Newark, New Jersey introduces transparent ‘stop and frisk’ policy as alternative to New York City’s | The Raw Story
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Police in the city of Newark, New Jersey, have enacted new, highly transparent “stop and frisk” procedures that civil libertarians have called a model for the country and an alternative to the New York City policy rejected by a U.S. judge.
New Jersey’s largest city, about 10 miles west of New York City, will on Thursday begin reporting data collected from the first month of its “Police Transparency Policy,” disclosing the race, gender, age and English proficiency of everyone that Newark police officers stop and frisk.
“It really should serve as a model for the rest of the state and even the rest of the nation,” said Udi Ofer, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey.
The Center For Constitutional Rights and the New York Civil Liberties Union had sued New York City over its “stop and frisk” tactics, and a U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled on Monday that New York City had violated the constitutional rights of racial minorities who were unfairly targeted by the New York City Police Department.
Officers often frisked young minority men or searched their pockets for weapons or contraband before letting them go, in a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Fourth Amendment that protects against unreasonable searches and seizures as well as the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits intentional discrimination based on race, the judge said in her 195-page decision.
The ruling was a stinging rebuke for New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is entering the final months of his 12 years in office, and could trip up NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly, who President Barack Obama has indicated may be a possible nominee for U.S. secretary of homeland security.
Bloomberg has vowed to challenge the judge’s finding, arguing that “stop and frisk” contributed to the city’s dwindling crime rate, but the judge ruled the efficiency of program was irrelevant.
By contrast, the new “stop and frisk” procedures in Newark were being rolled out just as Newark Mayor Cory Booker seeks higher office in Tuesday’s special primary election to select a new U.S. senator for the state of New Jersey. http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/08/13/newark-new-jersey-introduces-transparent-stop-and-frisk-policy-as-alternative-to-new-york-citys/
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Rosanell Eaton: 92-Year-Old NC Woman Sues State Over Voter ID Law | News One
Rosanell Eaton: 92-Year-Old NC Woman Sues State Over Voter ID Law | News One
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
The NAACP announced today that it will sue the state of North Carolina over its controversial Voter ID measure that was signed into law Monday by Gov. Pat McCrory (R).
The lead plaintiff in the lawsuit is 92-year-old Rosanell Eaton (pictured) of Louisburg, N.C., a registered voter since the 1940s. The NAACP says Eaton will be adversely affected by the new law.
“Mrs. Eaton, who was born at home, has a current North Carolina driver’s license, but the name on her certified birth certificate does not match the name on her driver’s license or the name on her voter registration card,” the lawsuit notes. “Mrs. Eaton will incur substantial time and expense to correct her identification documents to match her voter registration record in order to meet the new requirements.”
The lawsuit seeks relief under Section 2 under the Voter Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on race; the recent Supreme Court ruling limits reviews under Sections 4 and 5 of the VRA.
According the Washington Post, the new Voter ID law requires “voters to present government-issued photo identification at the polls and shortens the early voting period from 17 to 10 days. It will also end pre-registration for 16- and 17-year-old voters who will be 18 on Election Day and eliminates same-day voter registration.”
While critics of the law feel it discriminates against minority voters, Governor McCrory appeared in a YouTube calling the law good policy.
“Many of those from the extreme left who have been criticizing photo ID are using scare tactics,” McCory asserted. “They are more interested in divisive politics than ensuring that no one’s vote is disenfranchised by a fraudulent ballot.” http://newsone.com/2675187/rosanell-eaton-lawsuit-voter-id-laws/
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
The NAACP announced today that it will sue the state of North Carolina over its controversial Voter ID measure that was signed into law Monday by Gov. Pat McCrory (R).
The lead plaintiff in the lawsuit is 92-year-old Rosanell Eaton (pictured) of Louisburg, N.C., a registered voter since the 1940s. The NAACP says Eaton will be adversely affected by the new law.
“Mrs. Eaton, who was born at home, has a current North Carolina driver’s license, but the name on her certified birth certificate does not match the name on her driver’s license or the name on her voter registration card,” the lawsuit notes. “Mrs. Eaton will incur substantial time and expense to correct her identification documents to match her voter registration record in order to meet the new requirements.”
The lawsuit seeks relief under Section 2 under the Voter Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on race; the recent Supreme Court ruling limits reviews under Sections 4 and 5 of the VRA.
