Kamala Harris pledged to unite the Democratic Party and win the party’s nomination just hours after President Joe Biden dropped out of his reelection bid on Sunday and endorsed her as his replacement. In a statement, Harris thanked Biden for his “decades of service to our country” and for his support as the party navigates […]
Black voters
Posted inPolitics & Policy
This Issue Is Critical to Black Georgia Ahead of the Presidential Debate
Atlanta resident Cathy Hooker has heard enough about Donald Trump’s legal woes and Joe Biden’s fraught relationship with Israel this election cycle. Instead, the 63-year-old grandmother — who earns $25,000 annually as a child care provider in Lithonia and shares a rented, single-family home with her son, daughter-in-law-and their two children — wants to hear […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
How Some States Are Responding to the Worst Attack on Voting Rights in Decades
To Minnesota state Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, the mission was obvious: He had to do something to bolster protections against racial discrimination in voting. When a panel from the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a ruling limiting who can sue under the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party member and […]
Posted inEverything's Political, Politics & Policy
Everything’s Political, Including the Name of a School
Welcome back to Everything’s Political, Capital B’s weekly news, culture, and politics newsletter! In this edition, learn about two Virginia schools renamed after Confederate generals, a Texas county’s fight for a fair voting map, the killing of a Black airman in Florida, a Black mayor’s fight to govern his Alabama town, and the Trump campaign’s […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
Voter Apathy Is Real. Here’s How Black Organizers Are Tackling It.
Black Voters and the Fight for Democracy is a multi-part series that explores the stakes of the 2024 election for our communities. This project was produced as part of the Advancing Democracy Fellowship. HARRISBURG, Pa. — “Are y’all bored? Who’s bored?” Wearing mules, jeans, and a T-shirt emblazoned with the name of her nonprofit group — […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
How We’re Covering the 2024 Election
Mission: Capital B’s journalism is rooted in people. This means that we center our election coverage around how political issues and policy decisions affect Black people in America. Too often, mainstream newsrooms gloss over or ignore what issues matter to Black communities, where there’s often the most to lose or gain when it comes to […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Are We Really in the Middle of a ‘Racial Realignment’ in Politics?
The claim that Black voters are bolting to President Donald Trump’s Republican Party seems premature — and fuels a narrative that places the responsibility for the presidential election outcome on Black voters. This notion of realignment has gotten more attention in recent months, as political observers try to make sense of polls showing that some […]
Posted inEverything's Political, Politics & Policy
Everything’s Political, Including a Promise
Welcome back to Everything’s Political, Capital B’s news, culture, and politics newsletter! Every Thursday, I’ll take a look at recent stories that seem particularly noteworthy. Here’s what I’ve got for you this week. Biden’s Promise to Black America Janet Jackson put it best in 1986: What have you done for me lately? Today, Black voters […]
Posted inHistory, Politics & Policy
Daring to Be Bold: Examining Shirley Chisholm’s Everlasting Impact
When Kimberly Peeler-Allen was in the fourth grade, she had to pick someone to research for Women’s History Month. Her mother had a thought: Why not Shirley Chisholm? For Peeler-Allen, 47, the link was personal. Like Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress and the first Black candidate to seek a major political party’s […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
The Fight for Democracy and Black Votes Loomed Large in Biden’s Speech
Among the many special guests at President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address on Thursday was the jazz singer and civil rights legend Bettie Mae Fikes. Beloved as the Voice of Selma, Fikes is known for having led protests in song. She often changed the lyrics of Black standards to match the movement: “Tell […]