22 October 2015
Oct. 22nd, 2015 at 10:25 AM
chaya
ontd_political
The major media networks have been eerily silent about the latest wave of racist violence.
In the last 10 days, five black churches have been set on fire in the St. Louis area. And unlike the last wave of black church fires this summer in which weather played a role in some of the fires, these all appear to be the work of arsonists. The lack of media coverage about these fires is highly-noticeable, given the media’s hyper-intensive coverage of rioters in Baltimore setting fire to a CVS earlier this year.
“It is arson,” St. Louis Fire Department captain Garon Mosby told Fox 2 Saint Louis. “These are being intentionally set.”
This most recent wave of church fires are taking place in North St. Louis, near Ferguson, where racial tensions have been particularly high since the August 2014 shooting of Michael Brown. The department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is investigating the arsons.
On October 8th, the first fire was set at the Bethel Non-Denominational Church. Between October 10th and October 14th, three more churches were burned — New Northside Missionary Baptist Church, St. Augustine Catholic Church, and the New Testament Church of Christ. In the early hours of Saturday morning, another fire was set at the New Life Missionary Baptist Church. All 5 churches are within three miles of each other.
Prior to these latest church burnings, black churches were burned across the South following the June 17 killings of 9 people in the racially-inspired act of domestic terrorism at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. Those fires raged in Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. In that wave of fires, only three were ruled as arson. But as Capt. Mosby told local media, all 5 of these are being investigated as arson.
The destruction of black churches and community activism is a popular tactic among hate groups.
“Strike at the Black church, and you strike at the heart of Black American life,” said journalist and commentator David A. Love.
According to The Atlantic, white supremacist and affiliated groups planted more than 50 devices targeting black churches, black leaders, Jews, and Catholics between 1947 and 1965. And for a 72-month stretch starting in January of 1995, there were 945 acts of suspected arson against places of worship, many of which were black churches. That rash of arsons led to the creation of the National Church Arson Task Force. The task force has since been disbanded.
As the #BlackLivesMatter movement gains momentum and power, the backlash from white supremacists appears to be intensifying. This powerful reaction from racists in the US has taken many forms — from pundits blaming acts of violence against police on the movement to local law enforcement rallying against it.
Give the rise of a new wave of racist violence against black churches, perhaps Congress should consider the creation of a new task force to both investigate those behind attacks on black churches and find ways to better protect places of worship from arson and vandalism. The First Amendment’s guarantee of the people’s right to worship freely should be the only justification needed for swift action to protect America’s churches from future acts of racist violence.
(Source has more links.)
Tags:
missouri, race/racism, religion
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TITLE: Ad Perpetuam Rei Memoriam
AUTHOR: kerkevik_2014
CHARACTER: Susan,
RATING: PG-13
WORD COUNT: 100
A/N: This is a Susan POV (written for dw100 prompt #573: survive; thoughts as time passes after her grandfather (William Hartnell's Doctor) leaves her behind on Earth at the conclusion of “The Dalek Invasion of Earth”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um5Cn5eHsGo
It had gone bad so fast.
Just as a new stability was spreading they were hit by marauders; from the Germanies, and the Mediterranean.
The British islands were destroyed as they fought each other.
David had been executed as a peace dividend.
Before long she was the only one who could even remember the Daleks.
For a while she'd hoped her grandfather would return.
Knowing better made it easier to submit to the truth as Britain was stripped.
As forests were planted; animals farmed; people traded, she found herself leading a resistance.
She only had the key to remind her.
May the Goddess watch over us all,
Kerk TehKek
TITLE: Fingering the Suspect
AUTHOR: kerkevik_2014
CHARACTERS/PAIRING: Caitlin Todd, Abby Sciuto, Cait/Abby;
GENRE: femslash
RATING: R,
WORD COUNT: 250
CHALLENGE: started for ncis_drabble #459: nose; completed and posted now since it works for #460: hands as well.
SUMMARY: Cait and Abby got a little friendly; too friendly?