According the Washington Post, the new Voter ID law requires “voters to present government-issued photo identification at the polls and shortens the early voting period from 17 to 10 days. It will also end pre-registration for 16- and 17-year-old voters who will be 18 on Election Day and eliminates same-day voter registration.”
While critics of the law feel it discriminates against minority voters, Governor McCrory appeared in a YouTube calling the law good policy.
“Many of those from the extreme left who have been criticizing photo ID are using scare tactics,” McCory asserted. “They are more interested in divisive politics than ensuring that no one’s vote is disenfranchised by a fraudulent ballot.” http://newsone.com/2675187/rosanell-eaton-lawsuit-voter-id-laws/
Africa, the Factory Floor of the World? • Africanglobe.net
Africa, the Factory Floor of the World? • Africanglobe.net
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
In order to significantly transform the economies of Africa from the current low-income level to middle-income status, value must be added to Africa’s large reservoir of natural and agricultural resources through processing and manufacturing activities – implicit in the transition process from predominantly agrarian to industrial economies.
It is a fact that Africa’s recent relatively good growth performance has not been inclusive regarding its impact on poverty, due largely to the lack of diversification of its growth sources and an over-reliance on primary commodity exports. Also, growth has not necessarily led to job creation, and in some countries, has rather resulted in a rise in inequality!
The absence of significant industrialisation in much of Africa is a missed opportunity for more robust, diversified and sustainable economic development. The Asian industrialisation experiences are the most successful among the developing countries, and there is therefore good reason for Africa to look at this model as a basis for its own industrial development. Specific industrial policies and programmes worked in Asia and can be replicated in Africa. Among these are a sophisticated use of global value chains (GVCs) and the special economic zones (SEZs).
GVC operations concern the global division of labour in production processes and its concurrent effect on the distribution of income and profits between participating countries. Involvement in GVCs presents an opportunity for African economies to move beyond producing raw materials and build dynamic and competitive manufacturing sectors capable of processing the continent’s abundant minerals and agricultural products. It also provides an opportunity to create sustainable jobs and stimulate inclusive growth, as new markets for value-added produhttp://www.africanglobe.net/business/africa-factory-floor-world/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+africanglobe%2FQfoi+%28WWW.AFRICANGLOBE.NET%29cts evolve both in the continent and in the industrialised and emerging economies.
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
In order to significantly transform the economies of Africa from the current low-income level to middle-income status, value must be added to Africa’s large reservoir of natural and agricultural resources through processing and manufacturing activities – implicit in the transition process from predominantly agrarian to industrial economies.
It is a fact that Africa’s recent relatively good growth performance has not been inclusive regarding its impact on poverty, due largely to the lack of diversification of its growth sources and an over-reliance on primary commodity exports. Also, growth has not necessarily led to job creation, and in some countries, has rather resulted in a rise in inequality!
The absence of significant industrialisation in much of Africa is a missed opportunity for more robust, diversified and sustainable economic development. The Asian industrialisation experiences are the most successful among the developing countries, and there is therefore good reason for Africa to look at this model as a basis for its own industrial development. Specific industrial policies and programmes worked in Asia and can be replicated in Africa. Among these are a sophisticated use of global value chains (GVCs) and the special economic zones (SEZs).
GVC operations concern the global division of labour in production processes and its concurrent effect on the distribution of income and profits between participating countries. Involvement in GVCs presents an opportunity for African economies to move beyond producing raw materials and build dynamic and competitive manufacturing sectors capable of processing the continent’s abundant minerals and agricultural products. It also provides an opportunity to create sustainable jobs and stimulate inclusive growth, as new markets for value-added produhttp://www.africanglobe.net/business/africa-factory-floor-world/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+africanglobe%2FQfoi+%28WWW.AFRICANGLOBE.NET%29cts evolve both in the continent and in the industrialised and emerging economies.
Until Last Week, The Official Policy Of One Virginia City Was To Assume All Rape Victims Were Lying | ThinkProgress
Until Last Week, The Official Policy Of One Virginia City Was To Assume All Rape Victims Were Lying | ThinkProgress
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Until last week, Norfolk, Virginia police classified sexual assault claims to be “unfounded” — or not valid — by default. According to the Virginian-Pilot, a 22-year-old woman’s case prompted Norfolk police chief Mike Goldsmith to update the policy so that officers must now assume rape victims are telling the truth.
The woman reported the attack immediately to police, only to be told, “If we find out that you’re lying, this will be a felony charge.” Before giving her a medical examination, officers subjected the woman to interrogations during which they said things like, “You’re telling us a different story than you told … the other detectives,” and “This only happened hours ago. Why can’t you remember?” Having had enough, the woman cut off the interview.
The police eventually arrested and charged the attacker for multiple other sexual assaults and felonies, and Goldsmith apologized for mishandling the woman’s initial allegations. Now that Goldsmith has updated the policy for handling sexual assault cases, the department will also undergo training for post-traumatic stress disorder and rape trauma.
Many other areas have this same problem. In light of a Baltimore investigation on the city’s high number of unfounded cases, the Police Executive Research Forum noted, “Unwarranted ‘unfounding’ of cases can result in offenders remaining free — and in victims losing trust in the justice system.” This classification also leads to lower reports of rape, because “unfounded” cases are not included in crime stats.
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/08/13/2457991/virginia-law-enforcement-rape/
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Until last week, Norfolk, Virginia police classified sexual assault claims to be “unfounded” — or not valid — by default. According to the Virginian-Pilot, a 22-year-old woman’s case prompted Norfolk police chief Mike Goldsmith to update the policy so that officers must now assume rape victims are telling the truth.
The woman reported the attack immediately to police, only to be told, “If we find out that you’re lying, this will be a felony charge.” Before giving her a medical examination, officers subjected the woman to interrogations during which they said things like, “You’re telling us a different story than you told … the other detectives,” and “This only happened hours ago. Why can’t you remember?” Having had enough, the woman cut off the interview.
The police eventually arrested and charged the attacker for multiple other sexual assaults and felonies, and Goldsmith apologized for mishandling the woman’s initial allegations. Now that Goldsmith has updated the policy for handling sexual assault cases, the department will also undergo training for post-traumatic stress disorder and rape trauma.
Many other areas have this same problem. In light of a Baltimore investigation on the city’s high number of unfounded cases, the Police Executive Research Forum noted, “Unwarranted ‘unfounding’ of cases can result in offenders remaining free — and in victims losing trust in the justice system.” This classification also leads to lower reports of rape, because “unfounded” cases are not included in crime stats.
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/08/13/2457991/virginia-law-enforcement-rape/
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Samuel L. Jackson: 'Open Season' on Black Men
Samuel L. Jackson: 'Open Season' on Black Men
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
On the heels of yesterday's ruling that charges will not be brought against a New York police officer accused of shooting an unarmed black teen, actor Samuel L. Jackson took to Twitter to voice his opinion.
http://www.theroot.com/blogs/grapevine/samuel-l-jackson-open-season-black-men
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
On the heels of yesterday's ruling that charges will not be brought against a New York police officer accused of shooting an unarmed black teen, actor Samuel L. Jackson took to Twitter to voice his opinion.
"Young brothers Beware!!" he tweeted. "It's Open Season!"
Eighteen-year-old Ramarley Graham was shot and killed in the bathroom of the apartment he shared with his grandmother last year by a police officer pursuing him on suspicion of drug activity. The officer, 31-year-old Richard Haste, claimed that he fired because he believed Graham had a gun. In fact, he was unarmed.
With the conclusion of the Trayvon Martin case and the release of Fruitvale Station, a movie based on the story of Oscar Grant, many are hyperfocused on what they see as the devaluation of black lives in the eyes of the law. Jackson's tweet captures the sentiment of countless others.http://www.theroot.com/blogs/grapevine/samuel-l-jackson-open-season-black-men
American Colony on the Rio Pongo: Book Details Plan to Send Ex-Slaves Back to Africa
American Colony on the Rio Pongo: Book Details Plan to Send Ex-Slaves Back to Africa
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports: After 30 years of teaching African history, I am still fascinated by the idealism and innocence expressed by those who supported plans to settle African Americans on the African coast in the 1820s. They knew so little about the continent and the people who lived in it.
Nearly everyone who supported colonization believed that Africa would embrace the return of African Americans. They also believed that slavery in America was wrong and outdated, and they wanted it ended. Some believed that its end would come quickly, while others expected owners to free their slaves gradually.
Many supporters of colonization were convinced that freed blacks would become a perpetual underclass in America and that whites and blacks could not live harmoniously as equals. For some, the solution to the "Negro problem" was to move all African Americans to another place -- any place would do -- where they could rule themselves. Others dreamed of black republics spreading American-style republicanism and civilization, commerce and Christianity on the African continent. Some considered their efforts to be compensation for the damage America had inflicted upon the continent. And others dreamed of economic rewards that would surely come to sponsors, just in case African-American colonies became successful.
