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fb777 app download apk Tributes were paid to the former Scottish first minister, who died suddenly in North Macedonia in October at the age of 69. A private family funeral has already taken place, with Saturday’s memorial service in Edinburgh held to celebrate his love of Scotland and his commitment to the cause of independence. But while some 500 people, including family, friends and politicians from across the spectrum attended the service at St Giles’ Cathedral, his successor Nicola Sturgeon was not present. A rift between her and Mr Salmond – who she had previously described as her mentor – developed during her term as SNP leader. Ms Sturgeon attended the funeral of Scottish comedian Janey Godley in Glasgow on Saturday morning. Her successor, Mr Swinney, was met with boos as he arrived at the service – held on St Andrew’s Day – with at least one person in the crowd outside on the Royal Mile shouting “traitor”. Mr Salmond stood down as SNP leader and first minister after the 2014 referendum in which Scots voted to stay part of the UK. He helped found and went on to lead another pro-independence party, Alba, with Kenny MacAskill, a long-time friend who served as justice secretary in Holyrood under Mr Salmond. Mr MacAskill, now the acting Alba leader, told the congregation – which included Mr Salmond’s widow Moira as well as Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, former Labour first minister Henry McLeish and Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay – that Mr Salmond had been a “giant of man”. Mr MacAskill, who quit the SNP to join Alba, hailed Mr Salmond as “an inspiration, a political genius” and being “most of all a man who had the cause of independence burned into his heart and seared in his soul”. The cause of independence was Mr Salmond’s “guiding light, his north star”, the former justice secretary said, adding that “he came so close to achieving it”. He added: “Those of us who share his dream must conclude that journey on his behalf. That’s the legacy he’d expect and the duty we owe him.” Recalling Mr Salmond’s words from when he stood down as first minister that “the dream shall never die”, Mr MacAskill concluded his address with the words: “Your dream shall be delivered.” Former Conservative Brexit minister and long-time friend of Mr Salmond, David Davis, gave a reading as did former Scottish government minister SNP MSP Fergus Ewing. Scottish folk singer Dougie MacLean performed his famous song Caledonia, while singer Sheena Wellington led mourners in a rendition of Robert Burns’ classic A Man’s A Man For A’ That. Scottish rock duo the Proclaimers were applauded for their performance of Cap in Hand – a pro-independence song which features the line “I can’t understand why we let someone else rule our land, cap in hand”. Brothers Craig and Charlie Reid said: “We’re going to do this for Alex, with love and respect and eternal gratitude for everything you did for our country.” Christina Hendry described her Uncle Alex as a “political giant, a strong leader, a fearless campaigner” but also remembered his as a “dearly loved husband, brother and uncle”. While she said he had been “the top man in Scotland”, he had “always made time for his family”, recalling how he phoned her brother on his birthday – the day after the Scottish independence referendum in 2014 – to apologise for not posting a card “as he’d been busy”, before telling them he would “resigning in 10 minutes”. She told the congregation: “As his family, we always felt loved no matter how far away he was or the time that passed before we saw him next. “We always knew he was standing up for our country, and for that we were grateful.” Ms Hendry continued: “The world will be a much quieter place without Uncle Alex, for Moira, for the wider family and for Scotland. “Uncle Alex passing means a great loss for many. A loss of Scotland’s voice on the international stage. A loss of integrity in Scottish politics. And a great loss to Scotland’s independence movement. “As a family it is likely a loss we will never get over.” Duncan Hamilton KC, who was an SNP MSP after the first Scottish Parliament elections, but also served as a political adviser and legal counsel to Mr Salmond, said the former first minister had “rightly been hailed as one of the greatest Scottish politicians of this, or any, generation”. He told how Mr Salmond took the SNP from being “a fringe act trying to get onto the main stage” to a party of government. “In Scottish politics, his success was both spectacular and unrivalled,” Mr Hamilton said. “Alex Salmond will forever be a pivotal figure in Scotland’s story. He changed a nation. He inspired a country. “History will certainly remember him as a man of talent, charisma and substance. But also as a political leader of courage, vision and intelligence. “He dared to dream. And so should we.” As the service finished the crowd gathered outside applauded and chanted “Alex, Alex” before singing Flower Of Scotland.LOS ANGELES , Dec. 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cadiz, Inc. (NASDAQ: CDZI / CDZIP) ("Cadiz," the "Company"), a California water solutions company, today announced that its Board of Directors has declared the following cash dividend on the Company's 8.875% Series A Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock (the "Series A Preferred Stock"). Holders of Series A Preferred Stock will receive a cash dividend equal to $560.00 per whole share. Holders of depositary shares, each representing a 1/1000 fractional interest in a share of Series A Preferred Stock (Nasdaq: CDZIP), will receive a cash dividend equal to $0.56 per depositary share. The dividend will be paid on January 15, 2025 , to applicable holders of record as of the close of business on January 3, 2025 . About Cadiz, Inc. Founded in 1983, Cadiz, Inc. (NASDAQ: CDZI) is a California water solutions company dedicated to providing access to clean, reliable and affordable water for people through a unique combination of water supply, storage, pipeline and treatment solutions. With 45,000 acres of land in California , 2.5 million acre-feet of water supply, 220 miles of pipeline assets and the most cost-effective water treatment filtration technology in the industry, Cadiz offers a full suite of solutions to address the impacts of climate change on clean water access. For more information, please visit https://www.cadizinc.com . Safe Harbor Statement This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "anticipates", "expect", "may", "plan", or "will". Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, projections, predictions, expectations, or beliefs about future events or results and are not statements of historical fact, including statements regarding the Company's expectations regarding payments of dividends in the future. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. These and other risks are identified in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission"), including without limitation our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other filings subsequently made by the Company with the Commission. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date on which they were made and are based on management's assumptions and estimates as of such date. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of the receipt of new information, the occurrence of future events or otherwise. View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cadiz-inc-declares-quarterly-dividend-for-q4-2024-on-series-a-cumulative-perpetual-preferred-stock-302339009.html SOURCE Cadiz, Inc.

Ezewiro scores 19 and UAB takes down Alcorn State 91-74

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By Nicholas Tan Many world leaders have responded to the Trump tariffs that the president-elect says will be enacted on the first day of his administration . In several posts on social media, Donald Trump shares that he will impose through executive orders a 25% tariff on Mexico and Canada as well as an additional 10% tariff on China. He positions these taxes as actions made against Mexico and Canada for not preventing enough illegal aliens from entering the US, and also blames them and China for the increase in fentanyl in the country. Here’s how Justin Trudeau , Claudia Sheinbaum, and China’s leaders have responded to these tariffs. China, Canada, and Mexico have reacted in different ways to Trump’s proposed tariffs. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that he had a 10-minute call with Trump that was a “good conversation,” as reported by BBC . They discussed border security and trade, with Trudeau saying that the volume of migrants going through the Canadian border was much lower than than the Mexican border. Per The Guardian , he said that they “obviously talked a bout laying out the facts, talking about how the intense and effective connections between our two countries flow back and forth.” On Wednesday, he plans on meeting with the leaders of other Canadian provinces and territories to discuss how to deal with the new tariffs and border control. Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s president, says that she will warn Trump in a letter about the tariffs likely raising job losses and inflation in the US and Mexico. In a statement made at a press conference on Tuesday, via Reuters , she is concerned that tariffs will snowball: “To one tariff will follow another in response and so on, until we put our common businesses at risk.” Additionally, she will seek a phone call with Trump and send a letter to Trudeau. Considering that various U.S. carmaking plants for General Motors and Ford are based in the country, she added, “What sense is there?” On the subject of weapons and drugs, Sheinbaum said that “we do not produce weapons, we do not consume the synthetic drugs” and pointed out that people in her country “are being killed by crime that is responding to the demand in [the United States].” The response from China has been firmer. Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy, says that the country was already dealing with drug trafficking as part of a deal between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden. In a statement, he said their “progress made in US-related law enforcement operations against narcotics” shows that the country is not “knowingly allowing fentanyl precursors to flow into the United States.” A spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry also warned the US that it should not “take China’s goodwill for granted” in its cooperation in counternarcotic operations. Nick Tan is a SEO Lead Writer for GameRevolution. Once upon a time, his parents took away his Super Nintendo as a punishment. He has sworn revenge ever since. Share article

HELENA — Kalispell Glacier's journey to the 2024 Class AA state championship game started at the end of the 2023 championship game. That was a loss on the road to Bozeman. But from that moment, the Wolfpack vowed to get back, with another result in mind. However, the journey wasn't entirely smooth. It got bumpy against Helena Capital when the Bruins knocked off the Wolfpack 35-14. That sent Glacier on the road last week, instead of playing at home. It meant that the Wolfpack would need to do something they've never done — win a Class AA semifinal playoff game on the road. And thanks to a 46-27 win over Gallatin, the trip back for another state championship will be complete as the Wolfpack will return to Vigilante Stadium in Helena to play the Capital Bruins for the Class AA state championship. "It was pretty cool to see these seniors, after that tough, hard-fought loss say, you know what, we are getting back and we are going to finish it," Glacier head coach Grady Bennett said. "It's been fun watching them go on that journey for that one year. All the commitment. All the dedication to get back and it's hard. It's hard to