Links for 09-22-2009

As law students and future lawyers, they were in positions of power that most of us are not, nor ever will be. How could they lend their skills to this movement in a different way? How could they contribute to a broad, holistic agenda without reinforcing the inequities around race, gender, class, sexual orientation, ability, etc?

…white people should struggle a little more than they often do with names that they find unfamiliar — it’s really not that difficult. Using a person’s actual, correctly pronounced name acknowledges his or her individual humanity.

Through [Danticat's] works, she has amassed a wide range of fans with her simple prose and themes of isolation, human struggle, cultural survival — all set against the complex backdrop of Haiti’s complex history and immigrant life.

Aboriginal leaders in Manitoba are horrified that some of the reserves hardest hit by swine flu in the spring have received dozens of body bags from Health Canada. The body bags — which were sent to the remote northern reserves of Wasagamack and God’s River First Nation — came in a shipment of hand sanitizers and face masks.

Grand Chief David Harper, who represents northern First Nations, says body bags send the wrong message and no one can understand why Ottawa would do such a thing. “It really makes me wonder if health officials know something we don’t,” he said.

Shahrukh Khan, quite possibly the most famous man in India (and even the world) was in the U.S. to promote a movie about the profiling of Muslims and brown folk, called “My Name is Khan.”

And then he was profiled in the airport. And detained. Because his name came up in the airport’s computer alert system. Because his name was Khan.

I’ve got no problem talking to my kids about sex. Race is a different story. Like so many (white) parents, I thought not talking about it was the best way to make race a nonissue…