There was also a British side to the idea of returning African Americans to Africa. On Africa's west coast, Sierra Leone's governors were convinced that Americans were planning to surround and overwhelm the British colony by flooding the coast with American products and African-American settlers.
http://www.theroot.com/views/addressing-negro-problem-1820s
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports: After 30 years of teaching African history, I am still fascinated by the idealism and innocence expressed by those who supported plans to settle African Americans on the African coast in the 1820s. They knew so little about the continent and the people who lived in it.
Nearly everyone who supported colonization believed that Africa would embrace the return of African Americans. They also believed that slavery in America was wrong and outdated, and they wanted it ended. Some believed that its end would come quickly, while others expected owners to free their slaves gradually.
Many supporters of colonization were convinced that freed blacks would become a perpetual underclass in America and that whites and blacks could not live harmoniously as equals. For some, the solution to the "Negro problem" was to move all African Americans to another place -- any place would do -- where they could rule themselves. Others dreamed of black republics spreading American-style republicanism and civilization, commerce and Christianity on the African continent. Some considered their efforts to be compensation for the damage America had inflicted upon the continent. And others dreamed of economic rewards that would surely come to sponsors, just in case African-American colonies became successful.
There was also a British side to the idea of returning African Americans to Africa. On Africa's west coast, Sierra Leone's governors were convinced that Americans were planning to surround and overwhelm the British colony by flooding the coast with American products and African-American settlers.
http://www.theroot.com/views/addressing-negro-problem-1820s
Armed Gun Advocates Descend Upon Starbucks In Newtown, Across U.S. | ThinkProgress
Armed Gun Advocates Descend Upon Starbucks In Newtown, Across U.S. | ThinkProgress
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Open carry groups are holding “Starbucks Appreciation Day” rallies across the country on Friday, including in Newtown, Connecticut, where a gunman killed 26 people eight months ago.
Starbucks currently allows customers to carry their guns in states with open carry. Gun advocates have taken this move as encouragement to stage “appreciation days,” like the one on Friday.
As many as two dozen gun advocates have stopped by the Newtown coffee shop so far today.
Across the country, many of the participants have posted “Appreciation Day” photos to Facebook where they hold their coffee and guns, and even occasionally children:
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/08/09/2444801/armed-rally-held-in-newtown-starbucks/
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Open carry groups are holding “Starbucks Appreciation Day” rallies across the country on Friday, including in Newtown, Connecticut, where a gunman killed 26 people eight months ago.
Starbucks currently allows customers to carry their guns in states with open carry. Gun advocates have taken this move as encouragement to stage “appreciation days,” like the one on Friday.
As many as two dozen gun advocates have stopped by the Newtown coffee shop so far today.
Across the country, many of the participants have posted “Appreciation Day” photos to Facebook where they hold their coffee and guns, and even occasionally children:
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/08/09/2444801/armed-rally-held-in-newtown-starbucks/
Monday, August 5, 2013
Bayard Rustin honored by LGBT group 50 years after March on Washington | theGrio
Bayard Rustin honored by LGBT group 50 years after March on Washington | theGrio
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Bayard Rustin was a key figure during the 1960s — he was a man who fought in social movements for both civil and gay rights.
As one of the few openly gay men active during the Civil Rights era, Rustin participated in the 1963 March on Washington and was the chief organizer of the historic event. The historic march took place 50 years ago this month. Rustin died in 1987 at the age of 75.
In light of the milestone anniversary, the National Black Justice Coalition — the nation’s top black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization — are honoring Rustin with the Bayard Rustin 2013 Commemoration project.
“NBJC has implemented a multi-tiered strategy to garner Rustin the recognition he deserves,” reads the project’s mission statement. “By harnessing the power of the media, mobilizing [b]lack LGBT youth, and petitioning for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, NBJC is committed to keeping Rustin’s legacy alive.”
To add to their efforts, the NBJC is also hosting a commemorative event, titled “A Tribute to Bayard Rustin and the 50th Anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington.”
The event will show a clip from the documentary Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin. It is scheduled to take place on August 26 in Washington, DC. http://thegrio.com/2013/08/05/bayard-rustin-honored-by-lgbt-group-50-years-after-march-on-washington/
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Bayard Rustin was a key figure during the 1960s — he was a man who fought in social movements for both civil and gay rights.
As one of the few openly gay men active during the Civil Rights era, Rustin participated in the 1963 March on Washington and was the chief organizer of the historic event. The historic march took place 50 years ago this month. Rustin died in 1987 at the age of 75.
