Despite the black legislators in the West Virginia House of Delegates, the Republicans still held a law to prohibit Dei in the state, passionate speeches about the dangers of ending diversity, justice and inclusion. (Perry Bennett | West Virginia Legislative Photography)
The regular session of legislation in West Virginia ended on Saturday evening, but not before there was a last substantial fight that gave the majority the chance to show their contempt for West Virginians who do not look.
The Biggest fight The last night – if not the whole session – was Senate Bill 474Legislation to terminate the diversity, justice and inclusion programs in the state.
The Republicans seem to be regarded as a attitude of someone who is not qualified and not white over the most qualified white candidates in the world. Or maybe you just assume that someone who is not white is not qualified, no matter the truth.
In reality, Dei gives women, people with color, veterans and people with disabilities in the confessions. It makes the places more diverse because diversity in all jobs is of crucial importance.
Dems tried the best to drive the time out on the bill in the house on Saturday evening. Dels. Sean Hornbuckle, Anitra Hamilton and Hollis Lewis – the only black members of the legislature of West Virginia – everyone speaks about why Dei is critical.
Hornbuckle, D-Cabell, asked the Republican legislator to solve the problem of the legislation. He received a vague response to “divisions” in schools, offices, guidelines and programs in the state, and the law will remove these “divisions”.
“Mr. Speech, I get up and I think I can’t really say that I am surprised because we talked about it for a while, but I am shocked that several would continue with this Boogeyman in the body,” said Hornbuckle. “I’m also a bit confused, a bit angry. I don’t think there is a problem. I know that there is no problem. We scurry around here than ever to say goodbye to a legislative template, so it would be a pioneering law to create hundreds of jobs.”
There were no pioneering laws that created hundreds of jobs during this session.
Hornbuckle also interviewed Republicans who had the feeling of voting for the bill.
“Here are a few people who are friends of mine, and as a black man – I work, I will be friends with you after this coordination … and you will tell me: ‘I had to do it, man. I don’t believe in it, but I had to do it. I had to do it.’ They didn’t have to do anything.
I don’t know how something from that 87 Republicans Anyone who was still voted to forbid Dei after the delegates have declared that the adversities with which they are faced with every day can look Hornbuckel, Hamilton and Lewis in the eye after Saturday.
Hamilton, D-Monononia, also gave a passionate speech in which diversity is as critical as the only black woman in the entire legislative.
“We tell the state every day that you are not welcome here. You are welcome to work here, but your voice doesn’t matter. We want your work. We want your money, but your equity and your value doesn’t matter. That is the type of message that we send.”
Last year Hamilton’s first year was in legislation. It was appointed to fill Danielle Walker’s seat after she had resigned.
“You know that last year, when I came here in the first three months, I had to say to everyone that I was Danielle Walker because I had to make sure that you could hug me …” said Hamilton. “… you also know last year – was she ever stopped at the door and not come in? Did you stop at a public meeting and asked: ‘Can I help you? I said:” No. “” Do you need aid? “‘ No, I don’t know. ‘ … I had a place at the table and still have to explain why I deserve to be in the room.
Hamilton also explained the importance of representation.
“How would you feel if you went to class and you got your entire story out of the history books? How would you feel? How would you feel if you went to work and nobody in your job what she looked like? Would there be hope for you?
Lewis, D-Kanawha, talked about what this bill will do to limit the teachers by also teaching alternative theories.
“What is the alternative theory of slavery?” he asked. “What is the alternative theory, why West Virginia from Virginia was successful and joined the Union? What alternative do we offer? What we do are our educators with handcuffs so that they do not want to teach this kind of things.”
Lewis looked back on how little he learned about the history of the Black West Virginians in the public school. He spoke about how he did not know about her, even though he went to the same college as Katherine Johnson, until the film “Hidden figures” came out.
“I can remember that I sat in the class for months after months after months and I didn’t learn anything about myself. They thought that I and my family and the people I knew were the only blacks ever in West Virginia.”
Hamilton really gave the perfect summary of the hypocrisy of this Republican super majority:
“Isn’t it something we teachers trust with hidden weapons, but we can’t trust our teachers to teach history?” Said Hamilton.
After almost three hours of debate in the house, the legislation went off at 10:41 p.m. and moved to the Senate.
When the draft law in the Senate arrived, 13 changes from Senator Joey Garcia, D-Marion, seemed pending for the legislation-a tactic to go out in order not to adopt the bill.
Senator Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, however, applied for an application for suspension of the legislative rule 3-one rule, which regulates how changes to the changes and disagreements between the two legislative chambers are treated. This application was accepted and the Senate then agreed with the version of the law 31-2 and existed the version of the house without examination from Garcias changes.
In an interview, Senate President Randy Smith said R-Preston that he also did not quite understand the legislative procedures that led to the adoption of SB 474. Garcia said the Republican used “dirty tricks” to adopt the law.
As a white woman who has not experienced the discrimination, with which Hamilton, Hornbuckle and Lewis have to do, I cannot explain as well as you did how harmful this calculation will be. But Hamilton, Hornbuckle and Lewis’ appeal to the better nature and the sense of the justice of the colleagues were ignored.
The Republicans in our legislature must stop ignoring scientists and experts in order to blindly follow what President Donald Trump ordered. You have to stop ignoring people who don’t look like them. You have to listen to people who live and work here.
