Red State attacks on First Amendment Freedoms
The Tuesday Talking Points!
Happy Palindrome Day (2/22/22)!!!
***While I still hold to my belief that all-out war will not break out between Russia and Urkaine, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin drew the ire of U.S. President Joe Biden yesterday when he formally recognized the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic as separate nations from Ukraine. Putin's press corps then noted that Russian troops would be sent to these two “new nations" in an effort to “keep the peace."
One of the things that I love about history is that events tend to repeat themselves and because of that, those wise enough to study past people, places, and events are best situated to predict present and future behavior based on those events.
As far as Putin and his potential invasion of Ukraine, the world has seen this play before—back in 1939, when German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler claimed that Poland was persecuting ethnic Germans living in Poland. That was a lie, mind you, but it was the method he chose to launch a Blitzkrieg that devastated the unprepared Polish military within a few weeks.
Back then, Hitler guessed correctly that neither France nor Great Britiain were prepared to defend Poland from invasion. Hitler also had brokered a "Non-Aggression Pact" with the Soviet Union's Josef Stalin only weeks before invading Poland that ensured that his German Army would not have to face the much larger Red Army—at least not yet.
Today, NATO is far better equipped and capable of helping the Ukraine military through boots on the ground or through the supply of equipment to push back against the Russian Army. That point, again, leads me to believe that Putin will go no further than his incursion into the two former Ukraine territories that have declared independence. We shall see, but again, methinks that Russia is not prepared to wage a protracted war in Europe and at the last minute, will stand down and claim victory despite not having fired a single shot.
Stay tuned...
***While I have written often of late about Russian oppression abroad, I am far more concerned about right wing oppression right here in the United States.
Yesterday, a State House committee in Arizona voted to advance a Bill to the floor that would make it illegal for citizens to stand within eight feet of police officers and record their acts—unless they receive permission of the officers doing whatever it is that's being taped.
Well, just like the fox wouldn't want his business in the hen house taped, most police officers that are beating, Tasering, or choking out a suspect aren't going to stop and say, "why sure, sir/ma’am, please tape away." Such is the absurdity of this Bill, one that will NOT pass Federal constitutional scrutiny as such is an infringement upon the First Amendment's right to speak freely and to assemble peacefully.
But unconstitutionality doesn't stop the "Know Nothing" Republicans from their daily dastardly deeds to diminish the rights that America claims to hold dear, which is why it is critical for us to express our displeasure with words (blogs, op-ed pieces, social media posts), and deeds (voting)!
***Closer to home, the Florida Know Nothings, led by Gov. Ron Desantis, are prepared to pass measures this session that would ban Critical Race Theory—while also banning any instruction about sexual identity or orientation.
Florida's governor has earned the derisive nickname "Dumb-Santis," but if those Yale undergrad and Harvard law degrees he earned are worth anything, he has to know that preventing the open exchange of academic ideas is a patent violation of the First Amendment; the government simply CAN'T thwart the teaching of historical, sociological, and scientific thoughts simply to advance a political agenda!
While you can peruse the archives of this Blog to see my past criticisms of the Critical Race Theory critics, I am appalled by the idea that Black figures like writers Langston Hughes and James Baldwin, or civil rights icon Bayard Rustin, would be banned from schools due to their sharp views about white supremacy—or due to their sexual identification as gay men!
Further, as a historian who has spent quite a bit of time learning about Western civilization in general, and ancient Roman and Greek history, specifically, such bans by the Florida legislature would limit what kids could learn about the Isle of Lesbos, or, the complete comedies of Aristophanes, or, the historical retrospectives of Thucydides and his commentary on homosexual life in Athenian government! Such bans would eliminate study of the "Bacchanalian" pursuits of famous ancient Romans ranging from Pliny the Elder to Pompey Magnus; from Caesar to Cicero—wealthy Roman men who often participated in orgies that included both homosexual and heterosexual activity!
To me, the mark of an enlightened individual is one who can read about topics that are not to their personal liking—and still consider them in a scholarly, analytical manner; the mark of a fool is noted by those who close their eyes, cover their ears, and reject all knowledge that is not to their personal predilection. And judging from the poor state of discourse in the public square these days, the last thing our schools need to be doing is suppressing real knowledge of any kind!
