B6
DECEMBER 7-13, 2016
FORUM
NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER
Armstrong Williams How Americans If Trump is serious about lost faith in fighting terrorism, he should Commentary everything and register White Nationalists first found Trump Bill Fletcher Jr. President Donald Trump
(NNPA)—Professor Deva Woodly teaches political science at the New School for Social Research in New York. During a recent talk, she shared that trust in our nation’s institutions is at an all-time low. That is, perhaps, why that man who currently holds the title of president-elect was able to prevail over someone far more qualified in the November election. Using Gallup Poll data from June 2016, Professor Woodly notes that the military is our nation’s most trusted institution—73 percent trust them, while our Congress is the least trusted with only 7 percent support. Fifty-six percent of us trust the police, 41 percent trust the church, just 36 percent support the president, and only 23 percent trust organized labor or the criminal justice system. One in five trusts television news or newspapers. In a nutshell, it does not appear that we trust anybody! This lack of trust results in a lack of involvement in civil society. If you don’t trust the church, how involved will you be in it? If you don’t trust your union, will you do much more than pay your dues? Only two in five trust the medical profession—do you believe your doctors? Just one in four of us trust banks. If we don’t trust institutions, do we trust each other? And if we don’t trust each other, how
Julianne Malveaux
Commentary do we come together to organize, to resist the corrosiveness of the callous, racist, misogynistic leadership that Trump offers our nation. The man has no regard for the truth, and he has pandered to our collective mistrust by describing everything as “rigged.” Now he is saying that he really won the popular vote because “millions” of people voted fraudulently. He has no proof of it, and he ought to be ashamed for lying, except for if he had any shame he never would have run for president. Between fake news and mistrust, there are those who believe him, which further erodes institutional trust. Our nation is on a downward spiral, and there is no soft landing unless we rediscover the ways we once connected, and revive them. Woodly and I joined Michael Eric Dyson, and Columbia University Professor and moderator Fred Harris in a New School-sponsored panel on Obama, Race and Politics. Anyone who has read Dyson or me would not be surprised at our analysis. Fred Harris, too, has written about the Obama presidency in his book, “The Price of the Ticket: Barack Obama and the Rise and Fall of Black Politics” (Oxford University Press, 2012). Professor Woodly’s analysis stood out for me, though, because she talked about community distrust and ways it disconnects people from politics, the polls, and outcomes. Too many people thought that their actions had no consequences, and that whatever they did had no meaning. Their impressions may have been shaped by the smugness many of us saw coming from the Clinton campaign that behaved as if their victory was inevitable. Just 107,000 votes in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania separated Hillary Clinton from victory. Recounts are not likely to sway the election, and the “if I coulda, woulda, shoulda” post-mortem around the resources that should have been used to energize the base makes no difference now. The fact is that Hillary Clinton should have won this election. She didn’t, because the village she says it takes to save a child has been fractured. Instead of talking to each other, too many are texting each other. Instead of talking to voters, the Clinton campaign was spending millions on ads that vilified Trump instead of lifting up Clinton. The election is over. Recounts are important for the sake of accountability, but I’m not sure they will make a difference in the electoral outcome. I support the recounts, and also an electoral audit. I support reform that makes it easier, not harder for people to vote. I believe that there are things that can be done in the next two years to take our democracy back. I refuse to wring my hands and dry my eyes about Trump and his “victory” anymore. What must happen now is a return to community. I was heartened to see so many millennials at the New School panel, young people asking what to do next. The answer—we must rebuild community. We must organize, organize, organize, and agitate, agitate, agitate. The man who calls himself our president-elect is an unabashed liar who some say “deserves a chance.” Give him a chance, if you will, but hold him accountable for his lies, his conflicts of interest, and his racist appointments of Steve Bannon and Senator Sessions, D-Ala. Our community, revived, can do no less. (Julianne Malveaux is an author and economist. For more info visit www.juliannemalveaux. com.)
