Action Alert! The Michigan political scene is going to be really crucial this coming year. There are a number of important things on the ballot. One thing that has not been getting much play, but is really important is the possibility of bringing the death penalty to Michigan! The conversation largely resurfaced after Eric Marshall, a black man, killed two White police officers in February in Detroit. Well we know that Black folks killing or addressing Whites in anyway beyond deference has to be met with excessive force from the powers that be and thus we’re talking about the “death penalty” again in Michigan. The Friends have set up a website for armchair activism where you can voice your discontent for bringing this policy to MI. Here’s some more information on the death penalties disparate impact on Black folks.
Share with friendsRackham Dean Earl Lewis is leaving the University of Michigan for Emory. Dean Lewis is one of the highest ranking Black males here at U of M. And to many considered graduate students of color’s greatest ally. I am pretty shocked and saddened that he’s leaving. I sincerely doubt that whoever replaces him will look out for students of color as much as he did.
A email message I received from the Native American Student Association chair- Nickole Fox about Michigamua
Hello,
After creating beautiful powwow diag boards until 2am tonight, a group of
dedicated NASA members were about to venture home. However, we were caught off
guard by a suspicious group of students gathering near the fountain in
Michigamua Plaza (outside the union), appearing to hide something. These
students muttered “its NASA” and “ooo…the Chief.” While we are not certain
of their affiliations on campus, it was clear they didn’t want to be around us
and it reminded me of what time of year it is: Michigamua recruiting time.
If you do not know, Michigamua has a long history of degrading Native American
Culture. They would wear loin clothes, paint themselves red and give each other
suto-indian names and use language of a broken English sort, like “me like um
squaw.” They have been pictured in the yearbook smoking a pipe, with beers in
hand, on the presidents lawn. While these examples are wrong on many levels, I
encourage each person who receives this email to educate yourself about this
organization. I know it can be hard to understand some issues concerning
Native people, so to help you understand…if there is anything that confuses
you, think about the action if it was against another group of people. Think
about blackface, think about the KKK…
What I am asking of you is to
1) if you are a junior, and they want you to join, say no, no matter how much
the connections will benefit you. If you are interested in the community
service aspect of the org, join another group that does community service,
there are a ton of them, and if you need help finding one, I will gladly help.
2) If you are a current member: get out. its not worth it. the group may or
may not have changed their practices (they said they would change in the 70’s,
again in writing in 89 and didnt!) but the history they carry in the name is
not worth your time. Imagine if the KKK decided one day to not be a racist
organization any longer….would KKK still mean the same thing to the people it
hurt? yes. Would you then join the KKK? Please know the history and know that
you are a part of an organization that was founded on hatred, do you really
want to be associated with that?
3) if you are alum of gamua: see #2
4) if you don’t fit any of the above, educate yourself, and everyone you know.
Here are some links:
Sorry if you receive this email multiple times. I just think this is something
everyone needs to know about, especially University students, alumni, faculty,
and staff.
Hoping for social justice,
Nickole Fox
Need to laugh? Here’s an article that my friend Andrew sent me about African-American Studies programs being “left-leaning.” Okay, I can’t stop laughing!
And somehow, I have neglected to mention the murder of Kenneth Walker in Columbus, Georgia by police. Walker was a college grad, family man, and apparently most important to police- a Black man. This story has gotten very little media attention, despite it’s horrendous nature! Google news searchs reveal little, but we need to keep the word about this moving. Thought police brutality only happened to those who didn’t abide by the law, to people hopped up on drugs, or any of the above? WRONG Why do the brutality cases that get national attention always have some way of explaining away the abuse, it doesn’t seem like they’ll be able to explain this one away.
So now the Daily and Tim O’brien have weighed in on the Klan’s endorsement of the MCRI. It is becoming painfully obvious that there is minimal connection between the MCRI and Dr King. Can we all get real!?!
Still convinced that the MCRI’s initiative to end “racial preferences” is about equality? Still think it’s not about “affrimative action”? Still think it continues King’s legacy? Let’s see what Michigan’s Mystic Knight’s of the KKK have to say? Wow, they support it, must mean that it’s a great thing!
Now that I’ve been to their website and now know that there is a application process, I am considering applying. Of course, if I get killed mysteriously then we know what happened. Should I do it? (This is not a joke. I’ve already drafted a letter of inquiry)
Hey look, finally another strategy for disgruntled folks to “rebut” Affirmative Action- a white only scholarship. May I recommend that all the students of color at Roger Williams apply for the scholarship. After all, scholarships that are for underrepresented minorities do not require a test of authenticity*. This extra standard that the “white only” scholarship offers is unique.
*the only exception to this statement would be scholarships for students of Native descent who are part of a nation that defines membership by blood quantums to my knowledge.
