TruthSeeker24's 3rd Millennium Tidbits: 2022

This year is the historic time of the 75th year anniversary of Jackie Robinson going into the Major League Baseball organization. He was the first black man to join the MLB since Reconstruction. He was a hero. After these long decades, we still are fighting for the same aim of justice just like in 1947. Jackie Robinson not only fought racism and discrimination throughout his life. He married a black woman who was his complete equal too. She is Rachel Robinson who is almost 100 years living today in this world. Rachel Robinson has worked very hard in nursing and uses activism to advance the cause of social justice. Jackie Robinson was born in Georgia, and Robinson was raised in California. As a gifted athlete, Jackie Robinson played track, basketball, football, and baseball when he was in high school plus college. He played professional football and was a WWII-era veteran in the U.S. Army. From early on, he opposed Jim Crow apartheid verbally, and he was constantly invested in the Civil Rights Movement. He stood up against the extremism of Barry Goldwater, supported Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and promoted a black-owned banking institution in New York City. His children carried on his traditions of courage, love of truth, and fighting for justice. Robinson wanted black administrators in the leadership of baseball institutions. So, he was thinking of the fight for human liberation for a long time. As he lived, Jackie Robinson possessed human humbleness and compassion. Tons of average people of any color would not non-violently respond to vulgar plus racist words thrown at them. Yet, Jackie Robinson survived vicious racist baseball players with grace and profound dignity. As a black man in the 21st century, Jackie Robinson gave us hope, inspiration, and strength to carry forward the legitimate, just cause of black liberation. Jackie Robinson remains a true role model for the black community and any freedom-loving human being worldwide.

During the Beginning

To start, Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919. He was born in Cairo, Georgia to Mallie and Jerry Robinson. His family was made up of sharecroppers. Mallie's maiden name was McGriff. Jackie Robinson's siblings are Edgar, Frank, Matthew, and Willa Mae. Jackie was the 5th and last child of the family. Later, the family moved to California in 1920. They lived in Pasadena, California where he stayed for numerous years. The extended Robinson family established itself on a residential plot containing two small houses at 121 Pepper Street in Pasadena, California. Robinson's mother worked various odd jobs to support the family. Growing up in relative poverty in an otherwise affluent community, Robinson and his minority friends were excluded from many recreational opportunities. As a result, Robinson joined a neighborhood gang, but his friend Carl Anderson persuaded him to abandon it. In 1935, Jackie Robinson graduated from Washington Junior High School and was enrolled at John Muir High School (or Muir Tech). In high school, he played football, basketball, track and field, and baseball. He played shortstop and catcher on the baseball team, quarterback on the football team, and guard on the basketball team. With the track and field squad, he won awards in the broad jump. He was also a member of the tennis team. By 1936, Robinson won the junior boys' singles championship in the annual Pacific Coast Negro Tennis Tournament and earned a place on the Pomona annual baseball tournament all-star team, which included future Hall of Famers Ted Williams and Bob Lemon. In late January 1937, the Pasadena Star-News newspaper reported that Robinson "for two years has been the outstanding athlete at Muir, starring in football, basketball, track, baseball, and tennis."

After Muir, Robinson attended Pasadena Junior College (PJC), where he continued his athletic career by participating in basketball, football, baseball, and track. On the football team, he played quarterback and safety. He was a shortstop and leadoff hitter for the baseball team, and he broke an American junior college broad-jump record held by his brother Mack with a jump of 25 ft. 6+1⁄2 in. on May 7, 1938. Like in Muir High School, most of Jackie's teammates were white. While playing football at PJC, Robinson suffered a fractured ankle, complications from which would eventually delay his deployment status while in the military. In 1938, he was elected to the All-Southland Junior College Team for baseball and selected as the region's Most Valuable Player

In 1938, he participated in the JC Track Championship, and he set a national record (back then) in the broad jump (in April at Pomona, California. He races to Glendale and arrived at midgame to help the Pasadena Junior College to win the Championship in baseball by getting 2 hits and a stolen base. In 1936, his brother, Mack Robinson, won an Olympic Silver medal only to the great Jesse Owens during the 200 m. dash race. This Olympics took place at Berlin, Germany. Back then, Jackie Robinson was known to have opposed authority "figures" who expressed racism against black people. While at PJC, he was motivated by a preacher (the Rev. Karl Downs) to attend church on a regular basis, and Downs became a confidant for Robinson, a Christian. Toward the end of his PJC tenure, Frank Robinson (to whom Robinson felt closest among his three brothers) was killed in a motorcycle accident. The event motivated Jackie to pursue his athletic career at the nearby University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he could remain closer to Frank's family.

In 1939, Jackie Robinson attended UCLA. He was the school's first athlete to win varsity letters in four sports of baseball, basketball, football, and track. He excelled in sports like football, baseball, basketball, and track. He was one of four black players on the Bruins' 1939 football team; the others were Woody Strode, Kenny Washington, and Ray Bartlett. Washington, Strode, and Robinson made up three of the team's four backfield players. At a time when only a few black students played mainstream college football, this made UCLA college football's most integrated team. They went undefeated with four ties at 6–0–4. In track and field, Robinson won the 1940 NCAA championship in the long jump at 24 ft 10+1⁄4 in. (7.58 m). Baseball was Robinson's "worst sport" at UCLA; he hit .097 in his only season, although in his first game he went 4-for-4 and twice stole home. While a senior at UCLA, Robinson met his future wife, Rachel Isum (b.1922), a UCLA freshman who was familiar with Robinson's athletic career at PJC. He played football as a senior, but the 1940 Bruins won only one game. In the spring, Robinson left college just shy of graduation, despite the reservations of his mother and Isum. He took a job as an assistant athletic director with the government's National Youth Administration (NYA) in Atascadero, California.

Jackie Robinson During World War II

After his career at UCLA, Jackie Robinson was hired to play semi-pro football with the Honolulu Bears. Their first exhibition game was in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. He left Honolulu on December 5, 1941, which was just 2 days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He was on the ship called Lurline on his way home when Congress formally declared war against Japan. Jackie Robinson played for the Los Angeles Bulldogs of the Pacific Coast Football League in December 1941. In 1942, Robinson joined the Army during World War II. He was a friend to the famous boxer Joe Lewis too. Robinson was drafted and assigned to a segregated Army cavalry unit at Fort Riley (in north central Kansas). Many people like Robinson (who were black soldiers) applied for admission to an Officer Candidate (OCS) located at Fort Riley. Although the Army's initial July 1941 guidelines for OCS had been drafted as race neutral, few black applicants were admitted into OCS until after subsequent directives by Army leadership. As a result, the applications of Robinson and his colleagues were delayed for several months. After protests by heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis (then stationed at Fort Riley) and with the help of Truman Gibson (then an assistant civilian aide to the Secretary of War), the men were accepted into OCS. The experience led to a personal friendship between Robinson and Louis.

Jackie Robinson earned a promotion to the 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army by 1943. Afterward, Jackie Robinson and Rachel Robinson became engaged. By April 1944, he became the platoon leader of Company B of the 761st. After receiving his commission, Robinson was reassigned to Fort Hood, Texas, where he joined the 761st "Black Panthers" Tank Battalion. While at Fort Hood, Robinson often used his weekend leave to visit the Rev. Karl Downs, President of Sam Huston College (now Huston–Tillotson University) in nearby Austin, Texas; in California, Downs had been Robinson's pastor at Scott United Methodist Church while Robinson attended PJC. On July 6, 1944, he refused to move to the back of a military bus at Fort Hood, Texas. Texas had Jim Crow apartheid back then.

While awaiting results of hospital tests on the ankle he had injured in junior college, Robinson boarded an Army bus with a fellow officer's wife; although the Army had commissioned its own unsegregated bus line, the bus driver ordered Robinson to move to the back of the bus. Robinson refused. The driver backed down, but after reaching the end of the line, summoned the military police, who took Robinson into custody. When Robinson later confronted the investigating duty officer about racist questioning by the officer and his assistant, the officer recommended Robinson be court-martialed.

