How Staying Power shook British history. When it was published in 1984 Staying Power vividly captured the struggle for black British identity. Nearly 35 years on it still has lessons to teach. By Gary Younge, The Guardian — “The very serious function of racism is distraction,” Toni Morrison argued in a lecture in Portland, Oregon, in 1975: It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and…
By Gary M. Pomerantz, Signature — Today’s intersection of race, politics and sports harks back to the 1960’s. That time’s images live in our imagination: Muhammad Ali, loudly defiant, and sprinters…
Today’s far-right populists relish the idea that they can be morally contemptible, yet still prevail. By Keith Kahn-Harris, The Guardian — The concept of “white supremacy” is having a moment right now, and understandably so. White resentment, entitlement and bigotry never went away, but it is closer to the political mainstream now than it has been for decades. The rhetoric of the likes of Donald Trump, Viktor Orbán, Steve Bannon and…
The violent theft of land and capital is at the core of the U.S. experiment: the U.S. military got its start in the wars against Native Americans. By Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz,…
Democrats hoped for a huge rejection of Trumpism, but found two forces still hold an intoxicating political power. By Andrew Gawthorpe, The Guardian — The expectations we carry into elections always make it difficult to objectively assess their outcome. Before the midterms, Democrats hoped for a blue wave that would decisively hand them the House and perhaps more, while Donald Trump was poised to declare victory whatever the outcome. The morning…
His supporters hark back to an 1860s fantasy of white male dominance. But the Confederacy won’t win in the long run. By Rebecca Solnit, The Guardian — In the 158th year of the American civil war, also known as 2018, the Confederacy continues its recent resurgence. Its victims include black people, of course, but also immigrants, Jews, Muslims, Latinos, trans people, gay people and women who want to exercise jurisdiction over…
This video makes the powerful point that Britain and other European countries fail to honor and memorialize Black and Brown soldiers who fought and died for “democracy” in the…
“I want a country where black people and LGBTQ individuals can walk freely. As a woman, I want to walk around without being afraid I’ll get raped.” By Gislene Ramos,…
‘At first I didn’t want to,’ says the author of this magisterial biography of the great abolitionist, ‘it was so daunting’ By Martin Pengelly, The Guardian — David Blight arrives…
The president’s speech to African American millennial supporters was rambling and toe-curling. But he and his audience loved it. David Smith, The Guardian — Put a 72-year-old man with…
The prospect of electing the state’s first black governor is expected to boost African American voter turnout. By Richard Luscombe, The Guardian — It has been nearly two years since Florida’s black voters mostly stayed home on election day and, in the eyes of some, gave Donald Trump a free pass to win the state and the White House. To Quiana Malone, it was a mistake that cannot be allowed to happen…
Carlota died for revolutionary ideals long before Castro showed up. By Jules Franco, OZY — The discovery of the young woman’s corpse on the Triunvirato estate, a sugar mill in…