That’s the short title for HB11, a bill barring college access for undocumented students, which has been introduced in the N.C. General Assembly. The bill seeks to reverse the May 2008 decision that allowed undocumented students to attend North Carolina community colleges under certain conditions; CPCC, for example, will only take undocumented students who pay out-of-state tuition, among other stipulations.

The bill is being met with heavy opposition by those who support the rights of undocumented students. The website Dreamactivist.org detailed an e-mail exchange between a member of the NC DREAM Team and Rep. Cleveland;

“It is saddening that one of our state’s representatives would go out of their way to deny a segment of our state’s population the right to educate and better themselves,” said Ian Smith-Overman, the member who sent the e-mail. “I believe your decision to sponsor this bill is short-sighted at best and vindictive at its worst.”

Rep. Cleveland responded within five hours. “I find it revolting that an American thinks that we should financially support people that cannot legally work in this country through taxpayer subsidized education,” he said. “If you feel so strongly about this issue find an illegal and pay for their education at a private university."

Interested in voicing your opposition to the bill? Come out to Marshall Park tomorrow, Feb. 1, where a vigil to fight HB11 will be held from 6 p.m.-6:30 p.m. You can find more information on the event's Facebook page.

• Thanks to Keo 101 for the photo.

We're not just African-American, Asian, Caucasian, Latino and Native American. In fact, I assert most of us are mutts of some sort.

And by "mutts," I mean no offense. I'm simply saying that very few of us are 100 percent anything. Take me, for instance, I'm German, Welsh, Irish and, we think, Creole ... but since one branch of my family tree can't remember being from anywhere other than Baldwin County, Ala., it's difficult to know for sure. My husband? He's French, Cherokee and ... we don't know.

And, really, who cares? As someone said to me a couple years ago, "We're all pink underneath."

Check this article, "Black? White? Asian? More Young Americans Choose All of the Above," from The New York Times:

Many young adults of mixed backgrounds are rejecting the color lines that have defined Americans for generations in favor of a much more fluid sense of identity. Ask Michelle López-Mullins, a 20-year-old junior and the president of the Multiracial and Biracial Student Association, how she marks her race on forms like the census, and she says, “It depends on the day, and it depends on the options.”

They are also using the strength in their growing numbers to affirm roots that were once portrayed as tragic or pitiable.

“I think it’s really important to acknowledge who you are and everything that makes you that,” said Ms. Wood, the 19-year-old vice president of the group. “If someone tries to call me black I say, ‘yes — and white.’ People have the right not to acknowledge everything, but don’t do it because society tells you that you can’t.”

No one knows quite how the growth of the multiracial population will change the country. Optimists say the blending of the races is a step toward transcending race, to a place where America is free of bigotry, prejudice and programs like affirmative action.

Pessimists say that a more powerful multiracial movement will lead to more stratification and come at the expense of the number and influence of other minority groups, particularly African-Americans.

And some sociologists say that grouping all multiracial people together glosses over differences in circumstances between someone who is, say, black and Latino, and someone who is Asian and white.

Read the entire article, by Susan Saulny, here.

Rhiannon "Rhi" Bowman is an independent journalist who contributes commentary on Creative Loafing's CLog blog four days a week in addition to writing for several other local media organizations. To learn more, click the links or follow Rhi on Twitter.

• Thanks to Dan Patterson for the photo.

If you've been anywhere near a television or newspaper lately, you've probably heard about the uprising in Egypt. Mixed in with the news is speculation that social media -- which includes blogs, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and more --  has a huge role to play in it, as it has in other uprisings around the world.

It's amazing to witness. Anyone with an Internet connection or cell phone has access to countless readers, allowing them to share their thoughts and ideas with anyone interested in reading — even in countries that actively attempt to stifle such interactions.

Thanks to social media, everyone can wield the power of the pen. We don't have to wait for the paper to be published or the 10 o'clock news to find out what's going on. All we have to do is tune into the Twitter feed of someone in the crowd.

While not nearly to the same extremes, we see this type of thing occurring here in the Queen City all the time. Journalists and citizens alike live-Tweet public meetings, drawing their followers into meetings they may not have known about or couldn't attend.

Anyone who wants to, and has a cell phone or Internet connection, is able to speak out like never before about anything that's on their mind. So, is it time to recognize the Internet, particularly social media, as the great "democratizer"?

From Newsline: Your Hotline to Pakistan:

In a short space of time, new media and social networks have blitzkrieged their way into global consciousness and usage, increasingly replacing traditional media – which is believed to be an anachronistic closed circuit. Today, social networks are being used for social interaction, business, activism, fund-raising purposes or simply voicing one’s opinion. And in the process, they are shaping a new discourse. In fact, as opposed to traditional media defining the parameters of debate and discussion, the reverse is taking place now: the discourse is being set using social media which is then filtering out into traditional forums.

What Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, sites hosting blogs and especially comment forums on numerous newspaper websites have done is allow a steady exchange of views on news. And this has automatically put in place a system of checks and balances. Even the press has started getting ‘bad press.’ A story seems doctored? Commentators will comment. A reporter misinforms his readers; they will make sure they set the record straight. When people in positions of authority – regardless of how high up the food chain they are – do (or say) something unacceptable, there will be blogposts and tweets and status updates on Facebook and endless comments about it.

The social media has not only allowed an exchange of views, but also enabled the intelligentsia to voice its opinions more forcefully.

Read the entire post, by Farieha Aziz, here.

Rhiannon "Rhi" Bowman is an independent journalist who contributes commentary on Creative Loafing's CLog blog four days a week in addition to writing for several other local media organizations. To learn more, click the links or follow Rhi on Twitter.