Shout out to 1StrongBlackMan

[ismnotwasm]

Who continues to be FFR'd. Again.

Let me say, after the death of HOF, this is my favorite group. I've watched as racial issues pertinent to African Americans get belittled when inconvenient, held up like a flag when not. I've watched you all fight the good fight--even when you didn't agree on things like, oh, who should win the primary---the quality of posts here has always been apparent.

Watching the people from this group get silenced was one of the most disturbing experiences in my 12 years on DU.

Fighting inherent racism is never a comfortable or easy fight, and uncomfortable people tend to get reactive. I miss 1SBM's voice here.

I AM left wondering ... have the admins decided that he is more trouble than he is worth? I certainly hope not--this would be a shameful statement for a left-leaning site. Despite admins assertion, his problems with (and alert stalking by) DUers was not "partisan", it preceded the primaries, and largely revolved around discussions of racial matters. It, also, should be noted that his problems with (and the alert-stalking by) was with that segment of DUers whose primary home is now JPR. Finally, it should be noted that a quick view of JPR will reveal a/the number of JPR posts that are as racially and gender intolerant. It was those types of posts here on DU (by the same characters) that earned 1SBM their attention, and the alert-stalking and jury abuse that Admins finally had to acknowledge.

Now personally, I hope this is just an oversight, as 1SBM is an outspoken and passionate advocate for AA concerns, and a valuable DU member.

[Gothmog]

1. 1SBM is one of my favorite posters

[ismnotwasm]

2. Mine too

From way before the primaries,

[Warpy]

34. Same here.

His intelligent and articulate posts have helped me think a little differently about a few things.

Usually that takes a billy club and/or stick of dynamite.

[Laser102]

42. Mine too! Big fan.

[beveeheart]

46. Mine too!

[R B Garr]

69. Me too. I like him very much.

He doesn't deserve this.

[Bobbie Jo]

88. Leaving another *mine too* right here.

I had no idea he had been sidelined. The petty stalking needs to STOP.

We know who has been doing this all along, and thankfully most of them are now squatting on another site. Unfortunately some of them are still trolling here too.

If you're seeing this, Skinner, please lift his FFR ASAP. We need his voice here.

[etherealtruth]

3. His posts are always thought provoking ....

.... and intelligent.

He challenges you to think ... that may be the "issue"

[emulatorloo]

5. Dammit I had no idea he'd been FFR'd again.

Hoped that shit would be a thing of the once new rules were put in place. Obviously some folks must still feel threatened when they hear uncomfortable truths.

May the review be speedy and his return be quick.

[Hortensis]

9. Me neither. I wonder if he's targeted because he is so

decent and thoughtful. It makes him a powerful force on DU. Hoping to see you soon, 1SBM.

[R B Garr]

71. +1000, I was also thinking a lot of this obsessive

stalking was behind us.

[NanceGreggs]

6. Hear, hear!!!

[sheshe2]

65. Remember this?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024865234#top

One of the reasons they hate him. Lol~ 492 replies!

[Cha]

7. Mahalo, for this, Ismnotwasm~

1StrongBlackMan~U2~

[pkdu]

8. Hear, hear. I assume Admins are checking for stalking too. Nt

[DemocratSinceBirth]

10. TY

[George II]

11. Thanks for bringing this to attention. He is indeed One Strong Black Man, and we appreciate that.

[ismnotwasm]

12. He always brings something good to the table

Whether it be simple food for thought, or a brand new dish, exactly the kind of poster that encourages dialogue.

[bravenak]

13. I love 1sbm

[SusanCalvin]

48. Ditto. nt

[wildeyed]

14. Again?

Dammit.

What happened to this group and many of the regular posters in this group under the old jury system was not ok. I hope they find a way to stop more abuse. Discussing systemic racism IS uncomfortable, but it is also incredibly important.

[greatauntoftriplets]

15. 1SBM's voice needs to be heard.

[still_one]

16. I agree. 1SBM is a valuable member of the whole DU community

well said

[Skittles]

17. not always right, but always passionate

yes indeed

[stonecutter357]

27. +1000

[kestrel91316]

18. What is FFR?

[giftedgirl77]

20. Flagged For Review

[kestrel91316]

23. I've been gone nearly a year. Must be a new thing.

I do know what PPR is and even its predecessor, tombstoning.

