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Insight News

February 7, 2022 - February 13, 2022

Vol. 49 No. 6• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Page 2 • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Insight News

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Insight News • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Page 3

Insight News

INSIGHT NEWS IS AUDITED BY THE ALLIANCE FOR AUDITED MEDIA TO PROVIDE OUR ADVER TISER PAR TNERS WITH THE HIGHES T LEVEL OF MEDIA ASSURANCE.

February 7, 2022 - February 13, 2022

Vol. 49 No. 6• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

House lawmakers consider plan offering new way to prevent crime in MN cities

By Tim Walker The dramatic upswing in violent crime taking place nationwide and in Minnesota cannot be reduced by more cops on the streets and sentencing perpetrators to additional time behind bars.

That’s old thinking, inefficient and a waste of taxpayer money, according to experts who testified on a House bill that would fund communitybased crime-fighting groups focused on preventing crime in the first place.

“The answers we received from experts, victims and even law enforcement prompted this bill’s focus on preventing and solving crime, as opposed to focusing solely on punishing crime,” said Rep. Cedrick Frazier (DFL-New Hope), who sponsors HF2724.

The House Public Safety and Criminal Justice

Reform Finance and Policy Committee took testimony on Article 1 of the bill last Tuesday, then laid it over in order to hear testimony on Articles 2 and 3, on Thursday and Friday last week. There is no Senate companion bill.

Article 1 would establish and fund an Office of Public Safety Innovation within the Department of Public Safety, starting with a proposed $40 million appropriation for grants in fiscal year 2023 to be distributed to community-based crime-fighting organizations.

There would be $10 million in each subsequent year to fund the office, plus a one-time appropriation of $10 million in fiscal year 2023 for the Opiate Epidemic Response Fund.

Two-thirds of the grants would be distributed in the Twin Cities metropolitan area and one-third outside the area. Grants to individual organizations could not exceed

(Screenshot)

Rep. Cedrick Frazier (DFL-New Hope), who sponsors HF2724, presents the bill during the Feb. 1 meeting of the House Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Financeand Policy Committee. more than $1 million each year.

By Tim Walker

 $50 million in federal American Rescue Plan funding distributed to long-term care facilities to hire and retain

MPR News

Assistant Health Commissioner Daniel Huff employees;

 $40 million to hospitals to cover costs for emergency hospital staff, targeting hospitals experiencing staffing shortages due to COVID-19;  regulatory relief based on input from hospitals and long-term care providers;  four Department of Defense emergency teams provided staff to Hennepin County Medical Center, Fairview Southdale and Abbott Northwestern and St. Cloud hospitals;  four nursing homebased alternative care sites for treating non-critical patients; and

FRAZIER 4

CNN

Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota Dr. Michael Osterholm  National Guard members serving as skillednursing response teams, providing crisis staffing support at 40 facilities.

A presentation by Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, focused on the biology of the virus and what’s known about how the human immune system responds to different COVID-19 mutations.

He said the political debate surrounding whether natural immunity resulting

from a previous COVID-19 infection is better or worse than immunity obtained through vaccination is not productive.

Both kinds of immunity are important, he noted, adding that current medical thinking is that a previous COVID-19 infection confers about the same immunity as one shot of a vaccine.

“But one shot is not enough,” he said.

Three shots of a vaccine give about a 95% rate of protection, he said, even against the new Omicron variant.

And he noted that trying to get natural immunity by a deliberate exposure to COVID-19 is “a very bad idea.”

In the final presentation, Dr. Greg Vanichkachorn, assistant professor of Preventive Medicine at the Mayo Clinic, focused on long-haul COVID-19, where patients contracting the disease recover enough to be discharged from a hospital, but still have serious symptoms months and even years later.

In his experience at Mayo Clinic, the long-term effects in patients and their

COVID 5

Judge rejects federal plea deal for convicted killers of Ahmaud Arbery

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia

A U.S. District Court judge has rejected a plea deal offered to a white father and son convicted of murdering Black jogger Ahmaud Arbery that would have them serve decades of their life sentences while in federal custody instead of a less desirable state facility.

Judge Lisa Godbey Wood nixed the deal for Gregory McMichael, 66, and his son Travis McMichael, 35, during a hearing Monday for the latter, after prosecutors filed a notice that a deal had

been reached to avoid a federal trial slated to begin next week.

A hearing scheduled later Monday for the elder McMichael was canceled after the judge said her decision would be the same for both men.

Godbey Wood came to her decision after emotional statements from Arbery’s parents and family members, who vehemently opposed the deal.

