The African American Policy Forum

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The administration’s targeted harassment of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook should be called what it is: racist, sexi...
10/09/2026

The administration’s targeted harassment of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook should be called what it is: racist, sexist and deeply undemocratic.

Today’s announced White House ‘inquiry’ is just the most recent intimidation tactic against a qualified Black woman public servant who refuses to stand down in the face of authoritarianism.

We stand with Lisa, and in doing so, we recognize the hundreds of thousands of Black women who have lost their jobs since Trump took office again in 2025.

Toni Morrison’s seminal novel The Bluest Eye has continued to be one of the most targeted books in the country, facing c...
10/08/2026

Toni Morrison’s seminal novel The Bluest Eye has continued to be one of the most targeted books in the country, facing challenges and bans for its depictions of race, racism, beauty, and sexual violence. But Morrison never shied away from the realities we too often want to make uncomfortable. Her work asks us to confront how racism shapes the way we see ourselves, our communities, and one another.

During , we’re continuing to defend the freedom to read—and the stories that challenge us to reckon with America’s history and present.

AI can scan thousands of books quickly—but it can’t replace the context, interpretation, and judgment that comes with ...
10/07/2026



AI can scan thousands of books quickly—but it can’t replace the context, interpretation, and judgment that comes with actually reading them. Using AI to enforce book bans doesn’t just make censorship easier. It can make it faster, broader, and harder to see. A book can be reduced to a keyword, a passage, or an AI-generated flag and suddenly, an entire story is up for removal. During Banned Books Week, that should concern all of us.

On October 6, we celebrate the birth of Fannie Lou Hamer (1917), a fearless grassroots organizer and voting rights activ...
10/06/2026

On October 6, we celebrate the birth of Fannie Lou Hamer (1917), a fearless grassroots organizer and voting rights activist whose life’s work helped expand the possibilities of American democracy.
Born in Montgomery County, Mississippi, Hamer became one of the most powerful voices in the fight against voter suppression and political exclusion. After facing intimidation, violence, and losing her home and job for attempting to register to vote, she dedicated herself to organizing Black communities across Mississippi.

As we approach the midterm elections, Hamer’s legacy reminds us that democracy depends on people being able to participate, organize, and make their voices heard. Her work challenges us to continue building a multiracial democracy where civic engagement is not only encouraged, but accessible to all.

Fannie Lou Hamer’s life was a testament to the power of ordinary people to demand extraordinary change — and her vision for a more democratic America remains as urgent as ever.

10/05/2026

It’s !!!!

We asked our executive director Kimberle Crenshaw why it’s more important than ever that we uplift the stories and authors that have been targeted, censored, and pushed out of classrooms and libraries.

Because what we choose to read — and whose stories we choose to tell shapes how we understand ourselves, our history, and each other. At a time when access to knowledge is increasingly under attack, protecting the freedom to read means protecting the freedom to learn, question, and imagine something different.

This , we’re celebrating the writers and stories that refuse to be erased. 📚

It looks like another university is scaling back access to ethnic and gender studies.The University of Texas at Austin i...
10/01/2026

It looks like another university is scaling back access to ethnic and gender studies.The University of Texas at Austin is eliminating four majors, including African and African Diaspora Studies and Race, Indigeneity and Migration. This comes as part of a broader rollback of ethnic, gender, and Black studies programs happening across U.S. campuses. These programs examine histories, cultures, and systems of power that have too often been excluded or marginalized in traditional curricula. What knowledge are we losing when universities decide to narrow what students have access to?

Black media has always been essential to telling the stories that too often go uncovered, challenging dominant narrative...
09/30/2026

Black media has always been essential to telling the stories that too often go uncovered, challenging dominant narratives, and making space for voices that deserve to be heard. From Jet to Ebony and the independent outlets carrying that legacy forward, Black media reminds us why a robust, multiracial media landscape matters. We need journalism that reflects the full breadth of our communities, experiences, and histories, especially in moments when access to information and whose stories get told are increasingly contested.

The team at AAPF congratulates our executive director Kimberle Crenshaw for being inducted into the British Academy!
09/21/2026

The team at AAPF congratulates our executive director Kimberle Crenshaw for being inducted into the British Academy!

As the Census Bureau considers removing questions that concerns race and ethnicity, we have to ask what we lose when the...
09/20/2026

As the Census Bureau considers removing questions that concerns race and ethnicity, we have to ask what we lose when the government stops collecting information that allows us to understand racial inequality.

This is the danger of so called colorblindness: when racial differences and histories are dismissed, the inequities shaped by them can become easier to overlook.

Quote from Fordham Law Professor and AAPF Mellon Scholar Tanya Hernandez upcoming book , The Global Erasure of Blackness: The Civil Rights Crisis of Census (Under) Counting

The midterms are closer than we think and the fight over how Americans cast their ballots is already underway.Voting acc...
09/15/2026

The midterms are closer than we think and the fight over how Americans cast their ballots is already underway.
Voting access has long been shaped by decisions made at the state and federal level. This year, efforts to change the rules around mail-in voting have brought those questions into sharp focus. With the Supreme Court’s latest decision, existing mail-in voting systems will remain in place for the 2026 midterms. But the larger question remains: who gets to decide how accessible the ballot is?

As we head toward November, take the time to understand your options and make a voting plan!

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