After Robinson's commander in the 761st, Paul L. Bates, refused to authorize the legal action, Robinson was summarily transferred to the 758th Battalion—where the commander quickly consented to charge Robinson with multiple offenses, including, among other charges, public drunkenness, even though Robinson did not drink. By the time of the court-martial in August 2, 1944, the charges against Robinson had been reduced to two counts of insubordination during questioning. Robinson was acquitted by an all-white panel of nine officers. Although his former unit, the 761st Tank Battalion, became the first black tank unit to see combat in World War II, Robinson's court-martial proceedings prohibited him from being deployed overseas; thus, he never saw combat action.

He was later honorably discharged on November 28, 1944. As early as 1942, Jackie Robinson had a tryout with the Chicago White Sox. After his discharge, Robinson briefly returned to his old football club, the Los Angeles Bulldogs. Robinson then accepted an offer from his old friend and pastor Rev. Karl Downs to be the athletic director at Samuel Huston College in Austin, then of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The job included coaching the school's basketball team for the 1944–45 season. As it was a fledgling program, few students tried out for the basketball team, and Robinson even resorted to inserting himself into the lineup for exhibition games. Although his teams were outmatched by opponents, Robinson was respected as a disciplinarian coach, and drew the admiration of, among others, Langston University basketball player Marques Haynes, a future member of the Harlem Globetrotters.

Making History

In 1945, Jackie Robinson joined the Negro American League baseball team. He played for a while and gained baseball experience. Jackie Robinson met the great pitcher Satchel Paige and went on to play on the American All Stars Team. By April 16, 1945, Jackie Robinson had a tryout with the Boston Red Sox. Neither the manager nor the players showed up for his "tryout." In August 28, 1945, Robinson meet with Branch Ricky of the Dodgers and agreed to join the Dodger Organization. Later, he was drafted by the Montreal Royals, and then signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers. By October 23, 1945, Robinson signed a contract to play with the Montreal Royals of the International League. He earned a $3,500 bonus and a $600 per month salary.

Soon, he was the first African American to play professional baseball at the MLB since Reconstruction. Many teams threatened to strike rather than play against Jackie Robinson, because Jackie is a black man. By April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson played his first major league game. Many fans and even some teammates mocked him, cursed him, and disrespected him in many ways. Yet, Robinson played great on the field. Jackie Robinson even won the Rookie of the Year Award. By 1949, Jackie Robinson joined a few other African American men to play in the first All Star game that included African Americans in 1949. On February 10, 1946, Jackie and Rachel Robinson (her maiden name is Isum) married at the Independent Church in Los Angeles, California. By the Spring of 1946, the new couple came into Daytona Beach, Florida for Spring training. Robinson met with John Wright, another African American on the Montreal Roster. The Montreal Royals team is locked out of a Ballpark in Sanford, Florida, because Jackie and John are black men. Jackie Robinson played his first professional baseball game for the Montreal Royals at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, New Jersey. Joe Cummiskey of the Jersey Journal wrote: "Jackie Robinson, first Negro player ever to play in organized baseball, broke in yesterday with the Montreal Royals - and with a bang. He smashed out four hits in five times up-a homer with two men on base and three singles. He stole two bases, drove in four runs, and scored from third twice by forcing Jersey City's pitchers into balks. Montreal won 14-1." The Montreal Royals will go on to win the International League by 19 1/2 games and go on to win the Little World Series against the winners of the American Association the Louisville Colonels. Jackie finished the year as the International League batting champion, compiling a .349 average in 124 games. On November 18, 1946, Jackie Robinson and Rachel Robinson had their first child, named Jackie Robinson Jr. February 1947 was when both the Dodgers and the Montreal Royals held their spring training in Havana, Cuba. On April 11, 1947, The Brooklyn Dodgers announced the purchase of the contract of Jackie Roosevelt Robinson from Montreal.

Jackie Robinson made his Major League preseason debut on April 11, 1947 against the Boston Braves at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, NYC in an exhibition game. There were 24,237 people in attendance. On that game, Robinson grounds out against Johnny Sain in his first at bat. He goes 0-3 and scores a run. On April 15, 1947, Robinson made his major league debut at the relatively advanced age of 28 at Ebbets Field before a crowd of 26,623 spectators, more than 14,000 of whom were black. Although he failed to get a base hit, he walked and scored a run in the Dodgers' 5–3 victory. Robinson became the first player since 1884 to openly break the major league baseball color line. Black fans began flocking to see the Dodgers when they came to town, abandoning their Negro league teams. Some Dodger players insinuated they would sit out rather than play alongside Robinson. The brewing mutiny ended when Dodgers management took a stand for Robinson. Manager Leo Durocher informed the team, "I do not care if the guy is yellow or black, or if he has stripes like a f____ zebra. I'm the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What's more, I say he can make us all rich. And if any of you cannot use the money, I will see that you are all traded."

Robinson nonetheless became the target of rough physical play by opponents (particularly the Cardinals). At one time, he received a seven-inch gash in his leg from Enos Slaughter. On April 22, 1947, during a game between the Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies, Phillies players and manager Ben Chapman called Robinson a "n____" from their dugout and yelled that he should "go back to the cotton fields." Rickey later recalled that Chapman "did more than anybody to unite the Dodgers. When he poured out that string of unconscionable abuse, he solidified and united thirty men."

By May 9, 1947, a strike threatened by the St. Louis Cardinals is abruptly stopped by National League President Ford Frick (right) who stated "...The National League will go down the line with Robinson, whatever the consequence." By July 5 of the same year, the Cleveland Indians announced the signing of 22-year-old outfielder, Larry Doby of the Newark Eagles. However, Robinson received significant encouragement from several major league players. Robinson named Lee "Jeep" Handley, who played for the Phillies at the time, as the first opposing player to wish him well. Dodgers' teammate Pee Wee Reese once came to Robinson's defense with the famous line, "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color is not one of them." In 1947 or 1948, Reese is said to have put his arm around Robinson in response to fans who shouted racial slurs at Robinson before a game in Boston or Cincinnati. A statue by sculptor William Behrends, unveiled at KeySpan Park on November 1, 2005, depicts Reese with his arm around Robinson. Jewish baseball star Hank Greenberg, who had to deal with ethnic epithets during his career, also encouraged Robinson.

Following an incident where Greenberg collided with Robinson at first base, he "whispered a few words into Robinson's ear", which Robinson later characterized as "words of encouragement." Greenberg had advised him to overcome his critics by defeating them in games. Robinson also talked frequently with Larry Doby, who endured his own hardships since becoming the first black player in the American League with the Cleveland Indians, as the two spoke to one another via telephone throughout the season. Ben Chapman was one of the most racist baseball players in history along with Ty Cobb. Everyone knows that Ty Cobb was a racist. I knew that since I was a child. According to Roger Kahn's The Era book, Chapman told Jackie Robinson these words, "...Hey you, there. Snowflake. Yeah, you. You hear me. When did they let you outa the jungle... Hey, we don't need no n______s here... Hey, black boy. You like white p____nt__g, black boy? You like white p____? Which one o' the white boys' wives are you f_____ tonight?"

