Academic Rants

  Last week, President Trump provided the next soundbites in the cultural wars. This time he focused squarely on education and the teaching of American history. Education Week, an online educator periodical, captured and highlighted aspects of the president's comments. "We must clear away the twisted web of lies in our schools and our classrooms, and teach our children the magnificent truth about our country," Mr. Trump stated. He also said that teaching the 1619 Project and ideas like Critical Race Theory "is especially harmful to children of minority backgrounds who should be uplifted, not disparaged. Teaching this horrible doctrine to our children is a form of child abuse in the truest sense of those words."  The president feels that educators are confusing students about the legacy of our nation, and he called for schools to "teach American exceptionalism" because schools are teaching kids to "hate their own country."  The presiden...

 The Silent Crisis With over 200,000 souls lost, COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on the United States. Since the pandemic hit these shores in late January, America has faced its greatest medical challenge since the Great Flu Pandemic. Despite the fact that the United States has about four percent of the world's and roughly a quarter of the world's positive tests, there isn't an overwhelming sense of fear or panic throughout the nation.  This national optimism is due in part to poor messaging through the media, elected officials, and social media. The press, depending on its affiliation, is stressing that the virus is deadly or that it is benign. Additionally, there is a false sense of national confidence that America is immune to this plague and that we are somehow protected from its impact. Part of this confidence is based on our legacy in fighting flu epidemics, polio, and HIV-AIDS. People like to point out that the Great Flu Outbreak occurred during World War I and...

  It is interesting to hear countless political figures struggle when discussing systemic racism. There is a need to deny the existence of racism when we all know it is historical in nature. The quest to “Make America Great," and to "Make America Great, Again” is a search for a mythical time when America was perfect. A simple survey of the twentieth century proves that no such era ever existed. America, in the minds of most social scientists, was always a contested space. None-the-less, the quest to find that “special time” continues.  Some social commentators have described it as a time when whites dominated the suburbs and were able to keep blacks and other minorities out. A deeper dive would reveal that the suburbs were never perfect for any group. See Richard Rothstein's seminal work, The Color of Law to see how the government provided the tools for segregating America. Neither the city, suburb, or rural countryside gave rise to the ideal American residence. Various ...

People moving out, people moving in Why? Because of the color of their skin Run, run, run but you sure can't hide An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth Vote for me and I'll set you free Rap on, brother, rap on Well, the only person talking about love thy brother is the preacher And it seems nobody's interested in learning but the teacher Segregation, determination, demonstration, integration Aggravation, humiliation, obligation to my nation Ball of confusion Oh yeah, that's what the world is today Woo, hey, hey The sale of pills are at an all time high Young folks walking round with their heads in the sky The cities ablaze in the summer time And oh, the beat goes on Evolution, revolution, gun control, sound of soul Shooting …   Those are some of the words of Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong from the Temptations 1970 hit, Ball of Confusion . The song still resonates some fifty years later. American cities are experiencing mass outward migration as people flee from th...

 Although many Americans watch the presidential conventions, a significant number find them boring. This year's experience is very different, and it may be the beginning of a new set of trends. Political conventions and the stuffiness of backroom deals and cigar smoke may become historical legend. For a host of reasons, the 2020 election season is must watch television. The campaign started the day after the 2016 election and it has never ended. Although an endless campaign should be boring, this one has daily twists and turns. It flows like a soap opera because it is one. We are living in Donald Trump's world. We are being fed his views and notions of America and his abrupt ways of governing are causing national headaches, joys and depressions. And it may be ironic that the convention season is assuming aspects of his personality. Almost instantly, President Trump developed a new campaign slogan ("Keeping America Great") and prepared to fight an unknown challenger. H...

It is very important for those writing history to create the narrative on which that history stands. This is also true for those making history. The narratives of African Americans is far too often written by those who are not of African heritage. Black people and their ideas, political and social movements, and creations should be judged and evaluated from an African centered perspective. Unfortunately, in our Eurocentric world, the virtues of white Americans dictate how things are seen.  And this is the key problem for White America, who is creating their narratives?  Is it FOX, CNN, MSNBC, the Washington Post, the New York Times, or the Wall Street Journal? What other sources does one need to consult to learn about the events in your nation ? Anti-racism movements are as old as the nation itself. Yet, many in our news medias portray these movements as quite recent and frequently violent.  The treatment of anti-racist movements when white Americans are excluded...

I've had a Twitter account for years. My students pushed me to get an account, and one of my colleagues suggested that I could use Twitter as a teaching tool. My colleague was correct. Currently, Twitter is an amazing tool, but I'm not sure in the way that its creators intended. Instead of tweeting, I read. I've witnessed the viewpoints of millions of people and some that are vastly different than my own. I have been informed, educated and disgusted, but I have never stopped reading. Twitter has become the tool of influence. In fact, it can create influencers. Opinions and facts fly out to whoever is interested in reading and participating in social media debates. Often these conversations get a bit rowdy, but there's no violence. Tweets that affect the security of nations have been blocked and in some nations, there is censorship of tweets. But the power of the mind in reading, believing, disproving, arguing and fighting ensures that it will remain in the forefront o...