The Greene Room

Not an Economist

I'm not an economist, I don't play one on TV, but I will talk about it if asked.

Brown v Monkey

A political cartoon is misinterpreted and African American organizations and their talking heads immediately see an opportunity to make noise. Meanwhile, a famous black woman is beat down by her equally famous black boyfriend and commentary in the black community centers around, "What did she do to cause it?" Why are some African Americans so cowardly when it comes to addressing black-on-black violence? There is no end to the activists' displays of outrage when racism is perceived. Yet, the silence is deafening, drowned out only by the hypocrisy and ignorance when the perpetrator is black. Rupert Murdoch may be public enemy number one for the progressive community, but he and his posse at The New York Post are not sanctioning the abuse and killing of black women. The beating Rihanna experienced at the hands of Chris Brown was tragic, but definitely not uncommon. The leading cause of death for African American women ages 15 to 45 is intimate partner homicide. Yes, black men are killing young black women in such high numbers it beats out accidents and every illness you can imagine. Where is the outrage? Where is the boycott? Where is the speech? I have never received a call to action email on behalf of black women affected by domestic abuse – at a rate 35% higher than our white counterparts. When the Chris Brown incident became public where was the cry for attention to this issue by the megaphoniacs? The only commentary posted on CNN.com was written by Leslie Steiner, while one of the most prominent black CNN contributors was ranting about Valentine's Day.  Michael Basden had an 'enlightening' exchange on his radio show about if they should even be discussing the incident. If? Really, Michael? Would he ask that question if a white cop beat up a black boy? Absolutely not. Some will say it is not fair to compare the monkey cartoon to the "Chrianna" event or police brutality to domestic abuse. It is about priorities, people. It is time to stop hiding our dirty laundry in the closet or making excuses for it. Black-on-black violence is decimating our communities and has been for quite some time. An apology from the New York Post is not going to save the life of any black person. Imagine if the NAACP had publicly pulled support for Chris Brown's nomination for an Image Award similar to what Wrigley's Doublemint Gum and the Got Milk campaign did by removing him as a spokesperson? Maybe, just maybe, one young black male would learn an important lesson – never hit a woman. How can gum and milk peddlers have more integrity about their images than the NAACP Image Awards? It is time for the black community to adopt a zero tolerance policy against domestic abuse. Bottom-line, what Chris Brown did to Rihanna was a teachable moment - an opportunity for the black community to coalesce and show the world we are taking action to address a pressing issue affecting us all. Cartoon-gate is a misguided media stunt that will further create a chilling effect on free speech and ultimately have little impact on the lives of black people. To my friends at Colorofchange.org, Al Sharpton's National Action Network, and the NAACP please put the protest signs down and refocus the media spotlight on issues that actually matter. If you have to boycott something, boycott Chris Brown.

My Middle Passage

I started the 4 hour journey at 9 am. I was supposed to be at the meeting place by 4 pm. After throwing out my back, over-stuffing my luggage - causing it to semi-break, missing a ferry, a train, and the last bus from the Hampton's I was still surprisingly optimistic. That positive attitude helped me convince a complete stranger to drive me to the NYC border where I could take a subway from Queens to Newark Airport. Unfortunately, there were no cabs in Queens, so I hopped on the subway with the help of another kind stranger who carried my luggage down the stairs. He was kind to me, but rough on the already fragile suitcase. The train arrived just in time for my luggage to completely split open and dump the contents on the ground. Another kind stranger promptly produced some much needed duck tape - really - and again I was on my way. The plan was to take the train from Penn Station to Newark Airport, but between my broken back and the broken luggage, I couldn't fathom anymore trains so I climbed out from the depths of the subway (with help, of course) and hailed a cab. It was now 3:30 pm. The cab driver told me we would definitely get there by 4 pm - the traffic said differently and for the first time I started to doubt my chances of making the flight. Unbelievably we made it to Newark Airport by ten after four, but finding the designated meeting spot was a different matter. After twenty minutes of driving in circles we saw the company off in the distance and my cabbie jumped two medians to get me to the entrance. Imagine my surprise when I found out that we had a little extra time - just enough for me to go look for new luggage at the airport terminal. One quick shuttle and excruciatingly painful walk through Terminal A, I still hadn't found what I was looking for. A nice woman at the information counter suggested I take the bus to the mall and guaranteed I would be in and out in less than 30 minutes. It took 20 minutes to get to the right terminal for the bus, ten minutes to get to the mall, 20 minutes dashing through Burlington Coat Factory and I finally had my new luggage! Another 45 minute bus transfer wasn't an option and the universe was smiling at me when a cab drove by at the perfect moment. And even though he didn't speak English and had no clue how to get to the airport, somehow we found our way. Just in time for the mechanical problem. My middle passage wasn't nearly as rough as my ancestors and I am happy to report that after all that - I am on my way to the motherland!

Happy Fourth of July...WomenCount!

It has been a minute since I wrote on this blog. I'm back! I'm working with an incredible group of women on a new organization. Please read our July 4th message and I hope you join our movement at womencountpac.com

Peace,

Jehmu

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Dear Friends,

What does the Fourth of July mean to you? Freedom, equality, rebellion? Just like our founding fathers and mothers, we refuse to allow our issues to be taken lightly and we will not be ignored. Like you, WomenCount is fired up and ready to act, but first we need to hear from you.

WomenCount is an organization that has grown out of the historic presidential primary season – we are of the people and by the people – and your opinion is critical to our success. Think "MoveOn" for women. And now, we need your insight and direction on what issue we should tackle first.

It's up to you. Is fighting sexism and gender bias at the top of your list? Do we need to change the discriminatory nominating process? Should we turn our attention to electing more women to office? Tell us what you think at womencountpac.com

It may seem like just one more decision to add to your list this weekend in addition to what fireworks show, barbecue, or parade to attend. But this decision can change the world – for our mothers, our sisters, our sons and daughters.

The primary season proved that there is still a lot of work left to do. So as you prepare to celebrate our nation's Independence Day,

we urgently need you to make your own declaration.

WomenCount has already received incredible feedback from thousands of people who have became energized and inspired during the presidential primary.

Add your voice to the growing chorus at womencountpac.com and then tell your friends to do the same.

Happy Fourth of July!

Stacy, Rosemary, Jehmu and the entire WomenCount team

The Scrappy Factor, By: Tory Lauterbach

It is really hard to blog when you are in a different city every 4 hours and your computer is crashed. To answer the call from all the folks asking for an updated entry, I asked Tory Lauterbach, President of Students for Hillary at the University of Texas to be a guest blogger. Of course it took me a while to put her post up, but here you go...

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The Scrappy Factor

This week the Clinton campaign has mounted the greatest political comeback since, well, our last political comeback on March 4. Our critics—in the media, on the street, and on our opponent's campaign—wonder how we do it; what they don't understand is that comebacks are what Clinton supporters are good at. Why? Two words: We're scrappy.

I had a talk about this with Jehmu about a month ago. I told her I knew that we were going to win these late primaries because our supporters are scrappier, and our supporters are the ones who will make real sacrifices for this cause that they believe in so much. I said that our supporters would stick with Hillary for the long haul. I'm so happy that today I can say that I was right.

Our supporters are from all parts of American life, but by far our strongest support is found among two groups: American workers and American women. These two groups, more than any other, know that the key to success is twofold: First, keep working; second, never quit.

The proof that we're tougher? You could see it all over Pennsylvania:

There was the elderly but spry woman from rural Center County who gets around using a walker, who walked 11 miles from her home to attend a rally with Bill Clinton.

Then there was the 20-year old ballet dancer from Queens who knew Hillary needed her in Philadelphia, so at the last minute she took a bus to Philly on Election Day and walked around downtown until she found a group of Hillary volunteers she could join with in the fight. I was in that group, and we were glad to have her.

