Florida Courier - February 21, 2014

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FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

VOLUME 22 NO. 8

A FULL PLATE

Drought in Cali, battles in Ukraine, war in Syria, trade in Mexico, and homosexuality in Uganda, and some ‘down time’ with friends were all on the president’s agenda this week.

package that includes money for ranchers in California who have lost livestock, communities that are running out of water and farmers that need help conserving scarce water resources.

“I wanted to come here to listen,” Obama said at a round-table meeting at the San Luis Water District with about 20 local farmers and agriculture industry leaders.

“This is going to be a very challenging situation for some time to come.”

Visit for ‘show’

COMPILED FROM WIRE REPORTS

Here are notable issues President Obama tackled this week.

President Obama swept into the dusty San Joaquin Valley, Calif. on Feb. 14 to discuss California’s historic drought, open the federal government’s checkbook and make tens of millions of dollars in aid available to struggling farmers and communities.

Obama came bearing a $183 million aid

Some farmers in the area said they want federal laws changed to allow more pumping of water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, a critical source of water for cities from San Jose to Los Angeles – and a key habitat for salmon and other fish.

Paul Pafford lives in Firebaugh and farms 1,300 acres of pistachios, almonds WALLY SKALIJ/LOS ANGELES TIMES/MCT and pomegranates. He also plants cotton On Feb. 14, President Obama spoke to the media about California’s severe See OBAMA, Page A2

drought in Los Banos, Calif.

XXII OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES / SOCHI, RUSSIA

Winner, winter and summer

Less poverty – or fewer jobs? $10 minimum wage has pros, cons

BY KEVIN G. HALL AND SEAN COCKERHAM McCLATCHY WASHINGTON BUREAU / MCT

MARK REIS/COLORADO SPRINGS GAZETTE/MCT

USA-1 bobsled driver Elana Meyers kisses teammate Lauryn Williams after placing second in the women’s bobsled finals during the Winter Olympics on Wednesday. Williams, a graduate of the University of Miami, is one of only five athletes to medal in both Winter and Summer Olympic Games.

The vice-chairman of Gov. Rick Scott’s “stand your ground” task force has asked the governor to seek a repeal of the law.

The Rev. R. B. Holmes Jr. told reporters Tuesday that recent verdicts in the Jacksonville “loud music” case changed his view about Florida’s first-in-the-nation law that allows individuals to use deadly force when they feel their lives are in danger and provides immunity from prosecution.

A jury found Michael Dunn, a White man accused of killing an unarmed Black teenager after a dispute over loud music at a gas station, guilty of four charges related to the shooting but could not reach a decision on first-degree murder.

Holmes had criticized portions of “stand your ground” before but said Tuesday that

ALSO INSIDE

Scott appointed the task force in the aftermath of the shooting of Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, who claimed he shot the unarmed Black teenager in self-defense. The task force, which concluded its work before a jury acquitted Zimmerman of second-degree murder charges, recommended minor tweaks to the law but concluded it should remain intact.

Holmes on Tuesday said Scott should implement the task force’s suggested review of the law “to analyze if Black people and poor people are being the victim of misapplication.” Holmes said the jury’s inability to decide

SNAPSHOTS White House names HBCU All-Stars NATION | A6

“confusion, controversy and unrest” among judges, jurors and others prompted him to urge Scott to reconsider calls for a review and a possible repeal of the law.

Post-Trayvon committee

See WAGES, Page A2

FLORIDA | A3

Dunn verdict renews repeal fight THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

WASHINGTON – Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour could lift 900,000 Americans out of poverty but also cost a half-million jobs, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said Tuesday in a report that’s sure to feed a simmering debate over how to help loft people up the economic ladder.

President Obama wants to raise the minimum wage from the current $7.25 an hour to $10.10 over the course of three years. The minimum wage then would rise automatically each year to meet the rate of inflation under the president’s proposal.

The 43-page report by the Congressional Budget Office found that the proposal would increase earnings overall by $31 billion, although only 19 percent would go to families below the poverty line. That’s because many people who work low-income jobs come from families that collectively make far more than the pov-

R. B. Holmes Jr.

Alan Williams

Benjamin Crump

whether Dunn was guilty of first-degree murder was a turning point.

“Too many people who are full of hatred and fear and frustration are using this law to justify their frustration and hide behind ‘stand your ground,’” he said. “The law was not intended to support criminals and folk who ought to retreat.”

Will Tim Scott attract Blacks to GOP? BOOK REVIEW | B2

The intellectual influences of W.E.B. Du Bois

Joined by others Holmes was joined on Tuesday by several

FINEST | B4

Meet Olympian Aja Evans

See FIGHT, Page A2

COMMENTARY: CHARLES W. CHERRY II: RANDOM THOUGHTS OF A FREE BLACK MIND | A4 COMMENTARY: LUCIUS GANTT: PROTECT BLACK TEEN, MOST ENDANGERED SPECIES ON EARTH | A5

FOCUS

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FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

White men and guns Michael Dunn may be an easily identifiable outlier, but America clearly has a serious gun fixation and it results in the deaths of 11,000 people every year.

Dunn is the Jacksonville man who shot Jordan Davis to death in the so-called “loud music” case. It should have been called the “White person shoots Black person just because” case.

More killings It isn’t only White Americans like Dunn who kill with firearms, but the number of White men committing murder over seemingly strange reasons is increasing. It is easy to look at these individuals and label them as deviant, but these apples aren’t falling far from the nation’s tree.

The belief that White people ought to rule goes back to the earliest days of this country’s colonial history. The independent nation was no different as it relentlessly enforced an awful code of injustice based upon race.

MARGARET KIMBERLEY BLACK AGENDA REPORT

The Second Amendment of the Constitution, which guarantees a right to bear arms, was meant to give every White man the right to police the enslaved and indigenous populations.

Rainey was shot dead by another White man, Kenneth Roop, in Cape Coral, Fla. Roop considered anyone who set foot on his property a trespasser whom he had the right to kill. Roop first shot Rainy in the shoulder and then stood over him and shot him in the back of the head. He told police that the fatal bullet was “for effect.”

It wasn’t Roop’s first brush with the law. Seven years earlier, he held a woman at gunpoint when she came to read his electric meter. He was charged in this case, but was acquitted by a jury.

A dangerous state

Still believe Most White Americans are not aware of that particular historical fact, but they surely believe in its intent more than 200 years later. There is no other explanation for “stand your ground” laws and “castle doctrines” except to give license for murder at a whim.

Yet like all madness, it cannot be isolated enough to punish only those meant to be victims.

Two years ago, a White doorto-door salesman named Nick

Florida has become a very dangerous place, where one White man recently shot and killed another in a movie theater because of an argument about texting and thrown popcorn. Not only the killer, but also other White Floridians have defended his act as being a reasonable use of force.

The occasional death of a White person is apparently a small price to pay to keep Black people in line.

Michael Dunn was born in the

20th century, but he is the heir of the Founding Fathers who wanted to enshrine the right to kill without impediment. If prevented from doing as they wanted, they bitterly complained of mistreatment just as Dunn is doing today.

“You know I was thinking about that today, I was like I’m the f*** victim here, I was the one who was victimized. I mean I don’t know how else to cut it, like they attacked me, I’m the victim.

I’m the victor, but I was the victim too.”

That statement made by Dunn says it all. A 2011 study showed that White Americans felt themselves more likely to be discriminated against than Blacks.

Those results would be laughable if that mentality did not have such dire consequences for Black people. There is no evidence, no data, which shows White disadvantage; quite the opposite.

Surely few White people would switch places with Black people, because like Dunn, they know they are the victors. Somehow, they still find reasons to see themselves as victimized.

WAGES

Every now and then, an unfortunate White moviegoer or doorto-door salesman will be killed, but the bulk of these cases involve gun-loving White men who kill Black people.

In Texas, Brian Cloninger shot an 8-year old Black child in the face. When asked why he said, “Because I wanted to.” In North Carolina, Jasmine Thar was killed

by James Blackwell, who claimed that his gun went off by accident.

Blackwell was never even arrested.

These cases give one a disturbing kind of precognition. We know that there are more Trayvon Martins and Jordan Davises and Renisha McBrides around the country. We don’t know the details or the names, but history shows us that others will be added to the long list of victims.

Margaret Kimberley’s column appears weekly in BlackAgendaReport.com. Contact her at Margaret.Kimberley@ Black AgendaReport.com .

Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

but Republican lawmakers said the report proved that Obama’s “irresponsible” plan must be defeated.

“Today’s CBO report shows that raising the minimum wage could destroy as many as 1 million jobs, a devastating blow to the very people that need help most in this economy,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said the report confirmed arguments about the perils of raising the minimum wage.

“With unemployment Americans’ top concern, our focus should be creating, not destroying, jobs for those who need them most,” Boehner spokesman Brendan Buck said.

from A1

erty threshold, the CBO said.

The plan would move nearly a million people above the poverty line, the report found, with 16.5 million workers seeing hourly wages rise.

The CBO estimated, though, that the plan would reduce total employment by about 500,000 workers once fully implemented in 2016.

‘Rough estimate’ The CBO said its projection of a half-million jobs lost was a rough estimate, and that the range might be anywhere from a “slight reduction in employment” all the way to a drop in employment of 1 million workers.

Once the increases and decreases of income for all workers are calculated, the CBO said, overall real income in the economy would rise by a modest $2 billion.

Both sides of the heated minimum-wage debate seized on the report as confirmation of their points of view.

The White House touted the report’s findings on the benefits of raising the minimum wage, while dismissing the warnings of job losses as out of step with the consensus views of economists on the issue.

“The report very much does make the case for a policy that benefits more than 16.5 million workers, reduces poverty and raises income,” said Jason Furman, the chairman of the White

Blacks killed more often

Lower raise?

FLORIDA COURIER FILES

Cleveland, Ohio residents put their best feet forward at a recent job fair.

House Council of Economic Advisers.

Furman said he thinks “zero is a perfectly reasonable estimate” for how much impact the wage increase might have on employment.

Urban League disagrees

OBAMA from A1

and corn, but not this year. Had Pafford not invested in a new $500,000 well a few years before the drought set in, he would have been forced to walk away from his pistachio crops altogether, he said.

Pafford called Obama’s visit to the valley “a lot of show.” He said the president’s drought aid package is akin to welfare that farmers like him don’t want or need.

