Month / July 2020

by abritt

Lipstadt Quoted in ‘Media Line’ Article “Vaccinating Against the Virus of Anti-Semitism”

Deborah E. Lipstadt, Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish History and Holocaust Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, was quoted in a recent The Media Line article about the growth of anti-semitism. The article examines how the growth of anti-semitism intersects with the COVID-19 pandemic. Read an excerpt that quotes Lipstadt below, along with the full piece: “Vaccinating Against the Virus of Anti-Semitism.”

“Lipstadt said that anti-Semitism should not be used as a political weapon to shield against legitimate criticism of certain Israeli policies.

“‘Be careful. Be strategic. Be tactical. This is a major moral problem, and we must fight it with all our strength. But we also must fight it smart. We have to fight it tactically with a scalpel, not with a bludgeon,’ Lipstadt said.”

by abritt

Anderson Discusses ‘White Rage’ and Ralph Ellison on WDET (Detroit NPR Affiliate)

Dr. Carol Anderson, Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, was recently interviewed on Detroit Toady, a show produced by the Detroit NPR affiliate WDET. Anderson discusses her 2016 book White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide and draws connections to Ralph Ellison’s 1952 novel Invisible Man, which WDET hosts and listeners are reading as part of a summer book club series. Listen to the conversation here: “‘White Rage’ Author on Racial Justice and Ralph Ellison’s ‘Invisible Man.’“

by abritt

Crespino Interviewed on GPB’s ‘Political Rewind’

Dr. Joseph Crespino, History Department Chair and Jimmy Carter Professor of History, was interviewed on Georgia Public Broadcasting’s show “Political Rewind.” The episode, “History As Comfort, Teacher In Troubled Times,” pairs Crespino with Tamar Hallerman (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution), Frederick Knight (Professor, Morehouse College), and Doug Shipman (former-CEO Atlanta Center for Civil and Human Rights). Read a quote from Crespino below and listen to the full episode here: “History As Comfort, Teacher in Troubled Times.”

“We have been through incredible divisive times,” Crespino said. “We have faced enormous difficulties before, and I think in that sense history can be a good guide.”

by abritt

Price Quoted in AJC Article on Kemp’s Anti-Mask Lawsuit

Dr. Polly J. Price, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Law and Professor of Global Health, was recently quoted in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution article, “Kemp’s ban of mask mandates puts Georgia on collision course with its cities.” Price evaluates the probability of challenges to Kemp’s lawsuit and his political and public health strategy more broadly. Read the excerpt where Price is quoted below, along with another recent article (from TIME) where Price offers comment: “Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp Sued to Block Atlanta’s Face Mask Ordinance. Here’s What to Know.”

“It’s not clear whether Kemp added the language to bolster a potential legal case, though some analysts questioned the constitutionality of the order. Polly Price, a professor of global health and law at Emory University, said she thinks the governor’s order wouldn’t stand up in a court battle.

“‘But rather than force the question, why not allow local decision-making, as Texas has done, rather than waste time and resources engaging in litigation?’ she said.”

by abritt

Anderson Quoted in ‘The New York Times’ Article about 2020 Voting Conditions

Dr. Carol Anderson, Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, was recently quoted in an article about contemporary voting conditions in The New York Times. Anderson, who published One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy in 2018, argues that the difficulties citizens encounter in the process of trying to vote are by no means accidental. Read an excerpt of the article below along with the full piece here: “What It’s Been Like to Vote in 2020 So Far.”

“How much of a hassle it is to vote is generally a matter of design, not accident, according to Carol Anderson, the author of ‘One Person, No Vote’ and a professor of African-American studies at Emory University. ‘Long lines are deliberate, because they deal with the allocation of resources,’ Professor Anderson said. She said it’s frustrating to see long lines reported in the news media as evidence of voter enthusiasm: ‘What they really show is government ineptness. And oftentimes a deliberate deployment of not enough resources in minority communities.'”

by abritt

Price Comments on Kemp’s Lawsuit Against Bottoms’ Ordinances in TIME

Dr. Polly J. Price, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Law and Professor of Global Health, recently commented on Georgia governor Brian Kemp’s lawsuit challenging a mask-wearing ordinance issued by Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. Price, who is associated faculty in the History Department, offers additional context about the extent of Kemp’s suit, which extends beyond the mask ordinance alone. Read an excerpt from the TIME piece below, along with the full article: “Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp Sued to Block Atlanta’s Face Mask Ordinance. Here’s What to Know.”