Black History Figure
With President Joe Biden poised to select the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, the racist Know Nothings have wasted no time in painting any nominee as "unqualified" to serve. The truth is that Black women have been qualified to serve for decades, but have been overlooked by both Democratic and Republican presidents whenever vacancies arose.
Constance Baker Motley was surely qualified during her lifetime! Born on September 14, 1921 in New Haven, Connecticut, Motley was raised in the New York area and during her youth, her parents were influential leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; Motley later recounted that observing her parents work helped her decide by the age of 15 to become a civil rights lawyer.
Motley initially attended Fisk University in Nashville, but later transferred to New York University, where she earned a degree in economics in 1943. Motley then attended the Columbia University School of law and following graduation, became the first woman lawyer for the NAACP's Legal Defense and Education Fund. In this capacity, Motley served alongside legal giants Charles Hamilton Houston and Thurgood Marshall and in 1950, she drafted the original complaint that would lead to the seminal Brown vs. Board of Education case that eventually helped end legal Jim Crow segregation.
Motley was noted for winning nine of the ten cases that she argued before the US Supreme Court, including a 1962 case that allowed James Meredith to become the first black to enroll at the University of Mississippi. She also later served as Manhattan Borough President before being tapped by President Lyndon B. Johnson to become the first black woman to serve as a United States District Court Judge, a position that she held until her death in 2005 at the age of 84.
Judge Motley received numerous awards and commendations during her lifetime including citations by the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame, the Spingarn Medal—the NAACP's highest award, and the President's Citizens Medal as awarded by then President Bill Clinton.
Black College Feature
Each day during Black History Month, I will feature one of America's leading HBCUs.
Next up: Xavier University (La.)
History: Xavier University of Louisiana holds the distinction of being America's sole Roman Catholic affiliated HBCU. In 1915, St. Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament founded the coeducational secondary school in New Orleans on a site formerly used by Southern University prior to its main campus being moved to Baton Rouge. With support from her wealthy father, banker-financier Francis Drexel, in 1917, St. Katharine extended the focus of the secondary school to include a "normal" school that would focus on educating future teachers. In 1925 Xavier University of Louisiana became a reality when the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences was established; the first baccalaureate degrees were awarded three years later. Two years later, in 1927, Xavier opened a College of Pharmacy.
During the Civil Rights Movement, in 1961, Xavier, under the leadership of then Dean of Men, Norman Francis, provided shelter to Freedom Riders who had traveled to New Orleans to challenge the city's Jim Crow laws.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, nearly every building on Xavier's campus suffered damage, but the University reopened for business the following year. President Barack Obama, on the fifth anniversary of the Hurricane in 2010, gave a major speech from the Xavier campus.
Academics: Xavier is considered one of the elite academic HBCUs. The University is ranked 5th among HBCUs by U.S. News & World Report, and is the #1 HBCU in placing Black students into medical school, in the top three in the awarding of PharmD degrees to Blacks, and is #1 in the awarding of baccalaureate degrees in the physical and biological sciences.
Xavier students may earn degrees within its College of Arts and Sciences which houses traditional liberal arts course offerings, or within its renowned College of Pharmacy.
Motto: "Fro Adjuvante Timendum"--"With God's help there is nothing to fear"
Mascot: Gold Rush (Men) Gold Nuggets (Women)
Colors: Gold and White
Athletics: Xavier University competes in the NAIA Division 1 in men's and women's basketball, women's volleyball, baseball and track & field.
Famous Alumni/Figures: Former Bill Clinton Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman, Ernest Morial, first Black Mayor of New Orleans, Mayor Latoya Cantrell, first Black woman to serve as mayor of New Orleans, Educator and President Emeritus Dr. Norman Francis, former NBA star Nathaniel Clifton (first Black to sign an NBA contract), Dr. Mary Runge, first woman and first Black President of the American Pharamacists Association, USAF 4-star General Bernard Randolph, Coast Guard Admiral Stephen Rochon, Chief White House Usher under Presidents Bush (43) and Obama; Black College Hall of Fame football Coach Marino Casem, Former Negro League Baseball star Dave Malarcher, former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, Candice Stewart, first Black Miss Louisiana.
Thank you for subscribing to the Hobbservation Point--have a wonderful Tuesday!
Excellent points Mr. Hobbs. I’ve been following all the listed points, particularly the possibility of war between Russia and Ukrain. You think Putin is also embolden by his seemingly alliance with Xi Jinping?