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THURSDAY, MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
NAACP Calls for Full Release of Mueller Report, Barr Summary Not Enough
STATEMENT: Andrew Gillum on Senate Committee Passage of Legislation to Gut Amendment 4 Tallahassee, Fla. — Following the passage of legislation in a Florida Senate committee to gut the intent of the voters when they passed Amendment 4 last November, Andrew Gillum made the following statement: “The legislation advanced today in committee in the Florida Senate puts a price on restoring the right to vote. It is unconstitutional and wrong. “Last year, Floridians overwhelmingly passed the largest expansion of the right to vote since the Voting Rights Act. I am proud Floridians stood together and agreed we would not judge each other by our worst day — and yes, we knew exactly what we were voting for. “I am deeply disappointed in the lawmakers who
Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP, made the following statement: Attorney General William Barr’s principal conclusions submitted to Congress today raise more questions than answers. The American people deserve to see the full report and findings from the investigation, not just a summary from Trump’s hand-picked Attorney General. Robert Mueller stated, “While this report does not conclude that the President committed a (Cont’d on page 15)
(Cont’d on page 15)
South Africa performs world’s first successful middle ear transplant Head of the department of ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) at University of Pretoria medical school, Professor Mashudu Tshifularo and his medical team performed the breakthrough operation at the Steve Biko Academic hospital in Pretoria on Wednesday morning. The first patient was a 35-year-old man who lost hearing, after his middle ear was completely damaged in a car accident. Tshifularo has been doing a PhD study in the past ten years on conductive hearing loss and - over the past two years - the professor thought of using 3D technology to recreate all the bones in the middle ear that are broken. The 3D technology allows for the scanning and recreating of bones.
“This was one of our patients we have been waiting for, for this reconstruction for almost three years now because they are not affordable.” The professor says this surgery has pioneered a new approach to treating a middle ear problem and rehabilitating sound. With this 3D technology, Tshifulara says the operation needs to be affordable for patients who are using public hospitals. “It also means that we have done something new in the world and people will remember us for that. “Because we are doing it in the country and we are going to manufacture here, it has to be affordable for our people in state hospitals. (Cont’d on page 16)
A team of South African doctors have pioneered world medicine, when they became the first ever to successfully transplant a middle ear. Photos Credit: Steve Biko Academic Hospital
15 th Annual S.L.I.C.E. Conference
As a member of Broward Alliance of Black School Educators (BABSE) and a dedicated educator, I had the marvelous opportunity to spend our teacher’s planning day as a proud participant of this conference being held on Dillard High School campus better known as the “Panther’s Den.” After my entrance I traveled over to the Cafeteria for a delicious hot breakfast. We teachers rarely have a decent breakfast most
mornings. We’re off to work in our classrooms. Accomplished Principal Casandra Robinson, as well as the Vice President of BABSE, welcomed all participants to her campus. BABSE’S 2019 SLICE Conference was planned in collaboration with the Department of Equity & Diversity and Dillard High School 6th-12th. The SLICE Acronyms are: S-Social Emotional; L-Leadership; I-Instruction & Curriculum; C-Community; E-Equity. The BABSE theme was “Leading & Educating in Turbulent Times.” District 5 School board
What is coming out of our homes?
“but if any widow has children or grandchildren, they must first learn to practice piety in regard to their own family and to [a]make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God.” -------1 Timothy 5:4 NASB By Bobby R. Henry, Sr
Broward Alliance of Black School Educators (BABSE) By Juliet Gray-Williams
A M E S S A GE F ROM OU R PU BL IS H E R
member, Dr. Rosalind Osgood, sounded the “Battle Cry” as she shared the district’s timeline of challenging events and our resiliency walking through those turbulent times under the business expertise and leadership of our Superintendent Robert Runcie. Dr. Osgood introduced our Supt. arousing the crowd to a standing ovation. Our dexterous Supt. Runcie, whose also President of BASBE thanked all for their support and offered his humbled appreciation for all who rendered support towards him. He shared
The Westside Gazette Newspaper
There is a West African (Ashanti) saying which states, “The ruin of a nation begins in the homes of its people.” Based upon the evidence of what is occurring across this nation and the world, that old saying is becoming a reality at an alarming rate. Never mind statistics, if we were to speak openly and honestly, we would say that the decline of the American family is at hand, regardless of how we want to define what a family is. The term family has been modified to include examples of non-traditional views and values. To say that those examples are causing this downward spiral would be minimizing the plight and thereby cheapening the much- needed critical evaluation of the cause. We see the effects constantly of our deteriorating homes. Drug abuse, teen alcoholism, internet/social media psychosis and suicides. The list goes on and on. Our schools seem to be losing the battle to fully educate (Cont’d on page 16)
Dr. Rosalind Osgood (School Board Member, District 5), U.S. Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, Broward County Public Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie and Dillard High School Principal Cassandra Robinson.
how grateful he is to be allowed to press onward as our Superintendent. His desire is for perseverance, healing for our district that we continue to
@_WestsideGazett
pray for comfort and peace. Chief Office of School’s Performance and Accountability, Dr. Valerie Wanza, (Cont’d on page 3)
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WESTSIDE GAZETTE IS A MEMBER: National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Southeastern African-American Publishers Association (SAAPA) Florida Association of Black Owned Media (FABOM)
Deeply Rooted
PAGE 2 • MARCH 28- APRIL 3, 2019
Growing the Voices of
Our Future
www.thewestsidegazette.com In a joint effort to get students involved with the Children Services Council’s 2019 Broward AWARE! Protecting OUR Children campaign: Growing the Voices of Our Future, the Westside Gazette will engage youth in a photovoice (photojournalism) project. The youth will tell their stories through the written word and through the lens of cameras they will operate as photojournalists focusing on but not limited to the Broward AWARE campaign.
Mr. Eugene Pettis, Esq.
Sunday Fun Day
Brielle Henry, 9 Earlier this month, the Sunland community came to Joseph C. Carter Park to enjoy time together. Youth dance teams performed for the crowd, while others enjoyed a mobile video game center, food vendors and music by DJ Chipman.
Ruth Murray, 81 and growing I’m Leja Williams and I will be interviewing Ruth Murray, my 81 year old grandmother. She joined The New Mount Olive Baptist Church under the leadership of Rev. G E. Weaver and she is also a divorced mother to 7 children.
Leja Williams, 14 Leja’s audio interview can be heard online at: thewestsidegazete.com
What was it like raising 7 kids? It was tough at times but it was something I had to do. What was your support system like when you had your children? I worked and I received help. My grandmother has been here a long time and she has been through a lot. She owns her own home and has made many accomplishments in her lifetime. I am very grateful to call her my grandmother and we are lucky we still have her. I love you grandma.
Layla Davidson, 13 I would like to recognize Mr. Eugene Pettis Esq. He is partner at the Haliczer, Pettis & Schwamm Attorneys at Law firm. Mr. Eugene Pettis was the first African-American president of The Florida Bar from 20132014. He currently serves on the University of Florida Foundation’s board of directors and on the board of trustees at the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law. He is member of New Mount Olive Baptist Church and a strong advocate of the community. Layla Davidson
“ ch i l d r e n a r e t h e l i v i n g m e s s a g e s , w e s e n d t o a t i m e t h a t w e w i ll n o t s e e . ” - n e i l p o s t m a n
Dehlia Umunna appointed Clinical Walmart Accused of Racial Profiling Professor of Law at Harvard Law After Locking Up Black Hair Products ANY Walmart is under fire for locking Black hair care products in a glass case
Dehlia Umunna has been appointed Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. She has been a lecturer at HLS since 2007 and is Deputy Director and Clinical Instructor at HLS’s Criminal Justice Institute (CJI), in which she supervises third-year law students in their representation of adult and juvenile clients in criminal and juvenile proceedings and arguments before Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court and Appeals court. “Dehlia’s students revere her; her colleagues at HLS and nationally look to her as an By Jessica Bennett exemplary advocate, teacher, and mentor,” said Martha Minow, dean of Harvard Law School. A Walmart in Long had to wait 10 minutes for a “From her unprecedented win record in criminal Island, New York, is under manager to arrive with a key defense trials, her deft leadership of the Criminal fi re after locking Black hair just so she could select what Justice Institute day-to-day, and her superb care products in a glass she needed and proceeded to coaching of student moot court teams, her case while allowing other question the policy. published scholarship, to her numerous awards hair products to remain on “’I’m waiting for the key in recognition of her outstanding work as a open shelves. for shampoo and conditioner.’ criminal defense attorney, advisor, and teacher, Shopper Patricia I said, ‘But let me ask you, Dehlia is simply extraordinary, an inspiration to Fulford brought attention why are the black hair her students and her clients in every way. It is a to the matter, telling products locked up and not true privilege to be her colleague.” CBS 2 it’s a case of the white hair products?’ He Prior to coming to Harvard Law School, Clinical Professor Dehlia Umunna “discrimination.” Fulford said, ‘Um, um,’ and another Umunna was a trial attorney with the D.C. Public Defender Service and an adjunct professor of law and Practitioner in Residence at the Washington College of Law, American University. She currently serves as a faculty member for Gideon’s Promise, and is a frequent presenter at Public Defender trainings across the country. She was a board member of the District of Columbia Law Students in Court Clinic and was a guest lecturer for several years at the George Washington University Law School. She is the author of the article “Rethinking the Neighborhood Watch: How Lessons from the Nigerian Village Can Creatively Empower the Community to Assist Poor, Single Mothers in America,” published in the American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law. “I am blessed and honored to join Harvard Law School’s remarkable faculty,” said Umunna. “I relish this extraordinary opportunity to continue work that I am truly passionate about, and I am grateful for the deep interest and commitment of the school to issues of criminal justice, mass incarceration, indigent defense and social justice.” Umunna received her law degree from the George Washington University Law Center. She also holds a Master’s in Public Administration (MC) from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a B.A. in Communications from California State Non-Black hair care products without locks. University, San Bernardino.
associate said, ‘Well, people have been stealing.’” Although Fulford understands the store locking up expensive merchandise, she cannot accept products priced from $1-$25 being protected in such a discriminatory manner. “It’s just not right that I have to wait for a key to get shampoo and conditioner and my fellow shopper does not,” Fulford said. Town council member Catherine Kent, a member of the Anti-Bias Task Force, met with upper management about the policy. “They said this was based on data of theft in the store and we asked to see the data, and at that point she referred us to call 1-800-Walmart,” Kent said. The store has since reversed the controversial policy. “I would just like everyone to be able to go into Walmart and have the same shopping experience,” Fulford said.
Deeply Rooted
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MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 3
By Zachary Rinkins MIAMI GARDENS, FL– As Florida Memorial University (FMU) celebrates 140 years of service in higher education, FMU’s Board of Trustees appointed Dr. Jaffus Hardrick as its 14th president, effective immediately. The board originally tapped Hardrick to serve as interim president in July 2018. During the institution’s annual Founders’ Day observance, Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver G. Gilbert, III boldly declared, “Something is happening at Florida Memorial University. There is new energy and it is exciting.” The same sentiments have been shared by many key leaders throughout South Florida and the country. Many have expressed support for and have endorsed Hardrick as the right leader for FMU. “Dr. Hardrick is an ambitious and visionary leader who has demonstrated a commitment to student success and academic excellence throughout his career,” said Attorney JoLinda Herring, chair of FMU’s Board of Trustees. “He brings a wealth of experience and we want to continue the momentum. It is truly a new day at FMU.” An award-winning academic executive, Hardrick comes to South Florida’s only historically Black university with more than twenty years of experience in higher education. He worked for more than ten years at Florida International University (FIU) where he served as vice provost for Access and Success and vice president of Human Resources. Under Hardrick’s leadership, FIU earned national recognition from Forbes,
Florida Memorial University’s trustee board names Hardrick 14th president. Fortune, and the Chronicle of Higher Education, among other organizations. Prior to FMU, he worked at Baylor University for twelve years serving as assistant provost for Academic Affairs and vice president of Human Resources. Since assuming the presidency, Hardrick has promoted five strategic focus areas for FMU:
Student Success, Operational Excellence, Financial Solvency, Academic Quality, and Relationship Development. Hardrick identified these as key areas that will drive FMU’s success into the future. “I thank God for the Continue reading online at:
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Black Ivy Activism At Work
A student leads a protest at Princeton University The recent college admissions cheating scandal has reignited the ongoing national debate over whether or not affirmative action policies disadvantage majority populations, or if legacy admissions block other deserving and minority students. Overwhelmingly, polls show Americans view the college admission process as full of inequities around issues of wealth and class. They also believe that legal breaks for athletes and minorities rig the
system too. What is clear is that African Americans have often made the most of their careers when allowed in. As noted in Stefan M. Bradley’s recent book, Upending the Ivory Tower: Civil Rights, Black Power, and the Ivy League, African American students at elite institutions from the 1940s through the 1970s were the catalysts for change, thus paving the way for progress for others.
