Race Inquiry Digest (May 17) – Important Current Stories On Race In America

Feature – The Ancient Myth of ‘Good Fences.’ What do “fences” truly represent? If one looks at history, the answer seems obvious: What fences have very often indicated is not simply what is mine and what is yours, but, more subtly, who I am versus who you are. This tendency is based on the human inclination to define one’s identity in contrast to someone cast as a different, an untrustworthy Other best kept at a distance. Read more 

Part 1 :“It’s Time for Moral Confrontation”: New Poor People’s Campaign Stages Nationwide Civil Disobedience. Part 2: Rev. Barber Slams Anti-Muslim, Anti-Semitic Pastors Trump Chose to Open U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. Amy Goodman of Democracy interviews Rev. Barber.

Minnesota Timberwolves: “Hoopers in a cold state for Black Folks,” By Ralph L. Crowder III. An audio book article regarding the up and coming NBA team against a backdrop of social critique of Minnesota’s nation leading inequalities concerning the Black Community. A very unique inside perspective from an Independent black journalist. Watch here  

Spike Lee’s ‘BlacKkKlansman’ Is a Searing Indictment of Trumpism.  Nothing if not topical, Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman, which premiered in competition on Monday at Cannes, takes aim at resurgent racism in the age of Trump by dredging up a little-known episode from the 1970s. Read more and watch the trailer here. 

Trump’s brutal policies target the most vulnerable Americans. We tend to associate the word “brutality” with physical violence, especially violence at the hands of the state. It calls to mind police shootings, torture and war. But there is another form of brutality that is less apparent to the naked eye — the brutality of policy. Read more 

Ben Carson vs. the Fair Housing Act. The contempt of the housing and urban development secretary, Ben Carson, for the Fair Housing Act of 1968 has blinded him to policies that are in the nation’s best interest, and made him a prime target for lawsuits and court intervention. Read more 

Black and Latino people face the greatest barriers to re-entry after prison; women fare worst. Any given month, unemployment was 50 percent higher for the African American and Latino men in his study than the white men. Read more 

At a Killer’s Sentencing, Native Americans Talk of Both Healing and Enduring Suspicions. A white man in Washington state got 7 1/2 years for a killing some said was fueled by hate. Donkey Creek Road, near where Jimmy Smith-Kramer was killed last year, outside Taholah, Washington. Read more 

There’s a new Colin Kaepernick this season. Here we go again. Eric Reid is the new Kaepernick. Reid, who was a starting safety for the 49ers the past five seasons, was the first player to join Kaepernick’s protest. Eric Reid is 26 and healthy. And unsigned. Read more 

Affirmative Action Benefits Everyone — Including Asian Americans. A national poll co-sponsored by Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC found that 64 percent of Asian American voters favor programs that are designed to help African Americans, women and other minorities access higher education. Read more 

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