This past Tuesday delivered a shock to TPTB in Chicago: Mayor Rahm Emmanuel has been forced into a runoff.
His opponent is Jesus 'Chuy' Garcia, who, if elected, would become Chicago's First Latino Mayor.
When I say that folks just assumed that Rahm would get the 50% +1 of the votes needed to avoid a runoff, I mean it.
I mean, how could he not. He raised money hand over fist.
He outspent Chuy 12 to 1.
TWELVE TO ONE.
He had all these slick ads, and these slickly made fliers.
But, here's the thing.
Rahm doesn't have a base.
I can't point to anyone, other than the 1% that remotely likes Rahm, and would come out, hell or high water, to vote for him.
There are those who were afraid of him, and then there are those, like me, who are sick of him, and want an apology from those who voted him in 4 years ago.
When dissecting the ongoing crisis in Chicago, we must inevitably ask why elected officials and policy leaders have no readily identifiable solution for Chicago’s higher murder rate. One reason is simply that Chicago is just an extreme example of America’s murderous culture.
A second reason, one favored by fans of the 1965 Moynihan Report, is...read the rest here.
Tony Moseley, 18, a Posse Scholar, center, is congratulated by friends James Cole, 18, left and Cedric Hakeem, 17, as he steps to the front of the auditorium to be recognized for his accomplishments during an assembly at Urban Prep on Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011. Every senior at Urban Prep Academy in Chicago has been accepted to a four year college and the school held an assembly. ----Nancy Stone/ Chicago Tribune from The Chicago Tribune:
Urban Prep charter school again beats the odds All seniors accepted to college for second year in row By Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah, Tribune reporter 9:32 p.m. CST, February 16, 2011
Fire broke out in Cedric Abdul-Hakeem's Englewood home Dec. 31. After making sure everyone was out safely, the 17-year-old re-entered the smoke-filled home to retrieve his laptop.
"My laptop had all my applications, and most college applications are due Jan. 1," explained Abdul-Hakeem. "I figured if my laptop burns, I'm through."
He got his laptop. He got the applications in on time. And so far, he's been accepted to half a dozen colleges, including Grinnell College in Iowa, where most of his tuition will be paid through scholarships and grants.
Abdul-Hakeem is yet another Urban Prep success story. For the second consecutive year, every single senior in Chicago's only public all-male, all-African-American high school has been accepted to a four-year college or university.
In all, the 104 members of the 2011 graduating class have been accepted to 103 colleges, including some of the country's most selective schools. With many acceptance letters still anticipated, the charter school, which has campuses in the Englewood, South Shore and East Garfield Park neighborhoods, is hoping at least one of its students this year will land an Ivy League invitation.
"We would never advocate that anybody run into a burning building to get a computer or essay or application, but what (Abdul-Hakeem's story) speaks to is how much our students are dedicated and focused on getting into college," said Urban Prep's founder and CEO, Tim King. "They recognize that with college they will have very different lives that will be transformative for them and their communities."
On Wednesday, Urban Prep Academy for Young Men celebrated its repeat with a tie-exchanging ritual in which the final three seniors to receive acceptance letters exchanged their red uniform ties for red-and-gold ones as the other seniors did before them. Mayor Richard Daley and Chicago Public Schools' interim chief education officer Charles Payne were on hand. So was alum Israel Wilson, a freshman at Morehouse College in Atlanta, who said he has earned a 3.3 GPA and made the dean's list his first semester.
Skeptics last year had questioned whether grads would actually attend college and be able to succeed in higher ed programs. One of the school's missions is to ensure students earn that bachelor's degree, so King and his staff have helped secure money for plane tickets, driven students to college campuses, held workshops for alumni in the summer and winter, and checked up on them. Of the 107 seniors in 2010—the school's first graduating class—101 enrolled in college, King said. Three went into the military and another three joined the work force.
Just some good news this morning. Many blessings in the future for these young men.
When a whole lotta Negroes were scared of upsetting King Richard Daley I, and turned their backs on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. when he came to Chicago, Brazier was not one of them. He welcomed Dr. King and marched with him proudly.
