17 minute read
OpEd
We Need an Anti-Violence Campaign Message
Twenty-seven years ago, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan called on a million Black men to gather at the U.S. Capitol. The sunny but cold day in October marked the historic Million Man March. In fact, it wasn’t a march, but a gathering of a million men or more who took an oath for unity and a recommitment to family values.
Minister Farrakhan, a controversial figure to many, said he was inspired by a dream that came to him at a time when Black communities across the country were besieged by gun violence and a crack cocaine epidemic. He, along with a host of civil rights leaders and community activists, delivered messages that inspired many participants to return to their communities with a mission to do something to address the issues that were killing Black men, women and children by the thousands.
Today, history is repeating itself, and violence, often accompanied by a gun, is wreaking havoc in neighborhoods and schools, churches, shopping malls, entertainment venues, and nearly everywhere. The victims are of every race, gender, sexual orientation, and faith. Sadly, no one knows why or what to do to turn the tide and save lives. Unlike Dr. King or Minister Farrakhan, no one has a dream. Instead, we focus on the problem while looking to others for a solution.
Just as those who opposed Minister Farrakhan’s message but heeded his call because they wanted to be a part of the solution, the walls must come down between otherwise competing institutions to allow room for unity and against the carnage destroying families and communities.
That’s why we will shout out to Washington Post columnist Petula Dvorak whose column on Tuesday urged: “This year, give to groups trying to end gun violence; organizations working to curb gun violence need our help now more than ever.” She’s right, and we urge readers to heed her call and support anti-violence, youth-serving organizations as often and as much as needed.
Despite the absence of a messenger, local media can and must unite to promote a message of peace, unity and non-violence. As Dvorak urged, let’s plant seeds to help ensure the safety of America’s people.
Stop the killing now! WI
African Leaders: Welcome Back to D.C.
Rarely is there any good news coming out of Africa. It’s not that there isn’t good news—quite the contrary. But the narrative too often casts a negative light on the African nations’ vast poverty and corruption, which does exist. Still, Africa is not a continent of only poor and corrupt people.
Africa’s hardships are an outgrowth of colonization and domination by primarily European countries that sought to destabilize African nations and dehumanize their people. The African slave trade is just one example of how Europeans exploited Africa. The legacy continues, but today, Africa is fighting back, and how the continent is rising is the news we rarely hear.
In just over a week, approximately 45 African heads of state will visit the nation’s capital to participate in the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit at the Walter Washington Convention Center, December 13-15. Residents and businesses surrounding the Mount Vernon Square area will be temporarily inconvenienced for sure, but they will join President Joe Biden, Mayor Muriel Bowser, and many other domestic and foreign diplomats welcoming leaders coming here to seek support and to offer theirs.
Africa is still the world’s most mineral-rich continent. With over 70% of its people in sub-Saharan Africa under the age of 30, Africa has the youngest population in the world. The United Nations refers to them as the “key to Africa’s sustainable development.”
Africa has led the world with nearly ten women presidents that have served over the past 40 years, including Sahle-Work Zewde and Samia Suluhu Hassan, the current presidents of Ethiopia and Tanzania, respectively.
President Barack Obama hosted the last U.S. Africa Leaders Summit in 2014. President Donald Trump’s thoughts on Africa made headline news, and he is noted for being the first American president never to set foot in Africa. However, his daughter Ivanka visited Ethiopia, and his wife Melania visited Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, and Egypt.
In July, when Biden announced the summit, he said, in his official announcement, “The Summit will demonstrate the United States enduring commitment to Africa and will underscore the importance of U.S.-Africa relations and increased cooperation on shared global priorities.”
Africa is rising, and there are many lessons to be learned by watching it manifest. It is time to let go of the habitual negative view of Africa, which only demonstrates a lack of interest and laziness on the part of those who attempt to tell Africa’s story. The Black Press must take responsibility, as well. WI
I just want to say season’s greetings and happy holidays to all! I’m looking forward to a blessed and prosperous December and 2023. I hope to see everyone in the New Year!
