After waiting more than five months, the senate confirmed Loretta Lynch as attorney general on Thursday.  In a 56-43 vote,  Lynch won the position following an unprecedented delay.

Lynch, 55, will become the first Black woman to head the Justice Department when she takes the reigns from Eric Holder who announced his intent to resign last September. She will move into the Obama Administration from her post as U.S. attorney in Brooklyn.

Lynch's nomination became a spectacle not for her credentials or record, but because of Senate leaders' refusal to give her a vote.

h/t NYT

Photo: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque

by Kinsey Clarke
Not all of our skinfolk are our kinfolk. - Zora Neale Hurston

In light of the election of black Congresswoman Mia Love, I’d first like to say that I was raised a Black Conservative. I’ve written on this before, and my experiences growing up with parents who were heavily influenced by right-wing politics made me blind to race and gender; and how both of those things intersect in America. As I’ve grown and left behind those ideas, I can see how wrong the erasure of my identity as a Black woman is; and how it ultimately served to negate the relevance of my experiences as a Black woman as they relate to politics.

Last night, Utah Republican Mia Love made history with a narrowly won election to a House seat, becoming the first black woman to represent the Republican Party in Congress.

The United States has never had a Black female as the governor of a state-level jurisdiction but that could change in the November general election. U.S. Virgin Islands Del. Donna Christensen (D) is well on her way to becoming the governor of her territory. She and Basil Ottley Jr. won the crowded Aug. 2 Democratic Party primary for governor and lieutenant governor, respectively, and because of the strength of the party, will face minor opposition from the island’s other political parties in the Nov. 4 general election.
Christensen was delighted to win her latest political battle. “I am pleased to have the nomination of the Democratic Party and I invite all of my fellow Democrats to work together with me to ensure victory in November,” Christensen, 68, said. “We have a lot of work to do; our people expect that we will have a common vision and a plan to move our territory forward.”

The Supreme Court struck down a portion of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but what are the affects of the repeal to our community?

The Voting Rights Act (VRA) was initially adopted in 1965, and readjusted in 1970, 1975 and 1982. The VRA echoed the language of the 15th amendment, which stated "The right of U.S. citizens to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” Although, the 15th amendment was ratified on February 3, 1870, some legislators found loopholes within the amendment and passed state constitutional provisions that required literacy tests, poll taxes and grandfather clauses. Congress understood this and passed the VRA to enforce the 15th amendment.

Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi are Caucasian women who have made a name for themselves in the male-dominated political arena, but the political role models for African-American women are significantly fewer. However, African-American women who are currently in the 113th Congress and running for various political positions around the country seek to change that.