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COURIER FAMILY PAYS TRIBUTE TO FATHERS B1

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JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

VOLUME 20 NO. 24

TELLING IT LIKE IT IS Trayvon Martin’s parents and others speak out Tuesday about the state’s stand-your-ground law at the governor’s task force meeting. On the same day, George Zimmerman’s wife is charged with lying about the family’s finances. FROM WIRE AND STAFF REPORTS

Here’s an update on the Trayvon Martin case as of the Florida Courier’s deadline Wednesday night. The first public hearing of Gov. Rick Scott’s Task Force on Citizen Safety and Protection offered a wide range of opinion on the “stand your ground” law in Seminole County Tuesday, with about 100 people turning out to speak. Among them were hardline supporters of the statute and the bereaved parents and spouses who had lost loved ones to shooters who were never charged.

FAMU: Ammons’ evaluation will take months NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

The chairman of the state university system Board of Governors is reviewing a response from Florida A&M University on how it intends to move forward with an annual evaluation for embattled President James James Ammons, Ammons that indicates it may be several months before

Longwood was chosen for the panel’s first hearing because it’s near where 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was killed on Feb. 26 in Sanford. Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll, chair of the task force, said it is not to debate Trayvon Martin’s death or the case of George Zimmerman, who says he shot Martin in self-defense. National outrage over the lack of an arrest in the case prompted Scott to create the task force and to name Jacksonville State Attorney Angela Corey the special prosecutor in Martin’s case; she charged Zimmerman

the review is finished, a BOG spokeswoman said Thursday. FAMU Trustees Chairman Solomon Badger wrote earlier this week to Solomon Board of GoverBadger nors Chairman Dean Colson assuring him that the school was moving forward with an evaluation, but indicating it may not be until late in the fall before it completes the review. “Between July 1 and Oct. 31 the board will develop a process and conduct an evaluation for the president as required by his employment contract,” Badger wrote.

with second-degree murder. Carroll said the first public hearing was held in Longwood to give its community members some “closure” on the shooting death that has roiled the state and nation for months.

Congresswoman to introduce legislation Meanwhile, Congressional Democrats from Florida announced that they will introduce legislation seeking to force states to repeal “stand your ground’ laws. Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla., is spearheading the move, saying Trayvon Martin, who lived in her district, might not have been shot this year if Zimmerman hadn’t felt protected by such a liberally applied self-defense law. “The thought that George Zimmerman could get away with such a horrendous crime is a travesty of justice,” Wilson said in a state-

RED HUBER/ORLANDO SENTINEL/MCT

Tracy Martin, father of Trayvon Martin, is shown Tuesday outside the Stand Your Ground Task Force meeting in Longwood. He choked up at the meeting and said he would be spending Father’s Day this year at the cemetery. ment. She plans to introduce the controlled Congress the measure measure next week. has no chance of passage. It would withhold federal transportation money from states that Wife facing adopt stand your ground laws. Observers say in the RepublicanSee MARTIN, Page A2

NBA FINALS 2012

Heat-Thunder showdown continues on Father’s Day

Board meets in Orlando next week He also indicated that FAMU trustees would review proposed goals Ammons and the board have set forth once university officials have a better idea of the university’s budget. See FAMU, Page A2

Conference equips dads with parenting tools Cultural, legal and social barriers to fatherhood were discussed during sessions in Tampa

month, Rowland and about 50 other participants who value the importance of a father’s place in parenting, ascended on Tampa for the second annual Affirming Fatherhood Conference. “Oftentimes, we are overlooked because the focus is on the mother and child,” said Rowland, who lives in Riverview near Tampa. “And oftentimes, we don’t have the tools we need and it’s important to give the man the tools and it’s important to have mentors readily available to help equip us with the tools.”

BY DEMORRIS A. LEE SPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

Phillip Rowland knows the frustration. As a father, Rowland father sometimes feels overlooked. That frustration grows when he’s not taken seriously and made to feel that his words and emotions don’t matter. But at a conference last

See DADS, Page A2

SNAPSHOTS FLORIDA | A3

HISTORY | B5

Report examines state’s long prison terms

Overdue honor for Montford Point Marines NATION | A6

Romney’s health-care plan keeps parts of ‘Obamacare’

FINEST | B3

Meet Shawty Red

CHARLES TRAINOR JR./MIAMI HERALD/MCT

The Miami Heat’s LeBron James drives into the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Nick Collision on Tuesday during Game 1 of the NBA Finals at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Okla. The series continues June 17 at AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami.

ALSO COMMENTARY: REV. JESSE JACKSON: PUT U.S. JOBS ABOVE D.C. PARTISANSHIP | A4 INSIDE COMMENTARY: GEORGE CURRY: FLORIDA IS AGAIN THE LAUGHING STOCK OF AMERICA | A5

FOCUS

JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

Stop and Frisk programs continue to target people of color In 1999, when many of us were protesting the killing of Amadou Diallo, the New York Police Department performed 80,000 stopand-frisks. Last year they conducted almost 700,000. This year they are reportedly on pace to do 800,000. Nearly 90 percent of those stopped and frisked by the NYPD have been people of color. Approximately 90 percent of those are so completely innocent they do not even receive a ticket; 99.9 percent do not have a gun – Mayor Bloomberg’s primary reason for the stop-andfrisk program. Bloomberg’s massive streetlevel racial profiling program is a civil and human rights catastrophe that both hurts our children

DADS

BEN JEALOUS NAACP

and makes our communities less safe. Every year, hundreds of thousands of innocent New Yorkers and visitors to the city are needlessly targeted for physical searches and public humiliation because of their skin color.

Profiling undermines law Most of the victims of this form of police abuse are young. Many are forever changed by being assaulted and degraded by the very people who have sworn to pro-

tect and serve them. For years, many criminologists have warned that racial profiling ultimately undermines effective law enforcement. New York City’s failure to lower violent crime as far as many other major cities suggests those criminologists have a point.

City behind in lowering violent crime In the 10 years Bloomberg says New York City has lowered violent crime by 29 percent with this program, other cities have done far better without it. Over the past decade, violent crime is down 37 percent in Baltimore, 49 percent in Dallas and 56 percent in New Orleans. In Los Angeles, violent crime is down by

March in NYC On Father’s Day, June 17, the NAACP and a diverse group of civil rights activists, civil liberty advocates and outraged community members will march silent-

ly down the streets of New York City to protest stop-and-frisk policing. In the tradition of the NAACP’s silent march in 1917 drawing attention to the race riots in Illinois, protesters will march in silent solidarity on Father’s Day to let Bloomberg and the world know we will not tolerate his abusive and discriminatory stopand-frisk program. The “Silent March to End Stopand-Frisk” will begin at 3 p.m. at 110th St and Fifth Ave. More information is available at www.silentmarchnyc.org.

Ben Jealous is president and CEO of the NAACP.

Obama, barbers and barbecue

from A1 ‘A New Playbook’

U.S. President Barack Obama lunches with two active-duty members of the armed services and two barbers at Kenny’s BBQ on Capitol Hill in celebration of Father’s Day, in Washington, on Wednesday. Flanking the president are 1st Lieutenant William “Bill’’ Edwards, left, and barber Otis “Big O” Gamble. Opposite the president are Nurney Mason of Mason’s Barber Shop, left, and Captain Joubert Paulino.

The conference was sponsored by REACHUP Inc, which focuses on research, education and advocacy for a healthy living. Healthy Start Coalition of Hillsborough County and the Florida chapter of the March of Dimes co-sponsored the conference. The three-day conference’s theme was “A New Playbook for Fatherhood: Everyone Gets to Play in the Game.” Barbara Morrison-Rodriguez, REACHUP’s board chairperson, said the sessions were designed “to educate and inspire participants to support the power of fathers being present in the lives of children, their families and communities.” “This means focusing on men’s personal responsibility as well as informing public policy designed to improve how providers, our communities, and our culture interact and engage fathers,” MorrisonRodriguez said.

MARTIN H. SIMON/CORBIS VIA ABACA PRESS/MCT

RESOURCES FOR FATHERS Reach Up Inc., www.reachupincorporated.org Frederick James Preston, www.Frederickpreston.com Conscious Fathering, www.consciousfathering.org Father Source, www.fathersource.org National Center on Fathers and Families, www.ncoff.gse.upenn.edu

Pastor: Fathers get ignored Some of the sessions included discussions on the image of fatherhood and its evolution, the economic impact and advocacy of fatherhood and the cultural, legal and social barriers to fatherhood. The participants discussed changing the mindset that a father’s role is more valuable to the child than just a monthly child support payment. “A lot of the problem is that fathers get ignored,” said Jason Perry, a Chicago

59 percent in the same time period – falling more than twice as far as it has in New York City. Even if he is willing to tolerate his police abusing other people’s children, the mayor and all of us should be concerned about why New York City lags so far behind so many other major cities in reducing violent crime. If those cities could lower violent crime rates without a massive racial profiling program like stop-and-frisk, New York City can too.

National Fatherhood Initiative, www.fatherhood.org DEMORRIS A. LEE/SPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

Phillip Rowland of Riverview, right, speaks at the second annual Affirming Fatherhood Conference last month in Tampa. pastor, motivational speaker and author who led a session at the fatherhood conference. “The perception is that fathers are not important in the parenting process but conferences like this highlight that they are important. We have to

MARTIN from A1 perjury charge Also on Tuesday, Zimmerman’s wife, Shellie, was arrested on a perjury charge and booked into John E. Polk Correctional Facility in Seminole County. It’s the same jail her husband has called home since a judge revoked his bond early this month. At her husband’s bond hearing in April, Shellie Zimmerman was asked repeatedly about money. Among the questions: How much did the couple collect in donations through George Zimmerman’s webShellie Zimmerman site? “Currently, I do not know,” Shellie Zimmerman replied. She and other family members described their financial situation as dire. Judge Kenneth Lester granted George Zimmerman $150,000 bond on the second-degree-murder charge he faces in the death of Trayvon Martin. But prosecutors say Shellie Zimmerman spent the days before that April hearing shifting tens of thousands of dollars out of her husband’s account, then deliberately lied to the judge. “The prosecutor sent a strong message that you have to tell the truth in court because it is the whole basis of the American judicial system,” said Benjamin Crump,

do a better job of including and affirming a process that includes fathers.”

