GarveyFest Saturday August 16 at Parklawn YMCA
COMMUNITY
Africans on the Move (AOM) will be celebrating its 26th Annual GarveyFest on Saturday, August 16th, from 12 noon to 6 p.m. at the Parklawn YMCA, 4340 N. 46th Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. All events are free and open to the public. The theme for this year’s celebration is “Africa Today and Tomorrow: The Necessity for the African Revolution”! This year AOM will showcase the many talented local artists here in Milwaukee. Since 1988, many of these artists have donated hours of their time to help make GarveyFest a successful annual event. Come, listen and celebrate artists such as King Kamonzi, Kwabena, Blue, Nefertari Dancers and Drummers, poets Nikki and Alexia, and many more. Parents are encouraged to bring the children to the Children’s Arena for free snacks and school supplies. Experience the vegan food provided by Wild Greens and the many products offered by a variety of vendors at the African Marketplace. Don’t forget to bring your blankets and lawn chairs! (In case of rain, the event will be held inside the Parklawn YMCA.)
VOL. XXXIX Number 3 August 13, 2014
The Milwaukee
Ribbon cutopening renovated Silver Spring Neighborhood Centerfitness facility
DOROTHY BUCKHANAN WILSON TO BE HONORED AT MILWAUKEE COMMUNITY RECEPTION
JOURNAL
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated celebrates the installation of Dorothy Buckhanan Wilson of Milwaukee, WI, as the Sorority’s newly installed International President at a Community Reception. The reception will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, August 15, 2014 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, 929 N. Water Street. Invited local dignitaries include United States Congresswoman Gwen Moore, Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele, and Wisconsin State Senator Lena Taylor. Buckhanan Wilson, who was installed at the sorority’s biennial convention last month in Charlotte, N.C., will serve a four-year term from 2014-2018. She is the first Wisconsin resident and the 29th Alpha Kappa Alpha member to be elected to the position. Buckhanan Wilson will guide policy, develop programs, and set the leadership tone for Alpha Kappa Alpha’s more than 265,000 members and 986 chapters worldwide.
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THE RESULTS
ELECTION WATCH 2014
W I S C O N S I N ’ S L A R G E S T A F R I C A N A M E R I C A N N E W S PA P E R
Negro League player honoredby Brewers PULSE OF
THE COMMUNITY Photos and question by Yvonne Kemp
TED TOLES: “My first year in the Negro Leagues, I played for the Pittsburg Crawfords. I had the opportunity to pitch against the Honus Wagner AllStars. By beating them 4 to 1, my manager selected me to play on the Jackie Robinson AllStars team against the Bob Feller All-Stars, which was one of my dreams. After that game, I got a chance to shake hands with three Hollywood stars: George Raft, James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart.”
Molina Healthcare of Wisconsin recently renovated the Fitness Center at Silver Spring Neighborhood Center. Molina Healthcare employees volunteered last month to help paint and move-in new equipment, donated by the health plan. In addition, the company is sponsoring a free Zumba class for local residents every Monday. “We are thrilled to help support and maintain the fitness center at Silver Spring Neighborhood Center,” Scott Johnson, president of Molina Healthcare of Wisconsin. “It is Molina’s mission to make healthy lifestyles accessible and this gym does just that. It was also very exciting to get our employees involved in the effort by having them volunteer to paint, clean and organize the facility. We are so pleased to be a part of this renovation and hope that the residents enjoy the center this summer.” The Silver Spring Neighborhood Center serves 8,000 residents in Milwaukee and has a strong presence in Westlawn- the state’s largest low-income housing development. The Zumba class is free and open to the public. Classes are held every Monday at 5:45pm until August 25th. (Photo provided by the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center).
Nathan “Sonny” Weston (left) and Ted Toles, Jr. (right) were recently honored for their contributions to the Negro Baseball Leagues. The two men were honored before a Brewers game at Miller Park. They also participated in the throwing out of the first pitch and a tailgate reception at Helfaer Field where they signed autographs for fans of the Negro Leagues and baseball. Weston and Tolson were also inducted into the Yesterday’s Negro League Hall of Fame at the Mother Kathryn Daniels Center on the grounds of Holy Redeemer COGIC.
QUESTION OF THE WEEK: “During the recent Milwaukee Brewers annual tribute Negro Leagues tribute game and ceremony at Miller Park we asked four former Negro League players (two of whom were honored before the game) to tell us one of their most memorable moments playing in the legendary Negro Leagues?”
NATHAN “SONNY” WESTON: “One of my memorable moments? I have at least two that stand out equally: When (legendary Brooklyn Dodger owner) Branch Rickey wrote me a letter on Feb. 22, 1950 in Vero Beach, Fla. and invited me for a try out with the Dodgers. That’s when I met Jackie Robinson. He really encouraged me to don’t give up and to play hard and above all, listen to my coach.
JAMES BECKUM (One of the founders of the Beckum-Stapleton Little League Baseball): “I played shortstop in high school on a team that was one of the better ones in the area. I was surprised I got picked to play with the East St. Louis Colts. Then I went to play for the East St. Louis Giants. I played until Uncle Sam called me and I enlisted in the Marines. I played baseball the whole time I was in the Marines. After I was released, the East St. Louis Giants were waiting for me with my uniform. Guess what?...Play Ball!
RAY “BOO BOY” KNOX: “I was one of the youngest players (16-and-a-half years old) playing on the New Orleans Eagles. I caught a no-hitter playing against the McComb White Sox. I then played with the Harwood Sports in Baton Rouge, La. Then I went on to play for the Chicago American Giants.”
OF THE SUMMER PRIMARY ELECTIONS
Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke survives challenge, squeezes out win; Moore, Burke, Young win, Ozanne, Grant lose Compiled by MCJ Staff
In probably his toughest election challenge since assuming the office of Milwaukee County Sheriff 12 years ago, David Clarke, Jr. was finally declared the winner over Milwaukee Police Officer Chris Moews hours after the polls closed Tuesday night. Clarke received 59,191 votes (52%), to Moews’ 54,549 votes (48%). This is Moews second loss to Clarke for the county’s top cop position. A relentless television and radio ad blitz by Moews’ campaign, which was paid for by anti-gun organizations, and support from Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele couldn’t get the Milwaukee police lieutenant over the hump to unseat the controversial incumbent. Clarke remains the only elected African American in a decision making executive position in county government. With no Republican primary, Clarke will face Angela Walker, an African American feminist and labor activist in the Nov. 4 general election. In Milwaukee’s U.S. Congressional race (Congressional Dist. 4), incumbent U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore handily defeated her challenger, former State Sen. Gary George. Moore received 52,380 votes (71%) to George’s 21,234 votes (29%). Moore will again face-off against Republican Dan Sebring in the November general election. Sebring defeated African American candidate David King, 3,384 votes (80%) to 853 votes (20%). Milwaukee County Sup. David Bowen won his primary bid to succeed outgoing Sandy Pasch to represent the 10th assembly district in the state legislature. Bowen defeated three other candidates, including community activist Bria Grant who conducted a spirited campaign. She was highly visible in the community and in Black media. Bowen collected 3,991 votes (54%). Bowen has no Republican challenger. (continued on page 5)
Cong. Gwen Moore: To face Sebring again in November.
Sheriff David Clarke: In tightest race since assuming office.
Bria Grant: Finishes second behind winner Bowen.
Ismael Ozanne: Loses bid to be first Black state A.G.
THE 2014 FELLOWSHIP OPEN GOLF TOURNAMENT
FRIDAY
AUGUST 15 SILVER SPRING COUNTRY CLUB N56W21318 Silver Spring Drive Menomonee Falls, WI
THIS YEAR’S HONORIES:
VEL PHILLIPS
Community Leader Award
FRANK ROBINSON
Fellowship Open Legends Award
Community Brainstorming forum focuses on causes and solutions to Milwaukee violence The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 2
By Jazzmine Haygood-MCJ Intern
Four individuals from the fields of education, social activism, and religion met at Saint Matthew C.M.E. Church recently, to discuss their views and solutions to violence in the community.
