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Insight News

January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020

Vol. 47 No. 4• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

STORY ON PAGE 2

Page 2 • January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020 • Insight News

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Stars among the stars The race to get to space is long over but buried in time is the story of the world’s first Black astronauts.

For many Americans, the 20th-century Space Race was a Cold War competition over rocketry and technological feats, but the world’s two superpowers were also engaged in another high-stakes race – one whose impact is still being felt today.

“Black in Space: Breaking the Color Barrier” examines the crucial moment when America’s history of racial prejudice became a critical

vulnerability in the effort to win hearts and minds around the globe. Confronting a Soviet Union (USSR) foe determined to show that communism was the face of the future, the U.S. would need a new generation of astronauts.

“Black in Space: Breaking the Color Barrier” premieres February 24 at 7 p.m. on the Smithsonian Channel and will also be available to stream on Smithsonian Channel Plus beginning Feb. 1.

SPACE 4

(Left to right) Pioneering astronauts Ronald McNair, Guion Bluford and Frederick Gregory are featured in the Smithsonian Channel documentary “Black in Space: Breaking the Color Barrier.”

Rites of Passage: Changing the narrative for 22 Years The Minneapolis Chapter of Jack and Jill of America has introduced its 22nd Rites of Passage (ROP) class.

The Jack and Jill leadership program is designed for male high school seniors of African descent and is rooted in the seven principals of Nguzo Saba or African heritage, and focuses on self-discovery, achievement and leadership.

The ROP experience is a selective, mentor enabled insight, exposure and application model. The “initiates” engage in an array of experiences over a sixmonth period during their senior year. Experiences include time management, communicating for impact, personal branding, future of technology, mock interviewing, financial management and understanding the law and law enforcement.

In addition, the initiates perform two significant community service events and raise money for charity. This year’s service events include packing food at Second Harvest Heartland and serving as ushers at the MLK Breakfast. The service events culminate in a team-based Capstone project where three teams will pitch start-up ideas to a panel of judges.

The 2020 ROP cohort is a diverse group of 10 high school seniors that include nationally renowned scientists, championship athletes and artists representing six schools from across the Twin Cities.

The 2020 ROP Initiates are Adfemi Adewola – Park Hight School, Roberaa Ayana – Breck School, Kevin Drew – Twin Cities Academy, Jalon Jones – Wayzata High School,

Noah Layton – Benilde St. Margaret, Malaki-Milton Jackson – Wayzata, Andrew New – DeLaSalle High School, Tomi Oduwaiye – Simley High School, Derek Turner, III – Breck and Dylan Vincent – Breck.

The initiates will culminate their passage in the Rites of Passage Community Celebration on March 14 at the Marriott Northwest, 7025 Northland Dr. N., Brooklyn Park, where in front of family, friends and well-wishers, the initiates will be officially presented to the community as men.

Andrew New DeLaSalle HS

Adfemi Adewola Park HS

Robbera Ayana Breck School

Kevin Drew Twin Cities Academy

Jalon Jones Wayzata HS

Noah Layton BSM

Malaki Milton-Jackson Wayzata HS

Tomi Oduwaiye Smiley HS

Derrick Turner Breck School

Dylan Vincent Breck School

If I could do one thing, I’d tell the world she counts.

Communities are as rich and diverse as their needs. That’s why completing the 2020 Census matters. It’s a safe and confidential step toward having an impact on how public funds flow through our communities.

That could mean more resources in your area for special needs. It’s within your control.

Learn more at:

2020CENSUS.GOV Paid for by U.S. Census Bureau.

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Insight News • January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020 • Page 3

Insight News WINNER: 2018 NNPA MERIT AWARDS: 3RD PLACE BES T COLUMN WRITING

January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020

WINNER: 2019 GENERAL EXCELLENCE, 3RD PLACE, COLUMN WRITING, 2ND PLACE

Vol. 47 No. 4• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Senator Smith focused on equity, criminal justice and impeachment

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Managing Editor harry@insightnews.com Just two days before sitting in on only the third impeachment trial of a president in our nation’s history, Sen. Tina Smith proved she can, as they say, “walk and chew gum at the same time.”

Yes, impeachment is a foremost concern for the junior senator who’s senatorial legacy will forever be tied to the impeachment trial of Donald Trump, but so too is housing … and equity … and moving the needle further towards the lofty dream of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. So, two days before having to be in Washington, D.C. for the historic trial with marathon hours, Smith booked out part of her Sunday afternoon to be in North Minneapolis sitting with Insight News talking about the issues of great concern to the African-American community in Minnesota.

Smith sat with Insight’s editor-in-chief, Al McFarlane and its managing editor, Harry Colbert, Jr., for a live social media broadcast of “Front Room Sessions at the Marcus Garvey House.” And before the discussion even broached upon impeachment the talk was about King, equity and mass incarceration of Black and Brown Americans.

“We talk about Dr. King a lot on his birthday, but I think about Dr. King all the time. I have to say, over the

last three years, there has been something that Dr. King said that I have kept close to my heart, all these last three years, which is, when Dr. King said, I believe that was at the Kenyon College commencement, he said that progress does not roll in on wheels of inevitability.

It happens because of the dedicated work of tireless individuals,” said Smith. “And in this time in our country where progress seems hard to come by and the sense that it is inevitable seems especially hard to grasp, I’ve been thinking a lot about that quote of Dr. King’s over the last few years. The great idea of this country is that we can be a self-governing country that is dedicated to creating opportunity, and freedom, and equality for everybody. And we know that the great idea of this country originally didn’t include so many people, didn’t include indigenous people, didn’t include women, and didn’t include African-Americans.”

