Voter ID Laws...modern day poll taxes?

On July 10 in Black History...

Attorney General Holder spoke at the NAACP Annual Convention in Houston, Texas today.  During his speech he spoke of many things including how important the work of historical visionary leaders and organizations like the NAACP has been to our country.  What the Attorney General is getting the most attention for, however  is for comparing the new proposed voter id laws in Texas to poll taxes:

 “Many of those without IDs would have to travel great distances to get them and some would struggle to pay for the documents they might need to obtain them...We call those poll taxes.” 

About Poll Taxes:  In the United States, poll taxes were used as a voting prerequisite in the Southern states. The Populists, a low-income farmers’ party, gave the Democrats in these areas the only serious competition that they had experienced since the end of Reconstruction. The intensity of competition led both parties to bring blacks back into politics and to compete for their vote. Once the Populists had been defeated, the Democrats amended their state constitutions or drafted new ones to include various disfranchising devices. When payment of the poll tax was made a prerequisite to voting, impoverished blacks and often poor whites, unable to afford the tax, were denied the right to vote.  Poll taxes of varying stipulations lingered in Southern states into the 20th century. Some states abolished the tax in the years after World War I, while others retained it. Its use was declared unconstitutional in federal elections by the Twenty-fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, effective in 1964. In 1966 the Supreme Court, going beyond the Twenty-fourth Amendment, ruled that under the “equal protection” clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, states could not levy a poll tax as a prerequisite for voting in state and local elections.

"So, this afternoon, as we come together to celebrate the power of individual voices, and the strength of collective action – we must also take stock of what’s left to do, and reflect on the responsibilities that each one of us shares ...Although the direction we must take is clear, the road ahead is far from certain."


His entire speech can be found here:  
http://www.justice.gov/iso/opa/ag/speeches/2012/ag-speech-120710.html

