Cleveland Browns want to interview Condoleezza Rice for head-coaching job

UPDATE: Browns GM says Condoleeza Rice has not been discussed in head coaching search

Browns general manager John Dorsey said last week that he was open to hiring a woman as Cleveland's next head coach, and one prominent name is on the team's wish list to interview.

The Browns would like to interview former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for their head-coaching job, a league source tells ESPN.

If the Browns follow through on it, Rice would become the first woman to interview for an NFL head-coaching job.

Cleveland's interest in interviewing Rice comes at a time when women recently have moved into decision-making roles in men's professional sports. The San Antonio Spurs hired Becky Hammon as an assistant coach, the Buffalo Bills hired Kathryn Smith as a quality control assistant, the Oakland Raiders hired Kelsey Martinez to their strength staff, and the San Francisco 49ers hired Katie Sowers as an offensive assistant.

[SOURCE: ESPN]

Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Urges Trump to Stop Verbally Abusing Black Women

Congressman Cedric L. Richmond (D-LA-02), Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, released the following statement in response to Donald Trump’s repeated verbal abuse of black women.

“This president is an insecure bully and lacks basic respect for others. In recent days, while nursing wounds from a major political rejection this week, he has found a way to say abusive and disrespectful things about the former First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, and three reporters who have been ably and professionally doing their jobs, April Ryan, Abby Phillip and Yamiche Alcindor. This is just the latest series of aggressive and unhinged attacks from a president that consistently fails to set a good example for this country. He has also repeatedly attacked Members of the Congressional Black Caucus, including Reps. Frederica Wilson and Maxine Waters. This president clearly has demonstrated animus toward women in general, but black women in particular. This has to stop. I would call for him to apologize for his various disrespectful statements, but I know he lacks the compassion, self-awareness, and magnanimity to do so. Instead, I urge him to study these intelligent, strong, and accomplished women in order to learn lessons in grace, class, and dignity.”

Channing Dungey resigns as ABC Entertainment President

ABC Entertainment President Channing Dungey has stepped down.

Dungey’s departure — she will leave after a transition period — comes less than three years after she made history by becoming the first African American to lead a major TV network.

Her exit was not unexpected, given the wholesale changes to Disney’s television empire in Burbank. Disney is spending $71.3 billion to buy much of Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox media company, in large part, to turbocharge its TV operations because the company plans to roll out a Disney-branded streaming service in late 2019.

Dungey, 49, was promoted to the post in early 2016 at a time when a lack of diversity in Hollywood’s executive suites was drawing increased scrutiny. A veteran development executive, Disney leaders championed Dungey’s taste and collaborative approach.

She repaired relationships with high-profile producers and guided the launch of a few new hits, including “Speechless,” “The Good Doctor,” “The Rookie” and “Roseanne,” which exploded into one television’s biggest hits. But that sit-com fell apart last spring after its star, Roseanne Barr, made racist remarks on Twitter. Dungey pushed for Barr’s firing — a move that was supported by the Disney brass.

“I’m grateful to Channing for her significant contributions and unwavering dedication to the success of ABC over the past 14 years,” Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said in a statement. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed having the opportunity to work with and mentor Channing; her curiosity, passion and creativity will ensure she is successful in whatever path she chooses going forward.”

Dungey, in a statement, said she was “incredibly proud of what the team and I have accomplished over the years, and all the meaningful and impactful programming we’ve developed. This job has been the highlight of my career.”

[SOURCE: LA TIMES]

NAACP VOTER TURNOUT EFFORTS SPUR INCREASED BLACK VOTER PARTICIPATION

NAACP civic engagement campaign helped generate record midterm election turnout among Black Voters 

BALTIMORE – From the passage of Amendment 4 in Florida, which restored voting rights to convicted felons to the record number of early voting among voters of color – including a 77% increase among African American voters, the NAACP’s civic engagement initiative, The Demonstration Project, helped propel Black voter participation during the midterm election to historic heights.  

“Nothing can discredit the fact that leaders, activists, including NAACP supporters and partners, helped increase civic engagement in ways many thought would not be possible,” said NAACP President Derrick Johnson. “This election not only further proved the power of the Black vote but was an overwhelming rebuke of Trump and Trumpism, and a show of support for candidates who look like America and campaigned on a bold, forward-looking and inclusive vision.”    

The NAACP, along with GSSA, LLC, a Colorado data analytics group, mapped out metrics for the Black community – across six states (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan), to test new targeting models for low propensity and moderate propensity black voters, impact the elections and identify parity in registration and increase the turnout of Black voters in battleground states.   

NAACP door-knocking efforts produced the following numbers: 

• Florida: NAACP and partners knocked on approximately 165k doors and completed over 24k contacts. 
• Pennsylvania: approximately 30k doors and completed over 11k contacts.  
• Georgia: approximately 30k doors and completed over 6k contacts. 
• Ohio: approximately 17k doors and completed over 9k contacts.

NAACP voter protection work included:    

• Worked with County Board of Elections in various states, in real-time to ensure that issues at the polls were addressed in a timely manner and to support voters who had issues in casting their ballots. 

• Participated in litigation pressure efforts to extend voting hours due to voting administration irregularities in Georgia and Tennessee.  

NAACP victories to state-by-state include: 

• Helped flip the North Carolina Supreme Court 
• Helped to pass Amendment 4 in Florida – automatically restored voting rights in the state for people previously convicted of felonies   
• Helped to pass Proposal 3 in Michigan – Promote The Vote (Same Day Registration) 

NAACP communication and digital work included: 

• Reached over 575 thousand infrequent voters directly through peer to peer text messaging platform called, Hustle. 

Total Text Messages Sent:

• 512,014 (Across the six Demonstration Project states) 
• 578,569 (Including Maryland and Key Urban Centers) 

• Sent three flights of mail to our targeted universe of infrequent voters which included over 600k individual households. 

Unfortunately, voter suppression played a huge role in the silencing of the political voices of the Black community and all people of color during the election season. In Georgia and Tennessee alone, Republicans engaged in a massive voter suppression strategy that has included further rolling back the Voting Rights Act.  

“Now is the time to look forward and prepare for the 2020 Census, and the imminent threat that the Census will substantially undercount African-Americans and other people of color in communities throughout the United States,” President Johnson continued. “This would further dilute the votes of racial and ethnic minorities, deprive their communities of critical federal funds and undervalue their voices and interests in the political arena. We can’t let this administration use yet another mechanism to devalue and stifle the voices of people of color.”   

***Please note: The data above is just a preliminary count of the campaign’s efforts. Additional analytics and our full analytics will be produced over the coming weeks*** 

### 

ABOUT THE NAACP: 

Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation’s oldest and largest nonpartisan civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities. You can read more about the NAACP’s work and our six “Game Changer” issue areas by visiting naacp.org. 

Andrew Gillum concedes race to Ron DeSantis

Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, along with his wife R Jai posted a video today in which he conceded the Florida Governor's race to Ron DeSantis. Watch that video below.

Stacey Abrams "concession" speech

Democrat Stacey Abrams on Friday ended her campaign in the hotly contested Georgia governor’s race, saying she saw "no legal path forward" against Republican Brian Kemp.

“Concession means to acknowledge an action is right, true or proper,” she said. “As a woman of conscience and faith, I cannot concede. But my assessment is that the law currently allows no further viable remedy.”

Watch her concession speech below.

Rep.Marcia Fudge on possibly challenging Pelosi for Speaker of the House: Our leadership should be diverse

Marcia Fudge, the congresswoman from Ohio who may be launching a bid against Nancy Pelosi for Speaker of the House, told CNN's Elizabeth Landers that she is undecided about her bid, but seems bolstered by the outreach she's receiving. Watch her comments below.

U.S. Bishops give go-ahead to diocese’s Sister Thea Bowman sainthood effort

The U.S. bishops gave their assent to the canonization effort launched for Sister Thea Bowman by the Diocese of Jackson, Mississippi.

The assent, on a voice vote, came Nov. 14, the third day of their fall general meeting in Baltimore. The “canonical consultation” with the body of U.S. bishops is a step in the Catholic Church’s process toward declaring a person a saint.

Sister Bowman, a Mississippi native and the only African-American member of her order, the Wisconsin-based Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, was a widely known speaker, evangelizer and singer until she died of cancer in 1990 at age 52. She even made a presentation at the U.S. bishops’ spring meeting in 1989, moving some prelates to tears.