Robinson finished the season having played in 151 games for the Dodgers, with a batting average of .297, an on-base percentage of .383, and a .427 slugging percentage. He had 175 hits (scoring 125 runs) including 31 doubles, 5 triples, and 12 home runs, driving in 48 runs for the year. Robinson led the league in sacrifice hits, with 28, and in stolen bases, with 29. By August 27, 1947, the Dodgers bring up a second black player, 27-year-old Dan Bankhand, a strikeout pitcher from the Memphis Red Sox. On September 23, 1947, with permission for the Dodgers, Jackie's admirers staged a Jackie Robinson Day for him at Ebbets Field where he and Rachel are presented with a new Cadillac. Jackie is also presented with an interracial goodwill plaque from Jack Semel, a season box holder and supporter. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, a great entertainer, presented Jackie with an inscribed gold wristwatch from Tiffany's, which he cherished and always wore. The Robinson's also received a television and cash gifts that day. It would be October 1947 when Jackie Robinson was voted the first-ever major league Rookie of the Year. Two years later they would give one to a member of each league. Jackie also finished fifth in the National League's Most Valuable Player voting. On July 12, 1949, Jackie Robinson joined Roy Campanella, Don Newcombe, and Larry Doby as the first African Americans to play in an All-Star Game. Jackie Robinson testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee about the role of blacks in the military. He criticized Paul Robeson (who was a heroic black man), but Jackie Robinson later apologized for his statements to Paul Robeson later in his life. In fact, Jackie Robinson said the following words about Paul Robeson: ''I do have an increased respect for Paul Robeson, who, over the span of that 20 years'' - since 1949 - ''sacrificed himself, his career and the wealth and comfort he once enjoyed because, I believe, he was sincerely trying to help his people.'' By October 1949, Jackie Robinson was named the National League Most Valuable Player. He wins the batting title by batting .342, with 203 hits, 124 RBI's, and 37 stolen bases.

By January 13, 1950, Jackie and Rachel Robinson had their only daughter, named Sharon Robinson. In that same year, he stars in his own biographical called, "The Jackie Robinson Story." Ruby Dee played Rachel Robinson in the film. On October 26, 1950, Branch Rickey resigned as the President of the Dodgers, and Walter O'Malley was introduced as the new President of the team. On May 14, 1952, Jackie Robinson's 2nd son named David Robinson was born. By the Winter of 1953, Dodger manager Church Dressen quit and was succeeded by a minor league manager in the system, Walter Alston.

After a time, Jackie Robinson and his teammates played against the Yankees and won four games to allow the Dodgers to win their World Championship in 1955. In the year of 1957, Jackie Robinson retired from baseball. He had played 10 years for the Dodgers, winning 6 pennants and one World Series. Jackie Robinson worked with the NAACP to fight for freedom and justice for all. In 1957, Jackie Robinson joined Chock Full O'Nuts, a restaurant, and food chain, as Vice President of community relations. On June 7, 1957, Jackie Robinson, alongside Martin Luther King Jr., received an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from Howard University. In 1958, he was the spokesman and fundraiser for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Increasingly, he was involved in politics. Many people in my generation didn't know that Jackie Robinson campaigned for Presidential candidate Richard Nixon in 1960. Back in the day, there were an equal number of moderates/liberals and conservatives in both the Republican and Democratic parties. Today, most Republicans are conservatives, and most Democrats are liberals. So, back then, Jackie Robinson was a liberal Republican. He worked with Nelson Rockefeller, who was a liberal/moderate Republican too. By 1957, he was diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetes caused the continued deterioration of his body.

In October 1959, Robinson entered the Greenville Municipal Airport's whites-only waiting room. Airport police asked Robinson to leave, but he refused. At a National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) speech in Greenville, South Carolina, Robinson urged "complete freedom" and encouraged black citizens to vote and to protest their second-class citizenship. The following January, approximately 1,000 people marched on New Year's Day to the airport, which was desegregated shortly thereafter.

After Baseball and His Political Activism

By 1962, Jackie Robinson was inducted into the Baseball's Hall of Fame. It was a great achievement in his life in 1962. His Hall of Fame plaque reads the following words of: "Jack Roosevelt Robinson, Brooklyn N.L. 1947 to 1956, Leading N.L. batter in 1949. Holds fielding mark for second baseman playing in 150 or more games with .992. Led N.L. in stolen bases in 1947 and 1949. Lifetime batting average .311. Joint record holder for most double plays by second baseman, 137 in 1951. Led second baseman double plays 1949-50-51-52." Jackie Robinson was the first black player to be inducted into the Cooperstown Museum. In 1963, Jackie Robinson worked with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other human beings in a civil rights protest in Birmingham, Alabama. He was also present at the historic 1963 March on Washington with his son. By 1964, Robinson was named by New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller as one of the six national directors of his Presidential campaign. Rockefeller obviously lost, and Goldwater was the Republican nominee. During that time, Jackie Robinson legitimately opposed Goldwater, because Barry Goldwater refused to support federal civil rights legislation. Barry Goldwater publicly opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Goldwater was definitely wrong to do that. During this time, Robinson supported Rockefeller's 1964 Presidential run. Goldwater believed in the faulty libertarian argument that equality involving civil rights must be done at the state level. The problem with that argument is that some states will have more protections than others causing a breakdown of equal enforcement of the law involving civil rights. That is why you need federal, strong civil rights legislation in order for all parts of the nation to have uniform, powerful protections.

Also, Goldwater appealed to many far-right extremists, war mongers, and racists who want to press the clock back on progressive progress. Goldwater was a war hawk in favor of massive military involvement in the Vietnam War. Jackie Robinson supported LBJ in 1964 and became a Democratic supporter by the 1964 Presidential election. In 1965, Robinson served as an analyst for ABC's Major League Baseball Game of the Week telecasts, the first black person to do so. In 1966, Robinson was hired as general manager for the short-lived Brooklyn Dodgers of the Continental Football League. In 1972, he served as a part-time commentator on Montreal Expos telecasts. He chaired the NAACP's million-dollar Freedom Fund Drive in 1957 and served on the organization's board until 1967. He praised President John F. Kennedy for his support of civil rights.

A lot of people don't know that Malcolm X and Jackie Robinson had tensions with each other ideologically. It became so personal that both men never truly reconciled at the end. It's sad, but it's real. Jackie Robinson underestimated Malcolm X's revolutionary politics, his courage, and his will to change to be more progressive. Malcolm X underestimated Jackie Robinson's persistent motivation for equality and justice for black people. Both misunderstood each other which caused tensions in the first place. The irony is that both men would have more agreements than disagreements as time would go on. To understand how this existed, we have to look at historical events chronologically. Malcolm X at first respected Jackie Robinson. He listened to the radio on April 15, 1947, when Jackie Robinson was on the field as the first African American in the MLB since Reconstruction. Malcolm X would later reject his previous surname to be a follower of the religion of Islam. Malcolm X said that he was a great fan of Jackie Robinson in his "The Autobiography of Malcolm X." Malcolm X's brother, Philbert, inspired him to join the Nation of Islam. Years later, Malcolm X would be the most powerful speaker of the NOI, and Jackie Robinson would retire from baseball. By 1963, Malcolm X and Jackie Robinson would massively disagree on many issues. Malcolm X back then from 1953 to 1964 was in the Nation of Islam. Back then, he preached black nationalism and a separate black state to try to escape white racist society. Even when Malcolm X was in the Nation of Islam, he spoke the truth about being against imperialism, fighting police brutality, endorsing self-defense, and appreciating black identity.

Jackie Robinson disagreed with NOI leadership calling white people devils. Robinson rejected separatism by his own words, "“Malcolm X and his organization believe in separation. They have every right to. If they want to go off into some all-black community, why don’t they just go.” – Jackie Robinson, The Chicago Defender ( July 13, 1963).

“There I was, the black grandson of a slave, the son of a black sharecropper, part of a historic occasion, a symbolic hero to my people. The air was sparkling. The sunlight was warm. The band struck up the national anthem. The flag billowed in the wind. It should have been a glorious moment for me as the stirring words of the national anthem poured from the stands. Perhaps, it was, but then again, perhaps, the anthem could be called the theme song for a drama called The Noble Experiment. Today, as I look back on that opening game of my first world series, I must tell you that it was Mr. Rickey's drama and that I was only a principal actor. As I write this twenty years later, I cannot stand and sing the anthem. I cannot salute the flag; I know that I am a black man in a white world. In 1972, in 1947, at my birth in 1919, I know that I never had it made.”

