Destroying the freedom of association and liberty of contract

  I was recently staying in a hotel and noticed that the two women charged with cleaning the guest rooms were Hispanic. I couldn’t help but wonder whether they were here illegally. If so, they are among the millions of other illegal immigrants who are currently experiencing deep fear over the possibility of being arrested and deported. What a horrible way to have to live life. Moreover, the hotel owner (or manager) has to also live in fear over the possibility of being criminally charged for knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant.

We are what we think

  In the early 1900s, a little-known philosopher named James Allen wrote a powerful essay called “As a Man Thinketh” in which he argued that we are what we think, that a person’s character is the sum of his thoughts. He declared that the power to control our thoughts (whether we use that power or not) is the ability to mold our character and shape our destiny.

  This is a profound insight, making us personally responsible not only for our conduct but for our circumstances.

Sketches #1962: We must remember Jimmie Lee Jackson

  We must remember Jimmie Lee Jackson. He is a critical force in our history. He is a key reason we celebrate and commemorate the Bridge Crossing Jubilee. Let me tell you about Jimmie Lee Jackson. We must remember Jimmie Lee.

  It was February 18, 1965. Rev. James of Orange of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) was in the Perry County Jail in Marion, Alabama. The word was out that the Ku Klux Klan intended to get him out of jail late at night and murder him. The local voting rights movement leaders called a night mass meeting and a rare night march. Marches were very dangerous in the daytime and even more dangerous at night. We must remember Jimmie Lee.

The power of a song in a strange land

  From the moment of capture, through the treacherous middle passage, after the final sale, and throughout life in North America, the experience of enslaved Africans who first arrived at Jamestown, Virginia, some 400 years ago, was characterized by loss, terror, and abuse.

  The Abolition of the Slave Trade Act of 1807 made it illegal to buy and sell people in British colonies, but in the independent United States, slavery remained a prominent – and legal – practice until December 1865. From this tragic backdrop, one of the most poignant American musical genres, the Negro spiritual, was birthed.