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| By Brakkton Booker |
With help from Ella Creamer, Rishika Dugyala, Madina Touré and Teresa Wiltz
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Civil rights leader Marc Morial speaks about the 2017 State of Black America report, May 2, 2017, in Washington. | Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo |
What up, Recast family! Ukraine prepares for new Russian assaults, Philadelphia becomes the first major city to reinstate mask mandates and a new poll shows Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) and billionaire Rick Caruso in a dead heat in the Los Angeles mayoral contest. First though, we kick things off with the State of Black America. The National Urban League is out with its annual State of Black America report detailing the challenges facing Black Americans. Its findings are sobering. Taking into consideration a range of factors to measure how well Black Americans are doing compared with their white counterparts, its Equality Index stands at 73.9 percent. In other words, more than a quarter of the American pie is missing for Black folks in order to achieve full equality enjoyed by white Americans.
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First some positives. Black Americans have made advancements since the civil rights organization began tracking the index nearly two decades ago. In the areas of economics and health, African Americans are doing better compared with 2005, the first year of the index. But as the report notes, "change often happens slowly," which is why the overall index has ticked up just a single percentage point when comparing 2005 with 2022. The full report also includes data from a companion survey that points to some persistent disparities including household median income. Black households on average earn $43,862 compared with white households at $69,823, the report finds. There's also a wide gap between Black and white homeownership rates where 74.4 percent of whites own their homes compared with 43.1 percent of African Americans. Marc Morial , president and CEO of the 112-year-old civil rights organization, is releasing the report at an event in Georgia on Tuesday, which he hopes will serve as a call to action for Black voters in the midterm elections. The report found that Black voters take voting seriously; 70 percent strongly agreed that voting was critical to "solve problems that affect my life" – but they don't think politicians are doing a good job representing them. What's more, the report, ominously titled "Under Siege: The Plot to Destroy Democracy," warns that the push in many Republican-led states to enact stricter voting laws will serve to further widen that Equality Index – while posing real threats to our nation's democracy.
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Voters waiting to cast early ballots in the 2020 election in Durham, North Carolina — a state in which people of color made up 90 percent of the population growth in the last decade and attempts to pass restrictive voting laws have been made. | Gerry Broome/AP Photo |
"There has been a campaign waged by forces on the right to systematically undermine American democracy," Morial told reporters during a media briefing Monday. "The centerpiece of it is the suppression of the votes of African Americans." He notes these new voter laws also aim to make it more difficult for Latino, Indigenous Americans, young voters and disabled voters to cast ballots. At least 27 states have considered bills with restrictive voter provisions according to the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice this year alone. Proponents of the new voter laws say these are necessary to root out potential fraud and to protect the integrity of the electoral process. "We've never seen anything like this, not even in the dark days of the '50s and '60s," said Morial, who previously served as mayor of New Orleans from 1994-2002. "This is a well-orchestrated assault to try to shift power." The issue of voting is also deeply personal to him. Morial told reporters his mother, a school teacher and an activist, was subjected to a so-called literacy test as a condition to her casting a ballot in the 1950s. When a voter registration official asked his mother what color her eyes were, she answered, "brown." The official insisted her eyes were black and said she'd failed the test. As a result, she wasn't allowed to vote, Morial said. He was also at the White House when President George W. Bush signed the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act in 2006, which he referred to as a "high water mark" for him. Since then, the Supreme Court handed down the landmark Shelby v. Holder case in 2013, which stripped away a key enforcement mechanism dictating that juridictions with a history of discrimination must get clearance from the federal government before enacting state election laws.
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People standing outside the Supreme Court before the start of a rally during arguments in the Shelby v. Holder case. | Evan Vucci/AP Photo |
As Morial sees it, there are parallels between Shelby v. Holder and what took place after the 2020 election when lies about a stolen election were used as pretext to enact new state voting laws that he says target Black and brown voters. As the midterm campaign season ramps up, Morial is urging Black voters to pressure candidates to support two pending federal voting bills, the For the People Act and the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act, both of which failed to advance in the Senate. And he wants Black voters to press their senators to reform the Senate filibuster rules. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer attempted to pass a rules change to exempt election bills from the legislative filibuster, but it was defeated when two Democrats voted with all the chamber's Republicans, dooming the measure. While Morial acknowledges many Black voters are frustrated with Democrats for the lack of action on voting rights, he says the confirmation of President Biden's Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson last week is proof the party needs to remain in power. He would however like to see Biden use the power of his office more effectively in championing voting rights and says Russia's war with Ukraine provides a convenient backdrop. "I would like to see the president use his bully pulpit to connect the assault on democracy in Ukraine to the assault on Democracy at home," Morial says. "One cannot say we want to protect democracy in Ukraine … and be silent on democracy or support voter suppression here. To do so labels you as nothing but a hypocrite." We'll continue to watch how this unfolds for the remainder of 2022 and beyond. All the best,
The Recast Team A programing note: Join me for a live discussion with Marc Morial of the National Urban League on Clubhouse Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. EDT
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Power dynamics are changing. With The Recast, you'll get a twice-weekly breakdown of how race and identity are the DNA of American politics and policy. Was this forwarded to you by a friend? Subscribe to the newsletter here.
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THE NUMBERS GAME A new joint survey from GenForward and Next100 finds young adults don't trust government … hardly at all. Researchers hypothesize the disconnect stems from disparate backgrounds of the communities most affected by public policy and those who have the power to shape and enact it: Those who wield the power to make policy choices tend to be disproportionately white, male and wealthy.
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Student activists in a demonstration related to gun violence prevention in Washington, DC, Feb. 14. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images |
While the survey showed consistently low levels of trust in government among all respondents, local governments fared the best, followed by state government. Respondents said they trusted the federal government the least. When broken down by race, Asian respondents trusted the federal government the most (35 percent), while Black respondents trusted it the least (19 percent).
