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Taikein M Cooper

2 Nov, 8 tweets, 3 min read

[THREAD] so I’ve been inundated with texts and DMs about “morality” today from voters across the Commonwealth.

I’ve never said this publicly, but it’s important to say today.

In 2000, I was 12 years old sitting in a Black church. The pastor said, “I’m not telling y’all who to vote for, but let your morals lead you when you’re in that booth.”

The moral issues of 2000 were Clinton’s sex scandals and stem cell research.

I’m sure my experience in 2000 wasn’t an anomaly in Black churches.

With all due respect, we’ve had some nostalgia for George W. Bush after Trump, but his Presidency was historically bad for Black and Brown people.

Then, in 2016, morality came up again. “But her emails?!?!”

It’s a little premature to conclude just how bad Trump’s Presidency was, but it was AWFUL for the Black, Brown, disAbled, LGBTQ, immigrant, and Muslim communities.

So let’s talk about a few things that I’m getting in my inbox.

“Terry won’t say defund the police or end qualified immunity.”

Respectfully, most Virginians aren’t there. Youngkin definitely won’t do either. Are you willing to lose everything else? I’m not.

“Hala accepted Dominion money; she won’t be an ally against pipelines.”

Would you rather have Hala Ayala or Winsome Sears serving as the tie breaker on marijuana, Women’s reproductive rights, and right to work?

I wish I could keep going, but I’m working to turn out voters. It’s a life changing election today for the communities that I work with and live in.

I’m saying this out of love; THE FOLKS WHO YALL CLAIM YOU WANT TO HELP THE MOST, DON’T HAVE THE PRIVILEGE TO SIT THIS OUT.

@TerryMcAuliffe

Let’s do what’s right for Virginians; elect @TerryMcAuliffe, @HalaAyala, @markherringva, and Democratic House members to continue moving VA forward. #vagov

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More from @TaikeinCooper

Taikein M Cooper

@TaikeinCooper

3 Nov

[THREAD] As always, here's my short analysis of what we can learn from last night's elections. I'm seeing a lot of takes on here and in my inbox that I don't agree with. Let's dig in...

I've said this before, but running for office is a tall task; thank you for being willing to serve.

Thank you to all of the staff members and volunteers who work behind the scenes. You all really make this possible and I appreciate you.

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Taikein M Cooper

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19 Jun 20

[THREAD] Over the past few weeks, I’ve been listening and writing, A LOT. Below, you will find reforms and policies that drastically improves the lives of historically marginalized communities, across the country.

Please like and RT to spread the message. #juneteenth

To be clear? This agenda features the initial steps needed for creating equitable communities across America, but is neither exhaustive nor absolute. The agenda addresses the following needs: workforce, wealth building, policing & the law, housing, education, health & food.

We must prepare all people for a global economy, regardless of their access to or choices about post-secondary education.

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Taikein M Cooper

@TaikeinCooper

22 Jan 20

[THREAD] They say that hindsight vision is 20/20. That's why I'm so troubled by SJ75 in the #valeg.

A history lesson + a call to action...

#vagov #vapol #fundourschools

@VirginiaExcels

First, I'm the Executive Director of @VirginiaExcels. VE is designed to develop and amplify the voices of students and families from historically underrepresented communities to promote educational equity.

As I've shared with all of the participants in our programs, "I've failed you if you only parrot things that I think & I hate failing."

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Taikein M Cooper

@TaikeinCooper

24 Jul 19

Ok y'all, I just listened to the informal #RVA Informal Council Meeting from Monday. One exchange stood out to me, about the RPS recruiting teachers of color. This isn't an attack, but an effort to add some context to the conversation. Short [THREAD].

1/N

Councilor Gray asked Superintendent Kamras about RPS's efforts to prioritize teachers of color. I'll highlight the importance of teachers of color later in the thread, but it sounded like she was concerned about the legality of the prioritization.

2/N