The African-American Voters Guide

Transcription

The
African-American
Voters Guide
Visit us on the Web at
www.africanamericanvotersguide.com
http://blackcollegemonthly.com
www.blackcollegefootballtoday.com
For the August 14, 2012 Primary Election
August 2012
The African-American Voters Guide
On ty
Alachua County School
Board
Barbara Sharpe
Alachua County
Commission
Roberta Lopez
Alachua County
Comission
Ken Cornell
Alachua County School
Board
Jodi Wood
Alachua
County
Property
Appraiser
Alonzo
Perkins
State Representative
District 20
Clovis Watson
Early Voting Starts
August 4-11
United States
Senate
Bill Nelson
President Barack Obama
As an African-American
Make Your Vote Count
In the Primary
and in the
General
Election
The African American Voters Guide
is brought to you by
Black College Monthly
Now at
http://blackcollegemonthly.com
THE RIGHT TO VOTE WAS A FIGHT FOR
AFRICAN AMERICANS FOR OVER 100 YEARS,
BUT WHO CARES ?
• •
WHY DO WE LISTEN TO OTHERS ABOUT
CANDIDATES AND RARELY DO THE RESEARCH
FOUR OURSELVES ?
• •
WHY DO BLACK VOTERS RECEIVE DISRESPECT FROM CANDIDATES AND ELECTED
OFFICIALS ? THAT HAVE DONE NOTHING FOR
AFRICAN AMERICAN VOTERS BUT VOTED
AGAINST JOBS, GOOD RTS TRANSPORTATION
TO THE EASTSIDE OF
GAINESVILLE,
PROTECTECTED AND PROTESTED FOR A CONVICTED
FELON, BUT WOULD NEVER
DO THIS FOR THE INNOCENT
AFRICAN AMERICANS THAT
ARE LOCKED UP IN OUR
COUNTY JAIL, THAT ARE
ONLY BOOKED UNDER THE
ASSUMPTION OF BREAKING
A LAW
• • WHY IS
THE BLACK
VOTE TAKEN
FOR GRANTED
AS IF DEMOCRATS FEEL
THAT THEY
DON’T HAVE
TO WORK FOR
OUR VOTE ?
• •
WHY IS IT THAT AFRICAN AMERICAN
CANDIDATES HAVE A HISTORY OF ONLY FEELING COMFORTABLE RUNNING FOR THE SEAT OF
ANOTHER AFRICAN AMERICAN ELECTED OFFICIAL ? WHAT HAS BARBARA SHARPE DONE
THAT WARRENTS A POLITICAL CHALLENGER
AND EILEEN ROY CAN RUN UN-APPOSED, WHY
WAS THERE NOT A CANDIDATE TO RUN
AGAINST HER? IS IT AGAINST THE LAWS OF
ALACHUA
COUNTY THAT
TWO OR MORE
AFRICAN
AMERICANS
CAN’T HOLD
OFFICE AT THE
SAME TIME ON
THE SCHOOL
BOARD ? CITY
OR COUNTY
COMMISSION,
PROPERTY APPRAISER, SHERIFF, ELECTED
MAYOR ? ASK THE QUESTION DEMAND THE
ANSWERS AND VOTE.
• •
WHY DO AFRICAN
AMERICANS FEEL THAT
THINGS ARE ALRIGHT
WHEN YOU SEE THE
DECADES OF NO
PROGRESS ON THE EAST
SIDE OF GAINESVILLE ?
AND SLOW PROGRESS IN
ALL OF THE CITIES EXCEPT THREE IN ALACHUA
COUNTY?)
• •
WHAT HAS
BARBARA SHARPE DONE
THAT WAS NOT GOOD
FOR THE STUDENTS OF
ALACHUA COUNTY ?
YOU CAN’T FIND ONE,
BUT OTHERS ON THE
SCHOOL BOARD THAT
HAVE UNQUENCHABLE
DESIRE TO BE THE
CHAIR OF THE
ALACHUA COUNTY
SCHOOL BOARD? NO
MATTER WHAT IT
TAKES OR WHO JOINS
IN AND CALL IT
POLITICS
• •
WHEN ARE BLACK VOTERS GOING TO
REALIZE YOU HAVE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND
ATTEND MEETINGS? ALL MEETINGS, SCHOOL
BOARD, CITY AND COUNTY COMMISSION, AND
OTHER BOARDS ?
• •
WHEN ARE AFRICAN AMERICAN VOTERS
AND CITIZENS GOING
TO RETURN TO WORKING TOGETHER AS WE
DID FOR CIVIL RIGHTS
AND VOTING RIGHTS ?
IF YOU HAVEN’T NOTICED WE STILL
HAVEN’T ACCOMPLISHED THAT.
• •
AFRICAN AMERICANS MUST REALIZE
THAT WE HAVE OTHER AFRICAN AMERICANS
INVOLVED IN OUR POLITICS AND SOCIAL LIVES
THAT ARE NOT WORKING TO ENHANCE THE
QUALITY OF LIFE FOR US OR ANYBODY BUT
THEMSELVES. THEY WANT ALL OF THE TITLES
OF PRESIDENTS, AND CHAIRS OF ORGANIZATIONS AND WHEN YOU REVIEW THEIR
RECORDS NO ONE HAS BENEFITED BUT THEM.
• •
THERE IS A ATTITUDE AMONG PEOPLE
THAT AFRICAN AMERICANS DON’T CARE
ABOUT OUR CONDITIONS, IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS, ON OUR JOBS, IN OUR SCHOOLS. THE
ONLY PEOPLE THAT CAN CHANGE THAT PERCEPTION OF AFRICAN AMERICANS AND OUR
HABITS IS AFRICAN AMERICANS. BY FIRST
VOTING IN ALL ELECTIONS, ABSENTEE VOTING,
EARLY VOTING, AND VOTING ON DESIGNATED
DAYS, AUGUST 14,2012 AND NOVEMBER
4,2012. DON’T LEAVE YOUR LIFE IN THE
HANDS OF OTHERS YOU MUST TAKE CHARGE.
• •
IF YOU ARE SOME OF THOSE THAT FEEL
THAT RELIGION AND POLITICS AREN’T CONNECTED, REMEMBER JESUS WAS VOTED ON TO
BE CRUCIFIED BY THE MEMBERS PRESENT
WHO HAD A CHOICE TO SPARE HIS LIFE OR
THE LIFE OF A THIEF, AND THEY CHOSE SPARE
THE LIFE OF THE THIEF. ANOTHER BAD
CHOICE OF VOTING WITHOUT VITAL INFORMATION AND GOING ALONG WITH THE CROWD.
• •
EVERY CANDIDATE THAT IS AN ACTIVE
OFFICE SEEKER WAS CONTACTED BY ME TO
SEE IF THEY WANTED TO SHARE THEIR INFORMATION WITH YOU THE BLACK VOTER IN THIS
VOTER GUIDE, AND THOSE THAT APPEAR IN
THIS PUBLICATION HAVE PROVEN THAT THEY
RESPECT YOU, YOUR VOTE, AND THESE
CANDIDATES WILL WORK FOR YOU. THIS IS A
GUARANTEE OF OUR STAFF AT BLACK COLLEGE
MONTHLY THROUGH A STRENUOUS VETTING
PROCESS TO SEE IF THE CONCERNS OF AFRICAN AMERICANS WOULD BE GIVEN THE SAME
PRIORITY AS WHITE VOTERS.
• • THE CANDIATES THAT DO NOT
APPEAR IN THIS VOTERS GUIDE
HAVE USED VARIOUS EXCUSES TO
JUSTIFY THEIR POSITION, PRICES TO
HIGH, DON’T KNOW WHO IT
REACHES, AND OTHERS, BUT FOR
TRUTHFUL CLARIFICATION I MUST
TELL YOU MOST LOCAL WHITE
CANDIDATES DIDN’T PARTICIPATE
IN THE VOTERS GUIDE 18 YEARS
AGO WHEN PRODUCTION AND
PRINTING PRICES WERE A LOT
CHEAPER. WHEN THEY BUY AD’S AT
THE GAINESVILLE SUN, AND OTHER
PRINT PUBLICATIONS, PRICE IS
NEVER QUESTIONED BECAUSE YOU SEE THEM
IN THESE PUBLICATIONS, YARD SIGHNS ARE
NOT CHEAP BUT THEY FIND THE MONEY AND
THE IMPORTANCE TO PURCHASE THEM, TV
AD’S ARE PURCHASED ON COX, TV 20,TV 9,
AND OTHERS AND MONEY IS AVAILABLE FOR
THAT. ALL THE BLACK VOTER IS WORTH TO
MOST WHITE AND BLACK CANDIDATES IS A
MAILER THAT YOU GET OR A PALM CARD AT
YOUR CHURCH, ALL OF THE MATERIALS FOR
CANDIDATES COST MONEY A LOT OF MONEY
AND THEY PAY IT, BUT BECAUSE I PUT
GREATER VALUE ON AFRICAN AMERICANS AND
THEIR VOTE IT’S NOT WORTH IT TO WHITE OR
SOME BLACK CANDIDATES. IF THEY FEEL THAT
WAY THEN YOU SHOULD FEEL THAT WAY
WHEN YOU GO TO VOTE, PLEASE VOTE BUT
VOTE FOR THOSE CANDIDATES THAT RESPECT
YOU, YOUR VOTE AND WHO YOU ARE.
• •
PLEASE JOIN THE ALACHUA COUNTY
DEMOCRATIC BLACK CAUCUS, WE ARE ONE OF
THE FEW BLACK POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS
THAT IS 100% FOR THE TRUE REPRESENTATION OF ALL BLACK VOTERS, WE MEET EVERY
2nd THURSDAY OF EACH MONTH AT 6:30: AT
THE DOWNTOWN LIBRARY ON THE 4Th FLOOR,
COME AND SEE TRUE DEMOCRACY AT WORK.
African-American Voters Guide August 2012
2 African-American Voters Guide
BLACK COLLEGE MONTHLY —July/August 2012
VOTE
AUGUST
14TH!
Roberta
For Alachua County
Commission District 1
www.VoteRobertaLopez.com
Endorsed By:
Patricia Bern
Margaret Boonstra
Rev. Milford Griner
Blanch Parker
Alex Sink and Bill McBride
Archer Commissioner
Gainesville Commissioner
Former Gubernatorial Candidates
Perry C. McGri., Jr.
Former Florida Rep.
Yvonne Hinson-Rawls
Pol. Ad. Pd. for and Approved by Roberta Lopez for Alachua County Commission District 1 (DEM)
July/August 2012 — BLACK COLLEGE MONTHLY
African-American Voters Guide 3
Meet the candidates:
Ken Cornell
Alachua Co. Commission Dist. 3
By Christopher Curry
Former Alachua County Commissioner Robert
“Hutch” Hutchinson and area businessman Ken
Cornell are vying to be the Democratic nominee
in District 3.
Ken Cornell
Ken Cornell, who along with his wife owns an
area real estate firm, said his campaign is focused
on funding and preserving programs that invest in
children, neighborhoods and the protection of
water supplies and the environment.
To that end, he said, core government services are
not limited to police, fire and infrastructure but
also include environmental protection and social
services.
Cornell noted that, on the campaign trail, some
Republican candidates have argued the county’s
Environmental Protection Department duplicates
the roles of the state Department of Environmental
Protection or the federal Environmental Protection
Agency and should be cut or eliminated
“I am absolutely against that,” he said. “I think we
need the local EPD to make sure we don’t transfer
that responsibility to Tallahassee. No, thank you.
We want to take care of our environment locally.”
Cornell said the county’s Community Support
Services Department, the Community Agency
Partnership Program and the jail diversion and
alternative sentencing programs in the Court
Services Department were integral to providing
assistance to the poor, the area’s neighborhoods
and youth.
He said the CAPP program should not be seen as
funding charities but “purchasing social services”
from organizations to provide them in a costeffective and efficient manner
Cornell said the county is poised for continued
economic development in the areas of health care
and technology through
ongoing endeavors of the
University of Florida,
Santa Fe College and the
business community.
Age: 43
Residence: Unincorporated
Alachua County
Political party: Democrat
Current occupation: Owner/
Broker of Cornell & Associates
Political experience: First time
seeking office
Family: Wife, Angela Cornell;
sons Connor Cornell and Chris
Cornell
process and supports incentives such as the state’s
Qualified Target Industry program. Through QTI,
local governments provide a 20 percent match
toward a tax rebate for the creation of high-wage
jobs.
He said county government could foster that
economic development by
embracing a “culture of
yes” that helps business
navigate the regulatory
The official sample ballot for the Primary Election for
Alachua County Florida,
August 14, 2012.
All voters in Alachua
County will vote on the
following race:
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER
DISTRICT 4
(Vote for One)
Leanetta McNealy
Barbara Sharpe
Jodi Wood
If you are registered with
the Democratic Party you
will also vote on the
following races:
All Democratic voters will vote
on:
UNITED STATES SENATOR
(Vote for One)
Glenn A. Burkett
Bill Nelson
PROPERTY APPRAISER
(Vote for One)
Ed Crapo
Alonzo Victor Perkins
COUNTY COMMISSIONER
DISTRICT 1
(Vote for One)
Mike Byerly
Roberta Lopez
COUNTY COMMISSIONER
DISTRICT 3
(Vote for One)
Ken Cornell
Robert “Hutch” Hutchinson
If you are a Democratic voter
in State House District 20 you
will also vote on:
STATE REPRESENTATIVE
DISTRICT 20
(Vote for One)
Clovis Watson, Jr.
Marihelen Wheeler
in State House District 21 you
will also vote on:
DISTRICT 21
(Vote for One)
Aaron Bosshardt
Andrew Morey
in Precinct 5 you will also vote
on:
PRECINCT COMMITTEEMAN
PRECINCT 5
(Vote for Two)
John Dumoulin
Vincent John Lipsio, Jr.
Roberto David Sutton
If you are registered with
the Republican Party you
will also vote on the
following races:
All Republican voters will vote
on:
UNITED STATES SENATOR
(Vote for One)
George LeMieux
Deon Long
Connie Mack
Mike McCalister
Marielena Stuart
Dave Weldon
Votes for George LeMieux or Deon Long,
candidates for United States Senator, will
not count due to their withdrawal/
disqualification.
COUNTY COMMISSIONER
DISTRICT 1
(Vote for One)
Brandon C. Kutner
John Martin
Kevin Riordan
If you are a Republican voter in
Congressional District 3 you
will also vote on:
REPRESENTATIVE IN
CONGRESS
DISTRICT 3
(Vote for One)
James Jett
Steve Oelrich
Clifford B. “Cliff” Stearns
Ted Yoho
Precinct 24 you will also vote
on:
PRECINCT 24
(Vote for Two)
Robert D Hiatt
John Wilbur Holloway
Vernon William Howe
Precinct 60 you will also vote
on:
PRECINCT 60
(Vote for Three)
James Bryant
Herbert L. D. Cooke
Roderick F Gonzalez
Eric May
Stephen Tapia-Ruano
Voting is as Easy as 1,2,3 …
Absentee, Early Voting, or At
the Polls on Election Day.
Absentee: To have an Absentee
Ballot mailed to you, please call our
office at 352-374-5252 no later than
5pm on August 8th, the sixth day
prior to the election. All ballots
must be returned to the Supervisor
of Election Office no later than 7pm
on August 14th, election day. Your
ballot may not count if your
signature does not match the
signature on your voter record.
Early Voting: There will be three
Early Voting sites available for this
election. The Supervisor of Elections
office in the County Administration
Building, 12 SE 1st St. Gainesville,
The Millhopper Branch Library
Location at 3145 NW 43rd St.
Gainesville, and the Tower Road
Branch Library Location at 3020 SW
75th St, Gainesville. Early Voting will
begin on Saturday August 4th, and
end on Saturday, August 11th. Each
site will be open Saturday August
4th from 10am-4pm, Sunday August
5th from 10am to 4pm, MondayFriday from 10am-6pm, and
Saturday August 11th from 10am4pm.
Election Day: Voting at the Polls. On
Tuesday, August 14th, the polls will
be open from 7am-7pm.
Please remember, Florida Law
requires that you vote in the
precinct of your residence, and that
you provide a picture and signature
ID or you will need to vote a
provisional ballot. For a list of
polling locations, please visit our
website at www.VoteAlachua.com
If you have any questions, or need
more information, please call the
Supervisor of Elections office at
352-374-5252.
Did You Know These 10
Things about The Jeffersons?
1) The show started in 1975, ended in 1985 and was the longest running
sitcom with a predominantly black cast in US television history.
2) The show had one spin-off, called “Checking in.” This featured the
maid for the show, Florence. The show ran for only four episodes
before it was canceled. That’s when Marla Gibbs returned to “The
Jeffersons.”
3) The show ended abruptly in 1985 with the cast members being told
almost nothing by CBS. Sherman Hemsley said he found out about the
cancelation by reading it in the newspaper.
4) The Jeffersons as a family appeared on the final episode of “The
Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” where they bought the house from the Banks
family.
5) The Jeffersons also came back together (Florence and George did) on
an episode of “House of Payne” in 2011
6) Isabel Sanford, who played Louise Jefferson, made her first appearance as Louise on the show, “All in the Family” during an episode called
“Lionel Moves Into the Neighborhood,” on March 2, 1971.
7) Norman Lear, who created “The Jeffersons” saved the George
Jefferson character for two years specifically for Sherman Hemsley,
who was an actor on Broadway. At the time, Hemsley was busy doing
the Broadway show “Purlie.”
8) George Jefferson got the money to run his dry cleaners after being
rear-ended by a car and getting a settlement.
9) She show came to an end on June25, 1985 after sinking out of the
top 30 in the ratings.
10) While George and Louise were a very credible married couple,
Louise was nearly 20 years older than him in real life. The same was
true for Florida and James Evans in “Good Times,” who were 19 year
apart in age.
Alonzo Victor Perkins for Alachua County Property Appraiser
The financial success of any city and county, and
the government of this great country, is the budget.
The budget, according to former city and county
elected officials, is predominantly dependent upon
the revenues collected through property taxes.
Property taxes are determined based upon the
valuation of all real and personal property reported
in Alachua County. You can see how important it is
to accurately estimate the value of real and personal
property.
Accurate property values require experience,
knowledge, and education, knowledge of the
appraisal process, current knowledge of the real
estate market in general, and experience in the
market. Where I excel over my opponent is in the
education, real-life work experience, and knowledge. Whether you are appraising for lending,
eminent domain, or taxation, appraisal and economic principals hold true. I hold a Bachelor’s
Degree from the University of Florida, and I am a
candidate to receive a Master of Business Administration, with a concentration in real estate
(MBARE). I am an Accredited Senior Member
(ASA) of the American Society of Appraisers. I am
a State Certified General Real Estate Appraiser, No.
RZ431, a certification bestowed upon appraisers
who possess and demonstrate the required
experience and knowledge. I hold a BrokerAssociate license and I have successfully operated Alonzo Perkins, Inc., a real estate appraisal
and consulting company. I have been employed
by Florida Department of Transportation as an
appraiser, reviewer, and as an assistant administrator. I have been used as an expert witness in
Florida courts proceedings, related to real estate
values.
One of the cornerstones of an appraisal is a value
that is based upon what the market will pay for a
property, not what kind of relationship the
appraiser has with the property owner. Complacency, because of an unchallenged and long term
elected position, has fueled the inaccurate and
unfair property values/assessments that I, and
many of you, see coming from my opponent.
These include assessments that are two to three
years behind the market. That results in lost
opportunities for the citizens of Alachua County.
Over, or under, valuation, results in lost opportunities for families to add to the college savings
plan, and lost opportunities for the citizens to
support the economy of Alachua County through
additional savings or more spendable income to be
re-invested into the local economy.
When elected, I promise a tax roll that is more
representative of the current trends in property
values. Everyone has a stake in this very important start to building a better and more financially
sound, Alachua County. I look forward to working
with the staff and the Property Appraiser’s office.
As your Property Appraiser, the staff and I will
ensure that all real estate and personal property is
reflected on the tax roll and we will ensure fairness
through accurate appraisals. The staff and I will
correctly apply current market data, and the rules
and procedures required by the Department of
Revenue. And, because of my overall experience,
knowledge, and education I’m qualified to lead the
office of Alachua County Property Appraiser and
work for ALL THE PEOPLE of Alachua County.
Website –
www.alonzoperkinsforpropertyappraiser.com
Political Ad paid for and approved by Alonzo Victor Perkins, Democrat, for Alachua County Property Appraiser
Eric Holder says Republicans have made
him a ‘proxy’ to attack President Obama
By Sari Horwitz,
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.
sharply criticized lawmakers Monday
for voting to hold him in contempt of
Congress last week, saying Republicans have made him a “proxy” to
attack President Obama in an election
year.
In his first interview since Thursday’s
vote, Holder said lawmakers have used
an investigation of a botched guntracking operation as a way to seek
retribution against the Justice Department for its policies on a host of
issues, including immigration, voting
rights and gay marriage. He said the
chairman of the committee leading the
inquiry, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), is engaging in
political theater as the Justice Department tries to
focus on public safety.
The House voted to hold Attorney General Eric
Holder in contempt of Congress, and House
Democrats staged a walk out during the vote.
“I’ve been doing all of these things all the time
Darrell Issa and his band have been nipping at my
heels,” a defiant Holder said. “They’ve been
nipping, but I’ve been walking.”
The attorney general has long been a lightning rod
for Republican lawmakers’ anger toward the
Obama administration. But Holder said the debate
over documents related to the gun operation,
known as “Fast and Furious” — along with the
National Rifle Association’s attempts to make it an
electoral issue — have made matters worse.
“I’ve become a symbol of what they don’t like
about the positions this Justice Department has
taken,” he said. “I am also a proxy for the president in an election year. You have to be exceedingly naive to think that vote was about .?.?.
documents.”
The House voted Thursday to make Holder the
first sitting attorney general in U.S. history to be
held in contempt, after he withheld certain documents that lawmakers have demanded as part of
their investigation of Fast and Furious.
As part of the gun operation, run by the Phoenix
office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, federal agents watched as
more than 2,000 guns hit the streets; their goal was
to trace them to a Mexican drug cartel. Two guns
linked to the operation were later found at the
scene where a Border Patrol agent was killed.
The Justice Department has provided Issa’s House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee
with 7,600 documents on Fast and Furious.
Republicans, however, have pressed for more
records about the department’s internal deliberations, saying they want to determine who knew
Texas Republican Party
Calls For Repeal Of
Voting Rights Act
The Texas Republican Party released its new
platform, which calls for the repeal of the Voting
Rights Act of 1965. Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican, has spoken against the law.
The Texas Republican Party has released its
official platform for 2012, and the repeal of the
landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 is one of its
central planks.
“We urge that the Voter Rights Act of 1965
codified and updated in 1973 be repealed and not
reauthorized,” the platform reads.
about the operation and when. They have also questioned why Obama invoked executive privilege to keep
the documents from them.
“As often as [Holder] has tried to cast himself and his
other controversies as the reason for the investigation,
he still doesn’t acknowledge the simple truth,” Issa said
Monday. “The citation for contempt had his name on it
because the lawfully issued subpoena for documents
issued nine months ago, that his department didn’t
comply with, also had his name on it.”
Issa added that Holder “can say over and over that this
is all about him, but that isn’t true.”
In the interview, in a stately fifth-floor conference
room at the Justice Department, the attorney general
defended his handling of the case, saying that when he
found out about Fast and Furious, he ordered an
internal investigation, stopped the use of certain tactics
in gun cases and made personnel changes. He also
reiterated his belief that turning over the documents
would have a “chilling effect” on department lawyers
who prepare materials for cases.
“I’ve been a line lawyer, and I know what it would
mean to think that ‘if I write this, it is going to someday come before a congressional committee,’?” Holder
said. Seventeen moderate Democrats who face tough
reelection contests joined the vote against Holder;
several said they thought the attorney general was
thumbing his nose at the House’s oversight responsibility.
Holder said he was angry about the vote but not
surprised. He lamented what he described as an
increasingly toxic atmosphere on Capitol Hill, where he
has become the target of personal attacks.
“It’s a sad indication of where Washington has come,
where policy differences almost necessarily become
questions of integrity,” said Holder, a former judge. “I
came to Washington in the late ’70s, and people had
the ability in the past to have intense policy differences
but didn’t feel the need to question the other person’s
character. And that’s where we are now in Washington
with at least one part of the Republican Party.”
Under a provision of the Voting Rights Act,
certain jurisdictions must obtain permission from
the federal government — called “preclearance”
— before they change their voting rules. The rule
was put in place in jurisdictions with a history of
voter disenfranchisement.
Some elected officials, including Texas Gov. Rick
Perry, a Republican, have since argued that the
rules put an unfair burden on certain places and
not others. Texas is one of nine states that must
obtain preclearance before changing its electoral
guidelines.
The declaration by the state’s GOP comes as
Texas continues protracted fights over voting
rights on several legal fronts. U.S. Attorney
General Eric Holder blocked the state’s recent
voter I.D. law, citing discrimination against
minority voters. A federal judge earlier this month
heard motions in a lawsuit filed by Project Vote, a
voting rights group that tries to expand voting in
low-income communities, that claimed the state’s
laws made it difficult to register new voters.
Critics say voter I.D. laws like the one in Texas
make casting a ballot particularly cumbersome for
the young, seniors and the poor, who are less
likely to have official state identification, as such
laws often require. Others have noted the I.D.
laws will reduce turnout among groups that tend
to vote for Democrats, like young people, the
poor, African Americans and Hispanics.
Numerous independent studies — including one
undertaken by Greg Abbott, Texas’s Republican
attorney general, who claimed there was an
“epidemic” of electoral fraud — have found voter
identification fraud to be exceedingly rare. According to Wayne Slater of the Dallas Morning
News, Abbott’s two-year investigation yielded 26
cases of alleged fraud, but two-thirds of those
turned out to be technical infractions in which the
voters were eligible to vote and their votes were
legally cast. In all the fraud cases but one, the
voters at question were black or Hispanic. All of
them were Democrats.
Of the states that have made these changes, those
states contain 78 percent of all the electoral votes
that are required to elect the next president of the
United States.
“Experience Matters”
T
C
E
L
E
REBarbara
Sharpe
FOR
ALACHUA COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD. DIST. 4
(ALL REGISTERED VOTERS COUNTY WIDE CAN VOTE)
Please Vote August 14th 2012
Professional Experience:
• Elected to the Alachua County School
Board 16 Years (4 Terms)
• Chair, School Board of Alachua
County (X4)
• President, Florida School Boards
Association (presided over all 67
counties)
• Member, Alachua County Value
Adjustment Board
• Vice-Chair, Alachua County Library
Governing Board
• Delegate, National School Boards
Association
Achievements/Awards:
• Master Board Member Distinction, Fl. School
Boards Assoc.,(1 of only 8 in Florida)
• Certified Board Member Distinction, Fl. School
Boards Assoc.
• Ebony Award for Education
• National Outstanding Volunteer of the Year, and
Other Volunteer Awards, March of Dimes
• Prestigious Eleanor Roosevelt Award, Dem.
Executive Committee
• Women as Bearers of Culture Award, The Links
• Unsung Heroine Award, the PACE Center for
Girls
• Elected Official of the Year Award, League of
Women Voters
Civic Experience:
• Vice President, Alachua County Public Schools
Foundation
• Board of Directors, Executive Committee Alachua
County/North Central Florida March of Dimes
• Board of Directors, Alachua Co. Area Chamber of
Commerce
• Service Council, Family Services Center
• Vice Chair, Alachua County Recreational Task Force
• Initiated Healthy Kids program in Alachua County
• Board of Directors, Central Fla. Community Action
Agency
• Juvenile Justice Board, District III Secretary/
Treasurer
• Member, Visionaires Club
• Member, Gainesville Women’s Forum
• Member, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
• Member, League of Women Voters
My Dear Friends and Supporters:
It is that time again. I am seeking Re -Election to the Alachua County School Board, district 4. This is a County-Wide Election and every registered voter in Alachua County gets to vote on Tuesday, August 14, 2012.
As you know, I have sixteen (16) years of experience as an Alachua County School Board Member, served as President of the
Florida School Boards Association and served five (5) years on the FSBA’s Executive Committee. I am 1 of only 8 Master-Board
Certifies School Board Members in the State of Florida/ I have been a National School Board Delegate numerous times, as well as
served on National, State and local Committees. With this solid track record of experience, I continue to be uniquely qualified.
School Boards all over the State of Florida and this nation are facing serious problems. Budgetary concerns, programs in jeopardy, and the recent plans to reconfigure both the FCAT reading and math’s passing cut scores with the potential of more students not graduating because of it. There are many other problems where experience matters. This is no time for “ON THE
JOB TRAINING”!
Winning a campaign is not easy, but because of my proven sixteen (16) years of achievement on the school board, I know that I
am uniquely qualified. However, along with my solid experience, I need your financial support to help me win. I am soliciting
your contribution, and ask that you urge your friends to please donate as well.
I welcome you comments on issues that concern you and your children, and I humbly ask for your vote on Tuesday,. August 14,
2012
Barbara Sharpe
Candidate, Alachua County School Board, District 4
Paid Political Advertisement Approved by Barbara Sharpe, Paid for by Campaign Account of Barbara Sharpe, Candidate for School Board District 4
BLACK COLLEGE MONTHLY — July/August 2012
DISTRICT 20
About Clovis Watson Jr.
Investing in the Community
WHY I’M SUPPORTING CLOVIS WATSON, JR.
FRIENDS OF
DEMOCRATS:
MY HUSBAND, JOHN M.
JENKINS, SR. and I,
LIZZIE ROBINSON
JENKINS HAVE ENDORSED CLOVIS.
I am supporting Clovis
Watson, Jr., because I
believe in him and strongly
believe he is the best candidate to represent District 20,
local, state and district.
Clovis Watson, Jr., candidate for State
Clovis has a track record of
Representative District 20
bringing jobs to North
Central Florida, as the City
Manager of Alachua, Florida, and has helped attract thousands of jobs to the area
through hard work and cooperation. That is why (1) Builders Association of
North Central Florida (BANCF) endorsed him.
Clovis favors smaller class sizes, better pay for teachers and staff. School investments will bring new businesses here. Teachers’ strong teaching skills send more
students to college. (2) That’s why Florida Medical Association and (3) Florida
Dental Association endorsed Clovis Watson, Jr. He stands strong on education will
work with the teachers.
Clovis believes that smarter economic growth keeps North Central Florida beautiful and safe while protecting our water and land. Clovis will fight to make sure our
neighborhoods remain safe and protected. That is why the (4) Fraternal Order of
Police (5) Police Benevolence Association (6) Alachua County Firefighters Association (7) Gainesville Professional Firefighters Association. They, too, believe
Clovis is the candidate that will make our community great and greater with their
support.
(8) Florida Retailers believe Clovis Clovis is a member of the (9) Four A’s (African
American and has a proven networking and leadership skills.
The (10) Association of Industries of Florida endorsed Clovis because of his vision
to create safe jobs and healthy neighborhoods.
Thursday, July 19th, I traveled to Tallahassee, (with 3 others) and was a part of
the (11) Florida Chamber of Commerce hosting a fundraiser for Clovis because of
his proven track record to reach out and create businesses to bring jobs in our
area. The Florida Chamber believes Clovis is the candidate to hit the ground
running, not training.
Clovis and his 11 endorsers believe he can and will professionally represent
District 20 with enthusiasm and intellect pulling from real job experience and
strategic planning. His advantage is “On the Job Productivity” a solid everyday
decision making experience. He will always fight for us and better jobs. He has the
KNOW-HOW. Ask yourself, “Who is the more experienced candidate and make a
professional decision.
Join me and make a sensible selection, “Vote Clovis Watson, Jr. District
House Seat 20”.
Anchored in Politics (A 52 Year Voting Democrat) Lizzie Robinson Jenkins
As the City Manager of Alachua, Clovis
worked hand-in-hand with corporate partners
and tripled the tax base while simultaneously
lowering the taxes in our community. With all
that investment came thousands of high-quality
jobs. Clovis knows what it takes to bring
investment to our area, and he’ll continue that
work in the Florida House.
Real Opportunities for our Children
Clovis grew up in the projects of Merrillwood,
taking jobs after school to help make ends
meet and working hard in the classroom to
make a brighter future for himself. He wants
every child, no matter how wealthy or poor
their parents are, to get an education that prepares them to compete for good jobs.
Putting People First
Clovis has been serving Alachua for nearly 30
years, and he’s running to continue that service
in the Florida House. We can count on him to
make the right decisions in Tallahassee because he shares our priorities and will never let
partisan politics or political games get in the
way of what’s best and right for the people of
our respective communities
Miami School Board Tells
First Lady to Cancel Her Visit
First Lady Michelle Obama is scheduled to stop in Miami to recruit
volunteers for President Obama’s reelection campaign. But the
location for the campaign event, Barbara Goleman Senior High in
Miami Lakes, has some Republicans members of the school board
highly upset.
Miami-Dade School Board member Renier Diaz de la Portilla has
asked that the event be cancelled, while board member Carlos
Curbelo has asked the board attorney to consider whether holding
such an event is even legal.
Diaz de la Portilla said in a statement:
“The use of public schools whose only focus should be to educate
our children for political gain is downright wrong. Don’t these liberals
have boundaries? Our schools are places for learning, not places for
politicking.”
Curbelo told The Miami Herald: “There’s a difference between
official visits to schools by elected leaders and events that are for the
sole purpose of advancing the interests of a political campaign.”
Candidates holding campaign events at schools is nothing new. In
fact, Mitt Romney is scheduled to hold a campaign event at a high
school in Colorado on the same day as Michelle Obama.
PS: Help.... with 4s and the Florida Retailers
Political advertisement paid for and approved by Clovis Watson Jr., Democrat, for State Representative, District 20.
Black College Monthly June/July 2012
Florida voting rules discriminate, Justice
Dept says
Disenfranchised
Grandmother Sues
Pennsylvania
By Drew Singer
Under
Pennsylvania’s
new voter ID law,
voters must show
a photo ID issued
by the state or
federal government. The stateissued IDs are
free, but getting
one requires a birth certificate, which costs $10 in
Pennsylvania.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) New rules in Florida that cut
back on early voting hours
unfairly burden the state’s
minorities, U.S. Justice Department lawyers argued on Thursday.
A three-judge District Court
panel in Washington, D.C., heard
nearly six hours of arguments
from the Justice Department and
Florida, which last year passed a
series of measures its attorneys
say will stave off voter fraud.
New Florida laws that place harsh restrictions on
third-party voter registration groups and limit the early
voting period may have been passed with a discriminatory intent, lawyers with the Justice Department’s Civil
Rights Division suggested in a court filing
The changes would require people who moved
counties to file provisional ballots, allow counties
to adjust voter precinct hours and reduce the
number of early voting days.
During the 2008 election, about 55 percent of
black voters cast their ballots during the early
voting period that would be reduced under the
law, according to data from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
The federal government said the new rules
violated Section 5 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act
requiring certain states with a history of discrimination to obtain federal approval before making
changes to electoral rules.
Section 5 also requires courts to review the law
for retrogression, anything that would leave
minority groups worse off than they were before
the law’s enactment.
