Obama's health care reform efforts stymied by politics of prejudice
9:01 AM on 03/03/2010
OPINION - At the heart of this debate is partisan politics, inept leadership and racial prejudice...
CPAC reveals Republican identity crisis
9:02 AM on 02/22/2010
OPINION - After watching the videos and reading the speeches one can clearly see a GOP that is at war with itself in terms of ideology and imagery...
'The dream' is still a dream
12:06 PM on 01/18/2010
OPINION - What many fail to realize is that Dr. King was no dreamer. He was a prophet and a true revolutionary...
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
The Latest from Dr. Wilmer Leon on TheGrio.com – 3/2/10
Your Black News: OJ Simpson Back in the Limelight
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, AOL Black Voices
Remember the suit that OJ Simpson wore when he was acquitted of murder in 1995? I'm sure you do. The images of OJ breathing a sigh of relief after his acquittal were viewed all around the world. You probably remember exactly what you were doing at that precise moment, similar to the 911 attacks. Well, the Smithsonian Institute has announced that they do not want OJ's suit, claiming that it is "inappropriate for their collection."
The announcement came after a 13-year legal fight over what to do with the suit. Since that time, it has been in the possession of Simpson's former sports agent, Mike Gilbert. Fred Goldman, father of one of the men Simpson was accused of killing, has been fighting for the suit since the 1990s. Simpson told authorities that the suit was stolen from him.
The suit was also part of the reason that Simpson is in prison right now. OJ was arrested and convicted for an incident in which he robbed men in Las Vegas in order to reclaim memorabilia that he believed to be stolen. He'd been told that the suit was among the list of things being offered for sale.
The Smithsonian used these words on its website:
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Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Dr. Boyce Watkins Address NCAA Reform at Stanford University
From Your Black World
Dr. Boyce Watkins, faculty affiliate at The College Sport Research Institute, is going to speak to the Stanford NAACP on Wednesday, March 3. The topic of the conversation will be “Does the NCAA Represent an Opportunity or Exploitation?”
Dr. Watkins is one of the leading authorities on NCAA compensation. He has advocated for college athletes to be paid, and founded the group ALARM: The Athlete Liberation and Academic Reform Movement. He is also the founder of the Your Black World Coalition, with 60,000 members nation-wide.
Dr. Boyce Watkins and Rev. Al Sharpton Talk Black America
Dr. Boyce Watkins and Rev. Al Sharpton Talk Black America on the Syndication One News-Talk radio Network
Monday, March 1, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Medical News: Is Our Nation Short of Doctors?
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Your Black World
I did an appearance last night on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 to discuss the issue of Health care reform. This has been heavy on the mind of our president for his entire first year in office and has led to quite a few political battles on Capitol Hill. Health care is in serious jeopardy, as the cost of entitlement programs such as Medicaid/Medicare and Social Security threaten our nation's economic security. Our national debt has risen to unprecedented and frightening levels, and our politicians have little incentive to do anything about it.
One additional problem that we are running into on the issue of health care is the fact that our nation doesn't have enough Primary Care physicians. These doctors are incredibly important, since they are the first line of defense against illness in America.
Over the next 10 years, our nation is expected to have a shortfall of 40,000 Primary Care doctors. By 2025, that number is expected to balloon to over 120,000. To make matters worse, our population is aging, implying that there will be a greater demand for these doctors in the future.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Julianne Malveaux on the History of Black Economic Empowerment
Why, the email asks, do we still have Black History Month? The writer might be white, or she might not. She identifies her self as a "conscious woman" and sends the email to one of my public addresses. She seems chagrined that "race still matters" and wants to initiate an exchange of views with hers at the foundation - studying black history is obsolete. We have a black president, the woman writes. Black people have made so many strides. Aren't you holding on to the past, she argues, when you insist on having this month to study black history?
I am not in the habit of engaging in email debates with folks who are ill informed, so I ignore the note. Still, I am intrigued enough by it to print it out and paste it to my desktop for a few days. When I pick up high school history books, I see African American history sprinkled through, like seasoning, as opposed to being placed at a base. And I think of the tremendous vision of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the second African American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard (after WEB DuBois) and the founder, in `1915, of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). Woodson wrote the masterpiece "The Miseducation of the Negro" and founded Negro History Week in 1926. By 1976 the week had expanded into African American History Month. The Association, based in Washington, DC, sets a theme for Black History Month each year (notice that I use Black and African American interchangeably - for me they are the same thing). This year the theme is "The History of Black Economic Empowerment".
