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Black Unemployment Rate Drops Slightly in November by Frederick H. Lowe

Dec. 9, 2013

Black Unemployment Rate Drops Slightly in November
Second consecutive month that job growth exceeded 200,000
By Frederick H. Lowe

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Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from TheNorthStarNews.com

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for African-Americans dropped in November as the nation's nonfarm payroll expanded by 203,000 jobs, which was stronger than what many analysts had expected.

The jobless rate for blacks, however, was still much higher compared to whites, to Hispanics and to Asians, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this morning.

The unemployment rate for Blacks was 12.5 percent in November, compared to 13.1 percent in October. The November rate compares to 6.2 percent for Whites and 8.7 percent for Hispanics. The unemployment rate for Asians was 5.3 percent, but it was not seasonally adjusted.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the jobless rate in November for black men 20 years old and older was 12.5 percent, down from 13 percent in October. In comparison, white men in the same age group reported an unemployment rate of 6 percent, down from 6.2 percent in October.

The jobless rate in November for Black women 20 years old and older was 11.1 percent, compared to 11.5 percent in October, BLS reported.

White women 20 years old and older reported the nation's lowest jobless rate on a seasonally adjusted basis. Last month, their unemployment rate was 5.3 percent, down from 5.5 percent in October.

The nation's unemployment rate declined to 7 percent from 7.3 percent, BLS reported.

The Washington, D.C.-based Center for Economic and Policy Research reported that the number of jobs created in November was the second-consecutive month that the economy added more than 200,0000 jobs.  In October, the nonfarm payroll expanded by a revised 200,000 jobs.

“It was impressive that the jobs gains were broadly spread across industries,” the Center for Economic and Policy Research reported. “Manufacturing added 27,000 jobs after adding 16,000 in October. This is the largest two-month gain since February and March of 2012.”

BLS also reported job gains in warehousing, health care, professional and business services, retail, construction, leisure and hospitality. The Bureau of Labor Statistics noted, however, that 7.7 million workers were employed part-time and that there 762,000 discouraged workers in November.  These are workers who have stopped looking.

Black GOP Spokesman Assails Obama Instead of Explaining GOP Outreach Stumbles by Zenitha Prince

Dec. 8, 2013

Black GOP Spokesman Assails Obama Instead of Explaining GOP Outreach Stumbles

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Orlando Watson, GOP communications director, for Black media

By Zenitha Prince 
Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Afro American Newspaper

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - Called upon to defend the Republican National Committee’s faux pas in describing racism as being dead, Orlando Watson, the RNC’s newly appointed Black communications director for Black media, instead launched into an attack against President Obama.

Long criticized for being more of an exclusive club rather than a big tent when it comes to African-Americans and other minorities, the GOP conducted an autopsy to figure out why they couldn’t connect with voters in the 2012 elections, and, under Chairman Reince Priebus, has begun making outreach to the communities they previously marginalized.

But the Dec. 1 posting on the RNC’s Twitter account was labeled “tone deaf” by an MSNBC show host and has many observers questioning whether the party can connect with minorities after all.

“Today we remember Rosa Parks’ bold stand and her role in ending racism,” the tweet read, referring to the 58th anniversary of the seamstress’ arrest for defying a Montgomery, Ala. bus segregation law that sparked the modern-day Civil Rights Movement with the 13-day Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955.

The group followed up the message with a correction: “Previous tweet should have read ‘Today we remember Rosa Parks' bold stand and her role in fighting to end racism.’” But, the damage was already done.

“It speaks to the lack of connection and the fact that internally there is no objective oversight; there’s no one looking at that with a Black voice, if you will, who can say…this is historically incorrect and factually wrong, but more importantly, it’s dumb. It’s not going to resonate with the audience you’re trying to reach,” said former RNC Chairman Michael Steele, who is African-American, on MSNBC’s “Hardball.”

But Watson, speaking with MSNBC host Thomas Roberts on Dec. 4, dismissed the inaccurate tweet as “old news.”

