Civil Rights

Former Republican Hispanic Outreach Chief Blasts GOP "Hate," Registers as Democrat

That GOP need to build bridges to the nation's Hispanic community? The need party elders have talked so much about since Barack Obama was re-elected largely due to Hispanic support? The need that's propelled Florida's own Marco Rubio to preeminence in the early scouting reports on the GOP 2016 presd ... More >>

Obama's Inaugural Speech Mentions Gays, Long Voting Lines

If you found yourself saying, "Hey! He's talking about me!" during Barack Obama's inaugural speech, it's because you either waited in line to vote for many hours or you're gay or both! During the speech for his second inauguration, Obama made references to two items that are of great importance to ... More >>

Feds Tell Florida: You Can't Purge Voters -- There Are Laws About That

Gov. Rick Scott's campaign to purge "noncitizens" from the voter rolls less than three months before a primary election violates federal law, according to the Department of Justice.In a letter sent yesterday to Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner, the chief of the DOJ's voting section gave Detzne ... More >>

Allen West Turns Black History Month Into Attack on Democrats

​Last Wednesday, Congressman Allen West took to the House floor to commemorate Black History Month. As the first black congressman from Florida since Reconstruction, he was in a unique position to do so. West had hundreds of years of history he could have talked about, including 51 years of his ow ... More >>

Slavery by Another Name in Florida

​Last year, when Gov. Rick Scott and his cabinet enacted an archaic ban on the voting rights of ex-felons, supporters called the ban colorblind. They said making nonviolent felons wait five years after completing their sentences to apply for the right to vote again had nothing to do with Florida's ... More >>

Rick Scott Pleads Ignorance About Felon Voting Rights

I had no idea this was bad policy!​Here's a fun way to defend a racist restriction on voting rights: First, claim the new rule is colorblind. Then, when black legislators get angry, plead ignorance. Say you had no idea the rule was draconian compared to policies in most of the country.This is Gov. ... More >>

Dear Federal Court: Please Help Florida Suppress the Vote

Racism? Not here.​To: U.S. District Court From: Florida Secretary of State Kurt Browning We're having a small problem with voting down here in Florida. In May, our Legislature passed some brilliant new requirements designed to crack down on unnecessary voters -- specifically, people who are poor, ... More >>

New Voting Laws in Florida and 13 Other States May Affect 5 Million Eligible Voters, Study Says

​New voting laws passed in 14 states -- states that control 171 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win a presidential election -- could make voting "significantly harder" for more than 5 million people who are actually eligible to vote, according to a new study.As many as 1 million of those peop ... More >>

Rick Scott and Cabinet's Decision for Ex-Con Voting Hurdles Seems Bogus, Study Implies

prwatch.org​As much as Gov. Rick Scott likes to make the rules, it looks like his Cabinet's idea for making new hurdles for ex-convicts to have their civil rights restored was pulled out of their collective asses, according to implications from a recent study by the Florida Parole Commission.The s ... More >>

ACLU To Florida: "Two Lawsuits. Three Days Apart. And It's Only The Beginning."

aclufl.orgACLU of Florida's Howard Simon​The American Civil Liberties Union says Florida is "ground zero" in their fight for civil liberties -- which explains why it filed two lawsuits in three days against Gov. Rick Scott-approved legislation.The ACLU filed two federal lawsuits last week -- o ... More >>

Bill Nelson Warns Rick Scott to Veto Election Bill or Face a Federal Investigation

State lawmakers want to keep people from having sex with animals. U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson wants to keep lawmakers from screwing voters.​Although it seems like Gov. Rick Scott will make the bold and progressive move of banning bestiality, he still plans to screw voters. The election overhaul bill, wh ... More >>

Muslim Group "Welcomes Elimination of Osama Bin Laden"

Flickr/ Bird Eye Muslims protesting terrorism after the attacks in Mumbai. ​The Council on American -Islamic Relations is self-described as "America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization." CAIR positions itself as a peaceful organization that denounces terrorism and seeks to b ... More >>

Voter Suppression Back in Style; Let's Party Like It's 1869

Screw the 15th Amendment. This is Florida.​Florida's legislative attack on voter rights easily passed the House last week and looks like it will surely sail through the Senate to become law. We're not alone, though. Our state's attempt to disenfranchise a massive amount of its citizens is actuall ... More >>

