Tag: bree newsome
Late Night Roundup: Larry Wilmore Meets Bree Newsome

Late Night Roundup: Larry Wilmore Meets Bree Newsome

Larry Wilmore interviewed Bree Newsome, the woman who took down the Confederate flag at the South Carolina state Capitol grounds. And yes, as Bree had hinted on her Twitter account, the two of them enjoyed some nice Southern-style mint juleps together.

“Once I got up there and grabbed it,” she said, recounting her experience to the adoring Nightly Show crowd, “it was like, ‘Yes — take me to jail!'”

Jon Stewart paid tribute to a man who has been with him all throughout his run on The Daily Show: Donald Trump, who has provided so much material over the years. And now The Donald is slandering whole countries, losing business connections, and exposing his own utter unseriousness via his farce of a candidacy — and getting to second place in the polls.

Larry Wilmore also looked at the latest escapades from Donald Trump, and had an offer for Republican voters: “Okay, this is one time I’m not gonna chastise you, I’m not gonna ridicule you. You keep doing what you’re doing, okay — so I can keep doing what I’m doing.”

Conan O’Brien also reviewed the news that Macy’s will no longer carry Donald Trump’s menswear line — and Petco will no longer carry his shampoo.

Woman Who Took Down Confederate Flag: ‘We Want An End To The Hate’

Woman Who Took Down Confederate Flag: ‘We Want An End To The Hate’

Bree Newsome, the activist who made headlines around the world last Saturday when she took down the Confederate flag on the South Carolina state Capitol grounds, is now taking to the media to spread the deeper message behind her actions.

“I felt very strongly we needed that moment,” Newsome said during an appearance on ABC’s Good Morning America, which aired Thursday. “We needed that moment to say ‘enough is enough.’ We want an end to the hate.”

After she removed the flag, the State House staff put a new one up — but Newsome still believes she accomplished her goal. “Absolutely,” she said, with a wide smile, “because you’ve seen a lot of people have been inspired by that moment.”

Newsome also announced on her Twitter account Thursday that she had recorded an interview with Democracy Now!, and would appear Thursday night on CBS Evening News and The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. And it looks like she and Larry might be sharing their thoughts over a nice mixed drink often associated with the South:

Newsome and her compatriot, James Ian Tyson, face maximum possible sentences of three years in prison and fines of $5,000 for defacing a public monument — though they maintain their legal innocence, on the grounds that they did not actually deface the existing monuments.

On Monday, Newsome posted a lengthy message on the website Blue Nation Review, calling for social justice and thanking people for their support. She clarified that it was a deliberate choice among her group of activist friends to have the flag be removed by a black woman, aided by a white male accomplice. The message also discussed her own family heritage in South Carolina, going back to her ancestors who lived in slavery. (Newsome is from North Carolina, which has led to some objections to her taking such a lead role against the Confederate flag in South Carolina.)

The post closes:

It is important to remember that our struggle doesn’t end when the flag comes down. The Confederacy is a southern thing, but white supremacy is not. Our generation has taken up the banner to fight battles many thought were won long ago. We must fight with all vigor now so that our grandchildren aren’t still fighting these battles in another 50 years. Black Lives Matter. This is non-negotiable.

I encourage everyone to understand the history, recognize the problems of the present and take action to show the world that the status quo is not acceptable. The last few days have confirmed to me that people understand the importance of action and are ready to take such action. Whether the topic is trending nationally or it’s an issue affecting our local communities, those of us who are conscious must do what is right in this moment. And we must do it without fear. New eras require new models of leadership. This is a multi-leader movement. I believe that. I stand by that. I am because we are. I am one of many.

This moment is a call to action for us all. All honor and praise to God.

Late Night Roundup: ‘Good News-Mageddon’ Meets ‘The Human Dissentipede’

Late Night Roundup: ‘Good News-Mageddon’ Meets ‘The Human Dissentipede’

Jon Stewart couldn’t help but gloat at Fox News’ coverage of the Supreme Court’s decisions to uphold the Affordable Care Act and to extend marriage equality — or as Jon nicknamed the conservative media take on all of it, “Good News-Mageddon.”

Jon also highlighted the acidic dissents of Justice Antonin Scalia, the man who decries the elite Supreme Court overturning the will of voters — except when he gutted the Voting Rights Act, even ridiculing the large majority by which it passed Congress; wanted to overturn health care reform; and even helped to elect a president over the will of the American public.

Larry invited the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus on, to celebrate the Supreme Court’s ruling for marriage equality.

And of course, Larry also had to celebrate Bree Newsome, the woman who scaled the flagpole at the South Carolina state Capitol grounds to take down the Confederate flag. Larry and his crew also imagined just what the discussions to take down that flag forever might look like — or at least, the discussions to eventually discuss it at some point in the future.

Conan O’Brien looked at NBC firing Donald Trump from his TV shows with them, in the wake of his offensive comments about immigrants. “Think about it: Donald Trump isn’t even president yet — and he’s already made America a better place.”

Jimmy Kimmel showed the off the “first” presidential campaign ad Chris Christie. And looking over the Republican field, Jimmy could only ask: “It’s fat jokes or hair jokes — which will we run out of first?”

Jimmy also looked at the gay marriage decision — and showed that yes, it really is easy to explain this topic to children.

Reciting Prayers, Woman Takes Down Confederate Flag At South Carolina Capitol

Reciting Prayers, Woman Takes Down Confederate Flag At South Carolina Capitol

A woman publicly took down the Confederate flag at the South Carolina state Capitol grounds early Saturday morning, climbing the pole at the Confederate memorial and removing that flag before she then submitted herself to be arrested. A new Confederate flag was then put back in its place.

The woman has been identified as Brittany “Bree” Newsome, an African-American resident of Charlotte, North Carolina, Columbia’s newspaper The State reports. Newsome has been detained on a vandalism offense — and in the hours since, a popular hashtag has emerged on Twitter, called “#FreeBree.”

Governor Nikki Haley (R-SC) called this week for the Confederate flag to come down, in the wake of the massacre at a historic black church in Charleston by a confessed white supremacist. Haley’s statement has in turn kicked off a process of debates and votes in the state legislature, which is still ongoing. That flag has been located at a Confederate war memorial on the Capitol grounds since 2000 — a compromise measure after it had previously flown from the state Capitol dome itself, placed there in 1962 as a gesture of state defiance against desegregation and the civil rights movement.

In a video posted on YouTube, showing Newsome clad in climbing gear, she grabbed the Confederate flag and cried out: “You come against me with hatred, and oppression and violence — I come against you in the name of God! This flag comes down today!”

Newsome also recited Christian prayers as she descended the pole: “The Lord is my light and my salvation. Who shall I fear?”

As she descended, the pole was surrounded by three police officers. She assured them in a calm and friendly tone of voice: “I’m gonna come, sir. I’m gonna comply. I promise you, I’m coming down. I’m prepared to be arrested.”

Of the three arresting officers, two were black and one white. The arrest appears to have gone smoothly, with Newsome and the officers cooperating to help her over the waist-high iron fence surrounding the flagpole before placing both her and a white male accomplice in handcuffs.

The State also reports:

At about 7:45 a.m., a maintenance worker and a state security officer, neither of whom would give their names or comment, raised a new banner after removing it from a plastic sheet. The two state employees who arrived on the State House grounds to put the flag back up were African-Americans.

A member of a group associated with Newsome expressed disappointment to the paper that the Confederate flag was put back up again: “All they had to do was keep it down.”