Alice Walker Lovingly, Compassionately, and Critically Supports Barack Obama
March 30, 2008
Following is a powerful “open letter” written by Pulitzer Prize Winning Author, and Global Social Change Agent Alice Walker. For those of us based in the United States, I’m a critical supporter of Obama who has been in search of (because I, like too many of us, haven’t made the time to write something ourselves) essays by feminists/womanists of color who support Obama. As a Black feminist lesbian, I’ve been and am sick and tired of how all of the discussions about the democratic primaries have been looked through a Race = Black (Man) and Gender = (White) Woman lens, without any regards for millions of us who are both Black, Red, Brown, Yellow and Woman. Sister Alice’s open letter is a Black feminist/womanist loving, compassionate, and critical praise song for the candidate that I hope will become the next president of the United States of America.
LEST WE FORGET, An Open Letter To My Sisters Who Are Brave
From Alice Walker
Talking about Race and Gender in the Democratic Primaries
March 20, 2008
All the Men Are Black, All the Women Are White, and Some of Us Vote: A Remix by Salamishah Tillet
I spent the better half of Tuesday afternoon, listening to and reading the transcript of Barack Obama’s speech on “race.” Obama’s address was thoughtful, progressive, eloquent, brilliant, moving, and insightful. He did all the things I wanted him to do, acknowledged the founding “sin” of American slavery, shifted the burden of racial reconciliation from the shoulders of African-Americans to the larger American citizenry, and spoke about the past and present consequences of white rage and black disillusionment.
Violence Against Women of Color |Shout Out Anthology
March 14, 2008
Women’s History Month | Women of Color Speak Out Against Violence
Shout Out: Women of Color Respond To Violence
Maria Ochoa & Barbara K. Ige, Editors
Seal Press ©2008
“How do so many women survive the violence of their daily lives? Where do they find hope? How can this violence be allowed to continue? Shout Out address these troubling questions and more. This powerful collection provides a range of responses to the injustices that women sustain in their dialy lives through critical examiniations, creative non fiction, visual art, and poetry. Shout Out provides living testimony for the need to put an end to Oppression and violence.”
Violence Against Women of Color |The INCITE Anthology
March 12, 2008
Womens History Month | Stopping Violence Against Women of Color
Color of Violence: The INCITE! Anthology
South End Press © 2006
What would it take to end violence against women of color?
Michael Simmons Challenges Homophobia in the African-American Community
March 12, 2008
Michael Simmons, an international human rights activist who,with his partner Linda Carranza, co-founded the Raday Salon in Budapest Hungary, recently wrote comments about his thoughts on the responsibility of African-Americans who are heterosexual to speak out against homophobia. Following are his comments:
Women’s History Month | Screening of NO! The Rape Documentary @ Raday Salon in Budapest Hungary
March 12, 2008
Violence Against Women| Screening of NO! at Raday Salon in Budapest Hungary
After a long hiatus of screenings, book signings, and lectures, the Raday Salon kicks off its 2008 season with a screening of NO! The Rape Documentary to commemorate Women’s History Month. This is not the first time that Raday Salon has hosted screenings and discussions of NO! The Rape Documentary both as a rough cut and now as a completed documentary to standing room only audiences. However given the horrific and unfortuante global manifestation of sexual violence, combined with requests from people who have not had the opportunity to view the documentary, Linda Carranza and Michael Simmons, the Salon’s co-founders, are hosting an encore screening.
“...We have developed many new ties with folks who are new to Budapest or just new to our Salon, who have expressed an interest in seeing the film. We would be happy to see both old and new Salon friends at this showing, especially as the discussion is always different and brings up new observations every time we show the film…” will be an encore screening and discussion of NO! The Rape Documentary.” — Linda Carranza & Michael Simmons
Black History Month | Screening of NO! The Rape Documentary @ The Brecht Forum
March 12, 2008
Black History Month | Screening of NO! The Rape Documentary @ The Brecht Forum
On February 7, 2008, there was an almost standing room only screening NO! The Rape Documentary at the Brecht Forum. Immediately following the screening there was a very lively panel discussion with Ejeris Dixon, the Program Coordinator of the Safe OUTside the System Collective, Ebony Noelle Golden, poet and organizer, who is a founding member of UBUNTU and other groups in the Durham area after the Duke lacrosse case, and Michael Simmons, who is an international human rights activist and a featured interviewee in NO!. Unfortunately, due to illness, Salamishah Tillet, who was scheduled to moderate the discussion, wasn’t able to participate in the conversation.
One of the people who attended is a member of an organization called “SAFER (Students Active for Ending Rape)“, an advocacy group in the US which works to improve universities’ response to sexual assaults in the campus environment. After attending the event, she wrote two reaction pieces on the SAFER organization’s blog, which you can read by clicking the following two links.
NO! A Documentary about Rape
NO! Part 2
Southwest Airlines & ‘The Souls of White Folk’
March 3, 2008
Southwest Airlines & ‘The Souls of White Folk’
By Tamara K. Nopper
