2020 Conventions: on Civil Rights
Donald Trump:
FactCheck: LBJ civil rights laws dwarf any Trump action
Trump claimed that he has done more for the African American community than any other president since Abraham Lincoln.FactCheck: It's absurd to say Lincoln is a "possible" exception; emancipating the slaves was obviously more important for
Black Americans than anything Trump has done. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act, monumental bills whose impact dwarfed the impact of any legislation Trump has signed.
Source: CNN Fact-Check on 2020 Republican Convention speech
Aug 28, 2020
Nikki Haley:
American is not a racist country; it's a work in progress
In much of the Democratic Party, it's now fashionable to say that America is racist. That is a lie. America is not a racist country. This is personal for me. I am the proud daughter of Indian immigrants. We faced discrimination and hardship, but
my parents never gave into grievance and hate. America is a story that's a work in progress. Now is the time to build on that progress and make America even freer, fairer, and better for everyone.
Source: Speech at 2020 Republican National Convention
Aug 25, 2020
Tim Scott:
Our family went from cotton to Congress in one lifetime
My grandfather's 99th birthday would have been tomorrow. Growing up, he had to cross the street if a white person was coming. He suffered the indignity of being forced out of school as a third grader to pick cotton, and never learned to read or write.
Yet, he lived to see his grandson become the first African American to be elected to both the United States House and Senate. Our family went from Cotton to Congress in one lifetime.
Source: Speech at 2020 Republican National Convention
Aug 25, 2020
Joe Biden:
Government should look like the country, by gender & race
Q: Did you select a woman of color to rally your base, or did you feel pressure?BIDEN: I didn't feel pressure to select a Black woman but I think that the government should look like the people, look like the country. 51% of the people in this
country are women. In order to be able to succeed, you've got to be dealt in across the board. I cannot understand and fully appreciate what it means to walk in her shoes.
HARRIS:˙Joe and I have talked about the state of Black America.
He has a deep sense of awareness and knowledge about systematic racism. And Joe actually knows how to say the words "Black Lives Matter."
BIDEN: I was asked about voting for Trump, and I said, "How can a Black man vote for him?"
I shouldn't have said that. I was trying to make the point that this is a man who spent his entire career denigrating African Americans. But the truth is, there's a fundamental difference between Donald Trump and me on the issue of race across the board.
Source: ABC This Week 2020 National Convention Biden/Harris Q&A
Aug 23, 2020
Joe Biden:
COVID: Mask mandate is about saving lives
Q: Are you going to force people to wear a mask for coronavirus?BIDEN: I'm going to ask every governor to step up. This isn't about freedom; it's about freedom for your neighbors. It's about a patriotic responsibility to protect your neighbors.
The only way you can do that is to be socially distanced and wearing a mask when you're in public, when you're outside. This is the first time I've ever heard people say that doing something patriotic you can save other people's lives, impacts on
their freedom. Give me a break; this is about saving lives.
Q: Would you be prepared to shut this country down again?
BIDEN: I will be prepared to do whatever it takes to save lives because we cannot get the country moving until we control the
virus. That is the fundamental flaw of this administration's thinking. In order to keep the economy growing, and people employed, you have to fix the virus, you have to deal with the virus. I would shut it down, I would listen to the scientists.
Source: ABC This Week 2020 National Convention David Muir Q&A
Aug 23, 2020
Keisha Lance Bottoms:
Disgraceful to spread misinformation & interfere with voting
Bottoms invoked the late Rep. John Lewis describing the act of casting a ballot as a key component of the social justice activism championed by the civil rights legend. "We have cried out for justice. We have gathered in our streets to demand change.
And now, we must pass on the gift John Lewis sacrificed to give us. We must register, and we must vote," Bottoms said. The mayor also condemned those "who are disgracefully using this pandemic to spread misinformation and interfere with voting."
Source: Politico.com on 2020 Democratic National Convention
Aug 21, 2020
Joe Biden:
My father taught us that silence was complicity
Just a week ago was the third anniversary of the events in Charlottesville. Remember seeing those neo-Nazis and Klansmen and white supremacists coming out of the fields with lighted torches? Veins bulging? Spewing the same anti-Semitic bile heard across
Europe in the '30s? Remember what the president said? There were, quote, "very fine people on both sides."At that moment, I knew I'd have to run.