Thank you, Leon, for those kind words – and thank you all for such a warm welcome. It’s a privilege – and a sincere pleasure – to be with you; to be part another important NAACP gathering; and to share the stage with so many good friends, dedicated partners, and indispensible leaders.
I also want to thank President Jealous, Chairman Brock, General Counsel Keenan, and the NAACP’s National Board of Directors for inviting me to join you. It’s nice to be out of Washington today. And it’s an honor to bring greetings from President Obama, from my fellow members of his Cabinet, and from my colleagues across the United States Department of Justice.
I’m also grateful for this chance to salute the essential work that you are doing – here in the great state of Texas and all across the country – to bring our nation together, and to bring attention to the problems we must solve, the wrongs we must right, the divisions we must heal, and the future we must build. For more than a century, the NAACP’s leaders, members, and supporters have been defined and distinguished by your unyielding determination to do what you believe is right. And I want to tell you how much I appreciate, and am inspired by, the example of strength that this organization continues to provide for our nation – and for me personally.
This convention is focused on issues of real consequence – issues that directly affect people’s lives and influence our nation’s course. So, today – like all of you – I’d like to focus on the future. And I want to discuss some of the ways we must continue to build upon the social, political, economic, educational, and legal progress that this organization – and generations of like-minded civil rights pioneers, activists, advocates, and champions – have struggled and sacrificed to bring about.
Today’s gathering presents an important opportunity to celebrate, and give thanks for, the visionary leaders – from W.E.B. DuBois and Ida B. Wells, to Charles Hamilton Houston, Walter White, Roy Wilkins, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., our dear friend John Payton, and Clarence Mitchell, Jr. – whose memory many of you gathered to honor yesterday, and whose critical work – as the NAACP’s Chief Advocate in Washington – is being carried on today, with a renewed spirit and dedication, by Hilary Shelton. This is a critical moment for each of us – not only to lift up their legacies, but to take up the work that became the cause of their lives. And it’s a chance to recommit ourselves, in this hour of need, to the effort that now constitutes our sacred charge, our solemn obligation, and our breathtaking opportunity.
Every one of us has the ability – and, I believe, the responsibility – to continue the work that has driven the NAACP’s record of achievement. In short, it is time – yet again – to put our energy and skills to good use – in advocating for the most vulnerable members of society; in protecting the liberty – and the sacred rights – of every single person in this country; in safeguarding the basic infrastructure of our democracy; in ensuring economic and educational opportunities for all of our countrymen – and women; and in carrying forward the fundamental and inclusive ideals upon which this country was founded, and which continue to drive our pursuit of a more perfect Union.
These were the values that a group of patriots first seized upon 236 years ago last week, when they gathered in Philadelphia to draft a declaration that shook the foundations of an empire and set in motion the great American experiment with which we are entrusted today. They are the principles that another generation fought and died to extend, less than a hundred years later, with the abolition of slavery in the aftermath of a terrible Civil War that remade our nation; and the ratification – exactly 144 years ago this week – of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which finally ensured due process, equal protection, and – for the first time – the full rights of citizenship for the African-American people who helped to build this nation and their heirs. Even within our own lifetimes, these are the essential ideals that have driven great leaders and ordinary citizens alike to stand up, to march forward, to reach out a hand, or simply to take a seat – at a lunch counter or the front of a bus, in a classroom or a courthouse – in order to bring about transformative, once-unimaginable progress.
One of these people was a brave young woman who – in her desire to attend her state’s public university, had to march past a defiant Governor George Wallace to integrate the University of Alabama. I am proud to say that this courageous young student, Vivian Malone, would later become my sister in law. In her pursuit of the educational opportunity she deserved, Vivian was represented by the legendary civil rights attorney – and former NAACP counsel – Fred Gray. With his assistance – and with support from organizations like yours, and with the backing of the Justice Department I now have the privilege to lead, Vivian was able to open new doors of opportunity. And, although she is no longer with us, her legacy continues to teach and inspire us.
If she were here with us this afternoon, I’m certain that Vivian would be proud to help celebrate how far our nation has traveled on the road to equality in the decades since she took her rightful place in that university classroom. But she’d also be the first to remind us that we still have much more to do; and that, despite the advances we’ve seen – and the fact that a direct beneficiary of the civil rights movement now sits in the Oval Office, and another has the honor of addressing you today as the 82nd Attorney General of the United States – our nation’s long struggle for freedom and fairness is far from over. In fact, much of the hardest work remains unfinished. And, for all the successes we’ve enjoyed and the milestones we’ve celebrated – today, in 2012 – we cannot, and we must not, ignore the fact that there are still neighborhoods in America’s most vibrant cities where too many kids go to prison, and too few to college; where our young people are involved in, and become victims of, violence; and where the doors to education and opportunity still seem closed. And there is too little outrage, and not nearly enough action, in response to the fact that – nationwide – homicide is the leading cause of death for black men between the ages of 15 and 24; and that more than 60 percent of young people of all races are exposed to violence at some point in their lives, either as victims or as witnesses – which can have devastating, long-term consequences that last well into adulthood.

This is unacceptable. And it’s why the leadership of organizations like the NAACP – and the engagement of activists throughout Texas and across the country – remains as vital as ever. It’s also why, under the Obama Administration, today’s Justice Department has made an unprecedented commitment to protecting the safety – and potential – of our children.
Through our landmark Defending Childhood Initiative and our National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention, we’re developing strategies for reducing violence and countering its negative impact. I’m especially proud that, for the first time in history, the Department is now directing significant resources for the express purpose of addressing childhood exposure to violence, raising awareness of its ramifications, and advancing scientific inquiry on its causes and characteristics. We’re working closely with other federal agencies, educators, and state and local partners across the country to disrupt the “school to prison pipeline” that transforms too many of our schools from doorways to opportunity into gateways to the correctional system. And this is only the beginning.
At every level of this Administration, we’re working in new ways – and with a range of partners – to achieve fairness and expand opportunity – from successfully advocating for the reduction of the unjust 100-to-1 sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine offenses, to launching a new emphasis on re-entry programs to ensure the successful reintegration into society of those who have become involved in the criminal justice system. Through the Justice Department’s new Access to Justice Office, we’re fighting to expand the availability of desperately needed legal services, and to advance pro bono initiatives – in both the public and private sectors – that can help provide representation for those who can’t afford it. And, by any measure, our determination to build on these efforts – particularly through the work of the Department’s Civil Rights Division – has, quite simply, never been stronger.
As Attorney General, I am often mindful of the fact that I have the great privilege – and the solemn duty – of overseeing the enforcement of many of the laws and reforms that the NAACP fought so hard to enact. I take this obligation seriously. It is at the forefront of all I do as Attorney General. For the Department I lead – and our allies across the country – this work is a top priority. And our approach has never been more effective.
Over the past three years, the Civil Rights Division has filed more criminal civil rights cases than ever before, including record numbers of police misconduct, hate crimes, and human trafficking cases. We’ve moved aggressively to combat continuing racial segregation in our schools – and to eliminate discriminatory practices in our housing and lending markets, where we recently achieved the largest residential fair lending settlement in American history. We’ve also worked to eliminate bias, combat intimidation, and ensure nothing but the highest standards of integrity and professionalism across our nation’s law enforcement community. And – alongside state, local, tribal, and international authorities – we’ve reinvigorated sweeping efforts to ensure that, in our workplaces and military bases; in our classrooms and places of worship; in our immigrant communities and our voting booths – the rights of all Americans are protected.

