“Black Lives Matter”
is heard
from a chorus of voices
in a protest in the street.
“All Lives Matter”
someone screams
from a car rolling by
on the street,
in denial
that Black Lives Matter
wouldn’t have come to be
if All Lives Matter
had ever been a reality [Read more…]
America, Got Fascism?
By Frank Gormlie / OB Rag
Okay, America – are we ready for fascism?
As the presidential campaign season degenerated into racist and xenophobic diatribes by the Republican front runner, with those images of Trump supporters pledging their loyalty to him in Hitleresque salutes, after that scene in Chicago when the Trump rally was cancelled, triggering skirmishes between Trump supporters and demonstrators, it seems everybody is forming an opinion of whether Donald Trump is a fascist, comparing him to Hitler and Mussolini, and other dictators.
[Read more…]
Joe Wilder: Gentleman of Jazz
Joe Wilder was not only a magnificent trumpet player but a gentleman according to all who knew him. I had the privilege of presenting him and saxophonist Marshal Royal along with a local rhythm section composed of Mike Wofford, Bob Magnusson and Roy McCurdy at the Lyceum Theatre in 1990 under the auspices of the San Diego Jazz Society. A CD was made of the performance which, unfortunately, is out of print. Joe helped to break down racial barriers on Broadway, radio, television and in classical music.
Wilder’s sense of propriety was legendary. When Wilder was in Lionel Hampton’s orchestra in the early 1940s, fellow band members used to offer him a $10 bill if he would simply utter one four-letter word. Wilder never collected! A soft-spoken and stately man, he never appeared in public without a tie. He was a non-smoker and non-drinker. He was as impeccable in his playing as he was in his personal life. Classically trained, he had to face the reality that no African-Americans were being hired for symphony jobs in the 1930s and 40s. After auditions for symphony jobs, they were told, “Don’t call us; we’ll call you.” [Read more…]
San Diego Police and FBI Drove Local Black Panthers Underground
Union-Tribune Finally “Finds” San Diego’s Black Panthers
By Frank Gormlie / OB Rag
In a very decent February 28 article about San Diego’s Black Panthers penned by Peter Rowe of the San Diego U-T, some of the city’s turbulent civil rights and Black power movement history from the Sixties and Seventies was uncovered.
First, it’s amazing to some San Diegans, including Rowe, that San Diego even had a Black Panther chapter back in the day. And that’s a credit that the San Diego Union and Tribune themselves can claim, for the coverage of local Panthers and the civil rights movement in general was skewed due to the right-wing – and yes, racist – policies and bias of its owners and editors. Think the Copley family, who ran the city’s only pair of dailies for decades. [Read more…]
We Let White Celeb Domestic Violence Offenders Off the Hook Far More Than Their Black Counterparts
A new study reveals that racial bias in celebrity domestic abuse reporting has consequences for every victim
By Kali Holloway / AlterNet
Few of us who care about domestic violence are likely to see the continuing condemnation of Brown—which hasn’t been helped by his subsequent public meltdowns over the year—as undeserved. What’s more, it’s about time domestic violence was recognized as the terrible crime it is.
But Brown is far from the only celebrity to be accused of domestic violence. So why do we hear about other stars’ despicable behavior with so much less frequency? A new study suggests that the level of media outcry about domestic violence is colored by the race of the offender. [Read more…]
Imperial Beach OKs Medical Marijuana …
Imperial Beach again OKs medical marijuana to be cultivated by certain individuals for certain patients, while continuing to ban commercial production and local dispensaries. IB’s sister cities of National City and Chula Vista in recent months also voted against medicinal marijuana shops. [Read more…]
Cable News Now: All White, All the Time?
MSNBC pulls plug on Melissa Harris-Perry show
By Thandisizwe Chimurenga / Daily Kos
Cable network MSNBC might be going back to “all white, all the time.” That’s what the Washington Post seems to be implying with their headline, “#MSNBCSoWhite.” Unless you’ve been under a rock, you should know that Melissa Harris-Perry, the professor and author most recently known for her news and public affairs show on MSNBC, has effectively ended her relationship with the network. [Read more…]
#StandWithLincoln Incident Puts an Exclamation Point on Black History Month in San Diego
An incident at San Diego’s historically black Lincoln High School on Friday involved students being tased and pepper sprayed by police from two agencies.
Students say police involvement was an overreaction to horseplay. The parent of a student who was jailed claims the arrest is revenge by the authorities. The ACLU says they are deeply concerned about what happened and are investigating.
The police say one officer suffered a concussion and has been placed on administrative leave. A cell-phone video shows the seemingly unharmed officer tasing a student laying face down on the ground. [Read more…]
Black History Month Ends on a Sad Note
By Rev. Richard Lawrence
Affirmative Action–a restorative justice program that tried to level the playing field for minorities, women and the disabled has been a miserable failure if the measure is increased pressure for justice.
The best example of affirmative action I’ve seen was organized by Dr. King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) when in 1962 Dr. King appointed the Rev. Jesse Jackson to organize a chapter of Operation Breadbasket in Chicago. Jesse was a student at Chicago Theological Seminary–part of the Federated Theological Faculties–a cooperative academic venture that included the University of Chicago Divinity School (where I was a student). Disciples Divinity School and the Unitarian-Universalist Seminary. [Read more…]
Beyond Liberal Schadenfreude: ‘Poorly Educated’ Voters Are Not Really Responsible for Trumpmania
By Chauncey DeVega / Daily Kos
Tuesday’s Nevada caucuses were but one more battlefield on which Trumpmania easily vanquished its foes. Donald Trump, the American Il Duce and Mad Max’s Immortan Joe come to life in the form of a reality TV show host and real estate gangster capitalist, won 45.9 percent of the Republican vote. This was more support than his two nearest rivals combined.
Donald Trump stuck to a tried-and-true routine during his victory speech. The “Trumpeteers” are an easy crowd to move when in the presence of their demigod. Trump knows how to manipulate their anxieties, fears, worries, and hopes. Trump plays to the cheap seats—the lowest common denominator—as he brays about “making America great again,” killing “terrorists,” and building a wall on the Mexican border.
His public lives vicariously through Trump’s proto-fascist strongman routine. They are desperate to absorb his supposed vitality. [Read more…]
Excerpt From Sunshine/Noir II: The Civil Disobedient
By Michael Billingsley
The morning of January 15, 1976 started out just like any other in the Skyline neighborhood of southeast San Diego, but there were two special things that set this day apart. For one, it was the day before my 14th birthday. Second, it was the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
There had been a movement to make MLK’s birthday a national holiday—in fact, African Americans all over the country started celebrating before it became a legal holiday. One of the things that appealed to me was that my birthday was on January 16, one day after Dr. King’s and the day before Muhammad Ali’s. [Read more…]
Winter 2016 AFL-CIO Executive Meeting Topics: Economic Inequality, Democracy in America
The executive council of the AFL-CIO, a federation of 56 unions representing 12.5 million members, has been meeting in San Diego this week. The agenda for the gathering suggests a growing enthusiasm for broad political actions, going beyond the specific needs of organized labor.
The Big Story, according to mainstream media outlets, has been the decision not to make a presidential endorsement. The reasoning behind that decision, and just about everything else happening at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel is no secret though it would be easy to think it was from the lack of local coverage. [Read more…]
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