Greene County Democrat

Category: Community

  • Newswire: ‘Glimmer of Hope’ as UN Security Council approves Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution

    By Brett Williams, Common Dreams

    The ambassadors of the United Kingdom, United States, and Algeria raise their hands to vote in favor of a United Nations Security Council resolution for a cease-fire in Gaza in New York on June 10, 2024.


    In a move that boosts the three-phase plan announced by President Joe Biden late last month, the United Nations Security Council on Monday voted 14-0—with permanent member Russia abstaining—in favor of a U.S.-sponsored resolution for a cease-fire in Gaza.
    Russia chose not to exercise its power to veto the resolution, which urges Israel and Hamas to “fully implement its terms without delay and without condition.”
    Responding to the vote, Nihad Awad, national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement that “although the Biden administration should have allowed the U.N. Security Council to pass a permanent cease-fire resolution many months and many slaughtered Palestinians ago, we welcome today’s development as a positive and long overdue step toward ending the genocide.”
    “The Biden administration must now use American leverage to force [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu to agree to a permanent cease-fire so that the massacres of Palestinian civilians can end, all hostages and political prisoners can safely go free, international tribunals can begin holding those responsible for war crimes accountable, and the world can finally begin pursuing a credible end to the illegal occupation of Palestine that has fomented decades of injustice and oppression.”
    As U.N. News explained:
    Phase one includes an “immediate, full, and complete cease-fire with the release of hostages including women, the elderly and the wounded, the return of the remains of some hostages who have been killed, and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners.” 

It calls for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from “populated areas” of Gaza, the return of Palestinians to their homes and neighborhoods throughout the enclave, including in the north, as well as the safe and effective distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale. 

Phase two would see a permanent end to hostilities “in exchange for the release of all other hostages still in Gaza, and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.”

In phase three, “a major multi-year reconstruction plan for Gaza” would begin and the remains of any deceased hostages still in the strip would be returned to Israel.” 

The council also underlined the proposal’s provision that if negotiations take longer than six weeks for phase one, the cease-fire will continue as long as negotiations continue.
    “The only way to end this cycle of violence and build a durable peace is through a political settlement,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield—who vetoed several previous Security Council cease-fire resolutions— said following Monday’s vote.
    The Biden administration has provided Israel with billions of dollars in military aid, arms and ammunition sales, and diplomatic cover.
    In a statement, Hamas—which led the October 7 attack on Israel that left more than 1,100 people dead and over 240 others taken hostage—welcomed the resolution’s passage and affirmed its willingness “to enter into indirect negotiations on the implementation of these principles.”
    However, Reut Shapir Ben-Naftaly, Israel’s representative at the U.N., said her country’s objectives in the war have not changed and vowed to keep fighting “until all of the hostages are returned and Hamas’ military capabilities are dismantled.”
    “Israel will not engage in meaningless and endless negotiations which can be exploited by Hamas as a means to stall for time,” she added.
    According to Palestinian and international agencies, at least 37,124 Palestinians—mostly women and children—have been killed by Israeli forces during the 248-day Gaza onslaught, which is the subject of an International Criminal Court genocide case brought by South Africa and supported by more than 30 nations and regional blocs. Nearly 85,000 Palestinians have also been injured. At least 11,000 other Palestinians are missing and believed buried beneath the rubble of hundreds of thousands of bombed-out buildings.
    International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan is seeking arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and three Hamas leaders for alleged crimes including extermination.
    Algerian Ambassador Amar Bendjama  said  after Monday’s vote that “as a free and dignified people, the Palestinians will never accept living under occupation. They will never abdicate their fight for liberation.”
    “This text is not perfect, but it offers a glimmer of hope to the Palestinians as the alternative is continued killing and suffering,” he added. “We voted for this text to give diplomacy a chance. It is time to halt the killing.”
    The Security Council resolution’s passage follows last month’s vote by the U.N. General Assembly to recognize Palestinian statehood—a move supported by 143 members of the World Body but vehemently opposed by Israel and the U.S. Only nine nations voted against recognizing Palestine as an independent state.

