Category: Commentary

Back in March, I delivered a speech to an NAACP Freedom Fund banquet in my home state of Georgia. I drew on my personal life story to urge poor people, White and Black, to pull together and overcome racial divisions. We have to understand that our struggle is against poverty and against those who are […]

After Davon was arrested at the tender age of 16, he was charged with murder. His slinky arms and slender frame fit perfectly in a small holding cell at the juvenile unit in Baltimore City. Nothing would seem amiss about him joining other detained youths except for one thing: Davon was held in a jail […]

This month we mark the diamond anniversary of a national treasure – Social Security, signed into law on Aug. 14, 1935. It’s a time to celebrate Social Security’s remarkable success. It’s also a time when false assumptions are undermining support for the program and threatening to erode retirement security for our children and grandchildren. We […]

I just upgraded to Windows 7, and the way I did it was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done to this computer. What saved me was that the computer is a great brand and the company, Toshiba, can fix my stupidity for $24.95. It began when my office needed a new program to maintain reimbursements […]

Americans are recovering from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, and I am confident we will succeed. However, we also must consider where we and our families will be, economically, when our nation’s economic recovery is complete. Encouraging a morally acceptable answer to this critical issue is a paramount priority – for me, […]

Once again, the United States Congress has failed to correct the government’s modern institutional injustice against Black farmers. After years of racist neglect of Black farmers by the Department of Agriculture that ultimately led to the loss of Black lands and Black livelihoods, the government reached a settlement with the Black farmers that, to date, […]

For many Americans, protecting your home just gets harder and harder. Just ask Gloria. After trying to refinance her home in 2004, she and her husband were saddled with an adjustable rate mortgage. Now, thanks to rising payments, they’re currently fighting foreclosure. Gloria’s story is hardly unique. Thanks to the banking industry’s predatory lending practices […]

Sociologists and historians would remind us that it is the kind of thing to be expected when the country is in social upheaval and economic stress. Folks start looking for scapegoats, and they usually point the finger of blame at some kind of “other” – other race, other gender, other region, other religious group. But […]

(NNPA) — At the recent National Urban League convention, President Obama’s speech took aim at criticisms launched by the Black civil rights community over the educational reforms proposed by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. The 17-page document, “Framework for Providing All Students an Opportunity to Learn through Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act,” […]

Last March, President Obama invited me to join him at the White House as he signed our Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590) into law. While waiting for the President to arrive at that historic ceremony, my thoughts went out to the millions of Americans whose lives will be transformed for the better […]

What do the Tea party, NAACP, New Black Panther party, Shirley Sherrod and Attorney General Eric Holder have in common? They all teach us about racism. Racism is something you can see, sense, feel and hear, yet, it’s hard to quite put into words. A precise definition is difficult to come by. The law forbids racial […]

Congress recently passed the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, legislation that will protect consumers, investors and taxpayers by ensuring the financial services industry has the appropriate oversight to avoid the type of financial collapse that has rocked our nation and global markets. ? Over the last 30 years, our regulatory framework has not […]