Florida Courier - May 19, 2017

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MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

VOLUME 25 NO. 20

IT’S SERIOUS

firing of FBI Director James Comey a With Washington week ago. The appointment took the at a fever pitch, the White House by surprise.

Department of Justice, Broad powers appoints a special Mueller will have access to all the incounsel with the powers formation the FBI and Justice Departof a prosecutor to lead ment have compiled. He can convene grand juries and seek federal criminal the Trump-Russia indictments.

His appointment capped a day that investigation.

COMPILED FROM WIRE AND STAFF REPORTS

WASHINGTON – The nation’s capital went into full-blown crisis mode Wednesday night – just prior to the Florida Courier’s press time – as the Justice Department named a special counsel to look into Russia’s influence on the 2016 election and Congress grappled with growing unease over whether President Donald Trump had tried to quash the investigation.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein tapped former FBI Director Robert Mueller for the post, a subject of growing clamor since Trump’s

Department of Health officials halt sale of smokable weed

saw calls crescendo for the appointment of a special prosecutor or some other independent investigation to look at a range of issues: possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign, the firing of FBI Director James Comey and whether the president had committed a crime when he asked Comey to drop a probe into former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

Wall Street showed its concern that Trump’s troubles would cripple plans to ease regulations and cut taxes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 373 points as the storm gathSee SERIOUS, Page A2

JAMES BERGLIE/ZUMA PRESS/TNS

In this file photo, then-FBI Director Robert Mueller testifies before a Senate Intelligence Committee in 2012.

2017 MISS USA PAGEANT

Natural and outspoken

BY DARA KAM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – The Florida Department of Health on Monday ordered a medicalmarijuana operator to stop selling a “whole flower” product sold for use in vaporizers but which can easily be smoked, saying the product is not permitted.

Quincy-based Trulieve started selling “Entourage,” a whole flower product meant to be used in the Volcano vaporizer, last week.

Easy to smoke The department’s ceaseand-desist letter to Trulieve came after The News Service of Florida reported about the sales of the whole flower product, which can easily be smoked in pipes, bongs, or joints – all off-limits to patients under Florida’s current medical-marijuana laws.

“Licensed dispensing organizations have a responsibility to ensure their product is not one that can easily be transitioned into a smokable form.

Therefore, whole flower products are not permitted,” state Office of Compassionate Use Director Christian Bax wrote to Trulieve on Monday.

Current law bans “smoking” of medical marijuana but includes an exception that allows patients to use vaporizers to consume cannabis products.

Smoking is defined as “burning or igniting a substance and inhaling the smoke.”

Not illegal In a statement, Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said Monday the company was “surprised by the letter” but is “immediately and completely complying with the department’s wishes while evaluating our options.”

Rivers told the News Service last week she believed the product was legal and that her company had been selling

MARCEL THOMAS VIA ZUMA WIRE

Miss District of Columbia USA Kara McCullough glides across the stage during the bikini round of the 2017 Miss USA competition last week. McCullough, a South Carolina State University alumna, is this year’s Miss USA. See a related “No Chaser” column on Page A4.

See WEED, Page A2

SNAPSHOTS FLORIDA | A3

A home for Tommie

ALSO INSIDE

Summer Pell grants available

NATION | A6

No appeal for N.C. voter ID law

BUSINESS | B4

ENTERTAINMENT | B5

State sues Wells Fargo for discriminating against Blacks

Beyoncé and Solange to compete for BET awards

Impeachment?

Not so fast Here’s a Q & A

BY MICHAEL DOYLE MCCLATCHY WASHINGTON BUREAU TNS

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s incendiary words and actions have placed him in potential legal jeopardy, with more lawmakers floating concepts like “obstruction of justice” and “impeachment.” Here’s a guide.

What’s ‘obstruction of justice’? A Congressional Research Service report indicates there are related laws against obstruction of judicial proceedings, witness tampering and obstruction of congressional or administrative proceedings, among other misbehavior.

Violations of the “obstruction of congressional or administrative proceedings” statute can be punished by a fine and five years in prison. The witness-tampering statute carries a prison term of up to 10 years.

Could Trump be charged with these crimes? A 2000 Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel analysis concluded that “the indictment or criminal prosecution of a sitting president would impermissibly undermine the capacity of the executive branch to perform its constitutionally assigned functions.” That leaves impeachment, which might be based on allegations of a crime like obstruction of justice.

What does the “obstruction of justice” law cover? The “obstruction of congressional or administrative proceedings” law targets “whoever corruptly, or by threats or force, or by any threatening letter or communication influences, obstructs, or impedes or endeavors to influence, obstruct, or impede the due and proper administration of the law (pending) before any department or agency of the United States.”

The witness-tampering statute covers, among others, anyone who “knowingly uses intimidation, threatens, or corruptly persuades another person with intent to influence, delay, or prevent” testimony in an official proceeding.

How might that apply to Trump? Investigators would examine Trump’s interactions with ousted FBI Director James Comey.

An investigator, for instance, might delve into Trump’s May 12 tweet that “James Comey better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations before he starts

COMMENTARY: CHARLES W. CHERRY II: RANDOM THOUGHTS OF A FREE BLACK MIND | A4 COMMENTARY: JULIANNE MALVEAUX: ‘DEVOID’ AT B-CU – WE MUST BE THE RESISTANCE | A5

See TRUMP, Page A2

FOCUS

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MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

The political idol worshippers are doomed Many Americans are beginning to feel that the 45th president of the United States is beginning to act as if he thinks he is a dictator.

The president believes he can do what he wants to, say what he wants, and he can get out of bed at 5 a.m., and tweet what he wants to!

The 45th president of the United States doesn’t seem to have a clue about the separation of church and state, the governmental system of checks and balances, or the laws of the land as those laws relate to the basis for impeachment proceedings for lawbreakers that have the title of commander in chief!

A dictator’s ‘rights’ Even though the 45th president of the United States failed to get the majority of votes cast by eligible American voters, he

states that the base supporters of the 45th president of the United States – the people who worship the ground the president walks on – will be punished by the Lord!

LUCIUS GANTT THE GANTT REPORT

feels his election by an Electoral College gives him the right to act like a dictator, the right to hire and fire all government appointees and employees that he feels may be disloyal to him, and the inalienable right to lie to the citizens of the world’s greatest democracy at any time he desires to.

The 45th president of the United States carries himself like he is an idol. Not an “American Idol” like the singers on television – like he is a political idol!

The Bible says that God doesn’t like idols or idol worshipers. And the Good Book clearly

Chastisement is coming In Ezekiel’s Chapter 14, Verse 10, the Bible says idol worshipers “shall bear the punishment of their iniquity; the punishment of the (false) prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him.”

Most Republican members of the United States Congress, Republican state legislators, and the Republicans in local city and county councils and commissions praise, worship and rubber-stamp whatever governmental policies and proposals suggested by the idolatrous 45th president of the United States.

When the president supported a tax cut masqueraded as

How long?

er than you think. But what is in store for you?

If you don’t support good over evil, if you don’t support righteousness over wickedness, and if you don’t support the governmental truth tellers over the lying presidential idols and idol worshipers, Republicans, you are no more than “Dead Politicians Walking!

The losses that are coming to you in the 2018 elections will only be the beginning!

The political idol worshipers will be doomed to die for many more years!

Members of the Republican Party, how long will you support a devilish president more than you support your constituents that elected you?

The obstruction of justice and the perjury going on at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue will take care of the political idol soon-

Buy Gantt’s latest book, “Beast Too: Dead Man Writing,” on Amazon.com and from bookstores everywhere.

“Like” The Gantt Report page on Facebook. Contact Lucius at www.allworldconsultants. net.

Trumpcare – a devilish health bill that would deny millions of Americans health care they enjoyed under the Affordable Care Act – the idol worshipers in the U.S. House of Representatives not only supported the satanic bill. They celebrated the fact that millions of citizens would lose coverage in the White House Rose Garden!

Yes, the beasts in the White House, just like the beasts in Ezekiel, were making their presence known!

TRUMP

Presidential impeachments

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leaking to the press!” It sounds vaguely threatening. On the other hand, the press leak Trump mentions is not the kind of “official proceeding” covered by the witness-tampering law.

The May 12 tweet, though, might also be considered damning context for the more recent allegation that Comey wrote a memo or notes following a Feb. 14 private meeting with the president. Comey recounted that Trump had urged him to end the FBI’s investigation of retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, Trump’s first national security adviser.

“I hope you can let this go,” Trump told Comey, according to the memo first revealed by The New York Times.

Context matters when prosecutors try to prove the necessary intent. Trump was speaking to Comey in the Oval Office, the symbolic center of presidential power, and at a time when Comey’s job could be characterized as being on the line. Aides were reportedly asked to leave first, which a prosecutor might cast as vaguely suspicious, or even evidence of consciousness of guilt.

Trump fired Comey on May 9.

Andrew Johnson (1868): President Johnson was impeached by the House on Feb. 24, 1868, for violating the Tenure of Office Act regarding the appointment of Cabinet secretaries. He was acquitted on May 16 when the Senate fell one vote short of the necessary two-thirds.

Richard Nixon (1974): The House Committee on the Judiciary held hearings on whether President Nixon should be impeached. Before the House could hold a vote, Nixon resigned on Aug. 8, 1974.

Bill Clinton (1998): The House vote to impeach President Clinton on Dec. 12, 1998 for perjury and obstruction of justice related to his affair with Monica Lewinsky, but he was acquitted by the Senate.

OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/TNS

Who would investigate?

A series of Donald Trump’s interviews, public statements, tweets, and personnel firings has Congressional Democrats publicly mentioning “impeachment” for the first time.

The House of Representatives and Senate Intelligence committees have ongoing investigations into alleged Russian interference with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The biggest legal consequence might result from a witness’s false testimony.

A blue-ribbon special commission or a bipartisan special congressional committee to investi-

gate alleged Russian interference would likewise be more about fact-gathering than about prosecuting.

On Wednesday, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., launched a petition to force a House vote on a bill to establish a 12-member investigating commission. Such petitions face very long odds.

SERIOUS from A1

ered around the president.

The 1.78 percent decline was one of the average’s worst days since Trump’s inauguration. Other averages also closed lower: The NASDAQ was down by nearly 2.6 percent and the S&P 500 off 1.82 percent.

Not his fault The president, meanwhile, defended himself in a commencement address at the Coast Guard Academy, continuing to push his deeply held notion that he is blameless and his troubles are the doing of others.

“No politician in history – and I say this with great assurity (sic) – has been treated worse or more unfairly,” he said.

With Trump scheduled to embark on his first foreign trip Friday, fears were high that another shoe might drop. Some experts suggested the president cancel his travels, but there was no indication such a dramatic step was being considered.

Comey to speak?

In the wake of a New York Times report that Comey had written contemporaneous memos detailing his meetings with Trump about the investigation of Flynn, the Senate Intelligence Committee announced that it had asked

Comey to testify. No schedule for the appearance was set, but Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., the committee’s chair, said he expected Comey to agree to testify voluntarily.

The committee also asked acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe to surrender any notes or memos that Comey might have written about the investigation. Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, also has asked the FBI for memos Comey might have written involving his dealings with Trump and President Barack Obama.

Along with the committee’s ranking member, Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, and Democrat Dianne Feinstein of California and Republican Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Grassley also asked the White House for any records, including recordings, involving its dealings with Comey.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said he too had asked for any memos. Every Democrat on the House Oversight and Judiciary panels signed a letter asking their Republican chairmen to launch an investigation into Trump.

GOP shaken Republicans, who have largely turned a blind eye to Trump’s unorthodox and

They need a majority of House signatures, and Democrats control only 193 of the House’s 435 seats.

House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz has urged the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General to broaden an ongoing probe to include “the facts and circum-

stances surrounding the removal of Director Comey.”

All this could further undermine Trump’s overall standing, with a drip-drip of revelations that leave him politically vulnerable.

The most direct threat to the president is the the Justice Department’s appointment of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, par-

“No politician in history – and I say this with great assurity (sic) – has been treated worse or more unfairly.”

President Donald Trump controversial behavior, began to feel the ground beneath them crack. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., urged them not to panic.

But he acknowledged that the push for a more aggressive investigation may be irresistible.

“We need the facts,” he told reporters on Capitol Hill. “It is obvious that there are some people out there who want to harm the president. But we have an obligation to carry out our oversight regardless of which party is in the White House. And that means before rushing to judgment we get all the pertinent information.”

But whether it was their fears about a massive blowout in the 2018 midterm elections because of Trump or just a creeping realization that the president is in over his head and that could be dangerous to the republic, the mood among GOP lawmakers appeared to be shifting.

‘Aggressive’ press Indeed, the atmosphere on Capitol Hill has slowly turned dark, according to aides. The corridors are thick with reporters. Senate Press Gallery officials

sent out a letter Wednesday warning that “the press following senators have become large and aggressive.

We are concerned someone may get hurt.”

Health care and tax overhauls, as much as GOP leaders try to talk about them, get suffocated by the blanket of questions about the president and the many investigations.

At a moment when Republicans control the House of Representatives, the Senate and the White House and should be capable of pushing through their agenda with ease, they are like riven by infighting and led by an erratic and unskilled president.

While partisanship is never far from most congressional debates, including this one, the Trump controversies have gradually taken on a different tone, as each new development creates a fresh headline and fuels the unending political talkfest on cable. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle fret.

Events moving quickly The parade of revelations has been nonstop.

Word that Comey had accused Trump of asking him

Graphic: TNS Source: U.S. Senate, U.S. House, White House, Library of Congress, Nixon Library

ticularly if Mueller aggressively expands the scope of his work, as happened with former independent counsel Kenneth Starr and his years-long pursuit of President Bill Clinton, who was impeached.

Trump’s “impeachment” – in which charges would be filed against him by the House of Representatives – could follow, then conclude with a trial in the US Senate.

to drop the Flynn probe came less than a week after Trump fired him as FBI director over his irritation with the Russia investigation and only a day after it had been revealed that Trump had disclosed topsecret information to two Russian diplomats during an Oval Office meeting.

The memo revelation also came just a few days after Trump had suggested in a tweet that he had taped Comey during a White House dinner, in what many saw as a threat to prevent

WEED from A1

whole-flower products for nearly a year.

Lawmakers were unable to reach consensus during the annual legislative session on a measure to implement a voter-approved constitutional amendment that legalized medical marijuana for a broad swath of patients with debilitating illnesses. But they were in nearly universal agreement on at least one thing: Patients shouldn’t be able to smoke pot products.

Comey from leaking information.

That had everyone asking whether such tapes even exist. The White House refused to say.

All this has turned the capital into a political potboiler, with everyone braced for the next tweet, leak or headline that sends the government and news media into another tailspin.

David Goldstein and Lindsay Wise of the McClatchy Washington Bureau / TNS contributed to this report.

Lawsuit ahead?

John Morgan, the Orlando trial lawyer who largely bankrolled what was known as Amendment 2, has pledged to sue the state over the smoking issue, which he says was tacitly approved in the constitutional amendment approved by more than 71 percent of voters in November.

Patients and advocates maintain that the medicinal effects of whole flower consumption outweigh that of processed products, such as oils or other derivatives, including those inhaled by “vaping.”

But the Department of Health apparently isn’t sold on that argument.

MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

Rain didn’t douse the wildfire threat THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

Rain over the last weekend helped slow the growth of wildfires in some parts of Florida, but other blazes continued to grow, especially in the southern part of the state.

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and the Florida Forest Service said Monday the state had 127 active wildfires. Forest Service Director Jim Karels said the weekend rain was welcome, as it allowed many firefighters to strengthen their fire lines. However, he said the rainfall was scattered, and much of the state still has drought conditions.

“Once you get into the peninsula, it’s very dry,” Karels said. “Getting an inch of rain as an example, and being 10 inches behind, doesn’t catch you up. We’ve still got a ways to go.”

Bans around state More than 20 counties, from the FloridaGeorgia state line to the Florida Keys are considered to have “very high” fire dangers, according to a state index of danger levels.

Local burn bans are in place in over half of the state’s 67 counties. Two teams of firefighters and equipment came from South Carolina last week, and they continue to assist local crews in South Florida.

“Even with rain across large parts of Florida over the weekend, Florida is still experiencing drought conditions and elevated wildfire danger – and will continue to for some time,” Putnam said in a prepared statement. “Residents and visitors need to pay attention to and comply with local burn bans and should take every precaution to help prevent wildfire.”

FLORIDA

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‘Christmas in May’ for many college students The extension of Pell grants will cover summer classes for the first time since 2011.

BY LLOYD DUNKELBERGER THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Despite broader political turmoil in Washington and Tallahassee, federal and state lawmakers have agreed to dramatically increase financial aid to the neediest college and university students.

On May 4, the U.S. Senate approved a series of budget bills that will fund the federal government through Sept. 30, including the extension of Pell grants to cover summer classes for the first time since 2011.

Pell grants are the largest federal grant program aimed at students with financial need.

Four days later, the Florida Legislature overwhelmingly approved a new state budget that includes a major expansion of higher-education aid programs, including the Florida “student assistance grants,” the state’s largest need-based aid program for economically challenged students.

“It was Christmas in May,” said Darryl Marshall, director of financial aid at Florida State University.

“This is a huge win for students.”

Statewide impact He said expansion of the federal and state financialaid programs will have an impact throughout higher-education institutions in Florida, including lowering student debt and giving students more options for support.

Pell grants, which can be used in public and private institutions, play a large role in the state university system, with 39 percent of undergraduates receiving the grants in fall 2015, according to the state Board of Governors.

At the high end, more than 65 percent of the stu-

FC

FLORIDA COURIER

COURTESY OF FAMU

Above is a graduation photograph from Florida A&M University (FAMU). More than 65 percent of the students at FAMU received the awards. dents at Florida A&M University and 51 percent of the students at Florida International University received the awards, which do not have to be repaid.

At the lower end, Florida State University and New College of Florida each reported about 28 percent of their undergraduates had Pell grants.

Complicated formula Pell grants are equally important in the 28-school state college system. Miami-Dade College, the largest school, reported 53 percent of its students had Pell grants in the 2014-15 academic year, with annual awards averaging $3,934.

Although grants are distributed using a complicated formula, as a general rule students coming from families with less than $30,000 in annual income qualify for a full award, which is currently capped at just under $6,000.

Students have not been able to use Pell grants for summer classes since the end of the 2010-11 academic year because of federal budget cutbacks.

Summer benefit Marshall, the FSU financial-aid director, said some students will benefit from the Pell summer extension this year, although he said he doesn’t expect the full benefits to be realized until next summer because of the timing of the congressional decision.

The future of the extension remains in doubt after Sept. 30 as Congress has struggled in recent years with passing long-term budgets, although U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has been supportive of summer Pell grants.

The Pell summer extension is particularly important in Florida because the state’s main need-based aid program, the Florida student-assistance grants, does not cover summer terms.

Funding boost However, the 2017-18 state budget, which is awaiting the governor’s review, includes a record funding boost of $121 million in the student-assistance grant program, which now serves some 133,000 students who receive an average annual award of $1,113.

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About 78 percent of the program’s funding goes to state university and college students, with 12 percent for private college students and 10 percent for students enrolled in other post-secondary programs, including career-training initiatives.

The state support works in conjunction with the Pell grants, with students qualifying for the programs by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form.

Several effects At Florida State, Marshall said about 3,000 of the more than 10,000 Pell grant students also receive Florida student-assistance grant support, a number he expects to grow with the Legislature’s expansion of the program.

Marshall said the increase in the Pell grant and state-assistance programs will have several effects, including a new push by education officials to encourage more student to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid forms to determine their eligibility.

“Hopefully, the message will get out to our students and their parents to complete the FAFSA,” Marshall said.

‘A big win’ More important, Marshall said the boost in needbased aid will result in students taking out fewer loans, avoiding a debt bur-

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Political uncertainty Marshall said some of the merit scholarship students will now also qualify for the expanded need-based aid because of their financial circumstances.

But the expansion of the Florida need-based aid, like the federal Pell grants, faces some political uncertainty.

Gov. Rick Scott has threatened to veto all or part of the new state budget because of lawmakers’ failure to fund business-incentive and tourism programs that he supported.

However, Scott has been a consistent supporter of reducing the cost of higher education in Florida, including taking a firm stand against tuition and fee increases.

ADOPTIONS

A home for Tommie One Church One Child of Florida is reaching out to families and individuals in communities across the state in efforts to help find permanent homes for children.

Children featured in this monthly spotlight are waiting for a permanent home and/or mentor.

Daily, over 700 children are in need of a family to call their own; many of them are minorities.

May is National Foster Care Month and churches are asked to partner with One Church One Child in sharing information with congregations and extending Watch-Care Ministries to children.

The Rev. Beverly Hills Lane, state president for One Church One Child of Florida and vice president for National One Church One Child, is challenging fellow pastors to get involved and encouraging families to open their hearts and homes to children in foster care.

A natural leader TO ADVERTISE STATEWIDE OR IN A SINGLE ZONE call 877-352-4455 or email Sales@flcourier.com

den as they begin their careers.

“It’s a big win,” Marshall said. “The more needbased grant dollars, the less loan debt.”

The need-based aid expansion may also help students who receive meritbased aid, like the state’s Bright Futures scholarships.

The Legislature this spring increased the toplevel Bright Futures award to cover full tuition and fees as well as summer classes. But the expansion did not extend to the lower-level Bright Futures “medallion scholars,” who still will have to pay part of their tuition and all of the summer classes.

Tommie is an active, inquisitive kid who loves family and having fun.

He’s a diligent student who strives for good grades, and

COURTESY OF PEZZ PHOTO

This photo of Tommie is from the Children’s Board Heart Gallery Tampa Bay. he especially enjoys reading. Tommie likes sports of all kinds, but he’s particularly good at football and dodge ball.

He’s a natural leader and would make a great coach or mentor one day. Tommie looks forward to being a dad and having a family of “all boys plus a girl.”