get to state championship games. It's hard to win championships and to watch them grind all year with that goal in mind, and pull it off and get back to the big show, it's special." Glacier is back in the state championship for the second year in a row and they'll have the same starting quarterback, Jackson Presley. The Boise State commitment accounted for six touchdowns (3 rushing) and 325 total yards (107 rushing) last week during a snow game in Bozeman. "Friday night, Jackson Presley showed who he is and what he is," Bennett said of the Gallatin game. "He was the real deal. He competed. He led our team. His energy and his enthusiasm — it was just amazing. He was everything that he's built to be." Presley is known for his arm but carried the ball 20 times last week up from just four per game during the regular season. "If we wanted to, we could run Jackson 20 plus time per game," Bennett said. "We haven't really needed to and we don't really want to. When you have Kobe (Dorcheus) back there having so much success, we just decided not to (run with Presley). But, you get to the semifinals and the (state) championship and it's all on the table." Behind Presley and Kobe Dorcheus, Glacier ran 249 yards against Gallatin last week, an effort that included four rushing touchdowns. Dorcheus, a senior running back, actually set the Wolfpack season record last week as the 142 yards he gained pushed his season total to 1,538. "Talk about a kid to be proud of," Bennett said about Dorcheus. "His development from his freshman year to the young man he is now and the leader he is now, it's incredible. I could talk about Kobe forever. He's worked so hard to be our guy and at the beginning of the year we decided we were going to feed him the rock. We know we have Jackson back there and we can always go to that, but it was nice (this season) to give the ball to Kobe and let our O-line do their work." Glacier has run the ball well this season and is 9-1 when the Wolfpack outrush their opponent. Capital just so happens to be 10-0 when it gains more rushing yards than their opponent. So if there's a game within the game, that might be it since the Bruins out-rushed the Wolfpack 254-41 in the previous matchup. "We were running the ball pretty well early," Bennett said. "We were establishing it pretty well but once we unraveled a bit and got behind, we might have gone away from it a bit too early especially with the wind blowing like it was. It's going to be a huge key but I think we'll be a lot more patient. We were last week." Bennett said the win over Gallatin reminded him a lot of the Capital game. The Wolfpack led the Bruins by two scores before allowing 35 unanswered points. Against Gallatin, Glacier jumped ahead 20-7, before surrendered two touchdowns in the last few minutes of the first half, allowing the game to be tied. "Last Friday night was almost identical (to Capital)," Bennett said. "But there was a totally different attitude in the locker room. It was we're fine. We got this. You could see the kids determination. So I was proud of how far they have come. After the third quarter, it was 27-27, and we just kept with what we are. Our mindset was so perfect and put it away in the fourth quarter — on our way to the state championship." "I love how far this team has come."One of the most prominent figures from Canada 's trucker protests against COVID-19 restrictions in 2022 has been found guilty on five counts including mischief and disobeying a court order. A judge ruled Friday that Pat King was guilty on one count each of mischief, counseling others to commit mischief and counseling others to obstruct police. He was also found guilty on two counts of disobeying a court order. He could face up to 10 years in prison. Hundreds, sometimes thousands, of protesters clogged the streets of the capital, Ottawa , and besieged Parliament Hill for three weeks in early 2022, demonstrating against vaccine mandates for truckers and other precautions and condemning Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government. Members of the self-styled Freedom Convoy also blockaded U.S.-Canada border crossings in protest. The prosecution alleged King was a protest leader who was instrumental to the disruption in Ottawa. The prosecution alleged King coordinated the repeated bouts of honking, ordering the protesters to lay on the horn every 30 minutes for 10 minutes at a time, and told people to “hold the line” when he was aware that police and the city had asked the truckers to leave. The prosecution's case relied mainly on King’s own videos, which he posted to social media throughout the protest to document the demonstration and communicate with those taking part. King’s lawyers argued that he was peacefully protesting and was not one of the demonstration's leaders. King was found not guilty on three counts of intimidation and one count of obstructing police himself. The truckers' convoy gridlocked downtown streets around Parliament Hill, with area residents complaining about the fumes from diesel engines running non-stop, and unrelenting noise from constant the honking of horns and music from parties. Trudeau's government ultimately invoked the Emergencies Act to try and bring an end to the protests. Ottawa Police brought in hundreds of officers from forces across Canada. The protests were first aimed at a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers. They eventually encompassed fury over COVID-19 restrictions and dislike of Trudeau, reflecting the spread of disinformation in Canada and simmering populist and right-wing anger. The Freedom Convoy shook Canada’s reputation for civility, inspired convoys in France, New Zealand and the Netherlands and interrupted economic trade. For almost a week the busiest U.S.-Canada border crossing between Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit was blocked. It carries more than 25% of trade between the countries, who are each other's largest trading partners.

