Pope Leo XIV: "To be called 'woke' is no insult"

 

Cross-post from Democrats, Republicans & Independents United Against Trumpism.

Boomer Scouts took an oath and we intend to keep it

Here is what I have pledged and held close to my heart all my life:

The Scout Oath: "On my honor, I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight."

The Scout Law: "A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent."

Retro, right? My Millennial daughter tells me that retro is in (am I using that term right?) and that housewifery is in and the phrase "women can have it all" is so old and so Boomerish. The cool kids are now Republicans and the squares are Democrats. My wife and I are quite Boomerish. 

My daughter may be right. The bloviating from Trump's America makes me feel quite squarish. 

Still, I keep hearing that oath run through my head. And this one, too, the one I uttered when I was sworn in as a U.S. Navy midshipman:

"I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

I was a lousy midshipman and never became an actual shipman. Still, I took an oath and obey it. I am attuned these days to those who took the oath and now ignore it. You know, enemies, foreign and domestic. But mostly domestic. 

For Baby Boomers, the arguments go on forever

Big news from the Brookings Institution: Baby Boomers are in each other’s faces – again. According to a Brookings report:

“The primary political output of the divided boomers has been frustrating gridlock and historically low evaluations of congressional performance.”

As an early cohort Boomer (born 1950), I’ve been engaging in political arguments since my high school days. I grew up Catholic, attended Catholic school and went to mass regularly with my large family – I’m the oldest of nine children. For most of my childhood and teenhood, arguments with my parents revolved around curfews and whether rock was devil music (Parents: Hell Yes; Mike: Hell No.)  Vietnam wasn’t a hot topic – not yet, anyway. Civil rights, drugs, abortion, and all of the rest.

My first two years if college was one long political argument. I was a ROTC guy, but didn’t want to be. But I also didn’t want to go to Vietnam. I solved this by smoking pot, skipping classes and engaging in dorm-room political arguments that raged into early mornings, punctuated with long sessions of devil music. 

Over the decades, family gatherings have been filled with toasts to our continued good health and raging political arguments that may last an entire Thanksgiving weekend.  Most of my friends are boomers. Many are liberals, even here in Wyoming, but others are not. I no Longer have lunch with some conservative friends because it leads to indigestion on all of our parts.

These arguments will rage until we can rage no more. They can be traced back to the divisions caused by the Vietnam War. You might say: “That was a long time ago, guys – can’t you get over it?”

In a word, no. The divisions are deep and will only be solved by cohort replacement – death of all of the Boomers.

Go back to spring of 1970. On April 30 of that year, Pres. Nixon announced that U.S. troops would be sent into Cambodia. We had been told that Vietnam was winding down and now here was news that is was winding up instead. That led to protests in college campuses across the U.S. The most radical one was held at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, a place I had never heard of until then. On May 2, KSU students burst down the ROTC building. That was a bit off a shock to us ROTC guys at University of South Carolina. We spent quite a bit of time there. Attended naval science classes there during the week. Played basketball in its gym at night and on weekends. We assembled there in uniform weekly for our drills. Following Martin Luther King’s assassination in 1968, demonstrators had trashed our ROTC building. There were no real signs of the damage when I arrived in September 1969.

Ghosts remain.

We make enormous decisions when we’re young. We hope to receive guidance from our elders. We don’t always get it, or the right kind. So we end up making decisions on our own that come back to haunt us later. Then, at 64, we have to forgive our younger selves for our ignorance and our passion. I can remember how lonely and afraid I was at 19. It’s as if it happened yesterday. I was supposed to be a man but I was just a little boy.

I was sensitive and gifted with a great memory. That helped me lead a life of empathy. It also contributed to my passion as a writer. I could have turned out otherwise. Nixon parlayed a natural distrust of pointy-headed intellectuals and anti-American college brats into an election strategy. At a NYC demonstration after Kent State, hard hats rallied for Nixon. Most of these blue collar guys were Democrats then. By the next election (1972), Vietnam and student protestors and civil rights had turned them all into resentful Republicans. Many of their sons and daughters continued this policy of resentment. Some of them remained liberals and activists who continued to march for peace and justice. After the Vietnam War and civil rights struggles came the women’s movement and LGBT rights. The anti-nuke movement and swarms of environmentalists. All of these people looking for special treatment! Reagan and his policies arose from that resentment. That, eventually, gave rise to the Tea Party, that privileged group of Boomers who are wildly indignant about nearly everything.

