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Black Women and Girls are Too Often the Targets of Violence in America
Too often African American women and girls are targets of violence and abuse in America. The abuse is caused by interactions with law enforcement as well as domestic abuse, says Dr. Aretina Hamilton, a human geographer, scholar, and author. She says Black women live in a patriarchal environment where they are, unfortunately, valued less than… Read More
Racist Language and References Permeate Our Speech and Promote Inequality
In our everyday conversations, many of us use words or phrases that have racist meanings or derivations, even if we don’t intend our speech to be racist. Many of these words or phrases have worked their way into our common vernacular in a covert way and by their use promote inequality. Just a few examples… Read More
Early Voting May Change the Impact of Last Week Blitz Campaigning
We are in the last seven days of the 2020 Presidential election, but it is a campaign and a race like no other. Traditional campaigning has been turned on its head. With seven days to go, 66 million people have already voted, eclipsing the total early vote count from 2016. Some experts say that by… Read More
American Governmental Propaganda Starts in WWI but Still Thrives Today
In World War I, President Woodrow Wilson started an agency for governmental propaganda. It became the precursor and template of today’s governmental manipulation of information which often creates fictions and promotes those in power. Author, scholar, and journalist Dr. John Maxwell Hamilton delves into the birth of American government propaganda in his new book “Manipulating… Read More
WARNING: COVID-19 Cases Increasing as Cold Weather Approaches
Despite protestations from some politicians, most medical experts and scientists are concerned with the rise of COVID-19 cases across the country, even before colder weather and flu season arrives. Numbers are rising in 33 states plus Puerto Rico with approximately 40,000 new cases daily. This is a major concern, says Dr. Kenneth Johnson, Executive Dean… Read More
“A Presidential Election Like No Other” Says Veteran TIME Correspondent
With the COVID-19 pandemic plus racial turmoil across the nation, we are facing a Presidential Campaign and election like no other, says Philip Elliott, veteran Washington reporter and TIME’S Washington correspondent. As Public Health issues, the economy and racial inequities take center stage in this Presidential election year, an onslaught of books and media revelations… Read More
How to Overcome Racism in Newsrooms from a Journalist with Experience
There are too few African Americans in the country’s newsrooms and especially in news management positions. In 2020 racism still exists in America’s media companies from the smallest to the largest. Sometimes it is evident in hiring practices, promotions, or just in daily professional life. Traversing this media landscape is often difficult for Black journalists,… Read More
Racism Permeates Our Entertainment and Music Industries Says Expert
Historically, racism has permeated the American entertainment and music industries including movies, radio, television, and the recording industries. Blacks and black life have not been portrayed accurately and African Americans have been kept out of prime roles. However, there is some hope that the industries are taking seriously the recent claims of systemic racism and… Read More
Voter Suppression Targets the Black Vote and Other Non-White People
There are major concerns about attempts being made around the country to suppress the black vote along with other non-white populations. This is especially true in urban areas and in the South. Polling places have been closed in some areas and voting machines have been limited thereby creating long lines of potential voters. These suppression… Read More
Courts Must Recognize and Correct Systemic Racism says Judicial Educator
Courts must speak out “clearly” against systemic racism in our criminal justice system and make much needed corrections, says Judge Benes Aldana, president of the National Judicial College. The National Judicial College has been in existence since 1963 and has educated thousands of judges from all 50 states and 150 different foreign countries…. Read More
Multiple Factors Must be Considered before Opening a K-12 School
It’s not easy for policy makers to determine how to open K-12 schools in the fall. Each school district must weigh multiple variables in determining whether face-to-face instruction is worth the risks or whether some form of remote learning is better. Each school must assess its situation and develop a comprehensive plan if re-opening face-to-face,… Read More
Code-Switching is a Form of Systemic Racism Against Blacks
Code-switching is the ability of a person to switch between languages or dialects to meet communication needs. It also is the alteration of clothes, hairstyles and music from one environment to another to be accepted. Code-switching is something that white culture demands of blacks. In short, to be acceptable and not “other”, the white establishment… Read More
Black Female Office Holders Perceive They are Racially Targeted by Local Media
Are African American female public office holders treated differently than their white counterparts by local media? Two black female judges answer that questions with a resounding: YES. In our continuing in-depth conversations about race and racism, WOUB’s Spectrum Podcast talks with two first-time African American female judges from Northeastern Ohio, who bring to the bench… Read More