And then there was the group of 20 or 30 Texans who traveled to Scranton and Pittsburg and Philadelphia. Some of them arrived in Pennsylvania without housing or much money, but they wanted to help, and they knew that the people of Pennsylvania would greet them with open arms. And Pennsylvania did, providing housing and food to these out-of-state volunteers, and joining these volunteers in hours and days of canvassing, calling, and rallying support.

We won on Tuesday after our opponent outspent us on TV ads nearly 4-to-1, and we did it with elbow grease. We knocked on every door and we called every supporter. Volunteers of all ages awoke at dawn and stayed up 'til the wee hours, all because we know that if we stand up for Hillary, she will stand up for us.

Senator Obama may have had the money, but we had the passion, the determination, and the drive to defy the odds. We are the campaign with heart, and that heart won over Pennsylvania. 

Breaking News: It's all relative

After watching in-depth coverage of each candidate's 9th cousin, three-times removed, I decided to conduct the first ever Greene Room poll:

17% of Democratic voters nationwide say that they will vote for Barack because he is a distant cousin of Brad Pitt - the Brad Factor is outpacing the Oprah Effect in bringing women voters to his campaign.

22% of Democrats support Hillary because Angelina Jolie is in her family tree - sources close to her campaign are urging Hillary to get lip injections to help male voters see more of a resemblance.

13% of voters will not vote for McCain because he has no celebrity relatives, but that's okay because 34% of Democrats who are still loyal to Jennifer Aniston will be voting for the Republican nominee.

Given the nature of the National Enquiresque-like coverage of the election, you never know what nonsense will be scrutinized for an entire day week. Let's see how much airtime the Clinton and Obama economic speeches will get today. What would happen if the media only covered the serious issues at stake, provided unbiased and accurate analysis of each candidate's experience and plans, or just simply stopped focusing on the inside baseball horserace angle? Oh yeah, Hillary would be the front-runner.

As MJ said, "I'm talking to the man woman in the mirror...," because I too am guilty of sensationalizing the race in some of my on-air commentary, but the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem.

The Wrath of Kos

Uh-oh. I have drawn the ire of bloggers on Daily Kos after my appearance on The O'Reilly Factor last night. Daily Kos diarists are up in arms that I was critical of their beloved website. Interesting. I think most people would prefer my brand of constructive criticism vs. Daily Kos' vitriol.

The founder of Daily Kos, Markos "Kos" Moulitsas' statement:

• He has "enmity" towards Senator Clinton. (Fancy way of saying deep seated hatred or hostility)
• He calls Senator Clinton's voters, "low-information Democratic voters..." (Code-speak for "stupid")
• He refers to the millions of Democrats who voted for Senator Clinton in Ohio, Texas, and Rhode Island as a "shrinking band of paranoid holdouts" (Offensive and mathematically incorrect)
• He accuses Clinton of trying to ignite a Civil War within the Democratic Party (irresponsible and divisive)

They are mad at me for appearing on The O'Reilly Factor. Yeah, I went on O'Reilly and expressed my personal feelings of distaste towards comments I find to be offensive, threatening, divisive, and have no place in Democratic politics. Though I disagree with O'Reilly likening Daily Kos to the devil, I am happy to appear on the most-watched program on cable news and express my support for Senator Clinton. Because contrary to what the Daily Kos diarists may believe, not all Democratic and Independent voters sit in front of a computer all day and get their news from the blogosphere. The truth is many of them come home from a long day of hard work and sit down to hear what Bill O'Reilly has to say.

Don't Kos and his blogger posse understand that progressives need these voters to win in November? Instead of arrogantly dismissing their intelligence and espousing that all Democrats should follow blindly behind whatever he and his merry band of bloggers believe, Kos should reconsider his flawed rationale on the primary to date. On one hand he props up the party activists that are attending caucuses as the end-all-and-be-all of the Democratic electorate, while at the same time trying to downgrade the role of superdelegates to a rubber stamp. So it's okay to be a grassroots activist and have an opinion, but if you are a super-duper activist and have worked your way into a State Party leadership position or elected office, you must lose your own opinion and trade it in for someone else's??? And don't get me started on the disenfranchising nature of caucuses that exclude hourly workers, nurses, waitresses, senior-citizens and countless others who don't have four hours to spare...