The panelists who spoke at the forum come from different backgrounds but, have one thing in common, trying to find solutions to the plague of violence: Dr. Pamela Malone, Professor of Sociology at MATC, Dr. Robert Smith Professor of History at UW Milwaukee, Minister William Muhammad, Muhammad's Mosque number three and Joyce Ellwanger a peace activist. Even though all four panelists have different solutions and perspectives on violence they all seem to orbit around finding peaceful solutions to the problem that will not only change Milwaukee but other cities around the country. All the panelists believe its necessary to connect with people in other places. They believe doing so creates a more prosperous environment to raise children in. Malone shared how family is the primary unit that guides children's actions and values . Smith said slavery and "major league" violence are contributing factors to the destruction of our community. Muhammad said government is the main culprit responsible for problems around the world and in America. Ellwanger sees the Church as the sleeping giant that must wake up and help the community. Malone described how far violence has gone in the community, noting the cause of it is related to the family structure. "Our everyday lives are consumed by violence," she said. She explained that violent, anti-social behavior in adults can be traced back to their childhoods that were most likely filled with parental neglect and/or abuse that was either emotional or physical. The neglect could also have been the parent’s inability to provide for their children’s needs, or their inability to emotionally nurture them. Malone’s solution is to expose children to positive proper parenting and create early prevention programs that are home-based and aimed at improving parenting skills; and women's life course development with jobs and education. Smith discussed the history of how "major league violence" or rather "structural violence" has impacted many families. Slavery still effects us today, he said, because it has
destroyed families and communities due to the slave trade and migration to the north during the early to middle part of the 20th century. There have been five key migrations periods for African Americans during this country's history: Transatlantic Slave Trade, Domestic slave trade in the U.S. which was essentially the forced movement of blacks deeper south which resembled the forced migration of Native American indians during the “Trail of Tears.” The Great Migration that took place from the early to mid 20th century where African Americans left the south in great numbers to find better oppurtunies in the industrial cities of the north, as well as to escape the shadow of Jim Crow. Urban Renewal (or "Regentrification" as it would later become known) radically changed or destroyed the black community in favor of urban projects such as free ways, shopping centers, and large residential projects. As a result of this, a culture of structural violence emerged. Whereas, if it emerges from initatives by the federal and or state government, it has the sanction of law to prevent opposition. If someone tried to challenge it, Smith continued, it was seen as breaking the law. The solution to not breaking the law is to go around it and try to change it. This "structural violence has a negative physical, mental and cultural impact that resonates for generations and makes it more difficult to understand because it has been with us for a long period of time." Muhammad blamed the government for financing violence in third world countries. "We (Black Americans) are used as a scape goat for the problems in America," Muhammad said, adding that "whatever the U.S desires they take it like gangsters." Using biblical references, Muhammad compared Black people of America to the children of Israel and America as Egypt , oppressing them, with President Obama as a "modern day pharaoh" with what he calls America's "wicked and domestic properties." His solution to this modern day Egypt is for us to connect with our brothers and sisters in other cities/countries and guide them. Ellewanger's definition of violence is anything that diminishes the humanity of a person being attacked. Ellwanger calls the churches a “sleeping giant” that must awaken and become involved in the community. She said, "love is faith, and faith is love." If the churches wake up and help, then the "active resistance would seek to win friendship and defeat injustice."
PERSPECTIVES
The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 3
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “The
right to vote is the most POWERFUL NONVIOLENT tool we have in a DEMOCRACY. I risked my LIFE defending that RIGHT!”--Rep. John Lewis,
GUEST COMMENTARY We’re all accountable to the Movement By Andre Lee Ellis
Local activist/playwright says alleged suicide of Robin Williams another example of U.S. mental health crisis Andre Lee Ellis (second from left) talking to youths in his Brouchert Field neighborhood. (File photo)
“Robin Williams had been screaming for help a long time. I don't know all of the details, but while he kept us laughing, he was feeling pain on the inside. Was making money off of him more important than his mental health?”
I watch young Black men everyday where I live. They walk down the street or stand on corners talking to themselves. Many of our children are already on anti-depression medicine or behavioral medications. The care and after- care programs for people with mental illness and depression are very hard for poor people or people with little means to afford access to. But when even your money or status can't save you (like it didn’t save Robin Williams), we then realize it’s a people problem. How we will end it (mental illness) I don't know; but we sure do need to stop acting like it's not happening. More and more suicides are occuring. People (with mental illness) are tired of hearing the voices and listening for answers from unknown places. We dismiss them as crazy people (instead of) treating them as human beings with a treatable disease. Until we do something socially, politically and culturally to deal with the problem (of mental illness in America, especially in the Black community), we may see more suicides occuring as a result of depression or mental illness. We need to give more funding to programs that really assist and get the people the help they need (if there really is help). America will make it a hustle before they make it a help. We have to bring awareness and get the job done for our people. Let's attack mental illness and depression honestly and maybe, just maybe, we can produce some happier people and a stronger society. Let's work on making people happy within. This is a people issue. People will have to solve it, and it will be a fight. Robin Williams had been screaming for help a long time. I don't know all of the details, but while he kept us laughing, he was feeling pain on the inside. Was making money off of him more important than his mental health? Robin Williams proves that it is not about money or status; it's about producing good, healthy and strong human beings. If someone is hurting, let's help him or her, instead of make money off of them. Greed is killing people and leaving others without. Let's take care of one another. Listen to your own God voice that dwells within. It may be telling you something too, like how not to go crazy in this crazy, mixed up world. We are more than conquerors.--Andre Lee Ellis is an actor, activist and founder of the Andre Lee Ellis and Company, Inc., a theater company; and the prime mover behind a community garden in the Bouchert Field neighborhood, where young Black male youth are encouraged to work in the garden and keep the area around the garden clean for a monetary stipend.
THE MILWAUKEE COMMUNITY JOURNAL Published twice weekly, Wednesday & Friday
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Phone: 414-265-5300 (Advertising and Administration) • 414-265-6647 (Editorial) • Website: communityjournal.net • Email: Editorial@communityjournal.net/Advertising@communityjournal.net
Jimmy V. Johnson, Sales Rep. MCJ STAFF: Joan Hollingsworth, Sales Rep. Patricia O’Flynn -Pattillo CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Publisher, CEO Taki S. Raton, Robert J. Thomas Rev. Roxanne Cardenas, Assoc. Publisher PHOTOGRAPHER: Yvonne Kemp Todd Thomas, Vice Pres. Mikel Holt, Assoc. Publisher Thomas E. Mitchell, Jr., Editor Teretha Martin, Technical Consultant/Webmaster Billing Dept./Publisher’s Admin. Assist. Colleen Newsom, Classified Advertising Opinion and comments expressed on the Perspectives page do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher or management of the MCJ. Letters and “other perspectives” are accepted but may be edited for content and length.
The Conclusion of Part Three
Even today, there are a number of “right-wing, return our country to the Glory days” bigots, that want to show their patriotic fervor and wave the Confederate flag. Not only is the Confederate flag a symbol to destroy the United States claiming hundreds of thousands of lives, it is also code to restore the American Institution of Slavery, or at the least to recognize Blacks as little more than slaves. There is no honor to be remembered. The individuals who went to war against the United States did much damage to it and their own states for a cause that was unjust then and remains so now. Civil War history should not be denied, and facts of the Confederacy’s efforts should not be whitewashed into some “glorious past” but remembered as an attack on the United
States and attack against Black people. The Confederate flag is a sad fact of history to be kept in a drawer, not to wave in the air of a free land. The point is that this type of behavior and sentiment is alive and strong and we should never take our eye off the prize (WE’RE ALL ACCOUNTABLE TO THE MOVEMENT). Lest we forget our history in this country (there are so many of us today, Black and White, who just don’t have a basic understanding of our history) and how we got here. That’s why most of my articles include a piece of history. We must keep it real no matter how much people don’t like it. Freedom has existed in this country for only 150 years, and most of that time we have been fighting for our survival (literally).
