Freedom, the Kenosha Shooting in Context, and More w/ Irami Osei-Frimpong

On this edition of Parallax Views, Athens, Georgia has a long history of racial justice activism due to its prevalent black community making up nearly 30% of its residents. Even amongst those against-the-grain activists, however, Irami Osei-Frimpong is considered something of a controversial gadfly. Currently a Ph.D. candidate in philosophy at the University of Georgia, Frimpong's pointed commentaries on issues like white supremacy, racism, police brutality, and reparation has, at times, attracted a degree of ire outrage. Specifically, he was scrutinized after tweeting, "Some white people may have to die for black communities to be made whole in this struggle to advance to freedom.” The tweet turned into a viral lightning rod for controversy as Frimpong, who works as a Teaching Assistant (TA), was put under investigation by his University and then, as a result, profiled in websites like Heavy.Com and the right-wing Campus-Watch.Org.

What did Irami Osei-Frimpong actually mean in his controversial tweet? Was it a call to violence against white people? What does he really believe? The man himself joins us on this edition of Parallax Views in a conversation that hopefully provides an answer to those questions as well as providing an understanding of how Freedom, as a concept, and real autonomy is the driving forth behind Frimpong's thought and activism. In fact, it could be said that the idea of Freedom is the underlying theme of this discussion as Irami defines it's meaning, it's relation to black struggle, and how he seeks to reclaim the concept from the American libertarian and conservative right that has claimed a monopoly on its usage.

Additionally Irami and I discuss:

- The Kenosha shooting and and its suspected perpetrator, Kyle Rittenhouse, as an example of the type of white person who will violently oppose black freedom because they see it as a threat to their way of life

- What Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel and the Hulk Hogan vs. Gawker trial tell us about freedom and rights in the United States

- The meaning of white supremacy; the need to "poke the bear" when it comes to white supremacism and why Irami disagrees with the "don't poke the beer" mentality of some within the black community

- Irami's unique take on the subject of looting

- The case of Amy Cooper and 2020's infamous Central Park birdwatching incident that saw Cooper calling the police in distress after a black birdwatcher, Christian Cooper (no relation), politely asked her to leash her dog; questioning the premise that Amy Cooper is an aberration or anomaly

- Double standards: the Philadelphia heroin epidemic vs. the opioid epidemic

- The controversial ADOS movement, founded by activists Yvette Carnell and Antonio Moore, which pushes for reparations, but primarily for American Descendants of Slavery rather than black immigrants; why Irami supports movement; the movement's effective; the accusations pertaining to ADOS's anti-immigration stance; Irami's solution to anti-immigrant attitudes

- Why Bernie Sander's lost the black vote in the South; FDR and black America; how can the Left gain the trust of the black community

- Thoughts on Adolph Reed, arguments in favor of alliances between right-wing populism and left-wing populism, and the why Irami believes class cannot be the sole, or even primary focus, of the Left

- Irami's argument for reparations

- Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden and his Vice President pick Kamala Harris; alt right leader Richard Spencer's recent endorsement of the Biden/Harris ticket; Democrats and the tendency of centrist politicians tp punch Left when in power

This Episode Brought to You By:

The War State:
The Cold War Origins of the Military-Industrial Complex and the Power Elite, 1945-1963
by
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