Learning from Conscious Living

Workers Without a State To Protect Them

"Many fear the police because they are in the country illegally; some give false names; some do not know how the criminal justice system works or how to document their dealings with the police." - New York Times [1]

"My friends are from all races, but when I'm alone, I have to be on guard all the time, always watching to see who is around," - Jose Morales [1]

"Undocumented workers are among the most vulnerable and exploited workers in our country, as frequent victims of unpaid wages, dangerous conditions and uncompensated workplace injuries, discrimination, and other labor law violations." - Workplace Fairness [1]

____________________________________________________________

A 2004 report by the Urban Institute estimates "that there are 9.3 million undocumented immigrants in the country." What we all know is that something must be done to address this issue and give these workers some legal recognition, but we don't know the personal and societal consequences of people in legal limbo.

On July 14, 2008, a construction worker from Ecuador was physically assaulted by a dozen teenagers in a small Long Island town, then verbally insulted with shouts of “Go back to Mexico.” Of course, the point is not that the victim did not emigrate from Mexico, though that is worth an anthropological study on why all Latinos and South American immigrants are lumped as 'Mexican'. Rather, this is a story about what it means to be an undocumented worker, especially since another Ecuadorean resident was stabbed to death in the same town this November. All of this begs the question, "What does it mean more broadly to be an undocumented worker and what does it mean for society?"

• Minimum Wage: "About two-thirds of undocumented workers earn less than twice the minimum wage." [1]


• Working Conditions and Unionizing:"Of workers fired because their Social Security number couldn't be verified, 25% say they were fired for complaining about unsafe working conditions, 21% say they were fired for union activity" [1]

• Arrests:"This means that (as a result of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement strategy aimed at employers) immigrant workers and not employers accounted for 89% of the criminal arrests and 98% of all immigration arrests in the workplace in 2007." [1]

• Undocumented Labor and Nat'l Growth:In fact, the influx of undocumented immigrants accounted for about half of the growth in the labor force over the last decade [1]

• Payroll Taxes:An estimated three-quarters of undocumented immigrants pay payroll taxes. 17 Each year, taxpayers who use incorrect or false Social Security numbers (the majority of them undocumented immigrants 18 ) contribute approximately $7 billion to Social Security and $1.5 billion to Medicare. 19 Immigrants’ contributions to these programs are collected by the federal government to help meet its goals. 20 Even though undocumented workers contribute to tax revenues on the local, state, and national levels, these individuals are ineligible for most government benefits.

• Texas:In 2006, the Texas Comptroller reported that undocumented immigrants paid about $424.7 million more in state revenues – including sales tax and school property tax – than they used in state services, including education and health care

• Speaking Out:Undocumented workers are reluctant to join their peers in arguing for fair wages and working conditions because they fear exposure of their legal status

• California:(California) determined that those tried in immigration courts had no right to challenge the outcome of their cases based on their lawyers’ performance. [1]

• Deportation: If all undocumented workers were deported tomorrow, key industries such as services (32% of workers are undocumented), construction (19%), production-installation repair (15%), sales (12%), and management, business, and professional (10%) would be negatively impacted. [1]

• Impact on American wages: According to the New York Times, "There is scant evidence that illegal immigrants have caused any significant damage to the wages of American workers." The real indicator of wage disparity of American workers is education. [1]

• Undocumented Families: "In families where parents are undocumented, two-thirds of children are U.S. citizens." [1]

• Arizona: If all undocumented workers were removed from Arizona's workforce, economic output would drop annually by at least $29 billion, or 8.2 percent, according to a University of Arizona report [1]

• Public Services: Undocumented immigrants are ineligible for welfare benefits from food stamps, Medicaid and most other public services for the poor. [1]

• Education:Nationally, only 1.5% of elementary students and 3% of middle and high school students are from undocumented families [1]

• Health care: There are 5.6 million uninsured undocumented immigrants [1]

On Repeal of Virginia Marriage Amendment

"Nor shall this Commonwealth or its political subdivisions create or recognize another union, partnership, or other legal status to which is assigned the rights, benefits, obligations, qualities, or effects of marriage" - Virginia Marriage Amendment

“What better place to take a stand for equal rights than Virginia, whose greatest leaders defined the very rights we hold dear as Americans?" - David Englin