The McMichaels and a neighbor, William “Roddy” Bryan, 52, all convicted last year of murdering Arbery in 2020, were sentenced earlier this month in a Georgia court to life sentences, though Bryan would be eligible for parole after 30 years.

The three men also

Wilson’s Image Barbers and Stylists, raising COVID awareness is part of the job

By Brandi Phillips, Contributing Writer

House health panel briefed on MN’s COVID-19 situation, potential future trends How the state will respond to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is one of the topics the House Health Finance and Policy Committee will focus on this session. To prepare for the task ahead, members heard presentations from three COVID-19 experts last Wednesday.

Each presenter focused on different aspects of the pandemic in Minnesota, but each stressed that vaccinating as many residents as possible is the best strategy to combat the virus and lead to a return to pre-pandemic economic and social conditions.

Assistant Health Commissioner Daniel Huff highlighted the crushing caseloads of the hospitals treating COVID-19 patients and how state resources are being deployed to assist the frontline workers in those settings.

Some of that support includes:

For Teto Wilson

Now going into the third year, Covid continues to have devastating impacts on so many people, families and communities. Due in part to lies, deceptive communication, exclusionary marketing strategies and money-hungry medical providers, some African Americans continue to be hesitant to getting vaccinated against Covid. Finding reliable information and trustworthy vaccine providers- especially in the Black community- is critical if there is to be an increase in vaccinations and possible reductions in COVID-related deaths.

Teto Wilson, owner of Wilson’s Image Barbers and Stylists (located in North Minneapolis) is using his platform and space to provide trustworthy and reliable COVID-related information and resources. Since going into business in August of 2007, his mission has been to improve community economics, individual mindset, personal image, and more recently public health.

Wilson has a background in education and a passion for self care, adding Covid-19 vaccinations to his business seems to be a progressive fit.

“When Covid-19 began, nobody knew what to do. Everyone just wanted to stay alive,” said Wilson.

Wilson admits that at first, he was resistant getting vaccinated “I was not going to get it [just] based on our history with the healthcare system,” he said.

After many conversations with researcher Dr. Zeke McKinney, Wilson got vaccinated.

These divine connections and conversations

face federal hate crime charges, though the deal struck with the prosecutors would have allowed the McMichaels to serve the first 30 years of their

News

Black History Month opens with more than a dozen bomb threats at HBCUs

PAGE 5

sentences in federal prison in exchange for admitting their actions were racially motivated.

ARBERY 5

Teto Wilson

led Wilson to get a contract with the Minnesota Dept of Health.

He is currently providing testing in his barbershop on Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Vaccinations are provided by an all AfricanAmerican nursing staff.

Wilson intentionally chose North Minneapolis for his business. “I wanted it to be more than a place that people come to get a haircut.

I wanted it to be more than a one- or two-way transaction.

I wanted it to be more about community,” he said.

For this year, Wilson will continue his health and wellness work awith more health-related partnerships. He also plans to continue building his other businesses, ‘Black Love Rocks’; ‘Up Your Image’; and ‘Image Renewal Organics’.

Vaccinations will continue at his current site, for the remainder of the year, and then will be given at the commercial site he just purchased, located directly next to his current barbershop.

I you are interested in more information about the COVID-19 vaccination, feel free to contact Teto at (763) 245-8922.

Brandi D. Phillips BS, MBA, is a freelance writer, health and wellness coach, mother of 2, and life partner.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this article, please email her at wellifethreesixty@gmail. com.

iHEAL:

COVID Pandemic is the New Normal & We Need to Take Action and Deal with It Culture and Education Editor

By Irma McClaurin, PhD This is Part II of a series (link to Pt I: https://www. insightnews.com/coronavirus/ covid-pandemic-is-the-newnormal-and-we-need-to-takeaction-and-deal-with/article_ a5f8950a-7b3f-11ec-a94efbfd0edf1c3e.html)

Gregory and Travis McMichael

photo/Teto Wilson-Facebook

Enuff Already with Diagnosing the “Black” Problem After the tragedy of George Floyd in Minneapolis was met with local, national, and global responses and protests, foundations, philanthropic individuals, local businesses, and corporations shelled out millions of dollars to support diversity—but far too often the

organizations and consultants they support resemble the very oppressors that Black protestors seek to dismantle. Too many of those funded, despite all the #BLM protests, are white-led organizations, while Black-led ones are left wanting.

Sure, these white-led organizations and programs help “underserved” and “marginalized” communities— the code words used to talk about “race” without saying the “r” word.

