University of Cincinnati President Neville Pinto issued a statement Friday evening saying that the university had a First Amendment obligation to allow a white nationalist, Richard Spencer, to speak on campus.
Category Archives: racism
Chargers’ Okung Issues Call to Action for N.F.L. Players – The New York Times
Some players have reacted scornfully on social media to the suggestion they might be forced to stand. But Okung’s letter is a rare example of a player trying to unite all his peers in defiance of the league, and it sheds light on the frustration many athletes have only privately expressed regarding recent events.“Things have clearly gotten out of control,” he wrote. “As a pragmatist, I will admit, I initially doubted the merits of Colin Kaepernick’s protest and questioned the strategy. I was wrong.“There is now no doubt that what he started was a courageous, prophetic, self-sacrificial act that has captivated a nation and inspired a powerful movement,” he added. “If I had his cell phone number, I would tell him that.”Players routinely speak to teammates and to friends on other teams. Last year, players on several teams coordinated via text messages how to approach the anthem on the first Sunday of the season, which fell on Sept. 11.Broader conversations across multiple teams, though, have not been possible, Okung wrote, adding that the N.F.L. Players Association was ill-suited to facilitating larger discussions because the players are also competitors and “the system is designed to keep us divided and stifle our attempts to collaborate.”Okung said in the phone interview that his immediate goal was to identify players across the league who want to do more, then discuss their next steps.320COMMENTSIn his letter, Okung invited players to contact him on Twitter and when they do he will send them instructions on how to communicate as a larger group. He said he hoped that his letter reached as many players as possible, and that it “acts as a catalyst to convene a conversation among those of us who are uncomfortable having these important decisions made without us in the room.”“While I don’t have all the answers as to how to ensure we are not robbed of this moment, I am convinced that we will never make progress if we do not find a way to come together and take action that represents the will of the players,’’ Okung wrote. “What we have is strength in numbers.”
A Disaster in the White House for Puerto Rico – The New York Times
Americans have gotten into the uneasy habit of wondering how low President Trump might go each day in his multiple tirades against those he imagines as enemies, critics and easy targets. But did he really have to pick on the storm-ravaged American citizens of Puerto Rico, of all defenseless people, and reveal such a cold-hearted lack of empathy for their plight?Mr. Trump’s salvo of tweets on Thursday as the island struggled with devastation — suggesting people were ingrates responsible for much of their suffering — set a new low, even meaner than his usual harangues and self-aggrandizement. It called into question whether Mr. Trump grasps and accepts the responsibilities of his office when he imperiously suggested that federal emergency aid and workers could not be maintained on the island “forever.”In his rant, Mr. Trump made it sound as if the island’s 3.4 million residents were at his executive mercy. But in fact the federal emergency process, backed by congressional funding, typically stations workers on site for years to help communities recover from natural disasters.
Let Them Eat Paper Towels – The New York Times
It’s hard to make an accurate assessment of the initial emergency response to Hurricane Maria, although there are a number of indications that it was woefully inadequate, falling far short of the response to natural disasters in other parts of the United States. What is clear, however, is that recovery has been painfully slow, and that life is actually getting worse for many residents as the cumulative effects of shortages of power, water and food take their toll.And the Trump administration seems increasingly to see this tragedy as a public relations issue, something to be spun — partly by blaming the victims — rather than as an urgent problem to be solved.
Agenzia Fides – ASIA/INDIA – Condemnation of the Bishops: Hindu leader offends Mother Teresa
According to the Hindu nationalist leader, “Mother Teresa organized the illegal trafficking of 50,000 women, making them work as nuns after converting them to Christianity”. Swami also said that the religious undeservedly received the highest national honor, the “Bharata Ratna” prize in 1980 by the Government of India.”Is this not an insult to the nation and to the President of India who recognized the services of the Mother to the poor, the needy, the terminally-ill, the elderly, the abandoned and the suffering?”, wonders Archbishop Bala.”The work of Saint Mother Teresa – continues the text – is recognized all over the world and in 1979 was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Currently there are 5.161 Sisters of Mother Teresa in 758 Homes working in 139 countries. Besides, the comments of Paripoornananda Swamiji were not requested because the subject of the discussion was something different. It was not necessary for Swamiji to speak of the Pope and Mother Teresa”.The Archbishop notes that “Paripoornananda Swamiji’s comments and accusations on Mother Teresa not only deeply hurt the hearts and feelings of the Catholic Church and the Christian community, but also of people belonging to all regions and religions who respect her as saint and mother of the poor and the suffering”.The Indian Church condemns the attempts of those “who try to bring division in society”. Following the footsteps of Jesus Christ, “we can forgive Paripoornananda Swamiji”, the Archbishop said, recalling religious leaders of all faiths that “the primary duty of every religious leader is to foster harmony and peace in the community of our pluralist nation and safeguard the secularity and religious freedom guaranteed by our Constitution”. The Bishops ask the government to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in the future.