In what has become the nadir for gay Virginians, the Virginia Marriage Amendment passed with 57% of the vote in 2006, thus denying all gays Fourteenth Amendment rights, the right to equal protection under the law. Frankly speaking, it is absolutely absurd to ever put a civil rights question before voters because civil rights are a matter of constitutional and moral principle, not popular whim. Contrary to popular belief, what has been unique about this great nation of ours is that the legitimacy of the laws are not steeped in the will of the majority. Rather, we derive its legitimacy from the spirit of the Constitution, which does not present the majority as the absolute and final arbiters. The U.S. Constitution sets the tone. It impels us to look beyond our personal prejudices, our life experiences, and beyond our own place in time. Moreover, if the Constitution is more than just a piece of paper, we must continually renew the commitment of liberty, freedom, justice, and equality. No doubt, we are apt to err, but in the error lies the lesson.

Imagine if all of the major civil rights issues over the last century were put before voters! We would be a nation imprisoned by our own sexism, racism, prejudice, elitism, and moral bankruptcy. As a young African American, I dare not imagine. If the Constitution is a document that we truly value and if the liberty and freedom that sustain our national pride are worth defending in Iraq, in Afghanistan, around the world, then are they not worth preserving at home. I think so and I am glad that others think so too.

David Englin [1], Virginia House of Delegates representative, introduced a bill on January 6th [1] that would repeal the Virginia Marriage Amendment, requiring the General Assembly to pass the legislation twice with an intervening election and then be approved by public referendum. In other words, the bill is dead upon arrival, but Englin will not go down without a fight.

“This is an uphill battle in a state like Virginia. However, in light of the setback to equal rights resulting from California’s Proposition 8, now more than ever we need everyone in our country who supports equal rights — no matter what state they live in — to stand up and say that laws denying people equal freedom are wrong and un-American,” said Englin.“What better place to take a stand for equal rights than Virginia, whose greatest leaders defined the very rights we hold dear as Americans? After all, it was a Virginian named George Washington who promised us a government that would give ‘to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance,’ and it was a Virginian named Thomas Jefferson who extolled the self-evident truth that all people are created equal.” [1]

Though, Englin has successfully sponsored a "bill to protect equal rights in hospital visitation passed in 2007, and (a) bill to create a statewide registry of advanced medical directives for same-sex couples to designate partners to make medical decisions passed in 2008 and is due to be launched by April 2009". [1] In a well publicized speech before the General Assembly in 2006, Englin, a straight married Jew, challenged the Virginia Marriage Amendment. [1]

So if this amendment doesn't help protect my marriage, and doesn't help protect my family, and if it doesn't even change the status of same-sex marriage and civil unions and domestic partnership contracts, then what exactly does this amendment do? I submit to my fair-minded colleagues that this amendment sends a message.And that message is, if you are gay, or lesbian, or even a man and a woman living together and committed to each other who are not married, you are not welcome in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

And who are these people whom we are shutting out in the cold? They are my dear friends Karen and Sue, who have been together for years and are as loving and committed to each other as any husband and wife. They are my friend Lou, who served with me at the Pentagon, and continues to serve our country today.They are Father Mychal Judge, the gay priest who died in the World Trade Center on Sept. 11 while ministering to fallen firefighters. They are Mark Bingham, a gay passenger on United Airlines Flight 93, who fought back against Al Queda hijackers and sacrificed his life to save others.They are Ronald Gamboa and his partner Dan Brandhorst, who, along with their 3 year old son David, were killed when Al Quaeda flew United Airlines Flight 175 into the World Trade Center.They are David Charlebois, the co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon when Al Qaeda tried to kill me and my comrades who were on duty inside the Pentagon at the time.They are friends and neighbors and teachers and doctors and soldiers and loving parents who want nothing more than to live life without fear that the government will tear their families apart.

The fight continues.

Are You Protected from Gay Hiring Discrimination?

When it comes to protecting gays from hiring discrimination, well, let's just say that things can get a little complicated. I decided to do a little digging to see how well I am protected and I encourage you to do that same.

Step 1: Virginia State Employee
Conclusion: Virginia state agencies are prohibited from discriminating against gays.

Under Tim Kaine's Executive Order 1 (2006), the state's agencies are prohibited from "discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation,age, political affiliation, or against otherwise qualified persons with disabilities."

Even with "Restructuring", which is an effort by the state of Virginia to increase the autonomy of many of Virginia's schools, the executive order would legally suffice for all public universities and colleges. The University of Virginia has also issued its own revised statement of equal opportunity on 4/8/08.

