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The NY Times' flattering profile of the very professionally accomplished Dr. Ben Carson is part of a concerted effort to make a compelling news story out of the Republican Party's search for a viable black presidential candidate.

The Republican Party's quest is more of a comedic tragedy than a drama. It is a rerun of bad serialized television. Carson today; Herman Cain yesterday; Allen West before then; Colin Powell years ago. The story always ends the same way, with the masters of the Tea Party GOP going onto the next one in search of a black political messiah who can successfully package and sell a set of policies that are hostile to people of color, and which no black or brown folks with any self-respect or common sense, would support.

The Tea Party GOP is a racially chauvinistic political organization, one that is quite literally trying to put a black face on its policies and proposals. The union of racism and conservatism in the post-civil rights era deems that these efforts will likely fail. Nevertheless, they will still persist.

Instead of a bad serialized drama or sitcom, the Republican quest for a black leader who can be a salve for charges of racism--a human deflector shield--and win over non-white voters to the Tea Party GOP, is more akin to the world of XXX film.

In the United States, there is an underground culture where white men seek out black men to have sex with the former's wives and partners. These white men are cuckolded. They sit watching as these walking stereotypes of super endowed "impenetrable blackness" ravage the "gift" of white flesh given to them by these "magnanimous" and "generous" white men. All is not as it seems however. The white men who are supposedly submissive are actually enjoying the proceedings. They have power to "surrender" and find bliss and pleasure in watching the socially taboo, the Other, take what is in this sexual context, their white female marital "property."

The "Mandingos" at these events feel special and proud. They sell themselves as articulate, smart, professionally accomplished and atypical black men. These men are "exceptional" and "articulate." The white couples who seek out Mandingo parties are also seeking out the exceptional negro, that "special" one, who can fulfill a fantasy. Ultimately, the personhood of these black men is irrelevant: none of the people involved are really interested in talking. What does matter is that they are black men of a particular type.

The Republican Party's search for a Great Black (or even non-white) Hope is driven by the same logic. The "right type" of "accomplished" black guy who can be sold to the White Right in a play of political fantasy is preferable. But, any black person who is a "conservative" will serve their purposes.

Black conservative Ben Carson is a human prop for the GOP's 10 million dollar political Mandingo outreach party. As we saw with Herman Cain, the visual of a black man, standing central before a sea of Right-wing Whiteness brings waves of political joy and healing paroxysms to Republicans. Ben Carson should be cautious however, as the Republican Party has a fickle relationship with their political Mandingos. The curiosity is satisfied quite quickly before they return to their old lovers and even older ways. At the Mandingo party/political orgy that are events such as CPAC, Black conservatives can be used for sport or pleasure. But, they are rarely allowed to spend the night.

Ben Carson is the new best black friend of the Republican Party. But, will they call him the morning after? 

While SendGrid developer evangelist Adria Richards attended PyCon 2013 two men seated behind her made a crass sexual joke which violated the code of conduct for conference attendees. Bothered, Richards snapped their picture and tweeted it at the conference staff, asking that someone speak to the men about their conduct.

One of the men was subsequently fired over the incident — a consequence Richards says she never intended. After that, the Internet exploded. Anonymous attacked the SendGrid website, essentially shutting it down. Richards received many disgusting, racially charged insults via social media. She received rape and death threats. Someone tweeted her a disturbing image of the bloody decapitated corpse of a woman with the caption "When I'm done." The image included her home address.

Much thoughtful analysis has already been written about the situation and whether Richards' reaction was warranted. However, whether you agree with Richard’s actions or not, the amount of gendered hate directed at her is simply inexcusable. Unfortunately, it seems that women who write or speak out online are sometimes the recipient of these kinds of disgusting attacks. These attacks go beyond harmless internet "trolling," and they need to end.

After Democratic strategist Zerlina Maxwell told Sean Hannity that she thought sexual violence against women could be stopped by teaching men not to rape, she received a flood of disgusting and racially charged comments telling her she deserved to be gang raped.

Maxwell, who is a rape survivor, refused to allow these threats to stop her from educating the world about rape prevention, saying, "I’m certainly taking steps to protect my emotional health, but I will not be quiet. Because I refuse to be bullied into silence."

