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DEKANEY GIRLS KNOCKING ON STATE CHAMPIONSHIP DOOR IN BASKETBALL, P15
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Volume 85 | Number 19 MARCH 10, 2016 | FREE
NATIONAL BEN CARSON tells what’s next
P4 OPINION REV. JESSE JACKSON supports people of Mexico
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OPRAH’S
SPORTS
HOUSTON CONNECTION H PAGE 6
Mayor Turner on immigration
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is taking a stand on the immigration issue, and is supporting President Barack Obama’s “commonsense and humane” executive action. See why Turner is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to move quickly on a controversial case. H PAGE 5
DANUEL HOUSE shoots for Texas A&M Aggies
P14 TOP EVENTS
Cornell W. Brooks speaks out
National NAACP President Cornell William Brooks is calling for a nationwide end to racial profiling. Read about his trip to Houston to address the issue. Hear what he says about a social justice army. Find out what the NAACP Houston Branch is doing. H PAGE 8
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Tamela and David Mann at Higher Dimension Church Answer Conference
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MARCH 10 | 2016 | DEFENDER
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Four alternatives to warrant arrest
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he City of Houston’s Municipal Courts Department and Houston Police Department are among the participants in the 2016 Great Texas Warrant Round-Up currently underway. Some 300 jurisdictions across the state are engaging in the annual law enforcement campaign, including Harris, Galveston, Fort Bend and Waller Counties. The goal of the round-up is to collect payment of overdue fines from Texans who have warrants for unpaid traffic tickets and fines in Class C misdemeanor cases in justice and municipal courts. A coalition of Texas organizations, however, is concerned that low-income Texans may be unlawfully committed to jail for overdue fines. Texas Appleseed, Texas Fair Defense Project, the University of Texas School of Law Civil Rights Clinic and ACLU of Texas want individuals who may be arrested during the round-up to know their legal rights and the options available to them. According to the coalition, it is not legal for a judge to jail an individual simply because he or she cannot pay fines or fees. The law requires a judge to ask whether a person has the ability to pay their debt before committing that person to jail. If a person cannot pay, he or she cannot be required to “lay out” the fines or fees in jail (meaning, pay down the fines through a jail stay). If an individual is arrested for unpaid fines and cannot pay the total amount owed, that person should tell the judge and explain the reasons why. The person may
ask the judge for one or more alternatives to immediate payment: • A lower fine tailored to one’s income. Judges can reduce the amount owed, including fines, fees and court costs based on income, resources and family obligations. This is also called a “partial waiver.” • A payment plan, allowing the person to pay in installments over a period of months. Judges have the authority to order monthly payments in any amount, as small as a person can afford each month. • Community service, to be performed at locations authorized by the court. An individual will get at least $50 of credit towards their fines for every eight hours work, and judges may order credit at a higher rate. • A combination of these options. A person can discharge part of the debt through payment plans or
community service and ask for a waiver of whatever is left over. Any person who does not have enough income to pay the court debts in full – including people who receive government assistance, disability or SNAP benefits, the unemployed and those with minimum-wage or low-wage jobs – can ask for these options. It is important to fully explain the person’s limited income to the judge. Individuals who were under 18 when they were fined have even more legal rights and options. The court must make special findings before issuing a warrant in such cases and can also order individuals to complete tutoring instead of paying fines, if their offenses occurred
on school grounds. Additionally, individuals should not be arrested for any unpaid fines from past convictions for failure to attend school (i.e., truancy) since the change in law last year. Most courts have written forms that people can use to apply for a payment plan or to work off the debts through community service. People can request these alternatives using these forms or by asking to talk directly with a judge. People should present some proof of their household income and their monthly payment obligations to show that they have limited means to pay. More information about warrants or outstanding citations can be found at www.houstontx.gov/courts or www.jp.hctx.net.
localbriefs THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY upheld the termination of the trooper who arrested Sandra Bland. DPS Director Steven McCraw upheld his preliminary decision to fire Brian Encinia from the department for reasons related to Encina’s traffic stop of Bland last July. Bland was found dead in her Waller County jail cell three days after she was stopped by Encinia for a minor traffic violation. Her death was ruled a suicide. Encinia subsequently requested a meeting with McGraw to discuss his termination. After a thorough consideration, McCraw issued a letter of final termination…….. CHARGES HAVE BEEN FILED against
138 suspects arrested in a two-month initiative to combat illicit sex trafficking in Southeast, Westside and North Houston. In an effort to decrease prostitution demand, investigators in the Houston Police Department Vice Division, along with officers from three patrol divisions and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office conducted investigations that resulted in arrests……..TEXAS EMPLOYERS expanded their payrolls in January with the addition of 31,400 seasonally adjusted jobs, marking the 10th consecutive month of job growth for Texas. The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 4.5 percent in January, down from a revised
4.6 percent in December, and remained below the national average of 4.9 percent……..THE NEW METRO BOARD CHAIR is Carrin Patman. She will be the first woman to chair the board, and knows Metro well due to her previous experience as a board member from 2010 to 2014. Pending confirmation by City Council and a vote by the Metro board, she replaces Gilbert Garcia, who has been board chair since 2010. Mayor Sylvester Turner thanked Garcia for his service, vision and leadership. “Now it is time to build on that progress, and Carrin is the person who can take Metro to the next level,” Turner said. Patman is a trial lawyer at Bracewell LLP.
