Politics and Current
Are Black Male Voters Still Riding the ‘Trump Train’ or Are They Following Kamala?
A bunch of Black male voters discussed why some members of the Black community proceed to support former President Donald Trump at the same time as Vice President Kamala Harris considers a run for the White House.
MSNBC legal analyst and civil rights attorney Charles Coleman Jr. hosted a panel discussion titled “Black Men in America: The Road to 2024” with 4 black male voters. Because the men were of various ages, the goal was to think about whether Harris’ nomination affected their votes against Trump. “How many of you know a black man who has told you he’s determined to vote for Donald Trump?” Coleman asked.
When all the men raised their hands, he asked one other query: “Did Kamala Harris coming in change that?”
All the panelists shook their heads and said, “No.”
The conversation took a deep dive into why some black men are still on the “Trump train.” Teacher Corey Alexander said that for those he knows, it’s about wanting something different. “Most of the men I know who are on the Trump train just want something different from the status quo. And they feel like Trump can provide that,” he said.
According to Fox News, one other panelist mentioned the stimulus checks as a reason for support, with one saying: concerned about “interest rates” which they imagine the accused businessman will lower 4 times“There’s this attitude in this group: ‘I just need this guy,’” the panelist told Coleman.
In April 2024, polls showed that many black voters were avoiding supporting President Joe Biden, who withdrew from running for reelection in mid-July 2024, resulting from rising living costs and difficulty making ends meet. But they were also unconvinced of Trump.
Now, Harris’ campaign is gaining significant momentum amongst black voters. Seventy-eight percent of black voters said they support Harris, while 15% said they support Trump, down from previous polls wherein he had 23% support amongst black voters. “With Kamala now being the nominee, it still hasn’t changed my vote, where I was going,” Alexander said. “I’m definitely excited.”
One panelist noted concerns that if Trump returns to power, the 2024 election could possibly be the last time black people can have the right to vote, and that many are threatening to not vote in any respect.
“I don’t know if we’ll still have a vote if someone else takes office in a few years. So I’ve talked to a lot of brothers who have said, ‘I’m not voting,’” said Ervin Roberson Sr., an interior designer.
“You have to vote. Not voting is not an option.”
As a takeaway from the enlightening conversation, Coleman said he feels black voters are “not a monolith.” “It was a cross-generational conversation that I was able to have, really inviting a lot of different perspectives on what the enthusiasm has been since Kamala Harris entered the race for president, and also for some people, how that hasn’t changed,” he said.
He also noted that some black voters feel pressured to support Harris, no matter what they consider her policies, which address the issues most vital to them. A survey by the Black Futures Lab found that economic problems, inexpensive housing, wage growth and health care are issues that concern voters.
Reducing violence in black neighborhoods can be a key issue. Survey participants are counting on leaders to stop the senseless killing of unarmed black people and the use of excessive force. Additionally, voters are demanding attention on find out how to stop white supremacist violence, crimes against all women, and gun violence.
Politics and Current
Jasmine Crockett blasts Republicans for so-called white “oppression” over anti-DEI bill
On Wednesday, during a passionate speech before the committee, Sen. Jasmine Crockett, R-Texas, chided her Republican colleagues for the content of an anti-DEI bill that calls for eliminating all diversity, equity and inclusion programs and offices within the federal government.
Crockett, a 43-year-old congressional student who has change into a star within the Democratic Party because of her quite a few viral committee appearances, condemned the Dismantle DEI Act of 2024. The bill, H.R. 8706 – first introduced by Republican Vice President-elect J.D. Vance – essentially prohibit all DEI-related activities within the federal government, including all related positions, offices, training, and funding. Strikingly, the bill also prohibits federal employees working in DEI positions from transferring to a different federal position.
During a House Oversight Committee hearing wherein she responded to Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., who repeatedly called DEI policies “oppression” — seemingly aimed toward white people, as many Republicans suggested — Crockett used the committee’s speaking time to criticize the suggestion that white individuals are oppressed in consequence of efforts to shut racial disparities in sectors resembling business, education, and health.
“You don’t understand the definition of oppression… I would ask you to just Google it,” said Crockett, who moments later read the dictionary definition of the word, adding: “Oppression is long-term cruel or unfair treatment or control, that’s the definition of oppression.” The congresswoman emphasized: “There was no oppression of the white man in this country.”
Referring to the history of chattel slavery and racial segregation within the US, the Texas lawmaker said: “Tell me which white men were dragged from their homes. Tell me which one was dragged across the ocean and that you will go to work. We will steal your wives. We will rape your wives. It didn’t happen. This is oppression.”
Attempting to further explain the importance of DEI, Crockett noted that she is barely the fifty fifth Black woman elected to Congress in its 235-year history, unlike the 1000’s of white men who’ve served on Capitol Hill.