“The governor’s suit also goes beyond just Bottoms’ face mask ordinance. Polly Price, a professor of law and global health at Emory University, tells TIME that ‘the suit seeks an injunction from the court to prevent the mayor from issuing any more orders related to social distancing measures.’ In addition, it asks that the mayor and city council be required to state that whatever orders they have or may issue with respect to the pandemic are unenforceable, Price explains. Price says she’s not sure Kemp will win because the court might not buy his argument for an injunction, which a court only issues if there’s a threat of  ‘irreparable harm.'”

by abritt

Lipstadt Discusses ADL-Led Boycott of Facebook

Deborah E. Lipstadt, Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish History and Holocaust Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, recently contributed to an article in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. The article discusses reactions to Facebook’s decision to permit Holocaust denial on its platform, including a boycott led by the Anti-Defamation League. Read the section that cites Lipstadt below, along with the full article: “How the ADL went from working with Facebook to leading a boycott against it.”

“But Holocaust scholar Deborah Lipstadt, who spoke out against Zuckerberg’s remarks on Holocaust denial, said a boycott was the right way to go. 

“‘Facebook is a private entity and no private entity is obligated to post hate speech,’ she said. ‘Generally I don’t like boycotts, but if this is the only thing to which Facebook is going to respond, then you have no other choice. You can choose where you put your money.'”

by abritt

Jason Morgan Ward Cited in ‘Vox’ Article on Mississippi’s Removal of Confederate Emblem

Jason Morgan Ward, Professor of History, was recently cited in the July 1 Vox article “Mississippi’s future lies with its new state flag.” The piece discusses the Mississippi governor’s recent decision to remove the Confederate battle flag from the state flag. The author cites an earlier, 2015 article that Ward wrote in The American Historian, titled “The Cause that was Never Lost.” Read an excerpt from the Vox piece below along with the full article here.

“However, the symbolism of the Confederacy lives on. The flag has always been ‘a banner for a white supremacist regime that could not exist without constant violence,’ according to Emory University historian Jason Morgan Ward. While some narratives identify Klansmen and neo-Nazis as the extremists who transformed the flag from a supposedly non-racist heritage into a symbol of white hate, the Confederacy — formed over a commitment to slavery — was always an ‘unabashedly white supremacist crusade,’ said Ward. And its supporters, whether through laws or violence, acted in the oppression of Black people, he said. This expression continued through white people proudly displaying and waving the battle flag during Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and the civil rights era.”

by abritt

Anderson Offers Insight on Popular Support for Movement for Racial Justice

Dr. Carol Anderson, Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, was recently quoted in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution article “A moment became a movement as Georgians answered the calls for justice.” Anderson sheds light on how the COVID-19 pandemic has helped garner a broader base of popular support for the movement for racial justice. Read the excerpt quoting Anderson below along with the full piece here.

“More protests are happening in cities and towns where few Black people live, observers note. This is no coincidence, said Emory University historian Carol Anderson, an expert on the roles of race, justice and equality in domestic and international policy. More people are more willing to consider the toll policing has taken on Black lives amid a pandemic, widespread unemployment and deep political divisions, she said.

“White Americans are also suffering, Anderson said. Mom-and-pop businesses are losing out on federal emergency loans to large corporations. Essential workers are returning to their workplaces without adequate protections against COVID-19. It can take more than a month to get unemployment benefits. And while they’re stuck in their homes during the pandemic, they’re watching videos of the killings of Arbery and Floyd.

“‘The kind of disproportionate violence people are facing in all areas of their lives — that is what’s driving this moment. That’s what causing people to re-think America,’ Anderson said. ‘And we could be amazing.’

by abritt

Anderson Quoted in ‘New York Times’ Op-Ed “‘Let Freedom Ring’ From Georgia”

Dr. Carol Anderson, Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, was recently quoted in a New York Times op-ed by Roger Cohen. The piece, “‘Let Freedom Ring’ From Georgia,” discusses recent racial violence and manifestations of systemic racism – along with the campaigns against them – in the state of Georgia. In examining factors that seem to have contributed to an expanding and exceptional wave of popular support for those campaigns, Cohen quotes Anderson: “‘Like Emmett Till in the casket, the Floyd image made clear no black person is safe,’ Carol Anderson, a professor here at Emory University and author of ‘White Rage,’ told me.” Read the full piece here.