Civil Rights Group Says Rick Scott Violated The Voting Rights Act With New Restrictions On Felons

Wave bye bye to your voting rights​A few weeks ago, Rick Scott reintroduced Florida to Jim Crow-style voting laws, which essentially disenfranchise a large percentage of African Americans and just so happen to boost Scott's chances at reelection. The law brought back draconian restrictions on felo ... More >>

Why Felon Voting Rights Matter, by the Numbers (Rick Scott's Worst Nightmare)

Rick Scott was elected by a very small margin -- one that ex-felons could destroy.​We've told you about Rick Scott's new ban on felon voting rights, which returns Florida to a racist era of stamping out African-American votes. Many people have suggested that by prohibiting felons from voting for f ... More >>

Rick Scott Returns Florida to Reconstruction-Era Racist Voting Law

Rick Scott is showing his Confederate roots.​Remember the 2000 election debacle, when Florida became the laughingstock of the nation? It wasn't just punch-card ballots that caused our fair state such embarrassment. It was the wrongful purging of thousands of voters from the rolls because they were ... More >>

The Feds Bury Border Patrol Abuses of Immigrants, But What's Been Unearthed Reveals a Culture of Cruelty

The Feds Bury Border Patrol Abuses of Immigrants, But What's Been Unearthed Reveals a Culture of Cruelty

Allen West Denies Gang Involvement

NBC Nightly News with Brian WilliamsAllen West at a Constitutional Rights Rally in August.​Allen West, Florida's controversial and tea-party-backed candidate for Congress, was accused recently by NBC News of being connected to the Outlaws motorcycle gang.The Huffington Post reported Monday that We ... More >>

The Norman Rockwell Exhibit at the Museum of Art/Fort Lauderdale: The Painter Went Beyond Cutesy American Scenes

Not So Rockwellesque

PB Historian Fights to Save Haley Mickens House

Somebody really important slept here​If you happened to be a highly prominent person of color visiting West Palm Beach in the first half of this century, chances are you would have stayed at Haley Mickens's house at 801 4th Street. Mickens and his wife Dr. Alice Frederick Mickens, a well known ci ... More >>

A South Florida Muslim Leader Refused to Be a Snitch, so the Feds Tried to Destroy Him

Letters From the Issue of August 13, 2009

Supreme Court Speaks; Will Gardiner Skate?

So the Florida Supreme Court just accepted the State Attorney's motion to vacate the death penalty conviction of Omar Loureiro. Now we'll have a new murder trial, but there won't be an evidentiary hearing into the allegations against Judge Ana Gardiner. In other words, Gardiner, who broke judi ... More >>

Banana Republic

America downscales

Letters from the issue of November 27, 2008

Go Ahead, Make Her Day

Angelina Jolie takes on a serial killer and the system in Clint Eastwood's latest

Neshoba

Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival Preview

Good Lookin’ Out

Seminole Hold 'Em

It's a Hard Rock life. Flush with American dollars, the tribe either plays by U.S. rules — or risks losing it all

It's Hard To Be A Pimp

You're Killin' Me

If you like sentimental musical reviews, then you'll love it. Otherwise, pray for sudden death.

Dead in the Water

To Be a Reef

V Day

Suffrage in the city

V Day

Letters August 12-18, 2004

Patriot Acts

Broward's Jennifer Van Bergen joins Michael Moore in bashing Bush

The Toughest

An American concert promoter tries to preserve the heritage of a fallen reggae hero

Letters for February 6, 2003

Journalistic Ethics 101

Barred For Life

The process for restoring the civil rights of felons in Florida works perfectly -- if not restoring their rights is the goal

Felon Follies

A problem that marred the 2000 ballot is back

Rights Fight

The FOUNDERS fundraiser

Undercurrents

Saving Private Smith

One Man, One Vote

Haitian immigrants like Gerlyn Cadet know in their marrow that a ballot is a precious thing. But this election leaves them feeling robbed.

Hoop Nightmares

Local homeowners say they don't want basketball played at night in Jefferson Park because it disturbs the peace. The players say the real reason is even uglier: race.

Leading by Example

The Unforgiven

Twenty-seven years ago, teacher Stephen Ryan made a mistake. The School Board of Broward County just fired him for it.

Night & Day

July 2 - 8, 1998