The Roundup Top Ten for February 17, 2023

Drop "Culture War" Description: Banning Books and Restricting Ideas is Fascism by Jason Stanley Conflicting cultural values are a normal part of democracy. What leaders like Ron DeSantis want is to make sure only one set of values has a place in the public square.

 

Temple Revives Old-Time Union Busting against Grad Students by Heather Ann Thompson Temple's decision to revoke the tuition remission of striking grad students (and threaten their ability to complete degrees) is the kind of hardball tactic that bodes ill for workers in every workplace in America, and a reminder of the need to understand the country's labor history.

 

 

The Threat of Christian Nationalism by Kristin Du Mez "Because Christian nationalists believe that God is on their side and that the fate of Christian America is at stake, among staunch adherents there is no space for compromise."

 

 

Even In Death, Black Americans Denied Dignified Rest by Greg Melville Lacking legal protection, historic African American cemeteries face serious threats from neglect and redevelopment.

 

 

Originalism Will Kill Women by Madiba K. Dennie "Originalist ideology glorifies an era of blatant oppression along racial, gender, and class lines, transforming that era’s lowest shortcomings into our highest standards."

 

 

HBCUs and the 1950s Red Scare by Candace Cunningham South Carolina officials were able to use the purse strings to coerce public HBCU administrators to expel student activists. When private HBCUs became centers of sit-in organizing, state legislators turned to accusations of Communism.

 

 

The Three Little Letters that Have DeSantis on the Attack by Khalil Gibran Muhammad and Erica Licht By defunding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs in Florida's colleges, the governor is putting the state out of step with research-driven findings about how institutions and workplaces can incorporate diverse populations like Florida's – students, campuses and employers will pay the price for political posturing.

 

 

DeSantis Knows Path to Victory Runs Through Right-Wing Churches by Katherine Stewart Ron DeSantis's efforts to outflank Donald Trump to win the allegiance of Christian nationalists will determine whether he can become the GOP nominee. The lengths he's gone to already to court that constituency should scare supporters of democracy.

 

 

The Specter of Woke Corporate Communism Haunts the Republican Mind by Steve Fraser How do you run a politically useful Cold War without any actual Communism? Just declare that the organs of global capitalism are, in fact, red—borrowing some anti-Semitic tropes along the way.

 

 

Why Did it Take Until 2023 for Two Black QB's to Start the Super Bowl? by Kate Aguilar While Patrick Mahomes bested Jalen Hurts in Sunday's Super Bowl, historically the game signified the slow eclipse of prejudices keeping Black players from the all-important quarterback position.

 

* This article was originally published here