Nowhere is this clearer than in our work to combat hate crimes, and to bring those who commit these vicious acts to justice. Over the past three years, the Justice Department prosecuted 35 percent more hate crime cases than during the preceding three-year period. We’ve moved vigorously to enforce the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act – which the NAACP strongly supported, and which President Obama signed into law in 2009. And we’re working to bring together a range of allies and partners to help strengthen our collaborative efforts to make good on the promise of equal justice – and the protections of our legal system – in every sector of society.
At a fundamental level, this is the same commitment that has driven us to expand access to, and prevent discrimination in, America’s elections systems. And in jurisdictions across the country, it has compelled the Civil Right’s Division’s Voting Section to take meaningful steps to ensure integrity, independence, and transparency in our enforcement of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 – a law that the NAACP was instrumental in advancing.
Especially in recent months, Texas has – in many ways – been at the center of our national debate about voting rights issues. And I know many of you have been on the front lines of this fight. Here – as in a number of jurisdictions across the country – the Justice Department has initiated careful, thorough, and independent reviews of proposed voting changes – including redistricting plans, early voting procedures, photo identification requirements, and changes affecting third party registration organizations – in order to guard against disenfranchisement, and to help ensure that none of these proposals would have a discriminatory purpose or effect.
And, as many of you know, yesterday was the first day of trial in a case that the State of Texas filed against the Justice Department, under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, seeking approval of its proposed voter ID law. After close review, the Department found that this law would be harmful to minority voters – and we rejected its implementation.
Under the proposed law, concealed handgun licenses would be acceptable forms of photo ID – but student IDs would not. Many of those without IDs would have to travel great distances to get them – and some would struggle to pay for the documents they might need to obtain them. Since the passage of this law, the NAACP and other leading civil rights organizations have been spearheading critical efforts to protect the rights of minority voters in this and other states. And a growing number of you are working to raise awareness about the potential impact of this and other similar laws – and the fact that – according to some recent studies – nationally, only 8% of white voting age citizens, while 25% of African-American voting age citizens, lack a government-issued photo ID. In our efforts to protect voting rights and to prevent voting fraud, we will be vigilant and strong. But let me be clear: we will not allow political pretexts to disenfranchise American citizens of their most precious right.

Now, I can’t predict the future. And I don’t know what will happen as this case moves forward. But I can assure you that the Justice Department’s efforts to uphold and enforce voting rights will remain aggressive. And I have every expectation that we’ll continue to be effective. The arc of American history has always moved toward expanding the electorate. It is what has made this nation exceptional. We will simply not allow this era to be the beginning of the reversal of that historic progress,
For this and other reasons, I am confident about where this work will lead us – and the progress that passionate advocates like all of you will continue to make possible. And as we carry these efforts into the future, there’s no question that we’ll keep relying on organizations like the NAACP to help extend essential protections – and to encourage broad-based engagement – on a host of other issues of national concern.

I’m sure that, like millions of others across the country, you were closely following last month’s decisions by the Supreme Court – to strike down major provisions of an Arizona law that would have effectively criminalized unlawful status, and to uphold essential components of the Affordable Care Act. As President Jealous and Chairman Brock noted, these monumental rulings constituted an important step forward – providing a clear and final decision on a landmark health care law that will offer desperately needed help to millions of Americans, and – in the Arizona decision – confirming the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate on immigration issues, so that our nation speaks with one voice in this important area.