As Quiet As It’s Kept...
“Until the lion writes his own story, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.”--African proverb
“PICNIC”
The true meaning of the word... EDITOR’S NOTE: We bet alot of good people of all races have been using this term without knowing the real background. Now after you read this and still use the “picnic’” word more power too you. But to most humans, especially black people,
should never use this word again after reading this. The following is a revealing story behind the real meaning of picnic.
African American history, professional circles acknowledge that the ori-
civil rights legend
Rahim Islam
Since receiving our “so-called” freedom, there has been one rumble after another from the massive migration of our people from the south to the north; the political battles to have equal political and civil rights; the massive lynching and organized
gin of the term “picnic” derives from the act of lynching, burning and maiming African Americans during slavery and following reconstruction. Members of the Klu Klux Klan and other racist whites would often dress up and attend festive family outings with food and drink. To entertain themselves, they often kidnapped an unfortunate Black person (mostly males) and beat, burn and/or lynch them. These terrible events would take place in front of cheering crowds, even with children present. The word, “picnic” is rooted from the whole term, “pick a N----.” This information has been verified with the Smithsonian Institute African American archieves.
“Healing for Change” a vision for annual Heal the Hood celebration By Taki S. Raton
The Third Annual End of the Summer Heal the Hood Block Party will be held Sunday, August 24 from 2 to 6 p.m. on 24th and Keefe. Hosted by Ajamou Butler and 6th District Alderwoman Milele Coggs, this highly anticipated event will feature poetry, food vendors, a bounce house for the children, African drumming, food, and fellowship. Free haircuts will be provided for boys 14 and under by Prenasis Hair Gallery, 6025 North Teutonia Avenue praised by many in the community as a leading venue for Black hair styling Ajamaou Butler and Ald. Milele Coggs and model enhancement. Fit 4 U, LLC will provide free blood pressure testing. Minister Abel Muhammad representing the Honorable “Support for this year’s Heal the Hood is constantly Minister Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam based growing,” says Butler. “We have contributions and backat Chicago’s Mosque Maryam will serve as the day’s ing from Detroit, Texas, Atlanta, Las Vegas and Chicago. keynote speaker. And this is only as a result of growth in three years. I’m According to Butler, this year’s 2014 scheduled event excited to see where we will be in 13 or even in 30 years,” follows the success of the Second Annual Heal the Hood he adds. Block Party held May 25, 2013 on 9th and Ring and the When asked about some of the major challenges facing premier Heal the Hood on May 26, 2012 on 1st and our central city community, the Heal the Hood organizer Wright. positions that poverty itself can be viewed as a crime. “The initial inspiration for Heal the Hood is my spiri“If we look at what causes poverty, we will see among tuality,” said Butler in an Internet interview. He adds that, these causes political misrepresentation, poor education, “God has moved me to build the kingdom outside of the and non-existent employment opportunities. In order to walls of worship. My next inspiration for this project is heal that which is harming us, we must offer up tangible being a father to a beautiful Black boy.” and practical solution to the issues at hand.” Our vanguard community advocate in continuing comIt is Butler’s position that, “If we begin to address the ments notes that, “It breaks my heart to see so many economic disparity that exist amongst Black Americans, urban youth lost to poverty and a lack of love. we can start to truly heal.” “I have therefore made it my personal mission to He shares in his vison that Heal the Hood will seek to spread healing and possible solutions throughout Mil- reverse long term poverty by offering spiritual guidance waukee.” and support, food, clothing, shelter and employment. Sponsorship this year include the Boys and Girls Club, “Many people see the state of our community and may Running Rebels, the Girls Scouts, Children’s Hospital, feel overwhelmed with where and how to find solutions and Acelero Learning Center, Northwest Side Commu(continued on page 7) nity Development Corporation and the Nation of Islam.
UNIVERSALLY SPEAKING By Rahim Islam
terror; the inheritance of some of the worse slums (ghettos) in the country; the struggle with the worst education systems; police brutality, lack of equitable public services in our neighborhoods; and a whole host of structural discrimination. We continued to fight to secure an equal footing with other groups in America. All the while, America continued to grow and prosper becoming the world’s super power producing wealth and a life style for Whites that seem nearly impossible for Blacks to achieve(WE’RE ALL ACCOUNTABLE TO THE MOVEMENT). Brothers and Sisters we have been in a fight in this country since we’ve been here. It hasn’t been pretty. The Emancipation Proclamation, Brown versus the Board of Education, and the Civil Rights Legislation of the 1960’s represent the long and hard fought victories that were won because our people were accountable to the movement we so desperately wanted and needed. While Blacks are no longer in physical chains, the state of our economic reality is tantamount to a different type of slavery. Consider that when it comes to economics, Blacks control less than one half of one percent (-.5%) of the nation’s wealth. This is the same statistical amount since emancipation. At the end of the day, everything will go back to this alarming statistic. This number will only get worse when you consider the anemic number of Black businesses and the nearly 70% of Black people either at or near poverty levels coupled with extreme levels of racial segregation (nearly 75% of Blacks live in 35 cities). This produces more and more of our children living in abnormal conditions that over time become more and more normal. I frequently quote A. Phillip Randolph : “There are no reserved seats at the table of life; you get what you can take, and you keep what you can hold; and you can’t take anything nor keep anything without organization.” In part one of this article, I tried to describe the significant amount of organizations and individuals that contributed to the civil rights movement. While many took different paths and it wasn’t as organized as one might think, the fact of the matter is that we had so many Black people committed to the movement for the self-determination of Black people. Today, the movement is virtually dead and unfortunately there haven’t been any real legal challenges or gains in the path of more freedom for the Black community in America in fifty years. How do we justify this? Or maybe we’ve come to believe that we’re equal. The numbers paint a much different picture where the disparities of Blacks compared to Whites are statistically alarming. There has been some national movement against racially charged discrimination. For example: Jena Six, where six black teenagers were convicted in the beating of Justin Barker, a white student and when Trayvon Martin, an unarmed 17-
(continued on page 7)
RELIGION The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 4
Life! Get on and enjoy the ride!
This reminded me of an observation A couple of weeks ago, on a warm that I once read some years ago. It was Sunday evening, I found myself sitting in the book written by Iyanla Vanzant: in the open garage of my brother-in(Acts of Faith –Daily Meditations for law with my nephew just talking about People of Color 1993). It stated, things. My nephew’s mother had just “When you focus on the problem, the flown in from Memphis and the ladies were sitting inside in the “family problem gets bigger”. The quote conroom” discussing things that were tinues,” The mind is such an incredible about as interesting to us as our discuspower that it literally expands whatever sions were to them. it touches. When we are faced with a After several hours of ‘discussions’, challenge, obstacle or problem, our we believed we had virtual solved all tendency is to nurture it. We talk about the problems of the world that we were it. We describe it vividly. We monitor aware of that evening. I did not realize its progress day by day, imagining how at the time just how thoughtful and much it is growing and how its effects provocative we were at the time, until are devastating every aspect of our I started thinking about this article you lives. What we are actually doing is are now reading. giving the problem more value than it’s We discussed some of our ups and worth. When confronted with a diffidowns in our lives and had disagreeculty, we must immediately shift our ments and solutions for each one of attention from the problem to the soluthem to our own satisfactions. One By Rev. Joseph McLin tion. We can think, speak and bring the thing we seemed to all agree upon was best possible outcome into existence by just how important the women in our individual lives were focusing on where we are going, not on where we think we to each of us collectively. are”. She continues; “We often say we want many things, My brother-in-law (the eldest in these discussions) has while deep inside we doubt it will come to us. The universe been married to my sister for more years than I probably does not give us what we say we want; it gives us what we should mention in this forum, and still loves her as much as expect. We must feel ourselves being and enjoying the very the day of their wedding day nuptials. best life has to offer. We must think about it, talk about it My niece’s husband (my nephew) worships the ground his and expect it every moment”. wife walks on and shows it every time he mentions her I personally reference the book of Matthew, Chapter 6name. Verses 25-27, 34; N.I.V. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry My wife, to me, is the substance of my being. She is prob- about your life, what you eat or drink; or about your body, ably the smartest of all for arranging our wedding six days what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and after her birthday in the month of July, so she could double the body more important than clothes? dip on gratuities. (SMILE) Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or Another thing we found in our ‘garage discussion’, there store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds are almost always obstacles that present themselves to us them. when just when we believe we are the most secure in our Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you life. Sometimes, these obstacles are self-inflicted. Some- by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Therefore do times they are unforeseen. The hardest part of dealing with not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about obstacles we encounter is dealing with them by yourself. itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own”. Nothing is more intimidating to oneself than feeling that you Alvin Ailey - “You get what you expect, and I expect all are alone in your struggles. the best right here and now”!
MY BROTHER’S KEEPER
Relief initiative to be held Aug. 16 at Wahl Park
World Outreach and Bible Training Center will host The Milwaukee Give Summer Edition, an annual relief initiative to bring personal care items, household furnishings and clothing apparel to families for free. The Milwaukee Give is a community outreach effort designed to fight poverty in the city of Milwaukee. Since launching in 2008, The Milwaukee Give has helped more than 15,000 local residents with free food, clothing and other resources.
Event Details: Who: World Outreach and Bible Training Center (Senior Pastors Ervin & Melva Henderson) What: The Milwaukee Give Summer Edition When: August 16, 2014, 10 am – 2 pm Where: Wahl Park at 48th & Hampton Ave For more information on donating or to become a partner, contact World Outreach at (414) 962-0600 or www.worldoutreachbtc.org.
Why It’s Time to Repeal the Religious Freedom Restoration Act The law, passed in 1993 with near-unanimous support, has become an excuse for bigotry, superstition and sectarianism By Katha Pollitt,
courtesy of thenation.com
In the not-too-distant future, it’s entirely possible that religious freedom will be the only freedom we have left—a condition for which we can blame the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. Passed practically unanimously, with support from Ted Kennedy to Orrin Hatch, the ACLU to Concerned Women for America, the bill was a response to the Supreme Court’s decision in Employment Division v. Smith. This case involved two Oregon members of the Native American Church who were denied unemployment compensation after being fired for using peyote, an illegal drug, in a religious ceremony. Justice Antonin Scalia’s majority opinion, which held that a law that applied to everyone and was not directed at religion specifically was not a violation of religious freedom, made a lot of sense to me, then and now. Why should I have to obey a law and my religious neighbor not? RFRA, which required laws infringing on religious convictions to meet the “strict scrutiny” test, was overkill. There were other ways to protect Native Americans’ right to use peyote in religious ceremonies. The church could have asked the State Legislature for an exemption; after all, during Prohibition, the Catholic Church was allowed to use wine in the Mass. Or—but now I’m really dreaming—workers could have been given legal protection from losing their jobs for minor lawbreaking outside the workplace. I mean, peyote! Come on. But no, for some reason, there had to be a sweeping, feelgood, come-to-Jesus moment uniting left and right. “The power of God is such,” said President Clinton, “that even in the legislative process, miracles can happen.” Gag me with a spoon. What were progressives thinking? Maybe in 1993, religion
RELIGIOUS COMMENTARY
looked like a stronger progressive force than it turned out to be, or maybe freedom of religion looked like a politically neutral good thing. Two decades later, it’s clear that the main beneficiaries of RFRA are the Christian right and other religious conservatives. RFRA has given us the Hobby Lobby decision permitting religious employers to decide what kind of birth control, if any, their insurance plans will provide. It’s given us “conscience clauses,” in which medical personnel can refuse to provide women with legal medical services— culminating in the truly absurd case of Sara Hellwege, an anti-choice nurse-midwife who is suing a federally funded family planning clinic in Tampa for religious discrimination because it declined to hire her after she said she would refuse to prescribe “abortifacient contraceptives,” i.e., birth control pills. (That the pill does not cause abortion is irrelevant—this is religion we’re talking about; facts don’t matter.) For some, RFRA doesn’t go far enough because it doesn’t apply to state law. In April, Mississippi became the nineteenth state to enact its own RFRA, which essentially legalizes discrimination against LGBT people by individuals as well as businesses, as long as the haters remember to attribute their views to God. Instead of protecting LGBT people from discrimination—a business refusing to serve them, for example—Mississippi will be siding with the bigots, just like old times. Last year, the state passed the Student Religious Liberties Act, which gives pupils the right to express themselves freely on matters of faith without consequences. Johnny can tell his classmate Jane that she’ll burn in hell because she’s a lesbian and write all his biology papers on Adam and Eve and their dinosaur pets, and the school can’t say a word about it. That would be intolerant. In theory, everyone can play this game. In Oklahoma, Satanists are demanding a religious exemption from compulsory abortion counseling on the grounds that the false claims in the government-mandated scripts—abortion causes suicide and so on—violate their religious belief in science. In North Carolina, the United Church of Christ is suing the state, claiming that its constitutional amendment banning samesex marriage violates the right of its clergy to the free exercise
Do we “reap and keep” or “care to share”? BREAD IN THE WILDERNESS
By Fr. Carl Diederichs, All Saints Catholic Church
Dear Milwaukee Comunity Journal readers, the scripture readings and the commentary below were written originally for August 3, 2014. Since the last edition of the paper centered on the anniversary, I am submitting it for this week. The scripture readings for the 18th Sunday of Ordinary Time are: Isaiah 55: 1-3, Romans 8: 35, 37-39 and Matthew 14: 13-21. The theme is compassion and generosity; God
feeds every hunger. In the first reading Second-Isaiah gives good news to his compatriots who have been suffering as exiles in Babylon. They are free now, free to return home. And what better way to celebrate their freedom than to have a banquet. "All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; Come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk."
The Gospel narration places us at the time Jesus heard about the beheading of his cousin John. In his sadness, he withdrew to be alone. But it didn't work. People found out where he went and followed because they were looking for someone who could give them even a little peace and rest in their shabby, dirt-poor lives. And Jesus, even though preoccupied by his cousin's brutal death, opened his heart and was "moved with pity for them." He kept them for quite a while and they became hungry. His disciples became nervous and wanted them to be sent away so they could purchase food somewhere. Jesus had other ideas: "There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves." Tall order since they had only five
loaves of bread and two fish! And with that little bit of food, Jesus asked his followers to feed the crowd. And they all ate and they had 12 baskets of fragments left over. The message for us? God is an abundant God and He will share all he has with others. Jesus became the embodiment of this generous God. We are the inheritors of the God of abundance, through Jesus. So, how do we treat the gifts we have been given? Are we as lavish in our generosity as Jesus was? Are we more prone to reap and keep or to care and share? Our society, as we all know very well, is a "reap and keep" society. We are told to go after what we want and when we get it, keep it because there is a scarcity and we just can't
share. All of us are sucked into the advertising world where we are made to believe we can't live without things, most things that we don't even need, but just "want." And in doing this, we forget our compassionate Jesus and his ways. Jesus brought great compassion to the folks who followed him into a deserted place. He also gave a command to his followers to feed the people and they did distribute the food to the crowd. They gave real food to really hungry people. Their stomachs were aching. And his followers fed them all. Will we do the same? For us to have the courage to give generously, we will also need to be
(cotinued on page 7)
fed at the Welcome Table. And that great gift is also referenced in this story: "Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds." So, for us to be generous with the gifts that we have been given, we need to gain strength from the Bread and Wine offered to us as the Body and Blood of Christ. Then, when we become what we eat, our hearts will be moved with pity and our generous nature will prevail. We will once again be renewed in the Spirit and we will feed the people. "Give them something yourselves."
