Jeff Sessions, Doug Jones at odds over renaming military bases
Alabama Democrat, U.S. Sen. Doug Jones, and former U.S. Attorney General, U.S. Senate-hopeful Jeff Sessions went head to head online Saturday over renaming military bases named after Confederate military leaders during the Civil War. Sessions attacked Jones first following his vote in the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) in favor of adding an amendment to a defense spending bill supporting the renaming of the bases. “@DougJones vote to remove from all military facilities and installations the names of every soldier who fought for the Confederacy betrays the character and decency of every soldier who fought for the South in that bloody and monumental war,” tweeted Sessions tweeted. .@DougJones vote to remove from all military facilities and installations the names of every soldier who fought for the Confederacy betrays the character and decency of every soldier who fought for the South in that bloody and monumental war… — Jeff Sessions (@jeffsessions) June 12, 2020 “Make no mistake, this is not a little matter. It reveals a profound deficit in his understanding of what it means to be AL’s Senator. Doug Jones’ vote seeks to erase AL’s & America’s history and thousands of Alabamians for doing what they considered to be their duty at the time.” Make no mistake, this is not a little matter. It reveals a profound deficit in his understanding of what it means to be AL’s Senator. Doug Jones’ vote seeks to erase AL’s & America’s history and thousands of Alabamians for doing what they considered to be their duty at the time. — Jeff Sessions (@jeffsessions) June 12, 2020 But Jones wasn’t taking Sessions’ attack sitting back. “Delete your account Jeff. This came out of a Republican controlled Senate committee on a strong bi-partisan vote. I know it’s tough for you to be on the right side of history when it comes to the Confederacy, but you should give it a try,” Jones retorted. Delete your account Jeff. This came out of a Republican controlled Senate committee on a strong bi-partisan vote. I know it’s tough for you to be on the right side of history when it comes to the Confederacy, but you should give it a try. https://t.co/Nuhl5LW9dx — Doug Jones (@DougJones) June 13, 2020 Sessions responded he would “never back down to the woke mob,” calling Jones’ vote an “insane attempt to erase American history.” If you and the radical left had your way, the Jefferson Memorial and the Washington Monument would be razed to the ground. I will never back down to the woke mob—be it Republican or Democrat. This insane attempt to erase American history has to end. https://t.co/gA0H796L62 — Jeff Sessions (@jeffsessions) June 13, 2020 That’s when Jones hit back and reminded Sessions it was a bipartisan vote in the SASC. “Ok Jeff, let’s try this one more time: the vote was a bi-partisan vote of the Republican controlled Senate Armed Services Committee and dealt only with the Confederacy and the U.S. Military,” Jones tweeted. Ok Jeff, let’s try this one more time: the vote was a bi-partisan vote of the Republican controlled Senate Armed Services Committee and dealt only with the Confederacy and the U.S. Military. https://t.co/XThvOe7De7 — Doug Jones (@DougJones) June 13, 2020 Ultimately, Sessions got in the last word. “Doug, you are a radical leftist, a pawn for Chuck Schumer. You voted to impeach President Trump, reject Justice Kavanaugh, voted against an end to late-term abortions, and now you join with the woke mob to erase history. You are history,” he concluded. Doug, you are a radical leftist, a pawn for Chuck Schumer. You voted to impeach President Trump, reject Justice Kavanaugh, voted against an end to late-term abortions, and now you join with the woke mob to erase history. YOU are history. https://t.co/wtS63iSfGY — Jeff Sessions (@jeffsessions) June 13, 2020 Before the Twitter debate, Sessions issued a press release explaining his stance on the issue and why he so vehemently disagreed with Jones’ vote. “The vote by Senator Doug Jones to remove from all military facilities and installations the names of every soldier who fought for the Confederacy betrays the character and decency of every soldier who fought for the South in that bloody and monumental war, whose courage and duty reached the highest levels, on both sides,” Sessions said in the release. “Naming U.S. bases for those who fought for the South was seen as an act of respect and reconciliation towards those who were called to duty by the States. It was not then and is not now an affirmation of slavery. The slavery question had been settled by the war.” Sessions is no stranger to Alabama politics. He represented the state in the U.S. Senate for 20 years before resigning to take the U.S. Attorney General appointment in President Donald Trump’s administration. Prior to that, he served as Alabama’s Attorney General. Following his resignation as U.S. Attorney General, Sessions decided to run for his old seat in the U.S. Senate, where he’s hoping to challenge Jones in the November general election.
