One
Blue Dog missing
In our
October 17 issue we mistakenly referred to Tennessee Rep. Harold Ford,
Jr. as the "solitary Black" member of the Blue Dog Coalition,
the southern-based crowd of House members who squeeze themselves into
contorted "centrist" positions somewhere between Democratic
leadership and the White House. Common Cause activist James Benton wrote
to remind us that Georgia Rep. Sanford Bishop is also a Blue Dog. We
promptly corrected the error. Our only excuse is that Congressman Bishop's
conservatism places him so far afield of conventional Black politics,
we sometimes overlook him in plain sight.
Permanent
War, justifiable fears
Our commentary,
"Permanent War - Permanent State of Emergency" struck a chord
with a number of readers. Tram Nguyen searched for a glimmer of light
at the end of the road Bush is taking - and found none.
I just
read the Letter to 
Readers, regarding the war without end. I wish I could say you are
wrong, that the U.S. government does not have that coordinated of
a plan, that there must be more chinks in their armor, and that even
they will stop short of going over the brink into attacking Iraq and
fomenting endless armed conflicts... but I can't.
Part
of what hurts the most is that not only are some white folks acting
crazy or at best insolent and uncaring, immigrants and U.S.-born people
of color are pitiful for the most part in our response. Maybe we will
all stand up when we no longer have any choice, when the shit really
starts hitting the fan.
I have
to say, after weeks of intermittent discussion and reading about this
coming war, I haven't been as afraid and depressed as I was after
reading your piece.
Ms. Nguyen
is an editor with the progressive magazine, Color Lines.
"Race
hatred is the only fuel that can sustain permanent, global war,"
the October 17
commentary warned. Brookie Tribo agrees.
This
is praise of your article Permanent War, Permanent State of Emergency.
You couldn't be more accurate about fueling racial hatred. If everyone
would wake up they would understand the "agenda" behind
race problems in this country. Racial strife and division is being
deliberately provoked and managed as a form of control. It's simply
the divide and conquer approach. If people would realize this and
stop being manipulated they could pull together against the real problem...
the elites running this country. I am white and I plainly see what's
behind all the so-called "racial strife". Anybody with insight
can watch the major media and see the setup. I also believe you are
right that the black community will suffer most. Keep up this type
of commentary. People need to wake up to what's going on.
Mr. Tribo
added that "fear" is also a dangerous mobilization tool of
the war hawks.
Our
article emphasized the historically unique nature of the Bush doctrine:
"The simple capability to deter the U.S. from acting as it chooses
is deemed a legitimate cause of attack." Ron Harvey believes there
have been other sources of similar threats to world peace.
I just
read your commentary, "Permanent war, Permanent State of Emergency".
Very well done.
In
the article, it was stated that a "threat" to America is
any nation that that has the capability to keep America from imposing
its will on another nation. "[N]o other nation" has ever
made such a statement, says the commentary. I must differ with this
based on my recollection of hearing the communist definition of "Peace
is the absence of opposition to communism." Sorry, I do not have
a reference for this quote.
Otherwise,
I am glad to hear you telling the truth about the "War on Terrorism".
We responded:
Dear
Mr. Harvey:
W can't connect with the quote you're searching for,
but we get your point.
Predictions that one social system will triumph over
another are not threats of aggression by one state against others.
For example, when Soviet Premier Khrushchev said of the U.S., "We
will bury you," he meant that socialism would out-produce capitalism.
The Soviet and Eastern European economies were growing at phenomenal
rates in the early Sixties, as were China and North Korea.
The Bush administration has a plan, and believes
it has the means, to dominate the Earth. These are unique times.
Belafonte's
magnificent critique
It was
with great satisfaction that we reprinted Harry Belafonte's sterling
political performance on Larry King Live, an experience we wanted to
share with the world. Along with Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, Belafonte
continues in the tradition of Paul Robeson, the great singer-activist-scholar
who was consigned to a kind of internal exile for daring to denounce
U.S. domestic and foreign policy. Wylie S. Rogers remembers those times.