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DEFENDER | MARCH 10 | 2016
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Carson tells what’s next after leaving GOP race Former Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson said he is departing the campaign trail but is not “departing the scene.” Carson, who at one point was a GOP frontrunner, dropped out of the race after a string of disappointing finishes on Super Tuesday. He said he will continue to work to save America for the next generation, Ben Carson but did not endorse another candidate. “I will be working on a number of initiatives, including serving as honorary chair of My Faith Votes, a non-profit organization dedicated to mobilizing the 25 million Evangelicals who didn’t vote in the last election,” the retired neurosurgeon said. “The twin pillars of faith and family are under attack, and I will endeavor to strengthen our nation by preserving them both. Carson said that instead of endorsing a specific individual he supported “We the People,” and listed the attributes of a desirable candidate. “Though many today are making decisions based on fear and anger, I trust their judgment to logically examine the candidates and make the right decision,” he said. Carson said candidates should
be judged on: • Whether they have demonstrated significant accomplishments over their lives and careers • If they have ideas that are clear and policies that are easy to find • How they treat their family and others, as that is how they will lead the country • What they have done to improve the lives of Americans • The people they are with, what they are saying and how
they collaborate with others • Their ethics, because what America needs is “Trickle-down ethics.” “I have lived a blessed life and achieved more success than I ever dreamed was possible,” Carson said. “Running for President was never on my bucket list, and when I was drafted by a grassroots movement asking me to do so, it was not a decision that I made lightly and saw as an act of service.” “However, I believed that my values, life experience and common sense solutions put me in a position to help get our nation back on track for the sake of our children and grandchildren. This grueling endeavor would not have been worth it for any other reason.”
84 percent of Black victims killed with guns A gun is by far the most common weapon used to kill Black victims of homicide in America, according to a new study by the Violence Policy Center (VPC). The study found 84 percent of Black homicide victims nationwide are killed with guns, most often a handgun. The annual study, Black Homicide Victimization in the United States: An Analysis of 2013 Homicide Data, is based on unpublished data from the FBI Supplementary Homicide Report. “In America, Black men and women face a disproportionate risk of being murdered, a fact both alarming and unacceptable,” said VPC Executive Director Josh Sugarmann.
The study found that in 2013, there were 6,217 Black homicide victims. Blacks represent 13 percent of the U.S. population yet account for 50 percent of all homicide victims. Of the Black homicide victims, 5,381 were male and 836 were female. For homicides in which the victim to offender relationship could be identified, 72 percent of Black victims were killed by someone they knew. The 10 states with the highest Black homicide victimization rates were Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Louisiana, California and New Jersey. Texas was 24th on the list.
BLACK-SOUNDING NAMES on mortgage applications were denied by lenders according to results of a new study. The three-year study was led by Andrew Hanson, a professor of economics at Marquette University. His team used emails to test mortgage loan originator (MLO) responses to borrower queries with stereotypically Black and white sounding names. Hanson and his associates sent two identical emails to more than 5,000 lenders. “White” names included Maxwell Baker, Spencer Miller and Jake Krueger. “Black” names included Jamal Washington, Terrell Banks and DaQuan Booker. Names were categorized by examining New York City birth records and determining which race the name was more likely to be associated with it. “Our results show that MLOs discriminate on the basis of race and treat clients differently by their reported credit score,” the study said……..CONSUMERS ARE WARNED about buying imported products marketed as “dietary supplements” and nonprescription drug products from ethnic or international stores, flea markets, swap meets or online. According to the Office of Minority Health at the Food and Drug Administration, scammers often target advertising to people who prefer to shop at nontraditional places, especially those who have limited English proficiency and limited access to health care services and information. Scammers know that ethnic groups who may not speak or read English well, or who hold certain cultural beliefs, can be easy targets. Many advertisers put the word “natural” somewhere on the package of a product, knowing it inspires trust in certain groups.……… MEMBERS OF THE CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS joined other members of Congress in Flint, Mich. to hear directly from families affected by the city’s ongoing water crisis. CBC members spent the day touring the city, speaking with residents and meeting with officials to gain a better understanding of the effects of lead exposure and the federal response to the water crisis.
VOLUME 85 • NUMBER 19 MARCH 10, 2016
Publisher Sonceria Messiah-Jiles Advertising/Client Relations Selma Dodson Tyler Social|Online Editor LaGloria Wheatfall Art Director Tony Fernandez-Davila
Print Editor Marilyn Marshall Sports Editors Max Edison Darrell K. Ardison
Contributing writers Jasemine Knowles Amber Vernon
The Defender is published by the Houston Defender Newspaper Inc. (713-663-6996). The Defender is audited by Certified Audited Circulation. (CAC). For subscription, send $60-1 year to: Defender, P.O. Box 8005, Houston TX 77288. Payment must accompany subscription request. All material covered by 2012 copyright. (No material herein may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher).
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Turner supports Obama’s action Mayor Sylvester Turner announced that Houston has joined in a friend of the court brief to the U.S. Supreme Court in support of President Obama’s “commonsense and humane” executive action on immigration. “I urge the court to move quickly to overturn the lower court injunction that has stalled implementation of the president’s order,” Turner said. “A favorable ruling would remove the fear of deportation and separation that more than 200,000 eligible immigrants in the greater Houston metropolitan area live with every day. “We want these men, women and children to feel free to come out of the shadows and work toward the American dream we all wish for ourselves.” Two years ago, Houston was one of the cities that formed Cities United for Immigration Action to develop a coordinated national response to Obama’s executive action addressing immigration. All of the nation’s major cities with substantial immigrant and non-immigrant populations are opposing a lawsuit filed by the state of Texas and other state governments. The lawsuit accuses Obama of ignoring federal procedures for changing rules and of abusing the power of his office by sidestepping Congress. “This lawsuit is bad for the economy, hurts families and has stalled desperately needed changes to the federal government’s immigration policies,” Turner said. Obama’s order would benefit nearly 4 million undocumented immigrants who have resided in the United State since January 2010, and who either have children who are full citizens or themselves came to the U.S. as children. Immigrants who meet those requirements as well as additional educational requirements would be allowed to remain in the U.S. for three years and lawfully earn a living. The executive action also cracks down on illegal immigration at the border, makes deportation of felons a priority and mandates criminal background checks for certain undocumented immigrants
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entertainment
Oprah interviews Osteen, Morgan
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alk show queen and media mogul Oprah Winfrey is back with an all-new season of the Emmy award-winning series “Super Soul Sunday,” which premieres Sunday, March 13 at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network. “Super Soul Sunday” features Winfrey’s inspirational interviews designed to help viewers awaken to their best selves and discover a deeper connection to the world around them. The new season of “Super Soul Sunday” features thought-provoking, in-depth interviews with such personalities as Pastor Joel Osteen of Houston’s Lakewood Church and actor/comedian Tracy Morgan. Here is a rundown: March 13 – Oprah sits down with criminal justice activist Shaka Senghor, an author and mentor who turned his life around after spending 19 years in prison for second-degree murder, to discuss the power of redemption and forgiveness. March 20 – Oprah sits down with psychologist, journalist and New York Times bestselling author Daniel Goleman to discuss his groundbreaking research on emotional intelligence and how we can enhance and manage our emotions to expand our brain capacity. March 27 – Oprah speaks with Pastor Joel Osteen, one of America’s most influential religious and spiritual leaders, about his most recent bestselling book “The Power of I Am: Two Words That Will Change Your Life Today” and the meaning behind this core principle. Osteen is senior pastor of the largest congregation in the U.S. April 3 – Oprah talks to acclaimed actor/comedian Tracy Morgan for a rare and intimate conversation as he begins to step back into the spotlight following a Actor and
Oprah Winfrey, shown in a file photo with Joel Osteen, interviews the Lakewood pastor on March 27.
h on April 3.
ush with deat
br frey about his n talks to Win ga or M y ac Tr comedian
devastating multi-car crash in 2014 where a tractor-trailer struck his tour bus on the New Jersey Turnpike. He discusses the spiritual encounter he had with God while in a medically induced coma. April 10 – Oprah is joined by bestselling author Cheryl Strayed for a conversation about finding inspiration in the written word and the importance of exploring our own stories. April 17 – Oprah speaks with bestselling author and religious scholar Reza Aslan about the universal power of faith and the human desire to seek out spiritual connection. They also discuss the Islamic faith and what it means to be Muslim in a post 9/11 world.
what’sup “Dancing With the Stars” announced its celebrity cast of season 22, and it includes singers, actors and sports stars. Denver Broncos linebacker VON MILLER, the MVP of Super Bowl 50, will put on his dancing shoes. Miller is a Dallas native and played college football at Texas A&M University. Other dance floor competitors include WANYA MORRIS of BOYZ II MEN, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver ANTONIO BROWN and KIM FIELDS of “Facts of Life,” “Living Single” and “Real Housewives of Atlanta” fame. The show returns to ABC on March 21at 7 p.m……..BOBBI KRISTINA BROWN was intoxicated with a mix
of marijuana, alcohol, morphine and other drugs, conditions that caused pneumonia that led to her death, a medical examiner recently reported. The revelations came after speculation about how the daughter of WHITNEY HOUSTON and BOBBY BROWN died, including a wrongful death lawsuit filed by her estate against her partner, Nick Gordon. The medical examiner classified the manner of death as “undetermined” because investigators could not determine if it was accidental or intentional, or if it was a suicide or homicide. Bobbi Kristina died last July, five months after being found unresponsive in a bathtub…….. “Nina,” the controver-
sial movie about singer NINA SIMONE starring ZOE ZALDANA and David Oyelowo, will be released in theaters, digital HD and video-on-demand on April 22. Zaldana has been criticized for darkening her skin and wearing a prosthetic nose to play the role. Simone’s daughter, however, defended the actress. “It’s unfortunate that Zoe Saldana is being attacked so viciously when she is someone who is part of a larger picture,” said Lisa Simone Kelly. “It’s clear she brought her best to this project, but unfortunately she’s being attacked when she’s not responsible for any of the writing or the lies.” Nina Simone died in 2003 at age 70.
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MARCH 10 | 2016 | DEFENDER
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The Ensemble Theatre will “get down with Motown” with the play “Detroit ’67,” written by Dominique Morisseau and directed by Eileen J. Morris. Previews are March 19, 20 and 23, and the show runs March 24 to April 17. The play is set in 1967 when almost every single Motown release has made the charts. The world is changing around Chelle and Lank, who run an after-hours club in the basement of their late parents’ house. Tensions mount when the siblings discover that their dreams have diverged, and their tightknit community is threatened by the arrival of a mysterious outsider, while the city around them erupts in violence. The play unfolds at an explosive moment in history – the race riots that ravaged the city of Detroit – and is set to a vibrant soundtrack of Motown hits of the day. “Although this play takes place during a very turbulent time in our nation’s history, it reflects on what it was like to be young and full of passion in the ‘60s with great music, big dreams, and the desire to make a change in the world,” Morris said. Cast members include Kendrick “KayB” Brown, Cynthia Brown Garcia, Whitney Zangarine, Joseph “JoeP” Palmore and LaKeisha Randle. Morriseau, a playwright and actress, received a BFA in Acting from the University of Michigan and got her start as a performance poet in Detroit. She is a two-time NAACP Image Award recipient. She said “Detroit ‘67” came from “a place of love,” and she wanted to capture the spirit of the time through music. It originated off-Broadway at the Public Theater and extended at Classical Theatre of Harlem with the National Black Theatre. The Ensemble, located at 3535 Main St., is one of a few professional theaters in the region dedicated to the production of works portraying the African American experience. For ticket information visit www.EnsembleHouston.com or call 713-520-0055.
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DEFENDER | MARCH 10 | 2016
cente
NAACP President and CEO Cornell William Brooks led an 860-mile “America’s Journey for Justice” march from Selma, Ala. to Washington, D.C. The 2015 march focused on a fair criminal justice system, voting rights, employment and education.
