50% + 1
Jamie Raskin Says It’s Time to End the Electoral College

“We should elect the president the way we elect governors, senators, mayors, [and] representatives,” Raskin said.

By Chris Walker , TRUTHOUT

Published December 28, 2022

Rep. Jamie Raskin appears on Meet the Press in Washington, D.C., on June 19, 2022.

WILLIAM B. PLOWMAN / NBC VIA GETTY IMAGES

On Sunday, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) said lawmakers in Congress should begin the process of abolishing the Electoral College, describing the mechanism as a danger to the American people due to the plethora of ways it can be exploited.

In comments on CBS’s “Face the Nation” program, Raskin said that presidents should be elected by a popular vote model instead.

“We should elect the president the way we elect governors, senators, mayors, representatives, everybody else — whoever gets the most votes wins,” Raskin said.

Raskin noted that other countries reject the framework of the Electoral College. “We spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year exporting American democracy to other countries, and the one thing they never come back to us with is the idea that, ‘Oh, that Electoral College that you have, that’s so great, we think we will adopt that too,'” he said.

Notably, the Electoral College system provides several avenues for a presidential candidate to subvert the will of the people, the Maryland Democrat explained.


Jan. 6 Panel Members Propose Reforms to Electoral College Certification Process
The bill would definitively state that the vice president’s role in certifying electors’ votes is purely “ministerial.”   By Chris Walker , TRUTHOUT September 20, 2022

“There are so many curving byways and nooks and crannies in the Electoral College that there are opportunities for a lot of strategic mischief,” Raskin said.

Earlier this month, as part of the omnibus spending package, both houses of Congress passed the Electoral Count Reform Act, legislation that would limit ways for lawmakers to seek to subvert the outcome of the Electoral College vote; the bill is largely a response to actions by Republicans in early 2021, when members of the party aligned with former President Donald Trump to challenge electors’ votes in several states that Trump lost to President Joe Biden.

“I’m for [the Electoral Count Reform Act], and that’s the very least we can do and we must do,” Raskin said. “It’s necessary, but it’s not remotely sufficient.”

Raskin, a member of the January 6 committee, added:

The Electoral College now — which has given us five popular-vote losers as president in our history, twice in this century alone — has become a danger, not just to democracy, but to the American people. It was a danger on January 6.

Although abolishing the Electoral College would require a constitutional amendment, Raskin is far from alone in his views. A majority of Americans support ending the Electoral College system and replacing it with a popular vote model instead.

According to polling this past summer from Pew Research Center, 63 percent of Americans back a popular vote method for picking the president, while just 35 percent say they want to keep the current system in place.

This rate of support is the highest Pew Research Center has seen on the question since at least the year 2000.

ROGUE NATION

H.R. McMaster: "Chances Are Quite High" Israel Will Strike Iran's Nuclear Program In 2023

Posted By Tim Hains
On Date January 1, 2023

Former National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster suggested Sunday during a "Face The Nation" roundtable that Israel might strike Iran's nuclear program in 2023 despite Iran's increasingly close relationship with Russia.

MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you, from a military perspective, we heard the CIA director describe a "full-fledged military partnership" between Russia and Iran. What does this look like?

H.R. MCMASTER: Well, I think where it heads next is support for Russia’s war-making machine more broadly. I think you’re going to see missiles. You already have reports of Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps trainers and assemblers of these drones. And I think what we’re recognizing is these problem sets that we’re facing with the theocratic dictatorship in Iran, and- and the revanchist hyper-nationalist Putin. They’re connected to each other, and they’re connected to China, which of course, also has just doubled down on — on his relationship, Xi Jinping, his relationship with Vladimir Putin and support for Putin. So I, I think we are hopefully now in full recognition that we are in really consequential competitions with authoritarian regimes who are hostile to us, and- and we have to respond much more effectively than we responded in the past. And that’s a broad range of I think, preparations for potential military conflicts where we can deter a widening of war, but there’s also very significant economic and diplomatic aspects of these interconnected problems.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Oone of the things you’re saying there is recognition that the attempt to broker a nuclear deal with Iran is dead.

