Ahh... Slavery, Good Times!

Slavery Museum, a photo by timbrauhn on Flickr.

The madness that is the new conservatism rages on. Here for your reading pleasure is the brand-spankin' new version of the peculiar institution that a Tennessee faction of the Tea Party is trying to sell us. Tea Party Groups In Tennessee Demand Textbooks Overlook U.S. Founder's Slave-Owning History

Farewell Etta James

Etta James, the legendary blues singer, has died. The belter of such hits as the rocker "Dance with Me Henry" the sassy "W-O-M-A-N" and the now-classic ballad "At Last" succumbed to leukemia at age 73 in a hospital in Riverside, CA. Ms. James was born Jamesetta Hawkins on January 25, 1938 in Los Angeles, CA and beginning at around age 14, embarked on what would become an illustrious career. During this career, she won 6 Grammies, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and earned her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She is survived by her husband Artis Mills and her two sons Donto and Sametto, and despite whatever personal tribulations she may have experienced in her life, the most important thing to recognize is that she has left the world a more soulful place to live. Thanks, Etta.

Of White Supremacy and Swimming Pools

Last year, Jamie Hein, a 31-year old white landlord at a Cincinnati, Ohio duplex was found guilty of violating Civil Rights law by posting a whites-only sign on her swimming pool after one of her tenants brought his biracial daughter to swim, using the justification that blacks and biracials use hair products that would cloud the water. The Ohio Civil Rights Commission found her guilty of violating civil rights law and last Thursday she lost on appeal. So happy for small victories in the face of those who would try to hold us back.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, my dear readers! Thanks to all of you for keeping up with this blog thus far. I look forward to bringing you more news and happenings, and I wish all of you much success and happiness in the coming year!