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We Must Continually Fight to Carry On King's Work
The 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination comes amid a fierce struggle for the soul of America.
What Do African Americans Want?
As the presidential primaries heat up, African American voters are suddenly in demand. Democratic candidates vie to gain support in what is a key constituency in the Democratic Party. Donald Trump's re-election campaign says it's planning a special appeal to Black voters, arguing that if Trump could simply reduce the staggering margins against him, it would have dramatic effect. We know what the candidates want. The obvious question is what do African Americans want?
Mobilizing the Poor People's Campaign
This week in Washington, the powers that be are hearing from a vital new democratic force in this country. For three days, the Poor People's Campaign will bring poor and low-wage Americans to the nation's capital to call for a moral renewal in this nation. They will question many of those who are seeking the Democratic nomination for president.
Biden's Inauguration Offers New Hope and New Energy
On Monday, we marked Dr. Martin Luther King's 91st birthday; on Wednesday, Joe Biden will be inaugurated as president, promising change after a dark period of division. Dr. King's relationship with John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson offers instructive lessons for today's movement for justice.
Freedom and equal justice under the law requires constant struggle
Last week, on Juneteenth, the nation enjoyed the new national holiday celebrating the freedom of the slaves at the end of the Civil War. This week marks the 10-year anniversary of Shelby v. Holder and the impending decision of the Supreme Court on affirmative action in college admissions. The juxtaposition is a stark reminder that the struggle for equal justice for all is ongoing. Each step forward is met with furious reaction; each reconstruction with concerted efforts to roll back the progress. And today, we are once more in the midst of that reaction.
Trump's Latest Provocation and Its Unintended Consequences
President Donald Trump's most recent provocation -- suddenly issuing an order banning the admission into the United States of refugees and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries -- created chaos and fury that had to be expected.
Trump's Ridiculous Cuba Reversal
In his perverse fixation on overturning all things Obama, Donald Trump now turns his attention to Cuba, the island located 90 miles off our shores. Reports are that the President plans to travel to Florida to announce that he will reverse Obama's opening to Cuba, reinstate restrictions on the right of U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba and curtail business opportunities that Obama had opened up by executive order.
White Churches Have Moral Responsibility to Stand Up
In 2019, we will commemorate 400 years since the first 20 slaves were transported by ship from Africa by white slave traders and landed in Jamestown, Va.
Today Alabama Chooses Between Its Past and Its Future
"The state of Alabama deserves better," said Richard Shelby, the senior U.S. senator from Alabama, in explaining why he chose not to vote for Roy Moore, his party's nominee in Alabama's special election for the Senate today.
Obama vs. Trump: A Story of Decline and Hope for Renewal
Donald Trump began his presidency with an inaugural address that denounced the "carnage" that had preceded him. He vowed to Make America Great Again, and set about systematically trying to deep-six virtually everything that his predecessor Barack Obama had accomplished.
Automatic voter registration a sensible first step
As Americans, we hail our democracy as a beacon to the world. And all agree the right to vote is the fundamental cornerstone of democracy. Yet in our election last fall, fewer than half of all eligible voters cast a ballot – and that is considered a relatively high turnout. We need a nationwide drive to extend and promote the right to vote, the most fundamental of all political rights in a democracy. Let’s start by automatic voter registration – registering every eligible voter automatically on his or her 18th birthday.
As World Burns, Trump Adds Fuel to Fire
North Carolina has been hit with a storm of biblical ferocity. Florence has left at least 17 dead there, 500,000 without power, with flash flooding across the state from the coast to the western mountains. Landslides and infectious diseases are predicted to follow. North Carolina is not alone, of course.
GOP, Not Russia, the Greater Threat to Free Elections
We all have heard about WikiLeaks and Russian interference in the 2016 election. The report of Special Counsel Robert Mueller has once more put that on the front pages. Too often lost in the furor, however, is the far more damaging TrikiLeaks -- the tricks and laws used to suppress the vote by partisans, largely Republicans here at home.
There Is No Market for Trump's Values
Candidates say campaigns are about articulating programs, issues and priorities. But people vote for candidates based on how that person makes them feel. Consciously or unconsciously, elections are about giving voice to values.
Georgians Will Have a Clear Choice On Jan. 5
On January 5, Georgia will hold a run-off election for both of its Senate seats. The races capture national attention because control of the Senate is at stake. If the two Democratic challengers, Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock. both win, the Senate will be effectively split 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie. If one or both lose, Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell will retain his ability to obstruct the incoming president.
The Woke Derangement Syndrome
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been touted as the presidential candidate who offers Trump without the drama, a Trump who can win rather than lose. He was supposedly able to forge a majority by uniting Trump’s MAGA base with disaffected Republican suburbanites. In recent weeks, he’s rolled out his presidential campaign platform, promising Americans a “war on woke.”
Will the Ron DeSantis Bubble Burst?
Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has made himself into the leading rival to Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024. He won a sweeping re-election victory as governor in 2022, even as Republicans generally were underperforming. Now, he’s used that position to pick purposeful fights on polarizing social issues, clearly seeking to cater to the fury of the MAGA Republican base. By assailing what he calls “wokeness,” including everything from vaccinations, Dr. Fauci, critical race theory, LGBTQ students, and how American history is taught, he apparently hopes to offer Republicans a new generation culture warrior who can rouse Trump’s base and have a broader appeal to suburban voters.
This Fall, We Will See Whose America This Is
For President Trump, the campaign never ends. He is on the stump, in full campaign mode now. He is intent on nationalizing this fall's congressional elections. As Steve Bannon put it, "Donald Trump will be on every ballot." The choice will be for Trump or against.
America's Greatest Athletes Are Standing Up, Calling This Country to Change
The greatest athletes in America are standing up for justice at a critical time. Despite unprecedented, multiracial demonstrations across the country protesting police violence against African Americans, the horrors keep on coming. Last week, Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back by a policeman in Kenosha, Wisconsin. As the anger has grown, some of the protests have been marred by vandalism and looting. Now armed right-wing militia groups are escalating the tensions. In Kenosha, two demonstrators were murdered and one wounded by a 17-year-old Trump supporter illegally wielding an assault weapon.
Once Pandemic Passes, People of Conscience Must Step Up
In his famous letter from the Birmingham jail where he was arrested for demonstrating against segregation, Dr. King wrote, "I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. ... Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny."
