lune 25, 2008
Page A4
O pinion
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AM S5ÍM G IN A C T IO N ...
Black Women Can’t
Remain Invisible
Americans must
treasure female
achievement
M arc M oriai .
This year’sS tateof Black
A m erica report shines a
m uch-needed spotlight on
the struggles and triumphs
o f black women.
Too often invisible in
m ainstream society or depicted by
dem eaning stereotypes in "popu
lar” cu ltu re, A frican -A m erican
women are at once the m ost op
pressed and m ost resilient group in
America. M illions o f them work
harder, earn less and shoulder the
b u rd e n s o f b r e a d w in n e r an d
caregiver in their families.
At the sam e time, many step up
and stand out as leaders in their
churches, schools, businesses and
local com m unities. Lest we forget,
it was H arriet Tubm an who led us
out o f slavery and Rosa Parks who
m ortally w ounded Jim C row .
Dorothy H eight has spent most
o f her 96 years on this earth stand
ing on the front lines o f freedom,
not only for black women, but for us
all.
C urrently the Chair and Presi
dent E m eritao f the National C oun
cil of N egro W om en, H eight has
been com m itted to equality and
justice for all since 1933. A sayoung
woman, she becam e a civil rights
w orker with the U nited Christian
Youth M ovement of North America.
D orothy Height has been active
in every stage o f the modern civil
rig h ts a n d w o m e n 's rig h ts
struggles. She has taken her m es
by
End Weight Discrimination Now
by J udge
G reg M athis
Body-type bias
dangerously on
the rise
ju st plain foolish and needs to end.
T w o recent studies report dis
crim ination based on body size has
increased more than 60 percent in
the last ten years and has becom e
as nearly as com m on as prejudice
based on race or gender.
T he studies report that the dis
to overcome, since 60 percent o f our
men and 78 percent o f our women are
overweight. Whether in a profes
sional or social setting, blacks not
only have to deal with the assump
tions people make based on their
race, but also because o f their weight.
Like other forms o f discrimina
America has far too many
excluded classes; we do not
need to create another one.
Nearly two thirds o f Am ericans
are o v erw eig h t o r obese. Y ou
w ouldn’t know this, how ever, by
skim m ing through the pages o f a
fashion m agazine or watching tele
vision on any given night.
Popular culture prom otes a thin,
som etim es dangerously so, body crim ination experienced is varied:
image that most A m ericans do not Some overweight people say they
live up to. The "thin is in" m entality are m ade to feel a sh a m e d in
has made its way into the nation's healthcare settings or were fired or
workplaces and overw eight indi not prom oted becau se o f th eir
viduals are experiencing discrim i weight. In their personal lives, they
nation now more than ever before. reported that they are subjected to
Discrim ination of any kind is un insults and harassment from strang
just and intolerable. But weight dis ers and loved ones.
For African Americans, this new
crim ination in a nation that super
sizes and autom ates everything is inequity presents another obstacle
tion, this type o f bias is destructive.
It m ay n e g a tiv e ly a ffe c t an
individual's self-esteem , causing
them to eat more, do less and, possi
bly, gain weight. To be fair, being
overweight is unhealthy and can
lead to a host of health problems,
including diabetes, high blood pres
sure and heart disease. That aside, a
person's physical size should have
no bearing on whether or not they
get ajo b or a promotion and should
not subject them to taunts and rude
stares.
Currently, there is no federal law
that protects overweight people
from workplace discrimination. Ad
ditionally, healthcare providers
should be held accountable for their
rude treatment of heavier patients;
sensitivity trainings are one way to
address such behavior. The gov
ernment should increase access to
healthcare so the overweight can
receive solid advice on diet and
ex e rc ise p lan s; m any o f this
country's obese people are poor.
Just like the battle against race
and gender bias, the fight against
weight discrimination cannot be
won overnight. And legislation is
only a tiny piece o f the pie. As
individuals, we have to take a look
at our behavior. America has far
too many excluded classes; we do
not need to create another one.
Judge Greg M athis is vice presi
dent o f Rainbow PUSH and a board
m em ber o f the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference.
