Top Five Posts: Darrius, Dolezal, and Documentaries

Top Five Posts: Darrius, Dolezal, and Documentaries July 28, 2015

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Here are the top posts for the week of July 20-26, 2015 on the Rhetoric Race and Religion Blog. We ask that you share this with others.

1. Memphis Has a Hashtag: #DarriusStewart; #JusticeForDarrius

by Andre E. Johnson

But something else happened out there that night. Through the pain and sorrow; through the heartbreak and turmoil of yet another black youth dead at the hands of state sponsored terrorism, there was a spirit of commitment. Led by family members who vowed not to let this story die and promised to keep asking questions, the crowd of about 200 stood totally in solidarity with them. We stood in unison as the family asked for our prayers and support, but also asked us to not back down and not to quit. They asked us to keep this alive until justice for Darrius is a reality.

2. Two Sides of a Copper Coin: The Coloring of #RachelDolezal and #SandraBland in a Post-Racial America

by Gee Joyner

Rachel Dolezal’s decision to “pass” for Black in America was scrutinized and even demonized, mainly, by the Black community, particularly the Black Intelligentsia.  Whereas there were some that chanted the forgiving-mantra of Black America “Let that woman be”, most Black Americans that I came into contact with in the real world and via social media felt betrayed because while Rachel benefitted from her public identifying of Black (NAACP chapter president, adjunct professorship of Africana Studies) she, up until last month, lived a life null and void of the constant harassment and blatant and subtle discrimination and subordination that lurks around the corners of life for most of Black America.  Now though, Dolezal is out of work and complaining that her career and career opportunities have been ruined because of her clandestine racial fraud.  Some would say she has reaped what she has sown.  But, what about the literal demise of Sandra Bland?

3. “They Make This World So Damn Uncomfortable”: The African American Prophetic Tradition

by Andre E. Johnson

R3 founder and managing editor, Dr. Andre E. Johnson, will offer the Topics in Rhetoric seminar class for the Fall 2015 term titled, “They Make This World So Damn Uncomfortable”: The African American Prophetic Tradition.” Dr. Johnson will teach the class on Thursday Nights starting August 27, 2015 from 5:30pm-8:30pm as part of the Graduate Program in Communication at the University of Memphis.  Classes in the Topics of Rhetoric seminar typically focus on an important aspect of the history, theory, or criticism of rhetoric. Moreover, the class also challenges students to consider the core question of rhetoric’s role in the diverse settings of American culture and focuses on rhetoric’s influence on the multiple meanings of American citizenship and human identity. The course description and required texts for the class are below.

4. Born in the Struggle: The Untold Story of the Children of 1960’s and 70’s American Radicals

Born in the Struggle is a documentary film that explores the lives of the children of 1960’s and 1970’s Radical Activists. In the 1960’s and 1970’s there was a resurgence of pride, identity, and a reclamation of power and self-determination. My family was a part of this movement and as I child, I was inculcated in it with my African name, my celebration of Kwanzaa, and my parents insistence that I understand and participate in a knowledge of black pride and black identity. This film explores the lives of people from my generation –who were the sons of and daughters of 1960’s & 70’s radicals. The film addresses the question – What was/is life like for the children of many of the 1960’s/70′s Radicals? It explores their reflections and ruminations on their childhood, the influences of their parents, and how the activism of their parents affected their life. The driving narratives of film will be people like Tupac Shakur, Ayanna Gregory, Fred Hampton Jr, Ras Baraka, Tanehisi Coates, and Dave Chappelle.

5. We Have to Dismantle White Supremacy Before We Can Forgive

by Leah C.K. Lewis

For us, forgiveness takes on cosmic or metaphysical proportions. It is not interpersonal or immediate. Forgiveness for the masses must be withheld until the hydra headed monster of white supremacy and privilege breathes its last breath. Until white Americans confess their sins and those of their foreparents, remove every Southern Cross from public spaces, confront their intra-ethnic group members who are violators, ratify laws that rectify systemic disadvantages and oppressions based upon color and class, overturn injustices, apologize, and pay reparations, forgiveness ought not be articulated. Tall order, I know, but as Dr. Cornel West said on CNN shortly after the massacre, “Forgiveness is a process, not an utterance.” So, too is reconciliation.

 


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