Rep. John Lewis addresses the GA & AL delegations

This morning, I had the pleasure of visiting with the AL delegation for their breakfast and celebration of the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, "I Have A Dream" speech. Rep. John Lewis, the only man who spoke with Dr. King on that day still living, addressed both the AL and, after a request was received and honored to open the dividing partitions between ballrooms, the GA delegation.

Rep. Lewis, currently of GA, but a native son of AL, was amazing, as always. He talked about how far this country has come since he and his comrades marched from Selma to Montgomery saying, "Those of you who tell me nothing has changed, I'd like to tell you to come walk in my shoes." Saying that he had, "cried so many tears in the last two days," he went on to say that he, "never thought (he'd) see last night," the night when Barack Obama, an African American, was nominated for the Presidency.

Rep. Lewis was eloquent speaking about the nomination of Barack Obama for the Presidency: "What you did last night, what we will do tonight, we will be making a down payment on the fulfillment of (MLK's) dream." That downpayment, however, must be followed up by action and Rep. Lewis envisions a march on the ballot box. "We must march in every town, every hamlet, every village, every neighborhood. We must march on the ballot box and make Barack Obama the next President of the United States, not just for ourselves, but for the next generations. If we fail to elect Barack Obama as President of the United States, history will not be kind to us."

-Posted by AshPolitics

Personal Attacks

If you took the Republican party at its word, you'd have to believe that they have no sense of reality. In politics, of course, it seems that folks rarely speak the truth. Spin rules and reality luks somewhere under the couch cushions with the pennies and popcorn kernels.

Today, the Obama campaign released a spot emphasizing that McCain is out of touch, but speaking nothing but the facts: he can't use a computer (completely relevant in the Internet age and world of cyber-terrorism), doesn't know much about the economy, and puts a heavier emphasis on corporate tax cuts than helping the middle class. I'm having a problem seeing how these attacks are "personal." Personal attacks are the ones like the despicable recent attack levied against Obama by the McCain camp; the attack which digustingly distorted his record on education reform to make it seem as though he wanted to teach Kindergarteners about sex instead of how to protect themselves against predators. That's personal.

Obama's response to McCain's nasty ad was also personal. In the response, the Obama camp questioned McCain's honor, saying, "Last week, John McCain told Time magazine he couldn’t define what honor was. Now we know why." While the Obama camp may have interpreted that truth (McCain actually told the interviewer to go read the five books he wrote to get his answer), it was essentially the truth. Stating it the way they did, though, does seem a bit personal. The Obama camp, however, had every right to be outraged.

According to the AP, "A spokesman for the Republican National Committee, Alex Conant, accused Obama of 'trying to destroy' McCain and running mate Sarah Palin with personal attacks." How this ad does anything to Sarah Palin is beyond me. And how speaking the truth about McCain is a personal attack stretches the definition. But this is politics, spin is spin. It's going to be a long 52 days.

Cross posted to AshPolitics

Republican demonstrators at Convention

Republican demonstrators outside the CO Convention Center on Wednesday. (posted by AshPolitics)

Southern Maryland Unite for Change Event

On June 28, 2008, the Barack Obama campaign organized over 4000 nationwide events to gather grassroots volunteers in an initial push toward the November election. With the primary election settled and the first Obama – Clinton joint appearance in Unity, NH, complete, it’s time to get the grassroots campaign back in swing and get the volunteers reenergized for what promises to be a contentious and exhausting five months. As Obama said when he addressed his campaign staff after the primary election, now that he has won the nod, we have no choice but to win the White House.

I was fortunate to attend Maryland’s largest Unite for Change event at the World of Wings (WOW) restaurant in Waldorf, MD. A crowd of 76 volunteers gathered at 5 pm to watch videos, listen to will.i.am, and share their personal stories of why they support Obama’s candidacy. Hosted by Charles County Commissioner Reuben Collins, the event was attended by several local Democratic party officials, members of the Charles County Black Caucus, representatives from the Maryland Democratic party, and a representative from Sen. Ben Cardin’s office. Most exciting, however, were the volunteers, especially those who had never before volunteered on a political campaign.

After the dignitaries were introduced and the videos were watched, each person present was given the opportunity to say why they were there and why they support Obama’s candidacy. The reasons were as varied and as inclusive as the members present. Representing black, brown, white, teenage, and senior citizen, volunteers stood at the microphone and described being proud to support a leader who can put America back at the international table with dignity. They described the thrill of supporting a man who, while being America’s first African American candidate, transcends race. These volunteers got over their fear of speaking to strangers to describe the excitement of volunteering for a candidate who understands the needs of the middle class, will get us out of Iraq, and will serve as the people’s President. As one volunteer put it, working and voting for Barack Obama will be delivering the country to the American Dream instead of the American Nightmare.

Being with this group of volunteers was humbling. Many of those present put issues of race right on the table, clearly drawing out the symbolism of Obama’s candidacy and the need for healing that his election will hopefully facilitate. These are the conversations that we need to continue to have if we are to realize some of the dreams that Obama put forth in his challenging speech on race in March. My friend Zennie says that racism is a mental illness. Maybe Obama can be our collective psychiatrist.

I hope that the Unite for Change events all over the country were as productive and powerful as I felt ours was. I know that our volunteers left “Fired Up! Ready to Go!” If you attended one, I hope you did, too. If you’re late to this party and would like to find out more, please visit the official Barack Obama campaign site to find out how you can get involved. Whatever you do, vote. If you need to register, visit Rock the Vote to find out how.

*Cross Posted to AshPolitics

Post DNC Convention Thoughts - AshPolitics

So I've had a few days to consider my overall impression of the Democratic National Convention. While it was certainly a fantastic experience (excellent networking, exceptional star gazing, fantastic speeches, interesting panels and round tables), I think, for me, it boils down to an almost catastrophic waste of resources.

Let me say at the outset that I recognize the need to rile up the base for the election season. I understand that without an energized, hardcore set of volunteers, the party would be sunk. I'm not sure, however, that the party needs to spend the millions of dollars it did to achieve that effect. I sat in the Pepsi Center on Wednesday night watching the multi video screens scrolling text and flashing stars wondering if we really needed all of that? The party spends four years raising money from major donors just so they can spend a chunk of that money to throw lavish parties for said donors at the Convention. It seems a little nuts.

Yes, it all looks great on TV and that certainly is another goal. Yes, more people watched Barack Obama's acceptance speech than the Olympics. What those people don't see is all the wasted money behind the scenes: the piles of speech copies left at the end of each night (even though they had also been emailed to all press members); the concerts and parties thrown for donors; the lavish (yeah, I'll admit it) party thrown for the media. Certainly, much of the money to fund this was donated by major corporations, but doesn't that introduce another issue with which we should be uncomfortable?

Hats off to the Dems for throwing the "greenest" Convention ever. Heck, the beer cups at the media party, which appeared to be generic plastic and were emblazoned with the Coors logo, were actually made of corn and compostable. But in light of the interview I had with the taxi driver from the Sudan, maybe all that money would be best spent somewhere else.

Welcome To Zennie62.com From Twitter!

Hello and welcome to Zennie62.com. If you're on this page, chances are you came here directly from Twitter. With that in mind, here's a brief introduction.

Zennie62.com is an, as of this writing, a seven year old blog which was known as Zennie's Zeitgeist until 2009, when the name and branding were changed to Zennie62.com. Why that name? Well, it's a part of my name, Zennie Abraham, and includes the year I was born, 1962. That places me smack in the middle of perhaps the greatest generational transformation in the history of the industrialized World, all fueled by computerization and digital media.

Zennie62.com is designed to capture the stories of the day - the Zeitgeist. Even though the blog's name has changed, the focus - politics, news, sports, and tech - has not.  We cover what's now, happening, political, techie, and hip.  We love American and World Culture, and sports.  We're smart, provocative, and edgy.

