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Maurice Mitchell

A Socialist Afro-Punk Rocker Challenges the Two-Party System

By Editors' Choice

By Nick Fouriezos, OZY — Maurice “Moe” Mitchell stalks the stage aggressively, barking lyrics in pointed contrast to his black T-shirt, which reads in bold white letters: “Don’t Shoot.” It’s August 2014, and the socially conscious punk rocker is grieving. Not just because this Afropunk Fest show is his band Cipher’s first in three years after the death of its drummer Danny Bobis, but also because, less than three weeks earlier, the…

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Almost 2,000 white people gathered at a 1970 protest in Charlotte, N.C. against a court-ordered desegregation busing plan.

On Busing, Joe Biden, and the ‘Pervasiveness of White Backlash to School Desegregation’

By Commentaries/Opinions

By Esther Wang, Jezebel — The most widely discussed moment from last week’s Democratic primary debates was Kamala Harris’s pointed critique of Joe Biden’s defense of southern segregationists and his stance toward busing. That encounter—in which Harris shared her own story of being a young girl bused from her working-class neighborhood on the majority-black side of town to a predominantly white school in Berkeley Hills, and in which Biden appeared visibly flustered…

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U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey is among the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates who've traveled to the South to talk about voting rights. In this 2016 photo, Booker is seen discussing voting rights at the U.S. Capitol with Rep. Terri Sewell of Alabama and civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis of Georgia.

2020 presidential candidates go South to push for voting reforms

By Commentaries/Opinions

By Benjamin Barber, Facing South — As Republican lawmakers in Southern states continue their efforts to undermine the influence of a diverse electorate, Democratic presidential candidates are calling for new reforms to combat discriminatory voting policies and practices. Since the 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder gutted the Voting Rights Act (VRA) and ended federal preclearance of election-law changes in places with a history of voting discrimination, state…

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“If there was something to do in this town, this town would prosper, because there’s a lot of loyal people here, a lot of good people,” said Tre Lewis, who lives with his family on Youngstown’s south side.

The Nonwhite Working Class

By Editors' Choice

Talking to the people in Youngstown, Ohio, that the national media usually ignores. By Henry Graber, The Slate — YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio—In 1984, Lewis Macklin stood up at a community meeting and argued that city officials should shut down his high school. It had been seven years since Black Monday—when Youngstown Sheet & Tube announced it was closing its largest factory, costing 5,000 people their jobs and setting off a chain of plant…

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New friendship or new colonialism?

The Caribbean Must Play Its China Card Wisely

By Commentaries/Opinions

The growing competition between Washington and Beijing for influence offers opportunity and perils. By Mac Margolis, Bloomberg — In his recent swing through Latin America, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had some stern words for regional leaders about Chinese bearing gifts. “Malign practices,” “predatory loans,” envoys toting “bags full of money” to bribe officials: Such were the hazards of consorting with the would-be mandarins of the Americas, he said…

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Lindi Bobb, 6, attends a slavery reparations protest on August 9, 2002 in New York City. On June 19, 2019, the House Judiciary Committee held hearings on legislation proposing the establishment of a commission to study reparations.

Race, Devils, Ignorance & Reparations

By Dr. Julianne Malveaux, HR 40 Congressional Hearing, Reparations

By Dr. Julianne Malveaux — I was honored to have been asked to provide testimony at the House Judiciary Committee hearings on H.R. 40, the legislation that would establish a commission to study reparations and recommend remedies to Congress. It is relevant legislation that has been a long time coming. It is important to note that the bill does not “cash the check,” as Dr. Martin Luther King challenged when…

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Presidential hopeful Cory Booker speaking at a campaign event in New Hampshire.

Why Cory Booker Is Focusing on Affordable Housing

By News & Current Affairs

A monthly tax credit for low-income renters and a “baby bond” program to help first-time homebuyers are part of the presidential hopeful’s list of proposals. By Kriston Capps, City Lab — Pledging to make housing a priority in his 2020 presidential candidacy, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker unveiled a plan on Wednesday with features that would ease affordability, homelessness, and first-time homeownership pressure for millions of families. At the core…

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