“A tree is best measured when it is down,” the poet Carl Sandburg once observed, “and so it is with people.” The recent death of Harry Belafonte at the age of 96 has prompted many assessments of what this pioneering singer-actor-activist accomplished in a long and fruitful life.
Belafonte’s career as a ground-breaking entertainer brought him substantial wealth and fame; according to Playbill magazine, “By 1959, he was the highest paid Black entertainer in the industry, appearing in raucously successful engagements in Las Vegas, New York, and Los Angeles.” He scored on Broadway, winning a 1954 Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Musical – John Murray Anderson's Almanac. Belafonte was the first Black person to win the prestigious award. A 1960 television special, “Tonight with Belafonte,” brought him an Emmy for Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Musical Program or Series, making him the first Black person to win that award. He found equal success in the recording studio, bringing Calypso music to the masses via such hits as “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)” and “Jamaica Farewell.”
Harry Belafonte - Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) (Live)www.youtube.com
Belafonte’s blockbuster stardom is all the more remarkable for happening in a world plagued by virulent systemic racism. Though he never stopped performing, by the early 1960s he’d shifted his energies to the nascent Civil Right movement. He was a friend and adviser to the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. and, as the New York Times stated, Belafonte “put up much of the seed money to help start the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and was one of the principal fund-raisers for that organization and Dr. King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference.”
The Southern Poverty Law Center notes that “he helped launch one of Mississippi’s first voter registration drives and provided funding for the Freedom Riders. His activism extended beyond the U.S. as he fought against apartheid alongside Nelson Mandela and Miriam Makeba, campaigned for Mandela’s release from prison, and advocated for famine relief in Africa.” And in 1987, he received an appointment to UNICEF as a goodwill ambassador.
Over a career spanning more than seventy years, Belafonte brought joy to millions of people. He also did something that is, perhaps, even greater: he fostered the hope that a better world for all could be created. And, by his example, demonstrated how we might go about bringing that world into existence.
The US Hasn't Gone More Than 5 Days Without a Deadly Mass Shooting in 2018
Last night's deadly incident is only the latest in a year of mass shootings
In the final hours of November 7, 2018, a 28-year-old white male entered the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California and opened fire. Twelve people were killed as a result.
