#black civic engagement

[alwaysbewoke]

[successfulblackparenting]

Kamala Harris Inspires A New Generation: Leadership, Voting, And The Rise Of Black Girl Power

Kamala Harris is running for President of the United States. She is anticipated to become the first woman of color to get the nomination from the Democratic National Convention (DNC). Kamala attended Howard University, one of the most prestigious Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the United States. Howard University, often called “The Mecca,” gave Kamala a strong sense of…

[penmanshipeb]

The elderly should feel protected by the young instead of fearing them. There should be security and not insecurities -- at the least in one's own neighborhood. We need more communities in our societies.

We too hood in our neighborhoods, and I don't like it. 👎

[sayruq]

The Irish Senate just voted to impose sanctions on Israel

The Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign this evening welcomed the unanimous passing of a motion in the Seanad calling for robust actions by the Irish government to hold Apartheid Israel accountable for its ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people. The motion, moved by the Civic Engagement Group Senators Frances Black, Lynne Ruane, Alice Mary Higgins and Eileen Flynn, is comprehensive and calls on the Irish government to, among other things: impose sanctions on Israel; enact the Occupied Territories Bill and the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill; to actively ensure no US weapons are being sent to Israel through Irish airspace; and to push for an international arms embargo on Israel. It can be read in full here.

[thewulf]

Something Else || Aaron Hotchner

Summary: Request - hiyaa i have such a 😩😩 storyline in my head and i think you would excecute it soo well! Sooo i was thinking Hotch x Reader where they have to chase someone but somehow reader ends up in a car alone... Read Rest Here

A/N: Ahhh missed writing for my criminal minds fav man! Thank you for the request anon, hope ya like it :)

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x Female Reader

Word Count: 2.2k

Hotch’s voice was low, groveling, begging you not to do it desperately through the car speaker, “Agent, stand down!”

You pressed down on the peddle of the black SUV you were driving too aggressively a little harder, “Hotch, he’s going to get away and hurt somebody else.” Somehow your voice was much steadier than his as you focused on the unsub in the small sedan racing ahead of you.

“Dammit Y/N, do not engage the unsub. That is an order.” He was more panicked than anything. He shouldn’t have let you go to that police station alone. This was such a you thing to do. You didn’t seem to care about your safety and it terrified Aaron. You would put your life on the line every single time if it meant saving somebody else. You were too selfless, too good for this job. It was going to kill you if he didn’t talk to you about it soon.

“But Hotch! I can intercept him. End this whole thing now. I have to.” You mumbled mindlessly as you came up with your brilliant plan to speed up in front of him on the road next to the one he was on. The two of you were heading out of the city into the countryside with grided roads. You could intercept him down the road if you played it out correctly.

You heard shuffling on the other side of the call before he continued his pleas, “You’re going to get yourself killed. You’re going to get somebody else killed Agent! Stand down!” To his credit he certainly wasn’t backing down in his demands. He was committed to getting you to stop what you were doing. But he should’ve known you better than that. You’d never stand down. Not when you had the opportunity to stop him.

“We’re in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. I’ll manage.” You sped quickly down the dark country roads knowing you’d have to be hauling it to execute your plan. Get ahead of him enough you could cut down the side road and crash into him. He wouldn’t see it coming.

“You’re not listening to me.” He was all out desperate now as you ignored him and pressed on.

“I have to Hotch. I’ll be okay. I promise.” You hung up the phone in a hurry as your turned your car down the next road, you could do this. But you couldn’t have your boss yelling in your ear if you were to do this properly. You just needed to clip the back end of his vehicle as he sped on by. You got there seconds before he did allowing yourself to decide if you really wanted to or not.

Instincts took over and you gunned it, hard. The front end of your SUV smashed into the rear end of the unsubs small Honda Civic speeding on by. The sound of crunching metal was one that always shocked you. It was just so loud. What you’d failed to calculate was just how hard you hard pressed the gas. One moment you were conscious, the next you felt you head smack against the airbag sending you into that blackened state you really did try to avoid but couldn’t this time.

When the bright light of the doctors flashlight hit your eyes your body decided it was time to come back to reality. A muffled groan escaped your throat while your eyelids finally decided to work and slowly opened up adjusting to the bright lights around you.