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The UK is in a "new AI arms race" with countries like Russia and North Korea, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster will say on Monday. Minister Pat McFadden will be speaking at the NATO Cyber Defence Conference at Lancaster House, warning the UK and its allies that "cyber war is now a daily reality". "Be in no doubt: the United Kingdom and others in this room are watching Russia. We know exactly what they are doing, and we are countering their attacks both publicly and behind the scenes," he will say. "Putin is a man who wants destruction, not peace." In a bid to keep up with adversaries, Mr McFadden will announce a new Laboratory for AI Security Research (LASR). "AI is already revolutionising many parts of life - including national security," he will say. "But as we develop this technology, there's a danger it could be weaponised against us. Because our adversaries are also looking at how to use AI on the physical and cyber battlefield." US officials recently discovered a Chinese attack on the country's telecommunications infrastructure, where operatives "extracted all sorts of sensitive information from US telecommunications and penetrated it very deeply", according to tech investor Andrew Levi. "That shows that this isn't just about Russia," he told Sky News. In May, GCHQ director Anne Keast-Butler said the intelligence agency now "devotes ", after the country hacked the Ministry of Defence's payroll system and was accused of stealing data about UK voters from the Electoral Commission. In recent months, cyber security firm Check Point said it had seen "an uptick of 72% in cyber attacks on targets in the UK", according to Sergey Shykevitch, who leads the company's threat intelligence research. "It is definitely possible, with the right investment and national cyber security strategy, to reduce the risks from such attacks," he told Sky News. "But we have to remember that for the attacker, it is enough to have one successful attack in order to achieve their goal, while the defender has to be able to prevent 100% of the attacks." The new AI laboratory will receive an initial £8.22m round of government funding before inviting further investment and collaboration from industry. However, one expert told Sky News AI is only "one part of the puzzle" in terms of making the UK less vulnerable to cyberattacks. "We need to fundamentally change our posture and invest in our networks," said Stephen Kines, chief executive of British cyber security firm Goldilock. He said the UK's "legacy infrastructure" leaves the country vulnerable and adding AI protection on top is like having a "nice front door" with a security camera doorbell but an "old-school back door". "That's really the problem we have. We've got these back doors that just have no security whatsoever," he said. Mr Kines suggests the UK would be better off implementing physical "kill switches" in its grids in order to protect against Russian attacks, as well as reducing how many access points are connected to the internet. "If you take it down to the physical layer, then you can actually defeat the Russians because they can't physically penetrate it from thousands of miles away." Alongside the new laboratory, the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster will also announce a new £1m incident response project to share expertise so that allies can respond to cyber incidents more effectively.