But for me and my fellow liberals, there were more struggles ahead, more wars to protest, more inequalities to be addressed.

So Baby Boomers continue to argue. Not sure how our descendants will see us. Hippies. The Me Generation. Warmongers. Peaceniks. The generation who brought us the Millennials with all of their faults (everybody gets a trophy!). The generation that despoiled the planet with their excesses and stood by and did nothing.

Argumentative? You bet. And don’t expect the conflict to cease as long as we have breath enough to hurl an invective.

Presidential Medal of Freedom honoree Dolores Huerta is keynote speaker at Dem convention

I am a delegate to the Wyoming Democratic Party state convention in Rock Springs.

I had to fight hard for the convention spot. Really, all I had to do was show up for the county convention and sign my name to a statement that said something like "I swear to (insert here the name of spiritual entity or higher power or, if atheist, "none of the above") _____________ that I will show up in Rock Springs May 16-17 for the Democratic Party convention, will participate in the proceedings and will not nap in my seat. Amen."

That was it.

A much different experience than that very exciting presidential election year in 2008. Dems in Laramie County duked it out for a spot at the state convention. We even had to make convincing speeches from the floor and get voted on. I was elected as an Obama delegate, my wife Chris as a Clinton alternate. This turned her even more surly than she'd been all through the early primary season as it became clear that the unknown male senator from Chicago was getting the upper hand on Hilary, the party favorite. It was a long election season in the Shay household. Wyoming did send some Clinton delegates to the national convention in Denver, although Chris wasn't one of them. I attended as an embedded blogger, stirring up trouble wherever I could.

Wyoming Dems may not have many elected officials to show for our efforts. But we do have cameraderie. We will be among friends in Rock Springs and a fine time will be had by all. And the keynote speaker is fantastic. From the Wyoming Dems Facebook page:

There are four elementary schools in California, one in Fort Worth, Texas, and a high school in Pueblo, Colorado named after Dolores Huerta.

She was inducted into the California Hall of Fame in March of 2013. She has received numerous awards: among them The Eleanor Roosevelt Humans Rights Award from President Clinton in l998, Ms. Magazine’s One of the Three Most Important Women of l997, Ladies Home Journal’s 100 Most Important Woman of the 20th Century, The Puffin Foundation’s Award for Creative Citizenship: Labor Leader Award 1984, The Kern County Woman of The Year Award from the California State Legislature, The Ohtli Award from the Mexican Government, The Smithsonian Institution – James Smithson Award, and nine honorary doctorates from universities throughout the U.S.

In 2012 President Obama bestowed Dolores with her most prestigious award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S. Upon receiving this award, Dolores said, “The freedom of association means that people can come together in organization to fight for solutions to the problems they confront in their communities. The great social justice changes in our country have happened when people came together, organized, and took direct action. It is this right that sustains and nurtures our democracy today. The civil rights movement, the labor movement, the women’s movement, and the equality movement for our LGBT brothers and sisters are all manifestations of these rights. I thank President Obama for raising the importance of organizing to the highest level of merit and honor.”

FOR MORE INFO: http://tinyurl.com/pf9dsao
READ HER FULL BIOGRAPHY: http://tinyurl.com/n9nue5k

Molina Speaks blends hip-hop and futurism and social justice

Adrian Molina at a performance in Denver.

Spoken word artist and Rawlins native Adrian Molina will conduct an interactive workshop that focuses on "the power of voice in the technological age" on Sunday, March 9, 2-3:30 p.m. at the Laramie County Library in Cheyenne. Geared for youth ages 16-25.

