That's what the mail brought me yesterday. Page 48 kicks off Caroline Wanga's six page interview with the Democratic Party's presidential nominee. The two discuss a number of issues including the economy. I'll note this from the interview
Kamala Harris: I have been working on that issue for years -- with my colleagues from the CBC [Congressional Black Caucus] when I was in the Senate and now as Vice President. Why? Because Black women in the United States of America are three to four times more likely to die in connection with childbirth than other women. And we know that there are a variety of reasons for that. But we also know that this is a health care crisis of the highest order, and it has received very little attention proportionate to the seriousness of the matter. So, I worked with my colleagues when I was in the Senate. We passed a number of ills. When I came in as Vice President, I continue to work on it. And one of the things I found is this: For women on Medicaid, which states can provide for postpartum care for two months up to 12 months -- and I realized when I came in as Vice President, only three states would extend Medicaid coverage for postpartum care from two months to 12 months. I don't have a problem shaming people sometimes, so I challenged the states to extend it. And now 46 states have extended Medicaid coverage for postpartum care. There is a direct connection between this and Black maternal mortality. But back to the other point about freedom of choice. The majority of Black women in America live in the South You know that in the South, we have some of the highest rates of Black maternal mortality. In the South, except for the state of Virginia, every state has an abortion ban. And what I find hypocrisy upon hypocrisy, by some of these extremists, is that the same ones saying they're passing these abortion bans because they care about women and children have been completely silent on the issue of Black maternal mortality. Don't come to us, gaslighting us about where you've been and where you haven't been, on important issues that relate to what we know every day affects our sisters, our mothers, our aunties, our grandmothers -- and could affect our daughters.
A few comments. The interview is not online. I have no idea if it will be posted or not. Currently at ESSENCE, Jasmine Browley has an article about Kamala and the opportunity economy that went up this week and Robyn Mowatt looks at political style. Second, the cover notes "COLLECTOR'S EDITION." If you're a subscriber like me, you may grimace. But they used a real sticker that peels off -- not a paper label that's basically glued to the cover -- and it's very easy and doesn't tear the cover when you remove it. After I removed it, I scanned for the image above (notice no tear in the lower corner) and took the cover off the magazine. It's now framed and up in my home office.
From the October 16th "Iraq snapshot"
At ESSENCE, Melissa Noel reports:
On Monday, Harris introduced her "Opportunity Agenda for Black Men." The plan centers on providing up to 1 million fully forgivable loans of up to $20,000 for Black entrepreneurs and investing in training, mentorship, and apprenticeships for Black men in high-demand industries. Harris is also pushing for the legalization of recreational marijuana—paired with a focus on ensuring Black men access wealth and jobs in that market.
"This agenda is a further realization of Vice President Harris' Opportunity Economy. An economy where people don't just get by, but get ahead. Where Black men are equipped with the tools to thrive: to buy a home, provide for our families, start a business and build wealth," said Congressman and Harris-Walz Campaign Co-Chair Cedric Richmond in astatement shared with ESSENCE.
I'm glad ESSENCE exists. I'm a longterm subscriber to the print edition. But it's an amazing, less than a month away from an election, ESSENCE can report on this very important proposal but COMMON DREAMS can't and won't. Nor IN THESE TIMES. Nor THE PROGRESSIVE -- an outlet with a token or two but the tokens know what they're allowed to cover, they know who's running the plantation. That's a very important proposal and it's one that deserves serious exploration. But so-called news outlets in 'independent' media can't be bothered.
The post came just after Trump’s Friday summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin—not known for his love of free and fair elections—who allegedly counseled Trump that “your election was rigged because you have mail-in voting,” a message Trump promptly relayed to Fox News’ Sean Hannity.
Trump already led a movement to get rid of mail-in ballots, helping to push for a spate of anti-voter state laws both in the run-up to the 2020 election and after his loss. But each successive crackdown strips voting rights from disabled and aging voters, who disproportionately rely on absentee ballots and voter assistance laws to participate in democracy.
Some experts question whether the White House even has the power to
take further steps to ban voting by mail; a plethora of lawsuits would
likely follow any executive order against it.