  • Newswire: House Dem Leader Jeffries blasts Rep. Byron Donald on blasphemous Jim Crow comments

    Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) called Donald Trump “a two-bit racial arsonist” and said that the Republican presidential nominee has done nothing, but fan the flames of bigotry. (Freddie Allen/AMG/NNPA)

    By Hakeem Jeffries
    NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

    In what quickly turned into a polarizing week for Black Americans, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) delivered a scathing denunciation of Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) on the House floor, while rapper and entrepreneur 50 Cent visited Capitol Hill presumably to advocate for Black entrepreneurs. Both events highlighted the stark divisions within the Black community regarding political allegiances and historical perspectives.
    Donalds, who earlier co-hosted a Donald Trump campaign event for Black voters in Philadelphia, incredulously asserted, “You see, during Jim Crow, the Black family was together. During Jim Crow, more Black people were not just conservative—Black people have always been conservative-minded—but more Black people voted conservatively.”
    Jeffries responded forcefully, condemning Donalds’ remarks as inaccurate and deeply offensive. “Mr. Speaker, it has come to my attention that a so-called leader has made the factually inaccurate statement that Black folks were better off during Jim Crow,” he stated. “That’s an outlandish, outrageous, and out-of-pocket observation.”
    Highlighting the brutal realities of the Jim Crow era, Jeffries continued, “We would not be better off when a young boy named Emmett Till could be brutally murdered without consequence because of Jim Crow. We were not better off when Black women could be sexually assaulted without consequence because of Jim Crow. We would not be better off when people could be systematically lynched without consequence because of Jim Crow. We were not better off when children could be denied a high-quality education without consequence because of Jim Crow. We would not be better off when people could be denied the right to vote without consequence because of Jim Crow. How dare you make such an ignorant observation?”
    The Congressional Black Caucus echoed Jeffries’ condemnation in a statement: “This is a pattern of embracing racist ideologies that we see time and again within the MAGA Republican Party. Rep. Donalds is playing his role as the mouthpiece who will say the quiet parts out loud that many will not say themselves. His comments were shameful and beneath the dignity of a member of the House of Representatives. He should immediately offer an apology to Black Americans for misrepresenting one of the darkest chapters in our history for his own political gain.”
    On the same day, 50 Cent, meeting with lawmakers in a visit hyped as an attempt to advocate for Black entrepreneurs and Black representation in the liquor industry, commented on the political climate. Speaking to CBS News congressional correspondent Nikole Killion, 50 Cent gave a nod to an alarming trend among Black men identifying with the twice-impeached Trump, who is a convicted felon and still under indictment. When asked about his stance in the upcoming presidential election, the rapper, who supported Trump in 2020, stated he hadn’t decided yet but highlighted Trump’s appeal among Black male voters. “I see them identifying with Trump,” he explained, “because they got RICO charges.”
    Trump has more than 50 felony charges pending in three jurisdictions after a Manhattan jury convicted him of 34 felonies related to hush money payments, he made to an adult film actress to cover up their extramarital affair. A New York jury also twice found him guilty of sexually assaulting a woman, while a judge declared the former president committed massive business fraud and ordered Trump to pay nearly $500 million in fines and restitution.
    But the week underscored a significant divide within the Black community, juxtaposing Jeffries’ and the Congressional Black Caucus’s fierce defense of historical accuracy and social justice against Donalds’ and 50 Cent’s perspectives.
    Many noted that Jim Crow laws, enforced through local and federal legislation, relegated Black Americans to second-class citizenship, enforcing racial segregation and instilling systemic violence and terror. That era included the wrongful execution of 14-year-old George Stinney, Jr., convicted by an all-white jury in 1944 after just 10 minutes of deliberation. Stinney’s case epitomized the racial injustice of Jim Crow.
    Jeffries further criticized the romanticization of Black family history during that oppressive period, which included the Scottsboro Boys wrongly accused of raping a white woman in 1931, 14-year-old Emmett Till lynched in 1955 after being falsely accused of whistling at a white girl, and four Black girls murdered in a church bombing in Alabama in 1963? Not gone unnoticed, too, is that Donalds is married to a white woman, something that would have led to his lynching during Jim Crow.
    “You better check yourself before you wreck yourself,” Jeffries assailed. “I yield back.

