MetaFilter posts tagged with socialjustice

Fred Hampton: The Assassination of a Black Panther

invitapriore — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 20:48:36 -0800

December 4th, 2009 marked the fortieth anniversary of the assassination of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton. Among the activities undertaken by the FBI as part of their Counterintelligence Program (COINTELPRO), the organization of Fred Hampton's assassination by the Chicago Police stands out as one of the most egregious and tragic. As a charismatic leader and effective organizer, Hampton was an obvious target for J. Edgar Hoover's FBI, which was largely responsible for the dissolution of the black political movement by the 1970s (or, as Michael C. Dawson puts it in his book Black Visions, the undermining of "the institutional foundation for the black counterpublic" (36)). His death occurred in the middle of the filming of a documentary about his activities as a Black Panther, which became The Murder of Fred Hampton (Google video link to the full documentary). Forty years later, Simon Balto hopes that another charismatic black leader from Chicago will pay similar attention to the nation's poor. Also see: the FOIA request of the FBI's documents on Fred Hampton [PDF], a collection of speeches by Fred Hampton, Jr., and the documentary Death of a Black Panther: The Fred Hampton Story, which features interviews with Hampton's girlfriend Deborah Johnson, police officers involved in the raid, and others. (Some links reposted with the permission of Mefi user aquathug.)

Chavez' Venezuela At 10 Years

Rykey — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 07:31:21 -0800

Just ahead of a re-election referendum in Venezuela (scheduled for February 15), The Chávez Administration at 10 Years: The Economy and Social Indicators [PDF][Via]

If not in your backyard, then whose?

desjardins — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:54:54 -0800

Newcomers, with the zeal of recent converts, are often the most vocal in resisting change to the neighborhood they have just discovered. An exploration of NIMBYism. If not in your backyard, then whose? Probably a low-income minority group. Opposition to affordable housing is often thinly-veiled racism. How NIMBYism affects a seven-year old boy on LA's skid row. African-Americans fight back against environmental injustice. A Latina activist blogs about gentrification. There's also YIMBYs (Yes In My Backyard).

Osocio

divabat — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 01:57:46 -0800

Osocio is a blog that covers some of the best social marketing and non-profit advertising worldwide - whether it be through a careers fair, a "beauty" ad, or even through sex education.

Math classes with a cause.

jacalata — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 05:42:19 -0800

Maths classes + radical left wing = Radical Maths

Farewell Satya

homunculus — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 12:15:39 -0800

Satya Magazine's final issue is online. They're closing down after 13 years. Some articles from their back issues are also online.

Sorry for the NewsFilter

LouReedsSon — Wed, 08 Sep 2004 20:08:18 -0800

axisofjustice.org No need to comment... Just wanted to share.

Black Lois Lane

ColdChef — Thu, 26 Feb 2004 18:14:18 -0800

"Look at her, brothers and sisters! She's young and sweet and pretty! But never forget...she's Whitey!" The (Abridged) Adventures of Black Lois Lane.

Corporate fallout detecter

sharksandwich — Fri, 25 Jul 2003 12:40:41 -0800

From MIT's Media Lab: "The Corporate Fallout Detector reads barcodes off of consumer products, and makes a noise similar to a gieger counter of varying intensity based on the social or environmental record of the company that produces the product"

Lets not forget the good things

hoopyfrood — Mon, 31 Mar 2003 10:46:07 -0800

Cesar Chavez Day With our focus on the war lets not forget what DOES make this country great, its people! I have to confess ignorance of this mans accomplishments until I turned my calendar today. Read,enjoy, learn something about a man who fought injustice with the most powerful weapon...his mind!

systems theory Donella Meadow's

thedailygrowl — Sat, 18 Jan 2003 00:21:25 -0800

Dancing with Systems: What to do when systems resist change. Is an excerpt from the late Systems Theorist and Enviromentalist Donella Meadow's unfinished last book. There is beautiful information here. If you are confused and wondering about some of the ideas that has infused the world-wide peace, enviromental, social justice and anti-globalization movements (That is of course Globalization as defined by the Washington Consensus policies) you would be very hard pressed to find a better place to start. Here are points in the essay. Listen to the wisdom of the system. Expose your mental models to the open air. Stay humble. Stay a learner. Honor and protect information. Locate responsibility in the system. Make feedback policies for feedback systems. Pay attention to what is important, not just what is quantifiable. Go for the good of the whole. Expand time horizons. Expand thought horizons. Expand the boundary of caring. Celebrate complexity. Hold fast to the goal of goodness.

40 Watt — Thu, 20 Sep 2001 08:28:39 -0800

The American Friends Service Committee is a quaker-based, multi-faith national group advocating for peace & social justice on a variety of fronts. They have a sample letter urging peaceful government responses to terrorism which you can send or email to your representatives and Sheriff W. Better yet, use their email contact system and write your own letter.