Daytona
‘Tis the weekend for holiday parades and events
U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit #189 Daytona Beach, FL
How pro athletes go from rags to riches and back to rags See page 7
East Central Florida’s Black Voice
See page 3
www.daytonatimes.com www.daytonatimes.com
DECEMBER 5 - DECEMBER 11, 2013
YEAR 38 NO. 49
EE FR
JAMES CLINGMAN: It’s time for incarcerated PRESORTED to become ‘prisonpreneurs’ See page 4 STANDARD
Local lawmaker pushing personal finance class
PEOPLE SPEAK
Bill would require high school students to take course BY ASHLEY THOMAS DAYTONA TIMES aysheldarcel@gmail.com
State Senator Dorothy L. Hukill (R-Port Orange) and Rep. Heather Fitzenhagen (R-Fort Myers) are introducing legislation requiring high school students to take a half-credit, full-semester course in personal financial literacy to meet graduation requirements.
Beginning with students entering grade 9 in the 2014-2015 school year, State Bill 212, coined the “Personal Financial Literacy Education Act,” would require standard high school diplomas to include one-half credit for instruction in personal financial literacy and seven and one-half, rather than eight, credits in electives.
Economic challenges cited The course would beef up the financial component already re-
quired in an economics class lawmakers added last year. “Many young people in this state graduate from high school without having a basic knowledge of financial literacy and money management,” Hukill offers in the context of the bill. “The Legislature finds that, in Dorothy light of the recent Hukill economic challenges nationwide, sound financial management skills are vitally
important to all Floridians, particularly high school students, and … requiring educational instruction in financial literacy and money management as a prerequisite to high school graduation in this state will better prepare young people for adulthood by providing them the requisite knowledge to achieve financial stability and independence.”
Some resistance As a former educator at Mainland High School, Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry has reser-
vations about the bill. “The bill, while well-intended, is another example of state legislators adding more mandates to a curriculum that is increasingly cluttered and serves to further restrict local control of our schools,” Henry explained. “My experiences in two separate Florida districts do not support the need because most of the content mentioned is already covered and supported by programs like Junior Achievement,” he added. Please see class, Page 2
‘Go Tell It On The Mountain’ Negro spirituals to take center stage at civic center FROM STAFF REPORTS
A
handmade quilt of reproductive fabric from the Civil War era will form the backdrop for a program to be presented at the Center for Civic Engagement at Bethune-Cookman University on Dec. 7. “Go Tell It On The Mountain,” written and directed by storyteller and Civil War re-enactor Mary Fears, will feature six performers singing the “Sacred Sounds of Slavery,” songs known today as Negro spirituals. Dr. Howard Thurman, a former professor at Boston University and a former resident of Daytona Beach made a study of those slave songs and penned his views about their creation in The Negro Spiritual Speaks of Life and Death, Friends United Press. 1999. His book is a reference for the program. As in all of Fears’ programs, this Negro Spirituals’ presentation is based on documented resources: “The Sounds of Slavery’’ by Shane and Graham White; “Dark Midnight When I Rise, the Story of the Fisk Jubilee Singers’’ by Andrew Ward; and a book with the original songs published in 1887 with the title, “Jubilee and Plantation Songs, Characteristic Favorites as Sung by the Hampton Students, Jubilee Singers, Fisk University Students and other Concert Companies.’’ The spirituals in the program are taken from this book in which the original version of “Go Down Moses” has 25 stanzas.
Dramatization by locals Narrators and soloists clad in period clothing as those in bondage and free people of color will tell the stories which inspired the creation of the plan-
tation melodies or cabin songs as they were originally called. The program will include a dramatization of a scene from Andrew Ward’s “Story of the Fisk Jubilee Singers’’ and truelife experiences of Frederick Douglass who made comments about the slave’s singing in his books. It was the Fisk Jubilee Singers who toured the northern cities and European countries abroad in the early 1870s who introduced this musical phase of Black culture to the world. This program presents the story of the Fisk Jubilee Singers. In 187l when the nine Fisk University students embarked on their first of three tours, they accomplished for themselves and this nation, a dem-
Above: Mary Fears, (far left) stands before other Civil War re-enactors. A program with various reenactments and Negro spirituals will be held at Bethune-Cookman University on Saturday.
onstration of the dignity, intelligence and educability of African-Americans. Although at that time, the end of the Civil War and the l3th Amendment had declared the end of slavery, Black Americans were still perceived by many as members of an inferior race and many expected their first performances to be comical as minstrel shows. Their introduction of the plantation melodies to vast audiences proved to the world that there was something of lasting value in African-American culture. Years earlier, the well-known orator and abolitionist Frederick Douglass had also traveled
Left:John H. Anderson depicts abolitionist and orator Frederick Douglass.
Please see SPIRITUAL, Page 2
Local Democrats elect new leaders BY ASHLEY THOMAS DAYTONA TIMES aysheldarcel@gmail.com
The top two spots of the Volusia County Democratic Party have seen a shakeup since February’s election of Vonzelle Johnson as chair and Emma Brinkley as vice chair. Both officers resigned in recent months and have been replaced by Leslie Pierce as the new chair
and Jean Jenner as the vice chair at Monday’s meeting of the Volusia Democratic Executive Committee. Johnson, a DeLand city commissioner, sent a resignation letter to committee members Oct. 31 explaining that due to a job promotion he was “forced to resign from the chairman’s position within the Volusia Democratic Party. The organization will need someone leading the charge who
can be very responsive and on the ground,” the letter stated. “Unfortunately, I cannot be effective in those regards due to this new undertaking. I shall do what I can to the best of my abilities to help with the transition to a new chairman and continue to support efforts.”
New leadership Pierce, a native of Bos-
Vonzelle Johnson
Leslie Pierce
ton who has lived in Volusia County for 25 years, has taken that charge and is ready to move the party forward into the 2014 election cycle and beyond. She was elected vice chair after Brinkley stepped down
and as Chair following Johnson’s resignation. “The room went wild, everyone was all excited,” Pierce told the Daytona Times, referring to the evening she was elected. “We’re hoping we can take all the momentum and excitement that was in the room Monday night and keep it moving into this next election cycle.”
Reorganization The party, which is fueled by volunteers, has an office location in DeLand
and meets once a month on the Daytona Beach campus of the University of Central Florida at Daytona State College. “We’re going to make sure that everyone has a role,” Pierce said. “We are putting processes in place, what can be expected of office staff. How we communicate and what we need to do. Our volunteers have been very busy because of the transition and the reorganization of the party,” Pierce added, stating that Jenner has exPlease see LEADERS, Page 2
7 FOCUS
R2
DECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 11, 2013
Nurse: Don’t ignore the signs of heart disease BY GRACIE BONDS STAPLES/ MCT THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
ATLANTA — Heart failure, according to the American Heart Association, affects 5.7 million Americans and causes more than 55,000 deaths in the United States each year. Not only was Karen Wright privy to those numbers, she could very easily put a face on a great many of them. For at least half of her life, Wright had helped care for both men and women suffering from some form of heart disease. She could list the symptoms as quickly as she could name her daughters’ favorite foods. And yet for years, when it came to her own health, the Fairburn, Ga., single mom and nurse practitioner ignored her doctors and the warning signs: shortness of breath and fatigue.
Just do it
Handmade quilts, head scarfs, aprons and Civil War era clothing add to the production of “Go Tell it on the Mountain.”
SPIRITUAL from Page 1 abroad and expressed comments about the slaves’ singing. Douglass’ views will be given by re-enactor John H. Anderson.
Bitterness of slavery Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who often shared the stage with Anderson, wrote this description of his portrayal of Douglass: “He stood there like an African prince, conscious of his dignity and power, grand in his proportions, majestic in his wrath, as with keen wit, satire and indignation, he portrayed the bitterness of slavery.” Another contemporary stated that he was “more than 6 feet in height…his voice in its richness and depth…the listeners never forgot. And they never forgot his burn-
CLASS
ing words.” Anderson bears a striking physical resemblance to the great orator. He will highlight the Negro spirituals’ program with an unforgettable performance that remarkably lives up to the vision of Douglass as described by Stanton and his contemporaries who heard him speak.
