• Advertise
  • Donate
  • Subscribe
    • Become a print subscriber
    • Sign up for e-Newsletter
    • e-Editions
Tuesday, October 3, 2023
No Result
View All Result
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
  • News & Features
    • National
    • Local
    • Special Editions
      • MLK Legacy
      • Black History Month
      • The MSR Celebrates Women’s History Month
  • All Sections
    • Opinion
      • Mellaneous by Mel Reeves
      • Word on the Street
      • Reaching Out From Within
    • Health + Wellness
      • Women’s Wellness
      • Parenting Today
      • Minnesota Cancer Alliance Breast Cancer Gaps Project
    • Sports
      • Timberwolves/NBA
      • Lynx/WNBA
        • 20 in 20
      • Twins/MLB
      • MN Wild/NHL
      • Vikings/NFL
    • Business
      • Small Business Month Celebration
      • Black Business Spotlight
      • Finances FYI
    • Arts + Culture
    • Photo Galleries
      • Photo of the Week
    • MSR Forefront Digital Roundtable Series
      • MSR Forefront Highlights
    • Go Green
    • Education
    • Bulletin
    • Jobs & Notices
      • Legals
      • Announcements
  • Events
    • Submit an event!
  • Obits
  • Sister Spokesman
  • e-Editions
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
  • News & Features
    • National
    • Local
    • Special Editions
      • MLK Legacy
      • Black History Month
      • The MSR Celebrates Women’s History Month
  • All Sections
    • Opinion
      • Mellaneous by Mel Reeves
      • Word on the Street
      • Reaching Out From Within
    • Health + Wellness
      • Women’s Wellness
      • Parenting Today
      • Minnesota Cancer Alliance Breast Cancer Gaps Project
    • Sports
      • Timberwolves/NBA
      • Lynx/WNBA
        • 20 in 20
      • Twins/MLB
      • MN Wild/NHL
      • Vikings/NFL
    • Business
      • Small Business Month Celebration
      • Black Business Spotlight
      • Finances FYI
    • Arts + Culture
    • Photo Galleries
      • Photo of the Week
    • MSR Forefront Digital Roundtable Series
      • MSR Forefront Highlights
    • Go Green
    • Education
    • Bulletin
    • Jobs & Notices
      • Legals
      • Announcements
  • Events
    • Submit an event!
  • Obits
  • Sister Spokesman
  • e-Editions
No Result
View All Result
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
No Result
View All Result

Will a more diverse Congress signal a more perfect union?

by Julianne Malveaux
January 7, 2019
4
SHARES
77
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on LinkedIn
Julianne Malveaux

The 116th Congress is the most diverse our nation has ever seen. Sworn in on January 3, there are more women (102) and more members of the Congressional Black Caucus (55) than ever before. Indeed, a former Congressional Black Caucus intern, Lauren Underwood (D-IL) is part of the incoming first-year class. At 32, she is the youngest Black woman to serve.

This Congress also includes the first Native American woman, two Muslim women, openly gay representatives, and others. Much of this diversity was displayed at the ceremonial swearing-in of the Congressional Black Caucus, an inspirational event that preceded the official swearing-in on Capitol Hill.

There, as I listened to speeches by the top Congressional Democrats, including incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA), incoming Majority leader Steny Hoyer (MD), and incoming Whip James Clyburn (SC), I was awash in hope and optimism. These leaders, along with outgoing Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Cedric Richmond (LA) and incoming Chair Karen Bass (CA) spoke of challenge, struggle, and optimism with a focus on possibilities.

It’s not about MAGA (Make America Great Again), it’s about MAF, or Make America Fair, shared Congressman Clyburn at the ceremonial swearing-in. He opened with the words of French historian Alexis Tocqueville, who observed when visiting this country: “The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.”

Clyburn went on to list the many ways our nation has attempted to self-correct, from the passage of the Emancipation Proclamation to the Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education decision declaring “separate but equal” to be “inherently unequal.”

- ADVERTISEMENT -

Clyburn also talked about the Great Society legislation, another of our nation’s attempts at self-repair, and he concluded by saying that, “America does not need to be made great again, she is already great. Our challenge is to make that greatness apply fairly and equitably to all of our citizens.”