Joe Biden on racism: White people ‘can never fully understand’
Visiting a black church bombed by the Ku Klux Klan during the civil rights era, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden framed current racial tensions as part of an enduring struggle that is older than the nation. “In a centuries long campaign of violence, fear, trauma, brought upon black people in this country, the domestic terrorism of white supremacy has been the antagonist of our highest ideals since before the founding of this country,” Biden told the 16th Street Baptist Church congregation in downtown Birmingham on Sunday as they commemorated the 56th anniversary of the bombing that killed four black girls in 1963. “It’s in the wake of these before-and-after moments,” Biden added, “when the choice between good and evil is starkest.” Biden’s appearance comes at an inflection point for Democrats’ 2020 leader in the polls. He is trying to capitalize on his strength among older black voters while navigating criticism from some African American and other nonwhite leaders, particularly younger ones, who take a skeptical view of the 76-year-old white man’s willingness and ability to address systemic racism. During his 20 minutes at the pulpit, Biden condemned institutional racism as the direct legacy of slavery and lamented that the nation has “never lived up to” the ideals of equality written into its founding documents. But then he added a more personal note — perhaps the closest he would come to addressing his detractors. “Those who are white try,” Biden said, “but we can never fully understand.” The former vice president called out the names of the bombing victims — Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley — and he drew nods of affirmation as he warned that “the same poisonous ideology that lit the fuse on 16th Street” has yielded more recent tragedies, including in 2015 at a black church in South Carolina, in 2018 at a Jewish synagogue in Pittsburgh and in August at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart frequented by Latino immigrants. The Birmingham church, Biden said, offers an example to those communities and a nation he said must recommit itself to “giving hate no safe harbor — demonizing no one, not the poor, the powerless, the immigrant or the ‘other.’” From his long time in government, first as a senator and then vice president to Barack Obama, the first black president, Biden has deep ties in the black community. Though Biden didn’t mention President Donald Trump in his remarks, he has made withering critiques of the president’s rhetoric and policies on race and immigration a central feature of his candidacy. Yet Biden sometimes draws searing appraisals from younger nonwhite activists who point to complexities in his record. That includes his references to working productively alongside segregationist senators in the 1970s to distrust over his lead role in a 1994 crime law that critics frame as partially responsible for mass incarceration, especially black men. The dynamics flared up again Thursday after Biden, during a Democratic debate, offered a sometimes incoherent answer when asked how the nation should confront the legacy of slavery. At one point, Biden suggested nonwhite parents use a play a record player to help their children with verbal and cognitive development. That led to a social media firestorm and commentary that Biden takes a paternalistic view of black and brown America even as he hammers Trump for emboldening more obvious forms of racism. Author Anand Giridharadas called Biden’s answer “appalling — and disqualifying” for “implying that black parents don’t know how to raise their own children.” Biden’s audience Sunday seemed more to reflect his relative popularity with black voters. Parishioners wielded their cellphones when he arrived with Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, a white politician beloved in the church for his role as the lead prosecutor who secured convictions decades after the bombing occurred. The congregation gave Biden a standing ovation when he completed his remarks. Alvin Lewis, a 67-year-old usher at 16th Street Baptist, said the welcome doesn’t necessarily translate to votes. But as Lewis and other congregants offered their assessment of race relations in the United States under Trump, they tracked almost flawlessly the arguments Biden has used to anchor his campaign. “Racism has reared its head in a way that’s frightening for those of us who lived through it before,” Lewis said, recalling that he was at home, about “20 blocks from here” when the Klan bomb went off at 10:22 a.m. on Sept. 15, 1963. “No matter what anyone says, what comes out of the president of the United States’ mouth means more than anything,” Lewis added, saying Trump “has brought out some nastier times in this country’s history.” Antoinette Plump, a 60-year-old who took in the service alongside lifelong member Doris Coke, 92, said racism “was on the back burner” until Trump “brought out all the people who are so angry.” Coke, who was at the church on that Sunday in 1963, said, “We’ve come a long way.” But she nodded her head as Plump denounced Trump. Nearby sat Fay Gaines, a Birmingham resident who was in elementary school in 1963 — just a few years younger than the girls who died. Gaines said she’s heard and read criticisms about Biden. Asked whether she’d seen his “record players” answer in the debate, she laughed and said she did. But he remains on her “short list” of preferred candidates. “I think there may just be a generational divide,” she said of the reaction. “People who lived through all these struggles maybe can understand how to deal with the current situation a little better.” That means, she said, recognizing a politician’s core values. “I trust Joe Biden,” she said. “History matters. His history matters.” Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Michael Cohen expected to claim lying, racism and cheating by Donald Trump
President Donald Trump‘s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, is expected to give a behind-the-scenes account of what he will claim is Trump’s lying, racism and cheating, and possibly even criminal conduct, when he testifies publicly before a House committee on Wednesday, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Cohen is expected to provide what he will claim is evidence, in the form of documents, of Trump’s conduct, said the person, who requested anonymity to discuss the confidential testimony. Trump’s former personal “fixer” arrived on Capitol Hill Tuesday to begin three days of congressional appearances, starting with a closed-door interview with the Senate intelligence committee. The public won’t have a chance to hear from him until Wednesday, when he testifies before the House Oversight and Reform Committee. He will go behind closed doors again when he talks to the House intelligence committee on Thursday. Lawmakers are alternately suspicious of Cohen, who is set to serve time in prison for lying to the House and Senate intelligence committees in 2017, and eager to hear what Cohen has to say after he turned on his longtime boss. Senators on the intelligence panel are expected to attend Tuesday’s meeting, a departure from the committee’s usual practice, where witness interviews are conducted by staff only. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr told The Associated Press that senators will have staff ask questions but will be in the room to observe. He said no topics will be off limits and Cohen “should expect to get any question from anywhere about anything.” Burr said committee members know a lot more than they did when they first interviewed Cohen, who later pleaded guilty to lying to the House and Senate intelligence committees about abandoning a proposal for a Trump Tower in Moscow in January 2016. Cohen has since acknowledged he continued pursuing the project for months after that. Burr suggested that the committee will take steps to ensure Cohen is telling the truth. “I’m sure there will be some questions we know the answers to, so we’ll test him to see whether in fact he’ll be truthful this time,” Burr said. As a close confidant of Trump for many years, Cohen’s testimony is among the most anticipated since the House and Senate started investigating the Trump campaign’s Russia ties two years ago. In addition to lying to Congress, Cohen pleaded guilty last year to campaign finance violations for his involvement in payments to two women who allege they had affairs with Trump. He is set to begin a three-year prison sentence in May. Federal prosecutors in New York have said Trump directed Cohen to arrange the payments to buy the silence of porn actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal in the run-up to the 2016 campaign. Trump denies the allegations and says that Cohen lied to get a lighter sentence. The person with knowledge of the matter said Cohen will provide information about Trump’s financial statements that he will claim shows Trump deflated assets to pay lower taxes on golf courses; will provide details of the Daniels payment and claim that Trump organized a cover-up by pretending Cohen would be repaid; and claim that Trump talked to him and asked him questions about the Trump Moscow project throughout 2016. He is also expected to discuss what he knows about a meeting between Trump campaign associates and a Russian lawyer in Trump Tower before the 2016 election, a matter that is of particular interest to special counsel Robert Mueller and congressional investigators. Cohen is only expected to discuss matters related to Russia in the closed-door interviews with the intelligence committees, as House Oversight and Reform Chairman Elijah Cummings has said he doesn’t want to interfere with Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and links to Trump’s campaign. Members of the Oversight panel are expected to ask questions about the campaign finance violations, Trump’s business practices and compliance with tax laws and “the accuracy of the president’s public statements,” according to a memo laying out the scope of that hearing. The hearing’s scope does not include Russia. Cohen’s week of interviews come as House Democrats launch multiple investigations into Trump’s