Supporting ‘living historians” A cast of 17 will present a program that will inform and entertain. Proceeds will support a new project by Fears to train and costume a group of students to become living historians as storytellers and re-enactors to continue presenting educational programs about the history and achievements of African-Americans in music and other fields. For more information about the program, call 386-253 1516.
Taxes, contracts and credit
from Page 1 Program in force Junior Achievement of Volusia County partnered with five local community banks this year to launch an online program for Volusia County high schools helping young people learn about money management and financial decision-making. The interactive online simulation introduces students to personal finance and career exploration. Monetary scenarios allow users to role-play in financial situations such as developing a budget, maintaining a household and pursuing a career. Other components of Junior Achievement introduce students to the importance of making wise financial decisions while demonstrating “planning, goal-setting, and thoughtful decision-making within the context of personal financial decisions.” “If the bill is successful it is my hope that it will be accompanied by an increase in funds for proper implementation,” Henry concluded.
LEADERS
The proposed financial literacy class would include instruction on a myriad of topics for Florida high school students to include: • Types of bank accounts • Opening an account • Assessing the quality of a depository institution’s services • Balancing a checkbook • Basic principles of money management, such as spending, credit, credit scores, and managing debt • Completing a loan application • Receiving an inheritance and related implications • Basic principles of personal insurance policies • Computing federal income taxes • Local tax assessments • Computing interest rates by various mechanisms • Simple contracts; ontesting an incorrect billing statement • Types of savings and investments • State and federal laws concerning finance If passed, the legislation would make Florida the sixth state in the nation to require instruction in financial literacy as a prerequisite for high school graduation and a standard high school diploma.
Transparency
from Page 1 pertise in multiple areas that will be very beneficial in 2014. “It’s a big job.”
Pierce also believes transparency is an important component within the party and that organization will be a key to democratic wins in the future. “Everyone is eager. We will put a
GOSPEL HALLELUJAH WORLD WIDE RADIO MINISTRIES Hosted by: Pastor Harold Ford and Prophetess Deborah Ford LISTEN TO WPUL 1590 Saturdays 10 am -noon Sundays 5am- 7am & 1pm-3pm Listen online at: www.wpul1590.com website: www.gospelhallelujah.com
Come let the Holy Ghost Get Ya!
Democratic governor in the governors mansion,” she added. “Our committees will be forming the first of the year. Our goal is to get out the vote, because when Democrats vote Democrats win.”
Now she is on the waiting list for a heart transplant and adding her voice to the chorus of women who’ve found themselves in this awful place. Last year, Wright said, she could no longer ignore the signs she had turned a blind eye to for 10 years. “I told my doctor, ‘Whatever you have to do, do it,” Wright said. So in March, Wright finally consented to having a heart pump, or left ventricular assist device, implanted to help her heart beat more efficiently. “It’s not a permanent solution, but I feel so much better,” she said. “There were times when I tried to tell myself it wasn’t what it was, but I knew my fatigue had nothing to do with lack of sleep,” Wright said. “Still, for some reason, I really was very resistant to getting the LVAD. Looking back, I’m glad the decision was made for me.” For most of her life, Wright worked in a busy clinic and was very active in her daughters’ lives. Then without warning, she found herself slowing down, struggling even to breathe and feeling tired all the time, classic symptoms of a sick heart. “When I couldn’t walk 30 feet without stopping, I went to see my primary care doctor who referred me to the cardiologist,” Wright said. The moment he looked at her, Wright T: 11.5 in
said, he knew. “Your heart is really, really weak,” he told her. That doctor prescribed medicine and suggested she make a follow-up appointment in a few weeks, but Wright never returned. She asked around for someone who was a good interventional cardiologist and found one at Emory Saint Joseph’s Hospital. Tests showed Wright’s heart was functioning at about 15 percent of its capacity. Doctors suggested she get the LVAD, but Wright refused. She hoped medicine and a pacemaker would be enough to get the miracle she needed. Then as Thanksgiving approached last year, Wright was trying to take a dish from her kitchen to her car and couldn’t make it. “I had to call the ambulance I was so short of breath,” she said. Thus began a series of hospitalizations. Wright finally had to quit work. In March, doctors implanted the LVAD, the bridge she needed to get to a transplant.
Hypertension leads the pack According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, AfricanAmericans are disproportionately affected by heart failure. There are 817 African-Americans awaiting heart transplants nationwide. Wright, who is Jamaican, is one of them. Why? “Part of it has to do with the prevalence of hypertension in the African-American population,” said Dr. David Dean, heart surgeon and director of Piedmont Atlanta Hospital’s heart transplant and LVAD program. Hypertension is so dangerous because it also leads to more diastolic heart failure, which occurs when the heart can’t squeeze enough blood out to meet the demand of the body. “Heart failure is really pretty prevalent, with hundreds of thousands of new cases diagnosed every year,” Dean said. At first, Wright couldn’t get a transplant because of pulmonary hypertension. Now that that’s under control, he said, she is an excellent candidate for transplant. Dean said that African-Americans like Wright make up 26 percent to 30 percent of patients transplanted each year, but women only about 20 percent. “We in the field don’t really understand why women are under-served,” Dean said.
DECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 11, 2013
M ANEWS YOR COMMUNITY
3 7
DECEMBER 14 - 20, 2006
United Citizens in Action show support for Obamacare Loyce Nottage Allen, Florida Friends for Obama founder, related that the association’s recent rally enjoyed success. Allen conveyed that it was an awesome day in which the Lord blessed. It started to rain at 4 p.m. when they were packing to leave. They had participation from 9 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Everyone was excited and grateful! They rallied long; they rallied strong. They gathered as “United Citizens in Action,” representing a day of action. Advocates arrived with food donations for the local food pantry. They could not stop talking about being grateful for the support to President Barack Obama and the Affordable Health Care Act. They informed those discrediting the president - and his long-awaited Obamacare – to be aware that they, who elected him, are still standing behind him and supporting him. Allen spoke of Lynn Hogenson as a blessing with the valuable information on the Affordable Health Care Act. Hogenson is one of three navigators for all of Volusia and Flagler counties. Leaders and members rallied, representing the Flagler and Volusia County Democrats. It was indeed a day of unity and action on account of the food drive, voter registration, the Affordable Health Care Act, answering questions, and together-
Palm Coast Community news Jeroline D. Mccarthy
ness of folks appreciative of President Obama.
December rally in the works Florida Friends for Obama was founded in 2008 by Allen in support of electing the president. They gained momentum in 2012 for President Obama’s re-election. And, they are getting ready for election year 2014. Allen broached the willingness to have another rally this month, and other monthly gatherings until election year 2014. She signaled not to go backward, but to go forward – of not growing weary, but continuing to run on. She will forward the date, time, and location of the December rally. Allen voiced thanks to all backers for supporting the cause. She says it is indeed people that make a difference.