National NAACP President
Cornell William Brooks talks about social justice army By LAGLORIA WHEATFALL Defender
“Born Suspect: Tragedies of Racial Profiling,” was the topic of a speech delivered in Houston by NAACP President and CEO Cornell William Brooks. He was the featured speaker of the Yale L. Rosenberg Lecture at the University of Houston Law Center. Brooks addressed how racial profiling is a “constitutional” and “moral” challenge and how America should change the model of policing. As CEO, Brooks is working with leadership and membership to build an NAACP that is multiracial, multi-ethnic, multi-generational and 1 million members strong. “The NAACP has a multigenerational army of social justice activists,” Brooks said. “This is not about us versus them, and so any young person who is leading a movement, tweeting, posting, marching, demonstrating, disrupting, engaging in disruptive politics, we are standing with them.” The Defender sat down with Brooks to discuss racial profiling. Defender: What impact does racial profiling have on America today and what specifically can
be done to address it? Brooks: Racial profiling is not a “they” problem. It’s an “us” problem and African-American young men are 20 times more likely to lose their lives at the hands of the police than their white counterparts. When the number of people who report being profiled equals the population of Canada, and when we have Muslims, AfricanAmericans, Latinos and people who are gay and lesbian being profiled, this is not a small moral challenge. It is a gargantuan constitutional and moral challenge. And we know that there is something we can do about it. One of the things we do know is if you can document a problem, you begin to come up with a solution. So having better data is important as is shifting the model and modality of policing from a “warrior” model to a ‘guardian’ model. What that means is that police officers [must] fully appreciate that trust is a shield. When you build community trust, it shields the community from harm but it also shields police officers from harm. Because the more the community trusts the police department, the more likely you are to get witnesses, the easier prosecutions are, and the safer communities feel.
“Technology is powerful. It makes people aware but does not necessarily make people accountable.”
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Defender: In your lecture, you touched on the dehumanization of minorities. You also said that social media makes everyone aware but not accountable. Can you explain this? Brooks: Twenty-five years ago Rodney King’s beating was caught on tape. That was in a sense, the first police viral video. The technology moved from outside the camera into the phone. And a group of young people took pictures of Michael Brown’s body and literally put the name Michael Brown on the lips of Barack Obama in Geneva. Technology is powerful. It makes people aware but does not necessarily make people accountable. We’ve got to translate the pixels into policy. You see people being dehumanized on video. We should go from that to protecting people through policy –passing racial profiling laws that actually hold police officers accountable. Also, training police officers on what officers should do. If you ask me, the cell phone is to the Black Lives Matter movement what the mimeograph machine was to the Montgomery Boycott. Defender: The Black Lives Matters campaign has attracted national attention. Some say this is the NAACP of the 21st century. How is the NAACP working with this group and connecting with young adults of today? Brooks: Many of the people in the Black Lives Matter movement come out of the NAACP; it is a description of a
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Houston NAACP takes issue seriously By MARILYN MARSHALL Defender
ACIAL
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movement not an organization. So in Minneapolis, we see Black Lives Matter and people of the NAACP on the ground. One of the things I’ll note is this: Tamir Rice was 12 years old, Michael Brown 18 years old, Eric Gardner 47 years old and Walter Scott 50 years old. The victims of racial profiling are multi-generational, so are the opponents. So the NAACP has a multi- generational army of social justice activists. The point is that we are in a moment where we can’t afford what I call the Richard Wright, James Baldwin challenge – the sons thinking they must slay their fathers. We’re not at odds with one another; we’re at odds with bad policing. In the context of the Black Lives Matter movement, we need to celebrate that. Defender: Which presidential candidate do you think will help address current issues such as racial profiling, police brutality and killings as it pertains to African Americans? Brooks: We are a non-partisan organization. I am in no way giving a tacit partisan endorsement. Here’s what we will say. When you look at the policy platform of all the candidates, I would encourage every voter to look to see if they explicitly call for the end of racial profiling, explicitly stand behind the racial profiling act and whether or not they explicitly call for a uniformed standard when it comes to excessive use of force. If they’re not talking specifics, their generalities indicate they are the opposition.
he Houston area for over 80 years
The president of the NAACP Houston Branch said racial profiling is a serious local issue that must be addressed. “I think it’s a huge problem because of the way policing is handled in Houston,” said James Douglas. “If you talk to the police department they will tell you they put most of the policemen in the areas where most of the crime is. “It’s kind of self-perpetuating because they’ll say most of the crime occurs James Douglas in Fifth Ward, Third Ward, Fourth Ward and Sunnyside. That to me is racial profiling because what they’re saying is they’ve already decided that’s where most of the crime is.” Douglas, who is a distinguished professor of law at Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law, pointed to the high Black incarceration rate in general and the racial gap in drug arrests. “If you look at the jail cells now most of the people in jail are African-American and a substantial portion of them are in jail because of possession of drugs,” he said. “Reports by the Centers for Disease Control and other national reports tell us that whites use drugs as much as African-Americans. Why
aren’t they arrested at the same rate? Because they are not profiled as drug users but we are.” Douglas said locally, the NAACP has an ongoing dialogue with law enforcement officials to address racial profiling and related issues. “We have spent countless hours meeting with the district attorney and police and sheriff trying to sensitize them to the issues and trying to get them to adopt different policies for policing,” he said. “Some of it has been effective. I think you’ve seen recently that the district attorney has changed her opinion on how minor possession of drugs ought to be handled.” Douglas added that racial profiling is a real problem. “The average African-American knows that racial profiling exists,” he said. “The problem is convincing the average white American that racial profiling exists.” Douglas said another item on the NAACP’s agenda is the setting of bail. “We feel low-income and minority citizens spend too much time in jail on minor charges waiting for their day in court because they can’t pay a bond, and we think that’s discriminatory,” he said. “In order to get out of jail now you have to have money and that’s not what we think the Constitution intended.”
Brooks’ background • Born in El Paso; grew up in Georgetown, S.C. • Earned Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Jackson State University, Master of Divinity from Boston University School of Theology, Juris Doctorate from Yale law School • Prior to joining the NAACP, served as president and CEO of New Jersey Institute for Social Justice • Former senior counsel with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) • Former executive director of the Fair Housing Council of Greater Washington • Ran as Democratic nominee for U.S. Congress for 10th District of Virginia • Married to Janice Broome Brooks; two sons, Cornell II and Hamilton
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DEFENDER | MARCH 10 | 2016
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health
A Defender and Kelsey-Seybold Clinic Alliance
The role of parents in preventing diabetes
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likely to develop the disease.
