FORUM
Your Voice Must Be Heard
Barack
Obama
Guest
Columnist
On May 6th, North
Carolinians have the historic
opportunity to decide the
Democratic nomination for
president. The eyes of the world
will be on you.
Ultimately, the choice y?ii
make isn't about either candi
date. It's about our country,
your community, and your fam
ily. It's about what kind of
future we'll leave for our chil
dren and grandchildren. And in
many ways, it's about whether
we continue the same old divi
sive politics of the past, or
whether we work together to
address the great challenges fac
ing our country.
From health care to educa
tion, from poverty to the war in
Iraq, there are so many impor
tant issues we must face as a
country. Yet too often in
Washington, these issues get
ignored - or they fall victim to
the same old political game
we've seen for years.
I'm running for president
because it's time that the voices
of regular Americans are heard
in Washington - not just the
powerful interests.
We cannot continue with a
system where Wall Street
thrives and Main Street crum
bles. o
People across North
Carolina can't find jobs, and the
jobs that are around don't pay
well enough. Our government
has been giving tax breaks to
corporations that ship jobs over
seas instead of giving tax relief
to working families. Folks are
working too long and too hard to
File Photd
A local student registers to vote earlier this year. ,
find out they can't retire because
the bankruptcy laws protect
lenders instead of workers - and
CEOs walk away with golden *
parachutes while pension funds
are sapped. Millions of house
holds are af risk of foreclosure
and millions, more have seen
their home values plunge. In
North Carolina alone, subprime
foreclosures are expected to
total over 22,000 by 2009.
That's why I have put forth
an economic plan that is both
timely and targeted. To reward
work and make retirement
secure, my plan provides a mid
die class tax cut of up to $1 ,000
for working families, and elimi
nates income taxes altogether
for seniors making less than
$50,000 per year. I've also pro
posed a $10 billion Foreclosure
Prevention Fund that would
help vulnerable homeowners
modify their loans to avoid fore
closure or bankruptcy.
We have to put government
back on the side of regular,
hardworking Americans. But
that's just a first step. We also
need to recognize that we're all
in this together. We can restore
the promise of this great coun
try. But to do that, we'll need to
harness the talents and God
given potential of every one of
our citizens.
We also need to improve our
education system because every
child in America should have
the opportunity to receive the
best education this country has
to offer. We need to rebuild our
crumbling schools; invest in
early childhood education; and
recruit an army of new teachers,
and pay them better, and support
them more.
As I said earlier this month
in Philadelphia, 50 years after
Brown vs. Board of Education,
we still haven't done nearly
enough to fix our schools and
ensure educational opportunity
for everyone. Every time a
child drops out of school, or
doesn't learn to read, or doesn't
go to college because his or her
family can't afford tuition - it's
not just the child who loses; it's
our country. All of us have a
stake in this.
But we can only help each
other if we vote for change. The
problems we face are great - but
if we stand together, we can
make a difference. Voter regis
tration in North Carolina is open
until April 11th.
And from April 17 to May 3,
you can take advantage of North
Carolina's "One Stop Early
Vote" option. During those two
weeks, even if you're not regis
tered or have never voted
before, you can register and vote
all at once. To find out how,
visit my website:
nc barackobama.com .
Together, we can restore the
promise of our country. Your
vote, and your voice, can make
the difference.
O
Barack Obama is a U.S.
Senator represeting Illinois. He
is seeking the Democratic nomi
nation for president.
Quality Black Leadership Begins at Home
Gary
Flowers
> ~j
Guest
Columnist
Upon my return from the
recent commemoration of the
life and death of Dr. Martin
Luther King in Memphis, the
lens through which I viewed
leadership was made clearer. I
saw men, women. Blacks,
Whites, poor and wealthy
marching together.
As Dr. King's former aides
such as the Rev. C.T. Vivian,
Dr. Joseph Lowery, Dorothy
Cotton, Ambassador Andrew
Young, Rev. Wyatt Tee
Walker, and Rev. Jesse
Jackson shared the tragic and
triumphant events of the
1950's and 196d's, I consid
ered the question: What made
Dr. King a good leader?
Dr. King began his march
for justice with the personal
challenge: /'if not me, than
whom?"
A sense of Godly duty to
end the isms of the world ?
racism, militarism, totali
tarism ? was his battle charge.
As an aspiring leader. Dr.
King's pursuit of the
"Beloved Community" was
propelled by preparation.
After all, he apprenticed
under intellectual giants such
as Dr. Benjamin Mays, Dr.
Vernon Johns, Ella Baker, and
his father Rev. Martin Luther
King, Sr.
He used the isms of the
world to inspire him toomove
beyond academic analysis to
aggressive action through
membership in the NAACP
and the formation of institu
tions which included the
Southern Christian
Leadership Conference and
the Progressive Baptist
General Convention. The idea
of challenging unjust policies
of the U. S. government
through well-organized insti
tutions rested on hypocrisy of
this nation's words as opposed
to its Ways relative to the
denied anHvdispossessed.
Dr. King's "dream" envi
sioned a day when America
would breach the "broken
promise" of equal protection
under the law and life, liberty,
the pursuit of happiness for all
citizens, regardless of race,
religion, or resources. Forty
years after Dr. King's exam
ple of leadership, today's
leadership model is being re
birthed.
For example, the Black
Leadership Forum, Inc.
(1977), an alliance of 35
national Black organizations -
such as the Congressional
Black Caucus, The Links,
Inc., National Urban League,
100 Black Men of America,
NAACP, The Hip Hop
Caucus, Rainbow PUSH
Coalition, National Council of
Negro Women, Operation
Hope, TransAfrica, National
Pan-Hellenic Council, and the
National Black MBA
Association - is actively
addressing issues in the Black
community on a national and
state level.
The renaissance of
African-American leadership
is shifting the paradigm from
a pyramidal model (one
leader; many followers) to
one in which leaders share a
conversation circle ? a
forum? to affect policy
change for Black people,
based on their respective
areas of expertise. The circu
lar frame ensures that each
national leader has an equal
value radian to the center of
change.
In Dr. King's day and now,
the quality of Black leader
ship is measured by harness
ing the collective competence,
courage, compassion, and
commitment oof informed
leaders toward common
ground goals. The horizontal
connection of BLF member
organization, one to another,
is critical to the further devel
opment of a virtual, vertical
wall ? defensively to protect
the policy interests of Black
people; and offensively to
clearly convey a consensus
policy agenda. Like Dr. King,
today's model of leadership
must reach ordinary folk who
become leaders in their locale.
Conversely, the responsi
bility of ordinary folk who
deride Black leadership must
begin where Dr. King did:
What am I doing to change
the Beloved Community?"
Individuals who are not a
member of a civil rights
organization; have not found
ed qji organization of change;
or do not contribute to a civic
organization relinquish their
right to criticize. All of us are
leaders in one way or another.
We all have talents, resources,
and ideas needed to rid the
world of the i^ms.
But, Leadership begins in
the mirror. Leadership is
informed. Leadership is
inspired. Leadership is insti
tutionalized. Leadership is
idea-oriented.
If it is true that ideas are
intellectual currency, than all
who dare to care must deposit
their ideas in the bank of
truth, justice, and righteous
ness, and invest in building a
better world, beginning with
self. Leadership begins at
home.
? Gary Flowers is the execu
tive director and CEO of the
Black Leadership Forum.
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