Another cruise for AACS The latest buzz is a tourist destination to the Southern Caribbean for members and friends of the African American Cultur-
BRIEFS ‘Helping Citizens Be Aware’ is topic of free Palm Coast event Mark Rutledge of the Crime Prevention Task Force of Florida will give a presentation titled “Helping Citizens Be Aware” during a free Lunch n’ Lecture program offered by the City of Palm Coast’s Parks & Recreation Department, from 11 a.m.12:30 p.m. Dec. 18. Topics to be covered include identity theft, fraud and scams, purse snatching, guns and alternative weapons, home safety, carjacking and more. The lecture will start at 11 a.m. at the Palm Coast Community Center, 305 Palm Coast Parkway NE, with lunch immediately following. The event is free, but pre-registration is required. Register online at www.palmcoastgov.com by searching for “Activity” and then, once you’re on the Active Communities page, search again for “lunch.” The Crime Prevention Task Force is a community service organization developed by former law enforcement officers. The organization’s mission is to achieve more awareness by the public of the criminal threat facing everyone in today’s society and show effective measures to counter that threat. The program will raise attendees’ awareness of threats and to offer tested strategies to protect people and their property. Rutledge will present information citizens can use to enhance their personal security while at home and while doing as day-to-day activities out in the community. Rutledge has spent 14 years with the Crime Prevention Task Force of Florida. During his career, he has worked as a security consultant for hospitals, schools, government employees and major businesses. For more information, call 386986-2323. •••
AACS to host Kwanzaa celebration on Dec. 28 The African American Cultural Society is announcing that Kwanzaa 2013 will held on Dec. 28 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the AACS Center, 4422 N. US Highway 1, Palm Coast. This annual free public festivity of vendors, food and entertainment is partly supported by a cultural arts grant from the City of Palm Coast. This year’s celebration will focus on Ujima [oo-JEE-mah], the third of the seven Kwanzaa principles. Ujima directs us to build and maintain our community together, and make our brothers’ and sisters’ problems our problem, and to solve them together. Contact Cynthia Bachoo at 386986-6992 for vendor participation and Vikki Taylor for Kwanzaa event details. •••
Port Orange celebrates incorporation This entire year the City of Port Orange has been celebrating its incorporation as the Town of Port Orange
FILE PHOTO
AACS president Edmund G. Pinto, Jr., treasurer\travel coordinator Lynda H. Baten, and director Rob Whiting are shown aboard the Allure of the Seas in November 2012. In the background are AACS members John Pearson and Kurt Bottoms. al Society (AACS). It’s nine nights aboard the Explorer of the Seas, owned and operated by Royal Caribbean International. AACS treasurer/travel coordi-
nator Lynda Baten announced that the cruise will run through the Travel Leaders network at 386-445-0007. There will be plenty of dining,
entertainment with on-board and onshore excitement in Port Canaveral, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, and Labadee. The AACS travelogue shows that an exhilarating cruise was arranged in November 2012 to Labadee, Haiti; Falmouth, Jamaica; and Cozumel, Mexico. Seventy-five members and friends cruised aboard the Allure of the Seas. Meanwhile, they’ve gallivanted to places for a combination of cultural tours and casinos. Buses will be available for takeoff to Port Canaveral for a minimum of 24 passengers at an extra cost to the rates of a large balcony beginning at $1,249, as well as a balcony beginning at $1,199, an oceanview cabin starting at $899, and an inside cabin from $779. Rates are based on double occupancy. A deposit of $450 per person will reserve a spot. Government taxes, administrative and cancellation fees are extra. The cruise will be steeped in treasures and amenities. For specific details, call Baten at 386586-7672.
Celebrations Birthday wishes to: Teirra May, David Freckleton, Ernestine Logan, Bill Day, Dec. 5; Larry Wettlin, Dec. 6; Alexis Luckett, Dec. 9; Erica Malloy, Sunny Delaney, Dec. 10.
100 years ago with events and celebrations. The month of December has holiday activities scheduled along with a history lecture and a couple of free movie nights under the stars. Centennial events will include “Movies Under the Stars: “The Rise of the Guardians” on Dec. 6. It starts at 6 p.m. at Kenneth W. Parker Amphitheater, 2001 City Center Circle. A Christmas in the Park – Tree Lighting Ceremony is at 6 p.m. Dec. 7 at the amphitheater. The 36th Annual Port Orange Christmas Parade is Dec. 8 at 2 p.m., Dunlawton Avenue east from Nova Road. Visit the city’s website for all the Centennial celebration news and events at www.port-orange.org. •••
City lecture to focus on Three Dunlawton Bridges If you are interested in Port Orange history, there will be a lecture on the Three Dunlawton Bridges at 1 p.m. on Dec. 13. It will be held at the Adult Center Annex, 3738 Halifax Drive. Each year, thousands and thousands of people drive their vehicles over the Dunlawton Bridge. Whether traveling for a day at the beach or visiting the great community of Port Orange, the Dunlawton Bridge plays a major role in daily routines of many people. For more information, call 386506-5522. •••
Child Care assistance available for Flagler, Volusia residents Do you know someone who needs help paying for childcare? The Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia is calling customers from October’s waiting list. This means the wait period to receive childcare assistance is very minimal right now. This is an income eligible program that requires participants to be working or going to school at least 20 hours/week. Apply online at www.elcfv.org, call 386-323-2400 ext. 396, or visit one of the following locations: • Daytona Beach: 135 Executive Circle, Suite 100, Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. • DeLand: 1205 S. Woodland Blvd., Suite 1, DeLand, Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. • Flagler: 800 E. Howe, Bunnell, Monday/Wednesday/Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. •••
Deltona to present ‘Old Fashioned Christmas’ parade The City of Deltona’s third Christmas Parade themed “An Old Fashioned Christmas’’ is returning to Deltona Boulevard on Dec. 7. Marching bands, performers, floats, fire trucks, a life-size gingerbread house, Santa and all of his assistants will travel Deltona Boulevard from Balsam Street (where the U.S. Post Office is located) to Stratford Commons (near Dollar General) beginning at 6 p.m.
PHOTO COURTESY OF CITY OF PALM COAST
Dozens of community organizations participated in the 2012 Starlight Parade, with many entering colorful lighted floats.
Palm Coast preparing for Dec. 14 parade Celebrate the holiday season with your friends and neighbors at the City of Palm Coast’s Starlight Event & Parade on Saturday, Dec. 14, at Central Park in Town Center, 975 Central Ave. (off State Road 100/Bulldog Boulevard behind Flagler Palm Coast High School). Admission is free. The day kicks off at 2 p.m. with live local entertainment and performances; a 70-foot Snow Slide; arrival of Santa and pictures with Santa; facepainting; sand art; and a Letters to Santa activity. Santa will visit with children until 5:30 p.m., and a photographer will be available for photos. The Starlight event wraps up at 5:30 p.m. just in time for the start of the
annual Starlight Parade. At 6 p.m., the Starlight Parade will get under way – featuring colorful lighted floats, marching bands, and prizes for the top entries. Leading off the parade will be the participants of the Starlight Half Marathon and 5K, which is part of the Palm Coast Running Series.
Parade route The parade route will begin at the Round-About on Central Avenue (east of Market Avenue) and head east; turning north onto Park Street, east onto Lake Avenue, and south on City Place; then continuing south of Bulldog Drive. The grand marshal will be
Midtown health fair, tree-lighting ceremony takes place Dec. 7 A parade and health fair will both take place on Dec. 7 in Midtown Daytona Beach. The parade will begin at 10 a.m. behind the Daytona Mall. The Florida Department of Health in Volusia County and several community partners are offering the health fair at Daisy Stocking Park, 550 Third St., Daytona Beach. The fair will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Following the health fair, there will be live entertainment and activities from 2 to 5:30 p.m. At 5:30 p.m., there will be a Christmas tree lighting in the park and area residents and business are asked to decorate and illuminate their properties as part of the “Light Up Midtown” event. Admission is free.
Beach Safety schedules public workshop Dec. 16 Volusia County’s Beach Safety Division will hold a public workshop to review and take public input on surfing and fishing regula-
City Historian Arthur “Art” Dycke, a Palm Coast resident since 1993. A retired history teacher and community college instructor, Dycke was a co-founder and first vice president of the Palm Coast Historical Society and continues to serve as a board director. The commentators for the Starlight Parade will be Palm Coast Fire Chief Michael C. Beadle and his wife, DeeDee Beadle. The Starlight Event & Parade are sponsored by Palm Coast Ford and the Palm Coast Observer. For more information, visit www.palmcoastgov.com/ starlightparade or contact the Palm Coast Parks and Recreation Department at 386-9862323.
Various health vendors are participating in the event. Bethune-Cookman University’s nursing students will provide blood pressure checks, weight and weight management advice and BMI. The students also will offer education on blood pressure, diabetes prevention information, healthy eating information, promotion of tobacco cessation, HPV information, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS information. Atlantic Chiropractic will be providing spinal screenings. The health department’s outreach workers will offer information on nutrition, diabetes, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/ AIDS, maternity care, immunizations, breast cancer, disaster preparedness and tobacco prevention. There also will be children’s activities and entertainment throughout the day.
tions at 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16. The meeting will be on the third floor of the Lifeguard Headquarters and Administration Center, 515 S. Atlantic Ave., Daytona Beach. For more information, call Beach Safety Director Mark Swanson at 386-239-6414.
