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House N------ Gotta Eat, Too
hen I first sat down
to write this, my ini- tial intention was to express the amount of disappoint- ment I felt with the Black ac- tors and actresses who decided to ignore the #Os- carsSoWhite boycott and par- ticipated in the 88th Annual Academy Awards presenta- tion. But then I thought to
myself, "why bother?"
As I pondered which direc-
tion to take this piece, some- thing my friend Leonardo Wade always says kept pop- ping into my head... "That's just where they are right now." His words made me re- alize that harshly criticizing these individuals for their ac- tions was pointless.
They reminded me that all Black people don't think the same. Even though we face the same issues, we tend to deal with them differently.
What happened last Sun- day night may not have been a case of people like Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, Kerry Washington or The Weeknd not wanting to be a
part of the movement. They may just be the kind of Black people who are deathly afraid of the repercussions that they believe come with hurting the feelings of 'white folks.'
It isn't like we've never heard of this type of fear crip- pling Black people during the fight for change before. Dur- ing the quest for freedom from slavery it was individu- als, who harbored this same kind of cowardly nature, who sold out the rebellions of Nat Turner and Denmark Vesey for something as small as an extra bowl of chitter- lings. With Negroes living in multi-million dollar man- sions today, displaying that same mentality, It shouldn't be much of a surprise that they would be reluctant to make waves when steppin’ and fetchin’ helps to pay the bills.
Of course, most of these en- tertainers don't mean any harm. They are just operating on a very low level of aware- ness.
Much like the members of
the Association of Black Re- publicans, who recently an- nounced their support for Donald Trump, they suffer from a severe case of tunnel vision. A visual impairment that causes a person to lack the ability to see a bigger pic- ture which includes more than just himself.
But, regardless of who was right or who was wrong in boycotting or not boycotting the Oscars, as I look at the issue in its entirety, it's hard for me to see how any of it will make much of a differ- ence going forward. I mean, surely, enough noise has been made to make the Academy of Motion Pictures take no- tice.
But, you have to wonder, when the record number of Black actors and actresses are nominated next year in re- sponse to what occurred (you know that's going to happen), will it really be because the voters felt the work of these artists was deserving or will the trophies simply be golden plated pacifiers distributed to quell any more crying?
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bul- letin Publishing Com- pany. Anyone wishing to contact Clarence Barr can email him at: reality- onice@yahoo.com.
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Black Folks Loyal Voting Or Common Sense
he loyalty of Black voters has been put under a mi-
croscope recently because Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has garnered a significant chunk of Black votes in Southern states far and beyond Black votes for Bernie Sanders. But Black people old enough to remember the Civil Rights movement and the presi- dency of Bill Clinton are aware of the stance of the Clin- tons on legislation and issues that helped lift Black Americans out of poverty, and improved the quality of life for Blacks.
Many Black voters never heard of Bernie Sanders being at the forefront of the struggle for voting rights, education, fair and decent housing and other issues that confront Black people, even though he has.
However, to insinuate that Blacks voted for Clinton out of loyalty devalues the ability of Black voters to de- termine who the most qualified presidential candidate happens to be.
Gambling Expansion Harmful To Low Income Communities
Donald Trump, Republicans, And The KKK
o doubt, it had to happen, sooner or later. Nothing
so outrageous lasts forever. And so, it ended or seemed to end when David Duke, former Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan, cast his support for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump . . . And for one heart-stopping moment, a usually bellicose Trump an- swered nothing at all.
Disregard the fact that Duke, during one of his radio programs, told listeners that “a vote against Donald Trump (was) equivalent to treason for their heritage” (whatever that heritage might be). Forget the fact that Trump – who boasts about being a voracious reader – obviously lied when he said he knew nothing about the blood-stained background of David Duke; then face the reality that now confronts us.
For, what we are left with is the naked truth that by and large, the landslide, grassroots support for Trump is not support for a man, but is support against a soci- ety. In truth, Trump could have been a dancing bear or a stuffed pig. The majority of people now calling them- selves dyed-in-the wool Republicans embrace a Frankenstein monster who dances in the light of their baser nature. And they love it. Not since the ascendency of Adolf Hitler has the world seen a democracy such as ours go so savagely after its own tail.
So, Trump was slow to disavow acceptance from one of the most cold-bloodedly racist organizations in Amer- ican history. Yet, his lead in the primaries seems to have suffered none at all as he threatens to deal a deathblow to his own political party. Could it be that the real Con- federate nature of our nation is finally speaking as Abe Lincoln rolls over in his grave?
If so, may God have mercy on the future of the United States of America and the free world.
Clarence V. McKee, Esq.*
n what is becoming an an-
nual tradition in Florida, legislators are debating bills that could expand gambling in one or more parts of our state. This year, the feeding frenzy is over ratifying the proposed compact between the Semi- nole Tribe of Florida and the State of Florida.
The potential big winners: the Seminole Tribe, and the state’s Pari-Mutuel industry.
The losers: low income Floridians and their commu- nities.
Here’s why: if the compact is approved as it is proposed, the Tribe has the exclusive right to add blackjack, craps and roulette at each of its seven casinos. If the Senate bill passes, pari-mutuels in six counties including Palm Beach, Lee, Brevard, Washing- ton, Hamilton and Gadsden would be applying to install up to 2,000 slot machines in their facilities. They could also cease their racing or live events and essentially become 24-hour-a- day casinos.
The losers in this mega gambling expansion are low- income communities and citi- zens whom expansion proponents lull by mostly false
promises of jobs and economic prosperity.
The one thing that the pro- ponents of expanding gam- bling and slot machine do not want the Black community, es- pecially the Black press, to know is the disproportionate negative impact that legalized gambling has on low-income individuals. There is much ev- idence.
A 2013 study on the “Effect on Low-Income Individuals, Families and Communities,” by the Appleseed Center for Law and Economic Justice in Hawaii found that “legalized gambling...has negative im- pacts on the entire commu- nity, but does even greater harm to those living in poverty.”As to jobs, it stated: “Gambling neither creates high paying jobs nor prevents unemployment... casino gam- bling is no guarantee for stable employment.”
An article by Barbara Dafoe Whitehead in the New York Times in June of 2014, aptly entitled “Gaming the Poor”, puts casinos in the same category as “payday lending”, “rent-to-own stores” and “tax refund anticipation loans” when it comes to ex- tracting “high profits from low-income groups.” She
writes:
“The casinos’ method is to
induce low-income gamblers to make a huge number of small bets per visit, to visit the casino several times per month, or even per week...The key to executing this method is the slot machine.”
The article cites research showing that, of 15 types of legal gambling studied, casino gambling “had by far the most harmful effects on people at the lower end of the income ladder.”
And, here in Florida, a study on gambling expansion commissioned by the Legisla- ture in 2013 found that at least 90 percent of the money spent in new gambling facilities in Florida would come from local residents-- not tourists!
It is certainly understand- able that elected officials from economically depressed areas would seek any lifeline that would help their economically depressed communities.
Unfortunately, and as ex- perience has shown promises of prosperity from gambling are a myth. All too often, rather than add to the econ- omy of a community, casino gambling and slots will suck hard-earned dollars of local residents who can’t afford to lose them. Dollars that would be spent on food, shelter and clothing will instead end up as profits for gambling operators.
The bottom line: Promoting expansion of gambling as an economic bonanza for low in- come communities contradicts reality!
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