I was flipping through the TV channels last week and came across one of Spike Lee’s best movies, "School Daze."  This was a 1988 film written and directed by Lee.  The movie took an inside look at some of the internal issues that go on within the Black community—issues like dark skinned Blacks versus light skinned Blacks; Blacks that have “good”  hair versus Blacks with “nappy” hair; Blacks from wealthy families versus Blacks from poor families.   The movie was funny and serious at the same…

I was on “Washington Watch with Roland Martin” last week.  This is a weekly TV show that deals with Black political issues, among other things. The roundtable discussion was very lively, but I was amazed at my fellow panelists’ response to something I said.

Americans somehow have this strange notion that all discrimination is bad.  But it isn’t.  We discriminate every day.  You choose one restaurant over another; you watch one TV show versus another; you date skinny girls and not…

03 APRIL 2013

BY RAYNARD JACKSON, NNPA COLUMNIST

Several of my readers of have questioned why I am writing positive articles about my Republican Party.  The simple answer is that they deserve it. In the past, I…

White Media Masquerading as Black

March 25, 2013

By Raynard Jackson

NNPA Columnist

Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, released his long awaited report last week called the Growth and Opportunity Project.  It is basically a post mortem of last November’s election results and lessons learned.

The report stated the obvious: The Republican Party had problems with key demographic groups such as Blacks and Hispanics. To address this…

February 18, 2013

By Raynard Jackson

NNPA Columnist

Last week, President Obama gave his annual State of the Union speech before a joint session of Congress. I am stunned at how far left he has moved politically. He wants more government spending, more programs, and more government regulations. Ted Kennedy, the late senator from Massachusetts, would be very proud of Obama’s continued lurch to the left.

The one thing that stood out with me from his speech was his…

By Raynard Jackson

NNPA Columnist

Four years ago, President Obama made history by becoming the first Black president in the history of the U.S.  I would like to think that even those who did not support his candidacy were proud of what the American people demonstrated—that…

As I have reflected on the year just ended, I noticed everyone doing their usual year-end lists of the biggest winners and losers of the year. I am not a big fan of these lists, but I will acknowledge that the Black community was the biggest loser of 2012.

I have been very critical of how media-appointed groups/individuals have been labeled as the leaders of the Black community.  It’s funny that the media doesn’t use similar language when referring to the White community. Who are…

By Raynard Jackson ~

  Just over a month ago Mitt Romney addressed the NAACP during their national convention.  I thought Romney’s speech was horrible and quite a waste of time because he said nothing that would be of any interest to the Black community.  You can read that column at:  http://blackpressusa.com/romney-and-the-naacp-a-missed-opportunity/.

This column set off a firestorm of reactions…

By Raynard Jackson

NNPA Columnist

July 12, 2012

As anyone who has followed me knows, I have been extremely critical of President Obama’s non-engagement with the Black community. Obama has deliberately ignored the plight of the Black community while giving preferential treatment to the homosexual and Hispanic communities.

But I can’t in good conscious criticize Obama and then give the Republicans a pass when they display similar behavior…

July 4, 2012                   

Raynard Jackson

As we celebrate Independence Day here in the US, I wonder when the Black community is going to learn the true meaning of this day when it comes to politics.

Independence Day, or Fourth of July, is about freedom to think, be, imagine and to live.  In the U.S., July 4, 1776 was the day we celebrate our freedom from Great Britain.  Even though the adoption of the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 2,…

June 29, 2012

Raynard Jackson

Now that Romney is the defacto nominee for the Republican Party, I have been reflecting on the state of the presidential race as it enters the final stretch.  As a political strategist, I understand the necessity to run to the right during the Republican primary and then migrate to the center during the general election.

It is common knowledge that Romney has no intention of…

June 21, 2012

Raynard Jackson

As, I reflected on the celebration of Father’s Day last Sunday, I thought about what that day should really mean.  But, before I could do that, I had to find out where that day came from.

Father’s Day was a direct derivative of Mother’s Day; but the reason for their creation was polar opposite of each other.  Mother’s Day was created with the expressed mandate of not being turned…

June 14, 2012       

Raynard Jackson

In last week’s column I wrote about how the NAACP has lost its mind with its resolution supporting gay marriage.  I have very little faith or confidence in most of the traditional Black institutions—NABJ, churches, fraternities, sororities, HBCUs, etc.

But after attending a lunch this past Wednesday, my faith and confidence is a tad bit stronger.  It was though I was taken back in time to a better…

Raynard Jackson ~

   Those who have followed my writings over the years know that I am not very fond of the modern day NAACP. They have strayed very far from their original mission and have become a patsy for the Democratic Party. They are more concerned with having a photo taken at the White House than…

May 18, 2012

Raynard Jackson

Former British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, once said, “To every man there comes a time when he is figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a great and might work; unique to him and fitted to his talents; what a tragedy if that moment finds him unprepared or unqualified for the moment that could be his finest hour.”

Zakiya Randall has been…

May 11, 2012              

Raynard Jackson

Now that I have your attention, let’s talk.  Say what you will about the gay community, but this one thing is clear, “they are masters at communications!”

I make my living doing Public Relations, Crises Management, and Strategic Planning, so I know good public manipulation when I see it and the gay community, in this regards, should be emulated by the Republican Party.

Growing up in St. Louis, there…

May 1, 2012          

Raynard Jackson

When the average American thinks of Rwanda, there are two thoughts that come to mind—genocide and gorillas.

During the early 1990s, Rwanda killed almost 1 million of its own people in a brazen display of ethnic cleansing.  As with the Jewish Holocaust, the world stood idly by and pretended that they saw nothing! 

Rwanda is also known to contain an estimated 1/3 of the world’s mountain gorillas.

This is the…

April 20, 2012     

Raynard Jackson

During a BBC radio address titled, “The Russian Enigma,” on October 1, 1939, former British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill said, “I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia.  It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma; but perhaps there is a key.  That key is Russian national interest.”

The simple meaning behind Churchill’s statement is--something that is a puzzle or something…

April 5, 2012

by Raynard Jackson ~

 Now that both political parties nominee’s for president are set, I began reflecting on some of the TV ads I have seen and various statements candidates have made. My conclusion about both parties? There is hypocrisy in the democracy of the United States.

For example, Republicans claim to be against preference programs—affirmative action, minority set-asides, etc. But, yet they support preference programs for veterans (those…