Wyclef Jean Godsend for U.S., France; NYPD Top Cop is “Rogue”; Cynthia McKinney Bikes for Peace; Blacks Get Little News Coverage
by Nellie Bailey and Glen Ford
Wyclef Jean’s “Divisive” Role in Haiti
Should we take entertainer Wyclef Jean’s candidacy for the Haitian presidency serious? “In normal times, in a country that was functioning normally,” said community activist and radio host Roger Le Duc, “it would be a joke.” But with the state that Haiti is in today, Jean’s role could be to “divide the popular masses” to the advantage of American, French and Canadian overseers.
Blacks Not Newsworthy
A Pew Research Center study shows African Americans and their issues “attracted relatively little attention in the U.S. mainstream news media during the first year of Barack Obama’s presidency” – only 1.9 percent of total coverage. “Race, or the impact of White supremacy on Black people,” says BAR’s Dr. Jared Ball, “has disappeared from the mainstream.”
NYPD’s “Rogue” Police Commissioner
Raymond Kelly, the New York City police commissioner who has presided over a draconian stop and frisk policy targeting mainly Blacks and Latinos, is a “rogue” cop who practices blatant and “illegal racial profiling,” says Noel Leader, co-founder of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care. Stop and frisks reached nearly 600,000 last year.
From Katrina to the Jena Six
People learned to fight for their rights “in really inspiring ways” in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the unjust arrest of six young Black men in Jena, Louisiana, writes New Orleans-based journalist and activist Jordan Flaherty. His new book, “Floodlines: Community and Resistance, from Katrina to the Jena Six” examines the changing methods of struggle in the 21st century.
McKinney’s Bike4Peace Journey
Former Georgia congresswoman and Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney is traversing the country by bicycle in the service of peace. “On the way,” she said, “we are finding that we are, indeed, the majority. The majority of people don’t want war, and certainly we don’t need war as an energy solution.” The bike caravan arrives in Washington, DC, September 22.
Black Agenda Radio on the Progressive Radio Network is hosted by Glen Ford and Nellie Bailey. A new edition of the program airs every Monday at 4:00pm ET on PRN. Length: One hour.
In this eulogy for dub poet Michael “Mikey” Smith, Amiri Baraka asserts the need for Black and Third World mass organization against the ravages of neo-colonialism, imperialism, racism, and…
The United States still has the dubious distinction of having more people behind bars than any other country. The population of local jails continue to rise and is a bellwether for mass incarceration…
The Black political class is not made up solely of politicians. Celebrities and athletes like LeBron James are given access to corporate dollars and their politics reflect their class interests.
Cory Booker has been a favorite of right-wing interest groups ever since he first ran for office to become mayor of Newark 20 years ago.
The people of Gaza are completely at the mercy of Israel, without help from the outside world.
