Professor's Response to Twitter Slur Goes Viral; Inside Higher Ed, 8/30/16

Inside Higher Ed; Professor's Response to Twitter Slur Goes Viral:

[Kip Currier: Reading this story about Prof. Eric Mendenhall conjured up for me the memorable "When they go low, we go high" maxim from First Lady Michelle Obama's 2016 DNC speech.]

"The fall semester has just started but Eric Mendenhall, an assistant professor of biological sciences at the University of Alabama at Huntsville, already has schooled the Twitterverse on how to shut down slurs. Mendenhall said a student who had just followed him on Twitter posted that "My genetics teachers is a faggot." Believing the comment to be about him, the professor had this to say..."

Safe Spaces, Trigger Warnings And The University Of Chicago; On Point, WBUR, 8/31/16

[Podcast] On Point, WBUR; Safe Spaces, Trigger Warnings And The University Of Chicago:

"The University of Chicago is the latest school to push back against trigger warnings and safe spaces. We’ll look at the debate over political correctness on campus.

Guests

Stephanie Greene, senior at the University of Chicago, majoring in English. President of the Organization of Black Students. Member of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs Student Advisory Committee. (@all_worn_out)

Cosmo Albrecht, junior at the University of Chicago, majoring in public policy. Community and government liaison for the University of Chicago student government. Member of the student group, "Chicago Student Action." (@cosmo730)

Charles Lipson, professor of political science at the University of Chicago. (@Charles_Lipson)

Jonathan Chait, staff writer for New York magazine. (@jonathanchait)"

I’m a black UChicago graduate. Safe spaces got me through college.; Vox, 8/29/16

Cameron Okeke, Vox; I’m a black UChicago graduate. Safe spaces got me through college. :

"UChicago should know that trigger warnings and safe spaces exist to give those with firsthand experience a way to engage without sacrificing their well-being or safety. This accessibility is the key to a truly open marketplace of ideas and an essential pillar of academic freedom. Recklessly painting trigger warnings and safe spaces as enemies to academic freedom will only make UChicago a more hostile environment for marginalized first-years.

Being diverse isn't easy and our diversity ain’t free. Don’t let us in if you can’t make room for us."

"Alphabet"; Bizarro, 8/31/16

Dan Piraro, Bizarro; "Alphabet"

A Hero For The Arts And Sciences: Upcoming Marvel Covers Promote STEAM Fields; NPR, 8/28/16

Jason Slotkin, NPR; A Hero For The Arts And Sciences: Upcoming Marvel Covers Promote STEAM Fields:

"Readers may notice that Marvel's tapped a diverse field of heroes for the covers — characters Riri Williams and Moongirl are African-American, and Spiderman Miles Morales is of Hispanic and African-American descent — all working in fields in which educators and officials say women and minorities are underrepresented.

"The media literally shapes what people aspire to be," said Virginia Booth Womack, president of the National Association of Multicultural Engineering Program Advocates.

Womack also oversees recruitment and retainment efforts for students from underrepresented communities at Purdue University's College of Engineering. She says part of getting students to feel like they belong involves seeing people who look like them engaged in their field, in their own communities and the wider culture."

Colin Kaepernick protest has 49ers fans burning their jerseys; Washington Post, 8/28/16

Cindy Boren, Washington Post; Colin Kaepernick protest has 49ers fans burning their jerseys:

"Kaepernick’s team spoke of the symbolism of the anthem while also pointing out that Kaepernick’s protest was in keeping with “such American principles as freedom of religion and freedom of expression.” His coach, Chip Kelly, supported his right to protest.

The NFL, in a statement, said that players are “encouraged but not required” to stand for the anthem and O’Connor, among others, defended Kaepernick, writing: “This is what American servicemen and women have defended here and abroad — Kaepernick’s right to sing the national anthem at the top of his lungs, and to refuse honor it altogether. As long as he’s not interfering with his teammates’ right to make their own red, white and blue choices, what’s the problem here?”"

Vintage posters of America's national parks – in pictures; Guardian, 8/26/16

Sarah Gilbert, Guardian; Vintage posters of America's national parks – in pictures:

"A collection of posters created to promote tourism to the national parks is part of the creative legacy of the New Deal developed by Franklin D Roosevelt. Between 1938 and 1941, the Works Progress Administration and its Federal Arts Project designed a series of artworks promoting, and inspired by, the landscapes and wildlife of the parks. The collection is housed in the Library of Congress"

The alt-right attacks sci-fi: How the Hugo Awards got hijacked by Trumpian-style culture warriors; Salon, 8/23/16

Amanda Marcotte, Salon; The alt-right attacks sci-fi: How the Hugo Awards got hijacked by Trumpian-style culture warriors:

"Since 1955, the Hugos have been awarded through a fairly straightforward process: Members of the World Science Fiction Convention nominate and then vote on their favorites in a variety of categories. Past winners have included luminaries like Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, Connie Willis, Robert Heinlein and George R.R. Martin.

That all changed two years ago, when a group of conservative sci-fi fans and writers, believing that sci-fi had been taken over by “social justice warriors” who supposedly emphasize diversity and progressive themes over quality, revolted and set out to take over the Hugos so that the nominees and winners were whiter, more male, and more conservative.

Two overlapping groups of conservatives — deeming themselves the Sad Puppies (more standard conservatives) and the Rabid Puppies (more alt-right and white supremacist) — began publishing suggested ballots, prior to the Hugo nominations, so that their people could vote for finalists as a bloc and crowd all other potential nominees off the ballot. Collectively, they are known as the Puppies, a choice which not coincidentally makes them sound cuter and sweeter than a nest full of reactionaries and outright bigots has any right to sound."

Students Won the Campus Culture War; Daily Beast, 8/23/16

Lizzie Crocker, Daily Beast; Students Won the Campus Culture War:

"As of December 2015, students at roughly 80 schools nationwide had submitted lists of demands to their universities: calls for new deans and presidents, more globalized curricula at liberal arts colleges, and school-endorsed “safe spaces” for minority groups, among other things.

Many universities and colleges have attempted to assuage students—and right the wrongs of history—by abandoning symbols and traditions with ties to racism, colonialism, and slavery...

Indeed, a number of liberal arts schools have developed new diversity and inclusion initiatives in response to protests by the “Firebrand Generation”—a nickname, coined the New Yorker’s Nathan Heller, for today’s politically restive students.

As the new school year begins, it’s clear that universities are bending to student activists’ forcefully stated will.

These students have won many small and large battles against old-school institutions, sometimes refusing to eat until their vilified college leaders resigned. Do not expect students’ demands for change to die down anytime soon.

Here’s our guide to the most high-profile student protests over the last year—and how school administrations are heeding their calls for change."

