Year of Dreams
The Civil Rights Movement in the Era of Barack Obama
The Civil Rights Movement in the Era of Barack Obama
Having been born in Madison and raised a little colored girl, growing up during the Civil Rights Era — in the
late ‘50s and early ‘60s, I was too young to really understand what was going on. I only knew that things were
different when I visited relatives in the south. I had to remember to read the signs on drinking fountains and
restrooms in New Orleans, but not at home in Madison. It was a way of living — “bicultural” — before we even
knew anything about the word.
In the 21st Century, I am classified as a middle-aged, middle class Black woman who worked on the Obama
Election Campaign, because I felt not only did I want to be apart of something so BIG that it was sometimes hard
to imagine it was really happening, but I also knew that if he didn’t win, I wanted to know in my heart that I had
done my best to help.
I feel that during President Obama’s administration, Civil Rights will become important again — it will be
respected and not just tolerated. We will have a President who knows what it means to be discriminated against
personally, because he knows how people feel when it is only the color of their skin that has denied them
something that others take for granted. We will have a President who lived with his single mother on welfare, so
he knows that people need help to overcome poverty. We will have a President who has worked with grassroots
neighborhood leaders and he knows that these are the people who know first hand what their communities need
in order to thrive again.
I am looking forward to this new administration. I know it will not happen overnight, but I feel that President
Barack Obama will work hard to make government for the people. I pray that the majority of the people in
America will work hard in their communities to help make the necessary changes happen.
late ‘50s and early ‘60s, I was too young to really understand what was going on. I only knew that things were
different when I visited relatives in the south. I had to remember to read the signs on drinking fountains and
restrooms in New Orleans, but not at home in Madison. It was a way of living — “bicultural” — before we even
knew anything about the word.
In the 21st Century, I am classified as a middle-aged, middle class Black woman who worked on the Obama
Election Campaign, because I felt not only did I want to be apart of something so BIG that it was sometimes hard
to imagine it was really happening, but I also knew that if he didn’t win, I wanted to know in my heart that I had
done my best to help.
I feel that during President Obama’s administration, Civil Rights will become important again — it will be
respected and not just tolerated. We will have a President who knows what it means to be discriminated against
personally, because he knows how people feel when it is only the color of their skin that has denied them
something that others take for granted. We will have a President who lived with his single mother on welfare, so
he knows that people need help to overcome poverty. We will have a President who has worked with grassroots
neighborhood leaders and he knows that these are the people who know first hand what their communities need
in order to thrive again.
I am looking forward to this new administration. I know it will not happen overnight, but I feel that President
Barack Obama will work hard to make government for the people. I pray that the majority of the people in
America will work hard in their communities to help make the necessary changes happen.
| Lena Taylor Wis. State Senator |
Civil Rights’ New Direction
There are many events, people, and ideas from our history as a community, nation, and people that connect
to the words “civil rights”—Martin Luther King, Jr., Medger Evers, The Voting Rights Act, the Civil Rights Act, and
so much more. The fight to achieve recognition and human respect from the ruling majority was a long task; one
that has still not ended. Here in Wisconsin, African Americans continue to earn less than their White counterparts,
suffer higher unemployment, and are disproportionally over-incarcerated in our corrections system.
The fight for civil rights has lead our nation down many different paths – voting rights, affirmative action,
employment discrimination, housing availability, and much more. As President-elect Obama prepares to take
office, his tone on civil rights has taken a remarkable turn from the standard image of the movement. Included in
Obama’s civil rights initiatives is major corrections reform, the end of racial profiling, eliminating sentencing
disparities, and to expand use of drug courts.
It is refreshing to see the words “civil rights” used to describe the issues facing our corrections systems and
policies. In the Wisconsin State Senate, I chair the committees which deal with our state corrections system.
Every day, I hear stories of overcrowding, racial profiling, excessive force actions, and systemic
disenfranchisement. On top of those issues, our state is projected to need 8,920 new prison beds in the next 10
years at a cost of over $1.2 billion.
Obviously, Wisconsin is a ground zero area in the battle for civil rights in this area. President-elect Obama
has indentified the great racial disparities in our system, both in prisons and in the court system as an area to
assert a new direction. Wisconsin needs the same new direction. Working together, the federal and state
government can come to a new attitude, a new policy, and that new direction that we need, both to save
financial resources and human capital.
If civil rights and voting rights of the 1960’s were about ensuring the rights of law for all people, the new civil
rights of this day will be about ensuring that the law helps all people to overcome the challenges of our world.
That kind of change we can believe in!
There are many events, people, and ideas from our history as a community, nation, and people that connect
to the words “civil rights”—Martin Luther King, Jr., Medger Evers, The Voting Rights Act, the Civil Rights Act, and
so much more. The fight to achieve recognition and human respect from the ruling majority was a long task; one
that has still not ended. Here in Wisconsin, African Americans continue to earn less than their White counterparts,
suffer higher unemployment, and are disproportionally over-incarcerated in our corrections system.
The fight for civil rights has lead our nation down many different paths – voting rights, affirmative action,
employment discrimination, housing availability, and much more. As President-elect Obama prepares to take
office, his tone on civil rights has taken a remarkable turn from the standard image of the movement. Included in
Obama’s civil rights initiatives is major corrections reform, the end of racial profiling, eliminating sentencing
disparities, and to expand use of drug courts.
