Happy birthday, Dr. Du Bois!

[TBF]

Today would have been the 144th birthday of WEB Du Bois, the great scholar, civil rights and peace activist.

Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, in 1868, Du Bois quickly emerged as one of the 20th century's outstanding thinkers and social activists. Armed with a PhD from Harvard University, the young scholar came to national prominence at the turn of the century when he challenged Tuskegee University head Booker T. Washington's accommodationist policies.

His famous collection of essays, The Souls of Black Folk remains poignant and relevant even today. Du Bois went on to help found the Niagara Movement, a group of activists, workers and scholars devoted to fighting segregation and racism.

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Handcuffed at the age of 83 during the McCarthy period of Cold War repression, Du Bois ran for the U.S. Senate in New York and won over 100,000 votes. He joined the Communist Party in 1961 and died in Ghana in 1963, the day before the iconic civil rights march on Washington, led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr...

Read the entire article here: http://peoplesworld.org/university-of-pennsylvania-awards-du-bois-honorary-doctorate/

[tech3149]

1. Did you ever ask yourself why some of the greatest in our society

have risen from the lowest ranks of the society? Mother Jones? Paul Robeson, Du Bois, Frederick Douglas, Granny D? How many others can you name? If we had the sense and forethought to provide everyone with equal opportunity we could be centuries ahead of where we are now. This country makes me so sad as to what we have accomplished as opposed to what we were capable of.
I need a break for a few minutes to regain my composure to address the next outrageous post in a somewhat sane fashion. Otherwise I'll go off on a Malloy 3 hour rant about all the things that are wrong.

Peace Out BBRS

[Starry Messenger]

2. I wish I could rec your post too, tech3149.

I was just watching this bell hooks video, it has application to what you are saying, I think:

If we had the sense and forethought to provide everyone with equal opportunity we could be centuries ahead of where we are now.

I want to live in *that* world. Where we do that.