THE CASH STUFF FOR THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 2023

                                                                    REP. AMOS QUICK

HOUSE GOP LOOKS TO 

PUSH THROUGH NEW

ANTI-BLACK HISTORY BILL

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

On the heels of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis banning advanced placement African American history curriculum in the state’s public schools, North Carolina Republican lawmakers have decided to try again to get a bill outlawing the teaching of what they call “critical race theory (CRT)” in N. C. public schools. Their efforts were stymied by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper in 2021 when he vetoed the measure calling it “conspiracy-laden politics.”

Now, with just one vote shy of a super majority in the state House, Republican lawmakers believe they can override Cooper’s veto after introducing House Bill 187 called “Equality in Education,” which was introduced last Thursday.

According to the language, HB 187 is “…an act to demonstrate the General Assembly’s intent that students, teachers and administrators, and other school employees recognize the equality and rights of all persons and to prohibit public school units from promoting certain concepts that are contrary to that intent.”

If that language seems general and vague, the subsequent language is anything but, and has given Democrats, especially African American Democratic House members, pause.

Among the many restrictions cited in the proposed measure, public schools in North Carolina would be prohibited from teaching (though the bill uses the term “promote”), among other things, that “an individual, solely by virtue of his or her race or sex, bears responsibility for actions committed in the past by other members of the same race or sex; the United States was created by members of a particular race or sex for the purpose of oppressing members of another race or sex; the rule of law does not exist, but instead is a series of power relationships and struggles among racial or other groups; all Americans are not created equal and are not endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights , including life , liberty and the pursuit of happiness; and that governments should deny to any person within the government’s jurisdiction the equal protection of law.”

Under this law, if passed by the state House and Senate (which does have a supermajority to override Gov. Cooper’s veto), public schools would have to post on their websites at least 30 days prior “Providing instruction regarding concepts described ….in curricula, reading lists, seminars, workshops, trainings, or other educational or professional settings; contracting with, hiring, or otherwise engaging speakers, consultants, diversity trainers, or others’ who have previously advocated for what would be prohibited by law.

The law, if enacted, says it “would not apply” to textbook histories or other materials used “for the purpose of independent study and research,” or to “speech protected by the First Amendment.”

House Speaker Tim Moore, a Republican, in describing why North Carolina needs the “anti-CRT “law, told reporters last week that North Carolina students go to class “to learn, not be indoctrinated.”

But Black Democratic state lawmakers like Rep. Amos Quick of Guilford County told the News and Observer newspaper, “We need to learn the story of African Americans being able to overcome being brought here and enslaved for long periods of time. We need to learn about these things and how we have progressed as a society. And I think trying to shut down any telling of the actual American history is detrimental to our students, and to our society, because we don’t get a complete picture of who people are, where they’ve come from, and how they’ve contributed.”

The law becomes effective once it is ratified by the NC General Assembly.

According to the website Education Week,”Since January 2021, 44 states have introduced bills or taken other steps that would restrict teaching critical race theory or limit how teachers can discuss racism and sexism, according to an Education Week analysis. Eighteen states have imposed these bans and restrictions either through legislation or other avenues.”

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SEN. CORY BOOKER

                                                                 REP. ALMA ADAMS

REP. ADAMS CO-SPONSORS 

JUSTICE FOR BLACK

FARMERS ACT 

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

North Carolina Congresswoman Alma Adams (D-NC-12) has joined forces with New Jersey Democratic Senator Cory Booker in sponsoring legislation in Congress titled “The Justice for Black Farmers Act of 2023” that, if passed, would “address the sordid history of discrimination in federal agricultural policy.”

Rep. Adams, who serves on the House Committee on Agriculture, says that the comprehensive legislation, if passed, would, “reform the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provide debt relief, and create a land grant program to encourage a new generation of Black farmers.”

The list of grievances from Black farmers is long, says Rep. Adams.

“During the 20^th Century, Black farmers lost over $300 billion worth of farmland and acreage – a loss that further exacerbated the wealth gap for Black Americans,” she said in a statement. “That’s one of the many reasons why I’m proud to reintroduce the Justice for Black Farmers Act, which would enact policies to end discrimination within the USDA, protect the 50,000 remaining Black farmers from losing their land, provide land grants to create a new generation of Black farmers, and restore the land base that has been lost.”

“Additionally, the Justice For Black Farmers Act provides substantial resources for 1890 Land-Grant Institutions to help Black farmers get up and running and includes funding for all HBCUs to expand their agriculture research and courses of study.

“I am proud to join Senator Booker in confronting our history, and opening the door to a brighter future with this bill," Rep. Adams concluded.

Sen. Booker, who along with Rep. Adams, had previously introduced similar legislation in 2021, told why he’s joining forces to do it again.

“There is a direct connection between discriminatory USDA policies and the enormous land loss we have seen among Black farmers over the past century,” said Senator Booker. “Last year in the Inflation Reduction Act, we took a positive step by providing $2.2 billion for financial assistance to farmers that have suffered discrimination by USDA, but there is still much more work to be done. The Justice for Black Farmers Act seeks to correct persistent injustices and help restore the land base that Black farmers have lost. I am proud to work with Representative Adams on this landmark legislation that would empower a new generation of Black farmers.”

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THE CASH STUFF FOR FEB. 23RD, 2023

REV, DR. T. ANTHONY SPEARMAN

                                                           BISHOP WILLIAM J. BARBER

HEARTBREAK AND DISBELIEF

AFTER SPEARMAN AUTOPSY

REPORT

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

Reaction to the official autopsy report released last week documenting that former NAACP President Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, 71, committed suicide by a “self-inflicted gunshot wound” to his head, has ranged from disbelief to pure sadness from those who knew him best.

“Jesus, Lord, I’m heartbroken, and heartbroken for [his] family and friends,” opined Rev. Spearman’s friend and civil rights colleague, former NC NAACP Pres. Bishop William Barber.

The autopsy report confirmed what had been originally reported in July of 2022, that Spearman’s body, dressed solely in a t-shirt and pajama bottom, was slumped on a couch in the basement of his Greensboro home.

A large pool of blood was near the couch., having dripped down from the fatal head wound incurred from the handgun Spearman had used.

The Chief Medical Examiner’s report also noted slash marks on both wrists from a small cutting blade on the body.

“I am surprised at this medical conclusion,”  remarked atty. Irv Joyner, chair of the NC NAACP Legal Redress Committee. “I don’t have a factual basis to dispute this report, but the findings are completely at odds with the Dr. Anthony Spearman that I knew and worked with.”

Others, like close friend, Rev. Dr. Cardes Brown Jr., pastor of New Light Missionary Baptist Church and chairman of the Justice Coalition USA, also found the autopsy report hard to swallow.

“While I understand the medical examiner made that determination based on his examination,  the one thing that is not clear to me is that I knew Dr Spearman very well and I talked with him that night before his death,” Rev. Dr. Brown told The Carolina Peacemaker in Greensboro last week.

“We spoke every day. We were on the phone [that] Monday night [July 18th] from about 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. with members of the Justice Coalition. He (Spearman) was happy, the Justice Coalition was moving forward well with the defamation lawsuit [against the NAACP]. There was nothing indicative about him taking his own life. It does not belie what I know in my heart about Dr. Spearman’s character. The Wednesday before his death he was robbed at gunpoint. The person who robbed him was apprehended the next day. They arrested him and he was bonded out of jail. Then Spearman was killed.”

        “Spearman was an advocate for human rights. He helped people. He loved his wife and his family. That was not Anthony Spearman,” insisted  Dr. Brown.

The Chief Medical Examiner’s report found no evidence of death other than suicide, however.

Mark Cummings, Rev. Dr. Spearman’s attorney who filed the defamation suit against national NAACP President/CEO Derrick Johnson, NAACP Board Chairman Leon Russell and NC NAACP Pres. Deborah Dicks Maxwell, among others in June 2022, was also in disbelief.

“When you add up the knowledge you have of a person: for example, if I die, it surely won’t be [by] my doing. It might look like that, but I know Dr. T. Anthony Spearman would not do that. I knew him and we walked so many miles together. It does not align with the person I do know,” atty Cummings told The Peacemaker.

         “You have all these relevant things that factor into this. Were these people questioned, was there a determination that he owned a gun? We know it was made to look like a suicide.” 

Atty. Cummings was convinced shortly after Dr. Spearman’s death that he did not own a gun.

Still, others who knew Rev. Dr. Spearman, despite their shock, chose to honor the man they knew, no matter what darkness may have allegedly plagued him.