By KEMBA BLACK, M.D.
Common symptoms
wenty years ago, Type 2 diabetes Some children who have Type 2 in children was virtually unheard diabetes have no signs or symptoms. Others of. Sadly, this isn’t the case today. experience: The number of children and • Increased thirst and urination. adolescents with the condition – most of • Increased hunger. whom are diagnosed in their early teens • Weight loss. – has skyrocketed. African-Americans, • Fatigue. Asian-Americans and Latinos are especially • Blurred vision. vulnerable to the disease. • Slow-healing sores or frequent For instance, researchers at Children’s infections. Hospital in Cincinnati found that, compared • Areas of darkened skin – a possible with children of European descent, Africanindicator of insulin resistance. Kemba Black, M.D. American boys and girls were 3.5 and 6.1 The key to preventing Type 2 diabetes times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes, respectively. in children is the same as for adults: avoiding obesity.
Obesity is key driver
More than 80 percent of all children and adolescents with Type 2 diabetes are overweight and about 40 percent are clinically obese. Not surprisingly, researchers suspect that increases in obesity among young people is driving the new epidemic. Other factors can also put children at risk. If close family members have the disease or if a mother develops diabetes during pregnancy, for example, children are significantly more
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W A Y S
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How to prevent diabetes in kids
Kids get most of their lifestyle cues from their parents. By serving healthy foods, encouraging physical activity and educating the family about diabetes, parents can make an enormous contribution to their children’s health. Changes in lifestyle are difficult to make in today’s video game and fast-food culture, but if done gradually, they can be sustained over the course of a lifetime. By encouraging children to exercise and eat right from an early age, parents
C O N Q U E R
may be able to put a stop to this epidemic and set their children on the road to a long, healthy life. Here are some other tips to help prevent childhood obesity and diabetes: • Eat portion-controlled meals. Limit fast foods. No “supersizing.” • Serve high-fiber foods such as whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables. • Make water and low-fat milk the drink of choice. • Be physically active 30 to 60 minutes most days of the week. • Limit TV and video games to less than two hours a day. • Have regular pediatric exams, which may include testing blood-glucose levels and, if the doctor thinks there is a need, prescription medications. • Achieve and maintain a healthy weight. Don’t forget: A pediatrician is your best source for information about lifestyle strategies and medical options regarding your child’s long-term health. Dr. Kemba Black is a board-certified pediatrician at Kelsey-Seybold. She cares for her patients at KelseySeybold’s Cypress Clinic in northwest Houston. To make an appointment with Dr. Black, schedule online at kelsey-seybold.com or call Kelsey-Seybold’s 24-hour Contact Center at 713-442-0000.
C A N C E R
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MARCH 10 | 2016 | DEFENDER
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HISD calls attention to struggling schools During HISD’s 2016 State of the Schools address, Interim Superintendent Ken Huewitt urged the community to rally around its most struggling schools. In his first address since assuming leadership of the district, Huewitt encouraged the audience to never lose sight of the district’s driving force, children. He said all children can learn no matter their background or personal circumstances, but they must have the resources to be successful and people in their lives who believe in them and are committed to their success. Critical to that success, Huewitt said, are the district’s programs devoted to literacy, college preparation and career development, along with adequate funding from the Texas State Legislature. “We have students Interim with profound need and Superintendent even greater potential, but Ken Huewitt these students don’t have an advocate or a single person in their life who can help them,” Huewitt said. “These students are missing school, missing opportunities, and missing out on their only chance to escape poverty.
Houston is a can-do city, but we cannot ignore the challenges these students face.” HISD Board of Education President Manuel Rodriguez told the crowd there was much to be proud of, including the district’s first-place Magna Award. Presented by the National Association of School Boards, Magna Awards are designed to recognize school boards that take bold and innovative steps to advance student learning. HISD trustees received the first-place win for Literacy by
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3, an initiative that aims to have 100 percent of third-graders reading at or above grade level by 2019. “Literacy is the foundation for all learning,” Rodriguez said. “Thank you to my fellow board members and Team HISD for believing in this work.” Other achievements highlighted include: • This year, HISD welcomed the inaugural class of the nation’s first Arabic Immersion Magnet School. • The number of students taking Advanced Placement classes has hit an all-time district record, as has the number of students scoring high enough on AP exams to earn college credit. • The number of students taking the SAT has reached an all-time high — and math, reading and composite scores have risen, bucking a downward state trend. • Last year, seniors were offered a staggering $265 million in scholarships. That is a 227 percent increase from 2007. • HISD has more construction occurring than at any time in district history. In four years, HISD will have the most modern portfolio of high schools in the nation.
