Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

Realness Around the Collar

Thursday, October 6th, 2016
Minister/Activist Osagyefo Uhuru Sekou

Rev. Osagyefo Uhuru Sekou

Minister/activist Osagyefo Uhuru Sekou visited Syracuse University last night and was a speaker for a National Pan-Hellenic Council panel titled “Injustice for All 2: I Too Am America.”

Rev. Sekou said much of his personal activism is informed by his empathy as a Christian.

“So for me, Michael Brown’s body (laying on the street in Ferguson, Mo for four hours) is [like a] crucifixion at the hands of the state.”

He told students that we are living in the Age of Ferguson, which he described as:

  • occupation of public spaces (including die-ins)
  • rejection of traditional leadership
  • rejection of modernity (starting urban farms, living off the grid, etc).

“The systems of those that came before us [and] fought so hard to become a part of, we don’t necessarily believe they have redeeming power,” he said.

Picking up the Pieces

Thursday, October 6th, 2016
Timothy Noble Jennings-Bey talked about how to change attitudes and perceptions during Wednesday’s Conversations in Conflict Studies event.

Timothy Noble Jennings-Bey talked about how to change attitudes and perceptions during Wednesday’s Conversations in Conflict Studies event.

During a lunchtime lecture at SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs, Timothy Noble Jennings-Bey and Arnett Haygood-El described the workings of their organization, Street Addition Institute, Inc. The SAII could be described as a combination think tank/social service organization committed to bridging generational divides by rehabilitating individuals and families who suffer from trauma such as gun violence being confined to historically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

The presentation provided vital statistics and showed how violent trauma often breeds fear in those living within the affected areas and neglect from public institutions. One graph showed an interesting relationship between gun fire in neighborhoods and school disciplinary practices, and how a ADD diagnosis may actually be a form PTSD in some cases.

Jennings-Bey recognized these problems are not new (many like housing segregation are the result of public policy), but SAII’s goal is to identify those affected, and help provide solutions from a grass-roots perspective.

The Doctor Will See You Now (and prescribe a new paradigm)

Friday, September 2nd, 2016
The Doctor is in: TV host, scholar, author and public intellectual Marc Lamont Hill gave the keynote for yesterdays Race in Our Communities Forum at Syracuse University.

TV host, author and public intellectual and Morehouse professor Marc Lamont Hill gave the keynote for yesterdays Race in Our Communities Forum at Syracuse University.

Dr. Marc Lamont Hill, social justice warrior and host of “VH1 Live,” came to Syracuse loaded for bear yesterday, but he mixed in some humorous mixed metaphors to make the medicine go down easy. He talked passionately about the need for equitable justice under the law and thinking outside the imperfect system that currently exists (in cities and on campuses).

Hill asked the crowd at the Schine Student Center imagine a freedom dream,a world where healing and rehabilitation follow justice, and where we readily identify, and eventually diminish state violence propagated against vulnerable groups, stereotypes and marginalized people.

After Hill’s keynote there was a panel discussion, which included Keith J. Bybee, Ph.D., Tony Callisto,Bea González, Benjamin Jealous and Jordan Shelby West. The moderator was Dr. Keith Alford of SU’s Falk College.

NYS Fair: Celebrating Six Nations Day

Friday, September 2nd, 2016
Perry Ground, Native American Storyteller

Perry Ground, Native American Storyteller

Activist without a Pause

Monday, August 15th, 2016
Clifford Ryan, activist and poet

Clifford Ryan, activist and poet

We Are One

Sunday, August 14th, 2016
Mothers Against Gun Violence reminds us each year during their vigil in Clinton Square that violence impacts all of us.

Mothers Against Gun Violence reminds us each year during their vigil in Clinton Square that violence impacts all of us. The organization held an event this evening, and names of victims of gun violence over the past decade were read aloud.

MAGV Syracuse was formed in 2005 by Syracuse's Helen Hudson.

MAGV Syracuse was formed in 2005 by Syracuse’s Helen Hudson.

Draw the Bern

Sunday, July 31st, 2016
Sidewalk Drawing Competition Montgomery Street

Sidewalk Art Competition Montgomery StreetMontgomery Street

Pro·test (part 3)

Friday, July 29th, 2016
Activist Ursula Rozum was part of a small contingent who protested yesterdays arrest of a local activist.

Activist Ursula Rozum was part of a small contingent who protested yesterday’s arrest of anti-violence activist Mo Crawley.

ADA at 26

Tuesday, July 26th, 2016
Design by Hanna Ballinger (SU Senior Runway show)

Design by Hanna Ballinger (SU Senior Runway show)

Today marks the 26th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which was enacted by Congress in 1990.

Week in Review

Sunday, July 24th, 2016
Activists Aggie Lane and Cliff Ryan marched during Black Lives Matter protest on Monday.

Activists Aggie Lane and Clifford Ryan marched during Black Lives Matter protest on Monday.