I've never seen a hip-hop TEDx talk. Molina (a.k.a. Molina Speaks) uses his skills as a rapper in this video to do this:

Building on his talk on futurism and hip-hop, Molina Speaks delivers a performance serving as a powerful demonstration of the values of the new hip-hop movement as it ties into a new vision of the future. 

Here’s a taste of Molina on stage last year at TedX Mile High in Denver: http://youtu.be/3ejY6bAqNM4

Molina's vision for the future is one where young people have unfettered access to the arts. He puts this philosophy into practice daily as a mentor to students in one of Denver poorest neighborhoods. He's performance director and a lead instructor at Youth On Record, an arts education organization started by the Flobots that recently launched a state-of-the-art Youth Media Studio on Denver’s west side. 

He teaches Chicano Studies, Hip-Hop Studies and Media Justice courses at the college level, including courses at his lama mater, the University of Wyoming. Molina is a member of the Café Cultura Artist collective. He has collaborated with Bioneers, Denver Spirituals Project, Su Teatro, Lighthouse Writers, Café Nuba, Slam Nuba, The Growhaus, Servicios de la Raza, and the Denver Public Library, among others.

Come on out to the Molina's presentation on Sunday. It's designed for our kids but we all can learn something from such an engaged and talented artist. 

Sunday morning round-up: Medicaid expansion, Buffy rock & shark sighting

Blustery Sunday morning in WYO....

Lots of news this week on the Medicaid expansion front. Wyoming Association of Churches sponsored a big rally Thursday on the plaza between the Capitol and Herschler Building. Wind raged that day so the crowd took shelter within the flared wings of the strangely structured Herschler, named for a WYO Gov, as is the case with most of the state buildings. Rally organizers (and two of the speakers) were Rev. Rodger McDaniel of Cheyenne and Rev. Dee Lundberg of Casper. One counter protester showed up. A young man clad in a stocking cap and a Duck Dynasty T-shirt held a sign that read, "Support Gov. Mead." Have to give the guy some credit, not only for braving the cold in a T-shirt but for showing up. I heard someone at the rally say, "I've been that guy," meaning that Liberals in our state tend to always be outnumbered when it comes to protests. Think of the brave few who showed up for Iraq War protests back in 2003 or those folks in Laramie and Sheridan who showed up for weekly peace vigils for years. During the heyday of the Occupy movement, three hardy souls in Pinedale attended rallies and posted photos on Facebook.

I received a call last weekend requesting phone calls and e-mails to legislators urging them to support Medicaid Expansion. The barrage of e-mails and the rally had some effect -- two ME bills made it out of committee this week. Kudos to the Wyoming Assn. of Churches and local Democrats for all their hard work on behalf of the state's uninsured.

To read the bills:
Medicaid expansions –- limited benefits -– 14LSO0139.C1 (Medicaid Fit)
Medicaid expansion –- insurance pool -– 14LSO0140.C1 (Arkansas model with modifications)

I continue to be amazed by the volume and quality of arts events springing up all over the state. My day job is spent broadcasting the good news about the arts via print and electronic resources. I'm especially impressed by some of the unique ways local organizers come up with the nurture the arts. Over the hill in Laramie, the indie newspaper News from Nowhere keeps tabs on cultural events and provides a forum for creative writing. It's sponsoring "It's Another Art and Music Thing" on Saturday, Jan. 18, at noon to whenever in the Gryphon Theatre and the gymnasium in the Laramie Civic Center, 710 E. Garfield St. One of the bands on tap is Laramie's Sunnydale High which performs songs based on the 1990s TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." My son and wife are both Buffy fans, although I never really got into it. But that there's a band which is devoted to the show says a lot about creativity and fun and all the cool local resources that we have in WYO. The Jan. 18 event showcases other area bands and local artists. The Laramie Burlesque Troupe will perform. You'll also run into poets and writers and other scribes and bloggers and ne'er-do-wells. Tickets are $5 in advance and $8 at the door, which is yet another art and music thing bargain. E-mail for info: events@newsfromnowhere.info

Starting Wednesday, I'll be blogging from Florida for a week. I would say that I'll be in my shorts and flip-flops blogging from Florida, but temps are only expected in the 50s and 60s. That's warm for us snowbirds, but not sure how much beach time I'll get. May seem funny for Wyomingites, but it gets cold in January in The Sunshine State. But there should be plenty to blog about. Read this headline in today's Daytona Beach News Journal: "Great White Shark lingers off Daytona Beach coastline."

