Category: Commentary

Trent Lott became a liability to George Bush when it became clear that the unreconstructed Dixiecrat’s racist outbursts endanger Bush’s faith-based initiatives, the massive political bribery program designed to smash the Black bloc vote. Not even a political soul mate like Lott could be allowed to stand in the way of an historic opportunity to…

As Blacks take leadership roles in the growing anti-war movement, the more comfortable corners of the Left are busy generating schisms, for no reason other than to assure the War Party of their patriotism. Privileged people are like that. They insist on having their way and deciding who is and who is not good company,…

To step into the world of America’s Black Forum, the TV show, is to enter a carnival house-of-mirrors. African American political realities are distorted beyond recognition. The floor tilts crazily rightward as clowns in blackface jump into view to parrot George Bush and Jerry Falwell, then straighten up and hum “Lift Every Voice” as they…

“I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We’re proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn’t have had all these problems over all these years, either.” – Sen. Trent Lott, 2002 “I have done more for…

Just as infant mortality rates are the best indicators of the overall health of a society, unemployment rates reflect a range of social ills. When a particular group suffers persistent joblessness over the course of generations, the problem is systemic and closely related to the value the society assigns to the group. Official unemployment among…

The post-Thanksgiving mail and visitation has been so heavy, we imagined countless family gatherings dominated by intense, Black Commentator-inspired political debate, resulting in massive exchanges of URLs. More likely, good people are slowly coming to grips with the grand scope of evil emanating from the White House, and seek ways to meet the challenge. George…

This article was originally published December 5 as a Znet Commentary, by subscription at www.zmag.org So the Supreme Court has announced it will hear the long-simmering affirmative action case from the University of Michigan law school, in which white plaintiffs sued, claiming to have been denied admission even though they had grades and test scores…

The figure had been bouncing around think tanks and Capitol Hill for months, and on December 1 made the front page of the Washington Post: Bush’s invasion and occupation of Iraq will cost the American taxpayer between $100 and $200 billion. Think of this fantastic sum as a mountain of contracts, because that is precisely…

“You do not wipe away the scars of centuries by saying: ‘now, you are free to go where you want, do as you desire, and choose the leaders you please.’ You do not take a man who for years has been hobbled by chains, liberate him, bring him to the starting line of a race,…

cartoonist Khalil Bendib didn’t set out to draw a holiday greeting card, but his November 28 creation was just so damn good, readers couldn’t help but treat it like one. We’ve been informed that readers have been emailing Feast of the Parasites (one of our informal titles for the cartoon, not Khalil’s) to friends and…