"The University administers its programs, procedures and practices without regard to age, color, disability, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation or veteran status, and operates both affirmative action and equal opportunity programs, consistent with resolutions of the Board of Visitors and with federal and state requirements, including the Governor’s Executive Order on Equal Opportunity

"

Step 2: Private University or College
Conclusion: Hiring policies about gay applicants vary by institution. I imagine that an institution's inclusion of gays in its equal opportunity statement will depend on its geographic location within the state, the regional military and ideological culture, and general makeup of the faculty, staff, and student body.

The best way to determine the hiring practices of any given institution is to look at their statement of equal opportunity. You can usually find this on the Human Resources page or on the employment application. Let's look at some examples.

Hampton Sydney - Private
"Our company fully complies with all applicable laws which prohibit discrimination on the basis of
race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, or disability."

No mention of sexual orientation.

Virginia and Civil Rights

Driving along Preston Avenue in Charlottesville, Virginia, I was struck by this historic marker in the middle of a solidly middle class neighborhood near downtown Charlottesville. What makes this marker so unusual is that nothing in the immediate vicinity would seem to suggest that there's anything particularly historic about the area, but, as I would soon realize, history is everywhere around us.

Here is a look at Supreme Court cases from Virginia, similar to Buck v Bell, addressing civil rights.

Buck v Bell (1927)
This case involved compulsory sterilization of people deemed to be mentally handicapped.

Under a 1924 law legalizing sterilization of presumed mentally disabled individuals in order to prevent "genetically inferior" children, Charlottesville native Carrie Buck would be the first constitutional test of this law. The 18 year-old would be reduced an "incorrigible", "promiscuous", "degenerate" 9 year-old. Her mother's so-called "feeble mindedness" and Buck's own pregnancy (resulting from a rape) would be used to defend Virginia's and many other states' eugenics programs. In writing the Court's majority opinion, Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote...

...It is better for all the world, if instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for crime, or to let them starve for their imbecility, society can prevent those who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind. The principle that sustains compulsory vaccination is broad enough to cover cutting the Fallopian tubes. Three generations of imbeciles are enough....[1]

As a result of this decision, nearly 8,000 Virginians were sterilized before the most pertinent parts of the decision would be overturned. Of course, this does not account for all those hundreds of thousands of people affected around the country.

Atkins v Virginia (2002)
This case involves the execution of mentally handicapped persons

Daryl Atkins, a Hampton area resident, was convicted of abduction, armed robbery, and capital murder in the murder of Eric Nesbitt. Despite having taken a test that revealed his IQ to be 59, he was nevertheless sentence to death, which was upheld by Virginia Supreme Court. (Chief Justice Leroy Hassell, Sr. and Justice Koontz dissented) By the 2002 Supreme Court decision, 18 states prohibited the execution of mentally disabled persons. Justice John Paul Stevens writes for the majority opinion. 

America, Face It. We Are Still A Segregated Society.

To begin my entry, I want to present some facts about American society.

"5.4 percent of U.S. churches are racially integrated, meaning no one group makes up more than 80 percent of the congregation." [1]

"The percentage of black children who now go to integrated schools has dropped to its lowest level since 1968." [2]

"The statistics from the 2000-2001 school year show that whites are the most segregated group in the nation’s public schools; they attend schools, on average, where eighty percent of the student body is white." [3]

"Despite public perceptions to the contrary, segregated workplaces exist in greater numbers today than ever before, largely because of the influx of newly arrived immigrant workers in low-wage industries throughout the country" [4]

"The number of public schools experimenting with single-sex education is still small but has shot up in recent years – from five to at least 241 in the last decade – as districts in more than half the states take the chance that separating boys and girls will help students learn better." [5]

Unfortunately, these numbers do not do justice to the arrested development of our progressive ideals as characterized by the Civil Rights Movement. We have moved away from becoming a truly integrated society into a  society that has given way to the Darwinian forces of survival of the fittest, in which being fit is largely determined by education, socioeconomic status, race, gender and privilege. What this means in the long run is that we will regress to the extent that we will conveniently forget why there was ever a fight to begin with. We will turn a blind eye to the judicial philosophy that segregated schools are not equal schools. We will make mockery of "political correctness" as if though minority groups' and women's demands are overrated and overstated. We will defer or rather surrender to the traditional ruling class of the United States which is largely white and male. They,  in turn, will and have begun turning the tide on this progressive agenda because they are hostile to trends that they see as undermining their status in the United States. We will be left with the rule of many by a very few. And the next generation will be left to clean up our mess. That is, if we don't resume the proper and moral course.