“The faithful in, and well beyond, the Diocese of Jackson,” have asked for her canonization process to begin, said Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz of Jackson, who became bishop of the diocese in 2014. “Even well before I arrived in Jackson, the requests were coming in.”

Sister Bowman, Bishop Kopacz said, was “an ambassador of Jesus Christ and an apostle of reconciliation,” adding she was “singing, teaching and inspiring until the very end.”

He noted that “the church embraced Sister Thea from her early years, but there were times when she felt like a motherless child.” It never deterred her, though, Bishop Kopacz said. “We pray that Sister Thea’s voice will be a beacon of hope” to victims of clergy sexual abuse.

Bishop Kopacz liberally sprinkled his remarks with quotes from Sister Bowman.

“We unite ourselves with Christ’s redemptive work when we make peace, when we share the good news of God within our hearts,” she once said. “We celebrate the presence and proclamation of the word made flesh. It is never an escape from reality,” she also said.

At another point, Sister Bowman told her audience, “Go! There is a song that will never be sung unless you sing it. … Go tell the world, go preach the Gospel, go tell the good news.”

Sister Bowman was a trailblazer in almost every role: first African-American religious sister from Canton, Mississippi; the first to head an office of intercultural awareness; and the first African-American woman to address the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Sister Bowman led the Jackson Diocese’s Office of Intercultural Awareness, taught at several Catholic high schools and colleges, and was a faculty member of the Institute of Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University in New Orleans.

She took her message across the nation, speaking at church gatherings and conventions, making 100 speaking engagements a year, but spreading cancer slowed her. Music was especially important to her. She would gather or bring a choir with her and often burst into song during her presentations.

In addition to her writings, her music also resulted in two recordings, “Sister Thea: Songs of My People” and “Round the Glory Manger: Christmas Songs and Spirituals.”

When Sister Bowman spoke at the U.S. bishops’ meeting in June 1989, less than a year before her death from bone cancer and confined to a wheelchair, she was blunt. She told the bishops that people had told her black expressions of music and worship were “un-Catholic.”

Sister Bowman disputed that notion, pointing out that the church universal included people of all races and cultures and she challenged the bishops to find ways to consult those of other cultures when making decisions. She told them they were obligated to better understand and integrate not just black Catholics, but people of all cultural backgrounds.

Catholic News Service reported that her remarks “brought tears to the eyes of many bishops and observers.” She also sang to them and, at the end, had them all link hands and join her in singing “We Shall Overcome.”

Boston Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley, who served as bishop of the Diocese of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands from 1985 to 1992, said Nov. 14 that Catholics in his former diocese “really revere Sister Thea and I’m really glad to see this coming to fruition.”

By the mid-1990s, Catholic schools in Gary, Indiana, East St. Louis, Illinois, and Port Arthur, Texas, opened bearing Sister Bowman’s name.

She also was the focus of books, including 1993’s Thea Bowman: Shooting Star — Selected Writings and Speeches, 2008’s This Little Light: Lessons in Living From Sister Thea Bowman, and 2010’s Thea’s Song: The Life of Thea Bowman.

Redemptorist Father Maurice Nutt, observing the 20th anniversary of Sister Bowman’s death in 2010, said he believes the late nun is a saint. Though not officially canonized, “Sister Thea is canonized in the hearts of all who knew and loved her,” he said.

[SOURCE: CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE]

Ben Carson's name may be removed from a high school in his hometown of Detroit

Ben Carson's name may be stripped off a high school in his hometown because he's become 'an affront to Detroit' since joining Donald Trump's administration.

The Benjamin Carson High School of Science and Medicine was named after Carson, a prominent neurosurgeon, in 2011.

But it appeared that members of the Detroit Board of Education have had second thoughts about the name since Carson ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, and later became a member of Trump's cabinet. He currently serves as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

'When you align yourself with Trump, that is a direct affront to the city of Detroit and the students of Detroit,' said board member LeMar Lemmons earlier this year.

On Tuesday, the board voted 6-1 to begin soliciting public opinion on the potential name change.

On Tuesday, the board approved a policy that would allow it to rename schools named after living people, if they feel that person no longer represents the area's culture or population.

Future schools will only be able to be named after people who have died.