Broward Alliance of Black School Educators (BABSE) from Front Page expressed her commitment toward our schools. Thanked all for their presence. BABSE extended 3 Leadership Awards to: US Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, founder of 5000 Role Models of Excellence; Chief Strategy and Operations Officer, Maurice Woods. His mission is to “continue my spiritual growth, to love and attend to my wife, children, and family as well as to help build high-performing organizations that are better equipped to deliver greater social impact” and Chief Student Support Initiative Recovery, Michaelle “Mickey” Pope. She is retiring this year after 31 years of extraordinary work. I must share my experience firsthand with this extraordinary educator. She was instrumental in speaking with our staff while I taught at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary. This was a critical time for us, and she encouraged me to stick to teaching. I was ready to throw in the towel because of unfortunate circumstances. She shared with me her journey from New York and recognized her purpose from similar circumstances. I am forever grateful for those seasoned educators. We must continue to live out their legacies because our students need us. There were two dynamic keynote speakers: Guy A. Wheeler, CEO, Guy Wheeler Group, native son of Fort Lauderdale, and experience Consultant from his background with jail and outpatient drug treatment programs. We have great respect for him for he has been a powerful force with those residents here who have been impacted by his gifts throughout the years. We applauded him as he stated,” Gov. DeSantis, teachers just don’t want to hear praise the need their raise.” We all can agree with Mr. Wheeler. His message that hit home was how we view the teens as “THUGS.” They’re not. The acronym for it was: T-Truamatized; H-humane; U Unable: G-Grieve. These kids are unable to grieve through all the issues they are dealing with in their young lifetime. What’s needed is listening to them, love and Spirituality. The solution to their dilemma “GOD” and that’s simply Good Orderly Direction!! Roland Martin, Haitian American Journalist
and Founder of #RolandMartinUnafiltered, a fellow educators because the are coming…be savvy speaker, electrified the audience with his blessings speech “This Means War.” He walked us down assured a harvest of blessings is coming!! If you have not participated
memory lane illustrating the many obstacles he has observed here in America. The urgency for us to come together, being advocates for the struggles of our young people. He made it loud and clear for those who aren’t equipped to fight this struggle need to go. We must be committed and created and enthused about the business of educating our students. These powerful speakers left the audience empowered and inspired to continue to stick with it, as well as the importance of what our profession does each day investing in the lives of our students. Dr. Pedro Noguera, prominent Professor, Director for the Center of Transformation of Schools at UCLA, researcher and advocate of efforts aimed at fighting poverty, was a presenter at one of the sessions entitled: Building the Capacity of Schools to Meet Student Needs through an Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Approach. Also in attendance were retired Honorable Judge Ilona Holmes, President of the University of Fort Lauderdale and special performances by Dillard DCA Dance Program and Jazz Ensemble. Following the program, we continued two the sessions that were planned with expert presenters led by teachers and aspiring and current Administrators. The VIP luncheon followed the sessions sponsored by Renaissance Learning in the Blackbox Theater. The delicious luncheon was catered by Joya Coleman and staff. “This was a rewarding day that was well spent before going out to a safe and restful Spring Break. I look forward each year to the expanded level of expertise being organized.; job well done SLICE Planning Committee,’ stated Juliet Gray-Williams. Let us be reminded in Galations 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” It’s worth continuing to do good my
in this fabulous event, I encourage you to do so next year. NABSE is the National Alliance of Black School Educators. If you are
interested in more information visit : www.babse.org
PAGE 4 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
EVENTS The Westside Gazette Celebration Women History Month
Deeply Rooted LOCAL HAPPENINGS IN BROWARD - MIAMI-DADE AND PALM BEACH COUNITIES Festival American Craft Endeavors return to Coconut Creek for handmadein-the-USA Craft Festival Saturday, March 30-31 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at Promenda at Coconut Creek, 4443 Lyons Rd., Coconut Creek, Fla. Free and open to the community.
Celebration Program
Announcement
City of Miami Gardens Department of Community Development, Request for Proposals (RFP) for Program year 2019 – 2020 funding will be available for Public Services activities, at 18605 N.W. 27 Ave., Suite 151 Miami, Gardens, Fla. The complete Request for Proposals instructions and Forms will be available to open on ZoomGrants on Thursday, April 11, 2019. Application must be submitted online.
Presidential Announcement by Saturday, March 30 at 3 p.m., at Low Rawls Center for the Performing Arts, Florida Memorial University, 15800 N.W. 32 Ave., Miami Gardens, Fla.
Meeting
Opening
Join for our monthly meeting with guest speaker Board Certified Construction Attorney Lisa Colon, Thursday, March 28 at 6 p.m., at Midtown Commerce Center, 1033 N.W. Sixth St., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Broward Regional Health Planning Council Opening Eagles’ Haven – Rediscovering wellness, restoring hope, Monday, April 1, at 5601 Coral Spring Dr., Coral Spring, Fla. For additional info call Julie Gordon (954) 315-8688.
Seminar
Fair
The Nubian Sistahood and Attorney Vernita Williams invite you to Estate Planning Seminar, Saturday, March 30 from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at Miami Dade College, Medical Center Campus, 950 N.W. 20 St., Room 1175. This Seminar is strategically designed to help you avoid legal nuisances and nighmares.
First Baptist Church Piney Grove, Fourth Annual Health and Wellness Fair, Saturday, April 6 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at 4699 West Oakland Park Blvd., Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. Activities for kids and much more.
Conference
“Sistas Organizing to Survive Conference, Friday, March 29, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Mounts Botanical Gardens 531 N. Military Trail, West Palm Beach, Fla.
Strong Conference - Servidores -Ushers, Friday, March 29 at 5 p.m., Saturday, March 30 at 10 p.m., at Charles F. Dodge City Center Pembroke Pines, 601 City Center Way, Pembroke Pines, Fla
Conference
“We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated” - Maya Angelou
The Lake Park Harbor Marina will host its monthly Sunset Celebration, Friday, March 29 from 6 to 9 p.m., with Happy Hour, at 105 Lake Shore Dr., Lake Park, Fla. For more info call (561) 840-0160 or visit www.lakeparkmarina.com
Workshop
The Upsilon Xi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. will host a free First Time Homebuyers Workshop on Monday, April 1, 2019 at 6:00 p.m. at Mt. Hermon AME Church, 401 NW 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale. The workshop will feature information on how to buy your first house or if you have not owned a house within the last 3 years. The Workshop is open to the public. For additional information call (954) 830-8647.
Events at Miami Dade College MDC’s Miami Animation & Gaming International Complex presents a Talk with Animation Industry Veterans Ron Myrick, Wednesday, April 3, from 11 a.m., at MGAIC, 315 N.E. Second Ave., Screening Room, Room 8106. For more info call (954) 237-3949. -Miami Dade College’s North Campus to host D3 Art+ Design Conference & Expo, Tuesday, April 2 thru 4. •Tuesday, April 2 at 6 p.m., Bldg. 2, Room 2147 & Bldg. 5, Breezeway •Wednesday, April 3 at 9 a.m., Bldg. 3, Conference Room •Thursday, April 4 at 9 a.m., Bldg. 3. Conference Room
Events Broward County Library eNews Events •Temporary Closure: Southwest Regional Library to close March 24-31. •#DestinationFridays South: Experience the Renaissance with Society for Creative Anachronism, Friday, March 29 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., at South Regional/Broward College Library, 7300 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, Fla. •Director’s Book Club, Wednesday, April 3 at 1 p.m., at Imperial Point Branch, 5985 N. Federal Hwy., Fort Lauderdale,
Fla, and Monday, April 22 at 1p.m., at Davie/Cooper City Branch, 4600 S.W. 82 Ave., Davie, Fla. • Children, Teens and Families -Sign Up for New Steam Series, Monday, April 1 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at Tyrone Bryant Library, 2230 N.W. 21 St., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Summit JDETF/Broward College: 4th Advancement in Education Summit 2019; Summit Ope... Sunday, April 7-10, from 3 to 7 p.m., at Broward College North Campus, 1000 Coconut Creek Blvd., Coconut Creek, Fla.
Event Learn How to Fix Your Credit and But Your Home, Wednesday, April 3 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., at 8249 N.W. 36 St., Doral Florida
Program
The Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Zeta Chi Chapter, Fort Lauderdale, Florida will host its Annual Dr. Malcolm Black Talent Hunt Program on Saturday, April 6, from 12 noon to 3 p.m., at Joseph C. Carter Park (formerly Sunland Park), in the Kathleen C. Wright Multipurpose Center, 1450 W. Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The event will feature local middle and high school students from the surrounding communities. For additional info please call (954)-809-8844.
What’s Happening in Dania Beach
* Dania Beach Parks & Recreation presents Friday Night Light Movie Night & Kickball Game, Friday, March 29 at 5:30 p.m., at C.W. Thomas Park, 100 N.W. Eight Ave., Dania Beach, Fla. * Dania Beach Arts Seafood Celebration, Saturday, March 30-31 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., at Frost Park, 300 N.W. Second St., Dania Beach, Fla. * Every Second and Fourth Friday of the month, at C.W. Thomas Park, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., for ages 6 to 16. For more info call (954) 9243692 or DaniaBeachFl.Gov/Sports. Refreshments will be served.
* Dania Beach presents The Skils Factory Youth Football Workout, Tuesday, and Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m., Saturday, noon to 2 p.m., at C.W. Thomas
Park. * Now Hiring. How to apply for a position: The City of Dania Beach encourages online application. daniabeachfl.gov/jobs
Events
Collier City Events, all event held at Jan Moran Collier City Learning Library, 2800 N.W. Ninth Ct., Pompano Beach, Fla. For more info call (954) 357-7670. - Wednesday, April 3 at 7:30 p.m. – Oasis-Beginner’s Guide to the Cloud -Monday, April 8- 12 from 1 to 6 p.m. – Collier City Collier City Shop Event. -Monday, April 8-12 at 6 p.m. – The Rhythm of Collier City -Wednesday, April 10 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. – Oasis-Google Photos
Conference Empowerher Women’s Conference, Sunday, March 31 from 4:30 to 6 p.m., at Smith’s Conference Center Florida Memorial University, 15800 N.W. 42 Ave., Miami Gardens, Fla.
