I Messenger 7-30-21 by Cheryl Smith

I MESSENGER VOL X NO 45 JULY 30, 2021

GYM DREAMS Grambling studies adding women’s gymnastics team

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Established 2011 CREDO OF THE BLACK PRESS The Black Press believes that America can best lead the world away from racial and national antagonisms when it accords to every person, regardless of race, color or creed, full human and legal rights. Hating no person, fearing no person, the Black Press strives to help every person in the firm belief that all are hurt as long as anyone is held back. July 30, 2021

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OUR VOICES By A. Peter Bailey

I truly understand why most whites and their “Black” allies are so angry with the Critical Race Theory approach to teaching American History. After all, for some 400 years they and their ancestors have gotten away with misinforming and often lying about that history in educational institutions throughout the country. For instance, from elementary to high school to three years in the U.S. military, I was never taught the real deal about this country’s history, especially when it came to people of African descent. My introduction to Black History came when I was a 20 yearold freshman at Howard University. On the first day of class our history professor, Dr. Harold Lewis, said, “ALL of your lives you have mainly studied the history of people of European descent. In this class you will study the history of the rest of the people in the world.” Thus began my learning the true history of this country. For instance, I learned that 24 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence, in-

The ‘Critical Race Theory’ and the real deal in US History cluding Thomas Jefferson, were enslavers of African men, women and children. Despite this, they signed a document that stated: “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…” When reading this one can only conclude that Jefferson and his cohorts didn’t consider enslaved Africans as human beings. Further along in the much-hallowed Declaration, the signers attacked the King of Great Britain with the following: “He has plundered our seas ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns and destroyed the lives of our people…” Which is exactly what proponents of the Critical Race Theory insists they did to African people. By the way, many, if not most, of the other 32 signors of the Declaration of Independence may not have been slave owners but they did provide the ships that transported African men, women and

children to North and South America and the Caribbean. Thus, they benefited financially. Black folks who celebrate historical days honoring enslavers of African people are ignoring what Amos N. Wilson wrote in his book, “The Falsification of Afrikan Consciousness: Eurocentric History, Psychiatry and the Politics of White Supremacy”… The History of the oppressed, as written by the oppressor, shapes the consciousness and psychology of both oppressed and oppressor. It helps to legitimize the oppressive system and to maintain an imbalance of power and favor of the oppressor….” We, as Black folks, will greatly benefit educationally, psychologically and financially if we celebrate and honor, among others, the warriors and events cited in Lerone Bennett Jr’s book, “Great Moments in Black History: Wade in the Water.” A. Peter Bailey is a Tr i c e E d n e y Wi r e . c o m Columnist.

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INSIDE

I Was Just Thinking...

Viola’s House

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Highly regarded businessman When there were discussions about business and the Black communities of Tarrant County, Devoyd Jennings, President and CEO of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce (FWMBCC), was at the center of those conversations for decades. He died early Saturday.

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July 30, 2021

MY TRUTH by Cheryl Smith Publisher

Feel Good Times I am so glad I had a few feel good moments and wanted to share them with you. June, which is always an exciting month, was especially exciting but challenging for me in 2021. My sorority sister (bka line sister), who pledged with me on the campus of Florida A&M University 43 years ago, got married. It was a joyous occasion as sisters from Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and Chicago gathered in Houston for the celebration. We even had Karaoke Night and you should have seen me as I did Al Green proud with “Let’s Stay Together!” Congrats to Larry and Angela!

There was also a meeting of the Black Press, Black Texas Legislators and the NAACP to discuss the 87th Legislative session that had just ended. The candid comments from legislators gave us food for thought and should have fueled many of us to move to action. I then went to a wonderful Black-owned restaurant, Turkey Leg Hut, after visiting the impressive offices of the Houston Forward-Times. It’s always a joy to visit the homes of some of our historic Black newspapers and so much is happening under National Newspaper Publishers Association Chair Karen Carter Richards, who

is the publisher. And just think! It’s been about 14 years since I had turkey, and that one bite, encouraged by editor Jeff Boney, has me planning my next trip to H-Town! Next, it was off to Florida, the home of the great Florida A&M University (FAMU)! On a sad note, we said our farewell to Emmanuel Curet, whose life was celebrated in Miami. There are no words to ex-

press the respect I have for his mother, Nadrina. Talk about beautiful inside and out; spiritually grounded and loving! Then there’s Emmanuel’s beautiful daughter, Emani, who would like to become a FAMU Rattler, so I am in recruitment mode! Also, while in Florida, some

Emmanuel Curet 1988-2021 Cheryl with State Rep. Carl Sherman, Sr. in Houston

more FAMU Delta sisters joined me to celebrate my birthday, showering me with love and gifts! Of course we took time out to salute fathers because I had a great one and I know some great ones. So I paid tribute to Daddy and also Mother, who transitioned in June 2014. And fellow journalist and publisher of the Westside Gazette, Bobby Henry (bka Bobbeque) and his wife, my sorority sister Bertha, fried fish July 30, 2021

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I MESSENGER NABJ went to try Chicago Pizza. New Jersey wins!

NABJers winning CULTURETAGS team.

Angela and Larry Pope

for me at their beautiful home. The next day, I visited the newspaper and once again my heart was overwhelmed! You see, the story of the Westside Gazette’s founding is legendary. It seems the daily newspaper wrote something untrue about businessman Levi Henry. He visited the paper and told them that he wanted a retraction. In their arrogance and disrespect, they said, “no!” Mr. Henry told them he would start his own paper and print the truth! Well that was 50 years ago and today, my classmate, Bobby, is the publisher! Next I was off to Chicago for a National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) board meeting with President Dorothy Tucker. When we weren’t working hard for NABJ, I was dominating on the Spades table (Roland Martin wanted no parts of me), until my line sister Karen Caldwell joined forces with NABJ’s VP Broadcast Ken Lemon.

Houston Forward Times’ Jeff Boney at Turkey Leg Hut

NNPA Chair Karen Carter Richards at the Turkey Leg Hut

NABJ Vice President Broadcast Ken Lemon about to hallucinate a bid!

I didn’t do as well playing CULTURETAGS; but had a great time with Chicago ABJ members, Karen and former Dallas-area journalist Gevonna Fassett. And, as always the hospitality of Karen and hubby Kevin Fleming, was great, except for them beating Stew and I at Jenga. It was all good, though, because thanks to Karen and Dorothy, I got Uncle Joe’s wonderful seafood and Karen introduced me to ginger beer! Before I departed from the people in Houston, Miami/Fort Lauderdale and Chicago; I told them all that I loved, respected, appreciated them. Which brings me to my truth. We all know life is short. We must enjoy life, living and the people who make it all worth while.

With Bobby and Bertha Henry and Stewart Curet at the Bobbeque

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Karen Caldwell, NABJ Parliamentarian Michelle Fitzhugh Craig and Region IV Director Tre’Vell Anderson in heated competition

Yes, you should measure your words. You should determine what good comes out of what you say or don’t say because guess what? Some things are just not worth repeating and achieve absolutely nothing. If I never ever see any of the people I spent time with in June, I sure as heck tried to spread love during the time we shared. Actually every month will be like June for me, filled with love! Also, It was great to come home to dear Skylar, who I was more than happy to shower with love.