Economics is the study of who gets what, when, where and why. It is the study of the way the factors of production - land, labor, capital and creativity are paid in rent, wages, interest and profit. It is the history of the knife, of how the pie is sliced. And it is the story of why African Americans get so much less than our fair share of the pie.
We get less than we deserve, not for lack of wanting or trying, but because the playing field for us has never been level. For centuries we could not accumulate wealth in the United States because we were the source of wealth for others. Free frank McWhorter's story is compelling, but it is not the only story of a slave who bought back his freedom. And whenever I write or think those words, something twists in my stomach, the notion that someone had to buy himself, but also in the case of Free Frank, buy himself and a dozen or so of his relatives. Buy yourself, cut a deal with the person who owns you, as if there is honesty in this deal cutting. Free frank used his free time to work to save money to buy himself back and thanks to his descendent, Dr. Juliet Walker, we know the story. We don't know the story of the laundry women who did the same thing; don't necessarily know their names. But we know that the economic paradigm, the study of who gets what, when, where and why informed those women's decisions.
Fast forward from Free Frank to Billionaire Bob. Bob Johnson, that is, the brother who conceived of BET and then sold it to Viacom, creating dozens of millionaires and turning himself into a billionaire. Fast forward from buying oneself to selling a window to a people. Bob Johnson is to be admired as a consummate entrepreneur, one who leveraged an idea into a profit center into a fortune. With both Free Frank and Billionaire Bob, we have to ask what is left for the people they may have leveraged, or may not have.
Because the history of commerce so frequently embraces men and ignores women it is important to make it clear that the history of African American economic empowerment has a women's twist, too. There are early women to lift up like Dr. Sadie Tanner Moselle Alexander, who was the first to receive the doctorate in economics in the United States, or Madame CJ Walker, the first black woman millionaire. Maggie Lena Walker was the first to start a bank in Richmond, Virginia. Mary Ellen Pleasant was an economic player, an investor in the Gold Rush, in early days in San Francisco.
We still have Black History Month, I would tell my motley correspondent, because the story has still not been told. I am grateful and humbled by the vision of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, and by his commitment to remind us of who we are, again and again. Those who have inherited his mantle, the sisters and brothers of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History have taken up the baton of his vision and are about to pass it on. In the words of Dr. Maya Angelou, and still we rise.
Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author and commentator, and the Founder & Thought Leader of Last Word Productions, Inc., a multimedia production company.
Last Word Productions, Inc. is a multimedia production company that serves as a vehicle for the work and products of Dr. Julianne Malveaux. For the last 10 years the company has centered its efforts on Dr. Malveaux's public speaking appearances, her work as a broadcast and print journalist, and also as an author. Currently, Julianne Malveaux is President of Bennett College For Women in Greensboro, North Carolina
Saturday, February 20, 2010
TheGrio Speaks – 2/20/10
Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University
Malcolm X's legacy ignored 45 years after his murder
5:20 PM on 02/19/2010
OPINION - Malcolm's legacy has been treated like the neglected step-child of the African-American struggle for freedom and equality...
Journalist, author and broadcaster.
Tiger's been tamed, now leave him alone
5:03 PM on 02/19/2010
OPINION - Black superstars cause much media and public hurt when they supposedly betray the collective self-delusion of sport as pure and pristine...
Sports contributor
Why we should accept Tiger's apology
12:53 PM on 02/19/2010
OPINION - For better or worse, Tiger Woods seemed to want you to know that he's not much different from you or I...
President of Gilchrist Entertainment
Hollywood's most overlooked resource: black female directors
8:22 AM on 02/19/2010
OPINION - It took 74 years for the Academy Awards to acknowledge a black female as best actress. How long will it be before black woman is nominated for best director?...
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Sports contributor
Five things Tiger Woods should say at mea culpa media event
11:31 AM on 02/18/2010
OPINION - What can Tiger Woods do to redeem himself besides just saying 'I'm sorry'?...
Writer and human rights advocate
New census prisoner policy could benefit American cities
8:46 AM on 02/18/2010
OPINION - America's prison population could play an important role in the country's redistricting battles, and help reshape America's electoral map...
Associate Professor of International Studies at George Mason University
Why the US won't 'take over' Haiti
8:17 AM on 02/18/2010
OPINION - There is no need for 'nation-building'. What is required is temporary international guardianship...
Writer for VIBE, Newsday, The Source, Publishers Weekly, and Giant Magazine.
Why remaking 'We Are the World' may have been a mistake
9:01 AM on 02/17/2010
OPINION - Something about the remake feels inauthentic, the simplicity of the original has more sway...