Too many missing dads More than 24 million children live apart from their biological fathers, ac-

an attorney for Martin’s family, after learning of her arrest.

$74,000 transferred from April 16-19 In an affidavit, prosecutors revealed new details about Shellie Zimmerman’s alleged efforts to hide money from the court. Four days before she testified to having no knowledge of the funds, the affidavit says, Shellie Zimmerman began a series of transfers into her account – totaling $74,000 from April 16 to April 19. The affidavit says about $47,000 more was transferred from George Zimmerman’s account to his sister’s. Shellie Zimmerman withdrew about $18,000 more in cash, prosecutors say. Prosecutors say the Zimmermans used a rudimentary “code” to discuss the money in recorded jailhouse phone calls – referring to $100,000, for example, as “$100.” At least two of the calls, the state alleges, were made while Shellie Zimmerman and her husband’s sister were at a local credit union making the transactions.

More money transferred Zimmerman told his wife to “pay off all the bills” with the money, prosecutors said, including an American Express card and a Sam’s Club card. He also instructed her on how to pay his bail. According to the affidavit, after her husband was released on bond days after the hearing, she transferred more than $85,000 back into his account. A branch manager at their credit union told prosecutors he knew the couple and saw

Divine Alternatives for Dads, www.aboutdads.org cording to the 2009 U.S. Census Bureau data. That figure equates to one out of three or 33 percent of children in America. But that figure is drastically higher for African-American children; nearly two in three or 64 percent live in homes without fathers. For Hispanics, that number is 1 in 3 or 34 percent and for white children the

Shellie Zimmerman talking to her husband on the phone April 16. The manager said he had helped Shellie Zimmerman transfer control of George Zimmerman’s account, at one point speaking directly to George Zimmerman by phone.

Senator wants statistics kept While the Zimmerman drama unfolded in Seminole County on Tuesday, the governor’s task force was offered an overview of the stand your ground law and then listened to public comment. An overview of the law was presented by Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Krista Marx. Prosecutors, public defenders and law enforcement officials presented as well. “Reasonable minds will vary,” said Marx – and differing opinions were then expressed. The afternoon session was the public hearing. Among the speakers was state Sen. Chris Smith, incoming Senate Democratic Leader and leader of an independent panel investigating “stand your ground.” He called on the state to start keeping statistics on cases affected by the law. “There are many instances where law enforcement used their discretion not to arrest and state attorneys used their discretion not to charge,” said Smith, “so we don’t know of the maybe thousands of times that ‘stand your ground’ was used and nothing ever happened.”

Martin’s parents among speakers Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Mar-

number is one in four or 11 percent live in homes absent of their fathers. But because the father is not in the home does not diminish his value to the parenting process.

Single dad: Be a man for your child Frederick James Preston of Jacksonville is a motiva-

tin, parents of the unarmed Black teen who was shot killed less than four months ago, didn’t necessarily call for the law’s repeal. Fulton pleaded with the panel to at least “look at” the law in light of her son’s death. Tracy Martin choked up as he said he’d be spending Father’s Day this year at the cemetery. He and Fulton also delivered 375,000 online petitions collected by Second Chance on Shoot First, a national campaign. Listening to the stories “softened” the stances of panel members, Smith said. Criminal attorney Mark Seiden, a task force member, said he was disappointed that more local citizens didn’t turn out. But Carroll was upbeat. “From the comments that we heard from the sponsors of the law – and even they came to the forefront and said, ‘from what we heard, we need to make some changes, and I’ll be receptive’…I want to listen with an honest and open mind,” Carroll said. Many of the speakers didn’t want to give up their right to defend themselves, she said, but also want a fair application of the law. The panel is holding meetings statewide and will make recommendations to Scott and the Legislature about whether the law should be changed. The e-mail address to make comments is CitizenSafety@eog.myflorida.com.

Reports by Margie Menzel with the News Service of Florida and Jeff Weiner of the Orlando Sentinel/MCT were used in compiling this story.

tional speaker and the author of the novel “Do As I Say Not As I do.” He also produced a film with his two sons dubbed “Ain’t Nothing Funny: the Truth about America’s Youth and their Parents.” Preston, whose work focuses heavily on AfricanAmerican responsibility, especially Black males, is the single father of two sons and a daughter. “I still took the lead,” Preston said of being a single father. “You have to be strong enough in character and have the intestinal fortitude to overcome the obstacles because your child needs you. The Mama may be tripping, but it’s the child who suffers. You can be a man any other time; be a man for your child.”

Contact Demorris A. Lee at info@leemediaink. com

FAMU from A1 The budget will be approved by the Board of Governors at its meeting next week. Colson and others have been critical of Ammons and the university’s handling of a number of issues, particularly audits which were determined to have been done fraudulently. The school also is in the midst of heavy scrutiny over the hazing death of drum major Robert Champion in November. When asked if Badger’s letter on FAMU’s plan for Ammons’ evaluation satisfied Colson, spokeswoman Kelly Layman said he was reviewing the letter but likely would wait until after the board’s regular threeday meeting in Orlando next week before evaluating the need for any further communications. The FAMU audit and other issues involving the Tallahassee university are on the board’s agenda.

JUNE 15 - JUNE 21 2012

FLORIDA

Pew Center examines state’s long prison terms Florida inmates spend more time behind bars than prisoners in any other state BY MARGIE MENZEL THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Criminal justice experts say they weren’t surprised by last week’s study showing that the time Florida prisoners spend behind bars has grown more than in any other state – a 166 percent increase in the average sentence between 1990 and 2009. Former Department of Corrections Secretary James McDonough ascribed the findings of the report, “Time Served: The High Cost, Low Return of Longer Prison Terms” by the Pew Center on the States to changes in Florida statutes during the mid-tolate 1990s. He cited 1995’s “Truth in Sentencing” law, requiring inmates to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences, and two 1999 laws: “Three Strikes,” by which a third felony conviction requires a minimum sentence of 25 years to life if someone is injured or killed, and “10-20-Life,” which established mandatory minimum sentences for crimes involving firearms.

Fast jump in prison terms “Politics in Florida has been such that public officials are afraid to appear, quote, ‘weak on crime,’” McDonough said. “And the way that’s defined is, ‘Don’t lighten up on the sentencing in any way whatsoever.’” He said the state’s prison terms jumped so much, so fast because in 1990, Florida inmates were serving just 30 percent of their sentences. “We had prison overcrowding at that time, so we came up with a parole policy and a probation policy that really let a lot of inmates out much, much too early,” McDonough said. “So the pendulum had swung one way. And

Gov. Scott: Families can’t afford tuition hikes Gov. Rick Scott last week reiterated his stance against tuition hikes, as a number of state universities are planning. Scott has called on universities to do more to prepare the workforce, but to do it with less. “They have got to do the exact same thing … Florida households have had to do,” Scott said on June 8 on 97.3 The Sky radio in Gainesville. “We cannot continue to raise tuition constantly on the backs of our families. They cannot afford it…. I’m against raising tuition.” The University of Florida Board of Trustees moved to request an increase in tuition of 9 percent on June 8 after President Bernie Machen and some trustees expressed some concern about the rising cost of a college education in the state. A committee had earlier suggested the university might seek a higher increase. The proposed 9 percent increase would still need Board of Governors approval.

then throughout the ‘90s and the last 10 years, we saw the pendulum swing … the other way. “So you came up with a series of laws and policies that brought us up to this incredible increase in length of stay.”

Crime drops, inmate rate up The state’s position is that such laws have reduced crime immensely. “Tough-on-crime initiatives have successfully reversed the lenient and disastrous criminaljustice policies of the early 1990s in Florida that caused so much suffering,” notes the Department of Corrections (DOC) website. “Thanks to the dedication of our state’s law enforcement officers, correctional officers and state prosecutors who enforce tough laws like 10-20-LIFE, Florida’s ‘Index Crime’ rate was the lowest in 34 years and the violent crime rate is the lowest in a quarter century.” Crime has been dropping for decades, but Florida’s inmate population has risen by a factor of five over 30 years, during which time the general population has barely doubled. As of June 30, 1990, Florida prisons housed 42,733 offenders; by June 30, 2011, the figure was 102,319.

States embrace ‘smart justice’ During the period examined by the study, Florida sentences for violent crimes increased from 2.1 years to 5 years, or 137 percent, while drug-related sentences rose 194 percent, from an average of 0.8 years to 2.3 years. The 166 percent increase in the average prison sentence cost Florida taxpayers $1.4 billion in 2009, according to Pew. Meanwhile, most states have embraced the concept of “smart justice,” said prison chaplain Allison DeFoor, a former judge and sheriff. “Smart justice” is a compendium of performance measures, accountability and transparency designed to keep inmates from returning to prison

Marissa Alexander, a mother of three, recently was sentenced 20 years in Jacksonville under a mandatory minimum law for firing one shot in the direction of spouse Rico Gray. after their release. Fully one-third of Florida offenders return to prison within five years, DeFoor said. “That’s not an efficient system…We talk about recidivism like it’s an intellectual concept. Well, every new [act of ] recidivism is somebody’s grandmother’s house got broken into or their car got jacked.”