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DEFENDER | MARCH 10 | 2016
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Five financial tips for women business owners By BEVERLY MUGUERZA
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s we celebrate Women’s History Month in March, it’s a good time to celebrate the progress of America’s womenowned businesses. The latest Census data shows women-owned businesses increased by more than 20 percent from 2002 to 2007. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, womenowned firms make up almost a third (29 percent) of all nonfarm businesses across the country, generating a total of $1.2 trillion annually, and employing 7.6 million people. Like all businesses, women-owned businesses face unique challenges, and in today’s economic environment acquiring capital to operate and grow their businesses can be one of them. At Wells Fargo, we have the opportunity to work with women entrepreneurs on a daily basis. We know the important role womenrun businesses play in our local communities and economy, and we want to make sure that women business owners have the financial guidance and tools they need to succeed financially, including access to capital. Here are five key financial tips to help women entrepreneurs build their credit profiles and obtain the financing they need to grow their businesses: 1. Get to know your lender – Establishing a relationship with a banker is the first step to helping you get creditready because a banker can help identify financial solutions that meet your business needs and work with you to determine your long-term business goals. Bankers
have experience working with a variety of businesses, so they can be your best resource when it comes to business financing. Once you have established a working relationship with a banker, it’s important to keep them informed as your business and financing needs change. 2. Build a strong credit profile – Good credit is one of a business owner’s most valuable assets. As more women follow the path of entrepreneurship, it’s important that good personal financial habits transfer over to their businesses. When applying for financing, lenders will look beyond just the credit score to understand if your business is thriving; they’ll also review your debt-to-income ratio, and whether you have a history of on-time payments. 3. Explore financing options Beverly Muguerza – According to the National Associacommitments demontion of Women Busistrates to lenders that you ness Owners, the major have the ability to repay sources of funding that a loan. Achieving and women business owners maintaining positive cash rely on are personal sav- flow takes hard work. ings, reinvested business Set aside time for regular earnings, lines of credit, cash flow analyses, and equity financing and keep your financial inforventure capital. Busimation up-to-date so it ness owners have many can be easily referenced. financing options to 5. Separate business consider these days. If and personal accounts a conventional business – Your business credit loan or governmentprofile begins when you guaranteed loan doesn’t establish dedicated busimeet your specific ness accounts. While needs, you may want to many small business explore a SBA 7(a) loan. owners use personal Talk with your banker finances to pay for about which credit business expenses, it’s option is best for your important to establish business. separate business ac4. Maintain a posicounts. Having separate tive cash flow – Profitbusiness accounts is one ability and cash flow are of the first steps to show essential components your business is sound of credit capacity, and and well-managed when showing that your busiapplying for business ness has enough cash credit, and helps you on hand to meet both maintain accurate and short- and long-term
complete records of all business-related income and expenses.. Beverly Muguerza is a Business Banking manager for Wells Fargo in Houston. She can be reached at 713284-5546.
classified M/WBE Supplier Opportunity
Authentica Solutions LLC is bidding on RFP (16-01-20: MRMS PAAS HOSTING SERVICES) for the Houston Independent School District. We are looking for possible M/WBE suppliers to provide the following: Security & HIPPA/FERPA Auditing, Cloud Hosting Expertise, and K12 Data and Technology Expertise. If you are interested in this opportunity, please email us at: shane.chambers@authenticasolutions.com
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MARCH 10 | 2016 | DEFENDER
opinion
Mexico is our neighbor, not the enemy
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By REV. JESSE L. JACKSON SR.
residential campaigns often turn raw. Politicians reach for sound bites that bite. Often they gain by playing on fears, winning by division, not by addition. In 2016, insult has become the coin of the campaign, particularly in the Republican primaries. And too often the enemy singled out has been Mexico and Mexicans. Mexico has been burlesqued as a source of illegal immigrants, who are slandered as rapists and criminals. Mexico is accused of taking our factories abroad and Mexican immigrants of stealing our jobs at home. Trumpets sound for building a wall across a 2,000-mile border, for deporting millions of Mexicans living in America, for booting out the Dreamers who were born here, and more. We would be wise to step back and take a deep breath. Mexico isn’t our backdoor; it is our next-door neighbor. One hundred million people live in the 10 U.S. and Mexican states along the border region, and taken together these form the equivalent of the fourth largest economy in the world. Our ties with Mexico are deep, our peoples intertwined. They should not be reduced to a sound bite or an insult. Thirty-four million Mexicans and Mexican-Americans live in the United States; about 22 million were born here. Every day, the U.S. and Mexico exchange $1.4 billion in two-way trade. Mexico is our second largest export market (after Canada). Mexico buys more U.S. goods than all of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and Singapore) combined, nearly as much as the entire European Union. Mexico is the third largest supplier of crude oil to the U.S. It is the largest export market for U.S. refined petroleum products and a growing market for our natural gas. Cooperation between our two great countries is inescapable. We must and do coordinate on transportation, on legal entry points, on international organized crime, on trans-border infectious diseases and transborder environmental challenges.
In recent years focus has necessarily been placed on criminal activity — the flow of drugs coming north and the flow of guns and contraband cash going south. We are the biggest market for illegal drugs in the world. Our appetites feed the criminal drug rings that threaten entire countries. We have an obligation and a national interest in bolstering enforcement on both sides of the border. We don’t need a wall; we need a bridge. We are neighbors, bound together by geography and by history. Now we hear all these fulminations about undocumented workers. People don’t leave their homes on a lark. They flee parched earth for green grass. For too long, we have exploited Mexican workers on both sides of the border. They pick our fruit and vegetables. They clean our houses. They fight and die in our wars, hoping for a green card and a shot at an American dream. Mexicans didn’t take our jobs to Mexico; U.S. corporations used NAFTA to take our jobs to Mexico. Mexicans don’t seek subminimum wages here.
U.S. employers exploit the undocumented to pad their own pockets. This furious debate about immigration is taking place as illegal immigration has virtually disappeared due to the lack of jobs in the U.S. The biggest flood of immigration came after NAFTA forced family farmers in Mexico to compete with subsidized agribusiness in the U.S. Many lost their lands and their livelihood and came north to survive. We need economic policies that work for working people on both sides of the border, not a policy of division and insult that allows employers to keep exploiting workers in both countries. America’s strength is its diversity. And our security is enhanced by having close relations with our neighbors. American workers have every reason to be angry about an economy that is rigged to work against them and a politics that is corrupted by big money. But our Mexican neighbors didn’t do that, and building a wall won’t change it. The politics of insult ends up insulting us.
