Fascism may be here

[Vrede too]

GOP candidate Will Hurd slams Ron DeSantis' defense of Florida’s slavery curriculum

Former Texas Rep. Will Hurd, a Republican presidential contender, on Sunday slammed his opponent Gov. Ron DeSantis for defending Florida's new public school standards that teach that some Black people benefited from slavery because it taught them useful skills.

"I was the first Republican to come out and say that slavery is not a jobs program,” Hurd said in an interview on NBC News' "Meet the Press." “And anybody that is implying that there was an upside [to] slavery is insane.”

"Real leadership would have stepped up and said, 'Hey, there is no upside to slavery. Slavery was not a jobs program,'" Hurd said. "But this is one more part of a fact pattern of Ron DeSantis being mean and hateful."

... “I didn’t do it and I wasn’t involved in it,” DeSantis said when asked by reporters about the Board of Education’s wording in its guidance for teaching about slavery.

“But I think — I think what they’re doing is, I think that they’re probably going to show some of the folks that eventually parlayed, you know, being a blacksmith into, into doing things later in life,” he continued, referring to enslaved people. “These were scholars who put that together. It was not anything that was done politically.”

A few of DeSantis' Republican opponents, including Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, as well as Black Republicans in Congress have chided him over the new public school standards. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, another 2024 GOP contender, told NBC News "it's an absurd idea" to think that slavery benefited Black people.

Hurd, whose father is Black, was one of the few Black Republicans when he served in Congress. Currently, there are five Black GOP lawmakers in the House and Senate.

I wonder why so few?

... “Donald Trump is not running for president to make America great again,” Hurd said, invoking Trump’s slogan before bringing up the legal troubles surrounding him, including a superseding indictment approved by a grand jury last week. “Donald Trump is running to stay out of prison.”

Asked about the incident on Sunday, Hurd said: "I knew there were going to be people that didn't like it."

"I was there to talk to the people that believe in personal responsibility, that believe character matters, that believes service matters, that believes that the United States has a role in the world and it's important to us back here at home," he added.

In other words, the few non-Trumpettes. The TRE45QN Cult detests personal responsibility, character, service and the belief that the United States has a role in the world.

[Vrede too]

Fascist DerSantis and the FL GQP are bad for business:

In DeSantis rebuke, 2 major Black orgs move their conferences — and millions in revenue — out of Florida
The two organizations cite “hostile” conditions toward African Americans in Florida for their decision.

Just two months after the NAACP issued a formal travel advisory for Florida, warning visitors that the state has become “openly hostile toward African Americans” under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’s leadership, two major Black organizations are moving their annual multimillion-dollar conferences elsewhere.

Now advocates hope the momentum from the relocations translates to real change that affects the ballot box in 2024.

“It is our hope that the outcry and loss of revenue will force legislators to repeal the terrible bills that were passed in the last few years,” Melba Pearson, a Miami-based civil rights and criminal law attorney, told Yahoo News. “We hope that voters will make solid decisions in the upcoming elections, based on now knowing the impact these negative laws have on their neighbors, friends and communities."

Organizations pivot from Florida

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, the country’s oldest and largest intercollegiate Black fraternity, and the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), one of the largest student-governed organizations based in the U.S., have decided to move their conferences that were scheduled to be in Florida in 2025 and 2024, respectively, to other states, citing a potential “hostile” environment for their members.

Alpha Phi Alpha, which was founded in 1906 and boasts a membership of more than 200,000 members and 700 chapters around the world, last week said that due to DeSantis’s “harmful, racist, and insensitive policies against the Black community,” the organization would find a new home for its 119th anniversary convention, slated to be in Orlando in 2025. The group says the event was expected to generate $4.6 million in economic impact....

NSBE, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, similarly decided after much deliberation that Florida did not offer its members enough safety and an ideal “membership experience” to be the setting for such a milestone event.

“We made the decision that the environment in Florida is not the backdrop we want for that 50th annual convention,” Avery Layne, national chair of the organization, which reports having more than 18,000 members and nearly 800 chapters worldwide, told Yahoo News....

Controversial Florida policies

At the center of the decisions are what critics say are the state GOP leaders’ attempts to erase Black history and to restrict diversity programs in Florida schools....