It is refreshing to see the words “civil rights” used to describe the issues facing our corrections systems and
policies. In the Wisconsin State Senate, I chair the committees which deal with our state corrections system.
Every day, I hear stories of overcrowding, racial profiling, excessive force actions, and systemic
disenfranchisement. On top of those issues, our state is projected to need 8,920 new prison beds in the next 10
years at a cost of over $1.2 billion.
Obviously, Wisconsin is a ground zero area in the battle for civil rights in this area. President-elect Obama
has indentified the great racial disparities in our system, both in prisons and in the court system as an area to
assert a new direction. Wisconsin needs the same new direction. Working together, the federal and state
government can come to a new attitude, a new policy, and that new direction that we need, both to save
financial resources and human capital.
If civil rights and voting rights of the 1960’s were about ensuring the rights of law for all people, the new civil
rights of this day will be about ensuring that the law helps all people to overcome the challenges of our world.
That kind of change we can believe in!
| Al Felice Educ. Consultant |
“This tendency to hold Negroes at arm’s length amounted to something very different from modern
segregation. ____ Mightily scandalized or not, white colonials in general seemed wary of opening their society
to blacks, even to those who were legally free for two or three generations. (Jordan, 1974).
On the uniqueness of being “American”:
“… whence came all these people? They are a mixture of English, Scottish, Irish, Dutch, Germans, and
Swedes. What then is the American, this new man? He is either an European, or the descendant of an European.
Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men.”
What group or people is not evidenced in the list above? Has time shifted that exception/perception?
“(Education) is not only a process by which a cultural heritage is transmitted from one generation to another
but a process by which a society renews and perpetuates itself as a society. It is not merely a means of
transmission but a means of participation in a common experience and a common culture.”
If the purpose of education is to ready us to engage successfully in the culture then (a) who defines, directs,
and determines culture, and (b) is culture static? Would the process of education shift to reflect the emergence of
a new culture? If education is a slave to culture, then education cannot shift until culture demands. Are cultural
shifts subtle, or are they more dramatic — evidencing much grief and agony?
Given the clarity of Jordan’s 1974 piece, the question being asked is “Are we people yet?” Secondarily, “Are we
Americans yet?” Has the description of being “American” shifted enough to include us yet, or are we as Jordan
reflects, still being held at “arm’s length”?
Suspend for a second that you may be averse to participating in the culture: if education is the avenue, how
does one access the avenue, and what impediments are there to accessing the avenue?
Willie Lynch shared: “I have outlined a number of differences among the slaves; and I take these differences and
make them bigger. I use fear, distrust, and envy for control purposes. On the top of my list is “age”. (Then) color or
shade, intelligence, size, sex, have fine or coarse hair, or is tall of short. The Black slave after receiving this
indoctrination, shall carry on and will become self-refueling and self-generating for hundreds of years, maybe
thousands.
Ha! That wouldn’t work – would it? That couldn’t still be working today!!
South Carolina; 1740, Alabama; 1833, Virginia; 1819, North Carolina; 1831, Georgia; 1829, Missouri; 1847…
each had laws punishing any person found teaching a slave to read or write or any slave found reading or writing.
Hmm! It can’t be like that anymore, right?! So let’s see what vestiges there might be. Let’s see which states
Obama did not win. Just for fun! South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi. He barely got N.C., and won
Virginia.
"We do not have our first black president," the author Christopher Hitchens said on the BBC program
"Newsnight.""He is not black. He is as black as he is white."
"He's half-white, you know," says a white soldier.
"You must be so proud," responds another.
"He can't be African American. With race, white claims 50 percent of him and black 50 percent of him. Half
a loaf is better than no loaf at all," Ron Wilson of Plantation, Fla., wrote in a letter to the Sun-Sentinel newspaper.
What these pieces really suggest is that our history is now being written … now being formed. After MLK’s efforts,
we thought we had arrived. We had not. We have not. What MLK and Barack offer us are points on a continuum.
Major points, but “points,” nonetheless.
We are still pioneers. We are now creating our history. There is this middle-school principal in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin – the first Black principal Oshkosh has ever had in its history. She is a pioneer. And her readiness, and
her ability to deliver despite the waves that lash against her will determine the level of pause others will have to
another, and another, and to Barack’s success.
Nothing means nothing. Everything means something.
So Barack’s inauguration means that each of us must redouble his or her efforts at being the best parent, the
best student, the best citizen that each of us could be. The measure of his being there (not his presidency) will
be: if in four years from now, I see a flow of more African Americans, more Southeast Asians, more Latinos, more
first-generation kids of all stripes contending for spots in the advanced placement classes and in our most
prestigious universities … if I see more of my ethnic and social minority kids visiting new worlds.
Then I will know that we have begun to write the second chapter.
Dr. Felice is the Educational Consultant for Disproportionality and Diversity Issues with the Oshkosh Area
School District.
segregation. ____ Mightily scandalized or not, white colonials in general seemed wary of opening their society
to blacks, even to those who were legally free for two or three generations. (Jordan, 1974).
On the uniqueness of being “American”:
“… whence came all these people? They are a mixture of English, Scottish, Irish, Dutch, Germans, and
Swedes. What then is the American, this new man? He is either an European, or the descendant of an European.
Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men.”
