HBCU

Pelosi Keeps it Real with HU Students

THE AFRO — Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi frankly spoke to Howard University students on an array of subjects relating to their lives and futures.

Published

5 years ago

March 8, 2019

Oakland Post

By Micha Green

Donning an all orange suit with shoes to match, in honor of ending gun violence- a hot button issue that was set to hit Wednesday’s House floor for the first time in eight years- Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi frankly spoke to Howard University students on an array of subjects relating to their lives and futures.

The event, held on Feb. 27, was part of the “Gwendolyn S. and Colbert I. King Endowed Chair in Public Policy Lecture Series.” This year’s endowed chair is former Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair, political strategist and author Donna Brazile.

Brazile, who has brought political heavy hitters from both sides of the aisle, including former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele, told the AFRO why she felt it was important to bring Pelosi from the House to Howard.

“I wanted to bring [Pelosi], because she’s the Speaker of the House. She’s the one who controls the legislation. She’ll be very much engaged in the budget discussions and she’s the one who helps us with the policy in the House of Representatives. And I think having her on an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) campus, Howard University in particular, is a great way to remind her that this university, like all other universities, deserve her time and attention. And she readily accepted the invitation.” Brazile told the AFRO.

Brazile posed a question on student loan debt, which has increased 102 percent since 2009 according to Bloomberg.

“The debt is bigger than credit card debt. So when they want to give a tax break of over a trillion dollars to the richest people in America, why don’t we just eliminate the debt for higher education, instead of giving a tax cut to the top one percent in our country?” Pelosi said to the audience. “That would be something constructive to do that everybody would share in. And by the way, nothing brings more money to the treasury to further reduce the debt, than investments in education.”

On the topic D.C. statehood, Pelosi was very supportive of the idea, yet skeptical that the bill, H.R. 51, would pass this year.

“I’m supportive of the idea of statehood for the District of Columbia. I’m all for it. It’ll probably happen, or have a better chance of happening… under a Democratic president. But it’s something that we have to build a crescendo for. So unfair,” she said. “When we took office just a month and a half, we gave Eleanor Holmes Norton a right to vote on the floor, not on all measures, because that would mean a Constitutional change, but on many measures in the House.”

In less than hour students were able to listen to the moderated discussion between Pelosi and Brazile and then ask questions to the Speaker herself.

One student asked about reparations, the unrealized promise of valued land and goods to Blacks post the Emancipation Proclamation, and how to serve African Americans who still struggle today as a result of slavery. The Speaker admitted that reparations is a challenging issue that Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) has tackled with legislation to study the topic of giving African Americans their promised goods- further than 40 acres and a mule. With the difficulty of reparations, Pelosi touched on the troubling issues of poverty and disparity, which disproportionately affects African Americans.

“When you want to be involved in public service, know your why. What attracts you to this? I went from the kitchen to Congress, housewife to House Speaker, and my why is the one in five children in America living in poverty,” she explained. “We have to reduce the disparity in income in our country. We have to reduce the disparity in education…. We have to reduce the health disparities in our country… So while we’re studying how we deal with the reparations issue, there’s plenty we can do to improve the quality of life of many people in our country.”

Melyvonn Leon, a second year MBA student and graduate assistant at the School of Business, said he felt it was important to have Pelosi present at a place like Howard.

“This was an awesome experience. To get that up, close and personal experience with such a prominent member of society- such a large name in the leadership of this country right now. To have that easy access at Howard, and specifically within the School of Business, is unbelievable.”

This article originally appeared in The Afro.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

COMMENTARY: Hopkins, City MOU

Don't Miss

VIDEO: Esteemed Journalists Keep It Real During Howard University’s Power of the Pen Panel

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Community

Laphonza Butler Becomes California’s Newest U.S. Senator

Two days after California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that Laphonza Butler would fill the U.S. Senate seat of the late Dianne Feinstein, the new senator was sworn in on Capitol Hill by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris.

Published

7 months ago

October 10, 2023

Oakland Post

Laphonza Bulter was the president of Emily’s List. Wikimedia Commons photo.

Replacing the Late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Butler Becomes the 3^rd Black Woman to Serve in Upper Chamber

By Lauren Victoria Burke,

NNPA Newswire contributor

Flanked by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and California Sen. Alex Padilla as she took the oath, Butler than received a round of applause by senators of both parties.

After the swearing-in, President Joe Biden called Butler to congratulate her, the White House said.

“I am honored to accept Gov. Newsom’s nomination to be a U.S. Senator for a state I have long called home,” Butler said in a statement Monday. “I am humbled by the Governor’s trust. Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s leadership and legacy are immeasurable. I will do my best to honor her by devoting my time and energy to serving the people of California and the people of this great nation.”

She will be the third Black woman to serve in the U.S. Senate, preceded by Illinois’s Carol Mosely Braun, and current V.P. Kamala Harris. Butler is also the first openly lesbian Black U.S. senator: Her wife, Neneki Lee, held the Bible during Butler’s swearing-in.

