My address to the Union: Barack Obama I'm talking to you........

Dear Mr. President,

This is traditionally the time of year where family, friends, and society tends to come together to celebrate the reputed birth of Jesus Christ and all the wishes and blessings that ones heart desires; instead our nation is in a state of uproar. When we elected you as president, for not one but two terms, we trusted that you would be our voice of reason and a relentless advocate for people of color that would help elevate our current conditions to unparalleled heights. Sadly, it disturbs me how you've done nothing but the complete opposite. God knows that throughout the majority of your presidency we've been patiently pulling for you in light of the alleged propaganda that has been surrounding your name and some of the decisions that you've made. Largely, what really upsets me is the fact that you have consistently defaulted on your promises to the people for economic and social change; instead it is apparent that you've served everyone that doesn't look like you which includes corporations and immigrants. 

What about the majority that helped vote you in? You were supposed to be our "Great Black Hope!" The Affordable Care Act only is beneficial to the insurance companies who've hiked up premiums and deductibles and an overwhelmingly large percentage of non citizens and Americans who don't deserve it because the majority consume more resources than they actually contribute; while still leaving an estimated 5 million Americans uninsured due to the fact that they either can't afford coverage or they don't qualify for Medicaid in their state, according to The Huffington Post. 

In my opinion, your decision to grant de facto amnesty to over 4 million illegal immigrants was a bad idea solely because it's killing the pockets of both unemployed and working class American citizens already struggling to make ends meat. An influx of illegals in our country will continue to rob us of the jobs and wages that we rightfully deserve as well as draining our Social Security system, other governmental aid programs for people that need them, and tax payer dollars. It's bad enough that these large corporations have already been outsourcing jobs overseas but now the jobs that are still here are being taken by people that aren't even legally supposed to be here in the name of reduced wages! When you were a Senator back in 2006, you wrote an autobiography entitled, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream, in which you stated that "Not all these fears are irrational. The number of immigrants added to the workforce every year is of a magnitude not seen in this country for over a century. If this influx of mostly low-skilled workers provides some benefits to the economy as a whole, especially by keeping our workforce young, in contrast to an increasingly geriatric Europe and Japan, it also threatens to depress further the wages of blue collar Americans and put strains on an already overburdened safety net." Why such a big change of heart now Mr. President? Your response to signing such an executive order being that it was just "the right thing to do" is appalling and undermining your integrity to the American people. It is an undisputed fact that this country is a reflection of other nations, who've traveled here far and wide for hundreds of years, in search of the American Dream but the vast majority did it legally. 

Your lack of attentiveness to the blatant injustices in which the African American community has sustained, at the hands of multiple municipalities across the nation, is quite deplorable. Police brutality among black people in this country today continues to intensify without conviction almost parallel to the times of Reconstruction as well as during the Civil Rights Movement. Why do you continuously sit back in the White House and let our people suffer at the hands of a nation who historically identified us as no more than two thirds of a man; chattel that wasn't even worthy of a name on the U.S. slave schedules dating back to 1860 and prior? I understand that in early December 2014 you pledged to help fund $263,000,000 in order to outfit several police departments across the nation with body cameras yet a few weeks later Congress rejected that proposal because they claimed not to have had enough money in the budget; yet $1.3 billion went to Egypt and another $1.2 billion went to immigration! Don't you think that we should concentrate more on our own before we lend out a hand to others? I feel that if you can go over Congress and sign executive orders for immigration and healthcare that you can do the same for the betterment of not only the black community but also for other persecuted citizens in this country. You spoke of change throughout both of your campaigns repetitively so I think that it's time that you acted on those promises. I didn't vote for you just because you were black or your unblemished rhetoric but I did believe in your proposed vision and abilities. You still have two more years in office with a Congress that has relentlessly worked against you initially but in light of your current actions, you and the rest of us do know that if you really wanted to make it happen then you could. Force Congress to do their jobs and if they don't then roll over them, it's evident that they're gonna defame you regardless.

Lastly, African Americans are the only people on this planet that haven't received any type of reparations and I feel that such a good deed would be "the right thing to do" as you stated previously about immigration. It is undisputed that many of the wealthiest Caucasian families and corporations in the United States to date have and still are benefiting from the backs of slave labor that our ancestors died for. Compensation in the form of land and an amendment to the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States which states that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for a crime whereof the party shall have been dully convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." According to an article, published by the The Huffington Post in 2011, there were more black men in prison today versus slaves in the 1850's. We also know that African Americans are about five times more than likely to be convicted for crimes than their white counterparts. I believe that if this particular amendment is made it would help level the playing field in our justice system by halting both state and private industries who prey and profit on primarily the backs of black offenders. You know that the penal system is big business when they're trading stocks and bonds on the NASDAQ. The black vote is also immensely affected when at least one in every three black men can expect to go to prison in his lifetime and the younger generation doesn't care to vote anyway for various reasons. I think that you should push for a mandatory voting law for all U.S. citizens 18 or older just as you've made it obligatory to acquire health insurance. This power move would also put African Americans in a phenomenal position to not only potentially have somewhat of a voice in Congress and the presidency but it would help put pressure on those who are elected. Your "Yes We Can" speech is one of the most powerful dialogues that I've heard since Dr. King's "I Have a Dream," and Mr. President I do still believe that there is enough time for you to fulfill most of those obligations that you so eloquently spoke of when we elected you into office.


Sincerely,

Lakenya K. Monfort

  

Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signs new pro gun law

On Wednesday, April 23, 2014, Governor Nathan Deal signed the Safe Carry Protection Act known to many critics as the "Guns everywhere bill," a revision of House Bill 60. This new pro gun law, CNN reports, gives over 500,000 Georgians who are licensed to carry the right to bare arms in just about any public and private setting statewide which includes: airports, bars, churches, schools, and in limited areas of some government facilities at the discretion of that entity. Governor Deal stated that "This law gives added protections to those who have played by the rules and who can protect themselves and others from those who don't play by the rules," and called it "a great day to reaffirm our civil liberties." The Washington Post reported that the bill passed in both the House and Senate with sizable leads in March and about twice as many legislators in each chamber voted for it than against it. Governor Deal's office also pointed out that they've received an alarming amount of correspondences from citizens who were totally for the bill.

Critics of the bill argue that this new law basically gives just about anyone a license to kill, citing Florida's own infamous Stand Your Own Ground Law. I personally agree with most aspects of the law yet I know that it will be both a gift and a curse for many Georgians. For some odd reason, and I hate to think for the worst but it is what it is, I can see this scenario turning into a racially motivated battle when it comes to whites versus blacks. Believe it or not, we're still in ole "Dixie Land" a state that is no stranger to unjust lynchings and murders of minorities, especially African Americans. Under Georgia's Stand Your Own Ground law, both licensed carriers and convicted felons can now use self defense as grounds to use deadly force. At this point, I know that it must be scary for most black parents especially if they have a son who are hoping that someone won't see their child as a "threat" and maliciously invoke this type of law. This could also tremendously increase black on black crime as well. While looking at the picture of the governor and his colleagues above I'm wondering do these "good ole boys" have an ulterior motive. Isn't it ironic that suddenly after Trayvon Martin's murderer, George Zimmerman, got off free as a breeze, in Georgia's neighboring state of Florida, now legislators want to ease restrictions on our gun laws? We can't forget about the Michael Dunn trial where a Florida jury returned a mixed verdict in which the defendant was accused of killing a 17 year old African American male, during an argument over loud music at a gas station.

Georgia's Safe Carry Protection Act also poses a threat to law enforcement. Under the new law that is scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2014, police officers are forbidden from asking someone to see their permit unless they're actually committing a crime; they can also be sued for each violation in which funds will come from taxpayers. Are you nervous yet? If not then you should be. Proponents of the law are ecstatic that their Second Amendment rights are no longer limited in the Peach state. Guns are now allowed in schools with prior written permission. Lawmakers have given churches the right to opt in or out of the law as well as bars. Firearms are now allowed in government buildings as long as the entry isn't restricted or screened by security which mirrors the same protocol for airports. Ironically, one of the few places where guns are totally banned is the state capitol. When Governor Deal was asked about this he stated that the capitol fell under a wider statewide provision that affects many government buildings and it's "a uniform carved-out area across our state."