Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 70

Innovative Homes Help Keep Women out of Prison

'Formerly incarcerated women are far more likely to be homeless than the general public. With few resources available to help them meet their basic needs, many eventually return to prison. Soledad O'Brien speaks with Topeka Sam, who founded The Ladies of Hope Ministries in order to help women re-entering community.'

Racist ‘Replacement’ Rhetoric is Deadly and Republicans Must Stop Using It by Ben Jealous

Racist ‘Replacement’ Rhetoric is Deadly and Republicans  Must Stop Using It

by Ben Jealous | @BenJealous | special to NewBlackMan (in Exile)

 

The young man who murdered 10 people in Buffalo, New York on May 14, was out to kill Black people. He chose a grocery store because he wanted to leave the local Black community in fear of going about their daily lives.

 

These evil actions were motivated by a racist ideology known as the Great Replacement Theory. That should cause some serious reflection among Republicans who are trying to build power with their own versions of racist “replacement” rhetoric.

 

Replacement rhetoric is meant to tap into a very old fear: that the survival and dominance of White Americans is threatened by others—whether by the freedom and empowerment of Black people or immigration by people of color.

 

Frederick Douglass, one of the great Americans of all time, denounced that ideology shortly after the end of the Civil War. Douglass was born into slavery.He became a great anti-slavery speaker and organizer. He gave a series of important anti-slavery speeches in Buffalo, near where he lived in Rochester, and where a statue of him in his home town has been repeatedly vandalized.

 

In 1869, this Black Republican gave a speech called “Our Composite Nation.” He promoted a vision of a country that welcomed and was strengthened by diversity. And he denounced fears that were being stirred up against Chinese immigrants. He said that the idea that “the Caucasian race may not be able to hold their own” against immigrants “does not seem entitled to much respect.”

 

Truth.

 

Replacement ideology is still not worthy of respect. It is toxic. And it promotes violence.

 

The man arrested for the killings in Buffalo reportedly claimed that he picked up his anti-Semitic and racist beliefs from some of the unsavory corners of the internet. He decided to kill Black people in Buffalo. Others who were twisted by the same racist ideas chose to kill Latinos in El Paso, Jews in Pittsburgh, Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand.

 

Unfortunately, millions of Americans are hearing variations of the replacement rhetoric from irresponsible politicians and cable TV personalities. They falsely claim that Democrats want “open borders” so they can replace American voters with what Tucker Carlson called “more obedient voters from the Third World.”

 

Carlson has used that kind of rhetoric more than 400 times on his highly rated show. And this year at least half a dozen Republican Senate candidates have been running on the idea.

 

It seems that the Republican Party, the party of Abraham Lincoln, is acting more like the old Democratic Party did after the Civil War. It is becoming a party defined by its willingness to use the ideology of violent white supremacists to try to stir up voters and win elections.

 

This is playing with fire. And if it continues, we will all get burned, again and again.

 

There is a more honorable path for the Republican Party. I believe national Republicans should go to Buffalo. They should reflect on the killings that were motivated by racist ideas. They should reflect on the legacy of Frederick Douglass. And they should consider the life of a more recent Republican, the late Jack Kemp.

 

Kemp had been a quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. Then he became a Republican congressman representing western New York. And he ran for president as both a Republican and a card-carrying member of the NAACP. “I can’t help but care about the rights of the people I used to shower with,” Kemp said.

 

We urgently need more of our national leaders to embrace Douglass’s broad vision of a strong and diverse America, and Jack Kemp’s recognition of our shared humanity. And we need more people, both politicians and regular folks, to have the courage to consistently call out bigotry when we hear it and to hold accountable those who spread it.

 

***

 

Ben Jealous serves as president of People For the American Way and Professor of the Practice at the University of Pennsylvania. A New York Times best-selling author, his next book "Never Forget Our People Were Always Free" will be published by Harper Collins in December 2022.

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Non-Vegan Tries Vegan Chicken And Waffles Recipe! | Will Jamila Turn Into A Believer?

'Charlise Rookwood aka @Vegan Soulicious , host of MADAMENOIRE’s Black Vegan Cooking Show is joined by broadcast journalist Jamila Mustafa to throw down in the kitchen. One of the most beloved American foods makes its cameo. That's right—chicken and waffles are in the building. While different versions of this sweet and savory dish are plentiful, Rockwood’s vegan joint is the business! Can Chef Charlise turn non-vegan Jamila into a believer?'

Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts in The Black Writer's Studio

'Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts is author of the dynamic book, Black Joy: Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration. She is a professor of English and Black Studies at the Community College of Philadelphia and the founder of HeARTspace, a healing community that uses storytelling and the arts to serve those who have experienced mental, emotional and physical trauma. As a writer, Tracey has published over 15 books, including several collaborations with numerous high-profile authors. In 2016, Tracey was honored by SheKnows Media as one of the "Voices of the Year" for her nuanced and personal exploration of mental health, PTSD, and self-care.'

Elite Capture: How The Powerful Took Over Identity Politics (& Everything Else) – Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò and Robin D.G. Kelley in Conversation

'Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Georgetown University, and Robin D.G. Kelley, the Gary B. Nash Endowed Chair in U.S. History at UCLA, are in conversation about the politics of solidarity in the fight against racial capitalism.'

Hundreds of Years After Haiti Paid to be Free from Slavery the Costs are Still Being Felt

'Haiti is one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere, yet the reasons for that are often overlooked. The New York Times recently conducted an unprecedented investigation into those root causes, which includes revelations about Haiti’s former colonizer: France. The Times' Catherine Porter, who led the team that uncovered the story, joins Ali Rogin to discuss.'

Civil Eats: An African Rice Harvest on the Hudson

'Farmer Nfamara Badjie's rice-growing traditions, brought from Gambia to upstate New York, brings community and music together at Ever-Growing Family Farm.'

Al Harrington Talks About The Police Raid Of His Cannabis Business In Detroit

'In 2012, as Al Harrington’s basketball career was coming to an end—he was a power forward for the Indiana Pacers, New York Knicks, Denver Nuggets who earned nearly $100 million over the course of his career—he co-founded Viola, a Los Angeles-based cannabis company named after his grandmother. Viola grows, processes, and sells all types of pot products, from flower to concentrates to pre-rolled joints. Harrington now has operations in California, Colorado, Michigan, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Washington, and generated about $20 million in revenue last year.  Despite Harrington’s success, the past still haunts him. In 2018, Detroit police raided his legal business, seizing crops, equipment, arresting employees, and freezing bank accounts. The location was closed for two-and-a-half years, costing the company millions. (All charges were eventually dropped.) “Even now, we worry about being killed by the police,” he says. “The fear, it lingers. I'm 42 years old, a multimillionaire, I live in nice houses, nice cars, everything— but I’m still I'm scared. I don't know how it's going to end up”.'

The Side Of Pearl Harbor Tourists Don’t See

'Pearl Harbor is known as the site of a major U.S. military tragedy. But many Native Hawaiians remember an older wound that happened long before World War II. Dena Takruri went to Oahu to learn more about the history of Pearl Harbor we were never taught in school.'

Jeff Yang on the History of Asian-Americans in Pop Culture

'Rise: A Pop History of Asian America from the Nineties to Now, looks at the rising influence of Asian culture in America through the lens of pop culture, from the Hart-Cellar Immigration Act of 1965, to the rise in representation of Asians in popular music and movies today. Author Jeff Yang joins to discuss.'