[[link removed]]

CENTER FOR POPULAR DEMOCRACY LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT 14TH
AMENDMENT  
[[link removed]]


 

Ariana Orozco
May 6, 2025
The Indypendent
[[link removed]]


*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

_ Part of the ‘deep political education’ the CPD aims to provide
is the history of the 14th Amendment and the indispensable role Black
Americans had in ensuring its passage. _

Center for Popular Democracy co-directors Analilia Mejia and DaMareo
Cooper, (Ariana Orozco)

 

“Politics decide who gets what and when they get it.” Co-directors
of the Center for Popular Democracy (CPD) declared to the audience at
Roulette Intermedium in Downtown Brooklyn on April 27. The CPD
[[link removed]], a national network of
grassroots organizations pushing for progressive change in the United
States, was launching its campaign to protect the 14th Amendment
[[link removed]] with a
“We the Poets” poetry night hosted by writer and educator
Dr. Mahogany L. Browne [[link removed]]. The event was
organized in conjunction with 48 organizations ranging from Alaska to
Atlanta with the aim of bringing together diverse voices to “deepen
people’s analysis and understanding of what hurdles stand between
them and a fully thriving life” as Analilia Mejia, co-director of
CPD, explained. 

Part of the “deep political education” the CPD aims to provide is
the history of the 14th Amendment and the indispensable role Black
Americans had in ensuring its passage. Co-director DaMareo Cooper
explained: “Enslaved people had a general strike. They stole their
own labor and joined the Union and won the Civil War.” 

In 1896, at the end of Reconstruction, Congress ratified the 14th
Amendment, which has since become a monumental pillar of American
democracy. It establishes that all people born or naturalized in the
United States are American citizens who are provided equal protection
under the law, banned those who “engaged in insurrection” from
holding public office, barred former Confederate states from
compensating the war debts of former slave owners, and gave Congress
the power to enforce these provisions. It has been the foundation for
historical Supreme Court rulings, including _Brown v. Board of
Education_ (1954) and _Roe v. Wade_ (1973). The 14th Amendment is
now under threat as Donald Trump launches systematic attacks on civil
liberties.  

The Center decided to begin its campaign with a cultural event, citing
the power storytelling has to engage people emotionally and
intellectually. Art’s capacity to facilitate meaningful civic
discussion is at the core of CPD’s mission. “We’re trying to
give people the goggles to see the big picture,” Cooper said. 

_The audience at Roulette Intermedium on April 27. _

Poetry’s traditions, from rap to James Baldwin, lingered in the air
on Sunday as Dr. Browne explained that poets are “responding to the
times” and using their art to “stand by the fire but not preach to
the choir.” She emphasizes that CPD’s network of grassroot
organizations has provided it with the opportunity to incorporate
voices often missing in social-justice missions in New York City. The
poets on stage explored these issues through intimate portrayals of
their lives as Black and Latino youth struggling to reconcile the
legal protections they are guaranteed while acknowledging the
disparate reality for them and their families. 

Raquel Polanco, in a love letter to her parents, finished her
performance saying: “I pledge allegiance to my parents, the only
nation I have ever known,” while Damiano “The Miserable Genius”
Malvasio questioned “who’s illegal” while listing off the
offenses of the U.S. government against marginalized groups. Each poem
of the night sought to bring life to what is at stake as the far-right
mutilates our civil and human rights. 

The Center for Popular Democracy will continue its battle with
a campaign
[[link removed]] to
pressure representatives to take greater efforts in fighting the
conservative movement. 

_The Indypendent is reader-funded. We publish a free monthly
newspaper, a website, a weekly radio show on WBAI-99.5 FM and more. To
make a one-time or recurring monthly donation, click here._

 

* 14th amendment
[[link removed]]
* Reconstruction
[[link removed]]
* birthright citizenship
[[link removed]]
* Immigration
[[link removed]]
* slavery
[[link removed]]
* Poetry
[[link removed]]

*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

 

 

 

INTERPRET THE WORLD AND CHANGE IT

 

 

Submit via web
[[link removed]]

Submit via email
Frequently asked questions
[[link removed]]
Manage subscription
[[link removed]]
Visit xxxxxx.org
[[link removed]]

Twitter [[link removed]]

Facebook [[link removed]]

 




[link removed]

To unsubscribe, click the following link:
[link removed]