Boris Johnson suspending the Parliament is a known attack on democratic rights in the United Kingdom. He wants this existence in order for him to go forward with his Brexit agenda without the consent of the people in the UK. People question whether Brext will harm jobs, living standards, and democratic rights. There is no question that far right leaders worldwide are using authoritarian means to try to get what they want when they can't achieve their extremism by vote. This is similar to Trump harming separation of power noms with his policies. We witness the sad development of austerity, jingoistic nationalism, anti-immigrant xenophobia, and authoritarian actions in Europe, America, South America, etc. Boris Johnson is like Margaret Thatcher in the sense that he wants the UK to be a deregulated tax haven, the welfare state is privatized, and he further exploitation on the working class continues. Many fighters for democracy are found in the UK, Hong Kong, Puerto Rico, America, and in other places of the world that desire human rights not oligarchy to be the order of the day.
I disagree with Lakeith Stanfield that there is no such thing as black American culture. Black culture is real, and it isn't monolithic. It is found in music, art, sports, literature, sci-fi, and other parameters of life. For example, Toni Morrison's literature is part of black culture just like the inspirational words spoken by Malcolm X. Being Black is not one thing. Being Black is being free to express yourself while loving your Blackness at the same time without apologies. I do agree with Lakeith Stanfield making his point to praise black women. He said that black women are the most beautiful women in the world. He's right. I don't agree with Lakeith's views on black culture, since he's wrong on that issue. I am unapologetic Black.
56 years ago, about 250,000 human beings came out in the 1963 March on Washington. Many people of numerous backgrounds came together in advocating for the one goal of promoting freedom and justice. 1963 was a turning point of the Civil Rights Movement. By this time, the Birmingham protests existed, Medgar Evers was assassinated, and protests occurred nationwide in favor of ending Jim Crow apartheid. Jim Crow was more than about segregation. It was about a system where the rights of black people were violated, people were murdered by virtue of his or her skin color, and resources were restricted from being given to the black community. Black people wanted desegregation not to eliminate our black identity. We love our Blackness. We wanted desegregation to have the resources to live our own lives without discrimination and without oppression. This march has a long history. It was the dream of A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin (who wanted such a march since the 1940's). The Big Six (or civil rights leaders. Their names are A. Philip Randolph, Dr. King, John Lewis, James Farmer, Roy Wilkins, and Whitney Young Jr. Bayard Rustin was a lead organizer of the march) came together to form many components of the march.
Also, black women had a leadership role in the movement. Also, I disagree with many black women being restricted to speak in the 1963 rally as well. The March on Washington gathered people from planes, jets, cars, and trains. Many black leaders had to calm JFK's fears about the march in order for him to support it. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's powerful I Have a Dream speech was about condemning America's sins 100 years after the Emancipation Proclamation. It was a call for equality, and it outlined a plan of action. Many speakers wanted an end to police brutality, institute living wages, pass fair education, promote labor rights, create great housing, and establish other policies that were explicitly mentioned in the goals of the March. It is also important to recognize the sacrifice of black women in the movement like Dorothy Height, Diane Nash, Gloria Richardson, Pauli Murray, Lena Horne, Josephine Baker, Anna Arnold Hedgeman, and other women had a large role in the event and in civil rights in general. Rich, poor, young, old, celebrities, and unsung people were in Washington, D.C. on that late summer day. These people desired freedom sincerely.
We remember that heroic event to remind us that the Dream isn't realized yet. During these times, we are reminded how far we have to go. We witness anti-black hate crimes, harm done to immigrant rights, xenophobia, economic deprivation, ecological devastation, and other evils that must be eradicated. The eloquent words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was more than poetic eloquence. It was a call for action in seeing that the land of America and the world in general witness a progressive transformation wherefore justice for all is made into a concrete reality. That is the aim that we believe in.
By Timothy
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