Governor vetoed bill that freed addicts Florida’s “smart justice” proponents have tried, for instance, to reduce sentences for non-violent offenders. Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, repeatedly sponsored a measure that would have ended mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders, who would remain in custody during the rehabilitation portion of their sentences. She said many addicts have

mental health issues that cause them to self-medicate, and that with treatment, they can become taxpayers instead of inmates. But while the Senate passed Bogdanoff’s bill 40-0 and the House 112-4, Gov. Rick Scott vetoed the measure, saying it would be an injustice to victims. “Justice to victims of crime is not served when a criminal is permitted to be released early from a sentence imposed by the courts,” he wrote in his veto message. “This bill would permit criminals to be released after serving 50 percent of their sentences, thus creating an unwarranted exception to the rule that inmates serve 85 percent of their imposed sentences.”

DOC refrains from comment As to the Pew study, DOC

spokeswoman Ann Howard said the agency wasn’t involved in the research, “so we will refrain from comment out of respect and etiquette to the researchers.” “The department’s only role is to execute the court orders, added DOC spokeswoman Jo Ellyn Rackleff. “The judges apply the sentences according to Florida statutes, which are passed by the Legislature.” Pew examined nonviolent offenders released in 2004, concluding that 14 percent of all offenders released in Florida could have served shorter sentences with no threat to public safety. DeFoor said the most important thing about the study is that it measures the evidence. “It’s ultimately got to be about accountability,” he said. “We need to be driven by the data, not by emotional reactions on either side.”

B-CU alumni expected to discuss lawsuits, leadership at annual convention this month BY JAMES HARPER FLORIDA COURIER

The Bethune-Cookman University National Alumni Convention usually occurs with little or no fanfare – former classmates coming together reminiscing about the good old days, dancing until the wee hours of the morning and filling themselves up with good food at an annual cookout. Last year, the alumni met in the Bahamas. After four years, the convention returns this month to Daytona Beach and the alumni will have a lot of serious items to discuss as they welcome a new college president and discuss the impact of more than a dozen lawsuits filed against the school in the past year. Another concern is the Florida Classic, the annual football game between Bethune-Cookman (BCU) and Florida A&M University (FAMU), which is under a cloud now that FAMU’s Marching “100’’ will not be performing during the popular halftime show because of hazing allegations. The 44th B-CU alumni convention is scheduled to run June 2024 at the Daytona Beach Resort and Conference Center.

Some serious topics Carmen Oliver Williamson, is president of the B-CU Volusia County alumni chapter. “The purpose of this year’s National Alumni Association Convention is to reflect, to reconnect and to reignite the passion of service for recruitment and support of Bethune-Cookman University,” Oliver-Williamson said in an interview this week. Her husband, Percy Williamson, is chairman of the B-CU Convention Host Committee. “I’m sure the future direction of the university will be discussed and the alumni will offer any assistance it can to help improve the image of the university,’’ he told the Florida Courier. “B-CU is an integral part of the Daytona Beach community and the institution has a great story to tell, but there are many challenges that the university faces and a strong alumni will be there to

COURTESY OF B-CU ALUMNI

Bethune-Cookman alumni are shown during a cookout at last year’s national convention in the Bahamas. provide its help in meeting those challenges. Williamson said he is looking forward to the introduction of the school’s interim president to the alumni during the convention. Dr. Edison Jackson was appointed last month to replace Dr. Trudie Kibbe Reed, who announced her retirement earlier this year. Jackson, formerly of Medgar Evers College, is scheduled to speak to the alumni during a luncheon.

Interim president already visible Prior to his introduction to community leaders and B-CU staff last month at the university’s Performing Arts Center, Jackson granted an exclusive interview to the Florida Courier. He said it will be his job to “get people feeling good about being part of the academic community.” “The president sets the tone,” Jackson said, adding that what he says and does will impact the students and campus as well as the Daytona Beach community. Jackson said he will initially do a lot of listening, studying and reading. Percy Williamson wouldn’t compare Reed to Jackson but said he was impressed with the interim president thus far. “We are pleased with his com-

munity involvement,” said Williamson, noting that Jackson was at the opening of a new community center and planned to attend a Juneteenth banquet in Daytona this week. Reed often was criticized for not being more involved in the community as her predecessor, Dr. Oswald P. Bronson.

Lawsuits, complaints B-CU’s image was somewhat tarnished nationally with the school being slapped with numerous lawsuits, many pertaining to Reed’s firing of employees. The revelations were reported in a nine-part investigative series published from June through September 2011 in the Florida Courier titled “Crisis at B-CU.” The newspaper series detailed how B-CU was slapped with 13 state and federal lawsuits and administrative complaints, including legal actions filed by longtime professors.

Association sets new goals A. Ray Brinson is president of B-CU’s National Alumni Association. Brinson said in a statement that the alumni of B-CU are the greatest resources of advocacy for the university. He said many people

form their opinions about B-CU based on their contact or impression of the alumni. “We are living testament and it is imperative that we maintain positive images of B-CU where we live, work and worship,” said Brinson. “The sons and daughters of Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune should give first then ask others to give. We are the major stakeholders. We simply can’t expect others to do more for B-CU than we are willing to do ourselves,” Brinson continued in a letter to alumni. The goals the association has set for 2012 include increasing national memberships to 350 (212 in 2009; 281 in 2010); increasing alumni giving by 10 percent, completing an audit by a certified agency of the organization’s finances for the period that ended June 30, 2010. Percy Williamson said one of the highlights of this year’s convention will be the recognition of the school’s band program currently under the leadership of Donovan Wells. Registration for the convention begins Wednesday, June 20, at the Daytona Beach Resort and Conference Center, 2700 N. Atlantic Ave. For more information about the convention, visit bcu-naa.com.

EDITORIAL

JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

Black Press still relevant In last week’s column, I wrote about how the NAACP has lost its mind with its resolution supporting gay marriage. I have very little faith or confidence in most of the traditional Black institutions – the National Association of Black Journalists, churches, fraternities, sororities, Historically Black colleges and universities, etc. But after attending a lunch last week, my faith and confidence is a tad bit stronger. It was as though I was taken back in time to a better time and place within the Black community. After the luncheon, I really feel like we can get back to the “golden years” of Black engagement in our society. The Afro-American Newspapers (www.afro.com) celebrated its 120th anniversary with a luncheon. A couple of months ago, their General Manager Edgar Brookins called to ask me if I could talk with some people about buying a few tables to support the event. I immediately told him that I would personally buy a table. Brookins and the Afro have been supporters of many of my endeavors in the D.C. market.

rate America to return to the family business. Under Oliver’s leaderRAYNARD JACKSON ship, the Afro has been able to remain relevant by being NNPA COLUMNIST the first Black newspaper to continue to print hard copBrookins is always re- ies, as well as to be fully digisponsive to my calls and the tal—being assessable on the paper has been carrying my Internet. column for years. So, when they need my support, I will Afro still relevant always be there. If you want to know what’s going on in the Black comHistory of munity within the D.C. metAfro-American ro area, the Afro is a must The Afro has a storied his- read. tory and an evolving future Oliver has continued that is just as bright as its down the path of relevance past. The paper was found- by hiring a dear friend, Avised in 1892 by a former slave, Thomas Lester as his new John H. Murphy, Sr., when executive editor. She spent he merged his church pub- over 20 years as a writer for lication “The Sunday School the Washington Post. Helper” with two similar She will bring a new, fresh publications in Baltimore. perspective to the newspaThe newspaper is one of per and position it to continthe oldest remaining fami- ue to be relevant to our comly-owned newspapers in the munity with the full underU.S. standing that we are living Currently, John Jacob in a global marketplace. “Jake” Oliver, the great Under Oliver and Lesgrandson of the Afro-Amer- ter’s leadership, the Afro will ican’s founder, is the CEO of again branch out to bring the newspaper. A graduate news from throughout the of Fisk University and Co- world, especially from the lumbia University School continent of Africa. of Law, Oliver left a promAs they begin to covising legal career in corpo- er news from a global per-

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: GOOD ECONOMY

LARRY WRIGHT, THE DETROIT NEWS

If you want to see our spective, hopefully this will lead to increased readership community covered in a difon the Internet and an in- ferent manner, let’s commit creased subscriber base. to finding 1,000 people between now and September Support Black Press to take out a subscription Within the Black com- to the Afro and other NNPA munity, we often complain newspapers. If after a year you don’t about how we and our African brothers are portrayed like the coverage, then canin the media. Well, now we cel the subscription; but if have a chance to do some- they meet your liking, renew thing about it. For as little your subscription. We have to be what we are as $40 a year, the Afro will have the money to report on looking for. If we want fair, global issues. diverse coverage within our

Put U.S. jobs above D.C. partisanship This economy is in trouble. The jobs picture is getting worse, not better. Europe is headed into recession. China, India and Brazil are slowing. And here, even with record corporate profits, soaring CEO salaries and big banks back to making big bets, most Americans haven’t shared in the “recovery.” Jobs are scarce, wages are declining, health benefits are being reduced and basic services — from teaching to policing to food safety inspection — are being cut. This thing isn’t working for working people. Mitt Romney and Republicans say they have the answer: cut taxes and cut spending. But, as economist Paul Krugman has shown, we’re already essentially do-

way to growth.

will cost. As the conservative Financial Times editorialists concluded, “whatever is invested at these rates is likeTreasury 10-year bonds hit ly to pay for itself in higher a record low 1.45 percent growth and revenues.” last week, far less than inflaStates need Fed tion.) That means the U.S. can money now borrow money for no That is but a first step. cost to rebuild its aged in- One easy way to generfrastructure. It will never be ate jobs is revenue sharing cheaper to do so. And with with the states, first chamthe construction industry pioned by President Richard flat on its back in wake of the Nixon. Providing the states housing collapse, there are with money to rehire laidskilled workers willing and off teachers and cops would ready to work. make sense for our children Roads, bridges, airports, and our economy. sewers, mass transit and In addition, the federretrofitting public buildings al government should pay for energy efficiency — all for direct jobs programs in these will produce econom- targeted areas. Obama has ic benefits with greater gain called for a jobs corps for than the borrowed money veterans.

