Take action on executive orders.

Since his presidency began two weeks ago, President Biden has signed 26 executive orders to rewrite our political history and create a distinction between his and the previous administration. And in text, these statements are powerful. Four of them signed last Tuesday directly address racial equity, and cover topics you’ve seen in this newsletter: they stress the importance of land sovereignty for Indigenous communities, address anti-Asian sentiment due to COVID-19, reduce the use of private prisons, and acknowledge the role the federal government has played in discriminatory housing policy. The previous sentence links to previous newsletters. Read more about these orders on Politico.

Happy Thursday! And welcome back to the Anti-Racism Daily. Executive orders are meant to spark confidence in a new administration. But that can be performative if they're not emulated in policies and practices, or simply become revoked when there's a new President. We can't decide that for our nation's leaders, but we can certainly influence it. Today is a recommendation to channel the hope you're feeling into change by organizing on the local level. I've included the hopes and visions of our writers to help spark your own.

This newsletter is made possible by our subscribers. Consider subscribing for $7/month on Patreon. Or you can give one-time on our website, PayPal, or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). You can also support us by joining our curated digital community.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Get clear on your visions for this administration. What are you hoping this administration achieves in the next four years?
Read the executive orders published so far. All are available on whitehouse.gov.
Use our framework at the bottom of the article to start investigating how to take the executive orders you read into local action.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

Since his presidency began one week ago, President Biden has signed 26 executive orders to rewrite our political history and create a distinction between his and the previous administration. And in text, these statements are powerful. Four of them signed last Tuesday directly address racial equity, and cover topics you’ve seen in this newsletter: they stress the importance of land sovereignty for Indigenous communities, address anti-Asian sentiment due to COVID-19, reduce the use of private prisons, and acknowledge the role the federal government has played in discriminatory housing policy. The previous sentence links to previous newsletters. Read more about these orders on Politico.

Because our team has spent much of our newsletter’s history writing about these disparities, I wanted to hear from them about their hopes for the upcoming administration. Here are their thoughts:

While the abject cruelties of the last administration may pass, I think it’s important to hold on to the reality that racism, Islamophobia, and brutal state violence didn’t start with Trump and won’t end with him, either. Trump’s term was a time of repression and violence but of courageous resistance as well. My hope is that during the next four years, we can continue to manifest dignified, beautiful rebellion as we work together to craft a world that fits all of us.

– Andrew Lee

I want to see student loan forgiveness, accessible healthcare for all, foundational criminal justice reform, the beginnings of reparations to the Black and Indigenous communities and more; I want to see it and not just hear about the possibility of it. And I want to see people continuously demanding more of their local, state and national representatives, even when it isn’t trending anymore.

– Shayna Conde

I would like to see the Biden-Harris Administration combat drug addiction. As a recovering cocaine addict, my experience with prison-based rehab was very dispiriting, and didn't work for me. There isn't one shoe that fits all when it comes to combating drug addiction. And for Black people entering prison-based rehab, we are required to submit to the broken-self narrative. Even if it means saving a life, it can be a barrier getting Black people to admit to white authority figures that we are morally and emotionally broke and need white men to manage our lives.

– darryl robertson

I am looking forward to more BIPOC leadership at all levels of government from Madam Vice President to Senator-elect Raphael Warnock to take their rightful place in the White House and other areas of government. I am hopeful that as we see more diverse leadership, our policies will begin to reflect and prioritize the needs of communities in the U.S. including BIPOC, the LGBTQA, disability community, the elderly. Lastly, I am hopeful for a clear COVID-19 plan, a plan that was nonexistent prior to Biden's inauguration. Wishing for a new year of healing and invigoration.

– Kayla Hui

On Twitter, writer Kim Tran (@but_im_kim_tran) said: "If the rights of the marginalized can be diminished and reestablished in the space of years/hours, they are not inalienable, they are subject to state power and the real work is to free ourselves from a framework that would treat our humanity as such." I thought that described the problem so well. My hope is that over the next four years we will not grow complacent under a Democratic administration, but use our collective power to dismantle this framework piece by piece.

– Jami Nakamura Lin

I'll be honest: a Biden-Harris administration is both fearful and relieving to me. Even with a Democrat-controlled Congress and Executive branch, the battle for progressive policies like universal health care, erasing student loan debt, abolishing ICE and defunding the police seem so far off. But after an election with such a massive voter turnout, I am hopeful that all of the people who've joined this fight won't turn their backs on us and are in this for the long haul. Trump was a symptom of years of white supremacy and capitalism, so now more than ever, we must mobilize for a better future.

– Olivia Harden

National organizers see these executive orders as just the beginning. Black Lives Matter Movement co-founder Patrisse Cullors sees President Biden’s executive orders on racial equity as “a nod,” but emphasizes that "there's so much more to do and we will push this administration to do it” (MSNBC).

And Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson, co-executive director of the Highlander Research and Education Center, emphasizes that all of this was because of organizers on the ground fighting for change. “This is not just because of his good graces, but movement made it possible that racial equity is prioritized in the executive branch of our government”. She notes that the work is a step forward, and that “this is the floor, not the ceiling” (Democracy Now).

As Jami said above, the worst thing that we can do is become complacent. So, in the spirit of Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson, I encourage us all to put these executive orders into action in our own communities. As you continue to review the executive orders in the coming days and weeks, consider:

Who is exemplifying this work in my local community?

What policies and practices need to be implemented here to align with these national initiatives?

Where are the existing support services in my community already doing this work?

How can I contribute to this work? How can I cause unnecessary harm?

Why is this work so critical to move forward now, not tomorrow?

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.

Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza

Nicole Cardoza 11/9/20 Nicole Cardoza 11/9/20

Support the Georgia Senate runoffs.

Happy Monday and welcome back! This weekend, Joe Biden became President, bringing many people an exhale four years overdue. Many of you emailed me the same question: what now?

Now, the work begins again. We may soon be free from Donald Trump's tweets, but we are far from free. "Going back to normal" is still a world where Black people are killed by cops, where rising income inequality is forcing people from our homes, and a global pandemic threatens our way of life. The majority of white people in the U.S. voted for Trump, and it was the turnout of Black, Latinx and Indigenous folx that carried key states blue. Our work is unchanged. There is just one less obstacle in the way.

This is the Anti-Racism Daily, where we send one email each day to dismantle white supremacy. You can support our work by giving one time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). You can also give monthly or annually on Patreon. If this email was forwarded to you, you could subscribe at antiracismdaily.com.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Volunteer for both Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock. Many opportunities available for those outside GA and under the age of 18!
Donate to Fair Fight PAC, a nationwide group founded by Stacey Abrams that combats voter suppression and promotes “free and fair elections” in GA.
Donate to the Black Voters Matter organization, which is focused on voter registration and turnout for the Black community.
Georgia residents: Sign up to be a poll worker for the runoff election. Give those poll workers from the election a break!

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

There are two Senate seats up for a runoff election in January. If Democrats win both, we will have a 50/50 Senate split and a Democratic VP making tie-breaking decisions (NPR). This political power could make both a lasting and immediate impact. Some key issues have been stalled in the Senate, like the second round of coronavirus relief (Vox), that could pass more swiftly. To do this, we need to win both seats in the run-off election in Georgia.

The rise of support for the Democratic governors, particularly as mail-in ballots were counted, was energizing. But as the votes trickled in, one thing was clear: both races were so close that neither of the candidates would reach majority-rule (or 50%) for victory (NPR). This means that both races are going into a runoff election, a second election to determine an ultimate winner (Ballotpedia).

The concept of runoff elections may be new to you. Georgia is one of only a few states that require voters in an election to reach a specific threshold before winning. Most of these states are in the South. And "fun" fact, runoff elections were designed specifically for white leaders to maintain power as the voter block diversified.

The runoff system was implemented in Georgia in the 1960s, an effort led by state representative Denmark Groover. Groover was a bit salty from losing an election in 1958 – although he carried the white vote, Black people voted for his opponent by a 5-1 margin. This demonstrated that, as usual throughout history, Black people overall tend to support one progressive candidate, whereas white people split their vote between many (Vox).

Afraid of the power this could give to Black people, Groover pushed for runoffs so that, even if Black people chose one candidate that was counter to the white vote, their majority wouldn't be enough to win (Vox). According to someone on his team, Groover was worried that "the Negroes and the pressure groups and special interests are going to manipulate this State and take charge if we don’t go for the majority vote" (Vox).

But Groover didn't come up with this idea on his own. Runoff elections were implemented in several Southern states to maintain the overwhelmingly Democratic (now Republican) control. At that time, Black people were rallying for their right to vote – despite deep voter suppression through literacy tests, poll taxes, etc. Meanwhile, the Populist Party was growing in popularity, too, and could split voters further. The Populist Party often shared the Democrats' view on race, though, and documents from that time indicate that the fears of Democrats then mirrored those of Groover: racial domination was key (Washington Post).

An important exception: Arkansas implemented runoff voting in the 1930s specifically to keep Klan members from winning primaries (Washington Post).

The DOJ sued to overturn the runoff system in 1900, but the motion was unsuccessful. Although the judges noted that race played a factor in its implementation, it's difficult to discern whether outcomes would be objectively better for Black voters if majority-rule weren't in place (Vox). But, if it weren't in place for this election, David Purdue would have won (with 49.7% of the vote, which is higher than Ossoff's 47.9% but still less than 50%), and we wouldn't have this opportunity to even the Senate.

So, let's take this opportunity and make the most of it. The presidential race results in Georgia were influenced by the outpouring of support from non-white communities and youth (NYTimes). This offers a blueprint for winning this election – doubling-down on those efforts and securing as many new voters as possible.

Winning these elections also prevents the two Republican senators, both with racist values and beliefs, from joining the senate. Kelly Loeffler, running against Rev. Raphael Warnock, has been adamant about her dislike of the Black Lives Matter movement (Washington Post). And David Purdue purposefully mocked Kamala Harris' name at a Trump rally (CNN) and ran an anti-Semitic ad against his opponent, Jon Ossoff (Politico).

The runoff election will be held on January 5, 2021. The deadline for voter registration is December 7, 2020. Early voting starts December 14, 2020. The time to act is now.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The two Senate races in Georgia are moving into a runoff election. If both Democrats win, we could have 50/50 representation in the Senate.
Georgia is one of only a few states that require voters in an election to reach a specific threshold before winning.
Runoff elections have been used throughout history for southern white conservatives to maintain racial power.