In light of the milestone anniversary, the National Black Justice Coalition — the nation’s top black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization — are honoring Rustin with the Bayard Rustin 2013 Commemoration project.
“NBJC has implemented a multi-tiered strategy to garner Rustin the recognition he deserves,” reads the project’s mission statement. “By harnessing the power of the media, mobilizing [b]lack LGBT youth, and petitioning for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, NBJC is committed to keeping Rustin’s legacy alive.”
To add to their efforts, the NBJC is also hosting a commemorative event, titled “A Tribute to Bayard Rustin and the 50th Anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington.”
The event will show a clip from the documentary Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin. It is scheduled to take place on August 26 in Washington, DC. http://thegrio.com/2013/08/05/bayard-rustin-honored-by-lgbt-group-50-years-after-march-on-washington/
Friday, August 2, 2013
This Week in Poverty: Chairman Ryan and the Real World | The Poverty Line, What Matters Today | BillMoyers.com
This Week in Poverty: Chairman Ryan and the Real World | The Poverty Line, What Matters Today | BillMoyers.com
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Wednesday, at a House Budget Committee hearing entitled “War on Poverty: A Progress Report,” Republican Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee used her allotted time to try to discredit the sole Democratic witness, Sister Simone Campbell. Sr. Simone is the executive director of NETWORK, a national Catholic social justice lobby, but she is more widely known as the leader of the Nuns on the Bus.
“You said you come to this hearing today as a Catholic sister living under Christian tradition,” said Rep. Blackburn. “Would it be fair for this Committee to question the validity of your testimony knowing that the Vatican has reprimanded the Leadership Conference on the Women Religious and singled out your organization for only promoting issues of social justice, and being silent on the right to life from conception to natural death?”
Sr. Simone replied that the exchange with the Vatican was about “theological struggles, not about our engagement in political activity, and our organization works on economic issues.”
Republican Chairman Paul Ryan seemingly admonished Rep. Blackburn, albeit indirectly, telling Sr. Simone: “Speaking as a Catholic who usually disagrees with you on some of these issues, I think you are very well within Catholic social teachings to give the testimony that you gave here today.”
It was one of many bizarre moments during a hearing that Washington Democratic Congressman Jim McDermott described perfectly to his Republican colleagues when he said: “This hearing is surreal… You are not living in the real world.”
Indeed, one of the three Republican witnesses — University of Maryland professor Doug Besharov, director of the American Enterprise Institute’s Social and Individual Responsibility Project — was there to discuss incentives to help people get out of poverty. So it was surprising that he was unsure what the current federal minimum wage pays.
“The current federal minimum wage is $7.25, correct?” said New York Democratic Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, trying to pivot to a discussion about good jobs as the best anti-poverty program.
“Uh, it could be,” said Besharov. “I—I don’t know the exact number. It’s around there.”
Texas Republican Congressman Roger Williams described himself as “a job creator” who has owned and operated his family car business for forty-two years.
“Don’t you think a lot of this debate is the fact we’ve lost our family values? We’ve got single parents and so forth and we need to get back to that?” Williams asked Sr. Simone.“I practiced family law for 18 years in Oakland, California. I found with low-income families that the biggest cause of family break up was economic stressors,” said Sr. Simone. “So I think the most important piece we could do to support families would be to raise the minimum wage.”
“Or you could do away with the minimum wage,” said Williams.
Wisconsin Republican Congressman Reid Ribble described his “own religious upbringing”—his father was a minister; three of his brothers and one son are all pastors.
“Whoa,” said Sr. Simone, impressed.
“Christianity is all about serving the poor,” Rep. Ribble told her. “What is the Church doing wrong that it had to come to the government to get so much funding?”
Sr. Simone said the need for government assistance is more about the “dimension of the issue.” She noted a Bread for the World study that calculated the funds religious institutions would have had to raise if the food stamp cuts proposed in last year’s House Republican budget had been implemented. She said “every church, synagogue, mosque, and house of worship in the United States” would have needed to raise $50,000 in additional monies — every year, for ten years.
“We have a limitation in our capacity to do that,” said Sr. Simone.
“Your capacity is the same as our capacity,” Rep. Ribble argued.
These head-scratching moments aside, I found the entire frame of the hearing as laid out by Chairman Ryan to be seriously flawed. Ostensibly, it was to examine the most effective ways to fight poverty as we approach the 50th anniversary of the War on Poverty next year.
