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THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
Global Village
Black voters to play
big role in November
By Kendra Desrosiers
As Democrats gear up for
midterm elections in Novem- ber, the Black electorate will play an important role in battleground states. But with all the new political jargon about “climate change,” “green jobs” and the environ- ment, how much will those issues weigh on Black voters? According to a recent poll by the Joint Center for Po- litical and Economic Studies (JCPES), between 74 and 80 percent of African Americans surveyed said they are very likely to vote in key elections.
The poll questioned 500
African Americans in South Carolina, Missouri, Arkan- sas and Indiana on their opinions on climate change and the elections. In the politi- cal area, these are considered battleground states because the races are highly contest- ed.
Two-thirds of the polled
African Americans said they are following news on the mid- term elections closely. And a majority of the respondents said that climate change will be important in choosing a senator.
Because African Americans
traditionally vote for Demo- cratic candidates, high partici- pation rates in the Black com- munity could impact party control in Congress, poten- tially reversing the prediction in favor of the Democrats.
According to Sabato’s Crys-
tal Ball, a publication of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, the majority of the congressional seats rated a toss-up are currently held by Democrats and if elections were to occur today, Republi- cans would gain seven seats in the Senate and 27 in the House of Representatives.
“There’s a lot of states
where Democrats just can’t win unless African Americans turn out at the same rate that they did in 2008,” said Tom Jensen, director of Public Policy Polling, a polling re- search company based in Ra- leigh, NC.
Jensen anticipates a drop
in Black voter turnout by 10 to 11 percent but says it will vary by political race in each state.
“There are some candidates
who are willing to motivate Black voters to come back to the polls just like they did in 2008 for Barack Obama, and there are other candidates who will not inspire African- Americans to vote,” he said.
Of the JCPES respondents,
majorities in each state have already demonstrated favor for particular candidates. Among them, Secretary of State Robin Carnahan (D-Mo.) who is one of two leading candidates vying for the senate seat left open by the retiring Republican, Kit Bond. The other candidate, Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), received neutral approval responses.
“It’s very clear that African
Americans are paying atten- tion to what is going on right now,” said Dr. David Bositis, director of the JCPES poll. “They’re very supportive of President Obama and issues related to climate change. They take those issues very seriously.”
The majority of respon-
dents said they believe the Senate should pass legisla- tion to reduce greenhouse gas emissions before the next election. This is an issue that some relate to increase in jobs and reduction of the Black un- employment rate.
“Republicans will lose
votes that they could possibly win from Blacks, the young, and working class Americans if this issue is successfully framed as boosting Ameri- ca’s stagnant economy,” said Katherine Tate, University of California Irvine professor and author of the upcoming book, “What’s Going On? Political Incorporation and the Trans- formation of Black Opinion.”
Tate says the environment
has never been aggressively linked to the Black political agenda. She attributes the strong interest to Al Gore’s leadership as vice president to his interest in the environ- ment for which he has since received the Nobel Peace Prize. Now, President Obama has successfully linked his green policies with job creation.
Jacqueline Patterson con-
siders the support a natural extension of a historical re- lationship between African Americans and the environ-
For this unapologetic capital- ist, one of the keys to social betterment for African Ameri- cans is for Blacks to become less bashful about their yearn- ing for ownership, and less easily deterred from pursuing it.
Based in St. Louis, the
President Obama
ment. “We’re building on existing
practices,” said Patterson, di- rector of the NAACP Climate Gap Initiative.
Patterson believes that
gardening and frequent use of public transportation are among the activities that have kept the African-American community in “sustainable mode” and leaders in the envi- ronment.
“We’re willing to put our
money where our values are,” Patterson said.
According to her, extreme
weather, displacement and health concerns are among the issues influencing Black opinion and the commitment to fight climate change eco- nomically.
The majority of the polled
African Americans said they would pay an additional $10 per month on their electric bill to curb global warming. More than a quarter said they would pay up to $25 per month. De- spite a tumultuous economy and high unemployment rates, respondents were clear on their willingness to make a fi- nancial commitment.
In closely contested races,
the need for candidates to be in tune with the issues impor- tant to their constituency will be ever-pressing. Despite the strong interest in environmen- tal issues, they will not take priority.
“Voters of all stripes say
that their number one thing is jobs and the economy,” Jensen said. “What is going to be most important for Demo- crats to get across is that put- ting the Republicans back in charge is not going to make things better, but the policies pressed in Obama’s pursuit will take some time to really make an impact.”
According to Jensen, Dem-
ocrats will ultimately need to be successful beyond Black voters and push more than green issues.
“There are still many, many
more White people in the country than Black people. If Democrats completely lose the White voters like 70-30 — and that’s what we’re seeing in some races — then it’s not going to matter how many Af- rican Americans turn out,” Jensen said. “The Democrats will still lose.”
Black
millionaires buy Dallas Hotel
By Imani Evans
(NNPA) — “It’s symbolic,
actually, because the ability to own does produce job oppor- tunities in leadership roles for other African Americans.”
So says Michael V. Roberts,
chairman and CEO of the Rob- erts Companies and one of the country’s most successful Af- rican-American businessmen.
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company consists of a multi- tude of business ventures in- cluding hotels (11 hotels in 10 different cities), television sta- tions (one-half of all the Black- owned stations remaining in the U.S. are under the Roberts umbrella) and wireless phone service (including a lucrative and innovative partnership with Sprint PCS).
Strangely, for a man who
heads a business organiza- tion that consists of more than 76 companies, and who was recently profiled on CNN’s “Blacks in America 2” televi- sion special along with his brother, Roberts is relatively unknown within the African- American community. At first glance, this seems at odds with his apparent willingness to tout his achievements to all who are interested. To hear Roberts tell it, the fact that he’s not a household name may be part of a larger phe- nomenon — the general un- willingness to widen the story of Black America to include hard-charging entrepreneurs like himself.
“If we were in a communist
nation, we’d be called com- munists,” Roberts said. “But we live in a capitalist nation, therefore we’re capitalists. So if we’re capitalists, where’s our Black capitalist history? Why aren’t we as interested in teaching capitalism through history as we are slavery and civil rights? It’s so easy to write about Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, but for some reason it doesn’t seem that easy to write about Mike Rob- erts.”
A lawyer by training, he
has given speeches at col- leges and universities across the country. He has coined the word “actionnaire,” which he defines as “one who takes their dreams, their ideas, their aspiration, their vision, and pursues it with courage and bravado.”
The Dallas Examiner (TDE)
caught up with Roberts just a few days after the ribbon cut- ting for the newly renovated Roberts Marriott Courtyard in Dallas, purchased by the Rob- erts Group in 2006.
The Dallas Examiner: What
can you tell us about the new hotel?
Roberts: We’re the largest
African-American hotel group in America. We have 11 hotels, which translates to over 2,000 rooms. Our hotels have res- taurants, spa facilities, busi- ness centers, etc. This hotel in Dallas may be the only Af- rican-American-owned hotel, I’m not sure, but it’s certainly the newest and best Marriott in the state. It’s totally reno- vated, with the new prototype layout, if you will. Of our 11 hotels, five are managed by African-American women. It’s interesting to note that, with all the hotels that exist out here, why is it that very few if any have general managers that are African American and yet all of ours do?
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April 21-27, 2010 Page A-2
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