Sympoisium 2019 National Tutoring & Teaching Symposium, Friday, April 5 at 8:30 a.m., Saturday, April 6, at 4:30 p.m., at TBA Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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Happening at the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center
AARLCC, 2650 Historic Sistrunk Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. - Living my Best Life in 2019: Free Wellness Workshop for Seniors/Caregivers now through June from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more info call (954) 357-6282. Diabetes Self-Management (1 Session), Thursday, March 28, April 4, and 11. - AARLCC’s Social Dance Club, Monday thru Thursday, from 1:30 to 3 p.m. - A Peer Into the AARLCC Vault -Dorothy Porter Wesley Collection’s Afro- Brazilian Culture now thru March 31. - On Display in Special Collections - Moorish Spain:al Andalusian Afrikan Aesthetics. - Friday, Aoril 5 #DestinationFridays Adult Programs - Monday & Wednesday in March - Adult Literacy Class from 5 to 8 p.m. - Adulting 101: Mock Interviews from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Computer Training Center - Youth Programs - Free homework help, every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday from 3 to 5 p.m. -Monday, Tuesday, Wednesay, March 27 - Spring Break Tech Day from 3 to 5 p.m., Robotics ages 8 and up. - Thursday, March 28 Spring Break Game Day, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.*Computer Classes - Wednesday, March 27 from 6 to 7:30 p.m., in the Meet the Computer - Saturday, March 30 from 1 to 2:30 p.m., in the Meet the Computer Youth Programs - Free Homework, Help, Every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, March 27 - Spring Break Tech Days from 3 to 5 p.m. - Thursday, March 28 Spring Break Game Day, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Conference
Join City of Miami Gardens Councilman Erhabor Ighodaro and Antioch Missionary Baptist Church at A Better YOU Health Conference for Seniors and Caregivers, Saturday, April 6, at 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at Miramar Cultural Center, 2400 Civic Center Pl., Miramar, Fla Space is limited. Transportation will be provided. To RSVP contact Lisa B. Bennett (305) 6248170 ext. 0028.
Miramar Today
•It’s A Grand Slam for Miramar Residents. Residents receive special tickets at Hard Rock Stadium. Wednesday, Mar. 20; Sunday, Mar. 24 • Fire Station 100 Open House, Wednesday, Mar 27 from 6 to 8 p.m. • Commissioner Winston F. Barnes hosts Free Citizenship Drive, Saturday, April 6 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Vernon E. Hargray Youth Enrichment Center, 7000 Miramar Pkwy., Miramar, Fla. • MCC Spring Camp registration is open, Sunday, March 25-29. • Spring Junior Chef Camp at Vizcaya Park, Monday, Mar 25-29 • Movie Night at Shirley Branca Park, Saturday, March 30 from 7 to 10 p.m. • iEN Concierto! El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico,Saturday, Mar. 30, at Miramar Regional Park Amphitheater. • 8th Annual Little Broadway Open House, Saturday, Mar 30 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MCC •Movie Night at Shirley Branca Park from 7 to 10 p.m. free family night! food truck, bring your blankets. • Dance Yourself Into Shape at Miramar Free Zumba Classes, Thursdays, at 6 p.m. • Attention Miramar Residents – are you a furloughed federal employee? We’re Here to Help! For more info call (954) 602-HELP (4357). •Money Management & Homeowner’s Symposium, Sunday, Mar 31, at 2:30 p.m., at 2300 Civic Center Pl. Miramar, Fla. - Miramar City Hall. (Workshop is Free, but you Must register: eventbrite: tinyurl.com/miramarhomeworkshop For more info call (954) 6023154 or (954) 998-7500. • Relay For Life of Pembroke Pines- Miramar “Once Upon A Cure, Saturday, April 6 from 6 to 9 p.m., at Walter C. Young Middle School, 901 N.W. 129 Ave., Pembroke Pines, Fla. • Calling all Gamers Miramar Mix-Up is Back, Sunday, April 7 at 11:30 a.m., at Vernon E. Hargray Youth Enrichment Center, 7000 Miramat Parkway, Miramar, Fla. • Register Now! City of Miramar Spring Camp, from 7a.m. to 6 p.m., at: Vernon E. Hargray Youth Enrichment Center, 7000 Miramar Pkwy. (954) 602-4780 - Regional Park Aquatics Complex, 16801 MiramarPkwy. (954) 883-6955 - Vizcaya Park, 14200 S.W. 55 St. (954) 883-6800 - Ansin Sports Complex, 10801 Miramar Blvd. (954) 6024990 - Sunset Lakes Community Center, 2801 S.W. 186 Ave. (954) 602-3340. • Miramar Fire-Rescue offers CPR and AHA Healthcare provider
classes, the last Monday of every month. • Mayor Wayne Messam invites you to join My Brother’s Keeper - Young Men in High School, at Miramar Town Center, 2300 Civic Center Pl., Miramar, Fla. For more info call (954( 602-3198 • Apply now for U.S. Census 2020 Jobs! Temporary jobs are available as Census Takers, recruiting assistants, office staff and supervisory staff. •The City of Miramar is Hiring. Check out Miramar’s recruitment website to view opening and to complete an appli-
cation online. •City of Miramar Free College Application Workshop at Miramar Police Department Community Room, 11765 City Hall Promenade Miramar, Fl. April 6, 20, 27, May 4, from 12 to 2 p.m. For more info call (954) 564-1171.
MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 5 Deeply Rooted Donna Brazile Trying “A new lane” by Joining Fox News
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By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
“I’m not changing my values. Nobody would ever make me change my values,” Brazile told NNPA Newswire in an exclusive interview. “The only thing that will change about me is my age,” she said.
Donna Brazile says there’s no way she’s selling out and her core values will always remain intact despite her controversial decision to sign with Fox News. “I’m not changing my values. Nobody would ever make me change my values,” Brazile told NNPA Newswire in an exclusive interview. “The only thing that will change about me is my age,” she said. The former Democratic National Committee chairwoman signed on as a contributor with the Fox News Channel on Monday, March 18. Previously, Brazile had been a contributor for CNN and ABC News. In an op-ed article on FoxNews.com, Brazile wrote that she hoped to improve the tenor of political debate. “Will I agree with my fellow commentators at Fox News? Probably not. But I will listen,” Brazile wrote.
When you appreciate, it is easy to celebrate women during
Women History Month I firmly believe that there isn’t a creature on earth more complex, fascinating and interesting than a woman. We are beauty, we are knowledge and we are mystery. We are strong and fragile in the same season. And we are encouragers and nurturers by design. Yet, whether most will admit it or not, we require the empowerment, compliments and reminders of where we have come from. We earned voter rights in the 20s. We wanted to break glass ceilings and the equal rights pay act was passed in the 60s. In the 70s sexual discrimination conversations surface. And in recent years movements like Me Too continue to move the needle forward as it relates to women and our rights. Women have made and continue to make strides. We even have our own month, and I must say South Florida knows how to celebrate women’s history month appropriately. Here is a quick snapshot of what happened On the Scene. The month kicked off with Thou Art Woman’s three-day weekend celebration of womanhood and self-love in Fort Lauderdale. In its fifth year, the event series celebrates LGBTQ women and their allies through performance and visual art, this year adding a networking brunch to the mix. By all accounts, this was one not to be missed, at least that is what we heard from event goers. On March 15, Reflections in Soul Music celebrated songbirds in history with a talented line-up of performers including host Lyneise Rachelle. Realtor by day, sexy soul singer by night, Lyneise gave us life with her performance, showing us how to truly live our best life. Their next event is April 20 at Gigi’s Music Cafe. In the continued spirit of giving, the South Florida Black Business Directory has been celebrating Women’s History Month by helping “Sis secure the bag!” They have received so many wonderful donations of purses stuffed with items that encourage our sisters to go to the next level in business or career. They are still accepting monetary donations and items such as books, journals, quotes, coffee mugs, bath products, and more. Here is our opportunity to help “Sis Secure the Bag!” The Black Professionals Network held an amazing Black Women in Excellence mixer on March 22 at Miami’s Tomorrowland, a black owned restaurant. At the mixer, BPN honored amazing women in various industries who do amazing things in and for their respective communities. I am so proud of the women in my life, including Chef Kiara Hardy, CEO of Kitchen Killa Culinary Solutions for receiving this distinction. The following evening, I had the honor of hosting the TRP Taste’s Local Ladies Chef Series for which Chef Kiara was a featured chef! Chef Kiara Hardy served a six-course meal in front of guests while engaging in conversation with her dinner guests. It was a night of fine dining and elegance. And finally, we will
Brazile said she would question assertions about lowincome people and issues such as climate change but would do so with “civility and respect.” Brazile added: “I will also freely admit the weaknesses in liberal arguments and the strength in conservative positions.” Her signing with Fox comes as the network has faced growing criticism and mounting allegations of racism as hosts like Jeanine Pirro and Tucker Carlson have spewed hateful messages on air. Fox has openly been aligned with President Donald Trump and many observers have criticized the network and the president for their alleged prowhite supremacy views. Brazile, a longtime friend of the Black Press, was honored last year during Black Press Week by the NNPA when she delivered a stirring address about the “State of the Black Press in 2018” at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The NNPA is a trade group that represents more than 200 Black-owned media companies operating in the United States. NNPA member publications reach more than 20 million readers in print and online every week. “I’ve known Donna Brazile for about 40 years and, in 2016, the Democrats couldn’t have selected a better person to lead them,” said Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., the president and CEO of the NNPA. Brazile said that the Black Press is the “pulse of the community.” “You are carving out stories that the mainstream [media] won’t,” she said. “You’ve been at the forefront of change, even before change was in
close off the month with my Wine Tasting and Soul Concert. My ladies are encouraged to dress sexy, so fellas your future wife might be in the building. We will be sipping wine, listening to live music and enjoying good food at Gigi’s Music Cafe. Nonetheless, while there are so many public celebrations of women, the ones that matter the most are the private ones. In between events, I call my mom during a hectic work day just to hear her voice. I take out time to have brunch with my mentors turned friend: social media influencer/ author Suzette Turnbull and event production extraordinaire Belvit Jordan. Women’s History Month is an amazing opportunity to embrace all that we are and can become as women! Our womanhood is the undeniable display of our strength, our power and our resilience. And personally, I am thankful for all the women in my life and for the ways in which they continue to inspire and impact me both personally and professionally. LITTLE BROADWAY Crystal Chanel Press Release Marketing, LLC Event Hosting - Marketing - Public Relations www.justpressrelease.com @PressReleaseLLC on Instagram
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vogue. That’s why I’ve always supported the Black Press.” Brazile said she expected criticism when she decided to sign this week with Fox News. “If I made a decision tomorrow to work for a presidential candidate, people would ask why,” Brazile said. “It reminds me of 2008 when people asked how come I’m not working for Barack Obama, that he’s a black man. Or, how come I’m not working for Hillary Clinton because she’s a woman,” she said. “I said, I’m getting old and gray, so if I choose, can I work for John McCain?” Brazile said the importance of the 2020 presidential election was a primary reason she decided to join Fox News. She said it’s of great concern that the national debate has become hostile and disrespectful. “Fox has one of the largest audiences during the evening hours and they are not just Republican voters and they’re not just Trump voters,” Brazile said. “In order to win, we have to expand the electorate and we can’t just talk to people who agree with us. We have to talk to people who may not agree with us because they don’t hear us,” she said. Brazile continued: “I hope that I’m able to come across as someone reasonable and someone people can respect, and I will do my very best.” Finally, she said unlike those who wish to “stay in their lanes all of their lives,” she needed a change. “I want to try this lane [Fox News]. If I don’t like it, I’ll get out of this lane and hopefully I’ll get a job when I get out of this lane,” she said.
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apr 3 - 24 7pm - 9PM
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ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS NOW.
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2019 ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND deadline apr 19 TO APPLY, VISIT:
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Deeply Rooted
PAGE 6 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
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The Westside Gazette, under the Management of BI-AD’s, Inc., reserves the right to publish Views and Opinions by Contributing Writers thay may not necessarily reflect those of the Staff and Management of The Westside Gazette Newspaper and are solely the product of the responsible individual(s) who submit comments published in this newspaper.
