NJG | Vol. 124, No. 26 - June 27, 2024

NEWJOURNAL & GUIDE NEW JOURNAL & GUIDE

Vol. 124, No. 26 | $1.50

June 27, 2024 - July 3, 2024

Serving Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Suffolk & The Peninsula Publishing since 1900 ... that no good cause shall lack a champion and evil shall not thrive unopposed. www.thenewjournalandguide.com

U.S. Surgeon General Declares Gun Violence A “Public Health Issue” In Landmark Advisory

By New Journal and Guide Staff Writer

WASHINGTON, D.C.

In a landmark advisory, the nation’s Top Doctor this week declared gun violence a public health crisis. It is a welcoming approach to curbing the devastation

caused by gun violence that many activists in Black communities have long advocated.

Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General, said to the Associated Press in releasing the advisory on Tuesday (June 25), “People want to be able to walk through their neighborhoods and be safe.

PART TWO

“America should be a place where all of us can go to school, go to work, go to the supermarket, go to our house of worship, without having to worry that that’s going to put our life at risk.”

The Surgeon General, whose advisory comes at the beginning of an excessively hot summer, wrote the rate of firearm-

40 ACRES AND A LIE

By Alexia Fernanandez Campbell, April Simpson and Pratheek Rebala Mother Jones Magazine

July+August 2024

Special to the New Journal and Guide

Despite getting started late into the growing season, and having no mules or agricultural equipment, the freedmen were succeeding, shocking many of their former slave owners, (Gen. Rufus)

Saxton reported back to headquarters in Washington, DC. “They have persevered with an industry and energy beyond our most sanguine expectations,” he wrote.

Life was far from perfect. For those who settled on the Sea Islands, such as Skidaway and Edisto, medical care was scarce. Those on the mainland faced the constant threat of white violence and little chance of justice if they fell victim to it. “The Negroes are frequently murdered, shot down in cold blood, without any provocation except their loyalty and because they assert their freedom,” Saxton relayed in a letter at the time.

“I hope and pray that our Government will not listen to the ex-parte statements of the old rulers of these States, many of whom are still traitors

40 Acres and A Lie tells the history of an oftenmisunderstood government program that gave formerly enslaved people land title after the Civil War. A year and a half later, almost all the land had been taken back.

at heart, and even now are seeking to grasp again the political power under the old flag,” Saxton added. “It will be bad for the Freedmen if these men again get into power.”

It wasn’t long before Saxton’s fears became a reality. In April 1865, just a month after creating the Freedmen’s Bureau, Lincoln was assassinated by actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. see 40 Acres, page 8A

Photo:WhatWeareOwed(Reparations):ChrisBurnett;Source images:LibraryofCongress;Photo12/UniversalImages Group/Getty;Freedmen’sBureauRecords(2); EmielMolenaar;EnginAkyurt;MatthewAlexander/Unsplash(3) A COLLABORATION BETWEEN:

Gov. Moore’s Cannabis Pardons

By Rosaland Tyler Associate Editor

that have been

it is

number of Black lives that Maryland Gov. Wes Moore may have improved when he recently signed an executive order that pardons 175,000 Maryland residents with low-level cannabis convictions. According to the website for Gov. Moore, “The order represents the largest pardon for misdemeanor cannabis possession charges for any state in the country.” The order also pardons paraphernalia possession. The historic executive order not only made Maryland the first state to take such action, it prompted multiple political and civic leaders to express their gratitude to Gov. Moore. In fact, you can read a long list of tributes to Moore on his official website. The long list of tributes includes comments from local, state and federal government leaders, who not only congratulated Moore but explained how the order will help many. For example, Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown pointed to how cannabis convictions have denied jobs, housing and education to cannabis offenders. see Moore page 8A

by

related deaths in America has been rising and reached a near three-decade high in 2021. This crisis is being driven, in particular, by increases in firearm-related homicides over the last decade and firearm-related suicides over the last two decades.

see Advisory, page 2A

“Mr. Silver Strings” Is Super Talented Music Man

By Leonard E. Colvin Chief Reporter Emeritus New Journal and Guide

Since 1979, June has been National AfricanAmerican Music Appreciation Month.

The nation is observing the legacy and contributions of African-American musicians, composers, and singers to the art form from Gospel, Soul, Jazz, Rock to the current dominant genre Hip-Hop.

At Portsmouth’s Olde Towne Farmers Market on Saturdays or at the recent Juneteenth celebration in Franklin, or any of the various events where he is booked to entertain, Thaddeus Coffey displays his mastery of the tools of musical creation.

Along with English, he is pro fi cient in six other languages and counting. A proud son of African Heritage, he has adapted a love of the Japanese language and culture.

He also has an interest in Astronomy, Quantum Physics and Aviation.

He has a lucrative business under the brand of “Mr. Silver Strings.”

During the recent Juneteenth Festival in Franklin, Jenice Coffey, his mother, joined him on the stage and narrated to the audience with colorful banter, the young prodigy’s movements from one instrument to another, silently and brilliantly.

Coffey, 21, is a selftrained master of more than 200 – and counting – musical instruments.

trained master of more than 200 – and counting – musical instruments.

The violin, various fl utes, Chinese erhu and bagpipes are among his favorites.

The Booker T. Washington High School graduate participated in orchestral programs in the Norfolk Public Schools system, Tidewater Community College and eventually, Hampton University. He has also begun the process of enrolling at Hampton University for Music and other courses. Coffey’s unique ability to quickly master an instrument allowed him to outpace his fellow students in a matter of weeks from the rear chair to the front. see Music, page 6A

Why Poor People Are America’s New “SWING VOTE”

By William J. Barber, II

If you’re an ordinary American who goes to work to pay the bills or takes care of a loved one most days, it’s easy to feel down when you see the headlines about the 2024 election. Donald J. Trump has been convicted of 34 felonies for falsifying business records to cover up hush money he paid to bury an alleged affair with a porn star during the 2016 campaign, and the Republican Party continues to think he’s their best candidate.

… the good news in 2024 is that poor and working people are the new s wing vote in U.S. politics.”

At the same time, President Biden is struggling to hold together his Democratic base as images of devastation in Gaza continue to dominate the news. Stories of good news in politics seem few and far between. But as a preacher, I learned a long time ago that you don’t get to the good news by looking away from problems; the good news is most often found right amid trouble. Yes, politics is a mess in 2024.

see Swing, page 2A

Thaddeus Coffey

Thaddeus Coffey, 21, is a self-

Gov. Moore signs executive order

Photo: Courtesy

But, at the same time, several popular movements of everyday people struggling for economic justice have emerged that have the potential to reshape our politics.

Against the backdrop of decades of rising inequality, low-wage worker movements have made huge strides since the pandemic, insisting that living wages are a moral issue for “essential workers” and seeing the largest increase in real wages in decades.

Young people who’ve watched education and healthcare costs soar have come together to form effective coalitions for debt relief and won billions in loan forgiveness. Leveraging worker power, unions have waged effective strikes and negotiated new contracts while expanding to include new workers, especially in the South. Though they’re rarely in the headlines, these movements made up of millions of low-income workers have the potential to re-frame political debates for people who are weary of the status quo.

The good news in 2024 is that poor and working people are the new swing vote in U.S. politics.

A report from Lake Research Partners demonstrates just how powerful this untapped coalition of low-income voters could be. Looking back at the past three Presidential elections, they found that in the seven states that will likely decide the 2024 election – Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, and Pennsylvania –low-income voter participation was an average of 12 percentage points lower than that of their higher-income voters.

Using past averages to project 2024 turnout, this study measured the difference between the margin of victory in the last Trump/Biden matchup and the number of eligible low-income voters who are likely not to vote. In Georgia, for example, Biden won by almost 12,000 votes in 2020. In North Carolina, he lost by 74,000. But in both states, more than a million eligible lowincome voters will likely not vote in 2024 if past trends continue. That’s a huge potential swing vote, and the proportions are similar across the seven swing states in the

Brenda H. Andrews

ASSISTANT TO

Desmond Perkins

ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Rosaland Tyler

CHIEF

study. Since the 2024 Presidential race will likely be a rematch of 2020, this study used exit poll data from 2020 to ask who unlikely lowincome voters would vote for if they did turn out in 2024. Of the 1.3 million likely nonvoters in Georgia, 746,000 would likely be Biden voters. Of the 1.1 million in North Carolina, some 594,000 would likely go for Biden.

In short, Biden and other Democrats have a huge advantage among this demographic when they are able and willing to vote. The overwhelming takeaway of this study is that a relatively small increase in low-income voter turnout in any of these seven states would dramatically increase Biden’s chances of winning a second term in the White House. The millions of low-income people who’ve risen as leaders in movements for economic justice over the past few years have the power to decide the outcome of the 2024 election.

