by: Jeanine Ramirez
“It was all a dream. I used to read Word Up magazine. Salt and Pepa and Heavy D up in the limousine.”
– The Notorious B.I.G.
That was back in 2017, on the 20th anniversary of Biggie’s death. But it’s not the Brooklyn lawmaker’s only hip-hop reference. Jeffries, now the House Democratic Leader, took the stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and delivered these Fat Joe lyrics:
“Nothing can stop us. We’re all the way up.”
His energetic DNC speech garnered news headlines, and the next day, Jeffries posted “Brooklyn Stand Up.” Before Jeffries’ DNC appearance, The Source caught up with the House Minority Leader.
The Source: Clearly the young people are energized in this race and the youth will be an important part of this election. And they have vowed to make their voices heard. Can you please tell us about some of the strategies and some of the plans and the importance of the youth vote for this election?
Congressman Jeffries: “Well I think that we’ve always had a strong case to make to young people. That the issues that young people care about have been the issues that House Democrats, Senate Democrats, President Biden, Vice President Harris have been working on. Like combating the climate crisis with the fierce urgency of now and delivering the largest investment in combating the climate crisis in the history of the world. Passing gun safety legislation for the first time in 30 years. Because the young people of America deserve a great public school education free of gun violence. And that is what they are demanding. That is what we are working on to deliver. And of course the young people of America care about making sure that their freedom to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions are preserved.”
All of those issues are at stake in this Presidential election. Democrats are hoping young people will turn out in big numbers and vote blue down the ballot. If so, not only can the Democratic Party win the White House, but they can also become the majority in the House and make Jeffries House Speaker, among other party victories. Here’s NY Congressman Adriano Espaillat.
“The NY delegation of course, we have Hakeem Jeffries who stands to be the next speaker. We have Grace Meng, who stands to be the next Chair of the Asian American Pacific Caucus. We have Yvette Clarke, who stands to be the Chair of Congressional Black Caucus in the next session. And I’m delighted, God willing, I could be the Chair of the Hispanic Congressional Caucus.”
– NY Congressman Adriano Espaillat
Jeffries became the first Black Congressional Party Leader in US History when his colleagues unanimously elected him in 2023. With Democratic control of the House, Jeffries would serve as the first-ever Black Speaker. It would be a historic shift in the American story, one that has its roots in Brooklyn and the hip-hop community.
“We know that he went from negative to positive,” Jeffries said. “And emerged as one of the world’s most important hip-hop stars.”
And with this election, Jeffries could emerge as one of the nation’s most potent Democratic stars.
The post EXCLUSIVE: Congressman Hakeem Jeffries Brought the Rhymes of Biggie Smalls to the US Capitol first appeared on The Source.
The post EXCLUSIVE: Congressman Hakeem Jeffries Brought the Rhymes of Biggie Smalls to the US Capitol appeared first on The Source.