[ad_1]<\/p>\n
When it leaked in January, The New York Times<\/a> reported that law enforcement groups were so enraged by \u201cthe tenor of the order\u2019s policy preamble, which spoke of \u2018systemic racism\u2019 in the criminal justice system,\u201d that Susan Rice, the White House domestic policy adviser, was forced \u201cto make conciliatory phone calls with an eye toward more substantive discussions.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. President, it\u2019s March. We are still waiting for you to issue that executive order.<\/p>\n In the State of the Union you didn\u2019t once say the words Black or African-American, white or Hispanic.<\/p>\n Race, as a word, magically disappeared from your rhetorical repertoire. Why? I assume because the political winds have shifted. What polled well last spring isn\u2019t polling well this spring.<\/p>\n Even when you mentioned increasing support for historically Black colleges and universities, you used the acronym, H.B.C.U.s. Minor? Yes. But I noticed. By the way, the best way to help the graduates of H.B.C.U.s would be to use your executive authority to cancel more student loan debt, since, according to the Education Data Initiative<\/a>, Black college graduates owe an average of $25,000 more in student loan debt than white graduates.<\/p>\n Student loans were not mentioned in your speech.<\/p>\n You did hail your Supreme Court nominee, Ketanji Brown Jackson, even if you didn\u2019t point publicly to the historical significance of her being the first Black woman nominated. Her blackness \u2014 and the history of exclusion on the court \u2014 was left unsaid in the grand chamber.<\/p>\n Minor? Maybe. But again, I noticed.<\/p>\n Some might say that simply because Jackson is Black, it was enough to mention her name, without directly addressing Black people and their interests in the speech. But it doesn\u2019t work that way. Symbols, representation and inclusion are important to me, sure, but they are no substitute for policy and legislation.<\/p>\n This is not to disparage Judge Jackson\u2019s nomination in any way. It is exhilarating. She is qualified and should be confirmed, and she will be an inspiration for many as well as a needed voice for another perspective on the court. Thank you for nominating her.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n