By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com A $2 million investment from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Program will help bridge West Baltimore communities currently divided by the “Highway to Nowhere” which extends from N. Warwick Avenue to Martin Luther King Jr Blvd. Located in the 7th congressional district, the “Highway to Nowhere” […]
Author Archives: Tashi McQueen AFRO Staff Writer
Posted inBaltimore News
A tale of two cities: a look at Baltimore’s housing insecurity challenge
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Take a five-mile drive through Baltimore and you can’t help but notice how wealth is disproportionately dispersed throughout the area. Though Charm City is home to the affluent communities of Charles Village, Harbor East, Canton and Gilford, it’s also home to more than 14,000 abandoned homes on hundreds […]
Posted inNational News
New legislation passed by Georgia Senate Ethics Committee seeks to tighten proof of residency requirements, eliminate ballot drop boxes
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Republicans of Georgia’s General Assembly continue to make increasingly restrictive changes to voting laws in their state. On the last day of Black History Month, Georgia Senators passed SB 221 in the Senate Ethics Committee, which entirely removes the use of ballot drop boxes. This bill began as […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Del. Amprey defends Maryland rap artists in recent bill
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com On Feb. 28, Del. Marlon Amprey (D-Md-40) introduced HB0940, Criminal Procedure – Evidence – Admissibility of Creative Expression. “HB0940 is a bill to ensure that artistic expression cannot incriminate someone unless the court of law can prove that the lyrics and visual expressions are directly tied to an […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Congressional Black Caucus announces agenda for 118th Congress
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com The Congressional Black Caucus on March 2 announced its agenda for the 118th Congress during the House Democrats 2023 Issues Conference held in Baltimore City at the Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Harbor. Under the theme of “delivering for our communities, housing, jobs and justice,” CBC Chairman Rep. Steven […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Democrats tout wins, outline agenda at issues conference
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com As the 118th Congress entered its third month, House Democrats held their annual issues conference March 1-3 at the Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Habor hotel in Baltimore, Md. President Joe Biden, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott joined congressional Democrats and a host of […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Gov. Wes Moore announces $17 million state funding to reduce crime in Baltimore City
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Gov. Wes Moore announced a $17 million investment in Baltimore City towards crime reduction on Feb. 23. “This is not just a Baltimore problem, it’s a Maryland problem,” said Gov. Moore. “Statewide violent crime and its drivers span every jurisdiction in Maryland, and our state has fueled a […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Slain teen’s family home targeted in weekend shooting
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Deanta Dorsey’s family home was hit by bullets several times on Feb. 18. Baltimore Police Department officers were called to the family’s home at roughly 1:45 a.m. Authorities have confirmed that all residents at the property were physically unharmed. “Saturday morning, some time after midnight, the Dorsey house […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Gov. Wes Moore joins alliance of governors taking action to protect reproductive rights
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Gov. Wes Moore has officially joined the Reproductive Freedom Alliance, a group of governors who have pledged to sustain womens’ reproductive rights. Moore announced that he had joined the collective on Feb. 21. “I supported four bills heading to the floor of our state legislature that will protect […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Gov. Wes Moore honors Frederick Douglass, Harriett Tubman and Thurgood Marshall with Civil Rights Heroes Day
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Governor Wes Moore proclaimed Feb. 20, 2023, as Civil Rights Heroes Day in Maryland. The Moore-Miller administration chose to honor the date of the death of Frederick Douglass, a Maryland-born former slave and author, to signal Maryland’s commitment to promoting his legacy. “Our nation’s civil rights leaders’ legacies […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Officials respond to report stating 23 Baltimore City Public Schools have no students proficient in math
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com Baltimore City Public Schools (City Schools) representatives are responding to outrage over the disclosure that 23 City Schools have zero students deemed proficient in mathematics. The Statewide Spring 2022 Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP) testing results show that while City Schools students returned to “pre-pandemic levels of proficiency” […]
Posted inBaltimore News
AFRO Charities receives $2.25 million federal investment to renovate Upton Mansion
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com On Feb. 13 Frances “Toni” Draper, CEO and publisher of the AFRO American Newspapers, and Savannah Wood, executive director of the AFRO Charities, accepted a $2.25 million in federal funds earmarked for community project funding. “How fitting is it that after 130 years, AFRO Charities is redeveloping this […]
