I AM + @thetremag

More Than A Conqueror

I may forget who I am, where I am, what I am, but I cannot forget that I AM - Neville Goddard ”The Power of Awareness”

Exhibit

BLACK POWER

The journey and resilience of a Freedom Rider

In fall 1966 the American photographer and writer Gordon Parks (1912–2006) was contracted by Life magazine to profile 25-year-old Stokely Carmichael, one of the most maligned and misunderstood men in America. October 16, 2022 the exhibition Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power opened at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), presenting the five images from Parks’ 1967 Life article, along with nearly 50 additional photographs and contact sheets that have never before been published or exhibited and footage of Carmichael’s speeches and interviews.

Stokely Carmichael, the young and controversial civil-rights leader who, as the newly elected chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, issued the first public call for Black Power in a speech in Mississippi in June 1966, in Greenwood, Mississippi, eliciting national headlines and media backlash.

Kujichagulia

This robust vision for a Black, self-

determined future combined Black unity for social and political advancement, the breaking of psychological barriers to self-love, and self-defense when necessary. Yet, media organizations dissected and defined Black Power for white audiences with various levels of prejudice and fear, and Carmichael was cast as a figure of racial violence—a distortion of his character and his message.

On the road with Carmichael and the SNCC that fall and into the spring

of 1967, Parks took more than 700 photographs as Carmichael addressed Vietnam War protesters outside the U.N. building in New York, with Martin Luther King, Jr.; spoke with supporters in a Los Angeles living room; went door to door in Alabama registering Black citizens to vote; and officiated at his sister’s wedding in the Bronx. In his finely drawn sketch of a charismatic leader and his movement, Parks, then the first Black staff member at Life, reveals his own advocacy of

Black Power and its message of selfdetermination.

Exhibition Background

Parks met Stokely Carmichael (later, Kwame Ture) in September 1966, as Carmichael’s rallying cry for “Black Power” was grabbing national attention. Parks was a prominent contributor to Life magazine, photographing and writing essays that chronicled, with his characteristic humanity, Benedictine monks and Black Muslims; a Harlem family and a

Gordon Parks, Untitled, 1966, printed 2022, gelatin silver print, courtesy of and © The Gordon Parks Foundation.

teenage gang member. Carmichael, then 25 and a recent graduate with a philosophy degree from Howard University, was consistently in the news, whether publishing his own writing in The New York Review of Books or being profiled in Esquire and Look magazines.

Global Citizen

Carmichael (1941–1998) was born in Trinidad; he moved to New York City’s Harlem neigh-borhood when he was eleven and became a naturalized U.S. citizen two years later. An orator, brilliant student, and a captivating leader, Carmichael found his calling as an activist. While an undergraduate at Howard University, he joined the Freedom Riders on several trips. After graduation, he was a field organizer for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and became national chairman in 1966. Carmichael heralded a new chapter in the civil-rights movement when he called for Black Power. In 1969 he moved to Conakry, Guinea, where, having adopted the name Kwame Ture, he dedicated his work to Pan-Africanism and liberation movements worldwide.

Lowndes County, Alabama and Atlanta, Georgia

Although 80 percent of Lowndes County was Black, by 1965, not one Black resident was registered to vote. That year, Carmichael created the Lowndes County Freedom Organization (LCFO), a political party formed of Black residents with candidates and an agenda drawn from the community.

Carmichael was certain, “If we can break Lowndes County, the rest of Alabama will fall into line.” The young leader set a dizzying schedule throughout the end of 1966 and start of 1967, traveling between Lowndes and SNCC events across the nation.

Gordon Parks docu-mented his efforts along the way, revealing Carmichael’s adaptability and charisma.

of the slumped leader with images above him also recalls scenes of religious pilgrims at an altar, deep in thought and prayer.

In his profile of Carmichael, Parks aimed to combat the mass media’s one-sided depictions of the civil rights leader by capturing his complex character and emotions. At SNCC headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, Parks documented Carmichael in a moment of weary frustration. A portrait of Malcolm X, photographs of Lowndes County residents, and SNCC pamphlets hang above the modest desk. Carefully composed, Parks’s photo guides viewers to a more holistic understanding of Carmichael. The view

Carmichael at his desk at SNCC’s Atlanta headquarters, 1966. Printed 2022Gelatin silver print Courtesy of the Gordon Parks Foundation

THE GORDON PARKS FOUNDATION

The Foundation permanently preserves the work of Gordon Parks; makes it available to the public through exhibitions, books, and digital media; and supports artistic and educational activities that advance what Parks described as “the common search for a better life and a better world.”

The Man Beyond the Media Bias

As chair of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Carmichael was the figure most identified with the call for Black Power, and was routinely depicted as a representative of anger and separatism. But Parks’ text and photo essay for Life, “Whip of Black Power,” conveyed the nuanced range of Carmichael as a person—not only his anger at America’s deeply rooted racism, but his self-effacing humor, his private moments

with family and his own feelings of dismay that the justice he and the movement sought would not be attained in his lifetime – all part of a “truth,” as Parks described, “the kind that comes through looking and listening.”

Third Ward, Texas

Just days after Gordon Parks’s photo-essay “Whip of Black Power” was printed in Life magazine, Stokely Carmichael visited Houston. He delivered

speeches at the University of Houston (UH) and at Texas Southern University (TSU). “We will define ourselves as we see fit. We will use the term that will gather momentum for our movement,” Carmichael said, addressing public critiques of Black Power. The speeches were part of a SNCC nationwide campus tour. Yet, Carmichael’s appearance in Houston was auspiciously timed. Spring 1967 was a time of heightened social unrest in the city, and local universities were hubs of civil rights activism.

