the alleged "suicide" of Sandra Bland in Waller County, Texas and the death of Samuel DuBose at the hands of a University of Cincinnati police officer, are all just more grist for what Coates sees as a mill of misery, mistrust, and hopelessness.Ĭoates refers to the greater white American population as "Dreamers" – living in a "Dream" festooned with sentimental mythology such as "perfect houses with nice lawns," "ice cream socials," "the Cub Scouts," "block associations," and "Memorial Day cookouts." In Coates's mind, this mythology has clouded any real appreciation or empathy for those for whom the "Dream" is unattainable. Clementa Pinckney, slain with eight parishioners in a church in Charleston, S. In the wake of these many recent and lethal confrontations between law enforcement and black Americans, Coates expresses little hope that there will be meaningful change any time soon. Writing ruefully and with a hint of resignation, Coates writes to Samori about the way that "those who believe they are white" have been essentially "pilfering" the bodies of African Americans throughout the course of American history. In the wake of all the recent tragedies involving black men and boys at the hands of police – Michael Brown's death in Ferguson, Missouri in particular – Coates says he cannot help but fear for Samori's life. Coates's prose is addressed to his 15-year-old son Samori. In this slender (176 pages) volume Coates is also, like Baldwin before him, set on revealing similar "uncomfortable truths" to 21st-century America. Clearly it is Ta-Nehisi Coates."Ĭoates, a national correspondent at The Atlantic, has, in "Between the World and Me," crafted a highly provocative, thoughtfully presented, and beautifully written narrative concerning his own misgivings about the ongoing racial struggle in America. Thirty-five years later, Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison now invokes Baldwin's legacy in praising Ta-Nehisi Coates's powerful new memoir Between the World and Me: "I've been wondering who might fill the intellectual void that plagued me after James Baldwin died. With regard to race, Pratt's Baldwin was a "disturber of the peace" – one who revealed uncomfortable truths to a society mired in complacency. determined to avoid reality." Baldwin was born poor in New York City and personally knew racial intolerance. Pratt called the eminent 20th-century African-American writer a man "concerned with the destruction of the fantasies and delusions of a contented audience. In his 1978 biography of James Baldwin, Louis H. It was his anger that caused what occurred on January 6th,” he said. 6 “Stop the Steal” rally for their roles prior to the riot.After all, in closing arguments at the Proud Boy trial, defense lawyer Nayib Hassan said the attack wasn’t the Proud Boys’ fault. “It was Donald Trump’s words. 6 seditious conspiracy cases.The question is whether special counsel Jack Smith will indict former President Donald Trump and other political organizers of the Jan. It is possible the Justice Department is becoming increasingly confident in its ability to win complex Jan. Followers of two extremist groups have now been convicted of seditious conspiracy: Oath Keepers in March, and yesterday, Proud Boys. But more than 400 have faced prosecution for higher-level crimes, and at least 237 have been sentenced to prison.Second, Thursday’s conviction hints at prosecutions that may come. As of April, law enforcement had arrested 1,020 people for participating in the Capitol assault. Most of those brought to trial have faced only minor charges. First, it’s a symbol of the grinding Justice Department effort to hold accountable those responsible for Jan. government.The verdict is important for two reasons. The juror told Vice News that it was the Proud Boys’ own texts and messages that convinced the jury the men had engaged in seditious conspiracy – an effort to “overthrow, put down, or destroy by force” the U.S. and the fact they wanted to do so much in secret.”That’s what a juror said following Thursday’s conviction of four members of the Proud Boys far-right extremist group for plotting to attack the U.S.
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