“REFUSING TO BREAK
The Gantt Report
RELATIONSHIPS”
“A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is made for adversity” (Proverbs 17:17) By Rasheed Baaith and Bobby R. Henry, Sr. In 2020 there will be an election for the Office of Broward County Sheriff. There is no denying the importance of both the office and the election. Additionally, it will be an election of historical importance. The office is presently held by a Black man, Sheriff Gregory Tony, who was appointed by Gov. DeSantis to replace former Sheriff Scott Israel. That appointment too is of equal importance as Sheriff Tony is the first African American to hold the office of Broward County Sheriff. And although some say Scott Israel was the “first Black Sheriff,” he is not Black and could not be the “first Black sheriff”. It is an insult to ourselves to say otherwise. Sheriff Toney is having to restructure and replace much of what is essential and what is not that was put in place by Sheriff Israel. It will be of interest to see how well he does. He has to get to know our community as much as we have to get to know him. But there is one way he is connected to us. If he does not do well or even competently, those and there are many, who do not believe we can do well in such an office, will use his appointment against us. Let’s hope he does well even if you are supporting someone else in the upcoming election. Why? Because of who and what we are, we will always be connected in some way to each other. Whether we like it or not and for better or worse. In the upcoming election in 2020, there will be at least five men of color running for the office That our community will be fragmented as a result is an understatement; we’ve seen this before in other elections. Still, that might well be the least of our problems. The greater problem is insuring that the fragmentation and the division in our community wrought by the election does not leave permanent scars or fissures as our communities have not fully recovered from the last time this scenario presented itself. Our partisanship should be sincere but not unreasonable, our political camps should not be indissoluble places of residency. How do we prevent this from occurring again in our community? By recognizing the election has importance but not enough importance to destroy relationships. Already I hear potential candidates saying “If someone is going to support me, I don’t want them even talking to my opposition.” That people is just so much verbal diarrhea. I cannot speak for anyone else but I intend to speak to anyone I please. I do not intend to end relationships, some more than 25 years in duration because of an election. That way of thinking is tantamount to the thinking of slave masters and dictators. It is the kind of thinking our community has fought against all of our lives. It supports a type of censorship regimes in totalitarian states hold fast to. It’s the kind of doctrine President Trump aspires to have in place. So the animosity is already simmering. Our community cannot let the simmer become a boil. We cannot copy the behavior of drastic political practices that will gain us nothing else but disunity for our future. To break up family, friendship and business relationships because of a political campaign is nothing short of imbecilic. The candidates, however many there will be, will play the biggest role in this political fire prevention. Their campaigns have to be without personal attacks against an opponent’s family or the opponent him or herself. There are subjects that are germane to administration of the Office of Sheriff and those that are not. Nobody is interested in the sexual habits of someone’s family pet. Candidates need to focus on policy evolvement, leadership capabilities, experience, their paradigm for recruitment and training. Even more, what is it they have with our community except for skin color? If that is the only commonality, what is it as a Black man that makes you a better Black person than the Black person standing next to you? Finally, there is this: we are living in a time more dangerous for us than any time we have lived in before. Certainly as far as politics is concerned. We need each other more politically than ever before. Support who you want to be Sheriff but do not decide because anyone differs with you, that relationships, friendships, or brotherhood has to be ended. If you do, remember with enough time and enough elections, soon only politics will share your life; all your friends will be gone.
Meritocracy is the opium of the rich By Kevin Palmer
By James B. Miller
Nathan Robinson in a March 14, 2019 article published in The Guardian, Meritocracy is a myth invented by the rich, stated, “The elite college admissions scandal in the U.S. is a reminder that wealth, not talent, is what determines the opportunities you have in life.” Robinson explained, “It’s no secret that wealthy people will do nearly anything to get their kids into good schools. But this scandal only begins to reveal the lies that sustain the Amer-
Immigration and the Democratic Hopefuls By Andrew Moss To date, Democrats have largely failed to lay out a comprehensive vision of what our immigration policy should be. Some of the announced presidential candidates have, over time, staked out positions on specific issues, such as the status of the Dreamers or the abolition of ICE, but they’ve largely left it to Donald Trump and his allies to set the broader terms of the debate. If the candidates hope to offer a genuine alternative to the administration’s policies, it’s imperative that they shift the debate from sloganeering about the wall and “open borders” to a consideration of an underlying question: what priorities and values will guide our immigration policy
in the coming years? Will we continue along the present path of increased militarization and incarceration, or will we forge policies guided by a vision of a more just society? No challenger will succeed in this project unless he or she can begin to counter Trump’s greatest political weapon: fear. Right from the start, candidate Trump began stoking people’s anxieties about their job security, their physical safety, and the cohesion of American society itself. Since his election as president, he has used the enormous power of his office to amplify his message, supported by Fox News and other conservative outlets. If Democratic challengers are to succeed, they’ll need to employ facts and narratives skillfully to align the mainstream debates to reality. For the facts, they’ll need to draw on extensive research, including a recent Continue reading online at: www.thewestsidegazette.
Line in the sand
ican idea of meritocracy. In reality, there can never be such a thing as a meritocracy, because there’s never going to be fully equal opportunity. As long as there are large wealth inequalities, there will be colossal differences in the opportunities that children have.” Echoing the meritocracy myth, Richard V. Reeves in a March 13, 2019 Brookings Op-Ed, Dream stealers: How entrance into elite U.S. colleges is rigged in every way, stated, “The whole system is “rigged” in favor of more affluent parents.” This unearned favoritism mocks the American Dream. The late comedian George Carlin said, “That’s why they call it the American Dream, because you have to be asleep to believe it.” Nathan Robinson concludes, “The main function of the [meritocracy] concept is to assure elites that they deserve their position in life. It eases the “anxiety of affluence”, that nagging feeling that they might be the beneficiaries of the arbitrary “birth lottery” rather than the products of their own individual ingenuity and hard work.”
I am all for the beautification and natural progression of reconstruction in the historic Black District of 6 Street AKA Sistrunk Blvd. But, my problem lies with the passive aggressiveness of the act. The complacent sits and quietly complains in small congregations of friends, yet remain silent in the face of the powers that be. We must realize that contentment is a step backwards. What is done is only that which is allowed. If the best interest of the generations of residents of sis Strong Boulevard was at heart, this would be a wonderful gesture from the city of Fort Lauderdale. But, sadly that’s not the case. We are caught in the middle of a major landgrab. Our history is being snatched from us right before our eyes, and we sit idle as a man sitting on death row waiting for his eventual fate. When does it become important to us? Is it when you receive a three months’ notice informing you that you must move or do you as homeowners feel less affected by the contents of your environment? But, contrary to your belief, you will be greatly affected. Either by tax hikes, policy or eminent domain - why wait? Why not draw a line in the sand now? Don’t be disillusioned by the token of thoughtfulness of the prospect of the new YMCA/Mizell Community Center(which is well deserving), but it’s a fruit to defocus you from the other actualities that are going on around you. The residents of Sistrunk are sitting on a gold mine and don’t even know it. With the proximity to downtown that Fort Lauderdale Beach and I 95 are, it’s a dream of convenience that holds value by the visions of others, (not us). Let’s reflect It will be a sad day to watch the homes of your mother and father, you along with brothers and sisters, your kids, friends and neighbors grew up in torn down right in your face. Tears don’t stop demolition. tThere has been very little seed about the affordable low income and senior housing. Now we must decide where do we go from here, and most importantly where do we draw the line? What’s at heart is our people who have put the time in as a part of the American workforce and now live on a fixed income who live day to day, month to month. It’s virtually impossible to think that they will be able to afford an increase of $800/$1000 of rental a month. What are they supposed to do? Answer: Fight! Because there’s no place like home!
OPINION IS THE MEDIUM BETWEEN KNOWLEDGE AND IGNORANCE.
-Plato
Not Above The Law
By Lucius Gantt
President D o n a l d Trump and his league of liars got the Special Prosecutor results that they wanted recently, according to the rinky dinky opinionated letter given to Congress by Attorney General William Barr. After Bob Mueller released a voluminous report that detailed Russian interference in United States elections and Russian social media ads and posts designed to destroy any confidence in American Democracy, Attorney General Barr sent a four page letter to Congress that expressly stated that there was “no collusion” by Trump World and the Kremlin! Release the whole report? Oh no, Barr merely decided to say what Trump and his leader Vladimir Putin wanted Barr to say! In essence, it doesn’t matter if everyone in Trump world has been lying about their Russian contacts from the get go, it doesn’t matter if tens of Russians have been indicted for conspiracy against the United States for cyber crimes and hacking US businesses and individuals and it didn’t matter that Trump confidants and loyalists have been found guilty in a court of law and many have seen the inside of a prison cell block. If you don’t remember, Barr was selected to become Attorney General after he wrote a much longer letter months ago to the Department of Justice that stated his view that the President of the United States was above the law and could not be indicted or charged with obstruction of justice while sitting as the President. But Mary, don’t you weep and tell Martha not to mourn.! Continue reading online at: www.thewestsidegazette.com
Are the
Republicans
Playing Games with Amendment
4 in Florida?
By Roger Caldwell
“The passage of Amendment 4 was a political, ethical, and moral victory especially, for Blacks, and people of color in Florida. As many different organizations and different individuals take their victory lap, everyone must remember that the battle is not over,” as I wrote in a previous article, called “Amendment 4 Has Passed and Implementation Questions Start.” Florida is a red state, and the Republicans control the Governorship, the Cabinet, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Most of the appointees are conservatives and Republicans. Decisions are made with one thought in mind, and that is to remain in power. In order to remain in power, our leaders have no problem erecting barriers to make it difficult to make changes. Over nearly 65% of Floridians in the 2018 midterm elections voted to implement Amendment 4. This amendment restores the voting rights to approximately 1.5 million convicted felons who have completed their parole and Continue reading online at: www.thewestsidegazette.
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BUSINESS
Deeply Rooted
MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 7
UNITY IN THE COMMUNITY DIRECTORY
Fred Lovell, Lic. Opt. "Over 30 Years In Optics"
FRUIT, FRUIT & FRUIT “LET’S KEEP IT REAL AND WHAT YOU DON’T SEE ASK FORD” CALL (954) 557-1203 Brandi Alexander is the National Director of Constituency for Compassion & Choices, and she has been with the organization for more than 10 years. Her dedication to educating people about having autonomy over all aspects of life, including at the end of life, has been a driving force in her career. At Compassion & Choices, she is responsible for outreach to physician, African American, faith, and LGBTQ communities. Brandi previously served as the coalition director for the Yes! On Colorado End of Life Options voter initiative campaign in 2016, which passed with more than 65 percent of the vote. She has worked on campaigns all over the nation to advance the end-of-life choice movement, including in Colorado, Vermont, Montana, and Washington, D.C., where medical aid in dying is authorized. Brandi graduated from Middlebury College with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a minor in French and women’s studies. She holds certificates in the Fundamentals in Gerontology and Health and Wellness in an Aging Society, through a joint program offered by the American Society on Aging and the USC Davis School of Gerontology. She has completed several Wellstone Advocacy Training units, including Direct Mail & Voter Guides, Endorsements & Outreach, and Direct Voter Contact. She also has completed the Management Center’s People of Color & Indigenous Cohorts training.
HAVE YOUR BUSINESS CARD PLACED ON THIS PAGE CALL FOR MORE INFO (954) 525-1489
PAGE 8 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
Deeply Rooted
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MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 9
SPECIALTY CAMPS AT VIZCAYA PARK
JR. CHEF • BEATZ & PRODUCTION • ARTS & CRAFTS EXPLORATION CAMP • CAREER BOUND • TOY TECHNICIANS PAWN & PUTT • S.T.E.M. CAMP • FASHION • FOOTBALL • GET UP & DANCE MOVEMENT Includes field trips and meals. Pricing varies.
Because Our FuturE Shines bright!
VIZCAYA PARK (954) 883-6800 Space is limited. Call today for rates and availability!
miramarvels summer camp
SWIMMING LESSONS • S.T.E.M. ACTIVITIES • ARTS & CRAFTS FIELD TRIPS • MOVIES • GAMES • SHOWS • PARTIES & MORE! Includes all meals and activities. RESIDENT - $125 PER WEEK NON-RESIDENT - $150 PER WEEK SUNSET LAKES • SILVER SHORES • FAIRWAY (954) 883-5230 Space is limited. Call today for availability!
LITTLE BROADWAY SUMMER CAMP
The 8th annual Little Broadway Summer Camp is a seven-week funfilled summer theater arts program for youth ages 8 - 14, designed for performing art students with all levels of ability and experience. Camp includes weekly field trips, arts enrichment classes, nutritional snacks and culminates with a public theater performance. JUNE 17 - AUGUST 2, 2019 MIRAMAR CULTURAL CENTER | ARTSPARK (954) 602-4519 Space is limited. Call today for availability!
SUMMER SPORTS & M.O.S.T. CAMPS Includes field trips and meals.
RESIDENT $115 PER WEEK NON-RESIDENT $135 PER WEEK ANSIN SPORTS COMPLEX | (954) 602-4990
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RESIDENT $115 PER WEEK NON-RESIDENT $135 PER WEEK MIRAMAR REGIONAL PARK AQUATIC COMPLEX (954) 883-6955 Space is limited. Call today for availability!
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MIRAMAR COMMUNITY THEATER
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Miramar Cultural Center is thrilled to introduce an exciting theatre arts program for 8th through 12th graders who desire a deeper understanding for the theatrical arts. Facilitated by Jo Marie Payton (TV Personality, Actress, Singer and Director) students will engage in hands-on-participatory activities involved in putting together a full production. MIRAMAR CULTURAL CENTER | ARTSPARK (954) 602-4519 Space is limited. Only 35 openings available. Call today for availability!
PAGE 10 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
Family That Together, Together AF amily T hat Prays T ogether, Stays T ogether
Church Directory This Worship T his and Every Sunday at the Church of Your Choice
Bethel Missionary Baptist Church 2211 N.W. 7th Street, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33061 Church: (954) 583-9368 Email: bethelmbchurchfl@att.net
Deeply Rooted New Mount Olive Baptist Church 400 N.W. 9th Ave., Ft. Lauderdale 33311 (954) 463-5126 ● Fax: (954) 525-9454 CHURCH OFFICE HOURS Monday - Friday 8:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Dr. Marcus D. Davidson, Senior Pastor
WORSHIP SERVICES & BIBLE STUDY
Sunday .................................................... 7:15 a.m. 9:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m. Sunday School ............................................................................ 10:00 a.m. Wednesday Noonday Service .................................. 12:00-12:30 p.m. Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting ............................................ 6:30 p.m. Wednesday Night Bible Study ................................................... 7:00 p.m. Where the kingdom of God is increased through Fellowship. Leadership, Ownership and Worship F.L.O.W. To Greatness!
www.thewestsidegazette.com
Williams Memorial CME “PRAYER IS THE ANSWER” Rev. Cal Hopkins (M.Div) Senior Pastor/Teacher 644-646 NW 13th Terr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 33311 (954) 462-5711(Ministry Office Line) (954) 462-8222(Pastor’s Direct Line) Email: wm_cme@bellsouth.net ( Church} pastorCal50@yahoo.com (Pastor)
The WITNESS of “The WILL” Sunday Worship Experiences ................................................................ 7:45 and 11:00 a.m. Sunday School ................................................................................................................. 9:30 a.m. Tuesday Night Triumph {Prayer, Praise and Power} Prayer Meeting ................................................................................................................ 7:00 p.m. Bible Study ........................................................................................................................ 7:30 p.m. We STRIVE to PROVIDE Ministries that matter TODAY to Whole Body of Christ, not only the Believers, but also for those stranded on the “Jericho Road”! “Celebrating over 85 Years of FAITH and FAVOR! Come to the WILL ... We’ll show You the WAY: Jesus the Christ!”
Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church 2251 N.W. 22nd St., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 P.O. BOX 122256, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312 (954) 733-3285 * Fax: (954) 733-9231 Email: mountnebobaptist@bellsouth.net
Reverend Jimmy L. English PASTOR
WORSHIP SERVICES
Sunday Worship ............................................................. 8 a.m. & 11 a.m. Sunday School ........................................................................... 9:30 a.m. Wednesday (Prayer Service & Bible Study) ............................... 7:30 a.m. Saturday (Women Bible Study) ............................................................ 8 a.m. "Baptized Believers working together to do the will of God"
Rev. Danny L. McKenzie, Sr. Senior Pastor WORSHIP SERVICES & BIBLE STUDY
Sunday .............................................................................. 7:30 a.m. & 11 a.m. Sunday School .................................................................................... 9:30 a.m. Tuesday Night Bible Study .............................................................. 7:00 p.m. Fifth Sunday ..................................................................................... 10:00 a.m.
"Reaching Our World One Person At A Time"
Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church 1161 NW 29th Terr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 33311 (954) 581-0455 ● Fax: (954) 581-4350 www.mtzionmbc1161.com
Rev. Dr. James B. Darling, Jr., Pastor/Teacher WORSHIP SERVICES
Sunday School ............................................................................................................... 9:00 a.m. Sunday Worship Service ............................................................................................. 10:15 a.m. Communion Service (1st Sunday) ........................................................................... 10:15 a.m. Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting .......................................................................... 6:30 p.m. Wednesday Night Bible Study .................................................................................. 7:00 p.m. Saturday (2nd & 4th) Christian Growth & Orientation .................................. 8:30 a.m. But be doers of the Word - James 1:22 nkjv - “A Safe Haven, and you can get to Heaven from here”
Harris Chapel United Methodist Church Rev. Stanley Melek, M.Div E-MAIL:stanley.melek@flumc.org 2351 N.W. 26th Street Oakland Park, Florida 33311 Church Telephone: (954) 731-0520
SERVICES
Sunday Worship ................................................. 7:30 a.m. & 10:30 a.m. Sunday School .............................................................................. 9:00 a.m. Wednesday (Bible Study) ........................................... 11a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Living Waters Christian Fellowship Meeting at Central Charter School Building #5 4515 N. St. Rd. 7 (US 441) Lauderdale Lakes, FL 33319 (954) 295-6894
SUNDAY SERVICE: 10 a.m. Rev. Anthony & Virginia Burrell
lwcf2019@gmail.com (Church) llerrub13@gmail.com (Pastor)
“Jesus said, let anyone who is thirsty come to Me and drink.” (John 7:37)
New Birth Baptist Church The Cathedral of Faith International Bishop Victor T. Curry, M.Min., D.Div. Senior Pastor/Teacher 2300 N.W. 135th Street Miami, Florida 33167
ORDER OF SERVICES Sunday Worship ........................................................ 7:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. & 7:00 p.m. Sunday School ....................................................................................................... 9:30 a.m. Tuesday (Bible Study) ......................................................................................... 6:45 p.m. Wednesday (Bible Study) ............................................................................... 10:45 a.m.
1-800-254-NBBC * (305) 685-3700 (o) *(305) 685-0705 (f) www.newbirthbaptistmiami.org
Shaw Temple A.M.E. Zion Church 522 N.W. Ninth Avenue Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33311 Church: (954) 462-1413 or (954) 647-8254 Email: AMEZ522@yahoo.com
Rev. Dr. William Calvin Haralson, Pastor SERVICES
Sunday School .................................................................................. 10:15 a.m. Sunday Morning Worship ............................................................ 11:00 a.m. Bible Study (Wednesday) ............................................................... 7:30 p.m.
"Reaching beyond the four walls touching lives, touching communities".
Mount Hermon A.M.E. Church Reverend Henry E. Green, Jr., Pastor 401 N.W. 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 Phone: (954) 463-6309 FAX 954 522-4113 Office Hours: Tuesday - Friday 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Email infor@mthermonftl.com
Obituaries James C. Boyd Funeral Home CURTIS Funeral services for the late Harry Curtis, Jr. - 45 were held March 23 at James C. Boyd’s Memorial Chapel with Pastor Rickie Young officiating. Interment: Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens (Central). GLASGOW Funeral services for the late Collis Glasgow -66 were held March 21 at James C. Boyd’s Memorial Chapel with Pastor Erskine Benjamin officiating. WILCOX Funeral services for the late Margaret Ethel Silcox - 84
McWhite's Funeral Home BURNS Funeral services for the late Jeri Burns - 52 were held March 23 at McWhite’ s Funeral Home with DT. W.M. Ramsey officiating. Interment: Sunset Memorial Gardens.
HOGGAN Funeral services for the late Gerrick Lamar Hogan – 47 were held March 23 at McWhite’ s Funeral Home Chapel with Pastor Curtis Miller officiating.
Roy Mizell & Kurtz
Funeral Home
BULLOCK Funeral services for the late Emma Lee Bullock - 85 were held March 23 at Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church with Rev. Danny L. McKenzie, Sr officiating. Interment: Sunset Memorial Gardens. MASON Funeral services for the late Debra Denyse Mason - 60 were held March 23 at Roy Mizell & Kurtz Worship Center with Rev. Queen Ester McCormick officiating. Interment: Forest Lawn Cemetery.
“YOU MUST NEVER BE FEARFUL ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE DOING WHEN IT IS RIGHT” -- ROSA PARKS
Latasha Morrison
SUNDAY CHURCH SERVICES Worship Service ..................................................................... 7:30 & 10:30 a.m. Fifth Sunday ONLY .................................................................................... 10 a.m. Church School ........................................................................................ 9:15 a.m. BIBLE STUDY: Wednesday ....................................................................... 10 a.m. Gems & Jewels Ministry Senior Wednesday Wednesday (Bible Study) .................................................... 12 Noon & 7 - 8 p.m. Daily Prayer Line ...................................................................................... 6 a.m. (712)432-1500 Access Code296233#
hopes to build a bridge between Black and white
TO HAVE YOUR CHURCH PLACED In OUR CHURCH DIRECTORY PAGE, CALL (954) 525-1489 Golden Tigers mourn the loss of “Coach” Frank Leftwich
By Jasher Cox, Tuskegee University Athletics
Long-time Tuskegee University administrator and faculty member Dr. H. Frank Leftwich passed away on Friday, March 15. Dr. Leftwich, affectionately known as "Coach," served in a variety of capacities that spanned more than 50 years including professor, department chair, interim provost, interim dean, and athletic director. Services for Dr. Leftwich are scheduled for Saturday, March 23 at 11 a.m. at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 2007 W. Montgomery Rd. in Tuskegee. For more about "Coach" Leftwich, visit the Tuskegee University Athletics website.