RELATED ISSUES

11/3/2020 | Vote.

11/2/2020 | Make an election safety plan.

10/6/2020 | Be afraid of COVID-19.

10/1/2020 | Vote Trump out of office.

9/27/2020 | Protect the polls.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 11/3/20 Nicole Cardoza 11/3/20

Vote.

Hi there. Happy Tuesday. It's a monumental day. And, it's a day all the same. I'm obviously going to tell you to vote today But before we go there, take a deep breath in through your nose, and out through your mouth. Unclench your jaw, roll your shoulders up and back. Wiggle out the hips. Great! We can show up today for the nation, and for ourselves.

In our first episode of the Anti-Racism Daily podcast, I chatted with people who aren't showing up today. And noted how insidious voter disillusionment has become. We have a lot of work to do, and it starts today. Listen here >

This is the Anti-Racism Daily, where we send one email each day to dismantle white supremacy. You can support our work by giving one time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). You can also donate monthly or annually on Patreon. If this email was forwarded to you, you could subscribe at antiracismdaily.com.

TAKE ACTION

Vote. You can still register to vote today in 21 states at your polling station.
Double-check to see if your absentee ballot was received. Here are links to do so by state >
If your ballot is marked as not received, the next steps differ based on your state. Check with your local election office for next steps. Here's the link >
Call 1-866-OUR-VOTE if you or anyone you know experiences voter suppression, harassment or other issues when trying to vote
Make an election safety plan to support your community today and in the weeks to come.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

I need you to show up today. Our nation is at a crossroads. And the most urgent action we can take right now (if we have been granted the right) to transform this nation is to vote in the U.S. Presidential election.

And it's critically important that we vote our current President out of office. Donald Trump has used racism, xenophobia, sexism, homophobia, and ableism to divide this nation. He has sparked deep distrust of our political system and will fight this election's results if they do not work in his favor. We have written about how his racism has directly caused violence against people of color and sparked a rise in white nationalism. Twice. He will only continue to unravel our most basic rights to safety and freedom.

Political analyst Mehdi Hasan has a two-minute video summarizing more of his atrocities over his administration.

But if that's not enough to convince you to vote, vote for the people that can't: for the millions of people who cannot vote because of voter suppression, whether through voter registration, access to polls, and ballot counting. Rally for those whose ballots might be thrown away or may not arrive on time, and for the 5.2 million that can't because of a felony conviction. Vote for the people that can't take off work, have to care for their kids, or can't find transportation tomorrow. And, for the immigrants who can't, despite all they bring to this country.

As of November 1, we have lost 230,000 lives in the U.S. to COVID-19. If you still aren't convinced to vote, do it for them – and the frontline workers, the families that can no longer afford to stay in their homes, the people with disabilities and those immunocompromised that can't access medical care, the long-haulers that may never fully recover, the kids out of school, the people struggling with the physical and mental toll of quarantine – addiction, violence, domestic abuse.

Vote for the 545 children who can't find their parents, and all those detained in ICE detention centers. Vote for the 6500+ Black people killed by the police. Vote for the whales and the forests – actually, vote for the whole damn planet. Vote for those who came before us to protect our right to participate – and vote for those who follow. Vote for abolition. Vote for transformation. Vote for tomorrow.

Vote for you. Vote for me. Vote for us.

Vote.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Vote.
Don't vote for Trump.
Vote for the future.

RELATED ISSUES

10/1/2020 | Vote Trump out of office.

9/27/2020 | Protect the polls.

9/23/2020 | Reject the modern-day poll tax.

6/24/2020 | Fight voter suppression.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 11/2/20 Nicole Cardoza 11/2/20

Make an election safety plan.

Good morning and happy Monday. Because of the weight of this election on the safety and health of the U.S., we'll be following updates as it unfolds and offering ways you can take action. I hope that today's newsletter gives you a broader approach to organizing to prepare for whatever's ahead.

This is the Anti-Racism Daily, where we send one email each day to dismantle white supremacy. You can support our work by giving one time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). You can also donate monthly or annually on Patreon. If this email was forwarded to you, you could subscribe at antiracismdaily.com.

ps – if you can, vote.

TAKE ACTION

Go through the Safety Checklist for November and make your plan. You can go to File > Make a Copy to create your own editable version without bothering the organizers that created it!
Encourage your family, friends and colleagues do the same.
Take care of yourself this week.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

Regardless of who wins in tomorrow's election, it's likely that the coming weeks will be chaotic.

Activists and extremists alike from both the right and the left fear what could happen this election and are preparing for what's to come (The Atlantic). As a result, businesses are hiring security. Streets are boarding up their storefronts. Gun sales are up. And police departments are staffing up. And although a tiny percentage of people actually support violence, it doesn't take many incite it (more on this via Brookings).

It's important to note how this violence is likely to most impact marginalized communities – the essential workers that don't have a choice not to go to work. The low-wage workers that aren't given Election Day off. The people of color most likely to be targeted by racial violence from the right. The people that rely on public transportation that could be disrupted by protests. If you have the privilege not to be directly impacted by the election violence, it is your responsibility to protect their well-being.

This isn't meant to fear-monger. I simply want us all to prepare how best to respond. This year has been filled with catastrophes for the U.S., often with little or no time to prepare; the first wave of COVID-19 was mismanaged by our government, causing cases to skyrocket and responses to feel jumbled and disorganized. The rise of protests in response to the murder of George Floyd happened immediately (although not without warning; if you've been attuned to the decades of unchecked police brutality in the U.S., you were likely unsurprised).

The small glimmer of hope I see this time around is that we have precious time to prepare a response. So, let's do so. Planning for the election is not just exercising your right to vote (if you have one) or your way to contribute if you couldn't vote. It shouldn't be your default response when participating in our democratic process. But it needs to be today – and honestly, we should be

The first part of preparing is to prepare yourself. This is not to center your needs above those more marginalized. This is about ensuring you are resourced enough to do the most. Make your self-care plan.

Then get clarity on what it looks like to protect your community. The checklist offers ways to help from a wide range of perspectives: you can organize politically to defend polling sites, passing out food and water in places with long lines, or offer rides to people in your community. You can organize logistically by offering food, money, and other tangibles to those worried about leaving their homes in the coming weeks. You can also get prepared to participate or defend any protests that may unfold in the weeks ahead. The checklist includes links to upcoming trainings and virtual gatherings you can join – and I recommend subscribing for future events that may be scheduled as things unfold.

If anything, perhaps this plan will bring you and your community some ease and relief as the weeks unfold. But at most, it can save lives. Whatever you do, an extra day of planning won't hurt. In addition, this plan can act as a helpful template for other issues that may arise outside of the election, like an environmental disaster, looming COVID-19 lockdowns, or other political unrest. Regardless of our political beliefs, we must remember that we are all in this together. Violence this election serves no one. Commit to serving your community with love and solidarity.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

State and local governments, organizers, activists and extremists are worried about election violence over the coming weeks
Creating a plan is critical for your self-care, but to support and protect the people around you – especially those most marginalized
Take some time to prepare now, and keep this election safety checklist in your back pocket for whenever a response to crisis is needed

RELATED ISSUES

10/1/2020 | Vote Trump out of office.

9/27/2020 | Protect the polls.

9/23/2020 | Reject the modern-day poll tax.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 10/6/20 Nicole Cardoza 10/6/20

Be afraid of COVID-19.

With over 208,000 people lost and 7.5M reported cases, yesterday the President told the American people not to “be afraid of COVID-19”. This tweet was sent after the President was rushed to the hospital after contracting COVID-19 last week, likely at a White House event where most participants did not wear masks or properly social distance.

Currently, the news cycle is laser-focused on how a small and exclusive group of rich, powerful white people contracted COVID-19. Yet during that time, hundreds of thousands of everyday people have, too. The resurgence of the virus across the U.S. is discomforting, to say the least. But being afraid of a global pandemic that's ravaging the country and exposing its systemic inequities is a much more compassionate response than apathy or greed. Today, we unpack why it's critical we take this virus – and the disparities it illuminates – seriously as we head to the holidays.

Remember, you can always switch from a daily newsletter to a weekly digest (sent on Saturdays) by updating your profile information here.

Your support helps sustain this daily, free newsletter. Thanks to you, we can write about what matters, and center the voices of people of color that are often overlooked in the media industry. Make a contribution on our website, PayPal, Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe monthly on Patreon. Thank you!

Nicole

ps – the title isn't to spark fear, but solidarity. Please remember how many lives are at stake beyond your own.

TAKE ACTION

Find a local mutual aid network in your community that you can support through the winter.
Double-down on your preventative practices where possible: wear your mask, maintain physical distance, wash your hands, and stay home when you’re feeling sick.
Vote for state and federal candidates that take COVD-19 seriously.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

With over 208,000 people lost and 7.5M reported cases, the President told the American people not to “be afraid of COVID-19” on Twitter. This tweet was sent after the President was sent to the hospital after contracting COVID-19 last week, likely at an event at the White House where most participants did not wear masks or properly social distance. Since that event, over a dozen senior staffers and many more staff members have positively tested for COVID-19 (NYTimes).

If all that irony wasn’t enough, the President’s tweet shortly followed new evidence from the CDC that COVID-19 can “travel distances beyond six feet,” acknowledging that the virus can be “spread by airborne transmission“ indoors with inadequate ventilation (CDC).

This is major. The organization had made this statement earlier this month, but retracted it quickly, saying that a draft was posted in error (Forbes). And for months prior, hundreds of experts from around the world were pressing the organization to acknowledge the possibility of airborne infections to no avail (NYTimes). Although it’s unclear what the hesitation has been to draw short of calling it airborne, this acknowledgment may prompt much more stringent adherence to preventative measures.

And we need to be vigilant now more than ever. With over 43,000 cases a day, the U.S. has reached its highest daily contract rate of the disease than in the past two months (NYTimes). Twenty-one states have seen a rise in cases (CNN), and the average number of people hospitalized for coronavirus in a week rose recently for the first time since July (Covid Tracking Project).

As we’ve reported repeatedly throughout the past three months, the racial disparities of the impact of COVID-19 are significant. The latest from a Senate committee report shows that Black people are dying from COVID-19 at 3.4 times the rate of white people, and the disease is the cause of 1 in 5 deaths among Latinx. In addition, American Indian or Alaska Native patients are 4x more likely to be hospitalized than white people (NPR). And although many states and major cities acknowledged racism as a public health crisis and created various taskforces and initiatives to help offset the disproportionate impact, critics are skeptical on how effective these initiatives have been (WTTW).

As the weather cools across the country and people head indoors, there’s already an increased likelihood for the virus to spread. With the latest news from the CDC, it’s presumable that chances to catch the virus may increase. Already, we’re spending more time in close proximity: many people have returned back to offices, schools and daycares, and 39% of Americans plan to travel this holiday season (Hopper). And as we enter flu season, health officials are warning of a “twindemic,” where flu-like symptoms may mask symptoms of COVID-19, or weaken immune systems to make people more susceptible to catching both. The flu is also likely to take up valuable space in doctors’ offices and hospitals, which could greatly hinder a state’s ability to respond to a COVID-19 outbreak (NYTimes).

But we shouldn’t only be afraid of ourselves – or each other – contracting the virus. We need to fear the impact it’s having on our lives and our livelihood. Consider employment: as of this month, over 2.4M people have been out of work for six months, which constitutes long-term employment (Bureau of Labor Statistics). But more damaging: at least 5M more people will be unemployed long-term by the end of the year. Entire industries, like hospitality and travel, are struggling to return. Companies that have shifted to remote learning may never go back to offices. Over 3M people have lost their health insurance since the pandemic started, leaving them vulnerable to future potential illnesses (Forbes). And eviction moratoriums, student loan and mortgage forbearances, and other graces provided to those in need are unlikely to last forever. Our foundation is crumbling quickly and has already eroded for too many people.

Most urgently, we need to fear political leaders that are not afraid of COVID-19. We cannot afford to continue to respond to the health, social, and economic impact of this pandemic in such a careless way. Our future depends on leaders that can acknowledge and swiftly respond to this crisis – let alone the ones that may come next. Protect those around you – especially those most vulnerable – by doing your part to decrease the virus’s spread and the misinformation our President promotes.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Over 208,000 people have lost their lives due to COVID-19, and another 75M have contracted it.
New CDC guidelines warn that the virus can be spread airborne indoors
Despite efforts, there's still a wide range in racial disparities of contracting and surviving from COVID-19
We must continue to acknowledge the growing threat of COVID-19 as we head into fall and towards an upcoming election

RELATED ISSUES

9/16/2020 | Fight for paid sick leave.

9/6/2020 | Protect the aging population from COVID-19.

8/23/2020 | Support those incarcerated and impacted by COVID-19.

8/16/2020 | Think before eating out.

8/9/2020 | Understand the unemployment gap | COVID-19

7/27/2020 | Support Asian Americans through COVID-19.

7/19/2020 | Rally for representation in science and research: COVID-19 and CDC.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 10/1/20 Nicole Cardoza 10/1/20

Vote Trump out of office.

Hi everyone,

Yesterday was a tough day. I sat down to write an email about the debate and the news that's unfolded since, but realized that I've already written it. In fact, the current news is four years (and decades more) in the making. Trump did not condemn white supremacy Tuesday night. And he hasn't condemned it throughout his presidency. In fact, he's encouraged it.

Today's email is an adaptation of what I sent back in June when Trump shared a white power message on his Twitter. It outlines just a little of the terror white supremacy has inflicted in this country. As you read, consider how you can counter the hateful rhetoric you may hear beyond the debates. Racism doesn't end when Trump is out of office. Ending it starts with tough conversations with your friends and family.

Thank you for all your support! As always, you can support the newsletter by giving one-time on PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe monthly on Patreon.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Vote for Biden/Harris this upcoming election. Remember: not voting is a vote for Trump.
Join #DefeatbyTweet, an initiative where you can donate $0.02 every time Trump tweets (about $18/mo) to Justice Fund, a group of Black-led grassroots political organizations working in swing states to get people to vote.
Have a conversation with a Trump supporter you know about this newsletter.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

At the first presidential debate Tuesday night, Trump chose not to condemn white supremacy (Blavity). But if you've been listening, you may not have been surprised: Trump has actively supported white supremacy throughout his presidency.

Take for example, on Sunday, June 28, President Trump retweeted (and deleted) a video of a Trump supporter yelling "white power," thanking the "great people" in the footage (via NPR). After the tweet was deleted, White House spokesman Judd Deere released a statement that “President Trump is a big fan of The Villages [the community where the video was filmed]. He did not hear the one statement made on the video. What he did see was tremendous enthusiasm from his many supporters" (via AP News).

Before we start, I need to make one thing clear: President Trump is racist. This is not up for debate in my inbox. Whether he has deep-seated beliefs that white people are the superior race, incites racism solely for his political agenda, or is consistently unintentionally racist makes no difference to me. When it comes to this work, it shouldn't matter to you. These types of arguments center Trump's character instead of the social and political harm he creates. And as we discussed in an earlier newsletter, impact, not intent, needs to be our focus as we dismantle white supremacy. He is also bigoted, sexist, islamophobic, homophobic, and xenophobic (to name a few), and the intersectionality of these often come into play in his rhetoric. No anti-racism work includes voting for Trump in 2020.

The tweet mentioned above follows a series of hateful comments and actions from Trump over the past few weeks – and frankly, the past few years – which feel in strict defiance of the movement reshaping our nation. Remember that feelings on racism are rapidly shifting left in America (NYTimes)! Meanwhile, just over half of America considered him racist back in 2019 (USA Today). Here's a running list of Trump's hateful commentary since the 1970s (Vox).

I don't want to say that one comment is "worse" than another because they're all terrible. But sharing and thanking someone for saying "white power" is egregious. The term "white power" is a popular phrase used by “white supremacists,” people that believe that white is the dominant race and should have power over other races (more via ADL).

Side note: the Anti-Defamation League has a glossary of definitions on terms you'll see reflected here and in the articles I've referenced. Read more >

The slogan was chosen a counter-rally to the term "Black power," a positive phrase used by activists during the Civil Rights Movement. It united not just those uncomfortable with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 but also the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (Southern Poverty Law Center). But the white power movement grew to become not just a racially-motivated organization, but a politically-motivated one. Kathleen Belew, author of The White Power Movement and Paramilitary America, cites that the Vietnam War was a significant motivator to organizing and activating this group against one enemy – the government.

Remember that up to this point, the government was actually the ones purporting racist policies. It relied on like-minded vigilantes that were willing and able "to reinforce official policies like slavery and Jim Crow" (NYTimes). The Civil Rights Movement was received as a threat; it demonstrated that the country was adopting more equitable views, and allowing more power and privileges to non-white communities.

This group took arms against the government in smaller, isolated incidents, but culminated in the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing. Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, and other anti-government racists parked a truck of explosives under the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building’s daycare, killing 168 people – including 19 children leaving hundreds more injured (History). The Oklahoma City bombing was "the worst terrorist attack to take place on U.S. soil" until 9/11. The youngest survivor of the attack is 26 years old, and his family reflects on the experience in The Buffalo News.

“Ideologies are sometimes not just ideologies. They result in awful actions and we need to be vigilant about that.”

Dennis Purifoy, survivor of the Oklahoma City Bombing, for the NYTimes

When the protests over the murder of George Floyd began in June, many cities started to question whether white supremacists have been intentionally disrupting the demonstrations from the past month, inciting violence and looting (examples from NBC Chicago, NYTimes, and CBS News). The unrest aligns with a critical white supremacist concept called "accelerationism" – inciting and encouraging violence to draw more people into a war (Brookings).

One of these groups is the Proud Boys, a male-only far-right organization that was most prominent at Portland’s protests. They see themselves as a counter to the “terrorist group Antifa” and often arrive at protests carrying firearms and donned in body armor to support the President, law, and order, and police (CNN). Their chairman, Enrique Tarrio, says that the group does not discriminate (Tarrio himself is Cuban American). However, the group consistently centers misogynistic, Islamophobic, anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant views in their approach to "reinstating a spirit of Western chauvinism” (CNN). Tarrio said he interpreted "stand back and stand by" to mean that they should just keep doing what they're doing. He also made t-shirts with the words “Proud Boys Stand By” in honor of the President’s remarks (Blavity).

There is no justification for the racist rhetoric Trump shares. Inciting violence and terror as a president encourages others to repeat the violence and terror of our past. Our democracy doesn’t deserve another four years of this.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Trump has a long history of hateful and racist rhetoric.
Throughout our history, government officials have encouraged white supremacists to spew violence.
And the rise of violence from far-right groups like the Proud Boys is simiilar.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 9/27/20 Nicole Cardoza 9/27/20

Protect the polls.

It's Sunday! I've paused our weekly COVID-19 reporting to bring you more ways to take action this election. Last week, we discussed the importance of a diverse justice system. Today, Jami takes us into the racial bias that affects our polls.

For a more historical view on the importance of protecting the polls, I highly recommend you read our reporting on voter suppression and the legacy of Rep. John Lewis. In addition, last week's piece on the modern-day poll tax only emphasizes this issue. Let me know if you sign up to be a poll worker!

Thank you for your contributions. If you enjoy this newsletter, you can give one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe for $5/mo on our Patreon.

– Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Sign up to be a poll worker. Requirements differ from state to state, but positions are paid and usually require working on Election Day plus additional training. Go to workelections.com and select your state for more information.
Serve as a voting resource. Read up on voting rules and regulations in your county. Push out accurate information on early voting, absentee voting, etc. on social media. Make sure your friends know they can come to you with any questions!
Push for your workplace to make Election Day a paid holiday.

GET EDUCATED

By Jami Nakamura Lin (she/her)

We’re less than two months away from Tuesday, November 3rd— Election Day. In many states, we’re fast approaching the deadline to register to vote. We recommend checking out Slate’s comprehensive guide on the best way to vote in every state, which includes not only all deadlines and rules for voter registration and mail-in voting, but also recommendations on which method of voting will most ensure your vote will actually be counted. Unfortunately, as our past newsletters on voter suppression and Trump’s attacks on mail-in voting have shown, our government doesn’t make it easy for us to vote, or for those votes to be counted accurately.