(NNPA)--I have been trying to figure out how there can be any discussion of registering Muslims due to alleged national security concerns, when it is documented that the major source of terrorism in the United States since 9/11 has been White supremacists groups. The Southern Poverty Law Center has been a major source of information documenting myriad right-wing terrorist attacks, though little mainstream attention has gone to this phenomenon. Just recently several right-wingers in Oregon were acquitted of an ARMED occupation of federal property. This was not civil disobedience or standard protest, but an armed action. In the late 1960s/early 1970s, there were many Black activists who worried that, in the face of some alleged crisis proclaimed by the U.S. government, African Americans would be placed into concentration camps. The mainstream political establishment declared that we were paranoid. While it was true, they would say, that Japanese immigrants and Japanese Americans had been imprisoned in 1942 as an alleged security threat during World War II, we were subjected to repeated arguments that this would never happen again; what happened to the Japanese had been an aberration. The fact that Native Americans had been locked up on reservations was conveniently ignored. Fast forward to the 2016 presidential elections. Republican candi-
Commentary
dates, including, but not limited to, now President-elect Donald Trump, began making suggestions regarding the registering and possible interning of Muslims in the U.S. The rationale: alleged national security concerns. This threat of registration, if not detention, has not disappeared. Despite the fact that White supremacists are the main source of terrorism in the U.S., there has been no call to register White nationalists, let alone any other White people. Using the Trump rationale, there should be a massive registering of White nationalists since history demonstrates their propensity for violence. Yet any time the issue of right-wing/White supremacist terrorism is raised, it is brushed under the rug and the act(s) of violence is pinned on an allegedly disturbed White person, who committed the horrible act, solely due to some sort of inexplicable compulsion. If there is a registry of Muslims, then all people of conscience should sign up as an act of protest. We should ensure that the registry is debunked and that any discussion of terrorism in the U.S. begins with a current and historical examination of the main danger of terrorism we face, terrorism perpetrated by the homegrown right-wing.
(Bill Fletcher Jr. is a talk show host, writer and activist. Follow him on Twitter @BillFletcherJr, Facebook and at www.billfletcherjr.com.)
Colin Kaepernick, Fidel Castro and revolutionary romanticism Cuban revolufamilies, like his tionary leader own. Fidel Castro J. Pharoah Doss Kaepernick redied the week plied, “We break the San Franup families here. cisco 49ers were That’s what scheduled to mass incarceraplay the Miami tion is, the founDolphins. Bedation of slavery. fore his death, So our country there was a dishas been based pute over a T-shirt with his depiction. on that as well as the genocide of NaBack during the preseason Colin tive Americans.” Kaepernick, the 49ers quarterback At first the reporter’s questions known for his pre-game national an- were like a lawyer badgering a witthem protest, wore a T-shirt featuring ness about a trivial matter, but he a meeting between Fidel Castro and was actually protesting the romantiMalcolm X. (Background: In 1959 cizing of the Cuban revolution. Castro overthrew the U.S. backed It’s most likely Kaepernick wore dictator and promised Cuba will have the T-shirt during the preseason beno more dictators and free elections. cause Fidel Castro and Malcolm X In 1960 Castro gave a speech at the are romanticized figures for defying U.N. denouncing the United States. America and Black militancy. That During this U.N. visit Castro stayed combination (the middle finger and in a Harlem hotel. That’s when Cas- the black fist) was perfect symbolism tro and Malcolm X were introduced. for his national anthem protest. The photos have more symbolism I doubt if Kaepernick gave the than historical significance.) plight of Cuban exiles a single During a teleconference, a Miami thought. Kaepernick confirmed he reporter, a Cuban exile, reminded didn’t, by stating he’s not talking Kaepernick of his preseason apparel about Castro’s oppression, but that and asked how he could protest op- statement also confirms he’s aware pression then don a T-shirt featuring of it. Then he bragged about Cuba’s an oppressor. high literacy rate as if the ability to Kaepernick said he wore a Malcolm read as a child is an even exchange X shirt. for a lifetime of autocratic rule. The reporter said Castro was also If Kaepernick was ignorant of the depicted. human suffering inflicted by Castro Kaepernick explained he believed the reporter might not have menin Malcolm X’s ideology and his tioned the T-shirt, but Kaepernick is meeting with Castro showed Mal- aware and ignores it because of what colm’s open mind and interest in in- Castro symbolizes to him. ternational affairs. The reporter quoted Kaepernick But the reporter only wanted to saying if anyone is okay with peoknow if Kaepernick supported Castro ple being treated unfairly, being and his oppression, Kaepernick said, harassed, being terrorized then the “I’m not talking about Fidel Castro’s problem is more what they’re doing oppression.” in their lives. The reporter wrote, The reporter wrote in his own op-ed, “Kaepernick doesn’t understand his then “in the next breath Kaepernick, words apply to him before he can apborn in Milwaukee, Wis., explains ply them to others.” to me, the guy born in Havana, how But this is the moral failing of rogreat Castro really is.” manticism when faced with reality. Kaepernick said, “One thing Fidel Romanticism is nothing but an inCastro did do is…Have the highest fatuation with ideology, or in this literacy rate because they invest case revolutionary intentions, while more in their educational system overlooking the real life consequencthan they do their prison systems.” es of their implementation. (J. Pharoah Doss is a contributor to The reporter asked about the communist revolution, the lack of free the New Pittsburgh Courier. He blogs at elections, justice and the break up of jpharoahdoss@blogspot.com.)
