Politics

Part Two: Forgetting-The protest turns deadly

Written by Ana Turck

It’s a strange thing how some faces become etched in memory, serving as a visual representation of events. For me, the face of protests in Sarajevo 1992 belongs to a man for whom the intensity of his emotions became more than he could bear. At 16 I hardly understood these emotions. In his face I saw pain, sadness, anger and devastation. While his yelling and tearing off clothes scared me, I also felt sorry for him.

Passing the military barracks JNA soldiers (Yugoslavian Army) were in windows and on the roof. I imagined how magnificent this moment was and how great it would be if they joined us in solidarity. I still believed that the… Read more

Politics

Blog Highlight: Nazis in the U.S. military

Written by Jill Garvey

One of our favorite bloggers over at Crooks and Liars breaks down a troubling military trend. This is a topic that David Neiwert has covered extensively already. And one that Southern Poverty Law Center has warned about for years.

In his “about me” section, “SoldatAMG” describes himself as a “Sergeant in USMC stationed at Camp Lejeune. I recently returned from my 3rd trip to Iraq. I fight every day to stem the tide of multicultturalism and to ensure that my children have a better world. SIEG HEIL!” — Stars and Stripes

Why, it feels like only yesterday… Read more

Arpaio Supporters Exhibit Dangerous Rhetoric

Written by Jill Garvey

This most recent video from Humanleague shows us once again the people who are supporting Sheriff Joe Arpaio in Arizona. It’s a chilling look into an environment occupied by violent racists and the immigrants they target. This is exactly why Shawna Forde felt justified in breaking into a Latino family’s home and murdering a little girl and her father.

While some of the individuals featured on this video may be unstable or exhibit strange behavior, they are not crazy. These are functioning adults who are perfectly capable of behaving in a reasonable manner. They choose not… Read more

Politics

Music for Children Behind Bars

Written by George Garza

A photograph of an empty playground behind barbed-wire fences says it all.

Upon first learning about the inhumane reality of imprisoned children less than two hours from San Antonio, most locals I’ve approached are left speechless. This comes as no surprise seeing as how some residents of Taylor (the small town 30 miles north of Austin, TX where this cage is located) are still clueless as to what is happening in their own backyard.

The increasingly infamous T. Don Hutto “Residential” Center is maintained by the private security company Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) and is one of two facilities in the US (the other is in New Jersey) which “houses” immigrant… Read more

Politics

Remembrance

Written by Ana Turck

There are moments in my life when I regret not keeping a journal; the kind whose pages are filled with mundane details, only seldom interrupted by fragments of insightful thought. In my early teens I tried this exercise in self-awareness, but faltered after realizing that the journal turned into lists of meals, obsessive ramblings about unrequited love and frustrations over schoolwork. Realizing the ordinary nature of my teen angst, I stopped writing and turned to poetry instead.

During the war I refused to write; partially due to my inability to focus on anything more than survival, but also as a form of resistance to the conditions of my life. I refused to be just… Read more

The John Tanton Network and the Anti-Immigrant Movement in America

Written by Jill Garvey

One man is at the heart of the most influential network of anti-immigrant groups in the country.

This man, John H. Tanton, has created an empire of organizations populated by lobbyists, lawyers, legislators, and “experts” that have permeated the very depths of America’s social and political debate on immigration.

What appears to the public as myriad separate voices all advocating for one cause, i.e. severe immigration enforcement, is nothing more than a facade, a collection of craftily constructed front groups, faux-”coalitions,” and spin-offs that are collectively unified in their goal to overwhelm any reasonable debate on immigration with their branded worldview of bigotry.

This collective is known as the John Tanton Network.

Tanton founded… Read more

Sports

Despite Racism, Blacks Part Waters to Swim

Written by Eric Ward

I’ve heard all my life that “Black people don’t swim.” “Do too!” I would respond. When I was three it was impossible to get me out of the tub, at 15 I was biking down to Sunset Beach almost every day to boogie board (I still have the scar to show for it). At 16 I piloted my first boat and at 17 I even pre-enlisted in the U.S. Navy to sail the high seas. Perhaps it is because I grew up close to the ocean in S. California, or as some of my hippy friends like to point out, because I was born under the water sign of Cancer.

Whatever the reason I’ve… Read more

What—Then or Now—Is Your Fourth of July?

Written by Ken Brown

Amidst another round of the yearly patriotism-without-critical-analysis hoopla that comes with this week, I find myself still inclined to agree with Fred. I ask this country the same question he did: “What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July?”

(Read, in preset context: “What, to African Americans and other people of color, immigrants discriminated against, and those oppressed by this country generally, is your Fourth of July?”)

On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass gave an address in Rochester, NY that probably surprised his audience with its tone. To be sure, Douglass’s speech includes very clear expressions of hope: “Notwithstanding the dark picture I have this day presented, of the… Read more

July 4, 2009: Reflection, Celebration, and Struggle

Written by Jill Garvey

July 4th one year ago was all about nostalgia. In last year’s post I wrote about celebrating the 4th of July as a kid and why it is still my favorite holiday,

Earlier in the day we would attend, or sometimes host our neighborhood’s famous backyard pancake breakfast. The hosts made the pancakes, and everyone brought another dish, usually bacon (I swear you’ve never seen so many plates of bacon!). Afterwards we would go to the town fair – jump in the moonwalk until we were sick, have our faces painted, get soaked in the water balloon toss, and maybe take a whirl on the miniature ponies. Depending on the… Read more

News

San Diego Congressional Candidate Intimidated by Sheriff’s Dept.

Written by Katie Bezrouch

On June 26 a sheriff’s deputy walked into a democratic fundraiser in a private home and pepper sprayed the attendees, most of whom were over 50 years old.

Francine Busby is a Democratic candidate running in 2010 for congress in California’s 50th District (including San Diego). In 2006 she lost the same seat in a controversial race against Republican Brian Bilbray. The Republican National Convention put 5 million dollars behind Bilbray’s campaign because of Busby’s growing popularity. Brian Bilbray is the chairman of the anti-immigrant House Immigration Reform Caucus and a staunch advocate of John Tanton’s anti-immigrant movement. The local minutemen chapter often praises him on their website.

Last Friday,… Read more