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DEFENDER | MARCH 10 | 2016
sports
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Area teams hope to ‘go dancing’ at March Madness
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By MAX EDISON Defender
t’s championship time in college basketball as teams participate in their conference tournaments. Winners receive an automatic bid to go dancing in March Madness. Locally, Texas Southern University and Texas A&M University enter into their tourneys as No. 1 seeds. The University of Houston is seeded as No. 2. All three have the opportunity to compete but winning is the key. At TSU, coach Mike Davis’ squad finished conference play with a 16-2 record to capture the SWAC regular season crown. All that goes for nothing if the Tigers can’t win their post- season tournament held March 8-12 in the Toyota Center. The NCAA will only take one team from the SWAC and that’s the conference tournament winner, a fact that motivates Davis and the Tigers. “Our goal at the beginning of the season is to win our conference,” Davis said. “Win the tournament and we get a chance to play in the big dance. We have accomplished the first half, now we have to take care of business in the tournament.” Danuel House, who attended Fort Bend Hightower, is a standout for A&M. The Aggies won The Tigers are the SEC regular season title. from top to bottom the most talented team in 2 seed. The AAC tournament runs March 10-13 at the I’m proud of our the SWAC. Forward Amway Center in Orlando. guys,” A&M fifthMalcom Riley had a The Cougars have not competed as a No. 2 seed at year coach Billy conference season high a conference tournament since 1996. UH finished 12-6 Kennedy said. “We nine three-pointers for in conference play (22-8 overall). If the Cougars win the did it the way that 36 points in the regular AAC tourney they would get an automatic bid. There I wanted to do it, season finale against is a chance that a good showing just shy of winning the with toughness and Alcorn State. Chris tourney could land the team an at-large bid. Either way defense.” Thomas and Riley The Aggies have head coach Kelvin Sampson is happy with the progress of are the fifth and sixth been paced all season his team. leading scorers in the “I am very proud of this team and the way they by senior guard Jalen conference averaging accepted what we were trying to teach them this year,” Jones (15.8 points 14.6 and 14.5 points per game) and former Sampson said. “It’s all about getting better. You are going respectively. Forward Damyean Dotson is a playmaker for the UH Cougars, the No. 2 seed in the Fort Bend Hightower to have some tough ones, but when you have great player Derrick Griffin AAC tournament. leadership, that’s when your team can really take off. I have standout Danuel leads the conference in been so blessed in my career to have that, and I knew that House (15.1 points per rebounding averaging 11 points per game. was something we had to develop here.” game), also a senior. It has been a rollercoaster season for the Aggies, but “No question, this team is an NCAA tournament team,” “It’s just overwhelming right now, all the adversity more up than down. The Aggies won eight of their first Sampson continued. “It’s not because of who we scheduled we faced during conference and all the hard work that nine games in SEC action. They promptly lost four in a in non-conference. It is what we have done the last 11 we put in during the summer,” Jones said. “To win the row before righting the ship and winning their final six games. So much emphasis is put on how you finish the conference championship feels great, and we’ve got to games. They finished the season 13-5 in SEC play, 24-7 season, and we finished our season winning nine out of 11.” continue to build on this and get other championships as overall and winner of the regular season SEC title. The Cougars are a very athletic group led by the trio of well.” The SEC tourney is being held through March 13 at sophomore Rob Gray Jr. (16.3 ppg.), senior Devonta Pollard The University of Houston will head into the the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. (13.9 ppg.) and junior Damyean Dotson (13.8 ppg.) American Athletic Conference tournament as the No. “I’m thankful to be a part of such a special run, and
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MARCH 10 | 2016 | DEFENDER
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sportsbriefs Dotson Player of the Week University of Houston junior guard Damyean Dotson was honored as the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week after leading the Cougars to a pair of league road wins at the University of Central Florida and at UConn. Dotson averaged 19.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game and led the Cougars in scoring in each game. The Houston native connected on 66.7 percent (16 of 24) from the field, including 50 percent (7 of 14) from the 3-point line, and is the only Cougar to start all 29 games to date this season. He posted 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting with three 3-pointers and six rebounds in a dominating 88-61 win at UCF. The Yates High product followed that with an impressive 22-point, 14-rebound performance at UConn.
Rockets sign Beasley The Dekaney High School girls are the 2016 Class 6A state runner-up.
Dekaney girls knocking on state championship door might have been different. We just couldn’t make shots,” Stroman said. “We had some open looks but we couldn’t buy a basket.” erhaps this was the next to the last step leading Two Dekaney starters shot a combined 0-18 from to the Dekaney High School girls’ basketball the field in the first half. However, Wildcats’ guard Kene team eventually hoisting the state championship Hamilton had a strong game and finished with 17 points trophy. and 14 rebounds to earn all-tournament honors. For the second time since 2012 Dekaney advanced “They [Duncanville] are undefeated for a to the state title game only to suffer another eerily similar reason. They’re a phenomenal group,” Stroman said. disheartening loss at the hands of unbeaten Duncanville “Defensively, we did what we wanted to do. You’re not (39-0). Dekaney (37-2) succumbed 76-42 after losing by going to stop them but they missed some shots and we 38 points to the Pantherettes four years ago. held them in the 30s at halftime. When you’re down by 24 In the interim, Dekaney made two trips to the at halftime instead of eight or five, it’s hard for the kids to regional finals in 2013 and 2015 that ended their seasons. see themselves digging out of that hole. So much success shrouded by untimely losses hardly “What’s sad for me is that my kids didn’t show what seems fair. we really can do,” Stroman said. “I’m sure Duncanville Yet Dekaney head coach Stacy Stroman tried to put influenced a lot of that. But when you get on this stage, in a positive twist on the Wildcats’ latest barrier to greatness. this game, you want your kids to show what they can do “You put a lot of hard work and effort into a long season and what they’ve done all season. My top three or four like this,” she said. “It’s going to be hard to rebuild or scorers couldn’t buy a basket.” regroup without Jaelyn.” Dekaney High School is nine years old and the girls’ Jaelyn Richard-Harris is a four-year starter that will basketball program has grown into one of the state’s take her talents to LSU later elite in a relatively short this fall. amount of time. “She’s such a great “We try to demand defendernetwork.com point guard and she’s been excellence and hard work Find out which basketball player there for me the past four in the kids early on,” attained “rock star” status years. Her graduating is Stroman said. “We do it huge. There are not many every day and the kids kids that can fill her shoes,” Stroman said. have bought into it for awhile now.” Dekaney fell behind 11-0 and there was no catching Stroman coached a group of girls at Spring High up. A three-pointer by Aniya Thomas gave Duncanville an School to the state basketball tournament in 2007. 18-2 advantage that swelled to 33-9 at intermission. Somehow you get the feeling that the Dekaney girls will “If we could have hit some shots early in the game it be heard from again.