Celinda Lake and her

June 21, 1969 Edition of the Guide

Chamber Project Brings Over 4,000 Summer Jobs

NORFOLK

More than 4,000 jobs have been made available under the Summer Jobs 1969 Project sponsored by the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce.

Although this exceeded the Chamber’s goal of 3,500 available jobs, nearly 5,000 young people between the ages of 16 and 21 have made applications for summer work.

“We still need more summer jobs made available by the business community to meet the demand,” said C.E. Thurston, Jr., President of the Norfolk Chamber.

Of the total of 4,120 summer jobs now being filled, 1,634 have been provided through the STOP agency, 1,447 by the Federal government, 859 by the business segments of the community, and 150 by the Mayor’s Youth Commission.

House Had No Authority To Bar Powell WASHINGTON, D.C.

The Supreme Court collided with the Congress by declaring the House of Representatives had no authority to bar Rep. Adam Clayton Powell from his seat two years ago. The Court’s and Chief Justice Earl Warren’s 7-1 ruling agreed with Powell’s argument that the U.S. House and Senate can refuse admission to an elected member only if he fails to meet three qualifications spelled out in the Constitution related to age, residency and citizenship.

House members angered at the Court’s ruling irately vowed they would not foot the bill for the Harlem Democrat’s back pay even if the Court orders them to pay it.

They said the Constitution gives the House the exclusive right to judge the qualifications

In short, Biden and other Democrats have a huge advantage among this demographic (of poor people) when they are able and willing to vote. The overwhelming takeaway of this study is that a relatively small increase in low-income voter turnout in any of these seven states would dramatically increase Biden’s chances of winning a second term in the White House.

research partners are consultants for the Biden campaign, and there is a focus on the potential for his candidacy in 2024, but the potential power of this swing vote is much larger than one election or even one political party.

Both Democrats and Republicans have ignored low-income voters for decades precisely because they are unlikely voters. But when the nonpartisan Poor People’s Campaign, which I serve as a cochair, surveyed poor people to ask why they don’t vote, the number one reason they gave was, “No one speaks to us.”

This is why our campaign has committed to holding a Mass Poor People’s and Low-Wage Worker’s Assembly in Washington, D.C., on June 29th. We are bringing the everyday people who’ve demanded better wages from their bosses to Washington and

insist that Republicans, Democrats, and Independents make clear what they will do to address the needs of 135 million Americans who are living on the edge in the richest nation in the history of the world.

And we are committing to go home to our communities and reach 15 million of the unlikely low-income voters with the message that they have power in 2024. If they show up, especially in seven key states, their votes will decide the outcome in 2024. When they do, they will be able to help shape the reconstruction of an American democracy that works for all of us.

William J. Barber, II is President of Repairers of the Breach and author of the new White Poverty: How Exposing Myths About Race and Class Can Reconstruct American Democracy.

Advisory

Continued from page 1A

Across all firearm-related deaths in 2022, more than half (56.1 percent) were from suicide, 40.8 percent were from homicide, and the remaining were from legal intervention, unintentional injuries, and injuries of unknown intent.

The advisory addresses the mental toll and stress on American citizens from the possibility of a mass shooting, and notes that one in three adults (33 percent) say fear prevents them from going to certain places or events.

“Beyond the profound consequences of surviving a firearm-related injury, those who do not experience direct bodily harm often grapple with mental health consequences related to firearm violence exposure, including community members, children and adolescents, and families,” the report observes.

Among the recommendations and proposals Murthy’s report offers are hospitalcommunity partnerships to connect those who have experienced violence, or are at risk for violence; education on safe and secure firearm storage; safe and supportive physical environments and housing; equitable access to high-quality education and health care; opportunities for employment and economic growth; increased access to affordable, highquality mental health care, substance use treatment,

From The Guide’s Archives

The safety and well-being of our children and future generations are at stake.”

– Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy

and other trauma-informed resources.

In addition to communitybased prevention strategies, Murthy called for policy makers to implement universal background checks and expand purchaser licensing laws; ban assault weapons and large-capacity magazines for civilian use; and treat firearms like other consumer products. The report notes there are no federal standards or regulations regarding the safety of firearms produced in the U.S. Murthy said while many experts and leaders are working ion the gun violence issue. It will take more of the collective commitment of the nation – to turn the tide on the crisis of firearm violence in America.

“A public health approach can guide our strategy and actions, as it has done in the past with successful efforts to address tobacco-related disease and motor vehicle crashes. It is up to us to take on this generational challenge with the urgency and clarity the moment demands. The safety and well-being of our children and future generations are at stake.”

Archives taken from the pages of the (New) Journal and Guide

of a member. But the Court said only the Constitution did.

Powell, 60, but does not look anywhere near it, got the news in Bimini, his hideaway in the Bahamas. He was pleased.

Relaxing on his yacht, the longest-serving Negro member of Congress said, “It means the judicial; branch of government has re-established itself as one of the three branches of government. Instead of being secondary.

His ouster was based on charges by a unique House investigating committee that the legislator had been contemptuous of the House, defiant of New York courts, and uncooperative with House committees looking into his spending of government funds and other activities while chairman of the House Labor and Education Committees.

Smaller Loans To Negro Farmers, Report Reveals

WASHINGTON, D.C.

The Agricultural Department’s Farmers House Association (FHA) has made a comparatively large number of loans to southern Negro farmers but gave them much smaller amounts than it offered to whites with similar assets, a study indicates.

It appears the FHA was indeed dealing with the small low-income class of borrowers it was designed to serve and was generally not competing with other credit agencies.

In general, southern farmers were given smaller loans than farmers with similar operations in other parts of the country.

“But nearly two-fifths of the new FHA borrowers in the South were Negroes, even though the 1964 census reported that nonwhite farmers made up less than 15 percent of all farm operators in the South.

Loans to non-Whites averaged less than one-half the size of loans to white borrowers in the same region and asset class, the report said.

The report added that some of the differences in loan size “may reflect lower repaying capacity of Negro farmers.” It pointed out that non-White farmers generally had lower incomes and smaller farms than their white counterparts in similar asset groups.

Differing types of farm operations and more significant numbers of dependents in Negro families were other factors.

Willis, The New Principal of Beach School

VIRGINIA BEACH

Charles A. Willis, an administrative assistant at Union Kempsville High School, has been appointed the first Black principal of the predominately white Plaza Elementary School in Virginia Beach.

Willis, a native of Jamesville, N.C., received his B.S. degree and M.A. from A &T State University and Hampton Institute, respectively. He studied at Norfolk State College and is married to the former Nancy Bloomfield of Hamlet, N.C. They have a 10-year-old daughter.

Berkley Citizens Honor Beacon Light League

By Mozella G. Mitchell

NORFOLK

The Beacon Light Civic League, Inc., of Berkley, was honored for its effective work and achievements on June 8.

Several prominent citizens of Norfolk commended the organization at a meeting held at the STOP Neighborhood Center on Liberty Street.

The featured speaker was Dr. William P. Robinson, chairman of the Department of Political Science at Norfolk State College (NSC) and candidate for the Virginia House of Delegates.

Robinson commended Berkley citizens and Beacon Light for

effectively participating in the Model Citizens Project and the Urban Renewal programs.

“I am proud of the fact,” he stated, “that in this community and three other neighborhoods, they can see destiny and purpose.”

The three other neighborhoods which are playing an effective role in the Model Cities Project are Brambleton, East Ghent and Lindenwood.

The league presented a service award to Rufus Bryant, and his son Edward Bryant received it for him.

Horace Downing stated in his presentation that Bryant was an ardent worker who served as their “unofficial Councilman.”

He attended the city council meetings every Tuesday and brought back significant information and developments to the league.

Hampton Festival

Brings The Greatest Names In Jazz

HAMPTON

The second annual Hampton Jazz Festival will play host to many of the greatest names in jazz when festivities get underway in Armstrong Stadium at Hampton Institute on June 27.

Leading the list of top performers will be the ageless Duke Ellington, and his Orchestra.

Recently honored at the White House on the occasion of his 70th birthday, the Duke continues to be one of the most vital and exciting figures in the world of jazz today.

He will be joined during the opening concert on June 27 by Sly and the Family Stone, YoungHolt Unlimited, Roland Kirk, George Benson, and Herbie Hancock.

Two contemporary jazz giants will team up on June 28 when Gerry Mulligan and the Dave Brubeck Trio play some of the most relaxed and inventive jazz to be heard today.

A great female vocalist

and instrumentalist of jazz will also be featured that evening, including Nina Simone, aptly titled the “High Priestess of Soul.”

The Choice Of The Booker T. Site May Not Solve The Dilemma

NORFOLK

Although the Norfolk School Board was scheduled to reveal its choice of a site for the new B.T. Washington High School (BTWHS) this week, the question as to where it will finally be located still remains the thorny issue in the city’s efforts to desegregate its public schools. The school board’s choice of a site was slated to be revealed when it released its long-range desegregation plans. However, the plan must be submitted to the U.S. District Court, where a trial is set for Sept. 3, and it will be approved or rejected by the Court and appealed by the NAACP to the Justice Department.