After a late dinner with Jordanian King Abdullah II, one of the country’s closest Mideast allies, Obama spent the long holiday weekend in seclusion at Sunnylands, a desert retreat. He played rounds of golf with close friends and discuss the nearly 3-year-old civil war in Syria with top aides, including national security adviser Susan Rice.

Obama is weighing a “wide range of policy tools and options” for stepping up pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad to end his government’s attacks on civilians and rebel forces. Obama is also looking at ways to counter the rising threat of Islamist extremists in Syria, according a senior administration adviser who asked not to be identified.

Warning to Uganda On Sunday, Feb. 16, Obama said that a harsh new anti-gay law in Uganda would “complicate our valued relationship” with the east African country, which receives hundreds of mil-

National Urban League

President Marc Morial said his group’s research showed that raising the minimum wage the past six times had not cost jobs.

Morial, who was among a group of African-Americans who met Tuesday with Obama at the White House, said the minimum wage hadn’t kept pace with infla-

lions of dollars a year in U.S. aid.

In a last-ditch effort to derail the measure, national security advisor Rice called Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and urged him not to sign the measure. The law includes a provision of life in prison for “aggravated homosexuality.”

But amid news reports that Museveni was intent on pressing forward, Obama said that the move would be “a step backward for all Ugandans” and would reflect poorly on the country’s commitment to protecting the human rights of its people.

In his first term, Obama dispatched 100 U.S. troops to Africa to help hunt down the leaders of the violent Lord’s Resistance Army in and around Uganda. In addition, the U.S. gave more than $256 million in foreign assistance to Uganda last year.

Obama did not say specifically what changes might come as a result of the decision. But an administration official said Sunday that, if Uganda enacts the legislation, the White House would “conduct a review” of the country’s relationship with the U.S.

New truck rules Obama moved ahead Tuesday with plans to further tighten restrictions on carbon emissions from trucks and buses, saying the new fuel efficiency rules will reduce pollution, save consumers money and help cut back on oil imports.

He ordered the Environmental Protection Agency and Transportation Department to issue a first draft of the regulations for

tion and that workers’ ability to pay for necessities “erodes year after year because bread and milk and clothing and housing and baby’s diapers go up while their wages stay stagnant.”

Democrats in Congress said the report gave them ammunition in the fight for a minimum wage increase,

medium- and heavy-duty trucks

by March 2015 and to finalize the rules a year later.

The new fuel efficiency requirements will mark the second phase of the effort to reduce harmful pollutants by targeting trucks.

In 2011, the Obama administration completed fuel standards for trucks that call for a 20 percent reduction in heavy-vehicle emissions by 2018. Experts estimated manufacturers would need to boost fuel efficiency for trucks to an average of 8 miles per gallon to meet the new standards, up from 6 miles per gallon at the time of the announcement.

Those rules applied only to truck models for the years 2014 through 2018. The next round of regulations will set standards for models beyond 2018.

Heavy-duty trucks are the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions on the road, behind passenger cars, the White House said. The 2011 regulations are projected to save 530 million barrels of oil and reduce emissions by about 270 million metric tons, according to the White House, which estimates savings of $50 billion in reduced fuel costs over the lifetimes of the vehicles covered.

Summit in Mexico On Wednesday, Obama flew to Mexico for a summit of the leaders of the world’s largest trading bloc.

A bilateral spat between Mexico and Canada and anger in Ottawa over U.S. indecision on whether to build the Keystone XL

The CBO also examined the impact of a more modest proposal to raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour over the next two years and not to tie it to the rate of inflation thereafter.

That would move about 300,000 people above the poverty line while reducing overall employment by about 100,000 jobs, it estimated.

Some 7.6 million people would be affected by that change, the report found, with earnings for those workers rising by $9 billion and about 22 percent of that sum going to families with incomes under the poverty threshold.

Lesley Clark of the McClatchy Washington Bureau contributed to this report.

pipeline from western Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast cooled the atmosphere of the seven-hour summit.

Before boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews for the four-hour flight, the White House said, the president signed an executive order that’s intended to reduce bureaucratic barriers and speed up imports and exports, helping businesses strengthen supply chains across borders.

The move signaled that Obama wouldn’t cede to opposition to his trade agenda at home.

NAFTA anniversary The gathering in Toluca, Mexico’s fifth-largest city, coincides with the 20th anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which formed a market of 470 million people from Canada’s Yukon to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. The bloc represents more than 30 percent of global economic output.

Rather than re-debate NAFTA, Obama is expected to press Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to speak with one voice as they negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a proposed trade bloc that includes 12 countries around the Pacific Rim. The bright spot is an energy revolution that’s altering the global energy map and shifting its epicenter to North America, revitalizing manufacturing.

Mexico is irked at Canada over visa requirements that have caused its tourism to Canada to drop by about 50 percent since 2008 to about 130,000 Mexicans

FIGHT from A1

others asking for a repeal of the law, including lawyer Benjamin Crump, who represents Trayvon Martin’s parents, and Rep. Alan Williams, DTallahassee. Williams, the current chairman of the Florida Caucus of Black State Legislators, threatened that “there will be consequences” if Scott, seeking reelection, does not “provide leadership” on the issue.

“But what he has to understand is the consequences aren’t going to be at the ballot box.

They’re going to be in another casket,” Williams said.

Florida’s “stand your ground” law allows the defense to seek immunity from prosecution.

Like Zimmerman, Dunn did not choose that option.

Dunn claimed he shot at the car full of teenagers, killing 17-yearold Jordan Davis, because he thought there was a weapon in the car.

per year. In contrast, 1.9 million Canadians visit Mexico annually. Mexican diplomats say Canada requires 10 times more information from Mexican citizens to grant visas than the U.S. government requires.

Also irritating U.S.-Canada relations are delays in replacing the aged Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, the busiest international land border crossing in North America in terms of trade volume.

Warning to Ukraine Also on Wednesday, Obama warned Ukraine’s government to show restraint as clashes escalated in the capital of Kiev, urging the Ukrainian military to avoid violence to quash protests.

“We’re going to be watching closely, and we expect the Ukrainian government to show restraint, to not resort to violence in dealing with peaceful protesters,” the president said. He also urged “peaceful protesters to remain peaceful.”

Obama made it clear that he thinks the majority of Ukrainians want to establish a closer relationship with Europe in defiance of Russia, which has held sway over Ukraine for centuries.

The country is a key transit point for Russian natural gas exports to Europe.

Tim Johnson of the McClatchy Foreign Staff; Jessica Calefati and Paul Rogers of the San Jose Mercury News; and Kathleen Hennessey and Christi Parsons of the Tribune Washington Bureau (MCT) contributed to this report.

FLORIDA

FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

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Florida students named White House HBCU All-Stars 5 from state among 75 chosen nationwide as ambassadors FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Assists the president To qualify as an HBCU All-Star, students must display excellence in academics and community involvement through the submission of their college transcripts, resume, an essay and letters of recommendation.

According to WHIHBCU Executive Director George Cooper, the students will assist the White House in accomplishing its mission of “engaging with the next generation of leaders who will graduate from HBCUs and go on to make meaningful contributions to society.”

As ambassadors, the students will assist in advancing President Barack Obama’s goal of ensuring that a greater percentage of African-Americans complete college through promoting higher education and WHIHBCU programs on their campuses, social media and at regional and national events. The students will also be charged with engaging with other scholars to showcase the individual and collective talent of the HBCU community.

Jamil McGinnis

Jazmyne Simmons

Humbled by opportunity For Simmons, a Tallahassee native pursuing a master’s degree in public health, being selected as an HBCU AllStar is an opportunity to give back to FAMU and the HBCU community.

“I’ve always been taught to work hard, but to actually see it pay off is inspirational. I am really humbled and privileged to be called upon to step up and promote FAMU and HBCUs. FAMU has contributed to my success in so many ways,” said Simmons, who recently completed an internship at the Centers for Disease Control and hopes to pursue a career in the behavioral sciences, including starting a non-profit organization for victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.

According to McGinnis, a third-year business administration student from Tampa, the White House recognition is an opportunity to fulfill his dream of ensuring the financial soundness of young minorities through encouraging them to complete their education.

“Finance is something that drives our world – whether we know it or not. So, for me its about ensuring that the next person is fully equipped, through education, to go where they want to go financially, whether it is to Wall Street or just to help their family,” said McGinnis, president of the FAMU Chief Financier Organization, who recently completed an internship at J.P. Morgan and plans to pursue a career in finance.

For more information about the White House HBCU All-Star program, visit, /www.ed.gov/edblogs/whhbcu.

A report from Florida A&M University was used in this report.

OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/MCT

The National Rifle Association (NRA) office is photographed on March 14, 2013 in Fairfax, Va. The NRA is supporting the Florida proposal.

Gun owners could get help at tax offices State proposal adds tax collector’s offices as application sites

Carole Jean Jordan.

Collection fees

BY DARA KAM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Gun owners would be able to apply for concealed weapons licenses at their local tax collector’s offices under a National Rifle Association-backed measure approved unanimously by the Senate Agriculture Committee on Monday.

Florida has more than a million concealed weapons licenses and the number is growing. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has eight regional field offices where gun owners can apply for the permits in person, but demand is so high that the wait at some locales is six months for an appointment.

“It’s a convenience for the citizens of the state of Florida to be able to come into their own county in buildings that their taxes helped pay for. Whether it’s paying their taxes or getting a driver’s license, it’s a courtesy to the taxpayers,” said Indian River County Tax Collector

BRIEFS

FLORIDA COURIER

Compromise backed on nursing home lawsuits

UNIVERSAL PICTURES AND STUDIOCANAL PRESENT A SILVER PICTURES PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH ANTON CAPITAL ENTERTAINMENT S.C.A. AND LOVEFILM A JAUME COLLET-SERRA FILM LIAM NEESON “NON-STOP” JULIANNE MOORE SCOOT MCNAIRY MICHELLE DOCKERY NATE PARKER JASON BUTLER HARNER EXECUTIVE STEVE RICHARDS RON HALPERN OLIVIER COURSON HERBERT W. GAINS JEFF WADLOW AND ANSON MOUNT MUSICBY JOHN OTTMAN PRODUCERS STORY SCREENPLAY PRODUCED

BY JOHN W. RICHARDSON & CHRIS ROACH AND RYAN ENGLE

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Under the proposal, tax collectors would be able to charge an extra $22 on top of the $70 fee for new applications and an additional $12 for renewals, which cost $60. The county officials already process photos, fingerprints and other things associated with the concealed carry applications. The costs don’t include $42 for background checks, which will still be handled by the agriculture department.

Making it easier for gun owners to get concealed weapons licenses, which require some training, could make Floridians safer, said NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer.

“They become a little more conscious of the responsibility of gun ownership,” Hammer, who estimates that there are 8 million gun owners in Florida, said. “I think it can’t hurt.”

History of delays The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services offices in Fort Walton Beach, Jacksonville, Doral, Orlando, Punta Gorda, Tallahassee, Tampa and West Palm Beach are two-hour drives for some gun owners, many of whom prefer to hand over their paperics questioned whether the proposal addresses qualityof-care issues for nursinghome residents.

“I want more than what’s here,’’ Joyner said.

But bill sponsor John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, said the compromise was designed to resolve legal issues, rather than quality of care.

“If we feel strongly about that (addressing quality of care), let’s introduce a bill that does that,’’ Thrasher said.

The bill also is slated to go to the Senate Judiciary and Rules committees before heading to the full Senate.

– News Service of Florida

FRI: 02/21 FRI: 02/28 1/4 PG. (4.93") X 10" AS ALL.NSP.0221.FLORCOURemail

The White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (WHIHBCU) has named five students from Florida as “HBCU All-Stars.”

Seventy-five students from 62 historically Black institutions recently were named 2014 HBCU All-Stars.

The Florida students are Shantel Braynen of Daytona Beach, who attends Bethune-Cookman University; Tallahassee native Jamil McGinnis and Jazmyne Simmons of Tampa, who are students at Florida A&M University, Miami’s Jonte Myers of Florida Memorial University; and Vivian Nweze of Orlando, a student at Howard University.

The students were selected from an application pool of 445 students to become HBCU ambassadors to the White House.

Hoping to avoid a politically volatile debate, a Senate committee Tuesday approved a compromise plan that would make changes in lawsuits against nursing homes.

The compromise, offered as an amendment to SB 670, has the backing of the Florida Health Care Association nursing-home group, the Florida Justice Association trial-lawyers group and the AARP senior-advocacy group.

Among other things, it would shield “passive” nursing-home investors from liability stemming from injuries suffered by nursing-home residents; require judges to hold hearings to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to move forward with punitive-damage claims; and give power to the Agency for Health Care Administration to suspend nursinghome licenses, deny license renewals or prevent changes of ownership if homes do not pay legal judgments.

Opposed by Joyner The Senate Health Policy Committee voted 8-1 to approve the proposal, with Sen. Arthenia Joyner, DTampa, the only dissenter. Joyner and other crit-

‘Do not text’ bill advances in Senate A proposal to include text messages that feature sales pitches in the state’s “Do Not Call” list is one step closer to the Senate floor.

The measure (SB 450) by Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, received the unanimous backing of the Communications, Energy and Public Utilities Committee on Tuesday.

“This is a simple bill that simply keeps us up with technology,” Clemens said.

Currently, sales calls are prohibited when made by telephone solicitors to numbers on the list. The bill would expand the definition to include text messages.

work in person because of past delays processing the applications by mail.

Clerks at the regional offices can also ensure that applications contain all of the items necessary to be processed, another timesaver.

Applications now take about 35 days to process once received by the department, according to spokesman Aaron Keller.

Several years ago, the department had a backlog of up to six months to get the applications processed, which by law are required to be completed within 90 days.

Start-up costs for the program would be about $800,000, including 11 new workers, to get the operation up-and-running in 30 counties, according to Keller.

‘Natural thing’ The money would come from a trust fund made up of the concealed weapons license fees, which now has a balance of about $26 million. The department would enter into agreements with the tax collectors, who would not be required to participate.

“It’s just kind of a natural thing for us to go into, after doing drivers licenses.

We’re a very secure facility.

Our clerks are deputized,’’ Jordan said.

The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has estimated the change could cost about $200,000 a year, most for the salaries of regulatory consultants and a staff clerk.

Gripes about violations of the state’s “Do Not Call” list easily dominated the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ top complaints for 2013.

– News Service of Florida

Police: Tampa man fatally beaten over chicken foot TAMPA – Police in Tampa say a man is facing manslaughter charges after he beat his roommate to death in a dispute over a chicken foot.

Authorities say 52-yearold James Jugo was arrested after the beating death of 56-year-old Benjamin Calderon on Feb. 15. The Tampa Bay Times reported that the fight started after Calderon took the chicken foot from a skillet where Jugo was cooking.

An autopsy showed Calderon suffered internal bleeding after being hit numerous times on the face, neck and elsewhere. A witness told police that she saw Jugo hit Calderon with a board.

Jugo was jailed on $15,000 bail. Public records show Jugo has been arrested 19 times previously in Florida.

– Associated Press

EDITORIAL

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FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

Michael Sam stands tall “I’m a football player, and I’m gay.” With those words, Michael Sam, an All-American defensive end from the University of Missouri, demonstrated courage far beyond that demanded on the football field. And America may, for the first time, witness an openly gay man playing professional football.

“I just want to own my own truth,” said Sam, fully aware of what he risked by standing up.

There are no openly gay athletes in the NFL, NBA, NHL or major league baseball. That’s not to say there are no gay professional athletes. There have always been gays in professional sports, just as there have been in all professions — lawyers, doctors, bricklay-

Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM

ers and steelworkers. Some came out of the closet after they retired. Many gays were known, or widely suspected, by teammates but not admitted publicly.

When Jerry Smith, a tight end for the Washington Redskins, died of AIDS, some of his teammates served as pallbearers. It was rumored that he was gay when he was playing. His teammates rallied to him, partly because he could play. Sam has put his career of choice at risk. He’s a 6’2”, 260-pound menace

on the football field. He was the Associated Press Player of the Year in the Southeast Conference, considered the elite football conference. He was expected to be drafted high in the early rounds of the draft before the announcement. His announcement will now put the NFL and its owners to the test.

Rough on rookies As a path-breaker, Sam will face obstacles. Last week, Jonathan Vilma, a star linebacker for the New Orleans Saints, said openly that he wouldn’t want a gay teammate. The NFL locker room is already known as notoriously tough on rookies. Sam will no doubt face an even harsher introduction. When African-Amer-

R.J. MATSON

Random thoughts of a free Black mind, v. 202 quick takes from #2: straight, no chaser

Charles W. Cherry II, Esq. PUBLISHER

for 30 minutes. Thanks to all the listeners in the Daytona Beach area and those online who “thought it not robbery” to listen to me give my unvarnished opinion about everything for more than a decade…

Deacon Wilbert Kendrick, 1933-2014 – At the homegoing service last week, Attorney Earnest A. DeLoach, Jr. reflected on the “hard love” that inspired Deacon Kendrick to spend long days away from home driving 18-wheelers to provide for his family. That manly “hard love” generally isn’t recognized on Valentine’s Day. I understand and have benefited from such love. Thanks to all the men, living and dead, who do and have done what’s necessary for their families…

Contact me at ccherry2@gmail.com; holler at me at www.facebook.com/ ccherry2 and ‘like’ the Florida Courier and Daytona Times pages.

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.

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several states with more to come. On Monday, Attorney General Eric Holder issued orders to the Justice Department to recognize the federal rights of legally married same sex couples no matter where they are living.

Courage should be saluted A millennial generation is growing up that scorns those who would discriminate on the basis of whom one chooses to love. Even Pope Francis has asked, “Who am I to judge?” arguing that people “should not be marginalized” because of their sexual orientation and “must be integrated into society.” But this kind of change doesn’t come on its own. It takes courageous citizens of conscience to stand up. It requires organizing, marching and pro-

tests. Lives and careers are put at risk. The most courageous often pay the highest price, as exemplified by Dr. Martin Luther King.

The courage of Michael Sam should be saluted. But we should also stand with him. The NFL, its owners, its coaches and players should understand that it is time to step up. The football field is a level playing field.

All play by the same set of rules. There is no place for exclusion or discrimination in professional athletics.

Michael Sam asks only to be graded by his performance on the field. And if history is any guide, if he is given a fair shot, he will do just fine.

Jesse Jackson, Sr. is the founder of Rainbow/ PUSH. Write your own response at www.flcourier. com.

Dealing with more ‘Misery’

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: SPEAKER BOEHNER LETS HOUSE VOTE TO LIFT THE DEBT LIMIT

The Michael Dunn case – It’s not the jury or the prosecution that is the cause of a jacked-up verdict that punishes the shooter for missing his human targets, while allowing the same shooter to get off – temporarily – after intentionally killing a human being. It’s the jacked-up “shoot first/ stand your ground” law that was included in the jury instructions in the Dunn trial and in the George Zimmerman trial. As long as those instructions remain, you’ll get verdicts like Zimmerman’s (an acquittal) or Dunn’s (a hung jury, despite independent eyewitnesses at a well-lit location and an unrepentant shooter who testified at trial, was vigorously cross-examined, and gave inconsistent statements). Next: the Tampa case involving a retired cop allegedly threatened by popcorn thrown at him in a darkened movie theater. He’ll walk...

WPUL-AM shuts down – After more than 25 years on the air in the Daytona Beach area, technical problems are forcing the station off the air indefinitely. I’ve been broadcasting my talk show, “Free Your Mind,” on WPUL-AM every Tuesday at noon for the past 14 years. It’s been a blast. The show changed from talk and listener calls to just me ranting and raving

icans broke into segregated institutions, they knew that they would have to perform better and act better to compete. For Sam to survive in the NFL, he’ll no doubt have to perform better and play better than other rookies. But he’s been through this before. At the beginning of this season, he told his teammates at Mizzou that he was gay. Many already knew or suspected.

The team worked through the problems. Sam dominated on the field. And at the end of the season, they voted him their most valuable player.

Sam is part of a movement for equality that is sweeping all before it. In 2000, Republicans used same-sex marriage as a wedge issue to help win elections. Now, Americans attitudes have been transformed. Same-sex marriage laws have been passed in

As promised last month, I want to further explore my take on the motivation of those politicians who have chosen to place partisan politics above the well being of the nation they claim to love so much. The only caveat I offer is that these are my opinions, but opinions based upon the old axiom, “If it walks, talks and quacks like a duck – it’s a duck.”

When I assess current circumstances in government, I’m reminded of the 1990 movie based on the Stephen King novel, "Misery."

In the movie, Kathy Bates plays Annie, the psychopathic fan of novelist Paul, played by James Caan. The bottom-line – Annie holds Paul hostage and inflicts horrific torture - misery upon him because she disagrees with the plot of his new manuscript.