“Ah, there you are.” The doctor standing beside your bed smiled, “Great to see you awake. Your head may hurt. Took quite a hit there according to your boss. Looks like a mild concussion. Didn’t find anything else on intake. Got off lightly all things considered.” He pointed towards the man sleeping in the corner of your room. He looked so peaceful, the usual downturned scowl on his face had vanished in his own unconscious state.

“Mmm suppose I did.” You mumbled still coming back into reality. It wasn’t a moment later you heard Hotch shuffle from behind the doctor, light sleeper he was.

The doctor must’ve heard it too as he turned back to Aaron, “She’ll be just fine, see? Nothing to worry about.” He motioned to your wakened state, “I’ll be back in a little while. Have a few labs I need to check and then we should be able to get you out of here.” The older doctor smiled kindly at you before leaving you stranded with your probably over angry boss.

He crossed his arms over his chest as he took you in. You’d never truly felt so small under his gaze until now. He was angry, pissed, “I should have you fired.”

You closed your eyes fighting back the oncoming tears. You vowed to never cry in front of him but damn it was going to be hard to stop them. Your head was pounding, your boss who you had a massive crush on was threatening to fire you and all you wanted to do was shrivel up under the thin hospital blanket.

He cleared his throat seeing you react so timidly under his intimidating gaze he so hardly used on his team. He knew it wasn’t the time nor place no matter how angry he was. He could be angry later. You needed him now and he had to suck it up for what you needed, “Let me be clear. I should, but I won’t.” He dropped his rigid stance once your eyes made their way back over to him.

You nodded, looking away quickly. You were too ashamed to look him in the eye for too long, “I’m sorry. Did you get the unsub?” Your curiosity needed to know even if it would piss him off further.

He let out a shake of his head, “You’re something else Y/N. Yes, we got him. You knocked him out too. Quiet the scene to arrive to. Scared the shit out of me.” He grabbed the chair from beside the bed and pulled it close to sit down next to you, “Finding you with blood all over your face had me thinking the worst. You’ve got to be more careful. You’ve got to start giving a shit about yourself Y/N. You can’t keep pulling stunts like these.” His deep brown eyes searched yours hoping you’d finally hear his words he had been begging you to hear.

You heard him, you always did. But you couldn’t understand why he always tried to stop you and nobody else on the team. Derek pulled the same stunt not even a years ago, “But Derek did the same thing last August…”

He stopped you by grabbing your arm gently. He’d hardly ever touched you let alone grasped your seemingly small bicep, “You aren’t Derek, Y/N.”

Rolling your eyes, you knew you were likely pushing your luck with your very handsome superior, “I know that Hotch, but I’m an Agent just like him. I have to take these risks too. What makes me different?”

He let go of your bicep before looking away and grumbling something you couldn’t hear. When he turned back to you his softened features had turned back to the usual scowl he wore in the office. Neutral natural Hotch.

Deciding to push your luck you continued to chirp, “What makes me different Hotch? He gets praise while I get scolded? Come on!”

He shook his head seemingly conflicted of his next words, “You’re just not him, I don’t know what to tell you.”

“That’s not an answer Hotch!” You were getting worked up now, “What? So, everyone else gets to take risks to move on up in their career and I get to sick back and watch? That’s not fair Hotch and you know it!”

“You could’ve gotten yourself killed!” His usual stoic tone roared with emotion he so rarely showed. You were getting somewhere now. You just had to poke him a little further.

That wasn’t good enough for you, “So could all of my coworkers yet they get praised!”

“It’s different.” His voice had calmed but he felt his emotions bubbling to the surface as you continued to push him.

You let out a sigh after feeling like you were just going in circles, “What’s different Hotch?” You weren’t yelling but you certainly weren’t quiet.

He ran his hands through his hair conflicted beyond belief. But fuck it, you weren’t going to let it go until he gave you an answer right? He couldn’t think of a good enough excuse, so he gave you the truth instead, “I don’t love them.”

It felt like your rapidly beating heart stopped right then and there. Loved? Had you had a thought that Hotch had loved you? He’d always treated you different sure, but you never had an inkling thought he had done that because he loved you.

“You… you love me?” It felt like your throat was made sandpaper as you really processed his words.

He nodded his head at you. Slowly, watching for your reaction, he grabbed for your hands hoping to understand if you could potentially feel the same. He’d done an excellent job hiding it based on your shocked reaction. It wasn’t bad, no. You just seemed genuinely shocked.

“I love you.” He said it a bit more confidently this time.

“Are you sure?” It was the only thing you could think, and it sounded funnier spoken out loud than you truly had meant. Because why would your successful boss who seemed so far out of your league. You were only five years out of school. A measly twenty-seven-year-old attempting to figure out what being an adult actually entailed.

His stoic expression broke out into a smile followed by a soft chuckle. You’d always adored when he smiled. It seemed few and far in between he let you see that side of him, “You really are something else, you know that right?” He continued grinning at your reaction to his confession, “But yes, I’m positive. I’ve had a few years to ponder it.” He continued smiling seeing your expression go from shock to a smile to a slight blush back to embarrassment all within a few moments. He’d always found your expressiveness adorable beyond belief and this was no exception. Without much of a second thought he grabbed for your fidgeting hands hoping he could provide your brain some comfort.

“I uhm… wow. That’s not what I thought you’d say… I yeah.” Your face flushed further under his loving gaze. Now that he’d said the words out loud it’s like you were given to a softer, sweeter Aaron Hotchner that was just underneath his stoic surface.

Sure, you’d had a massive crush on the man. Looked up to him. Wanted to be him. Like almost everything about him. But did you love him? You liked him a lot. Loved him though? You thought further. You’d crushed on him since the moment Strauss had introduced you right out of college. But he was with Haley at the time. You’d pushed down the bubbling feelings for your boss that was nearly ten years older than you. He was everything you wanted to be and more. Smart, collected, calm and the best boss you’ve ever had. Yeah, you loved him too. You’d always loved him. The way he treated everyone. The way he was able to be the best version of himself when he needed to be.

He found comfort that his words had sent you into a babbling state. You hadn’t pulled your hand away from his which was a good sign, “You don’t have to say anything Y/N. I just.. I’m sorry I told you like that. You just, wouldn’t stop until I told you.” He grinned knowing that he just put it back onto your own actions for his statement. Which was true, you had decided to push and poke and prod. It kind of was your fault.

It was your turn to laugh now, “I’m sorry for yelling. Escalating. You know how I am.” You smiled bashfully at the man who had your heart. And who apparently loved you, who would’ve thought?  Certainly not you.

He nodded, giving your much smaller hands in a gentle squeeze, “Like I said, you’re something else. Now, get some sleep. I’ll wake you when you need to. You need to rest. We’ll talk later.”

You nodded at him, closing your eyes at his request. But before you could drift off you had to confess the same to him, “Hotch?”

“Call me Aaron. Yes?” He answered your question with his own.

You smiled after opening your eyes and making eye contact with him. He truly was a stunning man. Inside and out.

“Alright Aaron.” You laughed seeing the way his eyes lit up under the new way you said his name. It was thrilling. The two of you were learning about the others in their own ways, “I love you too.”

His smile only grew wider before he smirked over to you, “Are you sure?”

“Don’t make fun of me Aaron Hotchner!” You giggled feeling the weight of the world being lifted off your shoulders. Even though your head was aching it felt good to be here with him. He was laughing right along with you. The two of you off in your own little bubble finally finding each other after pining for so long over the years.

Aaron Hotchner/Criminal Minds: Permanent Taglist (If you'd like to be added to any or all works please fill out the form here: Taglist Sign Up) ) @loving-and-dreaming @kmc1989 @memeorydotcom @matisse556 @buckylov3r @taygrls @ah-blossom @daily-evanstan @hardballoonlove @14buddy22 @rosiahills22 @djs8891 @mrs-ssa-hotch @panandinpain0 @viscade @kreepja @il0vebeingdelulu @hiireadstuff @kajjaka @guacam011y @kreepja

[qqueenofhades]

It's funny t me because most people on the left who are encouraging voting and say their voting for Biden are Black and or brown. It's white lefty’s that are the problem.

This is because black and brown people have had a long hard fight to vote in this country (and still have it, what with the constant GOP attempts to disenfranchise voters of color) and are well aware that it is very powerful. It is also a right that they will not take for granted because their communities still live with the historical trauma of not being able to engage in the civic process and/or being attacked for doing it. They also know that "both sides are the same because nothing changes for ME regardless of who is in office" is the epitome of clueless and arrogant white privilege and has to be rejected like the nonsense it is. So yeah. This makes perfect sense to me.