“So if you want to talk about history and pretend it was that long ago, it wasn’t,” Crockett said, citing data showing that corporations perform higher and are more profitable after they are more diversified.
The anti-DEI movement, championed exclusively by Republicans, has led to several lawsuits invalidating federal programs, including debt forgiveness for Black farmers and business loans to Black and other disadvantaged businesses. Many states led by Republican governors have indicated that DEI – especially teaching about slavery and racism – is harmful to students, namely white students. In response, they banned such topics from public classrooms.
Jamarr Brown, executive director of Color of Change PAC, the political arm of the civil rights organization, said Congresswoman Crockett’s statements on DEI were “poignant and necessary.”
While the Dismantling DEI Act actually won’t be passed while Democrats control the Senate and President Joe Biden stays in office, it signals what may very well be a priority for Republicans next yr, as outlined within the pro-Trump “Project 2025” political manifesto “.
“According to Project 2025, diversity, equity and inclusion is synonymous with ‘White lives don’t matter,’” Brown noted. “Now more than ever, we at Color Of Change PAC, as well as advocates and activists across the country, must work to protect Black people and other people of color from harm resulting from anti-DEI attacks.”
Brown continued, “Civil rights protections have helped reduce mortgage discrimination, increase the number of Black physicians to counter problems such as Black maternal mortality, and provide financing for Black-owned businesses.”
He added: “Our country thrives and everyone benefits when diversity, equality and inclusion are valued rather than stifled.”
Politics and Current
Why is Trump delaying signing the ethics agreement?
The campaign’s legal department reports that President-elect Donald Trump is stalling the presidential transition process by refusing to sign an ethics pledge that is legally required of each sitting president
Under the Presidential Transition Act, Trump and his transition team must sign a document ensuring he avoids any conflicts of interest once he takes office. Only after the document is signed and sent to the General Services Administration (GSA) can the incoming administration gain access to federal agencies.
The transition, which President Joe Biden has promised will likely be “orderly and peaceful,” sets the tone for the Trump-Vance administration’s approach to transparency, accountability and earning the trust of Americans, all of that are seen as essential to making sure the administration fulfills its responsibilities to the U.S. people mean .
The reasons for withholding Trump’s documents are unknown, but some speculate it has to do along with his latest financial disclosure reports and for one reason particularly. Many of his holdings might be considered conflict of interest red flags, equivalent to his latest cryptocurrency business, a majority stake in his social media platform Truth Social, real estate, books and licensing deals.
It’s not only the GSA that the president-elect is avoiding. According to , Trump also refused to make use of the State Department’s secure phone lines and interpreters and kept away from using the FBI’s security clearance system. That’s why House Democrats issued latest laws on November 19 requiring Executive Office employees to have FBI security clearances. If not, Congress will likely be warned.
Democratic lawmakers and powerful Trump opponents like Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) are baffled by his transition team’s refusal to sign an ethics agreement.
“Donald Trump and his transition team are already breaking the law. I would know because I wrote the law myself,” Warren wrote in X on November 11. “Future presidents are obliged to prevent conflicts of interest and sign an ethics agreement. This is what illegal corruption looks like.”
Skepticism towards the bill, presented by Representatives Don Beyer (D-VA) and Ted Lieu (D-CA)persists. The upcoming GOP-controlled Congress is seemingly leaning toward Trump. Once back in office, Trump will give you the chance to issue security clearances to anyone he wants, no matter the FBI’s objections or whether the person faces legal charges. This latest situation involves two of Trump’s Cabinet picks – Matt Gaetz as attorney general and Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, each of whom have faced allegations of sexual misconduct.
Politics and Current
Social media reacts to video of Susan Smith’s tearful plea for parole 30 years after she killed her two sons and blamed their disappearance on a black man
Parole was denied Wednesday for notorious South Carolina mother Susan Smith, who drowned her two young children after initially claiming a black man had kidnapped them.
“I wish I could take it back, I really do,” Smith, now 53, said. “I didn’t lie to get away with it. … I used to be just afraid. I didn’t know the way to tell the individuals who loved them that they might never see them again.
Smith said she found peace because of her Christian faith. God is a vital part of her life testified on Wednesday, “and I know he has forgiven me.”
It was her first appearance before the state parole board, which voted unanimously to keep her in prison for the remaining of her life. After serving 30 years, Smith is eligible for parole every two years.
“I know what I did was terrible,” she said in her testimony given via Zoom. “And I would give anything if I could go back and change it.”
“I love Michael and Alex with all my heart,” she said openly, crying and wiping away tears.
The disappearance of 3-year-old Michael and 14-month-old Alex made national headlines after their mother told the chilling story of how a black man stopped her automotive and took her children. She appeared incessantly on television, playing every bit the role of a distraught mother, and the search for her boys lasted nine grueling days.
