“I do not want to become another African American/Black stereotype. Most of us men are labeled as thugs, because of our long hair, dreads, dark clothing and the music we listen to. If we are driving a luxurious car most people assume that we either bought it with illegal money or we stole. … I don’t want to be added to someone’s death statistic.”

This is the opening of an essay written by Antoine Tate, 16, who is going into his senior year at a large, predominantly black and low-income high school just outside D.C. in Prince George’s County, Md. This summer Tate participated in the College Summit program, a four-day workshop at Howard University about applying to college.

Self-promoting is wack. So I’ll pen this blog post as an explanation of why I’ve been absent from the blog for a few days. Eh, that’s a lie, this is self-promotion usually reserved in the progressive world for the likes of Mark Green (I’m a big fan. I just call ‘em like I see ‘em.)

I stopped by the Roosevelt Institution's policy expo today. Roosevelt, the first student think tank, had a strong program featuring innovative policy ideas from undergraduates across the country. I was especially impressed by their three booklets of 25 ideas on a given topic. In particular, "25 ideas for increasing socio-economic diversity in higher education," presented by Campus Progress's own Zach Marks, had some really strong content. My personal favorite is the argument that colleges should be pressured to practice "wealth blind" admissions, which means that they would eliminate legacy preferences and recruiting for exclusive rich kid sports like squash in the admissions process.

On the downside, I was surprised and disappointed to see a note that the closing ceremony would include a speech by Doug Bailey. Best known for being the chief press flack for the uninspiring Gerald Ford's losing 1976 presidential campaign, Bailey is currently in the news for pushing Unity '08, the movement for a bi-partisan presidential ticket. Unity '08, the product of wanky, David Broder-ish elite handwringing over political polarization and the fetishization of bi-partisanship has been sufficiently revealed for the moronic joke it is on this site and elsewhere, so I won't rehash the takedown. I will only suggest that if an organization names itself after a great liberal president and portrays itself as promoting a progressive agenda, it should refrain from giving a platform to illiberal out of date figures and their silly hobbyhorses.

Since I walk to work, I rarely get a chance to read the Washington Examiner which I imagine I would if I took the Metro. But I got a chance to see yesterday’s paper, which reported that the D.C. Council took a major step in preventing “payday lenders” from exploiting the desperation of low-income workers. The Council passed a bill restricting payday lenders from charging absurdly high interest rates that often trap consumers in an endless cycle of debt.

An article in yesterday’s New York Times chronicles the battle over expanding the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. Doctors, consumer groups, many state officials, and a broad bipartisan coalition in Congress want to see more children covered under SCHIP. Meanwhile the Bush administration stands staunchly opposed to the program’s expansion, deriding it as a step towards government-run healthcare, which some believe will be costly and add unnecessary bureaucracy.