Politics

People Beyond Reason: The Organizing Imperative

Written by Rev. David L. Ostendorf

It was at a meeting of U.S. and Canadian farmers and church leaders in the ‘80s that I first heard the story. After meeting all day to discuss and develop responses to the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement, participants gathered informally to wind down. I was engaged in a friendly and cordial conversation with one of the farmers when he lifted his can of Coca Cola and, pointing the to bar code, explained to me how the code signified which Jewish synagogue would get the profit from the sale of the product—part and parcel of the worldwide Jewish conspiracy to control everything. He was quite serious and quite earnest.

Though seldom at a loss… Read more

Anti-Choice Zealot Smears Kennedy

Written by Guest Blogger

by Edmundo Rocha

Equal political voice and democratically responsive government are widely cherished American ideals. Yet, what is happening today is a far cry from what has been happening at recent town halls, where angry protesters stooped to ad hominem attacks. Hatefulness is not attractive or persuasive.

In a Sept. 2 WorldNetDaily column, anti-choice zealot Jill Stanek shamefully dismisses Sen. Edward Kennedy’s accomplishments in the Senate based on a single issue – abortion. What was left out from her column was how Kennedy’s Catholic faith grounded his work and commitment on behalf of those less fortunate and those marginalized. His legislative history proves it. He authored more than 2,000 pieces of legislation in his… Read more

2009 ALMA Awards is the Show to Watch

Written by Eric Ward

Are you a music fiend? Be sure to warn your neighbors and give the living room floor an extra coat of wax if, like me, you’re lucky enough to be watching ABC Television on Friday, September 18 (8:00 to10:00 p.m., ET/PT). ABC will be broadcasting The American Latino Media Arts Award, also known as the ALMA. The early word on the street is that the creators of the event, the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), are taking the awards ceremony, now in its fifteenth year, to new heights.

NCLR President and CEO Janet Murguía guarantees, “If you like the ALMA Awards, you will love this year’s show because we’re bringing you more of… Read more

LABOR DAY

Written by admin

Politics

Crosspost: Insane reaction to president’s back-to-school speech

Written by Jill Garvey

A good article from Karl Frisch at Media Matters details more insanity from the right-wing media nuts.

It’s that time of the year again. Parents are busy preparing their children for the first day of school while children are busy holding on to every minute left in their precious summer vacation. But, out in the distance, an ominous threat is looming. That threat has a name … gulp … and it is … whimper … President Barack Hussein Obama.

Following news this week that Obama will speak directly to students next week in a special “back to school” address, media conservatives went absolutely apoplectic, calling Obama’s forthcoming speech “indoctrination,” as Fox News’ Glenn

… Read more

Politics

Right Wing Extremism in America is Real

Written by Stephen Piggott

Are birthers and town hall protesters right-wing extremists? You better believe it!

In May of this year the Department of Homeland Security released a report on right-wing extremism in the United States. The report describes right-wing extremism as:

“Broadly divided into those groups, movements and adherents that are primarily hate orientated (based on a distrust of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly anti-government, rejecting federal authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.”

Immigration

Environmental Organizations Targeted by Anti-Immigrant Bigots

Written by Jill Garvey

On Monday, Imagine 2050 contributor, Eric Ward, wrote about how to defeat anti-immigrant bigotry in seven days. One day focused on the Sierra Club and why we should show support for an organization that has repeatedly confronted bigotry infiltrating its ranks. If you haven’t already, click here to join the Sierra Club. If you are already a member, give a gift membership to a family member or friend.

On August 10, Southern Poverty Law Center posted this warning on its HateWatch blog:

Since his efforts to take over the board of directors of the Sierra Club with anti-immigration activists failed in 2004, UCLA

… Read more

Lessons of the Tulsa Race Riots

Written by Jill Garvey

On May 31, 1921 the reputation of Oklahoma was irreparably harmed when racial tensions turned violent in the thriving town of Tulsa. With over 300 African Americans murdered (some estimates reach into the thousands), and thousands of homes and businesses destroyed in just one day of mob violence – it was one of the cruelest days in American history. It is believed the sheriff deputized members of the white mob as they set upon Tulsa’s prosperous black neighborhoods.

On June 29, 1921, an article appeared in The Nation by Walter F. White, (future director of the NAACP). His… Read more

Lou Dobbs: Perspective on a Piker

Written by Rev. David L. Ostendorf

What more is to be said about Lou Dobbs? Bigot. Well-paid bigot. Anti-immigrant shill for the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) and its kind. Birther bloviator. Cash cow for CNN. The list is endless.

What is seldom said is that he is a piker, a small potato, “a person who does anything in a contemptibly small or cheap way” compared to the granddaddy of hate broadcasting, Father Charles E. Coughlin, whose radio diatribes in the 1930s set the gold standard for the airwaves.

A Michigan priest who first supported Roosevelt and was outspoken on behalf of exploited workers, Coughlin took a turn in 1934 and began denouncing the President as a… Read more

News

Ten Reasons Glenn Beck Should Get Off the Air and Never Come Back

Written by Katie Bezrouch

1 ) Over thirty companies have stopped running ads on the Glenn Beck show due to his racist statements.

2 ) Beck once aspired to be a top 40 radio DJ (snort).

3 ) He Relayed this message to a 7-year-old girl who wrote a poem about white nationalism: “You want to go to Africa? I will personally purchase your airfare. I’ll do it. It’s one-way. You have to sign a contract that you will never return to the United States.”

4 ) He endangers the eardrums of listeners. Hear for yourself – if you dare. Pay close attention to his astounding vocabulary and turn down the volume to prevent damage.