On the heels of President Trump's speech at the RNC from the White House, thousands descended on the capital today to commemorate the 57th anniversary of the March on Washington.
Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, said that in the midst of social unrest and senseless violence, the march is about emphasizing the importance of voting in this year's presidential election.
"We want to make sure that we use this moment to pause, to re-energize, to focus on marching to the polls in November," Johnson told Cheddar.
While many are expected to show up to the march in-person, organizers are also taking the event online for those unable to attend or who prefer to stay away from crowds amid the pandemic.
Meanwhile, as President Trump continues to wage a war against the mail-in voting process, Johnson and the NAACP are looking for the government to restore the "stripped" Voting Rights Act.
"In order for this democracy to truly work, we must allow access to the ballot box and unfortunately, we have reduced the administration of elections to a partisan consideration," Johnson said.
As the issue of policing in America hangs in the backdrop of the march's mission, Johnson said it is an issue that has to be addressed. When it comes to policies regarding policing, there has to be a process for accountability, he continued, stating that it's imperative other services receive the funding needed so that police are not required to serve functions for which they are not trained.
"We have to take a serious look at the budget of police to make sure we're not asking officers to serve the role of mental health providers; to serve the role of anything else other than policing," Johnson said.
For Johnson, it's all about leveling the playing field and making policing in the U.S. uniform across the country.
"Some of the wealthiest communities across this country see a really robust preventive program in place. Low income areas and areas where African Americans are being patrolled — we don't have enough preventive measures so things will not escalate as we've seen over the recent few months," he explained.
As President Biden travels to Europe this week amid Russia's ongoing invasion of its neighbor Ukraine, former Obama campaign foreign policy advisor and former Bush administration State Department official David Tafuri, joined Cheddar News to discuss the president's stop in Brussels, Belgium, to coordinate with NATO leaders efforts to dissuade Russian President Putin's war. "The maintenance of sanctions and increasingly ratcheting up the sanctions is what he thinks will cause a country like Russia to back off," Tafuri said of Biden. "And so he's committed to that strategy."
John Logan, Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University, joined Cheddar News to discuss the growing unionization push by employees at Starbucks and Amazon, and the wider implications of employee organization at these big companies.
Cheddar's Arielle Hixson sat down with five Black women making history as part of the Biden administration's communications team. Karine Jean-Pierre, the principal deputy press secretary; Khanya Brann, the chief of staff to Kate Bedingfield; Amanda Finney, the chief of staff to Jen Psaki; Erica Loewe, the director of African American media; and Rykia Dorsey, the senior regional communications director, shared their stories.
President Biden has embarked on a crucial trip to meet with allies in Belgium and Poland to discuss new sanctions on Russia as it continues to wage war on Ukraine. The president will seek to address the growing humanitarian crisis out of Ukraine, demonstrate a united Western front against Russia, and reassure Ukraine that it has support from the U.S. Joel Rubin, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State & President of the Washington Strategy Group, breaks down what to expect from the President's crucial visit to Europe.
Catching you up on what you need to know Mar 24, 2022, with NATO meeting updates, Ukraine retaking suburbs around Kyiv, the spread of omicron subvariant BA.2 in China, Google Pay launching a third-party billing option, and a 16-year-old is suspected of being the Lapsus$ mastermind behind hacks of Microsoft and others.
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week fell to its lowest level in 52 years as the U.S. job market continues to show strength in the midst of rising costs and an ongoing virus pandemic.
Alicia Garza joined Cheddar News to talk about the Black Futures Lab where serves as founder and principal. The non-profit organization seeks to develop grassroots power in the Black community with projects like the Black Census, which takes into account the granular experiences of the demographic. "What we know about Black folks and the reason that we decided to focus on black communities again, it's because we're being left out and left behind their stories being told about us without our input and without our shaping," she said. "If we want a robust democracy in this country, we have to change that equation." Garza also touched on issues around voter suppression and the midterm elections.
Sean O'Hara, President of Pacer ETF's, explains why investors who were down after Jerome Powell's remarks on inflation Monday were more optimistic on Tuesday as the major indexes ended the day near session highs.