I’m pleased that, in both cases, the Court broadly affirmed the government’s position as argued by the Justice Department. However, I remain concerned about the practical impact of the remaining provision of the Arizona law that requires local law enforcement officials to check the immigration status of anyone they even suspect to be here illegally. No American should ever live under a cloud of suspicion just because of what they look like. Going forward, we must ensure that Arizona law enforcement officials do not enforce this law in a manner that undermines the civil rights of Americans. In this work, I can assure you that the Department of Justice will continue to be vigilant.

At the same time, I recognize that the Justice Department will never be able to do it all – and that it simply won’t be possible for government to make all of the progress we need, and that the American people deserve, on our own.

So, this afternoon, as we come together to celebrate the power of individual voices, and the strength of collective action – we must also take stock of what’s left to do, and reflect on the responsibilities that each one of us shares – to ourselves, to those whose memories we honor this week, and – of course – to our children. Although the direction we must take is clear, the road ahead is far from certain. Significant obstacles and unprecedented threats remain to be confronted. And overcoming these challenges is sure to be anything but easy.

But I firmly believe that – if the leaders in this room heed the lessons of our past and follow the examples of our predecessors; if we keep faith in one another, and in our democratic institutions; and if we rededicate ourselves to the essential work of helping freedom grow, and extending the blessings of our Constitution to all men and women – there is no limit to the progress we can make, or the distance we must – and will – travel together in the days ahead.

Once again, thank you for your commitment to – and leadership of – this work. May God continue to bless our journey. And may God continue to bless the United States of America.

Heroes and Cowards

This week in Black History... Atty Holder, Vivian Marsh and Rep John Lewis

"One cannot truly understand America without understanding the historical experience of black people in this nation. Simply put, to get to the heart of this country one must examine its racial soul." US Attorney General Eric Holder

On February 18, 2009 in Black History...
On the evening of February 18 news headlines read: "Holder Calls US a Nation of Cowards" referring to the speech on race that Attorney General Eric Holder had given earlier that day. Read full speech here. I don't believe that was the intention of his speech; however his remarks definitely spark discussion around the subject.

 

Reflection: A coward’s actions or inactions demonstrate a disgraceful fear or timidity. Conversely, heroes display courage and self-sacrifice in the face of and in spite of adversity, danger and weakness. Is the US really a nation of cowards when it comes to handling race issues in everyday life? Are we also a nation of heroes that have overcome cowardice to move us forward over the past 200 years? Is Holder actually a hero for daring to broach the subject so candidly? Are there enough heroes to push us to the next level of racial equality in the US? Is there a hero in you?

On February 21, 1981 in Black History...

Vivian Marsh

Vivian Osborne Marsh, a local community activist and government official, was one of the most influential African-Americans in the San Francisco area. In honor of her life of service to the community, in 1981 the mayor of Berkeley, CA named February 21, Vivian Osborne Marsh Day. She was the first in several areas:

1st African-American to major in Anthropology at Berkley
1st African-American women along with Belinda Davis Mabsonto obtain Masters degrees from Berkeley.  Vivian founded the chapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority at Berkeley.  Vivian Marsh day by the Mayor of Berkeley, California in 1981.  1st African-American to sit on the planning commission and the Board of Adjustment of Berkeley, California

Reflection: Local heroes like Vivian are in communities across the country. Highlighting local heroes demonstrate the potential in each of us, in each community to affect lasting change.

On February 8, 2009 in Black History...

