Sometimes I ask myself if I have any other legacy to leave. Truly, my worldly possessions are few. Yet, my experiences have been rich. From them, I have distilled principles and policies in which I believe rmly, for they represent the meaning of my life’s work. They are the
fi products of much sweat and sorrow legacy ficial than hate.
Perhaps in them there is something of value. So, as my life draws to a close, I will pass them on to Negroes everywhere in the hope that an old woman’s philosophy may give them inspiration. Here, then is my legacy.
I LEAVE YOU LOVE. Love builds. It is positive and helpful. It is more bene than hate. Injuries quickly forgotten quickly pass away. Personally and racially, our enemies must be forgiven. Our aim must be to create a world of fellowship and justice where no man’s
must of and where no man’s skin, color or religion, is held against him. “Love thy neighbor” is a precept which could transform the world if it were universally practiced. It connotes brotherhood and, to me, brotherhood of man is the noblest concept in all human relations. Loving your neighbor means being interracial, interreligious and international
I LEAVE YOU HOPE. The Negro’s growth will be great in the years to come. Yesterday, our ancestors endured the degradation of slavery yet they retained their dignity. Today, we direct our economic and political strength toward winning a more abundant and secure life. Tomorrow, a new Negro, unhindered by race taboos and shackles, will benefi
t from more than 330 years of ceaseless striving and struggle. Theirs will be a better world.
This I believe with all my heart betterment. and fidence was vital in them started and them
I LEAVE YOU THE CHALLENGE OF DEVELOPING CONFIDENCE IN ONE ANOTHER. As long as Negroes are hemmed into racial blocks by prejudice and pressure, it will be necessary for them to band together for economic betterment. Negro banks, insurance companies and other businesses are examples of successful, racial economic enterprises. These institutions were made possible by vision and mutual aid. Con was vital in getting them started and keeping them going. Negroes have got to demonstrate still more dence in each other in business. This kind of dence will aid the economic rise of the race by bringing together the pennies and dollars of our people and ploughing them into useful channels. Economic separatism cannot be tolerated in this enlightened age, and it is not practicable. We must spread out as far and as fast as we can, but we must
confi confi race also help each other as we go I A
I LEAVE YOU A THIRST FOR EDUCATION. Knowledge is the prime need of the hour. More and more, Negroes are taking full advantage of hard-won opportunities for learning, and the educational level of the Negro population is at its highest point in history. We are making greater use of the privileges inherent in living in a democracy. If we continue in this trend, we will be able to rear increasing numbers of strong, purposeful men and women, equipped with vision, mental
I LEAVE YOU RESPECT FOR THE USES OF POWER. We live in a world which respects power above all things. Power, intelligently directed, can lead to more freedom. Unwisely directed, it can be a dreadful, destructive force. During my lifetime I have seen the power of the Negro grow enormously. It rst concern that this power should be placed on the side of
America must be ever vigilant lest his forces be marshalled behind wrong causes and undemocratic movements. He must not lend his support to any group that seeks to subvert democracy. That is why we must select leaders who are wise, courageous, and of great moral stature and ability. We have great leaders among us today: Ralph Bunche, Channing Tobias, Mordecai Johnson, Walter White, and Mary Church Terrell. We have had other great men and women in the past: Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, Harriet Tubman, and Sojourner Truth. We must produce more quali ed people like them, who will work not for themselves, but for others.
Now that the barriers are crumbling everywhere, the Negro in
I LEAVE YOU FAITH. Faith is the devoted to service. Without faith, nothing is possible. With it, nothing is impossible. Faith in God is the greatest power, but great, too, is faith in oneself. In 50 years, the faith of the American Negro in himself has grown immensely and is still increasing. The measure of our progress as a race is in precise relation to the depth of the faith in our people held by our leaders. Frederick Douglass, genius though he was, was spurred by a deep conviction that his people would heed his counsel and follow him to freedom. Our greatest Negro gures have been imbued with faith. Our forefathers struggled for liberty in conditions far more onerous than those we now face, but they never lost the faith. Their perseverance paid rich dividends. We must erings and their sacri for they were the foundations of the progress of our people.
our leaders. Frederick he was, was
for in conditions far more onerous now never forget their suff and their sacrifices, our people we are as as for We ffort to race more never about my color has ever
I LEAVE YOU RACIAL DIGNITY. I want Negroes to maintain their human dignity at all costs. We, as Negroes, must recognize that we are the custodians as well as the heirs of a great civilization. We have given something to the world as a race and for this we are proud and fully conscious of our place in the total picture of mankind’s development. We must learn also to share and mix with all men. We must make an e to be less race conscious and more conscious of individual and human values. I have never been sensitive about my complexion. My color has never destroyed my self-respect nor has it ever caused me to conduct myself in such a manner as to merit the disrespect of any person. I have not let my color handicap me. Despite many crushing burdens and handicaps, I have fields of South Carolina to found a college, administer it during its years of growth, become a public servant in the government of our country and a leader of women. I would not exchange my color for all the wealth in the world, for had I been born white I might not have been able to do all that I have done
I LEAVE YOU A DESIRE TO LIVE HARMONIOUSLY WITH YOUR FELLOW MEN. The problem of color is worldwide. It is found in Africa and Asia, Europe and South America. I appeal to American Negroes -- North, South, East and West -- to recognize their common problems and unite to solve them. I pray that we will learn to live harmoniously with ffi hypersensitive and truculent. I want to see my people conduct themselves naturally in all relationships -fully conscious of their manly responsibilities and deeply aware of their heritage. I want them to learn uence them for good, for it is advisable and sensible for us to do so. We are a minority of 15 million living side by side with a white majority. We must learn to deal with these people positively and on an individual basis.
I LEAVE YOU FINALLY A RESPONSIBILITY TO OUR YOUNG PEOPLE. The world around us really belongs to youth for youth will take over its future management. Our children must never lose their zeal for building a better world. They must not be discouraged from aspiring toward greatness, for they are to be the leaders of tomorrow. Nor must they forget that the masses of our people are still underprivileged, ill-housed, impoverished and victimized by discrimination. We have a powerful potential in our youth, and we must have the courage to change old ideas and practices so that we may direct their power toward good ends.
inherent in living in a democracy. If we continue in this clarity, health and education. all the power of the Negro grow enormously. It has always been my fi human justice. are undemocratic movements. He must not lend his to any group that seeks to and of moral stature and We have Church Terrell. We have had other fi others first factor in a life
Sponsored by the Stairstep Foundation, the Black Women’s Wealth Alliance, Solidarity - Twin Cities and Insight News.
What kind of nation dismantles its own future?
By Haley Taylor Schlitz, Esq.
A country reveals its soul not just in what it builds, but in what it chooses to destroy.
The United States once built public schools as an investment in the American Dream. We built libraries as temples to knowledge. We built universities as launch pads for innovation. And we built the United States Department of Education as a commitment to ensuring that no child, no matter their race, zip code, or background, would be locked out of learning.
Now, we stand at the edge of an unthinkable reality: the deliberate dismantling of that commitment.
Donald Trump and his allies are pushing to abolish the Department of Education, cloaking their assault in the familiar language of “states’ rights” and “cutting government waste.” But this is no ordinary policy debate. This is something deeper, more sinister, more revealing of what America is becoming.
Because what kind of nation chooses to undo its own progress?
What does it say about us when we decide, as a people, that education is expendable?
That the mechanisms we built to ensure children learn, that civil rights are enforced in
schools, that public funding is equitably distributed, can simply be discarded?
Education is not just an institution. It is a signal to the world about who we are.
When we, as a nation, once poured resources into public schools, we sent a message: We believe in a future where anyone can rise. When we passed laws to ensure students with disabilities received equal access to education, we affirmed that every human being has value. When we created Title I to fund schools in low-income communities and Title IX to protect girls and women in education, we declared that opportunity should not be a privilege, but a right. To dismantle the
Department of Education is to send a new message.
A message that education, once seen as a pathway to national strength, is now seen as a threat to those in power. That ensuring every child has a chance to learn is no longer a priority. That ignorance, inequality, and division are preferable to knowledge, opportunity, and unity. We should not pretend that this is happening in a vacuum. As a former 5th-grade U.S. History teacher, I saw firsthand how young students absorb the story of America, how they ask questions, challenge ideas, and make connections that adults often overlook. I also saw how the battles over what is taught in our classrooms
are, at their core, battles over power. The banning of books, the erasure of Black history, the vilification of teachers, these are not separate fights. They are part of a broader agenda to control knowledge itself. And now, in the moment when the majority of American K-12 students are Black, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, Native American and multi-racial, the loudest voices in the Republican Party are declaring that the system itself should be dismantled and destroyed. History teaches us that the suppression of education is always about something larger. It is about control. It is about fear. It is about deciding who gets to shape the future and
who remains in the shadows. This is not new. The deliberate denial of knowledge to Black Americans dates back to slavery, when learning to read was a punishable offense. Later, Jim Crow laws systematically underfunded Black schools to keep economic and social mobility out of reach. Even after Brown v. Board of Education, states fought against integration, closing schools rather than allowing Black children to sit in classrooms alongside their white peers. What we are seeing now is a 21st-century version of the same strategy. Only now, it is wrapped in the language of budget cuts and local control. It is the same attempt to preserve privilege by suppressing progress. The question before us is whether we will allow it to happen. Because this is not just about one federal department. It is about what we, as a country, are willing to let slip away. It is about whether we still believe in the promise of America, that a child in a struggling neighborhood deserves as much opportunity as a child in a wealthy one. That a young girl should not be told her future is limited. That a young Black boy should not be set up to fail before he even begins. Education is a contract between generations. It is our promise that we will leave behind a nation wiser, stronger, and more just than the one we inherited. To break that contract is to declare, without shame or hesitation, that we no longer care about the future at all. And if we let this happen, if we stand by while President Trump, born into privilege and notorious for his unprecedented dishonesty, along with a political movement fueled by fear and resentment, dismantles the very foundation of opportunity in America, we will not need to ask how history will judge us. The verdict will be clear: We chose decay over progress, ignorance over enlightenment, and destruction over the promise of a better future. History won’t ask why it happened. It will ask why we let it.
