Rights and Democracy
House Un-Christian Activities Committee
Al-Jazeera English: TV You Can’t Watch on TV
All of this gets to the heart of one big problem with cable television–something that’s rarely talked about. In most areas of the country you can’t watch Al-Jazeera English. But you do get Fox News Channel. And if you’re like most people, you don’t watch it–and don’t plan on starting anytime soon. It’s a good bet that the actual viewing audience for Fox News is smaller than the number of folks who are disgusted by Fox’s far-right bloviating and fear-mongering.
Silencing Human Trafficking Victims in America
Thanks to a wave of anti-immigrant proposals in state legislatures across the nation, fear of deportation and family separation has forced many immigrant women to stay silent rather than report workplace abuse and exploitation to authorities. The courts have weakened some of these laws and the most controversial pieces of Arizona’s SB 1070 law have been suspended. Unfortunately, America’s anti-immigrant fervor continues to boil.
American History Requires Study, not Plastic Surgery
The N-word is perhaps the most powerful word in the English language. It carries 400 years of brutal American history that can strike with the force of a lash.
There Goes the Neighborhood
Elections You Can’t Count On
You may believe that on Election Day all of officialdom momentarily unites in urging us to vote. Leaders–rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, business and labor–want us to do our patriotic duty, preferably for their side.
Justice for a 9-Year-Old Girl’s Killers in the Courts and in Print
A chilling trial is underway in Tucson for the murder of 9-year-old Brisenia Flores and her father. According to eyewitness testimony from her mother (the attackers thought she was dead) Brisenia pleaded with anti-immigration vigilantes, who had invaded her own home, not to shoot her—shortly before they murdered her anyway.
Renovating The New York Times Op-Ed Section
The New York Times recently named Trish Hall its next op-ed editor. She’s going to call the shots regarding who gets a guest spot in the nation’s premiere opinion pages, which typically feature brilliantly written, sharply argued, and perfectly edited commentaries on sometimes dry yet always inarguably important topics.
Ripping off Newspaper Websites Shortchanges Democracy
There’s a feast raging on the Internet. Websites and bloggers are helping themselves to huge servings of whatever newspapers offer online.
All Women Deserve a Sporting Chance
Next year will mark the 40th anniversary of Title IX, the law prohibiting discrimination in educational programs receiving federal tax dollars, including sports.