  • Newswire : Black troops fought on D-Day 

    Edward Carter was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in January 1997 for his heroic actions while serving in World War II. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. He is one of seven Black men awarded the Medal of Honor long after WWII ended due to racial discrimination

    Seven Black men were awarded the Medal of Honor
    in WWII long after the conflict was over

    By BlackmansStreetToday

    The Allies recently celebrated the 80th anniversary of D-Day, which was the beginning of the invasion of France to overthrow the Nazi government in Germany. 

    The movies recount the terrorizing experiences of men cut down by gunfire while running to the beach, while also depicting the jubilation of those who survived and were not harmed physically. The big-budget films include
    “The Longest Day,” “Saving Private Ryan,” and “Big Red One.” 

    But those films are short on the truth and long on lies.The movies ignored the role Black soldiers played in the overthrow Nazi Germany.

    Roughly 2,000 African American troops are believed to have hit the shores of Normandy in various capacities on June 6, 1944. 

    Serving in a U.S. military still segregated by race, they encountered discrimination both in the service and when they came home.

    The troops included the 320th Balloon Battalion, the 582nd Engineer Dump Truck Company, the 385th Quartermaster Truck Company, and the 490th Port Battalion with its 226th, 227th, 228th, and 229th Port Companies.”

    Seven Blacks won the Medal of Honor racial prejudice prevented them from receiving their medals long after WWII had ended.

    By 1945, 432 American service members had received the Medal of Honor for their gallantry in the face of enemy fire during World War II. 

    Not a single Black man among them was recognized.

    It took almost 50 years for the Army to recognize some of the incredible heroics of Black American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines who served during the war.

    More than a million Black men wore the uniforms of the United States in World War II, and many of them saw combat.

    In 1993, President Bill Clinton initiated the Army’s review of its World War II records to determine why no Black men received the Medal of Honor. 

    It discovered that a culture of discrimination in the awarding of medals prevented the Army from awarding the medal to a handful of deserving Black heroes. Only one of these vets was alive when the Medals of Honor were officially presented in 1997.

  • Newswire : Supreme Court says ‘no’ to Payday Lenders; ‘yes” to Consumer Protection

    By Charlene Crowell

    
(TriceEdneyWire.com) – A recent 7-2 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court gave consumers a long-sought victory that ended more than a decade of challenges over the constitutionality of the agency created to be the nation’s financial cop on the beat.
     
    The May 16 decision in the case  formally known as Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Community Financial Services Association of America LTD, ET AL refuted arguments by the billion-dollar payday lending industry that CFPB was unconstitutional because its funding is derived directly from the Federal Reserve instead of Congress’ annual appropriations.
     
    The majority opinion, written by Justice Clarence Thomas, concluded, “The statute that authorizes the Bureau to draw money from the combined earnings of the Federal Reserve System to carry out its duties satisfies the Appropriations Clause.”
     
    Two additional concurring opinions underscored this conclusion. Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court and its newest member, addressed why legislators created the CFPB.
     
     “As the Court explains, in response to the devastation wrought by the 2008 financial crisis, Congress passed and the President signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act… Drawing on its extensive experience in financial regulation, Congress designed the funding scheme to protect the Bureau from the risk that powerful regulated entities might capture the annual appropriations process,” wrote Justice Jackson.
     
