The Unofficial History of Memorial Day
The official history of Memorial Day goes like this: In 1868, three years after the Civil War ended, a group of Union veterans established a Decoration Day for the nation to adorn the graves of the war dead with flowers. A retired Union major general, John A. Logan, set the date of the holiday for May 30, and the holiday’s first observance was at Arlington National Cemetery.
David W. Blight, a historian at Yale, has a different account. He traces the holiday to a series of commemorations that freed black Americans held in the spring of 1865, after Union soldiers, including members of the 21st United States Colored Infantry, liberated the port city of Charleston, S.C.
Digging through an archive at Harvard, Dr. Blight found that the largest of these commemorations took place on May 1, 1865, at an old racecourse and jockey club where hundreds of captive Union prisoners had died of disease and been buried in a mass grave. The black residents exhumed the bodies and gave them proper burials, erected a fence around the cemetery, and built an archway over it with the words, “Martyrs of the Race Course.”
Some 10,000 black people then staged a procession of mourning, led by thousands of schoolchildren carrying roses and singing the Union anthem “John Brown’s Body.” Hundreds of black women followed with baskets of flowers, wreaths and crosses. Black men, including Union infantrymen, also marched. A children’s choir sang spirituals and patriotic songs, including “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
“The war was over, and Memorial Day had been founded by African-Americans in a ritual of remembrance and consecration,” Dr. Blight wrote in a 2011 essay for The New York Times. “The war, they had boldly announced, had been about the triumph of their emancipation over a slaveholders’ republic. They were themselves the true patriots.”
The African-American origins of the holiday were later suppressed, Dr. Blight found, by white Southerners who reclaimed power after the end of Reconstruction and interpreted Memorial Day as a holiday of reconciliation, marking sacrifices — by white Americans — on both sides. Black Americans were largely marginalized in this narrative.
“In the struggle over memory and meaning in any society, some stories just get lost while others attain mainstream recognition,” Dr. Blight wrote.
His claim is not universally accepted; the fact-checking website Snopes says of the 1865 remembrance: “Whether it was truly the first such ceremony, and what influence (if any) it might have had on later observances, are still matters of contention.”
What is clear is that the holiday is about freedom. Speaking at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day in 1871, Frederick Douglass laid to rest what today we would call a false equivalency — the notion that both sides were engaged in righteous struggle.
“We must never forget that victory to the rebellion meant death to the republic,” Douglass said. “We must never forget that the loyal soldiers who rest beneath this sod flung themselves between the nation and the nation’s destroyers.”
READ MORE BLACK HISTORY——->
Pair beat man, try to forcibly deport him to China
A pair of immigration vigilantes allegedly attempted to forcibly deport a man to China after they beat him, police said.
Tianshu Shi, a pilot in training at a flight school in California, was at his apartment on May 24 when Jonathan McConkey and his assistant Kelsi Hoser showed up at his home to and allegedly told Shi they were going to send him back to China, Redding police said. The next day, they came back to Shi’s home in the morning and told him to come with them.
Shi refused, police said. McConkey allegedly “battered” Shi and threatened more physical violence if her didn’t go with them. Shi left with them “in fear for his safety” and was taken to Redding Municipal Airport where McConkey and Hoser allegedly planned to send Shi back to China.
But Shi had called his brother and told him somebody was at his brother to take him away. a police spokesperson said. The brother called another student at the flight school who told him Shi had been assaulted and taken away.
He called police to report the kidnapping, officials said. Officers found Shi, McConkey and Hoser at the airport. They arrested McConkey and Hoser on conspiracy and kidnapping charges.
“The police officer is the best American,” Shi told Searchlight about the police who rescued him.
via: http://pix11.com/2018/05/27/pair-beat-man-try-to-forcibly-deport-him-to-china-police/
Deadpool 2 Movie Review (SPOILERS)
I’m a little late with this one but better late than never. About a week ago I got the pleasure of seeing Deadpool 2 and I have to say, it did not disappoint!
As with the previous movie the comedy was on point as well as the action. Ryan Reynolds was pretty much born to play Deadpool. However it was his secret role as the Juggernaut that caught me off guard. Yes Juggernaut made a surprise appearance in this movie albeit a small role.