Asked how the country can further move towards a more just and equitable society, Smith said in order to move forward we must first be honest with our past.

“We talked (prior to the broadcast) about this idea that the results of (slavery), the impacts of that history of slavery, of the core idea that one person can own another person, is that something that you just get over? It’s not like that happened a long time ago and it doesn’t really matter anymore.

We need to move on. I think that we are, I hope we are, coming to

CCX Media

Ron Edwards

Marc Kimball

Sen. Tina Smith (middle) sits with Insight News’ editor-in-chief, Al McFarlane (right), and managing editor, Harry Colbert, Jr. during a Jan. 19 broadcast of “Front Room Sessions at the Marcus Garvey House.” a better understanding that that legacy, that history, continues to live with us today, both for white people as well as for Black people,” said the senator.

“The sense of, whether it’s a sense of discrimination or a sense of privilege that you carry because of what people see on the outside. And so, I believe strongly that we shouldn’t think about that as just something that happened a long time ago and we don’t need to worry about it anymore. We can see that legacy and the impact of, for example, what you and I were talking about a couple of months ago, Harry, when you came to the housing round table that we had, and the legacy of racism and discrimination that exists in the wealth gap between AfricanAmericans and white people because Black people didn’t have the opportunity to build wealth through owning housing, owning a home.”

The senator also said

criminal justice reform must be at the top of agenda for area, state and federal legislators.

“The level of incarceration and the disparities of incarceration between white people and people of color of this country is a travesty, and it is another current day sign of the legacy of discrimination and racism that exists in our country. And we cannot turn our backs from it,” said the former lieutenant governor. “So, much of the result of this is because of the way in which the criminal justice system has been used in unequal and unfair ways to imprison African-Americans, especially African-American men. And the way in which, especially, our drug policies have contributed to this. The way I think about this is that we have to stop treating our criminal justice system as if it is, essentially, the place that you go

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Inhumane conditions, violence and death represent everyday life at Mississippi prison

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia The conditions at Mississippi’s Parchman prison makes it one of the worst detention facilities in the world, according to reform advocates and human rights organizations.

Death and violence are rampant, many inmates are without beds, and electricity, plumbing and fundamental human rights are absent.

At the same time, mold, roaches, mosquitos, and rodents far outnumber the more than 5,000 inmates.

On Jan. 14, hip-hop superstar Jay-Z sued the head of the Mississippi Department of Corrections and the warden on behalf of 29 prisoners who have complained that officials have done nothing to stop the violence at Parchman. In the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Greenville, Miss., Jay-Z addressed the recent deaths at the prison.

“These deaths are a direct result of Mississippi’s utter disregard for the people it has incarcerated and their constitutional rights,” the mogul said in the court filing..

The suit names Department of Corrections Commissioner Pelicia Hall and Mississippi State Penitentiary Superintendent Marshall Turner as defendants.

Earlier this month, hip-hop stars T.I., and Yo Gotti called on the governor to close the prison or to address the issues adequately.

“This is unacceptable,” T.I. wrote on his Instagram page.

“The conditions in the

Today, of the more than 5,000 inmates at Parchman, more than 60 percent are African American. The prison has an 11-to-1 inmate to guard ratio, and no one is safe. prisons operated by the Mississippi Department of Corrections are absolutely inhumane and unconstitutional,” Yo Gotti wrote in a letter to the governor Phil Bryant, a Republican. “To see this happen so close to my hometown of Memphis is truly devastating. That’s why we’re calling on Mississippi state leaders to take immediate action and rectify this issue. If they don’t right this wrong, we’re prepared to take legal action to provide relief for those that are incarcerated and their families.”

In an alarming 2019 report on Parchman and other Mississippi prisons, The Marshall Project found that gang activity isn’t limited to some of the people incarcerated. They discovered that some prison employees, including some highranking officers and managers, are affiliated with one of two gangs, the Vice Lords or Gangster Disciples. The reasons vary.

“Some staffers said gang loyalty gives some officers a measure of protection; since gangs have a lot of control, they can prevent certain attacks,” The Marshall Project reported. “Others say gang affiliation began before employment; according to lawsuits, testimony and interviews, gangs

directly recruit women to apply for correctional officer jobs.”

In a tweet, Pro Publica officials stated, “Understaffed and underfunded, Mississippi’s #ParchmanPrison recently received media attention for its grisly violence, gang control, and subhuman living conditions. Lawmakers have known about these issues for years – and have done nothing to fix it. ”Earlier this month, five inmates were killed after allegedly trying to escape. Video captured by cellphones, which are routinely smuggled into the prison, surfaced online this month appearing to show inside Parchman and the conditions in which inmates live.

One shows individuals in orange and white prison uniforms walking through piles of trash and dirty water. Mold is apparent, and there’s no electricity, heat, plumbing, and many inmates sleep on concrete because there aren’t enough beds.

“We sleeping on straight concrete. There are no mats,” one person on the video states. The individuals than demonstrate that there’s no running water by trying to flush toilets and opening faucets and showers. In another video, two inmates also complain about the

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lack of running water. “Please get us some help,” they plead.

In still another video, an inmate appears to breakdown emotionally as he sits in an area where prisoners have disposed of their feces.

