Racism in the Age of Obama

Yesterday the media exploded with the story of the young Black kids who were turned away from a privileged, white swimming pool in suburban Pennsylvania. Racist incidents have been on the rise in the United States in the past several months since the election of Obama. Despite the dreams and visions of utopia that many people have sought and wished for after the election of President Obama, we must face the truth that the struggle against racism has only intensified. It has not been resolved. Racist entities have sharpened their tools of hate and are more proactive than ever in their attempts to maintain that which they once had, thought they had, and are in danger of loosing. Indeed, within the same time frame as Obama was elected Oscar Grant was assassinated by police in Oakland California. White patriarchal systems of power have galvanized to fight to the death to keep the privilege that they feel is rightfully theirs.

We see this in the public fight over the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the supreme court. Establishment white males have gone out of their way to demonstrate Sotomayor's racial bias against white males in her judgments and rulings. Even the Supreme Court's recent rejection of her ruling in the case of the New Jersey firefighters is an effort on behalf of the white male power structure, namely John Roberts, who I believe is the key figure in this decision, to declare Sotomayor illegitimate and to shore up their position as privileged white men. This fight,coupled with racist statements made on the sly by public officials, the appearance of nooses on campuses around the country, the shooting at the Holocaust Memorial, and the plethora of other racist incidents that have occurred around the U.S. since November 2008, all reflect the extent to which white supremacy has flexed its muscles in an effort to vamp up the fight for its very existence.

Part of the problem is that race is a volatile bubbling liquid that has never been properly defined in the United States and that constantly threatens to spill,contaminating every aspect of American existence. Those who feel threatened by the influx of immigrants of color into the U.S., the advancement of Black and Brown people in the political arena, and the eroding predominance of white privilege in this society are those who have very feeble grasps on white privilege in the first place. The false privilege of being white that was extended to poor and economically disadvantaged people in this country is becoming less and less effective as a pacifier to people who have to fight for their very economic existence. The Latin American rule that "money whitens" is becoming more and more relevant in the United States and it is causing great bitterness and dis-ease among those people who historically enjoyed the social safety net that whiteness provided. This bitterness has been translated into hatred and violence against people of color, minorities, and immigrants.

Whiteness itself is a contentious bone to be picked between many groups who once relatively easily galvanized around this identity to shore up their class and racial privilege. If whiteness were limited to its original definition, the borders around "whiteness" would eliminate all peoples in Southern Europe, from Spain and southern France to Greece as well as the people of Eastern Europe. Take out the people of Ireland and Scotland too. If whiteness were limited to that original "wasp" idea of a "teutonic" heritage, the number of white people in the United States would be drastically reduced. The ramifications of that for those who have depended on this identity for their social, economic, and political power would be drastic and threatening. It becomes clear that the interests of white patriarchal power lie in maintaining the order that once was, pre-Obama.

The manifestations of such efforts can clearly be seen by all who are willing to look. The Bush administration worked perfectly towards the advancement of this agenda. The basic disarmament of the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice, the firing of U.S. Attorneys (yes, this had a lot to do with the Bush administrations attempts to erode Civil and voting rights protections at the DOJ), the appointment of John Roberts--all of these actions were efforts to concrete the power and privilege of the ruling class (read: white patriarchy) in this country and to shore up their position against the growing power of people of color, women, and other minority groups.

These revelations ought to inspire all of us to be more vigilant in our fight against racism. We should all be more aware and more proactive in countering the conservative and neoliberal forces in this country that would march us right back to the 1950s. The election of O'Bama served to give us hope that one day we would overcome the problems that we face in this country. It was not the end of the struggle. We must all wake up and come to realize that this fight is far from over and that all of us must work diligently in order to end patriarchy and white supremacy in the United States.

A Great Discussion of the Link Between Obesity Rates in the South and Poverty on CNN. Defintiely Worth Reading.

