Black Politicians

Why Black Firsts Matter

Michele Elam | Posted 01.09.2012

Michele Elam

Wikipedia may keep a running tab on "African American firsts" but apart from maintaining a historical record, why should they really matter at all in this so-called post-Civil Rights, post-race era?

Did a White Sheriff and District Attorney Orchestrate a Race-Based Coup in a Northern Louisiana Town?

Jordan Flaherty | Posted 05.25.2011

Jordan Flaherty

In Waterproof, Louisiana, the African American mayor and police chief assert that they have been forced from office and arrested as part of an illegal coup carried out by an alliance of white politicians.

Statewide Races a Challenge for Black Politicians?

Pamela Gentry | Posted 05.25.2011

Pamela Gentry

As recent as 2006, three African-Americans ran for high-profile statewide office on the Republican ticket and all were defeated by considerable margins.

Obama: 2008; Stokes: 1967

Kenneth McGee | Posted 05.25.2011

Kenneth McGee

In 1967 Carl Stokes was elected the first black Mayor of a major American city. He ran before and lost. The astonishing difference, for me, between then and now, is the huge support among white people for Obama

The African American Patriotism Quandary

Leonce Gaiter | Posted 05.25.2011

Leonce Gaiter

America is asking black politicians to prove that they will not use African-America's brutal and humiliating historical experience to guide their behavior.