Like the psychopathic Annie, Congressional Republicans have decided to hold the process of governing hostage and inflict untold torture upon the country, in part, because they disapprove of President Obama’s agenda and his vision for the future. I say, in part, because there are obvious signs of enmity based upon other reasons.

Stop all success From day one of the Obama Presidency, the stated goal of Congressional Republicans has been to thwart ANY success that his administration might

between her physician and

Dr. E. her. Enough said!

Faye Williams, Affordable health care Esq. TRICE EDNEY WIRE

realize. Sadly, this goal was undertaken regardless of the impact on the country or our citizens. The result has been economic malaise for the middle-class, a war on women and an incessant effort to return 30+ millions of Americans to the rolls of those without health insurance.

Logical action, based upon equity and fairness, is the simple resolution to the problems stated above, and more. A comprehensive jobs plan would do more to reestablish our middleclass than the futile effort to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. Repair of deficiencies in the national infrastructure as well as a needed shot in the arm to the national economy could be achieved with a Roosevelt/Depression-Era type jobs plan.

Resolution to the war on women could begin with equal pay. Although The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act affords women legal remedy for known acts of pay discrimination, a mandate of equal pay for equal work would give women the fair value of their work without having to litigate. The logical next step is the realization that a woman’s reproductive decisions are made

The assault on the President’s health care plan is the most concerted and vicious. It’s difficult to imagine any rational individual being desirous of stripping millions of citizens of affordable healthcare options that could extend their lives and those of their families and friends. Somehow increasing the profits of health insurers does not completely explain the visceral opposition to the ACA. Absent any other logical explanation, I can only surmise that the goal is to create a level of misery and discomfort that the ‘average’ citizen will hold President Obama and members of his party in such disdain that, for the mere hope of relief, they will vote against anyone with similar political goals.

If these events were found in a Stephen King novel, one could find the suspense intriguing. In real life, however, our only concern should be in identifying the true source of our misery and showing them out the door of their political careers. Voting in 2014 is urgent!

Dr. E. Faye Williams is Chair of the National Congress of Black Women. Write your own response at twww.flcourier. com.

Rick Scott misleading Floridians again with education budget “In 2011 and 2012 Florida state charter schools received $55 million each year, while 67 public school districts received no state Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) dollars,” says James Call of the Florida Current. When most residents try to understand a state budget they have no idea what the numbers mean. But when a line item indicates Public Education and it goes to a private institution, there is a fundamental accounting error, or a lie.

PECO is a state program that provides funds to school districts from revenue derived from tax collected on gross receipts from the sale of utility services. There are two types of PECO funds for school districts: 1. PECO maintenance dollars, and 2. PECO new construction dollars. Lately in the news district superintendents are screaming about funding and now with our governor, we understand where the money is going.

When the state charter schools are allocated $55 million and the public schools get nothing, the public schools are falling apart. Governor Scott from the very beginning had an agenda and he has been pushing for school choice and ignoring the public schools. As the public schools suffer, the national and large charter school

ROGER CALDWELL GUEST COLUMNIST

owners line their pockets with profits, and claim they can give a better education with less funding per student.

“In 2013, the charter schools received $91 million while school districts split $6 million with another $14 million going toward special facility construction projects in rural counties,” says Mr. Call. This is better than the last two years, but it would appear that the majority of the funding would be allocated to the facilities where the most students would be impacted.

Money for charters

for public schools. This line item is hidden in the budget, and very few people are looking for specific line items.

But in 2014, it is extremely crucial to our children’s education, because something that needs to be fixed is left broken. Instead of our children learning a new procedure; it is cheaper to teach the old procedure, because management and teachers cannot afford to teach the new procedure.

Governor Scott and his cronies need to be voted out of office, because they refuse to tell the truth.

The public school system in Florida is crumbling in front of our eyes, and the question has always been, “where is the money going?” When our leaders allocate millions of dollars to their friends, that own local and national charter schools, they corrupt and bastardize the system.

In 2014, everyone should pay attention to the educational line-item budget numbers, and how the PECO dollars are spent and allocated. If the charter schools get a larger portion of the PECO funding than the public schools, let our leaders know, it is no way to run a state fairly.

In Florida there are only 350 charter schools, but there are 3,500 public schools in 67 counties.

Our governor is always on the wrong side when helping Floridians, because he spends the majority of his time hurting the children and the residents of the state.

His own party has been fighting with our goverWrite your own renor with this line item, because they know that it is sponse at www.flcourier. devastating to the funding com.

FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

EDITORIAL

Clarence Thomas’ self-inflicted amnesia Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is at it again. Whenever he opens his mouth about race, he displays a surprising myopia for a 65-year-old AfricanAmerican man who was raised in the Deep South during a segregated era. During his confirmation hearing, Thomas excoriated his own family, speaking of his sister as someone (and I paraphrase) waiting around for her welfare check.

He was equally contemptuous of other members of his family, even as they were loyal to him and attended some of his hearings. A notable point in his confirmation hearing was a moment when he said he experienced the pain of racism when his grandmother could not use a desegregated bathroom. I’d remind him now, as I did then in a column, that it wasn’t personal, and it wasn’t just his grandmother, it was everybody’s grandmother. That’s the collective and institutional knowledge than Thomas lacks.

Race comes up everyday The old Clarence Thomas resurfaced when he went to Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Fla. to deliver a speech.

According to news reports, he said: “My sadness is that we are probably today more race and difference-conscious than I was in the 1960s when I went to school.

To my knowledge, I was the first Black kid in Savannah, Georgia, to go to a White school. Rarely did

DR. JULIANNE MALVEAUX TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM

the issue of race come up. Now, name a day it doesn’t come up.

Differences in race, differences in sex, somebody doesn’t look at you right, somebody says something. Everybody is sensitive. If I had been as sensitive as that in the 1960s, I’d still be in Savannah. Every person in this room has endured a slight. Every person. Somebody has said something that has hurt their feelings or did something to them –left them out.”

'Stood up to the White man' People didn’t talk about race much until the 1950s and early 1960s, and when they did, then, they did them with a whisper. When Emmett Till was killed in 1955, there were few AfricanAmericans who took White folks to account for this, except for the large African-American organizations, such as the NAACP. Because of their very public stance on the issue, the organization was described as “subversive,” their members (and the members of other organizations) were labeled “outside agitators”.

Before Till, there were thou-

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: MICHAEL SAM

sands of incidents, few making headlines. For African-Americans, acts that left African-Americans lynched and killed, run off their property, and just plain disappear were not much discussed.

It was understood that those harassed are those who “stood up to the White man.” Some of these oppressions are only now being uncovered. Of course, people are talking about race.

Furthermore, things like employment discrimination are not simple “slights” that result in hurt feelings. Instead, they are institutional attacks on a community’s economic well-being. Differences in the well-documented ways that interest rates are offered for homes and automobiles are not slights but pernicious economic discrimination.

DR. SINCLAIR GREY III PROJECT 21

Love knows no bounds Whether you agree or disagree with a person’s lifestyle, displaying love shows the world that it’s okay to have disagreement and yet love.

This leads to me to the big discussion about how the LGBT community has somehow misdirected their efforts in a community they want acceptance from. The first thing I want to make known is that I love my fellow brothers and sisters, no matter their race, ethnicity, nationality, or sexual orientation. The problem I have with many (not all) people who identify themselves as being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender is that they believe that peo-

ple who disagree with their lifestyle are homophobic.

The Book Society and the Healthy Individual written by psychologist George Weinberg first brought about the word ‘homophobia which means to have a fear, hatred or dislike for homosexuals. Common sense tells us under no circumstances must anyone display hatred towards another person, but the dilemma arises when there’s a disagreement not with the person but with the practice.

Homophobic and bullying Let me say it this way. If a person has a problem accepting or condoning the sexual act of homosexuality, does that mean the person fears, hates, or dislikes the person? I don’t think so. If a person steals, do you dislike the person or the act? You dislike the act of stealing. Unfortunately, many people have been labeled as be-

Civil Rights Movement and hip-hop African American History Month is an appropriate time to raise the question of the relationship between the Civil Rights Movement and the evolution of hip-hop culture and activism. Of course, I am very much aware that for some people this may appear to be a strange question to ask given the popular perception that there is a serious generation gap between the young and the elders. Yet, the issues of consciousness, values, principles, and ethics in context of the ongoing struggle for freedom, justice, equality and empowerment are matters that transcend age, gender, race and social class.

Too often there has been a tendency to engage in intergenerational finger pointing to lay blame for so many negative or self-destructive incidents have occurred in our communities. The truth is no one age group is solely responsible for the lack of progress or for the advancement of the interests of African-Americans.

I am blessed because I grew up and participated in the Civil Rights Movement in my native state of North Carolina. I had the privilege of working as a youth organizer for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Act not ask When you fight for freedom and when you stand up for justice squarely in face of oppression, you do not seek permission from others. What was required was an impenetrable solid faith in the God of justice and liberation that

DR. BENJAMIN F. CHAVIS, JR. NNPA COLUMNIST

aroused a ferocious courage that would not erode to a challenge or difficulty. The genius of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Black American church was the strategic practice and use of prayer, song, sermon and direct social action that “moved” millions of people to take a protracted stand for racial justice and equality. I once heard Rev. C.T. Vivian explain, “Building a movement for social change is about motivating and ‘moving’ people forward on the irreversible path to self-awareness, affirmation, and action to confront injustice and inequality.”

Hip-hop is more than music Hip-hop is a cultural phenomenon that represents the cognitive, expressive and musical creativity of youth who first evolved out of the crucible of poverty in the South Bronx, New York among African-Americans and Latino Americans whose poetry, prayers, dance, lyrics, songs, music and art forms all reflected the genius of a generation of new freedom fighters. Poetry, music, dance, artwork and lyrics that “spit truth in da face of power” became the new order of the day that rapidly spread to every neighborhood across Ameri-

DAVID FITZSIMMONS, THE ARIZONA STAR

the window of the vehicle, weaponless. Hiding behind the Stand Your Ground law, he says he felt threatened. If he felt so “threatened” why did he even bother to Oversensitivity approach the car of young men Thomas willfully reduces insti- minding their business? tutional racism to oversensitivity, when one more cognizant of No muzzles history might acknowledge that and no chains both micro and macro inequities What has race got to do with it? impact economic advancement, In the time when people didn’t and quality of life.

Thomas is joined by George talk about race, this question Zimmerman, who says his mas- might not be asked. Today, besacre of Trayvon Martin has noth- cause people perceive “slights,” ing to do with race, and has cast (like the murder of young Black himself as the victim in a trage- men), the question of race inevdy he perpetuated. Thus, Michael itably and appropriately comes Dunn, objecting to loud music, up. Thomas dissented in the Hudaimed multiple bullets at a ve- son case, which awarded an inhicle holding four young Black mate $800 after he claimed cruel men, killing one, Jonathan Da- and unusual punishment when vis, who was leaning away from he was beaten so badly that his

Love: We can agree to disagree Last week, many people celebrated Valentine’s Day by purchasing gifts, cards, and treating their loved ones to something special. Every year, florists and bakeries can see a tremendous increase in profits because love is in the air. Even though expressing one’s love for another isn’t dedicated to once a year, nor should it be, there is something about love on Valentine’s Day that makes people do some interesting things.

When Valentine’s Day is over, people still have to communicate their love. That’s right; the importance of communicating love (verbally and nonverbally) needs to take place and should take place. Whether you’re in a heterosexual or homosexual relationship, love isn’t something you turn off after the holiday. If you’re concerned that I referenced heterosexual and homosexual love, it’s because we’re living in a society that has accepted both.

A5

ca and eventually throughout the world. Hip-hop evolved to transcend race, ethnicity, class, gender and every other social category with demands for not only freedom of expression but also for “giving back and taking responsibility.”

The truth is that there is an inextricable connection between the Civil Rights Movement and Hip-hop. In fact, I would offer that the Civil Rights generation gave birth to the Hip-hop generation. Our long struggle for freedom, justice and equality cannot afford to reach a place when one generation, for whatever may be the perceived reason, cannot and will not speak to each other with a sense of dignity, understanding and mutual respect.

This is a subject that requires a deeper analysis and over the next several weeks, I intend to present and reflect on these issues for the sake of clarity.

I am an optimist. We do not have time for hopelessness, pessimism or cynicism.

I thank God for both the Civil Rights Movement and for Hip-hop. Now let’s all work together and help make the world a better place for all people.

Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. is President of Education Online Services Corporation and the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com.

ing homophobic because they choose to voice their personal opinion against the act of homosexuality.

Another problem I have with many people in the LGBT community is their bullying tactics imposed on people who disagree with their lifestyle. So many people like to brag about freedom of speech but when freedom of speech doesn’t line up with the agenda of a certain group, they’re called names, bashed, and ridiculed. Wait a minute! If the same group of people are fighting for acceptance by others complain about the abuse they received or may be receiving because of their lifestyle, why should they in turn bully those who don’t agree with them. It seems as though if someone were truly secure in who they are, they wouldn’t resort to foolish tactics that initiate hatred.

True meaning of love People who feel the need to enact bullish tactics don’t understand the meaning of love. Permit me to quote from biblical scripture, which says, ‘Love is patient,

dental plate was broken in his mouth. I guess he regarded police brutality as a simple “slight.”

People talk about race (and gender) more because they are not muzzled by an institutional racism that made it impossible to have these conversations without consequence, because “race champions” were beaten, firebombed, and killed because they dared seek social and economic justice. Thomas may lack institutional memory but he, frankly, makes a fool of himself when openly displays his ignorance.

Julianne Malveaux is a Washington, D.C.-based economist and writer. She is President Emerita of Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, N.C. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com. love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.’

My final thought is that we must come to embrace people as human beings. We have different thoughts, ideas, and lifestyles. No one is inferior or superior to another. Just because we may think differently, that should never lead to a fear, dislike, or hatred of a person. For people (anyone) to be truly accepted as a person, they must respect, love, and embrace who they are without worrying about the approval or acceptance of others.

Dr. Sinclair Grey III is an inspirational speaker, motivator, author and committed advocate for change. Contact him at drgrey@sinclairgrey.org or on Twitter @drsinclairgrey. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com.

Protect the most endangered species on earth It’s not the elephant, it’s not the owl, it’s not the panda, the world’s most endangered species is the Black male teenager!

Don’t ever think that Florida is the only place where Black children can be gunned down by white separatists, white supremacists or white racists in broad daylight.

Where ever you are, where ever you live and whatever non-threatening thing you do, all a hater has to do is call you a gangster or a thug and proceed to shoot you multiple times!

The African-American community has to protect African-American children.

Black people can’t depend on the police for protection. Many people that shoot unarmed, law abiding teenagers are released immediately once the shooter says he stood his ground and killed the teenager in self defense.

Depend on self You can’t depend on a courtroom where everything a Black eyewitness says is questioned and everything a murderer says is considered the unquestionable truth.

We have to depend on ourselves. So-called Negro leaders have to let the world know that the murders of Black teenagers

Lucius Gantt THE GANTT REPORT

will be avenged. If death is good for Black children I wonder why mass murders always seem to shoot up White grade schools and White colleges?

All children are targets for gun toting devils! All children and all parents should be afraid of trigger-happy people looking for someone to murder.

And, Black children should be more afraid than any other American youth.

Jewish children aren’t being shot by neo-nazis.

Native American children are not being shot by modern day cowboys.

Cuban American children are not being shot by communist agitators.

Christian children aren’t being targeted for gun play by Muslim terrorists.

But Black children have to look over their shoulders every day! They can’t go to the neighborhood market. They can’t go to the service station. They can’t go anywhere where someone has a gun, has a gripe and is looking for someone to unload a clip on!

It’s easy to convict a

Black man for killing a dog but it seems hard as hell to convict a White man for murdering a Black child.

Stand your ground Executions of Black children using stand your ground laws as a defense will go on and on until children of other races begin to get murdered.

Black dislike for self defense laws mean nothing until a non-white person fires ten high powered bullets into a SUV full of white teenagers.

Saying you killed a white teen because you feared him would not even fly in a Hollywood movie!

One day one of these modern day vigilantes is going to run up on a Black person that has just as many weapons as they do and the outcome of a subsequent shooting will be far different than it has recently been in the State of Florida.

Until then, Black male teenagers will remain the world’s most endangered species!

Buy Gantt’s latest book “Beast Too: Dead Man Writing.” Contact Lucius at www. allworldconsultants. net. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com.

TOj A6

NATION

FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

Can Scott force re-alignment of Blacks with GOP? Conservatives believe election of South Carolina Republican will attract more minorities to party

(what) I am,” Scott told The State newspaper. “Some people really want to hold dear the notion that Republicans and conservatives just don’t care about people.

“Perhaps what they’re afraid of is … it threatens their position in the world of being the only defenders of those who are the most vulnerable.”

BY JAMIE SELF THE STATE/MCT

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Strom Thurmond’s 1964 switch to the Republican Party helped make the GOP in vogue in South Carolina, prompting White conservatives to flock to the Grand Old Party. Now, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, the state’s first African-American senator, could help expand the party again, attracting minority voters, some conservatives say.

Scott was appointed to the Senate in December 2012, when U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint resigned to run the Heritage Foundation. Scott now faces his first statewide race, a November special election to fill the balance of DeMint’s unexpired term.

While Lindsey Graham, South Carolina’s other Republican U.S. senator, is besieged by GOP primary opponents, Scott faces no Republican challenge in June.

However, two Democrats have launched campaigns for Scott’s seat: Rick Wade, a former South Carolina Cabinet director, U.S. Commerce Department official and adviser to Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns; and Richland County Councilwoman Joyce Dickerson.

Automatic credibility?

If Scott wins the November contest and then again in 2016, he would become a “national symbol for conservative values in the Black community, and he will begin to force a realignment” of African-American voters with the GOP, said Clemson University professor Dave Woodard, a Republican consultant.

Scott’s successes would make it easier for African-Americans who do not agree with the Democratic Party’s positions on social issues — including abortion

Pushback from Dems

GERRY MELENDEZ/THE STATE/MCT

U.S. Sen. Tim Scott is shown at the South Carolina Inland Port groundbreaking ceremony in Greer, S.C. on March 1, 2013. and gay marriage — to shift to the GOP, Woodard said.

State Senate President Pro Tempore John Courson, R-Richland, said Scott’s continued presence as one of 100 U.S. senators would give him “automatic credibility” and help the GOP appeal to minorities in the state and nationally.

But not everyone thinks a Scott win would result in an exodus of African-Americans to the Republican Party.

No difference yet Thurmond’s transformation of the Southern GOP was “pretty dramatic,” said Scott Buchanan, a Citadel political scientist. “But I don’t see the same thing (happening) with Scott.”

That’s because even while many African-Americans already agree with the GOP on some social issues, they still do not vote Republican. “It hasn’t made any difference yet,” Buchanan said.

In a move meant to define himself, political observers say, Scott is trying to appeal to AfricanAmericans by making education

and access to jobs, traditionally Democratic issues, his issues.

‘Opportunity Agenda’ Last month, Scott introduced his first two Senate bills, calling them his “Opportunity Agenda.”

They are conservative proposals that should appeal to families stuck in struggling schools and economically depressed communities, Scott said.

Before introducing the bills, Scott said, he spent time during a congressional break riding a city bus, working at a restaurant “learning how to sweep floors again and cut chicken,” and talking to employees about what they need.

But, critics note, while Scott was introducing his “opportunity” legislation, he also was voting against other proposals intended to help the vulnerable, including extended jobless benefits, a bipartisan budget bill and a farm bill with money for food assistance programs that help poor families.

“The rhetoric doesn’t fit his actions,” said South Carolina Dem-

ocratic Party chairman Jaime Harrison, also an African-American. “You can’t go out and say, ‘I’m going to see how it feels to be a single mom,’ and then vote against the programs that help them.”

Fierce criticism Some of the criticism of Scott has been more fierce.

At a Martin Luther King Jr. Day event in Columbia last month, the Rev. William Barber II, president of the North Carolina NAACP, said of Scott: “A ventriloquist can always find a good dummy.”

“The extreme right wing down here (in South Carolina) finds a Black guy to be senator and claims he’s the first Black senator since Reconstruction and then he goes to Washington, D.C., and (he) articulates the agenda of the tea party, “ Barber said.

Scott dismissed Barber’s comments, saying the minister does not know anything about him or his past.

“There is an all-out assault to make me something other than

The subtext, he said, is that defenders of the vulnerable “can’t look like me and be a Republican.”

That pushback is “characteristic of what other conservative, Black Republicans have faced” from many in the African-American community, said the Citadel’s Buchanan.

In the 1960s, the Democratic Party delivered landmark civil rights legislation that ensured that Blacks would be allowed to vote while the GOP became “the party of … White conservatives who want to keep the status quo,” Buchanan said. “To many in the Democratic Party, (a Black conservative) raises the question: ‘Why are you a Republican?’ ” Of the Rev. Barber’s “dummy” comment, Clemson’s Woodard said, “In the Black community, anybody who doesn’t think like they do, they use a racial slur.”

Republicans say Scott’s race and his personal story, including his rise from poverty, make him an effective messenger for conservative values in the black community.

Glenn McCall of Rock Hill, one of three African-Americans on the 160-plus-member Republican National Committee, said Scott’s strategy of reaching out to African-Americans in “Democratic strongholds” is one the party has developed to expand its base as the country grows increasingly diverse.

“He’s going to get significant support across the board in our state, but ... he’s going to cross the party line, and also the racial line, because he’s doing the right thing and the thing that we have to do for the future of the party,” McCall said.

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Bethune archives relocated from D.C. house See page B2

SHARING BLACK LIFE, STATEWIDE www.flcourier.com

FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

SHARING BLACK LIFE, STATEWIDE

Black History Moment: The Kings’ wedding See page B4

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By Gregory Clay, McClatchy-Tribune News Service

In 1964, the circus-like theatrics in Miami centered around “The Scowl” vs. “The Mouth.”

It was Sonny Liston battling Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali — think Mike Tyson times two facing a whirling comet.

Liston was a frightening ex-con meeting the new kid on the block; Clay was an upstart boxer with an Olympic gold medal, who ultimately became a once-in-a-lifetime lord of the ring.

Still, old-school Liston, above, was viewed as a menace to other boxers; the anti-establishment Clay was viewed as a menace to society during a time when most athletes were seen and not heard.

If you were that old-school guard of the media and public, you preferred Liston, Black and White citizens alike; the new school of the young and revolutionary types preferred Clay during a time of much racial strife and social upheaval in the United States.

That’s why Clay’s winning the heavyweight boxing title for the first time was such a milestone. It represented the dawning of a new era not only in sports but also in culture and society.

“The Beatles were in Miami, (prominent Black Muslim leader) Malcolm X was there,” said Robert Lipsyte, then a 20-something sportswriter who covered the fight for the New York Times.

“To me, that’s when the ’60s really began. The ’50s died when (President) Kennedy was killed. Everything kind of changed. (Clay) became one of the guiding spirits of the ’60s. He became the best-known face on the planet in that decade.”

Brooding brute Liston lived up to his nickname (“The Big Bear”) in pummeling Floyd Patterson with a first-round knockout in 1962 to become the world heavyweight boxing champion. Fifty years ago on Feb. 25, Clay beat Liston to snatch that heavyweight title and shake up the world.

Baseball icon Jackie Robinson mused, Clay “outsmarted a scary man.”

That scary man, Charles “Sonny” Liston, was 6 feet tall and weighed 218 pounds. He had been arrested at least 19 times. Liston learned to write his name while in a Missouri penitentiary, where he also learned to box. Nevertheless, the man born on a cotton plantation in Arkansas with up to 25 siblings still couldn’t read. But he had a devastating left hook.

He once told Sports Illustrated, “I had nothing when I was a kid but a lot of brothers and sisters, a helpless mother and a father who didn’t care about any of us. We grew up with few clothes, no shoes, little to eat. My father worked me hard and whupped me hard.”

Louisville Lip

Cassius Clay lands a punch to the face of Sonny Liston during their first fight on Feb. 25, 1964. Clay became the heavyweight champ of the world.

John Pineda/Miami Herald/mct

This was Clay: standing upright, dancing on his toes while circling his opponent, head held high, fists lowered to navel level, leaning backward.

Clay’s style was unprecedented; he was a heavyweight displaying a middleweight’s athleticism.

Clay would later describe his fighting style as, “I float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.”

The controversial Clay, a consummate showman with the signature jab, was a poet who made it his business model to let you know it. For instance: “Clay comes out to meet Liston and Liston starts to retreat, “If Liston goes back an inch farther he’ll end up in a ringside seat. ...”

Bees, butterflies and Beatles The lead-up to the Liston-Clay fight that week also coincided with the Beatles touring Miami and two appearances on the iconic “Ed Sullivan Show” on Feb. 16 and 23. Boxing promoter Harold Conrad arranged for the Beatles to appear for photo shoots with Liston and Clay. The rock group first visited Liston, but the “Big Bear” growled with disapproval.

“The Beatles told me Liston said, ‘I refuse to pose with them sissies,’” said Lipsyte.

Lipsyte, at the time, was a 26-yearold journalist assigned to replace the New York Times’ regular boxing writer, who declined to cover the bout. Remember, Liston was a prohibitive 7 to 1 favorite because he was the defending champion and Clay hadn’t defeated anyone of note. It turned out to be an assignment of a lifetime that forever altered the media career of Lipsyte, now the ombudsman for cable TV’s ESPN. One day, Lipsyte was at Clay’s training ground, the 5th Street Gym in Miami Beach, conversing with the Beatles while waiting for Clay to appear.

“Suddenly,” Lipsyte recalled, “he

While Liston was the “Brooding Brute,” the 22-year-old Clay was the “Louisville Lip.” Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., named after the 19th-century Kentucky abolitionist and Republican politician, was 6-foot-3 and weighed 210 pounds. He won the gold medal in boxing’s lightheavyweight division during the 1960 Rome Summer Olympics. Clay was born in Louisville, Ky., in a lower middle-class setting. His father was a billboard painter and musician; his mother worked as a house domestic. Clay learned to box upon the advice of a police officer who saw a livid 12-yearold Clay after his bicycle was stolen.

The steaming Clay vowed to capture and beat down the thief, but the officer told him he’d better learn boxing first.

There, a dream was hatched.

Many boxing lovers advocated Liston’s conventional style: low fighting stance, slow lateral motion, head duckZuma/MCT ing, fists raised to face and neck level, leaning forward, a la Joe Louis. Clay ... Rising stars Cassius Clay and the well, he was exponentially unorthodox. Beatles meet up in Miami.

bursts through the door, and he says, ‘Come on Beatles. Let’s go make some money.’’’

Clay in control Most experts and casual observers alike — including the Beatles — predicted a massacre. But the fight didn’t follow that script.

“Clay was in control of the fight from the beginning,” explained Lipsyte, 76, and author of the book “Free to Be Muhammad Ali.” Clay’s powerful combinations resulted in a bruise under Liston’s right eye and a cut under his left.

Liston, who died in 1970, refused to answer the bell for the seventh round.

He spat out his mouthpiece while sitting on his stool.

That, of course, only fueled the supercharged conspiracy theorists: 1. Did Liston stop because of his purported Mafia ties?

2. Did he really suffer a torn tendon in his left shoulder?

3. Did he resign himself to a loss and refused further humiliation?

4. Did he fear the Nation of Islam?

5. Did he anticipate a bigger payday in a rematch with Clay?

Following his colossal victory, Clay defiantly screamed to anyone who would listen ringside: “I shook up the world” and “I am the greatest” and “I’m a bad man” and “I’m pretty.”

Becoming Ali After those lofty proclamations, the loud and proud Clay the next day announced he was converting to the Muslim religion and becoming a member of the Nation of Islam. That further shook up the world because the sect was viewed by many as an anti-White hate group.

Many U.S. citizens — White and Black and including his father — were opposed to this startling metamorphosis in which he abandoned “Cassius Clay.” Initially, Clay embraced the Muslim name Cassius X, saying he was eradicating his slave name of “Clay.”

The name “Muhammad Ali” soon followed in March of 1964 and, thus, another controversy was launched.

All of this name-changing resulted in a major conundrum for many media outlets — what do you call this guy?

Some media pronounced he still was “Cassius Clay” unless Clay provided official notification of a name change through court proceedings.

However, despite the name-game controversy, everyone was obligated to call Clay/Ali this in ’64: the new heavyweight champion of the world.

1942: Born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., Jan. 17, in Louisville, Ky. 1954: Wins his first amateur fight in a split decision 1959: Wins Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions and the Amateur Athletic Union’s national title 1960: Wins the Olympic gold medal for boxing 1964: Becomes world heavyweight champion after knocking out Sonny Liston; joins the Nation of Islam, changing his name to Muhammad Ali 1966: Conscientiously objects to serving in the Vietnam War 1967: Found guilty of draft evasion by the Justice Department, which revokes his passport; stripped of his title, banned from boxing 1971: Wins draft dodging battle in the U.S. Supreme Court, but loses the “Fight of the Century” to Joe Frazier; defeats Jerry Quarry 1972: Defeats Floyd Patterson in a rematch 1974: Wins unanimous decision against Frazier in a rematch; knocks out George Foreman in the “Rumble in the Jungle” in Kinshasa, Zaire 1975: Defeats Frazier in the “Thrilla in Manila,” their third bout, thought by many to be one of the greatest boxing matches 1978: Loses title to Leon Spinks, then regains it in rematch seven months later, becoming the first three-time heavyweight champ 1981: Loses title to Trevor Berbick; retires with 56 wins (37 by knockout) and five losses; begins devoting himself to philanthropy 1983: Inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame 1984: Says he has Parkinson’s disease 1990: Negotiates the release of 14 U.S. hostages from Iraq 1996: Lights the Olympic flame for the Summer Games in Atlanta 1998: Named U.N. Messenger of Peace for humanitarian work 1999: Named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Century, BBC Sports Personality of the Century 2005: Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom; Muhammad Ali Center opens in Louisville with the goals of preserving his legacy and continuing his humanitarian work

Source: ali.com, biography.com, Smithsonian National Museum of American History, NOVA

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FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

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Appiah examines Du Bois’ intellectual influences in ‘Lines of Descent’ BOOK REVIEW

BY DR. GLENN ALTSCHULER SPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

For much of his long life, W.E.B. Du Bois gave voice to his anger at racism in America. Nonetheless, the distinguished scholar, co-founder of the NAACP, and convert to Marxism was deeply ambivalent about the nation to which he had been born.

Although he had recently become a citizen of Ghana, Du Bois sent a telegram of support to the 1963 March on Washington on the day he died. And in a posthumously published memoir, he invoked the dichotomy that characterized his thought: “how far can love for my oppressed race accord with love for the oppressing country?”