[nesiacha]

Short note that I will expand upon when I have time (I have other priority projects). Through my posts, and like all of you, we fight against the black legend of Robespierre. However, he is clearly not one of my favorite revolutionaries from the French Revolution period. One of the reason is that while he was quite engaged on some points very important , he was not enough so compared to some actors of the French Revolution.

On slavery, although he was against it, it is unfortunate that he did not go further in supporting the Haitian revolt, unlike Marat or Chaumette, for example. He completely missed the boat regarding women's rights. While as a young lawyer he supported the entry of Louise de Keralio into the Academy of Sciences, Letters, and Arts, he was against women's right to vote and their more active participation in civic life (unlike people like Charles Gilbert Romme, etc.).

On social issues, he went much less far than the Hébertist movement, the group known as the Enragés, Gracchus Babeuf, etc. Moreover, I have often discussed that if Robespierre was demonized, those who were further to the left than him, like the Hébertists, are even more demonized ( except Hebert that I truly dislike like a lot of you, I find them a lot very interesting and I really like Momoro or Hanriot even if it is important to said that Hanriot would be a supporter of Robespierre in the end and will follow in his fall) or outright forgotten (the Enragés or the Babouvists) in popular culture.

This was just a point of view, far from me the idea of bashing, just an explanation of why Robespierre is clearly not in my top 20. He was engaged ,that truth and got admirable qualities I can't deny it ( even if he make a lot of things that we can reproach he and the majority of Convention), but not enough for my taste compared to some of his colleagues. I have the impression that he was always in the middle without going too far in social ideas unlike others.

P.S: In fact, I greatly admire Couthon, who was close to these ideas because despite his increasing and painful paralysis, he showed admirable courage in the retaking of Lyon ( as I said, no one achieves a feat alone; in a revolution only one hero the people). Unlike other envoys on a mission, he did not commit a horrible massacre (unlike Carrier), and his restraint did not come from racketeering or lining his pockets (unlike Tallien). With other people, he demonstrated that one can be effective in functions while being severely handicapped.

[punkedsolar]

The two individuals shown are representative members of the EBMs, of which there are two major families: the Bipae-leporae and the Quadrupedia-leporae.

Etymology The terminology selected by Coastal Sphynx is an approximation of 'two legged rabbit' and 'four legged rabbit'. EBM stands for Evidence Based Memorandum, though most New Petrans say 'Ebem' instead of using EBM as an acronym. EBMs themselves always use the acronym.

Taxonomy There is no current taxonomy accepted by all New Petran individuals because the EBMs refuse to update the central archive and have given no explanations as to why. This has lead to robust arguments over their status (generally assumed morphic) and their biology (unknown). EBMs who present as male are called 'bucks' and EBMs who present as female are called 'does' with the term 'coney' for all others.

A group of EBMs is known as a colony or swarm.

Description

The EBM, is a fast-running terrestrial creature; it has a dome of glassy material set high its head, long ears and a flexible neck. Its teeth grow continuously, the first incisors being modified for gnawing while the second incisors are peg-like and non-functional. An EBM is capable of gnawing through metal over time.

The limb musculature of EBMS is adapted for high-speed endurance running in open country. While no internal dissections have been permitted, observation has shown a flexible spine and considerable limb rotation that may mean that even the four-leggers are capable of throwing or hurling objects.

The fur colour is smooth and single coloured, and adjusts to levels of solar radiation, ranging from black through smooth blues to white. High levels of radiation mean paler colours, low levels mean darker. An EBM in a cold environment in midwinter will be entirely black.

Bipedal EBMs wear clothing, and quadrupedal EBMs tend not to. There are numerous indeterminate forms of greater or lesser functionality with movement, weight carrying capacity, and agility. Bipeds usually weigh less and are smaller in body size than quadrupeds.

Behaviour and ecology

The EBM originates from New Petra, and travelling is rare, but does occassionally happen.

Detailed behaviour and ecology is ultimately unknown - putting in a repair request that is approved into the central archive will summon an EBM who will then attend to the area of concern. EBMs seem to attend to other issues that have not had alerts, but with less urgency. They are commonly seen during the day, and only rarely at night.

Reproduction, socialisation, and similar topics are unknown - EBMs generally retreat back to the central archive once their work is done, and do not appear to communicate with each other even when working together.

They are not considered anti-social, and rarely cause any issues for New Petran citizens. They do vote and engage in civic duties, as well as engage with commercial operations - thus they may purchase food, clothing and minor items using New Petran Scrip. Any negative interactions are in the form of large EBMs blocking traffic while engaged in repairs, and issues of that nature.