A Deeper Dive

The accompanying catalogue, Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power is the latest installment in a series that highlights Parks’ bodies of work throughout his career, published by the Gordon Parks Foundation and Steidl. Essays by Lisa Volpe, MFAH associate curator of photography, and Cedric Johnson, professor of African American studies and political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago, shed critical new light on the subject. Carmichael’s September 1966 essay in The New York Review of Books, “What We Want,” is reproduced in the book.

Gordon Parks, Untitled, Bronx, New York, 1967, gelatin silver print, courtesy of and © The Gordon Parks Foundation. Mary Charles Carmichael serving her children Lynette and Stokely at Lynette’s wedding dinner in the Bronx, 1966.

Gordon Parks, Untitled, Watts, California, 1967, printed 2022, gelatin silver print, courtesy of and © The Gordon Parks Foundation. Members of the US Organization, including James Doss-Tayari (left), Tommy Jaquette-Mfikiri (behind Carmichael), and Ken Seaton-Msemaji (right), walking with Carmichael to the Watts rally, Los Angeles, 1966.

The Watts Uprising took place in August 1965 in a Black neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles. It began with the arrest of a local man, Marquette Frye, by a highway patrol officer and ended with 4,000 arrests, 1,000 injuries, and 34 deaths. Carmichael spoke to thousands of residents one year later at the Watts rally. In a speech that resonates today, Carmichael declared, “We have to have community alert patrols, not to patrol our neighbor-hoods, but to patrol the policeman.”

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Perspective

United States vs. Billie Holiday

Harry Anslinger, the Chief of the US Federal Bureau of Narcotics, in an effort to justify his budget, was known for planting evidence and unjustly targeting practicioners of jazz, which he referred to as black man’s music. In partnership with the FBI, Anslinger became incensed when Billy Holiday, regarded as the greatest female jazz musician, started performing the song, Strange Fruit, which outraged the Establishment because it referred directly to the lynching of African-Americans in the South. Holiday was burdened with unimaginable childhood trauma. Tormented and denied a peaceful death, Billie Holiday was was handcuffed to her deathbed and arrested.

TV, Film and Podcast Guide

Knowledge is power. Take a stand against injustice with the Innocence Project’s wrongful conviction guides. Watch The Innocence Files on Netflix as The Innocence Project unravels missteps and deceit in a series of wrongful convictions, exposing the injustice inflicted on victims and the accused.

Restoration

Many people feel hopeless about the broken prison systems. Prison Fellowship International is dedicated to restore prisoners’ lives, help their families, and integrate them back into the community—for good! pfi.org

Title 8

The NYC Human Rights Law prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The Law also protects against discriminatory lending practices, retaliation, discriminatory harassment, and bias-based profiling by law enforcement.

Above: Billie Holiday signing papers at the Hall of Justice during her booking on a narcotics charge, 1949. Photo: Bancroft Library

Stop Asian Hate Rally 3/20/2021 Chinatown, Manhattan NYC By Sam Cheng

Advocacy

Former officer Derek Chauvin, who pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck while Floyd was handcuffed behind his back, was convicted of murder.

Police recruit drops post George

Floyd

Amid global outrage, law enforcement struggles to recruit since the killing of George Floyd by Derek Chauvin. Among 184 police agencies surveyed in the U.S. and Canada, the nonprofit Police Executive Research Forum found that resignations jumped by 43% from 2019 through 2021, and retirements jumped 24%. In addition to those departures, overall hiring fell by 4%.

The California attorney general’s office concluded, after an independent investigation, that Jackson was neither “manhandled” nor mistreated when he was taken into police custody.

Jacskson shared pictures of bruises and injuries stating the police had mistreated him and complained of a dislocated shoulder during an interview with 60 Minutes.

“They Don’t Really Care About Us.”

Despite issuing a statement that claims against him were “predicated on a big lie”, global musical icon Michael Jackson was arrested in 2003. A verdict of not guilty on all charges was issued in 2005 and in 2010, the British journalist Charles Thomson described the trial as “one of the most shameful episodes in journalistic history”. Thomson said the media coverage was “out of control ... The sheer amount of propaganda, bias, distortion, and misinformation is almost beyond comprehension.”

Buy Black

Many Black start their businesses out of necessity due to limited employment options. Study finds that Black-owned business represent 26% of all new business start-ups in 2020, an 11% increase from 2019.

Resilience

Whoopi Goldberg speaks truth to power as she boldly tells of a mother’s unwavering courage and the ongoing fight to seek justice by sharing Emmett Till’s chilling story to the world in ‘Till’; the 14-year child who was abducted, tortured and lynched in Mississippi in 1955.

Angela Yvonne Davis is a prominent political activist, scholar, and author. She emerged as the leader of Communist Party USA in the 1960s and had close ties to the Black Panther Party. Pictured lifting her fist in the air as she arrives to court in San Rafael, Davis has advocated for the abolishment of prisons and the prison-industrial complex.

Resistance

WOMEN. LIFE. LIBERTY.

Prison Fellowship International (PFI) is the world’s largest network of Christian ministries working in the criminal justice field. PFI has built programs in prisons around the world that are restoring prisoners’ lives, helping their families and successfully integrating them back into the community for good.

This work is accomplished in more than 100 countries. This grassroots presence enables ministry to prisoners and their families in culturally relevant ways, in partnership with 46,000 local volunteers. PFI supports National Ministries through program partnerships, strategic funding and leadership training, among a variety of other services focused on building capacity to deepen impact.

RestorativeJustice.org

Within the realm of restorative justice, PFI seeks the adoption of best practices that increase programs’ restorative nature, with focus on offenders, their families, and their communities.

Lasting Prison Reform

PFI was founded by Chuck Colson, former aide to U.S. President Richard Nixon, who came to Christian faith in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal. While serving a prison sentence for a Watergate-related offense, Colson became convinced that the only way to lasting life transformation is through Jesus. Upon his release from prison, he vowed to his fellow inmates that he would return to help them. He spent the next nearly four decades making good on that promise. Colson founded Prison Fellowship in the United States in 1976, and then expanded the ministry overseas in 1979, establishing Prison Fellowship International.

Morality Police and Ethics

The illustration seemingly reflects solidarity for the death of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman, Mahsa Zhina Amini, on September 16, 2022 at the hands of the republic’s “morality police” which has sparked huge protests across the country. It is reported that the regime’s intense response has so far resulted in the deaths of more than 400 protesters and the arrest of more than 20,000.

Iranian religious law has dictated female dress code in public since the Iranian Revolution in 1979. The police chief of Tehran stated that the grounds of Amini’s arrest had been for wearing tight pants and for wearing her headscarf improperly, according to the rigidly enforced Islamic Penal Code.

On his first day in office, President Biden signed Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.

FIVE POLITICAL TRENDS

Over 90 federal agencies across the federal government, including all Cabinet-level agencies as well as over 50 independent agencies, mobilized quickly and effectively to implement the Executive Order.

whitehouse.gov/equity

The President’s Order emphasized the enormous human costs of systemic racism, persistent poverty, and other disparities, and directed the Federal Government to advance an ambitious whole-of-government equity agenda that matches the scale of the challenges we face as a country and the opportunities we have to build a more perfect union.

Equity Over ‘Equality’

Advancing equity is not a one-year project – it is a generational commitment that will require sustained leadership and partnership with all communities.

Taking Action

In year one of the Biden-Harris Administration, efforts that focus on equity has delivered concrete results for communities that have often been underserved by the federal government. Because of the Administration’s commitment to putting equity at the heart of its work, the Administration has taken ambitious steps, here are a few:

Public Safety & Criminal Justice Reform

- Signed an Executive Order to improve safety and criminal justice for Native Americans, and address the crisis of missing/murdered indigenous people.

- Began implementing the President’s order to end the Justice Department’s use of private prisons, moving more than 4,000 people out of privatelyoperated detention facilities to date.

Education Excellence & Equality

- Implement first-of-its-kind maintenance of equity requirement to ensure that high-poverty school districts and schools are protected from funding cuts.

- Signed Executive Orders advancing educational equity, excellence, and economic opportunity for Black, Hispanic, and Native students.

Defended Right to Vote & Civil Rights

- Took all-of-government action to promote voting access and to further the ability of all eligible Americans to participate in democracy.

- Called for Congress to pass comprehensive voting reform, including essential steps to restore the Voting Rights Act, even if it takes ending the Senate filibuster to get it done.

Narrowing Wealth Gaps

Narrowing wealth gaps through federal contracting and procurement. As the largest buyer in the world, the federal government will address racial and gender wealth gaps by leveraging the power of federal procurement to drive greater investment in minority-owned and women-owned small businesses.

tré + destiny

Interview

AGAPE LOVE

As the Black History Diversity Committee Coordinator for United Airlines, White works with fellow Black History Committee Members to celebrate legacy while highlighting our culture and further recognizing the role of Black, Indigenous and People of Color.

Yvette Alston White believes in helping others! She wears a lot of hats at United Airlines: Customers Service Representative, Premium Services Representative and her role as the ‘Black History Diversity Committee Coordinator’ for United Airlines provides her with the opportunity to not only help others, but to celebrate them as well.

First of its kind

As she communicated to The Tré, “I take pride in our initiatives. One being our successful 2022 Juneteenth celebration a historic flight lead by BEACON, United’s Black Business Resource Group (BRG). The organization is the first of its kind at United dedicated to a specific race/ethnicity. That flight was a memorable experience, not just for the students but for me as well”

For many students the trip was their very first flight. “I was thrilled and beyond proud to be part of this United Airlines effort to celebrate Black history with its origins in Texas.” Students from a variety of backgrounds, races and ethnicities were on this inaugural United flight to Galveston, Texas. History on flight was read by Majic 102 DJ Smooth. In the air, during the flight, they learned about the city’s rich history as the first city in Texas to abolish slavery in 1865, freeing one of the last groups of slaves in the United States.

Working together for positive change

“As the Black History Diversity Committee Coordinator for United Airlines I assisted with the planning of our Black History Diversity Program which was established in Houston in 2014. Working with fellow Black History Committee Members, Supervisor, Stanley Evans, Team Leaders, Brenda Douglas, Rose Lopes-Harris, CSR

Photos by Kendrick Lewis

Yvette Alston White is outgoing.

She prays we all live life to the fullest and have fun while doing it.

Interview

Crainna Berry and CSR Juanita Williams-Burton we are proud to celebrate the lives and legacy of those who came before us, while highlighting our culture and further recognizing the role of Black, Indigenous and People of Color.”

Black Lives Matter

United Airlines has a well-deserved reputation for striving to deliver our best service to every customer. We start by going the extra mile with our team to make sure we support one another and that we’re aware of events both domestically and internationally that can impact members of the United family. One example is a beautiful memorial service we conducted for the late George Floyd. “We held a moment of silence and took a knee in his honor. United also made “Black Lives Matter” pins available with the proceeds benefitting the local Chicago nonprofit, known as M3, which stands for ‘My Block, My Hood, My City. It’s an organization that helps underserved young people in the Chicago area by providing them with new experiences and exposing them to possibilities outside their communities.

A career in aviation for women

United Airlines’ Commitment to Diversity is wide-ranging and looks to have a long-term and far-reaching impact. “United Aviate Academy” opened in 2021 and continues to work towards diversifying the flight deck. The first class, 80% of whom were women or people of color, completed a rigorous year-long training program that prepares them for an amazing career in aviation and prepared them to deliver United’s high standard of professionalism and deep commitment to delivering a safe, caring dependable and efficient travel experiences.

