Explore African American Boston area politics in neighborhoods majority Black, Asian and Latino.
Black Boston Community Politics with Basic Black on TV and more..
It is still history when an African American runs for high political offices and wins. The first blacks were elected to the Massachusetts General Court in 1866 as state legislators. Senator Ed Brooke (a Republican ) was the first African American elected to the US Senate by popular vote. Massachusetts elected its first African American Governor in 2006.
Jacquolyn Payne-Thompson is an African American Native American woman running for a seat on Governor's Council this year.
Seen Live: Aug 7,2010 ...read the WIKIleaks web site and the AP Wire story about where an important hard drive cabinet is that stores documents published on the internet by WikiLeaks. Its in Sweden!
Saw in our Twittertimeline accounts from TITO JACKSON who reported there were 300 people at Governor Patrick's Campaign 2010 stop held August 7th in QUINCY,MA.
Another public party event produced by the Campaign Committee to Elect Deval Patrick 2010 comes up on August 25th at the Royale concert arena.
Yep, it looks like Election Year 2010 is coming into a full swing.
Sorry to hear about the Political Troubles facing Reps Rangel and Waters. Obama, in our opinon, is doing a find job but his administration just spent $56 bil on another bad US war situation. The money goes into the states via contracts to the textile belt, the military industrial complex firms and so on. The cash is circulating into soldier's careers and back into the US economy; that's good. But its time to "shut it down and get out," borrowing a phrase from Gil Scott Heron.
May we appeal to you about this political committee finance law improvement suggestion:
When people decide to run for office, especially people willing to run who have to work a full time job and campaign after they get off work, then why not allow their Committee Elects to pay them as employees while they run for public office? So many others from the "deserving poor" class in our communities might jump at the chance to run for office if they didn't have everyday bills to pay while running for office on no salary.
This is who is running: It is not a problem for the well-to-do to run for an office. Middle class citizens have to juggle while they struggle to win. And, the Deserving Poor cannot afford to campaign and expect to win, really! The submerged tenth is not to be forgotten either.. tweet @blackboston
See Basic Black TV on WGBH 2 and talk with Greater Boston's African American community about black issues online at the network site.
The April 29th show topic was "The Black Agenda" and panelists tackled the issue of what should be "The "Black Agenda." You can view the full episode online.
On the show were panelists Rev. Ray Hammond, Senior Pastor Bethel AME; Kim McLarin, writer-in-residence, Emerson College; Callie Crossley, The Callie Crossley Show on WGBH 89.7; Charles Ogletree, professor of law, Harvard Law School; and Darnell Williams, Executive Director of the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts.
REMEMBERING NOV 3, 2009 night of - the nerve of Boston's intellectual elite was captured that year, when editorial page authors of neighborhood-focused newspapers advised readers to VOTE for two African Americans, and one Latino candidate for three of four possible Boston City Council at-large open seats. Elections are over, and the winners have emerged. An African-American woman won an at-large seat on the Boston City Council for the first time ever. Close by in Newton, Massachusetts an African American male was elected Mayor - the first popular-elected black mayor in Massachusetts history!
Courtesy of the National Museum of American History
Smithsonian photographers created this composite image of the Star-Spangled Banner in 2004 from 73 separate photographs. The flag's large size (30-by-34 feet) prevented photographers from capturing it in one image while conservators worked on it in the specially-built conservation lab.
OBAMA'S MESSAGE TO BOSTON AND BEYOND in 2008, when George Bush was your President
"Black Boston politics, and all government politics for that matter, is about the control and redistribution of fixed limited resources, such as cash paid by citizens and businesses as taxes or fees, and the land and natural resources held by the governing authority" says ABB.
LABOR lined downtown streets to pay their respects to the Honorable Senator Edward Kennedy on August 27th at 4:15 p.m. His motorcade traveled the Big Dig highway tunnel system and surfaced near labor union members who assembled on Atlantic avenue. It rode past the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway where Ted Kennedy's personal investment initiated the building of greenway parks. In 1974, Bill Owens became the first African-American elected to the Massachusetts state Senate. Dianne Wilkerson was the first African American woman elected to the Massachusetts Senate. Running on the Democratic party ticket, she took office in 1993 and lost the 2008 Primary election by a bit over 200 votes to challenger Sonia Chang-Diaz.
The Honorable Edward Brooke, was the first African American to be elected by popular vote to the United States Senate when he was elected as a Republican from Massachusetts in 1966. In 1866, the first African-American legislators in New England were elected.
And, Ralph Martin was the first African-American elected (1992 to 2002) Suffolk County (Boston) district attorney while Andrea J. Cabral was elected in 2004 when she became the first Black female Sheriff of Suffolk County.
Among the current Boston City Council officeholders are two African Americans: Charles Yancey, Mattapan and Chuck Turner represents the Roxbury district.
As of December, 2008 - this information about black elected officials is NOT a complete accounting of the African Americans who have been elected to public offices in Massachusetts. Its close! But, you should Dig Deeper!! to get more history.
You could start by considering the Boston Banner Newspaper archives or call to speak to someone at the Banner that knows. The Banner is Boston's oldest black media source for news and information in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, we think?
The telephone number for the Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus may change from one political election season to another. That's because of fluctuating changes in the legislative body. The House and Senate leaders can reassign office locations and committee responsibilities.
The Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus [(photo) State Representative Gloria Fox, Vice-Chair, Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus 2/08 e-mail: Rep.GloriaFox@Hou.State.MA.US. ]
The MBLC is an association of Black Massachusetts State legislators who have pooled their political skills and experiences in order to facilitate the development and power of people of color throughout Massachusetts. This is accomplished by voter registration drives, newsletter circulation, press conferences, open forums and workshops, speaker services, support for community groups, and activities for non-elected members and youth.
A HISTORY SHORT ABOUT BOSTON BLACK POLITICS - Ward 9 was home to Laurence Banks, Boston’s first black city councilor. Shag Taylor's drugstore on Tremont Street was the headquarters of Democratic politics in the black community going back to the days of Mayor James Michael Curley, noted the Boston Banner newspaper in its 11/20/08 issue.
video file: Deval Patrick, Massachusetts Governor endorses Senator Barrack Obama for President of the United States
On WGBH PBS Channel 2 some time ago: a 1hr 52minute (real player video) fea. Deval Patrick, when he was a former US Assistant Civil Rights Attorney. Its about "William Lloyd Garrison" and the abolition of slavery and the black Boston community network long ago.
The Niagara Movement 1905-1909, established a civil rights movement and led to the founding of the NAACP. (view more)
Dial up the Boston NAACP at (617) 438-5816.
Dial up BCIC - Boston's Black Community Information Center at (617) 216-1705.
Bruce Marks - stands up for the "average Joes." He has been chosen 2007 BOSTONIAN OF THE YEAR by the Boston Globe newspaper.
Viewofficial Massachusetts State Election Results including: Candidates, Ballot Questions, Current Voter Statistical Reports: stats, stats, stats.
\\The Governor// is head of the executive branch and serves as chief administrative officer of the state and as commander-in-chief of the Massachusetts' military forces. His or her responsibilities include preparation of the annual budget, nomination of all judicial officers, the granting of pardons (with the approval of the governor's Council), appointments of the heads of most major state departments, and the acceptance or veto of each bill passed by the Legislature. Several Executive Offices have also been established, each headed by a Secretary appointed by the Governor, much like the president's Cabinet.
The Governor may recommend new policies for Massachusetts, new legislation, and changes in the administration of departments that conduct the government from day to day. He or she has the power to order out the National Guard to meet domestic emergencies, and is Massachusetts chief spokesman with the federal government.
Results (unofficial) of the 2006 Race for Massachusetts Governor were: Democrat candidate Deval Patrick won with 1,230,065 votes. Republican candidate Lt. Gov Kerry Healy received 779,807 votes. Independent candidate Christy Mihos had 161,012 and Green Party candidate Grace Ross received 43,032 votes.
During the primary race for Governor, the state certified results were: Patrick received 452,229 votes; Gabrieli received 248,301, and Atty Gen Reilly received 211,031 votes.
See Basic Black TV on WGBH 2 and talk with Greater Boston's African American community about black issues online at the network site.
LABOR lined downtown streets to pay their respects to the Honorable Senator Edward Kennedy on August 27th at 4:15 p.m. His motorcade traveled the Big Dig highway tunnel system and surfaced near labor union members who assembled on Atlantic avenue. It rode past the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway where Ted Kennedy's personal investment initiated the building of greenway parks.
In 1974, Bill Owens became the first African-American elected to the Massachusetts state Senate. Dianne Wilkerson was the first African American woman elected to the Massachusetts Senate. Running on the Democratic party ticket, she took office in 1993 and lost the 2008 Primary election by a bit over 200 votes to challenger Sonia Chang-Diaz.
The Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus
