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EGACY Yesterday. Today. Tomorrow.

WEDNESDAYS • Feb. 10, 2016

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INSIDE

The right to work and right to swear - 2 When grandparents decide to get high - 5 NN woman campaigning against hate- 8 Hallowed grounds of black history - 17

Richmond & Hampton Roads

A Black History Month reflection on black barbershops

LEGACYNEWSPAPER.COM • FREE

Police Chief Alfred Durham demonstrates the body-worn cameras Richmond Police Department officers are wearing.

The city is currently using two TASER versions of body-worn cameras - Axon Flex (worn on eyeglass frames) and Axon Body 2 (worn in the center of the chest.) PHOTOS: RPD

RPD rolls out body cameras CT - The Richmond Police Department will equip 40 officers with body cameras by Feb. 14 as part of a pilot program the to “defuse potentially dangerous situations and improve accountability.”

The city acquired the body cameras in a $340,000 contract. The first 20 cameras were issued to officers on Feb. 2 and the remaining 20 will be handed out this week. The department’s goal is to have 200 cameras deployed by May. The cameras will be worn on glasses, the lapel or mounted on the chest.

Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham said he believes in transparency and the body worn cameras will help with that.

“I think they (body cameras) are important,” Durham said. “The cameras benefit society. People want the truth, people want to know now.”

Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones said he hopes they will give the city an edge in police accountability.

“We are all aware of the discussions that have been taking place around the country about police brutality and excessive force. And we’re also aware of challenges that many cities have faced,” Jones said in published reports.

Durham said equipping officers with the cameras will give police a better record of what happens during an incident, whether it’s a traffic stop or a violent confrontation. He said this will make the department’s work more transparent and it can hold its officers accountable.

“I’m so excited and my officers are excited we’re about to deploy these cameras,” Durham said. “We get to tell outside of the story and that’s so important.”

Durham said officers must tell a citizen they are recording, a measure the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) made sure was included in the new policy. According to an ACLU report, an officer can record citizens if they are in public.

However, if an officer enters a person’s home, or private property, the ACLU report said a person can ask the officer to stop filming.

Durham said the cameras will roll continuously once an officer is dispatched to a call. At the end of each officer’s shift, the video will be uploaded and held for 90 days.

The only exception to this is if the video is considered part of evidence, in which case it is held until the judicial process is over. During that 90 day period, Durham said citizens can request to see the footage.

“If there is a complaint, the

complainant can come down right then and there and we will sit down and review the video,” Durham said.

Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton praised Richmond for implementing the new policy in a statement.

“I was heartened to see Richmond put a pilot program into action this week to equip police officers with body cameras, which will improve transparency and help strengthen trust between law enforcement and the local community,” Clinton said.

She added that she would work to implement such policies nationwide were she elected president.

“Body cameras are by no means a panacea for the challenges we face in our criminal justice system, but they will help to increase accountability and transparency on both sides of the lens,” Clinton said.

2 • Feb. 10, 2016

The LEGACY

News

Right-to-work measure headed for Virginia ballot RICHMOND — The House and Senate passed resolutions last week that will let voters decide whether the state’s right-to-work laws should be enshrined in the Virginia Constitution.

The Republican-backed measures passed both chambers without a single Democratic vote, clearing the last major hurdle in the two-year process to get on the ballot.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) will not have an opportunity to weigh in on the measures, which, as resolutions, are not sent to his desk.

House and Senate officials said they expect the proposed constitutional amendment to be on the November ballot — over the objections of

some registrars concerned that ballot questions in 2016 will slow down voting during a high-turnout presidential election year.

In the Senate, the measure prompted a heated argument that highlighted the GOP’s distrust of Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D). Herring has been a hero to liberal Democrats and a flash point for the GOP since he declined to defend the state’s ban on same-sex marriage shortly after taking office in January 2014. He later extended in-state tuition to certain illegal immigrants and took action on abortion clinics and guns, further inflaming Republicans.

Democrats said there is no

Decriminalizing public profanity Did you know that ‘cussing’, the use of profanity, in public could cost you a $250 fine? A 1950 Virginia law classifies it as a Class 4 misdemeanor, akin to public intoxication and while some lawmakers have been working to overturn the law, they haven’t been successful for several years.

The ACLU of Virginia is now lending its support to help decriminalize public profanity, asking a House of Delegates committee to approve a bill meant to do just that.

In a letter to the House Courts of Justice Committee, ACLU-VA Executive Director Claire Guthrie Gastañaga said concerns expressed about the implications of HB 893, sponsored by Del. Michael Webert (R-Marshall), on the ability of police to respond when needed to disorderly conduct are unfounded. “Fighting words” or speech meant to incite a riot are addressed in other statutes that can be used to prosecute disorderly conduct or use of abusive language against another person.

HB 893 does no more than delete unconstitutional language covering the use of profanity to express

viewpoints.

“Profane language, as the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed long ago, remains protected by the First Amendment, however, because it reflects personal viewpoints and is not associated with prohibited conduct,” Gastañaga’s letter states.

“It would be hard to argue this is not a clearly established constitutional right” that gives rise to a claim for money damages against any officer who tries to enforce it.

A Courts of Justice subcommittee voted to recommend tabling the decriminalization bill on Thursday but the full committee can still bring the bill back for a vote when it meets this week.

Democrat Mark Herring, left, and Republican Mark Obenshain. need to amend the Constitution because state law has a right-towork statute, which bans making union membership a condition of employment.

But the sponsor of the Senate legislation, Sen. Mark D. Obenshain (R-Rockingham), argued that future general assemblies and the current attorney general could not be trusted to support the right-to-work law that has been on Virginia’s books for decades. Obenshain, who narrowly lost the 2013 race for attorney general to Herring, noted that Herring had filed a brief on behalf of teachers’ unions in a California right-to-work case.

Other Republicans made a broader case against Herring based on his actions in other areas, including same-sex marriage and gun policy.

“We have an unprecedented activist right down the hill in that building,” said Sen. Thomas A. Garrett Jr. (R-Buckingham). “That gentleman took an oath to uphold the laws of Virginia and has at every turn worked to undermine the laws of Virginia.”

Herring’s spokesman, Michael Kelly, said the attorney general’s actions have always been consistent

with the law.

“Attorney General Herring [has] been absolutely right on the law with marriage equality, in-state tuition for DREAMers, and enforcement of Virginia’s concealed handgun laws, and no one is even challenging Virginia’s right-to-work laws,” Kelly said in an email. “Everything he has done has been firmly grounded in the law, affirmed by courts and other authorities, and is in line with where Virginians are on the issues.”

On same-sex marriage, for instance, Herring has said he was not ignoring Virginia law but recognizing that it no longer conformed with a higher authority — the U.S. Constitution, given signals the Supreme Court had sent six months earlier with rulings in two same-sex marriage cases. The court explicitly legalized gay marriage in June 2015.

In December, Herring infuriated gun rights Republicans by severing reciprocity with 25 states whose concealed-carry policies were looser than Virginia’s. A deal struck by McAuliffe and GOP leaders last week would undo that, but Republicans

(continued on page 4)

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Feb. 10, 2016 • 3

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The LEGACY

(from page 2) remain irked at Herring.

Herring said he was simply enforcing the state’s concealed-carry law, which recognizes concealedcarry permits only from states with standards on par with Virginia’s — something a long line of Republican predecessors failed to do.

“It appears Mr. Herring gets criticized when he follows the law, and he gets criticized when he doesn’t,” said Sen. Richard L. Saslaw (D-Fairfax).

The debate was more muted in the House, where the legislation was sponsored by Del. Richard P. “Dickie” Bell (R-Staunton). The House still must pass enabling legislation to put the matter on the ballot, but that is considered a formality. A vote is expected Wednesday.

Under questioning from House Minority Leader David J. Toscano (D-Charlottesville), Bell said he was not aware of any challenges to the law but maintained that amending the constitution would be a “proactive” step to head off future opposition.

SBE changes voting rules for RPV

David Toscano “The right to work — just like the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — is fundamental, and it deserves constitutional protection,” Bell said.

Toscano noted that union membership represents 5.4 percent of the state workforce and is falling.

He invoked James Madison’s warning that the constitution only be changed on “great and extraordinary occasions.”

“We don’t change the constitution willy-nilly in the commonwealth,” Toscano said.

WaPo

The State Board of Elections voted 2-0 at their special meeting last week to approve the Republican Party of Virginia’s request to rescind their statement of affiliation requirement for the March 1 presidential primary. This was despite objections from groups such as the ACLU of Virginia.

With the vote, effective immediately, local general registrars are directed to not include statements of affiliation with absentee ballots sent by mail for the primary.

In addition, statements of affiliation will not be required or offered to any in-person absentee voters in the primary.

“With the conversation about the statement of affiliation behind us, we can fully turn our attention to the pressing matter at hand: the March 1 GOP Primary,” said RPV Chairman John Whitbeck. “RPV is pleased that the State Board of Elections voted to rescind the statement of affiliation and we look forward to record turnout and tremendous enthusiasm for our candidates come Super Tuesday.”

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While several groups and individuals originally opposed the statement of affiliation because it required voters in the Republican Party to pledge their affiliation with the Republican Party, whether they were Republican or not. The ACLU opposed rescinding the statement of affiliation because it changes election requirements after voting had begun.

“Election requirements must be established and implemented fairly and uniformly for all voters,” noted the ACLU in a press release.

“Whether it’s a pilot project being proposed or a change in requirements in the middle of the election, voters have a constitutional right to experience the election process uniformly and equally. If there is an affirmation requirement, it must be equally applicable to all voters regardless of when they vote (early or late in the process).”

In seeking to overturn the statement of affiliation, the RPV noted that the original statement language was lost in changes implemented by the Democrat-led SBE.

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Feb. 10, 2016 • 5

Grandparents getting high on opiods and heroin is a disturbing trend in Va.

and enforcement, as well as legislative solutions, prevention, and education,” said Herring. “In the last year and a half we have worked with our local and federal partners to prosecute than •28105 cases against 409 E. Main St. #4 more (mailing) 1/2 E. Cla dealers and traffickers involving Richmond, VA 23219 more than 95 kilograms of heroin 804-644-1550 (office) • 1-800-783-806 with an estimated street value of ads@legacynewspaper.com more than $19 million. That’s about daily doses.

Ad238,500 Size: 7.15 inches (1 column(s) X 7.15 inche “We have also launched a number 1 Issue - $100.10 of prevention and education Rate: $17 per column inch initiatives to make sure everyone— Discounted rate: $14 per column young people, parents, adults, inch even seniors—understand just how Next run date: Feb. 10 dangerous these drugs can be.”

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STAFF It’s a sad state of affairs when grandma and grandpa are high on drugs. But that is the growing trend across Virginia, according to state numbers.

While many assume that addition and overdose centers on young people, the problem is beginning to have a very particular and dramatic impact on older Americans - one that largely begins in their medicine cabinets. It often starts with getting a prescription for a standard medical problem related to pain management.

In 2013, more than 12,000 baby boomers died of accidental drug overdoses - more than the number that died in car accidents.

According to preliminary numbers from the Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, through September 2015, 120 Virginians age 45-54 died of a heroin or prescription drug overdose. That is the third highest age bracket, and fourth highest is age 55-64.

More Virginians age 55-64 died of heroin and opioid (prescription painkillers) drug overdose than age 15-24.

“It’s almost unimaginable to think about someone becoming dependent on a drug for the first time at that age, but that is the power of these drugs, and it is a reality that more and more of our friends, neighbors, and parents are confronting,” said Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring this week during field hearing in Loudoun County to examine the ongoing fight against opioid misuse and abuse among older Americans “These are the Virginians who are about to age into certain medical assistance programs and whose struggle with addiction is likely to place an even greater strain on limited public budgets.”

According to the Virginia AG’s office, in 2014, Virginia’s Medicaid program spent approximately $27 million on prescription painkillers.

That is up about 30 percent from 2011. Conservative estimates indicate untreated substance abuse costs Virginia state and local governments more than $600 million annually in public safety and health care services alone.

Those numbers are part of a general heroin addiction ‘epidemic’

that’s sweeping across Virginia and the nation. In 2014, heroin and prescription drug overdoses claimed the lives of 728 Virginians. That’s nearly 80 percent of the fatal drug overdoses in Virginia, according to a recent policy brief by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine.

Drug overdoses claim the lives of nearly three times as many Virginians annually as do homicides, according to the policy brief.

“So to properly address what’s often called the ‘heroin epidemic’, we must acknowledge that this is a ‘heroin and prescription drug abuse epidemic’ that has its roots not in the streets, but in our medicine cabinets,” said Herring. “And given the amount of opiods prescribed to older Virginians, we should begin accounting for their needs and risk factors as we work to address addiction.”

While leaders are focused on prevention measures, law enforcement and prosecutors are also working the angles they know best.

“In my office, we are coming at the problem with a multifaceted strategy that includes prosecutions

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6 • Feb. 10, 2016

Op/Ed & Letters

The LEGACY

Blindsiding the public on Social Security ALLEN W. SMITH, Ph.D

There is more confusion about Social Security today than ever before. We hear contradictory claims from individuals, organizations and government, and nobody knows who to believe.

There is no reason for people to be so confused. Top government officials could explain the current condition of Social Security and tell the public what happened to the surplus Social Security revenue that was generated by the 1983 payroll tax hike.

Instead, the government adds to the confusion with false statements. Politicians from both sides of the aisle are deliberately trying to mislead the public. The debate has turned into a political war – not about how to fix Social Security – but whether the current system is worth saving.

The debate seems to center on the status of the Social Security trust fund. If there is a trust fund, what is in it? Is it full of marketable Treasury bonds, as some claim, or full of government IOUs? This is a crucial question the public needs to have answered.

Actually, that question was answered on Jan. 21, 2005. David Walker, the comptroller general of the Government Accountability The LEGACY NEWSPAPER Vol. 2 No. 6 Mailing Address 409 E. Main Street 4 Office Address 105 1/2 E. Clay St. Richmond, VA 23219 Call 804-644-1550 Online www.legacynewspaper.com

Office at that time, said, “There are no stocks or bonds or real estate in the trust fund. It has nothing of real value to draw down.”

That was 11 years ago. The public was entitled to know this important information, but it never reached the masses. Almost none of the mainstream media covered the story.

The Comptroller General of the GAO is the government’s top accountant. He is responsible for auditing financial statements from the Treasury Department and the Office of Management and Budget, among other things.

If anybody knows what is in the trust fund, the Comptroller General certainly knows.

There are no bonds in the trust fund because all of the surplus revenue was spent. None of it was saved or invested. This may be a bitter pill to swallow, but it is the unadulterated truth.

What the trust fund does hold is $2.8 trillion of government IOUs that are not marketable and cannot be used to pay benefits.

They are essentially a record of how much Social Security money was taken and spent for other things. If the government had saved and invested that money in marketable U.S Treasury bonds, as was the intent of the 1983 The LEGACY welcomes all signed letters and all respectful opinions.

Letter writers and columnists opinions are their own and endorsements of their views by The LEGACY should be inferred. The LEGACY assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material.

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legislation, the trust fund would today hold $2.8 trillion of “goodas-gold” bonds.

But all $2.8 trillion was spent to fund such things as wars, income tax cuts and other government programs over a 30-year period Since it is highly unlikely Congress and the public will support a substantial tax increase in the near future, the government may be unable to redeem the IOUs out of current income and will have to borrow from China, or one of our other creditors. With political fights over the debt ceiling, it won’t be easy to borrow enough to avoid cutting benefits.

When the first surplus revenue, generated by the 1983 payroll tax hike, began flowing into the Treasury in 1984, it was deposited directly into the general fund, where it became indistinguishable from the revenue from other federal taxes.

The intent of the 1983 legislation was that the surplus should be saved and invested in marketable Treasury bonds, which were to be held by the trust fund until the baby boomers began retiring.

But the politicians knew it would be 30 years before any of the surplus money would be

needed to pay current benefits.

In the meantime, politicians couldn’t resist the temptation to spend the money. Democrats and Republicans were both guilty of wrongful spending of Social Security money.

This is the essence of why Social Security has so many problems today. It represents the truth about the so-called bonds.

The only income flow that Social Security has is its annual tax revenue. Since 2010, the cost of paying full benefits has exceeded Social Security revenue, so the government has had to borrow to close the gap.

America has been living a “big lie” for many years. It is time to set the record straight.

The government should repay that $2.8 trillion, although it will be difficult to find the resources and it might be necessary to pay in annual installments.

A great wrong has been committed against the American people by their government, and that wrong should be made right.

Smith is professor of economics emeritus at Eastern Illinois University, is author of “Raiding the Trust Fund: Using Social Security Money to Fund Tax Cuts for the Rich.”

www.LEGACYnewspaper.com

Feb. 10, 2016 • 7

P.T. Hoffsteader, Esq.

A big difference

Six years ago, my life was turned upside down at the hands of my husband and father of my children.

After 21 years of marriage filled with verbal abuse and intimidation, my husband walked into our bedroom and shot me several times before turning the gun on himself. The physical pain I felt in that moment paled in comparison to the terror of knowing that my 12-year-old daughter witnessed her mother being shot and her father taking his own life.

As a parent, my No. 1 priority has and will always be to keep my children safe. My husband robbed me of that ability that day. Instead of protecting my children, I ran from the house as he continued shooting me, leaving our daughter to protect her 9-year-old brother by sending him to neighbors for help as she frantically sought to find me.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars of medical care and therapy later, my physical wounds have healed, but the scars serve as a constant reminder of the trauma my husband inflicted on our lives.

My life will forever be marked by residual physical challenges and emotional pain. My children and I continue to live daily with the emotional trauma and burden of grappling with my husband’s senseless actions.

Several times I tried to leave, to protect myself and my children. Each time, his abusive behavior escalated, becoming more and more aggressive.

After I initiated the separation

process, he began stalking me, reading my emails, texts and mail and appearing everywhere I went.

I became more frightened and knew that it would not be long before he finally followed through on his threats. At that time I weighed my options and considered whether to get a protective order. A protective order was just a piece of paper that could incite further rage and aggression. That piece of paper would not take away his guns and it would not punish him if and when he decided to use them.

I had no choice but to put my children and their safety first. It was a losing bet no matter which way I played it as long as his guns were still in his possession. That is why the historic bipartisan public safety agreement that Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and members of the General Assembly announced recently is so significant.

For the first time in Virginia, according to this agreement, family abusers subject to protective orders will not only be prohibited from possessing firearms but they will also be forced to turn over their guns within 24 hours. If an abuser fails to turn over his gun, he will be guilty of a Class 6 felony, which would result in the permanent loss of firearms rights.

Women should not be forced to gamble with their lives and their children’s lives when seeking protection from the person who is abusing them and threatening harm.

We know that domestic violence situations can be deadly and that women in abusive relationships are

500 times more likely to die when a firearm is present.

Had this law been in place six years ago, my life and the lives of many others since would be different today.

McAuliffe’s actions significantly strengthen the protective order process and will provide comfort to domestic violence victims seeking protection from their abusers.

I now serve as a hospital-based domestic violence advocate. I know that this additional safety measure will empower many more women to seek protective orders. It will afford these individuals and their children the opportunity to rest easier and enjoy their lives free of fear, violence and intimidation.

Thanks to McAuliffe for championing this issue, identifying an opportunity for bipartisan collaboration and for giving victims the chance to be survivors.

Lisette Johnson

Religion and politics

For 20 years prior to his 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama attended Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. Since his election as president, Obama has attended Christian worship services numerous times, has spoken annually at the distinctly Christian National Prayer Breakfast, and has periodically issued messages of holiday solidarity (Easter, Christmas, etc.) to “my fellow Christians.”

But some people don’t believe he’s a Christian. He drinks beer, eats pork, and marks Islam’s holy month of Ramadan with good wishes to

Muslims (in one, refers to “my own Christian faith”) rather than with that religion’s required fasting, but some people believe he’s secretly a Muslim. And some Republican politicians actively encourage that belief.

The can of hummus got opened up again on Feb. 3, when Obama visited a mosque in Baltimore to tell American Muslims “you’re part of America too. You’re not Muslim or American. You’re Muslim and American.”

As expected, the smirkingest, most “I’m saying what you think I’m saying but am not actually saying” critique of Obama’s visit came from Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who opined that “maybe he feels comfortable there.”

In other words, maybe he’s a secret Muslim.

Comes now U.S. Sen. (and also presidential candidate) Marco Rubio, characterizing the mosque visit as “pitting people against each other.”

Because, you see, telling Muslim Americans that they’re Americans is soooooo divisive (unlike, for example, asserting that America is “a Christian nation”). I wonder if Rubio isn’t maybe just jealous that he forgot to cover all his religious bases.

He started off as a Catholic. Then he was a Mormon. Now he’s a Catholic again and a Southern Baptist too (yes, really).

I sometimes suspect that Donald Trump’s, Marco Rubio’s and Barack Obama’s real religions revolve around, respectively, Donald Trump, Marco Rubio and Barack Obama.

Thomas Knapp

The LEGACY

8 • Feb. 10 , 2016

Faith & Religion

Newport News woman creates campaign against hate Religion lies at the heart of some of the most hotly debated issues today. There is a deep divide in this country along religious lines, perpetuated by extremism and a lack of understanding. Last Thursday’s episode of “Steve Harvey” saw Harvey dedicate the entire hour to having an open and honest discussion about religion, in hopes of narrowing

the gap between knowledge and fear.

As part of the specialty hour, Harvey welcomed 26-year-old Alana Simmons of Newport News. Simmons lost her grandfather, the Rev. Daniel Lee Simmons Sr., in the racially charged church shooting last year in Charleston, SC. She started a social media campaign in her grandfather’s memory, encouraging people to

Obama pleads for tolerance in first visit to U.S. mosque RNS -- In times of rising Islamophobia, President Barack Obama made a plea for religious tolerance at the first visit to an American mosque of his presidency.

A lot of Americans have never been to a mosque, the president said as he began his speech, shoeless per Muslim tradition, in the Islamic Center of Baltimore’s prayer hall last week.

“Think of your own synagogue or church or temple, and a mosque like this will be very familiar,” he said. “This is where families come to worship and express their love for God and each other.”

“This mosque like so many in our country is an all-American story,” Obama said, praising the hard work and educational achievements of the immigrants who make up much of the Islamic Society of Baltimore, where 3,000 attend Friday prayers.

The president said to the audience of about 500 that he wanted to say two words to the Muslim-Americans that they don’t hear very often: “Thank you.”

Obama went on to decry Islamophobia, and increasing threats against Muslims in this country.

Before his speech, he held a roundtable with a cross-section of the local and national Muslim community, where they talked about

combatting stereotypes of MuslimAmericans and anti-Muslim rhetoric on the presidential campaign trail.

Before Obama’s speech, an honor guard of children bearing the U.S. flag and the Maryland State flag led the Pledge of Allegiance. A recitation of a verse from the Quran followed, as well as words from the president of the Islamic Society of Baltimore, Muhammad Jamil.

“This community is part of the fabric of American society,” he said, explaining the founding of the mosque in 1969 in a room at a local university.

Obama has received criticism from the right and the left for his visit to the mosque. Conservative critics have taken the White House to task for choosing a mosque where a former imam, Mohamad Adam el-Sheikh, was accused of ties to terrorist groups.

But White House spokesman Josh Earnest brushed off that criticism, calling attention to the mosque’s role as a bulwark against extremism and an enthusiastic participant in community service projects. He also rejected criticism that Obama — who has visited mosques abroad — had waited too long to visit an American one.

He’s here at the right time, Earnest said.

Alana Simmons with Steve Harvey perform random acts of love with the hashtag, #HateWontWin. Alana explained that the hashtag came about after she spoke in court, telling people that her grandfather was all about love, even though he was taken away by an act of hate. “Hate won’t win,” Alana said

in court. “Before we got out of the courtroom, it was a nationally trending hashtag,” she told Steve Harvey.

Her #HateWontWin movement even caught the attention of President Barack Obama, who invited Simmons to the White House.

www.LEGACYnewspaper.com

Black History Month

Feb. 10, 2016 • 9

Celebrating the role of barbershops

B

lack-owned barbershops play a central role in African American public life. The intimacy of commercial grooming encourages both confidentiality and camaraderie, which make the barber shop an important gathering place for black men to talk freely.

For many years preceding and even after the Civil War, black barbers endured a measure of social stigma for perpetuating inequality: though the profession offered economic mobility to black entrepreneurs, black barbers were obliged by custom to serve an exclusively white clientele.

Black-owned barbershops are more than just places to get a shave and a haircut. Their position in American culture is well-known. They’re places to talk about the events of the day, to swap stories -- and, according to Vassar College history Professor Quincy Mills, to let black men become entrepreneurs.

It took barbershops the better part of a century to reach that quintessential place in black community life. Mills tells that history in his book “Cutting Along The Color Line”.

Mills explains that the history of barbershops is deeply entwined with the history of slavery.

In the 19th century, he says, most black-owned barbershops served wealthy, white clients -- businessmen and politicians.

“The black barbers were in many cases enslaved men, but also free

blacks,” Mills explains.

Barbering became a way for some African-Americans “to find some little pockets to sort of figure out how they could at least earn a little bit of money, and control their time -- which of course was what slaves did not have control over.”

That shifted in the late 1880s and 1890s, when a younger generation entered barbering. They were born after emancipation and specifically opened shops in black communities to serve black men.

Mills says it’s now hard to know what the place of black barbershops will be in this constantly changing economy.

The current political rhetoric is all about jobs -- and black barbershops don’t employ many people. However, Mills further points out that it’s pretty easy to become a barber.

For example, to open a shop costs about $150,000 and because of that, he says, maybe their direct economic impact is not the most important thing.

“So barbering still serves as that avenue for men, whether they want to own a barber shop or just work in [one]. But also, barbershops provide this sort of central hub, if you will, for communities across the country to understand the nature of their respective communities. And so I would argue that’s just as vital to an economy as is the number of jobs one can generate.”

Black barbershops: grooming, growing and guiding the community Many may question the appeal of black barbershops. The answer is quite simple: It’s a space for open discussions and in the past lacked white presence.

In the early 20th century, black barbers could freely support the NAACP and other protest organizations without fear that customers would alert the police.

Also during that time, barbershops could circulate subversive literature for customers to read such as: black newspapers, Communist pamphlets, and other radical texts that sat alongside unsuspicious piles of magazines found in barbershops.

Black barbershops also provided a public venue for political conversation free from white surveillance.

This liberty depended upon the exclusion of not just white people but of women as well.

From their inception in the 19th century, black barbershops were

the site of debates about black masculinity, because barbering was an all-black and all-male profession in the 19th century.

During the 1848 Colored National Convention, over which Frederick Douglass presided, delegates listed barbering among their list of “unmanly occupations” because it required submission to white men. In their own words, they claimed that “to be dependent is to be degraded” and that white men “may indeed pity us, but they cannot respect us” until black laborers did not rely on white patronage. These thinkers differentiated between white and black masculinity setting the historical precedent for discussing black barbers as a means of discussing black masculinity.

As time progressed the matter of women in the barbershop grew. The barbershop was a safehaven for men.

It was a place to escape into a world of masculinity that didn’t involve

being pestered by the girlfriend and wife. It was a gender argument-free zone. It was a place where a man didn’t have to show his sensitive side. The safety of black barbershops required privacy from female surveillance and that includes “baby mama drama” and nerve-wrecking battles.

Now, enter the 21st century where

women are barbers too. The once “for men only” spot has transcended into a non-gender specific place where women are not only cutting hair but sitting in the chair to receive a haircut.

This Black History Month special section will feature the role of black barbershops and its impact on the community.

10 • Feb. 10, 2016

The LEGACY

Alonzo Herndon noted as first black barber and entrepreneur in the U.S. Alonzo Franklin Herndon was an African American entrepreneur who founded and was the first president of Atlanta Life Insurance Company.

Herndon was born on June 26, 1858 in Walton County, Ga. to Frank Herndon, a white farmer, and Sophenie, his slave. By the time of his death in 1927, Herndon was Atlanta’s wealthiest African American and one of the first black millionaires.

Herndon worked on his father's plantation near Social Circle, Ga. Freed by the 13th Amendment, Herndon and his mother, younger brother, and maternal grandparents became sharecroppers. Herndon supplemented the family income by working as day laborer and peddler of peanuts and homemade molasses and axle grease.

In 1878, at the age of 20, Herndon left his family and moved to Jonesboro, Georgia where he opened up his first barbershop. He developed a great reputation as a barber and his business thrived. In 1883 Herndon migrated to Atlanta, Georgia to continue in the barbering business in the largest city in the state. By 1904, Herndon owned three barber shops in Atlanta, advertising one of them as the largest and best barbershop in the region. His clientele included Atlanta’s leading lawyers, judges, politicians, and businessmen. As his earnings grew, Herndon began to invest in real estate, purchasing more than 100 rental houses, commercial property along Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, and a plantation near Tavares, Fla. At the time of his death Herndon’s real estate holdings were valued at nearly $325,000.

In 1905, Herndon purchased a failing insurance company, which he incorporated as Atlanta Mutual

Insurance Association. He took over a company which had $5,000 in assets in 1905. By 1922 the company had more than $400,000 in assets.

That year Herndon changed the name of the company to Atlanta Life Insurance Company. The company rapidly expanded, establishing branches in Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas. Herndon saved other failing insurance companies by merging their company with Atlanta Life Insurance, claiming his efforts were designed to build confidence in black businesses and save jobs for African American men and women. Regardless of the reason, his acquisition strategy made Atlanta Life one of the most successful black businesses in the nation by the 1920s.

Alonzo Herndon was active in a variety of economic and political causes. He was a founding member of Booker T. Washington’s National Negro Business League in 1900. Five years later he was one of the original members of the W.E.B. DuBois-led Niagara Movement. Herndon also used his wealth to support local institutions and causes, such as the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), Atlanta University, the first Congregational Church, the Southview Cemetery, and the Atlanta State Savings Bank.

In 1893, Herndon married Adrienne Elizabeth McNeil, a professor at Atlanta University, who influenced his cultural and educational growth.

Alonzo and Adrienne had a son

together, Norris. After Adrienne died in 1910, Herndon married Jessie Gillespie of Chicago who became an active partner in Atlanta Life and who led the company along with her stepson, after Herndon’s death.

In 1910 Alonzo and Jessie Herndon

built the Herndon Home which at the time was one of the largest mansions in Atlanta. Today the home is registered as a National Historic Place. Alonzo Herndon died in Atlanta on July 21, 1927 at the age of 69.

BlackPast.org

Joseph Rainey

community.

In 1861, with the outbreak of the American Civil War, Rainey was among the free black people who were forced by the Confederates to work on fortifications in Charleston, South Carolina. He also worked as a cook and laborer on blockade runner ships.

In 1862, Rainey and his family escaped to Bermuda. They settled in St. George’s, Bermuda town where Rainey worked as a barber. In 1865, the couple moved to the town of Hamilton when an outbreak of yellow fever threatened St. George’s. Rainey worked at the Hamilton Hotel as a barber and a bartender, where his customers were mostly white. He became a respected member of the community. They made a prosperous life in Bermuda. (See plaque below) In 1866, following the civil war’s end, Rainey and his family returned to South Carolina, where they settled in Charleston. In 1870, 43 percent of the city’s population was African American, including many people of color who, like Rainey, had been free and held skilled jobs before the war.

His experience and wealth helped establish him as a leader and he quickly became involved in politics, joining the executive committee of the state Republican Party.

Portrait of Joseph Rainey June 21, 1832 – Aug. 1, 1887 Collection of U.S. House of Rep. Joseph Rainey was an American politician. He was the first African American to serve in the United States House of Representatives, the second black person to serve in the United States Congress and the first black presiding officer of the House of Representatives. A little known fact is that he was also a barber.

Born into slavery in South Carolina, he was freed in the 1840s by his father purchasing the freedom of his entire family and himself.

Rainey’s father had been allowed by his master to work independently to earn money and developed a successful business as a barber.

He paid a portion of his income to his master as required by law and managed to save a substantial sum of his earnings to purchase the freedom of his family.

With education severely limited for blacks, as an adult Rainey followed his father’s footsteps by becoming a barber. It was an independent and well-respected trade that enabled him to build a wide network in his

www.LEGACYnewspaper.com

Feb. 10, 2016 • 11

Hiram Revels Sept. 27, 1827 – Jan. 16, 1901

Hiram Rhodes Revels was a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), a Republican politician, and college administrator.

Born free in North Carolina, he later lived and worked in Ohio, where he voted before the Civil War. He was elected as the first African American to serve in the United States Senate, and was the first African American to serve in the U.S. Congress. He represented Mississippi in the Senate in 1870 and 1871 during the Reconstruction era.

During the American Civil War, Revels had helped organize two regiments of the United States Colored Troops and served as a chaplain. After serving in the Senate, Revels was appointed as the first president of Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Alcorn State University), 1871-1873 and 1876 to 1882. Later he served again as a minister.

Before his career in politics, in 1838, Revels went to live with his older brother in Lincolnton, North Carolina, and was apprenticed as a barber in his brother's shop.

After his brother died, the shop was transferred to Revels.

For levity’s sake: Things every black man knows about the barbershop

DAMON YOUNG 1. Breaking up with a barber is the most traumatic break-up a black man will ever experience.

One, because barber relationships usually last much longer than most “relationships.” But also because the usual break-up excuses — “It’s not you, it’s me” and “I’m just not ready for a relationship right now” — just don’t apply. You decide to start going to a new barber, it’s definitely because the current barber sucks and you’re just now accepting it and preparing to move on. And that’s a hard conversation to have. So you don’t have it. You just stop going to that shop…and avoid walking within a 200-meter radius of that shop for the rest of your life.

2. It is not uncommon to enter the shop with a terrible, shape up and a serious bout of depression and leave with a cut that bumps you up from a “hard five” to a “decent seven,” a smile, a new outlook on life, actual life insurance, and bootlegged copies of “Straight Outta Compton”.

3. If entering the shop, be prepared to spend anything from 15 minutes to three and a half days there. Barbers are vital. Since they’re aware they’re vital, they can also be divas. This means he might decide to pick up his lunch while you’re in the chair. And then eat the lunch while he’s cutting you. (And have the audacity to offer you fries!)

4. If you are new to a shop and don’t know who to go to, wait. Sit for 15-20 minutes and observe. It might feel awkward, but trust me. It’s worth it. Do not respond to the first person that asks if you need help, because this is usually a trick.

5. If there is a white barber in the barbershop or a barber who happens to be a woman, they are probably great barbers. If a white guy or a woman is manning a chair, trust that they’ve earned it.

6. In every black barbershop exists at least three posters of different haircuts modeled by regular folks.

These haircuts will be numbered.

No one has ever met an actual black barbershop poster model, so don’t feel bad if you’re not asked to be one, because these people don’t actually exist in real life.

7. Your face will never feel cleaner than it does after your barber does his post-cut alcohol/spray/powder routine. You will be in that chair feeling like you just got a mud bath from Martha Stewart.

8. If you are a person who happens to be a woman, and you’ve ever entered a barbershop, you might

have left impressed by their politeness and chivalry. Do not be fooled by this. The moment you left the shop it turned right back into an 8th grade boys’ locker room. FYI: Even if your butt is basically just an extension of your back, it was noted and mentioned.

9. Every black barbershop has a back area, but no one knows what goes on in the back.

10. A black man’s relationship with his barber is his third most important relationship, behind only his significant other and his children.

T:10”

12 • Feb. 10, 2016

The LEGACY

Ava Duvernay Arts & Entertainment (not shown) Jeff Johnson Trailblazer Caroyln Hunter Owner-Operator Marvin Sapp Living Legend

Marc Morial Humanitarian

Tori Turner Community Choice Youth Award Winner

Aaron Johnson Community Choice Youth Award Winner

12 Months. 365 Days. 8760 Hours. 525,600 Minutes.

To those who always find time to reach out…reach back…and bring others along.

McDonald’s® celebrates you, not only during Black History Month, but each and every day throughout the year. Find out more at 365Black.com.

©2016 McDonald’s

www.LEGACYnewspaper.com

Feb. 10, 2016 • 13

Harold Deane honored at 2016 VSU Winter Alumni Festival The Varsity Club Chapter of the Virginia State University Alumni Association, in conjunction with the VSU Men’s Basketball program honored Harold Deane, Sr. at the 2016 VSU Winter Alumni Festival, hosted by the VSU National Alumni Association.

Deane was presented with the VSUAA-Varsity Club’s Humanitarian Award, in recognition of his service and commitment to the VSU community.

“Coach Deane has been one of VSU’s greatest ambassadors and has been an integral part in contributing to the betterment of the University. His lasting impact has been an inspiration to us all. We are honored to celebrate Coach Deane,” said Tiffani Sykes, president of the

Harold Deane, Sr.

VSUAA-Varsity Club.

Deane was a two-sport studentathlete at Virginia State College (now University), competing in track and field and basketball. He was a three year starter on the men’s basketball team and selected to the CIAA All-Tournament team.

Deane received his bachelor’s degree from Virginia State College in 1961 and went on to earn a master’s degree from Howard University in 1968.

Deane returned to his alma mater in 1969 as a professor in the Health and Physical Education Department, where he taught until his retirement in 2015. Additionally, he was the head men’s basketball coach from 1969-1979 and again from 19871994. He led the Trojans to a CIAA

Championship in 1988 and was named the CIAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Coach. He was selected as the CIAA’s Coach of the Year in 1972, 1974, and 1976.

Deane’s leadership extended beyond the athletics arena. While attending VSC, he was the president of the Big Brothers Organization, a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. and a member of the Army ROTC. He served in the U.S. Army from 1961-1963, where he was commissioned as a 1st lieutenant and earned a letter of commendation for outstanding leadership displayed during Exercise Swift Strike 111.

“It’s great to see Coach Deane be recognized for all that he has done

(continued on page 15)

Scholars receive funding to expand research on mental health among students of color Active Minds, Inc. and the Steve Fund announce mental health researchers The mental health of college students of color will receive expanded focus in a national research fellowship program this spring, Active Minds, Inc. and the Steve Fund – two leading mental health organizations – announced last week.

Two researchers of the 2016 Emerging Scholars Fellowship, an Active Minds program dedicated to supporting undergraduate and graduate student research on mental health, will study mental health among students of color specifically.

The Steve Fund, the nation’s only organization focused on promoting the mental health and emotional well-being of students of color, is supporting two Stephen C. Rose Legacy Scholars: Alfred Delena and Heidi Tuason.

Delena, who was born and raised

on the Pueblo of Zuni reservation in New Mexico and is a senior studying human biology at Stanford University, will examine the lived experience of well-being among first-generation, low-income undergraduate students of color at highly selective universities. Tuason, a third year PhD candidate studying community health sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles, aims to uncover stories of mental health challenges and stigma in the Filipino community among students at UCLA. “Active Minds is honored and excited to work with the Steve Fund to expand the research around how students of color experience mental illness,” said founder and executive director, Alison Malmon. “There is simply not enough knowledge on the mental health of this critical student population. We’re confident that Alfred and Heidi’s research will help bridge that gap.”

“By 2044, minorities will comprise the majority of Americans,” said

(continued on page 15)

Moderator: AJ. Simon, Co-Publisher, The Legacy Newspaper

14 • Feb. 10, 2016

The LEGACY

Senators urge president to provide additional USAID funding to control the Zika outbreak WASHINGTON – As the threat of the Zika virus grows, U.S. senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-Va.) joined colleagues in urging President Barack Obama to devote increased funding to the Emerging Pandemic Threats (EPT) Program at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to enhance efforts to control outbreaks, counter the spread of the disease in Puerto Rico and other areas in our country where it is already present, and prevent transmission in the United States.

With at least one reported case of the Zika virus in Virginia, in a letter the senators called on the president to ensure that the federal government is working with local and

Did you know...

Although sexual transmission of Zika virus infection is possible, mosquito bites remain the primary way that Zika virus is transmitted.

Because there currently is no vaccine or treatment for Zika virus, the best way to avoid Zika virus infection is to prevent mosquito bites. state agencies to develop strategies for protecting Virginians from the threat.

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“Investing in the effort to combat the Zika virus abroad is one of the most important things we can do to prevent widespread transmission of the virus at home. The EPT Program helps developing countries prevent, detect, and control the outbreak of infectious diseases,” the senators wrote. “By taking action now, we can make significant progress toward mitigating the impact of Zika virus abroad and preventing the spread of the Zika virus in the United States.”

In addition to the increased funding, the letter stated, “it is also critically important that we take additional steps to respond to the ongoing outbreak and work to prevent additional cases of Zika from occurring in the United States.”

Specifically, the senators called for: · U.S. Customs and Border Protection to immediately review whether inspections procedures at major points of entry from South America and other affected areas need to be revised in order to respond to the Zika virus; · If necessary, allocate resources for appropriate screening procedures at border crossings and airports; · Ensure that federal agencies work with state and local partners to develop a cohesive national

surveillance strategy for the monitoring, identification, and reporting of any domestic Zika infections; · Direct the Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to develop educational materials to inform travelers regarding the risk of Zika virus exposure; · Ramp up research efforts, including at the National Institutes of Health, to better understand the link between Zika virus, microcephaly, and other public health impacts and accelerate rapid diagnostic and vaccine development.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that Zika “is now spreading explosively,” and requires an urgent and aggressive response in the months before peak mosquito season.

The Zika virus is transmitted via bites from the same kind of mosquitoes that carry dengue fever, chikungunya, and yellow fever. For most, the symptoms of Zika are mild, but when pregnant women become infected there is early evidence its effects can be devastating. Zika has been linked to microcephaly in developing fetuses, which can lead to below-average head size.

Feb. 10, 2016 • 15

www.LEGACYnewspaper.com

Education savings accounts growing in popularity amid opposition in Virginia AMELIA HAMILTON Virginia is considering a move to let parents invest 90 percent of their share of public school funds into a savings account to cover educational expenses, a plan that faces opposition from school choice opponents.

Gerard Robinson, resident fellow for education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, said education savings accounts would be good for Virginia “because they customize the delivery of education in ways unimaginable 10 years ago.

At the same time, ESA policies are no panacea. For Virginia, they represent

the latest example of an investment to expand opportunity to families and children while simultaneously supporting public school education.”

Education savings accounts let parents choose not only where their children go to school, but where their education tax dollars go by giving each student’s funding directly to the family. They can spend that money on private school or materials for homeschooling, tutoring, online education or towards other educational expenses.

Five states — Arizona, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee and Nevada — now offer ESAs, but the path to

approval isn’t easy.

Nevada opened ESAs to all students last year, rather than limiting them to those who fit narrow criteria as in other states. However, school choice opponents fought back, and weeks before parents were to get their funds, a court issued an injunction to prevent disbursement.

These families are now in a holding pattern until the courts make a final decision.

Arizona’s ESA program is limited to special needs students, students living on a Native American reservation or children of military members. Lawmakers are looking, like Nevada, to open ESAs to all students over the next several years.

“That’s a pragmatic way to go about a program like this,” said Jonathan Butcher, education director at the Goldwater Institute, a conservative public policy and advocacy group whose legal arm has defended ESAs in both Arizona and Florida. “Let’s phase it in over a couple of years so that the agency can keep up with the

growth of the program.”

The legality of ESAs and other voucher programs frequently comes down to an argument of separation of church and state. Citizens pay taxes and, in these programs, funds are disbursed back to families to spend on education. If those families choose religious education, critics argue that should be considered using public funds for religious purposes.

The laws that prevent such use of public funds, commonly known as Blaine Amendments, are being used to bolster lawsuits around the country.

“Activist groups are treating religious schools and the students who choose to attend them like second-class citizens,” said Diana Verm, legal counsel of the Becket Fund. “It is deplorable to see a discriminatory 19th century law being used to prevent children from access to quality education simply because the school may have religious ties.” © Virginia Watchdog

(from page 13) contests. The women’s basketball for Virginia State University, the men’s basketball program and all of the lives that he has touched,” said Lonnie Blow, Jr., VSU Head Men’s Basketball Coach.

The VSU Winter Alumni Festival was highlighted by two basketball

team hosted conference-rival, Virginia Union University and the men’s basketball team faced non-conference opponent, The Newport News Apprentice School.

Both games took place in Daniel Gymnasium, with Deane honored between games.

(from page 13) of Active Minds, Inc., a leading

Groundbreaking for embassy training facility

Last week, Virginia’s Congressional representatives, U.S. senators, Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, U.S. representatives, Bobby Scott, Randy Forbes, Rob Wittman, Gerry Connolly, Robert Hurt, Dave Brat, Don Beyer and Scott Rigell along with Gov. Terry McAuliffe, welcomed the groundbreaking of a Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (FASTC) at Fort Pickett in Blackstone.

They released the following statement: “After years of unnecessary delays and hurdles, the brave men and women who serve in our embassies around the world – many of whom call Virginia home – will finally have a dedicated facility to receive the best possible security training before they embark on assignments in high threat countries across the globe. We are especially proud that such an important facility will be located in Virginia.

As four different federal agency evaluations and an independent costbenefit analysis made clear, only Fort Pickett meets every requirement for a consolidated Foreign Affairs Security Training Center making it by far the best site – both from a strategic and cost perspective. We are pleased that groundbreaking is finally underway in Nottoway County.”

Evan Rose, president of the Steve Fund. “The future success of our nation will depend on the mental health and emotional well-being of all student populations, and on colleges and universities providing support appropriately. Our partnership with Active Minds will help ensure universities have the research necessary to provide that support.”

Eight scholars were selected for the 2016 Emerging Scholars Fellowship, which provides an opportunity for students from a variety of backgrounds to complete funded, independent mental health projects and to be connected with a network of young scholars and national experts in the field of behavioral health. The fellowship is a program

national nonprofit organization working to change the conversation and perception about mental health on college campuses. The Steve Fund sponsored its inaugural scholar in 2015.

As part of the Fellowship, scholars will receive financial support to complete their work and be connected to leading experts in the field as National Program Mentors.

Past mentors have included Robert Bernstein, PhD, executive director of the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law; Daniel Eisenberg, PhD, associate professor of Health Management & Policy at University of Michigan and director of The Healthy Minds Network; and Kaja Perina, editor-in-chief, Psychology Today.

16 • Feb. 10, 2016

Calendar

2.11, 6:30 p.m.

The LEGACY

COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES & EVENTS

Accounting students offer tax assistance

Virginia Credit Union will offer a free financial education seminar on Thursday, Feb. 11, with practical tips for successfully creating and sticking to a budget. Seminar participants will learn to track their spending and establish realistic goals for savings.

The event will be held at Virginia Credit Union in the Boulders Office Park, 7500 Boulder View Drive, from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.

To register call 804-323-6800 or visit https://www.vacu.org/Learning_ Planning/Financial_Education/ Seminars_Workshops/Building_a_ Better_Budget.aspx

Virginia State University (VSU) accounting majors are working in cooperation with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to provide income tax preparation and filing assistance for 2015 tax returns to individual or joint filers in the Tri-Cities area with income below $54,000.

This is the 28th year VSU accounting majors have provided this service, which is coordinated by Lester Reynolds, assistant professor of accounting at VSU and a former IRS employee; and Dr. John Moore, chairman of the Accounting and Finance Department in the Reginald F. Lewis College of Business. The students’ participation is among the requirements of the federal income tax course.

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site has been established in Room 333 Singleton Hall, on the VSU campus and is being staffed two days a week: on Fridays from noon to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The VITA site will be open through April 9. The service will be closed during VSU Spring Break, March 6 – 13. For more information, call 804-524-5842.

2.11, 7 p.m.

When a crisis hits your small business, getting the right message out quickly can protect your brand and speed up the recovery process. Increasingly, organizations are relying on social media to get ahead of and dispel misinformation that can lead to a tarnished reputation, and even failure of the company.

Get tips on creating a crisis communications plan using social media during a free webinar on Feb. 16, 2 p.m. co-hosted by Agility Recovery and the U.S. Small Business Administration. The discussion will include: · Effective uses of various social media platforms · Simple first steps toward building a crisis communications plan · Best practices based on recent disasters A question and answer session will follow the presentation.

The SBA has partnered with Agility Recovery to offer business continuity strategies through its “PrepareMyBusiness” website. Visit www. preparemybusiness.org to check out past webinars and to download helpful disaster preparedness checklists.

The SBA provides disaster recovery assistance in the form of low-interest loans to homeowners, renters, private nonprofits and businesses of all sizes.

Space is limited. Register online at http://agil.me/sba-social

Chesterfield County is partnering with The Harbor Institute to present a program dispelling the myths and highlighting the work of Black Greek-Letter organizations. The program, called “All We Do is Step, Stroll and Hop?!: What is a Black Greek-Letter Organization,” is one of several activities celebrating Black History Month.

Rasheed Ali Cromwell with The Harbor Institute will discuss the legacy, history, and community service work performed by these organizations. The program takes place at Meadowdale Library, 4301 Meadowdale Boulevard, Chesterfield.

Registration is required at library. chesterfield.gov or by calling call 804751-CCPL.

2.17, 7 p.m.

Expand your knowledge of African American culture by examining art in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts’ collection. VMFA faculty member Karen Getty will discuss many works by artists who deal with African American life and history as well as art that ranges in time period, style, and subject matter.

Registration is required. Come early to view the exhibit “A New Mosaic: African American Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts” on view at Meadowdale and at Meadowdale on Saturday, Feb. 17.

Social media tips for small business recovery

National Megan’s Law Helpline & Sex Offender Registration Tips Program Call (888) ASK-PFML (275-7365) Submit your calendar events to calendar@legacynewspaper.com.

Include contact infomation that can be published.

2.18, 4:30 p.m.

The University of Richmond Downtown will host its annual TAKE 30 event, a series of free 30-minute discussions that focus on questions that are important for the Richmond area. The theme for the spring 2016 series is “Leadership in Education.”

University faculty and community leaders lead the discussions.

“Educational Leadership: Understanding How Education Impacts Poverty” with Dana Bedden, superintendent, Richmond Public Schools, takes place at 4:30 p.m. at UR Downtown, 626 E. Broad St.

2.22

The 2016 Strong Men & Women in Virginia History Exhibition takes place on the Second Floor Lobby at the Library of Virginia in Richmond.

In observance of Black History Month, the Library of Virginia and Dominion Virginia Power honor eight distinguished Virginians in this traveling exhibition as the 2016 Strong Men & Women in Virginia History for their contributions to the commonwealth and the nation.

Through education and advocacy, they demonstrate how African Americans have actively campaigned for better lives for themselves and their people.

The library is located at 800 East Broad St., Richmond. 804-692-3592.

2.27, noon

Join other volunteers to transcribe handwritten pages by reading written text and typing it into digital form during ‘Transcribe-a-thon’ at the Network Training Center in Richmond.

Participate in enhancing access to collections of more than 400 years of Virginia history and culture.

Twelve computer stations will be available. If you have your own laptop, please bring it! Transcribea-thons are facilitated by the volunteer organization HandsOn Greater Richmond. Minimum age is 16 (12 with an adult). Registration required: http://bit.ly/LVAvolunteer.

Feb. 10, 2016 • 17

www.LEGACYnewspaper.com

ASALH encouraging visits to the “Hallowed Grounds” of black history HAZEL TRICE EDNEY

TEWire - Thousands of priceless relics, artifacts and black historic sites around the U. S. have been destroyed by accident, negligence or intention.

This is the reason that the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) is calling for African-Americans and others to pay homage to those “Hallowed Grounds” of black history during the entire year of 2016 – beyond Black History Month.

“There are a number of communities that have been completely eradicated off the map due to urban renewal, etc. There were places where black people had thriving communities; that when change came they were completely just annihilated. We need to remember those sites,” said Sylvia Cyrus, executive director of ASALH, the 101-year-old organization founded by the “Father of Black History”, Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

“We want to encourage people to find these sites and do something to support them and to increase the profile for them so that we can continue to show America and the world that African-Americans have made significant contributions and there are places that we can go that have significant importance to our history and to American history.”

Under the Black History Month theme, “Hallowed Grounds: Sites of African American Memories”, Cyrus says ASALH is joining in support with the National Park Service (NPS) to encourage people across the U. S. to visit the approximately 400 federally designated historic sites in commemoration of the NPS’s 100th anniversary this year.

“We are a spiritual people. And there’s no way in many of these instances that we can tell our story were it not for how hallowed these places are,” Cyrus said. “If you look at Annapolis, Maryland, the place where African slave ships came in. I

Sylvia Cyrus mean that’s holy ground for us. You have to understand why that should be important to you, how that speaks to your soul, how that speaks to who we are as a people.”

However, Cyrus confirmed that only 25 of the 400 NPS-designated sites pertain specifically to black history.

Within, NPS, these 25 sites are called the African-American Experience Fund. There are efforts to add more, but she said budget shortfalls have made that difficult.

“The reality is that with the federal budget being what it is today that the National Park Service cannot even maintain the sites that they have now,” she said. “So, we know that the reality is we cannot depend upon the federal government to identify and support these sites. We have got to be able to do this through our own communities, through our states; through organizations like ASALH and walking tours and local history so that people know about these sites.”

Many historic sites and artifacts are privately owned, kept in Black families, or entrenched in communities, she points out. They may include places like a church in a local community; a place where a race riot started, or the site of some local activity that dealt with civil African Burial Grounds, an NPS historic site in New York.

PHOTO: NPS

rights or education.

“We are charging Americans to look – not just nationally at these sites but in your own communities; to start a dialog about places of importance that have impacted African-American Life and History.”

Robert G. “Bob” Stanton, who was the first African-American appointed as NPS director, has been credited with the growth of the NPSdesignated black history sites. The number of sites increased as well as their prominence and care during his four-year tenure between 1997 and 2001. Appointed by President Bill Clinton, Stanton established the African-American Experience Fund for that purpose.

“There are certainly more sites that need to be recognized,” said Cyrus.

“We work every year to bring more on board.”

But, for now, the following are the 25 federally designated historic sites and state locations in alphabetical order: African American Civil War Memorial, DC; African Burial Ground National Monument, New York; Booker T. Washington National Monument, Virginia; Boston African American National Historic Site, Massachusetts; Brown V Board of Education National Historic Site, Kansas; Cane River

Creole National Historical Park and Heritage Area, Louisiana; Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site, DC; Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument, Ohio; Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, Ohio; Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, DC; George Washington Carver National Monument, Missouri; Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, South Carolina; Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument, Maryland; Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, Arizona; Maggie L Walker National Historic Site, Virginia; Martin Luther King Jr National Historic Site, Georgia; Martin Luther King,Jr. Memorial, DC; Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site, DC; Natchez National Historical Park, Mississippi; National Underground Railroad: Network To Freedom, Nebraska; New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, Louisiana; Nicodemus National Historic Site, Kansas; Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial, California; Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail, Alabama; Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, Alabama; and Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site, Alabama.

18 • Feb. 10, 2016

Classifieds 156-205 HAMPTON SOLICITATION The Director of Finance or his designated representative will accept written responses in the Procurement Office 1 Franklin Street, 3rd floor, suite 345 Hampton, VA on behalf of the Entity (ies) listed below until the date(s) and local time(s) specified.

HAMPTON CITY Thursday, March 3, 2016 2:00 p.m. ET – ITB 16-60/CGA Buckroe Avenue Roadway Improvement A Mandatory Prebid Meeting will be held on Thursday, February 18, 2016 at 1:00 p.m. local time in the Public Works Conference Room, 22 Lincoln Street, 4th Floor, Hampton, VA 23669 Tuesday, March 8, 2016 2:00 p.m. ET – RFP 16-61/CLP Franklin Street Extension A Mandatory Pre-bid meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 16, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. local time in the Public Works Conference Room, 22 Lincoln Street, 4th Floor, Hampton, VA 23669.

HAMPTON CITY SCHOOLS Saturday, February 27, 2016 10:12 a.m. ET – ITB 16-356746/CGA (Equip 2016) Erate Purchase of Wireless Access Points Deadline to Spend Funds June 30, 2017.

For additional information, see our web page at http://www.hampton.gov/bids-contracts A withdrawal of bid due to error shall be in accordance with Section 2.2-4330 of the Code of Virginia. All forms relating to these solicitations may be obtained from the above listed address or for further information call; (757) 727-2200. The right is reserved to reject any and all responses, to make awards in whole or in part, and to waive any informality in submittals.

Minority and Woman-Owned Businesses are encouraged to participate.

Karl Daughtrey, Director of Finance

The LEGACY

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Feb. 10, 2016 • 19

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Chesterfield County Public Schools Food and Nutrition Services Employment Opportunities 804-7433717 x157 We are currently accepting applications for: Assistant Manager - Food Services Apply via the CCPS website at http:// mychesterfieldschools.com.

Complete job description and application procedures are available on the website.

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The LEGACY is looking for a reliable, highly-motivated, goal-driven sales professional to join our team selling print and digital advertising in the Richmond and Hampton Roads areas.

Duties include: Building and maintaining relationships with new/existing clients Meeting and exceeding monthly sales goals Cold calling new prospects over the phone to promote print and online advertising space Qualifications:

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The LEGACY is an African-American-oriented weekly print newspaper, circulation 25,000, with a website featuring local and national news and advertising.

E-mail resume and letter of interest to ads@ legacynewspaper.com detailing your past sales experience. No phone calls please.

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MBE/ESB SUBCONTRACTORS WANTED TO BID Crowder Construction Company is preparing a bid for Westhampton Pumping Station Improvements project. We are soliciting in Richmond, Virginia and surrounding areas for pricing from subcontractors for the following: SCOPES of WORK (including, but not limited to): erosion control, selective demo, hauling, seeding, brick pavers, asphalt paving, concrete, rebar, metal fabrications, painting, piping supply, and electrical supply

Bid Date: February 18, 2016 , 2:30 PM Historically Underutilized Businesses including minority and emerging small business Enterprises and all others are encouraged to participate.

Bid Proposals will be received by Crowder Construction Company at the following address: 1111 Burma Drive Apex, North Carolina 27539 Telephone: (919) 367-2000; Fax: (919) 367-2097 Contact: Kathy D. Shear Please be advised the above bid date and time is the deadline for the General Contractor’s bid. We encourage you to provide us your “Scope of Work” at least 24 hours prior to this date and time so that we can clearly understand and evaluate your bid to us. We request MBE/ESB companies include a copy of their certificate with their quote. Complete plans and specifications may be viewed at Crowder Construction Company at the address listed above.

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The City of Richmond is seeking to Next publis fill the following positions: Includes I Automotive Mechanic II Please review the proof, make an 29M00001101 Department of Public Works If your Apply response is not received b by 02/21/2016

Ok X_______________ Equipment Operator II – Wastewater 35M00000315 Ok with changes X ____ Department of Public Utilities Apply by 2/28/16 REMINDER: Dea Investigative Coordinator 25M00000049 Department of Finance Apply by 02/21/2016 Lifeguard (Seasonal) Multiple Positions 30TEMP02013 Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Facilities Apply by 04/03/2016 Maintenance Technician I 30M00000036 Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Facilities Apply by 02/21/2016 Maintenance Technician IV 35M00000614 Department of Public Utilities Apply by 2/14/16 Project Management Analyst – Stormwater 35M00000820 Department of Public Utilities Apply by 3/6/16 Systems Developer 20M00000027 Department of Finance Apply by 02/28/2016 Systems Operations Administrator 87M00000117 Emergency Communications Apply by 2/28/16 ********************************* For an exciting career with the City of Richmond, visit our website for additional information and apply today!

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