Helping students reach their full potential

We also have a recruiting initiative called ‘Year Up’. It provides talented young professionals with their first corporate internship experience with United. United employees can host a student learner and help ensure the student gains the skills, experiences and support needed to reach their fullest potential.

We are proud to celebrate the lives and legacy of those who came before us, while highlighting our culture and further recognizing the role of Black, Indigenous and People of Color.” - Yvette Alston White

United’s fleet is growing. As part of the airline’s aim to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 100 per cent by 2050, United has invested in electric aircraft. With Denver-based aerospace company, Boom, they have the world’s first purchase agreement for net-zero carbon supersonic aircraft. Boom’s ‘Overture’ aircraft will cut travel times in half and operate on up to 100% sustainable aviation fuel. In addition, United Invests Another $15 Million in Electric Flying Taxi Market with Eve. The companies intend to work on future projects, including studies on the development, use and application of Eve’s aircraft and the urban air mobility (UAM) ecosystem.

AN INVESTMENT IN THE

FUTURE

Recently United has committed an additional $15 million in flying taxis – or eVTOLs (electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle) – that have the potential to revolutionize the commuter experience in cities around the world.

“United has made early investments in several cuttingedge technologies at all levels of the supply chain, staking out our position as a leader in aviation sustainability and innovation,” said Michael Leskinen, President of United Airlines Ventures. For more about how to join the United team, please visit www.united.com/careers.

An attitude of gratitude

Yvette generously shared her personal philosophy with The Tré. “I do all that I can to help others, at work and in my daily life; with my smile, my attitude and being friendly to everyone I meet. I also help others through volunteerism and generous donations.” Some of the organizations she supports include Purple Heart, Wreaths Across American and Girl Scouts. Yvette told The Tré she also enjoys giving back to

the local community as a River Bend HOA Board

Member and a food bank volunteer with Mount Teman AME Church (Elizabeth, NJ).

Faith by my works

Working on the Black History Program each year, participating in the Juneteenth Celebration supported by BEACON and all the other projects I participate in would not be possible for me without the love, support and encouragement I

receive from my best friend and husband Bruce of 25 years, my two sons Brandon and Bryan, my parents Thomas & Violamae Alston (Violamae passed 12/01/2021), and my Mother-in-Law Shirley A. White. All their love and continued support helps me to continue to grow and encourages me to stay strong! Yvette wants the world to know, “I am a child of God and would love for everyone to love one another, live life to the fullest and have fun while doing it!

Aviate Academy

Want a career in aviation? United is has developed Aviate Academy as part of their commitment to retain and increase the diversity of their overall workforce. Chief DEI Officer Jessica Muench states “We opened the United Aviate Academy with a class comprised of 80% women and people of color to help ensure diversity within United’s future pilot workforce.” You can learn more at unitedaviate.com.

OneTen Partnership

United has joined over 60 companies and their CEOs committed to increase the hiring of Black talent into jobs that do not require a fouryear college degree while improving the hiring, retention, upskilling and advancement practices to support diverse talent.

Leadership Training

United has partnered with McKinsey Black Leadership Academy on two new programs, Black Executive Leadership and Black Management Accelerator, to support internal talent and the progression of Black/African American leaders at United.

Aviation Pioneers

The Chief of the U.S. Army Air Corps in the 1930’s made it clear he thought Black people didn’t have what it took to be pilots: “there [are] no black units in the Army Air Corps and none [are] contemplated.” Policy supported his personal opinions, but fortunately, the Black people he rejected did not agree.

be denied, Cornelius Coffey with his wife Willa Brown and John Robinson created the Coffey School of Aeronautics which had thousands of students. They also founded the National Airmen Association to promote the idea of African Americans being trained as fighter pilots in World War II.

School Choice

A new generation of young aviators takes rise as Umberto Ricco revitalizes Coffey’s curriculum and travels the country with his mobile museum educating people about the connection between aviation and black pilots in Chicago.

POLICY

In 1941, the War Department overturned race excluding policies and forced the newly formed Army Air Forces to accept blacks for the first time.

Planting Seeds

In the 1930s, most schools that trained pilots and aircraft mechanics were closed to African Americans. Passionate about aviation, committed to equitable opportunities and not to

Pilot and aircraft mechanic Umberto Ricco revitalizes an aviation an aircraft mechanics training program from the 1950s for free at Dunbar Vocational High School in Chicago.

A lifelong advocate for gender and racial equality, Willa Beatrice Brown (January 22, 1906 – July 18, 1992) was an American aviator, lobbyist, teacher, and civil rights activist. She was the first African American woman to earn a pilot’s license in the U.S., the first African American woman to run for the U.S. Congress, first African American officer (lieutenant) in the Civil Air Patrol, and first woman in the U.S. to have both a pilot’s license and an aircraft mechanic’s license.

Umberto Ricco donates his time, knowledge, tools, and vintage airplane collection to educate a new generation of aviation students.

Brown relentlessly petitioned the government to admit Black pilots into the Air Force, and over 200 of her students eventually became Tuskegee Airmen!

Flying High

Become A Pilot

New Zealand Aviation Aotearoa Ltd. is a high quality, internationally recognized institution that understands the reality of flight training and provides the necessary tools and high standards that you expect in the Aviation Industry. Sign up and support their efforts at nzaa.net.nz

A New Frontier

Mae Carol Jemison is an engineer, physician, and former NASA astronaut. She became the first black woman to travel into space when she served as a mission specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour. Jemison was selected to serve for the STS-47 mission, during which she orbited the Earth for nearly eight days on September 12–20, 1992.

Officer, Aviator, Role Model

General Frank E. Petersen, the first black Marine aviator, flew more than 350 combat missions in Korea and Vietnam. In his 1998 autobiography, “Into the Tiger’s Jaw: America’s First Black Marine Aviator,” Petersen wrote at length about the opposition he encountered along his way up the ranks. Petersen was the senior ranking aviator in both the Marines and the Navy and held the honorary titles of Silver Hawk and Grey Eagle.

Lieutenant Colonel Frank E. Petersen, Jr. climbs into his phantom jet for a combat mission in Vietnam in 1968.

NASA Image and Video Library (file)

Hidden Figures

Ahmet Ali from Izmir

Ahmet Ali Çelikten (born İzmirli Alioğlu Ahmed; 1883–1969), was an Ottoman-born Turkish aviator regarded as the first black pilot in history and one of the first black males to become a fighter pilot, receiving his “wings” in 1914.

Research Psychologist

Dr. Patricia S. Cowings, an aerospace psychophysiologist is celebrated for helping find cures for astronaut’s motion sickness and her studies in the physiology of astronauts in outer space. She was the first American woman to be trained as a scientist astronaut by NASA.

A Brave New World

Lebohang Lebogo is a medical technician with the South African National Blood Service and South Africa’s first generation of drone pilots, whose mission is to save lives delivering bloods to farflung places where conventional transport is often a challenge, particularly when it comes to emergency.

Voo Negra

Based in Brazil, Kenia Aquino is founder of “Voo negro” (Black Flight). The project works to give a voice to in-flight racism and wants to gives Black flight crews visibility.

Black Pilots

Black Pilots of America, Inc. (BPA, Inc) is a non-profit flying organization established in 1997 and committed to train youth to participate and advance in various types of employment within the field of aviation.

Dr. Patricia Cowings, a research psychologist in the Biomedical Division of Ames Research Center. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution

“

Early detection gave us time to adapt together, as a family.”

If you’re noticing changes, it could be Alzheimer’s. Talk about visiting a doctor together.

ALZ.org/TimeToTalk

If you’re noticing changes, it could be Alzheimer’s. Talk about visiting a doctor together.

ALZ.org/TimeToTalk

FIVE TRAVEL TRENDS

The Future in Focus

Life in Orbit City

Created by Hanna-Barbera Productions, showcasing Googie architecture and originally aired in 1962, the Jetsons are a Space Age family residing in a future century with flying cars, elaborate robotic contraptions, holograms, and whimsical inventions.

Aston Martin Flying Car

Aston Martin unveils a futuristic personal aircraft concept it has dubbed “a sports car for the skies”. The three-seater hybrid-electric vehicle could help one day to revolutionise travel, ideally taking travelers from London to Birmingham in 30 minutes.

Lockheed SuperSonic Technology

Commissioned by NASA, Lockheed Martin collaborates to solve one of the persistent challenges of supersonic flight– the sonic boom. The Lockheed Martin X-59 QueSST (“Quiet SuperSonic Technology”) is an American experimental supersonic aircraft being developed at Skunk Works.

The First Mile is Free

Colorado Air and Space Port will serve as America’s hub for commercial space transportation, research, and development. Horizontal launch facilities are developing globally and have the potential to become the foundation for a global suborbital transportation network.

Aquatic Superhighways

The Samsung KX50: The Future in Focus report was authored by leading academics and futurists. Highlights include a subsonic tube transport system will be created as a sealed tube system that is travelled using pods.

Bespoke

Ozwald Boateng, the youngest black designer to open a business on London’s Savile Row in 1995, brings his talents to the aviation runway as he designs new uniforms for British Airways.

Investing in Customers

Boateng, who is known for bringing a modern contemporary twist to the classic British institution of tailoring, will be designing a collection for the airline’s 32,000 employees who wear a uniform as part of their role.

Designing The Experience

Alex Cruz, British Airways’ Chairman and Chief Executive, said: “Our uniforms have been an iconic symbol of our brand throughout our 100year history and our partnership with Ozwald will take us forward to the next chapter in our journey.”

Value and Teamwork

Boateng will be working closely with the airline’s employees throughout the development process, from shadowing them to understand their roles and how the uniforms need to perform, to design, testing and final delivery. britishairways.com.

BRITISH AIRWAYS

#YouDoYou

Are you ‘Acting Black’ enough?

Minstrelsy is a type of entertainment developed in the US that features songs, dances, and cliché comic routines with typecast depictions of blacks.

The concept of looking, sounding or acting black was born out of the minstral shows of the 1920’s. Initially performed by white actors with blackened faces minstral shows started in the 1830’s and became famous in the U.S. from 1840-1880.

Keepin’ it Real

MONEY

Although initially prohibited from performing in them, minstrel shows became the only type of theatrical performance that Black men could do to support themselves artistically after the CIvil War.

The shows included three characters: ‘Jim Crow’ (carefree slave), ‘Mr. Tambo’ (happy musician), and ‘Zip Coon’ (free black man trying to ‘put on airs’ to rise above his position).

Talking Black

Amos ‘n’ Andy began on March 19, 1928 as an American radio sitcom about “a couple of colored characters” and

became the first syndicated radio program in the USA. Adapted to TV in 1951, the series used black actors who were instructed to keep their speech patterns close to those of Gosden and Correll.

Historian James N. Gregory writes that the show “became the subject of heated conflict’ and the debate over media stereotypes remains an ongoing issue.

Many argue that some of today’s popular media racial ‘personalities” are extensions of the foundation established by Amos ‘n’ Andy.

Freeman Gosden (‘Amos’) and Charles Correll (‘Andy’) were white actors familiar with minstrel traditions and created a wildly popular radio series in the 1920’s based on vocal characatures of “a couple of colored characters” that fascinated radio listeners throughout the Midwest and spread across the USA.

True to You

Historical Fiction

Cleopatra is a 1963 film that stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. It chronicles Cleopatra, the young queen of Egypt. It is reported that director Mamoulian offered the title role to Dorothy Dandridge who turned down the role and replied, “You won’t have the guts to go through with this...” alluding to the racial turmoil and segregation of the time.

