Cory Booker's record-breaking speech ignites a Democratic base 'desperate' for a fighter
By Sahil Kapur, Frank Thorp V, Julie Tsirkin, Kate Santaliz and Syedah Asgha NBC News
Sen Cory Booker, D-N J , speaks on the Senate floor on Tuesday NBC News
WASHINGTON Sen Cory Booker, D-N J , wanted to do something extraordinary He knew Democratic voters were desperate for it
So he took to the Senate floor with little fanfare and went on to deliver a marathon speech excoriating the Trump administration for lawlessness and undermining American values and in the process breaking the record for longest Senate speech ever yielding last Tuesday after 25 hours and 5 minutes
See Cory Booker, p 6
The Black Economy
By April Ryan, NNPA White House Corespondent
We are in the midst of a storm, according to Allan Boomer, Chief Investment Advisor for Momentum Advisors who discusses Black Americans wallets amid this downward economic spiral created by President Donald Trump The president s economics include the proposed 10-year budget, massive tariffs, and the firing of federal workers
See Black Economy, p 7
U.S. Parks Service appears to have restored Harriett Tubman texts on it’s website
By Stacy M Brown BlackPressUSA
com Senior National Correspondent
U S Park Service and Harriet Tubman
After significant public backlash, the U S National Park Service has now appeared to restore its original webpage on the history of the Underground Railroad after it was met with backlash for deleting a prominently featured photo of abolitionist and women s suffragist Harriet Tubman, as well as segments of text describing the horrors of slavery
See Harriet Tubman, p 6
Trump slaps highest tariff yet on small southern African nation of Lesotho
By Stacy M Brown BlackPressUSA
com Senior National
Correspondent
Graphic on Tariffs
President Donald Trump has announced sweeping new tariffs on dozens of nations, including a record-setting 50% reciprocal tariff on the tiny southern African mountain kingdom of Lesotho the highest levy imposed on any sovereign country by the United States Trump s move targets at least 60 countries with duties starting at 10%, with Lesotho and other African nations bearing some of the heaviest hits
See Tariff, p 6
Plans to shutter Education Department add to Financial Aid Confusion
by Charlene Crowell
(TriceEdneyWire com) - The chaos and confusion resulting from systemic changes and closures at multiple federal agencies have now reached the $242 billion budget of the Department of Education With the agency’s workforce cut in half, and plans announced to shut it down millions of students and families who rely on federal financial aid for higher education are facing a front-line assault
See Financial Aid Confusion, p 6
On Saturday, April 5, 2025, 30 people from Greene County held a picket line and rally at the Eutaw Alabama Post Office, from 10:00 AM to Noon as part of the national “Hands Off” protest against the actions of the Trump-Vance- Musk regime in their first 75 days in office
The people of Eutaw and Greene County were protesting and resisting the actions of Trump-VanceMusk in firing Federal workers destroying Federal agencies, e g , USAID, CFPB, Department of Education\; proposing budget cuts to Medicaid Medicare Social Security Food Stamps and other programs that help poor people, while giving tax cuts to the wealthy; and rewriting the history and contributions of Black people to our nation in the
Greene County
and
Hands Off our Museums and National Parks Trump-Vance-Musk No Tax Cuts for the Rich on the Backs of the Work-
Deltas sponsor 39th Debutante Ball
Greene County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated held its 39th Debutante Ball on Saturday April 5 2025 at the Eutaw Activity Center in Eutaw, Alabama Twelve lovely young ladies made their debut to their family and guests The 2025 Debutante and Escorts were Debutante Sanaa Braxton escorted by Thomas Fritts; Debutante Jakayla Brown escorted by Indaglis Hunter; Debutante DeMya Chavers escorted by Mekhi Bragg; Debutante Nichyia Cook escorted by Christian Lewis; Debutante AlyceJosephine Hill escorted by Christopher K Williams; Debutante Zamiyah
Hughes escorted by Nicholas Henley; Debutante Aniya McMillian escorted by her brother Anthony McMillian Jr ; Debutante Kayla Nickson escorted by Jaron Lavender; Debutante ZoToria Petty escorted by Kameron Landrum; Debutante Jasmine Simpson escorted by her father Steven Simpson; Debutante Madison
L to R: Kayla Nickson Miss Debutante 2025, Madison Thompson 1st winner up and Alyce Josephine Hill second winner up
Thompson escorted by Joseph Ian Jones; Debutante Diamond White escorted by James Eatmon
Debutante Kayla Nickson was crowned Miss
2025 Debutante First Runner up was Debutante Madison Thompson and Second Runner up was Debutante AlyceJosephine Hill
Ed die Ayer s famil y honor ed at confer ence
The Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Land Assistance Fund (FSC/LAF) held its 3rd Annual Women in Agriculture Conference Friday April 4, 2025 at the New Generation Church Fellowship Hall in Eutaw, AL The program was organized under the leadership of Ms Audrey Haskins, FSC/LAF Research and Training Center staff Ms Brenda Goree served as facilitator Under the Conference s theme: The Lady, The Land, The Legacy, the program featured several presentations including Female Empowerment Message by Portia Shepard of Black Women Rising; New and Beginning Farmers by Decetti Taylor State FSA NIFA Coordinator; National Women in Ag by Cheryl Bell of Alabama Women in Ag Chapter The Women s Health Panel included presentations on Women’s Physical Health by Catherine Shelton of UAB; Women s
The guests enjoyed an elegant affair that had “A Storybook Ending” Phillis Branch Belcher is the chapter President and Nancy Cole was the Debutante Ball Chair
above
Mental Health by Lashaunda Lark Darien of Lock & Key Wellness and Therapeutic Health by Briana Hubbard-Bell Dr Carol P Zippert a founder of FSC was the keynote speaker focusing on a current project of the Federation s Memorial Legacy Committee (MLC) She explained that the goal of the MLC project is to honor and memorialize the
and groups that created built and sustained the Federation since its birth in 1967
FSC/LAF, p 2
ing People and the Poor the protestors walked on the sidewalk at the front of the U S Post Office, the only Federal Building in Eutaw
See Protestors, p 2
Shown
are Eddie Ayers’ family members honored on his behalf: Mr Ayers’ daughter, Una Johnson, Gallion, AL; grandchildren Michael and Yanna, children of Mr. Ayers’ daughter Janella Jones of Jonesboro, GA.
Carol’s Notes
Palm Sunday
The criers sang that the peacemaker was coming. Many rushed to lay palm branches at his feet and toss rose petals kissed in the air The garments of bowed heads swept the ground in his path Picture this scene today:
A long haired man in plain robe and sandal feet rides into town on a donkey Townspeople curiously stare as children’s eyes laugh behind hands. Bolder youth tease in slang Taunting the donkey with slaps and kicks Pointing daring fingers at the silent
humbled figure So long ago the gathering crowd called him king. He proclaimed it but could not claim it Destiny reserved for him a crown of pain and agony. Picture this scene today: With spirited eyes and hopeful cheers many call him leader They raise him
for his goodness and vision then they kill him The peacemaker rode in on a carpet of palm branches and rose petals. He rode to his death He rode to his glory He rode to someone ’ s salvation The criers sang.