In the heart of the Mississippi Delta, the prison, once a plantation that was home to hundreds of slaves, has a long history that’s intertwined with Mississippi’s racist past. In 1901, the state government of Mississippi established Parchman Penitentiary, taking advantage of an opportunity to continue to profit off of cheap Black labor, much like whites had done for generations before, while also continuing to exercise violent control over the descendants of former slaves.

Historians at the University of North Carolina said Parchman was modeled after a traditional southern plantation and the for-profit prison in Sunflower County was segregated until 1971.

“While a small farm held white convicts, Black inmates labored on Parchman’s massive, 20,000-acre plantation, where they picked cotton, chopped wood, and plowed fields under the control of armed guards,” the historians stated.

Today, of the more than 5,000 inmates at Parchman, more than 60 percent are African-American. The prison has an 11-to-1 inmate to guard ratio.

“I will be requesting that the U.S. Attorney General launch an investigation into the ongoing failures in safety, security, health, and environmental standards within the Mississippi Department of Corrections,” said Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) on his Twitter page.

“This is unacceptable.”

Freedom fighter Ron Edwards dead at 81

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Managing Editor harry@insightnews.com Civil rights giant Ron Edwards has died.

Edwards, 81, died Jan. 21 of apparent natural causes.

A longtime soldier in the Minnesota Civil Rights Movement, Edwards was the past chair of the board of the Minneapolis Urban League, writer for the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder and remained active in the community justice movement up until his passing. Following word of his death an outpouring of gratitude was expressed by some who knew Edwards best.

“The most important thing Ron did was always stand up for Black people,” said friend and fellow organizer Spike Moss.

Moss said Edwards was a mentor to him and to generations to follow.

“We (young justice fighters) had warrior mentalities, but not the information. Ron

would mentor us and join us in our protests and on our marches,” said Moss.

According to Moss, Edwards was the reason the Minneapolis Fire Department is integrated. Edwards most recently served as the national spokesperson for Moss’ Freedom Now, Free the Land organization. Weeks prior to his death, Edwards helped lead an effort to bring attention to a family alleging brutality on behalf of the Minneapolis Police Department. Those efforts resulted in felony charges being dropped against three siblings – two who were tasered repeatedly – following the release of police body camera footage of the incident.

“The Board of Directors and staff of Urban League Twin Cities wish to express our deepest sympathy and condolences to the family and friends of Ron Edwards on his passing,” read a statement from the organization. “He was an activist chair and led the organization in facing difficult challenges to the Black

EDWARDS 5

Poor People’s Campaign to march on D.C.

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia The Rev. Dr. William Barber II believes everyone has a right to live.

Through his Poor People’s Campaign, Barber is continuing to build a movement to overcome systemic racism, systemic poverty, ecological devastation, militarism of the budget and the false moral narrative of white religious nationalism. In an exclusive telephone conference with the Black Press of America, Barber and his Poor People’s Campaign co-chair, the Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, said America has a moral crisis.

“Democrats run from poverty and Republicans racialize poverty,” Barber said during the more than one-hour discussion.

“We have invited both sides of the political fence. We’ve invited the White House to come and talk with us. They’ve refused.

This administration has been virtually silent on the issue of poverty. The president talked about unemployment being down, but underemployment is up. The number of people that have dropped out of the workforce is up.”

The campaign conducted what it said was a 50-year audit of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, and the war economy in the U.S. They said the findings have already helped to inform and build state

Freddie Allen/AMG/NNPA

The Rev. Dr. William Barber II, president of the North Carolina state chapter of the NAACP, during the 2017 NNPA Mid-Winter Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and local, nonpartisan fusion movements that are committed to challenging laws and policies that are antithetical to the broad tenets of social justice.

Barber and Theoharis, who is a pastor from New York, told the Black Press that the ranks of the Poor People’s Campaign would increase as they broaden their efforts. They noted figures that show 140 million poor and low-wealth people live in the United States – from every race, creed, sexuality, and place.

“We aim to make sure these individuals are no longer ignored, dismissed, or pushed to the margins of our political and social agenda,” Theoharis said.

With 2020 counting as a pivotal election year, Barber pointed out that voter suppression laws in many

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Census kicks off $250 million ad campaign

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia The U.S. Census Bureau unveiled its $500 million “Shape Your Future. Start Here,” 2020 ad campaign Jan. 14, in Washington, D.C. with nearly $38 million – or approximately 16 percent – of the paid media budget is earmarked toward AfricanAmerican and Black audiences.

The “Shape Your Future. Start Here,” tagline is geared to helping underscore the notion that people can shape their future by responding to the 2020 Census. At a news conference at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., Census officials revealed that they would have more than 1,000 ads that target a range of demographics in 13 different languages. Those ads are projected to reach 99 percent of U.S. households.

“The 2020 Census is here and like we say in the ad, ‘Across America, we all count,’” said Steven Dillingham, director of the Census Bureau, at the

Space From 2 “Black in Space” features the personal stories of several African-American pioneers of the Space Race including Edward Dwight, a U.S. Air Force pilot and early NASA contender, Guion

Smith From 3 if you engage in low-level drug crimes.”

Again, the conversation was two days prior to the start of the impeachment of Trump; brought up on charges of

Poor People’s From 3 states have only contributed to poverty. The Poor People’s Campaign noted that since

several samples of the video advertisements were previewed.

In one video, children were featured teaching adults how to count their

forms. The ad aims to curb the routine undercounting of children. In another ad that’s specifically geared to AfricanAmericans called “The Mural,” Census officials highlight a desire for an accurate count in the Black community.

“Taking the 2020 United States Census impacts how funding flows in our communities for many programs and services,” the ad notes. “Because when a community comes together, anything is possible.”