Family is incredibly important to him, and he’s eager to become part of one.

For more information about becoming an adoptive or foster parent, mentor, partner or volunteer, call 888-2830886 or send an email to info@ococfl.org. The website for One Church One Child of Florida is www.ococfl.org.

EDITORIAL

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MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

B-CU, FMU show the spectrum of HBCU outreach The graduation season of 2017 has offered some interesting comparison in leadership among HBCU presidents.

The administration at Bethune-Cookman University, under the leadership of Dr. Edison Jackson, invited controversy when it announced that the US Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos would not only give the commencement address but would also be awarded an honorary doctorate from the institution.

Trayvon honored In contrast, the leadership for Florida Memorial University decided to award a posthumous degree in aviation to Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin in honor of their slain son, Trayvon Martin.

Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis, president of the institution, courted controversy of a different sort.

These events were separated by a few days and a wide chasm of ideological difference, the latter deserving more investigation.

Why? In some regards, HBCUs are the last bastions of collective Black self-determination. Aside from Black churches, HBCUs are the most influential institutions created and maintained by Black people, for Black people. In many ways, there are the canaries in the coal mine of Black cultural survival in the United States. The choices their leaders make are a significant indicator of the Black power.

Nothing new DR. TAMEKA HOBBS GUEST COMMENTARY

Defending himself So what of President Jackson’s choices? For B-CU, once the news leaked, hue and cry broke out around the state and nation, including alumni, students, and activists. President Jackson defended his decision, citing the need to make friends to raise money for the school.

Further, he invoked the legacy of the institution’s founder, Mary McLeod Bethune, citing her ability to court funders of all stripes to support her institution. “She modeled this by interacting with and uniquely engaging those who had to be convinced of her mission to provide education to her people,” Jackson wrote in an op-ed defending his decision.

But that’s not how it works.

There are many ways to cultivate strategic relationships with strange bedfellows, if one is interested in partnering with a representative from an administration that rode into office on a wave of White supremacist rhetoric.

This is also an administration that, just a few days before DeVos spoke, questioned the constitutionality of funding HBCUs.

Trump’s diss of historically Black colleges Editor’s Note – The following editorial appeared in The Baltimore Sun on May 10.

In late February, leaders from historically Black colleges gathered in the Oval Office to meet with President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in what they hoped would be a listening session and a chance to build a fruitful relationship.

Progressive critics chided it as no more than a “photo op” and a disrespectful one at that, given that the photograph that ended up receiving the most attention from that day was one of Kellyanne Conway taking a picture of the HBCU visitors with her cellphone while seated with her feet on a couch. Still, school leaders insisted that the door had been opened for “meaningful actions” from the president and perhaps even “additional resources and investments.”

Unexpected ‘slap’ What they might not have expected was the slap in the face the White House delivered this

THE BALTIMORE SUN GUEST EDITORIAL

month in the form of a “signing statement” that questioned whether directing low-cost construction loans to historically Black schools was constitutional.

Given that the rather modest $20 million or so federal program has been in effect since 1992 under Democratic and Republican administrations alike, and given how badly the funds are needed to help the schools repair and replace buildings and other campus facilities, and given how the schools don’t actually discriminate (you don’t have to be Black to attend), one imagines this didn’t go over well at the institutions.

The Trump administration scrambled to repair the damage. The White House released a

Random thoughts of a free Black mind, v. 299 The United States vs. Donald J. Trump – With the appointment of a special prosecutor, King Don’s gotta get officially lawyered up. He’ll get the best legal counsel money can buy, but it won’t make any difference because he won’t be able to keep his mouth shut, or stop sending out tweets at 2 a.m. after watching Fox News all day. Expect the FBI to go hard at him, given his scathing criticism of their former leader, James Comey, and the general disrespect and contempt that Trump has for both the FBI and the CIA… I swear, I tried to give this guy a chance. But no more. I can’t even think of the proper metaphor to describe how far he is over his

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: TRUMP AND FORMER FBI DIRECTOR JAMES COMEY

QUICK TAKES FROM #2: STRAIGHT, NO CHASER

CHARLES W. CHERRY II, ESQ. PUBLISHER

head as POTUS. And I’ve been extremely disappointed by Congressional Republican leaders who still seem to have Obama Derangement Syndrome so badly they will lie, cheat, and deny reality in order to finally slay the “Moby Dick”- style “white whale” that is Obamacare – or otherwise

This is not the first time that Jackson has gambled with the legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune.

In 2015, he made the decision to award Florida Governor Rick Scott with a leadership award named after the institution’s founder.

And why drag Mary McLeod Bethune’s legacy into this? Bethune didn’t truck with racists, or extend undue courtesies to unproven allies. She was a master at cultivating donors and supporters, but she could do so without gambling with her dignity. I can’t recall Bethune giving the power of the podium to people who had not proven their worth as friends and supporters.

And it wouldn’t seem like a particularly wise choice to invite someone like DeVos, who many doubt is qualified to hold the office to which she is appointed, and who in a public statement referred to HBCUs as model of school choice. Not to mention her reversal of policies but in place by the Obama administration that would harm the very students to whom she was invited to speak.

What did President Jackson think would happen? In the age of Black Lives Matter, in an audience full of millennials, did he think they would just sit there and take the insult?

RJ MATSON, ROLL CALL

Trayvon Martin nothing new. In 2014, she offered space on FMU’s campus to Sybrina Fulton, a FMU alumna, and the Trayvon Martin Foundation. She has continued to cultivate that relationship over the years, despite the political risk of being affiliated with a cause that has given birth to the Black Lives Matter Movement that has changed the face of civil rights and social justice activism in the US. In the days since the announcement of FMU’s plan to honor Trayvon, the institution has been inundated with calls from people who criticized the decision to commemorate a “thug.” A scroll through the comment section of any article about the recognition bears witness to the sentiment.

Jackson and Artis highlight the difficult positions and difficult choices faced by leaders in Black

America. But how do you advance the position of your community without sacrificing your dignity, and maintaining your ability to remain true to the values of that same community?

The choices made by BCU and FMU offer a power contrast, and important lessons for a way forward.

nal outreach to HBCUs, or chaos simply reigns supreme and in the Trump White House the right hand may not know what the far-right hand is doing.

Neither is a happy thought, but obviously, deliberately undermining federal aid for historically Black schools poses the far greater threat than a simple miscommunication (or the unsurprising presence within the White House of political conservatives who see support for colleges that have long accepted Black students as a form of discrimination against Whites and a violation of the equal protection clause).

especially those who are poor or otherwise less academically well prepared.

Trump’s backpedaling may have helped repair the damage, but it’s not surprising to hear that some HBCU presidents are now more skeptical about his position. If President Trump has demonstrated anything in his first four months in office, it’s that he must be judged by deed and not by words, which don’t seem to be especially meaningful to him.

Signing statements are essentially a written commentary presidents sometimes add when they sign bills and which critics charge are often aimed at undermining the very laws they’ve signed. While signing statements carry no legal weight, they can send a powerful message to federal agencies and courts that are supposed to enforce and uphold the law.

Ultimately, there are really just two possible explanations for Trump’s unexpected shot at HBCU support: Either he wasn’t sincere in his origi-

Setting the record straight

As Morgan State President David Wilson told The Baltimore Sun, “I’m hopeful it was a misunderstanding, but we’ll see what happens in the next budget and whether the president’s words and his embrace of HBCUs translate into additional investment.”

In other words, the HBCU presidents would be wise to extract what they can from the Republican president – but have their lawyers on standby.

take a sledgehammer to Barack Obama’s extremely modest legacy. Has the GOP lost its moral underpinnings? Actually, that’s a dumb question, because it assumes the party had moral underpinnings in the first place…

And speaking of King Don, I’m laughing that he’s going on a ‘pilgrimage’ to Saudi Arabia, the home of Islam’s holiest sites, then to the Vatican, the worldwide headquarters of the Catholic Church (unless he cancels as a consequence of all the drama). He can’t name a book of the Bible, has never done anything for which he feels remorse, and doesn’t believe that Islam is an authentic religion…

Getting what you pray for – For those of you hoping Trump will be dumped, remember that Christian fundamentalist Vice President Mike Pence is the next man up. He’s so lusty that he refuses to meet alone with a woman without his wife present to

keep him in check. That’s America’s leadership succession plan.

God bless us, every one…

Miss USA! Congratulations to Kara McCullough! She’s tall, Black, fine (if you like your women really slim, fellas), beautiful, weave-less, smart, and an HBCU graduate. What’s not to like?

Generally, national pageant winners fade into the woodwork as they travel around the country working on their issue “platforms” during the term of their “queendom.” Given Kara’s relatively conservative answers to questions about feminism (she calls herself an "equalist" who really likes men) and health care (a privilege, not a right), she'll probably be holding it down on Fox News next year. The only sister they have over there right now as a regular host or anchor is Harris Faulkner, so they could use some ‘color’…

Media under attack – Don’t believe it? We’ve got proof. Over

Connected to family And what of President Artis?

Her connection to the family of statement with Trump pledging “unwavering support” for historically Black colleges and observing that the stop-gap spending bill he signed last week included money for the construction loans. He also noted that Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos was scheduled to give the commencement address at Bethune-Cookman University and that he has launched an “initiative” to “strengthen the capacity of HBCUs to provide the highest-quality education.”

In other words, President Trump said “oops” without exactly apologizing.

A bit of perspective

The nation’s 103 HBCUs are facing a challenge. They are still dealing with the legacy of segregation – and particularly a historical lack of financial support from both the private and public sectors – as well as an evolving mission.

While they continue to provide opportunities for AfricanAmericans, HBCUs have also become critically important in providing a college education to students of all backgrounds and

Charles W. Cherry II, Esq., Publisher

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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Get what you can

the years, the Florida Courier’s website has been hacked multiple times. After recovering from our last attack, we installed software called Wordfence to protect the site. For the last six months, we have survived daily constant “brute force” attacks in which hackers try to guess logins and passwords to compromise our site.

The most frequent attacks come from – drumroll, please – Russia. Second most frequent?

Ukraine. Why? I believe it’s part of a wide-ranging plan to implant “fake news” reports on the Internet, as well as to eliminate smaller independent news sources like ours. It’s no different than the KKK burning down Black newspaper offices back in the day. There is a real cyberwar going on, and we’re in it whether we like it or not.

Hit me up at ccherry2@ gmail.com.

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MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

EDITORIAL

Today’s disinvited speaker could be tomorrow’s legislative loss Last week, Texas Southern University rescinded the invitation for U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) to serve as commencement speaker, prompted by online petitions and the threat of protests. Because no one wants a repeat of the Bethune-Cookman debacle on their campus, right?

So instead, you risk ostracizing the senator who oversees your district, whom you invited in the first place because of what you heralded as his help in securing additional funding for HBCUs. Because he is a Republican, and your students don’t like Republicans.

Reverse the situation In the conversations I’ve had about this, one point has emerged as the loudest: Imagine if Cornyn’s office had withdrawn the day before graduation. Imagine how he would have been dragged by the students and the local and national press.

