Politics

(The Root) — Something occult was taking place at the Home for Retired Racial Stereotypes. Smoky incense filled the air of a darkened room where Kingfish, the Frito Bandito, Charlie Chan, Tonto and the rest of the crew were gathered in a circle, chanting to the sound of exotic music. In the middle of the circle stood…

(Special to The Root) — Three years ago I wrote a piece for The Root entitled, “Supreme Court Saves Voting Rights Act and Itself.” The occasion was the court’s recent consideration of the constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, which Congress had reauthorized by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in 2006. In that…

(Special to The Root) — The U.S. Supreme Court has finally issued its long-awaited ruling in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, the latest case challenging affirmative action in higher education. Although many pundits expected a resounding defeat for defenders of diversity, their predictions proved to be wrong. The court sent the case back…

(The Root) — The Supreme Court decision this week in Fisher v. University of Texas upheld the winning argument and vision that my late husband, John Payton, put forward as the lead attorney in Grutter/Gratz v. Bollinger (the University of Michigan affirmative action case). That was the landmark decision decided exactly 10 years ago, in…

(The Root) — In the second explicitly race-related ruling this week, which legal analysts and Supreme Court observers have described as far more restrained than had been expected from the conservative-dominated court, the Supreme Court invalidated an essential portion of the Voting Rights Act.  The court’s 5-4 decision voided parts of Section 4, which provided…

(The Root) — Now that the Supreme Court has kicked Fisher v. University of Texas, its first major affirmative action case in a decade, back to the lower court, the outcome is still up on the air. But something that experts interviewed by The Root appear to be in agreement on is that regardless of what…

On Oct. 1, President Obama’s Affordable Care Act for Americans finally begins. According to the Washington Post, the question now is whether the federal government is ready.   There are, arguably, two big things that need to happen between now and October. The first is technical: The federal government needs to finish building the infrastructure…

On Saturday, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange spoke out against President Obama in a speech released on Twitter, saying the POTUS betrayed Edward Snowden, the man behind the NSA leaks. CNN reports Snowden was recently charged with espionage and theft of government property by U.S. federal prosecutors, according to a criminal complaint unsealed in U.S. District Court…

In an op-ed piece at the Washington Post, Dana Milbank describes how the Tea Party has turned on one of its own, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), for his immigration plan. Members of the Tea Party convened on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to voice their concerns with Rubio’s bill. Much of the scene was familiar: the yellow…

(The Root) — New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is clearly not afraid to court controversy. He has fought for bans on smoking and large sodas, despite his efforts sparking criticism and ridicule. The mayor has found himself provoking critics again with his comments earlier this month about which students should attend college. During his…