N O W D E L IV E R IN G
Y o u r fa v o r ite n e ig h b o r h o o d g r o c e r y s to r e n o w d e liv e r s
g r o c e r ie s r ig h t to y o u r h o m e o r o ffic e .
sage o f human rights and w om en's
em pow erm ent to places like India,
M exico and Africa. In 1947 she was
elected National President o f Delta
Sigm a T h eta S orority
and for a decade, led the
organization into a new
era o f activism.
She was one o f a few
w omen w ho stood with
men like Martin Luther
King, Jr. and W hitney
M. Y oung, Jr. at the
height o f the civil rights m ovem ent
and she was on the platform when
Dr. King delivered his historic “I
H ave a D ream ” speech. For her
many outstanding achievem ents,
Dorothy Height has been honored
by presidents and peers. She is the
recipient of the Presidential Medal
o f Freedom, the NA A C PSpringam
M edal and the C ongressional G old
M edal, ju st to nam e a few.
At the tender age o f 96, Dorothy
Height is still a pow erful voice for
black women. As she writes in the
forew ord to the State o f Black
A m erica 2(X)8, "W ho better than us
understand and em pathize with the
very real challenges that our broth
ers, fathers, husbands and sons
fa c e .. .and who better than us can
understand the very real bound
aries that all women face in navigat
ing a cultural dynam ic that still as
signs roles and oftentim es lim ita
tions based on g en d er...W ith no
apologies, the time is now to finally
focus on us.”
Dorothy H eight is an A m erican
treasure and I am proud to call her
my friend.
M arc M oriai is president and
c h ie f executive officer o f the N a
tional Urban League.
Voting Restrictions
replacing lost docum ents.
W hat do all these people have in
com m on? Senior citizens, the dis
abled, students and low -incom e
w orkers all tend to vote for D em o
by T anya C lay H ouse
On the heels of the Supreme crats. And that fact m akes voter ID
C ourt’s recent decision upholding legislation very attractive to Re
Indiana's restrictive voter ID law, publican officeholders in state af
lawm akers in three states— M is ter state—ju st look at who is intro
souri, Kansas and Oklahom a— have ducing the bills.
A dvocates o f v o ter ID bills
wisely rejected sim ilar voter ID leg
islation. But d o n 't think this is the would have you believe that th ey ’re
fighting fraud. Nonsense. There is
last word.
L et’s be clear. This is not about no evidence o f w idespread voter
election reform . This is a partisan fraud in this country.
In fact, even with the record-
light about access to the ballot
box— who gets in, and who does shattering voter turnout in the presi
not— and the voting rights o f hun dential primaries, all across the na
dreds o f thousands o f Americans tion this year, supporters o f voter
ID cannot point to any significant
are at stake.
On the surface, a voter ID law instances o f voter impersonation
doesn’t sound like a big deal to fraud at the polls.
D ead people are not voting.
those o f us who have a driver’s
license or a passport. Look deeper, U ndocum ented im m igrants are not
and it's clear that voter ID laws voting. But innocent, eligible vot
pose a significant barrier to the ers are being caught up in the mess.
ballot box for all kinds o f people— During the primary election in Indi
and that discouraging those people ana this year, 12 nuns were turned
from voting gives a clear partisan aw ay from the polls because they
d id n 't have photo ID. Som ething
advantage to Republicans.
W ho are the people who might tells me they w eren’t trying to pull
find it difficult tocom ply with voter a fast one.
Sim ply put, voter ID legislation
ID laws? Folks who d o n ’t drive or
is
partisan
politics at its w orst—
travel abroad, or who have lost
piling
up
barriers
for people who
their birth certificates. Senior citi
have
every
right
to
vote, in order to
zens w ho hav en ’t had a current
gain
political
advantage.
It’s wrong.
d riv er's license in years, or dis
W
e
should
be
passing
laws that
abled voters. Victim s o f natural di
make
it
easier
for
citizens
to vote,
sasters like Hurricane Katrina, who
not
harder.
lose all their personal papers. Stu
Tanya Clay H ouse is the People
dents w ho drive in one state, but
vote in another. Low-incom e w ork F or the A m erican Way director o f
ers who ca n ’t afford the costs of public policy.
Laws don’t
target cheaters
“W c are ab o u t n eig h b o rs
helping n eig h b o rs im prove
th e ir com m unity.”
M ary Harrell
nt Friendx rtf 7> w a
507 ¿Hl 8846
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