labor

A Day in the Life of a Day Laborer

Stephen Franklin In These Times
He waits along with more than 100,000 others who gather daily on dozens of street corners across the United States, according to figures from 2006. It is a world, where workers are often cheated out of their wages, injured on the job and then left without medical care, according to a 2006 survey. Where workers who complain often suffer retaliation by employers who fire them, suspend them, or threaten to call immigration officials.

tv

In Its First Season, The Handmaid’s Tale’s Greatest Failing Is How It Handles Race

Angelica Jade Bastién New York Magazine
How can you attempt to craft a political, artistically rich narrative that trades in the real-life experiences of black and brown women, while ignoring them and the ways sexism intersects with racism? The bodies and histories of black and brown women prove to be useful templates for shows like The Handmaid’s Tale, but our actual voices aren’t.

tv

"Master of None" Returns With Class and Daring For Season Two

Max Havey Vox
Master of None's second season tackles the intersection of queer identities and race, as well as the diversity of New York City, painting a fuller picture of the city than shows that have come before like Girls, or even Louie.

tv

Marque Richardson on His Big Episode of Dear White People and How Art Can Be Activism

Jackson McHenry New York Magazine
In the wrenching fifth episode of the series, Reggie gets into a fight with a white character who uses the N-word at a party, then winds up held at gunpoint by the campus police. As Richardson explained, the episode, which was directed by Moonlight’s Barry Jenkins, rejiggered the structure of the show and forced the writers to figure out a new way forward.

Movie | Get Out

When a young African-American man visits his white girlfriend’s family estate, he becomes ensnared in a more sinister real reason for the invitation.

tv

Jessica Henwick’s Iron Fist Role to ‘Inspect’ Asian Stereotypes

Brandon Staley Comic Book Resources
Henwick spoke how the series is looking to investigate the Asian stereotypes that spawned the character, rather than rely on them. When asked about concerns over the character’s Orientalist origins, Henwick recounted her own recent journey from actively avoiding Asian character roles to embracing them — so long as there’s something meaningful to say.

books

Remembering Martin Luther King's Last, Most Radical Book

Peter Kolozi and James Freeman New Politics
Martin Luther King's last book was downplayed when it was first published in 1967; even radicals thought it passe. On the 50th anniversary of its first publication--it is still in print-- the reviewers find much of value here for contemporary readers.

Tidbits - February 16, 2017 - Reader Comments - Lots: James Baldwin; Elizabeth Warren; Know Your Rights Guide; Readers debate role of Russia; Japanese Internment; Exploiting Black Labor; Resources; Announcements: and more...

Portside
Reader Comments - Lots: James Baldwin: "I Am Not Your Negro"; Elizabeth Warren - Nevertheless, She Persisted; Know Your Rights guide from the ACLU; Readers debate role of Russia; Iowa's New Union Busting Law - what it means for the whole country; Lessons from the Japanese Internment for Today's Anti-Immigrant Hysteria; Exploiting Black Labor after the Abolition of Slavery; Resources; Announcements: and more...
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