REV. There are common-sense things that should be done. JESSE L. JACKSON, Interest rates are now cheaper than free. (Interest on U.S. SR. TRICE EDNEY WIRE

ing that. Republicans forced President Obama to sustain the top end Bush tax cuts to gain support for the payroll tax cut and extended unemployment benefits that have been vital in keeping the economy from tanking.

Can’t cut way to growth And government spending — local, state and national — is going down, not up. Governments are shedding workers, not adding them. You can’t cut your

The devil is a liar An excerpt from a Gantt Report was selected a few years ago to be displayed at the United States National Freedom Museum in the “Freedom of Speech” section. The Gantt Report excerpt discussed how I thought “embedded” reporters covering the Iraq war should get Academy Awards for “acting like journalists”! Today, news reporters pretend they know the facts so well that they should get Academy awards, Emmy awards, Golden Globe awards, Pulitzer Prizes and every other award. Today’s journalists don’t investigate news stories they just parrot whatever they are told.

Journalists compared to puppets Don’t take my word for it just pick up any majority newspaper or tune in to any news broadcast and you’ll always read or hear some fake reporter talking about “authorities say, sources say, or reports say” while never quoting someone that can be vetted or verified. You have to have a video if you accuse police or someone else of beating you. If you don’t have undisputed evidence to back your claims no one will believe you. But all a media puppet has to do is say and write what he or she is told to say

LUCIUS GANTT THE GANTT REPORT

or write. I’m very concerned about how similar the news reports about Syria are to those reports from Iraq about weapons of mass destruction. After years of war and hundreds of thousands of people losing their lives now we know media reports about weapons of mass destruction were false. In Syria reports, all American media outlets describe how freedom fighting “rebels” are fighting a cruel dictator.

Terrorist defined Hmmm. Let me get this right. If someone attacks innocent citizens by flying planes into buildings, they are terrorists. But if people attack government forces in Syria those people are rebels. If the US media knew everyone seeking to overthrow the current Syria leadership than it should be easy to tell the people who they are. To me a “rebel” is a citizen fighting against other citizens. To me a terrorist is someone not from a country that attacks someone in the nation where they live.

Let me give you an example of how media can twist and turn the facts of a news story. As a young reporter for The Associated Press I often had to compose news wire reports about the stories of the day. In an ongoing story about Vietnam, the reporters on the news desk referred to Lt. William Calley as a decorated hero and an honorable soldier but I called the same man a “leading participant in the My Lai Massacre”.

Don’t believe hype If the West likes you, you are an ally. If they don’t like you and can’t control you, you are a dictator, a despot and an oppressor. Be careful in believing everything you hear or read in the imperialist press. Don’t believe the hype. Read news stories from around the world and see how other countries report on the same stories. You have to remember the devil hates the truth and that is why the devil is often times a liar!

Excerpts from Gantt columns are now posted every week on The Gantt Report’s Facebook page. Contact Lucius at www. allworldconsultants.net. Click on this story at flcourier.com to write a response.

Opinions expressed on this editorial page are those of the writers, and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of the newspaper or the publisher.

THE CREDO OF THE BLACK PRESS The Black Press believes that Americans can best lead the world away from racism and national antagonism when it accords to every person, regardless of race, color or creed, full human and legal rights. Hating no person, fearing no person. The Black Press strives to help every person in the firm belief...that all are hurt as long as anyone is held back.

Congress should sensibly expand that to create an urban corps and a green corps that would hire young people under 25 and put them to work. There is no greater threat to this country than the mass unemployment of young people at the start of their working lives.

End Bush tax cuts

community, then we must enable those who best know how to do this to have the money necessary to fulfill this goal. Remember, when all is said and done, there is more said than done.

Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a Washington, D.C.-based public relations/government affairs firm. He can be reached through his website, www. raynardjackson.com. tling infrastructure projects, not championing them. House Republicans blocked virtually all of the jobs agenda that President Obama called for last fall. Their budget would require even deeper cuts in education, child nutrition, aid to the states, Medicaid and more. They obstruct action on the economy, and then blame Obama for not doing anything. They seem intent on blocking anything that might improve the economy before the November election. In a time of national crisis, cynical partisanship is getting in the way of action.

To pay for these programs, we could sensibly end the top end Bush tax cuts for earners making more than $250,000 a year, and pass a bank speculation tax to limit computer-driven bank speculation that is about gambling, not investment. The Financial Times is not a liberal paper. Yet, its advice falls on deaf ears among the right-wing ReThe Rev. Jesse L. Jackson publicans. Conservative governors like Wisconsin’s Sr. is president and CEO of Scott Walker and New Jer- the Rainbow/PUSH Coalisey’s Chris Christie are scut- tion.

Street culture vs. church power The Rev. Marvin Winans’ remark, “I refuse to be afraid of us,” in the wake of the robbery attack on him by four young Black men at a neighborhood gas station on Linwood and Davison, carries a moral truth. Its a statement deeply rooted in the belief that we cannot throw our children away or become prisoners in our own communities, afraid to go out because young Black males have become tigers in the hood, on the prowl for their next victims. The carjacking of Winans, a prominent Detroit minister and nationally celebrated gospel singer who was driving with a suspended license, provides a context for our men and women of the clergy to be engaged in tackling the despicable acts of crime in this city. Just as many were concerned about Winans and his well-being in the aftermath of the carjacking, we should all be equally concerned about the escalating crime rate in our city, and the senseless taking of lives.

Church has role We have lost young Black males walking down the streets like lions looking for someone to devour. They need to be saved and mentored into understanding that they have great potential; they need not rob, sell drugs or kill.

BANKOLE THOMPSON SPECIAL TO THE NNPA

I believe that we can transform young Black males who believe they have no alternatives and no future. In the words of the hip-hop icon and street poet Tupac Shakur, we can make these young Black males “the rose that grew from concrete,” because by virtue of being a Black male they already live under the heavy weight of stereotypes just as we saw in the Trayvon Martin case. Our young Black males — and anyone who is raising a Black boy is aware of this reality — are already facing an image battle, and many of them are holding our community hostage. The church can liberate the hostage taker and the hostages.

Bankole Thompson is the editor of the Michigan Chronicle and the author of a six-part series on the Obama presidency, including “Obama and Black Loyalty,” published last year.

W W W.FLCOURIER.COM Central Florida Communications Group, LLC, P.O. Box 48857 Tampa, Fl 33646, publishes the Florida Courier on Fridays. Phone: 877-3524455, toll-free. For all sales inquiries, call Lynnette Garcia, 877-352-4455 ext. 4; e-mail lgarcia@floridacourier.org. Subscriptions to the print version are $59 per year. Mail check to 5207 Washington Blvd., Tampa, FL 33619, or log on to www.flcourier. com; click on ‘Subscribe’.

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Charles W. Cherry, Sr. (1929-2004), Founder Julia T. Cherry, Senior Managing Member, Central Florida Communicators Group, LLC Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Cassandra CherryKittles, Charles W. Cherry II, Managing Members Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Chief Executive Officer Charles W. Cherry II, Esq., Publisher Dr. Valerie Rawls-Cherry, Human Resources Lynnette Garcia, Marketing Consultant/Sales Linda Fructuoso, Marketing Consultant/Sales, Circulation Angela VanEmmerik, Creative Director Chicago Jones, Eugene Leach, Louis Muhammad, Lisa Rogers-Cherry, Circulation Jenise Morgan, Senior Editor Starla Vaughns Cherin, Karin Davis-Thompson, James Harper, 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

JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

Florida is again the laughing stock of America When it comes to national elections, no state makes a bigger fool of itself than Florida. The Sunshine state was at the center of an 1876 controversy over the presidential election between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel L. Tilden. By throwing out many votes cast by Blacks, Florida was able to give Hayes a one-vote margin in the Electoral College although Tilden had won the state’s popular vote by 260,000 votes. The case reached the Supreme Court where Florida’s chicanery was also upheld by a one-vote margin. A book on the election by Roy Morris Jr. was titled “Florida’s Voting Scandal in 1876: The Fraud of the Century.’’

2000 election was fraud The 2000 presidential contest between Al Gore and George W. Bush was the fraud of another century, featuring a governor, Jeb Bush, who was brother of the Republican nominee for president, and Florida’s Secretary of State Katherine Harris, with the responsibility of supervising state election procedures, serving as George W. Bush’s state co-chairman. There was widespread confusion leading up to Election Day. More than 54,000 people were purged from voting rolls supposedly because they were felons; 54 percent of the group was made up of African Americans. However, it was later determined that many of those denied access to the ballot were not convicted felons. A lack of uniformed ballots also caused major problems and introduced unfamiliar terms such

GEORGE E. CURRY NNPA COLUMNIST

as “hanging chads” and “butterfly ballots.” The ballots were so confusing that in the Jacksonville area, home to significant numbers of AfricanAmericans, 27,000 ballots were thrown out because they showed votes had been cast for two presidential candidates. In Palm Beach, another hotbed of controversy, the presidential choices were spread over two pages, with voters being instructed to “vote on every page.”

Media adds to confusion Instead of shedding light on the confusion, the news media added to it. All of the major networks made the mistake of announcing the polls in Florida closed at 7 p.m., EST. That was true in the eastern section of the state. However, polls in the more conservative western counties were open for another hour because they operated on the central time zone. This confusion caused the networks to project at 7:48 p.m., EST, that Al Gore had carried the state. When the final numbers were tallied, however, Bush was declared the winner by 537 votes. Under Florida law, a statewide recount was automatic. And that set off another round of confusion, with Democrats trying to make sure their votes were counted in Democratic strongholds and Republicans guarding their

EDITORIAL

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: THE PURGE

favored territory. During the process, lawyers for Bush appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court and on December 4, with George W. Bush leading by 154 votes, the court halted the recount process on a 5-4 vote, effectively awarding the state to George W. Bush. Although Gore won a plurality of the popular votes, Bush was awarded the state’s 25 electoral votes, enough to win the national election. This year, Florida officials are not waiting until the November elections to disenfranchise voters likely to vote for President Obama and other Democrats.

