Did you see his phone call to the Jim Obergefell, lead plaintiff on the same-sex case? And then did you see him in Mother Emanuel singing, “Amazing Grace”?
President Obama was deftly in two different worlds that don’t always mix. Are we on a collision course?
We saw it with last year’s debate on S-CA 5, the bill that would have restored affirmative action.
A group of Asian Americans were aggressively against affirmative action.
Traditional Asian American civil rights groups were for affirmative action.
The aggressive AAs won.
Check out how this is coming down nationally in my new column here:
It’s an Asian American Civil War.
The late Michael Jackson sang that song about Indiana. An oldie but goodie.
Going back to Indiana?
The answer now is an unqualified, “HELL NO!”
Jackson was from Gary, which is practically Chicago, and a real indication of how segregated the state remains today. More black and urban to the north, more white and ag to the south.
Now Gov. Mike Pence has signed a controversial new law that some say is a revival of Jim Crow.
It’s called “The Freedom of Religion Restoration Act,” and critics say it provides the cover for legal discrimination against more than just religion.
Those who defend the law readily say it’s a way to show concern with same-sex marriage. Those against the law say it creates the opening to discriminate against others. Don’t think it won’t happen.
Now what about the other 19 states with these so-called “religious freedom” laws pending?
This MSNBC map shows the full list of 20 states that have ventured into this arena of legal discrimination: Indiana,Idaho, Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma,Texas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
All the states I won’t be visiting anytime soon.
Now you see how important a tiny little thing like a commemoration of Selma was.
Just as we lurch forward, there are forces that would have our progress recalled.
And now, we really are going backwards.
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I met Todd Endo in 2013 at the 50th anniversary of MLK’s March on Washington. It’s the event which featured King’s “I have a dream” speech. Endo marched in 1963, and he was at King’s other big march, the one two years later in Selma, 1965.
Funny how few people conflate the DC march and Selma. Or how people don’t really understand that Selma was two years after the “Dream” speech, and a year after the Civil Rights Act. Even after that momentous bit of legislation, 1965 required the Voting Rights Act, which Selma helped bring about.
As we approach the 50th anniversary of Selma, we must constantly relearn the history. Or as we’ve found out, society begins to march backwards.
My piece on Todd Endo at Selma is here.
My podcast with Endo at the 1963 March on Washington is here.
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