Jonah Goldberg: What if most Americans aren't bitterly divided?Jonah Goldberg Among elites across the ideological spectrum, there's one point of unifying agreement: Americans are bitterly divided. What if that's wrong? What if elites are the ones who are bitterly divided while most Americans are fairly unified? History rarely lines up perfectly with the calendar (the "sixties" didn't really start until the decade was almost over). But politically, the 21st century neatly began in 2000, when the election ended in a tie and the color coding of electoral maps became enshrined as a kind of permanent tribal color war of "red vs. blue." Elite understanding of politics has been stuck in this framework ever since. Politicians and voters have leaned into this alleged political reality, making it seem all the more real in the process. I loathe the phrase "perception is reality," but in politics it has the reifying power of self-fulfilling prophecy. Like rival noble families in medieval Europe, elites have been vying for power and dominance on the arrogant assumption that their subjects share their concern for who rules rather than what the rulers can deliver. Political cartoonists from across country draw up something special for the holiday In 2018, the group More in Common published a massive report on the "hidden tribes" of American politics. The wealthiest and whitest groups were "devoted conservatives" (6%) and "progressive activists" (8%). These tribes dominate the media, the parties and higher education, and they dictate the competing narratives of red vs. blue, particularly on cable news and social media. Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority of Americans resided in, or were adjacent to, the "exhausted majority." These people, however, "have no narrative," as David Brooks wrote at the time. "They have no coherent philosophic worldview to organize their thinking and compel action." Lacking a narrative might seem like a very postmodern problem, but in a postmodern elite culture, postmodern problems are real problems. It's worth noting that red vs. blue America didn't emerge ex nihilo. The 1990s were a time when the economy and government seemed to be working, at home and abroad. As a result, elites leaned into the narcissism of small differences to gain political and cultural advantage. They remain obsessed with competing, often apocalyptic, narratives. That leaves out most Americans. The gladiatorial combatants of cable news, editorial pages and academia, and their superfan spectators, can afford these fights. Members of the exhausted majority are more interested in mere competence. I think that's the hidden unity elites are missing. This is why we keep throwing incumbent parties out of power: They get elected promising competence but get derailed -- or seduced -- by fan service to, or trolling of, the elites who dominate the national conversation. There's a difference between competence and expertise. One of the most profound political changes in recent years has been the separation of notions of credentialed expertise from real-world competence. This isn't a new theme in American life, but the pandemic and the lurch toward identity politics amplified distrust of experts in unprecedented ways. This is a particular problem for the left because it is far more invested in credentialism than the right. Indeed, some progressives are suddenly realizing they invested too much in the authority of experts and too little in the ability of experts to provide what people want from government, such as affordable housing, decent education and low crime. The New York Times' Ezra Klein says he's tired of defending the authority of government institutions. Rather, "I want them to work." One of the reasons progressives find Trump so offensive is his absolute inability to speak the language of expertise -- which is full of coded elite shibboleths. But Trump veritably shouts the language of competence. I don't mean he is actually competent at governing. But he is effectively blunt about calling leaders, experts and elites -- of both parties -- stupid, ineffective, weak and incompetent. He lost in 2020 because voters didn't believe he was actually good at governing. He won in 2024 because the exhausted majority concluded the Biden administration was bad at it. Nostalgia for the low-inflation pre-pandemic economy was enough to convince voters that Trumpian drama is the tolerable price to pay for a good economy. About 3 out of 4 Americans who experienced "severe hardship" because of inflation voted for Trump. The genius of Trump's most effective ad -- "Kamala is for they/them, President Trump is for you" -- was that it was simultaneously culture-war red meat and an argument that Harris was more concerned about boutique elite concerns than everyday ones. If Trump can actually deliver competent government, he could make the Republican Party the majority party for a generation. For myriad reasons, that's an if so big it's visible from space. But the opportunity is there -- and has been there all along. Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch: thedispatch.com . Catch the latest in Opinion Get opinion pieces, letters and editorials sent directly to your inbox weekly!