    During the Financial Crisis, millions of Black and Latino borrowers suffered home foreclosures because they were targeted with high-cost, unsustainable mortgage loans, even though many were eligible for other lower-cost loans. But those were not the only predatory financial product foisted upon people of color.
     
    Payday loans that lure financially-strapped consumers with promises of easy cash can still be found in profusion in most urban areas across the country. The payday industry’s billion-dollar profits typically are generated on loans of $350 or less. With high fees that create deepening cycles of re-borrowing, these loans disproportionately affect Black and Latino borrowers who earn $40,000 or less per year, and do not have a college degree. Research by the CFPB   found that payday lenders collect 75 percent of their fees from borrowers who take out more than 10 loans per year.
     
    In the absence of federal regulation, 20 states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws to cap payday lending interest rates at around 36 percent annual percentage rate (APR), or required other measures to eliminate long-term debt traps for consumers. Further, since 2005, no state has authorized the expansion of traditional storefront payday lending.
     
    But for the remaining states without reasonable rate caps, triple-digit interest on payday loans continues. Many of these states also have large numbers of minority residents. For example, Texas allows payday APRs as high as 662 percent, similar to Missouri (652 percent), Mississippi (572 percent), Wisconsin (537 percent), and Nevada (548 percent).
     
    Against this backdrop, it remains important for CFPB’s work in support of financial fairness to continue. Consumer advocates’ reactions to this key decision were understandably jubilant.
     
    Massachusetts U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, broadly considered the chief strategist for CFPB’s creation during the Obama Administration, said the court decision is a noteworthy development:
     
    “For the last decade, the consumer agency has fought the big banks and predatory lenders that try to cheat hardworking people. As of this week, the CFPB has returned more than $20 billion in ill-gotten funds to American families,” said Warren. “This isn’t the last attack on the CFPB we’ll see from Wall Street, the banks, and their Republican allies.…The CFPB will keep on doing its work to slash junk fees, fight giant banks when they cheat people, and level the playing field for everyone in this country.”    
     
    Rev. Dr. Cassandra Gould, Senior Strategist at Faith in Action and Founding member of Faith for Just Lending, said the ruling was as much a moral victory as it was a victory for public policy.
     
    “This Supreme Court decision, which aligns with the moral compass of Proverbs 22:22, has sided with the least of these by protecting the CFPB. This decision is a testament to our shared commitment to not rob the poor because they are poor and to not crush those in need in court,” said the Rev. Dr. Gould.  
     
    And for the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), Nadine Chabrier, Senior Policy and Litigation Counsel at CRL, said this consumer victory should be used as a springboard for even more consumer protection efforts.
     
    “Even with this decision, we must keep fighting to defend our consumer watchdog agency in the courts and in Congress as some industry actors sue and lobby to preserve illegal financial discrimination, billions in unlawful junk fees, and other exploitative behavior,” said Chabrier. “The nonstop crusade to undermine the CFPB goes against the wishes of the American people, who overwhelmingly support the CFPB’s work. The anti-CFPB campaign is an attempt to throw sand in the gears of financial justice and it must be rejected.”
    ###
    Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at Charlene.crowell@responsiblelending.org. 

  • Spiver W. Gordon Day

  • BBCF Awards Community and Arts Grants to Greene County Organizations: $52,620 in Grants Supports Twelve Different Greene County Organizations

     

    SELMA, AL – JUNE 3, 2024: The Black Belt Community Foundation (BBCF) is celebrating the impact of its 2024 combined Community Grants and Arts Grants cycle in Greene County and across all 12 counties it serves in the Alabama Black Belt region. Community-based organizations from Greene, Bullock, Choctaw, Dallas, Hale, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Perry, Pickens, Sumter, and Wilcox Counties applied for grants earlier this year. A total of $514,433 has been awarded through one-year long project grants to 130 different community organizations that are significantly impacting their communities in transformative ways that contribute to the strength, innovation and success of Black Belt citizens and said communities. Twelve organizations in Greene County were awarded a total of $52,620, in grants ranging from $2,500 to $10,000 in an award ceremony held in Selma on June 1. These projects and organizations are as follows:

