New Series of Short Videos on Al Jazeera Highlight Election Issues

Al Jazeera English is a 24-hour news channel available in more than 250 million households in over 130 countries. They have 65 bureaus across the globe, mostly rooted in the global South. As part of their US election coverage, they are airing this series of short videos focused on some of the issues that have shaped this election. The videos were produced by a team that includes New Orleans journalist Jordan Flaherty and filmed in cities across the US.

Miami - Immigration

Washington, DC - Foreign Policy

Arlington, VA - Health Care

Chicago - Money in Politics

Fort Lauderdale - Economy

Milwaukee - Economy

The channel has also been airing shorter versions that can be seen at the following links: Miami, Washington, Arlington, Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, and Milwaukee.

‘We All Count’ Campaign To Combat Historic Levels of Voter Suppression and Disenfranchisement

From a press release from Project South:

More than 30 million people will be discouraged or prevented from voting in this election. “This is the highest number since the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965. We know that many of those people are African-Americans, LGBT people, people displaced by foreclosure or disaster, and young people—we are working to bring these communities together, and to say that we will not be erased,” says Emery Wright, Co-Director of Project South in Atlanta, GA.

While the Democratic and Republican parties fight for the votes of people across the country, 15 grassroots Southern groups working for social justice are taking a different approach through an effort called the ‘We All Count’ campaign.

The 2008 election, which many considered a decisive victory, was decided by 9.5 million votes. The 2004 election was decided by 3 million votes. If even a fraction of the voters who are discouraged or prevented from voting were able to vote this year, the blue-red map could look very different.

While the media and many national organizations abandon the South during election years, these 15 groups representing over 25,000 people have established 25 action sites around the South. Instead of playing beltway politics, more than 300 organizers are engaging ‘unlikely’ voters - inviting them to join with other communities, to participate, and to be counted.

“Working with the ‘We All Count’ campaign has changed my life,” says Shaquita Bell, a 22-year-old college student at Alabama State University in Montgomery, AL. “I have learned so much about how to engage my community and stay involved beyond the election, when our organizations are needed the most.”

150 people will gather in Lowndes County, Alabama on September 22 to represent their communities and vote on a plan of action for the People’s First 100 Days. Lowndes County is the historic site of Tent City on the trail of the Selma to Montgomery March that organized for voting rights almost forty years ago. While other groups focus on how to target individual voter groups around narrow individual interests, the We All Count campaign is working to shine a light on how different groups of ‘unlikely’ voters have similar interests but are often marginalized from the democratic process.

This movement in the US South is bringing together people who are often dismissed as non-voters or as people without political power. But as history shows us, the power of a multiracial, multi-generational coalition represents a significant powerbase that can respond locally, regionally, and nationally to the attacks on immigrants, youth, women, and families living on the frontlines of poverty.

“Some people have asked why an LGBTQ organization would be spending our time building with Latino and Black-led groups across the South this fall instead of working with other LGTBQ groups to push ‘our issues’’, states Caitlin Breedlove, Co-Director of Southerners On New Ground (SONG), a regional LGBTQ organization. “The answer is simple—‘our issues’ are far more alike than different—people of Color, immigrants and LGBTQ people are being blamed for lack of jobs, unaccountable government programs, and fissures in our family and community values. But, we all need and deserve good schools, good jobs and basic safety—we need to come together to make our voices heard.”

“Many people ask me why ex-felons and formerly incarcerated people would be spending time building with immigrants, gays, and youth,” states Rev. Kenneth Glasgow, a formerly incarcerated person who leads The Ordinary People’s Society (TOPS) in Dothan Alabama. “The answer is simple: our issues are connected, and the disenfranchisement of any person threatens the whole democracy.” More than three million people who have served their time are still excluded from voting every election. “If we look at the economics of disenfranchisement, in Alabama alone the cost of housing inmates is approaching 30k per year. It makes good moral sense and sound economic sense to ensure public participation and reduce recidivism. We all need and deserve good schools, good jobs, and basic safety—we need to come together to make our voices heard.”

Is It Time For The Bounce Vote?

