NOTE: Faculty, if you are interviewed and quoted by news media, or if your work has been cited, and you have an online link to the article or video, please let us know. Contact us at news@csusb.edu.  

Caution urged by CSUSB professor after U.S. House approves amendment curbing Trump’s ability to declare war on IranPressTV (Iran)May 30, 2018

David Yaghoubian, CSUSB professor of history, was interviewed on PressTV about the U.S. House of Representatives passing an amendment that ban President Donald Trump from declaring war on Iran without Congressional approval. The bipartisan amendment received approval on May 23 from the House as part of the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act of 2019.

The vote came two weeks after Washington unilaterally walked out of a multilateral nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed between Iran and major powers in 2015. 

While calling it a positive development, Yaghoubian voiced some caution. The measure still needs to pass the U.S. Senate Arms Services Committee, win the full senate vote, then the House and Senate versions will need to be reconciled before it is sent to Trump for his signature. With a foreign policy team driving a hawkish stance against Iran and the end goal of regime change, it would be difficult to trust that the amendment would remain intact once it reaches Trump’s desk, Yaghoubian said.

Press TV is a 24-hour English language news and documentary network affiliated with Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting.

Watch the video interview at “US House okays motion opposing attack on Iran.”

CSUSB professor says avoiding discussion of apparent racist vandalism is not helpful to solving the problemDenver PostMay 29, 2018

A rope tied around the neck of a sculpture of a female figure titled African Queen has stirred hard feelings in the mountain town of Evergreen, Colo., after a picture of the vandalism was posted on social media and reported to the sheriff. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is not calling it a hate crime, but the woman who reported it was offended by racial implications.

The situation is representative of the current climate in the United States, said Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University at San Bernardino.

Race relations are at their lowest point since the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which were triggered by the acquittal of four white police officers who had beaten Rodney King, a black man, Levin said.

Hateful incidents can be hard to address and are embarrassing for communities.

“We’re very divided and we’re very entrenched in our divisions,” he said.

But avoiding the issue is not helpful, he said. Neither is an attempt to dismiss the whole thing as a prank.

“People who aren’t familiar with the history of lynchings are just oblivious,” Levin said.

Read the complete article at “A noose or not? A rope tied around an African figure sculpture has divided Evergreen residents.”

These news clips and others may be found at “In the Headlines” on the Inside CSUSB website.