One board member suggested the first school to benefit from the new policy should be the Benjamin Carson High School.

Carson's popularity has plummeted since working with the Trump administration.

Read more: Ben Carson's name may be removed from a high school in his hometown of Detroit

Rep. Marcia Fudge weighing a bid for House Speaker

Ohio Democratic Congresswoman Marcia Fudge says she's considering challenging California Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi for House Speaker.

Fudge said she does not believe Pelosi has enough votes to win the job, as many newly elected Democrats promised not to support her. Opponents to Pelosi are seeking an alternative candidate and have approached her about the job.

"People are asking me to do it, and I am thinking about it," Fudge told cleveland.com. "I need to give it some thought and see if I have an interest. I am at the very beginning of this process. It is just in discussion at this point."

Fudge said voters backed Democrats because they wanted a change, and Pelosi doesn't represent that. Fudge is also dismayed that neither of the party's two top leaders, Pelosi and Maryland's Steny Hoyer, is a minority, and said an African American woman should be in leadership.

"When you look at the people who support this party the most, they are women and African Americans and especially African American women," said Fudge. "We keep talking about diversity, but there is nothing diverse about the top of our ticket. We have to not just talk the talk, but walk the walk."

Read more: Rep. Marcia Fudge weighing a bid for House Speaker

Melody Stewart elected to the Ohio Supreme Court

The all-Republican Ohio Supreme Court will become a little Democratic with appeals court Judge Melody Stewart declared a winner on Tuesday night.

Stewart, who serves on the Eighth District Court of Appeals in Cleveland, had about 52 percent of the vote with 99 percent of the precincts counted to displace incumbent Justice Mary DeGenaro, who was appointed in January by Gov. John Kasich after the resignation of Democratic Justice Bill O’Neill.

Stewart, 56, is a member of the Ohio Criminal Justice Recodification Committee, which works to revise and update Ohio’s criminal code. Stewart has a bachelor’s degree from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati and a law degree from Cleveland Marshall College of Law.

[SOURCE: CLEVELAND.COM]

Kwame Raoul elected Illinois attorney general

Obliterating concerns from some Democrats that the race had tightened in the final days, Kwame Raoul cruised to an easy victory Tuesday over Republican Erika Harold to become Illinois’ first new attorney general in 16 years.

Raoul romped to a double-digit win over Harold, a result that tracked closely with major wins piled up by Pritzker and the rest of the party’s statewide candidates.

“All the way to the end, people were saying this was a nail-biter,” Raoul said with a laugh during his victory speech at a downtown hotel. “But numbers don’t lie.”

With 86 percent of the state’s precincts reporting, Raoul had won 54 percent of the vote to Harold’s 43 percent and 2 percent for Libertarian Bubba Harsy of Du Quoin, according to unofficial results.

Raoul’s sizable win left an enthusiastic crowd to greet him at the Fairmont Chicago Millennium Park hotel when he stepped on stage to accept a win that was boosted by a late infusion of campaign cash from Madigan, the state party and major unions.

“This campaign was the audition for the work that is yet to come,” Raoul said before repeating a familiar line from his TV ads. “It’s the work of my life, but I’m just getting started.”

[SOURCE: CHICAGO TRIBUNE]

Letitia James Is Elected New York Attorney General

Letitia James was overwhelmingly elected as the attorney general of New York on Tuesday, shattering a trio of racial and gender barriers and placing herself in position to be at the forefront of the country’s legal bulwark against the policies of President Trump.

With her victory over Republican nominee Keith H. Wofford, Ms. James, 60, the public advocate for New York City, becomes the first woman in New York to be elected as attorney general, the first African-American woman to be elected to statewide office and the first black person to serve as attorney general.

The victory follows a rugged political season that arose after the surprise resignation of former attorney general Eric T. Schneiderman, following charges that he physically abused multiple women. Ms. James will succeed Barbara D. Underwood, who was appointed by the State Legislature in May to complete Mr. Schneiderman’s term.

{SOURCE: NYTIMES]

HBCU graduate Mandela Barnes wins Lieutenant Governor seat in Wisconsin

An Alabama A&M University graduate was elected to the Lieutenant Governor seat in Wisconsin Tuesday night.

Democrat Mandela Barnes, who is actually a Milwaukee native, was named Lieutenant Governor after his running mate, Tony Evers, claimed victory in the early morning hours on Wednesday.