Carol Prejean Zippert
The Greene County Board Of Education WORK SESSION Monday, April 21, 2025 at 2:00 p m REGULAR SESSION Monday, April 21, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. in the central office auditorium
Death of a Fat Man A novel by Senator Hank Sanders
Available at The Greene
B C Marion, AL will be the guest speaker The public is invited
Pr otestor s
Garria Spencer, Chair of the Greene County Commission, said “The people of Greene County need to wake up and protest and resist the illegal and immoral acts of the Trump Vance and Musk regime If we don’t stand up and speak up now the leaders in Washington will cut our benefits and programs to give tax cuts to the rich and well connected
Mayor Latasha Johnson of the City of Eutaw, said “ I am glad to be here protesting against Trump who is taking away all our rights and programs Small rural places like Eutaw will be hurt if all these cutbacks go through We all need to stand up now or we will be sorry later
Spiver Gordon of the Alabama Civil Rights Museum, said “Trump, Vance and Musk are trying to erase Black history and the contributions of Black people during and after slavery to our nation That doesn’t seem like making things great – it seems like going backwards
Carol P Zippert, Democrat Co-Publisher said, I am especially disturbed by the impact of these authoritarian steps taken by Trump, Vance and Musk to hurt our children by dismantling the Department of Education cutting back on school lunches banning books in libraries cutting healthcare for children and mothers If you were not able to join us this time, I am sure we will be voicing our resistance again soon, so I hope you will come next time to show the opposition to trump is growing ”
John Zippert, Democrat Co-Publisher, said “We joined millions of people across America and the World in big and small places in bearing witness to the illegal and unjust actions of Trump-Vance-Musk in trying to end our national progress toward fairness, social change and democracy for all people
FSC/LAF
Several edifices will be constructed on the grounds of the FSC/LAF Research and Training Center in Epes (Sumter County) AL The edifices, including a memorial wall orchards gardens, trails, cabins, gazebos benches etc will be dedicated to individuals and groups that helped form the FSC/LAF
Special presentations by Ms Audrey Haskins and Ms Ethel Giles, FSC/LAF staff were made to the family of Mr Eddie Ayers who contributed significant work to the Federation He served on the Board of Directors representing Alabama cooperatives He is also famous for founding and growing the Demopolis Federal Credit Union in 1966
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Don’t
Greene County High School Scholars participated in Dual Enrollment Day at Wallace Selma-Demopolis Campus. They learned about the Dual Enrollment opportunities at Wallace and enjoyed a day of fun to celebrate
Seniors at Greene County High School participated in WOW 2 0 at the Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Center (TCTA) We are pleased to report that ALL 42 seniors that participated were moved to the next step in the hiring process with multiple industries WOW 2 0 is a partnership between West AL Works and Local Business and Industries to provide employment opportunities for graduating seniors Congratulations to the GCHS Class of 2025 Your future is bright Exposure is key
W ill the ‘Hands of f Movement’ have momentum?
(TriceEdneyWire com)Today s signing fulfills a longstanding personal commitment on my part
and civil rights organizations including the NAACP and the nation s largest teachers unions have taken to the courts to block an executive order that would strip the Department of its core responsibilities In Congress, senators are demanding answers after reports surfaced that Trump-era officials may have engaged in illegal mass firings to gut the Department from the inside
By Julianne Malveaux
(TriceEdneyWire com)
-
They rallied in Washington, DC and in Boston, in Chicago and Concord New Hampshire, in Milwaukee and Asheville North Carolina, and in 1300 other places A combined attendance of at least a million people came together to send a message to the President and the man who purchased the coPresidency, Elon Musk The message – hands off our Social Security, our Medicaid and Medicare our 401-k accounts, our immigrant brothers and sisters Organized by MoveOn and supported by hundreds of organizations, the turnout for the Hands Off movement may be a foundation for the necessary resistance to the oligarchal perfidy we can expect from this administration
Many were attending mass events like this for the first time They didn’t go to the Women s March or to the rallies against racism They came out this time because they are outraged at the lawlessness of this administration Many were older, not the rallying kind, but they are apprehensive about what will happen with Social Security and other benefits
Others are federal employees uncertain about their jobs and futures There were teachers nurses attorneys, physicians, poor people and patriotic millionaires, from every demographic The Hands Off rallies are the making of a movement
There are a few more Hands Off events after April 5 Little Rock, Arkansas cancelled their planned gathering because of dangerous weather and will rally On April 12 Parts of Kentucky, managing catastrophic flooding also postponed their gatherings for a week The postponements are evidence of the urgency of this moment, and testimony to the focus and determination that the MoveOn team have exhibited They seem committed to facilitating ways for people to come together lift their voices, and send a message Notably, the President signaled his indifference to this rousing movement by silently playing golf failing to react, except to tout the success of his sweeping tariffs Instead of lowering prices on day one as he promised he is sparking world economic chaos that will be especially harmful for people on the bottom Like Nero “fiddling while Rome Burns this destructive administration seems apathetic to the pain they are causing
No one should be surprised by this administration s reckless disregard for the Constitution for human rights, civil rights, and the order of law Project 2025 details all of these actions but some people don’t believe that fat meat
Is greasy In other words, they heard what the President said he was going to do but didn’t believe him Now that their jobs are being eliminated their relatives being deported, and their food prices are rising they are saying “we didn’t vote for this The massive nature of the Hands Off suggest resistance to this administration’s policies transcends the grousing of a few left-wing activists and Trump detractors Instead many who voted for the current order are now experiencing buyer ’s remorse April 5 was a statement but what’s next? Will people mobilize? Will some of the nonvoters get registered and ready for the 2026 elections? Will the tremendous energy of April 5 encourage people to get involved in state and local politics perhaps running for office or supporting candidates that reject the extremism of this administration and demand more than the platitudes about “a little bit of pain It s easy for some to talk about a little bit of pain, but some will find the pain imposed by this administration unbearable especially those with lower incomes The MoveOn team and the organization that supported Hands Off must keep the momentum going Otherwise April 5 will be simply an exciting activist moment Justice demands a movement, one that is transformative, and also encourages the bipartisan conversation that this administration has avoided They keep talking about their “mandate” but the current president did not win in a popular vote landslide Instead, he
won by 2 28 million votes, or a margin of 1 47 percent He won through voter suppression but also through the nonparticipation of many who are learning, the hard way, what s at stake There were some young Black activists especially Black women who encouraged people to avoid the rallies My cursory view (along with some reporting) suggests that while the speakers and entertainment “looked like America the crowd looked whiter than reality Some Black folks have activism fatigue and we all get it Author Tricia Hersey s book Rest is Resistance, is a reminder that Black women cannot be everything to everybody She writes, You were not just born to center your existence on work and labor You were born to heal to grow, and to be of service to yourself and community to practice, to experiment, to create to have space to dream and to connect ” Balance is the key and resistance is important, invigorating, and transformative
Tr ump’s tarif fs hur t wor ker s. A smar ter tr ade str ate g y could empower them. Defend the Depar tment of Education Our childr en's futur e
My first public office was as a county school board member As a state senator and governor, I devoted much of my time to education issues I remain convinced that education is one of the noblest enterprises a person or a society can undertake ” President Jimmy Carter
President Carter's words, upon signing the bill to create the U S Department of Education in 1979 ring louder today than ever before In a stunning act of political retribution and ideological extremism the Trump campaign and its allies have launched a crusade to dismantle the Department of Education