R4
7 EDITORIAL
DECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 11, 2013
‘Prisonpreneur’: From cells to sales (This article is dedicated to the folks in jails and prisons. Please share it with them.) According to the 13th Amendment, slavery in this country has not been fully abolished; there is an exception that says if one is duly convicted of a crime he or she can be enslaved. If you have been enslaved by either doing a crime or because you are in prison for something you did not do, why not learn how to turn your enslavement into a profit by studying to become a business owner? For two decades now I have written and spoken about that “exception” in the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and advocated a literal boycott of prisons especially by Black men, who make up a disproportionately high percentage of those incarcerated in this country. How do we boycott prisons? Just refrain from doing some of the stupid things we do that result in prison time. We cannot keep complaining about the “prison industrial complex” and refusing to do our part to put it out of business by abstaining from crime.
Use your time For those already imprisoned in what has become “Incarceration Nation,” why not use the time you have there to research ways in which you can make something or do something and sell it to someone. A profit can be generated by prisoners that they can keep in their pockets rather than have it appear on some corporation’s Profit & Loss statement. If prisoners would build up their brains the
can shift that equation by teaching our young children and teenagers entrepreneurship. It is our responsibility to do what we can, JAMES to control what we can control, CLINGMAN to stay out of prisons, and to adNNPA COLUMNIST vocate for the kind of training in our schools that provide the opway they build up their muscles, portunity for business ownership they would come out with a new among our youth. skill set as well as a new body. We can do as our ancestors did Prisonpreneur during their enslavement period I am going to make up anothin America. Many enslaved Afrier new word for this: “Prisoncans became “Intrapreneurs,” as Juliet E.K. Walker describes in her preneur.” A recent CNN segment book, The History of Black Busi- featured men at San Quentin beness in America. Despite their coming technology entreprelack of physical freedom, they lev- neurs while in prison, and geteraged their knowledge, and even ting great jobs when they were retheir services in some cases, in leased. They were taught all the exchange for a plot of land. They skills of owning a business while did not succumb to the condi- they were spending time incartions under which they were held; cerated. What a novel idea, huh? they made the best of their negaWe need to make the approtive situation priate changes necessary to control our own destiny, rather than Biblical reparation turning it over to a prison system that is only interested in making a history We all know it takes money profit from the work we put in evto be free. God showed us that ery day behind prison walls. The when He told the Israelites to go answer: Work for yourself not for back and get treasure from Pha- the new slave master, the prison raoh in Exodus 12, the first case system. Be a Prisonpreneur. of reparations in history. God Jim Clingman, founder of knew they would need “money” when they secured their freedom. the Greater Cincinnati African We must learn from the past and American Chamber of Comuse it to propel us forward to true merce, is the nation’s most proeconomic freedom. This requires lific writer on economic emnot only a change in behavior, but powerment for Black people. also a change in attitude about He is an adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati. Click business as well. There is a cause and effect re- on this story at www.daytonalationship between poverty and times.com to write your own recrime, and to the degree that we sponse.
Prevent hunger in our land of plenty While many American families gathered around the Thanksgiving table last week, some of us combined this year’s traditional dinners with Hanukkah feasts; a too quiet group was left out of the national celebration. The nearly 49 million Americans, including nearly 16 million children, living in food insecure households struggled to afford the food they need. These families didn’t have the luxury of choosing between apple or pumpkin pie this holiday season but continue to face choices about paying for groceries or rent, heat, electricity, medicine or clothing for their children as they do each month – choices no family should have to make in our nation with the largest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the world.
Marian Wright Edelman NNPA COLUMNIST
ping block while leaving largely intact subsidies for rich farmers and even some non-farmers. With the decision deadline just weeks away, Congress is working to bridge the gap between two dramatically different Farm Bill proposals that both include unjust funding cuts for SNAP. The Senate Bill cuts $4 billion from SNAP over 10 years while the House bill slashes more than $40 billion – denying food to as many as 6 million people, including children, seniors, and veterans. The House proposal would also drop 210,000 children from school meals and Decision deadline Congress will be choosing how cost our economy 55,000 jobs in many of these desperate fami- the first year alone. lies and children in need to cut from life-giving and life-sustain- Cuts to the cut Any agreed upon Farm Bill cuts ing federal nutrition programs. In the middle of this season of grati- to the already meager SNAP food tude for plenty, Congress has put benefits will come on top of the the Supplemental Nutrition As- $11 billion cut over the next three sistance Program (SNAP, often years that already began on Nocalled food stamps) on the chop- vember 1 and affected every sin-
gle SNAP recipient. This recent cut was equivalent to a week’s worth of meals for a 9-year-old. SNAP benefits now average a mere $1.40 per person per meal. Hunger and malnutrition have devastating consequences for children and have been linked to low birth weight and birth defects, obesity, mental and physical health problems, and poorer educational outcomes. SNAP cushions these threats and yields a strong return on investment. Children who benefit from SNAP are less likely to be in poor health, experience fewer hospitalizations, and are less likely to have developmental and growth delays than those with similar incomes denied the program. A recent study found that needy children who received food assistance before age five were in better health as adults. Specifically, the girls studied were more likely to complete more schooling, earn more money, and not rely on safety net programs as adults.
Marian Wright Edelman is president of the Children’s Defense Fund. Click on this story at www.daytonatimes.com to write your own response.
Thanksgiving and other myths Theoretically, Thanksgiving celebrates the breaking of bread between Native Americans and Pilgrims, who might have starved were it not for the generosity of those who first occupied this country. Pilgrims and their descendants developed the myth of the shared Thanksgiving. The myth leaves out the unprovoked massacre of tens of thousands on Native Americans because the same Pilgrims who needed food also needed land. They proceeded, systematically, to remove Native people from their own land. Too many history books portray Native American people as savages, and much of the fiction that derives from that era portrays Pilgrims as frightened victims. Native people are portrayed as predators eager to “scalp” the Pilgrims and later, those soldiers who attempted to take Midwest lands. Yet who would not defend their land? And why were people, the original inhabitants of this land, dumped into reservations?
Day of mourning No wonder many Native American people consider Thanksgiving Day a national day of mourning. No wonder many protest the conventional interpretation of Thanksgiving Day. No wonder so many bristle and the lens of history that allows distortion and the
DR. JULIANNE MALVEAUX TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM
celebration of Pilgrim theft. To add insult to injury, Thanksgiving Day has now devolved into a capitalistic orgy of excessive spending. Commercial establishments open much of the day on the Day of Mourning, and on the next day, described as “Black Friday.” The day is so named because spending on that day is likely to put many companies “in the black.” The Thanksgiving season is less a season of mourning, or even thanksgiving, as an excessive capitalist debacle. People have actually been stomped to death as others stepped over them to race for bargains.
Clouded mythology The mythology is similar with Christmas Day, which is supposed to celebrate the birth of the Christ Child. Historians note that the season of celebration is wrong, and that aspects of the story are rife with myth. Sometimes, however, myth simply allows people something to believe in. Most egregious to Christians, however, is the say that Christmas becomes
X-Mas, and the day becomes less about the birth of Christ than about the presents people put under a tree. Equally annoying is the Santa Claus myth of a pudgy little man wearing a red hat and sporting long a beard. How many children know more about Santa Claus than the real meaning of the day. Like the Thanksgiving season, the Christmas season has also become a season of capitalism, as consumers flock to department stores for “after Christmas sales.” Profligate spending in November and December represents as much as 20 percent of annual spending, though a typical monthly spend is about 8 percent. No wonder there is an endless promotion for spending during this time period. And no wonder customers respond. Thanksgiving, and Christmas are examples of the way we use myth either to denigrate or to elevate. The celebration of these holidays also reminds us of the biased lens of history, a lens that needs to be examined.
Julianne Malveaux is a Washington, D.C.-based economist and writer. She is President Emerita of Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, N.C. Click on this story at www.daytonatimes.com to write your own response.
VISUAL VIEWPOINT: THE RIGHT TO KNOW
JOHN COLE, NCPOLICYWATCH.COM
The American Dream lives! But… It’s the current American reality that’s become a nightmare for millions upon millions whose lives, occupations and economic stability once seemed to embody it. A new survey released Thanksgiving week by the Washington Post and the Miller Center, a nonpartisan, public policyfocused affiliate of the University of Virginia, offers fresh evidence that Americans overwhelmingly still hold fast to the positive beliefs that in the 20th century helped project the buoyant optimism of the American character.
Erosion of financial resources For example, 85 percent of Americans think that being able to attend college is at least a part of the American Dream; and 87 percent feel that way about home ownership. A nearly equal proportion – 86 percent – consider that doing better than their parents is part of the American Dream; and 61 percent claim that the idea of the American Dream is meaningful to them personally, while another 18 percent say it’s not meaningful to them but is to other people. In significant measure, calamity has eroded not just financial resources but also hopes about the present and the future. More than 60 percent say they worry the economy’s unsettled condition will cause them to be laid off, the largest proportion of concern that question has ever produced. Nearly half, 48 percent, said they feel less financially secure than a few years ago; and 66 percent expect it’ll be harder for people like them “to get ahead” in coming years; while a total of 73 percent say they’re somewhat or very dissatisfied about the country’s economic situation. Only 39 percent believe their children will be able to better the family’s current standard of living; another 24 percent believe their children’s circumstances will roughly match theirs; but 28 percent believe their children will be economically worse off.
Lower-paid workers Lower-paid workers worry far more than those higher up the wage scale about losing their jobs or running out of money to pay their rent and other necessities before the end of the month. That truism has a greater importance now than usual because more than half of the jobs created since the Recession ended have been low-wage positions paying on average little more
LEE A. DANIELS NNPA COLUMNIST
than $30,000 a year.
Growth of income inequality New York City Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio’s proposal to increase the taxes on the city’s wealthiest resident in order to fund improvements in the public schools. A new poll shows the idea has drawn widespread support from residents – including conservative and wealthy residents – of both New York City and the state. The economic hardship faced by these workers – the working poor – and the millions of Americans at or below the poverty line has been underscored in recent months by a number of developments. They include: • The one-day work stoppages by fast-food workers in dozens of cities across the country to dramatize their very low wages. • The increasing number of states and municipalities that are moving on their own to increase the minimum wage in their jurisdictions (more than 4 million workers are paid the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour). • New research showing the astonishing growth of income inequality in American society. • New York City Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio’s proposal to increase the taxes on the city’s wealthiest residents in order to fund improvements in the public schools. • The increasing attention being paid to the predicament of food stamp recipients, who face severe cutbacks in their monthly allotments on top of one they already suffered this month. And, lastly, there was Pope Francis, in a lengthy official, and startling, document issued two days before Thanksgiving, sharply criticizing the “idolatry of money” and the conservative “trickle-down theories” of economics for having helped usher in a “globalization of indifference” to the plight of the poor.
Lee A. Daniels is a longtime journalist based in New York City. His latest book is Last Chance: The Political Threat to Black America. Click on this story at www.daytonatimes.com to write your own response.
W W W.DAY TONATIMES.COM Central Florida Communicators Group, LLC, P.O. Box 48857 Tampa, Fl 33646, publishes the Florida Daytona Times on Thursdays. Phone: 877-352-4455, toll-free. For all sales inquiries, call 877-352-4455; e-mail sales@ flcourier.com.
Charles W. Cherry, Sr. (1928-2004), Founder Julia T. Cherry, Senior Managing Member, Central Florida Communicators Group, LLC
Subscriptions to the print version are $59 per year. Mail check to P.O. Box 48857 Tampa, Fl 33646, or log on to www.daytona.com; click on ‘Subscribe’.
Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Chief Executive Officer
SUBMISSIONS POLICY SEND ALL SUBMISSIONS TO NEWS@DAYTONATIMES.COM. Deadline for submitting news and pictures is 5 p.m. the Monday before the Thursday publication date. You may submit articles at any time. However, current events received prior to deadline will be considered before any information that is submitted, without the Publisher’s prior approval, after the deadline. Press releases, letters to the editor, and guest commentaries must be e-mailed to be considered for publication. The Daytona Times reserves the right to edit any submission, and crop any photograph, for style and clarity. Materials will not be returned.
Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Cassandra CherryKittles, Charles W. Cherry II, Managing Members
Charles W. Cherry II, Esq., Publisher Dr. Valerie Rawls-Cherry, Human Resources Jenise Morgan, Senior Editor Deborah Ford, Marketing Consultants/Sales Linda Fructuoso, Marketing Consultant/Sales, Circulation Angela van Emmerik, Creative Director Larry Steele, Circulation Andreas Butler, Ashley Thomas, Staff Writers Delroy Cole, Kim Gibson, Photojournalists MEMBER National Newspaper Publishers Association Society of Professional Journalists Florida Press Association Associated Press National Newspaper Association
5 7
HEALTH MA YOR
DECEMBERDECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 2013 14 - 20,11, 2006
Nonsmokers with lung cancer fight stigma Lack of marketing about disease irks sufferers, researchers
could be quarantined.” But two weeks later, a doctor confirmed the worst: stage 4 non-small cell lung cancer, already assaulting other organs. All she remembers is her father reaching out to steady himself on a nearby radiator. O’Brien spent most of the next four months in the hospital. Before she could start therapy, she needed emergency spinal surgery to remove the malignant tumors wrapped tenaciously around her spinal cord. Surgeons removed several of her vertebrae, replacing them with titanium rods and screws.
BY BONNIE MILLER RUBIN CHICAGO TRIBUNE/MCT
CHICAGO — November was Lung Cancer Awareness Month, but you’d never know it. Consumers aren’t bombarded by products in blue, the color designated by some to raise the profile of the disease. No NFL players or coaches wore blue-ribboned apparel, despite donning pink just a month earlier for breast cancer. “It just doesn’t seem fair,” said Meghan O’Brien, 31, a nonsmoker diagnosed with stage 4 of the disease last year. There is no stage 5. The lack of buzz is especially perplexing because lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States, claiming more lives than breast, prostate, colon and pancreatic cancers combined. The five-year survival rate is just 16 percent — a statistic that has barely budged since 1975, according to the American Cancer Society. But lung cancer is seen as a tobacco-related illness that patients somehow bring upon themselves.
Disparity in research About 10 to 15 percent of the roughly 228,000 people diagnosed with the disease each year were never smokers, according to the LUNGevity Foundation, a Chicago-based support organization. Stigma negatively affects everything from emotional support to the anemic November awareness campaign. Even in obituaries, family members feel compelled to include the “nonsmoker” status, lest the deceased be unfairly judged. However, nowhere is the disparity felt more acutely than in funding research. The National Cancer Institute estimates that $17,835 is spent per breast cancer death versus $1,378 for lung cancer, even though lung cancer accounts for almost 23,000 deaths annually among nonsmokers. “If we don’t start paying attention and changing attitudes, we will have a losing battle ahead of us,” said Dr. Ravi Salgia, O’Brien’s oncologist at University of Chicago Medicine.
No bright ribbon Not that it’s easy to build awareness. Forget the pink marketing blitz; just try to find a ribbon for lung cancer. There’s even dispute over the appropriate color, according to Andrea Ferris, president and chair of the LUNGevity Foundation, who says it’s blue. Others say it’s clear or pearl.
Hopeful landscape
COURTESY OF MEGHAN O’BRIAN/VIA CHICAGO TRIBUNE/MCT
Meghan O’Brien is shown during one of her many hospitalizations over the last 15 months. She is a nonsmoker that is battling stage 4 lung cancer. “In every other disease, the first question people ask is, ‘How can I help?’ But with lung cancer, there’s no empathy. It’s always, ‘Did you smoke?’ After a while, it’s just easier not to say anything,” Ferris said. In O’Brien’s case, doctors pinpointed a rare genetic mutation, called ALK, created when two normal genes fuse together to form a new, cancer-causing one. The University of Chicago is one of the nation’s major treatment centers because of a clinical trial for crizotinib, part of a new arsenal of drugs designed to help patients by blocking ALK. This pharmaceutical “Hail Mary” helped contain O’Brien’s cancer for a while, but now it has come roaring back, invading her lungs and brain. Two months ago, a scan revealed a liver studded with tumors.
