Voter Restriction Laws Will Impact More Than Just Black People

Davey-D-yellow-225-frameJust peeping the news this morning about the House not even debating the Immigration Reform Bill.. Granted , many of us know the bill itself is kinda weak, but that’s not why the House won’t debate it.. They wont debate because politically they know there can and will be no consequence..

Its pretty certain that most folks who are impacted by immigration reform, which is more than just Latinos are not gonna vote for the GOP folks who wanna shut this down.. However, because of redistricting and now the ability to enact crazy Voter Restriction Laws, thanks to the SCOTUS decision, many sitting in the house know they have nothing to fear at the polls..

This brings me to my next point, yes we all know the story of courageous Black folks marching to Selma in 1965 to get Voting Restrictions removed and in doing so, they were brutally beaten and sprayed with water hoses. This has led to the face of voting rights being a Black one.. The cold reality is at the end of the day Restrictive voting laws will not simply be used against Black people…

Wars of suppression have been waged against all sorts of folks ranging from students to union members to Muslims to other People of Color etc..There is no doubt that restrictive voting laws will be put in place to make it difficult for specific populations to get to the polls or get registered.

Do not think for one second, that folks are not sitting in backrooms redrawing voting maps and crafting news laws to hinder voting attempts for college students who are set to see their loan rates double…One law that was struck down and likely to be resurrected will force students to go back to their home towns versus voting in the student communities they reside..

It was already tested in think Tanks and realized that many students Black, white etc, have challenges with getting all the government issued IDs that they will require for voting.. The hope and anticipation is many will simply stay home..

There will be more than a million people in the streets of San Francisco at the Pride parade. Folks in power see such large numbers as a potential political windfall or a potential threat to political power. To those in the LGBT community don’t get too comfortable in thinking that those upset about the recent Supreme Court decision who are sitting in seats of power are not looking at ways to suppress votes where they find large gay and lesbian populations..Dont think they dont fear political payback from you because of the insidious ways they opposed you..

Voter suppressionThe focus has been on national elections but as you can see from the drama that unfolded and will continue to unfold in places like Texas, the political action is stateside and locally.. For example, Texas state senator Wendy Davis the women who filibustered SB5 in Texas is targeted for redistricting.. In short they gonna remove her seat. And now Texas is putting in place one of the strictest Voter ID laws in the country.. Any state with a majority minority pop can expect to see similar patterns play out..

Bottom line is everyone needs to be involved in pushing back.. Whether you live in places like Michigan where they have crazy governors assigning mostly Black and Brown cities to be run by ‘business managers’ to liberal enclaves like Austin, Tx where they have carved up neighborhoods to people living next door to each other are in separate legislative districts that are based 500 miles to states like Florida that has made it a felony for third parties to register people.. everyone is impacted..

One of the first things people should do, is no matter what, get the proper IDs.. There is more than a year before mid-term elections.. no matter what get that ID if for any reason just to smash back and upend these think tank plans.. Folks who are doing GOTV work need to do more than just register folks.. It needs to be a priority to make sure folks got their documents and funds to get them..That should be a fight while others work to change the laws

To those who are going on tours or who make the rounds speaking at college campuses, churches etc, you should insist that at every speaking engagement, there is a voter registration and ID table..I’ve gotten commitments from several artists who will make sure this happens when they play.. but others need to join that effort..

vote No to Voting-signWatch out for well-funded disinformation campaigns including some that will say if you owe money, child support etc, you are not allowed to register or vote.. Look out for campaigns telling you Not to vote because it doesn’t matter and electoral politics is a farce….It’ll be slickly packaged as being anti-authority. Some of will manifest itself in the form of ‘whisper campaigns’. Some of it will come in the form selected spokes people who suddenly have media access  burst on the scene and start telling you none of this matters.. A good look at the documentary Merchants of Cool can spell out how these types of techniques and other stealth marketing techniques are effectively used.

