Commentary by Black Kos editor JoanMar
New Yorkers know how much the Orange Mussolini craved the love and validation of high society. How he wormed his way into the company of the rich and famous, both Black and white. And so, imagine how it must have stung the stuffing outta him to see all of society’s big names rushing to endorse Madam Vice President instead of him. Oh, it must burn. It must be gnawing at him, lodged in his craw like an undigested McDonald’s Quarter Pounder slathered in ketchup. The crème de la crème — undeniable, acknowledged cultural superstars like Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Beyonce, LeBron James, Taylor Swift, Oprah, Bruce Springsteen, Eminem, to name a few. And who does he have? A ragtag collection of has-beens, never-were’s, wannabes, and lazy “comedians” whose only claim to fame is their ability to regurgitate and paraphrase all the hate they’ve imbibed over the years. Who’s gonna pay money to see Hulk Hogan, Apartheid Clyde, and DEI hire Dr. Phil?
Faced with the reality of his inability to attract genuine star power, he conceived, what was for him, a brilliant idea. Something along the line of, “If the mountain won’t come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain.” Some weeks ago, he had that disastrous Coachella-like, or Coachella-lite, event. That didn’t go too well, but the second time will be the charm. This time, they’d drag their stink to one of the nation’s most iconic venues — Madison Square Garden. Perhaps 19,000 devoted Red Hats chanting his name in a space renowned for hosting some of the most memorable sporting and cultural events of recent memory could fill the aching void in a narcissist’s heart?
We all knew what was going to happen at that hatefest. Petty, insecure little men spewing their hateful guts and giving us their best interpretation of the debunked “Alpha Male” myth. Imagine Stephen Miller, aka “Little Goebbels,” shrieking, “Americah for Americahns!” We’d all better wake up and know that we are all Puerto Ricans and all Haitians. Never mind that Puerto Ricans cannot be deported from their own mothereffing country.
No one of good conscience should feel secure that their community will be immune from MAGA world’s hatred. It’s really a shame that we have to wait for our own community to be attacked before we get involved, but here we are. For example, I hate to tell ppl from the Dominican Republic who are always quick to reminds us “We are not Black; we are Dominicans,” that racists don’t know and do not care to know the difference between them and Haitians. For that matter, MAGA world do not know and cannot tell the difference between Haitians, other Caribbean natives, and Africans.They do not know the difference between Muslims and Sikhs, or between Arabs and Indians. Who all remember how Puerto Ricans and people “who look” Latino (that’s a whole ‘nother discussion) were targeted after 911? Racists do not know and do not care to know the difference between Chinese and Japanese or anyone else from that region. Tucker Carlson doesn’t know that there are differences between Malaysians and Samoans. And they do not know or care to know the difference between Black Americans and other children of the diaspora.
No, ethnicity and nationality won't matter because they can’t tell us apart — and it will not be of super importance to them to tell us apart. Black and Brown Americans with roots stretching back to the 17th century, people whose ancestors were here long before Mary Trump first visited this country, will be required to prove their right to walk this land unbothered. That was no mere idle political rhetoric they spewed at that Nazi-style hatefest. The mass deportation of millions would by necessity see the reimagining of the slave patrols and all the the accompanying dehumanization, degradation, and brutality. It would mean Stop & Frisk on steroids. It would mean the expansion of the "show me your papers” law.
The good news? My beloved late, great Grandmother was fond of saying, “Pride cometh before a fall.” That rally at Madison Square Garden meant to stoke his fragile ego may just have caused him the election. His plan may have backfired hugely. He’s gonna learn to keep Puerto Ricans and Haitians names outta his foul mouth.
Let’s go! #KamalaHarris!
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News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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Imagine it’s the morning after the election is finally called and you wake up to sounds of jubilation chiming in your text messages, your social media feed is blowing up in celebration, and the newspaper headlines read: KAMALA HARRIS WINS!
You’re thinking it’s the end of the bitter Donald Trump saga. But don’t sleep...if the Jan. 6 domestic terrorism were any clue, this dude probably won’t go quietly even in the face of clear defeat. He didn’t last time and there’s no reason to expect he will now, and neither will his army of MAGA lackeys.
Despite no concrete proof of massive fraud anywhere, people ranging from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance — who happens to be running for vice president -- insist there was. They are inciting what some fear could be a repeat of the U.S. Capitol riot, so much so that security is being beefed up for the December electoral vote.
There is a long list of people who are personally invested in the belief that Trump won. If they were going to disappear with a Harris victory, there would be no problem.
But there is little reason to expect they will. In June, Trump himself all but said that he wouldn’t accept the results if he loses.