5 Skylar was a joy to come home to!

July 30, 2021

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July 30, 2021

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Accompanying photos are of girls at Grambling State University for the Brown Girls Do Gymnastics Conference where the university has committed to studying the creation of the nation’s first HBCU gymnastics team. Credit: Carlton Hamlin, GSU

GYM DREAMS By Valerie Fields Hill News Editor

Grambling State University, the powerhouse historically Black college that once created the nation’s preeminent pipeline for African American male athletes from college to the NFL, has set its sights on a new goal: sending Black female gymnasts to elite competition, including the Olympics. Grambling athletic officials said Black women are woefully under-represented at all levels of gymnastics competition - high school, collegiate and Olympics levels. They aim to change that narrative. Administrators at the 120-year-old public HBCU in rural North Louisiana said they will begin a feasibility study in September to create the nation’s first wommyimessenger.com

Grambling studies adding women’s gymnastics team en’s gymnastics team at a historically Black college or university. “We’re going to study it aggressively,” said Dr. Trayveon Scott, Grambling’s incoming vice president for intercollegiate athletics. “We’re 100 percent committed to studying the possibility of it.” Dr. Scott made the statements this weekend as more than 200 Black girls and their parents, dozens of coaches and other clinicians flew into Louisiana or drove up to 12 hours to attend the fifth annual

Brown Girls Do Gymnastics conference being held at the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center on Grambling’s campus. The sight of so many girls as young as four years old, vaulting in leotards emblazoned with images of young Black girls rocking puff-ball natural hairstyles on the front and other leos with a “G” for Grambling on the back, has accelerated interest in developing a women’s gymnastics team sooner than later, university officials said. “This is tremendous,” said Tisha Arnold, director of university communications at Grambling. “These girls are already on the next level. Any of them could be on the next US Olympics team in the next four years.” Grambling administrators said their feasibility study could take up to nine months to complete. It will include reJuly 30, 2021

search of gymnastics equipment costs, facility needs, coaching requirements, travel expenses and a determination of which athletic conference the proposed women’s team would compete. One NCAA women’s gymnastics coach welcomed the university’s plans. “You only get (one) opportunity to be the first. Grambling is primed for that,” said Umme Salim-Beasley,

women’s gymnastics coach at Rutgers University. “The interest is there. We’re really pushing this.” Salim-Beasley is chair of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association, a group representing the nation’s NCAA college gymnastics coaches. Efforts to start new college gymnastics programs would grow the sport beyond those currently participating, Salim-Beasley said. In the past, African American women who have wanted to compete in the sport at HBCUs have had nowhere to go; July 30, 2021

so they drop out of the sport altogether, she said. That includes Salim-Beasley herself, who years ago while visiting Howard University in Washington D.C. as a high school student, asked whether the HBCU had a women’s gymnastics team. She was scoffed at, she said, and reminded that she was touring an HBCU campus. No HBCUs sponsored gymnastics teams, she was told. “They just laughed at me. They said ‘Well, you do know we’re a Black school. You do know that’s a white sport’,” Salim-Beasley recalled. “That was disheartening to me.” She went on to compete at predominantly white West Virginia University from 1994 to 1998, and later to coach women’s gymnastics at Temple University before taking the head women’s coach’s position at Rutgers in May 2018. However, she never forgot her experience years ago during that campus tour at Howard, where both her father had earned his master’s degree and grandfather had completed his dental studies. “Really, from that time period on, I’ve just been trying to let people know that gymnastics is for brown girls,” she said. “Everyone should be able to have choices and opportunities,” said the coach, who flew from New Jersey to Shreveport and drove another hour to get to the conference at Grambling. “This is giving those gymnasts of color a choice (of teams on which to compete) where before they had no choice.” Grambling currently has eight women’s athletic teams - basketball, bowling, tennis, soccer, softball, volleyball, cross country and track and field. The women’s gymnastics team would be its ninth.

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The teams compete on NCAA Division I in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, or the SWAC. No SWAC colleges, nor any of the nation’s other 106 public or private historically Black universities, offer gymnastics – women’s or men’s. By contrast, there are 80 women’s collegiate gymnastics teams, all at predominantly white universities and at the US Air Force Academy, according to USA Gymnastics, one of the leading governing bodies of the sport. “LSU, Georgia, Ole Miss, Stanford, TCU, those are a few who offer the sport,” Dr. Scott said. “If we approach this at Grambling, it would show black and brown girls that their opportunities in gymnastics are limitless.” Dr. Scott’s statements come amidst national conversation calling for racial equity and representation in all areas of women’s gymnastics – including in coaching, judging, gym ownership and competition. For months leading up to the US Olympics trials, gymnastics judges faced criticism and charges of racism after they deducted points from African American gymnast Simone Biles’ scores when she performed vaults deemed too dangerous for the sport. Judges have said their decisions were made to discourage other athletes from attempting the moves. Biles competes at the Tokyo Olympic Games, which open Sunday. At Grambling last weekend, conversations regarding inequity – and insensitivity over hair styles and body image in the sport - were part of a panel discussion during the Brown Girls Do Gymnastics conference. Among Saturday’s panelists was the mother of former

University of Alabama gymnast Tia Kiaku, who quit the women’s gymnastics team in 2020 after she said the university allowed a culture of racism to fester on the team. Kiaku accused an assistant coach of making a racist comment toward her and two fellow African American gymnasts. “They all were telling their stories,” said D’Carra Harrison, who drove more than four hours to bring her 8-year-old

daughter Jaycee, the only African American girl competing at Level 4 on her team in Cypress, Texas, near Houston, to the conference. “Tia’s mom was there,” Harrison said. “Actually her story was horrible,” Harrison, who attended Grambling herself as an undergraduate, said she had no idea before this weekend’s conference that the sport Jaycee loves is so fraught with pitfalls that could potentially damage her daughter’s mental health. “Each person who came and spoke gave us their contact information,” for support myimessenger.com

if needed, she said. “That part, I appreciated.” There also was talk of Olympic dreams. This weekend, coincidentally, is opening weekend for the Tokyo Games. Derrin Moore, who founded Brown Girls Do Gymnastics to promote the inclusion of Black and Latina women in competitive gymnastics, didn’t plan this weekend’s conference around the opening weekend of the Olympics. She sometimes is uncomfortable when there’s too much conversation about the elite levels of the sport and not enough about the collegiate and levels below it. While she celebrates Biles’, Jordan Chiles’ and Sunisa Lee’s inclusion as a historic 50 percent of the US women’s Olympic gymnastics team, still she worries that those viewing the Olympics may falsely assume that all levels of the sport are equally as accessible and inclusive: They are not. “The Olympic team is just not a good representation” of the entirety of gymnastics, said Moore, who lives in Atlanta and has coached competitive gymnastics for 25 years. “There’s a difference between the collegiate route and Olympic or elite.” Moore says Black women athletes who compete at elite levels such as the Olympics represent a miniature image of the sport – not a full view. Such gymnasts often hail from families who have the economic means to compete in the wildly expensive sport of gymnastics. “Black people have money now,” Moore said. “That’s why you see the Simone Biles and the Jordan Chiles, because their parents have the resources. “There’s so many extreme situations that have to happen to be at that level. It’s just not myimessenger.com

a true representation of gymnastics. It’s just a small representation,” Moore said. Her assertions are accurate, according to a new study expected to be released next week by The Doug Williams Center for the Study of Race & Politics in Sports. The Center, which is housed on Grambling’s campus, is a new institute dedicated to researching, among other issues, the influence, history and impact of African American athletes in US society and politics. Raven Thissel, a spokeswoman for the Center’s new study, said research shows that Black women do not participate in US gymnastics at the same levels as white women, among other reasons, because they simply can’t afford to do so. “Cost comes down to one of the barriers for people of color,” Thissel said. “That is because of the dramatic gap of wealth in America.” On average, participating at the entry level of competitive gymnastics, Level 1, costs about $500 per year for training, leotards and other expenses, Thissel said the study found. Competing at elite levels, Level 8 and above, costs an average of $20,000 annually, she said. For context, the average Latin American household earns $41,000 per year while the average African American household wages are far less, said Thissel, who is the marketing and public relations director at The Doug Williams Center. There’s little money left, she said. “That type of money is just not there for expending on extracurriculars.” Grambling State’s administrators and athletics officials contend they can bridge the gap – and vault Black and Lati-

na women into US gymnastics arenas. Doing so would not be Grambling’s first exercise in catapulting athletes to elite levels. In the 1960s, Grambling State sent a continuous roster of Black men to play in the NFL and in Major League Baseball. Grambling’s Willie Brown was signed by the then AFL Houston Oilers after leaving the college in 1963. He and Buck Buchanan, Charlie Joiner, Ernie Ladd and others were part of Grambling’s famed college-to-professional sports pipeline. The pipeline continued throughout the 1970s, although the feed slowed with desegregation and the admission of Black athletes to predominantly white universities. In the 1980s, under the guidance of the legendary Coach Eddie Robinson, the winningest coach in college football history, Grambling continued to send athletes to the NFL, including the first Black quarterback to play in a Super Bowl, Doug Williams. The Doug Williams Center for the Study of Race & Politics is named for the university’s former star quarterback. It’s this history that leads Grambling administrators to believe they know the roadmap for athletic success – even in a sport in which the college

has never competed. “When you think about the athletic legacy of Grambling State, the home of Eddie Robinson, Everson Walls and Doug Williams, the legacy is there,” added Arnold. “This is the premier place to do it.” If this weekend’s conference offers any window into the future of gymnastics, Arnold may be correct. Niki Martin traveled 12 hours by car from Louisville, Ky. to bring her four-year-old daughter Kamryn to the Grambling campus where her father had been an administrator before leaving just weeks ago. After 2020’s race riots in her home city and elsewhere across the nation, Martin hopes Kamryn’s future includes a choice of competing on an HBCU team in a supportive and nurturing social environment. “She already made a comment ‘Mom, a lot of these girls look like me’,” Martin said of the toddler. “For her to recognize that is a big deal.” Martin said Grambling’s plans are within “perfect timing with everything that is going on in this country.” “In 2020, we saw a lot of things happen between George Floyd and Breonna Taylor,” said Martin, a former competitive gymnast herself. “I think it’s the perfect time to do this.” July 30, 2021