But here’s the thing: You can’t disinvite your senator from campus without there being some backlash down the line. Just like you can’t disinvite your governor and just like you should invite your state or national education secretary.

And you should present them with honorary degrees. And you should highlight for them the stories of graduates from your institution who will go on to contribute to the state’s economy.

How it’s done Before I covered higher education, I worked on government relations training modules for state and federal lobbyists. Several times a month, I advised on the need to engage elected officials on both sides of the aisle who were either sympathetic or could be made sympathetic to your cause, and shared best practices on how to achieve this: Invite them to your campus (or corporate headquarters) and

AUTUMN A. ARNETT HBCU DIGEST.COM

show off your best innovations and your brightest minds. Visit the district office. Take “leave behinds” they could keep in their offices to keep your cause top of mind.

Present them with awards or honorary degrees they can hang on their walls. Thank them publicly for attending. Put on a full show, with all the appropriate regal and pomp and circumstance appropriate for someone who could influence decisions which impact your future viability.

No vision There seems to be no longterm vision and some tail-wagging-the-dog behind some of these commencement decisions this season.

If their HBCU education has done its job, students are not just armed with degrees, but armed with a spirit of activism and a desire to make a change by the time they ready to cross the graduation stage.

Protests are a hallmark of all their training, and, frankly, a reflection of the current climate of the country. But protests, or the threat of protest, cannot be the reason a campus president decides not to engage in the appropriate level of government relations to advance the institution so that it will stand even stronger once these students have crossed the stage.

Wears many hats Today’s college president must be the top government relations officer, the top fundraiser, the chief marketing officer and the top student affairs official – si-

‘Devoid’ at B-CU – We must be the resistance I could not be prouder of the students at Bethune-Cookman University than if I had raised them myself.

Responding to the university’s very late selection of Betsy DeVos (hereafter referred to as “DeVoid,” as she is devoid of good sense, history, literacy, and even courtesy) for the spring commencement speaker, graduating seniors chose to turn their back on a woman who described HBCUs as “pioneers of school choice.”

Coordinated protest Their repudiation of her was well-coordinated. It reflects student ability to be sophisticated, not reactive, when confronted with a speaker that epitomizes the very refutation of their HBCU education. It is my hope and dream that these students can continue to operate in formation as they oppose oppression.

I don’t know how DeVoid came to be BCU’s commencement speaker. I suspect that the White House (Omarosa) made a call to offer an administration speaker and they went for it.

Maybe Trump whisperer Manigault’s new hubby, Florida Rev. John Allen Newman, has some ties to the college and he saw this as a way of burnishing wifey’s credentials as HBCU savior.

Maybe there are a bunch of Black Republicans on the B-CU board

DR. JULIANNE MALVEAUX TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM

standing in the wings and hoping for goodies from 45.

Usually, commencement speakers are secured months before graduation. This speaker was thrust on students and their families just ten days before the ceremony.

Just a sideshow For most students, speakers are the sideshow, not the main deal in commencement, unless the speaker is someone like President Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Denzel Washington, or Viola Davis.

Commencement speakers are expected to spout uplifting platitudes, offer sage advice, maybe share a private challenge, and wish the graduates well and do it in less than 20 minutes. Students are sitting at the edge of their seats not because they are waiting for the punch line, but because they want their degrees.

What was B-CU President Edison Jackson thinking?

Maybe he thought he was making friends by inviting DeVoid to speak. He made a spectacle

‘You are the best of us’ Editor’s Note: More than 200 Black professors signed this open letter to the 2017 graduates of Bethune-Cookman University.

Dear Graduates: First, congratulations! We are so proud of what you have accomplished. You have studied, prepared, planned, learned, and have earned what our parents, grandparents, and ancestors have had to fight, scrape, and die for in this nation. We are proud of you for that!

Beyond becoming graduates, we are floating this morning thinking about how you stood up to your university and protested the woefully under-qualified secretary of education who attempt-

MORE THAN 200 BLACK PROFESSORS GUEST COMMENTARY

ed to address you at your graduation. Watching you stand and turn your backs to her makes us elated.

Overjoyed. Humbled. It was a day and a moment that should have been about celebrating you and what you achieved.

We cheered The world watched you protest the speaker you never should have

multaneously.

And, since many of our schools sit in states with Republican leadership, and since the current climate seems to provoke blind protest of all things Republican in order to maintain one’s ‘Black card,’ it is incumbent upon leaders to communicate more effectively with students, faculty and other campus stakeholders about the motivation for inviting individuals to campus, and acknowledge the right of individuals to disagree while heralding the need for intelligent discourse even in the face of opposition.

I mentioned something to this effect on Twitter the other day, and was met with such high and noble responses as not wanting to stand around waiting for the benevolence of White folks and racists not deserving a seat at the table of Mary McLeod Bethune.

And those are all very nice t-shirt sayings, but it is the job of leaders to more firmly paint a picture of where we are.

No other choice Starting with the fact that neither party in this country has ever really been for Black folks or HBCUs, some just know what better to say – so playing partisan politics is a silly, fruitless game.

And until every soon-to-be alum who is protesting is in a position to a) give substantially, b) influence their soon-to-be employers to build corporate partnerships with their alma maters which would increase the capacity and resources of the institutions to train future graduates, and c) influence private philanthropists to give enough to make up for the gaps in state and federal funding, there is very little choice but to engage elected officials in the hopes that such engagement will yield favorable program and resources allocation.

But most importantly, leaders must have these transparent of the graduation by inviting a woman who had already disparaged HBCUs with her ignorance.

And he did it in the same week when her boss, 45, said (and then quickly reversed himself ) that he was not sure that some federal provisions for HBCUs are constitutional.

What qualifications?

It is odious that DeVoid has received an honorary degree from BCU. What has she done to earn it?

According to President Jackson, “Through Secretary DeVos’ life work, her contributions extend far beyond her home state of Michigan. Secretary DeVos has supported educational opportunities for students in over 25 states and supported Central Florida through several philanthropic efforts: 100 Black Men of Central Florida; Jones High School, and the Parramore neighborhood located in Orlando to name a few. Secretary DeVos is a graduate of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI. She is the wife of community activist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Dick DeVos, where they have four adult children and six grandchildren.”

This earns her an honorary degree?

Under pressure I reached out to President Jackson and several members of his team to discuss this. I’ve been to B-CU twice under President Jackson’s leadership and know what kinds of pressures that HBCU presidents face as they jughad. We cheered as we saw so many of you refuse to acquiesce in the face of threats and calls for complicity.

Your actions fit within a long tradition of Black people fighting back against those who attack our institutions and our very lives with their anti-Black policies and Anglo-normative practices.

Betsy DeVos’ commitment to dismantling public education and her egregious framing of Historically Black Colleges and Universities as “pioneers” in school choice are just two examples of why she should never have been invited to speak at an event celebrating Black excellence.

We shared your outrage when it was announced that DeVos would serve as your commencement speaker and receive an honorary degree. As your administration

A5

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: ‘RANSOMWARE’ CYBER ATTACKS

TOM JANSSEN, THE NETHERLANDS

conversations on the front end to avoid backlash, and they must be able to put their own personal politics aside to achieve a goal.

They should encourage students to express their opinions in constructive ways without damaging the broader effort, not threaten them from the commencement stage or put out press releases which mischaracterize the situation on the backend.

Because, regardless of whether students and faculty and even administrators like who is in office right now, these are the people with whom campus leaders must work to not only promote the strength of the institutions, but to secure the strength of the regional and national economies.

Looking forward For his part, Sen. Cornyn’s office has said he is looking forward to continuing to engage with the university moving forward. I’m not sure how many more rescinded invitations or humiliating shows I would endure if I were in office before turning my back on an entire group, but I’d bet it wouldn’t be many.

Some will argue backs have algle constituencies – faculty, students, alumni, community, trustees and many others.

He might have found himself stuck between a rock and a hard place when he invited DeVoid.

Or he may have welcomed the opportunity.

Sold out We in “HBCU Land” (my special term for our space) play ourselves cheap. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Columbia, Georgetown, and Stanford aren’t rushing to give Betsy DeVoid honorary degrees. They don’t think she deserves them.

The woman with a simple undergraduate degree from the unremarkable Calvin College (yes, my elitism is showing), whose only contribution to the education arena is her rabid embrace of school choice, should not get an honorary degree from anywhere. Unfortunately, B-CU was first in line to debase itself by offering a degree to DeVoid.

An insult DeVoid insulted the B-CU community by recounting Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune’s life story as part of her commencement speech. How dare she tell us about ourselves in a way to attempt to endear us to her? Betsy DeVoid, you are no Mary McLeod Bethune. You can go to her gravesite, but you can’t channel her energy.

The low point of the BCU commencement was the spectacle of President Jackson chiding his students because they had the integrity to protest the presence

ready been turned in deed and in rhetoric. But if there is a willingness to come and engage and listen, I would argue this is not the case. There have been several missteps so far, but there have also been swift corrections – which, if we are honest, has not always been the case from elected officials.

And while we may be tired and weary of waiting on change to come, until there is another way ahead, we can’t shun the people who write the budget. Even if we don’t like their politics.

Autumn A. Arnett is the editor of Education Dive, an online publication that provides news, trends, jobs listings and resources for educators and administrators in higher education and K12. She has contributed to several publications, largely around issues of diversity and access in higher education. This article originally appeared on HBCU Digest (www.hbcudigest.com). of Ms. DeVoid.

He is their leader, their guru, their mentor. He should not have threatened his students, but instead offered them, and Ms. DeVoid, a series of palliative statements designed to honor the protest spirit of Dr. Bethune, and the awkwardness of the moment.

Had I been a scolded student, I would have felt slimed. Had I been understood, I might have felt differently.

Next steps If I were in B-CU’s Class of 2017, I would contribute, for the next few years, to a fund that supports student activists. I’d find a classmate to run the fund outside the confines of the university. I’d support the fund because I support my college, but not an administration that insults the best day of our college career with an odious and repugnant speaker.

We must resist the ways that 45 and his minions like Omarosa Manigault are pimping HBCUs. “Woke” Black people must be aggressive in our financial support of HBCUs, and indifferent to the disingenuous overtures that would bring a devoid presence like Betsy DeVos to an HBCU campus.

Julianne Malveaux is a Washington, D.C.-based economist and writer. Her latest book, “Are We Better Off? Race, Obama and Public Policy,” is available at www.juliannemalveaux.com.

hid behind the rhetoric of “learning from people with divergent perspectives,” current students objected. Alumni petitioned. We watched from a distance wondering how but knowing why this moment was taken from honoring you.

You are the best of us.

We, the undersigned, are Black professors and college administrators— some of us at HBCUs, some of us at Predominately White Institutions, some of us HBCU alums – and we thank you. We salute you.

And we love you.

Honored us all

Dan Blue Endowed Chair in Political Science at North Carolina Central University Dr. Yaba Blay organized the collective effort among these instructors. Assistant Professor of Urban Education at Loyola University Dr. Camika Royal, and Associate Professor of Women’s Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Ohio State University Dr. Treva B. Lindsey wrote this letter. It was originally published on www. cassiuslife.com.

