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Opinion: Black Voters Must Be Mindful Of Who Has Their Political Interests At Heart

Opinion: Black Voters Must Be Mindful Of Who Has Their Political Interests At Heart

Black voters

Photo: Robert Powell casts his ballot at Alliance High School, Nov. 3, 2020, in Alliance, Ohio. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

A lot of noise is being made about New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez supporting a candidate against Hudson Valley Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney. But isn’t turnabout fair play? A political action committee is funneling money to support a challenge to progressive democrat Rep. Rashida Tlaib from Michigan. Funny enough, a Black former congressional candidate supports this PAC.  

Former South Carolina Democratic House member Bakari Sellers is supporting Urban Empowerment Action (UEA), a political action committee made up of a group of Black and Jewish business leaders, financed primarily by a hedge fund investor that supports both Democrats and Republican candidates and causes. Their hope is to unseat Congresswoman Talib and install a more moderate, Black politician to represent the Black people of Detroit.

The desire to get rid of Tlaib is due to her refusal to vote for President Joe Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure package. She voted against it because the Build Back Better plan was killed. But also at play here is Talib’s support of Palestinians and her continual calling-out of Israel. So, the question is, what is Black people’s play with this move?

It makes perfect sense to me why Jewish leaders would want Tlaib ousted. Most Jewish leaders are pro-Israeli government and Tlaib is not. History may explain why.

According to historian and professor Dr. John Henrik Clarke, Israel (as a nation) was established for Ashkenazi Jews (whom Clarke said are more European than Jewish) at the expense of Arab Jews or Mizrahi Jews — those who remained in the Land of Israel, Middle East and North Africa from biblical times to the modern era.

Once a nation state, Ashkenazi Jews became state leaders and excluded the Mizrahi from power. Taking the approach of Zionism, Israel became a settler colonial state, displacing the Palestinians who lived on the land and continuing to do so.

Like South Africa, Israel is an apartheid state with its unique form.

Tlaib is a fierce defender of Palestinian rights, therefore, it is understandable that she would make Jewish leaders in the U.S. angry with her. But what about Black people? Why do they want her out? Tlaib has also pointed out how Israeli soldiers train American police who brutalize Black people.

Several things are at play here.

Black business leaders want her out. While I don’t have any shade for Black business owners, businesses don’t put people above profits. Like it or not, the people voted Talib into Congress in 2016, 2018, and 2020. Traditionally, Black people don’t align with conservatives but business owners and leaders looking for less regulation of their business and more tax breaks do, however.  

But what else is that it seems Black people are biting their noses to spite their faces. Senators Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema have proven that Black folk can’t expect “radical” change for their good. Therefore, the politically advantageous move is to play ball with moderates as a means to an end; to gain concessions while fighting off the white supremacist republicans.

I get this strategy upon the part of Black folks in this PAC.

However, being a moderate for the sake of gaining concessions has never been what has freed Black people. Taking a moderate stance is not what forced America’s hand in abolishing enslavement. Being a moderate did not force America’s hand in abolishing Jim Crow. Being a moderate is not going to force America’s hand with respect to the challenges that Black people face today.

It will take people in government to honor the humanity of Black people. You can put a political label on that if you want, but it is just called being human. Again, would you rather simply gain concessions or fight for the humanity of Black people vis-à-vis all people? People who say that they’re for us have made their choice. What say you?

Photo: Robert Powell casts his ballot at Alliance High School, Nov. 3, 2020, in Alliance, Ohio. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

Rann Miller is the director of anti-bias and DEI initiatives as well as a high school social studies teacher for a school district located in Southern New Jersey. He’s also a freelance writer and founder of the Urban Education Mixtape, supporting urban educators and parents of students in urban schools. He is the author of the upcoming book, Resistance Stories from Black History for Kids, with an anticipated release date of February 2023. You can follow him on Twitter @UrbanEdDJ .