Armstrong Williams over at The Hill's Pundit Blog is furious -- simply furious -- that the democratic party would object to being called "the democrat party."
I just attended a Voting Rights panel in the Senate Russell building. Representatives of a variety of civil rights organizations, as well as Sen. Obama's chief of staff, discussed various ways that voters have been disenfranchsied, especially younger voters, minorities, and people with disabilities. Particularly insidious are states now requiring driver's licenses at polling places. Only half of blacks and Latinos, and less than half of black males 18-24 have state licenses in some places. As recently reported on Campus Progress, students in particular must be vigilant in protecting their right to vote.
I think several generations of Yale activists have had the chance to gather in protest or at least reflect on the outrageousness of the university's top decision-making body gathering beneath a portrait of the university's namesake with a slave. Looks like the next generation will have to come up with a new rite of passage.
Yale is finally taking the goddamn thing down. But god forbid you should think that Yale's leaders feel regret about leaving it hanging there the past few decades:
Since the portrait is confusing without the explanation [that Elihu Yale did not own slaves], I have decided it would be prudent to exchange that portrait of Elihu to another one in the University’s collection,” Lorimer said.
The quote, from Yale's VP and Secretary, leaves you with the sense that Yale is taking down the portrait, which involves adjusting the moldings around the mantelpiece around the painting (the classic explanation of yesteryear for why the thing had to stay up), because it's easier than putting up a plaque explaining that the man was not a slave owner. But it's a portrait designed to honor Elihu Yale by painting a chained Black man at his feet. It honors him with the imagery of White supremacy - an ideology of which the colonial Governor and the university named for him have been no small beneficiaries.
It's a painting that belongs in a museum. It has no place hanging over Yale's president as he meets with the Yale Corporation to try to chart a course for the university. It never did. (That's the difference between engaging and exulting the problematic)
To suggest that the racist graphic is being taken down to avert misunderstanding is to make abundantly clear that you don't get it.
If you looked up the antonym of Good Samaritan in a thesaurus, you would probably find a picture of a college student on spring break. Katrina Corps is trying to change that, however, by getting party people nationwide to give up a week in Tijuana for a trip to New Orleans.
How can college students help out their country, and will there be sangria?
Just as I finished reading the good news that Wal-Mart has joined a pro-universal health care coalition including the SEIU, AT&T, Intel, and my employer, the Center for American Progress, I clicked to another screen and learned that an immense class-action lawsuit alleging widespread sex discrmination at Wal-Mart stores moved forward yesterday. Over 2 million female Wal-Mart workers are elligible to join the suit, making it the largest sex discrimination suit ever filed in the United States. The lead plaintiff, 56-year old Betty Dukes, claims pay and promotion discrimination. It took Dukes three years to advance from cashier to customer service representative, even though men hired after her were promoted in as little as 90 days. Two-thirds of Wal-Mart workers are women, but only one-third of managers.
All of which begs the question: How should progressives engage with a corporation with so many widely-publicized labor abuses (including locking workers inside stores and denying them overtime), an arguably disasterous footprint on the American urban and suburban landscape, and yet a realistic, even pathbreaking, attitude about the health care crisis? When I interviewed SEIU president Andy Stern in November, he said, "We applaud good behavior and we hold people accountable for bad behavior."
It seems like public relations fiascos are just about the only criticisms Wal-Mart responds to. It's good news that they've joined the SEIU and CAP to make progress on health care, but it can't cover up Wal-Mart's despicable record on labor. I hope that as Wal-Mart works in the new coalition, they find themselves embarassed enough by their labor abuses to make some serious changes. Because how can you support a worker's right to health insurance but deny them time off to visit the doctor? How can you want to insure a single mother's child, but "mommy track" that worker, cheating her out of raises and promotions? We should expect better from the nation's largest employer.
According to a new study from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton, more than a quarter--and at some schools as many as half--of black college students are first or second generation immigrants, not African American descendents of slaves. Which schools' black populations are most heavily composed of immigrants? You guessed it--the Ivies. As the Brown Daily Herald reports:
The study's authors noted that once immigrant black students are enrolled in college, their performances do not differ from those whose families have a longer history in the United States. They did, however, find that immigrant blacks have distinct advantages over non-immigrants in gaining acceptance to selective colleges and universities, including statistically higher SAT scores, higher attendance of private schools and a better likelihood that one or both parents graduated from college.
Elite universities like to brag about their diversity. What this study compels, I think, is the realization (if you ever doubted it) that universities need to be doing much more to reach out to African American communities that aren't as upwardly mobile as recent immigrant families tend to be. Immigrants and children of immigrants bring important perspectives to campuses, and should also be beneficiaries of affirmative action policies. But the color of their skin doesn't let schools off the hook from aggressively recruiting students whose families are victims of generations of American racism. Of course, this is a huge challenge, especially considering the sub-par public schools so many low-income kids attend--schools that do little to prepare students for college academics. But by instituting tutoring and mentoring programs in public schools, some universities are doing their best to foster relationships that bring low-income and minority students to elite colleges.
What more can be done? Should college applications ask students to identify themselves not just by race, but by immigration status as well? Should forms distinguish between the categories of "black," "African American," "African," and the like?
Internships have long been an important part of the conservative movement, and with Campus Progress leading the way, progressives are starting to close the gap.
Ben Waxman, an undergraduate at Juniata College who has previouslywritten for Campus Progress, has landed an article in the most recent issue of Dissent Magazine.
In it, Waxman draws attention to the role of internships in the conservative movement and the lack thereof on the progressive side of the political spectrum. The conservative movement has been heavily examined for, if nothing else, successfully creating a network from the campus level to inside political circles. Campus Progress, Waxman notes, is an important and growing step in the right direction, and hopefully a harbinger of a growth in reasonably-well funded opportunities for college students left of center.
"There are some indications that the liberal left is beginning to understand what needs to be done. The Center for American Progress, a relatively new think tank run by Bill Clinton’s former chief of staff, has a well-bankrolled project called Campus Progress. Partially modeled on ISI, Campus Progress funds student publications across the country. It also provides a running calendar of summer events and sponsors an annual conference for interns.
The Center for American Progress isn’t the only group reaching out to young people. People for the American Way has poured more than two million dollars into its youth organization, called Young People For. A comprehensive training program designed to build leaders for the future, it is the most strategic and effective example of youth outreach in the left-liberal movement. Any organization looking to bulk up its programs for young people should try to model it after Young People For.
Both Young People For and Campus Progress seem to avoid some of the mistakes of the past. Both organizations are committed to racial, economic, and gender diversity. Unlike many left-liberal organizations, the young people involved appear to genuinely reflect our movement.
These are good first steps, but more can be done."
M.I.A. has come out with another song, Bird Flu, if you haven't already heard the awesome news. Check it out on her MySpace site now. I've been eagerly awaiting something since Arular and Piracy Funds Terrorism - her first two albums. (If you don't already know I'm *obsessed* with this kick-ass Londoner by Sri Lanka -"educated but a refugee still am"- female artist, whose full name is Maya Arulpragasam).
For those of you non-fans out there, she wasn't allowed into the U.S. when she was scheduled to come and work with Timberland - not sure if it was visa problems or her lyrics (which include "George Bush doin takeover" - probably one of her less controversial lines) and politics (her father was a Tamil Tiger).
She quickly gained a South Asian and indie cult-like following after Galang became famous (though I don't think it's her best) and her collabs with then-boyfriend Diplo (yeah, they just broke up, in late '06) have added funk. In Bird Flu, she knocks critics, major record labels and alludes to her breakup with Diplo.
This post isn't about anything superpolitical, except to alert the masses that M.I.A. is back. Bird Flu features some amazing dhol (Indian drum) beats, and she's posted the video on her MySpace page, via YouTube. (If you're having problems loading, like I was, try her website). The video is a crazy mix of my favorite sights and sounds of South Asia - the nitty-gritty - and make me miss it like whoa. And if you haven't already heard XR2 Turbo, it'll make you want to start dancing as soon as you hit play, in a weird, entranced sort of way.
Today, I got an email asking about artists that have become famous through MySpace. And I interviewed Talib with some other CP colleagues - he referred to using the web as a way to get your music out (look out for the 5 Minutes With coming out soon!). Do you think there will ever be a time when giant media moguls like Clear Channel, BET, and MTV are eventually shoved out by independent artists using the web as a great promotional tool?
Before the state of Michigan set back civil rights with the passage of Proposal 2, the affirmative action ban, in November 2006, it set back civil rights with the other Proposal 2, which banned gay marriage, in 2004. Almost 3 years later, we are dealing with the aftermath. Last week, the Michigan Court of Appeals declared that under the marriage ban, same-sex domestic partners are ineligible for benefits from public employers. This reversed an earlier decision by a lower court, which affirmed the right of same-sex couples to continue to receive benefits post-Prop 2. Countless government, public college and university employees now have their futures hanging in limbo.
Things are getting rough out in my home state...I wish I could say I didn't run away from it all, but I did.
"Hundreds of weathered combat boots lined the east side of the UA Mall this weekend, attracting passers-by and sparking renewed debate about the war in Iraq.
The traveling exhibit, "Eyes Wide Open: The Human Cost of War," was organized by the American Friends Service Committee, the Presbyterian Campus Ministry and other organizations to show the reality of the lives that have been claimed by the war in Iraq, said Caroline Isaacs, program director for the Arizona chapter of the American Friends Service Committee.
The exhibit included 458 boots, 381 of which represented National Guard deaths in Iraq and 77 for Arizona soldiers.
...
The display also had shoes representing Iraqi civilian casualties, with tags for children as young as 8 months old.
The display was not meant to be political, Isaacs said. "
The article goes on to describe how the display in fact did spark political discussion. Anti-war activists were present at the exhibit, collecting petition signatures asking Congress to end the war by cutting funding. Supporters of the war were also present, apparently, although apparently not in any organized counter-protest. The display is part of a larger national project, including a full-sized version in Chicago.
On Friday, the governor of Texas issued an executive order requiring all girls entering sixth grade recieve the vaccination for the sexual transmitted disease, HPV (Crib Sheet on HPV) beginning in September 2008. 70% of cervical cancer is a result of HPV.
The cost for this vaccine runs about $360 and is covered by most insurance companies. A Texas vaccination program will cover the cost for the uninsured. Sounds perfect, huh?
This Tuesday, I traveled to L.A. with David Halperin (Director of Campus Progress) and Keisha Senter (Speakers Bureau Manager) to attend the Campus Progress L.A. film screening and discussion of Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes, a hard-hitting look at the portrayal of masculinity in hip-hop and how it particularly relates to misogyny and homophobia. The director, Byron Hurt, uses on-the-ground footage, such as spitting battles on the courtyard to BET's Spring Bling, and interviews with artists including Busta Rhymes, Talib Kweli, Mos Def and De La Soul. Following the screening was a very in-depth (and rather star-studded) discussion moderated by Professor Regina Freer (of Occidental College), with Byron Hurt (the director), Keith Brown (Executive Vice-President of BET), recording artists Talib Kweli, M-1 (of Dead Prez fame) and Yo-Yo. There were well over 400 people attending the screening and panel discussion; the theater was filled to capacity with an overflow room showing the film on a television for those we couldn't accommodate inside.
The film was great; Hurt offers his perspective as a fan of hip-hop who is disappointed with the way hip-hop culture is portrayed in the media and examines why violence and sexually explicit lyrics are perpetuated by young men. He picks apart mainstream music outlets, including BET. He questions major artists like Busta and 50 Cent on their view of homosexuality and why a man must be “manly” to succeed in hip-hop, and juxtaposes their answers with younger men who are auditioning for a record deal or just rapping with one another on the street. You leave the film riled up – in a good way – to challenge and break the cycle; is it the media, the consumers or the artists that should be questioning why women are sex objects in rap videos?
After the jump – more on the panel discussion and some pictures from SoCal.
via feministing and appropos of our most recently posted piece on microbicides. The headline says it all: "Microbicide trial to prevent HIV in women stopped because of increased risk of infection." Let's hope researchers can still find a way to harness their potential to prevent HIV infection.
Students were out in force this morning at the Democratic National Committee's winter conference here in DC. All the major 2008 primary candidates spoke--we saw Clinton, Edwards, Obama, Dodd, Clark, and Kucinich.
Obama's entrance was electric, and like a rock star, the quieter moments of his performance were interrupted by crazed audience members screaming, "I love you!" and "You're the next president!" But his speech was tall on rhetoric and short on policy. He spoke primarily about "hope," and in what seemed like a dig at Hillary, said, "We don't want another election where voters are holding their noses and feel like they're simply choosing the lesser of two evils." And he reminded us that, unlike Clinton and Edwards, "I was opposed to this invasion--publicly and frequently--before it began."
Speaking of the war, when Clinton took the podium, she was heckled by antiwar folks who demanded that she "bring the troops home now" instead of simply capping the number of them that could be deployed to Iraq. Clinton swore to end the war if elected president, but repeated her talking point about finding the "right end" to the war in Iraq, as opposed to just any end. Despite the drama (or perhaps adding to it), Clinton's level of support in the room was huge: tons of posters and diverse supporters rushing to their feet to cheer her appearance.
Of the three major candidates, Edwards had the least ecstatic welcome, but he enjoyed the most enthusiastic standing ovations as he used anecdotes to illustrate the plight of the poor around the world--from a 5-year old boy in a refugee camp caring for his 2-year old sister, to an 8-year old American girl going to bed hungry, to a father who must take his sick child to the emergency room for basic medical care because the family is uninsured. His call was, "Will you stand up?" And the crowd certainly did, especially when he demanded, "Will you stand with organized labor?"
None of the candidates talked about a woman's right to choose, though Wes Clark did mention that women still make only 77 cents on the dollar, which was unexpected and exciting. Too bad he didn't mention that men can help solve the problem by picking up their share of domestic labor.
Dodd delivered a surprisingly energetic call for a return to American greatness in foreign policy. I'm not sure if Dodd's statement on bipartisanship made very much sense--"Bipartisanship for me means getting Republicans to agree with Democratic principles"--but the crowd gobbled it up. Each candidate was allowed up to 100 posters in the ballroom. Fascinatingly, when Dodd finished speaking, a few of his young supporters traded in their "Dodd" signs for "Hillary 08" posters, which, by the way, were being distributed throughout the hall by some attractive young women.
Looks like spring is going to be coming early this year, thanks to the weather-predicting, super-famous Punxsutawney Phil (ever wonder what PETA has to say about this holiday?).
Anyway, Phil gave a little shoutout to global warming, though in the slightly disturbing way that most Americans have thought about the freakishly warm weather we had earlier this winter. ("I know I'm supposed to dislike global warming, but I could get used to 60 degree weather in December on the East Coast!")
Any progressive who's concerned about George Bush's unconstitutional power grabs should be enraged about what the president of Venezuela has done this week. As the Los Angeles Times reports:
President Hugo Chavez was granted sweeping powers Wednesday to rule by decree for 18 months to accelerate his push toward socialism, a move that critics said propelled Venezuela toward dictatorship. Read More »
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