Free Republic

It’s hard to be a proud American these days. We can still admire our great history, our high standard of living, and our incredible landscapes, but none of that changes the grim state of the nation. Walking around in an airport or a mall can make any conservative feel like a stranger in a strange land. I hear constantly about right-wing students at elite universities and law schools who think America is over and want something new. They want to tear things down and start again. Out with the old, in with the new. That may have some appeal in...

BANGKOK, Thailand -- China's government sent more than one million majority ethnic Han Chinese to live uninvited in the homes of minority Uighur families in Xinjiang province and report if the Muslims display Islamic or unpatriotic beliefs which need to be forcibly reformed. "Had a Uighur host just greeted a neighbor in Arabic with the words 'Assalamu Alaykum'? That would need to go in the notebook," and reported to China's authorities, said American anthropologist Darren Byler. "Was that a copy of the Koran in the home? Was anyone praying on Friday or fasting during Ramadan? Was a little sister's dress...

Black graduate students at Harvard University will soon be a part of a first-of-its-kind ceremony. On May 23, the prestigious university will hold an individual ceremony for black graduate students, according to a report by The Root. The ceremony, which took a year to plan, celebrates “fellowship,” not “segregation,” Michael Huggins, a graduate student who will receive a master’s degree in public policy from the Harvard Kennedy School this month, told The Root. “This is an opportunity to celebrate Harvard’s black excellence and black brilliance,” Huggins told the online publication. “It’s an event where we can see each other and...

Two days before Courtney Woods dresses in a cap and gown for Harvard’s traditional commencement, she will don a stole made of African kente cloth and address the crowd at a somewhat different event: a graduation ceremony for black students. Student organizers said the event, called Black Commencement 2017, is the first universitywide ceremony for black students at Harvard, and is designed to celebrate their unique struggles and achievements at an elite institution that has been grappling with its historic ties to slavery. ADVERTISEMENT More than 170 students and 530 guests have signed up to attend the ceremony, which will...

Houston Official Calls for Form of Segregation: Only Blacks Can Police Black Communities HOUSTON, Texas – A Houston city councilman has called for segregation in policing. In the wake of the officer-involved shootings of black men across the country and the assassination of Dallas police officers, the councilman said police should reflect the ethnicity of the particular community where they patrol.

Instead of opposing racial classifications and racial division, the Obama administration is doing what it does best: taking sides against American traditions of equality and unity. On Friday, a federal judge in Hawaii will rule whether a racially discriminatory election that only allows one race to participate may take place in November. The Obama administration filed a brief as a friend of the court saying that the racially discriminatory election should take place. Hawaii passed a law to empower the “native Hawaiian” movement by establishing a government-run voter registration roll that only allows “native Hawaiians” to register to vote. The...

The Confederate battle flag is far from the only worrisome symbol in America today. Everyone is weighing in on the horrific murders in Charleston and blaming the mindset of the mass murderer on wider social pathologies. After the airing of the racist crackpot ideas of the unhinged Dylann Roof, calls have gone out to ban the public flying of the battle flag of the Old Confederacy, which has also been incorporated in various forms in four state flags. Perhaps we should step back and eschew symbolism that separates us by race rather than unites us as fellow citizens. (snip) But...

Though Canada's political centre of gravity of gravity has shifted westward in recent times - the country's conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, though Toronto-born, represents a constituency in resource-rich Alberta - this trend has not sparked a separatist revival. Paradoxically, the two referenda were held when two pro-Canada Quebecers, Pierre Trudeau and Jean Chretien, were Prime Minister. A key difference between Scotland and Quebec is the simplicity of the six-word question posed in the referendum: "Should Scotland be an independent country?" In 1995, Quebecers faced a 43-word question that many voters found incomprehensible. In 1980, it ran to a riddle-like...

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine's interim president said on Monday that the Kiev leadership was "not against" a referendum being held on the type of state Ukraine should be and added he was sure it would confirm the wish of the majority for a united, independent country. The holding of a referendum has been one of the demands of separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine. Oleksander Turchinov, in televised remarks to a parliamentary committee, added that such a poll could be held at the same time as a presidential election on May 25. He added that an anti-terrorist operation involving the army...

Catalonia regional parliament has approved a declaration proclaiming the Catalan people a “sovereign political and legal entity”. The motion also calls for a referendum to be held to allow Catalans their say on independence. The motion was passed by 85 votes to 41. The ruling Convergencia I Union coalition was backed by its parliamentary partner Esquerra Republicana (ERC), and the communist green coalition ICV. The Partido Popular, most of the Catalan socialists (PSC) Party, and Ciutadans, a non-separatist platform, voted against. The growing separatist movement in wealthy Catalonia - which has its own language - presents a major challenge for...

But whether Barack Obama is elected to a second term or Mitt Romney is elected the 45th president, the contours of their support during this fiercely fought campaign show that we live in two Americas. The culturally cohesive America of the 1950s that some of us remember, usually glossing over racial segregation and the civil-rights movement, is no longer with us and hasn’t been for some time. Niche media has replaced universal media. One America listens to Rush Limbaugh, the other to NPR. Each America has its favorite cable news channel. As for entertainment, Americans have 100-plus cable channels to...

Crackdown on Tibetan Ringtones 2010-05-21 Authorities in Tibet ban popular ringtones characterized as 'separatist.' Screen grab from a video of the song "The Hope of the Son of the Snow-City," taken from Tudou. HONG KONG—Students and teachers at a high school near the Tibetan city of Shigatse have been told to delete certain popular Tibetan-language songs from their cell phones after they were designated "unhealthy" by local education officials, according to its Web site. The school announced recently that owing to the "increasing complexity of separatism," a list of 27 popular Tibetan-language tracks had been banned, whether in audio or...

The Honorable Lamar Alexander United States Senate 455 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Re: Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act, S. 201 1/H.R. 2314, the “Akaka Bill” Dear Senator Alexander, In a few short months, my second term as Governor of Hawaii will conclude and I will return to private life. I had sincerely hoped that the campaign to afford federal recognition toNative Hawaiians through the “Akaka Bill” would reach a successful conclusion before I left office. As many will recall, I have traveled to Washington often to express my support for the Akaka Bill over the past eight...

Prejudice in Paradise Hawaii Has a Racism Problem By Larry Keller Celia Padron went on a Hawaiian vacation last year, lured by the prospect of beautiful beaches and friendly people. She, her husband and two teenage daughters enjoyed the black sand beach at Makena State Park on Maui. But a Hawaiian girl accosted her two teenage daughters, saying, "Go back to the mainland" and "Take your white ass off our beaches," says Padron, a pediatric gastroenterologist in New Jersey. When her husband, 68 at the time, stepped between the girls, three young Hawaiian men slammed him against a vehicle, cutting...

[Today, a letter was sent to Congressional leaders by the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, opposing the establishment of a new race-based government in Hawaii.] Dear Distinguished Members of Congress: Three years ago, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights issued a report opposing the passage of the proposed Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act. Although that report focused on an earlier version of the proposed legislation, that earlier version was substantially similar to S. 1011. Specifically, the report stated: “The Commission recommends against passage of the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act ... or any other legislation that would discriminate on the basis...

OTTAWA - A Liberal senator is threatening to push for a separatist movement in Newfoundland and Labrador if the Harper government continues to discriminate against the province. Sen. George Baker not only refused to back down Wednesday from separatist musings earlier this week - he turned up the rhetoric. "I will keep saying it: that if this keeps up then you're going to see a separatist movement in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador - and I'll be encouraging it." What's more, Baker said if Liberals support another Conservative budget that penalizes Newfoundland, no one will have to kick him...

“The very essence of civil liberty certainly consists in the right of every individual to claim the protection of the laws, whenever he receives an injury. One of the first duties of government is to afford that protection.” US Chief Justice John Marshall, Marbury v. Madison (1803) All citizens should be alarmed that the Office of Hawaiian Affairs is attempting to use political pressure to force the State of Hawai`i to abandon its “ceded lands” appeal to the US Supreme Court....

The so-called “Highness Rita Kulamika Makekau, Royal Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Hawaiian Kingdom Government” is still occupying a section of Iolani Palace grounds. But after pleading “no-contest” October 15 to charges that she abused and tortured five Hawaiian foster children, Makekau is carrying another title: “convicted felon.” This hasn’t dissuaded the HKG group from continuing to illegally occupy State property. And they seem unfazed by the contradiction between claiming to uphold Hawaiian rights and abusing Hawaiian children. According to the Star-Bulletin November 22: “Makekau's acts of abuse against her sister's children included hitting their heads with knives and...

Gay Pride. Jewish Pride. Black pride. Hispanic Pride. Multiculturalism. Ethnic pride. Minority rights vs. tyranny of the majority. For a generation, America has been awash in the celebration of minorities and minorities celebration of themselves. Just recall Black is Beautiful or I am a woman, I am invincible. At the same time, the majority group in America -- white Christians -- has been allowed to celebrate very little. Rather, they have constantly been reminded of what they should be ashamed of -- their racism, sexism, homophobia, patriarchy, and xenophobia -- real and alleged. But what about minority shame? Why does...

Russia’s Restless Muslim Republics By Uwe Klussmann Although Russia is celebrating the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, it still has its own problems in the region as its Muslim republics are drifting toward a partisan war. Last Monday, an eerie funeral procession passed through the center of Nazran in the Russian republic of Ingushetia. Hundreds of people silently crowded around the coffin of Magomed Yevloyev. The 37-year-old lawyer and founder of a Web site ( www.ingushetiya.ru) that was critical of the government was killed in police custody. The authorities said that he was shot in a police car “inadvertently”...