What Can Be Done
The first step that we can take is by diversifying the people that steer the ship. Contrary to popular belief, politicians are not the only people that matter. Obviously, if we were to increase the racial, cultural, ethnic, ideological, gender, and otherwise underrepresented perspective of  other  groups, then there is a greater potential for change and less chance for relapse, but the real threat to greater integration lies in our popular culture; television, books, movies, and the like. They are responsible for lulling us into complacency through sensationalized and meaningless noise, so much so that we have lost touch with what matters most, the full realization of our selves. How can we contemplate the United States without words like equality, liberty, opportunity, and justice? How can we meet these fundamental and eternal goals without keeping that fire aflame? We must return to these questions and in doing so, re-ignite the spirit of the Civil Rights Movement.

The Lynching of Mary Turner in My Hometown in 1918

"Her body was cut open and her infant fell to the ground with a little cry, to be crushed to death by the heel of one of the white men present."  - On the lynching of Mary Turner

For the last year or so, I have been researching my family's history in Virginia and southern Georgia. For the most part, this journey has been very rewarding, finding a newspaper article on my great, great, great grandfather who was born into slavery in the 1850s, discovering an extended relative who was one of the first Black principals in Central Virginia, and uncovering Native American ancestors. Unfortunately, I have also confronted the brutality and racism that defined the world in which they lived. Such was the case in Valdosta, GA in 1918.

Lynching has a long and a very depressing history, the history of which I can't even begin to describe in this entry. What I can say, however, is that experts have approximated that the number of African Americans who were lynched between the 1890s and 1930s averaged 103 per year and were often perpetuated by lynch mobs. As early as 1880, Brooks County, a county formed in 1858 from a portion of Valdosta, had developed a reputation for racial violence.

Brooks County, named after South Carolina congressman Preston Brooks, established a reputation second to none in Georgia for race violence. During the era of lynching, 1880-1930, the county established a ...reputation for mob violence on an unprecedented scale; there were at least twenty-four confirmed victims of lynchings. In December 1894, a mob lynched five men in a single incident. Lynchings were carried out on a regular basis, with mobs taking lives in August 1898, January 1901, July 1909, June 1911, March 1913, November 1917, and May 1918. There were more lynchings in Brooks than any county in Georgia; Fitzhugh Brundage has suggested that the county was the most mob-prone county in the entire South.( n10) It should come as no surprise, then, that the single lynching incident that claimed the most number of lives in Georgia, in May 1918, occurred in that county. ("Killing Them by the Wholesale" by Christopher Meyers)

It was in this historical context that Mary Turner, eight-months pregnant, became one of the most gruesome cases of lynching, racism and lawlessness in the United States. Responding to her husband's lynching, which supposedly involved his complicity with the murder of a white man, papers reported that Turner's statement about her husband's lynching being "unjust" "only inflamed" the white mob which had already claimed eight Black lives. Descriptions of Mary Turner's lynching are some of the hardest writings to stomach.

"The mob tied her ankles together and hung her to a tree head down and gasoline from automobiles was poured over her. Turner's clothing was burned off of her body. A member of the mob produced a sharp knife and her stomach was laid open; her unborn child fell to the ground. Hundreds of bullets were then fired into Turner until she was barely recognizable as a human being. Both Turner and her child were buried about ten feet from the tree, the grave marked by a whiskey bottle with a cigar placed in the neck." (Meyers)

"Mary Turner was pregnant and was hung by her feet. Gasoline was thrown on her clothing and it was set on fire. Her body was cut open and her infant fell to the ground with a little cry, to be crushed to death by the heel of one of the white men present. The mother's body was then riddled with bullets." [1]

The white residents of Valdosta, Georgia decided to teach her a lesson for being uppity enough to be vocal about her pain. A mob found her tied her upside down to a tree, doused her with gasoline and burned her alive. One of the crowd members took a knife and split her belly open letting the baby fall out. Another member of the crowd smashed the baby’s head with his foot. Then the crowd took out their guns and filled the burning body of Mary Turner with bullets. The Associated Press wrote that Mary Turner had made unwise remarks about the execution of her husband. [2]

"...a man stepped forward with a pocketknife and ripped open her abdomen in a crude Caesarean operation. 'Out tumbled the prematurely born child,'" White wrote. "'Two feeble cries it gave - and received for the answer the heel of a stalwart man, as life was ground out of the tiny form. [3]

Gladly, Valdosta has come a long way from Mary Turner, but unfortunately, two recent story coming out of Valdosta show me how far Valdosta still has to go.

Valdosta Court Refuses to Admit Muslim Woman for "Security Reasons"

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today criticized officials in the Valdosta, Georgia, municipal court for denying a Muslim woman entrance to the courtroom because she refused to remove her head scarf. 20-year-old Aniisa Karim had come to court to challenge a speeding ticket, but was denied entry on the basis of security concerns, security guards told her....Read More

White Students Hang Black Doll From Tree

Three white students painted a doll black and hanged it from a schoolyard tree, prompting calls from parents and the local NAACP that the FBI should investigate the act as a hate crime....Read More

Shame on Obama for Misleading the Gay Community

"With Obama, Gay Americans will be the first ones sold down the river" ~CWPolitical and Social Thought

I'm no political scientist, but I can clearly see how Obama is manipulating the gay community. First, Obama uses anti-gay gospel singer Donnie Mc-Closeted for a fundraiser in South Carolina, then yesterday in Charlottesville, Virginia, which I attended, Obama talked about his position on energy conservation, the achievement gap, foreign policy, special interests, health care, veterans benefits, social security, etc, but he made no mention of his support for civil unions for gay and lesbian Americans. You would think that a candidate running on "character" would want to be as morally and politically consistent as is possible. In his own words, Obama said, "I will always tell you where I stand". If that means anything, it should mean that Obama will not hide his position on civil unions just because he's in "red" Virginia, though it seems that he wants to hide his position altogether. Take a look at his website on the "issues".

Moreover, he perceives gay issues as being a divisive force in politics, as a problem originating out of the political calculus of those on the Right, instead of a  cry for equality from all the millions of second-class gay and lesbian Americans.

At every opportunity, they've told evangelical Christians that Democrats disrespect their values and dislike their Church, while suggesting to the rest of the country that religious Americans care only about issues like abortion and gay marriage; school prayer and intelligent design. There was even a time when the Christian Coalition determined that its number one legislative priority was tax cuts for the rich. I don't know what Bible they're reading, but it doesn't jibe with my version.
Hartford, CT, June 23, 2007

And when we try to have an honest debate about the crises we face, whether it's from the pulpit or the campaign trail, the pundits don't want us to find common ground, they want us to find someone to blame. They want to divide us into Red States and Blue States, and tell us to always point the finger at somebody else - the other party, or gay people, or people of faith, or immigrants.
Hampton, VA, June  05,  2007


For the last six years we've been told that our mounting debts don't matter, we've been told that the anxiety Americans feel about rising health care costs and stagnant wages are an illusion, we've been told that climate change is a hoax, and that tough talk and an ill-conceived war can replace diplomacy, and strategy, and foresight. And when all else fails, when Katrina happens, or the death toll in Iraq mounts, we've been told that our crises are somebody else's fault. We're distracted from our real failures, and told to blame the other party, or gay people, or immigrants.
Baton Rouge, LA, May 05, 2007

And when we try to have an honest debate about the crises we face, whether it's on the Senate floor or a Sunday talk show, the conversation isn't about finding common ground, it's about finding someone to blame. We're divided into Red States and Blue States, and told to always point the finger at somebody else - the other party, or gay people, or immigrants.
San Diego, CA, May 02, 2007


Nevertheless, here is where Obama stands on issues important to gay and lesbian Americans.

Expand Hate Crimes Statutes
In 2004, crimes against LGBT Americans constituted the third-highest category of hate crime reported. Obama co-sponsored legislation to expand federal hate crimes law to include crimes perpetrated because of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Fight Workplace Discrimination and Promote Rights
Obama believes the Employment Non-Discrimination Act should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Obama sponsored legislation in the Illinois State Senate that would ban employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Support Full Civil Unions and Federal Rights for LGBT Couples
Barack Obama supports full civil unions that give same-sex couples equal legal rights and privileges as married couples, including the right to assist their loved ones in times of emergency as well as equal health insurance, employment benefits, and property and adoption rights. Obama also believes we need to fully repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and enact legislation that would ensure that the 1,100+ federal legal rights and benefits currently provided on the basis of marital status are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and other legally-recognized unions.

Oppose a Constitutional Ban on Same-Sex Marriage
Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman and prevented judicial extension of marriage-like rights to same-sex or other unmarried couples.

Repeal Don’t Ask-Don’t Tell
Obama believes we need to repeal the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. The key test for military service
should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve. Obama will work with military leaders to repeal the current policy and ensure we accomplish our national defense goals.

Fight AIDS Worldwide
Obama has been a global leader in the fight against AIDS. He traveled to Kenya and took a public HIV
test to encourage testing and reduce the stigma of the disease. Obama worked to reauthorize the Ryan White CARE Act, one of the largest sources of federal funds for primary health care and support services for HIV/AIDS patients.

Finally, the question that we should all be asking is...

White Male Privilege in the VA Democratic Party

White Males are roughly 35% of Virginia's population, but have twice as much representation in the Democratic Party. The importance in using the Democratic Party as an illustration of white male privilege demonstrates the point that despite the so-called appeal of the Democratic Party to less represented groups like women and racial minorities, the pervasiveness of white male privilege in Virginia politics is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the special status afforded to white men in the United States. Indeed, they are overrepresented in almost all legislative bodies, but as well are  overrepresented in the media,  in academia,  and in the business world. No doubt, the deliberate attempt to shut out women and minorities for most of our nation's history has paid incredible dividends and  it is  our duty to see that that legacy ends once and for all.

Democratic Party Candidates for the Virginia General Assembly in 2007 as reported by the Democratic Party of Virginia [1]

By Numbers

 

In Percentage

 

* Race determined by physical characteristics and in some cases biographies provided by candidates on their official website.
* Race of Jerry Taylor and William Pratt not determined.

List of Party candidates from Virginia Democratic Party official website

• 01 - Jerry Taylor
• 05 - Susie Garner - http://www.susiegarner.com/
• 06 - Bill Thomas  - http://www.billthomas2007.com/
• 07 - Peggy Frank - http://www.peggyfrank.com/
• 09 - Eric Ferguson - http://www.fergusonfordelegate.com/
• 13 - Bruce Roemmelt - http://www.electroemmelt.org/
• 14 - Adam Tomer - http://www.tomerfordelegate.com/
• 16 - Andy Parker - http://www.parkerfordelegate.com/
• 19 - Lew Medlin - http://www.lewismedlin.com/
• 28 - Clyde Matthews - http://clydematthews.com/
• 21 - Bobby Mathieson - http://www.bobby21.com/
• 31 - Bill Day - http://www.dayfordelegate.com/
• 33 - Marty Martinez - http://www.martyfordelegate.org/
• 34 - Margi Vanderhye - http://www.vanderhye.com/
• 40 - Rex Simmons - http://www.rexsimmons.com/
• 50 - Jeanette Rishell - http://www.jeanetterishell.com/
• 51 - Paul Nichols - http://www.paulnicholsfordelegate.com/
• 52 - Chris Brown - http://www.brownfordelegate.com/
• 56 - Will Shaw - http://www.willshawfordelegate.org/ 
• 59 - Connie Brennan - http://www.conniebrennan.com/
• 72 - Tom Herbert - http://www.herbertfordelegate.org/
• 74 - Joseph Morrissey - http://www.morrisseyfordelegate.com/
• 78 - Mick Meyer - http://www.mickmeyer.com/ 
• 82 - Bob MacIver - http://www.bobmaciver.com/
• 83 - Joe Bouchard  - http://www.bouchardfordelegate.com/
• 86 - Jay Donahue - http://www.jaydonahue4delegate.com/
• 88 - Carlos Del Toro - http://www.deltorofordelegate.com/
• 96 - Troy Farlow - http://www.troyfarlow.com/

Incumbents

• 02 - Bud Phillips
• 03 - Dan Bowling - http://www.danbowling.homestead.com/
• 04 - Joe Johnson
• 10 - Ward Armstrong - http://www.wardarmstrong.com/
• 11 - Onzlee Ware - http://www.onzleeware.com/
• 12 - Jim Shuler - http://www.delegateshuler.com
• 23 - Shannon Valentine - http://www.shannonvalentine.net/
• 32 - David Poisson - http://www.delegatepoisson.com/
• 35 - Steve Shannon - http://www.delegatesteveshannon.com/
• 36 - Ken Plum - http://www.kenplum.com/
• 37 - David Bulova - http://www.davidbulova.com/
• 38 - Bob Hull - http://www.bobhull.org/
• 39 - Vivian Watts - http://www.vivianwatts.com/
• 41 - David Marsden - http://www.marsdenfordelegate.com/
• 43 - Mark Sickles - http://www.marksickles.com/
• 44 - Kris Amundson - http://www.amundson.org/
• 45 - David Englin - http://www.davidenglin.org/
• 46 - Brian Moran - http://www.brianmoran.com/
• 47 - Al Eisenberg - http://www.aleisenberg.com/
• 48 -  Bob Brink - http://www.bobbrink.org/
• 49 - Adam Ebbin - http://www.adamebbin.com/
• 53 - Jim Scott - http://www.delegatejimscott.com/
• 57 - David Toscano - http://www.toscano2005.com/
• 63 - Rosalyn Dance
• 64 - Bill Barlow
• 67 - Chuck Caputo - http://www.delegatecaputo.com/
• 69 - Frank Hall
• 70 - Dwight Jones
• 71 - Jennifer McCllelan - http://www.jennifermcclellan.com/
• 75 - Roslyn Tyler
• 77 - Lionell Spruill
• 79 - Johnny Joannou
• 80 - Ken Melvin
• 87 - Paula Miller - http://www.delegatepaulamiller.com/
• 89 - Kenny Alexander
• 90 - Algie Howell - http://www.algiehowell.com/
• 92 - Jeion Ward
• 95 - Mamye BaCote
• 100 - Lynwood Lewis

Senate

Challengers / Open Seats

• 01 - John Miller - http://johnmillerforsenate.com/
• 06 - Ralph Northam - http://www.northam2007.com/
• 09 - Donald McEachin - http://www.donaldmceachin.com/
• 13 - Steve Heretick - http://www.heretickforsenate.com/
• 15 - Bob Wilkerson - http://www.wilkersonforsenate.com/
• 22 - Mike Breiner - http://www.breinerforsenate.com/
• 23 - William Pratt
• 24 - David Cox - http://www.coxforva.org
• 26 - Maxine Hope Roles - http://www.rolesforsenate.com/
• 27 - Karen Schultz - http://www.karenschultz.org/
• 28 - Albert Pollard - http://www.pollardforsenate.com/
• 34 - Chap Peteresen - http://www.fairfaxsenator.com/
• 37 - Janet Oleszek - http://www.janetforfairfax.org/
• 39 - George Barker - http://www.barkerforsenate.com/

Incumbents

• 02 - Mamie Locke - http://www.senatorlocke.com/
• 05 - Yvonne B. Miller - http://www.senatorybmiller.com/
• 16 - Henry Marsh
• 17 - Edd Houck - http://www.senatorhouck.com/
• 18 - Louise Lucas
• 20 - Roscoe Reynolds
• 21 - John Edwards
• 25 - Creigh Deeds - http://www.creighdeeds.com/
• 29 - Chuck Colgan - http://colganforsenate.org/
• 30 - Patsy Ticer - http://www.patsyticer.com/
• 31 - Mary Margaret Whipple - http://www.whippleforsenate.com/
• 32 - Janet Howell - http://www.janethowell.com/
• 33 - Mark Herring - http://www.markherring.org/
• 35 - Dick Saslaw - http://www.dicksaslaw.com/
• 36 - Toddy Puller - http://www.toddy.org/
• 39 - Phil Puckett

Political Heroes

Bayard Rustin

Barbara Jordan

Shirley Chisholm

Maxine Waters

 Doug Wilder

                Who Are Yours?

Strange Fruit Indeed

If you were fortunate to take Julian Bond's class at U.Va. on the history of civil rights in the U.S., then you would know that he plays this song in discussing the history of lynching. It's a remarkable song not just because the incomparable Billie Holiday sings it, but that the metaphor is so disturbing.

Strange Fruit
Southern trees bear strange fruit,
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,
Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze,
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.

Pastoral scene of the gallant south,
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,
Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh,
Then the sudden smell of burning flesh.

Here is fruit for the crows to pluck,
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,
For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop,
Here is a strange and bitter crop.