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November 12th Vantage Point: Connecting The Diaspora to Africa and Impact of the Mid-Term Elections

By Vantage Point Radio, Video/Audio

Topics: Connecting the Diaspora to Africa • The Impact of the Mid-Term Elections on Blacks and the Progressive Movement. Guests:
H.E. Arikana Chihombori-Quao (African Union Ambassador to the U.S., Washington, D.C.), Bill Fletcher (Labor and Social Justice Activist, Washington, D.C.) and Maurice Mitchell (National Director, Working Families Party, New York, NY)

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Supporters of Ted Cruz react at his midterm election night party in Houston.

The midterms revealed the power of partisanship and whiteness

By Commentaries/Opinions

Democrats hoped for a huge rejection of Trumpism, but found two forces still hold an intoxicating political power. By Andrew Gawthorpe, The Guardian — The expectations we carry into elections always make it difficult to objectively assess their outcome. Before the midterms, Democrats hoped for a blue wave that would decisively hand them the House and perhaps more, while Donald Trump was poised to declare victory whatever the outcome. The morning…

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The American Civil War Didn’t End. And Trump is a Confederate President

By Commentaries/Opinions

His supporters hark back to an 1860s fantasy of white male dominance. But the Confederacy won’t win in the long run. By Rebecca Solnit, The Guardian — In the 158th year of the American civil war, also known as 2018, the Confederacy continues its recent resurgence. Its victims include black people, of course, but also immigrants, Jews, Muslims, Latinos, trans people, gay people and women who want to exercise jurisdiction over…

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Blue Wave or Red Tide: Vantage Point Pre-Election Special — Dr. Ron Daniels

By Vantage Point Radio, Video/Audio

TOPICS: Defining the Black Agenda in the Post Obama Era • Suppressing the Black Vote • The Midterm Elections: Blue Wave or Red Tide. GUESTS: Dr. Elsie Scott, Interim President, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc, Washington, D.C. • Atty. Barbara Arnwine, President/Founder, Transformative Justice Coalition, Washington, D.C. • Earl Ofari Hutchinson, President, Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable, Los Angeles, CA • Bill Fletcher, Labor and Social Justice Activist, Washington, D.C.

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You Can't Have Capitalism Without Racism - Malcom X.

The American Economy Is Rigged — And what we can do about it.

By Editors' Choice

NOTE: No mention of the centrality of racism and sexism the plays in “rigged” capitalism. I put rigged in quotes because it’s redundant to call capitalism rigged! Capitalism has always been rigged against the vast majority of the people: those exterminated or enslaved by capitalism’s founders and those who eventually became the proletariat all over the world. Hence, this essay is fundamentally flawed in its attempt to explain why their…

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A voter casts a ballot at a polling station in San Francisco, California, on June 5, 2018.

Last-Minute Tips for Figuring Out Your Ballot and Making Sure You Can Vote

By News & Current Affairs

The midterms are here. Here’s everything you need to know to hit the polls and cast an informed vote this election season. By Cynthia Gordy Giwa, ProPublica — While there are often reports of problems that can arise at the polls (maybe you’ve seen news of malfunctioning machines and registration purges in states that have early voting), a few simple steps can help make sure you’re ready to successfully cast your vote. Let’s start with…

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John A. Madison, great-grandson of Dred Scott, points to his ancestor's unmarked grave.

The Real Origins of Birthright Citizenship

By News & Current Affairs

Its purpose 150 years ago was to incorporate former slaves into the nation. By Martha S. Jones, The Atlantic — Birthright citizenship just might be, former slaves believed, the safeguard they needed. In the decades before the Civil War, in an era when a remedy like the Fourteenth Amendment was hard to imagine, free black Americans embraced the view that they were citizens by virtue of having been born on…

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Making Change: A Case for Black-Led Social Change: Panel discussion included, from left to right Keysha Taylor, board char of the African American Community Foundation; Henry Rock, founder of City Startup Labs; Janeen Bryan, a community activist and business owner; and Susan Taylor Batten, president and CEO of the Association of Black Foundation Executives (ABFE).

Major foundations must do more to support black-led organizations, speaker says at Charlotte event

By News & Current Affairs

Susan Taylor Batten, president and CEO of the Association of Black Foundation Executives, said black-led organizations must be central to addressing the legacy of racism in America. By Glenn Burkins, Qcitymetro — If America is to address the crippling legacy of slavery and racism, more money must be directed toward black-led organizations that are battling for social change, said a leading authority on philanthropic giving. Of the billions of dollars…

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Marijuana, Cannibus, Marijuana Reform

More Americans Than Ever Want Marijuana Legalized. Lawmakers Should Listen.

By Commentaries/Opinions

Nearly two-thirds of Americans want cannabis to be legal — but marijuana arrests are going up, not down. By Paul Armentano, Otherwords — Over 60 percent of Americans — including majorities of Republicans, independents, and Democrats — believe that the adult use of marijuana ought to be legal. And an estimated 20 percent of Americans now live in a state where cannabis use by those over the age of 21 is permitted.…

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