Primary
Results, Democracy Threatened?…
A few thoughts about the February 19th primary…
The results of the Supreme Court race weren't terribly surprising. There was little doubt that Justice
Roggensack would advance and with the support of many key groups, Ed Fallone,
was in good shape to be her opposition in April's election. We should expect the usual Supreme Court race
in Wisconsin
to shape up over the next few weeks.
This means lots of rhetoric, lots of money from influential groups, and
enough negative advertising to make everyone uncomfortable and frustrated with
the process.
It should be well understood by all Wisconsinites that this race will
have a huge impact on our state's immediate future. The way that legislation and policy is made
under the Walker administrations rule insures that our courts will see lots of
litigation and will play a pivotal role in deciding what laws and actions are
implemented.
If you remove the
obvious connections that Roggensack has to the conservative base in Wisconsin, I still have
significant concerns about her philosophy as a justice. I have always believed that our system of
government relied on "checks and balances" between the different
branches to prevent any single entity from becoming the sole holder of
power. The Supreme Court exists as the
final arbitrator in disputes over the constitutionality of any act by the
executive or legislative branches.
Justice Roggensack operates under the belief that she should work to, "…Continue to uphold the legislative intent of the
state Senate and Assembly." A
belief that I heard her articulate on Vickie McKenna's radio show last week as
well. Shouldn't our justices work to
uphold the state Constitution and not the intent of the legislature?
The low turnout is an embarrassment and
demonstrates the unwillingness of our state's citizens to fulfill their
responsibilities as the cornerstone of democracy. Is
it really a democratic action if only about 1 in 10 people participate? The fact that we saw such a poor turnout in a
state that should recognize the importance of any election shows us that we
still haven't learned our lessons from the recent past. We must do everything possible to get more
people to the polls in April or we will continue to face a government that only
represents the few and not the many.
We are becoming a society of special interests and
this is undermining our government's ability to govern and our ability to
function as a unified nation. The fact of the matter is that with a small number
of voters participating, these off year elections have become an opportunity
for special interest groups to insert themselves into the power structure of
our government. With most people sitting
out the elections it only takes a small number of dedicated voters to swing an
election in any direction. The
candidates who are elected wield the same representative power if they receive
the votes of 6% of the population as if they garner the support of 96% of the
eligible voters. Suddenly our
"representative democracy" really isn't so representative is it?
Of equal concern is the continuing division of the
electorate into special interest groups based on demographics or other unifying
interests. As our nation stratifies along racial, gender,
religious, economic or other lines we see less cooperation among groups and
more "infighting" between those whose interests are often very
similar. This can be observed in the
conflicts that arise in efforts to address issues like the Achievement Gaps in
our schools, the disparity in incarceration rates, the economic inequalities
that exist in our nation and in countless other areas where we see injustice
and inequality in our society.
That our nation has some
huge problems dealing with issues of social justice shouldn't be a surprise to
anyone. Yet our ways of dealing with
them are in many cases hampering efforts to address the problems we face. Instead of uniting together and finding
common ground we often find ourselves forming task forces, committees, or
organizations that in themselves are segregated and divisive.
As a white, middle-class
(for now) male should my opinions about issues of race or gender be of lesser
value? Shouldn't I have just as much
interest in resolving the challenges we face and improving the opportunities
for all my fellow citizens? Wouldn't we
find more lasting and powerful solutions if our organizing efforts centered
around finding common ground across all demographics instead of only reaching
out to those who are "directly impacted"? Aren't we all impacted by the inequities that
exist for any of our citizens?
Of course it is difficult
to mobilize widespread support for an issue that appears to only impact a smaller
demographic group. Take for example some
of these statistics for African-American citizens of Dane County
(this information was compiled by the Urban League of Greater Madison).
·
In
2011, 25.2% of Blacks in Dane
County were unemployed
compared to 4.8% of Whites.
·
Just
55.6% of Black men and 62.6% of Black women in Dane County
were employed in 2010 compared to 72% of White men and 68% of White women.
·
In
2011, the median household income for Blacks in Dane
County was $20,664, less than 1/3 the “median
income” of White households in Dane
County ($63,673). It was
also less than the household income for Blacks statewide ($24,399) and
nationwide ($33,223). This means that the majority of Blacks in Dane County
live in poverty while most whites are upper middle class.
