Vibes: They Think Its A Game
The last few weeks have been a flurry of news, especially for those of us with Southern roots as we see the political "gamesmanship" being played at the expense of Black Americans through the gerrymandering efforts. I can only imagine how the weightiness of this moment lands with elders like Dr. Leona Tate, who at SIX YEARS OLD, desegregated New Orleans public schools in November of 1960.
Listen to her recent testimony on the current foolishness happening in Louisiana.
"I walked through that mob once, and I feel like I'm still walking through it" - Dr. Leona Tate
Image source:
NPS: Louisiana Leona Tate Foundation for Change
We got some work to do. π€
Table of Contents
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βοΈ Lagniappe
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Sometimes you need a lil extra
βοΈ Lagniappe
The Take: I'm of the belief that electoralism won't be the "solution" to a just transition but I'm dang sure its part of it. The dilution of Black political power isn't just an issue for those Black constituents, it limits our collective ability to transition away from fossil fuels, recovery from climate disasters, or to ensure that people have livable wages and healthcare.
AIβs Fossil Fuel Future by Shilpi Chhotray for Peace & Riot
The Take: This is one of the best pieces I've read on how to think about the data center buildout - its in the lineage of fossil fuel companies. Whether in Louisiana or in Tennesssee, economic developers are using the promises of jobs, hyping the investment $$$, and claiming that this allows the communities where data centers are being proposed or sited to be part of the AI boom. The people aren't buying it.
"Weβre not getting the headquarters folks. Weβre getting the trash bin."
Rep. Justin J. Pearson
State Representative, Tennessee
β‘ Recharge β‘
Y'all know me. In moments like these I often look to our ancestors and those who've come before us. How did they think about their comparable moments? Where did they despair? Where did they draw hope? How did they organize?
Check out this interview of James Baldwin from 1963 where he laments about the way Black voting rights were obstructed as he organized in Dallas County, Alabama. No solutions, no words of encouragement but only his unreserved candor and anger. Sometimes that righteous indigination is the fire we need.
"The moral of the story, Fern, is that what really happened was that three hundred and seventy-five [Black] people who are American citizens, whom the government would put in jail if they didnβt pay their taxes, would put in jail if they did not serve in the Armyβthis same government says, and makes it known, they canβt do anything to protect them. There were three hundred and seventy-five people in that street yesterday who could have been shot down under the eyes of the F.B.I., and the government could have done nothing about it. All these people were jeopardizing their lives, their jobs, their children, everything they had in order to stand on that line in order to vote, which is an American right and duty. And the government of the U.S., which can mount invasions of Cuba and βprotectβ the Vietnamese, cannot protect these people! Thatβs a lie. The government can do anything it wants to do."
Image and article source: The New Yorker
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