The Day After: 2018 Midterm Elections

by with No Comment FeaturedGen ZPolitics

Two years ago I wrote a piece on the day following the 2016 presidential election. I was full of emotions that day—sad, angry, confused, frustrated, devastated, scared, and most of all, hopeless—and I needed to express them somehow. Two years later I’m here again to write a new version of my post-Election Day thoughts. This piece, however, will not be nearly as emotionally charged as the original. I have a lot of feelings about last night’s election, but above all else this time I feel hopeful.

​I want to start by talking about Election Day itself. One question that often gets asked is why Election Day is not a national holiday. I believe it should be. People are missing out on the opportunity to vote because they have to go to work or class. I also believe that on Election Day, all public transportation should be free. All people should have fair and equal access to voting and I believe that includes free transportation to get to the polls. Uber and Lyft have already implemented free rides to polling places on election day, so public transportation should be doing the same in order to ensure that everyone has a chance to vote. If we want to continue the pattern of growing voter turnout, we need to make sure that everyone has equal opportunity and access.

I also believe that every state should have same-day voter registration. A lot of people miss out on the opportunity to vote because many states require registration to be completed weeks before Election Day. Allowing people to register through the day of the election gives more opportunity for people to be able to vote. Voting should be a quick and easy process that everyone should have access to. After speaking to a few first-time voters yesterday I realized the process of voting might not be intuitive to those who have never done it before. There should be someone available at all polls to assist first time voters and anyone else who might need help.

​When it comes to the results of yesterday’s election, I have a lot of mixed feelings. However, like I said before, the emotion I’m feeling most strongly is hopefulness. As a registered Democrat, I am overjoyed to see the flip of the House of Representatives. Although the Dems were not able to flip the Senate as well, I find some joy in other smaller victories. For example, record-breaking numbers of women were elected to the House. There were many firsts of this election as well. For example Sharice Davids, the first openly gay and Native American woman to be elected to Congress, Jared Polis, the first openly gay male Governor, and Ihan Omar, the first Muslim woman in Congress.

​Although we may not have come away with the “Blue Wave” that so many people were hoping for, I see the victories from this election as a step in the right direction. I feel very optimistic about our future and I hope we continue to make history going forward in our elections by pushing for more minority representation in out Congress.

Returning to Work

by with 3 Comments FeaturedPoliticsRace Relations

The highly anticipated midterms are over… Not necessarily a “blue wave” but enough Democrats won to reclaim the House. So now the Dems can call for investigations, subpoenas, etc. We’re not sure how much success they’ll have, but if nothing else it’ll add to the circus that Washington has now become. 

If you’re a Black American, regardless of where you reside, you were hopeful Gillum and Abrams would win their Florida and Georgia Gov races respectfully. Let’s be honest, you were probably more than hopeful. You might’ve donated to their campaigns, at the very least your eyes were probably glued to CNN or MSNBC as they reported and updated the numbers. 

But while we didn’t want to admit it, the writing was on the wall when the coverage for these two big races began to fade and focus was redirected to other less historic or risky races. Gillum jumped to a lead, but Florida is Florida, and once the panhandle numbers came it was a done deal. Abrams on the other hand never appeared to have a shot. Her opponent jumped out to a big lead and held on. 

All that support, time, energy, “sweat equity,” registering new voters, younger voters, etc… wasted. Minorities including Black Americans have given a lot to this country. If Democrats can’t win elections with great candidates against opponents who blatantly traffic in racism and bigotry, then perhaps Dems aren’t the answer or the party for minorities? Or perhaps a drastic shift in leadership is the only way to get over this hump? 

Across this country, millions of Black Americans and minorities are mustering up the strength to return to mostly all-White offices and workplaces (today and the rest of the week) having suffered another moral and legislative defeat that hits them in every way possible. Where does that strength come from? Where are the safe places needed to exchange thoughts, vent, and move on? Trying to do so… after an 8-10 hour workday… year after year… election after election… can’t be healthy. 

Advice… don’t engage in political discussion, don’t take the everyday frustrations that come with any job personal, and stay close to family and friends who either know your pain, can relate, or have exemplified empathy. 