The attacks are not just symbolic they are existential Executive orders, lawsuits and budgetary sabotage aim to gut the Department s authority, revoke billions in funding, and leave America’s students especially our most vulnerable without the federal oversight and protection they deserve
The National Urban League categorically condemns this reckless and unlawful effort In our most recent statement, we made it plain: eliminating the Department of Education would not only be a disastrous policy, but a direct assault on educational equity, civil rights and the future of economic mobility in this country
Just this month, the Department abruptly halted nearly $3 billion in pandemic-era recovery funds meant to help districts recover learning loss, support mental health and stabilize staffing This sudden move, reportedly linked to political efforts to weaken the agency’s power puts millions of students at risk disproportionately Black, Brown, and low-income children
Meanwhile educators
Let s be clear: these are not isolated incidents They are part of a coordinated campaign to roll back hardwon progress in American education progress that has been essential to Black economic empowerment for more than a century
From the creation of Freedmen s schools during Reconstruction to the expansion of historically Black colleges and universities, access to education has been central to the Black freedom struggle
Teaching was one of the first professional careers open to Black Americans, and education remains one of the clearest pathways to upward mobility Pell Grants desegregation rulings, Title I funding, and affirmative action all of these federal tools have been critical in expanding access to opportunity
The National Urban League has long championed these tools Through our Equitable Education for All pillar and local affiliate programs, we are fighting to improve literacy rates close achievement gaps, increase Black teacher representation, and ensure fair access to postsecondary success Our Urban Youth Empowerment Program, Project Ready, and Community Schools initiatives all depend on a functioning Department of Education that works in partnership with communities, not against them
The Department of Education is far from perfect, but it remains the only federal agency solely focused on ensuring every child regardless of zip code receives a quality education We should strengthen it, not abolish it
Education is not a political bargaining chip It is a moral obligation and a constitutional right Any effort to dismantle the Department of Education is an attack on our children, our communities, and the promise of America itself
We will not stand idly by
By Ben Jealous
(TriceEdneyWire com) -
In the Trump era, economic policy often comes with more bluster than strategy His latest round of tariffs is no exception Slapped on a broad swath of imported goods without rhyme reason or regard for the people who will bear the brunt of the cost –American families and workers – these tariffs are a political stunt masquerading as industrial policy
Let’s be clear: tariffs can be a tool for economic transformation But they must be wielded with precision guided by vision and paired with bold investments What Trump is doing is none of that
His scattershot approach will disturb the ongoing US manufacturing renaissance and raise prices on everything from cars to appliances, hitting working families hardest The administrations recently announced 25% tariff on all cars and auto parts not made entirely in the United States could drive up the cost of an average new car
by thousands of dollars
And for what? There are no clear signals to industry no long-term plans for job creation, no environmental guardrails – just chaos and chest thumping We’ve seen this movie before During Trump s first term, similar tariffs on steel and aluminum were supposed to help revive American manufacturing And they could have, had he invested in clean, safe, high-tech production and the American supply chain Instead Trump opted for pain and scarcity Less availability of metals had a negative downstream impact on the industries that relied on them Prices on goods made with metals went up And American metals makers didn’t have a reason to invest in advanced manufacturing American manufacturing actually has been revived since then but it was the Biden-Harris administration s Inflation Reduction Act and other initiatives like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that were responsible The previous administration s trade policy was also smarter, with narrowly focused tariff increases specifically targeted to China and on sectors critical to the clean energy transition – solar panels electric vehicles EV batteries semiconductors, and yes, steel and aluminum Ideally, tariffs should be paired with investments in domestic manufacturing, particularly
in facilities that are clean, unionized, and ready to meet the climate challenge And tariffs should send a clear message to competitors that there will be consequences for polluting, relying on forced labor and other harmful practices
This is not just about economics; it is about justice Low-income and working-class communities have borne the brunt of dirty industry and offshored jobs Reindustrializing America has to be different this time We need a clean, equitable economy built with and for working families
And here s the good news: it is possible I have seen it From my time crisscrossing the country opposing NAFTA 30 years ago to my current work with the Sierra Club, I have stood shoulder-to-shoulder with labor leaders environmental advocates and frontline communities We agree more often than not We want trade policies that lift wages protect the planet, and rebuild domestic industries – not that rig the game for polluters and drive-up prices on alreadystruggling consumers
Those who oppose this administration’s policies are among those who gathered on April 5 Now they must keep their opposition going in the months to come Thanks, again, MoveOn and thanks to all who turned out The Hands Off website (handsoff2025 com) has information about a May 1 action Check it out!
don’t
By Hannah Ziegler, Washington Post, February 19, 2025
One step in the right direction is for trade agreements and tariffs to address pollution and include carbon border adjustment mechanisms – fees based on the pollution in imported goods exceeding US levels If your steel pollutes rivers in Mexico or your solar panels are made with coal power in China, you should not get a free pass in the US market These mechanisms level the playing field, give American manufacturers a reason to go green and become cleaner and improve conditions for workers and manufacturing communities overseas We also need to update agreements like the United S t a t e s - M e x i c o - C a n a d a Agreement to include rapid-response mechanisms not just for labor abuses, but for environmental violations too If a country undercuts us by trashing its air and water we should be able to act quickly Trump’s tariffs don’t do any of that They are about headlines not outcomes And we do not have time for empty gestures The climate crisis is here American workers are tired of being played And families across this country cannot afford higher prices with no payoff We need a real plan One that brings together labor and environmentalists, manufacturers and frontline communities One that builds a new industrial vision not just for profit, but for people and planet The path is clear What we need now is the courage to walk it
Ben Jealous is the Executive Director of the Sierra Club and a Professor of Practice at the University of Pennsylvania
Dr Julianne Malveaux is an economist and author based in Washington DC Juliannemalveaux com Elon Musk’s claims of Social Security fr aud
Marc H Morial, President and CEO, National Urban League
Dar k Enough to See the Star s
By Marian Wright Edelman
The night before he was assassinated Dr Martin Luther King Jr delivered his prophetic final speech, I ve Been to the Mountaintop,” in Memphis Tennessee It was a speech he almost didn t give He had returned to Memphis on the morning of April 3, 1968, to continue his support of the city s striking Black sanitation workers, but as the day went on he was exhausted and running a fever and the weather was stormy There were fears the storm warnings would also affect the crowd turnout at the mass meeting planned that night at the Mason Temple Church of God in Christ, and Dr King initially asked Rev Ralph Abernathy to speak in his place But when Rev Abernathy saw the hundreds of people and the press contingent who had arrived, he called Dr King at the Lorraine Motel and encouraged him to change his mind
As Dr King took the podium, he began that extraordinary speech by telling the crowd that if he had been given the divine opportunity to stand at the beginning of the world with a view of the panorama of human history and choose his time to be alive, after sweeping through all of the grand possibilities, from ancient Greece and Rome to the Renaissance to the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, he would have chosen to live even “just a few years at that very moment Dr King said: “Now that’s a strange statement to make because the world is all messed up The nation is sick Trouble is in the land; confusion all around That’s a strange statement But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men, in some strange way, are responding ” We are in such a moment now Yet when it is
dark enough, we can still see the stars How are women men and young people responding today?