Evers was declared the winner of the governor’s race by the Associated Press at 1:24 a.m, defeating Republican incumbent Scott Walker.

Barnes now becomes Wisconsin’s first African-American Lieutenant Governor.

[SOURCE: WAFF]

Andrew Gillum withdraws concession as Florida recount begins

Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum (D) withdrew his concession to Republican candidate Ron DeSantis in the Florida gubernatorial race on Saturday as a recount in the state begins.

“I am replacing my words of concession with an uncompromised and unapologetic call that we count every single vote," Gillum said at a press conference.

Watch his full statement below:

Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. expresses support for April Ryan

Bernice King, the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. and CEO of The King Center thought President (In Title Only) Trump went to far when he called White House correspondent April Ryan a loser and expressed her support for Ryan via Twitter:

I love you, @AprilDRyan. Thank you for being courageous and asking difficult, necessary questions. Be encouraged.

— Be A King (@BerniceKing) November 9, 2018

April Ryan responds to Trump calling her a loser

President ( In title only) Trump called Journalist April Ryan a loser. He made that comment while whining about revoking the press passes of people who don't show respect to the White House or the office of the presidency which translates into revoking press passes those who don't kiss his a**.

April Ryan as always responded with class and dignity via Twitter:

I love this country and have the most respect for the Office of the President. I will continue to ask the questions that affect America, all of America.

— AprilDRyan (@AprilDRyan) November 9, 2018

Lucy McBath, mother of slain teen Jordan Davis wins U.S. House seat

Lucy McBath, the mother of a slain teen Jordan Davis running on a gun-control platform has won a long held Republican House seat that Georgia Republicans held onto just last year in what was then the nation's most expensive congressional race.

"We've sent a strong message to the entire country," Lucy McBath tweeted on Thursday after Rep. Karen Handel conceded.

"Absolutely nothing – no politician & no special interest – is more powerful than a mother on a mission," she said.

McBath became a spokeswoman for the Everytown for Gun Safety group after her son was slain in a Florida shooting. McBath made gun control a key issue. Her 17-year-old son, Jordan Davis, was fatally shot at a Florida gas station in 2012 by a white man, Michael Dunn who was angry over the loud music the black teenager and his friends had been playing in their car.

A jury rejected Dunn's self-defense claim and convicted him of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2014.

McBath, a former flight attendant, told Elle Magazine she decided to run for office to make a difference on her son's behalf. She said she wanted to work to strengthen gun control especially after the February mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

McBath's margin of victory was narrow enough for Handel to have requested a recount. The Associated Press declared McBath the winner Thursday after Handel conceded.

[SOURCE: CBS NEWS]

Michelle Obama: 'I'd never forgive' Trump for 'birther' conspiracy

Former first lady Michelle Obama reportedly rips President Trump's spreading of the "birther" conspiracy theory against her husband in her upcoming book.

In excerpts from her memoir “Becoming" obtained by The Washington Post, Obama says she will "never forgive" Trump for the "xenophobic" claims that her husband, former President Obama, was not actually born in America.

"The whole thing was crazy and mean-spirited, of course, its underlying bigotry and xenophobia hardly concealed," the former first lady writes. "But it was also dangerous, deliberately meant to stir up the wingnuts and kooks."

“What if someone with an unstable mind loaded a gun and drove to Washington? What if that person went looking for our girls? Donald Trump, with his loud and reckless innuendos, was putting my family’s safety at risk. And for this I’d never forgive him," she continues.

The book is set to be released Tuesday.

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

Andrew Gillum campaign issues statement on possibility of a recount

Officials with the Andrew Gillum for Governor campaign have released a statement regarding the results of the Florida governor's race and his decision to concede to opponent Ron DeSantis.

Gillum for Governor communications director Johanna Cervone made the following statement:

"On Tuesday night, the Gillum for Governor campaign operated with the best information available about the number of outstanding ballots left to count. Since that time, it has become clear there are many more uncounted ballots than was originally reported. Our campaign, along with our attorney Barry Richard, is monitoring the situation closely and is ready for any outcome, including a state-mandated recount. Mayor Gillum started his campaign for the people, and we are committed to ensuring every single vote in Florida is counted."