The Growth Of Zennie62 Content

As this has developed, Zennie62 added video and I became a YouTube Partner in 2007, the year before that I was using, and still use, Blip.tv, and now I'm on six different video channels.  Here's one of my most popular videos, Fight At Fillmore Street Festival:



But over the years, Zennie62.com has moved beyond the me to the we.  We have great blog posts from great bloggers like Davey D, Tom Hayes, and our Executive Editor Nikky Raney.    As Zennie's Zeitgeist, this blog was one of 128 credentialed for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, and the main provider of video for CNN's iReport initiative, as well as one of their on-site contacts.  Four bloggers, Tom Hayes, David Kaye, Ashley Long (who calls herself AshPolitics) and myself provided coverage.

The NFL Draft and The Oscars

In 2005, I started covering the NFL Draft and then incorporated that content into Zennie62.com starting in 2009.  Today, Bill Chackhes brings his 33 years of NFL Draft expertise to Zennie62.  Already with Zennie62Media's NFL Business Blog,  we're making an even higher stage for the NFL Draft legend, starting at The 2011 NFL Combine.

Over the years, Zennie62 has expanded from this space and to about 40 online platforms, including Twitter, but they all work their way back here.  And around all of this is Zennie62Media.com.

Zennie62Media.com, Inc is a new company that provides one legal home for all of our media content, and one place for sponsors and investors to realize a return on their investments.

Welcome.

The Constitution has finally prevailed

Yesterday, the Constitution won. In a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court said that prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay have the right to have their cases heard in US courts, granting them the writ of habeas corpus. Writing for the majority in Boumediene v. Bush, Justice Anthony Kennedy said, "Liberty and security can be reconciled; and in our system they are reconciled within the framework of the law. The Framers decided that habeas corpus, a right of first importance, must be a part of that framework, a part of that law."

President Bush was none too happy with the decision, saying, while on a trip in Italy, "First of all it's a Supreme Court decision. We will abide by the court's decision. It was a deeply divided court and I strongly agree with those who dissented. The dissent was based upon those serious concerns about U.S. national security. Congress and the administration worked very carefully on ... a piece of legislation that set the appropriate procedures in place as to how to deal with the detainees." He went on to say that his Administration would study the ruling, " ... with this in mind, to determine whether or not additional legislation might be appropriate so we can safely say to the American people: 'We're doing everything we can to protect you.'"

I am not surprised at all that Bush is pissed. It's hard to keep your citizens under the blanket of fear when the courts expose the "enemies," like Omad Khadr, to the light of day. But it's a huge victory for America when the Court allows the rest of world to see that our system of checks and balances can, even at the last stop, prevail. The Constitution was bruised and battered along its way through, being hit hard by both the executive and legislative branches. It then was dealt near death blows by the courts along its way to the highest court in the land. But the highest court saved it and proved that our system does, indeed, work. This was a victory not only for the Constitution, but for the framework of our government detailed therein.

Writing for the opposition and speaking from the bench about his opposition, Justice Antonin Scalia said that the decision "... will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed." I'm not sure how. These prisoners have been held at Gitmo for years. Were any of them truly guilty, their fellow combatants would not get the message from this ruling that they could get caught, extradited to the US, have a short, easy confinement, get a fair day in a lenient US court, be set free, and return to the battlefield. That's just not the way it works and not the way it will be seen in the world. The message it does send the world, however, is that we are finally taking our role as human rights leaders seriously.

To read the Opinion and the Dissent for yourself, go here: FindLaw.com

Cross posted from The Constitution has finally prevailed at AshPolitics on WordPress.

Thank you Rep. Steve Cohen

Yesterday, the House passed H.Res 194, an apology for slavery and Jim Crow, originally introduced by Tenessee Rep. Steve Cohen. The Resolution was cosponsored by 120 House members, including members from Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. The Resolution does exactly what it says: apologize to African Americans for the institution of slavery, the Jim Crow establishment, Congress' role in each, and the legacy of each. Please read the full text of the Resolution below. Click here to see who cosponsored the Resolution. And then click here to thank Rep. Steve Cohen for his efforts and, if one of the cosponsors happens to be your Rep., thank that person, too. An apology may not seem like a whole lot, but it is a critical first step. We must first officially recognize the wrong doing, harm, and lasting legacy before anything else can be done. Here is the text of the Resolution:

RESOLUTION

Apologizing for the enslavement and racial segregation of African-Americans.


