The Prince George's County Afro American Newspaper September 14, 2013

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PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY EDITION

Volume 122 No. 6

SEPTEMBER 14, 2013 - SEPTEMBER 20, 2013

Obama Opts for Diplomacy Over War By George E. Curry NNPA Columnist WASHINGTON (NNPA) – Speaking to a war-weary nation Sept. 10, President Barack Obama asked Congress to postpone a vote authorizing him to launch an air attack against Syria while he explores a Russian diplomatic proposal that could rid Syria of its arsenal of chemical weapons. In a televised 16-minute address from the White House, Obama said: “…over the last few days, we’ve seen some encouraging signs. In

part because of the credible threat of U.S. military action, as well as constructive talks that I had with President Putin, the Russian government has indicated a

has these weapons, and even said they’d join the Chemical Weapons Convention, which prohibits their use.” In a speech originally planned to drum up support

“…President Obama changed gears as he expressed willingness to exhaust all diplomatic initiatives before using force.” willingness to join with the international community in pushing Assad to give up his chemical weapons. Assad has since admitted that it

for military action against Syria, President Obama changed gears as he expressed willingness to exhaust all Continued on A4

Marylanders Prepare for Oct. 1 Launch of New Healthcare Era By Alexis Taylor AFRO Staff Writer

INSIDE

Remembering 9/11

President Obama places a wreath at the Pentagon 9/11 Memorial Sept. 11 during a ceremony to mark the 12th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

AP Photo

The Isolated Prison Existence of the KKK Killer of the Four Black Girls

Last Living Bomber of Birmingham’s 16th Street Baptist Church

Myron Isley’s story is troubling, but far from unique, when it comes to the 45.5 million U.S. citizens currently living without health insurance, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

About six weeks ago, he lost his health insurance coverage due to the back-toback health issues. After he ran out of sick days, supervisors at his workplace in Columbia, where he had been on staff

Isley, 51, had been an accountant in the Baltimore area when his career was cut short by a series of health challenges that left him on five prescription medications a day. In June 2012, he suffered a heart attack as a result of two blocked arteries. This year, doctors diagnosed him with acute anemia after he became lightheaded and passed out. Internal bleeding was found at the same time. Isley was told his body was not creating enough blood for his organs to properly function.

for four years, dismissed him. “They just couldn’t hold my job anymore,” he said. So Isley was forced to depend for money on a company, Magnet Entertainment LLC, that he and his wife created in September 2010. The entertainment consulting firm is now his sole source of income. He and his wife, a local producer, recently attended a forum at Baltimore’s Empowerment Temple church on the intricacies of the Continued on A4

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Recalling the Tragic Sunday Morning Sept. 15, 1963

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Julian Bond Sees Tough Civil Rights Battle Ahead

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Jealous Resigns from NAACP By Freddie Allen NNPA Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON (NNPA) Ben Jealous – Five years ago, Benjamin Jealous, president and CEO of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, made two promises. The first was to the NAACP to help the organization get to the next level, revitalizing the mission and the relevancy of the storied civil rights group for the 21st century and old and new battles ahead. The second promise was to his then 3-year-old daughter that he would return to being a full-time daddy in five years. He says now is the time to keep that second promise. Continued on A4

16th Street Baptist Church after the Sept. 15, 1963 bombing By Jay Reeves Associated Press BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The last surviving Klansman convicted in a church bombing that killed four Black girls 50 years ago spends nearly all his time in a one-person prison cell, apparently too wary of other inmates to venture out. Thomas E. Blanton Jr., one of three men convicted in the bombing, is allowed to have regular contact with other prisoners in a day room and go outside a few hours a week for exercise, but a prison spokesman said Blanton rarely does either. Instead, as one of the most infamous prisoners currently in state custody, the 83 yearold man mostly keeps to himself. “You might describe him as a loner,” Department of Corrections spokesman Brian Corbett said Monday. A powerful dynamite bomb detonated outside

AFRO File Photos

A view from inside the bombed church Birmingham’s 16th Street Baptist Church on Sept. 15, 1963, killing four girls and critically injuring a fifth as they prepared for worship on a Sunday morning. Numerous events are being held this week in Birmingham to mark the anniversary of the bombing, and a fresh round of news coverage is once again focusing attention on the bombers. Yet Corbett said Blanton isn’t receiving any special protection during anniversary commemorations since he’s already confined in the most secure way possible. “That’s the way he lives

Copyright © 2013 by the Afro-American Company

all the time based on the high-profile nature of his case,” Corbett said. While no one was arrested in the bombing for years, three Ku Klux Klansmen eventually were convicted in the blast: Robert Chambliss in 1977; Blanton in 2001; and Bobby Frank Cherry in 2002. Chambliss and Cherry died in prison, but Blanton remains incarcerated at St. Clair Correctional Facility, located about 35 miles northeast of Birmingham, where he is serving a life term after being convicted of four counts of murder. Blanton may be mostly Continued on A3


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