Trolls Will Save The World; Breitbart, 8/20/16

Milo, Breitbart; Trolls Will Save The World:

"A warped currency today governs popular culture. Instead of creativity, talent and boldness, those who succeed are often those who can best demonstrate outrage, grievance and victimhood. Even conservatives are buying into it. Witness, in the days since Breitbart executive chairman Stephen K. Bannon was announced as Donald Trump’s campaign manager, how establishment stooges have bought into the worst smear-tactics of the left. As with the left, nothing is evaluated on its quality, or whether it’s factually accurate, thought-provoking or even amusing: only whether it can be deemed sexist, racist or homophobic.

Campuses are where the illness takes its most severe form. Students running for safe spaces at the slightest hint of a challenge to their coddled worldview. Faculties and administrations desperately trying to sabotage visits from conservative speakers (often me!) to avoid the inevitable complaints from tearful lefty students.

In this maelstrom of grievance, there is one group boldly swimming against the tide: trolls.

Trolling has become a byword for everything the left disagrees with, particularly if it’s boisterous, mischievous and provocative. Even straightforward political disagreement, not intended to provoke, is sometimes described as “trolling” by leftists who can’t tell the difference between someone who doesn’t believe as they do and an “abuser” or “harasser.”...

...I believe there’s one environment where trolls have yet to fully penetrate, and where they could make all the difference: the university campus.

This is the epicenter of the feelings-focused, danger-phobic, coddling culture described by Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff in their viral Atlantic essay. This is where the disease starts, adopts its most virulent form, and then spreads itself out, diluted, to the rest of society. This is the place where the doctrine of political correctness is freshest, and also where its adherents are at their most fragile. This, more than anywhere else, is where we need to see frog memes."

Black woman inundated with racist abuse while tweeting for @Ireland; Guardian, 8/22/16

Bonnie Malkin, Guardian; Black woman inundated with racist abuse while tweeting for @Ireland:

"A black British woman who was chosen to tweet from the @ireland account for a week has been subjected to a barrage of racist abuse, forcing her to take a break from Twitter.

Michelle Marie took over the account – which is curated by a different Twitter user in Ireland each week – on Monday. She introduced herself as a mother, blogger and plus-size model.

Originally from Oxford in England, she wrote she had settled in Ireland and “it has my heart”.

However, just hours after taking over the profile – which is followed by nearly 40,000 people – the abuse began."

If US national parks are to continue to thrive they must reflect the diversity of our population; Guardian, 8/21/16

James Edward Mills, Guardian; If US national parks are to continue to thrive they must reflect the diversity of our population:

"As the NPS celebrates its 100th anniversary this week, the idea of public land for everyone to enjoy is the basis of a new vision of environmental conservation to carry us through the next 100 years. Though rival candidates in our presidential election debate the many social issues which drive us apart, too often along racial and socio-economic lines, I am optimistic for the power of nature to bring us together, despite our differences, as a united people. The Next 100 Coalition, led by national park advocate Audrey Peterman, aims to raise awareness about making our natural spaces more accessible and inviting for all people, regardless of race or ethnicity, to enjoy. The Next 100 Coalition includes a variety of different organisations, including Outdoor Afro, a community network with leaders in 28 states, which promotes positive experiences in nature for African-American families...

In the next century of national park conservation, the coalition insists that we must acknowledge the contributions of African-American, Latino, Asian and Native American explorers and adventurers. Matthew Henson (it is the 150th anniversary of his birth is this week) was a black man from Baltimore, Maryland, who, with Robert Peary, was the first person to reach the North Pole in 1909. And Walter Harper, a native Athabaskan of Alaska, was the first to reach the summit of Denali, the highest peak in North America, in 1913. We have to inspire young people from all backgrounds to pursue study that will expand their knowledge and love of the natural world and preserve it into the future."

How The U.S. Navy Named a Ship After Harvey Milk To Show Its LGBT Pride; Daily Beast, 8/20/16

Lizzie Crocker, Daily Beast; How The U.S. Navy Named a Ship After Harvey Milk To Show Its LGBT Pride:

"“It’s important to remember and honor naval heroes—sailors and marines who have sacrificed so much for America,” [Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus] said. “But it’s also important to recognize and honor those who have fought in a different way and sacrificed… those who have fought for the ideals that we cherish as a nation: justice, equality, and freedom.”

Under his leadership, the Navy has now created a new naming convention (in January, Mabus named the first ship in this new class of command replenishment vessels after John Lewis, the Georgian politician and civil rights activist).

“My uncle always told me that it poisoned the soul to have to lie about or hide who you were,” [Stuart Milk, Harvey’s nephew and leader of the Harvey Milk Foundation] said, recalling how his uncle gave him a book in 1972, Seven Arrows, about Native Americans when Stuart was 12 and not yet out of the closet.

“He told me that my authenticity and the fact that I felt different from everyone else was important, and he wrote in the front, ‘All of your differences are the medicine that the world needs, even when the world doesn’t recognize that.’ I think the USNS Harvey Milk can telegraph that message to the world.”"

This couple didn’t tip their Latina server. They left a hateful message instead.; Washington Post, 8/21/16

Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Washington Post; This couple didn’t tip their Latina server. They left a hateful message instead. :

"About that time, John Elledge walked into the restaurant. He’d heard that the people who wrote the nasty message to Sadie were back and marched to the restaurant to meet them face to face.

“We didn’t talk much,” Elledge told The Post.” She was mad that I posted it … the guy, he was being really belligerent.”

” … She was asking me why I posted it,” Elledge said. “I said obviously, it was an insult — your signature against my granddaughter — darn right I’m going to post it. And no apologies.”"

U.S. swimmer ignites interest in unusual chest condition; KPNX, 8/19/16

Pete Scholz, KPNX; U.S. swimmer ignites interest in unusual chest condition:

"It was June 2016, right after Cody Miller, 24, qualified for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. It was then he shared with the world what he had been dealing with for the past 10 years or so...

Doctors told Miller his breathing was likely reduced by as much as 20 percent. ASU student Michael Mihuc had a similar experience as a young teenager...

Miller inspired many, many people to not let pectus slow them down, and the same could be said for Mihuc. He's gone back to school to become a doctor to help patients who are also dealing with this tough condition."

Rendell: USA shows off its wonderfully diverse athletes at Olympics; Philly.com, 8/19/16

Ed Rendell, Philly.com; Rendell: USA shows off its wonderfully diverse athletes at Olympics:

"The first thing I noticed about our team was that there were more women than men (292 to 263). Then it quickly became apparent that our team was more diverse than ever before, as fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad - the first Muslim-American Olympian to compete wearing a hijab - was part of the contingent. As the games unfolded, that diversity became even more apparent...

As the Olympics draw to a close, America is again proving its greatness when it comes to sports. We have won nearly twice as many medals as our nearest competitor, China. Our team is diverse, inclusive and encompasses Americans from every region of our country and from every possible background.

