In creating the myth of Zeus as their supreme deity, ancient Greek male politicians attempted to naturalize misogyny. Misogyny, “dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women,” from the Greek root “hatred [of] women,” centuries later found full-throated expression in U.S. politics through the hearings and eventual confirmation of the misogynist Kavanaugh for a…
Author: Michael Vavrus
“The state of the union for the Left after Trump’s first year in office”
I can almost hear centrist Democrats and other mainstream liberals saying how “idealistic” or “unrealistic” broad calls for social justice are. Never mind that numerous progressive goals proposed in the U.S. are common, legislated practices in many European nations and Canada. Without a vision of where we’d like our nation to become, it’s nearly impossible to…
Could Doug Jones have Won in Alabama if He were Black or Female?
While many of us bask in the glimmer of hope offered with the defeat of Roy Moore by Doug Jones for an Alabama U.S. Senate seat, we might ask ourselves if a Doug Jones-type candidate could have won if the individual were Black or female, White or Black? Despite the Black vote that clearly…
Comments at Recent Board of Trustees Meeting
Background: In Spring of 2107 the Evergreen State College was rocked with protests originating both on and off campus, including a threat by an individual who stated in a 911 call, “Yes, I am on my way to Evergreen now with a .44 Magnum. … I am going to execute as many people on that campus…
Movement Toward a “Third Reconstruction”
Trump and “Charlottesville” have opened yet another history chapter, so to speak, for the education of the public to the radicalized foundations of the U.S. Contrary to his campaign promise, Trump didn’t “drain the swamp.” Instead, Trump and his minions liberated neo-Nazis and neo-Confederates from the muck and shadows of the swamp. Yet we have…
Recalling Howard Zinn and “The Coming Revolt of the Guard” in the Trump Era
In A People’s History of the United States, the late Howard Zinn included a chapter that offered his own perspective on how progressive social movements can derail a political status quo. During the first 10 days into Führer Trump’s regime and visible resistance to his Electoral College appointment as U.S. president, I’ve been recalling Zinn’s perspective…
Trump’s Election & Characteristics of Authoritarianism
As we move forward in this new era of Trumpism, it will be important to keep in mind what the challenges ahead are likely as authoritarianism gains increasing legitimacy at all levels (for example, Trump’s demand to force children to salute the flag…and much worse…). Because many students I’ve had did not understand the authoritarian streak that…
Children Saluting the Flag in Public Schools
San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick definitely has the nation’s attention by his decision to not stand during the national anthem. In a Labor Day press conference, even President Obama weighed in on Kaepernick for following the First Amendment by “exercising his constitutional right” to protest police impunity in the use of excessive…
Trump and “Second Amendment People”
By now it’s no secret that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s appeal is to White voters who heed his racist dog-whistle. Only this week did Trump make any gesture toward Black voters, and that was in room that was 99% White and just 40 miles north of Milwaukee, where rioting recently took…
On the Killing of Dallas Police Officers
As horrific and unjustifiable as the lone sniper’s killing of Dallas Police Officers last night are, this ought not be surprising in light of the growing frustration at police impunity to use excessive force on civilians, especially on populations of color. The sniper was not part of any organized group, including Black Lives…