Brief for Coates Pages 133-135

For my brief I chose to focus on a quote which I felt not only encapsulated this section of the book, but the work in it’s entirety. It also struck me as relevant to my life, especially of late. It’s on page 149 where Coates says:

“They made us into a race. We made ourselves into a people.”

In relation to the book, I feel like this quote upholds this idea of beautiful resilience by the Black community which Coates consistently intertwines into his narrative. Since race was and, in many ways, still is a social construct used to compartmentalized different people and distinguish the dominant and powerful from the inferior minorities, to embrace race isn’t always portrayed in a positive light. There’s also the fact that the collective historical Black community experience within America has been littered with struggle through exploitation, oppression, marginalization - things which obviously weren’t appealing to those who endured them. Now, in our modern context, the products of said history - whether it be through Black “marked” communities or individuals - are being degraded and deemed not appealing to dominant “American” culture. Some results of this dynamic are discussed explicitly by Coates - for example, the attempts by Black youth to “whitewash” their identity to be accepted and a dissonance between up and coming generations and the struggle of their ancestors. 

This has definitely played out in my own life - I was privileged* in my childhood and adolescence in a sense that my race really only infringed upon my experience in the form of stereotypes, racist jokes and personal feelings of inferiority [* because privilege could also be seen as being sheltered from fully realizing the reality of my people]. My race, for the most part, could be ignored by myself in public, which contrasts how individuals of the same skin color spectrum are being threatened and killed for that exact reason. Due to stereotypes mostly, to associate with being Black wasn’t a particularly positive move to make - especially being the “Whitest Black kid” and “oreo” coming from a family that, against perceivable cultural norms, were the same as they weren’t criminals or impoverished people. 

However, something I’ve realized through this class, various conferences, lectures and events about race and just talking to others, and something which I believe Coates would agree with, is that there’s a beauty in struggle. That beauty is the fact that we can call ourselves a “people” - a term whose connotation implies notions such as unity, intimacy, relation, community and support. The comfort and intimacy which Coates details being able to feel with both Black peers and strangers is one which I believe can only exist out of a mutual understanding of where our people have come from. Also, especially through the dialogue with Mabel Jones, I felt that the strength in struggle was highlighted as well as the bittersweet realization that those things we are put at higher risk of as a people [in this case, police brutality] aren't imposed upon ourselves rooted in an inherent sense of inferiority. Mable Jones and her lineage were and are embodiments of perseverance through an unfair and unjust burden placed upon Black people. A question I’d pose to the class would be whether or not others believed the same.

Black Folks Dinner

For my bonus material, I want to talk about an experience I had a couple of weekends ago. Along with my family, I went to a “Black Folks Dinner” in Seattle. Black Folks Dinner, or BFD, is a monthly potluck with the intent of serving as a space for fellowship for people of the African American population within and around the city. This idea originated in Oakland and Barbara Jefferson, having attended BFD there, decided to replicate it upon returning to Washington. 

A part of each dinner is a unique location and theme/message which is presented by a speaker and these can be mutually exclusive. For example, the first one I went to was put on by Tarik Abdullah at his restaurant in Seattle, Morning Star, and it revolved around food & spirituality. The theme of this last one was “Reclamation: A Healing Ritual” - hosted by Angela, one of my mom’s friends, at a loft community space which was rented out. 

Both experiences were unique for me because they’ve been of the few times I’ve found myself completely surrounded by an extensive crowd of Black and Brown faces in a dining setting since moving to Washington. Since most of our family is on the East coast, I don’t experience this through family reunions or holiday celebrations like I once did. 

I want to talk about the most recent BFD because of it’s freshness and relevance. The concept of healing really took a communal route in this gathering. Angela, like Coates does in Between the World and Me, talked explicitly about the threats and stress imposed upon herself and the marginalized communities she identifies with by society. This intertwined with notions of healing for the body, mind, soul and so on. There were numerous opportunities to engage in both communal and individual after the meal, such as an altar, a live African spiritual musical performance and someone who, upon request, used this instrument - I forgot what it’s called - but he shook it around participants as a cleansing ritual.

Later in the night, there was someone who shared his “group wish/prayer” for us which was that we, as Black people, find these spaces to heal with each other and are empowered through this, rather than being pushed to the outskirts of society or silenced. I felt like this rhetoric related to some of our discussions about the state of the Black community on campus which may be struggling to find a space to support one another and engage in activism for our concerns and rights through that. Hopefully, in both communities, an increased sense of unity and strength will come into fruition.