William Murphy Laurel, Md.
TO THE EDITOR
I absolutely loved the WI Bridge’s 35 Under 35. What beautiful pictures of our young people, and what a great way to learn about some folks doing great things in our city. I look forward to reading the Bridge because it keeps me abridged of things that, at my age, I wouldn’t know about. Keep it up!
Simon P. Ogden Washington, DC
Readers' Mailbox The Washington Informer welcomes letters to the editor about articles we publish or issues affecting the community. Write to: lsaxton@washingtoninformer. com or send to: 3117 Martin Luther King Jr Ave., SE, Washington, D.C. 20032. Please note that we are unable to publish letters that do not include a full name, address and phone number. We look forward to hearing from you.
Guest Columnist
For many years I always cooked Thanksgiving dinner for our whole family and for friends away from their homes. Before our meal, children read various inspirational passages and this beautiful prayer by great Black theologian Howard Thurman, "A Litany of Thanksgiving." After my late sister Olive moved back to our hometown, we continued this tradition as we gathered to celebrate Thanksgiving with her in Bennettsville, South Carolina. She too loved this prayer, found in his book "Meditations of the Heart."
I share it here once again with its simple and profound sense of gratitude, and the eternal hope that "love and tenderness and all the inner graces of Almighty affection will cover the life of the children of God as the waters cover the sea":
Today, I make my Sacrament of Thanksgiving.
I begin with the simple things of my days:
Fresh air to breathe,
Cool water to drink,
The taste of food,
The protection of houses and clothes,
The comforts of home.
For all these I make an act of Thanksgiving this day!
I bring to mind all the warmth of humankind that I have known:
My mother’s arms,
Marian Wright Edelman
The strength of my father,
The playmates of my childhood,
The wonderful stories brought to me from the lives of many who talked of days gone by when fairies and giants and all kinds of magic held sway;
The tears I have shed, the tears I have seen;
The excitement of laughter and the twinkle in the eye with its reminder that life is good.
For all these I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
I finger one by one the messages of hope that awaited me at the crossroads:
The smile of approval from those who held in their hands the reins of my security;
The tightening of the grip in a single handshake when I feared the step before me in the darkness;
The whisper in my heart when the temptation was fiercest and the claims of appetite were not to be denied;
The crucial word said, the simple
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Guest Columnist
Ben Jealous How We Can Influence the Courts That Influence Our Lives?
As I write this, the final few races are being called in the midterm elections that were held weeks ago. It's clear that that the House will be closely divided, with Republicans holding a very small majority. History shows that in midterm elections, the party that doesn't hold the presidency typically gains a lot of seats in Congress — oftentimes in a wipeout of the party in power. Republicans' gains were comparatively tiny this year — but they probably should have been even tinier.
The reason is the far-right Supreme Court, and two rulings that hurt Black voters this cycle.
Two Deep South states, Alabama and Louisiana, redrew congressional maps months before the midterms. Incredibly, given the high proportion of Black voters in those states, the maps allowed for only one majority-Black congressional district in each state. That is almost certainly a violation of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits states from packing minority voters into fewer districts in a way that reduces their power. And you don't have to take my word for it; federal courts said the same thing and ordered both states to redraw their maps.
But state officials opposed to Black voting power fought back. And in both instances, the Supreme Court allowed them to go ahead with this year's midterm elections with maps that just happened to preserve "safe" Republican seats.
It's infuriating. And those are only two of the infuriating decisions that have come out of this Court since Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell succeeded in stacking it with enough ultraconservative justices to make a supermajority.
I know that the inner workings of the courts, especially the Supreme Court, can seem really remote in our day-to-day lives. Most people don't know any judges, and if they meet one in court it's probably happening on a very unpleasant day. In fact, my guess is that a lot of people would rather not think much about the courts at all. But we have to.
We need to pay attention to who sits on our courts and how they get there, because there is such an enormous impact on our lives whether we realize it or not. The Supreme Court's impact on
Guest Columnist
David W. Marshall
Generational Change Without Compromising Character
In a speech given in his home state of Kentucky, Sen. Mitch McConnell would say: "One of my proudest moments was when I looked Barack Obama in the eye and I said, 'Mr. President, you will not fill the Supreme Court vacancy.'" The 11 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee followed suit by signing a letter saying they had no intention of consenting to any nominee from President Obama. As a result, no proceedings of any kind were held for Obama's nomination.
With so much attention today being given to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, it is easy to forget what happened to Garland in the spring of 2016. With the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, an icon in conservative circles, Merrick Garland was nominated by then-President Obama to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court. It was considered to be a safe pick. Widely regarded as a moderate, Garland had been praised in the past by many Republicans, including influential senators such as Orrin Hatch of Utah. But even before Obama had named Garland, then-Senate Majority Leader McConnell declared any appointment by the sitting president to be null and void.
He said the next Supreme Court justice should be chosen by the next president, who was to be elected later that year. With McConnell blocking Obama's pick, it left the Supreme Court with an empty seat for more than a year, until President Trump's nominee Neil Gorsuch was sworn in. The unorthodox move by McConnell could not be stopped by scores of scholars or by the Democrats as the minority party. Law professors, historians and political scientists urged the Senate to at least have a process for Garland as a duly appointed nominee with impeccable qualifications. It turned out to be a classic power move by McConnell and no one was in position to stop him.
It's been said that the love of money is the root of all evil. The same can easily be said about the love for power. Meaning unchecked greed can be a the House majority is just one example. Those actions by the Court will affect what business gets done in Congress and what laws get passed — or not passed — that impact how we live and what rights we have.
Judges get their seats in different ways, especially at the state level. If you live in a place where state-level judges are elected, it's critically important to get informed and vote in those judicial elections. When it comes to federal judges, the Senate decides who will be confirmed. So every time you
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major cause of society's problems. It can be the greed for money as well as greed for power. In regards to the pursuit for power, not every individual or group can responsibly handle the power given to them without misusing it. The abuse of political power prevented the seating of a Democratic president's judicial choice to the Supreme Court. The Republicans knew had Garland been considered by way of a fair process, he might have pulled a few majority-party members across
MARSHALL Page 45
Guest Columnist
Before the Fall
I remember my mother and other accountable adults in our community teaching other children and me many important lessons of responsible citizenship. We learned those lessons in Sunday school and in the sermons we heard each Sunday. Not all lessons were spoken. Many were lessons we learned through observation of the examples set by our "teachers." Their behaviors during the week translated those sermons into demonstrations usable for us to construct an accurate portrayal of expected and acceptable behavior, and should there be any misunderstanding, the local trees issued enough "logs" to convince us of our indiscretions.
Central to their common-sense lessons was the idea that a community or society could not thrive or flourish without order. That order was based upon a general pattern of mutual respect for each other. We learned and expected the "Golden Rule" as minimally acceptable in our general dealings with others in our community.
With the exception of those few whose frustrations or inner demons would not allow them to accept respectful interaction with others, ours was a peaceful community. We respected the rights and privilege of others to live their lives without injury or interruption. I can only speculate, but life was the most tangible commodity available to us — from which all blessings flowed — and we respected and valued the lives of others as we valued our own.
Times have certainly changed! If there is any question of that, the events in the past few weeks of this writing prove my point. Three University of Virginia students were slain on a bus after a field trip to D.C. Six patrons of a Colorado Springs, Colorado, nightclub were killed under circumstances that have not yet been fully defined. In what appears to be an eruption of workplace animus, six men and women were killed in a Chesapeake, Virginia, Walmart. Rather than being unusual, these events have become no more than additions to a seemingly endless series of unnecessary and heinous homicides.
