This week we had the opportunity to participate in a workshop called A Framework for Understanding Socio-Economic Differences facilitated by Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D.  The event was hosted by The Assisi Foundation of Memphis, Inc. and it was a sell-out. No fees were charged – this was offered to the community as a collective learning experience. Lunch and snacks were provided, and a lot of learning took place.

Here’s just a little of what we learned.

• A community needs all of its members. We – as residents, community leaders, elected officials, and government employees – have to value the needs and aspirations of all our members. That means keeping a focus on the needs of people living in poverty, those who are middle class, and those who are wealth.
• Access to resources contributes to stability, and the differences between those who are resourced and those who are under-resourced play out in all aspects of life. According to Dr. Payne there are nine different types of resources.
  • financial resources
  • emotional resources
  • mental resources
  • spiritual resources
  • physical health
  • support systems
  • relationships
  • role models
  • Knowledge of the hidden rules – those things that you know or don’t know. Each social and economic class has them. We usually learn what they are when we break them!
  • Formal register – the ability to speak and write in language that is typically used in work situations and school. When people don’t speak in “formal register” in these situations they can be misunderstood – and sometimes suffer dire consequences – due to preconceptions that middle class people tend to have about how people should speak and what that means.
• Stability and access to knowledge are the bedrock of today’s middle class. Achieving and sustaining stability makes us “middle class.” All of us – regardless of our class – manipulate time and money in an attempt to achieve stability. How we manage our time and life is now a form of knowledge, and access to that knowledge is a new form of privilege. That was an eye-opener for us, and a reminder that we all need to think about how we – and our systems – judge people based on how “they” manage their time and their life.
• There is no one “cause” of poverty. Dr. Payne shared four causes, all of which are interwoven and interact together. These include:
  • individual behaviors
  • jobs, housing and transportation
  • exploitation in the forms of racism, sexism, and predatory lending
  • political and economic structures and policies
• Most of us have an idea about what causes poverty, but we don’t share the same idea. That includes:
  • those of us who grew up middle class or wealthy
  • those of us who grew up in poverty, and are now middle class and working with people living in situational or generational poverty
• Race and class are not synonymous. African Americans are not by definition poor, or from poor families. White people are not by definition middle class or wealthy. Yes, there are distinct correlations between race and class but if we don’t recognize the distinctions we cannot see ourselves and our community.
• Even though you might be African American, you cannot assume you understand the culture of poverty and how people living in poverty today make decisions and why. You may think you know, but you may have forgotten. And, the unspoken rules have changed.
• The “system” and people in power are constantly making mistakes. One reason is because the system operates on lag time: what was meaningful five years ago isn’t necessarily true anymore. And, the system operates on middle class values which are not always the values that people living in poverty use.
• We have to understand what drives people who are living in poverty.
• We have to be constantly educated to the changing culture and the pressures that affect people living in poverty. Things change almost from year to year, as changes are made in public policy, health care systems, transportation, education. Middle class assumptions are exactly that – assumptions.

You can learn more about Dr. Payne’s work at www.ahaprocess.com.

This workshop will be offered again next year. If you want to get on the invitation list, please reach out to the Assisi Foundation (901) 684-1564.

Copyright 2018 – Mel and Pearl Shaw

Mel and Pearl Shaw are authors of four books on fundraising available on Amazon.com. For help growing your fundraising visit http://www.saadandshaw.com or call (901) 522-8727.

Images courtesy of 123RF.com

Randall Pinkston, former CBS and Al Jazeera correspondent, Tamara Payne, Les' daughter and Les, enjoy a laugh. Tamara Payne collection--Facebook 

[Speaking Truth To Power]

Last Tuesday morning, I sent a series of texts to Black Star News publisher, Milton Allimadi, regarding the recent shooting of a 13-year-old girl, in Mississippi, by her nine-year-old brother. 

Given the racial angle, I was concerned how this story might play out in media, and politics, considering the current debate around guns that has spurred youth activism since the Valentine’s Day massacre at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. I had found Facebook pictures of the victim and her brother, confirming both were African-American.

How, I wondered, would this story be covered, if at all, within the press as America re-engages in heated discussions about gun-control? 

Milton’s response wasn’t what I expected. It had nothing to do with the topic of my texts. Instead his text read: “Les Payne passed away last night. Had heart attack.” He was 76. 

Instantaneously, this message’s magnitude turned my Tuesday into one of those difficult days we all dread. Instinctively, I knew Milton was devastated by this loss. 

Milton always made it known how much he respected and loved Les Payne, like another great who joined the ancestors before him: Gil Noble. After Gil joined the ancestors on April 5, 2012, I knew losing Les would be a very difficult pill to swallow. 

Saddened by this news, I started to reflect on the impression Les Payne made on me. Back in 1994, I moved to New York from the U.S. Virgin Islands to pursue journalism studies.

From early on, I was a fan of Long Island’s Newsday newspaper. Their editorial and op-ed pages were fantastic. The diversity of voices and perspectives there was refreshing and enlightening. 

After a while, I found myself always gravitating to two particular people: Jimmy Breslin and Les Payne. Eventually, I would meet them. They both were brutally honest truth-tellers who always tackled tough issues.

Heated controversy was often created by their commentary. Les’ mantra of “Don’t pull your punches, tell the truth and duck,” often led to the exposing of uncomfortable realities many people didn’t want to hear. 

Operating from the White suburban environs of Long Island, Les fiercely tackled racism head on. This often led to threats of violence. Former Newsday editor, Anthony Marro, has been quoted saying “we got to know the names of all the Suffolk police force bomb-sniffing dogs.” 

Les’ courageous crusade against racism was inspiring. Far too often, Black journalists who work for major mainstream media operations are usually afraid to speak honestly on racism. 

However, it took some time before I realized the enormity of Les’ journalism—and how much he meant to the rise of Newsday. Former Newsday editor Howard Schneider, dean of the Stony Brook University School of Journalism called Les “a seminal figure in the evolution of Newsday.”

Anthony Marro said, “I don’t think any other single person did more than Les did to move Newsday from being a very good suburban newspaper into a fully rounded paper that covered the state, the nation, the world.” 

Before taking the Newsday job, in 1969, Les was an Army Ranger in Vietnam who rose to the rank of captain. He also wrote speeches for General William Westmoreland the commander of U.S. forces in Vietnam from 1964 to 1968. Les had entered the military after graduating with a Bachelor’s in English, from the University of Connecticut, in 1964.

Born on July 12, 1941, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Les and his family moved to Connecticut when he was 12. In 1974, Les won a Pulitzer Prize for his part in Newsday’s 33-part investigation entitled “Heroin Trail,” which tracked heroin trafficking from Turkey to America.

Later, his reporting on apartheid angered the South African government so much that Les—and Newsday—were banned from South Africa, for over a decade.  Les had exposed the Boer government, on several fronts—including their massive undercounting the number of people killed during the Soweto Rebellion of 1976. 

Later, when Nelson Mandela was being released, Les was officially invited back. Unknown to the South African government, he had “managed to sneak back into South Africa for three weeks in the fall of 85 and reported on the new wave of rebellion in Soweto.” 

Les also maintained he had another Pulitzer—which he had apparently, initially, been selected to receive—stripped from him for that reporting on South Africa. In the introduction, to his “White Power, Black Revolt” report, from South Africa, Les said, “The editor of Newsday phoned with word that I had not won the Pulitzer Prize. The ‘good’ news that April morning had the international jury selecting my South Africa series as the clear winner of this most coveted award in journalism. However, the advisory board had overruled this decision without explanation.” Les’ said “Predictably, the board made a ‘safe’ choice that should please the White racists in Pretoria.” 

Les’ aggressive brand of journalism got him chased out of several African countries—sometimes at gunpoint. Les covered many important stories including: the assassination of Dr. King; the mistreatment of migrant farm workers, on Long Island; and the kidnapping of Patty Hearst by the Symbionese Liberation Army; 

Later, I discovered his instrumental role as a co-founder of NABJ, which was created in 1975. 

In the early 2000’s, longtime reporter and columnist Earl Caldwell started broadcasting a show on WBAI’s 99.5 FM called the “Caldwell Chronicles.” WBAI’s listeners know how important Earl’s show was, given the passion he brings to the table. When Les started appearing on the show, it was like listening to a double dose of dynamite on radio. On one program that I recall, Les said he used his column as a “lead pipe” to pound truth into people. I made a point of never missing a show. 

Les was also a critic of so-call “objective journalism.” Les, rightly, understood that this mantra is often used in convenient instances when journalists don’t want to hold those in power accountable, or, tell unpleasant truths. Les’ erudition on many subjects was astounding. Radio listeners of the Caldwell Chronicles heard it on a regular basis. 

Later, I would also meet Earl Caldwell; around the same time, I crossed paths, in Harlem, with another interesting African journalist--Black Star News publisher Milton Allimadi. 

In early 2004, I started to write for The Black Star News. In the coming years, several legendary journalists would endorse the journalism being published in Black Star News. The two endorsements that most excited and energized Milton was that of Gil Noble and, later, Les Payne. On both occasions, I remember jubilant phone calls from Milton followed by the question: “do you know who I just talked to, who likes what we’re doing?” 

He was honored when Gil Noble started inviting him for regular appearances on "Like It Is," alongside Les Payne and Herb Boyd, the noted historian and Amsterdam News columnist.  

Some years ago, Milton held an event at the Brecht Forum, with Les as the keynote speaker. This would be the first time I would meet him in person. The most memorable moment that night was the scalding tongue-lashing Les delivered upon a Black audience questioner. This individual had just made derogatory statements regarding the character of African-Americans, in comparison to Blacks from the Caribbean and Africa.

Les was having none of it. When Les was done with him, this questioner was relegated to silenced embarrassment. 

In 2011, Les, a collector of art and an artist himself, held an art exhibition at Hofstra University, entitled “Soweto Art: From the Collection of Violet and Les Payne.” These artworks were purchased by Les from his travels in South Africa. Some of the artists included: Hargreaves Ntukwana, David Mbele, Velaphi Mzimba and Winston Saoli. 

On April 11, 2011, I went to this exhibit. This was the third time I saw Les. After the Brecht Forum event, he had spoken at one of Milton's Guerilla Journalism classes in Brooklyn at Sankofa Academy. That night, controversy ensued when Les tackled the Tawana Brawley topic. Les had maintained his investigation’s conclusion: Brawley was a liar. The Black Brooklyn audience didn’t exactly embrace his findings. 

At the end of his Hofstra art presentation, while conversing with him, Les gave me his contact information—and encouragement—to keep working on my writing. One of my cherished possessions is the copy he gave me of his “White Power Black Revolt” report. He signed it thus--“Colin, a colleague. Let’s keep at it. All the best, Les Payne.” 

For awhile after this, I didn’t see him. I knew Milton had several projects planned with him, that he wanted me to be involved in. We had talked about capturing Les’ life story on audio and video. The last time I saw Les, was a truly great experience. Little did I know it would be the last. 

In the summer of 2015, Milton and I made our way to Les’ Harlem residence for a night of networking with people from various fields in journalism and media. The night’s keynote speaker was actor Tim Reid, who starred in television shows such as: WKRP in Cincinnati; Simon and Simon; Frank’s Place; Sister, Sister; and That 70’s Show. That last meeting at Les’ re-energized me to continue becoming a better writer.

Although we have lost his physical presence, those of us who admired and loved the man must continue to fight, as Les did, for truth, equal rights and justice.  In Les Payne’s words, “Let’s keep at it.”  

Funeral Arrangements: The Abyssinian Baptist Church,  132 W 138th St, New York, NY 10030Phone: (212) 862-7474Viewing: March 26. 5PM to 7PMFuneral: March 27. 10AM

Young Naomi Wadler spoke to the fears of many children at the March For Our Lives D.C. protest 

The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1789, states: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” 

The most recent school shootings --one at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL., leaving 17 dead and numerous wounded, and another at Great Mills High School in Lexington Park, MD.,  leaving one dead and one wounded-- have re-ignited the so-called gun debate in America.

Hundreds of thousands of people rallied in Washington, D.C. on Saturday and across the country in support of the March for Our Lives protest.The prevailing narrative from those in support of gun reform legislation is student safety and the reduction in the incidence of attacks on our nation’s schools and public arenas by assailants wielding assault-style weapons.

The rebuttal from the NRA is that passing any serious gun control legislation starts the country down the “slippery slope” of eliminating the 2nd Amendment and an individual’s right to own a gun, otherwise known as “the camel’s nose under the tent” theory. 

Part of the problem with this debate is how these arguments are framed. The focus should not be the reduction of gun violence in American schools.  The issue is how do Americans reduce the amount of gun violence, of which school shootings is a subset?

According to Business Insider.com, gun violence is one of the leading causes of death in America: “Assaults by firearm kill about 13,000 people in the US each year, which translates to a roughly 1-in-315 lifetime chance of death from gun violence. That's about 56% more likely than the lifetime risk of dying while riding inside a car, truck, or van.” 

From the gun rights perspective, there is a difference between the right to own a firearm and the argument that the “right” is protected by the 2nd Amendment. White males have owned guns in North America since the arrival of the colonists in Jamestown in 1607.

Much to the dismay and at the expense of the lives of Native Americans, America was founded at the barrel of the gun. Contrary to the fear-mongering perpetuated by the National Rifle Association (NRA), the probability of a White, male-dominated Congress passing legislation that takes away the right to own a gun is zero. 

The NRA infers that the 2nd Amendment has always been interpreted as the Constitutional protection of the right of individuals to own firearms. This could not be further from the truth.

According to the brilliant analysis of the Honorable Reggie W. Walton’s opinion in Seegars v. Ashcroft (297 F.Supp.2d 201 (2004)), “For more than sixty years following the Supreme Court's decision in Miller (1939), there was little judicial debate regarding the scope of the Second Amendment, as almost every circuit court interpreted Miller as rejecting the notion that the Second Amendment provided individuals a constitutional right to possess firearms.” 

Staying with Judge Walton’s “Seegars” analysis, let’s examine the controlling language of the 2nd Amendment which opens with ““A Well Regulated Militia…”. Walton explains, “the Emerson Court concluded that 'a well-regulated militia’ refers not to a special or select subset or group taken out of the militia as a whole ....”, Walton continued, “…the term 'militia,' as used in the Second Amendment, is clearly referencing a state military body.” Judge Walton also explains the context of, “The Right of the People to Keep and Bear Arms…”

Walton cites the Ninth Circuit, “…the Court finds it 'highly significant ... that the second clause does not purport to protect the right to ‘possess' or ‘own’ arms, but rather to ‘keep and bear’ arms. This choice of words is important because the phrase ‘bear arms' is a phrase that customarily relates to a military function.” It is important to remember that in 1789 when the 2nd Amendment was ratified “America” was still functioning --in the minds of many Americans-- as 13 colonies, not one cohesive nation.  In order for the colonies to protect themselves it was important that militias be maintained.

It was not until Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address in 1863 that the concept of America as a “nation” truly took hold. In 2018, with the existence of the National Guard, militias are obsolete.  Actually, with this fact, the 2nd Amendment has become obsolete and should go the way of the Three-Fifths Compromise and the Fugitive Slave Provision. 

President Trump supports the idea of arming teachers as a defense against school shootings. According to CNN, the president opined, "If you had a teacher who was adept with the firearm, they could end the attack very quickly…" This position fails on a number of levels, two of which are deterrent and response. Trump believes that “hardening targets” with armed teachers will frighten away potential shooters. "Gun-free zone to a maniac -- because they're all cowards -- a gun-free zone is let's go in and let's attack because bullets aren't coming back at us. " Wrong! 

Even though Trump refers to shooters as “maniacs”, he’s using “rational actor” logic. A person who is inclined to attack a school with a semi-automatic weapon will be more inclined to meet anticipated force with greater force because that person is not a rational actor. 

Thinking that arming teachers is a logical response to school shooting follows the often chanted but seriously flawed mantra, “the best way to stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun”. You will only wind up with more dead and injured students.  Even if a “trained” teacher is able to hit a target at a range and successfully pass simulation tests, this does not prepare them for “live-fire” situations.

Imagine hundreds of students in crowded hallways and classrooms, running for cover as an assailant fires rounds at them from a semi-automatic weapon. In most instances to date, had teachers been armed with handguns they would have easily been outgunned. You address this with highly trained school resource officers who are dedicated police officers not “trained” teachers with guns. At Great Mills High School in Lexington Park, MD, school resource officer, Deputy Blaine Gaskill, confronted Austin Wyatt Rollins shortly after Rollins had shot Jaelynn Willey and another student.  Deputy Gaskill was able engage Rollins and fire one round. It is still unclear if that round hit Rollins or if Rollins killed himself. Two points here, Deputy Gaskill is a highly trained school resource officer and SWAT team member, not a “trained” teacher with a gun.  

Also, Rollins was armed with a Glock semiautomatic handgun not an assault style rifle. Deputy Gaskill was not outgunned. While the students at Great Mills High were fortunate to have Deputy Gaskill as their resource officer, there have been other incidents where school resource officer’s actions were totally unacceptable.

Have we forgotten Officer Ben Fields, the South Carolina resource officer that violently threw a young female student across a classroom? When increased levels of force are implemented as solutions to problems, African Americans tend to be disproportionately victimized by it. 

There is no place for semi-automatic weapons that are based on military designs on our streets. There’s a reason why machine guns are illegal in America. A person should be 21 years of age before they can legally purchase any firearm in America. An extensive background check must be performed for all sales in all venues --even personal sales-- and a 3-5 business day waiting period should be imposed. The police should be able to temporarily seize weapons from individuals found to be mentally unfit. 

These are just a few common-sense ideas that should be implemented.

Will they put an end to school shootings in America? Possibly. Will they assist in lowering the number of deaths by firearm in this country? Definitely! That’s the point. 

Dr. Wilmer Leon is the Producer/ Host of the nationally broadcast call-in talk radio program “Inside the Issues with Leon,” on SiriusXM Satellite radio channel 126. Go to www.wilmerleon.com or email: wjl3us@yahoo.com. www.twitter.com/drwleon and Dr. Leon’s Prescription at Facebook.com

Uganda's Gen. Yoweri Museveni. Screenshot A Brilliant Genocide

On March 28, 2018 Sirius XM Radio debuts “ROCK THE BELLS RADIO” a new channel created by legendary rapper, actor and icon LL COOL J.
  The channel is a brand new platform for classic hip-hop from its genesis up to the early 2000’s, aptly named after his smash hit, “Rock the Bells”.
  And who better than the G.O.A.T., whose wildly successful rap career set trends and kicked down doors, to bring us this station?  “Rock the Bells Radio is strictly for the OG’s.  True fans of classic hip-hop will fall in love with this station!", he says. 
 Turn your Sirius XM Radios to channel 43 and enjoy a dope mix of classic hip-hop tracks, interviews with your favorite artists and much, much more!

Image Credit: Private Officer Breaking News

Caught illegally selling firearms that are not available to the general public, two Gardena police officers were indicted on five felony counts, including conspiring to deal in firearms without a license and selling a firearm to at least one convicted felon. Advertising the weapons on Instagram, the officers sold more than 100 guns that are only available to law enforcement officers.

From 2015 to September 2017, Detective Carlos Fernandez and Officer Edward Arao purchased “off-roster” firearms not available to the general public and illegally operated businesses that resold the weapons, according to their five-count indictment. As the CEO of Ronin Tactical Group, Arao used the company’s Instagram account to advertise the guns, including mostly Colt .38-caliber handguns, while Fernandez advertised guns for sale on his Instagram account “the38superman.”

Not licensed individually to engage in the business of dealing in firearms at the time, Det. Fernandez and Officer Arao negotiated the prices and terms of firearm sales on Instagram while accepting payments for the guns once they were delivered. Besides illegally selling the guns online, both California cops also allegedly unlawfully marketed at gun shows.

In 2017, Fernandez illegally sold a gun to Oscar Morales Camacho Sr. of Salinas, who intended to give the firearm to his son, Oscar Maravilla Camacho Jr., who has a prior criminal conviction that prohibits him from possessing firearms. According to the indictment, Fernandez and both Camachos “well knew [that] defendant Camacho Sr. was not the actual buyer of the firearm.”

During another “straw purchaser” transaction, a South Los Angeles woman allegedly purchased two firearms for her boyfriend. Bianca Ibarria and Adalberto deJesus Vasquez Pelayo Jr. were charged with making a false statement in a federal firearm licensee’s records during purchase of a firearm and have been directed to appear in federal court for arraignments on April 3.

“We are deeply concerned about the case,” said Gardena Police Chief Ed Medrano. “This type of conduct is inconsistent with our organizational values and the ethics of our profession and will not be tolerated by the Gardena Police Department.”

For more Please seeNationofChange 

Dr. King

When Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered he was engaged in a campaign to empower the economically marginalized.

He said: "When we foolishly maximize the minimum and minimize the maximum, we sign the warrant for our own day of doom. It is this moral lag in our thing-oriented society that blinds us to the human reality around us and encourages us in the greed and the exploitation which creates the sector of poverty in the midst of wealth. Again we have deluded ourselves into believing the myth that Capitalism grew and prospered out of the protestant ethic of hard work and sacrifice. The fact is that Capitalism was built on the exploitation and suffering of Black slaves and continues to thrive on the exploitation of the poor both Black and White, both here and abroad."