We're gonna need a bigger boat.

"My Two Moms" author is keynote speaker for 17th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice

This year's 17th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice is next week in Laramie. Its theme is “Counter Narratives: Advocacy at the Intersections.” Here are some highlights (from the Casper Star-Trib Weekender section)::

GLARE and UW faculty panel is 4:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY in the Yellowstone Ballroom. GLARE is a group of faculty and staff in the School of Education at Brooklyn College committed to the well-being of gay and transgender people.

New York Times writer Samuel G. Freedman, author of “Breaking the Line,” speaks at 4:30 p.m. THURSDAY in the Yellowstone Ballroom.

“Equality in the Equality State” panel discussion/luncheon is 11:30 a.m. on FRIDAY, APRIL 5, in the Yellowstone Ballroom. Panelists will examine the Wyoming legislative processes surrounding the introduction a bill granting legal recognition to domestic partnerships.

Zach Wahls’ keynote address is 4:30 p.m. APRIL 5 in the Yellowstone Ballroom. It is free.“The sexual orientation of my parents has had zero effect on the content of my character,” Wahls told the Iowa House Judiciary Committee in a public forum in 2011, then a 19-year-old University of Iowa freshman. His speech got more than 2 million views on You Tube. He has become a gay marriage and gay parents advocate, according to a release. His book, “My Two Moms: Lessons of Love, Strength, and What Makes a Family,” delivers a reassuring message to same-sex couples, their children and anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider.

“Saturday Night Party” begins at 9 p.m. APRIL 6 at the Alice Hardie Stevens Center, 603 E. Ivinson St. Tickets: $5; proceeds benefiting the Tie the Knot Foundation, which created a line of art-inspired bow ties to benefit various gay-rights organizations.

If Tea Party Slim had a pair of spurs, he'd wear them to the farmer's market to rattle veggie-eating Liberals

Tea Party Slim and I sip coffee and talk about progress.

“I don't want to see Cheyenne get any bigger,” he says. “It will lose its Old West character.”

I sip my latte. “Old West character?”

He nods. “You know, Cheyenne Frontier Days, rodeo, country-western music, steaks as big as my cowboy hat, Old West shootouts, horses and cattle, boots and spurs.”

I look at Slim. He was wearing a plaid shirt and jeans. His UW ball cap rested on the table. On the way in, I saw that he wore sensible shoes. “Nobody's trying to take away your boots, Slim.”

He shakes his head. “All of these people moving into Laramie County,” he said. “They'll change the place. It will lose its conservative character.”

I thought about the recent election. Wyoming's lone Republican House member and one of its Republican senators were reelected by wide margins. Democrats lost one of their 14 legislative seats (out of 90). Tea Party types were elected to the county commission. The state gave Romney his second-biggest margin (after Utah) over President Obama. Meanwhile, our southern neighbor Colorado legalizes marijuana and goes even more blue and it's one of the battleground states that hands Obama the victory.

“So you expect an invasion of Colorado Liberals any day?” I ask.

“We have a new supercomputing center west of town and Microsoft is building a data center right next door. Microsoft is also building a test site east of town to see if biogas from our waste treatment plant can power computers.”

“What's wrong with that,” I say. “Isn't that economic development? Don't you want your kids and grandkids to find good jobs in Wyoming?”

“But we give these companies millions of dollars in financial incentives. Why do the taxpayers have to foot the bill? Microsoft owns the damn planet.”

“That's Google that owns the planet, and maybe Facebook.” I smile. I know that Slim is on Facebook a lot with his pet rants. I've been tempted to unfriend him but don't want to hurt his feelings.

“And downtown? Why does the city have to subsidize downtown development. Let the free market decide what businesses go downtown.”

