Author Archives: Julianne Malveaux

The most recent data on minority-owned firms in the United States was collected in 2012 (and released at the end of 2015). It showed that the number of minority-owned firms rose from 5.8 million in 2007 to 8 million in 2012.

With a woman heading the ticket of the Democratic Party, it may be challenging for us to remember that women have had the right to vote for less than a century (and Black folks less than that). But the 19th Amendment that gave women the right to vote was certified on Aug. 26, 1920, just 96 years ago.

Our American exceptionalism allows us to shimmer, too fully in our greatness. We are the biggest and the baddest. We are the best armed and the most influential.

With a woman heading the ticket of the Democratic Party, it may be challenging for us to remember that women have had the right to vote for less than a century (and Black folks less that).

The North Carolina NAACP President Rev. William Barber tore it up and then threw down in a powerful speech at the Democratic National Convention on July 28. He called on those assembled to be a “moral defibrillator of our time,” to shock our nation with the power of love and morality. Rev. Barber did not use the word “endorse,” but urged delegates to “embrace” Clinton, and his rousing rhetoric was challenging and inspirational.

After Baton Rouge, La., and Falcon Heights, Minn., there was Dallas, Texas. After rogue cops unceremoniously killed two Black men, a deranged shooter killed five police officers. The shooter, identified as Micah Johnson, reportedly said that he wanted to kill White police officers. Too many commentators referred to his middle initial “X” in an effort to be more racially provocative.

When North Carolina passed laws eliminating anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, and passing its “bathroom bill,” mandating that transgender people use the bathroom of their birth gender, they experienced almost immediate backlash.

After Baton Rouge, La. and Falcon Heights, Minn. there was Dallas. After rouge cops unceremoniously killed two Black men, there were five police officers killed by a deranged sniper who reportedly said he wanted to kill White police officers.

The day after 52 percent of the people who voted that Britain should leave the European Union, Google was deluged with questions. The most common – what is the European Union? That suggests that the people who voted to leave the European Union didn’t even know what it was.