US Opinion and Commentary

“VOA will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussion and opinion on these policies.” — VOA Charter

Showing Archived Posts

Remembering Civil Rights Icon Julian Bond

Posted August 17th, 2015 at 12:39 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

The death at age 75 of Bond, a towering civil rights leader, comes at a moment when America is revisiting its history of racial inequality all over again. A new movement, #Black Lives Matter, has been born amid a series of deadly incidents involving white cops and African Americans. One observer hoped that Bond’s legacy would result in a new generation of young leaders filling the void he leaves behind.

‘I Identify as Black.’ But Is She?

Posted June 17th, 2015 at 2:20 pm (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

The case of Rachel Dolezal, the NAACP official who resigned after her parents revealed she is racially white, has become a lightening rod for self-identity. Her story set off a complex and uncomfortable national conversation about race, America’s history of racism and whether or not a white person can become black – just as Bruce Jenner became Caitlyn.

Black Like Who? Rachel Dolezal’s Harmful Masquerade

Posted June 17th, 2015 at 10:24 am (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

“I identify as black,” Ms. Dolezal told Matt Lauer on the “Today” show this morning. That may be. But actual black people, like me, don’t have the option of choosing.

Rachel Dolezal Has a Right to Be Black

Posted June 16th, 2015 at 9:36 am (UTC-4)
Comments are closed

On Monday, Rachel Dolezal, the head of the Spokane chapter of the NAACP, resigned in shame because she had posed as a black woman even though she is biologically white.