American excess and overindulgence are singular factors in the violence that appears to be self-generating. We continue to struggle with our original sin of racism. The other -isms and increasing levels of intolerance plague us. Poverty and wage stagnation are constant
Guest Columnist
E. Faye Williams
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Miles Jaye
Who Said 'Never Say Never'?
Who said "never say never"? Who claimed it was wise to never say never? Never is a powerful term. Never precludes the opportunity or possibility of a particular thing taking place at present or, more importantly, in the near or distant future. Never say never? The inability to affirm or to swear never is an indication of an inability to, or prediction of, failure to honor an oath, pledge or promise to others or oneself. An oath is by definition a promise, commitment, vow or a pledge. Doesn't the Pledge of Allegiance ("I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands — one Nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all") assert that reciter will never betray their country?
Consider the irony of this police officer's oath. He or she pledges to never betray their integrity: "On my honor, I will never betray my integrity, my character, or the public trust. I will always have the courage to hold myself and others accountable for our actions. I will always maintain the highest ethical standards and uphold the values of my community, and the agency I serve."
One could argue that Donald Trump betrayed his country and should have never been elected president. The dystopia brought on by the Trump kleptocracy is, at best, inexcusable and, at worst, irreversible. The damage inflicted by him, his family and his criminal miscreant cronies on this already struggling democracy is immeasurable.
The setbacks to human and civil rights are beyond any analytic diagnostic. It should have never happened. He should have never happened to us. He should never have been given keys to the White House. One could argue that President Donald Trump revealed the true nature and depths of ignorance, prejudice, xenophobia, institutionalized racism and systemic stupidity camouflaged as heritage and American tradition.
Trumpism continues to provide agency and legitimacy to the likes of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. Trump's bigotry supplies encouragement and imparts permission to the passionate — and far too prevalent — violent racists among us. He fuels the engine of fear of a browning America and the frustration brought on by a diminishing white middle class and the white privilege it engenders. Why continue to write about Donald Trump?
Because it should give rise to a public outcry of "Never again." Trump exposed America's vulnerability to greed, conspiracy and criminal enterprise and he hasn't
JAYE Page 46
Guest Columnist
Marc H. Morial
Nancy Pelosi: The Most Successful and Effective House Speaker in U.S. History
"History will note she is the most consequential speaker of the House of Representatives in our history. There are countless examples of how she embodies the obligation of elected officials to uphold their oath to God and country to ensure our democracy delivers and remains a beacon to the world. In everything she does, she reflects a dignity in her actions and a dignity she sees in the lives of the people of this nation." — President Biden
When the National Urban League convened our first in-person conference in three years, in July, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi joined us for the opening rally at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. "There's an assault on our democracy," she said. "That's why we have to fight for voting rights, and we will not stop until we achieve voting rights: removing obstacles of participation and the voter suppression laws, doing away with their nullification of elections, removing big special interest money from suffocating our political system, so that everyone's voices are heard."
As her historic fourth term as speaker of the House draws to a close, it is nearly impossible to express the full impact of her decades of leadership and the profound legacy she leaves behind
It has been my privilege to know and collaborate with Speaker Pelosi since her earliest days in Congress, when I was a Louisiana state senator, throughout my two terms as mayor of New Orleans and the past two decades with the National Urban League. One of my most treasured mementos is a pen she gave to me that President Obama used to sign the Affordable Care Act.
Of all the legislative and policy initiatives on which she and I have worked together, it was the passage of the ACA that demonstrated her unmatched mastery of the legislative process and the power of her determination. When her party's loss in a Senate special election cost them a filibuster-proof majority, many — including President Obama's own chief of staff — publicly declared the ACA dead and advocated for a watered-down, piecemeal approach. Speaker Pelosi derided the proposal as "eensy weensy bill," telling President Obama, "I know there are some on your staff who want to take the namby-pamby approach. That's unacceptable."
The vote-wrangling that Speaker Pelosi employed to bring the bill to meet the pen I now treasure will be the subject of graduate seminars on
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