The ads will run on television, radio, online, newspapers, magazines, billboards and various special events.

Census officials emphasized the importance of digital for the campaign.

About 29 percent of the paid media portion of the ad budget is allocated toward digital and social media channels; only television, at 39 percent, has a larger allocation. Johnson noted that as many as 65 percent of people are expected to complete the Census online this year.

The 2020 Census is billed as the most extensive collection of statistical

information on everyone who lives in the United States and is required by the U.S. Constitution.

Responses to the 2020 Census will shape how more than $675 billion in federal funding is distributed to local communities.

In spreading ad dollars, the U.S. Census Bureau has decided against advertising in the Super Bowl this year after previously running ads in 2010 and 2000.

“It isn’t an efficient spend of taxpayers’ dollars,” Alex Hughes, a census program director at VMLY&R, which is handling the campaign, told reporters.

“The work, research and dedication that has gone into this campaign is unmatched to that of any previous censuses,” said Kendall Johnson, executive director of the communications contract for the Census Bureau.

“Our outreach is multifaceted with a heavy focus on increasing response among groups that are historically undercounted. And it’s based on the most extensive research ever conducted to understand both what motivates people to respond to the census and what prevents them from responding.”

an orphan living in the shadow of Guantánamo to become a cosmonaut and national hero.

In the fall of 1957, America found itself rocked by two earth-shattering events – the USSR’s launch of Sputnik, the first satellite, and just a month earlier, the violent Little Rock Nine protests in Arkansas. The Soviet Union had just won two quick victories in the Cold War; with the battle for civil

rights raging in the West, they exploited the unrest and racism in America with propaganda campaigns aimed at discrediting not only America’s failures at improving civil rights, but also its fledging efforts to diversify their space crews. A supposed land of diversity, opportunity and hope, the United States had yet to get a Black man into the NASA program. President John Kennedy was determined

to regroup on both fronts.

Along with supercharging the space program, he ordered the Pentagon to find a Black astronaut.

“Black in Space” reflects on the fraught and long journey it took to achieve diversity in the skies and recounts the civil rights movement›s reaction to the Space Race. The special also studies the lasting legacy of the

world’s first Black astronauts – men that led the way for more diversity and inclusion in future NASA classes and space programs around the world.

“Our family had gone from slavery to space in four generations,” said Carl McNair, Ronald McNair›s brother. “And we thought that was something special.”

abuse of power and obstruction of Congress – charges that stem from the allegation Trump orchestrated bribery scheme to get the government of Ukraine to announce an investigation into potential presidential rival, former vice president, Joe Biden. The allegation is Trump withheld congressionally approved funds and a coveted

White House visit until an investigation was announced.

Eventually funds were released, but only after details of the July 25 call seeking dirt on Biden were revealed.

Smith said although the House case is strong, she does not see removal from office as a realistic possibility with the Republican-controlled Senate.

“Listen.

I’m an optimist, but I’m also a realist and the U.S. House of Representatives has impeached the president, and now, it comes to the United States Senate to hold a trial to decide whether or not, as a result of that, he should be removed from office,” said Smith. “That would require 20 of my Republican colleagues

to remove him from office and, as I said, I’m an optimist, but I’m also a realist. That seems unlikely to me, which is why I keep our focus on the election.

That is coming up in November.

But it’s going to be, I think, it’s a very, very important next few weeks that we’re having in the United States Senate. A little earlier, I was doing an interview

and a reporter asked me, ‘It’s very unlikely that the president will be removed from office, so what’s the point of all of this?’

And the point of all of this is that we need to stand up for the core values of our constitution. It is all that we have. It is our best idea, and that is what I’m going to be holding in my heart as I walk onto the Senate floor.”

2010, 23 states have passed racist voter suppression laws, including racist gerrymandering and redistricting statutes that make it harder to register.

Because of this, early voting days and hours have reduced, officials have purged voter rolls, and there have been

more restrictive voter ID laws.

Following the Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court case, which gutted key provisions of the Voting Rights Act, 14 states had new voting restrictions in place before the 2016 presidential election, and there were 868 fewer polling places across the country,

according to the campaign.

As of July 2017, 25 states have passed laws that preempt cities from adopting their own local minimum wage laws. Most of these are in response to city councils passing or wanting to pass minimum wage increases.

“We found that people

can work a minimum wage job and can’t afford a two-bedroom apartment,” Barber said. “We found out that there are 2 million people who work every day for less than the living wage. Some of them live in their cars, and they go to work every day.”

Theoharis spoke of Maria, a woman they met in El Paso, Texas, separated from her family because of immigration issues.

“We waded into the Rio Grande River – the river that separates the U.S. from Mexico – with an action called ‘Hugs, Not Walls.’ Maria got to see her

son for the first time in 16 years.

And for those couple of minutes that Maria had with her husband and her son were the first and only two minutes that she got to see her family members because of unjust immigration policy,” said Theohoaris.

The Poor People’s Campaign is organizing the Poor People’s Assembly and Moral March on Washington, June 20, during which time Barber said they would rise as “a powerful moral fusion movement to demand the implementation of our moral agenda.”

“The fact that there are 140 million poor and low-wealth people in a country this rich is morally indefensible, constitutionally inconsistent and economically insane,” added Barber.

During the call, Dr. Barber continued to lash out at the current administration’s controversial immigration policies. The Poor People’s Campaign has found that undocumented immigrants contributed $5 trillion to the U.S. economy over the past 10 years and they paid $13 billion in Social Security in 2010, but only received $1 billion in benefits. Barber said they also pay eight percent of their income in state and local taxes, while the wealthiest one percent pay just 5.4 percent. Yet undocumented immigrants and most lawfully residing immigrants are barred from receiving assistance under the major public welfare programs, causing hardship for many poor immigrant families.

“So, we have to understand the history of systemic racism. And we have to see how systemic racism is impacting not just people of color, but also white people today,” said Barber.

news conference. “The 2020 Census is your census, and its success depends on you. It’s a once-in-a-decade chance to inform how billions of dollars in funding are allocated for critical public services like hospitals and health care clinics, schools and education programs, roads and bridges, and emergency response for the next 10 years.

Through advertising, public events, partnerships and digital and traditional media, we are embarking on a nationwide effort to let everyone in the country know about the upcoming 2020 Census and encourage them to respond online, by phone or by mail. And we are extremely committed to reaching those people who are historically undercounted.”

The communications campaign includes television and radio commercials, digital, social media and print advertising and messaging on billboards and at bus stops.

The Census’ massive public education effort encourages participation among multicultural and hardto-count populations with ads in English and 12 other languages including Arabic,

Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese.

During the conference,

Bluford, the first AfricanAmerican to go to space, Frederick Gregory, the first African-American to pilot and command a NASA mission and Ronald McNair, who tragically perished in the Challenger disaster. The special also features a rare interview with the Soviet Union›s contender in the race, Cuban Air Force pilot Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez, who rose from a humble childhood as

iStockphoto/ NNPA

“Through advertising, public events, partnerships and digital and traditional media, we are embarking on a nationwide effort to let everyone in the country know about the upcoming 2020 Census and encourage them to respond online, by phone or by mail,” said Steven Dillingham, director of the Census Bureau.

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Dallas Examiner publisher receives NNPA Lifetime Achievement Award

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia A tragedy initially brought Mollie Belt into the world of newspaper publishing.

Now, 34 years after the tragic murder of her parents – Dallas Examiner publisher and civil rights leader Fred Finch, Jr., and Mildred Finch – Belt’s foray into the news business is nothing short of a triumph. A former longtime government employee, Belt received the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) 2020 Publisher Lifetime Achievement Award Jan. 24 during the trade organization’s annual Mid-Winter Training Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The NNPA’s executive committee unanimously selected Belt for the honor.

“It is with great pleasure that the NNPA Executive Committee has selected Mollie Belt for the honor of the Publishers Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions to the NNPA for so many years,” said Karen Carter Richards, NNPA national chair and Houston Forward Times publisher. “Mollie has demonstrated great leadership and guidance to uplift the publishers and the entire organization.”

“Mollie’s local, statewide, regional, and national leadership as the distinguished publisher of the Dallas Examiner exemplifies the best of the Black Press of America,” said NNPA President and CEO, Dr. Benjamin Chavis, Jr. For Belt, the conference wasn’t just about accepting such distinguished honor from her peers, but it was a reminder of how important the Black Press remains.

“It’s imperative that we publish the news and remember at all times that we are the voice of

the Black community,” said Belt.

“We have to remember that we are here to print the news. I always think of what someone told me years ago, which was to not worry about getting more advertising, to just print the news, and if your editorial content is good, the advertising dollars will come.”

Belt observed that when the Dallas Examiner was founded it was the only Black-owned newspaper in the city where the community could receive hard news.

“Black newspapers are the only real voice of the community that I know of in Dallas.

We don’t have a Black-owned television station or a Blackowned radio station,” said Belt.

Born in 1943 in Dallas, Belt’s mother was a mathematics instructor while her father was an attorney and civil rights leader who, in 1986, founded the Dallas Examiner. Tragically, after publishing just four issues of the newspaper, Belt’s parents

were murdered in their home.

Belt was forced to take over the paper. She did so without any experience. Prior to that tragic event she spent her career working as an employment counselor for the Texas Employment Commission, and she also held several positions for the city of Dallas and the federal government.

“I was the only child, I inherited the newspaper,” Belt stated. “I did not know the newspaper industry, and it was something that I had to learn on the job. My father wasn’t a newspaperman either and when I look back, there are a lot of things that we do differently today. We have a niche market, and we have to continuously stress that. Even though we know that we now live in a digital world – and we have to have a digital presence – we also have to remember the print edition and that our community still enjoys reading the print edition and our community loves pictures.”

After taking over the

paper, Belt decided to pour much of her resources into making the Examiner a success, in part, to carry out her parents’ legacy.

In a 2013 HistoryMakers interview, Belt noted that she successfully applied for a grant from AT&T to start, “Future Speak,” a publication aimed at developing young minority journalists. She also used the Dallas Examiner to increase HIV/ AIDS awareness and prevention by publishing numerous articles and special supplements.

Under Belt’s guidance, the Dallas Examiner has won a host of local, state, and national awards. In 2002, the newspaper earned honors as “Best Weekly Newspaper” by the Texas Publisher’s Association. The publication also has captured at least 12 awards from the regional chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, including “Best Newspaper” and “Best Practices.”

For Belt, the

Mollie Belt, publisher of the Dallas Examiner and recipient of the 2020 NNPA Lifetime Achievement Award NNPA Publishers Lifetime Achievement Award will forever stand out as most special.

“When you receive an honor from your peers, it’s all the more meaningful,” Belt said.

“I get a lot of awards and honors from various organizations, some of which are related to the community. But, this one is very special, and I’m really touched.”

