halfway to hell
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Queen Maxine Still Ain't Scared and She Expects Voters Not to Be Either
U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), who won’t allow bomb threats to intimidate her, is encouraging voters to “step up to the plate” on Election Day. The Root caught up with Auntie Maxine at this year’s Women in Media Awards in New York City. “I’d like to say to those who are targeted for bomb threats…
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Andrew Gillum Says Florida Is Not Safe for All While 'Stand Your Ground' Law Exists
“You can’t have a conversation about ‘stand your ground’ without understanding what the racial elements are.” text Andrew Gillum called on Florida Gov. Rick Scott to declare a “state of emergency” after Markeis McGlockton was killed by gunfire this July. His killer, Michael Drejka, claimed he fired in self-defense after a parking lot dispute and…
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What Black Voters Want in the 2018 Midterm Elections
The Root’s Video Producer Felice Leon and I went to Harlem to ask black voters what issues they want to see addressed. We found people who were more than ready to get to the polls but, as important as these upcoming elections are, we still found some folks were not motivated to vote. Are the…
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Andrew Gillum's Hamilton Tickets Are Barack Obama's Tan Suit
When Barack Obama won the Iowa presidential primary in 2008 and went on to win Super Tuesday, I prayed the brotha didn’t have a side piece the Republicans could pull out to dash his hopes for winning the White House. Barring Fox News’ misleading reporting of his former pastor’s “Goddamn America” sermon and conservatives’ false…
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Insecure's Kendrick Sampson Wants to Make Sure You Don't Ghost the Midterms
Insecure’s Kendrick Sampson doesn’t shy away from discussing politics or its impact on people’s daily lives. In fact, the actor and activist has been pretty outspoken about social issues such as police brutality and institutional racism. Recently, Sampson stopped by The Root and we asked him about why midterms matter, the importance of voting, plus…
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Florida Is on Course to Restore Voting Rights to Residents Convicted of Felonies
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.—Marissa Alexander knows politics. No political race—judgeship, state representative, national—nor proposed amendment escapes her notice. That’s why during this midterm election season, she has sat down her 18-year-old twins at the dinner table to go over everything—the amendments and candidates that voters must choose from on Tuesday so that her children will be fully…
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Andrew Gillum Is Winning by Being His Natural, Black Self
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.—Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum isn’t afraid to tell you he is a proud black man. The political implications of being “too black,” long a concern for black candidates running for statewide or higher office throughout U.S. history, don’t scare him. He embraces his blackness because he believes in himself and knows black candidates before…
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White Nationalist Who Threatened Stacey Abrams' Campaign Poses for Picture With Brian Kemp
In late September, The Root ran a story about a campaign event held by Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams in Augusta, Ga. Here’s what we wrote at the time. This is a pretty smart campaign stop—she’s tied with Secretary of State and Republican nominee Brian Kemp less than two months from Election Day and African-American…
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Voter Suppression Is Real and It Really Affects Black People
I think we all can agree that the 2018 midterm elections are critical. This means that our votes matter more now than ever. But what happens when you’ve registered and are ready to participate in this good ol’ democracy but can’t? Let’s talk about voter suppression. Voter suppression is simple—it’s a set of tactics used…
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Millennial Georgians Get Their Obama Moment With Stacey Abrams
Stacey Abrams’ campaign bus was running forty minutes late. But the anticipation for her arrival at Savannah State University seemed to intensify with each passing minute. Hundreds of people had settled into lawn chairs or found a spot on the ground around the gazebo in the center of campus Tuesday night. The candidate’s advance team…