Susan Smith, a South Carolina woman who pleaded guilty to killing her 3-year-old and 14-month-old sons in 1994, speaks at her parole hearing.
Smith initially lied to police, saying that a black man had kidnapped her and kidnapped her sons. pic.twitter.com/oppN49EvWj
— ABC News Live (@ABCNewsLive) November 20, 2024
It was then that Susan Smith, questioned by police who began to doubt her story, truthfully confessed what really happened on October 25, 1994.
Smith, then 23, strapped her sons into their automotive seats and drove the automotive into a lake near her home in Union, South Carolina.
Smith’s pleas fell on the ears of not only the parole board but in addition many on social media. As videos of her interrogation began circulating online, a whole bunch of comments condemned the mother for not seeming sufficiently remorseful about her actions.
“☠️MONSTERS should be kept in CAGES☠️”, one person wrote on Xformerly Twitter.
Another added: “I remember it when it happened. She claimed that her children were kidnapped by black people. And people believed her, unfortunately. She should be sentenced to death. He must remain behind bars until the very end.”
“I’m sure her children, strapped in their automotive seats, screamed and cried as they drowned in their own mother’s hands for her lustful pleasures. Shameful,” – wrote one other commentator.
Sixteenth Judicial District Solicitor Kevin Brackett recalled pulling Susan Smith’s automotive out of the water with her children inside. She added that these crimes shocked not only the family but your complete country.
“On behalf of the community I now represent, I do not believe she should ever be released from prison until the last living person who remembers Michael and Alex dies, and that will not happen in her lifetime. She should never have been released,” Brackett said Wednesday.
Defense lawyer Susan Smith argued that she planned to die with her sons, but jumped out of the automotive on the last minute.
Lead prosecutor Tommy Pope noted that Smith was not wet or injured when she ran for help after the automotive disappeared beneath the lake.
“God is an important part of my life and I know he has forgiven me… I just ask that you show the same kind of mercy.”
Killer mother Susan Smith applies for release 30 years after drowning her two young sons at her first parole hearing. The Parole Board unanimously rejected… pic.twitter.com/0jR88Mkuzo
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 20, 2024
“Susan’s focus was always on Susan,” said Pope, who presented evidence during Smith’s murder trial that she was distraught over her breakup with one other man. Prosecutors say the connection ended because Smith had children.
“Susan made a terrible, terrible decision, choosing a man over her family,” Pope said. “If she could have put David in the car, he would have been there too.”
David Smith, Michael and Alexander’s father, who was captured entering the constructing, told the board that his ex-wife had never shown any remorse for their murder.
David Smith has just arrived at Susan Smith’s parole hearing.
He is her ex-husband and the daddy of the boys she murdered.
He wanted the death penalty, and now 30 years later he must face it again when it asks the South Carolina Parole Board to release her. pic.twitter.com/2WdqXjwQxM— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) November 20, 2024
“It wasn’t a tragic mistake. (…) She deliberately wanted to end their lives,” he said.
David Smith testified that his grief over the loss of his sons “came close to taking my own life.”
His current wife, Tiffany Smith, says there are still days when her husband cannot get out of bed because of the pain.
“Michael and Alex didn’t get a chance at life,” she said. “They were given the death penalty.”
He said his ex-wife served just 15 years for each child. “It’s just not enough.”
Susan Smith’s attorney, Tommy Thomas, told the parole board his client’s case shows “the dangers of untreated mental health.” He said Susan Smith was not diagnosed with depression after the birth of her second child.
Her stepfather testified that he had sexually abused her for years.
Susan Smith was not a model prisoner. She was convicted multiple times, once for sex with a prison officer and one other time for drug possession. She was also threatened with punishment for providing documents with her ex-husband’s contact details.
Her lawyer said that if she was released on parole, she would live with her brother.
David Smith said if his wife applied for parole again, he could be there for the sake of his sons.
(*30*) he told the board.
-
Press Release8 months ago
CEO of 360WiSE Launches Mentorship Program in Overtown Miami FL
-
Business and Finance6 months ago
The Importance of Owning Your Distribution Media Platform
-
Press Release7 months ago
U.S.-Africa Chamber of Commerce Appoints Robert Alexander of 360WiseMedia as Board Director
-
Business and Finance8 months ago
360Wise Media and McDonald’s NY Tri-State Owner Operators Celebrate Success of “Faces of Black History” Campaign with Over 2 Million Event Visits
-
Ben Crump7 months ago
Another lawsuit accuses Google of bias against Black minority employees
-
Fitness7 months ago
Black sportswear brands for your 2024 fitness journey
-
Theater8 months ago
Applications open for the 2020-2021 Soul Producing National Black Theater residency – Black Theater Matters
-
Ben Crump8 months ago
Henrietta Lacks’ family members reach an agreement after her cells undergo advanced medical tests