This year, the lack of poll workers will make it even more difficult for people to vote. During the pandemic, many poll workers—the bulk of whom are over 60 years old (U.S. Election Assistance Commission)—are staying away. Election officials are scrambling to find younger people to fill the gaps, as the lack of poll workers has already hindered many state’s primaries (NPR). On the April 7 primary in Milwaukee—a city that usually has 180 polling places— officials only had enough workers to staff five, leading to extremely long wait times (CNN). This disproportionately affected the city’s large Black population (Business Insider). Even in normal, non-pandemic years, Black and Latinx people wait almost 50% longer than white voters (Brennan Center).

Without enough polling places, people with the least access are the most likely to be deterred from voting. It’s hard to vote if you don’t have a car, and this year, you have to go across town instead of walking a couple of blocks to your polling place. It’s hard to vote if you can’t get time off work, or if you have a kid, and this year you have to wait in line for two hours. This is why having enough poll workers so important—because the deficit disproportionately disadvantages low-income voters and voters of color (The Atlantic).

Poll workers also individually can influence who actually gets to cast a ballot. Before, I didn’t realize that they had any authority; I thought that their duties were just administrative or clerical. But research shows that even though election workers don’t make the voting rules, they can influence how those rules are actually implemented. Poll workers, election officials, and county recorders often have discretion in what kind of minor errors in voter forms or registrations they can decide to let slide or not. Studies show that election workers enforce the rules unevenly, and the decisions often come down to racial bias (Michigan Journal of Race and Law).

In Big Horn County, Montana, officials made the voter registration process more complicated and technical for Indigenous voters than for white voters. Election workers looked for minor errors to use as excuses to deny the Indigenous voters’ registrations (Windy Boy v. County of Big Horn). Another report from Arizona showed that Indigenous voters were often “placed… on ‘suspense lists’ (similar to inactive lists) when the recorder was not satisfied that an applicant sufficiently clarified his or her address. There are few guidelines on what should constitute an adequate address in Arizona; instead, it is left to the recorder’s discretion and may be influenced by implicit bias” (Michigan Journal of Race and Law).

Similarly, the ACLU discovered that “black and Latino voters in Florida were more than two times as likely to have their mail-in ballots rejected as white voters—because of a mix of voter error and how the state processes ballots” (The Atlantic). But blaming these rejections as “voter error” is a way officials can blame the voters themselves without taking into account the inequality in voter information access. Even when voters ask the right questions, they might not get the right answers depending on their race.

In a study from before the 2012 election, researchers sent almost two thousand emails to legislators in 14 states, feigning to be constituents unsure if they could vote without a driver’s license. Half the emails were signed “Jacob Smith”; the other half were signed “Santiago Rodriguez.” None of the states actually required an ID, but legislators that supported voter ID laws responded to “Jacob Smith” much more than “Santiago Rodriguez.” Even legislators that didn’t support ID laws responded more frequently to the white-appearing name, though the difference was not as large (Legislative Studies Quarterly). These reports and studies show how people of color face barriers in voting – not only from our unjust voter suppression laws but also from clerical and administrative workers all throughout the voting process.

Voting is a tactic and should just be one aspect in our fight for equity and justice, alongside protests, community organizing, and other types of activism. But if you are willing and able, you can apply to be a poll worker by going to workelections.com and clicking your state. I just sent in my application here in Illinois. Am I nervous about the coronavirus risk? Yes. But I’m more nervous about voter disenfranchisement, and I will take all the precautions I can. If you can’t be a poll worker, help other people vote. Study up on all the voting regulations in your county and serve as an information hub for your family, friends, and social media feed. And of course, make sure your registration is accurate and up-to-date.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

At polling places, Black and Latinx voters wait in line almost 50% longer than voters (Brennan Center).
We don’t have enough poll workers this year because of coronavirus. A lack of poll workers disproportionately affects voting access for people of color. (You can sign up to be a poll worker via workelections.com!)
Research shows that officials are more likely to reject voter registrations and mail-in ballots from voters of color (Michigan Journal of Race and Law).
Voting is one tactic among many. No matter who wins, we cannot stop our fight for racial equity and justice.

9/9/2020 | Make the census count.

9/7/2020 | Learn about critical race theory.

8/4/2020 | Protect the right to vote by mail.

7/21/2020 | Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 9/23/20 Nicole Cardoza 9/23/20

Reject the modern-day poll tax.

Yesterday was National Voter Registration Day. And today there are still millions of people who can't vote in the U.S. this upcoming election. As part of our ongoing series on covering various forms of voter suppression, today we're analyzing how the modern-day poll tax disincentivizes people to vote.

Today's article – written by Jami – centers the voter disenfranchisement in Florida and the work of the FRRC. If you can do one thing today, share their work using the action items below.

Thank you for your contributions! If you enjoy this newsletter, you can give one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe for $5/mo on our Patreon.

– Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Donate to the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition’s We Got the Vote fund. 100% of these tax-deductible donations will help returning citizens pay their court fines so they can vote and fully participate in their communities.
Listen to Voting Rights for Returning Citizens episode of The Returning Citizen podcast, which explains the issue in a national context.
Read through the ACLU Florida’s collection of actions to fight racism and white supremacy in the state. Choose one or more to participate in.

GET EDUCATED

By Jami Nakamura Lin (she/her)

On Friday, September 11th, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld SB 7066, Florida’s law requiring returning citizens to pay off their court debts before being able to register to vote (NPR). (The term returning citizen refers to people with prior convictions, in this case felony convictions specifically.) The law blocks almost 800,000 potential voters, a disproportionate number of whom are Black (The Guardian). In other words, it’s a poll tax—a fee one must pay in order to vote—and like the Jim Crow era poll taxes, it’s specifically designed to suppress the votes of low-income and Black citizens. But here in 2020, the poll tax is back again.

That this is happening in Florida is relevant. Florida is not only a swing state, but also considered one of the presidential race’s primary battlegrounds (FiveThirtyEight). It also has a history of poll taxes (Richmond University). People convicted of felonies were not allowed to vote until Floridians overwhelmingly passed a referendum restoring those voting rights in 2018, enfranchising 1.4 million people (NYTimes), including one in every five Black adults (Sentencing Project). In a swing state, 1.4 million potential votes matter a lot; in 2012, Obama beat Romney in Florida by just 74,000 votes—an 0.88% margin (St. Augustine Record).

Just eight months after these voting rights were restored, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed the new law requiring payment of court debts (Washington Post). This was a way to again disenfranchise the same population without explicitly saying so, as 774,000 of those 1.4 million owe debt, according to a University of Florida report (Courthouse News).

This May, a federal judge determined that DeSantis’s law was unconstitutional, but now the 11th Circuit Court has overturned that decision, making it valid again. Florida’s system also makes it difficult to know how much these potential voters owe, or how much they’ve already paid, as Slate outlines. The case could wind its way to the Supreme Court, but that takes time, and the Florida voter registration deadline is October 4th. For this presidential election, the damage is done.

The poll tax as we understand it now developed in response to the 15th Amendment, added in 1870, which stated “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude” (National Archive/Our Documents). The idea that Black Americans—including formerly enslaved people— could vote did not go over well with many people in power.

“After the 1870s, particularly in the southern states, there was an effort to restrict any kind of political power for African Americans,” William Pretzer, the curator of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, told Smithsonian. “There was great concern on the part of the white power structure that this was a revolution in their lives.”

In response, white legislators enacted voter suppression laws that included required literacy tests (as we discussed in a previous newsletter) and poll taxes, which effectively blocked not only Black Americans, but also Mexican Americans, Native Americans, and other people of color whose growing numbers struck fear into the white political elite. In Texas, voters were required to pay around $1.50 ($30 in 2020 dollars) to vote, unless they were covered by a “grandfather clause” which exempted anyone who could vote before the Civil War (or whose ancestors could vote) from paying the tax (African American Policy Forum). As only white men could vote before the Civil War, this meant that only the descendents of white men were exempt from paying the tax. (The law also disenfranchised poor white immigrants who came to America after the war.) Similar laws were enacted across all the former Confederate states (Smithsonian). Thus the Southern political elite ensured that while the federal law might give Black voters the vote in theory, the state poll tax still forbade it in practice, consolidating power amongst the wealthy white.

In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the 24th Amendment, which abolished the poll tax and guaranteed American citizens the right to vote regardless of wealth (National Archives). “There can be no one too poor to vote,” he said; everyone deserved the “freedom to vote without bans or barriers” (NYTimes).

And yet Florida’s law clearly shows that there are still people too poor to vote. At least three-fourths of people convicted of felonies in Florida owe the courts money, and most of them cannot pay it (NYTimes). Often, the word “felony” can call up images of murder, but driving three times with a suspended license is a felony in Florida, while murderers are explicitly excluded from the voting law. Instead, in a racist state with a history of overpolicing and overconvicting Black communities (ACLU Florida), the law is, again, a way to block poor people and Black people from voting while not expressly saying so. Like those Jim Crow voting laws, Florida’s law is a smokescreen. It is unconstitutional. It is voter suppression. Support the work of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition and donate to their We Got the Vote fund to support the cause and help returning citizens vote.

Key Takeaways

Florida’s law SB 7066 suppresses the vote of returning citizens (people with prior felony convictions) by requiring them to pay off their court debts first. SB 7066 affects around 774,000 people, a disproportionate number of whom are Black (The Guardian).
This law follows in the footsteps of the Jim Crow-era poll taxes, which effectively blocked Black voters and other voters of color.
The 24th Amendment (passed in 1964) abolished the poll tax and was supposed to ensure that anyone could vote regardless of wealth. But the overwhelming majority of those affected by SB 7066 do not have the means to pay their debts (NPR).

RELATED ISSUES

9/9/2020 | Make the census count.

7/21/2020 | Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.

6/29/2020 | Don't vote for Trump.

6/24/2020 | Fight voter suppression.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 9/9/20 Nicole Cardoza 9/9/20

Make the census count.

It's Wednesday and there's only 22 days left to complete the U.S. Census! You may have already completed this back in April, and that's a good thing – considering how messy the current census counting situation is right now. In case you missed the news, Renée is giving us the overview in today's newsletter. Learn why the extension is necessary for ensuring fair representation of everyone – especially those most marginalized.

And do your part to rally your friends, family and colleagues to take the census! The next best time to complete the census is now.

Thank you all for your contributions. To support our work, you can give one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe for $5/mo on our Patreon.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Complete the census! You can do it online, on the phone or via mail: 2020census.gov
Create time and space at your (IRL or virtual) office for your team to complete the census.
View where your state ranks on the 2020 Census Response Rates. Then, research specific ways you can help your state / city count – whether by joining text / phone banking initiatives, or spreading the word in your neighborhood.

