METRO PAGE | Beverly Baker Moore reports that ‘Life goes on at Austin’s Death Café.’
Thorne Webb Dreyer, Editor
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The symbolic stoning of Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Brandeis University rescinds speaking invitation to Somali-born writer Ayaan Hirsi Ali, an outspoken critic of denigration of women in Islamic societies.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali in Paris. Photo by Martin Bureau / AFP / Getty Images.
The Somali-born writer Ayaan Hirsi Ali was to be the commencement speaker next month at Brandeis University, named for former Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis. But voices of hysteria, censorship, and bullying won the day and Brandeis University’s president rescinded the invitation and the honorary degree she was to receive because of Hirsi Ali’s outspoken criticism of the widespread Islamic degradation and denigration of women.
I read her autobiographical book Infidel seven years ago. Her life story is compelling, educational, and unique. She left Somalia with her family as a little girl because of the civil strife in that country and lived in Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, and finally Kenya. At the age of 21 she immigrated to the Netherlands, eventually becoming a member of the Dutch Parliament.
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METRO | San Antonio art show takes on the South Texas ‘fracking frenzy’
Exhibit: Frackaso: Portraits of Extraction in Eagle Ford and Beyond
Opening reception: Friday, April 18, 7 p.m.
Place: Esperanza Peace & Justice Center
Address: 922 San Pedro Avenue, San Antonio
Dates of exhibit: Friday, April 18 – Sunday, August 31, 2014
Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
More information: 210-228-0201
Opening reception: Friday, April 18, 7 p.m.
Place: Esperanza Peace & Justice Center
Address: 922 San Pedro Avenue, San Antonio
Dates of exhibit: Friday, April 18 – Sunday, August 31, 2014
Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
More information: 210-228-0201
SAN ANTONIO — An art exhibit opening Friday, April 18, at the Esperanza Peace & Justice Center in San Antonio features photographs, visual and literary art, installations, performance, and film. Frackaso: Portraits of Extraction in Eagle Ford and Beyond takes on the fracking frenzy in South Texas and, well, beyond.
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Posted in Metro, RagBlog
Tagged Alice Embree, Art Exhibit, Carlos Lowry, Esperanza, Fine Arts, Fracking, Metro, Political Arts, Rag Bloggers, San Antonio, Social Activists, Visual Arts
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FRONT PAGE | See Rag Radio interview with Austin school trustee and East Austin community activist, Rev. Dr. Jayme Mathias.
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PODCAST | Rev. Dr. Jayme Mathias, Austin school trustee and American Catholic priest, on Rag Radio
The Hon. Rev. Dr. Jayme Mathias is an East Austin community activist and the first openly-gay member of the Austin school board.
Rev. Dr. Jayme Mathias, center, with Rag Radio host Thorne Dreyer and, far right, engineer Tracey Schulz, at the KOOP studios in Austin, April 4, 2014. Photos by Roger Baker / The Rag Blog.
The Rev. Dr. Jayme Mathias — an Austin community activist, a priest in the American Catholic Church, and the first openly-gay member of the Austin School Board — joins us on Rag Radio, Friday, April 4, 2014, in a lively discussion of issues ranging from Pope Francis and his emphasis on inclusion, to the threat to public education from privatization and charter schools, to gentrification and displacement of minorities and the poor in East Austin and elsewhere.
Listen to or download the podcast of our April 4, 2014, Rag Radio interview with the Hon. Rev. Dr. Jayme Mathias, here:
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SPORT | Pat Tillman, the Boston Marathon, and a Tale of Two Anniversaries
Two upcoming sports anniversaries contain elements of tragedy, honor, and courage. But one won’t get much attention.
Cpl. Pat Tillman in 2003. A pro football player turned Army Ranger, he was killed by “friendly fire” in Afghanistan in 2004. Photo by AP.
Two wrenching anniversaries loom in the world of sports. Both are in many respects conjoined by the dominant narratives of the 21st century. Both show how the military adventures of the last decade have even breached the escapist sanctity of the sports page. Both contain elements of tragedy, honor, and courage. But you can guarantee, that one of these anniversaries will get a whole hell of a lot more attention than the other.