One woman’s journey The Huntley woman is now in another early stage clinical trial and channeling her waning energy into chipping away at the “blame and shame” that has impeded progress. She also started a blog to chronicle her lung cancer journey. “I try not to get too mad when people ask if I smoked,” she said. “Instead, I try to turn it into an
Lung cancer’s lethality Despite the fact that lung cancer is projected to kill nearly 160,000 people in the U.S. this year, more than colon, breast, pancreatic and prostate cancers combined, the disease does not get as much public attention or research funding as other cancers. In 2012, the National Cancer Institute spent almost twice as much on breast cancer research as on lung cancer research.
Estimated 2013 U.S. cancer deaths
2012 research funding
By selected types of cancer
From National Cancer Institute, in millions of dollars
159,480
Lung
Brain/nervous system
105.4
38,460
Pancreas
Leukemia
602.7
40,030
Breast
Prostate
$315.1 256.3
50,830
Colon
265.1
29,720
234.7
23,720
177.5
14,080
Source: American Cancer Society, National Cancer Institute Graphic: Chicago Tribune
opportunity to talk about it … to educate. I guess that’s the teacher in me.” Even so, O’Brien immediately recited her virtuous health habits: Physical education teacher. Avid tennis player. An “almost vegetarian” who hasn’t rolled through a fast-food window since age 13. No cigarettes, ever. At first she had experienced back pain, which she attributed to muscle strain, a logical explanation for someone so active. But in May 2012 it became excruciating. She went ahead with X-rays, paying the $600 tab herself because, as a teacher’s aide at New Trier High School, she didn’t have health insur-
ance. The results were inconclusive.
Varying diagnoses By the end of summer she had landed a full-time job teaching physical education at Kenwood Academy High School in Hyde Park, allowing her to move out of her parents’ home and into her own apartment in Bridgeport. “I was so excited because it had a big yard for my dog,” she said. “Also, I thought I might be able to get a job working for the White Sox in the summer, combining my two loves of education and sports.” However, just as her “grown-up life” was taking off, it splintered apart.
© 2013 MCT
She received varying diagnoses, including scoliosis, sinus infection and pneumonia. On Sept. 1, the first day of her new job, she went to her neighborhood clinic. The physician took one look at her test results and sent her to University of Illinois at Chicago’s emergency room. Six hours later, a nurse told her to call her parents.
Shocking news Even after being admitted to the oncology floor, cancer didn’t enter her mind. “I thought maybe this was the only place where they had an open bed … or it was pneumonia or tuberculosis, and this was the only room where I
After discharge, O’Brien moved back to Huntley so her parents could help with caregiving. After almost three years of trying to obtain a full-time teaching job, her tenure at Kenwood had lasted about a month. O’Brien’s eyes glistened with tears as she ticked off her unfulfilled dreams — having a profession, getting married, having kids, buying a home. “When I was first diagnosed, I asked about freezing my eggs,” she said. “They basically told me that there was no point because I wouldn’t live long enough ... to get the procedure done.” As a leading clinicianscientist in lung cancer, Salgia has seen the condemnation firsthand. He also can see a more hopeful landscape, especially with the advent of new genetic therapies that may replace traditional chemotherapy and radiation. “The era of precision oncology has arrived,” he said. Better screening and biomarker tests also are on the horizon, identifying people earlier and improving outcomes. But none of it may happen without removing significant political, social and financial barriers. “Look at what we did with AIDS in the 1990s,” Salgia said. “Our job is not to judge ... but to ask, ‘How do we prevent this disease? How do we cure it? How do we face this together?’” Besides, she said, dating isn’t really on her radar now. Treatment caused her to lose her hair, while steroids added 50 pounds. Even with the side effects, she tries to find ways to stay attractive, such as having her makeup professionally done. The ultimate indignity, she said, “is when people ask, ‘Are you sure you never smoked?’ As if I forgot.” Not that anyone deserves the deadly diagnosis. It wasn’t so long ago that the military dispensed cigarettes to soldiers, and many lung cancer patients kicked the smoking habit decades ago, she said. “But it doesn’t matter. ... People still think it’s your fault.”
Study shows seniors less exhausted than teens BY EMILY ALPERT REYES LOS ANGELES TIMES (MCT)
Elderly people say they feel much less tired than teenagers and younger adults, according to a surprising new study that tracked how nearly 13,000 Americans rated their exhaustion. The results counter earlier studies and defy stereotypes of older people as weak and tired, said Laura Kudrna, a researcher at the London School of Economics and Political Science. What’s even more surprising, she said, is that the unexpected results can’t be explained away by elderly people sleeping longer or doing fewer activities they find tiring. “There’s something else going on here,” Kudrna wrote in an email to the Los Angeles Times.
Activities rated Kudrna and a fellow researcher analyzed answers from the 2010 American Time Use Survey, a nationally representative survey sponsored by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that included nearly 13,000 U.S. residents. Earlier rounds of the survey explored how Americans spent their time, but the 2010 survey was the first to ask how people felt during different activities. Each person filled out a diary of what they did the previous day and how they felt about some of their activities. They rated how tired they felt while doing those activities on a scale of 0 to 6. Remarkably, Americans ages 65 and older reported being less tired than older teens and young twenty-
somethings, pegging themselves almost one point lower on the tiredness scale. Tiredness dropped off after the age of 40 and continued to decrease with age, Kudrna said.
Technology to blame? The results were controlled for how healthy people thought they were and other background characteristics, such as gender, ethnicity, number of children and how much people slept. Researchers also factored in how much of the day was spent doing tiring activities. So why might older people report feeling less tired than teens, twentysomethings and other adults? Kudrna wonders if technology might be making younger people feel more
PAUL TOPLE/AKRON BEACON JOURNAL/MCT
Dance instructor Bobbie Fields, front left, with seniors learning line dancing in a class presented by Universal Nursing Services, Inc., at the Lawton Community Center on Jan. 11, 2012, in Akron, Ohio. The program provided much-needed cardiovascular exercise for seniors who otherwise might not participate. tired, or if other, untracked health factors are influencing the results. The bottom line, however, is that “we don’t know,”
Kudrna said. “And I’d love to find out.” The study, recently published online in the Journals of Gerontology, Series
B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, urged more research to understand the unexpected results.
R6
7 DECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 11, 2013
Florida Health Care Plans www.fhcp.com EOE/AA A Drug Free – Smoke Free Work Place
Advertise For all local sales for The Daytona Times & WPUL AM 1590 News Progressive Talk, Sports & Inspiration call Deborah E. Ford at 386-492-2908 Ext. 12
BOOK PEOPLE UNITE
Help us get books to kids in need. TAKE THE PLEDGE BookPeopleUnite.org
© 2011 United Way Worldwide.
All trademarks and copyrights are properties of their respective owners.
DIFFERENT BY NATURE
UNITED BY
MISSION
We come from different places. We come to different conclusions. But underneath it all, we share a passion for improving the human condition. When we LIVE UNITED, we create real, lasting change in the building blocks of life: the education, income and health of our communities, our families, even the person next to us. Real change won’t happen without you. SIGN UP TODAY AT LIVEUNITED.ORG.
GIVE. ADVOCATE. VOLUNTEER.
LIVE UNITED
®
7
SPORTS MA YOR
DECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 11, 2013 DECEMBER 14 - 20, 2006
er thinks he has two sets of independent, trustworthy eyes on his money when, in fact, he has none.
What about the agents?
PHOTOS COURTESY OF NNPA
Only 1 percent of contractors of Levi’s Stadium in California are people of color.
Unsportsmanlike conduct: The exploitation of Black athletes How pros go from rags to riches and back to rags BY EVERETT L. GLENN NNPA NEWS SERVICE
WASHINGTON – There have been so many former professional athletes in the news recently who have gone from rags-to-richesback-to-rags again that they could form their own reality show. Future Hall of Famer Terrell Owens, for example, accumulated some amazing stats during his 15-year NFL career as a wide receiver: second in league history with 15,934 yards, tied for second with 153 touchdowns and sixth with 1,078 catches. Instead of talking about his on-field accomplishments, however, fans and sportscasters are talking about his interview with Dr. Phil in which he disclosed that he has lost all of his money, estimated to be between $80 million and $100 million.
