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Voters To Decide Today Between Travis Hendrix, Sylvia Swayne in Hotly Contested Jeffco Runoff Election

The Birmingham Times The two Democratic candidates in today’s Oct. 24 runoff in House District 55 have had their say. Now voters in the district which encompasses parts of Birmingham, including UAB/Southside, the West End, and Fairfield will have theirs. The polls open at 7 a.m. Travis Hendrix, a 40-year-old Birmingham police sergeant, received 670 […]
The post Voters To Decide Today Between Travis Hendrix, Sylvia Swayne in Hotly Contested Jeffco Runoff Election first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

3 years ago

December 5, 2023

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Travis Hendrix, left, and Sylvia Swayne and candidates for the Jefferson County House District 55 seat.

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The Birmingham Times

The two Democratic candidates in today’s Oct. 24 runoff in House District 55 have had their say. Now voters in the district which encompasses parts of Birmingham, including UAB/Southside, the West End, and Fairfield will have theirs.

The polls open at 7 a.m.

Travis Hendrix, a 40-year-old Birmingham police sergeant, received 670 votes, or 27.91 percent, in the special election last month. Sylvia Swayne, a 26-year-old customer service manager, received 515 votes, or 21.45 percent.

Turnout in the general election was dismal with just about 3,140 of the 25,000 registered voters participating.

“A lot of people just don’t understand how important our local elections are because these are the elections that affect our daily lives,” Hendrix said as he canvassed a neighborhood in Fairfield. “It’s my job to remind people to engage in these local elections.”

Sylvia Swayne, 26, a quality assurance manager, said her interest in social justice took off in high school in the wake of the Ferguson protests in 2014.

Swayne, if elected, would be the first transgender representative elected to the Alabama House.

At the University of Alabama, she co-chaired the Students for Fair Labor’s Collective Liberation Caucus, participated in sit-ins to object to Milo Yiannopoulos, who was invited to speak at the university, and to demand the expulsion of Ryan Parrish, a UA student who was arrested after a racially charged threat on Facebook.

“At the end of the day, I’ve done a lot of work in terms of civic engagement, community service and social justice,” Swayne said. “That’s what ultimately led to me wanting to run for office — just seeing so many bills being introduced that distract us from the issues that face the everyday Alabamian.”

With no Republican opponent in the general election in January, the winner of the runoff will most likely become the representative-elect for the district, which includes parts of Birmingham and Fairfield.

Talk of race and gender identity exploded on Birmingham talk radio in recent days has exploded as callers and hosts debate and make cases for their preferred candidates.

District 55 has a 70 percent Black majority, and a victory for Swayne would change the area’s racial representation for the first time in decades.

Still, both candidates said they preferred to have conversations on issues affecting the district, rather than gender or race.

“I’m for all people. It doesn’t matter what you look like, what status you are, or what gender you are,” Hendrix said.

He renounced personal attacks against Swayne, including a flier that attacked her gender identity.

“I don’t care about anything but making sure that District 55 has the representation that it needs so we can all be successful, and we can all have a better quality of life,” Hendrix said. “Quality of life is on the ballot.”

Swayne in recent days also took to the airwaves to present her platform and answer questions regarding her commitment to serving what is a largely Black constituency.

“I’m one person just like any candidate in the election. I can’t represent every single person in the district, but I can work alongside folks in the district and make sure that the people are prioritized over all else,” Swayne said. “My identity is only a distraction from the issues that face District 55 and I’m ready to talk about the issues and face the issues.”

The two candidates broadly agree on issues, with both seeing a need for infrastructure investments in the district.

Medicaid Expansion

Medicaid expansion would be a top issue for both.

Hendrix said that as a police officer, he’s seen many Alabamians without health insurance. Hendrix also said he has seen people with gunshot or knife wounds at emergency departments who rack up thousands of dollars in hospital bills. Those bills are a big setback for those individuals, who may not be able to pay. When those bills go unpaid, hospitals absorb the costs.

“That’s why I say expanding healthcare and making it affordable to people — like different plans — kind of make it affordable to different ages so that they can be able to afford health care,” Hendrix said.

Swayne said that Alabama needed to expand Medicaid “yesterday,” but she said she would take a more behind-the-scenes approach by being a conversation starter. Medicaid expansion is a partisan issue, she said, but it doesn’t have to be when 70 percent of Alabamians support Medicaid expansion, according to an Alabama Arise poll.

“When we talk about Medicaid expansion, we can’t convince a Republican to get on board with that — because we believe that health care is a right. That’s not the language,” she said. “You talk about the economic benefits. You talk about the ways that if 200 to 300,000 more Alabamians have access to health care, think about the amount of people who can go to work.”

Education

On education, Swayne said legislators could have used the record-breaking surplus in the Education Trust Fund (ETF) to reinvest in struggling public schools, but instead, she pointed to SB202, filed by Sen. Larry Stutts, R-Tuscumbia, a bill — passed out of committee but did not come to a floor vote — that would have diverted $864 million from the ETF towards private or home schooling.

“I do not believe that public funds — taxpayer dollars — should be going to private institutions,” she said. “I am not opposed to the existence of private schools, but they are private for a reason. They have to be self-funded. You cannot use public money on private schools.”

Charter schools, being public schools, should be more accessible to low-income communities, she said. Those schools may lack buses, for example, and transportation could be a challenge for needy families.

“If we’re going to invest in charter schools, we have to make sure the charter schools are actually accessible for students,” she said.

Hendrix said that if it’s a public school, he supports it.

“I know parents have the right and the choice to decide where they want to send their kid to school. I think as long as they get their education and continue to be productive citizens throughout the state of Alabama. So, that’s it, and that’s what I care about,” Hendrix said.

Infrastructure

Hendrix also supports more infrastructure projects. He said it’s hard to attract businesses, and most places just need some lifting up, he said. Other places need more immediate help with things like street signs. He said that could be the difference that allows an emergency service to get to a house on time.

“Some street signs are knocked down, so you have to look on the house or on your phone and see what street that you’re on,” he said.

Swayne said that the state needs to invest in public transportation in the district. She said that she does not have a bus stop in her neighborhood, but that’s not the city of Birmingham’s fault.

“That’s because we don’t invest in public transportation at the state level. We have a 1952 constitutional amendment that prohibits us from using revenue from gas taxes on anything but roads and bridges. We’ve had a public transportation trust fund since 2018, and we don’t put money into it,” she said. “We need to come up with solutions that serve the people of the district and the people of the state.”

Hendrix raised $40,310 and spent $35,153 as of Sept. 30. Hendrix has accepted $25,496 in from seven PACs, with Alabama Works PAC being the largest donor at $9,254.

Swayne has raised $81,175 and spent $49,987 as of Oct. 13. Sylvia accepted money from LPAC only, a political action committee supporting LBGTQ+ candidates.

Tuesday’s special election will fill the seat left vacant when former Rep. Fred Plump resigned in May after pleading guilty to charges in a federal corruption case.

Plump was a freshman representative who served less than a year before a kickback scandal ended his political career.

The Alabama Reflector and AL.com contributed to this post

This article originally appeared in The Birmingham Times.

The post Voters To Decide Today Between Travis Hendrix, Sylvia Swayne in Hotly Contested Jeffco Runoff Election first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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COMMENTARY: Jim Crow 2.0 at the Pentagon

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The American people are expected to believe that one extraordinary officer after another suddenly fails to meet some undefined standard of excellence. We are expected to ignore impeccable service records while accepting that political appointees alone possess the wisdom to determine who is worthy of advancement.

Published

2 weeks ago

August 3, 2026

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Pete Hegseth insists that he is restoring “merit” to the United States military. But after months of dismissals, blocked promotions, and ideological purges, the evidence tells a different story. His campaign against so-called “diversity, equity, and inclusion” has become something far more dangerous: an assault on equal opportunity that falls with particular force on African Americans, while also targeting women, Latinos, gay Americans, and transgender service members.

The latest example is both troubling and infuriating.

Once again, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reportedly blocked the promotion of an exceptionally qualified woman—Rear Admiral Amy Bauernschmidt. Bauernschmidt is no ordinary officer. She became the Navy’s first woman to command a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, one of the most demanding leadership assignments in the world. Her career reflects decades of exemplary performance, operational excellence, and leadership under extraordinary pressure.

Yet once again, a distinguished military career appears to have been subordinated to an ideological agenda masquerading as “merit.”

I call BS!

The American people are expected to believe that one extraordinary officer after another suddenly fails to meet some undefined standard of excellence. We are expected to ignore impeccable service records while accepting that political appointees alone possess the wisdom to determine who is worthy of advancement.

The pattern has become impossible to ignore.

General Charles Q. Brown Jr., only the second African American to serve as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was dismissed despite a career that placed him among the most accomplished military leaders of his generation.

Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the first woman ever to serve as Chief of Naval Operations, was removed despite decades of distinguished command experience.

Reports have documented interventions that blocked or delayed the promotions of Black officers and women selected through the military’s rigorous promotion system.

Now Rear Admiral Amy Bauernschmidt joins the growing list of highly accomplished officers whose careers have been derailed for reasons that have never been persuasively explained.

Where is Congress?

Its silence has become deafening.

Congress has an independent constitutional responsibility to oversee the armed forces. Instead, too many lawmakers have watched silently while one of the nation’s most respected institutions is subjected to ideological litmus tests and political interference.

This is not military reform. It is testosterone-fueled performative masculinity disguised as a philosophy of military excellence.

The irony is impossible to miss. Hegseth repeatedly invokes “merit,” yet his rhetoric begins with the assumption that Black officers, women, and other historically excluded Americans must somehow justify their achievements in ways that white male officers are rarely required to do.

That is not meritocracy. It is prejudice wrapped in patriotic language.

No one is asking that anyone be promoted because of race or gender. Americans simply expect that promotions be based on demonstrated competence, leadership, integrity, and service. The officers being targeted have already proven themselves repeatedly under one of the world’s most demanding evaluation systems.

Their records speak for themselves.

The attack on African American military leadership has been especially pernicious.

For generations, Black Americans fought in segregated units, earned decorations while denied equal treatment, and repeatedly demonstrated loyalty to a nation that often failed to extend them full citizenship. They broke barriers not because standards were lowered but because excellence finally overcame institutional discrimination.

Today’s campaign against “diversity” threatens to revive old assumptions under new slogans.

The implication that Black generals and admirals somehow owe their success to affirmative action rather than extraordinary performance echoes some of the ugliest stereotypes of the Jim Crow era. Yesterday’s segregationists claimed Black Americans were inherently less qualified. Today’s culture warriors simply employ more politically acceptable language while inviting the same suspicion about Black achievement.

That is why Hegseth’s campaign increasingly resembles Jim Crow 2.0.

The targets may now wear stars on their shoulders instead of military patches on segregated uniforms, but the underlying message is hauntingly familiar: Black excellence is presumed suspect, while white excellence is presumed earned.

America’s military became the finest fighting force in history because it opened its doors to talent wherever it could be found. It grew stronger after President Truman desegregated the armed forces. It became stronger when women assumed greater command responsibilities. It became stronger when every qualified American was given the opportunity to serve to the fullest extent of their abilities.

Diversity is not a concession. It is a strategic advantage.

The nation’s adversaries do not fear an American military because it is racially homogeneous. They fear it because it draws upon the talents of more than 340 million Americans whose diverse experiences, perspectives, and abilities make our armed forces unmatched anywhere in the world.

Every politically motivated dismissal of a distinguished officer sends a chilling message throughout the ranks: excellence alone may no longer be enough if you belong to the wrong demographic group.

That weakens morale. It weakens recruitment. It weakens retention.

And ultimately, it weakens national security.

Pete Hegseth has every right to pursue military readiness. He has no right to redefine merit in ways that repeatedly cast suspicion upon the accomplishments of Black officers, women, and others who have devoted their lives to defending this nation.

America deserves better. The men and women who wear the uniform deserve better. The Constitution deserves better.

And unless Congress finds the courage to exercise meaningful oversight, history may well remember this period not as a restoration of military excellence, but as the moment political ideology attempted to resurrect, in modern form, the old poison of exclusion.

Jim Crow did not strengthen America. Jim Crow 2.0 will not strengthen America’s military. It will only diminish it

Wade Henderson
Strategic Advisor
Civil and Human Rights
wade@wadejhenderson.com

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New Judge Could Decide if Karmelo Anthony Gets a New Trial

By Emilie St. John (Contributor) Karmelo Anthony will return to court next month in his first step to overturn his murder conviction. Anthony was found guilty last month in the stabbing death of Austin Metcalf and sentenced to 35 years in prison. His new legal team has filed motions seeking the recusal of State District […]
The post New Judge Could Decide if Karmelo Anthony Gets a New Trial appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

Published

3 weeks ago

July 31, 2026

Oakland Post

By Emilie St. John
(Contributor)

Karmelo Anthony will return to court next month in his first step to overturn his murder conviction.

Anthony was found guilty last month in the stabbing death of Austin Metcalf and sentenced to 35 years in prison. His new legal team has filed motions seeking the recusal of State District Judge John Roach Jr. from overseeing the appeals process.

Two hearings have been scheduled on the motion for Aug. 9 and 10 in the Collin County Courthouse in McKinney, Texas, according to Fox4 News.

On July 14, Senior Judge Sid L. Harle of the 226th District Court was assigned to preside over the defense’s motion to recuse Collin County Judge John Roach. The assignment took effect immediately and authorized Harle to handle all matters related to the recusal request, the filing read.

The Collin County District Attorney’s Office continues to defend its handling of the case by issuing a statement to NBC 5 DFW.

