Habari Gani: A Focus on Recent Events

By Makheru Bradley

We titled this series Habari Gani, a Kiswahili term we use during Kwanzaa, translated as “What’s New”, or “What is the News?” Our intent is to cover recent events that impact Afrikan people.

Charlene Henderson and political activists in Charlotte's Hidden Valley community are protesting redistricting plans that would move them to another district

Hidden Valley is a predominantly African American community that has so far avoided gentrification. They want to keep the political continuity of their voting community.

Sister Henderson questions proposed redistricting maps that will result in a “denial or dilution of the Voting Rights Act for her community.” She told City Council, “Map A is the only map that protects and preserves Hidden Valley’s all Black voting record.” The activists consider two of the proposed redistricting maps to be racially discriminatory to Black voters in the Hidden Valley neighborhood. Charlotte’s City Attorney and the City Council denied these claims. The proposed maps Hidden Valley activists are criticizing move two precincts in Hidden Valley from District 4 into District 1.

Hidden Valley activist Cedric Dean said, “District 1 has voted for all white candidates. District 4 has voted for all Black candidates. We can never be a community of interest with District 1.” There is a plurality of Black voters in District 4.

Per WFAE: Of the council’s seven districts today, Black voters are the majority in District 2 and the plurality in districts 3, 4 and 5. The 2020 U.S. Census shows that the population of Charlotte is now 874,653. That is an increase of nearly 140,000 people since the 2010 census. The AP reports that Charlotte is now the 15th most populous city in the United States. The Census Bureau estimates Charlotte’s demographics by race to be: White alone—48.8%; African American alone—35.2%; Hispanic or Latino—14.3%; Asian alone—6.5%.

The population increase requires City Council redistricting to meet specific standards—that is each district in the city should have about 125,000 people. A majority of the districts are either above or below that standard.

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles established a four-person City Council redistricting committee, chaired by Malcolm Graham, including Ed Driggs, Dimple Ajmera and Greg Phipps. The committee was charged with re-drawing the city's seven voting districts so that they follow the “one person, one vote” principle. They have a Nov. 17 deadline to establish new district lines.

Jonathan Lowe of Spectrum News reported that: Graham says one of their guiding principles was to not break up what are called “communities of interest.” “In terms of not breaking up precincts, for example 42 and 82 are Hidden Valley,” he said. However, two of the maps Graham’s committee have produced contradict the principle he articulated.

City Councilman Braxton Winston was highly critical of the process saying in a September tweet: “City Council redistricting process is a hypocritical farce. We are throwing away any semblance of an equity lens for political expediency. We’ve talk a lot about others disrupting the crescent/wedge but fail to take bold action on our own where we actually control the map.”

Will the political continuity of Hidden Valley be preserved?

The Mecklenburg Board of Commissioners also has a Nov. 17 deadline to adopt new maps. Only two of their districts are out of balance despite a 21% increase in population since 2010.

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