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Former Vice President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington, D.C., March 30, 2016(Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Its axiomatic among progressives and the mainstream media that the country is awash in racism and white supremacy.

The entertainment industry is obsessed with racism/white supremacy. So too is the educational establishment. More than a half century after passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, racism and white supremacy apparently permeate every corner of the country. Indeed, according to the New York Times 1619 Project, racism is in the very DNA of America.

So virulent and widespread is racism and white supremacy today that Democratic presidential candidates call for rooting out the plague every chance they get. Speaking at a recent event hosted by Al Sharpton, former Vice President Joe Biden said: We have a lot to root out, but most of all the systemic racism that most of us whites dont like to acknowledge even exists. Theres something we have to admit not you, me, white America has to admit theres still a systemic racism. Biden wasnt asked why he seemingly hadnt made a dent in rooting out systemic racism in his 36 years as a senator or eight years as Barack Obamas VP. After all, he has been a member in good standing of The System for a long time.

Elizabeth Warren also wants to root out systemic racism: We must recognize the systemic discrimination that infects our country, and we must work actively and deliberately to root it out and set us on a better path. Racism is everywhere, affects everything. Warren maintains that race has totally permeated our justice system and our crisis of environmental injustice is the result of decades of discrimination and environmental racism. Given that racism permeates nearly every facet of society, even the environment, its impressive that Warren willingly subjected herself to the scourge by claiming shes Native American.

Pete Buttigieg maintains that We are by no means even half way done dealing with systemic racism in this country. He asserts that systemic racism and white supremacy in particularis the force that is most likely to destroy America. His website proposes a comprehensive and intentional dismantling of racist structures and systems.

What, specifically, are these racist structures and systems? How about a few concrete examples supported by evidence? No one in the media seems the least bit interested in asking. Its simply taken as given that whole institutions, structures, and systems in this country are racist and white supremacist. Asking for examples is, itself, racist. Or, at the very least, an embarrassing demonstration of terminal unwokeness. Racial disparities are presumptively equated with disparate treatment.

Racism and white supremacy became particularly acute, of course, after November 2016. Nearly every racial malady since then has been attributed to Donald Trump and his hordes of white supremacist minions. Its curious, however, that there hasnt been the expected spike in the data related to racism. Just the opposite. For example, the number of race discrimination charges filed with the EEOC reached a 25-year high of 35,890 in 2010 during the Obama administration, compared with 23,976 filed (merely filed, not even determined to have probable cause) in 2019. Similarly, the FBI reports that 7,120 hate crimes were committed in 2018, fewer than even a decade ago, when the U.S. population was millions smaller and far fewer agencies were reporting hate crimes.

These data points dont necessarily disprove Democratic/media assertions that racism and white supremacy abound. But its a far easier lift than proving racism and white supremacy are ubiquitous.

Not to worry. Theres at least one clear and unequivocal example of systemic racism in America today, but youll never hear Democratic candidates utter a word about it: the staggering racial preferences awarded by colleges to black and Hispanic applicants over white and Asian applicants. Systemic racism is OK, provided its approved by progressives, and theyre running the system.

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Rooting Out Systemic Racism and White Supremacy - National Review

Last month, at a Martin Luther King Day event in Harlem hosted by the Reverend Al Sharpton, Congressman Adriano Espaillat, representing New Yorks 13th district, had something to say about bike infrastructure: Affordability and gentrification are ripping our neighborhood apart, he said. And you see the stress of high rent. Now you got Starbucks. And bike lanes. And sushi. Wheres my rice and beans?!

The next day, on January 21,rideshare company Lyft hosted an event at the Harlem YMCA to announce its new LyftUp program, which will provide free one-year Citi Bike memberships to 16 to 20-year-olds in the YMCA network. Lyft, whichoperates New York Citys bike share program as well as those in other major U.S. cities, is partnering with NBA great LeBron James, who showed up to the event to surprise 50 local teens who would be receiving free access to Citi Bikes.I was at thepress conference, along with my nine year-old son (whos really lucky to have such a cool dad). The kids receiving the memberships were absolutely electrified when LeBron James entered the room. So was I, and I dont even follow basketball.My hand shook as I recorded his short speech.

While he didnt address the devastating effects of Starbucks or sushi, James did have a very different take on bikes and bike lanes. Once the screaming died down, he spoke to the kids about the role bikes played in his own childhood. I was a kid, growing up in the inner city of Akron, Ohio, riding bikes, he said. What a bike did for me was to be able to travel across the city with my friends, get from my home to school or get to basketball practices or football practices and be able just to travel, breathe the fresh air, be able to clear your mind at times...a segue to be able to do so many things that can also carry you for the rest of your life.

Furthermore, James addressed the safety and the importance of bike lanes, which in lower-income neighborhoods can be a lot harder to come by.Safety is always first, and for the city to understand that bike lanes are very important for the kids safety, he said. For adults that want to ride, too. So this is very important.

When the kids all gathered for a group photo, James came sliding across the wood floor into the shotthe very antithesis of Espaillats pompous podium posturing. Sure, the cynic in me registered that all of this was essentially a photo op put together by a tech company with a $14 billion market cap, but so what? Bikes need more of this. When was the last time you saw anyone even remotely excitinglet alone one of the most talented and successful athletes on the planetstand in front of a bunch of kids and articulate the sheer sense of freedom and exhilaration that comes from riding a bike? (Im talking about America by the way, not Belgium or the Netherlands. And sorry, David Byrne doesnt count.) Here in New York City, when it comes to young people and bikes, the approach by local government seems to alternate between making corny entreaties to kids (think helmet giveaways), and confiscating their bikes as soon as they start actually having fun with them. So an introduction from pro BMX and YouTube sensation Nigel Sylvester, followed by a video of kids getting rad on bikes, and finally a surprise appearance by King James himself, was all rather invigorating.

Lyft partners with LeBron James and UNINTERRUPTED to announce the new LyftUp initiative expanding transportation access for communities in need. (Photo: Craig Barritt/Getty Images Lyft)

James exuded sincerity, and whats more, his bike bona-fides are quite sound. He grew up riding. He famously commuted by bike while playing in Miami, even joining Critical Mass. Hes given away hundreds of bikes to kids in need. He even owned a stake in Cannondale for a while, which says more about his love of bikes than anything else, because only someone completely besotted with cycling would be crazy enough to invest in a bike company.

Far more important, James is not just promoting bicycling, but the bicycles potential to serve as an inflection point in a young persons life. His words resonate with anybody who grew up riding. Our bikes were our first taste of freedom, and exploring our neighborhoods was in part how we learned to chart a course through life. But as our roads become increasingly hostile and ridership among children continues to decline, fewer kids get to experience this sense of independence and agency. We owe it to our kids to return that joy and freedom to them.

Teens I spoke to at the event said that theyll use their memberships to ride to school, practices, and the Y. One 16-year-old told me he hasnt had a bike in two years, and that this would finally allow him to start riding again. Granted, we needmoreprograms like this, times a million, but at least its a start.

Odds are LeBron James was unaware of Espaillats comments the day before, but either way James certainly dunked on him. The idea that bikesarguably the healthiest, least expensive, and most accessible mode of transport on the planetare somehow classist and elitist doesnt hold up under any kind of scrutiny. Who better to send up this absurd notion than LeBron James? Bikes and bike lanes dont hold people and neighborhoods back, they help move them forward. Give kids better access to both and theres no telling what theyll accomplish.

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LeBron James Is the New Hero of Bike Shares - Outside

The various iterations of The Dick Cavett Show, especially the late-night ABC show which ran from 1969-1975, have been a deep resource for Cavett and director Robert Bader to look back on some of the serious issues that riled the country in the late 60s and early 70s. First they collaborated on how the shows often influential guests and intellectual discourse contributed to the discussion surrounding the Vietnam War, then they did another documentary about the shows extensive coverage of Watergate. Now, the two of them examine the unlikely friendship between Cavett and one of his most frequent guests: boxing legend Muhammad Ali.

The Gist: Ali was on Cavetts show over a dozen times between 1969 and his last fight in 1981. When he first appeared in 69, he was in the middle of a period where his heavyweight championship was stripped from him and he was threatened with prison over his refusal to enter the military draft. The first third of Ali & Cavett: The Tale Of The Tapes goes over the steps that led the former Cassius Clay to that point, from his association with the Nation of Islam, and how Elijah Mohammed and Malcolm X both tried to get Ali to align with eachs faction within NOI. Through interviews with Al Sharpton, Juan Williams, Larry Merchant and others and of course, Cavett we go in-depth into Alis state of mind then, who was influencing him, and how Cavett shockingly thought that the champ, who he had already established a strong rapport with, was using his nimble verbal skills to ramble on about someone elses agenda.

But once Alis boxing license was restored by the New York Supreme Court in 1970 (he was still appealing his federal conviction, which wouldnt be cleared until a year later), Alis appearances on Cavetts show were more of a balance of boxing talk and talk about the always touchy racial issues on which Ali had strong opinions. We see clips of Ali talking about all sorts of stuff, not the least of which trash talking his biggest rival, Joe Frazier. We even see the infamous appearance before the first Ali-Frazier fight where the two of them almost come to blows, then gang up on Cavett and lift him out of his chair.

From Alis comeback, where he regained the heavyweight crown after defeating a young, stronger George Foreman, the show takes a turn. We see light moments, like Cavett at Alis woodland training camp in Pennsylvania, to darker moments, like after Ali lost the title to Leon Spinks in 1978. Cavett and the other experts all wonder if his later fights, and the fact that he got hit harder during those than during his younger days, is what led to the Parkinsons syndrome that eventually led to his death in 2016.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: The film covers a lot of the same ground as 2019s HBO doc Whats My Name: Muhammad Ali, though it does concentrate more on the years 1964-1981. Theres definitely more of an examination on his relationships with Elijah Mohammed, Malcolm X, Louis Farrakhan and others in the Nation of Islam. Its likely because Cavett challenged him on the racial diatribes Ali often went on in those years, as well as let him talk about why he objected to going to Vietnam.

Performance Worth Watching: Alis life is fascinating to us, and its always fascinating to show how he transformed from the young Ali fast-talking, witty, unafraid to speak his mind, but considered by much of white America to be dangerous and subversive to the thirty-something Ali, who had slowed down but was still witty and, more importantly, a pop culture icon.

Memorable Dialogue: Sometimes he almost seemed like a brother to me, says Cavett, who once wrote that at times he considered Ali his best friend.

Our Take: What surprised me the most about Ali & Cavett: The Tale Of The Tapes is that the first third of the film has very little Cavett in it. For a film that is promoting itself as looking at Alis career through his appearances on Cavetts various shows, it felt like a curious choice that we would be going over the period of time before Cavetts show started in such depth (they did meet when Cavett was a writer for The Jerry Lewis Show in the mid-60s, but their friendship started in earnest when Ali started going on the shows Cavett hosted).

In this case, an e-mail response from Bader, after I interviewed Cavett, brought some light to the choice: I felt the audience would be confused without the background on Alis early interest and involvement with the Nation of Islam if my story began with his first Cavett interviews. So many of the critical events in Alis story occurred just before Dick got his show. But Ali was appearing on those early Cavett shows in response to the public reaction to many of those earlier events.

Once that part kicked in, it was fascinating to watch, especially as we see Alis icon status kick into high gear after the first Frazier fight. It was also fascinating to see those first signs that Ali might have stayed in the ring too long, even after he captured the heavyweight crown for the third time in the Spinks rematch. And what was the most fascinating was the stories Cavett told about the time Ali stayed over his house in Montauk, and the overall picture of how the two of them bonded to where they became more than just host and guest.

Our Call: STREAM IT. While we think Ali & Cavett: The Tale Of The Tapes could have given the context behind Alis first Cavett appearances a little quicker, its still a wonderful look at an unlikely friendship and a bit of insight into Alis mindset in the second stage of his boxing career.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesnt kid himself: hes a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, VanityFair.com, Playboy.com, Fast Company.com, RollingStone.com, Billboard and elsewhere.

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Stream It Or Skip It: 'Ali & Cavett: The Tale Of The Tapes' On HBO, A Documentary About Muhammed Ali Told Through His Talks With Dick Cavett -...

It was, by far, Donald Trumps best, most optimistic, State of the Union speechthe kind of speech we can expect to see clips of in his re-election adsthe kind of speech that would be considered good even without the qualifier for Donald Trump at the end.

Of course everyone didnt think soa number of Democrats walked out, and Nancy Pelosi pointedly tore it up for the cameras to see after he finished. But even with all that, if the goal were to reset the narrative and take advantage of the debacle in Iowa and the end of impeachment (without explicitly saying so), Trump was successful. He had a lot to work with, stressing a strong economy and low unemployment rateand the killing of some prominent, high-value terrorists.

But he also also touted accomplishments on issues with broad, bipartisan appeal, such as criminal justice reform, paid family leave, and opportunity zones. These are feel-good issues that Trump (due to his penchant for distracting us with insane tweets) doesnt get enough credit for.

Conspicuously, there was lots of outreach to African-Americans, both in terms of rhetoric regarding policy goals and achievements, and via special guests sitting in the gallery.

Coming on the heels of his Super Bowl ad, this was clearly not an accident. As The New York Times conservative columnist Ross Douthat put it in a mid-speech tweet, Theme of the speech so far: Somebody at the White House thinks Trump can win more African-American votes in 2020.

Whether Trumps numbers crunchers really believe he can peel off African-Americans, or whether the real goal is to make suburban whites more comfortable with voting for Trump, we are witnessing what seems to be a significant moment: Trump is actually in the business of addition.

Think of it. For three years now, his strategy has been entirely based on energizing his base. For the first time, it seems, we are seeing a campaign that is attempting to add to the Trump coalition.

Not only was the speech an opportunity for Trump to do some outreach (as well as recount the usual laundry list of successes and promises), but it was a trap for Democrats, who had to choose between applauding the president they just impeached versus refusing to applaud talk about a good economy. This was basically a no-win scenario for them.

During one moment, Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema was shown delivering a standing ovation to good news about unemployment, while Kamala Harris and Kirsten Gillibrand sat on their hands. Another example was when representatives including Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar reportedly did not stand to honor a former Tuskegee airman.

Thats not to say that Trump didnt occasionally play some of his greatest hits. One gets the sense that Stephen Miller got to ad a few lines, toward the end. This created some contradictions. Trumps talk about building an inclusive society was considerably undermined by his reversion to harsh rhetoric about walls and illegal aliens.

Though there was much less fan service than we are used to hearing from Trump, there was something for everybody, including fans of Rush Limbaugh, who was recognized and given a Congressional Medal of Honor in the gallery. This probably struck many as an intensely partisan move (imagine Obama having Michelle pin a Medal of Freedom on Al Sharpton), but the fact that Limbaugh was just diagnosed with advanced lung cancer made it more palatable.

For the first time, it seems, we are seeing a campaign that is attempting to add to the Trump coalition.

Trump also appeared to take a veiled swipe at Bernie Sanders. During a section of the speech that included welcoming the true and legitimate President of Venezuela, Juan Guaid, Trump declared that Socialism destroys nations. But always remember, freedom unifies the soul.

One had the sense that this wasnt just an attack on socialists from Venezuela, but also, a reminder that we have our very own from Vermont.

Still, putting aside that clever swipe at Bernie, and although he apparently snubbed Speaker Nancy Pelosis attempt to shake hands, Trump somehow stuck to the script, resisting what must have been an almost irresistible urge to ad-lib about impeachment, his approval numbers, or the Dems Iowa disaster.

At one point early in the night, Republicans in the chamber broke out with cheers of, Four more years! It was something that I have never witnessed in all my years of watching State of the Union addresses.

Yes, it was a sign of our partisan times. But If Trump can continue to stick to the script for the rest of this campaign (a very tall order), it will also be prophetic.

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Whoa, Donald Trump Just Gave a Genuinely Good Speech - The Daily Beast

Author and columnist Mark Steyn toldTucker Carlson TonightThursday that the ironic fact lost in the firestorm surroundingSen. Mitt Romneys vote to convictPresident Trump of abuse of power this weekis that Romneyis the reason Trump is in the White House.

Steyn told host Tucker Carlson that Romney never punched back when attacked by the media or Democrats during his failed 2012 bid for the presidency.

When voters took note of that habit, they wanted a candidate who would do the exact opposite and not bow to the opposition when attacked. Those voters, Steyn said, gravitated toward Trump when he appeared on the scene.

TRUMPS POST-ACQUITTAL SPEECH BASHED BY MAINSTREAM MEDIA: THIS IS REALLY CRAZY

In 2015, theRepublican base decided thatthe essential quality theywere looking for was someonewho didnt let himself getslapped around by [CNNs] CandyCrowley as Mitt did in that [second 2012] debate, Steyn said. If Mitt doesnt like Trump,Mitt, look in the mirror,you are the reason forTrump.

Steyn and host Tucker Carlson listed several instances whenRomney wasnowhere near the good graces of the left, where he currently finds himself.

Pundits like Donny Deutsch, Chris Matthews and Al Sharpton slammed Romney during the 2012 campaign. Additionally, then-Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., claimed Romney didnt pay his taxes, and was nonchalant about the claim when it was revealed to be a false accusation.

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Mitt was calledeverything that Trump iscalled:Racist, sexist, binders fullof women,doesnt pay his taxes, [is a] vampire capitalist who fliesin your window and gives youcancer, Steyn added before remarking thatRomneys vote appeared to give Matthews leg tingles he hasnt had since Obama.

The MSNBC host memorably claimed then-Sen. Obama gave him a thrill going up [his] leg as he and then-anchor Keith Olbermann were discussing the Illinois Democrats primary victories in early 2008.

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Mark Steyn to Mitt Romney: 'Look in the mirror, you are the reason for Trump' - Home - WSFX