― Jackie Robinson, I Never Had It Made

Jackie Robinson and Malcolm X fought for the same goal of black liberation, but they disagreed with the approaches on achieving the same aim. Robinson believed in integration. He supported Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Malcolm X, when he was in the NOI, believed in separatism, not integration or Jim Crow apartheid (i.e. segregation). Malcolm X said that segregation relegated black people to 2nd class citizenship which is true. Malcolm X regularly criticized the U.S. government for its lax response to eliminate anti-black racism, and he criticized black leaders that whom he didn't agree with as "Uncle Toms." Jackie Robinson considered the Nation of Islam as a group that would harm the essence of the civil rights movement. He voiced his criticisms in public and in the column in the New Journal and Guide, a weekly African American news journal including The Chicago Defender. Robinson disagreed with Congressman Adam Clayton Powell and accused him of wanting people to boycott the NAACP and support Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam. Malcolm X criticized white liberals as trying to co-opt the black freedom movement to make it lose its radical or revolutionary flavor. Elijah Muhammad told Malcolm X to not retaliate after girls were killed in Birmingham, Alabama and the police in LA murdered a NOI member. This increased the split among Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X. Dr. King was egged in Harlem, NYC. Malcolm X accused Robinson of selling out, and Robinson accused Malcolm X of promoting self-destruction for black people. The war of the words would continue and be increasingly personal.

Civil rights icon Medgar Evers was murdered in an assassination on June 12, 1963, at his driveway at Jackson, Mississippi. The murderer was Byron De La Beckwith. Malcolm X didn't attend Evers' funeral. Jackie Robinson criticized Malcolm X by saying that he was militant on Harlem street corners but not in the South where white racist terrorism ran rampant. Malcolm X criticized Ralph Bunche as a puppet of international Western elites, but Robinson praised Dr. Bunche for attending the funeral of Medgar Evers. Malcolm X responded in a speech saying that Robinson was an ex-baseball player and criticized the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Malcolm X criticized Robinson's ties and support for Richard Nixon, and his other policies. Malcolm X said that "If my integrity or sincerity is to be measured in your eyesight by attendance at funerals of Negroes who have been murdered by whites, if you should ever meet with such misfortune I promise to attend your funeral. Then, perhaps you will be able to see me in a different light. If you should ever become as militant on behalf of your oppressed people as Medgar Evers was, the same whites whom you now take to be your friends will be the first to put the bullet or the dagger in your back, just as they put it in the back of Medgar Evers.”

Robinson would criticize Malcolm X as a racist. Malcolm X was suspended from the NOI for his remarks about the JFK assassination. Robinson talked about Elijah Muhammad too. By 1964, Muhammad Ali defeated Sonny Liston. Malcolm X supported Ali. Malcolm X said this about Muhammad Ali: "He is more than Jackie Robinson was, because Robinson is the white man’s hero. But Cassius is the black man’s hero.” Months later, Malcolm X came to his Hajj. He transformed after coming to Mecca. He rejected the view that every white person was exclusively evil, but he believed in self-defense and black liberation. Jackie Robinson was shocked and astonished by the transformed Malcolm X. “In my view, if Malcolm were sincere and honest in his new visions,” Robinson wrote in The Chicago Defender on July 18, 1964, “he would reflect on how harshly and unjustly he has belittled and sought to discredit our national responsible leaders who have been working in the struggle for so long.” Malcolm X was forming his Organization of Afro-American Unity advancing international Pan-Africanism. Muhammad Ali rejected Malcolm X, because Malcolm X soon criticized Elijah Muhammad (and accused him of adultery which angered tons of NOI members). Malcolm X heroically changed further by opposing the Vietnam War, standing up for equality for women, and being against imperialism. Later, he was assassinated on February 21, 1965. Muhammad Ali regretted never having the time to reconcile with Malcolm X. Jackie Robinson expressed his views on the death of Malcolm X in these terms in the March 1965 column for The Chicago Defender, "But, in making him a martyr, they have only deepened whatever influence he may have had. In addition, they have generated a senseless brutal … war which sees black hands raised against brothers at a time when we most need unity among black people.” Jackie Robinson considered the death of Malcolm X a tragedy. If both would have spoke by 1965, they could have found common ground. Malcolm X found common ground with many people. Both black men (Malcolm X and Jackie Robinson) were heroic freedom fighters who wanted the best for black people collectively.

By 1966, Jackie Robinson was appointed Special Assistant to the Governor of New York State Nelson Rockefeller. By 1967 and 1968, America changed. The Vietnam War existed, there was the rise of Black Power, and there were rebellions in America (the rebellions had legitimate grievances against police terrorism plus against oppression in general. As Dr. King has said, rebellions involving burning things down is a long-term self-defeating action. You build things up to solve problems without burning buildings down. Dr. King was right to say that a riot is the language of the unheard meaning that the neglect of the problems of black people caused these rebellions to flourish back then. Jackie Robinson supported the Vietnam War, and Dr. King opposed the Vietnam War. I agree with Dr. King on the Vietnam War. Jackie Robinson was from an older generation who believed that joining the military represented courage, patriotism, and fidelity to giving more black people opportunities in society. Yet, the Vietnam War was an unjust war at every level. It should have never been in existence. Jackie Robinson was skeptical of Black Power. Of course, I believe in Black Power. Black Power is not violent or racist. Black Power is about promoting self-determination and political including economic independence in the black community. We have to be careful to advance progressive economic policies (i.e. capitalist exploitation must end, and we don't want lax wages or labor rights being violated. We desire a radical redistribution of economic and political power) and use Black Power in the right way that is not reactionary.

In 1968, Jackie Robinson's mother, Mallie, passed away. Dr. King passed away too in Memphis, Tennessee. Also, Robinson was named the National Chairman of the Brotherhood Week for the National Conference of Christians and Jews. Jackie Robinson supported Hubert Humphrey's 1968 Presidential campaign.

His Later Years

Robinson also became a prolific writer, including a column for the Amsterdam News, a weekly Black newspaper, where he further developed his fierce opposition to the Republican Party. “I suspect that unless the party showed a desire to win our votes,” he wrote in a letter in 1968 to Clarence Lee Towns Jr., the leading Black member of the Republican National Committee, “it may rest assured that I and my friends cannot and will not support a conservative." Jackie Robinson also wrote, “I have my right to remember that I am Black and American before I am Republican,” Robinson wrote in the Amsterdam News. “As such, I will never vote for Mr. Nixon.” In 1970, the Jackie Robinson Construction Company is established to build housing for families with low and moderate incomes. Jackie Robinson didn't just talk about civil rights. He executed programs to help people from the black-owned bank to his construction company. On June 17, 1971, Jackie Robinson's son, Jackie Robinson Jr., was killed in an automobile accident. It was one of the saddest moments in the Robinson household. Jackie Robinson also had health issues with his heart and other parts of his body. On June 4, 1972, Jackie's number 42 is retired in a ceremony at Dodger Stadium along with Roy Campanella's number 39 and Sandy Koufax's number 32. On October 14, 1972, Jackie makes his last public appearance before the start of the second game of the World Series in Cincinnati. He said, "I'd like to live to see a black manager, I'd like to live to see the day when there is a black man coaching at third base."

On October 23, 1972, Jackie Robinson passed away by a heart attack at his home in Stamford, Connecticut. The Reverend Jesse Jackson gave the eulogy at the funeral, held at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn. A portion of that eulogy is below:

"Jackie's body was a temple of God, an instrument of peace that had no commitment to the idle gods of fame and materialism and empty awards and cheap trophies... Jackie, as a figure in history, was a rock in the water, hitting concentric circles and ripples of new possibility. Jackie, as a co-partner with God, was a balm in Gilead, in America, in Ebbets Field... When Jackie took the field, something within us reminded us of our birthright to be free. And Somebody without reminded us that is could be attained. There was strength and pride and power when the big rock hit the water, and concentric circles came forth and ripples of new possibility spread throughout the nation... He didn't integrate baseball for himself. He infiltrated baseball for all of us, seeking and looking for more oxygen for black survival, and looking for new possibility... His feet on the baseball diamond made it more than a sport, a narrative of achievement more than a game.

For many of us...is was a gift, of new expectations, on that dash... He helped us to ascend from misery, to hope, on the muscles of his arms, and the meaning of his life. With Rachel, he made a covenant, where he realized that to live is to suffer, but to survive is to find meaning in that suffering. Today we can raise our hands and say Hallelujah... In his last dash, Jackie stole home. Pain, misery, and travail have lost. Jackie is saved. His enemies can leave him alone. His body will rest, but his spirit and his mind and his impact are perpetual and as affixed to human progress as are the stars in the heavens, the shine in the sun and the glow in the moon. This mind, this mission, could not be held down by a grave... No grave can hold this body down. It belongs to the ages, and all of us are better off because the temple of God, the man with convictions, the man with a mission passed this way."

By 1973, the Jackie Robinson Foundation was created. The Jackie Robinson Foundation is a public, not-for-profit national organization founded by Rachel Robinson as a vehicle to perpetuate the memory of Jackie Robinson and his achievements. To this very day, it has provided scholarships to those without enough funds to go to college. By February 7, 1981, UCLA's Baseball stadium is dedicated to Jackie Robinson. This statue stands in front. By August 2, 1982, Jackie Robinson becomes the first baseball player ever to be depicted on a U.S. Postage Stamp called "Black Heritage."

In the Major Baseball League, April 15th is the date of the special celebration called Jackie Robinson Day. This day of commemoration was caused by the legendary former baseball player Ken Griffey Jr. He made the idea of wearing the No. 42 (or Jackie Robinson's baseball jersey number) on April 15. It started on April 15th, 1997, when Selig retired Jackie Robinson's number of 42. Griffey played for the Mariners back in 1997. He asked that his uniform number be flip-flopped. 24 to 42. Ten years later, Griffey wanted to wear No. 42 again to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Robinson's debut. Ken Griffey Jr. had to ask Selig permission to do it as Robinson's number was retired. Selig called Rachel Robinson, and Griffey had permission to do it. It was extended for any MLB player to wear No. 42 on April 15th each year. Many players wore No. 42, especially black players from other teams at first. In 2009, it was official that any MLB player could wear No. 42 from players, coaches, and managers on Jackie Robinson Day. Ken Griffey Jr. (who is involved in philanthropy, social activism, and other almsgiving to this very day) taught his children about the legacy of Jackie Robinson. Sharon Robinson, Jackie Robinson's daughter, has praised the day.

“I’m grateful for all the breaks and honors and opportunities I’ve had, but I always believe I won’t have it made until the humblest black kid in the most remote backwoods of America has it made."

― Jackie Robinson, I Never Had It Made: An Autobiography

His Inspirational Legacy

Icons, whose work has been a blessing for so many human beings, deserve their honor and respect. Tons of black athletes are readily inspired by Jackie Robinson from Lebron James to Ken Griffey Jr. Jackie Robinson expressed heroism because it takes massive strength to continue to fight for change despite obstacles and bigotry coming your way. That is why Jackie Robinson stood tall as a black man in love with his wife and his family unconditionally. After Jackie Robinson came into the MLB, other black baseball players continued to fight racial injustice like the St. Louis Cardinal players of Curt Flood, Bill White, and Bob Gibson. Each of them won the World Series for the Cardinals too. Tons of people comprehend Bob Gibson's pitching abilities, Bill White announcing games, and Curt Flood wanting better contracts for players (in creating free agency for the first time in the MLB). In our DNA, our people have always resisted evil and injustice. Muhammad Ali promoted the love of Blackness and opposed the unjust Vietnam War. We know of high jumper Rose Robinson and Colin Kaepernick protesting for racial justice. Rose Robinson did her protest back in the summer of 1959. We know about Gwen Berry showing her support for social justice and black people in her protest. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf was a basketball player who used activism to stand up for freedom and justice.

In 2022, there are numerous recent athletic leaders who used their time to condemn racial injustice, police brutality, and imperialism. By 1984, Jackie Robinson was inducted into UCLA's Hall of Fame, and he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 1987, on the 40th anniversary of his historic Major League debut, the National League Rookie of the Year award is named in Robinson's honor. In 1997, MLB celebrates the 50th anniversary of Jackie breaking baseball's color barrier by retiring his number 42 in perpetuity. Major League Baseball dedicates the season to Robinson on the 50th anniversary of his debut. People, of every color, admire the sacrifice that Jackie Robinson did in his activities to make the world better. Jackie Robinson Day was formed in 2004 by the Major League Baseball organization to honor one of the greatest players in human history. In 2005, Jackie Robinson was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Jackie Robinson back then and today continues to make an impact on people.

By Timothy

Rest in Power Brother Jackie Robinson

Saturday, June 18, 2022

Fonts

Retro Fonts - Retro Font Generator (fontmeme.com)

Retro Text Box Free Vectors 88095 (textfonts.net)

1001 Fonts ❤ Free Fonts Baby!

Friday, June 17, 2022

White parents chased a Black educator out of town. Then they followed her to the next one

White parents chased a Black educator out of town. Then they followed her to the next one (msn.com)

Friday, June 10, 2022

Good News in the Black Community.

UNCF Partners with Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation to Offer Scholarship for Black and Brown NYC Students – Apply by June 30! – Good Black News

Baird Steptoe Sr. Elected Head of International Cinematographers Guild, 1st Black President in its History – Good Black News

Trudy Haynes, Philadelphia's First Black TV News Reporter Dead at 95 | Black Then

Syria Activists Denounce Left Forum’s Honoring of Ajamu Baraka

Ajamu Baraka, Apologist for Assad's Genocidal Regime in Syria, at Left Forum (lrp-cofi.org)

Sunday, May 22, 2022

Soul Rebel.

Thursday, May 05, 2022

The Ukraine War.

Theses on the Ukraine War (lrp-cofi.org)

Ajamu Baraka, Apologist for Assad's Genocidal Regime in Syria, at Left Forum (lrp-cofi.org)

Sunday, April 17, 2022

Jackie Robinson

Jackie Robinson was a Republican until the GOP became the 'white man’s party' (theconversation.com)

Did racism kill Jackie Robinson? (theconversation.com)

Decades After Insults To Jackie Robinson, Philadelphia Extends An Apology : NPR

Jackie Robinson vs. Malcolm X — Andscape

Jackie Robinson and Malcolm X | JACKIE ROBINSON | THIRTEEN - New York Public Media

Jackie Robinson and Malcolm X Had a Years-Long Public Beef Over the Civil Rights Movement (sportscasting.com)

Jackie Robinson | Jackie Robinson and Malcolm X | PBS

Jackie Robinson Foundation - Jackie Robinson Foundation

Jackie Robinson Timeline 1980-Present | Los Angeles Dodgers (mlb.com)

Monday, April 11, 2022

More History.