H.R. MCMASTER: It’s a pipe dream. It’s trying to revive something that is completely dead. And I couldn’t believe it, Margaret, as- as we were supplicating to the Iranian regime as they’re intensifying their proxy war in the region, and attacking some of our- of our long-standing partners there, the- the Saudi- Saudi Arabia and, and the UAE. And I think we lost a lot of ground in the Middle East, because we’re chasing this pipe dream of trying to revive this- this nuclear agreement. And if we didn’t Margaret, what would happen- what would happen is we’d give Iran a pass on- on the destructive effect that the dictatorship has had on the Iranian economy. And you know, where that money would go, that money would go into the bonyads, which are these collectives controlled by the theocratic dictatorship, who extend their patronage network and control and that money would go to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, who would, as they did after the first Iran nuclear deal, intensify their proxy war against us, their Arab neighbors, and especially against Israel. And I think, Margaret, if we’re going to be in the business of making predictions, I think the chances are quite high of a significant conflict in the Middle East, maybe entailing an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear program.

ABOLISH SCOTUS

"Why are these conflicts allowed?" Corporate giving to SCOTUS-linked group sparks blowback

Chevron, Goldman Sachs and anti-abortion activists donated to Supreme Court nonprofit, reports New York Times

By JON QUEALLY
PUBLISHED JANUARY 1, 2023 1:28PM (EST)

An abortion rights activist flies an upside-down US flag, the international sign of distress, outside of the US Supreme Court during a protest in Washington, DC, on June 26, 2022, two days after the US Supreme Court scrapped half-century constitutional protections for the procedure. (SAMUEL CORUM/AFP via Getty Images)

This article originally appeared at Common Dreams. It is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License. Feel free to republish and share widely.

Alarm and concern were expressed Saturday in response to new reporting about a charitable group with close ties to the U.S. Supreme Court that has been soliciting and accepting donations from corporate interests and far-right activists with cases before the court.

The New York Times exposé focused on the activities and fundraising of the Supreme Court Historical Society, a nonprofit that claims its mission is "dedicated to the collection and preservation" of the court's history.

While the group refused to disclose its donors to the Times, reporters from the newspaper determined that much of the funding came from powerful companies like Chevron, Goldman Sachs, Time Warner and Facebook as well as anti-abortion activists like the Rev. Rob Schenck.

According to the newspaper:

The society has raised more than $23 million over the last two decades. Because of its nonprofit status, it does not have to publicly disclose its donors — and declined when asked to do so. But The New York Times was able to identify the sources behind more than $10.7 million raised since 2003, the first year for which relevant records were available.

At least $6.4 million — or 60 percent — came from corporations, special interest groups, or lawyers and firms that argued cases before the court, according to an analysis of archived historical society newsletters and publicly available records that detail grants given to the society by foundations. Of that, at least $4.7 million came from individuals or entities in years when they had a pending interest in a federal court case on appeal or at the high court, records show.

In the case of Chevron, the oil giant actively gave to the society even as it had a pending climate litigation working its way through the court.

In response to the new revelations, public interest attorney Steven Donzinger, who was himself targeted by Chevron for his work aimed at holding the company to account for its polluting activities in Ecuador, said the implications were "horrifying."

"Why are these conflicts allowed?" asked Donzinger.

Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.

Others quoted by the Times said the effort by people like Schenck, who admits to using the charitable group as a way to get other anti-abortion activists closer to the justices, creates a clear conflict of interest.

Charles Fried, a Harvard Law professor who once served as solicitor general in the Reagan administration and counts himself a donor to the Historical Society, told the newspaper he was so "horrified" by Schenck's behavior that he may no longer give.
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"It's disgusting," Fried said. "Many of the people who contribute have the same reasons I do. You go to a cocktail party and support a good cause. But it turns out that for some people it's not that innocent."

While the Times notes that the Historical Society is "ostensibly independent of the judicial branch of government," the reality is that "the two are inextricably intertwined," with court justices serving as chair of the board and hosting gala events where exclusive access is reportedly part of the allure.