On Monday, April 21, the Boston Marathon will take place, and we will be compelled to remember the horror of last year’s bombing attack at the finish line. Three were killed and over 250 were injured. Two immigrant brothers, driven by their anger, ideology, and alienation towards what is called “The Global War on Terror” set the blasts. Two brothers: one now dead the other facing state execution.
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Posted in RagBlog
Tagged 9/11, Boston Bombings, Boston Marathon, Dave Zirin, Football, Friendly Fire, Iraq War, NFL, Pat Tillman, Professional Sports, Rag Bloggers, Sports, U.S. Army
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METRO | Proposed system for court-appointed attorneys must have accountability
Lawyer up. Cartoon from TheDogs.
TRAVIS COUNTY — The proposal, reported in the Austin American-Statesman on April 12, to create a new system for the appointment of attorneys who represent poor criminal defendants in Travis County may have merit if there is sufficient accountability provided in the new system, a factor largely missing from the current court-appointed process.
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People’s History of Egypt, Part 21, Section 2, 1992-2000
A 2001 Human Rights Watch report outlined the severe human rights violations of the Mubarak regime between 1992 and 2000.
Prominent Egyptian social scientist and human rights activist Saad Eddin Ibrahim was imprisoned by Mubarak.
[With all the dramatic activity in Egypt, Bob Feldman’s Rag Blog “people’s history” series, “The Movement to Democratize Egypt,” could not be more timely. Also see Feldman’s “Hidden History of Texas” series on The Rag Blog.]
An October 2001 Human Rights Watch background report indicated in the following way the degree to which the U.S. government-backed Mubarak regime had still failed to democratize Egyptian society very much between 1992 and 2000:
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‘Dirty, Pretty Things’ with Oscar nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor is a movie you should see
Drama, exposé, thriller, and more, this is a powerful film that grabs and holds you from beginning to surprise ending.
Chiwetel Ejiofor stars in Dirty Pretty Things.
[In his weekly column, Alan Waldman reviews some of his favorite films and TV series that readers may have missed, including TV dramas, mysteries, and comedies from Canada, England, Ireland, and Scotland. Most are available on DVD and/or Netflix, and some episodes are on YouTube.]
Dirty, Pretty Things is a powerful 2002 British film, available on DVD, Netflix, and Netflix Instant streaming, about the harrowing challenges facing two undocumented immigrants who work at a posh London hotel and live in constant fear of deportation.
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Posted in RagBlog
Tagged Alan Waldman, British Films, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Criticism, Dirty Pretty Things, Film, Rag Bloggers, Vintage Films
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METRO | Robust UT-Austin campus coalition fights corporatized ‘shared services’ plan
Event: Stop Shared Services Rally
Sponsor: UT Save Our Community Coalition
Date: Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Time: Noon
Place: South Mall, University of Texas at Austin
Sponsor: UT Save Our Community Coalition
Date: Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Time: Noon
Place: South Mall, University of Texas at Austin
UT students protest “shared services.” Image from UT SSOC / Facebook.
AUSTIN — A robust coalition has emerged in opposition to a University of Texas plan for “shared services.” The plan, drafted for UT by Accenture, a global consulting corporation, would centralize administrative services, create call centers, and eliminate 500 jobs.
The UT Save Our Community Coalition (SSOC) has gathered more than 1,000 signatures on a petition opposing the University plan and will present them to the administration on April 23, the day of the rally.
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Posted in Metro, RagBlog
Tagged Accenture, Alice Embree, Bill Powers, Campuses, Higher Education, Metro, Public Education, Rag Bloggers, UT Faculty, UT Save Our Community Coalition, UT-Austin
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FRONT PAGE | Rag Radio interview with Austin’s Hall of Fame singer-songwriter Eliza Gilkyson, with live performance.
Posted in Metro, RagBlurb
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Wahoo! It’s Indian Summer
As Washington Redskin fans debate the political correctness of their team name, Indians fans and detractors grapple with the propriety of the grinning visage of Chief Wahoo.
The grinning visage of Chief Wahoo. Image from Cleveland Frowns.
It’s crazy time again in Cleveland. Lake Erie has thawed. The snow has finally melted. Baseball season is underway. Once again the perennial argument over the Cleveland Indians team logo is heating up.
As Washington Redskin fans debate the political correctness of their team name, Indians fans and detractors grapple with the propriety of the grinning visage of Chief Wahoo, official face of the Indians.
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