Should you or should you not boycott the NFL? Let’s review the cases for and against. For: if you boycott the NFL, you will be supporting the civil rights protest conducted by Colin Kaepernick–one underway since last year when he began taking a knee during the playing of the American national anthem before NFL games;Continue reading “The Boycotter’s Guide To The NFL”
Tag Archives: Black Lives Matter
American Exceptionalism And Political Violence
Adam Shatz offers some interesting thoughts on dreaming of political violence in the Age of Trump-Bannon: It’s notable how easily violent thoughts have come to those of us who have known only a single, and much contested, month of the Trump-Bannon era. American exceptionalism may be dead, but it lives on as a habit ofContinue reading “American Exceptionalism And Political Violence”
On Surviving A Police Stop (Unlike Terence Crutcher)
One morning in the winter of 1989, after finishing up a short trip to Binghamton, NY with a pair of friends, I was driving back to my home in New Jersey. Rather, I was dozing in the front passenger seat after having performed my share of driving duties. I was jolted out of my slumbersContinue reading “On Surviving A Police Stop (Unlike Terence Crutcher)”
Paramilitary Organization Endorses Fascist; Nation Worries
Friday brought us the most frightening news of this terrible election season: The National Fraternal Order of Police, a 330,000-member union of law enforcement officers, has endorsed Donald Trump for president. “Our members believe he will make America safe again,” FOP President Chuck Canterbury said in a statement. Trump “seriously looked at the issues facingContinue reading “Paramilitary Organization Endorses Fascist; Nation Worries”
The Supposed Sacral Status Of ‘National’ Symbols
Yesterday, a Facebook friend–in the course of a discussion stemming from my post criticizing David Brooks‘ claim that protests by high school football players a la Colin Kaepernick were ‘counterproductive’–pointed me to the following quote by Saul Alinsky: Even the most elementary grasp of the fundamental idea that one communicates within the experience of hisContinue reading “The Supposed Sacral Status Of ‘National’ Symbols”
Colin Kaepernick Will Not ‘Behave’ And That’s A Damn Good Thing
Colin Kaepernick, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers will not stand during the playing of the national anthem at NFL games. As he put it, after refusing to stand during the 49ers against the Packers this past weekend: I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country thatContinue reading “Colin Kaepernick Will Not ‘Behave’ And That’s A Damn Good Thing”
The NRA On The Dallas Shooting
The National Rifle Association has issued the following statement in response to the shootings in Dallas: Today is a great day for the Second Amendment, that everlasting guarantee of our right to bear arms and take them up against a tyrannical government. For months and years now, we at the National Rifle Association have watchedContinue reading “The NRA On The Dallas Shooting”
Men Writing As Women, And Vice-Versa
A few days ago, I excerpted a passage from James Baldwin‘s If Beale Street Could Talk (Bantam, New York, 1974) in which the central character, a young woman named Tish, describes her–and her boyfriend, Fonny’s–perceptions of Bell, the policeman who has sent Fonny to jail. Tish: But I was beginning to learn something about theContinue reading “Men Writing As Women, And Vice-Versa”
James Baldwin On A White Policeman’s Eyes
In James Baldwin‘s If Beale Street Could Talk (Bantam, New York, 1974) Fonny, a young black man, is in jail for rape–his supposed victim’s eyewitness identification is probably mistaken; ‘outside,’ his pregnant girlfriend, Tish, wonders about the policeman, Bell, who arrested Fonny. Bell had wanted to arrest Fonny for assault ever since he had violentlyContinue reading “James Baldwin On A White Policeman’s Eyes”
The Legal Protection Of Armed And Deadly Assault By The Police
There are, supposedly, many legal protections to guard a citizen’s interaction with law-enforcement agencies and their officers: you may not be detained without cause (‘Am I under arrest?’ ‘Am I?’ ‘If I’m not, may I go?’); you and your personal spaces and possessions may not be searched without cause (‘Do you have a warrant?’); youContinue reading “The Legal Protection Of Armed And Deadly Assault By The Police”
Samir Chopra 