1/6 Today began with news of the loss of a TRUE American leader. John Lewis was born the son of sharecroppers in Alabama & went on to become a fearless leader of the Civil Rights movement, a towering figure in Congress. #velshi
2/6 Lewis’ fight for justice began early in life: as a student, he would organize sit-ins, eventually becoming one of the 13 Freedom Riders & the founder & early leader of SNCC: the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. #velshi
3/6 Lewis' fight against injustice & for his beliefs was not easy. He endured remarkable violence at the hands of authorities as a Freedom Rider & had his skull broken in Selma after leading a march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, named for a KKK member. #velshi
4/6 Lewis continued to preach non-violence throughout his life, yet he never shied away from confrontation that might result in his arrest or attacks against him. He spent his whole life fighting bigotry & racism with polish, compassion & resilience. #velshi
5/6 It's been nearly 60 years since Lewis began his life's work & his teachings are more relevant & important than ever. Once again, people are in the streets, risking violence from police, discontented with a country that continues to foster inequities based on race. #velshi
6/6 As we remember the force that was John Lewis, consider his own words: “Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise & get in good trouble, necessary trouble.” #velshi
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With all that’s going on in the world and here in the U.S., it’s easy to forget that Israel is coming apart at the seams. (1/30)
Since the end of last year, Israel’s internal politics has been upended, an indicted Prime Minister was returned to office and, in a situation echoing American politics, is trying to use his power and influence to remain in power to avoid prosecution for fraud, breach of… (2/30)
…trust and accepting bribes. He’s even changing Israeli laws for reasons that appear to be entirely self-serving. (3/30)
In Eastern Orthodox Christianity, icons are often hung not only in church but in the homes of the faithful. It is traditional to hang icons of saints or other religious figures in what is known as the “beautiful” or “shining” corner of one’s home. (1/18)
These corners typically face East, towards the rising sun, because it was once believed that Christ would return to earth from that direction. Such corners were and are considered the spiritual heart of a home. (2/18)
In the 1920s, during the Soviet Era, the government required homeowners to replace their religious icons with images of... Vladimir Lenin, the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia. (3/18)
I need your help. Seriously.
I need your help explaining something. Or at least discussing it. And I mean it. Because I’m truly stumped.
It came to a head this week with the indictment. (1/41)
As you know, I read the whole thing, out loud, for a podcast, so that those who didn’t have the time to do so, could hear what is in it. And it *is* damning. (2/41)
Assuming the allegations bear out in a fair trial, it SHOULD end any doubt reasonable people should have about re-electing Donald Trump. And it should convince those same people, wherever they sit on the political spectrum, that the next election isn’t about Right or Left. (3/41)
That was the warning from the U.N. Secretary General ahead of #InternationalWomen's day last week. 🧵
He made special reference to Afghanistan, saying that women and girls have been “erased from public life” under the Taliban, and he singled out Afghanistan as the most repressive nation in the world for women and girls.
In Afghanistan, the Taliban has restricted education for girls after the sixth grade. Women are banned from public spaces, from parks and gyms.
Back in 2013, after I had boarded a flight at New York's Kennedy airport, en route to cover the funeral of Nelson Mandela, I looked up to see President Jimmy Carter standing in front of me, facing me.
We discussed Mandela until the flight staff insisted he take his seat.
We ended up speaking throughout the flight. As we neared our descent I asked him if we could continue the conversation, on tape, after we landed in Johannesburg.
He said to give him a 30 minute head start and then meet him at the hotel.
Our brief meeting on the plane turned into a three-part interview for Al Jazeera. Here's Part 1: thevx.com/news/2016/11/1…
Mike Pompeo - former congressman from Kansas, former director of the CIA, and former Secretary of State in the Trump administration - is preparing for a Presidential run in 2024.
He said last week that he'd be making that decision in the next few months. 🧵
His new book, "Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America that I love" was released last week.
In the words of one reviewer in the Washington Post, “Hatred animates this book.”
Among others, there is one group in particular that has captured a significant amount of Pompeo’s vitriol. And that is reporters and journalists. In the book he calls us “wolves." He calls us “Hyenas.” In the past he's called us “lazy," “nasty," and a “clown show."