New Orleans hip-hop artist Tenth Ward Buck, a legendary New Orleans bounce music artist, announced today that he has qualified for a spot on the ballot for the city council election in District B, the seat formerly held by Stacy Head. He is one of several candidates who have declared their intentions in the race, including longtime community advocate Dana Kaplan, director of Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana.

Tenth Ward Buck has achieved fame on multiple fronts. He is best known as a musician who's career has spanned decades - his biggest hit is "Drop And Gimme 50," which became a national hit when it was covered by Mike Jones. He also has a restaurant, called Finger Lick'n Wings, that he is in the process of rebranding to turn it into a bounce-themed restaurant. The past year also saw the release of a play and film based on his book Definition of Bounce. The play, book and film tell a personal history of bounce music, a community's history told through the perspective of Buck's life. Buck has also appeared in several films, beginning with a role in Dead Man Walking, and directed the award-winning film A Katrina Story, a powerful short film that was shot by Buck in the days after Hurricane Katrina, as he traveled from a flooded home in New Orleans East, to his evacuation to Houston and later return to New Orleans. Buck also has a strong community reputation for his work in support of local youth.

Without funding or major political backing, his candidacy is an uphill struggle, but Buck has never hesitated to try the impossible, and he has an audience and fans. His shows and festivals like the annual Bounce Fest, one of many community projects he helps organize with longtime collaborator Lucky Johnson, have shown the Buck has a large constituency. If someone could turn the bounce community into a voting block, they would be a candidate to reckon with.

Buck, whose name will appear on the ballot as Marlon J. Horton, submitted his paperwork just over an hour before the qualifying deadline, and says he was still receiving contributions for the filing fee up until the final minutes. Dana Kaplan of JJPL, LaToya Cantrell, a community leader from the Broadmoor neighborhood, Eric Strachan, former Chief of Staff for Stacy Head, and Donald Vallee, a vocal advocate for landlords and opponent of affordable housing, also qualified for the ballot. The election will be on November 6.

Conviction of Black Mayor Overturned by US Court of Appeals in Case Closely Watched by Civil Rights Activists

In a 2-1 ruling today, the Second Circuit Court of Appeal reversed the conviction of former Waterproof mayor Bobby Higginbotham, and vacated his sentence. The case had attracted the attention of civil rights activists around the US, as well as Color of Change, a national racial justice activism group, who had gathered 50,000 signatures appealing for freedom for the former mayor.

The ruling gives ammunition to defenders of Higginbotham, who said he was an innocent man being prosecuted for standing up against the white power structure of Tensas Parish and convicted in an unfair trial. However, the ruling by the court of appeals did not address the substance of the charges against Higginbotham, but focused on irregularities in the trial. The main reason cited was missing transcripts from the trial, caused by apparent problems with a sound recorder used by the court reporter. According to Higginbotham attorney Rachel Conner, there is no transcript at all for at least two witness' testimonies.

The former mayor was released from jail in December because of good behavior, but today's judgement means he is no longer on parole and no longer owes restitution. The DA has the option to appeal this ruling to a higher court.

Below is more background, from our previous reporting on the case:

Waterproof, Louisiana is a rural town near the Mississippi border best known for holding an immigration detention center. The town -- population approximately 800 -- sits in Tensas Parish, a mostly agrarian region of the state. Community members say the civil rights movement came late to Tensas -- it was the last parish in the state where Black residents were able to register to vote, and the Klan was active until late in the 20th century.

The current troubles began in September of 2006, when Higginbotham was elected mayor of Waterproof. Soon after, he appointed his associate Miles Jenkins as chief of police. Jenkins, who served in the U.S. military for 30 years and earned a master's degree in public administration from Troy University in Alabama, immediately began the work of professionalizing a small town police department that had previously been mostly inactive. While both Jenkins and Higginbotham are from Waterproof, the men had also spent much of their adult lives working in other places, and brought a professional background to their new positions. Allies of Higginbotham and Jenkins say this threatened Parish Sheriff Ricky Jones and DA James Paxton. Annie Watson, a school board member and former volunteer for the mayor, says officers working for Jones told her, "As soon as you people learn that the sheriff controls Tensas Parish, the better off you'll be."