Defending Florida, attorney William Consovoy
argued there was no evidence that a reduction in
early voting reduced overall voter turnout.
He argued that the law, passed by a Republicancontrolled legislature and signed by Republican
Governor Rick Scott, aimed to fight voter fraud.
None of the rules were directed at members of
any minority or political party, he said.
Critics say such efforts aim to lower the partici-
pation of minorities because they historically
vote Democratic.
REDUCED HOURS, SUNDAY CLOSINGS
Under the new rules, counties may reduce the
hours their respective voting precincts are open
for early voting from 96 hours per week to as
few as 48.
The rules also require that precincts be closed on
the Sunday before Election Day, a day when
black churches in Florida transport members
from services straight to voting booths through
the “Get Your Souls to the Polls” program.
In all, the rules reduce the number of early
voting days from 12 to eight.
“Those days do make a difference,” Justice
Department attorney Elise Shore told the court.
“Retrogression is whether it puts the minority
group in a worse position.”
Although the law has passed in Florida, it will
not take effect without preclearance from the
court. The three judges will decide whether the
new rules create a significantly greater burden on
minority voters than the old rules did.
Lawyers expect a ruling in the case, Florida vs.
U.S. et al., before the November 6 election.
Florida has been hit with other lawsuits over its
voting rules, including one from the Department
of Justice, that challenge the state’s bid
to purge non-citizens from the state’s
voter rolls.
The suits accuse Florida of violating
Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act
because a disproportionate number of
those targeted, as part of efforts to cull
non-citizens from the voter rolls, are
Hispanics.
Lyndon Johnson signs the 1965 Voting Rights Act
Not everyone is having an easy time navigating the
new system. Earlier this month, Viviette
Applewhite, 93, filed a lawsuit with the ACLU and
NAACP challenging the law. Applewhite, who
marched with Martin Luther King Jr. during the
civil rights movement, does not have a driver’s
license, and the state cannot find her birth certificate. She is afraid that this year will be the first
since 1960 that she will be unable to vote.
Applewhite’s dilemma is not uncommon. Some
700,000 Pennsylvanians lack photo ID and half of
them are seniors. According to the Brennan
Center, 25 percent of voting-age black citizens
have no government-issued photo ID, compared to
8 percent of white citizens.
The Associated Press has released a study
finding that hundreds of legitimate votes have
been rejected due to strict voter ID laws:
As more states put in place strict voter ID
rules, an AP review of temporary ballots from
Indiana and Georgia, which first adopted the
most stringent standards, found that more
than 1,200 such votes were tossed during the
2008 general election.
During sparsely attended primaries this year
in Georgia, Indiana and Tennessee, the states
implementing the toughest laws, hundreds
more ballots were blocked.
The numbers suggest that the legitimate votes
rejected by the laws are far more numerous
than are the cases of fraud that advocates of
the rules say they are trying to prevent.
Thousands more votes could be in jeopardy
for this November, when more states with
larger populations are looking to have similar
rules in place.
Scott and other officials have defended
the voter purge effort, saying it was
aimed at protecting the integrity of the
voter rolls and involved just a fraction of
Florida’s more than 11 million voters.
Ask Dr. Terrell
Conflict and Abuse
determine what is deemed lawful.
Which is more
important,
heredity or
environment,
nature or nurture?
The question
regarding which
came first the
chicken or the egg
still remains open
for debate.
Conflict and
abuse create
problems in varying degrees for individuals,
groups, cultures, and is prevalent throughout the
world. Does conflict lead to abuse or does abuse
prompt conflict? Are they synonymous? Do they
appear in physical and verbal ways that confuse?
These and other questions lead to other questions
regarding how and why either starts, yet is beyond
the scope and focus of this article. In simplified
form conflict will be addressed as a clash and
abuse as cruel. A verbal clash differs from a
physical clash similarly as verbal abuse from
physical abuse. The psychology of both can
The superintendent called me into his office
without the assistant superintendent who reported
me to question me, but did not allow me to
explain, nor did he use the e-mail which would
have verified what I said and meant. He later
called in the assistant superintendent while he
verbally assaulted me as she added that a loss of
trust had occurred. The principal started at the
school in January. The school received an “A” for
the second time. The principal gave me a poor
evaluation that resulted in my loss of at least a
Dr. Juanita P. Terrell
Word usage can lead to conflict and abuse because
the intent may not match the impact. The impact
determines rewards or consequences. When I
studied for my doctorate in educational leadership,
I selected two females with master degrees to
serve as advisors/mentors due to positions held in
the school district. One was assistant superintendent and the other was director of personnel (now
called human resources director). As assistant
principal, in questioning regarding a new way to
handle end of the year and beginning of the year
activities, I made the statement that only laziness
or incompetence would prohibit changes. It was
reported to the superintendent that I called the
principal lazy and incompetent.
$2,500 bonus as I received the previous year.
Every employee at the school received a cash
bonus except me. The principal’s inner conflict
led to his abuse of power in his position.
Evaluations were tied to surveys in addition to
observations. I was assigned lunch duty daily. I
returned to the office prior to what would be the
end of my duty to find the secretaries and the
receptionist darkening survey forms. I called a
trusted friend for advice. My first thought was to
call the police. The person, a Vietnam Veteran
said it would be better to follow the chain of
command by reporting it to personnel. I did. A
couple days later the director came along with the
principal and said that she had gone over each
form and found no problems. In a hearing later,
this same person was angry and hostile towards
me because I dared report her behavior to the
EEOC. I received a letter stating discrimination
could not be proved but they could not say that it
did not exist.
Covert abuse is difficult to challenge. Overt
conflict often is settled immediately. Evidence
tampering, lying, and cover ups with a group
mindset of all for one and one for all can make it
easy for individuals to get abused. The very
system and or individuals in place to support and
protect are often the perpetrators of abuse.
Essential skills to resolve conflict are lacking and/
or the courage to enforce rules and regulations
give rise and opportunity for abuse.
Nelson re-election a major focus for Democrats
HOLLYWOOD, Fla.— Sen. Bill Nelson
doesn’t want supporters to be fooled by his
fundraising advantage over Republican
frontrunner Connie Mack the IV.
Democrats are also hoping to pick up
legislative seats and regain lost ground in
Congress, where they are outnumbered by
Republicans 19-6 in the U.S. House.
Florida will add two House seats this year
and Democrats are targeting a handful of
Republican incumbents. Otherwise,
Nelson’s seat is the only statewide Florida
office on the November ballot.
While Nelson has about $11 million in his
campaign account compared to more than
a $1 million for Mack, he reminded
Democratic Party activists that outside
groups have already spent millions attacking him.
Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod
Smith said that Mack has so far
underperformed as a candidate, but
outside groups that back Republicans as
well as the national GOP are targeting
Nelson.
“What we’re going to have to do about it is
be smarter, more efficient and we’re going
to have to put the shoe leather to the
street,” Nelson told about 1,000 Democrats
Saturday at the state party’s annual
fundraising dinner.
While the presidential election is grabbing
all the attention, Nelson’s re-election tops the list
of state races. He used much of his time talking
about the influence outside groups and their
money will have on the election.
“This is a time of extraordinary outside money
coming into Florida to try to buy certain elections,” Nelson said before the dinner. “When this
kind of money can come in to influence — and
coming from billionaires — it’s obvious they’re
not interested in Florida, they’re interested in their
own particular agenda. And that is what is different about this year, and we’ve never seen it like
this.”
Pete Mitchell, Nelson’s Senate chief of staff who
will head the re-election campaign beginning
Monday, estimates outside groups already have
spent about $14 million attacking Nelson.
the Aug. 14 primary, he is far ahead in polls and in
fundraising over former Congressman Dave
Weldon and Mike McCalister, who has never held
political office.
Saturday night was a major address for Nelson,
who so far has kept most of his campaign activity
behind the scenes with fundraising and organization. He hasn’t been holding public political
events.
“That’s the approach he’s taking. He’s showing up
for work,” said Mitchell, who added that Nelson
would do more public campaigning after Labor
Day, when the primary and Republican and
Democratic national conventions are over.
“I don’t want to be lured into this confidence that’s just not justified about money
because they’re going to have all the money they
need in one or more mechanisms in ways that we
never had seen before,” Smith said. “They’re
going to play here and play strong.”
He said the Supreme Court decision will eventually be seen as the most divisive and nonsensical
decisions of the time, and it’s not healthy for
democracy.
“When 10 or 12 people can sit together and say
‘We’re going to give $100 million’ — think how
many working people it would take to line up to
ever reach that number,” Smith said.
“Citizens United has created a whole new
paradigm in the political world,” Mitchell said,
referring to the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court
decision that allows limitless political donations
from corporations, labor unions and the
wealthiest Americans.
Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie
Wasserman Schultz, who represents a South
Florida district in the U.S. House, said Florida is
a competitive state and that’s why Nelson is a
target.
