Monday, October 31, 2016
Conscious News
https://www.thevintagenews.com/2016/10/24/she-essentially-ended-slavery-in-massachusetts-by-suing-for-her-freedom-in-1780/
https://blackmattersus.com/18776-black-mentally-ill-man-shot-to-death-by-boston-police/?utm_source=service_worker&utm_medium=push&utm_campaign=push20160408
http://www.webmd.com/diet/a-z/alkaline-diets
http://www.pbs.org/black-culture/explore/civil-rights-movement-birmingham-campaign/#.WBYUlNUrLIU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwNI0IV7yy8
https://socialistworker.org/2013/05/24/lenin-prepares-the-bolsheviks
http://home.earthlink.net/~drestinblack/invntion.htm
https://blackmattersus.com/18751-cop-brutality-officer-assaults-black-man-over-loud-music/?utm_source=service_worker&utm_medium=push&utm_campaign=push20160408
Trump supporter involved in voter fraud.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/crime-and-courts/2016/10/28/voter-fraud-suspect-arrested-des-moines/92892042/
https://thinkprogress.org/voter-fraud-trump-supporter-4063dfe775c1#.v8i45qocn
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/10/republican-trump-voter-arrested-in-iowa-for-voter-fraud-after-allegedly-attempting-to-rig-election/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/Aau4GnfefCXWmQScFOB6YwcXaYeyFnS71nLrJNLC7iVJ24WfFP_wLf0/
http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/28/opinions/republican-party-voter-suppression-bailey/
https://thinkprogress.org/voter-fraud-trump-supporter-4063dfe775c1#.v8i45qocn
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/10/republican-trump-voter-arrested-in-iowa-for-voter-fraud-after-allegedly-attempting-to-rig-election/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/Aau4GnfefCXWmQScFOB6YwcXaYeyFnS71nLrJNLC7iVJ24WfFP_wLf0/
http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/28/opinions/republican-party-voter-suppression-bailey/
Monday Information
In 1893, there was the Panic of 1893 and later came home rule in Denver. The 1893 financial panic occurred nationwide. The silver boom collapsed. Denver, by that time suffered economically, because of droughts and harsh winters. That weather harmed the agricultural industry. The agricultural distress along with the withdrawal of foreign investors (plus the over expansion of the silver mining industries) caused stock prices to decline. Banks closed and businesses failed. Numerous farms ceased to operate. With no federal insurance to support the money in the banks, many people lost their life savings. Denver banks closed and real estate values dropped. Smelters stopped working and the Denver Tramway had trouble getting people to ride and pay their taxes. The Union Pacific Railroad, which had absorbed both the Denver Pacific and Kansas Pacific in the 1880’s, declared bankruptcy. National unemployment was between 12-18% back in 1894. Wages declined. Strikes took place. One strike that took place in Colorado was the Cripple Creek miners' strike which lasted five months. As the silver mines began to close due to the continued drop in silver prices, unemployed miners and other workers from the Colorado Mountains flooded into Denver in hopes of finding work. Because of the city's inability to take care of the jobless, some train companies began offering reduced or free fares for people wanting to travel from Denver. This effort contributed to the exodus from the city. Denver's population dropped from 106,000 in 1890 to 90,000 in 1895. A new municipal charter was given to Denver in 1893 by the state legislature. This decentralized much of the mayor’s powers into 6 different administrative departments. 2 of which were elected. 2 were appointed by the mayor and the remaining two were appointed by the governor. King writes "The plan gave the maximum of opportunity for [political] party groups and corporate control." The municipal board members appointed by the governor had complete financial control over the police, fire, and excise departments. Over half the expenditures of the city went through this board which gave the governor and his party much direct control over Denver. Governor Davis Hanson Waite was elected in 1893. He was elected on a Populist Party reform platform. It tried to overturn the corruption in Denver in 1894 by removing police and fire commissioners that he believed were shielding the gamblers and prostitutes that he believed were resulting from and also worsening the depression. The officials refused to leave their positions and were quickly joined by others who felt their jobs were threatened. They barricaded themselves in City Hall, and the state militia was sent to remove them. Federal troops were called in from nearby Fort Logan to intervene and quell the civil strife. Eventually Governor Waite agreed to withdraw the militia and allow the Colorado Supreme Court to decide the case. The court ruled that the governor had authority to replace the commissioners, but he was reprimanded for bringing in the militia, in what became known as the "City Hall War.” The governor was elected by the whole state. He had so much power over the workings of Denver. That was not lost on the citizens in Denver. The economy flattered and the new six departments were divided. Later, the first nonpartisan mayor was elected in Denver back in 1895. His name was T.S. McMurray. He was reelected in 1897 and defeated in 1899. There was the home rule movement after people didn’t like the major political parties. In 1902, an amendment to the state constitution was passed that allowed cities to adopt home rule and Denver became a consolidated city–county. In 1897, the U.S. economy started to recover. Jobs slowly came back into Denver. Real estate prices remained depressed through 1900. Agriculture grew. Irrigation infrastructure and crop diversification increased. The processing and production of food in the state helped to not make the depression much worse. Denver gained back the population it had lost during the depression, mainly through the annexation of neighboring towns, and ended the century with a population of more than 133,000.
As we approach the 100th year anniversary of the Russian Revolution, we show reflection and an acknowledgment of that revolution being one of the most important events in human history. It changed the world and outlined issues that we debate to this very day which includes: class struggle, economics, government, and leadership. To start, many events must be known. First, before the revolution, the Russian nation was in a hot mess. Serfs were discriminated against despite them being emancipated. Anti-Semitism ran wild in Czarist Russia. Pogroms or executions of Jewish people in Russia were common place in the 19th century and early 20th century. Economic inequality was rampant and the czar had authoritarian control of the Russian population. Czar Alexander III rejected even progressive reforms and allowed autocratic rule. The philosophies of Marx and Engels were already global by 1900. Karl Marx believed that only class struggle would defeat the capitalists and cause a revolutionary situation where the workers would have economic and social equality in the world. Marx advocated communism or a classless society where the monarchy and capitalist elites would be gone. In the midst of the Czar’s tyranny, opposition groups existed. They were diverse from the moderates who wanted democratic reforms to the socialists and the communists who desire revolutionary change in the Russian society. The Russian Revolution was going to happen since tensions were growing since the 1800’s. With 4/5s of the population living as peasants and the feudal nobility running the majority of the economic and political infrastructure of Russia, a revolt was bound to happen. Cities like St. Petersburg and Moscow had many workers being paid low for long work. The disastrous war against Japan in 1904 caused more turmoil. In January 1905, Gapon (who was a priest) organized a march to the Winter Palace to plead with the Tsar--considered by most to be benevolent, but misguided by "bad advisers"--for reforms. The Tsar's soldiers opened fire on the unarmed demonstrators, killing more than 1,000 workers and their families. The massacre--known as Bloody Sunday--sparked an explosion of mass strikes. Factory owners and managers were forced by the scale of the upheaval to agree to some of the concessions the demonstrators had asked of the Tsar. The Czar soon wanted a constitution. Soviets or workers councils grew which addressed the needs of the poor and workers in urban and rural communities. Trotsky--elected president of the Petrograd soviet at age 26--described how the workers' council system concentrated all the forces of the revolution. Trotsky and Lenin would be leaders of the Russian Revolution. Lenin would sign an agreement with Germany to not be involved in World War I anymore. The workers of Petrograd would protest injustice again. On International Women's Day in 1917, they left their jobs to participate in spontaneous demonstrations against food shortages and the war--in what became the first day of the revolution. This revolution spread into other locations of Russia. The Bolsheviks or one revolutionary faction rebelled and caused the Czar to abdicate from his throne. Soon, 2 major factions of the Russian Revolution would develop. One was the moderate Provisional Government with leaders like Prince Lvov and Alexander Kerensky. The other faction would be the Soviets who represented peasants and other workers (i.e. the Bolsheviks). The Mensheviks were the moderates, but they were found in both the Provisional government and the soviet councils. Even Stalin didn’t want soviet councils to immediate take over, but Lenin did. Lenin's Theses was clear about what he wanted. Lenin thought that the Provisional government was too moderate and desired a radical program. As the Russian Revolution continued, we see its strengths and imperfections. There are no justifications for its errors too. Yet, we learn about the Russian Revolution as a means for us to promote revolutionary change in our generation and in future generations too.
The Birmingham movement was the most important part of the Civil Rights Movement. Afterwards, the civil rights movement would be changed forever. Before that movement, there was little progress legislatively in America involving civil rights. Afterwards, the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act would be passed. Courage defined the efforts of African Americans and others who fought for the freedom of black people in America. Diverse organizations were involved in this campaign like the SCLC (the Southern Christian Leadership Conference), ACHMR (the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights), and SNCC. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Fred Shuttlesworth, Wyatt Tee Walker, Dorothy Cotton, and other human beings were involved in this audacious campaign. The goal of this campaign was explicitly clear of eliminating Jim Crow in Birmingham, Alabama (which was the most segregated large city of the South back then). This program was called Project C. The protests would involve lunch counter sit-sin, marches on City Hall, and boycotts on downtown merchants who promoted segregation. Months later, racist police used water hoses and police dogs (as sent by the racist person Bull Connor) to harm black men, black women, and black children. Those images were shown worldwide and it showed the hypocrisy of the American establishment and the vicious oppression that black people experienced in American society. This came after the failed SCLC campaign in Albany, Georgia. The Birmingham, Alabama movement would be a victory. It lasted from April 3, 1963 to May 10, 1963. Young people, adults, and elderly human beings fought for justice. The city’s discrimination laws were changed. These events in the South caused President John F. Kennedy to be more progressive in public involving race and civil rights. After this campaign, President Kennedy would call for federal civil rights legislation which would be passed until after he was unfortunately assassinated. Ultimately, it was the masses of the people who caused the Birmingham campaign to be successful. The Birmingham campaign was turning point in the Civil Rights Movement, which signaled the beginning of the end of Jim Crow apartheid. Soon, more demonstrations came about throughout the South. The March on Washington existed in August of 1963. Unfortunately, the bombing of the Baptist church existed in Birmingham in September of 1963, which killed 4 little girls. There was more attention sent in fighting racial segregation in the southern United States. Dr. King expanded his movement and forced desegregation existed in Birmingham
Anthropology is the study of humanity and culture. It deals with the branches of physical, social, linguistic, archaeological, and cultural anthropology. In essence, anthropology is the study of the human family and human culture in all of its diverse manifestations. We live in a world where humanity has diverse cultures and there is the commonality among the peoples of the world too. We all need water and food to survive. We all either speak or deal with language in many ways. We have complex ideological viewpoints and we use technology constantly in the world society. In our lives, we fight on this audacious journey for liberty, justice, and equality. We realize the sacrifice of our forebearers, who heroically and without denial of their principles, stood up for the pristine, focused agendas of human excellence, of compassion, of strength, of love, of sacrifice, and of even handedness. To understand anthropology, people should understand the concepts of culture, human behavior, language, agriculture, human migration, economics, family structure, race, ethnicity, human gender, medicine, epidemiology, acculturation, human biology, and other characteristics of human society. Therefore, anthropology is a complex subject matter. It deals with the origins of humankind and it focus on the research on how human culture evolves over the ages of time.
African American history is a long journey. I am an African American, so African American history is personal with me on many different levels. We, who are African Americans, have made amazing accomplishments and still there is a long way to go. From the Motherland of Africa to the 21st century, black people have shown resiliency, courage, strength, grace, compassion, and a stirring passion for justice. Today, we live in a new age with a new President soon to be inaugurated in America. The vast majority of African Americans descended from African slaves centuries ago. Many African Americans are recent African immigrants living in America too. Also, it is important to note that our history, African Americans, didn’t just involve the Middle Passage and slavery. Our history revolve around literature, architecture, spirituality, music, athletics or sports, art, dance, political affairs, economics, STEM fields, and other aspects of human civilization. Therefore, it is time for us who to show the complete history of African Americans from the beginning to the present. I’m going to write a 7 Part series that describes African American history and culture from Africa to 2017. It will show information about the civil rights movement, the Harlem Renaissance, Marcus Garvey, Ella Baker, Reconstruction, various musical genres, the Great Migration, the Age of President Barack Obama, and other components of our journey. Our journey is filled with the strength of our ancestors and the influence of the youth too. In America, we have been a part of a journey for more than 500 years. Our black forebears fought in every war of American history, but we continue to fight the war against racism, bigotry, and intolerance in the USA. Our cause is just and we will keep on fighting for justice in the world as Brothers and Sisters. First, the story begins in Africa. The vast majority of African Americans descended from Western and Central Africa.
By Timothy
As we approach the 100th year anniversary of the Russian Revolution, we show reflection and an acknowledgment of that revolution being one of the most important events in human history. It changed the world and outlined issues that we debate to this very day which includes: class struggle, economics, government, and leadership. To start, many events must be known. First, before the revolution, the Russian nation was in a hot mess. Serfs were discriminated against despite them being emancipated. Anti-Semitism ran wild in Czarist Russia. Pogroms or executions of Jewish people in Russia were common place in the 19th century and early 20th century. Economic inequality was rampant and the czar had authoritarian control of the Russian population. Czar Alexander III rejected even progressive reforms and allowed autocratic rule. The philosophies of Marx and Engels were already global by 1900. Karl Marx believed that only class struggle would defeat the capitalists and cause a revolutionary situation where the workers would have economic and social equality in the world. Marx advocated communism or a classless society where the monarchy and capitalist elites would be gone. In the midst of the Czar’s tyranny, opposition groups existed. They were diverse from the moderates who wanted democratic reforms to the socialists and the communists who desire revolutionary change in the Russian society. The Russian Revolution was going to happen since tensions were growing since the 1800’s. With 4/5s of the population living as peasants and the feudal nobility running the majority of the economic and political infrastructure of Russia, a revolt was bound to happen. Cities like St. Petersburg and Moscow had many workers being paid low for long work. The disastrous war against Japan in 1904 caused more turmoil. In January 1905, Gapon (who was a priest) organized a march to the Winter Palace to plead with the Tsar--considered by most to be benevolent, but misguided by "bad advisers"--for reforms. The Tsar's soldiers opened fire on the unarmed demonstrators, killing more than 1,000 workers and their families. The massacre--known as Bloody Sunday--sparked an explosion of mass strikes. Factory owners and managers were forced by the scale of the upheaval to agree to some of the concessions the demonstrators had asked of the Tsar. The Czar soon wanted a constitution. Soviets or workers councils grew which addressed the needs of the poor and workers in urban and rural communities. Trotsky--elected president of the Petrograd soviet at age 26--described how the workers' council system concentrated all the forces of the revolution. Trotsky and Lenin would be leaders of the Russian Revolution. Lenin would sign an agreement with Germany to not be involved in World War I anymore. The workers of Petrograd would protest injustice again. On International Women's Day in 1917, they left their jobs to participate in spontaneous demonstrations against food shortages and the war--in what became the first day of the revolution. This revolution spread into other locations of Russia. The Bolsheviks or one revolutionary faction rebelled and caused the Czar to abdicate from his throne. Soon, 2 major factions of the Russian Revolution would develop. One was the moderate Provisional Government with leaders like Prince Lvov and Alexander Kerensky. The other faction would be the Soviets who represented peasants and other workers (i.e. the Bolsheviks). The Mensheviks were the moderates, but they were found in both the Provisional government and the soviet councils. Even Stalin didn’t want soviet councils to immediate take over, but Lenin did. Lenin's Theses was clear about what he wanted. Lenin thought that the Provisional government was too moderate and desired a radical program. As the Russian Revolution continued, we see its strengths and imperfections. There are no justifications for its errors too. Yet, we learn about the Russian Revolution as a means for us to promote revolutionary change in our generation and in future generations too.
The Birmingham movement was the most important part of the Civil Rights Movement. Afterwards, the civil rights movement would be changed forever. Before that movement, there was little progress legislatively in America involving civil rights. Afterwards, the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act would be passed. Courage defined the efforts of African Americans and others who fought for the freedom of black people in America. Diverse organizations were involved in this campaign like the SCLC (the Southern Christian Leadership Conference), ACHMR (the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights), and SNCC. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Fred Shuttlesworth, Wyatt Tee Walker, Dorothy Cotton, and other human beings were involved in this audacious campaign. The goal of this campaign was explicitly clear of eliminating Jim Crow in Birmingham, Alabama (which was the most segregated large city of the South back then). This program was called Project C. The protests would involve lunch counter sit-sin, marches on City Hall, and boycotts on downtown merchants who promoted segregation. Months later, racist police used water hoses and police dogs (as sent by the racist person Bull Connor) to harm black men, black women, and black children. Those images were shown worldwide and it showed the hypocrisy of the American establishment and the vicious oppression that black people experienced in American society. This came after the failed SCLC campaign in Albany, Georgia. The Birmingham, Alabama movement would be a victory. It lasted from April 3, 1963 to May 10, 1963. Young people, adults, and elderly human beings fought for justice. The city’s discrimination laws were changed. These events in the South caused President John F. Kennedy to be more progressive in public involving race and civil rights. After this campaign, President Kennedy would call for federal civil rights legislation which would be passed until after he was unfortunately assassinated. Ultimately, it was the masses of the people who caused the Birmingham campaign to be successful. The Birmingham campaign was turning point in the Civil Rights Movement, which signaled the beginning of the end of Jim Crow apartheid. Soon, more demonstrations came about throughout the South. The March on Washington existed in August of 1963. Unfortunately, the bombing of the Baptist church existed in Birmingham in September of 1963, which killed 4 little girls. There was more attention sent in fighting racial segregation in the southern United States. Dr. King expanded his movement and forced desegregation existed in Birmingham
Anthropology is the study of humanity and culture. It deals with the branches of physical, social, linguistic, archaeological, and cultural anthropology. In essence, anthropology is the study of the human family and human culture in all of its diverse manifestations. We live in a world where humanity has diverse cultures and there is the commonality among the peoples of the world too. We all need water and food to survive. We all either speak or deal with language in many ways. We have complex ideological viewpoints and we use technology constantly in the world society. In our lives, we fight on this audacious journey for liberty, justice, and equality. We realize the sacrifice of our forebearers, who heroically and without denial of their principles, stood up for the pristine, focused agendas of human excellence, of compassion, of strength, of love, of sacrifice, and of even handedness. To understand anthropology, people should understand the concepts of culture, human behavior, language, agriculture, human migration, economics, family structure, race, ethnicity, human gender, medicine, epidemiology, acculturation, human biology, and other characteristics of human society. Therefore, anthropology is a complex subject matter. It deals with the origins of humankind and it focus on the research on how human culture evolves over the ages of time.
African American history is a long journey. I am an African American, so African American history is personal with me on many different levels. We, who are African Americans, have made amazing accomplishments and still there is a long way to go. From the Motherland of Africa to the 21st century, black people have shown resiliency, courage, strength, grace, compassion, and a stirring passion for justice. Today, we live in a new age with a new President soon to be inaugurated in America. The vast majority of African Americans descended from African slaves centuries ago. Many African Americans are recent African immigrants living in America too. Also, it is important to note that our history, African Americans, didn’t just involve the Middle Passage and slavery. Our history revolve around literature, architecture, spirituality, music, athletics or sports, art, dance, political affairs, economics, STEM fields, and other aspects of human civilization. Therefore, it is time for us who to show the complete history of African Americans from the beginning to the present. I’m going to write a 7 Part series that describes African American history and culture from Africa to 2017. It will show information about the civil rights movement, the Harlem Renaissance, Marcus Garvey, Ella Baker, Reconstruction, various musical genres, the Great Migration, the Age of President Barack Obama, and other components of our journey. Our journey is filled with the strength of our ancestors and the influence of the youth too. In America, we have been a part of a journey for more than 500 years. Our black forebears fought in every war of American history, but we continue to fight the war against racism, bigotry, and intolerance in the USA. Our cause is just and we will keep on fighting for justice in the world as Brothers and Sisters. First, the story begins in Africa. The vast majority of African Americans descended from Western and Central Africa.
By Timothy
Sunday, October 30, 2016
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Friday, October 28, 2016
Howard Hughes Exposed
http://lasvegassun.com/news/2015/dec/28/a-peek-into-the-mind-of-howard-hughes/
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/the-story-of-nat-king-cole-and-his-racist-neighbours-9391316.html
http://www.reviewjournal.com/opinion/columns-blogs/john-l-smith/king-dream-nightmare-bigoted-howard-hughes
Friday Information in late October 2016
First and foremost, we advocate black liberation. This debate is not new. Decades ago, many self defense advocates strongly criticized the mainline civil rights movement during the 1960's over the issue of nonviolence and other political issues. One example is that Dr. King and Kwame Ture had a passionate, but cordial debate on nonviolence. Many Black Panthers debated the US organization on the issue of cultural nationalism. The Black Panthers opposed cultural nationalism back then. Elaine Brown's views are not new. The critiques about the Black Lives Matter movement have existed for years. Some are fair critiques and some are not fair critiques. First, it is fair to point out that Elaine Brown has the right to her views and Shaun King has the right to his views. First, I will show where I agree with Elaine Brown on and later, I will show where I disagree with her on. Now, I do agree with Elaine Brown that many Democratic establishment figures are warmongers. Also, we have Republican warmongers too. I agree with her that self defense units are legitimate especially in an age of massive police corruption and terrorism. I disagree with Elaine Brown that the BLM is just about hashtag activism. In many cases, some of the older generation omit the contributions of the younger generation. That is why some from the older generation must see that their work back then reflects on the current generation. The present is the fruit of the past. The BLM movement has created a concrete, explicit platform that shows their goals, their methods, and their strategies on how they desire to achieve their goals. The platform has research, and other forms of plans directly. The myth that the BLM (which explicitly calls for black self determination in its own document or platform) has no organized plan is just that, a myth.
Also, I disagree with her that BLM members collectively want to beg for change per se. Demanding change is different form begging. That is like saying that Dr. King and other civil rights heroes begged for the Civil Rights and the Voting Rights Act. The truth is that Dr. King, etc. demanded (not begged) that those Acts to be passed via protest, civil disobedience, and other forms of activism. Standing up for human rights is part and parcel of the progressive ideal. Many people want to attack progressive movements, because they want to promote a far right agenda that strips the rights of certain black people while creating a patriarchal, monarchical fiefdom for the black rich and the black upper middle class (to dominate the black masses), which is an agenda I oppose. BLM has organized many boycotts for economic reasons for a while now. It is another myth that the BLM has done nothing. Any social movement must be fairly critiqued, even the BLM. No movement is infallible. Also, it is important to recognize the accomplishments of the youth too like the following: 1. Bree Newsome inspired the Confederate flag to be eliminated in South Carolina on state capitol grounds.
2. BLM activists and other protesters caused the University of Missouri President to be resigned as a product of the racist actions in that campus.
3. The wider public has a more progressive analysis on the evils of the prison industrial complex, police brutality, and sexism as a product of youth activism.
4. Black students at the University of California prompted the school to pull out $30 million from prison investments.
Still, we have a very long way to go. There are massive differences among the Black Panther Party and BLM. The Black Panther Party more relied on self defense and an explicit condemnation of capitalism explicitly than the BLM. The BLM is a hybrid movement that combines the old school protests of the civil rights movement mixed with the emphasis on black humanity & black self determination (as in the Black Power movement). The BLM has strengths and weaknesses. Yet, the Black Lives Matter movement is not just showing hashtags. They are out in the streets daily organizing protests, organizing boycotts, working even in the local communities to address police terrorism & racial injustice. Therefore, the BLM are engaged. At the end of the day, we are black people. We may disagree on certain issues, but we should find some common ground in at least desiring the same goal. We want black people to have self determination and freedom. We want true expansion of black unity and we want the elimination of the system of racial oppression, so a real system of justice can exist in its place.
Donald Trump is the same male (not man) who still believes that the Central Park Five are guilty when they are innocent. That shows how he disrespects black people. I can never vote for a fraudulent charlatan like Trump. Trump has not advocated a condemnation of police terrorism, of systematic racism, of capitalist exploitation, and of xenophobic extremism. The reason is that many of his supporters are racists, sexists, and xenophobes. He doesn't believe in a public infrastructure plan to use public resources to rebuild American society by taxing Wall Street financial interests. He says nothing on enacting specific policies to end the mass incarceration state and advocate an expansion of voting rights (which is antithetical to the Voter ID law in North Carolina). Trump doesn't advocate for an increase of the federal minimum wage, which will give must needed income and economic resources to tons of black American families. Trump advocates the same right wing, bigoted populism as Alex Jones (as Alex Jones is one of his biggest supporters). Most African Americans won't vote for Trump, because we, as black people, have seen his act before from the George Wallace campaign of 1968 to the race baiting, Southern Strategy rhetoric of Ronald Reagan (during the 1980's). Therefore, I believe in racial and social justice forever. I won't show too much negativity here, but I have to get this off of my chest. I don't agree with Alex Jones. He has said some of the most slanderous, lying commentaries in our generation. Jones is known for his many false predictions, his excessive screaming, his disturbing (at times vulgar) language, and his lust for profit. We do know that some conspiracies have existed in the world like Operation Ajax and Operation Gleweitz. Yet, Alex Jones goes beyond showing legitimate conspiracies and uses massive xenophobia, he disrespects social justice activists, and his words about many black people are totally evil. Therefore, I don't agree with his agenda at all. Also, Alex Jones is a Trump supporter and Trump is known to disrespect women, minorities, and immigrants.
Yesterday was Ruby Dee's birthday. She passed away in 2014. She was 91 years old when she passed away and she lived a long life in service of the community. Her marriage to the late Ossie Davis was a stirring, strong example of Black Love too. Acting was in her blood. She was involved in acting during the 1940's and she historically made great contributions as a black woman from intellectual pursuits to social activism. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio and she was raised in Harlem. She loved New York City and NYC had people who were involved in the Harlem Renaissance and other social movements for change. She studied under the late WEB DuBois in Atlanta University. She had a brilliant mind and throughout the decades of her life, she promoted social justice. Ruby Dee was in the Jackie Robinson story movie from 1950. Rudy Dee opposed the McCartyite witch hunts, because they violated the freedom of speech and the freedom of human expression. She was involved in the civil rights movement and supported Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. She loved Ossie Davis with a special love. The couple also opposed the Vietnam War and stood up against police brutality. The majestic film of "Raisin in the Sun" included Ruby Dee. Ruby Dee also opposed the Iraq War. Her recent films just before she passed were about relevant topics from American Gangster to Video Girl (which also starred the great actress Meagan Good. That movie was about how women are readily exploited and mistreated in the music industry). A lifetime of service exemplifies her life. We honor her legacy by advocating for human justice and an unconditional love of Blackness. We also honor the union of Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis as their presentation of classic black films greatly inspired our community as a whole.