The charges and counter charges are difficult to untangle. At the center of the case is a state audit of Waterproof that found irregularities in the town's record keeping. The Parish District Attorney says the audit shows mayoral corruption. The mayor says the problems pre-date his term, and he had taken steps to correct the issues. The mayor's opponents claim he stole from the town by illegally increasing his salary. His supporters say he received a raise that was voted on by the town aldermen. The mayor initially faced 44 charges; all but two were dropped before the trial began. Those charges -- malfeasance in office and felony theft -- were related to the disputed raise and use of the town's credit card. Miles Jenkins, the police chief, faced charges related to his enforcement of traffic tickets.

The mayor was quickly convicted of both charges but lawyers have raised challenges to the convictions, bringing a number of legal complaints. For example: in a town that is 55% African-American, Mayor Higginbotham had only one Black juror. Higginbotham's counsel was disqualified by the DA, and the public defender had a conflict of interest, leaving the mayor with no lawyer. Two days before the trial began, the DA gave Higginbotham 10 boxes of files related to his case. Higginbotham's request for an extension to get an attorney and to examine the files was denied.

There's more: during jury selection, when Higginbotham -- forced to act as his own lawyer -- tried to strike one juror who had relationships with several of the witnesses, he was told he could not, even though he had challenges remaining. There was also a problem with a sound recorder that the court reporter was using, and as a result there is no transcript at all for at least two witness' testimonies. Finally, during deliberation, the judge gave the jury polling slips that had "guilty" pre-selected, and then later hid the slips.

When Higginbotham was convicted, the judge refused to set bail in any amount. Although a possible sentence for the crime was probation, and despite the former mayor's obvious ties to the community, Higginbotham has spent the last ten months in jail while his lawyers have worked on his appeal. "He's not a flight risk," says Rachel Conner, Higginbotham's lawyer. "He's tied to Waterproof and he's got a vested interest in clearing his name."

Ethics Issues Raised Regarding Chas Roemer and Kira Orange-Jones

A recent blog post from the Louisiana Federation of Teachers highlights some of the issues that have recently been raised around candidates for the upcoming Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) election. Below are excerpts from the blog:
Two candidates strongly supported by Gov. Bobby Jindal, big business and even New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg are facing ethics issues in the waning days of the 2011 election season.

Kira Orange-Jones, candidate for the District 2 seat on the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, is the subject of a cease-and-desist order signed by a New Orleans judge.

According to the online publication New Orleans Agenda, "Orange Jones had claimed in her campaign advertising that she had voted for President Obama in November, 2008, but the plaintiffs provided the court with a sworn statement signed by Orange Jones on August 17, 2011, that she had never before been registered to vote in Louisiana or any other place."

The order says that Orange-Jones must "cease and desist from misrepresenting her voting record or her registration in violation of Louisiana Revised Statute 18:1463." It is illegal for candidates to make statements that they know to be false or misleading, according to the article.

Chas Roemer, in a runoff for re-election to his District 6 BESE seat, has run afoul of the Louisiana ethics code and must return some $10,000 worth of contributions, according to this article by Mikhail Zinshteyn in The American Independent.

It seems that when the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry pumped $20,000 into Roemer's campaign, the cash infusion lifted him way over the legal limit for PAC contributions.

Gov. Jindal recently sent a fund-raising letter on Roemer's behalf, and his campaign fund for the District 6 seat - which pays no salary - now holds over $220,000. His opponent, former Ascension Parish Superintendent of School Donald Songy, has raised less than $14,000.

Songy's campaign chest is about par for BESE elections. The really curious question is why all the big money is pouring into Roemer's campaign. It is an unprecedented expenditure for the state school board.

But that's not the only ethics question dogging Roemer. His sister, Caroline Roemer Shirley, is executive director of the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools. Because of her relationship with Chas, she is prohibited from speaking at BESE meetings, and does not do so.

As this article by Louisiana Voice reporter Tom Aswell points out, ethics laws also prohibit elected officials from voting "on any matter in which a member or his immediate family has a substantial economic interest."

The ethics board has never made a specific ruling in his case, but it would seem that Chas Roemer should abstain from any vote involving one of his sister's schools.