Dems should take a hard look at how they decide to campaign and strategize moving forward. Taking the “high road” sounds great, when you win. But they lost, two devastating and deflating losses. In both Florida and Georgia, their opponents made it about race. Not just race, but nasty racism… whether it was “monkey this up” or repeat overtly racist robocalls, digs at their education and fitness for office, Republicans in Florida and Georgia made up their mind that they were gonna hit low, hit hard, and hit often. That’s exactly what they did, and it carried them to victory. 

Gillum, Abrams, and Dems collectively did the exact opposite. They stayed high, and once again, to no avail. Is the solution to go just as low, probably not. But when you run two highly qualified charismatic candidates in Gillum and Abrams, and still lose, you should probably take a hard look at your playbook, strategy, and party leadership. 

Change is never easy, but it is inevitable. Since Dems expect or count Black Americans and minorities in their tent, they need to start making changes and winning the games/elections they should win, because something tells me this younger generation won’t be as patient and understanding as those that came before them. 

THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP

by with No Comment FeaturedPolitics

Thank you, President Trump. Thank you for electrifying a nation that was politically flaccid. Thank you for jolting younger generations into political action. And, If I am being totally honest, thank for driving me to awaken the Silverback inside me.

Over the last six hundred and fifty four days of this Presidency, I’ve observed many things that have equally disturbed me and broken my heart. Unfortunately, at the top of that list are Conservatives of Faith who have continued to support this President. The more that I continued to see the bastardization of Faith, did it only drive me to recall my own Christian upbringing. While the net outcome of those conversations with myself will be shared at a later time, I did remember the following passage from 1 Kings 3: 16-27. Which is a story about King Solomon making a decision between amongst two disputing women:

16 Now two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. 17 One of them said, “Pardon me, my lord. This woman and I live in the same house, and I had a baby while she was there with me. 18 The third day after my child was born, this woman also had a baby. We were alone; there was no one in the house but the two of us.

19 “During the night this woman’s son died because she lay on him. 20 So she got up in the middle of the night and took my son from my side while I your servant was asleep. She put him by her breast and put her dead son by my breast. 21 The next morning, I got up to nurse my son—and he was dead! But when I looked at him closely in the morning light, I saw that it wasn’t the son I had borne.”

22 The other woman said, “No! The living one is my son; the dead one is yours.”

But the first one insisted, “No! The dead one is yours; the living one is mine.” And so they argued before the king.

23 The king said, “This one says, ‘My son is alive and your son is dead,’ while that one says, ‘No! Your son is dead and mine is alive.’”

24 Then the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword for the king.25 He then gave an order: “Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other.”

26 The woman whose son was alive was deeply moved out of love for her son and said to the king, “Please, my lord, give her the living baby! Don’t kill him!”

But the other said, “Neither I nor you shall have him. Cut him in two!”

27 Then the king gave his ruling: “Give the living baby to the first woman. Do not kill him; she is his mother.”

America is the baby. Love always wins. Go vote.

IT’S NOT ABOUT HIS VOTING RECORD

by with 7 Comments FeaturedPolitics

John McCain was one of the great Americans of our era. Far too many people caveat their remarks with their disagreements over one stance or another… but that’s the point.

He was a true legislator who wasn’t afraid of compromising or siding with anyone to get the best deal he could find… And yet, when he disagreed with anyone on either side, he pulled at them with all his might. That meant at one time or another, he fought with everyone, but we saw his true heart in his belief that our country’s values would set the whole world free, such as his bipartisan work on campaign finance reform.

Those who chastise McCain for his spectrum of politics or his view on an issue miss the point. He was one of the few men left in Washington that throughout his life proved that he believed in something greater than himself and directed his entire life’s work toward those goals.

If we had 100 senators who approached their own constituents and principles (liberal or conservative) as McCain did, we would be a much better country. And without his example, we are probably less.

WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS (A BLACK WOMAN AND TWO FELONS)

by with One Comment PoliticsTrump Administration

Last week, Omarosa Manigault, formerly Trump’s lone Black advisor, did her rounds blasting the President. Of course, she wrote a book looking to cash in. Nothing new there. Besides, that seems to be the de facto move immediately following a relationship going south in Washington. But even more interesting, she’s claiming to have more than 200 recordings of her time in the White House. One can only guess what’s on those recordings. She’s also claiming that Trump is a racist and has said the N word. I’m not sure what’s worse, the fact that some pundits have suggested that such a tape would be a deal breaker, as if the President has shown no signs of discrimination rhetorically or policy wise, or the fact that Omarosa wants us to believe she didn’t know or think the President was a racist for the past 20 years until the moment Kelly fired her in the Situation Room.

Either way, this dog, as he referred to her in a tweet, might have his card and stop at nothing to ruin him… and in Trump fashion, get paid while doing it.

This week, as if things couldn’t get any worse, Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was found guilty on 8 felony charges including tax and bank fraud.

And his long time “fixer” attorney, Michael Cohen, who once vowed to take a bullet for the President, did the exact opposite and pleaded guilty to 8 felony charges including campaign financing violations.

Weeks ahead. Mueller and his team are clearly working hard. Omarosa will likely leak tape after tape as slowly as possible to ensure she cashes in for as much and as long as she can. Convicted felon Manafort’s second trial, where he faces charges of lying to the FBI and money laundering, begins next month in Washington, DC. Cohen has shown his true colors, the facade of being a loyal solider didn’t last long when he was faced with an ultimatum. Oh, and the mid-terms are coming up.

Can the Democrats gain enough momentum to win big and take back the House? With all this chaos surrounding Trump and the White House, if Dems can’t capitalize and convince voters to vote Blue instead of Red in November, this country deserves a Trump presidency and everything that comes with it. After all, the American people will have voted for him… twice.

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An Argument To Respect Omarosa?

by with One Comment PoliticsTrump AdministrationWomen's Rights

Should every citizen in this country be offended by the President when he calls a woman a dog?  A Black woman at that, considering the deep history of racism in this country when African-American’s were often referred to as animals in an attempt to degrade and further dehumanize them?  Minus the fringe, most would say yes… we should all be offended.

But this isn’t the first time he’s called a Black woman a dog, a female dog, aka a b***h. In the literal sense, he called hundreds of Black women dogs when he referred to NFL players as “sons of bitches” for deciding to take a knee in protest during the National Anthem.  In the ongoing debate of whether we should take Trump’s comments and tweets literally or figuratively, the media completely missed or ignored his NFL SOB comment as disrespect to their mothers, who all happen to be Black women. Perhaps it’s the American culture of sexism that seems to permeate all groups and often forgets women’s rights, especially women of color.

Despite the early morning tweet attacking Omarosa, which many would call sexist and racist, it’s hard to defend her.  Over the past two decades, she’s built a reputation on being arrogant, extremely rude, and overly confrontational toward anyone who has criticized Donald Trump.  It’s especially hard to defend her if you’re a person of color who doesn’t identify with the current Administration and their policies. In many circles, she’s considered a “sell-out”, and despite the lip service, she’s been cast away as someone who does not have the Black community’s best interest at heart.

And let’s be honest, it’s hard to believe Omarosa’s recent epiphany in realizing Trump is a racist and a bigot. Because for nearly 20 years of knowing him well, including 3 appearances on The Apprentice and her short stint in the White House, she adored him, publicly praised him, and vehemently defended him at every turn.

So for many people, regardless of how sexist, racist, or cruel the tweet might’ve been, they’ve made up their mind that Omarosa is not worth their time or effort. Can we blame them? Truly an important question considering America’s current political climate. Is it possible to remove our disdain for a person and recognize the bigger picture, which is that despite many of Omarosa’s past comments and actions proving to be detrimental and harmless, does she deserve respect and decency? After all, she’s a woman, a Black woman… just like the mothers of those NFL players Trump was referring to when he attacked them and their sons nearly a year ago.

“Every critic will have to bow down to President Trump.”  