Rest in Power Sister Ruby Dee.
By Timothy
Also, I disagree with her that BLM members collectively want to beg for change per se. Demanding change is different form begging. That is like saying that Dr. King and other civil rights heroes begged for the Civil Rights and the Voting Rights Act. The truth is that Dr. King, etc. demanded (not begged) that those Acts to be passed via protest, civil disobedience, and other forms of activism. Standing up for human rights is part and parcel of the progressive ideal. Many people want to attack progressive movements, because they want to promote a far right agenda that strips the rights of certain black people while creating a patriarchal, monarchical fiefdom for the black rich and the black upper middle class (to dominate the black masses), which is an agenda I oppose. BLM has organized many boycotts for economic reasons for a while now. It is another myth that the BLM has done nothing. Any social movement must be fairly critiqued, even the BLM. No movement is infallible. Also, it is important to recognize the accomplishments of the youth too like the following: 1. Bree Newsome inspired the Confederate flag to be eliminated in South Carolina on state capitol grounds.
2. BLM activists and other protesters caused the University of Missouri President to be resigned as a product of the racist actions in that campus.
3. The wider public has a more progressive analysis on the evils of the prison industrial complex, police brutality, and sexism as a product of youth activism.
4. Black students at the University of California prompted the school to pull out $30 million from prison investments.
Still, we have a very long way to go. There are massive differences among the Black Panther Party and BLM. The Black Panther Party more relied on self defense and an explicit condemnation of capitalism explicitly than the BLM. The BLM is a hybrid movement that combines the old school protests of the civil rights movement mixed with the emphasis on black humanity & black self determination (as in the Black Power movement). The BLM has strengths and weaknesses. Yet, the Black Lives Matter movement is not just showing hashtags. They are out in the streets daily organizing protests, organizing boycotts, working even in the local communities to address police terrorism & racial injustice. Therefore, the BLM are engaged. At the end of the day, we are black people. We may disagree on certain issues, but we should find some common ground in at least desiring the same goal. We want black people to have self determination and freedom. We want true expansion of black unity and we want the elimination of the system of racial oppression, so a real system of justice can exist in its place.
Donald Trump is the same male (not man) who still believes that the Central Park Five are guilty when they are innocent. That shows how he disrespects black people. I can never vote for a fraudulent charlatan like Trump. Trump has not advocated a condemnation of police terrorism, of systematic racism, of capitalist exploitation, and of xenophobic extremism. The reason is that many of his supporters are racists, sexists, and xenophobes. He doesn't believe in a public infrastructure plan to use public resources to rebuild American society by taxing Wall Street financial interests. He says nothing on enacting specific policies to end the mass incarceration state and advocate an expansion of voting rights (which is antithetical to the Voter ID law in North Carolina). Trump doesn't advocate for an increase of the federal minimum wage, which will give must needed income and economic resources to tons of black American families. Trump advocates the same right wing, bigoted populism as Alex Jones (as Alex Jones is one of his biggest supporters). Most African Americans won't vote for Trump, because we, as black people, have seen his act before from the George Wallace campaign of 1968 to the race baiting, Southern Strategy rhetoric of Ronald Reagan (during the 1980's). Therefore, I believe in racial and social justice forever. I won't show too much negativity here, but I have to get this off of my chest. I don't agree with Alex Jones. He has said some of the most slanderous, lying commentaries in our generation. Jones is known for his many false predictions, his excessive screaming, his disturbing (at times vulgar) language, and his lust for profit. We do know that some conspiracies have existed in the world like Operation Ajax and Operation Gleweitz. Yet, Alex Jones goes beyond showing legitimate conspiracies and uses massive xenophobia, he disrespects social justice activists, and his words about many black people are totally evil. Therefore, I don't agree with his agenda at all. Also, Alex Jones is a Trump supporter and Trump is known to disrespect women, minorities, and immigrants.
Yesterday was Ruby Dee's birthday. She passed away in 2014. She was 91 years old when she passed away and she lived a long life in service of the community. Her marriage to the late Ossie Davis was a stirring, strong example of Black Love too. Acting was in her blood. She was involved in acting during the 1940's and she historically made great contributions as a black woman from intellectual pursuits to social activism. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio and she was raised in Harlem. She loved New York City and NYC had people who were involved in the Harlem Renaissance and other social movements for change. She studied under the late WEB DuBois in Atlanta University. She had a brilliant mind and throughout the decades of her life, she promoted social justice. Ruby Dee was in the Jackie Robinson story movie from 1950. Rudy Dee opposed the McCartyite witch hunts, because they violated the freedom of speech and the freedom of human expression. She was involved in the civil rights movement and supported Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. She loved Ossie Davis with a special love. The couple also opposed the Vietnam War and stood up against police brutality. The majestic film of "Raisin in the Sun" included Ruby Dee. Ruby Dee also opposed the Iraq War. Her recent films just before she passed were about relevant topics from American Gangster to Video Girl (which also starred the great actress Meagan Good. That movie was about how women are readily exploited and mistreated in the music industry). A lifetime of service exemplifies her life. We honor her legacy by advocating for human justice and an unconditional love of Blackness. We also honor the union of Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis as their presentation of classic black films greatly inspired our community as a whole.
Rest in Power Sister Ruby Dee.
By Timothy
Thursday, October 27, 2016
More News
https://www.dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/black-lives-matter-minneapolis-symbolic-demands-winning
http://isreview.org/issue/96/black-lives-matter
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/11-big-accomplishments-black-activists-achieved-in-2015_us_567996bae4b0b958f6583320
http://www.democracynow.org/2016/10/21/shaun_king_black_lives_matter_is
http://urbanintellectuals.com/2015/12/06/racist-police-alabama-planted-drugs-guns-1000-innocent-black-men/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/305681893432230772/
http://isreview.org/issue/96/black-lives-matter
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/11-big-accomplishments-black-activists-achieved-in-2015_us_567996bae4b0b958f6583320
http://www.democracynow.org/2016/10/21/shaun_king_black_lives_matter_is
http://urbanintellectuals.com/2015/12/06/racist-police-alabama-planted-drugs-guns-1000-innocent-black-men/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/305681893432230772/
More News
https://blackmattersus.com/18623-weak-apology-for-racist-jokes-star-black-female-kicker-compared-to-gorilla/?utm_source=service_worker&utm_medium=push&utm_campaign=push20160408
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2015/10/black-lives-matter-teach-for-america/
http://blackagendareport.com/organizing_in_age_of_hillary
http://atlantablackstar.com/2016/10/24/kansas-parents-fuming-middle-school-teacher-told-children-white-people-superior/?utm_content=buffer06d5b&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
More News
http://urbanintellectuals.com/2015/08/21/here-are-35-black-farmers-in-the-united-states-will-you-shop-with-them-over-walmart-whole-foods/
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/23/14646977-louisiana-woman-set-on-fire-kkk-smeared-on-her-car-police-say
http://www.kolumnmagazine.com/2016/10/26/ive-reporting-race-40-years-can-ever-fix-whats-broken/
http://kentakepage.com/ahmed-baba/
https://socialistworker.org/2016/10/25/whos-going-to-be-the-lesser-evil-in-1968
https://www.facebook.com/museicallyspeaking/posts/10157582688565623
Standing up for What's Right
Many conservatives always genuflect Clarence Thomas. The truth is that Clarence Thomas not only opposed affirmative action. He supported a decision to gut parts of the Voting Rights Act. That is omitted by that far right group which seeks to include him in the museum in a more elaborate emphasis. The truth is that Clarence Thomas is a hypocrite by benefiting from affirmative action, but he opposes it. He claims to be supportive of the interests of the people, but he was an attorney with the Monsanto Chemical Company in St. Louis, Missouri. In cases regarding the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures, Thomas often favors police over defendants. I don't respect him, but I do believe that he should have a greater mention in the museum because of historical reasons (not because I support his agenda, which I don't). Thomas is an ally of many white conservatives who desire not black liberation or even economic justice, but a return to the bad old days where environmental protections are gutted and the agenda of states' rights (which white supremacists used to oppress black people) are promoted over human rights. He should be mentioned to make the point that he represents a far right movement among some black people who desire the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, the ignoring of the necessity to fight for social justice, and the right wing backlash against the progressive victories that we won (these victories include Social Security, the Voting Rights Act, the Civil Rights Act, the Clean Air Act, Medicaid, Medicare, etc.). Clarence Thomas should be mentioned as a warning about what we shouldn't do in this life. The thing is that these extremists try to guilt trip us into believing that we're wrong, but we're not wrong to stand up for civil rights. We are not wrong to stand up for gender justice and environmental protections. We are not wrong in advocating for voting rights. We are definitely not wrong to advocate for black liberation too.
It is always vitally important to recognize excellence in our community. Dr. Andrea Hayes-Jordan is a great pediatric surgeon. She loves Texas and she has worked in Texas hospitals for years. A lot of great people live in Texas too. You know who you are. :) She is a graduate of Dartmouth College and Medical School. She is also one of the few pediatric surgical oncologists in the nation. For a long time, she has worked to help humanity. She has dedicated her life to find cures and she has helped children in order for her to improve their health (or standard of living). She is working in Houston, Texas. She always promotes education, excellence, and a due diligence, which will concretely including progressively impact the lives of other human beings. Her story makes the point clear that in this life, it is important on how we change society positively, how we love human dignity, and how we engage in the social parameters of the world order. She is the living example of how we are our Sisters’ keeper. We are also our Brothers’ keeper too. I do believe that life has a purpose and we have the audacious opportunity to fulfill our purpose in the realm of sacrifice, of love, and of the growth of human consciousness in order for us to establish a better society. I honor Dr. Andrea Hayes-Jordan’s life and her legacy, which will continue to inspire us forever more. Sister Dr. Alexa Canady is a history maker. She was born in Lansing, Michigan. Her love of education is inspirational and she worked hard to achieve magnificent accomplishments. For long decades, she has helped children throughout America. She was the first African American woman to become a neurosurgeon when she completed her residency at the University of Minnesota in 1981. Dr. Canady is an inspiration for anyone seeking to better themselves and anyone who desires their dreams to be fulfilled.
This is a very inspirational story. First, this rally is about teachers, students, and activists respecting the lives of black people involving education. Many black children are unfairly suspended, given lax opportunities, and are mistreated in the classroom. This rally in Seattle wanted not only solidarity among black students, but it existed to enact the necessary changes to address issues in education. We believe in social justice and we are unapologetic about it. We believe in tolerance and equality and we mean it. That means that black children in any school (regardless if it's public or private) should be taught about real black history, about STEM fields, and they should be treated fairly and equitably in the world. Jesse Hagopian and other activists want an anti-racism curricula in the Seattle schools. I read about this movement too. Counselors, paraprofessionals, nurses, instructional assistants, librarians and other educators have been involved in this audacious situation. Many people wore T-shirts with "SayHerName" words on them which wants to make the point that we should remember the lives of black women being killed unjustly by the police too. Racial and class discrimination exist in housing, education, the criminal justice system, and other facets of society. Therefore, we must continue to fight for progressive change. We not only want education for children to be affordable, strong, and filled with 21st century resources. We want schools to have policies that advance anti-racism and pro-social justice policies. Black Lives Matter. It is a very sad story. Renee Davis died by being shot and killed by the police. First, it is right to send prayers and condolences to the family and friends of Renee Davis. Those, with mental illness, are some of the most degraded and disrespected people in the world. We know about racial bias and other biases that many cops have, which can and have effect their decision making processes. This story certainly makes the point clear that police departments should have more awareness of mental health. Each situation of a mentally ill person is different and all of them don't deserved to be shot to death. Also, this was a pregnant woman and we all desire an independent investigation to find as much facts as possible. We should say her name. I don't believe that cops should be called for anyone with mental health issues unless in specific circumstances (or during the absolute last option available with people specifically trained to deal with mentally ill human beings). I only wished that professional and health care experts came to her before the cops came. In that since, it could be a possibility that her life could be saved.
#Say Her Name.
I watched this documentary called America Divided on Epix and it showed a lot of information. It showed information about immigration and about how even documented immigrants face hurdles in fighting for their rights. Undocumented immigrants also are scapegoated unfairly, mistreated, and abused of their human rights too. It looked at North Carolina and how its present governor have enacted a far right agenda in cutting services and promoting a bad voter ID law. There are many courageous activists in North Carolina who are fighting fro environmental justice, voting rights, and human rights as the documentary has shown. It dealt with the drug crisis in Dayton, Ohio (which experienced deindustralization and other economic issues for decades). It focused on police brutality and issues that black people care about too. It was wide reaching, comprehensive in content, and it made me think about many issues. Also, we believe in growing. Growing revolves around learning information. It is also about inspiring people. Without us treating each other as human beings, then nothing constructive will get done. That is why one secret out of life is to be introspective in life and to place yourself in other people's shoes. Not to mention doing something about things is important as well. That is why people now are involved in charities, community development programs, fitness programs, educational movements, grassroots organizing against injustice, and other positive actions to help humanity. Also, we honor courage. We honor Kaepernick's actions. We honor Assata Shakur's wisdom and we honor Malcolm X's heroism too. We believe in respecting the concepts of family and community. Therefore, I encourage everyone to keep on fighting for truth and to continue to live your lives in a positive, glorious direction.