But these white-led organizations, no matter how well-intentioned, which sometimes borders on paternalism— lack the cultural history, knowledge, and the lived experiences of those they claim to serve. Far too often, the thorn in our proverbial political side are white allies who fail to understand or even acknowledge that there is a long tradition of Black people themselves (lettered and unlettered) who have

IHEAL 5

I2H

Black Mental Health Matters

PAGE 6

Page 4 • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Insight News

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FDIC approves Detroit-based First Independence Bank expansion

Black-owned Bank set to Open Twin Cities Branch DETROIT – Detroit-based First Independence Bank, one of only 17 Black-owned fullservice banks in the country, has received approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to proceed with plans to open a branch in the state of Minnesota. This is the first national expansion effort for the bank, with plans to open the Minneapolis branch doors to the public (initially byappointment only) on Tuesday, February 22 at 9 a.m. Plans for an official Grand Opening celebration, expected to occur later in the year are underway.

This expansion involves collaborative support from five major Twin Cities banks: Bank of America, Bremer Bank, Huntington Bank, U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo. Their support includes capital, research, marketing, and other services to assure a solid start and long-term success for First Independence Bank.

“This approval from the FDIC confirms what our supporting financial institutions have demonstrated that they recognize as well – that our bank is welcome in the Twin Cities market because it’s important to have a variety of options available for all customers in the market. It’s especially important for the unbanked members of the community,” said First

In the tradition….

Entrepreneur Ayana Shakir There has not been one budding entrepreneur presented by the Black Women’s Wealth Alliance’s (BWWA) BEE Marketplace that has not been impressive, courageous, forward thinking, passionate and knowledgeable about their product or service. Not one has regretted taking the leap of faith into the entrepreneurial world.

Encouraged and inspired by the Queen BEE, founder and CEO of BWWA, Kenya McKnight-Ahad and by each other, all Queen bees in their own right, these women are dedicated to supporting one another.

Guests on last week’s Conversations with Al McFarlane webcast inspired me, and for that I am truly grateful.

My own Ethaan’s Kids, a line

First Independence Bank branch-main.

Independence Bank Chairman and CEO Kenneth Kelly.

First Independence customers will be offered fee-free ATM and debit card use at any Wells Fargo, Huntington, Fifth Third, or U.S. Bank locations.

Customers will have access to a loan program to help establish a credit score or repair their credit, as well as virtual financial education sessions, and more.

First Independence Bank’s Twin Cities branch will be located at 3430 University

Ave. SE, the site of a former Wells Fargo bank branch. Wells Fargo donated the facility to the nonprofit Project for Pride in Living (PPL), a partnering agency whose mission is: “To disrupt poverty & inequity.”

PPL is leasing the property to First Independence Bank.

Branch hours will be Monday through Friday 9 a.m.

– 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. with both inside the branch or drive-up service.

Due to COVID-19, there is an

initial 10 customer maximum occupancy inside the branch.

“This branch will be located in a key site in the community where it is visible and accessible to all in the Twin Cities,” Kelly said. “We look at the fact that it is close to both the Metro Green Line and bus routes so that under-resourced and unbanked members of the community can easily reach us and use our services to improve their financial outlook.”

First Independence

Senior Vice President for the Twin Cities Regional Market Damon Jenkins, formerly served this community as Wells Fargo’s district manager for Minneapolis and previously in different banker roles with U.S. Bank.

“The support received from several business, religious, nonprofit, and other community leaders the represent a broad cross section in the region has been key to garnering the support to open a branch of FIB in the Twin Cities,” said

of unique baby blankets I have made for 40 years, will have a website by fall. That’s the plan.

When St. Paul’s Ayana Shakir took a trip to the University of Chicago as a graduate student to earn a master’s degree in health and human services, she was motivated to take her exploration of her slave ancestry to the next level. Congolese Tracy was sold to the Martin Plantation of Charleston, S.C. in 1799. Today, the Martin lineage is 8,000 strong and living all around the world.

Another descendant, Moses, was a famous Senator.

Shakir’s life journey has been shaped by her Muslim religion and African American culture. She said Islam in West Africa preceded European Christianity. But as a female leader of her faith, she some question how she fits in as Muslim or as a Black woman living in America.

To her knowledge, little has been done

to tell the stories of Muslim women who are descendants of slaves.

Ayana Shakir Consulting Services, a business that addresses the racial disparities and lack of knowledge pertaining to available social services, aims to alter the face of change. Her doctoral research and dissertation, entitled ‘Practitioners, Organizations, and Racial Equity’ will hopefully help women to establish their own businesses and practices.

“Black women are not listened to or heard, not supported, not given the same networks, or the same opportunities as their white counterparts,” Shakir said.