Two weeks ago, I penned this piece about gender inequality in the media. In the piece, I included a mention of media critic Anita Sarkeesian. After she started a video series critiquing gender identity in video games, Sarkeesian said she received a series of threats. Sarkeesian notes:

"I found myself the target of a massive online hate campaign. All my social media sites were flooded with threats of rape, violence, sexual assault, death — and you’ll notice that these threats and comments were all specifically targeting my gender ... They attempted to knock my website offline, hack into my email and other accounts. They attempted to collect and distribute my personal information including my home address and phone number ... There were images made, pornographic images made in my likeness being raped by video game characters and sent to me again and again. There was even a game made where players were invited to beat the bitch up in which upon clicking on the screen, an image of me would become increasingly battered and bruised."

After my piece was published, I was surprised to find it received a lot of responses. While many people enjoyed the piece, or at least thought it raised questions worth asking, several seemed troubled by the study and my summary of it.

When I first started out as a blogger, I anticipated readers sometimes disagreeing with me. I mentally prepared myself for comments or tweets telling me my ideas were unfounded or that my writing was bad. These were all things I expected when publishing writing online.

My women in the media piece was a kind of milestone; it marked the first time I received a racially charged insult based on something I wrote, an outcome I was totally unprepared for.

Whether we agree or disagree with what these women have to say, these kinds of comments are never okay. No one should have to worry that they’ll receive racially charged insults, rape threats, or death threats because of what they write online. We should be able to disagree with each other respectfully without crossing the line.

Today, Adria Richards is in hiding. Once an avid user of social media, she hasn't tweeted or blogged since the incident began. For the time being, her voice has effectively been silenced.

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Bridget Todd teaches courses at Howard University. She blogs about race and politics. Her writing has appeared on the Huffington Post, Jezebel, DCentric, and Racialicious. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetMarie

I have always had an immense fascination with Lena Horne and Diahann Carroll. Watching them perform, respectively, immediately transports me to a nostalgic time where possessing class, glamour, beauty and amazing talent was a world all unto itself. These two women exuded a flawless grace in everything they committed their lives to whether it be their craft or to their community.



“My identity is very clear to me now, I am a black woman; You have to be taught to be second class; you're not born that way.” –Lena Horne

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was one of the most formidable singing actresses of her time. Starting out as a dancer at the ripe age of sixteen, she began performing nightly at the Cotton Club in Harlem to help support her mother. Having made a name for herself Horne continued to expand her wings embarking on a successful career that spanned more than 60 years both nationally and internationally. In negative images of Black people that time she earned numerous awards including three Grammy’s, one Tony, and a NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Artists.

While these are most notable for her career, it was her unadulterated activism that won my heart over. Through all of the perilous discrimination she faced (from both white and black folks mind you), she refused to bow down and be nothing more than her own fierce Black woman. Horne not only regularly turned down scripts where the characters perpetuated stereotypical images; she also worked to ensure that Black soldiers were treated equally by refusing to entertain to segregated audiences. She was a constant figure and supporter of the Civil Rights movement and frequently spoke out against racial injustices at rallies for the NAACP, SNCC and the National Council of Negro Women. Though her career took a hit for several long years due to her political views, Horne never once bowed down and took the easy way out. She remained simply Lena.
Source, Source and Source


"There are many different impressions about a woman of my color and my background who began in the fifties, and how she developed.; I've spent about that amount of time trying to tell the public that there was purpose in... my business, my career and the roller coaster ride... how the people I associated with worked together.” –Diahann Carroll

Diahann Carroll is the first Black woman to ever star in her very own mainstream television series which did not feature stereotypical images of Black women. Breaking racial-gendered barriers in media across the United States of America, Carroll’s character in her hit series, Julia, ran for a total of 86 episodes and earned her a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Television Series. Carroll not only proved that as a Black woman she could perform on the same level, if not better, than her white counterparts, but more significantly—that Black people were capable of playing vastly different roles than those normally associated with their culture.

Born Carol Diahann, her career began at the age of fifteen modeling for Ebony magazine. She later gained film recognition with her supporting role in Carmen Jones in 1954 and the character, Clara, in Porgy and Bess in 1959. After her hit series, Julia, Carroll went on to become a number of “firsts” including that of the very first Black woman to star in the popular series Dynasty as Dominique Deveraux.

