African-Americans

By Joshua Kaplan and Joaquin Sapien Allegations of racism against the Capitol Police are nothing new: Over 250 Black cops have sued the department since 2001. Some of those former officers now say it’s no surprise white nationalists were able to storm the building. ( ProPublica) – When Kim Dine took over as the new […]

African-Americans

“The Stone of Help:” Rev. Raphael Warnock ran for the Senate from Ebenezer Baptist Church: What that means to American History

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Rev. Raphael Warnock, the new senator from Georgia, grew up in Savannah. His commitment to the Black Baptist tradition was deepened during his undergraduate years at Morehouse College. He told Vicky Eckenrode of the Savannah Morning News on 24 Oct 2005 of Morehouse, “It has deep Baptist roots so […]

African-Americans

How Black Lives Matter Changed 2020 with Creative Tactics to Confront Systemic Racism

The Conversation

By Nimalan Yoganathan | – The police killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd have galvanized anti-racism protests throughout the United States, Canada and elsewhere. As a result, lawmakers have made pledges to divest from police and school districts have cut ties with law enforcement. The organizing of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and […]

African-Americans

How COVID-19 Hollowed Out a Generation of Young Black Men

ProPublica

By Akilah Johnson and Nina Martin | – ( ProPublica ) – The Rev. Dr. Kejuane Artez Bates was a big man with big responsibilities. The arrival of the novel coronavirus in Vidalia, Louisiana, was another burden on a body already breaking under the load. Bates was in his 10th year with the Vidalia Police […]

African-Americans

Biden Nominates first African-American Secretary of Defense, 250 Years after Crispus Attucks

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – President-Elect Joe Biden will appoint retired four-star general Lloyd J. Austin III as his secretary of defense, according to the scoop by Lara Seligman, Tyler Pager, Connor O’Brien and Natasha Bertrand at Politico. Austin will be the first Black secretary of defense in our nation’s history. Austin has, they note, […]

African-Americans

What President-Elect Biden and all Americans owe the Black Voters who Saved our Democracy

OtherWords

By Tracey L. Rogers | – ( Otherwoods.org) – Black voters waited in 10-hour lines to show up for Joe Biden. Now Biden needs to return the favor. During a pandemic that has killed Black people at disproportionate rates, we still managed to save our democracy by getting out the vote in what may have […]

African-Americans

Trump’s Scapegoats, African-Americans and Muslim-Americans, defended the Blue Wall and Elected Biden

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump notoriously said “I think Islam hates us,” and slapped a Muslim visa ban on a number of countries, which he later expanded. The ban cut families off from loved ones in Yemen, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria. Joe Biden pledged to end the ban on “Day one” of his presidency. […]

African-Americans

Trump’s appeals to white anxiety are not ‘dog whistles’ – they’re racism

The Conversation

By Bethany Albertson | – President Donald Trump’s rhetoric is often referred to as “dog whistle politics.” In politician speak, a dog whistle is language that conveys a particular meaning to a group of potential supporters. The targeted group hears the “whistle” because of its shared cultural reference, but others cannot. In 2018, The Washington […]

African-Americans

Trump doesn’t Understand History any more than he Understands Epidemics

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump has a long history of proclaiming that he understands things better than the people who are experts in those things. When Dr. Robert Redfield, the head of the Centers for Disease Control, testified to Congress that mask-wearing is even more effective against Covid-19 than a vaccine is likely to […]