“Government focuses too much on inputs,” said Chairman Ryan. “We focus on how much money we spend. Instead, we should focus on results.”
It’s a claim he has made consistently since last year. But it’s Rep. Ryan and his conservative colleagues who are constantly bemoaning the amount of money spent on anti-poverty programs — money we “confiscate” from taxpayers, said Indiana Republican Congressman Todd Rokita — while dismissing the data that show how effective these programs can be.
Indeed there are many poverty scholars who have found positive outcomes in both the short- and long-term for children and adults who participate in anti-poverty programs. Research from Arloc Sherman (here, here, here and here), Hilary Hoynes and Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach, Greg Duncan and Katherine Magnuson, and organizations like Children’s HealthWatch — to name just a few — reveal that these programs contribute to improved health, higher achievement, and greater financial security, for example.
But if Chairman Ryan wanted to hear more about results, Sr. Simone certainly obliged.
“In 2011, government benefits lifted a total of 40 million people out of poverty,” she testified. “While Social Security has the largest impact of any single program, means-tested programs such as SNAP, SSI and the EITC lifted almost 20 million Americans, including 8 ½ million children, out of poverty.”
She also noted that “poor babies in the 1960s and 1970s who were fortunate enough to live in counties served by the Food Stamp Program… were healthier as adults and were more likely to finish high school” than poor babies who lived in counties that didn’t yet have the program. (They also scored higher on a “self-sufficiency” index that included adult outcomes like earnings, income and decreases in welfare participation.)
Watch her full testimony, here:
And yet the House Republican proposal to cut $20.5 billion from SNAP (food stamps) over ten years would lead to approximately 5 million people being eliminated from the program, and would increase federal and state health care costs by $15 billion for diabetes alone over ten years. Further, Ranking Member Chris Van Hollen of Maryland noted that the Republican House budget would cut “$810 billion from base Medicaid funding” and that “Medicaid [would] be cut by one-third in 2023.”
“It simply adds insult to injury — and tortures the English language — to pretend that deep cuts to food and medical assistance programs will somehow ‘strengthen’ that safety net and help people in poverty,” said Rep. Van Hollen.
The star witness for the Republicans was Eloise Anderson, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. Anderson’s main message was that she saw time limits and the work requirement as the keys to the “success” of the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program created by welfare reform in 1996. She touted her own data from Wisconsin — that “90 percent of the people left the program — and have continued to stay off.” She urged Congress to implement work requirements and time limits in all anti-poverty programs.
But the twists in the hearing just kept coming. Wisconsin Democratic Congresswoman Gwen Moore revealed that she was on welfare in 1985 and worked for the Department of Employment Relations where she was trained by Secretary Anderson.
“She was brilliant, and of course, that was contagious, I’m brilliant now,” said Rep. Moore.
But Rep. Moore took issue with Secretary Anderson’s data and her description of TANF as a success in Wisconsin.
“Yes, the rolls did fall by 93 percent, because they just threw people off,” said Moore. “Many of the [people who left] did not find jobs. I tried to require that they do data and statistics — which they didn’t want to do — because they didn’t want to confirm that.”
Moore also noted that because the creation of TANF in 1996 made cash assistance much harder to obtain, the number of people living on $2 a day or less — the definition of poverty in developing nations, according to the World Bank — has doubled in the U.S.
As the hearing came to a close, Chairman Ryan said, “I think you can tell that the rhetoric is still mired in the status quo… Hopefully we can get past the status quo, past the rhetoric, and collectively focus on evidence-based solutions.”
But the fact is that there was plenty of evidence offered during the hearing about what works. The Chairman just chooses to ignore it.
As Sr. Simone testified, “We won’t address [poverty] by ignoring the successes of today’s safety net, but neither is today’s safety net adequate — we need a new commitment to reduce poverty and promote opportunity. ”http://billmoyers.com/2013/08/02/this-week-in-poverty-chairman-ryan-and-the-real-world/
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Wednesday, at a House Budget Committee hearing entitled “War on Poverty: A Progress Report,” Republican Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee used her allotted time to try to discredit the sole Democratic witness, Sister Simone Campbell. Sr. Simone is the executive director of NETWORK, a national Catholic social justice lobby, but she is more widely known as the leader of the Nuns on the Bus.
“You said you come to this hearing today as a Catholic sister living under Christian tradition,” said Rep. Blackburn. “Would it be fair for this Committee to question the validity of your testimony knowing that the Vatican has reprimanded the Leadership Conference on the Women Religious and singled out your organization for only promoting issues of social justice, and being silent on the right to life from conception to natural death?”