While I have enjoyed all of the success the team has had, perhaps the most enjoyable part of the Olympics for me is learning about all of the incredible life stories and backgrounds of our athletes. Though we still have problems, we are a great country with great people, and our diversity is one of the most important things that makes us great.

CC: Donald Trump"

LOOK: MARVEL HONORS MATHS, SCIENCES & OTHER EDUCATION WITH STEAM-THEMED VARIANTS; Comic Book Resources, 8/19/16

Andrew Paul, Comic Book Resources; LOOK: MARVEL HONORS MATHS, SCIENCES & OTHER EDUCATION WITH STEAM-THEMED VARIANTS:

"It might be obvious, but in addition to being superheroes, many Marvel Comics characters are major book worms. Peter Parker, Bruce Banner, Tony Stark -- the list goes on and on. Embracing this fact and promoting education, Marvel has announced special STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) themed variant covers for a handful of titles this November."

NBA Rewards New Orleans’ LGBT Tolerance With All-Star Game Selection; Huffington Post, 8/19/16

Daniel Marans, Huffington Post; NBA Rewards New Orleans’ LGBT Tolerance With All-Star Game Selection:

"The NBA announced Friday that the 2017 All-Star Game will take place in New Orleans, in a move that has been interpreted as a nod to Louisiana’s relatively tolerant attitude toward LGBT people...

Silver did not explicitly mention LGBT tolerance in Friday’s statement. The NBA had originally planned to hold next year’s All-Star Game in Charlotte, North Carolina, but withdrew the city’s selection in July in protest of North Carolina’s anti-LGBT law...

“By moving the 2017 All-Star Game to New Orleans, the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver have sent a clear message to lawmakers in North Carolina and across the country that discrimination against LGBTQ people has consequences and will not be tolerated,” Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement."

Federal Judge: Religious Liberty Includes a Right to Fire LGBTQ Employees; Slate, 8/18/16

Mark Joseph Stern, Slate; Federal Judge: Religious Liberty Includes a Right to Fire LGBTQ Employees:

"It finally happened.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Sean F. Cox found that Hobby Lobby’s broad guarantee of “religious freedom” to businesses exempts religious employers from the federal ban on workplace sex discrimination. Cox ruled that, under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act, for-profit corporations may claim a legal right to fire employees for being transgender. His decision marks the first time a court has used Hobby Lobby’s holding to abridge LGBTQ employees’ rights under nondiscrimination law—an extension of “religious liberty” that anti-LGBTQ advocates insisted would never occur...

Cox’s decision, then, will almost certainly be overturned. But it is still a useful reminder of Hobby Lobby’s power in the hands of anti-LGBTQ judges. There’s a reason states rushed to pass mini-RFRAs in Hobby Lobby’s wake: A right-leaning judiciary can always cite “religious liberty” to abridge others’ rights, and LGBTQ people are usually first on the chopping block. For years, conservative activists have sworn that the new campaign for religious freedom is not a Trojan horse designed to legalize anti-LGBTQ discrimination. Judge Cox just proved them wrong."

Tony Perkins blamed gay people for God's wrath. His house was swept away; Guardian, 8/18/16

John Paul Brammer, Guardian; Tony Perkins blamed gay people for God's wrath. His house was swept away:

"In a 2015 interview with Messianic Jewish pastor Jonathan Cahn, Perkins agreed that Hurricane Joaquin, a devastating storm that hit the Bahamas last year, was “a sign of God’s wrath”, punishment for abortion and for the legalization of same-sex marriage...

“This is a flood of near-biblical proportions,” Perkins said on his radio show. “We had to escape from our home Saturday by canoe. We had about 10 feet of water at the end of our driveway. Our house flooded, a few of our cars flooded.” Thankfully, none of his family was harmed.

You could be forgiven for thinking of this as some kind of twisted justice, or at least as a delicious bit of divine irony.

I’ve been out of the closet long enough that Perkins’ words don’t affect me anymore, but I remember what it was like to read them when I first came out in rural Oklahoma, before same-sex marriage was legalized and before I had other gay people supporting me. It was incredibly painful. It was a reminder of the thing that had kept me in hiding for so long: we are so misunderstood. We are so hated.

But to react with glee to news of Perkins’ plight – to regard it as comeuppance or karma – would, though tempting, be to engage in the toxic one-dimensional thinking that I loathe in the religious right...

I wish Tony Perkins hadn’t spent so much of his life squarely positioning himself against my thriving and that of my community. I wish Tony Perkins didn’t think of hurricanes and floods as God’s wrath. But I don’t wish harm on him. He’s a person.

My hope is that the flood makes Perkins reflect on his past statements. I hope that he contemplates whether or not his actions have truly been Christian.

Tony Perkins and I disagree over whether God sends storms to punish people. I don’t believe that. But if in these events he sees a sign from above to humble himself, I hope he heeds it."

White Male Privilege Is Why We Laugh At Lochte And Vilify Douglas; Huffington Post, 8/18/16

Emma Gray, Huffington Post; White Male Privilege Is Why We Laugh At Lochte And Vilify Douglas:

"It didn’t take long for people to point to the cognitive dissonance between the compassionate, light-hearted response to Lochte, Bentz, Conger and fourth swimmer Jimmy Feigen’s drunken actions, and the widespread online vilification gymnast Gabby Douglas experienced just a week prior.

Douglas, who is just 20 years old, failed to put her hand on her heart during the national anthem, and did not style her hair and/or face to every individual’s liking. For those “crimes,” she was widely criticized for being “disprespectful,” “unpatriotic” and “un-American,” and called words that we’d rather not repeat in this piece. Lochte and friends reportedly defiled a gas station restroom, fought with a security officer, lied to national news sources, and may have filed a false police report. And the four of them get to be framed as talented “kids” (reminder: Lochte is 32) having one debaucherous night of fun.

The vast gap between these two public perceptions has everything to do with the identities of the people involved. Lochte is a straight, white man, who has long been beloved for his pretty face, doofy personality and charmingly slow demeanor during interviews. Douglas is a young, black woman who has battled racialized critiques of her appearance and attitude for years, despite winning three Olympic gold medals."

Recruiting Leslie Jones May Have Been a Cynical Move for NBC, But Damn Is She Making Their Coverage Better; Slate, 8/18/16

David Canfield, Slate; Recruiting Leslie Jones May Have Been a Cynical Move for NBC, But Damn Is She Making Their Coverage Better:

"In 2016, regular contributors on NBC’s Olympics team have shown little interest in departing from the network’s standard narratives. Inadvertently or not, their default styles of commentary have sometimes marginalized the accomplishments of American women, people of color, and LGBTQ people...