For more than fifty years, Diahann Carroll has consistently brought to film and stage the unique and memorable classical essence of Black women. Having survived the worst of breast cancer, Carroll continues to stand strong projecting the elegant refinement of Black sophistication and Hollywood royalty.
Source, Source and Source

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Alice J. Rollins is an aspiring freelance writer and blogger who holds an M.A. in Women’s and Gender Studies from DePaul University. Her areas of interest include African American women’s spirituality, feminist/womanist pedagogy and politics of migration.

She is currently based in Chicago, IL. Email her at: alice@forharriet.com

Originally posted at Vibin' Courtside

We witnessed it back in 2009 when 18 year-old Caster Semenya dominated the 800 meters at the World Championships and was subsequently subjected to having her gender questioned and tested. Semenya’s masculine physique and “lack of feminity” prompted the IAAF to administer the test. The press got a hold of it and the whispers about Semenya that had been floating around on social outlets became screams.

 Earlier this month, Baylor University Women’s Basketball star Brittney Griner exploded for a Big 12 single-game record of 50 points against Kansas State. She went 21 for 28 from the field and eight for 10 from the free throw line. She also slammed her 14th career dunk. By any other standards, college or professional, all of the focus would solely be placed on how well and dominating the player played the game. This isn’t the case with Brittney Griner and it has never been the case.

It’s a trend that occurs in women’s sports that has become too common. Whenever there is an athlete that skews the social norms, the questioning and humiliation begins. For Griner it’s always the same statements: the “it should be illegal for her to play with women” and “Griner’s adam’s apple this…” and so forth. Serena Williams would probably garner the same responses if it were not for her extra baggage in the back.

Obviously, that has been deemed worthy enough for a pass even if she could out bench millions of dudes. Also, that Williams exhibits the usual “feminine” qualities surely relieves some of the questioning. Not to say anything about Williams, because she marches to her own drum fiercely and makes no apologies. She and no other athlete should have to make any apologies. It should not matter how “deep” Griner’s voice is, or how large her hands are. She is a damn good ball player and that’s where the attention should be focused. The notion that no female athlete could be that good or dominate as such unless she is packing something extra, speaks to how small-minded we still are as a society.

It’s something that all female athletes surely have come across in their lives at some time or another. Answering why you would rather bounce a ball than shake a pom-pom gets old very quickly…trust me. It’s 2013 and people are still quite close-minded when it comes to women in general but it seems as athletes always get it a step further. With that being said, here’s what’s really good.

Brittney Griner is a rarity, no doubt, by today’s standards. This is a 20-something college student who is obviously comfortable in her own skin and loves her sport. I don’t know how she does it. I cannot imagine the mental toughness it takes to not only block out all the ignorant negativity that she and others like Semenya faces on a daily basis. All the while continuing to set and break records. Griner does this all WITH a smile on her face. True basketball fans look her for what matters the most when she steps on the court: her game.

Issues of race in gaming aren’t often discussed – but a study in the current issue of the New Review of Hypermedia and Multimedia tackles the subject head-on. 

Kishonna L. Gray writes that in video-game culture, the default gamer is a white male. Those outside that privileged group are often marginalised, labelled ‘deviant’ and punished for their ‘deviance’. Women, ethnic minorities and people of colour are portrayed in a stereotypical manner, reinforcing notions of whiteness, blackness, racial hierarchies, masculinity and sexuality... 

 She uncovered disturbing patterns of behaviour and a space racialised by the profiling of non-white or non-male gamers by their speech. In particular, she found that some gamers picked up on linguistic cues from others that suggested they might be black. The black gamer would then be confronted about his colour and provoked by the use of racist slurs. Other gamers would often join in with the insults. The episode would end with one of the gamers leaving or being kicked out of the game, or the offended gamer retaliating with his own volleys of profanity and racist language.

I am eagerly waiting for BioShock 3 (I have surrendered to the fact that I will have to upgrade my video card and finally jump to Windows 7). Thus, this new article on the racial discourse of online video games is very well-timed.

[In my best NPR voice, our informal, random, few day fund-raising drive continues. If so inclined, and have some pennies or silver from your tax refund or found change from under the seat cushion, do throw a few into the begging bowl if you are feeling generous and would like to support We Are Respectable Negroes and Chauncey DeVega's various online efforts and mischief-making.]

We have discussed cyber racism several times here on WARN.