JEFF PARKER, FLORIDA TODAY

Republicans at it again Gov. Rick Scott signed an executive order that, in effect, permanently disenfranchises ex-offenders. In addition, the state eliminated early voting on the Sunday before elections, a move to disrupt “Soul to the Polls” voting campaigns organized by churches. In 2008, 32.2 percent of those who voted early on that last Sunday were Black and 23.6 percent were Latino. To make it more difficult to organize voter registration drives, Scott signed a law requiring groups registering voters to preregister with the state and turn in voter registration forms within 48 hours of collection. U.S. District Judge Robert L. Hinkle ruled on a suit that challenged those provisions by the League of Women Voters of Florida, Rock the Vote and Florida Public Interest Research Group Educational Fund. The groups said such require-

ments infringed on their consti- wish to assist others with the protutional rights of free speech and cess of registering and thus, in association. due course, voting. "Voting is a right protected by Judge to the rescue several constitutional provisions; Judge Hinkle dismissed the state election codes thus are substate’s assertion that no constitu- ject to constitutional scrutiny.’’ tional rights were being violated. The U.S. Justice Department “The assertion that the chalhas also objected to Florida maklenged provisions implicate no constitutional rights is plainly ing it more difficult for citizens to vote. wrong,’’ he wrote in his decision. Not surprisingly, Florida offi“The plaintiffs wish to speak, cials are appealing the court rulencouraging others to register to votes, and some of the chal- ing and the Justice Department’s lenged provisions – for example, intervention. the requirement to disclose in advance the identity of an employee George E. Curry, former edor volunteer who will do nothing itor-in-chief of Emerge magamore than speak – regulate pure zine, is editor-in-chief of the speech. This is core First Amend- National Newspaper Publishers ment activity. “Further, the plaintiff’s wish Association News Service. He to speak and act collectively can be reached at www.georgewith others, implicating the First curry.com. You can also follow Amendment right to association. him at www.twitter.com/curryMore importantly, the plaintiffs george.

Why target federal employees? Congress is on fire to balance the federal budget and they don’t care who they take as prisoners in the process. There are at least two proposals to freeze federal salaries for yet another year (they have been frozen since 2011), and to continue to demonize federal workers as do-nothing folks who don’t need raises. Meanwhile, President Obama has asked for a minimal half percent a year increase, and many in the private sector are seeing wages rise. Of course, everyone is struggling with unemployment rates rising to 8.2 percent. Still, it is onerous that federal employees seem to be bearing the brunt of this budget crisis. It is even worse when we understand that African-Americans make up 17.4 percent of the federal workforce, compared to 10.1 percent of the civilian labor force.

DR. JULIANNE MALVEAUX TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM

Blacks affected disproportionately Of course, the higher the pay grade the fewer African-Americans, but whatever the pay grade it is clear that African Americans are far more likely to get proportional pay in the federal government than in the private sector. Thus, proposals to cut federal pay disproportionately affect African-Americans. Somebody could perhaps argue that cuts are race neutral, but I’m not buying. The fact is that the federal government has been most open to African-American workers, and most willing to offer relatively equal pay. Too many would like to target

government workers as ineffective, without looking at the fact that most federal government and private workers do their jobs and then some. Everybody can tell trifling somebody done me wrong songs, but the real deal is most workers do their best and then some.

Workers deserve kudos Those members of Congress that target federal workers. These folks need kudos not the killing remarks that suggest that they don’t earn their money. It’s a rough job market and many make the choice to take pay freezes instead of looking for other work, and federal employees are among them. Are we losing some of our best employees, though, when we impose a freeze for the third year in a row? It may be hard for some others to sympathize with folks who have steady and well-paid employment, but at the same time,

who wants to work without appreciation or raises. Does our congress cut off our nose to spite our face by targeting federal employees? As a CEO, I’ve had to preside over the difficult task of imposing pay freezes and hoping that my staff would understand that frozen pay is better than no pay or layoffs. At the same time, I shudder when I think that our federal government cannot appreciate, even in a small way, those who keep our trains running, our balls in the air, our elders compensated, our work done.

Employees deserve raise

too many, mostly Black women, are at the GS-1 to GS-4 level, at less than $40,000. These women raise families, send children to school and overcome odds. They need a raise! They aren’t going to get it from a Congress that demonizes government workers, and that is a tragedy. Secondly, African-Americans are more likely to get fair treatment from a civil service system than from the ordinary labor market, and it seems that this is a reason that some seem to go after government employees. While Congress must be prudent about our budget, they shouldn’t take it out of the hide of government workers, especially those at the very bottom. There is no fairness in freezing government salaries while other salaries rise.

Half a percent is a small amount, and it hits the bottom, not the top. How can Congress push to maintain Bush tax cuts, but fail to raise wages for federal employees. There are two reasons that I am passionate about this. First, Julianne Malveaux is a D.C.although many federal workers earn more than $150,000 a year, based economist and writer.

There’s exceptional U.S. tolerance of poverty The latest edition of UNICEF’s report on child poverty showed the United States ranks second out of 35 developed countries on the scale of what economists call “relative child poverty,” with 23.1 percent of its children living in poverty. Only Romania ranked higher. It was another shameful reminder that, as economist Sheldon Danziger put it, “Among rich countries, the U.S. is exceptional. We are exceptional in our tolerance of poverty.” For the Lynch family in Columbus, Ohio, headlines like this aren’t news. Lucille Lynch and her children, Sarafina, 17; Timeeka, 14; Daisha, 11; and Elijah, 10, live on just slightly more than half of the federal poverty level. The family’s only cash income is the combined $1,200 per month Social Security disability checks for Elijah, who has autism, and for Lucille, who suffers from a lung condition, along with occasional and minimal child support.

Portrait of American family Their family is a portrait of deep poverty in America. In 2010, 20.5 million Americans were living on less than half of the federal poverty level, defined as income of $22,314 a year for a family of four. Elijah, 10, lives with his moth-

MARIAN WRIGHT EDELMAN NNPA COLUMNIST

er and three sisters. The family of five receives $583 a month in food stamps. They go to food pantries and raise tomatoes in pots but they often are down to peanut butter sandwiches at the end of the month. The Lynches live in isolation in a dark house in a dangerous neighborhood between several main roads. A church helped the family build a chain link fence around the house so Elijah can’t run out into the street. A block and a half away is a group home for sex offenders. Lucille gets advisory flyers in the mail with photographs of the men and their offenses—rape and gross sexual imposition were listed on two of the flyers on the living room table the day Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Julia Cass met the family while on assignment for the Children’s Defense Fund. “It’s scary to know that,” Daisha said. “You don’t want to go out in the street because of them.” Lucille, 47, considers herself lucky she has the house that she inherited from her parents. She left high school in the 11th grade.

“It was horrible and I couldn’t learn. There was too much violence.” Later she took classes and became certified as a nursing aide and for seven years she worked in nursing homes bathing, dressing, and diapering patients. But in 2006 she began feeling ill and by the next year, “I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t lift them anymore at all.” She was diagnosed with sarcoidosis, which causes inflammation of the lungs, and had to stop working. She’s done occasional babysitting since then.

Sad consequence of poverty One of the many sad consequences of deep poverty is that autism often goes undiagnosed longer, which is critical because many therapies for autism are most effective when they begin before age three. Elijah was diagnosed at five. Lucille said she knew something was wrong because “he wasn’t speaking. He wasn’t looking at people.” But pediatricians told her to wait and see if he improved and he wasn’t tested until he reached kindergarten age. When Elijah was eight he began having problems in his special education classroom. Lucille eventually found out a child sitting behind him on the school bus was hitting him and another in his classroom was choking

him. She said that school had one teacher and one aide trying to handle two classrooms full of children with different special needs. Lucille took him out of school and enrolled him in Buckeye Online, a statewide private charter school that gives online instruction and receives money from the public education system.

Difficult to escape violence The three girls experienced school violence, too, and now Sarafina and Daisha also stay at home and study with Buckeye Online, which provided two computers for the family to use. Sarafina was just starting middle school when she had a gun pulled on her. Daisha left school three years ago. “I didn’t really talk to other kids because they were so mean to me,” she said. “I got into a fight once but I didn’t want to fight but I had to because they kept hitting me. Nobody stopped them.” Online schooling means the children are isolated at home. Church is their major outside activity. The family of five receives $583 a month in food stamps. They go to food pantries and raise tomatoes in pots but they often are down to peanut butter sandwiches at the end of the month and regularly eat filling, starchy foods

such as rice, pasta, and potatoes. Lucille is hoping her children will “do better” than she did. She has the idea that art might help them get ahead because they all have the family talent for it. “There’s a lady who volunteers at the church, an artist,” Lucille said.

American dream still possible “She’s going to help them make portfolios. Sarafina wants to present hers to the Columbus College of Art and Design.” Lucille is still holding onto the American Dream for her children—but for now, the Lynches are living a much sadder American reality. At the Children’s Defense Fund National Conference in Cincinnati July 22-25, we will have a series of plenaries, mini-plenaries, and workshops focused on economic inequality and child poverty. Join us to learn more about what we know works to reduce poverty— and how we can work together to insist we do what works and set different national priorities. It’s time to end child poverty in rich America.

Marian Wright Edelman is president of the Children’s Defense Fund. For more information go to www.childrensdefense.org.