In 1965 the board voted to rebuild BTWHS on an expanded site at its present location. But attorneys representing the NAACP objected to the proposal and gave the season for their objection that the new school in the predominately Negro neighborhood would perpetuate segregation.

According to Vincent J. Thomas, Chair of the board, the location of the new school is part of the longrange plan and it cannot be implemented until it is built.

In a called meeting, a group of selected Negro citizens were briefed on the board’s plan, which will begin during the 19070-71 school year.

Among the group were Mrs. Vivian Carter Mason; Frank Bowe, chairman of the Model Cities program; Dr. Milton A. Reid, Pastor of the New Calvary Baptist Church and an official of the SCLC; Lenious Bond of the Brambleton Model City group; Alice Green of Rosemont area; and William E. Talley of Titustown.

Bishop William Barber

PROFESSOR EMERITUS OF SOCIOLOGY

VIRGINIA TECH

REV. JAMES LAWSON, PASTOR AND CIVIL RIGHTS PIONEER – PART 1

By Wornie Reed, Ph.D.

Rev. James Lawson, a civil rights pioneer, died earlier this month. Although not well-known to the broader public, Lawson significantly influenced generations of civil rights, labor, and peace activists. His work with civil rights activists was pivotal, as he taught many of the young leaders of the Civil Rights Movement.

Born in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, in 1928, Lawson was the son and grandson of Methodist pastors. Not surprisingly, he became a minister right after high school.

As he was finishing his bachelor’s degree at Baldwin Wallace College, Lawson, a pacifist, was imprisoned for 13 months for refusing to register for the draft. Following his parole in 1952, he went to India as a missionary for the Methodist church.

Lawson was introduced to Gandhi’s non-violent philosophy when he joined the Fellowship of Reconciliation, America’s oldest pacifist organization.

In India for three years, he immersed himself in Gandhi’s philosophy, studying Gandhi’s use of nonviolence to achieve social and political change.

Lawson returned to the United States in 1956 and entered the school of theology at Oberlin College. In 1957, he met Martin Luther King when King came to Oberlin to speak. The two men discussed their mutual commitment to non-violence.

Lawson mentioned his thoughts about going to the South and espousing nonviolence. King strongly suggested that Lawson should come South and do so soon, as no one like him was working down there. This meant that they did not have Black men and Black clergypersons with non-violent backgrounds like Lawson’s. Lawson told

Martin Luther King called Lawson “the leading theorist and strategist of non-violence in the world.”

King that he would do so as soon as he could.

A note here about nonviolence and the South: during and right after the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, many Northerners assumed that non-violence was the natural state of African-Americans in the South, thus making King’s push for nonviolence readily acceptable.

Of course, that was not the case. Southern Blacks had to be convinced about the non-violent tactic, and Rev. Lawson was the principal figure teaching people, especially the leaders, about the morality and usefulness of non-violence.

The following year, after meeting King, Lawson moved south to Nashville.

The Fellowship of Reconciliation appointed him as a field secretary, where his main task was to travel around the South and give workshops on non-violence for social change.

In 1959, Lawson enrolled as a divinity student at Vanderbilt University. While there, he also organized workshops on non-violence in church basements for community members, Vanderbilt students, and students at the city’s four Black colleges. Lawson believed that a non-violent movement would end segregation. He taught that this effort would require physical courage, unshakable conviction, and a willingness to forgive those who beat them.

Lawson was a master strategist and careful planner. Small groups of Black and White students engaged in role-playing exercises in his workshops.

Some played angry White racists pounding on protesters while calling them racist epithets. He

taught them to withstand the taunts, slurs, and blows of the segregationists and to protect themselves without retaliating.

Significantly, some of Lawson’s proteges –including Diane Nash, Marion Berry, John Lewis, James Bevel, and Bernard Lafayette – became leaders in the movement.

When the famous first sitin occurred in Greensboro, North Carolina, in February 1960, students in Nashville wanted to follow suit immediately. After Lawson’s crash course in non-violence, hundreds of these students held a massive sit-in in downtown Nashville the next day. These students received brutal treatment by the police, who arrested more than 150 students.

Lawson helped organize Nashville’s Black community, which was outraged by the students’ treatment. Sit-ins grew and intensified, and downtown businesses suffered, causing business leaders to pressure the mayor and city council to resolve the controversy.

In a march to city hall, Diane Nash famously asked the mayor if he felt discrimination against people of color was wrong. His answer was yes, beginning the desegregation of the city’s lunch counters.

Two months later, after hundreds of student sitins across the country, the young leaders in Nashville were vital participants in the formation of SNCC (Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee).

Lawson was the keynote speaker, spurring the organization to use nonviolence as a tactic.

Martin Luther King called Lawson “the leading theorist and strategist of non-violence in the world.”

EXTREME HEAT: A Wake-Up Call To Act On Climate Change

By Ben Jealous (TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM)

Are you one of the more than 100 million Americans who live somewhere that was (or still is) under a heat advisory?

As I write these words, the mercury is soaring. The world is reeling from the deadly impact of extreme heat and weather events. This is climate change in action. We are living it. And the thermometer-busting temperatures are just the tip of the (melting) iceberg.

Jocelyn Richards of Manassas, Virginia is currently staying in Maine to escape the summer heat in the South. She suffers from Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) from past exposure to mold. Heat is a major trigger for her due to Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), a common component of CIRS. Richards says, “Not only is the heat itself a major trigger, but heat releases VOCs [volatile organic compounds] from asphalt. It becomes unbearable to even take a walk outside or run errands because it’s so

CARRTOON By

Walt Carr

Black Athletes Are Black Men And Women First

By David W. Marshall (TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM)

During a recent Fox Sports pregame show appearance, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson was asked about his return to Birmingham, Alabama’s Rickwood Field, where he played 114 games in the minor leagues. His powerful response was a stark reminder of how sports, as a social institution, is not immune to the darkest side of bigotry.

Sports plays a significant role in shaping an individual’s personal growth. In addition to the benefits of physical fitness, sports are instrumental in building a person’s character, developing strategic and analytical thinking, leadership skills, risk-taking, becoming selfdisciplined, and making personal sacrifices. With sports comes the type of social interaction where the concepts of teamwork, unity, brotherhood, and camaraderie are molded, shaped, and refined. It was the brotherhood and camaraderie from teammates that made it possible for Jackson, as a Black professional athlete, to endure the onslaught of racism in the Deep South. Jackson said, “I wouldn’t

difficult to breathe from the VOCs in the air. Along with other MCAS symptoms triggered by the heat like tachycardia, high blood pressure, and dizziness, it can quickly turn into a medical emergency if I’m out in the extreme heat for even half an hour.”

Richards is still looking for a permanent place to reside with mild temperatures and low levels of the environmental toxins that also trigger her illness. And stories like hers are increasingly common. A host of illnesses are caused or dangerously exacerbated by extreme heat. Air quality is generally worse during periods of extreme

A host of illnesses are caused or dangerously exacerbated by extreme heat.

heat. Ground-level ozone –the main component in smog – presents one such threat. It is produced when pollutants, like those from burning fossil fuels, react with heat and sunlight. The stagnant, hot air during heat waves worsens ozone pollution.

The infamous 2022 summer heat wave in Europe is now thought to be responsible for up to 70,000 excess deaths, with ozone pollution playing a big part. Julie Nicely, an atmospheric chemist at the University of Maryland who worked on a report on the 2022 heat wave, noted the mix of conditions created by such a heat wave “is very bad for the lungs and the cardiovascular system. It’s just very unhealthy.” see Heat, page 6A

By Dr. E. Faye Williams, Esq. (Ret.) (TRICEEDNEYWIRE.COM)

I spent the last week in Canada with friends from all over the world. They were so attentive to the lectures and the tour and they were eager to learn more about Harriet Tubman.

We were attending a conference as guests of the National Policy Alliance –Canada. The conference host and Executive Director of NPA – Canada was Honorable Allister Coward. He is a member of the World Conference of Mayors as I am. He was assisted by Kendra Fipps, Don Mathias, Donna Marshall and others. What a great learning experience! We were reminded of our need to teach our history, but we can’t teach it if we don know it.

Mayor Johnny Ford, Founder of the World Conference of Mayors, led our team to Canada, with Mayor Jimmie Gardner of Pritchard, AL and President of WCM; Rev. Darryl Johnson of Mound Bayou, Ms. Hon. De’Keither Stamps (Public Service Commissioner for Central Mississippi District; Mayor Alberta C. McCrory of Hobson City, AL, leader of Historically Black Towns and Cities Alliance. Additionally,

wish it on anyone.”

He continued, “At the same time, had it not been for my white friends, had it not been for a white manager, and [Joe] Rudi, [Rollie] Fingers and [Dave] Duncan, and Lee Meyers, I would never have made it. I was too physically violent. I was ready to physically fight some – I would have got killed here because I would have beat someone’s ass, and you would have saw me in an oak tree somewhere.”

Society identifies and then defines individual athletes as either a sports hero or a sports villain. The reality facing the Black athlete, from the past, present, or future, extends from the fact that the color of a person’s skin can at any time be used to label and target them as a sports villain. Sports fans, through their racial hate, can turn an arena and stadium from a sports venue into a hostile and harsh

Dr. Abdoulaye Mbengue, member of the WCM as its Vice-President for Africa. All of us were conference speakers. Our team heard from many others.

We had a tour to Buxton, Canada. It was established in 1849 as a community for and by former African descent enslaved people who escaped to Canada to gain freedom. We had an opportunity to visit museums, schools, and we were treated to a masterful drama about Harriet Tubman who left our nation, knowing what problems the Fugitive Slave Law would present for people like her. She decided to make her exit and take others with her. If people were caught, they would’ve been severely punished – so Harriet was able to lead all who went with her safely by following her Underground Railroad. All the speakers included

The reality facing the Black athlete, from the past, present, or future, extends from the fact that the color of a person’s skin can at any time be used to label and target them as a sports villain.

environment of hate toward any Black athlete targeted as the villain.

In 1983, Georgetown University basketball head coach John Thompson pulled his team off the court after Villanova fans displayed multiple racist signs targeting star player Patrick Ewing. Fans held up signs reading “Ewing is an Ape” and “Ewing can’t read,” while another student wore a T-shirt reading “Ewing Kant Read Dis.” One fan threw a banana peel on the court when Ewing was announced during the pregame introductions. see Athletes, page 6A It’s our responsibility to teach young people our stories –because they don’t always hear them when we rely on others to tell a story they neither share nor live!

Harriet’s triumphs, and added remarks about our working together as Mayor Ford always reminds us in the WCM and HBTSA about the benefits of working together to make progress in economic development and other areas for our communities. He reminds us often that “We Are together.” That calls for working together and doing business with each other. Harriet had no fear leading others to freedom. After returning from Canada, she joined the Union Army as a nurse, cook, military scout and spy. She was successful in all those areas.

see Tubman, page 6A

Dr. E. Faye Williams, Esq. (Ret.)

David W. Marshall

GENERAL HARRIET TUBMAN

Ben Jealous

Music

Continued from page 1A

His mother, who works in the IT Department at Norfolk State University, is a protective lioness and “Momager” of her youngest offspring.

On the low end of the Autistic spectrum, this may be the partial clue to his unique abilities.

He could not talk until he was four, but he could read beyond his levels and had exceptional hearing, especially with music, according to his mother.

He recalls that his fascination with playing the violin began at age 4 as well. He heard a violin solo on a radio in his mother’s office shortly after he began speaking.

“I asked her what was playing,” he recalled. “She said it was a violin. I told her I wanted one, that it stood out to me as something unique.”

But due to the expense of hiring a teacher, constant travelling and other factors, his wish was denied.

Instead, his mother bought him a guitar and paid for lessons.

But one day his teacher called and told her “Come get your son, he is not interested in learning the guitar,” but he did know how to play it.

Then the family was off to Japan. His mother, a traveling Defense Department Civil Servant, managed a commissary at a Marine Base.

While overseas, her son immersed himself into the Japanese language and culture. During his time growing up there, he had secured the ability to play the various instruments used for music in the land of the rising sun.

When the family returned, he landed in the sixth grade Orchestra at Norfolk’s Blair Middle School.

“The first instrument I saw was the violin,” he recalled, “My wish had come through.”

But his mother was

Athletes

Continued from page 4A

Bill Russell led the University of San Francisco to two NCAA championships and an Olympic gold medal before entering the NBA. During his 13-year playing career, Russell holds the record for the most NBA championships with 11 titles. Russell is widely considered to be one of the greatest basketball players of all time. He changed the league landscape through his defensive brilliance and lightning–quick passes that initiated the Celtics’ fastbreak offense. The racism he endured would sometimes spill into his personal life when, in 1963, he returned home only to find it broken into and vandalized with racial slurs and feces on his bed. Such instances solidified Russell’s belief that his greatness and success as an athlete would never overcome societal racism. Regardless, he remained determined not to let the racial slurs deter his on-court performance.

Tubman

Continued from page 4A

In view of all the efforts to set back our progress, we emphasized the importance of telling our stories since when others tell them for us, they don’t often talk about what our ancestors went through to get us where we are today. Our speakers emphasized the fact that if our children don’t know our story, it means we didn’t teach them. It’s our responsibility to teach young people our stories –

still reluctant, fearing he would quickly abandon it like the guitar. Initially renting one through the school, he later acquired his own thanks to the proceeds from family yard sales and a gift from a pastor.

Without the benefit of years of training by instructors, Coffey has mastered instruments around understanding the similarity of the “anatomy” of each class of instruments. The classes are strings (violin), woodwinds (flutes), brass (horns), percussion (drums) and others.

Coffey converted his new found love and mastery into an enterprise in junior high. While waiting for his mother to scoop him up from school, he would practice his violin out in public. On his first day, someone dropped a $5 bill into his case. In Britain it’s called

“That was never a factor. Fans all over the country were racist and obnoxious, some places more and some less,” Russell said. “But I never permitted that to have an adverse effect on my playing.”

Bill Russell and Patrick Ewing’s professional careers exemplify their character and resilience to excel as players despite the harsh racial adversity they faced.

One can easily say that the verbal taunts they received motivated them to be better players on the court. The same athlete racially targeted as a sports villain by one group is also the hero by another group.

Regardless, famed athletes have become a money-making commodity for educational institutions like Georgetown and Villanova. Like music, film, and television, sports are a business subset of the entertainment industry. Collegiate sports have become an economic vehicle for cities and educational institutions. One cannot forget the wealth, power, and prestige that topskilled Black athletes bring to their colleges and universities. It is not by accident that in the two money-making sports,

because they don’t always hear them when we rely on others to tell a story they neither share nor live!

Speakers who have museums emphasized the importance of our building museums and putting up memorials to teach what some of our ancestors did. Listen to some of the songs of our past, and learn their meaning. For starters are Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On,” James Brown’s “I’m Black and I’m Proud,” Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes “Wake Up Everybody – No More Sleeping in Bed,” “Precious Lord” and so many more that have messages others

He allows them to attempt to play an instrument they fancy, and he gives instruction on doing so.

“I love teaching and sharing my gift to other people,” said Coffey. “People are surprised that learning to play an instrument is not that hard.”

Coffey just recently taught one of his blind pupils how to play the Bagpipes and march with a band in a parade.

After middle school, Coffey joined the Orchestra of Granby High School. Again, with ease, he moved up the ladder quickly towards the first chair.

He detected resentment due to his unique skills, having realized that a Black male possessing

Heat

Continued from page 4A

such skills was a threat to some. “One day after practice, they set me up. They blocked me from leaving the room, then another student came in and knocked me down, hoping I would retaliate and be kicked out of the program as a troublemaker. But I did not respond.”

His mother, irate, confronted the school leadership. She withdrew him from Granby and enrolled him at Booker T. Washington High School.

“A child like Thaddeus, who is gifted, is always targeted,” his mother said.

“I kept my shoes on ... prepared to go to a school to stand up and protect my child. This was the worst case.”

At BTWHS, he socially and academically

still could be as bad as or worse than last year’s.

flourished, especially in music. Shy and awkward, instead of being bullied, he was embraced and protected by his fellow students. He was even named the school’s ambassador to the community.

Mr. Silver Strings added “and Bagpipes” to his brand due to a very interesting turn of events about a year ago.

On some days at The Legend Brewery in Portsmouth, Coffey would join in on the Celtic Jam sessions hosted by international fiddling champion Sean Heely with his violin and other instruments.

The group was asked to play on the night the establishment would close for good. see Music, page 7A

windstorm, are becoming more frequent.

“busting” where a singer or instrumentalist stands outside of venues and entertains patrons standing in “queues” or the “line,” awaiting service.

He instructed his mother to delay collecting him from school so he could collect more donations.

This is how his brand, “Mr. Silver Strings,” was born.

The young entrepreneur also began teaching people how to play instruments, repairing them and composing via an enterprise called the Music Department.

He also established a workshop component where he builds, modifies and repairs instruments.

Coffey said during various events regardless of the weather, he mans a kiosk, where all of his instruments are on display. When the curious stop and pose questions, he then offers his “one minute music challenge.”

football and basketball, Black athletes have the highest concentration compared to golf, tennis, and baseball.

Black athletes are Black men and women first. The motivating factors behind those in the stands yelling racial taunts or carrying offensive signs come down to how they view a Black man or woman who they feel has something to offer that will benefit them personally or benefit the causes they publicly support.

What type of reaction would Patrick Ewing receive from both schools if he switched school jerseys?

Would the Villanova fans and students who yelled racist comments at Ewing do so if he wore a Villanova jersey? It’s the same Black man, but a different jersey. In both cases, the racist thoughts and beliefs about him are still there. When they are cheering the Black athlete representing their team, the racist feelings are still there, just suppressed for political correctness.

David W. Marshall is the founder of the faith-based organization TRB: The Reconciled Body and author of the book God Bless Our Divided America.

can’t possibly know –especially DeSantis and Trump. They don’t know our stories.

We’re still facing many challenges, but let’s learn more about ancestors like Harriet Tubman. Working together we can heal our broken places.

Sit at the knee of our elders and ask them questions. You will know why it’s mandatory for you to know our stories and vote in every election!

Dr. E. Faye Williams, President of The Dick Gregory Society and President Emerita of The National Congress of Black Women.

Then there is the smoke from wildfires. In addition to the destruction they cause, wildfires are making it harder for millions of Americans to breathe. It is a problem that is getting worse with longer, hotter fire seasons – another feature of climate change. The still-burning Post Fire northwest of Los Angeles is just the most recent highprofile fire in California to get national attention. And wildfire smoke has now become an issue for even more parts of the country.

At one point last summer, Chicago officially had the worst air quality in the world.

Other major American cities across the Midwest and East Coast were similarly impacted, as smoke pollution from Canadian wildfires poured over the continent. The threat of a repeat this summer is still there. Wildfires in Canada are still raging, and experts say the 2024 season

In places where the wildfires occur, once the flames subside, flooding becomes a threat. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the removal of trees and shrubs increases the speed and volume of runoff and hot fires can “create a water-repellent layer of topsoil, which further amplifies runoff volume and speed,” increasing the risk of flash floods. The heat itself dries out the ground and makes water absorption more difficult, which creates a threat of flash floods. And “warming seawater can fuel stronger, more destructive hurricanes.”

NOAA predicts an 85 percent chance of an above-normal hurricane season this year.

Beyond the threat of hurricanes along our eastern and southern coasts, inland storms are a growing threat for more and more Americans. The regions impacted by serious tornados are expanding. And oncerare derechos, another kind of incredibly destructive

Sadly, the list goes on. We must invest in climateresilient infrastructure and support communities most affected by climate change. The more than $1 billion investment by the Biden-Harris administration to expand shade-producing and air-cleaning tree canopies in cities across the country is one example.

At the end of the day, though, when it comes to the cascade of devastation caused by rising temperatures, there can be no substitute for tackling the climate crisis head on. First and foremost, that means hastening our transition from an economy that runs on fossil fuels to one powered by clean, renewable energy. The extreme heat and weather events we’re experiencing are not only a wake-up call. They are an immediate call to action to redouble our efforts towards that transition.

Ben Jealous is the Executive Director of the Sierra Club and a Professor of Practice at the University of Pennsylvania.

Thaddeus Coffey

Photo: Courtesy

BACHELOR-BENEDICT SOCIAL CLUB OF NORFOLK PROUDLY PRESENTS ITS 2024 DEBUTANTES

NORFOLK

The Bachelor-Benedict Social Club of Norfolk will hold their Annual Debutante Presentations in a ceremony on Sunday June 30, 2024 at Mt. Gilead Baptist Church in Norfolk, Virginia. The Social Club notes on its Facebook page that it is the oldest African-American organization in the Tidewater area. It is observing 101 years in 2024.

Continued from page 6A

Coffey recalled that after his fellow jamsters marched out of the bar’s doors, he was approached to join a Norfolk Bagpipe band by his now former pipe majors; they had played in the session with their bagpipes along with the Celtic group.

Black artists are not linked with the Scottish Bagpipes, for they were the Celtic instrument of war and provided high honor to fallen soldiers, police officers, royalty and other important figures.

Coffey has managed to change that idea.

He agreed and within weeks, advanced from the elementary to a viable level of performance of the instrument.

His gift is from God. How else can you explain it?”

– Jenice Coffey

band and soon established the new Portsmouth Pipes Pipe band, where he has ascended to the rank of Pipe Major. Whether it be through music or another discipline, Coffey said he wants to share his unique gifts. “I want to give back to my community,” he said. “I have been given so much, I want to share my gifts so others can enjoy music and the instruments we use to create it.”

“People ask me how he does it,” his mother said, “His gift is from God. How else can you explain it?” Music

He left his former pipe

Alexandra Steward Salem HS

Illyana Turner Norview HS

Makayla Parker Salem HS

Rhyan White Western Branch HS

Cidra Robert-Johnson Churchland HS

Iyana Taylor Franklin HS

Malye Hawes Landstown HS

Reygan White Western Branch

Cyla

Janae Tunstall Princess Anne HS Michaela

Shamir Jones Bayside HS

Giselle Yates Oscar Smith HS

Kynnadi Robbins Indian River HS

Mya Truesdale Landstown HS

Trindadee Battle Franklin HS

Thaddeus on the Bagpipes.

Photo: Courtesy

Lincoln’s successor, Andrew Johnson, was an avowed white supremacist who moved quickly to pardon many former Confederates and return their land.

“[Johnson] used executive power very, very skillfully to undermine transfer of land to Black people, and to really hamstring the Freedmen’s Bureau,” said Donald Nieman, a history professor at Binghamton University. He added that Johnson acted out of personal prejudice toward the freedmen, but also political expediency.

“By restoring land and by giving pardons to the former landowners in the South, he thought he could make that group of people beholden to him politically.”

General Oliver Howard, the head of the Freedmen’s Bureau, traveled to South Carolina in October 1865 and told the Black families gathered at a church on Edisto Island, south of Charleston, that the president had pardoned their former enslavers, according to the diary of a teacher who was there.

Howard suggested that the freedmen could work for the planters, urging them to lay aside bitter feelings and reconcile with their former enslavers.

“No, never,” the people murmured, according to the teacher’s account.

“Can’t do it,” they said. They burst into song, singing about “wandering in the wilderness of sorrow and gloom.”

For more than a year, a

battle raged over who was entitled to the land – the former Confederates or the formerly enslaved.

master, who had driven him off, helpless and hungry, to fi nd food and shelter as best he could.”

season of planting is near and therefore important to get the matter arranged soon.”

While it is unclear if any

of the formerly enslaved were truly interested in working for Habersham again, the appeals on his behalf worked. Within

Moore

Continued from page 1A

“The enforcement of cannabis laws has disproportionately and overwhelmingly burdened communities of color. Opportunities were denied because those who were convicted faced steep obstacles to jobs, education, and housing,” Brown said in a recent statement on the website for Gov. Moore.

Others applauded Moore’s recent June 17, 2024 executive order including NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson, who said in a statement after Maryland’s first Black governor signed and issued the historic executive order, “The NAACP has long known that the War on Drugs was a war on Black America. As we move away from the regressive policies of the past, it’s crucial that our leaders assist in building new futures for those impacted. For decades, communities of color have been torn down by the hands of injustice and imprisoned at disproportionate rates due to discriminatory policies.”

The NAACP added in a statement on its website, “The Governor’s brave

That prompted Johnson to dispatch two generals to ensure that the former slaveholders were reinstalled as landowners.

By the time Congress took up another Freedmen’s Bureau bill in the summer of 1866, most of the land had been taken back. Lawmakers eventually mustered enough votes to override Johnson’s veto and pass a weaker bill that gave a few scraps to some formerly enslaved people who had received land titles and were still on that land. The law swapped out their titles for warrants that allowed them to buy up to 20 acres for $1.50 per acre on government land in Beaufort County, South Carolina, far less than they had originally been promised.

In parts of the South, violence broke out as former rebels returned to plots that had since been occupied by the emancipated. One Freedmen’s Bureau agent reported that a 12-year-old boy had been “battered and bruised” by “his former

For more than a year, a battle raged over who was entitled to the land –the former Confederates or the formerly enslaved. Legislation that would have codified Sherman’s field orders into federal law made it through Congress, but was vetoed by Johnson. The Freedmen’s Bureau resisted, insisting the property now belonged to the emancipated men and women. “They felt that they had earned the land. They’re the ones who had tamed the land, cultivated the land,” said Damani Davis, the archivist who oversees the National Archives’ Freedmen’s Bureau collection. “Their family and ancestors were buried in the land.

Armed members of the Ogeechee Home Guards revolted, landing several of them in jail. (“The declared intention of the Negroes is to make it impossible for white men to live in this section and then take possession of the plantation themselves,” the Savannah Morning News reported.)

Many other freedmen on the South Carolina Sea Islands refused to work for their former enslavers.