No juvenile EBMs have ever been recorded, but Coastal Sphynx note that rabbits as animals hide their young until they are fully able to defend themselves.

EBMs avoid fighting and conflict wherever possible. When injured, they retreat immediately. Their speed makes such encounters rare. An EBM will not even defend another EBM - they will leave.

Morphic ecology notes

The two main shapes of EBMs and their willingness to work together lead to an assumption that the species is morphic, but what triggers any change between types is unknown. There are a number of intermediate anthropomorphic shapes as well.

Social notes

One can certainly talk to EBMs, and they do respond in the common tongue, but their conversational abilities are more or less bland and limited. They generally do not express interest in much - but they do seem to like music. Outdoor events or clubs are known to attract them in small swarms, which can kill the vibe for other, less strange New Petrans.

They do have names - the two above are called D-Comp and D-Res.

[cityof2morrow]

Sim Studies

Published: 6-3-2024 | Updated: N/A SUMMARY Did you know there are people out there who do extensive historical, psychological, mental health, tech, and design research based on sims? Did you know there are a host of positive mental health benefits associated with simming? Did you know simming has been used as a form of therapy by health providers…or that it has been implicated in international conflict(s)? Did you know it has made people more curious about others and can encourage civic engagement? Did you know simmers help each other become more tech-literate? The Sims/SimCity franchises have been around in one form or another since at least 1989 and continue to be a focus in game studies (ludology). This research is a part of my professional work and teaching – my research focuses on the psychology and cultural implications of simming. Occasionally, I’ll share interesting things scholars and curious playtesters have discovered about simmers and simming (there are some documented disturbing practices among simulation gamers but this project leans toward the positive/pro-social stuff). Look for more under the #CO2SIMSTUDIES tag. RECOMMENDED SIMS READS: I’ve only located a handful of trade (less-academic, intended for the average reader) publications specifically about The Sims, but I recommend the following to start with – this is a mixture of research-based and biographical reflections on simming:

The Black Simmer by Amira Virgial (@xmiramira) in Black Futures (2021; 2020), edited by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham

Players Unleashed! Modding The Sims and the Culture of Gaming (2011) by Tanja Sihvonen

Women and Gaming: The Sims and 21st Century Learning (2010) by James Paul Gee and Elisabeth R. Hayes

Sims is the subject of several chapters in Women and Video Game Modding: Essays on Gender and the Digital Community (2020), edited by Bridget Whelan.

CREDITS Thanks: Simming and game studies communities. Sources: Beyno (Korn via BBFonts), EA/Maxis, Offuturistic Infographic (Freepik).

[deadpanwalking]

At least tell me you're still gonna vote

It's not 2016 anymore, man. I've changed my whole shit around. I've actually been a leftist for quite some time, and believe me when I say I'm beyond done shilling for the Democratic establishment. Under the guise of "civic engagement", my leftoid commie friends and I have infiltrated the system and are gonna flood the market with potential non-voters.

Here's the deal.

You know how I've been a CASA for almost a decade? Well, my friend tipped me off about the local chapter of Black & Pink/ FJAH—I got involved ostensibly because I'm outraged by the violence and racism woven into the fabric of the justice system ruining the lives of entire generations of families. As I've been volunteering for Ayanna Pressley's election campaigns since her Boston City Council days, I've been lowkey spreading the prison abolitionist agenda by talking up the importance of the Inclusive Democracy Act—which would end felony disenfranchisement—when I tell people about Pressley's progressive policies. Now, that may sound extremely vote-pilled at first, but in the long run it accomplishes the most important leftist objective of all: suffrage gives 4.6 million people the choice not to vote.

I'm also continuing to help immigrant and refugee families navigate the byzantine naturalization/citizenship application process via the same organization that my grandmother volunteered for when she was alive. This may also veer dangerously close to patriotism (the amount of American propaganda I have to push to help them pass the civics exam is excruciating), but bear in mind that many of the freshly minted citizens will forgo voting entirely because they're just happy to be living large on Uncle Sam's handouts, and the rest are rabid Zionists who believe that "эта проститутка" (Hillary Rodham Clinton, age 76, public speaker, grandmother of 3) is an active threat to society, and are chomping at the bit to vote for Trump this and every subsequent November.

This is how we win.

[odinsblog]

According to my estimates of U.S. Census data and information revealed in a recent Stanford study, 24.76 million Black and Latino people are missing or listed with incorrect information in the voter databases sold by vendors, making them unreachable. While 40 percent of Black and Latino people are essentially invisible, only 18 percent of white people are missing or mislisted, according to the study.”

Finding these millions of missing Black and Latino voters could determine the outcome of the 2024 elections. In 2020, Joe Biden won battleground states like Arizona, Georgia and Wisconsin by only 10,457, 11,779 and 20,682 votes.

Vendors supplement government voter registration lists with demographic data and consumer information, such as from credit bureaus. For voters, being missed perpetuates a cycle of exclusion from civic engagement; if they aren’t in the voter database, they won’t get contacted about an upcoming election. Incorrect data also distorts the algorithms that assign vote propensity scores. Traditional campaigns will not generally contact voters whom technology has categorized — correctly or incorrectly — as unlikely to vote.

These applications are, in part, manmade — which means human biases seep in. For example, in 2022, one machine learning company announced that it could predict the race or ethnicity of an individual using only their name and address. Can something as complex as race be predicted by two factors alone? In general, companies building and selling voter databases do not provide enough transparency to allow users to assess the racial or other biases that may have distorted their products.

(continue reading)

[fandomtrumpshate]

2024 Supported Org: Voteriders

The United States has a very patchy history when it comes to voting rights, especially for minoritized people. Black men only secured the right to vote in 1870, and women in 1920. In practice, Black women were still effectively banned from voting until the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1975. Among the many strategies used to discourage minoritized citizens from exercising their right to vote are unnecessarily strict ID requirements. Although a 2014 study by the GAO found that requiring photo IDs reduces consistently reduces voter turnout by 2-3%, many states continue to require photo IDs. Many other states have implemented time- and resource-intensive processes for acquiring even a basic state ID, creating hurdles for potential voters.

The requirement for government ID can often pose a particular challenge for trans and nonbinary voters. For people whose ID doesn’t match their name and gender, voter ID laws can make the experience of casting a ballot invalidating and intimidating. Many transgender voters report verbal harassment as a result of an ID with a name or gender marker that did not match their gender presentation.

VoteRiders is a non-partisan, non-profit organization with a mission to ensure that all citizens are able to exercise their freedom to vote.

VoteRiders' vision is a thriving American democracy with an empowered, civically engaged, diverse, and representative electorate. In such a democracy, voter ID laws do not prevent any eligible voters from having a voice at the ballot box. They make it a special priority to help

VoteRiders and HeadCount’s Vote with Pride team are there to make sure everyone has everything they need to vote safely and confidently. They help people figure out what documents they need to get ID; request and pay for those documents; cover the DMV fees for getting an ID; and even find a lawyer to help, if necessary.

You can support Voteriders as a creator in the 2024 FTH auction (or as a bidder, when the time comes to donate for the auctions you’ve won.)

n.b. VoteRiders is one of two voting justice organizations on our list this year! You can read about the other one, Spread the Vote, here.

[petervintonjr]

“I was born and raised in the North, and I knew that there was discrimination… but I had never seen that type of hatred on the face of anyone before. It forced me to work harder, to come back and work harder. It forced me to take a good look at people that I knew and what was going on in my own community.”

Today we study the achievements of social justice giant Constance Mitchell, someone who truly understood the intrinsic connection between poverty and racial inequality, and infused that into her every action.

Born in 1928 New Rochelle, New York, little is known of the childhood or coming-of-age years of Constance (“Connie”) Mae Jenkins, but in 1950 she married Louisianan John Mitchell (part of the Great Migration) and moved to Rochester, New York –-the city for which she would forever be associated, despite her initial impression of a place where “people here didn't know how to smile and they weren't friendly at all.”  Her first foray into Rochester community activism was as a volunteer with the Delta Ressics, a group of Baden Street Black activists who pushed for better housing and living conditions for migrant farm workers living in shacks near Sodus.  She also fought against deplorable living conditions at the Hanover Houses, Rochester’s first low-income apartment complex.  