From T.O. to Iverson After falling behind in child support payments to baby mama Kimberly Floyd, a judge ordered T.O. to complete eight hours of community service, which he performed at a Los Angeles Goodwill store. And there was former NBA baller Allen Iverson, who says he’s broke after earning more than $150 million during his 15-year NBA career, plus a Reebok endorsement worth $50
As a sports agent, Attorney Everett Glenn has negotiated contracts for some of the biggest names in sports, including NFL Hall of Famers Jerry Rice, Richard Dent and Reggie White as well as 11 first-round draft picks. He also has had a front-row seat observing how Black athletes and the Black community are exploited, enriching others while leaving the community and, ultimately, the athletes themselves destitute. In a series for NNPA News Service, he outlines what can be done to halt the wholesale exploitation of athletes and initiate economic reciprocity.
million. At his divorce proceedings last year, Iverson shouted to his estranged wife, Tawanna, “I don’t even have money for a cheeseburger.” Hundreds of other former professional athletes – including former Boston Celtic Antoine Walker, boxer Mike Tyson and track star Marion Jones – could be added to the list. And no matter how often their stories are told, we’re likely to see still more stories of personal and financial ruin.
Train wreck waiting to happen Let’s be clear: Athletes
How is it that well-paid agents and advisers are absolved of any responsibility and/or liability for their complicity in players’ financial fatalities? We read about Iverson’s financial problems with no mention of his agent, Leon Rose of CAA. We know about Terrell Owens’ money worries but Drew Rosenhaus, his “super agent,” isn’t held accountable. If you check the websites of major agents, they all in one form or another claim a “family-first” approach. The only family they put first is theirs. The same media that ignores their colossal failures had no problem demonizing Don King. He singlehandedly changed the economics of the fight game with such promotions as the “Rumble in the Jungle” and the “Thrilla in Manila,” yet White-owned corporate media have portrayed King as an unrepentant villain. But they don’t make similar claims about his chief rival, Bob Arum, whom promoter Dana White accused of “sucking the life out of the sport (boxing).”
Broke, bankrupt or divorced
DeMaurice Smith, executive director of NFL Players Association, is shown with Everett L. Glenn, right. who spend lavishly and regularly travel with as many as 50 freeloaders must accept direct responsibility for their current predicament. But they are not the only ones at fault in a system that routinely separates Black athletes from their community while they are still enrolled in college, steering them away from wives who look like them and White agents who don’t share their culture. What separates the exploitation of the Black athlete at the professional level, where Black athletes make up roughly 80 percent of the NBA and 70 percent
of the NFL, is money. Big, big money. And big money in the hands of unsophisticated Black athletes is a train wreck waiting to happen, attracting agents, financial advisers and other professionals who view them as easy prey. In the typical scenario, a “qualified” agent lands a client and then quickly recommends a financial adviser. Or, vice versa. Maybe the pair recruits together. Maybe they just vouch for “their guy.” Maybe there are kickbacks. Maybe there is the expectation of future swaps. However it goes down, in the end, a play-
Because coaches and university boosters, most of whom are White, steer Black athletes to White agents, many Black agents – such as Angelo Wright, Al Irby, Alvin Keels, Kennard McGuire and Tony Paige – don’t get a fair opportunity to represent most Black athletes. My guess is that Black player agents represent less than 15 percent of all NBA and NFL players. According to Sports Illustrated, by the time former NFL players have been retired for two years, nearly 80 percent of them “have gone bankrupt or are under financial stress because of joblessness or divorce.” Within five years of retirement, approximately 60 percent of former NBA players are broke. By virtue of their numbers, it’s clear that Black agents are not leading a parade of Black athletes into bankruptcy or financial distress nor are they sitting by silently watching their clients commit financial suicide. The top 15 agents/agencies represent the majority of players, and practically all of the stars and superstars, including the two most amazing meltdowns in recent sports history, Allen Iverson and Antoine Walker, who reportedly lost a combined $320 million. The top agencies include Athletes First, BDA Sports, Creative Artist Agency (CAA), Excel Sports Management, Lagadere, Landmark Sports, Octagon, Pri-
ority Sports & Entertainment, Relativity Sports, Rosenhaus Sports, and Wasserman Sports Management, who collectively manage more than $10 billion in player contracts.
Beyond the field and court Can you imagine what would happen if the tables were reversed? Suppose Black agents dominated 85 percent of the agent game at a time White players dominated the NBA and NFL and more than 80 percent of NFL players and more than 60 percent of NBA players were going bankrupt. Led by Fox News, there would be a public outcry, the appointment of a special commission and at least one televised congressional inquiry. The exploitation extends far beyond the playing field and basketball court. Take the case of the $1.2 billion Levi’s Stadium that is being completed with less than 1 percent of minority participation. It will be the new home of the San Francisco 49ers, which has a roster that is 80 percent Black. Moreover, the stadium, expected to open in August 2014, will be located in Santa Clara County, where Whites make up less than half of the population. According to Fox News, in 2010, there were 10 NFL teams facing major stadium issues. If people of color received a share of the business constructing or overhauling the football facilities in numbers that approximate their representation in the local population, they could significantly empower their communities. If that practice were expanded to the NBA and Major League Baseball, the sharing of the economic pie more fairly could radically transform urban America.
No legal training When it comes to agents, perhaps the professional leagues should adopt uniform standards for agents, including an educational requirement, a clean criminal history and no record of fraud. Today, no legal training is required to negotiate player contracts. There are no apprenticeship requirements. And there are no widely accepted ethical standards. The NFL Players Association issues this warning about agents: Certification is “neither a recommendation, nor a warranty of the contract advisor’s competence, honesty, skills or qualifications.” In other words, buyer beware.
Everett Glenn of the National Sports Authority can be reached via email at eglenn@thensa.org.
Wildcats fall to Coastal Carolina in playoffs SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Crucial fumble
CONWAY, S.C. - Alex Ross tossed four touchdown passes on Saturday, leading No. 11 Coastal Carolina past No. 12 Bethune-Cookman, 48-24 at Brooks Stadium in a first-round FCS playoff game. The homestanding Chanticleers advance to play eight-seed Montana next weekend in Missoula, Montana. Bethune-Cookman (103) was unable to stop Ross as he passed for 256 yards on 13-of-18 completions in the contest for Coastal Carolina (11-2). “This certainly does not take away from anything we’ve done this season,” said Bethune-Cookman fourth-year head coach and MEAC Coach of the Year Brian Jenkins afterward. “We’ve won three conference titles in four years. What today shows is that we still have work to do, and we’ll figure out a way to get over the playoff hump. We’ll figure out a way.”
The Chanticleers jumped out to an early 14-0 advantage in the opening quarter, using a 19-yard pass from Ross to Tyrell Blanks down the middle to start the scoring. On the ensuing possession for the Wildcats, a fumble out of the hands of junior quarterback Quentin Williams – whom appeared to be setting his feet for a pass – fell into the arms of linebacker Mike McClure. He then rumbled 39 yards for the touchdown to give the Chanticleers the 14-0 edge. After a pair of scores from both teams later in the first quarter, the Cats used a Quentin Williams four-yard run around the end to cut into the lead, 21-10 with 12:22 left in the half. However, Coastal Carolina had an answer with Ross hitting a streaking Blanks down the middle yet again to setup a Lorenzo Taliaferro eight yard touchdown run. Though the extra point was blocked, CCU
advanced its lead to 27-10 at the break.
Two late scores The lead swelled to 4120 early in the fourth quarter with a 23-yard touchdown reception by John Israel, later followed by a Matt Hazel 21-yard reception for score. B-CU, champions out of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) – and winners of three of the last four conference crowns, added two late scores via senior receiver Eddie Poole’s 16-yard touchdown reception from senior quarterback Brodrick Waters, as well as Waters running 27 yards to pay dirt himself. That brought the score to within 41-24 with 5:26 remaining in the final stanza. Coastal Carolina once again had an answer with Travis Small rushing in for the score from 17 yards out on the team’s next possession to make the final, 4824.