Please Run for School Board THE LAST WORD BY DR. JULIANNE MALVEAUX

Critical race theory (CRT) asserts that racism is woven into the very fabric of our nation’s institutions. This is not new information for those who have studied how race affects our economy, politics, education, health care, and more. CRT is not an attempt to “blame” white America for its origins as much as it is a pedagogical approach to reality. Through critical race theory, we can see the many ways that the uneven application of laws allowed envious white people to destroy Tulsa’s Black Wall Street, colonizers to gentrify Black neighborhoods, doctors to experiment on Black people and more. CRT helps us understand how California stole parts of Mexico, Chinese people were imported here (without wives or families) to build railroads, and how our Constitution defined black folks as fractions of people. Attorney and Professor Derrick Bell (1930-2011) wrote about the many ways our racist gendered patriarch systematically oppressed Black people and others at the periphery. He used both legal theory and fiction to amplify his points. Critical race theory has been taught in our nation’s colleges and universities, and especially in our law schools, for decades. July 30, 2021

Now white legislators are passing laws in several states to outlaw the teaching of CRT because it hits too close to home. Much of this legislation demonstrates how ignorant some of these legislators are. It also illustrates how heated the battle for fact and knowledge is. Some think the South won the Civil War, which they describe as the war of “North-

conservative leaders are urging them to “take over” the schools by running for school boards around the country. Rich Lowry, the National Review Editor, wrote a piece, “The Point of the Anti-CRT Fight Should Be To Take Over the Schools”. What he means is to take over young people’s brains. Lowry is smart enough to know that the historical whitewash conser-

ern Aggression”. Though the statues are coming down, there are still those who believe those statues were erected for heroism, not resistance to equality. And every time you see a Confederate flag flying, you must know that hose stars and bars were only added to state flags after Brown V. Board of Education became law, and white Southerners wanted to communicate their allegiance to racism. The legislators who oppose CRT also oppose knowledge. Now, their fearlessly foolish

vatives are attempting cannot withstand historical scrutiny. So he and his conservative minions would instead inject their ideology into our schools, using low-turnout, low-budget races to grab power. Roland S. Martin deserves credit for lifting this. He has been looking at the damage school boards do for years. He says, and Lowry echoes, the power school boards have. To choose book vendors. To shape the curriculum. To select teachers and trainers. The anti-CRT crowd would shut this

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down. But we also shut ourselves down when we get stuck at the top of the ballot. It is essential to choose a President and Vice=President, a Senator and Congressperson, and it is equally important to select a zoning commissioner or a school board member. Rich Lowry’s piece makes it clear and makes it plain. He says that “education is too important to be left to educators.” He wants rabid (he didn’t say white, but I will) parents to run for school boards and to use their passion to lock knowledge out. So this is my plea to woke, progressive Black folk. Please run for school board. There are tens of thousands of Black women who have retired from education. Would you please run for the school board? There are young people of color who understand the flaws in the education that was delivered to them. Please run for school board. There are entrepreneurs who decry the inadequate education that so many young people bring when they apply for new jobs. Please run for school board. Many of these posts can be won with a few hundred votes and a few thousand dollars. The right-wing has their marching orders. We need to have ours, too. We can serve our communities and our nation by standing up for knowledge. Please run for school board. Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an author, economist, and social commentator.

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Heard it through the Grapevine…. My mother is one of the wisest individuals I know. Her wisdom didn’t come from books solely. A lot of people age but do not necessarily learn from their experiences and environments. My mother’s wit often comes in the form of expressions. One of my favorite ‘momisms’ is that a dog that brings a bone also takes a bone. Translation: People who gossip about others generally take something that you said back to others. Gossips don’t keep secrets. They share them. Some people feel that telling the truth is different. It doesn’t matter if the information is true that you are sharing. If it was shared in confidence, it isn’t your responsibility to share it with others. All gossip isn’t bad. According to research conducted by Hartung, Krohn, and Pirschtat, “six distinct motives were identified that underlie gossip behavior: information validation, information gathering, relationship building, protection, social enjoyment, and negative influence.” Gossip can be a way of bonding especially if the information isn’t negative or detrimental. Research has also demonstrated that women AND men gossip— despite beliefs that women are the only ones who participate. The problem is that although gossip may not start as being malicious, it can change quickly to become slanderous. Slander is spreading rumors and lies about a person. Our society thrives on gossip. From television shows like TMZ to blogs like Media Take Out, we are obsessed as July 30, 2021

FAITHFUL UTTERANCES BY DR. FROSWA BOOKER-DREW

a society in knowing about the private lives of others. Our incessant desire to know the torrid details is not only focused on celebrities but it happens in our personal and professional lives. We know all information sharing isn’t bad but there are times when it is harmful and destructive to others. It’s especially damaging when people share their personal thoughts with others only to find out that it has been shared. Trust is broken and relationships are impacted. It takes so much time to build trust and within seconds, it can be destroyed. Gossip happens in our homes, in the church and even at work. So many people have lost jobs, relationships, money and so much more because of factious, mean-spirited gossip. Author Sherrie Campbell says there are six toxic traits of gossip that happen in the workplace but are applicable to many situations. She states that gossips are immature and that “Immaturity is

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synonymous with poor mental health.” These individuals need to feel superior by destroying the reputation of others. Other traits mentioned include: • Embellishment—the need to fabricate to appeal to others • Emotionally violent— “bargaining tool for success, using “your own words for blackmail when they see fit to mend fences with their original target”. • Seductive—”a pathological gossiper will smile to your face while scheming to suck you in for the purpose of eventually exploiting your trust.” • Insecure—” feel justified to take down anyone they see as a threat.” • Parasitic—”A gossip may appear to care about you, to be interested in what you have to say and to be a person you can trust. They will easily garner your confidence and milk you for business and personal information….” It’s so easy to focus on offenses like murder, stealing and lying not realizing that gossip kills the reputation of others, takes away from and falsifies the character of those being discussed. James 1:26 states, “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.” Gossip also has a psychological impact. According to Goodtherapy. com, “Being the focus of gossip is not only likely to be humiliating in the moment, it can also have a long-term

negative impact on a person’s self-confidence and selfesteem. This impact might, in some cases, contribute to the development of depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, and eating disorders.” The Bible affirms this in Proverbs 18:8, “The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts.” Gossip is something that matters to God: “A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid anyone who talks too much.” (Proverbs 20:19) “Without wood a fire goes out; without a gossip a quarrel dies down.” (Proverbs 26:20) “Do not go about spreading slander among your people. “‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life….” (Leviticus 19:16) Gossip destroys relationships. Gossip is not motivated in love. We are called to build up others, not tear them down. We are not to “bear false witness” (Exodus 20:19 and Deuteronomy 5:20). Our goal should be to live peaceful lives and not one that is divisive and destructive. Words are powerful and just as they can destroy, let’s use them to lift others up instead of giving into the grapevine of gossip.

Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew is the Founder and CEO of Soulstice Consultancy, specializing as a Partnership Broker and Leadership Expert for companies and organizations to thrive with measurable and meaningful impact. She also is the VP of Community Affairs and Strategic Alliances for the State Fair of Texas.

