Civics 11/28

Tuesday, November 28, 2023

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Before we dive into today's civics and politics headlines from our network, let's kick off with the empowering sounds of the rapper and poet Talib Kweli's "Get By," a timeless record echoing the strength we all seek in the face of our everyday struggles.

▶️ 🎶 “Work 'til we break our back and you hear the crack of the bones / To get by, just to get by / Just to get by, just to get by” —

Talib Kweli, Get By

A View From the Ground

News and information about politics, government, civic participation and engagement from the URL Media network.

A view of the big wall separating Israel and Palestine taken in 2010. Credit: oliver de la haye, iStock

‘The goal is to eliminate Gaza’: Prism recently spoke with Zoé Samudzi, a scholar of colonialism, genocide and the politics of mass violence. Samudzi examines the role of U.S. and Israeli settler-colonialism against the backdrop of violence in Gaza, the politics of genocide recognition, and how U.S. media narratives manufacture consent for collective punishment. She identifies when it is useful to recognize genocide and what a real cease-fire in Gaza would look like. Prism >

Former Obama adviser caught on camera harassing Halal food cart vendors, later arrested for hate crime: Earlier this month, a former senior political officer in the U.S. State Department’s Office of Israel and Palestinian Affairs, was filmed taunting Halal food cart operators in New York City's Upper East Side district. One of the operators, Mohamed, recorded the man, who was spewing Islamophobic speech. A user shared the recording on X last Tuesday, and it went viral. 📱 Documented >

More: Everyday advice to stop Islamophobia and antisemitism in their tracks (Epicenter-NYC)

Environmental pollution lawsuit may pump the brakes on Cop City construction: In 2017, the Atlanta Police Foundation unveiled its proposal for building a police training facility across hundreds of acres of the Weelaunee forest, with taxpayers footing $31 million of the $90 million bill. Earlier this month, an organization dedicated to protecting, restoring and managing the water quality of the South River watershed in Georgia filed a civil rights complaint with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) against the city of Atlanta. The groups say that the rapid construction of the facility, locally known as Cop City, has caused environmental destruction to the surrounding community. Prism >

Federal Reserve's proposed regulation could especially harm small BIPOC-owned businesses: In a new national survey conducted by Goldman Sachs, over three-fourths of small business owners are concerned about their ability to access capital. For BIPOC-owned small businesses, the situation is more severe. The survey found that while 43% of Black business owners have applied for a line of credit in the past year, only 26% have received it. Black Voice News >

Plus: Is the Federal Reserve done raising interest rates? (La Noticia)

More: 🎧 Night markets have become incubators for entrepreneurs in NYC (Epicenter-NYC)

Introducing Our Body Politic's Living Data Initiative

Insights on cultural competency and the American mindset: Our Body Politic recently announced findings from its inaugural survey of the Living Data Series, a four-part series aimed at providing U.S. citizens with the opportunity to hold in-depth conversations about political events across the economy, health, politics, education, and the environment leading up to the 2024 U.S. presidential elections. 🎧 Our Body Politic >

More: Read findings from the inaugural survey