GET EDUCATED

By Renée Cherez

Beginning in 1790, the United States Census has been part of the country’s constitutional law. Every ten years, every person in America is counted for two main reasons: distributing funds and properly revealing representation. Census findings not only affect the funds and resources allocated to communities, but it also determines the number of seats each state in Congress holds as well as the drawing of congressional and state legislative districts (Census.gov).

On August 3rd, the Census Bureau announced that field data collection would end on September 30th, a full month before the Trump administration’s extended October 31st deadline. (CNN) In an internal document released last week by the Democratic-led House Oversight Committee, Census Bureau officials warned the Trump administration that compressing the Census data timeline would “eliminate activities that will reduce accuracy” (CNN).

Also mentioned in the Powerpoint-styled report is any modifications made to the review process would eliminate or reduce steps designed to ensure the exactness of data before it is made public (Census.gov). With a shortened timeline, there won’t be time to review data that may be skewed in a practical matter before presenting it to the president on December 31st.

A U.S. judge was able to temporarily halt this movement last Saturday, an issue that will remain in effect until Sept. 17 when she will hold a hearing in a lawsuit filed by the municipalities and advocacy groups (Reuters). This move buys the census some “precious and indispensable time” to gather more data (NPR). And this adjustment is critical; a miscount threatens the accuracy of the numbers used for reapportioning seats in Congress and the annual distribution of $1.5 trillion for federal funding of public services (NPR).

The Trump administration’s decision to expedite the census timeline during an election year and pandemic cannot be overlooked. Because the census determines the allocation of seats in Congress, there is undoubtedly a push to receive incomplete data to ensure seats are held by those who don’t have marginalized communities’ best interests over the next decade (New York Mag).

It’s also not the first time the Trump administration has tried to manage the census in a way that sways to their political agenda. In 2019, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who oversees the Census Bureau, insisted on a citizenship question added to this year’s census (NPR). With Trump’s xenophobic history towards immigrants on full display over the last five years, the Supreme Court blocked the citizenship question from the 2020 census (CNN).

A miscount or no count at all is disastrous for not only Black and Brown communities but also immigrant communities and those experiencing homelessness. Historically, Black and immigrant communities have been undercounted or not counted at all in the census. In 1940, the Census Bureau missed 1 in 12 Black residents (The Guardian). In the 2010 census, 2.1% of African Americans were not counted, including 6% of African American children (Forbes).

Also undercounted: 1.5% of Hispanics and 5% of Indigenous people living on reservations while the white-non Latino population was overcounted by almost 1% (CBS). A 2019 report by the Urban Institute estimates that between 1.1 million and 1.7 million Black residents will be missed in 2020’s census (Urban Institute). However, because of the ongoing pandemic and upending to daily life because of it, years of mistrust of the federal government, the numbers could be far higher.

Racial inequality in national statistics is not new. It has cost the Black community millions of dollars that could have been used for education, mental health services, clinics, businesses, and public programs like Medicaid. An example of this is the disproportionate incarceration rate of Black men.

Black men are incarcerated five times higher than white people, and when the census traces, it documents that Black men are part of the prison population. This inflates the population count and divests funds from Black communities, where incarcerated Black men will eventually return (Forbes). Like the Asian Americans Advancing Justice, who successfully sued the administration over its citizenship question, advocacy groups have voiced their concerns about the new census deadline:

"This new deadline allows Trump to cheat hard-to-count communities of color out of the resources needed for everything from health care and education to housing and transportation for the next 10 years" (CNN).

Like door-knocking, field operations are critical in undercounted communities and counting populations that are most vulnerable like the unhoused. Black people in America only make up 13% of the population, yet, 42% of the unhoused population is Black. The numbers are even higher among Black people experiencing homelessness with children at 52% (ABCNews).

With the deadline fast approaching, Census field agents are now pushing to get into the rural communities that don’t have internet or telephones access. Virtual phone banks organized by advocacy groups are scheduled for September 9th in Chicago, where only 40% of households have completed the census (ABC7). On the opposite end, fieldwork will end in San Diego, a city with a large Hispanic population, which will end on September 18th, twelve days earlier than the official deadline (KTLA).

Almost 230 years later, to the first enumeration, the 2020 Census may be the most critical of our generation as we face down a public health crisis, racial uprisings, an economic crisis, and a federal government steeped in fascism. We must do everything in our power to ensure BIPOC people are counted in this census. If we don’t, these communities stand to lose more than they already have over the last six months of this pandemic and four years of this administration.

key takeaways

The last day to complete the U.S. Census is September 30th.
Black communities are historically undercounted in the Census, leading to millions of dollars lost for valuable resources.
In the 2010 Census, 1.5 million Black and Hispanic people went uncounted.

7/21/2020 | Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.

7/20/2020 | Protect your community from the harm of gentrification.

7/8/2020 | Investigate school district funding disparities.

7/6/2020 | Abolish qualified immunity.

7/5/2020 | Support the Navajo Nation through COVID-19.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 9/7/20 Nicole Cardoza 9/7/20

Learn about critical race theory.

"Our social world, with its rules, practices, and assignments of prestige and power, is not fixed; rather, we construct with it words, stories and silence. But we need not acquiesce in arrangements that are unfair and one-sided. By writing and speaking against them, we may hope to contribute to a better, fairer world.”
– Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge (Third Edition)

Happy Monday. After a series of incendiary tweets, many people are asking about what critical race theory is, and how far the president will go to polarize the nation on the issue of race. Today's newsletter dives into the impact of these recent events and what we can do to keep the conversation moving forward.

As always, your support is greatly appreciated. These contributions are our only source of funding and help us pay writers and develop new resources. You can give one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe for $5/mo on our Patreon.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Reflect on the following questions, common to critical race theory work:

What is the significance of race in contemporary American society?
Where, in what ways, and to what ends does race appear in dominant American culture and shape the ways we interact with one another?
What types of texts and other cultural artifacts reflect dominant culture’s perceptions of race?
How can scholars convey that racism is a concern that affects all members of society?
How does racism continue to function as a persistent force in American society?
How can we combat racism to ensure that all members of American society experience equal representation and access to fundamental rights?
How can we accurately reflect the experiences of victims of racism?

Source: Purdue, which also has a comprehensive overview of critical race theory.

Research both presidential candidates’ agendas for racial equity. Choose one proposed policy by each candidate, and use the same questions for more critical inquiry.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza

Last Friday, Trump worked to cancel anti-racism trainings held by government agencies, a move that was widely shared on his social media. In a memo, the director of the Office of Management and Budget tells the agencies to “begin to identify all contracts or other agency spending related to any training on ‘critical race theory,’ ‘white privilege,’ or any other training or propaganda effort that teaches or suggests either (1) that the United States is an inherently racist or evil country or (2) that any race or ethnicity is inherently racist or evil” (NYTimes). This action was sparked after a conservative activist was featured on Fox News segment that argued that these diversity trainings are “racist,” and “systematically attack the unifying ideals of this country” (CNN).

But these accusations aren’t accurate. Critical race theory is a school of thought designed to help identify and understand how racism plays a part in our society. It doesn’t say that everyone is racist, but that racism is a part of everyday life for people of color and unpacks how racial bias influences our conscious and unconscious responses. Although it began as an academic theory, critical race theory is widely taught and studied cross disciplines, including education, sociology, and law.

Some of the key themes within critical race theory include topics like institutional racism, microaggressions, reparations, determinism, intersectionality, and white privilege (JSTOR). It encourages criticism of liberal anti-racism ideas, like colorblindness and affirmative action (Harvard). And it emphasizes that creating spaces for communities of color to share their stories is necessary for growth. Critical race theory has influenced the approach I’ve taken with this very newsletter. Explore our archives to find many of these topics covered in previous newsletters. And if you’re interested, you can find a more comprehensive overview of critical race theory via PDF here.

More variations of critical race theory have evolved to focus on specific ethnic/racial groups, or intersectionalities within ethnic/racial groups, including critical race feminism (CRF), Latino critical race studies (LatCrit),[50] Asian American critical race studies (AsianCrit), South Asian American critical race studies (DesiCrit), American Indian critical race studies (TribCrit), and disability critical race studies (DisCrit).

Before we discuss the broader implications of this change, we need to recognize its immediate impact. The federal government is the largest employer in the nation, employing nearly 9.1 million workers, or 6% of the total employment in the United States (The Hill). If these trainings do cease, they could negatively impact the workplace culture and the diversity of its staff.

Also, studies prove that federal contracts are disproportionately awarded to white-owned businesses, which has increased over the past twenty years (Washington Post). Not only will removing these trainings prevent leaders internally from being equipped to address these disparities, it eschews responsibility from fair and equitable practices moving forward.

And this has broader implications for our nation’s conversation on race. In some ways, this comment from Trump is nothing new; Trump’s social and political career has been shaped by his perception of race throughout the past decades (NYTimes). And in the past few months alone, he’s incited violence, denounced the Black Lives Matter movement, dismissed police brutality, and fueled anti-Asian racism during COVID-19, for starters (Vox).

But this action doesn’t just denounce marginalized communities and acts of injustice, but the concept of racism itself. Instead of delegitimizing movements towards racial equity, it’s as if he aims to eliminate the idea altogether. Regardless, it detracts from the racial reckoning that our country is fighting for, and is likely to incite more contention in a time where revolution is essential now more than ever.

Denouncing a theory doesn’t change the facts. It only emphasizes them. Racism is enough of an issue in the U.S. to drive political leaders to infer that it isn’t, which is why we need to continue to stay in inquiry with this work.

It feels a bit counterintuitive to write this; if you’re reading this newsletter, you’re clearly still part of the conversation. But nevertheless, we need to stay in dialogue – not about racism itself, but the actions we’ll take to transform this nation and provide justice for all. Because the how is the only part of the conversation that will move us forward. And we deserve to have clear and constructive steps outlined by both candidates as we head to the polls this November.

key takeaways

Critical race theory is a school of thought that analyzes how racism persists in social and political systems
The Trump administration aims to remove diversity trainings that use critical race theory, which impacts the federal government and conversations on race as a whole
Trump has fueled racism and divisiveness to maintain and gain power.

RELATED ISSUES

6/29/2020 | Don't vote for Trump.