TOJ A6

NATION

JUNE 15 – JUNE 21, 2012

Romney’s health-care plan keeps parts of ‘Obamacare’ BY SCOTT POWERS AND ALEXANDRIA BACA THE ORLANDO SENTINEL (MCT)

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney laid out his plans Tuesday to replace the Affordable Care Act with a new healthcare plan that emphasizes tax breaks to small businesses and picks up many of the popular parts of the law he derides as “Obamacare.” Speaking on the factory floor of Con Air InMitt dustries of Romney Orlando, a company that makes air filters, Romney also decried President Barack Obama as “out of touch,” repeatedly berating him for his comment last week that “the private sector economy is fine.” “It’s time we have a president who is touch with America. And I am,” he said in a speech that ran nearly 40 minutes.

free market model,” Romney said. “We need to apply that to health care.” Beyond that, Romney emphasized he would keep several portions of Obama’s

current plan, including guaranteeing that people with pre-existing health conditions would be able to purchase insurance. When governor of Mas-

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Speaking to 350 to 400 small business owners invited by the National Federation of Independent Businesses, Romney vowed to not just seek the appeal of the Affordable Care Act, Obama’s signature health care act, but to replace it. And he spelled out several points of his proposal. Romney wants to drop insurance mandates requiring everyone to eventually purchase health insurance and instead ask the states to continue to serve uninsured people’s health needs. He proposed turning Medicaid and other federal health programs into bloc grants to states without as many restrictions and requirements. He wants to create tax incentives for individuals and for small businesses that purchase health insurance for their employees. “It has worked everywhere we’ve applied the

Notwithstanding that, Romney has pledged to repeal Obamacare, and says that other states should be free to adopt the Massachusetts model or not.

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It was Romney’s first visit to Central Florida since the Florida Republican primary in late January. Democrats had promised to demonstrate against the speech, but only a handful of protesters showed up. But before Romney’s appearance, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer; state Rep. Dwayne Taylor, D-Daytona Beach, who is a retired firefighter; and a teacher named Jackie Centeno stood at an Orlando fire station to rail against Romney’s recent comment – in the wake of the Wisconsin recall election last week – that the nation does not need any more teachers, police and firefighters. Romney had criticized Obama’s call for the rehiring of hundreds of thousands of teachers, firefighters and police, saying: “He says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers. Did he not get the message of Wisconsin? The American people did. It’s time for us to cut back on government.” That comment has Republicans and Democrats dueling as to who is more “out of teach.”

Plan: Turn programs into bloc grants

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sachusetts, Romney signed into law a state plan that Obama and others say served as a model for the Affordable Care Act. “Romneycare” requires

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T.I. among celebs coming to Florida See page B2

A pop quiz about famous fathers See page B4

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HAPPY FATHER’S DAY The Florida Courier staff pays tribute to their dads with personal photos and narratives

Challenging police power, 1970

Last family picture, 2002

Glenn, Charles Sr., Charles II, 2003

To Charles W. Cherry, Sr., 1928-2004: We fight daily to keep the charge assigned to us. Asking, “What would Daddy do?” allows your wisdom to defy time and eternity, as you continue to guide us. We love you, and think about you every day. The Cherry Family

Jerry Thomas Sr., a fisherman, car enthusiast, military vet and believer in the power of God. Thanks for showing your love through the years in all you do. Remember when we’d go fishing and I wouldn’t put the worm on the hook because it was icky and gross? Well, Dad, it still is. Love ya, Ashley Thomas

He was a man of integrity, a mentor to many. There always seemed to be a twinkle in his eye, a kind word on his lips, and laughter came often and easily. The Rev. M.H. Griffin was a visionary who founded a ministry that continues to help numerous families of all races in Naples. Dad’s earthly life ended 19 years ago, but his messages of faith, hope, joy and love still live on in the many lives he touched. Jenise Griffin Morgan

Arthur Harper, you, along with mom Annie, who have been married for 52 years, have been by my side ever since I was born 49 years ago this month. Both of you still have my back. Thank you for everything. I love you. James Dear Grandpa Fred, (Wardell Lee) Thanks for everything you do for us. We really appreciate you! Love ya! Chayla and Wiggles

Meeting Charles III (“Wig”) for the first time, 2004

To our Dad, Gaddy M. Rawls (9-151933 to 3-17-2011) On this Father’s Day, we want to remember you. Simply, thank you for loving us in your way! We miss you! Love, Valerie and Gerod

To my Dad, Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, What a Dad gives a family can’t be measured…except by the HEART. Thank you Dad for all the little things and big stuff you’ve handled with strength and dignity, BUT most of all for planting footsteps for me to follow as a young man! Happy Father’s Day! Love You! Jamal

My dad is the best dad in the whole wide world, and we are blessed to be celebrating his 92nd birthday on June 15. All to Jesus that Dad is of sound mind, body and spirit. Jeroline McCarthy

On Dec. 12, 1995, a man, Louis M. Holman Sr., passed away from this realm into eternity with little fanfare. It’s what he would have wanted. He sacrificed time and money to take care of his family members and to take on a system of segregation when it could have cost him his life. He was determined to make the powers that be focus on the plight of Black teachers in Charleston, S.C., and used his position as president of the Teachers’ Association to win a measure of justice. You never truly know how much a father means until he is physically no longer a part of your life. God bless the spirit of my father, Lou Muhammad Dad, Thank you for being such an amazing father and a wonderful influence on my life. You’re always quick with a laugh and a helping hand and I love that about you! Happy Father’s Day, Angela Parker van Emmerik

James Harper at his high school graduation with dad Arthur

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! WE LOVE YOU, Chayla and Wig Chayla, Wig and Grandpa Fred

Harold, Angela, vacation 2008

CALENDAR

JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

Summer baseball league a hit for players from HBCUs Black-owned team in Orlando helps bring baseball back to downtown

for HBCU players to get exposure. There are many good HBCU players that donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get the exposure that this league has,â&#x20AC;? added infielder Elias Todman who attends Grambling State University.

BY ANDREAS BUTLER FLORIDA COURIER

Fewer Black players on MJB rosters

After months of anticipation, the Orlando Monarchs have taken the field. They opened their inaugural season on June 8 in Florida Collegiate Summer League (FCSL) last weekend against the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs at Tinker Field adjacent to the Florida Citrus Bowl in downtown Orlando. Hundreds of fans braved rainy conditions to watch the game which the organization deems a success. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was incredible night. We had people here tonight from all over the Orlando community as well as the surrounding communities and places like Daytona, Sanford, Ocala and others,â&#x20AC;? said Rickie Weeks, Sr, owner and president of the Orlando Monarchs.

The number of Blacks playing baseball has declined rapidly over the years. Earlier this year, a USA Today article stated that Blacks make up 8 percent of Major League Baseball (MLB) players. In 1975, Blacks made up 27 percent; in 1998 it was 19 percent; and in 1995 it was 15 percent of Major League Baseball rosters. Those numbers also are reflected at the collegiate, high school and Little League levels. Other statistics show that the National Football League (NFL) has 68 percent Blacks players and the National Basketball Association (NBA) has 80 percent. One goal of the Monarchs is to bring baseball back to the Black community. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have provided a platform by which any community could follow. Our players have an image development class at Florida A&M Law school in downtown Orlando along with a sports agency law class for both college and high school players. They will be role models for our youth. Putting the college players around the youth will make a strong presence with baseball in the lives of our youngsters,â&#x20AC;? added Weeks.

A different makeup The Monarchs are the only team in the league that is Blackowned and the only one with a Black coaching staff, which is rare in all of baseball. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The game was good. We had some jitters and some defensive mistakes that came back to hurt us. This is a new experience for everyone. We are all excited and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s good to see the support and excitement here,â&#x20AC;? said Bruce Larkins, the Monarchsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; head coach. The team has a majority of Black and Latino players. It also is the only team with players from historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). There are seven on the team. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is definitely different. Growing up we are usually the only minority playing but now we have a team that is majority minority,â&#x20AC;? stated outfielder David Lee who attends Bethune-Cookman University. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is a good experience. This is my first collegiate summer league. This is a great opportunity

FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR Miami: The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) returns to Miami Beach June 20-23 at various theaters throughout Miami Beach. More information: 646-375-2411 or www. abff.com. Fort Lauderdale: A threehour cooking class with professionally trained chefs is scheduled at City College Fort Lauderdale, 2000 W. Commercial Blvd. The class is 6 p.m. â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 9 p.m. MondaySaturday. Cost: $39.99 per person per class. More information: 954-703-6745 or www.chef954.com. Miami: The Miami Spring Home Design and Remodeling Show will be at the Miami Beach Convention Center on June 15 featuring celebrity guest speakers and informative seminars presented by industry experts in home design and remodeling. Free. Casino Creek: Little Anthony & the Imperials will be at the Seminole Coconut Creek Casino June 16 for an 8 p.m. show. Miami: Food truck night will be held June 15 from 6 p.m. â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 11 p.m. at Tropical Park, 7900 SW 40th St. Enjoy a park landscape and musical entertainment with affordable, gourmet delights of Cuban, Asian and Soul. More information: www.miamidade. gov/parks. Miami: The Overtown Rhythm and Arts festival featuring church choirs, marching bands, vendors, entertainment and food will be held June 23 on NW Third Avenue, between 9th and 11th streets. Miami: Classic cars will grace the grounds of the Barnacle Historic State Park for this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cars and Cigars

Starts with kids His Weeks II Success youth baseball program does the same, working with youngsters seven through 18 participating in competitive baseball. Orlando Zone 5 City Commissioner Daisy W. Lynum likes the Monarchsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; efforts to bring the sport back to Orlandoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Black community. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Others have started programs to introduce kids to different sports. This is a good opportunity for these players to demonstrate their talent. There is a loss of Blacks in baseball. This is a his-

Kids: Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fun Many of the youngsters in attendance enjoyed the game and also are excited about the team. Austin St. Ford, 11 said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I like baseball. I play it. This is good that the Monarchs are playing here. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fun to watch them.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I play and like baseball too. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s awesome that they have games here. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something fun for us to do,â&#x20AC;? echoed both Christian Hall, 7, and Elijah Dunston. Malik Carter, 10 added, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am having fun here watching the game. I am glad that they are playing here. I like baseball.â&#x20AC;?