Thank you for reading Hyperallergic! Subscribe to our newsletter Privacy Policy Success! Your account was created and you’re signed in. Please visit My Account to verify and manage your account. An account was already registered with this email. Please check your inbox for an authentication link. Support Independent Arts Journalism As an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider becoming a member today . Already a member? Sign in here. Support Hyperallergic’s independent arts journalism for as little as $8 per month. Become a Member Last week, Ridley Scott’s eagerly anticipated Gladiator II premiered in theaters across the United States. More than two decades after his first trip to the arena in Gladiator (2000), Scott’s follow-up focuses not on the reign of Commodus, who murders his father, Marcus Aurelius, for the throne in the first movie, but rather on the rule of the Roman imperial brothers Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) and Geta (Joseph Quinn). It is now the year 211 CE, and the Colosseum is filled with gladiators, rhinoceroses, and some ahistorical sharks. Those arena sharks are just one of many anachronisms, but the bigger problem with the film is its portrayal of the new rulers. Despite their casting as pasty strawberry blondes, for instance, the real-life counterparts of Caracalla and Geta were sons of an African Roman emperor named Septimius Severus and a Syrian woman named Julia Domna. The film has its fun in casting aspersions on the masculinity and leadership abilities of these fraternal rulers by cladding them in lavish colors and thick cosmetics and accessorizing them with jewelry and even a pet monkey. It misses out, however, on the opportunity to explore the fascinating, colorful, and syncretistic world of the real Severans being reconstructed by art historians and artists today. Before we can understand how these two Afro-Syrian brothers came to power, we must return to the demise of Commodus. In the first Gladiator , the former general and then enslaved gladiator Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe) kills the evil emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) as 50,000 Romans watch in the Colosseum. In reality, Commodus, Marcus Aurelius’ son, was killed by a youthful athlete named Narcissus in 192 CE. The assassin strangled the ruler while he was in a bath in his house on Rome’s Caelian Hill. Get the latest art news, reviews and opinions from Hyperallergic. Daily Weekly Opportunities By that time, it had been almost ten years since the real Commodus killed his sister, Lucilla, in 182 CE. In the movie version, however, Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) remains alive, playing the long-suffering mother of Lucius (Paul Mescal), the hero of Gladiator II . In Roman history, the period of uncertainty after Commodus’ demise was called the “ Year of the Five Emperors .” Ultimately, it was a Roman governor of Punic and Italian origins named Septimius Severus who marched on the city of Rome with the support of the Roman legions from along the Rhine and Danube rivers, becoming the new emperor. His second wife, Julia Domna, was the wealthy daughter of a priest from Emesa in present-day Homs, Syria. When the Severan Dynasty came to power in 193 CE, the couple already had a pair of sons: five-year-old Caracalla and four-year-old Geta. In the film, the two are depicted as twins, and their father is not seen at all. Not only does the African emperor not make it to the screen in Gladiator II , but the Africans that are depicted play the role of barbaric outsiders in ways both problematic and familiar. Lucius, who goes by the Phoenician name Hanno, was raised to hate Rome in the African province of Numidia. Despite his upbringing, Lucius eventually reveals that he is a Virgil-quoting Roman only hiding in the garb of an African. Numidia and other such provinces such as Africa Proconsularis are characterized as rebellious and non-Roman from the opening scenes of the movie, during which an uprising is put down by the Roman general Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal). This, even though they had by then been part of the Roman Empire for many centuries, and a great number of wealthy Roman families were living within them. The most allegedly progressive casting for the movie was Denzel Washington as the African usurper Macrinus, a gladiator troupe owner and power broker. The real Macrinus was a Mauritanian and a praetorian prefect from a wealthy family of elite Roman equestrians originally based in what is now Algeria. Scott’s Macrinus, though, is no equestrian elite, but rather an ambitious nouveau-riche who trades in gladiators, slaves, and soft power. Instead of depicting Macrinus as the wealthy African from an established Roman family that he is, Scott chooses to depict Macrinus as an upstart and — as it is revealed later — a formerly enslaved person. One of the only attempts in the film to address Rome’s oppressive use of enslaved labor comes in the last bloody moments of the jumbled plot. Finally revealing his background, Macrinus tells Lucius that he was once enslaved by Marcus Aurelius, a nod to the fact that emperors enslaved hundreds of people as part of the familia Caesaris , or “family of Caesar.” Not long after, Macrinus kills Geta and eventually Caracalla as well, seizing power. The triumphal Macrinus now stands in the hallowed halls of the Roman Senate House as the acclaimed emperor. And yet, Macrinus’ former servitude and ire toward Marcus Aurelius goes unexplored. This was yet another missed opportunity for Macrinus, and by extension, Scott and the film writ large, to speak up about the real Marcus Aurelius. Just as he was in the previous film, Aurelius continues to be extolled, quoted, and aesthetically referenced in sculpture due to the ahistorical notion that he wanted to rid Rome of imperial succession and return