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By DARRELL K. ARDISON Defender
The Houston Rockets announced that the team has signed free agent forward Michael Beasley. Beasley (6-feet-9, 235) was originally the second overall pick by Miami in the 2008 NBA draft following his lone collegiate season at Kansas State, where he earned National Freshman of the Year honors from The Sporting News and the United States Basketball Writers Association. In seven NBA seasons, he has appeared in 433 games with 200 starts, while averaging 13 points. Prior to signing with the Rockets, Beasley played for the Shandong Golden Stars of the Chinese Basketball Association and was named the league’s Most Valuable Player among foreigners.
Elkins, Atascocita win Elkins guard Ken Busby shook off an ankle injury to lead the Knights to a 67-65 victory over Beaumont Ozen in the Region III-5A championship game and earn the school’s first trip to the boys’ state basketball tournament. Elkins improved to 35-2 on the season. Busby scored 14 points, including a big three-pointer that broke a 55-55 tie with five minutes and change left in the game. Chad Bowie led a balanced Elkins scoring attack with 18 points. Ansu Sesay and Tyrik Armstrong added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Atascocita remained unbeaten (37-0) with an 80-65 win over Austin Westlake in the Region II-6A finals. Fabian White scored a game-high 28 points and Carsen Edwards added 23 for the Eagles who will make their first trip to the state tournament. La Marque also punched its ticket to the state basketball tournament for the second year in a row with a 71-54 victory over Wharton in the Region IV-4A finals.
Crosby girls routed Class 5A Crosby was making its second trip to the girls’ state basketball tournament in 20 years. Defending champion Canyon was vying for its 10th championship in 10 state appearances since 2000. Crosby made just two baskets in the first half and was limited to a season-low 25 points in the 5A state semifinals. Canyon prevailed 55-25 as Crosby shot 21 percent from the field and missed all 11 of their three-point attempts. Crosby (30-8) took a 16-game winning streak into the state tournament and hadn’t lost since December.
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DEFENDER | MARCH 10 | 2016
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Happening in Houston For event coverage email: events@defendermediagroup.com
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ATLF/KAPPA KASINO ROYALE……..Mardi Gras masks and beads added glitz to Suspect: Tragedies of Racial Profiling.” Guests were able to ask questions and talk one the 2016 Kasino Royale, the signature scholarship fundraiser presented by Achievement on one with the NAACP President as they enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. Those in Through Leadership Foundation with the Missouri City-Sugar Land Alumni Chapter attendance included NAACP Houston Branch President James Douglas, Executive Director of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. held at the DoubleTree Hilton Greenway Plaza. One Yolanda Smith, Jylise Smith, Dean Leonard Baynes, Ellen Marrus, Laura Oren, Dr. lucky winner received a “Porsche for the Weekend” sponsored by Momentum Porsche. Ewlyn Lee, Leonard James, Howard Jefferson, Carmen Watkins, Kim Baynes and Those in attendance included Annetra Piper, Annette Moore, Fredric Navarre, Kimberly students and faculty from the university……..HIGHER DIMENSION THE ANSWER Shoaf-Joseph, Richard Spencer, Fredericka Phillips, Nichelle CONFERENCE……..Pastor Terrance Johnson and First Lady Minix, Ron Julun, Thomas “T.J.” Cotter, Richard Spencer, Nick Torsha Johnson of Higher Dimension Church recently hosted their Defender TOP EVENTS Eubanks, Will Walker, Fabian Broaden, Brian Wright, Don second annual Answer Conference. The evening kicked off with hip More photos on defendernetwork.com Morales, Haroon Taylor, Sheldan Perry, Earnestine Wagner, hop pioneer MC Lyte live spinning on the ones and twos, and was See Events on KTRK Ch.13’s ‘Crossroads’ with Melanie Lawson Sunday Morning @ 5:30 and 11:30 a.m. Henry Wagner, Dr. Justin Washington, Hiji Washington, followed by Prudential’s Money, Relationships and Common Cents Marcolin Eakins, Fred McCoy, Joycelyn Washington, Lisa panel. Panelists consisted of Jonathan Sprinkles, MC Lyte, Jamar Peterson, and Gina Jackson.……..CORNELL WILLIAM Jones, LaToyia Dennis and Dr. Yulonda Griffin. A VIP Red Carpet BROOKS AT UH……..The University of Houston Law Center hosted NAACP’s Affair featured Slim Thug, David & Tamela Mann, Michelle Williams, Marcus Ecby, The President and CEO Cornell William Brooks as apart of the Yale L. Rosenberg lecture Musician Wives, Jonathan Sprinkles, Carlos Wallace, Dr. Irishea Hillard and more. The and reception. Brooks discussed racial profiling and a detailed study entitled “Born conference also included speakers such as Ashley Turner, Nephew Tommy and John Gray.
Annetra Piper, Annette Moore, Fredric Navarre, Kimberly Shoaf-Joseph, Richard Spencer
James Douglas, Cornell William Brooks, Jylise Smith
Tamela and David Mann
Joycelyn Washington, Lisa Peterson, Gina Jackson
Cornell William Brooks, Laura Oren, Ellen Marrua, Leonard Baynes
MC Lyte
Marcolin Eakins, Fred McCoy Kasino Royale photos by DeAndre M. Johnson
Howard Jefferson, Yolanda Smith, Leonard James
First Lady Torsha Johnson, Pastor Terrance H. Johnson, Kandyce Wade
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