Florida Courier - November 25, 2016

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CELEBRATING OUR 10TH YEAR STATEWIDE!

Florida Classic: Attendance dips, but not the enthusiasm See Page B1 www.flcourier.com

NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

VOLUME 24 NO. 48

TURMOIL AND TUTORING

As puzzled Democrats struggle to determine next steps, President Obama crafts a how-to manual for President-elect Trump.

COMPILED FROM STAFF REPORTS

WASHINGTON – Hillary Clinton had barely conceded the 2016 presidential race when Bernie Sanders’ liberal legions signaled a resumption of their campaign to take over the Democratic Party.

Less than an hour after Clinton called Presidentelect Donald Trump to

concede, the Sanders political organization, Our Revolution, responded.

It said the result confirmed “the political elite of both parties, the economists and the media are completely out of touch with the American electorate” and vowed “to offer a real alternative vision to continue the work of the political revolution.”

DNC change Sanders endorsed one of his earliest and most fervent supporters, Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota, for the Democratic National Committee’s chairmanship. An African-American who is one of two Muslims in Congress and has one of its most liberal voting records, Ellison said on ABC’s “This Week,” “The

most important criteria for DNC chair is going to be vision.”

Other potential candidates have also emerged, including former chairman Howard Dean, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, South Carolina Democratic chair Jaime Harrison and outgoing Labor Secretary Tom Perez, as well as other issues, notably whether the party needs a full-time chairman.

Pelosi challenged With Democrats in Congress frustrated over four straight election disappointments, Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio is furiously dialing OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/MCT his colleagues during their Thanksgiving break to win In February 2013, President Obama was flanked by Senate Majority Leader support for his attempt to Harry Reid, left, former Speaker of the House John Boehner and Rep. Nancy See TRUMP, Page A2 Pelosi as a statue of Rosa Parks was unveiled at the U. S. Capitol.

2016 PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM

‘Inspiring millions around the world’

Democrats vow to ‘fight’ Outnumbered as usual in the legislature

BY LLOYD DUNKELBERGER THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Continuing to be dramatically outnumbered by Republicans, Democratic lawmakers on Monday picked new leaders in the Florida House and Senate to guide their caucuses for the next two years.

House Democrats picked Rep. Janet Cruz, 60, a Tampa health-care executive, to lead their 41-member caucus, which faces a 79-member Republican majority.

Senate Democrats tapped Sen. Oscar Braynon, 39, a Miami Gardens consultant, to lead their 15 members in a chamber with 25 Republicans.

House Democrats picked up two seats in the November general election, while Senate Democrats picked up a net of one seat.

‘Voice’ in Florida

OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/TNS

President Obama presents Michael Jordan with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, during a White House ceremony on Tuesday. Twenty-one recipients were honored, including Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Cecily Tyson, and Diana Ross.

“No matter what happened on Nov. 8, we as the Democratic caucus will still fight for our core principles, making sure that the middle class and working-class people have a voice in Florida,” Braynon said in his acceptance speech Monday.

Cruz, who is the first Hispanic woman to lead the House Democrats, outlined several issues where Democrats will make a stand, ranging from protecting the environment to supporting public schools to opposing discrimination.

“Rest assured: On those values, we will stand, and we will fight for the hard-working families of this state,” See DEMS, Page A2

SNAPSHOTS FLORIDA | A3

Convictions upheld in death of FAMU drum major State tourism increases despite storms, Zika, Pulse NATION | A6

Will there be justice for all under Alabama’s Sessions?

BOOKS | B2

‘Trans’ examines how we now think about race and gender

ALSO INSIDE

Obama shortens the sentences of 79 felons

BY JOHN T. BENNETT CQ-ROLL CALL / TNS

WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, President Obama commuted the sentences of 79 more individuals he determined were serving “harsh” sentences under “outdated” laws.

The adjustments are the latest of more than 1,000 that Obama has issued during his presidency, mostly for low-level drug offenses. All the sentences he shortened Tuesday were for drug-related offenses.

The president has commuted select criminal sentences and

granted clemencies at a rapid pace, aiming to make a statement about the need for a comprehensive criminal justice overhaul, although prospects for such legislation are highly unlikely during his remaining time.

‘We make mistakes’ “At the heart of America is the idea that we’re all imperfect.

We all make mistakes. We have to take responsibility and learn from those mistakes,” Obama said in a written statement. “And we as a society have to make sure that people who do take respon-

sibility for their mistakes are able to earn a second chance to contribute to our communities and our country.

“It’s the right thing to do. It’s the smart thing to do,” he added. “Now it’s up to good minds on both sides of the aisle to come together to restore fairness in our criminal justice system, use our tax dollars more effectively and give second chances to those who have earned them.”

Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates told reporters that governments at any level that keep people incarcerated for long periods of time for minor crimes waste taxpayer resources and divert funds from other purposes.

More to come Justice Department officials are preparing additional peti-

tions for Obama to review in his final weeks in office and expect that he will issue more drug-related sentence commutations, Yates told reporters on a conference call. White House officials on the same call said they have yet to get a clear read on whether the Trump administration will continue the trend.

Obama has “done many more commutations than any other president, and I would expect that to continue,” Mark Holden, general counsel of Koch Industries, which is pushing for criminal justice changes, told CQ Roll Call earlier this year.

Justice Department data shows Obama has far outpaced modern presidents, with no one other than Lyndon B. Johnson issuing more than 100.

COMMENTARY: REV. JESSE JACKSON: THE RIGHT TO VOTE IN US HAS BEEN FRACTURED | A4 COMMENTARY: HOWARD SIMON: DEFENDING RIGHTS IN FLORIDA AFTER THIS ELECTION | A5

See OBAMA, Page A2

FOCUS

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NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

Let me tell you about political dummies After Hillary Clinton and many other Democratic candidates around the country suffered devastating defeats in 2016 elections, someone asked President Obama what he wanted to do when President-elect Donald Trump replaces him in the White House.

I thought Obama would say that he was going back to Chicago to resume his career as a community organizer. Reports say Barack was a formidable community worker. He was so good at it that a movie was made about those times that masqueraded as a Barack-Michelle love story!

No, the president didn’t say that!

Barack Obama said he and his beautiful wife Michelle wanted to work hard to rebuild the Democratic Party.

C’mon, man!

LLH! LLH! LLH! If you don’t know what “LLH” stands for its “Laughing Like Hell”!

President Obama is very educated. In fact, the world knows he was so smart, he became the very first Black president of the prestigious Harvard Law Review at his alma mater, Harvard University.

In my opinion, a desire to rebuild the Democratic Party in

LUCIUS GANTT THE GANTT REPORT

the United States was one of the dumbest post-presidential career decisions ever made by a presidential lame duck in political history!

The Democratic Party is dead!

Somebody call 9-1-1!

Homegoing service Get Reverends Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton and T.D. Jakes to perform the eulogy. Tell Yolanda Adams and Mary Mary to sing a heartfelt funeral song. The Democratic Party is as dead as a doornail!

Stop putting your time, your energy, your love, your money and everything else into a dead marriage, a dead relationship or a dead political party! That’s like pouring water on a dead plant.

Leave it alone When you can’t fix a political party or a political operation that poisons your political life, leave the Democratic Party lovers alone. Give your best to a good political party that wants you and

deserves you. Leave those dead hypocritical Democratic Party operatives in the political party cemetery!

The national Democratic Party insulted its Democratic members, conned its Democratic campaign contributors and ignored its Democratic base of voters that loved the Democratic Party more than they loved themselves!

I haven’t asked President Barack Obama if he read Blackowned newspapers or surfed Black-owned Internet sites, or even gathered the country’s Black political professionals to ask them their views on how to win elections or improve Democratic voter turnout. But I doubt whether he did.

He would have known If he just read The Gantt Report, he would have known many years ago that the Democratic Party was doomed to die!

He would have known that the Democratic Party took loyal Democratic voters for granted.

He would have known that Black elected officials who the Democratic Party chose to get out the Black votes couldn’t draw political flies to a political outhouse.

He would have known that just because a preacher is a preach-

er, it didn’t mean that all preachers were registered voters, or that preachers could motivate their congregations to vote for a political party that never voted for them.

He would have known that the 1950s tactics suggested by multimillion-dollar, highly-paid White political consultants were unusual, outdated and ridiculous to use in modern-day elections where knowledge or political science, political technology and political savvy was a must.

Like Humpty Dumpty President Obama’s desire to rebuild the Democratic Party is akin to Humpty Dumpty trying to rebuild the wall that gave him a great fall!

Somebody that loves the president and loves the Democratic Party should forward this column to the nation’s lame-duck president so he’ll know not to embarrass himself and the African-American U.S. citizens that love him more than a political junkie loves his political crack pipe.

Tell him most former Democrats, most loyal Democrats and the party’s only true block of voters don’t want to rebuild the Democratic Party. They want to destroy the Democratic Party!

DEMS Cruz said.

Trump wave

Democrats will continue to have little influence in the Florida Legislature and in the governor’s office over the next two years.

TRUMP from A1

end the long reign of California’s Nancy Pelosi as Democratic leader of the House.

A Huffington Post aggregation of polls found Pelosi’s national unfavorable rating at nearly 48 percent. She’s the favorite villain of Republicans.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., wants Pelosi to keep her position because “I truly believe as long as she’s the leader we keep the majority.”

But Pelosi commands immense loyalty among House Democrats.

“She still has enormous energy, she is the most successful fundraiser that the Democrats have in the House and she’s been able to keep her caucus together through many tough votes,” said Cindy Rosenthal, co-author of “Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the New American Politics” and director of the University of Oklahoma’s Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center.

“As the Democratic caucus thinks about the future, (Ryan is) forcing them to think about who will lead the party in 2020 and beyond,” Rosenthal said.

“That could be the most important outcome of this.”

Downward spiral Since Obama took office in 2009, Democrats have lost more than 900 seats in state legislatures. This election gave Republicans control in both state legislative chambers in

No Senate experience Another challenge for Braynon will be the fact that 11 of the

32 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. That’s the most in the history of the Republican Party and the largest number of seats since 1920.

“The problem is the Republicans are incredibly strategic and we aren’t,” said Marcel Groen, chairman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.

“The Republicans look at the political arena 10 to 20 years out. We look at the next election. So they figured wisely that if they can control legislatures in most states, every 10 years you get to draw the lines.”

He told Trump that it would matter “how he reaches out to groups that may not have supported him, how he signals his interest in their issues or concerns.”

As Obama traveled to Greece, Germany and Peru last week, he gave Trump a how-to manual for the presidency.

“Once you’re in the Oval Office, once you begin interacting with world leaders, once you see the complexities of the issues, that has a way of shaping your thinking and, in some cases, modifying your thinking,” Obama said in Peru.

Staying in politics?

Governing is different

Obama said at a news conference last week that one of his post-presidential tasks will be to help Democrats.

“How we organize politically, I think is something that we should spend some time thinking about,” the president said.

“I believe that we have better ideas, but I also believe that good ideas don’t matter if people don’t hear them, and one of the issues that Democrats have to be clear on is that given population distribution across the country, we have to compete everywhere.

“We have to show up everywhere. We have to work at a grass-roots level.”

During the news conference, Obama tried to drive home a “simple point,” perhaps to Trump himself: “You can’t assume that the language of campaigning matches up with the specifics of governing, legislation, regulations and foreign policy.”

Obama suggested a change is almost inevitable when he said, “What I can guarantee is … that reality will force him to adjust how he approaches many of these issues – that’s just the way this office works.” (Though he acknowledged during his final stop in South America that he “can’t guarantee that the president-elect won’t pursue some of the positions that he’s taken.”)

In Berlin, the president advised Trump to be “willing to stand up to Russia,” reminding his successor that many foreign policy experts, as well as himself, believe Russian President Vladimir Putin possesses views and strategic goals “deviating

Speaking to Trump Just hours before Obama boarded Air Force One for his final trip abroad, Obama began his public tutorial in the White House briefing room by discussing his meeting with Trump two days after the election.

Candidate Bernie Sanders had it right. The people wanted a Democratic revolution. The people wanted a party that supported members of their party. The people wanted a political party that they could be proud of – not a party based on political trickeration!

President Obama, don’t drag your wife down a political road behind a rundown, raggedy political truck the way closet Klansmen and rednecks drag Black community activists down Texas, Alabama and Mississippi dirt roads!

If you’re going to make a dumb statement about rebuilding the Democratic Party, you better hire some consultants, some advisers and some assistants that know what the hell they are doing!

Batman and Robin, Superman and Supergirl, or Willie Tyler and Lester can’t save a political party that has dummies as leaders!

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.

at lobbyists and state spending, “wants it to be all about his success and implementing his personal vision.”

“I think that’s the difference between the two chambers,” Clemens said. “It’s going to be entertaining to see.”

from A1

In an interview, Braynon said he was disappointed that the Democrats did not gain more seats in the Senate during a presidential-year election. But he said the wave of support that carried Republican Donald Trump to the presidency was a factor.

“After what happened nationally and what happened across the state with the presidential ballot, he had coattails,” Braynon said. “I think we’re happy we came back with plus one.”

In recent years, the Democratic minority has been more of a factor in the Senate, where Democrats have joined with a bloc of moderate Republicans on issues like guns and the state pension system. Braynon said he believes instances where Democrats can unite with some Republicans on contentious issues will continue.

“The Senate is a more moderate body,” Braynon said. “I think the Senate will continue to be that more moderate body.”

Wanted revolution

Rep. Janet Cruz

Sen. Oscar Braynon

Democratic senators are firsttime members of the chamber.

Only four Democrats are returning members, with Braynon labeling them “the fighting four.”

Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, another Democratic veteran, said he believes his caucus will be “playing defense” again on issues with the Republican majority.

But Clemens said the key factor for the next two years may not be the relationship between Senate Democrats and Republicans, which has been relatively cordial, as much as it is the relationship between Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, and House Speaker Richard Corcoran, RLand O’ Lakes.

Clemens said Negron, who attended Monday’s Democratic caucus, has talked about helping individual senators succeed with their agendas, while Corcoran, who has already outlined an ambitious reform package aimed

from our values and international norms.”

Flanked by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Obama advised Trump against taking a “realpolitik approach” to Russia by cutting deals that are merely “convenient at the time.”

Not well-served Notably, Obama’s remarks have also taken up temperament – something Trump’s opponent Hillary Clinton charged was his Achilles’ heel.

“I think what will happen with the president-elect is there are going to be certain elements of his temperament that will not serve him well unless he recognizes them and corrects them,” Obama said during one of his final briefing room appearances.

“When you’re a candidate and you say something that is inaccurate or controversial, it has less impact than it does when you’re president of the United States,” he said. “Everybody around the world is paying attention.”

“Markets move” when the U.S. president speaks, and “national security issues require a level of precision in order to make sure that you don’t make mistakes.”

John T. Bennett of CQ-Roll Call; Carl P. Leubsdorf of The Dallas Morning News; and David Goldstein, Sean Cockerham and William Douglas of the McClatchy Washington Bureau (TNS) all contributed to this report.

Efforts ‘appreciated’ Cruz, who has 22 first-time House members in her caucus, struck a conciliatory tone in remarks regarding Corcoran.

“While I know that we will have our fights as we should in a representative democracy, I truly do appreciate the efforts of my friend, Richard Corcoran,” Cruz said. “He includes us, the dissenting voices in this caucus.”

The Democrats on Monday also picked their No. 2 caucus leaders, tapping newly elected Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation, as the leader pro tempore in the Senate and picking Rep. Bobby DuBose, D-Fort Lauderdale, as the leader pro tempore in the House.

The full Legislature meets Tuesday in an organization session where Negron and Corcoran will formally take over their chambers for the next two years.

News Service staff writer Brandon Larrabee contributed to this report.

OBAMA from A1

One horror story The White House profiled a woman named Ramona Brant, who was sentenced to life in prison on her first offense, which she described in a YouTube video released by the White House as being tied to her then-boyfriend’s involvement with drugs.

When her boyfriend declined a plea agreement, law enforcement officials indicted her – but told her lawyer she would not serve jail time. When she showed up to court, her lawyer informed her things had changed.

“There’s a lot of women in prison who are there because of their association with (a) man, not necessarily that they were involved,” Brant said. “But the knowing is what makes us guilty.”

In a Facebook post shared with reporters but not yet posted on Ramona his official page, Brant Obama wrote that “Ramona’s story should serve as a reminder to all of us that we need to reform the sentencing laws for drug crimes in this country.”

He continued, “It makes no sense for a nonviolent drug offender to be serving decades, or sometimes life, in prison. That’s not serving taxpayers, and it’s not serving the public safety. Instead, it burdens our already overcrowded prisons. And it hurts families like Ramona’s.”

NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

FLORIDA

A3

Convictions upheld in death of FAMU band major

BY JIM SAUNDERS THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – Almost exactly five years after Florida A&M University drum major Robert Champion died of injuries suffered in a hazing incident, a state appeals court on Nov. 18 upheld the manslaughter and hazing convictions of another former member of the school’s “Marching 100” Robert band.

Champion A three-judge panel of the 5th District Court of Appeal, in a 16-page ruling, rejected arguments by attorneys for Dante Martin that Florida’s hazing law is overbroad and that a circuit judge made a series of errors such as refusing to exclude autopsy photos from the trial.

Martin, now 29, was found guilty of manslaughter, felony hazing resulting in death and two counts of misdemeanor hazing in the Nov. 19, 2011, death of Champion, who was injured in Orlando during a ritual known as “crossing Bus C.” During the ritual, band members were struck repeatedly as they crossed from the front of the bus to the back, and Martin was “president” of Bus C, the ruling said

77-month sentence Champion, whose death drew national attention, passed out after finishing the crossing and later was pronounced dead at a hospital. Martin was sentenced to 77 months in prison after being found guilty by an Orange County jury and is an inmate at the Wakulla Work Camp, according to information on the state Department of Corrections website.

During the appeal, Martin’s attorneys, in part, attacked the constitutionality of Florida’s hazing law, arguing it was overbroad and vague. But the three-judge panel rejected the arguments,

RED HUBER/ORLANDO SENTINEL/TNS

Dante Martin, right, a former member of Florida A&M University’s Marching 100 band, looks at his family as he is fingerprinted on Oct. 31, 2014 after being found guilty of manslaughter in the fatal hazing of drum major Robert Champion. which included issues related to First Amendment protections.

“The defendant asserts that Florida’s hazing statute encroaches upon constitutionally protected speech or conduct and, thus, the statute is overbroad; however, he does not articulate how the statute is susceptible of application to speech or conduct protected by the First Amendment. … The defendant has not demonstrated that the hazing statute criminalizes any speech or conduct protected by the First Amendment; therefore,

his overbreadth challenge fails,” said the ruling, written by appeals-court Judge William Palmer and joined by judges Thomas Sawaya and Jay Cohen.

Autopsy photos argument Martin’s attorneys also argued that Orange County Circuit Judge Renee Roche made errors, including allowing prosecutors to use autopsy photos that would be “unduly prejudicial” for the jury. But the appeals court backed

Roche on the autopsy photos and other issues.

“Champion’s autopsy photographs assisted the medical examiner in explaining to the jury the nature and manner in which the wounds were inflicted on his body,” the Nov. 18 ruling said.

“They also reinforced the testimony from other witnesses indicating that Champion had been repeatedly struck during the crossing. Importantly, the photographs were relevant to an issue that was in dispute: whether Champion was the victim of

‘any brutality of a physical nature, such as whipping, beating, branding.’ … Also, as for the claim that the photographs were not admissible because they were too gruesome, the trial court ruled that the photographs were not unnecessarily gory, and independent review of the record supports this conclusion.”

Champion’s death came during the annual Florida Classic weekend, which includes a football game between Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman University in Orlando.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott visits Dr. April Thompson-Williams, principal at Jose De Diego Middle School in Miami on Aug. 22. The students at the school had been learning about the Zika virus and the ways to prevent it.

Your Gold Rush gave Kirsten her shining moment.

E V E RY

P L AY

I S

F O R

E D U C A T I O N.

PATRICK FARRELL/MIAMI HERALD/TNS

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State tourism increases despite storms, Zika and Pulse attack

BY JIM TURNER THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – A hurricane that hit North Florida, the continued spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus and a horrific massacre in Orlando haven’t slowed the appeal of the Sunshine State for tourists, according to state officials.

Gov. Rick Scott’s office Monday announced that a record 26.9 million people traveled to Florida between July 1 and Sept. 30, a 5.1 percent increase from the same period in 2015.

Also, the numbers came as Canadians, Florida’s top source of foreign tourism, have cut back on travel due to their nation’s weakened dollar.

Scott traveled to the Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens to announce the latest numbers and to call for continued funding of Visit Florida, the state’s tourism-marketing arm.

Major challenges The state faced a series of challenges during the first nine months of the year,

including the June shooting deaths of 49 people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Hurricane Hermine hitting North Florida in early September and a steadily increasing number of Zika cases in South Florida.

Also, Hurricane Matthew churned along the state’s East Coast in early October, causing significant damage in some areas.

“Visit Florida does an incredible job of marketing our state and keeping all of our tourism partners, which include both large and small businesses, updated on how to keep our visitors informed when our state faces challenges like the Zika virus, hurricanes and the terrorist attack at Pulse nightclub,” Scott said in a prepared statement.

#LoveFL As part of the recovery strategy, Visit Florida has used marketing campaigns tied around the social media hashtag “#LoveFL” to focus on areas impacted by disasters.

The tourism industry accounts for more than 1 in 10 jobs in Florida, and Scott has set a goal of 115 million visitors for this year, which

would be up from the 106 million reported for 2015.

Preliminary numbers for the first nine months of the year indicate 85 million tourists have made their way to Florida, a 5.5 percent increase from a year earlier.

Visit Florida President & CEO Will Seccombe said the numbers indicate a need for his agency to work harder “to maintain that growth going forward.”

Domestic travel up To bolster the efforts, Visit Florida received $78 million from the Legislature for the current fiscal year, which began July 1.

Most third-quarter visitors, 23.6 million, were Americans crossing state lines. While domestic travel is up 5.8 percent, overseas travel grew 0.9 percent during the same time.

As part of its overseas marketing, Visit Florida spent $1.25 million to renew a one-year sponsorship of London-based Fulham Football Club, which is owned by Shahid “Shad” Khan, a Naples resident who also owns the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League and has been a political backer of Scott.

Britain’s nearly 1.7 million visitors last year was second to the 3.8 million Canadians. However, Canadian travel is down 3.8 percent this year from 2015 – 5.7 percent in the third quarter.

EDITORIAL

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NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

The right to vote has been fractured America’s election system is a disgrace, as the 2016 presidential election once more demonstrates.

This isn’t sour grapes. I’m disappointed that my candidate lost.

But the election is over; the results are in.

What every American ought to be outraged at, however, is that the United States is still not a democracy of one person, one vote.

Our electoral system is suppressing the right to vote for millions.

Start with the obvious Hillary Clinton won the election by a margin that may amount to 2 million votes. But Donald Trump will be inaugurated president largely because he won three states – Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan – by a total margin of, at last count, 112,000 votes.

The U.S. doesn’t count presidential elections by one person, one vote. Instead, the system counts electoral votes with the winner taking all in every state except Maine and Nebraska. This gives greater weight to small, rural states over large populous ones like California, and makes for perverse campaigning in a few closely-divided “swing states” – with much of the country essentially ignored.

The president of the United States governs all Americans, not just Americans grouped by state.

This is the second election in 16 years in which the winner of the popular vote lost the election.

This dangerously saps the legitimacy of the presidency. The Electoral College system survives only because most Americans know little about it.

America makes it hard to vote.

Registration is not automatic upon turning 18, allowing states to

REV. JESSE L. JACKSON, SR. TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM

Donald Trump rightly called the Electoral College a disgrace, before he won office because of it. If he cares about this country, he will lead the effort to reform our election laws, rather than accepting a system that perverts the will of the people. erect different hurdles for registering. Voting is usually on a workday that is not a national holiday.

States set the laws allowing for infinite schemes designed to make it harder for some to vote. Voting is the most fundamental right in a democracy – and the U.S. perversely empowers petty, partisan officials in various states to whittle away at it.

Limited protection This year was the first presi-

Afterthoughts on an election debacle For liberals or progressives, the 2016 presidential election is nothing less than a DEBACLE. Since Donald Trump’s victory, political and social uncertainty remain top-trending topics.

Trump now holds us in suspense, looking to his cabinet appointments as predictive of his method of governance. He has much of the nation and a large part of the world holding their collective breaths awaiting his next unpredictable move.

Having listened to many postmortems, I’ve concluded that some console, some congratulate and others point the finger of guilt. And some wish to debate “why” instead of engaging in future-oriented dialogue.

I take pride and consolation in the fact that Black women vot-

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

ed overwhelmingly for Secretary Clinton. The effect was that Black women’s vote carried the more closely contested states and kept a Clinton victory within striking distance in others. Exit polling showed that 94 percent of Black women voted for Clinton.

Charles D. Ellison, contributing editor at The Root, said, “If anyone is to blame for Trump’s dastardly White nationalist-driven win, to the dropping jaws of many, clouds can’t be sent over Black women... Sisters may have

War is less imminent after Clinton defeat With so many people who call themselves liberals and leftists tearing their hair out in dread of a President Donald Trump, it is necessary to point out that the prospects of avoiding nuclear war are much better than they were the day before the election.

Hillary Clinton was committed to imposing a “no fly zone” over Syria that would have meant instant war with Russia, likely resulting in the annihilation of the human species. You’d think that would have made Clinton anathema to decent people. But Americans, including those who call themselves liberals, are not decent people – not really.

Supporting atrocities Based on their political behavior, they just pretend to be de-

GLEN FORD BLACK AGENDA REPORT

cent, but support U.S. governments that have slaughtered millions since the end of World War II. If you voted for Obama and Clinton, you gave your assent to continuing George Bush’s wars, allowing Obama to start two major wars of his own in Libya and Syria, and to Hillary Clinton’s plans to roll the nuclear dice on the fate of humanity.

The whole world knows that Americans are dangerous to themselves and to others. But

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: DONALD TRUMP’S TO-DO LIST

dential election in 50 years without the full protection of the Voting Rights Act, gutted by the rightwing gang of five on the Supreme Court in Shelby County v. Holder. With Republicans shocked at Obama’s majority margins in 2008, Republican governors and legislatures pushed various schemes to make voting harder for the young, people of color, and working and poor people.

Fourteen states had various forms of voter suppression schemes in effect in 2016.

Early voting days were reduced.

Sunday voting was outlawed.

Polling places were reduced in numbers, particularly in poor or African-American districts. Hours were restricted.

New forms of voter ID was required. Electronic machines with no paper record are widely used.

Voter rolls were purged – allegedly to address fraud – but with lists that always target African-American and Latino voters disproportionately.

Victimized in Florida In many states, former felons who had paid their debt to society are permanently deprived of the right to vote. Six million citizens have been stripped of that right, disproportionately people of color. In four states, including Florida, more than one in five African-Americans has been disenfranchised.

In Wisconsin, the Republican governor and legislature pushed through new voter ID requirements. Three hundred thousand voters lacked the required ID; voter turnout was the lowest in two decades. In Milwaukee, where 70 percent of the state’s Africaninstinctively felt the approaching electoral freight train – perhaps that same way in which worried Black mothers, for centuries, have given racial-warning pep talks to Black children, bracing for dreams deferred.”

Ellison went on, “Whether Black women’s votes were, indeed, an honest attempt at sincerely supporting the candidate or whether they were seated in a real belief that she would be the most qualified president since, well, Barack Obama, is beside the point. What’s poignant is the impressive show of electoral force from Black women, despite odds historically stacked against them and – frankly – the almost scandalous underestimation of their value at Election Day polls.”

Racism was involved Among other things, I’m disgusted by attempts to disavow racism as a major component of Trump’s victory. Although thinly-veiled and less than subtle,

“decent?” Since when, and to whom?

Nobody’s dead Donald Trump looks and talks like the ugly, racist, bullying American – and he is exactly that.

But he hasn’t killed anybody yet, and his public statements have been of a far more peaceful nature than the woman he beat at the polls.

Trump says he wants to cooperate with the Syrians and the Russians to defeat ISIS. Trump also does not make distinctions between the various Islamic jihadist groups in Syria, unlike the Obama administration, which has directly and indirectly armed and funded all the jihadist groups, and has spent much of the last several months trying to protect the al Nusra Front, the al Qaida affiliate in eastern Aleppo, from Russian bombing.

No sooner had the votes been counted than President Obama ordered U.S. Special Forces to go

DAVE GRANLUND, POLITICALCARTOONS.COM

Americans live, turnout was down 13 percent. The suppressed votes were likely far more than the margin of victory.

In North Carolina, the governor and legislature openly cheered the success of their efforts to curb early voting among AfricanAmericans that resulted from slashing 158 polling places in the 40 counties with large numbers of African-American voters. On average, Black voters stand in lines two times as long as White voters, in a conscious and systematic effort to make voting harder – particularly for those working jobs without flexible hours.

Not complicated The American people should demand passage of a constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to vote and empowering the Congress to pass rules to protect that right. The candidate that wins the most votes should win presidential elections.

National rules should make appeal to racist leanings was a hallmark of Trump’s campaign.

Seen in increasing daily encounters, current incidents of blatant racism give evidence that Trump’s campaign opened the door to a resurgence of overt racism. As a former educator, most disturbing is that much of the resurgence has shown up in many of our middle and high schools.

“If you can convince the lowest White man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t know you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him someone to look down on and he’ll empty his pockets for you.” Attributed to President Johnson, that quote rings more true now than when first spoken.

Privilege is real However rationalized, White privilege is real and expected by those who’re White and those willing to submit. Most White people prefer being White to anything else in the world. The

all-out to kill the leadership of alNusra. This war has been entirely based on lies, so Obama will probably limit his Kill List to al Qaida leaders, while sparing the rank and file jihadist fighters for future use by the United States.

Setting the stage But it is safe to say that, had Hillary Clinton been elected, the most warlike factions in the U.S. military, the CIA, the State Department, and the foreign policy establishment at-large would be setting the stage for full-scale confrontation with Russia and all of Syria’s allies under President Clinton.

Instead, the jihadists are in despair, and the prospects for driving them out of Aleppo look promising. Hopefully, the Syrian government and its friends will be on the road to victory before Donald Trump’s presidency is decisively captured by the bipartisan War Party that runs the empire.

Charles W. Cherry II, Esq., Publisher

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

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registration automatic and voting easy. The Voting Rights Act should be revived and strengthened. The Justice Department right now should be prosecuting states that violated basic voting rights.

When America was founded, only White male property owners had the right to vote. Americans demonstrated and died, and fought a Civil War to end slavery, expand citizenship to all and expand the right to vote. Now partisan officials are trifling with the very foundation of our democracy. No republic can survive long without legitimacy.

Donald Trump rightly called the Electoral College a disgrace, before he won office because of it.

If he cares about this country, he will lead the effort to reform our election laws, rather than accepting a system that perverts the will of the people.

The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. is president and CEO of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. benefits of that privilege are taught from birth and are culturally embedded. For many Whites, equality of opportunity and social justice are tantamount to “reverse discrimination.” For that demographic, the last 8 years have been comparable to trudging waterless through the desert.

Although positive prospects for our next four years seem nonexistent, now is not the time to roll over in dismay. Our response to the challenges of a Trump administration will shape our own and our children’s future. We’ve come too far to relinquish the gains we’ve made since Emancipation and it’s REQUIRED that ALL of us activate and mobilize against any attempt to turn back the clock of freedom and justice.

Dr. E. Faye Williams is national chair of the National Congress of Black Women, Inc. Contact her via www.nationalcongressbw.org.

Can Trump deliver?

Syrian President Bashar Assad says it’s fine with him if Trump wants to fight the terrorists. But, Assad isn’t sure that Trump can deliver on his campaign pledge.

“What about the countervailing forces within the administration, the mainstream media that were against him?” Assad asks.

Assad thinks the notion of Trump bucking the War Party is “dubious.” He’s right. Half a million Syrians are dead because most Americans don’t much care who their government kills, as long as they’re not White.

But getting rid of Clinton has slowed the War Party down a bit, and maybe prevented a nuclear war. If you are a decent person, you should be pleased about that.

Glen Ford is executive editor of BlackAgendaReport.com. Email him at Glen.Ford@BlackAgendaReport.com.

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NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

Liberal sore losers attack Trump’s Cabinet picks Blacks voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton. Republicans engaged in voter suppression tactics nationwide. Clinton won the popular vote. Trump’s chief strategist and senior counselor Steve Bannon is a bigot. Senator Jeff Sessions, Trump’s pick for Attorney General, is a racist.

These are all Democratic talking points describing all things Trump and Republican. Just as sure as the sun rises and sets, liberal Democrats – especially Blacks – will call anyone a racist if they don’t agree with them on any range of issues.

I strongly implore the

Must be a racist

others to work with

According to liberals, if you don’t support open borders; if you don’t support homosexuality; if you don’t believe in global warming; if you support voter ID laws; if you support separate bathrooms for men and women – then you are a racist. And because Trump wants Bannon to the White House, then he must be a racist.

Well, I say that if Steve is a racist, then we need to have a lot more racists in America.

Most of the people who are trying to tear down Bannon have never met nor had any conversations with him. Steve is an extremely serious and insightful political operative and I have especially enjoyed working with him in pursuing one of my signature goals: getting more Blacks involved in the Republican Party.

Trump transition team

racist, please, can we have more racists like him?

Sessions is labeled a racist by radical leftist groups like the NAACP, the ACLU, and the NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund, to name a few. Sessions is prolife, pro-traditional marriage, believes those in the country illegally should be deported. He actually believes in the rule of law.

So what makes him a racist?

to unleash outside

‘Morally bankrupt’

RAYNARD JACKSON NNPA COLUMNIST

advocates like me and them to vigorously defend good people like Steve Bannon and Jeff Sessions.

sponsive and available when I needed to use him as a sounding board. His working understanding of many of the dynamics going on within the Black community, relative to the Republican Party and conservatism, is astonishing.

His understanding of these dynamics is more insightful than many of our so-called media-appointed “civil rights” leaders who simply want to be patted on the head by the likes of Obama and Hillary Clinton and be told, “AtUnderstands our ta boy.” community Senator Sessions is going to be Over the past year, Steve has a great U.S. attorney general. I been very helpful to me in this worked his first U.S. Senate race regard. He has always been re- back in 1996. Again, if Jeff is a

Barack Obama’s hollow legacy Obama’s legacy is in tatters, and that is good news. Donald Trump’s victory was not just a win over Hillary Clinton, but against Democratic Party policies that silenced the rank and file.

For years Democrats became convinced that the only means of keeping Republicans at bay was to go along with their party leadership without complaint. If they wanted to expand trade deals that stole workers’ jobs, so be it.

Nothing to say The people who marched against the invasion of Iraq folded their tents when Democrats became the party of endless war.

When Obama promoted austerity and “grand bargains” with Republicans, not a word was uttered. Even Black Lives Matter refused to point out that the Obama Justice Department left killer cops unpunished.

Barack Obama is nothing if not consistent. While Democrats take to the streets in protest against President-elect Trump, Obama declares that the man he once called unfit is not an ideologue, but a “pragmatist.”

MARGARET KIMBERLEY BLACK AGENDA REPORT

No one should be surprised about the conciliatory tone.

Obama never had a problem with Republicans. They may have obstructed him, but he was always happy to assist them because he wasn’t really opposed to their policies.

The most obvious example of Obama’s lack of substance was his relationship with Black Americans. His disdain and contempt for the people who loved him the most was clear to anyone who paid attention.

Racist ‘jokes’ Jokes about “Cousin Pookie” and parents serving fried chicken for breakfast should have been seen as the racist screeds they clearly were. But the desire to see a Black face in a prominent place endures to our detriment. Obama

Defending rights in Florida after this election Like many Americans, I found myself first in shock at the election results – but then fear for our country and for the civil liberties values we cherish.

This was because of how the campaign of President-elect Donald Trump stoked racist, xenophobic and Islamophobic fears, promising polices that, if enacted, would be an all-out attack on the rights of Americans.

He said he would: • End a woman’s right to abortion; • Amass a force to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants; • Institute an aggressive surveillance program targeting Muslim Americans; • Reauthorize waterboarding and other forms of torture; • Change our nation’s libel laws to go after critics in the media.

Ready to fight The day after the election, the ACLU of Florida staff met first to come to terms with our collective shock at the civil liberties

HOWARD L. SIMON, ESQ. GUEST COLUMNIST

challenges we are now surely facing, then to begin planning how we will deploy our resources and the tens of thousands of ACLU members in Florida to respond to them.

We are now preparing to fulfill the role the ACLU has always played since it was established in 1920: challenging any government abuses of rights and liberties.

People understand this about the ACLU. That’s why, since the election, the ACLU has received an unprecedented outpouring of support. We are now hard at work putting that support to work.

At the federal level, we are committed to: • Protecting the “Dreamers” who received presidential protection against deportation, and resist any attempt to create a dragnet deportation force;

This is Exhibit A in how intellectually depraved liberals react to those who have a different worldview than they do. It also shows how morally bankrupt they are.

How can anyone argue that Sessions is a racist when he, as a young lawyer in the U.S. Attorney’s office in Alabama, desegregated their school system, literally put the Ku Klux Klan out of business, and then had their leader sentenced to death in a civil rights murder case?

Liberalism accepts nothing short of 100 percent fealty to its radical ideology or it will use all the might of its liberal media machine to brand you a racist, a xenophobe, homophobe, etc. It is totally incompatible with the liberal mind construct that a person can disagree with them and yet still be a good person. To them, it’s a zero-sum game.

As a Trump supporter and a lifelong Republican, I will do everything within my power to make sure Sessions is confirmed as attorney general and has solid ties within the mainstream of the Black community, not the radical left that groups like the NAACP, the National Urban League, and

EDITORIAL

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: THANKSGIVING DAY SALES

RJ MATSON, CAGLECARTOONS.COM

the Congressional Black Caucus to vigorously defend good peorepresent. ple like Steve Bannon and Jeff Sessions.

Ready to support I know Bannon and Sessions I have already received sev- feel they have no need to reeral phone calls from respected spond to these lies being pushed Blacks with Alabama roots who by liberals. Trust me. As one who are ready to come out front in support of Sessions’ nomination. makes a living from communiOf course, liberals convenient- cations, you do need to respond, ly ignore lifelong friends of Ses- or at a minimum, have supportsions who don’t align with the ers with credibility in the Black racist narrative they are using to community to respond on your attempt to destroy him. behalf.

One of the most successful A lie that is oft repeated beBlack businessmen in the state of comes the truth.

Alabama, Don Watkins, is one of Sessions’ friends who had nothRaynard Jackson is founding but glowing things to say er and chairman of Black about the congressman.

I plan on doing everything I Americans for a Better Future can to work with Trump’s transi- (BAFBF), a federally registered tion team to help with the racial Super PAC established to get issues the NAACP, the National more Blacks, especially entreUrban League, and the Congres- preneurs, involved in the Resional Black Caucus are going to publican Party. For more inthrow at Sessions, and by extension, team Trump. I strongly im- formation, visit www.bafbf. plore the Trump transition team org. Click on this commentary to unleash outside advocates like at www.flcourier.com to write me and others to work with them your own response.

won by making himself palatable to White people, while also taking advantage of undeserved Black pride.

Hillary Clinton would be the president-elect if the new voters who emerged in 2008 had remained committed to the Democratic Party. But their loyalty was to the imagery of Barack Obama as president.

Their joy was confined to seeing him meet the queen of England alongside his first lady or disembarking from Air Force One with his signature swagger. The sight of Barack and Michelle hosting a state dinner was enough to make Black hearts swoon. Policy initiatives need not intrude upon the love fest.

The result of this unrequited and superficial love was six million fewer votes cast for Hillary Clinton in 2016 than for Obama in 2012. The apocryphal Cousin Pookie stayed home, and no one should be surprised.

needed so badly.

Not only did the Obama Environmental Protection Agency allow the beleaguered city to be given contaminated water, but he showed up for a photo opportunity and did nothing else as residents suffered.

Obama drank a glass of water, posed for the cameras and returned to Washington. The people of Flint are still living under conditions Americans think of as being “Third World.”

The response to Trump’s victory should mean more than protesting policies the Democrats now have little ability to fight.

This moment presents an opportunity for much-needed introspection and mea culpas.

Millions of people did more than just accept Democratic Party policy. They supported actions they would have rejected if carried out by a Republican or a White Democrat. They supported Muammar Gaddafi when Republicans were president, but averted their eyes to his murder when Dems didn’t deliver There is no secret to keeping committed by a Democrat. They voters engaged. They are engaged even voted for the person who if their needs are met. Deliver for bragged about the killing. voters and they deliver in the votWhy the silence? ing booth.

Even the unpopular and shady Democratic voters must ask Hillary Clinton could have won themselves why they said nothing Michigan if the people of Flint when their party promoted trade had received the federal help they deals that were against their inter• Blocking any effort to deny reproductive rights or defund Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health service providers that serve women’s health; • Preserving civil rights protections for transgender Americans, especially transgender children in public schools; • Preventing “stop-and-frisk” policies from being adopted nationwide; and • Opposing discrimination against Muslim Americans.

Impact in Florida

A5

care. President-elect Trump has said he would appoint justices who would reverse Roe v. Wade, but the Florida Constitution’s explicit right to privacy protects everyone in Florida, including a women’s right to abortion. (We are now before the Florida Supreme Court challenging a mandatory waiting period imposed by the Legislature before a woman can receive an abortion.)

And we must guard against efforts to undermine hard-won victories for LGBT people who want to live their lives free from discrimination. We’ve celebrated victories that brought an end to Florida’s ban on adoptions and marriage, and we are prepared to fight back against efforts to undermine those victories.

For example, if legislators attempt to pass a bill to allow discrimination against LGBT Floridians as long as people assert a religious basis – like that signed into law in Indiana last year by Vice President-elect Mike Pence – the Florida civil rights and business communities must be prepared to forcefully respond.

But the reverberations of this election will not be felt only at the federal level. The stakes are also enormously high in Florida.

We must be vigilant against efforts by Florida politicians who may seek to capitalize on the toxic anti-immigrant sentiment that fueled Donald Trump’s rise to the Presidency. Laws targeting individuals based on their status as immigrants violate the fundamental right to fair and equal treatment.

Immigrants in Florida are now a punching bag for opportunistic politicians seeking to make cheap political points. We will stand up Efforts must continue for Florida’s immigrant commuWe must prevent the election nity against discrimination. results from being misinterpreted We are prepared to fight back to derail the momentum for crimagainst attacks on women’s ac- inal justice reform. cess to abortion and reproductive A recent study commissioned

ests. Ultimately that acquiescence led to defeat at Trump’s hands.

The Obama team’s propaganda skills were legendary, but the day of reckoning revealed the emptiness of what they produced.

The corporate media acted like scribes under White House direction and declared that Russia was an enemy state and its president a 21st century Hitler. Now it is Donald Trump, the self-promoting reality television star, who declares his willingness to talk to his Russian counterpart. It is the sort of behavior that Democrats once valued.

Democratic presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton began the tradition of getting Democrats to support what they didn’t like.

Obama perfected the art, which ultimately led to the debacle. He will certainly not be the last to tempt the party faithful.

But in 2016, Democrats sold their souls and ended up with nothing. Defeat creates the hollowest feelings of all.

Margaret Kimberley’s column appears weekly in BlackAgendaReport.com. Contact her at Margaret.Kimberley@BlackAgendaReport.com. Click on this commentary at www.flcourier. com to write your own response. by the James Madison Institute and the Charles Koch Institute found that 72 percent of Floridians want reforms in the criminal justice system. We cannot allow racially-charged rhetoric about “law and order” to lead our state to double down on failed mass incarceration policies for which the cost in taxpayer dollars is matched only by their toll in human suffering.

For its nearly 100-year history, the ACLU has fought back on behalf of everyone, regardless of race or political point of view.

We have faced difficult times in the past, from the anti-immigrant Palmer Raids in the 1920s, to the Japanese internment in the 1940s, to the McCarthy hysteria of the 1950s, to the Nixon Administration’s assault on civil liberties in the ‘70s. In each of these crises, the ACLU stood up to presidents and stood up for the constitutional rights of Americans.

Ultimately constitutional values prevailed. Together, we will prevail again.

Howard L. Simon is Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida. Contact him via www.aclufl.org.

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

TOJ A6

NATION

NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

Justice for all under Sessions as AG? Civil rights advocates brace for a shift in Justice Department priorities under Trump’s new attorney general.

BY DEL QUENTIN WILBER TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

WASHINGTON – Under the Obama administration, the Justice Department’s civil rights division was rebuilt into what former Attorney Gen. Eric Holder called the agency’s “crown jewel.”

But many civil rights advocates and legal scholars voiced concern Friday that the unit faces an uncertain future under the leadership of Donald Trump and his pick to be the next attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.).

They predict the Justice Department in the coming years will be less likely to sue states over voting restrictions that target the poor or minorities, to hold police departments accountable for abuses or fight in court for the rights of transgender people.

From 1986 to present Also vulnerable are Justice Department guidelines set under President Obama that sought more lenient sentences for nonviolent offenders and restricted racial profiling and surveillance of Muslims.

Among the biggest objections to Sessions, civil rights groups say, is that he has voted against expanding rights for gays and lesbians, spoken dismissively of the 1965 Voting Rights Act and was denied a federal judgeship in 1986

People and American Civil Liberties Union “un-American.”

Sessions denied having made those statements or said he did not recall them.

“Jeff Sessions has a decades-long record – from his early days as a prosecutor to his present role as a senator – of opposing civil rights and equality,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, the president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. “It is unimaginable that he could be entrusted to serve as the chief law enforcement officer for this nation’s civil rights laws.”

over racially insensitive remarks he made. Now that same staunch conservative may be in charge of federal civil-rights enforcement.

Advocates say a retreat from the Justice Department’s aggressive posture on civil and voting rights would come at a horrible time. The country is grappling with the aftermath of widespread unrest and frustration sparked by the killings of unarmed black men by police officers in cities and towns across the nation.

Cheers from conservatives

More complaints In recent years, minorities have increasingly turned to the Justice Department, an agency of more than 100,000 employees and a $27.8 billion budget, to address discrimination by police and state and local governments.

Sessions “must be committed to equal justice under law for all,” said Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “His record is one that demonstrates deep opposition to our nation’s civil rights law … At a time when our country is gripped by a spike in hate crimes, we need an attorney general who will not fan the flames of hate.”

Because President-elect Donald Trump has released few policy papers or proposals dealing with criminal justice matters, civil rights advocates and

MICHAEL BROCHSTEIN/ZUMA PRESS/TNS

U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions campaigns for Donald Trump at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Oct. 10 in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Sessions has been offered the position of attorney general. former Justice Department officials have been left to guess about his positions through his tweets, campaign speeches and three debate performances.

How he’s voted Sessions’ positions, on the other hand, are better known. He voted for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and against expanding hate crimes to include sexual orientation.

He opposed an update to the Voting Rights Act after a 2013 Supreme Court ruling struck down key elements of the historic law.

He has been critical of bipartisan efforts to reform

sentencing in drug cases.

The senator also has been somewhat supportive of one of Trump’s most controversial proposals — banning Muslims from entering the United States.

Sessions has said that Trump has sparked an “appropriate” discussion by proposing the ban, though he acknowledged that such a proposal would be “treading on dangerous ground.”

“At the same time, we’re in an age that’s very dangerous and we’re seeing more and more persons enter and a lot of them have done terrorist acts,” he told Breitbart News in December of last year.

Denies statements In addition to his policy positions, civil rights groups are deeply concerned about his past.

In 1986, when he was tapped by President Reagan to become a federal judge at age 39, Sessions’ nomination was rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee after it emerged he made racially charged remarks.

Justice Department lawyers and colleagues at the time said Sessions had once agreed that a White lawyer was a “disgrace” to his race for handling civil rights cases, referred to a Black attorney as “boy,” and called the National Association for the Advancement of Colored

Republicans and conservatives cheered Sessions’ appointment, saying they are enthusiastic about what they see as a reversal of Obama administration policies in the civil rights arena that they believe went too far, particularly in the investigations of police departments, lawsuits against states over voter ID laws and the refusal to defend a federal law prohibiting the recognition of same-sex marriages.

“He will restore honor to a department that, under President Obama, perpetually pushed a political agenda while neglecting to enforce the law,” said Sen. John Cornyn, a top Republican in the Senate. “It’s time to end the politicization of the Justice Department and start defending the rule of law.”

Staff writer Seema Mehta in Los Angeles contributed this report.

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Numbers dwindle but not enthusiasm Florida Classic game attendance was 45,372, slightly lower than last year.

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BY ANDREAS BUTLER FLORIDA COURIER

Thousands ascend upon Orlando each year for the Florida Blue Florida Classic.

A weekend of events is highlighted with the football game between Florida’s two largest historically Black universities – Florida A&M University (FAMU) and BethuneCookman University (B-CU) at Camping World Stadium, formerly the Florida Citrus Bowl.

The Florida Classic is arguably the largest event in Black college football despite losing some luster in recent years as game attendance has fallen.

From 1999 to 2006, the Florida Classic drew record crowds of more than 70,000 fans including an individual game record of 73,358 in 2003.

In recent years, the game has drawn 40,000 or more fans, including an announced crowd of 45,372 fans this year.

The attendance last year was slightly higher with 45, 728.

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Economic impact According to reports, the Florida Classic has an economic impact as low as $700,000 to as high as $35 million for Orlando and its surrounding communities during the three-day weekend.

“I would definitely make a wild guess of north of a million. You have so many people coming here for the weekend,” said Scott Herring, Florida Citrus Sports ‘s chief financial officer. Florida Citrus Sports operates Camping World Stadium.

Ties to both teams The Florida Classic, which is held the weekend before Thanksgiving, is still a big draw for students, fans, alumni, faculty, businesses and entrepreneurs.

“It’s always good to come to and worth coming to the Florida Classic. It’s the No. 1 event of the year. B-CU has been winning lately. Hopefully, FAMU could change that today,” Dr. Gina Beckles said prior to the game.

B-CU later defeated FAMU 39-19. It was the Daytona Beach-based team’s sixth year in a row winning the Florida Classic.

Beckles attended the game and has ties to both schools.

She is a third-generation FAMU alumnus and was once employed at B-CU. She said, “I taught at B-CU for 25 years. It will always have a place in my heart. I’m still a Rattler. FAMU is my alma matter. It’s been weird with B-CU winning the Classic every year lately.’’

Vendors pleased Many vendors come from around the country to sell food, clothing and other items.

Papa Dious is a T-shirt vendor originally from Senegal who now lives in Shreveport, Louisiana. He has been selling his T-shirts at the Classic for the past 20 years.

“I’m out here every year from Friday to Sunday. Business is always good. I cannot complain. I think that the buying power has gone down in recent years, but it’s picking back up since recovery from the last recession,’’ he explained.

Donald Noble of Fort Pierce was a first-time vendor at the Florida Classic this year.

Noble sold barbecue chicken and ribs from his Fork it Over food truck.

“Business was definitely great on Saturday. It was slow

on Friday. This is definitely one of the events that I got to come too and take part of on an annual basis,” Noble remarked.

Good music, good food Thousands of people still just tailgate all throughout game day.

Bethune-Cookman fan Barbara McKnight of Orlando stated, “It’s definitely the thing to do. It’s a lot of fun, good music, good food and time with family and friends.”

“We tailgate the entire game. We do each and every year. We’ve been out here for the past 12 years. We don’t miss it. It’s still the event to come to each year. I’ve had a lot of family that have attended FAMU,” echoed Rattlers fan Richard Alford of Hollywood.

1. The rivals face off again at Camping World Stadium for the Florida Blue Florida Classic.

2. FAMU’s Marching 100 performs at halftime.

3. The Classic is a time for alumni and friends to reconnect.

4. Mr. and Miss Bethune-Cookman University represent.

5. It was a good weekend for vendors.

6. B-CU Coach Terry Sims holds up the winning trophy.

PHOTOS BY DUANE C. FERNANDEZ SR./ HARDNOTTSPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

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BOOKS

‘Trans’ examines how we now think about race and gender

BY DR. GLENN ALTSCHULER SPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

On June 1, 2015, Annie Liebovitz’s photograph of a corseted Caitlyn Jenner appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair. Formerly Bruce Jenner, an Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon, Caitlyn became America’s most famous transgender. Ten days later, Rachel Dolezal, the president of the Spokane, Washington chapter of the NAACP, was “outed” as White by her parents.

These two i n c i d e n t s, Rogers R o g e r s Brubaker B r u b a k e r, a professor of sociology at UCLA, suggests, are indications that a significant reconfiguration of racial and gender identity is now occurring.

In “Trans,’’ Brubaker analyzes the ways in which classifications, previously understood as biologically based and fixed at birth, have been re-claimed as self-conscious choices; the conflicts over who controls – and “patrols” – them; and whether individuals can live between or beyond them. Lucid, sophisticated, and judicious, “Trans’’ is an important and timely exploration of the increasingly uncertain and unsettled boundaries of identity.

Insights about “the contingency and arbitrariness” of gender and racial classifications, Brubaker acknowledges, have only recently begun to filter into broader public discussions.

And the “policing” of identity continues, most recently with a North Car-

NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

STOJ

REVIEW “Trans: Gender and Race in an Age of Unsettled Identities

by Rogers Brubaker. Princeton University Press. 236 pages. $24.95 olina law prohibiting people from using bathrooms, in schools and other public buildings, that conflict with the sex on their birth certificates; but also with concerns about misrepresentation of racial identity by individuals seeking jobs and admission to college (prompting proposals for a strict regime of racial classification on birth certificates and an assertion by the Native American and Indigenous Studies Associ-

The gender- and race-identity stories of Caitlyn Jenner, left, and Rachel Dolezal are analyzed in “Trans,” a book by UCLA professor of sociology Rogers Brubaker. ation that “belonging does not arise simply from individual feelings”).

At this pivotal moment, Brubaker concludes, “the pairing of transgender

and transracial in public discourse” has the potential not only to inform discussions of the former but prompt reflection on the artificiality and instability

‘New’ gender vs. ‘new’ race Brubaker asks tough questions. The public, he notes, responded differently to the Jenner and Dolezal stories.

An increasing number of Americans accept a change of gender (but not racial “passing,” especially from White to Black) as a legitimate choice, validated in social science research, popular culture, social and legal practices.

This new reality, Brubaker, claims is paradoxical.

After all, sex is a well-established biological category, and men and women do differ, morphologically, physiologically, and hormonally, “with nothing remotely analogous about racial divisions.”

Why, he asks, is it more legitimate to choose and change one’s sex than one’s race? Why is altering bodily features (hormones, genitalia and secondary sex characteristics) to signal membership in a “new” gender viewed as affirming an “authentic” identity while operations on eyelids, noses, and pigmentation to signal membership in a “new” race isn’t?

‘Policing’ of identity continues When “the putative objectivity of racial identity is grounded in social relations, not just the body,” Brubaker indicates, it constrains individual choice.

Under this logic, people cannot lay claim to an identity to which they are not entitled by ancestry.

Nor can they use “the born in the wrong body” narrative.

That said, Brubaker emphasizes that opportunities for choice in racial identity are expanding.

High rates of intermarriage and cohabitation, the discrediting of the “one drop rule,” and genetic tests that increase popular perceptions that “everyone is mixed” have undermined the authority of ancestry over racial classifications and invited a process in which race is “constituted at the nexus of genetic science, kindship aspirations, and strategic selfmaking.”

Did you know that smart technology can help you save?

Smart thermostats have been proven to save, on average, 450 kWh per year, or about $50 annually. Find even more smart ways to thelp you save money and lower your bill when you take FPL’s Online Home Energy Survey. Go to FPL.com/EasyToSave to see how you can save up to $250 a year.

of race.

We may well be a long way from a consensus about “the trans of migration” (male to female, White to Black), let alone a consensus about “the trans of between” (challenging the either or logic of gender and racial classification) or “the trans of beyond” (stressing the uniqueness of one’s lived experience).

But one thing’s certain: the times they are a’changing.

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

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NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

TRAVEL

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Trump may bring world of change to travelers There are plenty of questions about incoming administration’s stance on Cuban travel, fixing airports, open skies.

ed and the Airline Pilots Association have been fighting the Open Skies agreement with Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways the past two years because they claim the gulf states are receiving massive subsidies from the UAE and Qatar — subsidies strictly forbidden by Open Skies, which they weren’t getting when they joined up more than 25 years ago.

The U.S. airlines argue that the subsidies “threaten the jobs of 300,000 U.S. aviation workers and the American aviation industry as a whole.”

Trump has referred with great admiration to these airlines, so maybe he doesn’t want to cut them out of U.S. service. Maybe he’ll just make them pay more for the privilege — which means travelers will, too. Then again, he could subsidize U.S. airlines.

BY JILL SCHENSUL THE RECORD/TNS

Just what changes are ahead for travelers once President-elect Donald Trump takes office are as yet not entirely clear – what’s certain is that the travel industry and U.S. travelers may find some new curves in the road ahead.

Here are five points to consider.

Will Cuba remain open to travelers?

It’s been the hot destination ever since the Obama administration relaxed the rules and let travel agents sell tours without special licenses. Now flights from the U.S. are flying, cruise ships are sailing and tourists are filling every decent hotel room in the country. Starwood will soon operate there, and Airbnb bookings are brisk.

Will anything change now that Trump is taking over? Early in his campaign he indicated he was not opposed to opening Cuba — it is, after all, creating business for American companies. But in October, while campaigning in South Florida, he tweeted: “The people of Cuba have struggled too long … Will reverse Obama’s Executive Orders and concessions towards Cuba until freedoms are restored.”

In a letter to its members, the American Society of Travel Agents, or ATSA, wrote of the Cuba issue: “This is the most concerning from our point of view,” but “how and even whether he will follow through on this, given the many other priorities he’ll have upon assuming office, is impossible to know today.”

Fixing airports?

You may remember the tangent

Opaque business?

OLIVIER DOULIERY/ABACA PRESS/TNS

President Barack Obama shakes hands with Cubans at a baseball game on March 22, 2016, in Havana, Cuba.

Trump went off on during the first presidential debate — the part about the “Third World airports.”

At the time, no suggestions about fixing the state of the airports were forthcoming, but Trump has since made a somewhat vague reference in his agenda for the first 100 days in office.

He wants to put into place an American Energy & Infrastructure Act, which, through public-private partnerships and private investments through tax incentives, will spur $1 trillion in infrastructure investment over 10 years.

Whether that includes airports isn’t certain, though at least one group, Airlines for America, which represents the U.S. airlines’ interests, thinks it’s a positive sign.

Open skies?

Open Skies agreements allow

If I don’t have the answer,

CARLOS GONZALEZ/MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE/TNS

The mall area is under construction at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport in Bloomington, Minn. air carriers unlimited market access to partner markets and provide maximum operational flexibility for airline alliances. That has greatly increased air and car-

go service over the years — not to mention adding about $4 billion in revenue annually, according to the Brookings Institution. But American, Delta, Unit-

The FAA reauthorization bill is coming up in September 2017, setting aviation policy generally, and, of particular interest to travelers, authorizing federal aviation taxes. The airlines have been battling over how fares are displayed and advertised.

Currently, they have to clearly display what the total cost of an airline ticket is upfront on the first web page or in an ad. The airlines want to return to being able to show the fare and then separate out the taxes and fees.

Advertising of this sort is called “transparent” pricing — the $200 fare you first see turns out to be $800. With the Trump administration and Republican control of Congress, ASTA is predicting the airlines will be able to go back to what they call “transparent” pricing. So follow along when the bill comes up for reauthorization.

Talking politics?

No matter where you go, this election and the Trump victory have made global news. Expect to be asked about it.

The Record is based in Hackensack, New Jersey.

FINEST & ENTERTAINMENT

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Meet some of

FLORIDA’S

finest

submitted for your approval

NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

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Think you’re one of Florida’s Finest?

E-mail your high-resolution (200 dpi) digital photo in casual wear or bathing suit taken in front of a plain background with few distractions, to news@flcourier. com with a short biography of yourself and your contact information. (No nude/ glamour/ fashion photography, please!) In order to be considered, you must be at least 18 years of age. Acceptance of the photographs submitted is in the sole and absolute discretion of Florida Courier editors. We reserve the right to retain your photograph even if it is not published. If you are selected, you will be contacted by e-mail and further instructions will be given.

Drake was the big winner of the American Music Awards with four awards.

He broke Michael Jackson’s record for most AMA nominations after scoring 13 nominations. He won the following categories: Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album for “Views,’’ Favorite Artist, Rap/Hip Hop; Favorite Song, Rap/Hip Hop for “Hotline Bling’’; and Favorite Song, Soul/R&B for “Work’’ with Rihanna.

Pastor Shirley Caesar broke the Internet recently with a viral video of her singing, “Hold My Mule” that has been remixed into a Thanksgiving tribute called the U Name It Challenge. On the heels of going viral with the #UNameItChallenge, the legendary gospel singer is taking control of her brand and has launched an online store filled with #UNameIt paraphernalia. / JET

Television Academy names first Black chairman/CEO

BY CHRISTIE D’ZURILLA LOS ANGELES TIMES/TNS

LOS ANGELES – Hayma “Screech” Washington will be the next chairman and CEO of the Television Academy Board of Governors, the academy announced last week. The first AfricanAmerican to hold the job, he will succeed Bruce Rosenblum.

Washington, who produces and directs under the aegis of his own company, Screechers Pix, and was an executive producer on “The Amazing Race,” will begin his two-year term on Jan. 1, 2017.

“This is a time of considerable change Hayma for our industry and I am deeply commitWashington ted to ensuring that the academy is at the forefront as we move towards a more inclusive future,” Washington said in a statement issued by the group responsible for the Emmy Awards.

DRU HILL & SWV

The 2016 Miami Funk Fest takes place Dec. 9-10 at the Miramar Regional Park with Bell Biv Devoe, Dru Hill, H-Town, Jodeci, Mystikal, SWV, TLC, and Guy featuring Teddy Riley. Tickets: Funkfesttour.com.

Bandmate says Trump election induced Sharon Jones’ stroke

JOSHUA N. TIMMERMANS/ ZUMA PRESS/TNS

Sharon Jones, shown at the Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2014, died Nov. 18 in Cooperstown, New York, of pancreatic cancer.

EURWEB.COM

Sharon Jones, the soulfully explosive vocalist for the Dap-Kings died Nov. 18 at age 60 from pancreatic cancer. But there’s more to the story.

It seems the Grammynominated singer also suffered a stroke, which was induced by Donald Trump winning the presidential election.

Dap-Kings member Ga-

briel Roth told the Los Angeles Times that Jones was watching election day coverage when the stroke had occurred. He told the news outlet that when he went to visit Jones in the hospital that night (Nov. 8), she pointed to the presidential results as the cause of her health condition, which, according to Roth, ultimately led to her death.

“She told the people that were there that Trump gave her the stroke. She was blaming Trump for the whole thing,” Roth said. “She’d been fighting cancer for a few years now, and there’s been all kinds of stuff coming at her. But the thing that actually got her in the last couple of weeks was, she had a stroke watching the election results. After that first stroke she couldn’t move her leg, but she could still talk.”

Her website said she died surrounded by her loved ones, including her band, the Dap-Kings.

Jones’ struggle to return to the stage after her 2013 cancer diagnosis was the subject of a recent documentary titled “Miss Sharon Jones.”

THE ROOTS

You can catch The Roots on Dec. 29 at the House of Blues Orlando.

The show starts at 7:30 p.m.

FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR Pompano Beach: The Festival of Praise tour with Fred Hammond, Hezekiah Walker and Israel Houghton stops at the Pompano Beach Amphitheater on Nov. 30 and the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts on Dec. 1.

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.

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 Kenny G performs Nov. 28 at the Florida Theatre Jacksonville.

His holiday tour stops at Fort Lauderdale’s Parker Playhouse on Dec. 1.

Jacksonville: The Comedy Get Down show featuring Cedric the Entertainer, Eddie Griffin, D.L. Hughley, George Lopez and Charlie Murphy

will be at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial on Dec. 9.

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

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.

Ponte Vedra: The Stanley Clarke Band performs Dec. 2 at the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall. He also performs Dec. 4 at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.

Miami: The King and Queen of Hearts Tour featuring Maxwell and Mary J. Blige stops at the AmericanAirlinesArena on Nov. 29.

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

Tickets: www.AutoShowOrlando.com.

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.

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NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

FAMILY FEATURES

Transforming that leftover holiday turkey or ham from an ordinary dish you heat up in the microwave or let go to waste into an extraordinary meal may be easier than you think.

From flatbread pizza to a hearty stew, enhancing your everyday meals is easy with Holland House Cooking Wines, available in five flavors – Marsala, Sherry, White, Red and White with Lemon. The premium, flavor-enhancing cookFAMILY BARBECUE TURKEY MINI FLATBREAD Servings: 4 Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 10 minutes 2 cups Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine 1/2 cup barbecue sauce 1 1/2 cups roasted turkey, large diced 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 tablespoons yellow onion, small diced 1cup zucchini, large diced 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese 1 cup smoked Gouda cheese, shredded 1 cup fontina cheese, shredded 2 flatbreads (approximately 8 inches each)

FOOD

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ing wines are a go-to countertop ingredient and can be used to add a bold boost to any dish whether it’s around the holidays or just pasta for an any-night family dinner.

These recipes from Guy Meikle, corporate chef for Mizkan America, Inc., show how easy it is to whip up a new twist on holiday leftovers with Holland House Cooking Wines. You can also find quick tips for boosting the flavor of everyday meals on the label of each bottle.

Find more recipes and tips at HollandHouseFlavors.com.

2 teaspoons cilantro, chopped Heat oven to 400 F. In small saucepan, reduce cooking wine to about 1/2 cup. Mix with barbecue sauce.

Toss diced turkey with about 1 tablespoon of sauce and set the entire mixture aside.

Heat oil and saute onion and zucchini about 3 minutes over high heat. Season with garlic salt and remove from heat; mix in Parmesan cheese. Set aside.

In small bowl, mix Gouda and fontina cheeses together and set aside.

Spread each flatbread with an even layer of barbecue sauce. Top each with 1 cup cheese and half the zucchini and turkey mixtures.

Bake 10 minutes.

Garnish with chopped cilantro then cut flatbreads in half to serve.

TURKEY AND CARAMELIZED ONION JAM STUFFED EMPANADAS Servings: 15 Prep time: 20 minutes Cook time: 15 minutes 2 tablespoons butter 1 cup turkey, diced into 1/2inch cubes 2 tablespoons dried figs, diced into 1/2-inch cubes 1 cup button mushrooms, minced 3 tablespoons caramelized onions 2 tablespoons Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine salt, to taste pepper, to taste Empanada Dough (recipe below) 1 egg, beaten

Cranberry Dipping Sauce (recipe below) Heat oven to 350 F. In pan, heat butter; add turkey, figs, mushrooms and caramelized onions.

Deglaze pan with cooking wine; season with salt and pepper, and cool.

Roll out dough 1/8- to 1/4inch thick and cut into 15 3-inch circles.

Brush egg on entire disc of dough, eliminating any air bubbles, and place 1 table­ spoon filling in center of each circle.

Fold dough in half and crimp with fork; prick top with toothpick to let steam out.

Place empanada on greased sheet tray and brush with remaining egg; bake 15 min­utes until golden brown.

Place on plate and serve with Cranberry Dipping Sauce.

EMPANADA DOUGH Servings: 15 Cook time: 5 minutes 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 4 ounces butter 1 egg 1/3 cup ice water 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar Sift flour and salt.

HEARTY HAM AND BEAN PROTEIN BOWL Servings: 4-6 Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 30-45 minutes Total time: 3 hours 1 ham bone 12 cups water, divided 2 bay leaves 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns 1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus 3 tablespoons, divided 1 cup yellow onion, small diced, plus 3 tablespoons finely chopped, divided 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1/4 cup Holland House Red Cooking Wine 3 cans (15 ounces each) pinto beans, undrained 1/2 cup sour cream 8 ounces wild rice 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper 2 tablespoons Holland House Sherry Cooking Wine 3 cups fresh okra, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces at an angle 1 1/2 cups grilled corn kernels 1 1/2 cups kosher dill pickle, sliced

Cut butter into small cubes and blend into flour.

Whisk together egg, ice water and vinegar.

Add egg mixture to flour and mix until just incorporated.

On table, knead dough; wrap and chill 1 hour.

CRANBERRY ORANGE MARSALA DIPPING SAUCE Servings: 15 Cook time: 5 minutes 1 1/2 cups whole cranberry sauce 2 tablespoons whole unpeeled orange, finely chopped 3 tablespoons Holland House Marsala Cooking wine Mix all ingredients thoroughly.

1/4 cup parsley 4 teaspoons tarragon To prepare broth: In 4-quart stock pot, combine ham bone, 8 cups water, bay leaves and peppercorns. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 2 hours. Strain broth and set aside.

In same stock pot, heat 1/4 cup oil and saute 1 cup onion and garlic 2 minutes. Pour in red cooking wine and reduce by half. Add in canned pinto beans; no need to drain. Bring to boil and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer soup about 30-45 minutes, or until liquid is reduced to stew-like consistency.

Place sour cream in mixing bowl and ladle in some cook­ing liquid to temper it. Add back to soup while stirring. Let simmer a few minutes.

To prepare rice: In small saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add remaining onion and saute 1-2 minutes. Add rice and stir until coated with oil. Pour in remaining water and cook covered about 45 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from heat and rest, covered, 10 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and sherry cooking wine.

In 10-inch skillet, heat remain­ing oil. Saute okra about 3 min­utes, or until slightly charred.

For each bowl: Place rice and stew in center and garnish with 1/4 cup grilled corn, 1/4 cup diced pickles, 1/2 cup okra, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley and sprinkle of tarragon.

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FOOD

NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 1, 2016

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THE PERFECT PIECE OF PORK

To make sure the main course this holiday season – a yummy, juicy ham – is cooked and prepared to perfection, there are some simple steps to follow.

Thaw It While ham can be cooked without thawing, for best results the first step to a tasty ham is properly thawing it in either the refrigerator or cold water. Never thaw a ham on the counter, as it can become subject to bacterial growth when the outside warms but the inside remains frozen. Remember: The larger the ham, the longer it needs to thaw before cooking.

Bake It Once the ham is properly thawed, start by heating your oven to 325 F and lining a roasting pan with aluminum foil. You’ll want to cook the ham low and slow to avoid drying it out, and lining the pan helps limit the mess.

As it bakes, don’t forget to flip it over about halfway through the process.

Check It When the ham gets close to being done cooking, take the safe route and check its tempera­ture. The USDA recommends bringing pork to 145 F to help ensure it’s cooked thoroughly.

Finish It After pulling the ham from the oven, let it rest 15 minutes before slicing. Because the ham will continue baking outside the oven for a short period, allowing it to rest holds in those delicious juices. If you’re looking for a different way to please your guests’ palates, try glazing it with different mixtures that could include anything from brown sugar to fruit juices.

PHOTO COURTESY OF GETTY IMAGES

A full, delicious menu with sides and snacks FAMILY FEATURES

Preparing the perfect ham for all of your holiday guests to share can feel like a lot of pressure, but complementing the main dish with sides, snacks and desserts can help take a bite out of that overwhelming feeling.

To help fill out your dinner table this holiday season, start with a crowd-pleasing appetizer like Bacon and Cheddar Ranch Dip that can ease everyone into the meal.

Serve up a tasty side, such as Balsamic Glazed Roasted Root Vegetables, so that the ham doesn’t stand alone.

Then, just as dinner’s grasp wears away, treat your guests to White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn Bark as a delightful holiday sendoff.

A Dozen Ways to Dip

Variations

Liven up the party platter by transforming tradi­tional ranch dressing into crowd-pleasing dips, just by adding a few simple ingredients.

Litehouse Homestyle Ranch Dressing is a versatile base that can be mixed with anything from sriracha to basil and Parmesan cheese to create dips that pair perfectly with fresh-cut vegetables, crackers, bread and more.

To achieve different flavored dips, use any of the following mix-ins in place of bacon and cheddar cheese: Avocado Basil and Parmesan cheese Sriracha Barbecue sauce Dill pickles Chili pepper and lime Shredded chicken and hot sauce Cilantro and jalapenos Garden vegetables Roasted garlic Caramelized onions and Worcestershire sauce

BACON AND CHEDDAR RANCH DIP 1 cup Litehouse Homestyle Ranch Dressing chopped bacon, to taste shredded cheddar cheese, to taste assorted dippers Combine ranch dressing with chopped bacon and shredded cheddar cheese, to taste.

Serve immediately with assorted dippers.

A Tasty Holiday Treat As your calendar begins to fill up around the holidays, keeping a few simple ingredients on hand can be the difference between enjoying the festivities and feeling overwhelmed. An ingredient such as popcorn can help you serve up a tasty dessert like this White Chocolate Popcorn Crunch that packs both a festive punch and a sweet crunch. Find more quick holiday recipes at popcorn.org.

WHITE CHOCOLATE POPCORN CRUNCH 5 cups popped popcorn 1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries 1/2 cup sliced almonds 12 ounces white chocolate baking chips, chopped white chocolate or white candy coating 1-2 tablespoons vegetable shortening (optional) Cover baking pan with foil or wax paper; set aside. Place popcorn, cranberries and almonds in large bowl; set aside.

In double boiler over barely simmering water, melt chocolate, stirring until smooth, or melt according to package directions. (If chocolate is not smooth after melting, stir in 1-2 tablespoons shortening until mixture is smooth and loose enough to coat popcorn.)

Pour chocolate mixture over popcorn mixture; stir to coat.

Spread onto prepared pan; allow to cool completely.

When chocolate is cooled and set, break into chunks for serving.

Store leftovers in airtight container at room temperature.

Roast a Savory Side Fill your home with the wonderful aroma of Balsamic Glazed Roasted Root Vegetables. Easyto-make and completely satisfying, this holiday staple is ideal for a crowd and comes together beautifully with a pan that has raised circles for better browning, like the Circulon Symmetry Chocolate sheet pan. For more Circulon cookware and bakeware options, shop Circulon at Macy’s and Macys.com.

BALSAMIC GLAZED ROASTED ROOT VEGETABLES Recipe courtesy of Circulon Gourmet Cookware 2 onions, quartered 10 cloves garlic, unpeeled 2 cups carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 1 celery root, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 2 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 3 turnips, peeled and cut in half to about 2-inch pieces 1-2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3-inch pieces

1 cup winter squash, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes 2-3 potatoes, cut into 2-inch quarters 1-2 white or gold beets, peeled and quartered 2 tablespoons olive oil salt pepper 3 sprigs rosemary 3 sprigs thyme Circulon Symmetry Chocolate sheet pan Glaze: 2 tablespoons oil 3 tablespoons maple syrup 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 1/2 teaspoon rosemary Heat oven to 425 F. Combine vegetables, olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme; toss well.

Spread on sheet pan. Cover and bake 40 minutes.

Check vegetables and cook another 5 minutes, if needed, or until vegetables are tender but not mushy. Remove rosemary and thyme; add salt and pepper.

Combine glaze ingredients and cook 5-10 minutes until thickened. Pour over vegetables before serving; stir to combine.