Florida is home to more than 22 million people, 17% of whom are African American, according to the latest census data....

The governor has openly mocked the notion that any kind of boycott or travel advisory would be effective, calling it a “joke” during a news conference the day after the NAACP state conference in March.

In all, at least 10 other conferences that were slated to be hosted in Fort Lauderdale, Miami or Orlando have been moved or canceled in recent months, with event organizers citing concerns over the state’s laws related to LGBTQ rights, abortion, gun laws and more. The lost revenue has cost local businesses, hotels and others in excess of $20 million, according to local tourism officials....

[Vrede too]

Fascist DerSantis and the FL GQP are bad for business:

Fascist DerSantis and the FL GQP are bad for knowledge:

AP Psychology effectively banned in Florida because of gender, sexuality chapter

Florida superintendents were advised Thursday by the state to nix their Advanced Placement Psychology classes unless they exclude any topics related to gender or sexuality, according to The College Board, which oversees the AP program.

Such a shift would mean the courses couldn't be called Advanced Placement, however, or used by students to earn college credit, the College Board said. And the organization is advising Florida districts not to offer the class until the state reverses its decision, saying any AP Psychology course taught in Florida will violate either state law or college requirements....

Florida's school superintendents learned of the state education department's decision in a conference call Thursday morning. The news means school districts may have to quickly rejigger many students' schedules just days before the start of a new school year. This fall, about 30,000 students were enrolled to take the course statewide, the College Board said....

Florida's school superintendents learned of the state education department's decision in a conference call Thursday morning. The news means school districts may have to quickly rejigger many students' schedules just days before the start of a new school year. This fall, about 30,000 students were enrolled to take the course statewide, the College Board said....

'Very frustrating': Students react to shifting access to AP Psychology

Walt Haber, a rising senior at Leon High School, had signed up to take AP Psychology during the new school year. He's already taken most of the AP classes at his high school, so the psychology course was one of his few remaining AP options.

"High school students, by and large, are capable of higher thought and rational decision-making," he added. "By excluding the fields of psychology which they deem 'inappropriate,' Ron DeSantis and other Republicans place their personal beliefs above the rights of public school students across Florida to a full and free education." ...

Psychology - Funny that the topic Fascist DerSantis voters would most benefit from is now banned.

[Vrede too]

Bad news: Crybaby male white supremacists win a round.
Good news: It's TAMU so no one is surprised.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/texas-m-univ ... 48135.html

Effing Texas.

Texas A&M will pay $1M to Black professor following botched hiring and internal review



That was fast. Football coach fuckups cost more - right, Auburn? - but Prof Kathleen McElroy is apparently satisfied with the resolution and she still has her tenured job as holder of the Frank A. Bennack Jr. Chair in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin.

[billy.pilgrim]

Bad news: Crybaby male white supremacists win a round.
Good news: It's TAMU so no one is surprised.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/texas-m-univ ... 48135.html

Effing Texas.

Texas A&M will pay $1M to Black professor following botched hiring and internal review



That was fast. Football coach fuckups cost more - right, Auburn? - but Prof Kathleen McElroy is apparently satisfied with the resolution and she still has her tenured job as holder of the Frank A. Bennack Jr. Chair in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin.

Yeah, but we fired the (very likely) racist who refused to go into the homes of any prospects.

Lane is accusing A&M of being in bed with Saudi money.
What's college football coming to?

[Vrede too]

Fascist DerSantis and the FL GQP are bad for knowledge:

AP Psychology effectively banned in Florida because of gender, sexuality chapter



Psychology - Funny that the topic Fascist DerSantis voters would most benefit from is now banned.

Florida officials tell state schools to teach AP Psychology 'in its entirety'

It's a win, but it seems like Fascist DerSantis bureaucrats are just making up what the laws passed by the hateful FL GQP Leg mean. Maybe some psychological evaluation would help.

[Vrede too]

Florida School Board Reverses Restriction On Book About Male Penguin Couple
"And Tango Makes Three” recounts the true story of two male penguins who were devoted to each other at the Central Park Zoo in New York.