And ‘yes’, there are some folks will say this who are sincere and have genuine political rationale.. But right now you will see more of that from folks who are being paid to keep you from going to the polls.. Check the track records and see what work and results of that work from people telling you to stay home.. Weigh those findings with what you feel you can achieved by voting someone who you believe in into office or a proposition that can put in place or strike down a law..

We saw this during the Healthcare debates when executives, actors and stand ins were pretending to be grassroots organizers were going to townhall to townhall disrupting it and saying no to HCR.. Initially people thought it was the average Joe, later it was discovered to be paid plants..Just know that will be happening to keep you away from the polls.

Voter Suppression will not be limited to Black folks from this day forward, so hopefully folks from other groups keep this fight top of mind….

-Davey D-

Open Letter to the Hip-Hop Community: What do you think of the #NewRules to Voting Rights?

This is a editorial that was written by Marvin Bing the Northwest Regional Director of the NAACP in response to the Voting Rights Act. He asked me to pass it on.-Jasiri X-

Open Letter to the Hip-Hop Community: What do you think of the #NewRules to Voting Rights?

vote-rights500The Voting Rights Act, first signed into law in 1965, was a keystone victory of the civil rights movement. African-American citizens withstood beatings, fire hoses and dogs to see the law passed. Some even gave their lives.

And for decades since, the law has protected the right to vote for millions of America’s citizens — regardless of faith, color or creed.

Today’s ruling by the Supreme Court strikes down the power to enforce this important law. This is more than a disappointment—it’s an injustice.

The Hip-Hop community has an obligation to respond to this. Hip-hop was born out of the struggle against inequality, poverty, violence and discrimination. It is a genre that reflects those inequalities in order to overcome them and change them.

Millions of young people listen and act based off what artists, DJs, bloggers and On-Air personalities say. You have the power to help them retain their rights to vote and to fight for the millions of people who will lose the right to vote.

Last year, right-wing law-makers made a dramatic effort to limit voting access. They tried passing restrictive voter ID laws, cutting back early-voting hours, and eliminating same-day voter registration. Citizens with every right to vote were turned away from the polls after waiting hours in line to vote.

The Voting Rights Act was invoked to stop these attacks on the right of the people to vote in 2012. Without it, everything would be different today.

Our nation should be expanding voting access, not restricting it. The decision handed down by the Supreme Court today means that it is now up to us, the people, the hip-hop community, to protect our right to vote.

Tell your audience you’re pissed off about this decision. Talk about how important voting is and how the threat of voter discrimination is very real. Send email blasts, make a PSA, light up social media, and make on-air announcements.

You can start by getting people to Washington, DC for the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. In 1965, Dr. King and civil rights leaders led 300,000 to March on Washington, and this historic event is part of the reason the Voting Rights Acts passed 50 years ago. On Saturday, August 24, 2013, the NAACP and other civil rights groups can recreate the momentum with your help.

And we need more than marches. We need to be in our communities educating, registering, engaging, and building our people up with the tools and knowledge they need.

Where’s your hustle, are you up for the challenge? The time is always right to do what’s right. Our young people look to you for leadership beyond lyrics.

Marvin Bing is the Northeast Regional Director of the National NAACP. You can follow him on twitter and Instagram @MarvinBing

 

Folks Best Pay Close Attention to these Other Cases the SCOTUS Is Ruling On…

The Supreme Court decided the fate of over 30 million people today

The Supreme Court will decide the fate over millions

***Update*** The Supreme Court just ruled in favor of corporations..5-4.. You won’t be able to sue over racial and sexual harassment..

Today the Supreme Court will likely hand down a decision to determine the fate of gay marriage.. Later this week they will also hand down decisions on affirmative action.. Both are important cases and will keep everyone talking… There are a few other cases we should be aware of that will have even more far-reaching impact..

The first case was already ruled on, last week where the SCOTUS made it very difficult to bring a class action lawsuit.. The case they ruled on involved small merchants banning together to stop the tyranny imposed upon them by credit card companies. In this case it was American Express. If there’s an issue each small merchant must handle it through arbitration…There is no way to deal with a problem that may be systemic..This is important and I hope folks take heed, because this sets precedent for what has been an effective weapon to push back on corporate over reach..

