CBC members are (for the most part) fasting for Darfur

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus say they want President Obama to make the crisis in Darfur a top priority, and to show that they mean business they are fasting for the cause.

Well, the fast will be limited. On a rotating basis, that is. Actually, each person will fast for up to a few days at a time. And just through Congress’ adjournment in August.

Way to be tough. Yep. That should do it.

If you want to fast for Darfur, and for longer than a few days, go to Darfur Fast For Life.

A Voice for the Voiceless

There is one thing all leaders have in common. They’ve all stood in a room and were mocked for what they believed in. More importantly, they left that room and continued to believe.

In October, I attended a CNN roundtable discussion on the 2008 election. Naturally, the conversation led to the economy and its downturn. Toward the end, I mustered up the nerve to ask the respected panel full of news executives and respected journalists a question about over-reporting. My question, perhaps poorly phrased, was how to keep the audience interested in a story that was so over-reported. How do you get people to care?

And the laughter came. “I think people do care, you may be the only who doesn’t.”
“You can’t force someone to care, you can only tell them the story,” said the president of a popular political blog.

I wanted to scream at him, but the mic had already been passed back to the host. The panel full of privileged individuals from generations of wealthy families all agreed that you can’t force the audience to care about issues. I wanted to tell them that they were wrong. I wanted to lecture them on the responsibility of journalists to draw the viewers in and make them care. But I knew they would think I was naïve and perhaps blinded by foolish optimism.

After that morning, I believed that true change started with anger. I was so angry at myself, at that room, at that CNN president. I was angry at the ignorance and the audacity to just brush away my ideas as if they meant nothing. But only a few weeks later when I saw Barack Obama win the presidency, the anger faded and hope was reborn.

In my work as a journalist, I’ve met people who have tuned out politics and journalism completely. The two fields are remarkably similar in how they treat the average individual. In the words of Edward R. Murrow, "The American public is more reasonable, restrained and more mature than most of our industry's program planners believe." If you treat the audience as if they have a valuable opinion, they will express it. Some may go overboard, but others will most likely appreciate being treated as thinking individuals. President-elect Obama certainly appealed to the average person. New voters turned up at the polls in record numbers. Citizens who couldn’t care less about politics were all of a sudden joined together in believing they could unite and change the norms that have been accepted for centuries.

I pray each day that the same thing will happen in journalism. Today, when we turn on the news, you don't see diversity. The reporters may be diverse, but the stories are not. As an Asian woman, I really can’t see this country with an Asian president. I can’t even see an Asian senator. Asians are the fastest growing minority next to Hispanics. Many go to college and make great lives for themselves. But many live in poverty. With lack of money comes lack of opportunity. That is why I chose to be a journalist. Giving a voice to the voiceless is how change comes about. I’ve done stories on Hispanic families whose lives are in such despair that they can never imagine what it’s like to own a home much less lose one in a bad economy. I met a black mother who lost her son in a gang-related drive-by shooting. When I pitched that story to a news station, they brushed it off as old news not worth reporting.

When everyone around you is telling you to give up, you hear a voice that faintly tells you to go on. There has to be a constant push to force the voice inside you to grow louder. The time has come for change in Washington. I believe the time has come for change in news.

King: "it's nonviolence or nonexistence"

On this holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., over and over we will see his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.

While I do love that speech, I have always had a closer connection to his "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech that he delivered to striking sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee, the night before he was killed.



I understand why the excerpt at the end of the "Mountaintop" speech is played over and over again - it can make the hair stand up on the back of a person's neck with its intensity and foreboding.

But my favorite part of that speech is closer to the beginning when King discusses why he is happy to live during such troubling times.

“ … I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men in some strange way are responding. Something is happening in our world. The masses of people are rising up. And wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in Johannesburg, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee, the cry is always the same: 'We want to be free.'

And another reason that I’m happy to live in this period is that we have been forced to a point where we are going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to grapple with through history, but the demands didn’t force them to do it. Survival demands that we grapple with them. Men for years now have been talking about war and peace. But now no longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence in this world; it’s nonviolence or nonexistence.

And also, in the human rights revolution, if something isn’t done and done in a hurry to bring the colored peoples of the world out of their long years of poverty, their long years of hurt and neglect, the whole world is doomed. Now I’m just happy that God has allowed me to live in this period, to see what is unfolding. And I’m happy that he’s allowed me to be in Memphis.”