“The free market turned downtown into a ghost town. It wasn't until the legislature provided funding and the city matched it that we were able to save the train depot and turn it into a gathering place and a museum and that wonderful outdoor plaza. I've seen you at the downtown farmer's market.”

“You can have a farmer's market anywhere. A Wal-Mart parking lot, for instance.”

“Why isn't it at the Wal-Mart parking lot?”

“Hell if I know.”

“Maybe Wal-Mart fears the competition? Maybe it doesn't like vegans and assorted Liberals wandering around its parking lot?”

“It's no competition to Wal-Mart. They're even building another Super Wal-Mart east of town. I love shopping at Wal-Mart because I know it irritates you Lefties.”

He had me there. “What would you do about downtown, Slim? How would you deal with all of those absentee landlords who are holding on to their properties so they can maximize their investment when commercial real estates improves.”

“I have no problem with that. People should be able to do what they want with their property. We don't need the U.N. coming in a taking away our God-given right to own a building or a piece of land.”

“Even when doing so damages the livability of your town?”

Slim puts down his coffee. “Livability. There you go with some of that U.N. Agenda 21 lingo.”

“I'm just talking about making my town a nice place to live. Isn't that what you want?”

“I want to live in a place where a man's home is his castle and he can protect it any way he wants. I don't need some urban city planners coming in spouting about social justice and environmental justice, telling me I can't burn wood in my fireplace or park my RV out on the street.”

I'd read an interview in our local paper with new county commissioners M. Lee Hasenauer and Buck Holmes. They are both fixated on Agenda 21 and urban planners spouting off about social justice. They want to keep Laramie County western, whatever that means. “You're against planning for the future?”

“I'm against big city experts coming in and doing the planning,” says Slim.

“You don't want any planning?”

“Let the free market decide.”

I drain the last of my coffee. “What would you do, Slim?”

He looks pensive as he stares into his cup. “Not a thing,” he finally says. “I like this place the way it is. Conservative. Gun rights protected. Governor fights the feds. I can park my RV where I want.”

Slim has a hulking RV. It blocks out the sun when he parks it in front of my house.

“Why would the U.N. Want to tell you where to park your RV?” I ask.

“That's what they want. They want to tell us where to live and what to drive and the width of our streets and what kind of energy we can use.”

“And they want to take away our boots and spurs. Do you have boots and spurs Slim? If I remember correctly, you grew up in suburbs somewhere in Ohio.”

He shifts in his chair. “That may be, but I'm a Wyomingite now. I don't need any spurs but I have five pairs of boots and I wear them.”

“When you go shopping at Wal-Mart?”

He levels his gaze at me. “I'll wear them any damn where I please.”

“Even to the downtown farmer's market?”

“Especially the downtown farmer's market. My cowboy hat, too, and my Wranglers, and my gun because I have a concealed carry permit. If I had spurs, I'd wear those too, so you pantywaist organic-farming Liberals would hear them jingle-jangle-jingle as I walked toward you.”

“They might quiver in their Birkenstocks, Slim. Then they'll sell you some organically-grown local produce and some home-baked bread and some grass-fed bison steaks and locally roasted coffee sweetened with unpasteurized goat's milk.”

Says Slim: “Those are some Old West traditions I can get behind.”

Teachers are the real job creators

Democrats will have no problem with this one...

Selma Civil Rights March recalled by photo-essay by Wyoming's Wayne Thomas

EDITOR'S NOTE: This was a grad school project by Wayne Thomas that actually never appeared in Doubletake Magazine, which had folded by 2012. Too bad, as it was a great print mag. 

Wayne Thomas of Powell, Wyo., ranges far and wide for his photographs. His photo-essay examining the 47th anniversary of the Selma, Ala., Civil Rights March is featured in the spring 2012 issue of Doubletake Magazine Online. Wayne returned to Dallas County, Ala., to document the area in photos and story in this very moving piece. Read it (and view it) at http://www.waynethomasphotography.com/selma. 

Our family moved from Colorado to the South in 1964. What had only been a distant struggle seen on TV, now became something we experienced every day. In case you don't remember what happened in Alabama back in 1965, maybe these historic photos will jog your memory:

James Karales (American, 1930–2002). Selma-to-Montgomery March for Voting Rights in 1965. Photographic print. Located in the James Karales Collection, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University.

John Lewis (on the ground), head of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, is beat up by Alabama State Troopers on Bloody Sunday in Selma, Ala. From the Encyclopedia of Alabama.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (center) joins others in the march from Selma to Montgomery, Ala., on March 21, 1965.

Marilyn Miller brings her socially engaged art to the Cheyenne Family YMCA

In November, Marilyn Miller brings her outspoken Liberal self and her artwork to the Cheyenne Family YMCA. Opening reception for her exhibit is on Friday, Nov. 9, 5-6 p.m. Free and open to the public. Come in, meet Marilyn, view the art and eat some snacks. 

Republican Paul Ryan: Heavy on certitude, light on Catholic social justice

As I watched the Veep candidates trade barbs this evening in Kentucky, I couldn't help but wonder what they were like in high school. Lori said that Paul Ryan was called a brown-noser in his high school yearbook. I don't know this to be true but I also don't doubt it. One only has to see his thin-lipped smirk and his beady eyes to know he was a brown-noser, the kind who has his face so far up the teacher's bum that, well, you know....

Joe Biden, on the other hand, was a wise guy, quick-witted and big-mouthed, who might also have been fun to be around. He may also have been the BMOC -- Big Man on Campus -- the guy who got the girls and wasn't too humble about it.

But there's one other thing. Paul Ryan has the certitude and rectitude that makes him unbearable. He's the kind of parishioner who's driven me from the Catholic Church. This is what the Catholic Church believes! I know it in my lily white soul! If you don't like it, you must be one of those cafeteria Catholics. Get out!

So I did. These type of Catholics are insufferable. Certainty has never been a Catholic trait. Joe Biden was right when he quipped that Ryan didn't learn much about Catholic social doctrine with his catechism.

Give me those feisty social justice street-fighting Catholics any day. Or those heady Unitarians or friendly United Methodists or angst-ridden Existentialists or fallen Catholics or Jack Mormons. People who've been through the fire and learned a few things in the process.

Biden has been kicked around some. Lost his wife and daughter in a car crash. Had his son deployed to Iraq. Experienced losses at home and in the Senate. He knows that there's no certainty in life or in politics.

Biden stuck it to Ryan tonight. He probably would have done the same in high school debate, although charm and a big smile doesn't always win points in competition.   

Cheyenne Vineyard Church's "Cotton Patch Gospel" has roots in Christian social justice

My former work colleague Randy Oestman left state employment to serve as a minister for the Cheyenne Vineyard Church, 1506 Thomes Ave. Vineyard services are very musical, I am told, which is not surprising, considering Randy's theatre background. Randy and his Vineyard colleagues take the New Testament's social justice message seriously. They minister to Cheyenne's homeless and collect leftover foodstuffs from farmers' markets to distribute to needy families. I buy my eggs from Randy, whose chickens lay the darndest-colored eggs. Randy even practices his theatrical skills in the chicken coop.

In October, the Vineyard Church is producing the "Cotton Patch Gospel," based on a book by Tom Key and Russell Treyz, with music by Harry Chapin, written just before he died in a 1981 traffic accident. Anything with music by Harry Chapin has to be good.

Here is a description of the play from Wikipedia:

Cotton Patch Gospel is a musical by Tom Key and Russell Treyz with music and lyrics written by Harry Chapin just before his death in 1981. Based on the book The Cotton Patch Version of Matthew and John by Clarence Jordan, the story retells the life of Jesus as if in modern day, rural Georgia.

Using a southern reinterpretation of the gospel story, the musical is often performed in a one-man show format with an accompanying quartet of bluegrass musicians, although a larger cast can also be used. A video recording of the play was released in 1988 with Tom Key as the leading actor.