Sr. Simone replied that the exchange with the Vatican was about “theological struggles, not about our engagement in political activity, and our organization works on economic issues.”
Republican Chairman Paul Ryan seemingly admonished Rep. Blackburn, albeit indirectly, telling Sr. Simone: “Speaking as a Catholic who usually disagrees with you on some of these issues, I think you are very well within Catholic social teachings to give the testimony that you gave here today.”
It was one of many bizarre moments during a hearing that Washington Democratic Congressman Jim McDermott described perfectly to his Republican colleagues when he said: “This hearing is surreal… You are not living in the real world.”
Indeed, one of the three Republican witnesses — University of Maryland professor Doug Besharov, director of the American Enterprise Institute’s Social and Individual Responsibility Project — was there to discuss incentives to help people get out of poverty. So it was surprising that he was unsure what the current federal minimum wage pays.
“The current federal minimum wage is $7.25, correct?” said New York Democratic Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, trying to pivot to a discussion about good jobs as the best anti-poverty program.
“Uh, it could be,” said Besharov. “I—I don’t know the exact number. It’s around there.”
Texas Republican Congressman Roger Williams described himself as “a job creator” who has owned and operated his family car business for forty-two years.
Sister Simone Campbell waves as she steps off the bus in Ames, Iowa, Monday, June 18, 2012 (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
“Or you could do away with the minimum wage,” said Williams.
Wisconsin Republican Congressman Reid Ribble described his “own religious upbringing”—his father was a minister; three of his brothers and one son are all pastors.
“Whoa,” said Sr. Simone, impressed.
“Christianity is all about serving the poor,” Rep. Ribble told her. “What is the Church doing wrong that it had to come to the government to get so much funding?”
Sr. Simone said the need for government assistance is more about the “dimension of the issue.” She noted a Bread for the World study that calculated the funds religious institutions would have had to raise if the food stamp cuts proposed in last year’s House Republican budget had been implemented. She said “every church, synagogue, mosque, and house of worship in the United States” would have needed to raise $50,000 in additional monies — every year, for ten years.
“We have a limitation in our capacity to do that,” said Sr. Simone.
“Your capacity is the same as our capacity,” Rep. Ribble argued.
These head-scratching moments aside, I found the entire frame of the hearing as laid out by Chairman Ryan to be seriously flawed. Ostensibly, it was to examine the most effective ways to fight poverty as we approach the 50th anniversary of the War on Poverty next year.
“Government focuses too much on inputs,” said Chairman Ryan. “We focus on how much money we spend. Instead, we should focus on results.”
It’s a claim he has made consistently since last year. But it’s Rep. Ryan and his conservative colleagues who are constantly bemoaning the amount of money spent on anti-poverty programs — money we “confiscate” from taxpayers, said Indiana Republican Congressman Todd Rokita — while dismissing the data that show how effective these programs can be.
Indeed there are many poverty scholars who have found positive outcomes in both the short- and long-term for children and adults who participate in anti-poverty programs. Research from Arloc Sherman (here, here, here and here), Hilary Hoynes and Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach, Greg Duncan and Katherine Magnuson, and organizations like Children’s HealthWatch — to name just a few — reveal that these programs contribute to improved health, higher achievement, and greater financial security, for example.
But if Chairman Ryan wanted to hear more about results, Sr. Simone certainly obliged.
“In 2011, government benefits lifted a total of 40 million people out of poverty,” she testified. “While Social Security has the largest impact of any single program, means-tested programs such as SNAP, SSI and the EITC lifted almost 20 million Americans, including 8 ½ million children, out of poverty.”
She also noted that “poor babies in the 1960s and 1970s who were fortunate enough to live in counties served by the Food Stamp Program… were healthier as adults and were more likely to finish high school” than poor babies who lived in counties that didn’t yet have the program. (They also scored higher on a “self-sufficiency” index that included adult outcomes like earnings, income and decreases in welfare participation.)
Watch her full testimony, here:
And yet the House Republican proposal to cut $20.5 billion from SNAP (food stamps) over ten years would lead to approximately 5 million people being eliminated from the program, and would increase federal and state health care costs by $15 billion for diabetes alone over ten years. Further, Ranking Member Chris Van Hollen of Maryland noted that the Republican House budget would cut “$810 billion from base Medicaid funding” and that “Medicaid [would] be cut by one-third in 2023.”
