ATLANTA (AP) — Civil rights groups and other advocates denounced a concert series with Black performers dubbed “Soul Fest” that is being held at a Georgia park replete with Confederate imagery, including a giant carving of Confederate leaders.
Stone Mountain Park just outside Atlanta is where the Ku Klux Klan marked its rebirth in 1915. Its colossal, mountainside sculpture of Gen. Robert E. Lee, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson is the largest Confederate monument ever crafted and has special protection enshrined in Georgia law.
The park has taken steps in recent years to try to soften its Confederate legacy and promote itself as a family site amid declining revenue, but civil rights groups have said the moves fall way short of what’s needed.
The “Soul Fest” concert series is a way to “normalize and sanitize” the hateful message of the park, said Atlanta NAACP President Richard Rose.
“They’re saying, ‘This is OK. Get used to it. It’s cool,’” he said in a phone interview on Thursday.
Rose said he encouraged two of the bands to pull out of the event, but they told him they were under contract, and their music brings people together.
“The music can’t bring people together in front of this icon of the Confederacy,” he said.
Emails to the park and its management company, Thrive Attractions, were not immediately returned. In a news release earlier this month, the park promoted Soul Fest as a new event that would allow families to experience a “full day of fun.” An ad for the event on the park’s website featured a photo of a smiling Black man and Black woman on a lawn.
The event, which runs from Thursday night through Sunday night, features rhythm and blues groups, a gospel singer and a Prince cover band.
It’s a “bad faith effort” to distance the park from the Confederacy, said Rivka Maizlish, a researcher with the Southern Poverty Law Center.
“It’s an effort to pretend that the park is for everyone while still maintaining this massive symbol of white supremacy,” she said. Some supporters of the carving say it is a tribute to their ancestors who fought in the Civil War, not a celebration of white power. Others want to keep it as a reminder of the country’s ugly past.
The 3,200-acre (1,295-hectare) park about 15 miles (25 kilometers) northeast of downtown Atlanta also attracts large numbers of tourists and other visitors interested in hiking to the top of the mountain, walking the grounds or seeing a light show. In 2021, the park’s board voted to relocate Confederate flags from a busy walking trail and create a museum exhibit that relates the history of the site and the carving, which was completed in 1972 amid resistance to the civil rights movement and desegregation by Georgia and other Southern states.
The changes approved by the board came amid a national reckoning on race that brought down dozens of Confederate monuments in 2020.
The park, however, still maintains the giant carving, which measures 190 feet (58 meters) across and 90 feet (27 meters) tall. The Soul Fest concerts will take place on a lawn that faces the monument just months after a Confederate group gathered there.
“It’s just so beyond obnoxious and disgusting and gross that they’re hosting these artists now and trying to pull in a different audience,” said Brian Morris, a member of the Stone Mountain Action Coalition, an advocacy group that has called on the park to stop maintaining the carving.
By ADRIAN SAINZ and JONATHAN MATTISE, Associated Press
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice said Thursday it is investigating the patterns or practices of the police department in Memphis, Tennessee, nearly seven months after the violent beating of Tyre Nichols by five officers after a traffic stop.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division made the announcement in Memphis. Federal authorities will use the investigative tool to look collectively at the Memphis Police Department’s use of force and stops, searches and arrests, and whether it engages in discriminatory policing.
She said that in even in the majority Black city of Memphis, the police department may be disproportionately focusing its traffic enforcement on Black drivers.
Clarke said the probe will look into the city and its police department. She mentioned Nichols’ death, but said the investigation is not based on a single event, or a single unit with the police agency. The Nichols case joined the list of problematic killings of Black people by police in recent years and intensified national calls for police reform.
“The tragic death of Tyre Nichols created enormous pain in the Memphis community and across the country,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a news release. “The Justice Department is launching this investigation to examine serious allegations that the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police Department engage in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional conduct and discriminatory policing based on race, including a dangerously aggressive approach to traffic enforcement.”
Clarke said the Department of Justice has received reports of officers escalating encounters with people in the community and using excessive force; using force punitively when they perceive someone’s behavior as insolent; and using force against people who are already restrained or in custody.
Rodney Wells, Nichols’ stepfather, told the Associated Press that he hopes the probe will lead to changes in the way police deal with Memphis citizens.
“We’re moving in the right direction, trying to get some justice,” Wells said.
Clarke said investigators will ride along with Memphis police and speak with officers as part of the probe. She said the Justice Department told the police chief and mayor about the investigation, adding that they pledged to cooperate.
However, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said he was “disappointed that my request was not granted by the Department of Justice to discuss this step before a decision was made to move down this path.”
“I know they discussed the need for such an action with many other individuals. I hope the remainder of the process is more forthright and inclusive than it has been so far,” Strickland said in an statement.
Memphis Police Director Cerelyn “CJ” Davis said officers are expected to follow their training and department policies.
“While the officers involved in the Tyre Nichols case demonstrated no regard for these tenets, I am appreciative of the MPD officers that continue to serve our city with integrity,” she said.
The five officers have pleaded not guilty to criminal charges including second-degree murder in the Jan. 7 beating of Nichols after a traffic stop — and his death three days later. Caught on police video, the beating of the 29-year-old Nichols was one in a string of violent encounters between police and Black people that sparked protests and renewed debate about police brutality and police reform in the U.S.
The five officers charged in the case are Black. So was Nichols.
The officers were part of a crime-suppression team known as Scorpion. They punched Nichols, kicked him and slugged him with a baton as he yelled for his mother. The police chief disbanded the Scorpion unit after Nichols’ death.