This is a story (of white racist students putting a noose around the neck of a black student) that will make anyone disgusted at injustice. This happened in Mississippi. Some of the most vicious anti-black violence by terrorists were conducted in that state. Massive racism still transpires in Mississippi. Also, racism is not just limited in one state. It is found all across America and throughout the world. We should also recognize the freedom fighters in Mississippi who fought for civil rights and human rights like Medgar Evers, who was born and raised in Mississippi. He spoke out and stood up against racial intolerance. To this very day, Evers' wife and children have fought for human equality and freedom for black people. Freedom Summer (which is about activists fighting for educational, voting, and social rights for black people in the Deep South) was in Mississippi and Fannie Lou Hamer is from Mississippi too. So, we have to recognize our Black Brothers and our Black Sisters from Mississippi making great contributions in the overall freedom struggle. The school in this case has utilize disgraceful conduct. Those, who committed the evil act, are not expelled. The victim has not received true justice. Hate crime charges ought to be filed. No white racist so far has been charged, which is abysmally an affront to black people and all freedom loving people. We shouldn't tolerate the status quo. We are opposed to white racism and any injustice. We make it clear here in this time that we will stand up for our human rights and we will fight bigotry and evil deeds by any means necessary. The racist white students should be punished. We are clear on that. We do this for our people, for our ancestors, and for our descendants. I hope that the victim and his family receives true justice.
This fight a'int easy, but right is on our side.
By Timothy
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Monday, October 24, 2016
Information
http://www.glamour.com/story/burn-survivor-shalom-blac-makeup-tutorials-youtube
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/brazilian-beauty-queen-says-she-was-dethroned-for-being-too-black_us_56be13b6e4b08ffac124e66e
http://urbanintellectuals.com/2016/05/26/laundry-detergent-created-african-americans-making-huge-strides/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/brazilian-beauty-queen-says-she-was-dethroned-for-being-too-black_us_56be13b6e4b08ffac124e66e
http://urbanintellectuals.com/2016/05/26/laundry-detergent-created-african-americans-making-huge-strides/
Never Forget
The Progressive Era existed in Denver during the early 20th century. There was the Efficiency Movement that occurred in 1902 when the city and Denver County were made in coexistence. Robert W. Speer was elected Denver mayor in 1904. He started many projects that added new landmarks, updated existing facilities, and improved the city’s landscape including the City Auditorium, the Civic Center, and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. City leaders came into Washington, D.C. They assured the politicians there that Denver was no longer a frontier town, so they secured the first major party convention in a western state, which was the 1908 Democratic National Convention. Denver back then also pioneered the juvenile court movement under Judge Ben Lindsey. He gained national fame for his efforts. With his efforts, an act was passed to create a juvenile court in Denver. This was a new development in America as it relates to children and the court system. Emily Griffith in 1914 opened the Opportunity School. She was a Denver school teacher. The Opportunity School had language and vocational instruction. It also had both day classes and night classes, so nontraditional learners should have the opportunity for self-improvement. During this time, Denver’s park system was expanded. Land in the mountains was acquired for a future mountain park system. Cattle pens began to develop around the existing railroad depots as farmers began shipping their livestock to the existing meat packing industry in Kansas City and Chicago. Local ranchers wanted to concentrate on raising cattle rather than the logistics of shipping them east and in 1906 the first National Western Stock Show was held which quickly became the preeminent livestock show in the region. These events helped raise the national profile of Denver and live up to its nickname, the "Queen City of the Plains."
Labor unions were also active in Denver. There were construction and printing crafts affiliated with the AFL or the American Federation of Labor. There were railroad brotherhoods there as well. After being welcomed at the 1908 Democratic National Convention, the AFL unions, who formed the Denver Trades and Labor Assembly, generally supported Democratic candidates. In early 1913, members of the Industrial Workers of the World (or the Wobblies) conducted a free speech fight in Denver. The deal was that city authorities refused to allow IWW organizers to speak to people on street corners. Union members challenged this policy. They aimed to even fill the jails to put pressure on city leaders. This Wobbly tactics, which they had employed successfully for half a decade throughout the North and West, clogged the courts so they couldn't handle anything but free speech cases. Taxpayers complained that they were being forced to feed "whole armies of jailed Wobblies." In her autobiography, Emma Goldman wrote of twenty-seven IWW members, arrested during the Denver free speech fight, who were "tortured in the sweat-box for refusing to work on the rock-pile. On their release they marched through the streets with banners and songs..." The union eventually won the right to speak to workers, and within a year had formed two Denver "branches." On the brink of World War I, Denver mirrored the rest of the nation in wanting to stay neutral. But once America entered the war in 1917, Denver contributed what it could to the war effort. Clothing and supplies were donated, children enrolled in agricultural and garden clubs to free up young men for the war, and mining and agricultural interests were expanded to support the troops and the nation. As prices for goods rose with the demand from the war effort farmers began planting crops in greater numbers and mining companies opened new mines for molybdenum, vanadium, and tungsten. During WWI, anti-German sentiment was very high in Denver, because the United States was fighting Germans in Europe.
Before the war Germans had been a very prosperous immigrant group, who often congregated in their own ethnic clubs. They had enough political clout to have a law passed in 1877 that required German and gymnastics be taught in public schools, and until 1889 all of Colorado's laws were printed in English, Spanish, and German. The Germans built churches and owned interests in mining and agriculture, but many in the temperance movement primarily associated them with the production and consumption of alcohol. Believing all evil began with the drink, prohibitionists cracked down on what they considered "un-American" activity. In 1916, alcohol was banned in the state. Many saloon owners and brewers lost their jobs and with the outbreak of World War I, many others were fired and ostracized. German stopped being taught in schools and many Germans abandoned their heritage to avoid conflicts. Many individuals within the prohibition movement associated the crime and morally corrupt behavior of the cities of America with their large immigrant populations. That xenophobic, racist rhetoric is similar to the views of Donald Trump. In a backlash to the new emerging realities of the American demographic, many prohibitionists subscribed to the doctrine of “nativism” in which they endorsed the notion that America was made great as a result of its white Anglo-Saxon ancestry. In other words, these bigots wanted to promote the myth of white racial supremacy. The original people of America weren't Anglo-Saxons, but Native Americans. Not to mention that many of the Anglo-Saxons intermarried with the Picts, the Celts, etc. in the UK. This hate rhetoric from the nativists fostered xenophobic sentiments towards urban immigrant communities who typically argued in favor of abolishing prohibition. These sentiments led many in Denver to join the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) both because it opposed foreign immigration and because it defended prohibition. The Klan is an evil, racist terrorist organization that has murdered and raped black people. Roman Catholic immigrants, particularly of Irish or Italian descent, were often the target of KKK discrimination. These communities gradually became Americanized, and the KKK quickly lost influence especially during KKK member Clarence Morley's term as governor from 1925-1927. As Prohibition lingered on many citizens saw the negative effects: toxic bootleg liquor, corruption, bribery, and binge drinking. Colorado voters suspended the state’s Prohibition laws on July 1, 1933. While white racism and discrimination against a new wave of Mexican and African-American immigrants persisted, the KKK decreased its overt visibility in Colorado politics.
It is always important to never forget. We should never forget about the Maafa and the international slave trade in which evil people murdered millions of innocent black men, black women, and black children. These evils were created by Western capitalist extremists and racists. Capitalism was definitely used in the Maafa. We should never forget about the New York City massacre Riot (July 13–16, 1863). The exact death toll during the New York Draft Riots is unknown. At least 120 people were killed. In all, eleven black men were lynched over five days. The riots forced hundreds of blacks to flee the city of NYC. Violence by longshoremen against black men was especially fierce in the docks area. The New Orleans riot, which occurred on July 30, 1866, was a violent conflict in which whites attacked blacks parading outside the Mechanics Institute in New Orleans. There were a total of 150 black casualties including 44 killed. The Memphis, Tennessee riots of 1866 were the violent events that occurred from May 1 to 3, 1866. 646 blacks and 2 whites were killed, 75 blacks injured, over 100 black persons robbed, and 5 black women were raped. 91 homes, 4 churches and 8 schools burned in the black community of New Orleans. Many blacks fled the city permanently. On, September 28, 1868, there was the Opelousas massacre. This was when bands of armed whites scoured the countryside and killed black people in what was described as a “Negro hunt”. It is estimated that 200 blacks were killed in the fields and swamps surrounding Opelousas, Louisiana. Meridian, Mississippi had its race riot of 1871. In the ensuing mob violence, whites killed as many as 30 blacks over the next few days. Colfax massacre occurred on Easter Sunday, April 13, 1873, in Colfax, Louisiana. Estimates of the number of dead have varied, ranging from 62 to 150. Yet, the number of black victims was difficult to determine because bodies had been thrown into the river or removed for burial. The Vicksburg massacre happened on December 7, 1874. This was when armed white men disrupted a black Republican meeting. During the next several days, armed white mobs swept through black areas, killing other men at home or out in the fields. Estimates that 300 blacks were killed in the city and the surrounding area of Claiborne County. August 1874: Coushatta massacre was the result of an attack by the White League, a paramilitary organization 20 freedmen were killed. On September 4, 1875, in the city of Clinton, Mississippi, it experienced a traumatic event. Violence began at a Republican political rally attended primarily by freedmen and their families. After several days of racial violence, as many as fifty people were killed, most of whom were African American men. November 22, 1887 was the date of the start of the Thibodaux, Lousiana massacre. It was a violent labor dispute and racial attack by whites against black sugar-cane workers which led to the mass killing of an estimated 50 African Americans. November 10, 1898 was when the Wilmington, North Carolina massacre continued for several days. There was a mob of nearly 2,000 white men and they attacked the only black newspaper in the state, and persons and property in black neighborhoods. They killed an estimated 15 to more than 60 victims, and destroying homes and businesses built up since the Civil War. On October 1906, there was the Little Rock, Arkansas incident. It started after a white police officer in Argenta (North Little Rock) killed a black musician, and another black person was killed. Racial tensions rose with exchange of gunfire, resulting in half a block of commercial buildings on East Washington Avenue burned down, two African-American residences went up in flames, and scores of black families temporarily left the city as armed men roamed the streets. Buildings were burned down.
The Atlanta race riot of 1906 was a mass civil disturbance in Atlanta, Georgia which began the evening of September 22 and lasted until September 24, 1906. The death toll of the conflict is to this day unknown and disputed, but "officially" at least 25 African Americans were killed. The East St. Louis, riots of May and July 1917 were when some 3,000 white men marched into downtown and began attacking African Americans. Death toll estimated between 40 and 200 deaths six thousand blacks were left homeless after their neighborhood was burned to the ground. The Chicago race riot was a major racial conflict that began on July 27, 1919 and ended on August 3. During the riot, 23 African Americans were killed and over five hundred were injured two-thirds of them African Americans. Approximately 1,000 residents, mostly African Americans, were left homeless because of the fires. The combination of prolonged arson, looting, and murder was the worst race rioting in the history of Illinois. The Elaine, Arkansas massacre, took place on September 30-October 1, 1919 in the vicinity of Elaine in rural Phillips County, Arkansas. Over a three-day period, an estimated 100-240 blacks, with some estimates of more than 800 blacks killed, it was the deadliest racial conflict in United States history. Tulsa, Oklahoma massacre was a large-scale, racially motivated conflict on May 31 and June 1, 1921, in which a group of whites attacked the black community of Greenwood, the wealthiest black community in the United States was burned to the ground, police arrested and detained more than 6,000 black Greenwood residents at three local facilities. An estimated 10,000 blacks were left homeless, and 35 city blocks composed of 1,256 residences were destroyed by fire, resulting in over $26 million in damages. The official count of the dead vary from 150-300 cause there was a rush to bury the bodies and that no records were made of many burials. Rosewood massacre was a violent, racially motivated massacre of blacks and destruction of a black town that took place during the first week of January 1923 in rural Levy County, Florida. As many as 150 African Americans people were killed and the town of Rosewood was abandoned and destroyed. On May 1927, in Little Rock, Arkansas, there was the lynching of John Carter, a suspect in a murder, was followed by rioting by 5,000 whites in the city, who destroyed a black business area. The Detroit race riot broke out in June 1943, and lasted for three days before 6,000 Federal troops were called in to restore peace. A total of 34 people were killed, 25 of them black and most at the hands of police or guardsmen; 433 were wounded, 75 percent of them black; and property valued at $2 million was destroyed, Most of the property damage was in the black area of Paradise Valley, the poorest neighborhood of the city. Therefore, we will not get over a single thing. Jewish people rightfully never forget the Holocaust and the pogroms. We won't forget the Maafa either.