“In his notable leadership of the NC NAACP and the NC Council of Churches, as well as his long service as a pastor and teacher, Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman worked to make North Carolina a more just, equitable, and kind place,” said Dr.Timothy B. Tyson, Duke University Senior Research Scholar, and Spearman friend.  “His light was love in the largest sense, and his labors cheerful and earnest. His tender regard for other people was his hallmark.  His struggles and achievements bring to mind the words of the old gospel hymn, “Let the work that I’ve done, speak for me.” 

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REP. ZACK HAWKINS (D-DURHAM)

                                     SEN. GLADYS ROBINSON (D- GUILFORD)

STATE LAWMAKERS FORM

HBCU CAUCUS TO EXAMINE

PRESSING ISSUES

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

For years, statewide advocates for North Carolina’s historically-Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have complained that legislators paid little to no attention to what happens to these schools, despite their stellar record of producing more teachers, military leaders, and engineers than their predominately-white counterparts.

North Carolina HBCUs also confer 43 percent of all bachelor degrees awarded to Black students.

What was further troubling was that, according to the Hunt Institute,  North Carolina had more four-year HBCUs than any other state in the nation. Currently that number sits at ten. The state is also home to the largest HBCU in the country, NC A&T University in Greensboro.

It became almost commonplace to hear of North Carolina’s HBCU campuses literally falling apart because of deliberate underfunding by the NC General Assembly. Poor graduation rates and enrollments were also key issues that required state legislative attention.

Some even closed, while others, like Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, were close to failure.

But earlier this month, state lawmakers from both sides of the aisle came together to announce the creation of a bipartisan, bicameral HBCU Caucus at the NC General Assembly, believed to be the only one of its kind on the state level in the nation.

But it is modeled after the Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus, founded by NC Congresswoman Alma Adams (D-NC-12) in 2015. She cochairs that caucus with Arkansas Republican Congressman French Hill, Democratic Senator Chris Coons of Delaware and South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott. It has over 100 members.

The NC HBCU Caucus is co-chaired by state Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford), an alumna of Bennett College for Women and NC A&T University;  and state Rep. Zack Hawkins (D-Durham),  an alumnus of both Elizabeth City State University and North Carolina Central University in Durham; along with Republicans state Sen. Carl Ford (R-Rowan), and Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford). Each co-chair has an HBCU within his/her district.

The North Carolina HBCU Caucus’s goal? To help expand the collective economic impact of North Carolina’s ten HBCU’s, which currently stands at an impressive $1.7 billion annually.

But that’s not all.

“The mission of this joint legislative HBCU Caucus is to educate and engage members of the North Carolina General Assembly in a bipartisan and bicameral manner on the successes and benefits of the state’s 10 historically black colleges and universities,” said Sen. Robinson.

The timing for such an initiative couldn’t be better. HBCUs across the country have reportedly experienced a 30 percent increase in application rates since the May 2020 police murder of George Floyd.

Students from Winston Salem State University, Shaw University, NC A&T University and other NC HBCUs met with state lawmakers last week, urging them to better support their schools.

"HBCUs are important for our communities because they bring the history and they bring African Americans and other students like me to strive." said Shaw University student Zaid Steele.

The Republican chairs, at a recent press conference, committed to expanding “need-based scholarships” for HBCUs, an important point given that their party is currently in leadership at the legislature.

Sen. Robinson told reporters that the NC Legislative Black Caucus supports the efforts of the HBCU Caucus. She also made clear that the caucus will work to highlight the past and current successes of what are called the “NC10”, and address current issues plaguing HBCUs.

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THE CASH STUFF FOR FEB. 16, 2023

 

REV. DR. T. ANTHONY SPEARMAN

 CUTLINE FOR AUTOPSY DIAGRAM - 

    According to the February 14, 2023 autopsy report on the death of Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman from the NC Office of Chief Medical Examiner, and as seen in this diagram from that report, Rev. Dr. Spearman died of a "self-inflicted gunshot wound" to the right side of his head. The report and diagram also show that Spearman apparently tried to slash his wrists before shooting himself.

REPORT: REV. DR. SPEARMAN 

DIED OF “SELF-INFLICTED 

GUNSHOT WOUND TO HEAD”

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

According to the “summary and interpretation” from the Office of the  Chief Medical Examiner, the cause of death of Rev. Dr. Theodore Anthony Spearman, former president of the North Carolina NAACP, “is attributed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound of the head resulting in significant internal injury involving the skull and brain matter.