In 1959 at the urging of a fellow Delta Rassick, Walter Cooper, Mitchell ran for --and lost-- a race for a seat on what is now the Monroe County legislature (Ward 3, then known as the Monroe County Board of Supervisors).  However she made another run in 1961 and was this time successful, and was then re-elected in 1964: the first woman and the first African-American to be elected to that body --though not without enduring resentment, routine insults and slurs, and even threats from her fellow legislators.  From this position she and her husband came into regular contact with such figures as Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, among many other civil rights leaders of the time --even entertaining visits from Malcolm and then-Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.  In the wake of the violent 1964 racial unrest in Rochester, Connie expressed in an interview for Life magazine, “I'm not telling you, I told you so. I'm saying please listen to us."  These two terms were the full extent of Connie’s political career but her commitment to civil rights was just getting started: in 1965, she walked alongside Dr. King from Selma to Montgomery, but while this heroic act itself disillusioned her, at the same time it reinvigorated her determination to improves lives and conditions in her own community. 

Perhaps one of Mitchell's enduring achievements was the founding of Action for a Better Community, a Rochester-based nonprofit devoted to helping people in low-income areas become more self-sufficient and lift themselves out of poverty.  She also worked closely with the United Way and the Urban League of Rochester, and created the Urban League Black Scholars program.  In later years (1978 to 1989), she became the Program Director for an initiative called PRISM (Program for Rochester to Interest Students in Science and Mathematics).  In 1993 Rochester Mayor Bill Johnson, the first elected Black mayor of that city, credited Connie with inspiring him to get into politics; and in 2013 mayor Lovely Warren, the first Black woman to be elected to that position, similarly credited Connie as a role model. 

In February 2017, Mitchell was awarded the Frederick Douglass Medal for outstanding civic engagement by the University of Rochester.  She died the following year (2018); today the Monroe Country Office Building bears her name at the Constance Mitchell Concourse.

Read a truly absorbing transcript of a lengthy 2008 interview with Constance and John Mitchell at: https://rbscp.lib.rochester.edu/rbfs-CMitchell

[beardedmrbean]

The FBI is reportedly probing misconduct allegations regarding Dolton, Illinois Mayor Tiffany Henyard after a local business owner claimed he was punished for refusing to donate to an event the mayor held.

Henyard had previously posted an Instagram video of herself chatting with Biden from when she attended a press conference at the White House on Jan. 19, during the U.S. Conference of Mayors' annual winter meeting. 

Fox News Digital previously reported that Henyard has been living like a royal with a combined salary of nearly $300K – more than the state's governor – and frequent use of beauty vendors, despite the 23,000 residents of the Illinois town having a median income of $24K. Henyard has also come under fire for various tirades in public meetings, accusing her critics among local leaders of "beating and attacking on a Black woman that’s in power."

According to FOX 32, a Dolton-based U-Haul rental and trucking business owner named Lawrence Gardner said he went to the FBI out of frustration that the Village of Dolton would not renew his business license. He claims he has suffered from harassment, raids on his business and being shut down by Dolton Police. Gardner believes it’s retaliation after he refused to donate to a civic event sponsored by Henyard.

DEMOCRATIC MAYOR ACCUSED OF ANTICS SO WILD SHE DESERVES HER OWN TV SHOW: 'REAL LIFE PARKS & REC SITUATION'

"I talked to a couple of [FBI] agents and I explained to them what’s going on," Gardner told FOX 32. "I gave them all my paperwork to show them what was happening in court and what was happening in Dolton. And they told me they were investigating and would be in touch with me."

He also reportedly claimed that the FBI agents he spoke with took his allegations seriously, "Yes. Very serious. Very."

Gardner is one of six individuals who have reportedly spoken to the FBI about Henyard’s conduct, including other business owners, a former village employee and one or more public officials.

FOX 32 also cited restauranteur Dewayne Wood, who also has faced difficulties trying to renew his business license for his business for almost a year. 

While he has reportedly not spoken to the FBI, Wood believes that he has faced difficulties getting "Wood’s Kitchen" approved because he has catered to Dolton trustees who are engaged in a political battle with Henyard.

CONTROVERSIAL MAYOR POSTS VIDEO WITH BIDEN JUST DAYS AFTER RIPPING COLLEAGUES FOR 'ATTACKING ON A BLACK WOMAN'

"I've heard rumors that say, hey I'm on the wrong team," Wood said, later adding, "I think I've been targeted because of my association, affiliation with a certain group of people. The trustees. I've cooked for the trustees."

One of the trustees reportedly welcomes the FBI investigation.

