Page 32 - Florida Sentinel 6-25-21

National
WWII Vet Receives Purple Heart After Racism Denied Him One
Protesters at Black Lives Matter and anti-Trump demonstrations could be wearing T-shirts from an un- likely source: the Proud Boys.
The far-right group's leader, Enrique Tarrio, told The Wall Street Journal in a re- port published Wednesday that he set up a secret busi- ness to sell T-shirts with lib- eral slogans after card-processing companies kept refusing to work with his other businesses.
As the Proud Boys gained infamy for taking part in the Capitol riot and other contro- versial gatherings such as the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, banks and card-pro- cessing services have taken a stance against the group, making it hard for the Proud
Despite the various sacrifices he made while serving in the U. S. Army during World War II, Osceola “Ozzie” Fletcher was never awarded the Purple Heart after being wounded in battle due to racism and segregation within the military.
In his words, Black soldiers could be “injured, damaged (and) hurt. But they never got wounded. Only the white men who were wounded got Purple Hearts.”
On Friday, military officials righted this wrong during a ceremony in Brooklyn, where the 99-year-old veteran was awarded his long overdue Pur- ple Heart, according to The Washington Post.
“It was an honor and privi- lege to pin a long overdue Pur- ple Heart on a great Soldier
Ozzie Fletcher is pinned with the Purple Heart during a Friday ceremony in Brooklyn. Photo: New York Police Department/Twit- ter
Enrique Tarrio, leader of the Proud Boys.
Boys to make money. Tarrio wouldn't share the
name of his new business, and The Journal said it was not able to independently ver- ify its existence.
and member of the Greatest Generation, Mr. Ozzie Fletcher,” Gen. James C. McConville, chief of staff of the Army, said in a statement
to The Washington Post. “This week, we were able to pay trib- ute to Ozzie for the sacrifices he made in service to our great Nation during World War II.”
Georgia Removes 100,000 Names From Voter Registration Rolls
Proud Boys Leader Says He's Selling BLM And Anti-Trump Shirts
Apple And Google Award More Than $50 Million To HBCUs
“Apple will collaborate closely with our computer en- gineering faculty to strengthen our course offer- ings and laboratory capabili- ties in the areas of integrated circuit design, fabrication, and testing,” Anderson said in a statement. “Additionally, through design projects and internships, our students will have the opportunity to en- gage with Apple engineers and benefit greatly from their knowledge, experience, and mentorship.”
Google also announced it will give out $5 million grants to ten HBCUs including Howard, Morgan State and Prairie View as part of its ini- tiative to “address the diver- sity gap in tech.” The grants will go towards scholarships and technical infrastructure for in-person and remote learning asd well as curricu- lum and career support pro- grams.
The other seven HBCU schools that will receive a grant are Claflin University Clark Atlanta University, Florida A&M University, North Carolina A&T State University, Spelman College, Tuskegee University and Xavier University.
MORGAN STATE
Google Chief Diversity Offi- cer Melonie Parker said the $50 million commitment is the tech giant’s largest to date for HBCUs and part of the company’s dedication to closing diversity gaps in edu- cation and technology.
“These initiatives are de- signed to build equity for HBCU computing education, help job seekers find tech roles, and provide opportuni- ties to accelerate their ca- reers,” Parker said in a statement. “(These grants) further solidifies our commit- ment to providing access and opportunities for underrepre- sented groups in tech. We’ll continue to partner closely with HBCUs to achieve this shared goal.”
WASHINGTON, DC -More than 100,000 names will be re- moved from Georgia's voter registration rolls in an attempt to keep the state's voter files "up to date," Georgia's secre- tary of state announced Friday. "Making sure Georgia's voter rolls are up to date is key to en- suring the integrity of our elec- tions," Republican Brad Raffensperger said in a statement. "There is no legiti- mate reason to keep ineligible voters on the rolls."
The voter files being re- moved are "obsolete and out- dated," according to the statement, which says that since the 2020 election, Raf- fensperger has "made it a priority to continue with the list maintenance process."
The announcement follows a blitz of new voting restrictions in Republican-led states with Georgia as the first presidential battleground to impose new voting restrictions following
‘Ok, I get the idea': GOP senator cuts off Stacey Abrams on con- troversial voting law.
President Joe Biden's vic- tory in the state.
Raffensperger -- who was censured at the Georgia GOP convention earlier this month - - has received harsh criticism from those in his own party for stating that Biden won Geor- gia in November and for refus- ing to help former President Donald Trump overturn the results of the election after his loss.
Raffensperger and his family have also received death threats since the election.
The effort to remove 101,789 names from Georgia's voter files marks the first time the state has conducted a "major cleaning" since 2019, but Georgia regularly removes the voter files of convicted felons and the dead on a monthly basis, according to the statement.
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