The attitudes of the "real world" are often mirrored by the virtual world. In the most extreme cases, white nationalists have become increasingly adept at using online media to share their message with prospective members. In addition, the White Right has also begun creating websites on issues related to race and justice in order to disseminate disinformation to an unaware public, with a specific focus on young, impressionable, students.

As "Deviant bodies, stigmatized identities, and racist acts: examining the experiences of African-American gamers in Xbox Live" details, the colorblind day-to-day racism of the post civil rights era is also present in the chat rooms, lobbies, and in-game spaces of online video games. The theories which have been developed to critically interrogate and map colorblind racism, such as how it has moved from the "front stage" to the "back stage," involves "harmless" racial humor and jokes, and where white folks can use the common deflection "I am not racist because I didn't mean it that way" are all present in Kishonna Gray's findings:

Most worryingly, such racism appears to be ‘normalised’ in the Xbox Live sessions she observed, with offended users rarely complaining. When Gray confronted the gamers who used racist language, they categorically denied being racist. They further defended themselves by claiming it was ‘just a game’, that the words they used were meaningless or that they would use the same offensive terms to refer to white people... 

Gray concludes that much of this abuse occurs and is allowed to continue because of the mistaken belief that black people, women and minorities are not gamers; the games themselves continue to be created by and for white males. Until gaming changes considerably, it would appear that only white males can leave their real-world identities behind when they enter the virtual world of Xbox Live.

In total, Kishonna Gray has authored a very useful article, both in how it summarizes the growing literature on race, racial attitudes and cyberspace, as well as for the ways in which it connects empirical work to some of the core theories on racial formation in the post civil rights moment.
As someone who plays video games, "Deviant bodies, stigmatized identities, and racist acts: examining the experiences of African-American gamers in Xbox Live" inspires several thoughts and questions.

1. I do not play first person shooters as much as I once did. However, I am still a sucker for the Call of Duty franchise. I will also be buying Far Cry 3 at some point. I have noticed that racist language is much more common by players in those games than in other genres. Is this a function of how those games are ostensibly skewed towards younger players? If so, what does the frequent use of racist language there say about "post racial" America and young people's racial attitudes?
2. These questions of race and racial ideologies are not limited to first person shooters. Real time and turn based strategy games have also had to grapple with these issues. This is especially true of those games which are "historically" based. 
I am a huge fan of the Total War series (when will we be treated to either a World War One or Crimean War expansion?). 
One of its more recent installments, Empire: Total War, is set in the 18th and 19th centuries. Given its role in the era, the designers therefore had to include the Transatlantic Slave Trade in the project. How did they massage this game mechanic? The designers do not refer to slavery directly; instead, they allow players to set up very lucrative "trade routes" along the West African coast. 
This is a practical business decision by the game designers as they do not want the controversy over the Maafa to overshadow Empire: Total War. But, were they also being intellectual cowards who could have had a "teachable moment" for players of the game? And what of the genocide of First Nations peoples? How do you model that in a game? Or is any effort just going to cheapen the real events?  
Moreover, the ways that individual players choose to interact with those game mechanics is also very fascinating to me--for example, I decided to play a land based country because I have no interest in being a virtual slaver. Other players could care less, or alternatively see the trade profits from slavery as too great to resist if they want to win the game.
Which RTS or turn based strategy game do you think best deals with the ugly side of history as modeled by a game mechanic? The Civilization series perhaps?
3. Interestingly, I have seen very little if any racism in Starcraft 2 matches online. I have seen no small amount of it in Company of Heroes. Does the latter just attract white nationalist wannabe types because they can play virtual soldier in Hitler's army? Are the folks who play the former too intense to be distracted by typing racist foolishness?

I love a good car wreck. The Tea Party GOP is a white racist organization. From the Southern Strategy to the present, white racial resentment--and overt racism--are the political meth which it is addicted to both as an organization and a public.

The white nationalists who attended the laughably titled “Trump The Race Card: Are You Sick And Tired Of Being Called A Racist When You Know You’re Not One?” panel at CPAC are a symptom of a bigger problem facing the Tea Party GOP.

A political party is a type of brand name. It signals meaning and values to its members on overt, implied, and implicit levels. By example, if "Honda" or "Toyota" signal "reliability" to their buyers, "Tea Party" and "Republican" signals "white" and "whiteness" to the American public. The latter signal is heard by supporters and opponents of the Tea Party GOP. The racism of the Tea Party GOP is not a dog-whistle. It is an air raid siren. And until the Republicans can learn to mute its klaxon they will continue the slide towards political obsolescence.