The summary continued, “a bullet associated with the firearm discharge involved was recovered from the body at the time of the autopsy.”

But the summary has another startling revelation.

“Postmortem examination additionally revealed apparent self-inflicted small superficial cuts along the inside of both wrists- which did not substantially contribute to the demise.”

The report earlier states under “No contributory non-firearm injury identified - incised wounds of wrists, apparently self-inflicted using an X-ACTO knife.”

“No contributory natural disease is identified; and toxicological analysis of the blood showed no evidence of alcohol consumption.”

The final line of the summary makes clear how Dr. Spearman died.

“In view of the overall death investigation and postmortem examination findings, the manner of death  is classified as Suicide.”

Indeed the official “certification cause of death” is listed as “gunshot wound to the head.”

The listed “Direction of fire” for the  “projectile track” of the bullet that killed Rev. Dr. Spearman “is from the decedent's right to left and slightly front to back. “

As reported by the Black Press in July of last year, the lifeless body of Rev. Dr. Spearman was found in the basement of his Greensboro home, spread out on a couch amid a large pool of blood, by then Greensboro NAACP President Bradley Hunt, on the afternoon of July 19, 2022. According to the ME’s report, the autopsy was conducted on July 27, 2022. The medical examiner of record was Nabila Haikai MD, who signed off on the report on February 14, 2023. 

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                    NEW NCDP CHAIRWOMAN ANDERSON CLAYTON WITH BLACK VOTER

WILL NEW NC DEMOCRATIC

PARTY CHAIRWOMAN HELP OR

HURT BLACK INTERESTS?

By Cash Michaels

The challenges facing the NC Democratic Party (NCDP) are great, especially with the 2024 presidential and gubernatorial elections quickly coming up, and all North Carolina Democrats have to show for preparation is a continuing streak of losing big elections, and with it, a poor standing with the state’s black voters.

A common complaint of Black Democrats is that while the party is always asking for support, it doesn’t deliver tangible returns on African-American issues. Observers say that’s hard to do when the NCDP hasn’t been able to win the NC General Assembly back since 2010, has not won a U.S. Senate seat since 2008, has not helped elect a president since 2008, and in the 2022 midterm elections, didn’t even bother to put up a candidate in at least 40 House races, in addition to decisively losing the majority on the NC Supreme Court.

Post-2022 midterm election numbers show that among those who did not show up in sufficient numbers to make the difference, African-American Democrats led the way. This was especially troubling given that former NC Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley  lost an inspired bid to be elected the first Black woman elected the U.S. Senate from North Carolina.

While the picture for the 2024 presidential contest is still coming together (will the embattled Democrat President Joe Biden run for reelection with Vice Pres. Kamala Harris by his side? And will controversial Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis continue to undermine former Republican Pres. Donald Trump for the 2024 presidential nomination?), and the race for North Carolina governor is starting to shape up between expected candidates Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Democrat State Attorney General Josh Stein, there is no question that how strong the NC Democratic Party is going forward to 2024 will determine who wins these elections just around the corner.

And that’s why last weekend’s NCDP Executive Committee election of new leadership for the next two years was so important. The new chairperson, Anderson Clayton, 25 of Roxboro, currently the chair of the Person County Democratic Party, promised fresh, young, energetic and inclusive leadership in her bid to unseat former NC House member Bobbie Richardson, 73, the first African-American to chair the NCDP, and her leadership team which included former state Sen. Floyd McKissick Jr., 70,  as first vice chair.

Richardson had the backing of the state Democratic Party establishment, including Governor Roy Cooper, but to no avail.

A young white woman barely out of college, Ms. Clayton will now get her chance to prove her vision amid a daunting record of consistent electoral failure that has convinced the average NC Democrat that their party simply can’t win.

Not only must she adequately and efficiently mobilize the party’s resources to convince African-American Democrats, the most loyal base of the party, that their support means something, but she must also convince rural white voters throughout the state that her party is the one which has their best interests at heart.

The Republican Party in North Carolina has been wildly effective in convincing rural white voters that Democrats are liberals who just want to tax them blind, then spend their money to support so-called “woke” social policies like critical race theory that are cratering the country.

How can NCDP Chairwoman-elect Clayton succeed where other, more seasoned Democrat leaders have not remains to be seen. But if a July 2021 interview with the rural website  The Daily Yonder is any indication, Ms. Clayton’s reasoning for wanting to see more of a Democratic presence in rural North Carolina areas may give her leadership a fighting chance.

