Jesse Jackson Needs To Blame Media, Not Barack Obama For Neglecting Issues Facing Blacks

Note: This post was originally written November 27, 2007 in response to a comment by Jesse Jackson about the Democrats not talking about issues facing blacks. I’m updating the list a little bit because of some recent interest in it.

Jesse Jackson needs to do his homework before making blanket statements about who is and isn’t speaking out about issues facing African Americans. Just because the media don’t report about what Barack Obama is doing and saying, it doesn’t mean he isn’t talking about it.

Where were the other candidates and why didn’t the top mainstream media give lots of coverage when Obama:

• Stopped Senate Democrats in their tracks when they tried to confirm a man who had screwed minorities over on voting rights?
• Or when he was writing op-eds about injustices in the criminal justice system?
• Or when Obama gave a speech about improving race relations and addressing poverty, but instead, the mainstream media chose to distort his speech to say that he was saying that black people wanted to riot. Why didn’t Jesse come out and have his back on this?
• Or Obama challenging the Indiana Voter ID law because it discriminates against blacks?
• Or when Barack Obama was the first Presidential candidate to begin talking about the Jena 6 controversy and putting out press releases about it? John Edwards and Hillary Clinton didn’t say much about Jena until the news came out about Jackson’s alleged comments about Obama “acting like he’s white.” CNN never reported Obama’s early press releases on Jena, but they put up Edwards’ and Clinton’s statements the day they were released. What’s up with that?
• Or his speech releasing a comprehensive civil rights agenda, especially with regard to equalizing the mandatory minimum drug sentencing laws? Well, I guess not everyone missed that one.
• Or when he secured funding so that low-income minority kids could go to college?
• Or his work to get voting rights for DC residents?
• Or the fact that he wrote the foreword for the National Urban League’s 2007 report, “The State of Black America: Portrait of the Black Male”?
• Or his talk at the National Urban Action Network conference on issues facing urban blacks?
• Or when he went on Tavis Smiley’s show and did a full interview addressing issues of concern to black voters?
• Or that he was the first candidate scheduled to appear at the Essence Music Fest, the largest black event each year and he appeared at the National Association of Black Journalists convention as well?
• Or that Obama has developed one of the most extensive ground-level outreaches to historically black colleges and universities for a Democratic candidate probably since Jesse Jackson’s run for the Presidency?
• Or his work to combat pay discrimination for women and minorities?
• Or his extensive work to help black farmers who had been discriminated against?
• Or his extensive work on Hurricane Katrina, including recently working to test FEMA trailers and speaking out against recent efforts to destroy low-income housing in New Orleans? I appreciate Edwards announcing his candidacy in the Ninth Ward. However, there is no way Edwards’ efforts on Katrina even come remotely close to the work Obama has done.
• Or his efforts to control media consolidation which squeezes out minority media outlets?
• Or did we forget about his July speech releasing an agenda to combat urban poverty?
• Or his efforts to limit challenges to voter eligibility, which disproportionately affects minority voters?
• Or his speech in SC to address education for all the disadvantaged, particularly the gross disparities for black children?
• Or that he has carefully monitored and regularly addressed the Genarlow Wilson case in his stump speech while other candidates haven’t?
• Or his work to combat health disparities?
• Or that he has pressed Bush on his policies towards the Congo, and pleaded with Condoleeza Rice to address the violence inflicted on Congolese women?
• Or his continued push and noted efforts on America’s policy toward Darfur?
• Or his opposition to judges who do not maintain equality and civil rights for all?
• Or his work on subprime loan discrimination which has disproportionately affected minority homeowners?
• Or his work to bring minorities into the global warming/environmental debate?
• Or his work to increase underrepresented minorities and women in the sciences and engineering?
• Or his release of a detailed plan to combat AIDS/HIV in the U.S. and around the globe?
• Or his work to fight teen pregnancy in minority communities?
• Or his efforts to address the Latino dropout rate?
• Or the speech he gave about gun violence in our urban schools?
• Or his attempts to negotiate the situation in Kenya amidst a hectic Democratic primary campaign?
• Or his work on the Civil Rights Act of 2008?
• Or his work to strengthen the hate crimes laws?
• Or when the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education did their own research and called Obama “a superior choice”?
• Or that I haven’t heard any other candidate eloquently relating W.E.B. DuBois to the problems of race in America and around the globe and to our foreign policy and national security?

And there is much much more.

All these actions by Obama have happened over this year’s campaign season, but we’ve hardly heard about any of it in the mainstream media. Instead, they like to report about famous black folk who don’t know this work he has been doing and want to say he isn’t doing anything to address issues facing black people. Shame on the media. Also, the famous black folk with influence need to make sure they have their facts straight before publicly running off at the mouth.

Jackson says John Edwards is the only candidate addressing issues facing blacks. I absolutely disagree. Some of Edwards’ comments, ties, and political gaming throughout the campaign have been retrogressive for minorities and women.

Some black leaders are more concerned these days with winning the rhetorical/grandstanding battle than they are with winning the policy implementation battle. Yes, John Edwards does photo-ops and talks about poverty, but what policy implementation has he enacted that improves the lives of minorities and the poor at either the local, state, or national level? I can’t think of anything. However, I can think of policy accomplishments Obama has had at each of these levels that improve black people’s lives.

And Hillary Clinton? She’s been attempting to disenfranchise voters on her path to winning the nomination.  She was working behind-the-scenes slamming Barack Obama’s position on mandatory minimum sentencing disparities as “too liberal.” She was also the only one of the Democratic nominees who did not support retroactivity for sentencing disparities. The Clinton campaign also exploited the problems in black churches for political gain, but had no problem going to black churches for votes themselves.

So I respect Jesse Jackson and all, but he’s flat wrong on this one.

One can never talk about racial disparities too much until the problem is solved, but let there be no doubt that there is one candidate in this race who stands out above the rest in addressing issues over the campaign season that disproportionately face African Americans and that candidate is Barack Obama.