Source: Agenzia Fides – ASIA/INDIA – Condemnation of the Bishops: Hindu leader offends Mother Teresa
Challenging racial supremacy — from Charlottesville to Tel Aviv | +972 Magazine
as long as our recognition and understanding of racial supremacy begins and ends with groups of enraged men chanting and beating up people of color, leftists, and anyone else they see as a target, we will never approach the depth of reckoning needed to effect meaningful change.Racist mobs are not the load-bearers of supremacy; they are its outgrowths. Income inequality; disparities in incarceration rates; education gaps; housing discrimination; lack of representation: these are the constant reality of the effects of racial supremacy, and they pose a far greater challenge than the iconography of statues, ruins and flags. It is our tragedy, and our indictment, that it takes physical violence to make us see what has always been there.———————As I was writing these words on October 7, a group of torch-carrying white supremacists—led by Richard Spencer—again gathered at the Lee statue in Charlottesville, not two months after one of their number murdered Heather Heyer. May her memory be a blessing, as well as the memory of all those killed by the racist mentality she died protesting.
Source: Challenging racial supremacy — from Charlottesville to Tel Aviv | +972 Magazine
Vindicated in UK, Al Jazeera to reveal secrets of US Israel lobby | The Electronic Intifada
The UK documentary in January exposed the activities of Israeli embassy officer Shai Masot, and his efforts to influence political groups in the UK.He had plotted to “take down” senior government minister Alan Duncan, and worked with pro-Israel lawmakers in the Labour Party who exaggerated and faked anti-Semitism in the party, amid plots and coup attempts against leader Jeremy Corbyn – long a Palestine solidarity activist.As a result of the film, Masot was removed from his position as senior political officer and sent back to Israel. Israeli ambassador Mark Regev was forced to make an apology to the UK government.A British civil servant who was recorded with Masot plotting “a little scandal” for Duncan was made to resign.Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn called for a government investigation into the issues raised by the program.
Source: Vindicated in UK, Al Jazeera to reveal secrets of US Israel lobby | The Electronic Intifada
ESPN Is Terrified of Jemele Hill’s Honesty on Racism – The New York Times – White male owners afraid of the truth and of losing wrongful place!
Let’s be clear: The N.F.L. players who refuse to stand for the anthem aren’t protesting the flag or the anthem; they’re objecting to the obscenely high number of unarmed black people brutalized and killed by police officers in the United States. When Jerry Jones says that players can’t be “disrespectful,” what he’s really saying is that black people are not supposed to complain that we are routinely killed by the police, even when unarmed. We are supposed to embrace the idea that our lives should not be valued, because floating the opinion that maybe we shouldn’t be killed for no reason might offend advertisers.
NFL boss Roger Goodell says all players should stand for the national anthem | Sport | The Guardian – F#ck you Goodell for supporting racists! Not about flag – about murder and repression!
In a letter to the league’s 32 teams concerning players’ protests against police brutality, Goodell urged them to ‘move past this controversy’ and ‘honor our flag’
Source: NFL boss Roger Goodell says all players should stand for the national anthem | Sport | The Guardian
Inoreader – Tuesday Open Thread | Mike Pence’s NFL game walkout stunt was planned in advance
In other words, Mike Pence’s walkout stunt today was one hundred percent orchestrated from the start. He wasted a bundle of taxpayer money just so he could attend an NFL game for a couple minutes on the other side of the country, and then post a divisive series of tweets about it. Moreover, Pence tweeted a substantial prepared statement almost immediately after walking out of the game, which had clearly been written in advance.
Source: Inoreader – Tuesday Open Thread | Mike Pence’s NFL game walkout stunt was planned in advance






You must be logged in to post a comment.