“We want our clients to have quality wealth generating career aspirations, guided by culturally specific, responsive services.”

In 2020, Shakir secured a contract with the Ramsey County Aging and Disability Department.

She

guides clients to secure Waiver Services from the federal government that support the opportunity for seniors to live in their homes. Too often, she said, our community has not been made aware of these resources.

Shakir’s company educations senior clients about the federal programs and perks made available to them. They won’t have to spend their “winter season’ in an institution, she said. “In 2018, only 32.5% of BIPOC seniors utilized the waiver services. 85% of whites have long known about these assistance programs.”

“Shakir’s firm secured a Disability Innovation Grant Through Medicaid. “the grant allows me to identify qualified new talent and staff to work in the areas of at-risk child protection and social equity.

No more than 2 or 3 years ago, Black children were 4 times likely to be in out-of-home placement. In January of 2021, I

secured another contract known as the ‘Parents Support Outreach Program’ (PSOP). Our work involves early intervention recommendations for parents.”

Shakir published a journal for business owners and their employees called “Oppression Free Zone”, which is available on Amazon. The journal guides participants to think about questions such as, “how do organizations make you feel? How are you oppressed by your employers? How have you oppressed your employees? Or, how do companies dismantle racism in the workplace?

Shakir’s Consulting will soon publish a companion workbook available also derived from her prior work in government, systems and processes that often enable racial and class gaps in the public sector.

“When an employee spends their workdays in an oppressive environment, they

Lip Esteem: Tameka Jones’ calling

steps. “I always thought I was a chemist until my attempt at mixing a plant-base, gluten free, lipstick was quite unsuccessful.

Either it was too sticky, too waxy, or the color didn’t come through. But I didn’t give up.

My internal instinct told me I had something unique, a product idea that could be successful and make women feel good. So, I went back to researching and was blessed to find a company that manufactured lipstick. I was then prepared to start a brand. A year ago, Lip Esteem was introduced to the market.”

Jones is proud to say her company has been an absolute joy and having her daughter work with her is an added boost. At her dad’s request, she created a men’s lip balm called ‘So Smooth”. Their business mantra: Bringing happiness and beauty back from difficult predicaments; bringing

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Editor-In-Chief Al McFarlane Publisher Batala-Ra McFarlane Associate Editor & Associate Publisher B.P. Ford Culture and Education Editor Dr. Irma McClaurin, PhD. Associate Editor Afrodescendientes Carmen Robles Associate Editor Nigeria & West Africa Chief Folarin Ero-Phillips Columnist Brenda Lyle-Gray Book Review Editor W.D. Foster-Graham Director of Content & Production Patricia Weaver Content & Production Manager Sunny Thongthi Yang Distribution/Facilities Manager Jamal Mohamed Receptionist Lue B. Lampley

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Columnist

By Brenda Lyle-Gray Like so many in especially hard-hit BIPOC communities, the gripping pandemic forced furloughs and lockdowns. St. Paul make-up artist, Tameka Jones became unemployed.

There was now time to research and contemplate her next

new office but would receive funds proposed in other parts of the bill, such as $2.5 million to purchase body cameras for officers.

Frazier From 3 Law enforcement agencies would not be eligible for the community-based crime prevention grants from this

Correction: In our edition of January 24, 2022, Insight News incorrectly identified the person below left, as Rev. Brenda Johnson, who is pictured below right.

Our apologies for the error.

The article was entitled “Marching Toward Freedom” and presented a variety of leadership voices in Twin Cities labor movement

Eight types of programs, services or organizations would be eligible for grant money from

locals. Johnson, a school success program assistant at Minneapolis Public Schools and Shaun Laden, president of Minnesota Federation of Teachers, (MFT) Local 59, return to Conversations with Al McFarlane at 1pm Wednesday, Feb 9, to discuss union organizing and negotiating activity at St. Paul Public Schools.

Postmaster: Send address changes to McFarlane Media Interests, Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Avenue North, Minneapolis,

faithstreet.com

Rev. Brenda Johnson

Rev. Brenda Johnson

myfounderstory

Tameka Jones’

all cultures together one tube at a time! Her website includes an array of lipsticks, lip glosses, and lip liners with catchy names and fabulous colors. The beauty consultant is still involved in private makeovers and tutorials emphasizing glamor and fun.

Jones appears on Season 6, Episode 3, of Small Business Revolution. Not sure she met the criteria for being

the new office:

 juvenile diversion programs;  community violence interruption programs;  restorative justice programs;  co-responder teams;  community-based mental health and social service centers;  victim services;  re-entry programs; and  homeless assistance programs to provide a rent subsidy or temporary housing for formerly incarcerated individuals and families supporting formerly incarcerated individuals.