Jones, meanwhile, fixates on Biles’ pure athleticism. “She is … BAD,” she said, awestruck, after watching Biles win a gold medal. “Whew! She’s a flipper.” (She also shrieked at full force during one of Biles’ routines.) And she has similarly applauded the skills of Gabby Douglas—Biles’ Gold Medal-winning predecessor. Her enthusiasm is boundless: “Michael Phelps is a BEAST!” she yelled after seeing Phelps take gold. Amid a lineup of cookie-cutter correspondents in Rio, her passion is contagious, her style uniquely candid. She’s a perfect proxy for the rest of us watching the games at home. Since arriving in Rio, she has been delivering NBC’s messages with the kind of authenticity and energy that the network had been otherwise unable to muster. She relays genuine interest in every event. She gives “harmless nationalism” some spike."

Sexism in Olympics Coverage; New York Times, August 2016

[Video] Natalia V. Osipova and Katie Rogers, New York Times; Sexism in Olympics Coverage

Citizen Science Lab sets off STEAM-abration; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 8/16/16

Atiya Irvin-Mitchell, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Citizen Science Lab sets off STEAM-abration:

"Fast forward a few decades to Mr. Samuel as a 44-year-old. He has a doctorate in biology and has studied genomics and bioinformatics. He’s looking for children with an interest in math and science who aren’t satisfying it in classrooms with textbooks. He’s pretty sure they would enjoy the Citizen Science Lab’s first STEAM-abration event on Saturday at the Energy Innovation Center in the Hill District.

No, STEAM is not a typographical error. It reflects the inclusion of the arts with science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Although not everyone is convinced that the arts have a place among the sciences, Mr. Samuel, the lab’s director, very much is.

“The notion that art doesn’t belong in STEM is absolutely ridiculous. If you’re painting, you’re using chemistry. These things all go together,” he said...

He’s pleased to see an emphasis on finding and nurturing an interest in the sciences to keep up with innovations and create qualified workers in STEM industries. Yet he says that women and people of color are still underrepresented in most STEM programs...

Go to steamabration.eventbrite.com for free tickets to Citizen Science Lab’s STEAM-abration on Saturday [August 20, 2016] at the Energy Innovation Center, 1435 Bedford Ave., 15219."

Make the most of your brief time on Earth; Washington Post, 8/17/16

Garrison Keillor, Washington Post; Make the most of your brief time on Earth:

"Style is not what keeps us going. We survive by virtue of people extending themselves, welcoming the young, showing sympathy for the suffering, taking pleasure in each other’s good fortune. We are here for a brief time. We would like our stay to mean something. Do the right thing. Travel light. Be sweet."

Why Blacks Loathe Trump; New York Times, 8/17/16

Charles M. Blow, New York Times; Why Blacks Loathe Trump:

"This is the same man who has refused to reach out to black people in any way, including rejecting offers to speak before the N.A.A.C.P., the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Urban League. (Hillary Clinton spoke before all three.)

Donald Trump is the paragon of racial, ethnic and religious hostility. He is the hobgoblin of retrograde racial hegemony.

And this is the man who now wants to court the black vote? Puh-leese …"

Why media coverage of LGBT Olympic athletes is ‘simply unacceptable’; Washington Post, 8/16/16

Steven Petrow, Washington Post; Why media coverage of LGBT Olympic athletes is ‘simply unacceptable’ :

"Unfortunately, the Daily Beast incident is only the most egregious among other media “fails” in its LGBT coverage from Rio...

Let’s also take a look at NBC’s coverage of gay diver Tom Daley’s win of the bronze medal in the men’s 10-meter synchronized diving finals. Although the network routinely pans to parents, spouses and opposite-sex partners in these moments of triumph or defeat, NBC failed to identify Daley’s fiance Dustin Lance Black (the Oscar-winning screenwriter of the film “Milk”) sitting in the stands. Black, who emailed me from Rio, didn’t want to comment on his own situation but did offer this: “I can say in general that visibility is the cornerstone of the modern LGBT movement, and any news organization that actively avoids or ‘closets’ LGBT people, relationships or stories is most certainly on the wrong side of today’s struggle for better understanding, equality and acceptance.”

That’s exactly why responsible media coverage of the LGBT community remains so important. It’s not always life and death. But it’s always pride and prejudice."

Mikhail Baryshnikov: Trump's rhetoric 'reminds me of the Soviet Union'; Politico, 8/17/16

Nick Gass, Politico; Mikhail Baryshnikov: Trump's rhetoric 'reminds me of the Soviet Union' :

""Forty two years ago I left a country that built walls to come to a place without them. But today, as a citizen of the United States, for the first time, I’m hearing rhetoric that reminds me of the Soviet Union of my youth, where it was a crime, and continues to be, a crime to be different," said Baryshnikov, who had never publicly endorsed a candidate, in 75-second video released by the social media campaign Humanity for Hillary titled "#ITrustHer."

Baryshnikov defected from the Soviet Union in 1974 while touring Canada with the Kirov Ballet before becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen 12 years later. "The America I love welcomes people of all nations, all religions, and supports all forms of human expression. America welcomed me, an immigrant, and that welcome has made my life possible," Baryshnikov said."

Fan-fiction writers can't help wondering what if?; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 8/14/16

Atiya Irvin-Mitchell, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Fan-fiction writers can't help wondering what if? :

"What if Harry Potter’s parents lived? What if Spock and Captain Kirk were in love? What if Joan of Arc was a woman of color hearing the voice of God in 21st-century New York instead of 15th-century France?

For readers and writers, there is a place made up of such what ifs — fan fiction.

Although fan fiction today is filled with tales of vampires and wizards, the practice of writing new stories featuring familiar characters predates them as well as copyright laws. The term was coined in 1939 but is believed to have existed centuries before...

The fan-fiction world is a space uniquely dominated by women, LGBTQ people, people of color and individuals for whom those identities overlap. They say that the publishing world is dominated by white, heterosexual, able-bodied and cisgendered people.

“There’s next to no good queer representation in media,” Ms. Schmitt, 20, complained. “The reason why fan fic is used to talk about queer representation is because writers start so young and they’re disappointed in not seeing themselves. ... It’s a way of taking control.”"

The Rise of the Internet Fan Bully; New York Times, 8/12/16

Amanda Hess, New York Times; The Rise of the Internet Fan Bully:

"Normani Kordei, a member of the girl group on the rise Fifth Harmony, sat for a lighthearted Facebook Live interview earlier this month. Within a week, she had been chased off Twitter by a mob spewing racist insults.

“I’ve not just been cyber bullied, I’ve been racially cyber bullied with tweets and pictures so horrific and racially charged that I can’t subject myself any longer to the hate,” she wrote. Her account has been silent since.

