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Trump, Racism, and the Fear Factor

A recent USA TODAY/Rock the Vote poll of 1,541 voters aged 18-34 found that younger voters’ lack of enthusiasm for Hillary Clinton is overcome in a theoretical Clinton v. Trump general election race. Across all demographic groups specified, young voters only get excited about Clinton as the lesser evil.

The lack of enthusiasm for Clinton in the primary may be the result of her record as one of the most effective champions of neoliberalism from the center-left. And neoliberalism, the politic of privatization, unfettered free trade (NAFTA, TPP, etc.), and small government, is one of the drivers of the conditionsRead more “Trump, Racism, and the Fear Factor”

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Between a Rock and a Hard Place: What the Asian American Protests Over the Peter Liang Conviction May be Missing

A couple of editorials have appeared in the media recently concerning the Asian American-led protests of the second-degree manslaughter conviction of Chinese American NYPD officer, Peter Liang. Mr. Liang, in his role as an NYPD cop, shot and killed Akai Gurley, an innocent, unarmed African American man. The conviction is being celebrated by many racial justice advocates who have, for too long, seen police officers involved in similar shootings let off the hook in hundreds of other cases over recent years, but some Asian Americans claim justice has not been served. Predictably, the conflicting reactions have caused a minor furor … Read more “Between a Rock and a Hard Place: What the Asian American Protests Over the Peter Liang Conviction May be Missing”

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On Solidarity, “Centering Anti-Blackness,” and Asian Americans

As a long-time racial justice worker – a grey head in a movement mainly made up of young people – earnest young Asian Americans, anxious to acknowledge the pivotal role anti-Black racism plays in the perpetuation of white supremacy, often ask me how to “center anti-Blackness” in Asian American racial justice activism. I am as often asked that question by white progressives who aspire to become allies in the Movement for Black Lives.

My answer is simple. Acknowledge the leadership of Black Lives Matter and use the political space and opportunity the movement has created – including the 24/7 media … Read more “On Solidarity, “Centering Anti-Blackness,” and Asian Americans”

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The Bernie Sanders Kerfuffle, #blacklivesmatter, and White Progressive Colorblindness

I lived for nearly 25 years in Portland, Oregon. There I staffed an organization dedicated to fighting vigilante white supremacists. In order to fight the white right, we built a base that was made up almost entirely of white progressives. I also served as the Executive Director of the McKenzie River Gathering Foundation, a financial resource for progressive causes in Oregon. The foundation is supported almost entirely by wealthy white progressives. During my years in Portland, I also worked to end the prison build-up through a group made up of incarcerated people and their loved ones. The prison population … Read more “The Bernie Sanders Kerfuffle, #blacklivesmatter, and White Progressive Colorblindness”

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In Mexico with Frida Kahlo

Today is the birthday of the great Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo. To honor the occasion, I’ve reposted this article, written while in Mexico in 2010. 

Here in Mexico, images of Frida Kahlo are everywhere.  She peers from the shelves and walls of tourist shops where her image is emblazoned on handbags, t-shirts, masks, and children’s toys.  In the homes of friends, Frida is on tissue boxes and table cloths, refrigerator magnets and matchboxes.  So ubiquitous are images of her face that I occasionally feel as if she is watching me.

On a recent trip to Mexico City, I visited the … Read more “In Mexico with Frida Kahlo”

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No, Dylann Roof, Asians Aren’t “So” Racist

The racist manifesto attributed to vigilante racist, Dylann Roof, is troubling for a lot of reasons, not least of which is that Roof’s diatribe reflects certain broadly held and increasingly mainstream beliefs among whites, like, for instance, that Blacks are the true racists and whites are under attack. And this plum, “black on White crime” is the real problem, while white on black assaults are overblown, indicating a lack of concern for, or even a conspiracy against, white people.

Roof’s manifesto serves as evidence that, in a society whose elected political leaders often blame Black people for everything from the … Read more “No, Dylann Roof, Asians Aren’t “So” Racist”

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The Twisted History of Jerry Hough

It’s been a while since Duke University Political Science Professor, Jerry Hough, kicked off a sh*t storm of commentary by offering a bluntly racist critique of the New York Times article, How Racism Doomed Baltimore.

The Times piece is an excellent take down of entrenched poverty among Blacks in Baltimore, describing the collapse of Baltimore’s inner-city as the nexus of a history of racial coding and legal restrictions, social exclusion, white flight, inequitable public policy, and straight-up financial chicanery, suggesting that these conditions contributed to the world weariness and anger behind the unrest we were witness to following … Read more “The Twisted History of Jerry Hough”

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Racial Tension in the City

Yesterday I had a conversation about race and gentrification in a cab. I ride in a lot of cabs, and this was the third conversation I’ve had on this topic with drivers. But this time was different. Normally, the conversation starts with some version of “there goes the city…” This time, the conversation began with “what’s that?!”

“That” referred to a construction site in downtown Oakland, California, the city across the Bay from San Francisco, the fourth fastest gentrifying city in the country. Oakland is the destination for San Francisco’s rent refugees, myself among them, who’ve escaped to the East … Read more “Racial Tension in the City”

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When Blacks and Asians Clash

Pictured Above: RadAsians a group of anti-racist, feminist, anti-homophobic, trans-inclusive Asian-identified students at UNC Chapel Hill. For more information please check out:

Media stories about clashes between Asians and Blacks during the ongoing uprising in Baltimore, Maryland have been getting a lot of attention over the last week or so. There was this one on NPR, that at least attempted to offer a balanced view, and this one in the Daily Beast that, not surprisingly, didn’t. In the end, most of the coverage is incomplete, and more designed to drive page views than provide real news.

Jeff Yang … Read more “When Blacks and Asians Clash”

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Robots with Chinese Faces

Are you freaked out by the robotics revolution? If so, you’re not alone. News stories projecting a near future in which as much as 50 percent of the workforce will be displaced by robots have a lot of folks conjuring visions of sci-fi dystopias.

To prepare for this future, Shunde, China has created a program appropriately named “replacing humans with robots.” Apparently, about half of factory workers in Shunde, a city of more than 2.4 million (among whom half are migrants who moved to the city for work), will soon be automated out of their jobs. Many will … Read more “Robots with Chinese Faces”