Opening night ANDREAS BUTLER/FLORIDA COURIER

Orlando Zone 6 City Commissioner Samuel Ings, Monarchs mascot Satchel Paige, Orlando Zone 5 City Commissioner Daisy Lynum and Monarchs Owner/President Rickie Weeks are shown on opening night at Tinker Field. toric move and proves that not only Latinos but Blacks can have opportunities in the sport,â&#x20AC;? added Lynum.

Revitalizing inner cities In addition, the team is revitalizing baseball in the inner city. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This team came about from what we do with our youth. We want to revitalize the game in our communities. The best thing to do is get best HBCU players and Black college talent to Orlando. This will attract kids to the sport. The goal is not only to be a professional but to get a chance to go to college and earn a degree. This will make the players, our kids and our communities successful,â&#x20AC;? explained Weeks. The Monarchs are the first team to be housed at Tinker Field since the Orlando Rays AA affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays left in 2000. Keeping the field occupied with a team is a goal of both the Monarchs and the city. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is important to keep this facility open and operating for the west side of Orlando. Many of us who have lived here during segregation had this facility but couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t use it. It has been in decay. This is great for our citizens, the team, the players and our

children. Mr. Weeks has proven to everyone that he is a serious owner,â&#x20AC;? commented Lynum.

Excited fans Many fans are glad to have the Monarchs in town and they like the idea of bringing baseball back to the Black community. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nice to be out here and watch the game. I played back in the day but my brother is the expert. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a positive move and a win-win situation for the entire city,â&#x20AC;? responded LeShawn Lee of Atlanta. Gerald Turner of Ocala agreed, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an enjoyable experience. There are many kids here. The players are good. I think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s awesome and one of the best things that could happen in the inner city for these kids. It can definitely keep them off the streets.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is a really good thing for the community to get people back into baseball. I grew up here around Carter Street Park and we had baseball there which was great. Let kids participate in the baseball programs and everyone can help out by volunteering and supporting. That will show the kids that there is another sport out there for them,â&#x20AC;? added ClearT:5.6875â&#x20AC;? ance Cooper of Orlando.

Pre-game festivities included Little League and Weeks II Success Youth baseball players being on the field for the national anthem, which was sung by actress, songwriter and singer Chanelle Ray. Lynum threw out the first pitch and Zone 6 City Commissioner Samuel Ings also was on hand. The Young Blacks in Action community band also performed during the game and a fireworks show took place at the gameâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s conclusion. Many from the local Orlando media covered the game, including Spanish television outlets. The Monarchs led 4-0 after five innings but the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs won the game 13-4.

On the field The Monarchsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; game the following day in DeLand against the Suns was canceled due to rain. The Monarchs got their first win on Sunday by defeating the DeLand Suns 7-6 at home. The Monarchs play a 45-games schedule along with summer league members the DeLand Suns, Winter Park Diamond Dawgs, Sanford River Rats, Leesburg Lightning and Orlando Freedom. The season runs through Aug. 2 For more on the Orlando Monarchs, the Florida Collegiate Summer League and other teams, visit www.floridalegue.com.

T.I.

T.I., below, Young Jeezy, Ice Cube, Wale, DJ Khaled, Fat Joe and Waka Flocka Flame will be at the Klipsch Amphitheater in Miami on July 7 for the Radio One Fest.

MARCIA GRIFFITHS

Marcia Griffiths and David Rudder are featured artists at the free Colors of the Caribbean Festival on June 16 from 4 p.m. â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 11 p.m. at ArtsPark at Young Circle in Hollywood.

EDDIE GRIFFIN

Eddie Griffin, above, will be at Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts in Jacksonville on July 28 for an 8 p.m. show.

Fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Day festivities. Park admission is $2. Bring your own picnic or purchase hot dogs, hamburgers, veggie burgers, chips, and soft drinks from the Barnacle Society at the Barnacleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Micco Pavilion. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 11 a.m. June 17 at the Barnacle Historic State Park, 3485 Main Hwy. More information: www.floridastateparks.org/thebarnacle or 305-442-6866. Boca Raton: An open mic night for 18 and up featuring comedy, poetry and music is held every Monday at the Funky Biscuit in the back of Royal Palm Plaza, 303 SE Mizner Blvd. Sign up is at 8 p.m.; show time begins at 8:30 p.m. More information: Richy Lala 561-512-8472. Miami: Fantasia, Keith Sweat, Guy, K-Ci & Jo-Jo will be at the American Airline Arena for

the Fresh Music Festival July 12 for an 8 p.m. show. Miami: Miami-Dade County hosts a Downtown Harvest Market every Friday from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Residents and visitors have the opportunity to purchase seasonal produce directly from MiamiDade growers, handmade artisanal foods and crafts, green products, healing arts and plants, and more at the Stephen P. Clark Centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Courtyard, 111 NW 1st St. More information: www.earthlearning.org. Doral: The City of Doral hosts its annual Independence Day Celebration beginning at 7 p.m. Festivities include a concert and fireworks show at 9 p.m. at J.C. Bermudez Park, 3000 NW 87th Ave. More information: www.cityofdoral. com.

A message from the NBA and its players

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JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

FINEST & ENTERTAINMENT

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Shawty Red is a Miami native loving life in the fast lane. She enjoys family, music and fun in the sun. “Live, laugh & love and you’ll never go wrong!” She can be contacted at shawtyred305@ ymail.com or twitter. com/shawtyred79.

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Think you’re one of Florida’s Finest? E-mail your high-resolution digital photo in casual wear or bathing suit taken in front of a plain background with few distractions, to news@flcourier.com with a short biography of yourself and your contact information. (No nude/glamour/ fashion photography, please!) In order to be considered, you must be at least 18 years of age. Acceptance of the photographs submitted is in the sole and absolute discretion of Florida Courier editors. We reserve the right to retain your photograph even if it is not published. If you are selected, you will be contacted by e-mail and further instructions will be given.

TIBXUZ SFE

South Floridian Jamael is interested in runway, sport and stunt shoots. Photo courtesy of Brian Padget

KBNBFM

FAMILY

TOJ B4

STOJ

JUNE 15 – JUNE 21, 2012

Some fathers pass on their love of sports. These dads went one step further. 1. Which father and son have combined for the most points in NHL history? _________________________________ 2. Who were the first father and son to win Olympic hockey medals as goalies? _________________________________ 3. Which two daughters of former heavyweight boxers met in a 2001 bout called the “The Thrilla in Manila 4?” _________________________________ 4. Who are the only father and son to play on national championship basketball teams?

same time? _________________________________ 7. Name the only father and son to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft by the same team. _________________________________ 8. Who were the first father and son to be selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft? _________________________________ 9. Who were the first father and son to reach the Super Bowl? ______________________________ 10. How many of George Foreman’s 11 children have “George” in their name?

________________________ 5. Who were the first father and son to coach in the NBA?

__________________________

_________________________

ANSWERS: 1. BOBBY AND BRETT HULL, 2. DENIS AND MARTIN BRODEUR, 3. LAILA ALI AND JACQUI FRAZIER-LYDE, 4. MATT GUOKAS AND MATT JR., 5. BILL AND ERIC MUSSELMAN, 6. KEN GRIFFEY AND KEN JR., 7. ED AND BRAD BUDDE (KANSAS CITY), 8. TOM AND BEN GRIEVE, 9. FRANK CORNISH (MIAMI) AND FRANK JR. (COWBOYS), 10. SEVEN — SONS GEORGE EDWARD JR., III, IV, V AND VI, PLUS DAUGHTERS FREEDA GEORGE AND GEORGETTA

6. Who were the first father and son to play in the major leagues at the

Happy Father’s Day! We know this is the one day of the year that dads are supposed to take it easy, but we wanted to stretch your brain a little. So we decided to test your knowledge with these trivia questions to see how you measure up against other dads. — Jody Mitori, MCT and David Thomas, McClatchy Newspapers

Former heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman has 11 children.

Match the father-themed lyrics to the song title. LYRICS ___ 1. “Daddy, daddy if you could only see/Just how good he’s been treating me/You’d give us your blessing right now/’Cause we are in love.” ___ 2. “Father, father/We don’t need to escalate/War is not the answer/For love can conquer hate.” ___ 3. “My son turned 10 just the other day/He said, ‘Thanks for the ball, dad, come on let’s play/Can you teach me to throw?’ I said, ‘Not today/I got a lot to do.’ He said, ‘That’s OK.’” ___ 4. “The mama pajama rolled out of bed/And she ran to the police station/ When the papa found out he began to shout /And he started the investigation.” ___ 5. “Then the light begins to shine/And I hear those ancient lullabies/And as I watch this seedling grow/Feel my heart start to overflow.”

___ 7. “There’s two things I know for sure/She was sent here from heaven and she’s daddy’s little girl.” ___ 8. “So fathers, be good to your daughters/Daughters will love like you do.” ___ 9. “It’s not time to make a change/ Just relax, take it easy/You’re still young, that’s your fault/There’s so much you have to know.” ___ 10. “Words can’t express my bound-less gratitude for you/I appreciate what you do/You’ve given me such security.” SONGS A. “Mr. Mom,” Lonestar B. “My Father’s Eyes,” Eric Clapton C. “Father and Son,” Cat Stevens D. “Butterfly Kisses,” Bob Carlisle E. “Daddy,” Beyonce F. “Papa Don’t Preach,” Madonna G. “What’s Going On,” Marvin Gaye

___ 6. “How much smoke can one stove make/The kids won’t eat my charcoal cake/ It’s more than any man can take.”

I. “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard,” Paul Simon J. “Cat’s in the Cradle,” Harry Chapin

Beyonce’s dad also was her manager.

ILLUSTRATIONS BY CHRIS WARE/ LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER/ MCT

ANSWERS: 1. F, 2. G, 3. J, 4. I, 5. B. 6. A, 7. D, 8. H, 9. C, 10. E

Bill Cosby played Cliff Huxtable on the hit sitcom “The Cosby Show.”