Redefining suffrage, ‘unerasing’ Black women Commentary by Gwen McKinney Sojourner Truth. Harriet Tubman.

Ida B. Wells. Shirley Chisholm.

Rosa Parks.

These household names, spanning a couple of centuries, qualify for the Suffrage Hall of Fame.

Almost a buzzword synonymous with the Year of the Woman, in 2020 the centerpiece of suffrage will be marked by the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment granting women’s voting rights. Referred to as a bold justice movement, suffrage will be celebrated as America’s march to full democracy.

In popular parlance, can we unpack the significance of suffrage and inclusive democracy for Black women?

Words matter. But the impact and impetus of their meaning matter more.

Edwards From 3 community including housing discrimination, segregation in

Here’s a composite definition from online dictionaries.

Suffrage is the right to vote in public elections. Universal suffrage means everyone gets to vote, as opposed to only men or property holders … For example, after trying for about a hundred years, American women were granted suffrage and voted for the first time in 1920.

The 19th Amendment was adopted Aug. 18, 1920, after the required number of states ratified the constitutional measure. Though many Black women led suffrage campaigns, the 19th Amendment put white women on an empowerment tract to electoral engagement.

Interestingly, the suffrage movement, festooned in the symbolic color white, is often portrayed through a narrow window uncomplicated by the strictures of race and power that framed the Amendment then and now.

Look no further than the historical landscape of that

moment. Congressional approval of the Act in 1919 was the same year as the infamous Red Summer, a tumultuous white supremacist reign of terror and lynching in Black communities across the country. One year after the 19th Amendment was adopted in 1921 racist mobs set ablaze Tulsa, Okla., decimating what was revered as Black Wall Street.

The Year of the Woman battle cry is perversely at odds with Black women’s unbroken quest for liberation.

Although lauded today as the most reliable and consistent voting bloc for democratic change, we’ve historically endured being marginalized, dismissed and erased.

Black women’s demand to be equal and heard extends beyond the century runup to the 19th Amendment. It was intersectional and linked with abolition of slavery, anti-lynching battles, literacy drives, sharecropper land rights campaigns and the establishment of a radical Black Press that

public employment and police brutality. He was an unapologetic and tireless advocate for equity, justice and power for Black people. He challenged the City of Minneapolis to integrate its

Fire Department, advocated for placing the Minneapolis Police Department under federal receivership, among other reforms, and confronted the Board of Education about

was led by many Black women suffragists.

Our suffrage quest continued through the Civil Rights Era and passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 which finally, for the first time, delivered the franchise to Black people in the South.

Rewind centuries earlier.

Our demand to selfgovern predates the formation of

this republic, beginning in 1619 when the first Africans, snatched from their ancestral home, landed on these shores. Those nameless suffrage pioneers joined with their men to resist and carry the torch for all people – Native-Americans, Chinese immigrants and even Irish indentured servants – denied fundamental liberty. Then and now, we wage claims to own our bodies, voices and choices.

We build on that truth by redefining suffrage beyond the limited act of casting a ballot.

For Black women, the narrative is rooted in telling herstory, “unerasing” the achievements of yesterday and the possibilities for the future.

This centennial year is an appropriate time to redefine universal suffrage through the prism of triumphs and tragedies. “Trust Black women” must be more than a cliché.

“Unerased Black Women” promises to create brave spaces and in alliance with Black newspapers across the country,

unfurl a frank public conversation about suffrage, race, and power.

Through a digital destination, we’ll turn our ear to a beating heart of resilience, resistance, words and deed.

Daughter of slaves, descendants of warriors, writers, journalists, teachers, mentors, activists – universal suffragists all – have something to say.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. Anna Julia Cooper. Mary Ann Shadd. Harriet Jacobs. Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin.

Mary McLeod Bethune. Fannie Lou Hamer. Ella Baker.

Gertrude BustillMossell. Charlotta Bass. Marvel Jackson Cooke.

Most of these women can’t claim household name status in the traditional suffrage roll call.

But their noble stories will be “unerased.”

Gwen McKinney is campaign director of an initiative, “Suffrage. Race. Power: Unerased Black Women,” that will launch in March.

inequitable discipline and educational outcomes for Black students.”

“From the 1967 riot on Plymouth Avenue to the push to bring body cameras to the

Minneapolis Police Department, much of our city’s history has been written alongside Ron Edwards’ activism,” said Minneapolis Mayor Jocob Frey.

“Ron’s roots in community ran

as deep as his knowledge of the structure of local government.

He was a constant presence in the fight for civil rights and racial justice who will be missed by our entire city.”

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Page 6 • January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020 • Insight News

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Those most at risk for low vitamin D levels are people of color and people living at higher latitudes

Why you need more Vitamin D in the winter

By Margherita T. Cantorna Distinguished Professor of Molecular Immunology, Pennsylvania State University

vitamin D in immune cells. My laboratory has been interested in figuring out why the immune system has vitamin D receptors that determine which cells can use vitamin D. In the immune system, vitamin D acts to improve your ability to fight infections and to reduce inflammation.

TheConversation.com

Where to get your vitamin D Vitamin D is called the sunshine vitamin since it is made in the skin after exposure to sun. The same UVB rays that cause a sunburn also make vitamin D. Sunscreen, darker skin pigmentation, clothing and reduced daylight in winter diminish the skin’s ability to make vitamin D. The people who experience the biggest seasonal swings in vitamin D levels are fair-skinned individuals living in the northern regions of the U.S. and at higher latitudes around the globe where there is very little daylight in winter.

But those most at risk for low vitamin D levels are people of color and people living at higher latitudes. Dark-skinned individuals are more likely than fair-skinned individuals to be

Winter is upon us and so is the risk of vitamin D deficiency and infections.

Vitamin D, which is made in our skin following sunlight exposure and also found in oily fish (mackerel, tuna and sardines), mushrooms and fortified dairy and nondairy substitutes, is essential for good health. Humans need vitamin D to keep healthy and to fight infections. The irony is that in winter, when people need vitamin D the most, most of us are not getting enough. So how much should we take? Should we take supplements? How do we get more? And, who needs it most?

I am a medical microbiologist and immunologist who studies the functions of

Food rich in Vitamin D low for vitamin D year-round because the darker skin blocks the UVB rays from producing vitamin D. However, even in dark skinned individuals, vitamin D is lowest in the winter.

In the winter, in addition to high vitamin D food, adults should take additional vitamin D from foods and/or supplements to get at least 600 IU per day of vitamin D. People who have dark skin or avoid sunshine should eat more vitamin D year-round.

Vitamin D is important for bones and your microbes Originally, doctors

thought that vitamin D was only important for bone health. This was because the vitamin D deficiency caused bone diseases like rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults. However, in the 1980s scientists discovered that immune cells had receptors for vitamin D. My group’s research has shown that vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining health in the gastrointestinal tract. Higher levels of vitamin D reduce susceptibility to inflammatory bowel disease and Crohn’s disease, gut and lung infections in animals and people.

My colleagues and

I have discovered that one of the ways vitamin D functions is by keeping the microbes in the gut healthy and happy. Vitamin D increases the number and diversity of microbes living in the gut, which together reduce inflammation throughout the body.

Low vitamin D levels are associated with inflammatory bowel disease in humans.

Researchers have found that inflammatory bowel disease patients in Japan have more symptoms in winter than during other seasons.

Why is vitamin D more important in winter?

In the winter, humans are exposed to more infections and spend less time outside.

Exactly how much vitamin D healthy adults should have is debated. Some authorities recommend from 200 IU per day to 2,000 IU per day. In the U.S., the Institutes of Medicine recommends 600-800 IU per day for adults, while the Endocrine Society states that optimal vitamin D status may require 1500-2,000 IU per day. In the winter, people have a reduced ability to make

vitamin D when they go outside, so amounts of at least 600 IU per day of vitamin D from food or supplements would help maintain vitamin D status at summer levels.

But, just like many things, too much vitamin D can be harmful. Vitamin D toxicity does not result from too much sun or food. Because of the risk of skin cancer, dermatologists and other health professionals do not recommend unprotected sun exposure to boost your vitamin D. Instead they suggest supplements.

But vitamin D toxicity can occur if an individual takes too many.

The experts that set the national intakes of vitamin D for the U.S. recommend that adult individuals take no more than 4,000 IU per day of vitamin D to avoid toxic side effects.

Vitamin D helps you absorb calcium from your diet, but when vitamin D is too high, calcium levels in the blood go up and that can lead to kidney disease.

By consuming more vitamin D during the winter your gut microbes will be healthier and you’ll be more resistant to infection and inflammation yearround.

Confused about what to eat? Science can help

By P.K. Newby Adjunct Associate Professor of Nutrition, Harvard University TheConversation.com Do you feel like nutritionists are always changing their minds?

Do you want science-based information about diet but don’t know whom or what to believe?

If you’re nodding in agreement, you’re not alone. More than 80 percent of Americans are befuddled.

Yet it’s a lament that’s getting quite tiring – if you’re a nutrition scientist, that is. So much so that I refocused my career to shine scientific light on today’s critical food conversations, which have profound impacts on public health and the environment. My mantra: From farm to fork, what we eat matters.

In fact, did you know that 80 percent of chronic diseases are preventable through modifiable lifestyle changes, and diet is the single largest contributing factor?

Science says plants are better for you and our planet The scientific report from the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans concluded a plant-based diet is best for human health and the environment alike. More than 75 percent of your meal should comprise vegetables, fruits and whole grains, and protein sources should include beans, peas, nuts, seeds and soy.

Canada’s 2019 Food Guide is similarly plantfocused, as is Harvard’s Healthy Eating Plate, while Brazil emphasizes foods “mainly of plant origin.” These guidelines and others also stress the importance of limiting processed and ultra-processed foods.

There’s also consensus from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and others that plantbased diets are more sustainable, largely due to the high energy inputs and environmental damage of livestock.

A plant-based diet is a win-win for human health and the environment. Plant-

Ana Popovic

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based diets can be adapted to suit your taste preferences, traditions and cultures, as the Blue Zones, or regions of the world where people typically live longer than average and with fewer chronic diseases, indicate.

If science has the keys to a health-promoting, diseasepreventing, planet-saving diet, why are people so confused? A closer look will arm you with the skills to sort fact from fiction.

There’s money in confusion Celebrity junk science is an obvious player. It might even be cloaked in scrubs, like Dr. Oz – though chastised by the Senate for his quackery.

(Physicians, in general, have little to no training in nutrition.)

Celebrities garner enormous platforms, often clouding the truth (or drowning it completely); the deal between Netflix and Gwyneth Paltrow, whose company Goop was sued over a certain jade egg, suggests that science is losing the battle.

One needn’t be a celebrity to hold sway, however.

A list of the Top 100 influencers

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Science can help you decide which diet works best for you. showed that most were bloggers or athletes with no expertise.

(None were scientists.) These voices gain considerable traction on social media. Health Feedback, a network of scientists who review the accuracy of online content, conducted a study with the Credibility Coalition and found a minority of articles received a positive rating, with most “exaggerating the benefits and harms of various foods.”

Traditional media don’t always shed light, alas.

Single-study sensationalism is ubiquitous – for example, glyphosate in oats, coconut oil and weight, coffee causing cancer – and findings lack context.

And science journalism has taken a hit and is perhaps why CNN interviewed an antiscience zealot. Or why the Los Angeles Times tweeted that there’s a “growing belief” about the health benefits of celery juice. (Pro tip: It’s not a thing.)

Surrounding the din of bogus dietary advice and media hype is a backdrop of science denialism, which legitimizes antiscience when espoused from top levels of government. Science illiteracy also plays a role.

Changing

the conversation Potent societal powers create a culture of nutrition confusion that not only obfuscate the truth about diet, they undermine science as a whole. Three steps will help eaters navigate this rocky terrain.

Begin by asking critical questions when digesting diet news. Does the writer have an advanced degree in nutrition, or does she or he have expertise in science journalism? Are there references to peer-reviewed studies or scientific organizations?

Is the source credible? Are

miracle cures or quick results promised? Are there expensive price tags for magic bullets?

Does it sound like clickbait?

Questioning the who-whatwhere-why-how is paramount.

Second, remember that what flits through our newsfeeds often comes via algorithms that enable news to careen through our echo chambers and elicit confirmation bias, factual or not.

Offline, too, we are more likely to share beliefs with friends and family, our tribe. Getting curious about what you eat and why it matters beyond your comfort zone is necessary: You may need to “unlearn what you have learned.”

Finally, try this on for size: Nutrition. Isn’t. Confusing.

We all have cherished traditions and values – what we eat isn’t just about the science. (At least, I hope not.) But it is time to learn the fundamental food and nutrition facts that will inspire you to harness the power of food to promote health, prevent disease and protect the planet. Change is possible – and the truth is out there.

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Insight News • January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020 • Page 7

Harry Colbert, Jr.

Rude Boi Jerk Chicken and Waffles.

Soul Bowl provides new school take on old school soul food

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Managing Editor harry@insightnews.com Nothing warms the soul on a frigid 19-degree day than a nice hot bowl of chicken and waffles.

You read that right, bowl of chicken and waffles. To be specific the Rude Boi Jerk

Chicken and Waffles.

That was what I ordered on a blustery Sunday afternoon when I made my way to Soul Bowl inside of Graze Provisions & Libations in the North Loop, 520 4th St. N., Minneapolis. Located on the second level of the open-concept dining hall and bar, Soul Bowl is offering up a new-school take on soul classics – all served up

in a bowl. For instance, the Rude Boi started with a crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside Belgian waffle topped with spicy jerk chicken, plantain, pineapple, jerk syrup and green onions. The cacophony of flavor explodes on the tongue with the heat of the chicken balanced by the waffle and plantain.

Diners have the option to order one of the advertised

dishes off the menu or they can build their own bowl with items such as the D’Angelo Candied Yams, Jill Scott Collard Greens, J. Cole Cauliflower Mash or Drizzy Cornbread Dressing.

As you’ve probably observed there’s a theme here. The restaurant, run by husband and wife team Gerald and Brittney Klass, offers hip-hop, reggae and … well … soul inspired

dishes with names to match.

An added treat, Sunday meals are accompanied by a soundtrack full of your favorite artists, and occasionally resident DJs will ply their craft during the festive brunch. Oh, yeah, I did mention the bar, right? Graze has bars located on both levels and offers a wide selection of libations. Did someone say mimosas?

For the gamer, Graze offers videogaming on its wall of televisions and a variety of board games as well.

Soul Bowl is open Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. – 9 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. – 10 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.

WINTER: Angela Myers (right) will soon wed Tyler Moroles.

Love rooted in activism: Myers and Moroles to wed Angela Rose Myers will be married to Tyler A. Moroles on Feb. 14 in Puerto Rico.

Myers is the daughter of Dr. Samuel Myers Jr., professor in Public Policy at the University of Minnesota and Dr. Sheila Ards, former assistant vice-president for Community Engagement at the University of Minnesota. Moroles is the son of Jesus Moroles and Barbara Spleiss of Minneapolis and is the DFL state treasurer and candidate for Minnesota State House District 63B. Moroles has spent his career working in affordable housing for Minneapolis Public Housing Authority and Hennepin County. Myers is a 2018 graduate of Barnard College/Columbia University, where she majored in Africana Studies and Women, Gender, Sexuality studies. Currently, each are supporting the other’s dreams in activism and politics, as Moroles runs for office and Myers grows in her position as the second vice-president of the Minneapolis NAACP. The couple met through their shared Columbia University alumni network when both were back home in Minnesota. They were drawn to each other because of their passion for social justice work as well as their shared values of family, integrity, education, and love of community and culture.

Two years after their first date at Restaurante Maya in Northeast Minneapolis, Moroles proposed to Myers on a private beach in Portugal.

The couple would like to thank those who have helped them nurture their relationship, their families, their parish – the Church of Incarnation/ Sagrado Corazón de Jesús in

South Minneapolis, St. Peter Claver Church in St. Paul, The Minneapolis NAACP, Lambda Chapter and Delta Phi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity, Inc., the DFL Latino Caucus, and the Minnesota DFL.

WE MAKE A GAME OF IT.

Page 8 • January 27, 2020 - February 2, 2020 • Insight News

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