Fifty-eight years ago today, Rosa Parks, then 43-years-old, became a lightening rod for the Civil Rights Movement when she was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama. Apparently, that singular act ended racism. Yes, the Civil Rights Movement that followed Parks’ courageous act — which itself followed the courageous act of Claudette Colvin[1] — ended racism, according to a tweet by the Republican National Committee: The murders of Four Little Girls in Birmingham and Wharlest Jackson in Natchez, Mississippi weren’t racist. The assassinations of Dr. Martin L. King, Jr., Medgar Evers and El Hajj Malik el-Shabazz (Malcolm X) were apparently not race related, at all. The contemporary effects of slavery: School-to-Prison pipelines, disparities in prison sentencing, Stop-and-Frisk, just to name a few, have nothing to do with racism because racism is over, according to the GOP. It ended here: Maybe Black America didn’t get the memo. The RNC tried to explain ...
In a surprise move, NAACP President Benjamin Jealous, 40, has announced that he is stepping down from the position in January, 2014, reports USA Today. “Leadership knows when to step up and when to step down,” Jealous said. “This day I can say with pride that I’m prepared to step down and make room for the next person who will lead this organization to its next chapter.” Citing family reasons, Jealous said that his high-profile career has caused him to sacrifice time with his wife, Lia Epperson, and children, daughter Morgan, 7, and Jack, 13 months, and that is something that he intends to change. Still, the hum of the civil rights movement still courses through Jealous’ veins: “I’m really going to miss the street fights we’ve been in.” Read more from USA Today: The civil rights leader said he’s satisfied that he will leave an organization in much better condition than it was when he took over five years ago. Back then, the Baltimore-based civil rights group was financially shaky a ...