Months after access to a popular children’s book about a male penguin couple hatching a chick was restricted at school libraries because of Florida’s “ Don’t Say Gay law,” a central Florida school district says it has reversed that decision....

The lawsuit is moot since age restrictions on “And Tango Makes Three” have been lifted following a Florida Department of Education memo that said the new law only applied to classroom instruction and not school libraries, according to motions filed Friday by Florida education officials and school board members of the district located outside Orlando.

Fascist DerSantis crew making it up as they go along, again. School libraries have been targeted from the get-go.

“And Tango Makes Three” recounts the true story of two male penguins who were devoted to each other at the Central Park Zoo in New York. A zookeeper who saw them building a nest and trying to incubate an egg-shaped rock gave them an egg from a different penguin pair with two eggs after they were having difficulty hatching more than one egg at a time. The chick cared for by the male penguins was named Tango.

The book is listed among the 100 most subjected to censorship efforts over the past decade, as compiled by the American Library Association.

[Vrede too]

Florida schools plan to use only excerpts from Shakespeare to avoid ‘raunchiness’
DeSantis law that clamps down on LGBTQ+and gender issues also says material sexual in nature should not be used in classes

Seriously? Responsible adults would help students contextualize the passages in question, not ironically create Disney versions of Shakespeare.

[GoCubsGo]

At what point is Abbott criminally liable?

This is obscene.

Greg Abbott slammed by Texas lawmakers for ‘cruel’ floating border barriers with ‘chainsaw devices’

[Vrede too]

At what point is Abbott criminally liable?

This is obscene.

Greg Abbott slammed by Texas lawmakers for ‘cruel’ floating border barriers with ‘chainsaw devices’

When is never, Alex? If anything the feds will sue him on environmental or border treaty grounds.


Remember when Germany's Jews were removed from official life?

Ron DeSantis Suspends Florida’s Only Black Female State Attorney in Radical Move — and (non)Local Sheriff Mocks Her

[billy.pilgrim]

At what point is Abbott criminally liable?

This is obscene.

Greg Abbott slammed by Texas lawmakers for ‘cruel’ floating border barriers with ‘chainsaw devices’

When is never, Alex? If anything the feds will sue him on environmental or border treaty grounds.


Remember when Germany's Jews were removed from official life?

Ron DeSantis Suspends Florida’s Only Black Female State Attorney in Radical Move — and (non)Local Sheriff Mocks Her

Makes perfect sense - to a moron: black woman is judge by a 67% majority vote was negligent in her duties for failure to charge a black teen without any evidence.

[Vrede too]

The Story Behind DeSantis’s Anecdote About an ‘Abortion Survivor’

Antiquated, medically unlikely to be true, irrelevant. Typical misogyny.


Florida elementary school apologizes after assembling all the Black children from two grades into a room and telling them to do better

Flagler County in central Florida

In Alabama, White (Patriarchal) Tide Rushes On

[billy.pilgrim]

The Story Behind DeSantis’s Anecdote About an ‘Abortion Survivor’

Antiquated, medically unlikely to be true, irrelevant. Typical misogyny.


Florida elementary school apologizes after assembling all the Black children from two grades into a room and telling them to do better

Flagler County in central Florida

In Alabama, White (Patriarchal) Tide Rushes On

As much as I hate to defend anything bammer, this article appears to have an agenda. Blacks are definitely involved in sorority rush.

Your article states, "Still, in 2022, almost 85 percent of the sorority members in the Alabama Panhellenic Association, comprising most of the university’s sororities, were white, a percentage disproportionate to the racial makeup of the university and the state."

True, the percentage of black students doesn't match the state (26%), but False the percentage of blacks in sororities is lower than the percentage of black students.

https://datausa.io/profile/university/t ... 20(6.3%25).

"Students enrolled at The University of Alabama in full-time Undergraduate programs are most commonly White Female (42.6%), followed by White Male (34.6%) and Black or African American Female (6.3%)."

Here's another

https://www.eonline.com/news/1375253/ba ... we-learned

" 97 percent of the Black PNMs who completed the recruitment process receiving bids—"a higher rate than any other racial group," The Crimson White noted.

