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Obama Heads To Selma For 50th Anniversary Of Voting Rights March on Saturday

By goodblacknews on March 5, 2015

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Fifty years ago, several hundred peaceful protesters marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge from Selma, Ala., to Montgomery to underscore the need for Black voting rights.
Demonstrators were brutalized and beaten by White police officers in what has become known as “Bloody Sunday.” This weekend, scores of civil rights leaders, clergy, elected officials, and peaceful demonstrators will converge on Selma to mark the 50th anniversary of the march that helped spark a movement.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) will be there just as he was on March 7, 1965, when he was hit on the head, left bloody and unconscious. He will be accompanied Saturday by President Barack Obama. A second march, organized by local leaders, is scheduled for Sunday.
The event comes at a time when voting rights are once again under attack in the U.S., especially after the Supreme Court gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act in 2013. It also comes at a time when protesters have launched an online petition to change the name of the historic bridge, which was named for Edmund Winston Pettus, a Confederate general and U.S. senator who lived in Selma after the Civil War.

“Fifty years ago this week, brave activists embarked upon the Selma to Montgomery March to bring attention to the fight for voting rights,” NAACP President and CEO Cornell William Brooks said.
“The Selma to Montgomery Jubilee is more than a commemorative occasion—ever present in our minds is that voting rights continue to be impinged,” Brooks continued. “And this new assault on voting rights is being ignored by the same lawmakers who are coming to Selma to celebrate the jubilee. Selma is now—and the NAACP will not rest until every American has unfettered access to the ballot box. I stand with NAACP state leadership in demanding that our most vulnerable voters be protected by the law—in every state.”

Lewis said in an interview last month with USA Today that he and U.S. Reps. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) and Martha Roby (R-Ala) have assembled what will be the largest congressional delegation participating in the pilgrimage to Selma in its 17-year history. The delegation will participate in a series of civil rights-related events in Birmingham on March 6, Selma and Marion on March 7, and Montgomery on March 8, the report says.
“When President (Bill) Clinton came (in 2000) we had more than 20,000 people,” Lewis said, according to USA Today. “With President Obama, it could be many more. It’s going to be wonderful.”
article by Lynette Holloway via newsone.com

Loretta Lynch Wins Senate Panel Approval to be Attorney General

By goodblacknews on February 26, 2015
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved the nomination of Loretta Lynch to be the 83rd U.S. attorney general and the first African American woman to hold the post.
The vote was 12 to 8, with 3 Republicans voting in favor of Lynch, who is the U.S. attorney in Brooklyn.

Lynch’s nomination now goes to the Senate floor, where she seems assured of eventual approval. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has so far been noncommittal about when he will schedule the vote. Democrats have complained that Lynch’s nomination has been pending for more than three months.
Republican opponents of Lynch have mostly not criticized her, but have used the nomination as a proxy for their opposition to President Obama’s executive action that would shield from deportation several million immigrants in the country illegally.
Lynch has testified that the legal underpinning for that directive was “reasonable.”
The committee debate also featured a spirited disagreement about the constitutional role of senators in confirming nominees, one that did not stricly follow party lines.
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), the committee chair and a Lynch supporter, excoriated fellow Republicans in the House who said in a letter that voting for Lynch was a vote in favor of “lawlessness” on the part of President Obama.
“That is ridiculous on its face,” Hatch said angrily.
“The case against her nomination, as far as I can tell, essentially ignores her professional career and focuses solely on about six hours that she spent before this committee on Jan. 28,” Hatch said.
Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) joined Hatch in siding with all nine Democrats on the committee.
“To those who really believe this is a constitutional overreach of historic proportions, you have impeachment available to you,” Graham said, referring to the immigration controversy.
Noting the near-constant complaints among Republicans on the committee about the current attorney general, Eric H. Holder Jr., Graham said wryly that “Eric Holder’s ready to go, and I wish him well. He’s about to make a lot of money. Republicans are into that.”
Conservatives led by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) say Lynch would not be independent of President Obama on immigration and other issues and would not depart from Holder’s policies.
Cruz, a potential candidate for president, said Lynch had refused to answer crucial questions in her confirmation hearing.
Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), who has led opposition to Obama’s immigration plans, denounced Lynch.
“The Senate cannot confirm someone to this post who is going to support and advance a scheme that violates our Constitution and eviscerates congressional authority,” Sessions said. “Congress makes the laws, not the president—as every schoolchild knows.”
Lynch has twice been U.S. attorney in Brooklyn, the top federal prosecutor in a district that includes all of Long Island and most of New York City outside of Manhattan and the Bronx.
She has been a federal prosecutor much of her career and earned the endorsement of a number of top law enforcement officials and organizations. She has extensive experience in terrorism and public corruption cases.
Lynch also has international experience, volunteering over several years with the International Criminal Tribune for Rwanda training lawyers and conducting an investigation.
article by Timothy Phelps via latimes.com

In a U.S. First, New Orleans Finds Homes for All its Homeless Veterans

By goodblacknews on January 24, 2015
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US Navy veteran Ray Charles Griggs receives keys to his new home in New Orleans, December, 2014. New Orleans became the first US city to end veteran homelessness on Jan. 2 after housing 227 people in less than six months. (Photo Courtesy of UNITY of Greater New Orleans)

Most people celebrate the New Year by making resolutions. The city of New Orleans rang in 2015 by keeping one.

At 6 p.m. on Jan. 2, social workers in New Orleans moved the city’s last known homeless veteran into his new apartment – becoming the first US city to effectively eliminate veteran homelessness.
Homelessness advocates around the country are hailing New Orleans as a model for cities around the country looking to end homelessness, not just for veterans, but for all people needing a permanent home.
“The solutions that work for veterans are the solutions that work for all people,” says Laura Zeilinger, executive director of the US Interagency Council on Homelessness. “The problem is absolutely solvable when we invest in the practices that we know work.”
This time last year, nearly 50,000 US veterans had no home to call their own, according to an annual count. On Independence Day, first lady Michelle Obama launched the Mayor’s Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness. Since that time, more than 300 mayors, six governors, and 71 other local officials have joined the pledge to house every veteran by the end of 2015.
New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu took that pledge one step further, promising to meet the goal by the end of 2014.
“We owe our Veterans our eternal gratitude for their service and sacrifice to this nation, and making sure they have a place to call home is a small but powerful way we can show our appreciation,” Mayor Landrieu said in a statement Wednesday, announcing that New Orleans had housed all known veterans in the Crescent City.
In total, the city has placed 227 veterans in housing since the start of 2014.
Other cities have made huge strides in this area as well. Both Phoenix and Salt Lake City have managed to house all chronically homeless veterans, who have experienced long-term homelessness. The city of Binghamton, N.Y., successfully housed its 21 homeless veterans in November 2014. However, New Orleans is the first major city to be able to meet the needs of all homeless veterans, according to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
“There’s been a lot of skepticism as to whether this is a problem that we can actually solve and I think that [New Orleans’ progress] is a proof point for us as a nation that this is something that can actually be done,” says Ann Oliva, HUD’s deputy assistant secretary for special needs.

New Yorker Magazine Cover Depicts Martin Luther King Jr., Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin & Mike Brown

By goodblacknews on January 17, 2015
Cartoonist and illustrator Barry Blitt is best known for his work with The New Yorker, and his latest cover for the magazine depicts Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in a re-imagining of images seen in photos from the Selma-To-Montgomery march events. In the illustration, Rev. King is seen walking —  arms locked — with slain Staten Island, N.Y., resident Eric Garner and fallen NYPD officer Wenjian Liuwith, slain Black teenagers Trayvon Martin and Michael “Mike” Brown in the background.
The image is enhanced due to the inclusion of the American flag behind the marchers, and the serene look on the faces of the figures invites a moment of reflection of what was lost. Blitt was inspired to draw the cover for the New Yorker’s upcoming cover story, “The Dream Of Reconciliation,” because of the Selma marches. With King’s birthday on Jan. 15th, and the upcoming recognition of the civil rights leader this coming Monday, the timeliness of the illustration is noteworthy.
From Blitt and the New Yorker:

“It struck me that King’s vision was both the empowerment of African Americans, the insistence on civil rights, but also the reconciliation of people who seemed so hard to reconcile,” he said. “In New York and elsewhere, the tension between the police and the policed is at the center of things. Like Trayvon Martin and Eric Garner, Michael Brown and Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, Martin Luther King was taken way too early. It is hard to believe things would have got as bad as they are if he was still around today.”

As the nation continues to grapple with the loss of Martin, Garner, Brown, Liu and his partner Officer Rafael Ramos, there is a collective outpouring of grief and questions that are still yet unanswered. Blitt, in his words, seems to recognize the weight of his art and the inquiries it will surely spark in the days to come.
article by D.L. Chandler via newsone.com

Obama Fights Again to Get Paid Sick and Family Leave for More Workers

By goodblacknews on January 15, 2015

President Barack Obama
BALTIMORE (AP) — President Barack Obama launched a fresh push Thursday to bring paid sick and family leave to working parents and other private-sector employees as the White House unveiled proposals that could benefit tens of millions of people. Most require action by the Republican-controlled Congress.
“Forty-three million Americans do not get paid sick leave,” Obama said after a lunchtime discussion about juggling work and family with a group of women at a Baltimore cafe that offers paid sick leave to its small workforce. “It’s a pretty astonishing statistic.”
Obama said the issue transcends demographics and geography, but “the good news is that we can really do something about it.”
The White House said Obama will push the issue anew in the State of the Union address he delivers Tuesday night to a joint session of Congress.
Obama wants Congress, states and cities to pass measures to let workers earn up to a week of paid sick time a year. He’ll also ask for more than $2 billion to encourage states to create paid family and medical leave programs.
Obama also will propose that Congress pass legislation giving federal workers an additional six weeks of paid parental leave.
Before traveling to Maryland, he directed federal agencies to advance six weeks of paid sick leave that federal workers could use as paid family leave. The leave would have to be paid back over time.
The White House said details on how Obama would raise the $2 billion will be released next month.

California Attorney General Kamala Harris to Announce Bid for U.S. Senate on Tuesday

By goodblacknews on January 12, 2015
“She’s not testing the waters. She’s charting the course. She’s in with both feet,” said the source who requested anonymity while discussing Harris’ plans.
The move comes as California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday that he would not run for the seat, averting an ugly battle between two Democrats who share many of the same supporters, have national profiles, are both from the Bay Area and are popular with the liberal wing of the party.
Harris, 50, who is in her second term as attorney general, previously served as the district attorney of San Francisco. She is the first candidate to officially declare. Boxer announced last week that she would not seek reelection in 2016, setting off a scramble among Democrats who have not seen an open U.S. Senate seat since 1992.
Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer are seriously considering bids, as are several members of Congress.
article by Seema Mehta via latimes.com

Congressional Black Caucus Swears In Largest Group Of Black Lawmakers

By goodblacknews on January 9, 2015

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Members of the Congressional Black Caucus Chairman participate in a ceremonial swearing-in, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015. on Capitol Hill in Washington, as the 114th Congress began . (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke)

Hundreds gathered in the nation’s capital Tuesday morning for the Congressional Black Caucus’ (CBC) swearing-in ceremony for both newly elected and current members of the 114th Congress. Forty-six African-American men and women took oath during the ceremony, making it the largest group of representatives to be sworn in to the CBC. One of the 46 was Republican Rep. Mia Love, who became the first Black female Republican in Congress.
Rep. G.K. Butterfield will lead the CBC as chairman. He plans on tackling poverty and other issues that have plagued the African-American community. “As we stand here now on the dawn of a new Congress, the 114th Congress, we must tell the full story — for many Black Americans, they are not even close to realizing the American dream. Depending on where they live, an economic depression hangs over their head, and it is burdening their potential and the potential of their children.
Black America is in a state of emergency today as it was at the turn of the century,” he said during the ceremony. “There will be times when I will encourage the CBC to reach across the aisle and try to reach some bipartisan deals that will not make us feel good, but will move the needle in our communities and communities of color.”
To see video coverage of this event, click here.
article via newsone.com

Ferguson Protesters Stall Opening of Missouri Senate Session

By goodblacknews on January 8, 2015
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The start of Missouri’s legislative session was interrupted Wednesday by demonstrators who chanted and unfurled banners in the Senate while protesting the fatal Ferguson police shooting of Michael Brown.
Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, who was presiding over the chamber, said demonstrators were violating Senate rules of decorum and ordered proceedings suspended while police cleared people from the visitors’ galleries. The Senate resumed after about 30 minutes, but no one was allowed to return to the visitors’ section.
Protest leaders and a spokesman for the Missouri Department of Public Safety said no one was arrested.
Demonstrators vowed to return to the Capitol throughout this year’s session as lawmakers consider numerous bills stemming from the Aug. 9 shooting of the black, unarmed 18-year-old by officer Darren Wilson, who is white, in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson. A grand jury decided not to charge Wilson, who later resigned.
“Our hope is they take what we did seriously,” said one of the protest leaders, Kayla Reed, of the Organization for Black Struggle. “What people need to understand is that 152 days into this, we’re not stopping — we’re really just getting starting.”
Demonstrators distributed a 28-point plan for changes to police practices, including “anti-racism training,” greater citizen oversight of police agencies and an end to the police acquisition of military-grade equipment.
As the Senate convened, chants of “Hands up, don’t shoot” and “No justice, no peace” echoed from the hallways into the chamber. Both chants have been common rallying cries at protests in Ferguson and across the nation by people who believe minorities are too often the targets of overzealous police.
Dozens of protesters intermingled among relatives and friends of newly elected Missouri senators who were seated in the visitors’ galleries to watch lawmakers take the oath of office. They unfurled several banners. One said, “Swear to protect the people.”
Kinder, a Republican, banged the gavel and declared that protesters had “rudely inserted yourself into the solemn proceeding.” But protesters continued with chants — “It is our duty to fight for our freedom” and “Black lives matter” — as they were escorted from the chamber.
article by David A. Lieb, AP via bet.com

Ollie Tyler, 69, Becomes 1st Black Woman to be Elected Mayor of Shreveport

By goodblacknews on January 5, 2015
(Image: Twitter)
Mayor Ollie Tyler (Image: Twitter)
Shreveport, Louisiana made history over the weekend as the city swore in Ollie Tyler, their first-ever black female mayor. Tyler, 69, won with 65% of the city’s votes. “Your vote was your voice and you sent a message to the next generations that we are vested in our city and will use the challenges we face as opportunities to create unity around a vision that will move us to build a stronger, better Shreveport,” Tyler wrote in a letter to the citizens of Shreveport. “I will work with a sense of urgency to bring pride, excitement, and economic growth to our city.”
Ollie Tyler was elected the 48th Mayor of the City of Shreveport. Council members-elect are Willie Bradford, Jeff Everson, Oliver Jenkins, Michael Corbin, James Flurry, Stephanie Lynch and Jerry Bowman. Mayor Tyler was formerly an education administrator, according to USA Today, and this is her first time serving as an elected official. She revealed several of her aims at the Inauguration, which included enhancing police force in high-crime areas, calculating a budget to balance the city’s finances, improving sewers and streets, attracting Fortune 500 companies, and cleaning up Shreveport’s major gateways.
During Tyler’s political race, a piece of her past resurfaced and it was revealed that the now mayor fatally shot her abusive husband in 1968. USA Today reported that “Tyler said she was never indicted and said the killing was ruled an ‘accidental and justifiable homicide.’” After the incident, Tyler proved that you really can overcome anything by becoming a teacher, Parish of Caddo’s Director of Middle Schools, New Orleans city schools’ Deputy Superintendent, Superintendent of Caddo Parish Public Schools, Louisiana’s Deputy Superintendent of Education and Acting State Superintendent of Education. Her latest victory as Shreveport’s first black mayor involved her defeating a white woman lawyer who’s 15 years younger.
Mayor Tyler was born in Caddo Parish. She obtained her Bachelor of Science from Grambling State University, and a Master of Education from Louisiana State University-Baton Rouge.
article by Essence Gant via blackenterprise.com

Carl Jones' Animated Musical "The Wizard Of Watts" Airs Saturday on Cartoon Network, Takes on Police Brutality

By goodblacknews on January 5, 2015
“The Wizard of Watts,” an animated musical coming to Adult Swim on Saturday, tackles police brutality during a charged time. (Credit: Adult Swim) 

LOS ANGELES — “The Wizard of Watts,” a coming animated television musical, was conceived two years ago as a big, fat gob of raucous entertainment wrapped around a nugget of racial commentary.

Then, with the musical’s animation already far underway, Ferguson, Mo., became a flash point, starting a national debate about race, overzealous policing and the need for officers to wear body cameras. Then came the phrase “I Can’t Breathe” and the broader protest against police brutality.

Suddenly, “The Wizard of Watts,” with its devastated black neighborhoods and army of pigs, took on greater weight. How the musical will be received by viewers at a racially charged cultural moment is anyone’s guess. But when it arrives on Cartoon Network’s after-hours Adult Swim block on Saturday, “The Wizard of Watts” will at the very least become one of those eerie instances of art accidentally mirroring life.

The primary villain in the Magical Land of Oz-Watts, where the story takes place, is a vicious pig clad in riot gear. Water does not neutralize this Oz villain; instead this baddie gets melted with a camcorder. “Oh, no! Not an irrefutable visual record of my illegal actions!” the anthropomorphized pig wails as he turns to mush at the musical’s climax.

Even Carl Jones, the director of “The Wizard of Watts” and one of its writers, was surprised at hitting such a cultural bull’s-eye.

“I take pride in tackling things with my gloves off, but animation takes such a long time to produce that you usually don’t end up being all that current,” he said.

Mr. Jones had noticed on social media how African-Americans were increasingly using cellphone cameras as “protection from police, like as a weapon,” he said.

“Nobody was talking about it and so I decided we had to take it on,” he said.