    • Girl Scout Troop 408 – Arts Grantee
    • Society of Folk Arts and Culture – Arts Grantee
    • Triple J Farm & Petting Zoo – Arts Grantee
    • Boss Ties LLC – Community Grantee
    • Boy Scout Troop 945 – Community Grantee
    • Eutaw Elderly Village Inc – Community Grantee
    • Eutaw Housing Authority Enrichment Program – Community Grantee
    • GCF & APA Imagine Me – Community Grantee
    • Girl Scout Troop 408 – Community Grantee
    • Greene County Human Rights Commission – Community Grantee
    • Mount Pleasant Home Protection Society – Community Grantee
    • Society of Folk Arts and Culture – Community Grantee

    2024 represented a ground-breaking first for BBCF as it continued its model of giving based on the practice known as “Trust-Based Philanthropy” and combined, for the first time ever in its 20-year history, both the Community Grants and Arts Grants cycles. By utilizing BBCF Local Grant Committees in each county, decisions were made by those closest to the issues and granting needs voiced by their community. Local Grant Committees scored applications from their county based on these needs, proposed delivery of services, potential of project to change the community, how the project will be evaluated, and the results of those evaluations disseminated, and finally, the requested budget for the project.

    “Celebrating our 20th year, the Black Belt Community Foundation is proud to award over half a million dollars in grants to 130 different community and arts organizations across the 12 counties we serve. This record-breaking milestone reflects our enduring commitment to empowering local initiatives, fostering growth and impacting the entire Black Belt region.” – Felecia Lucky, President of Black Belt Community Foundation

    A complete list of all funded grantees for the 2024 combined BBCF Community Grants Cycle and Arts Grants Cycle is included with this release within our special edition of the Black Belt Bulletin which focuses on this year’s Community and Arts Grants cycles. (BBCF publishes its Bulletin bi-monthly and is available online.

    Follow BBCF and community developments and more online at http://www.blackbeltfound.org and via our social media outlets at BBCF Facebook, Instagram, Youtube Channel, or Twitter.



  • Eutaw City Council receives audit,engineering, and financial reports

    Angela Henline, PE addresses Eutaw,City Council

    The Eutaw City Council met on May 28, 2024, for its regular fourth Tuesday meeting. Mayor Johnson and all the council members, except for Valerie Watkins, were present.

    Patricia Stough, CPA with Harbin and Stough, presented the audit report for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2023. The report was presented with an unqualified opinion letter saying that the audit, “presents fairly, in all material respects, the respective financial position of the governmental activities, the business type activities, each major fund, and the aggregate remaining information for the city as of September 30, 2023.”

    Stough summarized the report and referred to pages 12 and 14, which was the Statement of Net Position on September 30, 2023, government-wide for the City of Eutaw. This report shows Total Assets of $12,840,650; with Liabilities of $3,245,940; and the Net position of $9,532,347. The report shows the annual revenues and expenses for specific governmental funds and activities. The Council accepted the audit as submitted. The audit report will be helpful to the city in pursuing grant funds for specific needs.

    Angela Henline, Engineer from Cassady Company, who is working on improvements to the City of Eutaw water and wastewater systems, gave a progress report to the Council on the status of current projects. The Backflow Meters Project for residences is complete. The Boligee Tank Rehabilitation Project is 95% waiting on a control valve. The Backflow Prevention, Monitoring and Flushing Project is 50% complete, waiting for materials to be delivered.

    The Stand-by Emergency Sewer Pump Project, for a trailer mounted sewage pump,is complete. Critical Pump Station Improvements Project is awaiting pumps and other materials to be installed. The Upgrade Low Road Force Main Project is 405 complete. The Lagoon Improvement Project design is 90% complete to be used seeking construction funds next year. The Boligee Manhole Rehabilitation plans and specs have been approved, waiting on funding.

