Whoopi Goldberg, Joe Rogan, and the First Amendment
The Thursday Thoughts!
"...Shadowed beneath thy hand, may we forever stand, true to our God, true to our Native land!" James Weldon Johnson, "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," the Negro National Anthem
*** Late yesterday it was reported that the FBI had identified "six tech savvy juveniles" as the likely culprits in the recent spate of bomb threats at over a dozen Historically Black Colleges & Universities.
With the bulk of the threats coming on February 1st—the start of Black History Month—one can only conclude that the six suspects probably thought this prank to be funny; clearly it is not, and the threats have caused considerable angst for administrators, faculty, staff, parents, and students at these hallowed institutions.
While it is far too early to know what charges will occur and whether hate crime designation will be considered, it isn't too early to ask what in the Hell is going on in these kids' homes? Seriously, if such hate is still being taught to children, then that renders the whole "racism will improve once the elders from the Jim Crow era die off" totally moot.
Not to mention that with the defendants likely to be juvenile delinquents, that a slap on the wrist is all that any will receive when truth be told, each should be compelled to spend time explaining themselves at public forums on the very campuses they threatened!
Stay tuned...
***Each and every time I hear Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy speak, his country accent makes me think that I am watching a re-run of the classic film "Mississippi Burning," the fictional account of the lynching of James Chaney, Mickey Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman, the three civil rights workers killed in the Magnolia State during the summer of '64.
Yesterday, I had the displeasure of hearing Sen. Kennedy's sexist and racist comments about President Joe Biden's pending selection of a Black woman for the U.S. Supreme Court when he said: "No. 1, I want a nominee who knows a law book from a J. Crew catalog. No. 2, I want a nominee who’s not going to try to rewrite the Constitution every other Thursday to try to advance a ‘woke agenda.’”
I have spent the better part of my life listening to white folks like Kennedy make disparaging remarks about Black intellectual abilities, but usually those making the comments are the ones who didn't finish school, or barely have a GED and have to count with their fingers to do basic math.
But Kennedy isn't one of those; a Vanderbilt and Virginia Law grad who earned a Phi Beta Kappa Key and magna cum laude status at both, he may sound like he is better suited to go dig a ditch than to debate in the Senate, but he is no fool. His foolish comments, however, not only besmirch an infinite many Black women lawyers and judges whose academic abilities are equal to (or far greater than) his own, but they spur on the ignorant base that wish to keep racial strife front and center in American politics—which is a shame...
***Listen, I am not a fan of Joe Rogan, and I wouldn't begin to take his advice about anything under the sun seriously. That said, while Rogan isn't my cup of tea, he clearly is the preferred taste for millions of Americans as his podcast derives millions in revenue for him on various platforms, including Spotify.
Over the past few weeks, first with singer Neil Young and now with other artists pulling their music from Spotify due to Rogan's reckless comments about Covid, I am beginning to see more and more folks asking "doesn't Joe Rogan have free speech rights per the First Amendment?" Hobbs the History/Civics teacher is here to remind you that yes, he does have free speech rights, but that NONE of that is at issue with a private company like Spotify should they choose to cancel his contract (which is unlikely due to the revenue he generates). The same holds true for actor/host Whoopi Goldberg, who was suspended from ABC's The View yesterday for opining that the Holocaust was not about race.
Lest we forget that the Constitution's First Amendment prevents the GOVERNMENT from abridging the right to free speech—not private companies. I repeat, the Federal or individual state governments cannot pass laws that abridge free speech rights (with limited exceptions), but a private company can mute speech on their platforms as they wish! Even for yours truly, when Facebook has banned me multiple times for telling historical truths, they had every right to do so because that's their platform and I am not free to say what I wish there (but I am as free as a formerly caged bird right 'chea at the Hobbservation Point)!
Please remember this lesson the next time some politician or pundit is being banned (or may become banned) by a private media corporation!
Black History Hobbservation
(Mansa Musa: Wealthiest Man of All Time)
Ten years ago, the Huffington Post published an article that posed the question: "Who was the wealthiest person in history?" Some of the answers included ancient King Croesus of Lydia, Robber Barons like the Vanderbilts, Carnegies, Rockefellers and Astors, and then current billionaires like the Walton, Gates, and Buffett families.
All of those answers were reported to be wrong; the writers concluded that the richest human of all time was Mansa Musa I!