The other case they will decide upon will make it harder for employees to sue on the basis of racial and sexual harassment.. What the US Chamber of commerce and others are pushing for is for a redefinition of what it means to be a ‘supervisor’… They want it to specifically to mean someone who can hire and fire.. So if you are on a job and have a co-worker who is ‘supervising’ you and causing you grief, it will be hard to bring a lawsuit for a ‘hostile’ work environment.. Workplaces are already difficult to deal with, this will now make it shear hell. An article in today’s Think Progress breaks it down like this:

The law provides very robust protections to employees who are harassed by their supervisors, but it is drastically more difficult for an employee to win a racial or sexual harassment lawsuit if they have only been harassed by coworkers. In the later case the worker must show that their employer has “been negligent either in discovering or remedying the harassment.” For this reason, it matters a great deal who qualifies as a “supervisor” for purposes of sexual harassment law. If the word is defined too narrowly, it could encompass employees who have the power to intimidate their victims into keeping their harassment secret.

You can read the entire article HERE: http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/06/24/2200681/the-scariest-pending-supreme-court-case-that-youve-probably-never-heard-of/

I hope folks stay abreast of such rulings and understand that its rulings like these that favor corporations that will impact us for decades to come.. We already see the impact in places where we have work at will rules and in other places where union organizing is damn near outlawed..

-Davey D-

Editorial: In Defense of Dr Cornel West

Cornel-West-purple

Who am I to defend Dr. West who is a considerably one of the greatest minds God has blessed humanity with in the 21 century. He is a prophetic voice out of the African American Baptist tradition, a scholar, writer, historian and musicologist. He has been critical of President Obama and because of his criticism he and Tavis Smiley, his partner in criticizing the president have both been accused of profiteering and jealousy. Frankly, I cannot say if that is or is not absolutely false.

However, I do welcome Dr. West’s well placed articulation for the poor and disenfranchised. I applaud his truth telling in season and out of season. I encourage his well aimed perspectives on President Obama’s administration and policies. I disregard the claim that our President cannot be the Black President as a ridiculous comment, which seems only African American make about themselves and accept from others. The President is of African American descent, but he is also from other descents, yet we are not to enthusiastically advocate for ourselves to him?

I also have reflected on President Obama’s successes because I don’t want pundits, or the media, or some misinformed colleague to tell me how to think. I have listed President Obama’s first term achievements from my contextual perspective. Everyone has the right to do so;
consequently here are what the President achieved:

He overcame an intransigent Republican Party led by billionaires like the Koch brothers
and the Tea Party, who spent obscene money to defeat him. He had to deal with Sen. McConnell
and Representative John Boehner who stated their number one focus is to stop President
Obama’s initiatives, and deny him a second term.

He inherited an economy in freefall, after being robbed by Wall Street, by initiating a
stimulus that created 5 million jobs.

During his term Wall Street averages went from 6000 to 13000.

CEO’s of major corporations under Obama’s term increased their profits over 230%

He brought the economy out of a hole.

He initiated the Lilly Ledbetter Act giving women equal pay for equal work.

He saved the United States Auto Industry and thereby saving all of the Great Lakes
economy.

He wound down the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He eliminated Osama Bin Laden, after he was considered unable to be brought to justice,
and made America safer. Remember President Bush said he doesn’t even think about Osama Bin
Laden.

He appointed two women to the Supreme Court and has one more selection to make.

He initiated the Health Care Reform that every President tried to do; but could not do for
over 100 years.

He managed that we did not go over the fiscal cliff and stood up to the Republicans when
they tried to hold America hostage on raising the credit limit.