This ain't North vs South, and there ain't gonna be no Civil War.  I may be in the minority here, but I am pretty confident I am right. The heated contest between Senator Clinton and Senator Obama has been good for the Democratic Party. It has produced record turnout and monopolized media coverage away from John McCain. The fear-mongering talk of Civil War within our Party is rubbish. It's a scare tactic to try and persuade superdelegates to cave for Obama. Regardless of whoever gets the nomination, we will be a united Party come November. Come to think of it, Senator Clinton has stated this unequivocally many times while Senator Obama has said in press conferences that he was not sure his supporters would unite behind Senator Clinton. Coupled with Michelle Obama's wavering on the question on whether she would support Senator Clinton if she wins the nomination, it calls into question which campaign is more comfortable with a split in the Party...but I digress.

I do not consider myself a "real" blogger, but I have praised the role of citizen journalists in countless speeches and interviews. Bloggers have brought a much needed fresh perspective and truth to political reporting. I also have a lot of respect for Kos and his service to our country while in the Army. Deep down, I don't believe Kos hates Senator Clinton. And I really hope that he doesn't honestly think that millions of Clinton supporters are dumb and stupid. I know for a fact that Kos wants a Democrat in the White House. So my advice - reign in your posse, Kos. Educate them on the real facts of presidential politics and what it will take to actually win the general election. While you're at it, try informing the netroots that supporting a candidate you believe in should not include insults, name-calling, and threats. At the end of the day, we all have the same objective.

U-N-I-T-Y

Democrats will unite after we choose our nominee. The contest between Senator Clinton and Senator Obama is strengthening our party and increasing our chances in November. This comment (from a Barack Obama supporter) to my  "Blacklisted" post is a perfect example of how we will all come together in the end:

Jehmu: I am sorry to hear that you are facing this type of criticism, especially considering the history you have working for the traditionally disenfranchised. As someone who has worked for and on behalf of those same ideas (with the Clintons and the Obamas) I know how difficult a decision it must have been to even make the decision to support Hilary. I made my choice based on what I was looking for in a candidate. I am sure that you went through a similiar process. Good for you. Real leadership is about making the tough choices when the pressure is on. You are not selling out at all. And what's the "selling out" thing about anyway? Hilary has been there for children and families for so many years that it is laughable that anyone would call supporting Hilary selling out? Leave No Child Behind is not just a slogan that George Bush uses to slide in his own "non-agenda." I was on the organizing team at the Children's Defense Fund that rolled out the proposed policies during the Democratic AND Republican conventions in 1992. The ideas and strategies were developed by the leadership of CDF, which included Mrs. Clinton. To everyone who is coming at my sister and trying to "hem" her up, ask yourself this...If we beat each other down now, what will happen during the November general election. I mean, the point is to win...right?...JUST BEAT McCAIN !!! Julius Davis Stone Mountain, GA BARACK OBAMA Supporter

Blacklisted

Senator Obama is a great man who has and will continue to do great things for our country. It is unfortunate that some of his supporters believe I am a race traitor for endorsing Senator Clinton. That type of thinking has no place in America. African Americans should not be treated differently because of the color of their skin and neither should Senator Clinton. I'm proud to be voting my race...the human race.

Here's a sampling of the name calling that I have been faced with since endorsing Senator Clinton:

"I hope your community  and your black friends treat you like you deserve to be treated after creating that fear in white people minds for a few pieces of gold, shame on you, you're just a sell out"

"Black on black crime in the political arena...you are living proof that Africans hate African Americans...go back to Africa"

"This to me is like an awful treason to your own race!"

"Lock your door and watch your back"

"You may try to wash it off but you always going to be black no matter how hard you try to  deny it by working against your people"

Ignorance at it's finest.

 

One of a Million

Hillary is one in a million. I am proud to be one of a million Texas women supporting her. Check out the video, join in, and help Hillary make history.