If Erica Schwartz becomes the first Black woman to head the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, she’ll walk into an agency that for more than a year has been beleaguered by turmoil: resignations, deep staff cuts, and major changes to vaccine policies. During her confirmation hearing this week, the physician faced senators’ questions […]
Congress
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
Black Alabama Voters Lose Again as Supreme Court Greenlights Map
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed Alabama to use a map that eliminates a district where Black voters had the opportunity to elect the candidate of their choice. “The Supreme Court’s decision gives cover to Alabama and others to deliberately and openly discriminate against Black voters without fear of any consequence,” Deuel Ross, the […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
Louisiana Republicans Cut Black Voting Power With New House Map
NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana Republicans on Friday approved a new congressional map that erodes Black voting power in the state — eliminating a majority-Black district established in 2024 that gave residents there an opportunity to elect the candidate of their choice. Friday’s move comes one month after the U.S. Supreme Court found that the lines of […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Jim Clyburn’s District Is at the Center of a New Fight Over Black Voting Power
COLUMBIA, South Carolina — To Jasmine Broadwater, U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina isn’t some distant power broker in Washington, D.C. He’s a hometown fixture. Broadwater, 32, grew up in Columbia, the state’s capital, and she said that Clyburn would sometimes “just randomly pop up at school.” His daughter Jennifer Clyburn Reed was one […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Black Voters in the South Want Leaders Who Fight but Also Deliver
Farmer Jeremy Peaches spends his days thinking about food: not only how to grow it and where to send it — but also whether people can afford it. The owner of the Fresh Life Organic Produce Co., he manages 25 acres of vegetables for restaurants, food banks, and residents in the largely Black community of […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
Black Women Are Turning the Supreme Court Ruling Into a Battle Cry
The flurry of direct attacks on voting rights in the South has thrust voters, candidates, and organizers into a state of chaos and confusion in the midst of an election season. It’s a result of the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, which weakened protections under the Voting Rights Act. It allowed several states, including Alabama, […]
Posted inNews, Politics & Policy
Supreme Court Ruling Threatens Black Voting Power Beyond Louisiana
Louisiana resident Press Robinson wasn’t surprised by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision on Wednesday to strike down the state’s new majority-Black district. But he was deeply disappointed. “They’re determined to see to it that we don’t have a voice at all,” Robinson, a participant in the case, said Wednesday, referring to Louisiana political leaders. […]
Posted inNews, Politics & Policy
A Sudden Resignation Leaves Florida’s Blackest Congressional District in Limbo
Constituents of Florida’s heavily Black 20th Congressional District must now navigate a volatile political moment, as U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, a Democrat who represented the district since 2022, resigned on Tuesday. The surprise announcement came just ahead of a hearing when the House Ethics Committee was scheduled to formally recommend disciplinary action over an investigation […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
2 Live Crew’s Uncle Luke Is Running for Congress and Calling Out Black Trump Supporters
The 2 Live Crew: Remember them? Led by Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell, the hip-hop group pioneered the Miami bass genre and Southern rap more generally in the 1980s and ’90s, as they rattled car trunks and scandalized censors with lyrics that implored women to pop that … well, you know. Fast-forward a few decades, and […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy, Voting
‘Jim Crow 2.0’: Civil Rights Leaders Sound Alarm on SAVE America Act
Despite facing long odds, Senate Republicans on Tuesday voted to begin debate on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act. The bill, also known as the SAVE America Act, is a deeply controversial proposal that civil rights groups say could disenfranchise millions — particularly Black Americans — by creating new barriers to the ballot box. The […]
