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election 2019
Democratic Victory in Virginia Paves Way for Final Approval of Equal Rights Amendment
"When people tell you that their vote doesn't matter point them to Virginia and the possibility of finally ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment. Elections have consequences."
Nov 07, 2019
House Democrats wasted no time Friday preparing to allow for the Equal Rights Amendment to enter into force, just three days after Democrats won control of Virginia's legislature--making it likely that the commonwealth will soon become the 38th state to ratify the amendment.
Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, announced Friday the committee will mark up a bill next week that would do away with the 1982 deadline for states to ratify the amendment, often called the ERA.
"After decades of work by tireless advocates, it is time for Congress to act and clear the way for Virginia, or any other state, to finally ratify the ERA and for discrimination on the basis of sex to be forever barred by the Constitution," Nadler said in a statement.
A deadline of 1979 was originally set in 1972 when Congress passed the ERA, but advocates were unable to convince the 38 states needed to ratify the amendment to adopt it by then; only 35 states had adopted it by 1982, the second deadline that was set.
It wasn't until 2018 that Illinois became the 37th state to approve the ERA, following Nevada, which ratified it the previous year. The two states were the first to approve the amendment after the passing of the deadline.
Soon after Democrats in Virginia won control on Tuesday of both the state Senate and House of Delegates, pro-ERA advocates in the state and across the country celebrated the likely approval of the law.
"We will be bringing [the ERA] back, and yes, we do have the votes to pass it," Virginia state Rep. Eileen Filler-Corn told The Atlantic Friday.
The law would enshrine in the U.S. Constitution a ban on discrimination on the basis of sex. Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits workplace discrimination, it only applies to companies with 15 or more employees.
As the advocacy group VA Ratify ERA wrote on Twitter, the Constitutional amendment would strengthen domestic violence laws, pregnancy discrimination protections, and push companies to adopt parental leave policies for men as well as women.
VA Ratify ERA reported that a desire to see the ERA ratified was one of the top three motivators that sent Virginia voters to the polls on Tuesday.
"This is a pivotal moment in our nation's history and in the fight for equality. It's a moment that will be recorded in the history books as a time when Chairman Nadler and our colleagues on the committee worked to protect and advance the rights of more than half of the citizenry and voted for women and girls to finally see themselves in our Constitution," said Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), co-chair of the Democratic Women's Caucus.
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After Racist Attacks, Former Refugee Makes History as First Somali-American Elected to City Council in Lewiston, Maine
"You might smear us. You might hurl racist attacks at us. But we will always rise up to serve our communities."
Nov 05, 2019
After a campaign marred by racist attacks, the victory Tuesday of a Somali-American woman who won a city council seat in Lewiston, Maine garnered national attention for the winner.
Safiya Khalid, who came to the U.S. in 2006 as a refugee, became the first Somali-American to be elected to city council in Lewiston, a city with a long history of racism against its immigrant community.
Khalid told supporters and the press on Wednesday that her victory was the result of a commitment to connecting with voters--even as online trolls were harassing her with comments saying, as the Washington Post reported, "that Muslims had no place in American government and she should go back to where she came from."
"Community organizers beat internet trolls," Khalid told supporters after results came in Tuesday night.
The 23-year-old is also the youngest person to ever be elected to the city council. She told reporters that she was inspired to run for office after seeing the city grow more racially and ethnically diverse while the government remained homogenous.
"Lewiston needs change, it deserves change, and I think we need a lot of perspectives on the city council," Khalid told Reuters. "The local government needs to be reflective of the community."
In addition to ensuring that the city's sizable immigrant population's voices are represented, Khalid aims to secure a $30 million federal housing grant; force code officials to regularly inspect every rental unit to make sure they meet lead and other safety standards; and push for low- or no-interest loans for homeowners.
Khalid's victory earned praise from national politicians including Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), the first Somali-American to serve in Congress.
"You might smear us. You might hurl racist attacks at us," Omar tweeted. "But we will always rise up to serve our communities."
Tuesday's result comes amid heightened anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. that's been encouraged by President Donald Trump and his policies, including the so-called Muslim ban under which travelers from Somalia and other countries are currently barred from entering the United States.
In recent decades, refugees and immigrants in Lewiston have faced attacks by white supremacists; a former mayor who wrote an open letter to Somali-Americans saying the city was "maxed-out financially, physically, and emotionally" and unable to welcome them; and local Republican politicians.
The progressive group Run for Something, which endorsed Khalid, called her win after facing "overwhelming odds" a potential "inspiration" for others who may consider running for public office.
"No election is too small," tweeted Ashley Allison of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. "ALL elections matter and have the potential to shape how we become a more inclusive nation."
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'Sweet Justice': Juli Briskman, Who Lost Her Job After Flipping Off Trump, Unseats GOP Incumbent on County Board
"She flipped off the president, got fired, and now got elected."
Nov 05, 2019
On Tuesday, two years after she was fired over a viral photo of her giving President Donald Trump's motorcade the middle finger in Sterling, Virginia, Juli Briskman was elected to the state's Loudoun County Board of Supervisors in her first foray into electoral politics.
The first-time candidate unseated eight-year Republican incumbent Suzanne Volpe by a vote of 5586-4721.