Caitlin didn't bother reporting to her desk when she got in; heading straight down to the lab for words with Abby.
After last night words needed to be had.
No regrets, but she'd forgotten how much she needed some sex in her life.
Both had been less than sober, but Abby's scent had been too intoxicating.
For either of them.
She wasn't the first woman Kate had slept with, but Abby was too young; too free and too important a part of the team for sex to interfere in their work.
All she told herself as she watched Abby from the doorway, stunned.
If Abby knew she was there, she didn't let on.
She seemed too engrossed in whatever totally inappropriate material was on the screen.
The scent coming from Abby now was lube as she worked a vibrator in her ass; fingers of the other hand in her pussy.
Almost before she realised what she was doing; certainly without hope of stopping herself, Kate had her pants open; underwear pulled aside.
Her own fingers working assiduously in unity as she kept her gaze tunnel-visioned on Abby's; Kate reached her orgasm bare moments after Abby reached hers.
As her vision cleared, she saw Abby watching her with a smile as she redressed herself.
It was perfectly clear that Abby needed to have no words with her.
“Back to work, “ she said unrepentantly, as Kate hurriedly fixed her own clothing and wandered, a little dazed, back upstairs.
May the Goddess watch over us all,
Kerk TehKek
First of Two
TITLE: Too Easily Swallowed
AUTHOR: kerkevik_2014
FANDOM: BtVS, post-series; set in my 22'verse,
RATING: PG-13 (written for open_on_sunday prompt #615: no regrets, but unable to post in time)
WORD COUNT: 100
SUMMARY: Buffy's pov over people's perceptions and her inability to communicate.
She felt it about Riley, until she met Sam.
Knowing she'd lose him to Nina, she felt little over Angel.
There was little over keeping Faith from Xander; they'd other reasons for their awkward silences.
Everyone missed Will, but when she wouldn't talk Kennedy didn't mind as much.
Until Gazaleh she felt some not being able to give Satsu what she needed.
She sometimes regretted Spike's absence, but nowhere as often as people assumed.
“Regret can be a bitter poison, “ her mom told her, “too easily swallowed.”
Buffy heard her; only regretting nobody realised she had what she really needed.
May the Goddess watch over us all,
Kerk TehKek
Second of Two
TITLE: Standing Still, Whilst Moving Forward
AUTHOR: kerkevik_2014
FANDOM: BtVS S1
RATING: PG (written for open_on_sunday prompt #615: no regrets, but unable to post in time)
WORD COUNT: 100
SUMMARY: Joyce's reflections after moving to Sunnydale.
She did miss LA's bustle, but Sunnydale's quiet streets were a boon.
The gallery was popular; filling her time, so her friends; absentee when she'd needed them, were not as much a loss as she'd expected.
The social life was disappointingly suburban; satisfying nothing. She was the boss, so not readily invited into the settled lives of her employees.
She felt relief that there was only the one child; but regret there were no more was still keen.
At least Buffy had found friends quickly, though she still seemed so quiet.
Sunnydale had no bookshop, so she proactively thought Book Club.
May the Goddess watch over us all,
Kerk TehKek
TITLE: For the Team
AUTHOR: kerkevik_2014
FANDOM: Torchwood (written for tw100 prompt #365: rejected)
CHARACTER(S): Gwen Cooper
WORD COUNT: 100
RATING: PG-13
SUMMARY: Set post the death of Ianto Jones; Gwen reflects on the after effects.
Jack seemed as gone as Ianto.
He was getting dangerously obsessed with work.
His work, not theirs; stressed, vocally, to the point of fights on occasion.
He was morose; both depressed, and depressing, when he couldn't work.
Drunk too.
Gwen had thought she knew a way to start the healing.
She was both wrong... and right.
Consulting no-one, she seduced him; getting him fed and drunk, and naked.
But he sobered up before she had to carry her plan through any further.
She was relieved; if a little hurt that he actually turned her down.
He returned to the team though.
May the Goddess watch over us all,
Kerk TehKek
Suits my mood lately.
kerk