The fight for the basic right to vote has been among the most enduring struggles of Black people in America. From poll taxes to literacy tests and grandfather clauses, the methods used to bar Black voters from the ballot box goes back over a century. Even progress toward the goal for other once-disenfranchised groups has […]
Politics & Policy
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voices of Change
It’s a golden era for Black female political leaders. This woman wants to keep it that way.
Ahead of the midterms, Capital B is talking to newsmakers from across the country who want to reshape American politics or galvanize Black voices in government. Our “Voices of Change” series will update periodically with insights from the candidates, activists, lawmakers, and political insiders who you should know. Laphonza Butler made history in September when she became […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
‘Democracy is a process, not a state of being’
The Senate’s failure to pass voting rights legislation this month was a blow to Democrats and Black activists who hoped to stem the tide of laws limiting ballot access across the country. Many had stressed the urgency of passing the bill ahead of November’s midterm elections, but the effort was thwarted when senators blocked a […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
The Reading List: The Policy Discussions Black Americans Should Be Following
In that past decade or so, Black Americans have been particularly hard hit. There was the massive recession that hiked unemployment and decimated homeownership and personal finances—ruining the economic safety of Black people in particular. Then a rise in white nationalism during the Trump presidency. A seemingly never ending wave of police shootings of Black […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voices of Change
Meet the Reluctant Politician Fighting to Save Black Families’ Homes
Black candidates have thrived in recent elections, helping to fuel a blue wave that put reformers at the head of local governments and delivered both houses of Congress to the Democratic Party in 2020, for the first time in a decade. Progressives hoped the wave would bring change on major issues that disproportionately affect Black […]