CNN airs the story that Rep. John Lewis received a apology from an ex-KKK member who beat him up in 1961. John Lewis is American politician and was a leader in the American Civil Rights Movement. He was chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and played a key role in the struggle to end segregation. In 1961, John had been beaten bloody by a white mob in Montgomery as a Freedom Rider in the spring of 1961. Lewis was present on the stage during the inauguration of Barack Obama, as the only living speaker from the rally at the March on Washington. Obama signed a commemorative photograph for Lewis with the words, “Because of you, John. Barack Obama.”In February 2009, Elwin Wilson, an ex-KKK member apologized to Lewis for attacking him in Montgomery in 1961. In spite of receiving angry phone calls from current KKK members accusing him of turning his back on his KKK oath and his race, he still maintains this is something he had to do. He recalled the incident on national TV while apologizing to Lewis:

"I'm so sorry about what happened back then," Wilson said breathlessly. "It's OK. I forgive you," Lewis responded. "[I remember] going directly to the Greyhound bus station," Lewis said. "We tried to enter a so-called 'white' waiting room and the moment we started through the door, a group of young men attacked us." Wilson was in the group, but said he "did more than help." He said he was the main attacker. The outburst, Wilson said, was just part of a life of hate he led for years. "I had a black baby doll in this house, and I had a little rope, and I tied it to a limb and let it hang there."

Reflection: Representative John Lewis has long been considered a national hero for his tireless dedication to the Civil Rights movement in America against cowards such as Elwin Wilson acted as a coward as he and others attacked Lewis in 1961 and led an overal life of hate. 50 years later he has emerged as a hero in his repentence and rejection of hate. Having the courage to apologize to someone he hated and having the courage to turn his back on former comrades is heroic indeed. This story is yet another sign that not only do heroes exist in the form on John Lewis, who graciously forgave him, but that it is never too late for a coward to turn into a hero.








Full Text of AG Holder's speech:

Attorney General Eric Holder at the Department of Justice African American History Month Program

~ Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Remarks as prepared for delivery.