“It simply adds insult to injury — and tortures the English language — to pretend that deep cuts to food and medical assistance programs will somehow ‘strengthen’ that safety net and help people in poverty,” said Rep. Van Hollen.
The star witness for the Republicans was Eloise Anderson, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. Anderson’s main message was that she saw time limits and the work requirement as the keys to the “success” of the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program created by welfare reform in 1996. She touted her own data from Wisconsin — that “90 percent of the people left the program — and have continued to stay off.” She urged Congress to implement work requirements and time limits in all anti-poverty programs.
But the twists in the hearing just kept coming. Wisconsin Democratic Congresswoman Gwen Moore revealed that she was on welfare in 1985 and worked for the Department of Employment Relations where she was trained by Secretary Anderson.
“She was brilliant, and of course, that was contagious, I’m brilliant now,” said Rep. Moore.
But Rep. Moore took issue with Secretary Anderson’s data and her description of TANF as a success in Wisconsin.
“Yes, the rolls did fall by 93 percent, because they just threw people off,” said Moore. “Many of the [people who left] did not find jobs. I tried to require that they do data and statistics — which they didn’t want to do — because they didn’t want to confirm that.”
Moore also noted that because the creation of TANF in 1996 made cash assistance much harder to obtain, the number of people living on $2 a day or less — the definition of poverty in developing nations, according to the World Bank — has doubled in the U.S.
As the hearing came to a close, Chairman Ryan said, “I think you can tell that the rhetoric is still mired in the status quo… Hopefully we can get past the status quo, past the rhetoric, and collectively focus on evidence-based solutions.”
But the fact is that there was plenty of evidence offered during the hearing about what works. The Chairman just chooses to ignore it.
As Sr. Simone testified, “We won’t address [poverty] by ignoring the successes of today’s safety net, but neither is today’s safety net adequate — we need a new commitment to reduce poverty and promote opportunity. ”http://billmoyers.com/2013/08/02/this-week-in-poverty-chairman-ryan-and-the-real-world/
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Number of Whites in Washington D.C. Has Skyrocketed, But Blacks Account For 83% of D.C. Arrests | Your Black World
Number of Whites in Washington D.C. Has Skyrocketed, But Blacks Account For 83% of D.C. Arrests | Your Black World
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Much has been said about the gentrification in Washington D.C., with an influx of whites moving back into the city for work, but you
wouldn’t know that there’s been an increase in the number of whites in the nation’s capital if you looked at the arrest rate.
A report by the Washington Lawyers Committee found that the overwhelming majority of the people arrested in the city are African-American.
According to the report, 83 percent of the people arrested between 2009 and 2011 were African-American while only 14 percent were white, even though African-American adults make up less than half of Washington D.C.’s population.
Based on the report, 69 percent of traffic arrests in D.C. were of African Americans, 91 percent of drug arrests were of African Americans, and 76 percent of disorderly conduct arrests were of African Americans. In fact, blacks were arrested at higher rates in just about every category.
D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier issued a statement about the report’s findings:
JohnButts@JBMedia - Reports:
Much has been said about the gentrification in Washington D.C., with an influx of whites moving back into the city for work, but you
wouldn’t know that there’s been an increase in the number of whites in the nation’s capital if you looked at the arrest rate.A report by the Washington Lawyers Committee found that the overwhelming majority of the people arrested in the city are African-American.
According to the report, 83 percent of the people arrested between 2009 and 2011 were African-American while only 14 percent were white, even though African-American adults make up less than half of Washington D.C.’s population.
Based on the report, 69 percent of traffic arrests in D.C. were of African Americans, 91 percent of drug arrests were of African Americans, and 76 percent of disorderly conduct arrests were of African Americans. In fact, blacks were arrested at higher rates in just about every category.
D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier issued a statement about the report’s findings:
Many in D.C. protested the racial disparity at City Hall on Wednesday.“Comparison of racial proportions alone is not sufficient for examining this important issue. We are not aware of any agreement among community members, criminal justice professionals, or academics that says that arrest rates should match the racial proportion of residents of a city.“
“Some things that occur are attenuated with poverty,” District Council member Tommy Wells told News4 in D.C. ”We don’t have a large poor white population but with traffic crimes, there should be no difference between black and white.”
http://www.yourblackworld.net/2013/08/black-news/number-of-whites-in-washington-d-c-has-skyrocketed-but-blacks-account-for-83-of-d-c-arrests/
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