In the News

May 05, 2014

US Congress Delegation Visits Alan Gross in Cuba

Four US Congresspersons were in Havana on Monday to visit with imprisoned Maryland resident Alan Gross and meet with Cuban officials, with the aim of promoting negotiations to free the prisoner now in his fifth year of a fifteen year sentence, reported dpa news. “It is of the interest to both our countries to start negotiations, not just talks,” said California Congresswoman Barbara Lee, heading the parliamentary group of four Democratic Party representatives. She spoke at a brief press … Continue Reading


May 05, 2014

US lawmakers meet with American jailed in Cuba

Four US lawmakers Monday visited an American serving a 15-year prison term in Cuba, urging Havana and Washington to being negotiations "without preconditions" to secure his release. Alan Gross, who turns 65 on Friday, was arrested in December 2009 for allegedly distributing telecommunications equipment in Cuba while he was working as a contractor for the US Agency for International Development (USAID). California representative Barbara Lee, who headed the US delegation, told reporters … Continue Reading


May 05, 2014

U.S. delegation urges talks to free American jailed in Cuba

(Reuters) - Four U.S. lawmakers visiting Cuba on Monday urged President Barack Obama to authorize negotiations with the Cuban government about freeing jailed U.S. contractor Alan Gross. The visiting Americans, who met with Gross in his hospital prison, also expressed hope those talks would cover other issues such as the U.S. trade embargo of Cuba and the case of three Cuban spies serving long prison terms in the United States. Gross, 65, is serving a 15-year sentence over his 2009 arrest … Continue Reading


May 02, 2014

California Rep: Raise State Minimum Wage To ‘$26 An Hour’

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., said that she supports raising minimum wage in the state of California to $26 an hour, adding that she doesn’t think such a hike would hurt small business owners. Speaking on CNN’s “Crossfire,” the California Democrat disagreed with Republican congressmen looking to keep minimum wage the same, or in one case, to be abolished as a whole. Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., said on the show that the national minimum wage “should be left where it is,” and definitely not … Continue Reading


May 02, 2014

Creating Better Futures for Our Children

One of my favorite Earth, Wind and Fire songs (and I have many) is Remember the Children. For many elected officials, children are often forgotten because simply they do not vote or make campaign contributions. Another problem is that it is nearly impossible to get resources to children without passing it through parents and other caretakers. Obviously poor children have poor parents who are regarded largely as failures in life for not sufficiently capitalizing on the wealth of … Continue Reading


May 01, 2014

Paul Ryan meets with the Congressional Black Caucus to make amends

A meeting between Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Wednesday has helped reduce tensions but seems to have done little to reconcile different views on how to best fight poverty. The House Budget Committee chairman was invited to attend one of the meetings after he made comments about a "tailspin of culture in our inner cities" on conservative Bill Bennett's radio show had many members of the CBC, and even the broader Democratic establishment, crying foul. Rep. … Continue Reading


May 01, 2014

Defense Secretary Hagel Orders Army to Review Black Hair Bans

The Army and its complicated relationship with black hair are back! I’m sure before ordering the military to review its recent controversial hairstyle rules, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel probably needed several people to explain why banning locks and twists was a problem for African American soldiers, let alone a priority for him. But following a petition created by black women in uniform and protests from Congressional Black Caucus leaders like California Democratic Congresswoman Barbara … Continue Reading


April 30, 2014

House Budget Committee to Hold Hearing on Poverty

Is the federal government responsible for lifting millions of Americans out of poverty or trapping them in it? That question has become a political Rorschach test this year, the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s war on poverty. On Wednesday, Representative Paul D. Ryan, chairman of the House Budget Committee, is holding a third hearing on the government and the poor, featuring testimony from the “front lines.” In recent months, Mr. Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican, has loudly … Continue Reading


April 30, 2014

Paul Ryan tries to ease tensions with black lawmakers on poverty

Republican Representative Paul Ryan, who angered black lawmakers in March with his comments about the causes of inner-city poverty, met with the Congressional Black Caucus on Wednesday and pledged to study its proposal to help the poor. "We didn't get a whole lot accomplished, but we do agree on a number of things," said Representative Marcia Fudge, an Ohio Democrat who chairs the caucus. "One is that we are both concerned about the poverty in this country. We just disagree on how we … Continue Reading


April 30, 2014

On Trial: Lyndon Johnson’s Anti-Poverty Program

Should we keep anti-poverty programs? Or should we cut them? That was the underlying question at a contentious event Wednesday that pitted Republicans’ belief that the government’s effort to help the poor are hurting them against Democrats defending the worth of federal anti-poverty programs. Representative Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, the House Budget Committee chairman famous for his austere budget proposals, has decided to tackle the problem of poverty. He believes President Lyndon … Continue Reading