Since 2021, Butler has been serving as the president of EMILY’s List. The fundraising platform supports and funds women candidates and amplifies issues that disproportionately impact women.

Before that she was involved in labor organizing, elected president of California’s largest union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

“As the president of SEIU 2015, Laphonza Butler led the fight for fair wages and respect for home care workers,” said Mary Kay Henry, current SEIU president, in a statement Monday. “As president of SEIU California, she was a driving force in winning the first statewide $15 an hour minimum wage in the nation. She has been a strong ally electing pro-women candidates as president of Emily’s List.”

Fellow California Sen. Alex Padilla also expressed strong support for Butler. “Throughout her career, Laphonza Butler has been a strong voice for working families, LGBTQ rights, and a champion for increasing women’s representation in politics. I’m honored to welcome her to the United States Senate,” Padilla wrote in a statement. “Governor Newsom’s swift action ensures that Californians maintain full representation in the Senate as we navigate a narrow Democratic majority. I look forward to working together to deliver for the people of California.”

Newsom’s decision was not on the political radar screen of most prognosticators.

With the selection of Butler, the decision by California’s Governor did not include any of the currently announced candidates for U.S. Senate in 2024 in California. Those current candidates include veteran members of Congress Barbara Lee and Adam Schiff and relative newcomer Katie Porter.

“As we mourn the enormous loss of Senator Feinstein, the very freedoms she fought for — reproductive freedom, equal protection, and safety from gun violence — have never been under greater assault. Laphonza will carry the baton left by Senator Feinstein, continue to break glass ceilings, and fight for all Californians in Washington, D.C.,” wrote Gov. Newsom in a statement released on the evening of October 1 announcing Butler’s appointment.

Butler will be the only Black woman in the Senate. But Delaware Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester is expected to win the Senate seat vacated by Senator Tom Carper. Carper announced he would not run for re-election in 2024 and Rochester announced shortly afterwards that she would run for Carper’s seat.

Butler formally became another addition to the Congressional Black Caucus when she was welcomed with a swearing in by those members later on Tuesday.

Butler grew up in Magnolia, Miss., one of four siblings raised by a single mother. Her father, who suffered from heart disease, passed away when Butler was 16. She attended Jackson State University, an HBCU, graduating in 2001.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Community

Historic Black University: Multiple Suspects Sought After Shooting Incident at Morgan State University

Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley and Morgan State University Police Chief Lance Hatcher told reporters that the incident happened around 9:25 p.m. when university police officers, on their regular patrol, detected gunfire from the campus. The victims, aged between 18 and 22, which include four men and a woman, sustained injuries that are reported to be non-life-threatening.

Published

7 months ago

October 10, 2023

Oakland Post

Tyler Hall, Morgan State University campus. Morgan State is one of the few historically Black institutions nationally to offer a comprehensive range of academic programs, in business, engineering, education, architecture, social work, and hospitality management. Photo courtesy morgan.edu

By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire

Baltimore police are intensifying their search for multiple suspects involved in a shooting incident that occurred on the campus of Morgan State University, leaving five individuals injured. Among the victims, four are students of the historically Black institution.

“The entire city of Baltimore’s heart aches for the Morgan community, for the victims and their families, and for our city as a whole,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott stated.

Multiple windows were shattered during the incident, and school officials said they immediately began active shooter response protocols. Worley said police systematically cleared buildings in pursuit of those responsible. While there are indications that it could have been more than one shooter, authorities could not confirm whether multiple assailants were involved.

Hatcher said university police received notification of the shooting at approximately 9:27 p.m. and sent the first public safety alert to the community at 9:30 p.m., followed by four other notifications.

At approximately 11:45 p.m., city police announced via Twitter that the incident was no longer an “active shooter situation.” University officials announced via social media that the shelter-in-place order had been lifted, and shuttle services resumed at around 12:30 a.m.

Worley emphasized that SWAT officers meticulously combed through every floor of the buildings they searched, conducting two sweeps, before lifting the shelter-in-place order.

Authorities are urging anyone with information to come forward and assist in their efforts to bring those responsible to justice.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Black History

Acting President of Temple University Dies Suddenly After Memorial Service

“President Epps was a devoted servant and friend who represented the best parts of Temple,” the university said in a statement. “She spent nearly 40 years of her life serving this university, and it goes without saying her loss will reverberate through the community for years to come.”

Published

7 months ago

October 3, 2023

Oakland Post

JoAnne A. Epps had served Temple University for 40 years. Courtesy photo via NBC News.

NBC News

Referred to by a colleague as a ‘calm force in troubled waters,’ Temple University Acting President suddenly died Tuesday after falling ill at a memorial service, officials at the Philadelphia school said.

While attending a memorial for Charles L. Blockson, JoAnne A. Epps, 72, slumped in her chair onstage while someone else was speaking and was taken to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.