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Editorial/OP-ED

Opinion | Republicans Should Pay a Political Price for Abortion Bans

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The right to an abortion is protected in the Kansas State Constitution and on Tuesday, a decisive majority of voters kept it there. Fifty-nine percent of Kansans who went to the polls voted to reject a constitutional amendment that would have opened the door to full abortion bans of the kind that exist in neighboring states like Missouri and Oklahoma.

What makes this all the more striking is the fact that Kansas is one of the most reliably Republican states in the country. Donald Trump won in the 2020 presidential election with more than 56 percent of the vote. Three of its four representatives in the House are Republicans and its two Republican senators, Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall, are among the most conservative in the Senate.

Anti-abortion activists were confident they would succeed. They’ve taken, instead, a devastating blow to their project.

It is hard to overstate the significance of this defeat. The vote in Kansas is the first time abortion has been on the ballot since the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, which overturned Roe v. Wade. It’s the first time any voters have had the chance to weigh in on new abortion restrictions, and the result is a stunning victory for Kansans, and Americans, who believe that the right to an abortion is an inextricable part of our liberty under the Constitution.

If it isn’t already obvious that Dobbs has unsettled American politics, the vote in Kansas makes it clear. Republicans may still win the House, and even the Senate, in November. But the sheer unpopularity of abortion bans — as well as the monstrous consequences for women in states that have banned abortion — is a heavy weight around the neck of the entire Republican Party.

The task, for the national Democratic Party, is to make that weight even heavier. And for this, they have the model of Kansas, where pro-choice activists went on the offensive against restrictionists. They drew a sharp contrast between their aims and those of their opponents and made abortion rights a live issue for voters.

Republicans do not want to fight on this turf — see the immediate campaign to downplay the impact of Dobbs in the wake of the ruling — which is all the more reason for Democrats to make them do it.


I didn’t have a column this week! I did do other things, however. I joined the Left Anchor podcast at The American Prospect (my journalistic alma mater) to discuss the Supreme Court, the Constitution and how to take both back from the political right.

I also recorded a short video for the Criterion Channel in which I explored the career of the late, great actor Yaphet Kotto.

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Annie Lowrey on pregnancy and motherhood for The Atlantic.

Jennifer L. Morgan on slavery and reproductive rights for the African American Intellectual History Society.

A 1978 interview with screenwriter-director Paul Schrader on his debut film, “Blue Collar.”

Gaby Del Valle on “environmental nativism” for The Nation magazine.

Monica Potts on Republicans and same-sex marriage for FiveThirtyEight.

The transcript of Vin Scully’s radio call of the ninth inning of Sandy Koufax’s 1965 perfect game against the Chicago Cubs.


I am a huge fan of the Beastie Boys, and so when I saw this mural the last time I was in New York, I had to take a picture.


My son has become something of an ice cream connoisseur, and frequently requests different flavors of ice cream to make at home. This week, we made strawberry ice cream using a recipe from David Lebovitz’s book, “The Perfect Scoop.” Here’s the recipe and, fair warning, you’ll need an ice cream maker for this.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound fresh strawberries, rinsed and hulled

  • ¾ cup granulated sugar

  • 1 tablespoon vodka or other liquor

  • 1 cup full-fat sour cream

  • 1 cup heavy cream

  • a squeeze of fresh lemon juice

Directions

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Slice the strawberries and toss them in a bowl with the sugar and vodka, stirring until the sugar begins to dissolve. Cover and let stand at room temperature for one hour, stirring every so often.

Pulse the strawberries and their liquid with the sour cream, heavy cream and lemon juice in a blender or food processor until almost smooth, but still slightly chunky.

Refrigerate for an hour, then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Read the full article here

A journalist since 1994, he also founded DMGlobal Marketing & Public Relations. Glover has an extensive list of clients including corporations, non-profits, government agencies, politics, business owners, PR firms, and attorneys.

Editorial/OP-ED

Black Women Were Always at the Table — Stop Writing Them Out

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(BALTIMORE – August 8, 2025) – The Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) recently dropped a timeline highlighting major milestones in U.S. women’s political history — from Seneca Falls to Kamala Harris. It’s long, detailed, and well-produced.

But let’s keep it real: it’s incomplete.
And this is personal for menot because I’m a woman.
I’m a man. A Black man.
And as a journalist, publisher, and student of history, I have a responsibility to call it like I see it.

What I see is a whole lot of celebration for white women’s progress — and not nearly enough credit given to the Black women who’ve been leading, building, organizing, and risking it all from day one.

Where’s Sojourner Truth, who stood up in 1851 and demanded the world answer: “Ain’t I a Woman?”
Where’s Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, a Baltimore legend who confronted white women suffragists with truth and grace?
Where’s Ida B. Wells, who stared racism in the face and built her own organizations when others tried to silence her?

And how do you miss Frances Ellen Watkins Harper — a Baltimore-born powerhouse who was one of the first Black women to publish a book in the U.S. and who addressed the 1866 National Women’s Rights Convention with a message that still resonates? Raised and educated in Baltimore at her uncle’s Watkins Academy for Negro Youth, Harper’s early years in this city shaped the moral clarity and courage that defined her national work. She’s not a side note. She’s a cornerstone.

You mean to tell me there’s a 48-year gap between the 19th Amendment and the first meaningful mention of a Black woman in elected office? That’s not an oversight. That’s historical malpractice.

Black women have always been in the fight.
They didn’t wait to be invited. They didn’t ask for permission. They created their own lanes — from the Black women’s clubs of the 19th century to the organizing of the Civil Rights Movement to the halls of Congress today.

And while others were patting themselves on the back, Black women were doing the work.

I’m not speaking for them — I’m standing beside them.
And I’ll use every mic I’m handed to make sure their names, their labor, and their leadership are never erased. Because Black women didn’t just join the movement.
They moved the movement. And BlackUSA.News will always make sure the world knows it.

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Editorial/OP-ED

Message to the World: We Are Not Trump

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(BALTIMORE – August 2, 2025) – Greetings. 你好. Namaste. Hola. Bonjour. Salaam alaikum. Nomoshkar. Olá. Shalom. Здравствуйте.

I come to you humbly and respectfully to say this: most of the people I know and live among are nothing like President Donald Trump.

From where I stand, I imagine much of the world watches in disbelief as this man — and those aligned with him — continue to dismantle civil rights protections, gut healthcare programs like Medicaid, and insult global allies without remorse. It’s disheartening, shameful, and dangerous.

And yet, here we are.

Even after years of evidence — his public misogyny, the racism, the cruelty, the lies — millions still voted for him. Only now, with democracy in crisis and global trust fractured, are some Americans having what we call a “come-to-Jesus moment.”

That’s what we call cognitive dissonance: when someone knows the truth but refuses to fully accept its consequences.

Around the world, cultures may differ, but many share a basic value: respect. It costs nothing — but means everything.

I felt that truth in my bones when I watched Vice President J.D. Vance berate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in front of the global press. I was sickened. The disrespect was not only unnecessary — it was classless.

I wasn’t raised like that. And neither were many of the good people I know across this country.

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To be honest, I think the group most manipulated in all this were white women voters. They knew who Trump was. The video clips, the criminal allegations, the “grab ‘em” tape — it was all out there. But still, many chose him over Kamala Harris, a competent and qualified leader.

Was it the trauma of having had a Black president for eight years that made the idea of a Black woman too much to bear? Maybe. But it’s worth asking.

America has never truly reconciled with its original sin: slavery and the structural racism that followed. And now we have a president who canceled MLK Day, who mocked a teenage climate activist on the world stage, and whose wife often appears unwilling to even fake a smile beside him.

Let us not forget: this is the man who incited a violent insurrection on January 6th, 2021.

Dear world, please know this: America is better than what you’re seeing right now.

As my mother always said, “Nobody is better than you, and you are no better than anyone else.” That’s the kind of America I believe in — not one built on ego and profit, but on humility and shared dignity.

Still, we live in a society where your bank account defines your worth, where kindness is seasonal, and where too often, decency gets buried under division.

But where I come from — Baltimore — we still learn respect. At home, in the streets, in school. You give it, you get it. You don’t give it, you learn the hard way.

That’s the American spirit I stand for. That’s the America I want the world to know.

So no, we are not all like Trump. And many of us are doing everything we can to keep our country from falling deeper into that abyss.

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Wishing you peace in the midst of this storm.

‘Til next time,
Doni Glover

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Editorial/OP-ED

The Rebirth of BlackUSA.News

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(BALTIMORE – August 2, 2025) – In December 2020, right in the thick of COVID, everything was turned upside down. Interviewing people became nearly impossible — folks weren’t coming outside, Fauci was in everyone’s ear, and Trump was out here talking about drinking bleach. It was chaos.

But through the madness, we found a way forward. We embraced streaming.

Special thanks to Peggy Morris of Sisters4Sisters Network. She introduced me to StreamYard.com, and the rest is history. That connection helped birth BlackUSA.News — the national arm of BMORENews.com. It wasn’t the first time Peggy and her network showed up for us, and it likely won’t be the last.

From there, the movement grew.

On the West Coast, De’Von Walker and Troy Rawlings have been pillars. Troy — a Baltimore native — brings heat from Los Angeles, while De’Von’s Black Wall Street Board Game reminds us of Monopoly with a mission: to uplift Black-owned businesses.

In Oakland, Doug Blacksher has been a home-run-hitting host. His show consistently breaks reach records, diving deep into politics and business — his two favorite lanes.

Up in New York, our go-to is Tasemere Gathers of The DM Firm. She’s solid, dependable, and visionary. And we’d be remiss not to shout out Walter Edwards, Regina Smith, and Vito Jones in Harlem, as well as Makonen of the Harlem Business Alliance — each of them pushing the needle forward.

In Atlanta, Robert Scott and Bou Kahn have not only supported the news but have helped us successfully host the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards over the years.

And then there’s Lee Vaughan, our National President. Thanks to Lee, we’ve expanded from 6 to 9 cities — adding Mobile, Las Vegas, and Tulsa to the fold. One of his honorees? None other than D.L. Hughley.

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Let me not forget Dr. Eric Kelly, a brilliant connector introduced to us by the illustrious Marsha Jews, our resident anchor and a national treasure.

We stream live on LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.
This is our rebirth.
This is BlackUSA.News.
Check us out — and spread the word.

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