In addition to the officers fired and charged with murder, one white officer who was involved in the initial traffic stop has been fired. That officer will not face charges. Another officer, who has not been identified, also has been fired. An additional officer retired before he could be fired.
Three Memphis Fire Department emergency medical technicians were fired for failing to render aid to Nichols. Two Shelby County Sheriff’s Office deputies who went to the location after the beating were suspended for five days for policy violations.
Activists have been calling for a pattern or practice investigation into Memphis police for years stemming from several incidents, including the fatal shooting of Darrius Stewart, a Black man who was killed by a white officer during a traffic stop in 2015, and a federal court order about improper police surveillance of activists.
“This is a necessary step in ensuring the citizens of Memphis have our civil rights protected and that we moving beyond tacit political talking points regarding Criminal Justice Reform,” said Memphis activist Earle Fisher.
The Memphis City Council passed an ordinance earlier this year that outlawed so-called pretextual traffic stops, which include minor violations such as a broken tail light. But some activists have complained that the ordinance has not been consistently enforced.
In June, a similar Department of Justice probe alleged that Minneapolis police systematically discriminated against racial minorities, violated constitutional rights and disregarded the safety of people in custody for years before George Floyd was killed.
And in March, the department found Louisville police engaged in a pattern of violating constitutional rights and discrimination against the Black community following an investigation prompted by the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor.
The investigations can take years — both the Louisville and Minneapolis probes were launched in April 2021.
Depending on their findings, the investigations can result in agreements that require reforms that are overseen by an independent monitor and are approved by a federal judge. The federal oversight can continue for years.
NEW YORK (AP) — The day after Jan. 6, 2021, then-President Donald Trump denounced the rioters who violently stormed the Capitol building, breaking through barricades, battling law enforcement and sending members of Congress — who were set to formally certify his reelection loss — running for their lives.
“Like all Americans, I am outraged by the violence, lawlessness and mayhem,” he said in a video, condemning what he called a “heinous attack.”
That condemnation was delayed and only offered amid widespread criticism — including from fellow Republicans — for his role in sparking the mayhem. But 2 1/2 years later, any sign of regret or reprimand from Trump has vanished as he prepares to face federal criminal charges for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Now the early but commanding front-runner in the 2024 Republican presidential primary, Trump regularly downplays the violence, lionizes the rioters as patriots and spreads false claims about who was involved. He has not only vowed to pardon a “large portion” of Jan. 6 defendants if he wins a second term, but he has also fundraised for them, befriended their families and collaborated on a song that became a surprise iTunes hit.
“They were there proud, they were there with love in their heart. … And it was a beautiful day,” Trump said at a recent CNN town hall. When asked if he had any regrets about his actions that day, Trump voiced no remorse and instead seemed most concerned about the lack of attention paid to his crowd size.
“Jan. 6: It was the largest crowd I’ve ever spoken to,” he said.
Trump was always reluctant to condemn the actions of supporters spurred by his lies of a stolen election. As the violence unfolded, Trump ignored the desperate pleas of aides and allies to denounce the rioters and ask them to stand down. And when he did speak out, hours later, his response was tepid: He said he loved the rioters and shared their pain.
Trump’s evolution began at a time when he was garnering relatively little mainstream media coverage. And it echoed the efforts of some Republicans in Congress, who had tried to recast the mob as nonviolent despite reams of video footage, public testimony and accounts from members of Congress, journalists and Capitol Police officers, 140 of whom were injured that day.
It also coincided with a broader shift in public opinion. Polling from Monmouth University showed that between March and November 2021, Republicans grew increasingly likely to say the anger that led to the Capitol attack was justified, with 54% saying the anger was either fully or partially justified in the fall — up from 40% that spring.
The Pew Research Center also found that, between March and September 2021, Republicans grew less likely to say it was important for law enforcement agencies to find and prosecute the rioters. Only 57% said that it was very or somewhat important in the fall, down from about 8 in 10 six months earlier.
That March, in an interview with Fox News Channel’s Laura Ingraham, Trump claimed the rioters had posed “zero threat” to the lawmakers who had assembled in the Capitol to certify the Electoral College vote — even though the mob tried to breach the House chamber.
“Look, they went in — they shouldn’t have done it. Some of them went in, and they’re hugging and kissing the police and the guards, you know, they had a great relationship,” he said.
In fact, many of the protesters violently clashed with police as they stormed the building, smashing windows and ramming through doors. Some brandished weapons; others wore tactical gear. Dozens of officers were severely injured.
By that time, many of Trump’s supporters had already painted Ashli Babbitt, one of five people who died during or immediately after the riot, as a martyr unjustly killed by police,
Babbitt was fatally shot by an officer while trying to climb through the broken window of a barricaded door as Capitol Police scrambled to evacuate members.
That summer, Trump began to publicly demand the release of the shooter’s identity, despite the officer being cleared of wrongdoing by two federal investigations.
“Who shot Ashli Babbitt?” Trump asked repeatedly.
Trump called Babbitt “an innocent, wonderful, incredible woman” in an interview with Fox News and described his supporters that day in glowing terms, claiming that there had been a “love fest between the Capitol police and the people that walked down to the Capitol.”
“They were peaceful people. These were great people. The crowd was unbelievable,” he said. “And I mentioned the word ‘love.’ The love — the love in the air, I’ve never seen anything like it.”
That fall, Trump taped a video that was played at an event commemorating what would have been Babbitt’s birthday in which he demanded “justice” for her and her family.
In January 2022, Trump first publicly dangled the prospect of pardons for the Jan. 6 defendants at a rally in Texas.
“If I run and if I win, we will treat those people from Jan. 6 fairly,” he told the crowd. “And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons because they are being treated so unfairly.” At that point, more than 670 people had been convicted of crimes related to the attack, including some found guilty of seditious conspiracy and assaulting police officers.
In September 2022, Trump told conservative radio host Wendy Bell that he was helping some of the defendants, though aides declined at the time to elaborate or say how much he had contributed.
“I’m financially supporting people that are incredible, and they were in my office actually two days ago. It’s very much on my mind,” he said. “It’s a disgrace what they’ve done to them. … Contributions should be made.”
Days later, Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania that included remarks from Cynthia Hughes, the founder of the Patriot Freedom Project, whose nephew was convicted for storming the Capitol. Geri Perna, whose nephew died by suicide while awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to riot-related charges, also spoke.
Later that month, the former president called into a small rally held outside a Washington jail where Jan. 6 defendants have been held, led by Micki Witthoeft, Babbitt’s mother.
“We’re with you. We’re working with a lot of different people on this. And we can’t let this happen,” he said via a cellphone held up to a microphone.
Trump’s support has only intensified since he formally launched his third campaign.
Earlier this year, he collaborated on “Justice for All,” a song that features a choir of Jan. 6 defendants singing “The Star-Spangled Banner,” recorded over a prison phone line and overlaid with Trump reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
Trump featured the song at the first official rally of his 2024 campaign, standing with his hand on his heart as a music video featuring violent footage of the riot played behind him on two giant screens.
In June, he spoke at a Patriot Freedom Project fundraiser to support the defendants that was held at his Bedminster, New Jersey, club.
“They’ve been made to pay a price that is very unfair, in many cases,” he said.
Trump also recorded a video played at the group’s holiday fundraising event in Washington and hosted a dinner for family members of Jan. 6 defendants at Mar-a-Lago in March.
“He is very concerned for these families,” Hughes said after the event.
An Associated Press review of social media posts, voter registrations, court files and other public records found that the mob was overwhelmingly made up of longtime Trump supporters, including GOP officials, donors and far-right militants.
But that hasn’t stopped Trump from falsely claiming that others were responsible for the attack, including antifa and Black Lives Matter. Last weekend on his social media site, Trump amplified messages claiming that Jan. 6 had been a “staged riot” orchestrated by the government.
Trump was still in charge of the government at the time.
Planning a trip to the beach this week. Before you decide to walk along the shore to get your feet wet, take note of the San Diego County Department of Environmental Health and Quality (DEHQ) recent beach management actions, released on Monday, July 24, 2023.
New Beach Management Actions:
Warning – Silver Strand Shoreline
DEHQ has issued a water contact warning for Silver Strand Shoreline. South swell conditions are present and pushing ocean waters from the south to the north (transboundary flows). Beachgoers are advised that bacteria levels exceed State health standards and ocean waters may contain sewage and cause illness.
On-going Beach Management Actions:
Advisory – Bayside Park at J St., Tidelands Park, San Diego River Outlet, North Cove Vacation Isle, La Jolla Cove, Avenida De La Playa, and Children’s Pool
The above beaches remain under advisory. Beach goers are advised that bacteria levels have exceeded state health standards and may cause illness.
Warning – Imperial Beach Shoreline
The Imperial Beach Shoreline remains under warning. South swell conditions are present and pushing ocean waters from the south to the north (transboundary flows). Beachgoers are advised that bacteria levels exceed State health standards and ocean waters may contain sewage and may cause illness.
Closure – Tijuana Slough Shoreline
The ocean shoreline from the International Border to the South end of Seacoast Drive will remain closed until sampling confirms these areas are safe for water contact. The public is advised to avoid water contact as the water is impacted by sewage and may cause illness.
For updates on beach advisory and closure information please visit our website at www.sdbeachinfo.com or call the 24-hr. hotline at (619) 338-2073.
By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Kevin G. Ritz for the Western District of Tennessee have launched an investigation to determine a pattern of civil rights violations allegedly committed by the Memphis Police Department.
The investigation comes in the wake of the fatal police beating of Tyree Nichols, the 29-year-old Black man who police beat, tasered, and pepper-sprayed during a traffic stop earlier this year.
Nichols died three days later, sparking a civil rights probe.
Clarke and Ritz said authorities are looking into conduct within the police force that might violate the Constitution or federal civil rights statutes.
“The tragic death of Tyre Nichols created enormous pain in the Memphis community and across the country,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland stated.
“The Justice Department is launching this investigation to examine serious allegations that the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police Department engage in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional conduct and discriminatory policing based on race, including a dangerously aggressive approach to traffic enforcement.
“We are committed to working cooperatively with local officials, police, and community members to conduct the thorough and comprehensive review that the residents of Memphis deserve.”
Clarke emphasized that the Nichols case did not solely prompt the investigation.
Instead, she claimed that numerous reports of officers allegedly escalating encounters with community members and using excessive force sparked it.
“There are also indications that officers may use force punitively when faced with behavior they perceive to be insolent,” Clarke stated.
The DOJ had previously agreed to review the Memphis Police Department’s specialized units at the request of Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis.
Clarke highlighted a concerning disparity, noting that despite Memphis being a majority Black city, the police department’s traffic enforcement disproportionately targeted the Black community.
She noted that officers were accused of using force against individuals already restrained or in custody, often resulting in serious physical injuries.
The scope of the new investigation will encompass the department’s overall conduct, Clarke insisted.
