Tag Archives: Gabriel

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Victory — Psychology Today! …Rashad Robinson, ColorOfChange.org


The efforts of you and more than 75,000 other ColorOfChange members paid off.1 Psychology Today has now agreed to remove controversial author Satoshi Kanazawa, the author of a deeply offensive article regarding Black women, from its website, and they have implemented new policies to prevent inflammatory content in the future.

It wasn’t easy or a foregone conclusion. After staying silent for almost two weeks, Psychology Today on Friday issued an apology, but they refused to say how they would prevent such a situation from happening again. Then hundreds of ColorOfChange members started calling the magazine by phone, along with additional pressure on Facebook and Twitter demanding a clearer response — at which point Psychology Today came correct and did the right thing.

While there still remains the larger problem of Black women and girls having to face dehumanizing and damaging messages, this is an important victory. We’ve not only drawn a line with Psychology Today — we’ve sent a powerful message to other media outlets that serving as a platform for racist and dehumanizing content is unacceptable and will result in pushback and consequences.

At ColorOfChange, we will continue to hold media accountable, and we hope you will continue to be there with us. Remember, our work is powered by you, our members. If you can support our work financially, whatever the amount, please click the link below:

http://www.colorofchange.org/donate

Thanks and Peace,

— Rashad, James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha, and the rest of the ColorOfchange.org team
June 2nd, 2011

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Call Psychology Today … Rashad Robinson, ColorOfChange.org


On Friday, after more than 70,000 of you spoke up, Psychology Today finally issued a statement apologizing for Kanazawa‘s racist and dehumanizing article that they published. But they failed to explain the steps they’re taking to prevent such articles from being published in the future1, which is critical for holding them accountable.

Can you take a moment to call them and demand that they do? Just click the link below to get started:

http://act.colorofchange.org/call/ptcalls

For almost two weeks, Psychology Today remained silent after publishing “Why Are Black Women Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women?” In their statement Friday they took responsibility for Kanazawa’s article, an important first step.

However, they remained silent on what they’d do differently in the future — leaving it unclear what will prevent similar articles from being published, or if Kanazawa will continue to write for the publication. Given the level of the offense, it is important that Psychology Today provide such an explanation before declaring the issue resolved.

Your phone call is about more than Psychology Today — it’s about standing up to any media outlet that becomes a vehicle for unfair attacks on our communities. Please join us in calling Psychology Today:

http://act.colorofchange.org/call/ptcalls

Thanks and Peace,

— Rashad, James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha, and the rest of the ColorOfchange.org team
May 31st, 2011

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ColorOfchange.org —It’s a “fact” that Black women are ugly?


Nearly 20 years after a black parent documented how hard it was to hear, “Mommy, I want to be white,”1 Psychology Today reinforced the false and hurtful sentiment that Black women aren’t attractive.

Last week they published an article claiming it to be scientific fact that Black women are less beautiful than women of other races,2 penned by Satoshi Kanazawa, who is notorious for hiding behind pseudoscience to promote discredited racist and sexist ideas.3

By giving Kanazawa a platform and validating his ideas, Psychology Today dehumanized Black women and girls everywhere. After widespread public outcry, they removed the article from their website.4 But that alone won’t erase the damage they’ve done by validating these discredited ideas — the editors need to apologize, explain how this happened, and let us know that it won’t happen again. Please join us in demanding they do so immediately, and then ask your friends and family to do the same:

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/827?akid=1987.1174326.Gg4MZA&t=3

Kanazawa’s article is flawed from top to bottom.5 Using a dataset from an unrelated study of teenagers, he draws the obviously false conclusion that Black women are “objectively” less attractive than women from other racial groups.

Kanazawa has a long history of hiding behind pseudo-science to express racist and sexist views. He once wrote an article asking “Are All Women Essentially Prostitutes?” and another suggesting that the US should have dropped nuclear bombs across the entire Middle East after 9/11 because it would have wiped out Muslim terrorists.6

So why does Psychology Today continue to give him a platform? Black women constantly face both subtle and explicit messages that they are valued less than women of other races — messages that are especially damaging to Black girls. Now Psychology Today has served as launching point for yet another attack, this time in the name of science.

Almost as if to cover up the racism inherent in his piece, Kanazawa says that black men are, “if anything more attractive” than their counterparts of other races because of “greater testosterone.”7 But even here Kanazawa relies on the same pseudoscience to describe black men in familiar terms — brutish, hypermasculine, oversexed, exotic. And that’s dangerous, too.