Many are founding fathers, but how much do you know about the U.S. presidents as parents? 1. Which U.S. president had the most children?

dent?

A. Theodore Roosevelt

B. Theodore Roosevelt

C. William Henry Harrison 2. George Washington is known as the father of the United States. How many children did he have? A. None B. One C. Three

Match the TV dad with his profession.

3. Who said: “My father was not a failure. After all, he was the father of a president of the United States”?

TV DADS

A. Dwight Eisenhower

___ 1. Cliff Huxtable, “The Cosby Show”

B. Ronald Reagan

___ 2. Ray Barone, “Everybody Loves Raymond”

C. Harry S. Truman

___ 3. Mike Brady, “The Brady Bunch”

4. Which president signed the law that made Father’s Day a permanent annual holiday?

___ 4. Tony Soprano, “The Sopranos” ___ 5. Andy Taylor, “The Andy Griffith Show” ___ 6. Merrill Stubing, “The Love Boat” ___ 7. Al Bundy, “Married ... with Children” ___ 8. Ross Geller, “Friends”

A. John F. Kennedy B. Richard Nixon C. Jimmy Carter

___ 9. Homer Simpson, “The Simpsons”

5. How many U.S. presidents were fathers of a president?

___ 10. Archie Bunker, “All in the Family”

A. None B. One

PROFESSIONS

F. Sheriff

C. Two

A. Cruise ship captain

G. Loading dock worker

6. Which president’s grandson was also presi-

B. Obstetrician C. Shoe salesman D. Sports writer E. Nuclear power plant worker

H. Waste management I. Architect J. Paleontologist

SOURCE: “FACTS ABOUT THE PRESIDENTS,” BY JOSEPH NATHAN KANE, U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

Is President George W. Bush the only U.S. president whose father also held the position?

A. William Henry Harrison C. William Howard Taft 7. How many presidents were the sons of ministers? A. One B. Two C. Three 8. David Eisenhower, grandson of Dwight Eisenhower, married which president’s daughter? A. Jimmy Carter B. Richard Nixon C. Bill Clinton 9. Which president’s son served as the secretary of war? A. Abraham Lincoln B. Andrew Jackson C. Franklin Pierce 10. Which president’s father served as U.S. ambassador to Great Britain? A. Franklin D. Roosevelt B. John F. Kennedy C. George H.W. Bush ANSWERS: 1. B. TYLER HAD 15 CHILDREN; 2. A; 3. C; 4. B. NIXON SIGNED THE LAW IN 1972; 5. C. JOHN ADAMS WAS THE FATHER OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, AND GEORGE H.W. BUSH IS THE FATHER OF GEORGE W. BUSH; 6. A. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON WAS THE GRANDFATHER OF BENJAMIN HARRISON; 7. C. THE FATHERS OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR, GROVER CLEVELAND AND WOODROW WILSON WERE MINISTERS; 8. B. DAVID EISENHOWER MARRIED JULIE NIXON IN 1968; 9. A. ROBERT TODD LINCOLN WAS SECRETARY OF WAR UNDER PRESIDENT JAMES GARFIELD; 10. B. JOSEPH P. KENNEDY SERVED FROM 1938-1940.

B. John Tyler

ANSWERS: 1. B, 2. D, 3. I, 4. H, 5. F, 6. A; 7. C; 8. J; 9. E; 10. G

Ray Romano played TV dad Ray Barone.

H. “Daughters,” John Mayer

STOJ

JUNE 15 - JUNE 21, 2012

NATION

COURTESY OF JOHN BROWN/ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION/MCT

Above is a group photo of some of the original Montford Point Marines. The Black Marines will be honored this month in Washington, D.C.

A long overdue honor for Montford Point Marines Pioneers who helped break military’s color barrier will receive Congressional medals from Obama this month BY GRACIE BONDS STAPLES ATLANTA JOURNALCONSTITUTION (MCT)

In the decades since World War II ended, they’ve never once looked back on their service in the U.S. Marine Corps with bitterness. And now the men who broke the color barrier in the last branch of the military to admit Blacks soon will be awarded one of the nation’s highest honors. As they think back on their service as Montford Point Marines with pride, not sure what to make of the years it has taken to get to this point, Theodore R. Britton Jr., John R. Hill Jr. and John B. Brown Sr. agree it is an honor long overdue.

Overlooked Marines Britton, Hill and Brown are among a few hundred surviving members of the 20,000 men who served as Montford Pointers. Unlike better-known military units that helped end racial segregation such as the Tuskegee Airmen of the U.S. Army Air Forces and the Army’s Buffalo Soldiers, the Montford Point Marines

had been overlooked. But last summer Gen. James F. Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps, announced plans to highlight their service to the Corps. And in November, President Barack Obama signed legislation awarding them the Congressional Gold Medal, putting them in the company of Winston Churchill and Rosa Parks. On June 27, they will be awarded bronze replicas of the gold medal at a ceremony in Washington. And so here they sit in a first-floor apartment in downtown Atlanta, eager to relive memories that won’t fade, to bear witness just as the Tuskegee Airmen and the Buffalo Soldiers have done before them.

‘A pioneer spirit’ They were still in school in 1941 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt banned race-based exclusion from the military, thus opening the door for them and other blacks to join the Marines. What they hadn’t counted on, the men said, was how quickly the Corps ad-

back to camp when they discovered White bus drivers wouldn’t stop to pick them up. “I’ll never forget a big White Marine from Texas told me, ‘You little S.O.B., you sit up here with me and we’re going to take this bus,’ ” Brown recalled. “That was the one time the bus driver sat in the back of the bus.”

‘True acceptance’

JOHNNY CRAWFORD/ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION/MCT

John R. Hill, from left, John Brown and Theodore Britton Jr., shown May 19, are three of seven original Montford Point Marines who integrated the corps in 1942 and who live here in Atlanta. opted a policy of racial segregation. Indeed, the next year a separate training camp for Blacks was built at Montford Point, about five miles from all-White Camp Lejeune, near Jacksonville, N.C. Britton, 86, volunteered for the Corps in 1944 during his senior year in high school. “I had a pioneer spirit,” he said. “We were so gungho and patriotic, we weren’t concerned at all about what we were going to do. We just wanted to get in there and fight.”

The assignments The men took buses and trains to North Carolina from every corner of the country, only to discover that there would be no fighting for African-Americans – at least not initially. They delivered ammunition and other supplies to combat troops and later evacuated the wounded from the front lines. “We didn’t know what we were getting into,” Brown said. When he learned Black Marines were not permitted to engage in combat, “I wanted to get out and go

back home,” he said, “but that wasn’t near possible.” Eventually, Britton said, some went into combat as reinforcements to White Marines in Guam and Saipan, earning commendations for their bravery from Gen. Alexander Vandergrift, the Marine Corps’ first World War II hero. Britton would go on to spend two years in the South Pacific, where he served until May 1946. Brown was assigned to the all-Black 52nd Defense Battalion and in August 1944 headed to the Russell Islands in the South Pacific with the 29th Depot Company, and then on to Korea. After spending time at Camp Pendleton, Hill went to Korea, where he saw action at Chosin Reservoir, one of the Marine Corps’ greatest battles.

Recalling the racism Although each of them felt the sting of segregation, their experiences were as unique as their personalities. Britton said he never felt overt discrimination but was disheartened by the stories he read, including those of Blacks who were

unfairly flunked in officer candidate school. But Brown, 88, said he didn’t know what real discrimination was until he arrived at Montford Point in 1943. “When I got to North Carolina, I was baptized,” he said. However there were occasions when White people stood up for him and other Black Marines, Brown said. He remembered once being packed like sardines in a train car en route to North Carolina with 80 other Black Marines. When the conductor came through, Brown said they could see the car ahead of them was empty except for a lone White woman. “We moved into the car; the conductor tried to get us to go back and we wouldn’t do it,” he said. “The conductor called military police when we arrived in Richmond and told him to arrest (us). The two military officers looked at the conductor and laughed.” On another trip, Brown said, several White Marines helped commandeer a city bus and drove him and several other Black Marines

Although other Montford Point Marines would go on to fight in some of the bloodiest battles of the Pacific, including at Iwo Jima, Saipan and Okinawa, they were never fully recognized for their service. Thirteen Montford Pointers were lost in World War II. After the war, most were discharged. Seventy years later, they say their band of brothers trained them well and to this day they stand tall with chin in and chest out. “Years later, we still have a feeling of pride,” Britton said. Hill, who retired in 1987 as a fleet manager for the Citizens and Southern Bank, said receiving Congress’s highest civilian honor is proof “we can do whatever we have in our hearts to do.” Fred Codes, president of the Montford Point Marine Association, Atlanta Chapter 5, said few people had heard of the Montford Pointers when he entered the Corps in 1976 — even among Marines. “They are the pioneers who paved the way for me and other Blacks to become part of one of the finest forces in the world,” he said. “I stand on their shoulders.” For years, Brown, a retired federal law enforcement officer and ordained elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, said he envied the recognition of the Buffalo Soldiers and Tuskegee Airman. Now, he said, “I’m pretty happy.” Britton, a former U.S. ambassador to Barbados and Grenada, said the most gratifying part of the renewed interest in the Montford Point Marines was the hearty welcome they received last summer from Commandant Amos. “To me,” he said, “it was the final evidence of true acceptance of all Black Marines into the Marine Corps.”

TOJ B6

JUNE 15 – JUNE 21, 2012

– Chef Tony Morrow Celebrity Chef, Restaurateur | Atlanta, GA

These lamb chops have won awards. But more importantly, it’s my son’s and my favorite meal. That’s why I’m sharing this and other recipes, so you can show Dad he’s your favorite too. Publix has the whole meal planned for you on their site. We have such busy households these days, but Publix makes it easier to get together and reconnect as a family with great food on the table.

Pictured

Chef Tony’s Lamb Chops with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans