Page 8 - Florida Sentinel 5-31-16 Online Edition

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Tampa Alphas To Host Black And Gold Scholarship Ball
The Men of Gamma Zeta Lambda (Tampa Alumni) Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. are pleased to present “Ocean’s 06 – Casino Royale,” their Annual Black and Gold Scholarship Ball, which will be held on Saturday, June 4, 2016 at the Hilton Hotel – Down-
town, 211 N. Tampa Street, beginning at 6 P. M.
This semi-formal event will include dinner, danc- ing, raffle, and casino gam- ing for the enjoyment of those attending.
This annual event bene- fits the Men of Tomorrow Mentoring Program, which is the Chapter’s local initia-
Alpha ROLAND MARTIN ...2015 Special Guest
tive of the Fraternity’s Na- tional Go-to-High-School, Go-to-College Program, which dates back to the 1920s.
Last year’s (2015) event was attended by over 300 people and featured nation- ally known media personal- ity, Roland Martin.
Tickets are $75 each and
can be purchased from any member of Gamma Zeta Lambda Chapter or online at www.gzleducational foundation.org or www.tampaalphas.com.
For more information please contact Barry Cole at (813) 451-3306 or Alphonse Stewart at (813) 841-6548.
Elected Officials, Pastors And Community Partners Attend 2nd Annual Barber Shop Roundtable Discussion
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
A group of community stakeholders filled the room Monday at Shear Elegance Barber Shop, but none were there for grooming.
Instead, they gathered at the 2nd Annual Barbershop Roundtable Discussion to talk about issues that matter to Tampa’s Black citizens, such as economic develop- ment, youth mentoring, and education.
Attendees included pas- tors, attorneys, and commu- nity activists along with special guests, Reps. Ed Narain and Darryl Rou- son and City Councilman Frank Reddick.
“Bringing together such a mix of folk who are invested in the Black community is crucial during the political season. But it’s what hap- pens after the meeting that matters most,” said event organizer Darrell Star- ling.
“We don’t put boot to the ground after discussions like this,” he said. “Let’s invite some change right now in this room. I’m tired of talk- ing.”
Mr. Starling’s plea for movement followed more than two hours of debate and dialogue that, at times, became very intense.
One of the most divisive issues was the allowance of transgendered people to use the public restroom of the gender with which they identify.
At issue for many was the fear that pedophiles will take advantage of the law to abuse children.
But the topic is a “red herring” considering that pedophiles have always – and will continue – to do whatever they want to sat- isfy their desires’, said At- torney Monica Harris.
The easiest compromise would be to create gender- neutral restrooms, she said.
Seneca Howard, pas- tor of Radical Faith Min- istries, agreed.
But when examining the topic from a Christian point- of-view, “we need to find a way back to God,” he said.
We must also be careful to not lump pedophiles with transgendered people, said Rep. Narain.
One way to punish the former for abusing restroom laws is to raise penalties against those who are found using restrooms with the in- tent to cause harm, he said.
But there’s a drawback, he said.
“How do you prove it?” he said. “I don’t know.”
Economic development – especially entrepreneurship – was another topic of dis- cussion.
Many who are interested in starting their own busi- ness are not aware of the network of free resources available to them – and that has to change, said Be- linthia Berry, program di- rector for Global Corporate College at St. Petersburg College.
Consistent support of Black-owned businesses also is important for driving eco- nomic development in the Black community, Atty. Harris said.
“Our community would be so much better if the dol- lar circulated longer in our community,” she said.
Implementing strong economic initiatives and policies will do much to im- prove the well-being of the Black community, Rep. Narain said.
But changing mindsets about education – from job preparation to job creation – is imperative, he said.
“We cannot talk about economic development with- out talking about education,” he said. “Those two are to- gether.”
On the topic of mentor- ing, ‘it’s critical that young people see role models of
Rep. Ed Narain, left, and City Councilman Frank Reddick, front, are shown with Darrell Starling and
Shear Excellence Mitchell.
Barbershop
owner,
Donald
Maxon Victor was host of the discus- sion.
Political candidates Atty. Sean Shaw and Eddie Adams, Jr. attended the roundtable discussion.
Ladies who joined the conversation included: Belinthia Berry, Nikia Kaiza and Kim Jackson.
Willie Lucas of the Tampa Police Dept. and Mary Patton, Patient Advocate with Lakeland Health Dept.
Kathartis Neal, Hope 4 TB Homeless Vets, andBianca Ross, Youth Advocate.
what they would like to be,’ said Attorney Sean Shaw. “It’suptoustobein front of us,” he said. “That’s very important to have that
example.”
But it’s not just youth
who need mentoring, said business owner, Kim Jack- son.
“We need to mentor the adults too,” she said. (Pho- tos by Toby Scott of Chow and Scott Photog- raphy).
PAGE 8 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, MAY 31, 2016