Among the white Southerners trying to reclaim the rice plantations lost following the war was William Habersham, one of the previous owners of Grove Hill. In January 1866, nine months after Jackson received his 4 acres, Habersham swore his allegiance to the Union and sought a presidential pardon. He enlisted Dan Talmage, a well-connected friend in New York, to make his case.

“His former slaves wish to labor for him & he is willing to pay them wages or give them a fair share proportion of the crop,” Talmage wrote to one of his senators in Washington, DC. “I beg therefore that you use your influence to return him from his embarrassment. The

The order represents the largest pardon for misdemeanor cannabis possession charges for any state in the country.

decision to pardon these 175,000 Americans will provide them with a newfound ability to attain opportunity. We will continue to advocate for, and applaud all policy reforms that repair injustices inflicted on our community. As we celebrate today, we look toward tomorrow, pushing for similar policies across the nation. Together, we will mold a future that shines a light over the darkness of our nation’s past.”

Others who celebrated Gov. Moore’s recent executive order include University of Baltimore School of Law Center for Criminal Justice Reform Executive Director Heather Warnken, who said, “This courageous action by Governor Moore is an important piece of a much bigger puzzle of addressing the devastating drug war which disproportionately harmed, and continues to harm, marginalized Black and brown communities. We celebrate this historic win and look forward to partnering with the administration on the work ahead.”

Baltimore City Mayor Brandon M. Scott said, “We still see and feel the wounds every day in the lives, families, and communities that were disrupted and destroyed. Today’s action to pardon these more than 175,000 convictions is a step towards healing. For those receiving the pardons –which includes thousands upon thousands of Baltimoreans – it will be life changing.”

Moore’s executive order also directs the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services to develop a process to indicate on an individual’s criminal record that the conviction was pardoned. This process is expected to take approximately 10 months to complete. Individuals do not need to take any action to receive the pardon. After the Judiciary updates the electronic dockets to reflect the pardon, a process that should take approximately two weeks, individuals can check online or at a public kiosk at any courthouse in the state to verify whether they were included in the pardon.

Celebrate The Fourth of July

BY DELORES DUDLEY HAMPTON ROADS ʼ POET,

Every year, it has become crystal clear that most Americans honor The Fourth as a day very dear, and many in reverie recall an earlier time as their best day of all and just simply divine,

And then they plan to celebrate this holiday so great:

So, Let there be fireworks that light up the sky,and let there be shouts of victory, For though we are troubled on many a day now, We still hope in our future to be absolutely set FREE!

Now, The Fourth of July began in 1776 when America united as its colonies would become all as one, a nation now free from her British Connection, free from its control and its governing hold, free to be the founder of her own country and free to be the leader of democracy.

And so bells rang out and people did shout and fireworks put on their show, And cannons ʼ fires were sounded so loudly, for America wanted the whole nation to know,

That England would always be an ally and a special friend, but America would stand now as the leader of the one day, free world and would never be ruled by England again.

So the Fourth of July is a symbol of how independence does feel: And it feels in reality like being released from oneʼ s overseer ʼ s rule and returned to his or her first love for real.

Now, as years have gone by, The Fourth has become more of a holiday of families, Who attend proud parades or camp out in the park or have picnics that last endlessly, For no matter what event that you attend, immediately you will gain a new friend, For everywhere you will see joy

quietly glowing on happy faces,

For freedom did have a price, and all of our ancestors paid for it years ago in many places, long before America purchased the ideas of liberty and much more the embracing of diversity.

And so let John Philip Sousa ʼ s music play, and let marching bands move along,

And let all military men and women proudly in step perform as they march on to a Sousa song,

And view a sea of our red,white, and blue flags waving upon a flagpole or in many a toddler ʼ s hand

Or view the red, white, and blue, numerous outfits worn by all of our pets, dogs and cats, present to lie near us or to anxiously by us just stand,

And if you get a chance, please take more than a glance at The Annual Capitol July 4 Concert, No.ONE, For it is usually amazing, for all it seems is a few hours of perfect acts from sun to sun, and every salute to the Fourth in speec h or song and dance is a touch of remarkable work well done.

And what is classic and also classy is that no presentation is sassy, but all are sophisticated and poised with all types of artists so very diverse, and each has mastered his or her Fourth of July offering that each did rehearse, for there is not a single flaw any where, and the over 700,000 concert members in attendance are so amazed and mesmerized at being there.

And the Annual Capitol Fourth of July Concert is home to the melting pot of a racial group: the Black and the white, the brown and yellowish and reddish too and every gender and every age and all of our furry friends who did not know what to do.

So they tried the snacks that were packed in their back packs , and then rested their paws from name brand tennis shoes,and lastly they took a nap, thinking,

“Wow”! I have had a great holiday,and my family and I will of course, next year also remember to CELEBRATE The FOURTH!

Delores Dudley

When James Hopkinson, owner of a plantation on Edisto Island, left South Carolina in 1862, he left behind more than 50 enslaved people, some seen here in 1860.

Photo: 12/UniversalImagesGroup/Getty

a few days, President Johnson pardoned Habersham, eventually allowing him to reclaim Grove Hill as his own.

STAY WEATHER AWARE DURING EXTREME HEAT, URGES DOMINION

HAMPTON ROADS

As we all experience this heat wave, Dominion Energy encourages the community to stay weather aware and safe.

If you have ceiling fans, use them to circulate air and keep your home cool. They use far less energy than your AC unit.

During extreme heat, we always encourage customers to conserve energy as much as possible to avoid higher power bills. Here are a few simple things customers can do to conserve and save: Set your thermostat a few degrees higher than you normally would. Every few degrees can lead to big savings when your AC is working overtime.

Keep your blinds closed during the hottest parts of the day. That makes a big difference in keeping your home cool and reducing stress on your AC unit. As for Dominion Energy, our system is fully prepared for the heat, and it’s performing well under the conditions. We have not had any heat-related power outages during this heat wave.

JULY 4TH CEREMONY

SWEARS IN

NEW CITIZENS AT HISTORY MUSEUM

RICHMOND

This Fourth of July, celebrate America by welcoming new citizens at Virginia Museum of History & Culture’s annual Independence Day Celebration and Citizenship Ceremony.

Approximately 75 candidates will be sworn in as newly naturalized citizens during an inspirational ceremony held in partnership with the

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The ceremony will be officiated by The Honorable Roger L. Gregory, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and begins at 11 a.m.

The ceremony, sponsored by McGuireWoods with support from the Bob & Melinda Sledd

Independence Day Fund, is free to attend and open to the public. Please visit VirginiaHistory.org/July4 for an up-to-date list of prohibited items inside the ceremony venue.

Admission to the museum galleries will be available from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on July 4th, and tickets can be purchased through VirginiaHistory.org.

Following the ceremony, guests are invited to

participate in a special July 4th celebration in Commonwealth Hall. Guests can enjoy live patriotic music, an in-gallery scavenger hunt, and Ukrop’s cake (while supplied last) to commemorate the 248th birthday of America. The VMHC Library will also display a selection of rare artifacts to offer a unique glimpse into early America.

CDW

CHESAPEAKE DEMOCRATIC WOMEN AWARD FOUR SCHOLARSHIPS DURING LUNCHEON

CHESAPEAKE

The Chesapeake Democratic Women (CDW) hosted its Annual Nora Davenport Scholarship Lunch on Sunday, June 23 at the Greenbrier Library. The CDW established the Nora Davenport Scholarship in 1995 to assist young women graduating from Chesapeake Public High Schools with a desire to pursue higher education.

Four graduating seniors were selected by the CDW to receive $1,000 scholarships each after a review of their applications submitted for consideration.

The winners – Nykira Reid, Mai T. Saldivar, Gabriel McCutchen, and Juliana Hipolito – met all the high ideals set forth by the late Nora Davenport who was extremely dedicated and active in the community.

Nykira Reid graduated with honors from Oscar Smith HS and was recognized on the President’s Honor Roll at Tidewater Community College, where she earned an Associate’s degree in Social Sciences. In the fall, she will be attending Old Dominion University

Mai T. Saldivar graduated from Indian River HS and

ErnestLowery

will attend the University of Virginia this fall, pursuing a pre-med track with aspirations of becoming a doctor specializing in Obstetrics/Gynecology.

Gabrielle McCutchen, who graduated from Great Bridge HS, and will be attending Virginia Commonwealth University, was a member of the National Honor Society and consistently made the Dean’s List, ranking in the top 10 percent of her class.

Juliana Hipolito, a graduate of Great Bridge HS, will be attending Virginia Tech in the health sciences, followed by further training to become a Physician’s Assistant.

Delivering words

of encouragement and inspiration was Santeria Brown-Yearling, the event’s keynote speaker, who is an active member of the Chesapeake community.

Others on the program were Brenda H. Andrews, the M.C., and the members of the Scholarship

Thought-Provoking Black Art Exhibit At Sandler

VIRGINIA BEACH

From now until Sept. 2, you may stroll past several thought-provoking Black portraits designed by Poetry Jackson, whose solo exhibit is on display at The Sandler Center for the Performing Arts Gallery located at 201 Market St., in Virginia Beach.

and

Jackson is an accomplished Black artist headquartered in Hampton Roads. She has designed an optical feast for art lovers. Her exhibit is titled, “The Great Gamut: Exploring the Electromagnetic Spectrum.”

She said in a statement on her website, “When it comes to creativity, I believe it doesn’t come from me, but rather it is channeled through me.”

In addition to being a

LOCAL VOICES

channel, who has compiled an extensive portfolio through the years, Jackson (whose real name is LaJae Jackson) also serves as a board member of the ViBE Creative District. She founded the 757 Street Art Battle and has also served as a grassroots art advocate on the public art planning committees for the Elizabeth River Project and the Norfolk NEON District. This boundary-pushing artist has a habit of capturing the depths of raw emotions. Her works have been on display in renowned galleries such as the Chrysler Museum of Art, the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Barry Art Museum in Barcelona, Spain. To learn more, contact artsinfo@vbgov.com.

EVE VS EVIL 2024

By Sean C. Bowers

The first bite of that apple Eve and Adam shared has gotten her and other women ribbed about all these years since.

Joan of Arc led, then burned at stake until finally the suffragettes White-outted mankind’s women and child abuse.

Those who burned brightest in the locked garment factory 100 percent fire-proofed to boost productivity’s bottom line. The childlabor laws were birthed along with the FIVE-day

Hello and welcome to The Bridge Corner.

When developing tricks through promotion, you have to give the lead to the opponents; you want to be able to regain the lead to take the tricks you have developed. It’s generally a good idea to keep sure tricks in other suits to help you regain the lead and maintain control. In short, when developing tricks in a suit, practice patience when promoting and take your losses early.

1) West is the dealer and opens the bidding with 1 N/T. West is the describer and East is the responder and the captain.

2) With West showing at least 15 points (a No Trump opening bid show 15 to 17 High Card Points) and East having a 6-card Diamond suit and only 3 High Card Points, the level of the contract should be a partscore. The strain would be Diamonds. East, the responder, makes a signoff bid of 2 Diamonds. West must pass.

3) The contract is 2

Diamonds and East is the declarer.

4) South makes the opening lead with the Q Spade.

5) Declarer needs eight tricks but only has three sure tricks. Declarer can develop the extra tricks in Diamonds, the trump suit, and the Heart suit.

6) Declarer will have to give up the lead two times before developing sure tricks in the Diamond suit. Declarer should then work to develop the extra trick in Hearts. Diamonds will play better than No Trump

FORTY-hour work week. From strong women of substance came the likes of Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony, and Eleanor Roosevelt, who acted beyond the external expectations placed on women of those times and any times.

Rosa Parked in her seat, supported by God. Coretta kinged Martin, with Ruby Dees and Mahaila Hallilou-ya’s until the Civil Equal Rights movement was sung to life by Mavis’s staples.

You don’t have to listen to any man, women! This one is completely in your hands, in your minds, in your power.

old opposite. Now eight short years later, women no longer have the once assured human 50-year right over their own bodies’ birth control. Those RIGHTS were stolen by 45’s stolen protagonist, fork-tongued 3 Supreme Court (on the takers payroll) JUDGES, proudly proclaimed by the ORANGE-maleonly candidate for 2024.

future in YOUR OWN VOTER LEVERPULLING-HANDS, you know deep in your heart, in your soul, in the pit of your stomach, in the origin of creation in your wombs, you hear all womankind from all time’s history calling for this, YOUR MOMENT OF POWER.

Too many women died and prayed, not knowing, not ever fully expecting to see it, be a part of it, to own it, to pull that level of power, that for all time has been pulled against womankind at every vote counted.

because there isn’t enough protection in the other suits. Declarer would lose too many tricks in No Trump.

7) Declarer should make his 2 Diamond contract.

TIDEWATER BRIDGE CLUB PLEASE NOTE, NEW LOCATION:

Richard A. Tucker Memorial Library 2350 Berkley Ave. Norfolk, VA 23523

Our next three games will be held on Friday, June 28, 2024 at 9:45 a.m. – 2 p.m., Friday, July 12 at 9:45 a.m. – 2 p.m., and Friday, July 19, at 9:45 a.m. – 2 p.m. The schedule for all future games will be posted here in the Bridge Corner. Thank you in advance for your continued support.

If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please feel free to contact Lawrence Owes, President, Tidewater Bridge Club at l.a.owes1@ gmail.com. Dealer:

We have seen other types of women over the last sixty years become the ultra-choosy, even gossipy, women who turn on one another over clothing, money, fame, men, or notoriety at the drop of a hat. Women have already turned up their noses at 2016 Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. All over petty pant suits or Bill-Dis-agreementsperceptions losing sight of the big (WOMEN) picture.

WOMEN, KNOW YOU MISSED YOUR FIRST CHANCE IN 2016. YOU MAY NEVER EVER GET ANOTHER CHANCE AND VOTE LIKE THIS 2024. THIS IS YOUR BEST CHANCE AT TRUE BODILY FREEDOM. ONE ticket has a Woman on the ticket and totally supports Women’s rights. One ticket does the same

Women can’t see they only have to show up and vote since they make up over half of the total voters! Women, you don’t need a single man’s vote to right the ship, seal the deal, save the day, do all women proud, to unite like never before, seizing bodily autonomy once and for all. Make up for all the centuries of mistreatment and abuse.

For a unique instant in all history, women can steer the nation, the world, our collective’s sense of decency, justice, fair play, equity of equality.

Note* at no other time in the known recorded world’s history have women come so far yet are poised to fall so far back from where they’ve already struggled to overcome.

Gospel music is my home. Country roads take me home. I hear the sweet sounds that saved us wretched men by womenkind’s amazing grace. A great woman makes a man become his best. It’s time we are man enough to support women in their role of superior leadership.

Women, not only do you hold the world, America, and your own

You don’t have to listen to any man, women! This one is completely in your hands, in your minds, in your power. Own the moment, or you could go back to the wrong side of the self-ownership, self-determinative right’s track.

Women, unite. You are more than enough together! Separate and divided you will fall, continuing to be held down, and holding yourselves back. FREE YOUR BODIES AND YOUR MINDS WILL FOLLOW!

Sean C. Bowers writes for The New Journal and Guide, CHAMPIONING overcoming racism, sexism, classism, and religious persecution. More of his work can found by searching “Sean C. Bowers” on the NJ&G website, on social media at Linkedin.com or by email at V1ZUAL1ZE@ aol.com NNPA 2019 Publisher of the Year, Brenda H. Andrews (NJ&G 37 years) has always been his publisher.

Photo: ErnestLowery

Sean C. Bowers

(L-R) Annette Kelley and Brenda H. Andrews

Photo: ErnestLowery

(L-R) Mai T. Saldivar, Nykira Reid and Gabriel McCutchen (Absent Juliana Hipolito)

Photo: ErnestLowery

Photo:

Committee, led by Chair Wanda Camm

CoChair Tracy Holland: Charlotte Worley, Della Hudson, Jeanne DeRusha, Carol Cherry, and Leslie Kelley.

The President of the CDW is Annette Kelley, who delivered remarks to close out the program.

“The Great Gamut: Exploring the Electromagnetic Spectrum,” by Hampton Roads-based artist Poetry Jackson

Photo: Courtesy

Santeria Brown-Yearling

By Rev. Dr. Archie L. Edwards, Sr.

THE PROBLEM OF THE TONGUE MOMENTS of MEDITATION

James 3:1-12

This passage from James is one of the classical portions of literature dealing with the potential, for both good and evil, of the human tongue. For as long as human beings have had the power of speech, their tongues have gotten them into trouble.

Of course, the tongue has power for good as well as for harm. Peter’s tendency to speak impulsively got him into trouble more than once, but he also voiced some great truths (e.g., Acts 10:34-35). The power of the tongue for both good and evil was recognized by many Old Testament writers, including David and Solomon. So James’ interest in the tongue is very much in the tradition of Hebrew thought.

THE TONGUE OF THE TEACHER. We may infer from James 3:1, 2 that becoming a teacher was a common ambition among the early Jewish Christians. This was a natural outgrowth of Jewish culture, in which teachers or rabbis were held in high regard.

Some of James’ readers, remembering the

recognition and deference that rabbis received, may have been seeking similar prestige on the Christian community.

But James warns that this ambition involves added responsibility: one who aspires to teach others must first be a model in his own conduct, and he is subject to stricter standards of judgment than other persons. He will be judged not simply by the effectiveness of his teaching, but also by the quality of his life.

James does not claim any special virtue for himself. Indeed he seems to make a point of including himself among those who “stumble in many ways” (v. 2). He shares with his brethren a keen sense of need for God’s forgiveness and power in his life. The crux of the matter, to which his thought has been leading, is the way in which all – especially teachers – use their tongues. Since words are the most necessary and frequently used resource of a teacher, controlling the tongue is the key to effectiveness. Anyone, teacher or not, who succeeds in controlling his

tongue is “perfect” – i. e., completely or mature. James asserts that a person who bridles his tongue can control his whole body. This is the first of a series of word – pictures that graphically portray the powerful effect the tongue has on human life.

THE TONGUE AS A TYRANT. Through a bit in a horse’s mouth (v. 3) and reins attached to it, the animal’s power comes under the control of the rider, who can thereby both restrain and guide the horse. The human tongue also needs this type of control.

In verse 4 James shifts the metaphor from land to sea, from an animate to an inanimate object. He calls attention to ships, on which some of his readers had probably traveled as they fled Jerusalem. The passenger ships, of that day, though tiny compared with modern vessels, were then viewed as large and ponderous. They were powered by the wind, apart from which they were helpless, but at whose mercy they were in time of storm.

Even a large vessel, driven by such a powerful force, is ultimately controlled by a very small thing – a rudder. Obviously, James is impressed by the contrast between the size of a ship and its rudder. Like a horse’s bit and a ship’s rudder, the tongue is very small compared to the rest of the human body (v. 5a). But this does not prevent it from doing a great deal of boasting. Its power in the life of an individual is measured not by its size,

but by the effects of its actions.

THE TONGUE AS A TROUBLEMAKER. In the first two metaphors – the bit that controls a horse and the rudder that guides a ship – James recognized the tongue’s potential for good as well as evil. In the third – the tongue as a spark that can kindle a raging fire – he focuses on its destructive power. He begins by referring to a great forest fire, which can begin with a small flame or a spark (v. 5b). The beginning may be insignificant; the consequences are catastrophic.

The tongue, says James, operates in this way. It is a small part of the body, but what it does has consequences far out of proportion to its size. “The course of our life” (v. 6) means, literally, “the wheel of life,” and suggests the on-going cycles that make up human existence.

Throughout our lives, the tongue has the power to burn and destroy. James traces the source of this evil to its root when he says that the tongue “is set on fire by hell.” Hell itself is the source of the iniquity and defilement that the tongue spreads among the members of the body.

James points out that human being have successfully tamed all kinds of creatures –animals, birds, creeping things and fish – “but no one can tame the tongue” (v. 8). Unless brought under the power of God, it continues to be a “restless evil ... full of deadly

CHURCH ADs & DIRECTORY

poison.” THE TONGUE AS A TRAITOR. A traitor is a person who betrays a trust, who pledges loyalty to a cause and then goes over to the other side. It is in terms such as this that James voices his final indictment of the uncontrolled human tongue. Those who bless God and curse their fellow-man (v. 9) fail to realize that both they and the persons they are cursing share a common likeness to God.

They are equally God’s creatures and objects of His love. In the natural world such contradictory situations do not occur.

James mentions a fountain, or natural spring. The water it produces may be fresh or bitter, but not both. Fruit-bearing plants produce according to their kind – fig trees produce figs, not olives; vines produce grapes, not figs. Saltwater never turns

itself into fresh water. When operating according to God’s plan, the created world – except for man – is consistent and dependable. The fact that man often proves to be inconsistent in what he says, to the point of using his God-given tongue to curse others, shows how desperately he needs to find a way to bring his tongue under control. The tongue is a continuing problem for every human being. Christians should “be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:1819). In our own strength, we cannot control our tongues. But we know the one who can and to the extent that we surrender to Him, He will do it for us. This is the only solution to the problem of the tongue.

Willie Mays, the iconic Hall of Famer often hailed as the greatest player in baseball history, died June 18 at age 93. Mays began his career with the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues. His Major League in a career spanned from 1951 to 1972 with the Giants, where he won a World Series in 1954, was a 24-time All-Star, and was a two-time National League MVP. Among many other accomplishments, his 660 home runs and 12 Gold Gloves highlight his legendary status.

Major League Baseball, the city of Birmingham, and the Friends of Rickwood nonprofit group have collaborated to renovate Rickwood Field, the oldest professional ballpark in the United States, to honor Mays and the Negro Leagues.

“My father has passed away peacefully and among loved ones,” Mays’ son, Michael Mays, announced. “I want to thank you all from the bottom of my broken heart for the unwavering love you have shown him over the years. You have been his life’s blood.”

Mays was not only a

baseball legend but also a cherished figure in San Francisco. His 9-foot bronze statue stands proudly at Oracle Park’s 24 Willie Mays Plaza. In 2015, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama, who acknowledged Mays’ impact on sports and society. “It’s because of giants like Willie that someone like me could even think about running for president,” Obama remarked. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, cementing his place as one of the sport’s all-time greats. His wide smile, boyish joy, and fondness for yelling ‘hey’ to get the attention of his teammates, earned him the moniker of the “Say Hey Kid.”

Willie Mays

BOOKWORM REVIEW

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

TRAVELING WITHOUT MOVING: ESSAYS FROM A BLACK WOMAN TRYING TO SURVIVE IN AMERICA

O“Traveling without Moving: Essays from a Black Woman Trying to Survive in America”

By Taiyon J. Coleman ©2024, University of Minnesota Press $18.95, 160 pages

ne step forward, two steps back. That’s how it goes: every time you think you’re getting a little ahead, something – or someone – yanks you back. You see a little light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s a train. It feels like you can’t win, but what’re you gonna do? You can’t quit. As in the new book “Traveling without Moving” by Taiyon J. Coleman, you just have to keep going. Like most Black children born after Martin Luther King was assassinated, Taiyon Coleman was “expected to be the fulfillment of ... generations of struggle ...” She hoped, at age eight, that being a writer would do it (“I just knew that I had a lot ... to write”) but it didn’t work out: she ran out of patience and candy after her first try. Living on the South Side of Chicago, the second oldest of five with a single mother, Coleman understood then that writing would be a struggle but she never let go of that dream. When she was a child, during the school year, Coleman cared for her younger siblings and helped keep house for her mother, who barely held things together and died too young. Every summertime, Coleman and her eldest sister were sent

to stay with grandparents in Illinois, near St. Louis; it was hot there but she could run and play with cousins and others she “was kin to.” Those annual trips, she says, became a sort of ancestor-fuel map for her growth. Her mother added to the many inroads, especially once Coleman understood her mother’s hard life and sacrifices. When it came time to choose a graduate program, Coleman visited a college in Alabama and saw Confederate flags everywhere, which went on the map, too. So did the racism she endured in college in Minnesota again and again, the unfortunate miscarriage due to more racism, being the only Black family on the block in their Minnesota neighborhood, and being told that her use of Black vernacular would keep her from being published ... That last one. You almost want to say, “HA!” now, don’t you? And you will, for more reasons than one, while reading “Traveling

without Moving.”

Because here’s the thing: author Taiyon J. Coleman is funny, taking readers from her grandma’s living room and Coleman’s feisty, foul-mouthed eight-yearold self; to being a teacher, writer, and mother of three; with laughing at Rush Limbaugh in between. And yet, the humor is only icing on the cake: the better parts of this collection of autobiographical essays are the knife-sharp comments and observations of life as a professional Black American when white America won’t give up the 1930s. This is told with proudly-embraced irony and sarcasm, which turns out to both coat the anger a little and to delight readers, even its most seething moments.

You’ll also particularly enjoy Coleman’s style: it’s conversational with plenty of asides, like talking with a friend – but it’s also payattention serious and you’ll like that, too. “Traveling without Moving” is a quick and forward read.

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is seeking Statements of Qualifications for the Route 58 Vesta design-build project from qualified and experienced respondents with design and construction experience of roadways and bridges. The Project is located in Patrick County, Virginia, and involves construction a four-lane divided roadway, of which portions are anticipated to be on a new alignment. The limits of the Project are from approximately 0.1 miles west of Route 795 (Mabry Mill Road) to approximately 0.51 miles East of Route 610 East Intersection (Cloudbreak Road), for a total length of approximately 4.5 miles. The existing bridge over the Dan River will be replaced as part of the project.

The work includes but is not limited to: roadway, bridge, survey, environmental, geotechnical, hydraulics and stormwater management, traffic control devices, transportation management plan, utility relocation, quality assurance and quality control, construction engineering and inspection, and overall project management.

Questions/clarifications regarding the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) should be submitted to Joseph A. Clarke, PE, DBIA (joseph. clarke@vdot.virginia.gov).

Copies of the RFQ and additional submittal requirements can be found on Bid Express (bidexpress.com)

The Department assures compliance with Title VI requirements of nondiscrimination in all activities pursuant to this advertisement.