Monthly Archives: April 2016

The Beheading of a Saint: Junipero Serra and the California Monument Wars

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Richard Esbenshade

During his visit to Mexico in February, Pope Francis apologized for the “systematic and organized” exclusion of indigenous Americans over the centuries. This took place in San Cristobal de las Casas, the epicenter of the indigenous-identified Zapatista uprising in 1994, … Continue reading →

Posted in Indigenous, Latino/a, Politics | Comments Off

Students Rally for Coal Divestment

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Richard Esbenshade

On April 4, the student group UIUC Beyond Coal rallied on the Quad to push the Academic Senate to pass a resolution urging the University divest $5.1 million held in the coal industry through stock index funds, in order to slow … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Politics | Comments Off

Reframing Refugees: Looking Beyond Borders in Champaign-Urbana

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Alexandra van Doren

The St. Louis Perhaps you have heard of the Voyage of the St. Louis. On May 13th, 1939, a ship with 937 passengers aboard, predominantly Jewish, set sail from Hamburg en route to Havana. Among the 937 men, women, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Rights, Immigration, International | Comments Off

Crime at the News-Gazette

Posted on 04/25/2016 by David Prochaska

There has been considerable recent discussion – and argument – over racial disparities in traffic stops. In Urbana, the findings of a “Traffic Stop Data Task Force Report” are being discussed at City Council meetings. In Champaign, a different report with … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

Nigerian Man Connects with African American and Caribbean Cousins Through AncestryDNA

Posted on 04/25/2016 by LaKisha David

“My maternal grandmother told me … that way back in time, we had family members who went to the stream to fetch water and never returned. This stuck in my psyche for all those years,” said Ade. As a young … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, DNA Testing, International | Comments Off

Youth Poetry

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Public i

MY CURLY HAIR by Amina Alamin My curly hair can do anything it can be in big braids and in little braids and curled in to ringlets and many more things. Some people don’t like my hair and some people … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Arts, Community Forum, Education, Policing, Youth | Comments Off

Radical Women-An Historical Perspective

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Julie Laut

“Women have to find a script, a narrative to live by, because all other scripts are likely to depict them in roles that fit the conventional stereotypes.” Mamphela Ramphele Last month in these pages I wrote about my personal journey as … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Rights, Voices of Color, Women | Comments Off

Citizens Divided: the Presidential Campaign and Film

Posted on 04/25/2016 by Audrey Wells

Audrey Wells (Audrey Wells is a retired educator, freelance writer, and co-author of The Art of Theater: Playing Movies for 100 Years.) In an important film from the 2008 presidential race, Ann Coulter warns of Hillary Clinton: “She’s far more … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts | Comments Off

UIUC is Balancing a False Budget “Crisis” on the Backs of Students and Faculty

Posted on 04/10/2016 by Mary Grace Hebert

Illinois has not yet passed a state budget for higher education, and schools like Chicago State have been left in the lurch. According to the Chicago Tribune, Chicago State will not be able to pay employees after April. Similarly, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Labor/Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Comments Off

#North Carolina Tweet Goes Viral

Posted on 04/06/2016 by Public i

This tweet by U of I student Stephanie Skora, written in response to the homophobic and transphobic law HB2 in North Carolina, garnered over 7,400 retweets on Twitter and was also shared widely on Facebook: “Time to remind folks that … Continue reading →