November 05, 2015

By Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. 

NNPA Contributor 

Across the country, parents have been in revolt against high-stakes standardized testing, with kids tested over and over again while creativity is cut out of classroom curricula. Parents — particularly in targeted urban schools from Chicago to Boston — are also marching against the forced closing of neighborhood schools, displacing kids and shutting down needed neighborhood centers.

Now there is more and more evidence that the parents have it right — and the deep-pocket “reformers” are simply wrong.

First, the Obama Administration — which has pushed high-stakes testing as central to its education agenda — announced that kids were being tested too often, with too much school time devoted to preparing for and taking required tests. In what a writer for the New Yorker described as a major “mea culpa,” the administration now recommends that standardized testing be limited to 2 percent of class time. Maybe music, art and creativity will have a chance once more.

Second, a report by the Center for Media and Democracy on charter schools — the centerpiece of the so-called reformers’ agenda — reports that some $3.7 billion in federal money has been larded onto charter schools in the past two decades with virtually no accountability. The result is often a simple rip-off: schools that never open or open for a few months and shut down. Some highly touted cyber charters — schools featuring online courses — are, as Education Week reported, essentially useless, like not going to school at all. Others, like the highly touted New York Success Academy Schools, apparently boost their test scores by identifying low-performing students who have “got to go” and finding ways to get rid of them.

And now the National Assessment of Education Progress, the gold standard for measuring progress, reports that American kids have lost ground in math, and either were stagnant (4th graders) or worse (8th graders) in reading.

Charters are spreading like kudzu; wall-to-wall standardized testing is nearly universal — and the parents are right: It isn’t working.

The reality, as National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen Garcia has pointed out, is that the nations that have outperformed the U.S. in recent years don’t do the things that the deep-pockets reformers have been touting. They don’t terrorize teachers; they train, respect and pay them. They don’t set up private charters and drain money from public education; they devote more resources to the poorest students, not less. They don’t do repeated high-stakes standardized testing; they evaluate teachers and students carefully, mentor them and improve them.

The school “reformers” are hurting, not helping. Closing neighborhood schools too often divorces parents from their students’ schools. Demeaning teachers is leading to higher turnover, when experience is central to becoming a good teacher. Repeated standardized testing takes the joy out of learning, making kids less likely to find their strength.

As Jeff Bryant of the Education Opportunity Network writes, parents are driving an “education spring,” revolting against an elite reform agenda that is driving away good teachers, undermining public schools, and draining funds and fun from our public schools. Parents are right to keep the pressure on.

October 29, 2015 

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. 

NNPA Columnist  

Black America needs more good news and positive news. Too often headlines in American media have the proclivity to focus only on the negative when it comes to the life-experience of Black Americans and other people of color communities.

Bakewell Media recently hosted the "10th Annual Taste of Soul” family festival on the historic Crenshaw Boulevard in the heart of Los Angeles was just held. Estimates of the aggregate crowd size throughout the day on October 17, 2015 for “Taste of Soul” ranged from 380,000 to 450,000. This makes the Taste of Soul the largest African American-owned and sponsored annual festival in the United States.

But the unprecedented size of the “Taste of Soul” was not the only outstanding feature of the uplifting and magnificent display of Black American “family, food, fun and respect.” Thanks to the genius of Danny J. Bakewell, Sr. and his Bakewell Media group of enterprises including the Los Angeles Sentinel and the L.A. Watts Times, “Taste of Soul” has evolved over the past decade into the most vibrant, transformative, energetic and peaceful mass gathering in the history of the city of Los Angeles.

The positive vibrations from “Taste of Soul” were not only heartfelt throughout the state of California, but were also felt across the nation as millions of people were participated via social media and live video streaming. As I stood in the huge crowds of African Americans, Latino Americans, Asian Americans and many others, I witnessed the power of multicultural and multiracial solidarity and unity all together saluting the importance of family, entrepreneurial development and mutual respect.

There was no drama. There was no ill will. There was no violence. The beauty of diversity was in full display. People were dancing in the street. People enjoyed the music and the fantastic array of food that revealed the culinary excellence and expertise of our families and businesses.  The Taste of Soul was the manifestation of the soul of Black America that is in fact the soul of America: the undergirding irrepressible spirit and triumph of the creativity of the oneness of all humanity that transcends race.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti at one point also got inspired and to took the 94.7 The WAVE stage and played the piano to entertain the masses at “Taste of Soul.” California State Attorney General Kamala Harris spoke at the McDonald’s Gospel stage about the importance of voting in upcoming elections. Yolanda Adams, Grammy award-winning artist, also performed on the McDonald’s stage to the ecstatic pleasure of thousands that crowded around the stage.

Of course an event of this magnitude just does not happen without a lot of diligent preparatory work and significant corporate sponsorship support. General Motors Buick Division was a major sponsor of this year’s “Taste of Soul.” It is important for us to support those companies that invest back into our communities and in particular those companies that sponsor events that help to generate economic development and success of African American owned businesses.

