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Falling on the GOP swordFormer state chairman sentenced to 18 months in prison, probabtion

COMPILED FROM WIRE REPORTS

An Orlando judge Wednesday sentenced Jim Greer, former high-flying chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, to 18 months in prison, followed by one year of probation.

Greer, 50, pleaded guilty last month to money laundering and theft of $125,000 in connection with a scheme in which he created a company and then steered party business to it. The affair was a major em-barrassment to Republicans, who forced Greer out after the matter became public.

Crist’s main manGreer argued all along that he was being

punished for supporting former Gov. Char-lie Crist. Greer had been relatively obscure, the vice mayor of Oviedo, before being chosen to head up the party in 2007. It was widely believed he was rewarded by help-ing Crist get elected governor. Crist denied in a deposition that he knew Greer had cre-ated a company, Victory Strategies, to se-cretly contract with the party for fundrais-ing help.

Prosecutors said essentially that Greer, as party chairman, and former RPOF Ex-ecutive Director Delmar Johnson, signed the contract with Victory Strategies with-out other party officials knowing they were paying themselves for “outsourced” work they were already being paid for in their positions at the party.

Greer resigned in early 2010 just before the thefts were discovered and was arrest-ed June 2 of that year and hauled to the Seminole County Jail. Until his plea, he had loudly and angrily claimed he was a victim of a political hatchet job by supporters of now-Sen. Marco Rubio and the right wing of the state party.

His trial had promised to be a long and

ALSOINSIDE

CoMMEntary: luCius Gantt: God HatEs FaKE CHristians | a4

CoMMEntary: rEv. JEssE l. JaCKson: Good studEnts bEinG ForCEd to drop out oF HbCus | a5

SNAPSHOTS

FLORIDA | A6

Black press, mainstream coverage: Still big differences in news priorities

FINEST | B5

Meet Cartiss

See GREER, Page A2

BY JIM TURNERTHE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

The association that dictates rules for Florida’s middle and high school athletes is fighting what it says is a power grab by legislators that will lessen the oversight of mid-season transfers and allow some schools to become recruiting giants.

The Florida High School Athletic Asso-ciation is objecting to measures (House Bill 1279, Senate Bill) 1164) by Rep. Larry Metz, R-Yalaha, and Sen. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, that could restrict their inves-tigations into student-athlete transfers, limit the amount of fines and fees mem-ber schools pay, and revamp the makeup of the association’s board.

High school to pros?FHSAA Executive Director Roger Dear-

ing, during a media teleconference on Tuesday, claimed the legislation would essentially allow middle and high school student-athletes to become “free agents.”

“This legislation opens the door for ne-farious people who might want to circum-vent rules in order to do what they may think is getting students scholarships to

college, or even open the door to profes-sional athletics,” Dearing said.

The measure by Metz also further ex-pands the state law that allows students to play for the school of choice if the public or charter school they attend does not of-fer the sport.

More oversightStargel’s companion proposal adds

more legislative oversight to the FH-SAA board by having the House and Sen-ate each make four appointments to the

board, with the Commissioner of Educa-tion getting to name three.

While the board would be expanded from 16 to 25, the majority of appoint-ments would come from Tallahassee. Cur-rently, FHSAA member schools select 13 board members, with the three others coming from the Department of Educa-tion.

The proposals also call for replacing Dearing by having the commissioner of education name the FHSAA executive di-rector rather than the association’s board. Dearing said his job being on the line was less a concern than keeping the playing field level for students and schools as they compete across the state if each school district is given powers to self-regulate transfers.

Due process concernsStargel, in a release from Access for Stu-

dent Athletes Coalition sent out prior to the teleconference, denied her proposal will allow illegal recruiting or create stu-dent-athlete “free agency.”

“This proposal would not prevent the FHSAA from fulfilling their primary role,”

FLORIDA COURIER / OUT AND ABOUT

Sony Open tennis tourney in the home stretch

KIM GIBSON / FLORIDA COURIER

No. 8-ranked Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France, shown here during his victory over Jarkko Nieminen, was knocked out in his next match at the Sony Open in Miami-Dade. The world’s top-ranked women’s pro, Serena Williams of Palm

Beach Gardens, is expected to make it to the finals.

COMPILED FROM WIRE REPORTS

WASHINGTON – On Tuesday – the same day it agreed to weigh in on col-lege affirmative action for a second time in a year – the U.S. Supreme Court struggled with the gay

marriage issue for the first time in history.

During more than an hour of arguments in their jammed courtroom, the justices were clearly di-vided over California’s Proposition 8 voter-ap-proved ban on same-sex marriage, although reluc-

tant to take the larger step of casting a broader rul-ing that would apply to gay marriage rights across the country. The only cer-tainty is that the Supreme Court will leave the fate of California’s gay marriage ban dangling until June, when it must rule.

Leave it alone?But the justices’ barrage

of questions hinted at op-tions that could open the door to same-sex nuptials in California by simply leaving intact lower court rulings declaring the law unconstitutional.

“Always hard to predict based on arguments, but I think it is more likely that they will dismiss (on pro-cedural) grounds than de-cide the merits (of the gay marriage issue),” said Er-win Chemerinsky, dean of the University of Califor-nia, Irvine’s law school.

As hundreds of gay mar-

See COURT, Page A2

JUDGMENT DAYSOn Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court decided to

hear a case that may further limit or end affirmative action in colleges and universities, then argued about

gay marriage in two days of hearings. Here’s what happened – and what it means.

MOLLY RILEY/MCT

Demonstrators gather Tuesday outside the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., as arguments are heard on California’s Proposition 8 concerning gay marriage.

Will new law create high school free agents?

See LAW, Page A2

Was the decision to go ‘gunless’ in the ‘Gunshine State’ fatal?

METRO | BI

A2 MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013FOCUS

very public airing of GOP dirty laundry with a wit-ness list that included Crist, former Florida At-torney General Bill Mc-Collum, former Flori-da House Speaker Dean Cannon and former Flor-ida Senate President Mike Haridopolos.

GOP secrets are buried

His plea ended that. During his 10-minute plea hearing, Greer said almost nothing. Chase, his attorney, later insist-ed that his client had de-cided “to fall on his sword rather than burn down the house.”

It was a humbling end for a man who, until four years ago, wielded enor-mous political power in Florida and was part of then-Gov. Charlie Crist’s inner circle.

But the sentence was significantly lower than what the state had asked for.

Circuit Judge Marc Lubet said he was giv-ing Greer the 18-month prison term, instead of the term of more than 40 months sought by pros-ecutors, because Greer had paid $65,000 in res-titution, and because Greer was facing the charges while Johnson, his business partner in the fundraising compa-

ny and co-conspirator in the scheme. was getting off with no prison time after coming forward about the plan and work-ing with law enforcement against Greer.

Johnson wasn’t pros-ecuted, and wore a wire to help prosecutors make the case against Greer.

“Society itself deserves justice,” Lubet said, how-ever, “justice has to be tempered with some sort of mercy, if that mercy is deserved.”

Greer will be on proba-tion after he is released from prison. He was handed over to law en-forcement immediately after the sentencing.

Rene Stutzman of the Orlando Sentinel (MCT) and David Royse of the News Service of Florida contributed to this re-port.

GREERfrom A1

Stargel stated. “However, it would help combat their predisposition to consider students as guilty until proven innocent, and would estab-lish true due process and rights for student athletes, which the current system of conducting investigations clearly lacks.”

The coalition, which contends the FHSAA displays overreaching and arbitrary authority when conducting investigations on student eligibility, is an initiative launched by the Na-ples-based conservative-policy think tank Floridians for Government Ac-countability, Inc.

Follows recent lawThe high school student-athlete

proposal follows a law enacted a year ago that pushed back on the FHSAA for clamping down on mid-school year transfers and students following coaches to new schools.

The law, sponsored by Stargel – then a member of the House – allows students-athletes to change schools at any time without having to sit out a year as was the prior rule after the first 20 days of a school year. Mean-while it is up to the school districts to self-police themselves for recruiting violations by coaches, parents and alumni.

The FHSAA initially fought the law, noting that none of its member high schools had requested the change.

Months before the bill was intro-duced, the FHSAA imposed more than $62,500 in fines against the Lakeland High Dreadnaughts after seven of its athletes, including five from the school’s perennial football powerhouse, were found ineligible to play for infractions ranging from falsifying addresses, failing to make

a full and complete move before en-rolling, and receiving impermissible benefits that included free rent.

Fees cap would hurtThe FHSAA doesn’t directly re-

ceive state funding, but in addition to relying upon corporate donations for funding, it draws public dollars through membership fees from pub-lic schools.

FHSAA Chief Financial Officer Lin-da Roberston said the expected re-duction in revenue by capping fines and fees could hinder the non-profit association’s ability to promote and run championship events at profes-sional fields, along with training and certification for coaches and offi-cials.

“The quality of our events will cer-tainly suffer,” Robertson said.

LAWfrom A1

Every time I write something about a Black elected official, hat-ers are quick to say, “Stop writing about OUR LEADERS!”

Well, in most instances, I ob-viously don’t feel I am writing about “leaders”!

I encourage all Black elected officials to work with all Blacks in the political process – Black leg-islative staffers, Black lobbyists, Black political consultants, Black political pollsters, Black caterers, and so forth.

I say that because when an Af-rican-American gets elected to the Congress, state legislature or to the city or county commission, they usually don’t know how to find the restrooms in the halls of governing, let alone how to be a good public servant.

Taking ordersSo what do they do? For the

most part, they do what the polit-ical devil tells them to do!

When a campaign contribu-tor tells them to sponsor a bill, they sponsor that bill. When a campaign contributor requests a meeting, the meeting is quick-ly held. And when a Black elected official is offered “rice and peas” (a little bit of money), sometimes they take just the rice!

OK, you don’t like for me to

write like this. So you tell me. Why are so many Black elect-ed officials getting caught up in scandals, where political dev-ils make tons of money and all Black elected officials get are the crumbs off of the political table?

When I ask some of these la-dies and gentlemen what in the hell is going on, they say, “Well, the White elected officials are getting paid by political interests. I should get paid, too.”

A better wayIf only the people you voted for

would talk to experienced Black lobbyists, they could learn a bet-ter way to accomplish their pay-off goals.

Let me explain. Yes, politicians of all races get campaign contri-butions, get wined and dined, get slaps on the back and get a lot of false compliments.

The elected officials that get in trouble usually are the ones that don’t have a clue about what they are trying to do. They just trust

the political devil too much and trust their own kind too little.

I don’t want to name any names. Much has been said about a lieutenant governor’s resignation, but more than one Black elected official is facing jail terms for trying to get paid while being a public servant.

There are congressmen, leg-islators, mayors and other Black elected officials getting caught in embarrassing legal situations af-ter getting involved with politi-cal devils while trying to generate some chump change.

Here’s some help Let The Gantt Report help the

brothers and sisters.First, when you rise up in the

political process, you should bring your friends along with you. Very few Black elected of-ficials employ their friends on their staffs. Even fewer hire their friends to provide campaign ser-vices. Some Black elected offi-cials only hire whom they are told to hire.

Secondly, if the political dev-il wants to pay you off when you become elected, just ask them to pay a qualified friend of yours that will be appreciative of such a gesture and who will look out for you after your public service has

ended.Thirdly, just wait. If White

elected officials can all land big lobbying jobs after they retire from office, why can’t you? If you are truly smart, you can help po-litical interests get their way and they can help you – after you re-tire.

We know them The experienced Black lob-

byists and political profession-als know the other lobbyists and political professionals to some extent. We can easily tell new-ly elected and appointed Black elected officials who the good guys are and who the political devils are.

The sad part of all of this is that oftentimes, the Black elected offi-cials are merely taking the fall for the wicked politicos. When in-vestigations start and wires start to be worn, the political snitch jumps into action. If the FBI, Jus-tice Department or someone else gets investigated, the devil being investigated might say, “I didn’t do anything, but I’ll give you the Black person.”

And that is one way how some Black elected officials that are as poor as a church mice get ac-cused of being in bed with po-litical criminals that attempt to

forge, defraud and steal millions!

Love yourselves Black elected officials, learn

how to love and work with oth-er Blacks in politics. Start holding hands with each other and let the devil’s hand go!

Black elected officials seem to be being overly investigated not because they are public servants. They are being investigated be-cause they are Black and holding a public office that a non-Black should have or could have!

If you work with political crooks and thieves that commit crimes, you might have to do the time!

Excerpts from Gantt col-umns are now posted every week on The Gantt Report’s Fa-cebook page; become a fan. Buy Gantt’s latest book, “Beast Too: Dead Man Writing” on Ama-zon.com and from bookstores everywhere. Contact Lucius at www.allworldconsultants.net. “Like” The Gantt Report page on Facebook. Click on this sto-ry at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

Black ‘leadership’ and chump change politics

riage supporters and opponents waved placards and chanted for their causes on the Supreme Court steps outside, the justices expressed concern over whether the time is right for them to take on a state’s right to ban gay mar-riage. Justice Anthony Kennedy, a key swing vote, wondered wheth-er the court perhaps should not have taken on the controversy in the first place.

How far?With both liberal and conser-

vative justices particularly wor-ried about a broader ruling that might apply to all states, 37 of which now ban gay marriage, the court pressed lawyers on both sides about how far they should go.

“Is there any way to decide this case in a principled manner that is limited to California?” Justice Sonia Sotomayor asked Theo-dore Olson, who argued the case for same-sex couples.

But on Tuesday, the justices’ questioning cast doubt on Prop-osition 8’s future, with some jus-tices clearly concerned it may trample on the rights of gay and lesbian couples.

What about children?Kennedy, while acknowledg-

ing gay marriage is a new con-cept in a tradition that stretch-es back thousands of years, said there is an “immediate legal in-jury” to same-sex couples in Cal-ifornia who are raising children but unable to marry legally.

Other justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts, were skep-tical of a court decision finding same-sex marriage bans uncon-stitutional. “Same-sex couples (in California) have every other right, it’s just about the label (of marriage),” he told Olson. “All you’re interested in is the label, and you insist on changing the definition of the label.”

Justice Samuel Alito, consid-ered a likely conservative vote against gay marriage, pressed U.S. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli about pushing for same-sex marriage rights in the states on behalf of the Obama admin-istration.

“You want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of (gay marriage) which is newer than cellphones or the Internet,” he said.

More argumentsOn Wednesday, the court

struggled again with its role in deciding the gay marriage issue, but did appear to lean toward striking down at least part of a

1996 law barring federal benefits to same-sex couples.

During nearly two hours of ar-guments, many of the justices, particularly liberals Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Elena Kagan, ex-pressed deep concerns about the Defense of Marriage Act discrim-inating against same-sex couples married in states that legalize gay marriage.

Kennedy questioned whether the federal government has the right to define marriage in a way that conflicts with states that tra-ditionally regulate marriage.

“The question is whether the federal government ... has the authority to regulate marriage,” Kennedy said at one point in the arguments.

But many of the justices indi-cated they may not decide the is-sue at all, expressing concern that House Republicans do not have the legal authority to defend the law in court in place of the exec-utive branch. The Obama admin-istration considers the law un-constitutional, joining the New York woman who challenged it in court.

If the justices decide they ba-sically have no case to consider, they could leave unresolved for now the legal challenge to the federal law, and perhaps choose another case winding through the legal system, buying time as gay marriage continues to perco-late as a political issue.

Split on affirmative action

The justices are also closely split on whether school officials may ever use race as a factor for deciding who is admitted.

A decade ago, the high court by a 5-4 vote upheld a limited use of race as means to achieve class-room diversity in a case from the University of Michigan Law School.

But that victory for affirmative action advocates was soon over-turned by Michigan’s, who ad-opted Proposal 2 in 2006 forbid-ding university officials from “dis-criminating” against or “granting preferential treatment” to stu-dents based on their race, eth-nicity or gender. It was patterned after a similar ballot measure in California in 1996 that also pro-hibited race-based admissions policies at the state’s colleges and universities.

Partisan splitDefenders of affirmative action

in Michigan took their fight to the federal courts and won a surpris-ing 8-7 decision last year from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that struck down the state ballot measure as unconstitutional.

The judges in the majority, all Democrats, said the ban on affir-mative action wrongly took away a civil rights provision that had benefited minorities. The dis-

senters, all Republicans, said for-bidding discrimination based on race does not violate the “equal protection” clause in the Consti-tution.

Two casesFew doubted that the justices

would hear Michigan’s defense of its ban on race-based affir-mative action. The only surprise was that the justices announced Monday they would hear the ap-peal before they ruled on a pend-ing affirmative action case in-volving the University of Texas.

In the Texas case, lawyers for a rejected White student urged the court to rule that giving pref-erences to applicants based on their race violates the Constitu-tion and the guarantee of equal protection of the laws. A decision in that case, Fisher vs. University of Texas, is expected this spring.

The court said it would hear the Michigan case, Schuette vs. Co-alition to Defend Affirmative Ac-tion, in the fall. Justice Elena Ka-gan is not taking part in the case, apparently because she worked on it as solicitor general.

Howard Mintz of the San Jo-se Mercury News and David G. Savage of the Tribune Wash-ington Bureau (MCT) contrib-uted to this report.

COURTfrom A1

LUCIUS GANTT

THE GANTT REPORT

FLORIDA COURIER FILES

Former Republican Party of Florida Chair-man Jim Greer is now a convicted felon.

The Florida Legisla-ture is consid-ering bills that may make it harder for the Florida High School Athletic Asso-ciation to stop high school athletes from trans-ferring among schools.

FLORIDA COURIER FILES

A3FLORIDAMARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

New YouTube ad focuses on state’s economic comeback

BY DAVID ROYSETHE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – If there was any question, Gov. Rick Scott is in re-election

campaign mode.Scott released his first

campaign ad this week, though he put it up only on YouTube, and on Tuesday while talking with report-ers laid out what is expect-ed to be the main mantra of his campaign - that he has been at the helm as the economy has come back.

“We’re going to show that there’s a stunning con-trast (between) the econ-omy I inherited and the economy today,” Scott said after landing at the air-port in Tallahassee after a morning event.

Could face CristIt is no coincidence that

the economy he inherited that he will make the con-trast with was the economy during the term of former Gov. Charlie Crist, who is now considering running to unseat Scott.

The governor has for weeks been talking about

the current economy most-ly as it relates to the econo-my during the Crist admin-istration and did so again on Tuesday.

“In the four years before I became governor, the state had lost 832,000 jobs, unem-ployment tripled from 3.5 to 11.1 percent, state debt had increased by over $5 billion, and, you know the housing market collapsed,” Scott told reporters.

Taken on causesScott has also taken on a

number of popular causes, from an across-the-board teacher raise, to opposition to college tuition increas-es to firm opposition to tax increases, or anything that looks like one.

The new ad focuses on the economic comeback in Florida, showing video of Scott visiting compa-nies that have been hiring. It has a number of work-ers and company officials

touting Florida’s improving business climate.

Scott has benefitted from a dwindling unemploy-ment rate – which is now below the national rate for the first time since before he took office.

Some poll improvement

Still, Scott appears to have a job to do. Two re-cent polls have shown Crist ahead of Scott in a hypothetical governor’s race, and while some polls have shown improvement for the governor, he is still hampered by low approval ratings.

The governor’s cam-paign fundraising arm has also swung into full gear, evidently, with a big up-tick in fundraising in the first two weeks of March. The committee, “Let’s Get to Work,” brought in more than $800,000 during that period.

Governor starting to campaign for re-election

JOE BURBANK/ORLANDO SENTINEL/MCT

Shown on Dec. 27, 2010, then Florida governor-elect Rick Scott and Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll, center/ back-ground, talk with students Arianna Davis and Mike Laelante, from the Frontline Outreach program in Orland at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista. Carroll, Scott and his wife, Ann, and daughter Jordan Kandah, background, right, toured Epcot as a part of his statewide, inaugural tour.

BY JIM SAUNDERSNEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

TALLAHASSEE – A fed-eral appeals court Tues-day upheld the constitu-tionality of prayers before meetings of the Lakeland City Commission, reject-ing atheists’ arguments that the practice promotes Christianity.

Lakeland is one of nu-merous local governments across the state that opens meetings with prayers, of-ten led by clergy. Athe-ists of Florida, Inc., filed a lawsuit in 2010 challeng-ing Lakeland, but a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the city.

The court said Lakeland has acted legally after put-ting in place a 2010 poli-cy that included a process for selecting speakers from a wide range of congrega-tions.

That policy also, for ex-ample, said invocations would not be listed as part of the public business of meetings and that employ-ees, commission members and members of the public would not be required to participate.

“The selection proce-dures of the invocation-al speakers invited to de-liver an invocation at (the) Lakeland City Commis-sion’s meetings pursuant to policies and practices do not support the AOF’s

contention that Lakeland attempted to exploit the prayer opportunity to pros-elytize or advance or dis-parage any one faith or be-lief,’’ the court ruled. “Nor do these policies and prac-tices have the effect of af-filiating the Lakeland City Commission with any dis-crete one faith or belief.”

Also, the judges declared moot arguments about Christian prayers before the 2010 policy.

Prayers trackedAtheists of Florida ar-

gued that the city’s actions violated the state and fed-eral constitutions, includ-ing what is known as the Es-tablishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution. In a brief filed last year, it tracked prayers given at commis-sion meetings since 2002.

“Prior to the filing of this lawsuit, all but one of the city of Lakeland’s prayers

included explicitly Chris-tian references,’’ the May 2012 brief said. “Since the filing of this lawsuit, that proportion has on-ly changed modestly. The sectarian references have been exclusively, or almost exclusively, Christian.”

In a response filed in June 2012, the city disput-ed that, historically, only Christian clergy had given invocations. It also argued there was no evidence that the city had “usurped the prayer opportunity to proselytize or to advance or disparage any religion or sect.”

“There is no record ... the city has ever provided a speaker with an invocation, edited a speaker’s invoca-tion or prevented a speak-er from giving a particular invocation,’’ the brief said. “Simply put, the city exer-cises no control whatsoev-er over the words that flow from the speaker’s mouth.”

The U. S. Supreme Court seems poised to declare Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act unconstitutional.

The challenge, filed by Shelby County, Alabama, was invited by signals sent by the Supreme Court in earlier cases. It will

be surprising if the decision departs from the Court’s ideological and partisan 5-4 divide.

Section 5 requires that nine states and parts of seven others – all with a history of discrimination against racial and ethnic minorities – get approval from the Department of Justice or the federal court in Washington before making changes to voting laws or procedures. This “preclearance” is designed to ensure that changes do not have a retrogressive impact on the voting rights of minorities.

Five Florida counties (Hendry, Hardy, Monroe, Collier and Hillsborough) are covered by the Voting Rights Act.

Essentially, opponents claim that the Voting Rights Act has accomplished its mission and is no longer needed. They argue that Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act is now just a federal intrusion on states’ rights.

But let’s not forget history.In the spring of 1965, following the

Bloody Sunday attack on civil rights workers at the Edmund Pettis Bridge, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. sent telegrams to allies across the country to come to Alabama to work for passage of the Voting Rights Act. As a leader of my college student government, I received that telegram and, with two friends, got on the bus, and ultimately made the 54 mile march from Selma to Montgomery.

There was reason to be scared. Two years earlier, three college students, two from my university in New York, were murdered for helping to register Black people to vote. And in Selma, leading up to the march, a Unitarian minister was beaten on the streets and died a few days later.

The Selma-to-Montgomery march

for the passage of the Voting Rights Act ended with the murder of Viola Liuzzo, a Detroit mother of five who was shot from a car containing four members of the KKK. Ten years later, when it was revealed that one of the four was the FBI’s chief paid informant in the Klan, I worked to bring, fund and sustain a lawsuit to hold the FBI responsible for the murder of Viola Liuzzo. (I was then the executive director of the ACLU of Michigan.)

The tactics of voter suppression have changed since the enactment of the Voting Rights Act. It is less common that people of color face violence or are murdered when they try to exercise their fundamental rights as a citizen.

Instead, bureaucrats purge voter rolls and legislators restrict voter registration activities. (In Florida, a majority of black and Hispanic voters register through volunteer voter registration programs.) Legislators also cut back on early voting that in effect shuts down programs like “Souls to the Polls” marches from black churches on Sundays. (In 2008 in Florida, a majority of black voters voted during early voting days.)

The tactics of voter suppression have changed, but voter suppression has not ended.

Look at the performance of Florida officials. For the 2012 election, they tried to make it harder to register to vote, harder to vote, and harder to ensure that your vote will be counted. And then they lied about it by claiming that these restrictions were necessary to address voter fraud, or as the governor claimed, to prevent “potential fraud.”

Is Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act still needed? Our Legislature and governor are walking advertisements for why America needs the Voting Rights Act and why it would be a disaster for the U. S. Supreme Court to end federal oversight.

But even if the Court strikes down Section 5, the fight will not end. The search for other tools to defend the right to vote will intensify.

Will the Supreme Court strike down part of the Voting Rights Act?

Dr. Howard SimonExecutive Director

American Civil Liberties Union

of Florida

NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

Gov. Rick Scott wants a detailed report from state university system Chan-cellor Frank Brogan re-garding an incident in which Florida Atlantic University student Ry-an Rotela claimed he was suspended from class for refusing to stomp on a piece of paper bearing the word “Jesus.”

“Whether the stu-dent was reprimand-ed or whether an apol-ogy was given is in many ways (inconsequential) to the larger issue of a pro-fessor’s poor judgment,” Scott stated in a letter to Brogan.

“The professor’s lesson was offensive, and even intolerant, to Christians and those of all faiths who deserve to be respected as Americans entitled to reli-gious freedom.”

School apologizesThe school, while deny-

ing any student had been disciplined, has issued an apology and instructed its intercultural communi-cations class to no longer conduct the exercise.

The class, taught by De-andre Poole, vice chair-man of the Palm Beach County Democratic Par-ty, was reportedly follow-ing an exercise in the in-structors manual that had students write the name “Jesus” in large letters on a piece of paper, put the paper on the floor, face up, and after a brief peri-od, tell them to step on the paper.

“Most will hesitate,” the manual says, according to news reports. “Ask why they can’t step on the pa-per. Discuss the impor-tance of symbols in cul-ture.”

Scott demands report on ‘Jesus’ stomping at FAU

Rollins College to use Black History funds to help working student

The Hamilton Holt School at Rollins College will honor the Black His-tory Committee of Orange County’s scholarship to Rollins College by estab-lishing the “Dean’s Schol-arship for Leadership in the African-American Community.”

This scholarship will make a difference in the African-American com-munity for a student pur-suing a degree as a work-ing adult.

This year, Rollins Col-lege received a $4,000

check from the Black His-tory committee to award as a scholarship to an eco-nomically disadvantaged student at Rollins College with a 3.0 or better grade point average.

“I am delighted to an-nounce that the Hamilton Holt School at Rollins Col-lege will honor the $4,000 scholarship to Rollins from the BHCOC and es-tablish a new scholarship for a disadvantaged adult student entering the Holt School as a freshman in the fall 2013,” said Dr. Da-vid Richard, dean of the Hamilton Holt School.

The Black History Com-mittee has donated more than $200,000 in scholar-ships to economically dis-advantaged students who wish to continue their education beyond high school.

Atheists of Florida, Inc., put up billboards in Lakeland.

Loss for atheists: Appeals court uploads prayer at city meetings

MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013A4 EDITORIAL

I’ve lived through the elec-tion of several popes. I can honestly say that, although I am not a Catholic, I’ve al-ways been fascinated by the anticipation, pomp, circum-stance and ceremony relat-ed to the change of leader-ship of the Catholic Church.

The election of the cur-rent pope was even more intriguing because it wasn’t preceded by the death of a pope. I’m eager to see the potential impact on church doctrine with the co-exis-tence of a sitting pope and a pope emeritus.

Not since the resignation of Pope Gregory XII in 1415 has the Catholic Church had to deal with the resignation of a pope. The papacy or line of succession was much dif-

ferent then with politics and nationalism impacting The Church more significantly than theology.

Pope Gregory’s resigna-tion was a part of a plan to resolve the Papal Schism. This Schism was a split with-in the Catholic Church from 1378 to 1417. Two men si-multaneously claimed to be the true Pope. Driven by politics rather than any theological discord.

The Schism was ended by the Council of Constance

(1414-1418), which result-ed in the resignation of Pope Gregory and Antipope Bene-dict XIII, the rival pope.

Although dramatic, church doctrine was little changed after these resignations and the election of the new pope, Martin V.

Church’s futureLike many, the practical-

ity of Pope Benedict’s res-ignation gave me signifi-cant cause to ponder The Church’s future. Although the uncertainty associated with his resignation was in-calculable, it was refreshing to see a leader of the stat-ure of Pope Benedict XVI acknowledge that age and health considerations pre-cluded his ability to success-

fully perform the duties of his office.

I was hopeful that “The Resignation” would signal the dawn of a new era in the history of The Church - a new era that, consistent with our contemporary re-ality, would allow for greater and more significant partic-ipation of women in the af-fairs of The Church.

For years, the stereotyp-ical Catholic woman was characterized by the nun or the devout female parishio-ner. Normally, we would see the nun placed in the role of the self-sacrificing nurse in a Catholic hospital or as the stern disciplinarian with a ruler managing a classroom of youthful miscreants.

Status quo stayingMy first year of school

was spent with one of those nuns! The devout female parishioner is often por-trayed on television and in movies as a guilt-ridden be-

liever who is caught in the throes of a theological chal-lenge and is seeking abso-lution in the confessional.

Pope Benedict’s resigna-tion brought hope that we’d see these stereotypes dis-solve into obsolescence. It appears as though the elec-tion of Pope Francis is con-firmation of the perpetua-tion of a theological status quo.

Lest my readers see my last sentence as a lead-in to criticism of the new pope, I’m not critical of him as a man, cleric or theologian. His track record appears on first glance to demon-strate a human being of im-mense humanity and hu-mility. He’s shown a desire and a practice to abandon the trappings of status while emphasizing the common-ality between us all.

However, his public pro-nouncements seemingly indicate his personal lean-ing toward maintaining tra-

ditionalist limits on wom-en’s participation in the hi-erarchy of the church and a traditional approach to the questions of abortion and birth control.

If Pope Francis holds to the traditional theology that has existed for centu-ries, we all lose a meaning-ful opportunity to redefine the role of Catholic women in The Church and society at-large.

It is my sincere belief that a revision of the value that The Church places in wom-en will initiate a redefinition of the acceptable treatment of women as members of the human family.

Dr. E. Faye Williams is chair of the National Con-gress of Black Women, www.nationalcongress-bw.org. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

Catholics need to view women differently

Opinions expressed on this editorial page are those of the writers, and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of the newspaper or the publisher.

THE CREDO OF THE BLACK PRESSThe Black Press believes that Americans can best lead the world away from racism and national

antagonism when it accords to every person, regardless of race, color or creed, full human and

legal rights. Hating no person, fearing no person. The Black Press strives to help every person in

the firm belief...that all are hurt as long as anyone is held back.

RIGHT ON! You hit the proverbial nail on the head regarding Hollywood’s – or Hollyweird’s – revisionism, inaccuracies, or just plain lies about the Bible and the people in it. (“No Chaser” column, March 22, 2013, Page A4).

Places in Africa are men-tioned at least six times in the Bible, such as Egypt, where Moses was raised, not born. According to leg-end, his mother placed him in a basket in the Nile River, which flows from south to north. That means he was born further south in Africa. Ethiopia is the birthplace of Abraham.

Other ‘White’ lies about the Bible include White Zi-onist or so-called Jews call-ing Black leaders such as the Most Honorable Minis-ter Louis Farrakhan an anti-Semite, because he tells the truth about White people – especially Jews.

Semitic people or “Sem-ites” are people who origi-nated in northeast Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and southwestern Asia – Black and Brown people. Hence, no Black person can be called or labeled anti-Se-mitic, because Black people

are descendants of Semitic people.

According to the White Hollywood movie “The Ten Commandments,” the Egyptians were White. How does White Hollywood ex-plain that Egypt is a hot des-ert country in Africa with temperatures of 100 degrees or more, and White peo-ple did not become Brown? (Remember White people don’t possess melanin, so they get red, not brown or black).

The hieroglyphics (ear-ly paintings of the original Egyptians) within the Pyra-mids show Brown-skinned to Black-skinned people, not White people. The orig-inal Egyptians had painted themselves as Black.

In the Bible, Jesus is de-scribed as having olive-skin complexion (Black, not green), his hair was that of lamb’s wool (nap-py), and his feet were the color of burnt brass. If you burn brass, it becomes dark brown. Fade to BLACK.

White Christianity is a slave-making religion that

White people have used since they enslaved our Af-rican ancestors through-out the world to rationalize and justify their evil racist acts. Most Negroes (“need-to-grow”) need to remem-ber, recognize, and re-edu-cate themselves, and revolt against racist White Chris-tianity, White racism and oppression, and especial-ly Negro apathy, antipathy, and hate and mistrust of one another.

You mentioned a Mel Gibson movie about Jesus Christ. I remember a Mel Gibson movie, and at the end a quote that stated, “A great civilization cannot be conquered from without until it completely destroys itself from within.”

That’s why White people successfully conquered the Native Americans and took this country and renamed it Amerikkka (pun intended), stole our African ancestors, and enslaved them practi-cally all over the Western hemisphere for nearly 400 years. All Black people of the African Diaspora need to unite.

– Kirk C. Odems, Orlando

Poor may be left out if people don’t speak up

Educate yourselves about Bible, color of Christ

God hates fake ChristiansI studied theology in col-

lege and I have visited as many different places of worship that I could. I have worked as a media profes-sional with many of Amer-ica’s most prominent reli-gious leaders, including for-mer National Baptist Con-vention President Rev. Hen-ry Lyons, Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan, Yahweh Leader Yahweh Ben Yahweh, AME Bishop A.J. Richardson, Primitive Baptist Convention Presi-dent Elder Earnest Ferrell and many others.

But I’ve got to tell you. If I hear another blasphemous word from the fake Chris-tians in our community, I think I’ll scream!

People, especially wom-en, are always talking about how they “know what God wants.” God wants them to have a good man, for in-stance.

And when people pray, they always expect God to do things for them. They say things like, Lord, please don’t let me kill this woman. Or, Lord, please help me get these 10 kilos of cocaine from Miami to Atlanta without be-ing caught by the police.

Follow Commandments

Instead of expecting

things from God, we should do the things that God ex-pects us to do for Him. The God I know wants us all to love Him and love our neighbors. God wants us to be real, be honest and do the right things. You can even follow the 10 Com-mandments if you desire to.

People like me who study religion laugh at people who only go to church on Easter and Christmas, never open a Bible or Holy Book and pretend that they are bibli-cal scholars.

Since I’m single, ladies al-ways tell me to have a good relationship, we have to have the same equal yoke. They say, Lucius, if you at-tend African religious cer-emonies and I go to King-dom Hall, our relationship can’t work.

What the Apostle Paul was referring to in his writ-ings in Corinthians had nothing to do with prefer-ences for places to worship, relationships, marriages or anything of the sort.

He was talking about be-

lievers and non-believers should not be together.

Christian hypocritesIt’s easy to say that God

woke you up this morn-ing, but it’s hard for you to say that God made you lie down with that person the first time you met them.

It’s easy to give God cred-it for waking you, but it’s hard to give God credit for that liquor you drank and that weed you smoked that caused you to oversleep and miss that job interview.

Quit sinningEveryone has to have a

personal relationship with God. You can’t go to Heav-en based on what Mama did or what Baby Daddy did not do. You praise God when you quit tripping and quit tricking! If you quit ly-ing, hating and fronting and be the very best person you can be, God will smile on you!

Buy Gantt’s book “Beast Too: Dead Man Writing” on Amazon.com, like The Gantt Report page on Fa-cebook and contact Lu-cius at www.allworldcon-sultants.net. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own re-sponse.

I never considered the late Rodney King anything of a philosopher, but as one observes Washington she-nanigans, especially around fiscal matters, it seems that Brother King had a point. Can we all just, maybe, get along.

In the wee hours of Satur-day morning, the Senate fi-nally passed a budget by the narrowest of margins, 50-49. Four Democratic Sen-ators jumped ship to side with Republicans, proba-bly because they are facing tough election fights in Re-publican leaning states.

Senate thoughtfulStill it was great to see

some vision from this sen-ate, which called for a $1 trillion in tax increases and $875 billion in program cuts. Unlike proposals present-ed by the likes of Paul Ryan, who would eviscerate social programs, the Senate offers a budget that cuts social and other programs more care-fully and thoughtfully.

Since this is the first bud-get the Senate has passed in four years, one might think that they should be con-gratulated. But the passage of a Senate budget is only the first step. Now the Sen-ate and the House of Repre-sentatives have to find some common ground.

Former Vice Presiden-tial candidate Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) chairs the House Budget Committee, and he chairs it like he thinks he is still running for office.

He claims that he can save $4 trillion more than Demo-crats by turning Medicare into a voucher program and slashing Medicaid, SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, for-merly Food Stamps), and other safety net programs.

How will the Senate and House resolve their differ-ences when Republicans basically refuse to bargain, and Democrats will give away the store if given an opportunity.

Can’t go alongWe can’t get along if we go

along with nonsense like a voucher program for senior health. As it is, some hospi-tals are closing or consoli-dating, largely because of the number of poor and el-derly people who use those facilities.

While Ryan is talking slash and burn, Obamacare, albe-it imperfect, expands health care possibilities for ev-eryone. We can’t get along with cuts in SNAP that leave more people hungry.

We can’t get along with proposals to cut education-al funding , when education opens doors for generations to come.

Poor People’s Campaign

As this is the 50th An-niversary of the March on Washington, many marches are being planned to com-memorate that critical date. But it might also be mean-ingful if Dr. King’s Poor Peo-ple’s Campaign were also re-enacted.

Dr. King’s vision of bring-ing thousands to occupy government offices to high-light the needs of the poor was never fully realized, and the current gap between the House and Senate suggests that the poor will be more harshly treated now than they were two generations ago.

When one contrasts the House Budget with the one that comes from the Senate, one realizes that there are two starkly different visions of our country.

People chose the human-itarian Obama vision of the world instead of the elitist austerity that Romney ex-emplified. The people have spoken, but the politicians can’t hear.

The people are talking, the politicians are postur-ing, and millions are won-dering how they will sur-vive if a Ryan budget passes. Why can’t we all get along?

Julianne Malveaux is a D.C.-based economist and writer. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: SEQ-EASTER BUNNY

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DR. E. FAyE WILLIAMs, Esq.

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A5EDITORIALMARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

Good students being forced to drop out of HBCUs

Black women urged to ‘Lean In’ too

Black Democrats, Black Republicans fight each other for crumbs “So please ask yourself: What

would I do if I weren’t afraid? And then go do it.”

– Sheryl Sandberg

In a stroke of marketing ge-nius befitting the chief operat-ing officer of the social media phenomenon Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg chose Women’s His-tory Month to launch her new book, ‘Lean In,’’ and begin a na-tional dialogue about “Women, Work and the Will to Lead.”

Ruth Standish Baldwin was a co-founder of the National Ur-ban League more than a century ago and the inclusion and em-powerment of women has been one of our most important pri-orities.

Today, Former Labor Secre-tary Alexis Herman serves as Se-nior Vice Chair on our Board, and almost half of our 95 local Affiliate CEOs are women. For that reason, we applaud Ms. Sandberg for her new book and are proud to join in the conver-sation.

Historic barriersWe all know that historic bar-

riers of gender discrimination, as well as the responsibilities of bearing and caring for chil-dren have made it more diffi-cult for women to balance work and family. But Sandberg con-tends that women too often “hold ourselves back in ways big and small, by lacking self-confi-dence, by not raising our hands,

and by pulling back when we should be leaning in.”

Consider how Harriet Tub-man leaned into the face of death to lead a thousand slaves to freedom on the Underground Railroad. Or how Sojourner Truth stood up and boldly asked “Ain’t I a woman” at the 1851 Ohio Women’s Rights Conven-tion.

Consider how Fannie Lou Hamer who was “sick and tired of being sick and tired,” fought for African-American voting rights as an organizer of the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Sum-mer and Vice Chair of the Mis-sissippi Freedom Democratic Party. Or how a quiet seamstress named Rosa Parks, leaned in, sat down on a bus and lit the fuse of the civil rights movement.

Lack of women at topDecrying the lack of women

at the top of corporate America, Sandberg does admit that, “The gap is even worse for women of color, who hold just 4 percent of top corporate jobs, 3 percent of board seats and 5 percent of congressional seats.” But, with rising numbers of Black women in college, preparing themselves

for successful careers, clearly a lack of drive or ambition is not the problem.

“Lean In’’ urges women to “Sit at the Table,” “Seek and Speak Your Truth,” “Don’t Leave Be-fore You Leave,” and “Make Your Partner a Real Partner.”

Obstacles listedThese recommendations

present a road map of success that has obviously worked for Sheryl Sandberg. But, it is large-ly the lack of support, the pres-sures of single parenthood, and systemic racial and gender dis-crimination that continue to keep women of color from get-ting a foot in the corporate door.

The empowerment of all women depends on closing the wage gap, protecting women’s reproductive rights, providing greater workplace flexibility, having more women in non-tra-ditional professions like science and engineering, and support-ing common sense measures like the Violence Against Wom-en Act which was reauthorized and signed into law by President Obama last week.

If men and women lean in to-gether, we can foster gender eq-uity and a better America.

Marc H. Morial, former mayor of New Orleans, is pres-ident and CEO of the Nation-al Urban League. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

On several occasions I have lis-tened carefully as a couple of Black Republican colleagues cite the grievous shortcomings and sins of the Democratic Party. More often than not I found myself in agree-ment with much of their analysis.

After their critique is finished I ask the Black Republicans what should be the response of Black people to their analysis. Their an-swer is “Switch to the Republican Party.”

That suggestion is an immedi-ate signal that they cannot be tak-en seriously. From approximately 1867 to 1936, Black folks, as a way of thanking President Lincoln for ending legal enslavement of our ancestors, voted overwhelmingly for the Republican Party.

Since 1936, Black folks have vot-ed mostly for Democrats, especial-ly in presidential campaigns. Again there were concrete reasons for this voting pattern- - government programs launched by President Franklin Roosevelt and the pas-sage of civil rights legislation elimi-nating legal White supremacy/rac-ism, especially by presidents Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson.

Empowerment guidelinesWhat serious observers of the

current national scene should strive for is an independent Black economic, political and cultural movement not tied to the Demo-cratic or Republican parties, yet

willing to work with either on any issue of mutual benefit.

Clear and doable guidelines for doing this are made by Martin Lu-ther King, Jr. in his book, “Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?, Brother Malcolm X in his autobiography and in the goals and objectives of the Organi-zation of Afro-American Unity and Chancellor Williams in chapter 15 of his book, “The Destruction of African Civilization: Great Issues of the Race 2500 BC-2000 AD.’’

Instead of following these guide-lines Black Democrats and Black Republicans continue to fight vi-ciously with each other over which group of White folks to cling to and accept crumbs from – White Dem-ocrats or White Republicans, White liberals/progressives or White con-servatives/reactionaries. It’s a pa-thetic and visionless sight to be-hold.

Peter Bailey is currently editor of Vital Issues: The Journal of Af-rican American Speeches. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

Morehouse College, one of the most distinguished historically Black colleges — with graduates like Dr. Martin Luther King, for-mer Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jack-son, film director Spike Lee and others — literally shut down for spring break this week.

As its 2,000 students took their break, every member of the faculty and staff was furloughed without pay as the college struggles to bal-ance its books.

The crisis at Morehouse, which will hit other historically Black col-leges and universities (HBCUs) even harder, results from the com-bination of foul economic times and continued cuts in support for students and colleges at the feder-al and state level.

African-Americans have dra-matically less wealth than White families. To pay for advanced ed-

ucation, students piece together grants, work, family contributions and loans.

Morehouse lost 200 students, part of 10,000 students in HBCUs affected, when the Department of Education suddenly tightened el-igibility requirements for Parent Plus Loans that lend to eligible parents to help pay for their chil-dren’s college costs.

College costs risingThe average Plus loan at More-

house was $22,000 in 2010-11. Add

to that the fact that college costs are rising, while the level of Pell grants is not, and colleges and fac-ulties will be hit by the across-the-board “sequester” cuts at the fed-eral level.

Morehouse is like the canary in the mine — an early warning sig-nal. Student loan debt now ex-ceeds $1 trillion dollars, greater than credit card debt. A quarter of African-Americans graduate with debt over $30,000, along with 16 percent of White students. Student debt can’t be erased in bankrupt-cy, or because of loss of a job.

About half of college gradu-ates are unemployed or underem-ployed. In worse shape are the 30 percent of college students with loans who fail to graduate, often because they can’t afford to con-tinue

Burdened with debtBurdened with debt, graduates

find it hard to pay for a car, a place to live and health care. They find it virtually impossible to save any-thing for the future.

President Obama understands that educating the next generation is vital to this country’s future.

In his first address to Congress, he pledged that “by 2020, Ameri-ca will once again have the high-est proportion of college graduates in the world.” He then signed into law the largest increase in student aid since the GI Bill at the end of World War II.

We will pay far more in the fu-ture for failing to educate this ris-ing generation than we will save in cutting support for them. We need a National Commission on College Affordability to review the rising

costs of and the declining support for colleges and advanced training programs.

It should recommend how the rise in college costs can be slowed and how to ensure that students are not priced out of the education they need nor condemned to debt servitude to get it.

That good students are forced to drop out of a distinguished school like Morehouse because they can’t afford it is a warning sign. The fur-lough of Morehouse employees is a wake-up call. We need action before good schools fail and more good students are locked out.

Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. is presi-dent and CEO of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. Click on this story at www.flcourier.com to write your own response.

Dr. Ben Carson: Great surgeon, terrible icon for political collective“Nobody is starving on the

streets (of America). We have al-ways taken care of them. We have churches which actually are much better mechanisms for taking care of the poor because they are right there with them. This is one of the reasons we give tax breaks to churches.”

– Dr. Ben Carson, CPAC speech 2013

In modern culture, an icon is a symbol – i.e. a name, face, picture, or even a person readily recog-nized as having some well-known significance or embodying cer-tain qualities.

That face or person begins to represent something else of greater significance through lit-eral or figurative meaning. With his speech at the 2013 National Prayer Breakfast and his recent CPAC speech, Carson has be-come the new Black conservative darling. He’s a great pediatric sur-geon but a terrible icon for the po-litical collective.

Dr. Ben Carson has an incred-ibly compelling and motivation-al story. Born into poverty in De-troit in 1951 and raised by a single mother with a third-grade educa-tion, Carson became the first sur-geon to separate conjoined twins and the youngest to head a surgi-cal department. His focus, work ethic, and commitment to excel-lence should be emulated by as many as possible.

Safety net neededOne problem with Dr. Carson

and others like him – i.e. Justice Thomas, Michael Steele, Wardell Connerly and Condoleezza Rice is how they have lent their voic-es and their personal narratives to conservatives in ways that al-low them to undermine the social

safety net in America. The argument is that these in-

dividuals have overachieved in spite of the odds; therefore, the inability of the poor in America to rise into the middle class or be-yond is due to personal failure, lack of drive, initiative, and de-pendence upon the system. Car-son, Rice, and Thomas made it; why can’t you?

Another problem with their “re-alities” is their failure to recognize and/or admit how they benefitted from “the system” at some point in their struggle. For example, Wardell Connerly grew his busi-ness in part with assistance from the 8(a) Program. Justice Thom-as was a beneficiary of affirmative action.

I don’t know if Carson’s moth-er ever received any public assis-tance during his childhood but if she did not I am certain some of his neighbors did. Is he ready to cast them all as lazy and total-ly dependent upon the govern-ment?

Overcoming oddsWe love to hear stories about

people overcoming great odds to achieve success. What is ig-nored when reciting the stories of the Carsons, Thomases and Rices of the world is depth of the chasm that lied between Africans in America and later the African-American community and White America.

There have always been per-sonal successes in the midst of

the collective or group struggle. During the 18th century while hundreds of thousands and later millions of Africans in America where bound by the shackles of slavery, individuals such as Olau-dah Equiano aka “Equiano, the African” and James Forten found success on American shores.

Did the success of Equiano, Forten and others negate the suf-fering and systemic oppression of those enslaved? Obviously not.

Disturbing dataToday, in spite of all of the dis-

turbing data documenting the dis-parity between the African-Amer-ican community and Whites, such as eighteen percent unemploy-ment, African-Americans being 53 percent of those incarcerated and only 13 percent of the population, the wealth disparity, high school dropout rates, college graduation rates, home foreclosure rates, etc. the likes of a Wardell Connerly, Shelby Steele, or Clarence Thom-as stand before conservatives and argue that we no longer need Af-firmative Action, Head Start, and other social programs.

Individual success should nev-er become the standard of mea-sure of success for the collective. It is only through group success that the African-American com-munity will truly become politi-cally and economically empow-ered.

Dangerous statementsDr. Ben Carson made some very

inaccurate and dangerous state-ments during his CPAC speech that cannot go unchallenged. He stated as referenced above, “No-body is starving on the streets (of America).” According to Bread for the World, “14.5 percent of U.S. households struggle to put

enough food on the table. More than 48 million Ameri-

cans — including 16.2 million children — live in these house-holds…Among African-Ameri-cans and Latinos, nearly one in three children is at risk of hunger.” Has he forgotten that in 1951 he may have been one of those hun-gry children?

He also stated, “Many people don’t know this but socialism started as a reaction to America because people in Europe, they looked at us and said, “”wait a minute look at those Americans…people like Henry Ford, Kellogg, Vanderbilt…they’ve got so much money…”” it needs to be redis-tributed.”

Socialism definedActually, the term socialism is

attributed to Pierre Leroux and Robert Owen around 1827. Henry Ford was not born until 1863. So-cialist models and ideas espous-ing common or public ownership have existed since antiquity.

Karl Marx, considered by many to be the founder of modern so-cialism first published Das Kap-

ital in 1847. Henry Ford was 4 years old. Socialism was actually a reaction to the Industrial Rev-olution which started in Britain around 1760.

Dr. Ben Carson has a very mo-tivational story but his political analysis and message lack real understanding of the issues nec-essary to be taken seriously.

It is dangerous to use the suc-cess of an individual(s) as the ba-sis of a sociological or economic indictment of an entire class of in-dividuals. A reporter once asked Dr. Carson why he never talked about race to which he respond-ed, “…because I’m a neurosur-geon”.

Well, Dr. Carson, I’ll make a deal with you, I’ll stay out of the operating room if you leave the political analysis and dialogue to trained professionals.

Go to www.wilmerleon.com or email: wjl3us@yahoo.com. Click on this story at www.fl-courier.com to write your own response.

VISUAL VIEWPOINT: NRA CONGRESS DANCE

STEVE SACK, THE MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE

TRICE EDNEY WIRE

MARC H. MORIAL

DR. WILMER J. LEON III

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REv. JEssE L. JACksON, sR.

TOjA6 NATION MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

BY DENIQUA CAMPBELLTRICE EDNEY NEWS WIRE

Wendell Allen’s life came to an abrupt end on March 7 last year as he died shirt-less, standing on a stair-case, at his home in New Orleans.

Unarmed, the 20-year-old basketball star was shot in the back by New Orleans Police Department offi-cer Josh Colclough. For six weeks the Allen family be-lieved their child was shot in his chest until the em-balmer revealed that Al-len was actually shot in his back.

Yet, newspaper readers in New Orleans noticed two starkly different news priorities on the stands and in the streets.

Louisiana Weekly, a Black-owned paper, had the Wendell Allen shooting on the front cover. Right be-side it, was the Times-Pica-yune, a White daily news-paper that had no mention of the Allen shooting. In-stead, the cover featured a Black male being charged with multiple counts of murder.

In interviews over the past year, seasoned jour-nalists say the differences in coverage between White and Black-owned media – whether print or broadcast – continue to be clear.

Distinctly different coverage

News outlets like CNN, MSNBC, BBC and Fox News, all cover certain types of stories from a cer-tain perspective.

“Black press is the voice of the Black community,” said Ingrid Sturgis, jour-nalism professor of new media and multimedia ex-pert at Howard University. “Our story doesn’t always get heard in mainstream media.”

Award-winning Black press reporter Hazel Trice Edney agrees. “Both of these stories are impor-tant,” said Edney, editor/publisher of the Trice Ed-ney News Wire. “It is typical across America that when Black newspapers come

out they have distinctly dif-ferent stories than White newspapers.”

On August 13, 1977 an article headlined A little about A lot — the need for the black press, was fea-tured in the Baltimore Af-ro-American that detailed former dean of the School of Communications, Dr. Li-onel C. Barrow’s four rea-sons for the Black press.

Context and perspective

According to Barrow, the Black press functioned as a watchdog, answered attacks published in the White press, presented a viewpoint different even from that of liberal Whites and, the Black press also served as the carrier and preserver of Black culture.

Marrow did not deny that there were still im-provements that needed to be made, improvements on production, in investigat-ing and in reporting, writ-ing and editing. But con-sidering other issues Black media has faced, its surviv-al is incredible.

“The strength of the Black press would be that it always relied on context and providing perspective,” said George Curry, award-winning journalist who is editor-in-chief of the Na-tional Newspaper Publish-ers Association News Ser-vice.

Curry reflected on when he interviewed the fam-ily of Trayvon Martin, the Florida teen shot dead by Neighborhood Watch cap-tain George Zimmerman on Feb. 28, 2012, a highly publicized court case now set for court June 10.

“No one was doing a sto-ry on how the news broke to Martin’s father,” Curry said.

While reporters of White publications were sticking to the basics and investi-gating the case, Curry went for an intimate and per-sonal story.

“Urgency is not such a big problem,” Curry said. “It’s worth the wait be-cause we don’t come out with the same frequency as other newspapers.”

Hurdle: Attracting youth

Today the Black press faces issues within its own agencies. Perhaps the big-gest is technological ad-vancement. According to the State of the News Media in 2007, an annual report by the Pew Research Center on American journalism, “the black press has been slow to technology, and its audi-ence appears to be aging.”

Pew’s State of the Media 2013 reports a new Black press hurdle – how to at-tract the attention of new, younger readers.

“One of the broader chal-lenges for African-Amer-ican news media in gen-eral, and most notably the newspaper sector, is strik-ing a balance between ap-pealing to a younger gener-ation with a contemporary product and fulfilling a mis-sion to honor a history that includes the defining civil rights struggle of a half-cen-tury ago,” the report states.

“History has got to be a definitive weave in what we do,”’ said John J. “Jake’’ Oli-ver Jr., the publisher and chief executive of the Af-ro-American newspapers in Baltimore and Washing-ton, D.C., was quoted in the Pew Study. “We’ve got to re-define our personality from just a straight delivery of community news to help-ing people really educate themselves.”

Working on technology

The Black press has an ex-tensive history dating back

to March 16, 1827. That is when the first Black news-paper, Freedom’s Journal, was founded in New York City by John B. Russwurm, a journalist, and Samuel Cornish, a minister. It’s first editorial stated, “We wish to plead our own cause. For too long have others spoken for us.”

Because of its longevity, now 186 years old, some find it hard to fathom why the Black press isn’t the biggest and most advanced among all media in the U.S. But, there are many rea-sons its numeric growth has been stunted.

“Technological advance-ment is an issue and it re-mains an issue,” Edney said. “But we’re working on that. There are many Black news-papers that are online and there are many that are not.”

Faithful readersAccording to Sturgis, it

has a lot to do with resourc-es. “A lack of resources, re-porters, funding to do in depth pieces, and training in new media hampers the

ability to cover what needs to be covered as well as the ability to grow,” Sturgis said.

Financial struggles due to racial discrimination in ad-vertising have also been a complaint by NNPA, a fed-eration of more than 200 Black-owned newspapers, founded in 1940. The or-ganization has launched many strategic campaigns calling on fair share in ad-vertising from major corpo-rations.

But the Black press isn’t losing its older audience. Curry admits that the older audience is a lot more ap-preciative of news and Ed-ney agrees that there are faithful readers of Black newspapers that have strong contingencies with-in the community. The biggest concern Edney has with the Black press is get-ting online and becoming more technology savvy.

“Because of the urgency of our issues, we must use every opportunity avail-able to get our message out,” Edney said.

Online outreach vital

According to the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project, 83 percent of U.S. adults own a cell phone. Of these adults, 35 percent of them own a smart phone and one quarter of them use their phone as their main source of Internet access. This is a trend that is es-pecially found among 18 to 29-year-old adults who identify themselves as Black.

Pew Internet research shows that “when someone has a mobile device con-nected to the Internet, they are more likely to share, to forward, to create and to consume online informa-tion, from text to photos to videos.”

Curry said, “You’re not going to reach the younger audience through print…You have to reach them through a mobile plat-form.”

The Black press, aiming to play a vital role in the lives of African-Americans, has been serving the com-munity to bring perspec-tive and context for over 100 years. Black press con-tinues to do its part in tell-ing the story and keeping its readers loyal. “You have to give them something they can’t get anywhere else,” Curry said.

Covering Allen’s death

Two months into Wen-dell Allen’s death, the Allen family remained outraged at the slowness of the in-vestigation.

“They feel that because their son is African-Ameri-can, the police department is taking its time investi-gating the incident,” said the Rev. Raymond Brown, president and founder of National Action Now dur-ing a press conference at the Allen home.

According to Louisi-ana Weekly, the shooting took place inside the Al-len’s home during an ex-ecution of a search war-rant for marijuana. Since the shooting, Allen has not been linked to the marijua-na allegedly sold in or near the home.

Eventually, Colclough was indicted by a state grand jury on one account of manslaughter regarding Allen’s death.

A year after the shoot-ing Colclough awaits trial and no date has yet been set. Meanwhile, the fami-ly, early this month, filed a federal wrongful death law-suit against the City of New Orleans, accusing the New Orleans Police department of several civil rights viola-tions.

Though the Times-Pic-ayune has done exten-sive reporting on the case, the Louisiana Weekly – in keeping with the Black Press mission – has not on-ly lead the way, but agitat-ed for justice, Edney says.

“The White press [still] criminalizes and stereo-types us,” Edney said. “We need to bring a sense of fairness and balance to the media consciousness.”

Black press, mainstream coverage:Still big differences in news priorities

MARGOT jORDAN/NNPA

National Newspaper Publishers Association Editor-in-Chief George Curry, left, and Florida Courier Publisher Charles W. Cherry II are shown at a Black Press Week event this month in Washington, D.C.

Supreme Court to hear Michigan affirmative action caseBY DAVID G. SAVAGETRIBUNE WASHINGTON BUREAU/MCT

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will hear Michigan’s appeal of a sur-prising ruling that struck down its voters’ ban on giving “preferential treat-ment” to students based on their race, weighing the emotionally tense issue of affirmative action for the second time in a year.

The Michigan measure is nearly identical to the Cal-ifornia proposition that in 1996 abolished race-based affirmative action policies for admission to the state’s colleges and universities.

But defenders of affirma-tive action went to federal court in Michigan and won

a ruling from the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals that held the state measure unconstitutional on the grounds it took away a civil rights provision that bene-fited minorities.

Texas case pendingThe Supreme Court jus-

tices are highly skeptical of any use of race-based policies, and few doubt-ed the justices would hear Michigan’s defense of its ban on race-based affirma-tive action. The only sur-prise was that the justices announced Monday they would hear the appeal be-fore they ruled on a pend-ing affirmative action case involving the University of Texas.

In the Texas case, lawyers for a rejected White student

urged the court to rule that giving preferences to appli-cants based on their race violates the Constitution’s promise of “equal protec-tion of the laws.” A decision in that case, Fisher vs. Uni-versity of Texas, is expected this spring.

Michigan’s voters ap-peared to adopt the kind of race-neutral admission policies that many of the justices favor. It told the state universities to admit students without regard to their race or ethnicity.

Kagan won’t hear case

State Atty. Gen. Bill Schuette said it made no sense to say a provision that forbids discrimination of any sort based on race violates the “equal protec-

tion” provision of the Con-stitution.

But the defenders of the race-based policies could point to Supreme Court rulings from the late 1960s that faulted state and local governments for repeal-ing civil rights provisions in actions that appeared to target minorities. By an 8-7 vote, the 6th Circuit Court said the Michigan ballot measure was unconstitu-tional under those prece-dents.

The high court said it will hear the Michigan case in the fall. It is Schuette vs. Coalition to Defend Affir-mative Action. Justice Ele-na Kagan is not taking part in the case, apparently be-cause she worked on it as solicitor general.

The Supreme Court already is considering an affir-mative action case, Fisher v. University of Texas, in-volving then undergraduate Abigail Fisher (above).

TRICE EDNEY NEWS SERVICE

Unarmed Wendell Allen was shot in the back in March 2012, killed by a New Orleans police officer.

“Black press is

the voice of the

Black community.

Our story doesn’t

always get heard

in mainstream

media.”

Ingrid SturgisJournalism professor

of new media and multimedia expert at

Howard University

LIFE | FAITH | HEALTH | MONEY | EVENTS | CLASSIFIEDS | ENTERTAINMENT | SPORTS | FOOD

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Fort Myers team is this year’s NCAA darling See page B4

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March 29 - April 4, 2013courier

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PENNY DICKERSON/FLORIDA COURIER

William “Bill” Burns holds a monthly raffle to win an AR-15 rifle. Proceeds benefit his nonprofit organization “Dream Hunts For Heroes.”

Was the decision to go ‘gunless’ in the ‘Gunshine State’ fatal?

Ammuni-tion can be pur-chased for cash at local gun shows. Firearm respon-sibility requires a permit applica-tion.

Editor’s Note: This is the sixth in a series of stories framing the life of James Roland Jackson, III, known as “Jimmy” to his family.

BY PENNY DICKERSONSPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

As reported in this se-ries, 26-year-old Jimmy Jackson was shot on June 2, 2012, at the Silver Fox nightclub while working part time as road manager for rap artist Young Cash, a protégé of popular Flori-da-based rapper Flo Rida.

The former Florida A&M University business student died 10 days later at Shands Hospital, leav-ing his supportive fam-ily shocked and grieving. His five-year-old daugh-ter Denia no longer has a daddy to tuck her in at night. He won’t cheer at her college graduation, or walk her down the aisle on her wedding day.

Four bulletsJacksonville Detective

Bobbie Bowers, the lead homicide investigator, is calling Jackson’s tragic shooting a random rob-bery.

Two Black males wear-ing dark clothing ap-proached Jackson in a pitch-dark parking lot at close to 4 a.m. He com-plied with their request for money, but assailants still pumped four bullets into his 6’1” athletic frame as he walked away.

Older brother Antho-ny Rozier said that Jack-son refused to carry a con-cealed weapon, as is pos-sible under Florida’s liber-al ‘concealed carry’ law.

“I don’t need a gun, cause I ain’t gon’ shoot nobody,” Jackson told Ro-zier.

Millions with gunsThere’s no proof that

Jackson would still be alive if he had been carrying a gun. But a record number of citizens do plan to shoot whenever necessary. One of every 17 Floridians –

more than a million peo-ple just in Florida alone – has a license to carry a concealed firearm.

While homicide rates are down, Florida is home to the largest number of gun-carrying permits in the country, giving the peninsula an unsavory moniker: “the Gunshine State.”

Jacksonville has its own Gun Crime Unit, and for good reason. As reported by the United States De-partment of Justice base on 2011 statistics, the Mid-dle District of Florida, the federal court district were Jacksonville is located, ranks third in the nation for the number of federal prosecutions of firearms-related cases.

In conjunction with Project Safe Neighbor-hood, a community-based initiative, the Gun Crime Unit meets once a week to discuss the prosecu-tion of gun crimes and in-cludes detectives with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Of-fice, special agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Bu-reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), as well as prosecu-tors from the State Attor-ney’s Office.

Easy to getMany Floridians evi-

dently believe peril is im-minent, and they are buy-ing guns. And all you need is money to buy a gun in Florida.

According to a Feb. 27 cover story in Folio Week-ly, “No permits, license or identification card is re-quired to buy or possess firearms and ammunition here, unlike in some oth-er states.” (You do need a license to conceal a gun and carry it.)

Fierce debateThe availability of guns

is America’s most conten-tious new debate. From seasoned politicians to neighborhood barber-shops hosting Saturday morning court, everyone is weighing in on access to firearms, who has a right to own, and the rampant gun violence sweeping the nation.

A movie theater massa-cre and last year’s Sandy Hook elementary killing spree has created a nation in fear and rendered pub-lic places unsafe.

First gun at 15Gun shows are held al-

most every weekend in

a Florida city and a large populous of enthusiasts support the culture. Luke Wyatt purchased close to $280 worth of ammuni-tion at a recent Jackson-ville gun show.

“I come here to buy am-mo because I can’t get it from the store,” said Wyatt. “ The government is mak-

ing it even harder.”The Florida State Com-

munity College student works part time at Long-horn Steakhouse and uses his earnings to support his hobby.

“I own three guns, a 30.06 long-range rifle, a tactical AR-22, and have access to my parents’ 9mm

pistol,” Wyatt boasted. Guns and target shoot-

ing has always been a part of Wyatt’s family life. He was given his first gun at age 15 and is an avid hunt-er of game.

Racial disparity The use of guns is racial-

ly disparate. According to a March 22 feature in the Washington Post, “Gun deaths are shaped by race in America. Whites are far more likely to shoot them-selves, and African-Amer-icans are far more likely to be shot by someone else.”

What’s consistent is that thousands of people are killed – or are killing them-selves – with guns.

The Florida-based Tray-von Martin case has in-tensified the racial debate. Martin was shot and killed last February in Sanford by George Zimmerman, an off-duty neighborhood watchman. The shooter alleged Martin’s behavior was suspicious – he was walking slowly in the rain and wearing a hoodie.

The equally tragic kill-ing of Jordan Davis fol-lowed the Martin killing. The 14-year-old was shot to death while sitting in a Dodge Durango with friends at a Gate gas sta-tion in Jacksonville.

JIMMY JACKSON

THE LIFE & DEATH OF

A revolver like these on sale at a Jacksonville gun show could be similar to the firearm Jimmy’s shooter used.

See JIMMY, Page B2

Lauren Londonjoins ‘The Game’See page B5

Orlando: Funny man Mike Epps will be at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre on May 24 and the Jack-sonville Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts April 12.

St. Petersburg: Celebrate Easter with jump houses, free Easter baskets for children, raffles and door prizes March 31 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Neveah’s Easter Extravagan-za, 4300 6th St. South. Adults, $5. More information: 727-641-9580.

Orlando: Good Friday Communion service and a viewing of “The Pas-sion of the Christ’’ will be held at Kingdom Life Events Center, 5232 S. Orange Ave. March 29 at 7 p.m. Easter service will be held at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. March 31. There will be an Easter Egg Hunt and all families will get the opportunity to take a free professional family photo. More information: KingdomLifeOrlando.com.

Tampa: Bible-Based Fellowship Church will host a Good Friday service titled “Conversations around the Cross” March 29 at 7 p .m. 4811 Ehrlich Road. More information: 813-264-4050.

Jacksonville: Three egg hunts will be held to benefit the American Red Cross Volunteer Life-Saving Corp on March 30 at Adventure Landing, 1944 Beach Blvd. Registration is at 8 a.m., egg hunts 9 a.m., 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. Each hunt is followed by a charity raffle. Cost: $3 per child. More information: 904-246-4386.

Tampa: The 100 Black Men of Tampa Bay will host a workshop on retirement basics as part of an economic empowerment workshop series on April 13 from 10 a.m. - noon at Strayer University, 4902 Eisenhower Blvd.

Jacksonville: Jazz and Blues group Fourplay will be at the Florida The-atre Jacksonville along with Harvey Mason, Chuck Loeb and Nathan East April 21 for an 8 p.m. show.

Tampa: The Delta Sigma Theta

Sorority’s Centennial Torch Tour makes a stop in Tampa on May 18. The day, hosted by the Tampa Alumnae Chapter, will include an event for students at the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. A Crimson Yacht Soiree on the Yacht StarShip starts at 6:30 p.m. More informa-tion: Call 850-284-3386 or visit www.dstta.com.

Hollywood: Fantasia is scheduled at the 7th Annual Gulf Coast Rhythm & Ribfest at the Manatee County Fairgrounds on April 14.

Tampa: 1990s rap stars Salt N Pepa are among the artists slated to per-form at Funk Fest 2013 at Tampa’s Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park May 3 and 4. Concerts also are scheduled in Jacksonville and Orlando. Com-plete lineup: http://funkfestconcerts.com.

Orlando: Eric Deggans, TV and me-

dia critic with the Tampa Bay Times who wrote the book “Race-Baiter: How the Media Wields Dangerous Words to Divide a Nation,’’ will be one of the authors featured at the University of Central Florida Book Festival/Orlando 2013. The festival is April 13 from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at the UCF Arena. More information: bookfestival.ucf.edu. Jacksonville: The 17th Annual Southeast US Boat Show, formally known as the Jacksonville spring boat show, will take place April 12, 13 and 14 at the Metropolitan Park & Marina to include live seminars, live music and hundreds of new boats.

Tampa: Hillsborough Community College’s Dale Mabry Campus will host an annual job fair April 16 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4001 W. Tampa Bay Blvd. in the student services building.

Jacksonville: Jillian Michaels’

“Maximize Your Life” tour comes to the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts April 17. Jillian shares her keys to health, success and happiness.

Jacksonville: The stage play and musical “Dreamgirls” will be at the Times-Union Center for the Perform-ing Arts May 21 at 7:30 p.m.

Tallahassee: The Women of Color 2013 Legislative Days will be held April 3-5 at multiple locations at the state Capitol. Committee meetings, a Women of Color luncheon and banquet, the State of Black Florida workshops, updates from elected of-ficials and the Florida Black Caucus Gala Celebration are among featured events. More information: www.woclc.com or call 407-953-5599.

Winter Park: As a tribute to the 125th anniversary of the City of Winter Park and incorporation of the City of Eatonville, Crealdé’s Han-

nibal Square Heritage Center will feature an original exhibition through April 13 among the three African-American communities – Eatonville, Maitland and Winter Park. Venue: 642 W. New England Ave. Free. More information: 407-539-2680 or www.hannibalsquareheritagecenter.org.

St. Petersburg: Youths ages 7 to 11 can enjoy a night of football, kickball, ping-pong, foosball, video games and dance parties during “Freestyle Fridays” at the Fossil Park & Willis S. Johns Center, 6635 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. N. First visit free; $6 each following visit. More information: 727-893-7756.

St. Petersburg: First Fridays are held in downtown St. Petersburg at 250 Central Ave. between Sec-ond and Third Avenues from 5:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m. More information: 727-393-3597.

Tampa: A free professional grant writing workshop will be held March 29 from 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. at the Chil-dren’s Board of Hillsborough County, 1002 E. Palm Ave. The workshop is designed for staff, administra-tors, board members of non-profits, faith-based organizations, govern-ment agencies and other tax-exempt status organizations. RSVP to Michael Randolph, 813-857-7657 or wefindgrants@aol.com. No one will be admitted without an invitation.

Jacksonville: Rap artist Bubba Sparxx will be at Brewster’s Roc Bar in March 30 for a 7 p.m. show.

Fort Lauderdale: The Florida Minor-ity Community Reinvestment along with a coalition of Florida minority non-profits and neighborhood as-sociations are hosting the 2013 Let’s Do Business Florida & Summit June 28-June 29 at the Westin Beach Resort & Spa. No cost to women-minority-veteran businesses and nonprofits. More information: www.letsdobusinessflorida.com.

Jacksonville: The Public Theater’s Tony-winning production of “Hair,’’ about a group of young Americans searching for peace and love will be held April 10 at 7:30 p.m. at the Times-Union Center for the Perform-ing Arts. More information: www.artistseriesjax.org.

TOJCALENDAR MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013B2

FLORIDA COMMUNITY CALENDAR

MO’NIQUEActress and comedian Mo’Nique is coming to Florida. She’s scheduled at the Orlando Improv April 5-6, Tampa Improv April 19-20, the Fort Lauderdale Improv May 3-4.

STEPHANIE MILLSStephanie Mills will be at the James L Knight Center May 12 for a 7 p.m. show.

The Pi Iota Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity invites the public to several events during its 7th District Meeting in Tampa. On April 4, there will be a golf tournament starting at 11:30 a.m. at Roger’s Park Golf Course, 7911 N. 30th St. A picnic at Curtis Hixon Park is from 3 p.m.-7 p.m. A Founders Banquet will be held April 6 at 7:30 at Hotel Tampa-Downtown. A worship service will be held at Hotel Tampa-Downtown April 7 at 8 a.m. More information and additional events: www.piiota.org.

BOOK REVIEW

New book looks at war through soldiers’ eyesBY DR. GLENN ALTSCHULERSPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA COURIER

“Making War at Fort Hood: Life And Uncertainty In A Military Community’’ is by Kenneth T. MacLeish. The book is published by Princeton University Press; 265 pages, $29.95.

“My job is to heal as I transition back to duty or continue serv-ing the Nation as a veteran in my community,” a U.S. Army Medi-cal Department publication de-clares. “This is not a status, but a mission. I will succeed in this mission because I Am A Warrior And I Am Army Strong.”

Most of the servicemen and women at Fort Hood, Texas, one of the largest military installa-tions in the world, are in transi-tion. They have returned from one or more tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan or are about to be sent there.

Dark, depressing account

In “Making War At Fort Hood,’’ Kenneth MacLeish, as assistant professor of Medicine, Health and Society, draws on interviews with them and members of their

families in an ethnographic ex-ploration of the impact of deploy-ment on their everyday lives.

The term “vulnerability,” he suggests, best captures their con-dition. Spreading outward from the soldier to the individuals and institutions connected to him (or her), vulnerability “is a sort of productive contamination that is less a strain on or disruption of at-tachment than it is the stuff of at-tachment itself.”

MacLeish’s account is dark and depressing. The author under-stands the risks of reading every-thing “as meaning-laden traces of war.”

Emotions suppressedHe acknowledges that there is

“abundant good feeling at Fort Hood” and that many readjust-ments to home and family life “are seamless, or close to it.” These stories, however, do not make their way into “Making War at Fort Hood.’’

Instead, MacLeish documents, often poignantly, the difficulties soldiers have in making sense of their experiences and in moving on. The Army, he indicates, in-culcates and cultivates “suspicion toward claims of non-visible inju-ry,” which it tends to equate with “deception and moral failing.”

Designed to be “exercises in solidarity and affection,” he writes, “manifests” (departure and return events, usually held in gymnasia on the post) often un-derscore “pain, loss, grief, mis-

recognition, and the tight control and suppression of emotions.”

Even love, according to Ma-cLeish, yokes soldiers “to a pre-carious state.”

Although “perhaps it can pull you through to the other side,” to love is to “suffer, to be exposed, and to be harmed for someone.”

Racism overlookedSurprisingly, MacLeish devotes

relatively little attention to some of the conflicts of life in the armed services. He claims that racial dif-ferences “are inevitably entan-gled in the unequal distribution of harm, exposure, responsibility, and authority – in the Army as in so many other settings.”

Except for a single paragraph in which he describes a fight be-tween a racist and another sol-dier, however, he does not elabo-rate.

Nor does MacLeish investigate why the soldiers at Fort Hood joined the Army –and what they think they may have gained from the experience. It seems clear that he is appalled by the costs exact-ed by war in general – and by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in particular.

Bigger questionsWhen MacLeish’s plumber de-

clares that contractors in these countries have sold their souls and that America is corrupt, he tells us that he was “too ner-vous, too wary of splitting hairs” to point out “what seemed like a bigger and messier complicity.

Weren’t we all here because of war, one way or the other? Was there even any question of turn-ing down blood money or not ending up with some of it in your own pocket?”

“Being subject to war’s facts of life makes them normal,” Ma-cLeish concludes, “but it doesn’t make them easier.” Fair enough. But you have to wonder how much of the vulnerability he de-scribes is endemic to 21st-centu-ry wars. And about what we can do to address the disturbing con-sequences he has described.

Dr. Glenn C. Altschuler is the Thomas and Dorothy Litwin Professor of American Studies at Cornell University. He wrote this review for the Florida Cou-rier.

Michael David Dunn, a White male, pulled up next to the teens and asked them to turn their loud music down. Following a verbal dispute, Dunn claimed he saw a shotgun in their car and sprayed seven shots into the parked SUV. Davis died on the scene; police reported the teens had no gun.

These murders have sparked a national outcry against gun violence; race is a subtext be-cause White men killed both Martin and Dunn.

Jimmy Jackson’s death was different. The shooters were Black. As mass shootings prompt vigils and flags flown at half-mast, mainstream media attention to “Black-on-Black” crime is practically nonexis-tent.

‘Not a race problem’David Frum, contributing ed-

itor at Newsweek offered the following in a CNN report ti-tled, “U.S. gun problem is not a race problem.’’

“The typical murder has one victim, not many. The typical murder is committed with a handgun, not a rifle. And in the typical murder, both the perpe-trator and the victim are young black men. Blacks are six times as likely as Whites to be the vic-tim of a homicide. Blacks are seven times as likely to commit a homicide.”

‘In the wrong hands’Isaiah Rumlin, president of

the Jacksonville NAACP branch, says his organization is very concerned about gun violence.

“It’s a socioeconomic issue that affects our city, state, and nation,” said Rumlin. “We have got to produce better-educated people, produce more jobs, and develop better programs for re-peat offenders who are released and return to our communi-ties.”

He additionally calls on par-ents to do a better job and take responsibility for their chil-dren’s actions before tragedy strikes.

“Too many guns are in the wrong hands,” declared Rum-lin.

The Rev. R.L. Gundy, pastor of Mt. Sinai Missionary Bap-tist Church in Jacksonville, al-so weighed in on the subject. He is the state president of the Southern Christian Leadership conference.

Gundy stated that with “a present mean legislative body and more than 225 federally li-censed gun dealers in a state, it creates an environment where people become predators on each other – both Black and White.’’

The community activist doesn’t offer it as an excuse but insists that the current gun cul-ture has been created by society and cites the previous method-ology of President Bill Clinton’s as a positive example. The Clin-ton administration tracked ev-ery gun used in a crime and, statistically, as it was then, Flor-ida tops the list.

“When all of your Black fa-thers are in jail and there are no jobs, the problem transcends mere socioeconomic and it’s deeper than parents serving as a solution,” Gundy added. “The highest population of Blacks in Florida is in Duval County and 72 percent of all babies born in a Black family are without a fa-ther. It becomes a mental health and psychological (issue) too.”

Crimes and justiceA public service announce-

ment uses six quick words to spell out the consequences of committing a gun crime: “Use a gun and you’re done.” Pull a gun –10 years in prison. Fire a gun – 20 years. Shoot someone – 25 years to life in prison.

That’s the penalty facing the individual(s) responsible for Jackson’s murder.

JIMMYfrom B1

“Blacks are six times as likely as Whites to be the victim of a homicide.”

David Frum, contributing editor

at Newsweek

B3PERSONAL FINANCETOJ MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

Increase proposed by Obama drawssupporters, critics

BY DAN VOORHISWICHITA EAGLE/MCT

Steven King knows the difference between neces-sities and luxuries.

King has lived on mini-mum wage for four years. Minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. At half time, that’s $7,540 per year.

At full time, it comes to $15,080 per year, minus

payroll taxes. Last year, King said, he earned $8,400 working in a program at the Salvation Army.

King lives an almost as-cetic life. He rents a tiny apartment over a garage, pays his utilities, and walks or takes a bus. He has lit-tle money for much be-yond that. The government stretches his wages by giv-ing him $200 a month for food and a phone with four hours per month.

He’s not complaining. It beats the two years he spent sleeping in the bush-es near a Wichita, Kan., ho-tel.

“It’s literally paycheck to paycheck,” he said. “I pay bills with one paycheck and rent with the other. It’s just really, really tight.”

Majority support idea

In his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama proposed raising the minimum wage to $9 per hour in stages by 2015 — and then indexing it to inflation.

The arguments for and against that idea will sound similar to the last time Con-gress raised the minimum

wage, when the increases were phased in between 2007 and 2009.

The White House main-tains that modestly in-creasing the wage helps workers, boosts the econ-omy by getting more mon-ey into the hands of those who will spend it immedi-ately, and helps employers by cutting down on work-er turnover. Several polls show that the majority of people support the idea.

What opponents sayThe National Federation

of Independent Business, which represents 350,000

small businesses, force-fully rebuts the Obama ar-gument. It maintains that raising the wage will kill jobs by increasing costs for small-business owners without really helping the workers.

They argue that mini-mum-wage jobs tend to be second or third jobs in a family, are often for teen-agers and are part time, meaning the increase, so painful to the business owner, doesn’t do much to increase family income.

Economists come down on both sides of the argu-ment, acknowledges Mal-colm Harris, an economist and professor of finance at Friends University in Wich-ita who tends to dislike the minimum wage.

“The national impact is fairly clear,” he said. “It drives up youth unemploy-ment, particularly minority unemployment.”

Impact on youth workers

Teen unemployment is 22.1 percent, nearly three times the unemployment rate, while the Black teen unemployment rate is 40.3 percent.

“Those numbers won’t get any better if you raise the minimum wage,” he said.

The minimum-wage workforce does tend to be young: Half are younger than 25. And two-thirds of minimum-wage jobs are less than 35 hours a week, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

But that still means that half of minimum-wage jobs are held by adults old-er than 25, and a third of those earning minimum wage are working at those jobs full time.

The leisure and hospital-ity industry — typically res-taurants and hotels — has the highest proportion of workers with hourly wages at or below the minimum wage.

Small profit marginAdam Mills, CEO of the

Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Association, said that restaurants as a whole already have a small profit margin, less than 4 percent.

“If the minimum wage goes up, then something else has to give,” he said.

“It’s a combination of higher prices and few-er people working. We are not a high-profit industry. … A restaurant owner has to rub two nickels togeth-er and figure out how to get 11 cents out of it.”

And, he noted, wait staff who depend on tip income often earn far more than $7.25 an hour. He estimat-ed it at closer to $11 to $15.

Melad Stephen, who owns several upscale res-taurants, said that raising the minimum wage could have a big impact on his business. He starts his in-experienced employees at minimum wage and raises it as they grow more expe-rienced.

He estimated that his entire staff, other than the wait staff, earns an aver-age of between $9 and $10 an hour. Setting $9 as the minimum would push his whole wage scale up.

“What’s going to happen is that if the labor is high, we’ll have to cut some-body’s hours,” he said. “When things slow a bit, we’ll send people home and have somebody do more.”

Would minimum-wage hike help workers?

MIKE HUTMACHER/WICHITA EAGLE/MCT

Steven King, who has earned minimum wage for four years, works in the Salvation Army food pantry on Feb. 20.

BY SUSAN JACOBSONORLANOD SENTINEL/MCT

KISSIMMEE – Anna Lau-rao Auletta was shocked when she received a no-tice saying she would be evicted in three days if she didn’t pay her March rent.

Auletta knew she had slipped a money order through the slot in the rent drop box at her apartment-complex office about 9 p.m. March 5, the last day to pay without incurring a late charge.

The next day, however, a manager said he did not believe her. By the time po-lice arrived to sort out what had happened, Auletta was crying.

“I’m not a liar,” the 54-year-old mother of three and grandmother of nine told the Orlando Sen-tinel in Spanish earlier this month. “I’m not a thief.”

Auletta was right, police say.

She is among dozens of victims of a new twist in low-tech crime: drop-box thieves.

How scheme worksApartment complexes

and tenants in Orlando, Kissimmee, Lakeland, Os-ceola and south Orange counties reported being victimized this month.

Law-enforcement offi-cers said they don’t think all of the thefts are related.

The scheme works like this: Thieves smear glue or another sticky substance

on a coat hanger or simi-lar object. Then they reach through the slot into the drop box, which can be a couple of feet deep, and fish out rent checks and money orders.

They use acetone to wash the ink away, write in a new name and cash the mon-ey orders. Checks are less likely to be tampered with because they are harder to alter and easier to trace.

Surveillance video can be a deterrent, but it isn’t an answer.

Moderate-income victims

Video from The Arbors at Sendera condominiums in Kissimmee, for example, shows two men walk to the office. One peers through

the window, then reach-es into the drop-box slot, pulls out envelopes and hands them to his accom-plice.

The video isn’t clear enough to see what he used as a tool.

Many of the victims live in moderate-income apart-ment complexes where residents are required to pay by money order or do so because they have no checking account.

“These poor folks are working hard to pay their rent, and they certainly don’t deserve to be ripped off like that,” said Lori Trainer, a vice president at Concord Management, which had thefts at four of its complexes.

A hassle to fixThat’s certainly true of

Madeline Velez, a 38-year-old motel housekeeper and single mother of three who earns $8 an hour, and her neighbor Jonathan So-to, who works at an auto shop.

“I change a lot of tires to pay my bills,” the 29-year-old Soto said.

Even for those who have done nothing wrong, straightening out the situa-tion is a hassle.

Tenants at Polo Run Apartments in Kissimmee, for instance, were asked to provide a receipt for their money orders, a stop pay-ment or claim report and a police report.

A note advised them

to submit the documents within 24 hours or the com-plex’s attorneys would be-gin eviction proceedings.

A Polo Run leasing agent, Akira Gutierrez, said ten-ants would not be required to make a second rent pay-ment for the month and would not be charged late fees.

No arrests madeTrainer of Concord Man-

agement said her company

lost $34,000 to the thefts at properties in Orange County and Kissimmee, but it has insurance.

Law officers could not provide a total loss for all 11 complexes hit in south Florida. They include Reef Club and Regatta Bay in Kissimmee; Berkshire Club and Falcon Trace in Or-ange County; and Water-stone Apartments in Or-lando, which had only one reported theft.

Kissimmee police have identified a Hialeah man and woman whose names were payees on some of the money orders, but no arrests have been made.

For at least the time be-ing, most affected apart-ments are not accepting drop-box payments. Res-idents can pay in person or, at some complexes, on-line.

“Right now, we’re just on hold,” Gutierrez said.

Drop-box scheme targets apartment-rent payments

SUSAN JACOBSON/ORLANDO SENTINEL/MCT

The Gables at Lakeside in Kissimmee is not accepting rent payments through its drop box because of recent thefts.

TIPS FOR RESIDENTS

Avoid using a rent �drop box.Pay in person and �get a receipt.Pay online if your �complex allows it.Use a gel pen to �make out your money order. The ink can’t be washed away like ballpoint ink.

SOURCES: KISSIMMEE AND LAKELAND POLICE

TOjB4 STOjSPORTS MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

Florida Gulf Coast has become the darling of 2013 NCAA tournament

BY DAVE HYDESUN SENTINEL/MCT

FORT MYERS – The school bookstore ran out of shirts Mon-day. The athletic website crashed twice. The basketball coach re-ceived more than 1,000 texts. The star guard saw three alias Twitter accounts start in his name.

“And one already has more followers than me,” Sherwood

Brown said.Before last Friday night, no one

knew about Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU), which opened in Fort Myers in 1997. After two surprise victories, the Eagles be-came the first No. 15 seed to qual-ify for the regional semifinals in the men’s NCAA college basket-ball tournament.

This is an unlikely feat, consid-ering it is just in its second season as a tournament-eligible Division I program. It has gone from a rel-atively unknown program to be-coming the darling of the 2013 NCAA tournament.

But the epicenter of a college basketball earthquake is locat-ed here on a usually quiet cam-

pus Monday to where the director of admissions points at his office computer.

“Look here,” R. Marc Laviolette says, tapping the screen. “We usu-ally get 20 emails a day with some kind of inquiry. Today we’ve got 200. And our Web traffic is up 400 percent.”

March Madness hits the admis-sions office?

“And it’s just after noon,” he says.

Florida Gators nextThis is what two wins at the

right time can do for the most unknown of schools. Just over a week ago, Florida Gulf Coast offi-cials celebrated getting eight sec-

onds of national television for be-ing picked to play in the NCAA tournament.

On Friday night, the Eagles will play a bigger brother, the Univer-sity of Florida, in Arlington, Texas. The Eagles have two NCAA tour-nament wins on their resume. The Gators have two national ti-tles notched on their belt.

After capturing the imagina-tion of America, FGCU staggered under the sweet onslaught of at-tention. An ESPN crew gave hour-ly updates outside the basket-ball arena. National radio shows wanted any player or coach they could get.

‘Too much for us’Sports information director

Patrick Pierson sat at his desk af-ter 45 minutes of sleep Sunday night and tried to wade through the hundreds of unanswered texts and emails.

“We aren’t capable of handling this,” Pierson said. “I’m not too proud to say it — this is too much for us.”

And he laughed, because he knew this is how sports feels on its best days.

Florida Gulf Coast is an up-start by any definition. It started classes on restored wetlands in 1997, meaning its basketball play-ers are older than the school and most people nationally had never heard of it before this weekend.

After its first tournament win against traditional powerhouse Georgetown, school officials cor-rected CBS for labeling it “Florida G.C.” After Sunday’s win against San Diego State, TBS put up a graphic of “Florida Golf Coast.”

Building a programCoach Andy Enfield, who was

hired two seasons ago said when he began recruiting his first sea-son most people thought it was a community college.

“I’d get the whole line of ques-tions — Who? What? Where?” En-field said. “One thing about this, I hope more people will have heard of us.”

Enfield, 43, knew it was a build-er’s job and figured he was right for the job.

He set the NCAA career record with a 92.5 free-throw percent-age at Johns Hopkins, was an NBA assistant in Milwaukee and Bos-ton and co-founded a technology company in health care before re-turning to basketball as a Florida State assistant.

It’s also a question in the En-field household of who got more TV time this past weekend —

him or his wife, a former model, Amanda Marcum, who was on fashion magazine covers like Elle and Maxim.

“One thing my wife has im-pressed on me — this story isn’t about me,” Enfield said. “It’s about the players and the university and she’s right about that. This is their story.”

Lots of new fansThe players have similar stories

that the upcoming game against Florida underscores. Brown, for instance, grew up in Orlando and was a Florida fan all his life. Eddie Murray, the only Fort Myers na-tive on the team, also was a Ga-tor fan.

“It’s funny how it’s all worked out in playing them,” Murray, a fifth-year senior, said. “When I first started here, we’d play after the women’s game, and people would be filing out of the gym as our game started.

“Now, everywhere we go, it’s crazy.”

Brown went to have lunch at his normal spot in the student center on Monday and ended up taking pictures with fans for 90 minutes. Some of those he took pictures with were donning new school shirts from the neighboring book-store, which was undergoing its own issues.

Slammed in good wayAs 156 people stood in line to

buy the dwindling supply of ap-parel, the school’s bookstore manager told others a new ship-ment was coming Tuesday.

“What time?” asked Ron Kapo-sos, who retired five years ago to Fort Myers from Hudson, Ohio.

When told the time was uncer-tain, Kaposos shrugged and said, “My grandsons called and said they want shirts for the game this week.”

All this is evidence of the sur-prise sports can carry. Laviolette already heard from admission di-rectors at other schools that spiked nationally through sports who say it will translate into a 20-percent increase in applications next year.

“You can’t buy the kind of mar-keting and advertising we got from the past few days,” Laviolette said. “We’re all slammed right now in a good way by the reaction to it.”

Laviolette plans to call his counterpart and friend at Florida. “I want to make a little bet on the game,” he said.

He smiled and, like a lot of peo-ple on campus these days, then said, “I never thought I’d get to say something like that.”

BY BRIAN SCHMITZORLANDO SENTINEL/MCT

ORLANDO – No mat-ter what day it is, it’s always Sunday to Tiger Woods when he’s sniffing a title.

Woods won the Arnold Palmer Invitational on a Monday after storms de-layed the final round — but not Tiger’s climb back to the golfing mountaintop.

“I think he plays every shot like he plays them on Sunday,” said Justin Rose, the runner-up.

Tiger fired a two-under 70 for a 275 total to defend his title, beating Rose by two shots and four third-place finishers by five strokes.

With his eighth victory at Bay Hill, Woods reclaimed the world No. 1 ranking for the first time since 2010, won for the third time this season and rediscovered his awe-inspiring domi-nance two weeks before

the Masters.Pick any day of the week,

any climate, any course now.

“His intensity is the same on Thursday often as it is on Sunday, and that makes Sunday a lot less different for him,” Rose continued.

“He plays in that kind of atmosphere far more regu-larly than a lot of guys do. It’s an adjustment for most of us. It’s a known for him.”

Competition from Fowler

Sounds as if Rose and the rest of the field feel like their predecessors did when Ti-ger, now 37, ruled the game in his youth.

Brash Rickie Fowler, 24, was Woods’ playing part-ner for the final round. He thought he had a chance to upset Woods, who had built a three-shot lead after play was halted Sunday after-noon.

Woods wasn’t serious-ly challenged until Fowler pulled within two after he birdied 14.

Then on the 511-yard, par 5 16th hole, Fowler implod-ed to end any suspense. He hit two balls in the water to finish with a triple-bogey while Tiger birdied out of a bunker, the six-shot swing leaving Woods free and clear.

Greatest closerWoods has built an emo-

tional blockade with all his experience. When Fowler hit a birdie putt on No. 12 to apply some pressure, Tiger simply matched it, showing how his putter has helped his resurgence from injuries and a personal crisis. And to think, he was just trying to get the putt close and not make a telling mistake.

“It ended up being a nice putt to make, but I certain-ly wasn’t trying to make it,” Woods said. “I was just try-

ing to make sure I didn’t run it past the hole.”

Woods reminded Fowl-er that he was — er, is — the game’s greatest closer, pushing his record to 42-2 when he carries the outright lead into the final round.

Woods held his putter over his head to acknowl-edge the fans after his win, greeting Palmer off the 18th

green. His eighth win at Bay Hill tied a record set by Sam Snead for most victories at a single tournament.

Among the legendsPalmer said he sees Ti-

ger’s eight wins here re-maining in the record books for a while.

“I don’t really see any-

body touching it for a long time,” Palmer said. “I had the opportunity to win a tournament five times, and I knew how difficult that was.”

Said Woods, “There are certain events that are more special when you have Ar-nold Palmer on the 18th green or you have Jack (Nicklaus) at the Memorial. … It’s special to be able to walk off the 18th green and see these guys there.

“They’re living legends of the game.”

Woods is a living legend, too. But he hasn’t won a major in five years, still four wins away from tying Nick-laus’ all-time record of 18.

Maybe Tiger is back to chasing history in earnest — and everyone else is back to chasing him.

“I’m getting there,” he said.

And it doesn’t really mat-ter if it’s a marquee Sunday — or a makeup Monday.

Unknown Fort Myers team defines spirit of March Madness

STEVEN M. FALK/PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS/MCT

Florida Gulf Coast guard Sherwood Brown (25) celebrates after hitting a three-pointer against Georgetown in the second half of a second-round game in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tourna-ment at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on March 22. FGCU upset Georgetown, 78-68.

Tiger Woods returns to sport’s pinnacle with eighth Arnold Palmer win

GARY W. GREEN/ORLANDO SENTINEL/MCT

Tiger Woods is presented with a jacket after winning his eighth Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando on Monday.

Georgetown forward Otto Porter Jr. (22) keeps the ball from Florida Gulf Coast forward Ed-die Murray (23) during first-half ac-tion in a sec-ond-round game in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadel-phia.

STEVEN M. FALK/PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS/MCT

David Claxton sits poolside as this week’s male Florida’s Finest.

South Florida-based model Cartiss Brown, a Miami native, has an undergraduate degree in biology. Her goal is to be a physician’s assistant, as well as a model, actress and dancer. You can see more of her at www.cartissbrown.com; contact her at booking@cartissbrown.com.PHOTOGRAPHER: MARQUEST EDWARDS

david

cartiss

B5FINEST & ENTERTAINMENTSTOJ MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

Think you’re one of Florida’s Finest? E-mail your high-resolution (200 dpi) digital photo in casual wear or bathing suit taken in front of a plain background with few distractions, to news@flcourier.com with a short biography of yourself and your contact information. (No nude/glamour/ fashion photography, please!) In order to be considered, you must be at least 18 years of age. Acceptance of the photographs submitted is in the sole and absolute discretion of Florida Courier editors. We reserve the right to retain your photograph even if it is not published. If you are selected, you will be contacted by e-mail and further instructions will be given.

FLORIDA'Ssubmitted for your

approval

Meet some of

BY DAN DELUCAPHILADELPHIA INQUIRER/MCT

PHILADELPHIA — If Jimmy Fallon takes over as host of “The Tonight Show” from Jay Leno in 2014 in the marquee late-night spot for Comcast-owned NBC, as has been widely speculated, does that mean The Roots will be the new “Tonight Show” band?

Probably. They may not change their name, but it’s highly unlike-ly that Fallon would make the move from Studio 6B in 30 Rock-efeller Center, where “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” is current-ly produced to the new state-of-the-art 30 Rock studio being built for him without bringing the Phil-adelphia band billed as The Leg-endary Roots Crew with him.

Why’s that? Because NBC is interested in moving Fallon, 38, into an earlier time slot than his current 12:35 start time to attract younger viewers, and keep ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel from gaining a stranglehold on a not-yet-gray-ing demographic, now that the

45 year old Kimmel is in direct time slot competition with Leno, 62 and David Letterman , 65.

And how does Fallon score so well with younger viewers? Part-ly his show is Internet savvy, sure, and kind of because he looks like he could still get carded if he or-dered a beer at the 30 Rock com-missary.

Shrewd career move for house band

But also because “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” since it came on the air in 2009, has established the most aggressive and astute musical booking policy, pulling the rug out from Conan O’Brien, whose late-night show used to attract all the hippest acts.

Now, that distinction goes to Fallon, who also attracts plenty of big names, from Prince to Paul McCartney to Bruce Springsteen to Justin Timberlake, who per-formed on the show five nights running last week. And the rea-son Fallon’s show has so much

cred basically boils down to The Roots, who made a shrewd ca-reer move taking the “Late Night” job and have pretty much be-come America’s backing band ever since.

So, in all likelihood, The Roots and their drummer bandlead-

er Ahmir “Questlove” Thomp-son look to be in line to become the house band at the most icon-ic late-night show on TV, with Questo stepping into the role filled by flashy-dressing trumpet-er Doc Severinson from 1967 to Carson’s retirement in 1992.

On Twitter on March 21, music critic and movie director Nelson George congratulated Questlove on becoming “the new Doc Sev-erinsen.” The Roots-connected music site amended that desig-nation: “The Funk Doc Severin-sen!”

Fallon likely will keep ‘The Roots’

The Roots

finest

BY GREG BRAXTONLOS ANGELES TIMES/MCT

Since being rescued from the scrap heap two years ago after it was canceled by the CW, “The Game” has proved to be a winner for BET. The football-themed se-ries scored record ratings in its 2011 cable debut, remains the channel’s top-rated series, and with “Real Husbands of Hol-lywood” anchors BET’s scripted comedy slate.

But as it kicked off its sixth season Tues-day, the show is reeling from the loss of its two MVPs: Tia Mowry-Hardrict and Pooch Hall.

Though she is punching up the series with new cast members, creator and ex-ecutive producer Mara Brock Akil admit-ted that dealing with the absence of “the heart” of “The Game” has been a formi-dable challenge, forcing the show into its third reboot in six years.

“Changing networks and then changing casts is initially always daunting,” Akil said by phone from Atlanta, where the show

is filmed. “Losing Pooch and Tia is really rough — you love them, they’re a part of the family, and you want it to last forever. But sometimes there are circumstances beyond your control, and you have to play with the cards you are dealt. Losing them was definitely not ideal, but the show has to go on.”

Hall moves to ShowtimeWith its predominantly African-Ameri-

can cast, “The Game,” which first launched in 2006 on the CW, featured Mowry-Hardrict as Melanie Barnett, an aspir-ing doctor who put her plans for medical school on hold to support her boyfriend, Derwin Davis (Hall), a star receiver for the fictional San Diego Sabers. The couple, who later married, were the central focus of the ensemble cast.

But the show hit a roadblock late last season when Hall accepted a role on Showtime’s upcoming drama “Ray Dono-van.” Subsequently, Mowry-Hardrict told reporters that Hall’s exit left her charac-

ter’s status uncertain and that she’d decided to leave “The Game” rather than have Melanie become less important.

“What has happened speaks authentically to the world of sports,” Akil said. “We fall in love with play-ers, and it hurts when they leave. It’s like Peyton Man-ning leaving the Colts to wear a Broncos uniform. It hurts, but it’s what real life is like. First you get ner-vous, then it becomes ex-citing and new. There’s new life to the show.”

Mowry-Hardrict, who continues to appear with her twin sister, Tamera Mowry-Housley (“Sis-ter, Sister”), on their Style Network reality series, “Tia & Tamera,” de-clined to comment for this story.

Ellis, London join castNew to the cast is Jay Ellis, who plays

Bryce “The Blueprint” Westbrook, a cocky No. 1 draft pick whose recruitment by the Sabers leads to Derwin being traded to a Washington team, and Lauren London, who plays Keira Whitaker, a former child star trying to revive her career. Westbrook and Whitaker will most likely become ro-mantically involved down the line, pro-ducers say, while more emphasis will be focused on other cast members.

Costar Wendy Raquel Robinson, who has been on the show since its debut, called the revamp “a true resurrection. It feels completely different, crisper and edgier and sexier. I know we will get new fans. The true constant is ‘The Game.’”

Making it easier for Akil to move past the Melanie and Derwin era is the chance to bring closure to their story line. Mela-nie will finally pursue her medical career while Derwin tries to make it with his new team.

“They’re together, and we were able to put a period on their story,” she said.

Jay Ellis

Lauren London

‘The Game’ goes on without Melanie and Derwin

TOjB6 TOjFOOD MARCH 29 – APRIL 4, 2013

From Family Features

Looking to put a delicious twist on your Easter meal? Try cooking ham on the grill.

It’s easy to fire up your feast with this Spiced Grilled Ham with Citrus Glaze recipe. A flavor powerhouse, ham can be prepared in multiple ways, complement-ing a variety of dishes and flavors that fit into any Easter celebration and beyond. Surround it with sa-vory sides like Roasted Potatoes with Bacon and Goat Cheese or Ham and Peas with Mint and Tarragon for a truly mouthwater ing meal. And, don’t turn that grill off just yet, because no fired-up Easter feast would be complete without a sweet and smoky dessert that’s al-so fresh off the grill — Caramel Frozen Yogurt Pie with Grilled Peaches.

You can find more Easter recipes, helpful tips and nutrition information at www.porkbeinspired.com.

Roasted Potatoes with Bacon and Goat cheese Prep Time: 10 minutesCook Time: 40 minutesYield: 6 servings

1/2pound bacon, sliced�

12 small red potatoes, halved�

Olive oil�

1/2 cup sour cream�

1/4 cup goat cheese, plain�

4 tablespoons green onions, sliced�

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated�

3 tablespoons dill, snipped, plus dill for garnish�

1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt�

1/4 teaspoon pepper�

Heat oven to 450°F. In large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat, turning to

brown evenly, until crisp. Blot bacon on paper towels, mince and set aside.

Brush cut surfaces of potatoes lightly with olive oil. Place potato halves cut side up on a shallow rimmed baking pan; bake until potatoes are tender and faces of potatoes are lightly browned, about 20 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in small bowl mash together sour cream and goat cheese, stir in minced bacon, onion, Parmesan, dill, salt and pepper.

Top each potato with a spoonful, about 2 teaspoons, of sour cream mixture. Serve warm.

Make-Ahead Tip: Roast potatoes before guests arrive; keep warm in the oven. Top with cheese mixture before serving.

ham and Peas with mint and taRRaGon Prep Time: 10 minutesCook Time: 10 minutesYield: 4 to 6 servings

4 ounces cooked ham, cut into 1/4-inch dice�

3 cups peas, fresh or frozen�

3 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick) cut into 4 to 6 pieces�

1/4 cup fresh mint, coarsely chopped, plus sprigs for garnish�

2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, coarsely chopped, plus sprigs �for garnishSalt and pepper to taste �

Bring medium saucepan of well-salted water to a boil over high heat. Add peas and cook until tender, 3 to 8 minutes depending on size of peas.

Drain peas, reserving 2 tablespoons cooking water. Return peas and cooking water to saucepan. Add ham, butter, mint, and tarragon, stirring until butter melts. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer to bowl, garnish with mint and tarragon sprigs, and serve.

GRillinG tiPs fRom the national PoRk BoaRd• Grill over indirect heat. This allows the ham to heat evenly, without burning.• Score the ham. Scoring (diagonal cuts about 1 inch apart on the surface of the ham) not only looks more appeal ing, but it allows both the natural juices and the glaze to pen-etrate and flavor the meat.• Use an instant-read thermometer. Heat pre-cooked (or cured) ham until the internal tem-perature reaches 140°F. Cook fresh uncooked ham until the internal temperature reaches 145°F, followed by a 3-minute rest. When inserted into the thickest part of the meat (without touching any bone), the temperature should register within a few seconds.

sPiced GRilled ham with citRus Glaze Prep Time: 15 minutesCook Time: 1 1/2 to 2 hoursYield: 12 to 14 (4-ounce) servings

6 to 7-pound fully-cooked bone-in �ham, trimmed1 tablespoon ground coriander�

1 tablespoon ground paprika�

1 teaspoon ground cumin�

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon�

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves�

1/4 cup lemon marmalade (or other �citrus marmalade)2 tablespoons orange juice�

2 tablespoons packed brown sugar�

Preheat gas or charcoal grill to medium-hot (375°F to 425°F). Prepare grill for indirect cooking: For gas grill, turn off center burner; for charcoal grill, bank coals on either side; place a drip pan under grate between heat sources.

Score a diamond pattern into ham, about 1/8 inch deep into any fat. In small bowl, combine coriander, paprika, cumin, cinnamon and cloves. Rub spice mixture over all sides of ham. Place ham, flat side down, in center of grill over drip pan. Cover and cook, adding briquettes as necessary to maintain heat, until internal temperature of ham reaches 140°F, 1 1/2 to 2 hours or 15 to 18 minutes per pound.

Meanwhile, in small bowl, combine marmalade, orange juice and sugar.

Brush marmalade mixture over ham. Cover and grill 5 minutes, until glaze is lightly caramelized. Remove ham from grill, transfer to cutting board, and let rest 15 to 30 minutes.

(Oven-roasting instructions can be found at www.porkbeinspired.com.)

caRamel fRozen YoGuRt Pie with GRilled Peaches Prep Time: 20 minutesCook Time: 15 minutesYield: 8 to 10 servings

2 pints premium vanilla frozen yogurt�

19-inch prepared graham cracker pie �crust, or 8 individual graham cracker pie crusts1 1/4 cups caramel sauce, store-�bought2 tablespoons butter, melted�

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar�

6 ripe medium sized peaches, halved �and pittedTransfer 1 pint of frozen yogurt from

freezer to refrigerator to soften for 30 to 40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake pie crust until lightly browned and crisp, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

To assemble pie, spread softened yogurt evenly over pie crust. Place in freezer and chill about 1 hour. When firm, spread about 3/4 cup caramel evenly over frozen yogurt.

Return pie to the freezer, and transfer second pint of frozen yogurt to refrig-erator. Allow pint to soften for 30 to 40 minutes.

Spread second pint of yogurt evenly over caramel, making decorative swirls, if possible. Freeze until firm. Remove from freezer 10 minutes before serving.

To grill peaches, prepare medium fire in a charcoal grill or preheat gas grill on medium. Melt butter and stir in brown sugar until dissolved. Toss peaches with butter mixture until well coated.

Grill peaches directly over medium fire, cut-side up, until grill marks are visible, about 5 minutes. Turn peaches over and grill until grill marks show and peaches are tender, about 4 minutes longer. Set aside to cool. When cool, cut peaches into thick wedges.

When ready to serve, cut pie into wedges and serve with peaches on the side. Drizzle a little of remaining caramel sauce over top.