The iPINIONS Journal
Commentaries on the Global Events of 2014—Volume X
by
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We must face the sad fact that at 11 o’clock on Sunday morning, when we stand to sing ‘In Christ there is no East or West,’ we stand in the most segregated hour of America.
(UC Berkley’s Oakland North, February 15, 2012)
This is the famous and widely reported declaration Martin Luther King Jr. made during, what turned out to be, his last Sunday sermon before he was assassinated. He delivered it at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC in 1968.
Alas, it speaks volumes that, almost 50 years later, America not only remains as segregated on Sunday during church services but seems equally so on Saturday during social occasions. This was brought into stark relief today when pictures of George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin’s wedding party went viral on social and mainstream media.
But let me hasten to clarify that I really couldn’t care any less who White folks invite to their nuptials. It’s just that, if a putative Hollywood liberal like George can have a wedding party as lily-White as his apparently was, then we must face the sad fact that the wedding hour on Saturday might be the second most segregated hour of America. After all, from Hollywood to Washington and even throughout Africa, no White celebrity appeared to have nurtured more cross-racial/cultural friendships than he. Yet, while it’s understandable that Barack Obama had far more pressing matters, it strains credulity that every one of his other Black "friends" was otherwise occupied.
It would be an entirely different matter, of course, if George and Amal had followed Brad and Angelina’s walk down the aisle by having a more private, family wedding held at their own home…
In any event, this lily-White wedding provides spectacular affirmation that MLK’s dream of a country where Blacks and Whites not only work and worship but also socialize together remains deferred….
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About the Book
Anthony L. Hall takes aim at the global events of 2014 with a unique and refreshing perspective. For example, on:
Media broadcasting terrorist propaganda as ‘breaking news’
“We live in a Twitter age of such promiscuous, indiscriminate and surreal media practices that it seems perfectly normal for our own media to be helping the enemy perpetrate psychological warfare against us. What else explains the media shielding us from the epithets of racists, but bombarding us with the taunts of terrorists?”
Snowboarder Shaun White failing to medal at Sochi Olympics
“Frankly, I think it’s fair to say that never before in Olympic history has an athlete so hyped to win gold failed to even win bronze.”
Only authoritarian regimes can govern Arab countries
“Show me an Arab country governed by a democratically elected government and I’ll show you one that is an ungovernable mess.”
Feminist call for liberated women to ditch high heels
“It’s a reflection of the addictive high women get on heels that, when they’re barefoot (or wearing tennis shoes), they invariably perch themselves on the balls of their feet to simulate those missing high heels. Have you noticed this?”
Putinization of Russia
“Putin’s propaganda has done such a terrific job of convincing Russians that Westerners are undermining their culture at home and threatening the safety of fellow Russians abroad, the credibility of his presidency now depends on backing up his neo-Stalinist words with avenging military action.”
Police in U.S. killing unarmed Black men
“If I hear another political or civic leader calling for a ‘conversation on race,’ I’m going to puke. Because nothing will do more to curb deadly encounters between the police and young Black men than requiring the former to attach cameras to their bulletproof vests and prevailing upon the latter to obey police orders.”
About the Author
Anthony L. Hall
is a Washington-based lawyer who is licensed to practice in a number of foreign jurisdictions. He hails from The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands and attended some of America’s best schools, including Williams College. He is also a syndicated columnist and the author of The iPINIONS Journal, a weblog of enlightening and entertaining commentaries that provide a refreshing take on current events. He lives in Arlington, Virginia.Visit him online at http://ipjn.com.