As a civil rights organization that worked closely with Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the April 4 anniversary of King’s assassination has always been a somber day of remembrance for the National Urban League.

This year, the 50th anniversary, is an especially poignant one, presenting an opportunity to examine the progress of racial equality over the last half-century, and examining King’s legacy through the lens of that history.

On Wednesday, I have the honor of speaking at the official 50th Anniversary Commemoration at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee.

The Museum occupies the former Lorraine Motel where King was shot to death. At 6:01 p.m., the moment of his death, bells at the Museum will ring. To symbolize the news of his death rippling across the country and around the world, bells will ring nationally at 6:05 p.m. and internationally at 6:07 p.m.

I was a child at the time of King’s death, but I remember the devastation of my parents, Dutch and Sybil Morial, who knew him personally. My mother first met King when he was a graduate student at Boston University, where she was an undergraduate. She describes the day in her memoir, Witness to Change: From Jim Crow to Political Empowerment.

He knew it was his time. He had said it …“I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land.” He knew it, but we didn’t. And we didn’t understand his death. I was inconsolable … I said to Dutch, “Now that Martin is gone, what will become of the movement?” “It will go on. It must.” And it did.

And now, 50 years later, the country asks itself the same question: What will become of the movement? The Museum’s commemoration is part of its year long exploration of the theme, “MLK50 - Where Do We Go From Here.”

It’s seldom emphasized that the reason King was in Memphis on April 4, 1968, was to support the city’s striking sanitation workers. Earlier in the year, a worker had been crushed to death by malfunctioning equipment, leading 1,300 men to walk off their jobs to protest dangerous conditions and low pay.

Memphis was the first stop in his Poor People’s Campaign, a massive march on Washington planned for later that year. King saw the Poor People’s Campaign as an expansion of his movement from civil rights to human rights, an effort to unite all marginalized people.

His plan for the Poor People’s Campaign included petitioning the federal government to prioritize helping the poor with a $30 billion anti-poverty package that included, among other demands, a commitment to full employment, a guaranteed annual income measure and more low-income housing.

Sadly, the campaign floundered as a result of the sudden loss of his leadership. With an eye toward this history, the National Urban League has established robust programs to cultivate and nurture leadership potential within and without our movement. Our Emerging Leaders Program is a competitive, 12-month development opportunity for professionals that provides a unique chance to master analytical and critical leadership skills in the non-profit sector. Walmart Foundation, a sponsor of Wednesday’s ceremony, has made its support of Emerging Leaders and other leadership training initiatives a centerpiece of a community-wide commitment to honoring King’s legacy.

With the help of a new generation of leaders, the Poor People’s Campaign has been revived, and begins a series of local action, peaceful rallies and protests in April. In alignment with the National Urban League’s mission of economic empowerment and opportunity, we look forward to helping the spirit of King’s legacy live on through sustained activism.

Marc H. Morial
President and CEO
National Urban League

Trump, the hater-in-chief

Congress may be essentially done for the year, but the Trump Administration is moving forward aggressively to fundamentally reshape the way America treats immigrants and refugees. Just in the past few weeks alone, we’ve seen the Trump administration:
Abandon ICE’s presumed release policy that kept most pregnant women out of immigrant detention facilities;
Float a radical policy to deny legal residency and facilitate the deportations of legal immigrants who rely on benefits such as the earned-income tax credit and health insurance subsidies (see disturbing details in a leaked memo reported on by the Washington Post);
Terminate Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Liberians, a move that will, over time, subject thousands of settled Liberian immigrants to deportation;
Add a new citizenship question to the 2020 Census in order to undermine the political power of diverse communities across America;
Put their “blame the immigrants” effort into overdrive, with the President holding a White House round-table event on sanctuary policies that sought to whip up fears about immigrants and crime, and delivering a NH speech blaming immigrants for the opioid crisis; and
Continue their indiscriminate and cruel enforcement against long-settled immigrants -- a direct consequence of their choice to eliminate enforcement priorities and sow fear in immigrant communities.
These new developments are just the most recent additions to a list of policies that is as long as it is extreme, including Trump Administration decisions to:
End DACA and plunging some 800,000 young immigrants into a crisis that has yet to be resolved;
Block a half-dozen bipartisan compromise bills that would have resolved Dreamers’ crisis (instead seeking to use Dreamers’ status to advance a full-throttle version of a nativist wishlist);
Empower an “unshackled” ICE and CBP to become unaccountable and politicized police forces;
Ramp up ICE enforcement - arrests of non-criminal immigrants surged 171% last year (many detained through “silent raids” against individuals who were complying with the law and checking in regularly with the government);
Dismantle protections for hundreds of thousands of TPS holders from nations in no condition to accept their return;
Seek to punish California and local jurisdictions more interested in public safety than aiding and abetting mass deportation;
Eviscerate protections for Central American minors fleeing violence and using the specter of criminality to advance sweeping raids against immigrant youth;
Slash refugee admissions; and
Impose a ban on millions of Muslims.

According to Pili Tobar, Managing Director of America's Voice, “The Trump Administration continues full steam ahead in its efforts to sow fear, scapegoat immigrants and redefine who we are as a people. From the decision to rescind DACA, to canceling Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberians, to their latest heartless change in ICE detention policy of no longer releasing pregnant women, the Trump administration has made it clear they will stop at nothing when it comes to harming and attacking immigrants. Anti-immigrant hostility is the central and consistent theme of this administration, the basic focus of their political and policy agenda, and a push that is at direct odds with our basic values and best traditions in America.”

Follow Frank Sharry and America’s Voice on Twitter: @FrankSharry and @AmericasVoice America's Voice – Harnessing the power of American voices and American values to win common sense immigration reform

www.americasvoice.org

Presidential contenders Julius Maada Bio and Samura Kamara.

Statement by the United African Congress on the eve of the runoff election for the President of Sierra Leone

The on-again off-again runoff election to elect the President of Sierra Leone has created uncertainty and anxiety among our brothers and sisters in the Sierra Leone Diaspora.

Many are fearful the situation could degenerate into chaos unless handled with deliberate care, calm and political maturity by the contesting parties in order to create a peaceful environment for the people to exercise their constitutional rights to vote for the leader of their choice with confidence in a fair and legal process.

The United African Congress (UAC), a Pan-African organization representing the interests of millions of continental Africans in the United States is fully supportive of the efforts undertaken by Sierra Leone nationals in the United States led by Sidique Wai in their appeal for a democratic and fair electoral process, as well as patriotic unity and peacefulness, in the period leading up to, during, and after, the runoff election, when the people’s choice for president will be known. The United African Congress is not an uninterested bystander in this situation as it has long been advocating for the strengthening of democratic institutions, defending human rights, and good governance practices, throughout our Mother Continent. The people of Sierra Leone have endured much trauma, including a long civil war, a protracted viral epidemic, and a massive mudslide, all of which claimed thousands of lives and unsettled an already fragile economic and social state.

The people are presently struggling to recover physically, economically, environmentally and emotionally. Given this situation, it is even more urgent that this election be conducted without corruption and in a peaceful manner.

The UAC knows that an immediate appeal, in situations like those and in the current election situation, can result in a positive outcome. For example, when the devastating Ebola epidemic struck the Mano River Commission countries, and thousands were dying in early 2014, with apparent indifference by the international community, we became among the first to raise awareness – by convening a forum at the United Nations – and to take action, by calling for an immediate global response to the devastating public health crisis in the establishment of a health emergency response team by the UN. This was successful in that the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) was created by then-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon within weeks after our call.

Similarly, when the mudslide occurred, we took immediate action, mobilizing support and encouraging others likewise. And just last Sunday, we convened a press conference and public forum, with experts and religious leaders, to explicate the situation of the election and to call for non-violence. In that vein, we recognize the high value that Sierra Leoneans and the extensive Diaspora place on the maintenance of peace and justice at this time, as well as the importance to strengthen the democratic institutions in the country. Thus, we wholeheartedly endorse the call for patriotic unity at this critical juncture in Sierra Leone history. Peaceful transition in this electoral process will allow the country to continue the reconstruction effort with greater focus and vigor.

As an organization with a pan-African agenda, the concern of the UAC is the concern of all Sierra Leoneans. We share their hopes and aspirations for a peaceful and thriving society. Therefore with regard to this election, we call upon:

All electoral officials, authorities and parties to engage in, and insure, a transparent, peaceful and fair process. As a show of this approach, we recommend that the Presidential contestants Julius Maada Bio and Samura Kamara appear jointly on the eve of the elections to reassure the citizenry that the process will be conducted peacefully and that each candidate will abide by the people’s verdict.

All Sierra Leoneans to engage in what we are calling a “Sierra Leone Unity First” peace building effort across the country, rejecting all acts of violence and provocations. Ordinary citizens may face overzealous security forces, but they must also be responsible for their own peaceful actions. Posters and social media can be used to encourage peaceful action with the message “Sierra Leone Unity First” and “Unite Sierra Leone in Peace.”

Signed:

Sidique Wai, President and National Spokesperson, United African Congress

Dr. Mohammed Nurhussein, National Chairman, United African Congress; Associate Professor of Medicine, Emeritus, State University of NY, Downstate

Gordon Tapper, Trustee, United African Congress and Chairman and Founder, Give Them a Hand Foundation

Dr. Judith Kuriansky, Trustee, United African Congress; United Nations NGO representative, International Association of Applied Psychology

Dr. Michael J. Cole, Executive Vice President for Administration and Finance, United African Congress

Milton Allimadi, Trustee United African Congress, Adjunct Professor, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY, Publisher, The Black Star News

A special column for emerging nonprofits and those who are “struggling”

What do you do if you are a nonprofit board chair or executive director, and you know in your heart-of-hearts that your current board can’t do what needs to be done? We have observed a tendency towards several responses. One is to bury your head in the sand and hope the situation improves; another is to hope your term ends before the situation gets too messy; and another is to swear “I’ll fire them all.” We have another way: find one right person.

You want to find one person who understands and believes in your vision and mission. Think of who you know and start there. This is an interview process of sorts. You want to interview them, and you want them to interview you. You need to get to know each other: do you share common values? How do each of you think? Do you understand each other? Can you create an open line of communication that includes trust?

Be open and honest: share your strengths, challenges, weaknesses and the opportunities that lie before you. Don’t paint an unreal rosy picture. You want someone who can complement your strengths, help find ways to address challenges, and identify areas where you need professional development. You won’t know if you are talking to “the right person” if you’re not honest.

