Page 5 - Florida Sentinel 9-15-15 Edition

Editorials
Is Your Life In Need of 9-1-1
America’s Wealth-Gap Must Close
R eportedly and repeatedly, America’s business commu- nity is fearful of the impending downside of our coun-
try’s wealth gap.
However, they are strangely uncomfortable with sug-
gestions that raising the minimum wage will help solve the problem. Perhaps, because America is gradually becom- ing a country of the rich and poor due to a shrinking mid- dle class, economists are worried that a backlash from the poor is inevitable. Why not? Indeed, destabilization of our nation’s economic base is a real possibility.
Yet, America’s wealth-gap, which has reached a record high, continues to spiral with no concrete solutions in the near future. Almost biblically, the top 20 percent of Amer- icans own 85 percent of the country’s wealth, while 80 percent of Americas own only 15 percent of the country’s wealth. When reviewing research on corporate executive salaries for 2014, some of the executives have received as high a salary increase as 179 percent. One hundred phar- maceutical, media, entertainment, cable company and restaurant corporate executives earned $20 to $156 mil- lion this past year. In fact, the median pay for 200 highest paid CEO’s was $17.6 million.
The next time you purchase your favorite drink, eat at your favorite restaurant, shop at your favorite store, pay your cable bill, fill a prescription or your gas tank, ask the clerk or waiter how much they make. Then check to see how many millions of dollars the CEO of the company is being paid.
Finally, ask yourself, “Why are so many companies against raising minimum wage?”
Years ago, in the southern part of a Northern state was a Black community much like many of its kind in the midst of racial discrimination and economic inequality ex-
cept for one thing. To our recall, this Black enclave, which was squeezed between an east-west flowing river and a north-south-running major highway, had a uniqueness that set it apart from every other community in that far- ago state.
A community within a community had sprung up like a toadstool in what remotely could be called a neighbor- hood. And that toadstool sector became known through- out the state and the other states surrounding it as Bloodfield. It got its name because of the record of blood- shed written every week on its streets.
And in a twisted, savage sort of way, the denizens of Bloodfield grew proud of its reputation, on a world stage, believing that no other place could eclipse that death-hole located directly beside a Black cemetery. But that was then. Things have changed. Now, America is bloated by Bloodfields.
In fact, several of them are located in the community of Tampa, Florida. Check the newspapers: “Police Recover Body From Hillsborough River” (a Black body); “Murder Victim Found in North Tampa Road (a Black man).
The list of articles stretches until the mind or the stom- ach explodes. A father continues to have nightmares about holding his murdered son while being bathed in the boy’s blood. Funeral homes overflow with youthful mourners wearing T-shirts. The Devil walks our streets and eats our young. So, our staff confers upon this city a brand-new name.
It is with sadness and loathing we will from this day forward, refer to Tampa, Ybor City, East Tampa, and Brandon as Bloodfield. Chambers of Commerce wear your T-shirts with sackcloth and ashes.
“Recognize your prob- lems as problems before they become and emer- gency.”
– Selphenia Nichols-Simmons
Empowered Greetings. At some point and time in life we will all face an emergency. The U.S commemorated the anniversary of a previously inconceivable act of terrorism on U.S. soil. September 11, 2001 was a day when almost 3,000 lives were lost due to calculated acts of terror. The people, who committed those unimaginable acts, felt they were carrying out an assign- ment they had to fulfill.
As tragic as that day was,
By Marc H. Morial President and CEO
National Urban League
“You must register. You must vote. You must learn, so your choice advances your interest and the interest of our beloved Nation. Your future, and your children’s future, depend upon it, and I don’t believe that you are going to let them down.” – Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson, Remarks on the Signing of the Voting Rights Act, August 1965.
For four days beginning in July, political, business, and community leaders will con- vene in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for the 2015 National Urban League Conference. Conference attendees should expect to engage in thought- provoking discussions with leaders and experts in a variety of areas, including economics, entertainment, civil rights and politics. This year, following a long-standing tradition of major-party presidential candi- dates addressing the confer- ence, the National Urban League counts several 2016 presidential hopefuls—Repub- licans and Democrats alike—as invited guests. The candidates, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’- Malley and retired neurosur- geon Ben Carson, will share their respective vision and strategies to save our cities.
The candidates’ plenary ses-
it is even more of a tragedy to see countless numbers of our people not committed to ful- filling their individual assign- ment in life. According to the American Heritage Diction- ary a tragedy is a disastrous event or drama or literary work in which the main char- acter is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, espe- cially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfa- vorable circumstances.
Understand that you are the main character of your life’s story. Don’t allow your life to be brought to ruin be- cause of your inability to deal with mess from messy people. Get a greater outlook for your
sion, “Save Our Cities: Educa- tion, Jobs + Justice,” falls under the umbrella of the National Urban League’s “Save Our Cities” campaign— an unprece- dented mobilization to influ- ence public policy through grassroots political action.
As we know far too well, our country faces tremendous chal- lenges. Rather than recite our problems, rather than fall into the trap of recycling failed solu- tions for today’s and tomor- row’s challenges, we will reunite in Florida to deliberate on solutions and fresh ideas to the economic and social trou- bles plaguing our cities. These are discussions that are too im- portant to take place in silos. The solutions to our challenges are stronger with buy-in, en- gagement and resources from all concerned stakeholders. So, it is vital that those contending for the highest office in the land be a part of that conversation.
The ravages of inequality on American families—particularly among those in African-Ameri- can and Latino communities— continues to rip our nation apart. We must question and listen to any candidate’s pro- posals to reverse this ever- widening trend of inequality. An educated citizenry is best prepared to choose the candi- date who will advance his or her interests, and ultimately, the in- terests of a stronger, healthier and more inclusive nation. Dur- ing his remarks on the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Pres. Lyndon Johnson said,
life other than the existential circumstances that you have faced. You need to stop hit- ting the rewind button and making the same mistakes over and over again but ex- pecting a different outcome. There is no time left for char- acter flaws. Think before you do, because your actions will have consequences. Always do what is right just because it is the right thing to do.
Your life is an assignment that you must fulfill. You are a unique individual with a unique calling. You are as- signed to a path that only you can walk. Get committed to walking out your assignment so that you don’t have a 9-1-1 EMERGENCY!
Selphenia would love to speak, emcee or provide a workshop at your next event. Call or text (813) 956-0185, or connect with her website: sucesscoachtowomen.com, follow her on Instagram: Selphenia or Twitter @queenofsuccess1 or Face- book: Selphenia Nichols.
“The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by man for breaking down injus- tice and destroying the terrible walls which imprison men be- cause they are different from other men.” The stakes are too high for us, and for future gen- erations, not to have these dis- cussions together.
In this year’s analysis of the state of Black America, the Na- tional Urban League found that while strides have been made in Black and Brown communities, tremendous gaps continue to leave us with a crisis in educa- tion, jobs and justice. In the case of justice, a series of hor- rific acts—from the deaths of Black men and women at the hands of police, to the racially motivated murder of nine peo- ple in a South Carolina church, to the legislative efforts in some states to rob Americans of their constitutional right to vote — cries out for serious and imme- diate reform. While our economy is improving after the recession, the bounce back has not been as evident in many Black and Brown communities. For too many Americans, the recession is alive and well. As Congress continues to debate reauthorization of the Elemen- tary and Secondary Education Act, we, along with a diverse coalition of policy-makers, fam- ilies and community activists, are fighting to ensure that any new legislation adopted pro- tects civil rights and promotes equity, equality and accounta- bility in education.
These conversations are in- dispensable in this moment in which we as a nation find our- selves of perhaps the greatest social and economic upheaval in a generation. Choose to be a part of our discussion and con- versation, or choose to get in- volved in the discussions and conversations that are happen- ing, or will happen in your com- munities—every voice and vote matters.
Off To The Races:
How Will 2016 Presidential Candidates Save Our Cities?
A Town Called Bloodfield
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5