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Author and Finance Professor at Syracuse University
The stimulus one year later: A bold move that began a jobless recovery
8:14 AM on 02/17/2010
OPINION - Abysmal disparities in economic opportunities prove that equality has not yet been achieved...
Friday, February 19, 2010
Dr. Boyce Watkins on Tiger’s Press Conference
Today, Tiger Woods finally did what everyone expected him to do: He spoke out on his own behalf. The world waited for months to hear a peep from the man who has decided to do one of the greatest disappearing acts the sports world has ever seen. When there was no Tiger, there was no professional golf.
The press conference was starting on the wrong foot, as there was buzz of a boycott from golf writers, who felt that Tiger was not giving proper respect to media by refusing to allow them to ask questions. There was also the ire communicated from his fellow golfers, such as Ernie Els, who called Tiger "selfish" for giving his press conference on a Friday, during a tournament sponsored by Accenture.
What Ernie Els failed to remember is that Accenture is the company that dropped Tiger when he was being embarrassed by the media. There is no reason that Tiger should be the least bit hesitant about stealing the headlines away from their golf tournament. Perhaps had Accenture not decided to abandon Tiger, he might not have abandoned them.
His mother was there, the PGA Commissioner was there, and one of Tiger's roommates from college was in attendance. What was missing from the press conference? Well, the press. I'm not sure if you can actually call this a press conference when you've chosen to exclude the media. The other glaring absence from the room was Tiger's wife, Elin.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Felon Disenfranchisement is UnAmerican
by Dr. Michael Fauntroy, The Shirley Chrisholm Commission
“I don’t want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of the people. They never have been from the beginning of our country and they are not now. As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down.”
– Conservative activist Paul Weyrich, at a 1980 training session for Christian conservatives
While there are a number of very worthy issues that need to be addressed in this area, I propose that we include the issue of felon disenfranchisement in our deliberations. Felon disenfranchisement is critical as it impacts the outcomes of elections throughout the country. Too often, conservative, anti-minority candidates are elected because of the disproportionate removal of African Americans and other minorities from the election rolls. As the policies that disenfranchise felons disproportionately impacts African Americans (both those caught up in the criminal justice system AND the larger Black public which does not get the policies that it could because supportive people are not elected to office), we must understand it undermines the policies that we believe to be helpful to our community.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Dr. Boyce: Russell Simmons Rants on Banks
Hip hop mogul Russell Simmons seems to feel that banks are not treating the poor in a proper fashion. This week, in a rant on his site, “The Global Grind,” Simmons had this to say:
“They trick customers into doing things that are not good for them through lack of transparency, and surprise them with new fees when they can least afford it. I’m learning an important lesson about ethics or lack of ethics in this industry. In fact, I’m fighting with a bank right now that doesn’t know what kind of ass whipping they are going to get when I expose them for the abusive practices and exuberant fees they are charging the poor. What they are doing is trying to double their already outrageously high fees in exchange for providing absolutely nothing to my customers.”
Simmons went on to try to create a “movement” by adding a call to action:
“Let’s start the biggest public discussion ever about how banks treat us and expose these banks for their unequal treatment and unconscionable conduct. The time is now.”
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
News: Dr. Boyce Watkins Discusses CBC Corruption
by Dr. Boyce Watkins, AOL Black Voices
From left are, Rep. Donald Payne, D-N.J., Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y. and Rep. Charles Rangel D-NY. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
Does anyone think that the Congressional Black Caucus works for the interests of the African-American community? Well, think again. It appears that, according to a scathing report in The New York Times, African-Americans don't have the money to buy the CBC's loyalty. At the very least, they do not appear to be the top priority for a legislative group that has allowed dollar signs to complicate its priorities.
The New York Times article details a highly suspicious network of foundations and charities that seem to funnel money to CBC members in exchange for influence in Washington. The political and charitable wings of the CBCtook in $55 million dollars between 2004 and 2008, with only $1 million of that coming through their political action committee; the rest came through their unregulated network of foundations, which are allowed to escape campaign finance laws designed to keep legislators from being bought by corporate America.
While the CBC argues that the funds are used to support charitable causes in the African-American community, it seems that the foundation spends more time "big balling" with elaborate corporate events than it spends actually doing work for the community. Federal tax records show that the CBC Foundation spent more money on the caterer for its annual dinner, $700,000 dollars, than it spent giving out scholarships. As my mama used to say, "That's just trifling."