What group or people is not evidenced in the list above? Has time shifted that exception/perception?
“(Education) is not only a process by which a cultural heritage is transmitted from one generation to another
but a process by which a society renews and perpetuates itself as a society. It is not merely a means of
transmission but a means of participation in a common experience and a common culture.”
If the purpose of education is to ready us to engage successfully in the culture then (a) who defines, directs,
and determines culture, and (b) is culture static? Would the process of education shift to reflect the emergence of
a new culture? If education is a slave to culture, then education cannot shift until culture demands. Are cultural
shifts subtle, or are they more dramatic — evidencing much grief and agony?
Given the clarity of Jordan’s 1974 piece, the question being asked is “Are we people yet?” Secondarily, “Are we
Americans yet?” Has the description of being “American” shifted enough to include us yet, or are we as Jordan
reflects, still being held at “arm’s length”?
Suspend for a second that you may be averse to participating in the culture: if education is the avenue, how
does one access the avenue, and what impediments are there to accessing the avenue?
Willie Lynch shared: “I have outlined a number of differences among the slaves; and I take these differences and
make them bigger. I use fear, distrust, and envy for control purposes. On the top of my list is “age”. (Then) color or
shade, intelligence, size, sex, have fine or coarse hair, or is tall of short. The Black slave after receiving this
indoctrination, shall carry on and will become self-refueling and self-generating for hundreds of years, maybe
thousands.
Ha! That wouldn’t work – would it? That couldn’t still be working today!!
South Carolina; 1740, Alabama; 1833, Virginia; 1819, North Carolina; 1831, Georgia; 1829, Missouri; 1847…
each had laws punishing any person found teaching a slave to read or write or any slave found reading or writing.
Hmm! It can’t be like that anymore, right?! So let’s see what vestiges there might be. Let’s see which states
Obama did not win. Just for fun! South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi. He barely got N.C., and won
Virginia.
"We do not have our first black president," the author Christopher Hitchens said on the BBC program
"Newsnight.""He is not black. He is as black as he is white."
"He's half-white, you know," says a white soldier.
"You must be so proud," responds another.
"He can't be African American. With race, white claims 50 percent of him and black 50 percent of him. Half
a loaf is better than no loaf at all," Ron Wilson of Plantation, Fla., wrote in a letter to the Sun-Sentinel newspaper.
What these pieces really suggest is that our history is now being written … now being formed. After MLK’s efforts,
we thought we had arrived. We had not. We have not. What MLK and Barack offer us are points on a continuum.
Major points, but “points,” nonetheless.
We are still pioneers. We are now creating our history. There is this middle-school principal in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin – the first Black principal Oshkosh has ever had in its history. She is a pioneer. And her readiness, and
her ability to deliver despite the waves that lash against her will determine the level of pause others will have to
another, and another, and to Barack’s success.
Nothing means nothing. Everything means something.
So Barack’s inauguration means that each of us must redouble his or her efforts at being the best parent, the
best student, the best citizen that each of us could be. The measure of his being there (not his presidency) will
be: if in four years from now, I see a flow of more African Americans, more Southeast Asians, more Latinos, more
first-generation kids of all stripes contending for spots in the advanced placement classes and in our most
prestigious universities … if I see more of my ethnic and social minority kids visiting new worlds.
Then I will know that we have begun to write the second chapter.
Dr. Felice is the Educational Consultant for Disproportionality and Diversity Issues with the Oshkosh Area
School District.
What is the role of civil rights during the administration of President Barack Obama?
As President-Elect Barack Obama begins his legacy of leadership, he will prioritize and focus on issues that are
most important to moving this country forward. In addition to improving the state of the current economy, addressing
the housing crisis, ensuring that Americans have and maintain employment; have access to affordable and
available healthcare and educational opportunities, he must continue to ensure that the role of civil rights remain
an essential part of these initiatives.
Job opportunities for Americans will strengthen the infrastructure of America and allow Americans to sustain
the American dream. This includes, but is not limited to, access to affordable housing, accessible healthcare,
meaningful job opportunities and strengthening educational programs.
The Supreme Court appointments that President-Elect Obama will be selecting during his tenure will be significant.
These appointments will be the key to addressing and ensuring that we don’t repeat history by moving backwards.
That we continue to build on the foundation of significant and former Supreme Court decisions such as, Brown vs.
the Board of Education, Roe vs. Wade. As we all know that he has been following the Lilly Ledbetter case and
hopes that Congress will overturn the Supreme Court decision dealing with equal pay for women. As you know, there
is a major move across the country advocating paid sick leave for all employees. This is notable in that it will afford
parents the opportunity to be more engaged in child and family health related issues. With a growing elderly
population, this will provide some relief to the adults who have responsibility for taking care of family members,
including elderly parent.
Also, significant to civil rights will be key appointments to Federal Courts that our President-Elect Obama will
make. These appointments will reflect the diversity of America’s judicial system that is representative of this great
country’s racial, ethnic and cultural composition.
We are truly fortunate to have a President who has lived, understands and has received benefits from our
former leaders such as Chief Justice Thurgood Marshall and Martin Luther King, Jr. I know that our President Obama
will reach out to all sides of the aisle to hear what America is thinking. This will not only include individuals but key
organizations that have been instrumental in moving Civil Rights to the front of the American agenda like the
NAACP (National Association of Advancement of Colored People) that has been around for almost 100 years.