It was Brazier's Apostolic C.O.G.I.C. where then candidate Barack Obama came to deliver his Father's Day speech in 2008, after the whole Rev. Wright fiasco.
Bishop Arthur M. Brazier, 1921-2010
Civil rights legend, founder of The Woodlawn Organization
By Margaret Ramirez, Tribune reporter
9:00 p.m. CDT, October 22, 2010
In the 1960s, Bishop Arthur M. Brazier marched through the streets of Chicago alongside the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the struggle against segregation in housing and schools.
He helped start The Woodlawn Organization to shepherd his South Side community through racial unrest and neighborhood upheaval. A spiritual leader as well, Bishop Brazier was Pentecostal pastor of the Apostolic Church of God in Woodlawn for more than 48 years, building a congregation of nearly 20,000 members before handing church leadership over to his son, the Rev. Bryon Brazier, in 2008.
Bishop Brazier, 89, who influenced generations of pastors and parishioners and who was praised by President Barack Obama as "one of our nation's leading moral lights," died Friday, Oct. 22, at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, after a five-year struggle with prostate cancer, his family said.
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For decades, Bishop Brazier fought gangs and crime and pushed for more affordable homes and better schools. As founding president of The Woodlawn Organization, he opposed plans by the nearby University of Chicago to expand, which would have displaced residents and use land he hoped to develop for low-income housing.
While he refused to preach politics from the pulpit, his wide influence made the Apostolic Church of God an obligatory campaign stop for politicians.
On Father's Day in 2008, presidential candidate Obama delivered a key campaign speech on the importance of family in Bishop Brazier's church. The president issued a statement Friday saying he and the first lady were "deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our dear friend, a stalwart of the city of Chicago."
"Bishop Brazier … promoted spiritual empowerment and economic development through his pastorate of Apostolic Church of God and leadership of numerous community organizations and charitable efforts," Obama said.
It is starting to look that way to me. We have an attorney General, Eric Holder, who doesn't believe in individual gun rights. His interpretation of the Second Amendment is completely different from how most legal scholars see it. Will he pursue an agenda aimed at taking away basic rights?
I already knew that Obama was anti-Gun, but I didn't realize until recently just how anti-Gun he really is. Now I understand why people have been swamping the gun shops, trying to get their purchases made, before their rights are challenged.
Obama doesn't believe in Concealed Carry Laws and he would like to see a Federal Ban on the practice. Although at least 40 of the 50 States have full Concealed Carry Rights for citizens who have been vetted and properly trained and who pay the required fees. Another 8 States offer partial Concealed Carry Rights (usually based on need...and with even more scrutiny and restrictions for applicants). Only two States have a ban on Concealed Carry... not surprising that Illinois is one of those 2 States. Wisconsin is the other.
Obama ignores the fact that there have been no serious problems with the Concealed Carry programs in States that allow full CCW rights. Despite information challenging their position they continue to try to erode the Second Amendment. Recently another Chicago politician, Bobby Rush (him again) quietly introduced Federal legislation (bill HR 45) known as the "Blair Holt Bill" that would stifle my right as a citizen to protect myself. Why are these Chicago politicians so obsessed with this? It's strange, considering the fact that Chicago's own Gun ban has done little to reduce gun crime. That's because the vast majority of street criminals don't buy guns through legitimate channels. Therefore, these gun bans only hurt law abiding citizens....preventing them from protecting themselves from the thugs who have been enabled and encouraged by folks like Bobby Rush.
Chicago has seen violent gun crime rise in recent years .... under the gun ban. Just last month, there was a major shooting outside of a Chicago high school... wounding at least 5. Even the Chicago police Department had to deploy much heavier weapons just last year because they were so outgunned. Chicago is like Mexico right now.... Damn near lawless. St. Louis is the same... with a much higher murder rate than Chicago... in fact, St. Louis has one of the highest Murder rates in the nation. Running gun battles in broad daylight between gangs or between gunmen and police are not all that uncommon in the City. But officials here understand that preventing law abiding citizens from protecting themselves is not the answer and is beyond foolish.
