Well, this is not at all how we want to start our Sunday, or our week; but we have to deal with the fact that the spectre of Covid-19 still looms large over New York, as well as America. Sadly, much of it is the result of blatant disregard for the guidelines that were outlined by both Governor Cuomo and Mayor DeBlasio. This has precipitated an uptick in contamination, which they hope they will be able to stem before it reaches the horrific proportions experienced in the early stages of the pandemic, causing the loss of thousands of lives of New Yorkers - not to mention jobs, unemployment, and peace of mind. I am sending up a prayer for my fellow New Yorkers - as well as all those who have been inflicted or infected by this horrific virus. Stay Blessed - GDW
New York to ‘Rewind’ Re-Opening in Hard-Hit Neighborhoods
Mayor
Bill de Blasio of New York announced plans to close nonessential
businesses, schools and day care centers in nine neighborhoods where the
coronavirus testing positivity rates have been higher than 3 percent in
the past 7 days.
I’m
going to be giving an update that gives me no joy at all. In fact, it
pains me to be putting forward this approach that we’ll need. But in
some parts of our city, in Brooklyn and Queens, we’re having an
extraordinary problem, something we haven’t seen since the spring. And
we have to address this issue forthrightly. That’s why we’re here on a
Sunday after several days of continuing to review all the data, look at
everything from the point of view that has gotten us this far as a city,
always relying on the data and the science. What has become clear is
that there are a number of neighborhoods now that have continued to have
a high level of coronavirus positivity and that requires stronger
action than we’ve had to take for many months. So the plan is to rewind
in these nine zip codes. To rewind, to go back, to address the problem
by using the tools that we know work, which is to ensure that
non-essential businesses are not open and a variety of activities are
not happening. Again, no joy in saying that. But that, unfortunately, we
do know is what is necessary to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Mayor
Bill de Blasio of New York announced plans to close nonessential
businesses, schools and day care centers in nine neighborhoods where the
coronavirus testing positivity rates have been higher than 3 percent in
the past 7 days.CreditCredit...Mark Abramson for The New York Times
Mayor
Bill de Blasio announced on Sunday that he intended to “rewind” the
reopening in nine neighborhoods in New York City that have had a testing
positivity rate of more than 3 percent over the last seven days.
That means the closure of nonessential businesses, public and private schools and day care centers in those neighborhoods, which are in Brooklyn and Queens. Many of them have large populations of Orthodox Jews, and the virus has been spreading rapidly in those communities in recent weeks.
The mayor said he would also put lesser restrictions on 11 other neighborhoods where the rates are rising.
In
total, the mayor’s plan would affect only 20 of the 146 ZIP codes in
the city. Still, the move reflects the growing fear of a second wave of the virus, and marks the first major reversal in the city’s reopening since it was hit hard by the outbreak in March.
If approved by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, the plan would go into effect on Wednesday.
“Today, unfortunately, is not a day for celebration,” Mr. de Blasio said. “Today is a more difficult day.”
The nine ZIP
codes subject to the most severe restrictions include portions of Far
Rockaway and Kew Gardens in Queens, and Borough Park, Midwood,
Gravesend, Bensonhurst and Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn.
The
restrictions would be in place in these neighborhoods for two to four
weeks, if not longer, depending on the success of efforts to curb the
virus, the mayor said.
The city is also closely watching the 11 additional ZIP codes, which Mr. de Blasio described as a “real concern.”
They
include parts of Williamsburg, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Fort Greene, Clinton
Hill, Manhattan Beach, Bergen Beach, Kensington and Crown Heights in
Brooklyn. The Queens neighborhoods include Rego Park, Fresh Meadows,
Hillcrest and Jamaica Estates.
In those neighborhoods, the city will curtail indoor dining, which has only just begun, and close gyms and pools.
Coronavirus Schools Briefing: It’s back to school — or is it?
Most
of the schools set to close are nonpublic schools, largely yeshivas in
Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods that have been open for weeks. About 200
private schools will close, and 100 public schools, officials said.
There are about 1,800 public schools in New York City. The new restrictions come just three days after the city’s school system fully reopened.
Children returned to elementary school classrooms on Tuesday, and to
middle and high schools on Thursday. Principals and teachers have been
working for months to prepare for in-person learning.
The
mayor emphasized that the school closures were not prompted by
outbreaks in schools, but came “out of an abundance of caution.”
“We have seen very little coronavirus activity in our schools,” he said.
Houses of worship will remain open throughout the city, even in the nine ZIP codes where the new restrictions will be adopted.
Mr.
de Blasio said he planned to work with the state on enforcement
measures. He said he was not certain about the details, but that “we
want the maximum education, maximum mask distribution, maximum
enforcement.”
“We’ve had 1,000 city
personnel out in the key ZIP codes over the last few days in a very,
very intensive enforcement effort,” Mr. de Blasio said. “We are finding
some places where enforcement is needed, but really not that many in the
scheme of things. But we will keep pounding away with that and we will
certainly work with the state in every way possible.”
Mr.
Cuomo offered no immediate comment on whether he would approve Mr. de
Blasio’s plan. The two have often feuded, and have been at odds over how
to handle the outbreak.
But as Mr.
de Blasio was making his announcement, Mr. Cuomo did issue a statement
that criticized local officials across the state for their failure to
curb the virus in hot spots.
“Local governments have not done an effective job of enforcement in these hot spot ZIP codes,” Mr. Cuomo said.
In
his statement, he made no mention of whether a similar lockdown would
be adopted in portions of Rockland and Orange Counties, north of the
city. Both have large populations of Orthodox Jews, and have seen
sharply increasing infection rates in recent days.
By Gloria Dulan-Wilson Hello All: As you now may be well aware - there is a battle raging for the heart and soul of Lincoln University. It started as a sneak attack and back stabbing at the hands of the untrustworthy board of (un)trustees. They have set into play a mechanism to undermine Lincoln University by trying to get rid of the best President Lincoln has had in two decades - that of Dr. Brenda Allen - who came on board in 2017, after the same board brought on an individual who was only second to Donald T-rump in destruction, disruption, deception and division. There are members on this current Board of (un)trustees who were instrumental in bringing Lincoln University close to the brink of destruction. Had it not been for some very savvy Lincoln University students, fed up with the incompetence of both the ersatz president and the board, Lincoln could very well have shuttered her doors forever. So disgusted was the Alumni as well as students and parents, we demanded that no president be brought to Lincoln University without the approval of the alumni association. We thoroughly vetted the candidates for the next president of Lincoln University, and the individual who stood out above all others was DR. BRENDA ALLEN, who also happened to have been an alumna - class of 1981. She had distinguished herself in college/university management and expansion. If we could have brought her on board on the day we decided on her, we would have. It could not have been soon enough. Lincoln was limping along as the result of the previous ersatz president, as well as funds "illegally?" paid to him by the former chairlady - who is still on the board well past her tenure. The story behind the story is something that most people don't have the full understanding of. It's okay to have soundbytes, and keep it down to 800 words. But when you do that, sometimes it's difficult for the readers to totally grasp what's really going on. So I'm going to try to give some clarity and texture to this whole scenario - note that my comments are in red - GDW
Attorney general sues Lincoln University board over ouster (Note: This article originally appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer, and was then published by Fox 29 News Philadelphia)
Attorney
General Josh Shapiro said Saturday that the lawsuit argues the Lincoln
University board violated notice and agenda requirements and refused to
allow participation by members named by the commonwealth during the July
10 meeting during which the contract of president Brenda Allen wasn't
renewed.
OXFORD, Pa. - The
Pennsylvania attorney general's office weighed in on a dispute over the
leadership of one of a historically Black university near Philadelphia,
filing suit against the board of trustees over the process that
resulted in the ouster of the university president.
Attorney
General Josh Shapiro said Saturday that the lawsuit argues the Lincoln
University board violated notice and agenda requirements and refused to
allow participation by members named by the commonwealth during the July
10 meeting during which the contract of president Brenda Allen wasn't
renewed.
“My
office has no position on who serves as president of Lincoln
University, but we will take action to ensure the board follows the
law,” Shapiro said in a statement. “Lincoln is a jewel of our
Commonwealth’s heritage, and students, alumni, faculty and staff of the
school that taught Langston Hughes and Thurgood Marshall must have
confidence that their leadership complied with state law.” The
complaint said university bylaws require 10 days notice for a special
meeting and bars discussion of topics not included in the notice, and
argues that not enough notice was given and the meeting was said to
discuss “new leadership" rather than removal of the president. After
members met privately for three hours (actually, it was 3 hours and 45 minutes - the bylaws say an executive meeting can only be 30 minutes!!), the board chair announceda 52%
to 48% margin against negotiating a new contract with Allen, The
Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Shapiro, however, said that with five
commonwealth trustees not allowed to participate, the vote on renewing
the university contract including Allen's appointment was tied 11-11,
and judged to have failed. A new motion to appoint an interim president
( which was likewise illegal, because the so-called vote taken behind closed doors by the board, instead of in public was illegal in the first place; therefore the premise of appointing an interim president was bogus in the main) was "approved" (because the muted the mikes of the board members who opposed, and when one board member announced his protest they put hm on mute!!!) Lincoln (please clarify who you are referring to as "Lincoln" - because the board has proven itself incompetent and not authorized to speak for the University) said the five members appointed separately
by the state House and governor hadn't been seated after the coronavirus
pandemic prompted cancellation of the board's regular meeting in April.
They are to be properly seated at the next regular meeting scheduled
Sept. 19, the university said (since they were appointed by the governor and the attorney general, and they were told to seat them immediately, they violated the law and the bylaws by blocking their participation. The Philadelphia Inquirer
reported that Allen, who had served as president of the Chester County
university since 2017, sued the board Thursday, accusing members of
having breached her contact and violated state law. She seeks an
injunction declaring the action invalid and damages for “being denied
her rightful position." Supporters have credited Allen with
boosting student retention and alumni contributions. More than 14,000
people signed a petition to keep her as president, the Inquirer
reported. Additionally, the Central States Accreditation Commission has endorsed and given Dr. Brenda Allen high praise for having advanced Lincoln University, but they didn't appear to be thrilled with the ersatz Board of Trustees mismanagement of the school in the main. Lincoln, a historically Black university in Oxford (actually, Lincoln is its own town - just outside of Oxford, PA) about 45 miles (70 kilometers) southwest of Philadelphia, was founded in
1854 as the Ashmun Institute and was the first of the historically
Black colleges and universities to grant degrees. NOTE: The Lincoln University Board of Trustees released the following statement to FOX 29 (Please note that the Board of (un)trustees did their release through FOX (FAUX) NEWS - the bastion of T-Rump, racism, prejudice, and distortion - think about it). "The
Attorney General has launched a lawsuit against members of the Lincoln
University Board of Trustees over the issue of several individuals
appointed as Commonwealth Trustees separately by the House of
Representatives and the Governor. The appointees were to fill
commonwealth seats on the Lincoln University Board of Trustees that have
been vacant for nearly two years. The Board has publicly
stated that the commonwealth appointees were originally set to be
seated at the Annual Board Meeting in April. That meeting was canceled
due to the state’s stay-at home orders in response to the coronavirus
pandemic. Due to the cancellation of the Board’s regular
meeting in April due to the Coronavirus pandemic and the Governor’s
appointment occurring after the date for such Annual Meeting, all of the
commonwealth appointees will be properly seated by the Board in
accordance with its standing procedures at its next Regular Meeting
scheduled for September 19, 2020. The appointees in question have been
acknowledged and been notified of the Board’s intent to properly seat
them on that date. Much has been written in regard to the
appointees and there are a lot of inaccuracies in the press and in the
Attorney General’s complaint. The actions of the Attorney General appear
to be driven by a disgruntled member of the Board of Trustees who seeks
to manipulate the Board’s decisions. As a member of the Board, it is
our contention that NO LAWS have been violated and actions taken by the
Board are consistent with its bylaws and standard practices. These
practices are no different than those at Temple University, also a
Pennsylvania commonwealth institution. "It is curious that
the Attorney General chooses to go after this 166-year-old historically
black institution, in the middle of a global pandemic, after years of
inaction on vacant commonwealth seats on the Board; and at a time when
the cries for social justice are rising from black communities from
coast to coast. " This is my response to the foregoing statement by the LU BOT:I find the foregoing statement disingenuous - in the first place, backstabbers are not pleased with the fact that they were outed for trying to destroy this 166 year old historically Black (CAPITAL "B") Institution, because apparently the current ersatz Board of Trustees has no respect or regard for the history and accomplishments of Lincoln University - had they cared and had they respected the school, its students, faculty, alumni and president, there would have been no need for a petition to renew Dr. Brenda Allen's contract; there would not be a VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE signed by all the Presidents of all Lincoln University's different alumni affiliations; there would not have been 70 students marching in front of Lincoln's Campus in support of Dr. Allen's reinstatement. They would not have to hide in meetings and pretend to be doing the work of the college, when all along they were conspiring to undermine Lincoln U. And most of all we would not have had to write the Governor, the Attorney General, Stephen Kinsey, Chair of the Pennsylvania State Black Caucus; Senator Vincent Hughes (who also made a statement in support of Dr. Allen at the July 10 Board of Trustees meeting); Pedro Rivera, Secty of Education, State Sen Andrew Dinniman, Gov. Secty of Legal Affairs, Noe Ortega, Dr. Jon Peri, among others asking for their assistance in stopping this travesty and tragedy being perpetrated against Lincoln University at the hands of those who purported to be working in our behalf. There is nothing worse than finding out that, with all the other heinous things going on in the world - the pandemic, George Floyd's murder, Black Lives Matter taking a stand for the rights of Black people - that you also have to watch your back; that you have relied to your detriment on individuals who were supposed to be working in the behalf of BLACK STUDENTS; and that your biggest enemy happens to be someone who looks like you and comes from your gene pool. And that is what we have here with the ersatz Board of Trustees of Lincoln University. For them to try to make it look as if Attorney General Shapiro is interfering or "nosing in" on "Black business" - puh-leeze give us a break!!! As Black people, we all know what a back stabber is. We've been there - we've seen those who appear to have the utmost decorum and demeanor, they smile while simultaneously undermining you and your lives - we have all been there!! What their motives are, we don't know. But we do know that the total disrespect and disregard for 14,000 Alumni, as well as students, and faculty, shows exactly what kind of individuals we are dealing with. But what we do know is that we totally appreciate the fact that Attorney General Shapiro was cognizant of the issues and the illegalities, and did his job - as he would and should for any entity that is a part of the State of Pennsylvania - without prejudice or deference. Whether or not he would have stepped in on Temple University is immaterial - that he stepped in to intervene on a chair lady and an ersatz board that is evidently and obviously out of control is laudable and highly appreciated. And while they allege that no laws have violated - the issue is that so many laws have been violated - deliberately and egregiously and without compunction, it is obvious why they wanted to get Dr. Brenda Allen out as president. She is not a rubber stamp president. She does not go along to get along. Like Shirley Chisholm, she is unbought and unbossed - this does not mean she is not cooperative, but that she cooperates in as much as it is for the highest and best for the students and the university she was hired to guide and expand.
Why now? Because this board thought it could fly low under the radar while everybody was distracted by coronavirus and Black Lives Matter - they thought they could railroad Dr. Brenda Allen, the President of Lincoln and use the coronavirus as a shill for not seating duly appointed Trustee members and hold it off until after September, after the deed was done and they had put a puppet in place as an ersatz president, so they could continue dismantling Lincoln as they had under the previous ersatz president, Robert Jennings. The ersatz board of (un)trustees have the temerity to ask "Why Now? Why is the Attorney general focusing on Lincoln Now? Really???- Right now it is apparent that we have vipers in our midst. When they did not renew Dr. Brenda Allen's contract could not and did not give a reason why they hadn't done so; why they were looking to get an "interim placement while they search for someone else" - IN THE MIDDLE OF THE VERY PANDEMIC THEY REFERRED TO IN THEIR STATEMENT! - and, adding insult to injury, ignored the 14,000 petitioners, students, governor, elected officials - and had no compunction about throwing Lincol into further chaos and confusion - we ourselves had to ask "WHY NOW? Why are we bringing our complaints and trying to put a stop to this now?Because we plan for Lincoln University to be here an additional 166 years as an HBCU that turns out quality Black scholars, activists, movers and shakers - and not as a marker on the threshhold that says "Lincoln University was here." Why Now? Because BLACK LIVES MATTER; and have and will always Matter and Lincoln University has always been in the forefront of making sure that those Black Lives Matter, continue to Matter and have Meaning. We are the Lincoln University that gave you Gil Scott Heron, Langston Hughes, and Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamdi Azikewe, Thurgood Marshall, Roscoe Lee Brown, Cab Calloway, Sheila Oliver ... among so many other greats. Why Now they asked: "Why second guess and question the intelligence of this Board?" The truth of the matter is that the board's intelligence, along with its integrity and intentions, are highly suspect, and questionable. Thus far they have shown they have anything but intelligence. The chairlady is relying on the ignorance of certain board members, and has done what she can to pack the board with those who have more of an allegiance to her than to Lincoln University, the students, their well being and their future. In fact, it has become increasingly apparent that the authority vested in the board is abused and definitely misplaced. Their actions have caused more than 14,000 alumni, as well as students, faculty, administrators, elected officials and the Black community at large to totally question the intelligence of the ersatz board of trustees. So much so, the attorney general, governor, elected officials are being inundated with complaints and requests for intervention to prevent any further incursions and impositions of their poor judgment and egregious abuse of power and the public trust - which has been displayed at the hands of a chair woman who cares more about power and control than she cares about her own African American brothers and sisters - the students of Lincoln University. The President of Lincoln University has done an exemplary job of turning the school around, in spite of the micromanaging and sabotaging during her first three years; and the chair lady's total disrespect for the legacy and future of Lincoln University. I have been trying to understand when the chairperson becomes a czar or czarina - a dictator, instead of a member of the board who is supposed to provide oversight. When a board member was queried as to why she had not said anything in the past about the illegal actions - violation of the Sunshine Act, secret meetings, egregious use and abuse of executive sessions - the response was that no one wanted to tangle with the chairlady!! That sounds to me like there was a fair amount of bullying and brow beating going behind the scenes - in violation of the bylaws of Lincoln and the board of trustees. And it has to stop now. And whatever they have done or passed under this chairlady has to be rendered null and void. (Interestingly enough, some people care more about a football or basketball game, where a player is out of line than they do about violations that really go to the heart and soul of our children's existence - SMH). While it's convenient to ask why the Attorney General is now focusing on our little ole 166 year Black University that has survived so many other threats, it's like seeing a house on fire, and asking why that white fire man is trying to put out the fire of the Black house - because it will not survive if the fire is not put out, and because IT'S THE RIGHT THING TO DO. We thank all of our elected officials, Black and otherwise, our citizens - whether you're in Philadelphia, or elsewhere in the world - educators, Lincoln University Alumni, faculty, administrators, parents, who stand solidly with us as we put a stop to this and make sure that our students can study and survive in a stable, professional, nurturing environment. When we say "Stay Woke! we have to be woke to all our enemies - internal and external. Black Lives Matter at Lincoln University as well as everywhere else in the world.
I totally understand the kind of devious, nefarious kind of thinking the authoritarian personality operates from - and how they really think they have you over a barrel by invading our sacred holiday of Juneteenth and the celebration of those lives that were lost during the conflagration now know as Black Wall Street. It won't the be first time a wannabe dictator has imposed his presence by way of intimidation over what he considers "underlings" because he thinks he's the big sh-t (yeah, I said it!) But as we all know, he ain't sh-it.
So, you don't have to show up. You can hold Juneteenth anywhere you wish. You can do it in small gatherings, in churches, on scattered sites. You don't have to have the stench of racism mar what has been a traditional celebration in our Oklahoma Families for more than 150 years. The thing they overlook is that we Black people rebuilt the entire town of Greenwood ourselves - we didn't need government subsidies, or hand outs - and we restored the homes, schools, businesses, and other institutions and continued to thrive until the 60s when dis-integration came about and devastated a lot of Black owned businesses - partly because we got amnesia and thought (as Johnnie Cochran said, "the white man's ice was colder).
We are a mighty people in Oklahoma. At least when I lived there, and when I grew up there and when I participated in the sit ins and kneel ins and pray ins and other demonstrations under the wonderful guidance and mentorship of Ms. Clara Luper. We were there before the invasion of 1889. We had already built our own towns, schools, businesses. We already owned our own homes, land, farms. We had already educated our children and each other. We are a mighty people and vermin can't take that away from us.
I truly hope the original spirit of those Black men and women who pioneered Oklahoma, long before there was a civil war, long before there was a Juneteenth, long before there was an emancipation proclamation, we already had our own all Black towns that were thriving, and no tyrant can intimidate us into a forced march to hear his preprogrammed lies just for a photo opportunity similar to the one he staged at the Church in DC.
Celebrate Juneteenth - but don't allow it to be desecrated by a person who would just as soon see you in chains that to do anything that is of benefit for you. Below are some excerpts from articles recently covering this issue - My commentaries and responses are in red.
Stay Blessed The BlackList Pub:
A new level of depravity
New rule for Trump campaign rallies: DON'T SUE IF YOU GET THE VIRUS
As President Trump moves to resume indoor campaign rallies, his campaign has added a twist to his optimistic push to return to life as it was before the pandemic: Attendees cannot sue the campaign or the venue if they contract the virus at the event.
“By clicking register below, you are acknowledging that an inherent risk of exposure to Covid-19 exists in any public place where people are present,” a
statement on Mr. Trump’s campaign website informed those wishing to attend his June 19 rally in Tulsa, Okla. “By attending the rally, you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to Covid-19 and agree not to hold Donald
J. Trump for President, Inc.; BOK Center; ASM Global; or any of their affiliates, directors, officers, employees, agents, contractors or volunteers liable for any illness or injury.”
Mr. Trump’s rally in Tulsa, the site of a massacre
of black residents in 1921, will be on Juneteenth, a prominent African-American holiday recognizing the end of slavery in the United States. The rally will also be his first since the pandemic forced most of the country into quarantine three months ago, a
campaign official said Wednesday. Polls have shown former Vice President Joseph
R. Biden Jr. establishing a substantial lead over Mr. Trump.
Oklahoma, a state Mr. Trump won four years ago by 36 percentage points,
began lifting restrictions on
businesses on April 24 and moved into Phase 3 of its reopening on June 1, allowing summer camps to open and workplaces to return with full staffing.
Of the four states the president announced this week as sites for rallies, three — Florida, Arizona and North Carolina — are seeing rising virus caseloads, while Oklahoma’s infection numbers are steady but not falling.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends that people avoid mass gatherings and stay
out of crowded places.
FROM BUSINESSINSIDER:
President Donald Trump is planning to restart his campaign rallies,
which had been put on pause because of the novel coronavirus.
His first rebooted rally is scheduled for June 19 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, The New York Times reported. WATCH OUT MY BLACK OKLAHOMA HOMIES - THE CREATURE IS TRYING TO WALK AMONG YOU - in fact you need to give his "rebooting" the boot!!
Juneteenth,
celebrated June 19, is a holiday to celebrate the end of slavery and is
commemorated by Black Americans as an independence day.
NOTE: Juneteenth started in Texas. It was brought to Oklahoma when many Black Texans fled the still racist state after the Civil War. They brought the celebration with them. Eventually it caught on and was celebrated in Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, Kansas and Arkansas. I remember when we would have picnics, bar-b-ques, and massive family and neighborhood gatherings. I would eat so much wonderful food.
President Donald Trump is planning to restart his campaign rallies
after pausing them because of the novel coronavirus, which has infected
nearly 2 million people in the US and killed more than 112,000. Some
quickly pointed out that Trump's first rally would be held on
Juneteenth — a holiday to celebrate the end of slavery that is
commemorated by Black Americans as an independence day — in a city where
a race massacre took place 99 years ago. According to CNN, hundreds of African Americans died during the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921. In a statement, the Trump campaign adviser Katrina Pierson defended the move. "As
part of the party of Lincoln, Republicans are proud of the history of
Juneteenth, which is the anniversary of the last reading of the
Emancipation Proclamation," Pierson wrote. She should choke on even having Lincoln's sacred name come out of her mouth! In case you don't remember: THE CURRENT REPUBLYCON PARTY IS NO LONGER THE REPUBLICAN PARTY OF LINCOLN, AND HAS NOT BEEN SINCE THE DEMOCRATS, WHO WERE PISSED OFF AT LYNDON BAINES JOHNSON FOR PASSING THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT AND THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT, IN 1964 AND 1965 - THEY LEFT THE DEMOCRAT PARTY AND INVADED THE ORIGINAL REPUBLICAN PARTY OF LINCOLN THINKING IT WOULD BE A WAY THEY COULD VOTE JOHNSON OUT OF OFFICE AND RETURN THE U.S. TO THE GOOD OLD BOY RACIST DIXICRAT MENTALITY THEY HAD ENJOYED. Oklahoma was one of the states affected by this jump. Most Black people in Oklahoma, including my Mom and Dad, were LINCOLN REPUBLICANS, and always voted Republican because they carried forward the principles and policies established by Abraham Lincoln when he founded the Abolitionist party in 1854. And, of course because of the Emancipation Proclamation which freed slaves in all rebellious states (Oklahoma was a Territory and slavery was not allowed there). ABRAHAM LINCOLN HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS CURRENT INCARNATION OF THE REPUGLYCONS (aka Republicans) - HE WOULD ALSO HAVE RESCUED THE POOR INNOCENT ELEPHANT WHO GOT TRAPPED INTO BEING A SYMBOL OF A PARTY THAT IS SO TOTALLY AGAINST ALL THEY STAND FOR.
The Tulsa race massacre happened 99 years ago
Tensions
between white and Black Americans in the city were high because of the
success of the Greenwood District, known as "Black Wall Street," which
had more than 300 Black-owned businesses. Mechelle Brown, the director of programs at the Greenwood Cultural Center, told CNN
that white people at the time would make comments like, "How dare these
Negroes have a grand piano in their house, and I don't have a piano in
my house." These Black people had been in Oklahoma Territory (which became a state in 1907) from at least 1835. We already owned our own homes, there were 67 all Black towns. Blacks and Indians got along very well. Did not have or need white people to do anything for them. We thrived. When they opened the so called unoccupied lands to settlement/invasion, on April 22, 1889, it opened Oklahoma up to the same kind of racism that permeated the rest of the US. The rednecks were jealous. They were trying to impose their racist rules on Black and Indian Oklahomans. It's what they do. It's who they are. They can't be happy if we're happy. They don't want us to thrive, for whatever reason, it sticks in their craw. White armed mobs stormed Greenwood after an incident in which Sarah
Page, a 17-year-old white girl who operated an elevator, initially
claimed she was assaulted by Dick Rowland, a 19-year-old Black man who
took the elevator. The building was a Black owned office building. They should never have even given her a job. "This particular day after the elevator doors
closed and Sarah Page and Dick Rowland were alone in the elevator a few
moments, there was a scream," Brown told CNN. The account of
events varies, as the Tulsa Historical Society and Museum points out. As
CNN wrote: "Other historic accounts say Rowland tripped leaving the
elevator, grabbed Page's arm, she screamed and an onlooker went to
authorities." Rowland reportedly ran after the incident but was
arrested later and charged by local authorities, though Page declined to
press charges. Rumors circulated that she was raped. Typical redneck racist excuse - they are so jealous of Black men, they would try to use rape as an excuse if they couldn't find any other reason for going after them. After an "inflammatory" story in the local paper, the Tulsa
Historical Society and Museum said, the confrontations started between a
group of Black and white men, who confronted each other in front of the
courthouse where Rowland was being held. After gunshots were fired, the
Black men retreated to Greenwood, before a white mob destroyed and
looted the district. Uh, not exactly correct!! The white mobs tried to do a shoot out against the Black men. They found out, to their surprise and dismay, that our brothers and sisters were armed to the teeth, and not easily intimidated. We gave back as many shots as they did. We backed them out of the communities and made it difficult for them to get in and destroy our homes. It was for this reason they dropped incendiary devices on our homes - they were actually losing the battle. Black people in Oklahoma had guns and weren't afraid to use them (most of us still do). They always protected their own. (if you want to read the truth, read STAKING A CLAIM - By Jake Simmons - it was so riveting, I read it in less than 2 days!!) According to Human Rights Watch,
more than 1,200 houses and 35 square blocks were destroyed in just one
day. By the end of the massacre, Black Wall Street was decimated, and
photos showed Black people dead in the street. The Tulsa Historical Society and Museum said "contemporary reports of deaths began at 36" but "historians now believe as many as 300 people may have died." The fact that they were able to destroy so many homes in such a short period of time also shows this was planned and premeditated. The false accusation was a catalyst, a ruse used to destroy Black homes and Black people.
'Oklahoma schools did not talk about it'
Despite the magnitude of destruction, the massacre was largely ignored and missing from the educational curriculum in the state. "Oklahoma schools did not talk about it," Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma told the CNN affiliate KFOR
in 2018. "In fact, newspapers didn't even print any information about
the Tulsa Race Riot. It was completely ignored. It was one of those
horrible events that everyone wanted to sweep under the rug and ignore." True. I never heard about this until they did the documentary BLACK WALL STREET on PBS in the late 1980s. I was in total shock - especially since we had been taught Black and Indian history, along with American history from Kindergarten. I used to regularly visit Tulsa and Greenwood with my best friend, who had relatives there - but nothing was ever said. The homes and businesses were thriving and elegant. So I had absolutely no idea all this horror had transpired. Talk about burying an incident. I couldn't ask my mom, she wasn't born until 1923; my dad was born in 1921, but of course he wouldn't have had any knowledge of it either. June 1 marked the 99th anniversary of the massacre, as protests for
racial justice continued across the country after the May 25 killing of
George Floyd during an arrest in Minneapolis.
Planning rallies while behind in the polls
In
her statement, Pierson (T-rump's mouthpiece) also went on to call out Joe Biden, the 2020 Democratic presidential nominee. She alluded to Biden's
widely panned remarks last year
in which he talked up his ability to compromise by emphasizing how he
was able to work with segregationist senators decades ago. "Joe Biden spent last Juneteenth raising money at a private
fundraiser and defending comments he made celebrating his work with
segregationist senators," she wrote. As The Times noted, the decision to restart rallies during a pandemic comes with Trump far behind Biden in national opinion polling. I can't imagine any self conscious, intelligent, Black man or woman voting for T-rump - Like Biden Said on Charlamagne Da God - "If You Vote For T-rump, You're Not Black!"
Trump won Oklahoma, a deep-red state, by 36 points in the 2016
election. The state began lifting its coronavirus lockdown on April 24.
Experts, however, warn that the risk of catching the coronavirus is not
over, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends avoiding mass gatherings. Not only can you be at risk for coronavirus - but the contamination of your mind is an even greater problem. Oklahoma had recorded 7,480 cases
of the coronavirus and 355 deaths, as of Wednesday. According to The
Times, it's unlikely that any social-distancing measures will be put in
place at Trump's rally, and attendees will most likely not be required
to wear masks. Some campaign officials, however, said they were
considering providing hand sanitizer. "Americans are ready to get
back to action, and so is President Trump," Brad Parscale, the
president's campaign manager, said in a statement earlier in the week,
according to The Times. "The Great American Comeback is real, and the
rallies will be tremendous."
The Trump campaign is requiring people to sign a waiver acknowledging the risks of COVID-19 when they register to attend his Oklahoma rally. PENNSYLVANIANS WOULD NOT ALLOW T-RUMP TO VISIT THEIR PLANTS OR HOSPITALS BECAUSE OF THE DANGER OF CORONOVIRUS - I STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT MY OKLAHOMIES GROW SOME SERIOUS BLACKBONE AND REFUSE TO BE PARTY TO HIS CONTAMINATION.
AND YOU CAN BEST BELIEVE IT'S NOT GOING TO GET ANY BETTER -
To my Black and Original Nation Brothers and Sisters in Oklahoma, don't allow this ersatz president use you for his footstool. Stand up and make sure you are not anywhere near his efforts to invade our sacred ceremonies and traditions for his own negative and nefarious ends. He means us no good.
NOW THAT YOU KNOW
WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?
Mobilize to make sure you VOTE FOR JOE BIDEN FOR PRESIDENT. No more years of T-rump!
