Under the baobab: Marking Indigenous People Day, Dignity Day and more across Happy Valley
Happy Indigenous People Day. Recognizing those ancestors who inhabited these lands for thousands of years, President Biden proclaimed the holiday in 2021: “Indigenous peoples are a beacon of resilience, strength, and perseverance as well as a source of incredible contributions. Indigenous peoples and Tribal Nations continue to practice their cultures, remember their heritages, and pass down their histories from generation to generation.”
Around town
It is a difficult time for our football team. After suffering a bad loss against UCLA, Penn State sits near the bottom of the league. James Franklin is one of the best coaches in the country. He will bring our young champions back, beginning Saturday with the homecoming game against Northwestern. We are ...
One of the perks of sharing a community with one of the world’s preeminent universities is having access to celebrities in the academic, entertainment, scientific and other fields. Delroy Lindo, a prominent A-list actor, was in residence at PSU this past week. Known for his many collaborations with Spike Lee, including “Da 5 Bloods,” “Crooklyn,” “Clockers” and “Malcolm X,” his filmography also includes “The Cider House Rules,” “Get Shorty,” “Gone in 60 Seconds,” “The Harder They Fall,” and Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners.” Lindo was awarded Best Actor by the New York Film Critics Circle, National Society of Film Critics and Critics Choice Super Awards. On the stage, Lindo received a Helen Hayes Award Nomination and NAACP Image Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Herald Loomis in August Wilson’s “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone.”
At PSU, Lindo participated in a scintillating public interview with Dean B. Stephen Carpenter II, at Penn State’s Downtown Theatre. Wanda Knight, head of the Department of African American Studies, moderated a Q&A session following the interview. There was a screening of “Da 5 Bloods” in the Carnegie Cinema, facilitated by Matthew Jordan, head of the Department of Film Production and Media Studies.
In addition, Lindo led a workshop with School of Theatre (SOT) acting students on Wednesday, facilitated by Wendell Franklin and Steve Snyder, associate professors in the School of Theatre. SOT opened its season with a timely production of Eugenie Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros” directed by Sam Osheroff. It runs until Oct. 18.
Resistance continues
The resistance continues. On Oct. 18 the second “No Kings” protest will be held in thousands of cities and towns across the country. Organizers believe this will be the largest protest of its kind.
Thompson Tuesdays are still held in front of Congressman Glenn Thompson’s Bellefonte office from 5 to 6 p.m. “Candles for Peace” happens at the Allen Street Gates on Mondays from 5 to 5:30 p.m. The Centre County Democratic Party held their annual fall dinner to encourage people to come out a vote for the retention of judges and other local officials. Municipal Election Day is on Tuesday, Nov. 4. Your vote is your voice.
Sisters and brothers, it is homecoming week and Wednesday is Dignity Day. It is time to come home. For many of us, mired in the mud of mendacity, reality rests on shaky ground. As we approach the 250th anniversary of the founding of the Republic, there are serious questions about whether democracy itself will survive into the second quarter of the millennia. The President and his administration seem hell bent on pushing the country into autocracy. They are supported by the complacency of many of our fellow citizens. Only a besieged regional judiciary and a few courageous state and local officials stand in the doorway to say, “they shall not pass.”
This is not the first time we have suffered bad times based on corrupt ideas. Presidential candidate and white supremacist George Wallace won five states. Celebrity icon Charles Lindberg celebrated Hitler’s rise. Before there was fascist Elon Musk there was Nazi sympathizer Henry Ford. We survived them. We, as a people, will survive this.
Charles Dumas is a lifelong political activist, a professor emeritus from Penn State, and was the Democratic Party’s nominee for the U.S. Congress in 2012. He is a Lions Paw honoree. He lives in State College with his wife and partner of over 50 years.