Rosa Clemente

Rosa Clemente

Rosa Clemente with child

Rosa Clemente speaking at Union Square, New York City, 2009.
Born Rosa Alicia Clemente
April 18, 1972
South Bronx, New York, United States
Education Cornell University, University at Albany, SUNY
Occupation Scholar, Activist, Journalist
Years active 1995–present
Political party
 Green Party

Rosa Alicia Clemente (born April 18, 1972) is a United States community organizer, independent journalist and hip-hop activist. She was the vice presidential running mate of 2008 Green Party Presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney in the 2008 U.S. Presidential election.[1][2][3]

Early Life and Education

Clemente was born and raised in South Bronx, New York. She is a graduate of the University of Albany and Cornell University.

Clemente's academic work has focused on research of national liberation struggles within the United States, with a specific focus on the Young Lords Party and the Black Liberation Army. While a student at SUNY Albany, she was President of the Albany State University Black Alliance (ASUBA) and Director of Multicultural Affairs for the Student Association. At Cornell she was a founding member of La Voz Boriken, a social/political organization dedicated to supporting Puerto Rican political prisoners and the independence of Puerto Rico.

Journalism

Clemente has written for Clamor Magazine, The Ave. magazine, The Black World Today, The Final Call and numerous websites.[4] She has been the subject of articles[5] in the Village Voice, The New York Times, Urban Latino and The Source magazines. She has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, C-SPAN, Democracy Now! and Street Soldiers.[6][7] In 2001, she was a youth representative at the United Nations World Conference against Xenophobia, Racism and Related Intolerance in South Africa and in 2002 was named by Red Eye Magazine as one of the top 50 Hip Hop Activists to look out for.

Activism

In 1995, she developed Know Thy Self Productions (KTSP), a full-service speakers bureau, production company and media consulting service.[8] Seeing a need for young people of color to be heard and taken seriously, she began presenting workshops and lectures at colleges, universities, high schools, and prisons. Since 1995, Clemente has presented at over 200 colleges, conferences and community centers on topics such as "African-American and Latino/a Intercultural Relations", "Hip-Hop Activism", "The History of the Young Lords Party", and "Women, Feminism and Hip Hop". KTSP now includes an expanded college speakers bureau which has produced three major Hip Hop activism tours, "Dare to Struggle, Dare to Win" with M1 of dead prez and Fred Hampton Jr.; "The ACLU College Freedom Tour" with dead prez, DJ Kuttin Kandi, Mystic and comedian Dave Chappelle; and the "Speak Truth to Power" Tour a collaborative tour of award winning youth activists.

In 2003, Clemente helped form and coordinate the first ever National Hip Hop Political Convention that drew over 3000 activists who came together to create and implement a national political agenda for the Hip-Hop generation. 10 days after Hurricane Katrina ravaged parts of Southern United States, Clemente traveled to the areas as an independent journalist and her on-the-ground reports were broadcast on independent radio stations all over the world, including Air America, NPR, Pacifica Radio, Democracy Now, Indymedia, Hard Knock Radio and many more independent and mainstream media outlets.

Vice-presidential campaign

In July 2008, Clemente was named the running mate of former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney.[9] Three days later, on July 12, she was confirmed as the Vice Presidential nominee of the Green Party of the United States at their annual convention. A month later, Clemente and McKinney appeared at a number of events in Denver, Colorado, which was the site of the 2008 Democratic National Convention. On August 27, Rosa Clemente spoke at a "Open The Debates" rally organized by the Ralph Nader/Matt Gonzalez presidential campaign.

On Election Day, McKinney/Clemente received 161,797 votes (0.12% of the popular vote).

References

  1. ↑ Cynthia McKinney announces her VP pick
  2. ↑ First All-Women-of-Color Presidential Ticket in US History
  3. ↑ In conversation with a former Green Party candidate
  4. ↑ Walk Like A Warrior
  5. ↑ El Pueblo Unido
  6. ↑ Black Life Is Treated with Short Worth
  7. ↑ Two generations,two inspiring women
  8. ↑ Revear, Eva. "Bigger than Civil Rights: Rosa Clemente talks Black Lives Matter and what we can do to see this fight through". Post Defiance. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  9. ↑ "First All-Women-of-Color Presidential Ticket in US History: Green Party Nominee Cynthia McKinney and Running Mate Rosa Clemente on War, Democracy and Hip Hop". Democracy Now. July 21, 2008. Retrieved 12 April 2015.

External links

Party political offices
Preceded by
Pat LaMarche		 Green Party vice presidential nominee
2008 		Succeeded by
Cheri Honkala