to the Republic that existed before Julius Caesar. Although the emperor has enjoyed much celebration by wealthy technocrats obsessed with quoting Stoic virtues from the emperor’s Meditations, the real Marcus Aurelius was a man who chose his own biological son, Commodus, to take over as Roman Emperor. This broke with over 80 years of emperors adopting more fitting rulers to take over the Roman Empire during the course of the second century CE. He put family before community in a way neither Gladiator or Gladiator II ever reckons with. And he did so while adopting a Stoic philosophy that promotes being happy with one’s lot in life and not focusing on wealthy. This is a much easier thing to do when one is born an emperor rather than a slave. In other ways, African identity is glossed over altogether in Gladiator II — the Afro-Syrian lineage of Geta and Caracalla is never addressed . The brothers’ family is non-existent. Archaeological remains tell a different story. Perhaps the most famous depiction of the emperor, his wife, and his children comes from a painted tondo dated to around 199–200 CE made about seven years into Septimius Severus’ reign and found in Djemila in present-day Algeria . The tondo allows for more insight into the variant skin tones within the Roman Mediterranean and further investigation into what the Severans looked like in real life. The famed portrait is not the only evidence that allows us to access how the Severans looked. Leading art historians and artists are now working with the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University to try and reconstruct the Severans using the vestiges of ancient polychromy left on two busts of Septimius Severus and Julia Domna in the museum collection. Working with Mark Abbe , an Associate Professor of Art History and Classics at the University of Georgia and a leading polychromy scholar, and Stephen Chappell , an independent digital artist, the museum is using new microscopic analyses of the remaining colorants on the museum’s busts in order to suggest a number of possible reconstructions for Severus and Domna. The busts and multiple possible reconstructions sit side-by-side in the gallery. A new publication, Imperial Colors: The Roman Portrait Busts of Septimius Severus and Julia Domna (2023), reveals these new reconstructions while also showing how Septimius Severus and Julia Domna used references to Egyptian gods like Serapis and Isis to accentuate the fact that they “had one foot planted in Africa and the other in Rome.” Demonstrating that wealthy Africans served as Roman senators, magistrates, and respected citizens in imperial Rome long before (and many years after) the Severans came to power dissolves the casting of Africa and Africans in Gladiator II as largely rebellious, uncivil, and above all, outside of the bounds of the Roman empire . In comments to Hyperallergic, archaeologist and Classics professor Vivian Laughlin also discussed the importance of using these reconstructions to teach students about the diversity of the Roman Mediterranean. “Scientific analysis of the hue of his skin can negate the preconceived notion that just because Severus was a Roman Emperor, he must have appeared European, without any melanin,” Laughlin remarked. Showing students that skin tone and Africanness did not hinder political position continues to chip away at the modern assumption about Rome’s Whiteness. Septimius Severus eventually died in February of 211 CE, leaving his sons to co-rule for less than a year. Despite their father’s alleged last words urging them to get along, Caracalla would have his brother, Geta, killed later that year. Caracalla then served as emperor alone for almost six more years thereafter, before the praetorian prefect Macrinus would have him murdered by a soldier. The Syrian mother of the brothers, never depicted or referenced in the film, would not die until 217 CE in Antioch (Turkey) in the same year as her son. Caracalla’s 14-year-old cousin from his Syrian side, a teenager named Elagablus , would then bring the Severan dynasty back to power, followed by a final Severan named Severus Alexander. Despite never being addressed in the film, the Afro-Syrian parentage of Geta and Caracalla is crucial to Roman history: It remained an important part of the public art and coinage produced by the Severan dynasty until its fall in 235 CE. What pained me the most about Gladiator II was not the many anachronistic or ahistorical gaffes that ranged from references to hoses, newspapers, and sharks in the Colosseum to inscriptions in both English and Latin — it was the damage done by perpetuating false ideas about Africa and its supposedly “good” emperors. Films don’t have to be historically accurate to be good or enjoyable. I still rewatch Spartacus (1960) every year, despite its historical flaws . But movies set in historical time periods do wield an undeniable public power — and thus responsibility. As I gaped at the white marble of the famed Apollo Belvedere , which made a brief cameo in the third act of Gladiator II , I wanted more than just painted statues or colorful architecture to be visualized for the audience. Omission can cause more damage than inaccuracy. Ignoring the Afro-Syrian identity of Geta and Caracalla in both casting and in plot, all while also erasing women like Julia Domna altogether, reinforces the popular assumption that Rome’s diversity lay only in the outlying places it conquered. Instead, we can and should recognize that it also existed among the elite Romans doing the conquering. We hope you enjoyed this article! Before you keep reading, please consider supporting Hyperallergic ’s journalism during a time when independent, critical reporting is increasingly scarce. Unlike many in the art world, we are not beholden to large corporations or billionaires. Our journalism is funded by readers like you , ensuring integrity and independence