Racism

60th Anniversary Of Birmingham Church Bombing Which Killed Four Black Girls! :(

The 60th Anniversary of the Birmingham, Alabama Church Bombing which killed four young black girls is being commemorated at a time when Republicans, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and many other Republicans, are trying to deny the truth of African American history.

Supreme Court Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and former Alabama Democratic Senator Doug Jones, who successfully prosecuted Ku Klux Klansmen four decades later who did the dastardly deed, commemorated the horrid events, and made clear that the truth and the reality of history cannot be suppressed because some people might feel disturbed.

Alabama was a center of racial violence and bloodshed six decades ago, and even now, the state legislature has refused to create legitimate congressional and state legislative districts to reflect that 28 percent of the state is black, and the federal courts have intervened.

Sadly, for much of the South, the old South of pre civil rights days has reared its ugly head again, with the difference being that in the past it was a segregationist Democratic South, and now it is a biased, racist Republican South!

The fight for civil rights and teaching of the truth of the past is a battle that cannot be abandoned, and must be pursued without pause!

The Sick, Insane, Warped Republican Voters And Donald Trump!

The latest Wall Street Journal poll on the upcoming Presidential Election Of 2024 shows Donald Trump ahead of all his Republican opponents for the nomination, winning 59 percent of the vote, 46 points ahead of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and further ahead against the rest of the field!

And 78 percent of the Republican party members in the poll believe Donald Trump did nothing wrong, despite having four indictments and 91 counts levied on Trump, and with trials coming up, where he is likely to have at least some counts leading to convictions.

With this information, one must conclude that a vast majority of Republican supporters and voters are sick, insane, warped individuals, who do not care for the Constitution, rule of law,and common decency and compassion for fellow Americans!

The Republican Party base has become a Fascist group, supporting authoritarianism, and clearly racist, misogynist, nativist, homophobic, and antisemitic, and also willing to consort with foreign totalitarian dictators in Russia, North Korea, and China!

And yet, there are also people who are of minority background, who are only too supportive of a very dangerous man, who has lied his whole life, and is a disgrace of an excuse for a human being!

The nation is in great danger, therefore, as we move toward the 250th anniversary of nationhood in July 2026, less than three years from now!

60th Anniversary Of March On Washington: Need For Renewal Of That Effort!

Today, 60 years after the famous March on Washington in 1963, and the legendary speech by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther, King Jr. calling for justice and basic civil rights for African Americans and other discriminated groups, we are having a commitment to restore the civil rights that are under attack in recent years by the US Supreme Court, the Republican Party, and extreme right wing forces.

It is expected that about 100,000 people will participate in today’s commemoration in Washington, DC, as compared to the 250,000 who did so on August 28, 1963.

The struggle against forces that have taken away the right to vote requires a new national commitment to restoring the weakened Voting Rights Act of 1965.

And the open racism and nativism and misogyny promoted by Donald Trump and his minions must be fought tooth and nail through lawsuits, marches, and demonstrations against state governments that are limiting basic human rights, with Florida, Texas, Tennessee, and Alabama in the leadership of setting American rights and freedoms in the wrong direction!

Kamala Harris Starting To Demonstrate Her Strengths As Vice President, And Potential Future President!

Kamala Harris has been Vice President for two and a half years now, and she has had a poor public image, being often portrayed as weak and ineffective, in public opinion polls.

A lot of this is pure right wing propaganda, with heavy elements of misogyny and racism.

If one examines earlier Vice Presidents of the Republican variety, one realizes how horrendous they were:

Mike Pence, unwilling even now to stand up to Donald Trump for his transgressions, including the threat to the lives of Pence and his family on January 6, 2021.

Dick Cheney, technically qualified, but a miserable wretch of a human being.

Dan Quayle, a total disaster and embarrassment as Vice President.

Spiro Agnew, a crooked felon, forced out of office.

And then the Republican Vice Presidential nominees who, thankfully, never were in that role:

Sarah Palin 2008

Paul Ryan 2012

Jack Kemp 1996

William E Miller 1964

And then, the potential Vice Presidential list for Donald Trump, if he became the Presidential nominee again, a total nightmare of lunacy and insanity!