Interesting to note that Clarence Jordan was the founder of the Koinonia Farm,  a ground-breaking Christian social justice community that infuriated its white Georgia neighbors by practicing and preaching equality for all, including African-Americans. During the Civil Rights struggles of the 1950s and '60s, Koinonia was the target of a local economic boycott and several bombings. It was able to survive by shipping all of its goods through the U.S. Postal Service because, as we all know, "the mail must go through." Jordan also was instrumental in the founding of Habitat for Humanity, another revolutionary Georgia organization. Koinonia and Habitat had a big influence on one of its neighbors, Jimmy Carter of Plains. Clarence Jordan's nephew, Hamilton, was President Carter's chief of staff.

"Cotton Patch Gospel" will be performed at the Cheyenne Vineyard Church Oct. 5-6. 12-13 and 19-20 at 7 p.m. Admission is free but please bring grocery gift cards or non-perishable food for the needy. Call for tickets: 307-638-8700.

Sister Simone Campbell fires up the DNC crowd

"Captured Justice" textbook cover features "Incarceration" poster designed by Laramie artist Felicia Follum

Laramie artist Felicia Follum shared this news today on her blog:

My poster "Incarceration" was recently used as a textbook cover for a Native American History and Public Law textbook.  I was ecstatic when I received the hard copy in the mail. It looks great!!

The idea for this poster was largely inspired by growing up in Rapid City, South Dakota, and seeing the mistreatment of, and racism toward, Native Americans.  The poster was created as part of a series addressing the conditions on American Indian Reservations (specifically Pine Ridge and Rosebud) after many hours of research.  The photo is an unknown chief from a portrait photography book.

"Captured Justice: Native Nations and Public Law 280″ is by Duane Champagne and Carole Goldberg. You can purchase the book online at Carolina Academic Press or on Amazon.com.

DNC delegates will hear social justice speech from Sister Simone Campbell on Sept. 5

The Democratic Party has the wisdom to realize that activist nuns have a lot to teach its convention delegates. This news comes from NETWORK, a national Catholic social justice lobby.

NETWORK is pleased to confirm that Sister Simone Campbell has accepted an invitation to speak at the Democratic National Convention on the evening of Wednesday, September 5. This will provide an important opportunity to talk about what she has learned after decades of work for social and economic justice.

We also regret that no similar invitation was extended by the Republican National Convention and that, despite our efforts, NETWORK was unable to find a venue there for sharing information about economic justice rooted in Catholic Social Teaching. Sister Campbell would have been delighted to speak at the convention.

We are pleased that Cardinal Dolan will be present at both the Republican and Democratic conventions.

Note: In addition to her speech, Sister Simone Campbell (and NETWORK staff) will be facilitating two social justice workshops during the Democratic convention: “Mind the Gap” on Wednesday, Sept. 5 from 10 AM to noon (http://charlottein2012.com/events/mind_the_gap_) and “Nuns on the Bus” on Thursday, Sept. 6 from 10 AM to noon (http://charlottein2012.com/events/nuns_on_the_bus). She will also provide the keynote address at the Faith Caucus meeting of the College Democrats of America annual convention prior to the Democratic National Convention.

"There's nothing left to do but sing" -- Climbing Poetree performs April 19 at Center for the Arts in Jackson

Performance poetry group Climbing Poetree will take the stage at the Center for the Arts in Jackson on Thursday, April 19, 7 p.m. FREE! Brought to you by pARTners. This is an amazing chance to see art for social justice in action.

Felicia Follum's "Make it Plain" exhibit to be held in conjunction with the Shepard Symposium at UW

Artist and fellow progressive blogger Felicia Follum (see blogroll on right sidebar) will be featured in an exhibition "Make it Plain," March 19-April 2 in Gallery 234, room 004 in the lower level of the UW Union. A reception for the exhibit is scheduled for Wednesday, March 28, from 6-8 p.m. Admission to both events is free and open to the public. It’s an African-American view of history and religion, as well as an exploration of the ways we persecute members of society today. This exhibit is being shown in conjunction with the Shepard Symposium for Social Justice , March 28-31.