But then you turned it around, figuratively and literally. We beamed with joy as we watched videos and read tweets of how you took your graduation back to honor yourselves. To honor your founder. To honor our ancestors.

To honor us all.

You represent the best of Mother Mary McLeod Bethune who took the little she had and built an institution that remains committed to bringing out the best in us.

TOJ A6

NATION

MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

Supreme court won’t revive N.C. voter ID law Justices refuse to hear appeal that would have reinstated ballot restrictions

2013 act change

BY GREG STOHR BLOOMBERG NEWS/TNS

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court dealt an unexpected blow to the voter-identification movement Monday, refusing to reinstate North Carolina ballot restrictions that a lower court said target Blacks “with almost surgical precision.”

Turning away the appeal by state Republican leaders, the justices left intact a ruling that said the provisions were racially discriminatory in violation of federal voting-rights law.

In addition to requiring people to show a photo ID, the North Carolina law reduced the number of early-voting days and eliminated same-day registration and out-of-precinct voting.

Surprise move

CHRIS SEWARD/RALEIGH NEWS & OBSERVER/TNS

The Rev. William Barber, head of the North Carolina NAACP, back left, listens in August 2013 as one of the plaintiffs, Rosanell Eaton, speaks as they announce that the group was filing a lawsuit against North Carolina’s voter ID bill. Barber, president of the state chapter since 2005, says he’s stepping down next month.

lenged the North Carolina law. A three-judge panel said the provisions violated the Constitution’s equal protection guarantee and the Voting Rights Act. A federal trial judge had upheld the law.

The rebuff was a surprise because four conservative justices previously tried to revive the measure before the 2016 election. That effort failed because it was an emergency request that required five votes, but the court could have accepted the latest appeal with only four votes.

In a statement that accompanied the court’s order Monday, Chief Justice John Roberts pointed to uncertainty over an important procedural aspect of the case, disagreement over who was authorized to file an appeal on behalf of the state.

The Obama administration and civil rights groups chal-

The North Carolina law was enacted in 2013, a month after the Supreme Court struck down a central part of the Voting Rights Act, the landmark 1965 law that opened the polls to millions of Black Americans.

The Supreme Court ruling effectively eliminated the requirement that parts of 15 states with histories of discrimination, including North Carolina, get federal approval before changing their voting rules.

North Carolina was among the first states to adopt voting changes after the decision.

Mixed fates Voting restrictions met mixed fates in the run-up to the last year’s election, with federal courts allowing some state limits but not others.

Federal appeals courts invalidated or softened voter-ID laws in Texas, North Carolina and Wisconsin.

The North Carolina dispute provoked unusual courtroom wrangling among the state’s elected officials. The state filed its appeal using private lawyers when Republican Pat McCrory was governor.

McCrory lost the November election, and the man who defeated him — Democrat Roy Cooper — tried to withdraw the appeal. The lawyers pressing the appeal, however, told the justices that they represented the Republican-controlled General Assembly, not the governor.

Mixed messages from Trump about HBCUs Statement about funding Black colleges worries educators, legislators

BY JANE KENNEDY TRICE EDNEY NEWS WIRE

Repeatedly during his first 100 days, President Donald J. Trump signaled to the leaders and supporters of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that the federal support on which HBCUs depend would remain a priority under his administration.

One sign of hope was an executive order that the president signed in February to move the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities from the Education Department to the White House, which some believed was an indication that HBCUs would continue to be a priority under the new administration.

Started in February But doubts surfaced just weeks later after dozens of HBCU presidents and leaders met with the president on Feb. 27 for a meeting that was widely panned as little more than a photo op. That same month, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos was heavily criticized for a statement in which she praised HBCUs as “real pioneers when it comes to school choice.’’

HBCUs were actually birthed from legalized racial segregation when African-Americans had no choice but to attend Black schools.

It was, in part, the aftermath of that statement that caused graduates at Bethune-Cookman University to boo and turn their backs on DeVos in protest as she began their commencement speech May 10.

Troubling statement Still, the Trump administration has sent yet another troubling message concerning HBCUs, contained in a signing state-

Dr. Lezli Baskerville

John Conyers

ment connected to a temporary federal spending measure.

The statement said, “Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program Account” among other funds, the order said, “My Administration shall treat provisions that allocate benefits on the basis of race, ethnicity, and gender…in a manner consistent with the requirement to afford equal protection of the laws under the Due Process Clause of the Constitution’s Fifth Amendment.”

This HBCU Capital Financing Program Account, which provides HBCUs with funding at reasonable rates to build new and renovate infrastructure on their aging campuses, was created in 1992 as part of the Higher Education Act passed by Congress.

Black leaders respond According to Black lawmakers and other HBCU advocates, race is not a criteria and to qualify for the loans the schools must meet standards based on mission, accreditation status and the year an institution was established.

Hours after the White House released the signing statement, Michigan Rep. John Conyers, who is the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, and Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Cedric Richmond (D-Louisiana) issued a joint response that questioned both Trump’s understanding of the Capital Financing Program and his commitment to HBCUs. “Trump’s statement is not only misinformed factually, it is not grounded in any serious constitutional analysis,” it read. “For a president who pledged to reach

DUANE C. FERNANDEZ SR./HARDNOTTSPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, right, was the keynote speaker at Bethune-Cookman University’s graduation last week. She also was bestowed an honorary doctorate degree. out to African-American and other minorities, this statement is stunningly careless and divisive. We urge him to reconsider immediately.”

HBCU statistics Dr. Lezli Baskerville, president and CEO of the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO), in a lengthy statement noted that HBCUs serve diverse student bodies.

“Since their founding, HBCUs have been open to, welcoming and supportive of persons from all races, ethnicities, religions, and both genders except for the gender-specific HBCUs,” she said.

“HBCUs enroll roughly 30% of non-African American students.

Their faculty is more than 40% non African American. Today 5 HBCUs are more than 50% nonAfrican American. At least one is majority Hispanic serving. One is being shepherded by a white fe-

male president.”

If the administration were to withdraw from the program, she added, it would be “devastating to these equal opportunity institutions to whose presidents and chancellors President Trump pledged the largest investments in their history.”

Trump clarifies The president has hastened to clarify the signing statement and assuage his critics, stating that the signing statement “does not affect my unwavering support for HBCUs and their critical education missions.” Noting the executive order he signed in February to strengthen their capacity, he said his commitment “remains unchanged.”

Baskerville is willing to give Trump the benefit of doubt and said DeVos’ decision to deliver her first commencement speech at an HBCU “is an important indication that this administration understands the centrality of HB-

CUs to the realization of many of its priority goals, including its education, workforce, economic stimulus, urban and rural revitalization, and infrastructure development goals.”

Baskerville also said that the experience will help DeVos become an “even more potent voice” for HBCUs.

No mercy But, Conyers and Richmond aren’t buying it.

“Sadly and shamefully, HBCUs, including the schools that President Trump met with, are left to wonder whether he wants to help or hurt them,” they said in the joint statement.

“If President Trump really wants to help HBCUs, he’ll implement the proposals the CBC has suggested to him in several letters, including the letter we sent him on April 27, calling for robust funding for a host of programs that support students served by these schools.”

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MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

Celebs speak out about their mental health See page B3

SHARING BLACK LIFE, STATEWIDE

How Biles was booted from ‘DWTS’ See page B5

SOUTH FLORIDA / TREASURE COAST AREA

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Not rushing to the altar

BY GARY ROTSTEIN PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

2005 to 41 percent in 2015.

The economic situation of young men has plummeted, with 41 percent of those ages 25-34 earning less than $30,000 annually, compared to just 25 percent who were below that inflationadjusted threshold in 1975. The status of women has spiked, meanwhile, as only 14 percent in that age group are homemakers now compared to 43 percent in 1975. Despite economic gains compared to young men, however, their earnings still trail those of males.

Sharing a home with an unmarried partner has been the fastest-growing living arrangement over the past four decades, used by 12 percent of 18-to34-year-olds in 2016 compared to less than 1 percent in 1975. The age group’s most common living arrangement, however, is living with parents, which has overtaken living with a spouse.

New Census report highlights how young adults’ views on marriage and adulthood are vastly different from their parents.

PITTSBURGH – Shenay Jeffrey, a 28-year-old Point Breeze resident in a committed relationship for the past two years, is already six years older than the age at which her mother got married.

No move toward wedlock is imminent for the college graduate who holds a Carnegie Mellon University master’s degree in public management.

Instead, she plans to move with her partner, Brandon Jennings, into a Highland Park apartment this summer, a cohabitation choice that’s increased in popularity nationally for decades and will help both of their finances.

The idea of a binding, long-term commitment — especially one that customarily involves children? That’s taking a back seat to other pursuits, such as her consideration of applying to law school while Jennings completes a Ph.D. program at the University of Pittsburgh.

Changing benchmarks

Not ready “We’re both at a stage of our lives where marriage is not the most feasible, and we have a lot of individual goals we want to accomplish first,” said Jeffrey, currently employed in a Pitt student volunteer program. “I want to be set financially, and him as well, before we get into that big of a decision.”

This postponement of the age of marriage by young people compared to prior decades — partly spurred by improved educational and economic status in their 20s for women such as Jeffery — is just one of many long-term trends highlighted by national statistics in a recent U.S. Census Bureau report.

The April report, “The Changing Economics and Demographics of Young Adulthood: 1975-2016,” puts numbers to some often-discussed aspects of today’s millennial generation — ones that may inspire either frustration, sympathy or nodding approval from their baby boomer parents, who themselves often broke with their parents’ traditions.

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‘Big disconnect’

Census findings Examining census and other survey data about the 18-to-34 age group, the report notes: The percentage of women ages 2024 who are married fell from 57 percent in 1976 to 17 percent in 2014, while those with a child fell from 31 percent to 25 percent. It is thus more common for a 25-year-old woman to be a mother than a wife.

About one of three 18-to-34-yearolds relies on parents’ financial help, and a similar proportion live in their parents’ homes. The percentage living independently fell from 51 percent in

The report pointed out how today’s millennials generally fail to reach benchmarks of adult independence by an age that most of society considers ideal.

A 2012 survey of the U.S. population, for instance, found 21 was deemed the ideal age of financial independence from parents, but only 29 percent of 21-year-olds currently achieve that.

And 22 was the consensus as the ideal age of obtaining full-time employment, but only 37 percent have such jobs by that age.

Similarly, wide gaps show up for getting married and becoming a parent.

3 Julius Givens says he doesn’t need a house or a car. Givens, shown on Jan. 26, lives with a roommate in a two-bedroom apartment in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Studies show many millennials will struggle to reach the level of financial success their parents achieved.

Brandon Jennings and Shenay Jeffrey of Pennsylvania are shown outside of his apartment near Pittsburgh. The couple has been dating for two years.

In 2005, some 26 percent of young adults (ages 18 to 34) still lived at home, the U.S. Census Bureau says. By 2015, that number had risen to just over 34 percent.

REBECCA DROKE/PITTS-

IAN ALLENDEN/DREAM-

NANCY STONE/CHICAGO TRIBUNE/TNS

BURGH POST-GAZETTE/TNS

STIME/TNS

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Putting together four yardsticks by which someone might fully embrace adulthood — a job, marriage, parenthood and living apart from parents — nearly half of 25-to-34-year-olds could claim all of those in 1975, but fewer than one-fourth could in 2016, according to the report.

“There’s a big disconnect between what Americans believe are milestones of adulthood and what young Americans are actually reaching,” Jonathan Vespa, the Census Bureau demographer who authored the report, said in an interview.

The millennial generation’s accomplishments don’t necessarily align with those of older adults to start with because of shifting attitudes.

A 2014 Pew Research Center survey found 55 percent of people over age 50 thought marriage and parenting should be priorities for adults, while two-thirds of people ages 18 to 29 did not deem those essential.

The new 20 On a practical level, matching past generations’ achievements at the same age became only more difficult due to See ALTAR, Page B2

CALENDAR

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FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR West Palm Beach: The Urban League of Palm Beach County will host its an Equal Opportunity Day Awards Gala Luncheon on May 23 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center.

Details: ulpbc.org Orlando: The West Orlando Christian Center’s Women’s Empowerment Conference is May 19-21. Details: Westorlandochurch.tv Lauderdale Lakes: Caribbean Nationals in Broward will celebrate Unifest starting May 20 from 5 to 10 p.m. at the Lauderhill Sports Park with a CASA Football tournament. A May 21 festival will be at Vincent Torres Park. Complete details: www.unifestlive. org.

Jacksonville: Diana Ross is scheduled at 8 p.m. June 28 at Daily’s Place.

Clearwater: Idina Menzel performs May 25 at Ruth Eckerd Hall.

Miami: The Urban Collective, producers of the Art Africa Miami Arts Fair will host a free IAMART Miami for youth in

MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

STOJ

Historic Overtown May 18-20. More information: 786-897-8854 or email info@harrispublicrelations.com.

Tampa: The State of Florida Black Empowerment Convention is May 19-21 at the Robert W. Saunders Library. It will focus on supporting Black businesses, raising strong candidates, and the education system. More information: Call Ali Muhammad at 813-452-7119 or visit vanguardoftampabay. webs.com.

Miami: Chance the Rapper is scheduled June 13 at AmericanAirlines Arena and June 14 at Tampa’s Amalie Arena.

Orlando: Plans are underway the 18th Annual Darrell Armstrong Classic Weekend Aug. 11-13 for his foundation that helps premature babies.

Sponsorship info: Call 407-252-333 or email jbm395@gmail.com.

MACY GRAY

The Macy Gray Live show is at the Faena Theater in Miami Beach on June 2.

West Palm Beach: Catch Trevor Noah on June 3 at the Kravis Center.

Tampa: Tickets are on sale for the Total Package Tour with Paula Abdul, New Kids on the Block and Boyz II Men at the Amalie Arena on July 15.

BRUCE BRUCE

LIONEL RICHIE

Lionel Richie and Mariah Carey are scheduled Aug. 11 at the Amalie Arena in Tampa for a 7 p.m. show.

The Memorial Weekend Comedy Festival is May 28 at the James L. Knight Center. Performers include Bruce Bruce, Bill Bellamy and Luenell.

Senator to present free Choice Challenge for teens from various Miami-Dade County public schools like Norland Middle, Highland Oaks Middle, John F. Kennedy Middle, North Miami Middle, North-Dade Middle, Thomas Jefferson Middle, Edison Park K-8 Center, Charles R. Drew Middle, Brownsville Middle, Madison Middle, and Westview Middle.

SPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

It takes a village to raise a child and for the past five years, Senate Democratic Minority Leader Oscar Braynon II has created an event for the youth to teach the good, the bad, and the ugly of certain choices made in life.

On May 20, the fifth annual “Choice Challenge” will take place from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Florida International University’s Kovens Center (3000 Northeast 151st St., North Miami).

The Choice Challenge, in partnership with the Moss Foundation and NFL player Santana Moss, is a free youth only event aimed to equip middle and high school students with the knowledge and tools to

Equipping youth Senator Oscar Braynon’s annual event for teens will take place on May 20. make conscious decisions about their future.

Hundreds attend Every year, South Florida’s teens between the ages of 13 to 17 participate in a day filled with education-

al workshops that focus on careers, life choices, character development, and teen self-consequences of drugs, gangs, and gun violence.

In the previous years, over 300 students attended

Braynon created the Choice Challenge to be a free event because he saw the need to educate the youth in South Florida about the impact choices can have on their lives positively and negatively.

He wanted to provide every teen the opportunity to participate and engage in conversations that may not feel as comfortable speaking with a parent or teacher.

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the start of the Great Recession a decade ago and the labor market’s evolution since then.

The census report “tells us that more and more young men are not getting a decent foothold when it comes to work and making money, and that of course has a big impact on their capacity to get married and even stay married,” said Bradford Wilcox, a sociology professor who is director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia.

“But I also think there are a good number of young adults out there today who think 30 is the new 20, and they can spend their 20s looking about for a career and a relationship and not be that intentional about moving more quickly into marriage and family life and a professional future,” Wilcox said. “Seeing the 20s as a decade for an opportunity to explore, to have fun, is certainly a mindset held by some younger adults today.”

Older brides Nicole Brough, 35, a wedding planner in Pine, Pennsylvania, who was herself married at 24, sees how priorities have evolved just in the time

since she left school, especially among women.

She’s generally helping brides already in their mid-to-late 20s instead of younger. That correlates to today’s U.S. median age for a woman’s first marriage being 27, compared to 22 in 1980. Men are customarily about two years older

when marrying.

Thinking of her many clients who have been through post-graduate education or launched careers, Brough said, “It used to be the next step after graduating was to get married, but now women see it as good to take their time — maybe travel and do things for

themselves. There’s not the same pressure to jump right in to get married.”

Thinking positive Wendy Manning, director of the Center for Family and Demographic Research at Bowling Green State University, said re-

“You do better when you know better,” stated Braynon. “The Choice Challenge exemplifies this maxim by aiming to equip our young people with life facts. As we prepare for our fifth year, we hope that each participant leaves the workshop well-informed, with a renewed outlook on life, and the unwavering commitment to make the right choice.’’

Celebs, local leaders Middle and high school students are encouraged to attend and spend the day with celebrities and community leaders talking honestly about their real-life experiences and the choices that led to their successes and failures.

This year’s 2017 speakers include Chef Teach, owner of the World Famous Mac

cent data suggest that people aren’t avoiding marriage altogether — they’re simply delaying it. And in many cases, that may be a positive.

“People are maybe more financially set when married than they were before, and they’re maybe making better matches and have better criteria,” she said.

“I don’t think as a nation we’re really rejecting marriage — we had been seeing a decline in the marriage rate, but that’s stabilizing now.”

Similarly, it’s not necessarily a bad thing that more young adults are returning to their parents’ homes or delaying departures from them, said Manning. National surveys have indicated the majority of both children and parents in such arrangements view them positively.

She said the growth in the trend is also often exaggerated — 29 percent were with their parents in 2007, compared to 33 percent in 2015, and most are younger than 25 and perhaps just finishing school.

“If parents can help their young adults launch, I think they’re happy to do it,” said Manning, a sociology professor. “And if you’re living with parents and on a pathway to something positive, it’s not so much of a problem.”

Some limitations The census report not-

& Cheese; Pastor Richelle Williams, Jesus Peoples Ministries Church International; Ernishia Randolph, president and CEO of Juanita’s Kitchen; John Gay, CEO and president of Tax Drz; “Lex” PierreLouis, founder of LPMG; Stitchez, 103.5 The Beat/ iHeart radio personality; K. Foxx, 103.5 The Beat/ iHeart radio personality; Antonio Bryant, former NFL football player; Adrianna Smith, former Miami Dolphins and Heat dancer; Tammy Gray, Public Defender’s Office; Arthur “Marty” McNeil, Public Defender’s Office; Walter Byers, City of Miami Police Office; and Rolando Perez, City of Miami Police Office.

Registration is required at ChoiceChallenge2017.

Eventbrite.com.

ed that about one-fourth of young adults living in their parents’ homes have a disability of some kind. Others are frequently single mothers or may be living there to help care for their parents, but more males than females are living with parents, and those men typically lack college degrees.

Like the negative connotation often ascribed to such situations, Brandon Jennings — the post-graduate student who is Jeffrey’s partner — said he knows plenty of peers trapped into living in their childhood bedrooms or basements by student debt, unemployment or other factors not of their choosing.

“I found in college a lot of peers were completely unsure what they wanted to do,” said Jennings, who studies electrical engineering. “They founder around in school, majoring in things they may not be particularly interested in or don’t know how to turn into a career, and they ultimately graduate without a direction and don’t find a job and have to live at home.”

The Maryland native and Jeffrey, both long out of the nest, are happy to be in a different situation. And for them, like many in their 20s, marriage can wait. A fulfilling relationship and the benefits of shared living space have plenty to offer in the meantime.

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MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

HEALTH

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Celebs open up about mental health struggles Holdsclaw says she’s encouraged that others are sharing their stories

BY ALISON BOWEN CHICAGO TRIBUNE/TNS

CHICAGO — Many find it difficult to speak out about mental illness. Some worry what others will think of them. Some are concerned it will negatively affect their career. Some fear the information would be a burden on family and friends.

Former WNBA star Chamique Holdsclaw had these same fears before talking publicly about her depression and bipolar disorder.

“I was really worried,” she said.

“I was like, ‘Oh my God, now I’m going to be judged. The coaches are going to treat me different.’”

She worried, she recalled, people would think, “She’s not mentally tough. She’s soft.”

Prince Harry

Subject of documentary

Encouraging others

But Holdsclaw, who was recently in Chicago to talk about ending stigmas surrounding mental health issues, found transparency provided relief.

Her story was translated into the documentary “Mind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw,” which tracked her athletic career and mental health struggles.

In 2013, she pleaded guilty to assault and possession of a firearm after reportedly smashing the windows of her ex-girlfriend’s car. Realizing she needed help, she found that telling others what she was going through took away feelings of hiding and shame.

She said she is encouraged that other boldface names are opening up.

Princes speak out Last month, Prince Harry detailed the grief and rage he suffered after losing his mother, Princess Diana, when he was 12

Chrissy Teigen

years old. He and his brother, Prince William, are involved with charity work that aims to take away the stigma of mental illness.

Prince William also released a video with Lady Gaga — who has detailed her post-traumatic stress disorder — in which they discussed the importance of letting people know they will not be judged.

“I should be so happy,” the singer said in the video. “But you can’t help it if in the morning you wake up, you are so tired, you are so sad, you are so full of anxiety.”

Celebrities speaking frankly about depression or anxiety, Holdsclaw said, might help others feel comfortable doing the same.

“Young people coming up, we have to change things by letting them know that it’s OK to talk about their feelings and their emotions,” she said. “Those thoughts and emotions fester.”

Model Chrissy Teigen wrote in Glamour in March about her postpartum depression. She too hesitated because of what people would think of her or how they might criticize her. But she said talking openly felt necessary.

“I’m speaking up now because I want people to know it can happen to anybody, and I don’t want people who have it to feel embarrassed or to feel alone,” she wrote.

For Holdsclaw, opening up freed her in a way she hadn’t felt before.

“We have to use our voices and use our platform to encourage,” she said.

CCN/REX SHUTTERSTOCK/ZUMA PRESS/TNS

Former WNBA star Chamique Holdsclaw says that when celebs like Prince Harry speak out, it lessens the stigma of mental health issues.

Exploring role of food, obesity in early onset of puberty

BY DANIEL NEMAN ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

DREAMSTIME/TNS

People who are suicidal are often disconnected and socially isolated.

Study: Follow-up phone call could save a life

BY KATHERINE BURGESS KANSAS CITY STAR/TNS

Hospital emergency departments shouldn’t merely give psychiatric referrals after discharging patients who have attempted suicide, a new study found.

Instead, follow-up phone calls after the patient is discharged could reduce the risk of future suicide attempts.

In the study, which included nearly 1,400 patients across the United States, fu-

ture suicide risk was decreased by 30 percent due to follow-up phone calls, specialized screening and safety planning.

“People who are suicidal are often disconnected and socially isolated,” study co-author Michael Allen, professor of psychiatry and emergency medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz, told HealthDay. “So any positive contact with the world can make them feel better.”

Let’s talk seriously about periods.

Doctors and scientists have noticed an alarming trend.

Some girls in elementary school are experiencing their first period — menarche — as early as fourth grade.

That’s 9 or 10 years old.

This shift is noticeable across the board. In the United States, the average age for a girl’s first period is now just under 12 1/2 years old.

This is a year and a half earlier than the average for girls in 1900.

What does this mean? And could it be related to what they are eating?

Very possibly, says Dr. Jill Powell, a pediatric and adolescent gynecologist at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital and SLUCare, and an associate professor at St. Louis University School of Medicine.

Potential causes Powell sees three potential causes for this earlier onset of girls’ periods: obesity, chemical exposures and social and psychological stressors.

“We know kids are more obese now than they ever were in the history of our country. Right now, about one-quarter to one-fifth of children are obese. That’s not overweight, that’s obese, meaning that they are significantly above their recommended body weight.

Obesity in children has tripled in the last 30 years,” she said.

And that may be important, she said, because fat cells make estrogen.

The more fat cells you have, the more estrogen your body makes.

Ghrelin and leptin Estrogen, of course, is the main female sex hormone (men have it too, in smaller amounts). So it

makes logical sense that an overabundance of it could lead to earlier menstruation.

And the relationship between fat cells and puberty may extend beyond estrogen, Powell said.

Two hormones control our appetite, she explained: ghrelin, which tells our bodies that we are hungry, and leptin, which tells us that we are full.

“There is a lot of interplay between the amount of fat cells that you make and how sensitive your body is to leptin,” she said.

“It looks like the fatter you are, the more insensitive you are to leptin.”

And “leptin itself may be involved in puberty,” she said.

The relationship between obesity and early periods has not been definitively proved, Powell said, but substantial evidence points to an association. A disproportionate number of obese girls reach puberty earlier than those of normal weight.

Impact of chemicals And while boys are also reaching puberty somewhat earlier than before (though not to the same extent as girls), obese boys tend to come to it a little later than others. One possible reason could be their increased levels of estrogen.

But as Powell pointed out, other factors may be in play besides obesity.

Scientists are studying whether chemicals or hormones that we encounter every day might be having an effect. These chemicals could be naturally occurring in food or be added to them, or they may be found in everything from beauty products to furniture, she said.

Xenoestrogens are hormones that mimic the effect of estrogen or turn on estrogen receptors and act like estrogen. They can be found in certain common food preservatives, along with soy products, the plastic that lines food cans, plastic food storage containers and possibly the non-

stick coating that lines pans.

Not enough sleep?

Sleep deprivation, too, can lead to obesity and therefore potentially earlier periods for girls, Powell said.

“There is pretty good evidence that in children and adults that sleep is more important in hormones than we ever thought.

Sleep deprivation, even for a few hours, turns on ghrelin and turns off leptin,” she said.

Children from 5 to 10 years old need 10 hours of sleep a night, “and I can guarantee you that that is a rare event now,” she said.

But does any of this even matter? If girls get their periods earlier now, is that even a cause for concern?

Absolutely, said Powell, and one of the reasons she gave is absolutely chilling: “Early sexual development leads to a much higher risk of sexual abuse,” she said.

What can help So, what can we do to slow this trend?

“Try to maintain or move toward a healthy weight. Make a reasonable effort to try to avoid the accumulation of certain chemicals in our lives and in our foods” and get enough sleep, she said.

“From a dietary standpoint, we’re all familiar with the recommendations for either kids or adults to get to a healthier weight: more fruits and vegetables, less sugars and processed foods.”

If you can afford it, buy organic foods to avoid pesticides. If you can’t buy organic, use a fruit or vegetable wash to clean certain fruits and vegetables (homemade recipes for these washes are available online, along with lists of which foods are likely to be coated with pesticides and which are not).

For more information on the subject, Powell highly recommends the book “The New Puberty,” by Louise Greenspan and Julianna Deardorff.

“It’s a layperson’s book talking about all of these issues,” she said.

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BUSINESS & PERSONAL FINANCE

MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

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Philadelphia sues Wells Fargo for discriminating against Blacks State says banks knew borrowers couldn’t handle expensive loans

BY JOSEPH N. DISTEFANO PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

PHILADELPHIA – Philadelphia has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Wells Fargo & Co. of overcharging more than 1,000 Black and Latino homebuyers for loans to buy homes in the city since 2004.

Citing six confidential informants who formerly worked for the bank, the city says Wells Fargo knew or should have known that those borrowers could not handle these loans at those terms.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court, says unnecessarily expensive loans drove minority borrowers toward foreclosures that cost the city unpaid taxes, drove down property values, and violated the federal Fair Housing Act.

Neighborhoods ‘hurt’ Wells Fargo, the city’s largest bank, has hurt neighborhoods with a “longstanding, unbroken policy and practice of intentionally steering minority borrowers in Philadelphia into ‘discriminatory’ mortgage loans” at higher cost than it charges “similarly situated white buyers,” the suit charges.

Responding, bank spokesman James Baum said, “The city’s unsubstantiated accusations against Wells Fargo do not reflect how we operate in Philadelphia” or other communities, where the bank is “a fair and responsible lender.”

“These types of cases have been pending in other states and have been rejected by all courts who have addressed the merits of the claims,” Baum said.

LG FRANCIS/SAN JOSE MERCURTY NEWS/TNS

A pedestrian walks by the headquarters of Wells Fargo Bank in San Francisco, Calif. The lawsuit states that the banking giant violated the federal Fair Housing Act among other things.

How not to get fired like Comey

Baum cited the U.S. Supreme promised public trust.

Keep your guard up to avoid a fate similar to Comey’s. If you’ve been in the same job for awhile, it’s easy to get too comfortable and start making poor judgement calls.

Show up for work on time, take deadlines seriously and put 100 percent effort into all assignments.

If you want to stay on the team, you need to pull your weight.

BY LAURA WOODS GOBANKINGRATES.COM/ TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

Last week, President Trump sent shockwaves through the nation when he fired FBI Director James Comey, whose 10-year term should have placed him in office until September 2023.

Precedent made Comey appear untouchable, considering this is only the second time in U.S. history a president has made such a move.

If even someone like Comey’s job security is unstable, you might be feeling a bit insecure about your own position. Continued employment is never a guarantee, so learn from the alleged missteps of the former FBI director to maintain your paycheck.

Wells Fargo’s side

Don’t lose boss’ trust

ANDREW HARRER/POOL/SIPA USA/TNS

President Donald Trump, center, shakes hands with James Comey, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), during an Inaugural Law Enforcement Officers and First Responders Reception at the White House on Jan. 22. On May 9, Trump fired him via a short letter.

Put your best self forward “He wasn’t doing a good job,” Trump told reporters on May 10.

“Very simple. He wasn’t doing a good job.”

Despite recently accusing Comey of going too easy on Hillary Clinton for her use of a pri-

vate email server, part of Trump’s basis for the firing was Comey’s alleged unfair treatment of the 2016 Democratic presidential candidate. Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders claimed Comey’s handling of the situation damaged morale inside the FBI and com-

The White House cited an “erosion of confidence” over the last several months as a key part of Comey’s firing. This came as a surprise to the public, since Press Secretary Sean Spicer recently said, “The president has confidence in the director.”

Clearly, trust can be lost very quickly. Steer clear of this situation by always conducting yourself in an ethical manner.

Don’t lie to your boss, avoid shady business practices and resist the temptation to cut corners. Taking the easy way out might seem convenient in the short term, but if you lose your boss’s trust, you might never gain it back.

Court’s May 1 ruling on an appeal of a Fair Housing Act discrimination lawsuit against Wells Fargo and competitors, holding that banks “cannot be held responsible for harm they didn’t cause.”

In that case, filed against Wells Fargo and other banks by the City of Miami, Justice Stephen Breyer, writing for the court majority, ruled that “the housing market is interconnected with economic and social life,” and plaintiffs such as Philadelphia have to prove a “direct relation” between lawbreaking and damages — a higher standard than merely showing a bank broke the law.

But the court still allowed cities to sue if they think they can prove direct damage.

Miami case cited In suing the San Franciscobased banking giant, the city’s public and private-sector lawyers cited the “breakdown of internal controls” under the bank’s “decentralized” management style.

The legal group is led by Sherrie Savett and colleagues at Philadelphia-based Berger & Montague, and includes lawyers from Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Berstein; the Center for Constitutional Litigation; Trial and Appellate Resources; the University of California, Irvine, law school; and City Solicitor Sozi Pedro Tulante and his staff.

The city was encouraged by the ruling in the Miami case and decided to sue, said spokesman Mike Dunn.

The city also sought to connect incentives that it says made highinterest loans more profitable to the bank’s admission that perverse incentives caused last year’s bogus accounts scandal. That mess has cost the bank hundreds of millions in penalties and forced the departure of former chief executive John Stumpf.

Follow the chain of command In 2016, Comey – who was nominated for FBI director by President Barack Obama in 2013 – held a news conference without notifying his superiors to announce that Hillary Clinton wouldn’t face charges over her email server. This move came back to haunt him.

“Director Comey made a pretty startling revelation that he had essentially taken a stick of dynamite and thrown it into the Department of Justice by going around the chain of command,” Sanders said during a May 10 press conference.

Bucking the chain of command probably won’t put you on a national stage as it did for Comey, but it will get back to your boss.

Even if you don’t agree with your superior, respect them enough to go through the proper channels before making a move above your pay grade.

Chaos ensues when employees start doing whatever they want. Rules and practices are put in place for a reason, so don’t cut the line.

Instagram copies another Snapchat feature: Face filters

BY TRACEY LIEN LOS ANGELES TIMES/TNS

SAN FRANCISCO – Instagram continued to play copycat to Snapchat, launching on Tuesday its own version of face filters — a feature popularized on Snap Inc.’s app.

The new Instagram tool superimposes adornments such as animal ears, hats, makeup and masks over a person’s face on the app.

The decorations include a gold crown and a pair of bunny ears reminiscent of Snapchat’s offerings, as well as thickrimmed glasses.

The company also added features such as the ability to play videos in reverse, hashtag stickers that link to a hashtag page, and an eraser brush when using drawing tools.

Striking resemblances Instagram originally launched in 2010 as a photo-sharing platform with stylish filters. Facebook bought the company in 2012 for $1 billion.

Over the last year, the company has launched features that bear striking resemblance to Snapchat, including Instagram Stories, which lets users share videos that disappear after 24 hours; drawing tools, which allow users to doodle over their photos and videos; and geo-filters, which create a range of location-specific stickers that can be placed on photos and videos.

When asked during Snap Inc.’s first earnings call about copycat competitors, Chief Executive Evan Spiegel said: “At the end of the day, just because Yahoo has a search box doesn’t mean they’re Google.”

Which would be a sick burn,

were it not for the fact that Instagram Stories has already surpassed Snapchat usage. Snapchat has 166 million people who use the app every day. Instagram Stories alone has more than 200 million.

‘World lenses’ The Los Angeles-based Snap Inc. has said its best strategy to stay ahead of imitators is to continue launching new features for users and advertisers. Its latest offerings, announced Monday, include geo-filters that add information such as ZIP Codes, cities, colleges and airports.

The company also said it will give advertisers the ability to sponsor “world lenses,” an augmented reality feature that superimposes three-dimensional digital objects onto phone screens

INSTAGRAM

Instagram users can now superimpose adornments such as animal ears, hats, makeup and masks over a person’s face.

STOJ

MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

FINEST & ENTERTAINMENT

Meet some of

FLORIDA’S

finest

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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.

Thousands of Caribbean culture lovers converge on South Florida every year on the Columbus Day weekend to attend the annual Miami Broward Carnival, a series of concerts, pageants, parades, and competitions. On Carnival Day, “mas” (masquerade) bands of thousands of revelers dance and march behind 18-wheel tractor-trailer trucks with booming sound systems from morning until nightfall while competing for honors. Here is one of the “Finest” we’ve seen over the years.

Go to www. miamibrowardcarnival.com for information on this year’s Carnival.

Graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work from Florida A&M University, Camille Young is not only finding a way, she’s making a way. She’s always been academically motivated, and that shows by making the President’s List and the Phi Alpha National Social Work Honor Society. She plans to continue her education and pursue a career in social services. Though he can’t take all the credit, her dad, Matt Young, has played an important role. He says, “It’s all her, and she’s making me proud.”

CHARLES W. CHERRY II / FLORIDA COURIER

PHOTO BY MATT YOUNG

Beyoncé and Solange to compete for BET awards Beyoncé may lead the pack of nominees this year for the BET Awards, but her sister Solange isn’t far behind. In fact, she’s nominated against her big sis in three of the categories, the network revealed Monday.

Bey earned seven nods and will compete against Solange for best female R&B/pop artist, video of the year and album of the year.

Bruno Mars earned the second highest amount of nominees with five, including best male R&B/pop artist, album of the year and video of the year.

4 for Solange, Chance, Migos

The Knowles sisters were nominated in three of the same categories.

Mo’Nique accuses Daniels, Perry and Winfrey of ‘whiteballing’ her

BY NY MAGEE EURWEB.COM

During a Mother’s Day comedy special at the Apollo in Harlem, actress and comedian Mo’Nique popped off about being blacklisted in Hollywood.

It appears that she is still pissed about being thrown out to wolves from key Hollywood players, and she’s calling out Lee Daniels, Tyler Perry, and Oprah Winfrey.

On Saturday night (May 13), she hosted a comedy special at the Apollo Mo’Nique in Harlem and described her “blackballing” as “whiteballing” because it’s White folks in Hollywood who no longer want to work with her.

She went off about falling out of flavor a couple years ago and ended her rant by naming those she feels are partly responsible, citing Daniels, Perry and Winfrey.

Solange tied with Chance the Rapper and Migos for four nominations a piece.

Migos’ nods include best group and best collaboration for “Bad and Bougee” with Lil Uzi Vert. Best male hip-hop artist nominee Chance the Rapper is also a best new artist nominee along with 21 Savage, Cardi B, Khalid and Young M.A. Now in its 17th year, the BET Awards will air live on June 25 from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles at 8 p.m. The awards ceremony will cap off the annual BET Experience at L.A. Live in Los Angeles from June 22-25.

The BET Awards will also recognize achievements in film, television, sports and international music acts across more than 19 categories. A complete list of the nominees is available at BET.com.

How Biles was eliminated from ‘DWTS’ with perfect scores

the overall percentage of the judges’ points each couple earned. (Confused yet?) Since the judges awarded 303 points total Monday night, the breakdown looked like this: • Biles: 80/303 = 26.4 percent • Jennings: 77/303 = 25.4 percent • Kordei: 76/303 = 25.1 percent • Ross: 70/303 = 23.1 percent Those percentages are then added to the percentage of overall North American votes each contestant receives. If those votes had broken evenly, then it would be Biles, Jennings and Kordei moving to next week’s finals.

BY LIBBY HILL LOS ANGELES TIMES/TNS

“Smiling doesn’t win you gold medals.”

That’s what Simone Biles taught the world on last week’s episode of “Dancing with the Stars.” This week, the Olympic gold medalist learned that perfection doesn’t win you mirror-ball trophies.

Biles was eliminated from Monday night’s episode of “DWTS,” failing to make it to the season finale, despite earning perfect judges’ scores on both of her dances.

How could this happen? Pretty easily, it turns out.

While the judges’ points matter, they don’t matter as much as you might think.

And don’t underestimate the audience’s votes. Here’s how it works:

The scores Each of the four remaining contestants — Biles, former baseball player David Ross,

‘Smile retort turnoff?

Simone Biles and her partner Sasha Farber dance on “Dancing with the Stars.’’

Fifth Harmony member Normani Kordei and NFL running back Rashad Jennings — were judged on their two dances and given numeric scores.

• Biles: Jive 40/40, rumba 40/40, total 80 • Jennings: Rumba 38, quickstep, 39, total 77 • Kordei: Waltz 36; jazz, 40, total 76 • Ross: Foxtrot 34, tango 36, total 70 The totals were then used to calculate

Since Biles dropped from first to last with the addition of audience votes, that means that Ross earned more than 3 percent more of the viewer votes than the Olympian.

So what caused “DWTS” fans to turn on Biles?

It’s possible that last week’s “smile” exchange — during which host Tom Bergeron interjected during Biles’ judging, “I was waiting for you to smile at some of the compliments, you didn’t” followed by Biles’ tart retort — left a bad taste in viewers’ mouths.

Telling a woman to smile is treacherous territory, but perhaps some in the “DWTS” audience were put off by Biles’ refusal to embrace Bergeron’s critique.

The final performances of the season air on ABC next Monday, with the winner being announced the following night, May 23.

FOOD

B6

MAY 19 – MAY 25, 2017

S

Go ahead...

eat the

WHOLE

watermelon FROM FAMILY FEATURES

Sliced or diced, grilled or blended, there are countless ways to prepare watermelon. With some fruits, half or more is wasted when you throw away the seeds and peel, but you may be surprised to learn that you can use an entire watermelon, including the rind, to make delicious and refreshing dishes.

Most people think of watermelon as a sweet, juicy snack perfect for hot summer days, but with its high water content (92 percent), the fruit is more than just tasty. It’s also an ideal way to keep your body hydrated.

What’s more, the ability to use the entire fruit makes watermelon one of the most versatile and value-conscious options in the produce department.

An average watermelon consists of about 70 percent fruit and 30 percent rind.

Hollowed out, the rind is an attractive way to serve any number of recipes, but the rind is actually edible, too, and can be stir-fried, stewed

or pickled, or even enjoyed raw. This yummy slaw gets its distinctive crunch from the watermelon rind, which is packed with citrulline and arginine, two compounds that may aid in healthy blood flow.

Watermelon is also a flavorful substitute for tomatoes, as shown in this traditional Italian appetizer, and contains higher levels of lycopene than any other fresh fruit or vegetable per serving, according to awardwinning nutrition author and registered dietitian Elizabeth Somer.

Additionally, it lends some sweetness to a spicy salsa and a refreshing twist on a summery salad. You can also try blending watermelon with other fresh fruits for a super smoothie or mixing it up with some adult libations (and don’t forget, you can transform the rind into a mini-keg in minutes; just add a pour spout).

Find more ideas for using every bite of fruit, juice and rind at watermelon.org.

WATERMELON CAPRESE SALAD WITH BALSAMIC VINEGAR REDUCTION Makes: 6 servings 12 slices watermelon cut into rounds or squares, approximately 3 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick, with seeds removed 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons honey 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 12 slices salt, to taste pepper, to taste 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, loosely chopped 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 sprig basil, for garnish Place watermelon slices on paper towels and cover with additional paper towels to absorb excess fluid.

In small saucepan over medium heat, add vinegar and honey. Stir to blend, bring to simmer and reduce heat. Stir occasionally until mixture is reduced by almost half. (Do not let reduce too far or allow to froth.) Set aside to cool slightly.

On large platter, place watermelon slices and top each with slice of cheese.

Add salt and pepper, to taste, then sprinkle basil leaves evenly over top.

Drizzle with olive oil, followed by reduced balsamic vinegar. Garnish with sprig of basil.

Tip: Use red and yellow watermelon for an extra pretty presentation.

WATERMELON RIND SLAW Makes: 4 one-cup servings Dressing: 1/4 cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt 1/4 cup low-fat sour cream 1 1/2 tablespoons stone-ground mustard 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon poppy seeds 2 teaspoons olive oil salt, to taste pepper, to taste Slaw: 4 cups grated watermelon rind (fruit and green peel removed) 1 cup grated carrot 1 1/2 cups diced fresh pineapple In small bowl, blend Greek yogurt, sour cream, mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, poppy seeds, olive oil, salt and pepper thoroughly. Set aside.

Place watermelon rind on several layers of paper towels to soak up excess fluid.

In medium bowl, place dressing, rind, carrot and pineapple, and toss to thoroughly coat.

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Learn more at publixcharities.org/hfh.

WATERMELON SLICE ICE POPS Makes: 5-15 servings 5-15 watermelon slices, cut into triangular wedge shapes, about 1/2 to 1 inch thick, with seeds removed 5-15 ice pop sticks Insert ice pop stick into rind of each slice.

Optional variation: After inserting sticks, freeze ice pops before serving.

SUPERFOOD SMOOTHIE Makes: 3 cups 2 cups cubed and seeded watermelon 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries 1 cup raspberry kefir 2 tablespoons orange juice concentrate 2 tablespoons hemp 2 tablespoons agave syrup ice (optional) Place watermelon, raspberries, rasp­berry kefir, orange juice concentrate, hemp, agave syrup and ice, if desired, in blender and blend until smooth.