The left-leaning Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) said the reporting raises "significant questions" about the group which has "raked in millions — a significant chunk of it from groups with cases before the Court" over the last two decades.

Fix the Court, which acts as a watchdog organization for the Supreme Court, said the justification for the Historical Society's existence just doesn't hold water.

Gabe Roth, the group's executive director, told the Times that if money was an issue for funding such a project it would be the best solution — one free of ethical concerns — for Congress to simply appropriate the money needed to maintain the history of the Supreme Court.

Iranian dissident journalist released: media

Keyvan Samimi has served prison terms both before and after the Islamic revolution of 1979.

MENA1 min read
The New Arab Staff & Agencies
01 January, 2023

Independent media in Iran face constant harassment, say RSF [Getty images]

Iranian dissident journalist Keyvan Samimi, jailed in December 2020 for "plotting against national security", has been released, reformist daily Shargh reported on Sunday.

Samimi, 73, was in December 2020 sentenced to three years in prison and was held in Semnan, nearly 200 kilometres (125 miles) east of Tehran.

Shargh did not specify the date of his release.

Samimi had been granted permission to leave prison on medical grounds in February 2022.

Doubling Down on Defiance
In-depth
Hugo Goodridge

But he returned to prison in May after being suspected of carrying out activities against national security, the Mehr news agency said.

In December, he issued a message from prison supporting the protest movement following the September 16 death of Mahsa Amini.

The 22-year-old Iranian Kurd died after being arrested by the police for an alleged violation of country's dress code for women.

Samimi has served prison terms both before and after the Islamic revolution of 1979.

Following the death of Mahsa Amini in morality police custody, nationwide demonstrations against the hijab law began in Iran, and women burnt their headscarves in major Iranian cities.

The brutal crackdown on the protests fueled the anger against the authorities and sparked a new wave of anti-establishment demonstrations, during which security forces killed at least 448.

Media Freedom Suffers Record Setbacks Globally in 2022

The easing of restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic meant more journalists were out on assignment in 2022. But that, combined with an expansion of deadly conflicts, has triggered a spike in killings and jailings of journalists. VOA’s Laurel Bowman has our story.

Zelensky signs controversial law expanding government power to regulate media

BY BRAD DRESS - 01/01/23

Greg Nash
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks alongside Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) during a photo op following their meeting at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, December 21, 2022.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed into law a controversial statute expanding the government’s power to regulate media groups and journalists in the country.

Zelensky signed the legislation on Thursday over the objections of media unions and press freedom organizations, who warned it will have a chilling effect on free speech.

Under the new law, the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council, whose members are appointed by the president’s administration and by members of parliament, will have broader authority over Ukrainian media organizations and journalists.

The regulatory agency can effectively shut down news sites that aren’t registered, according to the Kyiv Independent.

In a statement last month, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine said the bill posed a “threat” to press freedom in the country.

“Such powers are clearly excessive,” the organization wrote. “No one has yet managed to tame freedom of speech in Ukraine. It won’t work this time either.”

Zelensky’s administration has been accused of suppressing press freedom. He first ordered the drafting of a new law to boost media regulation in 2019, the year he entered office.

The law was passed along with several other new statutes lawmakers say are required in order to become eligible for European Union membership, which Ukraine applied for last year.

The bill for the legislation, which the Ukrainian parliament passed on Dec. 13, was watered down after mounting criticism.

Previous draft versions handed the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council a greater ability to impose fines on media groups, revoke licenses from printed media and block online outlets from publishing restricted information.

When the draft versions were released, several international media organizations voiced opposition to the law, including the Committee to Protect Journalists and the European Federation of Journalists (EPJ).

EPJ General Secretary Ricardo Gutiérrez told The New York Times the law still contradicted European press freedom standards.

“Ukraine will demonstrate its European commitment by promoting a free and independent media, not by establishing state control of information,” Gutiérrez said.