[giftedgirl77]

36. It's what happens when you get 2 hides in 24 hours.

The trolls have figured out quick fixes to silence us when we point out their ignorance.

[SusanCalvin]

49. Whaaa? That's all it takes?

Oh, ripe for abuse.

[sheshe2]

54. Thus we have.....

Alert stalking 101.

[salin]

59. thanks for this explanation.

[MH1]

90. Hmm. He should appeal the hides.

I like 1SBM and generally don't consider his posts problematic.

I didn't realize the alert stalkers had figured out the new system yet but perhaps they have.

[salin]

58. Thanks for asking the question.

While I have been reading for more than a decade, haven't been active in recent years - and thus miss things like this. Appreciate the question (which I was about to ask, but scrolled through first), and those who answered/explained.

[giftedgirl77]

19. Appeal the hides.

Every one I've appealed has been turned over. There are some closet racists & bigots here that really don't like being addressed by anyone that would fall into the category of minority.

Be strong 1SBM

[Omaha Steve]

21. I'm in

[stonecutter357]

26. I'm with you Steve.

[SusanCalvin]

50. Thanks, Steve. nt

[NBachers]

22. 1SBM is one of the posters I always click on to see what he's got to say. He's in my "Click Family."

I'm sticking up for 1StrongBlackMan because I know he's become the focus of some awful people here.

Free 1StrongBlackMan!

[stonecutter357]

24. 1StrongBlackMan is a national treasure.

[Thinkingabout]

25. 1StrongBlackMan has his fans, I am one, like to read his posts.

[pnwmom]

28. I can't understand how this keeps happening. I've never seen him post anything alert-able. n/t

[still_one]

33. I have the same view

[sheshe2]

29. Free 1StrongBlackMan.

This is getting ridiculous. It is stalking!

[misterhighwasted]

30. To Admins:

Free 1strongblackman.
JPR doesn't exist here any longer.

[SusanCalvin]

53. Thank goodness, from what I hear. nt

[steve2470]

75. 1StrongBlackMan rocks! Free him now!

As I said last year, alert stalking STILL exists and under-the-radar discrimination still exists at DU amongst some.

We all need to strongly support 1SBM and the AA community!

[Iggo]

31. I stand with 1SBM.

[unblock]

32. i've learned more about racial issues and a black perspective from 1sbm than anyone

even in real life. perhaps ironically in real life that's a topic that rarely comes up. maybe that's on me....

in any event, 1sbm tells it like it is, and does so with passion.

i understand how that can be off-putting to some, but i've always found the passion to be genuine and appropriate to the topic at hand, not personal. and i think it's an important part of communicating the intensity of the feelings behind the topic at hand.

in short, that's exactly what white people like me need to be willing to hear.

[TexasTowelie]

35. K&R.

Looking forward to 1SBM returning after a quick review.

[SusanCalvin]

51. Thanks for all you do.

[TexasTowelie]

64. You're welcome.

I've been busier than usual the last week or so since one of the cats went missing, my brother was away house-sitting and I was taking care of some health related issues. I'm hoping to get back to posting more frequently since those events are out of the way.

[Loki]

37. I stand with 1StrongBlackMan

[lib87]

38. Intelligent, Eeducated, Proud of His Blackness & Outspoken

Those qualities piss off racists every time.

Bring back 1SBM.

[True Dough]

39. Damn!

I'm too new to the site to appreciate 1SBM, but I will make a point of looking up some of his old posts. I hope he is allowed to return because it sure sounds like he's a valuable member of this forum.

[SusanCalvin]

52. Yep. Welcome to DU.

[True Dough]

67. Thank you, Susan!

[SusanCalvin]

68. Not the ideal place, but among the best.

https://m.

[arithia]

40. enough is enough

There is sh*t that goes down on this site that shouldn't and it's sickening.

Thoughtful, powerful contributors like 1SBM and Bravenak have been doxed, harassed and otherwise been hounded by a small contingent of sexist, racist malcontents... and it's been allowed to happen repeatedly.

It is up to administrators to make a stand against abuse on this site. You run it. You choose the rules. You enforce them. I hoped that this electoral cycle would teach everyone to be cognizant of who they chose to associate themselves with. By allowing this to go on, admins give the appearance of siding with the trolls.

