A Very Different Fourth of July

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View this email in your browser Reflections on Race and Anti-Racism Recently on America Unfiltered, we've focused a lot on race and racial politics in America as well as the anti-racist movements emerging across Europe. This week we kick off with two complimentary pieces of content looking at these issues.  First, check out Allison Page's latest piece where she explores the nascent politicization of some Americans concerning race and lays out what steps we can take to go beyond generic "allyship": "What other possibilities exist, particularly in this moment? What might it look like if the non-profit industrial complex and white saviorism were dismantled in favor of mutual aid? As Ruth Wilson Gilmore and other prison abolitionists underscore, abolition is not just about absence or removal; rather, it requires the presence of resources that communities need to thrive in a world beyond prisons and police. In the wake of a pandemic that is disproportionately affecting BIPOC communities and the attendant uprising against these intertwined forms of violence and dispossession, it is crucial to follow the lead of those who have for so long imagined other futures.  Read Article Here >> Then listen to this America Unfiltered podcast episode featuring a conversation Liam had with anti-racism activist and campaigner, Ebun Joseph, about racism in Ireland and how the Black Lives Matter movement has highlighted the fight against systemic injustices here. The Inside Line from Scott Lucas  What You Need to Know Now  A Coronavirus 4th of July: Independence Day celebrations are cloaked in a surge of the virus, with six daily records in 10 days and rising cases in 46 of 50 states. Governors pull back on lifting of restrictions, but Donald Trump defies social distancing and says virus "will soon disappear". March March: Black Lives Matter marches continue across the US, as some State and local communities began to grasp the nettle of changes to policing --- but issues of income disparity, housing, education, and health care are still in the distance. Culture War or Leadership?: Trump pins his re-election campaign on portrayal of a culture war against "angry left-wing fascists". Democratic nominee Joe Biden emphasizes "leadership" and responsibility", as he puts priority on social and economic issues, including race relations. Trump AWOL Over Russian Bounties on US Troops: US intelligence assesses that Moscow paid the Taliban to kill US and coalition troops in Afghanistan. The White House covers for Trump after he declares ignorance of the situation. China Crisis: Beijing's political and security crackdown on Hong Kong puts US agencies in a bind --- they want a firm response, but Trump's affinity for Chinese leader Xi Jinping and lack of interest in the island limits any response. Special Podcast Episode: A Very Different Fourth of July  Fourth of July, when America declared independence from Britain in 1776, is an annual celebration synonymous with big public displays of patriotism, parades, outdoor barbecues, fireworks and family gatherings. But this year, things were different... Scott & Liam take stock of where America is as it celebrates this most awkward of birthdays and Fiona McEntee, Founding & Managing Attorney of McEntee Law Group, joins from Chicago to help us decipher Donald Trump's most recent immigration bans. Listen Here >> and don't forget to Subscribe Here >>  Black Power Policing: The Afro-American Patrolmen’s League Matthew O’Brien, Irish Research Council Fellow in the School of History at University College Dublin, has a brilliant new piece out chronicling the rise of the Afro-American Patrolmen’s League (AAPL) in Chicago in 1968: "They interpreted the mounting disregard for black life as a calling for black officers to “assert the interests of the black community to professional, non-racist law enforcement,” articulating that black police would “no longer be pawns in a chess game” adversely affecting their communities. By adopting Black Power iconography and embracing the ideological trapping of “closing ranks,” the AAPL worked to cultivate a new image of proud black policemen that could truthfully fulfil the Chicago Police Department’s (CPD) maxim, “We Serve and Protect.”  Read More >> Where Are The Pandemic Robots? That's the question that's been bugging J. Jesse Ramírez during lockdown. Robots were supposed to be taking our jobs but when the pandemic hit, they were nowhere to be seen:  "For more than a decade, we have heard of the prospect that a new generation of automated technologies will learn how to do our jobs. Robots and algorithms could have been readied to step in during the lockdowns, proving that they can work more safely, cheaply, and efficiently than we can. But when Coronavirus raised the curtain on automation, people stepped into the spotlight. Robots aren’t staffing hospitals, stocking shelves at grocery stores, cooking and serving meals, disinfecting bathrooms, delivering packages, driving buses, or educating students. As the lockdowns begin to end, we must remember that today’s crisis is not about automation. It’s about how we value and protect the people whose labor sustains the world." Read More Here >> Check out UCD Clinton Institute's most recent promotional video.  Thank you for reading and please send us your comments and feedback. Until Next Time. America Unfiltered Team.  Copyright © 2020 UCD Clinton Institute. All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: americaunfiltered@ucd.ie  Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

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