Christians
Photo courtesy Be The Bridge Nicola A. Menzie (RNS) — When white supremacist Dylann Roof gunned down nine Black Christians at Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, South Carolina, on Jun. 17, 2015, LatashaMorrison said her predominantly white church “didn’t even know how to handle it.” No one, she said, seemed to notice. “That day I came to church and people were carrying on like it was a normal day. I was devastated,” she said. This was a church where a fellow member had decided during a staff meeting to explain to Morrison “what Lincoln did to the South and that people loved their slaves.” That did not go over well, Morrison said. “I actually wanted to become the Incredible Hulk and knock over the table,” she said. That conversation stuck with Morrison. She wondered how people who shared the same faith could have such different views. And she wondered if church members from different backgrounds could ever really talk about race. “We’ve grown up in two different worlds, two different Americas. I think that was the beginning,” Morrison said. “It took me three days to process that conversation. If she’s thinking this, that means a whole lot more people are having these same thoughts. If I’m going to be in this environment, then I want to help re-shape perspectives in worldviews and change lenses and really bring truth in those spaces.” That experience led Morrison to found Be the Bridge, a faithbased nonprofit that provides a framework for meaningful cross-cultural relationships and dialogue about America’s racial history. Continue reading online at: www.thewestsidegazette.com
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MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 11
This Isn’t Your Grandparent’s Election By Perry Busby
PART III OF IV SERIES Director Comey made many questionable decisions and puzzling statements leading up to the 2016 election. This one can also be added to the list. The statement, while partially true, points to a lack of understanding many elected officials, including county and state election administrators, have when it comes to the inner workings of voting machines. Coupled with the fact that many county election offices have been slow to upgrade staff resources to include personnel skilled in areas to monitor and mitigate such attacks, even approaches with the best intention cannot compete against these new threats. There are roughly 350,000 voting machines in use in the country today. At the core of these machines is a proprietary software that handles a number of functions, from highlighting a user selection on a screen, to scanning and recording the selections on a paper ballot and tabulating all votes cast from a machine. Proprietary software, also called black-box software, is a set of instructions that are readable only by the machine. While the software that runs the voting machine is secure, hackers at DefCon proved that the software does not safeguard the machine itself from intrusion. To understand voting machines, let’s start with the fact that it is a highly competitive $300M a year industry. State contracts are usually awarded as
a result of wining and dining stateand county-election administrators. Then there is the offer of an advisory board listing on their letterhead and website. This appointment provides legal covering for the administrator to receive lucrative perks such as first-class flights, upscale hotel accommodations and tickets to sporting and entertainment events. It is said that the industry itself is as equally secretive and problematic as the machines they make. There are approximately ten vendors nationwide, but the top three vendors: Election Systems & Software (ES&S), Hart InterCivic, and Canadian-based Dominion, account for 80% of the voting machines currently in use. Also significant is the industry’s political ties, which are overwhelmingly Republican. This is not to infer any suggested bias or rigging of systems, but in a highly partisan government system such as the one we’re currently experiencing,
one is justified in questioning whether state and federal officials are capable of being objective when it comes to machine count tallies, especially in hotly contested race. Cyber Threats The effectiveness of social media as a political power tool came to light during Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns in 2008 and 2012. The Obama campaign skillfully used social media platforms, particularly Facebook and Twitter, to drive messaging and mobilize supporters on a magnitude never seen before by a politician. Soon, other politicians, enticed by social media’s reach and ability to influence, rushed to establish an online presence, although not with the same level of success as Obama. Even Donald Trump, with his bombastic Twitter tirades, has yet to achieve that type of consistent, widespread message-to-action momentum through social media.
Tuskegee students honored at Emerging Researchers National STEM Conference
Tuskegee University was well-represented at the recent Emerging Researchers National Conference in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in Washington, D.C. The annual conference seeks to help undergraduate and graduate students enhance their science communication skills and to better understand how to prepare for science careers in a global workforce. In addition to providing students with professional development that enhances their classroom studies, the conference provides students with a forum to compete in several different poster and oral presentation categories. Winners and participants from Tuskegee in these competitions include: · Carlton Antoine, a senior from North Miami, Florida, majoring in business; third place, HBCU Maker and Innovation Showcase; mentor, Dr. Richard Whittington · Devante Dawson, a graduate student from Trussville, Alabama, majoring in biology; third place: ERN Summer Science Video Contest; third place: HBCU Maker and Innovation Showcase; mentor: Dr. Richard Whittington · Sydnei Head, a sophomore from Powder Springs, Georgia, majoring in chemical engineering; first place, Nanotechnology Poster Presentation · Aarin Huffman, a senior from Birmingham, Alabama, majoring in biology; first place, Biological Sciences Poster Presentation; mentor: Dr. Daniel Abugri · Alice Levert, a senior from Cleveland, Ohio, majoring in biology; third place, HBCU Maker and Innovation Showcase; mentor: Dr. Richard Whittington · Stephen Massenburg, a senior from Oxon Hill, Maryland, majoring in business; participation award, Conference Plenary Session; mentor: Dr. Willard Collier · Jonathan Mitchell, a senior from Atlanta majoring in materials science and engineering; first place, Nanotechnology Poster Presentation; mentors: Dr. Michael Curry and Dr. Richard Whittington · Jade Roberts, a junior from North Miami, Florida, majoring in biology; competed in the Biological Sciences Oral Presentation contest; mentor: Dr. Daniel Abugri · Brianna Smith, a graduate student from Palmetto, Georgia, majoring in biology; third place, HBCU Maker and Innovation Showcase; mentor: Dr. Richard Whittington · Jade Stanley, a senior from Birmingham, Alabama, majoring in chemistry; second place: Chemistry and Chemical Sciences Poster Presentation · Dr. Richard Whittington; third place, HBCU Maker and Innovation Showcase The annual conference, held Feb. 21-23, was hosted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Education and Human Resources Programs (EHR) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Human Resource Development (HRD),
(Continue reading online at: www.thewestsidegazette.com)
Jamarah Amani Receives the Trailblazer Award From City of Miami Commission on the Status of Women City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and the City of Miami Commissioners presented Jamarah Amani, community midwife and organizer, whose work narrative is dedicated to the importance of midwifery and doula care being accessible to help reduce health disparities. Amani ’s mission is to do her part to build a movement for Birth Justice locally, nationally and globally. Her work has a lens toward those who are most marginalized for various reasons related to the oppressive forces of our society. “I’m so grateful for the support and encouragement of my family and community. To me, this is an opportunity to raise the visibility of Black mamas, Black midwives, and Black doulas and to compel elected officials in Miami to have conversations about the intersections of oppression that impact health outcomes. Onward!”, states Jamarah Amani, Director at Southern Birth Justice Network. Last week, Jamarah spoke at Capitol Hill in Tallahassee about the importance of midwifery and doula care being accessible to help reduce health disparities. She was
accompanied by five teen moms and their babies. A community organizer from the age of sixteen, Jamarah has worked with several organizations across the United States, the Caribbean and in Africa on various public health issues, including HIV prevention, infant mortality risk reduction, access to emergency contraception and access to midwifery care. She is currently the director of Southern Birth Justice Network, a 501(c)3 non- profit organization. Jamarah studied Africana Studies, Women’s Studies and Midwifery at centers of learning such as University of Pennsylvania, Clark Atlanta University and, most recently, International School of Midwifery. Jamarah is also a Certified Lactation Consultant. In addition to raising four lively children (who are also raising her), Jamarah offers midwifery care, breastfeeding consultations and childbirth education to families and communities across the state of Florida. For more information and to connect with Jamarah, visit www. southernbirthjustice.org
PAGE 12 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
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AfricanAmericanHeartHealthIsVital By Dr. Anisa Shomo, NNPA Newswire Contributor
Last month, February 2019, was not only Black History Month, it was also Heart Health Awareness Month per the American Heart Association. Heart disease is the number one killer of men and women in the United States. Generally, heart disease is considered a man’s disease, but more Black and White women die of heart disease than all cancers combined. About 610,000 men and women die of heart disease each year and it accounts for 1 in 4 deaths in both genders. Coronary Heart Disease is the most common type and accounts for over half of these deaths. Coronary heart disease increases the risk for heart attacks and over 700,000 Americans have heart attacks each year. Like other serious health issues, African Americans have disproportionately high rates of heart disease. Every month for 49 million African Americans should be heart health awareness month. The three largest risk factors that lead to fatal heart disease are high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and smoking. Diabetes, Obesity, poor diet, physical inactivity, and excess drinking are other risk factors. There are other lifestyle concerns that can also lead to high blood pressure and obesity such as poor sleep and high stress levels. Heart disease signs and symptoms are chest pain and discomfort, nausea, lightheadedness, shortness of breath, sweating, upper body pain or discomfort (jaw, arms, neck, upper back, upper stomach). If you or a loved one are experiencing these symptoms you should call 9-1-1 immediately. Now that I have your attention at least for a moment, there are specific ways to improve your heart health. Know your heart-related numbers. Get your primary care doctor at least once per year to check your blood pressure, heart rate, BMI (body mass index). and cholesterol. High blood pressure or hypertension is called the “Silent Killer” because many people have no symptoms of their blood pressure being high. Your doctor will also screen you for depression and other conditions depending on your age and risk factors. Check your weight at home often (daily, weekly, monthly) to make sure that you are not gaining weight. Many people gain 5 pounds per year without awareness and that adds up over the years. The goal is a blood pressure under 130/80 and a
Dr. Anisa Shomo is the Director of Family Medicine Scholars at the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio and is a health columnist for the NNPA. heart rate between 60 and 80. Smoking cigarettes is not good for your health and in particular smoking is not good for a healthy heart. If you smoke, you should consider the health benefits of “stop smoking.” Consistent exercise is also important to keep your heart healthy. Be Active: at least 30 minutes five days per week. Think about how you can move naturally in your home. Can you walk more in your home? Can you routinely bike or lift weights or stretch? Make a plan to walk more by setting goals for how much you want to walk, how often, and how you will track your progress (pedometer, stopwatch, timer, calendar, etc). Eat a ”Heart Healthy Diet.” Of course, there will always be a range of strategies and objectives to help maintain having a healthy heart. Diet is another user-friendly item. In other words, you can control your personal daily diet. Avoiding becoming over weight and obesity are both related to diet. Studies have concluded that a “Mediterranean Diet” has consistently been shown to be the preferred diet for heart health. It is not actually a diet but the way that people in Mediterranean cultures eat for their whole lives. It consists of small amounts of meat, fish, and dairy but is mostly plant based. Weight is directly related to diet and physical exercise. Maintaining a healthy weight is a factor in sustaining a healthy heart. This is a somewhat controversial because as recent studies have shown that weight is not as important to heart health as diet and exercise. That is to say that whether your weight is low or high, you
should still be working to have a healthy diet and stay active. If you do desire to weight loss, talk with your doctor about long-term plan. We all should strive to have quality sleep. Most adults need 7-9 hours of sleep each night. If you have trouble falling asleep: try setting a regular bedtime; avoiding long naps during the day; getting rid of the TV in your bedroom; leaving your cell phone on the other side of your bedroom; reading a physical book or journaling while trying to fall asleep; and, get out of the bed until you are more sleepy. Lastly, we emphasize the critical importance of managing stress to prevent heart attacks and heart disease. Stress may cause heart attacks and death even in people with normal cholesterol and coronary arteries. It is very important to reduce stress in your life. Work to not overcommit yourself to family, friends, work and tasks. Self-care is key and learning how to say “no” is part of self-care. Work on your mindset and how you view your world and stressful situations. Learn how to let go of things that are out of your control. Utilize mindfulness, journaling, talk therapy, meditation, yoga, exercise to help clarify what is important to you and filter out the things that may be causing your goals and vision to be clouded. All of the above advice and recommendations will help you to focus on keeping your heart healthy and strong. Again, for African Americans the health of our hearts will determine the health of our families and communities. Our heart heath is vital.
COLLEGE T-SHIRT DAY AT ST. JOHN UMC
-- Psalm 105:1 O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon His name; make known His deeds among the people. The members of St. John used their annual college t-shirt day as one means of displaying their thankfulness to God. The young and the used-to-be young proudly worshipped together wearing t-shirts from their favorite colleges and universities.