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Viola’s House By Sriya Reddy Special to Texas Metro News

Jayla Ned was 18 years old when she found herself pregnant and sleeping on park benches. After two weeks of searching on library computers for a place to go, she stumbled upon Viola’s House, which took her in that same day. Now, at 20 years old, she has a job and her own place where she can support her two children. She attributes her success to the time she spent at Viola’s House. In a dark grey dwelling situated behind Cornerstone Baptist Church, Viola’s House provides housing and support services for teen mothers. The women that stay at Viola’s House typically get assistance to finish high school, attend trade schools, and have access to the resources they need to thrive. Since 2015, the organization has housed about 240 mothers and their infants. Every Tuesday, Viola’s House has a community day where

‘a sanctuary for young moms’ grew out of one woman’s experience Founder and executive director of Viola’s House, Thana Simmons, poses for a photo at the maternity home in Dallas. Credit: Brandon Wade / Special Contributor

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mothers of children under the age of three can come and receive supplies such as diapers, clothing and formula. In the fall Viola’s House will open a baby thrift store where mothers of children up to three years old can receive a voucher and pick out clothing for their kids. As a former teen mother herself, founder Thana Hickman-Simmons is committed to providing this demographic with the support they need to thrive. “I see a piece of myself in so many of them,” Hickman-Simmons said. “It’s funny because a lot of times they look at me and think I’m just a director. Most of the time I can tell them exactly what they’re feeling and going through because I’ve been there. It makes a big difference once they know you can relate.” At the age of 17, Hickman-Simmons had her first child. She was a professional harpist at the time, and already began taking college classes. Having a child deterred her path, but Hickman-Simmons said that this was the path she was meant to be on. She still was able to finish high school and get a degree because Hickman-Simmons had her parents, her sisters, and her godmother Viola Paris. Hickman-Simmons had a support system, but many Viola’s House cliJuly 30, 2021

ents don’t have that. “100% of the girls that step in through these doors have a dysfunctional mother,” said Hickman-Simmons. “We step in as their village to offer what they need and become what they need.” A village is exactly what Ned got when she arrived. Ned described everyone who worked with her during the year she lived at Viola’s House as her auntie or her second mother. She said they always push her to do the right thing. “They’re like family,” Ned said. “That’s how I feel about everybody. Everybody that works here. When I come it’s like coming to see my family.”

Simmons has a good relationship with her own parents, she wanted the girls she works with to know that they don’t have to be family for her to look out for them. A native of Chicago, Hickman-Simmons moved to Dallas in 2007 to find a more stable life for her and her children. She got a job with AAA and is now a catastrophe manager. When Hickman-Simmons first began her work in the DFW area she had a mentorship program for teen mothers in the Plano and DeSoto school districts, but she quickly realized the girls she mentored had more immediate needs.

This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color, particularly in southern Dallas.

Hickman-Simmons named Viola’s House after her godmother, Viola Paris. She spent countless afternoons and weekends at her godmothers and came to Viola for any advice she needed. Hickman-Simmons said that Viola was her village and her safe place. “It’s the same concept here,” Hickman-Simmons said. “These girls can’t live here permanently, but we want them to know that this is a safe place, this is a safe house, and outside of their parents, we are their village.” Although Hickman -

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“The curriculum was great, right, but they wanted to know where they could sleep, where they could get diapers, where they could get their immediate needs met,” Hickman-Simmons said. “Not the long term mentoring program that I was trying to provide to them.” That’s when Hickman-Simmons said she had the crazy idea for a residential home. Viola’s House grew from two beds in a small apartment owned by Cornerstone Baptist Church to a two-story house that can accommodate up to six

women and their babies. Now they are hoping to add a secondary house for more incoming mothers. “We realized that bringing the residential component to Cornerstone would be a game changer for the organization because of the reality that many young ladies were homeless and pregnant,” Pastor Chris Simmons with Cornerstone said. “Over the years, Viola’s House has been able to assist a number of these young ladies and they have found stability in their lives which might not have otherwise been the case.” Pastor Simmons said that many of the mothers coming out of Viola’s House now work and volunteer with Cornerstone as a way to give back to their community. “There are so many examples of young ladies who are now living on their own, raising the children, completing both their high school education and working because of the support that Viola’s House has been able to offer,” Simmons said. Ned comes back to visit Viola’s House at least three times a week despite having her own place. She said she just feels comfortable there. “This place is a sanctuary for young moms,” Ned said. “Even if you don’t stay here, you can always come here if you need help.” myimessenger.com

New Mount Zion 75th Church Anniversary The New Mount Zion 75th Church Anniversary 3-Day Celebration will be Friday, July 30; Saturday, July 31; and Sunday, August 1: • Friday, July 30 – 5:00 p.m.–10:00 p.m. – Will feature NMZ Youth groups (Mime, Praise Dancers, and Steppers); Gospel Artists: Stellar Award Nominated Vincent Tharpe & Kenosis and Antwan Jenkins & Campfire Music; Gospel Rap Artist, Herschel Jorden; Spoken Word Artist, Monica Daniels; DJ Warren Brooks; games; food and fun; we will also be featuring a Black Greek Fraternities and Sororities Step Show and Stroll; and locally well-known food trucks. • Saturday, July 31 – 4:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m. – Will include an old-fashioned picnic on the grounds; Grammy Nominated Gospel Artist, JJ Hairston & Youthful Praise; Local Gospel Artists: Eric Houston & Stronger, Kim Washington, and Pastor Chris Wesley & Undignified Praise; Actress and Spoken Word Artist, Sha Bailey; more food and games; Dominoes, Spades, Bible Bingo; a Rock-Climbing wall and Zip- lining. **Note: Families are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, picnic blankets, tents, grills, fish fryers, and picnic baskets filled with your favorite foods. • Sunday, August 1 – 10:30 a.m. – Will feature Actress and Spoken Word Artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sha Bailey; Guest Minister, Pastor Chris Wesley, Senior Pastor of Antioch Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church, Dallas, Texas; and Gospel Artist, Antwan Jenkins & Campfire Music from Indianapolis, Indiana. myimessenger.com

July 30, 2021

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SMU Perkins five Black trailblazers changed face of campus I WAS JUST THINKING... NORMA ADAMS-WADE

In part II here, we discuss what happened concerning desegregation at SMU after the first five Black Perkins School of Theology students integrated the campus in 1952 then graduated in 1955? In 2013, Scott Alan Cashion was a candidate for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in History at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. His doctoral research gives a fairly clear view of how SMU’s “lily-white” walls came down during the 1950s to 1970s when the school began to be more visibly integrated. Here are some highlights of subsequent years gleaned from Cashion’s research: • 1955. The year that the first five Black students graduat-

Irving Baker

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ed from Perkins. They were John Elliot, James Hawkins, James Lyles, Negail Riley, and A. Cecil Williams as chronicled in Part I. That same year, trustees agreed to admit “qualified” Black students to evening classes at SMU’s Dedman School of Law. Ruby Braden Curl, who was about age 30ish and had been a Dallas public elementary school teacher for about nine years, became that first Black Dedman student. Records indicate Curl left after about one year. • 1956 -1959. A few other Black law school students apparently came and went, seemingly one at a time, but none apparently graduated before leaving. • 1960. According to Cashion’s research, Richard A. Strecker enrolled in the law school and in 1964 earned what was then a Bachelor’s Law degree, later titled a

Credit: YouTube

Anga Sanders

Juris Doctor (J. D.) Law degree. Also, it was the 1960s before SMU had Black students in all of its undergraduate colleges, and most other Texas colleges had a few Black students in small numbers. • 1961. The SMU student body at large started pressuring the administration, and Methodist Church that traditionally controlled it, to admit undergraduate Black students. There also was at least one sit-in at University Pharmacy supporting efforts to improve health care services for Blacks. • 1962. SMU fully desegregated its undergraduate program, and hired head football coach Hayden Fry – later a major force in integrating the Mustangs football team. • 1964. SMU further desegregated athletics, faculty,

Credit: Twitter

and student organizations, the year following the 1963 assassination of Pres. John Kennedy in Dallas. • 1965. [See sidebar.] • 1966. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke on campus on March 17, 1966, after receiving a friendly invitation from the then all-white Student Senate. He was the first national civil rights leader to speak on campus. But citywide, his reception was cold, including from some local Black ministers. • 1968-1969. Black activism arrived on campus when Black students organized a non-violent group that began protests in 1969. Anga Sanders was a standout activist leader and one of 33 Black students who formed the Black League of Afro-American and African College Students (BLAACS). The group preJuly 30, 2021

• 1969. Irving Baker of New York and New Jersey was hired as Pres. Tate’s special assistant. Baker had been executive president at Bishop College. At SMU, he developed a new Afro-American Studies program and other diversity activities. • 1970s. Black sororities and fraternities arrived at SMU. Previously, there were no Black social outlets on campus.