"The Board of Trustees and I have repeatedly questioned the Mayor’s Office on her use of public funds," Dolton Trustee Jason House wrote in a statement. "We welcome any investigation that will bring transparency on how taxpayer dollars are being spent. Our residents deserve this level of financial transparency."

A public relations firm responding on behalf of Henyard told FOX 32 she had not been contacted by the FBI so far. 

"Mayor Tiffany Henyard and the Village of Dolton have not received any subpoenas and have not been contacted by the FBI or any other law enforcement agency," the firm said. 

Henyard and the FBI did not respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital. _______________

That RICO thing I said with her looks like it may actually be in the works sooner than I thought

[canadianabroadvery]

 " ... researchers point to the growing body of research that finds that violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act are more common in communities with a larger Hispanic and Black populations. They explore those inequities and argue that failing tap water systems in the United States erode trust in government. As a result, the people who can least afford it end up buying expensive bottled water, even if what’s coming out of the tap is safe.

Over the past two decades, the size of the bottled water industry in the U.S. has nearly tripled. In 2020, wholesale revenues totaled $20.1 billion. While commercial water companies market their water as a cleaner alternative to tap water, research shows little evidence to support or refute these claims because this industry has less stringent oversight compared to tap water..."

[communistkenobi]

Political knowledge and interest in public affairs are critical preconditions for more active forms of involvement. If you don't know the rules of the game and the players and don't care about the outcome, you're unlikely to try playing yourself. Encouragingly, Americans in the aggregate at century's end are about as likely to know, for example, which party controls the House of Representatives or who their senators are as were their grandparents a half century ago. On the other hand, we are much better educated than our grandparents, and since civics knowledge is boosted by formal education, it is surprising that civics knowledge has not improved accordingly. The average college graduate today knows little more about public affairs than did the average high school graduate in the 1940s. (Bowling Alone, p 35)

Putnam just got done saying voting is only a limited slice of American political participation and voter turnout numbers can’t be used to generalise about all public political engagement, but we are now back to “knowing about elected officials” as a generalised version of political knowledge (which, as he argues, is a pre-condition to political participation, eg voting).

Adorno’s comment about the widespread political ignorance of the American public comes to mind while reading this, although his diagnosis is very different from Putnam’s, pointing instead to the industrial capitalist standardisation of education that produces extremely rigid knowledge frameworks that encourage people to think in set types, to believe there are singularly correct answers to complex problems, and that these answers are discoverable only within the available range of options (contributing to “both-sides”-isms and a failure to imagine political discourse beyond what is presented by political candidates). I think there’s a bunch of idealism going on there too, but Adorno at least acknowledges that education in America is the result of capitalist economic production shaping cultural and educational standards, which are deeply revisionist and use american imperial interests as the basis for educational programs. Coupled with how poorly funded and decentralised public education is, the privatised nature of post-secondary education, and the deeply racialised and gendered dimensions of economic inequality, access to the types of education that would inform you about political matters is reserved for the select few.

And that’s still a very generous criticism, given that Putnam’s argument rests on the absurd notion that political participation is a function of education (even though he acknowledges in that last sentence that college degrees don’t necessarily mean you “know the rules of the game.”) Again I’m not like a historical expert or anything, but my understanding is that black civil rights movements, gay civil rights movements, women’s rights movements etc in the 60s and onwards were not resultant from all those people individually getting college degrees or learning who their elected officials were but rather mass organising and protesting - ie, a response to the failures of electoral politics to secure civil rights and protections for oppressed groups. This is again a bourgeois conception of political participation - if education is a necessary function of political engagement, then mass movements and demonstrations do not really “count” as political engagement.

it’s honestly laughable that this book is as well-regarded and heavily cited as it is. Putnam is fundamentally unserious about and uninterested in anything outside of the American mythological conception of bourgeois individualism and electoral politics. The term “social capital,” a centrally important concept in his book, is not interrogated for any ideological baggage or methodological limitations it may carry, and he has not provided any explanation for social change aside from the completely ridiculous idea that generational change is the driving factor in American politics. He claims that a lack of knowledge or interests in electoral outcomes prevents people from “playing the game,” with no allowance for anyone who declares the game itself is unfair, or any argument that we should change the rules of the game. He’s writing about the social life in America with the assumption that there is literally nothing beyond liberal electoral individualism, and any arguments to the contrary - any political activity that is illegal, unpopular to the white public, or simply uninterested in electoralism - to be unimportant in diagnosing the social ills of American society. What a fucking joke