Aretha

Listening to Aretha on Radio Woodstock. She’s in concert at Filmore West years ago. What a voice, what a musical genius. She finished the concert with “Reach out and touch somebody’s hand, make this world a better place if you can.” I kick myself now that I never saw her live in concert.

Constant and tumultuous

Living in a time where social movements come and go, it is easy to forget that the Civil Rights movement, led by Martin Luther King in the first place, sustained itself for nearly a decade and a half. And it did so in the face of all manner of vicious threats and attacks from state and non-state actors. Fair winds and moments of lull were rare. Indeed, the struggle was constant and tumultuous.

What is more, courage and fearlessness combined with a compelling and relatable vision of freedom, strategic depth and acumen, tactical flexibility, and, not least, an appreciation of the imperative of multi-racial unity that find few parallels in our history. Though conditions and challenges are different a half century later, much can still be learned in ways too numerous to mention by today’s political and social activists, if we hope to expand the boundaries of freedom, democracy, and justice.

Come back to bite them

I believe we will hear soon from the Justice Department as to why they entered Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home and what they found there. At that point the Republican Party, which is up in arms now at the actions of the Justice Department, will find itself on shaky ground. Methinks the Trumpists doth protest too much and it will come back to bite them!

Only embolden

Fear of backlash from Trump and Trumpism is no reason not to press the case against the lawlessness of Trump. Hesitation and passivity only embolden him and his motely array of fascist and fascist like supporters.

Welcomed and supported

I don’t see the logic of damning the Democratic Party bill in the Senate at this moment with faint praise – worse still dimissing it – as Bernie is doing. Enough people on the left will do that without Bernie joining the chorus. In present circumstances, the bill should be welcomed and supported. Can you imagine the consequences if the bill failed to pass.

I like Ohio Senator’s Sherrod Brown’s positive take on the bill.

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