Politics, Policy & PowerSeptember 26, 2023
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A View From the Ground
News and information about politics, government, civic participation and engagement from the URL Media network.
People rally against the US Supreme Court's latest decisions to strike down the Biden administration's student loan forgiveness plan and race-conscious student admissions programs in Washington D.C., on Friday, June 29. (Credit: Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
🙅🏾♀️ Some borrowers of color say they will boycott student loan repayments: On average Black college graduates owe $25,000 more in student loan debt compared to white college graduates, and with student loan payments resuming in a few days, some borrowers of color say making payments will set them back even further financially. In some cases, they say they may have to choose between paying off debt or paying for rent. “It’s a very confusing bureaucracy that people are having to navigate,” said Maddy Clifford, deputy press secretary for The Debt Collective, a debtors’ union. Prism >
🏢 What being incarcerated during quarantine taught me about abolition: Writer David Campbell has a complex relationship with lockdowns. Speaking from his own experience with incarceration during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic at a time when the general public experienced its own form of confinement, Campbell's essay highlights the lessons he learned during his time at Rikers Island that have compelled him — and maybe, hopefully others — to think differently about abolition. Scalawag >
🎧 Voter mobilization in the Peach State: Celebrating its third year on air, Our Body Politic returns to its electoral roots and spotlights Georgia — a key state in next year's U.S. presidential election. Host Farai Chideya interviews Kendra Davenport Cotton, CEO of the New Georgia Project, about the nonpartisan organization's efforts to mobilize voters by educating them about their civic rights and responsibilities while addressing voter purges in the state. Our Body Politic >
What's Your View?
Nearly half of you who voted in last week’s poll said you support Hamline University’s decision to fire the professor who showed a depiction of the Prophet Muhammad during an online lecture last fall. About a third of you disagreed.
For this week’s poll, we’re turning our focus on student loan payments, which is already bringing a lot of stress to borrowers around the country. Have you or someone you know experienced mental health challenges due to the financial stress tied to student loan debt?
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