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Still With The Monkey Business
wo weeks ago, a West
Virginia mayor and a county developer were caught up in a controversy after Face- book posts between the two women exposed their inner bigotry. The message, sent by the developer after Donald Trump's shocking victory in the presidential election, stated that: "it would be re- freshing to have a classy, beau- tiful First Lady in the White House. I'm tired of seeing an ape in high heels." To which the mayor responded: "You just made my day."
It was one of those ex- changes that you read or hear about and think to yourself, "wait-a-minute. Did that really just happen?" "Did these hill- billies actually refer to Michelle Obama as a mon- key on social media?"
For me the comments weren't as upsetting as they were frustrating. After all, it isn't like we've never heard
this kind of language before. The words only become unset- tling when you realize that we're less than 30 days from the year 2017 and there are still parts of America where Black people are viewed as something less than human.
This incident is the latest reminder that, to some white people, it doesn't matter our education level, financial sta- tus or, apparently, even if our address happens to be 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. None of it changes the fact that, to them, we're nothing more than ani- mals playing dress up.
I can only assume that this way of thinking is, at least, part of the reason why punish- ment is seldom doled out to white faces who extinguish Black lives. If the juries in those types of cases share the same views as the two women in West Virginia, it's probably impossible to convince them that, when a Black man or
woman is murdered, a crime was even committed.
Unfortunately, this is the kind of ignorance that we will forever be forced to deal with as long as we consider the United States our home. We were 3/5 of a man 200 years ago. And, in the eyes of many non-Blacks today, our status still hasn't changed.
This is why it disheartens me to watch those of us who constantly pander for the ap- proval and acceptance of the greater society at large. They never seem to realize that re- gardless of how well they dance, how proper they speak or how big they smile, the eyes from the other side will always view them with a certain level of contempt.
With that being the case I suggest that, going forward, we continue to embrace our Black identity with unapolo- getic vigor because, at the end of day, it doesn't matter how humble, compromising or as- similating we attempt to be, it still won't lessen the level of hell they continue to want to give us.
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‘No Smoking’ In Public Housing Begins In January!
n 1995, a Florida Court considered a North Miami City
regulation requiring applicants for municipal jobs to cer- tify in writing that they had not used tobacco in the preceding year. The regulation was challenged. Consequently, the court judge decided, “There is no Constitutional Right to Smoke (or Not to Smoke).”
This conclusion was rendered despite the fact that “smok- ing continued to be the leading cause of preventable death in America with more than 12 million deaths over the past 40 years.”
So, it is with painfully mixed emotions we greet HUD’s re- cent initiative to arbitrarily and completely stop smoking on its premises.
Beginning January 1st of the New Year, public housing throughout our nation will be off-limits to anyone who smokes a pipe, cigar, cigarette or any other combustible to- bacco products. In the words of a local public housing resi- dent, “I hate it. You can’t sit in your house and smoke; you can’t sit on your porch and smoke,” concluding, “I just don’t think it’s right.”
But a HUD official counters “Every child deserves to grow up in a safe, healthy home, free from harmful secondary cig- arette smoke.”
But, what about individuals for whom tobacco use has be- come a way of life? In response, Tampa Housing Authority will offer free “smoking cessation” classes and nicotine patches. Yet, the question we cannot escape is, from a Con- stitutional perspective, has non-smoking America gone too far?
With apologies to all non-smokers and unborn babies, we believe this latest federal initiative has indeed crossed a dan- gerous Constitutional line, more dictatorial than Demo- cratic.
World AIDS Day 2016: Envisioning The
Beginning Of The End
BY MARC H. MORIAL President and CEO National Urban League
’m very proud of what
we’ve accomplished to- gether over the past eight years. Here and around the world, over 18 million people are receiving the treatment and care they need — millions of in- fections have been prevented. What once seemed like an im- possible dream, the dream of an AIDS-free generation, is within our grasp. But we know that there’s work to do to ban- ish stigma, save lives and em- power everyone to reach their potential...Today we remember those we’ve lost, and reflect on the extraordinary progress we’ve won. We give thanks to the heroes on the front lines of this fight and tomorrow we get back out there, because to- gether, we can do this.”
— President Barack Obama, Video Message for World AIDS Day, December 1, 2016
On June 5, 1981, the Centers for Disease Control published its weekly Morbidity and Mor- tality Report. The report — which described five cases of previously healthy, young gay men in Los Angeles infected with a rare lung infection — would eventually become recog- nized as the first official report on HIV/AIDS in the United States.
Since the start of the epi- demic 35 years ago, an esti- mated 35 million people have died from AIDS-related ill- nesses around the globe. In the United States alone, more than 700,000 people have died an AIDS death since the beginning of the epidemic.
Today, more than 1.2 mil- lion people in the United States are living with HIV, according to the CDC. New infections are down from their peaks in the 80s and 90s, with the CDC esti- mating that new HIV diagnoses have fallen by 19 percent from 2005 to 2014.
The death rate from AIDS-
related illnesses has dropped by 30 percent, approaching our na- tion’s 2020 target rate.
In 2015, African Americans, who represent 12 percent of the U. S. population, accounted for 45 percent of HIV diagnoses.
The link between health, so- cial and economic equity and our vision of an AIDS-free gen- eration is real and borne out by the shocking rate of HIV/AIDS in communities of color and vulnerable populations. Given the disproportionate impact of the epidemic in communities of color, effectively addressing HIV/AIDS in the United States also means addressing poverty and a lack of access to health care.
The National Urban League and its affiliates continue to partner with organizations and groups working to decrease and defeat HIV/AIDS in the hardest hit populations.
Here is a final sobering sta- tistic: 1 in 8 people living with HIV in the United States are un- aware of their status. We cannot fight what we don’t know. We need leadership from service providers, advocates, doctors and government officials, but all of us, have a role to play on the journey towards an AIDS-free generation. Protect yourself and reduce the risk of spreading HIV, or any STD, by getting tested and knowing your status. We must all commit to keeping our communities healthy.
Government Contracts Scarce For Blacks
e’ve often said that if government contracts died out,
many Black businesses would no longer exist. Thank- fully, however, at least one Black organization is guarding the economic opportunities available to Black, women, and other minority-owned businesses in the Tampa-Hillsbor- ough area.
Therefore, we extend kudos and support to the Tampa Or- ganization on Black Affairs (TOBA) for their continued mon- itoring of and advocacy for Black, women and other minority groups in order to insure minority-owned businesses secure a proportionate share of local government contracting and procurement opportunities.
That Black businesses conclude the year 2016 no better off in securing government contracts than in 1986 when Af- firmative Action Programs were implemented is a bitter in- dictment on the sincere efforts of governments in general.
According to several sources, minority-owned businesses diversified and increased in numbers in the areas of finance, insurance, real estate, transportation, communications, util- ities, manufacturing and repair by 175%. Furthermore, mi- nority wholesale businesses increased by 111.8%. These
increases, of course, are relative to the number of businesses you begin with. Yet, in 2012 Black and Hispanic owned businesses won only 8.4% and 7.20% of government contracts, re- spectively.
Nevertheless, we applaud City Council for seeing the need to increase its contracting with minority-owned businesses, and for seeking advice from cities (Atlanta and Denver) that have done a credible job contracting with minority firms. We will watch, and see the outcome of its efforts.
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