·
Contrary
to what some believe, only 8.1% of Blacks in Dane County
drew cash public assistance in 2010. However, this was much higher than the .9%
rate among Whites. Additionally, 34.2% of all Blacks in Dane County received Food stamps/SNP benefits
because their low-incomes qualified them for it.
·
In
2011, 74.8% of Black children in Dane
County were living in
poverty compared to 5.5% of White children. The poverty rate among Black
children in Dane County was 50% higher than the poverty
rate among Black children statewide, and nearly twice as high as the black
child poverty rate nationwide. The poverty rate among Black children grew from
less than 50% in 2006 to 75% in 2011, while the poverty rate among White
children remained stable.
·
In
2010, 86% of all Black, 85% of all Latino, 49% of Asian and 18% of White
students enrolled in the Madison Metropolitan School District were poor
(qualified for free-and-reduced price lunch). Students of color now comprise
55% of the total enrollment in MMSD (2012-13 school year).
·
In
2011, nearly half (48.1%) of Dane
County’s Black third
graders failed to meet proficiency standards in reading, compared to 10.9% of
White third graders. Similarly, nearly half (47.7%) of Dane County’s
Black eighth graders failed to meet proficiency standards in math, compared to
10.4% of White eighth graders.
·
In
2012, 50% of Black students attending the Madison Metropolitan School District
(MMSD), Dane County’s largest public school system
and the state’s second largest, failed to graduate from high school.
·
Just
3% of Black high school seniors attending all four of MMSD’s comprehensive high
schools in 2011-12 were academically ready for college according to high school
graduation rates and results from the ACT college entrance exam.
·
In
2010, only 20% of Blacks age 25 and older held bachelor’s degrees compared to
46% of Whites, 14% of Hmong and 22% of Hispanics.
·
In
2010, just 19% of Blacks in Dane
County owned their homes
while 81% were renters. The same year, 64% of Whites owned their homes while
34% rented. This was the exact same rate of homeownership for Blacks in Dane County
1990.
·
In
2010, Blacks owned less than 1% of all businesses in Dane County,
while comprising 5% of the County’s total population.
·
In
2011, according to data provided by the Wisconsin Department of Commerce’s
Bureau of Minority Business Development and City of Madison,
there were are only four black-owned businesses with 10 or more full-time
employees in Dane
County.
·
Low
marriage rates are also challenging the wealth accumulation and financial
stability of Black families more than other groups in Dane County.
In 2010, 55% of Black women in Dane
County were not married,
compared to 33% of White, 40% of Hmong and 35% of Latino women.
·
In
2010, 75% of Black births in Dane County were to unmarried mothers, compared to 20% of
White births in Dane
County. This was somewhat
consistent with national trends, as 73% of Black births and 29% of White births
were to unmarried mothers the same year. While births to single mothers were 4
times higher among Blacks than Whites in Wisconsin
in 2010, the Black child poverty rate was 14 times greater than that of Whites.
·
In
2006, a study by a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor found that 47% of
African American males between the ages of 25-29 in Dane County
were either incarcerated, on probation or under some form of court supervision.
This percentage continues to hover around 45% with a significant number of men
who’ve been released from jail and prison reporting significant difficulties
with finding employment.
Startling statistics,
definitely. The Urban League uses these
statistics as a rallying call to gather members of the African-American
community to work to address them. I
certainly don't challenge the need for members of this community to work to
address issues that directly impact them, but also argue that the conditions of
any group impacts our community as a whole.
Will any group, operating in relative isolation be able to impact their
situation as effectively as the same group operating united with others in the
community? Taking the Civil Rights
Movement as an example it appears clear to me that it is only through
increasing the diversity in a movement can we hope to create real change.
The reality of modern America is that
a vast majority of our population, independent of race or ethnicity, is losing
their ability to influence their socio-economic conditions. The loss of power is used as a wedge to
separate groups and to increase the status and power of those with access to
decision makers. This is another reason
why inequality shouldn't be an issue addressed by any single demographic
group. If we don't work to educate and
engage all people then we will see a majority of citizens operate under the
false assumption that certain issues don't impact them.