”That’s the only way we’re gonna lose, because they cheat,” he said at a September rally in Michigan.
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Many, many people have warned that Trump is a threat to American democracy. Many others have argued that these warnings are politically inert, that focusing on abstract concepts like “democracy” and “the rule of law” removes political debate from the concrete concerns people want addressed by government. Do people struggling to pay the bills have time to care about such matters of principle?
Yet in reality, the two things are inseparable. Trump’s plan to turn the government into a tool of his own personal will would have extraordinary consequences for Americans’ everyday lives. It would disrupt, or potentially even devastate, core functions of government that we’ve long taken for granted.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division is a case in point.
Founded by the 1957 Civil Rights Act, the Division is tasked with enforcing federal law regarding anti-discrimination and civil equality. This is a mammoth responsibility, covering areas of law that shape the fundamental experience of American democracy. Its attorneys launch hate crimes prosecutions, investigate discrimination in employment and housing, and sue states when their voting rules run afoul of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
If Trump returns to power, the department could easily be turned from a tool for protecting civil rights into a means of undoing them. Trump and his allies have laid out fairly specific plans for doing just that — plans that, if enacted, would mean a far more radical and methodical transformation of the federal rights civil apparatus than what we saw in Trump’s shambolic first term.
The department’s Voting Section — which played a critical role in defending the integrity of the 2020 election — would be twisted, its attorneys replaced with cronies working to validate Trump’s lies and shield Republican-controlled states from federal scrutiny. Its anti-discrimination litigators would be tasked with investigating “anti-white” discrimination, effectively turning the Civil Rights Act on the minority citizens it was written to defend. And Lopez’s former colleagues working on policing would not only let abusive cops skate, but potentially even investigate local law enforcement Trump believed weren’t aggressive enough toward alleged criminals.
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Downballot candidates, particularly Black women, have benefited from a surge in support this year from volunteers who happen to be members of Black Greek organizations, many energized by Kamala Harris' presidential run. The Grio: Inspired by Harris, many Black sorority and fraternity members are helping downballot races
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U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes isn’t a member of the historically Black sororities and fraternities known as the “Divine Nine.”
But throughout her hotly contested reelection campaign this year, Hayes, the first Black woman to represent Connecticut in Congress, has sometimes felt like she’s a fellow soror, the term used by Black Greek organizations for sorority sisters. On their own, members have shown up to call voters, organize fundraisers, knock on doors, cheer Hayes on at campaign events and even offer pro bono legal help.
“I had people from Massachusetts come in to volunteer,” said Hayes, a Democrat who is seeking a fourth term. “I’ve had people who had previously been considering going to a battleground state like Pennsylvania and are saying, ‘No, we’re going to stay right here and help out in this race in Connecticut.’”
Downballot candidates like Hayes — particularly Black women — have benefited from a surge in support this year from volunteers who happen to be members of Black Greek organizations, many energized by Kamala Harris’ presidential run. The vice president is a longtime member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, which was founded at her alma matter, Howard University, in 1908. Harris pledged AKA as a senior at Howard in 1986.
Collectively known as the National Pan-Hellenic Council, the nine historically Black sororities and fraternities are nonpartisan and barred from endorsing candidates because of their not-for-profit status. The organizations focus on voter registration drives, civic engagement and nonelectoral initiatives and are careful not to show favor to a particular candidate. But many of the groups’ members, as individuals, have been “extremely active” in federal and state races around the country this year, said Jaime R. Harrison, chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
“I think that’s a part of the Kamala Harris effect,” Harrison said during a recent visit to Connecticut.
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Botswana’s president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, has conceded defeat as early results from Wednesday’s election showed his Botswana Democratic party losing by a landslide after nearly six decades in power.
With more than half of constituencies counted, the opposition coalition Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) was heading for a parliamentary majority, with its leader, lawyer Duma Boko, on track to become the southern African country’s next president.
Soaring unemployment has hit young people especially hard, fuelling a backlash at the ballot box in Wednesday’s vote against the BDP, which has ruled the country of 2.5 million people since it became independent from Britain in 1966.
It is also part of a wider wave of popular discontent that has swelled across the continent, amid a lack of good jobs for growing youthful populations.
“Although I wanted to stay on as your president, I respect the will of the people and I congratulate the president-elect. I will step aside and I will support the new administration,” Masisi said at a press conference on Friday morning.
State television showed that out of 41 of the 61 constituencies that had reported results, the UDC had won 26 seats, while the BDP had just three. MPs will then elect the president.
Botswana is the world’s second largest diamond producer, with income from the gems credited with helping the country to be one of the region’s most stable and wealthy states.
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