You need a person who shares the same vision and values that you do. But, you don’t want a clone of you – you want someone with experience, resources, and contacts that can help your organization grow to the next level. You want to extend your circle and increase your knowledge and resources.

This is not a “task” to be delegated. Don’t depend on others to find your leadership! If you do this, you will find yourself with leadership that others are comfortable with, but who you may not be the right fit for you. Don’t farm this out. You don’t have anything more important to do! If you can’t attract one person, how can you attract and build a new board?

Don’t be pressured by funding agencies and other outside groups to “do something about your board” immediately. If your board is dysfunctional, or the organization needs access to different perspectives, skills and relationships, the change won’t happen overnight. This is a growth process. You will need to let the people who provide funding and influence know that you want to take your time and find the right people – one person at a time. Don’t try to build your board by Friday. You may find yourself locked into a nightmare.

Before you ask someone to serve on your board, ask them to work with you as an advisor. Over time your advisors may become board members. Or they may provide the advice you need to bring out the best in the board you already have.

Copyright 2018 – Mel and Pearl Shaw

Mel and Pearl Shaw help nonprofits grow their fundraising and increase board engagement. Visit http://www.saadandshaw.com or call (901) 522-8727.

Images courtesy of 123RF.com

Djon Africa

The Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Museum of Modern Art:  complete lineup for the 47th annual New Directors/New Films (ND/NF), through– April 8, 2018.

Throughout its rich, nearly half-century history, the festival celebrates filmmakers who represent the present and anticipate the future of cinema, daring artists whose work pushes the envelope in unexpected ways. This year’s festival will introduce 25 features and 10 short films to New York audiences.

“The purpose of New Directors/New Films is to seek out emerging filmmakers who are working at the vanguard of cinema,” says Film Society Director of Programming Dennis Lim. “This is as diverse and wide-ranging a lineup as we’ve assembled in years: full of pleasures and provocations and, above all, surprises—proof that film remains a medium ripe for reinvention in ways big and small.”

“The filmmakers in this year's New Directors are as imaginative, daring and restless as any we've seen, whether observing a world-famous rapper fighting injustices in Sri Lanka or prostitutes and holy men in Jamaica, a coal peddler in the Congo or a credit-card scammer in Switzerland," says Josh Siegel, Curator of the Department of Film at The Museum of Modern Art.

This year’s lineup boasts features and shorts from 29 countries across five continents, with 10 North American premieres, 13 films directed or co-directed by women, and 14 works by first-time feature filmmakers. Highlights include Pedro Pinho’s surprising three-hour epic The Nothing Factory, which was voted #1 on Film Comment magazine’s Best Undistributed Films of 2017 list; the late Hu Bo’s epic feature debut An Elephant Sitting Still, a masterpiece sure to be remembered as a landmark of modern Chinese cinema; New York-based filmmaker Ricky D’Ambrose’s dark, minimalist pseudo-detective tale Notes on an Appearance; Gustav Möller’s emergency call center thriller The Guilty, which won prizes at Rotterdam and Sundance; Our House, an evocative examination of female friendship by first-time Japanese filmmaker Yui Kiyohara; acclaimed documentarian Emmanuel Gras’s Cannes prizewinner Makala, which follows the monumental efforts of a young Congolese charcoal-maker at work; Khalik Allah’s stylistically rich Black Mother, a close look at Jamaica via its holy men and prostitutes; Locarno prizewinner Milla, Valérie Massadian’s moving, visually striking meditation on young motherhood; and many more exciting discoveries.

The New Directors/New Films selection committee is made up of members from both presenting organizations. The 2018 feature committee was comprised of Dennis Lim (Co-Chair, FSLC), Josh Siegel (Co-Chair, MoMA), Florence Almozini (FSLC), Sophie Cavoulacos (MoMA), La Frances Hui (MoMA), and Dan Sullivan (FSLC), and the shorts were programmed by Brittany Shaw (MoMA) and Tyler Wilson (FSLC).

To become a member of the Film Society or MoMA, please visit filmlinc.org or MoMA.org, respectively. Plus, see more and save with a 3+ film discount package or brand new VIP All-Access Pass (quantities are limited).

New Directors/New Films is presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Museum of Modern Art and is supported by the Annual Film Fund of The Museum of Modern Art, Film Society’s New Wave, The New York Times, American Airlines, The Village Voice, Shutterstock, and Hudson Hotel.

FILMS & DESCRIPTIONS: All films are digitally projected unless otherwise noted

CLOSING NIGHT: Hale County This Morning, This Evening

RaMell Ross, USA, 2018, 76m

Attorney Antonio Moore has guest President of HBCU Simmons college, on to discuss the Howard 1 million dollar financial scandal, and the power of the HBCU. Moore looks at Tyrone Hankerson, Howard Administration, and a fashion culture in digging into the topic. The two also talk about Simmons College the last HBCU led by Dr. Kevin Cosby.

Washington Post

Six employees of Howard University were fired for “gross misconduct and neglect of duties” after school officials discovered that financial aid money had been misappropriated, school leaders confirmed Wednesday.

A university investigation discovered that for nine years — from 2007 to 2016 — some employees who received tuition benefits to cover the cost of taking classes were also receiving university grants. That double dipping exceeded the actual cost of attendance, signaling that the workers appeared to be embezzling.