From Harvard to Berlin In Lines of Descent, Kwame Anthony Appiah traces the intellectual influences on Du Bois – at Harvard in the 1880s and the University of Berlin in the 1890s

and The Ethics of Identity.

Rejected concept of race

Review of Lines of Descent: W.E.B. Du Bois and the Emergence of Identity. By Kwame Anthony Appiah. Harvard University Press.

227 pp. $18.95.

– that shaped his extraordinarily influential ideas about race and social identity.

Appiah’s beautifully written, lucid and sophisticated book takes the measure of “the alternating currents” of Du Bois’ thought and of “both the souls of individual black folk and of the multiple black souls contending for possession of the collective black folk.”

It’s hard to imagine anyone better suited to these tasks than Professor Appiah. A philosopher and cultural theorist, he was born in England and raised in Ghana. Appiah has taught at Cornell, Harvard, Princeton and New York University. His many books include Cosmopolitanism

Appiah demonstrates that Du Bois’ struggle to understand “the real meaning” of race remains eminently relevant in 2014. Drawing on population genetics, Du Bois rejected the then dominant biological conception of race (and refuted claims that blacks had fixed and inferior mental traits).

He sought to replace it with a model, grounded in history, culture and sociology. Entertaining the idea that races were little more than hypothetical entities, Du Bois asked, W.E.B. “But what is this Du Bois group and how do you differentiate it; and how can you call it ‘black’ when you admit it is not black.”

With its implication that race was a social construction, his rejoinder was ahead of its time:

“The black man is a person who must ride ‘Jim Crow’ in Georgia.”

The “concept of race might be a unicorn,” Appiah adds, “but its horn could draw blood.”

But then again, Appiah indicates, Du Bois was also acutely aware of the limitations of an identity based on experiences of injustice. Again and again, he tried to “ward off” this inference.

Vexed by subject of race His “one life fanaticism,” he insisted, “had been belief in my Negro blood.” And Du Bois spent decades looking to African history (including stories and tradition that “might figure in the subject life of self-consciously black people”) to help unlock “the secret of Negro identity.”

Paradoxically, Appiah writes, Africa was alluring as well “because it was a land where he was not seen, or not seen primarily, as a Negro – a land where racial identity lost its salience.” Where institutions didn’t need to be “outward-facing, batteries meant

to repel white racism.”

According to Appiah, the subject of race continued to vex Du Bois. He doubted he had mastered the concept and speculated that it might be better to treat race “as a group of contradictory forces, facts, and tendencies.”

Du Bois continued to search for an animating idea to unite and inspire blacks. He came to believe that social identity, an account from outside, lacked the potency “of some mystic spell of a shared memory and a pulsing sense of a common destiny.” This view, Appiah concludes, along with his conviction that the arc of history bent toward justice, made him a romantic. And, I would add, an appealing one at that.

Dr. Glenn C. Altschuler is the Thomas and Dorothy Litwin Professor of American Studies at Cornell University. He wrote this review for the Florida Courier.

St. Augustine Orchestra celebrates Civil Rights Act anniversary with ‘Someday’ concert As part of the 450th anniversary of the City of St. Augustine, the Saint Augustine Orchestra, under the direction of William McNeiland, will perform a concert to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act. The lineup of soloists and music for this special concert is impressive. In addition to music

by Beethoven and Brahams, audiences will enjoy the premier performance of “Someday,’’ a symphonic reflection on the American Civil Rights Movement composed by Bob Moore for the orchestra.

Bill The renowned American Prince pianist Thomas Pandolfi will be playing Greig’s Piano Concerto in A Minor.

Commissioned for anniversary

ALVIN AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATER

The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2014 tour continues in Miami through Feb. 23 and in Jacksonville on Feb. 25.

To honor African-American music, Bill Prince, Jazz Festival Hall of Fame recipient, spotlights Black music as guest soloist for a selected jazz repertoire of Duke Ellington.

“Someday’’ is an orchestral work commissioned to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. The composer has created a symphonic poem to

musically represent the historical realities of slavery and the years of oppression leading up to 1964.

The Rev. Tindley’s hymn, “We Shall Overcome,’’ is used as transitional material leading to the events of 1964, with a dramatic crescendo to the finale.

Moore is a composer with a multifaceted resume. He has published nearly 150 choral and instrumental works, many of which have been recorded on CDs.

Feb. 28-March 2 concerts The concerts will be Feb. 28, March 1 and March 2. A fundraising event is scheduled at 6:30 p.m. prior to the concert on March 1 in the Lightner Museum Lobby.

Pandolfi, Moore, Prince and McNeilland will all be in attendance to meet the guests.

The cost for attending the VIP event is $50 per person.

The Feb. 28 and March 1 will be held at 8 p.m. in the Lightner Museum, 25 Granada St., St. Augustine. The March 2 show will be at 3 p.m. at the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall, 1050 A1A North, Ponte Vedra Beach. The cost for each performance is $20 for adults and $5 for students with ID and children.

Tickets are available online at www. staugustineorchestra.org.

Arsht Center to present Miami premiere of ‘Love American Style’

SMOKEY ROBINSON

JACKSONVILLE CHILDREN’S CHOIR

The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing arts of MiamiDade County will present Smokey Robinson on March 16 at 8 p.m.

Information: www.arshtcenter.org.

The Jacksonville Children’s Choir and a choir from the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church of Atlanta is scheduled 7 p.m. Feb. 22 at Hendricks Avenue Baptist Church for the “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing’’ concert. More information: www.jaxchildrenschorus.org.

FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR

of South Florida, Marshall Student Center, USF Cedar Circle. Register at www.

MHFTampa.com or call 888663-3488 and press 4.

Orange City: The city’s fifth annual African-American Heritage Event is Feb. 28 at Dickinson Park on Highway 17/92. A free showing of “Red Tails starts at dusk. On March 1, there will be a day of food and crafts, a battle of the bands, a sweet potato bakeoff and more. More information: www.ocaahf.com or call 407-314-1033.

Miami Gardens: The ninth annual Jazz in the Gardens is March 15-16. More information and lineup of artists: www.jazzinthegardens.com.

Tampa: Moffitt Cancer Center and partners will host the 14th annual Men’s Health Forum on March 8, 8 a.m. 2:30 p.m., at the University

Tampa: Katt Williams’ Growth Spurt tour stops at the USF Sun Dome on March 15.

Gainesville: J. Cole and Chance the Rapper are scheduled for a 7 p.m. show Feb. 27 at the O’Connell Center.

Tampa: Charlie Wilson is

scheduled Feb. 21 at the University of Sun Dome and the James L. Knight Center on Feb. 22 in Miami.

St. Petersburg: Branford Marsalis will perform at the Palladium Theater on April 3 and on April 4 at the Curtis M Phillips Center for Performing Arts in Gainesville.

Jacksonville: John Legend is scheduled at the Florida Theatre Jacksonville on April 30.

Gainesville: Soprano Kathleen Battle’s Underground Railroad: A Spiritual Journey show takes place Feb. 23 at the Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County will welcome back Rhaw (Rennie Harris Awe-inspiring Works), with “Love American Style,’’ a new dance theater piece that blends classic rock and hip-hop.

The program, co-commissioned by the Arsht Center, will make its Miami premiere from Feb. 28-March 1 in the Carnival Studio Theater inside the Ziff Ballet Opera House.

Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. show may be purchased through the Adrienne Arsht Center box office by calling 305-949-6722 or online at www.arshtcenter.org.

“Rennie Harris Awe-inspiring Works shares our mission of being worldclass and communitybased. They are our country’s ambassadors of hiphop dance and, at the same time, fully committed to inspiring and fostering young dancers,’’ said John Richard, president and CEO of the Adrienne Arsht Center.

“We gladly welcome them back as a centerpiece of our Black History Month celebration and applaud them for their innovation in the art of dance,” said “We strongly support innovation in the art of music.”

About the production Performed by an energetic 14-member crew and enhanced by multimedia projections, Harris’ new fulllength hip-hop dance musical is inspired by the legendary classic rock from the 1970s and 1980s and uses dance and dialogue to vividly tell the story of a teenage boy becoming a man.

Hip-hop against obesity class The Rennie Harris AweInspiring Works street dance team will connect

with the public and work with local public school students through a residency and series of workshops in a special one-day workshop at the Arsht Center on Feb. 26.

Seventy-five to 100 teenagers from across MiamiDade County will participate in a “Hip-Hop Against Obesity” program that instills the importance of exercise, health and fitness through the art of dance.

During the week of Feb. 24, RHAW dancers will

lead a three-day residency at a Miami-Dade County Public Schools secondary school. Students who participate in the residency will perform for the public during the matinee performance on March 1 at the Arsht Center.

In addition, a free community master class will be offered to the general public at the Arsht Center on Feb. 26.

For additional details, visit arshtcenter.org/educate.

TOJ

FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

B3

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

Black Women’s History archives relocated from Bethune house D.C. facility considered inadequate to house documents of B-CU founder and others

BY ZENITHA PRINCE TRICE EDNEY NEWS SERVICE

The National Archives for Black Women’s History collection will be relocated from the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site in Washington, D.C., to the National Park Service’s (NPS) Museum Resource Center in Landover, Md., and will be unavailable to the public through March 9, the National Park Service has announced.

The archives are currently housed in the Carriage House at the Bethune site, and a recent assessment found that the facility was “not adequate” to protect the historic artifacts, an NPS official said.

While the collection is relocated, the agency will determine “whether the Carriage House is a proper structure to protect the archives, what modifications/upgrades would be required, and whether it is financially and structurally feasible,” a Park Service statement said.

The archives were at “high risk” for “catastrophic loss from fire, flood theft and pest infestation,” said Gopaul Noojibail, acting supervisor of the National Park Service’s National Capital Area Parks East. “[And] because these are irreplaceable national treasures we felt strong-

The Mary McLeod Bethune Council House is based in Washington, D.C. ly that we had to protect these documents.”

Millions of documents

al, Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site, Arlington House, Clara Barton National Historic Site and other national parks.

Not everyone is happy about the move, however.

“The archives belong at that site where they have been since the institution was founded,” said Bettye Collier-Thomas, a professor of history at Temple University in Pennsylvania.

Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune was the founder of Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach.

The National Archives for Black Women’s Histothing for the archives they ing property abutting the ry documents the legacy have neglected the build- site. That property – at the of Mary McLeod Bethune, ing and allowed it to be- time – was appraised at $2 including the National come dilapidated,” she told million.

