Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

The Great Debate in Harlem
Bill Quigley
24 Jun 2009
🖨️ Print Article

another debate

Last December 14, with Barack Obama's inauguration more than a month away, CEMOTAP and the Friends of Dr. Mtulu Shakur presented a debate at Harlem's Salem United Methodist Church, centered on the question: "Was the election of Barack Obama good for Black People? Yes or No?" The church was packed and the exchanges were heated, although the 8-minute limit on presentations proved woefully insufficient, and created as many problems as it was designed prevent.

On Sunday, June 28, the question will be posed: "After six months, is President Obama good for Black people?" We have been assured that the "roundtable discussion" will provide a more effective and fair format for debate. We at BAR believe our side made the better case ("NO") back in December, and are confident we will do so again, on June 28. See you there!

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


More Stories


  • Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Nobel War Prize
    15 Oct 2025
    The Nobel Peace Prize is an anachronism and a compromised “honor” as the struggle against the U.S. and its collective west allies intensifies. The peoples of the world know who is fighting for peace…
  • Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    ESSAY: David and Goliath Collaborate in Africa, Africa Research Group, 1969
    15 Oct 2025
    “Israel has played a relatively invisible but strategically important role in Africa as a servant of the United States…”
  • Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    Dr. Denis Mukwege’s Nobel Peace Prize Brought No Peace to the Congolese
    15 Oct 2025
    Awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to “the man who heals women” made Euro-Americans feel good without interrupting their catastrophic proxy war for Congo’s resources.
  • Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright
    Israel’s Perpetual War Machine Demonstrates that Environmental Warfare is a Tool, Not a Consequence of Genocide and Settler Colonialism
    15 Oct 2025
    Environmental destruction in Gaza is a calculated military strategy. By poisoning the land and water, Israel is ensuring a permanent and toxic genocide.
  • Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    End the Epstein shutdown and F-bombing our cities!
    15 Oct 2025
    "End the Epstein shutdown and F-bombing our cities!" is the latest from BAR's Poet-in-Residence.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us