Commentary
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will make the Middle East great again, too
(NNPA)—The election of Donald J. Trump signals very dark days ahead. Not for the American people, of course, but for our nation’s enemies and adversaries in the Middle East. The American people turned out to the polls in record numbers for the election, and they delivered the future President Trump an undeniable and strong mandate to lead. With the Republican Party in control of both the House and the Senate, Trump is poised to avoid the gridlock that has perpetually plagued Washington, and actually get things done. It’s a new day in America, and we should expect tremendous changes when it comes to how America approaches conflict in the Middle East. President Obama withdrew from the region, minimizing American power and diminishing our much-needed presence and leadership. Trump will bring that indispensable leadership back to the Middle East, and the world will be better for it. Notably, the presidency of Trump signals a rekindling of the historic ties that have bound America to its closest ally and the only true democracy in the region, the Jewish state of Israel. Trump has a strong affinity for the Jewish people. It’s not just politics—it’s personal. His daughter Ivanka is a convert to Judaism, and his Orthodox Jewish son-in-law Jared Kushner has been a trusted advisor on the campaign trail. Trump has spoken with pride about his Jewish grandchildren. His affection for Israel will be reflected in his policies, too. Trump’s Israel advisors recently issued a position paper noting that his administration will veto any United Nations vote that unfairly singles out Israel. It shames UNESCO for its clear egregious bias against Israel. It pledges that he will move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and recognize the holy city as the uncontested capital of Israel. Trump has also derided the idea that a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can be imposed from outside parties, including the U.N. And Trump is not the only rock solid pro-Israel leader on his ticket. During his time serving in Congress, Vice President-elect Mike Pence was one of the most stalwart supporters of the U.S.-Israel relationship. A devout Christian, Pence has said that his support for Israel is rooted deeply in his faith. Among his many laudable achievements in office, Pence signed one of the strongest laws against the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. He advocated for robust military aid to Israel, and he led bids to place conditions on funding for the Palestinian Authority. With Trump in the White House, Israel can be assured that the United States will fight alongside it to protect the Jewish state from the many perils of its neighborhood. Both Trump and Pence have repeatedly spoken of the dangers of the disgraceful Iran deal. Both have opposed the agreement, which hands $150 billion to a thuggish, terrorist regime. Trump has pledged to revisit this misguided and dangerous deal and address its many shortcomings. While negotiating this deeply flawed agreement, Obama bent over backwards to give Iran concession after concession and Secretary of State John Kerry was outfoxed and maneuvered, time and again. The unelected mullahs in Iran must surely feel much more uneasy about the future. Trump has been making deals throughout his entire illustrious career, and he is a master of negotiation. With him in the Oval Office, the world should expect an end to America’s bad deals with tyrannical dictatorships that put our allies in danger. Now, America’s interests will be put first. Meanwhile, U.S. allies in the Middle East should be breathing a collective sigh of relief. No longer will our country be so quick to turn its back on long-time friends. Countries like Egypt that are fighting terrorists should be gratified that the most powerful country in the world will be led by someone who understands, and is unafraid to confront, the existential threat that radical Islamic terrorism poses to the democratic way of life. In fact, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was among the first foreign leaders to call and congratulate the president-elect. Moving forward, America is going to be smarter and more strategic in the choices it makes in the international arena. Gone are the days when America draws a red line in Syria and backs away from it, showing dangerous and bloodthirsty regimes that America is afraid to live up to our commitments and that we lack the moral courage to follow through on our pledges. A lack of leadership in the Middle East created a vacuum filled by nefarious actors, including ISIS. We will not make that mistake again. There’s a new Commander-in-Chief in town, and our enemies should be frightened. As Trump looks to “Make America Great Again,” that includes demonstrating to our closest allies in the Middle East that we stand with them. It will mean showing them that America is not just a paper tiger, and that we are unafraid to stand strong against tyranny. The Obama administration purposefully and irresponsibly showed hostility toward allies, including Israel, and that damaged our standing in the world. As we transition to the Trump administration, our friendships across the globe will be restored. Americans should take comfort in knowing that Trump will boldly lead, and that our essential relationship with our partner Israel will be stronger than ever. (Armstrong Williams is manager/sole owner of Howard Stirk Holdings I & II Broadcast Television Stations and the 2016 Multicultural Media Broadcast Owner of the year.)