Because CPAC is a carnival and Right-wing Woodstock it is a safe space for members of the tribe to present themselves for an act of political coitus with their prospective suitors. All attendees are ostensibly friends and family so why not just let one's political freak flag fly high?


Therein lies the problem. In a surveillance society where cameras are ubiquitous the divide between private space and public space has been largely erased. We the people--be it at Mitt Romney's 47% quip fundraising dinner or at CPAC--can see the Tea Party GOP for what it really is, an organization that is both plutocratic and racist.

The “Trump The Race Card: Are You Sick And Tired Of Being Called A Racist When You Know You’re Not One?” panel, and the white racists in attendance, are the equivalent of the annual family party where everyone dreads if Uncle Jimmy is going to get drunk again and act the fool. They cannot tell him "no" because he is family. Each year Uncle Jimmy promises to behave. Inevitably he gets drunk on cheap beer and rubbing alcohol from the bathroom medicine cabinet before picking a fight with his ex-girlfriend of ten years ago's new boyfriend/husband. Matthew Heimbach is Uncle Jimmy.

Why does the Tea Party GOP consistently fail in its efforts to reform their racist habits and bad ways? The answer is not complicated. White racism and contemporary conservatism are intertwined in the Age of Obama and the post-civil rights era. Asking the Tea Party GOP to publicly disavow the white racists in its midst, and to sever all ties with racist conservatives (white, black, and Other), would be like amputating your foot with a spoon coated in wasabi and without either anesthesia or a tourniquet. It ain't gonna happen. Such willpower is beyond the reach of most mortals.

The Tea Party GOP at this year's CPAC have once more shown us who they really are. They are the white racially resentment fueled Borg, asking them to purge the racists, those sick with white racial resentment, and who are generally hostile to anyone that is not a "real American" is not possible:


Two questions. One, how can the black garbage pail kids black conservatives who participate in these events (i.e. K. Carl Smith) look at themselves in the mirror with any pride or self-respect? What levels of denial and self-hate makes them seek out acceptance from a racially chauvinistic anti-black and brown white political organization?

Two, which group is more "wizzable" and perplexing? Black Republicans or Gay Republicans? What drives them to be the "best black" or "best gay" friend of the white herrenvolk Tea Party GOP?

Today, white smoke came out the Vatican chimney, telling us that they picked a new Pope. I’m not Catholic but I still wanted to know who they picked, and I can’t even tell you a good reason why. Within minutes, Twitter blessed me with this graphic:

Because Grumpy Cat is a cat for the people. Look at him. Get your life. Amen.

And you know Twitter went off into the land of endless jokes. When I tweeted about the white smoke, my friend Evan slayed me with this tweet:

You know we’re all suffering from Liv Pope withdrawal. COME ON, MARCH 21!!!

And if you want to see other jokes, do a Twitter search for “Pope.” Here’s where you will laugh, cry and be disgusted. Because as always, people don’t have boundaries and will take the jokes so far you’ll want to quit humans for the rest of your life. It’s tradition.

When they announced that the new Pope is Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina (now to be known as Pope Francis I), Twitter went nuts. He’s the first Latin American Pope ever and the first to be born outside of Europe since the 8th century. Look at the Church making strides. And of course, someone (@DorseyShaw of BuzzFeed) created a GIF for it.

My only contribution is that the new Pope looks older than the life itself. Do they wanna be doing this conclave every 2 years to pick a new one? I mean… I’m just asking. For a friend. Pope Francis doesn’t look like a young whippa snappa. No shade or anything but he’s 76 years old. Were all the 50 year olds inadequate? These are real questions.

Anywho, I’m sure the Pope jokes will keep going for hours and folks will beat the dead horse and use its tail for weave before they stop. I got my fill already.

Oh and one last thing. I Googled “Pope.”

They suggested “Popeyes.” Because you know chicken is important and that’s surely what I must have meant. Oh Google. Never change.

Have y’all seen madness on your Twitter timeline and Facebook newsfeeds after this announcement? Catholic readers, how are you feeling bout this?

Follow the Awesomely Luvvie FB page | The post There’s a New Pope and the Internet Goes Nuts appeared first on Awesomely Luvvie.

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