April 30, 2014

Welcome to "Post-Racial" America

On November 5, 2008, the day after the country elected its first African-American president, an op-ed appeared in the Los Angeles Times written by the conservative black academic Shelby Steele titled "Obama's Post-Racial Promise." In it Steele asks: "Doesn't a black in the White House put the lie to both black inferiority and white racism? Doesn't it imply a 'post-racial' America?" Thus began a trope that has bounced around our political discourse ever since. Commentators and pundits and … Continue Reading


April 30, 2014

After Offensive Comments, Paul Ryan Will Let Black Lawmakers School Him on Poverty

On Wednesday afternoon, anti-safety-net crusader Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) met with members of the Congressional Black Caucus in an attempt to make amends after he said on a radio show last month that urban poverty is caused by the lack of a work ethic in inner cities. At the meeting, Ryan admitted he didn't "know everything about poverty," and agreed to sit down with CBC members in the coming months to discuss specific solutions proposed by black lawmakers to address the needs of historically … Continue Reading


April 29, 2014

Reps. pressure U.S. News & World Report to include rape stats in college rankings

A dozen members of Congress are attempting to revamp the venerable U.S. News and World Report college rankings by imploring the publisher to include campus rape statistics in the annual reports. “Institutions that fail to adequately respond to sexual violence should not receive any accolades from your publication,” says a letter signed by 10 Democrats and two Republican members of Congress. “We urge you to include violence statistics in annual Clery reports on campus crime statistics and … Continue Reading


April 29, 2014

Hagel Seeks Review of Military Policies on Hairstyles

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Tuesday ordered the American military to review its policies concerning hairstyles popular with black women, telling critics of new Army regulations banning large cornrows, twists and dreadlocks that he takes “very seriously” concerns that military rules on hair have unfairly targeted black women. Responding to a complaint lodged by the 16 women of the Congressional Black Caucus, Mr. Hagel said he had given the secretaries and military leaders … Continue Reading


April 29, 2014

Who has the best Web sites and social media outreach in Congress?

The Congressional Management Foundation recognized more than 80 lawmakers this week with Golden Mouse Awards for “excellence in online communication.” Florida Congressman Patrick Murphy (D) earned one for creating a photo contest that highlighted polluted waterways in his state. Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk (R) landed one for using Twitter to share his recovery from a stroke. And Pennsylvania Sen. Robert P. Casey Jr. (D) picked up one of the top prizes for Web-site development. Those are just … Continue Reading


April 21, 2014

‘Our hair is kinky’: Black women cry racism after U.S. army bans dreadlocks and cornrows among its troops

Black women and their hair have been a topic of discussion for years by people like Maya Angelou, Al Sharpton and Salt-N-Pepa. Now add Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel to that list. In reaction to a new Army regulation banning numerous hairstyles — twists, dreadlocks and large cornrows — popular with black women, the 16 women of the Congressional Black Caucus have asked Mr. Hagel to overturn the regulation on behalf of the 26,700 African-American women on active duty in the Army. The … Continue Reading


April 21, 2014

GOP and the wuss factor

Wuss is the term that comes to mind when I think about recent Republican presidential tickets and would-be GOP presidential candidates. I can still recall the skittish behavior of Mitt Romney who anxiously avoided giving offense to his opponent in the last two presidential debates. Romney avoided any vigorous response to charges by Democratic operatives that he had been complicit in the death of a woman in Michigan. The husband of this woman, who died of cancer, had lost his medical … Continue Reading


April 21, 2014

Contest to Design Nelson Mandela Monument in Bay Area

Nelson Mandela's death in December 2013 was mourned by billions of people, and now the Nelson Mandela Foundation in South Africa, the Oakland faction of the NAACP, and two cemeteries based in the Bay Area have joined together to create a monument to honor Mandela's life and legacy. And they want you to create it. Bay Area artists and designers over the age of 18 are invited to submit their design for a monument to commemorate Mandela and his vast international contributions. All designs … Continue Reading


April 16, 2014

Bay Area airport workers learn how to identify human trafficking victims

Workers at Oakland International Airport on Tuesday began training on how to spot victims of human trafficking as part of a regional effort to stamp out what's become the world's fastest-growing criminal enterprise. Thousands of victims of sex and labor trafficking are shepherded through airports, but they are very rarely rescued there, said Betty Ann Boeving, executive director of the Bay Area Anti-Trafficking Coalition. Officials are sharing this message with airport workers across the … Continue Reading


April 15, 2014

Congresswomen meet with Dirks, student sexual assault survivors on campus

Two U.S. congresswomen visited UC Berkeley on Tuesday to meet with Chancellor Nicholas Dirks and a group of student survivors of sexual assault who have been advocating improved sexual harassment and violence policies on campus. Reps. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, and Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, are currently working to introduce federal legislation to combat cases of sexual assault on college campuses. At a press conference following their meeting with the chancellor, Speier said Dirks was … Continue Reading

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