Questions From Helsinki

by with No Comment FeaturedPolitics

President Trump’s enormous misstep in Helsinki, heaping praise onto Putin was a strange misstep that casts doubt on what had seemed like a brilliant few months of politicking.  While the President has been repeatedly vilified in the news, his string of accomplishments had been growing, and it seemed in many cases that he was almost goading many of his opponents into vilifying him while positive results continued to stack up.

Tax reform has produced the lowest unemployment in the history of unemployment tracking.  His general style of creating chaos merely to create a trading chit has proved largely effective as a bargaining chip, while serving to simultaneously rally his base.  The trade war with China may yet yield results, and the short-term negative economic effects are largely offsetting (and probably keeping inflation in check while the market absorbs the cash influx of reduced tax burdens).  While they continue to look (unsuccessfully) for opportunities to create chaos and flexibility, North Korea is moving faster and harder than they ever have toward denuclearization having already dismantled several sites.

Related: Korean Reunification Will Never Work, And Here’s Why

The political fallout from child separation was neutralized (and perhaps made a political win) when he capitulated, causing Democrats to move the goalposts from “stop separations” to “abolish ICE” – leading to the massive primary upset of Joe Crowley by an incredibly talented (but incredibly socialist) Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, which distracted the party and dragged them horribly out of the mainstream.  His press secretary’s (Sarah Sanders) ejection from a DC area restaurant prompted calls for harassment of his entire administration – shaking America’s confidence in one of the few reprieves they had to offer the American people – an end to all the unsettling chaos of our current political discourse.

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The Spirit and the Letter

by with No Comment FeaturedPolitics

The Trump Administration’s policy to separate children from the undocumented adults they accompany has created outrage among Republicans and Democrats alike. We all know that the administration is taking a hard line on immigration. It appeals to their base. Attorney General Jeff Sessions invoked the Bible (Romans 13) in an effort to justify the new policy. This statement alone is concerning, coming from the mouth of a public servant. The First Amendment is in place to prevent religion from influencing policy or law.

So, what is policy? Policy is the plan that describes what the government intends to do, and the path to get there. Law is the end result of this plan. This means that the policy of arresting undocumented adults on federal charges and taking away the children they bring over the border may soon become law. 

There is a difference between law and policy, and the law says nothing about separating children from their parents. The law, in the most basic terms, describes apprehending undocumented aliens, charging the adults with a misdemeanor, determining if there are family ties with the children, and treating them according to an established process. The policy of the Trump Administration turns this process on its ear, not only by charging adults with federal felony charges, but with taking all children into custody. 

The Trump Administration lays blame on the Democrats, who it says put the law on the books. It appears to be referring to the “catch and release” policy (not a law) of releasing parents with children into society while awaiting their day in court. The Administration considers this policy a loophole and wants to close it. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen claims further that the vast majority of children who cross the border are sent alone, or with an adult who is not a parent. I’m not going to dig deep here; my intent is to frame the situation. 

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection website reports an alarming increase in the last few years in the number of family units and unaccompanied children crossing the Mexican border into the US illegally. This may be why the GOP is reluctant to condemn the new policy. 

However, there is nothing beyond this policy that outlines what to do with the people once they are apprehended. This is why we have a repurposed Walmart in Texas and the federal detention system will soon become overwhelmed.

Laws are subject to interpretation, even the ones that appear to be very clear-cut. The letter of the law is being enforced here. However, the spirit of the law is being ignored. The Trump Administration seems to interpret the law as giving no quarter (and using the Bible to justify it).

The laws are written in a way that removes the element of emotion, or at least tries to. However, humans are emotional creatures. Emotion drives interpretation and enforcement. Claiming adherence to the letter of the law while adding a cruel spin to it reveals a dark side of the Administration. One that is not very different from certain authoritarian regimes in the past and today. No compassion, no consideration of the human condition, and justifying it as a commandment from God. This is the worst sort of interpretation and hypocrisy. 

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“American Democracy: A Paradox”

by with One Comment FeaturedPolitics

[In response to I Still Believe In My Country And My Party]

Thank you for your service. 