Whereas millions of Africans and their descendants were enslaved in the United States and the 13 American colonies from 1619 through 1865;


Whereas slavery in America resembled no other form of involuntary servitude known in history, as Africans were captured and sold at auction like inanimate objects or animals;


Whereas Africans forced into slavery were brutalized, humiliated, dehumanized, and subjected to the indignity of being stripped of their names and heritage;


Whereas enslaved families were torn apart after having been sold separately from one another;


Whereas the system of slavery and the visceral racism against persons of African descent upon which it depended became entrenched in the Nation's social fabric;


Whereas slavery was not officially abolished until the passage of the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1865 after the end of the Civil War, which was fought over the slavery issue;


Whereas after emancipation from 246 years of slavery, African-Americans soon saw the fleeting political, social, and economic gains they made during Reconstruction eviscerated by virulent racism, lynchings, disenfranchisement, Black Codes, and racial segregation laws that imposed a rigid system of officially sanctioned racial segregation in virtually all areas of life;


Whereas the system of de jure racial segregation known as `Jim Crow,' which arose in certain parts of the Nation following the Civil War to create separate and unequal societies for whites and African-Americans, was a direct result of the racism against persons of African descent engendered by slavery;


Whereas the system of Jim Crow laws officially existed into the 1960's--a century after the official end of slavery in America--until Congress took action to end it, but the vestiges of Jim Crow continue to this day;


Whereas African-Americans continue to suffer from the consequences of slavery and Jim Crow--long after both systems were formally abolished--through enormous damage and loss, both tangible and intangible, including the loss of human dignity and liberty, the frustration of careers and professional lives, and the long-term loss of income and opportunity;


Whereas the story of the enslavement and de jure segregation of African-Americans and the dehumanizing atrocities committed against them should not be purged from or minimized in the telling of American history;


Whereas on July 8, 2003, during a trip to Goree Island, Senegal, a former slave port, President George W. Bush acknowledged slavery's continuing legacy in American life and the need to confront that legacy when he stated that slavery `was . . . one of the greatest crimes of history . . . The racial bigotry fed by slavery did not end with slavery or with segregation. And many of the issues that still trouble America have roots in the bitter experience of other times. But however long the journey, our destiny is set: liberty and justice for all.';


Whereas President Bill Clinton also acknowledged the deep-seated problems caused by the continuing legacy of racism against African-Americans that began with slavery when he initiated a national dialogue about race;




Whereas a genuine apology is an important and necessary first step in the process of racial reconciliation;


Whereas an apology for centuries of brutal dehumanization and injustices cannot erase the past, but confession of the wrongs committed can speed racial healing and reconciliation and help Americans confront the ghosts of their past;


Whereas the legislature of the Commonwealth of Virginia has recently taken the lead in adopting a resolution officially expressing appropriate remorse for slavery and other State legislatures are considering similar resolutions; and


Whereas it is important for this country, which legally recognized slavery through its Constitution and its laws, to make a formal apology for slavery and for its successor, Jim Crow, so that it can move forward and seek reconciliation, justice, and harmony for all of its citizens:


Now, therefore, be it


Resolved, That the House of Representatives--


(1) acknowledges the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery and Jim Crow;


(2) apologizes to African-Americans on behalf of the people of the United States, for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow; and


(3) expresses its commitment to rectify the lingering consequences of the misdeeds committed against African-Americans under slavery and Jim Crow and to stop the occurrence of human rights violations in the future.



Cross posted to AshPolitics.

Props to Nas

Props to Nas for a song on his new untitled album. The song, “Black President,” is another in a line of non-campaign related pro-Obama songs created by and for the youth movement. If DefJam or Nas or iTunes, even, loved us, just a little, we could put the song or an as-yet-to-be-created video here for you. But, alas, they do not and we cannot. So run over to iTunes and check it out for yourself. We'd love to know what you think.

*Cross posted to AshPolitics.