American Babylon: Index (redmoonrising.com)

American Babylon: Part 2 (redmoonrising.com)

Chapter 9 – Bush Challenges Yarborough for The Senate « TARPLEY.net

Black Beauties To Know And Love: Marpessa Dawn | MadameNoire

United States Presidents and The Illuminati / Masonic Power Structure (archive.org)

A Christian view of Communism (redmoonrising.com)

Monday, April 04, 2022

Mysteries Revealed

Masons and Knights Templar - Los Masones y Los Caballeros Templarios (bibliotecapleyades.net)

The Masonic/Templar Connection - Sub-Figura vel Liber Caeruleus (bibliotecapleyades.net)

Illuminati - Order of The Illumined "Wise" Men / Los Illuminati - La Orden de los Hombres "Sabios" Iluminados (bibliotecapleyades.net)

Entrance to Pleiades Library (lege.net)

Say NO to Left Forum’s Promotion of Ajamu Baraka — Apologist for Assad’s Genocidal Regime in Syria | by Syria Solidarity | Medium

Two Faces of Freemasonry (bibliotecapleyades.net)

PB-3 (bibliotecapleyades.net)

Scriptural Clues to the "Mystery of Iniquity" (bibliotecapleyades.net)

Sunday, March 27, 2022

🔥Flo-Jo The Fastest Woman in the World! ✨ 1988 Olympics #flojo #1988 #ol...

Sunday, March 20, 2022

Timeline of HBCUs.

The History of HBCUs | What is an HBCU? | Get Schooled

HBCU Timeline: 1837 to 1870 (thoughtco.com)

Ruby Doris Smith-Robinson - Wikipedia

Role Of Hbcus On Civil Rights Movement | Researchomatic

HBCUs: Leaders of the Modern Civil Rights Movement « ThePoliDay Report

Mercer University Press: Undaunted By The Fight : Spelman College And The Civil Rights Movement, 1957-1967 (mupress.org)

Spelman History in Brief | Spelman College

Karen Spellman and the SNCC Legacy Project –Black Power Chronicle | Black Agenda Report

Karen Spellman and the SNCC Legacy Project –Black Power Chronicle Part II | Black Agenda Report

Fresh Writing (nd.edu)

New Orleans HBCU graduates in the Modern Civil Rights Movement | New Orleans' Multicultural News Source | The Louisiana Weekly

HBCU students who led the Civil Rights Movement and Freedom Rides | New Orleans' Multicultural News Source | The Louisiana Weekly

The Civil Rights Movement, HBCUs, and You (hbculifestyle.com)

The history of HBCUs in America | APM Reports

HBCU History Timeline - HBCU First

History of HBCUs – Thurgood Marshall College Fund (tmcf.org)

Saturday, March 12, 2022

The Crisis in Ukraine

The Crisis in Ukraine

It is important to mention the facts on the Ukraine crisis. This crisis came about long before the 21st century, but its events now have existed before the quarter century mark of the 21st century. Officially, Putin apologists have no credibility. These apologists say what about NATO and the NED in their actions. The truth is that 2 things can be true. It is wrong for NATO to invade Libya and conduct airstrikes worldwide (the West's Iraqi invasion was wrong as well) along with NED agitating slick actions. Yet, it is also wrong for Putin to initiate an unjust, provocative, and illegal invasion of Ukraine too. Two wrongs don't make a right. That is why I condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine which is about an inter-imperialist conflict among Russia governmental leaders and Western governmental leaders for the resources and influence of Ukraine. The vast majority of Americans, Ukrainians, and Russians reject this Putin invasion and desire a peaceful resolution. The Russian military targeting civilian buildings, killing children, and using other unwarranted tactics have been condemned worldwide.

Even in Russia, protesters in Moscow and St. Petersburg have shown their voices in opposition to the Putin regime. Putin is not a progressive hero. Vladimir Putin is a tyrant, a far-right nationalist, and an extremist (who has used policies that harmed democratic rights like the suppression of the freedom of speech and the suppression of the freedom of the press). Years ago in 2014, I wrote about the Ukraine crisis. Now, in 2022, I am better aware about the complexities and nuisance of this crisis. This following work is my official beliefs on this Ukrainian situation forever. This crisis has grown since the dissolution of the Stalinist Soviet Union in 1991. Vladimir Putin (who slams the 1917 Russian Revolution and questions the entire existence of Ukraine via his horrendously nonsensical speech. Putin called Zelensky a Nazi when Zelensky is Jewish. Zelensky's relatives are survivors of the Holocaust) follows reactionary Russian nationalism which is why many far right Americans like Trump and Tucker Carlson have praised Putin. Many far right white nationalists are praising Putin too including members of the Trump administration. Habitual lying from Vladimir Putin is typical of him. Now, it's time to show a chronological look at the Ukrainian crisis. The Ukrainian people have been courageous to fight back against Russian imperialism.

Early Ukrainian History

Ukraine is an Eastern European country with a large land. It has a population of about 45 million people. It borders on Russia to the East and other countries of Europe on the West. Russia tried to control Ukraine for centuries. During the ancient times, it was part of Scythia and home to Getae, the Cimmerians, the Dacians, including early Slavic peoples. It was one area that was a site of Indo-European expansion too. Horses were domesticated back thousands of years ago. Much of the Ukrainians came from the ancient Slave people called the Antes. By 1990, there was the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany. Putin, in his speech, said that Western leaders gave written and spoken assurances to then Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that NATO doesn't plan to increase its territory eastwards. Putin also said that U.S. Secretary State James Baker talked about NATO back then didn't desire to spread eastward. According to Mark Karmer in the 2009 article in The Washington Quarterly, he found declassified American, German, and Soviet records. Kramer made the case that in discussions on German reunification, the Soviets never raised the question of NATO enlargement other than how it might apply in the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). The Germans, Americans, British, and French did agree in 1990 to not make any deployment of non-German NATO forces on the territory of the former GDR. The agreement of not deployment foreign troops on the territory of the former GDR was found in Article 5 to the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany, which was signed on September 12, 1990. It was signed by the two Germanys, the United States, Soviet Union, Britain, and France. Former Soviet President Gorbachev said in an interview that the topic of NATO expansion was not discussed at all. He said that the agreement didn't wanted NATO to be sent to the then GDR after German reunification.

The Prelude of the Invasion of Ukraine

Ukraine was an independent state in the modern area by December of 1991. The first Ukrainian President was Leonid Kravchuk. The economy shrank by more than 10 percent per year under his Presidency. The Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances comprises three identical political agreements signed at the OSCE conference in Budapest, Hungary on December 5, 1994 to provide security assurances by its signatories relating to the accession of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The memorandum was originally signed by three nuclear powers: the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States. China and France gave somewhat weaker individual assurances in separate documents. This agreements says that Ukraine agreed to give up nuclear weapons in exchange for Russia and other nations to respect their sovereignty. Has Putin lived up to that promise? No, so Putin violated the 1994 Budapest Memorandum agreement completely.

The 2nd President of Ukraine was Leonid Kuchma (1994-2005). He has many scandals like the reduction of media freedom including the Cassette Scandal. In 1997, the Charter on a Distinctive Partnership was signed by NATO and Ukraine that Ukraine will move gradually in cooperation in NATO (and eventually be a member). The economy recovered with GDP growth at 10 percent a year during his last years in office. Kuchma said that he wasn't trying to run for re-election in 2004. So, the battle was on in Ukraine to see who the next President would be. There were 2 major candidates in the 2004 Presidential election. One Viktor Yanukoyvh, the incumbent Prime Minister, supported by Kuchma and the Russian Federation. Viktor wanted closer ties to Russia.