There is no broadly-accepted definition of a mass shooting. A 2013 federal mandate defines a mass shooting as a single incident that results in the death of three individuals. The Gun Violence Archive uses the barometer of four or more people shot and/or killed during a single incident.* By this measure, there have been 307 such incidents in 2018 alone. The longest span of time between mass shootings this year has been five days. This is 2018 in mass shooting casualties:**
Date | Location | Add'l Injured | Killed |
January 1 | Huntsville, AL | 3 | Adrian Jashawn Porter, 21 |
January 4 | Brinkley, AK | 3 | Xavier Parker, 33 |
January 7 | Union Springs, AL | 5 | Unknown Victim |
January 11 | St Robert, MO | 2 | Jonathan Graham, 24 Sherry Gann, 53 |
January 12 | Nashville, TN | 2 | Samaii Daniel, 5 Sammarre Daniel, 8 Robert Payne, 70 |
January 14 | Eutaw, AL | 4 | Mandel L. Pearson, 36 |
January 17 | Washington, DC | 3 | Jasmine Lashai Light, 23 |
January 23 | Benton, KY | 14 | Preston Ryan Cope, 15 Bailey Nicole Holt, 15 |
January 28 | Indianapolis, IN | 3 | James Ratcliffe, 50 Deron Gray, 24 |
January 28 | Reading, PA | 0 | Jarlyn Lantigua-Tejada, 20 Joshua Santos, 20 Juan Rodriguez, 23 Nelson Onofre, 23 |
January 28 | Melcroft, PA | 1 | William Scott Porterfield, 29 Seth William Cline, 21 Chelsia Lou Cline, 25 Courtney Sue Snyder, 23 |
February 3 | Cleveland, OH | 5 | Michael Jones, Jr., 22 |
February 5 | Colorado Springs, CO | 4 | Deputy Micah Flick, 34 |
February 7 | Lake Worth, FL | 3 | Edvin Milkevic, 29 Nicole Novak, 27 |
February 10 | Paintsville, KY | 0 | James Wayne Nickell, 75 Arlene Nickell, 70 Lindsay Vanhoose, 41 Patricia Vanhoose, 57 |
February 11 | Detroit, MI | 3 | Patricia Williams Wilson, 62 Barbara Williams Cynthia Williams |
February 13 | New Orleans, LA | 3 | Byron Jackson, 21 Jamar Robinson, 26 |
February 14 | Parkland, FL | 17 | Scott Biegel, 35 Martin Duque Anguiano, 14 Nicholas Dworet, 17 Aaron Feis, 37 Jaime Guttenberg, 14 Alyssa Alhadeff, 15 Christopher Hixon, 49 Luke Hoyer, 15 Cara Loughran, 14 Gina Montalto, 14 Joaquin Oliver, 17 Alaina Petty, 14 Alexander Schachter, 14 Carmen Schentrup, 16 Meadow Pollack, 18 Peter Wang, 15 Helena Ramsay, 17 |
February 16 | Oklahoma City, OK | 3 | Aubry Johnson, 66 |
February 17 | Kansas City, KS | 7 | Kevin Forman, 28 |
February 23 | Palm Beach, FL | 3 | William Burgess II, 28 |
February 26 | Detroit, MI | 0 | Cierra Bargineer, 26 Raphael Hall, 60 Kristen Thomas, 21 Jaymon Thomas, 22 |
March 3 | Brooklyn, NY | 3 | Unidentified Adult Male, 20s |
March 4 | Rockford, IL | 3 | Theodore Daniel, 31 |
March 7 | Hurtsboro, AL | 2 | Donald Hughes John Williams, 74 |
March 9 | Wadesboro, NC | 1 | Jacques McBride, 22 Mareco McNair, 33 Unidentified Adult Male |
March 11 | Champaign, IL | 3 | Montrex Vonner, 34 |
March 29 | Plano, TX | 3 | Quintarius Young, 29 |
April 1 | Mobile, AL | 4 | Anesa Baker, 15 |
April 2 | Houston, TX | 3 | Unidentified Adult Male |
April 4 | New Orleans, LA | 2 | Ryan Massey, 25 Carlos Rodrique, 33 |
April 6 | Virginia Beach, VA | 3 | Rakel Ramel Mason, 41 |
April 8 | Miami, FL | 2 | Rickey Dixon, 18 Kimson Green, 16 |
April 8 | Hickory, NC | 3 | Antonio Knoshjun Watts, 20 |