Jerry LeVias and (Rt) coach Hayden Fry Credit: The Dallas Morning News

sented demands during a meeting with SMU Pres. Willis Tate and did a sit-in outside Tate’s office. BLAACS helped change a racist environment that included

an annual fraternity-sponsored mock slave auction complete with a giant Confederate flag and costumes during Old South Week on campus.

1978. Blacks entered campus-wide leadership when two Black males won the two top student government offices. David Huntley was elected President and Brett Ledbetter vice-president, both in runoffs. It was the first time in SMU history that the top two student officials were Black. I will face trouble if I attempt to call names of prominent Black SMU graduates through the years and to the present. The names include those who in later years sailed through relatively unscathed and those who in early years faced either isolation or gutpunch racism; such as star football player Jerry LeVias. He was emotionally rejected

William Shedrick Willis Credit: Howard University 1942 year book

by his own team members in the 1960s and spit on and harassed by some opposing players and students. But the roll call of Black SMU and Perkins graduates, faculty and administrators would be impressive. Lessons were learned along the way, although the current #BlackAtSMU project indicates that students and alumni still are seeking improvements. I wish them well. Norma Adams-Wade is a veteran, award-winning journalist, Graduate of UT- Austin and Dallas native. One of the founders of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), she was inducted into the NABJ Hall of Fame

1965 was an especially busy civil rights year, nationally and at SMU. Here are some highlights: • SMU and then all-Black Bishop College collaborated that January and allowed 25 Bishop students to take undergraduate classes that Bishop did not offer. • The ’65 Watts riots happened in California. • Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. witnessed President Lyndon Johnson sign the ’65 Voting Rights Act. • SMU Coach Hayden Fry recruited football star wide-receiver Jerry LeVias from Beaumont who became the first Black in Southwest Conference history to earn an athletic scholarship. LeVias also excelled academically and graduated in Spring ’69 near the top of his class. Despite Fry’s moral support, LeVias experience cruel rejection and racist acts from team mates and the public, yet he excelled anyway. July 30, 2021

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• Anga Sanders, a stand-out SMU activist freshman during LeVias’ 1966 sophomore year reflected on that time: • “I’d have to say that our tenure was characterized more by benign neglect than anything else. We were an invisible minority, and little if any thought was given to our feelings about or response to (bigoted) things that were simply accepted at SMU.” • The invisible minority she was referring to were black students who were not involved with sports teams. She said she never received any of the ridicule that was aimed at LeVias, nor did she recall any other black student mentioning threats like those made against the pioneer Black football star.

• The main reason was because Anga Sanders, and the other 132 black students at the time, were never put on as visible a stage as the Mustang football team. • Also in 1965, William Shedrick Willis, born in Waco and grew up in Dallas, became the first Black to join SMU’s faculty in the Sociology and Anthropology department. Part of his time, the Howard University grad also taught at Bishop College. Willis gave up his Bishop duties and in 1967 became a part-time SMU assistant professor. That same year he advanced to full-time, then in 1968 became an associate professor with tenure. Four years later in 1972 he resigned after negative experiences with other faculty and enduring his comparatively lower salary despite his heavier class load. myimessenger.com

Highly regarded businessman transitions Devoyd Jennings was a champion of Black Businesses and Entrepreneurs By Amore Staff Writer

When there were discussions about business and the Black communities of Tarrant County, Devoyd Jennings, President and CEO of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce (FWMBCC), was at the center of those conversations for decades. He died early Saturday. Expressions of sympathy were quick in coming as many remembered their friend and colleague who missed a meeting early Saturday. According to businessman and former CEO of D/FW Airport Vernell Sturns, that meeting also included veteran journalist and FWMBCC Director of Communications Bob Ray Sanders, who he talked with in-depth as they tried to wrap their thoughts around the loss. “I am deeply saddened by the news I got this afternoon that Devoyd Jennings had passed,” said businessman Vernell Sturns, who has known Mr. Jennings for more than 40 years. “We have worked on many, many things in the community, trying to im-

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prove conditions especially for minorities. I am deeply grieved by the news today of a young man who has contributed so much to the Fort Worth community, to the Black community and was a special and dear friend to me.”

Devoyd Jennings

As late as a few days before his death, the champion of entrepreneurs and Black businesses saluted Black businesses on his Facebook page. “This is fantastic,” he wrote about a posting announcing A.S.A.P.P. Barber College offering classes and scholarships.

In an interview with NBC5 earlier this year, Mr. Jennings discussed the plight of Black businesses. “When there is a recession for the majority community a lot of times it is a depression for the minority community. At the end of the day, the color of freedom is green. And as long as we can create some green opportunities for all that want to be involved we make that difference.” Mr. Jennings is remembered for spending his life making a difference. He attended George Washington Carver Elementary School. A proud member of the I.M. Terrell High School Class of 1966, he enrolled at Tarrant County College and later studied economics and marketing at Texas Wesleyan University, graduating in 1971. A former Energy Consultant\ Lobbyist at TXU Energy, Mr. Jennings was always on top of the issues and contributed his thoughts in columns that appeared in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Honored by the City of Fort Worth with Devoyd Jennings Day, in 1991 he became one of the Colonial Country Club’s first

Black members. A member of the Texas Association of African American Chambers. His extensive knowledge of public and private organization efforts in the area of economic development is gained through more than 30 years of experience with economic development organizations in the metroplex. He has served on numerous boards including: The Texas Association of Business Texas Wesleyan University, North Texas Commission, and the Texas Association of African American Chambers. He resided in Forest Hills with his wife of 40 years, Gwen Barbee.

Homegoing Service Saturday, July 31 10a St. Vincent's De Paul Catholic Church 5819 W. Pleasant Ridge Rd., Arlington, TX 76016 Visitation Friday, July 30 6-8p.m. Emerald Hills Funeral Home 500 Kennedale Sublett Rd. Kennedale, TX 76060

July 30, 2021

“Them White Folks and Peggy” QUIT PLAYIN’ VINCENT L. HALL I met a lady named Peggy in the store the other night. We took a chance and bought a few lottery tickets. Please don’t hold it against us. If your skin was kissed with the sunlight of melanin, you take a chance every time you walk out of the door. But I will leave that subject right there because that ain’t my thesis statement today. Peggy was a forceful voice of encouragement. “I read you every week, and whatever you do, continue to keep it real. You be telling the truth so keep it up.” So here we go. Every day, as we traverse from place to place, we are stopped or stymied by road construction. Everywhere you go, there is a road crew fully engaged. The high number of projects have caused a shortage of concrete, asphalt, rock, and other road material. From I-35 to US 67 South in Oak Cliff and all points north, south, east, and west, there are cranes, bulldozers, dump trucks, and hundreds if not thousands of men working but something is amiss! July 30, 2021

“If a man (woman) is called to be a street sweeper, they should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

My problem is not that Hispanics make up 95% of the crews. My issue is that so few of the teams include Blacks. I ain’t got nothing but love for my Mexican brothers. They are “coming up” because they show up. These dudes are working 40-70 hours a week and deserve what they earn. Meanwhile, our community has subrogated our former place in the “dirty job” market. College should be the ultimate goal, but not the only one. If you survive as a minority in the next 30 years, you better learn a trade/dirty job to. My paternal grandfather had a fourth-grade education, but he was smart enough to understand the need to develop some brawn to go along with that brain. Papa Hall was a truck driver until diabetes rendered him legally blind at the age of 51. After that, he became the best truck loader on the dock at the Farmer’s Market. He made a place for me as his helper. At the age of 13, I overslept, and my grandfather was furious. I woke up at 4:30

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a.m., 30 minutes late. He probably allowed me to oversleep so that he could deliver a lifelong lesson. Papa yelled, “Boy get up. I don’t know how you can lay there when you know you owe them, White folks.” Was there a hidden message embedded in his admonition? As the years went on, I gathered that Papa’s instructions were twofold. His primary point was that I needed to have a sense of industry about myself. Some get up and go. Later in this lecture series, he reminded me that every man ought to be able to “set themselves” at night before bed. You don’t need an alarm clock when you live with a sense of urgency. He taught me to work hard but work smart. Tools and machines are there to be utilized. Learn how to operate everything in your workspace. Secondly, Papa’s caveat was that if you don’t own anything in this world, you can’t afford to sleep. Slumber and slothfulness are luxuries afforded to those who own

and lend or develop and control. That’s where “them White folks” entered his soliloquy. Papa Hall was born in 1918, lived through the Depression and the Voting Rights Act. Yet, throughout the breadth and span of his 71 years, White folks owned virtually everything economically, socially and politically. And they still do. Don’t get mad because Mexicans are “coming up!” Hispanics and other minorities do not prosper at our expense. That ignorance Trump infers about them “taking your jobs” is a damn lie. You too can come up sweeping streets if you are willing to work! It’s 2021 and we still owe them, White folks. However, we also owe a debt to the 22 generations of Black folk who built their reputations on hard work and industry. Thanks, Peggy for reminding me to work hard with a pen or a fluorescent safety vest! Vincent L. Hall is an author, activist, and award-winning columnist.

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Intimidated by Girlfriend ASK ALMA BY ALMA GILL

Dear Alma, My girlfriend is absolutely beautiful, gentle and kind, loving and respectful. Ninetyfive percent of the time everything is perfect. But every now and again she goes off. She curses, screams, and throws things and just follows me around arguing. She has never hit me, but it is intimidating. I don’t know what to do to calm her down. I talked to her sister about it, but she said, “Yea, that’s how she is,” and suggested that I should leave and take a walk. We are talking about marriage, but I don’t want to consider children in this situation. It’s not like I’m scared

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of my lady. I just don’t know when she’s gonna flip out sometimes. Name withheld, Baltimore, Md. Dear Nameless, Hmmm, I can’t quite tell if you’re fishing for catfish or shark. Either way, you’d better bait this bad behavior quickly, because there’s no room for slack on this line. Determine if you’re experiencing a partner who’s a hothead or a mate who hurls verbal abuse. If you’re not sure, check the verbal abuse websites. They lay out the descriptions clearly. I see room for improvement if she’s just spoiled and ranting for the sake of attention. You’ll need to lay down some ground rules. Discuss self-control techniques and how

both of you are held accountable for your words and actions. If she’s a verbal abuser, then you’re dealing with someone who needs professional help. Both need to be recognized, and she needs to accept responsibility, take action and apologize. You say she never hurt you, but that’s not true. I think most men identify “hurt” as a physical experience. But words can cause hurt and pain, too. A relationship can be unhealthy or abusive even without physical violence. Experiencing verbal abuse may not cause physical damage, but it does cause emotional damage. Don’t get me wrong, we all can reach a point where we’re sooooo mad we want to lash out and go for broke. Been there, done that.

The frustration can be overwhelming and you release it like a pressure cooker. Nobody’s perfect. It happens every once in a while. Hold her accountable and insist that she receives the help she needs. I wouldn’t consider marriage until the two of you are basking in progress and exercising a new learned and acceptable behavior, a corrected behavior that can be demonstrated and passed along to your kids. Marriage doesn’t fix your problems; it leans towards escalating them. It’s best to make appropriate enhancements on the front end. Alma Alma Gill’s newsroom experience spans more than 25 years, including various roles at USA Today, Newsday and the Washington Post. Email questions to: alwaysaskalma@gmail.com. Follow her on Facebook at “Ask Alma” and twitter @almaaskalma.

July 30, 2021

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What is needed fast WHAT’S ON MILES’ MIND

MILES JAYE She’s fast! She’s super-fast, running like her hair’s on fire! Yes, I’m talking about Sha’Carri Richardson! She’s 5’1” with bright orange hair, inch long eyelashes, and 3-inch fingernails, destined to win gold. In a sport in need of what any sport requires for sponsorship and viewership; a recognizable face, a recognizable name, and a fiery, charismatic personality-an absent Richardson will not go unnoticed! Sha’Carri was born for this assignment, winning Olympic gold, but she’s a No Go for Tokyo, and Tokyo is now under a Covid-19 State of Emergency. The first of a series of ironies, Tokyo doesn’t want us in Japan. The Japanese want us all to stay home, so none of us gets to go. No spectators in the stands? How ironic? The second glaring irony is the gross hypocrisy. Rather than a 100-meter dash, what is dashed is a 21-year-old’s dreams… dreams she’s embraced since she was a little girl. Faster than her sprint time was the time it took to disqualify this young black female phenom.

The irony is the intolerance and inflexibility. She tested positive for a non-performance-enhancing substance, legal in her home state of Oregon. Let her run! If a trendsetting transgender Miss Nevada can compete for the coveted Miss USA title, let Sha’Carri Richardson run! Rules are rules? She knew better! Yes, she admitted to her infraction, her error in judgement. Now you admit that when you saw Sha’ Carri’s Olympic dreams go down in flames, some of you felt a shameful, heartless sense of satisfaction. Perhaps you’ve never had a dream denied, perhaps you never had potential to achieve greatness, but check yourself. What you cannot take away is that she is already great. Her accomplishments, to date, have already rendered her great. Among her peers of world class athletes, she is exceptional, a champion. They know it, you know it! Deal with it! When is it time to review the rules? That question has plagued the Olympic committee for many years. Cheating and Performance Enhancing substance abuse have been part of Olympic culture throughout its history, but when is it appropriate to reevaluate the rules? Now, because, in this case, they got it wrong. Their inflexibility renders them wrong. Re-

member, not only is cannabis not listed as a Performance Enhancing controlled substance, the target of existing doping rules, but she consumed it in a state where it is legal to do so. She will have to wait 3 more years to realize her dream. Another dream deferred! Naomi Osaka, the number one ranked women’s tennis champion, found her dreams stalled as quickly as she admitted to personal mental health issues, rendering her unavailable for press interviews. When she announced she would not be available to participate in the French Open press conference, the action taken against her was a swift $15,000 fine. She chose to drop out of the French Open and Wimbledon. This 23-year-old tennis great grew up watching Venus and Serena. She had dreams! Remember what a sport requires for sponsorship and viewership? I’m sure her presence was sorely missed in both events. Naomi’s New York Times cover story, “It’s Okay, Not to Be Okay,” reveals the need for the WTA to study the stress, pressure and anxiety suffered by its competitors. Her essay will serve as an expose, benefitting unknown thousands of young competitors in all sports. Her courage and maturity will serve as a model for unknown thousands of little girls

and little boys who look up to her as a role model in the same way Venus and Serena served as her role models. Add 2016 Olympic 100-meter hurdles star, Brianna McNeal, and her 5-year suspension from Olympic participation to the conversation and a pattern begins to take form. Naomi documented her stress related issues, Sha’ Carri was suffering the loss of her biological mother, and Brianna, a recent abortion. Together they all spell varying degrees of mental health challenges and the absence of proper support. If fines and penalties remain the only recourse, dreams will continue to be dashed, and the powerful who hold youthful dreams in their mitts will never be held accountable for suffocating the exceptional within our midst. Exceptional, like the precocious 14-year-old National Spelling Bee winner, Zaila Avant-Garde, whose victory, the first by an African American in the contest’s 96-year history, she declares, was “like a dream come true.” Change is desperately needed… FAST! That’s what’s on my mind! Website: www.milesjaye.net Podcast: https://bit.ly/2zkhSRv Email: milesjaye360@gmail.com

Your Ad belongs here, Contact: 214-941-0110 myimessenger.com

July 30, 2021

BOBBIE THOMAS THAT CELEBRITY INTERVIEW BY VALDER BEEBE

In the Valder Beebe Show studios, I’m delighted to chat with Bobbie Thomas, Style Editor for NBC’s TODAY Show to discuss JOY in its many aspects. The stressful demands of our daily lives can be overwhelming. We all are aware that taking a little “me” time each day is vital to reduce stress levels, improve concentration and stay productive. To this end, the beauty & style expert has a number of simple self-care tips to share and to pursue joy on a daily basis. According to Bobbie -- author of the best-selling book, The Power of Style – it’s most important to put YOU on your to-do list. Bobbie shares with the audience, the launch of Joy Bites, by Russell Stover. Bobbie has a multi-faceted career, she is a bestselling author. Bobbie has shared fashion, beauty, and feel-good advice in nearly 1000 segments over the past 15 years. Although her television career started on the red carpet for E!, the former co-host July 30, 2021

of the Style network’s Fashion Police and national columnist began her work as a rape crisis counselor. Uniquely understanding that “beauty comes from the strength within,” Bobbie has worked tirelessly with major brands and organizations such as Step Up, Make a Wish, The Beauty Foundation, and more, to promote positive campaigns, instill self-confidence, and encourage people to use style as a powerful voice. – Bobbie Thomas publicists provided text in conjunction with the Valder Beebe Show VBS: Bobbie, you have been giving great fashion and wellness advice for over 15 years on NBC Today show and to viewing audiences. Today you are adding to your repertoire the power and knowledge of joy, tell us about joy. BT: Yes, joy is something we all want more of. Joy is so important to me. I’ve actually partnered with Russell Stover, the chocolate company that is over onehundred years old to share JOY. Beyond Joy Bites being a wonderful candy being launched by Russell Stover, my partnership with company, we both

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Bobbie Thomas

have the same mission. We want everyone to embrace joy. VBS: So how can we create more joy in our daily lives? BT: Start with finding quiet time, give yourself the gift of time, spend time with yourself. In quiet time just imagine, be creative, let your imagination bring joy. I would love to hear how your audience, the Valder Beebe Show is experiencing joy, just visit my web page or visit russellstsover.com and make a joy post.

I want to add that Russell Stover Joy Bites (the candy) is no sugar added to chocolate, non-GMO, no artificial colors and plant based stevia extract. So Joy Bites not only taste good but they are good for ………… Bobbie Thomas complete interview…… YouTube.com/valderbeebeshow; more interviews: Broadcasting to a national & global audience: ValdeBeebeShow. com ; SoundCloud.com/kkvidfw; KKVI FM Radio, KRER FM, 411RadioNetwork, Streaming TV, Social Media, Print Publications I MESSENGER, Texas Metro News, and Garland Journal News.

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July 30, 2021

Dr. Amerson adapts to Temporary Business Closure Dr. Linda Amerson, Board Certified Trichologist, has adapted to the temporary closure of LA's Hair and Scalp Clinic. We continue to offer our award-winning products to consumers. Our exclusive products are manufactured by a facility in Garland, TX. Premium quality natural ingredients are used to assist with dry, oily, itchy, flaky, inflammed scalps, as well as hair breakage, hair thinning and regrowth. Everyone may order from our website, and we will ship your product order to you. http://www.hairandscalpessentials.com We need your support. In addition, we offer Video Consultations globally! We will schedule an appointment, give a diagnosis, them make a recommendation. We are available to serve you in the comfort of your home. Call us today - 817.265.8854 http://www.hairandscalpessentials.com We need your support.

July 30, 2021

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Nena’s Finds Boutique A Uniquely Stylish, Fashionable Boutique for women of all Sizes! Ranging from Pretti and Petite to Pretti and Plus! Nena likes to be a bit edgy, blingy ... But she keeps it Chic with Sophisticated Style!

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July 30, 2021

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July 30, 2021

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AT THE MOVIES

Movie Review

BY HOLLYWOOD HERNANDEZ

SNAKE EYES: G.I JOE ORIGINS

The first thing you need to remember when watching SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS isn’t a movie about an action figure; so don’t expect too much. The movie starts with a young Snake Eyes seeing his father murdered by a group of COBRA henchmen. He spends his adult years as an underground cage match fighter who drifts from town to town fighting and who has no family or anyplace to call home. That changes when he saves the life of an undercover spy who he works with in a criminal organization. His new best friend Tommy, played by Andrew Koji, takes him home to his family in China. The family has hundreds of years of kung fu tradition and trains Snake Eyes, played by Henry Golding, in a series of tests that he must pass or die trying. The fight scenes are some of the best I’ve seen in a movie so far this year. The rest of the movie, frankly, is just dumb. There is no chemistry between the actors and I think that’s because they spend so little time in scenes together. SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS is a movie aimed at 10-12 year old boys who like playing with action figures and seems like a long commercial aimed at selling toys and accessories. Don’t waste your time on this movie. On my “Hollywood Popcorn Scale” I give this movie a MEDIUM.

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July 30, 2021

Virtual and liVe Community Calendar

Minority Mental Health Month UV SAFETY The Black Church Month JULY 29 The Connection with Debra BrownSturns. On Facebook.com/@TexasMetroNews & BlogTalkRadio.com. 7-8 pm. 646-2000459.

Delta GEMS Informational Session, host Eastern Panhandle Alumnae Chapter. 5:30 pm. CDT. Online: us02web.zoom.us. Info: Carla Hunter at levernhunter@comcast.net.

DFW Small Business Expo at Music City Mall Lewisville, 2401 S. Stemmons Fwy. Eventbrite.com.

Rapper’s Delight Family Comedy. By Fran Harris Filmmaker/ Writer/Producer/Director, at Bishop Arts Theater, 215 Tyler St. 5:30-7 pm & 8-9:30 pm. 32nd Texas Black Invitational Rodeo, Presented by African American Museum, at Fair Park Coliseum at the Grand Entry Parade begins at 6 p.m. www.fairparktix.com.

Women Winning in Ministry, host Dr. Jasmin Sculark. It’s an online event. 6:30 am-12 pm CDT. Reg: iamdrjazz.org.

JULY 30 From Marva with Love, with Marva Sneed.11 am -1 pm. CDT, Fridays on Facebook Live/@TexasMetroNews, and BlogTalkRadio.com. Join in at 646-200-0459.

Dallas New Foster Parent Orientation Host The Bair Foundation of Texas Christian Foster Care and Adoption, 3630 N Josey Ln . #100, Carrollton. 7:30-9:30 pm. RSVP: www.bair.org Dallas Live Career Fair & Job Fair, host National Career Fairs - Live and Virtual Job Fairs. At Crowne Plaza Dallas-Market Center, an IHG Hotel, 7050 N. Stemmons Fwy.11 am-2 pm. Reg: https://bit.ly/3i2rR1K.

Morris Day and The Time, El DeBarge & Klymaxx. Host Ryman Auditorium Nashville. Free-Online Event Tickets: TicketSmarter.com. 7 pm. CDT. Fantasy Draft Party at Tower Club, 1601 Elm St. Dallas. 6 pm. Info: 214-220-0403. The Hope Church of Tarrant County Church Anniversary, at 2010 E Lancaster Ave, Fort Worth. Guest Speaker: Pastor Winton R. Anderson. 3 pm.

AUGUST 2-5 Pan African Connection Summer Science Discover Camp, 4466 Marsalis Ave. 11 am-2 pm. Reg: https://bit.ly/2UPNV75.

JULY 31 Quentin Moore and The DaxTones Live at Ridglea Theater, 6025 Camp Bowie Blvd. 7 pm. Eventbrite.com.

Salon Sessions with Michaela Angela Davis. Host AARP Black Community. 2 pm. CDT. Facebook Live @AARPBlackCommunity

AUGUST 3

4th Annual SECC Inc. Back-to-School Backpack/School Supply Giveaway. 10 am-1 pm. Info: 214-997-4240.

THE DOC SHEP SPEAKS SHOW! From 11 am. CST on Facebook Live/@TexasMetroNews, @fnsconsulting, and You Tube @ docshepspeaks.

Safety Protocols: Basic Emergency Practices Lecture Series, host St. Luke’s Medical Center. Online via Zoom: https://bit. ly/3j2yLUf .

AUGUST 6

From Marva with Love, with Marva Sneed.11 am -1 pm. CST, Fridays on Facebook Live/@TexasMetroNews, and BlogTalkRadio. com. Join the conversation at 646-200-0459. Dallas Mayor’s 25th Annual Back to School Fair (Drive Thru) at Fair Park, 3809 Grand Ave. 8 am-2 pm. Must Reg: www. mayorsbacktoschoolfair.com.

Lasoa Cigar Lounge Ladies Wine Down Tues. at 2150 N. Jo-

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The Connection with Debra Brown-Sturns. On Facebook. com/TexasMetroNews & BlogTalkRadio.com. 7-8 pm. 646200-0459.

Dallas Virtual Job Fair host Job Fair Pro. 9 am-3 pm. CDT Reg: https://bit.ly/3j37lxx.

AUGUST 2

AMOC Presents: Amplify at Arts Mission Oak Cliff, 410 S. Windomere. 8-9 pm. Tickets: https://bit.ly/3xyS5yp.

AUGUST 5

The Cultured Conscience Book Discussion, “The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett. Via Zoom: us02web.zoom.us 6 pm. CDT.