The main opposition candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, called for Ukraine to turn its attention westward and aim to eventually join the EU. So, much of the crisis in Ukraine deals with different factions in Ukraine disagreeing on the future of Ukraine (either being more pro-Western and the other side wanting to be more pro-Russian). In the runoff election, Yanukovych officially won by a narrow margin, but Yushchenko and his supporters alleged that vote rigging and intimidation cost him many votes, especially in eastern Ukraine. A political crisis erupted after the opposition started massive street protests in Kyiv and other cities (in the "Orange Revolution"), and the Supreme Court of Ukraine ordered the election results null and void. A second runoff found Viktor Yushchenko the winner. Five days later, Yanukovych resigned from office and his cabinet was dismissed on January 5, 2005. During the time of Yuschenko's term, Russia and Ukraine relations were strained. Yushchenko wanted better relations with the European Union and less toward Russia. There was a 2005 highly publicized dispute over natural gas prices with Russia. It caused shortages in many European countries that were reliant to Ukraine as a transit country. A compromise was established in January 2006. In 2008, Ukraine applies to initiate ties with NATO in 2008. By the time of the presidential election of 2010, Yushchenko and Yulia Tymoshenko — allies during the Orange Revolution — had become bitter enemies. Tymoshenko ran for president against both Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych, creating a three-way race. Yushchenko, whose popularity had plummeted, persisted in running, and many pro-Orange voters stayed home. In the second round of the election Yanukovych won the run-off ballot with 48% to Tymoshenko's 45%.

The Maidan Revolt

The Presidency of Yanukovych and his Party of Regions lasted from 2010 to 2014. President Yanukovych signed an agreement with Russia to have a lease on the Black Sea naval base in Crimea until at least 2042. They were accused of trying to form a "controlled democracy" in Ukraine and of trying to destroy the main opposition party Bloc Yulia Tymoshenko. Both Yanukovych and the Party of Regions deny the charges. One frequently cited example of Yanukovych's attempts to centralize power was the 2011 sentencing of Yulia Tymoshenko, which has been condemned by Western governments as potentially being politically motivated. In November 2013, President Yanukovych did not sign the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement and instead pursued closer ties with Russia. In 2013, Ukraine would change forever. Yanukovych's action caused protests in the streets of Kjiv and ultimately to the 2014 Ukranian Revolutions. By early December 2013, protesters occupied Kiev city hall and Independence Square in dramatic style. Some 800,000 people rally in Kiev. There were protesters setting up camps in Kyiv's Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square), and in December 2013 and January 2014 protesters started taking over various government buildings, first in Kyiv and, later, in Western Ukraine. Battles between protesters and police resulted in about 80 deaths in February 2014. On December 17, 2013, Vladimir Putin buys up 15 billion dollars of Ukrainian debt and rescue the price of Russian gas supplies by a third. President Yanukovych, on February 19, 2022, wants compromise and truce with the protesters in the chaos. On the next day, snipers open fire on the crowd in the Maidan Square causing over 60 deaths. Both protesters and police officers are killed in the gunfire. Negotiations continue with a plan to have a national unity government, new Presidential elections by the end of 2014, and protesters to surrender all public buildings and illegal weapons. By February 22, 2014, as the police pulled back, the protesters stormed government buildings and seized control of Kiev. Yanukovych flees to the city of Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine. The peace deal was over.

After the violence in the Ukrainian Parliament on February 22, 2014, the Parliament voted to remove Yanukovych from power (on the grounds that his whereabouts were unknown, and he couldn't fulfill his duties). Neo conservatives like Victoria Nuland and John McCain actively supported the protests to expand Western hegemony in the region not for the purpose of democratic reasons completely alone (as the protesters have the right to voice their views). That is why Nuland was opposed to a compromise government in Ukraine by saying "F___ the EU!" During the infamous call on which Nuland and Pyatt appeared to be plotting to replace or undermine elected Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych, Nuland expressed her not-so-diplomatic disgust with the European Union for favoring former heavyweight boxer and austerity champ Vitali Klitschko to take over as prime minister, instead of the U.S. first choice, Artseniy Yatsenyuk, who indeed took power after Yanukovych was ousted about three weeks later. John McCain is photographed being united with far-right Svoboda party leader Oleh Tyahnybok (Oleh wants to require Ukrainians to pass a Ukrainian language test to work in the civil service. He even wants Ukraine to be a nuclear power). Also, the Right Sector and the Azov Battalion in Ukraine are filled with Neo-Nazis and far right racists. That is true, and those groups are abhorrent.

Yet, the vast majority of Ukrainian people aren't Neo-Nazis. A Neo-Nazi, white racist far right movement is found in Russia too. That is why nationalist politician Vladimir Shirionvsky (the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia in the State Duma) said that America should go into racial segregation. Russian leader Anton Morozov said that he wanted black people in America to go into reservations. The racist Donald Trump has praised Putin multiple times. Why isn't Russia Today (who are under orders to not refer to the Ukraine crisis as an invasion now) or other hypocritical leftists not reporting on these facts? The reason is that they want to minimize the far-right nature of Putin and his supporters while seeking to hypocritically claim to be against imperialism. You can't support Putin and be anti-imperialist.

The Parliament voted to free Yulia Tymoshenko from prison too. The same day Yanukovych supporter Volodymyr Rybak resigned as speaker of the Parliament, and was replaced by Tymoshenko loyalist Oleksandr Turchynov, who was subsequently installed as interim President. Yanukovych had fled Kyiv, and subsequently gave a press conference in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don. By March 2014, evidence proves that the snipers shooting at the crowds in Kiev were not employed by the Ukrainian government but were shooting at both sides to stoke chaos.

Crimea, Donetsk, and Lugansk

The March 18, 2014 controversial annexation of Crimea existed by Russia. Crimea had its referendum on reunification with Russia. A large majority favored the proposition. The vote was organized under Russian military occupation. Russia stands by the referendum. The European Union and the United States government view the vote as illegal, because it was created under Russian military occupation. The Crimean crisis was followed by the unrest in eastern and southern Ukraine. On March 4, 2014, America pledged $1 billion in aid to Ukraine. By April of 2014, Ukrainian separatists self-proclaimed themself as the Donetsk Peoples' Republic and Lugansk People's Republic held referendums on May 11, 2014. The separatists claimed nearly 90 percent in favor of independence. Later by April 2014, massive fighting exists between the Ukrainian army and pro-Ukrainian volunteer battalions on one side, and forces supporting the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics on the other side, escalated into the War in Donbass. July 17, 2014 was the date when Malysia Airline Flight MH17 from Amsterdam is shot down near the village of Grabove in rebel held territory. 298 lives were killed. The West accused Russia of doing it, and of course Putin denies this. Investigators say that the weapon used in the attack is traced back to Russia.

On September 5, 2014, the Ukranian President Petro Poroshenko and local armed groups in eastern Ukraine signed a ceasefire protocol in Mink. Both sides as well as Russia including the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe held talks for a possible political solution to the crisis. Yet, the crisis continued. October 21, 2014 was when Human Rights Watch said that it has strong evidence that Ukraine attacked populated areas of Donetsk with cluster bombs, banned by many other states. November 2012 was when NATO Commander General Philip Breedlove said that Russian military equipment and Russian combat troops have been seen entering Ukraine in columns over several days. By December 23, 2014, the Ukrainian Parliament renounced Ukraine's "non-aligned" status with the aim of deepening cooperation with NATO.

By December 2014 more than 6,400 people had died in this conflict and according to United Nations figures it led to over half a million people becoming internally displaced within Ukraine and two hundred thousand refugees to flee to (mostly) Russia and other neighboring countries. During the same period, political (including adoption of the law on lustration and the law on decommunization) and economic reforms started. On May 25, 2014, Petro Poroshenko was elected president in the first round of the presidential election. In 2015, reforms in Ukraine slowed down, the economy in Ukraine suffered, and corruption was a real problem.

On February 12, 2015, the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany, and France announced a peace deal in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. This deal deals with another ceasefire between Ukrainian government troops and local armed groups in eastern Ukraine. By December of 2015, more than 9,100 had died (mostly civilians), in the War in Donbass, according to the United Nations figures. On October 2015, the Washington Post reported "elite units" of the Russian army in Ukraine. By 2017, Ukraine had closer ties with the EU with Ukranian citizens giving visa free travel to the Schengen Ara for up to 90 days during any 180 day period on June 11, 2017. On May 19, 2018, Poroshenko signed a Decree, which put into effect the decision of the National Security and Defense Council on the final termination of Ukraine's participation in the statutory bodies of the Commonwealth of Independent States. It is clear that both Minsk Agreements came about in 2014 and in 2015.

