GOP’s SAVE Act bad for Blacks; Rickey Smiley rips hazing; Shoot victim wins $27M
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖The GOP's 'SAVE Act' is characterized as an unconstitutional poll tax requiring passports or birth certificates for voting, disproportionately affecting Black, Brown, low-income individuals, and women.
- ❖Prominent figures like Van Jones are criticized for downplaying the severity of the 'SAVE Act' by framing it as a reasonable voter ID measure.
- ❖Hazing in fraternities and sororities is condemned as a 'generational curse' that causes PTSD, physical injury, and death, undermining the core values of these organizations.
- ❖Ricky Smiley and Roland Martin advocate for an end to hazing, emphasizing community service and brotherhood over barbaric traditions, and warning of organizational liability.
- ❖A Black man, Stfan Barber, was awarded $27.5 million in a civil lawsuit after being partially paralyzed by a San Bernardino County deputy sheriff who used excessive force.
- ❖The civil verdict against the deputy highlights the critical role of civil litigation in achieving justice and accountability for police misconduct, especially when criminal charges are not filed.
- ❖The 'Love Forward Together' march in North Carolina mobilizes voters against gerrymandering and policies that harm poor people, advocating for love, justice, and economic equity through the ballot.
Insights
1The 'SAVE Act' as a Deliberate Voter Suppression Tactic
The GOP's 'SAVE Act' is framed not as a simple voter ID law, but as a modern-day poll tax and a deliberate act of voter suppression. It requires citizens to present a passport or an original birth certificate to vote, excluding driver's licenses or voter registration cards. This disproportionately impacts 21 million voters without passports and 70 million women whose birth certificates may not match their current legal names due to marriage. The simultaneous closure of libraries that process passport applications, reminiscent of Alabama's DMV closures in Black belt counties, further indicates intentional disenfranchisement.
Cliff Albright states, 'This isn't just about ID. This is about citizenship and documentation of citizenship... 70 million women do not have birth certificates that match up with their current legal name.' He also notes the simultaneous forbidding of libraries from processing passports, echoing Alabama's 2015 DMV closures in Black belt counties. (, )
2Hazing's Traumatic Impact and Threat to Greek Organizations
Hazing in Black fraternities and sororities is identified as a severe issue leading to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), physical injuries, and even death. Ricky Smiley and Roland Martin argue that these practices are a 'generational curse' and a 'cult' that betray the founding principles of community service and brotherhood. They stress that the 'paper' vs. 'pledge' debate is a manipulative tactic, and that true greatness in Greek life is measured by post-college accomplishments, not endurance of abuse. The financial liability from lawsuits, with only one insurance company covering the Divine Nine, poses an existential threat to these organizations.
Ricky Smiley states, 'members of all these fraternities... have posttraumatic stress disorder... got mental health issues for the rest of their life from pledging.' Roland Martin adds, 'No black parent should sending their young young child to college and he come home in a body bag.' Ricky Smiley warns, 'One insurance company is representing the divine nine. Only one. If this keep going on and that insurance goes away, it's over.' (, , )
3Civil Justice as a Mechanism for Police Accountability
The $27.5 million civil verdict awarded to Stfan Barber, a Black man partially paralyzed by a police shooting, demonstrates the critical role of civil lawsuits in achieving accountability for police misconduct. Despite a prior criminal conviction for Barber (unrelated to the shooting), his attorney successfully argued excessive force, securing a verdict that is among the largest non-death awards in California and US history for such cases. This outcome highlights that civil litigation can provide a crucial recourse for victims when district attorneys fail to prosecute officers, and that substantial financial penalties can compel police agencies to implement systemic change.
Attorney Rodney Diggs explains that his client was acquitted of attempted murder and battery on a peace officer in the criminal case, which was 'huge.' He states, 'in effort to effectuate change within these uh police agencies, we have to bring these cases civily.' He confirms the $27.5 million verdict is the largest non-death verdict in California and among the top five in US history for cases where deadly force was used but the victim survived. (, , )
Lessons
- Educate yourself and others on the specific, restrictive requirements of the 'SAVE Act' (passport/birth certificate, not just any ID) to counter misinformation and mobilize against voter suppression efforts.
- Advocate within Black Greek letter organizations for an end to hazing, emphasizing the severe mental and physical health consequences (PTSD, death) and the financial liability threatening their existence. Support non-hazing pledge processes.
- Support and amplify the work of Black civil rights lawyers who pursue civil lawsuits against police misconduct, as these cases are often the only recourse for justice and can drive systemic change through significant financial verdicts.
Notable Moments
Discussion on Van Jones's 'both sides' narrative regarding voter ID, which is strongly refuted as dishonest.
This moment highlights how even prominent figures can inadvertently or intentionally downplay the severity of voter suppression tactics, underscoring the need for precise and informed advocacy.
Senator Jon Ossoff explicitly states that Donald Trump's attacks on Fulton County's voting tabulation are 'specifically an attack on African-Americans.'
This direct accusation from a sitting Senator frames the political actions as racially motivated voter suppression, providing a clear, high-level perspective on the intent behind such efforts.
Ricky Smiley shares personal experiences and a strong stance against hazing, calling it a 'generational curse' and a 'cult.'
This personal and passionate testimony from a well-known figure adds significant weight to the anti-hazing message, making it relatable and urgent for a broad audience, including members of Greek organizations.
The discussion about the single insurance company covering the Divine Nine and the threat of losing coverage due to hazing lawsuits.
This reveals a critical, often overlooked, business and operational vulnerability for Black Greek letter organizations, providing a powerful, pragmatic argument for ending hazing beyond moral or ethical considerations.
The lawyer for Stfan Barber explains how his client was acquitted of criminal charges (attempted murder, battery on an officer) before winning the civil case.
Quotes
"This is pathetic. As I told you personally, all caps back in 2021, this was never just about voter ID. And for you to be posting this while ignoring the citizenship requirements and unconstitutional poll tax, which will make it difficult for at least 75% of voters, is simply dishonest."
"70 million women do not have birth certificates that match up with their current legal name. Why? Because they got married and their legal name was changed and so now that no longer matches what's on their birth certificate."
"Voter voter fraud is is extremely rare, especially the kind that they're talking about this this noncitizen voting, you know, voter fraud, which is almost non-existent."
"This is not accidental that um that this this this proposed legislation would have the impact on the communities that we're naming black, brown, lowincome women. It's not accidental. That is that is the purpose of it all."
"The power of black voters and the fact that the power of black voters ejected him from office may outrage him more than the defeat itself."
"We need people like the Paul Osafos of the world, everybody who's involved in this process to call out what's really happened based in facts and based in history."
"members of of all these fraternities, Kappas, alphas, sigas, Q's that's walking around and for the rest of their life they have posttraumatic stress disorder, from pledging, got mental health issues for the rest of their life from pledging."
"It's a curse. It's a curse. It's a cult. Uh it's a cult. It's part of the culture. And that don't make it uh correct because of uh tradition and you know being uh bringing you to to the point of almost death don't make you no more uh uh alpha kappa omega sigma iota than than anybody else in the fraternity that came in with a good pledge process."
"Can't nobody put the sauce on a case like black lawyers. And nobody is going to get in that courtroom and get in the gutter like black lawyers and really fight for you."
Q&A
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