Labor unions were also active in Denver. There were construction and printing crafts affiliated with the AFL or the American Federation of Labor. There were railroad brotherhoods there as well. After being welcomed at the 1908 Democratic National Convention, the AFL unions, who formed the Denver Trades and Labor Assembly, generally supported Democratic candidates. In early 1913, members of the Industrial Workers of the World (or the Wobblies) conducted a free speech fight in Denver. The deal was that city authorities refused to allow IWW organizers to speak to people on street corners. Union members challenged this policy. They aimed to even fill the jails to put pressure on city leaders. This Wobbly tactics, which they had employed successfully for half a decade throughout the North and West, clogged the courts so they couldn't handle anything but free speech cases. Taxpayers complained that they were being forced to feed "whole armies of jailed Wobblies." In her autobiography, Emma Goldman wrote of twenty-seven IWW members, arrested during the Denver free speech fight, who were "tortured in the sweat-box for refusing to work on the rock-pile. On their release they marched through the streets with banners and songs..." The union eventually won the right to speak to workers, and within a year had formed two Denver "branches." On the brink of World War I, Denver mirrored the rest of the nation in wanting to stay neutral. But once America entered the war in 1917, Denver contributed what it could to the war effort. Clothing and supplies were donated, children enrolled in agricultural and garden clubs to free up young men for the war, and mining and agricultural interests were expanded to support the troops and the nation. As prices for goods rose with the demand from the war effort farmers began planting crops in greater numbers and mining companies opened new mines for molybdenum, vanadium, and tungsten. During WWI, anti-German sentiment was very high in Denver, because the United States was fighting Germans in Europe.
Before the war Germans had been a very prosperous immigrant group, who often congregated in their own ethnic clubs. They had enough political clout to have a law passed in 1877 that required German and gymnastics be taught in public schools, and until 1889 all of Colorado's laws were printed in English, Spanish, and German. The Germans built churches and owned interests in mining and agriculture, but many in the temperance movement primarily associated them with the production and consumption of alcohol. Believing all evil began with the drink, prohibitionists cracked down on what they considered "un-American" activity. In 1916, alcohol was banned in the state. Many saloon owners and brewers lost their jobs and with the outbreak of World War I, many others were fired and ostracized. German stopped being taught in schools and many Germans abandoned their heritage to avoid conflicts. Many individuals within the prohibition movement associated the crime and morally corrupt behavior of the cities of America with their large immigrant populations. That xenophobic, racist rhetoric is similar to the views of Donald Trump. In a backlash to the new emerging realities of the American demographic, many prohibitionists subscribed to the doctrine of “nativism” in which they endorsed the notion that America was made great as a result of its white Anglo-Saxon ancestry. In other words, these bigots wanted to promote the myth of white racial supremacy. The original people of America weren't Anglo-Saxons, but Native Americans. Not to mention that many of the Anglo-Saxons intermarried with the Picts, the Celts, etc. in the UK. This hate rhetoric from the nativists fostered xenophobic sentiments towards urban immigrant communities who typically argued in favor of abolishing prohibition. These sentiments led many in Denver to join the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) both because it opposed foreign immigration and because it defended prohibition. The Klan is an evil, racist terrorist organization that has murdered and raped black people. Roman Catholic immigrants, particularly of Irish or Italian descent, were often the target of KKK discrimination. These communities gradually became Americanized, and the KKK quickly lost influence especially during KKK member Clarence Morley's term as governor from 1925-1927. As Prohibition lingered on many citizens saw the negative effects: toxic bootleg liquor, corruption, bribery, and binge drinking. Colorado voters suspended the state’s Prohibition laws on July 1, 1933. While white racism and discrimination against a new wave of Mexican and African-American immigrants persisted, the KKK decreased its overt visibility in Colorado politics.
It is always important to never forget. We should never forget about the Maafa and the international slave trade in which evil people murdered millions of innocent black men, black women, and black children. These evils were created by Western capitalist extremists and racists. Capitalism was definitely used in the Maafa. We should never forget about the New York City massacre Riot (July 13–16, 1863). The exact death toll during the New York Draft Riots is unknown. At least 120 people were killed. In all, eleven black men were lynched over five days. The riots forced hundreds of blacks to flee the city of NYC. Violence by longshoremen against black men was especially fierce in the docks area. The New Orleans riot, which occurred on July 30, 1866, was a violent conflict in which whites attacked blacks parading outside the Mechanics Institute in New Orleans. There were a total of 150 black casualties including 44 killed. The Memphis, Tennessee riots of 1866 were the violent events that occurred from May 1 to 3, 1866. 646 blacks and 2 whites were killed, 75 blacks injured, over 100 black persons robbed, and 5 black women were raped. 91 homes, 4 churches and 8 schools burned in the black community of New Orleans. Many blacks fled the city permanently. On, September 28, 1868, there was the Opelousas massacre. This was when bands of armed whites scoured the countryside and killed black people in what was described as a “Negro hunt”. It is estimated that 200 blacks were killed in the fields and swamps surrounding Opelousas, Louisiana. Meridian, Mississippi had its race riot of 1871. In the ensuing mob violence, whites killed as many as 30 blacks over the next few days. Colfax massacre occurred on Easter Sunday, April 13, 1873, in Colfax, Louisiana. Estimates of the number of dead have varied, ranging from 62 to 150. Yet, the number of black victims was difficult to determine because bodies had been thrown into the river or removed for burial. The Vicksburg massacre happened on December 7, 1874. This was when armed white men disrupted a black Republican meeting. During the next several days, armed white mobs swept through black areas, killing other men at home or out in the fields. Estimates that 300 blacks were killed in the city and the surrounding area of Claiborne County. August 1874: Coushatta massacre was the result of an attack by the White League, a paramilitary organization 20 freedmen were killed. On September 4, 1875, in the city of Clinton, Mississippi, it experienced a traumatic event. Violence began at a Republican political rally attended primarily by freedmen and their families. After several days of racial violence, as many as fifty people were killed, most of whom were African American men. November 22, 1887 was the date of the start of the Thibodaux, Lousiana massacre. It was a violent labor dispute and racial attack by whites against black sugar-cane workers which led to the mass killing of an estimated 50 African Americans. November 10, 1898 was when the Wilmington, North Carolina massacre continued for several days. There was a mob of nearly 2,000 white men and they attacked the only black newspaper in the state, and persons and property in black neighborhoods. They killed an estimated 15 to more than 60 victims, and destroying homes and businesses built up since the Civil War. On October 1906, there was the Little Rock, Arkansas incident. It started after a white police officer in Argenta (North Little Rock) killed a black musician, and another black person was killed. Racial tensions rose with exchange of gunfire, resulting in half a block of commercial buildings on East Washington Avenue burned down, two African-American residences went up in flames, and scores of black families temporarily left the city as armed men roamed the streets. Buildings were burned down.
The Atlanta race riot of 1906 was a mass civil disturbance in Atlanta, Georgia which began the evening of September 22 and lasted until September 24, 1906. The death toll of the conflict is to this day unknown and disputed, but "officially" at least 25 African Americans were killed. The East St. Louis, riots of May and July 1917 were when some 3,000 white men marched into downtown and began attacking African Americans. Death toll estimated between 40 and 200 deaths six thousand blacks were left homeless after their neighborhood was burned to the ground. The Chicago race riot was a major racial conflict that began on July 27, 1919 and ended on August 3. During the riot, 23 African Americans were killed and over five hundred were injured two-thirds of them African Americans. Approximately 1,000 residents, mostly African Americans, were left homeless because of the fires. The combination of prolonged arson, looting, and murder was the worst race rioting in the history of Illinois. The Elaine, Arkansas massacre, took place on September 30-October 1, 1919 in the vicinity of Elaine in rural Phillips County, Arkansas. Over a three-day period, an estimated 100-240 blacks, with some estimates of more than 800 blacks killed, it was the deadliest racial conflict in United States history. Tulsa, Oklahoma massacre was a large-scale, racially motivated conflict on May 31 and June 1, 1921, in which a group of whites attacked the black community of Greenwood, the wealthiest black community in the United States was burned to the ground, police arrested and detained more than 6,000 black Greenwood residents at three local facilities. An estimated 10,000 blacks were left homeless, and 35 city blocks composed of 1,256 residences were destroyed by fire, resulting in over $26 million in damages. The official count of the dead vary from 150-300 cause there was a rush to bury the bodies and that no records were made of many burials. Rosewood massacre was a violent, racially motivated massacre of blacks and destruction of a black town that took place during the first week of January 1923 in rural Levy County, Florida. As many as 150 African Americans people were killed and the town of Rosewood was abandoned and destroyed. On May 1927, in Little Rock, Arkansas, there was the lynching of John Carter, a suspect in a murder, was followed by rioting by 5,000 whites in the city, who destroyed a black business area. The Detroit race riot broke out in June 1943, and lasted for three days before 6,000 Federal troops were called in to restore peace. A total of 34 people were killed, 25 of them black and most at the hands of police or guardsmen; 433 were wounded, 75 percent of them black; and property valued at $2 million was destroyed, Most of the property damage was in the black area of Paradise Valley, the poorest neighborhood of the city. Therefore, we will not get over a single thing. Jewish people rightfully never forget the Holocaust and the pogroms. We won't forget the Maafa either.
By Timothy
Sunday, October 23, 2016
Timeline of Pan-Africanism
http://www.blackpast.org/tree/Pan+Africanism/Pan+Africanism
http://www.sahistory.org.za/topic/pan-africanist-congress-timeline-1959-2011
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-Africanism
https://socialistworker.org/2012/10/05/origins-of-pan-africanism
http://www.africanstudies.org/blog/117-may-2014/359-looking-back-into-the-future-civil-rights-and-pan-africanism-in-a-marginalised-world
http://socialistworker.org.socialistworker.org/series/The-history-of-black-america?page=2&quicktabs_sw-recent-articles=9-22
http://www.sahistory.org.za/topic/pan-africanist-congress-timeline-1959-2011
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-Africanism
https://socialistworker.org/2012/10/05/origins-of-pan-africanism
http://www.africanstudies.org/blog/117-may-2014/359-looking-back-into-the-future-civil-rights-and-pan-africanism-in-a-marginalised-world
http://socialistworker.org.socialistworker.org/series/The-history-of-black-america?page=2&quicktabs_sw-recent-articles=9-22
Saturday, October 22, 2016
News
http://atlantablackstar.com/2014/10/24/10-african-kingdoms-no-one-talks-about-but-should/
http://www.conspiracyarchive.com/2015/04/18/owl-of-wisdom-illuminati-bohemian-club-schlaraffia-james-gordon-bennett-jr/
https://blackmattersus.com/18475-racism-in-america-journalist-bullied-at-the-street/?utm_source=service_worker&utm_medium=push&utm_campaign=push20160408
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/458382068298592055/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3H978KlR20
Vindication for Press Freedom as Charges Dropped Against Journalist Amy Goodman
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/10/17/vindication-press-freedom-charges-dropped-against-journalist-amy-goodman
http://www.democracynow.org/2016/10/18/victory_for_press_freedom_amy_goodman
http://www.colorlines.com/articles/charges-dropped-against-amy-goodman-covering-dapl
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2016/10/amy-goodman-dakota-access-pipeline-press-freedom
http://fair.org/home/charges-dropped-against-amy-goodman-no-thanks-to-corporate-media/
http://www.democracynow.org/2016/10/18/victory_for_press_freedom_amy_goodman
http://www.colorlines.com/articles/charges-dropped-against-amy-goodman-covering-dapl
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2016/10/amy-goodman-dakota-access-pipeline-press-freedom
http://fair.org/home/charges-dropped-against-amy-goodman-no-thanks-to-corporate-media/
Friday, October 21, 2016
Friday News
I saw the final debate and here are my thoughts. This debate was about the issue of the Supreme Court first. Chris Wallace wanted each candidate to discuss about details. This debates documents how a male bigot with mediocre intellect is showing deception. I'm not a strict constructionist. I believe that the Constitution can evolve to right wrongs and get rid of imperfections. That is why it was wrong for the Constitution to call black people 3/5s of a person centuries ago. Hillary Clinton opposed Citizens United. Trump wants the Supreme Court to reflect a far right agenda. Trump's voice sounded hoarse in this debate. He is clear that his justices that he promotes will be similar to the extremist Scalia. The Founders were never infallible, so the Constitution should evolve to suit the times and reflect egalitarian principles. Trump talks about the Second Amendment when even the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment can have reasonable restrictions on it. I believe in the Second Amendment, but I also believe in sensible regulations to it. They disagreed on abortion, which is an issue that has been debated for a long time. The debate tuned into immigration. Trump lied and said that Hillary wants amnesty. He omits that undocumented immigration has declined in the past few years. Hillary Clinton said that she doesn't want children to be punished. She believes in border security and wants comprehensive immigration reform. Therefore, even on immigration, Hillary Clinton is not completely progressive on the immigration issue. Donald Trump wants a large wall along the United States border, which will not work. Trump lied and claimed that his opponent wants amnesty, but he exploited undocumented workers for years. Workers (whether undocumented or not) deserve to be treated with dignity and with respect. The debate moved into Russia and Putin. Later, the debate came into the economy.