The Kerch Strait incident occurred on 25 November 2018 when the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) coast guard fired upon and captured three Ukrainian Navy vessels attempting to pass from the Black Sea into the Sea of Azov through the Kerch Strait on their way to the port of Mariupol. February 7, 2019 when the Ukrainian parliament passed a constitutional amendment stating Ukraine's commitment to join NATO.

On February 21, 2019, the Constitution of Ukraine was amended, the norms on the strategic course of Ukraine for membership in the European Union and NATO are enshrined in the preamble of the Basic Law, three articles and transitional provisions. On 21 April 2019, Volodymyr Zelensky was elected president in the second round of the presidential election. Early parliamentary elections on July 21 allowed the newly formed pro-presidential Servant of the People party to win an absolute majority of seats for the first time in the history of independent Ukraine (248). Dmytro Razumkov, the party's chairman, was elected speaker of parliament. The majority was able to form a government on August 29 on its own, without forming coalitions, and approve Oleksii Honcharuk as prime minister. On July 28, 2020, in Lublin, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine created the Lublin Triangle initiative, which aims to create further cooperation between the three historical countries of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and further Ukraine's integration and accession to the EU and NATO. Ukraine banned TV broadcasting of pro-Russian TV channels on February 2, 2021. The decision of the National Security and Defense Council and the Presidential Decree of February 19, 2021 imposed sanctions on 8 individuals and 19 legal entities, including Putin's pro-Russian politician and Putin`s godfather Viktor Medvedchuk and his wife Oksana Marchenko.

The image on the left shows US paratroopers of 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment departing from Italy's Aviano Air Base for Latvia, on February 23, 2022. Thousands of US troops were deployed to Eastern Europe amid Russia's military build-up.

Peace Talks Fail

As the year of 2021 continued, Ukraine works with the EU planning for a possible Ukraine membership in the European Union by the 2030s. On December 7, 2021, Joe Biden Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation for 2 hours. Biden told Putin that he would put sanctions on Russia if the Kremlin allowed his military forces to enter Ukraine. By December 2021, Russia made 2 draft treaties that wanted Ukraine to not join NATO and reduce NATO troops and military hardware stationed in Eastern Europe. Russia threatened a military response if their demands were met. The United States rejected such demands. Biden talked with Putin about his goals. Biden said that he disagreed with Putin on many things. January 10-13, 2022 was when the latest rounds of talks between Russia and the West failed (within the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe). Both sides warned of political escalation. The Geneva talks on January 10, 2022 failed to have a resolution between Washington and Moscow. January 22, 2022 was then the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said that the first shipment of military aid from the United States arrived in Kiev. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the USA has delivered a written letter to Russia addressing Moscow's concerns. America deployed additional troops to Europe including 1,000 troops to Romania and another 2,000 troops to Germany and Poland on February 2, 2022. America predicted that Russia is preparing for an imminent invasion of Ukraine with almost 200,000 Russian troops on the Ukrainian border. On February 17, 2022 the Ukrainian military and local armed groups in eastern Ukraine accuse each other of firing weapons in eastern Ukraine first. On February 21, 2022, Russia officially recognized the two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine, the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic, as independent states, and deployed troops to Donbas, in a move interpreted as Russia's effective withdrawal from the Minsk Protocol. The breakaway republics were recognized in the boundaries of their respective Ukrainian oblasts, which extend far beyond the line of contact. Ironically, China isn't so hawkish on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. On February 22, 2022, Putin said that the Minsk agreements were no longer valid. On the same day, the Federation Council unanimously authorized the use of military force in the territories. So, the deal is that Russia refused to send its troops away from the Ukrainian border, and Biden refused to disengage military associations in Eastern Europe.

The Evil, Unjust Russian Invasion of Ukraine

On the morning of 24 February 24, 2022, Putin announced that Russia was initiating a "special military operation" in the Donbas and launched a full-scale invasion into Ukraine. Putin's action was a total attempt to conquer Ukraine and try to make it a puppet pro-Russian state. Putin's actions was against international law blatantly. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is unjust and evil. It has been condemned in the world. This is the largest invasion of Ukrainian territory since World War II. Missiles rain down on Ukraine's cities. Russian troops from Belarus and from Crimea go and attack Ukraine. Many Ukrainians forces held back the Russians in many cities. Putin has become more bellicose by threatening Finland Sweden if they join NATO. He also said that American intervention in Ukraine will be met with consequences greater than anything in history (implying usage of nuclear weapons). Putin putting his nuclear deterrent forces on alert is militarist and provocative. There are stories of black people (and other people of color) being refused to go into Poland from the Ukraine border, and that is wrong. Racism and discrimination have no place in the world period. The Ukrainian have shown stiff resistance to Russian imperialism. Germany and even Sweden plan to send weapons to Ukraine to help them defeat Russian forces. As the fighting continues, talks are underway between Ukrainian leaders and Russian leaders. Russia's ruble crashes as many nations cut funds sent to Russia.

There are Harvard students creating an app to help Ukrainian refugees to find shelter. The United States have rejected multiple calls to impose a no fly zone in Ukraine, because doing that action would risk causing WWIII for real. Putin has placed his nuclear forces on high alert. More black Africans and Indians report racism as they flee Ukraine. That is wrong as racism and discrimination have no place anywhere on this Earth. Ukraine police flashed guns on African people as shown in video tape footage. Both African and Indians students report being left stranded at checkpoints in Ukraine. 16,000 Africans live in Ukraine, and 20,000 Indians live in Ukraine too. Many of them are denied seats on buses and taxis. A woman from Zimbabwe report on how she was assaulted by a civilian. More than 3 million Ukrainians have fled Ukraine. Vice President Kamala Harris was on a diplomatic assignment in Poland.

Now, people know of the truth about Putin. Putin is a murderer and a war criminal for his actions in Ukraine. Russian forces have destroyed a Ukrainian theater where men, women, and children have died. Many Russian troops have attacked civilians indiscriminately, even at a food storage location in Kyiv. ON March 18, 2022, Russia attacked Lviv for the first time. Lviv is in Western Ukraine near Poland. Civilians are being targeted after leaving cities. There were people killed in a bread line and markets where people are going to get food. Putin is definitely a hypocrite, a liar, and an evil tyrant. That is why many Russians are going to jail for peacefully protesting Putin. Putin is no progressive person. He is a far right ethnonationist dictator of Russia. We have many Ukrainians seeking foods and water. Many people say why care? We care because we deal with increasing oil prices, we care for human life, and we are opposed to far-right dictators like Putin who want to ruin democracy in the war. Therefore, the actions of a tyrant like Putin are not representative of all Russians. Tons of Russians are protesting Putin's war. We know that the racist, far right Azo Battalion is not representative of all Ukrainians. We know many Ukrainians who oppose racism and oppose the unjust, racist treatment of black Ukrainians (including Middle Eastern people and Indians) at the Ukrainian border. We know that Ukraine is right to say that the Russian invasion of Ukraine is illegal, unjust, and morally reprehensible.

Now, anyone supporting Putin is a traitor to democracy and humanity period. Putin doesn't care about the humanitarian crisis in Eastern Europe or the people struggling to survive bombs. Putin cares about power. That is why even China's Xi have said that a peaceful resolution is necessary in this conflict. This is a war, the first war of this magnitude in Europe since the days of World War II. Russian military morale is low, and more than 7,000 Russian troops have been killed in Ukraine. That's a larger number that the deaths of U.S. soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. Ukrainian residents have been around to defend themselves against an invading force. The Ukranian crisis continues in March of 2022.

By Timothy

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The ADOS movement exposed.

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