    Henline proposed a $101,669 project to ADEM for an inventory of lead in the service lines of projects. The inventory is required to be completed by October 16, 2024, to be in compliance with Federal guidelines. The Council approved Resolution No. 2024-05#8, for a forgivable loan from ADEM, to finance this project. Henline said a local Greene County company should be eligible to do this inventory work, since it does not require construction licenses and other requirements. Companies interested in doing the work should contact her office in Northport, Alabama (phone 205/330-0098) to request an RFP packet. The deadline for proposals is June 28, 2024.

    At the recommendation of Councilman Jonathon Woodruff, the Council approved an amended policy for the use of city vehicles that would end the policy of allowing police officers to drive cars home even if they live outside the city limits. Woodruff argued that since the police were receiving higher salaries, they no longer needed the benefit of driving cars home. Mayor Johnson objected and said allowing police officers to drive city vehicles home would allow them to respond to emergencies in a more timely manner. The Council voted 4 to 0, over the mayor’s objections, to approve the amended policy.

    The Council approved a recommendation from Ralph Liverman, Financial Adviser that they seek $130,000 in matching funds from Sheriff Benison for the Lower Gainesville Road and Streetscape Projects. The Sheriff is no longer giving municipalities a set amount of bingo funds each month, but he is willing to consider specific requests for bingo fund allocations.

    The Council received a series of reports from Ralph Liverman, Financial Adviser, concerning the City’s finances. Liverman reported that at current rates of revenues and expenses, the City would end this fiscal year on September 30, 2024, in a deficit position unless the city watched finances closely. He recommended that the city increase water and sewer rates as these activities are not generating enough funds to cover expenses. He recommended closing the Robert H. Young Community Center because of high utility bills.

    Councilman Woodruff asked what the City of Eutaw charges to dig graves outside the city, since he said he saw city staff and equipment digging a grave at a church in Clinton. The Mayor said there was a policy on this that she would have to research. She also said that she was not aware the specific instance that Councilman Woodruff was raising.

    In other actions, the Eutaw City Council:

    • Approved travel and expenses for City Council members and staff to attend various trainings in the coming months.
    • Approved placement of an antenna for the Greene County Fire Association on the Boligee Water Tank.
    • Approved 2023 Municipal Water Pollution Prevention report from consultants, Living Waters.
    • Tabled a request to pay light and gas bills for the Goodson Storm Shelter, which is in the Eutaw fire district, pending a discussion with the City Attorney.
    • Took no action on a request to acquire a credit card account with Citizens Trust Bank.
    • Approved use of the Robert H. Young Community Center for the Greene County Children’s Policy Council and the University of Alabama Center for Business Research. Denied approval to Order of Eastern Stars #699 and Eutaw High Class of 1979, because their events did serve a public purpose.
    • Discussed the arrangements with the Sixth Day Saddle Club on their use of the City’s Lock 7 Park. Councilwoman Hunter said that members of the Saddle Club were blocking other city residents from using the park. The Mayor agreed to gather more information to decide on control of the park and locking and unlocking of the gates to the park.
    • Approved payment of monthly bills.

  • Local Delta Chapter, with community partners, holds Annual Impact/Fun Day

    Shown L to R with DST International Awareness and Involvement Banner:  Nancy Cole, Chair of Political Awareness/Social  Committee; Phillis Belcher, IAI Committee Chair; Dr. Florence Williams, DST Chapter President; Rebecca Coleman DST Chapter Vice-President; and Carolyn Young, IAI Committee member.

    The Greene County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, in partnership with Rural Alabama Preventive Center, National Association for the Prevention of Starvation, and New Generation Outreach Center, sponsored Impact/Fun Day on May 25, 2024, from 10:00a.m.-2:00 p.m. at New Generation Outreach Center in Eutaw, Alabama.