And with the swearing-in of the nation's first African-American president tomorrow, I'm sure King would have been happy to live in this period too. Ever mindful of the fact that the struggle continues - for human rights, civil rights, peaceful co-existence, existence.

Please, turn your attention to Oakland

I wanted to call everyone's attention to the fatal-shooting of 22-year-old Oscar Grant III on New Year's Day by a BART police officer.

If you haven't already seen the video, this cell phone video captures the shooting.



Grant was buried Wednesday in Lone Tree Cemetery in the hills of Hayward, where he lived. Mercury News covered his funeral.



Since the shooting there have been ongoing protests in Oakland. Wednesday night's protest escalated with some vandals looting, smashing windows, starting fires and damaging buildings and cars. 105 people were arrested, and some businesses are closing early Thursday for fear that there will be more property damage.

Here's protest footage from Wednesday night.



The officer who fired the fatal shot has since resigned. Community members voiced their outrage at the BART Board meeting Thursday and demanded that the investigation of the shooting be turned over to state and federal authorities.

What are your thoughts, reactions or plans? Share them below.

The message in Forté's commuted sentence

When President Bush pardoned 14 people and commuted two sentences on Monday night, the hip-hop community’s ears perked up.

John Forté, a rap artist and producer for The Fugees’ 1996 Grammy Award-winning album “The Score,” was on the commuted sentence list and is expected to be released December 22, when he will begin his five-year probation.

The 33-year-old Brooklyn native was nabbed by authorities at Newark Airport in 2000 and was convicted the next year of possessing 31 pounds of liquid cocaine (read: street value $1.4 million) with the intent to distribute, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 14 years.

Carly Simon (whose son befriended the elite Phillips Exeter Academy graduate) and Republican Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch (who wrote President Bush on Forté’s behalf) are among the musician’s supporters.

But they are not the only people heartened by Forté’s upcoming release. Joining them are sentencing reform advocates who see presidential clemency as a time to look at the bigger picture.

“For us it helps underscore just how insane these sentences are,” said Julie Stewart, founder and president of the non-partisan non-profit Families Against Mandatory Minimums.

“John was serving 14 years for a first offense for which he was remorseful, which was abhorrent behavior, which was not part of his regular lifestyle,” Stewart added. “It was a crazy sentence.”

While Stewart told me she was happy with Forté’s upcoming release, she added that President Bush’s commutations highlight the underlying problem that still needs to be addressed – mandatory minimum sentences.

“Repeal all mandatory minimums,” Stewart said. “Make the sentences make sense. We’re trying to make that happen by giving the courts the discretion that has been taken from them in the cases that carry mandatory sentences,” Stewart said.

In other words, the (federal or state) legislature needs to get out of the way.

Oh, yes. I almost forgot.

For those of you who have no idea who Forté is or for those of you who would like a trip down memory lane, listen to Forté ‘s “Ninety Nine (Flash the Message).”

Black Chrome

You can’t tell by looking at me, but anyone who knows me well can tell you that I love motorcycles. And as soon as I learn to ride (don't laugh) I intend to travel this great country on my Sportster.

So you can imagine how excited I was when I learned that the California African American Museum has an exhibit that looks at the African American contribution to motorcycle aesthetics, technology and culture in post-World War II America.

I met with the history curator for the exhibit, which runs through April 12th, and I found that not only did African Americans shape American motorcycle culture, but there’s also a special place for African American women within that culture. There’s hope for me yet.

Change takes time

Americans (myself included) have been high for the last week and a half. Even with the economic crisis, anyone who supports President-elect Barack Obama, or the Democratic Party, or a new approach to U.S. foreign policy, or the notion of a (probably lofty) post-racial society, has been high as a kite.

Why? Because President-elect Barack Obama told us that "change has come to America."

And surely it has. The American people have clearly articulated what they want from their Executive Branch.

But this afternoon, when I was driving through L.A.’s Crenshaw District and Leimert Park, I came down from that high.

I was on Rodeo Road (not to be confused with Rodeo Drive. L.A. locals will tell you the two are worlds apart) when I saw two LAPD vehicles descending on a street corner that I was quickly approaching.

The squad cars stopped, the car doors flew open and out jumped four, large white police officers. I couldn’t see why they were moving so rapidly.

Fearing that I might be driving into a hail of bullets, I slowed down as I got to the street corner.

The four officers were wrestling a man to the ground – a young, African American man wearing a white cap, a white t-shirt and light denim pants.

