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The Vote On Bilingual Education And Latino Identity In Massachusetts, Jorge Capetillo-Ponce

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the Massachusetts electorate voted overwhelmingly to pass Referendum Ballot Question 2 (Q. 2), sponsored by California millionaire Ron Unz. The passage of this initiative by close to 70% of the voters effectively ended bilingual education in the state as it had been known for thirty years. Exit polling done at selected cities in Massachusetts by the Mauricio Gaston Institute and UMass Poll revealed, however, that out of a total 1,491 Latinos polled, a vast majority of them, around 93%, had voted in favor of rejecting Q. 2 and keeping bilingual education in place.

Indeed, Q. 2 became …

Race And Political Empowerment: The Crisis Of Black Leadership, William E. Nelson Jr.

William Monroe Trotter Institute Publications

W.E.B. Du Bois demonstrated poignant insight into the character of American society when he predicted in 1901 that the fundamental problem of the 20th Century would be the problem of the color line. Du Bois was writing in the aftermath of the first reconstruction that saw the institutionalization of Jim Crow and white dominance across the South. This period was symbolized by the infamous Plessy v. Ferguson decision in 1896. It was also marked by the capitulation of white Republican custodians of Reconstruction to the racist demands of southern politics, including the massive ejection of Black politicians from public office, …