Every year, in February, we attempt to recognize and to appreciate black history. It is a worthwhile endeavor for the contributions of African Americans to this great nation are numerous and significant. Even as we fight a war against terrorism, deal with the reality of electing an African American as our President for the first time and deal with the other significant issues of the day, the need to confront our racial past, and our racial present, and to understand the history of African people in this country, endures. One cannot truly understand America without understanding the historical experience of black people in this nation. Simply put, to get to the heart of this country one must examine its racial soul.
Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards. Though race related issues continue to occupy a significant portion of our political discussion, and though there remain many unresolved racial issues in this nation, we, average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race. It is an issue we have never been at ease with and given our nation’s history this is in some ways understandable. And yet, if we are to make progress in this area we must feel comfortable enough with one another, and tolerant enough of each other, to have frank conversations about the racial matters that continue to divide us. But we must do more- and we in this room bear a special responsibility. Through its work and through its example this Department of Justice, as long as I am here, must - and will - lead the nation to the "new birth of freedom" so long ago promised by our greatest President. This is our duty and our solemn obligation.
We commemorated five years ago, the 50th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision. And though the world in which we now live is fundamentally different than that which existed then, this nation has still not come to grips with its racial past nor has it been willing to contemplate, in a truly meaningful way, the diverse future it is fated to have. To our detriment, this is typical of the way in which this nation deals with issues of race. And so I would suggest that we use February of every year to not only commemorate black history but also to foster a period of dialogue among the races. This is admittedly an artificial device to generate discussion that should come more naturally, but our history is such that we must find ways to force ourselves to confront that which we have become expert at avoiding.
As a nation we have done a pretty good job in melding the races in the workplace. We work with one another, lunch together and, when the event is at the workplace during work hours or shortly thereafter, we socialize with one another fairly well, irrespective of race. And yet even this interaction operates within certain limitations. We know, by "American instinct" and by learned behavior, that certain subjects are off limits and that to explore them risks, at best embarrassment, and, at worst, the questioning of one’s character. And outside the workplace the situation is even more bleak in that there is almost no significant interaction between us. On Saturdays and Sundays America in the year 2009 does not, in some ways, differ significantly from the country that existed some fifty years ago. This is truly sad. Given all that we as a nation went through during the civil rights struggle it is hard for me to accept that the result of those efforts was to create an America that is more prosperous, more positively race conscious and yet is voluntarily socially segregated.
As a nation we should use Black History month as a means to deal with this continuing problem. By creating what will admittedly be, at first, artificial opportunities to engage one another we can hasten the day when the dream of individual, character based, acceptance can actually be realized. To respect one another we must have a basic understanding of one another. And so we should use events such as this to not only learn more about the facts of black history but also to learn more about each other. This will be, at first, a process that is both awkward and painful but the rewards are potentially great. The alternative is to allow to continue the polite, restrained mixing that now passes as meaningful interaction but that accomplishes little. Imagine if you will situations where people- regardless of their skin color- could confront racial issues freely and without fear. The potential of this country, that is becoming increasingly diverse, would be greatly enhanced. I fear however, that we are taking steps that, rather than advancing us as a nation are actually dividing us even further. We still speak too much of "them" and not "us". There can, for instance, be very legitimate debate about the question of affirmative action. This debate can, and should, be nuanced, principled and spirited. But the conversation that we now engage in as a nation on this and other racial subjects is too often simplistic and left to those on the extremes who are not hesitant to use these issues to advance nothing more than their own, narrow self interest. Our history has demonstrated that the vast majority of Americans are uncomfortable with, and would like to not have to deal with, racial matters and that is why those, black or white, elected or self-appointed, who promise relief in easy, quick solutions, no matter how divisive, are embraced. We are then free to retreat to our race protected cocoons where much is comfortable and where progress is not really made. If we allow this attitude to persist in the face of the most significant demographic changes that this nation has ever confronted- and remember, there will be no majority race in America in about fifty years- the coming diversity that could be such a powerful, positive force will, instead, become a reason for stagnation and polarization. We cannot allow this to happen and one way to prevent such an unwelcome outcome is to engage one another more routinely- and to do so now.
As I indicated before, the artificial device that is Black History month is a perfect vehicle for the beginnings of such a dialogue. And so I urge all of you to use the opportunity of this month to talk with your friends and co-workers on the other side of the divide about racial matters. In this way we can hasten the day when we truly become one America.
It is also clear that if we are to better understand one another the study of black history is essential because the history of black America and the history of this nation are inextricably tied to each other. It is for this reason that the study of black history is important to everyone- black or white. For example, the history of the United States in the nineteenth century revolves around a resolution of the question of how America was going to deal with its black inhabitants. The great debates of that era and the war that was ultimately fought are all centered around the issue of, initially, slavery and then the reconstruction of the vanquished region. A dominant domestic issue throughout the twentieth century was, again, America's treatment of its black citizens. The civil rights movement of the 1950's and 1960's changed America in truly fundamental ways. Americans of all colors were forced to examine basic beliefs and long held views. Even so, most people, who are not conversant with history, still do not really comprehend the way in which that movement transformed America. In racial terms the country that existed before the civil rights struggle is almost unrecognizable to us today. Separate public facilities, separate entrances, poll taxes, legal discrimination, forced labor, in essence an American apartheid, all were part of an America that the movement destroyed. To attend her state’s taxpayer supported college in 1963 my late sister in law had to be escorted to class by United States Marshals and past the state’s governor, George Wallace. That frightening reality seems almost unthinkable to us now. The civil rights movement made America, if not perfect, better.
In addition, the other major social movements of the latter half of the twentieth century- feminism, the nation's treatment of other minority groups, even the anti-war effort- were all tied in some way to the spirit that was set free by the quest for African American equality. Those other movements may have occurred in the absence of the civil rights struggle but the fight for black equality came first and helped to shape the way in which other groups of people came to think of themselves and to raise their desire for equal treatment. Further, many of the tactics that were used by these other groups were developed in the civil rights movement.
And today the link between the black experience and this country is still evident. While the problems that continue to afflict the black community may be more severe, they are an indication of where the rest of the nation may be if corrective measures are not taken. Our inner cities are still too conversant with crime but the level of fear generated by that crime, now found in once quiet, and now electronically padlocked suburbs is alarming and further demonstrates that our past, present and future are linked. It is not safe for this nation to assume that the unaddressed social problems in the poorest parts of our country can be isolated and will not ultimately affect the larger society.
Black history is extremely important because it is American history. Given this, it is in some ways sad that there is a need for a black history month. Though we are all enlarged by our study and knowledge of the roles played by blacks in American history, and though there is a crying need for all of us to know and acknowledge the contributions of black America, a black history month is a testament to the problem that has afflicted blacks throughout our stay in this country. Black history is given a separate, and clearly not equal, treatment by our society in general and by our educational institutions in particular. As a former American history major I am struck by the fact that such a major part of our national story has been divorced from the whole. In law, culture, science, athletics, industry and other fields, knowledge of the roles played by blacks is critical to an understanding of the American experiment. For too long we have been too willing to segregate the study of black history. There is clearly a need at present for a device that focuses the attention of the country on the study of the history of its black citizens. But we must endeavor to integrate black history into our culture and into our curriculums in ways in which it has never occurred before so that the study of black history, and a recognition of the contributions of black Americans, become commonplace. Until that time, Black History Month must remain an important, vital concept. But we have to recognize that until black history is included in the standard curriculum in our schools and becomes a regular part of all our lives, it will be viewed as a novelty, relatively unimportant and not as weighty as so called "real" American history.
I, like many in my generation, have been fortunate in my life and have had a great number of wonderful opportunities. Some may consider me to be a part of black history. But we do a great disservice to the concept of black history recognition if we fail to understand that any success that I have had, cannot be viewed in isolation. I stood, and stand, on the shoulders of many other black Americans. Admittedly, the identities of some of these people, through the passage of time, have become lost to us- the men, and women, who labored long in fields, who were later legally and systemically discriminated against, who were lynched by the hundreds in the century just past and those others who have been too long denied the fruits of our great American culture. The names of too many of these people, these heroes and heroines, are lost to us. But the names of others of these people should strike a resonant chord in the historical ear of all in our nation: Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. DuBois, Walter White, Langston Hughes, Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Joe Louis, Jackie Robinson, Charles Drew, Paul Robeson, Ralph Ellison, James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Vivian Malone, Rosa Parks, Marion Anderson, Emmit Till. These are just some of the people who should be generally recognized and are just some of the people to whom all of us, black and white, owe such a debt of gratitude. It is on their broad shoulders that I stand as I hope that others will some day stand on my more narrow ones.
Black history is a subject worthy of study by all our nation's people. Blacks have played a unique, productive role in the development of America. Perhaps the greatest strength of the United States is the diversity of its people and to truly understand this country one must have knowledge of its constituent parts. But an unstudied, not discussed and ultimately misunderstood diversity can become a divisive force. An appreciation of the unique black past, acquired through the study of black history, will help lead to understanding and true compassion in the present, where it is still so sorely needed, and to a future where all of our people are truly valued.
Thank you.