Meanwhile, Democratic Vice Presidents and nominees were superior by far:

Hubert Humphrey 1964
Edmund Muskie 1968
Sargent Shriver 1972
Walter Mondale 1976, 1980
Lloyd Bentsen 1988
Al Gore 1992, 1996
Joe Lieberman 2000
Joe Biden 2008, 2012
Tim Kaine 2016

The only terrible choices were Geraldine Ferraro in 1984 and John Edwards in 2004.

Harris has had an impressive career in California Government, and has been, by necessity, the most active Vice President, due to the narrow division of the Senate, necessitating that she break more tie votes in the Senate than any Vice President, surpassing John C. Calhoun under President Andrew Jackson from 1829-1832, recently!

Harris is now becoming significant, as she makes the issues of women’s rights and civil rights the center of attention, including attacking the end of abortion rights, and the promotion of outrageous interference with the teaching of American history and slavery, as advocated by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and spreading nationwide in Republican states!

This is raising her profile, as she would certainly be the frontrunner to be President after Joe Biden, either when he leaves office, or if he was unable to finish his time in office!

Ron DeSantis Denying Truth Of African American History: A Whitewash Of The American Past!

It is absolutely infuriating beyond belief that Florida under Ron DeSantis is denying the truth of African American history, and American history at large, in setting a new curriculum that whitewashes the truth of slavery, Jim Crow segregation, lynchings, and horrendous race riots in that state and elsewhere, causing mass destruction and death over the centuries.

To tell students that slavery “benefited” slaves by teaching them “job skills”, and that race riots saw African Americans both being victimized but also being perpetrators of the riots, is a bald faced lie, making Florida look worse than 1960s Alabama and Mississippi!

In the past, the Confederate myth perpetuated lies and racism, and finally in the 1960s and moving forward, the truth was being taught.

As a professor who has taught for a half century, I refuse to teach lies and mistruths, but imagine those who teach at all levels who are in danger of losing their jobs and professions over political interference by a governor, who seems as if he is George Wallace on steroids!

And Florida is setting the stage for other “Red” states to impose the same censorship and manipulation of the truth on students, which will undermine the future of a multiracial society, as nothing can be done to overcome the reality that in 2045, the white population of America will be less than half the nation, and already, non white groups are a majority of young people in many parts of the nation.

This does not bode well for the future of interracial cooperation, and Ron DeSantis must be opposed legally in court to work against this poison he is promoting!

What does this say about the truth of the treatment of Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, and native Americans, which also must be taught, and known by future generations!

The old saying is: “The Truth Shall Set You Free”!, and that must be the motto of all educators, and most specifically, American historians and journalists in this struggle against reality!

Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville Undermining Military Readiness, And Must Be Stopped!

There is a dire need for the US Senate to change its policy that any one Senator can prevent a movement forward on a nomination, or a vote on legislation!

Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville, who was a renowned football coach with a Physical Education degree from a third rate college, has held up approval of military promotions, causing hundreds of military personnel to be held effectively captive, including the movement forward on a new Marine Corps Commandant. This has been done in order to prevent women in the military from being able to gain the right to have abortions, if in their personal judgment, it is appropriate and wish to control their own bodies!

He also is vehemently anti gay and anti transgender, and has claimed white nationalists are not racists!

This is causing an uproar, with even Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell disturbed about this mess, and the need is clear to do whatever has to be done to force movement on promoting the military readiness that is urgent for national defense!

The fact that Tuberville is a terrible Senator, who sadly defeated Doug Jones in 2020, arguably the best Alabama Senator in many decades, is a sad commentary on how extremist right wing Alabama has been for such a long time! The idea that a football coach with minimal qualifications on major national issues could end up in the Senate is a true tragedy! 🙁

Ron DeSantis Strikes Out On Day One, And All Downhill From Now On For Good Reasons!

Ron DeSantis “struck out” on Day One, having problems on Twitter Audio with Elon Musk, and it will be all downhill from now on.

Instead of speaking before an audience of supporters, DeSantis is isolating himself, and talking only to right wing cable and radio shows.

