this is an interesting one, too:

smart guy:

“Don’t weaponize race,” Gillum warned over the weekend.

Don't know that I agree 100% with this, but it is worth a read and a thought or two about new possible "common good" coalitions:

Joshua Johnson of NPR, his 1A site based @ Washington DC's WAMU:

“America is divided, but millions of us are still eager to come together. 1A proves that every day. We take on tough subjects in a thoughtful, civil and meaningful way. It’s exactly the kind of conversation this nation desperately needs. And it can only happen when you show your support.”

— Joshua Johnson

empty dupe due to code problem

Identity Politics Does Not Continue the Work of the Civil Rights Movements

By Helen Pluckrose & James A. Lindsay @ Aero Magazine, Sept. 25

It is nearly beyond dispute that the Civil Rights Movement, second-wave liberal feminism, and Gay Pride were liberal projects, both in the broad philosophical sense and in the narrower meaning that arises within contemporary politics. Nevertheless, it is common for those of us who consider ourselves liberal in either sense, or both, to be told we must disapprove of these great liberal successes. This occurs when we criticize identity politics.

This peculiar criticism follows an insistence that these civil rights movements must be a form of identity politics because they advocated very explicitly for a certain identity group. No. This is never what liberal critics of “identity politics” mean by the term. It is fully consistent with—indeed, integral to—universal liberalism to advocate for universal human rights, freedoms, and opportunities by focusing on the identity groups who lack them. This advocacy, however, is not identity politics.

This is not a mere semantic quibble. It is vital to distinguish between universal liberalism and identity politics and recognize what they share in common alongside how they differ. Both see and oppose inequality and seek to remedy it, but they do so with very different conceptions of society and use different approaches. These differences matter. Universal liberalism focuses on individuality and shared humanity and seeks to achieve a society in which every individual is equally able to access every right, freedom, and opportunity that our shared societies provide. Identity politics focuses explicitly on group identity and seeks political empowerment by promoting that group as a monolithic, marginalized entity distinct from and polarized against another group depicted as a monolithic privileged entity.

Universal Liberalism

It is essential to understand that “liberal” does not indicate a place on the left of the political spectrum, as it is often used in the United States. Neither does it indicate a place on the right of the political spectrum, as it is often used in Australia. Rather, it is a philosophical and ethical position with a long history which focuses on individuality, liberty, and equal opportunity. In fact, it is found in decidedly left-wing political positions, decidedly right-wingones, libertarian ones, and among the unaffiliated but broadly centrist. Therefore, universal liberalism is a widely held principle, and it is one which grew out of Enlightenment thought and the founding of secular, liberal democracies. As such, it birthed the civil rights movements.

The Civil Rights Movement, second-wave liberal feminism, and Gay Pride functioned explicitly on these values of universal human rights and did so to forward the worth of the individual regardless of status of race, gender, sex, sexuality, or other markers of identity. They proceeded by appealing directly to universal human rights applying universally. 

They demanded that people of color, women, and sexual minorities no longer be discriminated against and treated as second class citizens. They insisted that within a liberal society that makes good on its promises to its citizens, everyone should be given the full range of rights, freedoms, and opportunities.

Martin Luther King, Jr., articulated this ethos of individuality and shared humanity explicitly when he said, “I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” Liberal feminists did so when they sought to have access to the same careers as men, the same pay [....]

From special IDENTITY CRISIS issue of Spiked Review, September 27- 28, 2018.

[Spiked is a publication centered in London, England. From their about us page: Launched in December 2015 and edited by Tim Black, the spiked review is dedicated to the long-form – the essay, the interview and the in-depth review. It aims to provide a vital space for some of the most interesting minds out there to give full vent to their ideas and insights.The spiked review is nothing without the intellectual verve of its contributors. They all share a common commitment: to shed light.]

My problem with black identity; Remi Adekoya on the danger of racial politics.

By Remi Adekoya​

Remi Adekoya is Polish­-Nigerian. He is the former political editor of the Warsaw Business Journal. He has written for Foreign Affairs, Politico and several Polish newspapers such as Gazeta Wyborcza, Wprost, naTemat.pl, Central European Financial Observer and Poland Today. He has provided socio­political commentary and analysis for BBC, Foreign Policy, Stratfor and Radio France International among others. He is currently conducting PhD research on identity politics. He tweets @RemiAdekoya1 ~ TheGuardian.com

Racism fatigue. Is it time to turn away from raciology?

By Diran Adebayo​

Diran Adebayo FRSL is a British novelist, cultural critic and academic best known for his stylish, inventive tales of London and the lives of African diasporans. His work has been characterised by its interest in multiple cultural identities, subcultures, and its distinctive, "musical" use of language..... ~ Wikipedia

‘We need to think of ourselves as Americans’ Sheri Berman on how identity politics harms democracy.

By Shari Berman

Sheri Berman is a professor of Political Science at Barnard College, Columbia University.  Her research interests include European history and politics; the development of democracy; populism and fascism; and the history of the left.  She has written about these topics for a wide variety of scholarly and non-scholarly publications, including the New York Times, The Washington Post, Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs, and VOX.  She currently serves on the boards of the Journal of Democracy, Dissent and Political Science Quarterly.  Her most recent book, Democracy and Dictatorship: From the Ancien Regime to the Present Day, is forthcoming from Oxford University Press. ~ Barnard website.

A pastor simpatico with "common good" movement just got a MacArthur genius grant:

William J. Barber II, 55, pastor and social justice advocate
"Building broad-based fusion coalitions as part of a moral movement to confront racial and economic inequality."