It's well past time to take a frakin stand against hate.

[nolabear]

41. If you're out there, know we see you and love you.

I don't throw around the word "love" lightly but inasfar as we can believe our lives are made better by having contact with certain people and you're glad to have their experience to help you hone your thoughts and ideas, I truly am glad 1SBM is here.

[Squinch]

43. Oh, FFS! They have their new little site. Why won't they just stay there and stop harassing one of

the best posters here?

He's too smart for them, and it makes them mad.

[sheshe2]

57. I have noticed they come in an orchestrated group.

It is pretty noticeable. They do a tag team game.

[Squinch]

79. And then they complain about being bullied.

[Arazi]

91. If you check 99% of JPR are FFR'D here. They can't alert 1SBM

So whose doing it?

[Squinch]

95. No they aren't. Plenty of them post in both places. Trash the Democrats there and troll them here.

[niyad]

44. oh, FFS, what has he supposedly done THIS time????

[NurseJackie]

45. I ❤ 1sbm!

[SusanCalvin]

47. Signing for the amount of time it takes to say AMEN.

Thank you, 1SBM. Out.

[StrictlyRockers]

55. I love 1SBM, too. We have chatted via DM. He's a good guy.

Bring him back plz.

[OneTrueLeroy]

56. It's been a long minute...

I was an active member of DU early during its inception. I posted sporadically in the mid-20-aughts, but let my account expire after grad school, and have not posted for years. However, I am a VORACIOUS lurker. Hourly.

1StrongBlackMan is among the best. His insight, passion, and eloquence form an outstanding contribution to this site. Seeing him TS'd (I'm old school) again breaks my heart, and I felt that I needed to reactivate to say this. Disagree, if you must, but I argue that his voice is often at the core of what true progressiveness requires- an unflinching, squirmily uncomfortable expression of the _struggle_ that is yet unsecured. While it is altogether satisfying to pat one another's back, to congratulate ourselves and fellow progressives on our 'post-racial' society, 1SBM remained a pea under the mattress AND cookie crumbs between the sheet. As uncomfortable as that may be, the alternative of a delusional belief in which we ignore the real, palpable threats plaguing black members of our society, simply to advance a convenient narrative of progressive solidarity, is unacceptable.

OTOH, it warms my heart to see voices that I have come to (silently, lurkingly) see and respect over many years rally for him. I can scroll up and read a literal who's who of the posters that I will automatically read, because I know that even disagreeing with them will make me a more informed and enlightened lurker.

Finally, it pains me to see that this thread isn't longer. DU has unfortunately lost some brilliant voices, due in large to the Bernie/Clinton split. While I understand, to a degree, the need to coalesce behind a 'unifying' candidate, it is a fearsome irony that 'too far' progressive voices have become muted testaments to the progress we have yet to achieve.

-OTL

[salin]

61. I was active at DU in an earlier era, like you.

I have kept reading (often daily - often multiple times daily) in the intervening time.

I, too, have found 1StrongBlackMan to be insightful, passionate, and seeking to sow empathy with those of use whose life experience does not include the same realities (white privilege). I have grown as a person from reading his posts, and having exchanges, I would find the loss of his voice here as a tremendous loss.

[Squinch]

80. Welcome back. Stick around. We need you!

[SunSeeker]

60. K & R

[fleabiscuit]

62. K&R he's a teacher here.

[aikoaiko]

63. 1SBM is alright by me.

[raven mad]

66. I very much hope he is soon back where he belongs - here on DU.

Never afraid to speak his mind and usually better than anyone else on the same issues. He set me straight on a lot of issues - I'm white - but never with rancor, blame, condescension or anger. I've learned a lot from him that I didn't learn earlier (no, not in a multi-racial neighborhood, which I love, and have for 40 years), he supplied a perspective I hadn't heard.

[brer cat]

70. I stand with 1SBM!

He represents DU at its best, and we need him here fighting against racism and bigotry.

[Tarheel_Dem]

72. Again? WTF? Stay strong 1SBM!

[awoke_in_2003]

73. They shut him down again?

Ridiculous. He may say things that some don't like, but they are things that need to be said.