All in all, it was once again a great experience and I’d definitely encourage everyone to attend one at least once. The Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/groups/1661869300697916/ so that you can find out about upcoming dinners and other things posted by the group members. Also, I just found these pictures of me and my family at the dinner on their Facebook page.

*

“The African American community does need your support just not in the form of you teaching history.”

            I believe this statement to be a great starting point for class discussion. My only regret is that the individual who wrote this statement removed themselves from our class. I feel like he or she may have provided valuable in-depth context into what exactly is meant by this comment. It is always disconcerting when one individual takes it upon themselves to speak as the voice of an entire community. Too often, my actions have been taken to represent an entire group of people. This has become synonymous with MY Black experience in the United States. I take great offense to this because it strips me of my individuality. It is because of this fact, that I will take this as an opportunity to regain my autonomy, and speak to my personal experience in African American history class, as one voice, who is a part of the larger African American community, as well as the UWT community.

Whether or not professor Morrow has any “Black friends” is of no concern to me. The company one keeps is not indicative of one’s ability to educate. Maybe I am naïve, or maybe my mind is shackled through a lifetime of racialized socialization, but I am not from the popular school of thought that, in order to teach Black history, one must be Black. I grew up in a single parent household, in which my mom taught me more about being a man than any men I’ve ever encountered. That being said, I do feel it important that the individual teaching an African-American history class, do so with great respect, honesty, and sensitivity. It is in my humble opinion that Alex has done all of these things.

I agree with the individual who critiqued our class in that, we did spend a lot of time focusing on the racism, discrimination, and economic disadvantages experienced by the African American population in the United States. However, I disagree with the notion that by focusing on these things, we perpetuate negative stereotypes. I believe that having these conversations puts into context the struggles that African-Americans have faced, and highlights the courage, strength and fortitude of the African American spirit. W.E.B. Du Bois, Cornel West, Marc Lamont Hill, Mumia Abu-Jamal, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and the great James Baldwin have all gone to great lengths and expended much energy in order to have the conversation regarding racism, discrimination, and economic disadvantage, therefor the classroom of the University of Washington seems a fitting place to continue to talk.

I have learned a great deal this quarter in both my labor studies class, and my African American history class. Both classes were taught with the same amount of fervor, and both were taught by the same professor. I feel privileged to be in a position where I am able to continue my education, as I am the first in my family to attend college, and I am honored by the individual who critiqued our class because it gives us all the opportunity to continue to have difficult conversations.

Damion W. Smith

#beingblackatUWT

I was alerted to a post on UWT's BSU Facebook, which appeared last night and explicitly names me and my class in very critical terms.   The content troubles me for a variety of reasons.  I want to sincerely believe it does not accurately describe my course, approach to the subject matter, and importantly the rapport I have with my students.  But to disregard such criticism would be arrogant and insensitive.  I welcome any comments, suggestions, or responses.  You are welcome to reach me via email.  I have changed the settings in the comment box on my course blog to allow anonymous comments, if you prefer.

Dog whistle politics

The other day we spoke in class about dog whistle politics. I find this topic really interestung. It is like learning about fallicies. At first I didn't really notice them and now I see them all over the place. Take Obama for example. Can you name 5 presidents middle names off the top of your head? Probably not but most know Obama's. This is a form of dog whistle politics. Hussien is a Islamic sounding middle name and those who connect it get the message that he is not to be trusted while others are saying it's just a middle name. Similarly, and probably connected, we know obama's birth place. Obama has lost groups of people due to lack of trust because of this dog whistle politics. I just find the hidden strategies in politics fasinating.

"reveling in a specious hope"

“reveling in a specious hope”

In his book, Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates lays out for his son, the realities associated with being black in America. The bleak overtones coupled with the atheistic underlying feeling is in stark contrast with the popular Black, Christian narrative. Coates’ belief lay not in the hope of Christianity, but in the reality of power within social structures. Given the fact that Between the World and Me was inspired by a 2013 meeting with president Barack Obama, I think it’s is safe to say that Ta-Nehisi Coats does not share in the same sentiment of “hope” that many African-Americans and young people do today.

