On this Fourth of July, as we hear about the flag and freedom, I want to salute a woman raised her voice for what our country should be, what it can become. Bree Newsome climbed a flag pole in South Carolina and publicly took down the Confederate flag, refusing to accept a symbol of slavery and racism flying in a place that's supposed to belong to all Americans.
As CFC observed, the psalm-quoting Newsome did what Jesus would do:
So Bree Newsome was a reminder to me that forgiveness is not the only thing faith can look like in public. Faith in public can look like a demand – for justice, for recognition, for grace. Faith in public can look like calling white supremacist evil exactly what it is and “coming against it.” Faith can look like a Black girl climbing a pole. Faith can look like that Black girl looking into the face of power and telling those come to arrest her that she ain’t “neva scared” in the name of God.
Here's more by the artist who created the image at that link, of
Newsome as Wonder Woman.
Newsome herself issued an awesome statement, which you have to read in full to appreciate, but here's a slice:
We discussed it and decided to remove the flag immediately, both as an act of civil disobedience and as a demonstration of the power people have when we work together. Achieving this would require many roles, including someone who must volunteer to scale the pole and remove the flag. It was decided that this role should go to a black woman and that a white man should be the one to help her over the fence as a sign that our alliance transcended both racial and gender divides. We made this decision because for us, this is not simply about a flag, but rather it is about abolishing the spirit of hatred and oppression in all its forms.
I removed the flag not only in defiance of those who enslaved my ancestors in the southern United States, but also in defiance of the oppression that continues against black people globally in 2015, including the ongoing ethnic cleansing in the Dominican Republic. I did it in solidarity with the South African students who toppled a statue of the white supremacist, colonialist Cecil Rhodes. I did it for all the fierce black women on the front lines of the movement and for all the little black girls who are watching us. I did it because I am free.
The good, the bad, and the ugly below the orange-spangled banner.
Reproductive Freedom:
Legal harassment is contributing to the shortage of abortion providers.
A total of 51 new abortion restrictions have gone into effect this year.
Just like when creationism became "intelligent design," abstinence programs are trying to rebrand themselves as "sexual risk avoidance" and pretend they're evidence-based, but it's the same old shaming message getting billions in taxpayer money.
Economics:
Poverty is a reproductive justice issue.
Violence:
There are still states where a rapist who impregnates his victim can still get child custody rights.
We deal with getting consent all the time, for all kinds of activities. Comic artist Alli Kirkham imagines what would happen if we applied the same "gosh, consent is so confusing" rules that routinely get applied to sex.
After 25 years of prostituting, not seeing a way out for herself, Brenda Myers-Powell is working to help other women find their way out.
When family courts treat domestic violence cases like ordinary custody cases, it's the children who lose out.
Intersectionality:
At the same time that AME churches are being attacked, three female ministers in the African Methodist Episcopal Church have received threatening letters. The letters quote Bible to claim women shouldn't be pastors - but apparently the writer saw nothing un-biblical about issuing death threats against the women and their children. Pretty sure that's not what Jesus would do.
Art series Made in Latin America, by Maria Maria Acha-Kutscher, features women in male-dominated occupations.
African-American women discuss profiling and harassment by police. (Note: video at link auto-plays.)
Uncategorizable:
Amanda Marcotte on conservatives ideas about marriage: the "tradition" they want is one where marriage is not a loving partnership, but a grim duty that women must submit to. And they can't figure out why that's a less appealing vision than the liberal view.
Also, I'm not gonna link, but it would be really nice if here at dkos we could stop seeing diaries with terms like "bitch slap" in the title.
Good News and Action Items (Lots of them this week!)
Women's sports, and the power of seeing women who go for what they want.
Misty Copeland is the first African-American to be a principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater.
In Ontario, a library refused to let a girl attend their summer robotics program, saying it was only for boys. The girl, Cash Cayen, responded with an online petition that got 31,000 signatures, and the library apologized for the "misunderstanding" and announced that the program would be open to all children ages 9 to 12.
This diary by SCDem4 honors 21 great Americans who often get left out of the history books.
Petition to Ireland to end its ban on abortion.
Petition for justice for Tondalo Hall. The man who abused her children is serving two years - and she's serving thirty years for not protecting them.
Girl Scouts continue to rock: they turned down a $100,000 donation because the donor demanded a guarantee that none of the money would be used to benefit transgender girls. The Girl Scouts started an Indiegogo campaign to replace the money, and have already raised over $300,000. More donations are always welcome, of course!
Thanks to all the folks who sent links this week: ramara, mettle fatigue, elenacarlena, Catskill Julie & 2thanks!