Bama Rush briefly goes into the history of the Divine 9, which are the nine historically African American Greek-letter organizations, including Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first African-American sorority on sorority row.

Rian, who is biracial, explained why she decided to rush outside the Divine 9."

I would bet this is similar to most schools other than traditional black schools

[O Really]

Sororities/fraternities don't necessarily pull from the same demographics as the school as a whole. Sorority members historically have been from higher economic class, more likely to have a family in a country club, more likely to have been a debutante when there were such things. They also don't usually rush unattractive girls or those from fringe groups, goths, etc. No surprise their members don't mirror the general population.

[Vrede too]

As much as I hate to defend anything bammer, this article appears to have an agenda. Blacks are definitely involved in sorority rush.

Your article states, "Still, in 2022, almost 85 percent of the sorority members in the Alabama Panhellenic Association, comprising most of the university’s sororities, were white, a percentage disproportionate to the racial makeup of the university and the state."

True, the percentage of black students doesn't match the state (26%), but False the percentage of blacks in sororities is lower than the percentage of black students.

https://datausa.io/profile/university/t ... of-alabama.

"Students enrolled at The University of Alabama in full-time Undergraduate programs are most commonly White Female (42.6%), followed by White Male (34.6%) and Black or African American Female (6.3%)."

Here's another

https://www.eonline.com/news/1375253/ba ... we-learned

" 97 percent of the Black PNMs who completed the recruitment process receiving bids—"a higher rate than any other racial group," The Crimson White noted.

Bama Rush briefly goes into the history of the Divine 9, which are the nine historically African American Greek-letter organizations, including Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first African-American sorority on sorority row.

Rian, who is biracial, explained why she decided to rush outside the Divine 9."

I would bet this is similar to most schools other than traditional black schools

From your source:

The enrolled student population at The University of Alabama is 74.4% White, 11.2% Black or African American, 5.32% Hispanic or Latino, 3.33% Two or More Races, 1.54% Asian, 0.358% American Indian or Alaska Native, and 0.0783% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders....

So, your point is valid that the percentage of Greek Blacks is not lower than the university. However, 85 percent of the sorority members being White is still higher than their university and state representation. Then, the existence of the Divine 9 means that the sororities that have taken on the mantle of national leadership are deliberately even more lily white than an 85-15 split in the total Greek membership suggests. College girls should be leaders for change, especially when the whole world is watching.

Ftr, I watched snippets of Bama Rush TV. It's so White that I had to put on shades.

As for why Bama Blacks are only 11.2% in a state that's 26% Black opens up a separate discussion of what's wrong with the Alabama educational system.

[billy.pilgrim]

Sororities/fraternities don't necessarily pull from the same demographics as the school as a whole. Sorority members historically have been from higher economic class, more likely to have a family in a country club, more likely to have been a debutante when there were such things. They also don't usually rush unattractive girls or those from fringe groups, goths, etc. No surprise their members don't mirror the general population.

Alabama does get picked on for no reason here. Enough so that I looked at several other states enrollment of blacks. Finding were interesting with most schools being similar to bama and some being way worse and, of course, some being much better. USC had equal percentage of students to state population.

Alabama blacks = 26.8% of state pop vs 11.6% of student body - needs serious improvement, but it's the same or better than:

Northwestern University 18.2 vs 5.6
Illinois 18.2% - UI 6.8%
Indiana - 9.4% = IU 4.3%
Purdue = 2.7%
Iowa - 10.7% - UI 3%
Maryland 31.7% UM 13% - this was surprising
Michigan. 14.1% - UM 4
NJ 15.4 vs Rutgers 3.5

Texas 13.4
A&M 3%
UT 4.4
SMU 3.8

[billy.pilgrim]

As much as I hate to defend anything bammer, this article appears to have an agenda. Blacks are definitely involved in sorority rush.

Your article states, "Still, in 2022, almost 85 percent of the sorority members in the Alabama Panhellenic Association, comprising most of the university’s sororities, were white, a percentage disproportionate to the racial makeup of the university and the state."

True, the percentage of black students doesn't match the state (26%), but False the percentage of blacks in sororities is lower than the percentage of black students.

https://datausa.io/profile/university/t ... of-alabama.

