Poster illustrating Derailment Bingo
Derailing discussions about racism and other "isms".
Commentary by Black Kos Editor Denise Oliver Velez.
It wasn't very long ago that I wrote about "microagressions", aka "The stuff that piles up and wears you down". After spending Mother's Day dealing with a few wrong-headed micro-agressors who expended a lot of keyboard energy trying to derail discussion of the racial component in the coverage of the kidnappings in Nigeria, and media coverage of African countries—period—and then logging in yesterday to look at "youthful campus racism" against Native Americans, documented by Meteor Blades, which isn't coming from "old people" or from "the South", I thought it might be a good idea to dust off the Derailing for Dummies playbook for review.
You can download it here.
We have a few more years to go with the sludge and slime of racial attacks against our President and his family, and though we haven't even come near to the 2016 primary season, the sexism sewer is already bubbling.
We already know that the right wing in this country is racist, sexist, homophobic, ageist, classist, ethnocentrist...what is more difficult to wrassle with is when elements of "isms" crop up within spaces we expect to embrace values that are the antithesis of wingnuttery.
Some of it is rooted in denial. Some in ignorance. It doesn't make it any more comfortable to deal with. From my perspective it's more difficult for us, since the effective building of political coalitions we need to effect change on issues of great import, are impeded by covert, and sometimes overt expressions of "isms" and the wearying process of continually having to wage struggle on multiple fronts.
While dealing with it myself, on Sunday, I was relieved to have a commenter do an effective job of summing up the derailment of a discussion of racism that was taking place in this comment she made.
So if you are faced with derailing and denial from purported allies and friends, on a blog or on facebook, or in face-to-face discussions, as aggravating as it can be, or get caught up in it without even recognizing what is taking place, here are some handy tips, links and examples you might want to bookmark for future use.
Abagond has a good piece based on derailing for dummies, and goes into a deeper discussion of how to figure out who you might be dealing with on the anonymous internet. Though not all racists black folks or other people of color are confronted by are white, and though white folks get called racist too (we have plenty examples of people from the Black Kos Community who are white, getting confronted with the same b.s. because of their active anti-racism), and yes, poc's can be bigots too (though they don't control systemic racism) much of the racist spewing does come from unenlightened white folks. He has a list of clues, which includes:
They bring up purple people: they say it does not matter to them if you are black, white, green or purple.
They bring up the Arab slave trade.
They point out that Africans sold and owned slaves.
They say their family never owned slaves.
They talk down to you like they know everything and you know nothing, like you are just imagining things.
They point out that Obama is half white.
They say that most crimes are committed by blacks.
They say they never got any help but made it on their own
Sigh. Cannot even begin to tell you how frequently I've had to read and reply to some of the things he's listed.
I've decided I'm simply going to post this graphic, from Feminocracy, as a reply to anyone who drags out ye olde "race card" accusation. Tired of explaining my life is not a card game, nor is the deadly and often fatal seriousness of systemic oppression.
Dealing with, discussing, and combating racism does not make me, or any other person fighting racism, "a racist". Or that other hackneyed standard plaint, "a reverse racist".
I do have an anecdote to share that gave me a chuckle yesterday. After having been called "bitter" and "a racist" for posing the question about the initial lack of media coverage of the kidnappings in Nigeria being related to the fact that the girls are black and African, not white, I had a surprise on my way to school on Monday.
Had an interesting experience driving to work this morning. I usually listen to a discussion program on my local Northeast public radio station - WAMC-FM. The morning Roundtable program often covers media, and how media cover different stories. One of the panelists, Libby Post raised the question, "what if the kidnapped girls were white?".
I admit I had to grin while driving, since after reading some of the comments from people who found my raising that question horrific, and somehow motivated by my black lens - if was interesting to hear it raised by a white woman.
Panelist Libby Post is an out lesbian (her blog is called
Proudly Out), and has been attacked here in upstate New York frequently, for her views on white-straight-male privilege, and her critiques of racism hurled at the President and Sonia Sotomayor. The other woman, also white, on the panel was award winning journalist and journalism professor
Rosemary Armao, who has extensive experience reporting on Eastern Europe and in Africa. She didn't have any problem with exploring that premise, and agreeing that it was initially a key factor.