Four passing TDs In all, the CCU offense added 217 yards on the ground and two scores, while the four passing touchdowns is the most allowed all season by the Wildcats defense. The previous high was three in a victory over MEAC foe Savannah State. Taliaferro led the rushing attack with 85 yards and his score, while Niccol Mastramatteo led the receiving core with four catches for 51 yards. However, it was Hazel adding two of the four receiving scores. “You don’t win 10 games unless you’re a good ball club,” said Jenkins of Coastal Carolina. “If you can find a team with 10 wins that’s not good, then I want to see them. They have a good team, and I tip my hat to them because they were the better team today.”
202 yards by Williams B-CU was paced offensively by Williams with 202 yards passing on 16-of-29 through the air, while Wa-
KIM GIBSON/DAYTONA TIMES
Bethune-Cookman Wildcats are shown hustling for the ball during the Florida Classic against Florida A&M on Nov. 23 in Orlando. ters came off the bench for 102 yards and a passing score. Senior running back Isidore Jackson led the ground game with 59 yards, followed by Cary White with 47. Senior linebacker Jarkevis Fields led the Cats defensively with 11 tackles, followed by Marquis Drayton with 10. LeBrandon Richardson also added 10
tackles from his defensive end position, including the team’s only sack. With the loss, B-CU falls to 0-5 all-time in the Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs, as well as 0-6 lifetime in NCAA postseason play (including a Division II playoff loss to Cal-Davis).
This story is courtesy of B-CU Athletics.
R8
7 HEALTH
DECEMBER 5 – DECEMBER 11, 2013
Reign in holiday stress and enjoy the season BY PAMELA KNUDSON GRAND FORKS HERALD/MCT
GRAND FORKS, N.D. — As the holidays draw closer, your mind can start spinning with all of the items on your to-do list, and stress that results from trying to do it all — and doing it perfectly — can take a toll on your health. While stress can be good — it motivates and spurs us to take action — it “can also be a bad thing if you have too much of it in your life,” said Bethany Brandvold, medical fitness specialist with Altru Health System in Grand Forks, N.D. Symptoms of stress are caused by the body’s instinctive survival mechanism to protect it from predators and aggressors. “In the last 100,000 years or so of human existence … survival depended on the ability to successfully flee or to successfully defend yourself,” said Dr. James Whitehead, professor of kinesiology and public health education at the University of North Dakota.
Stress hormones In stressful situations, the body releases stress hormones, adrenaline and cortisol, “to prepare us to either fight like hell or flee like hell,” he said. “The ‘fight or flight’ response that has evolved and that we’ve inherited from our predecessors” sets in motion physiological changes intended to preserve life. Although life-threatening dangers are rare today, the body treats hassles — such as multiple demands and family problems — as threats and reacts the way our ancestors’ bodies did eons ago. In the past, most of the threats to survival were physical, he said. Today, “threats” are typically psy-
chological and emotional stresses. “The stress of the boss dumping a bunch of work on you or someone (making you angry) in a relationship has the same effect on our body as if a bear jumped out in front of you. … The body diverts blood from places like the gut system to the skeletal muscles,” he said.
Activity helps Skin may feel cooler because less blood is being pumped to the skin; instead it’s sent to the muscles. Perception is heightened to become more focused for visual cues, he said. “Pupils are dilated to spot telltale signs” in the environment. This response produces stress symptoms that can affect your body, your thoughts and feelings, and your behavior, according to MayoClinic.com. Stress that’s left unchecked can contribute to health problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and diabetes. “Physical activity helps dissipate that stress response,” Whitehead said. “When you improve fitness through physical activity, you get less reactive to common stresses. It’s called the ‘stress inoculation effect of physical activity.’”
Sources of stress Studies have found that during the holiday season, 40 percent of Americans report feeling financial stress, Brandvold said. “The stress of credit card bills will make you feel even more stressed come January.” Studies also found that 37 percent of Americans feel stressed by memories of loved ones who have died,
DON BARLETTI/LOS ANGELES TIMES/MCT
For some, it’s stressful. And for others, it’s enjoyment. Shoppers armed with borrowed umbrellas and bags of sale items walk through South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Calif., on a rainy Black Friday morning, Nov. 29, 2013. and having too much to do causes stress for 34 percent of people, she said. Those who are stressed out may make unhealthy food choices and abandon regular exercise, which has been shown to be among the best treatments for combating stress, she said. “Researchers are also finding that stress is a major factor in many digestive problems, such as irritable bowel syndrome and ‘sensitive stomach syndrome,’” she said. Stress can lead to inadequate or poor quality sleep, she said. Without sufficient sleep, “we suffer in our performance at work and can experience many of the same (effects) as if we’re highly stressed, like gaining weight.”
Survival tips Here are some tips that Brandvold suggests to better manage stress during the holidays: • Plan ahead. “Get your
Christmas letter together ahead of time,” she advised. “When I was little, my mom got out the Christmas letter in February.” Decide in advance who is going to host family gatherings and meals, write out the menu and make a list of everything you need to buy “so you won’t have to run to the store at the last minute,” she said. “Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.” • Host a potluck meal. Rather than taking on the whole dinner yourself, recruit others to share in food preparation. “People like to help out,” she said. Ask them to bring a side dish or another item to lighten the burden. • Learn to say “no.” “Don’t feel obligated to attend every single party you’re invited to,” Brandvold said. “It’s your holiday season, too — you don’t need to attend everything that you could. People will understand that you can’t participate in every event.
Save your time and energy for the ones you enjoy most. Make sure you enjoy the season the way you want to.” • Stick to a budget. “Plan how much you’ll spend on gifts, food and other expenses, and follow that budget, no matter how much you’re tempted to go beyond,” she said. “It’s really hard, I know, but it’s doable.” If your child asks for something beyond the limit, you can explain, “That’s a pretty big-ticket item. I’ll give you this much toward (the cost), but it’s your job duty to save up the rest.” • Create a barter system. Trading “services” with someone else can lighten your load. “My sister wraps 80 percent of the gifts I give,” said Brandvold, who in exchange does Christmas baking for her sister. “Or ask a friend who has great handwriting to write your cards in exchange for some baking. It cuts stress and time constraints.” • Keep up with or start
Nothing says romance like leftover
Savings.
Favorite meal, music, and flowers: Check. A little planning goes a long way when it comes to preparing dinner for that special someone. The same can be said for enjoying great savings at Publix. There are Buy One Get One Free deals and weekly specials on the items you love throughout the store. Bring in your coupons and save even more. With all the ways Publix helps you save, you can cross something else off your list. Leftover money: Check.
Love To Shop Here. Love To S ave H e r e . For a list of current Buy One Get One Free deals, weekly specials, and coupons, visit publix.com/save. To view deals on your smartphone, scan the code.
healthy habits. To eat healthier during the holidays, “keep temptations away from home and the workplace,” she said. “Save indulgences for special parties and on the holiday itself.” To eat healthier, she suggests replacing full-fat milk with low-fat or 1 percent milk and reducing the amount of butter in foods like mashed potatoes. “Use fresh herbs and spices” to season foods, she said. “Cinnamon soothes digestion, increases metabolism and is good for regulating blood sugar.” • Keep up your exercise program during the holidays, Brandvold said. Studies show that exercise has many great effects on the body, such as helping to reduce stress and fatigue, elevating mood and improving sleep. “Exercise helps you remain calm and clearminded in everything you do,” she said. Allow yourself “some room” during the holidays, she said. “If you can’t (exercise) for an hour, do less. “Even 10 minutes out of your day will help. Go for a walk, ride a bike. You’ll feel better than if you let it go to the wayside and (then) feel you have to start over on Jan. 1.” The holidays should not be viewed as “another commitment,” Brandvold said. “They are to be enjoyed.” Long-term activation of the body’s natural stressresponse system and constant production of stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol) can increase your risk of numerous health problems, such as anxiety, depression, digestive problems, heart disease, sleep problems, weight gain, and memory and concentration impairment.