7/23/2020 | Know our racist presidential history.

7/21/2020 | Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.

7/6/2020 | Abolish qualified immunity.

6/30/2020 | Boycott as a form of protest.

6/26/2020 | Face the bias in facial recognition software.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 8/19/20 Nicole Cardoza 8/19/20

End the "angry Black woman" trope.

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Happy Wednesday! I've referenced today's topic in several newsletters in the past, and it's been sitting in queue for a while. But the conversations that have sparked since Kamala Harris' nomination brought it right back to the top of the list. Today we're referencing how the "angry Black woman" trope has played in the political world. If you're learning about this for the first time, be sure to dive into the resources provided for more historical examples across industries, and I highly recommend Brittney Cooper's book also referenced below.

The upcoming election is bringing conversations on race centerstage. Racism is deeply intertwined in our political system, the ideologies and lived experiences of key candidates, and the gravest issues affecting our nation. We are not a political organization, nor will we endorse a candidate. But we will talk about how current and future administrations affect this topic. More urgently, we will encourage each of you to exercise whatever right to vote you have, wherever you are – civic engagement is critical to dismantling systems of oppression. I'm grateful to navigate what's coming with this community.

Thank you all for pitching in to make this possible! You can make a one-time or monthly contribution on our website, PayPal, Venmo (@nicoleacardoza) or subscribe monthly on Patreon.

Nicole

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TAKE ACTION

Note how friends, family, and colleagues discuss Kamala Harris and her speech at the Democratic National Convention. Hold conversations with those promoting the "angry Black woman" trope.
Consider how similar actions by Black women would be labeled if white women or white men performed them.
Reflect: How does it feel when others invalidate your emotions or experiences? When have you been mislabeled as angry?

If you identify as a Black woman:

How do you create space for your anger? How can you practice reclaiming your inherent right to be mad?

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza

Not a day after Kamala Harris was nominated as the vice-presidential candidate for the upcoming election, Trump referred to her as a “mad woman” (Axios). This, paired with a “birther” conspiracy theory we’ll discuss in a later newsletter, was the start of a broader series of accusations referring to Kamala Harris’ perceived temper. Harris is the first female vice-presidential African American candidate and candidate of Indian descent.

The “mad woman” stereotype has been applied against women of all backgrounds and identities, reinforcing a long-held assumption that women should be approachable and friendly. Taylor Swift released a song of the same title a few weeks ago (Seventeen). In Game of Thrones, the character of Daenerys Targaryen was judged for her descent to madness, perhaps in a way many men aren’t (Polygon). And in the 2016 presidential debate, Trump’s comment on Hilary Clinton as a “nasty woman” launched a rallying cry against these outdated stereotypes (CNN).

But there’s a particular relationship with anger and Black women in our society. The “Angry Black woman” trope has been used to discredit Black women’s emotions since slavery. This trope has been perpetuated consistently throughout history in the media, which was outlined recently by the NYTimes. From TV shows and movies to Broadway plays, Black women are often depicted in smaller roles and appear sassy or angry. It’s wielded against powerful businesswomen and athletes – consider how Serena Williams has been publicly scorned for demonstrating any anger through her career (Washington Post).

And perpetuating this stereotype encourages our society to dismiss the thoughts and emotions of Black women. It’s a form of policing Black bodies, a concept we outlined in our very first newsletter (look at how far we’ve come). This fact is well-outlined in author and educator Brittney Cooper’s book Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower (Bookshop):

“Whenever someone weaponizes anger against black women, it is designed to silence them. It is designed to discredit them and to say that they don't have a good grasp on reality, that they are overreacting, that they are being hypersensitive, that whatever set of conditions that they are responding to, that their reaction is outsized.”

Brittney Cooper, author, teacher, activist, and cultural critic, for NPR.

And when the “angry Black woman” trope is played against Harris during the election season, it gets personal and political. It doesn’t just work to discredit any other Black and female political leader – current or forthcoming. It’s an attempt to muzzle the policies and promises the Biden/Harris election campaign will reinforce in their campaigns, speeches, and debates. It can be used to weaken Harris’s political career and aspirations – and weaken Biden solely based on association.

We’ve already seen this happen. Harris isn’t the first politician to be criticized this way and is unlikely to be the last. Michelle Obama has publicly spoken out against the series of tropes (BBC). And Maxine Walters has faced the same discourse throughout her career (Vox). Stacey Abrams, who has been adamant about voter disenfranchisement throughout her political career, has also been depicted the same way (The Root). It’s hard not to find an example of a Black political leader that hasn’t been the same sentiment, which shows how weaponized this term has become. It’s even been wielded by Black women for their own gain: Omarosa Manigault, who rose to fame on Celebrity Apprentice before becoming a high-profile political aide under President Trump, played into the “angry Black woman” trope on the reality show (Slate).

The frustrating thing about this trend is that, because Black women’s feelings are often minimized, they are forced to show up for themselves. Because as we watch Black women being discredited as angry, we also see society dismiss their pain and sorrow. Megan the Stallion, a prominent 25-year-old rapper, was mocked and ridiculed widely on social media after reports circulated that she was shot (NYTimes). Oluwatoyin Salau, a 19-year-old Black Lives Matter activist, who went missing and was found dead a week later, had recently shared feeling unsafe after a sexual assault (CNN). The injustice against Breonna Taylor isn’t a singular story; many Black women have lost their lives to police brutality that still goes unchecked (WFPL).

No one ever needs external validation for how they feel. But this outdated narrative is especially damaging today. With a global pandemic exposing the systemic racial inequities in our society, the protests and rallying to change our police systems, and a contentious upcoming election, there hasn’t been a better time to be angry. And we need to acknowledge the anger of Black women to create transformative change.

And that starts at the polls. Regardless of how you feel about Harris as a candidate, we need to validate the space she takes up and the role she plays in activating a nation towards change. That means actively dismantling the angry Black woman trope in this election – and how it shows up in conversations with those around you.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Kamala Harris follows a long line of Black female political figures that have been discredited with the "angry Black woman" trope
This trope has been persistent throughout history, and used as a way to police the voices and perspectives of Black women
It is up to us to center the voices and perspectives of Black women

RELATED ISSUES

7/31/2020 | Keep fighting for Breonna Taylor.

7/30/2020 | Support Black maternal health.

6/15/2020 | Diversify your media consumption.

6/13/2020 | Center Black trans lives.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 8/4/20 Nicole Cardoza 8/4/20

Protect the right to vote by mail.

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Alright. Buckle up because this one is a wild ride. I don’t know about you, but I hadn’t been following the USPS situation closely until researching this newsletter and wow. Wow. Let’s take a journey through history to fully understand how the struggling U.S. Postal Service and a surge of voting by mail can aggravate disenfranchisement for communities of color.

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Thank you to all that give to support this newsletter. Please consider giving one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). Or, pledge $5/month on Patreon. Your funds help pay staff and ensure this newsletter remains free.

Nicole

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TAKE ACTION

Sign the change.org petition to save the USPS.

Get clear on the vote by mail rules and deadlines in your state, including any initiatives to protect the right to vote by mail.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza

The Trump administration has expressed repeatedly that there is “tremendous potential” for vote by mail fraud, and Trump himself has gone as far as to suggest postponing the election (Twitter). Although experts say that voting by mail is more vulnerable than voting in person, actual fraudulent incidents are rare. Of those, they have been easily detectable – like the incident during North Carolina’s Ninth Congressional District race in 2018 (NYTimes). Any fraud with the capacity to sway the outcome of a national election would be easy to identify. Five states – Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, and Utah – already conduct elections almost entirely by mail and haven’t recorded significant fraud of note (NCSL). Nevertheless, Republicans and Democrats alike call for more accountability and scrutiny to minimize harm during this unprecedented time.

It’s more accurate to argue the “tremendous potential” for vote by mail disenfranchisement than vote by mail fraud. Take the current situation in New York. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo encouraged voters across the state to participate in the June primaries through vote by mail, widely distributing mail-in ballots throughout New York City. But election staffs quickly became overwhelmed with 400,000 mail-in ballots, 10x the number of mailed-in ballots received in previous elections (NYTimes). Six weeks later, two congressional races remain undecided, and election officials fear that 20% of ballots for New York’s 12th Congressional District will be thrown out, disenfranchising over 100,000 voices (The Intercept). Similar issues in California earlier this year (PBS) and historically in other states raise the same concerns (The Intercept).

There are many reasons for a ballot to be thrown out during the counting period. Some are human error: incorrectly filling out forms associated with the ballot, forgetting to sign, or having a signature that doesn’t match their voter registration form. It is important to note that although user-driven, many of these errors disproportionately impact voters of color and language-minority voters (The Intercept). But the focus of today’s newsletter looks at the responsibility of the U.S. Postal Service, which is partially responsible for the issues in New York City. An essential part of mail-in voting relies on delivery dates: depending on the state, ballots can be disqualified if they’re not received by the election deadline, or at least postmarked by that date. In New York, thousands of voters didn’t receive their ballots until the day before the primary. Also, the U.S. Postal Service “had difficulty” processing ballots with their prepaid return envelope, potentially invalidating thousands more (NYTimes). In Michigan, currently preparing for its primary on August 4th, election administrators said they have “fielded complaints from voters who had not yet received their ballots” (Washington Post).

The U.S. Postal Service is having a rough 2020. In fact, it’s been having a tough go since the mid-2000s, when consumer habits and economic instability ravaged its revenue. Earnings plummeted as people shifted from mailing letters to sending texts with the rise of mobile devices, and the Great Recession of 2008 obliterated first-class mail volume – a high margin profit source (Washington Post). In 2019, the USPS delivered 31.4% less mail than the year prior. But in contrast, the number of individual mailboxes, P.O. boxes, and other “delivery points” typically grows by 1 million or more each year (Pew Research). Although shipping packages to same-day shipping-obsessed-consumers generates some revenue, the USPS is approximately $160B in debt (Washington Post).

With the situation looking dire earlier this year, the Trump administration appointed Louis DeJoy, a North Carolina businessman and major Trump donor, as the new postmaster general, who immediately created sweeping changes to make the USPS a more viable business model (NPR). These changes include “prohibiting overtime pay, shutting down sorting machines early and requiring letter carriers to leave mail behind when necessary to avoid extra trips or late delivery on routes” (Washington Post). DeJoy made it clear that “if we [USPS] cannot deliver all mail” because of staff shortages, “the mail will not go out,” causing concerns about its accountability to the upcoming election (The Hill).

It’s important to note here that the U.S. Postal Service wasn’t designed to be a thriving and flourishing for-profit business like FedEx or UPS, but a public service democratizing access to information – uniting a nation across its vast terrain (Washington Post). This model, though, was made possible by using enslaved people at its start, perpetuating a long legacy of racism and discrimination through inequitable pay and lack of job security through its history. That conversation is for another newsletter (Smithsonian Institute).

These changes went into effect mid-July, so let’s look at how these changes are unfolding. Across the U.S., mail service is slowing and inconsistent. In Overbrook, a community in West Philadelphia, mail delivery is taking weeks, forcing citizens to go without paychecks and medicine (Inquirer). Boxes pile up in local offices without the capacity to sort and deliver efficiently. Anonymous supervisors told the Inquirer that they’ve been instructed to leave mail behind and prioritize the delivery of Amazon packages instead (Inquirer). According to Niche, Overbrook’s demographics are 78% African American, which emphasizes a point made by COLORLINES earlier this year: communities of color – particularly in rural communities – are more likely to rely on services the USPS provides, like checks through the mail, money orders, medicine, and necessary resources during COVID-19 (COLORLINES). Consequently, we can expect that they can be disproportionately impacted by voter disenfranchisement as the election nears.

And these broad political and economic decisions also burden the postal workers on the ground. Over 630,000 people work at the USPS and represent a more diverse workforce than most of America. 23% of Postal Service workers are black, 11% are Hispanic, and 7% are Asian (Pew Research). These essential workers are critical to our democracy’s future but have less support than they did before the pandemic. Across Philadelphia, at least 133 Postal Service employees have tested positive for the coronavirus since March, and two employees have died (Inquirer). Cases exacerbate the short-staffed individuals, and the lack of overtime may make it impossible for anyone to deliver mail. One carrier is working 90 hours/week and still unable to finish his routes (Inquirer). Conditions worsen as postal workers face angry and frustrated customers on the ground or inside post office facilities. And working conditions are harder with rules like reducing “park points,” or places where carriers park their trucks to walk packages to nearby homes. By decreasing the number of times workers can stop and rest, they’re more likely to be on their feet and exposed to the outdoor environment (Washington Post).

The House Oversight and Reform Committee called a hearing to examine recent changes to the USPS. They’ve asked DeJoy tor his testimony on Sept. 17 to “examine operation changes to the U.S. Postal Service” and “the need for on-time mail delivery during the ongoing pandemic and upcoming election, which as you know may be held largely by mail-in ballot” (The Hill). And as 18 states hold primary elections this month, we’ll have greater insight on how drastically the USPS can affect elections this November. One thing is clear: we must protect our right to vote by mail, especially for those most marginalized, and rethink the role of the U.S. Postal Service so it can continue to serve us fairly and equitably.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The impact of COVID-19 is encouraging more states to promote vote by mail to participate in upcoming elections
The Trump administration continues to note "tremendous potential" for vote by mail fraud, which is factually untrue
The USPS, under new leadership, is slowing mail delivery making it more difficult for communities to receive necessary mail, including vote in mail ballots
The USPS could play a role in disenfranchising thousands of voters in upcoming elections
The shifts at the USPS disproportionately impact communities of color

RELATED ISSUES

July 23, 2020 | Know our racist presidential history.

July 21, 2020 | Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.

June 29, 2020 | Don't vote for Trump.

June 24, 2020 | Fight voter suppression.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 7/21/20 Nicole Cardoza 7/21/20

Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.

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The title of today's newsletter should say "honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis, and C.T. Vivian, and the civil rights leaders of generations past and present that, among so much more, advocated for all voices to be heard at the polls". But this email analyzes specifically how we can respond to the outpouring of love and support for one person with actions that center the perspectives and legacy of many.

You can now update your profile to specify topics most interesting to you, like politics, education, pop culture, or relationships.

And donations are always welcomed to help keep this going. Thanks to the support of the community, we've hired a proofreader and can now hire more writers to offer more diverse perspectives – all while keeping this free. You can donate on our website, through PayPal, or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). Or, become a monthly contributor on Patreon.

– Nicole

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TAKE ACTION

1. Contact your state senator to pass the Voting Rights Advancement Act (you can text "Senate" to 50409 to send a message directly from your phone).

2. Sign the petition to rename the Edmund Pettis Bridge.

3. Find the closest landmark (street, highway, bridge, etc) to your home and review:

What is the landmark named after?
What story does it say about the community you're a part of?
Which voices does it elevate? Which voices may be minimized in the process?

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza

On Friday, July 17, 2020, prominent civil rights activist and politician Rep. John Lewis died after a battle with cancer. Read more about his life at CBS News, tributes from his sister and dear friend / civil rights fellow at Alabama News and NYTimes, respectively, and tribute from President Barack Obama).

His death, along with protests over the two months, re-ignited conversations about renaming the bridge where one of the most prominent civil rights events happened. (Although the petition mentioned in today’s action was created months ago, it’s important to note that people have been advocating for change for years, including another Change.org petition created by a student-led organization that received nearly 200,000 signatures over five years ago).

On Sunday March 7, 1965, hundreds of protestors, led by Lewis and Reverend Hosea Williams, participated in a nonviolent civil rights march through Selma, but were met with violence from state troopers who assailed them with tear gas and clubs when they stopped to pray. The photos of the protestors being beaten by police, including Lewis, who suffered from a fractured skull among other injuries, were circulated widely in the days and weeks following, prompting national outcry and more demonstrations. This monumental day, referred to as "Bloody Sunday," accelerated the passing of the Voting Rights Act in August that year (Politico).

But the bridge where the incident occurred, the Edmund Pettus Bridge, is named after a decorated Confederate general and a leader in the Alabama Ku Klux Klan (Smithsonian Magazine). His family, who ran a plantation and enslaved Black people, profited greatly from slavery. But his views on slavery and the Confederacy were rooted in white supremacy. As he gained recognition, first as a general in the war, then as a chairman of the state delegation to the Democratic National Convention and Grand Dragon of the KKK, Pettus was considered a “living testament to the power of whites to sculpt a society modeled after slave society” says University of Alabama history professor John Giggie (Smithsonian Magazine).

Pettus died in 1907, but the bridge wasn’t erected and named until 33 years later (remember our previous newsletter on how many Confederate symbols were erected long after the end of the Confederacy). Ironically, the bridge at the time was celebrated as “the answer to ‘The March of Progress,’ a reference to The Road to Homo Sapiens image that simplifies the evolution of man (Smithsonian Magazine). I doubt that anyone at that time expected the bridge to represent an entirely different type of march towards justice and equity for the people systemically oppressed by white supremacy.

“If the bridge is being so heavily identified with the black freedom struggle, we should be able to appreciate how much of an act of reclamation this is. People need to know that”.

Jelani Cobb, American writer, author and educator, for Smithsonian Magazine

Although the petition for the rename is gathering national attention, local leaders aren’t in agreement. Some people feel the name needs to stay – whether to encourage visitors to continue learning the area’s deep history, or simply because the bridge’s name has transcended the man it shares the name with (NYTimes).

“The name Edmund Pettus no longer is about Edmund Pettus from the Civil War, from the Confederacy. The Edmund Pettus Bridge is now a staple and symbol of civil rights and voting equity, as well as voting rights. It’s a symbol of hope, of freedom. And that’s been a name that has passed through generations”.
Collins Pettaway III, a political communications specialist and Selma native, for the NYTimes

Others advocate for renaming the bridge, but not after the late Rep. John Lewis. Some feel that this action would minimize the impact of local civil rights activists that were critical to the movement. Some call for the bridge to honor leaders like Amelia Boynton Robinson, a prominent civil rights activist who was also on the bridge during ‘Bloody Sunday,’ or Jimmie Lee Jackson, whose brutal death during a peaceful voting rights march in February 1965 sparked the marches that defined the movement (Alabama News). Rep. Prince Chestnut notes that he hasn’t spoken with a single local survivor of the attack who supports renaming the bridge for Lewis, but is in favor of “Bloody Sunday Bridge” or “Historic Selma Bridge” (Associated Press). A local group was organized to make sure the residents of Selma are heard.

A more fitting way for us to take action in honor of Rep. John Lewis is to protect the voting rights that were established in the Voting Rights Act of 1965 but reversed in the June 2013 ruling of Shelby County v. Holder. Since then, 24 states have implemented new restrictions on voting that make it difficult for many, particularly marginalized communities, from exercising their right to vote. Although the Voting Rights Advancement Act was passed by the House in December 2019 to restore more equitable practices, the bill is still stalled in the Senate. We’ve discussed this issue in full in our June 24th issue of the Anti-Racism Daily – please read to gather more perspective of this issue.

Today’s action includes signing the petition because we believe it may encourage whatever change the local community decides. But regardless of whether the bridge is renamed, and what it is ultimately called, that action is only part of how we can honor the legacy of the late Rep. John Lewis and the other civil rights activists that risked their lives that day. Our right to vote is still tenuous, and access to the ballot this November is critical for civil rights. Regardless of its name, let’s ensure the bridge is symbolic of the change we’re committed to protecting for generations to come.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The bridge that acted as the stage for "Bloody Sunday" is named after a Confederate general and KKK leader
Although national attention calls for the bridge to be renamed to honor the late Rep. John Lewis, local leaders say otherwise
Changing the name is part of a larger initiative to take down Confederacy statues and symbols
We must protect the voting rights that Lewis and other civil rights activists fought for decades ago
The Voting Rights Advancement Act, which aims to restore voting rights lost in 2013, is still stalled in Senate

Related Issues

June 29, 2020 | Don't vote for Trump.

June 25, 2020 | F ight voter suppression.

June 18, 2020 | Take down Confederate symbols.

June 17, 2020 | Learn about the history of lynching in America.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 6/29/20 Nicole Cardoza 6/29/20

Don't vote for Trump.

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Happy Monday,

Our president tweeted a video with the words "white power" in it, and somehow – after everything – I still can't believe it. So we're talking about it in today's newsletter: the history of the white power movement, its rise over the past few years, and the racist rhetoric Trump is pushing during these revolutionary times.

I encourage you to read today's newsletter and be in inquiry on how we often minimize or justify racist rhetoric. It might be easier to call it out when Trump says something, but not our beloved uncle at the dinner table. How do you make justifications for racist things people close to you may say?

If these newsletters are supporting you, considering giving one-time on PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe monthly on Patreon – just like a newspaper subscription.

Nicole

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TAKE ACTION

Don't vote for Trump.
Consider joining #DefeatbyTweet, an initiative where you can donate $0.02 every time Trump tweets (about $18/mo) to Justice Fund, a group of Black-led grassroots political organizations working in swing states to get people to vote.
Have a conversation with a Trump supporter you know about this newsletter.

GET EDUCATED

On Sunday, June 28 President Trump retweeted (and deleted) a video of a Trump supporter yelling "white power," thanking the "great people" in the footage (via NPR). After the tweet was deleted, White House spokesman Judd Deere released a statement that “President Trump is a big fan of The Villages [the community where the video was filmed]. He did not hear the one statement made on the video. What he did see was tremendous enthusiasm from his many supporters" (via AP News).

Before we start, I need to make one thing clear: President Trump is racist. This is not up for debate in my inbox. Whether he has deep seated beliefs that white people are the superior race, incites racism solely for his political agenda, or is consistently unintentionally racist makes no difference to me, and when it comes to this work, it shouldn't to you. These types of arguments center Trump's character instead of the social and political harm he creates. And as we discussed in an earlier newsletter, impact, not intent, needs to be our focus as we dismantle white supremacy. He is also bigoted, sexist, islamophobic, homophobic, and xenophobic (to name a few) and the intersectionality of these often come into play in his rhetoric. There is no anti-racism work that includes voting for Trump in 2020.

The aforementioned tweet follows a series of hateful commentary and actions from Trump over the past few weeks – and frankly, the past few years – which feel in strict defiance of the movement reshaping our nation. Remember that feelings on racism are rapidly shifting left in America (NYTimes)! Meanwhile, just over half of America considered him racist back in 2019 (USA Today). Here's a running list of Trump's hateful commentary since the 1970s (Vox).

I don't want to say that one comment is "worse" than another, because they're all bad. But sharing and thanking someone for saying "white power" is egregious. The term "white power" is a popular phrase used by white supremacists, or people that believe that white is the dominant race and should have power over other races (more via ADL).

Side note: the Anti-Defamation League has a glossary of definitions on terms you'll see reflected here and in the articles I've referenced. Read more >

The slogan was chosen a counter-rally to the term "Black power," a positive phrase used by activists during the Civil Rights Movement. It united not just those uncomfortable with Civil Rights Act of 1964, but the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (Southern Poverty Law Center). But the white power movement grew to become not just a racially-motivated organization, but a politically-motivated one too. Kathleen Belew, author of The White Power Movement and Paramilitary America, cites that the Vietnam War was a major motivator to organizing and activating this group against one enemy – the government.

Remember that up to this point, the government favored racist policies – and actually needed these vigilantes "to reinforce official policies like slavery and Jim Crow" (NYTimes). It was a threat that the country was adopting more equitable views, and providing more power and privileges to non-white communities.

This group took arms against the government in smaller, isolated incidents, but culminated in the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing, when Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols and other ani-government racists parked a truck of explosives under the day care of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, killing 168 people – including 19 children – and leaving hundreds more injured (History). The Oklahoma City bombing was "the worst terrorist attack to take place on U.S. soil" until 9/11. The youngest survivor of the attack is 26 years old, and his family reflects on the experience in The Buffalo News.

"
Ideologies are sometimes not just ideologies. They result in awful actions and we need to be vigilant about that.

Dennis Purifoy, survivor of the Oklahoma City Bombing for the NYTimes

And violent acts of white supremacy continue. It inspired Dylann Roof in 2015 in South Carolina, and James Alex Fields Jr. in Virginia in 2018 (read about both of these murders in our newsletter re: Confederate symbols). A Coast Guard lieutenant and "self-defined white nationalist" was charged in 2019 for stockpiling weapons and planning to start a race war (NYTimes). 22 people were killed at a Walmart in El Paso, TX by a white supremacist against immigration (Axios). In 2019, a U.S. State Department report named that racially and ethnically motivated terrorism from white supremacists is “on the rise and spreading geographically" (Forbes).

Today's protests and the pandemics may have sparked urgency for white supremacists (examples via The Nation). And several cities have questioned whether white supremacists have been intentionally disrupting the protests from the past month, inciting violence and looting (examples from NBC Chicago, NYTimes and CBS News). Regardless if they are, the unrest aligns with an important white supremacist concept called "accelerationism" – inciting and encouraging violence to draw more people into a war (Brookings).

Which is why there is no justification for the racist rhetoric Trump shares. Inciting violence and terror as a president encourages others to repeat the violence and terror of our past. And I'm not sure that will Make America Great Again for anyone other than those that identify as white.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Trump has a long history of hateful and racist rhetoric
"White power" is the rallying cry for white supremacists
Racially and ethnically motivated terrorism from white supremacists is on the rise
There is no anti-racism work that includes voting for Trump in 2020

Nicole Cardoza 6/24/20 Nicole Cardoza 6/24/20

Fight voter suppression.

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Happy Wednesday, everyone!

I've been working on a series of emails about voter suppression for a while, but the recent news in Kentucky – paired with the anniversary of Shelby County v. Holder, encouraged me to publish the first today. As the election gets closer, we'll continue to analyze how white supremacy and systemic oppression has influenced our collective right to vote.

There's been so many questions coming through that I'll dedicate each Saturday's email to answering each of them! If you haven't already, submit your questions by replying to this email. I'll do my best to answer them, and save the rest for following weeks.

Your support makes these email possible! You can donate one-time on Paypal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza) or give monthly on Patreon to keep these going.
- Nicole

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TAKE ACTION

DO THIS NOW (U.S. READERS)

Contact your state senators to encourage them to pass The Voting Rights Advancement Act.

INTERNATIONAL READERS
Consider how voter suppression may be protected – or barred – from your government. Are there disproportionate groups of people that have had difficulty participating in your most recent election?

GET EDUCATED

Accusations of voter suppression ring this morning after yesterday's state primaries – particularly in Kentucky. After delaying the vote from May until yesterday because of COVID-19, the state slashed the number of polling locations from 3,700 in a normal election year to less than 200. In Jefferson County – home to the state's largest Black population – there was just one in-person voting location in Louisville for the nearly 617,000 registered voters. Videos from yesterday show frustrated voters locked out after polls closed.

Louisville, Kentucky is where Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was killed by police in her home for no reason. And over three months later, none of the officers involved in the shooting have been arrested. For a state that's been at the center of the recent protests unfolding across the country, many people feel the moves were deliberate, especially because the winner from this election will take on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in November. Results are being updated here >

COVID-19 complicates the issue of voter suppression today. States have to take necessary precautions to prevent the spread of the virus, so reducing the number of polling states and encouraging absentee ballots makes sense. But we do know that this country has a long history of voter suppression, particularly against Black people, and there is more work to be done until everyone can exercise their constitutional right.

An overview of voter suppression.

Voter suppression, by definition, is when state or federal government intentionally make it difficult for people to exercise their right to vote. The Fair Fight PAC breaks down three fundamental stages of voting: voter registration, access to polls, and ballot counting. Voter suppression can happen at any stage of this process. Although voter suppression affects everyone from having a fair and democratic election, it usually directly impacts communities of color, the elderly, people with disabilities and others systemically marginalized in our country.

You can read about common examples of disenfranchisement here.

Voter suppression for Black people has been around since the beginning. Although the 15th Amendment made it unconstitutional to deny any man the right to vote based "on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude," Black men were often barred from the polls, particularly in the South, through state-wide rules and regulations that limited their rights. States implemented polling taxes – which made it to expensive for any poor person to vote – and literacy tests to thwart Black people, newly freed and often undereducated. Some states implemented grandfather clauses, which required voters to have parents or grandparents registered to vote, impossible for newly freed Black people.

In Mississippi in 1890, the state went so far to also require voters to read and interpret a section of the state constitution chosen by a local official. Over the next few years, every state followed suit, eliminating Black voters from the conversation. By 1906, more than 90 percent of African-American voters in the South had been disfranchised. Read in-depth about this process here >

The poll tax won’t keep ’em from voting. What keeps ’em from voting is section 244 of the constitution of 1890 that Senator George wrote. It says that for a man to register, he must be able to read and explain the constitution … and then Senator George wrote a constitution that damn few white men and no niggers at all can explain.

– Democrat Senator Theodore Bilbo during his campaign re-election in 1946

It wasn't until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that the federal government finally eradicated these voting laws, but seven years ago the Supreme Court significantly weakened the Voting Rights Act. In its June 25, 2013 ruling in Shelby County v. Holder, the Court rejected a provision of the Voting Rights Act that determined which jurisdictions with a history of discrimination had to “pre-clear” changes to their election rules with the federal government prior to implementing them. This gave states a free pass to make whichever rules they see fit without oversight.

Since then, 24 states have implemented new restrictions on voting. Alabama now requires a photo ID to cast a ballot. Other states such as Ohio and Georgia have enacted "use it or lose it" laws, which strike voters from registration rolls if they have not participated in an election within a prescribed period of time. In 2018, voter purges and delayed voter registrations affecting mainly Black voters plagued the Georgia governor race between Stacey Abrams and Brian Kemp. Only 40% of polling places fully accommodate people with disabilities. And across the country, counties with larger minority populations have fewer polling sites and poll workers per voter.

The Voting Rights Advancement Act aims to counter these statewide initiatives with some standard for a coverage formula, giving the federal government more oversight to ensure all people can vote.

As concerns of voter suppression loomed early this week, Trump took to Twitter to warn that foreign countries will rig the upcoming elections by using mail-in ballots. Regardless of which stance you take, one thing is clear – we need a better solution to ensure all voices are heard this fall, especially in the midst of a global pandemic.

Note: A major part of voter suppression is felony disenfranchisement, which will be discussed in full in another newsletter in early July. Here's an overview if you're curious now.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Voter suppression is a persistent part of our nation's history
COVID-19 complicates providing a fair and just voting process
Black people have systemically been deprived of their right to vote

ARCHIVES

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PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

Key Takeaways

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

key takeaways

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

key takeaways

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Related Issues

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

TAKE ACTION

GET EDUCATED

KEY TAKEAWAYS

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT