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Joined 1 year ago
Cake day: August 13th, 2024
  • Atelopus-zeteki@fedia.iotoComic Strips@lemmy.world•HuskMitNavn
    3·
    8 days ago

    This brings to mind a song, No Images by Nina Simone, which came from a poem by William Warin Cuney.

    [Verse 1] She does not know her beauty She thinks her brown glory She thinks her brown body has no glory If she could dance naked under palm trees And see her image in the river, she would know Yes, she would know But there are no palm trees in the street No palm trees in the street And dishwater gives back no images

    [Verse 2] She does not know her beauty She thinks her brown body has no glory If she could dance naked under palm trees And see her image in the river, she would know Yes, she would know, yes, she would know But there are no palm trees in the street No palm trees in the street And dishwater gives back no image

    On the album Let It All Out, Nina Simone sang William Waring Cuney’s poem “No Images” in a capella. The poem won Cuney his first prize in the 1926 Opportunity Literary Contest.

    As part of the Harlem Renaissance, “No Images” was a poem hailed as a lodestar for the New Nego Movement of the 1920s that pushed for “a renewed sense of racial pride, cultural self-expression, economic independence, and progressive politics.” The poem speaks to the psychological angst of African American women who perceive themselves as ugly due to their skin color as a result of the discriminatory, anti-black world they now inhabit. Waring Cuney juxtaposes her urban life with that of her ancestors, and if she had the chance to return to these surroundings she would realize her true beauty.

    Writing in the Dictionary of Literary Biography: Afro-American Writers from the Harlem Renaissance to 1940, Lucy Kelly Hayden writes about “No Images,” stating:

    The poet knows that the brown girl has beauty and glory, but acculturation into a white society and economic poverty have caused her not only to lose awareness of her merit but to denigrate herself. If she were in Africa or the Caribbean, where women like her set the standards for beauty, she would have a different clearer “image” of herself reflected back by society.
  • Atelopus-zeteki@fedia.iotopolitics @lemmy.world•ICE officer who fatally shot woman in Minneapolis identified
    1·
    10 days ago

    I’m pretty sure the charge is 1st degree murder, however ‘premeditation’ is the key point of differentiation between 1st and 2nd degree.

    Here’s what I found from Minnesota Statutes Section 609.185: https://legalclarity.org/understanding-murder-charges-and-penalties-in-minnesota/

    "In Minnesota, the criteria for murder charges are defined by state statutes, which outline the circumstances and intent required for each degree. Minnesota Statutes Section 609.185 outlines conditions for first-degree murder, including premeditated intent to kill, killing during certain felonies, or causing the death of a peace officer. Proving intent and premeditation is pivotal in distinguishing first-degree murder from other charges.

    Second-degree murder, under Minnesota Statutes Section 609.19, involves intentional killing without premeditation or causing death while committing a felony not specified for first-degree murder. The absence of premeditation differentiates it from first-degree murder, yet intent remains crucial. This distinction highlights the importance of the defendant’s state of mind.

    Third-degree murder, detailed in Minnesota Statutes Section 609.195, is characterized by acts that are dangerous to others and demonstrate a depraved mind, without regard for human life, but without intent to kill any particular person. This charge often applies when actions were reckless or negligent, leading to death. The focus is on the reckless nature of the act rather than specific intent to kill, differentiating it from higher degrees of murder."