AROUND THE REGION

majority Black population. The documents were discovered by American scholar Sasha Polakow-Suran-

MAY 25

1878 – World-renowned dancer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson is born in Richmond, Virginia.

MAY 26

1799 – Famous Black Russian writer Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin, known as the "father of Russian Literature," is born in Moscow.

1949 – Pam Grier, one of the premier Black actresses and top sex symbols of the 1970s, is born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

MAY 27

1958 – Ernest Green graduates from Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, becoming the first Black to do so. Green was a member of the "Little Rock Nine," the group of Black students who first integrated the high school with the aid of federal troops.

MAY 28

2010 – The book "The Unspoken Alliance: Israel's Secret Relationship with Apartheid South Africa" is released, revealing that Israel aided the racist regime of South Africa and supported providing chemical and nuclear weapons to them for possible use against the country's delivers her "Ain't I A Woman?" speech to the Ohio Women's Rights ConPresident Andrew Johnson announces his program of Reconstruction. It required ratification of the 13th Amendment, but did not guarantee , then-president of the National Urban League, is critically injured in attempt-

Congress passes the Kansas-Nebraska Act that repealed the Missouri Compromise and opened the Northern territories to slavery. More specifically, it allowed Whites in Kansas and Nebraska to decide whether or not slavery would be allowed in the ter, one of the most outstanding poets in the history of Black America, is born.

May 31

1921 – The Tulsa Riots begin in Oklahoma. Whites go on a violent rampage lasting several days. When the rioting was over, an estimated 21 whites and 60 Blacks were dead. In addition, as many as 15,000 Blacks were left homeless as hundreds of homes and businesses were burned to the ground. The area bearing the brunt of the destruction was known as the "Black Wall Street" because of its large number of African American-owned businesses. WI

BY SARAFINA WRIGHT

Pro Football Hall of Famer, actor and civil rights activist

Jim Brown has died at 87. While the gridion giant is being mourned by many, some have questioned his complicated legacy regarding off-field incidents.

What are your thoughts?

MARGARET MOTON / PHILADELPHIA, PENN.

Rest in peace, Mr. Jim Brown. He will be remembered in sports movies and the civil rights movement. He was a legend, left his mark, and won’t be forgotten. Rest in heavenly peace.

CARL SCOTT / WASHINGTON, DC

The GOAT. Rest in heaven.

STEPHANIE HUFF / WASHINGTON, DC

Just like some remember what he did on the field, community activism, etc. Some will remember his violent past with women. No, we cannot ignore that. It’s a part of his past. I pray he sought forgiveness and made amends with those he hurt.

WILL BENSON

/ BIRMINGHAM, ALA.

Jim Brown was arguably one of the greatest athletes of our time. Excelling in lacrosse and football. Fifty years after leaving the NFL, he is still a top-five running back. He was the truth!

BYRON HURT / PLAINFIELD, N.J.

Jim Brown was one of the greatest football players to ever play the game. No one can question that. He was a great champion for issues that affect Black men. I greatly appreciate his using his platform and influence to address gang violence and other social issues. He was also accused of being abusive to women multiple times in his life after football, which always saddened me because it was clear to me that he had a pattern of abuse in his relationships, and I can’t ignore that part of his history. It definitely complicates his legacy, to say the very least.

DC BUDGET from Page 5

Eastern High School’s stadium, and install lights on Johnson Middle School’s football field.

During a pre-council rally that took place on the front steps of the Wilson Building, White said that funding these endeavors would require taking money from eastof-the-Anacostia River trailway projects earmarked in the D.C. Department of Transportation’s budget. Mendelson would later implore White to wait until the second budget meeting to clarify the fiscal impact of these projects.

Key elements of the Fiscal Year 2024 Local Budget Act include an allocation of $10 million for housing vouchers and reversals to cuts to Access to Justice, a program through which residents obtain legal aid. The budget also protects seniors’ access to essential services, launches a social worker pipeline program and teacher flexible scheduling program, and maximizes mechanisms for transparency within the D.C. Housing Authority.

The council’s legislation also reinstated the Baby Bonds program that D.C Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie (I-At large) championed. On Tuesday, McDuffie expressed concerns about whether D.C. Council Mendelson’s subtitle expanding the ride-share congestion tax beyond downtown would fulfill its purpose in generating revenue.

McDuffie, Parker and other council members rallied around their Ward 8 colleague’s call for equity and support for the District’s blackest ward. Hours earlier, during his rally and presser, Councilmember White said he would call on his fellow council members to do right by his constituents and all marginalized Washingtonians.

“My colleagues mean well and come with good intentions but it means no good if we don’t put our money where our mouth is,” White said on Tuesday morning. “This is our first shot at the budget,” he added. “We want to create a budget that’s inclusive.

Excluded Workers Speak Up

Starting at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, excluded workers flocked to the front steps of the Wilson Building to greet council members as they prepared for the first budget vote. They interacted with Mendelson, Henderson, Ward 8 Councilmember White, Frumin, Parker, and D.C. Councilmember Brianne Nadeau (D-Ward 1).

Had Parker’s amendment been embraced, excluded workers, a class of workers who were not eligible for state unemployment benefits or federal COVID-related funds, would have received the last $1,200 installment of COVID relief that their counterparts received several months ago.

Events DC, the agency tasked with releasing more than $20 mil- lion in support to 15,000 excluded workers, was in the process of doing so before Bowser removed those funds. Nadeau spoke out against Bowsser’s decision, and later the council’s pushback against Parker’s amendment.

“People were expecting those funds those years,” Nadeau said. “ The people out [in front of The John A. Wilson Building] are there because they felt the money was stolen from them. People have gone into debt to pay their rent. They hadn’t been made whole. An amendment would restore that.” Evelin Lopez, a mother of two and adult student who lives in Northeast, counted among those who held signs in front of the Wilson Building, played music, and greeted council members. She recounted struggling to feed her children during the pandemic, and the relief she felt knowing she had been approved for funds.

Receiving them, she said, became another hurdle that she was hoping to overcome. For the time being at least, that would not be a possibility.

“My rent is a lot of money,” Lopez said. “I have bills and [have to] buy a lot of food. I felt so happy about the money [because] it helped me a lot with my children. WI

@SamPKCollins

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