Hello, and welcome to my blog. This is my first action project for my Humanities course called Rhetoric. So far in this class, we studied how to understand the elements of the rhetorical situation and using rhetoric devices and appeals in writing and speaking. We created storybooks for children in the grade range of kindergarten to first grade, about Christopher Columbus's colonizing the Americas. Our challenge was to use the art of rhetoric in explaining the "hard truth" of the history of who Columbus was and what he and his people did. Due to Covid-19, we weren't able to physically attend any field experiences. We had many assignments where we had to practice breaking down and understanding the rhetoric in conversations, broadcasts, excerpts, and other texts of writing. For this Action Project, we were instructed to use rhetoric in a scripted brief interview with a current candidate of our choice. I chose to write up an interview with a young black student activist with Good Kids Mad City (GKMC) from Chicago by the name of Myracle Boyd and candidate for Illinois State's Attorney, Kim Foxx. I chose to interview Kim Foxx instead of the top mainstream candidates such as Donald Trump or Joe Biden while acting as Myrcale Boyd because it was easier for me to decipher Kim Foxx’s response since she is also from the same city as the young activist and myself as well.
SCRIPT
CBS 2 Chicago Reporter: Now we have a young student activist from GoodKidsMadCity (Chicago), Myrcale Boyd!
Myracle Boyd (MB) from GoodKidsMadCity: Good Afternoon, Thank you for being here Candidate Foxx. I’d like to start with an excerpt that I recently came across from James K Galbraith.
(MB): “Economic inequality is like blood pressure: Too high could mean disaster; too low and the economy, or the patient, is sluggish. Economic inequality and social inequality is not only a fact of life, but an unavoidable and even necessary fact of life; The question is not whether there should be inequality, but how much of it.”
(MB): In actuality, equality isn’t the answer for building up communities and people groups that inhabit under-resourced areas and don’t have access to affordable and needed healthcare or health essentials. Equity would solve more problems for people of color not only state and countywide but nationwide.
(MB): As a candidate for Illinois State’s Attorney, how do you plan to increase equity of healthcare and human and essential resources for underserved and underinvested communities throughout Cook County?
Kim Foxx, candidate for Illinois State's Attorney (KM): The casual acceptance of racial disparities in healthcare and the investment of resources to the BIPOC population of this nation has been a long and tiresome history from the beginnings of moral and civil uprising in this country. As a representative of the BIPOC community in this country, I’ve had enough. We’ve had enough. Enough of the systemic racism that is forged within our nation’s constitution and judicial system. Enough of being considered and categorized as “last” or “other” when it comes to access to and receiving human resources whether they are micro or macro.
(KM): As Illinois State’s Attorney, I will prosecute criminal and civil cases for the people. We need resources to identify and support the needs of people living in underserved and underinvested areas, which includes housing, food, transportation; and mental health treatment; trauma-informed and survivor-centered services; and financial assistance; especially during this time of Covid-19. I am the voice of the people in America's courtrooms. While enforcing the law to seek justice, I tend to do so with moral good in mind.
(KM): “As a Black woman in America, I am challenged every day to operate in a system that was not built for me to be successful. As a Black woman in politics, I recognize that I have a certain responsibility that many candidates do not share. A responsibility to run a campaign that is both representative and equitable. A responsibility to lift up the concerns and listen to the hopes of my community. And a responsibility to forge a path forward for the next generation of Black women in office.
(KM): I do not take this lightly. And I want to build a campaign that reflects that fact. That is why my campaign is making a pledge to fight for racial justice. I hope you will sign your name and join me in making this pledge. Thank you.”
Citations
“Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx Calls for Resources for Crime Survivors at Springfield Rally.” Cook County State’s Attorney, 11 Apr. 2019, www.cookcountystatesattorney.org/news/cook-county-state-s-attorney-kim-foxx-calls-resources-crime-survivors-springfield-rally. Accessed 2 Oct. 2020.
Dobbins, Elizabeth. “Economist Galbraith at Fitchburg State:” Lowell Sun, Lowell Sun, 11 Oct. 2016, www.lowellsun.com/2016/10/11/economist-galbraith-at-fitchburg-state/. Accessed 30 Sept. 2020.
“Equality vs Equity - Difference and Comparison | Diffen.” Diffen.Com, Diffen, 2020, www.diffen.com/difference/Equality-vs-Equity#:~:text=Equality%20generally%20refers%20to%20equal,achieve%20greater%20fairness%20of%20outcomes. Accessed 30 Sept. 2020.
FOXX, KIM. “KIM FOXX FOR COOK COUNTY STATE’S ATTORNEY.” KIM FOXX FOR COOK COUNTY STATE’S ATTORNEY, 2014, www.kimfoxx.com/pledge. Accessed 30 Sept. 2020.