Clayton was 23 at the time of her remarks to The Daily Yonder, had graduated Appalachian State University in 2019, and then worked for the Kamala Harris’ and Elizabeth Warren 2020 presidential campaigns “in the cornfields of Iowa.” Doing so convinced her that what she was doing in rural Iowa could be done back home in rural Person County.

Ms. Clayton continued that the rural Democrat caucus voters of Iowa taught her that for them, “it was about people, not partisanship or politics.”

“They believed in having intentional conversations with folks that didn’t agree with them, because they knew it was about building a coalition of rural people to show that we live in these communities too, Clayton said. “And honestly, I had never seen anything like it. Growing up in Person County, no one ever said they were a Democrat out loud, and I knew if there were people like this in rural Iowa, there were people like this in rural North Carolina.”

Clayton continued, “I leaned into the Iowa experience, and realized that the way to make changes in places like where I grew up was to go home and actually organize there. Rural Iowans felt forgotten, and I was the first organizer they met who believed deeply in the possibilities of their communities.”

She also realized upon coming back home to rural North Carolina that she needed to “…organize in order to make Person County a place that young people with bright ideas don’t feel forced to leave, but instead want to come back home to.”

Later on in the interview, Ms. Clayton said disinformation, a lack of organizing and a lack of pride for what the Democratic Party stands for, are what is killing the party in rural areas. She made clear that organizing just can’t happen in those communities around election time, but year-round, 24/7.

“So, my issue is that when the Democratic Party abandoned rural America, they gave way to Republican fear mongering controlling our communities. County parties are supposed to be the grassroots, or the “local voice” of the Democratic Party. Yet in rural communities, Democratic county parties are struggling or non-existent, and have been since the national party diverted it’s attention from focusing efforts on organizing in rural America.”

Anderson Clayton isn’t under any illusion that it is going to take several election cycles before the NCDP will be able to turn rural North Carolina around. But to do that, Clayton haas outlined a five-point-plan she says can strengthen the party not only in rural areas, but across the state.

Reinvest in local county parties; establish a year-round presence and support in the community; funding a better NCDP; engaging Democrats for the future; and messaging what matters.

And Clayton dares to express a vision that goes beyond the 2024 elections.

“We need to prepare for an important date: Election Day 2030,” she says. “For Democrats to have a seat at the table when redistricting happens, we must have a plan to win back the NC General Assembly. Our job as a party is to prepare now to get us there.”

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HELP FOR LOW INCOME RESIDENTS

LOOKING FOR HOME HEATING 

BILL ASSISTANCE

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

Depending on where you live in North Carolina, your monthly bill to heat your home or apartment could be extremely high this winter as temperatures have hit the low 20’s and below in most areas. And if you’re low-income, your monthly home heating bill could cost hundreds of dollars, putting a strain on other utility costs to get through the rough winter.

That’s why if you’re low income, you should know about the resources available to help you pay your high heating bills so that you and your family don’t get cutoff.

Right now, thanks to a rate increase, more North Carolinians this winter are seeking help with their high heating bills. According to published reports, there has been a five percent increase (or over 117,000) in applications to the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) over this same time in 2022 statewide, reports the NC Dept. of Health and Human Services.

Based on your income, you can apply through March 31st (or until the funding runs out) for LIEAP funding to help with your heating bills. If granted, you will receive a one time grant in assistance. Applicants must meet income qualification requirements.

You are automatically qualified for LIEAP assistance if you participate in the SNAP food stamps program, TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) program, or receive Social Security benefits.

North Carolina has $125.3 million for its LIEAP program from a federal block grant. That funding is allocated to all 100 counties based on a formula that considers population and households that are receiving food stamp benefits.

If you need assistance, apply through your county LIEAP office. Call your local county Department of Social Services office, or go online, and enter your county, and then “LIEAP office” to find out where it is, how to contact it, and  how to obtain an application for home heating assistance.

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THE CASH STUFF FOR FEB. 9, 2023

 

ASSOCIATE JUSTICE MIKE MORGAN

                                                  NCCU LAW PROFESSOR IRVING JOYNER

GOP-LED NC SUPREME COURT

WILL” REHEAR” VOTING RIGHTS 

CASES IN MARCH

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer 

In the recent words of one North Carolina civil rights attorney, “The carnage at the NC Supreme Court has begun!!!”