I'm still smiling, I'll continue to explore racism and all the other "isms" in my blog posts, and teaching about them in the classroom. Those who persist in derailing attempts might want to stop and take a good look at themselves and read up on the game of bingo they are playing.
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News by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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The Nigerian lawyer who started the #BringBackOurGirls viral campaign says he is humbled and overwhelmed by the unprecedented response. The Grio: Meet the Nigerian lawyer who created #BringBackOurGirls campaign.
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“It’s gratifying that because of the popularity of the hashtag the whole world has an interest in the abduction of the girls.” Ibrahim M Abdullahi, a managing partner at an Abuja-based law firm, sparked off the social media movement with the poignant words #BringBackOurGirls following a televised talk by Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, vice-president of the World Bank for Africa.
In fact, during her speech at a UNESCO event in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt, Dr. Ezekwesili used the expression “Bring Back Our Daughters” when referring to the brutal kidnapping of 200 plus Nigerian girls.
Mr. Abdullahi phrased her words and unwittingly sparked off what may well be one of the biggest worldwide trending campaigns, which has garnished attention from politicians and celebrities alike.
So far, #BringBackOurGirls has been tweeted nearly 2 million times, including posts from President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Kerry Washington and even Chris Brown.
“I am happy that the world is aware of the situation and the atrocities being committed by Boko Harom,” said Mr. Abdullahi. “The involvement of the international community is also putting pressure on President Goodluck Jonathan to live up to his responsibilities.”
Nigerian lawyer Ibrahim Abdullahi, creator of #BringBackOurGirls on Twitter (Video still via Twitter)
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More of missing schoolgirls could have escaped but were too frightened because of threats to shoot them, says 19-year-old. The Guardian: Nigerian student tells of kidnap ordeal after escaping Boko Haram captors.
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One of the teenagers who escaped from Islamist abductors said the kidnapping was too terrifying for words and she was too scared to go back to school.
Science student Sarah Lawan, 19, told the Associated Press on Sunday that more of the 300 girls and young women who were seized could have escaped but they were frightened by their captors' threats to shoot them.
Lawan spoke in a phone interview from Chibok, her home and the site of the mass abduction in north-east Nigeria. The failure to rescue 276 of the students, who have now been held for four weeks, has prompted international outrage. "I am pained that others could not summon the courage to run away with me," she said. "Now I cry each time I come across their parents and see how they weep when they see me."
Police said 53 students escaped, and that captors were threatening to sell those still held into slavery. Lawan said other students who escaped later told her the abductors had spoken of their plans to marry them. She said the thought of going back to the burnt-out remains of Chibok government girls secondary school terrified her. "I am really scared to go back there but I have no option if I am asked to go because I need to finish my final-year exams which were stopped half way through," she said.
In churches across Nigeria, congregations prayed for the students, whose plight has brought together ordinary people in a year that had seen growing dissension between Muslims and Christians, disagreements exacerbated by the increasingly deadly attacks of the Boko Haram militants.
Women march in protest in Lagos, Nigeria, over the failure to rescue the 273 students from the Chibok Government Girls Secondary School who are still held captive. Photograph: EPA
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Democrats sitting home in 2010 continues to have real world implications. The New Republic: Four Inmates Might Return to Death Row Because North Carolina Republicans Repealed a Racial Justice Law.
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Last month, the North Carolina Supreme Court heard arguments about whether it should reinstate death sentences for four inmates whose punishments were previously commuted. Under the state’s Racial Justice Act of 2009, the inmates awaiting execution had successfully challenged their sentences by illustrating that their trials had been affected by racial bias.
Last year, however, the Racial Justice Act was repealed by North Carolina's Republican-controlled state legislature, allowing the state to argue in favor of sentencing the four inmates to die for a second time. The state’s Supreme Court has not said when it will deliver an opinion on the case, and it is not clear whether its ruling will focus on the four defendants or whether it will be broad enough to apply more widely. Either way, the state’s repeal of the Racial Justice Act provides a powerful example of why we should fear the takeover of state legislatures by Republican politicians.
