COMMENTARY | For over 100 years, promoters have worked tirelessly to make professional wrestling one of the most popular forms of entertainment in the world. Although today's younger wrestling fans may only know a handful of these giants of the industry, contemporary promoters such as Vince McMahon may have had to work in other fields if not for these trailblazers. While McMahon and other promoters of the last 20 years revitalized pro wrestling, the work done decades earlier should not be … [Read more...]
Opinion: If only all we had to do was ‘Dream’
We shouldn’t forget what Martin Luther King’s America really looked like Jeff Greenfield If we really want to mark the meaning of the March on Washington of 50 years ago, we would do well to put aside the endless invocations of “the dream” and remember the harsher realities of race in 1963. Yes, the speech was a classic; I was in that crowd, and from the first moments that Martin Luther King Jr. spoke, there was a sense that something historic was unfolding. Yes, it was a memorable … [Read more...]
THE March of history
Few half-century commemorations raise as many complex and uncomfortable questions as does the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington: With a black man in the White House, has Martin Luther King's dream been realized? With American social mobility seeming to be stalled, is the American Dream a dream deferred? With nearly a million black men in prison, is the King dream a dream denied? Plus: Why did the events of August 1963 sear us all so indelibly? What was the power in that speech, … [Read more...]
American Politics, Scandals and Human Failures
By Glenn Mollette What do Anthony Weiner, Bob Filner, Eliot Spitzer, Thomas Jefferson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Bobby Kennedy and Bill Clinton all have in common? Think about it. There are several answers to this question. One answer - they all had or have a human failure problem. Thomas Jefferson is reported to have had six children with a mistress slave. How would that play out on cable news today? Ralph Abernathy reported in his book that King had a … [Read more...]
Essay: Black male humanity shown in ‘Fruitvale’
Oscar Grant did not deserve to die. This is the central message of "Fruitvale Station," a film dramatizing the real-life case of the young unarmed black man shot in the back by a white police officer in 2009. It's a common message, often heard in film and life in general. But the way writer/director Ryan Coogler delivers this message is extraordinary. As portrayed by Michael B. Jordan (beware of plot spoilers ahead) Grant is a great father — and a convicted felon. He loves his girlfriend — … [Read more...]
N-word debate rages with Deen’s comments
By Javier E. David However improbably, two of the week’s biggest stories – the self-inflicted travails of Paula Deen and the trial of George Zimmerman – are connected by a relentlessly troublesome word. The n-word controversy has reared its ugly head yet once again. This time, there’s little denial of its corrosive impact on public discourse, or the ethical morass its very use often creates. The link between Paula Deen and the Trayvon Martin saga may in fact be a watershed moment for … [Read more...]
Obama and the Callous Kanye Culture
By L. Brent Bozell Egotistical musicians often exaggerate their political influence, none more than the nattering, narcissistic rapper Kanye West. He has compared himself in global stature to Apple founder Steve Jobs and has titled his latest album "Yeesus." Rolling Stone magazine has posted part of a West song titled "I Am a God," where West raps that Jesus is the "Most High," but he's a "close high." Now it's The New York Times pandering to West's colossal self-regard — and it's … [Read more...]
THE GRAND OLD PARTY NEEDS A REBOOT
By Cynthia Tucker The political party of Abraham Lincoln is in trouble, threatened with irrelevance, even extinction. Its weaknesses are legion. Its congressional leaders are quite unpopular, polls show. So are the party's positions. Its beliefs -- animosity to same-sex marriage, hostility toward saner gun laws, rejection of higher taxes for the wealthy, suspicion of popular entitlement programs -- are not shared by the majority of Americans. It is bereft of ideas, committed to formulas … [Read more...]
Joyce Adejumo (Hunt) A few Words…
We at The Austin Times would like to take this time to share a few things about Joyce. The Austin Times started in December of 1997. My partner and I were new to the city and didn’t know anyone. But that quickly changed when we met an art gallery owner named Joyce Hunt. When we met Joyce things seemed to accelerate. Joyce was a major player in the community. She knew everyone and seemingly everything about Austin especially the minority community. After knowing her 16 years , that never … [Read more...]
Tiger is the tip of the iceberg: Fried chicken, monkey chants and bananas in sports
By Stefen Lovelace By now you’ve heard the comment. A noted PGA Tour veteran made an off-color joke about Tiger Woods, referencing fried chicken. After the incident, and the subsequent backlash, the professional backtracked, said he meant the comments in jest, and claimed there was no racist intent. The golf and national media examined the golfer’s comments and motives, and Woods – almost begrudgingly – accepted the golfer’s apology. The incident I’m referring to happened in 1997, when … [Read more...]
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