Why is it wrong to teach students about diversity, equity and inclusion?

  The college where I teach had always been very progressive. It encouraged faculty and staff to exercise freedom of speech and welcomed inclusive speakers, lessons and events.

  Texas Senate Bill 17 was passed in May 2023, and almost overnight things changed. This law, similar to ones in two of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s focus states of Florida and Alabama, bans diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in public colleges and universities. Colleges that do not comply can lose millions in state funding. Administrators explained to us what speech was prohibited, such as requiring attendance for certain speakers.

  I wondered how I could teach without violating the law and how it would affect events for students.

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.

What shaped King’s prophetic vision?

  The name Martin Luther King Jr. is iconic in the United States. President Barack Obama spoke of King in both his Democratic National Convention nomination acceptance and victory speeches in 2008:

    “[King] brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln’s Memorial… to speak of his dream.”

  Indeed, much of King’s legacy lives on in such arresting oral performances. They made him a global figure.

Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill's comments on voter registration are cynical, ignorant

  In an interview with a documentary filmmaker, Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill attacked automatic voter registration as the “sorry and lazy way out” and cited the sacrifices made by civil rights leaders like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) as a reason not to make voting more accessible to more Americans.