April 18 | Asheville, NC | 3 | Erica Nichelle Smith, 32 Keithan Whitmire, 15 Harmony Smith, 13 |
April 20 | San Francisco, CA | 5 | Unidentified Adult Male |
April 21 | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | Viktoriya Manasyan, 20 Rashawn Tahir Miller, 21 |
April 22 | Antioch, TN | 3 | Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29 Joe R. Perez, 20 DeEbony Groves, 21 Akilah Dasilva, 23 |
April 22 | New Orleans, LA | 5 | Lil' Ricky Goins, 38 |
April 25 | St Louis, MO | 1 | Timothy Solano, 20 Brandon Stephenson, 36 Melissa Tierney, 40 |
April 29 | West Palm Beach, FL | 3 | Kassandra Yamileth Morales, 24 |
April 29 | Monroe, NC | 3 | David Duncan, Jr., 22 |
April 29 | Seattle, WA | 2 | Deondre Cabine, 24 Charles Ray Justice, 35 |
May 2 | Brooklyn, NY | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 18 |
May 2 | Chicago, IL | 4 | Nakia Bailey, 21 |
May 6 | Memphis, TN | 4 | Dejuan Hill, 18 Deandre Doyle Rogers, 18 |
May 13 | Los Angeles, CA | 2 | Lamarion Upchurch, 15 Unidentified Adult Male, 25 Unidentified Adult Male, 25 |
May 13 | Stockton, CA | 2 | Joe C. Lor, 22 Gina Xiong, 22 Kayleen Lor, 5 |
May 16 | Ponder, TX | 1 | Seth Richardson, 29 Drake Alexander Painter, 4 Caydence Nicole Painter, 6 Odin Tyler Painter, 8 |
May 18 | Santa Fe, TX | 13 | Glenda Ann Perkins, 64 Sabika Sheikh, 18 Cynthia Tisdale, 67 Christopher Jake Stone, 17 Shana Fisher, 16 Angelique Ramierz, 15 Jared Conrad Black, 17 Aaron Kyle McLeod, 15 Kimberly Jessica Vaughan Christian Riley Garcia, 15 |
May 20 | Hazelhurst, MI | 7 | Jonathan Miller, 26 |
May 27 | Aurora, CO | 3 | Dejon Andre Leon Williams, 37 |
May 31 | Timmonsville, SC | 2 | Cheresse Lutricia Jackson, 39 Breyanna Priscilla Jackson, 11 Nykerria Shanyia Jackson, 14 |
June 2 | Omaha, NE | 6 | Jasmine Harris, 20 |
June 3 | Chicago, IL | 3 | Ari Armour, 35 |
June 5 | Jacksonville, FL | 1 | Trevon Bullard, 18 Jercoby Groover, 19 Royale D'Von Smith, Jr., 18 |
June 9 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Kameron Gilfillian, 21 |
June 10 | Chicago, IL | 5 | Tyrone White, 39 |
June 10 | Bloomington, IL | 2 | Steven Alexander, Jr., 18 Taneshiea Brown, 20 |
June 10 | Indianapolis, IN | 4 | Daron 'Manny' Johnson, 14 |
June 10 | Bradenton, FL | 5 | Gabriel Conde, 39 |
June 11 | Orlando, FL | 1 | Dove Lindsey, 1 Aidan Lindsey, 6 Lillia Lopez, 10 Irayan Lopez, 12 |
June 14 | Westminster, CO | 3 | Vaughn Bigelow, 13 |
June 14 | Buffalo, NY | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 38 |
June 14 | Tracy, CA | 4 | Emilio Gerardo Enriquez Almanza, 15 |
June 17 | Macon, GA | 3 | Calvin Bernard Harvey, 16 |
June 18 | Chicago, IL | 3 | Shalonza E. McToy, 22 Erin Casey, 17 |
June 18 | Bloomington, IL | 1 | Corey D. Jackson, 22 Nathaniel A. Pena, 22 Juan C. Perez-Macedo, 33 |
June 21 | San Bernadino, CA | 3 | Alize Ross, 20 |
June 22 | Homestead, PA | 3 | Jazmere Brianna Custis, 19 |
June 23 | Chicago, IL | 4 | Michael Sutton, Jr., 50 |
June 24 | Gary, Indiana | 3 | Jazaniel Davis, 19 |
June 24 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL | 3 | Timothy James Frederick, 19 |
June 24 | Sanford, NC | 6 | Travis Jamarian Mclean, 27 |
June 27 | Oakland, CA | 3 | Derick Alexander, 18 |
June 28 | Annapolis, MD | 0 | Wendi Winters, 65 Rebecca Smith, 34 Robert Hiaasen, 59 Gerald Fischman, 61 John McNamara, 56 |
June 30 | Ashburn, GA | 6 | Za'quavia Smith, 21 |
July 2 | Buffalo, NY | 2 | Yvette Johnson, 54 Kyrie Johnson, 1 |
July 3 | St Louis, MO | 5 | Stanley Sparking, 40 |
July 4 | Atlanta, GA | 3 | Curtis Lamar Wright, 25 |
July 4 | Gary, IN | 3 | Jessie Brown, 29 |
July 5 | Lima, OH | 5 | Carrington Lott, 23 |
July 5 | Los Angeles, CA | 3 | Unidentified Adult Male Unidentified Adult Male Unidentified Adult Female |
July 7 | Wetumpka, AL | 2 | Charlene Ann Orsi, 44 Cadence Rose Orsi, 12 |
July 9 | Orlando, FL | 4 | Edgar Rivera, 20 |
July 9 | Wilmington, DE | 0 | Julie Burton Edwards, 41 Jacob Edwards, 6 Brinley Edwards, 4 Paxton Edwards, 3 |
July 13 | Richmond, VA | 3 | Terrance C. Peters, 46 |
July 16 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Tyree Bates, 14 |
July 16 | Washington, DC | 4 | Mikiyah Wilson, 10 |
July 16 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL | 4 | Norriesha L. Hills, 22 Jamal Forrest, 21 |
July 20 | Sunnyside, WA | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 23 |
July 21 | Chicago, IL | 5 | Tavish Harris, 30 Kevontay Montgomery, 22 |
July 26 | Oakland, CA | 2 | Unidentified Adult Female, 21 Unidentified Adult Male, 19 |
July 26 | Cleveland, OH | 6 | Cortez Ruffin, 27 |
July 27 | Robstown, TX | 0 | Thelma Montalvo Ernest Starry, 85 Isaiah Starry, 13 Roel Mireles, 41 |
July 28 | Los Angeles, CA | 4 | Juan Lopez, 23 Unidentified Adult Female, 19 |
July 28 | New Orleans, LA | 7 | Kurshaw "Twin" Jackson, 38 Jeremiah "Zippa" Lee, 28 Taiesha Watkins, 27 |
July 29 | Phoenix, AZ | 4 | Jessuh Williams, 37 |
July 31 | Gardena, CA | 3 | Delores Sanchez, 28 Francisco Rafael Montes, 28 |
August 4 | Chicago, IL | 3 | Donald Norris, 19 |
August 5 | Chicago, IL | 5 | Jahnae Patterson, 17 |
August 5 | Chicago, IL | 4 | Charles Green, 32 |
August 8 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Averill "General Reezy" Davenport, 34 Niesha Cooper, 32 |
August 11 | Thornton, CO | 3 | Brenda Martinez, 37 |
August 11 | San Francisco, CA | 4 | Gerson Romero, 19 |
August 12 | Clearlake, CA | 1 | Unidentified Child, 2 Unidentified Child, 4 Unidentified Child, <1 |
August 20 | Cleveland, OH | 3 | Jaylin Glanton, 26 |
August 20 | Jackson, TN | 4 | Braxton Watkins, 20 |
August 25 | Nashville, TN | 4 | Mansfield Rutherford, 22 |
August 26 | Wichita Falls, TX | 3 | Davonta Jason Combs, 26 |
August 26 | Jacksonville, FL | 9 | Taylore Robertson, 27 Eli Clayton, 22 |
August 27 | Pine Bluff, AK | 3 | Antonio Brown, 36 |
August 31 | Aurora, CO | 3 | Anthoni Readus, 26 Wayne Carter, 19 |
September 1 | Ft Lauderdale, FL | 3 | Dwayne Smith, 34 |
September 1 | Cleveland, OH | 7 | Theresa Goldwin, 29 |
September 2 | Paterson, NJ | 2 | Daryl Tann, 48 Nykeema Kersey, 33 |
September 6 | Cincinnati, OH | 2 | Richard Newcomer, 64 Pruthvi Raj Kandepi, 25 Luis Felipe Calderon, 48 |