And he is telling us he will be more hardline than Donald Trump was on immigration! And he will consider giving pardons to Insurrectionists from January 6, and even to Trump, if he is convicted!

So DeSantis is against the rule of law, and supporting the sedition and treason of the Insurrectionists, which should, automatically, kill his candidacy!

DeSantis is coming along more than ever as an extreme right wing Fascist, who wants to take away the freedom of women, gays and transgender people, and immigrants!

And he is ignoring evidence of antisemitism in Florida, and warring on Disney, and banning books, and dictating curriculum in public schools and universities, and promoting racism and white supremacy!

Remember he was one of the founders of the Freedom Caucus in the House of Representatives, and a TEA PARTY activist under Barack Obama’s Presidency!

And he wanted to cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid while in Congress, and has used his power to fix legislative and congressional districts to promote gerrymandering, which took away representation from African American in the state of Florida!

He has a wife who is very ambitious and dominating, and he has come across as very phony in his public persona, laughing hysterically that looks preposterous, and lacking any empathy, sincerity, compassion, or common decency!

He is the direct opposite of the personality and character of President Joe Biden, and for anyone to support him as the “better” alternative, would need his or her head examined!

Can Senator Tim Scott Become The Republican Presidential Nominee In 2024?

The only black Republican Senator, Tim Scott of South Carolina, has just entered the race for the Presidency.

With only five black Republican House members and Scott the only black Republican Senator, the Republican Party does not have the image of caring about African Americans.

So the question arises whether Scott has any possility of becoming the Republican nominee for the White House.

With South Carolina being a crucial state in the battle for the nomination of both parties, he might have an avenue to advance, but also has to deal with the woman who chose him originally to fill an open Senate seat a decade ago, then Governor and later United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, who has already announced her own Presidential candidacy,

And Donald Trump has the backing of the South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster and Senator Lindsey Graham, so these complexities make one wonder if Scott has any chance to move forward.

Scott comes across as likeable to his own Republican Senate colleagues, with South Dakota Senator John Thune, the Minority Whip, endorsing him, and even New Jersey Democratic Senator Cory Booker praising him as a colleague across the aisle.

His announcement was inspiring to those who think conservative government is the best, and have no issue with his promotion of Christianity in government.

But such viewpoints are not inspirational to anyone, such as this author and blogger, who believes in progressive and liberal values.

Scott will make the race more interesting for sure, but one has to wonder how Donald Trump will treat him in language and behavior, as the former President’s racism may, once again, show up in his rhetoric.

The Danger To Education That Will Affect The Future Of Acceptance Of Differences In Society!

The American educational system at all levels is under attack by advocates for white supremacy, racism, nativism, antisemitism, misogyny, Islamophobia, and homophobia.

Instead of exposing all students at all levels to the realities of American history and present day society realities, many want to shield young people of all ages from learning the truth about our past.

The need to expose these realities as a method to promote acceptance of differences and advance the future of American society is at stake!

It is urgent for all young people to become accepting of racial, ethnic, and religious diversity, and to understand the need to show respect for women as equal with men, and to accept different sexual orientions as essential to advance tolerance!

The Republican Presidential Race Is About To “Explode” With Ronald Reagan Comparisons, Which Will Not Succeed!

The Republican Presidential race for 2024 is about to “explode”, with at least three, and possibly more, contenders about to announce by Memorial Day, and with the first Republican Presidential Contenders debate scheduled for sometime in August.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis; South Carolina Senator Tim Scott; and former Vice President Mike Pence (Indiana) are about to announce, and others–including former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie; New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu; Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin; and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem seem likely to join in the fray.

They will join former President Donald Trump; former South Carolina Governor and United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley; former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson; and former biotech executive Vivek Ramaswamy (an arrogant extreme right wing multimillionaire 37 years old without any government experience) in the race.

Many of the soon to be contenders are invoking the name and image of former President Ronald Reagan, failing to understand that none of them are really at all like Reagan.

But also, the Ronald Reagan “bandwagon” fails to realize the great damage that the 40th President did to America in so many ways, but at the same time his open mindedness on some issues, such as immigration reform, which is one of the horrendous sins of the present day Republican Party, the depth and extent of their nativism and racism!