Sunless Tanning / Injections

The estimated cost of treating the skin cancers attributable to indoor tanning is $343.1 million a year, leading to a total economic loss of $127.3 billion over the lifetime of those affected. The global market for Sunless Tanners estimated at $1.4 Billion in 2020, is projected to reach a revised size of $1.8 Billion by 2026.

Whitening

Some Bollywood Actors have opted for Skin Fairness Treatment. The global skin lightening products market size was valued at USD 9.96 billion in 2021.

Culture

Rita Moreno, in an interview with AP revealed that her skin was actually darkened to play her Puerto Rican character, Anita, in the 1961 classic West Side Story.

Left: Dorthy Jean Dandridge is the first AfricanAmerican film star to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Left: Supermodel Iman starred in Michael Jacksons 1991 music video for the hit single “Remember the Time.”

THE POWER OF ONE

Tré Celebrates True Trailblazers #TreNation

It is important to determine your frequency, define your voice and create your own destiny. We are honored to share with you those individuals who have set the bar high and committed to gowing forward and remaining authentically committed to community growth and improvement. Please support their endeavours and champion their efforts.

Education Matters

Houston ISD school closures are looming due to budget deficits and declining enrollment and a possible fiscal shortcoming of over $200 million. Is now the time to finally do right by Jack Yates and build a true opportunity for equity?

School segregation and undereducation lies at the epicenter of America’s racial inequity and also feeds into housing segregation, which is a major source of the racial wealth gap.

implements its Voluntary Interdistrict Education Plan (VIEP) in 1980 to lure non-BIPOC students back from neighboring districts to elite magnet schools and neighborhood students of any ethnicity were led to bus for equitable resources. Although in 1981 the court declares HISD a “unitary” school district, meaning all vestiges of a dual, segregated school system had been eliminated, recent data shows notable inequity in experience based on race.

FACTS

In 1956, approximately 100 members of Congress signed the “Southern Manifesto” opposing the Supreme Court’s Brown vs Board of Education decision.

Academic Anchor

In 1968, following a judge’s order to integrate, HISD adopts stringent guidelines and of the 22 black first graders who applied only 12 are accepted in the white schools. HISD implements buses and magnet schools, which desimate local feeder patterns and community. Zone schools were seemingly under resources. HISD

The Baylor College of Medicine

Ryan, a HISD magnet middle school, now occupies the original Yates campus. In an effort to build true equity and healing, community groups advocate for a more inclusive usage of 2610 Elgin street.

The Struggle Continues

The Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan, a HISD magnet middle school, now occupies the original Yates campus. In an effort to build true equity and healing, community groups propose a more inclusive usage of 2610 Elgin street. Advocates suggest that visionary leadership and progressive principals such as James D. Ryan, William S. Holland and Michael McKenzie have met great resistence when working to uplift historic Negro academic institutions and most notably HISD schools in Third Ward, TX.

A poorly educated workforce is destructive for the Houston economy. As the President & CEO of Children at Risk, Dr. Robert Sanborn is committed to positive change for the ‘whole student’. The mission of Children at Risk is to serve as a catalyst for change to improve children’s quality of life through strategic research, public policy analysis, education, collaboration, and advocacy.

Academy at

Interview

ON MISSION

The mission of the Houston Housing Authority is to improve lives by providing quality, affordable housing options and promoting education and economic selfsufficiency.

The Houston Housing Authority provides affordable homes and services to more than 60,000 low-income Houstonians, including over 17,000 families housed through the Housing Choice Voucher Program and another 5,700 living in 25 public housing and tax credit developments around the city.

HHA also administers the nation’s third largest voucher program exclusively serving homeless veterans.

In 2017, Hurricane Harvey ripped through Louisiana and Texas, leaving a vast swath of destruction in its wake. As with any natural disaster, it was most unforgiving to people living in low-income neighborhoods.

Northern observes, ”When you can’t pay your rent, you lose out. Without savings or disposable income, many community members in need found it difficult to secure a place to stay.”

Fortunately, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reallocated federal resources toward disaster relief. The Houston Housing Authority deployed housing specialists to assist families left without a roof over their heads.

Northern states, “The process was long and arduous, but slowly, we helped families recover.”

MORE THAN A HOUSE

David A. Northern, Sr. encourages residents to trust the process.

David A. Northern, Sr., knows the importance of having a safe place to call home. As the new President and CEO of the Houston Housing Authority (HHA), he is focused on unifying resources and helping Houstonians recover from the economic challenges of the pandemic as well as mitigate the compounding risk caused by natural disasters such as floods, wildfires and freezes.

The need for safety and security against threats is both real and primal. As many Houstonians and citizens around the world are adjusting to the ‘new normal’, the desire for a safe place to reset and rebuild is essential. Although vulnerable

populations have a high risk of experiencing significant recovery disparities, money does not prevent one from being negatively impacted by natural disasters or being displaced from your home due to unforseen events.

A Safe Place To Call Home

Northern is President and CEO of the Houston Housing Authority and although he has an incredible title, he is driven by the belief that his job is about service. With the economic challenges of the pandemic, the rise of income loss due to underemployment, divorce or spousal death as well as concurrent natural disasters, many residents have found themselves navigating new territory. Northern is aware of the challenges and is simultaneously addressing the long-term goals of the institution and focusing on the immediate needs of the individual. He is committed to ensuring the

Photos of David Northern by Bohemian Photography

InterviewHHA provides an array of services to help people. These services are not just about transitioning from homelessness or increasing housing choices for lowincome families but, ideally, it is about helping people to become self-sufficient.

Personal Restoration & Fulfillment

Northern states, “As President and CEO, my job is to ensure our agency provides an array of services to help people transition from homelessness to self-sufficiency. We’ve designed our housing and service options to be as flexible as possible, so all who are eligible for our programs will be served. In addition to providing the tools needed to regain stability, I work with my senior executive team members to ensure our case management staff provides ongoing, intensive support to help each individual achieve their own personal restoration and fulfillment.”

