Florida Courier - December 23, 2016

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CELEBRATING OUR 10TH YEAR STATEWIDE!

Cities forever changed by mass shootings See Page B1 www.flcourier.com

DECEMBER 23 – DECEMBER 29, 2016

VOLUME 24 NO. 52

WHAT’S NEXT FOR HBCUs? BY WILLIAM DOUGLAS MCCLATCHY WASHINGTON BUREAU / TNS

WASHINGTON – What does President-elect Donald Trump know about historically Black colleges and universities? That’s what leaders and advocates of the nation’s HBCUs, the common shorthand for historically Black schools, have been trying to figure out since Trump’s surprising victory in November’s presidential election. “What are the priorities for HBCUs in the new administration? I don’t know,” said Ronald Carter, president of Johnson C. Smith University, a four-year private HBCU in Charlotte, N.C. “I think it’s a bit premature to try to guess or de-

In discussions Leaders of HBCU officials and Historically Black Trump advisers have been Colleges and huddling, having discusUniversities are sions that some particidescribe as listening searching for ways pants sessions and sales pitches to work with the for the incoming administo heavily invest in incoming Trump tration the 100-plus HBCU camadministration. puses, which are home to

Reality TV personality Omarosa Manigault, at the podium, is expected to be a critical link between HBCUs and Donald Trump.

duce what he’ll do and what the priorities will be for higher education in general and Historically Black Colleges and Universities in particular.” But it appears that the incoming 45th president is trying to learn as much about Black colleges as the institutions are trying to learn about his level of his commitment to funding and supporting their campuses.

former reality-show star who serves on Trump’s transition team, attended a December meeting of HBCU presidents in Atlanta hosted by the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education. Manigault, who gained fame in the first season of “The Apprentice,” is a graduate of Central State University in Ohio and Washington’s Howard Universi-

about 300,000 students. Earlier this month, Sam Clovis, a national co-chairman and policy director for Trump’s campaign, met with Johnny Taylor, president of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, at the fund’s Washington office, continuing a conversation about HBCUs that had begun during the Republican primaries. The fund is an HBCU support and advocacy organization. Omarosa Manigault, a

DAVID T. FOSTER III/CHARLOTTE OBSERVER/TNS

ty, both HBCUs.

Knows the struggle “She knows about the difficulties HBCUs face,” said Tashni-Ann Dubroy, president of Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C. “The HBCU presidents that were in the room were there to inform her about current challenges that she might not be in tune with.” There are 107 HBCUs in

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON

The Dolphins give back

the United States and U.S. Virgin Islands. North Carolina tops the list, with five public and five private fouryear institutions. Several HBCU campuses are struggling financially, suffering from low endowment compared with predominately White institutions, and dealing with aging facilities. See HBCUs, Page A2

‘The Prince of PanAfrikanism’ Dr. Umar Johnson to lecture in Florida BY ANDREAS BUTLER FLORIDA COURIER

This week, Miami Dolphins players, coaches, cheerleaders, Miami Dolphins Women’s Organization members and mascot “T.D.” welcomed 125 preselected kids from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach elementary schools to the Dolphins Holiday Toy Event at Baptist Health Training Facility. Players Jakeem Grant and Lafayette Pitts helped give out toys.

JACKSONVILLE – The self-proclaimed “Prince of Pan-Afrikanism,” Dr. Umar Johnson, is coming to Florida. Pan-Africanism promotes freedom, unity, self-determination, and self-sufficiency as well as economic, political and social independence for Africans and their descendants worldwide. Johnson, a certified school psychologist and advocate of Pan-Africanism who shot to national prominence with the release of the popular “Hidden Colors” video series, will deliver a Ujimaa Kwanzaa message at the Regency Square Mall Event Planning Center in Jacksonville on December 28. His Kwanzaa tour includes stops in Baltimore on December 26 and in Detroit on December 30. “I’ve been on this tour for six years. My tour isn’t about the cultural aspects of Kwanzaa but it is more politically-minded,” Johnson told the Florida Courier. He will appear at Fort Lauderdale’s Rev. Samuel Delevoe Memorial Park on January 18, 2017 in what’s called See JOHNSON, Page A2

Florida leads states in Obamacare enrollment THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

Florida led the nation with 1.3 million residents signing up for 2017 coverage under the federal Affordable Care Act by a Monday deadline, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday. Floridians seeking health insurance through the federal marketplace were up more than 14 percent from the 1.14 million Floridians who had signed up during the same time last year, federal officials said. More than 1.5 million Floridians were covered by the federal program, which is also known as Obamacare, in 2016. The 1.3 million Floridians

ALSO INSIDE

signed up for 2017 coverage will grow, as the number does not include consumers who were automatically enrolled in the program, federal officials said.

More to come The number also only reflects those signing up for coverage beginning Jan. 1. Floridians can still enroll in Obamacare through Jan. 31, with the coverage beginning March 1. Updated numbers, including the automatic enrollees, will be released next month. In a phone conference with reporters, Sylvia Burwell, the Health and Human Services secretary, said the Florida numbers, and the record 6.4 million

consumers who signed up nationally for the Jan. 1 coverage, reflect the fact that the federal health care program “is vital to them and their families.” Burwell said the federal health care program faces “head winds” as President-elect Donald Trump and Congress have vowed to repeal Obamacare. But she said Floridians who sign up for the 2017 coverage will be covered through next year, as the debate evolves over repealing and replacing the program in Washington, D.C.

Still no plan Congressional Republicans are considering a “lightningstrike” rollback of Obamacare

early next year to kick off the Trump era, but first they have to agree on a plan. The Republican plan would take advantage of “reconciliation,” a budget-related mechanism to circumvent the 60-vote threshold in the Senate and prevent Democrats from being able to block legislation on their own. By striking early, the GOP could set itself up to invoke the same procedure again later in the year on a broader range of targets, including tax cuts. Passing something in Trump’s first 100 days would allow Republicans to claim a big win early on, and conservatives are demanding the GOP deliver quickly.

SNAPSHOTS FLORIDA | A3

Damages from hurricanes near $1.6 billion NATION | A6

Lawmakers back program to probe lynchings SPORTS | B4

FOOD | B5

Donations up Recipes after Elliott for holiday jumps in kettle leftovers

COMMENTARY: GLEN FORD: GO TO WASHINGTON TO FIGHT FOR BLACK SELF-DETERMINATION | A4 COMMENTARY: DR. WILMER LEON: IT’S WINTER IN AMERICA WHEN DEMS WONT DEFEND DEMOCRACY | A5


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