Florida Courier - November 11, 2016

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CELEBRATING OUR 10TH YEAR STATEWIDE!

Other winners and losers in 2016 election season See Page B1 www.flcourier.com

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

VOLUME 24 NO. 46

‘WHITELASH’

BY HANNAH ALLAM MCCLATCHY WASHINGTON BUREAU / TNS

NEW YORK – In his first speech as president-elect, Donald Trump pledged early Wednesday to serve as a leader representing “all Americans.”

Racial and religious minorities viewed the promise skeptically.

They noted that it came from a man who, over the course of his campaign, had called for mass deportations and a wall along the Mexican border, floated the ideas of spying on mosques and forcing American Muslims onto a national registry, and dismissed Black Lives Matter protesters as “looking for trouble” while disseminating grossly inflated Black crime statistics.

He was endorsed by Ku

A broad coalition ing demographic shift that will leave Whites in the miof White voters, nority. led by non-college educated men and Broad base Activists of color pounced rural voters, elect on results that showed that Donald J. Trump 70 percent of Tuesday’s voters were White; of those, the as America’s 45th majority – 58 percent – votpresident in one of ed for Trump, across economic and other traditional the most stunning divides.

For many non-Whites, the upsets in America’s numbers confirmed their presidential history. suspicions about White

Klux Klan, neo-Nazi and White supremacist figures.

Instead, they criticized White voters for buying into Trump’s racially charged messaging and prepared for what many foresee as the battle still yet to be fought between the vestiges of America’s ugly racial past, and the realities of an ongo-

compatriots’ views toward them, and cast aspersions even on White allies such as supporters of the social media campaign #notallwhitepeople. With the voter data so stark, they gave nobody a pass Wednesday.

“There’s a president who wants to make America great

J. CONRAD WILLIAMS JR./NEWSDAY/TNS

See TRUMP, Page A2 Donald Trump will be the face of American power for at least the next four years.

Lights out

ELECTION 2016

A legacy at risk

Voters kill anti-solar amendment

BY JIM TURNER THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – A controversial solar-energy ballot initiative fell short of the 60 percent voter approval it needed Tuesday, concluding for now one of the most expensive constitutional amendment campaigns in Florida history.

The “Consumers for Smart Solar” proposal, Amendment 1 on Tuesday’s ballot, received support from nearly 51 percent of voters, short of the 60 percent approval needed for passage. The failure came after supporters, including four major utilities, spent $25.47 million to try to pass the measure.

Opponents who argued the amendment would hinder the development of alternative energy in Florida celebrated the defeat of the measure.

‘Voter manipulation’ Tory Perfetti, chairman of the opposition group Floridians for Solar Choice and director of Conservatives for Energy Freedom, called the vote a “victory for energy freedom.”

DUANE C. FERNANDEZ SR./HARDNOTTSPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

President Obama spoke in Kissimmee at a rally last week for Hillary Clinton in a futile effort to win Florida’s 29 electoral votes for the Democratic candidate. Donald Trump promises to begin dismantling Obama’s political legacy, including Obamacare in Trump’s first day in office.

“We defeated one of the most egregious and underhanded attempts at voter manipulation in this state’s history,” Perfetti said in a prepared statement.

“The millions of dollars in slick ad buys and glossy mailers did not win the day as opponents of Amendment 1 successfully harnessed social and earned media to educate Floridians about the true intent of this deceptive proposal while tapping a vast See SOLAR, Page A2

SNAPSHOTS FLORIDA | A3

Voters expand medical marijuana NATION | A6

Obama meets kid kicked out of Trump rally

Diverse delegation

Charlie Crist

Val Demings

Al Lawson

COMPILED FROM WIRE REPORTS

Here’s a roundup of political races of interest around the state.

HEALTH | B3

U.S. Congress

How to avoid health plan enrollment headaches

ALSO INSIDE

Crist, Demings, Lawson going to Congress

include a sizable portion of Orlando, where a Democratic candidate would be favored.

Florida voters on Tuesday sent a former governor to Congress and called home a 24-year veteran lawmaker from Washington.

Charlie Crist, a former one-term Republican governor who lost the 2014 governor’s race as a Democrat, defeated U.S. Rep. David Jolly by 52-48 percent in the redrawn Congressional District 13, centered on Crist’s home-

town of St. Petersburg.

Crist’s victory revived a political career that had stalled after a loss as an independent candidate in the 2010 U.S. Senate race, followed by his narrow loss to Gov. Rick Scott in 2014.

In the Orlando area, political novice Stephanie Murphy, with a powerful financial push from national Democrats ousted veteran U.S. Rep. John Mica, a Winter Park Republican who was seeking his 13th term in Congress.

Democrats targeted Mica because court-ordered redistricting had reshaped his district to

Florida’s Congressional delegation is more diverse, with four African-American members and four Hispanic members, including Darren Soto, who won election to Congressional District 9 in the Orlando area, becoming Florida’s first congressional representative of Puerto Rican heritage.

Two Black South Florida incumbents, Alcee Hastings and Fredericka Wilson, both return.

Among the other new members are former state Sen. Al Lawson, a Democrat representing North Florida’s Congressional District 5, which was previously represented by Corrine Brown; and Democrat Val Demings in Orange County’s Congressional District 10.

The net effect of the night was a one-seat pickup for the Democrats in Florida, which gives Republicans a 16-11 edge in the delegation.

See CONGRESS, Page A2

COMMENTARY: CHARLES W. CHERRY II: RANDOM THOUGHTS OF A FREE BLACK MIND | A4 COMMENTARY: JAMES CLINGMAN: NOTHING HAPPENS UNTIL WE VOTE WITH OUR WALLETS | A4

FOCUS

A2

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

Why Blacks are to blame for Trump win I told you what would happen and you knew this, but the political party and political candidates that you love were absolutely clueless!

The election of Donald Trump as president of the United States was the result of Black imagery.

The translation of “Make America Great Again” is, for all practical and political purposes, make America White again!

Focused campaign Donald Trump focused on what he knew would resound with White voters, change, job loss, corruption and White nationalism or anti-globalization.

But the big thing Trump did was tie Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama. He didn’t dwell on Hillary “policies” – everything was Obama’s and Clinton’s policies.

He tied Hillary Clinton to Obamacare, immigration, Muslim refugees, failed war strategies and everything else that was wrongfully and negatively attached to President Obama.

Trump had his strategy and he stuck to it! He made White voters think that voting for Hillary Clinton was akin to voting for Barack Obama.

Yes, Americans will be sorry they voted the way they voted, just like English citizens had immediate remorse about voting for Brexit.

About the money It is always all about the money. Blacks were told it was about

LUCIUS GANTT THE GANTT REPORT

Democrats.

When stock prices drop, retirement plans lose value, wars and rumors of wars increase and worldwide American hate increases beyond measure, voters will be sorry they voted for who they voted for.

The corrupt political system you know is always better than the far more corrupt political system that you don’t know.

It’s your fault Donald Trump’s win is the fault of Blacks. The leaders that you love should have told you that Bernie Sanders would have beaten Trump by a landslide!

Again, only Blacks voted Democratic as a block. Latinos, women and everybody else voted for both Democrats and Republicans – everyone but you.

The head of the national Democratic Party is President Barack Obama. The person in charge of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) is an African-American woman, Donna Brazile.

Same strategy They both agreed to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to pay White consultants, White strategists and White political vendors

to regurgitate failed political campaign techniques that haven’t worked since the 1950s.

The two of them agreed, by design or coincidence, to take Blacks for granted and to take organized labor for granted and to completely ignore Hispanic and Latino culture and reality.

The majority of Blacks voted for the party that they always vote for.

But as always, they had no campaign demands or future presidential demands. They trusted the devils – the Democratic devils and the Republican devils.

No agenda When Blacks should have trusted each other, believed in each other and supported each other, they decided to just vote Democratic. They didn’t have a Black political agenda, a Black political platform or a Black political wish list!

Black voters were not the only Democratic supporters that were taken for granted. Organized laborers took a hit when labor leaders decided to become political puppets, too.

You see, labor leadership supported and contributed member money to the Democrats and Hillary Clinton. But members of organized labor voted for Trump!

Can I prove it?

Yes! Coal miners voted for Trump and so did law enforcers, firefighters, automakers, plumbers, electricians. Even schoolteachers voted for Trump! Hillary

Clinton couldn’t even corral the White women’s vote!

None of the Black legislators, elected officials, radio and TV show hosts, athletes, entertainers and others you love that got close enough to Clinton to whisper in her ear asked her to spend some of her campaign money with Black media or Black political professionals that saw which way America’s conservative political winds were blowing, and could have advised her how to change it.

African-Americans are influenced by flowery speeches by politicians and preachers. But other groups in America – businesses, workers, White women, the media, defense contractors, health care providers, bankers, insurers and everybody else in America – is influenced by money, or the purported lack thereof.

Get ready Well, Native Americans, get ready for more pipelines on sacred soil. Immigrants of all kinds, sizes and shapes and from all countries, get ready for visa checks, green card checks and possible deportation. Students, get ready for decreases in financial aid. Sick people, get ready for poorer and costlier health care.

Because it is coming!

And Blacks, get ready for stopand-frisk and more law enforcement beatdowns and mistreatment!

White nationalism won the election. In our case, the only way

Another proposal pending

ANNE CUSACK/LOS ANGELES TIMES/TNS

Amendment 1’s attempted regulation of the solar industry was rejected statewide.

SOLAR from A1

network of organizations, solar businesses and supporters who remain committed to growing – not restricting – Florida’s solar industry,” Floridians for Solar Choice said in a release Tuesday.

TRUMP from A1

but not for me, for people who look like me, for people who believe what I believe in.

He just wants to make America great for people like him,” said Taylor Brainey, a California native who attends Howard University.

Whiteness as ‘oxygen’ One of the most searing indictments of White voters came from Damon Young, the Pittsburgh-based editor of the online publication VSB, known for its race-related commentary. He wrote that he’d been wrong to believe that a majority of White Americans would choose “their own humanity” over the preservation of White supremacy.

“I failed to realize how intertwined these things are for them,” Young wrote. “There apparently is no point in even existing without existing as White. Whiteness is past an identity or status. It is their oxygen, their plasma, their connective tissue.”

Throughout the election, polls showed racial resentment as a key factor in

A clear signal?

“The failure of Amendment 1 is the clearest signal yet that Floridians want more access to clean solar energy,” said Aliki Moncrief, Executive Director, Florida Conservation Voters.

Backers of Amendment 1 took some solace that more than 50 percent of voters supported the proposed constitutional amendment Tuesday and Trump’s popularity, but analysts say that reality was overshadowed by Trump’s antics on the campaign trail or the narrative of the impoverished, neglected White voter.

Other factors Surveys find that economic factors were not the only drivers of support for Trump.

One, by the Pew Research Center, found that attitudes about immigration, Islam and racial diversity were bigger factors than economic concerns among Republican voters.

Another, by Hamilton College political scientist Philip Klinkner, who analyzed voter data for Vox, found Trump was favored over Hillary Clinton by “those who express more resentment toward African-Americans, those who think the word ‘violent’ describes Muslims well and those who believe President Obama is a Muslim.”

What now?

Now Trump critics are bracing to see whether the rhetoric from the campaign trail – including words and ideas that once were out of bounds for polite discussion – makes it into policy. Human rights and civil liberties defenders on Wednesday is-

that the effort served its purpose as a counter to the Floridians for Solar Choice proposal.

“This campaign’s purpose was to offer a sensible and fair way to grow the use of solar in Florida as an alternative to our opponent’s amendment, which failed to make the ballot,” Consumers for Smart Solar spokeswoman Sarah Bascom said in a prepared statement late Tuesday.

Opponents of a solar energy ballot initiative that failed at the polls Tuesday said they haven’t decided whether to revive their rival initiative, which was waylaid nearly a year ago by utility giants in the state.

Floridians for Solar Choice put aside its effort in January after falling behind in qualifying for the November ballot. The coalition had also become engaged in a contract dispute with a petition-gathering firm as it competed for signatures with Consumers for Smart Solar.

But with the demise of Amendment 1 on Tuesday, Stephen Smith, a member of the Floridians for Solar Choice coalition, said the constitutional amendment route isn’t currently a focus of his group.

Sell excess power The Floridians for Solar Choice initiative would have sought to allow businesses to generate and sell up to two megawatts of solar power to customers on the same or neighboring properties.

Part of any calculations on reviving the Floridians for Solar Choice proposal will include the millions of dollars that four major utilities – Duke Energy, Florida Power & Light, Gulf Power

sued pre-emptive warnings about the hardening of these racial and anti-immigrant sentiments.

“From internment camps to the use of torture, we have seen disastrous results when those we elect to represent us flout the United States’ obligations to uphold human rights,” said Margaret Huang, the executive director of Amnesty International USA, the rights watchdog known better for monitoring dictatorships abroad. “All who have been elected today – from the executive office to city council – should bear these lessons in mind.”

Others charged that Trump’s appeal played squarely on fears that, according to current population trends, White Americans are about 30 years from becoming a minority group.

Jose Antonio Vargas, an undocumented immigrant and prominent activist behind the documentary “White People,” asked on Twitter how much change White Americans can handle as they see their hold on the country loosening, gradually. He answered himself: “I think last night we saw that it’s not a lot.”

CNN commentator Van Jones put it bluntly during

to deal with White nationalism is Black unity and Black nationalism! What we need is Pan Africanism! What we need is Black unity and Black leaders that have an international view and perspective.

Look toward Africa We have been politically bamboozled once again. Set your mind to Africa!

Politically speaking, Latino is the new Black. We once decided all close elections. But from now and evermore, Latinos will decide close elections if Hispanics can unite themselves in the future. But right now the Cubans, Mexicans, and other of Hispanic descent hate each other as much as we do.

I’m sorry the leaders that you love tricked you like a two-dollar whore. The powers that be sold you a political house with a terrible foundation.

Don’t take my word for it. But millions of Democrats will change their voter registration to Republican in record numbers, and all you will do is what you’re told to do!

We don’t have a political problem that money and wisdom can’t solve!

Excerpts from Gantt columns are now posted every week on The Gantt Report’s Facebook page; become a fan. Buy Gantt’s latest book, “Beast Too: Dead Man Writing,” on Amazon. com and from bookstores everywhere. “Like” The Gantt Report page on Facebook. Contact Lucius at www.allworldconsultants.net.

and Tampa Electric Co. – pumped into trying to pass Amendment 1.

“We could take on the ballot in ‘18, and they will be very aggressive,” Smith said. “We know they are very, very concerned about elements of our proposal.”

Alys Daly, a spokeswoman for Florida Power & Light, said Wednesday she couldn’t speculate about what the company would do if Floridians for Solar Choice revives its ballot proposal. But she was more direct on the original intent of the Consumers for Smart Solar amendment.

“We’re proud that the Smart Solar campaign achieved its primary objective, which was to stop the dangerous anti-consumer proposal, which was funded by the secretive Southern Alliance for Clean Energy political group,” Daly said. “Their proposal would have stripped Floridians of basic consumer protections.”

Solar ‘subsidy’ Amendment 1 was promoted as a consumer protection effort by placing into the state Constitution existing rules regarding solar power. But critics contended the measure was deceptively designed to allow “discriminatory charges” to be imposed against rooftop solar users.

election coverage.

“We’ve talked about everything tonight…we haven’t talked about race. This was a ‘whitelash’ against a changing country, against a Black president, in part, and that’s the part where the pain comes…I know this is more than about race…but race is here too and we gotta talk about it.”

‘Slave codes’ Across social media, Black and Brown pundits offered their takes on the outcome, naming the target of their anger: “White folks did this,” “this was a referendum for White nationalism,” “the slave codes for the modern day.”

Such characterizations jibe with the research of Joe Feagin, a White, Texas-born sociologist who’s written extensively about race relations in books such as “White Party, White Government: Race, Class and U.S. Politics.”

“This demographic shift is not going to come peacefully and that’s why Trump was elected,” said Feagin, a professor at Texas A&M University. “Whites know enough about this coming demographic shift to be scared.

“The racial problem in America is a White problem.”

The failed ballot language would have said that people who haven’t installed solar on their property “are not required to subsidize the costs of backup power and electric grid access to those who do.”

While not returning to the amendment route for now, Smith said his coalition intends to focus on ensuring that a separate constitutional amendment approved by voters in August is enacted without changes during the 2017 legislative session.

Solar tax breaks That measure, which was placed on the primary ballot by state lawmakers, is designed to extend a residential renewable-energy tax break to commercial and industrial properties.

The measure also will exempt for 20 years the assessed value of solar and renewable-energy devices installed on businesses and industrial properties and exempt all renewable-energy equipment from state tangible personal property taxes.

Though approved by nearly 73 percent of primary voters, the measure, known as Amendment 4, still needs the Legislature to enact the changes.

CONGRESS from A1

Florida Senate Oscar Braynon takes over as the chamber’s Senate minority leader, the chief Democrat, later this month. Democrats gained one state Senate seat and are now outnumbered by Republicans, 25-15.

Winners include Rep. Randolph Bracy, an Orlando Democrat in Senate District 11; Rep. Darryl Rouson, a St. Petersburg Democrat in Senate District 19; Rep. Bobby Powell, a West Palm Beach Democrat in Senate District 30; Rep. Daphne Campbell, a Miami Democrat in Senate District 38; and Rep. Perry Thurston, DLauderhill, in Senate District 33.

Incumbent Democratic Sen. Dwight Bullard lost to Rep. Frank Artiles, a conservative who gained notoriety for sponsoring a measure that would have required transgender

people to use the bathrooms that match the genders on their birth certificates.

Florida House Florida Democrats made a net gain of two seats in the state House of Representatives on Tuesday, although Republicans kept their firm grip over the 120-member chamber.

In Jacksonville, Tracie Davis, a Democrat who replaced state Rep. Reggie Fullwood after he pleaded guilty to wire fraud and tax charges, won election to District 13.

With some close races not finalized, Republicans appeared headed to holding a 79-seat majority in the House, with the Democrats moving up two seats to 41.

The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

ELECTION 2016

A3 2014 law expanded Partly to fend off the 2014 pot proposal, Florida lawmakers that year authorized non-euphoric marijuana for patients with epilepsy, chronic muscle spasms or cancer. The 2014 law also set up a regulatory structure for the marijuana industry.

The Legislature this year expanded the law to allow fullstrength marijuana for terminally ill patients.

But supporters of Amendment 2 say the current Florida law does nothing for a host of severely ill patients who could benefit from the treatment.

A more Democratic-leaning voter turnout in the presidential election year was anticipated to give the constitutional proposal an additional boost Tuesday.

Some of the same opponents who helped kill the measure two years ago again contributed to the “No on 2” campaign in an effort to replicate their success.

Critics insisted the provision giving doctors leeway to recommend the treatment for unspecified illnesses would amount to “de facto legalization” of pot.

But recent polls showed tremendous support for legalization of medical marijuana, and financing for the opposition crawled to a halt in recent weeks.

DAVID SANTIAGO/MIAMI HERALD/TNS

A group of people cast their vote on Tuesday in Miami-Dade County at Miami Beach Fire Station 4.

Voters overwhelmingly approve medical marijuana Amendment 2 passes in Florida with at least 70 percent of vote

BY DARA KAM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Stunning even some of the proposal’s most avid supporters, Florida voters Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana for patients with a broad swath of conditions.

Amendment 2, “Use of Marijuana for Debilitating Medical Conditions,” received at least 70 percent of the vote, far greater than the 60 percent required for passage of constitutional amendments in Florida.

While Florida was one of several states with marijuana-related proposals on the ballot Tuesday, pot reform proponents believed the success or failure of the Sunshine State’s constitutional amendment was critically important for legalization efforts nationwide. Two dozen other states have already legalized medical marijuana.

‘Gigantic victory’ The clear support for Amendment 2 could make Orlando trial lawyer John Morgan one of Florida’s biggest election winners. He and his law firm have spent more than $6.5 million on the effort to legalize marijuana in Florida over the past two years.

Tuesday’s victory came after voters narrowly rejected a similar effort in 2014, but the politics – and presence – of pot in Florida

No surprise: Rubio returning to Senate

BY JEREMY WALLACE KRISTEN M. CLARK AND DAVID OVALLE MIAMI HERALD/TNS

MIAMI – Republican Marco Rubio is headed back to the U.S. Senate with his prospects of another run for president intact.

Rubio defeated twoterm Democratic Rep. Pat-

rick Murphy, who couldn’t overcome poor name recognition or questions about embellishments on his resume.

Tuesday’s outcome was not a surprise given that Rubio never trailed in 47 consecutive public polls of the race since he entered into the contest in June.

Yet, since Rubio emphatically said six months ago that he would not run for

have changed dramatically since then.

“It’s a gigantic victory because hundreds and hundreds of thousands of sick and suffering Floridians will be able to see the benefit of this law very, very soon,” Ben Pollara, campaign manager of the political committee supporting the amendment, said in a telephone interview shortly after the polls closed Tuesday night.

The constitutional change legalizes marijuana as a treatment option for patients with conditions including post-traumatic stress disorder, cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Crohn’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis.

Boost for businesses Florida is home to an estimat-

Overmatched Murphy That pronouncement came after Rubio was trounced in the Florida Republican presidential primary, when he lost all counties but one, MiamiDade, to Donald Trump.

Still, Rubio was seen as a lifeboat for national Republicans who became increasingly concerned that

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Opponents of the measure also warned Floridians that, according to a Department of Health estimate, about 2,000 “pot shops” could sprout up throughout the state, if the proposal passed.

In anticipation of November’s election, local governments around Florida have been considering ordinances that would restrict where the dispensaries can be located.

Morgan – who, with his law firm, contributed more than half of the $12.5 million raised by the political committee backing the Florida proposals since 2013 – maintains that the marijuana industry will almost certainly have a positive economic impact on the state and will result in job creation.

Morgan is a devout believer in the use of marijuana as a far safer treatment option for sick individuals than prescription drugs, which result in thousands of deaths each year nationwide.

“This is not a pharmaceutical and guess what? Thank God it’s not. Man made opioids. God made pot. I’m going to go with God every single time when it comes to me. And by the way, marijuana has never killed one person,” Morgan said during a recent debate.

re-election, the outcome was still improbable.

“I have only said like 10,000 times I will be a private citizen in January,” Rubio posted on social media in May.

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ed 500,000 patients who would be eligible for the treatment, making it the second-largest market in the country.

The expansion will be a lucrative boost for businesses already growing, processing and distributing cannabis in Florida and will almost certainly spur even more competition for highly sought-after dispensing organization licenses, now limited to a handful of businesses chosen by state health officials last year.

Opponents of the measure immediately said they would take their fight to the Legislature, which is responsible for implementing the amendment.

In a statement, the “Vote No on 2” campaign said the group planned to ask lawmakers to ban pot candy, put a limit on THC levels, more tightly define what “debilitating conditions” would make patients eligible for the treatment, and ensure that local communities can regulate and ban marijuana dispensaries that critics call “pot shops.”

While the 2014 initiative failed, it did open the door for pot in Florida.

‘God made pot’

PEDRO PORTAL/MIAMI HERALD/TNS

Republican U.S Senator Marco Rubio speaks, flanked by his family, as he celebrates his victory against Democrat U.S. Rep. Patrick E. Murphy at the Hilton Miami Airport Hotel on Tuesday. they would lose the seat and their majority in the Senate. Rubio easily won the Republican primary against candidates who didn’t have his renown or fundraising abilities.

From the start, Rubio overmatched Murphy by campaigning as the more accomplished legislator. Murphy, 33, is finishing only his second term in Congress and would be six years younger than the next youngest member of the Senate had he won. No legislation by Murphy has ever passed the House, a point that Rubio was quick to remind voters during the campaign.

new six-year term in the Senate, the win keeps the Miami Republican in the conversation for another White House run. During the campaign Rubio continually hedged on questions about whether he’d run for president again, never completely ruling it out.

During the first debate with Murphy, Rubio said he intended to serve all six years in the Senate if he won. But he added, “God willing,” an important caveat that could allow Rubio to test out his stock in Iowa and New Hampshire over next three years.

On presidential run

Successful attack ads

Rubio stressed his work on the Everglades, foreign policy, efforts to fight human trafficking globally and pressure he’s brought on slumlords around the state — all evidence to blunt criticism from Democrats that he had been AWOL. Beyond giving Rubio a

Murphy used that hedging as part of an overall general election strategy to relentlessly remind Floridians of Rubio’s wellknown flaws — his poor attendance record, his unabashed political ambition — but Murphy’s message never dented Rubio’s reelection prospects.

Meanwhile, Murphy perpetually deflected or outright denied any of his own flaws, such as welldocumented lies about his academic and professional credentials that plagued him since they were uncovered during the summer primary season.

Democratic advisers leading get-out-the-vote efforts recently conceded Republicans won the high ground through a barrage of successful attack ads that highlighted Murphy’s resume misstatements, which defined him for undecided voters before Murphy could introduce himself.

Rubio and Republican forces supporting his reelection vastly outspent Murphy, who had been all but abandoned earlier this fall when national Democrats turned their investments to brighter prospects who could help them win back the Senate.

Patricia Mazzei contributed to this report.

EDITORIAL

A4

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

Nothing changes until we vote with our wallets By the time you read this, I trust you will have wiped away the slime and the grunge, regurgitated a few times, taken a good bath or shower, relentlessly scrubbed the stench from your bodies, and maybe even found it necessary to delouse, because the dirty, filthy, hateful, distasteful, embarrassing, vile, toxic, grimy, polluted campaign we all witnessed is likely the worst in the history of electing a president.

At the time of this writing (Nov. 4), the results are unknown. But in light of the lies, slander, vitriol, vulgarity, hypocrisy, hyperbole, false accusations, innuendo, leaks, assaults, and even physical threats of murder, it matters less than usual who wins.

Nothing for us No matter the result, there will be millions of people in this country who will be so angry that very little will get done for “The People.” January 20, 2017 will be a very sad day for many voters, depending on which side is victorious. That’s a terrible commentary on this country, and an even worse reflection on the leadership we have chosen.

But what does it say about us?

We have fought one another over the two candidates, neither of whom is held in high regard by the majority of the electorate.

It has been suggested that our choice is between the “lesser of

JAMES CLINGMAN GEORGE CURRY MEDIA

two evils,” and some say the “evil of two lessers.”

We have been led down one of two primrose paths of prevarication, perversion, pseudo-piety, and pompous posturing, only to have gone to the polls holding our noses to choose our next leader.

Various responses Some have dropped out of the system altogether because they cannot stand to be a part of such downright evilness. Some have said they will start a civil war if their candidate does not win.

Some say they will “take out” one of the candidates if things don’t go their way. Some have said they will move to another country. Some say the whole system is corrupt anyway, so why care about it at all?

We have former candidates who called the two finalists insulting names: “pathological liar,” “con man,” “woefully unqualified,” “criminal,” “predator,” and the like. But those same self-righteous folks, some of whom profess to be of high moral character, are telling us to vote for the very persons they disdained and

The uprising of minority communities After this presidential election, the minority community should have a wakeup call that encourages entrepreneurship, home ownership, quality education, and togetherness.

Clearly, there are other areas that minority communities need to wake up about. However, it’s evident when people don’t own and control the economics and politics within their community, they will be used, abused, and mistreated.

Impacting our children This election season has brought about the disrespect and almost dehumanizing of people based on color, culture, sexual orientation, and religion. What’s even more troubling is the fact that the future generation is learning from this misguided and

DR. SINCLAIR GREY III GUEST COLUMNIST

insane ideology.

Too many of our politicians like to preach love, liberty, and justice when in fact they are the very ones who condone and even contribute, consciously and subconsciously, to hatred.

The minority community cannot and must not keep smiling in the face of their oppressors while being stabbed in the back – stabbed by being overlooked, marginalized, neglected, and undervalued. In addition, this stabbing includes being pandered to for a photo op and/or a vote.

When politicians and former

denigrated during the primaries.

What kind of people are they?

Are they typical of what we call a “politician?” Hypocrites who turn on a dime when it’s politically expedient for them, no matter what they said a couple of months ago?

Talk about trouble – folks, we are deep into it. This nation is split nearly 50-50, so there is very little room for compromise or concession on either side, and we are right in the middle of this mess.

MARTIN SUTOVEC, SLOVAKIA

What’s next for us?

Yes, the nirvana and utopia called Barack and Michelle that many Black people thought we were living in is all over – gone.

What shall we do now?

Truthfully, irrespective of who wins this election, Blacks and poor folks are going to be in the same shape we have been in for a while. After the assessments and Monday morning quarterbacking is over, many of us will still be sitting in the stadium sulking, complaining, and lamenting what took place.

I am reminded of LeBron James’ comments after losing the championship to the Dallas Mavericks: “…at the end of the day, they (his haters) have to wake up tomorrow and have the same life that they had before they woke up today. They have the same personal problems they had to-

up the vast majority of people (collectively), our unity can work to overthrow the powers that deem to separate, conquer, and/ or divide.

• Encourage everyone to become active in their community.

Whenever there are city council and school board meetings, only a few show up. This isn’t the time to sit home, because tax dollars are being used. And if there is no representation in political offices from the minority community, our issues will not be discussed.

• Understand why entrepreneurship is vital. It’s no secret that small businesses help the U.S. economy. They are also catalyst to jumpstarting communities. When businesses thrive, people from within communities are able to work. And when you own your own business, you’re not begging someone for a job.

You’re helping build a legacy.

• Stay healthy. When we learn to eat healthy and exercise properly, we reduce many illnesses and diseases that will drain us and deplete us of our financial

resources. Pharmaceutical companies are always seeking a profit. If people are healthy, profits from these companies will decline. Do not become some busy with life that you neglect taking care of you.

The longer minority communities continue to be divided based on stuff, those in power will continue writing and implementing laws that will always benefit those in power and “the haves.” Let’s come together and work smart.

Here’s a word of caution. We must be cautious and aware of those who will seek to infiltrate our unity in order to disrupt us from working together and building.

Sound advice from Dr. Frances Cress Welsing

derlying reason and logic behind the whole of our experience since leaving Africa in slave ships and our subsequent mass confrontation with Europeans (Whites)?”

Frances, if she was still here physically, would pose that same question to Black folks today who are “shocked” at statements made by some of Donald Trump’s supporters or at attempts to suppress the Black vote.

For anyone who has Twitter, follow Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York, and read some of his tweets. It’s clear that he is a racist, a misogynist, and one who supports the notion of White supremacy.

Individuals like Giuliani clearly point out why the minority community must wake up and employ ownership by any means necessary. If the actions of Giuliani and people like him don’t make the masses of minorities upset, nothing else will. This isn’t the time to simply pray. This is the time to do something.

Here’s what we must do: • Learn to work together instead of against one another. Because minorities (together) make

CHARLES W. CHERRY II, ESQ. PUBLISHER

are gonna be, or as good as you hoped.

“But no president can control your life. Your day-to-day decisions determine your destiny.

Just keep doing what you’re doing every day.

“Have a great day! We are gonna be alright. I love you.”

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

Follow the Florida Courier (@ flcourier), the Daytona Times (@daytonatimes) and me (@ ccherry2) on Twitter.

Here’s a solution

Recently when browsing through a July 1974 issue of Ebony magazine, I came across an opinion piece by the late Frances Cress Welsing. In the article, “On Black Genetic Inferiority,” the brilliant psychiatrist made observations that are as relevant in 2016 as they were when she wrote them 42 years ago.

In the opening paragraph, she noted, “It is absolutely imperative that we as Black people get very quiet and calm and begin to think critically and analytically in a very broad perspective and cease doing push-button reactions to social events that happen around us and that relate negatively to us.”

One example She cites as an example of what she considered our kneejerk reaction to statements by White supremacist Dr. William Shockley who said Black folks are genetically inferior to Whites.

A. PETER BAILEY TRICE EDNEY NEWS WIRE

Wrote Frances, whom I was fortunate to know as a colleague, “In recent months, in response to Dr. Shockley’s appearance, we as Black people have been behaving as though we are shocked by Dr. Shockley (no pun intended) and as though he has some message we have never heard before. If we begin to relate to our past and present history as a people, we immediately become aware that the effective majority of White people have always believed or spoken and acted as though they believed that people of color were genetically inferior to Whites.

“Don’t we understand that the White concept of Black genetic inferiority is the basic un-

Charles W. Cherry II, Esq., Publisher

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

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

nized critical mass of people and a vehicle through which that can be done. This is not a knock on anything anyone else is doing; it’s simply a call for just two percent of Black people in this country to join forces, offering their time, talent, and treasure to help our people. The One Million is the only active movement of its kind.

So after you have cleaned up and disinfected yourself on Nov. 9, get into a game you can win – The One Million!

James E. Clingman is the nation’s most prolific writer on economic empowerment for Black people. His latest book, “Black Dollars Matter! Teach Your Dollars How to Make More Sense,” is available on his website, Blackonomics.com, and Amazon Kindle eBooks.

Follow Giuliani

QUICK TAKES FROM #2: STRAIGHT, NO CHASER

day.”

Well, alright then. We will have to get back to the real world, which includes not having real political power and very little influence on public policy. But maybe this will be the final wakeup call Black people need to understand that until we get our economic act together, we will continue to be viewed as childlike voters instead of a true force to be reckoned with.

If you are a conscious and conscientious Black person, go to www.iamoneofthemillion.com and join the movement as we move closer to economic and political empowerment.

We know that in order to attain the levels of power and influence we seek there must be an orga-

politicians use social media to share their thoughts, opinions, and ideas, you are able to get a better understanding of who they are, what they think, and how they feel about people.

Random thoughts of a free Black mind, v. 288 Nov. 9, on the way to school – “We are gonna be alright.

“I know you’re stressed about Donald Trump winning; you’ve told me so. You’ve seen him do things and say things that you would get in trouble for if you did or said yourself.

“America is a democracy. Everybody gets just one vote. Sometimes people vote the way you do and sometimes they don’t. That’s the way it is.

“Remember how happy we were when Barack Obama won?

We even went to D.C. and stood out there in the freezing cold when he was inaugurated in 2009.

Wig doesn’t remember. But Chayla, you do, because you lost your favorite scarf on the National Mall somewhere.

“Well, some of your classmates and their parents feel the same way today. So expect them to be jumping with joy because their candidate won.

“Presidents come and go. They are never as bad as you think they

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: CLINTON VS. TRUMP

Dr. Glenn W. Cherry, Sales Manager

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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

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Dr. Sinclair Grey III is a speaker, the author of “The ABC’s of Making Business Networking Work for You,” and a success coach. Contact him at www.sinclairgrey.org, drgrey@ sinclairgrey.org or on Twitter @ drsinclairgrey.

Don’t be ignorant It is to be extremely naïve or willfully ignorant to be shocked about expressions of White supremacy/racism when that has been a dominant and fundamental concept in this country for nearly 400 years.

We need to follow Frances’ advice to think critically and analytically and cease having push-button reactions to those who want to harm us physically and psychologically.

A. Peter Bailey’s latest book is “Witnessing Brother Malcolm X, the Master Teacher.”

Contact him at apeterb@verizon.net.

Central Florida Communicators Group, LLC, P.O. Box 48857 Tampa, FL 33646, publishes the Florida Courier on Fridays. Phone: 877-352-4455, toll-free. For all sales inquiries, call 877-352-4455; e-mail sales@flcourier.com.

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NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

EDITORIAL

Trump’s victory is a tonic for disaffected Americans For many Americans, the unimaginable has happened.

Their new leader is a man who had never previously run for public office, who fired people in a reality television boardroom, who boasted of forcing himself upon women, who promises to jail his main political opponent and who will soon have the keys to America’s nuclear arsenal.

Number that matters Six out of 10 Americans don’t even like Donald Trump. But the number that mattered in the election was this one: Two-thirds of voters said the U.S. was on the wrong track. For many of these people, Trump is exactly the president they want, the president they believe this country desperately needs.

Not bound by the conventions of Washington, or of political correctness. Not afraid to use American might to stand up to smaller nations. And most of all, not Hillary Clinton. She proved a deeply unpopular candidate, the very symbol of the political status quo.

Trump’s agenda is blunt-edged and dramatic, a tonic to right a country gone astray, in the eyes of his voters: Build a wall. Deport undocumented immigrants. Ban immigration from many Muslim countries. Renegotiate trade deals or abandon them. Make NATO allies pay more toward their own defense. Make America great again. He mentioned none of that in his victory speech, pledging to focus on rebuilding U.S. infrastructure.

Trump’s victory is an American version of the nationalist populism that has surged across Europe and that powered the discontent behind Britain’s vote to exit the European Union. Only now the wave has crossed the Atlantic, cresting in the world’s most powerful nation.

Despite evidence that the U.S. economy has come back from the Great Recession, many voters viewed progress as too slow and their own future financial prospects as too uncertain. In exit polls Tuesday, voters cited the economy and jobs as the top issue, at 52 percent, followed by terrorism at 18 percent, foreign policy at 13 percent and immigration at 12 percent, according to ABC News.

Trump has promised to use his executive authority on his first day in office to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership – President Obama’s 12-nation Pacific Rim trade deal that was never ratified by Congress – and to noti-

MIKE DORNING GUEST COMMENTARY

(Trump) represents everything that Obama does not: gut instinct instead of intellect; anger rather than hope; raw emotion over cool restraint; nativism instead of cosmopolitanism; political incorrectness over multicultural sensitivity; the oldest man to be elected president following one of the youngest. fy NAFTA partners of his intent to renegotiate that trade deal.

He also has pledged to designate China a currency manipulator, stop the resettlement of Syrian refugees in the U.S., end the Obama policy protecting millions of undocumented immigrants without criminal records from deportation, and reverse “every single Obama executive order.”

His legislative agenda for the first 100 days includes a massive tax cut, the repeal of Obamacare and groundbreaking on his Mexican border wall.

Easy to say, hard to do The traditions of U.S. governance and the familiar gridlock of Washington are sure to work against him. He’ll have to figure out how to pay for his wall if Mexico’s government continues to spurn his demand that it foot the bill.

He’s repeatedly modified a proposed ban on Muslim immigration. He has tempered his talk of

It’s time to dump the Democrats for good This columnist did not see a Donald Trump victory coming.

The degree of disgust directed at an awful candidate was more than I had predicted. Neither the corporate media, nor Wall Street nor the pundits nor the pollsters saw this coming, either. Their defeat and proof of their uselessness is total.

But those of us who rejected the elite consensus and didn’t support Hillary Clinton should be proud.

Time to fight Black people are now in fear and in shock, when we ought to be spoiling for a fight. All is not lost. Even the victory of the openly bigoted Donald Trump poses an opportunity to right our political (not electoral) ship.

For decades, Black Americans have been voting for people who have done them wrong. Bill Clinton got rid of public assistance as a right, and undid regulations that kept Wall Street in check. He put Black people in jail. And yet, Black people didn’t turn on him until he and his wife tried to defeat Barack Obama.

But Obama gave us more of the same. Bailouts of Wall Street, interventions and death for people all over the world, and a beatdown of Black people who still loved him. Despite the fear of Republican victory, we end up losing whenever a Democratic presidential candidate wins.

Dump them Victory is ours if we dump the Democrat Party and their Black misleaders. The Democrats were so entrenched in their corruption and self-dealing that they didn’t see the Bernie Sanders campaign

MARGARET KIMBERLEY BLACK AGENDA REPORT

for modest reform as the savior it might have been. Instead they marched in lockstep with a woman who was heartily disliked.

Sanders went along as the sheepdog who led his flock straight over the cliff. The Democrats inadvertently galvanized people who had stopped participating in the system and who want change from top to bottom.

One of our biggest problems lies not in facts, but in perceptions. What did Democrats do for Black people? The Democrats ship living-wage jobs offshore in corrupt trade deals like NAFTA and TTP. They don’t prosecute killer cops or raise the minimum wage. Trump will be hardpressed to deport more people than Obama did. The list of treachery is very long.

When Donald Trump asked Black people, “What have you got to lose?” his words were met with derision. But in reality, he posed a good question.

What do we have to show for years of Democratic votes? Obama bailed out banks, insurance companies, Big Pharma and even Ukraine. But he didn’t rebuild Detroit or New Orleans. The water in Flint, Mich. is still poisoned and the prisons are still full.

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE

abandoning military alliances.

Even the most powerful office in the world has its limits, and the courts and Congress – where even many Republicans are cool to him – exist largely to constrain the ambitions of the U.S. executive.

The outcome was unexpected even a day before the election.

Global stock markets gyrated after FBI Director James Comey announced, 11 days before the election, that his agency had discovered a cache of emails related to an earlier investigation of Clinton’s use of a private email server while secretary of State. Comey’s astounding move hurt Clinton’s poll numbers but never broke the the benefits of increased globalconsensus she would prevail. ization and a culturally conservative White working class now hosReviled by voters tile to anything smelling of Wall Not since Richard Nixon has a Street. man so reviled by so much of the country been elected its leader. No goodwill Like Nixon, Trump summoned Democrats in Congress will be up the nation’s darkest impuls- determined adversaries and can es: fear and resentment over be expected to make full use of Clinton’s promises of continuity minority powers, such as the Senand community. “The American ate filibuster, to thwart Trump’s Dream is dead,” Trump has said. legislative priorities. He has no That sense of dread, and that reservoir of goodwill with much promise of deliverance, resonat- of the American public to draw ed with a White working class be- upon for strength and leverage. sieged by economic rip currents, Though presidential electerrorist threats and a rapid de- tions frequently represent a remographic shift to a nation with versal in course from the incuma majority made up of minorities. bent, rarely has the repudiation That such a bleak outlook can been so striking. Trump’s victosucceed in a presidential election ry wrests the presidency from the — especially when the country is first Black commander-in-chief, relatively prosperous and largely who assembled a winning coaliat peace — is remarkable. Nixon tion from the country’s expandexploited divisions over the Viet- ing minority population. Power is nam War, race riots and coun- back in the hands of an almost extercultural upheaval, but his so- clusively White coalition, perhaps called Southern Strategy to stir up for the last time. racial resentments among White Trump first made his mark in voters was largely a whisper cam- politics in 2011 by championpaign. ing the “birther” movement that falsely contested Obama’s citi‘Last gasp’ zenship and thus his legitimacy “Nixon had this strategy of mar- as president. shaling resentment, but it was nowhere near as overt as Trump’s,” Obama’s opposite presidential historian H.W. He represents everything that Brands, a professor at the Univer- Obama does not: gut instinct insity of Texas, said in an interview. stead of intellect; anger rather “It’s the last gasp of the old White than hope; raw emotion over cool guy. Demographically they are restraint; nativism instead of coslosing ground. By 2020 it’s virtual- mopolitanism; political incorly impossible to win the presiden- rectness over multicultural sensicy focusing on that narrow demo- tivity; the oldest man to be electgraphic.” ed president following one of the Far from bringing unity of pur- youngest. pose to a national government Trump’s vocalization of the after years of gridlock, Trump’s frustration and foreboding felt election threatens the cohesion by America’s White lower middle of the Republican Party even as class resonated with an electorit strengthens its grip on both ate that has watched the benefits chambers of Congress. from the economic recovery since His rise fractures the Republi- 2008 flow mostly upward.

The stock market has tripled in can confederation between a corporate wing that’s thriving from value in less than eight years. The gave him victory in 2008 and 2012 stayed home. They loved seeing him and his wife dressed up at state dinners. But they were never fully engaged in politics, because that is not what Democrats want.

The love was phony and void of any political intent. Donald Trump will be president because of that veneer of political activism.

As for White people who voted for Trump, of course many of them are racists. However, they are not without valid complaints.

They don’t want neoliberalism, but Black people don’t either. They don’t want wars around the world, and neither do Black people.

We corrupt our own heritage of radicalism in favor of shallow symbolism. While we slept walk in foolish nostalgia for Obama and cried at the thought of him leaving office, White people kept their hatred of Hillary to themselves or lied to pollsters. They want America to be great again – great for them.

Be vigilant

White nostalgic yearnings are dangerous for Black people, and we must be vigilant. But there may be opportunity in this crisis if we dare to seize it.

Republicans have been the White people’s party for nearly 50 years. Trump just made it more obvious. He didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know.

We don’t have to be the losers in this election. Let us remember what we have achieved in our history.

Half of Black Americans didn’t even have the right to vote in the 1960s, yet made earth-shattering progress in a short time. But we must understand the source of that progress. It came from struggle and daring to create the crises that always bring about change.

Not engaged Yes, White people will strut for The outpouring of love for President Trump. But that doesn’t Obama was purely symbolic. In mean we must submit as if we are state after state, Black people who in the Jim Crow days of old. We

A5

The end of the duopoly is the first step in liberation. Staying with a party that literally did nothing was a slow and agonizing death.

Sometimes shock therapy is needed to improve one’s condition. If we don’t take the necessary steps to free ourselves, this election outcome will be a disaster.

Instead, why not bring the disaster to the people who made it happen?

DAVE GRANLUND, POLITICALCARTOONS.COM

median U.S. household meanwhile earns less than it did in 2007, and its net worth in 2013 was 28 percent less than a dozen years earlier.

Jobs replaced The same technological progress that mints Silicon Valley billionaires is scrambling the economic prospects of workers who once could expect to maintain a comfortable middle-class lifestyle without a college education.

Factories operate with fewer employees. Self-service kiosks have replaced cashiers and ticket agents. Even roadwork is increasingly mechanized. Drones and driverless cars are poised to displace even more unskilled workers.

Attacks by home-grown terrorists – across the Atlantic in Paris and Brussels and in the U.S. in San Bernardino, Calif., and Orlando – further stoked anxieties. And racial tensions surfaced in protests over police shootings and a sniper ambush of officers in Dallas.

Killing White men The stress of the times may be literally killing middle-aged Whites, the constituency that most overwhelmingly embraced Trump. Death rates among 45- to 54-year-old non-Hispanic Whites rose from 1999 to 2013, a period when other ethnic groups enjoyed longevity gains, according to a 2015 study by two Princeton University professors. Suicides and drug and alcohol abuse largely account for the increase.

Trump may not save America’s disaffected White middle class.

But for one election, at least, he gave it voice.

Mike Dorning writes Bloomberg News/ TNS.

for

Democratic National Committee and the civil rights organizations that don’t help the masses must all be kicked to the proverbial curb. The rejection must be complete and blame must be laid squarely at their feet.

Those of us who voted for the Green party ticket of Jill Stein and Ajamu Baraka must stand firmly and proudly for our choice.

We must strategize on building a progressive party to replace the Democrats who never help us.

We must applaud Julian Assange and Wikileaks for exposing their corruption. There should be no backtracking on the fight to build left-wing political power.

The Black people who didn’t return to the polls shouldn’t be blamed either. Those individuals must have personal introspection that is meaningful and political.

Their lack of enthusiasm speaks to Democratic Party and Black misleadership incompetence.

We should refrain from personal blame and help one another in this process as we fight for justice and peace.

Bring disaster The end of the duopoly is the first step in liberation. Staying with a party that literally did nothing was a slow and agonizing death.

Sometimes shock therapy is needed to improve one’s condition. If we don’t take the necessary steps to free ourselves, this election outcome will be a disaster. Instead, why not bring the disaster to the people who made it happen?

The destruction of the Democratic Party and creation of a truly progressive political movement is the only hope for Black America.

have ourselves to rely on and we can reclaim our history of fighting for self-determination.

The dread of redneck celebration should not be our primary motivation right now. Before we quake in fear at White America, we must send the scoundrels Margaret Kimberley’s column packing. appears weekly in BlackAgendaReport.com. Contact her at The real culprits Margaret.Kimberley@BlackAgThe Black politicians and the endaReport.com.

TOJ A6

NATION

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

President meets boy tossed from Trump rally

BY NIELS LESNIEWSKI CQ-ROLL CALL/TNS

DUANE C. FERNANDEZ SR./HARDNOTTSPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

J.J. Holmes, who has cerebral palsy, is greeted by President Obama on Sunday after a rally in Kissimmee.

Chancellor catches flak for not ejecting man from game wearing offensive Obama costume TRICE EDNEY NEWS WIRE

Surrounded by Whites, some smiling while others looked indifferent, an unidentified man dressed in a Halloween costume as President Barack Obama with a noose around his neck attended the University of Wisconsin and University of Nebraska football game on Oct. 29 in Madison, Wis. Camp Randall Stadium staff told the person to remove the costume’s noose, which symbol-

ized White terrorist lynching of Blacks after some the spectators protested on social media.

The costumed man removed the noose but was allowed to continue watching the game, one played by many African- American football players.

University of Wisconsin Chancellor Rebecca Blank said in a statement issued Oct. 30 that once the noose was removed, “the costume fell within the stadium’s costume policies.”

Blank explained that wearing the costume without the noose was a free speech issue.

“I believe our university must resist the desire to outlaw forms of speech and political dissent with which we disagree,” Blank said.

Some University of Wiscon-

TIME TO CASH IN!

sin alumni, however, criticized Blank’s response, calling the costume hate speech and saying that the costume wearer should have been ordered to leave the stadium. Eventually, he left on his own volition.

One response on Twitter called the statement from the university ‘appallingly misguided’ and stressed that ‘hate speech is not protected as free speech.’

Alumni called on the school to revisit the in-stadium costume policy and consider a stronger response in the future such as revoking the person’s season tickets or permanently banning offenders from the stadium.

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

President Barack Obama paused after a campaign stop for Hillary Clinton on Sunday for what was one of the more poignant moments of the presidential campaign.

Obama, campaigning in the Orlando area, stopped to greet 12-year old J.J. Holmes. The young man uses a wheelchair and speaks with assistance of a computer, a consequence of severe cerebral palsy.

“I hate Donald Trump. I hate Donald Trump,” the boy said to a pool reporter traveling with Obama, through his vocalization device.

Holmes’ mother, Alison, explained that he had been wheeled out of a campaign event for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump a day earlier in Tampa. A Trump campaign spokeswoman did not respond to a request for details on that incident.

But a Clinton campaign aide said that the boy had been re-

moved from the Trump event for holding up a pro-Clinton sign.

Campaign video His mother said that J.J. wanted to grow up to advocate for rights of persons with disabilities, according to a Clinton aide in Florida.

Days before a presidential election, individual moments don’t always resonate, but the interaction between Obama and the boy is a reminder of the incident in which Trump appeared to mock Serge Kovaleski, a journalist with arthrogryposis, or joint contractures.

The Clinton campaign and supporters of the former secretary of state have been aggressive in using the video of Trump on a campaign stage making gestures that he has denied were directed at mocking Kovaleski, and Clinton surrogates like former Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin have talked about the importance of people who have disabilities, some who may need extra assistance getting to the voting booth.

At a University of Wisconsin football game, a fan wears a President Obama costume with a noose around his neck.

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NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

SHARING BLACK LIFE, STATEWIDE

Tips to help veterans return to civilian life See page B6

SOUTH FLORIDA / TREASURE COAST AREA

WWW.FLCOURIER.COM

CAROLYN COLE/LOS ANGELES TIMES/TNS

Sen. Bernie Sanders waves after conceding the nomination to Hillary Clinton on the second day of the Democratic National Convention on July 26.

JOE CAVARETTA/SUN SENTINEL/TNS

U.S Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D- Fla, hugs Amaya Thomas, 9, during the “Souls to the Polls” march on Nov. 6 in Fort Lauderdale.

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U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R- Texas, ended up endorsing Trump after a contentious primary battle.

MORE WINNERS AND LOSERS OF 2016 ELECTION CYCLE

BY CHRIS MEGERIAN LOS ANGELES TIMES TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

years — and whether it will affect any chance to run for president in the future.

Not many survived this tumultuous and dispiriting race with their reputations intact. Republicans performed pretzel-like contortions to accommodate Donald Trump and Democratic leadership was bruised by a series of controversies that raised questions about the fairness of their primary process.

Meanwhile, Americans continued to lose faith in their most important institutions. So it shouldn’t be surprising that this list is heavier on the losers than the winners. As Donald Trump might say: Sad!

Democratic Party leaders

WINNERS Bernie Sanders The Vermont senator started his campaign for president as a curiosity, a septuagenarian socialist with little influence in Congress. But his unkempt demeanor and passionate message about economic inequality struck a chord with disaffected young voters and unsatisfied liberals who viewed Hillary Clinton as insufficiently honest or progressive.

After a near-tie in Iowa and a resounding victory in New Hampshire, Sanders fell behind and never seriously threatened Clinton’s chances at the nomination. Yet he remained a force until the end, using his political clout to drag the Democratic Party further to the left on issues such as increasing college affordability and raising the minimum wage.

Michelle Obama Once a reluctant political wife, the first lady has been a force to be reckoned with on the campaign trail. It began with a stirring speech at the Democratic convention, which included a phrase that became a mantra for Clinton’s team — “when they go low, we go high.”

But Obama solidified her standing as Democrats’ moral messenger in October when she targeted Trump’s boasts about sexual assault, which were revealed in a leaked recording from “Access Hollywood.” In a bluntly emotional speech, Obama said she was “shaken to her core.”

“Now is the time for all of us

KRISTIANA FADDOUL/CRONKITE NEWS/TNS

First lady Michelle Obama speaks at a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix on Oct. 20.

A look at others who impacted the presidential race to stand up and say, enough is enough. This has got to stop right now,” she said. Obama’s strong performances on the campaign trail had some speculating about whether she would launch her own political career. There seems to be little chance of that, but she’s already carved out her place in political history.

Megyn Kelly Fox News was rocked this year when longtime chief Roger Ailes was ousted over a series of sexual harassment allegations. The scandal tarnished not just Ailes but others at the conservative network who rushed to his defense even as more stories of his inappropriate behavior emerged.

But anchor Megyn Kelly helped bring Ailes’ reign to an end by quietly telling investigators that she herself had been the victim of his unwanted advances.

It was one episode in a turbulent year for Kelly, which included a barrage of insults from Trump after she aggressive-

ly questioned him in a primary debate about his track record of making offensive and dismissive comments about women.

The exchange drew attention to an issue that eventually proved to be one of the most damaging to Trump’s campaign.

Now, her star power intact, she’s poised to sign a lucrative new contract with Fox News.

LOSERS Reince Priebus When Mitt Romney lost the 2012 election, the Republican National Committee chairman pledged to chart a new course for his party.

In a widely circulated “autopsy report,” Priebus said Republicans must reach out to minorities in a country that was becoming more diverse, and he urged compromise on controversial immigration policies.

None of that came to pass. Instead, Republicans nominated Trump, who alienated Blacks, Latinos and women. Public polls

show that even college-educated White voters, a group that has backed Republicans for decades, were leaning toward Clinton.

The party still faces a reckoning with the country’s changing demographics, a problem that only worsened while Priebus was in charge.

Ted Cruz It wasn’t long ago that the Texas senator took a stand, refusing to endorse Trump in a highprofile speech at the Republican convention.

The decision made sense for personal and political reasons.

First, Trump had insulted Cruz’s wife and spread false conspiracy theories about his father. Second, Cruz was positioning himself as someone who could lead conservatives-in-exile disappointed by Trump’s lack of ideological fervor.

But Cruz threw all that away in September when he issued a widely mocked endorsement of Trump. It remains to be seen how wide the fallout will be — Cruz faces re-election in two

It was a rough year for chairwomen of the Democratic National Committee.

First Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman, faced withering criticism for appearing to stack the deck in Clinton’s favor during the primary. That perception only grew when WikiLeaks released hacked emails showing her staff members discussing ways to undermine Sanders.

Wasserman Schultz was ousted and denied a speaking role at the party’s convention. Her interim replacement, Donna Brazile, worked to mend fences but ran into her own WikiLeaks-related problems. More hacked emails showed she leaked questions to Clinton’s team before primary debates while she worked as a CNN contributor.

Democratic institutions If there was a word of the year, it was “rigged.” At one point or another, almost every important American institution was accused of being rigged — the two major political parties, Wall Street, the election process, the polls, the media, the FBI. Democracy hinges on the public’s faith in institutions, and that took a beating during this fractious campaign. Trump was the primary instigator, sometimes using a flamethrower of falsehoods to torch what he saw as standing between him and a shot at the White House. He spread conspiracies about rampant voter fraud and accused reporters of unfairly covering his campaign.

Federal law enforcement took a bipartisan drubbing. When FBI Director James Comey declined to recommend criminal charges against Clinton over her handling of classified material, Trump accused him of covering for her.

Then when Comey announced Oct. 28 that investigators were taking a look at newly discovered emails, it was Democrats’ turn to raise questions about his motivations so close before the election.

By the time he announced over the weekend that he was standing behind his original recommendation of no charges, Comey had managed to anger all sides.

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NATION

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

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tian mother and a father who converted to Islam as a college student.

“That unique background that African-Americans have experienced in this country, winning a fight for civil rights, I think, informs how we deal today with violations of our civil rights,” Mitchell said.

Muslim immigrants, he added, may come from countries where criticizing the government could land a person in jail or worse.

“If you come from a culture that is not accustomed to speaking up against authority, then you might have a different way of dealing with discrimination here in America,” Mitchell said.

Outreach campaign

CURTIS COMPTON/ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION/TNS

A young man stands across from the Covington courthouse during a protest against building a mosque in Newton County on Sept. 13 in Covington, Ga.

Some communities uneasy about Muslims’ arrival Efforts to establish Islamic institutions in some homogenous suburban and rural areas are being met with hostility.

BY MERIS LUTZ ATLANTA JOURNALCONSTITUTION/TNS

ATLANTA – Masjid AlMu’minun, a mosque in south Atlanta, is one of the few that play the call to prayer over external speakers, letting the sound drift through the neighborhood.

Ahmed Najee-ullah, a leader in the congregation, said neighbors set their watches by it.

“We are in those parts of the African-American community where a lot of people wouldn’t venture and the communities that we’re in appreciate us being there,” he said. “They have this perception that we represent the best in them.”

Najee-ullah is one of many Black Americans who converted to Islam during the height of the civil rights movement in the 1960s and ’70s. He said mosques are welcomed as beacons of stability in many Black neighborhoods.

Town opposes mosque Things have changed in the decades since Masjid Al-Mu’minun opened in the early ’80s. As the U.S. Muslim population grows, communities are seeking to establish Islamic institutions such as mosques, schools and cemeteries in otherwise homogenous suburban and rural areas.

These efforts can be met with hostility.

In Newton County, Ga.,

hundreds turned out to oppose a proposed mosque during a town hall meeting in August. “(Muslims) carry hate and it is known in their faith that all infidels will die if you don’t believe like they believe,” one woman said.

“I don’t want to see our town destroyed.”

Her sentiment was echoed by dozens of speakers.

Versions of this have played out across the United States in recent years.

Controversies over Muslim worship centers appears to coincide with a surge in anti-Muslim rhetoric and activity.

Hate crimes increase A study by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at the University of California, San Bernardino, found that hate crimes against Muslims increased 78 percent in 2015. The Council on American-Islamic Relations has warned that 2016 is on track to surpass that.

Over the summer, a Muslim woman was set on fire on a New York City street and a Florida mosque was torched. Three Kansas men were arrested and charged with a bomb plot targeting Somali Muslims.

While the government does not collect information about religious affiliation on the census, the Pew Research Center estimated there were 3.3 million Muslims living in the United States in 2015. About 1.7 million of them, according to Pew, immigrated from 1992 to 2012. The Muslim population is expected to reach 8.1 million by 2050, or 2.1 percent of the total population.

Split on response The Atlanta area, like many cities, is home to a large, diverse Muslim community, although there are no numbers available.

Conversations with Mus-

lim residents and community leaders in Georgia reveal a split in opinion on how to respond to antiMuslim animosity.

Based on these interviews, American-born children of immigrants and African-American Muslims, whose history of activism is often overlooked in the broader conversation about Islam in America, tend toward a less apologetic approach.

Older, immigrant Muslims may tread more cautiously, eschewing lawsuits and official complaints in favor of working behind the scenes to assuage the fears of non-Muslims, even when faced with threats of violence.

Imam preaches patience When opponents of the Newton County mosque called it a terrorist training ground, Imam Mohammad Islam counseled his congregation, which bought the property to use primarily as a cemetery, to be patient.

Several weeks later, a local militia shot a menacing video at the site in which a man calling himself General Blood Agent disparaged Muslims as followers of the Antichrist. The imam did not call in the police, although the county deemed the video threatening enough to cancel a scheduled meeting to address the mosque.

“We’re not going to go and take shelter in the law,” said Islam, who arrived from Bangladesh over 20 years ago and now ministers to a congregation in Doraville. “I believe if we are patient, we are tolerant, we depend on God almighty.”

CAIR reacts Meanwhile, against the imam’s wishes, the Georgia branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations called the Justice

Department and led the charge to publicly shame the county for its handling of the case.

Edward Ahmed Mitchell, the executive director of CAIR Georgia, said that while he respected the imam’s position as a matter of religious principle, he felt he had a duty as an attorney and the leader of a civil rights organization to take a stand.

As the plan for a mosque became common knowledge, the county commission issued a temporary moratorium on all new places of worship, an act CAIR called discriminatory.

Public meetings County Commissioner John Douglas told a local newspaper he feared the

mosque would make Newton a prime area for the federal government to resettle refugees from the Middle East.

The commission then held two public meetings to discuss the mosque, even though the property owner had no business before the county.

“When a government violates the Constitution, then I have to put my foot down,” Mitchell said. Of the militia, he said: “Some people, you cannot negotiate with. Some people will not respond to kind acts and warm smiles.”

But Imam Islam, who objected to CAIR’s methods, also rejected this characterization.

“We know that there’s a Constitution, what is our right, we know it, so don’t think we are not aware or we don’t know,” he said.

“We will give time, and time is the best thing to heal any scar.”

The controversy over the Newton County mosque and cemetery appears to have resolved itself after the temporary moratorium on new places of worship expired, the congregation conducted a monthlong outreach campaign, and CAIR threatened legal action.

Meanwhile, Muslim community leaders say mosques are vital bulwarks against Islamophobia and radicalization.

Varied experiences Mitchell, who is Black, said he embraced Islam as a teenager, having been raised by a Unitarian Chris-

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S

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

HEALTH rolled in a plan with similar costs and benefits. But that can mean changes in the list of approved drugs or losing access to your favorite hospitals and doctors, among other things.

Pay attention to timing.

Enrollment ends Jan. 31, but to have coverage that starts Jan. 1, you must make a choice by Dec. 15.

Check out new standardized plans

HEALTHCARE.GOV

It’s more important than ever to carefully evaluate the health care plans available and choose the one that best suits your needs.

How to avoid costly health plan enrollment headaches

BY MICHELLE ANDREWS KAISER HEALTH NEWS/TNS

With the annual signup period for plans on the health law’s marketplaces open, many consumers are worried about rising premiums, shrinking provider networks and the departure of major insurers such as UnitedHealthcare, Aetna and Humana from many exchanges.

Comparing plan premiums and deductibles only scratches the surface of what you should evaluate before selecting a plan this fall. Policy details can make an important difference in coverage and costs, but it may take some digging to uncover them.

Avoid premium sticker shock Premium increases for 2017 will generally be higher than last year’s rate hikes, though with significant geographic variation.

In the two-thirds of states

where the federal government runs the marketplace, the average premium increase for the second lowest cost silver plans will be 25 percent next year, according to a recent report by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Last year, the comparable premium increase was 7 percent. The average premium, before tax credits, for the lowest cost silver plan will be $433.

About 85 percent of marketplace customers have incomes of up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level (about $47,000 for one person) and qualify for federal tax credits to help pay their premiums.

If you are one of these consumers, it may be necessary to switch plans to minimize your share of the premium because your tax credit is pegged to the second lowest-cost silver plan in your area, which often changes from year to year.

Next year, three quarters of people can find a cheaper

plan at the same metal level if they come back to the marketplace to shop. Consumers who bought the lowest cost silver plan in 2016 can save an average $58 per month by switching to the cheapest silver plan next year, according to the HHS.

Look for hidden benefits Even as deductibles continue to rise, many plans are offering coverage for certain services before the deductible is satisfied. So instead of having to pony up the entire cost of your visit to the doctor or your prescription drug until the deductible is paid off, you may just owe a copayment.

This year, for example, 66 percent of silver-level plans sold on healthcare.gov covered primary care doctor visits before the deductible.

Half of plans covered generic drugs before the deductible. (In addition, the health law requires that many preventive care ser-

vices, including tests and screenings, vaccinations and contraceptives, generally be covered without requiring people to pay anything out of pocket in all new marketplace plans.)

This practice can serve two purposes. Encouraging primary care may save insurers money down the road on more expensive treatment. And exempting some services from the deductible could help make plans more appealing to the relatively healthy people insurers want to attract and who might otherwise balk at policies with a typical deductible of around $3,000.

Sidestep automatic re-enrollment If your plan is continuing next year, you may be automatically renewed, but that may not be your best option. Do some comparison shopping on marketplace plans to see whether there are changes to plan benefits or provider networks that matter to you and how 2017 pricing will affect your subsidy.

If your plan is not going to be available next year and you don’t actively pick a new plan, you may find yourself automatically en-

Next year, healthcare.gov will join several state-based marketplaces in offering standardized plans that are expected to help consumers make apples-to-apples comparisons between plans at the bronze, silver and gold levels and cut down on confusion caused by a sometimes bewildering array of options.

In these “simple choice” plans, the deductibles and annual limits on out-ofpocket spending will be standardized, as will many of the consumer payments for medical services. For example, the standardized silver plan will have a deductible of $3,500 and the maximum amount you will owe out of pocket for the year will be $7,100.

In addition to standardized benefits, many of the plans cover a number of services before the deductible is satisfied, such as primary care and specialist visits, drugs, urgent care and outpatient mental health.

Many standardized plans also rely on copayments (fixed amounts that you pay for a service), rather than coinsurance (a percentage of the cost of the service), to a greater extent than people may see in regular marketplace plans, said Sabrina Corlette, research professor at Georgetown University’s Center on Health Insurance Reforms.

Dig into drug details Drug coverage is a big concern for many people, but finding plan details can be tough.

You can check out a plan’s

B3 list of covered drugs through healthcare.gov, but determining what your share of the cost will be can be more challenging. That’s because even though state marketplaces typically only show four cost-sharing tiers online, many plans have five, six or even more tiers. In 2016, 40 percent of silver marketplace plans had more than four cost-sharing tiers, according to Avalere data.

An initiative by the federal government to communicate whether a plan’s network is basic, standard or broad in all states using the federal marketplace has been trimmed back to a four-state pilot in Tennessee, Maine, Ohio and Texas.

Use caution when shopping off marketplace If the marketplace plans don’t appeal and you don’t qualify for subsidies, you can shop for individual market coverage off the exchanges, although the number of such offerings has been declining, said Katherine Hempstead, who directs health insurance coverage research for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Off-exchange plans can’t be too wildly different from what’s available on the exchange, because they also have to cover the essential health benefits and offer plans in metal tiers that cover the same proportion of care as those on the marketplace, among other things. But in some markets, plans may offer different or broader provider networks outside the exchanges, said Corlette.

There’s a potential downside. If your income is too high to qualify for subsidies at the beginning of the year, you may qualify for them later if your income drops – for example, if you lose a major client. But that’s only an option if you’re already enrolled in a marketplace plan.

When your list is long and time is short,

FOOD

B4

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

FROM FAMILY FEATURES

Want to spend more time with loved ones this Thanksgiving? Ditch the perfectly timed oven schedule and put your slow cooker to work. It’ll deliver the familiar flavors of your favorite holiday stuffing, sauces and desserts in a new, more convenient way.

“Take advantage of the hassle-free slow cooker for sides and desserts and leave the oven free for your turkey,” said McCormick Kitchens Executive Chef Kevan Vetter. “Top a mixture of apples, brown sugar and cinnamon with seasoned oat crumbles for a warm Oatmeal Apple Cobbler – an ooey gooey dessert that will fill your kitchen with an irresistible, sweet and spicy aroma while it slow cooks.”

For more time-saving tips and recipes for your Thanksgiving feast, check out McCormick.com and visit McCormick Spice on Facebook and Pinterest.

SLOW COOKER PUMPKIN CAKE WITH CARAMEL SAUCE Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 3 hours, 35 minutes Servings: 16 Pumpkin Cake: 1 package (2-layer size) yellow cake mix 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted 1/4 cup milk 2 eggs 2 teaspoons McCormick Pumpkin Pie Spice 1 cup chocolate chips Caramel Sauce: 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter 1 teaspoon McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract 1/2 teaspoon McCormick Pumpkin Pie Spice Spray inside of 6-quart slow cooker with no stick cooking spray. For the Cake, mix all ingredients in large bowl.

Pour into greased slow cooker. Place towel over slow cooker and cover with lid.

Cook 3 1/2 hours on low or until cake is almost set.

Meanwhile, for the Caramel Sauce, cook and stir all ingredients in small saucepan on medium-high heat 5 minutes or until sauce is smooth.

Carefully remove slow cooker insert and place on wire rack. Pour 1/2 of the Caramel Sauce over the cake. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes to cool slightly. Serve cake with remaining sauce and ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

Substitution: Use 1 cup chopped candy bars in place of the chocolate chips.

SLOW COOKER CRANBERRY SAUCE Prep time: 5 minutes Cook time: 3 hours, 45 minutes Servings: 8 1 package (12 ounces) fresh or frozen cranberries 2/3 cup sugar 1 seedless orange, peeled and sectioned 2 McCormick Bay leaves 1 McCormick Cinnamon Stick Place all ingredients in 4-quart slow cooker. Cover.

Cook 3 hours on high, stirring every hour. Uncover.

Stir well.

Cook, uncovered, 30 to 45 minutes longer on high or until slightly thickened.

STOJ

SLOW COOKER SAUSAGE STUFFING Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 1 hour, 25 minutes Servings: 12 (2/3-cup servings) 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter 2 cups chopped celery 1 cup chopped onion 1/2 pound mild (sweet) Italian sausage, casing removed 1 cup Kitchen Basics Original Chicken Stock 2 teaspoons McCormick Rubbed Sage 1 teaspoon McCormick Crushed Rosemary

10 cups cubed French bread (1-inch pieces) Melt butter in large skillet on medium heat. Add celery and onion; cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Add sausage; cook and stir until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

Spray inside of slow cooker with no stick cook­ing spray. Add stock and herbs; stir to blend. Stir in bread cubes and sausage-vegetable mixture. Cover.

Cook 45 minutes on high. Uncover and stir. Cook, uncovered, 30 minutes longer.

SLOW COOKER OATMEAL APPLE COBBLER Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 3 hours Servings: 10 Apple Filling: 5 medium Gala apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1/4 cup all-purpose baking mix, such as Bisquick 1 teaspoon McCormick Ground Cinnamon Oatmeal Cobbler Topping: 1 cup all-purpose baking mix, such as Bisquick 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon McCormick Ground Cinnamon 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter, cut into pieces Spray inside of slow cooker with no stick cooking spray. For the Apple Filling, toss apple slices, brown sugar, baking mix and cinnamon in large bowl. Place in slow cooker.

For the Cobbler Topping, mix all ingredients, except butter, in medium bowl. Cut in butter with fork until crumbly. Sprinkle over Apple Filling.

Cover.

Cook 3 hours on high.

STOJ

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

Meet some of

FLORIDA’S

finest

submitted for your approval

Chance the Rapper, a Chicago native, hosted a “parade to the polls” early voting event in the city on Monday to help get millennials out to vote. Earlier this year, the rapper teamed up with the NAACP for its #StayWokeAndVote campaign. He also performed at a Hillary Clinton rally in Cleveland last week alongside superstars Beyoncé, Jay Z, Big Sean and J. Cole.

FINEST & CALENDAR

B5

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.

Solange made her first appearance on “Saturday Night Live” last weekend and performed two songs from her new album, “A Seat At The Table.” On “SNL,” the sister of Beyoncé performed “Cranes In The Sky” and “Don’t Touch My Hair.’’

LENNY GILMOREREDEYE/TNS

FLORIDA CLASSIC

Tickets are on sale for the Nov. 19 Florida Classic game pitting Bethune-Cookman University against Florida A&M University at Camping World Stadium. Details: floridaclassic. org. The game includes a popular halftime show by the schools’ bands. FILE PHOTOS

FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR

UNIVERSAL PICTURES PRESENTS IN ASSOCIATION WITH PERFECT WORLD PICTURES A WILL PACKER PRODUCTIONS PRODUCTION A DAVID E. TALBERT FILM "ALMOST CHRISTMAS" KIMBERLY ELISE DANNY GLOVER JOHN MICHAEL HIGGINS ROMANY MALCO EXECUTIVE MO’NIQUE JB SMOOVE GABRIELLE UNION MUSICBY JOHN PAESANO PRODUCED PRODUCERS LYN SISSON-TALBERT DAVID E. TALBERT AND PRESTON HOLMES JAMES LOPEZ GABRIELLE UNION JEFF MORRONE BY WILL PACKER p.g.a. WRITTEN DIRECTED BY DAVID E. TALBERT A UNIVERSAL PICTURE SOUNDTRACK ON BACK LOT MUSIC

© 2016 UNIVERSAL STUDIOS

Orlando: Dr. Camara Jones and Dr. Rex Archer will speak on Nov. 11 at the Disney Swan Hotel about what a comprehensive public health response to gun violence might look like and the components of a balanced solution. Time: 7 p.m. Register at www.aaphp.org/gunviolencecmecommunity.

ALL.ALC.1111.FLORIDACOURIER

MR

#8

Orlando: Jazmine Sullivan will perform at the Orlando Classic Tastemasters’ official game after party Nov. 19 at the House of Blues Orlando.

The show starts at 10 p.m.

1/4 PG. (4.93" X 10")

FLORIDA COURIER

CHECK LOCAL LISTINGS FOR THEATERS AND SHOWTIMES

FRI 11/11

Jacksonville: Catch Fantasia with Guordan Banks and LaPorsha Renae on Nov. 25 at the Times Union Center for Performing Arts or Nov. 26 at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale.

Tampa: The Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists’ Griot Drum Awards & Scholarship Banquet is Nov. 17 at Tampa Marriott Westshore. Special guest: Jarrett

Hill. Details: www.tbabj.com.

Orlando: The I Love the 90s Tour stops at the Amway Center on Dec. 3. Performers: Salt N Pepa, Coolio, Tone Loc, All-4-One and Young MC. Jacksonville: Alicia Olatuja will perform Nov. 11 at the Ritz Theatre & Museum. The show begins at 8 p.m.

Orlando: The Central Florida International Auto Show is Nov. 24-27 at the Orange County Convention Center – North Concourse. Tickets: www.AutoShowOrlando.com.

St. Petersburg: Catch Tracy Morgan on Nov. 11 at The Mahaffey Theater and Nov. 13 at Hard Rock Live Orlando.

Orlando: Jodeci is scheduled Dec. 11 at the House of Blues Orlando for a 7 p.m. show.

Tampa: St. Peter Claver Catholic School’s annual gala is Nov. 12 at 6:30 p.m. www.stpeterclavercatholicschool.org Fort Lauderdale: Stanley Clarke performs Dec. 4 at the Broward Center for the

Performing Arts. The show starts at 7 p.m.

Orlando: A Parramore/Holden Heights town hall is Nov. 13 at the Callahan Neighborhood Center. Topics: Criminal, social, economic and environmental justice. More info: 407-953-5599 or LawannaGelzer@aol.com Miami: The King and Queen of Hearts Tour featuring Maxwell and Mary J. Blige stops at the AmericanAirlinesArena on Nov. 29.

Pompano Beach: Boyz II Men takes the stage at the Pompano Beach Amphitheater on Dec. 2. The 7:30 p.m. show will include Al B. Sure.

Orlando: Kanye West: The Saint Pablo Tour is scheduled Dec. 6 at t he Amway Center.

Miami: The God of the Trap show featuring Gucci Mane stops at the James L. Knight Center on Nov. 23.

St. Petersburg: Lauryn Hill’s The MLH Caravan: A Diaspora Calling! Concert stops at The Mahaffey Theater on Dec. 6 and Dec. 8 at House of Blues Orlando.

VETERANS

B6

NOVEMBER 11 – NOVEMBER 17, 2016

STOJ

PHOTOS COURTESY OF GETTY IMAGES

Reintegrating into civilian life 5 tips to help veterans find their new normal FROM FAMILY FEATURES

W

hile the transition back to civilian life after a military stint or deployment is often full of happiness, it can also be difficult and stressful to assimilate back into life at home. Roles and responsibilities within the household have often shifted and new circumstances have often arisen during time away.

To help make the readjustment process easier, here are a few tips for returning soldiers and military families:

Handle personal obligations Being on active duty may have caused you to have to put things on hold or allow them to lapse. Upon your return, remember to renew your driver’s license and vehicle registration if it has expired. Renew or reactivate vehicle insurance and have any necessary maintenance performed on your vehicle, especially if it hasn’t been driven during your absence. If you have left the military, register your Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty with your county’s veterans service officer and registrar, and rescind any active power of attorney you may have.

Take care of yourself While a proper diet and exercise were undoubtedly built into your military routine, the onus falls on you to take proper care of yourself upon returning home. Remember to maintain a healthy diet, exercise regularly, re-engage in or find new hobbies to occupy free time and make time for rest and adequate sleep.

Reconnect with family

Helping veterans build careers

O

nce their military service ends, veterans can face obstacles in assimilating back into civilian life. One common struggle is finding post-military employment, which is why some veterans choose to own their own business and pursue franchising.

In fact, The UPS Store found in a recent survey that 63 percent of veterans and active duty service members who envisioned a second career as a small business owner considered owning a franchise. Franchising allows veterans an opportunity to apply the skills they gain in the military, such as leadership, work ethic and discipline, to manage and run their own business.

Beyond skills they gain in the service, there are several qualities those with military training have that help them become successful franchisees, including discipline and drive. Of those surveyed, 54 percent of service members felt confident that the skills they gained in the military help them to be successful in the civilian world.

When Wade Franklin, a former U.S. Navy Officer, made the decision to strike out on his own, he looked for a franchise option where he could leverage these skills with a franchisor that provided support to veterans and was backed by a strong brand reputation.

“After realizing I wanted to own a business, franchising seemed like the way to go,” said

Franklin, who now owns a The UPS Store in Arlington, Virginia. “The UPS Store has other veteran franchisees in the network, which is a great avenue of support. They also have a system in place for training and setting up franchisees for success.”

As a participant in the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative (VetFran), a cooperation of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Veterans Corporation and the U.S. Small Business Administration, The UPS Store allows veterans the opportunity to fulfill their desire for a second career. Since partnering with VetFran in 2004, it has awarded franchises to more than 150 first-time franchisees. Of the 4,500 locations in the United States, more than 250 are owned by veterans.

Franchisees complete a comprehensive training program to develop the knowledge and dayto-day operational skills needed to own and operate their own business. The training focuses on everything from marketing and operations to hands-on print services training.

To find resources and tools to help veterans run a successful business, and to learn more about franchise opportunities and special incentives for veterans, visit theupsstore.com.

Trying to make up for lost time overnight is an exercise in futility that may make matters worse. Go slow as you ease back into your old routine as the process of rebuilding relationships with your spouse, children and extended family can take months.

Routines and responsibilities have likely changed in your absence, and new experiences and memories were created. Take time to immerse yourself in your family’s photographs and stories from the time you were gone and share with them as much of your military experience as you’re comfortable with, allowing the whole family to connect and find new bonding experiences.

If necessary, parenting and relationship classes and programs are available.

Head back to work or school If you were in school or employed prior to going on active duty, checking your status with school or your employer can be a good first step toward reintegration. Investigate your educational benefits, including the GI Bill, if you decide to go back to school.

Look into unemployment insurance or assistance programs, such as the Transition Assistance Program, if you’re not returning to your former job or were not previously employed.

Watch for signs of PTSD While returning to a normal routine as a civilian takes time, months of anger, rage, isolation or unpredictability may be signs that a former servicemember is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. While rebuilding connections can help alleviate some of the effects of PTSD, it is important to get professional help if you begin to show signs of the disorder – which 11-20 percent of veterans from Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom experience, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Local VA hospitals or clinics, as well as the Military Crisis Line (800-273-8255), are among the resources available to veterans dealing with PTSD. For more tips to help veterans re-assimilate into everyday life, visit elivingtoday.com.