He uses a modern-day version of the faulty logic used to dehumanize blacks as inferior for hundreds of years, from the social Darwinists and eugenicists of the 19th century to The Bell Curve just 15 years ago. Psychology Today has a responsibility not to give such false logic a stage, nor validation.

To undo the damage it’s done, Psychology Today needs to explicitly reject Kanazawa’s ideas. Please join us in demanding that their editors apologize, explain how this article was published in the first place and what they’ll do to ensure it won’t happen again in the future. It takes just a moment

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/827?akid=1987.1174326.Gg4MZA&t=4

Thanks and Peace,

— Rashad, James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha, and the rest of the ColorOfchange.org team

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

help save Troy’s life


It’s not often that you could literally save a life by signing a petition. This is one of those times.

Last week we told you about Troy Davis, who could be put to death as soon as next month — despite overwhelming evidence that raises serious, unanswered questions about his guilt.

Please read more about the Troy Davis case below, then sign our petition asking the Georgia Pardon Board to spare Troy’s life. It takes just a moment, and it could be the most important action you take this year.

http://act.colorofchange.org/sign/troy/

— James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team

April 27th, 2011

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In 1991, Troy Davis was convicted of murdering a white police officer. Though there’s major evidence that Davis didn’t commit the crime, Georgia is prepared to put him to death. We have a good chance of stopping this — but only if we speak up now.

The fact is, no physical evidence connected Davis to the murder. Seven of the original nine witnesses have recanted, with many saying their testimony was a result of law enforcement pressure. Of the remaining witnesses, one is highly suspect and the other could be the actual culprit in the officer’s murder.

Now, despite these and other facts, the state of Georgia has taken the first steps toward Davis’ execution — and only the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole stands between Davis and the lethal injection chamber.

Georgia may be about to kill an innocent man. That’s not justice. Please ask the Georgia Parole Board to spare Troy Davis’ life, before it’s too late — and it’s critical that you ask others to do the same:

http://act.colorofchange.org/sign/troy/

Since Troy Davis’ 1991 conviction, numerous facts have emerged that introduce significant doubt as to his guilt. These facts include:

All but two of the original witnesses against Troy Davis have signed affidavits recanting their earlier testimony. Most claim that their testimony was coerced by police officers.1

Multiple witnesses say that another man — one of the original witnesses against Davis — has claimed to have slain the fallen officer.2

The weapon used in the murder was never found. The only physical evidence connecting Davis to the crime was indirect, circumstantial — and new testimony disputes Davis’s connection to that evidence.3

In light of this evidence, the Supreme Court granted Davis another chance. But instead of an actual new trial before a jury, which would mean the burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt is on the prosecutor, he got an evidentiary hearing before a single federal judge where Davis’ lawyers had the burden to meet an impossibly high and undefined legal standard.

In light of this, it was sad — but no surprise — when the judge rejected the new evidence and cleared the way for Davis’ execution. However, even he acknowledged lingering doubt, noting that the case against Davis was not “ironclad.”

But “ironclad” is exactly what the evidence should be in order to put someone to death. If the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole doesn’t act to stop Davis’ execution, they’ll run a serious risk of putting an innocent man to death. That is not acceptable.

Please join us, along with our partners at Amnesty International and the NAACP, in asking the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole to save Troy Davis’ life by commuting his sentence to life in prison. And when you do, please ask your friends and family to do the same.

http://act.colorofchange.org/sign/troy/

Thanks and Peace,

— James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team

April 20, 2011

Help support our work. ColorOfChange.org is powered by YOU–your energy and dollars. We take no money from lobbyists or large corporations that don’t share our values, and our tiny staff ensures your contributions go a long way. You can contribute here:

http://www.colorofchange.org/donate

References:

1. “Troy Davis – Finality over Fairness,” Amnesty International USA

http://act.colorofchange.org/go/808?akid=1959.1174326.F8eCrN&t=8

2. See Reference 1

3. See Reference 1

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Fwd: SHOCKING VIDEO: Houston police beat helpless 15-year old


Last week, we told you about Chad Holley, a Houston teenager who was brutally beaten by police in that city.

Since then, more than 35,000 ColorOfChange.org members have spoken out, demanding real justice for the officers involved and a federal investigation of Houston Police Department. Can you help us get to 50,000 signatures?

You can add your voice by clicking the link below. After you do, please pass this information along to your friends and family so that they can join our campaign as well. You can read the original email we sent below.

http://colorofchange.org/campaign/houston-police/

Thanks and Peace,

— James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha, and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team