POLITICS & G OVERNMENT
The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 5
BlackFemale Candidates C i t y • C o u n t y • S t a t e • N a t i o n a l Face Different Alderman Davis issues statement regarding Challenges-Some of Them the One Summer Plus Pilot Program From Black Voters
There recently have been public statements made to the press regarding my support of Community Advocates' proposal for the One Summer Plus Program in the City of Milwaukee that is being spearheaded in Chicago to reduce violence for atrisk youth. As you may well know, the Common Council’s Community and Economic Development Committee has the appropriating authority to recommend funding on behalf of the City of Milwaukee for the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development funds which includes the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding. Andi Elliot, interim CEO of Community Advocates, states that she “told (Alderman) Davis the agency had enough to run the (One Summer Plus) program” in a recent article with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
POLITICS & GOVERNMENT FIRST PERSON
She further states that my response was “(Davis) said he thought it was a great idea and he could help support it.” These statements from Andi Elliot are false because it is a fact that I have never spoken to, nor have I ever met with, Andi Elliot, and the characterization of my comments leaves an impression that impropriety has occurred. With this in mind, I have requested the City Clerk to submit a communication file (file #140603) regarding this issue for a special CED Committee meeting before the next Common Council meeting in September. It is imperative that I as the CED Committee Chairman operate with transparency and that information transmitted from partnership agencies that perform services for the City of Milwaukee is accurate and truthful.
2014 Summer Primary election results
(continued from page one) Sixteenth State Assembly incumbent Leon Young defeated activist Tracey Dent, 2,309 votes (63%) to 1,376 votes (37%). Dane County District Atty. Ishmael Ozanne lost his bid to become the state’s first African American Attorney General, finishing third to winner Susan Happ and Jon Richards.
Businesswoman Mary Burke easily won her gubernatorial primary over Brett Hulsey. Burke received 259,385 votes (83%) to Hulsey’s 52,020 (17%). Burke will, as predicted, face-off against incumbent Governor Scott Walker in what is shaping up to be a very tight governor’s race. Recent polls have shown both gubernatorial candidates in a dead-heat going into the fall.
A newly released study published in the Journal Health Affairs, using data from death certificates collected by the National Center for Health Statistics, shows the disparity in life expectancy between blacks and whites is improving everywhere but Wisconsin. The new report shows the gap between black and white life expectancy has closed in recent years, but Wisconsin is the only state in which the life expectancy gap has grown significantly in the last two decades. In 1990, white men had a life expectancy 8.1 years longer than black men, and white women were expected to live 5.4 years longer than black women. Twenty years later, the gap shrunk to a 5.4 year difference between black and white men and a 3.8 year difference between black and white women. The data shows that overall life expectancy for individuals is up, but the study focuses on a more nuanced version of that story. A state by state breakdown reveals a major difference in reducing the life expectancy gap. New York, for example, with a population of over 19 million, outperformed other states by closing the gap by 5.6 years for men and 3.1 years for women. Unfortunately, Wisconsin was the only state with a significant increase in disparity of life expectancy - that meant the disparity in the life expectancies of whites and black actually worsened over time. In twenty years, the life expectancy gap for men in Wisconsin rose from 7.7 years to 7.9 years. For women in Wisconsin, the gap increased significantly from 4.9 years to 6.4 years. Not only did the disparity skyrocket between black and
white women, black women’s life expectancy in Wisconsin barely improved. Black women’s life expectancy increased by just 0.4 years while white women’s life expectancy in Wisconsin increased by a full two years. Geoffrey Swain, medical director at the City of Milwaukee Health Department and professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, commented that the study didn’t surprise him. Swain pointed to a report released earlier this year by the Annie E. Casey foundation, which pegged Wisconsin as the worst state in the country for childhood opportunities for black children. Governor Walker and the Republicans who control the state legislature have done little to reverse this alarming trend in recent years. Since Walker took power in 2011, the Republican agenda has ignored the black community. Instead of policies that improve the quality of life for blacks, they’ve implemented ideas that reduce health options and limit opportunity. A perfect example of Republican indifference to the needs of the black community lies in the federal Medicaid expansion. Scott Walker gained national attention by rejecting more than $4 billion in federal funding to expand the state’s Medicaid program to cover all residents living at or below 138% of the federal poverty line. Instead, Walker forced citizens making as little as $12,000 per year to buy private insurance with copays and deductibles as much as $4,000 per year. The governor riled up the most extreme, fringe members of his base, but his political grandstanding had sig-
African-American women are often the backbone of political campaigns, but the number of elected black women doesn’t reflect our passionate political activism. By Mary C. Curtis, article courtesy of The ROOT.com
Black women are often the backbone of political campaigns—making calls, managing offices and registering voters. And we show up at the polls. In the last two presidential elections, the turnout percentage of African-American women was greater than all other demographic groups. In Virginia, for instance, Gov. Terry McAuliffe owes black women, in particular, for his win in a year when President Barack Obama was not on the ballot. Yet the numbers, in terms of black women in elected positions, don’t reflect black women’s passionate political activism. Is it a matter of cultural stereotypes? Is it harder to raise the money crucial to any successful campaign? Is reluctance of black voters to support black women an unexpected hurdle? Why this is so and how the numbers can change were topics at the recent National Association of Black Journalists convention in Boston. At a roundtable on African-American female voters and leaders hosted by the Democratic National Committee and EMILY’s List, women shared obstacles they had encountered on the way to electoral success and reasons why the struggles are far from over. They also addressed the pivotal role African-American female leaders and voters will play in the 2014 midterm elections and in the future of an increasingly diverse country. Sharing notes and strategies as I moderated the panel were
Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley
Ayanna Pressley, the first woman of color elected to the Boston City Council; Charniele Herring, a delegate and minority whip in the Virginia Statehouse; and Jessica Byrd, manager of state strategies at EMILY’s List, which is dedicated to recruiting, training and electing pro-choice Democratic women at all levels. “Without speaking with too wide a brush,” said Pressley, an obstacle for black women becoming candidates is “that we don’t tend to operate with the same sense of entitlement. There is this ‘I don’t know enough, I need one more degree. I need to have one more baby.’” In explaining her own success, which includes being the top vote-getter in her last several races, Pressley said she could credit “the typical things,” including having a “message that resonated” and “a strong field plan.” In Boston, though, the conflict was less about partisan politics than race, she said. “The codified question was, ‘Can Ayanna Pressley appeal to traditional voters?’ or ‘Can this black woman represent an entire city?’ “Ultimately, why I believe I was successful is that I didn’t take any vote for granted and I didn’t stereotype voters or neighborhoods,” she said. “I ran on a platform of wanting to save girls. People told me out loud that’s not the job of an elected official—go run a nonprofit. “But I didn’t pander. I was consistent in saying broken girls grow up to be broken women. ... I recognized that the issues that I wanted to work on—poverty, violence, trauma—were really neighborhood-transcendent issues.” She said many people encouraged her to run on her résumé, having worked as political director for then-U.S. Sen. John Kerry and as a senior aide for Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II. “I was discouraged from telling my personal narrative,” Pressley said, “that of being raised by a single mom in very tough circum-
Life is difficult in Scott Walker’s Wisconsin nificant implications for low-income blacks. According to the Kaiser Institute for Public Health, as of 2011, 74% of uninsured blacks had incomes at or below 138% of the federal poverty line in Wisconsin and only 16% had health insurance. Quality of life for those in the black community continues to take a hit due to Scott Walker's failed policies, and his disastrous health care policy didn't improve the day to day life of poor people of color. Access to quality, affordable health care plays a significant role in closing the gap in life expectancy between blacks and whites. With so many Wisconsinites of all stripes poised to benefit from Medicaid expansion, accepting federal dollars should have been a no-brainer for Walker and Republicans. The increase in the life expectancy gap between black and white women is telling as Republicans - and Scott Walker more recently - have repeatedly attacked women’s right to safe, reliable health care options. Scott Walker made it a top priority to cut funding by $1 million for Planned Parenthood, forcing the closure of four health centers, and blocking at least 12,000 Wisconsin women from their only source of preventative and medical care. With the stroke of a pen, and help from a rubber-stamp legislature, Walker denied thousands access to birth control, cancer screenings, annual exams, and sexually transmitted disease testing and treatment. In addition to direct attacks on public health, Walker has worked to end opportunities for blacks in Wisconsin to become established in the middle class.
(continued on page 7)
In Walker’s first few months as governor, Republicans swiftly ushered in a controversial law gutting public-sector unions in the state. Unions have long been an established path to job security and family-sustaining wages for blacks. Unions are a historic gateway for millions to move up and get ahead through public-sector jobs as teachers, public safety officers, and other professions. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, black workers are more likely than all other ethnic groups to be public-union members, comprising 15 percent of all membership. Union membership means workplace protections, the ability to fight for health benefits or a fair wage to afford private health insurance. Scott Walker’s first-term agenda completely undermines that idea. The most recent study published in the Journal Health Affairs is the second study this year to paint a picture of what life is like for blacks in Scott Walker’s Wisconsin this year - and it isn’t pretty. Our government should put a premium on looking out for its most vulnerable citizens. In his first term, Governor Walker should have been looking for solutions to major problems like racial health disparities, not playing politics and exploiting ways to exacerbate them. Walker hasn’t lifted a finger to help improve the lives of marginalized black men and women in Wisconsin and there is little evidence to show his attitude will change if given a second term. The November election is important for many reasons, but in the black community it could mean four more years of setbacks and roadblocks on the path to prosperity. --Article courtesy of Urban Media News
SMALL BUSINESS
The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 6
Clean Slate-Milwaukee SMALL BUSINESS PROFILE
Established in 2012, Clean Slate Milwaukee, Inc. (CSM) is a 501c3 re-entry organization for young men and women ages 17 to 23 who have misdemeanor and non-violent felony convictions in their past. CSM focuses on expungment of criminal backgrounds that are barriers to employment, housing and higher education. CSM’s office is located at 2212 N. Martin Luther King Drive, between North and Garfield Avenues. The office hours are 9 a.m to 6 p.m. CSM is for Milwaukeeans who want to obtain employment based on skill and qualification and not on personal mistakes of the past. The expungement of non-violent criminal backgrounds promotes equal opportunity and access to employment, housing, and higher education, as well as a pathway out of poverty. Expungement is the legal process by which a court removes or erases all records of a criminal conviction, even if it is a felony conviction. If
you wish to remove a felony from your record and you are eligible to do so under the laws of the state in which you were convicted, you will have to obtain a court order. If you are successful in having your conviction expunged, your records related to the conviction will be erased and sealed from public view. All states have different procedures from expunging felony matters. Generally, convicted felons must file a motion or petition for expungement with the court that heard the felony charges. All states have different eligibility requirements for the expungement of felony convictions. In almost all states, there are certain types or classes of felony convictions that cannot be expunged, and in a fair amount of states, felony convictions cannot be expunged at all. CSM is also looking for volunteers. Those interested in becoming a volunteer should call 1-888-3623993.
NOW WHAT? Is social media killing our sales skills? Shanyiell McCloud founded Clean Slate Milwaukee two years ago.
By Greta Schulz
Recently, I spoke to an organization that spent an ungodly amount of time, energy and money on Social Media to create Lead Generation. So my question was, "Now what?” they said, "What do you mean?" I said “Okay, so you got a whole bunch of people calling you or contacting you through a web form, email etc. How's your closing ratio?” They looked at me like I had three heads. The issue is a simple one, just because we believe that we have found a new way to generate business, it is not generating business…alone. Lead generation is Interest; lead generation is getting people to the door. Are they coming over the threshold and are you closing the door behind them? That's a very important step. One without the other will result in no revenue. Between Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google and Bing ads on any of the Social Media sites, Blogs amongst other things we do today to build leads is it really working? That's one question. If we’re doing all of the things that we need to do in Social Media and all the ‘white noise’ is going out, what is it bringing us? Well, it should be bringing us Leads. It should be bringing us Emails, filling out contact Information or a website, web forms and phone call, and if that's happening, Great you have reached step one. This is a very important step but it is ONLY step one. The million-dollar question is "Now What?" It's important to make sure that we know once people contact us or when we contact them back, we are using the right process to follow up from any kind of lead
Schulz
generation that we get. Are we setting some ground rules at the beginning of the conversation? Are we asking well? Thought provoking openended questions to engage them and truly understand their needs beyond what the told you? DO we have a true picture of all of this before we have the cost conversation and do you clearly understand the next step and what that means as opposed to just “checking back” or following up with them? It's important to understand that when someone contacts you, they are often contacting several people within your industry. You don't have a relationship built, there were just some low levels of interest that got them to contact you. Is it better than you calling out cold? Well certainly it is but you still needs the same attention to process as you always did. Getting somebody to call you is only the beginning. So, what are the other steps: What are we doing when we contact them or they call us. Are we using the process properly? Here is what we typically see. When we get them on the phone, they will typically ask you a simple question that I call a "Wall Question" which is they put up a wall and the question sounds something like this "Hey, I see you guys sell widgets. Can you tell me if I bought a hundred
widgets what that would cost?" and we say, "Sure, let me look. What can of widgets you are looking for?” "We're looking for widget A or widget B." "Okay well, widget A would be $75,000 for a hundred widgets and widget B would be $82,000. "Oh, that's a lot of money. "Well, maybe I can do a little better." You negotiate a price and they say "Okay sounds good, ah we'll call you back” Or “Sounds good, can you send me a proposal / price sheet/ some more information?" We get their email, we send that information in writing and cricket, we never hear from them again. We try to contact them back, they don't contact us. We try to call them, they don't take our call, and we leave messages. Sound familiar? Of course, it does. The same situation that happened before when you did your prospecting more proactively occurred. Prospecting hasn't changed. Sales and the sales process haven’t changed just because they're contacting you. In fact, I would say that it is more difficult now because we are not as on top of our game since they contacted us we feel it is a ‘hot’ lead. Not only do you need to do a good job on working on the sales process in closing the sale, you need to do a better job than you ever have before because remember, they have control. They're the ones that are calling you but they're also calling your competitor. So they've done a little homework, they know who's out there and they know what the pricing is out there. That's where the sale process comes in. If you don't have a process, you're going to fail whether they're lead generating through Social Media or not.
Bad Debt is Bad Business Miller
By Antoine Miller
There's nothing I love to do more than work with entrepreneurs to make money. There's an old saying that goes-it takes money to make money. I had a client named Joe who found this out the hard way. Joe had bad credit. He had credit card debt, payday loans and many other assorted bills that he simply couldn't afford. Joe was an entrepreneur. He was a smart handyman and the kind of guy that would give you the shirt off of his own back. Joe came to me and asked if I could help him start his business. He wanted to start up a handyman type home repair business. Joe had learned how to make some money doing home repairs and he was ready to take his hustle to the next level. He needed money for a vehicle, tools and marketing material. Joe didn't have friends or family in a position to lend him the money and his credit was poor. The issue wasn't the fact that Joe didn't have money. The issue was the fact that he couldn't get any money. At least not the amount of money he needed to support his family and start up his business. Joe needed a small loan from a bank. Don't worry, this story has a happy ending but it took a little work. Before I could help Joe start his business, Joe had to rebuild his credit. He had to stop piling on new debt. He had to make a budget and stick to it. He worked with the Wisconsin Debt Clinic to stop debt collectors and pay off his payday loans with zero interest and on his terms. Lastly, he had to trust his plan and remain positive. In a little over a year, Joe was able
to clean up his credit and pay down his debt with terms he negotiated. He received the loan he needed from a local savings and loan establishment. He is in the process of starting his own home repair business here in Milwaukee. I’m proud to help him with his sales and marketing plan. Joe will be a success story because he always believed he would. He got out of debt
and used money to turn his life around. So can you.
Antoine Miller is Founder of 99 SALES iDEAS for Business Development. Miller is excited to help business owners sell more of their products and services. Contact Miller at 414-219-1989 or amiller@99salesideas.com with your sales and marketing or business startup questions.
KALEIDOSCOPE
Sista Speak... Speak Lord!
The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 7
the MCJ lifestyle & entertainment section
Celebrating “Grandmother Power”
Mt. Mary University recently held a reception opening the “Grandmother Power: A Global Phenomenon” exhibit at the university’s Marian Gallery. The exhibit features the work of renowned photojournalist Paola Gianturco. The exhibit includes images and stories of grandmothers worldwide who are acting courageously and effectively to create a better future for grandchildren around the globe. Shown above at the reception are (left to right): Mt. Mary University President Eileen Schwalbach, Milwaukee Urban League President Ralph Hollmon, and Erickajoy Daniels of the law offices of Quarles & Brady, who helped bring the exhibit to Milwaukee and Mt. Mary. (Photo by Yvonne Kemp)
United Way announces Steve A. Roell Agency Partner Awards
Three agencies receive $25,000 each to extend work in Education, Income and Health
United Way of Greater Milwaukee awarded three one-time $25,000 grants to three agency program partners in honor of Stephen A. Roell, former United Way Board Chairman and retired chairman and CEO of Johnson Controls, Inc. United Way introduced the Steve A. Roell Agency Partner Awards at its annual meeting in February. Nearly 70 United Way agencies applied for the grants. Winners were announced Tuesday during a meeting of agency executives. “I am honored to have my name attached to these special grants,” said Roell, who was on hand for the announcement. “United Way invests in over 160 quality programs throughout our region. “The collective impact of these programs is truly remarkable. Working together in the areas of Education, Income and Health, we are truly moving the needle on critical issues in our community.” Grants were awarded to agencies that have programs in each of United Way’s three focus areas, Education, Income and Health – the three building blocks to a good quality of life. Recipients of the Steve A. Roell Agency Partner Awards are: City Year (Education): A United Way partner since 2012, City Year Milwaukee is wholly focused increasing graduation rates by investing in innovative strategies to get students back on
track. City Year was built with the conviction that one person can make a difference; and since its inception, has promoted the vision of service as a common expectation for the global community. IMPACT (Income): A United Way partner since 1965, IMPACT helps restore the health and productivity of individuals, organizations and workplaces, leading to an improved quality of life for our entire community. IMPACT programs provide the motivation and means for those looking to take the first step toward regaining stability. Meta House (Health): A United Way partner since 1973, Meta House is one of the first treatment programs founded specifically for women struggling with substance abuse. In response to client feedback, the agency became one of the first treatment facilities in the country to bring children into the residential treatment setting with their mothers, a testament to Meta House’s innovation and commitment to meeting client needs. “United Way is fortunate to have so many high-performing agency program partners,” said Nicole Angresano, Vice President of Community Impact. “We were overwhelmed by the number and quality of applications for this very special award. When applying the criteria, which are based on the values Steve Roell and Johnson Controls reflect, these three agencies stood out. We are honored to be able to make these awards in his name.” “Steve Roell has made a real difference in the lives of so many people in this community, not only through his work with United Way of Greater Milwaukee, but through his work with organizations throughout the Greater Milwaukee area,” said Mary Lou Young, President and CEO of United Way of Greater Milwaukee. “The ripple effect of his work will be felt for generations to come.”
We’re all accountable to the Movement
(continued from page 3) year-old Black teenager, was fatally shot by George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old mixed-race Hispanic at a gated community in Sanford, Florida. In the case of Trayvon Martin, Zimmerman was released by police because there was no evidence to refute Zimmerman's claim of having acted in self-defense in accordance with Florida's Stand Your Ground law. Ultimately, national attention by the Black community would shine light on both of the cases that produced a better outcome. However, as what happens in all reactionary efforts, once the immediate effort is somewhat addressed, the movement retreats until the next outrage sparks it up again. Recently, we witnessed a national organized response led by the NAACP to challenge the republican agenda to suppress the Black and brown vote across the country, which if successful, would have seriously threatened Barak Obama’s re-election in 2012. If they had been successful, it is my humble opinion, that we would have another person representing the office of US president. While most of the State courts reacted positively, we still having a major challenge brewing that could roll back our voting rights. We must come to terms with the reality that these issues will never go away until we are able to address them on an ongoing basis and that we become a very strong an organized effort. We are now fighting structural and systemic racism, discrimination, and bias because there is no longer “white only” or “colored only” signs in America. Our people are
Why It’s Time to Repeal the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (continued from page 4)
of religion. “By preventing our same-sex congregants from forming their own families, the North Carolina ban on samesex marriage burdens my ability and the ability of my congregation to form a faith community of our choosing consistent with the principles of our faith,” the Rev. Nancy Petty told Religion News Service. But even if these cases are successful, they take us down the wrong road. People with religious objections shouldn’t have to listen to government speech. Imagine an anti-vaxxer a few years hence claiming the right not to be informed of the dangers of measles. Same-sex marriage should be legal because a clergyperson wants to perform them? What happens when a Mor-
not being whipped and beaten down in the streets, but the sting and the impact of racism will further derail the Black man’s plight for self-determination in America. Has that not been the objective for Black people in America for more than 400 years??? As I have previously mentioned I am part of an effort to organize the Black community in Philadelphia – The Philadelphia Community of Leaders, which is designed to create a table where we’re able to aggregate the capacity of our community and develop a long-term proactive solution to address our concerns. We’ve been at this for nearly three years with limited success. I say limited because we’re still building the foundation to support this monumental effort that will live and grow forever. This is the only approach that will work because we won’t see the goals of these efforts in our lifetime but our children should have a better chance to succeed. Please go to: www.philadelphiacommunityofleaders.org to learn more about what we are doing. Absent of having the place that will consolidate our capacity in Milwaukee, we all can get more engaged in the political process. Like the civil rights movement which represented a collective of unorganized activity, we can begin to increase our participation because it’s still through the door of the politics that Black people will achieve self-determination. Unfortunately, our participation in the political process is at an all-time low. This is the pathway that we must restart. I will elaborate more in my next article (WE’RE ALL ACCOUNTABLE TO THE MOVEMENT).
mon elder or a Muslim imam claims the right to express his faith by performing polygamous marriages? Even if religion were not the basically conservative social force it is in American life, expanding the religious freedom of individuals or corporations is simply not a good way to make public policy. It’s great, though, when you don’t have an actual argument to support your position. The right uses religion because that’s all it’s got: the secular arguments against LGBT rights are in history’s dustbin. And if the notion that the pill causes abortion wasn’t a religious tenet, it would have no traction, since it is false and known to be so. Religious freedom functions like a giant get-out-of-reality-free card: your belief cannot be judged, because it’s a belief. There are still states where parents can legally let their children die of curable diseases—as long as they have a religious reason to shun medical care. The difference between criminal child neglect and tragedy? Jesus. Why It’s Time to Repeal the Religious Freedom Restoration ActThe Religious Freedom Restoration Act needs to be repealed, but it is hard to see where the political will is going to come from. Somehow the separation of church and state has come to mean blocking the state from protecting the civil rights of citizens and forcing it to support—and pay for—sectarianism, bigotry, superstition and bullying. I really doubt this is what Thomas Jefferson had in mind.
