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Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) sponsored HR 40, legislation to form a commission to study slavery reparations for African Americans.

Reparations for slavery to get a hearing in Congress

By News & Current Affairs, Reparations

Writer Ta-Nehisi Coates and Actor Danny Glover to testify House subcommittee will discuss issue on 19 June – ‘Juneteenth’ The topic of reparations for slavery is headed to Capitol Hill for its first hearing in more than a decade with the writer Ta-Nehisi Coates and actor Danny Glover set to testify before a House of Representatives panel. 6.19.19 Event NAARC and ACLU Present a National Forum: Healing and Reconciliation, HR-40 and the…

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Black Lives Matter Poster

The Racist Roots of American Policing: from Slave Patrols to Traffic Stops

By Commentaries/Opinions

But the persistence of racially biased policing means that unless American policing reckons with its racist roots, it is likely to keep repeating mistakes of the past. Connie Hassett-Walker, The Conversation — Outrage over racial profiling and the killing of African Americans by police officers and vigilantes in recent years helped give rise to the Black Lives Matter movement. But tensions between the police and black communities are nothing new. There are many precedents to the Ferguson,…

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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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Kamala Harris

What Do 2020 Candidates Mean When They Say ‘Reparations’?

By Commentaries/Opinions, Reparations

Even highly informed commentators lack a shared understanding of what the word means. By Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic — Earlier this year, Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, and other Democratic presidential aspirants began speaking positively about reparations, in contrast to Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, who opposed the policy. Just 26 percent of voters favor reparations in polls. In the telling of The New York Times, this shift is due to the fact…

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The Trump baby blimp is set to fly over London as part of mass protests against the U.S. president's state visit.

A Demagogue, Fascist, and Serious Threat: UK Mobilizes to Make Sure Trump Knows He ‘Is Not Welcome’

By News & Current Affairs

“Donald Trump is just one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat. The far-right is on the rise around the world, threatening our hard-won rights and freedoms.” By Jake Johnson, Common Dreams — With the city of London effectively on “lockdown” in anticipation of the protests—complete with the now-famous Trump Baby Blimp—that are expected to flood the city’s streets on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump touched down in…

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The Alabama abortion ban has prompted new questions about why America’s elected officials don’t look more like America.

‘Democracy has been hijacked by white men’: how minority rule now grips America

By Commentaries/Opinions

The US is becoming more diverse and progressive, but white men’s grip on power is being exercised via the courts, gerrymandering and dark money in politics. By Tom McCarthy, The Guardian — The exercise of political power by legislative majorities of white, male elected officials in ways that disproportionately exclude or harm women and people of color is such a familiar part of the American political landscape that it sometimes…

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National Museum of African American History and Culture

Debt-Free: Five Things to Know About the Billionaire Donor Behind That Morehouse Gift

By News & Current Affairs

By Ade Adeniji, Inside Philanthropy — It’s graduation season again, as students around the country don their caps and gowns, receive cheers from family, and then scramble to move out of their dorms. At Morehouse College, the all-male historically black college founded in 1857 in Atlanta, the nearly 400-member class of 2019 watched billionaire private equity veteran Robert F. Smith deliver the commencement address and receive an honorary doctorate. Near…

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President Donald Trump talks about border security with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) as Vice President Mike Pence sits nearby in the Oval Office on December 11, 2018 in Washington, D.C.

Critics Warn, $2 Trillion Infrastructure Plan ‘Another Empty Promise’ From Trump

By News & Current Affairs

“If major tax increases are off the table, there is no way to pay for a $2 trillion infrastructure plan, it’s that simple.” By Jake Johnson, Common Dreams — With President Donald Trump and Democratic leaders set to meet Wednesday to discuss a possible $2 trillion infrastructure package, a progressive advocacy group on Monday warned that any proposal that doesn’t include significant tax hikes on the rich and corporations “will…

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Ben Carson Humiliates Himself At Hearing As Member Of Congress Has To Explain How HUD Works

Ben Carson Humiliates Himself At Congressional Hearing

By News & Current Affairs

Ben Carson Humiliates Himself At Hearing As Member Of Congress Has To Explain How HUD Works By Jason Easley, PoliticusUSA — Rep. Porter made the mistake of asking Carson about the interest rate curtailment schedule at FHA, and Ben Carson had no idea what she was talking about. Carson asked the House member who was supposed to be conducting oversight to explain how his agency works to him. Video Rep.…

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