Whoever wrote this article needs to recieve a Pulitzer. Perhaps a Nobel Prize. I have never seen such a profound link made between obesity, health risks, poverty, and the sociopolitical realities of an area such as is made in this article. Everyone living south of the Mason Dixon line needs to read this.

Maureen Dowd on Sarah Palin

Everyone must read this hilarious piece that Maureen Dowd did in the New York Times. It is hysterical! Is anyone proud of Sarah Palin?

Christopher de la Torre's Commemorative Series: 40 Years After Stonewall

Christopher de la Torre has put together a very thought-provoking series with "Forty Years After Stonewall." I encourage everyone to take a look at the interviews with Steven Dansky, John Knoebel, and Ellen Shumsky that have already been published. These interviews provide some major insight into radical gay politics. My piece has been posted as well.

Check Out Brandon Wallace at Christopher de la Torre

Check out Christopher de la Torre's commemorative series on Stonewall at his website linked above.

Injustice in Paris, Texas

A Black youth named Brandon McClellan was dragged behind a truck 70 feet by two white men who have just been set free in Paris Texas, a town known for its racist past and its racist legacy. This is the same town where the Shaquanda Cotton incident occurred and it is the same place where one of the worst lynchings in the history of the United States took place. These atrocities must stop. Everyone must stand with these people and demand justice!

We want Sotomayor on the Supreme Court NOW!

Commemorating Stonewall: For Immediate Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 29, 2009


40 YEARS AFTER STONEWALL: THE GAY LIBERATION FRONT'S FOUNDING MEMBERS SPEAK

(New York, NY) – Beginning Tuesday, June 30, christopherdelatorre.com commemorates the 40th Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots and the inception of the modern gay rights movement.

Produced by journalist Christopher de la Torre, the series features several founding members of the Gay Liberation Front, including Perry Brass, Steven Dansky, Karla Jay, John Knoebel and Ellen Shumsky. “The blog series is actually, in part, a response to the recent New York Times article ‘Why the Gay Rights Movement Has No National Leader.’ I think it’s important, now more than ever, to put a face (or faces, as it were) on the movement,” he said. “These are a few of those faces.”

Also featured is historian and author John-Manuel Andriote, whose exhibit “Victory Deferred” is currently showing at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Other contributors include Kevin Kopelson (author, Sedaris) and activist Brandon Wallace.

“I’d not only like to remember the importance of Stonewall as a catalyst for a new movement,” de la Torre said, “but I also implore the next generation of activists – gay and straight – not to lose sight of the raw transformative power of revolution, and how real change often begins with the convictions of a marginalized and fearless few.”

Selected quotes:

“From 1969 – 1972 I dedicated myself to the self chosen mission of documenting these Gay and Lesbian Liberation movements from a privileged insiders perspective. It was through my participation in this revolutionary community that I healed my divided self…” –Ellen Shumsky

“In addition to activism, a great deal of queer theory began with GLF thinkers and writers who compelled a shift in perception of reality so persistent that it radically altered assumptions about gender and sexuality.” –Steven Dansky

“We wanted to create an authentic gay culture, a real gay media, and a gay world that was part of the bigger world and yet distinct enough from the mainstream for us to survive intact in it.” –Perry Brass

“The assumption that we need a national leader is ridiculous. The reality is that we are not one people and do not share race, gender, class, sexual preferences, or a common upbringing. Queers constitute many communities…” –Karla Jay

Christopher de la Torre is a New York-based journalist and civil rights activist. A former scientist, he endeavors to take scientific discourse to a new level with the re-launch of his online publication, Urban Molecule, later this year.

I pray for the people of Honduras..and I have faith in the progressive movements of Latin America!

Strengthened Ties Between the U.S. and the Bolivaran Movement

Recently, President Obama and President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela have renewed pledges of friendship between one another and between the U.S. and Venezuela. Very promising. I have linked to the article about the matter in the title. Oh what sweet progress!