Politics

Angry Voters, Right-Wing Populism, & Racial Violence: People of Faith Can Help Break the Linkages

Written by Imagine 2050 Editors

This article was written by Chip Berlet and originally published at religion dispatches on January 26, 2010.

We are in the midst of one of the most significant right-wing populist rebellions in US history as illustrated by the Tea Party and Patriot movements. Will religious and progressive activists provide a voice and outlet for populist fear and anger or will these dispossessed voices find a home among the potentially violent elements of the far right?

Eric Ward is nervous. He’s seen it before—the angry right-wing populist crowds, the strident calls to “Restore America” and “Take it Back.” In the mid 1990s, Ward was a community organizer for a human rights group in the

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Immigration

The President’s State of the Union: Missed Opportunities on the Push for Immigration and Health Care Reform

Written by Imagine 2050 Editors

An insightful post from VivirLatino blogger Maegan la Mamita Mala. Worth reading to the last word.

After President Obama’s State of the Union address last night, I needed to get out of Casa Mala. I knew what was coming, the analysis, the discussion, and the disagreements about what needed to done and what tone to use in doing it. But I needed a drink, I need to sing and dance a little as an act of mourning because in all of these discussions, which I am now engaged in, there was little mention of actual people.

While I was preparing mentally for the State of the Union address, I saw on the Spanish

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Immigration

Tanton Memo of the Month – Center for Immigration Studies

Written by Sarah Viets

Every month, the Center for New Community releases one of John Tanton’s personal letters and/or memos, illustrating John Tanton’s close relationships with white nationalists and the formation of today’s anti-immigrant movement. The letters and memos are a public collection at the Bentley Historical Library.

As discussions on immigration reform fill airwaves and blogs in the coming months, anti-immigrant and immigrant rights organizations will debate if immigration financially benefits American society. Currently, the John Tanton Network, a web of over two dozen organizations, is attempting to represent the interests of American workers, particularly organizations like Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), NumbersUSA and the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS). Almost every month, the Center for… Read more

Politics

Republic Broadcasting Network: Safe Haven for Hate

Written by Stephen Piggott

When I came across Republic Broadcasting Network, billed as “The most provocative programming on the internet”, I immediately thought it was going to be another conservative talk network like Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity. But after digging deeper and finding the list of shows and hosts, I came to the conclusion that Republic Broadcasting Network was not just “provocative” but rather extreme.

The network features a whole slew of extreme right characters, not to mention its weekly ad in the anti-Semitic newspaper, American Free Press. Two current American Free Press employees, Michael Collins Piper and Mark Anderson have their own radio shows on Republic Broadcasting Network. Both men have strong connections to anti-Semites.… Read more

No Fans for All-white Basketball League

Written by Guest Blogger

By Tom Dunmore

Former wrestling promoter Don “Moose” Lewis last week announced he was launching a basketball league for white, American-born players only. A press release from Lewis reported by the Augusta Chronicle said that “Only players that are natural born United States citizens with both parents of Caucasian race are eligible to play in the league”.

He went on to claim that his league was not racist: “There’s nothing hatred about what we’re doing,” he said. “I don’t hate anyone of color. But people of white, American-born citizens are in the minority now. Here’s a league for white players to play fundamental basketball, which they like.”

State of the Union: By No Means a Tea Party

Written by Rev. David L. Ostendorf

After a year of abysmal sleepwalking, Congressional and Administration leaders are finally waking up to the growing restlessness—and yes, anger—across the Potomac. While the state of the union could be summed up in one word—disarray—it will not likely persuade the political class to start acting like grown-ups and settling in to address the nation’s fundamental challenges. We are in for a very perilous ride.

While both parties clamber to get in front of the restlessness and anger—and the President himself finally speaks of “fighting back” against entrenched interests—the rumbles of an incipient “tea party” movement lure politicos and pundits alike to the siren song of disaffected whites who “want their country back.” Record levels… Read more

Eating with a Conscience

Written by Carlos Rich

Ever since I moved to the US I have really enjoyed going out to eat with my family and friends. I’ve been to many unique, fine and also hole-in-the-wall restaurants. In the past year however I cut down on how much I eat out and I’m becoming more conscience of my food purchases. It’s really hard since I live in a small town and my choices are limited. When I travel and have more options, I try to look for locally owned establishments or places that are recommended to me. Often, I make an effort to ask the wait staff if they know where the food comes from. If I know that the meat comes… Read more

The Disappeared In America

Written by James E. Johnson Jr.

Across the U.S. hundreds of thousands of good people have disappeared without warning; some say it happened in the blink of an eye. No, it is not the Divine Rapture. People have disappeared because they believed in the American dream. More than 369,000 people who believed in the dream and worked toward making the dream become a reality are being held in detention facilities for following it.

Recently, there has been a focus on how our broken immigration system is turning the American dream into a nightmare for those who are working to make it their own. As the New Year approached, Jean Montrevil, who worked not just to make the dream a reality… Read more

Politics

Ding Dong Democracy is Dead

Written by Imagine 2050 Editors

Altenet posted this article, The Bush-Packed Supreme Court Thinks Corporations Are People Too, describing how very un-human corporations are. Even better is the video posted below of Keith Olbermann sounding off about the Supreme Court’s stupidity. It’s brilliant.

Corporations now have all the privileges of citizenship, without any of the responsibilities.

This week’s Supreme Court decision in the Citizens United case removes all limits on large corporations to finance and influence federal elections. In its ruling the court reverses a decades-old ruling barring companies from using their general funds to fund political campaigns, and guts pieces of the popular McCain-Feingold campaign finance legislation. In so doing the Court implicitly embraces a 125 year-old precedent in

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Immigration

Roy Beck Appearance Raises Concern

Written by Imagine 2050 Editors

The word is the National Council for Science and the Environment did not boot Roy Beck from its conference on Thursday, and it didn’t turn out too well. Attendees to Beck’s session were given detailed leaflets beforehand explaining his associations to the John Tanton Network and white nationalism and voiced their concerns about his relationships during the session.

Following up on our recent post about the NCSE, here is an excerpt from Erin Rosa’s in-depth article at Campus Progress:

What was supposed to be an annual convention of environmental scientists and influential policymakers quickly turned into a political polemic after some discovered that a speaker at one of the event’s breakout sessions had

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