AT&T, Nielsen, Toyota, Wells Fargo, Walmart, McDonald’s and many other corporations also co-sponsored this unique public gathering that many believe was an affirmative glimpse into the future of a rapidly growing multiracial America that values its diversity rather than denying it.  The city of Los Angeles in the past has had more than its share of racial strife, injustice and inequity.  Yet the “Taste of Soul” continues to stand out as an aspirational reality of how a major city finds and exhibits its best in the marketplace.

Community and business leaders in other cities across the nation might well benefit to consult with Danny Bakewell Sr. about the promise and potential of replicating the “Taste of Soul” in their cities and communities.  Striving for excellence and stressing the importance of family unity, economic development and respect should not be limited to Los Angeles. Our nation as a whole needs to have more days and moments that transform and advance the goal of equality and economic empowerment.

From my vantage point, the “Taste of Soul” was another tremendous step forward in the celebration of the benefits of an inclusive democracy and economy. We have come a long way, but we still have a mighty long way to go to attain freedom, justice and equality for all.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is the President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and can be reached for national advertisement sales and partnership proposals at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ; and for lectures and other professional consultations at: http://drbenjaminfchavisjr.wix.com/drbfc.

October 22, 2015 

By Julianne Malveaux 

NNPA Columnist 

In contrast to the more entertaining Republican presidential candidate debates, the first Democratic presidential candidate debate was more absorbing. We heard from grownups that refrained from personal attacks and offered solid information about their positions. While there were mild fireworks, there was much gravitas, and the sagacity with which these candidates discussed issues was most welcome.

Hillary Rodham Clinton was gracious, graceful, firm and focused. She was the best I’ve seen her since she gave her incandescent speech at the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver. Martin O’Malley missed his chance to shine. He seemed stiff and though he also seemed thoroughly prepared, he did not stand out. Senator Lincoln Chafee might as well have stayed home. The dog ate my homework is not a credible defense for voting to repeal Glass-Steagall, the legislation that regulated banks in some of their activities. He says it was his first vote, and his dad had just died. With all due sympathy, that’s no excuse. Finally we have “Whining Jim Webb” who complained that he was not getting enough time. But he spent too much time saying he wasn’t getting equal time, and he did not jump in, as others did, to make his point. As CNN’s Anderson Cooper (who did a great job) correctly pointed out, Webb agreed to the rules in advance. And, really, had he equal time, what would he have said, and who would be interested? Bottom line, Webb and Chafee should go away, but they won’t. The real contrast is between Hillary and Bernie, with O’Malley, seemingly running for Vice-President, adding occasional spark to the fire.

In response to the question, “Do Black lives matter, or do all lives matter?” Senator Bernie Sanders was the only Democrat on stage who uttered the words, “institutional racism.” Whatever the Black Lives Matter team said to him in back in August, it took. He invoked Sandra Bland, the woman who supposedly hung herself in Texas, and talked about mass incarceration. O’Malley and Clinton addressed the issue as well, with the acceptable answers that included police reform, education and mass incarceration. Clinton suggested a “new deal” for communities of color, but time prevented her from offering details. Neither Clinton nor O’Malley suggested that institutional racism had anything to do with the Black Lives Matter movement or the racial disparities that exist in our nation. Unless I missed something (I watched the debate twice and went through the transcript) Chafee did not address the issue. “Whining Webb” cited his work with African American veterans, which included defending a Marine who was convicted of murder and clearing his name. He also fought to include an African American soldier on the Mall. Great work, but where is the public policy?

The fact that Bernie Sanders mentioned institutional racism is significant. While as many as three-quarters of African Americans vote for Democrats, it is not clear that our Democratic allegiance is returned. In the Democratic debate, Hillary Clinton talked about the role entrepreneurship plays in empowering people in our nation. Did she (or any of the other candidates) know that the Democratic National Committee spent $500 million on political consulting, but only 1.7 percent of those funds went to minority-owned businesses? African American support of the Democratic Party is not reflected in the dollars the DNC chooses to invest in our community. Black lives matter, and so do black dollars.

African Americans have unemployment rates that are twice the jobless rates of Whites, earn less regardless of education and occupation, have a fraction of the wealth, and less homeownership. Blacks account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, but half of those incarcerated. Institutional racism is alive and well, but only one Democratic candidate for President chose to mention that. Some will say that Clinton and O’Malley alluded to institutional racism, but the concept has to be embraced, not simply alluded to. When people understand the concept of institutional racism, it allows them to work to dismantle it. Otherwise, we get a tepid response to racial injustices and ignorant attitudes about African American incarceration. Haven’t you heard some White person say they didn’t own any slaves, without understanding that slavery’s aftermath can be seen in disparity data? Union folks forget that African American people were systematically excluded from their unions, used as strikebreakers until a few decades ago. Others forget the advantages they gained because institutional racism dictated African American exclusion.

Race matters are not the only matters that the Democratic nominee for president must deal with. But those Democrats who take African American fealty for granted must understand that they have to give as much as they get. If about 25 percent of all Democrats are African American, shouldn’t we get 25 percent of the dollars that the DNC spends?

I am glad that Bernie Sanders raised the issue of institutional racism. I am wondering if the DNC and others will address the issue by doing a better job of distributing contracts and opportunities to minority-owned businesses.

Julianne Malveaux is an author and economist and her latest book, “Are We Better Off? Race, Obama and Public Policy,” will be released in November 2015.