Prometheus 6

And I thank him for it.

Also broke the story on Shaquanda Cotton in Texas. I wonder what his RESEARCH APPROACH has been? Perhaps he is perusing small-town stories run in local papers that raise these red flags. If that is so, it's a perfect and LOGICAL follow-up to the question of SUNDOWN towns and FORCED EXPULSIONS, etc.

yes, i look at small town papers. but i also get information and ideas for stories from readers and concerned citizens who alert me to civil rights cases that haven't gotten any attention and should. i invite you and your readers to email me whenever you see stories that deserve scrutiny.

thanks,

howard witt

In this week's addition of the Black Commentator Anthony Asadullah Samad speaks to the historical conditions which have made it easier to target racism in relatively small cities and towns than in densly populated cities:

"Cracks in the 'equality' prescript have alwys started in 'Smalltown USA', places where social and political leaders were less 'cultured' and the media less sophisticated in protecting the backroom racial hierarchy.  It is no coincidence that the defense of the racial hierarchy of 'Big City USA' (St. Louis in the Dred Scott decision, New Orleans in the Plessy decision) often succeeded, while Topeka, Kansas--Montgomery, Alabama--Little Rock, Arkansas or Philadelphia, Mississippi, exposed the race divide in its truest face. 

 While exposing racial insjustices in localities with relatively small populations may have its tactical benefits, what can be done to bring this struggle to the inner cities where racial inequality is more concentrated and intense?  While Howard Witt has successfully adopted the tactic of exposing racial injustices in places like Paris, Texas and Jena, Louisana, Bob Herbert has taken on this same task in his editorials for the New York Times.  The release of Shaquanda Cotton and the publicity produced by the rally in Jena were both products of bloggers and activits working in tandem with the efforts of journalists such as Witt to publicize racial discrimination in the criminal justice system.  How can we gain traction in the bigger cities where the adversaries have the ability to hide the truth behind smoke and mirrors and reproduce the success scored in Paris and Jena?    

Northern racism is tougher to root out because it depends on semantics, and unequal distribution of information. Addressing it is a middle class burden...a tough one, since all the court reversals we've suffered specifically enables this type of racism.

Why do you see addressing northern racism as a middle class burden?  From, say, Mayor Daley to Rudy, do you see a change in tactics in how northern urban leaders deflect charges of racism and maintain institutional racism? 

Why do you see addressing northern racism as a middle class burden?

It requires skills and expertise you get from a middle class life and career...and not always even then.

Consider what you'd have to do to prove discrimination in the credit market...which we know exists. How would a lower class person (who the subprime mortgage mess proves is ill-to-misinformed about mortgages at all) recognize they're being screwed on the interest rate, much less prove it?

And I'm not sure upper class Black folks really see it as in their interest. 

A reporter doing his job? It's been a while.

"And I'm not sure upper class Black folks really see it as in their interest."

Would I be right in assuming that whatever affects lowerclass Blacks will undoubtedly affect the middle class and upperclass Blacks, and vice versa? But I do have to aggree about northern racism; it IS more hidden and nuanced than that of many places of the south, which in my opinion is more dangerous. I don't know about anyone else but I perfer my racist open and out front. It's easier to defend yourself from open racist. But northern-style racism is most damaging because it's hard to destingush friend from foe. It's hard to determine when, where, and how the punches will come. (Thank you integration!) And, in my opinion, it is the northern-style that white America - as a whole - favors. Increasingly it has become the mode of racism most prevalent in America.

But seriously, how can any of us be surprised by the Jena, Louisiana reality reminder?

Would I be right in assuming that whatever affects lowerclass Blacks will undoubtedly affect the middle class and upperclass Blacks, and vice versa?

Only if they all have equal resources with which to respond to those affects.

With the large movement of white sunbelt migrants to the South, I would argue that northern style racism has commingled with and supplanted southern style racism in some areas.  I live in Florida where there are countless numbers of people who don't have roots in the South beyond a generation.  It is with these people that I witness some of the most poisonous forms of anti-black racism which contribute to and enforce the traditions of racism already in place.  These are the people who are the most offended when accused of being racist and give all kinds of lame "I-am-not-a-racist-because-I-have-black-friends" excuses.  I may be wrong, but as the country becomes more homogeneous and regional differences continue to shrink, I think practices of anti-black racism will grow more uniform and will take a decidedly northern shape.          

I don't think the migration was necessary. Northern-style racism is just more effective.