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Volume 121 No. 36
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April 13, 2013 - April 13, 2013, The Afro-American
APRIL 13, 2013 - APRIL 19, 2013
Black Families 2013 Maryland Legislature May Suffer in Immigration Session Closes Reform By CNS STAFF Capital News Service
By Zenitha Prince Special to the AFRO
Black immigrants and others stand to lose if the United States’ system of family-based visas is changed, according to religious and immigration reform activists. As the nation eagerly awaits legislative language on comprehensive immigration reform, which could be released any time now, early
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Black immigrants and others stand to lose if the United States’ system of family-based visas is changed. indications suggest possible reductions in visas available to foreign-born family members of U.S. citizens. Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union” on March 31, Gang of Eight member Sen. Lindsay Graham, (R-S.C.), said a key goal of the legislation would be to “turn our chain migration family-based immigration system into a meritbased, [economic-based] immigration system with a family component.” But religious and other pro-reform groups say the alleged proposal, which could seek to reduce or eliminate family-based visas available to the siblings and to the married adult children of U.S. citizens, would break up families and destabilize networks that support the success of new immigrants. “To depend on immigrants for some of the hardest work in this country and then to deny them the opportunity Continued on A3
ANNAPOLIS - If Gov. Martin O’Malley really does have his sights set on a presidential nomination, the 2013 legislative session could go a long way toward solidifying his liberal qualifications for a Democratic primary electorate. The list of legislation from the 2013 session reads like a progressive’s wish list: pass some of the strictest gun control laws in the country, repeal the death penalty, legalize medical marijuana, increase taxes on gasoline and subsidize offshore wind power. Much to the chagrin of conservative lawmakers, O’Malley and the Democrat-controlled legislature accomplished all of these initiatives. “The governor and the liberal left have hijacked the state of Maryland,” said Sen. E.J. Pipkin, (R-Upper Shore). Senate President Thomas V. “Mike” Miller Jr. called 2013 the “most successful legislative session of my lifetime.” GUNS With the passage of the Firearm Safety Act of 2013, Maryland will ban the purchase of assault rifles, reduce firearm access for the mentally ill, require safety training and the submission of fingerprints before the purchase of a handgun, and increase penalties for violent crimes committed with “cop killer bullets.” The bill was drafted by the O’Malley administration in response to the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in December that left 27 people dead. DEATH PENALTY Maryland became the 18th state to abolish state-sanctioned
By Blair Adams Special to the AFRO Baltimore City Fire Chief Kevin Cartwright, who for a decade was the connection between the department and the public, has moved on. He departed April 1, exchanging his uniform for a suit, tie and private sector job. As the spokesman for the fire department since 2002, Cartwright was a common sight at the scene of fire and major medical emergencies, sometimes arriving before the fire engines and ambulances. He tweeted reports of paramedic rescues and posted photos of fires on Facebook. He initially joined the department in 1989 and is a trained paramedic. In an interview with the Afro,
By Frank J. Phillips Special to the AFRO
Courtesy photo
GAS TAX The legislature passed a gas tax to raise funds for future transportation projects. This summer motorists will see prices rise about 4 cents per gallon due to the tax. “It hurts the poor, working class the most,” Pipkin said. On July 1, the gas tax rate will be indexed to inflation and there will be a new 1 percent sales tax on gasoline. The sales tax will increase incrementally until it reaches 5 percent in fiscal year 2017, unless federal legislation is enacted on Internet sales taxes, in which case it will top out at 3 percent. The money generated from the tax will be used to replenish the dwindling Transportation Trust Fund, which is used to maintain existing infrastructure and to build new projects. OFFSHORE WIND O’Malley’s offshore wind energy bill will funnel $1.7 billion of ratepayer subsidies over a 20-year period toward the construction of a wind power farm 10 to 30 miles off the coast of Ocean City as early as 2017. O’Malley’s previous two attempts to push the legislation -- the first more ambitious -- never made it to the Senate floor largely because of concerns about the cost to Marylanders. But a change in the makeup of the Senate Finance Committee, which held up the bill in years past, brought an important vote Continued on A3
Baltimore City Fire Chief Kevin Cartwright Retires
Black Generals, Rich in Legacy, Make History
Gen. Lloyd Austin
executions after passing a controversial bill that replaces the death penalty with a sentence of life without the possibility of parole. The last execution in Maryland took place in 2005 and five inmates remain on death row. O’Malley has been supportive of the repeal since taking office in 2007.
Two African-American generals made history this year by simultaneously taking charge of major regional commands. President Barack Obama nominated Generals Lloyd Austin and Vincent Brooks to head U.S. Central Command and U.S. Army Pacific, respectively. Each powerful command position allows the generals to oversee operations in either the Middle East or Asia. Brooks will earn his fourth star upon assuming command, while Austin is already a four-star general. Although the nominations highlight a first for African Continued on A4
Courtesy Photo
Fire Chief Kevin Cartwright
Cartwright, 49, declined to identify his new employer. He said, however, that he would serve as a “public affairs and corporate communications liaison.” Additionally, he will continue to run his own public relations company, Cartwright PR and Media Consulting, LLC. Through that company, he wrote, produced and hosted a public safety broadcast program for the fire department. Cartwright made the announcement that he would be retiring from the Baltimore City Fire Department less than a week before he left. Asked why he was leaving now, he said: “I have come to a juncture where I want to expand my knowledge base, skill set into another setting.” Cartwright said serving in the fire Continued on A3
Hampton U. Drowning Victim Buried in Baltimore By Bria Freeman and Krishana Davis AFRO Staff Writers
The day before his 18th birthday, David Tolulope Esan should have been preparing for a celebration with family and friends. Instead, 300 of his loved ones gathered April 5 at Faith Christian Fellowship World Outreach Center in Owings Mills, Md. for his funeral. Esan, 17, was a freshman at Hampton University when he drowned at a Freshman Week pool party on campus on March 20. He did not swim. University spokeswoman Yuri Milligan called the incident an Photo by Andrea Crews “accident” and said it did “not Ade Esan, his wife Kemi and their sons, Daniel, 20, and Continued on A3 Victor, 9, mourn David at the April 5th funeral.
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