Conversations about Race and Racism Featured on WOUB’s Spectrum Podcast
New episodes are released each Wednesday ATHENS, OH – Over the past several weeks, WOUB’s Spectrum Podcast has featured conversations about race, racism and social justice. More episodes have been recorded and will be published over the summer. To date, the conversations have featured racism confronted by a black female judge, racism and racial disparities… Read More
Black Children in 2020 are Still Disadvantage in Educational Opportunities
African American children are often told by the white establishment that “education” is the way to obtain equality yet, at the same time, black children are not given equal educational opportunities. They are told to get a quality education at the same time their schools are underfunded, have old textbooks, and have overly stretched teachers,… Read More
“The Talk”– Parents of Black Children Explain Special Parenting Issues They Face
An African-American father and a black mother explain how they need to warn children about possible violence against them by police or others. This starts at a very young age and continues through young adulthood in a repetitive manner. It’s called “The Talk” and it happens in every black family with children, says Isaiah Simmons,… Read More
A Black Judge is Subjected to Continual Acts of Racism Despite Her Position
In 2012, Gayle Williams Byers was elected to become the first black judge for the South Euclid Municipal Court in Northeastern Ohio. She came to the job with a wealth of experience after being a Congressional staffer on Capitol Hill and after spending nearly a decade as an Assistant Prosecutor in Cuyahoga County (Cleveland-area). However,… Read More
Some Police Attack Journalists During Demonstrations: Why are They Targets?
Since the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis Police, demonstrations against police violence have traversed the nation. Yet, during these demonstrations, there have been 383 press freedom incidents including some 173 assaults on journalists 78 physical attacks (50 by police) —49 tear gassings —27 pepper sprayings —89 rubber bullet / projectiles injuries… Read More
Local Health Official Describes Fighting COVID-19 from the Grassroots
Dr. James R. Gaskell has been a physician for over 50 years specializing in pediatrics. He also is the Health Commission of Athens City and County in Southeastern Ohio. When he took that job 20 years ago, he certainly didn’t expect to be fighting a major pandemic from the bottom up—from the grassroots front lines…. Read More
Many Americans have Mixed Views on Re-opening or Still Isolating
Some Memorial Day crowds seemed large and people were not self-distancing. They were jammed in swimming pools, on crowded boardwalks and watching auto racing. Most without masks. It seems that many want to reopen the economy and break out of isolation regardless of the risks. They are tired of lockdowns and restrictions. However, recent polling… Read More
Economist Depicts Pandemic’s Pinch on Higher Education & the Average Family
Colleges and universities and average families are all feeling the financial pinch from the COVID-19 pandemic and the impacts are dramatic. Dr. Richard Vedder, emeritus distinguished professor of economics at Ohio University, outlines, for the Spectrum Podcast, how these loses will really be felt. He notes that higher education was already under financial distress before… Read More
Washington Coping with Fear on Multiple Fronts says TIME Correspondent
Almost every aspect of government and certainly the legislative and executive branches are addressing multiple aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic from medical protocols and providing medical supplies to economic devastation. Some view the partisan pull about this issue in Washington as a battle between science/medicine and ideologies. However, TIME Washington Correspondent Philip Elliott says that… Read More
Will Colleges and Universities Have Students on Campus This Fall? – Criteria
Colleges and universities across the country are trying to anticipate how to handle their students this fall. Will they teach remotely or have students back on campus for in-person instruction? Will there be hybrids of partly remote instruction and partly regular classroom teaching? Several institutions have already made decisions to have students back while others… Read More
Opening the Country Safely Without Politics Is Wish of Frontline Doctor
There are valid arguments for opening the country after the COVID-19 shutdowns. But those actions must be tempered by good medical data and with the safety of people being foremost, says Dr. Todd Fredrick, Associate Professor of Family Medicine at the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine at Ohio University. These decisions to open our businesses… Read More
The Survival of Local News Media is a ‘Race Against Time’
Local news outlets are being used more than ever by people during the Coronavirus pandemic. However, these local outlets are struggling for financial survival and many are losing the battle. For the past month, major news outlets such as The New York Times, Atlantic, The Hill, Fortune and others have been ringing the death knell… Read More
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