It's been bumpy at times, but consider the Republican alternative

"The Road We've Traveled" premieres March 15. We've traveled a long and scary road the past four years. Just think of how bad it would have been with McCain/Palin at the helm or -- shudder to think -- just Palin. But we are motoring down the road into the future. The Republicans want to put us all into a stagecoach and transport us back to the past, all the way to those golden days of the '50s -- the 1850s!

Anti-racist author Tim Wise is keynote speaker for UW Shepard Sumposium

 From a UW press release:

Tim Wise, anti-racist essayist, author and educator, is the keynote speaker Wednesday, March 28, for the University of Wyoming's 16th annual Shepard Symposium on Social Justice. Wise will speak from 4:30-6 p.m. in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. "Identities: Dismantling the Boxes" is the theme of this year's Shepard Symposium, which runs March 28-31. 

Wise, who is among the nation's most prominent anti-racist writers and educators, has been called "one of the most brilliant, articulate and courageous critics of white privilege in the nation," by best-selling author and Georgetown University Professor Michael Eric Dyson. 

Wise is the author of six books, including the highly acclaimed memoir, "Affirmative Action: Racial Preference in Black and White"; an essay collection, "Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama"; and his recent book, "Dear White America: Letter to a New Minority." 

In 1997, former UW College of Education faculty members Omawale Akintunde and Margaret Cooney organized the first symposium, then called "The Symposium for the Eradication of Social Inequality." Since then, the symposium has evolved into a major national conference that engages participants in discussion and analyses of strategies and actions that can eliminate social inequality. 

Honoring the work of the Shepard family and the memory of their son, Matthew Shepard, a UW student and social activist who was murdered in 1998, the symposium's name was changed in 2002. That spring, the Shepard Symposium received funding from an anonymous endowment given to UW to pursue social justice activities throughout the campus. 

The symposium is a living reminder of the need for information and dialogue about social justice concerns in America and beyond. 

"We want people to deconstruct and interrupt the ways in which proscriptive identities are forced upon members of marginalized groups by society," says Chair Angela Jaime in explaining the latest theme for the symposium. "Specifically, we hope that attendees will critically examine the ways in which society forces people to identify with certain membership groups." 

Various presentations will be made during the symposium. Highlights include: 

Beth Loffreda, UW Department of English associate professor, will present the plenary speech, "The Consequences of Identity," at the noon luncheon Thursday, March 29, in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. She is the author of "Losing Matt Shepard."

Bridget Kisling, a junior music therapy and psychology student at Anna Maria College (Paxton, Mass.), will use a life-size version of the 1950s Barbie doll to shed light on how the media plays a significant role in shaping a young girl's sense of body image. Her presentation is Friday, March 30, 1:45-3 p.m., in the Wyoming Union Big Horn Room. 

An endnote student panel discussion, "Boxed In," will be presented Friday, March 30, at 11:30 a.m. in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. UW students will discuss complex and misunderstood identities. 

The second annual Shepard Symposium Friday Night Party is from 10 p.m.-1:30 a.m. at the Library Bar and Grill. All proceeds benefit the recognized student organizations that have contributed time and efforts to the Shepard Symposium. Tickets are $5 at the door or $4 in advance, and can be purchased at the symposium.

For more information about the Shepard Symposium, visit the website at http://www.shepardsymposium.org/, or contact Jaime at (307) 766-3991 or email jaimea@uwyo.edu.


Here's some info on Tim Wise's book, "Dear White America":

In America, being white has long meant never having to think about race. Whites have been able to assume that the culture, political leadership and their own neighborhoods would “look like them,” and the economy would work for them, so long as they played by the rules. Now, facing chronic economic insecurity, a multicultural pop culture, a black president and a future in which they will no longer be the majority, whites are growing anxious. This anxiety has helped create the Tea Party phenomenon and is characterized by the call to “take the country back” to a mythologized past. Using racialized nostalgia, the right seeks to enlist fearful whites in a movement for reactionary social and economic policies. But as Tim Wise explains, such an agenda will only further harm the nation’s people, including most whites. Only by embracing a progressive, multicultural future, can the hope of American democracy survive.