The DOJ will determine whether the police department engaged in unlawful stops, excessive force, and racially discriminatory policing practices against the city’s Black residents.
Nichols’ family has filed a $550 million lawsuit against the city of Memphis, Police Chief Davis, the five officers involved in Nichols’ death, two additional officers, and three Memphis Fire Department employees.
The lawsuit accuses the city of negligence in hiring Chief Davis and blames her for lax hiring processes.
It also addresses the development of the SCORPION Unit’s “oppression style of policing” and inadequate training.
The five officers facing criminal prosecution for Nichols’ death were members of the SCORPION Unit and have pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges.
“I know this community is still hurting after the tragic death of Tyre Nichols,” Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta remarked.
“At the Justice Department, we are committed to using all our tools to help ensure that Memphis residents have a safe community and can trust in the actions of law enforcement,” Gupta continued.
Clarke added that every person is entitled to constitutional and non-discriminatory policing.
“Based on an extensive review of publicly available information and information provided to us, there are grounds to open this investigation now,” Clarke said.
“We have reviewed information that indicates that the Memphis Police Department may be using an approach to street enforcement that can result in violations of federal law, including racially discriminatory stops of Black people for minor violations.
“The Justice Department will conduct a thorough and objective investigation into allegations of unlawful discrimination and Fourth Amendment violations. Unlawful policing undermines community trust, which is essential to public safety.”
By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
Donald Trump’s lawyers met with special counsel Jack Smith’s team on Thursday as both sides prepared for an indictment of the former president regarding the January 6 insurrection and his attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
John Lauro, one of Trump’s lawyers, was at the meeting, the Associated Press reported.
Earlier this month, Smith’s office informed Trump, the 2024 GOP presidential front-runner, that he was the focus of the Justice Department’s probe.
The investigation primarily focuses on the two months after the November 2020 election.
During that time, Trump refused to accept his loss to Democrat Joe Biden and spread false claims about a stolen election.
His actions culminated in the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Trump supporters stormed the building, attacked police officers, and stopped the counting of electoral votes in Congress.
More than a thousand people have faced federal charges concerning the Capitol riot.
Trump reportedly pressured local election officials to change the voting results.
He asked Vice President Mike Pence to stop the certification of electoral votes and falsely claimed that he won the 2020 presidential election.
Multiple authorities, such as federal and local officials, courts, former campaign staff, and even his attorney general, all confirmed that there was no evidence to support his fraud claims.
This is the second time Trump has been identified as the focus of a federal probe.
Last month, Smith charged Trump with 37 crimes, including seven violations of federal law.
New York prosecutors charged Trump with over 30 state-related financial crimes this year. A Manhattan jury later found him responsible in a civil sexual abuse trial.
Trump is also awaiting a decision in Georgia. A seated Grand Jury has continued investigating his alleged efforts to influence the 2020 race in that state.
Mother Mary Elizabeth Lange — a Black Catholic nun who founded the United States’ first African American religious congregation in Baltimore in 1829 – has advanced another step toward sainthood.
Under a decree signed by Pope Francis on Thursday, Lange was recognized for her heroic virtue, and advanced in the cause of her beatification from being considered a servant of God to a “venerable servant.” The Catholic Church must now approve a miracle that is attributed to her, so she can be beatified.
Lange grew up in a wealthy family of African origin, but she left Cuba in the early 1800s for the U.S. due to racial discrimination, according to the Vatican’s saint-making office. After encountering more discrimination in the southern U.S., she moved with her family to Baltimore. Recognizing a need to provide education for Black children in the city, she started a school in 1828, decades before the Civil War and the abolition of slavery.
In 1829, she founded the Oblate Sisters of Providence — the country’s first African-American religious congregation. They were trailblazers for generations of Black Catholic nuns who persevered despite being overlooked or suppressed by those who resented or disrespected them.
The Oblate Sisters continue to operate Baltimore’s Saint Frances Academy, which Lange founded. The coed school is the country’s oldest continually operating Black Catholic educational facility, with a mission prioritizing help for “the poor and the neglected.”
“She lived her virtuous existence in a hostile social and ecclesial context, in which the preeminent opinion was in favor of slavery, personally suffering the situation of marginalization and poverty in which the African American population found itself,” the Vatican’s saint-making office wrote.
Lange is among three Black nuns from the U.S. designated by Catholic officials as worthy of consideration for sainthood. The others include Henriette Delille, who founded the New Orleans-based Sisters of the Holy Family in 1842 because white sisterhoods in Louisiana refused to accept African Americans, and Sister Thea Bowman, a beloved educator, evangelist and singer active for many decades before her death in 1990.
Pope Francis’s advancement of Lange’s sainthood cause ”is a monumental step forward in the long fight for Black Catholic saints in the United States and for recognition for the nation’s long-embattled African American Catholic community, especially nuns,” said Shannen Dee Williams, a history professor at the University of Dayton and author of ” Subversive Habits: Black Catholic Nuns in the Long African American Freedom Struggle.”
Currently, there are no recognized African-American saints. Williams said Lange joins three other African American sainthood candidates who have been declared ”venerable – Delille, Father Augustus Tolton and Pierre Toussaint.
Williams said only one Black woman has been declared a saint in the modern era – St. Josephine Bakhita, a formerly enslaved Sudanese nun who made “the extraordinary journey from slavery under Islamic auspices to freedom in an Italian Catholic convent in the late 19th century.”
“This is why Lange’s cause is so important and revolutionary,” Williams said via email. “There is absolutely no way to tell Lange’s story or the story of her order accurately or honestly without confronting the Catholic Church’s mostly unreconciled histories of colonialism, slavery, and segregation.”
Williams said that unlike most of their counterparts in religious life, Lange and the Oblate Sisters of Providence were not segregationists, and never barred anyone from their ranks or institutions based on color or race. Instead, Williams said, Lange’s multiethnic and multilingual order preserved the vocations of hundreds of Black Catholic women and girls denied admission into white congregations in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean.
”Lange and her Oblate Sisters of Providence’s very existence embody the fundamental truth that Black history always has been Catholic history in the land area that became the United States,” Williams said.
Their story “upends the enduring myth that slaveholding and segregationist Catholic priests and nuns were simply people ‘of their times.’” Williams said. ”Mother Lange and the Oblate Sisters of Providence were also people of those times.”
The ageless and iconic singing group, The Temptations had a song a while back titled, “Ball of Confusion”. It painted a dim view of what was happening in the world at the time. The year was 1970.
Some of the lyrics said, “Evolution, revolution, gun control, sound of soul. Shooting rockets to the moon, kids growing up too soon. Politicians say more taxes will solve everything. And the band played on”.
Sometimes these old school songs mirror what is happening in our country during these times. Few would argue that the political landscape is uneven and unpredictable. Both sides have positions sometimes that are problematic. The American people over time have increasingly lost faith in the system.
The Republican Party, for example, is at a crossroads. Too much wrong and not enough right has crept into the GOP. Many critics have said that it has become a shell of itself.
The in-fighting and public displays of anger (PDAs) are being viewed by all of us. It is my opinion that this vitriol will not be ending any time soon. Meanness and mayhem will be with the Republican Party as the 2024 elections draw near.
My 4th quarter view is that they have not always been that way. If you are a Democrat or an Independent, you are flummoxed as you look at the circus-like atmosphere the Republican Party has created.
We are seeing the cracks and the crevices in the GOP armor. Their leadership is questionable and unsure. I have a suggestion for them. They should bring in former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi for some lessons on leadership. A simple title could be, “How to keep your members together”.
The GOP has taken a downward turn since the arrival of Donald Trump. His ascent to the presidency has caused them anguish and anxiety. They have become polarized and extreme. These are my opinions.
Republican House members, Jim Jordan from Ohio and Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia have gone off the Republican path. They believe in the stolen election lies and other ill-founded subjugations.
Kevin McCarthy, Speaker of the House of Representatives is barely hanging on to his position. He is being held as a political hostage by his own party. If you recall, it took him 15 ballots over 5 days to assume his role.
Does that engender any confidence in his leadership? Lastly, he had to make some concessions in order to become Speaker. He agreed to a House rule change that would make it easier to remove him from office. So, it is safe to say that Speaker McCarthy needs to walk gingerly and watch his step at every turn.
Republicans are now wondering what to do and who to trust. Their constituents are unsure about the goals of the party.
On one side, you have former president Trump. He is presently hung up and tied down in legal drama. The state of Georgia will be coming for him soon.
On the other side, you have other Republicans, all of whom wield power at different levels. Ron DeSantis is a wanna be, Nikki Haley is a could be and Chris Christie is a maybe. Each has a political machine that is fighting an uphill battle to dethrone Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, the old guard in the GOP has remained silent. Does their silence mean apathy or are they sick and tired of the current GOP?
I think it is a bit of both. The Bush family for instance are Republican loyalists yet we don’t hear from them. Senator Mitch McConnell is on mute these days when it comes to addressing the Republican carnage. Maybe he can see the handwriting on the wall.
The Grand Old Party is in the political emergency room. Can it be saved? Stay tuned. We will see.
It’s a question a lot of white people have been asking in recent years, especially since the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in 2020.
It taps into a recognition of the impact of systemic racism on Black Americans and an apparent desire by white friends, colleagues and managers to address ongoing discrimination and bias.
As business scholars – one white, one Black – with a keen awareness of the value and impact of diversity, we are interested in trying to answer that question: that is, how can white people support their Black colleagues? To find out, we interviewed 18 successful Black professionals and the mostly white “allies” they said were helpful in their careers to see if we could identify some common strategies that are effective in the workplace.
Three themes stood out from this ongoing research.
Systemic bias
The effects of racism often feel as if they are embedded in the fabric of Black people’s everyday lives.
And it’s not just being treated differently by the police, which was the impetus for the 2020 protests.
Black people even experience bias from well-meaning schoolteachers, neighbors, colleagues and managers. Small acts of reckless disregard build toward broad racial disparities.
Therefore, we sought to understand the small acts of resolute connection that could shift the tide toward greater justice and equity.
Using our own networks, we reached out to five Black professionals in a range of industries – financial services, packaged foods and sports management – who were all in executive roles in their organizations. We asked them to think of the individuals who were instrumental to their success and describe the specific support these people offered to help manage explicit or implicit moments of discrimination. Next, we interviewed the eight allies they identified – seven white, one Black.
These 13 in-depth interviews yielded key patterns about the simple ways to address racial bias that defy conventional wisdom. Unlike research that relies on surveys to get representative viewpoints, a qualitative approach allowed us to gain a richer, more comprehensive understanding of the factors and variables in these relationships that made them powerful.
Reciprocal relationships
Consistent with social exchange theory, we found that these relationships worked best when there was a partnership and both parties benefited.
People of color said they did not want to be objects of pity. Even the question “What can I do?” implies a power dynamic – someone in power reaching out to someone in need.
The people of color we spoke to found the strongest support when their allies recognized their talents and helped them apply these talents more effectively in the workplace. And that support was more authentic and trustworthy when both parties benefited from the relationship and learned from each other.
The Black professionals we interviewed said that they were already performing at a high level and trying to prove themselves invaluable, which made colleagues and managers who benefited from their efforts seek to promote them in the organization. The allies likewise said they supported Black workers because they saw their talent.
For example, one ally reported seeing that the dominant white macho culture in his organization did not appreciate his female Black colleague’s talent and was limiting her success. When he moved to a new company, as soon as he saw an opportunity he actively recruited her. The new role involved much more responsibility than her previous positions, but he convinced her that she could do it.
She told us that his ongoing support in the position encouraged her continued success. The relationship focused on talent, not pity, and benefited both parties. And she is now paying this allyship forward. She is the CEO of a marketing services agency that focuses on supporting companies led by underrepresented minorities.
Don’t avoid uncomfortable conversations
These relationships were not careful or guarded; they were straightforward and honest.
Past research has found that white supervisors often avoid giving critical feedback to Black subordinates and peers out of a fear of being viewed as biased. Yet it can be more biased to say nothing. Avoiding difficult conversations can impede a young professional’s upward mobility.
People of color need advice from more experienced individuals on how to successfully navigate racism traps that may exist in the workplace. They might be unaware that some of their actions or approaches are being perceived negatively in the office. These difficult conversations can strengthen relationships.
For example, an ally observed that although it was difficult, she considered it a managerial responsibility to tell her Black colleague that he was not meeting her expectations. Another ally reported explaining to a junior Black colleague that proving to a supervisor that you are right may not always be beneficial if it harms your long-term career prospects.
These difficult but honest conversations helped shape the conduct of the person of color and laid the foundation for lifelong trusting connections.
Connect outside of work
Finally, it made a big difference to the people of color we interviewed when an ally tried to get to know them better on a personal level, not only in terms of work.
People are more productive at work when they feel that colleagues see them with nuance – with unique passions, talents and interests – rather than pigeonholing or stereotyping them based on race or gender. It also becomes a lot easier to champion and advocate for someone you know well.
But as a result of real or perceived racial barriers, Black professionals often report feeling anxious during work-related social engagements, in part because they say they don’t understand the rules. Black and white professionals also tend to move in different social circles outside of work.
Our interviewees said a key antidote to this came when allies made an effort to connect outside of work. Whether over a cup of coffee or a home-cooked meal, these social encounters allowed relationships to flourish and stereotypes to diminish.
One white ally we interviewed reported realizing that she often had white colleagues to her home for dinner but had never invited a Black colleague. So when discussing her vacation plans – a seven-day chartered Alaskan fishing trip – with a Black woman who worked in the same office, she discovered her co-worker’s husband loved fishing and invited them on the trip, where they bonded and formed a friendship.
Doing this doesn’t require becoming friends. It only means closing the “psychological distance” that can separate people along racial lines at work.
A simple antidote
Black people in the U.S. are faced with a world that can make them feel both empowered and vulnerable. Two incidents at the U.S. Capitol in early 2021 that happened just two weeks apart sum up this jarring narrative.
On Jan. 20, Kamala Harris took the oath of office on the Capitol steps as the first Black vice president – and only hours later swore in the first Black senator from Georgia. Contrast that with images exactly two weeks earlier of white supremacists storming that very same building.
Americans face great challenges on the road to a more inclusive society. To be sure, addressing institutional racism requires systematic interventions by companies and substantial policy changes by the government. But our research suggests they also could use something simpler from their colleagues, managers and others in their lives: genuine relationships.
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This is an updated version of an article originally published on Feb. 2, 2021.
The latest reminder that police officers around the country routinely deny Black people their constitutional rights comes from the Justice Department. This time, it’s about Minneapolis, the site of a police officer’s video-recorded murder of resident George Floyd.
More than three years after Floyd’s brutal death and the global protest movement that sprang from it, a June 2023 Justice Department report found that Minneapolis police use excessive force, including unjustified deadly force in their interactions with civilians, and discriminate against Black people.
The report echoes Justice Department findings, released in March 2023, about police misconduct in Louisville, Kentucky, where officers killed Breonna Taylor during an unlawful search of her home in March 2020, and about police in Ferguson, Missouri, in a report released in March 2015. An officer shot and killed Michael Brown, who was unarmed, during a 2014 encounter.
The Justice Department found that Minneapolis police also discriminate against Native Americans; routinely use excessive force, including “unreasonable use of tasers”; violate the rights of citizens exercising their First Amendment right to free speech; participate in racially discriminatory stops against Black people and Native Americans; and discriminate against people with serious mental illnesses.
As a geographer and scholar of African American studies, I’ve written about racist policing for The Conversation before. So, I struggled to find a new way to examine the topic this time around. And that led me to the enduring question: Why is racial discrimination by police so common in the United States?
Policing in black and white
Justice Department reports, complaints from citizens and dozens of academic studies painfully point to racial discrimination by police as a common practice.
The evidence is overwhelming. Countless studies have shown that Black people are routinely stopped by police and live in racially segregated communities that police heavily monitor. These conditions have led to Black people being overrepresented in arrests for violent crime that doesn’t involve a fatality.
Police body camera footage shows officers speak disrespectfully to Black people during traffic stops; about four of every 10 Black people say police have unfairly stopped them; and Black people are more than three times as likely to be killed by police during interactions. These experiences explain why Black people have negative views of police.
For white Americans, however, their feelings and interactions with the police are more positive. For instance, only a quarter of white people surveyed report being in situations where they believe police were suspicious of them. Meanwhile, 78% feel police protect people from crime; 75% say police use the correct amount of force and that they treat people of color and white people equally; and 70% of white Americans feel police are held accountable for their misconduct.
