civil rights

Sep 9 2010

Why we are marching on October 2nd

The past two years have been marked by major progress despite massive challenges, and a worrying resurgence of far-right activity, urging massive resistance to our momentum. We must keep pushing forward.  We have come too far to let ourselves be turned back now.  

Sikivu Hutchinson  |   OW Contributing Columnist
Sep 2 2010

Revivalism

During the 19th century the “Manifest Destiny” of the United States was one of “God-ordained” expansionism. African slaves, indigenous peoples, Mexican nationals and other “non-Europeans” were deemed aliens and enemy combatants, anathema to the democratizing force of America.

Brittney M. Walker  |   OW Staff Writer
Sep 2 2010

Racism then and now

African Americans come from a long line of royal ancestors, warriors, and spiritual people. Our legacy in the United States cannot be told without recognizing the fighters that came before us— the ones who started movements, the ones who kept us alive, and the ones who sacrificed their lives for our freedom.

Emmett “Bobo” Till, a sacrificial lamb, is one of those heroes, who cannot be erased from the memories of our history.

Joseph Wright  |   OW Senior Staff Writer
Apr 22 2010

His passion for justice served the nation

Rev. Dr. Benjamin L. Hooks, a lawyer, minister, and judge, who took over the leadership reins of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1977, recently died at the age of 85, after fighting a long illness.
When Hooks took over the position of executive director of the civil rights organization, it was $1 million in debt and its membership had dwindled to 200,000, a sharp decline from its nearly half a million members it enjoyed throughout the 1950s and 1960s.

Joseph Wright  |   OW Senior Staff Writer
Mar 4 2010

Nation celebrates Black women leaders and activists

In recognition of Women’s History Month, OurWeekly is turning the spotlight on the Ford Motor Corporation’s presentation of the exhibit Freedom’s Sisters, a traveling show featuring women who have made great contributions to America, the Civil Rights Movement and feminism.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.