"Students enrolled at The University of Alabama in full-time Undergraduate programs are most commonly White Female (42.6%), followed by White Male (34.6%) and Black or African American Female (6.3%)."

Here's another

https://www.eonline.com/news/1375253/ba ... we-learned

" 97 percent of the Black PNMs who completed the recruitment process receiving bids—"a higher rate than any other racial group," The Crimson White noted.

Bama Rush briefly goes into the history of the Divine 9, which are the nine historically African American Greek-letter organizations, including Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first African-American sorority on sorority row.

Rian, who is biracial, explained why she decided to rush outside the Divine 9."

I would bet this is similar to most schools other than traditional black schools

From your source:

The enrolled student population at The University of Alabama is 74.4% White, 11.2% Black or African American, 5.32% Hispanic or Latino, 3.33% Two or More Races, 1.54% Asian, 0.358% American Indian or Alaska Native, and 0.0783% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders....

So, your point is valid that the percentage of Greek Blacks is not lower than the university. However, 85 percent of the sorority members being White is still higher than their university and state representation. Then, the existence of the Divine 9 means that the sororities that have taken on the mantle of national leadership are deliberately even more lily white than an 85-15 split in the total Greek membership suggests. College girls should be leaders for change, especially when the whole world is watching.

Ftr, I watched snippets of Bama Rush TV. It's so White that I had to put on shades.

As for why Bama Blacks are only 11.2% in a state that's 26% Black opens up a separate discussion of what's wrong with the Alabama educational system.

See my post after yours
Also, the Divine Nine plays the same role in these other schools.
The article is simply Alabama bashing because most people will accept it

As to Ala Ed sys - did you look at Maryland and nearly every other school in the country

[Vrede too]

Sororities/fraternities don't necessarily pull from the same demographics as the school as a whole. Sorority members historically have been from higher economic class, more likely to have a family in a country club, more likely to have been a debutante when there were such things. They also don't usually rush unattractive girls or those from fringe groups, goths, etc. No surprise their members don't mirror the general population.

"higher economic class, more likely to have a family in a country club, more likely to have been a debutante" = White
"fringe groups" = non-White
Snooty White sororities that choose to shun DEI recruiting are perpetuating the problem.

Alabama does get picked on for no reason here.

Alabama is picked on here because its sororities have chosen to represent themselves as the pinnacle of Greek life.

Enough so that I looked at several other states enrollment of blacks. Finding were interesting with most schools being similar to bama and some being way worse and, of course, some being much better. USC had equal percentage of students to state population.

SC or CA's USC?

Alabama blacks = 26.8% of state pop vs 11.6% of student body - needs serious improvement, but it's the same or better than:

Northwestern University 18.2 vs 5.6
Illinois 18.2% - UI 6.8%
Indiana - 9.4% = IU 4.3%
Purdue = 2.7%
Iowa - 10.7% - UI 3%
Maryland 31.7% UM 13% - this was surprising Ugh.
College Park is in the White burbs. University of Maryland, Baltimore is a bit better at 17.7% Black. Shockingly, it's also 82% women. Why didn't I go there?
https://www.collegefactual.com/colleges ... diversity/
However, Baltimore also has the public Morgan State University, an HBCU, 82.8% Black.
Michigan. 14.1% - UM 4
NJ 15.4 vs Rutgers 3.5

Texas 13.4
A&M 3%
UT 4.4
SMU 3.8

Northwestern and SMU are private, arguably just as offensive, but I don't hold them to the same standard.

Montana 0.6% Black
University of Montana 0.9% Black (53)
https://www.collegefactual.com/colleges ... rsity.html
However, most are athletes or Africans.

California 5.4% Black
San Diego 6.6% Black
San Diego State University 4.4% Black
https://www.collegefactual.com/colleges ... rsity.html
Surprising equivalence.

[billy.pilgrim]

USC = California

Idk but suspect that sororities in Texas are similar in status to Alabama

[billy.pilgrim]

Personal observation only:
Alabama definitely has historically had some of the worst and most visible racism, but I see blacks in Alabama and Georgia more able to integrate into society than in many of the states having a low number of black people.