An outstanding set of presidential accomplishments, but have African Americans gotten their usual short end of the stick? Yes, and Dr. West agrees and it is why I see Dr. West serving a necessary purpose. He is critical of the President and his criticism has been on point. Speaking as a Black American I would give President Obama a B+. Why? This is why. During the first term he never spoke of the poor, just the middle class. I assume his handlers and he felt it would be political expedient to do so. However, it is the poor in this country that have been left out of any economic recovery and the poor that took the gravest economic loss. The poor are still waiting for employment, educational opportunities and gun/violence free communities.

Eric Holder

Eric Holder

Secondly, the President’s Justice Department gets a “C”. Attorney General Eric Holder has been lackluster and seemingly unaggressive in his prosecutions in the face of a growing number of rogue cops and bigoted white men killing innocent black boys and men. For example, in Mississippi there has been a rash of car accidents, where running over black men as they walk along the streets and country roads is their cause of death at the hands of white male drivers. Young white southern men have stalked unsuspecting random black males to thrill kill.

Never to forget, the shooting of boys like Trayvon Martin, Jordan Davis and others. Very little or to be fair an uninspiring response from the Justice Department has been offered – – no signal or aggressive Federal prosecutions to indicate a perception of safety and protection for people of African American descent.

Also, not one Wall Streeter went to jail for stealing our money and crashing the economy. Yes, we get reports of Wells Fargo, Bank of America and CitiBank paying hundreds of millions in civil case settlements for colluding to foreclose on vulnerable and unsophisticated homeowners. These victim homeowners were predominantly of African American descent, which resulted in the largest transfer of wealth from African Americans. I ponder if the banks are so willing to settle for 100’s of millions in awards, it must mean they stole twice as much.

Thirdly, there are the drone bombings throughout Pakistan that are killing their intended terrorist targets, but the collateral deaths are innocent women and children.

Long Lines at Voting Booths

Long Lines at Voting Booths

Fourthly, where in the jobs program? Black folk voted for our President in record number (92%), in spite of misinformation scams, voter intimidation, rigged voting machines, and the reduction of voting hours. The collusion to defeat the Black vote included the Republican Party and Corporate class, who planned, hired operatives and funded illegal and close to illegal scams to thwart the Black voting strengths. Republican lawyers, legislators, elected governors, state attorney generals and even the son of the Republican candidate all have unclean hands in these unscrupulous efforts.

Valiantly African American common folk, in the spirit of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the year – long protest in Montgomery, Alabama, that galvanized the American Civil Rights Movement and led to a 1956 decision by the Supreme Court of the United States declaring segregated seating on buses unconstitutional, stood in the hot sun and long lines to cast their vote; and, seemingly no earnest effort on developing a jobs program is on the horizon.

Fifthly, I appreciate the president’s effort on the gun violence initiatives. I support his advocacy and bold leadership, but where is the focus on urban youth? Forty percent of the deaths from gun violence occur within urban communities across this nation from Oakland, LA, Detroit, Chicago, Baltimore, New Orleans and Miami. Yet, no specific plan to address the violence that has destroyed communities and a generation of young black males. Jobs and hope are the answer to the nihilism affecting these communities.

Dr. West is advocating for the least of these that seemed to again be left out. Gays got “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” repealed and the right to marry, Hispanics got Supreme Court Justice Soto -Meyer and immigration dialog, Jews got Justice Kagan and an assurance of military protection from Iran. Wall Street bankers received no prosecutions for the theft of our surplus. Women got the Lilly Ledbetter Act that ensures equal pay for equal work and the Presidential defense of Roe vs. Wade. They also received the selection of two female Supreme Court Justices and possibly a third.The middle class received Health Care Reform.

So when the President chooses to get sworn in on MLK’s Bible the President is evoking Dr. King’s values that he has fallen short of. I understand he was trying to get to a second term, but if we do not demand in politics we will not receive anything. Lastly, every King David NEEDS a Nathan. It’s is an inoculation against corruption and apathy. Our President needs someone who will call it like it is and speak for the poor and people of color. Dr. West has done a good job at that and I hope he continues, along with others. Otherwise African Americans poor, elderly and Black middle class will not get their needs addressed.

written by Reginald W Lyles