Coates has been critical of Obama during the president’s tenure on several occasions. One example is of Coates’ critique of Obama’s inability to address the racial disparities that exist within the community of racial minorities in terms of healthcare. Given the fact that Republican governors opted out of the federal expansion of Medicaid, Blacks and Hispanics would be disproportionately left out because of where they live. Coates wanted Obama to take action to counter this. He also criticized Obama for the president’s call for Black people to accept “more personal responsibility” which ignores the existence of structural-racism that exists within the African-American community. In a cover story written in the Atlantic magazine, a magazine dedicated to literary and cultural commentary, Coates wrote a piece titled, “The Case for Reparations”, in which he speaks to the above mentioned structural racism. In response to the killings of Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and Walter Scott, Coates askes the question, “how, within an increasing progressive era, a country led by a black president could act with such racial brutality”. In his book , Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates uses the phrase “reveling in specious hope”. Through clever language, Coates takes aim at the metaphor that Obama is the embodiment of hope.

Debrief for 5/25 Class

In yesterday’s class we spent a substantial amount of time talking about how politics are often racialized - both in regards to President Obama’s campaign and presidency and the concept of ‘dog whistle politics’ presented by Ian Haney-López in the interview we were to watch for today. Naturally, our conversations of these two topics became intertwined. However, my post class thoughts got me thinking about an inner relation even more. I was thinking about the ways in which our society perpetuates the racialization of politics which is often presented by government or media. One of the most challenging quotes from the interview video for me was when Haney-López said that “most racists are good people” in supporting the claim that their racist ideologies towards politics is a product of the environment they're in. While I agree with this, I believe the claim shouldn’t end here with racist mindsets being rationalized. There should be efforts to educate the broader public on the ways in which it's problematic to make such influential decisions on the whim of race. This goes both ways - for those who would identify as White, I'd just encourage them to think about how voting has historically functioned I'm communities of color. Voting rights were restricted and infringed upon for the longest time and even in the short period between solid voting equality and the 2008 election, there were barely any non-White candidates to choose from. So, if people groups which have historically been oppressed, marginalized, exploited, condemned and killed by White people can find it in them to vote for a White candidate, I’m sure it’s possible for a White individual to look past skin color and truly analyze potential candidates. Besides this, there are ways in which President Obama’s policies could benefit White individuals [especially those geared towards poverty which isn’t a racialized element in many communities] which were disregarded simply because he’s been perceived as a Black man and Black president for Black people. On the other side, voters of non-White race backgrounds shouldn’t jump on board with a candidate of color simply because of their race. In both cases, policy should be the focus on politics and while there’s opposing forces such as the dog whistles used by media and government, there needs to be an active attempt to tune these out and not be so easily and animalistically swayed towards a side from this language.

Like we discussed in class, there seems to be a lack of dog whistle usage in current campaigns, with race being explicitly discussed. It’s interesting that the candidates of non-dominant race backgrounds came from the Republican party but have since all fallen out.  Also, in the ways that the 2008 and 2012 were racialized, I believe this current presidential race will be gendered if Hillary Clinton is the Democratic nominee. Again, it's ridiculous to think that people wouldn't vote for her, not based on policy but solely on the fact that she's a women. That being said, I also see this trend as a product of the society we live in where successful men are more so perceived as respectable and genuine while, for some, successful women seem threatening and cold.

All in all, I think it'd be cool to experimentally do a blind caucus or election where the race and/or gender of a candidate wasn't disclosed with voters - only their policies - and see how that affects the likelihood of individuals with racist//sexist mindsets crossing over racial/gender lines.

-Tarik Mckenzie

Brief: Second part of Ta-Nehisi Coates: Between the World and Me.

The second Part of Ta-Nehisi Coates Between the World and Me opens with him discussing a topic that is all too well-known at this time, Police abusing their power, and the relationship between Police officers and African Americans. It’s not very often I read a book that is discussing events that are happening now. You read books that take place 50- 100 years ago and you can only imagine what it might have been like. It’s because of this that Ta-Nehisi Coates discussion on Police comes off as nothing less than terrifying. Not terrifying in the sense of monsters or ghosts, this is not a H.P. Lovecraft kind of scary, it’s a “This is real and is happening now kind of scary”. Obviously cops abusing their powers, especially when concerning African Americans is not anything new, we have all seen the pictures from the 60’s that show just that. But this is not the 60’s or the 70’s its 2016 and the fact that this is still happening is what makes the reading terrifying. Coates list off several people who suffered or died at the hands of police, and again it’s just scary. He’s not listing off one, or two he lists off several, to the point where you don’t want to read anymore. It got to the point where I had to put down the book and give myself a second before continuing. The way Coates grabs your attention and forces you to look at the events that have taken place over the past few years between police officers and African Americans is something that is difficult to describe, it’s as if a hand is hovering above and if you try to look away it will turn your head back to the book, forcing you to read on. 

