Mississippi, Giving Tuesday, Racism: 3 Stories You Should Read 11/27/2018

November 27, 2018 Confluence

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In the category of: Good news and bad news – the pendulum always swings…

A state of Hate

Most African-Americans polled immediately after the 2008 election called Obama’s victory “a dream come true,” one they never expected to see in their lifetime.

Not all Americans saw it that way. Racists viewed a black man in power as a signal of the browning of America. It was the sight they feared the most. They were terrified and infuriated.

White supremacists, Klansmen and others began to vent, plot and act. As Obama called for people to come together, they used his existence to drive the nation apart.

Their rallying cry became “We have a black man in the White House and you need to do something about it,” according to Ken Parker, then a KKK Grand Dragon and neo-Nazi.

“We would even joke amongst ourselves, we’re going to send President Obama a honorary membership to the Klan because he’s our … biggest recruiting tool.”

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In the category of: Tis the Season

Giving Tuesday explained

A short history of the new international day for giving back.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, has always been the kickoff event of the holiday shopping season, and one of the biggest shopping days of the year.

Marketing experts noticed how popular it was and followed it up with Cyber Monday, a second day of mega-sales focused on online shopping. It took off, making the period after Thanksgiving famous for its blitz of deals.

In 2012, the 92nd Street Y in New York and the United Nations Foundation introduced Giving Tuesday — the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving — with the hope that after several days of big sales and rampant consumption, there’d be interest in giving back.

They were right. Giving Tuesday went viral almost immediately.

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In the category of: The Soul of the South

What To Know About Mississippi’s Senate Runoff Election

Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and Democratic challenger Mike Espy face off Tuesday.

Voters in Mississippi head to the polls Tuesday for a Senate runoff election between Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and Democratic challenger Mike Espy. The final Senate seat up for grabs in this year’s midterm elections, the contest has drawn increased national attention due to a series of offensive comments from Hyde-Smith that hark back to the state’s racist history. If elected, Espy would become the state’s first black senator since Reconstruction.

The closer-than-expected race in a GOP stronghold has drawn comparisons to the Senate special election in Alabama last year, when Democrat Doug Jones pulled off a surprise victory against Republican Roy Moore, who had been accused of sexually assaulting or harassing nearly 10 girls and young women.

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