As I listened to him, I could not help but think of the late poet Langston Hughes, and his poem “Let America Be America Again.” Written in 1935, the poem was first published in Esquire Magazine in 1936.

In it, he writes:

Let America be America again.

Let it be the dream it used to be.

- ADVERTISEMENT -

Let it be the pioneer on the plain

Seeking a home where he himself is free.

(America never was America to me.)

Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—

Let it be that great strong land of love

- ADVERTISEMENT -

Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme

That any man be crushed by one above.

(It never was America to me.)

O, let my land be a land where

Liberty Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,

- ADVERTISEMENT -

But opportunity is real, and life is free,

Equality is in the air we breathe.

(There’s never been equality for me,

Nor freedom in this “homeland of the free.”)

Though Hughes did not consider it one of his favorites, it captures the duality of our nation, the marked difference between our nation’s soaring establishing rhetoric and the stark reality that many experience. In the words of Malcolm X, it is the difference between the American dream and the American nightmare.

There may be no freedom in this “homeland of the free,” but this Congress offers freedom possibilities. It offers the possibility of fixing the Voting Rights Act, even as the Supreme Court has attempted to erode voting rights and even as at least two elections were stolen in 2018: those of Stacey Abrams in Georgia and Andrew Gillum in Florida.

This Congress offers freedom possibilities in resisting the insanity of a “wall” that the Great Negotiator (and purported author of The Art of the Deal) swore that Mexico was paying for. Not. This Congress offers freedom possibilities in its efforts to preserve the Affordable Health Care Act and to move us to Medicare for all. This colorful Congress (the pictures tell it all) offers a sharp contrast to the dismal (as in grey and navy suits) set of Republicans, overwhelmingly White and male, and staid.

Can this diverse new Congress make our nation fair for many who have never experienced our nation in the way it is supposed to be? In the words of Hughes, “It never was America to me.” We’ve come a long way since he wrote his 1935 poem, but we still have so much to do.

After these last two dystopian years under the leadership of President Genital Grabber (let’s just call him GG), this new Congress offers us many possibilities. May they manifest!

Julianne Malveaux is an author and economist. Her latest book Are We Better Off? Race, Obama and Public Policy is available via amazon.com. For more info, visit http://Will a more diverse Congress signal a more perfect union?juliannemalveaux.com.

Support Black local news

Help amplify Black voices by donating to the MSR. Your contribution enables critical coverage of issues affecting the community and empowers authentic storytelling.

Donate Now!

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...
ADVERTISEMENT
Previous Post

Five African American NFL head coaches fired

Next Post

State’s newly diverse leadership sworn into office

Julianne Malveaux

You Might Also Like

No Content Available
Next Post
Irene Fernando, Ilhan Omar, Keith Ellison & Angela Conley

State’s newly diverse leadership sworn into office

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
ADVERTISEMENT

Upcoming Events

Sep 12
September 12 @ 6:30 pm-December 18 @ 9:30 pm Recurring

Vic Volare Presents MUSIC FOR MARTINIS ft: Vic’s Fabulous Nightclub Academy

Oct 3
October 3 @ 8:30 am-October 4 @ 5:30 pm

Insects: Little Body, Big Impact | Nobel Conference 59 | Virtual or In-Person

Oct 4
6:00 pm-8:00 pm

An Evening with Liz Cheney

Oct 5
7:00 pm-9:00 pm

The Bombing of Cubana Flight 455: Why it Matters

View Calendar
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Read our latest e-Edition!

PHOTO: Barbie back-to-school party

A Barbie back to school party.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Subscribe

  • Home/Office Delivery
  • Weekly e-newsletter
  • e-Editions

Support

  • Donate
  • Subscribe
  • MSR Newsstand Locations

Connect

  • About
    • MSR Staff
  • Contact
  • Send a news tip
  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms

© 2023 Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder

No Result
View All Result
  • News & Features
    • Local
    • National
  • All Sections
    • Arts & Culture
    • Health & Wellness
      • Women’s Wellness
      • Parenting Today
      • MN Cancer Alliance Breast Cancer Gaps Project
    • Business
      • Black Business Spotlight
      • Finances FYI
      • Small Business Month Celebration
    • Opinion
    • Sports
  • Events
  • Obits
  • Sister Spokesman
  • Donate
  • Subscribe

© 2023 Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder

 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: