June 2016 Edition by Columbus African American News Journal

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CELEBRATING FIVE YEARS OF EXCELLENCE

June 2016

6 Hon. Priscilla R. Tyson

Local and National Leadership

Kunta Kinte...More Than Your Roots Part 1 By Elizabeth Joy, MBA

Navigating The Health Care Maze For Older Adults By Charleta B. Tavares

Stop HIV In Columbus, Ohio

By Leon McDougle, MD, MPH

There are no routine heart or vascular diseases. And this is no routine heart hospital. The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center is home to central Ohio’s only heart hospital ranked “Best” by U.S.News & World Report. At the Richard M. Ross Heart Hospital, our dedicated team of cardiologists, heart specialists and surgeons works side-by-side with researchers who are leading more than 200 studies to treat and prevent heart and vascular disease. Each year, our physician and research teams lead national studies on new lifesaving devices, medications and procedures that are improving lives, extending time with loved ones and offering hope against heart disease. Stopping the number one killer of Americans is no easy task. That’s why care at the Ross Heart Hospital is anything but routine. Learn more at wexnermedical.osu.edu/osuheart.

Publisher’s Page Founder & Publisher Ray Miller

Layout & Design Ray Miller, III

Assistant Editor Ray Miller, III

Staff

Ashley Burkes Kheri Cooper

Ohio University Intern Joseph W. Cooke

Photographer Ira Graham, III Steve Harrison

Contributing Editors Tim Anderson Tim Ahrens, D. Min Lisa D. Benton, MD Roderick Q. Blount, Jr. M.A. Joseph W. Cooke Iris Cooper, MBA Marian Wright Edelman Cecil Jones, MBA Elizabeth Joy, MBA Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D Jacqueline Lewis-Lyons, Psy.D William McCoy, MPA Leon McDougle, MD, MPH Milca Pierre Tierny Sneed Senator Charleta B. Tavares

The Columbus African American news journal was founded by Ray Miller on January 10, 2011 The Columbus African American News Journal 750 East Long Street Columbus, Ohio 43203

On June 25, 2005, in a beautiful naming ceremony, I was given my African name “Thandizwe” (pronounced Tawn-eeez-way). The ceremony was held at Ephesus Seventh Day Adventist Church, in a packed sanctuary, on a Saturday afternoon. And, quite frankly, my initial enthusiasm for being present did not nearly approximate that of the conveners for the event. To put it bluntly, I was on the “political treadmill” going from one place to the next, until I walked through the doors of the church. It was only then, upon seeing the large congregation, did I begin to wonder what I had done to deserve such high recognition and what would I say to those assembled. My host at the church was, a very good friend and great educator, Nozipho Nxumalo. She is a very bold woman, with big ideas, who does not take no for an answer. When it was my turn to be honored, Nozipho, very proudly and thoroughly presented the official certificates and gave the meaning of my African name--Thandizwe. The name Thandizwe means a “strong bond or love for one’s country.” My initial thought was that sounds rather patriotic, but upon further reflection, I readily concluded that the name was totally appropriate and perfect for me. After all, where there is no great love, there is no great disappointment. And, I certainly have experienced cause for celebration and disappointment, historically and contemporaneously, with many actions of this great nation. To those who rather mindlessly say “America, love it or leave it.” My response is “America, change it or lose it.” This story comes to mind because of an historic initiative that will be placed before the voters on August 2, 2016. The proponents of the initiative, Represent Columbus, is a citizens’ ballot issue committee that is promoting an amendment to the Columbus City Charter to change the size and composition of our City Council. The committee has collected sufficient signatures to require a Special Election to be held two months from now--August 2, 2016. There will be those who will try to vilify the supporters of the initiative for no reason other than the supporters are seeking change. Do not be surprised if some of the fiercest opponents of the ballot initiative are “Black leaders.” These individuals are suffering from cognitive dissonance in its most severe form. They will tell you that the current structure is working just fine and we should maintain the status quo. Well, contrast the development of the Short North on High Street with Mt. Vernon Avenue, Long Street, Cleveland Avenue or Main Street east of downtown. A vibrant downtown is necessary for any City, but not to the detriment of our neighborhoods. The Columbus African American heartily endorses this ballot initiative and strongly encourages all voters in our City to support this issue which will provide greater representation for our neighborhoods. If adopted, the proposal will change Columbus City Council from having seven members elected at-large, i.e., city-wide, as designed in 1914, to a Council with three members elected at-large and 10 from districts. This new structure will decentralize the political power in Columbus and give the voters more influence and accountability over those who they elect to represent their interests. Virtually every major City in America, the size of Columbus, has a City Council structure that approximates this proposed new design in some form. We want to specifically commend Jonathan Beard, co-chair of the ballot initiative for his brilliance, persistence, and courage in bringing this issue before the voters of our City for their approval. We will remain eternally indebted to John Russwurm and Samuel Cornish for their vision in establishing Freedom’s Journal as the first African American newspaper on March 16, 1827. They determined that their publication would be a bold advocate for the people. Hear their words: “We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us. Too long has the public been deceived by misrepresentation in things that concern us dearly.” Consistent with that same preamble, we founded The Columbus African American on January 12, 2011 to educate, inform and empower our community. The need for independent, courageous leadership from the Black press has not been abated. Most of us love our City, our State, and our Nation too much to sit idly by and do nothing in the face of some of the most severe inequities we have ever witnessed. Finally, we want you to come out and celebrate with us on Friday, June 17, 2016 for our Five Year Anniversary. You are invited to join us at The Boat House at Confluence Park, 679 W. Spring Street, Columbus, OH 43215 from 11:30 a.m. until 1:15 p.m. as we honor all of our contributing writers, advertisers, staff, and our Inaugural Class of “Grace Award” recipients--Jonathan Beard, Dr. Quin Capers, Angela Dawson, Greg Jefferson, Senator Charleta Tavares, Nancy Tidwell, and Attorney John Waddy. Individual tickets are $40.00 and tables of 10 are $400.00. Sponsorship of the event at four distinct levels are also available. We will unveil a number of new features for The Columbus African American to enhance our core mission and our reach throughout Central Ohio. The Best Is Yet To Come! With Appreciation and Respect,

Office: 614.340.4891 editor@columbusafricanamerican.com

Ray Miller Founder & Publisher 3

The Columbus African American • June 2016

In This Issue

Original Child Bomb

A Legacy Lives On: A

Transition From

Father To Son

Consumer Financial

Protection Bureau

Proposes Rule To

End Payday Debt Traps

The Columbus

Metropolitan Club:

The Legacy of Poindexter

Village Council President Pro-Tempore, Priscilla R. Tyson

23 31

Technology Is Ever Changing: Where Do I Dive In? By Cecil Jones, MBA

It’s Game Time: Where Are You? By Ambrose Moses, III, Esq.

Boyd Holliman: Pioneering Barber and Pillar of the Community By Roderick Q. Blount, MA

Technology Is Ever Changing: Where Do I Dive In?

16 Navigating The Health Care Maze For Older Adults

Robert Caldwell, Jr. - The Mind of a Dedicated Servant

40 Acres And A Mule, Affirmative Action, Health Equity...WTF

Getting Better Health Care Should Not Be A Conspiracy of Silence

Stop HIV In Columbus, Ohio

Aging Gracefully Is Possible

Older People Are Doing The Most

Kunta Kinte: More Than Your Roots - Part 1

The Columbus African American • June 2016

Boyd Holliman:

Pillar of the Community

The Unsung People - The

Unsung Heroes

The 11 Most Racist U.S.

Presidents

The State of Black

America - National Urban

League’s Annual Report

COTA Signs $37 Million

Grant Agreement 15

Book Bags & E-Readers Pioneering Barber and

Cover Story – Page 20

Legislative Update

Race Matters and There is More to It Than What You See

COVER STORY

It’s Game Time: Where Are You?

With Federal Transit

Administration 36 Meet The Mexican Judge

From Indiana Who

Is Trump’s Latest Target

Community Events

Distribution List

All contents of this news journal are copyrighted © 2015; all rights reserved. Title registration with the U.S. Patent Office pending. Reproduction or use, without written permission, of editorial or graphic content in any manner is prohibited. Unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, and illustrations will not be returned unless accompanied by a properly addresses envelope bearing sufficient postage. Publisher assumes no responsibility for return of unsolicited materials.

AGING OLDER PEOPLE ARE DOING THE MOST By William McCoy, MPA

Lawrence Auls currently serves as a member of the local NAACP executive committee and chair of its Labor and Industry Committee. He is an active member of the Thursday Noon Luncheon Club and recipient of its “Brass Bell” for outstanding service. Lawrence Auls can be reached via e-mail at lja349@aol.com.

Last month, May 2016, marked the national observance of Older Americans Month. On April 29, 2016, President Barack Dr. Robert Day has touched Obama issued a Presidential thousands of lives through Proclamation that said, “Older Americans have his work with the (former) unique knowledge and a breadth of insights that Ohio State University are tremendous assets to our country- and our New Careers Program, seniors are eager to impart the wisdom learned Columbus Metropolitan from their experiences. Across our country, Area Community Action older Americans work and volunteer in their O rg a n i z a t i o n ’s C a r e e r communities, challenging younger Americans’ A c a d e m y, C o l u m b u s ambitions for what they can hope to achieve in Community Intercultural Program (which their golden years.” facilitated school integration), and other Like the proverbial “Energizer Bunny,” some initiatives designed to uplift public housing people keep going and going. This is true residents and low-income individuals and for many older people, especially the three families, and community revitalization. Through individuals highlighted in this article. Over the his efforts, over 1,000 young people completed years, these local icons have taught, touched, their (high school) General Equivalency Diploma and transformed thousands of lives in Columbus, and moved on to more productive lives, including Ohio and beyond- and they continue to do so. two who became school board members. They are proof that, in the words of C.S. Lewis, “You are never too old to set another goal or to Now, Dr. Day is breathing life into the Curtis Brooks Institute for Social Action (CBISA). He dream a new dream.” created this nonprofit organization to celebrate Lawrence Auls became the life and legacy of Curtis Brooks- a long-time the nation’s youngest activist and advocate for poor, oppressed people N A A C P C h a p t e r and communities in Central Ohio and around president at the age of the country. Dr. Day plans to use the CBISA to 22. After landing in educate people about the Great Society initiative Columbus, he was co- of the 1960s, poverty, and community activism. founder and president of Dr. Day is also working with the American Youth “Hands On” Community Soccer Organization to provide recreational and Information and Referral skill-building opportunities for thousands of Service (i.e. 211 access number). Mr. Auls may Columbus area youth, including disabled young be best known as co-founder, president, and people. Dr. Robert Day can be contacted via chairman of “Comin’ Home,” the very successful e-mail at bobday3@yahoo.com. African-American community festival, which Catherine Willis is a longbecame the third largest event in Columbus. time Columbus resident, who During its ten-year run, “Comin’ Home” attracted loves working with youth. over 700,000 attendees and earned a spot in the Mrs. Willis co-founded the Guinness Book of World Records for the world’s Helen Jenkins Davis Lunch largest line dance (i.e. Electric Slide) on July 12, Bunch, which has provided 1991. college scholarships to The mercurial Mr. Auls is a passionate advocate dozens of African-American for utilizing the findings of brain science to treat youth, as well as the Friends the injuries- not the symptoms- of discrimination, of Art for Community Enrichment (FACE). In stress, and physical trauma with medically2007, she created Urban Strings Columbus to based solutions. He is concerned about “why children fail and how we can help them succeed.” promote interest and skill development in string

instruments among African-American and other urban youth. In 2015, she received the Jefferson Award for community service and was inducted into the Central Ohio Senior Citizen Hall of Fame. Catherine Willis remains passionate about Urban Strings Columbus, which is preparing for its June 6- 10, 2016 summer camp. This camp will offer instruction for newer and advanced musicians, under the direction of guest conductor David Robinson of Atlanta’s SinfoNia Youth Orchestra. Special attention will be given to the music of Prince, Natalie Cole, and Earth, Wind, and Fire. Interested youth can get additional information, an application, and arrange an audition for summer camp at www. urbanstrings.squarespace.com. Mrs. Willis is also promoting the June observance of “AfricanAmerican Music Appreciation Month,” which was originally started by President Jimmy Carter and recently proclaimed by President Barack Obama. Catherine Willis can be contacted via e-mail at cat4face@gmail.com. These three Columbus residents continue to participate in and, sometimes, lead the local conversation about community action and improvement. They retain a vision and passion for making a difference. One 23-year study of Ohioans concluded “people who saw growing older as something positive lived a whopping seven and a half years longer than those who didn’t” (Victoria Moran, 2004). Sophia Loren- a popular 1960s actress- said, “There is a fountain of youth: it is in your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to life and the lives of the people you love.” In closing, as the individuals spotlighted in this article show, age really is nothing but a number: the number of people you help, the number of people you inspire, the number of people you love. William McCoy is founder of The McCoy Company- a personal services consulting firm specializing in strategic planning, economic development, and training that helps clients articulate and achieve their visions, solve problems, and capitalize on opportunities. Mr. McCoy holds BA and MPA degrees, and numerous professional certifications. He is a published author, accomplished public speaker, and award-winner, who is profiled in Who’s Who in the World and elsewhere. William McCoy can be reached at (614) 785-8497 or via e-mail wmccoy2@themccoycompany.com.

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015 The Columbus African American • June 2016

HEALTH KUNTA KINTE...MORE THAN YOUR ROOTS: PART 1 “on edge,” and having anger outbursts. By Elizabeth Joy, MBA, LSW, LCDC III It’s early June and many of us are fresh off of a three day weekend which featured good times and barbeques, as we do every year around this time. The origination of Memorial Day celebrations, like many other pieces of African American history, were excluded from history books erasing evidence that this day of remembrance began in 1865 when a group of African Americans decided to initiate a series of commemorations to declare what the Civil War meant to them. Ironically (or not so ironic), The History Channel premiered its remake of the movie “Roots” on Memorial Day. The series is quickly becoming a hot debate among those in the African American community. Many argue the importance of never forgetting our past yet others maintain that such films hinder forward LeVar Burton as “Kunta Kinte” in the progress. While none of us would disagree 1977 version of Alex Haley’s “Roots” that our ancestors’ experiences were more than horrific, less obvious are both the psychological for members of our own race and culture, and biological connections between our present physical characteristics of our culture (i.e. hair, reality and the trauma Kunta endured. facial features), and customs which are based on our culture. Additionally, there is an increased In her book “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: likelihood for anger and violence rooted in America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and extreme feelings of suspicion of negative and Healing,” Dr. Joy DeGruy Leary presents threatening motivation in others. findings from twelve years of quantitative and qualitative research leading to her Post Though not currently recognized as a diagnosable Traumatic Slave Syndrome (PTSS) theory. Dr. DeGruy points to multigenerational oppression condition, PTSS can be paralleled as the African and continued oppression along with conditions American’s version of Post-Traumatic Stress that do not provide an opportunity to heal as the Syndrome (PTSD), a condition featured in the primary ingredients which lead to PTSS among Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental many African Americans. She proposes that Disorders (DSM-5) which is used by psychiatrists our history of slavery lead us to having Post and therapists to diagnose mental health Traumatic Slave Syndrome with symptoms that disorders. About 8 million adults have PTSD include self-destructive outlooks and low self- in a given year and symptoms include but are esteem which are reflected in internalized racism. not limited to having flashbacks of the traumatic Our internalized racism shows in our aversion event, feeling emotionally numb, feeling tense or

The Columbus African American • June 2016

Other researchers have identified biological markers which indicate that trauma can pass from one generation to the next. Rachel Yehuda, professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Mount Sinai School of Medicine examined the neurobiology of PTSD in Holocaust survivors and their children and found that the children were born with low cortisol levels (a stress hormone that helps the body return to normal condition after trauma), predisposing them to experience the PTSD symptoms of the previous generation. Children whose parents had PTSD were three times more likely to have PTSD. It is also worth noting that 50-70% of those with PTSD also meet the criteria for major depression or another mood or anxiety disorder. The research essentially indicates that we, the descents of Kunta Kinte, have a significantly higher likelihood to have Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder both from a biological and psychological perspective. If we are honest with ourselves, many of us can identify with at least some of the previously listed symptoms. What can we do about it? Be sure to pick up a copy of the July edition of The Columbus African American news journal where I will outline solutions. Elizabeth Joy is founder of Survivors To Alivers, a non-profit organization focused on empowering trauma survivors to overcome challenges and achieve restoration. Her organization offers online support groups and a space for trauma survivors to connect and support one another. Elizabeth is a speaker, life coach, and author of “You Survived… Now What? A Road Map to Reclaiming Life.” For more information visit www.survivorstoalivers.org, email ejoy@ survivorstoalivers.org, or call 614-332-1592.

HEALTH

NAVIGATING THE HEALTH CARE MAZE FOR OLDER ADULTS By Charleta B. Tavares The Pew Research Center, AARP and the Ohio Department of Aging have indicated that each day in Ohio, ten thousand people turn 65. According to a report issued by the Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University, “The Road to Balance: Two Decades of Progress in Providing LongTerm Services and Supports for Ohio’s Older Population,” Ohio currently has the seventh highest older adult population in the nation. Key demographics cited in their report include: • Currently, Ohio has 2.5 million people over the age of 60, and 1.7 million over 65. • In less than 20 years, almost 22 percent of our population will be age 65 or older. • Between 2010 and 2030, Ohio’s overall population will grow by 2 percent. • In this same time frame, the growth of the over-60 and over-85 population segments will far outpace overall population growth at 47 percent and 46 percent, respectively. • The number of Ohioans age 85 and older will grow from 260,000 today to 675,000 by 2050 (160% increase) • The number of older adults with physical and cognitive impairments resulting in severe disability will increase forty-four percent by 2020. What does this mean for older adults, families and communities? Are we prepared to address their physical, social, emotional, housing and transportation needs? What are the implications for African Americans? These are some of the questions we should be exploring as the impending tsunami of aging Ohioans grows in the Buckeye state. We have an emerging population whose needs have not been addressed in the most effective, efficient or humane way. Our health care system is not prepared with the necessary skilled health care practitioners (physicians, nurses, physical therapists, psychologists, social workers, nutritionists and etc.) who have specialized in serving older adults. The kinds of services, cultural competence training, compassion and patience required to appropriately serve the needs of the older client or patient is essential. One area that is particularly unsuccessful is health care. Unless you are or have a health care practitioner as a family member or a friend to help you to navigate the myriad of care providers, systems, institutions, and agencies you will likely be lost in a maze with little or no assistance to direct you where, when, who and how to get there. In addition, for a large percentage of African American families who are disproportionately single heads of households we have a double crisis in that we may have a single adult female child tending to the needs of a female older adult without a spouse or who may widowed to assist with her care coordination and appointments. Who is speaking up, coordinating and advocating for appropriate services and policies to meet the needs of older adults? It is in many cases the

adult child or children if you are fortunate enough to have more than one and who is living in the same city. However, these adult children may be hourly employees with no personal, vacation or sick leave to attend to doctor’s appointments, scheduled tests and/or to meet with social workers, home health aides, nurses or therapists. We have to be the advocates and caregivers now to give voice to the needs of our African American older adults who currently need health and home care services. We have to ensure that they are not dismissed or given less attention and care to their health needs especially, when they cannot speak for themselves. We have a responsibility, moral obligation and cultural heritage that dictates that we honor our elders by protecting their health and safety so that they can live inter-dependently, in the care environment that meets their needs that respects their wishes. African Proverbs:

families so they can preserve their independence. Below are a “partial” listing of services they provide. Information and Advocacy - Resource information on community-based services for older adults is furnished to the public. Case Management - Ongoing assessment and interaction with older adults is conducted to insure adequacy and quality of community-based services. Homemaker Services - To enable older adultus to achieve and maintain a clean, safe and healthy environment, assistance is provided with light housecleaning and laundry. Personal Care - Older adults are aided in the performance of necessary activities, such as, personal hygiene, grooming, foot care and moving about the home.

The old woman looks after the child to grow its Adult Day Service - Community-based programs teeth, and the young one in turn looks after the designed to meet the needs of functionally impared adults in a protective setting are old woman when she loses her teeth. available. Program componenets include health A man who pays respect to the great, paves his services, personal care, meals, activities and transportation. Some programs include social way to his own greatness. work services and rehabilitation therapies. Resources: Home Delivered Meals- Well-balanced meals are delivered to the older adult’s home to promote Franklin County Office on Aging adequate nutrition. Hot noon meals are available 280 East Broad St, Room 300 Monday - Friday. A cold evening meal and/or Columbus, Ohio 43215 weekend meals may also be provided. www.officeonaging.org Contact Information For a complete list of services, please call one of Senior Options: the numbers provided. A representative can help (614) 525-6200 you identify the services that you are looking for. Adult Protective Services: (614) 525-4348 Charleta B. Tavares is the Chief Executive Officer Ohio Relay Service TDD: at PrimaryOne Health, a Federally Qualified (800) 750-0750 Health Center (FQHC) system providing comprehensive primary care, OB-GYN, pediatric, Hours of Operation vision, dental, behavioral health and specialty Weekdays 9:00AM-4:30PM EST care at 10 locations in Central Ohio. The mission Thursdays until 7:00PM EST is to provide access to services that improve The Office on Aging provides centralized access the health status of families including people to diverse programs and individualized services experiencing financial, social, or cultural barriers for older adults, dependent adults, and their to health care. www.primaryonehealth.org. 7

The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

HEALTH

40 ACRES AND A MULE, AFFIRMATIVE ACTION, HEALTH EQUITY...WTF By Tim Anderson Our nation has had a love/ hate relationship with the practice and acceptance of social equality. As a nation, we accept the notion of a level playing field, but the manner in which the field is leveled has always been a contentious debate. Those in power have wanted to place restrictions such as timetables, allocated limited resources, artificial goals with no meaningful accountabilities to measure the intervention. And those of us who have a historical and a continuum perspective of seeing The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment - Tested on African American men for 40 years. our community suffer from social determinants factors rooted in the legacy of slavery; have grown weary of promises that has left our community without a playing field to level. white male, who had twice applied for admission and Near East Side consisting primarily of into the University of California Medical School African American residents will be given grants During the Civil War, as run-a-way slaves at Davis and had been rejected each time. He of $125,000 to address infant mortality in the escaped from plantations in their effort to self- then sued the University for holding sixteen of neighborhoods which have among the highest emancipate many were captured by the Union its one hundred admissions for qualified minority rates of black infant deaths. The math does not army. So prolific was this capture of slaves by candidate into the medical school. His argument add up, for every dollar given to the organization, Union forces, that it created a dilemma on what was that race should not be a determinant for fourteen cents is given to these African American to do with these slaves seeking freedom. These admission. The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed his neighborhoods to formulate, develop and slaves were not free to continue their journey, but argument, however it did allow race to become instead deemed to be contraband of the Civil War. one of many factors for admission consideration, implement an initiative to address black infant The Union Army established colonies during the but not the primary consideration. Since the mortality. The organization provided the granting Civil War where slaves were placed; many of Bakke decision, other legal challenges have foundation with documentation of the crisis and these colonies were located in southern states further weakened the effectiveness of Affirmative particularly documentation of the health disparity existing between black and white babies. The net occupied by Union forces. Under the command Action to level the playing field. result to our community is fourteen cents. of the Union Army, these one hundred established colonies which detained slaves, contraband of Health Equity emanates from a social justice the Civil War, worked the land on the promise context. In March of 1966, Dr. Martin Luther Practicing equality and creating a level by Union Army Commanders that after the war King, Jr. stated, “Of all the forms of inequality, playing field has tremendous barriers towards the land would be homesteaded and deeded to injustice in healthcare is the most shocking achievement. A primary barrier is that whites the former slaves. Hence came the conception and inhumane.” This statement fifty years ago, have historically benefitted from the inequity, as of forty acres and a mule. After the Civil War focused on the health disparities that existed then Chris Boeskool, a white contributing columnist and with the passage of 14th Amendment of the and now, blacks and the poor had limited access for the Huffington Post wrote, “When you are U.S. Constitution, which made former slaves to healthcare services and health outcomes of accustomed to privilege, equality feels like U.S. citizens and gave them the right to own blacks were then and remain among the worse in oppression.” Equality is not oppression, but to land. However, to appease the south, these this nation. In the Affordable Care Act (ACA), those who have benefitted from inequality, it is Union colonies where ex-run-a-way slaves, now otherwise known as Obamacare, there are sixty- unsettling to acknowledge that their privilege U.S. citizens had lived and worked the land with two provisions for addressing health equity in resulted from the oppression of freedom and the promise of land ownership, now found that eliminating health disparities in ethnic and racial rights of other humans. Of course, this nation very land returned to the former slave owners as minorities. Just as in the case of Affirmative has moved to a measurable degree towards compensation for their loss during the Civil War. Action, significant legal challenges to the ACA reconciliation with its history of oppression. This transaction, put these new U.S. citizens back are taking place to weaken and eliminate the Moreover, the practice of equality should never on the plantation and under the control of white intent of the law to improve health outcomes. be in the sole hands of those who have benefited landowners who relegated these blacks citizens These efforts are particularly detrimental within from the inequality. as sharecroppers. the African American populations, that has historically been plagued by health disparities As African Americans, we can never stop fighting During the sixties, President Lyndon B. Johnson and adverse health outcomes which began during the fight for equality in employment, education, signed into law the Affirmative Action provision slavery and continues till this day. housing, environmental justice and healthcare. that sought to address this nation’s history of discriminatory practice against blacks. It open The practice of health equity which is the With our greatest world leaders such as, King, doors to employment and educational opportunity elimination of health disparities by way of greater Mandela and others who have lead in the struggle to blacks who had been denied employment and access of medical and clinical services as well as, against oppression; we are bound to see this admissions due to racial discrimination practices. directed community resources requires a parity through, when full equality has been achieved. With Affirmative Action policies expanding to formula. For instance, here in Columbus, Ohio It is a continuum of our history and not an included government contracts, it also created when an organization receives 1.7 million dollars occurrence or event that engages us to stand for economic opportunities for black businesses in foundation funding to address infant mortality equality for ourselves and others. We own this. and other racial and ethnic minority firms to for the entire community than at minimum 1.7 compete on contracts that were previously million dollars must also be allocated specifically Tim Anderson is a contributing columnist for awarded to firms owned and managed by white to the African American community that sees The Columbus African American with a focus males. Proponents of Affirmative Action policies our babies die before their first birthday twice on healthcare. He is the founder of In My viewed it as leveling of the playing field, while as often as white babies. True parity would be Backyard Health and Wellness, providing health opponents challenged its’ constitutionality as 3.4 million dollars allocated to eliminate black education and wellness activities within the reverse discrimination-being harmful to whites. infant mortality disparity rather than 1.7 million urban community. To reach Tim directly, contact In a 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court heard the case dollars to reduce the disparity. The greatest him at 614-402-2089 or by email: timanderson@ of California Versus Bakke; a thirty-five-year-old insult is that two communities, the South Linden inmybackyardhope.com. The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

HEALTH

GETTING BETTER HEALTH CARE SHOULD NOT BE A CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE By Lisa D. Benton, MD, MPH A few days ago I had to pull out my “I’m a doctor card” helping someone who had been awaiting test results and a long overdue return call from her doctor. By saying it was Dr. Benton calling, I got a prompt reply from the person I needed to speak with. Although I was able to get through almost immediately, I was disappointed that the information had not been as quickly relayed to the patient, and the patient had gotten a bit of a runaround without direct answers when she had called. In this case the doctor that had the long-awaited lab results had put them in the wrong place in the electronic medical record where they weren’t able to be viewed by the primary provider to choice of healthcare providers and where you share with the patient. get your health care. The impact of racism can I thought delays in doctors and providers matter more as to when, why and how you get communicating with their patients were supposed sick and whether you will recover and get well. to lessen with emerging technology and the Affordable Care Act. On the contrary, it appears For this reason, you need to learn to become the that they’ve created additional barriers, delays best advocate for your health or connect with in proper care and more layers of confusion at someone who has your interests in mind. times. If you don’t understand or have questions about At the time when we as doctors are encouraged your illness, medications or treatment plans, to share with our patients the importance of please speak up In the presence of your healthcare reducing stress and having emotional and provider or doctor. That is the last place to keep spiritual balance and peace in getting and staying quiet and just go along without understanding well, we’re on defense against the disruptions in what is going on. the health care delivery system. Despite the current political climate ripe with an In many instances we as providers and caregivers abundance of conspiracy theories, getting well are lagging behind in giving our patients our best and having better health care should not be one. because we are struggling to coordinate their Voice your needs and be heard because your care, maintain awareness of the latest treatment desire for good health and getting well has no protocols and guidelines, and keep our patients place in a conspiracy of silence. from falling through the cracks in a complex and Learn a little more: often difficult to negotiate health care maze. It is estimated that each year over 200,000 people AHRQ 20 Tips to Help Prevent Medication may die and up to 20 times as many people suffer Errors: Patient Fact Sheets - http://archive. negative effects due to preventable medical errors. Although protocols are in place to lessen big mistakes such as operating on the wrong side of the body, medical errors can still happen in a lot of other places and ways you interact with the medical system.

ahrq.gov/patients-consumers/care-planning/ errors/20tips/index.html American Public Health Association: The Impact of Racism on the Health and Well-Being of the Nation and other webinars - https://www. apha.org/events-and-meetings/webinars/racismand-health Racial Bias in Medicine Leads to Worse Care for Minorities - http://health.usnews.com/ health-news/patient-advice/articles/2016-02-11/ racial-bias-in-medicine-leads-to-worse-care-forminorities U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Strategies to Reduce Medication Errors: Working to Improve Medication Safety - http://www.fda. gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ ucm143553.htm Lisa D. Benton, MD, MPH (The Doctor is In) breastsurgeonlb@gmail.com Twitter: @DctrLisa (415) 746-0627

These mistakes can range from medication errors –too much or too little medication, or the wrong drug, the wrong combination of medications to charting errors, to hospital-associated infections. Many infections gotten while in the hospital can be prevented with frequent and regular handwashing by healthcare workers or properly cleaning medical equipment before and after it is used. There is also evidence that shows that when the effects of racism are at work in the settings where medical errors lead to negative events, outcomes for African American and patients of other racial and ethnic backgrounds are even worse. Racism can be considered an independent factor contributing to poorer health and how you respond when you are not well. Thus, racism can matter more than the health of the neighborhood in which you live, your access to a healthy lifestyle, nutritious food, clean air and water, The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

The Columbus African American • June 2016

HEALTH

STOP HIV IN COLUMBUS, OHIO By Leon McDougle, MD, MPH

If you were a doctor or nurse what advice would you provide to a person who reports that he or she was recently tested and does not have HIV, but continues in a sexual relationship with someone who is known to have HIV or AIDS and sometimes a condom is not used? Love, passion, pleasure and other factors that affect relationships such as culture, religion, socioeconomics, education, self-esteem, and environment including neighborhood, prisons and jails may improve or decrease the effectiveness of counseling provided by a healthcare provider. This may be especially true within the African American community of Franklin County and the United States where African American females and males have the highest rate of new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections Figure 1: New Diagnosis of HIV infection in Franklin County, Ohio in 2014

Source: Ohio Department of Health HIV/AIDS Surveillance Program. Data reported through December 31, 2014

Figure 2: New Diagnosis of HIV infection in the United States in 2014

To start, let’s return to the case introduced in the opening paragraph. Despite counseling about the risk involved and need for the partner to receive optimal treatment for HIV and to practice safer sex, about a year later the African American person returned to the office with a new diagnosis of HIV. Now this case occurred prior to the advent of a new HIV prevention strategy called PrEP (Pre-exposure prophylaxis). PrEP which involves taking the antiviral pill called Truvada (emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) daily which has been shown to decrease the rate of HIV transmission by 92% when taken consistently. Condom use is also recommended compared to other racial and ethnic groups. while taking PrEP. This prevention strategy may See Figure 1 and 2. MSM: Men who have sex with men; Heterosexual be one of the keys to lowering the new HIV contact with a person known to have, or be at risk infection rate among African Americans. for, HIV infection; Source: CDC. Diagnoses of HIV infection in the United States and dependent However, barriers such as lack of healthcare areas, 2014 http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/pdf/library/ provider familiarity with PreEP, implicit bias of reports/surveillance/cdc-hiv-surveillance-report- healthcare providers, inadequate health insurance coverage, and out of pocket expenses may limit us.pdf its effectiveness within the African American community. Please see the Columbus Public African American males also have the highest Health Department website for more details about incarceration rates in Ohio representing PrEP and listing of local healthcare providers (6,972/17,302: 40.3 %) of new inmates in Ohio who prescribe PrEP including The OSU Wexner prisons in 2014. African American males also Medical Center Infectious Disease Clinic 614comprised (516,900/1,508,636: 34.3%) of the 293-4854: https://www.columbus.gov/Templates/ total number people incarcerated in federal Detail.aspx?id=79275 Recommend that you first and state prisons in the United States in 2014. check with your local primary care physician. Although most HIV infections are thought to Information concerning health insurance coverage occur outside of prison, African Americans also for PrEP can be found at the Project Inform have the highest percentage of HIV infection website: http://www.projectinform.org/pdf/PrEP_ within federal and state prisons. According to Flow_Chart.pdf the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), incarcerated African American males Another important strategy to lower the rate of were 5 times as likely as white males, and twice as new HIV infection within the African American likely as Hispanic/Latino males, to be diagnosed community involves enacting the STOP AIDS in with HIV. Incarcerated African American females Prison Act introduce by Congresswomen Maxine were more than twice as likely to be diagnosed Waters in 2013 and 2015. It would require the with HIV as white or Hispanic/Latino females. Bureau of Prisons to develop a comprehensive To date, federal or state policy to prevent HIV policy to provide HIV testing, treatment, and transmission within prisons and among the prevention for inmates within federal correctional civilian community upon a person’s release from setting and upon reentry. The Act also aims to prison has not been enacted by U.S. federal or reduce the risk of inmates transmitting HIV to others in the civilian community following state governments. their release from prison. Enactment of similar Figure 3. Estimated New HIV Diagnoses in the U.S. for the MostAffected Subpopulations, 2014

Source: HIV Surveillance Report Volume 26. Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Cultural and religious mores may be especially impactful among the African American community where in many cases homosexuality is considered a sin and an unacceptable behavior of sexual preference, not sexual orientation. Remarkably, 91% of African American females and 75% of White females contract HIV infection by straight or heterosexual contact with a male who may be known to have or be at higher risk for HIV. However, 4 times as many African American females (4,564) compared to White females (1,115) contracted HIV in 2014 during heterosexual contact. See Figure 3.

How can African Americans protect themselves from a disease like HIV that may be difficult to visually detect until later stages of AIDS? The rate of new HIV infections among African Americans has improved but remains 8 times higher than rate of new HIV infection of Whites. See Table 1.

legislation for state prisons is also needed because 90% of inmates with HIV diagnosis are in state prisons. Please consider contacting your Ohio and U.S. Congressional representatives concerning this legislation.

Leon McDougle, MD, MPH is the Chief Diversity Source: CDC Diagnosis of HIV infection in Officer and Associate Professor of Family the United States and dependent areas, 2014 Medicine at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/pdf/library/reports/ surveillance/cdc-hiv-surveillance-report-us.pdf Leon.McDougle@osumc.edu

The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

HEALTH

AGING GRACEFULLY IS POSSIBLE By Jaqueline LewisLyons, Psy.D Several years ago, there was a popular phrase designed to help us baby boomers not feel so old – “Fifty is the new forty.” There is a definite obsession in our country with youth and the appearance of youth. I am amazed at the number of television ads pointing out how much we need these products. The cosmetics aisles are full of new products each month designed to take years off, eliminate wrinkles, and return that ‘youthful glow’. Maybe I’m unusual, but I don’t mind being my age. I am at the end of my 50s and I can honestly say I don’t know what sixty is supposed to feel like, but I’m focused on enjoying every day and year I am given. There is nothing wrong with wanting to enhance your appearance but it seems that this national obsession has reached absurdity. What would it be like if we could all just relax and relish the experience of our lives, without dreading the next birthday? After all, at this time, our generation has the longest life expectancy rates. There is much more living that we can enjoy regardless of our age. Turning forty, fifty, or even sixty years old should not be a point where we give up and resign ourselves to being worn out, useless, or irrelevant. It’s all about our choices. I love quotes and I have chosen some of my favorites to share in hopes of encouraging you to look for ways to thoroughly enjoy this new phase of your life. Let’s start with what aging is – the dictionary lists Aging as a noun which

refers to the process of growing old. From the moment we are born, we are aging. It’s a fact of life that we cannot fight. Each day, month, year, we all age. And, don’t forget, there is only one alternative. Aging gracefully requires us to take responsibility for our physical health. Edward Stanley wrote this in the 1880s – “Those who think they have no time or bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness.” He was quite a forward thinker in advocating for the benefits of physical activity. It is important for us as we get past forty to make positive decisions about our health. We are aware of the recommended changes – daily physical activity, eat a healthy diet, stay mentally active, be social, manage stress in healthy ways, quit smoking, and lower blood pressure. It’s never too late to start incorporating these suggestions in our lives.

Actress - Cicely Tyson at age 91

aside while raising a family, building your career, or even caring for your own aging parents. She wrote about successful aging in “The Fountain of Age” and described it as “a time of growth rather than decline.” Value what you have learned over the years and search out ways to make a difference in the world. Make a new legacy. Anything is possible!

The baseball great Satchel Paige is credited with this one – “How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?” I love this question! When I check in with myself, I often find that I don’t feel my age. A lot depends on what I’m doing. When I am in the zone of whatever activity has my attention, time seems to fade and I just go with it. Granted, I know that I am not in my 20s, but I don’t feel like my time is coming My last and favorite quote is from George Burns: to a close. Mindset is important here. Don’t let a “You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have number dictate who you are or what you do. Your to get old.” This says it all for me. identity is so much more than a number. Dr. Jacqueline Lewis-Lyons’ office is located in Another quote is from the period known as North Columbus. Her practice centers on helping the Women’s Liberation Movement (yes, I’m clients with depression and anxiety related dating myself ) by Betty Friedan. “Aging is not disorders. In recent years, after discovering a lost youth but a new stage of opportunity and love for running, she expanded her practice to strength.” What would happen if you allowed include services related to Sport Psychology yourself to take on a new challenge or reconsider for athletes of all ages and levels. To reach a dream from years ago? Now may be the perfect her, call 614-443-7040 or email her at Jaqui@ time to throw yourself into a project that you put DrLewisLyons.com

KEVIN MORTON, JR. BECOMES INSPIRED AFTER DOCTORS SAVE HIS LIFE doctors at Detroit’s St. John Hospital weren’t sure the then 22-year-old would make it. The Oakland University of Rochester student, who was closing up after a night shift at a local Arby’s, was shot by a gunman who attempted to rob him as he was getting into his vehicle. Doctors said the young student had a 10 percent chance of surviving through the night, the report said: Sheth-Zelmanski got a call for a Code 1 trauma patient that night. Doctors prepared Morton’s family for the worst. “Whether we call it intuition, experience or a miracle … we put some extra sutures in and the bleeding stopped,” Sheth-Zelmanski recalled. Morton’s life was saved. He had plans to graduate from school and go into the pharmaceuticals industry, but that all changed when doctors at St. John Hospital gave him another chance. He spent 50 days recovering there. A Michigan man who was nearly killed in a 2007 shooting graduated last week to become a surgeon, much like the one who saved him after the random robbery that almost took his life.

Morton Jr. was brought in with a gunshot wound to the stomach. And Sheth-Zelmanski was there again when the now 31-year-old graduated from Michigan State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, NBCreports.

It was Dr. Dharti Sheth-Zelmanski who was in the trauma unit when then-college student Kevin Morton’s story is full circle; nine years ago, 11

What’s more, Morton will begin his residency at the same hospital where he was saved. “The compassion and drive that Dr. Sheth has shown in trying to save my life … I just wanna pay that forward,” Morton told NBC News.

The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

MAIN LIBRARY OPENS

JUNE 25

Join us for these free events Saturday June 25 Noon

Saturday June 25 12:30 p.m.

Saturday June 25 2 p.m.

Saturday June 25 Dusk

Sunday June 26 2 p.m.

Dedication and Ribbon Cutting

Grand Opening Celebration

Concert in the Park with PBJ & Jazz

Outdoor Movie: The Lorax (2012)

Author Talk with David Baldacci

Making it official!

Explore the new building.

Enjoy this special concert.

In partnership with the Gateway Film Center.

For tickets visit columbuslibrary.org.

#newmain

columbuslibrary.org

Learn how you can help create great libraries at greatlibrariescreate.org. The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

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Some of us follow our own beat. COTA KEEPS US MOVING.

The Columbus African American â&#x20AC;˘ June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal â&#x20AC;˘ February 2015

The Columbus African American • June 2016

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY IS EVERCHANGING - WHERE DO I DIVE IN? By Cecil Jones, MBA Do I just start using the current technology provided to me? Do I get more selective and focus on specific technology? Let’s discuss approaches to using technology. We all use technology. Recently, you were forced to begin entering 10 digit telephone numbers instead of 7 digits for local calls. At work, new features and functionality of applications and software to help complete your work are introduced, regularly. This may have included the rollout of Microsoft Office or the Windows 10 operating system over the last several months. If you have not been a fan and great user of technology, where do you begin? If you are a fan and enjoy using technology, how do you continue to get better? Since the focus of this edition is ‘Aging’, let’s then 3) the city belonging to that zip code appears start with our mature citizens. – that is an example of an app. An app usually provides one or two functions, not many. There Mature Technology Users is free software at the site https://www.appmakr. com/ that you can download to build a phone app. Gray/white hair does not mean that one is not There are many tutorials available that walk you familiar with technology. Much of the core of through building an app. the technology that is used to day was developed by the 45 to 65 year old age group. Of course, Instead of looking an app on a phone, do this group did not grow up with a mouse in you want to look at an existing app in more their hands. Some seniors did not begin using detail on a larger PC screen and use it there? technology heavily until it became a part of Download iPadian from http://www.pcadvisor. everything that we do (Smart TVs, Smart Phones, c o . u k / d o w n l o a d / s y s t e m - d e s k t o p - t o o l s / Electronics in cars, etc.). Some got involved with ipadian-30-3249967/ to your PC. You can then Facebook to look for former class mates and use the app on your PC rather than on your others. phone. If you are a bit older and are spending more time getting into newer technologies, a great free source for learning new technologies is the web itself. Plan on spending an hour once or twice each week in your favorite technology or a new technology. There are free formal technology college courses offered by organizations like www.coursera.org. Going directly to the software that you use and clicking on ‘Help’ within the software itself can get you to useful online web sites. YouTube is a good source of videos for many software tools. While help and support is available online in written documents, more and more help and assistance is provided via step-by-step videos. Additional free face-toface instruction is available from locations like the libraries and the OSU African and African American Studies Extension Center. Young Technology Users Instead of just downloading apps for your phone, build your own! Sell them! An app is short for application. Applications are usually larger and provided fuller capabilities; for example, Excel is an example of a full application. Something small to allow you to 1) enter a zip code, 2) Click, and

conduct online forums. Be sure to attend the national conferences and conventions of technology that you use regularly. It is important for me to keep abreast of various types of technology and how they are managed (people, process and technology). I attend conferences in Silicon Valley including Stanford (Palo Alto) and San Francisco to learn about multiple types of technology and how it is managed. While I attend conferences around the country, there are nationally known high quality conferences held in Columbus.

Locally, IT Martini, Rev1 (formerly TechColumbus), Dogfoodcon.com and many other groups provide opportunities to dive Mid-Career and Business Users into technology. There are gatherings at our local colleges for adult workers. Technology Career and personal needs are often the source IS ever changing. You just have to LEAN IN! of technology needs for those in the middle of DIVE INTO THE WATER! their careers or for those that manage a business. Focus on your customers and what you need to Go for it! do to help them. First, you need to know your Help Us to Help You customers and communicate with them. Tools like constantcontact.com and similar tools allow The purpose of this column is to provide useful you to store important information about your information and knowledge that you can use, customers and contacts. Evite is a free tool to today. If you have a technology question (how invite people to that special event. Doodle allows to get something done, what business, process your teams to choose a meeting date/time that or software solution might be available for is good for all of the team members. These your situation, etc.), please email the question comment to the email address Admin@ technology tools also allow you to communicate or Accelerationservices.net for a quick response. with customers and others when you have that special message: sale, discount, you are moving, Having managed technology, communications your hours are changing, etc. and business functionality for multiple Fortune 100 companies, Cecil is a technology and Professionals need to utilize several technology management leader. He teaches technology, tools to perform their duties and enhance their business and communications courses. He is a careers. Think about the software that you use. past president of many organizations including BDPA (Technology group), and Columbus There are technology user groups for almost Association of Black Journalists. He serves on all software and technology; particularly for the Executive Committee of boards including software used by most organizations. Many Chairman of IMPACT Community Action user group meetings are local gatherings. Others Agency. www.AccelerationServices.net

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

The Columbus African American • June 2016

EDUCATION ROBERT CALDWELL, JR., Q&A: THE MIND OF A DEDICATED SERVANT work with primarily poor folks living in poverty eventually led me to community development work.

By Joseph W. Cooke For more than 25 years, Robert L Caldwell, Jr., has dedicated his life to implementing social change through discovering how racial and class differences can keep some people trapped in poverty. He has used his grounding in spirituality to improve the quality of lives of in Central Ohio, including residents of neighborhoods surrounding The Ohio State University.

Q: Was there a financial sacrifice for you and your family (a wife and four children) that came with working in social services and living in neighborhoods like Weinland and Greenbrier?

Dr. Michael V. Drake, President of OSU (right) presented Distinguished Service Award to Robert Caldwell, Jr. (center).

work in enhancing citizens’ lives by improving For this reason, Caldwell was one of two their communities, and his mentality regarding recipients of Distinguished Service Awards poverty and how to overcome it. p r e s e n t e d a t O h i o S t a t e ’s 2 0 1 6 S p r i n g Commencement. Q : Wi t h a d e g re e i n C o r p o r a t e a n d Organizational Communications, you could Coming from a middle-class background, have likely secured a lucrative career in the Caldwell made the decision in the early 1990s private sector. What motivated you to pursue to start his career by living in the low-income a career in social services, and especially to neighborhoods of Greenbrier on the city’s east focus on poverty? side, and later Weinland Park near Ohio State’s south campus, to better understand the realities A: It was clear that I had a calling to do this of those who are economically disadvantaged.. work. I started to understand that around the time While living in Greenbrier, an area with so much I was 25 years old. By the time I went to grad alleged gun violence that it was nicknamed school and seminary it began to become clearer “Uzi Alley,” Caldwell helped develop TEACH and clearer that trying to work to address poverty (The Enrichment Association for Community was what I was supposed to be doing. It was Healing). During this time, he also developed something that I was clearly wired to do. This is initiatives such as R.O.W. T.E.A.M.S. (Residents what I was gifted to do and was the best use of off Welfare Teaching Educating Achieving my talents. Motivating Success) and Break Dividing Walls, to expose financially disadvantaged residents to Q: Was any of your motivation to help the poor faith and spirituality to emotionally empower driven from your background or childhood? them. A: Not really. I was a working class kid so I really After moving to Weinland Park in the early didn’t have any real knowledge of poverty in a 2000s, Caldwell founded the Weinland Park way that it’s understood growing up. There was Community Civic Association. Caldwell’s a lot for me to learn so that’s why I moved into accomplishments as president of the association the neighborhoods in order to do the work I do.” include creating a comprehensive economic development plan that would affect more than Q: Was there anyone you knew personally who 100,000 Weinland Park residents and Ohio State dealt with poverty? students and employees. Caldwell is now executive director of AnswerPoverty.org, regional director for training and development at Think Tank, Inc., a senior fellow at Mission Columbus, managing partner at Community Revitalization Associates, board chair of the University Area Enrichment Association and the University District Freedom School Program. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Corporate and Organizational Communications from Dennison University, and is a graduate and fellow of Ohio State’s Ray Miller Institute for Change and Leadership. Family members and friends find it fitting that he works with people, citing his rambunctious and energetic personality while growing up. In this exclusive Q&A interview with the Columbus African American News Journal, Caldwell reflected on his background, his unorthodox career and lifestyle decisions, his

A: I started working with teenage boys. When I was in grad school, I had a part time job with a foster care agency. I used to do what they called ‘wrap around support’ which was really babysitting and hanging out with kids to give foster parents a rest from their children from half a day to a day. I turned that into my own social service organization and I started working with kids who would get referred from (Franklin County) children’s social services, they were all teenage boys. What I realized is that by the time the boy is a teenager, it was almost too late to get through to him. So I started working with younger boys of elementary age. When you start working with younger boys, you realize that the families are really broken as well. If you’re going to work with kids, you have to work with families. That’s when you realize the communities folks grow up in is low-income and poor and that people are trapped in the cycle of generational poverty. Over a period of years, this experience and desire to

The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

A: We considered ourselves to be missionaries to the inner city. In some ways, we prepared ourselves like missionaries. Our family has never really had a lot of consumer debt. The risk wasn’t as much financial as much as it was ‘you’re moving into a neighborhood where people get shot and sell drugs. Is this where you want to have your family? These are questions that I got when I first started doing this stuff and moving into these neighborhoods. I lived in the poor and crime-ridden areas of Greenbrier as a single guy, and then got married and after a few years of marriage, we moved to Weinland Park with a few kids. People thought that was kind of crazy but I knew this was what I was supposed to do. My understanding of what it means to be a Christian is that it means to be obedient, doing what you’re led to do. I was led into living in neighborhoods like Greenbrier and doing the work that I do. Living in these neighborhoods was philosophically the way I thought you had to do it. Q: How hard was it to muster up the courage to live there? A: When you’re there and really understand what’s going on, you realize you’re at no greater risk of getting shot in a neighborhood like Greenbrier than you are anywhere else in the city. Typically, people who get shot are those in the gang. You very rarely hear about innocent people getting shot. It happens occasionally but that’s true everywhere. Occasionally there’s a stray bullet or several guys shooting at each other. You’d think it’s more likely to happen in a neighborhood like Greenbrier or Weinland Park but the truth is it’s not more likely to happen there than it is anywhere else. We were there doing good stuff and we began to get a reputation in the neighborhoods. We weren’t ever in any danger in the way people may think so it was more just being obedient than mustering up the courage. I had faith and knew that this was what I was supposed to do. I trusted that God would take care of us ultimately. Q: You’re unique in how you use faith to give back to the community. What is the importance of using spiritually to enhance your social work? A: Faith in the original language is translated into ‘trust in God.’ For people who are trapped in the cycle of poverty, what else do they have if they can’t learn they have to trust God to help them break free from this cycle? In addition to learning Continued on next page.

EDUCATION Continued from previous page.

skills and having resources, when people’s lives are so broken emotionally and psychologically, it’s only faith and spiritually that can heal that. There’s no way that a person who’s never been poor can truly understand what it means to live in the cycle of generational poverty. It’s constant stress, never knowing what the hell is going to happen, if you’re going to eat and what you’ll eat. Most of these kids’ parents’ lives are in shambles, so you have to look to God or else you don’t see any hope for your life. So, I include a component of faith and spiritualty as a part of what I do not only because it’s why I do it but I think it’s a resource people have to embrace like getting a job or education. Q: Have you ever worked with westside Columbus neighborhoods? A: I started in Greenbrier and moved to Weinland Park. I’m (working) in Milo-Grogan and South Linden now and I’ll be in the Hilltop (on the west side of Columbus) by the end of this summer. We lived and worked in Weinland until about 2011.

I made a commitment to live there for at least 10 years in order to do the work that I was doing. It was a ten year commitment to live and work in the community. hat was part philosophy and part strategy because living there long enough allowed me to understand and figure out the best things that could be done to help.”

the problem. If you want to effect change, you have to go the real root. What I learned from doing this is how things work systemically to perpetuate poverty. My work now is to interrupt that perpetuation to change things in the system of funding, programming, and service delivery design, so that we can break the cycle of poverty.

Q: You have expertise in urban community Q: What’s the number one lesson you hope development, social justice, diversity and impoverished kids learn from your work? equity, and collaborative leadership. Are there mental lessons you’ve learned that you carry A: That you don’t have to live in the cycle of into what you do now? generational poverty if you happen to be in A: I’m a systemic thinker. Part of what means it. You have to be ready to take advantage of is that I deconstruct things, I want to understand opportunities when they present themselves. why things are the way they are. If you’ve got One of the unfortunate things about living in this issue over here, I want to dig deeper and poverty is that you don’t get many opportunities figure out what’s going on that produces this over (that require money as a factor). Most children here. As an example, if you’ve cut your grass and don’t have parents who are strong advocates who you think you’ve dealt with your dandelions, a work to create opportunities for their children. couple days later they’ll be right back. If you’re My dad was a working class guy; he couldn’t going to get rid of dandelions, you have to get do a whole lot to create opportunities for me. o the root. If you’re going to deal with some of When you’re trapped in poverty, it’s unlikely that the problems in the neighborhood, like throwing you have a parent that has the capacity to create people in jail and all these surface things we tend to do, then that’s not getting to the root of opportunities for you.”

DON’T LET STUDENT DEBT CRUMBLE HOME BUYING DREAMS

By Laden Hayle and Isabel Giles Ohio’s college graduates this spring have heard from and been challenged by an impressive array of speakers -- leaders in health, cable television, and fast food, to name a few. “Expect the unexpected,” “You have to change to keep growing,” “Lead and achieve greatness,” graduates of colleges, large and small, have been told. student loan default against you. Some licensed professionals can be suspended if delinquent on But if there is one consistent message that most their college loans. graduates need to take with them, it might be: “Visit your student financial aid office and find This issue and the impact is huge: out the terms of the loans that got you to this point.” • 70 percent of college graduates are graduating with student loan debt. While the upside of a college degree is potential employment, your student loan debt, particularly • 25 percent of individuals with student loan debt if you fall behind on payments and go into are in default. default, can adversely affect your future ability to borrow money to purchase a home. Upon leaving college, find out the source of your financial aid. College financial aid offices should For example, to quality for an FHA loan – the be more than happy to advise you, as the loans most common for home buying -- you are they coordinate are monitored for success. If required to show a dozen straight loan payments loans dry up, that means fewer student admissions on your student loan. -- the lifeblood of any college or university.

-- but private ones do. If you have a government loan, develop a strategy to reduce the monthly payment and when it comes due. Hope is not an option. You need a repayment plan. Develop it before you hit default. At Homeport, we can help individuals develop an overall budget. Once that budget is established we can help you develop a repayment plan for debts and an action plan that could one day help you purchase a home or meet other financial goals. Congratulations graduating class of 2016.

Layden Hale is a Senior Counselor Advisor for Homeport; Isabel Giles is Loan Program Manager for Homeport. Visit www.homeportohio. And it’s more than just a house that is at stake. You should also know that government backed org/get-help, or call 614 221-8889, Ext. 134, for Employers searching backgrounds may hold a student loans do not have immediate payments free financial counseling advice.

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

The Columbus African American • June 2016

POLITICS

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: 131ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY By Senator Charleta B. Tavares The Ohio General Assembly conducted a marathon session on Wednesday, May 25 prior to a scheduled summer recess. The members of the legislature heard approximately fifty bills including the Medical Marijuana Control program and others which contained controversial provisions inserted by one Chamber or the other to evade opponents and public discussion. The legislative summary of the legislation passed prior to the summer recess will be highlighted over the next several months. Part I of the summary is listed below: S. B. No. 247- Summer Food Programs (sponsors Senators Brown and Lehner) - To require school districts to allow approved summer food service program sponsors to use school facilities to provide food service for summer intervention services under certain conditions. This bill provides for expansion of summer food service programs for children to address food insecurity. The bill passed out of the Senate on May 25, 2016 unanimously (33-0) and now goes to the Ohio House of Representatives. S. C. R. No. 15 (sponsors Senators Obhof and Faber) – To reassert the principles of federalism found throughout the Constitution of the United States of America and embodied in the Tenth Amendment, to notify Congress to limit and end certain mandates, and to insist that federal legislation contravening the Tenth Amendment be prohibited or repealed. The Senate Concurrent Resolution was passed along party lines with a vote of 23-10. The Democrats voted against the resolution because they felt it was an affront to Congress and President Obama and because of the hypocrisy displayed by state legislators who have enacted legislation preempting local government control over their jurisdictional communities. Sub. H. B. No. 50 (sponsors Representatives Pelanda and Grossman) – To extend the age for which a person is eligible for federal foster care and adoption assistance payments under Title IV-E to age twenty-one; to require that a guardian receive the Ohio Guardianship Guide;

and to conform to recent amendments to federal Title IV-E program requirements. The bill passed out of the Senate unanimously and now goes to the Governor for signature. This is an important bill for youth aging out of the Foster Care System by allowing adoption and foster care assistance to continue until a child is 21. Young adults will be able to transition with supports into adulthood while in school or working. Sub. H. B. No. 173 (sponsors Representatives Anielski and Terhar) – To authorize a county recorder or county veterans service office, with the approval of the board of county commissioners, to issue Ohio veterans identification cards. The bill would provide a permanent record of the veteran’s “DD 214” which is used for employment and other benefits with the county recorder or veterans’ service office. The bill was unanimously passed out of the Senate and now goes to the Governor for signature. Sub. H. B. No. 200 (sponsor Representative Hagan) – Expands the organizations, agencies etc. who can procure, store, and access epinephrine auto injectors for which there are no patient-specific prescriptions and provides civil immunity of health professionals. The legislation will allow various institutions serving the public to keep “Epipens” on hand for use in emergencies such as allergies to food, bug bites and animals which may cause swelling, breathing difficulty, choking or death. This bill passed unanimously out of the Senate and now goes to the Governor for signature.

elective offices. This bill passed out of the House (95-2), unanimously in the Senate and now goes to the Governor for signature. H. B. No. 523 (sponsor Representative Huffman) - To authorize the use of marijuana for medical purposes and to establish the Medical Marijuana Control Program. This legislation was one of the more deliberatively studied, debated and controverial bills to come before the Ohio General Assembly. After the 2-1 defeat at the ballot in November of a Medical and Recreational Use Marijuana initiative sponsored by wealthy investors and Canibus advocates, members of the House and Senate (Reps. Schuring, Hoffman and Sens. Burke and Yuko) worked over several months conducting field hearings, interested party (IP) meetings and discussions with the members of the General Assembly on their legislative proposal. The proposal was convincingly passed in the House by a vote of 67-29 and it was narrowly agreed to in the Senate by a vote of 1815. The bill now goes to the Governor where he can allow it to become law without his signature, sign it or veto it.

The committee schedules, full membership rosters and contact information for the Ohio House and Senate can be found at: www. ohiohouse.gov and www.ohiosenate.gov respectively. If you are interested in getting the House Calendar each week of the General Assembly, contact the House Clerk, http://www. ohiohouse.gov/housecalendar/house_calendar.pdf or your state Representative. Senate calendars are available at www.ohiosenate.gov; contact the Sub. H. B. No. 359 (sponsors Representatives Senate Clerk’s office at (614) 466-4900 or your Duffey and Gonzales) – To create an address state Senator. confidentiality program for victims of domestic violence, menacing by stalking, human The Ohio General Assembly sessions and the trafficking, trafficking in persons, rape, or sexual House and Senate Finance Committee hearings battery and to allow wireless service account can be viewed live on WOSU/WPBO and replays transfer in a domestic violence situation. The can be viewed at ohiochannel.gov (specific House bill passed unanimously out of the Senate and and Senate sessions can be searched in the video now goes to the Governor for signature. archives). If you would like to receive updated information on the Ohio General Assembly and Sub. S. B. No. 63 (sponsor Senator LaRose) – policy initiatives introduced, call or email my To create an online voter registration system, office at 614.466.5131 or tavares@ohiosenate. to require the Secretary of State annually to review the Statewide Voter Registration com to receive the Tavares Times News monthly Database to identify registrants who are not legislative newsletter. United States citizens, to modify the procedures for maintaining the Statewide Voter Registration Sen. Charleta B. Tavares, D-Columbus, is proud Database, to amend the requirements for the to serve and represent the 15th District, including certification of voting equipment, and to clarify the historic neighborhoods of Columbus and the the circumstances under which a political party cities of Bexley and Grandview Heights in the may appoint a person to fill a vacancy in certain Ohio Senate.

The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

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The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

COVER STORY HON. PRISCILLA R. TYSON: INFLUENCE AT CITY HALL AND THE NATION

By Joseph W. Cooke When the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials Summer Conference and Board Meeting convenes in Columbus this summer from July 20-23, it will be due to the efforts of the organization’s president, Columbus City Council member and President Pro Tempore Priscilla Tyson. During the conference, Tyson will be promoting Columbus’ progressive attitude and noteworthy employment opportunities, while making sure policy recommendations address and improve issues African Americans face in Central Ohio. For more than 30 years, Democratic Columbus City Council member and lifelong resident Priscilla Tyson and Former Columbus City Council Member, Les Wright Priscilla Tyson has been an advocate for community empowerment at federal and state levels. Her work has reached the profit and nonher the funds to pay for the associate degree she careers in other areas besides public service, she profit world. received. While attending Franklin, she worked still continued forward with her desire to give Even though she has spent around three decades as a supervisor of the former Lazarus department back to the community. Outside of her work life, she has always been involved with community of her life in the public eye, her quest towards stores. service and felt her experience as a servant working to assist others has extended far beyond From 1977-1993 she worked at Ohio National combined with a business background would suit this time frame. Bank, which became National City Bank and is her well as an elected official. Her opportunity Born on April 4th, 1955, she was raised by her now PNC bank. She spent a decade in the Ohio to dive into the profession was right around the mother and stepfather after the passing of her National and National City human resources corner. biological father when she was six months old. department and an extra six years to the lending Her mom and stepdad raved about the importance side, assisting the bank’s efforts to improve inner In 2007, Mary Jo Hudson resigned from City Council and Tyson was appointed as a of education and a good work-ethic. According to city Columbus. replacement. She has won election twice and was a 2012 Columbus Dispatch article which profiled Under the leadership of Erie D. “Chip” Chapman, the lead vote-getter in 2009. her, the councilwoman said her mom often stated she should be a doctor instead of just marrying III, formerly CEO of U.S. Health Corp, (now Ohio Health), Tyson became the business’s During her time on Council, she has been one. first black vice president. This position opened considered the “quality of life” member, Her early schooling set the foundation for her the door for Chapman to send her to Boston to focusing on job creation, safety, and economic success outside the classroom. She has been attempt to bring City Year, a federally funded development. Since being on council, she has noted for praising her teachers for being role program that pays 17-to-24 year olds for collaborated with numerous organizations to community service, to Central Ohio. Thanks to develop solutions on various Council committees, models. her efforts in launching City Year Columbus, including serving as chair of Finance, Recreation She graduated from Eastmoor High School in teenagers and young adults earned thousands and Parks, and as a Zoning committee member. 1973, received an associate’s degree in retailing of hours of volunteer service to students and As the chair of Health and Human Services and Workforce Development committee, her work at Columbus Technical College, and a bachelor’s teachers in Columbus Public Schools. increases Central Ohioans access to healthcare degree in business administration from Franklin Tyson eventually left Ohio Health to become and job training. University in 1978. She was the first in her family to receive a college degree, and her sisters would Executive Director of City Year. During this period, she led City Year’s work with Columbus She has many accomplishments that are follow in her footsteps. Schools kindergarten through third grade distinguishable in their creation of programs Even though she has earned acknowledgement reading program, achieving the goal of 80% of that pave ways out of poverty, access to food and success in Ohio politics, her career has children moving above one grade in reading and employment, and preventing homelessness. comprehension. Her rigorous performance On Finance Committee, she led an effort to spawned across many fields. resulted in her being promoted to the Regional pass the city’s largest General Fund and Capital Improvements Budgets. In the Driving Park She started working as a young adult in less Director of City Year. neighborhood, she funded $1 million in home glamorized fields. While in high school, she was employed by a paint company which helped give Even though Tyson had established dynamic repairs through the James Johnson Driving The JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015 The Columbus Columbus African African American American •News

COVER STORY Park Home Repair Program. She created the first city funding for community gardening and Columbus Art Commission, along with updating the Columbus Civil Rights Code to protect individual’s identity of expression by race or gender. Her accolades include the Amethyst 2013 Purple Heart Award, a YWCA Women of Achievement Award, the Urban League Equal Opportunity Award of Excellence, an Ohio Hispanic Coalition’s Padrino Award, the Columbus Education Association’s Martin Luther King Humanitarian of the Year Award, and the 2014 Making a Difference Community Service Award. Tyson also serves on the City Council’s Small Business Roundtable. She was appointed to the board of directors of the Ohio Municipal League, where she will be a part of a bipartisan coalition of municipal elected officials who stand up for Ohio’s cities and villages before the state legislature and executive branch.

Councilmember Tyson and Congresswoman Beaty pose with the Mother’s for the Movement They are the mothers of Hadiyah Pendleton, Eric Garner, Jordan Davis, Dontre Hamilton, Sandra Bland and Travon Martin.

Even though she has spent tireless energy aiming to improve lives in business and community, she also helps expose people’s talents and gifts in the arts.

city council colleagues selected her as the Council President Pro Tem. She will act as the presiding officer of council in the absence of the council president.

As evidence of her deep-rooted passion for the expression of culture through the arts, she previously served as a member of the Creative Arts Steering Committee, and worked on the report of “The Creative Economy: Leveraging the Arts, Culture and Creative Community for a The statistics of Columbus’s growth has spoken Stronger Columbus.” volumes of the value of Tyson’s work. As the 15th largest city in the country, Columbus is Tyson is the founder and owner of the Star Arts recognized as one of the best places for young Gallery Limited, one of Columbus’s premiere art adults to begin their career. According to a venues that since 2005 has helped artists share story from Columbus Business First, more their work, and allows her to introduce audiences new business grow to employ 50 or more to their fine arts and art collections. She also individuals in the first decade than all other major serves on the board of the Greater Columbus Arts metropolitan areas in America. Columbus has Council and has been a member of the Phoenix been cited by many newspapers and economic Theater Board. development organizations as being among the best cities in the Midwest. Despite her prestigious career, it seems as if the best for her is still to come. This year, Tyson’s

Her success has not come without trials and tribulations. Her son John Butler, was diagnosed with sickle-cell anemia while he was an infant. While working to establish her own career, she led her son to strive for success despite this sometimes debilitating disease. Despite his medical challenges, he graduated as an honors student from a prestigious private high school in Columbus and from Howard University in Washington, D.C. He now works as a volunteer for her campaign.

Her other positions include being appointed to the Columbus Civil Service Commission, on which she served for more than 13 years from 19932007 and rose to the rank of President. She has previously a member of the Partners Achieving Community Transformation, as Services to Youth chair of The Links, Inc. and as a member of the boards of the Columbus Education Commission and the Community Shelter Board.

Priscilla Tyson has been married to Renny Tyson since 1999. His firm, Renny J. Tyson Co., LPA, handles primarily employment discrimination and personal injury cases. Attorney Tyson has more than 25 years of experience that includes more than 150 jury trials involving workplace injuries, and has represented over 1,000 personal injury victims. He has earned significant settlements on behalf of his clients, including multi-millions dollar resolutions. The Tysons have a blended family of four sons and one daughter. They live in the Eastmoor neighborhood of Columbus. They both attribute their personal and professional success to their Christian beliefs, and serve as a deacon and deaconess at First Church of God. In an era where progress in major metropolitan areas like Columbus seems to be more transient than long-term, there is often less compassion shown for issues addressing major cities. With that in mind, the passion Tyson has shown for Columbus is rare and valued. With the dedication and hard-work of Priscilla Tyson on Columbus City Council, the citizens of our community will be well represented for years to come.

Congresswoman Joyce Beatty and Councilmember Priscilla Tyson speak to Mother’s for the Movement.

Joseph W. Cooke is a Junior, Journalism Major at Ohio University. He is currently serving as a summer intern with The Columbus African American.

The Columbus African American • June 2016

The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

JUSTICE

IT’S GAME TIME: WHERE ARE YOU? By Ambrose Moses, III A few months ago, after quoting Malcolm X, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Frederick Douglass, I called upon the words of Steven Biko, who said, “The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.” I submitted to You that the imposition of, and the suffering under, economic injustice follows the same pattern as oppression in general. If the economically oppressed do nothing, they will continue to get what they have always gotten (or worse). I then channeled Brother Jesse Jackson in proclaiming, “If my mind can con-ceive it, my heart can believe it, I know I can achieve it.” As you can see, I pulled out all the stops in an effort to not just make a point, but to motivate the Black community. You to take action. Yes, once again, I am talking about crowdfunding . . . what President Obama The “Black community” is not limited to a called the “game changer”. single geographical area. Black folks are all over the place.Technology (websites, social media, The law (i.e. Title III of the JOBS Act) went live mobile devices, etc.) has allowed us physically on May 16, 2016. I went to Capitol Hill and to be spread about, yet unified in mind, spirit, peeked in on the celebration of the new law and and action. We can and must conceive the idea the opportunities it is expected to bring. I didn’t of Black-owned businesses. We can and must see You. conceive ourselves as individual investors who The sponsors and promoters of the new are willing to invest $500 into a Black-owned crowdfunding law talked about You and the need business. to have You there, but I didn’t see You there. Where were You? I was disappointed by Your absence. All the way home to Columbus, I pondered, “How are We going to get Black folks to be engaged and educated about crowdfunding as a wealthbuilding and community building tool”? I will continue to write about it, talk about it, and help everyone I can to benefit from crowdfunding. In order to compete, You have to be in the game. Since crowdfunding utilizes social media and other methods of connecting with “the crowd”, You might want to consider expanding Your social network (both online and offline). I am accepting new folks in my social network. You can fol-low me on Twitter @moseslaw. I am also on Facebook and LinkedIn.

What is the current wealth gap between Black Americans and White Ameri-cans? How many Black-owned businesses are there in the United States or your town? What is the unemployment rate for Black Americans (adults and teens)? What is the underemployment rate for Black Americans? How many Black Amer-icans are no longer even counted in the unemployment numbers? How many Black Americans would Black-owned businesses hire? How many vacant, aban-doned, or under-used commercial buildings and land are there in Black neighbor-hoods? The We can and must believe in ourselves individually answers to these questions are known. You can and as a people. We can and must believe in our find them online, at your local library, or at your worth, our value, our contribution to society. local department of development. We can and must believe in the power of Blackowned businesses and the new Black Wall Street. As I’ve said before, I don’t have all the answers, We can and must achieve our economic but I am convinced that May 16, 2016 ushered in independence and success . . . via, among other a new era of opportunity for economic growth things, the new Black Wall Street. and access to capital for Black Americans as investors and business owners. The New Black Wall Street can be a real thing. www.BlackAmericaCrowdfunding.com. Ambrose Moses, III is a lawyer and writer whose mission is to promote and obtain “. . . legal, social, and economic justice for all.” His primary areas of practice are business, 501(c) (3)/nonprofits, and crowdfunding. Ambrose regularly presents with community and business development organizations on business and lawrelated topics.

Remember, we can and must conceive the possibility of economic success in-dividually and as a Black community. We can and must conceive the idea of a new Black Wall Street for

Email: info@MosesLaw.pro • Website: www. MosesLaw.pro • Telephone: (614) 418-7898

The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

JUSTICE

ORIGINAL CHILD BOMB By Marian Wright Edelman P r e s i d e n t O b a m a ’s historic visit to Hiroshima this week offers an opportunity to take a clear-eyed look back to the first and only time nuclear weapons have been used in war. Germany had surrendered on May 8, 1945. Japan refused to surrender and continued to wage the Pacific War. President Harry S. Truman faced a decision on whether or not to drop the world’s first atomic bomb in Japan. “3: President Truman formed a committee of men to tell him if this bomb would work, and if so, what he should do with it. Some members of this committee felt that the bomb would jeopardize the future of civilization. They were against its use. Others wanted it to be used in demonstration on a forest of cryptomeria trees, but not against a civil or military target. Many atomic scientists warned that the use of atomic power in war would be difficult and even impossible to control. The danger would be very great. Finally, there were others who believed that if the bomb were used just once or twice, on one or two Japanese cities, there would be no more war. They believed the new bomb would produce eternal peace.” This fragment is from Trappist monk and social justice and peace activist Thomas Merton’s 1962 prose poem “Original Child Bomb.” Its title is a rough translation of the root characters in the Japanese term for the atom. Merton subtitled his “anti-poem” “Points for meditation to be scratched in the walls of a cave,” and it includes a numbered list of 41 points about the atomic bomb’s creation, the decision to drop the first one on Hiroshima, and its aftermath: “32: The bomb exploded within 100 feet of the aiming point. The fireball was 18,000 feet across. The temperature at the center of the fireball was 100,000,000 degrees. The people who were near the center became nothing. The whole city was blown to bits and the ruins all caught fire instantly everywhere, burning briskly. 70,000 people were killed right away or died within a few hours. Those who did not die at once suffered great pain. Few of them were soldiers. 33: The men in the plane perceived that the raid had been successful, but they thought of the people in the city and they were not perfectly happy. Some felt they had done wrong. But in any case they had obeyed orders. ‘It was war.’” It was war, and despite the initial reaction by copilot Captain Robert Lewis as he witnessed the

The Columbus African American • June 2016

President Barack Obama and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shake hands at memorial site.

devastation — “My God, what have we done?” — pilots and crew members stressed over and over again that they believed they did what they had to do. But the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki have not produced eternal peace. Instead they opened a Pandora’s box that can never be fully locked back up. I have visited Hiroshima twice — once with my husband and once with him and our three sons. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial (Genbaku Dome), created from the ruins of the only structure left standing near the bomb’s hypocenter, is a reminder of how far we still have to go to make this a world worthy of and safe for all our children. The Bulle tin of the Atomic Sc ie ntists’ “Doomsday Clock” has this ominous message today: it is still three minutes to midnight. Beginning in 1947 the clock’s hands have moved based on the scientists’ evaluation of whether events are pushing humanity closer to or further from nuclear apocalypse; since 2007 they have also considered climate change and other threats that might lead to global catastrophe. In 2015 the clock was moved closer to midnight because of grave concerns about unchecked climate change, global nuclear weapons modernizations, and outsized nuclear weapons arsenals. In January 2016 they announced it has not changed: “Last year, the Science and Security Board moved the Doomsday Clock forward to three minutes to midnight, noting: ‘The probability of global catastrophe is very high, and the actions needed to reduce the risks of disaster must be taken very soon.’ That probability has not been reduced. The Clock ticks. Global danger looms. Wise leaders should act—immediately.” Will we hear and heed?

President Obama’s visit should prompt us all to realize that if we do not want the horrors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to be repeated ever again we cannot be complacent. While we can celebrate all steps that have been taken to control access to more weapons in our nuclear saturated world we must do even more to protect our children’s and grandchildren’s futures in a world rife with war and religious, racial, gender, sectarian, and political strife. When anyone argues that the world might be safer if more countries had nuclear weapons it is yet another reminder that history can and may repeat itself on our watch if we are not vigilant. The clock is still ticking. The same year that “Original Child Bomb” was published, Thomas Merton also wrote this in the essay “Nuclear War and Christian Responsibility”: “. . . there can be no doubt that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were, though not fully deliberate crimes, nevertheless crimes. And who was responsible? No one. Or ‘history.’ We cannot go on playing with nuclear fire and shrugging off the results as ‘history.’ We are the ones concerned. We are the ones responsible. History does not make us, we make it—or end it.” What we have wrought by trying to play God is still our responsibility. How will we write the next chapter? Marian Wright Edelman is President of the Children’s Defense Fund whose Leave No Child Behind mission is to ensure every child a Health Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communitites. For more information go to www. ChildrensDefense.org

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

BUSINESS

A LEGACY LIVES ON:TRANSITIONS FROM FATHER TO SON By Iris Cooper, MBA Fathers and sons arrive at that relationship only by claiming that relationship: reduced to biology, the whole earth would blaze with the glory of fathers and sons. (James Baldwin) Bob and Sean Ross are the principals behind Professional Consulting, Associates, LLC (PCA), a Columbus-based leadership-development, consulting, and coaching firm. Bob Ross, CEO, started the firm in 1998 when Sean was in college by marketing his military leadership credentials to train law enforcement professionals. Neither thought the day would come when father and son would be working side-by-side as partners at PCA, an enterprise certified as Service Disabled Veteran (SDVOSB), Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), Encouraging Diversity, Growth and Equity (EDGE), DISC personality analysis, and various executive coaching competencies. Education was always Sean’s passion and while spending 15 years as a high school teacher and administrator, he achieved a PHD in leadership and educational administration. However, the restrictions and bureaucracy of the educational arena drained his motivation; he longed for a greater challenge and more control over his destiny. Fortunately, Bob was looking to expand his training firm and leave a legacy to his children and grandchildren. He approached his son with an opportunity to assume a leadership role at PCA, and expand into new markets of training and development nationwide. Dad, your guiding hand on my shoulder will remain with me forever. (Unknown) Sean was ready, willing, and able to add “partner” to their relationship; his secret longing to work with his dad had finally come to fruition in 2013. Bob was Sean’s first teacher; lessons about integrity, commitment, and responsibility dwell in his soul today. He has fond childhood memories of his dad’s drive and ability to fix anything with just the right tool. Sean shares the same “fix-it” commitment, and teaches his girls to tinker with problems before giving up to failure. Disagreement is commonplace in business and in the family. Bob, a baby-boomer, relies on experience and simplicity in decision-making. Sean, from the Gen X age group, looks for holistic solutions to management dilemmas, yet both are transformational leaders. However, differences of opinion are benefits to a partnership based upon shared pride and goals. Both men

Sean and Bob Ross - Princials behind Professional Consulting Associates, LLC

fervently believe in the unparalleled value of growth and development in leadership: for the leader, the subordinate, and the organization. These shared values have created a stellar reputation for training excellence and innovation from leaders in private, nonprofit, government, and educational institutions across the nation. Global impact, ethics, cultural competency, communication, and workforce development are just a few of PCA’s training topics, which includes more than 60 courses for groups from five to 5000. As the world becomes more complex, PCA continues to delve into complicated, remote, areas of conflict and challenges, to clear the path for individuals to communicate and collaborate on a higher plane of understanding. Be careful to leave your sons well instructed rather than rich, for the hopes of the instructed are better than the wealth of the ignorant. (Epictetus) With a combined 45 years of leadership education and experience, Bob and Sean are now jointly planning the next decade of PCA, committed to each other, their family, and the communities they serve. Their legacy of respect, commitment, and excellence will live on for generations, as a testament to the love between a father and son. Happy Father’s Day and best wishes for future success! Iris Cooper’s career includes leadership

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

positions in financial services, economic development, community service, communication, government, and education. She is the owner of “JustAskIris!” an entrepreneurial coaching firm. Iris is a founder of Glory Foods, Inc., a multi-million dollar food marketing company. Iris is recognized nationally as an expert in business strategy and branding, having coached many startups to sustainability. Her newest venture is Finish Your Gloryfied Business Plan Now!, a workshop to foster entrepreneurial success. Iris is the former Director of the Ohio Division of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, where Iris led the state from 29th worst place for small businesses in 2007 to the 9th best in the nation, and 1st in the Midwest in four years. In 2015 Iris introduced the 2nd version of “When the Devil is Beating His Wife, a Christian Perspective on Domestic Violence and Recovery” co-authored with Melanie Houston and available on Amazon and alabasterboxmedia.com. Iris is a featured writer and speaker on business topics, and an adjunct professor at Franklin University. She is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, the Indiana University Alumni Association, and WELD. She will complete her DBA in 2016 from Walden University, majoring in Entrepreneurship.

The Columbus African American • June 2016

BUSINESS

CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU PROPOSES RULE TO END PAYDAY DEBT TRAPS WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today proposed a rule aimed at ending payday debt traps by requiring lenders to take steps to make sure consumers have the ability to repay their loans. The proposed rule would also cut off repeated debit attempts that rack up fees. These strong proposed protections would cover payday loans, auto title loans, deposit advance products, and certain high-cost installment and open-end loans. The CFPB is also launching an inquiry into other products and practices that may harm consumers facing cash shortfalls. “The Consumer Bureau is proposing strong protections aimed at ending payday debt traps,” said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. “Too many borrowers seeking a short-term cash fix are saddled with loans they cannot afford and sink into long-term debt. It’s much like getting into a taxi just to ride across town and finding yourself stuck in a ruinously expensive crosscountry journey. By putting in place mainstream, common-sense lending standards, our proposal would prevent lenders from succeeding by setting up borrowers to fail.” Watch a video about payday lending at: https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PATJPkj4sw The proposed rule would apply to certain shortterm and longer-term credit products that are aimed at financially vulnerable consumers. The Bureau has serious concerns that risky lender practices in the payday, auto title, and payday installment markets are pushing borrowers into debt traps. Chief among these concerns is that consumers are being set up to fail with loan payments that they are unable to repay. Faced with unaffordable payments, consumers must choose between defaulting, reborrowing, or skipping other financial obligations like rent or basic living expenses like food and medical care. The CFPB is concerned that these practices also lead to collateral damage in other aspects of consumers’ lives such as steep penalty fees, bank account closures, and vehicle seizures. Loans covered by the proposal include: • Payday and other short-term credit products: Payday loans are generally due on the borrower’s next payday, which most often is within two weeks, and typically have an annual percentage rate of around 390 percent or even higher. Single-payment auto title loans, which require borrowers to use their vehicle title for collateral, are usually due in 30 days with a typical annual percentage rate of about 300 percent. Most consumers end up rolling over these short-term loans when they come due or reborrowing within a short period of time. The consumer pays more fees and interest each time they reborrow, turning a short-term loan over time into a long-term debt trap. CFPB research shows that more than four-in-five single-payment loans are reborrowed within a month. One-in-five payday loan sequences end up in default and onein-five single-payment auto title loan borrowers end up having their car or truck seized by the lender for failure to repay. • High-cost installment loans: The proposal would cover loans for which the lender charges a total, all-in annual percentage rate that exceeds 36 percent, including add-on charges, and either collects payment by accessing the consumer’s

The Columbus African American • June 2016

account or paycheck or secures the loan by holding the title to the consumer’s vehicle as collateral. Some of the installment loans covered by the proposal have balloon, or lump-sum, payments required after a number of interest-only payments. The Bureau’s research, which looked at loans from several payday installment lenders, found that over one-third of loan sequences end in default, sometimes after the consumer has already refinanced or reborrowed at least once. The Bureau further found that nearly one-third of auto title installment loan sequences end in default, and 11 percent end with the borrower’s car being seized by the lender. A summary of CFPB research on payday and installment loans is available at:http://files. consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/Payday_ Loans_Highlights_From_CFPB_Research.pdf Proposal to End Debt Traps The CFPB is proposing a rule that would put an end to the risky practices in these markets that trap consumers in debt they cannot afford. The proposed ability-to-repay protections include a “full-payment” test that would require lenders to determine upfront that consumers can afford to repay their loans without reborrowing. The proposal includes a “principal payoff option” for certain short-term loans and two less risky longerterm lending options so that borrowers who may not meet the full-payment test can access credit without getting trapped in debt. Lenders would be required to use credit reporting systems to report and obtain information on certain loans covered by the proposal. The proposal would also limit repeated debit attempts that can rack up more fees and may make it harder for consumers to get out of debt. Specifically, the proposal includes the following protections: • Full-payment test: Under the proposed full-payment test, lenders would be required to determine whether the borrower can afford the full amount of each payment when it’s due and still meet basic living expenses and major financial obligations. For short-term loans and installment loans with a balloon payment, full payment means affording the total loan amount and all the fees and finance charges without having to reborrow within the next thirty days. For payday and auto title installment loans without a balloon payment, full payment means affording all of the payments when due. The proposal would further protect against debt traps by making it difficult for lenders to push distressed borrowers into reborrowing or refinancing the same debt. The proposal also would cap the number of short-term loans that can be made in quick succession. • Principal payoff option for certain shortterm loans: Under the proposal, consumers could borrow a short-term loan up to $500 without the full-payment test as part of the principal payoff option that is directly structured to keep consumers from being trapped in debt. Lenders would be barred from offering this option to consumers who have outstanding short-term or balloon-payment loans or have been in debt on short-term loans more than 90 days in a rolling 12-month period. Lenders would also be barred

from taking an auto title as collateral. As part of the principal payoff option, a lender could offer a borrower up to two extensions of the loan, but only if the borrower pays off at least one-third of the principal with each extension. • Less risky longer-term lending options: The proposal would also permit lenders to offer two longer-term loan options with more flexible underwriting, but only if they pose less risk by adhering to certain restrictions. The first option would be offering loans that generally meet the parameters of the National Credit Union Administration “payday alternative loans” program where interest rates are capped at 28 percent and the application fee is no more than $20. The other option would be offering loans that are payable in roughly equal payments with terms not to exceed two years and with an allin cost of 36 percent or less, not including a reasonable origination fee, so long as the lender’s projected default rate on these loans is 5 percent or less. The lender would have to refund the origination fees any year that the default rate exceeds 5 percent. Lenders would be limited as to how many of either type of loan they could make per consumer per year. • D e b i t a t t e m p t c u t o ff : U n d e r t h e proposal, lenders would have to give consumers written notice before attempting to debit the consumer’s account to collect payment for any loan covered by the proposed rule. After two straight unsuccessful attempts, the lender would be prohibited from debiting the account again unless the lender gets a new and specific authorization from the borrower. Repeated unsuccessful withdrawal attempts by lenders to collect payment from consumers’ accounts pile on insufficient fund fees from the bank or credit union, and can result in returned payment fees from the lender. A CFPB study found that, over a period of 18 months, half of online borrowers had at least one debit attempt that overdrafted or failed, and more than one-third of borrowers with a failed payment lost their account. This proposed rulemaking is the latest step in the CFPB’s efforts to reform the markets for these payday and installment loan products. The Bureau already exerts supervisory oversight of payday lenders and takes enforcement actions as appropriate to address violations of the law. With its action today, the Bureau continues to seek input from a wide range of stakeholders by inviting the public to submit written comments on the proposed rule once it is published in the Federal Register. Comments on the proposal are due on Sept. 14, 2016 and will be weighed carefully before final regulations are issued. A factsheet summarizing the proposed rule is available at:http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/ documents/CFPB_Proposes_Rule_End_Payday_ Debt_Traps.pdf The CFPB’s proposal is available at: http://files. consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/Rulemaking_ Continued on Page 28

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The Columbus African American • June 2016

BUSINESS credit products that are offered in this market, their pricing structures, and lenders’ practices Payday_Vehicle_Title_Certain_High-Cost_ with regard to underwriting. The Bureau is also Installment_Loans.pdf interested in learning whether these loans keep borrowers in long-term debt with a structure Inquiry into Emerging Risks where borrowers pay down little to no principal The CFPB is also launching an inquiry into other for an extraordinarily long period. potentially high-risk loan products and practices Concerns about risky practices not that are not specifically covered by the proposed • covered: The Bureau seeks to learn more about rule. The Request for Information is focused on: practices that can impact borrowers’ ability • Concerns about risky products not to pay back their debt. This includes methods covered: The Bureau is seeking information lenders may use to seize borrowers’ wages, funds, about forms of non-covered loans such as high- vehicles, or other forms of personal property cost, longer-duration installment loans and open- in a way that could pose consumer protection end lines of credit where the lender does not take concerns. The Bureau is also interested in a vehicle title as collateral or gain account access. learning more about the sales and marketing The CFPB’s inquiry seeks information about the practices of credit insurance, debt suspension or range and volume of installment and open-end debt cancellation agreements, and other add-on Continued from Page 26

products. Other practices subject to the inquiry include loan churning, default interest rates, teaser rates, prepayment penalties, and latepayment penalties. Comments on the Request for Information are due on Oct. 14, 2016. The Request for Information is available at: http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/ RFI_Payday_Loans_Vehicle_Title_Loans_ Installment_Loans_Open-End_Credit.pdf The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a 21st century agency that helps consumer finance markets work by making rules more effective, by consistently and fairly enforcing those rules, and by empowering consumers to take more control over their economic lives. For more information, visit consumerfinance.gov.

COLUMBUS METROPOLITAN CLUB: THE LEGACY OF POINDEXTER VILLAGE By Joseph W. Cooke At the Columbus forum one fact was emphasized repeatedly: The ‘Nurturing’ Nature of Poindexter Village. On May 18th, 2016, The Columbus Metropolitan Club (CMC) held a forum that focused on the History and Development of Poindexter Village. The keynote speakers were Memphis City Council Chairman Myron Lowery, President & CEO of Moody-Nolan, Inc., Curtis J. Moody, and retired Ohio Policy and Program director Leslie J. Sawyer. The talk was moderated by Community Activist and former Media Executive Ann Boston Walker. The CMC conversation was reminiscent of the type of conversations that could have occurred throughout the Poindexter community in its heyday based on how the panelists characterized the sense of community that was present in the Poindexter Village housing projects. Everyone knew each other and talked to each other. Everyone carried an equal sense of responsibility for the neighborhood. S. Yolanda Robinson’s book “There’s Magic in the Blackberry Patch” was also mentioned as a way to illustrate the nurturing and joy that children felt living in Poindexter. According to Moody, even though many families like his had little money and resources or were being led by a single parent; residents there still felt happiness. “Those were some of the best times of my life.” he said. “There were four of us raised by a single mother, we had radiators, we knew it wasn’t ideal but that was heaven to us. Youth felt like they were a part of the village whether they lived there or not. Despite not being raised in Poindexter, Sawyer and Walker said that Poindexter set them on a path for success. “Not all of them lived in Poindexter, like I didn’t, but we still received that same sense of family and nurturing,” Sawyer said. “I believe I got a great start educationally and in my development The Columbus African American • June 2016

as a human being.” Sawyer’s father worked in the complex and Walker is a long time Columbus resident who has extensive first-hand knowledge about African Americans in Central Ohio Outside of the home, children got to receive the same nurturing in the classroom. Poindexter Preschool fostered roots of education and collaboration for the youth. Poindexter’s sense of unity produced children that were highly educated and prepared to make the world a better place in their professional careers. Lowery received a Bachelors Degree in Sociology from LeMoyne-Owen College and two Masters degrees in education from New York University and the University of Tennessee. He has reached distinguished levels of success in multiple fields. After teaching social studies in New York City schools, he relocated to Memphis where he was honored one year as one of 10 Outstanding Young Men in America by the United States Jaycees. As a retired civil servant, Sawyer worked in state government for over 30 years, enriching lives through education, health care, community outreach, and human services. Her desire to help hasn’t diminished since her retirement. She currently is the Vice-Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Neighborhood House, Inc. In her 90’s now, Ann Boston Walker has an unprecedented background of success. She has more than 30 years’ of experience in journalism. She has worked at the Ohio Sentinel, WVKO Radio, and Channel WLC TV-4. At channel 4, she anchored several talk shows, and became the first Columbus female in broadcast management by working as Community Services Director. She instilled a sense of Black community within her profession by creating a TV-4 internship program to help African Americans, including Angela Pace, a former news anchorwoman and now Director of Community Affairs for WBNS10TV, pursue broadcasting careers. Following her stint in journalism, Walker worked in the Carter Administration as Media Director for the Community Services Agency. Upon retirement from this position, she developed a 28

business targeting Africa for community service. Curtis Moody graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from The Ohio State University in 1973. He later studied planning and design at Harvard Graduate School of Design, The Ohio State University, and Columbus Technical Institute. Moody founded Moody Nolan & Associates in 1982 and since then has designed more than $4 billion in architectural projects. He has earned the AIA Ohio Gold Meal Award, the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award, and has captured more design awards from the National Organization of Minority Architects that any other minority firm in America. During the century of Poindexter’s existence, people and customs have transitioned tremendously. Poindexter in the past consisted of working class Blacks. This trend has since transitioned. Poverty, crime, and drugs began to diminish the productivity of the area. Many houses have been shut down. Moody is using his background in construction to bring back the past productivity of this village. He has produced visuals that conceptualize architectural plans to produce a visually appealing array of housing in this area. There have been numerous other notable individuals from Poindexter village who have established prestigious careers in the NBA, the United States Air Force, and healthcare. Sawyer hopes to recapture the sense of security needed to foster a desire for future generations to live in this area. “One of the things we lost is that we used to have a beautiful, secure, and healthy place to live in Poindexter,” she said. “It’s difficult now because people were forced out so they have to begin to feel like it’s their home, that they’re not being made to live there and that they have a choice.” Lowery said the only way to regain a sense of togetherness is for the youth to know and respect their history. “You get a new sense of community by the people who move into the area,” he said “They need to know and never forget it.

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

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The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

By Ray Miller, MPA The Lynching - The Epic Courtroom Battle That Brought Down the Klan

Writing My Wrongs - Life, Death, And Redemption In An American Prison

By Laurence Leamer

By Shaka Senghor Shaka Senghor was raised in a middle class neighborhood on Detroit’s east side during the height of the 1980s crack epidemic. An honor roll student and natural leader, he dreamed of becoming a doctor-but at age 11, his parents’ marriage began to unravel, his mother beat him and eventually he ran away from home, turning to the drug game to survive. By 19, he was in prison for murder, fuming with anger and despair. Writing My Wrongs is the story of what came next. During his 19-year incarceration, Senghor discovered literature, meditation, selfexamination and the kindness of others. This book is a page-turning portrait of life in the shadown of poverty, violence and fear, with an unforgettable story of redemption.

The New York Times bestseller author of The Kennedy Women chronicles the powerful and spellbinding true story of a brutal race-based killing in 1981 and subsequent trials that undid one of the most pernicious organizations in American history - the Ku Klux Klan. Based on numerous interviews and extensive archival research, The Lynchings brings to life two dramatic trials, during which the Alabama Klan’s motives and philosophy were exposed for the evil they represent. In addition to telling a gripping and consequential story, Laurence Leamer chronicles the KKK and its activities in the second half of the twentieth century, and illuminates its lingering effect on race relations in America today. Being Mortal - Medicine and What Matters in the End

The Slave’s Cause - A History of Abolition

By Atul Gawande

By Manisha Sinha

Medicine has triumphed in modern times, transforming the dangers of childbirth, injury, and disease from harrowing to manageable. But aging and death, what medicine can do often runs counter to what it should. Atul Gawande, a practicing surgeon, has fearlessly revealed the struggles of his profession. Now he examines its practices as well as others’ - as life draws to a close. And he discovers how we can do better. Riveting, honest, and humane, Being Mortal shows how the ultimate goal is not a good death, but a good life - all the way to the very end.

Received historical wisdom casts abolitionists as bourgeois, mostly white reformers burdened by racial paternalism and economic conservatism. Manisha Sinha overturns this image, broadening her scope beyond the antebellum period usually associated with abolitionism and recasting it as a radical social movement in which men and women, black and white, free and enslaved found common ground in causes ranging from feminism and utopian socialism to anti-imperialism and efforts to defend the rights of labor. Drawing on extensive archival research, including newly discovered letters and pamphlets, Sinha documents the influence of the Haitian Revolution and the centrality of slave resistance in shaping the ideology and tactics of abolition.

Negroland - A Memoir By Margo Jefferson

Post Traumatic Slave Syndrom America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing By Dr. Joy DeGruy

At once incendiary and icy, mischievous and provocative, celebratory and elegiac - here is a deeply felt meditation on race, sex, and American culture through the prisim of the author’s rarefied upbringing and education among a black elite concerned with distancing itself from whites and the black generality while tirelessly measuring itself against both. Born in upper-crust black Chicago - her father was for years head of pediatrics at Provident, at the time the nation’s oldest black hospital; her mother was a socialite - Margo Jefferson has spent most of her life among (call them what you will) the colored aristocracy, the colored elite, the blue-vein society. Since the 19th century they have stood apart, these inhabitants of Negroland, “a small region of Negro America where residents were sheltered by a certain amount of privilege and plenty.

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From the beginning of American chattel slavery in 1619, until the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865, Africans were hunted like animals, captured, sold, tortured and raped. They experienced the worst kind of physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual abuse. “Isn’t likely that many slaves were severly traumatized? Furthermore, did the trauma and the effects of such horrific abuse end with the abolition of slavery? Dr. Joy DeGruy enourages African Americans to view their attitudes, assumptions, and behaviors through the lens of history and so gain a greater understanding of the impact centuries of slavery and oppression has had on African Americans. This exploration will help lay the foundation necessary to ensure our well-being and the sustained health of future generations.

HISTORY BOYD HOLLIMAN: PIONEERING BARBER AND PILLAR OF THE COMMUNITY of the Barbers and Beautician and Allied Union, Barber Division Local 204, which later merged with Local 1059. His zeal led him to become the first Black President of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. Mr. Boyd was also a licensed Real Estate Agent, a member of the Marion Franklin Civic Association, a community volunteer with over 1000 hours and member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary. He loved to fish and was one of the first licensed African American Charter Boat Captains on Lake Erie based out of Port Clinton. He was a member of King David Lodge #116, L.D. Easton Consistory #21, and Alla Baba Temple #53 for nearly 40 years. He danced beyond his 89th birthday with the Men in Black Dance Troupe Incorporated. He received the House of Representatives Distinguished Service Award, was a member of the 1952 NBA National Championship YWCA Bowling team, and was featured as one of the country’s premiere stylist in Journeyman Barber & Beauty Culture Magazine, “The Mechanical Blowout and the Mini-Afro” in 1977.

By Rodney Q. Blount, M.A. “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” (Psalm 23) Psalm 23 is a favorite Bible verse for many people, including my great-grandmother. The verse is used widely by individuals, churches, and organizations as a source of comfort and hope. The importance and relevance of this verse came back to mind when I recited it with others at the funeral of a local legend. Boyd Holliman was a man of faith and goodness and mercy followed him all the days of his life. He labored faithfully in his profession as a barber, in his church, and in several community organizations. His love for the community, especially Southfield, was well known and his good work will continue to live on.

Boyd Holliman made history in 1965 when he opened the first integrated barber shop in Columbus, Ohio. He was the proud owner of Boyd’s barbershop for over 48 years, among other businesses, and continued to cut hair until shortly before his passing. Boyd Holliman’s dedication transcended the four walls of his barbershop to include his dedication to many other activities. He was a member of Trinity Baptist Church for over 80 years. At Trinity, Mr. Boyd was a member of Senior Choir #2, the Mens Chorus, Sunday School Church, Baptist Training Union, and the Brotherhood. He loved God, his church, fellowshipping with its members and singing. He was also dedicated to saving and exemplifying the dying art of shape note singing. “Shape notes are a music notation designed to facilitate congregational and community singing. Shapes were added to the note heads in written music to help singers find pitches within major and minor scales without the use of more complex information found in key signatures on the staff.” He was the Director of The Harmony Force Choir, Christian Joyful Singers and the Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Vocal Singing Union, and member of the Columbus Vocal Singing Union. He was well known for his energy and enthusiasm when leading/singing with his vocal groups.

Boyd William Holliman was born in on November 28, 1926 in Columbus, Ohio to Prince William Holliman and Carrie Mae Hull. He was one of five children. He attributes much of his success to his father who raised all five children on his own. Mr. Holliman attended Columbus public schools and graduated from Central High School after taking evening classes. He was also a graduate of Andrew Barber College in Columbus. As a young man, he found that he had a gift in cutting hair, following in his father’s and uncle’s footsteps, and quickly honed his craft. He loved his vocation as a barber and it put him in contact with people from all walks of life. One of his first jobs as a barber took him to Chillicothe for two years. Thereafter, he returned to Columbus serving in his profession for nine years at Lockbourne Air Force Base (currently known as Rickenbacker Air Force Base). A little known fact is that the Tuskegee Airmen’s 477th Composite Group was stationed there and Mr. Holliman had the distinction of being their barber Mr. Holliman was an organizer and integral part and befriending many of them.

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Boyd Holliman departed from this life on April 17, 2016. I am truly happy to write about Boyd Holliman, aka Mr. Boyd, because he represents the local heroes who work hard, help others, and do not seek public recognition. As his obituary opined, “Boyd the barber” was an institution in the Southfield/Marion Franklin community and throughout the city, having given so many of us both our first and last haircuts {including myself as he was the first barber to cut my hair}. He liked to say that he never met a stranger.” By all accounts, he appeared to be an ordinary man, but his activity in the community and the advice and help that he rendered to so many people made him an extraordinary community leader. Works Cited Columbus Black Heritage: The Bicentennial Celebration Edition (2012) Columbus Dispatch Journeyman Barber & Beauty Culture Magazine (Volume 73, No. 5, May, 1977) Obituary – Boyd Holliman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shape_note Roderick Blount is an Educator and Historian. He received two Bachelor of Arts degrees from Ball State University and a Masters of Arts degree from The Ohio State University. His work has been featured in several publications. Roderick is a native of Columbus, Ohio and is a member of several organizations.

The Columbus African American • June 2016

HISTORY

THE UNSUNG PEOPLE - THE UNSUNG HEROES By Rev. Dr. Tim Ahrens My father told stories. As a writer, Herman A h r e n s , J r. w r o t e the stories of young Christians who were growing up from 19501980’s. As an editor, he gathered stories by and for young Christians who were coming of age. He was a gifted writer and editor. He had faith in people -believing particularly in the goodness of young men and women. He taught right from wrong. In war and peace; in life and then in death, my father was my hero. He was an unsung hero who told stories of unsung people. Throughout my life, I have been drawn to unsung people. Perhaps that is why when I sat down on a black granite bench at the University of North Carolina Chapel. It was a hot summer day. I sat down to rest under the trees at McCorkle Place, one of the university’s quads. I was sitting on the bench of a monument which is understated and somewhat undersized. It is called “The Unsung Founders Memorial.” Located in McCorkle Place, one of the University’s quads, the memorial is a black granite tabletop supported by 300 bronze figurines and surrounded by five black stone seats. The inscription around the edge of the table says “The Class of 2002 Honors The University’s Unsung Founders - The People Of Color Bound And Free - Who Helped Build The Carolina That We Cherish Today.” I got down on my hands and knees and crawled around the table looking at all three hundred figurines. My family thought I had “lost it.” But, I wanted to see each face and honor each figure shouldering the weight of this load. I

The Unsung Founders Memorial - The Class of 2002 Honors The University’s Unsung Founders The People of Color Bound and Free - Who Helped Build The Carolina That We Cherish Today

found myself weeping as I returned to my point of beginning. Slaves built the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Following the Civil War, free blacks continued to build the university on slave wages. How many buildings and how many institutions have been built in our city on the shoulders of African-American men and women who weren’t welcome there? How many tons of cotton, sugarcane, and produce of all kinds were planted and harvested by AfricanAmericans whose names were never known, whose lives were cut short by harsh working and life conditions and whose contributions went unrecognized? How many songs were written and stolen? How many inventions were created and given credit to someone else? How many lives were wasted by greed and avarice across the American landscape? My heart breaks when I consider the sins of White America against the Unsung African American Founders of this nation. I am humbled and grateful to be given space by my friend Ray Miller to write for the finest news publication in Columbus, Ohio. The Columbus African American News Journal has

faithfully lifted up the names, faces, stories, and contributions of great African-American leaders in our community for the past five years. The contributing editors who offer their wisdom and insights are the Unsung Heroes of our city. They lift and carry our city. They make a difference every day for people. Moreover, you, the people whose stories they tell, whose lives they celebrate, and whose heroic work is elevated are the true unsung heroes of Columbus, Ohio. Thank you for lifting and carrying our city. Thanks be to God for you, your family and your ancestors. May God bless and keep strong the unsung people – the unsung heroes. Rev. Dr. Tim Ahrens is the Senior Minister of First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in downtown Columbus. A church known for its witness to social justice since its birth as an abolitionist congregation in 1852. Rev. Ahrens is the fifth consecutive senior minister from Yale Divinity School and is a lifelong member of the United Church of Christ. Photos provided by Dr. Tim Ahrens

THE 11 MOST RACIST U.S. PRESIDENTS By Dr. Ibram X. Kendi Let’s imagine the unimaginable: Donald Trump was elected president in November. Yes, president of the United States. Let’s imagine the impossible: he forced Mexico to build a border wall. Let’s imagine the unthinkable: he deported millions of Latino/as. Let’s imagine the unconscionable: he ruthlessly terrorized Muslim Americans and #Black Lives Matter activists. Let’s imagine the unacceptable: middle and low income people suffered horribly The Columbus African American • June 2016

under the weight of this billionaire’s policies. Let’s imagine that he did not moderate on his campaign pledges and he carried them out as president. Would a President Trump go down in the annals of American history as one of the most racist presidents ever? He certainly would face a substantial amount of competition on the racist front. There have been many frightfully racist U.S. presidents in American history. Here are the 11 most racist U.S. presidents of all time. 11. George Walker Bush ~ 43rd President (2001-2009) Not only did President Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA) in 2003 increase the stranglehold of standardized testing on America’s children—tests antiracists have long argued 32

were racist. NCLBA more or less encouraged funding mechanisms that decreased (or did not increase) funding to schools when students were struggling or not making improvements on tests, thus privately leaving the neediest students of color behind. Then two years later, President Bush’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) publically left thousands of stranded Black folk behind after Hurricane Katrina hit on August 29, 2005. While reporters quickly reached the Gulf Coast, federal officials made excuses for their delays, quickening the death spiral in New Orleans, ensuring that President Bush would land on this list of the most racist presidents of all time. And to top it all off, President Bush’s economic policies—his lax regulation of Wall Street loaners and speculators—helped bring into

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

HISTORY being the Great Recession, bringing about the largest loss of Black and Latino wealth in recent history. 10. John Calvin Coolidge Jr. ~ 30th President (1923-1929) President Bush’s FEMA response to Hurricane Katrina seemed prompt when compared to President’s Coolidge’s handling of the Great Mississippi (River) Flood of 1927. While most White communities were saved, riverside Black communities were flooded to reduce the pressure on the levees. And then these thousands of displaced Blacks were forced to work for their rations under the gun of the National Guard and area planters, leading to a conflagration of mass beatings, lynchings, and rapes. Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover, who President Coolidge eventually appointed to head the relief efforts, capitalized on southern segregationists’ support for his flood mismanagement and succeeded Coolidge in the White House. President Coolidge also signed arguably the most racist and ethnocentric immigration act in history, an act championed by Republican eugenicists and Democratic Klansmen. The Immigration Act of 1924 was co-authored by Washington Congressman Albert Johnson, well-schooled in theories of “yellow peril” that had rationalized discrimination against west coast Asians for decades. The bipartisan measure further restricted immigration from southern and eastern Europe, severely restricted African immigrants, and banned the immigrations of Arabs and Asians. “America must be kept American,” President Coolidge had said during his first annual message to Congress in 1923. 9. Dwight David Eisenhower ~ 34th President (1953-1961) Most presidents made this list for what they did. President Eisenhower made this list for what he did not do. He made this list as a representative of all those U.S. presidents who did nothing to stop the trepidations of slavery and segregation and mass incarceration. When NAACP lawyers persuaded the U.S. Supreme Court to rule Jim Crow as unconstitutional in 1954, President Eisenhower did not endorse Brown v. Board of Education and dragged his feat to enforce it. At a White House dinner the year before, President Eisenhower had told Chief Justice Earl Warren he could understand why White southerners wanted to make sure “their sweet little girls [are not] required to sit in school alongside some big black buck.” He reluctantly sent federal troops to protect the Little Rock Nine who were desegregating an Arkansas high school. He considered that act to be the most repugnant of all his presidential acts. During those critical years after the 1954 Brown decision, this former five-star World War II general did not wage war against segregation. And he remains as much to blame as anyone for its persistence, for the lives lost fighting against it. 8. James Knox Polk ~ 11th President (18451849) In the 1840s, western expansion of the U.S. was uniting White Americans, while the western expansion of slavery was dividing White Americans. Months after President Polk took office, John O’Sullivan had imagined White Americans’ “manifest destiny...to possess the whole of the continent which Providence has given us.” President Polk leaned on this racist idea when his administration waged the Mexican American War (1846-1848). War propagandists

John Parrot/Getty Images

framed the U.S. as bringing freedom and civilization to the backward Mexicans. From the war spoils, the U.S. seized from Mexico nearly all of what is now the American Southwest—a gargantuan land seizure that mirrored the ongoing violent seizures of Native American land and the ongoing violent seizures of Black labor. President Polk led the fight against those politicians and activists pressing to ban slavery in the new southwestern territories. This lifelong slaveholder was angrily hated by antislavery Americans as the leader of the western marching “Slave Power.” Indeed, President Polk wanted slavery to extend to the Pacific Ocean. He looked away as White slaveholders (and nonslaveholders) danced around the legal protections for Mexican landowners inscribed in the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, and went about illegally stealing the lands of the new group of Mexican American citizens. President Polk started a forgetful history of the Mexican southwest—and the long history of racism against Mexicans inside and outside of the border—a history of racism that is now fueling the campaign of Donald Trump. 7. Thomas Woodrow Wilson ~ 28th President (1913-1921) The same reasons why antiracist students have been pushing recently for Princeton University to take Wilson’s name down from campus buildings are the same reasons why he made this list. President Wilson never turned his back on the racist ideas he produced as a Princeton political scientist. President Wilson oversaw the re-segregation of the federal government. Black federal workers were fired, and those that remained faced separate and unequal workspaces, lunchrooms, and bathrooms. He refused to appoint Black ambassadors to Haiti and the Dominican Republic, as was custom. Professor Wilson and then President Wilson unapologetically backed what he called the “great Ku Klux Klan,” and championed the Klan’s violent disenfranchisement of southern African Americans in the late 19th century. President Wilson began the brutal two-decade U.S. occupation of Haiti in 1915, preventing Haitians from self-governing. And possibly most egregiously, at the Versailles Convention settling World War I in 1919, President Wilson effectively killed Japan’s proposal for a treaty recognizing racial equality, thus sustaining the life of European colonialism. 6. Franklin Delano Roosevelt ~ 32nd President (1933-1945)

Eleanor Roosevelt’s storied life of activity on the civil rights front could not save her husband from making this list. Neither could the storied life of activity on the racist front of his uncle Theodore Roosevelt save him. FDR’s racism was even more impactful that his uncle, Teddy. President Roosevelt’s executive order in 1942 that ended up rounding up and forcing more than 100,000 Japanese Americans into prisons during World War II is arguably the most racist executive order in American history (He thankfully spared German and Italian Americans from the military prisons, but that showed his racism). And while some of the White American competitors in the 1936 Berlin Olympics received invitations to the White House, Jesse Owens did not. President Roosevelt’s snub of the U.S. four-time gold medal winner came around the same time he was pushing through Congress all of the job benefits in his New Deal, like minimum wage, social security, unemployment insurance, and unionizing rights. Farmers and domestics—southern Blacks’ primary vocations—were excluded from the New Deal and federal relief was locally administered, satisfying southern segregationists. Northern segregationists were also satisfied by the housing discrimination in New Deal initiatives, like coding Black neighborhoods as unsuitable for the new mortgages. As such, Black communities remained buried in the Great Depression long after the 1930s while these New Deal policies (combined with the GI Bill) exploded the size of the White middle class. 5. Thomas Jefferson ~ 3rd President (18011809) By the time President Jefferson took office in 1801, his “all Men are created equal” was fast becoming a distant memory in the new nation’s racial politics. President Jefferson had emerged as the preeminent American authority on Black inferiority. His racist ideas (“The blacks...are inferior to the whites in the endowments both of body and mind”) in his perennially best-selling Notes on the State of Virginia (1787) were that impactful. His Notes were useful for powerful Americans rationalizing slavery after the American Revolution. In the book, Jefferson also offered the most popular race relations solution of the 19th century: the freeing, “civilizing,” and colonizing of all Blacks back to “barbaric” Africa. President Jefferson should be applauded for pushing Congress to pass the Slave Trade Act Continued on Page 34

The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

HISTORY

Slaves were used to build the original White House Continued from Page 33

in 1807. Then again, a new evil replaced the old. The measure closed the door on the nation’s legal participation in the international slave trade in 1808, and flung open the door on the domestic slave trade. Large slaveholders like President Jefferson supported this law since it increased the demand and value of their captives. They started deliberately “breeding” enslaved Africans to supply the demand of planters rushing into the Louisiana territory, which President Jefferson purchased from Napoleon in 1803. “I consider a woman who brings a child every two years as more profitable than the best man on the farm,” Jefferson explained to a friend on June 30, 1820. 4. James Monroe ~ 5th President (1817-1825) If Jefferson was the brainchild of the colonization movement, then President Monroe was its pioneering initiator. Weeks before he was elected, candidate Monroe watched and supported the formation of the American Colonization Society. Presiding over the first meeting, House Speaker Henry Clay tasked the organization with ridding “our country of a useless and pernicious, if not dangerous” population, and redeeming Africa “from ignorance and barbarism.” By 1821, President Monroe had seized a strip of coastal West African land. This first American colony in Africa was later named “Liberia,” and its capital was named “Monrovia.” But it was another namesake that really thrust President Monroe onto this list. “We...declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portions of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety.” Thus said President Monroe during his seventh annual message to Congress in 1923. Several U.S. presidents used this “Monroe Doctrine” as a rationalizing cord for U.S. intervention into sovereign Latin American states, including the toppling of governments unfriendly to U.S. interests. This Monroe Doctrine was as racist and devastating to Latin American communities abroad as the doctrine of Manifest Destiny was to indigenous communities at home. In 2013, President Obama’s Secretary of State John Kerry declared to the Organization of American States the “era of the Monroe Doctrine is over.” 3. Ronald Wilson Reagan ~ 40th President (1981-1989) The arbiter of the “welfare queen” myth who evoked the old slaveholder and segregationist mantra of “states’ rights” perfected President Richard Nixon’s infamous “southern strategy” The Columbus African American • June 2016

that actually worked nationally. President Reagan attracted voters through racially coded appeals that allowed them to avoid admitting they were attracted by the racist appeals. He stood at the head of a reactionary movement that undid some of the material gains of civil rights and Black power activists. During President Reagan’s first year in office, the median income of Black families declined by 5.2 percent and the number of poor Americans, who were disproportionately Black, increased by 2.2. million—a sign of things to come under Reaganomics. Then in 1982, President Reagan announced his War on Drugs at an inauspicious time: when drug use was declining. “We must mobilize all our forces to stop the flow of drugs into this country,” Reagan said. President Reagan surely did not mobilize any of his forces to stop the CIA-back Contra rebels of Nicaragua from smuggling cocaine into the country to fund their operations. But he surely did mobilize his forces to draw media attention to their spreading of crack cocaine in 1985. The media blitz handed his slumbering War on Drugs an intense media high in 1986. That fall, he signed “with great pleasure” the AntiDrug Abuse Act, which established minimum sentencing for drug crimes and led to the mass incarceration of Black and Brown drug offenders over the next few decades. Like his campaign strategies, President Reagan took President Nixon’s racist drug war to a new level, and the mass incarceration of Black and Brown bodies accelerated under the Bush (times two) and Clinton administrations, especially after Clinton’s 1994 crime bill. White drug offenders, consuming and dealing drugs at similar or greater rates, remained disproportionately free. Reagan stands on this list as the representative of all these mass incarcerating presidents in the late 20th century. 2. Andrew Jackson ~ 7th President (18291837) Yes, the president the U.S. Treasury is planning on putting on the back of Harriett Tubman is the second most racist president of all-time. Ironically, he attracted the same demographic groups (less educated, less affluent White men) that Trump is attracting these days. Jackson stepped into the U.S. presidency as a wealthy Tennessee enslaver and military general who had founded and spearheaded the Democratic Party. Jacksonian Democrats, as historians call them, amassed a winning coalition of southern enslavers, White working people, and recent European immigrants who regularly rioted 34

against abolitionists, indigenous and Black communities, and civil rights activists before and after the Civil War. When the mass mailings of antislavery tracts captured national attention in 1835, President Jackson called on Congress to pass a law prohibiting “under severe penalties, the circulation...of incendiary publications.” And the following year Jackson and his supporters instituted the infamous “gag rule” that effectively tabled all the anti-slavery petitions rushing into Congress. And yet, it was his Indian removal policies that were the most devastating of all on the lives of Native Americans (and African Americans). Beginning with the Indian Removal Act of 1830, President Jackson forced several Native Americans nations to relocate from their ancestral homelands in the Southeastern United States to areas west of the Mississippi River—all to make way for those enslaved Africans being forcibly hauled into the Deep South. President Jackson help forge this trail of Native American tears out of the Deep South, and this trail of African tears into the Deep South. 1. Andrew Johnson ~ 17th President (18651869) This Democrat from Tennessee was sworn into the presidency after John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln days after the Civil War ended. When President Johnson issued his Reconstruction proclamations about a month later on May 29, 1865, he deflated the high hopes of civil rights activists. President Johnson offered amnesty, property rights, and voting rights to all but the highest Confederate officials (most of whom he pardoned a year later). He later ordered the return of land to pardoned Confederates, null and voided those wartime orders that granted Blacks forty acres and a mule, and removed many of the Black troops from the South. Feeling empowered by President Johnson, Confederates instituted a series of discriminatory Black codes at the constitutional conventions that reformulated southern states in the summer and fall of 1865. The immediate postwar South became the spitting image of the prewar South in everything but name - as the law replaced the master. These racist policies caused a postwar, war, since an untold number of Black people lost their lives resisting them. Congress stepped up to unravel the reemergence of the southern Confederacy in everything but name. But President Johnson vetoed the Freedmen’s Bureau Bill and Civil Rights Bill of 1866, compelling Congress to pass them over his veto. President Johnson also opposed the 14th and 15th Amendments to the U.S. constitution, and in 1868 became the first American president to be impeached by the House of Representatives. He remained in office, after being acquitted in the Senate by one vote. But President Johnson has never been acquitted in the annals of history. He still makes those lists on the worst presidents of all-time. He tops this list as the most racist president of all time. Dr. Irbram X. Kendi is an assistant professor of contemporary African American history at the University of Florida. He is the author of “The Black Campus Movement: Black Students and the Racial Reconstruction of Higher Education, 1965-1972.” This article was submitted via Huffington Post.

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

COMMUNITY THE STATE OF BLACK AMERICA: NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE’S ANNUAL REPORT voter registration. The reports health index also showed a drop from 79.6 percent to 79.4 percent. “The 2016 National Urban League Equality Index tells an all too familiar story of persistent racial disparities in American life,” Morial wrote in the report, “making clear that the historic Obama presidency has not been a panacea for America’s long-standing race problem.” Providing suggestions for improvement, the report called for a “bold and strategic investment” in America’s urban communities that would require $1 trillion over the span of the next 5 years. Recommendations include investments in early childhood education, the expansion of summer youth employment programs and doubling the Pell Grant program as a means of making college more affordable.

By Milca Pierre As the National Urban League’s annual publication, the State of Black America serves as a source for immense insight into the r acial equality, or lack thereof, that Blacks face within the areas of economics, social justice, education and health. Now in its 40th edition, the report reveals just how far black America has come within the past four decades, and in the same instance, how much further it has to go. “The similarities of the United States of 1976 and the United States of 2016 are profoundly striking,” said Marc Morial, the president and chief executive of the National Urban League. “We are now, as we were then, a nation struggling to overcome the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. All gears have been thrown into reverse.” One of the most profound findings in this year’s report was the equality index of African American stands at just 72.2 percent compared to the 100 percent white benchmark. This marks a slight improvement in the quality of Black life compared to 2015’s 72.0 percent. The area that showed significant improvement

“Vernon Jordan realized in 1976 that it was incumbent upon the National Urban League to confront the problems that Washington refused to acknowledge,” Morial continued in the report. “Forty years later, we continue on that path to this year was that of education, which progress – with a clear purpose and even a clearer demonstrated an increase from 76.1 percent to plan.” 77.4 percent. Social justice also saw an increase partly due to the decline of incarceration of Milca Pierre is student at Georgia State University, majoring in Business Administration Blacks. Telling decreases, however, were seen in with a minor in Marketing/Computer Information categories such as civic engagement with a drop Systems. She also works as an Editorial Intern from 104 percent to 100.6 percent due to lower with The Source Magazine.

COTA SIGNS $37 MILLION GRANT AGREEMENT WITH FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION C O L U M B U S , O H — O n We d . , J u n e 1 , Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Acting Administrator Carolyn Flowers and U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown joined Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) President/CEO W. Curtis Stitt to sign a $37.45 million funding agreement for COTA’s CMAX Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project. More than 50 elected officials, business and community leaders gathered at COTA’s Linden Transit Center to witness the signing and celebrate the new transit technology that will enhance the Cleveland Avenue corridor when operation begins in January 2018. Program speakers included Stitt, Flowers and Brown, as well as donna Hicho, executive director of the Greater Linden Development Corporation. “COTA’s CMAX BRT will introduce new transit technology to our community – making service faster, more direct and more accessible,” said Stitt. “We are extremely fortunate to be the recipient of this generous grant from the Federal Transit Administration. Thank you to Senator Sherrod Brown and FTA Acting Administrator Carolyn Flowers for their support and leadership

FTA Acting Director, Carolyn Flowers, U.S. Senator, Sherrod Brown, Greater Linden Development Corporation Executive Director, Donna Hicho, COTA President, W. Curtis Stitt

in funding the transportation that this community deserves.” COTA’s CMAX will link the northeast suburbs with downtown Columbus, connecting residents to major employment centers, medical facilities 35

and educational institutions. The line will bring critical service to over 211,000 residents while encouraging economic development along the corridor. Construction is expected to begin in summer 2016.

The Columbus African American • June 2016 The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

MEET THE MEXICAN JUDGE FROM INDIANA WHO IS TRUMP’S LATEST TARGET

By Tierny Sneed

threats.

rant at a campaign event in San Diego, where the judge is based and on the same day that the judge was hearing a motion to unseal docs pertaining to Trump University’s strategy.

T h e t a r g e t o f D o n a l d “I have a judge who is a hater of Donald Trump. Trump’s latest barrage of He’s a hater. His name is Gonzalo Curiel. And attacks is no stranger to ugly he is not doing the right thing,” Trump said, later suggesting Curiel was “Mexican.”

Back in the late 1990s, Gonzalo Curiel -- then a federal prosecutor, now the federal judge handling two high-profile cases against Trump University -- was believed to have had a hit placed on him by one of Mexico’s most dangerous cartels. “This is typical Trump bullying tactics, but they’re not going to work on a man who survived a contract taken on his life by the Arellano Felix organization,” Jason Forge, a lawyer representing the challengers in a class-action lawsuit against Trump University, told TPM. The lawsuit, Cohen v. Trump, was already a closely-watch case that alleged Trump University, through its “educational” programs, defrauded thousands of students. But Trump’s racially-tinged smears against the judge attracted additional scrutiny. Three lawsuits are pending against Trump University, which Trump launched in the midaughts. Two of those cases are being heard in front of Curiel, a U.S. district judge in San Diego, and the third in New York. The controversy over the program -- a get-quick-rich scheme promising students Trump’s real estate secrets -- is quickly becoming a focal point of the 2016 race. And, not surprisingly, the presumptive GOP nominee hasn’t been mum about the lawsuits and has zeroed in on Curiel, who Trump said is a “Mexican” and a “hater” who is being “hostile” to him because of his border wall plans.

“I think Judge Curiel should be ashamed of himself. I think it is a disgrace he is doing this,” he continued, adding, “They ought to look into Judge Curiel because what Judge Curiel is doing is a total disgrace.” Curiel was actually born in Indiana, though he is of Mexican descent. But perhaps the greatest irony in Trump’s attacks is that the Indiana University grad cut his prosecutorial teeth going after a major cartel that had been terrorizing communities around the U.S-Mexican border. Working in the U.S. Attorneys’ offices in San Diego and in Los Angeles, Curiel was on the front lines in the effort to take down the Arellano Felix cartel, an extremely dangerous drug trafficking ring operating out of Tijuana. At its peak in the 1990s, the cartel had infiltrated Mexican law enforcement and was believed to be responsible for hundreds of disappearances and deaths. Curiel once described the cartel -- led by the high-flying children of its kingpin, who had been incarcerated in 1989 for alleged connections to the murder a DEA agent -- “the beautiful people, the 90210 of drug cartels” because of their links to well-to-do families in Mexico.

His confirmation was approved in a Senate voice vote with little to-do a year later. “This judge is the most even-handed, genial, decent judge you can find,” Iredale said Legal commentators, both liberal and conservative, have worried that Trump’s antiCuriel tirade is “dangerous,” “terrifying,” a form of judicial intimidation, and a sign that the potential leader of United States has “no apparent philosophy of how judges make decisions” Trump’s attacks also put his legal team in an awkward position. His defense is being led by Daniel Petrocelli, a flashy Hollywood attorney who famously won a civil lawsuit against O.J. Simpson brought by the family of Ronald Goldman, who was murdered along with Nicole Simpson, a crime for which Simpson was acquitted. When he was asked by the Hollywood Reporter back in April about the Curiel comments Trump made after the debate, Petrocelli laughed them off.

Curiel and his fellow prosecutors were able to dismantle the cartel in a partnership with the Mexican government. The alliance came to be after secret meetings in 1999 between Mexican and U.S. authorities, during which the Mexican “Trump is a very opinionated guy,” Petrocelli heritage of the U.S. officials -- including Curiel said. “Yeah, it was certainly unusual. I think the It’s not new that Trump relies on derogatory -- helped build a bridge of trust. judge recognizes the rhetoric that takes place in language to tear down his opponents; it’s been an hallmark of his presidential campaign. But ‘’We were working without the disconnect of politics is not for the courtroom, and I think he’s because the recipient is now a federal judge, the interpreters and barriers of culture. When it separated the two.” torrent of insults are taking on new implications. comes down to it, this involves the country of The comments were referenced, however, our parents,” Curiel -- then the chief of narcotics in Curiel’s order last Friday to unseal a set of “It is an abuse of his position in the situation. He at the U.S. Attorney’s office in San Diego -- told documents related the lawsuit, an order that knows that the judge is constrained, unlike him, the New York Times. came hours after Trump slammed Curiel from by the rules of decorum and truthfulness. The judge is not able to defend himself,” said Gene During that period, Curial was involved in the stump. Iredale, a San Diego attorney who has been in the numerous arrests and extraditions of members “Defendant became the front-runner for the courtroom with Curiel, both when Curiel was a of the cartel. In one incident around 1997, a top lieutenant in the drug trafficking ring told Republican nomination in the 2016 presidential judge and a prosecutor. a bugged government informant while they are race, and has placed the integrity of these court The dog-whistle insinuations began in February, both incarcerated that he planned to have Curiel proceedings at issue,” the order said. after the lawsuits were brought up during a assassinated and had put the request into cartel The assaults on Curiel have continued, debate. Trump told Fox News a few days later leaders. The threat prompted U.S. marshals to be nonetheless, with Trump bashing Curiel again, that Curiel’s treatment “has to do with I’m very, placed as security at Curiel’s home and he drove via Twitter, over the weekend. very strong on the border.” around in in a bullet-proofed Suburban. Article submitted via Talking Points Memo. “Now, he is Hispanic, I believe. He is a very In 2006, then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger hostile judge to me,” Trump said. (R-CA) appointed Curiel to the state Superior Tierny Sneed is a reporter from Talking Points The racial subtext became text last week when Court in San Diego and in 2011 President Obama Memo. She previously worked for U.S. News and Trump made Curiel the subject of a 12-minute nominated him to his current federal judgeship. World Report.

The Columbus African American •News JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015

COMMUNITYEVENTS June 5, 2016 Soul Brunch Are you looking for good food and soulful music? Come out and listen to the sounds of The Harmony Force Shape Note Singers with Debra James Tucker, Tia Harris and Vicki Saunders at Natalie’s Coal Fired Pizza and Live Music in Worthington. For more information call 614-436-2625.

June 11, 2016 COSI: Game Master The Exhibit Discover the true heroes of gaming at Game Masters: The Exhibit. Journey through five decades of video game creation to learn how these iconic arcade, console, handheld, and mobile games transformed from ideas to reality. This is a great family summer activity. For more information call 614-228-COSI.

Location: Natalie’s Coal Fired Pizza & Live Music Address: 5601 N. High St., 43085 Time: 2:30 PM - 4:00 PM Admission: $10 Web: www.NataliesCoalFiredPizza.com

Location: COSI Address: 333 W. Broad St., 43215 Time: Open Daily from 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM Admission: $15 - $20 Web: www.COSI.org

June 6, 2016 12th Annual Easton Job Fair Are you looking for a job or to change careers? Then stop by the 12th Annual Easton Job Fair. Participating companies will have hundreds of job openings available. Computers will be available onsite for online applications. For more information call Lynn Aspey at 614559-0117.

June 17, 2016 The Columbus African American - Anniversary Event The Columbus African American news journal will celebrate its 5 th Anniversary with a special luncheon to honor contributing writers and advertisers. The news journal will also award 7 “Grace” awards to oustanding members of the Central Ohio community. For tickets call 614-340-4890.

Location: Columbus Airport Marriot Address: 1375 N Cassady Ave, 43219 Time: Noon - 4:00 PM Admission: Free Web: www.JFScolumbus.org

Location: The Boat House at Confluence Park Address: 679 W. Spring Street, 43215 Time: 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM Admission: $40 per person/ $400 per table of 10 Web: www.ColsAfricanAmerican.com

June 10, 2016 Columbus Commons for Kids Looking for something fun to do with the kids this summer? Then visit the Columbus Commons each weekend for kid-friendly activities. On June 10, join Ronald McDonald and The Columbus Zoo as they bring some of their furry friends. Then stay for the free Summer Movie! For more information about parking and activity times, visit the website below.

June 17, 2016 Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival Kick off the summer with 490 hours of Ohio’s best Blues & Jazz music at the Creekside Plaza in Gahanna. In addition to great music, enjoy wine tasting, food and a family fun zone. For more information please call 614418-9114 or visit the website below.

Location: Columbus Commons Address: 160 S. High St, 43215 Time: 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM Admission: Free Web: www.ColumbusCommons.org June 10-12, 2016 The Columbus Arts Festival The Columbus Arts Festival, produced by the Greater Arts Council celebrates its 55th year of bringing the best in fine art and craft to Columbus. In addition to great art, experience hands-on activities, music, spoken word and great food. For a list of vendors or for parking, visit the website below. Location: Downtown Address: The Riverfront Time: Fri & Sat 11:00 AM - 10:30 PM, Sun 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM Admission: Free Web: www.ColumbusArtsFestival.org

Location: Creekside Plaza Address: 101 Mill St., 43230 Time: Fri. 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM, Sat. 11:00 AM - 11:00 PM, Sun. Noon - 6:00 PM Admission: $7-$10 day pass, $15 wknd pass, Kids 12 under Free Web: www.CreeksideBluesandJazz.com June 18, 2016 Northeast Community Resource Expo The Northeast Community Resource Expo is a free event featuring community resources for education, entrepreneurship, financial empowerment and health & wellness. In addition to the resource expo, there will be activities for kids, food and entertainment. For information, call 614-383-7750 or visit the website below. Location: Columbus Christian Center Church Address: 2300 N. Cassady Ave, 43219 Time: 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM Admission: Free Web: www.IncreaseCDC.org

Please note: Information for this section is gathered from multiple commnuity sources. The Columbus African American is not responsible for the accuracy and content of information. Times, dates and locations are subject to change. If you have an event that you would like to feature in this section, please call 614-3404891 or email us at editor@columbusafricanamerican.com. Submissions are due the last Friday of each month.

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015

The Columbus African American • June 2016

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• JuneJournal 2016 • February 2015 The Columbus African American News

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Congratulations Graduates!

Central State University celebrated the accomplish- represented 15 states including Nassau, Bahamas.

ments of more than 250 graduates at the University’s 2016 Commencement Exercise held on May 7th. This year’s baccalaureate and master’s degree recipients

Award-Winning International Journalist and Former CBS Evening News Weekend Anchor Mr. Russ Mitchell delivered the commencement address.

Join the CSU Family

Fall classes begin Aug. 15 • CentralState.edu Admissions@CentralState.edu 39

The Columbus American • June 2016 The Columbus African AmericanAfrican News Journal • February 2015

OPEN ENROLLMENT STARTS

You Have a Choice!

Now!

Serving Grades

K-8

CHALLENGING CURRICULUM AND DAILY SPORTS INSTRUCTION! 3 ALL DAY KINDERGARTEN 3 Small Class Sizes 3 Extended School Day from 8 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

3 Daily Fitness Instruction in Martial Arts, Soccer, and Tennis 3 No Tuition! 3 All Students Wear Uniforms 3 Teachers and Staff Who Care! 3 Individualized Instruction to Meet the Needs of the Whole Child 3 LIMITED SPACE. UNLIMITED POTENTIAL!

Strong Academics—2 hours of reading/language arts, 1.5 hours of math, 1 hour each of science and social studies daily 3 Daily Character Education

Choose from 1 of 5 conveniently located campuses!

1258 Demorest Rd. • Columbus OH 43204 E-mail: ssantos@performanceacademies.com Phone: 614-318-0606

1875 Morse Rd. • Columbus OH 43229 E-mail: medwards@performanceacademies.com Phone: 614-318-0600

3474 Livingston Ave. • Columbus OH 43227 E-mail: wconnick@performanceacademies.com Phone: 614-324-4585

Information Meetings will be held at each school for interested parents. Please check the websites for dates and times.

2220 South Hamilton Rd. • Columbus OH 43232 E-mail: ntate@performanceacademies.com (Grade 4-8) jpammer@performanceacademies.com (Grade K-3) Phone: 614-314-6301

274 E. 1st Avenue, Suite 200 • Columbus, Ohio 43201 E-mail: ahaman@performanceacademies.com Phone: 614-318-0720

www.performanceacademies.com 40

The Columbus African American News Journal • February 2015