September 7 | Minneapolis, MN | 3 | Steven L. Fields, 42 |
September 9 | Auburn, AL | 4 | Evan Mikale Wilson, 20 |
September 9 | Elgin, IL | 4 | Sharpie Smith-Tate, 25 |
September 12 | Bakersfield, CA | 0 | Eliseo Garcia, 57 Laura Garcia, 31 Antonio Valdez, 50 Emanuel Contreras, 50 Petra Maribel Bellanos Casarez, 45 |
September 17 | Silver Spring, MD | 0 | Sang Yeon Kim, 48 Unidentified Adult Female, 22 Mina Kim, 11 Andy Kim, 10 |
September 20 | Aberdeen, MD | 3 | Sunday Aguda, 45 Bromdra Giri, 41 Hayleen Reyes, 41 |
September 23 | Bakersfield, CA | 4 | Jeremy Charles Littlejohn, 20 |
September 24 | Memphis, TN | 2 | Calitri Boone, 17 Jessie Williams, 30 Unidentified Adult Male, 37 |
September 28 | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | Unidentified Adult Male, 24 |
September 29 | Orlando, FL | 4 | Ruby Steplight, 83 |
September 30 | Compton, CA | 3 | Chloe Hunter, 17 |
October 1 | Chicago, IL | 2 | Steve Nixon, 31 Bruce Y. Miller, 29 |
October 3 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 20 |
October 3 | Florence, SC | 6 | Investigator Farrah Turner, 36 Officer Terrence Carraway, 52 |
October 4 | Espanola, NM | 3 | Cameron Martinez, 18 |
October 6 | Houston, TX | 3 | Decarlo Washington |
October 13 | Taft, TX | 1 | Juan Espinoza, Sr., 62 Juan Sandoval III, 20 Jeremy Sandoval, 22 Nicky Sandoval, 20 |
October 14 | Las Vegas, NV | 1 | Susan Nash, 52 Dejona'e Nash, 20 Deonte' Nash, 31 |
October 14 | Palo Alto, CA | 2 | Eduardo Sandoval, 22 Mario Vidales Mendez, 23 |
October 15 | Columbia, TN | 0 | Kaileigh Lin, 17 Bo Li, 14 Meigan Lin, 14 Lia Li, 15 |
October 21 | Lakewood, WA | 3 | Terrence King, 28 |
October 21 | Jacksonville, FL | 5 | Robert Lee Williams, 76 |
October 26 | Jersey City, NJ | 3 | Jade Saunders, 17 |
October 27 | Pittsburgh, PA | 7 | Richard Gottfried, 65 Jerry Rabinowitz, 66 Cecil Rosenthal, 59 David Rosenthal, 54 Sylvan Simon, 87 Daniel Stein, 71 Melvin Wax, 88 Irving Younger, 69 Joyce Fienberg, 75 Rose Mallinger, 97 Bernice Simon, 84 |
October 28 | El Dorado, AK | 2 | Darrischica Rogers, 30 Aric Hall, 28 |
October 30 | Vallejo, CA | 3 | Bobby Beasley, 32 De'Angelo Quinn, 26 |
October 31 | Detroit, MI | 3 | Unidentified Male Child, 15 |
November 1 | Springfield, MO | 2 | Aaron Hampton, 23 Steven Marler, 38 |
November 2 | Tallahassee, FL | 5 | Maura Binkley, 21 Nancy Van Vessem, 61 |
November 8 | Thousand Oaks, CA | 10 | Deputy Sgt Ron Helus, 54 Cody Coffman, 22 Tim Munson, 19 Authorities have not yet released the names of the 10 additional victims |
*Because the number of injuries caused by gun violence has increased consistently in the last four years, and because a human life should not be the lowest bar necessary to surpass for the public to take notice, we will be using the GVA definition in this report.
**As the Gun Violence Archive excludes perpetrators from their definition of mass shootings, so too have we excluded the names of those responsible.
Rebecca Linde is a writer and cultural critic in NYC. She tweets about pop culture and television @rklinde.
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