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  • Politics Is Like Hiring A Hitman
    by Scott Woods inPolitical on2020-08-13

    For me, politics is like hiring a hitman. I have values and things I care about. I care enough about them to at least bother voting for 5 minutes every year for one issue or another. And because I care at least that much, I vote for people who align with the ability to realize the things I care about.

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  • Punching Above Our Weight
    by Roger Madison Jr. inPolitical on2020-07-24

    I believe our vote is the punctuation of our voice. Without that resounding exclamation mark, I believe our voices are just incoherent noise.

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  • BLACK PROGRESS AMIDST SOCIAL CHAOS
    by Roger Madison Jr. inPolitical on2020-06-16

    Recent events have raised the profile of historical injustice and inequities here in the USA. The entire world has taken note of the fact that BLACK LIVES MATTER.   We invite all of our friends to engage in actions that result in the greatest movement for change in our history. It is imperative that we take advantage of this opportunity to affect a positive change by ACTING IN OUR SELF-INTERESTS.

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  • Living in a Black No-Man's Land
    by Roger Madison Jr. inOur Community on2019-10-28

    There are many narratives that define the Black experience in America in this 2nd decade of the 21st century. Our striving over the centuries of our sojourn in this nation is a tapestry of every human experience -- oppression, enslavement, forced assimilation, dehumanization, exclusion, segregation, isolation, struggle, perseverance, achievement, excellence, celebration, mourning, despair, progress, setbacks, lynching, assassination, genocide, terror, self-hatred, low esteem, pride,...

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  • Fighting Racism
    by Scott Woods inOur Community on2018-10-25

    I had a boss who was racist. Not an outright bigot, of course; her toolbox was more subtle than most. We bumped heads a lot over inconsequential things. She frequently couldn’t keep my name out her mouth. Lot of gaslighting. You know…2018 style. I tried a lot of ways to combat or navigate her issues. None of them worked, and that’s saying a lot because I’m really good at fighting racism. But at the end of the day – every day – she was my boss, I had to deal with her, and that was that. Finally I...

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The Obama Campaign in North Carolina

During the 25 years I was a working journalist, I wasn't permitted to outwardly show my allegience to  any one political candidate. I was told I had to remain fair and impartial.  Funny, coming from  a medium that is anything BUT fair and impartial.

Well, I have to say I did oblige (publicly).  But now that I am no longer in the "public eye" I can do and say what I want about politics---or anything else for that matter.  Today, I decided to go out and volunteer for the Obama campaign.  Following our 30 minute training session, I was paired up with a partner and we went canvassing specific areas of our community.

I have to admit I was surprised that the "key" folks in the Obama campaign office were white.  Their strategy is to have volunteers go into African-American communities and encourage people to get out and vote early---as opposed to dealing with long lines on May 6.  Maybe they think we'll get so impatient on May 6 that we'll go home if we have to wait too long. 

My question was why aren't we going after the "Unaffiliated" voters---primarily white voters who haven't quite made up their minds yet? Ninety-nine percent of the African-Americans I spoke with today were definitely going for Obama so I felt like my time was wasted.

Why not give this affluent African-American woman an opportunity to  go head-to-head with suburbia or rural America?  I'm good at talking to people.  After all, that's what I got paid to do for 25 years.

Could it be someone is underestimating us---STILL?