Median Household Income by Race Table

The table that my group showed earlier in class today displayed the average household income by race in various cities. I created a new table to display median household income by race rather than the average household income. This table should give more accurate numbers and help to eliminate the outliers. In both tables it remains true that Tacoma’s African American average and median incomes are higher than the other cities’ African American populations that were being compared. It also remains true that the white, non-Latino group has a higher average income as well as a higher median income than the other races in the table, specifically African Americans. The main difference in the average income and median income tables are the numbers. Rather than having a $20,000 average income difference in African Americans and White, non-Latinos in Tacoma, there is a $14,000 median income difference, which is still substantial. Seattle’s gap is about a $45,000 difference in median household income between African Americans and white, non-Latinos.

Ta-Nehisi Coates on Barack Obama...

What shall we make of Barack Obama, and his presidency?  I offered a few perspectives today in class, as did some of you (not enough, in my opinion).  It occurred to me on the way home - what does Ta-Nehisi Coates think of Obama?  As it turns out, he's written on this subject numerous times.

"Barack Obama is an earnest moderate. His instincts seem to lead him to the middle ground." - Coates

If we had more time this quarter, we would spend a class session on Obama's speech, "A More Perfect Union," delivered during his 2008 campaign.  At times, his speech offers a sharp critique of race and race relations in America.  However, it often veers into the kind of rhetoric that Coates calls out in his book as the "weight of the Dream." 

And as I mentioned today, Richard Sherman and the coding of language.

Hip Hop Debrief

Hip-Hop as we know it today was not just the creation of the art of rapping or rather rhyming lyrics to a rhythmic beat. The Hip Hop movement was just that; it was a whole art movement that served as a way for the youth in poverty to express themselves. From the creation of the DJ and MC to Graffiti and the art of dancing over a repeated break in the beat known as Breaking or B-Boying which is what we know as Breakdancing, a new art form or style was created that still has popularity to this day. Though it isn’t what people would consider as classic art it is still multiple art forms from what I described. Breakdancing is an aggressive but fluid form of dancing that can be seen as a physical way of showing that the streets have talent just like the white population, Rapping is often used as a way to get political statements across of the current situation in a way that young individuals can understand. And graffiti is a straight expression of not following the rules that the government have put on them yet still leaving a beautiful mark that can express ones struggle or just their talent. Even though the people’s situation was not ideal they still found a way to express themselves that we today can look back on and appreciate just like any other artist in history. Hip-Hop is not just your typical art movement it is created from something more raw from the streets that was not the social norm but Hip-Hop is multidimensional and includes much more than just the rapping that it is known for.

Hip-Hop as we know it today was not just the creation of the art of rapping or rather rhyming lyrics to a rhythmic beat. The Hip Hop movement was just that; it was a whole art movement that served as a way for the youth in poverty to express themselves. From the creation of the DJ and MC to Graffiti and the art of dancing over a repeated break in the beat known as Breaking or B-Boying which is what we know as Breakdancing, a new art form or style was created that still has popularity to this day. Though it isn’t what people would consider as classic art it is still multiple art forms from what I described. Breakdancing is an aggressive but fluid form of dancing that can be seen as a physical way of showing that the streets have talent just like the white population, Rapping is often used as a way to get political statements across of the current situation in a way that young individuals can understand. And graffiti is a straight expression of not following the rules that the government have put on them yet still leaving a beautiful mark that can express ones struggle or just their talent. Even though the people’s situation was not ideal they still found a way to express themselves that we today can look back on and appreciate just like any other artist in history. Hip-Hop is not just your typical art movement it is created from something more raw from the streets that was not the social norm but Hip-Hop is multidimensional and includes much more than just the rapping that it is known for.