Patrick Sharkey, a professor of sociology and public affairs at Princeton University, said the proposals fit a new model of policing that avoids the pitfalls of overpolicing and over-surveillance in high-crime areas, which can lead to distrust of the police in those communities.

Plus, it is unfair to burden law enforcement agencies with the job of

Damon Jenkins, senior vice president and Twin Cities Regional Market President, First Independence Bank.

More than 50 years ago, the quest for equity of opportunity led to the establishment of Detroit-headquartered First Independence Bank, following the city’s 1967 rebellion.

In the late 1960s, two dozen of Detroit’s prominent African American business and community leaders pushed for tangible change, to address the lack of opportunity and the frustration that had boiled over into the streets of the city. In May 1970, their organized action resulted in the opening of First Independence Bank. Today, there are three branches in metro Detroit and First Independence ranks as the seventh largest African American-led financial institution in the U.S. Kelly recognizes a similar quest for social justice is now ushering in the opportunity for expansion into a region that was recently rocked by calls for racial justice following the killing of George Floyd. A second Minneapolis location, at Lake Street and Hiawatha Avenue, is set to open sometime in 2022.

Ayana Shakir

Facebook

don’t operate as their authentic self, resulting in customers not getting the resources they are entitled to. It was imperative I take a leap of faith and give back to my community and others,” she said. “It’s a matter of business, having trusted information, examining our skills and strengths, and figuring out a way to capitalize on our enormous skills and abilities.

We settle for 9 to 5s, when we probably have so much more do give.” on the show, she said, “There really wasn’t one thing that helped me to qualify. It was just this internal voice telling me to trust that what was intended to happen would, and it did.

Come to think about it, I was marketing lip products when everyone was wearing masks.

Talk about having faith and hearing the insistence of my ancestors telling me to ‘keep calm’, keep confident, and keep going.”

Jones said she is relocating her retail business from Mall of America to a store in St. Paul’s Rondo Neighborhood.

Contact Information: www.lipesteem.com Facebook - lipesteem LLC Instagram - Lip_ Esteem (underscore) (651) 788-7868

solving all of society’s ills, he said, noting that it’s more efficient and effective to have community groups engage in crime prevention activities.

Increased community confidence in police agencies leads to more community cooperation with police, said Frazier, and that comes about when a community knows the police are supportive of these kinds of community-based crime-prevention groups.

During Thursday and Friday’s hearings, the committee is expected to take up other sections of the bill, including the $2.5 million for police body cameras, plus a $22 million appropriation to the Department of Public Safety to improve clearance rates for homicides and nonfatal shootings.

Other, more controversial portions of the bill to be discussed later this week would change how police officers are hired, trained, supervised and disciplined, and would allow the creation of civilian oversight councils with expanded powers over law enforcement agencies.

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Insight News • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Page 5

MAAHMG celebrates Black History Month with new exhibit about early Black Settlers in Southeast Minnesota and series of events Minneapolis, MN – The Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery (MAAHMG) celebrates Black History Month 2022 with a new history exhibit, Early African Americans of Southeast Minnesota, by MAAHMG History Fellow Mica Anders.

The exhibit runs February 1 – July 31, 2022, at the museum, 1256 Penn Avenue N., Minneapolis, MN. Admission and parking are free.

“This exhibition is an opportunity to rewrite early African Americans into the history of Southeast Minnesota.

It serves as a starting point to bring their stories and their contributions to the region to light,” said Anders who is a professional genealogist, researcher, oral historian and visual artist. Funding for the

MAAHMG History Fellowship program was provided by a grant from the Transformative Black-Led Movement Fund

by Nexus Community Partners and Black Visions Collective.

In addition to the new exhibit, the museum will present a series of public online events for Black History Month featuring conversations on a variety of topics. The virtual events are:  February 3: “Erase: The Movement to Exclude Black People from History.” A discussion with Dr. Keith Mayes, University of Minnesota, Dr. Yohuru Williams, University of St. Thomas, and moderated by Tina Burnside, MAAHMG Cofounder and Curator, about making American history more inclusive and the importance

of teaching Black history everyday not just in February.

From 5:30 – 6:30 pm.  February 7: “History of African Americans in Southeast Minnesota.”

A discussion with MAAHMG History Fellow Mica Anders about her research and exhibit.

