The dread many Black Americans feel about Donald Trump’s triumph in the 2024 presidential election isn’t misplaced: He organized his reelection campaign against Vice President Kamala Harris around revenge — around how he and his allies can inflict the greatest amount of suffering on vulnerable groups and on those he considers enemies. Making things worse, […]
Politics & Policy
Posted inHistory, Politics & Policy
5 Black Presidential Candidates Who Paved the Way for Kamala Harris
In 1848, Frederick Douglass was the very first Black candidate to receive a nominating bid for the American presidency. He received one vote. Over the next 100 years, Black presidential hopefuls — particularly those with connections to the two major parties — would eke out symbolic victories and break barriers. Their efforts paved the way […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
Vibe Check: What Every Black Voter Should Know for Election Day
Election Day is here. For some voters, it’s already a nightmare. Shantae Martin is a lifelong Virginian who cast her first ballot for Barack Obama. But the 37-year-old recently found out through a notice in the mail that her voter registration had been canceled, supposedly because she’s a noncitizen. “I was confused, to be honest. […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Here’s What Black Swing-State Voters Care About This Election
As Americans go to the polls today, much of the nation’s attention will turn to the math of this historic election. How many votes have been cast — early or on Election Day — and of course, whether either of the major party’s candidates have amassed enough support in the right combination of states to […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
How the Electoral College’s Origins Manifest Today
As we get ready for the season finale of this presidential election cycle, what happens after the polls close Tuesday night is anyone’s guess. But what we know for sure is that the countdown to whether Vice President Kamala Harris or Trump becomes our 47th president all hinges on the Electoral College. It’s that slow […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
At a North Carolina HBCU, Black Students Get Out the Vote
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Standing in a manicured field near the edge of Johnson C. Smith University — an HBCU in Charlotte where his fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha, and others display some of the symbols associated with their organizations – Kevin Napier explained just how large the election has loomed on campus in recent weeks. In […]
Posted inHBCUs, Partner Content, Voting
Harris and Trump Want Young Black Votes. Here’s What HBCU Students Want in a President.
Originally published by Open Campus. In a few days, voters will decide who becomes the nation’s next president. There’s been much speculation about whether Vice President Kamala Harris’ identity as a Howard University alumna will result in support at the polls from students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Both Harris and her opponent, […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
Black Voters Prepare for Backlash Ahead of Election Day
Activist Camille Bennett never backs down from a fight, despite her life being in danger. She’s endured racist and violent threats in rural Alabama, a part of a life she’s known since moving there as a teenager. She’s in Florence, her father’s hometown in the northwest part of the state known as The Shoals. In […]
Posted inCulture, Politics & Policy
The Fight for ‘Freedom’
This time around, the rumors were true. Houston native Beyoncé Knowles-Carter returned to her hometown Friday and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. The campaign’s anthem, Beyoncé’s 2016 song “Freedom,” played as Harris took the stage. Back in August, rumors had circulated that the global music phenomenon was scheduled to perform at the Democratic National Convention […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics & Policy
Ignored for Years, Black Milwaukee Voters Hold Power in 2024
MILWAUKEE — When Diane Blaylock’s parents migrated to Milwaukee from Lena and Canton, Mississippi, they immediately went to work. Her father was employed by Rex Chain Belt, a manufacturing company that produced chain links for agricultural equipment. Donning a knit Green Bay Packers cap, she reminisced about a time when Black people had more opportunities […]