Instead, Aswell writes, "In December of 2010 alone, he made motions to approve charter school contracts of $50,000 and under, made motions to approve Crescent City School, the NET Charter High School, the Collegiate Academy Charter School, the Sarah T. Reed Charter Middle School, the ReNEW K-8 Charter School, The ReNEW Alternative High School, and in one case, made the motion to deny an application to commence operation of Joseph A. Craig Charter School in New Orleans."

Louisiana Justice Institute Joins Observation of Haiti Elections

Summary of Election Day - 11/28/10 23:14EST
Louisiana Justice Institute Observer Group
Jacmel, Haiti

Despite the calm, peaceful and relatively orderly atmosphere earlier in the day a growing number of voters were confused about where to vote by mid-morning.

Registered voters who had been assigned a polling location at the time they received their identity card, could not vote at their assigned location. Reactions ranged from disappointment to rage. Many searched multiple locations unsuccessfully, seeking their name on any voter list but instead finding many of their deceased neighbors and family members listed.

In one case, a voter found his name on the voter list posted outside of the polling station, but that voter’s name did not appear on the official roll of voters inside the voting station managed by the voting officials. Initially he was denied the right to vote until a non-partisan observer intervened on his behalf. A polling official marked his ballot as provisional.

By early afternoon, conditions began to deteriorate, as voters exchanged stories about their personal experiences and frustrations, trying to cast a ballot.

Eleven months after the earthquake, and in the midst of a deadly cholera epidemic, many voters expressed a strong desire for change and their determination to claim their right as a citizen of Haiti to cast their ballot.

A consensus began to emerge by mid-afternoon that the credibility of the election was seriously challenged.

As news about the developments in Port au Prince reached Jacmel, the situation became unstable. Spontaneous manifestations broke out, beginning in the suburbs of Jacmel and spreading to the city with marches, tires burning in the streets, and an attach on the police headquarters with four burning tires and throwing rocks in the street. People gathered in small, anxious groups at storefronts, on the steps of houses, porches and in the streets.

Louisiana Justice Institute Joins Human Rights Groups in Expressing Concerns About Upcoming Haitian Elections

Experts will be in Haiti for the elections, Sunday, November 28.

A delegation of U.S. and Haitian human rights organizations are in Haiti as unofficial election and human rights observers to monitor the Presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for Sunday November 28. The delegation is concerned that the rapid spread of a cholera epidemic across the country could gravely affect voter participation and threatens the validity of the election process. The group will be in Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas from Monday, November 22 through Wednesday, December 1.

Over the last several months, organizations represented in the delegation have been monitoring the situation on the ground. Despite overarching concerns about the increasingly desperate situation of Haiti’s homeless Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and about the exclusion of a number of political parties from the electoral process, representatives of the organizations and partners have been preparing in good faith to observe events during Haiti’s elections. There is a particular concern of insufficient preparation and response on the ground from those responsible for curbing the cholera epidemic, including international NGOs and international donor nations. With such pressing concerns unresolved, many members of Haitian civil society organizations, as well as numerous Presidential candidates, believe it nearly impossible to hold elections that would meet the most minimal standards of fairness and credibility at this time.

While in Haiti the delegation will monitor the human rights and political situation surrounding the elections, with particular attention to those most affected by the Quake, including police and U.N. response to protests, possible voter boycotts, voter access and participation levels, the cholera epidemic response; and the status of overall relief efforts. The delegation’s members will be in close contact with an array of local and national civil society organizations during their stay.

Among those who will participating in the delegation:

Melinda Miles, Director, Let Haiti Live, a project of TransAfrica: “Cholera is a game changer in the most fundamental sense. It is an immediate and critical crisis that requires all hands on deck in response. It is not for us to predict when the crisis will level off. What we can say, definitively, is that now is that the time for focus on the human needs first and not politics.”

Etant Dupain, Bri Kouri Nouvèl Gaye, Noise Travels, News Spreads: “Although the elections are necessary, in the midst of a humanitarian crisis there needs to be more attention to vulnerable populations. The NGOs have not responded adequately to the crisis and everyday there are more people dying, more people becoming infected due to a lack of potable water. Attention needs to be paid to the people who continue to live under tarps today. It is sad because these elections will not change anything, you see many people expressing their lack of support for the process.”