Further pushed about Republican-led efforts to disenfranchise minority voters, Watson said, “That’s simply not true…. We’ve been engaging Black voters. We’ve been going into the community, showing up; meeting people in the places where they meet…work…[and] worship.”

For example, he said, RNC leaders have been going places where they may not have gone before. Last month, Chairman Reince Prieubus was in Detroit meeting with Black business and community leaders and also visited New Orleans, where he met with Black parents and students who are recipients of a Louisiana scholarship program that is geared toward low-income families.

The MSNBC host, however, continued to challenge Watson about the RNC’s commitment to African Americans, this time, in light of Republicans’ persistent attacks against the Affordable Care Act. Thomas cited a New York Times report showing that almost 60 percent of African Americans live in states led by Republican governors, almost all of whom refuse to expand Medicaid coverage under the ACA.

Asked if that position was “defensible,” Watson responded, “What I don’t find defensible is after five years of living under President Obama he has little to show for what he’s done for the Black community.

“And if you want to focus on his health care law,” he continued, “his health care law has cost jobs, particularly jobs in the Black community. And he’s done little to speed up the job prospects of millions in Black America and millions of Americans across the country. So while we’re focused on trying to create jobs—private sector jobs, good-paying jobs, career-making jobs—I would ask, 'What exactly has the president done for the Black community?”

Watson concluded, “The effects of President Obama’s policies haven’t matched his promises.”

Statement of President Barack Obama Upon the Death of President Nelson Mandela

Complete Statement of President Barack Obama Upon the Death of President Nelson Mandela

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At his trial in 1964, Nelson Mandela closed his statement from the dock saying, “I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.  I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.  It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve.  But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

And Nelson Mandela lived for that ideal, and he made it real.  He achieved more than could be expected of any man.  Today, he has gone home.  And we have lost one of the most influential, courageous, and profoundly good human beings that any of us will share time with on this Earth.  He no longer belongs to us -- he belongs to the ages.

Through his fierce dignity and unbending will to sacrifice his own freedom for the freedom of others, Madiba transformed South Africa -- and moved all of us.  His journey from a prisoner to a President embodied the promise that human beings -- and countries -- can change for the better.  His commitment to transfer power and reconcile with those who jailed him set an example that all humanity should aspire to, whether in the lives of nations or our own personal lives.  And the fact that he did it all with grace and good humor, and an ability to acknowledge his own imperfections, only makes the man that much more remarkable.  As he once said, “I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.”

I am one of the countless millions who drew inspiration from Nelson Mandela's life.  My very first political action, the first thing I ever did that involved an issue or a policy or politics, was a protest against apartheid.  I studied his words and his writings.  The day that he was released from prison gave me a sense of what human beings can do when they’re guided by their hopes and not by their fears.  And like so many around the globe, I cannot fully imagine my own life without the example that Nelson Mandela set, and so long as I live I will do what I can to learn from him.

To Graça Machel and his family, Michelle and I extend our deepest sympathy and gratitude for sharing this extraordinary man with us.  His life’s work meant long days away from those who loved him the most.  And I only hope that the time spent with him these last few weeks brought peace and comfort to his family.

To the people of South Africa, we draw strength from the example of renewal, and reconciliation, and resilience that you made real.  A free South Africa at peace with itself -- that’s an example to the world, and that’s Madiba’s legacy to the nation he loved.

We will not likely see the likes of Nelson Mandela again.  So it falls to us as best we can to forward the example that he set:  to make decisions guided not by hate, but by love; to never discount the difference that one person can make; to strive for a future that is worthy of his sacrifice.

For now, let us pause and give thanks for the fact that Nelson Mandela lived -- a man who took history in his hands, and bent the arc of the moral universe toward justice.  May God Bless his memory and keep him in peace.

NEWS ANALYSIS: After Mandela: World Fight Against White Supremacy Continues By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon, III

After Mandela: World Fight Against White Supremacy Continues
By Dr. Wilmer J. Leon, III

NEWS ANALYSIS

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - Former South African President Mandela has passed.  The world has lost another point on its compass of morality.

The dominant narrative is of a docile and passive man.  A man who, according to President Obama’s remarks, “we draw strength from the example of renewal and reconciliation and resilience that you (Mandela) made real.” What is missing from this narrative is the reality of the warrior, the revolutionary.

The African National Congress (ANC) took up arms against the South African Government in 1961.  According to the ANC,  “The massacre of peaceful protestors and the subsequent banning of the ANC made it clear that peaceful protest alone would not force the regime to change.  The ANC went underground and continued to organize secretly.  Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) was formed to “hit back by all means within our power in defence of our people, our future and our freedom. In 18 months MK carried out 200 acts of sabotage.”

Nelson Mandela was involved in the armed struggle to free his people, his country from the grip of White supremacist rule.  That is why he faced the death by hanging and was sentenced to life in prison.

It’s imperative that as we honor Madiba we don’t lose sight of the fact that his struggle, the ANC’s struggle, the struggle for liberty and human rights in South Africa and for people of color all over the world has and continues to take place within the larger context of the global system of White supremacy.

That’s why for example when you read President Obama’s Nobel Prize acceptance speech, he said that he was mindful of what Martin Luther King said in this same ceremony years ago - "Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem: it merely creates new and more complicated ones…I know there is nothing weak -nothing passive - nothing naïve - in the creed and lives of Gandhi and King. But as a head of state sworn to protect and defend my nation, I cannot be guided by their examples alone.”  He was speaking as the President of the most powerful military imperial hegemon in the world. The not so subtle undertone of that passage is that even as the first African-American president he was swearing to use all of the military force he commands in order to defend and protect “US interests” any place he deems necessary.

Notice also, that during that speech, Mr. Mandela’s name was only mentioned once, almost in passing. “Compared to some of the giants of history who have received this prize - Schweitzer and King; Marshall and Mandela - my accomplishments are slight.”  Why?  Because Nelson Mandela was a true revolutionary, a freedom fighter and president Obama could never align himself with that part of Mr. Mandela’s reality.

It’s a great thing that Nelson Mandela became the first Black African democratically elected president of South Africa.  This must also be put into context. He was not a perfect president. Many will argue that he cut a bad deal.  That is not for me to judge.

Before he was elected president there were approximately 4 million socially, economically, and politically disenfranchised Black South Africans.  During his presidency there were millions of socially, economically, and politically disenfranchised Black South Africans, as there are still today. I do recognize that this is partially due to the fact that even as the democratically elected president of South Africa he did not control the natural resources of his country; he did not control the military, and did not control the factors that impacted its economy.  That’s the reality of being the first Black president within the greater context of a white supremacist power structure.

As President Obama expresses Americas condolences to the Mandela family and the people of South Africa, he should also apologize to them for the CIA’s involvement in the initial arrest of Mr. Mandela.  He should apologize to them for President Reagan’s policy of Constructive Engagement. Reagan’s vetoing legislation and blocking attempts by the United Nations to impose sanctions and to isolate South Africa.

Madiba was a principled warrior.  During the June 21, 1990 Town Hall Meeting in Harlem – Ken Adelman from the Institute of Contemporary Studies asked Mr. Mandela about his relationships with Yasser Arafat, Col. Gaddafi, and Fidel Castro and tried to get him to renounce his association with them. Mr. Mandela responded, “One of the mistakes many political analysts made is to think that their enemies should be our enemies.  That we can’t and will never do.  We are an independent organization engaged in our own struggle.  Our attitude towards any country is determined by that country’s attitude toward our struggle…Yasser Arafat, Col. Gaddafi, and Fidel Castro support our struggle to the hilt.  Not only with rhetoric but by placing resources at our disposal for us to win our struggle.”

It’s interesting to note that in 1960 when Fidel Castro came to America he went to Harlem.  Months after Madiba was released from prison he came to America and visited Harlem as well.

During the same meeting Mr. Mandela also said to Henry Siegman from The American Jewish Congress “We identify with the PLO because just like ourselves they are fighting for the right of self-determination.” Madiba demonstrated in those exchanges that was not going to be bullied by outside interests and take positions that were not based on principle and contrary to the stated mission of the ANC. Many individuals in positions of “leadership” within the African American community would be well served to follow President Mandela’s example.  There’s a lot to said for and gained by sticking to principle.

Facing death by hanging at his 1964 trial for treason in Pretoria, South Africa Mr. Mandela said, “During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people…I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve…But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

I submit that contrary to President Obama’s observations, most people who truly understand the arc of Madiba’s life really draw strength from the example of renewal and reconciliation and resilience that Madiba made real as a principled warrior and uncompromising guerilla fighter.  The revolutionary who was willing to die for the freedom of his people.

Dr. Wilmer Leon is the Producer/ Host of the Sirisu/XM Satellite radio channel 110 call-in talk radio program “Inside the Issues with Wilmer Leon” Go to www.wilmerleon.com or email:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.www.twitter.com/drwleon and Dr. Leon’s Prescription at Facebook.com  © 2013 InfoWave Communications, LLC

Statement of South Africa President Jacob Zuma Upon the Death of President Nelson Mandela

Complete Statement of South Africa President Jacob Zuma Upon the Death of President Nelson Mandela

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My Fellow South Africans, Our beloved Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, the founding President of our democratic nation has departed. He passed on peacefully in the company of his family around 20:50 on the 5th of December 2013. He is now resting. He is now at peace.

Our nation has lost its greatest son. Our people have lost a father. Although we knew that this day would come, nothing can diminish our sense of a profound and enduring loss. His tireless struggle for freedom earned him the respect of the world. His humility, his compassion, and his humanity earned him their love. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Mandela family.

To them we owe a debt of gratitude. They have sacrificed much and endured much so that our people could be free. Our thoughts are with his wife Mrs Graca Machel, his former wife Ms Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, with his children, his grand-children, his great grand-children and the entire family.

Our thoughts are with his friends, comrades and colleagues who fought alongside Madiba over the course of a lifetime of struggle. Our thoughts are with the South African people who today mourn the loss of the one person who, more than any other, came to embody their sense of a common nationhood.

Our thoughts are with the millions of people across the world who embraced Madiba as their own, and who saw his cause as their cause. This is the moment of our deepest sorrow. Our nation has lost its greatest son. Yet, what made Nelson Mandela great was precisely what made him human.

We saw in him what we seek in ourselves. And in him we saw so much of ourselves.Fellow South Africans,Nelson Mandela brought us together, and it is together that we will bid him farewell.Our beloved Madiba will be accorded a State Funeral.I have ordered that all flags of the Republic of South Africa be lowered to half-mast from tomorrow, 6 December, and to remain at half-mast until after the funeral.

As we gather to pay our last respects, let us conduct ourselves with the dignity and respect that Madiba personified.Let us be mindful of his wishes and the wishes of his family.As we gather, wherever we are in the country and wherever we are in the world, let us recall the values for which Madiba fought.

Let us reaffirm his vision of a society in which none is exploited, oppressed or dispossessed by another.Let us commit ourselves to strive together – sparing neither strength nor courage – to build a united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa.Let us express, each in our own way, the deep gratitude we feel for a life spent in service of the people of this country and in the cause of humanity.

This is indeed the moment of our deepest sorrow.Yet it must also be the moment of our greatest determination. A determination to live as Madiba has lived, to strive as Madiba has strived and to not rest until we have realised his vision of a truly united South Africa, a peaceful and prosperous Africa, and a better world.We will always love you Madiba! May your soul rest in peace. God Bless Africa. Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika.

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