1/6 President Trump has chosen to relaunch his re-election campaign at a time and place that are heavy with racial symbolism – much like Ronald Reagan did in 1980. tulsaworld.com/news/local/gov…
2/6 Reagan began his campaign with a speech on “state’s rights” outside Philadelphia, MS. It was there, in 1964, that three men registering black voters were murdered by white supremacists. 41 years later, a former KKK member was convicted of manslaughter in the case.
3/6 Amid tensions over the killings of black men, Trump plans a rally June 19 in Tulsa, OK where, in 1921, there were days of riots as white mobs attacked black citizens, burning their businesses and churches.
4/6 It’s estimated that between 100 and 300 black people were killed over two days. The incident was not fully investigated until 2001. #TulsaMassacre
5/6 The date of the upcoming Trump rally, June 19, is also laden with history. It is known as #Juneteenth, a celebration of the freeing of the last of the slaves in the 1860s.
6/6 Trump press secretary Kayleigh McEnany was asked by NBC News what Juneteenth meant to the president, and whether it was an appropriate date for a rally. She responded that the African American community was "near and dear" to Trump's heart. nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
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1/ 2023 is almost here. As we wrap up another year, we’d like to celebrate some of the accomplishments of our fellow @retroreport journalists from 2022 ⬇️.
2/ A finalist for the @NIHCMfoundation awards in Journalism and Research, our film with @sciam examined how stigmas about weight could play a role in the quality of medical care received by heavier patients.retroreport.org/video/the-weig…
3/ “How Saba Kept Singing” premiered at the @hotdocs festival, bringing it to an international audience. The film reveals how love and music helped two young people survive the concentration camp at Auschwitz. hotdocs.ca/whats-on/hot-d…
1/ In 2022, we produced and updated over 20 videos and films. Take a look at some of our highlights from over the past year ⬇️.
2/ Produced in partnership with @frontlinepbs, “American Reckoning” covers a lesser-known story of the civil rights movement and Black resistance to racist violence in Mississippi. retroreport.org/video/american…
3/ We documented the lasting legacy in Latin America from revolutions, coups, and uprisings that became commonplace during the Cold War. #Teachers can find our classroom materials related to this video here: retroreport.org/education/vide… #teachersoftwitter#edchat
1/ As pro-Trump rioters stormed the US Capitol Wednesday, Senate staffers carried the electoral ballots to safety. It’s not the first time an item of historical significance has been rescued.
2/ During the War of 1812, the first time the Capitol was stormed, War Office clerks hid the original parchment Constitution in a linen sack and carried it to a mill in Virginia, saving it from British troops who burned much of DC.
3/ Dolley Madison did some quick thinking during the War of 1812. As the British approached the White House on Aug. 23, 1814, she ordered household workers to remove a full-length portrait of George Washington from its frame so it could be spirited to safety.
Drug overdose deaths have risen to the highest level ever.
Maybe someday, we’ll be able to treat addicts with a vaccine. retroreport.org/video/why-this…
1/ We heard objections to our tweet pointing to a Retro Report video about changing attitudes toward addiction. Specifically, our tweet overstated the potential benefit of a vaccine in development, and the tweet and the video title used the word 'addicts,' which carries a stigma.
1/8 How is it that the highest office in the land - the US presidency - is one where the person who gets the most votes can still lose the election? 50 years ago, Congress came close to changing that. Why did the effort fail?
Thread 👇
2/8 Twice in the last 20 years (2016 Trump, 2000 Bush), and 3 other times, presidents took office by winning enough electoral college votes (270 or more) but losing the popular vote. This arcane, some say undemocratic, system dates back to the nation’s founding.
3/8 In 1787, most of the men writing the new nation’s rules wanted the president chosen by Congress (men like them.) Direct election was pushed by James Madison but seen as leading to mob rule. The electoral college was the cumbersome compromise.
In 2013, #RBG issued a blistering dissent in the case: “Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."
Ginsburg’s dissent referred to the protections in the 1965 Voting Rights Act which she believed were being rolled back.
Here we look at how the ruling in that case is playing out today: