Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, facing heavy criticism for defending “anti-woke” teaching in Florida, this week teed up an unusual proposal to the nation’s first Black vice president: Come debate the merits of the state’s new curriculum on African American history.
To further resist the threat of authoritarianism, we must lift up young leaders who will be democracy’s champions for this and future generations. People For the American Way’s Young Elected Officials Network is celebrating the election of young leaders as new members of Congress from across the country: Greg Casar from Austin, Texas; Emilia Sykes from Akron, Ohio; Maxwell Frost from Orlando, Fla.; Summer Lee from Braddock, Pa.; Robert Garcia from Long Beach, Calif.; Sydney Kamlager from Los Angeles, Calif; and Jasmine Crockett from Dallas, Texas. Dozens more were elected to local and state offices, building a crucial leadership pipeline.
U.S. Senator Alex Padilla decided that a life of service to those who grew up like he did, unprivileged in a working class family, and that commitment to service has ascended him to one of the highest seats in California and throughout the nation.
Atlanta is submitting a formal bid to host the 2024 Democratic National Convention, Mayor Andre Dickens announced Friday to Democrats holding their annual state party dinner.
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is the first Black woman to be nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court and after a grueling three days of questioning – and in some cases badgering – by Republicans, she has finally cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee and appears to be headed towards confirmation as a justice with support from a united Democratic Party and she even managed to pull a small group of Republicans in along the way.
In a word, we must honor our historical and ongoing role as a moral and social vanguard in this country and the world.
rom this week moving forward, there will be much said about the efforts to recall California Governor Gavin Newsom. It’s almost strange that such a recall would come at a time during which the state has its biggest surplus budget in history.
The so-called “conservative” justices on the Supreme Court are rewriting the laws passed by Congress to serve their own partisan purposes. Now the excuse is to limit voter fraud, even though there is no evidence of such fraud other than in the ravings of partisan politicians. This struggle will continue.
I see the $6 trillion price tag on the Biden legislation as more of an investment than simple spending. A better-educated workforce earns more money, pays more taxes. A healthier workforce means less absenteeism, more efficiency, and productivity. Quality childcare means more women in the workforce —millions of women left in the wake of COVID. The investment makes sense to build our labor force back better.
Republicans opposed the nomination, but Clarke won confirmation because Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) used the chamber’s “Discharge Petition” to move her candidacy forward and vote.
“The right to vote is the foundation of American democracy. Free and fair elections that reflect the will of the American people must be protected and defended,” President Biden remarked during the Martin & Coretta Scott King Unity Breakfast. “But many Americans, especially people of color, confront significant obstacles to exercising that fundamental right. These obstacles include difficulties with voter registration, lack of election information, and barriers to access at polling places.”
“We applaud the confirmation of Rep. Fudge as secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD),” Marcela Howell, president and CEO of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda, responded in a statement. “Her appointment comes at a pivotal time when her leadership is sorely needed. The U.S. faces a severe housing crisis as millions of residents struggle to pay their rent and mortgages due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.”
California is determined to stay on a path to a brighter future and, “won’t change course just because of a few naysayers and doomsdayers,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom in his third State of the State Address as he reflected on California’s year-long battle against the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic instability it has caused.
While some of us are spending our time watching the news or wondering how we are going to survive the pandemic, now is the time to understand the battles we are in and determine what we must do individually and collectively.
This week, authorities announced they had suspended Louisiana State Police Master Trooper Kory York, and acknowledged that Ronald Greene, who was shackled, handcuffed and dragged, “was mistreated.” The admission came after Greene’s family viewed graphic body camera footage of the arrest that included York using a barrage of expletives as he detained the Black motorist. York and other troopers were seen on the video choking and beating Greene.