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August 17, 2016 The Skanner Page 9 News New Hires at the RNC Ready to Court the African American Vote By Stacy M. Brown NNPA News Wire Contributor D ue to unprecedent- ed poor polling numbers in the African American community, Republicans have ramped up their efort to court Black vot- ers. The party has hired four new Black staf members in a move that they hope will not only help GOP Presidential nominee Donald Trump in the general election this November, but that will also bolster the par- ty’s long-term eforts to gain support among Af- “ ed oicials and commu- nity activists; Shannon Reeves, a professor of po- litical science at Alabama A & M University and former national direc- tor of state and local de- velopment for the RNC; Elroy Sailor, the founder and CEO of the J.C. Watts Companies; and Georgia State University senior Leah LeVell, whose fa- ther Bruce LeVell is the chairman of the National Diversity Coalition for Trump. Two of the new hires, Bell and Sailor, spoke at length with the NNPA News Wire, expressing optimism that they can help turnaround the re- AP PHOTO/PAUL HOLSTON Strategy focuses on outreach at HBCUs, stressing economic empowerment and criminal justice reform Ashley D. Bell speaks with The Associated Press Aug. 9 in Washington. Bell, who was one of the 18 black delegates at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, has been hired as an RNC senior strategist and national director of African-American engagement. their ideas for criminal justice reform. “HBCUs are a very big It’s been eight years since a Republican was in the [White House]…we have to make sure that the Black vote is competitively fought for rican Americans, a vot- ing bloc that for decades has mostly voted for Democrats. The new staf mem- bers are Ashley Bell, who helped to launch the 20/20 Leaders of Ameri- ca, a bipartisan group of African American elect- cord low polling num- bers that show Trump currently receiving just one percent of the Black vote. They also spelled out their mission to court students at historically Black college and uni- versities — HBCUs — and focus of ours and part of our job is to make sure we engage HBCUs,” said Bell. “We don’t have a lot of time, but HBCUs can help get the economy to where it needs to be and we recognize that.” They also recognize that criminal justice re- We honor the many accomplishments of African Americans. form is a critical issue for the Black community. “We have to make sure that America can turn the page from the cur- rent mass incarceration system,” added Bell. “If we talk about communi- ties being devastated by a failed criminal justice system where brothers and sisters are being disenfranchised and not being able to ind a job, we talk about ixing the criminal justice sys- tem.” The solution, Bell said, is the creation of more entrepreneurs in the Black community and improving the capital gains tax which would al- low these entrepreneurs to perform activities like buying houses to ix up and resell for proit. Bell noted that Con- gress has put forward a number of compelling ideas, like economic em- powerment zones and transforming education to create a marketplace where schools have to compete for students. “I think the economic ideas and education op- portunities [put forth by the GOP] are very speciic to the Black community,” said Bell. “It’s been eight years since a Republi- can was in the [White House]…we have to make sure that the Black vote is competitively fought for.” Sailor said it’s import- ant to remember that no party has exclusivity on having 100 percent of the best models for America. “I’ve been a Republican for over 25 years and I have seen the end re- sults of some very good policies and new models that have proven suc- cessful in terms of cre- ating opportunities and solving old problems in our community,” he said. “For example, former Congressman J.C. Watts authored the American Community Renewal and New Markets Act, which was signed into law by President Clinton. This legislation helped to empower faith-based organizations, and spur development in our com- munities.” Among the new team’s assignments, Bell will serve as Senior Strategist and National Director of African American Polit- ical Engagement and fo- cus on winning elections for 2016. Reeves will serve as Senior Advisor to the RNC’s Political De- partment and will focus on the X’s and O’s of pol- itics – the data, and voter identiication. Sailor has the job of Senior Advisor to the Chairman and will focus on infrastructure, institutional growth and sustainability. Read the rest of this story at TheSkanner.com FREE MOVIE SCREENING The wake of vanport Digital narratives and storytelling from lood survivors and residents of Vanport It is our primary goal as a labor union to better the lives of all people working in the building trades through advocacy, civil demonstration, and the long-held belief that workers deserve a “family wage” - fair pay for an honest day’s work. A family wage, and the beneits that go with it, not only strengthens families, but also allows our communities to become stronger, more cohesive, and more responsive to their citizens’ needs. Our family wage agenda relects our commitment to people working in the building trades, and to workers everywhere. In this small way, we are doing our part to help people achieve the American Dream. This dream that workers can hold dear regardless of race, color, national origin, gender, creed, or religious beliefs. Paciic Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters Representing more than 5,000 construction workers in Oregon State. Do you want to know more about becoming a Union carpenter? Go to www.NWCarpenters.org PORTLAND OFFICE 1636 East Burnside, Portland, OR 97214 503.261.1862 | 800.974.9052 HEADQUARTERS 25120 Paciic Hwy S, Suite 200, Kent, WA 98032 253.954.8800 | 800.573.8333 FRI. AUG. 26, 2016 1:30 PM Embassy Suites Portland-Downtown, 2nd Floor, 319 SW Pine St., Portland, OR Free to the public. Limited seating. RESERVATIONS REQUIRED. REGISTER ONLINE: htp://thewakeofvanport.eventbrite.com HHHH Together, this touching collection of truly heartfelt remembrances paint a poignant portrait of a short-lived, idyllic oasis —Movie Critic Kam Williams BOOK SIGNING AT THE EVENT FREE BOOK TO THE FIRST 40 GUESTS! Portland author Zita Podany will be signing copies of her book “Images of America: Vanport” at the event. Oregon Community Foundation Meyer Memorial Trust • Portland Prime Oregon Arts Commission • Oregon Humanities