-Malcolm

I am still only starting, Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehasi Coates but I can already tell that it is very powerful. I liked the quote from class said, “All my life I’d heard people tell their black boys and black girls to “be twice as good,” which is to say “accept half as much”. This is how we lose our softness. This is how they steal our right to smile. No one told those little white children, with their tricycles, to be twice as good” (90). When I think of this I think back to a picture I saw on Twitter awhile back. It was an animated picture of a black couple telling their son to listen to anything an officer says because all they want is for their son to come back home safe. It’s sad because police are supposed to make people feel safe, but instead whenever we see them we feel afraid. I think African Americans have to act “twice as good” because the police mostly all blacks as thugs. When I think about the thugs topic, I think about when we talked about athletes in class. I personally think about Allen Iverson because he was a great athlete but his image was still overshadowing his athleticism because of his tattoos, style, and attitude. One person that I can think of that build his image and isn’t considered a thug is Will Smith. In Smith’s films he is kind, helpful and funny. He also doesn't have hostile behavior so that’s probably why he is deraced. He has his funny personality to show his black side but other than that I think people view him as more white than black.

-        Miny

Dog Whistle Politics of Race Brief

In the beginning of this video, Ian Lopez brings up a good point when defining the term racist. It reminded me of the point I was trying to make in class the other day about Sal from Do the Right Thing. Lopez describes a modern day racist quite well and if we’re using that definition (which I am) then it describes Sal to a t. He says, “Look, here’s a hard, difficult truth. Most racists are good people. They’re not sick. They’re not ruled by anger or raw emotion or hatred. They are complicated people reared in complicated societies. They’re fully capable of generosity, of empathy, of real kindness, but because of the idea systems in which they’re reared, they’re also capable of dehumanizing others and occasionally of brutal violence. And that’s an important truth. Most people are not racist out of some sort of a sickness of the soul. They’re racist because of the society in which they operate”. Sal was definitely generous and kind to Mookie, Jade, and pretty much everyone in the neighborhood. He wasn’t angry or filled with hate like Pino was. He was just a regular guy running his business, and he was also a racist. Because of the world that he was living in in New York in 1989, he was the way that he was. A dead giveaway should’ve been when Sal yells “You black cock sucker, I’ll fucking tear your fucking nigger ass” or “You nigger mother fucker”. This racially charged anger shows his capability of dehumanizing other and being violent. I thought that it was interesting how this video tied well into Do the Right Thing.

Dog Whistle Politics

I thought there was an important and very true point made by Ian Haney Lopez when he said that most racists are nice caring people capable of generosity, and he also said if you were to ask them if racism was still relevant in their lives they would truthfully believe it wasn’t. At the same time Lopez said that these same people were capable of dehumanizing people and sometimes “brutal violence”. Lopez also pointed out that these people were racist through an idea system that makes excuses as to why certain groups of people get privileges and advantages over others, and it also tells them who is considered trustworthy, law abiding, etc.

Usually when people think of racism the focus is on blatant acts of overt racism, for example somebody using a racial slur, but not enough attention is put on covert racism. In our society institutional racism has shown its lasting effects from things we have discussed in class like gentrification and still goes under the radar in other forms. Last year I wrote a research paper on racial discrimination in the job recruitment process, and I came across a study that created a large number of fake job applications all with similar qualifications and skillsets and sent them to different companies in Chicago and Boston. Half of the job applications were given stereotypical Black names and the other half of the applications were given stereotypical White names, and a significantly higher number of the White applications received call backs over the Black applications. The employers of these companies are not racists in the fact that they despise people of color or that they use racial slurs on a regular basis but because of who society tells them are trustworthy or qualified to work a white collar job.

Bobby

Bonus | Ferguson Superintendent Asks Celebrities to Help Fund Literacy Initiative

In August 2014, Michael Brown was shot and killed in Ferguson, Mo. The community was outraged and many celebrities joined in the fight to create a bigger movement through the tragic incident, many voicing their opinion on social media, like twitter, straight to the public eye. 

Now, Ferguson-Florissant Superintendent Joseph Davis has begun a literacy campaign that aims to raise $2 million to fund the 11,000 children that would benefit directly. The students that live in St. Louis County attend the school, these students are predominantly African-American and about 76 percent live in poverty. 

Superintendent Davis decided that he wanted to put these "activists" to the test and wrote a letter reaching out to these celebrities asking for donations. In this letter Davis wrote, "I believe that providing all children with a first-rate education is the single most powerful tool in eradicating bias and building community." His campaign aims to provide new books and technology to provide a higher level of education for these children. 

The requests for personal and financial support went out to 170 celebrities including:

• John Goodman
• Sheryl Crow 
• Akon
• Katy Perry
• Magic Johnson
• Pharrell Williams
• Rihanna
• Chris Rock

In my opinion this is an amazing idea, nothing I have seen before. It's a great way to ask people (especially wealthy people) to put their money where their mouths are. Think about it, we all like to share our thoughts about what we see in the media (twitter, instagram, Facebook,etc.), but how many of us actually take action? Get involved? Donate?

This is relatively recent, his letter came out last April. Thought I'd share so we can all keep an eye on what celebrities do decide to publicly support this campaign!

Debrief | "Do The Right Thing" ... Perception

"They aren't black... they're more than black" -

In a scene from Do The Right Thing, Mookie gets into a dispute with Pino about what "black is". Pino seems to hold celebrities, athletes, and other prominent figures on a "higher" regard, as opposed to the African American's that live in their neighborhood.

Social media plays a huge role in the way people express their opinions, from what I've seen often times black women are demeaned by members of their own ethnic group for their attempts to change their physical appearance in a manner that is seen as "white" such as certain hairstyles and colors, makeup trends, choice of dress, etc.
Personally I find this to be contradicting when I see celebrities from the black community put on a pedestal when they themselves take part in these actions.

An example,

In May of 2015, Giuliana Rancic (E! News Fashion Police) stated on national tv, that Zendaya's choice of wearing dreads on the red carpet made her look "too boho...like she smells like patchouli oil. Or weed." My point? She was publicly embarrassed for embracing something that is natural.

While on the other hand, Beyonce has become a prominent figure in the media (for all ethnicities). While she is the poster child for many brands, she is clearly highly edited... my point? No one says anything about that.

Clearly general (societal) perception has not changed since the making of this movie, but now the question emerges how can this perception change if it hasn't changed within the (African American) community?

* I got the inspiration to put the scene from the movie together with my personal opinions when I stumbled upon multiple comments on Facebook by African American women stating,

"Beyonce is winning at the white girl game."

Hip Hop or Rap is cultural movement which gain mainstream popularity in the late 1970’s to the early 1980s also, the backing music for rap, the musical style mixing rhythmic and rhyming speech that this form art became more predominate with African Americans, They use this way of art to expresses themselves and the struggles they are in their neighborhoods. Hip-hop originated in the predominantly African American economically depressed South Bronx section of New York City in the late 1970s. As the hip-hop movement began at society’s margins. In the late 1980’s heading into early 1990s numerous rappers and rap groups took a huge step to address political issue, example rap groups like public enemy and N.W.A, solo rappers such has Tupac and notorious BIG.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8IO2KHjXZg

-Kakai

Debrief: Do the Right Thing

We are taught early on that there are two competing discourses in life; good and bad. This manifests in several ways from love and hate, heaven and hell, hero and villain, peace and violence and so on.  This way of thinking was displayed in class today after we finished watching “Do the Right Thing.” Our discussion was led with the question of whether certain characters were “bad guys” or “good guys” or whether they were racist or not. This way of analyzing the characters and the film is flawed, as it perpetuates the idea of one dimensional characters and binary thinking. Humans are complicated and it wouldn’t be an accurate critical view to assume that people are either all bad or all good. This takes away the depth to the story and its subjects. The idea of being “colorblind” is another way these assumptions perpetuate. Race and racism are looked at as two complete opposites; black or white, racist or not. This binary fails to express the complicated system of racism, it makes us target the “bad apples” and those who are overtly racist rather than looking at systems and institutions.  (more about racist spectrum/ prejudice binary:https://www.quora.com/In-what-ways-is-racism-a-spectrum-rather-than-a-binary )

    I think “Do the Right Thing” was exploring how opposites interact with each other. This is seen in a literal sense with the characters of different racial backgrounds and in the scene with the love and hate rings. But it is also an underlying theme about peace vs violence. The quotes at the end by MLK and Malcolm X also demonstrate this idea of two competing ideologies.   

Postscript....

The conclusion of this short video is pretty interesting.

Reclamation & Education

Ta-Nehisi Coates’ novel, Between the World and Me, was written as both a letter to his son and a letter to any individual today struggling with their identity—cultural or otherwise. Coates quotes Malcolm X when explaining “if you’re black, you were born in jail.” This stresses a lack of control over “body” and how a constant fear ruminates within the black community centered around their bodies and how easily they can be taken. A strong emphasis is placed on “the body,” “his body,” “the black body,” which seemingly asks African Americans to reclaim their bodies for all that they symbolize—their history, heritage, and legacy—and by extension, America’s history. Coates argues “schools did not reveal truths, they concealed them. Perhaps they must be burned away so that the heart of this thing might be known.” This powerful rhetoric aptly describes how the education system can be viewed as a veil of sorts that highlights only certain aspects of history. When American school children learn about the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech and Rosa Parks’ bus boycott are often the main (and sometimes only) events discussed. Schools constantly emphasize how progressive the Civil Rights Movement was—and yes, it was a radical time when many social policies shifted and laws were re-written—but oftentimes, the movement is placed on top of a pedestal that seemingly claims “everything is great and everyone is equal now.” But can we honestly say this statement is true? Schools don’t often teach the struggles behind those movements: the police brutality, the bombing of churches, etc. Schools, especially elementary schools where children are more easily influenced, don’t often bring up the hardships African Americans are facing in the present. And this can be problematic if the future of America grows up blind and oblivious to the current societal inequalities that plague the nation today. 

African American History at the YMCA

Hey guys. I started working at the YMCA not to long ago and during a training we watched a video on the history of the YMCA. One of the things that was mentioned, as you can see in this video, is the YMCA's involvement in civil rights. I just wanted to share this because it just shows how the civil rights is part of everyone's history. We all have (or could have) a free Y memberships through the school so here is a little history on how our world outside of class connects to what we are learning about in class.

Announcement

The Due Date

For your Research Project

Has Been

Extended to

Monday...

"$108 With Tax!" - Do The Right Thing

I enjoy old school movies such as these. Beat Street, Breakin', Flashdance, are a few favorites. While we were watching Do The Right Thing, however, a particular scene caught my eye.

The scene where Buggin' Out's Jordans got scuffed was kind of funny, especially when he said that he paid "$108 WITH TAX!"

Here's the scene again:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc6_XgtOQgI


When Buggin Out said that he paid $108 for his pair of White Cement 4s, I couldn't help but think: "Man, if J's were that cheap today, my friends and I would make so much more profit than we do now".



Working in a retail business that sells thousands of Jordans a week across the nation and growing up in a family and neighborhood of sneaker heads, $108 is a pretty nice price on a pair of adult sized J's.

Today, preschool sized retro Jordans would normally be sold for $79.99, a grade school size would run around $120-140, depending on the retro's demand, and an adult size would be about $190. And this is without tax.

An adult sized retro in Washington State costs about $210 after tax. And that's the retail price. There are people selling retros for triple that price if the shoe is demanded enough!

Seeing that the price of Jordans just about doubled since the 90's is absolutely fascinating. Don't forget the $1.50 pizza. Wish lunch was that cheap nowadays too!

- Ariel Advincula

Bouns Material: After 50-Year Legal Struggle, Mississippi School District Ordered To Desegregate

While on Facebook today, I came across an article titled “After 50-Year Legal Struggle, Mississippi School District Ordered To Desegregate”, and I wanted to share it with you guys as my bonus material.   As we discussed in class, in May of 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that segregated schools were unconstitutional because “separate schools are inherently unequal”, and violate the "equal protection clause" of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  According to the article, fifty years after the court’s ruling in Brown v Board of Education, the Cleveland, Mississippi, school district has yet to integrate.  The district was first taken to court for failure to integrate in 1965.  In 1989 the school district again was taken to court for failure to integrate.  Fifteen years later the school again were in court for failure to segregate, and then again in 2011.  In the latest case, the school district argued that “forcing integration by merging would cause white families to turn to private schools, causing a drop in enrollment”, but this argument meant nothing to the court who wants both of the high schools in the district to be merged into a single school with around 1,000 students, and to also combine middle schools.

The thing I found most shocking out of everything I read in the article was that this school district is far from being the only school district to fail to integrate. As recently as 2014, the U.S. Justice Department was a plaintiff in 43 similar lawsuits in the state of Mississippi alone.  It is crazy that fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education that we still have segregated schools.  As Judge Debra Brown wrote “The delay in segregation has deprived generations of students of the constitutionally-guaranteed right of an integrated education”.   All children deserve the right to a quality education no matter what side of the rail tracks they live on (A railroad track runs through Cleveland Mississippi and African Americans live on the east side of the tracks; white people live on the west side) or what color their skin is.  I am glad that the government has continued to track the Cleveland Mississippi school district (as well as other school districts who have had failures to integrate).  Hopefully this will be the last time the school district ends up in court for failure to integrate.

