Alt-Right Exults in Donald Trump’s Election With a Salute: ‘Heil Victory’
WASHINGTON — By the time Richard B. Spencer, the leading ideologue of the alt-right movement and the final speaker of the night, rose to address a gathering of his followers on Saturday, the crowd was restless.
In 11 hours of speeches and panel discussions in a federal building named after Ronald Reagan a few blocks from the White House, a succession of speakers had laid out a harsh vision for the future, but had denounced violence and said that Hispanic citizens and black Americans had nothing to fear. Earlier in the day, Mr. Spencer himself had urged the group to start acting less like an underground organization and more like the establishment.
But now his tone changed as he began to tell the audience of more than 200 people, mostly young men, what they had been waiting to hear. He railed against Jews and, with a smile, quoted Nazi propaganda in the original German. America, he said, belonged to white people, whom he called the “children of the sun,” a race of conquerors and creators who had been marginalized but now, in the era of President-elect Donald J. Trump, were “awakening to their own identity.”
Hundreds of Jewish scholars of holocaust history call on Americans to ‘mobilise in solidarity’ against Trump
Hundreds of Jewish scholars of the holocaust have signed a statement condemning the “hateful and discriminatory language and threats” against minorities during Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, and called on Americans to “resist attempts to place vulnerable groups in the crosshairs of nativist racisms.”
The statement, signed by more than 250 Jewish professors from across America, expresses the need to “evaluate where the country stands” following the election, and “resist the degradation of rights that Mr Trump’s rhetoric has provoked.”
Published in the online LA-based Jewish Journal, the message opens by stating: “As scholars of Jewish history, we are acutely attuned to the fragility of democracies and the consequences for minorities when democracies fail to live up to their highest principles.
“The United States has a fraught history with respect to Native Americans, African Americans and other ethnic and religious minorities. But this country was founded on ideals of liberty and justice and has made slow and opportunities for all.”
It goes on to describe “the racial, ethnic, gender-based, and religious hatred” that has been “provoked” during Mr Trump’s campaign and in the wake of his election, citing the “numerous attacks on immigrant groups” from both the President-elect and his supporters.
Sen. Bernie Sanders just delivered a powerful speech on Capitol Hill.
Sen. Bernie Sanders just delivered a powerful speech on Capitol Hill.
Source: Occupy Democrats
Life in Trump’s America: A mixed-race educator in the rural South speaks
It’s been just over a week in “Trump’s America.” Across the nation, there has been an increase in reported hate crimes, as those once considered to represent a fringe sentiment of society have been emboldened by the election of a president endorsed by the KKK. Not one to distance himself from that endorsement, Trump has begun building a cabinet that includes individuals tied to white nationalism.
In my home state of North Carolina, we’ve seen an increase in racial taunting and violence, including the assault of a black trans woman in Charlotte with a hatchet. Overtly racist, anti-Semitic, anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim graffiti has appeared in Durham, including one message that said, “Black Lives Doesn’t [sic] Matter and Neither Does Your Vote.” My Facebook feed has been filled with personal stories of fear as my black, Muslim, brown, and queer friends and family are reporting being harassed, taunted, and intimidated; meanwhile, a lot of my liberal white friends are debating with people of color about the effectiveness of wearing a safety pin.
Saluted in uniform, harassed as a civilian: life as the NYPD’s Muslim chaplain
One morning, Khalid Latif was asleep in his bed when he was awakened by two FBI agents. Latif remembers the agents telling him, “You’re just too good to be true, and we want you to know we’re watching you.”
At the time, Latif was an honored member of the NYPD and traveled around the world for the US State Department. He had met with President Barack Obama, Pope Francis, and the Dalai Lama. Yet every time he went through an airport, he was searched, questioned, and detained. When Latif asked the TSA agents why, they said, “you’re young, you’re male, and you’re Muslim, and those things don’t go so well together right now.”
University of Ottawa professor Amir Attaran takes discrimination fight to human rights tribunal
A University of Ottawa professor who alleges he was denied a prestigious Canada Research Chair promotion based on racial bias has launched a discrimination complaint against the school through Ontario’s Human Rights Tribunal.
Law professor Amir Attaran, who was recruited from Harvard in 2005 with a prestigious Canada Research Chair professorship, believes the university’s decision to deny him a renewal of that position was not based on merit, and claims the denial is evidence of discriminatory practices.
“There is a systemic problem with not enough visible minorities, women, disabled and aboriginal people getting into Canada Research Chairs, not just in this university, but across the country,” said Attaran, who has filed the suit against both the university and the Association of Professors of the University of Ottawa.
The suit claims Attaran was “systemically denied equal inclusion” in the university’s CRC program, and Attaran is seeking $30,000 compensation for lost income and an additional $160,000 for “loss of dignity and distress.” The suit also seeks an order to direct the university to comply with equity targets.
Following a landmark 2006 settlement by the Canadian Human Rights Commission, all Canadian universities are required to meet “equity targets” in four under-represented groups – visible minorities, women, people with disabilities and indigenous people – when filling CRC positions.
“We’re now a decade past that point and the CRC program is still not meeting those targets, and of all universities in English Canada, University of Ottawa is the worst – they’re batting zero-for-four on those targets,” said Attaran. “But in addition to that, they’re behind even other universities that missed all targets.”
Bank Led by Trump Treasury Pick Accused of Racial Discrimination
According to a complaint filed today with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, OneWest Bank has consistently violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to locate bank branches in minority communities or issue mortgage loans to people of color. The bank was also more likely to foreclose on properties in communities of color, and their holdings of foreclosed properties in minority communities were not well-maintained, the complaint alleges.
This matters because until 2015, OneWest Bank’s CEO was Steven Mnuchin, Donald Trump’s national campaign finance chair and rumored choice for Treasury Secretary.
Two non-profit groups, the California Reinvestment Coalition and Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, filed the complaint. The alleged conduct comprises “redlining,” the long-held practice of preventing minority families from acquiring home mortgages. Congress banned redlining in the Fair Housing Act of 1968, designed to prevent discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, or familial status.
According to a complaint filed today with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, OneWest Bank has consistently violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to locate bank branches in minority communities or issue mortgage loans to people of color. The bank was also more likely to foreclose on properties in communities of color, and their holdings of foreclosed properties in minority communities were not well-maintained, the complaint alleges.
This matters because until 2015, OneWest Bank’s CEO was Steven Mnuchin, Donald Trump’s national campaign finance chair and rumored choice for Treasury Secretary.
Two non-profit groups, the California Reinvestment Coalition and Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, filed the complaint. The alleged conduct comprises “redlining,” the long-held practice of preventing minority families from acquiring home mortgages. Congress banned redlining in the Fair Housing Act of 1968, designed to prevent discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, or familial status.