The 5-2 Republican majority state Supreme Court began hearing arguments last week, and according to observers, there are strong indications that the High Court is prepared to erase several of the important decisions made by the Democrat 4-3 majority court last term.

In his recent analysis of the new Republican court majority, Irving Joyner, professor of law at North Carolina Central University School of Law in Durham said, “We can expect this newly minted North Carolina Supreme Court to reverse the recent voting rights and voter protection opinions which were recently decided by that Court. These political motivated reversals will be unprecedented in North Carolina law and cement the present Supreme Court, which will be in power for the next eight years, as a tool of right-wing conservative forces.

On Friday, against established precedent, the new GOP majority court voted to rehear two important voting rights cases already decided just a few months prior because Republican legislative leaders petitioned the court to do so.

The first to be reheard will be Holmes v. Moore, where the Democrat-led High Court on Dec. 16th decided to strike down the 2018 voter I.D. law passed by the Republican-led NC General Assembly because it was ruled racially discriminatory and thus, unconstitutional.

Observers say after rehearing arguments next month, expect the new state Supreme Court to rule that the 2018 voter ID is not racially discriminatory primarily because Republican legislative leaders say it isn’t.

Expect the same predicted outcome by the High Court after rehearing Harper v. Hall in March, where on Dec. 16th, the Democrat-led court agreed with plaintiffs that the second version of a 2020 congressional redistricting map, in addition to the state Senate voting map, “…violates the state’s constitutional guarantees of free, fair and honest elections, equal protection under the law , freedom of speech, and freedom of assembly “

The two African-American associate justices left on the NC Supreme Court now, Anita Earls and Michael Morgan, made clear in their written descents that rehearing the cases was highly improper, and smacked of politics.

“The allowance of this extraordinary remedy to petitioners in this case, under the existent circumstances, may serve to foment concerns that North Carolina’s highest state court is engaged in the determination of challenging and legitimate legal disputes with a perceived desire to reach outcomes which are inconsistent with this Court’s well-established principles of adherence to legal precedent, stare decisis, and the rule of law,” wrote Justice Morgan.

Justice Earls was also not pleased with the prospect of rehearing cases.

“The majority’s order fails to acknowledge the radical break with 205 years of history that the decision to rehear this case represents,” Earls wrote. “It has long been the practice of this Court to respect precedent and the principle that once the Court has ruled, that ruling will not be disturbed merely because of a change in the Court’s composition.”

“Indeed, data from the Supreme Court’s electronic filing system indicate that, since January 1993, a total of 214 petitions for rehearing have been filed, but rehearing has been allowed in only two cases,” she added. “It has been the understood practice of this Court that rehearing is not allowed solely because a Justice may have had a change of heart after the opinion in the case has been issued or because an opinion was controversial.”

However, Republican justices on the court saw no problem with the GOP petitions for rehearing the cases. All parties are now required to file briefs in preparation for March 14th rehearings.

Meanwhile, the Republican-led High Court heard arguments in two other cases of particular interest to African-Americans.

On Feb. 2, justices heard arguments in Community Success Initiative v. Moore, where Republican justices insisted that ex-felons can only earn back their voting rights as prescribed by an old 1970s law, a law that critics maintain was based on the intent to disenfranchise African-Americans from their voting rights and should be deemed unconstitutional.

A ruling is expected on that case shortly. 

And yesterday, the Supreme Court heard arguments on the constitutionality of prosecutors using race as a tool to eliminate Black prospective jurors from capital cases where Blacks are the defendants, in an effort to convict with an all-white jury.

Prof. Joyner says the new High Court is about to turn the clock back on hard fought for gains by African Americans.

“The newly constructed Supreme Court is in place today because African Americans, racial minorities and many other progressive voters failed to fully participate in the 2022 elections,” Joyner says. “When you don’t vote, you get the government that other people wish to be in control. As a result, efforts to protect civil and political rights will be more difficult than it has been since 1900 when “Jim Crow” forces seized control of all branches of the North Carolina government. “ 

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REP. SHEILA JACKSON - LEE

                                                         NIKOLE HANNAH-JONES

BEING BLACK IS BACK UNDER

ATTACK; WHAT’S BEING DONE

by Cash Michaels

An analysis

The cry from High Point College Republicans (HPCR) was compelling. 

The university had cancelled their scheduled big movie event. They were allegedly receiving threats of violence from classmates because of it.

The HPCR say they just wanted to contribute to a peaceful atmosphere of dialogue and discussion on campus by sponsoring the film.

On the face of it, one would naturally feel sorry for these college students….that is until you dig deeper, and discover that their cancelled movie event was a film by black conservative firebrand Candace Owens titled “The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd and the Rise of BLM (Black Lives Matter).”

The school reportedly cancelled the screening because the HPCR allegedly did not have the proper permission to publicly show it. It just came out last October.

The fact that conservative students at High Point University thought it would be fine to promote a controversial film that has the words  “greatest lie,” “George Floyd” and “BLM” in its title, understandably upset and provoked some Black students on campus, thus the threats.

But that’s just indicative of some of the political attacks that continue to be made on the Black community by conservative politicians and opinion-makers seeking to gin up their base as we head towards the 2024 elections.

Indeed, what happened in 2020-21 is also instructive.

Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones was initially denied a tenured position in the UNC Hussman Journalism School because of her work with the award winning NY Times 1619 Project. Conservatives in Congress also sought to ban the teaching of the 1619 Project from the nation’s schools.

After losing his reelection, then President Donald Trump claimed unproven voter fraud mostly in Black voting areas of Georgia and Pennsylvania. When his efforts failed, on January 6, 2021, hundreds of pro-Trump white supremacist rioters attacked the U.S. Capitol, hoping to disrupt the certification of Trump’s loss, and overturn the election.

In the meantime, communities across the country were embroiled in heated debates over the teaching of critical race theory, a college-level course of study that many white parents were misled to believe was being taught to middle and high schoolers.

Those events set the predicate for today, where a legislative aide to NC House Speaker Tim Moore had to be terminated after his “pro-white” background was revealed; two school districts in Alabama canceled Black History Month activities that featured NY Times bestselling children’s author Derrick Barnes; and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a rumored 2024 Republican presidential hopeful, just prohibited the teaching of the Advance Placement African American studies course in his state, saying that it lacked educational value, and would indoctrinate, instead of educate students.

Civil rights Attorney Benjamin Crump, under the banner of “Stop the Black attack,” threatened to sue Gov. DeSantis and the state of Florida if he doesn’t allow the AP African American Studies course to be taught in Florida classrooms. 

According to the Associated Press, “Florida is hoping its strict law regulating how race, gender, and sexuality are taught in school will soon be applied to students nationwide…”

Leon Russell, chairman of the national NAACP Board of Directors, called Gov. DeSantis’ actions the “politics of hatred and atheism,” adding, “We will not allow public officials to rip our part of American history out of textbooks, out of the classroom and out of the mouths of teachers.”

Black lawmakers in Congress also aren’t standing for the current onslaught on African-American people or their history.

Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Tx) reintroduced her “Leading Against White Supremacy Act,” which, if passed, would, “ prevent and prosecute white supremacy inspired hate crime and conspiracy to commit white supremacy inspired hate crime.”

Two of Jackson-Lee’s colleagues are demanding that African-American history not be diminished.

“Black history is American history, and it is under unprecedented attack,” Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) said after reintroducing a bill titled “the Black History is American History Act.” on Feb. 1st. “Black history is crucial to understanding the complexity of our nation’s past, present and future — not just slavery and civil rights. By incentivizing schools and educators to teach Black history in the classroom, we can all learn important lessons in our country’s ongoing journey toward creating a ‘more perfect Union’ for all Americans.”

“Black History is more important than ever,” echoed Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC-12) during remarks on the floor of the U.S. House February 1st. “If it weren’t so important, they wouldn’t try and stop us from teaching it.”

“We can’t afford to remove critical thinking from our curriculum,” Rep. Adams continued. “Our students won’t understand American history without understanding African American history - and those who don’t understand history are doomed to repeat it. That is why this February, all Americans must recommit to teaching Black history in our homes, in our schools, in our churches, on TV, on Twitter, and yes, even in the halls of Congress.”

“We must be unafraid to “say Black” and teach our history and heritage,” Adams, who says she believes every month should be Black History Month, continued. “Because if we don’t remember The Greensboro Four, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King, John Lewis, Hattie McDaniel, Frederick Douglass, Harriett and Dred Scott, Nat Turner, Harriett Tubman, and countless others, someday, somewhere, someone will have to endure what they endured to win yet again the rights and respect they fought for.”

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