Mansa Musa was the grandson of Abu Bakr, who was the brother of Sundiata Keita, the founder of the Mali Empire in Western Africa. Mali was the second of three powerful Empires in the region with the first being Ghana and the last being Songhai, that flourished well into the 15th Century.
Musa, born in 1280 AD, was appointed as deputy to the Mansa, or King, Abu Bakr II in 1321. According to Arab historian Al-Umari, Musa ascended to the throne after Bakr embarked on a trip to learn the ends of the Atlantic Ocean. Bakr never returned, and while his fate is not known, some scholars, including Ivan Van Sertima, have suggested that he successfully made it to the Americas---nearly 300 years before Christopher Columbus. Many other historians have rejected this claim, dismissing such as revisionist history promulgated by Afrocentric professors and philosophers.
What is known is that in 1324, Musa embarked on a Hajj, or pilgrimage, to Mecca. His journey included over 60,000 men, 12,000 slaves who each carried 4 pound gold bars; 80 camels that carried between 50 and 300 pounds of gold dust. During his journey, Musa's philanthropic efforts became legendary as he gave away vast amounts of gold to bystanders and reportedly built a new mosque each Friday. Musa's efforts also caused great economic instability along his path in Egypt as well as in Mecca and Medina, as the sudden appearance of gold among the masses caused the metal to be devalued for well over a decade after Musa returned to Mali.
Celebrity Networth estimated in 2012 that Musa's net worth was approxinately 400 billion dollars, which was seven times greater than Carlos Helu, the world's richest man at the time with a net worth of 69 billion dollars.
Musa died in 1337 at the age of 57, but his impact on the world was that through his opulence and philanthropy, scholars from across Africa traveled to. Sub-Saharan Africa to study among Malian scholars, as well as participate in the trade of sorghum, gold, and unfortunately, slaves who were bartered and sold in the Trans-Saharan slave trade.
Black College Feature
Each day for Black History Month, I will feature one of America's top HBCU's. Next up is the perennial HBCU academic rankings champ—Spelman College!
Spelman College facts
Founded: April 11, 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary by Sophia B. Packard and Harriet E. Giles. Classes began in the basement of Friendship Baptist Church. Following generous philanthropic gifts from oil baron John D. Rockefeller, the school's name was changed to Spelman Seminary in 1884 in honor of Rockefeller's wife, Laura Spelman Rockefeller. In 1927, the school changed its name to Spelman College, and entered into an articulation agreement with Atlanta University and Morehouse College that would eventually morph into the Atlanta University Center consortium with Clark College (now Clark Atlanta University), Morris Brown College, and the Interdenominational Theological Center.
Motto: "Our Whole School for Christ"
Mascot: Jaguars
Academics: Spelman College has been ranked the #1 HBCU by U.S. News & World Report for the past 15 years—and counting. US News has also ranked Spelman among the Top 50 private liberal arts colleges. In 2018, the Wall Street Journal ranked Spelman #3, nationally, in terms of student satisfaction.
With an endowment of 367 million dollars—tops among HBCUs—Spelman has garnered distinction as the nation's leading producer of Black women who earn Ph.D.s in STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Spelman is one of four HBCUs with a chapter of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa honor society (along with Morehouse College, Fisk University, and Howard University)
Famous Alumni: Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker, noted authors Pearl Cleage, Tina McElroy Ansa, and Tayari Jones; Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams, Children’s Defense Fund Founder Marian Wright Edelman; Starbucks Group President and COO Rosalind Brewer; former Acting Surgeon General (and Spelman President) Dr. Audrey Forbes Manley; global bioinformatics geneticist Janina Jeff; actress Esther Rolle, actress/producer LaTanya Richardson, actress Keshia Knight Pulliam, entertainment host/actress Tanika Ray, host/actress Shaun Robinson, former Miss Black America Sharmell Sullivan-Huffman, actress Maia Campbell; Alberta King, mother of civil rights legend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., educator/activist Christine King Farris (MLK's last surviving sibling), Bernice King, activist (MLK's younger daughter); Gen. Marcelite Harris, the first Black woman to obtain the rank of General officer in the United States Air Force.
Thank you for subscribing to the Hobbservation Point—have a wonderful Thursday!
OUTSTANDING!!!