Virginia NAACP Gala Photos; VP Kamala Harris Interview with Roland Martin; Harris-Walz Rolls Out Black Male Agenda; AI and Historic Racism
🚩 Early voting started on Sept. 20, 2024
🚩 There are 19 days left to vote early in Virginia. The last day of early voting in Virginia is Nov. 2, 2024
🚩 There are 22 days until Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024
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Photos: Virginia NAACP Gala in Williamsburg
All photos 📷 by Paulette Shipman Singleton
WILLIAMSBURG, VA — The Virginia NAACP held their state convention in Williamsburg on a busy weekend that included Virginia State University’s homecoming and several other events.
Melanie Campbell, President of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, was the keynote at the annual Virginia NAACP Gala. She was joined by Virginia NAACP President Cozy Bailey, Congressman Bobby Scott and Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan who also made remarks.
The protection of voting rights was a main topic of the evening days after Virginia was sued by the Department of Justice for allegedly purging voters from the rolls.
📍RELATED: 6 Ways Glenn Youngkin's GOP is Targeting Voters for Removal or Making Voting Harder (Sept. 2023)
Early voting started in Virginia on September 20 and ends on November 2. There are 22 days left until election day on November 5.
VP Kamala Harris Talks on How Black Voters Were Targeted by Russian Misinformation in 2016
“I have to say to everybody listening to this. Don’t let them take your voice. I was part of the Senate Intelligence Committee when we investigated Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. Black folks were targeted,” Vice President Harris told Roland Martin on Oct. 13 in North Carolina during and exclusive interview.
As new polling is showing that the race between Harris and former President Donald Trump is tightening, Republicans are relying on fear and lying to win. MAGA Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene lied about the government controlling the weather in a communication on social media on Oct. 9 as Hurricane Milton threatened Florida. With no evidence and multiple court defeats behind him, Trump continues to tell the “big lie” that President Biden didn’t defeat him in 2020 even though Biden won over Trump with over 7 million votes. The entire interview can be seen below.
“There is an intent to suggest to a lot of folks that their vote won’t matter.. which is an attempt to silence votes. What we’ve learned is that the greatest progress has been achieved when we jump over the obstacles that have been purposefully laid to do what we know is about progress. This election is going to be no different. They’ve already started with the misinformation in the lies. We know that there is foreign interference,” the Vice President said.
Vice President Harris spoke on housing prices, taxes, voter apathy and mentioned Trump’s lack of fitness for office during a 30 minute exclusive interview with Martin in North Carolina.
Oct 14: New Policy Targeting Black Men Announced
This morning the Harris-Walz campaign announced new policy proposals focused on Black men.
“Vice President Kamala Harris has unveiled an extensive agenda designed to dismantle systemic barriers and foster new opportunities for Black men across America,” wrote Stacy Brown for Black Press USA.
Though it did not come up in the interview, the Harris campaign has had to refocus on Black male voters after former President Barack Obama, a top Democratic surrogate, pointedly stated on Oct. 10 in Pittsburgh that some Black male voters may not be supporting the President because of misogyny.
Black Press USA: “Harris’s economic plan centers on wealth-building and supporting Black entrepreneurship. Her administration would provide one million forgivable loans, each up to $20,000, to help Black men and others who have faced significant barriers to starting a business. By partnering with community banks and mission-driven lenders, Harris aims to make capital accessible to Black entrepreneurs looking to launch or expand businesses in fields ranging from technology to landscaping and beyond.” READ ENTIRE
AI, Bank Loans and Historic Racism
Paige Gross for the Virginia Mercury 💵 In a recent study evaluating how chatbots make loan suggestions for mortgage applications, researchers at Pennsylvania’s Lehigh University found something stark: there was clear racial bias at play.
With 6,000 sample loan applications based on data from the 2022 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, the chatbots recommended denials for more Black applicants than identical white counterparts. They also recommended Black applicants be given higher interest rates, and labeled Black and Hispanic borrowers as “riskier.”
White applicants were 8.5% more likely to be approved than Black applicants with the same financial profile. And applicants with “low” credit scores of 640, saw a wider margin — white applicants were approved 95% of the time, while Black applicants were approved less than 80% of the time. READ ENTIRE
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