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Editorials/Columns
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It Could Always Be Worse
he other day I ran
across a sad story in- volving a 23-year-old woman who was found dead laying halfway inside of a window of an abandoned home. Accord- ing to the police report she was homeless and, apparently, suf- fered an asthma attack while looking for shelter for herself and her infant son.
The incident was one of those occurrences that you read about and instantly won- der how a person could arrive to such a desperate and low point so early in life? What kind of troubled background was she forced to endure that resulted in her existence com- ing to a conclusion so abruptly?
Whenever I hear stories of this nature it's hard for me to not have sympathy for individ- uals who were seemingly vic- timized by fate. Their extreme misfortunes make my minor issues appear trivial by com- parison.
I would assume that we all have those moments of self re- flection once we become aware of someone facing obstacles on his or her life's journey that are larger than our own. If we didn't, what would it say about us and the compassion we're supposed to have as human beings?
Hearing horrific tales of an- guish, whether it's the growing starvation rate in countries like Venezuela, soldiers re-
turning home severely disfig- ured, people being displaced from their homes because of wars or natural disasters or in- nocent children being gunned down on the streets of crime- ridden cities, should make us all, at least, a little more grate- ful for whatever lesser prob- lems we do have.
While this isn't to say that the things we contend with in our daily lives are of no signif- icance, witnessing the severe struggles of others should be a constant reminder that our sit- uations, regardless of how dire they seem, could always be worse.
And, knowing this, should make us both ashamed and embarrassed to continuously complain about things that, in the big picture, are far too petty.
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bul- letin Publishing Com- pany. You can TEXT C.B., II, at (+18133080849).
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C. Blythe Andrews, Jr. 1930-2010 (1977)
States Can Ban The Sale Of Assault Weapons
et us be the first to say it. At least the Supreme Court
has more sense than Republicans in Congress who once again defeated four bills that would have imple- mented stronger laws on the ownership of guns, last week.
However, voting for a second time not to hear appeals from gun-rights advocates, the states of Illinois, Connecti- cut, and New York were upheld by the Court in banning the sale of rapid-fire assault weapons. By refusing to en- tertain gun advocates’ claim that the Second Amendment includes the right to own rapid-fire weapons, the ruling opens the door for every state to pass similar common sense laws.
Therefore, we urge our Florida legislative delegation to enact laws that ban the sale of rapid-fire weapons and high capacity gun magazines.
Our reasons are painfully clear. American society can- not continue to mourn and bury our dead killed by both domestic and international assault gun violence and then continue to return to “business as usual” as soon as the victims are buried.
The solution is that the majority of 325 million Ameri- cans who prefer stricter gun control should make their power known by voting against any Congressional repre- sentative or Senator who did not or will not commit to supporting stricter gun laws.
By the way, Marco Rubio voted “No” on gun-control. Remember that when you go to vote in the upcoming elec- tions.
Class Of 2016: Beating The Odds
BY MARC H. MORIAL President and CEO National Urban League
“Education is a precondi- tion to survival in America today. Investing in children is not a national luxury or a na- tional choice. It’s a national necessity.” –
Marian Wright Edel- man, Founder and President, Children’s Defense Fund
ongratulations, gradu-
ates. Whether you’ve walked across a stage to re- ceive your high school diploma and begin your journey into a new world of independence, or you finally have your college diploma and are ready to step out into a world outside of lec- ture halls and dorms, you de- serve much congratulations on your achievement.
Today, you are set to begin a new chapter in your life. Cel- ebrate and bask in your well- deserved feeling of accomplishment now, because tomorrow is a new day and there is much work to be done.
Two years from now, it is projected that over 60 percent of all jobs will require some college education. As you pre-
pare to become a part of the American workforce with your degree securely in hand, our nation faces a looming crisis because we are not producing enough men and women like you: graduates.
College enrollment and at- tainment rates have been steadily increasing in our country across racial and eth- nic groups, but the problem is not that there are not enough people enrolling in college. The problem is that there are not enough people finishing college. And from among those who do attain that now vital postsecondary degree, large racial divides in degree attain- ment persist. If we, as a nation, do not commit to figuring out what it takes to graduate from college, we risk diminishing the lives of our citizens, who are more likely to find better and better-paying work with a degree. We risk the loss of crit- ical skills and training that will keep our national economy prosperous and thriving. And we risk our country’s ability to remain competitive in the global, 21st century workforce.
As long as large numbers of students of color remain ill prepared to navigate and suc-
ceed in our postsecondary sys- tem of education, we will con- tinue to have an urgent, national conversation about income inequality. The lack of financial aid that doesn’t drown students in future debt, the lack of high-quality teach- ers in K-12 in communities of color and the lack of guidance from professionals about the college experience is a recipe for disaster that will continue to trap our nation’s future into poverty. You see, when a young man or woman is de- nied access to opportunity through education, we all lose.
The solutions to college at- tainment and completion will be both economic and social — from providing students with grants and low-interest loans, to providing better teachers in our grade schools and middle schools and providing aca- demic remediation for stu- dents who need support with college courses.
A college educated popu- lace and workforce is a na- tional imperative that requires the across-the-board support and collaboration of all stake- holders, from families to edu- cation professionals, employers and politicians.
Despite whatever obstacles you may have faced, you have earned a degree that is prom- ised to reward you with a life you may not have had without that diploma. You have worked hard to be given access to jobs and opportunities that your degree merits. You have beat the odds. Now go out and change the world!
The Whole World Is Watching
hey sat down and refused to move. Nonviolent, but
non-cooperative, despite taunts, brown-outs or in- timidations, these peaceful activists sat waiting to be served or heard. So, for the first time in American history in this place, protesters staged an all-day sit-in, creating what news reporters termed “a stunning and unruly scene,” which was broadcast live to the world (by cell phones).”
Yet, they sat there, stopping legislative business in the U. S. House of Representative, shouting at the tops of their lungs, “No bill, no break!” and singing intermit- tently, “We shall overcome!” when in the midst of the song, a blonde-haired young woman from Tampa, sprang to her feet and shouted, “We will not leave the floor of this House until this Congress takes action!”
More than a half century after America and the world witnessed the phenomena of sit-down strikes, could we believe our eyes when, not Flower-children, not Hippies, Yippies, College students, or SCLC Freedom-riders, but members of the Democratic Party’s House of Represen- tatives collectively shut down the House in righteous protest? The answer is an all-around “OMG!!”
We are dismayed, but not surprised. Democratic Party House representatives staging a sit-down strike in the bowels of Capitol Hill may well signify the House of Rep-
resentatives has become a tragi-comic shadow of its prior self, holding up empty hands to its voting public and crying, “IT ISN’T MY FAULT!”
True, Republicans are also guilty, but in the midst of the guilt, who runs the govern- ment?
Yes, we applaud Democratic Party House reps for remembering those days when Baby Boomers believed that with song and savvy we could save the world. But now we nerv- ously cover our eyes because we fear the vehicle of the House of Representatives has lost its driver.
TUESDAY, JUNE 28, 2016 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5
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