As President-Elect Barack Obama begins his legacy of leadership, he will prioritize and focus on issues that are
most important to moving this country forward. In addition to improving the state of the current economy, addressing
the housing crisis, ensuring that Americans have and maintain employment; have access to affordable and
available healthcare and educational opportunities, he must continue to ensure that the role of civil rights remain
an essential part of these initiatives.
Job opportunities for Americans will strengthen the infrastructure of America and allow Americans to sustain
the American dream. This includes, but is not limited to, access to affordable housing, accessible healthcare,
meaningful job opportunities and strengthening educational programs.
The Supreme Court appointments that President-Elect Obama will be selecting during his tenure will be significant.
These appointments will be the key to addressing and ensuring that we don’t repeat history by moving backwards.
That we continue to build on the foundation of significant and former Supreme Court decisions such as, Brown vs.
the Board of Education, Roe vs. Wade. As we all know that he has been following the Lilly Ledbetter case and
hopes that Congress will overturn the Supreme Court decision dealing with equal pay for women. As you know, there
is a major move across the country advocating paid sick leave for all employees. This is notable in that it will afford
parents the opportunity to be more engaged in child and family health related issues. With a growing elderly
population, this will provide some relief to the adults who have responsibility for taking care of family members,
including elderly parent.
Also, significant to civil rights will be key appointments to Federal Courts that our President-Elect Obama will
make. These appointments will reflect the diversity of America’s judicial system that is representative of this great
country’s racial, ethnic and cultural composition.
We are truly fortunate to have a President who has lived, understands and has received benefits from our
former leaders such as Chief Justice Thurgood Marshall and Martin Luther King, Jr. I know that our President Obama
will reach out to all sides of the aisle to hear what America is thinking. This will not only include individuals but key
organizations that have been instrumental in moving Civil Rights to the front of the American agenda like the
NAACP (National Association of Advancement of Colored People) that has been around for almost 100 years.
| Frances Huntley-Cooper Former Mayor of Fitchburg, Wis. |
To me, Obama's role is to do what any and every president SHOULD have been doing but rarely did, in
defining who is American and who should be included in making decisions and helping others feel like they belong
to this country. Too many folks define who they are by specific and narrow groups and by defining who they are by
which groups they belong to and identify with and what groups they definitely are not a part of. These differences
create a false sense of security and identity and raises barriers between people. Each year, the Martin Luther King
Jr celebrations and remembrances of what he stood for have always been very important to me. The celebrations
and honoring of Martin Luther King Jr. deepen my commitment to work towards inclusion and social justice. It is a
time to be inspired and renewed to rally on and connect with others with feel the same way. But the ideal vision
Martin Luther King Jr expressed often seemed so very far away and a goal and dream that we strive for but we really
wouldn’t experience ourselves. Now with Obama's leadership, Martin Luther King's vision appears so close to our
reality that, for me, I am not quite sure I can take it all in yet and I am still in awe and a bit giddy in anticipation of
the possibilities ahead. It makes me think that all these years of continued commitment with these important
celebrations recognizing Dr. King's work really do make a difference and I am proud to have been a part of this
special day and year.
defining who is American and who should be included in making decisions and helping others feel like they belong
to this country. Too many folks define who they are by specific and narrow groups and by defining who they are by
which groups they belong to and identify with and what groups they definitely are not a part of. These differences
create a false sense of security and identity and raises barriers between people. Each year, the Martin Luther King
Jr celebrations and remembrances of what he stood for have always been very important to me. The celebrations
and honoring of Martin Luther King Jr. deepen my commitment to work towards inclusion and social justice. It is a
time to be inspired and renewed to rally on and connect with others with feel the same way. But the ideal vision
Martin Luther King Jr expressed often seemed so very far away and a goal and dream that we strive for but we really
wouldn’t experience ourselves. Now with Obama's leadership, Martin Luther King's vision appears so close to our
reality that, for me, I am not quite sure I can take it all in yet and I am still in awe and a bit giddy in anticipation of
the possibilities ahead. It makes me think that all these years of continued commitment with these important
celebrations recognizing Dr. King's work really do make a difference and I am proud to have been a part of this
special day and year.
| Sharyl Kato Executive Director, Rainbow Project |
| Isadore Knox Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity for Dane County |
First, I would like to express what a privilege it is to be able to share my thoughts on the topic “What is the role
of civil rights during the administration of President Barack Obama” with the Madison community. I would also like
to thank Jonathan Gramling for the opportunity.
It is a difficult topic to address, given that the significance of President Obama’s presidency goes well beyond
the historic meaning and contemporary interpretation of “civil rights” or human rights. The significance of the
Obama Presidency will, in some way, personally impact the African American populations, immigrant populations
of all races and ethnicities here in the United States; and people in other nations all over the world.
What does that mean for civil rights during the Obama administration? Given the onslaught against civil liberties of
all kinds during the past eight years of the Bush administration, it will be critical that civil or human rights activists
aggressively push the Obama administration and the newly elected Congress to restore many of our democratic
rights and privileges and move forward toward providing additional protections to those who are most vulnerable, as
result of the current fiscal crisis.
Activists must fight against the demise of equal opportunity and affirmative action in recent Supreme Court
decisions and state constitutional amendments, repeal the Patriot Act, prosecute governmental officials who are
responsible for war crimes against humanity and police brutality, take aggressive action against hate crimes of all
kinds and work to remove racial and social economic disparities.
