Category: Editorial

In the whirlwind mania leading up to the Super Bowl last week, Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, appearing on a CBS morning show from New Orleans, was asked not only about the Baltimore Ravens’ prospects of winning the big trophy, but also about his own prospects of taking a run at the presidency. Grinning from ear-to-ear […]

“Be vigilant, for nothing one achieves lasts forever,” cautions Moroccan poet and writer Tahar Ben Jelloun. Though he didn’t say these words, this was the creed of my dearly departed friend, civil and voting rights warrior Lawrence Guyot. He cherished the franchise. He was nearly beaten to death by Southern whites in the 1960s for […]

Teria Rogers  My favorite story that I covered this year was the “Many Blacks in D.C. Still Worried Despite Steep Drop in Killings” piece. This was my favorite because as a student in D.C. Public Schools, I remember the years/stories/tales of D.C. being the murder capital. It was very heartwarming to know that, even though […]

An armistice ending the hostilities between Germany and the Allied Nations became effective on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. Armistice Day, which was commemorated for the first time on November 11, 1919, became a legal holiday in 1938. Veteran service organizations urged Congress in 1954 to change the word “Armistice” to […]

We have already won! It is not quite 3 p.m. on Nov. 6 in the central United States. The national polls, depending on where you live in the country, will not close for hours. Yet, I am making a bold prediction that President Barack Obama will win and those of us who worked for his […]

U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D) is set for a rematch against Republican challenger Frank Mirabile on Nov. 6. The last time the pair faced off in 2010, Mirabile lost to Cummings with 23 percent of the vote. Mirabile, a landscape designer and small business owner for more than 20 years, is running on a typical […]

On the verge of the General Election, Sen. Benjamin Cardin is sitting pretty, as one of the U.S. Senate incumbents with the best chances of re-election. The longtime lawmaker faces Potomac businessman Rob Sobhani, an Independent, who had channeled his own considerable funds into a multimillion-dollar advertising blitz. A two-time candidate in the Republican Senate […]

The shape of the newly redrawn third congressional district meanders from northwest Baltimore County, through parts of Baltimore City, into Howard and Anne Arundel counties, and down into Montgomery County. With nearly 110,000 new constituents, the district represents a challenge to the person that would represent it in Congress. The AFRO believes incumbent Rep. John […]

U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D) is in a three-way contest against Faith Loudon of Pasadena, who has been active in the Republican Central Committee in Anne Arundel County, and Libertarian Scott Soffen of Ellicott City, in her bid for reelection in the Fourth Congressional District. Based on her grasp of the issues, her commitment to […]

President Barack Obama is running for a second term on the strength of his health care reform, his foreign policy initiatives, job creation, the auto industry bailout, banking industry reform and passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. Among many African Americans, his healthcare reform was the signature accomplishment of his administration—providing […]

When voters in Maryland go to the polls, they’ll have the opportunity to decide by their vote on Proposition 4 as to whether or not children of illegal immigrants should be extended the privilege to pursue college degrees at in-state tuition rates, if they qualify under certain conditions. The Maryland DREAM Act was passed by […]

For years, Marylanders have argued over gaming. In years before, much of the contention seemed to center on the moral and social considerations of gambling—whether it leads to addiction, personal bankruptcies and increased crime and becomes a scourge on already-suffering communities. This election, the referendum on gaming elicited more politically- and economically-influenced arguments. Question 7 […]