2020 Vision
Hard to believe that as millions gathered worldwide ten years ago to usher in the new millennium the biggest worry was whether the computers would work after midnight.
This year millions worldwide simply wonder if they will ever work again; it has been a hellacious decade.
This is the week of reflection on the gasping 00’s, a ten year stretch that cannot end soon enough. The decade-long litany of socioeconomic and political disasters is filling chattering class columns ad nauseum, reminding us why, once again, most Americans believe that the country is heading in the wrong direction. The bloom is off the rose of the new Administration, and the grim reality of a very long-term recovery is settling in on the body politic. Read more
Minutemen and Klansmen
By Joel Olson
I recently reviewed The Rise of the Ku Klux Klan by Rory McVeigh (University of Minnesota Press 2009) for the academic journal American Studies. The book is a little dry, but there were some notable lessons in it for understanding anti-immigration organizations today.
The Klan originated after the Civil War to restore white supremacy by terrorizing ex-slaves and antislavery whites during Reconstruction. This generation of the Klan ended when Reconstruction did in the 1870s. McVeigh’s book studies the second generation of the KKK, which started in 1915 (coinciding with the release of D.W. Griffith’s famous pro-Klan movie The Birth of a Nation) and exploded in growth from 1920-1924, with a membership of over four million people at its peak.
Read more
The Reality of White Nationalism
As an anti-racist activist, researching white supremacists, white nationalists, anti-Semites, neo-Nazis and anti-immigrant groups hasn’t always been easy, particularly when I’m trying to figure out the similarities and differences (and yes, there are MANY important differences) between each of these groups. And then there are the militia/patriot groups and those we define as “Christian identity”. (Are you confused yet?)
When I started working with anti-racist leaders I heard the term “white nationalist”, but I had no idea what it meant. Out of fear of looking stupid, I didn’t ask anyone if there was a difference between white nationalism and white supremacy. I assumed that they were the same – a huge mistake for any researcher, particularly for anyone trying to understand how race and racism functions in 21st century society. Read more
Security, Sovereignty, & Justice
Earlier this year, prices of food staples shot up 40 percent, marking the fastest rate of increase since 1990. The current recession is beginning to bear its weight on the spending choices of middle-class Americans, from big ticket items to weekly grocery lists. Twenty eight million citizens are now relying on food stamps to survive – a record high and a sure sign of increased poverty levels. Food riots have been increasingly occurring around the world due to the rising price of grain and fear of starvation. Our nation’s food security is already at risk, and while some people may be reluctant to come to terms with this reality, I think it’s time to take a more in-depth look into social food movements already battling these pressing sustenance issues. Read more
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Authors
- Amy Mehta
- Amy Spicer
- Ana Turck
- Andrew Grant-Thomas
- Axel Fuentes
- Carlos Rich
- Chris Bober
- Cloee Cooper
- Eric Ward
- Garat Ibrahim
- George Garza
- Guest Blogger
- Imagine 2050 Editors
- James E. Johnson
- Jessica Acee
- Jill Garvey
- Joan Flanagan
- Katie Bezrouch
- Katie Irwin
- Ken Brown
- Noah Chandler
- Rev. David L. Ostendorf
- Sarah Viets
- Stephen Piggott
- Tom Dunmore
- Amy Mehta