Even more disturbing are the relationships that the Congressional Black Caucus has formed with industries that clearly do not have the interests of the black community at heart, including the Internet poker industry, cigarette manufacturers, alcoholic beverage producers and rent-to-own companies. Many rent-to-own companies operate in predominantly black neighborhoods and are effectively electronic drug dealers: They give consumers a quick high today in exchange for unethically high fees and massive amounts of debt. Well guess what? The CBC is one of the reasons that the rent-to-own industry has been allowed to expand its operations in urban communities where CBC members don't even live.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
African American Politics in America – 2/14/10
Holder may abandon civilian trial for 9/11 mastermind
By theGrio
1:14 PM on 02/12/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) - Attorney General Eric Holder is leaving open the possibility of trying professed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed before a military commission...
Some blacks back Tea Party, despite movement's racist reputation
7:52 AM on 02/11/2010
A small but increasing number of black conservatives and libertarians are getting involved in the protest movement...
Blacks have endured a decade-long jobless recovery, leaders say
By Adam Howard
6:31 PM on 02/10/2010
In a meeting that many in the African-American community considered a long time coming, President Obama met with black leaders today ...
Leaders leave real black issues out in the cold at White House
6:16 PM on 02/10/2010
OPINION - Black leaders still insist the president's travails are born of process and not of substance...
Obama invites black leaders to White House for economic talks
By theGrio
3:05 PM on 02/10/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) - African-American leaders grappled with how to improve economic opportunities for blacks...
Former Va. governor urges DNC chairman's firing
By theGrio
12:29 PM on 02/10/2010
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Democratic former Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder is urging President Obama to fire DNC Chairman Tim Kaine, another former Virginia governor...
Obama welcomes crowd to White House to honor civil rights music
By theGrio
9:46 AM on 02/10/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Obama welcomed an all-star lineup of performers to the East Room of the White House yesterday to pay tribute to the music of the civil rights era...
NY gov battles rumors of womanizing and drug use
By theGrio
4:54 PM on 02/09/2010
ALBANY, NY (AP) - David Paterson, New York's first black governor, has cited as fabricated a report that he was caught by state police in the governor's mansion cavorting with a woman other than his wife...
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Fox News contributor Angela McGlowan to run for Congress in Mississippi
By theGrio
3:07 PM on 02/09/2010
Her candidacy puts the House GOP campaign committee in a bit of a jam...
First lady fights child obesity: 'That's the legacy I want'
By theGrio
12:42 PM on 02/08/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) - The first lady's goal is ambitious: to put America on track to solve the childhood obesity problem in a generation...
Obama to GOP: Let's talk about health care - live
By theGrio
9:20 AM on 02/08/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Obama says it's time for Republicans who have attacked his health care proposals from the sidelines to step before the cameras and present their own ideas...
Move over Ray Nagin, New Orleans has new mayor
By theGrio
9:12 AM on 02/08/2010
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Four years ago, Mitch Landrieu narrowly lost to Ray Nagin in a racially divisive election for mayor of Katrina-scarred New Orleans...
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NY Gov. meets with fellow Dems amid scandal rumors
By theGrio
8:45 AM on 02/08/2010
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- Gov. David Paterson met privately with key Democratic leaders about his re-election plans as questions swirl around the state...
Obama's decline reflects the perils of democracy
8:17 AM on 02/08/2010
OPINION - Obama has been given the simple, yet impossible task of improving the economy while being given no resources in order to get the job done...
Senate likely to be less diverse after elections
By theGrio
9:41 AM on 02/05/2010
CHICAGO (AP) - That historically all-white club known as the U.S. Senate is likely to lose what little diversity it has after November's elections...
Justice Thomas: Some questioning of Supreme Court 'irresponsible'
By theGrio
4:25 PM on 02/04/2010
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) - Questioning the Supreme Court and other government branches needs to stay within the range of fair criticism or "run the risk in our society of undermining institutions that we need to preserve our liberties," Justice Clarence Thomas said Thursday...
CA National Guard gets first black, female leader
By theGrio
3:22 PM on 02/04/2010
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Brigadier General Mary Kight was sworn in Tuesday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at a former Air Force base outside Sacramento...
Obama calls for civility in Washington
By theGrio
10:35 AM on 02/04/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) - "You can question my policies without questioning my faith. Or my citizenship," Obama said...
Obama's aunt tries second asylum bid
By theGrio
8:19 AM on 02/04/2010
BOSTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama's African aunt is going before a Massachusetts immigration judge for a second time to argue she should be allowed to stay in the United States...
Attorney General Holder: I made decision to charge Christmas terror suspect
By theGrio
2:41 PM on 02/03/2010
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Attorney General Eric Holder said Wednesday he made the decision to charge the Christmas Day terror suspect in civilian court rather than the military system...
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