Council of Negro Women, the Afro American NewsThat may have been which she founded; other paper. “There’s no need to where Collier-Thomas got African-American wommove the collection. What the idea about the $2 milen’s organizations and inthey need to do is take the lion in funding, Noojibail dividuals associated with $2 million and retool the said. those organizations. building.”

Client: Fifth/Third Bank Bleed: Region: US Part of the collection is But Noojibail said the Emotional Campaign: BHN Newspaper Trim: 9.889” x 10” Language: English Allegation already housed atJob the#: MuAgency 610-FTFTBNP4001 Live:professor’s claims are unNotes: None connection seum Resource Center, the of neglect AD #/AD ID: QFRC3705 founded.

Date Modified: 02/6/14 1:55 PM According to congressioScale:have 100%done some sigCollier-Thomas, who satKeyline “We central curatorial faciliat: 100%research on this nal records, however, the ty for moreCR: than 5 million on the federal advisory boardOutput nificant Round: documents AD and museum that developed a manage-Page:and found no evidence of legislation died in comobjects from national parks ment plan for the Bethune $2 million being appropri- mittee. And, since then, TO BE USED FORthe COLOR APPROVAL desired property has site, alleged that the Park atedNOT throughout the region.

by Congress,” he said.

With modern environ- Service “secretly siphoned” In 2004, Rep. Eleanor been turned into condoR. Bernadine P: E. Garber BM: J. Lewandowski appropriamental systems, research off a $2AM:million Holmes Norton (D.-D.C.) miniums, Noojibail said, laboratories and a cold tion from Congress that was introduced H.R. 4293, which “really put a cramp” storage vault for sensitive meant to improve the Bet- which would have adjust- in their expansion plans.

“What we are going to materials, the Center hous- hune facilities. ed the boundary of the “The Park Service has Mary McLeod Bethune embark on is a study on es other historically significant collections from the not acted in good faith. Council House Nation- how and if – from a feasiVietnam Veterans Memori- Instead of doing some- al Historic Site by acquir- bility standpoint – is it a

possibility to bring [the archives] back on site,” the Park Service official said.

“The carriage house itself is historic…so to rehabilitate it to put the technology and other controls in place necessary to properly store and protect the archives would change that building quite a bit.”

“We are aware of the emotional connection of accessing the archives onsite and we are very sensitive to this,” he added. “[But] one of the primary things I have to do is to ensure these irreplaceable resources are around forever for future generations.”

This story is special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Afro American Newspaper.

HISTORY IS MADE BY THOSE WHO ASK QUESTIONS. The curious bank and its 20,000 employees proudly support and celebrate Black History Month.

The curious bank.® Member FDIC.

FINEST & ENTERTAINMENT

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Meet some of the

OLYMPIC'S

finest

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FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

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Think you’re one of Florida’s Finest?

E-mail your high-resolution (200 dpi) 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.

aja

shani USA Olympic champion Shani Davis competes in a 500-meter race on Feb. 10 in Sochi, Russia. Coming off two bitter results in his specialty distances, the speedskater from Chicago had his sights this week on a medal during the final Olympic speedskating event, the Team Pursuit, scheduled Feb. 21 and 22.

Olympian Aja Evans is a brakesman on the U.S. women’s bobsledder team. The Chicago native graduated from the University of Illinois with a Bachelor’s of Science in Sports Management. She competed in track and field in college.

HARRY E. WALKER/MCT

A big wedding for Martin and Coretta King 350 people attended the 1953 ceremony at her parents’ home in Marion, Ala.

The classic guide from Florida Courier publisher, lawyer and broadcaster CHARLES W. CHERRY II PRAISE FOR ‘EXCELLENCE WITHOUT EXCUSE’:

BY ERICA L. TAYLOR BLACKAMERICAWEB.COM

Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott met by phone in 1952 at the urging of a friend, Mary Powell.

Coretta Scott from Heiberger, Alabama was studying music at the New England Conservatory.

She had been raised in a household that stressed education; her mother even bought a school bus to make sure Coretta and the other Black kids got to school everyday. Martin was a grad student and recent pledge of Alphi Phi Alpha Fraternity at Boston University.

The couple bonded over talks of racial injustice, which impressed the future civil rights leader.

While she admits to not feeling ready to be married when they met, and Martin was, the couple was betrothed by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr. in the Scotts’ backyard on June 18, 1953.

By no means was it a small wedding. According to the New York Times, there were 350 guests at the wedding of Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King on the lawn of her parents’ home in Marion, Ala.

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE FOR BLACK STUDENTS. NO EXCUSES.

Martin and Coretta King were married on June 18, 1953 on the lawn of her parents’ home in Marion, Ala. Martin’s father, the Rev. King, Sr., performed the wedding ceremony. Mrs. Edythe Bagley, Coretta’s sister, was the maid of honor. The Rev. A.D. King, Martin’s brother, was the best man.

BLACK HISTORY MOMENT back room of a funeral parlor.

Five years later they took a second honeymoon in Mexico. In “I May Not Get There With You’’ by Michael Dyson, Coretta said “When we get in an argument, usually he just stops talking.”

The Kings would have four children: Yolanda Denise born in 1955, Martin Luther III in 1957, Dexter Scott in 1961, and Bernice Albertine in 1963.

Honeymoon in funeral parlor

Strong mothers

Alabama was still very segregated in 1953 and denied the newlyweds a room in the local hotels of Marion. With the help of friends, Mr. and Mrs. Martin Luther King Jr. spent their wedding night in the

Coretta Scott King was a woman who had known the ways of a strong female backbone in the home. Her mother, Bernice McMurry Scott, was not only the school bus driver, but she served in the community

with the Eastern Star Organization, and helped her husband with his business.

Coretta served the local chapter of the NAACP in college along with her college’s Race Relations and Civil Liberties Committees. When her husband was in the height of the civil rights movement, Coretta insisted on helping more out in the field although her husband wanted her in the home with the children.

After his passing in 1968, widow King took over as a leader of the movement to continue her husband’s legacy and stand up for her own beliefs. She helped with the Poor People’s Campaign that same year and brought the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change. It was also the work of Mrs. King to see that her husband received one of the highest honors in America – a national holiday.

“This guide for African-American college-bound students is packed with practical and insightful information for achieving academic success...The primary focus here is to equip students with the savvy and networking skills to maneuver themselves through the academic maze of higher education.”

– Book review, School Library Journal • How low expectations of Black students’ achievements can get them higher grades; • Want a great grade? Prepare to cheat!

• How Black students can program their minds for success; • Setting goals – When to tell everybody, and when to keep your mouth shut; • Black English, and why Black students must be ‘bilingual.’ …AND MUCH MORE!

www.excellencewithoutexcuse.com Download immediately as an eBook or a pdf Order softcover online, from Amazon, or your local bookstore ISBN#978-1-56385-500-9 Published by International Scholastic Press, LLC Contact Charles at ccherry2@gmail.com

Facebook ccherry2 excellencewithoutexcuse

for info on speeches, workshops, seminars, book signings, panel discussions.

Twitter @ccherry2

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FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

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NATION

FEBRUARY 21 – FEBRUARY 27, 2014

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White House internships open to African-American students BLACKNEWS.COM

The White House Initiative’s Year-round Internship Program provides current undergraduate and graduate students with an opportunity to learn about African-American-focused education policy, communications, and outreach at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. Until March 15, the program will be accepting applications for summer interns. Their responsibilities will include, but are not limited to: • Collecting and compiling research and data on African American education, institutions and communities; • Performing data entry and managing the office database;

• Greeting and escorting visitors to meetings; • Participating in strategic planning and staff meetings and other Department policy briefings and meetings

relevant to the work of the Initiative • Responding to constituent inquiries verbally or in writing.

Throughout the course

of their internships, students will have the opportunity to attend and potentially lead in the planning and management of meetings, briefings and other

special events on the Hill, at the White House and in other federal agencies. New internship positions are available every summer, fall, winter and spring.

For more information and/ or to apply, visit http:// www.ed.gov/edblogs/whieeaa/internship-opportunities or www.findinternships. com.

Some top sites to find Black History scholarships BLACKNEWS.COM

Many foundations nationwide have launched scholarship campaigns tied to Black History Month. Her are some of the top Black History Month scholarships with deadlines in February and March.

The Frito-Lay ‘Create to Celebrate’ Black History Month Art Contest encourages applicants to submit online an original piece of art created in any medium (video, song, photo, sculpture, painting, etc) that celebrates African-American achievement. Details: www.scholarshipsonline.org/2014/01/ frito-lay-create-to-celebrateblack-history-month-artcontest.html.

The Coca-Cola Pay It Forward Scholarship Program offers scholarship awards and once-in-a-lifetime apprenticeship experiences to African-American youth looking to pave the way for their futures. Details: www.scholarshipsonline.org/2014/01/coca-cola-pay-it-forward-scholarship-program.html.

The RBC Black History Month Student Essay Competition is offered by the Royal Bank of Canada for Canadian students. The essay consists of writing in 750 words or less on how Black Canadians have contributed toward the heritage of Canada. Details: www.scholarshipsonline.org/2014/01/ rbc-black-history-monthstudent-essay.html.

The 100 Black Men of America Future Leader Scholarship Program is open to high school seniors as well as college freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors. The scholarship is based on academic achievement and community service. Details: www.scholarshipsonline. org/2013/12/100-blackmen-of-america-futureleader.html.

The Jerry Bartow Scholarship Fund, offered by the Black Executive Exchange Program (BEEP), awards three scholarships each year for undergraduate students who are attending historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU). Students must major in business, engineering, technology, or education.

Details: www.scholarshipsonline.org/2013/02/blackexecutive-exchange-program-jerry.html.

The Kroger “I Can Make History” Contest will award more than $71,000 in prizes in the categories of art, essay, music and poetry. Celebrating Black History month, Kroger, the largest grocery chain in the country, is using the contest to recognize the contributions of African-Americans in the past and in the future. Details: www.scholarshipsonline.org/2014/01/ kroger-i-can-make-historycontest.html.

To search hundreds of more 2014 scholarships, visit www.ScholarshipsOnline. org.

J O I N U S “ I N C O N V E R S AT I O N ” A S S T Y L E E X P E R T C O N S TA N C E C .R . W H I T E , S I N G E R /A C T R E S S D E M E T R I A M C K I N N E Y A N D A N K A R A M I A M I ’ S E V E LY N O N Y E J U R U WA D I S C U S S “THE INFLUENCE OF BL ACK ST YLE”!

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