This will require that we organize and lobby our elected officials, tell them what we want and hold them
accountable at election time. Clearly, President Obama cannot forward civil rights nor remove all the ills of our
trouble society alone. We must send him a clear message of what we want and support him with our actions, when
he has to make the tough decisions that will benefit our long-range objectives, but may require a painful sacrifice
in the short term.
Civil rights have always started at the local level and have been motivated by action, largely by the youth and
young adults of our community. Clearly, this election has shown that the mobilization of youth activism coupled
with the knowledge of organizing can lead to a “new civil rights” movement based on inclusion, rather than
exclusion.
The role of the civil rights movement during the Obama administration is to be the conscience of the county
by not allowing the administration or the new Congress to slip into the old politics of “business as usual”. This can
only be done by holding our representatives accountable, constantly speaking out, pushing through “grass roots”
organizing, lobbying and political activism at he ballot box and through participation in government.
Isadore Knox is currently the Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity for Dane County, a community activist, a
former Madison City Alder and former Equal Opportunity Director for the Wisconsin Department of Administration.
of civil rights during the administration of President Barack Obama” with the Madison community. I would also like
to thank Jonathan Gramling for the opportunity.
It is a difficult topic to address, given that the significance of President Obama’s presidency goes well beyond
the historic meaning and contemporary interpretation of “civil rights” or human rights. The significance of the
Obama Presidency will, in some way, personally impact the African American populations, immigrant populations
of all races and ethnicities here in the United States; and people in other nations all over the world.
What does that mean for civil rights during the Obama administration? Given the onslaught against civil liberties of
all kinds during the past eight years of the Bush administration, it will be critical that civil or human rights activists
aggressively push the Obama administration and the newly elected Congress to restore many of our democratic
rights and privileges and move forward toward providing additional protections to those who are most vulnerable, as
result of the current fiscal crisis.
Activists must fight against the demise of equal opportunity and affirmative action in recent Supreme Court
decisions and state constitutional amendments, repeal the Patriot Act, prosecute governmental officials who are
responsible for war crimes against humanity and police brutality, take aggressive action against hate crimes of all
kinds and work to remove racial and social economic disparities.
This will require that we organize and lobby our elected officials, tell them what we want and hold them
accountable at election time. Clearly, President Obama cannot forward civil rights nor remove all the ills of our
trouble society alone. We must send him a clear message of what we want and support him with our actions, when
he has to make the tough decisions that will benefit our long-range objectives, but may require a painful sacrifice
in the short term.
Civil rights have always started at the local level and have been motivated by action, largely by the youth and
young adults of our community. Clearly, this election has shown that the mobilization of youth activism coupled
with the knowledge of organizing can lead to a “new civil rights” movement based on inclusion, rather than
exclusion.
The role of the civil rights movement during the Obama administration is to be the conscience of the county
by not allowing the administration or the new Congress to slip into the old politics of “business as usual”. This can
only be done by holding our representatives accountable, constantly speaking out, pushing through “grass roots”
organizing, lobbying and political activism at he ballot box and through participation in government.
Isadore Knox is currently the Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity for Dane County, a community activist, a
former Madison City Alder and former Equal Opportunity Director for the Wisconsin Department of Administration.
| Annette Miller Board Chair, ULGM |
The role of civil rights during President Barack Obama’s administration is no different than it has been in any
presidency. When a president is sworn in they must swear that “… I will faithfully execute the Office of President of
the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United
States. "
Civil rights law as defined by State Lawyers.com states, “it is the area of law protecting those rights guaranteed
by the Bill of Rights, the 13th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution, including the right to due process, equal
treatment under the law of all people regarding enjoyment of life, liberty, property, and protection.”
In light of the above, President-Elect Obama’s role as it pertains to civil rights is to preserve, protect and defend
them as it is part and parcel of the U.S. Constitution. So, the real question we must ask ourselves then is, how will
President-Elect Obama faithfully execute his duties as it relates to civil rights?
Clearly, every president has interpreted their duties as President differently, yet I think the way he campaigned
to become president demonstrates how he will lead and execute his duties. His work in Chicago as a civil rights
attorney, his background, and most importantly his campaign, clearly indicate that he understands what American
people want and need. This country needs help to fix the economy, healthcare, education and our military
presence and positioning.
We need a president who looks at the issues and tries to look at solutions that benefit those in need. If
President-Elect Obama continues with that strategy, he will inherently lift up many who fall into race, class,
gender and sexual orientation categories.
Yet, as I carefully ponder the question at hand and look back on history, it was a collective of people who obtained
and demanded that their civil rights be preserved, protected and defended. If that is indeed the case, the true
question is what will you (we) do as Americans to ensure that the role of civil rights as an issue is put forth in this
next administration?
We are the people and we have the role and responsibility to empower our President and when it is no longer
Barack Obama, then we must also hold the next President that comes after, and the one after that. The reality of
what President-Elect Barack Obama has done is set the standard by which we seek leadership and accountability.
So, it is up to us to ensure that there is a role for civil rights in the administration of President Barack Obama by
being the collective that demands that our civil rights be part of his administration and that they preserve, protect,
and defend those rights!
Annette Miller, Board Chair of the Urban League of Greater Madison, is also Chair of the Madison Network of
Black Professionals, and Community Services Manager for Madison Gas and Electric.
presidency. When a president is sworn in they must swear that “… I will faithfully execute the Office of President of
the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United
States. "
Civil rights law as defined by State Lawyers.com states, “it is the area of law protecting those rights guaranteed
by the Bill of Rights, the 13th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution, including the right to due process, equal
treatment under the law of all people regarding enjoyment of life, liberty, property, and protection.”
In light of the above, President-Elect Obama’s role as it pertains to civil rights is to preserve, protect and defend
them as it is part and parcel of the U.S. Constitution. So, the real question we must ask ourselves then is, how will
President-Elect Obama faithfully execute his duties as it relates to civil rights?
Clearly, every president has interpreted their duties as President differently, yet I think the way he campaigned
to become president demonstrates how he will lead and execute his duties. His work in Chicago as a civil rights
attorney, his background, and most importantly his campaign, clearly indicate that he understands what American
people want and need. This country needs help to fix the economy, healthcare, education and our military
presence and positioning.
We need a president who looks at the issues and tries to look at solutions that benefit those in need. If
President-Elect Obama continues with that strategy, he will inherently lift up many who fall into race, class,
gender and sexual orientation categories.
Yet, as I carefully ponder the question at hand and look back on history, it was a collective of people who obtained
and demanded that their civil rights be preserved, protected and defended. If that is indeed the case, the true
question is what will you (we) do as Americans to ensure that the role of civil rights as an issue is put forth in this
next administration?
We are the people and we have the role and responsibility to empower our President and when it is no longer
Barack Obama, then we must also hold the next President that comes after, and the one after that. The reality of
what President-Elect Barack Obama has done is set the standard by which we seek leadership and accountability.
So, it is up to us to ensure that there is a role for civil rights in the administration of President Barack Obama by
being the collective that demands that our civil rights be part of his administration and that they preserve, protect,
and defend those rights!
Annette Miller, Board Chair of the Urban League of Greater Madison, is also Chair of the Madison Network of
Black Professionals, and Community Services Manager for Madison Gas and Electric.
| Steve Morrison Executive Director, Madison Jewish Community Council |
Ten civil rights and individual liberties (one can not exist without the other) imperatives for President Barack
Obama?
It is a privilege to celebrate the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with some thoughts on civil rights and
individual liberties (one can not exist without the other) in America on the eve of the inauguration of President
Barack Obama. Dr. King’s pursuit of equality and justice helped shape a vision of America as a country where all
people could live and work together, united by a shared conviction of the significance of civil rights and individual
liberties for all people. Our new President holds the potential, capacity, and confidence of the American people to
take up the pursuit and, perhaps, fulfill Dr. King’s vision.
That explains why I am so troubled by the President-elect’s decision to invite Rick Warren to offer the
inaugural invocation. Warren, despite assurances of love for all people, denies civil rights to homosexuals and
individual rights to women; and would establish public policy based on his personal religious beliefs, yet deny that
right to those whose beliefs are different from his.
These are among the rights which have been diminished these last eight years and are among the 10
imperatives which, while varied, share the common element of securing and protecting fair and equitable
treatment of all people:
• Require a “Constitutional note” (e.g., fiscal note) be a part of proposals members of his Administration submit; that
is, how will the proposal strengthen our Constitution and its liberties.
• Repeal the “Patriot Act.”
• Appoint to the Federal Courts those who will advance civil rights and individual liberties for all.
• Insist that immigration reform and the treatment of immigrants living and working in the United States be based on
dignity, civility and respect.
• Extend all the rights, protections and benefits of civil marriage to same-sex couples.
• Repair the breach in the essential Constitutional wall separating religion and State. Faith-based initiatives, school
vouchers, religion in the military, decisions about science (e.g., embryonic stem-cell research), and teaching
“intelligent design” are only some distortions of civil rights and individual liberties during the last eight years which
require correction.
• Insure full ballot access to exercise one’s voting rights.
• Repeal “No Child Left Behind” because, among other reasons, it harms the civil right to quality public education
for all students.
• Restore and advance gender equity and non-discrimination in employment.
• Keep the right to abortion fully legal. Whatever else it may be, a woman’s right to make her own decision about
abortion, without the interference of government, is both a civil right and a matter of religious freedom and
individual liberty.
As I think about these 10 civil rights and individual liberties imperatives, I am reminded of the words spoken by
one of Dr. King’s colleagues in the struggle, Dr. Abraham Joshua Heschel.
“Where in America today do we hear a voice like the voice of the prophets of Israel? Martin Luther King is a sign
that God has not forsaken the United States of America. God has sent him to us. His presence is the hope of
America. His mission is sacred, his leadership of supreme importance to every one of us.”
While I am not suggesting that Barack Obama is this generation’s “voice of the prophets of Israel” (though I
would welcome that), I am suggesting that these civil rights and individual liberties imperatives are, indeed, “sacred
[and] his leadership [is] of supreme importance to every one of us.”
Steven Morrison recently received the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Jewish Community
Organization Professionals in recognition of his 40-year career in Chicago, Washington, and for the last 25 years,
Madison.
Obama?
It is a privilege to celebrate the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with some thoughts on civil rights and
individual liberties (one can not exist without the other) in America on the eve of the inauguration of President
Barack Obama. Dr. King’s pursuit of equality and justice helped shape a vision of America as a country where all
people could live and work together, united by a shared conviction of the significance of civil rights and individual
liberties for all people. Our new President holds the potential, capacity, and confidence of the American people to
take up the pursuit and, perhaps, fulfill Dr. King’s vision.
That explains why I am so troubled by the President-elect’s decision to invite Rick Warren to offer the
inaugural invocation. Warren, despite assurances of love for all people, denies civil rights to homosexuals and
individual rights to women; and would establish public policy based on his personal religious beliefs, yet deny that
right to those whose beliefs are different from his.
These are among the rights which have been diminished these last eight years and are among the 10
imperatives which, while varied, share the common element of securing and protecting fair and equitable
treatment of all people:
• Require a “Constitutional note” (e.g., fiscal note) be a part of proposals members of his Administration submit; that
is, how will the proposal strengthen our Constitution and its liberties.
• Repeal the “Patriot Act.”
• Appoint to the Federal Courts those who will advance civil rights and individual liberties for all.
• Insist that immigration reform and the treatment of immigrants living and working in the United States be based on
dignity, civility and respect.
• Extend all the rights, protections and benefits of civil marriage to same-sex couples.
• Repair the breach in the essential Constitutional wall separating religion and State. Faith-based initiatives, school
vouchers, religion in the military, decisions about science (e.g., embryonic stem-cell research), and teaching
“intelligent design” are only some distortions of civil rights and individual liberties during the last eight years which
require correction.
• Insure full ballot access to exercise one’s voting rights.
• Repeal “No Child Left Behind” because, among other reasons, it harms the civil right to quality public education
for all students.
• Restore and advance gender equity and non-discrimination in employment.
• Keep the right to abortion fully legal. Whatever else it may be, a woman’s right to make her own decision about
abortion, without the interference of government, is both a civil right and a matter of religious freedom and
individual liberty.
As I think about these 10 civil rights and individual liberties imperatives, I am reminded of the words spoken by
one of Dr. King’s colleagues in the struggle, Dr. Abraham Joshua Heschel.
“Where in America today do we hear a voice like the voice of the prophets of Israel? Martin Luther King is a sign
that God has not forsaken the United States of America. God has sent him to us. His presence is the hope of
America. His mission is sacred, his leadership of supreme importance to every one of us.”
While I am not suggesting that Barack Obama is this generation’s “voice of the prophets of Israel” (though I
would welcome that), I am suggesting that these civil rights and individual liberties imperatives are, indeed, “sacred
[and] his leadership [is] of supreme importance to every one of us.”
Steven Morrison recently received the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Jewish Community
Organization Professionals in recognition of his 40-year career in Chicago, Washington, and for the last 25 years,
Madison.
| Lucia Nuñez Director, Dept. of Civil Rights, Madison, Wis. |
The expectations are high. We imagine that the first African American President of the United States will
surely bring about great changes in the civil rights arena. In my circles, everyone is anxiously waiting to reap the
benefits of this historical change. Those associated with civil rights and human rights expect great policy shifts in
Washington, across the country, and around the world.
For years, the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) has reduced regional offices and cut
staff. Only recently did this agency raise its payment for reimbursement of cases for local and state agencies by a
mere $40 per case. Will there be more money for enforcement now? Will offices, such as the one in Milwaukee,
grow and regain the status they once had? Will we see a strengthening of protections in employment and housing?
The plan to strengthen civil rights on the Obama/Biden Transition website looks promising. Their key issues are
high on all of our agendas — from fighting employment discrimination to expanding hate-crimes laws, and
recommendations for reducing the disproportionate number of minorities in the criminal justice system. The
president-elect includes the LGBT community in his definition of equal rights and supports civil unions and
legislation to expand federal rights to LGBT couples.
So from a personal and professional point of view, I am hopeful and excited to be part of this historical
period. But I’m also realistic. Our new President is facing challenges like no other President in the history of the
United States: two major wars and the continued escalation of Middle East unrest and an economic crisis affecting
every segment of our society.
Economic injustice is a reality we have not truly addressed in this country. Unemployment rates in cities such
as Detroit are among the highest in the country. The current economic crisis hit the Latino community quite hard
with some of the highest unemployment rates of all minority groups. African Americans are losing their homes at
much higher rates than other groups. Economic injustice is a battle of a different kind--with visible and invisible
enemies. As Obama addresses the economic issues of the country will he take particular measures to close these
disparities?
Perhaps the greatest step we have made is that we, as a nation, listened to the words and ideas of a
presidential candidate that gave us hope and inspired us to get involved in ways that surprised us. We passed along
text messages about house parties, we received daily emails about ideas and campaign discussions, we kept
abreast of the latest blogs. Those of us not as tuned-in to the latest technologies quickly adapted to keeping
informed. We listened to his ideas, we thrilled to his words, and in embracing the promise of these words, we voted
him into office. Perhaps the greatest step towards civil rights to be made in the coming era has already been
declared--in the words and spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we judged our 44th President not by the color of his
skin but by the content of his character.
surely bring about great changes in the civil rights arena. In my circles, everyone is anxiously waiting to reap the
benefits of this historical change. Those associated with civil rights and human rights expect great policy shifts in
Washington, across the country, and around the world.
For years, the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) has reduced regional offices and cut
staff. Only recently did this agency raise its payment for reimbursement of cases for local and state agencies by a
mere $40 per case. Will there be more money for enforcement now? Will offices, such as the one in Milwaukee,
grow and regain the status they once had? Will we see a strengthening of protections in employment and housing?
The plan to strengthen civil rights on the Obama/Biden Transition website looks promising. Their key issues are
high on all of our agendas — from fighting employment discrimination to expanding hate-crimes laws, and
recommendations for reducing the disproportionate number of minorities in the criminal justice system. The
president-elect includes the LGBT community in his definition of equal rights and supports civil unions and
legislation to expand federal rights to LGBT couples.
So from a personal and professional point of view, I am hopeful and excited to be part of this historical
period. But I’m also realistic. Our new President is facing challenges like no other President in the history of the
United States: two major wars and the continued escalation of Middle East unrest and an economic crisis affecting
every segment of our society.
Economic injustice is a reality we have not truly addressed in this country. Unemployment rates in cities such
as Detroit are among the highest in the country. The current economic crisis hit the Latino community quite hard
with some of the highest unemployment rates of all minority groups. African Americans are losing their homes at
much higher rates than other groups. Economic injustice is a battle of a different kind--with visible and invisible
enemies. As Obama addresses the economic issues of the country will he take particular measures to close these
disparities?
Perhaps the greatest step we have made is that we, as a nation, listened to the words and ideas of a
presidential candidate that gave us hope and inspired us to get involved in ways that surprised us. We passed along
text messages about house parties, we received daily emails about ideas and campaign discussions, we kept
abreast of the latest blogs. Those of us not as tuned-in to the latest technologies quickly adapted to keeping
informed. We listened to his ideas, we thrilled to his words, and in embracing the promise of these words, we voted
him into office. Perhaps the greatest step towards civil rights to be made in the coming era has already been
declared--in the words and spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we judged our 44th President not by the color of his
skin but by the content of his character.
| Jessica Pharm UW-Madison student |
Education for African Americans a must for civil rights
As a college student in my senior year, I was amazed and hopeful when on November 4, 2008; Barack Obama
became the first African American President of the United States. This day touched me personally because I
remember my ninth grade math teacher saying that the country isn’t ready for a Black President. Watching Barack
Obama make history reminds me that as Americans we can overcome for the greater good. However, November 4,
2008 did not end the economic and social disparities African Americans face. One of the biggest social injustices
facing African Americans today is education.
When I tell people, especially other African Americans, I am in college, let alone a senior, I get looks of
bewilderment and amazement. For some of us, obtaining even a high school diploma is cause to celebrate with
the high drop-out rates of African Americans. Civil rights leaders need to refocus on getting African Americans
access to better quality education, a need that should be first addressed at the elementary and secondary levels.
Black civil rights leaders need to fight against the anti-education bias prevalent in the Black community. The anti-
education bias hinders our progress by discouraging our young men and women from fulfilling their potential,
essentially enslaving us all over again. Our children need to understand that education is key to progress. Civil
rights leaders and community members must combat this by encouraging our children to read books; by designing
resources to help those who are failing, getting parents involved in their children’s education; and showing children
positive Black role models who achieve success through education.
In terms of financial help, that is a bigger concern. Schools in urban areas are severely underfunded, lacking
qualified teachers and have large classrooms. It is easy for children to fall in the cracks. Civil rights leaders need to
call public attention to these problems and get our elected officials to take notice and demand action. It is up to us
as a people to support ourselves; we cannot afford to wait until someone decides to help us.
Jessica Pharm is a senior at UW- Madison and a Capital City Hues contributing writer.
As a college student in my senior year, I was amazed and hopeful when on November 4, 2008; Barack Obama
became the first African American President of the United States. This day touched me personally because I
remember my ninth grade math teacher saying that the country isn’t ready for a Black President. Watching Barack
Obama make history reminds me that as Americans we can overcome for the greater good. However, November 4,
2008 did not end the economic and social disparities African Americans face. One of the biggest social injustices
facing African Americans today is education.
When I tell people, especially other African Americans, I am in college, let alone a senior, I get looks of
bewilderment and amazement. For some of us, obtaining even a high school diploma is cause to celebrate with
the high drop-out rates of African Americans. Civil rights leaders need to refocus on getting African Americans
access to better quality education, a need that should be first addressed at the elementary and secondary levels.
Black civil rights leaders need to fight against the anti-education bias prevalent in the Black community. The anti-
education bias hinders our progress by discouraging our young men and women from fulfilling their potential,
essentially enslaving us all over again. Our children need to understand that education is key to progress. Civil
rights leaders and community members must combat this by encouraging our children to read books; by designing
resources to help those who are failing, getting parents involved in their children’s education; and showing children
positive Black role models who achieve success through education.
In terms of financial help, that is a bigger concern. Schools in urban areas are severely underfunded, lacking
qualified teachers and have large classrooms. It is easy for children to fall in the cracks. Civil rights leaders need to
call public attention to these problems and get our elected officials to take notice and demand action. It is up to us
as a people to support ourselves; we cannot afford to wait until someone decides to help us.
Jessica Pharm is a senior at UW- Madison and a Capital City Hues contributing writer.
| Mona Adams Winston King Coalition Co-Chair |