I want
to register my full support for Harry Belafonte's characterization
of the role and relationship of Powell and Rice in the Bush Administration
and I want to applaud your site for your support of his courageous
stance.
I am
a man of 62 years, old enough to experience the lynching of Emmitt
Till, old enough to participate in the struggle for civil rights in
the South and the urban uprisings of the North, old enough to witness
the wholesale retreat from social justice and equality during the
Reagan years. And yes, old enough to have suffered through the Clarence
Thomas fiasco.
For
me, Belafonte's words are like a gale of fresh air momentarily blowing
away the suffocating stench of U.S. politics, a politics of arrogance,
hypocrisy, and economic and social neglect. My fervent hope is that
his remarks will serve as a spark to awaken the sleeping giant that
is the long-suffering American people.
Above
all, we who desire to protect our democracy must move quickly to protect
this courageous man from the attack dogs of the right.
Baraka's
verse
Guest
Commentator Rachael Kamel's brilliant exposition of the controversy
surrounding Amiri Baraka ("Urban Legends," October 17) drew
a quick and positive response from K. Witcher.
I enjoyed
reading the analysis made about the poem "Somebody Blew Up America"
by poet Amiri Baraka. Actually, if anyone was aware of the strides
made by Baraka in Newark, New Jersey alone they would not have made
any deal out of a few lines in the poem. Baraka has led peoples' causes
for over forty years in Newark - initiating the election of the first
Black Mayor; the idea of the first parade in tribute to Crispus Attucks,
the drive to correct unfair hiring and promotions of African Americans
in supervisory and principalships in Newark schools and etc.
I believe
this magazine should interview Baraka.
Baraka
is on our list of future interviewees, as is his son, Ras Baraka, 33,
a deputy mayor and public school vice principal, in Newark, with a growing
national reputation.
Unpaid
African debts
We have
presented two Guest Commentaries on Zimbabwe in recent weeks, and a
third in this issue of .
(See "Land Struggles and Democracy in Zimbabwe," by Chris
Lowe.) Reader Leroy Wilson, Jr., an attorney, submits his own brief
on the subject.
Throughout
the history of Africa, Europeans have forcefully removed black Africans
from their land or have swindled them out of it (with King Leopold
II of Belgium perhaps being the best example of the latter). South
Africa, Rhodesia, Kenya and the Belgian Congo, quickly come to mind.
One of the items that is missing from the Zimbabwe debate is the duty
of the white farmers to account for the profits that they reaped from
the use and occupancy of the land that they stole.
The
press has focused on the asserted "right" of the farmers
to be paid "just compensation." Where is their coverage
and the righteous indignation of fair-minded peoples on the right
of the black Zimbabweans to be paid for their land that was stolen
and the right to profits generated from this land? In this connection,
your readers might wish to refer to "The Trial of Jomo Kenyatta,"
by Montagu Slater, Secker and Warburg (London 1955) at pages 7-9,
and all of Adam Hochschild's "King Leopold's Ghost" (A Story
of Greed, Terror, and Heroism In Colonial Africa) A Mariner Book,
Houghton Mifflin company (Boston New York-1999 first Mariner Edition)
When
it comes to history and politics, Atty. Wilson engages in due diligence.
Extra
credit at Hampton U.
We
at
are proud that the publication has a strong readership among traditionally
black universities and colleges. This letter, from Hampton University's
Dr. Clayton G. Holloway, made our day.
Thank
you very much for sharing with me the relevant articles on how world
affairs affect African Americans and other peoples of African ancestry.
Your
publication, which stimulates analytical and critical thinking, is
performing a great service and it achieves excellence in its highest
forms. Please be encouraged and keep up the good work.
Dr. Holloway
is Director of the Humanities Program at Hampton.
Keep
writing.