Heal the Hood event set for Aug. 24
(continued from page 3) to help improve it,” says Ald. Coggs. “I give Brother Ajamou tremendous credit for creating the Heal the Hood movement as one way to help build a better future for our community and I am proud to support the effort,” she adds. Black America and indeed Milwaukee’s African American community should be greatly inspired and strengthened by the wisdom, culture and work of our young people in this “20’ish” generation. They are students of the history and culture; they are visionaries. But most importantly, they are workers and builders. They and the older “Thirty-Something’s” in Milwaukee and around the country are taking this ever growing flowering of love of ancestry, history and culture and are building a vision of future that belongs to them and to their children. This indeed is what all cultures in this country and around the glove naturally do for their people, for their children, and for their tomorrows. “The single most powerful thing that we can do in Black America among my generation is to break long standing imposed stereotypes and begin to love our own image in our own mirror,” Butler posits. “Once a knowledge of self and love for self is again restored in our hearts, mind, and spirit and once a love for your brother and sister and for our people is again restored in our hearts, mind, and spirit, then violence cannot exist where love of self and love for your community is the landlord.” Short range goals for the Heal the Hood initiative is to continue with the block parties to attract resources to impoverished sectors of the community and in the long term to purchase abandoned house, restore them and launch the creation of transitional living facilities. As for the August 24 event, Butler has structured Heal the Hood for attendees to leave with a deeper love for and knowledge of self. It is an additional objective of this celebration for community members to greatly benefit from the informational vendors who will provide valuable resources for employment, health care and educational assistance. Vendor space is still available. For booth arrangements, please contact
NO DOUBT!
SECURE
When we function from fear, we are steeped in insecurity and at worst we doubt God. When we question and worry too much about the unknown, we lack faith. When we over analyze things, we become double minded and unstable in all our ways. When we choose to believe the worst, we are allowing the Sonya Bowman evil one to sit on our shoulder and whisper in our ear. We need to fall to our knees and pray more asking God for help. This will eradicate fear and doubt. We should be patient and cease questioning, letting Him do His work in His time. This will teach us faith. We need to feel secure with the thoughts of our first minds. This will show God that we trust His will. We have to cease having doubts about people we say we love. God knew what He was doing when He placed that person in your life. The best that can happen from this is that you become secure in all your ways. Sonya Marie Bowman “It is what it is” QUESTIONS???
We have so much that is going on in our homes, neighborhoods, cities, country and around the world...Do You have Doubt of a positive outcome?????? Have we become inhuman to the feelings of others...Do You have Doubt of a positive outcome?????? Human Life and Life Span...What Does it Mean to You? Do You have Doubt of a positive outcome?????? What's to become of Our Future...Do You Have Doubt of a Tara R. Pulley positive outcome?????? “Always Keeping It Real,” Tara R Pulley I BELIEVE
No more hesitation. No more uncertainty. No more reservations. No more distrust. No more disbelief. No more qualms. No more skepticism. No more questioning. No more self-sabotage. NO MORE DOUBT!!!
Black Health Coalition of Wis. and MICAH to hold Employer Information Session Aug. 19
As a result of Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin's (BHCW) and Milwaukee Innercity Congregations Allied for Hope's (MICAH) recent Zoo Interchange lawsuit victory, an Employer Information Session will be held on Tuesday, August 19th from 2:00 -5:00 pm at BHCW (3020 W. Vliet Street). New bus routes will begin on August 24th to jobs in Menomonee Falls & New Berlin. This event will feature a panel of employers from these suburban communities that have available jobs. The employers will talk about their companies, the jobs they have available, needed qualifications, pay and benefits, etc. Confirmed employers include FedEx, BuySeasons, Herzing University, RJ Shinner, Wacker-Neuson Corp and more! To RSVP or questions, please contact Clarene at 414-033-0064 Ext. 214 or cmitchell@bhcw.org. BHCW will also provide onsite health insurance enrollment assistance. *Free bus tours of the new Menomonee Falls and New Berlin routes will be provided on Friday, August 15th. The busses will leave from the MICAH office, 1927 N. 4th Street, at 11:00 am and are expected to return by approximately 1:30 pm.
Black Female Candidates Face Different Challenges--Some of Them From Black Voters (continued from page 5)
Zelda Corona
stances in Chicago, Illinois; a father who struggled with addiction who was in and out of prison and our lives; and my being a survivor of sexual violence”—all things that she said informed her desire to run for office. “So I had to fire those people; I’m not going to allow someone to dictate the story that I tell.” She added, “It wasn’t white folks that had a problem with that narrative; it’s black folks,” with many telling her, “‘We don’t want to hear any more Precious stories’—black folks who did not want me perpetuating a stereotype.” Herring, who in 2009 became the first African-American woman elected to represent Northern Virginia, said one of the things she had to fight when she ran for the first time was a presumption that she needed to “wait in line” for her turn. But then, controversial Virginia laws enacted in 2011 and 2012, which regulated clinics that performed abortions and introduced the term “transvaginal ultrasound” into the political debate, “started the conversation about women in politics and our role,” Herring said. “In 2012 I was asked to lead the state party.” She said people realized it was women who were able to mobilize people to get to the capital “to have this great visual.” And media coverage can cut several ways for women, black women in particular. “When I did win that first time,” said Pressley, the story wasn’t that her message resonated or that she’d run a smart campaign. “It was that voters wanted to make history.”
She pointed to her remarks at a recent rally in Massachusetts in response to two Supreme Court rulings—one giving Hobby Lobby’s owners the right not to provide contraceptive coverage that conflicted with their religious beliefs, and the other that judged protest-free buffer zones at Massachusetts abortion clinics unconstitutional. At the rally, Pressley recalled, “I said that I’m tired of people discouraging me from being publicly angry because they’re worried that I would be characterized as an angry black woman or an extreme feminist.” Herring noted that at an event during her first re-election campaign, when she had a woman as her opponent, “We talked about transportation, we talked about education and reforming the standards of learning in Virginia,” but one reporter covering the race “wrote an article about the fact that we both liked to cook.” Money, and raising it, is another issue, said Pressley. “We’re very comfortable with inviting someone to an event but not necessarily with making a hard ask,” she said, and admitted it was “something I had to mature and evolve into.” Byrd, of EMILY’s List, leads the first-time-candidate recruitment program for the organization. She said that when she was growing up in Columbus, Ohio, her mother, a poll worker, was the first activist she ever knew. Yet, she said, “I never asked this woman to run for office.” She said that African-American women make up 3 percent of statewide executive seats in the country, barely 11 percent of state representative seats, “where major pieces of legislation are happening that affect your family, my family.” When recruiting candidates, Byrd said, “The truth is, there is no blueprint.” She said you have to think about “the must-haves and the nice-to-haves. You can’t teach honesty, you can’t teach integrity.” “There are historical, cultural and social barriers why black women aren’t running for office, and all of those are real,” she said. “It takes women seven times to be asked to run for office. We like to think of every single woman as a new conversation.” She said she has talked to the store manager of a supermarket, a UPS driver and others as she has traveled around the country. “I do think it’s going to be a long game.”
The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 8
The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 9
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The Milwaukee Community Journal August 13, 2014 Page 10