Quote of the day: TNC on the Civil War’s role in the birth of black America
I’d never thought of black America this way, the way Ta-Nehisi Coates describes it in the quotation below. It makes sense to me, in terms of politics. But I worry that it sets aside the contribution of African-Americans to the country and the culture before the war. I am a child of war. The Civil ...
I'd never thought of black America this way, the way Ta-Nehisi Coates describes it in the quotation below. It makes sense to me, in terms of politics. But I worry that it sets aside the contribution of African-Americans to the country and the culture before the war.
I’d never thought of black America this way, the way Ta-Nehisi Coates describes it in the quotation below. It makes sense to me, in terms of politics. But I worry that it sets aside the contribution of African-Americans to the country and the culture before the war.
I am a child of war. The Civil War birthed modern African-American political identity. Our political leadership can be traced back to many of the soldiers who served in that War. The notions of freedom and the franchise, and specifically the notion that these are things worth dying for, come from War. Our century-long journey into the American polity can be traced back to Port Hudson and Milliken’s Bend, to Harriet Tubman leading Union raiders into Confederate territory. This is not abstract — the first proposals for the franchise were for black Union veterans.
I also liked this unrelated comment of his:
At some point you just have to say that, conservatively, a portion of Rupert Murdoch’s empire was a criminal enterprise.
Indeed, so far 13 people have been arrested in connection with alleged hacking crimes by Murdoch newspapers. No, make that 16. Does that mean News Corp. might eventually face RICO-like charges?
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