Josh Brolin as also making big moves with him not only playing Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but also Cable in the latest Deadpool movie. His cold demeanor along with him being opposite of Deadpool was really fun to watch and I’m looking forward to seeing more of Cable in an X-Force movie.
Now let’s get on to the beauty known as Zazie Beetz aka Domino. This woman was awesome to see on screen and while the power of luck might not seem like a big deal, it works wonders on the cinematic screen! I also look forward to seeing what she does for the character Domino in future X-Men movies as well as the tv series Atlanta.
One of the biggest teases that they did for Deadpool 2 was the belief that the X-Force was going to play a big part in the movie. We were proven all the way wrong as the died minutes after parachuting out of their plane and met gruesome ends. However seeing as how this is Deadpool he can break continuity and still have it make sense. I can assume that the rest of the. -Force is still alive and will be back in an X-Forcd movie.
In hindsight, while the movie is all over the place in Deadpool fashion, this plot is rather simple once again. Rescuing a boy from doing the wrong thing. The main objective of this movie was for Deadpool to stop a young Firefist from going down the wrong path and essentially causing Cable to go back in time to kill him.
In conclusion, Deadpool 2 is another great installment to the X-Men franchise and I look forward to more X-Men movies in the near future. If you haven’t seen it, see it as soon as possible!
Sorry To Bother You Trailer
Lakeith Stanford is from definitely doing big things right now, check out the trailer for his new movie, Sorry To Bother You.
2 Mississippi Police Officers Fired After Brutally Beating, Kicking Black Man
Two Mississippi officers were swiftly given the boot after being accused of brutally beating up a black man last week for avoiding a police checkpoint.
According to ABC News, 36-year-old James Barnett was chased by officers after he reached a vehicle checkpoint and turned around. After a short chase, Barnett was pulled over, and the officers ran up to his vehicle with their guns already drawn.
The officers from the Laurel, Miss., Police Department ordered Barnett to the ground, which he readily complied with, but that’s when they began kicking him in the head and face with steel-toe shoes, Barnett said.
“I wouldn’t wish this on NOBODY!! One even had the nerve to ask me how did those steel toes feel boy, trying to get a rise out of me, but I just laid there and prayed!!” Barnett wrote in a Facebook post showing his injuries. “I’ve never been so afraid in my life, 6 white cops surrounded my bed taunting me as if the assault wasnt enough!! I will not let this go, I dont this to happen to anyone else. There is no justice in what they did to me!! But I will get JUSTICE!!”
The photos show one side of his face swollen and red with scratches and bruises all over.
Not only that—Barnett claimed that after police took him to South Central Regional Medical Center, he was beaten up more. To add insult to injury, officers charged him with five misdemeanors, including resisting arrest and driving on a suspended license.
However, according to the Laurel Police Department, a supervisor on duty saw that there was a problem with the arrest and handed the case over to the department’s internal-affairs team, who launched an investigation mere hours after the incident occurred. By the next day, the officers, who remain unidentified, were fired.
The Police Department also noted that it has been communicating with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation about possibly pressing additional charges against the officers.
“The Officers and Administration of LPD take these types of allegations very seriously,” the LPD said in a statement to ABC News. “It should be noted that the [internal affairs invesigation] was initiated only hours after the incident occurred before any media attention, social media posts or even a formal complaint from the individual involved.”
There’s a Reparations Happy Hour in Oregon Where Black Attendees Get Cash From White Donors
NOW THIS IS SOME REAL FUCKERY RIGHT HERE! Wow
Let’s get drinks, but make it reparations.
To be fair, I’m not certain what that means, but apparently Portland, Ore., is now the place to go if you want to take part in a Reparations Happy Hour, where black attendees get $10 cash, mainly from white donors.
According to Raw Story, the event, which happened for the first time Tuesday night, was thought up by longtime social justice organizer Cameron Whitten and organized through his new group Brown Hope.
“It’s exactly what it sounds like,” Whitten said, according to the site. “What I want to do is end the cycle of exploitation. For black, brown, indigenous people, you face so many barriers, whether it’s tokenization or straight-up poverty.”
Whitten says that several white people donated and signed up to be regular, monthly donors. He’s also gotten donations from black people, too.
“I felt so good. That was my best part of the night, just giving out that money,” he added. “I feel like Oprah—like, fuck, I’m Portland’s Oprah right now. And I want to give more than $10.”
