South

Carolina Sen. Tim Scott Announces Presidential Campaign

South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott, a longtime and devoted ally of former President Donald Trump, has thrown his hat into the 2024 presidential ring.

With Trump already declared and the presumptive frontrunner, Scott joins a growing Republican candidate list that includes another Trump ally, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

Ironically, Haley appointed Scott in 2013 to represent South Carolina in the U.S. Senate after the retirement of Jim DeMint.

The GOP already has a crowded field of candidates, including former tech and finance guru Vivek Ramaswamy, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Former Trump Vice President Mike Pence hasn’t ruled out a run.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, former Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney, ex-national security advisor John Bolton, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are also said to be weighing a run for the GOP nomination.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the lone Democrat to declare his intention to challenge President Joe Biden.

“Under President Biden, our nation is retreating away from patriotism and faith,” Scott said, announcing his bid. “Joe Biden and the radical left are attacking every rung of the ladder that helped me climb. And that is why I am announcing today that I am running for president of the United States of America.”

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Black Canadian Legislators Exchange Ideas in D.C

Eight members of the Parliamentary Black Caucus in Canada were on Capitol Hill this week to meet with the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). This was a historic first meeting between the two groups. In stature and representation, the Canadian political leaders could be comparable to America’s Congressional leadership.

Interviewed on the campus of Howard University, Senator Bernadette Clement, who represents Cornwall, Ontario, spoke about meeting with the CBC.

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“We want connection, we want to talk about the Black diaspora and discuss some of the issues we might have in common,” said Clement. “Both sides of the border deal with systematic racism, both sides of the border worry about representation.”

The visit to D.C. by the Parliamentary Black Caucus coincided with the third anniversary observance of George Floyd’s murder. That led the Black Canadian legislators to reflect on how they were affected by that murder.

“It’s been a time for us, as Canadian Blacks, to decide very deliberately to take up more space in all of the places we occupy.” Clement, who was the first Black female mayor in Ontario, also shared her thoughts on the stalemate with U.S. debt ceiling discussions. She feels the conversations are hard because decisions are around investment.

“How do you justify the need for investment,” said Clement. “How do you talk about the stories in our communities, like young people who want healthcare, who want all the things so they can fully participate in their communities? These are hard conversations because they require money and investment.” WI

IN Series Honors Lawrence Brownlee at Denyce Graves Awards Gala

Entertaining Washington area audiences with innovative, exciting, engaging and thought provoking opera, is what IN Series has been about since its founding by Carla Hübner in 1982; and at the arts organization’s gala on May 23 at Planet Word Museum in Northwest, D.C., it was evident the legacy of inspiring through art continues. In a post-pandemic world, IN Series Artistic Director Timothy Nelson has furthered and elevated the organization’s mission of “disrupting expectations” and “deepening the conversation,” with the Denyce Graves Awards Gala, which not only honors artistic achievements but salutes arts advocacy and bravery.

Tenor Lawrence Brownlee, 50, is the first recipient of the Denyce Graves Award, and while the award’s namesake couldn’t be present, she offered a statement emphasizing why the tenor was the perfect person to receive the honor.

“He has already left an indelible mark on our industry ,” a spokesperson read on Graves’ behalf. “Larry sees his platform and career as tools to use for good, which resonates with me because during the pandemic, artists were made aware, more than ever, that we must contribute to elevate people, raising consciousness, and healing.”

Brownlee has spent more than two dozen years in show business ensuring he shows up as his best self, offering his unique flair and proudly advocating for diversity, equity and inclusion not only in classical music, but across the arts and all fields— values he said that began as an adolescent in church and continued through college. The singer isn't new to arts advocacy, but the pandemic became an opportune time to ensure his voice was heard even when opera houses were dark.

I want to be… not that I have all the answers, but to be a voice that people can begin to work together to find our way so that we can find more equity,” the celebrated artist emphasized.

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