“There’s a handful of billionaires that are trying
to buy their way to power,” she said. “They’re
trying to buy the White House, they’re trying to
buy the Republicans a majority in the United
States Senate. If they can distort Senator
Nelson’s record and do it in a way that’s
opaque and unaccountable and non-transparent,
then democracy loses and so will Floridians.”
Nelson is seeking his third term. Mack is
considered a shoo-in in the Republican primary
after most of the major candidates have
dropped out. With about a month to go before
Gov. Scott could get a chance to
appoint 3 new justices
By GARY FINEOUT
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott
could get a chance to overhaul the Florida
Supreme Court.
A conservative legal group on Monday
filed a lawsuit that aims to block three
Florida Supreme Court justices from
getting new six-year terms on the court.
Voters this fall are supposed to decide
whether to keep Justices Fred Lewis, Barbara
Pariente and Peggy Quince on the bench.
But the Southeastern Legal Foundation,
which filed suit on behalf of two Florida
residents, contends that three justices did not
property fill out their election-related paperwork and did not follow state law. The group
is asking a Leon County circuit judge to order
state election officials to remove their names
from the November ballot.
“As has been the case with other candidates
for high office in Florida and elsewhere, the
laws and rules that govern elections and
public disclosures are designed to provide
public accountability and sometimes result in
disqualification from the ballot,” said Shannon
Goessling, executive director of the foundation. “For those in the legal profession in
public office, particularly judges, there is an
additional, heightened duty to follow the rules
to the fullest extent because we ask judges to
determine what the law is.
The campaigns of the three justices called the
lawsuit a “headline hunt” and said it was part
of “organized efforts” to defeat the justices
“based on politics and not their qualifications.” The Southeastern Legal Foundation is
the same group that pushed to have President
Bill Clinton give up his law license.
In Florida, appeals judges and supreme court
justices are subject to a retention vote.
“We are confident that the voters will see
through these political attacks and vote to
retain these extraordinarily well-qualified
justices on our Supreme Court,” said a
statement issued by the co-chairs of the
campaigns of the three justices.
In Florida, appeals judges and supreme court
justices are appointed by the governor. But
instead of running for re-election, they are
subject to an up-or-down merit retention
vote.
The three justices nearly missed the deadline
to qualify for the ballot in April. The sevenmember court abruptly put a hearing on hold
for more than an hour to allow the justices to
finish their paperwork and turn it in to state
elections officials with just minutes to spare.
The justices wound up using court employees
to notarize the paperwork. A state law prohibits
candidates for office from using state employees to help their campaign during working
hours, although it is unclear if that law applies
to judges. A violation of the law is a misdemeanor.
After a state legislator complained the Florida
Department of Law Enforcement earlier this
month opened an investigation.
Attorneys for the justices contend that they did
nothing wrong and called the use of the employees routine. Election records from 2010
show that four justices on the ballot that year
also had their paperwork notarized by court
employees.
Chris Cate, a spokesman for Secretary of State
Kent Detzner, said that the department has not
yet seen the lawsuit. But he pointed out that
state election officials have a “ministerial” role
in processing election-related paperwork.
The three justices named in the lawsuit have
drawn the ire of Republicans, including Scott.
Two of the justices were appointed by the late
Democratic Gov. Lawton Chiles; Quince was
jointly appointed by Chiles and then-incomingGov. Jeb Bush.
In 2010, the state Supreme Court removed
from the ballot three constitutional amendments
pushed by the GOP-controlled Legislature
including a “health care freedom” amendment
that would have made it illegal in Florida to
have a health insurance mandate. Legislators
reworked the amendment in 2011 and placed it
on this year’s ballot.
Scott did not comment directly on the lawsuit
Monday. But he said he said the justices should
be required to follow the law.
“It’s the Supreme Court, you think they would
comply with the law,” Scott said.
That remark drew a sharp response from Dan
Gelber, a former state legislator and prosecutor
who ran unsuccessfully two years ago for
attorney general. He called Scott a “bully” by
taking aim at the justices.
“It’s beneath the office for him to make these
sophomoric accusations at another branch of
government,” Gelber said.
Alachua County
Commission District 1
Ex-Archer mayor running for
County Commission
Roberta Lopez was born and raised
in the beautiful town of Archer, FL.
Eventually, she branched out and
worked her way into successful
private and public sector employment. She spent many years
working in government in Washington, DC and then moved to Tampa
where she worked for 13 years
with Eastern Airlines and more
with the Hillsborough County
Board of County Commissioners.
In a short amount of time, Roberta found her way into the
community relations department, finishing her time as a
Director. She gained valuable experience as an intermediary between the public and their elected representatives
and that experience has shaped her governing philosophy.
In the year 2000, she moved back to Archer to take care of
her aging mother. Immediately she began giving back to the
community. In a matter of months she was registering,
previously unregistered, voters. It wasn’t long before she
transitioned from volunteer activist to public servant, being
elected to the Archer City Commission in 2002 and serving
terms as both Mayor and Vice-Mayor over the coming
years. In that time, she also took a couple of years as the
lead grant writer and project manager for the restoration of
a former “white-only” high-school gymnasium into a
community center which is now used by everyone. During
the course of that project, Roberta helped to engage with
the business community and government to raise more
than $900,000.
She has been recognized by numerous groups for her
commitment to public service, leadership and activisim;
winning the Alachua County Democratic Executive
Committee’s Eleanor Roosevelt Award in 2003, the Santa
Fe College Woman of Distinction Award in 2006 and many
others.
She currently lives in Archer with her husband Francisco
(Frank) Lopez.
Black College Monthly
Editor & Publisher
Charles E. Goston
President and CEO - Charles E. Goston
National Offices Florida and Georgia
Washington Media Representative
Lacey O’Neal 1-202-841-9704
Advertising rates on request. To Advertise
or contact Black Colege Monthly
Phone # 1-352 335 - 5771
e-mail bcft2bcm@gru.net
“Its more than a College
Magazine”
John Annarumma To Run
For Alachua County Sheriff
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA, – The
Annarumma For Sheriff campaign
official announces today the qualification of John Annarumma as a
candidate for Alachua County
Sheriff. Today’s qualification
officially places John Annarumma
on the General election ballot on
November 6th, 2012.
John Annarumma, 38, has been a
resident of the State of Florida for
over 20 years. With over thirteen
years of law enforcement combined
with fifteen years of active duty and
reserve military experience, John
has served his country to the highest
order for most of his adult life.
Receiving
numerous
commendations from the
military as well
as the Law
Enforcement
agencies he
served.
After graduating high
school, John
attended University of Florida while
simultaneously serving in the Florida
National Guard before eventually
entering active duty with the United
States Army. John was stationed at
Fort Wainwright in Alaska, and then
deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
in order to assist with the processing
of Haitian and Cuban refugees enroute to the United States. While on
active-duty John earned an
Associate’s Degree from the University of Alaska. John returned to
Florida, attended and successfully
graduated from a Florida State
Certified Police Academy, and
began working as Law Enforcement
Officer in 1998 at the Pasco County
Sheriff’s Office.
While at Pasco County Sheriff’s
Office John worked hand and hand
with the community serving within
the Agency’s Community Oriented
Policing Program. John coordinated
numerous community events and
after school programs for juveniles
in order to facilitate better relationships between Pasco Sheriff’s
Office and the community.
In 2002 John moved to the
Gainesville area, closer to his family,
and began working at the
Gainesville Police Department. John
served on Gainesville’s downtown
Unit utilizing his Community Policing
background to ensure the safety of
downtown patrons and businesses.
Additionally during his tenure at the
Gainesville Police Department, John
was selected to serve as a K-9 officer.
After becoming certified as a K-9
handler by the State of Florida John
served in the K-9 unit until his National Guard Unit was activated in
2006 to be deployed to Iraq.
Upon returning from combat in Iraq,
John returned to his Law Enforcement
duties as a Deputy with the Alachua
County Sheriff’s Office. Initially
starting in the Operations
Bureau, John
was transferred to the
New Initiative Aims to “Imagine A Future”
For One Million Black Girls
CINCINNATI—Procter &
Gamble’s My Black is
Beautiful (MBIB) announced Imagine a Future, a
new initiative designed to
positively impact the lives of
one million black girls over
the next three years. In
collaboration with UNCF
(United Negro College Fund)
and Black Girls Rock!
(BGR!), Imagine a Future
will document the current
state of black beauty with an
in-depth look at the influences – people, fashion,
music, education, pop
culture – and provide tools
and resources to foster a
greater sense of self and
confidence within the next generation of young black girls.
“My Black is Beautiful represents a community of over 600,000 strong who
come together based on shared experiences and the desire to celebrate
everything that makes black women beautiful,” said Linda Clement Holmes,
Procter & Gamble, Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Vice President of
Global Business Service. “The launch of Imagine a Future reflects a natural
evolution of our mission to focus on both black women and girls. We are
thrilled to partner with UNCF and BGR! to bring this new initiative to life
through the development of much needed solutions for our young black girls
based on the must-have conversations about beauty, self-worth and empowerment.”
Criminal
Investigations Bureau where he was
assigned as a Detective in property
crimes. John worked as a Detective
until again being activated with the
National Guard, this time deploying to
Afghanistan. Upon returning John
again resumed his service to Alachua
County as a Deputy Sheriff.
Annarumma hopes to promote positive
Community Relationships by implementing a neighborhood based Community Oriented Policing program.
C1ommunity Policing in conjunction
with Intelligence Led Policing will
allow for a more focused effort in
proactively arresting prolific offenders.
By targeting high crime areas with
accurate intelligence the need for a
large intrusive Law Enforcement
presence is not necessary, resulting in
less misunderstandings and conflicts
with the law abiding citizens of any
neighborhood that suffers from high
criminal activity.
In 2010, Annarumma ran against
Congressman Cliff Stearns to represent the 3rd Congressional District.
All three organizations will come together at the Essence Music Festival
(EMF) – the preeminent African American community education and entertainment weekend event – to kick off Imagine a Future with the announcement of several exciting opportunities for young girls throughout the country,
including in EMF’s backyard, the New Orleans area. During EMF, P&G’s
MBIB will distribute six book awards totaling $3,000 to black female student.
Additionally, one New Orleans-based black female student will receive a
$5,000 academic scholarship.
“The Imagine a Future initiative is right in line with our mission to give
African American students a fighting chance to succeed both academically
and personally,” said Dr. Michael Lomax, President and CEO, UNCF. “We
truly believe in creating strong minds, and we know the emotional health of
our students is also a key success measure for them as they enter the postcollege world. It is with great enthusiasm that we partner with Black Girls
Rock!, as well as My Black is Beautiful to offer solutions for girls so they
can become self-sustaining, happy leaders.”
“At Black Girls Rock!, we are committed to youth empowerment,
mentorship and the positive portrayal of black girls and women in media,”
said Beverly Bond, founder and executive director, Black Girls Rock! “We’re
so excited to take the Black Girls Rock! movement to the next level by
collaborating with both My Black is Beautiful and UNCF. Together, we will
reach and broaden the lives of black girls through enriching educational
opportunities as well as uplifting once-in-a-life time experiences that help give
our girls a sense of pride, purpose and possibilities.”
To learn more about Image a Future initiative and MBIB activities at Essence
Music Festival, consumers are encouraged to visit:
www.myblackisbeautiful.com or www.facebook.com/mbib.
James “Jimmy Henchman” Rosemond
Implicated Himself in 1994 Tupac Shakur
Attack
By Chuck Philips
For nearly two decades, drug lord
James Rosemond, a/k/a “Jimmy
Henchman,” denied accusations of his
involvement in the near-fatal 1994
ambush of rap star Tupac Shakur at
New York’s Quad Recording Studios
that marked a pivotal moment in
American pop history.
The attack on Tupac triggered a
bicoastal rampage that played out in
songs and videos generating billions of
dollars for global music corporations
and left a trail of body bags from
Manhattan to Beverly Hills, culminating in the murders of both Tupac and
his nemesis, the Notorious B.I.G.
Star Jones Defends
Super-Rich Friend
Who Renounced
U.S. Citizenship to
Evade Taxes
It’s not just rich techies, like the co-founder
of Facebook, who are renouncing their
citizenship as a strategy for hoarding money
and evading taxes, it’s Democrats as well.
Rosemond, who already faces life in jail for his drug conviction, will never be charged for his role in the 1994 ambush on
Shakur, which was classified by NYPD as a robbery.
Before he was assassinated, Tupac recorded a song
called “Against All Odds,” in which he blamed
Rosemond for orchestrating the assault at the Quad:
“Jimmy Henchman. . .
[You] set me up, wet me up... stuck me up.
But you never shut me up.”
Now, new evidence implicates Rosemond in the
crime — facts recently divulged by an unlikely
eyewitness, never previously interviewed by police:
Rosemond himself.
Rosemond secretly admitted to involvement in
Tupac’s ambush during one of nine “Queen For A
Day” proffer sessions with the government last
autumn, court transcripts show. (In such sessions,
suspects under investigation choose to enter an
agreement with the government to confess knowledge of certain crimes with the agreement that the
information won’t be used to prosecute them.) His
confession unfolded as he was trying to carve out a
cooperation deal that might lead to a reduced
sentence, according to federal prosecutors.
During the opening arguments of Rosemond’s trial,
his lawyer denied that the defendant had anything to
do with Tupac’s ambush and berated a March 17,
2008 Los Angeles Times article that blamed him for
the assault, blasting the article as “utterly false.”
But within moments, prosecutors complained to the
judge about the veracity of the defense counsel’s
accusations.
“If [Rosemond’s attorney] is going to argue that this
was a fabricated article, it’s the government’s
position that we can put in the defendant’s own
admission about that particular shooting,” the
prosecutor said. “In saying it is not true, when in
fact it is true, the government should be able to
rebut that argument that he’s making, [and introduce] that the defendant actually admitted to this
1994 shooting.”
The revelation surfaced May 14 during a sidebar in
the same Brooklyn federal court where Rosemond
was later convicted of operating a multimillion-dollar
crack ring that moved thousands of kilos of drugs
and dirty cash between Los Angeles and New York.
Twelve jurors took only two days to issue a unanimous verdict, convicting him of all 13 counts with
which he was charged.
Prosecutors proved that couriers working for
Rosemond delivered massive volumes of drugs, cash
and machine guns in music crates to recording
studios and record labels owned by or affiliated with
Vivendi’s Universal Music Group, the largest music
corporation in the world.
Rosemond apparently came clean about his involvement in Tupac’s ambush shortly after his former best
friend, Dexter Isaac, stepped forward last summer to
publicly confess that he had led the attack on Shakur
in 1994. Isaac released a statement on June 16, 2011
to allhiphop.com, saying it was Rosemond who had
paid him to rob and pistol-whip Tupac:
“In 1994, James Rosemond hired me to rob
2Pac at the Quad Studio. He gave me $2,500,
plus all the jewelry I took, except for one ring,
which he wanted for himself. It was the
biggest of the two diamond rings that we took.
He said he wanted to put the stone in a new
setting for his girlfriend at the time, Cynthia
Reed. I still have as proof the chain that we
took that night in the robbery.”
Rosemond, who already faces life in jail for his drug
conviction, will never be charged for his role in the
1994 ambush on Shakur, which was classified by
NYPD as a robbery. Nobody will. In New York, the
statute of limitations on robbery is seven years,
which means the time to prosecute anyone for the
Quad case expired 11 years ago. No one will ever go
to jail for attacking Tupac: Not Jimmy. Not Dexter,
nor any of his other henchmen.
Nevertheless, rap’s longest running crime mystery
has finally been solved — and pretty much the way
my March 2008 LA Times article reported it.
Hob Nobber Denise Rich, a Democratic
fundraiser, has renounced her United States
citizenship in favor of an Austrian one so
that she can avoid paying taxes. Yes, Wesley
Snipes is in jail for not paying his taxes, but
it seems that if he’d only renounced his
citizenship as the one percenters are doing,
he’d be home free.
Although most people consider tax evasion
an unfair way of leaving the rest of America
to foot the bill, on the Today Show this
morning,Star Jones, a close friend of Rich,
defended her while her co-panelists Dr.
Nancy Snyderman and Donny Deutsch were
unapologetically calling Rich’s actions
“despicable.”
Awkward.
Matt Lauer made the segment even more
awkward when he pointed out that Jones
wasn’t a disinterested bystander on the
topic, but a good friend with Rich. Many
viewers wouldn’t have known of their close
relationship if Laurer hadn’t pointed it out,
and put Star Jones on the spot. Jones
continued to defend Rich, insisting that she
just wanted to be closer to her children.
Deutsch made the obvious point that Rich
didn’t need to renounce her citizenship in
order to be close to her kids. She could’ve
done that with a plane ticket and a passport.
Jones even went so far as to call tax avoidance a “byproduct” of her decision to spend
more time with her kids.
Lauer also pointed out that former President
Bill Clinton had pardoned Rich’s husband,
Marc Rich, making the point that the U.S.
government had been very good to Mr. and
Mrs. Rich.
Jones then got defensive, and made the
following comment:
I’m not going to let you call somebody I
love, who I’ve been supportive of, who’s
been supportive of me, despicable, and not
call you out on it.
At least we know what team Jones plays for
now. She went gangbusters to defend that
rich woman.
Wells Fargo Announces Settlement with U.S. Department
of Justice Regarding Mortgages
Wells Fargo & Company announced today a definitive settlement agreement between Wells
Fargo Bank, N.A. and the U.S.
Department of Justice (DOJ) that
resolves the DOJ’s previously
disclosed claims that some Wells
Fargo mortgages may have had a
disparate impact on some African-American and Hispanic
borrowers.
The DOJ claims are based on a
statistical survey of Wells Fargo
Home Mortgage loans between
2004 and 2009, and the claims
primarily relate to mortgages
priced and sold to consumers by
independent mortgage brokers.
While Wells Fargo denies the
claims, the company has agreed to
pay $125 million to borrowers
that the DOJ believes were
adversely impacted by mortgages
priced and sold by independent
mortgage brokers.
Wells Fargo is settling this matter
solely for the purpose of avoiding
contested litigation with the DOJ,
and to instead devote its resources to continuing to provide
fair credit services and choices to
eligible consumers, and important
and meaningful assistance to
borrowers in distressed U.S. real
estate markets.
This settlement also resolves
pending litigation filed in 2009 by
the State of Illinois on behalf of
borrowers there, and resolves an
investigative complaint filed in
2010 by the Pennsylvania Human
Relations Commission.
While not part of the DOJ settlement, Wells Fargo, on its own
volition, also announced that it
will discontinue funding mortgages that are originated, priced
and sold by independent mortgage
brokers. Mortgages sold by
independent brokers in this
manner currently represent five
percent of the Company’s home
mortgage funded volume. Mortgage brokers operate as independent businesses and are not
employed by Wells Fargo. There-
fore, Wells Fargo cannot set loan
prices for independent mortgage
brokers nor control the combined
effect of the negotiations that thousands of these independent mortgage
brokers conduct with their customers.
“Wells Fargo is settling this matter
because we believe it is in the best
interest of our team members,
customers, communities and investors to avoid a long and costly legal
fight, and to instead devote our
resources to continuing to contribute
to the country’s housing recovery,”
said Mike Heid, president of Wells
Fargo Home Mortgage.
The Company stopped making
subprime loans through independent
mortgage brokers in 2007 and
stopped all subprime home lending
in 2008. During the period in which
Wells Fargo originated subprime
loans, the Company implemented
industry-leading procedures to
identify applicants who might be
eligible for a prime-rate product. In
keeping with Wells Fargo’s commitment to strong fair and responsible
lending controls, the Company has
agreed with the DOJ to undertake an
internal lending compliance review
of a small percentage of subprime
mortgages during the period of 2004
to 2008 and will rebate as appropriate.
Working with the DOJ, the Company
also will provide a total of $50
million to community improvement
programs in the City of Baltimore
and in certain areas within seven
metropolitan statistical areas
identified by the DOJ as being
most in need of support to recover from the housing crisis:
This program will be modeled
after Wells Fargo’s successful
NeighborhoodLIFTSM program,
launched earlier this year.
The Company separately is
entering into a collaborative
agreement with the City of Baltimore in which the city will
dismiss the lawsuit it initially
filed against Wells Fargo in
January 2008. In keeping with the
Company’s commitment to continue lending in Baltimore and to
supporting the area’s financial
recovery, Wells Fargo will
provide $4.5 million of the $50
million for community improvement programs to the City of
Baltimore, and will grant the City
of Baltimore $3 million in additional funds for local priority
housing and foreclosure-related
initiatives. Wells Fargo also has
set a five-year home-mortgage
lending goal for the Baltimore
area.
“Our commitment to our customers and to turning the housing
market around is stronger than
ever,” Heid added. “We will
continue to offer education and
meaningful choices through our
Retail and Correspondent mortgage lending operations, including
an important emphasis on providing assistance to communities
affected most by the economic
downturn.”
Customers can find more information about Wells Fargo’s commitment to fair and responsible
lending practices at
www.wellsfargo.com/fairlending.
Florida Threatens Those Who Register Voters
One of the worst aspects of Florida’s new patchwork of laws designed to suppress voting is the law that
makes it much more difficult to register new people to vote. It’s so bad that even the League of Women Voters
suspended their voter registration programs there. And now you can see why:
All Sabu Williams wanted to do on Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend was register voters…
After the rule was first put in place, the NAACP was the only group in Okaloosa County that braved the new
pitfalls and continued to register voters. However, when they registered voters over MLK weekend, they were
charged with submitting the forms an hour late on Tuesday, despite the fact that they were unable to submit
forms on Monday because it was a holiday.
“We’re here the very first day that you’re open at 2 o’clock in the afternoon and you’re saying that we’re an
hour late?” Williams asked. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
He soon received a letter from the state supervisor of elections. “We appreciate you going out and registering
voters,” the letter read. “However, you were late for two of those and if you’re late anymore we’re going to
turn this over to the Florida Department of Justice for prosecution.”
This is purely designed to intimidate people into not registering new voters, and the sole purpose is to keep
people who might vote Democratic away from the polls.
Less than a quarter of
blacks earn more than their
parents
By Annie Gowen
The overwhelming majority
of Americans still make more
money than their parents, but
upward mobility is elusive for
many, particularly for African
Americans and those without
a college degree, according to
a new study.
While 84 percent of Americans earn more than their
parents, about a third moved
up between income classes during the past four decades, according to a new study
from the Economic Mobility Project at the nonpartisan Pew Charitable Trusts.
Sixteen percent of all families surveyed dropped from the income levels of their
parents, and blacks were more likely to be downwardly mobile than whites.
“While most Americans have more income earnings or wealth than their parents, it
may not be enough to move them to a higher rung of the economic ladder,” said
Diana Elliott, the project’s research manager.
Among the most striking findings: The chances of moving from the bottom of the
income spectrum to the very top is only 4 percent, a figure that suggests the
American “rags-to-riches” story is “more often found in Hollywood than in
reality.”
Researchers parsed data from about 2,200 families participating in the University
of Michigan’s Panel Study of Income Dynamics, which has tracked the family
income and wealth accumulated by a group of parents and their children from
1968 to 2009.
The study showed that Americans in the past 40 years have had a harder time
moving up and down between income classes — what the researchers called
“relative mobility.” Forty-three percent of those raised by the bottom level of
income earners were likely to be stuck there as adults, while 40 percent of the
children from the highest-earning families were likely to remain high earners
themselves.
Africans Americans and those without a college degree have the most difficulty
climbing the rungs, according to the study, “Pursuing the American Dream:
Economic Mobility Across Generations.”
African Americans have a harder time earning more than their parents than whites,
and, among the middle class, only 23 percent accumulate more wealth than their
parents, compared with 56 percent of whites. Half were likely to fall out of the
middle income ranges and into the ranks of the lower class.
Erin Currier, the manager of the Economic Mobility Project, said there are a host
of factors that can affect whether someone moves up or down the income ladder,
including education and how much a family has in savings.
Those with college degrees are three times more likely to rise from the bottom of
the family income ladder to the top, the study showed, while those without
secondary degrees are more likely to stay mired in the bottom.
Even geography can play a role. Those who grow up in high poverty neighborhoods are likely to become downwardly mobile, regardless of how much money
their parents make, Currier said. A previous study released by Pew earlier this year
showed that those living in some states in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic —
including Maryland — have higher upward mobility than the national average,
while several states in the South were below the national average.
Fla. Lt. Gov:
“Black Women Who Look Like
Me” Don’t Get Caught in
Lesbian Scandals
by Monique
Jennifer Carroll defended her
campaign office opening for
Mitt Romney in Orange
Park, Florida after a scandal
involving Carroll threatens to
tarnish her image. Former
staffer Carletha Cole claimed
that she saw Carroll and
another woman, Beatriz
Ramos in a “compromising
position.” This was shortly
after Carroll had fired Cole
and charged her with illegally
recording office conversations.
Cole was arrested in October
after she gave an illegally
taped conversation between
Carroll and another aide to
reporters. In the filing, Cole claims that she recorded conversations in
Carroll’s office in secret after being directed to do so by those working for
Governor Rick Scott. Cole passed a polygraph test after she was asked
about viewing a “sexually compromising position in the Capital”. She
passed the test, but polygraphs are not admissible in court.
Many allegations are surfacing in a criminal case on Cole, the former top
aide to Florida Lt. Gov. Carroll, all of which Carroll denies. Most interestingly, Carroll seems to feel that women who “look like her” are not the
ones who are typically caught up in lesbian behavior.
Carroll said, “the problem is that when you have these accusations that
come out, it’s not just one person you’re attacking. It’s an entire family.
My husband doesn’t want to hear that. He knows the type of woman I
am. I mean, my kids know the type of woman I am. For twenty-nine
years - I’m the one that’s married for twenty-nine years. The accuser is
the one that’s been single for a long time. So usually black women that
look like me don’t engage in relationships like that.”
Notice that in Caroll’s words, she says that the woman is attacking her
family, focusing the attention on Cole instead of her own behavior or
whether or not she’s lying. Second, she doesn’t say she didn’t do it. We
should also note that she used the word “usually.” That doesn’t sound like
a clear denial.
Black College Monthly Voter’s Guide
Endorses the Following Candidates
For US Senate - SENATOR BILL NELSON
State Representative - CLOVIS WATSON JR.
Alachua County Comission
District 1 - ROBERTA LOPEZ
District 3 -KEN CORNELL
Property Appraiser -ALONZO PERKINS
Alachua County School Board - BARBARA SHARPE
Black College Monthly June/July 2012

The African-American Voters Guide

Transcription

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