Page 25 - Florida Sentinel 11-25-16 Online Edition

National
Grandma’s Text Leads To Invite To Thanksgiving Dinner
Entrepreneurs Create App That Rewards Students For Good Grades
PENNSYLVANIA ---Based in Pennsylvania, African American entrepreneurs Trevor Wilkins and Logan Cohen have cre- ated an amazing app called Kudzoo that motivates stu- dents to do well in school.
The app, which is free to download, allows students to upload their report cards and be rewarded with deals, giveaways, scholarship opportunities, con- cert tickets, and once in a life- time experiences based on their grades and achievements.
Trevor has always been very motivated about getting good grades. His parents encouraged him and his siblings to do well by rewarding them if they did well in school. They received $10 for every A they brought home, and $5 for every B. But they also were penalized if they brought home bad grades. For example, if they got a C, they had to pay their parents $20. But the strategy worked very well.
Based on his own background, Trevor grew up wanting to cre- ate a way to motivate other stu-
Logan Cohen and Trevor Wilkins
dents to do the same.
Why the name Kudzoo?
Kudzoo is the name of the fastest growing plant in the world. This is how both Trevor and Logan want students to feel about their education, grow- ing and taking their place in the world. Since the app was re- leased last school year, it has grown to 500,00 active users.
For more details and/or to download the app, visit www.kudzooapp.com.
Top Black Religious Leaders Call For Ousting Of Trump’s Chief Strategist, Steve Bannon
A group of African-American clergy have added their voices to the chorus demanding Don- ald Trump’s Chief Strategist pick, Steve Bannon be ous- tered.
Seventeen Black religious leaders from around the coun- try signed an open letter to President-elect Donald Trump urging him to recon- sider his appointment of Ban- non in order for the country to move forward.
A portion of the letter states: “The publicly reported informa- tion about Mr. Bannon makes reconciliation and unity ex- tremely difficult–”
Rev. Dr. James Perkins, President of the Progressive Na- tional Baptist Convention Inc., spoke with Roland Martin during Friday morning’s edition of NewsOne Now about Black clergy’s calls for Trump to drop Bannon.
Perkins said of Trump’s de- cision to appoint Bannon to his administration, “Birds of a feather flock together and as the American leadership confer- ence what we’re hoping is that
Mr. Trump meant what he said, he was going to work to try to be the president of all Amer- icans.
“If that is the case, then we be- lieve as African-Americans that to put an avowed White Nation- alist as his chief administrator and adviser is an insult to us as African-Americans.”
Perkins added the selection of Bannon proves President- elect Trump is “totally insensi- tive to our needs.”
When asked if White Evan- gelicals have raised their voices in opposition to Trump’s se- lection of Bannon as Chief Strategist, Perkins said, “I be- lieve that White Evangelicals, as they are pointed out to be, have decided to side with the person who is a philanderer, who is a casino mogul and it flies in the face of all of the values that they espouse.”
As he continued the stern re- buke of the silence of White Evangelicals, Rev. Dr. Perkins said, “We believe that they’re being more White than Christian.”
CHANDLER, AZ --- Amer- ica needed a lighthearted story like this for the holidays to show us that there is still good in the world!
A grandmother by the name of Wanda texted 17-year-old Jamal Hinton of Chandler, Ariz., by accident in a group text Tuesday talking about Thanksgiving-dinner plans, according to the Huffington Post.
Jamal responded to the message, asking who the woman was, and she replied with, “Your grandma.”
He then asked her to send a picture to confirm, and when she did, he replied with a photo of himself, saying, “You not my grandma.”
Despite the mix-up, Jamal asked if he could still get a plate, and Wanda said of course.
Since the funny text ex- change, Jamal has gone over
Jamal Chandler and Grandma Wanda.
to Wanda’s house in nearby Mesa, Ariz., to meet her face- to-face.
“She was really nice!” he said. “A very funny, sweet lady.”
Prosecution Rests Against Former Police Officer On Trial For Killing Walter Scott
Prosecutors in the trial of a former white North Charleston police officer charged with the murder of a Black unarmed motorist rested their case last Wednes- day.
Michael Slager, 34, is on trial for the April 2015 shoot- ing death of 50-year-old Wal- ter Scott. Scott was running from a traffic stop in North Charleston when Slager shot him five times in the back. In addition to the state murder charge, Slager faces three federal charges, including a civil rights violation.
Last week, the state rested its case against Slager after 32 witnesses and 9 days of tes- timony. Immediately after the prosecution rested, attorneys for the defense asked the judge to dismiss the case stat- ing the prosecution could not prove evidence of malice, which is a requirement of a murder charge.
The prosecution argued that shooting Walter Scott in the back and the alleged lies Slager told authorities after the shooting are evidence of malice, and the judge agreed. Circuit Judge Clifton New- man denied the defense’s mo- tion for a directed verdict of acquittal and said that the state had proven beyond a rea-
Then officer Michael Slager was videoed shooting unarmed Walter Scott after a traffic stop.
sonable doubt that Michael Slager killed Walter Scott with malice.
“The evidence — if believed by the jury — indicates that the defendant shot the victim ... in the back while running away,” Newman said. “The jury can infer an evil intent. The jury can infer hostility.
The jury can infer malice.” The prosecution rested its case after crime-scene recre- ation expert Bill Williams testified that Scott was 17 feet away from Slager when Slager fired the first shot and 34 feet 9 inches away when Slager fired the seventh shot.
Steve Bannon is an alt-right hate monger who’s conserva- tive news site Breitbart, fuels white supremacy theories.
Dr. James Perkins is the president of the Progressive National Baptist Convention Inc.
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