Northern is a ‘man of the people’. He states, “Being visible and having presence in and around our communities is extremely important to me. I am especially interested in enhancing collective impact by serving the missions of partner organizations that are meeting the needs of our communities.” Northern says providing housing is just one component — the HHA also works to provide exceptional services that also help people achieve financial security and well-being. HHA works to simplify the process, making it easier to get help.

In addition to providing the tools needed to regain stability, I work with my senior executive team members to ensure our case management staff provides ongoing, intensive support to help each individual achieve their own personal restoration and fulfillment.

Family Self-Sufficiency

The HHA Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) Program offers employment and other case management services designed to promote economic self-sufficiency for families currently participating in the Housing Choice Voucher and Public Housing Programs. FSS participants develop specific financial goals, through individual training, a services plan and they work with an FSS coordinator to identify activities and services to help achieve these long-term goals over a five-year period.

#trusttheprocess

Northern recently incorporated the hashtag #trusttheprocess. He recognizes the value of the journey and providing the community with an opportunity to take that voyage along with the help of the HHA as it builds

HHA also works to provide exceptional services that also help people achieve financial security and well-being.

BY THE NUMBERS

Moving to Work Plan – According to HUD, Moving to Work (MTW) is a demonstration program for public housing authorities (PHAs) that provides them the opportunity to design and test innovative, locally designed strategies that use Federal dollars more efficiently, help residents find employment and become self-sufficient, and increase housing choices for lowincome families. We are looking to fully implement the program by early Spring 2023.

a coalition of doers and believers who want to help improve the human condition.

Long-term Goals

Northern is acutely aware of the inequities in wealth and services between wealthy and low-income communities. Northern told The Tré “It became painfully evident as families were negatively impacted by the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and the 2021 freeze. Many who lived in low-income neighborhoods found it difficult to recover, especially

since many were hourly workers who lost their jobs in the process. When you can’t pay your rent, you lose out. Without savings or disposable income, many community members in need found it difficult to secure a place to stay. Undoubtedly, our work gives people hope.”

A Fundamental Human Right

Northern believes a key part of the mission is creating more affordable housing. “There’s never enough housing. It is imperative that we nurture and develop relationships with landlords and developers to

The Houston Housinng Authority is also committed to providing additional support to lowincome, elderly, and disabled residents. Contact HHA if you need assistance obtaining childcare, health care, finishing school, or learning a trade.

encourage the growth and expansion of new, affordable housing communities to ensure our most vulnerable have a safe place to live. “What I believe to be true is that shelter is a fundamental human right. It is essential to personal dignity, health, and well-being. It provides protection from violence and oppression. The right to shelter should not be based on wealth, status, gender, or race. Simply put, everyone should have access to safe and secure housing to live in peace and privacy”.

A Better Tomorrow

Northern describes himself as a servant leader. “ What matters most to me is ensuring the people around me - family, friends, and colleagues - are provided with the care and commitment they deserve. Consequently, I have always felt most comfortable in the affordable housing industry. Knowing that my work positively impacts people’s lives is quite a blessing. I hope that my work continues to give people the confidence and motivation to build for a better tomorrow.

To see if you qualify, go to housingforhouston.com and access the “Apply for Housing” application portal. HHA provides access to an array of helpful programs and resources in and around Houston.

Website: www.housingforhouston.com

Telephone: (713) 260-0500

Facebook: Houston Housing Authority

Twitter: @Housing4Houston

LinkedIn: Houston Housing Authority

Instagram: @HoustonHousingAuthority

Special Housing Resources: housingforhouston.com/contact-us/

EFFORT A DETERMINED TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Myra Caldwell is an Executive Vice President, Chief Diversity Officer at Cadence Bank. In her role, she champions diversity, equity and inclusion and leads a program that will be used for positive momentum, education and change.

Based in Houston, Myra has over 35 years of bank experience and is a Certified Diversity Executive, through the Society for Diversity Institute for Diversity Certification. She is also a Certified Treasury Professional and a received her Bank Operations Certification from The American Institute of Banking and her Six Sigma Green Belt training from Villanova University. She is a Fall 2020 graduate of the Center for Houston’s Future.

Determined & Dedicated

A Chief Diversity Officer’s position is always evolving. Fortunately, Caldwell brings over 30 years of banking experience in operations, treasury management and product strategy and transfer those skills into executing a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategy at Cadence. “I collaborate with different lines of business, actively build relationships with different community

People matter. Their hopes, dreams, aspirations, voices. Each of us can contribute to making the world a better place, no matter who we are.”

- Myra Caldwell

organizations, and ensure our budget is being used efficiently to create momentum, education and change and to advance equity” states Caldwell.

Moving Forward Caldwell works closely with executive leadership as well as the DEI Council to nurture a safe place to have the conversations that will move the needle forward internally and, through training and other efforts, help to ensure Cadence Bank is a community partner and a great place to work for everyone.

Education: TSU

In partnership with TSU’s Jesse H. Jones School of Business’s Future Bankers Leadership Program (FBLP), which launched in Fall 2021, scholarships are available to business students based on merit and financial need. The program sponsors three summer interns and focuses on providing students with the necessary financial and business skills to succeed in the banking industry.

More info: www.cadencebank.com

initiatives that promote prosperity in the Tré.

In any business, it’s all about relationships. Caldwell states “We have the opportunity to create programs that build awareness and drive change through open dialogue.” Cadence Bank is expanding its services and footprint in the Houston / Third-Ward area. Through partnerships with various organizations, and by working with others across the company, Cadence is striving to create better equity outcomes for the communities they serve and to advocate for change. Some current initiatives include:

Housing: OST/South Union

Another partnership is with Agape Development which opened new homes for lower-income residents in the OST/South Union area. Each of the 88 homes will be available for purchase by local community members. In addition to bringing new affordable housing options to the greater Third Ward, the ministry also provides job training opportunities to members of the community.