Online harassment has become a depressingly common workplace hazard for people of color in the public eye. Last month, the “Ghostbusters” star Leslie Jones temporarily quit Twitter after weathering a deluge of racist abuse...

The incident illuminates some strange similarities between the bands of internet trolls stalking the web and the legions of online fans seeking to stir up some drama. They both know that the most hurtful online weaponry to wield against black women include images of apes, threats of lynching and a tossed-off N-word."

She’s With Us: The fundamental choice in this election is between Trump’s “I” and Hillary’s “We.”; Slate, 7/29/16

William Saletan, Slate; She’s With Us: The fundamental choice in this election is between Trump’s “I” and Hillary’s “We.” :

"Trump sees the “we” approach as timid and liberal. But Clinton, like Obama, hears echoes of the anti-government message of Ronald Reagan. “Our founders fought a revolution and wrote a Constitution so America would never be a nation where one person had all the power,” Clinton warned. Obama, in his speech to the convention, issued a similar rebuke: “Our power doesn’t come from some self-declared savior promising that he alone can restore order as long as we do things his way. We don’t look to be ruled.”

Framed this way, the election isn’t a choice between Trump and Clinton. It’s a choice between authoritarianism and self-government, between a man and a team. Clinton can’t match Trump’s ego, and she doesn’t have to. She just has to offer a better alternative. The alternative is a different conception of the presidency, one that’s less imperial but gets more done. It’s less about the president and more about us. The choice isn’t left versus right, or him versus her. It’s Trump versus America."

Gay and Lesbian High School Students Report ‘Heartbreaking’ Levels of Violence; New York Times, 8/11/16

Jan Hoffman, New York Times; Gay and Lesbian High School Students Report ‘Heartbreaking’ Levels of Violence:

"The first nationwide study to ask high school students about their sexuality found that gay, lesbian and bisexual teenagers were at far greater risk for depression, bullying and many types of violence than their straight peers...

The survey documents what smaller studies have suggested for years, but it is significant because it is the first time the federal government’s biennial Youth Risk Behavior Survey, the gold standard of adolescent health data collection, looked at sexual identity. The survey found that about 8 percent of the high school population described themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual, which would be about 1.3 million students...

Dr. Elizabeth Miller, the chief of adolescent and young adult medicine at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, said, “The intensity of homophobic attitudes and acceptance of gay-related victimization, as well as the ongoing silence around adolescent sexuality, marginalizes a whole group of young people.”...

Dr. Miller, who is also a professor of pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said that self-acceptance can begin at home. “We have to start conversations early with young people about healthy sexuality, attraction, relationships, intimacy and how to explore those feelings in as safe and respectful a way as possible,” she said."

Too Poor to Afford the Internet; New York Times, 8/12/16

Anthony W. Marx, New York Times; Too Poor to Afford the Internet:

"I know there are technological hurdles to providing universal broadband. But the commitment I’m asking for isn’t particularly novel. Early in the last century, the nation’s leaders decided, at no small cost, to bring clean water, then electricity, then phone service to all parts of our country. And from this foundation we built the wealthiest, most productive economy in the world.

When New York City was founded by the Dutch, it had two great strengths: a population of varied backgrounds and ideas, and access to information, through its vibrant shipping industry. This is what made us a global city. Today’s technology revolution promises to provide more information, more widely than ever. Yet we have left almost two million New Yorkers in the digital dark.

We can fix this. We can realize our city’s full potential in the digital age. And the kids in the Bronx can get their math homework done."

Here’s how I’ll teach Trump to my college students this fall; Washington Post, 8/11/16

Zach Messitte, Washington Post; Here’s how I’ll teach Trump to my college students this fall:

"...[W]e also need to listen and respect those students and professors who support Trump. That 19-year-old supporter just starting his sophomore year shouldn’t be dismissed automatically as a racist for supporting Trump. He’s a stand-in for our next-door neighbor, your child’s softball coach and my cousin’s spouse. Keeping the classroom open for discussion slows a student retreat to the anonymous online world of Yik Yak, where college-aged Trump supporters troll hate without ever directly engaging their classmates. That means that the possibility of ever broadening their perspectives organically will be lost.

There will be tense points and tempers may well flare. Why are Trump’s most ardent supporters rural whites without a college degree? Why does he belittle those he disagrees with? Where does his worldview and his preoccupation with Vladimir Putin come from? But there is a way to have these discussions in the classroom with respect. It will be up to our professors to defend the right to hold an unpopular position, even one that we strongly disagree with. Because if colleges and universities want to remain a training ground for future leaders, an incubator for new ideas or a place where a future political consensus is forged, civil discourse is a fundamental part of that higher calling.

This will not be an easy task, but it is a crucial one. While professors and administrators need to do everything they can to make sure that their campuses promote free speech, they also need to maintain civility and basic decency. And that’s tricky. Beyond higher education, how the nation wrestles with this same conundrum is important — and not just in the run-up to the election. In the weeks and months after Nov. 8, the country is going to have to understand what Donald Trump and Trumpism means going forward. Win or lose, it is critical that we study and interpret what his candidacy signifies beyond American politics. How the nation’s teachers integrate understanding Trumpism into their classrooms this fall, regardless of discipline, will go a long way toward finding some common ground with the 40-something percent of the voting population that supports him."

US Daily Beast website takes down article discussing Grindr dates with Olympic athletes; Guardian, 8/11/16

Elle Hunt, Guardian; US Daily Beast website takes down article discussing Grindr dates with Olympic athletes:

"Tyler Oakley, a gay social media personality, said something similar, accusing Hines and the Daily Beast of treating same-sex-attracted people as “zoo animals”."

Daily Beast Removes Article on Gay Olympians in Rio; New York Times, 8/12/16

Christopher Mele and Niraj Chokshi, New York Times; Daily Beast Removes Article on Gay Olympians in Rio:

"The article drew significant backlash from gay leaders and athletes.

Sarah Kate Ellis, the president and chief executive of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, said on Twitter: “Thoughtless @thedailybeast piece puts LGBT athletes in danger. It should be removed & replaced w a real story about violence LGBT ppl face.”...

Robert Drechsel, who retired last week as the James E. Burgess Chair in Journalism Ethics and director of the Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, described the article as “thoughtless, insensitive and unethical.”

He said it was good that the article had been removed but that it came too late.

“It’s hard to find the words to describe,” he said. “Why in the world — why in the world of journalism — would anyone do this?”"

A Note From the Editors; Daily Beast, 8/11/16

Daily Beast; A Note From the Editors:

"Today, The Daily Beast took an unprecedented but necessary step: We are removing an article from our site, “The Other Olympic Sport In Rio: Swiping.”

The Daily Beast does not do this lightly. As shared in our editor’s note earlier today, we initially thought swift removal of any identifying characteristics and better clarification of our intent was the adequate way to address this. Our initial reaction was that the entire removal of the piece was not necessary. We were wrong. We're sorry.

Today we did not uphold a deep set of The Daily Beast’s values. These values—which include standing up to bullies and bigots, and specifically being a proudly, steadfastly supportive voice for LGBT people all over the world—are core to our commitment to journalism and to our commitment to serving our readers.

As a newsroom, we succeed together and we fail together, and this was a failure on The Daily Beast as a whole, not a single individual. The article was not intended to do harm or degrade members of the LGBT community, but intent doesn’t matter, impact does. Our hope is that removing an article that is in conflict with both our values and what we aspire to as journalists will demonstrate how seriously we take our error.

We were wrong. We will do better."

Gay Olympian Amini Fonua Has Words for the Grindr-in-Rio Journalist; Slate, 8/11/16

J. Bryan Lowder, Slate; Gay Olympian Amini Fonua Has Words for the Grindr-in-Rio Journalist:

"The queer internet was dominated on Thursday by backlash to Nico Hines' exploitative Daily Beast story on athletes' use of sex apps in Rio, with condemnation from LGBTQ press-watchers (including us here at Outward) being universal. But, likely for reasons relating to safety and focus, we've heard relatively little from athletes themselves. That changed Thursday afternoon when Amini Fonua, an Olympic swimmer and gay man representing Tonga at the Rio games, let fly a tweet storm that powerfully captures the damage this story will cause...

As of 5:30 p.m., the article was still posted on the Daily Beast site

Update, 9:18 p.m.: Later on Thursday evening, the Daily Beast took down the piece entirely."

The Other Olympic Sport in Rio: Swiping; Daily Beast, 8/11/16

Nico Hines, Daily Beast; The Other Olympic Sport in Rio: Swiping:

"Editor's Note: A number of readers complained to The Daily Beast after the publication of the original iteration of this story. We take such complaints seriously because a central part of The Daily Beast's mission is to fight for full equality and equal treatment for LGBT people around the world. Publishing an article that in any way could be seen as homophobic is contrary to our mission.

There was legitimate concern that the original version of this story might out gay male athletes, even by implication, or compromise their safety. This was never our reporter’s intention, of course. No names were ever used and some of the profiles described were of straight women. But there was a concern that even mentioning the home nation of some gay athletes could compromise their safety. We apologize for potentially jeopardizing that safety in any way. As a result, we have removed all descriptions of the men and women’s profiles that we previously described.

The concept for the piece was to see how dating and hook-up apps were being used in Rio by athletes. It just so happened that Nico had many more responses on Grindr than apps that cater mostly to straight people, and so he wrote about that. Had he received straight invitations, he would have written about those. He never claimed to be anyone he was not, did not offer anything to anyone, and immediately admitted that he was a journalist whenever he was asked who he was.

Some readers have read Nico as mocking or sex-shaming those on Grindr. We do not feel he did this in any way. But it’s up to us to deliver stories that are so clear, they can’t be misinterpreted—and we clearly fell short of that standard in this article.

Accordingly, we have made some editorial changes to the article, responding to readers' concerns, and are again sorry for any upset the original version of this piece inspired."

—John Avlon, Editor in Chief

This Daily Beast Grindr Stunt Is Sleazy, Dangerous, and Wildly Unethical; Slate, 8/11/16

Mark Joseph Stern, Slate; This Daily Beast Grindr Stunt Is Sleazy, Dangerous, and Wildly Unethical:

"Anyone who has heard of Grindr has also heard of the Wayback Machine. Nothing on the internet can be reliably deleted.

Shortly after Hines’ article published, openly gay Olympian Gus Kenworthy tweeted that the author “basically just outed a bunch of athletes in his quest to write a shitty [Daily Beast] article where he admitted to entrapment.” That is correct, but it’s worth exploring why Hines embarked upon this weird, sleazy quest in the first place. I count two reasons. The first is that Hines simply enjoys tittering with condescension at all the gay athletes who take the bait and engage with him—a straight dude, as Hines emphatically reminds us. Why else zero in on Grindr? The second reason is more repulsive: Hines appears to take pleasure in luring in these Olympians then outing them to all the world.

But the offensive purpose of Hines’ article is really the least of its problems. Far worse is the actual damage it will likely cause to real, live human beings—inevitable consequences that Hines blithely ignored. Several athletes who are closeted at home (and possibly to their own teammates) will wake up on Thursday morning to the news that the Daily Beast has outed them. Their teammates could ostracize and alienate them; their families could disown them; their countries could imprison them. And for what? A homophobic article about how a straight guy conned gay Olympians from anti-gay countries into hitting on him through Grindr? Hines’ article is a dangerous disaster, a wildly unethical train wreck that should be taken down immediately for the sake of its duped subjects. Hines may view his Grindr-baiting as all fun and games. For the victims of his unprincipled journalism, however, his nasty little piece has the power to ruin lives."

Straight Writer Blasted For ‘Outing’ Olympians In Daily Beast Piece; Huffington Post, 8/11/16

Curtis M. Wong, Huffington Post; Straight Writer Blasted For ‘Outing’ Olympians In Daily Beast Piece:

"The backlash from other media outlets, predictably, was swift. Blasting Hines’s article as a “dangerous disaster” and “a wildly unethical train wreck,” Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern wrote, “Hines may view his Grindr-baiting as all fun and games. For the victims of his unprincipled journalism, however, his nasty little piece has the power to ruin lives.”

Many were specifically concerned that Hines’s piece was outing athletes, especially those from countries like Russia and Jamaica where it’s dangerous for people to be openly LGBT. Added Mic’s Mathew Rodriguez: “Sure, queer sexuality can be a fascinating topic for journalism — when it’s done respectfully and, hopefully, by someone with ties to the community. But just booting up an app and seeing that people like sex isn’t journalism, and the tone stigmatizes gay sexuality even further.”...

After the story was published, a note by Daily Beast Editor-in-Chief John Avlon appeared at the bottom of the piece, noting that “all descriptions of the men and women’s profiles that we previously described” had been removed."

Gay and Transgender Egyptians, Harassed and Entrapped, Are Driven Underground; New York Times, 8/10/16

Liam Stack, New York Times; Gay and Transgender Egyptians, Harassed and Entrapped, Are Driven Underground:

"Mr. Long said that online entrapment had become especially effective in the last two years, because the shutdown of gay-friendly spaces had left many with no place to go.

“There aren’t many queer places left in downtown or in the rest of the city, so people become more reliant on apps and social networks,” he said. “People are lonely and they meet someone who seems like they’re interested, and bang, they’re arrested.”

Ali agreed that despite the dangers, the internet was one of the few public spaces left for gay and transgender people.

“There is no other way,” Ali said. “It is Egypt.”"