Bank of America economist says 2023 could be ‘difficult’ year for US

BY THERESA MAHER - 01/01/23 


Bank of America’s chief economist warned on Sunday that 2023 would be a “difficult” one for Americans due to economic factors that he predicted could trigger a recession.

When asked by CBS’ Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation” to give a forecast on the economy this year, Michael Gapen said he agreed with the notion that it could look and feel worse.

“I think we’re in a situation where the risk of recession is high, may not be a deep and prolonged one. But we’re in a situation where the economy has recovered very rapidly from- from COVID, and it’s come with a lot of inflation,” Gapen said. “We may be able to avoid it, but I would agree that the outlook by most people who sit in the position that I do think 2023 could be a difficult year for the U.S.”

Gapen cited interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in its attempt to slow inflation.

“More often than not, when we’re tightening policy, pushing interest rates higher to slow down the domestic economy and bring down inflationary pressures, that often means we get a period of higher unemployment rates, and what would be characterized as a recession,” Gaper explained.

But Gapen said it’s also possible to avoid a recession or be in one that doesn’t last long.Zelensky signs controversial law expanding government power to regulate mediaFamily of suspect in Idaho stabbings say they’re trying to ‘promote his presumption of innocence’

“In the past, we have been able to raise rates, cool inflation, without pushing the economy into a recession. In the mid 1990s we were able to do it. It’s just that the path to that is very tricky and sometimes involves a little more luck than it does skill,” Gapen said.

Gaper also said the U.S. economy is most likely past peak inflation, and the year-over-year inflation rate should continue to lower as it began doing late last year, but would take a while to take effect.

“The trajectory is a more favorable one. It will probably take two to three years to get inflation back down to levels that we knew prior to the pandemic,” he said.

Historic term begins in Michigan as Whitmer, others sworn in

By JOEY CAPPELLETTI

1 of 10 INCLUDES VIDEO

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer addresses the crowd during inauguration ceremonies, Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023, outside the state Capitol in Lansing, Mich. (AP Photo/Al Goldis)

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was sworn in for second term as the state’s 49th governor on Sunday, pushing a message of unity and working together during remarks on the state Capitol steps as Democrats took full control of the state government for the first time in 40 years.

Whitmer, who was first elected in 2018 after serving as a state lawmaker for 14 years, won reelection in November by defeating Republican Tudor Dixon by nearly 11 percentage points. Alongside her on Sunday were other top Democratic leaders, including newly reelected Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II.

During her inauguration address, Whitmer pledged to pursue “common sense” gun reform, continue investing in K-12 education, improve worker rights, lower taxes for the state’s retirees and tackle climate change, adding that she would provide more specifics in her upcoming State of the State speech.

“For the next four years, our task is to ensure that every Michigander, present and future, can succeed,” Whitmer said to the nearly 1,000 people in attendance. “And our message is simple: We’re putting the world on notice that your future is here in Michigan.”

With a newly powerful Democratic caucus, Whitmer faces a test of delivering on years of promises in a swing state where Democrats must appeal to more than just their base or risk losing their majorities when the Legislature is up for grabs again in two years.

Whitmer acknowledged several Republican legislative leaders and promised throughout her speech to work across the aisle and with “anyone that wants to solve problems and get things done.”

Sen. Aric Nesbitt, the new Republican leader in the state Senate, congratulated Whitmer following the inauguration and said in a statement that he hopes she “actually follows through on her repeated promises of bipartisanship.”

The inauguration ceremony comes days after two men were sentenced to lengthy federal prison terms after they led a plot to kidnap Whitmer in 2020 ahead of the presidential election. Whitmer has previously blamed Republican leaders for stoking violent rhetoric and making light of the plot to kidnap and assassinate her.

Michigan Democrats officially took control of the state House and Senate at noon Sunday after winning slim majorities and flipping both chambers in November’s election.

Newly selected Democratic leaders in the Legislature, Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks and House Speaker Joe Tate, joined the governor in stressing the importance of bipartisanship during their speeches.

“A stunning opportunity stands before us to work together like never before across legislative chambers and alongside the executive branch,” said Brinks, who was selected as the Senate’s first female majority leader in December.

The new legislative session is required to begin the second Wednesday of January. The state’s budget will be among the priorities lawmakers tackle as they carry a nearly $6 billion surplus into the new year.

History was also made Sunday on the state’s Supreme Court as Kyra Harris Bolden was sworn in as the first Black woman to serve on the high court after Whitmer appointed the former state representative in November to replace retiring Justice Bridget McCormack. Bolden also administered Whitmer’s oath of office.
___

Joey Cappelletti is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Democrats, Republicans have sharply distinct priorities for 2023, AP-NORC poll finds


By —Hannah Fingerhut, Associated Press

Politics Jan 1, 2023 

WASHINGTON (AP) — Eva Guzman’s expenses have swelled, but she feels comfortable financially thanks to the savings she and her late husband stockpiled for a rainy day. Nevertheless, the 80-year-old retired library clerk in San Antonio limits trips to the grocery store, adjusts the thermostat to save on utilities and tries to help her grandchildren and great-grandchildren get what they need.

It was difficult to raise her own four children, Guzman said, but she and her husband were able to manage. She doesn’t know how young families today stay financially afloat with such high prices for groceries and clothes.

“It’s really gotten worse in this age for a lot of people,” said Guzman, who identifies as a conservative and blames President Joe Biden for inflation and economic instability. “It’s really getting out of hand.”

Like Guzman, 30 percent of people in the United States consider inflation a high priority for the country, named in an open-ended question as one of up to five issues for the government to work on in 2023, according to a December poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That’s roughly twice the percentage as a year ago, though down from 40 percent in June, with inflation easing somewhat despite remaining high.

READ MORE: Slowdown in inflation eases some pressure on American households

Overall, the economy in general remains a bipartisan issue, mentioned by most U.S. adults across party lines. But the poll finds Republicans and Democrats have sharply distinct views of priorities for the country in the new year. More Republicans than Democrats name inflation, gas and food prices, energy and immigration, while Democrats focus on health care, climate change, poverty, racism, abortion and women’s rights.

Elizabeth Stephens, a 41-year-old Democratic-leaning independent in Houston, recognizes that inflation is an issue right now. But she thinks there are other problems that the government should focus on addressing.

“Inflation comes and goes,” said Stephens, a manager working in learning and development. But issues such as poverty and health care disparities, she said, “are always there.”

“Even if the economy is great, there are still people who are suffering,” Stephens added.

There is broad skepticism from members of both parties that progress will be made on the issues about which the public most cares. In the poll results and in interviews with the AP, many people cite hostile political divisions as part of the problem.

Stephens said the country is so divided that “it seems close to impossible” to imagine there would be progress this year.

Glenn Murray, a 59-year-old in Little Mountain, South Carolina, also called out the distance between the left and the right, wishing that politicians would recognize the “truth in the middle.” But his priorities are different from Stephens’.

Murray, a moderate Republican, thinks inflation and the economy are critical issues and he worries that the U.S. will soon face a recession. But he is also concerned about energy policy, suggesting the nation’s reliance on foreign oil is driving up gas prices, and he describes the surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border as “unsustainable.”

“I definitely understand that immigration is what helped build this country … but you have to have guardrails,” said Murray, who works for a university’s audit services. “You just can’t open the gates and let everyone in that wants to come in.”

Named by 45 percent of Republicans, immigration is one of the GOP’s leading priorities. The Supreme Court recently extended Trump-era pandemic restrictions on people seeking asylum, as thousands of migrants gathered on the Mexico side of the border seeking to the enter the United States.

WATCH: Frigid temperatures create dangerous conditions for migrants gathering near border

Roughly 2 in 10 Republicans also name crime, foreign policy issues, energy and health care. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to specifically name inflation, 37 percent vs. 26 percent, and gas prices, 22 percent vs. 7 percent.

Among Democrats, about 4 in 10 rank climate change and health care, 3 in 10 prioritize gun issues and roughly one-quarter name education and abortion or women’s rights. Roughly 2 in 10 Democrats name racism and poverty.

