Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 4-25-17

Local And State News
Members Of HOPE Deliver 1,200
Republican State
Postcards To County Commissioners
Senator That Used
During Wednesday Meeting
The N-Word Resigns
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
During the Wednesday morning (April 19th) Hills- borough County Board of County Commissioners Meeting, 4 members of Hills- borough Organization For Progress and Equality (HOPE) presented 1,200 postcards aimed specifically at 4 Commissioners who did not attend its March 27, 2017 Nehemiah Action meeting.
The postcards were pre- sented by HOPE members Arlene Aranha, Gretchen DelSavio, Kevin Robbins and Brian Braley. Char Lerch spoke before the com- missioners.
The postcards were signed by 1,200 of the 1,300 mem- bers who attended the March Nehemiah meeting at Bran- don’s Nativity Catholic Church.
The postcards were pre- sented to Commissioners Stacy White, Sandy Mur- man, Les Miller and Al Higginbotham because they did not attend last month’s annual meeting. Commissioners Pat Kemp, Victor Crist and Ken Hagan attended the meet- ing.
The postcards were meant to show the disappointment
Left to right: Arlene Aranha, Kevin Robbins, Gretchen Del- Savio, and Char Lerch prepare to present the postcards to the Commissioners.
TALLAHASSEE —- Florida state senator, Frank Artiles, who used a racial slur and vulgar language in a conver- sation with two African- American colleagues resigned Friday, saying the incident is causing a distraction to the legislative process.
Artiles a republican repre- senting a district in Miami, submitted a resignation letter to Republican Senate Presi- dent Joe Negron and issued a separate statement.
“I clearly made comments that were hurtful, unaccept- able and inappropriate. The American people and Floridi- ans want their leaders to be accountable and responsible, and by resigning my elected office, I believe I am demon- strating those qualities they desire and deserve,” Artiles said in the statement released by a publicist.
Negron said the resigna- tion was the right thing to do and dropped an investigation into the incident.
“All of us are accountable for our actions and our com- ments, so I think it’s an ap- propriate resignation,” Negron said.
The Florida Legislative Black Caucus filed a complaint about the incident on Wednesday and asked that Artiles be removed from of- fice.
The matter began Monday night during a private conver- sation with Sens. Audrey Gibson and Perry
of those at the meeting that the commissioners did not attend their meeting.
Ms. Sharon Streater, founder of HOPE, said the meeting last month ad- dressed the “need for funding for affordable housing for our seniors and families of low incomes. Commissioners Crist, Hagan and Kemp committed to helping the or- ganization locate funding to rehab or develop decent, af- fordable housing for working class families.”
Four years ago, HOPE identified the housing prob- lem in Hillsborough County and has been doing research.
One of their solutions asks for the Commissioners to es- tablish a local Affordable Housing Trust Fund to con- struct and rehab affordable housing. The Tampa Housing Authority Board voted to support efforts for the Trust Fund.
On Thursday (April 20), members of HOPE were in Tallahassee to support Florida Civil Citation SB 196 and companion HB 205 to expand the use of Civil Cita- tions so all children in Florida have equal access to life-saving arrest avoidance programs for misdemeanor offenses.
Florida State Senator, Frank Artiles has resigned.
Thurston at the Governors Club, a members-only estab- lishment near the Capitol. Artiles used vulgarities in talking with Gibson, includ- ing one particularly offensive to women. Sen. Perry Thurston intervened and Artiles, a Cuban-American from the Miami area, used a variation of the “n-word” and used a vulgarity to describe Negron, according to the complaint filed Wednesday by Thurston.
Artiles apologized for the comments on the Senate floor on Wednesday, but Democ- rats said that wasn’t enough.
Democratic Senate Leader Oscar Braynon, who is African-American, issued a statement saying Artiles did the right thing by resigning.
Orange County State Attorney Receiving Racially Motivated Threats In The Mail
The Orange County Sher- iff's office is currently inves- tigating a racially motivated hate crime after a noose and multiple threatening letters were sent to the office of State Attorney, Aramis Ayala.
According to Ayala's of- fice, the first letter arrived on March 20th in an envelope that read, "Sooner or Later A Nigger Will Be A Nigger." The envelope included busi- ness cards, one that stated, "You are an Honorary Mem- ber of S.P.O.N.G.E.” and “So- ciety for the Prevention of Niggers Getting Every- thing."
A week later, the office re- ceived another envelope filled with a noose made of
State Attorney Aramis Ayala has been a target since making a decision to not seek the death penalty in the case of Markeith Loyd followed by Gov. Rick Scott getting involved.
twine. These threats come after Ayala's decision to no longer pursue the death penalty against Markeith Loyd — a man who sent the police on an eight-day chase after shooting his pregnant girlfriend, Sade Dixon and Lt. Debra Clayton.
Ayala is Florida's first black State Attorney and ad- mits to receiving a lot of flack after her decision. When speaking about the incidents at her office, Ayala stated that she's received "several types of derogatory and racist remarks" both personally and professionally. The Sheriff's office is currently working with the United States Postal service to find the person re- sponsible for this hate crime.
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