North Carolina Attorney Says States Are “Criminalizing” Protests If legislators and police can criminalize protests, America’s democracy is imperiled. By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
With protests growing increasingly common around the country, the movement to silence those who exercise their First Amendment Rights is fast gaining traction. At least that’s the opinion of one North Carolina attorney who said the wave of legislation to criminalize protests has hit Charlotte where a controversial ordinance known as the “Extraordinary Event” law even led to a city councilman being charged for carrying a water bottle and a gas mask. “That ordinance permits police to stop and search residents based on what they deem are extraordinary events, which is an exceedingly vague phrase,” said attorney Darlene Harris. “For instance, in 2016, my client, Braxton Winston, who was attending demonstrations following the fatal police shooting of a Black man, Keith Lamont Scott, was arrested for having a water bottle and a mask – items apparently prohibited by law enforcement,” she said. “It’s one of those laws that people hardly know about and, of course, ignorance is no defense for breaking the law, but even another client of mine, Gloria Merriweather, who attended the same protest, was charged with inciting a riot for just being in attendance,” Harris said. The charges against both Winston and Merriweather were eventually dropped but
Harris said it’s because of their standing in the community and because they had a good lawyer. “If it were a public defender and someone of little means or impoverished, they would have a difficult time fighting the charges because you think about the many days, they’d need to take off from work to go to court and the loss of income,” Harris said. Harris recently defended Rayquan Borum, whom prosecutors charged him with first-degree murder, and they sought to use the theory of felony murder in convicting him. Typically, felony murder is applied when someone is in the process of committing an inherently dangerous felony. In North Carolina, felony murder is punishable by life without parole. In the Borum instance, the underlying felony was rioting at the 2016 protests connected to the Scott shooting. “Rioting was used as the underlying felony, but it raises legal questions like whether all of those at the protest were engaged in a riot just because of their presence and if someone dies by means other than intentional homicide, are all the attendees responsible,” Harris said. While Borum was convicted of second-degree murder, the jury failed to convict him on the more serious first-degree murder charge. “It was a 9-3 split for Continue reading online at: thewestsidegazette.com
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MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 13
‘Black Farmers’ gear up for legal fight after appeals court setback By Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell, Special to the New Tri-State Defender The Black Farmers and Agriculturalists (BFAA) recently hit a snag when the U. S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, denied the group’s complaint against the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). “It was anticipated that the quest for justice and the cash award for BFAA’s 20,000 members for past years of racial discrimination could be won,” said Bishop David A. Hall Sr., ecumenical support advisor for BFAA. “The fight is very costly, but the dues of BFAA’s members afford the Association the opportunity to continue vigorous legal action on behalf of black farmers and their heirs.” The descendants of Earnest Lee Boyland from Mason, Tenn. filed a lawsuit in the 1990s alleging that the USDA adhered to discriminatory policies against African American farmers between the years of 1983 and 1997 when loans and other assistance programs were systematically denied to “black farmers.” Others joined Boyland’s heirs in a class action and in 1999 an appellate judge agreed approving a settlement. By 2011, $1.06 billion had been paid to 16,000
The BFAA’s fight for nearly a decade has been to have the money already set aside to pay the additional class-action claims be actually paid to farmers and their heirs. Some have passed away over the past decade, waiting for redress. (Photo: iStockphoto / NNPA)
growers across the country. Tens of thousands missed the September 2000 deadline to file a claim under the initial ruling. To remedy this, Congress added a 2008
provision to the Farm Bill, allowing them to petition the court for their portion of the settlement. In 2010, Congress appropriated $1.2 billion for the second round of
settlements. The BFAA’s fight for nearly a decade has been to have the money already set aside to pay the additional class-action claims be actually paid to
farmers and their heirs. Some have passed away over the past decade, waiting for redress. Previously, this same court had denied the USDA’s motion for a summary ruling, which would have dismissed the claims of the additional litigants. BFAA President Thomas Burrell called that decision a monumental one that “vindicates our movement and vindicates the organization.” Attorneys for the BFAA contended that a private claims administrator hired by the USDA improperly denied the plaintiffs’ efforts to join the second phase of settlements. The attorneys for the 20,000-member organization had argued before a panel of judges with the District of Columbia Third Court of Appeals on October 1, 2018, in Washington, DC. Although the latest decision announced by the Circuit Court caught BFAA by surprise, the issue is nowhere near over, Hall said. “We will make the correct assessment of the ruling and will file appeals appropriately. BFAA is prepared for a fight.” Hall, who is a farmer, said the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association is undeterred from its pursuit of social injustice, rectifying rural and urban disparities and demanding fair and equitable policies for African Americans. “(BFAA) stands on its convictions that this nation has a moral and social responsibility to provide equal treatment under the law.”
FPL Volunteers Pack Meals for Over 150 Food Insecure Families in North Miami Beach
Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) volunteers distribute food to 150 food insecure families at the Highlands Village Community Center, an organization served by Joshua’s Heart Foundation (JHF), as part of FPL’s Power to Care initiative on March 9, 2019 in North Miami Beach. JHF is a local nonprofit that provides families in need with food, toys, books and other personal items as part of its mission to fight hunger in local communities and abroad. Celebrating its 11th anniversary, FPL’s Power to Care Week consisted of 30 projects with more than 1,000 employee volunteers throughout the state. Photo credit: David Adame for FPL. By Bernadette Morris Beginning March 4, Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) volunteers will participate in FPL’s Power to Care Week. Throughout the week, volunteers will roll up their sleeves to help make the communities they serve even better places to work and raise families. On Saturday, March 9, more than 45 FPL volunteers will have all hands-on deck packing a weeklong supply of meals for 150 food insecure families at the Highlands Village Community Center in North Miami Beach,
an organization served by Joshua’s Heart Foundation (JHF). JHF, a local nonprofit, is dedicated to fighting hunger in local communities and abroad. Since its inception in 2005, the organization has raised over $1M to execute its mission to stomp out hunger, distributed over 2.2 million pounds of food, served over 500K meals to families, assisted over 450K individuals, recruited over 25K youth volunteers and donated over 100K toys, books and personal items. “These volunteer efforts will benefit North Miami Beach residents and JHF is honored to be a
part FPL’s Power to Care Week,” said JHF local chapter president, Colin Walness. North Miami Beach Mayor DiFillipo and various commissioners worked to identify families for support. Tennessee Titans safety and Miami native Johnathan Cyprien will also be in attendance. This is one of 27 volunteer projects that are part of Power to Care Week, now in its 11th year. During the week, FPL volunteers will tackle community projects in 11 counties throughout Florida.
Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) employee Lucretia Allen carries packaged food to load a van for distribution to food insecure residents at the Highlands Village Community Center. Photo credit: David Adame for FPL.
Deeply Rooted
PAGE 14 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
ACLU and Center for Media Justice Sue FBI for Records on Surveillance of Black Activists
NEW YORK — The American Civil Liberties Union and Center for Media Justice today sued the FBI and Department of Justice for records related to the surveillance of Black people and Black-led organizations pursuant to a 2017 FBI Intelligence Assessment that asserts, without evidence, the existence of so-called “Black Identity Extremists Likely Motivated to Target Law Enforcement Officers.” The intelligence assessment was disseminated to at least 18,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide. In response to the organizations’ request under the Freedom of Information Act for records about the intelligence assessment, the FBI entirely refused to search for certain records and disclosed only heavily-redacted documents in response to
one portion of the FOIA request. “The FBI’s baseless claims about a fictitious group of ‘Black Identity Extremists’ throws open the door to racial profiling of Black people and Black-led organizations who are using their voices to demand racial justice,” said Nusrat Choudhury, deputy director of the ACLU’s Racial Justice Program. “Our government’s shameful practice of using surveillance as a weapon against racial justice activism was wrong in the past and has no place in our present. The public needs to know whether FBI is manufacturing a threat to improperly surveil, investigate, and prosecute Black people for constitutionally protected activity.” The ACLU and Center for Media Justice’s FOIA request
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren rolls into Memphis with fix-government pitch
followed significant public concern about the basis for the FBI intelligence assessment, which is dated August 3, 2017, and was leaked to Foreign Policy magazine. The intelligence assessment provides no evidence of the existence of a group of so-called “Black Identity Extremists” and appears to wrongly group together Black people who, in the FBI’s own words, “perceive[ ] racism and injustice in American society.” It asserts that six isolated incidents of violence against police officers by Black people purportedly demonstrate the existence of a shared ideology motivating violence against law enforcement. The intelligence assessment also shows that the FBI considers associations, online activity, and “violent anti-white rhetoric” when determining whether a person is a so-called “Black Identity Extremist.” “As a Black activist and member of the Black Lives Matter Network, I am concerned that the FBI is deploy-
ing high-tech tools to profile, police, and punish Black people who stand up for racial justice,” said Malkia A. Cyril, co-founder and executive director of the Center for Media Justice. “The surveillance of Black people who protest police violence smacks of COINTELPRO, which targeted civil rights leaders and ordinary Black people who had the courage to protest racial inequality and discrimination. The public deserves to know whether the FBI is wasting valuable resourcContinue reading online at: thewestsidegazette.com
LEGAL NOTICES PUBLICATION OF BID SOLICITATIONS Broward County Board of County Commissioners is soliciting bids for a variety of goods and services, construction and architectural/ engineering services. Interested bidders are requested to view and download the notifications of bid documents via the Broward County Purchasing website at: www.broward.org/purchasing. March 7, 14, 21, 28, 2019
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TAURUS-Don’t expect to win every battle, especially with your lover. This week winning is losing. Backing down is winning. Shyness produces a bold result. It’s easy to collect that long-standing debt. 18, 25, 39 GEMINI-Possibilities of hearing good news about home are greatly expanded. Savor the news rather than thinking about other annoyU. Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer ances. Travel is on the horizon. Plan the trip this sets the stage for U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren. week. 26, 44, 52 (Photo: Gary S. Whitlow) CANCER-Feather the nest. Stock up on stuff for the long haul. Cement relationships. A friend By New Tri-State Defender Staff Report needs your support. Enjoy giving it. You will receive good news about a pal. Cheerfully han With Memphis-born Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” dling what comes at me is the test of who I am. playing, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren took the stage 13, 22, 31 at Douglass High School Sunday afternoon as her LEO-Be cautious and conservative with money. presidential bid rolled into a Southern swing. The event at Douglass High was an organizing You are extremely witty this week. Allow othto enjoy your good humor. Your leadership event and the first stop of a sweep through Tennessee, ers skills are very high, and others will follow. 14, Mississippi and Alabama. Monday’s schedule called for 20, 44 stops in Cleveland and Greenville in Mississippi before an evening Town Hall meeting (televised by CNN) at VIRGO-This is a good time for you to seek agreement on a plan that involves a relative. Jackson State University. Cheering supporters greeted the Massachusetts Take the time to remind your lover how much Democrat, who roused the crowd with a frank speech you care. Get a little sentimental if you have to. Don’t be too critical of that softer side of your during which she called the national government personality. 2, 9, 19 mistakenly labeled as broken by other politicians. District 7 Shelby County Commissioner Tami LIBRA-You’ve made your point. Now wait. Wait Sawyer, who is running for mayor of Memphis, for the feedback about the impact it had on the moderated a question and answer session after the people around you. Be careful of those who don’t celebrate with you. They feel the impact speech. and are resisting the positive effects. 5, 16, 23 Warren said, “corruption plain and simple” prevents Washington lawmakers from responding to some of SCORPIO-Be sharp! All of your needs will be the basic needs of average Americans, asserting that met in indirect ways. Gifts will come from unexgovernment works just fine, “for those at the top.” pected sources. They will be carefully packaged Sweeping changes is needed, she said, including to go unnoticed. Unwrap everything and look bringing a halt to lobbying “as we know it” and inside. There will be empty boxes, but there will blocking “the revolving door between Wall Street and also be a prize in an unanticipated situation.3, 10, 41 Washington.” Declaring a need for “big, systematic change in this SAGITTARIUS-Push. Now is a good time to country,” Warren advocated a constitutional amendment push. Your energy is higher than ever. Someone might get offended, but you can’t please that guarantees every voter’s vote is counted. The rules governing how the economy works also everyone. Hire a pro for something that you needs to be changed, said Warren, setting a context planned to do yourself, especially if a expertise is involved. 5, 7, 12 by drawing upon her upbringing in Oklahoma as the youngest of four children. Her father was a salesman of CAPRICORN-Review your “to do” list again. fencing, carpeting, housewares and other items, until You may need to slow down to discover something that you didn’t realize while you were in he had a heart attack. “He pulled through, but he couldn’t work for a long the flow of events. Your lover is going to be a period of time,” she said, detailing the loss of the family little difficult to understand. 5, 16, 23 station wagon and that her mother got a minimum wage AQUARIUS-Back off if an argument arises. job at Sears that saved the family home and Warren’s You’re probably the one who is too busy. Forfuture. giving yourself is often harder than getting “If you want to know who I am, that’s the story that someone else to forgive you. Go easy on yourself. Two hats fit well on my big head.25, 20, 32 tells it all,” Warren said. “It’s written in my heart.” Warren said that for a long time she thought it was PISCES-Make a special effort to spend all week just a story about her mother and about how, “no matter with your lover, husband or wife. Your sense of how scared you get…you reach down, and you get what the importance of relationships is keen and this you need to take care of the people you love.” is a good time to strengthen your passionate Later, she learned that it is a story about millions of partnership. Take your lover to a party. Devote attention. 12, 51, 49 people across the country. A minimum wage job would support a family of three NUMBERS (2-DAY RESULTS when she was growing up, Warren said. Send Self Addressed Envelope and $10:00 to: “Today, a minimum wage job will not keep a momma C.L.HENRY OR S.H. ROBINSON
