Category Archives: Political History

Pennsylvania: a review of racial politics displayed in Rendell and Swann battle of 2006

For those most interested in the seeming hesitance for black voters, particularly, to resist voting for the Republican Party, one of the most interesting thoughts is if a black candidate outside the Democratic Party ran. I was asked one question … Continue reading

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Frank Rizzo 1987 mayoral campaign TV advertisements

With the power of Youtube, it’s interesting to look back at what political advertisements of the past looked like. It should be no surprise that a stack of TV ads made it online from the failed 1987 Republican campaign of … Continue reading

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The Committee of Seventy: a century-old political watchdog

Tomorrow I am interviewing Ellen Kaplan, vice president and policy director for the Committee of Seventy, and it occurred to me that it is worth posting just on the organization. Seventy, a nonpartisan, nonprofit political group, has been a self-proclaimed … Continue reading

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What patronage means

State Rep. JOHN PERZEL is an integral figure to understanding Philadelphia’s Republican Party. He is a power player in the city’s politics, even if he does his work in Harrisburg. Perzel still works with the Republican City Committee and its … Continue reading

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Post-racial urban politics: hardly

We have called for and expected the end of mainstream institutional racism in the United States since about the third day after it was exported to this country, maybe 400 years ago. Back in 1999, when white Republican Sam Katz … Continue reading

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Philadelphia taxes created King of Prussia, lost jobs

It frustrates me that so much of the Delaware Valley’s gain is Philadelphia’s loss. That is, much of what makes this metro region great is development that could have helped make this city even greater. In researching this thesis and … Continue reading

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Ronald Reagan and racial politics

A central requisite of my paper is trying to disentangle national and local politics as best I can. Racial politics, however present in both forms, have to be more important in a city like Philadelphia, so much more diverse racially … Continue reading

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When national politics haunt Philadelphia candidates

July 4, 2001 Photo by William Thomas Cain for Getty Images on Oct. 21, 2003, not to be distributed.

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The effects of national politics in the local scene

Photo courtesy of JFK Library. Eight years next month, then-U.S. President Bill Clinton was stumping for then-outgoing City Council President John F. Street in his bid to become Philadelphia’s next mayor, as election day was nearing and Street was facing … Continue reading

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City Hall

Photo courtesy of SkyscraperSunset.com via Gloucester City News.

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