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The poetry of a ‘phenomenal woman’ Page B1

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

VOLUME 22 NO. 22

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A DISTINCTIVE VOICE STILLED Maya Angelou dies at 86 after a full life of tragedy, survival and triumph.

BY ELAINE WOO LOS ANGELES TIMES (MCT)

aya Angelou, the poet, actress and prolific memoirist, whose most celebrated work, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” established her as a clear-eyed interpreter of the Black experience, has died. She was 86. Her death was announced Wednesday by Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., where she had taught American studies since the 1980s.

Diverse activities Angelou was a diva of American culture whose bestselling autobiographies portrayed a complex, freewheeling life. She was an actress, singer and dancer, who toured internationally in “Porgy and Bess” and played Kunta Kinte’s grandmother in the television miniseries “Roots;” a film director, playwright and professor with a lifetime appointment at Wake Forest; an author of inspirational essays, and a Pulitzer Prize-nominated poet (for “Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’fore I Diiie”) who wrote verses for Hallmark cards and the 1993 inauguration of President Bill Clinton. Her most enduring achievement was “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” (1969), the first of six memoirs. Universal in its themes yet compellingly particular in its details about being a Black girl in a White world, it is a story of survival that embraces what she called a “culture of disclosure,” OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/MCT exposing the ugliness as well as the beauty President Obama honored Dr. Maya Angelou with the 2010 Medal of Freedom in in a prodigiously inventive life. The book became a bestseller and a a White House ceremony in 2011.

2014 GRADUATION SEASON

Presenting the Class of 2014!

staple of high school and college reading lists. At the same time, its graphic descriptions of racism and sexual abuse secured Angelou a place on the American Library Association’s list of most frequently challenged authors. Angelou defended the work for its message of hope and transcendence. “In all my work, in the movies I write, the lyrics, the poetry, the prose, the essays,” she told Paris Review in 1990, “I am saying that we may encounter many defeats – maybe it’s imperative that we encounter the defeats – but we are much stronger than we appear to be, and maybe much better than we allow ourselves to be.”

Born in St. Louis Angelou was born Marguerite Annie Johnson on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis but moved to Long Beach, Calif., with her parents shortly after her birth. When she was 3 and her brother, Bailey, was 4, her parents split up and her father sent them to live with his mother in Stamps, Ark., a “musty little town” that was so segregated, Angelou wrote, that “most Black children didn’t really, absolutely know what Whites looked like.” Her grandmother, who ran a general store, tried to make her granddaughter feel safe and loved, but Angelou saw herself as an ugly, tongue-tied misfit abandoned by her parents. She longed for blond hair and pretty dresses instead of Black skin and clothes cast off by their White owners. “If growing up is painful for the Southern Black girl, being aware of her displaceSee ANGELOU, Page A2

Too disabled to die? High court gives guidance on executions BY JIM SAUNDERS THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

WASHINGTON – Siding with a Death Row inmate convicted of killing a pregnant woman in 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Florida’s use of a “rigid” IQ score in determining whether defendants should be shielded from execution because they are intellectually disabled. The court, in a 5-4 decision, said Florida’s use of an IQ score of 70 “creates an unacceptable risk that persons with intellectual disability will be executed, and thus is unconstitutional.” In 2002, the court found that executing people who are intellectually disabled, or in the common terminology at the time, mentally retarded, violates the Eighth Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment

On Death Row

CHARLES W. CHERRY II / FLORIDA COURIER

All across the country, high schools, colleges and universities are holding graduation ceremonies. Four Black students graduated from Cornell University’s School of Civil Engineering in Ithaca, N.Y., including two from Florida. From left to right: Jamal Cherry of Tampa; Khadija Scott of Brooklyn N.Y.; Hercules Stancil of Bartow; and Nnamdi Okoye of San Jose, Calif.

SNAPSHOTS HURRICANE SEASON 2014 ALSO INSIDE

Looks like another slow season A3

How to prepare for disaster B3

Attorneys for Freddie Lee Hall, on Death Row for the February 1978 murder of 21-year-old Karol Hurst after she left a Leesburg grocery store, presented evidence in state courts that he had an IQ score of 71. The Florida Supreme Court, however, said Florida’s legal threshold for considering an inmate intellectually disabled was a score of 70. Writing for the majority in Tuesday’s U.S. Supreme Court opinion, Justice Anthony Kennedy said using the 70 IQ score as a cutoff prevents courts from considering other types of potentially important evidence in determining whether a person is intellectually disabled. That evidence can include such issues as social adaptation, medical history, behavioral records, school reports and family circumstances.

HEALTH | B4

ENTERTAINMENT | B5

‘A condition’

First lady decries plan on school lunches

Temptations’ Williams discusses 53 years with legendary group

“Intellectual disability is a condition, not a number,’’ wrote Kennedy, who was joined in the majority by justices Ruth Bader Gins-

COMMENTARY: CHARLES W. CHERRY II: RANDOM THOUGHTS OF A FREE BLACK MIND | A4 GUEST COMMENTARY: DARYL GREEN: JOB STRATEGIES FOR TODAY’S COLLEGE GRADS | A5

See EXECUTIONS, Page A2

FOCUS

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

Six ways to know if you let White racism control your destiny, Part 2 Here are factors four through six to determine if you’re allowing racist White people to control your destiny: 4. You are convinced that being a polite, well-behaved Negro is the thing that separates you from the rest of “us.” There is merit to being a good person in general, but don’t fall for the misconception that Black people are only punished or denied opportunities because we are lazy or unethical. One of the reasons it’s so difficult to fight the mass incarceration epidemic is because millions of Blacks are convinced that “those criminals” don’t deserve any rights at all. However, the tide is turned once they have their own confrontation with police and realize just how easy it is for a Black man to be arrested. (You hear that, Dr. Henry Louis Gates?) In academia, I’ve seen many

ANGELOU from A1

ment is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat,” she wrote. After four years in Stamps, Angelou and her brother returned to their mother, Vivian Baxter, who had moved to St. Louis. Angelou worshipped Baxter, a beautiful, fiercely independent woman who supported herself in nontraditional occupations, including professional gambler and merchant seaman. “To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power,” Angelou would later write. “Or the climbing, falling colors of a rainbow.”

Sexually battered Baxter’s boyfriend lived with them. Angelou identified him as “Mr. Freeman” and described him as a “big brown bear” who seldom spoke to the children. One Saturday when her mother was away, he raped her. Freeman was tried and convicted, but before he could serve his sentence he was found beaten to death. His murder shocked the 8-year-old Angelou into silence. Because she had told on him and later testified at his trial, “I thought if I spoke I could kill anyone,” she said years later. She and Bailey were sent back to their grandmother in Stamps where, for the next five years, she spoke to no one except her brother. She might have clung to muteness much longer if not for the intervention of a woman in town named Bertha Flowers, described by Angelou as “the aristocrat of Black Stamps.”

‘Deeper meaning’ Flowers knew the silent girl read voraciously but, as she told her over tea and cookies one afternoon, words “mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with the shades of deeper meaning.” When Flowers read aloud from “A Tale of Two Cities,” Angelou said she “heard poetry for the first time in my life.” She began to memorize and recite poems by Shakespeare, Langston Hughes, Longfellow and Paul Lawrence Dunbar. She wound up graduating at the top of her eighth-grade class. After graduation, she and her brother rejoined their mother, who had moved to San Francisco. She attended George Washington High School and won a scholarship to study drama and dance at the California Labor School. To earn pocket money, she worked as a streetcar conductor and was, by her account, the first African-American woman to hold the job.

Pregnant teen At 16, after a clumsy sexual encounter with a neighborhood boy, she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, Clyde Bailey Johnson, nicknamed Guy. She graduated from San Francisco’s Mission High School and struggled to raise her son on her own through a succession of jobs, including “a shake dancer in

DR. BOYCE WATKINS GUEST COLUMNIST

Black scholars fall for the misconception that their university had never hired or promoted an African-American in their department because every Black person who’d ever applied for the job was either lazy or unqualified. We often sit idly by and watch another person of color get pulled through the mud because we believe that if we quietly mind our own business, we’ll be safe from harm. Unfortunately, when we are convinced that the rest of our people are denied opportunities because they are all less capable

than ourselves, we are feeding right into White supremacist outcomes. This is why so many corporations are able to boast horrifically discriminatory hiring records without so much as a peep from Black employees about such a grave injustice. 5. You’re fearful of being associated with too many other Black people on the job. I once had a colleague who told me that she deliberately avoided associating with other Black people at work because she didn’t want to receive a hostile reaction from her White co-workers. Unfortunately, her strategy only served to dilute our collective power when she was on the verge of being fired from her position. By isolating herself in this way, she made it easier for her opponent to attack her. Remember that there was a reason that it was once illegal for slaves to congregate in large groups. There is also a reason that police typically investigate when large numbers of Black teenagers gather together in one location. It is due to a fear of collective action and what might happen if we were to actually stick together. Black people are

amazing when we work in unison. 6. You believe that White is almost always better. Some of us hold onto an interesting double standard when it comes to Whites. We think that White businesses are more efficient than Black ones. We believe that White universities are better than HBCUs. We’ll spend $250 at WalMart, but gripe about spending $25 with a Black-owned company. Collective economics is not always our strong suit. Have you ever noticed that White people are never clamoring to attend our universities the way we fight to get into theirs? They also don’t spend a lot of time worrying about what we think, or asking us for support (other than Democrats using Black votes in order to stay in power). Now mind you, we have a right to demand things from Whites, such as reparations for both slavery and the War on Drugs, but we can’t allow their reactions to us to determine how we are going to map out our future. White is not always better. We know this. Yes, they have talent like the rest of us and access

In 2008, Dr. Maya Angelou spoke at Wake Forest University, WinstonSalem, N.C., where she held a lifetime teaching position.

I’m the same person I was back then A little less hair, a little less chin, A lot less lungs and much less wind. But ain’t I lucky I can still breathe in. “On Aging” Maya Angelou

YALONDA M. JAMES/ CHARLOTTE OBSERVER/MCT

nightclubs, fry cook in hamburger joints, dinner cook in a Creole restaurant and once had a job in a mechanic’s shop, taking the paint off cars with my hands.” In San Diego, she was a madam who managed a couple of prostitutes. For a period of time, she was addicted to drugs. In 1949, she married a White ex-sailor, Tosh Angelos, but they divorced after three years. Commandingly tall at 6 feet, with a deep voice and theatrical manner, she moved to New York to study dance, then returned to San Francisco, sharing billing as a singer at the Purple Onion cabaret with comedian Phyllis Diller, who would become a close friend.

Name change Riffing off her ex-husband’s last name and her brother’s nicknames for her, she began performing as Maya Angelou. She won a role in a touring production of “Porgy and Bess” and performed in 22 countries from 1954 to 1955. She spent the late 1950s in New York, where she joined the Harlem Writers Guild and met novelist-playwright James Baldwin. In 1960, when she was appearing in Jean Genet’s Obie-winning play “The Blacks,” she joined the civil rights movement, co-producing a benefit cabaret for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the civil rights group co-founded by the Rev. Martin Luther King. For a brief time she led the SCLC’s New York operation. During this period she met Vusumzi Make, a South African freedom fighter, and moved with him and her son to Cairo, where she worked as an editor for the Arab Observer. When her relationship with Make ended, she moved to Ghana, where she worked as a college administrator, editor and writer.

