Jack and Jill Politics

Since I am trying to avoid watching anything about Tsunami Tuesday until tomorrow (less stress, longer life), this is a good time for me to profile the blog Jack and Jill Politics, run by Jack Turner and Jill Tubman. This is a major U.S. political blog from an African-American middle class viewpoint.

The "blogosphere" is dominated by the voices of white men, but that is changing. Jack and Jill Politics is an excellent way for progressive whites to keep in touch with the views of African-Americans. Yes, having "real black friends" would also be good, but, let's face it, there's a certain amount of self-censorship that happens in mixed-race social situations. In many cases, there is still much at stake in workplace relations, etc. that would be risked if "full disclosure" came in every conversation. Sad, but true.

Also, while there are exceptions (such as the church I attend), whites and blacks mostly still worship in different settings, live in different neighborhoods (mine is one of the few partial exceptions in Louisville), go to different places for entertainment, etc. And the dominant group usually knows less about the "minority" groups than they (originally for survival reasons) know about the majority. (Surveys have shown that African-Americans are much better at predicting white answers than vice versa.)

So, fellow white progressives, I urge you to decrease your ignorance. One way is to read regularly on black political blogs. There are many of them, but I am pushing Jack and Jill Politics first because it was one of the earliest this progressive cracker found. Which is more helpful during an election year that may result in the first black president? Watching a bunch of white men on TV talk about "the black vote" or read the thoughts of active, politically-informed African-Americans? Hmm.