Here is a link to the article: http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/05/17/478389720/after-50-year-legal-struggle-mississippi-school-district-ordered-to-desegregate

Mother’s Day Disturbance, 1969 | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed

Mother’s Day Disturbance, 1969 | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed



Debrief



Alex you asked about the civil rights movements in Tacoma here some history!!



This is something that me and my dad discussed. His lived in Tacoma WA his whole life and worked at the Malcolm x center and now known as Peoples community center. My parents still reside on the hilltop and my dad still works at the peoples community center. He has told me many stories about how he was apart of the black panthers of Tacoma and how they would not let the TPD police their communities. One of the things that he discussed was the Mothers Day Riots in Tacoma's hilltop.

Everyone.

We have a guest tomorrow.

If it's anything like our last guest to class

You will not want to miss our session.

And please be prompt and on time.

That's all.

Culture & Apathy

Robin G.D. Kelly quotes cultural critic Henry Giroux in his essay, Finding the Strength to Love and Dream, wherein he describes today's youth as growing up in a “culture of cynicism.” Looking around today, one can easily pinpoint where Kelly is coming from. Much of today’s youth hold what can either be described as an uninformed view, or an apathetic view, towards the political landscape. This is a serious problem if you, much like Kelly, believe that revolutionary dreams—and by extension social change—erupt out of political engagement. But how can we fix this? If someone is uninformed, they can simply educate themselves from (hopefully) quality sources. However, if someone is apathetic, they may very well be informed, but they refuse to get involved in social and political movements because of a lack of caring about social and political issues. And you cannot force someone to care. But why the lack of care in the first place? It seems like the majority of young people today have had their dreams sideswiped by the consumer culture that envelopes American society. Prosperity and the ability to purchase “stuff” constantly impedes the minds of the masses and acts as a kind of driving force in their motives for engaging in most any activity. Today’s youth view the current situation as the best anyone can do in terms of moving towards “freedom” and “equality.” Perhaps the apathetic masses have settled to believe this illusion of progress and social change is the limit of what we are able to accomplish, but there are some that don’t see that limit—the activists, visionaries, and dreamers. It’s always easier to identify what people are fighting against than what they're fighting for, and this essay seems to be a direct address to those “still bold enough to dream.” 

Freedom Dreams

In Robin D.G. Kelley’s essay, Finding The Strength To Love And Dream, I really liked his mother’s dream, the dream of a new world. From helping people less fortunate to them to different views on life is still a learning experience for everyone. Her vision of being free seems like an impossible task even in America, the land of the free. Everyone wants to live in a utopia. That’s probably why many immigrants come to America to live their American Dream. Many refugees come to America because of civil wars, like places like Afghanistan. Places like that are dangerous because they are exposed to weapons, battle, starvation, etc. If you think about it, traveling on a boat to America has less casualties. These refugees are in a search for freedom but when they come to America they are being called terrorists and many other derogatory terms. The ideologies we get from media make us really believe in these stereotypes. Instead of spreading love we are spreading racism. But what do we consider real freedom to be? Is it having a good job, driving a nice car, or having a roof over your head? Is it having all of our pleasures to be satisfied? Is it living in a world where we are all considered to be equal? I think the dream of a new world is far from our reach. To reach freedom, I believe activists truly play a big role. They inspire others to be engaged in spreading freedom and love.
-Miny

Meeting Time

Black Student Union 

Wednesday, 12:30

BHS104

Lemonade

Since no one took up my offer to write a review of Lemonade, here is Bell Hooks' take on Beyonce's new album.  If you don't know who Bell Hooks is, you best educate yourself.

& 

FYI

SU Student Occupation

Tubman

In 2020 the $20 dollar bill face is going to be Harriet Tubman. She was born into slavery, escaped and went back to help family and friends using methods of the antislavery activist. She was a spy for the US Amy and had a rough childhood.  She will be in the 20 dollar bill instead of Alexander Hamilton who was a founding father of the US. He was also a promoter of the U.S Constitution. This change is the begging of a new change in America. Having an African American face in a bill is what people don’t expect. I believe the change is good for America. People that are not white but another race will see that America is changing little by little. I hardly believe this really matters because whites that are racist will have to see that their not the only ones who can make a change here in the USA. She is a great person to be the change. Why? Well she made a change, she is well known, and didn’t give up helping others. This proves that you don’t have to be a president nor white so everyone can see you.     https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/04/20/u-s-to-keep-hamilton-on-front-of-10-bill-put-portrait-of-harriet-tubman-on-20-bill/    

-Banesa