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Deeply Rooted
www.thewestsidegazette.com
MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 • PAGE 15
Attorney Ben Crump Sues Harvard Over Slave Images University refuses to return images once used to advocate racism CAMBRIDGE, MA – A Connecticut woman today accused Harvard University of the wrongful seizure, possession and monetization of photographic images of her family’s patriarch, an enslaved African man named Renty, and his daughter, Delia. The images, believed to be the earliest known photographic images of slaves, were commissioned in 1850 by a Harvard professor, Louis Agassiz, and used to support a theory, known as polygenism, that Africans and African Americans are inferior to whites. Polygenism, widely advocated by the Harvard professor, was used to justify both the ongoing enslavement of Black people prior to the Civil War and their segregation afterward. As detailed in a lawsuit filed today, Harvard stood by its professor and, to this day, has never sufficiently repudiated Agassiz and his work. The images, known as daguerreotypes, were captured in the winter of 1850 in a South Carolina photography studio. Renty was brought to a photography studio, stripped naked and photographed from every angle; next to him, his daughter Delia was then stripped to the waist and forced to pose for the photographs. The lawsuit filed today in Middlesex County Superior Court alleges that Harvard has ignored Tamara Lanier’s repeated requests to stop licensing the pictures for the University’s profit and stop misrepresenting her greatgreat-great grandfather, the man she knows as
Papa Renty. A direct linear descendent of Renty, Ms. Lanier is seeking return of the photos to her family, as well as damages from Harvard. “For years, Papa Renty’s slave owners profited from his suffering – it’s time for Harvard to stop doing the same thing to our family,” said Tamara Lanier, Renty’s great- great-great granddaughter. “Papa Renty was a proud and kind man who, like so many enslaved men, women and children, endured years of unimaginable horrors. Harvard’s refusal to honor our family’s history by acknowledging our lineage and its own shameful past is an insult to Papa Renty’s life and memory.” “These photographs make it clear that Harvard benefited from slavery then and continues to benefit now. By my calculation, Renty is 169 years a slave. When will Harvard finally set him free?” said national civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, co-lead counsel for Ms. Lanier. “Without slavery, this photo would not exist, nor would the racist theories that led to its creation We cannot erase the wrongs of the past or the legacies of slavery within higher education, but we can forge a new path of respect, dignity and equality moving forward. Returning the images would be a first step in the right direction.” In 1847, Harvard had recruited Agassiz, whose work as a zoologist had focused on grouping living things together based on observable characteristics and placing them in
hierarchical order, to head the University’s Lawrence School of Science. With the prestige and support of Harvard, Agassiz soon became a zealous advocate for polygenism. The famed Harvard professor’s assertion of Black inferiority came at an opportune time for slave owners and northern profiteers from the cotton trade and aided their fight against abolitionists. The Fugitive Slave Act, widely seen as a barometer for the relative strength of the proslavery and abolitionist camps, was being hotly debated in Congress. For those seeking to prove that African Americans were inferior, Agassiz’s work, backed by Harvard’s prestige, was an invaluable gift. Based upon the oral history passed on to Tamara Lanier, Renty was born in Africa. After being kidnapped by slave merchants, he was enslaved on the B.F. Taylor plantation in South Carolina. Renty was small in stature but towering in the minds of those who knew him. Though prohibited by South Carolina law, Renty taught himself and other enslaved people to read and also conducted secret Bible readings and Bible study on the plantation. In the winter of 1850, on Agassiz’s orders, Papa Renty was led into a plush photograph studio in Columbia, South Carolina. He was ordered to fully disrobe, and Delia was stripped naked to the waist. Renty and Delia were photographed in various poses, half and full figures
taken from the front, side and back views. The completed daguerreotypes received just the enthusiastic reception that had Agassiz hoped. The next month, Agassiz published the results of his research in an article entitled The Diversity of Origin of the Human Races, noting that he had recently studied “closely many native Africans belonging to different tribes, and [have] learned readily to distinguish their nations ... and determine their origin from their physical features.” He went on to describe, with the detached voice of an empiricist, the essential characteristics of Africans as “submissive, obsequious, [and] imitative,” possessing “a peculiar indifference to the advantages afforded by civilized society.” For decades, the images were then forgotten. In 1976, an employee of Harvard’s Peabody Museum, the late Ellie Reichlin, discovered them in a corner cabinet of the museum’s attic. Despite Ms. Reichlin’s expressed concern for the families of the men and women depicted, Harvard University chose to make no effort to locate the subjects’ descendants. In displaying and licensing the images, Harvard has avoided the fact that the daguerreotypes were part of a study, overseen by a Harvard professor, to demonstrate racial inferiority of Blacks. To this day, Harvard insists that anyone seeking to view the photographs sign a contract, and anyone wishing to reproduce the images, even for educational
showrunner, dies at 63
Boone, who died of an apparent heart attack on Thursday, is a veteran of numerous black sitcoms, including The Fresh Prince of BelAir, Living Single, Parent ‘Hood, The Hughleys, My Wife and Kids and One on One, which she created. Boone was currently serving as showrunner on Raven’s Home. “My heart is heavy following the loss of Raven’s Home executive producer Eunetta Boone,” RavenSymoné said in a statement. “Eunetta was a pioneer and an inspiration to everyone she met. She was a masterful storyteller, an empathetic leader and a beacon of light to so many. I’m sending love and my deepest sympathies to Eunetta’s family and friends and all who knew and loved her. She will be missed. Thank you for everything Eunetta.”
NAACP Calls for Full Release of Mueller Report from Front Page
panoply of powers under the Constitution to rigorously and exhaustively investigate these harmful attacks on our democracy and any actions by the administration in concealing them. Unlike Special Counsel Mueller’s
Andrew Gillum STATEMENT from Front Page
today passed legislation to rip away the right to vote from hundreds of thousands of former felons. Rather than respect Floridians’ decision to end 150 years of voter suppression, these lawmakers are unconstitutionally excluding new crimes from Amendment 4 and are writing discriminatory ‘cash register justice’ even more deeply into our laws.” “Florida leads the nation in using fees and fines to fund Continue reading online at: its criminal justice system — thewestsidegazette.com trapping offenders in a cycle
Eunetta Boone: Raven’s Home
crime [of obstruction of justice], it also does not exonerate him.” Yet that is exactly what William Barr has tried to do. It is even more imperative that we have full access to the Mueller report and evidentiary basis to learn the facts surrounding Donald Trump’s actions and potential attacks on the integrity of our democracy. We are entitled to know everything about Russia’s brazen attacks on our political system. This includes how Russia manipulated voters in the United States, fomented racial division among voters through social media and other means, and targeted the African American community in extraordinary fashion to suppress voter turnout. The nation must consider the Mueller report in its entirety. Anything short of complete transparency is unacceptable. Congress must exercise its full
Tamara Lanier with Attorney Crump holding images of her family’s patriarch, Renty and his daughter, Delia.
charge, this investigation is not limited in scope. We implore the House and the Senate to do the job we entrusted to our elected representatives to protect the rule of law. Guarding our democracy is not partisan.
of poverty, debt, and new offenses. With today’s action, the committee ties a former felon’s restoration of rights to this flawed and predatory system. This isn’t just an attempt to gut Amendment 4, but an attempt to ensure former offenders remain on the outskirts of our society.” “To those lawmakers who are advancing this misguided bill: you may not respect the wishes of the people, but this is a democracy — and you must follow them. We the people will make sure of it.”
PAGE 16 • MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019
Deeply Rooted
Pfizer, Sickle Cell Advocates Address Disease During Black Press Week
Lori Luck, the global medical director for Pfizer Rare Disease, joined Beverley Frances-Gibson, the president and CEO of the SCD Association of America; NNPA President Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. and Angie Snyder, a professor at Georgia State University, to discuss the latest in Sickle Cell Disease advocacy during Black Press Week in Washington, D.C. By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent National Sickle Cell Advocacy Day 2019 is a great time to focus on key legislative issues that are important to individuals and their families who are living with the blood cell disorder, including promoting stable funding for research, better healthcare access, expanded programs and increased education and awareness for the Sickle Cell Disease community and programs throughout the country. Lori Luck, the global medical director for Pfizer Rare Disease, joined Beverley Frances-Gibson, the president and CEO of the SCD Association of America; and
Angie Snyder, a professor at Georgia State University, to discuss the latest in Sickle Cell Disease advocacy during Black Press Week in Washington, D.C. The discussion came ahead of National Sickle Cell Advocacy Day, which is held over two days on April 8 and April 9 at the Kellogg Conference Hotel at Gallaudet University in Washington. The event features advocacy training and meetings with legislative champions and a collaboration of federal partners, as advocates attempt to raise awareness to the disease which affects about 100,000 Americans and occurs among nearly 1 out of every 365 Black or African American births.
According to researchers, the illness occurs among about 1 out of every 16,300 Hispanic American births and about 1 in 13 Black or African American babies are born with sickle cell trait, meaning that the individual has inherited the sickle cell gene from one of his or her parents. “We’re educators and we’re not only educating internal clients but external as well,” said Luck, who noted that Pfizer has partnerships with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as other organizations. The company also has a partnership with the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), a trade association of more than 200 African American–owned
community newspapers from around the United States. The partnership is a collaboration to raise awareness of sickle cell disease, a lifelong and debilitating genetic disorder that affects red blood cells. People with rare diseases, like sickle cell disease, have unique and complex challenges and the Pfizer partnership provides an opportunity for NNPA to inform and educate readers of Black-owned newspapers in more than 70 markets across the country on sickle cell disease, which NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., said is an often misunderstood Continue reading online at: thewestsidegazette.com
www.thewestsidegazette.com A M E S S A GE F ROM OU R PU BL IS H E R continued from Front Page
our children because of the fallout from broken homes equated to dysfunctional families. Gang related activities and racism could be attributed to the collapse of our institution called the FAMILY as well. Hell, if domestic violence is on the increase what can we expect? Sure, there are outside forces that persistently attack the delicate membrane of the family structure. These forces have not just arrived on the scene; they’ve been around since the beginning of life. Remember: “There is nothing new under the sun.” The only thing that is new is how we have chosen to deal with that which is trying to penetrate our protective constitution. Our approach to addressing these problems has not been from the position of tenderness, purity, and kindheartedness. We are deficient in these personalities, which communicate respect for all people. Lack of respect will destroy relationships quicker than a cat can blink its eye. Where has the respect in our families vanished to? To those of us who are being blessed by having a home trusted in God, have we become so selfish that we are hoarding all of the love and goodness within the walls of our homes? What good is it if we have a cure for preserving our families if we are safeguarding it for ourselves? There was a time when the term extended family meant that the bonds of family went beyond the four walls of your home. Family love included aunts, uncles, cousins, neighbors, grandparents, that illegitimate child and everybody else. If we are not careful our family, both in- house and extended, will become an extinct family unless we bring back the love, respect and joy that once filled our homes. It did not matter whether our home was an apartment, in the projects, or a single- family home, we always had some kind of love to share. “And walk in love, as Christ also halt loved us, and halt given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet –smelling savor.” ----Ephesians 5:2 KJV
South Africa performs world’s first successful middle ear transplant from Front Page “It will be very accessible because as long as we can train the young doctors to be able to do this operation, then it will be accessible for them as well,” Tshifularo said. Tshifularo expressed how
blessed he is to be the first in the world and Africa to perform the transplant, making reference to Chris Barnard who performed the world’s first heart transplant in Cape Town in 1967.