For the Games of the XXX Olympiad (i.e. 2012 London Summer Olympics), I found myself standing in my living room in Sydney, Australia. I had only been living in the land down under for a few weeks and a strong sense of emotion came over me when I heard the announcers say to cheers, “And here come the Americans!” As I watched this multiethnic delegation process into London Stadium, a tear rolled down my face as I noticed that the Aussie announcer made no mention of a hyphen. There was no mention of the hyphen by which we Americans divide one another on a daily basis. There was no mention of African-Americans, no mention of Hispanic-Americans, no mention of Asian-Americans, no mention of Caucasian-Americans; just Americans. For the first time in my life, I was not African-American or Hispanic-American, I was solely an American; a patriot on foreign soil.     

Over the last six years, I’ve studied to gain a deeper understanding – beyond what I was already taught in school – of American history. I’ve lost myself in various books and documentaries on how we have arrived at this place in history. I too, arrived at the conclusion that the founding documents of this Democratic experiment, known as the United States of America, was truly brilliant as you put it. 

However, as I began to place myself throughout brilliant moments in American history I began to wonder what life would’ve been like then. I wondered what would life be like as a New Yorker in 1776, what would life be like to experience a young nation expand its territory in the early 1800s, what would life be like to see the first photographs in the 1850s, what would life be like to experience a nation take up arms against itself in 1861, what would life be like to witness her began to heal her wounds during the Reconstruction in 1865, what would life be like to hear about human beings taking flight for the first time at Kitty Hawk in 1903, what would life be like to experience this young nation embrace globalism and join its Allies in fighting the first World War in 1914, what would life be like to experience Americans flocking to cinemas to watch the nation’s first blockbuster film, Birth of a Nation in 1915, what would life be like to hear FDR announce the New Deal in the 1930s, what would life be like to experience Pearl Harbor and subsequently increase our participation in World War II in 1941, what would life be like to see my hero, Jackie Robinson, break MLBs color barrier at Ebbets Field, Brooklyn in 1947, what would life be like to see that New Deal become the engine of American prosperity in the 1950s post WWII, what would life be like to experience human beings landing on the moon and the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s…

Sadly as I placed myself throughout American history, racism quickly ended my moments of wonderment.

Fast forward to the present and the meteor sized crater of income inequality between blacks and whites, the value of public education in lower socioeconomic neighborhoods, law enforcements disproportionate violence against black bodies, Flint Michigan still not having clean water, 4,645 Puerto Ricans dying in the absence of federal leadership, and the immense pressure that the current President is placing on the cornerstones of this Democratic experiment.

I can’t help but vacillate between being in awe of the brilliance of her ideological words and ashamed of her deeds.

As a black American, I can not bring myself to fully align and endorse Conservative approaches to the antiquated Documents by which we are governed. And with that being said, given that we are still governed by this paradoxical Document, I cannot accept America’s misconception that her values are morally superior to any other nation until she exemplifies those values in not only her words but in her deeds to all her citizens; specifically her citizens of color.    

While this nation has had brilliant moments in its 242-year history, the backdrop has always been and will always be racism and the relentless preservation of white supremacy. So while I wish I could live my daily life in that tearful patriotic moment I had in Sydney; the consciousness of our collective experience impacts my ability to do so. In fact, immediately upon my return from Sydney in 2013, America found George Zimmerman not guilty in the murder of Trayvon Martin. So in a way, I am envious of your privilege to still believe in country and party but I, unfortunately, am unable to join you on that perch.

My patriotism lives in the steely resolve of my community and the soaring indelible impact that we have had on American history and culture. 

How do you define your patriotism?

Trump Succeeds Where Obama Did Not?

by with 4 Comments FeaturedInternationalPolitics

The North Korean state media hailed a meeting between its leader and South Korea’s president as a “new milestone.” Momentous decisions took place at this meeting, one of them is to end the Korean War formally, and another being to make the Korean peninsula nuclear-free. 

South Korean’s news agency Yonhap reported on Saturday that both Pyongyang and Seoul “affirm the common goal of realizing a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula through complete denuclearization.”