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Latino and white respondents had slightly higher opinions of the federal government, at 24 percent and 25 percent, respectively.
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SIX FEET APART Since being sworn in as mayor of New York, Eric Adams has been urging residents not to "wallow in Covid" and do all they can to move beyond the pandemic. He's met with business execs, urging them to get their employees back into the office to help stimulate the city's economy. But on his 100th day in office, the mayor tested positive for Covid-19. Madina Touré of our POLITICO New York bureau picks up our coverage from here. The mayor addressed his Covid diagnosis in his virtual remarks highlighting President Biden's push to crack down on untraceable firearms known as "ghost guns." WATCH: Adams addresses his recent Covid diagnosis in remote press conference
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On Sunday — after Adams canceled his in-person events — Fabien Levy, his press secretary, announced that Adams woke up with a "raspy voice" on Sunday morning and took a PCR test "out of an abundance of caution." The test came back positive. "At this time, the mayor has no other symptoms, but he is already isolating and will be canceling all public events for the remainder of the week," Levy said at the time. "He is also going to immediately begin taking the antiviral medications offered for free to New York City residents and encourages all New Yorkers eligible for these medications to take them as well." Before he tested positive, Adams went to the New York State Association of Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislators' 51st Annual Legislative Conference in Albany on Friday and Saturday. He also attended the Gridiron Club dinner in Washington, D.C., on April 2 wheredozens of guests tested positive, but he tested negative. On Monday, the mayor — who has been working remotely this week — told reporters that his doctors gave him the greenlightto participate in outdoor events as soon as Friday.
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Adams at the game between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, Apr. 8. The mayor drew criticism last month for creating an exemption to vaccine mandates for athletes. | Mike Stobe/Getty Images |
The mayor, who is vaccinated and received a booster shot, has advocated moving beyond the pandemic restrictions first introduced by his predecessor during the height of pandemic, where New York City was ground zero for virus cases and deaths. He's scrapped the vaccination requirement for indoor dining and entertainment as well as the mask mandate at public schools. Adams also drew criticism last month for creating a special exemption to an employer mandate so unvaccinated athletes can play in New York.
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ICYMI @ POLITICO No Rush Touch – Retiring Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) has held his seat for three decades and he counted on playing kingmaker for his South Side Chicago seat. As POLITICO's Shia Kapos reports, that's not happening. Rush's preferred candidate, Karin Norington-Reaves, will join a congested Democratic primary with 19 other candidates, including the son of civil rights icon Rev. Jesse Jackson. NY Lt. Gov. Indicted – POLITICO's Joseph Spector is chasing the developing story of New York Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin, who was indicted earlier today . He is facing charges stemming from a federal bribery conspiracy case involving allegedly fraudulent donations to his unsuccessful campaign for New York City comptroller.
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Benjamin speaking during the New York State Democratic Convention in New York, Thursday, Feb. 17. | Seth Wenig/AP Photo |
Dems' Wobbly Youth Support – As a presidential candidate, Joe Biden struggled to connect with young voters, but eventually the 30-and-under voting bloc backed him by a 25-point margin in 2020. But with economic uncertainty and without former President Trump to serve as a foil, Democrats are turning to one youth polling guru to help solve their midterm conundrum, reports POLITICO's Elena Schneider. We Don't Talk About Manchin – After the collapse of Biden's domestic policy agenda, the administration is hoping the man who doomed hopes for the Build Back Better plan in December is ready to deal now. One caveat: the White House is not talking about negotiations with Sen. Joe Manchin (D - W.Va.). More from POLITICO's Adam Cancryn and Eugene Daniels on the administrationwide gag order.
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Kai Kahele at the opening day of the Hawaii Sate Legislature in Honolulu, Nov. 3, 2020. | Audrey McAvoy/AP Photo |
This congressman is a Fly Guy – Freshman Rep. Kai Kahele (D-Hawaii) succeeded former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard. He's kept a low profile for the most part and "has voted by proxy exclusively since January," write our colleagues at Congress Minutes . Turns out Kahele is still an active employee with Hawaiian Airlines, where he is a commercial pilot.
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JUSTICE JACKSON: THE LATE NIGHT EDITION Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson , who became the first Black woman to be confirmed to the Supreme Court last week, was the belle of the late night talk show circuit. We've curated the highlights for you: On "The Late Show," Stephen Colbert led his audience in a big cheer.
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Then there's Amber Ruffin, cracking jokes about another female justice: "Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed by the Senate yesterday…. And Amy Coney Barrett has already tried to touch her hair."
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More hair touching jokes from the crew at SNL's "Weekend Update."
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But our favorite by far is SNL's cold opener, when the ghosts of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Thurgood Marshall, Harriet Tubman and Jackie Robinson show up to offer Judge Jackson a little advice.
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Still, our favorite comic bit about the confirmation of a Supreme Court Justice dates back — way, way, back — to this blast from the past with David Alan Grier on "In Living Color."
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THE RECAST RECOMMENDS Filmmaker Mira Nair looks back, 30 years later, on her groundbreaking interracial romcom, "Mississippi Masala," starring Sarita Choudhury and Denzel Washington. Boricua rapper Rauw Alejandro has a new cut, "Museo."
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In Aamina Ahmad's debut novel, "The Return of Faraz Ali," a Pakistani police chief is ordered to cover up the violent death of a young girl in Lahore's red light district. The Linda Lindas were on The Recast Power List playlist – they're favs of nominee Cynthia Choi of Stop AAPI Hate. Now you can catch them in the latest NPR's Tiny Desk (At Home) concert. TikTok of the day: Friendly reminder :)
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