15th Amendment then and now....

On Februray 3 in Black History...15th Amendment, baseball and Eric Holder

In 1870, Congress ratified the Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution:

• Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
• Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Even though this amendment was not fully realized until the Voting Rights Act in 1965, it was an important step in voting rights for African-Americans.

On March 31, 1870, Thomas Mundy Peterson became the 1st African American to vote. He was a school custodian in New Jersey and became the city's first African-American to hold elected office and the first African-American to sit on a Jury. The school he worked in was later named for him.

In 1886, the Southern League of Colored Base Ballists became the first Negro league. It was not until 1920 that an organized African-American league (the Negro National League) survived a full season. The second league formed in 1923 (Eastern Colored League), and the following year the Kansas City Monarchs defeated the Philadelphia Hilldales in the first "colored" World Series. Many great teams played in the Negro Leagues, as did many great players. Some students of baseball consider James "Cool Papa" Bell the smoothest and fleetest outfielder ever to play and that Josh Gibson, who averaged.362 over his 16-year career, was the best offensive threats of the times. Of course, no list could be complete without the legendary pitcher Leroy "Satchel" Paige, the greatest pitcher of the Negro Leagues.

In 2009, 139 years later, Eric Holder was sworn in as the first African-American Attorney General of the United States.
Holder was appointed by President Clinton to serve as the U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C. in 1993 becoming the first African-American to serve in the position. During his four-year term, he created a domestic violence unit, a community prosecution project, and a program for restricting gun laws. In 1997, Holder made history yet again when President Clinton nominated him to be the deputy attorney general and became the first African-American elected to the position, as well as the highest-ranking black person in law enforcement in the history of the United States at that time.
He was also featured in the 2007 edition of The Best Lawyers in America, and in 2008 he was named by The National Law Journal as one of "The Most 50 Influential Minority Lawyers in America" as well as by Legal Times for being one of the "Greatest Washington Lawyers of the Past 30 Years."