The challenge is to find
ways to bring people together and to make the issues of inequality relevant to
all people. It is too easy for any of us
to ignore the challenges faced by others and concentrate solely on our own
interests. This problem is compounded by
the existing prejudices and stereotypes that members of different communities
have regarding each other. We are a
society that is divided in so many ways.
The problems we face are
compounded by the rhetoric and hyperbole that is thrown around in public
forums. For example, there were several
comments after the school board primary that Madison's electorate was racist because
Ananda Mirilli finished 3rd. I can't
speak for all the voters, but most of the people I know voted for the candidate
of their choice based on other criteria than race or even gender. I also can't speak about the politics that
may or may not have gone on behind the scene.
The unfortunate reality of our current situation is that every action is
viewed through a lens of mistrust, skepticism and outright dislike for those
with opposing views. This isn't to
discount the real racism that does exist, but I believe that to make blanket
statements about large groups of people does more harm than good.
The need for unity between
groups and diversity in coalitions formed to promote positive change goes way
beyond issues around race or ethnicity.
Any group that is working to create a power base to operate from needs
to engage multiple groups in order to succeed.
Public employees can't win their fight without the support of all
labor. Defenders of public education
can't successfully defend our public schools without going to the community as
a whole. We must even try to engage our
opponents in dialog and build relationships with those who have opposing
viewpoints whenever possible.
In the end we must
continue to work at the individual level to create unity out of the separations
that are entrenched in all aspects of our national culture. We need to find ways to celebrate our
differences while building an identity as a nation that is working towards
meeting the lofty expectations that we have so often expressed for our society. We must remain conscious of our existing
challenges while looking towards a future where we can see beyond our
differences and recognize the value that every person has in a just and fair civilization.
Education
Races…
The upcoming races for
Seats 3, 4 and 5 on Madison's
School Board will be very important as the district faces important issues and
decisions during the next year. This
board will face continuing pressure to privatize our schools in order to
address the achievement gap. It will
also be instrumental in the continually evolving labor relations situation that
has been created by the actions of state Republicans. They will also be working with a new
superintendent who will very likely bring some new philosophies and ideas to
the discussions around Madison's
public schools.
host.madison.com
One of the races, that for Seat #5, changed dramatically as Sarah Manski withdrew from the race. This just after winning the primary election on Tuesday.
http://m.isthmus.com/article.php?article=39175
Tony
Evers also will be involved in an important race for State Superintendent of
Public Instruction. It should be obvious
that we public schools in Wisconsin
can't afford to have a conservative who supports privatization and cuts to
education in office at the state level.
Tony Evers has spoken against the "reforms" offered by
Governor Walker and other GOP officials.
It's
Not About Education…
What is immensely frustrating to supporters of
public education is the reality that so many of the "reforms" offered
to "fix" our schools have very little to do with education. Instead of addressing the real needs of our
educational system, we are seeing initiatives launched that promote profits for
a few and advance the goals of special interest groups over proposals that
would benefit a majority of our students.
One example of this is the effort to expand the
voucher system to more Wisconsin school
districts. Whether these vouchers are
for students in general education, or those with special needs the impact on
school districts and the families they serve are negative and harmful.
Kenosha school board unanimous in opposition to private school
vouchers | Institute for Wisconsin's.
Even businesses in education
aren't exempt from the unfair practices imposed by GOP leaders.
Scott Walker's budget contains
many parts that harm our public schools.
We are supposed to be grateful for any increases in funding after
decimating public school's finances in the last budget, but these "modest
increases" are at best a token offering.
At worst they are a smokescreen to make Walker appear moderate to the masses as we
build towards a 2014 gubernatorial race.
If nobody who is directly involved in education seems to support Walker's proposals, then
whose interests does this budget represent?
Gov. Scott Walker's 2013-14 budget is even more radical than
his last one, belying his new 'moderate
Budget fight could be looming in the state Senate : Ct
There
is no denying that the continuing assault on public education and educators has
had an impact on those in the profession.
We
can't afford to ignore the continuing assaults on all public employees in Wisconsin. Public educators are only one part of the
public employee ranks.