These experiences explain why white Americans are more likely to give police high marks – 75% – for job performance.
These differences influence how race shapes people’s interactions with police. African Americans have negative views of police because of past and personal experience. Many white people have more positive views shaped by living on their side of the color line.
Experiences shape people’s views
The fact that Black and white Americans have different views on the police are not accidents.
This reality is built on a long history of police targeting people of color. Indeed, policing in the United States was established on the practice of controlling specific populations. In the 19th century, for example, policing in the South was designed to monitor the movement of enslaved Black people. Some of the first police forces in the nation were developed to keep the enslaved from escaping and to recapture them if they did. They were called slave patrols, and by law, some states required white men to serve as slave patrollers.
Similar histories exist with the Irish in the Northeast before they were considered white, as well as with Mexicans and Mexican Americans in the Southwest.
Policing and controlling the movements of specific nonwhite groups have often gone hand in hand. This powerful cocktail of racism and policing has enabled brutal forms of violence against people of color.
In each case, police discriminated against Black people in the South, Mexicans and Mexican Americans in the Southwest and the Irish in the North, while treating white Southerners, white Southwesterners and the middle and upper classes in the North differently. The parallels to this moment are not an accident. And neither is police misconduct.
Policing the way it was intended
The Justice Department’s report will place the practices of the Minneapolis Police Department under public scrutiny. And it will be part of the mountain of studies, complaints and federal reports that show widespread racial discrimination.
That said, with the long history of how policing began and how targeting groups was part of its foundation, along with the studies that document it, what’s apparent is that police misconduct is not an aberration. Despite claims of serving and protecting the public, that is simply not what the police have always done.
It’s no wonder, then, that so many people believe racial discrimination is endemic to policing and is simply part of the way it works. And while this most recent Justice Department report shows that, it also makes the case that Minneapolis police are working the way they were intended.
If this is the case, then Black people’s denial of basic constitutional guarantees by law enforcement, enshrined in our nation’s founding documents, is, to quote the abolitionist Fredrick Douglass, a “shameless hypocrisy.”
For many educators, the 2022-2023 school year was harder than the pandemic years.
Sharif El-Mekki, founder and CEO of the Center for Black Educator Development, recalled a recent conversation with a principal describing the challenges.
“Every time there’s a shortage in your school, it has a ripple effect,” El-Mekki says.
If a teacher is absent, of course students’ routines and schedules are impacted. But it extends to their colleagues. What if there aren’t substitute teachers available? Who will cover the class? Then, losing that time means teachers have less time to prepare, build relationships, and reach out to families.
“There are so many different examples of that in the day-to-day lives of our teachers,” El-Mekki says. “But it’s not just teachers. It’s a whole ecosystem that has really been struggling.”
New Report Cites High Rates of Teacher Turnover
A new RAND report found that about 10% of teachers retired or resigned nationwide during or after the 2021-2022 school year, a 4 percentage point increase from the previous school year. These rates are now higher than pre-pandemic levels.
This is attributed to multiple things.
For one, people underestimate how the pandemic exacerbated inequities that already existed, El-Mekki says, like mental health.
A lot of mental health supports prioritize students, but “we also have to think about the vicarious trauma that the people who serve those students may be confronted with,” El-Mekki says.
“They’re human beings and part of the community — particularly diverse educators who may have also been impacted by COVID, and in significant and disproportionate ways,” El-Mekki says.
It’s not just teachers. It’s a whole ecosystem that has really been struggling.
SHARIF EL-MEKKI
And teachers of color face additional challenges, says Dr. Fedrick Ingram, secretary-treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers. For one, many teach in zip codes that are more socioeconomically disadvantaged. And, of course, there’s the invisible tax — when Black teachers are expected to serve as disciplinarians or take on other responsibilities that don’t set them up for promotions.
Plus, with Black teachers making up less than 10% of the workforce, it’s common to be part of a very small group of Black teachers in a school — or even the only one.
“To ask our teachers to deliver on top of that, that could be a lot to bear,” Ingram says, “especially for a young educator who is really trying to come in and get their feet wet and trying to learn the art and science of education.”
Turnover Is Highest in These Districts
The roughly 114,000 vacated positions weren’t distributed evenly around the country.
Turnover was highest in urban districts (14%), the majority of which serve predominantly students of color, and high-poverty districts (12%).
And the turnover gap increased between majority white districts and districts with a majority of students of color. In the 2021-2022 school year, majority-white districts had a 9% rate of teacher turnover compared to 14% in districts with a majority of students of color.
The roughly 114,000 vacated positions weren’t distributed evenly around the country.
These are all the districts that already needed support, El-Mekki says.
“Those are where the inequities have been the most concentrated for so long,” El-Mekki says. “Post-pandemic, there’s more challenges on top of what was already there. So it’s trying to build on top of inequity. Things are going to be compounded even more so.”
Wanted: Subs, Special Education Teachers, and Bus Drivers
The most common shortages were among math teachers (38%), science teachers (33%), and English as a second language (ESL) teachers (32%).
The shortages weren’t limited to classroom teachers. Districts nationwide also reported moderate or considerable shortages of substitute teachers (78%) and special education teachers (53%).
And, about 68% of districts reported shortages of bus drivers. Since the pandemic, El-Mekki’s daughters have had two or three different bus drivers.
Bus drivers are generally the first people in the “educational village” that students see every day, Ingram says.