"On “political correctness""; jensorensen.com, August 2016

Jen Sorensen:

"On “political correctness""

‘Politically incorrect’ ideas are mostly rude, not brave; Washington Post, 8/11/16

Alyssa Rosenberg, Washington Post; ‘Politically incorrect’ ideas are mostly rude, not brave:

"But what if the things people have held themselves back from saying for fear of social censure aren’t inherently meaningful? The sad thing about so much supposed truth-telling is that their supposed transgressions aren’t remotely risky. They’re just rude...

Presenting commonplace unpleasantness as an act of moral courage is a nifty bit of reframing. This formulation allows its practitioners to treat their own laziness, meanness and self-indulgence as ethically and politically meaningful, when in fact they’re anything but. We may not be able to afford the suppression of important ideas in the public sphere. But people who rail against political correctness need better examples if they’re going to insist that kindness and decency are threats to the republic."

Trump Is After The Anti-Gay Bigot Vote, Apparently; Huffington Post, 8/11/16

Jennifer Bendery, Huffington Post; Trump Is After The Anti-Gay Bigot Vote, Apparently:

"Democratic operatives took note of Trump’s and Rubio’s role at the gathering ― particularly because it falls on the two-month anniversary of the shootings at an Orlando gay club that left 49 people dead.

“Instead of honoring the memory of those we lost at Pulse two months ago, Donald Trump and Marco Rubio have come to Orlando to headline a gathering of some of the nation’s most incendiary anti-gay bigots,” Democratic National Committee chair Donna Brazile and DNC LGBT Caucus chair Earl Fowlkes said in a statement.

“We at the DNC join all people of good conscience in expressing our solidarity with the Orlando LGBT community as they continue to grieve the deadliest shooting in American history. We suggest Trump and Rubio disavow these anti-gay extremists who have likened gay people to Nazis and characterized HIV/AIDS as divine ‘penalties’ for being gay,” they said. “Failing to do so will be yet another example of the utter lack of judgment that makes Trump unfit to serve.”"

Why Your Diversity Program May Be Helping Women but Not Minorities (or Vice Versa); Harvard Business Review, 8/8/16

Even Apfelbaum, Harvard Business Review; Why Your Diversity Program May Be Helping Women but Not Minorities (or Vice Versa) :

"When it comes to issues of race, gender, and diversity in organizations, researchers have revealed the problems in ever more detail. We have found a lot less to say about what does work — what organizations can do to create the conditions in which stigmatized groups can reach their potential and succeed. That’s why my collaborators — Nicole Stephens at the Kellogg School of Management and Ray Reagans at MIT Sloan — and I decided to study what organizations can do to increase traditionally stigmatized groups’ performance and persistence, and curb the disproportionately high rates at which they leave jobs.

One tool at any organization’s disposal is the way its leaders choose to talk (or not to talk) about diversity and differences — what we refer to as their diversity approach. Diversity approaches are important because they provide employees with a framework for thinking about group differences in the workplace and how they should respond to them. We first studied the public diversity statements of 151 big law firms in the U.S. to understand the relationship between how organizations talk about diversity and the rates of attrition of associate-level women and racial minority attorneys at these firms. We assumed that how firms talked about diversity in their statements was a rough proxy for their firm’s approach to diversity more generally.

Two findings were particularly intriguing."

Toxic white male nerd avengers: What’s really behind the “Suicide Squad” super-fan freak-out; Salon, 8/9/16

Matthew Rozsa, Salon; Toxic white male nerd avengers: What’s really behind the “Suicide Squad” super-fan freak-out:

"Beyond simply calling for diversity, though, we also must infuse our debate with an awareness that being a fanboy doesn’t entitle you to anything. The common thread linking the “Suicide Squad” petition to other nerd-based racist and misogynist incidents this decade is that, at their core, all of them betray an assumption that producers of popular entertainment are beholden to the nerd community. This misunderstands a basic principle of a free market society — while consumers have the right to invest or not invest their time and money as they see fit, they don’t have the right to demand that producers act as obedient servants to their will. It’s certainly nice when an author or actor or critic or film studio shows deference to the wishes of fans, but they are in no way ethically obligated to do so. Indeed, because many fans (like many people from all walks of life) harbor terrible social views, it is very often necessary for producers to disregard the will of the more vocal segments of their fanbases. Just because some gamers don’t want increased diversity doesn’t mean it shouldn’t happen; just because a lot of moviegoers liked “Suicide Squad” (myself included) doesn’t mean the film critics aggregated by Rotten Tomatoes should agree."

‘We need to do better': CBS responds to TV critics about fall shows only led by white men; Washington Post, 8/10/16

Emily Yahr, Washington Post; ‘We need to do better': CBS responds to TV critics about fall shows only led by white men:

"Geller admitted that when it comes to lead characters, the network is “definitely less diverse” than last year, though he noted that of 16 new series regulars on the network, 11 of the actors are from diverse groups. “We’re very mindful at CBS about the importance of diversity and inclusion, and I’m glad we’re having this conversation first,” Geller responded. “We need to do better and we know it. That’s really it. We need to do better.”...

Another reporter brought up that Geller, who is gay, said during the last press tour earlier this year that he was proof of the network diversifying, and asked about “sexuality representation” on the network. (His quote in January: “I’m just a gay guy from Indiana who doesn’t play basketball, but now I’m the entertainment president of CBS.”)

“It’s obviously a very personal topic for me, I think things are definitely shifting,” Geller said, pointing to LGBT characters on “Code Black,” “NCIS: New Orleans,” “The Great Indoors” and new drama “Bull.” Plus, he added, Laverne Cox stars in the Katherine Heigl-led drama “Doubt” this season as the first transgender actress to play a transgender series regular on TV."

CBS All Access' 'Star Trek: Discovery' to Be Captained By a Woman, Feature Gay Character; Hollywood Reporter, 8/10/16

Lesley Goldberg, Hollywood Reporter; CBS All Access' 'Star Trek: Discovery' to Be Captained By a Woman, Feature Gay Character:

"Fuller confirmed that his Star Trek also will feature a gay character after he received hate-mail during his time on Voyager following a rumor that speculated that one of the show's characters could be out. He noted that fellow executive producer Alex Kurtzman was the first to pitch the idea, which was already something Fuller had planned on including in the 10-episode series.

While details about the cast are still yet to be determined, the news that it would be led by a woman comes as little surprise. Showrunner Fuller — who is openly gay — recently moderated a 50th anniversary Star Trek panel at San Diego Comic-Con where he used the platform to stress that the franchise could serve as an antidote to the current political upheaval.

"Think about what’s happening in America, and think about the promise of Star Trek, and what we can all do to get there," he told the crowd before ending the panel by asking all the fans in attendance to take each other’s hands and “make a promise to leave this room with love, to leave this room with hope, to leave this room and take responsibility to craft a path to Gene Roddenberry’s vision.""

'No room' in Indonesia for gay rights, says president's spokesman; Agence France-Press via Guardian, 8/11/16

Agence France-Press via Guardian; 'No room' in Indonesia for gay rights, says president's spokesman:

"There is “no room” for the gay community in Indonesia, the president’s spokesman has said, as a new report criticised officials for an unprecedented series of LGBT attacks.

“Rights of citizens like going to school and getting an ID card are protected, but there is no room in Indonesia for the proliferation of the LGBT movement,” presidential spokesman Johan Budi said.

Indonesia’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) citizens have long been targeted by vigilante Islamist groups.

But the community experienced an “immediate deterioration” in their rights following a sustained assault by ministers, religious hardliners and influential Islamic organisations in the space of two months this year, Human Rights Watch said in a report released on Thursday."

Two Views On The Jim Crow South And Its Legacy Today; The Diane Rehm Show, 8/10/16

[Podcast] The Diane Rehm Show; Two Views On The Jim Crow South And Its Legacy Today:

"Historian Charles Dew was born in 1937 and grew up in St. Petersburg, Florida. His parents, along with every white person he knew, believed without question in the inherent inferiority of black Americans and in the need for segregation. In a new memoir, “The Making of a Racist,” he describes what he learned as a child and how he gradually overthrew those beliefs. Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Isabel Wilkerson details the crushing realities of the Jim Crow South from the other side of the color line. In her 2010 book, “The Warmth of Other Suns,” she documents the migration of black families in the 1930s, 40s and 50s in search of better lives in the North and in the West. Charles Dew and Isabel Wilkerson join us to talk about racism in American, then and now.

Guests

Charles B Dew professor of history, Williams College; author of "The Making of a Racist: A Southerner Reflects on Family, History and the Slave Trade"

Isabel Wilkerson Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist; author, "The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration"

Further Into the Muck With Mr. Trump; New York Times, 8/9/16

Editorial Board, New York Times; Further Into the Muck With Mr. Trump:

"Just eight years ago, Senator John McCain of Arizona, then the Republican presidential nominee, told a man at a town hall session who said he was “scared” of an Obama presidency that Mr. Obama “is a decent person and a person that you do not have to be scared as president of the United States.”

Twenty minutes later, a woman told Mr. McCain that she couldn’t trust Mr. Obama because “he’s an Arab.” “No ma’am,” Mr. McCain replied. “He’s a decent family man, a citizen, that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues. And that’s what this campaign is all about.”

Republicans would do well to summon the integrity that Mr. McCain showed in 2008, and not just to give some sense of decency to this ugly campaign. The time has come for Republicans — including Mr. McCain — to repudiate Mr. Trump once and for all."

This is Donald Trump at his lowest yet: a man hinting at murder; Guardian, 8/9/16

Lucia Graves, Guardian; This is Donald Trump at his lowest yet: a man hinting at murder:

"Rebecca Traister has written brilliantly on the long history of powerful men like Trump who would delegitimize the ascent of women and minorities. But this – to have the nominee of a major party appear to encourage his supporters to assassinate his opponent – is unlike anything we’ve seen before, quite likely for the simple reason that we’ve never had a woman this close to the White House steps.

Just as the birther movement that Trump helped lead was thinly-veiled racism rooted in the belief that a black man couldn’t possibly legitimately be the president, Trump’s insistence that “crooked Hillary” has “stolen” the election thrives among those who are angry that power could be taken from them by a woman, and specifically this one.

It’s vulgar, un-American and undemocratic. And it was only a matter of time."

GOP senator Susan Collins: Why I cannot support Trump; Washington Post, 8/8/16

Susan Collins, Washington Post; GOP senator Susan Collins: Why I cannot support Trump:

"My conclusion about Mr. Trump’s unsuitability for office is based on his disregard for the precept of treating others with respect, an idea that should transcend politics. Instead, he opts to mock the vulnerable and inflame prejudices by attacking ethnic and religious minorities. Three incidents in particular have led me to the inescapable conclusion that Mr. Trump lacks the temperament, self-discipline and judgment required to be president."

Judge Tests Limits of Free Speech With Facebook Jury Remarks; Associated Press via New York Times, 8/6/16

Associated Press via New York Times; Judge Tests Limits of Free Speech With Facebook Jury Remarks:

"The Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission believes Stevens went so far in misleading the public about Wine's request and undermining his own impartiality that it charged him with multiple counts of misconduct. Stevens is scheduled for a hearing Monday that could usher him off the bench for good.

But his posts ignited a debate about racial fairness, judicial impartiality and free speech that seems far from finished.

Experts say his cause was worthy: Stevens shined a light on a racial imbalance that has dogged the criminal justice system for generations. But his attack on a prosecutor for requesting an appellate opinion could cross an ethical line and threaten to drown out the issue he attempted to highlight."

How to Crack Down on Social Media Threats; New York Times, 8/3/16

Room for Debate, New York Times; How to Crack Down on Social Media Threats:

"Last week, a prominent feminist writer abandoned social media after a rape and death threat was directed at her 5-year-old daughter. Online violent threats are not uncommon, especially for women and minorities, but when they are reported, police are often not responsive.

How can law enforcement crack down on threats of violence made on social media?"

Donald Trump’s Spokeswoman In 2012: Gay People Are ‘Not Normal’; Huffington Post, 8/3/16

Jennifer Bendery, Huffington Post; Donald Trump’s Spokeswoman In 2012: Gay People Are ‘Not Normal’ :

"Asked how she squares her past comments with Trump’s claims that he’s a friend to LGBT people, Pierson told The Huffington Post that it’s “a long reach” to look at her tweets from 2012.

“What does 2012 have to do with the 2016 presidential campaign?” she wrote in an email. “You’ll also find that as a grassroots volunteer for multiple campaigns, it’s quite common that Twitter is a platform to promote/defend the policies and values of the candidates at the time. Many times, it’s about engaging trolls which can lead to humorous and sarcastic banter. I’m sure you’ll also find that the positions/values of the candidates are not necessarily a sole reflection of the individual promoting or supporting said candidate.”

Pierson added, “Therefore, there is nothing to square. I support Mr. Trump and his policies 100 percent.”"

Voices From Donald Trump’s Rallies, Uncensored; New York Times, 8/3/16

[Video; Graphic Language; NSFW] Ashley Parker, Nick Corasaniti, Erica Berenstein, New York Times; Voices From Donald Trump’s Rallies, Uncensored:

"Not everyone attending a Trump rally behaves this way. In fact, many are polite and well mannered. But while protesters are often shouted down, crowds seldom express disapproval of the crude slogans and angry outbursts by Mr. Trump’s supporters."