Love’s Story:
Evrod Cassimy is
“Newzic”
Detroit Cornerstone student accepted into 42 colleges
City.Life.Style. C1
Roots. B1
Michigan Chronicle
Vol. 82 – No. 29 | March 27 - April 2, 2019
Powered by Real Times Media | michiganchronicle.com
Oakland County Exec L. Brooks Patterson battling cancer
Michigan, Ground Zero for New
By Trevor W. Coleman Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson announced Tuesday, that after more than five decades leading the county, he will not seek re-election following a diagnosis of stage-4 pancreatic cancer. The 80-year-old Patterson’s announcement was greeted with a mixture of surprise and sadness by both friends and foes, who the firebrand conservative tangled with over the course of his long career in public service. During a press L. Brooks Patterson conference at his Waterford Township office, Patterson said in spite of his being given only an 11 percent survival rate, he planned to finish out his term. “I’m in treatment now. I will continue in treatment until my oncologist says I’m free to go,” Patterson said. “There’s an 11 percent chance you can walk away, and I intend to be a part of that 11 percent.” Pancreatic cancer begins in the tissues of your pancreas and typically spreads rapidly to nearby organs. It is seldom detected in its early stages. Stage 4 pancreatic cancer tends to spread to other organs. This means that surgeons cannot remove it, and there is no cure. Treatment involves managing pain and other symptoms to improve a person’s quality of life. Which may also include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or a combination of these. Warren C. Evans, Wayne County’s Chief Executive Officer, tweeted words of encouragement to his fellow county executive: “My prayers are with Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson and his family today. Attempting to beat stage 4 pancreatic cancer is the ultimate fight, but if there is one thing about Brooks that we can all agree on, it’s that he’s a fighter. We will all be cheering him on.” A native Detroiter, Patterson won re-election to his seventh four-year-term as county executive in 2016, and before yesterday’s announcement was expected to seek a record-breaking eighth term. He served for 16 years as an outspoken ultra-conservative county prosecutor who had a very tempestuous relationship with the late Detroit Mayor Coleman A. Young. Upon his 1992 election as Oakland County Executive he came to symbolize the long-simmering conflicts between urban and increasingly affluent and influential suburban communities. But also earned a reputation for trafficking in toxic racial zero sum politics that often rejected regional cooperation, thrived on the fears of others and exploited such anxieties for political gain. Although he mellowed considerably over the years, he still maintained his feistiness which was on display at his press conference. “This is not a goodbye,” said Patterson. “This is just an announcement of a shi--y deck of cards dealt me, that I intend to play out.”
WHAT’S INSIDE
STD Epidemic By Trevor W. Coleman State health officials warn that Michigan is in the midst of a new STD epidemic, and Southeast Michigan is ground zero for syphilis. Jim Kent, an STD epidemiologist with the Michigan Department of Community Health, explained that after nearly a decade of steadily declining rates in sexually transmitted diseases, 2018 statistics indicate recent increases in STD cases, which remain unabated. Data shows there was an estimated 28 percent spike in reported syphilis cases in Detroit for 2017, and a 30 percent increase last year. “We are alarmed,” he said. “We’ve seen two years in a row of pretty big increases in syphilis and no evidence that it is slowing down. And it makes it even more critical that providers are paying attention and that individuals think about getting tested and treated and do what they can to make sure their partners are getting tested and treated.” Kent added that there has also been an 8 percent increase in chlamydia and a 20 percent increase in gonorrhea cases. “And we expect
the 2018 numbers for chlamydia to increase by about 5 percent over 2017 and a big jump in gonorrhea of about 25-30 percent,” Jim further explained.
disease. “Since I’ve worked in this field Detroit has always been the highest, and after Detroit, the rest of Wayne County. Then, Oakland and Macomb County.
Health officials said the growth in syphilis cases in Detroit worries them most.
“The most common cases are among race and sexuality,” she said. “We see a lot among gay men and young African American men.”
This is mainly because it has been driven by the promiscuous behavior of young black males (between the ages of 20-29) who often do not think of themselves as gay but have sex with other men nonetheless. In fact, three-quarters of the new cases can be attributed to men who have sex with other men. Kathy Hollis, a disease intervention specialist at the Wayne County Health Department, said there is also a correlation between population density and the spread of the
Majority of these syphilis cases involve male with an even split between black and white males. However, because the population of African Americans in Michigan is significantly lower, the rate among black males is 16 times higher than among white males, Lynn Sutfin, a public information officer for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, explained. While easily treatable with penicillin and early detection, syphilis is a highly-contagious and potentially-deadly disease. Left untreated, its long-term effects can be severe, causing eye, ear and neurological problems. It can result in masses and growths on the head as well. About 30 percent of the people who contracted the disease
See STD
Detroit’s 2019 Sambo Awards: Is “Calling ‘em Out” the Right Approach? By Janis D. Hazel
Detroit’s U Prep Academy High School Debate team to represent city at The Urban Debate National Championship
Roots. B2
37
WEEK’S BEST LOTTERY
PICKS
This week on page A5
$1.00
EPIDEMIC page A5
The racial term “Sambo” became prominent in American culture in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 anti-slavery book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The Sambo character was a slave overseer who had tormented and beaten to death a God-fearing slave named Uncle Tom, hence the title of the Detroit Sambo Awards.
Presented by the activist group ‘Call ‘em — Out!!!,’ the 15th Annual Sambo Awards dinner was held March 21, 2019, at the International Institute in Detroit’s Cultural Center. The master of ceremonies was Sam Riddle, host of Riddle at Random on 910AM (WFDF) and political director of the Michigan chapter of the National Action Network (NAN). The sold-out dinner was in roast fashion, and was hosted by its founder and president Agnes Hitchcock who is described on Kirsten Hitchcock’s Facebook page as “the Grape-throwing Detroit activist,” a nod to Agnes’ 2007 incident of throwing grapes at school board members during a meeting where a vote took place to close dozens of district schools. This was not your customary black-tie affair. The evening’s host wore her signature black ‘Call ‘em — Out!!!’ hoodie with their mantra emblazoned on the
Hitchcock says, “We can’t be polite, we have to call it as we see it. See what Sambo did to Uncle Tom?!”
Sambo Awards founder and president Agnes Hitchcock with Sam Riddle, master of ceremonies back: “Those elected in our city must serve in the interests of the people in the city. When they don’t...Call ‘em — Out!!!” The look was complete with black leather lace-up sneakers with “Call ‘em Out” elegantly painted on them.
Sambo [typically preceded by ‘Little Black’] is deemed a derogatory term for an African American who is considered weak. It is synonymous with the phrase “Uncle Tom,” which describes a Black person who has “sold out” their race.
On Riddle’s talk show, he stated, “Detroit has been rendered a plantation lorded over by Mike [Duggan] of Livonia,” and stated during the Sambo event, “I unapologetically stand with ‘Call ‘em Out’ on the racial disparities and issues of poverty, piss poor schools, water shutoffs, and wealth inequality, which motivated me to emcee this event. And further, the Handkerchief Head Negro enablers who support the racist agenda that doesn’t benefit the black community are among
See SAMBO page A5