Labor Day and the Democratic Party

Reporter's Notebook

America's First Black President and the 'False Promise of Integration' ()

As we wait for the re-nomination of America's first black president, it's worth pointing out that Charlotte was a focal point of the Civil Rights movement and integration. The latest issue of the Atlantic magazine carries an article titled, "Fear of a Black President," which says of the Obama era: "He governs a national enlightened enough to send an African American to the White House, but not enlightened enough to accept a black man as president." Why is it so hard for Barack Obama to talk about the racial tensions that still exist four years after he was elected?

Guests:

• Tom Hanchett: Levine Museum of the New South, @levinemuseum
• Mary Curtis: freelance journalist, @mcurtisnc3
• Ta-Nehisi Coates: Atlantic magazine

Main Topic

The Democrats and Organized Labor ()

In Cleveland on this Labor Day, President Obama spoke to an audience of United Auto Workers. On Thursday, he will accept re-nomination here in Charlotte, from a convention where organized labor is playing a much smaller role than it has for decades.  In a letter to union officials, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka wrote, "We will not be making major monetary contributions to the convention...we won't be buying skyboxes, boosting events... or bringing a big staff contingent to the convention." North Carolina is a right-to-work state. Are the Democrats turning their backs on a historic support group?  Does organized labor still matter? We hear from labor leaders and others, including Occupy protesters in America's second largest financial center after New York.

To the Point is broadcasting live from the Democratic convention all week. You can find all our coverage at KCRW.org/election2012.

Guests:

• Arlene Holt Baker: AFL-CIO, @AFLCIO
• Harold Meyerson: American Prospect, @haroldmeyerson -
• Bob Morgan: Charlotte Chamber of Commerce

Links:

• Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
• Working America
• American Prospect's brief history of American labor

Making News

Republican Convention Changes Few Minds ()

It's been several days since the gavel fell on the Republican National Convention in Tampa.  Did the convention give Mitt Romney what political pros call a "bounce" in the opinions of likely voters? Frank Newport is Editor in Chief of the Gallup Poll.

Guests:

• Frank Newport: Gallup Poll, @galluppoll