[betsuni]

74. K&R!

[JustAnotherGen]

76. N/S

[lovemydog]

77. k & r

Great points you make, that most of hides came at a time when this site had many jury panels comprised of a majority of right wing trolls.

I read all his posts and like them very much.

[BlueMTexpat]

78. + a million or so!

[BooScout]

81. Dear Skinner....

Dear Skinner,

What many of us want from DU is to have a place for thought provoking political conversation as well as sharing of ideas and news regarding politics in America as well as internationally. Lately, I personally have been getting more of that here and have finally started to post more frequently. For the past year however, I have kept my head low and only posted occasionally and I've also self-censored much of what I would like to really say. To be blunt, I've been afraid to post much for fear of being attacked, stalked and silenced.

To log in here this morning and see that once again, one of the best discussion initiators has yet again been silenced is dis-heartening and discouraging. I had hoped that these sorts of incidences were on the wain here.

I am asking respectfully that you please reinstate my friend 1Strongblackman and let him re-join those of us that want nothing more than to journey together to see a Democrat sit in the White House in 2017 and to with perseverance watch the Democrats take back our government and continue the fight for Democratic values that we all believe in.

Sincerely,

BooScout

[Maru Kitteh]

92. Wish I could K&R your post BooScout.

[lovemydog]

93. +1

[wcast]

82. I first remeber reading a post from 1SBM when he assured us Obama would win reelection.

His points were salient and spot on. Obama easily won reelection and 1 SBM's points were dead accurate. Since that time I have always read his posts, and while we have never interacted, he stepped in a few months ago to back up a comment I made that another poster was responding to without reading critically. His response, I am sure, quieted the comments. It also made me feel that DU still had those members that were looked up to and whose posts garnered respect.

While I am mostly a lurker here, I have noticed, and commented under the old site, how sometimes DU sounds like a non-progressive site on some hot button topics; namely race, unions, education, and gun control. While some of these commenters are mostly trolls, there are some long term DUers with tens of thousands of post that always seem to be coming from the other perspective.

DU needs posters like 1SBM, otherwise we are not a community but a group of faceless individuals shouting into the wind.

[KMOD]

83. K&R

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

84. He's on the battle lines and will not be deterred!

Love you, my friend!

[Starry Messenger]

85. Wow, wtf??

Skinner, at a certain point, you need to recognize that a people of color getting silenced here by alerts over and over isn't simply a roll of the dice.

[The Polack MSgt]

86. We really shouldn't have to do these posts so often, right? This seems like BS - Right?

Of course we support 1SBM. He's one of my favorite people on this site or any of the sites I read.

It is straight bullshit that this keeps happening to him.

As I said in a similar post 10 damn months ago it is because of posters to the AA group like 1SBM, and so many others that;

"I come to this group knowing that at the end of the day I may have been corrected but I had never been attacked"

Sooner or later 1SBM will just say fuck it, it's just not worth it anymore.

And when that happens, the people responsible will have "won" by making this site less than it was.

[Squinch]

89. Great way to put it, "may have been corrected but I had never been attacked." My experience too.

It's a wonderful place, this AA group.

[heaven05]

87. while having been here, ALWAYS

it seems the nazi trump culture has infected the DU forum also and like those in the general culture who now feel it is okay to lets their racism, bigotry and ignorance show, we seem to have to fight it here also. May 1SBM return unscathed.

[bigtree]

94. k&r

[VulgarPoet]

96. Admittedly, 1SBM was one of the few people I talked to during the warozne that the primaries became

I have nothing but respect for the guy, even if we used to disagree-- I hope he comes back.

[Gothmog]

97. Any update?

[La Lioness Priyanka]

98. he is one of my fav du'ers.

[gollygee]

99. Has it been a full week?

He should be back by now.

[betsuni]

100. Still FFR. And I miss Number23, too.

Heck, heck, heck, heck.

[ismnotwasm]

102. I know!

So irritating

[wildeyed]

103. Is Number23 FRR too?

[betsuni]

104. No, but she hasn't posted since last month.

When my favorite members don't post I experience abandonment issues.

[Gothmog]

101. Wow

[gollygee]

105. I see that 1SBM is still flagged for review

I wonder why it's taking so long.

Are any other prominent group members also FFR?

[wildeyed]

106. I miss 1Strong too.