Just three days before the Memphis speech Dr King was in the nation’s capital for the last time to deliver the March 31 sermon at the National Cathedral “Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution was a title Dr King took from the old story of Rip Van Winkle who fell asleep for twenty years and slept right through the American Revolution, and whenever he retold that story Dr King used it as a warning that during upheaval in our own times we must not do the same In that last Sunday sermon he refuted one more time the myth that patience and time would ultimately solve the problem of injustice Once again, as we honor and remember Dr King today, listen to his words: “I am sorry to say this morning that I am absolutely convinced that the forces of ill will in our nation, the extreme rightists of our nation the people on the wrong side have used time much more effectively than the forces of goodwill It may well be that we will have to repent in this generation, not merely for the vitriolic words and the violent actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence and indifference of the good people who sit around and say ‘Wait on time Somewhere we must come to see that human progress never rolls in on the wheels of inevitability It comes through the tireless efforts and the persistent work of dedicated individuals who are willing to be coworkers with God And without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the primitive forces of social stagnation So we must help time and realize that the time is always ripe to do right ”
Marian Wright Edelman is Founder and President Emerita of the Children's Defense Fund whose Leave No Child Behind® mission is to ensure every child a Healthy Start a Head Start a Fair Start a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities For more information go to childrensdefense org
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PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE
The Town of Forkland will hold a public hearing on April 19, 2025, at 10:00 AM at the Forkland Town Hall, located at 13327 US Highway 43, Forkland, AL 36740 The purpose of this hearing is to discuss a proposed amendment to the Town’s Community Development Block Grant (SM-CE-PF-22-030), awarded in 2023 to support improvements at Forkland Park The proposed amendment aims to revise the project scope to address increased costs and ensure the successful completion of the park improvements The Town of Forkland invites the public to attend and provide feedback on the proposed changes For additional information or to request special accommodations for the hearing, please contact Kinya Isaac at (334) 289-3032
Penny wise and pound foolish This wise saying evolved in England hundreds of years ago A pound is an English monetary unit Today a pound is roughly equal to the U S dollar ($1 28) Today 128 pennies would make a pound Years ago, a pound was worth more than $4 dollars, and 400 pennies would make a pound In a very specific sense the saying means saving a penny and losing something 400 times greater in value In a narrow sense the saying means to save pennies while wasting much larger sums In the broadest sense the saying means to save the small stuff while throwing out the big stuff Penny wise and pound foolish is very much on the loose these days Penny wise and pound foolish
The United States of America became the most powerful economic country (force) on the face of the planet by a unique combination of production and trade Production without trade would not have built such a force Trade without production would not have built such a force Countries don’t produce the same things Countries don t trade the same things However, countries value what each produces and what each trades We must not treat unlike things as equal, but we must have equity in trading Everyone must get something out of the trade This country did not become the most powerful economic force in the world by focusing on the little things while ignoring much bigger more valuable things Penny wise and pound foolish
To have the most powerful economy in the whole world while getting hung up on variations in tariff rates leaves a lot of big things out of the equation Leaders of this country must understand all the dynamics that forged the most powerful economy in the world If current leaders don t do that, they will destroy the most powerful economic force on the planet in the name of tariffs to make this country powerful when it is already the most powerful See what is happening to the stock market with more than six trillion dollars lost in three trading days Penny wise and pound foolish
Tariffs are not the only things that leaders are greatly misjudging The attacks on students who have come to the U S from around the world is another penny wise and pound foolish move These students often stay and help create new products and services They bring a unique creativity because they see opportunities that many of us born here fail to see Coming from a different culture produces a different vision Even when these students return to their original countries they become good will ambassadors for the United States of America Students from foreign countries do not take from this country, they add to this country Don’t stop foreign students from coming to America Penny wise and pound foolish
There are lots of jobs that people born in the United States will not perform but people from certain other countries will perform I grew up in rural Alabama planting, cultivating and picking peas beans okra cucumbers
greens, and other vegeta-
bles I know how difficult these jobs are It is truly hard to bend over all day or work on knees all day for very low pay Some years ago, I planted and cultivated large gardens I could not give away the vegetables if the persons receiving the gift had to go in the garden and pick the vegetables The idea of driving people out of the country who do the least desirable and least paying jobs will leave a lot of food in the fields and a lot of work undone It will result in food prices and other items rising higher and higher to the detriment of all Penny wise and pound foolish American universities are the envy of the world That’s why students from all over the world make their way here by the hundreds of thousands A key element in the greatness of American universities is freedom: freedom of thoughts; freedom of speech; and freedom of association Freedom of speech stimulates freedom of thought and vice versa Freedom of association forges new relationships and new entities Freedom leads to increased productivity We cannot attack freedom of speech and thought without killing spirits that make these universities great We cannot destroy our universities without reducing the greatness of this country Penny wise and pound foolish In my view fear causes us to hesitate, to stop moving with confidence, to withdraw to react negatively Fear causes us to take fewer risks and ultimately to make less progress Fear is contagious It infects not just select persons but all that it touches We cannot make people fearful in one area without fear spreading to unintended areas Campaigns of fear destroy more than they save Penny wise and pound foolish
Some of us seem to think the government should outlaw the history of certain peoples All history made in this country is American history History is not like one big sheet or spread History is a quilt pieced together from multiple moments and multiple actions and multiple peoples at multiple times We never know how one moment or one action will impact another moment or another action or another person or another group at another time Selective suppression of certain history will have unforeseeable adverse consequences Besides such suppression will drive history underground where it will become virulent Campaigns to suppress the history of certain peoples are counterproductive Campaigns to suppress certain books must cease as well Penny wise and pound foolish
In a previous Sketches, I outlined the commonly accepted characteristics that make countries great These include: economic indicators such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP) GDP per capita high employment rates, low inflation, and a positive trade balance; political stability grounded in democracy; legal foundations such as the rule of law, due process, fairness, and justice; social systems that meet basic human needs in health, education, and general well-being; inclusion and equality for all people; military strength; and cultural influence All of these
characteristics, to varying degrees, have been and are abundant in this country and combine to make this country great Now all of these characteristics are under severe attack Penny wise and pound foolish
The economy is under attack with massive tariffs that will result in higher inflation and lower unemployment Foundations of the legal system such as the rule of law, are under attack with threats to the entire legal system including judges and lawyers Essential public services such as education, health, social security, Medicaid and Medicare are under attack with reductions in funding and/or abolishment Inclusion and equality are being diminished with attacks on diversity inclusion and equality Cultural power is being diminished by threats to other countries causing fear and revulsion; and military power is being adversely impacted with senseless threats to take over Canada Greenland Panama and Gaza Penny wise and pound foolish
The United States, by commonly accepted standards is the greatest country in the world Now the very things that made this country “great” are under all-out attacks I am extremely concerned about this democracy, however imperfect To me democracy is the lynch pin to this greatness It is so ironic that this country s greatness is being destroyed in the name of making it “great ” We all have a responsibility to do something to make a positive difference Let s each of us take a stand for true greatness Now on to the Daily Diary
Saturday, March 29, 2025 – I drove to Birmingham to the Women s NCAA Basketball Regional Playoffs We were taking two of our grandchildren to see the women s games in person over a three-day period After the games on Saturday we went to dinner and then spent the night in Birmingham Among others I communicated with the following: Faya Rose Toure of the Bridge Crossing Jubilee and Ayyana Fortier and Asa Fortier of Selma
Sunday – We awakened in Birmingham and went to see more women’s basketball games We met other family members after the games for dinner and spent the night in Birmingham Among others I communicated with the following: Sharon Wheeler of Montgomery; David Gaines, Walter Gaines and Ursula Stribling of Birmingham; and Jason Rogers of Selma
Monday – We left Birmingham early in the morning because of severe weather threats We transferred our tickets for Monday's games to others We traveled to Montgomery for a medical appointment and then traveled on to Selma We arrived to find the office closed and the internet not working Severe weather had knocked out the power, the internet and the computers The lights came back on and I worked into the night Among others, I communicated with the following: Dr Adelaide Sanford of Philadelphia Pennsylvania
whose grandchild transitioned; Valeria Bright of Montgomery; and Josephine Curtis of Selma
Tuesday – I arrived at my office early only to discover that I had to drop everything and immediately travel to Lowndes County to handle certain matters I returned to Selma, handled additional matters and worked into the night Among others, I communicated with the following: Lowndes County School Superintendent Samita Jeter; Yvette Patterson of Lowndes County; Steve Thomason of Montgomery; Azali Fortier of Spelman College; Sarita Atkins and Robert Atkins of Selma; Greene County School Superintendent Dr Corey Jones; Helen McClellan of Gadsden; and Cynthi Ross of Detroit Michigan
Wednesday – I handled many matters, participated in a Zoom meeting chaired another meeting and worked into the night Among others, I communicated with the following: Law Professor Emerita Martha Morgan; Jade Sipes of Birmingham; Charles Sanders of Baldwin County; and Gloria Pompey Marilyn Cosby Geraldine Wofford, Karen Jackson, Charlene Williams, Junior Oliver, Tyesha Smith and Liz Rutledge of Selma
Thursday – I walked, handled many matters chaired a local New South Coalition meeting and worked into the night Among others, I communicated with the following: Greene County School Board President Leo Branch; Greene County Democrat Co-Publishers Dr Carol P Zippert and John Zippert; Ebony Flake of Dallas, Texas; Fourth Judicial Circuit Judge Collins Pettaway Jr ; Betty Strong Boynton and Reverend Michael Bowen of Selma; and Queen Jackson of Montgomery
Friday – I handled many matters as I worked into the night Among others, I communicated with the following: Wallace Community College Selma President Dr James Mitchell; Coumba Toure Ba of Senegal West Africa; Askhari Little of Washington, D C ; and Dixie Bonner of Talladega
EPILOGUE – Some of us build families Some of us build organizations Some of us build institutions Some of us build communities Some of us build countries Others of us tear down these very same entities in the guise of building them greater This country is being torn down in the name of making it “great” when it is already great by commonly accepted standards We just need to work together to make this country greater Penny wise and pound foolish
EarthTalk® From the Editors of EThe Environmental Magazine
Dear EarthTalk: How will Trump pulling the U S out of the Paris climate accord affect international efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions? -- Paul B , Houston, TX
The Paris Climate Accord established in 2015 is a global agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit temperature rise to well below 2°C ideally 1 5°C Nearly every nation has signed on, signaling a shared commit-
Whether or not international negotiators can rein in carbon emissions in time to stave off cataclysmic climate change is anybody's guess without the U S involved Credit: Pexels com
ment to combating climate change In January 2025, Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the U S from both the accord and the U N Framework Convention on Climate Change
This isn t the first time In his previous term, Trump also initiated a withdrawal, but a statutory four-year delay meant the U S was only out for four months
Financial Aid Confusion
remaining party to the accord for most of his term That delay was since shortened to 12 months enabling a quicker, more complete withdrawal this time
With this move the U S joins Iran Libya and Yemen as the only non-participating nations Critics say it signals that the U S is an unreliable partner undermining diplomatic relations
State attorneys general in 20 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit challenging the agency’s gutting According to the AGs the department is a congressionally authorized executive agency with laws creating its various programs and funding streams As such the Executive Branch lacks the legal authority to unilaterally incapacitate or dismantle it without an act of Congress
The administration s layoff is so massive that ED will be incapacitated and unable to perform essential functions ” said Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown “As the lawsuit asserts the administration s actions will deprive students with special needs of critical resources and support They will gut ED’s Office of Civil Rights, which protects students from discrimination and sexual assault They would additionally hamstring the processing of financial aid, raising costs for college and university students who will have a harder time accessing loans Pell Grants and work study programs
This administration may claim to be stopping waste and fraud, but it is clear that their only mission is to take away the necessary services, resources, and funding that students and their families need ” said New York Attorney General Leticia James
While it is encouraging for state attorneys general to file legal challenges against administration actions, and education advocates to raise their voices and influence to thwart these changes, every day that passes without direct relief makes borrowers financial challenges harder and more difficult to resolve
For example even before legislation was enacted to avert a government shutdown in March the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) predicted the popular Pell Grant program that over six million students rely upon faced a $2 7 billion funding shortfall this year Pell Grants, the single largest source of post-secondary education grants provided $31 billion in aid with approximately 6 5 million undergraduate students in FY2023
Without additional funding the grant shortfall is expected to balloon to $10 billion in 2026 Currently the maximum annual award per eligible student in the formula-based program is $7,395 Most Pell recipients come from families whose total income is $60,540 or less
It is relevant to note that the new round of cuts to the Pell Grant program are not the first time that significant changes have been made Instead the new changes come in addition to others never restored For example, in the aftermath of the Great Recession in FYs 2011 and 2012, the option for year-round” Pell, which helped students make continuous progress toward their credentials was eliminated That same action also cut the number of lifetime semesters a student can receive Pell Grants from 18 to 12 semesters and remains unchanged
In response to CBO s disturbing report, a coalition of over 100 higher education organizations signed a February letter appealing to committee chairs and ranking members in both the Senate and the House to act with dispatch Its signatories included an array of organizations such as: the American Association of University Women Center for Law & Social Policy, Georgetown University Center on Education & the Workforce, NAACP, National Education Association, National Consumer Law Center, Student Borrower Protection Center, and the United Negro College Fund
“If additional funding is not added to the Pell Grant program very soon students could face eligibility or award cuts for the first time in more than a decade wrote the educators Students cannot afford such cuts during a time of rising living costs, and our economy cannot afford to have students lose access to the education and training they need to succeed in the labor market The maximum Pell Grant already covers the lowest share of college costs in the program’s history contributing to a persistent “affordability gap” that forces low- and middle-income students to either take out loans or forgo higher education and training entirely
And speaking of loans – borrowers understand that when it takes longer to repay principal owed interest fees rise as well Further fixed interest rates on graduate student loans come at a higher price than those for undergraduate loans New federal direct loans disbursed between July 1, 2024 and July 1, 2025 carry 6 53 percent fixed interest rates for undergraduate loans, but an 8 08 percent rate for graduate and professional loans
Part of the restored text describes the 18th- and 19th-century Underground Railroad as efforts of enslaved African Americans to gain their freedom by escaping bondage Tubman was one of the system’s best-known “conductors ” Earlier, a photograph of Harriet Tubman was removed from a webpage about the Underground Railroad Previously the page opened with a photo of Tubman and a description that acknowledged slavery and the efforts of enslaved African Americans to escape bondage That language is now gone
The change followed an executive order signed by President Donald Trump last month directing the Smithsonian Institution to eliminate “divisive narratives ” A review by The Washington Post found that since Trump’s return to office dozens of webpages across the National Park Service have been edited to soften or eliminate references to slavery racial injustice, and the historical struggles of African Americans
On the website for the Stone National Historic Site in Maryland, mentions of Declaration of Independence signer Thomas Stone owning enslaved people were removed Elsewhere references to “enslaved African Americans” were changed to “enslaved workers ”
A page exploring Benjamin Franklin s views on slavery and his slave ownership was taken offline Those references were still missing despite the restoration of Tubman and the Underground Railroad
The Defense Department also removed several webpages related to diversity and minority contributions to the U S military including a tribute to Jackie Robinson s Army service and content honoring the Tuskegee Airmen, the Navajo Code Talkers, and the Marines at Iwo Jima Officials later said some content would be republished after public outcry Nearly 400 books were removed from the library at the U S Naval Academy The list includes Maya Angelou s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Memorializing the Holocaust, Half American, and Pursuing Trayvon Martin Officials cited Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s directive to eliminate books that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion
and weakening its global credibility Even the brief withdrawal last time disrupted momentum Biden was late preparing for the COP26 conference due to the reentry process creating uncertainty among allies and competitors alike
European Commission
President Ursula von der Leyen has called the Paris Agreement “the best hope for all humanity ” underscoring its global significance But this second U S exit could be very damaging Already Argentina is reportedly re-evaluating its commitment raising concerns that the U S withdrawal could trigger a broader unraveling of climate consensus
Domestically, the move undercuts the momentum of the Inflation Reduction Act casting doubt on clean energy investments and rattling the renewable energy
sector Internationally it threatens efforts to meet COP29 s goal of mobilizing $100 billion annually to help developing nations adapt to climate change a target heavily reliant on U S contributions The European Union may respond by pushing ahead with ambitious climate policies further isolating the U S on the global stage And fossil fuel-rich countries like Saudi Arabia could double down on their interests no longer facing strong U S counterbalance
At home Trump has declared a “national energy emergency, prioritizing fossil fuels and rolling back environmental regulations
This has emboldened the oil gas and coal sectors while leaving renewable energy companies in limbo
“Pulling out of the Paris Agreement is an abdication of responsibility and undermines the very global action
that people at home and abroad desperately need says Rachel Cleetus of the Union of Concerned Scientists echoing a chorus of scientists warning that the U S retreat threatens both international cooperation and the planet’s future
CONTACTS: America’s Pledge on Climate C
K "http://www americaspledgeonclimate com" americaspledgeonclimate com
EarthTalk® is produced by Roddy Scheer & Doug Moss for the 501(c)3 nonprofit EarthTalk See more
https://emagazine com To donate visit HYPERLINK "https://earthtalk org"https: //earthtalk org Send questions to: HYPERLINK
In other words higher education comes with higher costs And the longer loan repayment takes, the higher and harder it becomes to fully repay them
Today, many borrowers currently enrolled in affordable, income-based repayment options have been frustrated by a lack of online access to complete mandatory income recertification Without that timely access spikes in monthly payments ensue As recently reported by Forbes, This effectively keeps millions of student loan borrowers who had enrolled in SAVE stuck in a forbearance The forbearance pauses payments and sets interest to zero, but the period does not count toward student loan forgiveness, including for Public Service Loan Forgiveness or PSLF – a popular program for borrowers working in nonprofit or government settings
For many of us, student loans were supposed to be a path forward, not something that holds us back,” said Mike Pierce, executive director of the Student Borrower Protection Center “We need leaders that prioritize policies that put working people first ”
Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending She can be reached at Charlene crowell@responsiblelending org" data-linkindex="10">Charlene crowell@responsiblelending org
Cor y Booker
It was a cathartic moment for a vast swath of demoralized voters across the country, who tuned in amid hunger for some action by the opposition party beyond the traditions of business as usual
And for a Democratic Party that has been lost in the wilderness since its bruising defeat to Donald Trump last fall, it offered a rare moment of hope to pursue what may be its only chance of slowing Trump down: inspiring a mass popular uprising against him
“There’s a lot of people out there asking Democrats to do more and to take risks and do things differently, an exhausted Booker told reporters after he walked off the floor This seemed like the right thing to do And from what my staff is telling me a lot of people watched And so we ll see what it is I just think a lot of us have to do a lot more, including myself ” Throughout Tuesday afternoon, Booker was trending across social media, including on TikTok BlueSky and even Elon Musk's X
The speech got over 350 million "likes" on Booker's TikTok livestream of his remarks, according to his office including more than 300 000 people viewing them across his platform at once It included over 200 stories from New Jerseyans and Americans And it drew over 28,000 voicemails of encouragement on Booker's office phone line, along with public accolades from Democratic luminaries like former Vice President Kamala Harris and Rep Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif , the former House speaker
“Rank-and-file Dems are desperate for leadership and fighters ” said Ezra Levin a cofounder of the progressive organization Indivisible, which has accused Democrats of being too passive against Trump
Sen Peter Welch, D-Vt , said Booker taught Democrats a lesson He made the Senate relevant and he captured the moment where people were focused on the why we have to push back and stand up against Trump, as opposed to the tactical day-to-day slog,” he said It was very inspirational Yet despite the reaction Booker s speech won t end Trump’s attempts to dismantle the federal government or halt his agenda of tax cuts and mass deportations from barreling through the Republican-controlled Congress The only specific Senate business it disrupted were votes on a resolution involving Trump’s tariffs and his nominee to be the U S ambassador to NATO
After Booker finished the GOP moved toward a vote on that nominee Matthew Whitaker, prompting some outside liberals to say Democrats should treat it like an abnormal moment and object
Democratic strategist Mike Nellis said that Booker s move recognizes the political currency of the modern era and that Democrats can take a page from his playbook Cynics are going to call Booker ’s speech a stunt Maybe but stunts aren’t necessarily a bad thing The name of the game is attention ” he wrote on X “Trump and Musk are very good at it Democrats have struggled to take these kinds of risks to our own peril but Cory is paving the way forward
Adam Jentleson, a former senior Senate Democratic aide, said Booker marshaled the chamber's arcane rules to great effect, posting on X that "in today s fractured media environment, Booker singlehandedly drove the narrative "
He added that Democrats have more tools at their disposal to build on that, if they unify: "As a thought experiment imagine what a coordinated caucus-wide talking filibuster against, say, a GOP funding bill that cuts popular social safety net programs would look like as opposed to just voting it down at a 60-vote threshold?"
Booker s preparation included 1,164 pages of material and some unusual physical techniques to brace his body which couldn’t sit or go to the bathroom for the entire session
A spokesperson said Booker didn’t wear a catheter or a diaper
And Booker managed to remain on message for the duration of his remarks albeit with help from Democratic colleagues who joined to ask him questions While senators before him had gone off topic during long floor remarks like Ted Cruz R-Texas who read the book "Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr Seuss during a 21-hour speech protesting Obamacare in 2013 Booker stayed focused on highlighting what he perceived to be the negative impacts of the Trump administration’s policies
I fasted for days into it I stopped drinking water a long time ago I think that had good and bad benefits I definitely started cramping up from lack of water ” he said “So there’s just a lot of tactics I was using to try to make sure that I could stand for that long
“I really spent time dehydrating myself beforehand so I did not have to go to the bathroom, he said
Inside the packed chamber Booker got a standing ovation when he crossed Strom Thurmond's record of 24 hours and 18 minutes It was a deeply symbolic moment for Booker, who is African American to end a record held for nearly 70 years by a man who was a symbol of segregation politics and was fighting at the time to kill the Civil Rights Act in 1957
“To be candid, Strom Thurmond’s record always kind of just really irked me that he would be the longest speech, that the longest speech on our great Senate floor was someone who was trying to stop people like me from being in the Senate ” Booker told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow on Tuesday night So to surpass that was something I didn t know if we could do but it was something that was really once we got closer became more and more important to me
NAACP President Derrick Johnson thanked Booker “for demonstrating true courage in the face of hatred
“Despite Trump’s attempts to silence the voices contributions and history of Black people, a Black man just made history tonight in protest of Trump himself,” he said in a statement
Yet Booker was the first to insist his speech can’t be the end “My constituents the letters the calls the demands were definitely an ignition point for me he said But we have got to continue to ignite this movement ”
Har riet Tubman
Black couple reviewing bills
But experts say coding quirks and outdated technology, not fraud, explain why so many Americans are listed as 150 years old in those databases And while fraud exists, it is limited compared with other government aid programs they say Here s what you need to know
Are Social Security payments actually going to 150-year-old
No according to Olivia Mitchell a professor of insurance and risk management at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School Musk’s allegation that Social Security doles out payments to dead Americans is based on a “misunderstanding of how Social Security computer systems work Mitchell wrote in an email to The Washington Post Jeffrey Brown a finance professor at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, agreed, say-
ing: It s simply a coding issue ”
No one takes 1875 seriously as a birth year added Brown, who previously served on the bipartisan Social Security Advisory Board The Social Security Administration maintains its databases using COBOL, a nearly 70-yearold computer programming language that has long served as the backbone for data maintenance in many government and finance-related industries said Manjeet Rege, chair of the software engineering and data science department at the University of St Thomas The Social Security Administration maintained more than 60 million lines of COBOL in 2016 according to a report that year from the agency’s inspector general
The challenge with COBOL is that it doesn’t have a standardized way to store and work with dates unlike most modern programming languages
Black Economy
Instead, many dates in COBOL must be coded to a reference number, often using an international standard, Rege explained The most common reference date number is May 20 1875 under an international standard known as ISO 8601 That means if someone applies for Social Security without a birth date they may be recorded as 150 years old in the database depending on how a programmer troubleshoots the issue
Programmers can overcome these limitations in COBOL’s functionality, but they may also opt to use 1875 as a placeholder for unknown dates if it aligns with the database’s purpose, Rege said For example when the federal government began issuing regular monthly Social Security payments in January 1940 recipients needed to be at least 65 to qualify, meaning they needed to be born in 1875 or before Those who crafted the Social Security database
The stock market and global markets are shaking because the U S has implemented tariffs on imports to this country The expectation is that the costs will be transferred to consumers There s been no rhyme or reason for each country s percentage of tariffs it’s receiving for imported goods to the U S
The National Urban League, an economic rights organization, urges people to “resist” and fight against these drastic financial shifts Marc Morial the President and CEO of the organization believes federal government firings will create an impending slowdown [that] will drive Black unemployment up 18 to 19% of all government employees identify as Black or African American
Morial also added “DOGE is a disaster for Black people” as it “targets those agencies that have invested in the most vulnerable- the Department of Education Minority Business Development Agency, National Institutes of Health, and Veterans Affairs Another concern of the president s economic plan is his budget
Reverend William Barber, founder of Repairers of the Breach, calculated, “60% of Black people in this country are poor and are low wealth” and will be severely impacted by the president s budget that cuts out money in Medicare and Medicaid
Barber emphasized, Eight hundred eighty billion dollars would be cut from Medicaid for the 10-year plan It would cut 36 million people from Medicaid, impacting more than 6 million Black people ” Barber says the president’s proposed 10-year budget is just as “dangerous and it’s deadly” as “800 people die a day from poverty ”
Black people need to be in the budget battle says Barber amid financial concerns for Black wallets, Boomer says consumers should take a hard look at your spending Are there areas where you could make cuts? Now is the time to increase your savings and to put cash aside to make more investments “
The White House said the tariffs are aimed at addressing what it described as longstanding trade imbalances that hurt American manufacturers In the case of Lesotho, the administration cited a 99% tariff on U S goods and a $264 million trade surplus in the kingdom’s favor as justification for the steep penalty Lesotho which exports diamonds and apparel to the U S imported only $8 million in American goods in 2022 according to the Tralac Trade Law Centre in South Africa
The U S government’s action also appears to signal the impending death of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) a landmark trade deal from the Clinton administration that allowed duty-free access to the U S market for many African exports The pact will expire in September, but trade experts say the tariffs effectively end AGOA months ahead of schedule The reciprocal trade announcement policy will pull the AGOA rug from under our feet,” said Adrian Saville, an economist and professor at South Africa’s Gordon Institute of Business Science “That will be gone It will replace AGOA; you don t have to wait for September
Other African nations are also reeling Madagascar faces a 47% tariff, Mauritius 40%, Botswana 37%, and South Africa the continent’s largest exporter to the U S 30% For several of these countries, the tariffs could not come at a worse time as they struggle with severe poverty natural disasters or public health crises Lesotho for example has one of the world s highest HIV/AIDS infection rates and relies on South Africa for 85% of its imports
“African countries are being penalized for having trade surpluses, some of them achieved by pursuing export-driven development policies as advised by the U S ” Bloomberg Africa economist Yvonne Mhango wrote “Lesotho exports apparel to the U S , a product that until recently enjoyed duty-free access and helped create jobs for the youth that migrates in large numbers to neighboring South Africa
One of Trump’s arguments for these tariffs is to bring back manufacturing jobs to the U S Slapping high tariffs on Africa is not going to help this narrative ” Lesotho now joins Saint Pierre and Miquelon a French archipelago off the coast of Canada as the only other territory to face a 50% reciprocal tariff from the Trump administration While acknowledging the setback, the South African presidency said the tariffs make it even more important to reach a new agreement with the U S “The tariffs affirm the urgency to negotiate a new bilateral and mutually beneficial trade agreement with the U S , as an essential step to secure long-term trade certainty, the South African government said in a statement
may have, therefore, set 1875 as the default birth year for anyone who lacked that information at the time
How much Social Security fraud is there?
Between 2015 and 2022 the Social Security Administration estimated it issued about $72 billion in improper payments, most of which were overpayments according to a report last year from the administration s inspector general That figure accounts for less than 1 percent of the total benefits paid during that period, the report said The amount of fraud is quite small,” said Wendell Primus, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution who served as senior policy adviser on health and budget issues to Rep Nancy Pelosi (D-California), the former House speaker “In the case of Social Security [compared with other programs] everything is pretty well-
set It s permanent law
But Musk who has characterized multiple federal agencies as riddled with fraud, has recently zeroed in on Social Security arguing without evidence that the program is rife with erroneous payments
There are scenarios in which Social Security payments continue for additional months after a person has died, but authorities typically handle those cases swiftly, Primus said For their part, watchdog groups have suggested improvements to help the Social Security Administration better its recordkeeping especially for beneficiaries who have died Some have suggested the administration hand some of its tracking duties over to the Treasury Department, while others have called for a revamping of its methodology for updating birth and death information
The legitimate policy question is: How do we
handle people for whom we don’t have confirmed birth dates? Brown said “And the second legitimate question is: Can we do better at tracking death? Yes ”
What database did Musk and DOGE access?
This issue remains unclear Musk did not specify which Social Security database DOGE had gotten into saying only that his staffers had begun a cursory examination” of the federal program DOGE stands for the Department of Government Efficiency DOGE s access to records that contain the Social Security and bank information of millions of Americans has sparked outrage at some federal agencies charged with protecting that data The acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration left her job this past weekend after clashing with Musk over DOGE’s attempts to access sensitive government records
Celebr ating Nutrition Month: Pr omoting Healthy Eating Among Senior s at Eutaw Activity Center
March is National Nutrition Month a time to emphasize the importance of healthy eating On March 26 the Eutaw Activity Center hosted a special nutrition program for seniors, featuring a guest speaker from the WACH agency The event was led by Tameka King FCS Agent and Sheanell Edwards, Youth Development Agent, from the Tuskegee University Cooperative Extension
Alshantynea Carpenter, EFNAP agent, conducted a smoothie-making demonstration showing attendees how to prepare simple, nutritious drinks The program provided valuable insights into balanced diets and practical ways to improve daily nutrition Events like these continue to promote health and wellness in the community
Submitted by Tameka King, Extension Agent
JOB OPENING THE GREENE COUNTY WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITY
Part-time Chief Financial Officer
Preparing general ledgers, trail balances and other financial statements
•Preparing accounting, statistical, and financial reports
•Reconciling Financial Accounts
Assistant Administrator/Secretary
Supporting the Office Administrator/Director
•Preparing communications
Create and maintain filing systems, both electronic and physical
Apply at Greene County Water and Sewer Authority: 253 Harris Avenue Eutaw, Al 35462
Phone: 205-372-1661 or 205-372-1662
*Greene County Water and Sewer Authority is an Equal Opportunity Employer
JOB OPENING FOR AN ATTORNEY THE GREENE COUNTY WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITY
Representing the Water Authority in legal proceedings
•Attending the Authority s Board Meetings and Call Meetings
Prepare, drafting legal documents and reviewing and negotiation contracts
•Advising the Authority on legal rights and responsibilities
Providing legal support and guidance
Preparing and filing legal documents
Working closely with the Water Authority
Apply at Greene County Water and Sewer Authority: 253 Harris Avenue Eutaw, Al 35462
Phone: 205-372-1661 or 205-372-1662
Greene County Water and Sewer Authority is an
schalor s “Caught Being Good”
Tarif f
CSP host Bystander CPR Tr aining
Submitted by Jennifer Watkins Community Service Program of West Alabama (CSP) partnered with Tuscaloosa VAMC Veterans Affairs to host a free training in By-stander CPR The class teaches how to help with no mouth-tomouth contact and useof a AED The March 25 class was held in Hale County April 1- Greene County and April 8 in Perry County Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure consisting of chest compressions often combined with artificial ventilation or mouth-tomouth in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a per-
son who is in cardiac arrest It is recommended for those who are unresponsive with no breathing or abnormal breathing, for example, agonal respirations CPR involves chest compressions for adults between 5 cm (2 0 in) and 6 cm (2 4 in) deep and at a rate of at least 100 to 120 per minute The rescuer may also provide artificial ventilation by either exhaling air into the subject s mouth or nose (mouth-tomouth resuscitation) or using a device that pushes air into the subject's lungs (mechanical ventilation)
Current recommendations emphasize early and highquality chest compressions over artificial ventilation; a simplified CPR method involving only chest compressions is recommended for untrained rescuers With
children, however, 2015 American Heart Association guidelines indicate that doing only compressions may result in worse outcomes, because such problems in children normally arise from respiratory issues rather than from cardiac ones, given their young age Chest compression to breathing ratios are set at 30 to 2 in adults
CPR alone is unlikely to restart the heart Its main purpose is to restore the partial flow of oxygenated blood to the brain and heart
The objective is to delay tissue death and to extend the brief window of opportunity for a successful resuscitation without permanent brain damage Administration of an electric shock to the subject's heart, termed defibrillation is usually needed to restore a viable,
or "perfusing", heart
rhythm
Defibrillation is effective only for certain heart rhythms namely ventricular fibrillation or pulseless ventricular tachycardia, rather than asystole or pulseless electrical activity which usually requires the treatment of underlying conditions to restore cardiac function Early shock, when appropriate is recommended CPR may succeed in inducing a heart rhythm that may be shockable In general CPR is continued until the person has a return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) or is declared dead
Duration: 6 minutes and 39 seconds 6:39
The best position for CPR maneuvers in the sequence of first aid reactions to a cardiac arrest is a question that has been long studied
As a general reference, the recommended order (according to the guidelines of many related associations such as AHA and Red Cross) is:
Asking for help from bystanders in case any of them have received first aid training or can perform additional tasks
Variation: when the rescuer is alone and no phone is nearby the rescuer would go first for a phone to call for emergency medical services (only if the rescuer can return in very few minutes to apply CPR maneuvers to the patient, or emergency medical services will be with the patient in a few minutes)
Calling by phone for emergency medical services Also, go for an automated defibrillator (AED) but only if the AED is avail-
GCHS senior s par ticipate in Mock Inter views
On April 4, seniors at Greene County High School participated in mock job interviews The seniors prepared for the event by creating resumes in Ms Tura Edwards’
English class and practicing interview skills with both Ms. Edwards and Mr L E Burnette For the interview experience, three professors from The University of Alabama
College of Education, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Dr Cory Callahan, Dr Terrance J Lewis and Dr Crista K Banks, as well as Ms Rebecca Coleman of the
GCHS visited by A&M faculty and scholar s
Greene County High Scholar was visit by some faculty and students of Alabama A&M University Scholarship Tour!!Thank you for your support! Congratulations, Scholarship Recipients
Greene County High School Scholars participated in Tiger Fest at Stillman College Scholars learned about the educational opportunities and student life at Stillman College The Greene County High School Marching Tiger Band performed with the Stillman College Band It was a GREAT DAY to be a GCHS TIGER!
able within a few minutes
Attempting defibrillation with the automated external defibrillator (AED) because it is easy to use if it has been found If not, or until it has arrived, attempting CPR maneuvers as the latest step of those possible ones If there are multiple rescuers, these tasks can be distributed and performed simultaneously to save time
If you would like to have the By-stander CPR training at your community agency or service organization contact Sharon Allen sharon allen3@va gov or Anita Rutledge or anita rutledge@a gov or call 205-469-0386 or 205-7585429
J Lewis
Greene County School System, served as interviewers
Photo: Chaky’a Dixon introduces herself to Dr Terrance
Photo: Jasmine Simpson responds to a question from Dr. Crista K. Banks as, in the background, La’Dasia Hutton is interviewed by Ms Rebecca Coleman
Photo: Jamiyah Bullock explains her plans to Dr Cory Callahan
GCHS scholar s tour Stillman Colle ge
Someone once said, "I bargained with life for a penny only to learn dismayed, that any wage I would have asked of life life would have paid We get out of life what we ask and expect Never sell yourself short Your life is invaluable Be unreasonable Think big Expect more Demand more
In the Probate Court of Greene County Alabama State of Alabama County of Greene Case N In the Matter of the Administration of The Estate of Edgar Williams deceased Notice
To : Monica Letterwood and any and all unknown heirs at law and next of kin of Edgar Williams
You are hereby notified that the Probate Court of Greene County Alabama based on the Petition of Edgar B Williams filed for the Adminstration of the Estate of Edgar Williams, Deceased with Will Annexed It appears from the Petition that the heirs at law and next to kin of Edgar Williams where abouts are unknown
Therefore, service of process and notice of the hearing of the Petition in the Matter of the Administration of the Estate of Edgar Williams, Deceased must be obtained on them by publication You are hereby notified that the Petition in the Matter of the Administration of the Estate of Edgar Williams, Deceased is set for hearing before the Probate Court of Greene County, Alabama in Eutaw Alabama 35462 on the 12th day of May 2025 at 11:00 o’clock and be governed accordingly Rolonda M Wedgeworth Judge of Probate 4tcg 3/19 4/2 9
Legal Notice Case No 2024009 Notice to Creditors
The State of Alabama Greene County Probate Court Estate of Debbie Ann Taylor Deceased Letters of Administration having been granted to the undersigned on the 15th day of April, 2024, by the Honorable Rolonda M Wedgeworth Judge of Probate Court of Greene County Alabama notice is
d a n c e Young Bertha Williams Dexter Morton, Michael Olukoya Carolyn J Young, Cleve Spencer, Hodges Smith Annie Perry Shakeisha Richardson Happy Anniversary to Rev & Mrs John and Kisha Williams Cedrick & Tamela Ware Carolyn’s
"People can alter their lives by altering their atti-
tudes " Happy birthday to John Scott Jr Tonny Washington, LeDerrick Hunter, Aniah Robinson Kaylen Allen, Rodney Perry, Vinci Morton Rev James Wilson, Timothy Davis, Lakisha T Robinson Olympia Bradley, James Wilson, Jalon Nelson LaTeka French, Ethel Spencer, Kolton Spencer Amari Jackson, Adyen Jackson, Latonya Fields, Nicole
---Le gal Notices---
hereby given that all perons having claims against said Estate are required to file an itemized and verified statement of such claim in the office of the said Judge of Probate within six months from above date or said claim will be barred and payment prohibited Deandre Derrell Taylor Administrator 15 day of April, 2024
Attorney C Burton Dunn Dunn & Associates, LLC P O Box 13081 Birmingham, AL 35202
Phone: 205-352-4455 3tcg 4/2 9 16
Legal Notice In the Matter of the Estate of Sinnie Neal Richardson Deceased Notice of Service by Publication To: Syni Jean Champion, Inaam Kenyatta Aisha K e n y a t
Richardson and Demetrius Richardson
You will hereby take notice that on the 19th March 2025, Dwayne Walton, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Sinnie Neal Richardson, filed in this Court an Amended Petition for Sale of Real Estate Your are hereby notified to be and appear before me at the Probate Office of Greene County, Alabama, on the 29th day of April 2025, at 11 0’clock a m when the petition will be considered, and show cause, if any, your have allege as to why said Petition and Motion should not be approved by this Court Done this the 19th day of March 2025
Rolonda M Wedgeworth Probate Judge
Richard G Cross P O Box 1528 Livingston Alabama 35470
3tcg 4/2,9,16 Legal Notice
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In the Probate Court to Greene County Alabama In Re : The Estate of Wilbert Morrow Deceased
Notice of hearing To Wilhelmina Winston Ester Jackson -Guajardo, Deseree Jackson Madlock Levi A Jackson, Rosemary Jackson Burma Grace Jackson, Denisa BrownPerkins Valerie Morrow Kevyn Morrow, Lillian Fondren and Vera Matthews,
Take notice that a writing purposted to be the Last will and Testament of Wilbert Morrow has been filed with this Court on the 16th day of June 2025 at 10:00 0’clock a hearing will be held regarding same, at which time you can appear if you see proper Date this 27th day of March 2025
Rolonda M Wedgeworth Judge of Probate Walter Griess
Griess Shaw & Willingham 315 Main Street P O Box 528 Eutaw AL 35462
Phone (205) 372-9333 Fax (205) 372-4027 FOR LEGAL
Case No 2024-042
Watkins, Gloria Hunter, Kourtney Davis, April Lauren Branch Claudine F u l g h a m , C
NOTICE TO CREDITORS The State of Alabama Greene County Probate Court Estate of: William B Wilder Deceased
Notice is hereby given that a Petition for Summary Distribution having been filed by Altheria Wilder on the 14th day of November 2024, in the Office of the Probate Court of Greene County Alabama and that all persons having claims against said Estate are required to file an itemized and verified statement of such claim in the office of the Honorable Rolanda M Wedgeworth, Judge of Probate, within 30 days of this notice or said claim will be barred and payment prohibited
Altheria Wilder, Personal Representative
Of Counsel:
Waters Sullivan LLC 2 Twentieth Street North Suite 1350 Birmingham, AL 35203 205 855 5020
1tcg 4/9/2025
Eutaw Annual Chamber Meeting
The event has been postponed until Thursday April 24th at 6:00 pm at the Greene County Historical Courthouse Tennyson Smith, Jr will be our guest speaker
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