ties to Russia and conflict-of-interest issues within the administration. House Republicans in the last Congress investigated whether Trump’s campaign coordinated with Russia, but ended that probe over Democratic objections, saying that there was no evidence that they did so. The Senate’s Russia investigation is ongoing. Cohen had been scheduled to speak to the three committees earlier this month, but rescheduled all of those appearances for different reasons. He said he needed to recover from surgery and also was concerned about what he considered to be threats to his family from Trump and the president’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff postponed Cohen’s appearance before that committee saying it was “in the interests of the investigation,” with no additional details. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Jefferson County School Board member Donna Pike apologizes for social media posts
Irondale-Republican and Jefferson County School Board member Donna Pike is apologizing for social media post that some have deemed racist. On Tuesday, Pike found herself in the hot seat after being called out by local Birmingham activist Carlos Chaverst for a Facebook post she shared on June 1 with an picture of former President Barack Obama advisor Valerie Jarrett but with the caption “No! I’m not black! I’m Valerie Varret (sic) and I’m a Muslim, born in Iran!” Pike didn’t deny the post. “I shared it, and I’m not sorry I did, and I meant it because it shows hypocrisy in our country. Some people can get away with it and some people can’t. It was not racist,” Pike responded to Chaverst and the rest of the school board, according to AL.com. Pike also posted an image in support of Roseanne Barr, who’s revived sitcom was recently cancelled by ABC after the comedian posted a racist and Islamophobic tweet that attacked Jarrett. The post read, “Everybody seem to be against Roseanne. Do you still support her? If you still support her, share this picture and comment with yes.” Tuesday night, she deleted the posts and on Wednesday she apologized for them. “I didn’t realize they would be perceived as they are,” she told WVTM 13.
Birmingham’s Randall Woodfin takes a stand against racism in his city
In 1963, Birmingham, Ala. was a KKK stronghold. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. went so far as to describe it as America’s worst city for racism, calling it America’s most segregated city. Flash forward 55 years and the city is still a hotbed for racism in America, struggling to move beyond race-driven politics and ideologies. The issue was front and center Tuesday when Mayor Randall Woodfin decided he wasn’t going to stand for it anymore. The issue Birmingham mega-church, Church of the Highlands announced plans to move a satellite campus into an inner-city, high-crime area of the city last month. Local Pastor Michael Jordan of New Era Baptist Church on Cotton Avenue SW, didn’t approve of the church coming into “his” neighborhood. He posted a message on a sign outside of the church saying, “Black folks need to stay out of white churches” on one side. “White folks refused to be our neighbors,” read the other. “Whites left the inner city. They carried their churches with them and they moved to the suburbs. White folk have proved they don’t want to live next door to us or be our neighbors, or worship with us,” Jordan rationalized to WVTM 13. “Now they want to plant a white church in a black neighborhood under the umbrella of supposedly to fight crime. The real reason Church of the Highlands wants to put a white church in a black neighborhood is they have too many black folks at their main campus and they want them to leave and come to a church in their inner city.” At the end of the interview with WVTM 13, Jordan made a final plea to “every African American who attends a white church.” “Leave now, ” he said. “Come to your mainstream black church. Your focus is different. Our cultures are different. The white institutional church is under watch, because they elected a promiscuous, racist President that’s building walls.” Woodfin takes a stand But Mayor Woodfin didn’t appreciate Pastor Jordan’s message. He took to Twitter on Tuesday to call him out. “There is a spirit of racism and division that is over this city. It must be brought down. We have to change the conversation to what we need it to evolve into. “Darkness can not drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate can not drive out hate; only love can do that,” Woodfin tweeted. There is a spirit of racism and division that is over this city. It must be brought down. We have to change the conversation to what we need it to evolve into. “Darkness can not drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate can not drive out hate; only love can do that.” pic.twitter.com/QuNGjqYrjS — Randall Woodfin (@WoodfinForBham) May 15, 2018 Jordan’s history with controversy Jordan has found himself in the midst of controversy before. The 26-year pastor posted a sign last year saying, “Undercover racist elected Trump” (sic) read one side, and on the other, “Trump deceived poor white folks.”
U.S. Court of Appeals denies Gardendale school split, cites racial reasons
A federal appeals court on Tuesday denied the city of Gardendale, Ala.’s request to secede from Jefferson County Schools to form its own system. The 11th Circuit Court cited racial and discriminatory reasons for denying the predominantly white city of Gardendale request to secede from the majority black Jefferson County. “Instead of denying the motion to secede, the district court – unprompted by either party – devised its own secession plan,”Judge William Pryor wrote in the decision. “In doing so, it weighed a number of impermissible considerations and thereby abused its discretion.” The city of Gardendale has been working toward forming their own school system since 2012. Following the court’s decision, President of Gardendale City Schools Board of Education Dr. Michael Hogue said the fight is not over. “We know the heart and intent of this board and of the residents of Gardendale as a welcoming community, and we believe our actions reflect just that,” said Hogue in a statement. “This is not the result we deserve, and the fight is not over.” Since the Jefferson County school system is under court-ordered desegregation, any changes in school demographics, such as the proposed secession, must be approved by the federal government. Dr. Craig Pouncey, superintendent of Jefferson County schools, said he’s pleased with the ruling. “There were a number of programs that Jefferson County invested in and placed in Gardendale that Gardendale would have actually closed because they don’t have the local tax base with which to keep those going,” said Dr. Pouncey.
The N-word
Thinking about the Hoover High School teacher who used the N-word in her classroom last week, which follows the University of Alabama expelling Harley Barber for using it the only word that comes to mind is: Stop! Yes, you. You too. No exceptions. No excuses. There are words you shouldn’t even think. Words that don’t belong in ones vocabulary — in my world the C-word, the P-word and the N-word fall into that category. I have come to a point in my life I’m not even shy about confronting those who use them. I had a family member use the N word in front of children and I stopped the conversation to express how inappropriate it was. Another family member pointed out that it was the offensive man’s old age talking. An excuse that still doesn’t excuse the behavior. Did I change his mind that day and will he stop using the word? No. Probably not. But hopefully the children at the table realized that we can’t be passive about bigotry and hatred and we can’t make excuses. These awful words are meant to demean and devalue an individuals worth. Regardless of race I don’t think anyone should use them. The continual use of them in music or entertainment isn’t strengthening or empowering anything or anyone. Some African Americans will say that they can use the word because they stole it back from those who used it against their race in generations that came before them. Some whites will claim they can use the word because the First Amendment says they can say whatever they want. To this I say: Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Until no one uses these words, there will continue to be people like this teacher and the sorority girl from UA who can make excuses for their use. I’ve tried to play out in my mind how I could explain to my five-year old the idea that some people can, and some people can’t, use the same word. A word that’s history is full of hate and divisiveness. How a classmate may use the word and she can’t. I can’t make an argument for a hate-filled word to be used by anyone. Why would race matter in right and wrong? It wouldn’t hurt my heart any less to hear the young African American’s in her class use it any less than it would hurt to hear her do so. I think if we looked at more problems like this through the eyes of children we’d see the solutions aren’t as complicated as we make them out to be.
Harley Barber expelled from University of Alabama for racist rants, removed from sorority
University of Alabama (UA) has officially expelled a student for a series of racist video rants that surfaced and went viral Tuesday afternoon. UA President Stuart Bell confirmed Wednesday afternoon Harley Barber, 19, is no longer a student at the university. “The actions of this student do not represent the larger student body or the values of our University, and she is no longer enrolled here,” Bell said in a statement. “We hold our students to much higher standards, and we apologize to everyone who has seen the videos and been hurt by this hateful, ignorant and offensive behavior. This is not who we are; it is unacceptable and unwelcome here at UA.” Barber was also removed from her sorority at UA, Alpha Phi. Late Tuesday night, the national organization responded to the rant by posting a statement on Facebook, noting Barber is no longer a member of the organization: Alpha Phi is a diverse, values-based organization and condemns the language and opinions in these videos. They are offensive and hateful to both our own members and to other members of the Greek and campus community. The Beta Mu chapter leadership and supporting alumnae moved quickly to address the offense, and Ms. Barber is no longer a member of Alpha Phi. Linda Kahangi, executive director of Alpha Phi International Fraternity confirmed the news to Alabama Today. Twitter user @TabisBack outed Barber’s videos Tuesday afternoon. The first video showed Barber turning off a water faucet in an undisclosed bathroom. She ranted: “We do not waste water… because of the poor people in Syria. We don’t waste water. I love how I act like I love black people because I (expletive) hate (n-word) so that’s really interesting but I just saved the (expletive) (n-word) by shutting that water off.” In a second video, Barber ranted about those who were calling her for her use of the n-word on Martin Luther King Jr. Day no less, saying: “I’ve wanted to be an Alpha Phi since I was (expletive) in high school and nobody (expletive) understands how much I love Alpha Phi. And now someone wants to say I’m offensive because I said (n-word)’? You know what? (n-word), (n-word), (n-word). I don’t care if it’s Martin Luther King Day. (n-word), (n-word), (n-word). I’m in the south now, (expletive). So everyone can (expletive) off. I’m from New Jersey, so I can say (n-word) as much as I want. (n-word), (n-word), (n-word). And if anyone else wants to (expletive) snake me on my (expletive) Finsta for saying (n-word)?” Following her ouster from her sorority and the University, Barber told the NY Post she felt horrible and was “so sorry.” “I feel horrible,” Barber told the Post on the way back to her hometown in New Jersey. “I feel so, so bad and I am so sorry… I did something really, really bad. I don’t know what to do and I feel horrible. I’m wrong and there’s just no excuse for what I did.” Read Bell’s entire message below: In light of the racist and disturbing videos posted by one of our students on social media, I want to express my personal disgust and disappointment. Like many of you, I find the videos highly offensive and deeply hurtful, not only to our students and our entire University community, but to everyone who viewed them. The actions of this student do not represent the larger student body or the values of our University, and she is no longer enrolled here. We hold our students to much higher standards, and we apologize to everyone who has seen the videos and been hurt by this hateful, ignorant and offensive behavior. This is not who we are; it is unacceptable and unwelcome here at UA. These types of incidents affect community members differently. If you have been impacted and would like additional support, please access resources here that are available to you on our campus. Over the last year, I have had conversations with many of you who shared your UA experiences with me. You have voiced your pride in the progress we have made, but we still have much work to do. I want to thank all of the students, faculty and staff who met today to have conversations about this event and the steps we can take, individually and collectively, to create a more welcoming and inclusive campus. You have my commitment and the commitment of our leadership team to sustain progress and address directly any issues that arise. I know you join me in taking a stand against this and all reprehensible behavior. As members of this community, we are a family and this is our home. Everyone has a right to feel safe and welcome here. Stuart R. Bell President
“I don’t care if it’s MLK Day (n-word)”: racist video rants from Univ. of Alabama sorority girl surface
Officials at the University of Alabama are investigating a student after she recently posted multiple videos on social media where she used the n-word repeatedly among other profanities. Harley Barber, a Marlton, N.J. native and a member of Alpha Phi sorority took to her alleged “Finstagram” (fake Instagram) to post at least two racist video rants. Twitter user @TabisBack outed Barber’s videos Tuesday. Posting the first one a little before 1 p.m. CT, the video, which was originally posted on Instagram showed Barber turning off a water faucet in an undisclosed bathroom. She ranted: “We do not waste water… because of the poor people in Syria. We don’t waste water. I love how I act like I love black people because I (expletive) hate (n-word) so that’s really interesting but I just saved the (expletive) (n-word) by shutting that water off.” In a second video @TabisBack shared two minutes after the first, Barber ranted about those who were calling her for her use of the n-word on Martin Luther King Jr. Day no less, saying: “I’ve wanted to be an Alpha Phi since I was (expletive) in high school and nobody (expletive) understands how much I love Alpha Phi. And now someone wants to say I’m offensive because I said (n-word)’? You know what? (n-word), (n-word), (n-word). I don’t care if it’s Martin Luther King Day. (n-word), (n-word), (n-word). I’m in the south now, (expletive). So everyone can (expletive) off. I’m from New Jersey, so I can say (n-word) as much as I want. (n-word), (n-word), (n-word). And if anyone else wants to (expletive) snake me on my (expletive) Finsta for saying (n-word)?” The University of Alabama was tagged on the tweet by @TabisBack and they responded in little over an over disavowing Barber’s rant: These remarks are ignorant and disturbing and in no way reflect the values of The University of Alabama. This unfortunate behavior has been reported to the Office of Student Conduct as it does not align with the community expectations of students at the Capstone. — The Univ. of Alabama (@UofAlabama) January 16, 2018 “These remarks are ignorant and disturbing and in no way reflect the values of The University of Alabama. This unfortunate behavior has been reported to the Office of Student Conduct as it does not align with the community expectations of students at the Capstone,” the university tweeted. The Alpha Phi chapter at University of Alabama whose webpage says their values “cherish life-long friendships rooted in kindness, love and respect for one another,” has yet to make a statement on Barber’s actions. Alabama Today has reached out to both the chapter and Alpha Phi nationally for comment, neither were immediately available. We will update this post when we hear back from them.
National lynching memorial and slavery museum sets open date in Alabama
The original capital of the Confederacy, a city once mired in racism, will soon redefine its legacy when it opens the nation’s first memorial dedicated to lynching victims and a new museum dedicated to slavery in the spring. The Equal Justice Initiative on Monday announced it will open the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Ala. on April 26, 2018. The memorial, devoted to 4,075 blacks EJI’s research shows were killed by lynching in the U.S. from 1877 to 1950, will acknowledge an era of racial terror in the United States when thousands of African Americans were lynched and publicly tortured, sometimes in the presence of thousands of people. Designed with hundreds of six-foot, corten steel monuments aligned in a structure that sits above the city of Montgomery, EJI’s memorial will feature new sculptures from African and African American artists that explore slavery, segregation, and contemporary issues of racial inequality. The spacious park holding the memorial will include a monument for every county in America where a racial terror lynching took place that can be claimed by community groups and installed locally. “Our nation’s history of racial injustice casts a shadow across the American landscape,” Bryan Stevenson, director of EJI, said in a statement. “This shadow cannot be lifted until we shine the light of truth on the destructive violence that shaped our nation, traumatized people of color, and compromised our commitment to the rule of law and to equal justice.” The six-acre site will also feature a museum, From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration, a few blocks away from the memorial that will be situated within 150 yards of one of the South’s most prominent slave auction sites, near the Alabama River dock and rail station where tens of thousands of enslaved black people were trafficked. Check out a preview of the memorial below: Tickets for admission to the museum and the memorial are now available at museumandmemorial.eji.org.
‘Put the Panic back in Hispanic’ pep rally sign causes outrage at Alabama school
A photo from an Alabama high school football pep rally on Friday has stirred up controversy across the internet over the weekend. Posted on social media Saturday, the photo featured two Robertsdale High School students posing with the school’s mascot. In the photo, one of the students is holding a homemade sign that reads, “Put the Panic Back in Hispanic,” as the team prepared to take on the Spanish Fort High School Toros. The other, is holding a Donald Trump campaign banner that reads “Making America Great Again.” The message on the first sign is being called racist across social media. Trey Leggett, a Spanish Fort High School alumni, took to Facebook to express his distaste, writing “If this picture doesn’t make you sick please delete me. You will not be missed.” Current Robertsdale student Jennifer Lopez Vazquez, also posted on Facebook saying the sign was “very disrespectful in so my ways.” Both posts received thousands of comments and shares from across the country. The Baldwin County Public Schools superintendent Eddie Tyler put out a statement on the matter Saturday responding to the complaints. “We are aware of a photo that appears to be taken at a Robertsdale High School football pep rally Friday Sept. 15 that is circulating on social media containing political banners and unacceptable language,” Tyler said. “School administrators, as well as my office, are following up on the matter.” One of the students in the photo has since sought legal representation and has sent an apology letter to the Baldwin County School Board. In the letter, the student writes: ”I am one of the girls in the picture at the Robertsdale High school pep rally. I had the sign that said “Put the “panic” back in Hispanic”. Sir I would like to inform you that, that wasn’t my intention and was not meat for it to be taken that way. We played the Spanish Fort Toros on Friday night, I was meaning “panic the Toros” considering when I think Spanish I think Mexican or Hispanic. When I realized how people were taking it, I wasn’t going to bring it. But my friend who had it in his truck brought it to the bleachers, when one of the boys sitting near me saw it and held it up. I do apologize for making our school look bad and I do understand any consequences I must face. But I also believe in my right of speech. I did not mean it in any kind of racial way, half of my family are Hispanic. Thank you for your time reading this, I apologize for all the publicity and misunderstandings this has brought to our school.”
Tim Scott admonishes Donald Trump to be more careful on racial matters
The Senate’s lone black Republican urged President Donald Trump on Wednesday to avoid inflammatory racial rhetoric such as his statement blaming “many sides” for the violence at a recent white nationalist protest in Virginia. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina said he met for roughly a half hour with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence at the White House. He said the president tried to explain his comment, and why he said there were “very fine people” among the nationalists and neo-Nazis protesting the possible removal of a Confederate statue in Charlottesville, Virginia, last month. “We had three or four centuries of rape, murder and death brought at the hands of the (Ku Klux Klan) and those who believe in a superior race,” Scott told reporters later at the Capitol. “I wanted to make sure we were clear on the delineation between who’s on which side in the history of the nation.” In a subsequent news release, the White House misidentified Scott in a photo caption by calling him “Senator Tom Scott.” Scott bluntly criticized Trump for assigning blame in a way that put white supremacist protesters on equal footing with counterdemonstrators who turned out for the Aug. 12 protests, sparked by Charlottesville officials’ decision to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. That remark, Scott said, compromised Trump’s moral authority as president. On Wednesday, Trump told Scott that he just meant to convey “that there was an antagonist on the other side” – to which Scott replied, “The real picture has nothing to do with who is on the other side.” Scott continued: “I shared my thoughts of the last three centuries of challenges from white supremacists, white nationalists, KKK, neo-Nazis, so there is no way to find an equilibrium when you have three centuries of history.” The president said that he got the point, Scott said. Asked if the president can regain his moral authority, Scott responded, “That will take time.” White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trump and Scott had an “in depth” discussion about the Charlottesville comments, “but the focus was primarily on solutions moving forward.” “That was what both people came to the meeting wanting to discuss,” Sanders said during a White House briefing. “What we can do to bring people together, not talk about divisions within the country.” Scott said Trump also brought up Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett, who has accused Las Vegas police of using racially motivated excessive force against him. Bennett sat on the bench during the national anthem before Sunday’s game at Green Bay, one of several NFL players protesting in support of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who remains unsigned after starting the protests last year to bring attention to police brutality against minorities. “I believe he found it unsettling and challenging,” Scott said. This came as several athletes, activists and celebrities signed a letter of support for Bennett. “Michael Bennett has been sitting during the anthem precisely to raise these issues of racist injustice that are now an intimate part of his life. Now we stand with him,” the letter said. It was signed by Kaepernick; tennis legend Martina Navratilova; academic Cornel West; John Carlos, a U.S. Olympic champion who famously raised his black-gloved fist during a 1968 medal ceremony, and other athletes and activists. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
