jackson
The Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., biography
The Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr., Founder and President of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, is one of America's foremost civil rights, religious and political figures. Over …
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Many are like Romney — ‘not concerned’ about very poor
Last week, Mitt Romney created a firestorm for saying that “I’m not concerned about the very poor.” Romney later explained that he “misspoke,” and that he’d said something “similar to that, but quite acceptable, for a long time.” The real problem isn’t that it misstates …Read More
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Challenge campaign of insults, slurs vs. Obama
Republican Gov. Jan Brewer insults the president with a finger-wagging tarmac rant in Arizona. As a result, sales of her book soar. American presidents have always been fair game for public criticism. But isn’t it past time that we challenge the campaign of insult, racial …Read More
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Gingrich plays Old South race card of a bygone era
The toxic message that drove Newt Gingrich to victory in South Carolina will drive our nation apart rather than bring it together. And it will spell defeat for him — and for Republicans if they choose to go that way. Gingrich’s campaign limped into South …Read More
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South Carolina shows how far we have to go
The Republican presidential primary in South Carolina captures the news, but too little attention has been paid to the state itself. South Carolina reflects the triumph of Dr. Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement: Its schools are desegregated; its public facilities open to …
The New South is legacy of Martin Luther King
New Hampshire’s primary grabs headlines today, but if history is any guide, the Jan. 21 South Carolina primary will play a far greater role in determining the Republican winner. Of that state’s population, 28 percent are African American, and could be a major factor in …
In Iowa, only offensive choices available
About 120,000 voters will make national headlines with the choices they make in the Iowa caucuses. Those who turn up will be disproportionately white, conservative, affluent and old. Conservative evangelicals will turn out in significant numbers. Their influence has been exercised before they even go …
Electorate suffers from a PAC attack
‘Newt Gingrich has more baggage than the airlines.” Romney is akin to “big spending liberals.” Beware of “smooth talking politicians.” In Iowa, after a breather for Christmas, voters are once more being deluged with attack ads 24/7 that go after whoever is leading in the …
The real Christmas story
This Christmas, times continue to be hard for many. And that — amid all the presents, parties and holiday gaiety — is the real story of this mass we celebrate on the birth of Christ. As I’ve reminded throughout the years, the real story isn’t …
To gain workers’ votes, Gingrich slanders poor
Republican front-runner Newt Gingrich appeals to working Americans by slandering the poor. Gingrich recently denounced child labor laws as “truly stupid,” suggesting that schools should fire janitors and hire students under the age of 16 to clean the place. When critics said he would send …
Cost of broken health care system is killing us
I suffer from a harsh case of gout that requires constant treatment. Suddenly this year, I discovered that the generic drug I was using that cost about 3 cents a pill had been banned and replaced by a proprietary drug — a brand name — …
We salute our soldiers, but we fail them at home
America honors the men and women who fight for their nation. Ads beckon the young to join the armed forces and see the world. We provide training, decent pay, benefits, the best in uniforms and equipment. Soldiers are applauded when they are seated on airplanes, …
Lesson of White House strafing: Limit guns now
Protest has returned to Egypt’s Tahrir Square; the Bears won their fifth in a row; a man stands accused of strafing the White House; China warns of a long recession. Wait a minute. Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez was arrested in connection with what prosecutors describe as …
What’s happening to poor is warning to us all
The canary does not soar like an eagle. It doesn’t mark the change of seasons like a swallow. But the delicate canary captures the attention of the hardest miners, for it warns of impeding danger. When the canary keels over, miners run, realizing that the …
U.S. can’t stand by while racism ravages Libya
Before leaving the G-20 meetings in Cannes, France, President Obama joined with French President Sarkozy to pay tribute to the two countries’ alliance and celebrate the successful intervention in Libya that ended the rule of Moammar Gadhafi. “Every man and woman in uniform who participated …
As Obama finally acts, he exposes GOP strategy
‘We can’t wait.” Finally, President Obama has had enough of what he rightly calls an “increasingly dysfunctional Congress.” Over the past week, he has begun to use his own authority to issue executive orders to move reforms the country desperately needs. “Where they won’t act, …
We bail out banks, but not desperate students
The sign at the Occupy Wall Street demonstration revealed the struggles of America’s young: “A B.A., $30,000 in student debt and no job.” Young people are graduating from college into the worst jobs market since the 1930s while carrying record levels of student debt. The …
To rescue our economy, bail out the homeowners
When I was growing up in South Carolina among hard-pressed families, food would often be short. Mothers with two lamb chops and five children wouldn’t give the lamb chops to the biggest child and cut off the others. No, they would chop the lamb up, …
Justified protests are not going away
Occupy Wall Street protests have now spread to several cities. It’s spreading like a fire on a strong wind over a dry field. The heat is likely to keep on building. Conservatives have fallen over themselves rushing to side with the top 1 percent against …Read More
Occupy Wall St. group speaks up for America
People are turning. The misery is too widespread. The privileged are too brazen. The injustice too apparent. On Wall Street, young students have created a free democratic space in a place they call Liberty Square. They protest that Wall Street has been rescued, but there …Read More
Recapture the future LBJ saw for America
Poverty is spreading in America. The numbers are numbing: 46 million people in poverty, a record number, one out of every seven Americans. Nearly 50 million go without health insurance. There are fewer payroll jobs now than in 2000. The income of a typical household …Read More