    Ms. Jacqueline Allen presided, Mrs. Nancy Cole gave the Invocation, and Greetings were presented by Dr. Florence Williams, President Greene County Alumnae Chapter Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority, Incorporated, Mrs. Loretta Wilson, Director of Rural Alabama Preventive Center, and Rev. Joe Webb Pastor of New Generation Church. Alabama State Representative Curtis Travis, of District 72, gave updates on current legislative issues and encouraged the audience to get out to vote and get others to vote as well.

    Various agencies, vendors, and presenters were in attendance, including Dr. Tiffany Mayo with UAB Department of Dermatology; Wings Across Alabama Mental Health; CJ Resources; Comprehensive Care Behavioral Health; Hear-Hear Alabama; UAB Epiphany, Community Health Education and Resource Center; and Healthy Haven-Lead-Free Home.

    Door prizes, gifts cards, children’s school supplies and complimentary food were available for all attendees. The day ended with fun activities for the children. Thanks to all who made the community engagement Impact/ Fun Day a success.

    Dr. Florence Williams, Chapter President, Mrs. Nancy Cole and Ms. Jacqueline Allen Co-Chairs, Chair of Political Awareness/Social Action Committee.

     

  • Newswire : Mexican voters elect a woman president

    Claudia Sheinbaum,

    By BlackmansStreetToday

    When she takes office in October, Claudia Sheinbaum will become the first woman president of Mexico.

    The climate scientist and former Mexico City mayor, who is Jewish, said Sunday night that her two competitors had called her and congratulated her. 

    “I will become the first woman president of Mexico,” Sheinbaum said with a smile, speaking at a downtown hotel shortly after electoral authorities announced that she held an irreversible lead. She declared, “I didn’t make it alone.”

    Sheinbaum won 60.7 percent of the vote, the National Electoral Institute’s president said. 

    Claudia Sheinbaum is a member of the leftist Morena party, and Xochitl Gálvez, her closest rival, is also a woman. She is a member of the conservative PAN party, which represents a coalition of opposition parties.

    Sunday’s voter poll revealed the largest election turnout in the country’s history. More than 98 million voters are registered to cast a ballot in Mexico, and 1.4 million Mexicans are eligible to vote abroad. More than 20,000 positions were set to be filled, with an estimated 70,000 candidates vying to become senators, mayors, and governors.
     

  • Newswire : The African National Congress will be forced to form a coalition government in South Africa

    Paul Botes/AFP/Getty Imagesters queue outside a polling station in Juju Valley, Polokwane, on May 29, 2024, during South Africa’s general election. 


    Voters queue outside a polling station in Juju Valley, Polokwane, on May 29, 2024, during South Africa’s general election. 

    The African National Congress, which has ruled South Africa since the end of apartheid, making Nelson Mandela its first president and post-apartheid leader, must now form a coalition with another party or parties to govern the country.

    “We can talk to everybody and anybody,” Gwede Mantashe, the ANC chair and current mines and energy minister, told reporters in comments carried by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), dodging a question about who the party was discussing a possible coalition deal with.

    Despite the ANC’s result, President Cyril Ramaphosa could still keep his job, as the former liberation movement was on course to get about twice as many votes as the next party. 

    Vote tallying from Wednesday’s election was entering its final stages on Saturday, with results from 99.53% of polling stations giving the ANC 40.21%. This is a dramatic drop from the 57.5% the ANC received in the last election on May 7, 2014, which was the fifth election under universal suffrage since the end of apartheid.

    The official opposition party, the centrist Democratic Alliance (DA), had about 22% of the vote.

    Behind them were two ANC splinter parties: the newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK), led by Jacob Zuma, who served as South Africa’s president from 2009 to 2018, captured nearly 15% of the vote, and the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) had nearly 10%, data from the country’s electoral commission showed.


    South Africans angry at joblessness, inequality, power shortages, and the lack of clean drinking water have slashed their support for the ANC.