"It's feeling fantastic, it's feeling surreal," Briskman told The Washington Post Tuesday night. "The last two years have been quite a ride."
A photo of Briskman, on her bicycle, flipping off the president's motorcade as it left Trump's golf course in Sterling went viral in Ocotober 2017. Briskman said in an interview in 2018 that she was incensed by Trump's ending of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and his reaction to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
Shortly thereafter, Briskman lost her job as a marketing executive at government contracting service company Akima LLC.
Briskman said in September 2018 that the experience of losing her job for political expression spurred her run for office and dismissed the idea that the office of the president is inherently worthy of respect.
"I've gotten some feedback that folks say you should respect the president. Even if you don't like what they're doing, you shouldn't show this sort of disdain," said Briskman. "And I simply disagree, and I think the Constitution grants me that privilege."
"She flipped off the president, got fired, and now got elected," tweeted law professor Jennifer Taub. "Sweet."
The board acts as an administrative body for county government and includes in its oversight the Trump National Golf Club Washington D.C., which is located in Potomac Falls, Virginia.
That coincidence wasn't lost on Briskman.
"Isn't that sweet justice?" she said to The Washington Post.
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With Lori Lightfoot's 'Historic, Hopeful Victory' in Chicago Mayoral Race, Progressives Vow to Hold Her Accountable
"Chicago elected a new mayor out of a desire for bold and progressive ideas, and a commitment to building a more fair, just, and equitable city."
Apr 03, 2019
As Chicago's mayoral runoff election on Tuesday ended with a "historic, hopeful victory" for Lori Lightfoot, residents and community organizers vowed to hold the former federal prosecutor to her promises to usher in "a new progressive vision for the city."
"Mayor-elect Lightfoot's commitment to change will be quickly tested."
--Abbie Illenberger, Grassroots Illinois Action
After securing more than 73 percent of the vote--per the latest tally reported by the Chicago Tribune--Lightfoot will be the second city's first black female and openly gay mayor.
The faceoff between Lightfoot and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, both black women and self-styled progressives, garnered national attention for its historic nature.
NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson, and many others across the country, took to Twitter to congratulate Lightfoot for her "groundbreaking win."
While recognizing the significance of Lightfoot stepping into a role currently held by "neoliberal nightmare" Rahm Emanuel, many local progressives continued to raise concerns about Lightfoot's record and promised to hold her feet to the fire.
"I'm excited to say we are going to have our first black female mayor in the city of Chicago," Christopher Cook of 100 Black Men, a group that mentors the city's black youth, told In These Times last week. "But when that's all said and done, what changes are they going to make? We can't really predict right now, but we can hold them accountable."
Key priorities for progressives include pushing Lightfoot to address Chicago's infamously discriminatory policing, beleaguered public education system, growing pension debt, tax policies that prioritize corporations over low-income residents, and underserved South and West Sides.
"Chicago elected a new mayor out of a desire for bold and progressive ideas, and a commitment to building a more fair, just, and equitable city," the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and SEIU Local 73 said in a joint statement. "Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot has her work cut out for her on day one."
"We hope Mayor-elect Lightfoot separates herself from the dubious interests that funded her campaign, and governs like the progressive she claims to be," the unions added while laying out some clear demands for the incoming mayor:
Mayor-elect Lightfoot's leadership must stop the hemorrhage of black families from our city, prioritize affordable housing and rent control, secure a Community Benefits Agreement for the Obama Center, make the wealthy pay their fair share, and stabilize and fund public services.
While urging Lightfoot to appoint "stakeholders" from local communities to the Chicago Board of Education, the unions also offered a broader agenda for public schools:
School communities need justice and equity; an elected, representative school board; fully resourced school communities; black, Latinx and veteran teachers in classrooms; and full restoration of our collective bargaining rights.
"Will she embrace Emanuel's public safety policy of criminalizing communities of color, or change course to prioritize neighborhood investment, mental health services, and jobs?" asked Abbie Illenberger, deputy director of the political group Grassroots Illinois Action.
"Will she fulfill her campaign promise to end rip-off development deals like the Lincoln Yards TIF?" Illenberger added. "Mayor-elect Lightfoot's commitment to change will be quickly tested."
Others were more immediately critical. In a series of tweets, Charlene Carruthers, a Chicago-based black, queer feminist community organizer and writer, expressed frustration with the excitement over Lightfoot's win, arguing that "we are going to have to fight the Lori Lightfoot administration tooth and nail."
This is not a victory for LGBTQ people. We are going to have to fight the Lori Lightfoot administration tooth and nail. Please stop exclaiming how great this is. It makes me so upset.
-- Charlene Carruthers (@CharleneCac) April 3, 2019
Carruthers also highlighted the #StopLightfoot campaign, launched by "a group of young black, brown, native, white queer, trans, and gender-nonconforming organizers and people who love Chicago, and have worked for years on issues of police violence, immigrant justice, LGBTQ liberation, and more."
For more info please see https://t.co/iveFwf2ulL
-- Charlene Carruthers (@CharleneCac) April 3, 2019
Supporters of the #StopLightfoot campaign included the Chicago chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which saw a series of wins in aldermanic races on Tuesday.
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