News of misappropriated university funds and the subsequent firings mark the latest blow to Howard’s reputation. The school’s president, Wayne A.I. Frederick, came under fire earlier this month when he criticized a student for her tone when she expressed concern about whether she would get housing. And six women have accused the school— an iconic historically black university — of mishandling sexual assault allegations.

Frederick released a statement Wednesday about the financial aid misdeeds and promised that measures had been instituted to prevent a recurrence of the misappropriation.

“While this has been a very difficult and disappointing situation, I know our campus community deserves better and I am committed to ensuring that each of our campus offices operate with integrity and are the best that higher education has to offer,” Frederick said in his statement.

University officials did not immediately reveal how much money was involved in the matter.

“We don’t have a final amount but we are working with our outside experts to ensure every dollar is accounted for and the university will exercise all of our options to recoup the funds,” Howard spokeswoman Alonda Thomas said in an email.

Frederick’s statement came not long after an anonymous item was posted to online blogging platform Medium this week that alleged an “office-wide scandal” involving officials in the university’s financial aid department. Frederick’s statement did not directly mention the Medium post, which was later no longer available online.

In the statement, Frederick said he learned in December 2016 that financial aid money might have been misappropriated, a revelation that prompted an internal investigation. An outside auditor was brought in to dig into the concerns, and Frederick said he received the results of the audit in May 2017.

The university said the misappropriated grant money was not from the federal government, nor was it money that donors had designated for grants. Frederick said in the statement he reported the findings to the Education Department. That agency’s inspector general would neither confirm nor deny whether officials are investigating.

Brave Archbishop Lwanga--Ugandans must assure him that they will protect him from murderous U.S.-backed dictator Museveni.

The Catholic Archbishop of Kampala Archdiocese, Dr. Cyprian Kizito Lwanga has received chilling death threats from U.S.-backed dictator Gen. Yoweri Museveni's agents.

Ugandans must take these threats seriously. Museveni is feeling very insecure at the moment, and he will do anything to stay in State House.

The dictator receives more than $1 billion annually from the U.S. and Britain in financial and military support.

The fears expressed by Archbishop Lwanga, about the death threats he has received from agents of Museveni's killer regime
must be taken seriously, given the Ugandan ruling regime's track record of murdering its critics and perceived political opponents, including religious leaders.

Ugandans see in Museveni's threats confirmations of the signs we have witnessed lately. That no one is immune from the vicious tentacles of tyranny not even relijgious leaders. Recall that Gen. Idi Amin first threatened the late Bishop Janan Luwum before murdering him then concocting a supposed car accident. Dictator Amin lasted two years after that murder.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janani_Luwum

Moreover, memories are still very fresh of countless leading Muslim Clerics who have been shot dead in broad daylight, many of them known to have uttered criticisms against the ruling regime.

Apart from prominent Muslim leaders, a growing number of prominent Ugandans continue to be murdered through direct hits, using gunmen riding on boda bosa motorbikes, as happened to the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Andrew Kaweesi and Mrs. Joan Magezi the Assistant Director of Public Prosecution.

In the over 30 years of Museveni's criminal rule in Uganda, countless public figures have died in exceedingly suspicious circumstances, and the regime has failed to explain the deaths, let alone instigate proper investigations, or bring anyone to account.

It must also be remembered that the general security situation in the country has markedly deteriorated, and as a result large numbers of simple citizens are being murdered, kidnapped, raped, etc., and the regime has shown little care of ending the horrors. In many cases, it has been established that the killers had associations with the regime's security forces, but Museveni has conveniently laid the blame on some of his top hatchet men, such as the former Police Chief, General Kale Kayihura, while distancing himself from the responsibility of a failed national security situation.

It is high time Ugandans held Gen. Museveni to account, since it is he who has the ultimate responsibility of keeping Ugandans safe, and it is his failed leadership of the country that has ignited the fire of unprecedented murders and lawlessness affecting Ugandan citizens.

Even if Museveni is not the one holding the gun and shooting down Ugandans physically, it is his agents and hatchet men doing the jobs for him and on his behalf.

Crimes committed by Mafioso are carried out afterr orders from the Godfather.

Just a few days ago, Blaise Kamugisha the so-called leaders of Museveni's so-called Crime Preventers publicly, and in front of Museveni, promised to kill any Ugandan who is opposed to Mr Museveni's regime. Instead of containing the murderous youth gangs or warning them not to murder innocent citizens, Mr Museveni triumphantly declared that he is proud of his young loyalists who are commanding the Crime Preventers, and even went further to state that he, Museveni, and not General Kale Kayihura, was the one who established and owns the Crime Preventers.

As we all know, Museveni is now very weak, politically, and is only managing to hang onto power by violently repressing and intimidating the Ugandan People. We all know that Mr Museveni is so scared that he thinks that most Ugandans, including religious leaders, want to overthrow him.

As we have variously heard from those who know Museveni well, the man can be extremely dangerous when feeling cornered, and his normal way is to order for the elimination of those he perceives to be his enemies, whether they actually are or not.

That a whole Archbishop of the Kampala Archdiocese should publicly disclose that Gen. Museveni’s agents have threatened to kill him, is not merely a cause for concern, but something which Ugandans must act to prevent – for, it can happen.

The best way to prevent these horrors bedevilling our country Uganda is for all Ugandans to work really hard to remove the man who is the prime source of terror in Uganda today.

The Struggle Continues.

Dr. Vincent Magombe, Secretary Free Uganda (FU)
Leadership Committee and Press Secretary FU