Worked with Malcolm She returned to the United States in 1964 to work as an organizer for Malcolm X, but he was assassinated before she could begin that work. She lectured at UCLA and wrote, produced and directed “Black. Blues, Black,” a 10-part public television series on AfricanAmerican culture that aired in 1968. That year she also helped in the planning of King’s Poor People’s March in Memphis. The day he was assassinated was Angelou’s 40th birthday. While still in mourning over

King, she was invited by writer James Baldwin to a party at the home of Jules Feiffer. Feiffer’s wife, Judy, was enchanted by Angelou’s stories and urged a Random House editor she knew to sign Angelou to a contract.

Paved the way When “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” was published in 1969, it was hailed as a new mode of autobiography, one that described the Black experience “from the inside, without apology or defense,” Mary Helen Washington wrote in a study of Black female autobiographers. A New York Times bestseller for two years, it presaged a wave of Black feminist fiction in the 1970s and ’80s by such authors as Toni Morrison, Ntozake Shange, Alice Walker and Toni Cade Bambara. Walker found it “incredibly powerful and marvelous in its capacity to move people to share their experiences.” “Caged Bird” remains the most highly regarded of her autobiographies, which also include “Gather Together in My Name” (1974), “Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas” (1977), “The Heart of a Woman” (1981), “All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes” (1986) and “A Song Flung Up to Heaven” (2002).

Critics attack Poet Wanda Coleman, in a review for the Los Angeles Times, wrote the gifts Angelou demonstrated in her most famous work “have deserted her in ‘Song,’ ” which Coleman attacked as “a sloppily written fake.” Critic Hilton Als, writing in the New Yorker in 2002, said Angelou’s later memoirs were less successful because her original goal, “to tell the truth about the lives of Black … seems, after her first volume, to have evolved into something else: to document the ups and downs of her own life.” In later years, Angelou’s highs included becoming one of the first African-American women to have an original screenplay produced (“Georgia, Georgia,” released in 1972) and direct a major feature film (“Down in the Delta” in 1998). Angelou was deliberately fuzzy about the number of husbands she had. “I will say how old I am, I will say how tall I am, but I will not say how many times I have been married. It might frighten them off,” she said in 1983, after ending a 10-year marriage to Paul Du

Feu, a writer and cartoonist.

Poetry books She wrote more than a dozen volumes of poetry, including “Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’fore I Diiie” (1971), which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Her poems were notable for their jazzy rhythms and themes of struggle and transcendence, as in “Still I Rise”: “You may write me down in history/With your bitter, twisted lies,/You may trod me in the very dirt/But still, like dust, I’ll rise.” Critics said she wrote homilies disguised as poems, a view that was not substantially altered in 1993 when she wrote “On the Pulse of Morning” for fellow Arkansan Clinton’s inauguration. Only two poets before her had been so honored: Robert Frost read at John F. Kennedy’s swearing-in in 1961 and James Dickey at Jimmy Carter’s inauguration in 1977.

Mixed reviews Angelou’s inaugural verse won mixed reviews. One of the most stinging comments came from Yale scholar and critic Harold Bloom, who told the Hartford Courant in 1994 that Angelou “cannot write her way out of a paper bag.” But her powerful delivery on national television led a new generation of readers to discover her: “Caged Bird” rose to the top of bestseller lists again, more than two decades after its original publication. In 2011, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama. Her short, lyric works spoke so strongly to the masses that Hallmark created a line of products, including greeting cards and pillows, featuring her words. To some, writing for Hallmark confirmed she was not a serious poet, but Angelou was not bothered. Even as she grew frailer, her lungs weakened by decades of smoking, she captivated audiences in her last years, telling the stories of her life. One of the poems she frequently read was “On Aging”: I’m the same person I was back then A little less hair, a little less chin, A lot less lungs and much less wind. But ain’t I lucky I can still breathe in. In addition to her son, Maya Angelou is survived by a grandson and two greatgrandchildren.

to expertise and resources, but there is something deathly wrong with a community that is as determined as ours to give our resources away to the descendants of our historical oppressors, and to also lean on them for advice. Oppression breeds mental illness, and many of us are infected. Racial harmony in America is not going to be achieved through any government program or by holding hands and singing “We Shall Overcome.” It’s going to occur only through the volatility of struggle and a commitment to being courageous enough to stand on our own two feet. No one controls your destiny but you. When you fall down, keep getting back up. Never be afraid, never surrender and never take your eyes off the prize. That’s how you create a future worth fighting for, and that’s how you leave something for your children.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a professor of finance at Syracuse University. Read his columns and weblog at www.boycewatkins.com. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

EXECUTIONS from A1

burg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. “Courts must recognize, as does the medical community, that the IQ test is imprecise. This is not to say that an IQ test score is unhelpful. It is of considerable significance, as the medical community recognizes. “But in using these scores to assess a defendant’s eligibility for the death penalty, a state must afford these test scores the same studied skepticism that those who design and use the tests do, and understand that an IQ test score represents a range rather than a fixed number. A state that ignores the inherent imprecision of these tests risks executing a person who suffers from intellectual disability.” But Justice Samuel Alito wrote in a dissent that the 2002 case, known as Atkins v. Virginia, relied on states to determine how best to identify defendants with intellectual disabilities. The dissent also took issue with parts of the majority opinion about looking at a person’s adaptive behavior in making such determinations. Tuesday’s decision sends Hall’s case back to Florida courts for further consideration. Hall, now 68, is being held at Union Correctional Institution.

Gruesome murder Hall was sent to Death Row in the murder of Hurst, whose body was found in a wooded area of Sumter County. Hall and another man, Mack Ruffin, accosted Hurst after she left a Leesburg grocery store. The woman, who was pregnant, was beaten, shot and sexually assaulted, according to court records. After leaving the scene of the Hurst murder, the men went to a Hernando County convenience store, where a clerk became suspicious and called police. Hall and Ruffin were arrested a short time later and were also charged with shooting to death sheriff’s Deputy Lonnie Coburn outside the store, the court records say.

Decades in court The Hall case has bounced through the courts for more than three decades, with his IQ a heavily debated issue. The state attorney general’s office argued in a brief last year that the U.S. Supreme Court should not take up the case, in part pointing to findings by the Florida Supreme Court that evidence during a 2009 hearing indicated Hall had an IQ higher than 70. But Kennedy’s majority opinion Tuesday took issue with the state’s use of what he described as the “rigid” 70 IQ score. “Florida’s rule disregards established medical practice in two interrelated ways,’’ Kennedy wrote. “It takes an IQ score as final and conclusive evidence of a defendant’s intellectual capacity, when experts in the field would consider other evidence. It also relies on a purportedly scientific measurement of the defendant’s abilities, his IQ score, while refusing to recognize that the score is, on its own terms, imprecise.”

COURTESY OF FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Freddie Lee Hall’s attorneys successfully argued that an IQ test should not be the only determinant of intellectual disability.

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

HURRICANE SEASON 2014

Forecasters: Looks like another slow hurricane season No more than two expected to become major storms in 2014

Calm season

BY JENNY STALETOVICH MIAMI HERALD/MCT

2014 Atlantic hurricane season

The 2014 hurricane season is shaping up to be a slow one, federal forecasters said earlier this month, which could make the launch of new storm surge maps predicting the location and severity of flooding less hectic. Only eight to 13 tropical storms are projected, with three to six becoming hurricanes. Of those, no more than two are expected to become major storms. Forecasters based the projection largely on the expectation that an El Nino weather pattern will form in Pacific waters, fueling winds and water temperatures that help stop storms in the Atlantic from strengthening. Near-average, cooler surface sea temperatures also reduce the risk, said National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Director Kathryn Sullivan.

50%

Season starts June 1 The hurricane season starts June 1 and runs through Nov. 30. Since 1981, an average hurricane season has produced 12 named storms, with six hurricanes and three major storms packing winds of 111 mph or higher. But remarkably, in the past eight years, Florida, with its 1,260 miles of coastline, has had only one major hurricane — Wilma — come ashore. In 2012, Isaac sideswiped Palm Beach County, dumping

NOAA is predicting a slightly below-average hurricane season in the Atlantic this year.

Outlook probability

Below normal

Near normal

Above normal

Major hurricanes Hurricanes Named storms Source: NOAA

between 10 and 13 inches of rain and causing major flooding. At a news conference held May 22 in Brooklyn, New York, Sullivan and emergency officials repeatedly warned that just one bad storm can wreak havoc, pointing to Superstorm Sandy that struck the Northeast in 2012 when a hurricane merged with a winter storm. Sandy caused more than $50 billion in damage and spurred federal officials to rush completion of storm surge maps that will help pinpoint the path and depth of flooding during a storm. “Sandy reminded us that loss of life and property during ... a storm doesn’t necessarily come about from wind and rain,” Sullivan said. “It comes from storm surge.” NOAA scientists had been working on the maps before Sandy struck, but money from the Hurricane Sandy Relief Bill last year helped speed the work, she said. The maps will tell people in real time where

CAROLYN COLE/LOS ANGELES TIMES/MCT

A dusting of snow fell on the community of Breezy Point, New York, where more than 100 homes burned due to Superstorm Sandy, on Nov. 8, 2012. Temperatures below freezing delayed the cleanup effort even further. water from a storm surge is expected to go and how high it will rise about 48 hours before winds kick in. The maps will show water levels in comparison to the ground, not sea level or mean sea level, which in the past led to confusion.

Prepare in advance The National Hurricane Center, based in Miami, will update the maps every six hours as information from the storm is collected, said Holly Bamford, director of NOAA’s National Ocean Service. “The tool is going to take

in conditions of tide as well as surge, which is really important,” she said. “How high a tide is has major impact.” The maps will also be linked to local evacuation plans, said Joseph Nimmich, of the Federal Emergency Management Agency,

who urged people to learn the plans in advance. “There is not one of us who can withstand the surge and protect their house when it is under attack by nature,” he said. “If you’re in your house when it’s being devastated and call 911, we are unable to help you.”

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EDITORIAL

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

Not forgetting or forsaking our elders As a former chaplain for a nursing home facility in the state of Maryland, I encountered many people from all lifestyles. Some of the residents were there shortterm (90 days or less) while others seemed to have lived there for many years. With regard to their illness, you name it, someone in the facility probably had it. Just meeting these men and women and hearing their stories were heartbreaking in one sense and uplifting in another. The tragic story was hearing those whose family members abandoned them. It was the same story - family members would come to visit for the first two to three months and after that no calls, visits, or gifts. They felt so alone and isolated from the ‘real’ world. Not only were they dealing with their illness, but they were dealing with an internal struggle of feeling all alone.

DR. SINCLAIR GREY III GUEST COLUMNIST

A top priority On the other hand, those who were uplifting didn’t allow their illness, situation, and/or circumstance to define them. In addition to this, they didn’t permit their condition to confine their thinking about possibly transitioning from the nursing home to an assisted living facility. Yes, they had some of the issues as the other residents, but they had a positive outlook. Whether it’s in a nursing home, assistant living facility, or through private care, caring for our elders must be a top priority in the health care debate. According

to statistics provided by the Department of Health and Human Services Administration on Aging (AOA), the African-American older population was 3.2 million in 2008 and is projected to be 9.9 million by 2050. It’s unclear how many of them will find themselves in a nursing home, assisted living facility, or needing private care. One thing for sure is that our elders are our responsibility individually and collectively. Let’ face it - no elderly person wants to be uprooted from their home. Unfortunately, many will have to do so and their loved ones will have to make some tough decisions. Decisions such as where should they go, the quality of care, who will pay for it, and will it be temporary or permanent. With so much to look into, one thing that needs to be addressed during any consideration is the compassion of the workers.