He was struggling with them a bit it seemed, but I couldn’t tell if he was resisting.

There was no judgment of the officers or the young man on my part. Who’s to say what was going on there? I was just driving by.

But the image stuck with me. Four white men dressed in dark blue suits. Extremely dark blue. Almost black. One black man in the middle wearing mostly white.

Aside from the color juxtaposition, the incident was sobering. I felt for my brother. He could have been wrong. He could have been right.

But I wished the young man were on his way home from school, or on his way home from work, or busy mowing the lawn for his grandmother. Just anything other than being wrestled to the ground by four police officers.

I felt as sad for him as I felt happy for President-elect Obama on election night. I hope you can understand that.

So, yes. Change has come to America. But real change will also take time.

Gay is the new black

In a statement released today regarding the passage of California's Proposition 8, which seeks to amend the state constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and woman, No On 8 said the following:

"We achieve nothing if we isolate the people who did not stand with us in this fight. We only further divide our state if we attempt to blame people of faith, African American voters, rural communities and others for this loss. We know people of all faiths, races and backgrounds stand with us in our fight to end discrimination, and will continue to do so. Now more than ever it is critical that we work together and respect our differences that make us a diverse and unique society. Only with that understanding will we achieve justice and equality for all."

In case you're wondering, the part about African American voters is in response to the fact that 70 percent of African Americans voted Yes on Proposition 8.

The theory goes, African Americans turned out in higher numbers to support their man, Barack. They got to the polls, and the socially conservative lot thought "gay people shouldn't be calling their unions 'MARRIAGE!'

Whether African Americans did in Prop 8 is being debated as I type. (Also check out Meg's post on Prop 8).

Either way, the theory was discussed well in advance of November 4th because a) African Americans were expected to come out in record numbers and b) our President-elect stopped short of calling gay unions marriage.

But I am left with this: California voted to elect an African American president while simultaneously voting to amend the state constitution to exclude gays from calling their unions marriage. Does that mean that gay is the new black?

Obama: "change has come to America"

The transcript and video of this speech have been posted and printed in countless outlets across the nation and world.

But, for the record, here are the video and transcript of President-elect Barack Obama's speech at Chicago's Grant Park after Americans voted to send him to the White House:

Hello, Chicago.

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen, by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different, that their voices could be that difference.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states.

We are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who've been told for so long by so many to be cynical and fearful and doubtful about what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this date in this election at this defining moment change has come to America.

A little bit earlier this evening, I received an extraordinarily gracious call from Sen. McCain.

Sen. McCain fought long and hard in this campaign. And he's fought even longer and harder for the country that he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine. We are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader.

I congratulate him; I congratulate Gov. Palin for all that they've achieved. And I look forward to working with them to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart, and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on the train home to Delaware, the vice president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

And I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last 16 years the rock of our family, the love of my life, the nation's next first lady Michelle Obama.

Sasha and Malia I love you both more than you can imagine. And you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the new White House.

And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother's watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight. I know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my sister Maya, my sister Alma, all my other brothers and sisters, thank you so much for all the support that you've given me. I am grateful to them.

And to my campaign manager, David Plouffe, the unsung hero of this campaign, who built the best -- the best political campaign, I think, in the history of the United States of America.

To my chief strategist David Axelrod who's been a partner with me every step of the way.

To the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you've sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you. It belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington. It began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston. It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give $5 and $10 and $20 to the cause.

It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep.

It drew strength from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on doors of perfect strangers, and from the millions of Americans who volunteered and organized and proved that more than two centuries later a government of the people, by the people, and for the people has not perished from the Earth.

This is your victory.

And I know you didn't do this just to win an election. And I know you didn't do it for me.

You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime -- two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century.

Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us.

There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after the children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage or pay their doctors' bills or save enough for their child's college education.

There's new energy to harness, new jobs to be created, new schools to build, and threats to meet, alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there.

I promise you, we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president. And we know the government can't solve every problem.

But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And, above all, I will ask you to join in the work of remaking this nation, the only way it's been done in America for 221 years -- block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began 21 months ago in the depths of winter cannot end on this autumn night.

This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.

It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other.

Let us remember that, if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers.

In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let's resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.

Let's remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.

Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.

As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, we are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.

And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces, to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand.

To those -- to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.

That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight's about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons -- because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America -- the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.

And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.

Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves -- if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.

This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.

Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.