As Raw Story notes, Whitten is known throughout Portland politics. He held a 55-day hunger strike at City Hall over the city’s housing crisis and then exposed the racism within a city housing-advocacy group. In one particularly shocking incident, white activists in the group were caught mocking an indigenous person’s request not to sing “This Land Is Your Land” and locked the individual out of the room and sang the song loudly. The white woman at the head of the housing group ended up resigning because of Whitten’s work.
Whitten was recently fired from the city’s Office of Neighborhood Involvement, an act that he says is a result of racism and for which he is seeking to file a lawsuit, according to Raw Story.
“In Portland in general, when they say ‘people of color,’ they mean light-skin, white-passing Asian and Latino,” he said. “Very often we don’t see black people in charge of things. And we see a lot of anti-blackness.”
“This is a hostile environment,” he added, noting that was why many black friends of his have left the city. “They don’t die physically, but they leave Portland because they’re not getting what they need to nourish their spirit here.”
It is through events like the happy hour that Whitten hopes black and brown people can start to feel more comfortable in the city.
READ MORE—–> THE ROOT
Pennsylvania man caught on video harassing black neighbors gets prison time and loses home on ‘ethnic intimidation’ charges
Please save us the white people tears. Keep in mind this racist was doing this stuff BEFORE Trump was elected or even ran for President of the United States .
white Pennsylvania man is going to prison and losing his home after he was convicted of harassing his black neighbors over a period of years, reports The Morning Call.
According to the report, 45-year-old Robert Kujawa of Easton, was found guilty by a jury of ethnic intimidation, harassment, stalking and is facing two to four years in state prison…..
READ MORE—->
Elfen’s Neosoul Hip Hop EXTRA EXTRA MUSIC VIDEO
I bring you Tristate X Oh No “G.T.D.” feat Xiomara A tribute to the late Tommy Ford
We Attempted to Contact the Alleged Oakland, Calif., Cookout Hater and She Blocked Us [Updated]
MISS Beckey has some supporters saying she shouldn’t be publicly shamed. I say DON’T call the police on Black and brown folks for barbecuing in an area of the park YOU thought wasn’t designated. She needs to be shamed. Thank God for that particular police officer. Because a black man or woman could have ended up murdered.
Updated: Sunday, May 27, 2018 8:00 a.m. EDT:
The official Oakland police log from the Lake Merritt incident has been released, and has identified Jennifer Schulte as the woman who called to complain about the people barbecuing. The log shows Schulte also lied about being pushed by the woman filming the incident, Michelle Dionne Snider. The police had Schulte evaluated for a 5150 hold, but concluded “she didn’t fit the criteria.”
Earlier:
When it comes to internet sleuths and social media, they’re bound to uncover your identity, especially if you’re involved in some bullshit. And it seems as though the Oakland, Calif., cookout hater has been identified.
Last week, a then-unidentified white woman went viral after she attempted to put a stop to a group of black people cooking out at Oakland’s Lake Merritt park by calling the police. She was so serious about getting the family to obey the “no charcoal” sign, she stood around for two hours waiting for the cops to show up, giving another white woman, the wife of one of the black men at the cookout, the chance to put her on blast, and the video went viral.
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#CookingOutWhileBlack: White Woman Calls Cops on Black People Cooking Out in Oakland, Calif., Park
This is getting exhausting. Need we remind you on a daily basis the asinine reasons that white…
And now the woman has been meme-morialized. Forever.
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Woman Who Called the Cops on Oakland, Calif., Family Becomes Viral Meme
“Hello, Officer, it’s me, Susan. I’ve entered what I think to be a racist black site called The…
Although it’s quite funny now, I’m sure the incident was anything but funny for the people involved. Thankfully, the police officer who showed up didn’t escalate the situation, no matter how many white tears the woman attempted to shed. But, as I wrote earlier, no one is safe from internet sleuths.
On Monday afternoon, The Root received an anonymous tip that included a photo of a woman and her name and stated that she was allegedly the woman involved in the park incident. So, of course, we did our investigating. The photos, minus a few inches of hair, some extra pounds and gray hair, look exactly alike……..
https://twitter.com/kevincash__/status/996129299567644672?s=21