I have never understood the logic of the anti-Gun politicians. I really don't think they understand this issue... they just don't have the criminal justice expertise to understand street crime. They have this false notion that blocking legitimate gun purchases and preventing law abiding citizens from even having guns in the home will somehow prevent thugs, burglars, gang members, rapists, robbers, and career criminals from accessing guns on the street level -- The Black Market. These politicians don't understand that there are two parallel gun markets... blocking one gun market, does not effect the other whatsoever, especially in large urban areas. If you take away the legitimate gun market.... it doesn't impact the criminal at all... Why? Because he is getting his gun on the street anyway. He's not going to a gun shop... submitting to background checks and so forth. Gun bans and restrictions only prevent law abiding folks from having the option... their Second Amendment Right... to protect themselves and their families. This is the main fallacy in the anti-gun argument.
We recently saw the same nonsense in Washington DC... with its ban on handguns. The city saw gun violence skyrocket in recent years, with the handgun ban in place. Again, showing that such laws are idiotic. Luckily the U.S. Supreme Court agreed and decided (for once) to support the Constitution. And why was the DC law so idiotic? Because most of the gun violence was taking place on the street... between thugs, gang bangers, drug dealers, muggers assaulting innocents, home invaders, burglars, etc. Meanwhile, the citizens of DC (like in Chicago) were left vulnerable to all this nonsense by their own crooked politicians. (By the way... the politicians enjoy armed body guards and police protection...while their citizens are left to fend for themselves unarmed... interesting). These politicians are cowards... the worst kind. These political cowards in DC and Chicago should be forced to live in these crime ridden neighborhoods for 6 months with no protection. Then they might see just how irrational their logic is on this issue.
Sure... the citizens of DC could have shotguns in the home.... but the guns had to be disassembled... put away...packaged with no ammo...etc. Basically these guns would be of no use to you in an emergency. The corrupt politicians who run these cities want you to rely on 911 for protection... LOL. A complete joke. The response time that you can typically expect (the time between when your call is answered by an operator and the time an officer arrives) is anywhere from 6-10 minutes... and that's if you are lucky enough to get a 911 operator with a brain. It takes them about 1-2 minutes just to process your call. Yeah... good luck with that. The above time frame is an eternity if someone is breaking into your home (home invasion) to kill you, rape you, to kill and rob you, kidnap you...to force you to withdraw your money from an ATM, kill you and dump your body somewhere before taking your vehicle. To put it plainly... 911 is inadequate. There are just not enough well trained operators...and not enough police on the streets to get to you before harm is done (at least not every time). Therefore, you have the right to have that 10 minute insurance policy.
The aim of the Bobby Rush legislation seems to be along the lines of the DC policies that were designed to stifle your rights. It is designed to create so much red tape paying fees, taxes, filling out paperwork (much of which is already done)... that people will be discouraged and deterred from exercising their rights under the Constitution. It's a play at incrementally taking away rights. 10 years down the road... they may take another incremental step... until finally the Second Amendment is effectively eliminated.
I am hoping that the proposed legislation dies in Committee. The bottom line is, the Legislation appears to be unconstitutional...since it creates additional barriers. This has usually been a States rights issue. For these restrictions to be made permanent, it seems to me that it would require a Constitutional Amendment. Most States would revolt against this.
If Obama and his Chicago cronies make a serious push to take away my fundamental rights... I will treat him worse than George W. Bush. It's interesting that he says little about the source of the gun violence (that it comes mostly from his gangs and street thugs...not from law abiding Americans). Yet he wants to punish the law abiding citizen and make them even more vulnerable than they already are to the madness in the streets.
Keep away from my Second Amendment Rights Mr. Obama.
After decades of accusations, Burge finally faces charges October 21, 2008 BY NATASHA KORECKI
After decades of accusations of torture, former Chicago police commander Jon Burge finally appeared before a judge to face charges against him.
Dressed in a blue denim short-sleeved shirt and still sporting a shock of thick blond hair, Burge sat quietly in a Tampa federal courthouse, chatting with a court security officer and politely answering questions.
His friend, former Chicago Police Officer Thomas Brady who lives half a mile from Burge, handed his friend glasses he retrieved earlier from Burge’s Apollo Beach stucco home.
Burge put on the glasses, leaned back in his chair and started reading the indictment against him when the judge walked in. The judge asked if he had read the charges against him.
“I just started reading it when you got on the bench, your honor,” Burge answered in a thick Chicago accent.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas B. McCoun III gave him time to read it and explained to him he was charged with crimes “dating back to the city of Chicago police department,” saying the allegations have to do with torture or physical abuse of inmates or detainees.
When I heard the news on the radio this morning, I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe that the law had finally caught up with that sadist Burge. I'm from Illinois, the state that put 13 INNOCENT MEN ON DEATH ROW.
John Burge, and the false confessions he obtained from TORTURE, was responsible for several of those DEATH ROW SENTENCES.
Former Mayor Harold Washington was a powerful force in Chicago politics to say the least. His ability to break down barriers and navigate through the City's hostile racial politics helped to pave the way for other Black political figures across the Country. Indeed many Black political figures today operate in the shadow of Harold Washington. Washington's mayoral run helped to motivate Barack Obama to move to Chicago and enter grassroots politics back in the 1980's. Washington's efforts to end Chicago's history of dividing the races is something that is echoed today in many of Barack Obama's speeches.
I recently heard an interesting radio documentary about Harold Washington's mayoral career, and the racial politics of Chicago during the 1980's. The Program, produced and presented by Chicago Public Radio, was aired for the 20th Anniversary of Washington's passing. I didn't realize that Chicago's politics were so raw. Many of the things mentioned in the program reminded me of similar situations in my hometown of St. Louis- one of the most racially stratified communities in the nation. The program examines the question of how far Chicago and the nation have come, in terms of race and politics, over the last two decades. How big of a part does race still play in American politics? Can a Barack Obama really become President of the United States today?
I believe that the Country has come a very long way from the racial politics of Harold Washington's time. But "a long way" for me means perhaps 13 miles of a 26 mile Marathon. There is still a very long way to go and I don't believe that the Country will get to where it needs to be anytime soon. All one has to do is turn on the news or read the newspaper or the blogs (especially Blogs by African Americans) and they will see story after story of race related incidents across the nation. The same kinds of racial divides still exist today, although they manifest in different forms. And in many ways the nation has probably gone backwards when it comes to the relationship between race and politics.
Barack Obama has had to deal with some of the same ignorance that Harold Washington faced two decades ago in Chicago. All of the death threats that Obama has received, and all of the ignorant fear mongering by the White power structure and its corporate media, especially regarding Barack being a terrorist, is the same sickness that Harold Washington had to face. I recall, from the audio documentary, an incident experienced by Washington where a caller to a program that he was on asked him whether he planned to replace all of the elevators in Chicago with vines (a racist reference). That segment of the documentary actually sparked by memory...because I now vaguely remember that controversy. Obama is now getting similar treatment, albeit more nuanced in most cases. But it's basically the same racist nonsense all over again.
So have we come a long way as a nation? Sure. But I don't believe that this Country has grown up enough to actually elect a Black candidate for President. I just don't believe that a Black candidate will be elected in my lifetime. Some may say i'm wrong... and I may be...but I am one of those people who, in this particular case, has to see it to believe it.
*The Woman being interviewed at the end of the program has a Joe Biden moment. It's one of those things that makes me wonder if White Americans really do get it.
P.S. Mirror On America Blogger Rikyrah is a volunteer worker with the Obama Campaign.
"The two parties have combined against us to nullify our power by a ‘gentleman's agreement' of non-recognition, no matter how we vote ... May God write us down as asses if ever again we are found putting our trust in either the Republican or the Democratic Parties." -- W.E.B. DuBois (1922)
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