For 24-year-old Osbaldo Cruz, the country’s minimum wage is insufficient, especially to keep up with high inflation. But the Democrat, who works as an assistant manager at a fast-food restaurant, equally prioritizes climate change and gun policy, issues that have been close to his home in Las Vegas.

Seeing record temperatures and increasing waste, Cruz worries that conditions on Earth won’t be livable in the future. “People pretty much think short term, so we never take the time to invest in proper long-term solutions,” he said.

And while he said he understands the importance of the right to bear arms, he’s concerned with how easy it is for people to get a gun.

Joseph Wiseman, a 52-year-old Presbyterian pastor in Wichita, Kansas, wants the country to prioritize protections for women’s health care, including access to abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and LGBTQ individuals.

“I’m very concerned that basic human rights are under threat,” he said. “The blatant politicization of the Supreme Court and the handing down of that ruling really brought home in stark circumstance how deadly important this is for the livelihood of 51 percent of God’s children.”

Wiseman was a lifelong Republican up until the past few years, registering instead as a Democrat. He said he worries about the “dangerous” shift toward authoritarianism and Christian nationalism happening in the country, especially within the GOP.

Still, he said he has to be hopeful.

“I have to be optimistic that the threat will be met and that basic human rights can be secured for all,” Wiseman said.

Most of those surveyed say the opposite. About three-quarters of U.S. adults say they are not confident in the ability of the federal government to make progress on the important problems facing the country in 2023, according to the poll.

About one-third of Republicans and Democrats name the state of politics as a critical issue facing the country.

Michael Holcomb, a 35-year-old audio technician in Los Angeles, wants less polarization in the election process, which he thinks leads politicians to be more extreme. But he sees the issue as extending beyond politics.

“I think that it’s more of a cultural problem,” the independent said. “We all have to figure out a way to get past it.”

The poll of 1,124 adults was conducted Dec. 1-5 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.

THREE BLACK WOMEN LAW STUDENTS MAKE HISTORY AS EDITORS OF THREE OF PENN’S SEVEN LAW JOURNALS

Stacy Jackson

January 1, 2023

Chayla Sherrod (Image via LinkedIn/Chayla Sherrod), Simone Hunter-Hobson (Image via LinkedIn/Simone Hunter-Hobson), Layla June West (Image via LinkedIn/Layla June West)

These women have become part of a major network of scholars and prestigious alumni, and they have the support of their fellow classmates.

Black law students Chayla Sherrod, 25, Simone Hunter-Hobson, 24, and Layla June West, 27, are the selected editors for three out of the seven law journals at the University of Pennsylvania.

According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, the women are a part of the 7.2% of Black students out of a total 824 student body at the law school.

After votes from student editors from the prior year, Sherrod was appointed as editor for the University of Pennsylvania Law Review, one of the most prestigious law journals in the country. Hunter-Hobson, president of Penn’s Black Law Students Association, was appointed as editor in chief of the Journal of Constitutional Law. West was selected to head the Journal of Law and Social Change.

“I find it so important, now that we are leaders in the school, to give back to that community that poured so much into me,” said West, a Howard University graduate who got a master’s at New York University in Africana studies.

Reportedly, Penn has appointed the most Black editors of its primary law review compared to any other university. Vernon L. Francis, a partner at Dechert LLP in Philadelphia, was the university’s first when he was selected in 1986. with others following in 2000, 2009, 2015, and within the last four years.

“It would be nice to walk into an office and just see someone who looks like me,” said Sherrod, who got her bachelor’s in environmental studies and political science from Villanova.

“The continual denial of Black women’s existence and intellectual contributions in the classroom causes many Black women to work 10 times as hard compared to their counterparts just to prove their worth, and ultimately leads to serious health concerns, such as anxiety, loss of appetite, and self-doubt,” wrote Hunter-Hobson in a research report that examined racism and sexism in the legal field and its harm to the health of Black women.

Reportedly, Clara Burrill Bruce was the first Black editor, selected in 1926 at Boston University with a twenty-seven year gap between the next selection of a Black editor.