My father taught us that silence was complicity. And I could not remain silent or complicit.
Maybe George Floyd's murder was the breaking point. Maybe John Lewis's passing, the inspiration.
However it has come to be, America is ready to, in John's words, to lay down "the heavy burdens of hate at last," and to do the hard work of rooting out our systemic racism.
Source: Acceptance speech at 2020 Democratic National Convention
Aug 20, 2020
Kamala Harris:
There is no vaccine for racism--we've got to do the work
As Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic Party's vice presidential nomination she argued that "structural racism" had compounded the coronavirus's consequences for communities of color across America. "This virus has no eyes,
and yet it knows exactly how we see each other--and how we treat each other," the California senator said. "And let's be clear--there is no vaccine for racism. We've gotta do the work."
Source: Politico.com on 2020 Democratic National Convention
Aug 19, 2020
Socialist Party:
Oppose making English an official language
We oppose all efforts to declare English an official language and call for an end to all language discrimination.
We demand that all public and private institutions provide services and materials in the languages of their communities.
Source: Socialist Party Platform at 2020-2021 PSL Convention
Aug 3, 2020
Socialist Party:
Lower voting age to 15
We call for the lowering of the voting age to 15.
We oppose age-based curfew laws.
Source: Socialist Party Platform at 2020-2021 PSL Convention
Aug 3, 2020
Democratic Party:
Remove Confederate flags & statues from public property
Hate and its symbols have no home in America. We support removing the Confederate battle flag and statues of Confederate leaders from public properties. We believe Juneteenth (June 19th) represents the end of slavery,
the freedom for millions of enslaved Black Americans, and should be recognized as a federal holiday. We must acknowledge that there can be no realization of the American dream without grappling with the lasting effects of slavery.
Source: Democratic Party Platform adopted at 2020 Convention
Jul 27, 2020
Democratic Party:
Pass Equality Act; outlaw discrimination against LGBTQ+
We will fight to enact the Equality Act and outlaw discrimination against LGBTQ+ people in housing, public accommodations, access to credit, education, jury service, and federal programs. We will work to ensure
LGBTQ+ people are not discriminated against when seeking to adopt or foster children, protect LGBTQ+ children from bullying and assault, and guarantee transgender students' access to facilities based on their gender identity.
Source: Democratic Party Platform adopted at 2020 Convention
Jul 27, 2020
Green Party:
Support International Bill of Rights for Women
The Green Party makes a strong and urgent call for U.S. passage of CEDAW, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which was adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly and ratified by 173 countries.
It is also known as the Women's Convention, the Women's Bill of Rights, and an International Bill of Rights for Women. The United States is one of a very few countries and the only industrialized nation that has not ratified it.
We call for equal representation of women in Congress instead of the current 17% in 2012. We support the inclusion of an equal number of women and men in peace talks and negotiations,
not only because these efforts directly affect their lives and those of their husbands, children and families, but also because when women are involved, the negotiations are more successful.
Source: Green Party Platform at 2020 Green National Convention
Jul 9, 2020
Reform Party:
Reform Party takes no stance on gay marriage
The Reform Party takes NO STANCE as an organization on issues such as pro-life/pro-choice and gay marriage. The Reform Party as a national organization believes that social issues or values issues (which include issues such as abortion,
gay marriage, and end of life decisions) should not be our focus as a party. The Reform Party does not, and will not, have stances on Social or Values Issues in our National Platform.
Source: Reform Party Platform at 2020 Convention; ReformParty.org
Jun 22, 2020
Libertarian Party:
Oppose government aid to or attack of any religion
We support full freedom of expression and oppose government censorship, regulation, or control of communications media and technology.
We favor the freedom to engage in or abstain from any religious activities that do not violate the rights of others. We oppose government actions which either aid or attack any religion.
Source: Libertarian Party Platform for 2018-2020 National Convention
Jul 4, 2018
Libertarian Party:
State licensing any marriage is illegitimate practice
Government does not have the authority to define, promote, license, or restrict personal relationships, regardless of the number of participants. Consenting adults should be free to choose their own sexual practices and personal relationships.
Until such time as the government stops its illegitimate practice of marriage licensing, such licenses must be granted to all consenting adults who apply.
Source: Libertarian Party Platform for 2018-2020 National Convention
Jul 4, 2018
Page last updated: Sep 07, 2020