From 5:30 – 7 pm.  February 10: “Artificial Intelligence & the Black Experience.” A discussion with AI expert Elizabeth Adams about opportunities AI presents for the Black community and how we can address challenges of data privacy, digital inclusion and algorithmic bias. From 6 – 6:30 pm.  February 17: “Artist Talk: A conversation with seangarrison and Seitu Jones.” MAAHMG Artist-

In-Residence seangarrison talks about his exhibit “Abstracproseality: Visual Notations from Dark to Light” with artist Seitu Jones. From 5:30 – 6:30 pm.  February 24: “Black Joy: Strategies for Improving Mental and Physical Health.” A discussion with Marlee James, LPCC, founder of Reviving Roots Therapy & Wellness; Clarence Jones, Outreach Director for Hue-MAN; Phillip McGraw, filmmaker and executive director of V-Fest; and Natalie Walters, life coach and facilitator. Moderated by Tina Burnside. From 5 – 7 pm.

All events are free.

Information and links for the events can be found on the museum’s Facebook page for each event and the museum’s website at: www.maahmg.org.

MAAHMG

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Black History Month opens with more than a dozen bomb threats at HBCUs

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia More than a dozen historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) received bomb threats Tuesday.

The threats, the second such in two days, came on the first day of Black History Month.

Howard University in Washington, D.C., again found

COVID From 3

Arbery From 3 Godbey Wood said the father and son have until Friday to decide whether to withdraw their guilty pleas and begin trial next Monday or risk receiving harsher sentences than the plea agreement called for.

No deal was announced for Bryan.

Kristen Clarke,

BLM From 3 successfully described the problem of being Black in America.

Black and Brown activists and academics—like Frederick Douglass, like W.E.B. Du Bois, like Ida B. Wells, and more recently like the late bell hooks, or Kimberle Crenshaw, like Nicole Hannah-Jones or William (Sandy) Darity, Jr. (on Reparations), like Ibram X. Kendi, and like even myself— have worked rigorously and vigorously to describe and define the problematics of being a racialized individual or group in America.

Whites (allies and non-allies) read us, come to our speeches and conference presentations, participated in our Unlearning Racism workshops—then taken our content to create their own whitewashed versions—and they are the ones white corporations and academic institutions hire. All of those whites doing diversity work may have heard us, but they never really listened to us. Black Americans have been diagnosing this very American dilemma of living in this oppressive racialized society for decades—DECADES! We do not need a Brookings Institute (which has only recently become diverse in who it hires in the recent past—before that it was all white guys with an occasional white woman) write a report to describe what we have been living—economic gaps, education gaps, healthcare gaps, police support gaps, justice system gaps, etc.

Enuff Already.

We know what oppression is and what it does to us and our communities. And yet,

itself the target of such ominous threats. The school issued a shelter-in-place order Tuesday.

“A bomb threat against the university is being investigated,” read a 3:29 a.m. alert from Howard University.

“All persons on campus are advised to shelter in place until more information is available.”

The school later issued an all-clear.

The other institutions that reported bomb threats were the University of the District

frequencies are:  fatigue 80%;  respiratory 59%;  neurologic 59%;

photo/PAGREENE

Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, is one of several HBCUs that has received bomb threats. 



with will than with

about 2.2 million of those unable to return to work.

Try to google images of presenters.

the possibility for parole in a Glynn County, Georgia, court for murdering Arbery, a 25-yearold Black man jogging through their neighborhood.

disturbance

Vanichkachorn said that as the pandemic continues,

assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said that while the department respected the court’s decision, the plea deal was offered “only after the victims’ attorneys informed me that the family was not opposed to it.”

“The Justice Department takes seriously its obligation to confer with the Arbery family and their lawyers both pursuant to the Crime Victim Rights Act and out of respect for the victim,” Clarke said.

Before the judge’s

decision Monday, Arbery’s family lashed out at the plea agreement that would have allowed Arbery’s killers to dodge the harsher conditions of a state prison for decades.

“The United States Department of Justice has gone behind my back to offer the men who murdered my son a deal to make their time in prison easier for them to serve,” CooperJones said in a statement. “I have made it clear at every possible moment that I do not agree to offer these men a plea deal of

any kind. I have been completely betrayed by the DOJ lawyers.”

Family attorney S. Lee Merritt referred to federal prison as “a country club compared to state prison.” He said federal

prisons are less populated, have better funding, and are “generally more accommodating” than state lockups.

The McMichaels received life sentences without

our perspectives are silenced, and white voices continue to be elevated over ours, and whiteled organizations continue to be funded at unprecedented levels, over BIPOC-led organizations and scholars, to study us. This is how it feels to be a problem—to answer the question that W.E.B. Du Bois posed almost a century ago.

Today, the diversity movement is being led by whites, sometimes allies, sometimes not, who do workshops, write books and articles, create toolkits about us, and sometimes, for us, but, they have NEVER lived our experiences! It’s like an oceanographer trying to tell a fish what it’s like to live in water continuously.

Enuff already.

We need less talk, less studies, less programs to discuss diversity, equity, inclusion, and now “belonging.”

We need actionable plans that will make a real difference in closing the achievement gap, the economic gap, the health disparities gap; the employment gap, and the education gap. We need programs that will buy houses and put Black owners in them; programs that will create jobs that pay a livable wage; and subsidize childcare.

pandemic will become standard.

Rather than nostalgic reminiscing about a past life that was not so wonderful and idyllic for many, I proffer that we need to be fashioning solutions that will make the next few pandemic years as comfortable as possible for everyone, not just the privileged, and that we set equity and equalizing this world as attainable goals.

We need to bolster our humanity and understand that our actions are not just for us as individuals, but impact the greater good. We must stop to have fewer “have nots” in the future. And, action is the only solution.

In 2022, let our refrain be—”I hear you, but whatcha gonna do?”

45%;



mental health issues

College in Tougaloo, Miss.

In a statement, Morgan State President David K. Wilson said he was saddened to confirm that the school had received a bomb threat.

He said several individuals had asked about the veracity of the threat.

“Unfortunately, and sadly, it is,” he said. “The campus is being searched building-bybuilding this morning with our residential halls being searched first.”

the number of patients long-haul COVID-19 possibly grow to more 7 million nationwide,

Talk is Cheap; Actions Speak COVID and pandemics are now the new normal for 2022. I predict that at least for the next 5 years, the COVID virus, and all its variants, as well as the pandemic preventive protocols of masking, vaccinations, and boosters will be with us for a long time.

Nothing to do, but deal with it. Denial and refusal to follow the pandemic protocol and rules does not change the reality that the current new normal we are living inside this

cognitive impairment

of Columbia; Morgan State University and Coppin State University in Baltimore; Fort Valley State University in Fort Valley, Ga.; Kentucky State University in Frankfort, Ky.; Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans; Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Fla.; Alcorn State University in Lorman, Miss.; Mississippi Valley State University in Itta Bena, Miss.; Spelman College in Atlanta; Jackson State University in Jackson, Miss.; and Tougaloo

26%. sleep

30%; and

What are you going to do to fix things? What tools do you have, that are not the Master’s tools, to dismantle the Master’s house built on inequality, police violence, incarceration violence, political violence, economic violence.

Because like it or not, COVID, the Omicron variant, and general pandemic conditions are the new normal and here to stay. Conditions of disparities will only worsened.

We must ACT—and quickly. ©2022 Irma McClaurin Irma McClaurin (http:// irmamcclaurin.com/ https:// twitter.com/mcclaurintweets) is the Culture and Education Editor and columnist for Insight News, an award-winning writer, activist anthropologist, the CEO of Irma McClaurin Solutions (IMS), and founder of the Irma McClaurin Black Feminist Archive (bit.ly/ blkfemarchive) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Her book, JustSpeak: Reflections on Race, Culture and Politics in America, is forthcoming in 2022.

Page 6 • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Insight News

Insight 2 Health

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Black Mental Health Matters Hobb servation Point

By Chuck Hobbs Last night, I found myself deeply saddened by the suicide death of Cheslie Kryst, the 2019 Miss USA hailing from North Carolina whose postpageant life included working as a lawyer, diversity specialist, model, and correspondent for the Extra television program.

Celebrity deaths tend to hit hard because while most of us never knew this star decedent or that one personally, the nature of multi-media, especially social media pages that allow us to follow celebrities as if we are in their inner circle, serve to make many of us feel like we are a part of the family or clique.

Such is why the outpouring of shock after Kryst’s passing at the age of 30 is filled with comments like “she was so young,” “she was so gorgeous,” “she was so talented,” “she was so smart,” “she seemed to have everything going for her” and similar expressions of grief.

What some seem to overlook is Kryst “was so depressed and despondent,” thus, her final Instagram post, “May this day bring you rest and peace,” shows what this talented young Sister was craving—peace!

While reading more about her life early this morning, it is clear that Kryst was dealing with many of the same stressors that have hurt so many people around the globe as the Coronavirus Pandemic has radically altered how we live and

The late Cheslie Kryst

Kryst was a graduate of the University of South Carolina and the Wake Forest Schools of Law and Business relate from a social standpoint. It also seems clear that like many lawyers before her, that the vicissitudes of the profession, coupled with the sexism and harassment that she already had been candid about in her public advocacy for equality for women, may have played some

part in her melancholy as well.

Attorney Kryst worked on workplace diversity and sexual harassment claims, while dealing with harassment much like far too many women in colleges and workplaces across America I recall with my own

deal of melancholy that over the past 27 years, I have lost five friends—three Black males and two white males under the age of 40—to suicide. The last two, a lawyer colleague named Jason Savitz, and my former personal trainer and client Andrew Giba, still haunt me because I was

among the last folks to see them alive; Jason sat in my office for about 20 minutes late one Friday evening talking about World War II era history with me after a long week in court and at the end of our conversation, casually mentioned that he had several new books on the Holocaust in his adjacent office that I should take and read. The next day, our landlord and fellow lawyer, John Kenny, called with the news that Jason had hanged himself at his apartment…

As for my trainer, Andrew, my last meeting with him was on a Friday, too, as we met to discuss a legal matter that was troubling him. Two days later, as I went to my office to get some work done on a Sunday, his girlfriend was on my office steps sobbing uncontrollably and, when I finally was able to calm her down enough to tell me what was wrong, she told me that Andrew had shot himself in the foyer of their shared home…

Through the years, I have asked myself several times whether there were any signs that I should have picked up in those last convos, signs that may have helped me to help them?

Each time I conclude that the personal Hell that these friends were enduring was endured in

solitude, with smiles affixed upon their faces, so as to “wear the mask” that the poet Paul Laurence Dunbar described so long ago. A mask that we all have worn to varying degrees, from time to time, as we have been socialized to just “suck it up,” or “faith it til you make it,” when, what many of us have needed (or still need) is well trained medical help to assuage those mental demons that attack each and every human being at some point or another within a life’s span.

As I pray this morning for the soul of Ms. Kryst and comfort for her family and friends, I implore anyone who may be reading these words while actively contemplating suicide to contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255! There, you will find professionals who can help you in your crisis situation—and help you locate mental health care providers in your area!

Requiescat in Pace, Attorney Cheslie Kryst…

Chuck Hobbs is a freelance journalist who won the 2010 Florida Bar Media Award and has been twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.

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Insight News • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Page 7

Busy Ain’t the Half of It

late 20s, and acting has always been his passion. He is striving to get that Big Break in film while facing the challenges being Black and LGBT bring in the industry. At the same time, he continues to give excuse after excuse not to move in with his boyfriend Zaire, despite Zaire’s being that Mr. Right his friends and associates keep pointing out.

With unrequited crushes, family and work pressures, and some secrets, can Justin and Elijah step back and find what, like Anita Baker’s song, “brings them joy?” Are they able to take their own advice? Will they see the love that’s been in front of them all along?

Yes, I admit it, I love romance, and Black Love is at the top of the list. Smith and Cruz have deftly created a romance novel with social commentary blended into it. I loved the dynamics of Justin and Elijah’s family of origin and the families they created.

They also let the reader know that romance isn’t limited to 20-somethings, since Justin’s love interest is pushing 40 himself. Likewise, Elijah has his contemporaries. And yes, though it takes some soulsearching, Justin and Elijah each finds their respective happily-ever-after (HEA).

I extend a hat-tip and a thank-you to Frederick Smith and Chaz Lamar Cruz for their voices, and for creating another space for LGBT writers of color in Romancelandia. If we don’t share our stories, who will?

Sharing Our Stories

By: W.D. Foster-Graham Book Review Editor

By Frederick Smith and Chaz Lamar Cruz Ah, life in California. Glitz and glam, acting quests for the Big Break, celebrity success, and treadmills of to-dos. Is life passing you by in your busyness? Such are life lessons for Justin Monroe and Elijah Golden, the main characters of Busy Ain’t the Half of It, the collaborative work of Frederick Smith and Chaz Lamar Cruz.

A brotha now in his 40s, Justin Monroe (aka The Justin Monroe) has had a distinguished career as a respected lead news anchor in Los Angeles. He has the trappings of success— his teenaged twins are in a private school, multiple homes, celebrity status, etc.

All this, however, has come with a price. Throughout the book, we see his endless todo lists, which often separate him from his family. His wife divorced him to pursue her life with another woman. He is now living his own truth as an LGBT man, putting his toes in the water of the dating pool. In addition, he has been demoted at work and replaced by a much younger Black man.

Justin’s nephew, Elijah Golden, is in his

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Page 8 • January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 • Insight News

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