in our coverage. We strive to offer trustworthy perspectives on everything from art history to contemporary art. We spotlight artist-led social movements, uncover overlooked stories, and challenge established norms to make art more inclusive and accessible. With your support, we can continue to provide global coverage without the elitism often found in art journalism. If you can, please join us as a member today . Millions rely on Hyperallergic for free, reliable information. By becoming a member, you help keep our journalism free, independent, and accessible to all. Thank you for reading. Share Copied to clipboard Mail Bluesky Threads LinkedIn FacebookOAKLAND — The race to be Oakland’s next mayor may have officially kicked off Monday, but the starting line is eerily quiet — and may continue to be until Rep. Barbara Lee makes up her mind about whether to run. Lee, the longtime East Bay congresswoman and stalwart of progressive politics, said late last week in a social media post that she will announce her decision in early January, noting the decision was “not one I take lightly.” In the meantime, Lee has held numerous private meetings with city officials about the issues affecting Oakland, from the ongoing budget crisis to homelessness to policing, two sources with direct knowledge of those conversations told this news organization. The policy “deep dive,” as a source not authorized to speak publicly put it, might offer reassurance to skeptics who worry that the retiring legislator, who has represented Oakland, Alameda, Berkeley and San Leandro in Congress since 1998, would struggle to adapt to running a city full-time. But the larger consequence of Lee’s decision-making timeline is that the run-up to the April 15 special election to replace Mayor Sheng Thao has largely stalled. Most candidates are holding off until Lee makes a move. Hours after the formal start on Monday of the candidate filing period, which lasts until Jan. 17, only two people had scheduled appointments to pull papers for the office — Peter Liu and Mindy Ruth Pechenuk , a pair of fringe prospects who are unlikely to make a dent in the race. Loren Taylor, the runner-up in the 2022 mayoral election, said Monday he plans to pull papers in the coming days, noting in an interview that his desire to help Oakland grow as a city won’t be affected by whom he’s running against. But others, such as former Councilmember Ignacio De La Fuente and lobbyist Isaac Kos-Read, have said they’re holding off. “To be candid, I’m getting a little restless — but out of respect I have to wait,” De La Fuente said Monday in an interview. “Hopefully, she’ll make a decision soon.” An open letter published last week by numerous Oakland leaders urging Lee to run included sign-offs from City Council members Nikki Fortunato Bas, Treva Reid and Dan Kalb, as well as prospective candidate Kos-Read. The letter included signatures from both labor leaders and local political figures who otherwise have often clashed on issues like crime and public spending. “We need someone who can bring the new ideas, policies, resources and opportunities that the people of Oakland deserve,” the letter read. “That person is Barbara Lee.” There are other examples of weighty political races symbolically put on hold amid “will they, won’t they” tension involving potential candidates, including late Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s indecision to run for California governor in 1998. But the upcoming special election in Oakland is unique in how strongly some local leaders seem to be thinking past the election entirely in their overtures to Lee, said political expert Dan Schnur. “These communities and business and labor leaders aren’t begging her to run because they think she’s the only one who can win,” Schnur said. “They think she’s the only one who can govern.” The clearest sign of how many in the city view Lee — who has often weighed in on local affairs to oppose Thao’s recall or support striking teachers or chastise the departing A’s — might be a billboard that popped up in recent weeks along Interstate 880 in East Oakland. “Thank You, Barbara Lee,” it reads, “for bringing over half a billion dollars of federal funds into Oakland in 2024!” The billboard, hoisted near the highway’s High Street exit, also links to a website, thankyoubarbaralee.com, which lists some of Lee’s accomplishments and includes a sign-up form “to add your name to our letter of gratitude!” Both the physical and digital ads were created by the East Oakland Youth Development Center. Selena Wilson, the nonprofit’s CEO, said the gesture had nothing to do with the upcoming special election and was solely intended to honor the congresswoman for her longtime support of the center. Nationally, Lee is perhaps best known for being the only member of Congress to oppose the use of military force following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Her entry into the race would bring a layer of gravitas to the top political office in Oakland, a city whose reputation took a hit after crime rose and the economy declined during the pandemic. But it may also bring back memories of the mayoral tenure of the late Rep. Ron Delllums, whose decorated legacy was hurt by the perception that he was an absentee leader during the Great Recession, or former Gov. Jerry Brown, whose time as mayor coincided with the infamous Riders police brutality scandal. Taylor, meanwhile, is steadfast about wanting to lead, an ambition that has not diminished in the two years since his loss to Thao by fewer than 700 ranked-choice votes. “I think the fact that the others are playing a game of political calculus,” he said, “is indicative of where their leadership commitment is and how confident they are in what they’re bringing to the table.”Preview: Heracles vs. RKC Waalwijk - prediction, team news, lineups

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