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Peaceful protesters call for justice
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By B.C. Manion and Kathy Steele
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Dozens of peaceful protesters stood in front of The Shops at Wiregrass on the rainy evening of June 6 — joining the chorus of voices across America calling for the end of police brutality and systemic racism. Those gathered in Wesley Chapel were there to speak up in the aftermath of the May 25 death of George Floyd. Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died in Minneapolis, Minnesota, after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, according to a video that went viral and national news reports. Chauvin initially was charged with thirddegree murder and second-degree manslaughter, but Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison later added a seconddegree murder charge against Chauvin.The three other officers — Tou Thao, J.Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane — were charged
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with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, news reports say. Protesters in Wesley Chapel walked from the main street of the mall — which had been closed at 3 p.m., by management — out to the intersection of State Road 56 and Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. Greg Lenners, the mall’s general manager, said the decision to close was made in an abundance of caution. “Obviously, we value the beliefs and the opinions of the community,” he said.“It’s just that we have the obligation to protect the
safety of the businesses and our employees, and customers,” he added. So, protesters made their way to the area in front of the mall, which is public property. They carried signs with messages such as “Silence is Violence,” “Amplify Black Voices,” ”Justice for George,” and “No Justice, No Peace.” See JUSTICE, page 11A
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Protesters stood on the side of the road at the intersection of State Road 56 and Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, chanting slogans to try to raise awareness for the need to take action to end systemic racism.
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When experience matters to you! Time capsule unearths memories in Lutz Jasmine Sanchez, Elijah Sanchez, Isaiah Sanchez and Kimberly Morin raised their voices during a protest at the corner of State Road 56 and Bruce B. Downs Boulevard.
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Tonya Reavis came to join the protest, held in front of The Shops at Wiregrass, in the early evening of June 6. ‘We want to be treated as human, not three-fifths human,’ she says.
By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
A 60-year-old time capsule unearthed at Learning Gate Community School will be a teaching moment for at least one third-grade teacher. The battered metal box held items buried on July 18, 1948 during a ceremony to lay the cornerstone for the First United Methodist Church of Lutz. The congregation now resides in a new church off West Lutz Lake Fern Road. The former church site came into ownership of Learning Gate in 2014. The time capsule came to light as workers demolished the old church building. Learning Gate plans to build new administrative offices in its place. Inside the box, school officials found a few, water-logged items, namely: A July 18, 1948 edition of the Tampa Sunday Tribune with full comic section, a Bible, a hymnal and a round glazed window panel. Using the Tribune issues as a guide, Linda Fuerst foresees a timely history lesson for her third-graders. One headline captures the connection between then and now:“New Links Found, May Aid Polio.” In the 1940s and 1950s, polio was a crippling disease that could cause paralysis.The virus frequently attacked children, but it also affected one famous figure, President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Today, the world is battling COVID-19 and is waiting for a vaccine. Another news item is on “meat rationing,” a part of the Depression and World War II familiar to older generations.
KATHY STEELE
Linda Fuerst, a third-grade teacher at Learning Gate Community School, takes a cellphone shot of a 1948 newspaper found in a time capsule.
“I talk about my parents a lot,” said Fuerst.“They grew up in the Depression and World War II.” Learning Gate teachers got a laugh out of one story, in particular, about teachers’ salaries being lower than that of craftsmen. Salaries ranged from a low of $2,812 to a high of $3,150. Advertisements from Maas Brothers highlighted fashionable clothing on sale at the iconic Tampa department store. The store closed in 1991 and was torn down in 2006. The comics and some language in the 1948 newspaper reveal some outdated
views on race and women. A brief news item notes the importance of the day for the Lutz church members – a cornerstone ceremony for the then-new church construction. The congregation traces its beginnings back nearly 100 years through church mergers and other church locations. The article described a concrete block building plastered with stucco, an auditorium measuring 30-by-50 feet, and a rear addition of about the same size. See CAPSULE, page 11A