More info: www.cadencebank.com

Financial Services: Third Ward

Cadence operates a full-service branch in Palm Center that provides residential and commercial loans as well as retail and business banking services designed to meet the financial needs of the community. Services include guidance and support on affordable home loans, quick decision small business loans, and a certified checking product to expand access to safe and affordable financial products and services.

More info: www.cadencebank.com

Reflections

Entergalactica

Created by Kid Cudi and Kenya Barris the animated series is available on Netflix. Featuring the voices of Kid Cudi, Jessica Williams and Timothée Chalamet, the innovative and beautifully illustrated story follows ambitious artist Jabari attempts to balance success and love when he moves into his dream Manhattan apartment and falls for his next-door neighbor.

The Woman King

In the late eighteenth century, the Kingdom of Dahomey flourished as one of Africa’s most powerful states. Yet as European merchants encroach, seeking riches at the expense of its people, warrior Nanisca takes a stand to uphold her peoples’ freedom. Inspired by true events.

Colored American

From 1900 to 1909, during a period of intensifying racial violence and Black disfranchisement, the Colored American Magazine promoted literature, protested injustice, and contested bias representations of Black culture and history. coloredamerican.org

James Brown

Directed by David Leaf, the film is almost testimony to the power of music in general and the power of James Brown’s music in particular. The film is a tribute to the Godfather of Soul and the role he would come to play in working for civil rights.

Bridgett Floyd President, The George Floyd Memorial Foundation

Insights

Fat Albert & the Cosby Kids

Featuring educational lessons in each episode, the show dealt with issues commonly faced by children, ranging from first loves and personal hygiene to more serious themes including racism, STD’s, abuse and death. The gang typically plays a song, summarizing the show’s lesson.

Big Brother Almighty

Directed by Spike Lee, School Daze explores several issues within the BlackAmerican community such as colorism, elitism, classism, political activism, hazing, groupthink, female self-esteem, social mobility, and hair texture bias— all against the backdrop of an historically black college.

Antiracist Baby

Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s children’s book, which already has been featured in Netflix’s preschool series Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices, will be adapted into a series of musical animated shorts that will focus on the nine steps to being antiracist.

James Baldwin

I Am Not Your Negro is a radical narration about race in America that tracks the lives and assassinations of Baldwin’s friends Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Medgar Evers.

Ava DuVernay

Founded in 2011 by filmmaker Ava DuVernay, ARRAY is a Peabody award-winning arts and social impact collective dedicated to narrative change. arraynow.com

YASUKE Self-Made

Almost 500 years ago, a man named Yasuke was the first foreign-born man to become a samurai, Japan’s elite warrior caste.

Yasuke was a man of African origin and one of several Africans to have come with the Portuguese to Japan during the Nanban trade. Described as robust, black as a bull, and of fine character, he was skilled to become a retainer and weapon-bearer to the Japanese daimyō Oda Nobunaga.

Nima comnisq

In 1579, Yasuke arrived in Japan with the Italian Jesuit missionary Alessandro Valignano. Yasuke, who likely could speak Japanese, was likely from Mozambique. According to Fujita Midori, the first African people to reached Japan in 1546 were Africans from Mozambique as shipmates with Portuguese captain Jorge Álvares.

In June 1582, Nobunaga was attacked and forced to commit seppuku in Honnō-ji by the army of Akechi Mitsuhide. Yasuke was there at the time and immediately after Nobunaga’s death, Yasuke went to join Nobunaga’s heir Oda Nobutada, who was trying to rally the Oda forces at Nijō Castle. Yasuke fought alongside the Nobutada forces but was eventually captured. When Yasuke was presented to Akechi, the warlord allegedly said that the black man should not be killed, but taken to the Christian church in Kyoto, the Nanbanji. His fate is uncertain as there is no further written information about him after this.

THE QUIET REBEL

Tracie Jae is a person who helps create spaces where all the humans who occupy them can feel safe and seen.

With the grounding phrase, ”LOVE, first, always.” Tracie Jae is the Lead Rebel for The Quiet Rebel, LLC. Her organization and mission helps make space for people to see others by first seeing themselves.

#QuietRebel #feedthehappy #LOVEfirstAlways #HUMANCenteredEquity

www.quietrebellife.com

“Our shared humanity is directly connected to our ability to honor each other’s lived experience,” states Tracie Jae. The Quiet Rebel, LLC makes the abstract idea of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) tangible and accessible.

Intentional

LOVE first, always!

Tracie Jae’s work in the world is creating incremental and organic shifts to the status quo through a framework called HUMAN Centered Equity. The Quiet Rebel, LLC works with individuals and organizations to increase their equity footprint.

What Can I Do? Challenge

What Can I Do? Challenge is a 5x5 bingo styled game which walks willing individuals through HUMAN Centered Equity Core Elements. It is available as a free download from quietrebellife.com.

Beyond Bias

Beyond Bias is a 1.5 hour interactive workshop designed to introduce participants to the HUMAN Centered Equity framework. The workshop is offered in group settings and is available to organizations of any size.

100 Voices

100 Voices Guided Conversations on Race and Culture is an opportunity to share your lived experience while learning about the experiences of people outside your regular community. Additional information is available at 100voicesconvo.com.

We Can All Be Better

Sign-up at the quietrebellife.com Follow all social media platforms on the linktree, and stay tuned! There is so much more coming up! facebook.com/ alwaystraciejae | Twitter @QuietRebelLLC | IG @quietrebel.life

8 kids a day are accidentally killed or injured by FAMILY FIRE.

FAMILY FIRE is a shooting involving an improperly stored gun, often found in the home.