In Memoriam

[billy.pilgrim]

Body of John Lewis makes final Selma bridge crossing

Saluting Alabama state troopers, including some African American ones, at 0:20 seconds.

The wagon rolled over a carpet of rose petals, pausing atop the bridge over the Alabama River in the summer heat so family members could walk behind it. On the south side of the bridge, where Lewis was beaten by Alabama state troopers in 1965, family members placed red roses that the carriage rolled over, marking the spot where Lewis spilled his blood and suffered a head injury.

Full crossing, 9:37.

We need more people like him.

[Vrede too]

We need more people like him.

Together, You Can Redeem the Soul of Our Nation
Though I am gone, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe.



By John Lewis
Mr. Lewis, the civil rights leader who died on July 17, wrote this essay shortly before his death, to be published upon the day of his funeral. Editorial Page Editor Kathleen Kingsbury wrote about this piece and Mr. Lewis’s legacy in Thursday’s edition of our Opinion Today newsletter.

July 30, 2020

...

[billy.pilgrim]

One of these days I'm going to subscribe.

[Vrede too]

One of these days I'm going to subscribe.

By clearing my NYT cookies I am able to read one or two articles at a time without hassle. Meanwhile:

While my time here has now come to an end, I want you to know that in the last days and hours of my life you inspired me. You filled me with hope about the next chapter of the great American story when you used your power to make a difference in our society. Millions of people motivated simply by human compassion laid down the burdens of division. Around the country and the world you set aside race, class, age, language and nationality to demand respect for human dignity.

That is why I had to visit Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, though I was admitted to the hospital the following day. I just had to see and feel it for myself that, after many years of silent witness, the truth is still marching on.

Emmett Till was my George Floyd. He was my Rayshard Brooks, Sandra Bland and Breonna Taylor. He was 14 when he was killed, and I was only 15 years old at the time. I will never ever forget the moment when it became so clear that he could easily have been me. In those days, fear constrained us like an imaginary prison, and troubling thoughts of potential brutality committed for no understandable reason were the bars.

Though I was surrounded by two loving parents, plenty of brothers, sisters and cousins, their love could not protect me from the unholy oppression waiting just outside that family circle. Unchecked, unrestrained violence and government-sanctioned terror had the power to turn a simple stroll to the store for some Skittles or an innocent morning jog down a lonesome country road into a nightmare. If we are to survive as one unified nation, we must discover what so readily takes root in our hearts that could rob Mother Emanuel Church in South Carolina of her brightest and best, shoot unwitting concertgoers in Las Vegas and choke to death the hopes and dreams of a gifted violinist like Elijah McClain.

Like so many young people today, I was searching for a way out, or some might say a way in, and then I heard the voice of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on an old radio. He was talking about the philosophy and discipline of nonviolence. He said we are all complicit when we tolerate injustice. He said it is not enough to say it will get better by and by. He said each of us has a moral obligation to stand up, speak up and speak out. When you see something that is not right, you must say something. You must do something. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part to help build what we called the Beloved Community, a nation and world society at peace with itself.

Ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America by getting in what I call good trouble, necessary trouble. Voting and participating in the democratic process are key. The vote is the most powerful nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. You must use it because it is not guaranteed. You can lose it.

You must also study and learn the lessons of history because humanity has been involved in this soul-wrenching, existential struggle for a very long time. People on every continent have stood in your shoes, through decades and centuries before you. The truth does not change, and that is why the answers worked out long ago can help you find solutions to the challenges of our time. Continue to build union between movements stretching across the globe because we must put away our willingness to profit from the exploitation of others.

Though I may not be here with you, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe. In my life I have done all I can to demonstrate that the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence is the more excellent way. Now it is your turn to let freedom ring.

When historians pick up their pens to write the story of the 21st century, let them say that it was your generation who laid down the heavy burdens of hate at last and that peace finally triumphed over violence, aggression and war. So I say to you, walk with the wind, brothers and sisters, and let the spirit of peace and the power of everlasting love be your guide.

John Lewis, the civil rights leader and congressman who died on July 17, wrote this essay shortly before his death.

[billy.pilgrim]

Thanks

[O Really]

Clearing cookies works, but you don't have to subscribe to NYT. You can just sign up for an account.

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John Lewis: Celebrating A Hero
new episode
tonight, 10:00 PM ET on CBS, 1 hr 2020

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John Lewis: Celebrating A Hero
new episode
tonight, 10:00 PM ET on CBS, 1 hr 2020

tonight, 8:00 PM, 11:00 PM, 2:00 AM & 3:00 AM ET on OWN

[GoCubsGo]

Awww...

[Vrede too]

Awww...

Jackie Robinson
James Brown
Thurgood Marshall
Black Panther

Damn, and only 43.

[Vrede too]

Awww...

Full text:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/c ... r-BB18vFiK

The tweet announcing the death of the actor Chadwick Boseman surpassed six million on Saturday night, becoming the most-liked tweet on the social media platform by far.

Twitter confirmed that it was a record for the website, tweeting that the milestone was "a tribute fit for a King."

... Previously Twitter's most-liked tweet belonged to Barack Obama in August 2017, which received 4.3 million likes. His tweet decried racism after the Charlottesville car attack that killed the activist Heather Heyer amid counter-protests against a white nationalist rally.

Chadwick Boseman recalled being fired from a TV show after questioning the racial stereotypes of his role

In 2018, Chadwick Boseman gave a commencement speech at Howard University Saturday where he said he was fired from a TV show early in his career after questioning the negative stereotypes of his role....

"I was promised to make six figures, more money than I had ever seen. I was feeling myself," Boseman said. "Once I saw the role I was playing, I found myself conflicted... this role seemed to be wrapped up in assumptions about us as black folk."

... Boseman didn't specify which show he was on. But, as HuffPost noted, Boseman's first credited professional role was on the ABC soap opera "All My Children," where he briefly played the gang member Reggie Porter Montgomery (Jan 2003)....

During his commencement speech, Boseman praised his undergraduate years at Howard University — a historically black college — with preparing him for his major film roles.

"I stand here today knowing that my Howard University education prepared me to play Jackie Robinson, James Brown, Thurgood Marshall, and T'Challa," Boseman said.

At the end of his speech, Boseman gave the Wakanda salute, adapting it for his alma mater.

"Howard forever," he said.

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Chadwick Boseman Fans Petition to Replace Confederate Statue in His Hometown with Memorial

Petition to replace the Confederate monument in Anderson (SC) with a Chadwick Boseman memorial
37,697 have signed.

[GoCubsGo]

Class act.

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Black Jeopardy with Chadwick Boseman - SNL

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Gale Sayers dies at 77



He was a childhood favorite of mine. RIP

(Brian's Song) is often cited as one of the greatest television films ever made, as well as one of the greatest sports films....

I agree.

[GoCubsGo]

[Vrede too]

Bye, Eddie.

0:03
For you non-Sports forum readers:
viewtopic.php?p=127604#p127604

What are Union 76, Canon cameras, Zenith TVs and Yellow Pages?

[GoCubsGo]

Fuck 2020.

[neoplacebo]

The first time I saw a James Bond film (Goldfinger) I remember wishing that my dad was like that guy. I was about ten years old. Dad didn't live up to my wishes.

[billy.pilgrim]

I read all the Bond books and went to all the Connery/Bond movies