Alex Main, Policy Analyst, Center for Economic and Policy Research: "These elections were already highly problematic before the cholera epidemic began to spread. Haiti's electoral authority - the CEP - suffers from a lack of credibility; legitimate parties have been excluded from participating in the legislative elections; and very few effective measures have been taken to ensure that Haiti's over 1.3 million displaced people would have access to the polls. As a result of these problems, there was already a high probability that voter turnout would be very low and that the elections would be widely seen as illegitimate.”

Jacques Etienne Morial, Co-Director, The Louisiana Justice Institute: “As respectful, understanding and supportive as we are of the determination of Haiti to assert its independence and stand on its own feet, the growing cholera epidemic imperils the legitimate elections that Haitians so urgently need to achieve this noble goal. Moving forward under the prevailing conditions undermines public confidence in any outcome that the people of Haiti deserve and need to move their recovery forward.”

Get Out The Vote! Last Day to Register is This Wednesday!

The New Orleans Municipal Primary Election is scheduled for February 6, 2010. This Wednesday, January 6, is the last day to register to vote.

We're sure that you're registered. But perhaps you know other folks who haven't yet. Please help make sure that everyone you know is registered to vote by this Wednesday. If you know any high school students or teachers, help get the registration forms into the schools.

Currently early voting for the primary is scheduled for the week of January 23-30, 2010. The hours are 8:00am - 6:00pm daily except Sunday. It's still unclear how the proposed closure of city hall will affect this schedule. Mail ballots can also be requested by February 2.

The general election is scheduled for March 6. The last day to register for the general election is February 3. Early voting for the general election is scheduled for February 20 - 27.

A Question of Public Values

Last week I watched with interest, and then just disgust, as a 'masker' (don't get me started) complained to a WDSU news reporter about City of New Orleans buget cuts, which would preclude him from receiving the 'traditional toast' at Gallier Hall from Mayor Ray Nagin. Because the city is broke, Mayor Nagin cut expenditures on reviewing stands at Gallier Hall. Poor baby.

The irony was palpable. This member of the privileged elite of the City of New Orleans sat in his well-appointed seating area, complaining that the public is not paying for his traditional toast, at the same time citizens (read peasants) will be burdened with reduced garbage service, reduced hours at city offices (closures every Friday), and reduced services to our children.

Carnival Dude. Get a clue.

This is a question of public values and, while I'm appalled at the lunacy of this Carnival King's statement, my voice alone is ineffective.

So let's tell the mayor -- loudly and clearly -- Carnival Toast's are not a shared public value. The well-being of our children is a shared public value; restore funding to NORD. Public safety is a shared public value; restore the funding to NOPD. Our clean environment is a shared public value; restore the funding to the Sanitation Department.

Hey -- Carnival Krewe People -- you want a reviewing stand...PAY FOR IT YOURSELVES!

Too much like right?

http://www.wdsu.com/news/22076986/detail.html

THIS *?\!* AIN’T FUNNY

I have a confession to make. For years, I’ve suffered from potty-mouth. It’s the halitosis of expletives, and very unattractive. So last week, I decided my birthday present to myself (November 23rd) is to become a ‘swear-free’ Tracie. I made this decision because I wasn’t raised by parents who swear, and I really don’t want my son to develop this habit.

And the bottom line is swearing is not an effective communication skill. An educated person should be able to make her point, persuasively, without denigrating herself or her audience.

I’m disappointed in the now viral James Perry campaign video, mostly because I know the candidate and he’s better than this.

The lesson for all mayoral candidates should come from the negative public reaction to Perry’s commercial. Folks aren’t just saying they don’t want profanity laden campaign advertisements, they are also saying this election is serious business, and we will not countenance gimmicks.

Don’t curse at us. Don’t inundate us with negative commercials. Don’t treat us like children.

New Orleanians are issue educated, and they want a Transformative Leader, who will move this city to the prosperity it was promised and so richly deserves.

Swear at your own peril.