“We expect those bus drivers to have drinks and coffee and kick the tires, make sure they hit every stop sign and get those students there safely, and then get them back home in the same manner that they received them,” Ingram says.
They — along with cafeteria workers, paraprofessionals, and secretaries — are among the many in the educational village who deserve more respect.
These three categories are all jobs that “schools have historically had a difficult time finding,” the report says. And, Ingram adds, this has to do with there being “not a lot of relief” for those teachers.
“They started looking at other options,” El-Mekki says.
But the shortage of special education teachers isn’t a new pandemic-era problem. It’s a facet of the profession that requires a lot of paperwork, support, and specialty certifications. It can also be a more solitary job due to the lack of classroom assistants and fewer similarly-trained educators in the building, which leads to fewer professional development opportunities.
“If you have the students with the highest levels of need, and you’re getting the least amount of support,” El-Mekki says, “that can really fray your ability to be effective and your desire to stay.”
Looking at the 2023-2024 School Year
So what does this mean for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year?
“We are hearing that there are a lot of districts that are giving additional incentives to join the classroom or join their district,” El-Mekki says.
Some places in the country have succeeded at increasing teacher pay, and changing working conditions and contracts to better respect teachers.
And some schools are trying to restructure what supports and professional development opportunities look like and are available.
But, through all of the changes, nothing will matter if the voices of those who are meant to benefit aren’t being heard. And this doesn’t mean educators and bus drivers should be the ones drafting the policy, but they should be able to provide feedback or be involved in the conversations from the start.
Too often, whoever’s furthest away from the classroom often is the one that signs off on policy.
SHARIF EL-MEKKI
“That would be the biggest miss, as districts around the country try to address these challenges and the shortages: Not listening to what’s happening on the ground, in the classroom, in the hallways, in the school,” El-Mekki says. “Too often, whoever’s furthest away from the classroom often is the one that signs off on policy.”
But, Ingram says, this is going to be a great school year. Some students will matriculate from one grade to another, and others will graduate. And teachers will do what they always do: “Stand at the gate of success for our students.”
“Our teachers are eternal optimists. That’s what we do,” Ingram says. “We believe that we can take a kid from one place to another if you give us the right time, give us the right space, get out of the way, and let the magic happen in the classroom.”
“That is what we’re going to do, and that is what happens every day.”
More than 25 years ago, I collapsed onstage while performing. I had no idea what was happening, but that night in the hospital, when I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, my life was forever changed.
At first, I was angry, and I was terrified. I watched my aunt and uncle lose their sight, and my mother lost both her legs before she died in her 60s due to diabetes. I know firsthand the toll that this disease can take. It took me a while to do something about my diabetes. I was in denial. I kept my old unhealthy eating habits. If it was battered or fried, I ate it!
Eventually, I realized my glucose levels weren’t getting any better, and I knew it was time to do something. I made a conscious choice to prioritize my health and change my way of living. I turned to my love of cooking to overhaul my diet. It meant I had to put down the butter and pick up the vegetable steamer. I would even take my pots and pans with me on tour and cook in my suite with ingredients from the local farmer’s market, just so I could better control my food intake.
Has it been easy? No. But has it paid off? Absolutely.
Black people and diabetes
The more attention I pay to my health, the better I feel. Exercise and I are not friends, but I started becoming more active – whether walking my dog and exercising in my pool or hopping on the elliptical machine. I use my Dexcom continuous glucose monitor (or CGM) to stay on top of my glucose levels throughout the day, without the need for painful finger pricks. It lets me know where my glucose levels are and where they’re headed, all with a glance at my iPhone. I can even share my levels with members of my family and my physician so they can keep a close eye on them, too.
I am proud of how far I have come on my health journey, and I am blessed and privileged to have an incredible support system in my doctors, family and friends. But millions of Americans in this country are not as fortunate.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 10 Americans have diabetes (34 million), and approximately 90% of them have Type 2 diabetes.
Black people are 60% more likely to develop diabetes than white people, and in 2018, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that Black people were twice as likely as white people to die from diabetes.
Lots of things are making this true, but it doesn’t have to be this way.
Patti LaBelle lost three sisters to cancer. Now, she’s telling adults to ‘take heed and get checked’
Living with diabetes has never been easier; insulin pumps talk directly to continuous glucose monitors and automatically deliver insulin, and you can keep a close eye on your glucose levels from your smartwatch or phone without pricking your finger – no one likes to do that!
But this amazing technology is still not in the hands of people in Black communities and communities of color. A recent survey of people with insulin-treated diabetes found that most believe they deserve new technology to manage their disease, and I couldn’t agree more.
Why are so many of us out here fighting diabetes with the same old tools that have been around since my aunt, uncle and mother were diagnosed? If today’s health care system provided more coverage for (and access to) these technologies, millions of lives could be saved.
A ‘divabetic’ advocating for others
Diabetes is often invisible to everyone except those living with it, and for too long, minorities have felt invisible in this country. They deserve to feel seen and heard. I am proof that you can not only live with Type 2 diabetes but also live well with it. I am not a diabetic, I’m a divabetic! And I am proud of it. That is why this November, along with the Global Movement for Time in Range, I am sharing my story to amplify this important topic, and advocating for better access to diabetes technology and asking that decision-makers take action for communities of color to receive the care they need.
Whether you have Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, care for someone with diabetes, or you simply believe that people with diabetes deserve better, you can take action too by joining the conversation at wheninrange.com.
It’s time that we all truly #SeeDiabetes, because we can’t help change what we cannot see.
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Patti LaBelle is a singer, actress, author and advocate. Follow her on Twitter: @MsPattiPatti
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