Back in 2010, North Carolina was one of eleven states in which Republicans gained control of both houses of the state legislature. In North Carolina, this marked the first time the GOP controlled both assembly chambers since 1870. The takeover resulted in an onslaught of legislation: sweeping voter identification laws, drastic reduction of unemployment benefits, the subsidization of homeschooling, and cuts in funding for public schools.
The repeal of the Racial Justice Act was part of that legislative push. Local Republicans justified the repeal by arguing that it was unnecessary and excessive. Governor Pat McCrory implied that it offered too many avenues of redress for guilty inmates: “Nearly every person on death row, regardless of race, has appealed their death sentence under the Racial Justice Act,” said McCrory after he signed the repeal. The repeal bill’s sponsor, State Senator Thomas Goolsby, told local news outlet WRAL the act was “bad”—i.e., unnecessary—“law” since those convicted of capital crimes already have “multiple avenues of appeal” available to them.
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Comedy Central has named a successor to Stephen Colbert. Talking Point Memo: Larry Wilmore Tapped To Replace Stephen Colbert.
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“The Daily Show's" Larry Wilmore will host a new show called “The Minority Report with Larry Wilmore" in the 11:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday timeslot currently held by Colbert, according to Variety. Colbert is leaving the network to take over the "Late Show" on CBS next year.
"The Minority Report" will premier in January, and promises to “offer a comedic look at news, current events and pop culture from unique perspectives not typically on display in late night television,” according to Variety Jon Stewart will serve with Wilmore as an executive producer.
Wilmore is currently the “senior black correspondent” on “The Daily Show," and has worked as a showrunner, comedian, actor, and writer.
Larry Wilmore, Photo by Frank Micelotta/Invision/AP
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Critics of black actors playing white characters seem to suffer from selective outrage. But that selective outrage has an easy explanation.Salon: “Rosemary’s Baby” stars a black woman. Why isn’t anybody mad?
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A new, miniseries version of “Rosemary’s Baby” premieres on NBC this Sunday, starring Zoe Saldana as the titular mother of Satan’s spawn. I am almost ashamed to admit this, but my first thought after hearing about this production was not, “How will it be different than the 1968 Roman Polanski classic?” or “Why is it a miniseries?” or even “Will it be any good?” No, my first thought was, “Oh, man, white people are going to freak out over a black Rosemary.” As the series’ air date neared, I began to search for instances of outrage on Internet comment boards and, of course, on the most obvious incubator of frivolous beef, Twitter. Ultimately, I found little objection to Saldana’s casting. Though I am embarrassed to have gone looking for controversy where there appears to be none, a brief, not-at-all exhaustive survey of recent public response to black actors cast in traditionally white roles proves why I expected the worst.
Recently there was an uproar over the casting of actor Michael B. Jordan (“Fruitvale Station”) as fiery Johnny Storm in the upcoming update of the The Fantastic Four comic book series. Jordan has already proven his heroic merit in the brilliantly understated origin story “Chronicle.” Nevertheless, many Fantastic Four fans objected to this announcement on the grounds that the recognizably white Kate Mara was cast as Storm’s sister Sue – an objection predicated on the nonexistence of adoption or half-siblings. In one comment section, I read a very impassioned argument that Johnny Storm was traditionally written in the comic books as a cocky, privileged white man. Therefore, re-casting him as black would undermine the character’s arc into a better, more humble person. What?
The fanboy rabbithole on this topic is bottomless. There are pro-Nordic lobbies against Idris Elba being cast as Heimdall in the Thor franchise films. I even dug up specious resistance to Samuel Jackson as Nick Fury. (Having watched him thrillingly chew up the CGI scenery in so many Avengers films, you have to wonder, “Was there ever any other option?”) To my mind, the most upsetting of these occasions pertains to the casting of Amandla Stenberg as the character of Rue in “The Hunger Games,” where her tragic death scene is the emotional turning point of the film. The insidious tenor of protest was reported basically everywhere. It seemed that some white folk simply had difficulty relating to or sympathizing with the on-screen death of an innocent young child because of the color of her skin. As if this truth doesn’t suck enough, such grumblings are often based on the idea that the casting of a black person somehow violates the sanctity of the source material, as evidenced by current grievances against the forthcoming “Annie” remake starring Quvenzhané Wallis (“Beasts of the Southern Wild”). In the case of “The Hunger Games,” however, the filmmakers were not being heedlessly creative or liberal-minded. They were being faithful. The book describes Rue as having “dark brown skin and eyes.”
“Rosemary’s Baby” is not my favorite film, or even my favorite horror movie. Yet, I have always accepted the image of actress Mia Farrow with her pixie haircut as somewhat iconic — this brittle waif seduced and taken advantage of by dark forces, leading to the ultimate corruption of her motherhood. If someone can raise their hand and say that Annie is too ginger or Johnny Storm too douche-y to be black, I fully expected to read some deceptively or overtly racist rant about how the character of Rosemary Woodhouse is traditionally meek, innocent, or pure – all qualities not typically ascribed to black female characters.
Zoe Saldana in "Rosemary's Baby" (Credit: NBC)
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It (continues) to get better. EURWeb: Michael Sam, Kisses Boyfriend After Selection by St. Louis Rams (Watch).
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*Hmmm, one look at the photo above and you know the NFL is never going to be the same. And that photo may also explain why it took nearly the entire draft for Michael Sam to be picked. But once he was, history was made.
Sam officially become the league’s first openly gay player when the St. Louis Rams used the 249th pick in the seventh round to select him. That means Sam will stay in the state where he played college football as a standout at the University of Missouri.
Sam, the 2013 defensive player of the year in the Southeastern Conference, came out as gay to his teammates before last season. He disclosed his sexual orientation in media interviews this year. At the NFL scouting combine in February, he drew the largest media contingent that anyone there could recall.
“Thank you to the St. Louis Rams and the whole city of St. Louis. I’m using every ounce of this to achieve greatness!!” Sam tweeted after he was selected, including a picture of himself wearing a Rams cap and a pink polo shirt.
Even though he was productive in college, Sam was generally regarded by NFL evaluators as a “tweener,” someone too small to be an effective defensive end, and too slow to drop into pass coverage — at least at an elite level. He was widely projected to be a late-round draft pick or free agent, despite his impressive credentials.
Sam granted almost no media interviews in the days before the draft, and he watched Rounds 4 to 7 on Saturday in San Diego with friends, family and his agent. There was a TV camera capturing the scene when Sam was selected. Like many players before him, Sam cried as he got the news over the phone.
“I knew I was going to get picked somewhere,” Sam said. “Every team that passed me, I was thinking how I’m going to sack their quarterback.” Rams Coach Jeff Fisher said during an interview with ESPN: “In the world of diversity we live in now, I’m honored to be a part of this.”
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Voices and Soul
by Justice Putnam
Black Kos Poetry Editor
The time it takes to blink an eye is the time it takes to roll back the clock to segregated lunch counters and strange fruit hanging from the poplar tree. Time is truly, that fluid. How can we give up when there is still so much work to do and so many people in need? How can we give up on those who have struggled so mightily? We just cannot give up, we just cannot turn our backs. We cannot stop the struggle when the struggle is only...
Midway
I've come this far to freedom and I won't turn back
I'm climbing to the highway from my old dirt track
I'm coming and I'm going
And I'm stretching and I'm growing
And I'll reap what I've been sowing or my skin's not black
I've prayed and slaved and waited and I've sung my song
You've bled me and you've starved me but I've still grown strong
You've lashed me and you've treed me
And you've everything but freed me
But in time you'll know you need me and it won't be long.
I've seen the daylight breaking high above the bough
I've found my destination and I've made my vow;
so whether you abhor me
Or deride me or ignore me
Mighty mountains loom before me and I won't stop now.
-- Naomi Long Madgett
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