Hillary Clinton wants an economic plan to deal with clean energy, infrastructure, helping the middle class, helping the small business, and increasing the national minimum wage. Trump wants great tax cuts for the wealthy. He wants to renegotiate trade deals and he omits that the deficit has declined by 2/3s since 2009. The deficit increased under Reagan and George W. Bush. The economy isn't where it should be, but tricked down economics is not the answer. We need investments, the super wealthy to pay their fair share of taxes, and other programs. I don't agree with NAFTA. Trump is despicable to blame Hillary for the victims of sexual abuse and for the protesters in Trump rallies (when Trump advocated violence against protesters). Trump is known to degrade women. Trump talked about emails and Hillary and he ignores his Trump University corruption. The debate came into the imperfections of the Clinton and Trump Foundations. Undocumented immigrants pay more federal income taxes than Donald Trump. Trump lied about voting fraud when voter fraud isn't found in a majority of voting machines. Trump refuses to say if he will accept the election results. Trump is a liar since ISIS has decreased its power in Iraq, Mosul is being attacked, and the Iranian nuclear deal doesn't mean that Iran has a nuclear weapon. The last part of the debate was about the national debt. Hillary Clinton's ties to Wall Street and militarist policies must be known too. It seems that Chris Wallace is a deficit hawk with his words on the debt and social programs. Trump told the lie that inner cities have no jobs and no education. Trump said that Hillary was a nasty woman in the debate, which was cruel. Trump interrupted in a lot of times. Hillary Clinton wanted to send money into the Social Security trust fund. Both gave closing statements and it's over. Hillary Clinton won the debate. This doesn't mean I worship Hillary Clinton. The debate didn't show information about racial justice, climate change, police brutality, I believe in political independence.
We are not shocked at this. Donald Trump is a sexist bigot. For years, he has disrespected black people, women, immigrants, Muslims, etc. His misogyny is abhorrent. His lies are apparent and his agenda is wicked. I don't support Trump at all. He believes in a xenophobic nationalism that promotes fear mongering, a lack of intellectual curiosity, and blatant hypocrisy. He calls this election as rigged, but his Trump University is rigged which harmed people. That is why people have brought up lawsuits against Trump University. Tocarra Jones is a beautiful black woman. She is deserving of respect and dignity. Trump is just plain wrong. I know many black people support him for many reasons. Just because some black people support him doesn't mean that Trump respects black people. Obviously, he doesn't respect black people by claiming that the Central Park Five as guilty, but it has been proven that they are innocent. It is inexcusable for Donald Trump to disrespect a black woman period. His anemic performances at the debate document his mediocrity and extremism. It is inexcusable also for Trump to support adultery and sexual assault in a tape period. Anybody supporting Trump is just plain wrong. We will fight for justice.
Today is Friday. Enjoy your Day everyone. Also, we acknowledge the independence of Haiti. In 1804, heroic Haitian Brothers and Sisters defeated the English, the French, and other imperialists to form their own nation. The Haitian Revolution was successful and caused Haiti to be the first black run Republic in the Western Hemisphere in human history. This historic event should always be cherished by us since it proved that human freedom must be promoted and slavery anywhere on this Earth must be extinguished. Toussaint L'Ouverture and other heroes fought against tyranny and won. Today, Haiti is dealing with many issues and we are in solidarity with the Haitian people in Haiti and throughout the world. The Afro-French people have a long history. There are at least 2.5 million black people in France, which is more than any other nation in Europe. Some came from Africa, some were born in France, some came from the Caribbean, and some were form America (as many African Americans traveled from the U.S. to France). The “negritude” movement of the 1930's and afterwards was about black people in France to advance literature, art, and other aspects of human culture. Also, France is not an Utopia. Racism and classism are found in France just like in the States. France has a notorious history of colonialism and imperialism. They were involved in the Maafa. Also, it is important to recognize Afro-French heroes who fought oppression, who are standing up for truth, and who believe in justice. One Afro-French hero of our generation is Sister Rokhaya Diallo. She is a filmmaker and a progressive activist who is fighting against racism in France. In 2002, Rokhaya Diallo took part in different humorous short-films by the group Une case en moins. There are black French scholars, activists, athletes (like Mariama Signaté), spiritual leaders, politicians, and other human beings.
Bless the Afro-French people.
Nous croyons en la justice. Nous voulons que les Noirs d'avoir la liberté et nous honorer la vérité.
There is no question that we are at war. We are fighting for black liberation. One of the most important points of this situation is to realize that we are at war, because many black people are being killed by the police in an unjust way, many of our people have been poisoned in many areas of the world (i.e. Flint), many of us are being discriminated against, some of us are being negatively stereotyped by the media conglomerates for profit, etc. We know about how the criminal injustice system has unfairly sentenced many black people. Sister Deborah Danner was a woman filled with light and hope. She wrote the truth that Black Lives Matter and she had mental illness. In our community, we must always show understanding, compassion, and love to our Brothers and Sisters who have mental illness. Deborah Danner never had a gun with her. We know that tons of alternatives could have been enacted to resolve the situation without her being killed. No psychiatrist, therapist, or other experts were called to the location to help her. She was not given immediate compassion. She was killed by one NYPD cop. We all feel sadness over her passing. We all are angered at the lax accountability of cops who unjustly kill our black people. This story shows how black people, who are especially poor, or have mental illness are very vulnerable to oppression. We are opposed to racial and class oppression. We desire justice for all. We realize that the solution isn't just about allowing people to have resources (which must be done). It is about transforming society as a whole, so people can live in a world free from discrimination, free from police terrorism, and free from oppression in general. Deborah's life will not be forgotten by us. She is not here physically, but her spirit motivates us to carry onward in the same journey for human liberation.
Rest in Power Sister Deborah Danner.
By Timothy
Hillary Clinton wants an economic plan to deal with clean energy, infrastructure, helping the middle class, helping the small business, and increasing the national minimum wage. Trump wants great tax cuts for the wealthy. He wants to renegotiate trade deals and he omits that the deficit has declined by 2/3s since 2009. The deficit increased under Reagan and George W. Bush. The economy isn't where it should be, but tricked down economics is not the answer. We need investments, the super wealthy to pay their fair share of taxes, and other programs. I don't agree with NAFTA. Trump is despicable to blame Hillary for the victims of sexual abuse and for the protesters in Trump rallies (when Trump advocated violence against protesters). Trump is known to degrade women. Trump talked about emails and Hillary and he ignores his Trump University corruption. The debate came into the imperfections of the Clinton and Trump Foundations. Undocumented immigrants pay more federal income taxes than Donald Trump. Trump lied about voting fraud when voter fraud isn't found in a majority of voting machines. Trump refuses to say if he will accept the election results. Trump is a liar since ISIS has decreased its power in Iraq, Mosul is being attacked, and the Iranian nuclear deal doesn't mean that Iran has a nuclear weapon. The last part of the debate was about the national debt. Hillary Clinton's ties to Wall Street and militarist policies must be known too. It seems that Chris Wallace is a deficit hawk with his words on the debt and social programs. Trump told the lie that inner cities have no jobs and no education. Trump said that Hillary was a nasty woman in the debate, which was cruel. Trump interrupted in a lot of times. Hillary Clinton wanted to send money into the Social Security trust fund. Both gave closing statements and it's over. Hillary Clinton won the debate. This doesn't mean I worship Hillary Clinton. The debate didn't show information about racial justice, climate change, police brutality, I believe in political independence.
We are not shocked at this. Donald Trump is a sexist bigot. For years, he has disrespected black people, women, immigrants, Muslims, etc. His misogyny is abhorrent. His lies are apparent and his agenda is wicked. I don't support Trump at all. He believes in a xenophobic nationalism that promotes fear mongering, a lack of intellectual curiosity, and blatant hypocrisy. He calls this election as rigged, but his Trump University is rigged which harmed people. That is why people have brought up lawsuits against Trump University. Tocarra Jones is a beautiful black woman. She is deserving of respect and dignity. Trump is just plain wrong. I know many black people support him for many reasons. Just because some black people support him doesn't mean that Trump respects black people. Obviously, he doesn't respect black people by claiming that the Central Park Five as guilty, but it has been proven that they are innocent. It is inexcusable for Donald Trump to disrespect a black woman period. His anemic performances at the debate document his mediocrity and extremism. It is inexcusable also for Trump to support adultery and sexual assault in a tape period. Anybody supporting Trump is just plain wrong. We will fight for justice.
Today is Friday. Enjoy your Day everyone. Also, we acknowledge the independence of Haiti. In 1804, heroic Haitian Brothers and Sisters defeated the English, the French, and other imperialists to form their own nation. The Haitian Revolution was successful and caused Haiti to be the first black run Republic in the Western Hemisphere in human history. This historic event should always be cherished by us since it proved that human freedom must be promoted and slavery anywhere on this Earth must be extinguished. Toussaint L'Ouverture and other heroes fought against tyranny and won. Today, Haiti is dealing with many issues and we are in solidarity with the Haitian people in Haiti and throughout the world. The Afro-French people have a long history. There are at least 2.5 million black people in France, which is more than any other nation in Europe. Some came from Africa, some were born in France, some came from the Caribbean, and some were form America (as many African Americans traveled from the U.S. to France). The “negritude” movement of the 1930's and afterwards was about black people in France to advance literature, art, and other aspects of human culture. Also, France is not an Utopia. Racism and classism are found in France just like in the States. France has a notorious history of colonialism and imperialism. They were involved in the Maafa. Also, it is important to recognize Afro-French heroes who fought oppression, who are standing up for truth, and who believe in justice. One Afro-French hero of our generation is Sister Rokhaya Diallo. She is a filmmaker and a progressive activist who is fighting against racism in France. In 2002, Rokhaya Diallo took part in different humorous short-films by the group Une case en moins. There are black French scholars, activists, athletes (like Mariama Signaté), spiritual leaders, politicians, and other human beings.
Bless the Afro-French people.
Nous croyons en la justice. Nous voulons que les Noirs d'avoir la liberté et nous honorer la vérité.
There is no question that we are at war. We are fighting for black liberation. One of the most important points of this situation is to realize that we are at war, because many black people are being killed by the police in an unjust way, many of our people have been poisoned in many areas of the world (i.e. Flint), many of us are being discriminated against, some of us are being negatively stereotyped by the media conglomerates for profit, etc. We know about how the criminal injustice system has unfairly sentenced many black people. Sister Deborah Danner was a woman filled with light and hope. She wrote the truth that Black Lives Matter and she had mental illness. In our community, we must always show understanding, compassion, and love to our Brothers and Sisters who have mental illness. Deborah Danner never had a gun with her. We know that tons of alternatives could have been enacted to resolve the situation without her being killed. No psychiatrist, therapist, or other experts were called to the location to help her. She was not given immediate compassion. She was killed by one NYPD cop. We all feel sadness over her passing. We all are angered at the lax accountability of cops who unjustly kill our black people. This story shows how black people, who are especially poor, or have mental illness are very vulnerable to oppression. We are opposed to racial and class oppression. We desire justice for all. We realize that the solution isn't just about allowing people to have resources (which must be done). It is about transforming society as a whole, so people can live in a world free from discrimination, free from police terrorism, and free from oppression in general. Deborah's life will not be forgotten by us. She is not here physically, but her spirit motivates us to carry onward in the same journey for human liberation.
Rest in Power Sister Deborah Danner.
By Timothy
Thursday, October 20, 2016
News
http://atlantablackstar.com/2016/03/30/skin-color-opioid-abusers-change-watch-quickly-america-softens-attitude-towards-drug-addiction/?utm_content=buffer38d6c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer
https://blackmattersus.com/18337-black-woman-shot-by-police-in-bronx/?utm_source=service_worker&utm_medium=push&utm_campaign=push20160408
http://atlantablackstar.com/2016/10/19/what-these-texas-state-students-did-when-their-professor-asserted-all-people-are-of-african-descent-is-appalling/
http://www.vox.com/2016/2/14/10981986/black-panthers-breakfast-beyonce?utm_campaign=vox.social&utm_medium=social&utm_content=voxdotcom&utm_source=facebook
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Black Panthers
http://thegrio.com/2016/10/14/black-panther-party-50-years/
http://img.new.livestream.com/events/00000000004a667d/e7d68325-2b5e-42b2-a338-b5bf8ad3c47e_1920.jpg
http://black-panther-party.tumblr.com/page/3
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/women-revolution-more-50-black-panther-party-were-women-carried-guns-1525198
Black Agenda Report News
http://www.blackagendareport.com/bib_convention_self-determination
http://www.blackagendareport.com/black_liberation_economic_justice
http://www.realchangenews.org/2016/10/19/seattle-teachers-undaunted-threats-renew-black-lives-matter-efforts
http://www.blackagendareport.com/south_africa_student_struggle
http://www.blackagendareport.com/louis_gates_poverty_scam
http://www.blackagendareport.com/black_liberation_economic_justice
http://www.realchangenews.org/2016/10/19/seattle-teachers-undaunted-threats-renew-black-lives-matter-efforts
http://www.blackagendareport.com/south_africa_student_struggle
http://www.blackagendareport.com/louis_gates_poverty_scam
50 Years After the Black Panther Party
What this man Edna had experience was evil and unconscionable. We face a serious issue where many cops have an authoritarian mentality that maintains the evil ideology that people are to be treated as servants while they ought to be treated as infallible kings. I disagree with that evil proclamation. We pay the cops' salaries and they are obligated to serve the law and to treat people fairly in the realm of equal protection. The Brother was handcuffed when he was no direct threat to anyone. Even the person who videotaped the incident has said that the man should have never been treated in that way by the police. We witness police brutality in many communities nationwide. The vast majority of the victims of police brutality or unjust treatment are found in poor and working class communities. Black people in many cases also are killed by cops in an unjust fashion. Our bodies, as black people, beyond to us (not to anyone else). That is why we are so adamant in opposing police misconduct. This is why there is a suspicion among many black people and the police institution (since the police institution has made it clear that true accountability and justice must be made in their image instead of the people's image. The police institution is never infallible). Therefore, I found out that the charges against the Brother has been dropped, but the police there still claimed that they did everything right, which is ludicrous. This fight for a real change in our world continues. There is no justice unless racial oppression, class oppression, and police terrorism are adequately and comprehensively addressed in the world.
Today, the Black Panther Party is 50 years old. I was not born during that time. My parents were alive back then as they experienced Jim Crow apartheid. The BPP was created in 1966. Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton were its founders. It was a progressive nationalist organization that was influenced by socialism, Third World movements against colonialism, and other philosophies. New members had to read books. It focused on self defense, opposing police brutality, and developing the black community. Its membership included men and women. Also, the Black Panthers grew very fast and had their peak in 1971. Afterwards, they started to decline due to FBI infiltration and FBI attacks, sexism (among some people in the BPP), splits, and other problems. Many heroes in the Black Panther Party should be honored and respected like Assata Shakur, Afeni Shakur, and other Brothers and Sisters. They also worked to form health clinics for free, schools for children, and the highly popular & successful Children Breakfast Program. They also created sickle cell testing centers for black people and prison reform programs. We won't forget about the unjust killings of Bobby Hutton and Fred Hampton either. The 10 Point Platform of the Black Panther Party (which wanted full employment of black people, an end to police brutality, freedom, decent housing, etc.) was progressive, strong, vibrant, and relevant in our generation. The BPP existed after the first stage of the civil rights movement. The first stage ended with the Selma voting rights movement in 1965. After that time, many young people especially didn't view the civil rights movement going quick enough for change (as legitimate laws to end Jim Crow and voting rights suppression existed, but massive economic deprivation remained in the nation. As early as 1964, which was before Watts, rebellions happened in Harlem, Philadelphia, Rochester, NY, and in other parts of the nation) and many young people rejected nonviolence unconditionally and believed in self defense. The Black Power speech from Kwame Ture in 1966 in Greenwood, Mississippi signaled the new era of the civil rights movement. Therefore, the movements of Robert F. Williams, of the Deacons of Defense (which was a group of black people in the South who used guns to protect the black community back in the early 1960's against racist Klan individuals), the Lowndes County Freedom Organization (LFCO. It used the black panther as its logo), Malcolm X, etc. inspired the Black Panther Party of Oakland. Seale and Newton respected Malcolm X (Malcolm X believed in self defense, black liberation, and unity with Third World peoples). I researched the Black Panther Party for years. The BPP was more than people with leather jackets with guns. The Black Panther Party developed critical social and political analysis of politics and economics. They knew that Western imperialism harmed black people and all oppressed people globally. They knew about the weaknesses of capitalism. Therefore, they formed alliances with many Third World movements against imperialism and colonialism. They also allied with many U.S. organizations from the Young Lords to the SNCC members for a time. Today, we see people protesting police brutality and other forming organizations being directly or indirectly inspired by the Black Panther Party. Power to the People F.U.B.U. Uhuru Sasa. The struggle continues. The fight isn't over and we shall overcome.
Venida Browder recently passed away because of a heart condition. She was a hero in every meaning of the word. Her life was transcendent and she has inspired the growth of the criminal justice reform movement. For decades, she has shown a mother's love, compassion, and grace in the midst of oppression found in New York City including throughout the world. Her activism has been excellent and she has defended the life of her late son Brother Kalief Browder (who was the victim of abuse and mistreatment in Riker's Island). We have a serious problem when America locks up more people than any other nation in the world. We have a serious problem when even some innocent people have to plea in order for them to avoid paying expensive trial costs. We know about the unfairness of sentencing based on race and class. Therefore, the lives and legacies of Venida and Kalief Browder should motivate all of us to fight back against the evils of the prison industrial complex.
The documentary entitled 13th (which Sister Ava Duvernay is apart of) magnificently shows the history of mass incarceration, the corruption in the prison system, and the horrendous exploitation of black human lives in the prison system. We know that justice is not blind in American society and we realize the capitalist exploitation of many private corporations in how some of them handle the private prison industry (and it is an industry). There has been no real accountability in many situations involving prisoners who have been abused of their human rights. We stand not only against the evils of the mass incarceration state. Venida loved her son so much and we mourn her passing. We also stand against the policies of oppressive oligarchy, imperialism, racial oppression, gender oppression, and economic exploitation too.
Rest in Power Sister Venida Browder.
Many people have praised Solange's new album. Here are my thoughts on her new album. I have listened to many of its songs and it's great. Solange should be respected of her work ethic, of her talent, and of her strength too. For over 15 years, Solange has not only been involved in music. She has supported black banks, she has worked in charities, and she has spoken out on many important issues from racial justice to opposition to police brutality. Therefore, Solange isn't disingenuous when she sings or talks about issues relevant to the black community. Solange's songs like Stillness in the Move, Freedom, I decided, Under Construction, and other songs outline her range, creativity, crispness, and improvisation of her voice. She represents Black Girl Magic. Musical experts, fans, and other people have given Solange's new album universal acclaim. Solange has always expressed unapologetic blackness since the start or her career. She is a singer, a songwriter, a model, an entrepreneur, and a woman who overcame many challenges in her life. Solange's new album addresses depression, black history, black self-determination, black women's autonomy, the struggles of life, and other issues that are important in our lives. Solange's "Cranes in the Sky" is a classic and one of the best songs that I have heard in this decade of the 2010's without question. At the end of that song, no one can tell me that her vocals are mediocre either. Her song Borderline is a great record too. Therefore, we are a diverse people and we should welcome diverse views. So, I wish Solange the best.
Both women, Chimamanda Ngozi and Rashida Jones, wrote eloquent, gracious, and humble thank you notes to First Lady Michelle Obama. Chimamanda has outlined great excellence in her literary prose. As other people have mentioned here, First Lady Michelle Obama is the greatest First Lady in American history. With poise and determination, she has promoted healthy eating and exercise. With grace, she has exposed racism and promoted the beauty of Blackness. With strength, she has confronted a sexist male demagogue running for President and promoted the human autonomy of women in general. Her intellect and her activism have inspired the world, especially black girls and black women to achieve their dreams plus aspirations. Michelle Obama's eloquent words, her great fashion style, and her story outlines very truly that we shouldn’t lose faith as faith plus works makes life bountiful. Michelle Obama is not only a gorgeous black woman. She is a black American who will not be intimidated, who will not be defeated, and whose legacy is just getting started. From the South Side of Chicago to the White House (which was built by slaves as she has accurately mentioned in the 2016 Democratic National Convention in the great city of Philadelphia), the First Lady is a black woman whose passion for justice has never been extinguished and whose presence has glowed a magnificent light for all people to witness.
Thank you Sister First Lady Michelle Obama for your words, actions, and hope that you give in the Earth.
Thank you.
By Timothy
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
More News
http://blavity.com/doj-begin-tracking-police-killings-use-force?utm_content=buffere34bd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer
http://countercurrentnews.com/2016/08/white-white-america-control/
https://www.facebook.com/KhamitKinks/videos/10153317026827962/
https://hbcubuzz.com/2011/04/florida-gov-rick-scott-cuts-all-funding-to-states-hbcus-in-florida/
http://countercurrentnews.com/2016/08/white-white-america-control/
https://www.facebook.com/KhamitKinks/videos/10153317026827962/
https://hbcubuzz.com/2011/04/florida-gov-rick-scott-cuts-all-funding-to-states-hbcus-in-florida/
Monday, October 17, 2016
Mass Incarceration
http://www.democracynow.org/2016/10/3/from_slavery_to_mass_incarceration_ava
http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2016/10/13th-ava-duvernay-black-women/
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-13th-doc-trump-20161014-snap-htmlstory.html
http://www.internationalist.org/courageouskaepernickprotest1609.html
Other News
Historical Information.
After World War I, the economy in Denver grew for a time. Yet, there was less demand for goods. This caused prices to drop and 1918 saw a short recession. There was more severe one from 1920 to 1921. The mining industry in Denver suffered badly by decreasing prices and more foreign competition during the post-war recession years. Coal mining in Colorado was definitely negatively impacted, because alternative sources of fuel was widely used and labor strikes hurt production. In 1928, Denver was just on the receiving end of a major natural gas pipeline from Texas and more households and businesses switched to gas, so the demand for coal fell. From 1905 to 1929, there was the longest recorded wet period in Colorado history. This favorable weather combined with war-time demand saw farmers over plant during WWI and significant price drops after the war ended caused many farmers significant losses. Costs began to exceed profits and many farmers were forced to sell their land which was then rented to others or simply left abandoned. Dryland farming was common on the prairies though many farmers removed the native grasses that helped control erosion. In 1929, the national economy crashed leading to the Great Depression. In 1930, the weather turned dry beginning the most widespread and longest lasting drought in Colorado history, a period of time that would later be referred to as the "Dust Bowl." Dry weather, soil erosion, and a depressed economy led to a huge social upheaval felt across the entire nation. The Dust Bowl decimated agriculture. The Great Depression made many industries and mines to close. Workers were laid off. Many of the unemployed came to Denver to try to work and get a better life. In 1933, it was estimated that 25 percent of Demverites were out of work. The Hoover administration promised that the recession would end quickly. The economy continued to worsen though. Franklin D. Roosevelt won the 1932 Presidential election with his promise of a “New Deal.” The New Deal bought funds and jobs to Colorado and Denver. The Historic American Buildings Survey hired architects and photographers to document historic buildings. They inspired the nascent historic preservation movement. The Civilian Conservation Corps built trails and campgrounds in Denver’s Mountain Parks. The Works Progress Administration build roads, fixed schools, and funded artists to decorate government buildings. The new roads and trials encouraged tourism. The improved rail and air travel made Denver a hub for transportation. The new Moffat Tunnel came about in the mid 1920’s. It was cut through the Rocky Mountains. It opened in 1928. It shorted need the distance between Denver and the Pacific coast by 176 miles. During the 1930’s, the rail system was transformed. In 1935, the Burlington Railroad introduced the Zephyr with a record breaking 13 hours and 5 minutes trip from Denver to Chicago. It was a revolutionary new diesel-powered train, streamlined and luxurious. That changed the public's expectations of rail travel. Having a direct link to the west coast, it helped Denver compete against Cheyenne and Pueblo for rail business and it quickly became a major hub for railways. Air travel grew in the same time period. When Mayor Benjamin F. Stapleton opened Denver Municipal Airport in 1929, it was derided as a taxpayer subsidy for the powerful elite who flew for sport. Built northeast of Denver, The Denver Post complained that it was too far from the city center and the location had been chosen to benefit the mayor's financial backers. But with four gravel runways, one hangar, and a terminal it was greeted by others as "the West's best airport." At the time unpressurized planes were the norm, and transcontinental flights went through Cheyenne or south through Texas as the mountains were smaller there. Denver Municipal Airport was used mainly for mail service and private pilots. As pressurized planes came into general use, the mountains were no longer an issue and the advanced airport attracted major airlines positioning Denver as a major hub for air travel in the region. The economy recovered by the end of the 1930’s as World War II started in Europe. Demand for goods increased. America was preparing to fight in that war. Denver benefited from the military buildup. Denver had been selected for a new training airbase, Lowry Air Force Base which opened in 1938, and in 1941 the Denver Ordnance Plant opened. These facilities brought many jobs with them which in turn attracted more people to the city. Denver had started the decade with just under 288,000 people and by 1940 had over 322,000.
Before World War II, Denver’s economy was mainly about processing and shipping of minerals and ranch products (like beef and lamb). Most Denverites were isolationists. Yet, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Denver joined the war efforts. Denver’s leaders continued to use policies to bring businesses to the city during the war and afterwards. Specialized industries were introduced to the city. Denver soon became a large manufacturing center. Denver was away from either coast. This made an attack from the Axis Powers unlikely. During World War II, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Buckley Air Force Base, and the Denver Ordnance Plant all opened during the war. In 1941 over 6,500 federal employees lived and worked in Denver. With so many federal employees already in Denver, it was easier to convince the government to add more and by 1946, the number increased to over 16,000. After the war, many of the facilities continued to be used and some were converted to different uses. One example is that the Denver Ordnance Plant was converted into the Denver Federal Center. More federal agencies began to come to the area which already had a large federal footprint and a well trained work force. The Commission, National, National, and Technology all opened offices in the Denver area. From 1953 to 1989, the Rocky Flats Plant, a Department of Energy nuclear weapon facility formerly located about 15 miles (24 km) from Denver, produced fissile plutonium "pits" for nuclear warheads. A major fire at the facility in 1957, as well as leakage from nuclear waste stored at the site between 1958 and 1968, resulted in the contamination of some parts of Denver, to varying degrees, with plutonium-239, a harmful radioactive substance with a half-life of 24,200 years. The bad news is that studies documented that the contamination to an increase in birth defects and cancer incidence in central Denver and nearer Rocky Flats. With the large military and federal presence in the area the aerospace industry followed. Large corporations such as IBM, Packard, Honeywell, Ball Aerospace, and Lockheed-Martin came to Denver. These businesses brought jobs and money with them and began to influence the city displacing the wealthy entrepreneurs and pioneer families that had previously dominated political life.
In 1947, J. Quigg Newton was elected mayor and began the process of modernizing the government, expanding public housing, setting up one the nation's first civil rights commissions. At the time restrictive racial covenants were common in every major city in the country. Long before the Civil Rights Acts were enacted, the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Commission passed one of the earliest fair housing laws in the nation permitting Mexican-Americans, African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, and Jewish people to move into neighborhoods previously denied to them. These new laws upset many and contributed to the flight of middle-class families to the suburbs. Despite these laws, discrimination was still very prevalent. Yet, the work of the Newton’s Human Rights and Community Relations spared Denver some of the racial unrest that occurred in other cities in the post-war years. Over four million soldiers had come through Denver during the war for training or recuperation and after the war ended many choose to make Denver their home. As Denver's population expanded rapidly, many old buildings were torn down to make way for new housing projects. The Denver Urban Renewal Authority demolished block after block to make room for apartments and parking lots. Many of Denver's finest buildings from the frontier era were demolished, including the Tabor Opera House, as the city expanded upward and outward. By 1950, middle-class families were moving away from the downtown area seeking larger houses and better schools; the suburbs multiplied as more people moved out of the city. In the 1960's, Victorian homes were considered old-fashioned and unpopular and were targeted for demolition. The destruction of so many of these homes spurred Denverites to form the Denver Landmark Preservation Commission and Historic Denver, Inc. which raised awareness of the value of these historic buildings and established the local historical preservation movement. During this time, Denver was a gathering point for poets of the "beat generation." Beat icon Neal Cassady was raised on Larimer Street in Denver, and a portion of Jack Kerouac's beat masterpiece "On the Road" takes place in the city, and is based on the beat's actual experiences in Denver during a road trip. Beat poet Allen Ginsberg lived for a time in the Denver suburb of Lakewood, and he helped found the Buddhist college, Naropa University or the "Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa" in nearby Boulder. Denver was also a gathering place for a new Chicano Movement. In March 1969, a convention hosted by Rodolfo Gonzales's Crusade for Justice was held in Denver and the Plan was adopted as a manifesto for the movement. The Crusade for Justice was instrumental in bringing attention to the plight of Mexican-Americans living in Denver and laid the ground work for Hispanics to be in city government.
After World War II, oil and gas companies opened offices in Denver. The reason is that they are in close proximity to the mountains and the energy fields contained within. The price of oil rose during the 1970’s energy crisis. So, these same companies fueled a skyscraper boom in the downtown area. A second office core was opened in the suburban Denver Tech Center. That center was made to accommodate the higher demand for office space. Many original downtown saloons and old buildings were renovated and revitalized. Many other cities during that time were threatened with bankruptcy and crime, but Denver was actively growing and renewing its downtown. In 1969, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that ‘optional’ attendance zones constituted segregation and ordered schools to be de-segregated. This triggered the dynamiting of school vehicles and fire-bombing of school buildings. Denver complied with the law by annexing neighboring towns and busing students. By the mid-1970's many wealthy residents were leaving Denver. In 1974 anti-integrationists used the fears about the impact of racial mixing as well as the recent tensions between Denver and its neighbors to pass the Poundstone Amendment to the state constitution. Its supporters claimed the amendment would prevent Denver from abusing its size and status, while detractors pointed out that it greatly limited the ability of the city to absorb other school districts and thus end segregation in its schools. With the combined spending of the energy companies and the federal government, Denver expanded quickly. Denver went from having a small urban core surrounded by rural farms to a booming downtown dotted with skyscrapers and surrounded by growing suburbs. The majority of the new people settled in the suburbs; Denver's population was essentially flat at about 490,000 from 1960 to 1980 even as the land area grew by 40 square miles (100 km2). With the expansion came problems. Traffic increased due to poor public transportation and pollution increased due to traffic.
Denver Tramway had been responsible for all public transportation in Denver since the turn of the century, but with aging equipment, low revenues, and lackluster ridership it eventually dissolved. Author Sherah Collins writes, "... in 1970, Denver had more cars per capita than any other place in the country, which is not surprising due to the lack of public transit options." In 1974 the Regional Transportation District took over responsibility for Denver's public transportation. During this period a "brown cloud" began to form over the Front Range, a result of air pollution from the increasing number of cars and people in the area. This cloud of pollution would take more than two decades to get rid of and was a serious concern for people living in the Denver area. Many people had moved to Denver for the beautiful landscapes and climate. The environment had always been an important issue to Coloradans and when Denver was selected to host the 1976 Winter Olympics to coincide with Colorado's centennial anniversary, a movement against hosting the games was formed based largely on concerns around the environmental impact of having so many people come to the area. Colorado voters struck down ballot initiatives allocating public funds to pay for the high costs of the games, and they were subsequently moved to Innsbruck, Austria. The movement against hosting the games was led by then State Representative Richard Lamm who was subsequently elected as Colorado governor in 1974. With the 1979 energy crisis the price of oil rose to over $30 a barrel, but by the mid-1980's the price had slid to under $10 a barrel. Thousands of oil and gas industry workers lost their jobs and unemployment rates soared. Downtown Denver had been overbuilt over the past two decades and the cost of office space dropped as office vacancy rates grew to the highest in the nation at 30-percent. Housing prices fell, the exodus from the city to the suburbs continued and the city fell into disrepair. By 1990 the population of the city had fallen to 467,610 the lowest level in over 30 years. Yet, Denver would revitalize by the 1990's.
By Timothy
Before World War II, Denver’s economy was mainly about processing and shipping of minerals and ranch products (like beef and lamb). Most Denverites were isolationists. Yet, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Denver joined the war efforts. Denver’s leaders continued to use policies to bring businesses to the city during the war and afterwards. Specialized industries were introduced to the city. Denver soon became a large manufacturing center. Denver was away from either coast. This made an attack from the Axis Powers unlikely. During World War II, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Buckley Air Force Base, and the Denver Ordnance Plant all opened during the war. In 1941 over 6,500 federal employees lived and worked in Denver. With so many federal employees already in Denver, it was easier to convince the government to add more and by 1946, the number increased to over 16,000. After the war, many of the facilities continued to be used and some were converted to different uses. One example is that the Denver Ordnance Plant was converted into the Denver Federal Center. More federal agencies began to come to the area which already had a large federal footprint and a well trained work force. The Commission, National, National, and Technology all opened offices in the Denver area. From 1953 to 1989, the Rocky Flats Plant, a Department of Energy nuclear weapon facility formerly located about 15 miles (24 km) from Denver, produced fissile plutonium "pits" for nuclear warheads. A major fire at the facility in 1957, as well as leakage from nuclear waste stored at the site between 1958 and 1968, resulted in the contamination of some parts of Denver, to varying degrees, with plutonium-239, a harmful radioactive substance with a half-life of 24,200 years. The bad news is that studies documented that the contamination to an increase in birth defects and cancer incidence in central Denver and nearer Rocky Flats. With the large military and federal presence in the area the aerospace industry followed. Large corporations such as IBM, Packard, Honeywell, Ball Aerospace, and Lockheed-Martin came to Denver. These businesses brought jobs and money with them and began to influence the city displacing the wealthy entrepreneurs and pioneer families that had previously dominated political life.
In 1947, J. Quigg Newton was elected mayor and began the process of modernizing the government, expanding public housing, setting up one the nation's first civil rights commissions. At the time restrictive racial covenants were common in every major city in the country. Long before the Civil Rights Acts were enacted, the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Commission passed one of the earliest fair housing laws in the nation permitting Mexican-Americans, African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, and Jewish people to move into neighborhoods previously denied to them. These new laws upset many and contributed to the flight of middle-class families to the suburbs. Despite these laws, discrimination was still very prevalent. Yet, the work of the Newton’s Human Rights and Community Relations spared Denver some of the racial unrest that occurred in other cities in the post-war years. Over four million soldiers had come through Denver during the war for training or recuperation and after the war ended many choose to make Denver their home. As Denver's population expanded rapidly, many old buildings were torn down to make way for new housing projects. The Denver Urban Renewal Authority demolished block after block to make room for apartments and parking lots. Many of Denver's finest buildings from the frontier era were demolished, including the Tabor Opera House, as the city expanded upward and outward. By 1950, middle-class families were moving away from the downtown area seeking larger houses and better schools; the suburbs multiplied as more people moved out of the city. In the 1960's, Victorian homes were considered old-fashioned and unpopular and were targeted for demolition. The destruction of so many of these homes spurred Denverites to form the Denver Landmark Preservation Commission and Historic Denver, Inc. which raised awareness of the value of these historic buildings and established the local historical preservation movement. During this time, Denver was a gathering point for poets of the "beat generation." Beat icon Neal Cassady was raised on Larimer Street in Denver, and a portion of Jack Kerouac's beat masterpiece "On the Road" takes place in the city, and is based on the beat's actual experiences in Denver during a road trip. Beat poet Allen Ginsberg lived for a time in the Denver suburb of Lakewood, and he helped found the Buddhist college, Naropa University or the "Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa" in nearby Boulder. Denver was also a gathering place for a new Chicano Movement. In March 1969, a convention hosted by Rodolfo Gonzales's Crusade for Justice was held in Denver and the Plan was adopted as a manifesto for the movement. The Crusade for Justice was instrumental in bringing attention to the plight of Mexican-Americans living in Denver and laid the ground work for Hispanics to be in city government.
After World War II, oil and gas companies opened offices in Denver. The reason is that they are in close proximity to the mountains and the energy fields contained within. The price of oil rose during the 1970’s energy crisis. So, these same companies fueled a skyscraper boom in the downtown area. A second office core was opened in the suburban Denver Tech Center. That center was made to accommodate the higher demand for office space. Many original downtown saloons and old buildings were renovated and revitalized. Many other cities during that time were threatened with bankruptcy and crime, but Denver was actively growing and renewing its downtown. In 1969, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that ‘optional’ attendance zones constituted segregation and ordered schools to be de-segregated. This triggered the dynamiting of school vehicles and fire-bombing of school buildings. Denver complied with the law by annexing neighboring towns and busing students. By the mid-1970's many wealthy residents were leaving Denver. In 1974 anti-integrationists used the fears about the impact of racial mixing as well as the recent tensions between Denver and its neighbors to pass the Poundstone Amendment to the state constitution. Its supporters claimed the amendment would prevent Denver from abusing its size and status, while detractors pointed out that it greatly limited the ability of the city to absorb other school districts and thus end segregation in its schools. With the combined spending of the energy companies and the federal government, Denver expanded quickly. Denver went from having a small urban core surrounded by rural farms to a booming downtown dotted with skyscrapers and surrounded by growing suburbs. The majority of the new people settled in the suburbs; Denver's population was essentially flat at about 490,000 from 1960 to 1980 even as the land area grew by 40 square miles (100 km2). With the expansion came problems. Traffic increased due to poor public transportation and pollution increased due to traffic.
Denver Tramway had been responsible for all public transportation in Denver since the turn of the century, but with aging equipment, low revenues, and lackluster ridership it eventually dissolved. Author Sherah Collins writes, "... in 1970, Denver had more cars per capita than any other place in the country, which is not surprising due to the lack of public transit options." In 1974 the Regional Transportation District took over responsibility for Denver's public transportation. During this period a "brown cloud" began to form over the Front Range, a result of air pollution from the increasing number of cars and people in the area. This cloud of pollution would take more than two decades to get rid of and was a serious concern for people living in the Denver area. Many people had moved to Denver for the beautiful landscapes and climate. The environment had always been an important issue to Coloradans and when Denver was selected to host the 1976 Winter Olympics to coincide with Colorado's centennial anniversary, a movement against hosting the games was formed based largely on concerns around the environmental impact of having so many people come to the area. Colorado voters struck down ballot initiatives allocating public funds to pay for the high costs of the games, and they were subsequently moved to Innsbruck, Austria. The movement against hosting the games was led by then State Representative Richard Lamm who was subsequently elected as Colorado governor in 1974. With the 1979 energy crisis the price of oil rose to over $30 a barrel, but by the mid-1980's the price had slid to under $10 a barrel. Thousands of oil and gas industry workers lost their jobs and unemployment rates soared. Downtown Denver had been overbuilt over the past two decades and the cost of office space dropped as office vacancy rates grew to the highest in the nation at 30-percent. Housing prices fell, the exodus from the city to the suburbs continued and the city fell into disrepair. By 1990 the population of the city had fallen to 467,610 the lowest level in over 30 years. Yet, Denver would revitalize by the 1990's.
By Timothy
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