“The defendant’s new lawyers have filed a motion containing several inaccurate characterizations of the trial proceedings. The entire prosecution team and I conducted this trial ethically and in full compliance with the Court’s rulings and any agreements with defense counsel. We look forward to addressing these claims thoroughly in a Court of law in the coming weeks. The jury heard extensive evidence over the course of the trial and returned a unanimous verdict. We remain confident in that verdict and the fairness of the proceedings.”

Anthony’s new legal team, made up of appellate, civil rights, and criminal defense attorneys, was retained following Anthony’s conviction.

“Our responsibility is to determine whether a legal error occurred and to ensure that every issue supported by the record is fully and vigorously presented on appeal,” the team said in a statement.

“We recognize the profound loss suffered by one young man’s family and the uncertainty facing another, and we extend our respect to everyone whose lives have been forever changed by these events,” the release reads.

Anthony was charged with the stabbing death of Austin Metcalf during a track meet in Frisco, Texas, April 2, 2025. Anthony has long maintained it was an act of self-defense.

The attorneys are representing Anthony pro bono. The nearly 200-page notice of appeal seeks a new trial because his Sixth Amendment right to a public trial was violated.

“The cumulative and practical effect of these provisions was to exclude members of the public from proceedings at every stage,” the filing reads.

The filing also focused on an alleged “handshake deal” that kept Anthony from taking the stand in his defense.

The defense filing said the agreement was that the jury would not hear that Metcalf and his twin brother had been accused of racism and bullying in the past. In exchange, they also would not see Anthony’s cellphone records or his school disciplinary record, according to court documents reported by the Dallas Morning News.

Anthony’s former defense attorney, Mike Howard, said the defense relied heavily on that deal. The team chose not to ask certain questions of witnesses or call on a separate expert witness based on that agreement. It also abandoned plans to introduce testimony and evidence about the allegations against Metcalf and his brother.

Appellate attorney Russell Wilson is now handling post-trial proceedings and Anthony’s appeal. He recently sat down for an interview, stating, “The court committed multiple errors during the June murder trial, preventing him from receiving a fair trial.”

“You know, we file motions that we expect to prevail on, but we understand that there’s two sides to every story. And at the end of the day, it’ll be a judge that has to make these decisions, but we feel confident in the positions that we’re taking,” Wilson said during an interview with WFAA. “There were substantial issues that we thought a reviewing court needed to look at. We thought these were constitutional irregularities, and we could have them addressed now. And so, we put them into a motion for a new trial.”

Bree West, a former Dallas County Assistant District Attorney, found it startling that so little time was given to Anthony’s team for such a serious “life or death” situation.

“I do think that it’s really challenging that potentially a court decided that you have 10 minutes to make that level of decision when it has the potential of being life-altering,” said West during an interview with Fox 4 News.

Judge Harle is no stranger to high-profile cases, having presided over the prosecution of a police officer charged in connection with the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde.

Anthony was convicted on June 9 of the murder of Austin Metcalf and sentenced to 35 years in prison.

The post New Judge Could Decide if Karmelo Anthony Gets a New Trial appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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COMMENTARY: LSMFT! Lord Save Me from Trump!

WESTSIDE GAZETTE — The author criticizes Donald Trump’s rhetoric, noting his use of terms like “Dumbocrats” and “Communist” to describe Democrats and democracy. The column asserts that Trump’s current strategy involves creating doubt about midterm elections due to a lack of Republican agenda.
The post COMMENTARY: LSMFT! Lord Save Me from Trump! appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

Published

3 weeks ago

July 31, 2026

Oakland Post

Frankly Speaking

Wow! Wow! Wow! The swamp drainers have truly stepped down to new levels of stupidity. You remember Weapons of Mass Destruction? We now have Weapons of Mass Distraction. Trump has introduced Dumbocrats and Communists into the conversation about Democrats and Democracy.

Trump lies so much, and his current strategy is to set up doubt about midterm elections because he and Republicans have no agenda!

He has no “Trump “ card, but Iran has a strait! He called it a skirmish; it’s now a War. He said five days; now it’s five months. He said few casualties; now it’s 18 deaths. He knew nothing about Project 2025 but hired its architects! Trump lies about the lies and often forgets these little inventions called cameras and phones

We see and hear and then see and hear the inconsistencies.

I didn’t like 45 and dislike 47 even more!

The post LSMFT! Lord Save Me From Trump! appeared first on The Westside Gazette.

Based on reporting by Westside Gazette.

The post COMMENTARY: LSMFT! Lord Save Me from Trump! appeared first on BlackPressUSA.