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: UNCLE SAM’S PROMISE

DAVID FITZSIMMONS, THE ARIZONA STAR

Random thoughts of a free Black mind, v. 213 The Cherry kids – Jamal graduated from Cornell University with an undergrad degree in civil engineering (focused on petroleum), then goes to Stanford University to work on two master’s degrees in the fall. Chayla (8th grade) got high FCAT scores, finished with straight A’s and perfect attendance in middle school, and heads to high school. Charles III (“Wig”, 4th grade) was one of two “outstanding choristers” in his second-year level of school chorus. We’re proud of y’all! Faith, hope, love – The greatest of these is hope, the Bible notwithstanding. Case in point: The deranged killer of six college students in Cali last week. (I won’t write his name; I won’t help him become a celebrity killer.) The killer left a 150-page ‘manifesto’ describing his privileged life from birth. It’s a combination of first-person racist White male entitlement, ignorance, delusion, naïveté, deep-seated insecurity, jealousy, unrealistic expectations, rage, depression, ingratitude, impatience, weak impulse control and egomaniacal arrogance. He had a family that loved him, that had enough money to put him through college, to fund his international travel, and to get him the psychological help he needed. It wasn’t enough. Even a family’s love can’t trump hopelessness. The killer, a sex-crazed 21-yearold male virgin, lost hope that he, a selfdescribed “perfect, magnificent gentleman,” would ever experience sex and love. He vowed symbolic vengeance on young women he believed rejected him, and young men of whom he was jealous. He saved his allowance money, legally purchased two guns, trained on a gun range, stabbed three male roommates to death in their sleep, shot two female students to death in front of their sorority house, shot a young male student to death

QUICK TAKES FROM #2: STRAIGHT, NO CHASER

CHARLES W. CHERRY II, ESQ. PUBLISHER

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Rita Crichlow, the administrator of the H. B. Anderson Home in West Palm Beach, FL says, “there needs to be compassion from the workers towards the elderly. So many people in the health care field are there for a check, but fail to have true love, passion, and concern.” She went on to say that ‘family members need to look at the heart of the workers. Don’t get caught up with the building and the manicured lawns that you fail to observe the quality of care.’ In addition to addressing the quality of care for the elderly, the need for stimulating activities will help keep many of our elders sharp mentally. All too often, there’s a routine of wake up, eat, and watch television throughout the day without much interaction. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know this will cause our elderly to diminish.

Black women constantly complain about the dearth of “eligible” Black men to date and marry. Noted sociologist William Julius Wilson has argued, “the increasing levels of non-marriage and female-headed households is a manifestation of the high levels of economic dislocation experienced by lower-class Black men in recent decades.” He further argued that, “When joblessness is combined with high rates of incarceration and premature mortality among Black men; it becomes clearer that there are fewer marriageable Black men relative to Black women who are able to provide the economic support needed to sustain a family.” Then you add in the unfortunate increase in homosexuality within the Black community and you have a recipe for disaster. This is why Black men need more White women like Ann Coulter and Laura Ingraham. Even though they are conservative media personalities, they have done more to promote the well-being of Black males than many of the very women who stridently complain about the lack of “eligible” Black men. Coulter is a friend and I find her comments regarding the Black community very insightful. Look at what she said two years ago on “This Week with George Stepha-

Chayla, Jamal and Wig in a nearby restaurant, then killed himself. Without those guns, a major tragedy doesn’t become a catastrophe. (Watch the National Rifle Association focus on the stabbings.) The only way to tighten gun control laws is for Black folks to get licenses and start carrying guns legally in large numbers. Historically, when we avail ourselves of our constitutional rights – like voting – those rights become harder to exercise. That’ll save some lives.

Contact me at ccherry2@gmail. com.

Charles W. Cherry, Sr. (1928-2004), Founder Julia T. Cherry, Senior Managing Member, Central Florida Communicators Group, LLC Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Cassandra CherryKittles, Charles W. Cherry II, Managing Members Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Chief Executive Officer Charles W. Cherry II, Esq., Publisher Dr. Valerie Rawls-Cherry, Human Resources Jenise Morgan, Senior Editor Linda Fructuoso, Marketing Consultant/Sales, Circulation Angela VanEmmerik, Creative Director Chicago Jones, Eugene Leach, Louis Muhammad, Lisa Rogers-Cherry, Circulation Andreas Butler, Ashley Thomas, Staff Writers Delroy Cole, Kim Gibson, Photojournalists MEMBER National Newspaper Publishers Association Society of Professional Journalists Florida Press Association Associated Press National Newspaper Association

Proper care partnered with activities will help our elderly live a more productive life. Just because they have reached a certain age, it doesn’t mean they are to be disregarded. The demands placed on the children to care for their loved ones can seem overwhelming at times, but it doesn’t have to end there. As mentioned, there are options: nursing home, assisting living facilities, or private care. What’s important is the quality of care that extends from medicine to the heart. Let’s not forget or forsake our elders.

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

Why Black men need more White women

Insightful approach

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Choose compassion

Two steps back

RAYNARD JACKSON NNPA COLUMNIST

nopoulos.” She said, “Groups on the left, from feminists to gay rights groups to those defending immigrants, have commandeered the Black civil rights experience.” She continued, “I think what – the way liberals have treated Blacks like children and many of their policies have been harmful to Blacks, at least they got the beneficiary group right. There is the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow laws. We don’t owe the homeless. We don’t owe feminists. We don’t owe women who are desirous of having abortions, but that’s — or — or gays who want to get married to one another. That’s what civil rights has become for much of the left.” Stephanopoulos asked, “Immigrant rights are not civil rights?” Coulter responded, “Civil rights are for Blacks…what have we done to immigrants? We owe Black people something… We have a legacy of slavery. Immigrants haven’t even been in this country.” So, let me make sure I understand. Black women complain about the state of “eligible” Black males to date and marry; yet they support the policies of a president who is going to make the problem much worse.

Under Obama, Blacks have regressed on every economic, social and moral indicator that is tracked. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the current Black unemployment rate is 11.6 percent; for Blacks aged 16-19 it is at 36.8 percent. Campaign slogans notwithstanding, this isn’t the kind of change we have been waiting for. Obama has done more for same-sex marriage couples than he has for his samerace brothers and sisters. In fact, Newsweek dubbed him our first gay president – not for his sexual orientation, but for his relentless pandering to homosexuals. Historically, Black women have been notoriously protective of their men and children. It is ironic that Coulter and Ingraham, two conservative White women, are now assuming that role. We Black men need more White women like Coulter and Ingraham, not Black women who will give a pass to a failing Black president.

Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a Washington, D.C.-based public relations/government affairs firm. Write your own response at www.flcourier. com.

Get over it! America’s closet Klansmen, beast bullies and slimy skinheads are fast to tell Native Americans to get over genocide attempts and racial slurs like “Redskins.” They are quick to tell Cubans to get over the Mariel boatlift. They have no problem telling Japanese Americans to get over the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And they wouldn’t ever go to sleep and dream about telling Jewish Americans to get over the Holocaust! No group has been told to get over more crimes and atrocities committed against them by devilish beasts than African Americans living in the United States of America! Black people have been told to get over the kidnappings, the beatings, the hangings, the rapes and the selling of family members during slavery days. We have been told to get over the over-charges, the false arrests, the much too lengthy jail sentences, the bombing of Black churches and homes, the dog attacks ordered by bigots and racists, separate and worse schools, job discrimination, housing discrimination, being used as guinea pigs in syphilis and other experiments, riding in the back of the bus and sitting in the theater balconies because Blacks were forced to.

made a dumb mistake by approaching some thieves and White folks went to LUCIUS work and urged law enforcers and officers of the court GANTT to give O.J. Simpson the lonTHE GANTT REPORT gest jail term in history for trying to recover his own property that was stolen Fire and rain Black people have been from him! hurt by water when shot at with water hoses during Day will never come Tell me why is justice denon-violent, peaceful civil rights protests and also sired in the O.J. Simpson harmed by fire like when situation but never even the MOVE headquarters in considered in the George Philadelphia, Pennsylva- Zimmerman joke that was nia were fire bombed by law called a “fair” trial? enforcers and men, womDon’t worry that books en and children were killed have been published that merely for being Black and say someone other than outspoken. Simpson killed his ex-wife Recently, Black people and her “buddy.” And, don’t have been told to get over worry that Simpson is old the shootings and killings and sick and living in a jail of Black teenagers in broad cell while Zimmerman is daylight and also in night- free signing autographs time rainstorms! and painting pictures of the However, no matter what young boy he profiled and you say or what anybody murdered. says, White folks will nevFour hundred years afer get over the fact that O. ter slavery days a Black man J. Simpson was found not better not even be falsely acguilty by a jury of his peers cused of doing something when he was accused of to a White woman because murdering his ex-wife and a White folk will never get man she got high with. over it! The White controlled news media bombarded the Buy Gantt’s latest book print media and broadcast “Beast Too: dead Man airwaves saying that the O.J. Writing” anywhere books verdict was wrong and that are sold and contact LuSimpson committed a dou- cius at www.allworldconble murder. sultants.net. Write your White folk shunned and own response at www.flscorned Simpson until he courier.com.

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

EDITORIAL

Ignoring Black American veterans The current controversy surrounding the plight of veterans in the United States is an important issue for all families in America who have benefited from the service of millions of men and women who have served in the military. Every Memorial Day, the nation pauses to remember and honor all of those who have served the nation and who today continue to serve in the armed services. But the growing contradictions surrounding the U.S. Veterans Administration (VA) about systematic failures to provide timely and adequate health care for veterans is alarming. Too often, however, the status and interests of Black American veterans get loss in the national public debate when issues of the VA are raised. Since the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s, the percentage of Black Americans serving in the U.S. armed services peaked at 30 percent. Today, the percentage is at approximately 20 percent. Now that so many Black American veterans and other veterans are now returning home from the long and awful wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the VA is now overwhelmed with the increased demands for health care and warrelated disabilities.

DR. BENJAMIN F. CHAVIS, JR. NNPA COLUMNIST

Affairs health care group is the largest health care provider in the U.S., overseeing 1,700 hospitals, nursing homes, multipurpose health clinics, and other medical facilities. The VA is a massive bureaucracy that has had major dysfunctional problems for decades. Accordingly, the crisis at the VA is not a new one. Yet, with a Black American president of United States, old problems are viewed with a different level of urgency and priority. The truth is that past U.S. presidents were aware of the VA’s long term systemic dysfunctions, but they did not correct or remedy the VA’s problems. Let’s, however, be very clear. It is President Barack Obama’s problem now. It is Obama’s responsibility as commander-in-chief to take all necessary leadership and actions to quickly resolve this crisis. Some reports have found evidence that allegedly indicates that deaths of veterans have occurred as a result of the administrative failures of the VA. One White House official reported that President Obama was “madder than Dysfunction for decades hell” about the VA scandal. An Obama White House aide The Department of Veterans

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: JOBLESS GRADS

told “Face the Nation” on CBS that “Obama is demanding that Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and others in the administration continue to fix these things until they’re functioning the way that our veterans believe they should.” I believe that all veterans should be treated with equal respect. All veterans should receive all the benefits that they are entitled, including good health care without bureaucratic red tape and a prolonged waiting list.

Double whammy for Blacks We are all aware that before and after the enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the problem of racism and racial discrimination in the delivery of quality health care remains a serious problem. While 10 million or more people have health care as a result of ACA, there are still millions of Black Americans and Latino Americans who do not have health care insurance coverage. Black American veterans are facing a double whammy. They are confronted with the inadequacies of the VA as well as the racism in society that makes it more difficult to get quality health care in traditional public and private health care systems. And for Black female vets, there’s a triple whammy. This is why it is urgent to call urgent attention to

RICK MCKEE, THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE

the struggles and challenges that confront Black veterans. When I was a member of the Wilmington Ten in North Carolina in the 1970s, I saw firsthand the disproportionately high percentage of Black American Vietnam veterans who were imprisoned for long periods of unjust incarceration. Even though many of those veterans had served with valor and honor in that tragic war in Southeast Asia, too many went to prison because of inadequate health care and unemployment and war-related problems. In 2014, many returning Black American veterans are also ending up in jails and prisons. Many return to trouble with the law

Job strategies for today’s college grads Many parents will celebrate their child’s graduation from college this year. However, most parents are concerned that their children will not have a better life than they did. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the U.S. ranked fourth worst among 29 developed countries for children obtaining a higher level of education than their parents. In fact, only 22% of those 24 to 34 years old achieved a higher level of education than their parents in the United States compared to an OECD average of 37%. For many former college graduates, unemployment and underemployment continue to be a curse on their dreams and aspirations. Yet, this pressing problem has impacted many segments of our society and way of life. For example, adult children are returning home to their parents at record numbers. Sadly, overly protective parents may stunt the maturation of their college graduates by destroying their independence as they return home. These miscues in understanding the financial cli-

DR. DARYL GREEN GUEST COLUMNIST

mate and the hiring process of employers could jeopardize their future. This article examines the current economic crisis and how recent college graduates and parents can better position themselves for more employment opportunities.

The economic picture According to several polls, including Harris and Career Builders’ polls, employers expect to hire more college graduates based on feedback from more than 2,000 hiring managers and human resource professionals from various industries. In fact, 57% of employers plan to hire new college graduates, up from 53% last year. Businesses and other organizations intend to hire graduates in percentages from these majors: computer/information (28%), engineering (18%), math/statistics

(14%), health/clinical services (14%), communications technology (12%), engineering technologies (11%), liberal areas (10%), education (7%), science technologies (7%), and communications/journalism (7%). Consequently, in society, getting hired can be shown as the important effect on the demand for any particular college major. If there is no demand or interest for college major, students will have a difficult time in finding gainful employment. Despite this positive prospect, many employers feel that most college graduates are not prepared for the workforce. According to a recent study, 24% of employers do not feel that recent graduates are prepared for positions in their companies. Sadly, employers do not have the time and patience to groom prospective graduates who are talented but lack experience or preparation for the workforce. Companies want prospective employees who are ready to work. Peter Cappelli, author of Why Good People Can’t Get Jobs, explains that employers have shifted their expectations for prospec-

Welcoming the NAACP leader On the 17th of May, I was overjoyed to learn that the Rev. Cornell William Brooks, Esq., was selected as the new President and CEO of the NAACP. Those of us who observe the selection process routinely take for granted that the person selected to lead this preeminent civil rights organization is a person who embodies the highest standards of character, achievement and leadership. With the selection of Rev. Brooks, I can assure my readers that these criteria have been met. I‘ve been fortunate to know the new NAACP leader for many years. I would like to share what I know about him.

Humble beginnings He was born in South Carolina. His father was a physician; his mother was a nurse. His parents came from humble beginnings and rather than the pampered existence lavished upon many of the children of professional people of that time, Cornell was taught the value of hard work and preparation. He also learned that he was no better than other children in his community. Cornell likes to say he is a graduate of the Yale School of Law, but that he is also a graduate of Head Start! Early in life, he developed the skill of goal set-

DR. E. FAYE WILLIAMS, ESQ. TRICE EDNEY WIRE

Rev. Brooks that the press and most inquiring minds will learn. I also know him as a dedicated husband and father. Janice, his wife, mirrors Cornell’s dedication to social equity and justice, and has been a member of the NCBW for nearly 20 years. She serves on our National Board. Their sons reflect their disciplined love of learning and personal excellence, and have been an integral part of our youth programs. Rev. Brooks was an early supporter of our College for Kids Program and served as a volunteer facilitator of “Law Day” where he introduced basic principles of law and civic responsibility to our students. Many fear change, especially in organizations as venerable as the NAACP. In both public and personal ways, Rev. Brooks has demonstrated qualities of leadership that make his selection as NAACP President and CEO an inspired choice. With his servant’s heart, he’s right for our time and future. As a Life Member of the NAACP, I invite you to join me in welcoming our new leader.

ting and a dogged determination to persevere to the achievement of his goals. These qualities were reflected in academic achievement and led him to pursue his undergraduate degree at Jackson State University in Mississippi. There he achieved academic honors and, as a plus, met Janice Broome, who would become his wife. After graduation from Jackson State, Cornell pursued his Master of Divinity degree at the Boston University School of Theology. He later received his law degree from the Yale School of Law. Thereafter, he clerked for Judge Sam Ervin, III. Later, he served at the Dept. of Justice in the Civil Rights Division and successfully prosecuted several high-profile housing cases. From there, he moved to the Federal Communication Commission. He ran for Congress in 1998. Most recently, he’s served as President and Dr. E. Faye Williams CEO of the New Jersey In- is Chair of the National stitute for Social Justice. Congress of Black Women, Inc. Write your own Dedicated father response at www.flcouThat’s the history of the rier.com.

tive employees: “Employers do not have time to develop the new skills they need internally when dramatic changes in products and strategies happen so quickly.” Regardless of where you stand on today’s college students, it is clear that some intervention is necessary if they are to be successful in this environment.

Strategies for landing a job The following job strategies are offered to better assist this segment of the population: • Evaluate your current online appearance so that your image makes a positive impression. • Get an independent assessment on your resume and job strategies. • Develop a personal brand that will create an image of indispensability and uniqueness. • Showcase your expertise on a variety of levels (blogs, media expert, etc.). • Champion a significant cause in a nonprofit organization such as United Way.

while seeing the persistent absence of good health care and the lack of productive employment opportunities. It is so important, therefore, that we should not forget the needs and aspirations of all our veterans. In particular, Black American veterans should be remembered and supported not just on Memorial Day, but on every day. We thank God for their service and sacrifice. Let’s show our vets our continuous salute, respect and support.

Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is president of Education Online Services Corporation and the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com. • Consider volunteering in areas where you can build or enhance your expertise. • Extend your network globally with social media platforms such as Linkedin.com. • Obtain special training or certifications to become more competitive. With the ever-increasing competition for limited job opportunities, college grads must understand today’s hiring process. Additionally, parents can assist their recent grad by providing other nontraditional strategies for obtaining full employment. This article demonstrates the need for careful and deliberate job strategies in today’s competitive environment for employability. Individuals can help themselves by becoming knowledgeable in all aspects of the employment process. The road may not be easy, but dedicated planning will pay off for recent college grads and their parents to find successful employment in the future.

Dr. Daryl Green has done extensive research on cultural issues impacting today and future leaders. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com.

Highway fund running out of money As the president’s hair turns a spotty grey, the financial problems in the federal government never stop. With a dysfunctional national legislature that remains gridlocked, “The Highway Trust Fund” is running out of money. This year there are estimated 112,000 highway projects and 5,600 transit projects, presently under way. An empty trust fund could stall all these projects, and 700,000 jobs would be affected. August is the peak of the summer construction season, and stopping these jobs would devastate the economy. It would be necessary for Congress to find $18 billion in spare change in Washington D.C. as a temporary funding source to help keep the fund solvent. The United States Highway Trust Fund is a transportation fund, which receives money from a federal fuel tax of 18.3 cents per gallon on gasoline, and 24.4 cents per gallon on diesel fuel. This rate was established by President Clinton in 1993, and has never been increased since. The rate has been discussed many times for an increase, but the new rate has never been approved by both the houses and signed by the president.

ROGER CALDWELL GUEST COLUMNIST

a transfer of funds from the General Fund to keep the highway fund solvent. Basically, the Congress must rob Peter to pay Paul, and this appears to be the standard operating procedure for the government. The infrastructure system in America is in deplorable condition, and when you travel around the country, it appears the projects are corrupt and filled with fraud. President Obama has offered a four-year, $302 billion transport spending plan, but will that be enough funding across the country? It appears the more money contractors and states get the more money they need. President Obama and his Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, a black man, is going around the country to drum up support for funding, and light a fire under Congress. When the president first got into office, he talked about “shovel ready jobs” and cutting the red tape on infrastructure projects. But, with The Highway Fund getting ready Spending plan to run out of money someIn the last 6 years, Con- one dropped the ball. The U.S. needs more ingress has been forced almost every year to authorize frastructure projects to

meet the needs of a growing country. In the last week and a half, the president and his administration plan to accelerate, and push approvals for infrastructure projects across the country. Many of the leaders in Congress and across the country agree with the concept, but everyone is wondering where the money will come from.

Major funding needed As President Obama and Congress get ready for another fight, there is no mechanism to increase revenues to cover a chronic shortfall in U.S. fuel tax revenues. Construction and fuel cost continue to rise, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is calling for the fuel tax to be increased. It will be up to the tax-writing committees in the House and Senate to make that decision, but the Republicans are always against increasing taxes. As the roads and bridges continue to deteriorate across the country, there must be action, and major funding. Everyone in the country must get ready for an increase in the gas tax, which will increase the cost of gasoline and diesel fuel.

Roger Caldwell is the President and CEO of OnPoint Media. Write your own response at www.flcourier.com.

FLORIDA

TOJ A6

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

Miami-Dade easily brings home most money in budget BY JIM TURNER NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – MiamiDade County has the most money on the line among Florida’s counties as Gov. Rick Scott decides what to veto from a record election-year budget. Unlike in sparsely populated counties, where officials can count their budget projects on one or two hands, South Florida lawmakers were able to pack 323 separate line items into the spending plan for Miami-Dade, according to a list of county-by-county allocations released by the House. Col l e ct i vely , Mia m i Dade is set to draw $1.82 billion from the state for various transportationand water related projects, schools, cultural amenities, historic preservation, economic development and community services. And as with Orange, Alachua, Leon and Hillsborough, the other counties that top the funding list, Miami-Dade is home to a state university and a college that require considerable dollars to operate.

Little detail from Scott The fortunes for each item will be known by June 4, the deadline for Scott to sign the $77.1 billion spending plan. Scott’s office is offering little detail about its review process and when the fiscal plan will be signed. “Our office will work within the June 4 deadline to produce a final tax cut budget that invests in Florida's future, puts the state on a path toward continued job growth, and provides Floridians with half a billion dollars in tax relief,” Scott spokesman John

WALTER MICHOT/MIAMI HERALD/MCT

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx speaks to a crowd at the Miami Tunnel dedication of PortMiami on May 19. Also pictured from left, Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez Cantera. Tupps said Tuesday in an email responding to questions about the budget. Scott, who has line-item veto power, cut $368 million last year from what had been a $74.5 billion budget. He cut $142.7 million from the spending plan in 2012, after nixing $615 million his first year in office.

Optimistic view Brian Ballard, one of 25 registered lobbyists for

Miami-Dade County, said he’s optimistic that most of the items will survive Scott’s veto pen this year as the governor’s office appears to have been “receptive to much of the county’s initiatives.” Part of Ballard’s confidence comes from people learning, after several lean years of budget allocations, how to work with Scott, who came into office promising to cut spending and reduce legislative earmarks.

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE FOR BLACK STUDENTS. NO EXCUSES. The classic guide from Florida Courier publisher, lawyer and broadcaster CHARLES W. CHERRY II PRAISE FOR ‘EXCELLENCE WITHOUT EXCUSE’: “This guide for African-American college-bound students is packed with practical and insightful information for achieving academic success...The primary focus here is to equip students with the savvy and networking skills to maneuver themselves through the academic maze of higher education.” – Book review, School Library Journal

“People have had the experience of working with this administration and understanding what standard of proof is needed and how you cross the various checklists off,” Ballard said. “I know it’s been a work in progress for us and the folks we work with.” Line items in MiamiDade range from $20,000 for the non-profit arts advocacy Cannonball Miami Inc., to $10 million to help people access the planned SkyRise Miami tower, to $137 million so a nearly three-mile section of the Homestead extension of Florida's Turnpike can be widened from six to 10 lanes.

High-priced projects Broward County was second to Miami-Dade in terms of individual lines items in the budget with 145. However, the items, bolstered by several highpriced highway projects and $86 million for Broward College, weren't enough to put the South Florida county in the top five for funding from lawmakers in the next fiscal year. After Miami-Dade, the counties in line for the most money are Orange, $1.32 billion; Alachua, $1.12 billion; Hillsborough, $936 million; Leon, $891 million; and Duval, $847 million. Broward is slated for $786 million.

College funding As a sign of the high cost

• How low expectations of Black students’ achievements can get them higher grades; • Want a great grade? Prepare to cheat! • How Black students can program their minds for success; • Setting goals – When to tell everybody, and when to keep your mouth shut; • Black English, and why Black students must be ‘bilingual.’ …AND MUCH MORE!

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

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

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of higher education, more than $950 million is heading to Alachua County through grants and aid to the University of Florida. The neighboring campuses of Florida State and Florida A&M universities in Tallahassee could bring Leon County more than $730 million. The University of Central Florida accounts for $566 million of Orange County’s money. At the low end of funding among the state’s 12 universities, New College of Florida landed $24 million, while Florida Polytechnic University, set to open this fall, accounted for $38 million of the $191.1 million heading to Polk County.

your corner. Pasco County – home to House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, and House Health and Human Services Chairman Richard Corcoran, R-Land O' Lakes – has landed 38 projects that total $157 million. Pasco County total includes nearly $37 million for Pasco-Hernando State College, of which $10 million is for the construction of a performing arts center that was included among $121 million in vetoes recommended Friday by Florida TaxWatch.

Rural breakdown

Meanwhile, six Panhandle counties – Bay, Holmes, Jackson, Okaloosa, Walton and Washington – that are fully or partially represented by Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, are in line for a combined 145 projects worth $455 million. Bay, with $90 million heading for work related to the Hathaway Bridge, and $5 million for a science, technology, engineering and math building at Gulf Coast State College, drew the most money, $181.7 million, among the Gaetzlinked counties. The county-by-county funding doesn’t include multi-county appropriations, such as $9.9 million for artificial fishing reef creation and restoration off Bay, Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties.

Among counties, North Florida’s Gilchrist County would receive the lowest amount at $1.3 million spread over six projects. As with Gilchrist, those counties at the bottom of the funding spectrum are often rural and in most cases inland, sitting either across the northern end of the state – Liberty, Lafayette, Hamilton, Dixie, Union, Jefferson – or abutting the northern or western edges of Lake Okeechobee – Okeechobee, Highlands and Hendry. Of those counties, Highlands at $23 million was the highest, while Liberty and Lafayette were both under $4 million. For those in the middle of the funding pack, the county-by-county numbers show it also helps to have top lawmakers in

Governor proposes $10 million prize for new technology BY JIM TURNER NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Rolling out part of his re-election platform, Gov. Rick Scott on Tuesday proposed offering a $10 million prize that would reward people who devise new technology to address challenges confronting Florida. The Risk Taker Reward, funded through state and private dollars, was announced as Scott discussed parts of his platform dealing with small businesses and job creation. It came after Scott promised last week that, if re-elected, he’d spend $300 million during his second term for upgrades at most of the state’s 15 seaports. Few details were immediately available about how the entrepreneur contest would be administered. According to information posted on Scott’s campaign Facebook page, the prize would go to a Florida-based entity, nonprofit or for-profit, that uses private capital to successfully tackle issues such as “water supply and quality issues, transportation and infrastructure, and medical break-

How Panhandle fared

throughs in cancer and other diseases.”

Compared to ‘X Prize’ The campaign drew comparisons between the prize and a $25,000 reward offered in 1919 by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig to the first aviators to fly non-stop from New York to Paris and to the $10 million “X Prize” offered in 1996 to the first non-governmental organization to twice within two weeks launch a reusable manned spacecraft. The Orteig award was won by Charles Lindbergh in 1927. The “X Prize” was won in 2004 by the SpaceShipOne venture, which was financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. In addition to the Risk Taker Reward, Scott on Tuesday also proposed teaming with the state’s universities and colleges on an annual business-plan competition. The business-plan program, which would offer cash prizes, would be intended to “incentivize start-ups and innovative businesses” around the schools, according to the Scott campaign. When asked about Scott’s proposals, a spokesman for potential Democratic gubernatorial challenger Charlie Crist replied, “The real risk in this election is allowing Rick Scott another shot at defunding education and hurting more middle class Floridians.”

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IFE/FAITH

Otis Williams: 53 years with Temptations See page B4

SHARING BLACK LIFE, STATEWIDE WWW.FLCOURIER.COM

PHENOMENAL

woman

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

SHARING BLACK LIFE, STATEWIDE

Grapes add burst of flavor to meals See page B6

SECTION

TOJ

Phenomenal Woman Phenomenal Woman: Four Poems Celebrating Women was published in 1994. Pretty women wonder where my secret lies. I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size But when I start to tell them, They think I’m telling lies. I say, It’s in the reach of my arms The span of my hips, The stride of my step, The curl of my lips. I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me. I walk into a room Just as cool as you please, And to a man, The fellows stand or Fall down on their knees. Then they swarm around me, A hive of honey bees. I say, It’s the fire in my eyes, And the flash of my teeth, The swing in my waist, And the joy in my feet. I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me. Men themselves have wondered What they see in me. They try so much But they can’t touch My inner mystery. When I try to show them They say they still can’t see. I say, It’s in the arch of my back, The sun of my smile, The ride of my breasts, The grace of my style. I’m a woman

The Florida Courier offers a poetic glance at the work of the legendary author/poet Dr. Maya Angelou

MCT

On the Pulse of the Morning

Clad in peace and I will sing the songs The Creator gave to me when I and the Tree and the stone were one.

This poem was read by Dr. Maya Angelou in 1992 at the inauguration of President Bill Clinton.

Before cynicism was a bloody sear across your Brow and when you yet knew you still Knew nothing.

A Rock, A River, A Tree Hosts to species long since departed, Marked the mastodon. The dinosaur, who left dry tokens Of their sojourn here On our planet floor, Any broad alarm of their hastening doom Is lost in the gloom of dust and ages. But today, the Rock cries out to us, clearly, forcefully, Come, you may stand upon my Back and face your distant destiny, But seek no haven in my shadow. I will give you no more hiding place down here.

The River sings and sings on.

So say the Asian, the Hispanic, the Jew The African and Native American, the Sioux, The Catholic, the Muslim, the French, the Greek The Irish, the Rabbi, the Priest, the Sheikh, The Gay, the Straight, the Preacher, The privileged, the homeless, the Teacher. They hear. They all hear The speaking of the Tree.

Give birth again To the dream.

Today, the first and last of every Tree Speaks to humankind. Come to me, here beside the River.

Your mouths spilling words Armed for slaughter.

Each of you, descendant of some passed On traveller, has been paid for.

The Rock cries out today, you may stand on me, But do not hide your face.

You, who gave me my first name, you Pawnee, Apache and Seneca, you Cherokee Nation, who rested with me, then Forced on bloody feet, left me to the employment of Other seekers- desperate for gain, Starving for gold.

Your armed struggles for profit Have left collars of waste upon My shore, currents of debris upon my breast. Yet, today I call you to my riverside, If you will study war no more. Come,

History, despite its wrenching pain, Cannot be unlived, and if faced With courage, need not be lived again.

There is a true yearning to respond to The singing River and the wise Rock.

Plant yourself beside me, here beside the River.

Each of you a bordered country, Delicate and strangely made proud, Yet thrusting perpetually under siege.

Lift up your faces, you have a piercing need For this bright morning dawning for you.

Lift up your eyes upon The day breaking for you.

You, created only a little lower than The angels, have crouched too long in The bruising darkness, Have lain too long Face down in ignorance.

Across the wall of the world, A River sings a beautiful song, Come rest here by my side.

I, the Rock, I the River, I the Tree I am yours- your Passages have been paid.

You, the Turk, the Swede, the German, the Scot... You the Ashanti, the Yoruba, the Kru, bought Sold, stolen, arriving on a nightmare Praying for a dream. Here, root yourselves beside me. I am the Tree planted by the River, Which will not be moved.

Women, children, men, Take it into the palms of your hands. Mold it into the shape of your most Private need. Sculpt it into The image of your most public self. Lift up your hearts Each new hour holds new chances For new beginnings. Do not be wedded forever To fear, yoked eternally To brutishness. The horizon leans forward, Offering you space to place new steps of change. Here, on the pulse of this fine day You may have the courage To look up and out upon me, the Rock, the River, the Tree, your country. No less to Midas than the mendicant. No less to you now than the mastodon then. Here on the pulse of this new day You may have the grace to look up and out And into your sister’s eyes, into Your brother’s face, your country And say simply Very simply With hope Good morning.

“Listen to yourself and in that quietude you might hear the voice of God.” Maya Angelou’s last tweet May 23, 2014

Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me. Now you understand Just why my head’s not bowed. I don’t shout or jump about Or have to talk real loud. When you see me passing It ought to make you proud. I say, It’s in the click of my heels, The bend of my hair, the palm of my hand, The need of my care, ‘Cause I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me.

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings This iconic autobiography about the early years of Dr. Angelou was published in 1969. The free bird leaps on the back of the wind and floats downstream till the current ends and dips his wings in the orange sun rays and dares to claim the sky. But a bird that stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage his wings are clipped and his feet are tied so he opens his throat to sing. The caged bird sings with fearful trill of the things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom The free bird thinks of another breeze and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn and he names the sky his own. But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream his wings are clipped and his feet are tied so he opens his throat to sing The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom.

EVENTS

FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

TOJ

DJ KHALED

103.5 The Beat Down 2014 concert is June 12 at the BB&T Center in Sunrise. Performers will include Kendrick Lamar, Trey Songz, Future and DJ Khaled.

Clearwater: The crooner Maxwell is coming to Florida He will make stops in Clearwater, Orlando and Jacksonville in August. More information: www.musze. com. Tampa: Lionel Richie: All the Hits All Night Long tour featuring Cee Lo Green stops in Tampa on July 14 at the MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre. Tampa: The Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists will host a free professional development seminar from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. May 31 at the University Area Community Development Center, 14013 N 22nd St. The seminar is for professionals and students. More information: www.tbabj.com. Orlando: Kirk Franklin Presents Gospel Brunch is on Sundays at the Orlando’s House of Blues.

RICK ROSS

The MasterMinds Episode concert featuring Rick Ross and Jhene Aiko takes place on June 20 at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables.

Miami: Kelly Price will be at the Miami Love Parade 3 Homeless Benefit Concert on June 7.

Daughter shares fond memories of Sammy Davis Jr. BY SUSAN KING LOS ANGELES TIMES/MCT

LOS ANGELES — Tracey Davis always knew growing up that her father, Sammy Davis Jr., loved her and her two adopted brothers, Mark and Jeff. But the legendary performer and member of the Rat Pack “was married to his work. He wanted a family. But he didn’t know how to prioritize family because work was his passion. I am not saying that he didn’t love us, but work was his driving force.” She admitted that he often didn’t know her phone number. And he didn’t even attend her college graduation. But their relationship evolved when she became an adult. “We started hanging out,” recalled Davis, a mother of four who works as a TV and commercial producer in Tennessee. “I said things like, ‘Dad, I always loved you, but I didn’t like you that much,’” recalled Davis, 52, over the phone from her home in Brentwood, Tenn. “He said, ‘Well, I didn’t like you that much either.’ It turned out the air needed to be cleared.”

Second book about dad By the time the powerhouse singer-dancer-actor was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1989, father and daughter had a strong bond. While pregnant with her first son, Sam, Tracey Davis constantly went to his house in Beverly Hills to visit and talk. And

on those days when Davis couldn’t talk, they sat and held hands. Davis recalls these intimate conversations in “Sammy Davis Jr.: A Personal Journey With My Father,” a new coffee table book filled with family and historical photos, which she wrote with Nina Bunche Pierce. “A Personal Journey” marks the second book she’s written about her father, who starred on Broadway in “Mr. Wonderful” and “Golden Boy,” appeared in such Rat Pack films as “Ocean’s Eleven” and “Robin and the Seven Hoods,” headlined in Las Vegas, had his own musical-variety series and guest starred on countless TV shows, most notably as himself in a 1972 episode of “All in the Family.” “Twenty years ago, I wrote ‘Sammy Davis Jr.: My Father,’ and it did pretty well,” she said. “This was just kind of coming back to it and looking at it later.”

‘No education, just talent’ Sammy Davis Jr. was practically born in a trunk on Dec. 8, 1925, to vaudevillians Sammy Davis Sr. and Elvera Sanchez, who was Puerto Rican. The two separated in 1928, and Davis’ father and grandmother, Mama, raised him. At age 3, Davis was singing, dancing and charming audiences as a member of the Will Mastin Trio with his father and Will Mastin, whom Davis referred to as Uncle Will. Davis never went to school, which prompted T:11.5”

Sammy Davis Jr. him to tell his daughter, “What have I got? No looks, no money, no education, just talent.” But Tracey Davis admitted that it was excruciating at times to listen to her father’s horrific stories about the racial discrimination he had to endure, including physical abuse, in the Army during World War II. Her father and AfricanAmerican entertainers appearing in Las Vegas in the very restricted 1950s had to stay at rooming houses outside of town. Even to this day, she often thinks about how her father endured despite the odds. “How did he make it and so many others not make it?” she said. “He had talent. But what he went through would have killed a lot of people or make them bitter or just messed with your life so bad you couldn’t get over it.” Her dad, she noted, “worried about me a lot. I think (about) being mixed-race, especially when I was born. What will the world be like for Tracey? What will our legacy be for our children? Is it going to be any better.”

films as 1958’s “The Young Lions” and the 1959 remake of “The Blue Angel,” was, according to Tracey Davis, dropped by 20th Century Fox because of her relationship with Davis. Despite the firestorm of controversy, Davis said, her parents “didn’t regret being together.” “My mom loved my dad like crazy, and my dad loved my mother,” she said. “My mother was so lucky because her parents didn’t care.” Davis and Britt divorced in 1968. But their daughter said they never fell out of love. When she asked her father why they broke up, he confided: “I just couldn’t be what she wanted me to be. A family man. My performance schedule was rigorous.” Sammy Davis Jr. also had a bromance with Frank

Sinatra. “Dad and Frank were best friends on stage and off,” she said. “He was like a good cushion for Dad.” And he wasn’t hesitant about throwing his weight around if Davis was being excluded because of his color. “He’d say, ‘Oh, Sammy can’t come in here? Then I am not coming in.’ I think it gave my dad such comfort knowing he had this big brother out there that would go to the mat for him.”

Died at age 64 Sinatra also stopped talking to Davis for a time in the 1970s when the entertainer begun using drugs. “Frank was mad he was squandering himself, doing stupid things. He let dad know about it, and dad was kind of well, I don’t

care.” Ultimately, Davis did care and apologized to Sinatra. Tracey Davis had been told by her father’s doctors that he wouldn’t survive to see his first grandson. But her father promised his daughter that he would survive long enough. And he did. Tracey Davis gave birth to Sam on April 20, 1990. Sammy Davis Jr. died May 16 at age 64. Davis still gets emotional recalling the day she brought her newborn son to see her father. “When I came up the stairs, he saw Sam. He was sitting up in the chair and tears — just tears.” Her father, Davis said, “was incredibly driven and had a huge heart, a huge zest for life. He had more energy than anyone I had known. I am grateful for everything he taught me.”

“the dirtiest

damn Western comedy ever.” Peter Travers

Bromance with Sinatra It wasn’t easy for Davis and her mother, Swedish actress May Britt, when they married in 1960. Britt, who appeared in such

T:10.5”

UNIVERSAL PICTURES AND MRC PRESENT A FUZZY DOOR PRODUCTION A BLUEGRASS FILMS PRODUCTION SETH MACFARLANE CHARLIZE THERON “A MILLION WAYS TOMUSICDIE IN THE WEST” EXECUTIVE AMANDA SEYFRIED GIOVANNI RIBISI NEIPRODUCED L PATRICK HARRIS SARAH SILVERMAN AND LIAM NEESON WRITTENBY JOEL MCNEELY PRODUCERS ALEC SULKIN WELLESLEY WILD BY SCOTT STUBER SETH MACFARLANE JASON CLARK BY SETH MACFARLANE & ALEC SULKIN & WELLESLEY WILD DIRECTED A UNIVERSAL RELEASE BY SETH MACFARLANE SOUNDTRACK ON BACK LOT MUSIC

checK LocaL ListinGs For starts Friday, may 30 theaters and shoWtimes

STOJ

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS

Check this clip-and-save page to see whether your family is ready in case disaster strikes. BEFORE IT HAPPENS

GATHER DOCUMENTS AND CASH

EVALUATE YOUR HOME

Store important documents such as insurance policies, deeds, property records and birth certificates in a bank safe-deposit box. Store copies in your disaster-supplies kit.

Structural safety

q Keep a stash of cash or traveler’s checks at home where you can quickly get them in

case of evacuation.

Make sure your home is bolted to the foundation and the structure is properly reinforced.

MAKE A FAMILY EMERGENCY PLAN

Identify a safe place in each room of your home and practice rapidly getting there. Best locations include under a sturdy desk or table, or beside a sturdy, large piece of furniture such as a sofa or bed. Avoid doorways; doors could bang open and shut during a storm.

Check the roof, foundation, chimney and walls for cracks and overall condition. Contact trained contractors in your area for information on retrofitting.

If you live in an apartment, know where your building’s utility controls are and how to use them.

q Practice home-evacuation drills. Choose someplace nearby for your family to meet.

OFF

Expect a lack of transportation.

Educate your children. Get a copy of your school district’s disaster policy regarding transportation and the release of students. Keep photos of family members in your wallet in case someone is missing.

q Take a first-aid course. Learn CPR. q Know where the nearest police and fire stations are. Know the route to the nearest

hospital emergency room. Keep critical phone numbers and your insurance-policy numbers by your phone and in your wallet.

Enter your “ICE” — In Case of Emergency — numbers on your cell phone so emergency workers will know whom to contact if you’re hurt. For example, enter “ICE husband John” and the phone number.

Find out whether any neighbors have medical or other expertise. Plan to unite if your neighborhood becomes isolated. Help elderly, disabled or single-parent neighbors create an emergency plan. Get contact information for their relatives. Fill in the spaces below and keep this page in a handy place.

Family Emergency meeting place: _____________________________________________________ Out-of-state contact, phone number: ____________________________________________ Insurance company and phone numbers: ________________________________________ Insurance policy numbers:______________________________________________________ Driver’s license numbers: ______________________________________________________

Plumbing

Family members should know how to shut off waterlines in case of a leak in the house. Label the shutoff valve clearly; it’s the first valve in the line after it enters the house.

Strap your water heater (gas and electric ones) to studs in the wall with heavy-duty metal strips or to the floor to prevent gas leaks and possible fires from broken pipes. You can find strapping kits at home-improvement stores.

Gas

All occupants should also know how and when to turn off the gas. If you smell gas after a storm or other emergency, shut off the meter valve found at the first fitting on the supply pipe coming out of the ground. Use a wrench to turn the valve either way until it is perpendicular to the pipe. Keep a wrench attached to the gas meter with a wire. Call the gas company to get service restored.

OFF

Electricity

Neighborhood Neighbors’ names, phone numbers: _____________________________________________

Utility companies Electricity: ___________________________________________________________________ Water: _______________________________________________________________________ Natural gas: __________________________________________________________________ Phone: _______________________________________________________________________

Emergency Call 911 in life-or-death situation: _______________________________________________ Doctor’s phone: _______________________________________________________________ Pharmacy phone: _____________________________________________________________ Police non-emergency phone: __________________________________________________ Fire non-emergency phone: ____________________________________________________ Closest emergency room, address: ______________________________________________

Other ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________

Buy a portable, gas-powered generator for emergency electricity. Only appliances that can use extension cords should be attached to a generator. A 2200-watt unit can power a refrigerator and several lamps. Keep fuel in a safe, protected container.

Learn how to shut off the electricOlder ity: Turn off single panel breakers first, then switch off the main breaker. To turn back on, switch the main breaker first, then the single breakers. On older panels, pull the main fuse blocks.

a n rea er e er panel n le rea er

Household items

Place flashlights in hallways, bathrooms and bedrooms. Keep a flashlight, spare batteries and sturdy shoes under the bed. (Shoes will protect you from broken glass and other debris on the floor.)

Evaluate each room. Secure appliances, bookshelves and hutches to wall studs. Mirrors should be hung on double hooks; do not lean them against the wall.

Place heavy objects and electronic equipment on lower shelves. Use large Velcro patches or nonskid rubber shelf liner to help keep items in place.

Place a beanbag of sand or shot in the bottom of vases and other breakable items to help hold them down.

q Store household chemicals safely, preferably on or near the floor.

AFTER AN EVENT Hurricane Sandy’s devastation is shown on the southern end of Long Beach Island, New Jersey, as beach houses are washed off their foundations on Oct. 30, 2012. The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30. CLEM MURRAY/PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER/ MCT

Check on everyone • Provide first aid and a safe place for anyone who is injured or very upset. Check on and help neighbors. • Call 911 or other emergency phone numbers only if injuries are serious or the situation is life-threatening. Unnecessary calls can hamper rescue efforts. Assess surroundings •Check for hazards such as fire, leaks, chemical spills and precarious structures. Natural-gas companies ask customers not to turn off their gas service at the meter unless they smell or hear a leak. If you smell gas coming from inside your home, call your gas company from a phone outside. It’s important not to touch electric switches or use the telephone until the situation is corrected. Only the gas company can restore service. •Plug appliances into a generator directly or with extension cords. Never plug a generator into a household outlet because power can flow back to the utility’s main system and injure utility workers trying to restore power. Always run generators outdoors to prevent buildup of toxic fumes. •Turn on the radio. In the case of an emergency that displaces many people, shelter locations will be announced. •Give pets food, water and dry shelter. Keep them away from antifreeze. •Turn off all appliances except the refrigerator and one light. This prevents a power surge when power is restored. Call for help • If phone service is available, give your out-of-state contact an update on your situation. If service is spotty, ask

your contact to call your insurance company if necessary, and your family and friends who may be worried about you. Gather water •Be prepared to treat, filter or boil contaminated water. •Use hot water sparingly. Most water heaters can retain heat for three days. •If the water supply is cut off, drinking water is still available in your home in water heaters, in-house plumbing and melted ice cubes. •Use a hose to get drinking water from your water heater’s drain valve in an emergency. It will be cloudy at first but will clear up after a few gallons. •If pipes break or leak, turn off water at the shut-off valve inside your home. Prepare food •If the electricity is out, open the refrigerator and freezer doors only when necessary. Eat refrigerated food first, frozen food next and dried or canned food last. •Refrigerated foods should be OK for about eight hours, holding a temperature of 40 degrees, unless the door is opened often. •Food in a freezer of 12 cubic feet or more should stay frozen for 48 hours if the freezer is full and the door kept closed; that food will keep safely cold for up to 72 hours. Frozen food that has completely thawed — especially vegetables and dishes containing meat, fish, eggs, cheese and cream sauce — should be tossed out because of possible bacteria growth. If the freezer temperature is higher than 40 degrees, throw out all food.

HEALTH

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

STOJ

to add flexibility to the program and said the first lady’s response seemed out of proportion. But the White House has appeared eager to play offense to protect a key piece of the first lady’s legacy. White House officials helped with a letter by former presidents of the School Nutrition Association opposing the waiver plan.

Other changes

OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/MCT

First lady Michelle Obama makes a healthy drink with actors Peyton List, center, and Cameron Boyce from the comedy series “Jessie,” during the annual White House Easter Egg Roll ON April 21.

First lady decries plan to lower school lunch nutrition standards BY KATHLEEN HENNESSEY TRIBUNE WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON — After steering clear of most messy legislative battles, first lady Michelle Obama on Tuesday publicly took on lawmakers, food companies and lunch ladies who say the school lunch law she championed nearly four years ago is leading kids to brown bag it. The attempt to scale back new nutrition standards for the federal school lunch program is unacceptable, Obama declared at a meeting with school nutrition officials that launched her public campaign to defend the law. She blasted lawmakers for playing “politics with our kids’ health” and suggested they were trying to “roll back everything we have worked for.” “It’s unacceptable to me not just as first lady, but also as a mother,” she said. The unusually confrontational remarks were a departure for a first lady who has largely sought to work with the food industry and around Congress in her campaign against childhood obesity. As the nation’s best-known healthy-eating advocate, Obama has typically emphasized partnerships and pledges with the makers of gummy fruit snacks and sweetened cereals, aiming for incremental changes in their products and increased marketing of healthier options.

Major challenge

CARL JUSTE/MIAMI HERALD/MCT

First lady Michelle Obama talks to students at Riverside Elementary in Miami about the importance of eating healthy in November 2010.

Since lobbying on behalf of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which set new standards for school food, Obama has rarely waded into legislative or regulatory debates. The law set guidelines for the amount of sodium in school lunches and breakfasts and targets for more whole grains and fresh fruit.

But the law is being challenged in Congress by the School Nutrition Association, a coalition of school officials and the food companies that sell mini-pizzas, yogurt, pastas and chicken nuggets to schools. Its industry members include Pizza Hut, Coca-Cola, Chobani Greek yogurt and Tyson Food Service, according to the group’s web site. The group supported the law in 2010, but its leaders now say the regulations it spawned are too rigid. House Republicans have backed the group’s efforts. The House Appropriations Committee was to vote Thursday on a provision that would allow school districts that have been operating at a loss to seek a oneyear waiver from the nutrition guidelines. The measure was expected to win approval in the House.

White House offense The waiver is aimed at schools that have seen resources slide as more paying students are opting out of school lunches and bringing their own food. Some districts say they have had trouble finding affordable products that meet the nutrition standards; meanwhile, they say, they’ve watched students throw away large amounts of the healthy food that land on their trays. “These new federal regulations should not drive local school nutrition programs underwater. This temporary one-year waiver simply throws them a lifeline,” said Brian Rell, a spokesman for Rep. Robert B. Aderholt, R-Ala., chairman of the Appropriations Committee’s agriculture subcommittee, which approved the provision on a voice vote last week. Supporters of the waiver described it as a modest attempt

The association is also seeking other changes to the law, including scrapping a requirement that foods be 100 percent wholegrain by July 2014 and sticking with the current 50 percent target; holding to the newly enacted standard for sodium rather than a lower target scheduled to go into effect in a few years; and eliminating the requirement that students take a fruit or vegetable, regardless of whether they plan to eat it. The association “does not want to gut the nutrition standards — we support many of the requirements. Our request for flexibility under the new standards does not come from industry or politics; it comes from thousands of school cafeteria professionals who have shown how these overly prescriptive regulations are hindering their effort to get students to eat healthy school meals,” said President Leah Schmidt, in a response to the first lady’s event. The White House argues that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program, has been flexible. The USDA already delayed a wholegrain provision for pasta, heeding complaints that some such pastas were unpopular and could be hard to find. Officials argued against having lawmakers determine what is nutritious, noting that lawmakers have bent to food industry complaints in the past, such as an effort in 2011 to classify pizza with tomato sauce as a vegetable. “What we’re not going to do is put politics and interests ahead of what’s good for our kids and allow politicians to set nutrition standards,” said Sam Kass, director of the first lady’s anti-obesity campaign and the White House chef. Kass said the first lady’s office hoped to amplify the voices of those school officials who think the guidelines are helping kids eat healthier diets. The USDA estimates that 90 percent of schools are in compliance.

No pizza On Tuesday, David Binkle, director of food services for the Los Angeles Unified School District, joined the first lady for the event. Binkle noted that he was a member of the School Nutrition Association, but said its “hard line” on the law did not reflect his views. Binkle said he had not had trouble procuring food that meets the federal guidelines or stricter local nutrition standards and noted that the “plate waste” critics point to was a problem before the 2010 law. “In fact, we don’t serve the typical corn dog and chicken nuggets,” he said. “We don’t even have pizza on the menu.”

Study: In states with no drug testing, most jobs given to White women, not Blacks BY FREDERICK H. LOWE TRICE EDNEY NEWS WIRE

Pre-employment drug tests are fairly common throughout the United States, but in states where companies are not required to drug test potential employees before hiring them, the available jobs go to White women instead of Blacks although more White women than Black women are being imprisoned for drug use. “I find some evidence that employees substitute White women for Blacks in the absence of drug screening,” Abigail K. Wozniak, associate professor of economics at the University of Notre Dame, wrote in paper titled “Discrimination and The Effects of Drug Testing on Black Employment.” The National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Mass., published the paper in May. “The evidence on employers substituting White women when testing is not available is suggestive,” Wozniak wrote in an email message to The NorthStar News & Analysis. “Unfortunately, I don’t have more details beyond

By the late 1980s, grounds as to which employers could require testing were well-established by the courts, notably with a major U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1989.

what was in the paper.” White women 20 years old and older have the lowest unemployment rate and Black men 20 years old and older have the highest, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

14 states

Started in 1980s Wozniak does not delve into this issue, but The Sentencing Project released a study that reported that more White women than Black women are being incarcerated in state and federal prisons for property crimes related to illegal and prescription drug use. “I think your question – do employers know the facts and ignore them without testing or do they really not know – is an intriguing one and deserves more research,” she added. Wozniak notes that drug testing in the U.S. labor market began in the early 1980s, driven by the fact that workplace accidents in which drugs were alleged to play a role were occurring, the development of accurate and inexpensive screening devices were read-

ily available, rising public anxiety over the prevalence of drugs in society and federal incentives for workplace drug testing. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan issued an executive order requiring that federal agencies adopt testing to establish “drugfree workplaces.” The 1988 Drug Free Workplace Act went further, requiring federal contractors to adopt comprehensive anti-drug policies.

Anti-testing states have small Black populations compared to pro-testing states, which have large Black populations. Most of the testing states are in the South and Midwest. And most of the anti-testing states are in the Northeast. According to the 2006-2007 Guide to State and Federal Drug Testing Laws, 14 states require employers to test job applicants for drugs and seven are anti testing. More Whites use drugs than Blacks but that belief is not shared by employers. Their own racial prejudices coupled with news reports and so-called reality television shows depicting police arresting mostly Blacks for drug-related offenses have led most people to believe that African-Americans use drugs more

than Whites. The reality is much different from the reel news. From 1990 to 2006, 13 percent of Whites and 12 percent of Blacks reported some drug use in the past month. Less-skilled Blacks and less-skilled Whites reported drug use of 19 percent, the report said. Police, however, have developed a set of perceptions in which they disproportionately target Blacks, which has become part of the mindset of small business owners and corporate America. “In a survey of hiring managers, there is a belief that Blacks are more likely to fail a drug test and they cite evidence that even Black youth overestimate their down drug use relative to Whites. They also cite a 1989 survey in which 95% of [hiring survey] respondents described the typical drug user as Black,” the report stated.

This story is special to the Trice Edney News Wire from TheNorthStarNews.com.

STOJ

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

FINEST & ENTERTAINMENT

Meet some of

FLORIDA’S

finest

submitted for your approval

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.

mike

jasmine Jasmine Akakpo is a former child model and actor who has recently made her way back in the entertainment industry. She has done work on TV shows such as “The Game” and “Drop Dead Diva” along with independent films through young filmmakers like herself. Jasmine takes pride in her fun, down-to-earth personality and loves working with others. Contact Jasmine at www.jasmineakakpo.com; www.facebook.com/jasmineakakpo.com or on Twitter: @jasmineakakpo. Credit: BlackIce Bell Mike Garvey is a South Florida resident of Jamaican descent and a Marine Corps veteran who has bloodlines to historical leader Marcus Garvey. The aspiring actor and 1st Million Management talent has worked numerous projects, including appearances on Starz Network’s “Magic City,” “The Glades” (A&E Network) and “Burn Notice” (USA Network). Recently he played a security guard in the film “Pain and Gain.’’ Photo courtesy of 1st Million Management

Temptations’ Otis Williams discusses 53 years with the legendary group BY DARLENE DONLOE EURWEB.COM

In 1961, when Otis Williams was just beginning his career as one of Motown’s tempting Temptations, he says he had no idea that the group would last very long. All they wanted to do was “make money, have hits and have the girls like us.’’ Fast forward, 53 years later and Williams, one of the founding members of the group, is still keeping the music, tradition and legacy of The Temptations alive. He’s still making money, singing the hits, doing the Temptation walk and wearing those classic suits. And, of course the girls still like them. The group has new fans and old fans. Williams still enjoys the music and never tires of being on stage. “Our challenge,” says Williams, “is to live in the present while respecting the past. Our past is filled with riches only a fool would discard. At the same time, we thrive on competition. As a Motowner, I grew up in the most competitive musical atmosphere imaginable. But we also understand that for a group with history, no matter how glorious that history might be, reinvention is the name of the game.

‘God’s group’ “When I tell people we are God’s group, I don’t mean it arrogantly. It’s just that we have been tested time and time again and keep coming back. We have suffered the deaths of so many legendary singers … Paul Williams, David Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks,

Melvin Franklin. Others like Dennis Edwards, Richard Street, Ali-Ollie Woodson and Theo Peoples have left, and yet our unity is tighter, our sound brighter and our popularity greater. Someone has watched over this group. Someone has protected our integrity. Someone has said…just go on singing and it’ll get better.” The Temptations’ discography is vast. It includes hits like: My Girl, Since I Lost My Baby, Ain’t Too Proud To Beg, Beauty Is Only Skin Deep, Way You Do the Things You Do, Get Ready, I Wish It Would Rain, Cloud Nine, Runaway Child, Running Wild; I Can’t Get Next To You, Psychedelic Shack, Ball of Confusion, Just My Imagination, Superstar, Papa Was A Rolling Stone, Treat Her Like A Lady, Stay and Lady. Today Williams, 72, is the father of one, the grandfather of three and recently moved into a new home in Los Angeles. He says he likes being a grandfather because, ‘I can play with them and then give them back. Then I can chill.’

Q&A with Williams DD: How do you prepare for a show? DD: We just go and do it. It’s second nature. We are mentally and physically ready and prepared. We have to dance every night. We go out with the mindset of giving our fans the best show we can give. DD: Do The Temps have a ritual before going on stage? DD: Yes, we pray to God for letting us come together. We bow

ADRIENNE HELITZER/MCT

The Temptations perform a short rendition of “My Girl” backstage in celebration of their Grammy win for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Album “Ear-Resistable” at the Grammy Awards on Feb. 21, 2001. Otis Williams is in the center. our heads with everyone and pray. DD: How has a Temps show changed over the years? OW: The one ting that is constant is change. But we don’t stray too far from what we’re known for. You’ll never see us come out with our pants down and showing our underwear, or grabbing our crouches or cussing. We’ll stay classy. We were taught that. DD: Has your audience changed over the years? OW: they have grown up with The Temps. Our audiences are as young as five and as old as 80 or 90. DD: Does it seem like 53 years? OW: Yes! When I stop and think back, it is what it is. It doesn’t seem like yesterday. I thank God for letting us change and be around 54 years later. We had no idea we would be doing this. We just wanted to make money, have hits and have the girls like us. We made it a vocation instead of an avocation. DD: When I say Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin what comes to your mind? OW: The greatest lineup ever! I’m walking around in my home. I have a wall with all of the original Temps. Those were some great guys. DD: You are the lone remaining original Temp. How does that affect you? OW: I take it all in positive

stride. I don’t think about it. The other four are no longer here. I’m sad they are no longer here. I talk to the man upstairs quite often. Why am I still here? I learned something about myself. I wasn’t a saint. I saw a lot of craziness. I’ve had self-discipline. I have to govern myself. Health is first. I try to take care of myself. DD: We’re all familiar with Ron Tyson. Talk about the new guys, Terry Weeks, Joe Herndon and Bruce Williamson. OW: They are just fantastic performers. They are carrying on the legacy. They all knew what they had to do. Ron Tyson has been in the group for 30 years. They are all showmen and performers in their own right. DD: What is your favorite Temptations song of all time? OW: It has to be My Girl. I believe most men from the womb to the tomb would like to say, ‘hey, that’s my girl.’ That’s universal. DD: What is your all time best memory of being a Temp? OW: Breaking records at the Copa Cabana, playing the Apollo Theater, doing Ed Sullivan 13 times, having our own special, the mini-series, five Grammys, going to the White House. I can’t single one out. DD: How many presidents has the group met? OW: Presidents Obama, Clinton, Nixon and George W. Bush. DD: What is it about The

Temps that keeps fans wanting more? OW: It was arts development. We went to school to be in show business. It’s the way we present ourselves. That’s entertainment – that’s what I want them to think. DD: How many shows do The Temps do in a year? OW: We stay pretty busy. We just got back from Europe. DD: I know it’s been a number of years, but describe the first time you heard a Temps song on the radio. OW: We still lived in Detroit. Motown was becoming very popular. It was a joyous feeling. You never tire of it. I screamed. The little girl in us came out. DD: You’ve got to settle something. For years people have been debating whether in the song, Papa Was A Rolling Stone, the line ‘All he left us was’ what? Is it ‘alone’ as in by ourselves or is it ‘a loan’ as in debt? OW: It’s ‘alone’ as in by yourself. DD: Your thoughts on today’s music? OW: I’m not impressed with today’s music. The FCC really relaxed their laws. They are cussing all over. Bitch bring my money. When we started, we couldn’t say, damn. The music back in the day had great melodies. The lyrics were non-offensive, you didn’t mind your kids listening to it. Where is the melody today and the lyrics are atrocious. DD: Who do you like? OW: I like John Legend and Bruno Mars. There are a few. DD: Who do you regularly listen to? OW: When I’m in my truck, I listen to CDs. I don’t really turn on the radio. We have become a decadent society. Damn morality. There is nothing sacred anymore. DD: The Temps know how to dress. Since the 60s, the group has been sharp as a tack. Have you kept any of them? Where are they? OW: I don’t keep those. They are in storage. Some are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. DD: Any thoughts about retirement? OW: I’m going to ride the horse bald. For more information, visit http://www.otiswilliams.net

From snacks to sides, grapes add a burst of flavor FROM FAMILY FEATURES

F0OD

MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2014

Versatile and delicious meal ideas

Always the convenient go-to option for snack time, grapes from California also bring great taste, texture and added flair to your favorite dishes. From the juicy burst of flavor to the vibrant array of beautiful reds, greens and blacks — fresh grapes are a top choice for home cooks and health-conscious eaters alike. While shoppers often choose this tasty fruit for in-between meal snacking, grapes can also boost the “healthy” factor in recipes, while adding bright, beautiful color to salads, entrees and desserts. They can make any of your favorite dishes healthier, and can make already healthy ones taste even better. California grapes are available May through January. For flavorful, unique ways to add grapes to your meals, visit grapesfromcalifornia.com or facebook.com/ grapesfromcalifornia.

SMART SNACKING They are ready-to-eat with no peeling or coring required. Plus, grapes go where you go — they’re easy to pack along to the office, in a lunch or in the car. Here are more reasons to feel great about grapes: • One serving (3/4 cup) contains just 90 calories. • Grapes have no fat, cholesterol and virtually no sodium. • They are also a natural source of beneficial antioxidants and other polyphenols. In fact, some studies suggest grapes may help support a healthy heart.

GRAPE, FETA AND MINT QUINOA SALAD Servings: 4 1 cup quinoa 1 1/3 cups water 1 cup red seedless California grapes 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice 8 fresh mint leaves, coarsely chopped Sliced green onion tops (optional garnish) Rinse quinoa in fine-mesh sieve. Put in medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 12 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Remove cover and fluff with fork. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. Stir together quinoa, grapes, cheese, lemon juice and mint in large bowl. Top with green onions, if desired. Nutrition information per serving (without onions): 228 calories; 6 g fat (3 g saturated fat); 25% calories from

fat; 8 g protein; 36 g carbohydrate; 3 g fiber; 17 mg cholesterol; 222 mg sodium; 400 mg potassium. GRAPE AND LENTIL SALAD Servings: 6 3 cups green seedless California grapes, halved 3 cups chopped English cucumber 17.5 ounces (2 1/2 cups) steamed lentils 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives, sliced into slivers 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese 2 lemons, zested and juiced (about 6 tablespoons) 2 tablespoons olive oil In large bowl, toss all ingredients together. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Notes: • Steamed lentils are sold in the produce department of most grocery stores. Canned lentils (rinsed and drained) can be substituted.

• An English cucumber has a thinner skin and smaller seeds than traditional cucumbers. • Make this salad a complete meal by adding a grilled, whole grain pita on the side. Nutrition information per serving (1 1/2 cups): 246 calories; 11 g fat (2 g saturated fat); 40% calories from fat; 9 g protein; 29 g carbohydrate; 7 g fiber; 6 mg cholesterol; 387 mg sodium; 495 mg potassium. GRAPE, GOLDEN BEET AND BROWN RICE SALAD Servings: 8 4 medium golden beets, scrubbed 2 cups cooked brown rice Salt, to taste 1/3 cup chopped red onion 1 clove garlic, minced 1/4 cup white wine vinegar 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon honey

Black pepper, freshly ground, to taste 1 cup thinly sliced celery 1 cup halved red seedless California grapes Pinch cayenne 1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley Preheat the oven to 375°F. Trim off all but 1 inch of stem on the beets and place in a small baking dish. Cover with foil and bake until a paring knife inserted into the center of the beets goes in easily, about 60–90 minutes. Let cool until easy to handle. Peel, then cut the beets into 1/2-inch wedges. At the same time, combine the onion, garlic and vinegar in a large mixing bowl and let stand 15 minutes. Whisk in the oil, honey and salt and pepper to taste. Then add the rice, beets, celery, grapes, cayenne, parsley and toss. Serve warm or chilled. Makes about 6 cups. Nutrition information per serving: 162 calories; 8 g fat (1.1 g saturated fat); 41% calories from fat; 2.3 g protein; 22 g carbohydrate; 2.5 g fiber; 0 mg cholesterol; 119 mg sodium; 328 mg potassium. TOSTADAS WITH GRAPE AND JICAMA SALSA Servings: 4 8 handmade-style corn tortillas Cooking spray, as needed 1 cup black seedless California grapes, chopped 1 cup red seedless California grapes, chopped 1 cup chopped jicama (about 1/2 medium jicama) 1 avocado, diced 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped 1 lime, zested and juiced 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 (15-ounce) can vegetarian refried beans, warmed Preheat oven to 400°F. Place tortillas on baking sheet and mist with cooking spray. Bake for 5 minutes, flip and bake additional 3 to 5 minutes, until crisp. In medium bowl, mix together grapes, jicama, avocado, cilantro, jalapeno, lime zest, lime juice and salt. Spread beans on tortillas and top them evenly with salsa mixture. Note: this recipe is gluten-free and vegan. Nutrition information per serving (2 tostadas): 408 calories; 11 g fat (1 g saturated fat); 22% calories from fat; 17 g protein; 67 g carbohydrate; 14 g fiber; 0 mg cholesterol; 758 mg sodium; 862 mg potassium.