The Coronavirus Pandemic five years later
Five years ago today, the World Health Organization declared Covid 19 a “Global Pandemic” and within days, the world as I/we knew it was turned upside down!
As a diabetic/ hypertensive, my doctor sent me a text message that week telling me to isolate and that if I had to venture out, to mask up! Still very much in a state of disbelief, my skepticism quickly began to wane once the courts and schools made the wise choice to turn virtual later that week! Soon thereafter, essential items like toilet paper and bleach were in painfully short supply, restaurants closed to sit down meals, and Door Dash, Instacart and
similar apps became the go to methods to obtain food and materials for the fortunate, while the less fortunate braved the risk of contracting this phantom menace to ensure their daily sustenance.
Those were frightening times, times made even more nerve wracking when considering that the president at the time, Donald Trump, mocked the seriousness of the disease at every turn even as the death tolls worldwide (and right here in America) grew steadily. An infection and death toll that claimed the lives of our kin, friends, and acquaintances across the nation, many of whom died alone—in pain— and couldn’t even have traditional funerals due to the risk of spreading the disease!
Five years and seven million lost lives later, I can’t help but ask what have we learned here in America? I know that my life was forever changed in many ways five years ago this week and the memories haunt me up to this
very hour. But really, what did we, the people, REALLY learn, what with the same wise-cracking president back then, the one who lost the 2020 election, in part, due to his poor handling of the Covid crisis, being reelected last fall and placing a quack, Robert Kennedy, as head of the Department of Health and Human Services? I can only conclude that we didn’t learn much and we all, those who love Trump and those who loathe him, are dangerously at risk should the next pandemic come down the pike over the next four years.
God, forbid...
Lest we forget…
Hobbservation Point is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Chuck Hobbs is a freelance journalist who won the 2010 Florida Bar Media Award and has been twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.
Trump says there is “transgender lunacy” in America- the only lunacy is the GOP and its block obsessing about what is between people’s legs.
Maybe Donald has a crush on a transgender woman, and he’s not happy about it, you know, such feelings make “real men” very uncomfortable.
Let’s be clear, we have a lot of problems in America, but transgender people are not one of them, the GOP have created an imaginary problem.
On December 22, at a speech Trump gave in Phoenix, he lashed out repeatedly at transgender people, and said once in office, “it will be the policy of the United States that there are only two genders: men and women.” But then you would need a Gestapo type
Identity Police to make sure everyone behaved accordingly to the gender they were assigned.
Trump has unlawfully accessed enough womens’ underwear, now he wants access to know what is inside every Americans underwear, to create his new “gender policy”. Good luck with this Nazi insane approach.
Trump’s main goal is to accelerate the de-evolutionary process.
Trump’s violent speech puts innocent transgender people in the crosshairs, it motivates and inspires transgender bigots. Trump’s a psychopath who gets aroused, they’re junkies for his cruel insanity. Currently he’s feeding his addiction by terrorizing the transgender community.
Columnist
Hobb servation Point
By Chuck Hobbs
By Frank Erickson
By Steve Karnowski Associated Press
Voters in a Minnesota House district at the center of postelection drama over chamber control decisively chose Democrat David Gottfried on Tuesday, tying the House and ending a short-lived Republican majority. The Democratic victory will force the two parties to work together on a budget for the next two years.
Gottfried got about 70% of the vote to defeat Republican Paul Wikstrom, who also ran for the seat in November. The special election in
the heavily Democratic district in the northern St. Paul suburbs of Roseville and Shoreview was scheduled after a state court ruled that Democratic winner Curtis Johnson failed to meet residency requirements. That disrupted an expected 67-67 tie in the House and led to the collapse of a power-sharing agreement when Republicans tried to capitalize on their unexpected majority, prompting a three-week Democratic boycott of the chamber. The parties reached a new power-sharing agreement in February that assumed Democrats would win the special election and restore the tie. Under the terms of the deal, Republican Lisa Demuth will
remain House speaker for the next two years. Once Gottfried is sworn in, the two parties will have even strength on most committees, with cochairs who will take turns holding the gavel, except for an oversight committee that Republicans will control to investigate fraud in government programs. Democrats hold a one-seat majority in the Minnesota Senate. Given the tie in the House, some degree of bipartisan cooperation will be required to get the 68 votes needed to pass the big budget measures to Democratic Gov. Tim Walz. Updated budget projections released last Thursday suggested difficult negotiations ahead. The
projected surplus for the next two-year budget slipped to $456 million, while the projected deficit for the two years after that grew to $6 billion. Gottfried’s 40-point margin of victory exceeded Johnson’s 30-point win in November. Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris carried the district with 68% of the vote over President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee. Gottfried said his win is a victory for the voters in his district, who haven’t been represented in the House since the session convened in January.
‘More than brick and mortar:’ DC begins removing ‘Black Lives Matter’ plaza near the White House
into the giant yellow letters in the street. Thomas discretely secured a chunk of pavement and said holding it made her feel conflicted.
Starlette Thomas remembers coming down almost daily to the intersection of 16th and H streets, to protest police brutality and systemic racial iniquities during the summer of 2020.
On Monday, the 45-year old Bowie, Maryland resident returned to the site of those protests to mourn the end of Black Lives Matter Plaza.
“I needed to be here today. I can’t just let this go away,” Thomas said, as jackhammers began tearing
“To walk away with a piece of that, it means it’s not gone,” she said. “It’s more than brick and mortar.”
Crews started work Monday to remove the large yellow “Black Lives Matter” painted on the street one block from the White House. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the change last week in response to pressure from Republicans in Congress. The work is expected to take about six weeks and the words will be replaced by an unspecified set of city-sponsored murals. The painting of those
The DNC congratulated Democratic candidate David Gottfried for his victory in last week’s Minnesota legislative special election. The victory, means the Minnesota House remains at a tie – giving House Democrats a fighting chance to defend against the GOP’s extreme attacks on reproductive freedom, labor, and working families, The Democratic National Committee said in a press statement. Gottfried’s victory follows special election victories earlier in Virginia, Iowa, and other states across the country.
DNC Chair Ken Martin said, “As a proud Minnesotan, I’m honored to congratulate David Gottfried on his crucial special election victory. Minnesota is a shining example of what can happen under Democratic leadership: providing free breakfast and lunch for K-12 students, investing in mental health services, strengthening worker protections, establishing paid family and medical leave, and enshrining protections for reproductive freedom into law. Since November’s election, Democrats continue to fight and
the
Charles Mauldin was near the front of a line of voting rights marchers walking in pairs across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama on March 7, 1965. The marchers were protesting white officials’ refusal to allow Black Alabamians to register to vote, as well as the killing days earlier of Jimmie Lee Jackson, a minister and voting rights organizer who was shot by a state trooper in nearby Marion.
At the apex of the span over the Alabama River, they saw what awaited them: a line
of state troopers, deputies and men on horseback. They kept going. After they approached, law enforcement gave a twominute warning to disperse and then unleashed violence.
“Within about a minute or a half, they took their billy clubs, holding it on both ends, began to push us back to back us in, and then they began to beat men, women and children, and tear gas men, women and children, and cattle prod men, women and children viciously,” said Mauldin, who was 17 at the time.
Selma on Sunday marked the 60th anniversary of the clash that became known as Bloody Sunday. The attack shocked the nation and galvanized
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, last week led 122 House Democrats in a letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner requesting information regarding questionable staff terminations, stop-work orders, funding cancellations, and the role of private corporations through the influence of the Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”)—led by Trump’s unelected billionaire co-President, Elon Musk. The Congresswoman was joined by key House Democrats in handdelivering the letter to HUD. In the letter, the lawmakers also sound the alarm on how recent Trump Administration and DOGE actions to weaken HUD would exacerbate the worsening housing and homelessness crisis and perpetuate illegal housing discrimination.
“As our nation faces one of the worst housing and homelessness crises in history, HUD’s role in addressing this crisis is more critical now than ever,” wrote the lawmakers. “Plans to terminate HUD staff across the country, freeze HUD funding which makes up less than 1% of all federal spending, as well as the decision to ‘[go] after’ the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule and halt fair housing enforcement efforts under the Equal Access Rule, are cause for deep concern about the future of fair and affordable housing in this great nation.” Additionally, the lawmakers point out the blatant conflict of interest between the work of HUD and the DOGE personnel who have infiltrated the agency.
“Just as concerning is that several individuals from
The White House complained Tuesday that Columbia University is refusing to help federal agents find people being sought as part of the government’s effort to deport participants in pro-Palestinian demonstrations, as the administration continued to punish the school by yanking federal research dollars.
Immigration enforcement agents on Saturday arrested and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a legal U.S. resident and Palestinian activist who played a prominent part in protests at Columbia last year. He is now facing possible deportation.
President Donald Trump has vowed additional arrests. In a briefing with reporters in Washington, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said federal authorities have been “using
intelligence” to identify other people involved in campus demonstrations critical of Israel that the administration considered to be antisemitic and “pro-Hamas.”
She said Columbia had been given names and was refusing to help the Department of Homeland Security “to identify those individuals on
By Ashraf Khalil and Jacquelyn Martin Associated Press
By Kim Chandler and Safiyah Riddle Associated Press
AP Photo/Mike Stewart U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., Rev. Al Sharpton, Rev. Jesse Jackson and NAACP President Derrick Johnson,
Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP Protesters march on campus against the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil at UC Berkeley on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in Berkeley, Calif.
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
From the top of a building, the Black Lives Matter mural is seen as demolition begins at left, Monday, March 10, 2025, in Washington.
Democrat David Gottfried
Black homeownership faces persistent barriers despite hard-fought gains
By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
Sonia Reed believed she had achieved the American dream.
In December 2024, the Black grandmother and former homeless individual became a homeowner in San Leandro, California. But her triumph quickly turned into a nightmare when neighbors began harassing her with racial slurs and vandalizing her property. “I worked so hard to finally have a place to call my own, and now I have to fear for my safety in my own home,” Reed said. The Alameda County Sheriff’s
Office said it is investigating the incidents as hate crimes. For many, vandalism is part of an ongoing pattern where Black homeowners have faced
By Stacy M. Brown
Experian has launched a major debt relief initiative, committing $5 million to assist 5,000 families in Louisiana and aiming to expand to other locations. The effort, carried out in partnership with public benefit corporation ForgiveCo, seeks to ease the financial burdens of households grappling with credit card and personal loan debt. Steve Hartmann, vice president of Integrated Marketing at Experian, said in an interview with Black Press USA that the initiative goes beyond advertising and directly helps consumers. “Consumer debt is at an alltime high—credit card balances are soaring, and minimum payments are shrinking. We wanted to do more than just advertise our products. We needed to actively engage with the community and provide real financial relief,” Hartmann said.
some kind of discrimination.
Reed’s experience is far from isolated. Black Americans remain locked in a battle for homeownership, confronted by systemic inequities, economic challenges, and, in some cases, environmental disasters that threaten to strip them of generational wealth. A new Urban Institute report revealed that Black homeownership rates remain far behind those of white Americans. Researchers said it’s a gap rooted in decades of discriminatory housing policies, redlining, and predatory lending practices.
“Homeownership remains one of the most significant drivers of wealth, yet Black families face disproportionate barriers to achieving this milestone,” researchers wrote. The crisis extends beyond acts of overt racism. In January 2025, devastating wildfires tore through Altadena,
California, a historically Black community with a homeownership rate of 81.5 percent—far higher than the national average. Thousands of homes were reduced to ashes
and rubble, leaving families displaced. Many now face the daunting task of rebuilding and the looming threat of gentrification. “Developers are circling like vultures,” said
ForgiveCo plays a crucial role in the initiative by identifying and purchasing debt in collections on behalf of Experian. “We wanted to focus on credit card and personal loan debt, specifically targeting families in Louisiana who need it the most. ForgiveCo identifies these accounts in collections, purchases the debt on our behalf, and then we notify beneficiaries through direct mail, text, and email,” Hartmann added. Recipients will not owe taxes on the forgiven debt, an important aspect of the initiative. “They do not have to pay taxes on this,” Hartmann confirmed. The initiative is linked to Louisiana State University’s basketball star Flau’jae Johnson, an advocate for financial literacy. “Since we had partnered with Flau’jae before and financial education is one of her passions, it made sense
to align this effort with her,” Hartmann explained. Johnson will use her platform to spread awareness about financial literacy and debt relief, focusing on communities in Louisiana where she currently plays.
“It’s hard to create a winning financial game plan when you are blocked by debt,” Johnson remarked. “I am excited to partner with Experian to empower families in the
longtime Altadena resident James Carter. “We’re trying to rebuild, but the fear is that we won’t be able to afford to stay.” Economic barriers remain a defining struggle. Brooke Scott, a litigation assistant in Los Angeles, calculated that achieving homeownership and financial security requires an annual household income of $300,000—far beyond what many Black families can attain. Housing costs, healthcare, taxes, and child-rearing expenses leave little room for savings or investment. “The numbers just don’t add up,” Scott said. “Even with two incomes, we’re barely able to put away anything for a down payment.” The Urban Institute’s findings represent a clear picture of the obstacles Black homeowners face. Disparities in income, lending practices, and generational wealth accumulation continue to create barriers that make
state and across the country so they can become financial champions of their future.”
According to Experian, Johnson’s involvement extends beyond promotions. She is actively engaging with students and community members about financial empowerment.
“She’s not just putting her name on this,” Hartmann said.
“She’s going out, meeting with students and the broader community, and sharing her own financial journey as a young athlete with NIL deals.”
Beyond the initial $5 million relief, Experian has added an incentive tied to LSU’s upcoming college basketball tournament performance. The company will contribute an additional $100,000 for every LSU victory, up to $500,000.
Beneficiaries will also receive a free one-year premium membership to Experian, providing access to credit monitoring, FICO® scores, and tools to help them regain financial stability. “One of the most rewarding aspects is hearing the stories of the people impacted. Every story is unique, and it reinforces why this work is so important,” Hartmann exclaimed.
Dacy Yee, president of Experian Consumer
Black homeownership an increasingly difficult goal. While federal and local initiatives have sought to close the gap, the road ahead remains steep. “Without significant policy changes and investment in Black communities, the homeownership gap will persist for generations to come,” the Urban Institute report warns. For Reed, Scott, and the residents of Altadena, the challenges of Black homeownership are deeply personal. Whether confronting racial harassment, economic hurdles, or the aftermath of natural disasters, their stories serve as a reminder that the fight for equity in housing is far from over. If these barriers persist, the promise of homeownership will remain an elusive dream for too many Black Americans. “We just want what everyone else has—a fair shot at building a future,” Carter asserted.
Services, said the initiative provides much-needed relief during difficult economic times.
“Unmanageable debt prevents consumers from achieving their goals,” Yee said. “During these challenging economic times, Experian offers resources that can help consumers save time and money as well as improve their overall financial health. We hope this debt relief and access to Experian tools will help beneficiaries in Louisiana move towards a healthier financial future.” The campaign marks Experian’s second major debt relief initiative, following a previous effort targeting the Hispanic community. “Yes, we want to expand this,” Hartmann said. “We need to figure out the best way to do this more frequently and target regions or communities that could really use it.” Hartmann also urged those struggling with debt to seek financial education and understand the impact of credit. “Debt can put you in a tough spot, making it harder to achieve milestones like buying a home or car,” he stated. “Educating people early is key, especially young adults just beginning their financial journey.”
Market turmoil raises concerns among Black investors
By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
The U.S. stock markets have continued to experience significant declines, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping to start the week at 890 points (2.1%) to close at 41,912. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also fell to begin the week by 2.7% and 4%, respectively. The downturn has heightened concerns among Black investors, who have historically faced challenges in wealth accumulation and market participation. “When the ‘check engine’ light is on in America, the car is on the side of the road for Black America,” Antjuan Seawright, a strategist, said in an earlier published interview. “We always feel the pain more than other constituencies.” Financial advisors recommend that Black investors maintain a cautious approach during this period of volatility. According to a report by T. Rowe Price, many Black/ African American investors are seeking guidance on financial topics and are interested in having a financial “coach” to help manage their financial health. The report states, “Two out of three (67%) Black/ African Americans want to
know as much as possible about financial topics. 62% would like a financial ‘coach’ to help manage their financial health.” Experts have also stressed the importance of building an emergency fund covering six to twelve months of expenses, which can provide financial stability during job loss or economic downturns. Additionally, reviewing and adjusting budgets to distinguish between essential and non-essential expenses can help manage finances more effectively. Enhancing skills to remain competitive in the job market is also advised for career security. Prioritizing debt repayment, especially high-interest debt like credit cards, can prevent financial strain during economic downturns. The looming threat of a government shutdown adds another layer of uncertainty. The Black Economic Alliance has expressed concern that such a shutdown could exacerbate racial economic inequality and inflict long-lasting harm on the U.S. economy. They highlight that the prolonged loss of income poses significant hardships for federal workers, including Black employees from communities still struggling to overcome generations of systemic exclusion from economic opportunity. The 2020 Ariel-
Hobson said by
informed and proactive, Black investors can better
the challenges posed by
downturns and policy changes, working towards financial resilience and
“We are
Schwab Black Investor Survey revealed that only 55% of Black Americans reported stock market investments, compared to 71% of white Americans. This disparity results in middle-class Black Americans having less money saved for retirement and less wealth to pass on to future generations. Mellody Hobson, co-CEO and President of Ariel Investments emphasized the urgency of addressing this gap, stating, “Black Americans are already behind the eight ball, and it is disheartening to see that at current savings and investing rates, the wealth gap will continue to expand, endangering our
Happy family
Gottfried From 3
“The President is sowing chaos that is increasing the price of basic needs like food, energy, and healthcare,” Gottfried said in a statement. “It’s never been more urgent that we work together in Saint Paul to shield Minnesotans from the chaos, lower the cost of prescription drugs, and make a smart plan to protect our shared futures in Minnesota.”
words was an act of governmentsponsored defiance during President Donald Trump’s first term. The removal amounts to a public acknowledgement of just how vulnerable the District of Columbia is now that Trump is back in the White House and Republicans control both houses of Congress.
House Democratic Caucus leader Melissa Hortman said Gottfried’s win confirms that they’ll be working under
Bowser, a Democrat, ordered the painting and renamed the intersection Black Lives Matter Plaza in June 2020. It came after days of chaotic protests at that location following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer; Bowser had clashed with Trump over her handling of the protests.
But now Bowser has little power to fend off encroachments on D.C.’s limited autonomy. Bowser said last week on X that, “The mural inspired millions of people and
the power-sharing agreement they negotiated with House Republicans.
“Democrats have been ready to work in a bipartisan way for months,” Hortman said in a statement.
“It’s time for our Republican colleagues to leave the partisan games behind and work with us to craft a budget for the people of Minnesota.”
helped our city through a painful period, but now we can’t afford to be distracted by meaningless congressional interference. The devastating impacts of the federal job cuts must be our number one concern.”
Among those who gathered to witness the work Monday was Megan Bailiff CEO of Equus Striping, the pavement marking company that originally painted the letters.
Bailiff called the dismantling of Black Lives Matter Plaza, “historically
we understand to be currently stationed at HUD, including Scott Langmack and Michael Mirski, come from the very industries that stand to gain from the dismantling of the federal government’s role in housing and consumer protections, and the path that creates for greater housing market consolidation and profiteering at the expense of families,” said the lawmakers.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner
what happened in Selma changed the nation. He said the 60th anniversary comes at a time when there is “trouble all around” and some “want to whitewash our history.” But he said like the marchers of Bloody Sunday, they must keep going.
support for the U.S. Voting Rights Act of 1965. The annual commemoration pays homage to those who fought to secure voting rights for Black Americans and brought calls to recommit to the fight for equality. For those gathered in Selma, the celebration comes amid concerns about new voting restrictions and the Trump administration’s effort to remake federal agencies they said helped make America a democracy for all
Speaking at the pulpit of the city’s historic Tabernacle Baptist Church, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said
From 3
campus.”
“As the president said very strongly in his statement yesterday, he is not going to tolerate that,” Leavitt said.
A spokesperson for Columbia University did not directly respond to a message seeking comment on the administration’s response but referred The Associated Press to a letter sent to students Monday by Interim President Katrina Armstrong.
“We will follow the law, as has always been the case, and rumors suggesting that any member of Columbia leadership requested the presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on or near campus are false,” the letter stated. Last week, the Trump administration announced it was pulling $400 million in grants and contracts from Columbia, accusing the school of failing to stop antisemitism on campus. As part of those cuts, the National Institutes of Health late Monday said it was cutting more than $250 million in funding, which included more than 400 grants.
X. Edward Guo, director of Columbia’s Bone Bioengineering Laboratory, posted a screenshot on X of an email he received notifying him that one of his NIH awards had been canceled. “We understand this may be shocking news,” the email reads.
The university was wracked last spring by large demonstrations by students calling for an end to Israeli military action in Gaza and a
“At this moment, faced with trouble on every side, we’ve got to press on,” Jeffries said to the crowd that included the Rev. Jesse Jackson, multiple members of Congress and others gathered for the commemoration.
Members of Congress joined with Bloody Sunday marchers to lead a march of several thousand people across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. They stopped to pray at the site where marchers were beaten in 1965.
“We gather here on the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday when our country is in chaos,” said U.S. Rep. Terri
recognition of Palestinians’ human rights and territorial claims. The university ultimately called in police to dismantle a protest encampment and end a student takeover of an administration building.
Khalil, 30, had been a spokesperson for the protesters. He hasn’t been charged with any crimes, but Leavitt said the administration had moved to deport him under a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act that gives the secretary of state the power to deport a noncitizen if the government “has reasonable ground to believe” the person’s presence could have “serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”
As of Tuesday, Khalil was being held at an immigration detention center in Louisiana.
Civil rights groups and Khalil’s attorneys say the government is unconstitutionally using its immigration-control powers to stop him from speaking out. A federal judge set a hearing for Wednesday and ordered the government not to deport him in the meantime.
Trump, a Republican, has suggested that some protesters support Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and abducting 251. Israel responded with bombardment and other military offensives that have left over 48,000 Palestinians dead in Hamas-ruled Gaza. Israel says more than 17,000 were militants.
Sewell of Alabama. Sewell, a Selma native, noted the number of voting restrictions introduced since the U.S. Supreme Court effectively abolished a key part of the Voting Rights Act that required jurisdictions with a history of racial discrimination to clear new voting laws with the Justice Department. Other speakers noted the Trump administration’s push to end diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and a rollback of equal opportunity executive orders that have been on the books since the 1960s.
In 1965, the Bloody Sunday marchers led by John Lewis and Hosea Williams walked in pairs across the Selma bridge headed toward Montgomery.
“We had steeled our nerves to a point where we were so determined that we were willing to confront. It
Trump heralded Khalil’s arrest as the first “of many to come,” vowing on social media to deport students the president described as engaging in “pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity.”
Immigration agents also tried to arrest another international student at Columbia, but they weren’t allowed into an apartment where she was, according to a union representing the student.
Khalil, who finished his requirements for a Columbia master’s degree in December, and protest leaders have said they are anti-war, not antisemitic. They note that some Jewish students and groups have joined the demonstrations. A Columbia disciplinary body recently told Khalil it was investigating whether he violated a new harassment policy by calling a school official “genocidal.”
Leavitt didn’t detail specific wrongdoing by Khalil. But she said he had organized protests that disrupted classes, harassed Jewish students and “distributed pro-Hamas propaganda, fliers with the logo of Hamas.”
Born in Syria, Khalil is a grandson of Palestinians who were forced to leave their homeland, his lawyers said in a legal filing. It didn’t address his citizenship but said his relatives have been displaced anew amid Syria’s civil war and are now in other countries.
Khalil is married to a U.S. citizen, who is expecting their first child.
“For everyone reading this, I urge you to see Mahmoud through my eyes as a loving husband and the future father to our baby,” his wife, who has not been publicly identified, wrote in a statement provided by his lawyers. “I need your help to bring Mahmoud home, so he is here beside me, holding my hand in the delivery room as we welcome our first child into this world.”
Demuth said it was always going to be an uphill battle for a Republican to win in the district. “While the House will return to a 67-67 tie after tonight, House Republican priorities remain unchanged: we will continue our effort to stop the fraud, protect Minnesotans from harmful tax increases, and work with our Democrat colleagues to pass a responsible and balanced budget,” Demuth said in a statement.
obscene” and said its presence was, “more significant at this very moment than it ever has been in this country.”
The far right celebrated the shift online, with conservative provocateur Charlie Kirk visiting the site to hail, “the end of this mass race hysteria in our country.” In Trump’s second term, Bowser has worked to avoid conflict and downplay any points of contention. She traveled to Mar-a-Lago in Florida to meet with Trump after the election and has publicly
Ken Martin, a Minnesotan who chairs both the Democratic National Committee and the state party organization, congratulated Gottfried for what he called a “crucial” victory for the party.
was past being courageous. We were determined, and we were indignant,” Mauldin recalled. He said the “country was not a democracy for Black folks” until voting rights. “And we’re still constantly fighting to make that a more concrete reality for ourselves.”
Kirk Carrington was just 13 on Bloody Sunday and was chased through the city by a man on a horse wielding a stick. “When we started marching,
Gottfried’s win comes on the heels of special election victories earlier this year in Virginia and Iowa, and it shows that Americans are already rejecting President Donald Trump, the DNC said in a statement.
emphasized their points of agreement. Trump recently revived a frequent campaign talking point about wanting a federal “takeover” of the nation’s capital, describing Washington as being riddled with crime, graffiti and homeless encampments.
Bowser has refused to comment on reports that the White House is preparing an executive order targeting Washington. She publicly said that the greatest threat to the so-called Home Rule autonomy was “some of
“Since November’s election, Democrats continue to fight and win in communities across the country,” Martin said.
the people in Congress.” Congressional Republicans have repeatedly threatened to interfere in city affairs in large and small ways. A measure currently before Congress, named the BOWSER Act, seeks to completely revoke the Home Rule Act of 1973, which grants the capital city limited autonomy. Associated Press journalists Nathan Ellgren contributed reporting.
we did not know the impact we would have in America,” he said.
Dr. Verdell Lett Dawson, who grew up in Selma, remembers a time when she was expected to lower her gaze if she passed a white person on the street to avoid making eye contact.
Dawson and Mauldin said they are concerned about the potential dismantling of the Department of Education and other changes to federal agencies. Support from the federal government “is how Black Americans have been able to get justice, to get some semblance of equality, because left to states’ rights, it is going to be the white majority that’s going to rule,” Dawson said. “That that’s a tragedy of 60 years later: what we are looking at now is a return to the 1950s,” Dawson said.
DOGE’s Scott Langmack is Chief Operating Officer of Kunkun, which is
Columbia Univ.
Congresswoman
Maxine Waters (D-CA)
Managing Member of TCC Asset Management LLC
DOGE’s Michael Mirski
Chief Operating Officer of Kunkun DOGE’s Scott Langmack
By April Ryan
“I assume there is some effort to sanction me…I will accept whatever the punishment is” says Democratic Texas Congressman Al Green. He was escorted out of the well of the House last night after disrupting President Donald Trump’s speech. However, Green acknowledged he accepts the punishment saying, “ I respect them but, I would do it again” as it is “a matter of conscience.” According to social media reports, Washington State
Republican Congressman Dan Newhouse is working on a resolution to censure Green. That resolution is reportedly supported by Republicans and could be voted on as early as today. It is expected to pass in the House. Republicans move to censure Al Green.
The typically softspoken Congressman Al Green told Black Press USA exclusively, “I don’t begrudge him [Speaker Mike Johnson] in any way for having me escorted off the floor.” Green also commented that the police officers who led him out of the room were “kind.” Last night Speaker Johnson asked Congressman Green to sit down while calling for decorum. Green did not comply with the demand as he stood directing his cane at President Trump
and yelled, “You don’t have a mandate to cut Medicare and you need to raise the cap on social security. “The longstanding Congressman spoke on the disruption at the speech while reflecting on being “incarcerated” with late civil rights icon John Lewis. The late Georgia Congressman John Lewis promoted peaceful agitation that is oftentimes uncomfortable. Green said of his protest last night, “If you get in the way, you break the rules, you have to be ready to suffer the consequences.” If the resolution passes, Green would be the only congressperson to be censured for disruptions during a Presidential joint session speech in recent years. For history, during Biden’s speeches, there were disruptions.
Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Beobart and Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green shouted at thenPresident Biden while he was delivering his address. And, South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson loudly interrupted a 2009 Obama State of the Union address with the words “you lie.” Congressman Green was the only person escorted out of the presidential address to the joint session last night. He admitted he was “speaking out of order.” Meanwhile, as this censure matter is working its way through the House, Congressman Al Green still plans to follow through on a promise to file articles of impeachment against President Trump. “This president is causing harm to society,” emphasized the federal
How Trump’s foreign aid and diplomatic cuts will make it harder for the US to wield soft power to maintain its friendships and win new ones
By Matthew Clary Senior Lecturer in Political Science, Auburn University
The Trump administration has proposed shuttering USAID and cutting some of the State Department’s critical diplomatic programs; it has also announced tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico and China. As scholar Borja Santos Porras has noted, these measures may lead to modest savings, however, the longterm damage to the reputation of the U.S. abroad will likely outweigh any such gains.
As an expert on how nations manage their reputations, particularly in terms of rebuilding diminished ones, I believe the recent foreign-aid cuts are undermining a critical foreign-policy tool that is often undervalued, if not outright ignored, within the Trump administration: soft power.
Soft power is the ability of nations, in this case the U.S., to use its appeal –and others’ affinity and often friendship toward it – to induce cooperation. In other words, it is a strategy to get others to do what the U.S. government wants them to do, but without coercion.
Since the end of World War II, it has been this soft power that has been the heart and soul of American foreign policy.
By Dwight Stirling Lecturer in Law, University of Southern California
The dismissal of Gen. Charles Q. Brown as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was startling, if not unexpected, at the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term.
Trump had appointed Brown to lead the Air Force in 2020, and in 2023, former President Joe Biden elevated him to the chairmanship. Both Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had signaled that Brown’s ouster was a key part of their overhaul of the Department of Defense, one of several firings of senior officials associated with the Biden administration.
To replace Brown, Trump has nominated Dan Caine, a retired Air Force general. The abrupt firing of a respected incumbent in favor of a replacement within Trump’s orbit has triggered concerns about politicizing the military.
The controversy has brought attention to the vital, yet not widely understood, role of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. What exactly does the chairman do? What powers does he or she have? How has the job changed over time? And what makes someone effective in the role?
The president’s principal military adviser
The chairman is the United States’ highest-ranking
How nations manage their reputations
The phrase soft power was coined by a professor at Harvard University, Joseph S. Nye Jr., in 1990. It refers to the ability of nations to influence other countries in pursuit of their interests without having to bully them into doing so.
The central idea is that others are likely to be compelled to partake in friendly behaviors, such as taking a more favorable trade stance or investing in your nation, when they understand your needs and have affinity toward you.
The core benefit of soft power lies in its cost to implement. It is lower-risk and lower-cost than hard power strategies, such as tariffs, sanctions or even the threat of military force. Hard power also requires the maintenance of a strong military to coerce or bully others through abrasive interactions and to constantly mitigate threats.
Soft power is a product of how others perceive the nation’s culture, including its internal and external economic, social and political values and policies. If others generally have affinity and respect for those characteristics, they are more likely to listen to you, to respect your positions and interests, and to follow your example. The goal is to develop a more sustainable, long-term relationship than one based on coercion and control.
military officer. A four-star general or admiral who reports directly to the president, the chairman presides over the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a council comprised of senior members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force and the National Guard.
The chairman’s job is to distill the collective wisdom of the council and then advise the president on the best use of the nation’s military force.
While outranking all other military personnel, the chairman possesses no command authority. An adviser rather than a decision-maker, the chairman helps the president understand the armed forces’ options and capabilities during military crises. Operating outside the chain of command, which runs from the president to the defense secretary to combatant commanders, the chairman’s power stems not from leading troops in battle, but from having the ear of the leader of the free world.
Created in 1949, the chairman position was designed to solve a quintessentially American problem. In a nation where civilian control over the military is a first principle, what is the best way for presidents to receive the considered wisdom of the military forces they command?
Since George Washington’s time, this problem has vexed Congress, the branch of government the Constitution designates “to make rules for … land and naval forces.”
If military officials
To [wield soft power],
the U.S. has since the 1960s used the distribution of foreign aid through USAID as central to the promotion of a positive image of itself to others. Over the past 60 years, USAID has worked to eradicate or combat smallpox, polio and malaria; it has worked to decrease infant and maternal mortality rates and contributed to the overall decrease of global rates of extreme poverty and food insecurity. Such actions, combined with the broader appeal of the U.S. economy and popular culture, have produced a world where the U.S. government frequently gets what it wants without having to resort to hard power. In contrast with a nation like China that relies much more on coercive economic relationships, the U.S. has been effective at maintaining an extensive network of friends with common values and interests. At this time, the Chinese approach is beginning to make inroads with some African and Asian nations, which, I argue, makes it even more critical for the U.S. to maintain its soft power presence.
Financial costs of reputation A 2017 study conducted by three professors at Drexel LeBow College of Business found that every spot a nation dropped on a ranking of global reputations produced a 2% decrease in export volume
have too much sway in the White House, the president can veer toward authoritarianism, seeing troops and tanks as the answer to matters better solved politically.
But if the officer corps’ voice is too weak, complex battlefield operations – and the strategic planning that precedes it – are likely to be botched, as happened in Vietnam.
Tension with the service secretaries
In its original form, the chairman position was little more than a first among equals. Devoid of a staff, the position’s day-to-day power was outstripped by the civilian secretaries heading each military branch, more firmly entrenched leaders who were heavily invested in the existing divisions.
From what had become a centuries-old bureaucratic turf war, the Army and Navy secretaries knew how to “divvy things up,” as a 1985 Senate report put it. Relentless infighting undermined the chairman’s ability to get all the players on the same page and could lead to a disaster like the the 1983 bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut by militants.
In an interview about the failures in the aftermath of the Beirut attack, Adm. William Crowe, the chairman at the time, said: “I could only operate through the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine component commanders, who stood between me and the forces in the field. Component
to that nation. They found that a move up the rankings produced an equally positive result. In the context of the U.S. trade relationship with a nation like Canada, they noted that this would amount to as much of a decrease as US$5 billion in exports for each spot in the rankings dropped. The tariff threat has produced a deterioration of Canadian perceptions of the U.S., with more than 1 in 4 viewing the U.S. as an “enemy” and 68% perceiving it less favorably after the threat of American tariffs against Canada. The financial costs to the U.S. are likely to be in the billions of dollars. Taking into account other trade partnerships under similar threats, the total costs of this strategy are likely to be substantial.
Limits of soft power
commanders reported to their own service chiefs … and could use this channel to outflank the unified commander.”
The GoldwaterNichols Act, passed in 1986, strengthened the chairman’s position significantly. The law said it aimed “to improve the military advice provided to the President” and more efficiently use military resources. The chairman received the coveted responsibility of personally advising the president and defense secretary on military matters. In practical terms, the chairman became the third-most important military figure, behind only the two officials he advised. For their part, the service secretaries were relegated to the less prestigious role of training and equipping their respective troops. Their determination to preserve an antiquated model of military administration made them less relevant in an era of “jointness” and unified commands.
The qualities of an effective chairman Immense in scale and scope, the chairman position by law must be held by a four-star officer with a significant amount of prior seasoning, including experience in one or more of the senior-most positions of the military. This requirement can be waived when it is in the “national interest” to do so, a provision Trump invoked when nominating Caine. Broad experience helps chairmen identify counterproductive gamesmanship.
Soft power has limitations as well. For example, during the buildup to the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, the U.S. worked extensively to win over global public support, particularly from France and Germany. Despite the strong affinity and partnership with those nations, the Bush administration found that soft power’s influence only goes so far.
In some cases, persuasion and affinity simply aren’t enough to overcome national security concerns. In these instances, the U.S. can still choose to act unilaterally using its hard power, like the Trump administration’s approach to trade. However, such actions often produce significant, longterm reputational damage.
This doesn’t imply that diplomatic options are lost.
Rather that some combination
February
Air Force
In the buildup to the Gulf War, the Air Force chief of staff publicly bragged about the superior effectiveness of air power. Army Gen. Colin Powell, the chairman at the time, responded by advising Defense Secretary Dick Cheney to immediately fire the Air Force chief. Keen to such maneuvers, Powell wanted to send a message that the days of inter-service rivalries and airing of grievances were over: Only a unified mindset would be tolerated. Frank, apolitical guidance is also important. The chairman’s four-year term is intentionally staggered against the president’s term so that a single chairman advises two presidents. Adm. Mike Mullen was appointed by President George W. Bush and then worked under President Barack Obama for nearly three years. Gen. Joseph Dunford, an Obama
of soft and hard power, or what Nye coined as “smart” power, makes diplomacy and engagement possible in even the most difficult cases. In American foreign policy, smart power entails proactively preventing threats and challenges to U.S. interests and security. This is done through diplomatic engagement, development projects through programs like USAID and the State Department, and collaboration with friends and allies.
The key for the U.S., I argue, is to use soft power when it can and hard power only when it must. It will be this balance that will ensure the U.S. maintains its extensive network of allies and partners. Such alliances have been the backbone of U.S. foreign policy and have distinguished the U.S. from other past global superpowers. Matthew Clary is affiliated with the American Political Science Association (APSA), the International Studies Association (ISA), the Southern Political Science Association (SPSA), the College Board, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), and serves as Secretary to the Board of Directors for the Southern Regional Model United Nations (SRMUN), Inc. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.
appointee, counseled Trump at the start of his first term. Trump broke from this tradition by dismissing Brown less than two years into the term to which President Joe Biden appointed him. He selected Caine, a general whom Trump said told him the Islamic State group could be “totally finished in one week.” The new chairman’s challenge will be to balance his independent judgment against telling the president what he wants to hear. Dwight Stirling does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.
lawmaker who filed articles of impeachment against Trump during his first term in offi
Wikimedia Commons / The United States Congress
Congressman Al Green (D-TX 9th Disrtict)
Soft power is lower-risk and lower-cost than hard power strategies.
Retired Lt. Gen. Dan Caine has been named as President Donald Trump’s pick for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. U.S. Air Force via AP
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs advises the president on use of America’s military power
Black Press USA Washington Bureau Chief
Military.com In
2025,
Gen. Charles Q. Brown, was fired as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by President Donald Trump.
Timberwolves top Spurs 141-124 for 5th straight win on 25-point night for Anthony Edwards
By Dave Campbell AP Sports Writer
Anthony Edwards scored 25 points on 10-for-15 shooting to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves past the San Antonio Spurs 141-124 on Sunday night for their fifth consecutive victory and highest score this season.
Naz Reid had 20 points and seven rebounds and Julius Randle added 14 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for the Timberwolves, who never trailed on their way to a season-best eight games above the .500 mark (37-29).
Jaden McDaniels added 16 points, one of eight players for Minnesota scoring in double digits including Rudy Gobert (16 points and eight rebounds in 20 minutes) in his return from injury. The Timberwolves matched their season high with 38 assists and went 21 for 42 from 3-point range, one short of their season best for makes.
De’Aaron Fox scored 22 points on 8-for-12 shooting and Stephon Castle added 20 points for the Spurs (26-36), who fell to 3-7 since star center Victor Wembanyama was ruled out for the remainder of the season with a blood clot in his shoulder.
Takeaways Spurs: Castle, who was drafted fourth overall last year from two-time national champion Connecticut, has been shining off the bench down the stretch of his rookie season. He’s second in points, third in steals and fourth in assists among first-year players in the NBA this season.
teams. Nine of their last 16 games are against losing teams.
Key moment Donte DiVincenzo
found Jaylen Clark for a 3-pointer on the wing to finish a break for a 109-94 lead at the buzzer to cap a 41-point third quarter that matched Minnesota’s third-highest
By Doug Ferguson AP Golf Writer
Tiger Woods had a less invasive surgery for a ruptured Achilles tendon on Tuesday, which will keep him out of the Masters and leaves in question whether he can play in any other major championship the rest of the year.
Woods posted the development on his social media accounts without saying how long he expected to be out or any other details except that the surgery went well.
“As I began to ramp up my own training and practice at home, I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured,” Woods said.
He said he had a minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon that the doctor said went smoothly. Such surgeries
involve smaller incisions, and the recovery time is quicker. But most recoveries take at least a month before someone can even put weight on their foot.
Two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer had a tear in his Achilles tendon last year that kept him out for three months.
Dr. Charlton Stucken of the Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach performed the surgery and said in the post, “The surgery went smoothly, and we expect a full recovery.”
The Masters is April 10-13.
Woods set the tournament record last year by making the cut for the 24th time in a row. He missed the cut in the other three majors in 2024. The British Open in July was the last time he played against top competition. He played with his son in the 36-hole PNC Championship in December.
Woods also has played his TGL indoor circuit, the 18hole Seminole Pro-Member last week and a round with President Donald Trump a month ago.
Woods entered the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines until withdrawing because he was still processing the Feb. 4 death of his mother, Kultida. Woods had a sixth back surgery last September. He had issues with the Achilles tendon before, injuring the left one from hitting a shot at the Masters with an awkward stance. He also cited the left Achilles tendon in withdrawing from The Players Championship in 2011, when he was out for two months.
Woods badly damaged his right leg and ankle in a February 2021 car crash outside Los Angeles. AP golf: https:// apnews.com/hub/golf
AP Photo/Abbie Parr Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) passes over San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4) and center Bismack Biyombo (18) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, March 9, 2025, in Minneapolis.
AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File
Tiger Woods walks on the first hole during the first round of the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on Thursday, April 6, 2023, in Augusta, Ga.
Mary McLeod Bethune: The Emergency of Now!
By Dr. Mahmoud El-Kati
1/31/2022
Once again in our long and noble struggle, Martin Luther King’s dictum “The Urgency of Now!” is upon us. This reckoning with America’s latest racial nightmare, “The Souls of Black Folk” must emerge to save America from itself. In the midst of the current challenges to our steadfast and evolving progress towards moral clarity and a more just society, we need resources beyond the conventional or visible ones. We need a special kind of resource to arrest the rising tide and fanatical cries to “Make America Great Again.” We, above all people in America, know exactly what this sinister slogan means. In short, in some form, it means the resurgence of the doctrine of “White supremacy.” This has happened before. After the Civil War and the failure of the Reconstruction period. The Republican party, the victors of the Civil War abandoned nearly four million ex-enslaved people. The political elite and business leaders of America allowed African Americans to be re-enslaved under the banner of segregation, under the leadership of White supremacists, many who were law makers in the United States Congress. Then Republicans sold Black people out to a reign of terror, which lasted 50 years until execution of Emmert Till.
Today, we still live under the aftermath of enslavement and a failed Reconstruction. Both our enslavement and Jim Crow were systems committed to dehumanizing Black people.
We are now 157 years removed from our formal enslavement. We are now some 61 years removed from legal segregation, since the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which banned public discrimination against Black
people in public spaces, largely focusing on the blatant and visible forms of racism by which we mean White supremacy. We should drop from our verbal usage or vocabulary the mild terms referring to racism such as prejudice, bigotry, bias and go for the main vein, which feeds other veins and that is the doctrine of White supremacy. Let us boldly and rightly point to the source of the “race problem” or the “Colored question,” and call out what has become the real practicing religion of too many Americans who call themselves white, with religious fervor. The wise persons among us believe that “Truth Crushed to Earth, will Rise Again.” Our current challenge
is to stand forth and face the last desperate wave of violent, and all-consuming rage of the doctrine of White supremacy. This must be done, not only for the salvation of Black Americans, but in the name of the human family. The fortuitous turns of history have placed Black people, as a people, in the “proverbial belly of the whale.” Our destiny is to “speak loud, tell the truth, shame the devil and get free!” I think that Black
One of the great historical documents of our times
the greatness of America. Lest we forget that greatness, does not automatically mean good. The dropping of bombs on Japanese cities was awesomely great, but was not good. Now the main message: Mary McLeod Bethune ranks among the most creative and thoughtful leaders that the Black American has produced. It is my belief that her time has come. She left a living legacy of her life’s work such as Bethune-Cookman
My Last Will and Testament
As life drew to a close, America’s First Negro Lady prepared for her people a legacy of love
From the Publishers of Ebony Magazine
Realizing death was near, Mary McLeod Bethune wrote this article exclusively for EBONY less than a year before she died. A woman of heroic stature, Mrs. Bethune felt strongly about many things and she wanted to put them down on paper before her death. EBONY cooperated with her on this project. The end she foresaw came before our scheduled date of publication. After a full day’s work, she collapsed and died of a heart attack on May 18, 1955. A woman of outstanding achievements, Mrs. Bethune was founder and president emeritus of Bethune-Cookman College, Daytona Beach, Fla., founder of the National Council of Negro Women, and special adviser to Presidents Roosevelt and Truman. Her last literary will and testament, we believe, will become one of the great historical documents of our times.
Reprinted from the August, 1955 issue of EBONY magazine
JOHNSON PUBLISHING COMPANY, INC. - CHICAGO • NEW YORK • LOS ANGELES
Insight News Editor’s Note: At the suggestion of Griot Dr. Mahmoud El-Kati, readers are encouraged to save and frame this document for prominent display in the home, church, office and community center.
Americans in the generality underate themselves both in terms of their will to struggle and their leadership qualities which the heavens have granted this people. We hear all too often, people who call themselves “white,” brag endlessly about
University (118 years-old) and the National Council of Negro Women (87 years-old). These two institutions have inspired and sharpened the lives of many thousands of Black women and has served our communities across the world. Let’s not forget
that the most important things that institutions do - They make human behavior predictable! I am thoroughly convinced that in these turbulent times the life, work, courage and boundless wisdom of Dr. Bethune is an untapped resource that we desperately need. These characteristics are intangible, yet powerful, and can be used as a weapon in our struggle for freedom.
Curiously enough in the midst of America’s ongoing moral dilemma, African Americans are talking to one another on a scale, as never before. They are looking up with pride and not talking down to one another. This makes for a time to call on Mary McLeod
Bethune’s Last Will and Testament to her beloved people.
In effect, it is a holy script that tells us who we are, and how we rise above the racial madness.
Her Testament is akin to Martin Luther King’s Letter from the Birmingham Jail, which some religious authorities suggest that his Letter should be added to St. Paul’s New Testament, because it belongs there!
Mrs. Bethune’s Testament is a transcendent message to us. It begins with love, of course, because in this society that is who we are. The Testament, in such
a time as this is a resource.
Bethune’s Testament is humane, conciliatory, and yet proud. In effect, it requests that Black people remain the adults, that we are, in the societal room called America, full with ignorant, immature and disingenuous adolescents.
In efforts to raise our collective consciousness, every home, school and Black institution should have Dr. Bethune’s Last Will and Testament on their wall for everyone to read and discuss. Thus, it is printed in this issue of Insight News and is sponsored by Solidarity - Twin Cities, the Stairstep Foundation, the Black Women’s Wealth Alliance and Insight News. We are hereby asking Black households, businesses, social service agencies and educational institutions, to take this Testament and frame it and hang it on your walls so that our children can learn. Put this in your church, business and social service bulletin boards. Let this Testament not simply be a keepsake, but a minor monument and working document. The word “monument” from the Greek language means, “The thing that causes one to remember.” Mary McLeod Bethune would be proud of this collaborative effort - demonstrating unity.
5 ways schools have shifted in 5 years since COVID-19
By Rachel Besharat
Mann
Assistant Professor in Education Studies, Wesleyan University and Gravity Goldberg
Visiting Assistant Professor in Education Studies, Wesleyan University
The U.S. educational landscape has been drastically transformed since the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered school campuses five years ago.
Access to highquality teachers and curriculum developed by teachers is shrinking, for example. Likewise, there has been a loss of emotional support for students and a decline in the school use of technology and social media.
As education scholars focused on literacy practices in schools, here are five ways we believe the COVID-19 pandemic – and the rapid shift to remote learning and back –has transformed education:
1. Teachers are leaving, and those staying are stressed
At the start of the 2024-2025 school year, 82% of U.S. public schools had teaching vacancies.
Schools have tried to adapt by expanding class sizes and hiring substitute teachers. They have also increased use of video conferencing to Zoom teachers into classrooms.
Teacher retention has been a problem for at least a decade. But after the pandemic, there was an increase in the number of teachers who considered leaving the profession earlier than expected.
When teachers leave, often in the middle of the school year, it can require their colleagues to step in and cover extra classes. This means teachers who stay are overworked and possibly not teaching in their area of certification.
This, in turn, leads to burnout. It also increases the likelihood that students will not
have highly qualified teachers in some hard-to-fill positions like physical science and English.
2. Increase in scripted curriculum
As of fall 2024, 40 states and Washington had passed science of reading laws, which mandate evidence-based reading instruction rooted in phonics and other foundational skills.
While the laws don’t necessarily lead to scripted curriculum, most states have chosen to mandate reading programs that require teachers to adhere to strict pacing. They also instruct teachers not to deviate from the teachers’ manual.
Many of these reading programs came under scrutiny by curricular evaluators from New York University in 2022. They found the most common elementary reading programs were culturally destructive or culturally insufficient – meaning they reinforce stereotypes and portray people of color in inferior and destructive ways that reinforce stereotypes.
This leaves teachers to try to navigate the mandated curriculum alongside the needs of their students, many of whom are culturally and linguistically diverse. They either have to ignore the mandated script or ignore their students. Neither method allows teachers to be effective.
When teachers are positioned as implementers of curriculum instead of professionals who can be trusted to make decisions, it can lead to student disengagement and a lack of student responsiveness.
This form of deprofessionalization is a leading cause of teacher shortages. Teachers are most effective, research shows, when they feel a sense of agency, something that is undermined by scripted teaching.
3. Improvements in teen mental health, but there’s more to do
Many of the narratives surrounding adolescent mental health, particularly since the pandemic,
paint a doomscape of mindless social media use and isolation. However, data published in 2024 shows improvements in teen reports of persistent sadness and hopelessness. Though the trend is promising in terms of mental health, in-school incidences of violence and bullying rose in 2021-22, and many teens report feeling unsafe at school. Other reports have shown an increase in feelings of loneliness and isolation among teens since the pandemic.
4. Crackdown on students’ technology use in schools COVID-19 prompted schools to make an abrupt switch to educational technology, and many schools have kept many of these policies in place. For example, Google Classroom and other learning management systems are commonly used in many schools, particularly in middle school and high school. These platforms can help parents engage with their children’s coursework. That facilitates conversations and parental awareness. But this reliance on screens has also come under fire for privacy issues – the sharing of personal information and sensitive photos – and increasing screen time. And with academia’s
use of technology on the rise, cellphone usage has also increased among U.S. teens, garnering support for school cellphone bans.
But banning these devices in schools may not help teens, as smartphone use is nearly universal in the U.S. Teens need support from educators to support them as they learn to navigate the complex digital world safely, efficiently and with balance. In light of data surrounding adolescent mental health and online isolation –and the potential for connection through digital spaces – it’s also important that teens are aware of positive support networks that are available online.
Though these spaces can provide social supports, it is important for teens to understand the strengths and limitations of technology and receive authentic guidance from adults that a technology ban may prohibit.
5. Students and adults need social emotional support Students returned to in-person schooling with a mix of skill levels and with a variety of social and emotional needs.
Social and emotional learning includes selfawareness, self-management, social awareness, relational skills and decision-making.
These skills are vital for academic success and social relationships.
Teachers reported higher student needs for social and emotional learning after they returned to in-person instruction.
While some of this social and emotional teaching came under fire from lawmakers and parents, this was due to confusion about what it actually entailed. These skills do not constitute a set of values or beliefs that parents may not agree with. Rather, they allow students to self-regulate and navigate social situations by explicitly teaching students about feelings and behaviors.
One area where students may need support is with cognitive flexibility, or the ability to adapt to current situations and keep an open mind. Classroom instruction that engages students in varied tasks and authentic teaching strategies rooted in real-life scenarios can strengthen this ability in students.
Besides allowing students to be engaged members of a school community, cognitive flexibility is important because it supports the skill development that is part of many state English language arts and social studies standards.
Social and emotional learning and cognitive
flexibility are key components that allow students to learn.
Due to vague or confusing state policies, many schools have stopped teaching social and emotional learning skills, or minimized their use.
This, coupled with teacher stress and burnout, means that both adults and children in schools are often not getting their social and emotional needs met.
Message of mistrust
While we described five shifts since the start of the pandemic, the overall trend in K-12 schools is one of mistrust.
We feel that the message – from districts, state legislators and parents – is that teachers cannot be trusted to make choices.
This represents a massive shift. During the initial phase of the COVID-19 lockdown, teachers were revered and thanked for their service.
We believe in teacher autonomy and professionalism, and we hope this list can help Americans reflect on the direction of the past five years. If society wants a different outcome in the next five years, it starts with trust. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.
Carl Van Vechten
Portrait of Mary McLeod Bethune, 1949. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division, Van Vechten Collection, Washington, D.C.
Trailer Park Prince
By W.D. Foster-Graham Book Review Editor
TRAILER PARK PRINCE
By Andre L. Bradley
As Black authors, poets, and playwrights, we cover the entire diaspora of genres. From Nikki Giovanni, Lorraine Hansberry, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Samuel Delany, Brenda Jackson, James Baldwin, Octavia Butler, T. Aaron Cisco, Alice Walker, Eric Jerome Dickey, and so many others, we share our unique gifts and voices.
Having the gift of imagination, we also combine genres to make a compelling read. Such is the case with Andre Bradley’s Trailer Park Prince.
The story begins in the Gray Flats trailer park in Toombs County, Georgia, where ten years earlier a rift in the firmament created a portal between the planet Kayda and Earth. Thousands of refugees from the Hunt Wars on Kayda were pulled through the portal to Earth, including King Rosh, his brother Tobin, and his twin sons, Prince Jormon (the heir apparent) and Prince Noan. Once through, the portal closed.
Now teenagers, Jormon and Noan’s relationship is complicated, both within the Kaydan community in Gray Flats and outside it. Because of a superstition about twins based upon a conflict generations ago, Noan was condemned to die had his mother the queen not interceded, aided by Tobin.
Saint Paul Public Library (SPPL) and Saint Paul Parks and Recreation have launched the Rondo-Frogtown Loop (The Loop), a new initiative that provides youth ages 10-18 free after-school transportation to four recreation centers, Rondo Community Library, and the Black Youth Healing Arts Center to attend free educational, recreational, and culturally responsive programming in the Rondo and Frogtown neighborhoods.
“The Loop is about more than transportation – it offers a network of opportunities for youth to connect with enriching activities, mentors, and resources that reflect their identities, cultures, and experiences,” said Mayor Melvin Carter. “When young people participate in activities they resonate with, they strengthen their sense of belonging and truly see their place within our community.”
Made possible by a $1.5 million After-School Community Learning Grant from the Minnesota Department of Education, The Loop operates with the help of a 15-passenger van that runs between 3-8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays across Frogtown Community Center, Oxford Community Center/Jimmy Lee Recreation Center, Martin Luther King Recreation Center, Rondo Community Library, and West Minnehaha Recreation Center, as well as Black Youth Healing Arts Center. Pick up and drop-
off at select housing sites in the Rondo and Frogtown
neighborhoods is also available.
“The Loop is a game-changer for youth in our city,” said Andy Rodriguez, Director of Saint Paul Parks and Recreation. “Through conversations with families, we’ve heard again and again that transportation is a major hurdle, and it’s limiting young people to just one program site instead of exploring all the amazing opportunities available at libraries and recreation centers. This partnership grew out of those discussions and helps youth connect with programs that match their passions and interests.” In addition to supporting the broad range of programs and activities SPPL and Parks and Rec already offer youth—such as afterschool sports, homework help, and teen-led maker spaces—this grant funding expands access to culturallyaffirming programming for Rondo and Frogtown youth through supporting contracts with trusted community partners like the Network for the Development of Children of African Descent’s Sankofa program and Irreducible Grace Foundation’s Black Youth Healing Arts Center.
“With this investment, we are meeting Saint Paul families and youth where they are with what they need to connect and thrive, and we’re investing in Saint Paul organizations and leaders of color who are doing incredible work with our young people,” said Maureen Hartman, SPPL director.
Operating with a hop-on, hop-off model, The Loop gives young people the flexibility to explore different activities that support youth development throughout the week.
“One day an individual might choose to play basketball at Jimmy Lee Recreation Center and the next day they will hop on The Loop van to attend a poetry lab at Black Youth Healing Arts Center before heading to Createch at Rondo Community Library,” explained Kali Freeman, Community Services Manager for The Loop. “It is meant to provide flexibility and empowerment for young people within a structured and safe program model.”
Get Started Today The Loop is already up and running. Permission slips to ride the RondoFrogtown Loop are required. Any young person ages 10-18 can get started today by visiting stpaul.gov/the-loop to explore activities, find the van schedule, and download the permission slip.
The Loop is funded with a grant from the Minnesota Department of Education using state funding, AfterSchool Community Learning Programs. The contents of this program do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education or the Minnesota Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the federal or state government.
Now, he is relegated to the status of shadow twin, an outsider among his own people, while Jormon’s messes are cleaned up by him and others. Outside the community, the town has shown its racist hostility to Kaydans. The burning crosses are one example. In integrating Toombs County High School, for another example, the mentality of the humans is reminiscent of the events that took place at Little Rock Central High School in 1957. In the midst of the diplomatic situation King Rosh is navigating, and the unwelcoming environment, Jormon has burgeoning feelings for Dirk, a Kaydan who was raised by humans. Though the Kaydans possess certain powers, humans have found a way to block them, suggesting that a traitor is in their midst. Events at some point spiral into violence, tough choices, and a battle for their lives and their very existence. What will be the outcome?
Like Alfred Hitchcock did in his movies, Bradley puts the reader through it. His worldbuilding is amazing, as we see through the princes, Tobin, Taavi, Dirk, and Phae. The powers they wield are awesome, yet they are rendered useless when their own magic weapons are used against them by humans. The love between Jormon and his boyfriend Dirk is real, but can it stand up to the tests as they face their truths? Can Noan, who wants to fit in somewhere, fully trust Sean, a human who is evasive about his family? And who is betraying the Kaydan people?
Bradley gives us all in his novel: science fiction, fantasy, romance, thriller, and a powerful message for social justice. Trailer Park Prince is available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Tiny Ghost Press. Tough questions, tough choices, and at the end of the day, hope. Thank you, Andre, for invoking thought.
Insight 2 Health
Measles cases are still rising in Texas: Here’s
what you should know about the
By Devi Shastri AP Health Writer
Measles outbreaks in West Texas and New Mexico are now up to more than 250 cases, and two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes.
Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that’s airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It is preventable through vaccines, and has been considered eliminated from the U.S. since 2000.
Here’s what you need to know about measles in the U.S.
How many measles cases are there in Texas and New Mexico?
Texas state health
o
fficials said Tuesday there were 25 new cases of measles since the end of last week, bringing Texas’ total to 223. Twenty-nine people in Texas are hospitalized.
New Mexico health
officials announced three new cases Tuesday, bringing the state’s total to 33. The outbreak has spread from Lea County, which neighbors the West Texas communities at the epicenter of the outbreak, to include one case in Eddy County.
Oklahoma’s state health department reported two probable cases of measles Tuesday, saying they are “associated” with the West Texas and New Mexico outbreaks.
A school-age child died of measles in Texas last
contagious virus
month, and New Mexico reported its first measles-related death in an adult last week. Where else is measles showing up in the U.S.?
Measles cases have been reported in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an outbreak as three or more related cases — and there have been three clusters that qualified as outbreaks in 2025. In the U.S., cases and outbreaks are generally traced to
someone who caught the disease abroad. It can then spread, especially in communities with low vaccination rates.
Do you need an MMR booster?
The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old. People at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago may want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with an outbreak, said
Scott Weaver with the Global Virus Network, an international coalition. Those may include family members living with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions. Adults with “presumptive evidence of immunity” generally don’t need measles shots now, the CDC said. Criteria include written documentation of adequate vaccination earlier in life, lab confirmation of past infection or being born before 1957, when most people were likely to be infected naturally.
A doctor can order a lab test called an MMR titer to check your levels of measles antibodies, but health experts don’t always recommend this
route and insurance coverage can vary.
Getting another MMR shot is harmless if there are concerns about waning immunity, the CDC says.
People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in the 1960s don’t need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective measles vaccine made from “killed” virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said. That also includes people who don’t know which type they got. What are the symptoms of measles?
Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body,
causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.
How can you treat measles?
There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.
Why do vaccination rates matter?
In communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — diseases like measles have a harder time spreading through communities. This is called “herd immunity.” But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots. The U.S. saw a rise in measles cases in 2024, including an outbreak in Chicago that sickened more than 60. Five years earlier, measles cases were the worst in almost three decades in 2019.
AP Science Writer Laura Ungar contributed to this report.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