On the opposite side of the border, North Korea’s Central News Agency (KCNA) also said that the summit would mark the way for “a new era of peace and prosperity.”

To cement these substantial declarations, the leaders of the two Koreas signed a joint statement after a historic summit that saw Kim Jong-un become the first North Korean leader to step into South Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953.

A day of choreographed talks and symbolic gestures gave way to some unscripted spontaneity when Kim asked his South Korean counterpart to reciprocate by briefly stepping into North Korea.

The signing of the declaration came after two rounds of discussions between the leaders, as well as a symbolic tree-planting ceremony to bring about peace and prosperity on the split peninsula.

What does this all mean?

North Korea and South Korea have had talks before, have made pledges before and have also committed to peace previously, and none of it lasted. What makes this time different?

Here is a brief look at the sanctions (see fig. 1) and the reasons behind them. This new agreement would help Kim Jong-un remove some if not most of these sanctions and benefit from if the deal between South Korea, United States, and China goes through. 

Sanctions Against North Korea 

Year Action Sanction
Dec – 1985 DPRK ratifies the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
Jan – 2003 DPRK withdraws from NPT
Oct – 2006 UN Security Council (UNSC) passes resolution 1718 condemning the country’s first nuclear test and imposing sanctions on DPRK, including the supply of heavy weaponry, missile technology, material, and select luxury goods.
June – 2008 DPRK declares its nuclear programs to China and commits to shutting down parts of its Yongbyon nuclear facilities
June – 2009 UNSC adopts Resolution 1874, which strengthens against DPRK after it conducted its second nuclear explosion test.
Dec – 2011 North Korean leader Kim Jong-il dies after seventeen years in power. His son Kim Jong-un takes over
Jan – 2013 UNSC passes Resolution 2087 condemning DPRK 2012 satellite launch and proliferation activities.
Mar – 2013 UNSC passes Resolution 2094 imposing harsher sanctions in response to DPRK’s third nuclear test in a month prior
March – 2016 UNSC adopts Resolution 2270 condemning DPRK’s fourth nuclear test and its 2015 submarine-launched missile test. Sanctions are enhanced, including banning states from supplying aviation fuel to DPRK.
Nov – 2016 UNSC passes Resolution 2321 expanding sanctions after DPRK’s fifth nuclear test, including a ban on mineral exports such as copper and nickel, and the selling of statues and helicopters.
Aug – 2017 UNSC adopts Resolution 2371 boosting sanctions after DPRK’s two intercontinental ballistic missile tests in July, including a ban on coal and iron exports.
Sept – 2017 UNSC unanimously passes Resolution 2375 to ratchet up sanctions following DPRK’s sixth and largest nuclear test.
Dec – 2017 UNSC passes Resolution 2397 imposing new restrictions on oil imports, as well as metal, agricultural, and labor exports.

(Figure 1. Chronology of International action against the rogue state Eleanor A. (2018). What to know about the sanctions on North Korea. Retrieved from https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/what-know-about-sanctions-north-korea.)

These sanctions have been crushing to the economic stability and prosperity of North Korea. So the reason to come to the table now and push to make these promises stick this time is actually quite simple. Kim Jong-un wants to improve North Korea, and mutually the leaders of both Korea’s realize that there is more strength in unity than there is to remain split apart and to have outside influences use the “divide and conquer strategy” to get what they want and foster distrust and hatred to continue the vicious cycle.

This summit is good news. Having a joint Korea (or something close to it), will help the North become stable and less aggressive to the world. It will also open up borders for trade and commerce to flow once again while allowing peace and security to reach all its neighbors without fear of turning back. For the South, it will allow families who have been split for decades to finally reunite and remove threats to their stability and growth.

All that remains now is to see how these talks will fare with Donald Trump when he meet’s with Kim later this year. South Korean President Moon Jae-in has suggested that Trump should receive the Nobel Peace Prize should the matters of their talks come to fruition. We have yet to see how all of these recent developments stand with our President, and if he wants to truly make a positive difference. One thing for sure, time will tell fast.

Denuclearization is a milestone worthy of applause… but who deserves the applause?

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