$300 Poker Tournament at Texas Billiards! Grand Opening! Texas Billiards Bar & Grill, 6651 Watauga Rd. #117.Watauga. 7-10 pm. Info: ahlpoker.com

July 30, 2021

Ask Dr. Amerson with Dr. Linda Amerson.12 pm. CST @DFWiRadio.com, and Live on Facebook @DrLindaAmerson

SUAF-Dallas Vendor Pop-Up Day Party, Host Southern University Alumni - Dallas Chapter. The Daiquiri Shoppe, 816 Montgomery St, 1-7 pm. Tickets: https://bit.ly/3yNOBZ6.

Happy Hour Fridays Live DJ. Host Off The Cuff, 2901 Elm St. 5-8 pm. RSVP: offthecuffdallas@gmail.com.

Mesquite ISD Drive Through Back to School Event-at Mesquite High School, 300 E. Davis St. Mesquite. 8 am-11am. Reg: https://bit.ly/36xPicQ.

AUGUST 4 I Was Just Thinking with Norma Adams-Wade. From 11 am -1 pm. CST On Facebook Live/@TexasMetroNews and BlogTalkRadio.com. Call in and join the conversation at 646-200-0459.

The World According to Drew, host Andrew Whigham, III on BlogTalkRadio.com 8-10 am. It’s thought-provoking, enlightening, informative, and entertaining news commentary. Join the call at 646-200-0459.

Jam to Give – All Funk Radio/ Cedar Hill Shares, at Hillside Village, 305 FM 1382 #590. 7-9 pm.

Fedoras & Cigars: 4Tarrant Meet & Greet, host MarQ Clayton for Judge County Criminal Court 7 at Fedoras & Cigars, 12853 Cabela Dr, Fort Worth, 5:30-8:30 pm.

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival 2021 Feat: Dallas Black Dance Theater on the Henry J. Leir Outdoor Stage. Ticket, & info: www. jacobspillow.org or call 413-243-0745.

AUGUST 1

SoulJazz Thursdays Feat: Natural Change Band. Host Sandaga 813, 813 Exposition Ave. 8 pm-12 am. sandaga813.com.

JULY 30-31

August 4-8

Parkland – RedBird Health Center Hiring Event at 3662 W Camp Wisdom Rd, Dallas. 9 am-1 pm. Reg.: https:// anywherecareerfair.com/parklandlive/

Small Business Savvy – Market Research & Competitive Analysis, host SBA. Reg: https://bit.ly/3eDJHWU. 11 am.

Jacob Lawrence Art Exhibition Grand Opening at Arlington ISD Center, 900 E Sanford St, Arlington, 5:30-8 pm.

sey Ln. 3109 Carrollton. 5-8 pm. www.lasoacigarlounge.com/

Rooftop Friday Night Vibes @ Lava Cantina, 5805 Grandscape Blvd. The Colony. Tickets: maturepartycrowd.com. 10 pm-2 am.

AUGUST 7

4th Annual SECC, Inc. Back to School Backpack/School Supply Giveaway, Mesquite.10 am-1 pm. Info: 214-9974240 or www.specialeditioncc.com/ Dallas Back To School Event at J C Phelps Recreation Center 3030 Tips Blvd, Dallas12-2 pm. Reg: Eventbrite.com. Arlington ISD Back To School Kickoff at AT&T Stadium, 1 AT&T Way, Arlington 8am-2 pm. Reg: https://bit.ly/3ec67hF. Richardson ISD “Backpack Bash” Presented by Richardson Mayor, at Richardson High School, 1250 W. Belt Line Rd. 9 am. Reg. is required. https://bit.ly/2UXfJ9d Vitruvian Salsa Festival 2021, host Salsa Dallas Official. At Vitruvian Park, Vitruvian Way, Addison. 6-10 pm. Info: https://bit.ly/3kVKEhg. Watermelon Day at the Dallas Farmers Market, 920 S. Harwood 9 am-5 pm. Seasons of Change 10th Annual Back 2 School Giveaways, Seasons of Change, Inc., 921 West Mayfield Rd., Arlington. 9 am-1 pm. Reg: https://bit.ly/3rz3Xy0

AUGUST 8 The World According to Drew, host Andrew Whigham, III on BlogTalkRadio.com 8-10 am. It’s thought-provoking, enlightening, informative, and entertaining news commentary. Join the call at 646-200-0459. West End Association Outdoor Market, Host The West End, 607 Corbin St, Dallas. 1 am-5 pm. Seersucker & Linen Night Out Feat: Natural Change & DJ Romeo at BH Lounge of DeSoto, 2021 N. Hampton Rd. #100. 7 pm-12 am. PoochieFest 2021 at Cedar Canyon Ranch & Event Center, 4523 N. Houston School Rd.6-11 pm. Tickets: https://bit.ly/3iHtAsu.

BLACK LIVES MATTER

YouTube Live: Take Your GED to College. Host, GED Academy. Online: https://www.youtube.com/user/ gedacademy 11-11:30 am. Coaching Sessions https://bit.ly/36YPQsn.

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July 30, 2021

www.grandpasecret.com July 30, 2021

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July 30, 2021

TRiBL Founder & CEO Nwabuisi Lays Out Plan for New Black Wall Street Ikechi Nwabuisi, founder & CEO of TRiBL, with a call for a “New Black Wall Street,” is offering a bold vision on how Blacks around the world can create generational wealth by building off some of the many lessons learned 100 years after the famed Greenwood community in Tulsa was destroyed. Nwabuisi, a Nigerian-American, is the founder and CEO @ TRiBL, a messaging app for Pan-African commerce, says that while it’s a great time for to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the horrific “Black Wall Street” massacre where nearly 300 people were killed an 35 acres of businesses and homes were destroyed. He says a strategic plan is needed to lay the groundwork for a new global digital wealth strategy built on community and e-commerce. “I can’t tell you how angry I am that this part of our nation’s history was hidden for so long,” Nwabuisi says. “More importantly, the seemingly sudden awareness about the success of those brave Black men and women only validates the false narrative that lives in the media on why Black people can’t create wealth, leading us to approach the problem incorrectly.” Here are three other key components of his strategy: 1. Leverage Black consumer buying power. The $1.4 trillion Black consumer buying power should be used to create the new Black Wall July 30, 2021

Businessman Ikechi Nwabuisi

Street. Focus on Black excellence; the power of community; and, the importance of unity. In the year since the death of George Floyd, there is the need to create a blueprint for wealth creation within our communities. He points out that, according to BankGreenwood. com, a dollar circulates six hours in the Black community, 20 days in the Jewish community and 30 days in the Asian community. 2. Promote and celebrate buy black initiatives. Nwabuisi says Blacks around the world should take greater control of their own destinies and move from words to actions to understand these three valuable lessons that can be applied today: 1) Create wealth within the Black community; 2) Buy black; and, 3) Create safe spaces/communities where majority of commerce is

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Black-owned. The tragedies of the past year have fueled a new energy in buying Black. #BlackWallStreet, #BuyBlack and #BankBlack are trending. WeBuyBlack. com has become one of the largest online marketplaces for Black-owned businesses. The Official Black Wall Street app offers another invaluable tool for Blackowned businesses and consumers. 3. Invest in technology. Nwabuisi says that there needs to a greater investment in technology to create social networks that allow Blacks around the world to have greater access blockchain. Community plus commerce plus technology, he says, are the tools for Blacks to accumulate long-term wealth. “The new Black Wall Street empowers us to re-train our community with a community-first mentality that will

significantly shift our behavior,” Nwabuisi says. “Group economics amongst Black people around the world will enable us to take advantage of some of the biggest wealth creation events which will occur over the next 50-years i.e., emerging market real estate/ infrastructure, blockchain, cryptocurrency, etc. With the power of our global community, we have the potential to tap into more than $2.5 trillion in Pan-African commerce.” Nwabuisi’s app, TRiBL, is an all-in-one crypto platform uses a Discord meets CashApp like experience to pool money & streamline commerce within Black communities across the US, Nigeria, & more. The company has partnered with VISA and crypto firms Circle Internet Financial & Paxos Brokerage Firm to enable interoperable exchange of digital currencies worldwide. myimessenger.com

myimessenger.com

July 30, 2021

ARRESTED

HE IS A SERIAL RAPIST

He targeted members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. but this is more than about a sorority. We’re talking about a community.

Come on PEOPLE! Don’t you CARE? Will it matter when it is your sister, mother, aunt or grandmother or maybe YOU?

Crimestoppers 877-373-8477 July 30, 2021

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