Sandra Bland, 28
Breonna Taylor, 26
Aiyana Jones, 7
Atatiana Jeerson, 28
Rekia Boyd, 22
Pamela Turner, 44
Michelle Cusseaux, 50
Yvette Smith, 47
#SAYHERNAME Five years after the death of Sandra Bland, national attention is focused on the death of Black women and girls at the hands of police.
FEATURE
LOCAL
JOE P
ROYCE WEST
Houston spoken word icons join the Defender in Facebook COVID-19 campaign. Volume 89, issue 37 July 9, 2020
The candidate for U.S. Senate tells Blacks why they must vote.
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DN On Point
FIT & FINE Nicole Hudson Age: 47 Occupation: Owner of Conscious Eatz, a meal prep company Education: Texas State University Major: Business Motto: “Want for your sister and brother what you want for yourself.”
LEARN… My top tip for staying in shape.
Kanye West, who wore a MAGA cap while visiting President Donald Trump in the White House in 2018, now says he’s running for president. OLIVIER DOULIERY/AP PHOTO
Message from the People Editor more than just reality show bravado. It was America not only has a reality TV president, symbolic of a different kind of energy that is but America itself has become a reality show. emerging — Black folk asserting our agency Now, I’m no expert on the genre, but what I do and reshaping our reality. know is reality shows thrive off sensationalism It’s as if the courage and fire of our ancesand fake drama to get the audience hyped. They tors has been reborn in us. Even the most vilify one person or group and purposefully blasé, chill brothers and sisters were declaring instigate conflict where none need exist. This July 4 Frederick Douglass Day! The spirit of Aswad Walker can lead to very real violence that’s played on our Madame C.J. Walker engulfed us with the red screens over and over again. Not only that, ignofires of resistance as we made July 7 National rance and tomfoolery are valued over intelligence and decency. Blackout Day, withholding our green dollars from busiExamples of reality TV 101 are everywhere. The instinesses that care little about us. gator-in-chief in the White House tweets lies of NASCAR That Malcolm X spirit had many of us refusing to be hoodbrother Bubba Wallace planting that racetrack noose, and winked and bamboozled by the NFL’s attempt to placate us 45’s cult members respond by attempting to lynch a broth- by singing the Black National Anthem before games yet still er in Indiana on July 4 of all days. not employing Colin Kaepernick or hiring more Black head Trump groupie Kayne West announces his run for coaches. Fam, let’s keep this energy going! president, a move Black folk immediately call out as an attempt to take Black votes away from candidate Joe Biden. IN THIS WEEK’S DEFENDER Mississippi Election Commissioner, Gail “Ms. Daisy” • Make your vote count and read about the promising Welch, complained that “The Blacks” were registering in early vote numbers. too large numbers, and said “people in Mississippi have to • Associate Editor Marilyn Marshall writes about Sandra get involved, too.” So, Blackfolk aren’t people, Ms. Daisy? Bland five years after her death and profiles Black women She sounds just as reality-show silly as those racists who and girls killed by police. #SayHerName warned Blacks to stay away from Stone Mountain (the • In sports, Terrance Harris shares why the NFL is “off largest Confederate monument in the nation) on the “4th key” with their “Lift Every Voice and Sing” plans. of You Lie.” Mayne! Even I, who have only seen 10 minutes of reality TV in my entire life, know that challenging ON THE WEB folk to jump leads to only one response. And “The Blacks” • Prayers are going up for Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance at Stone Mountain jumped big-time. Bottoms who tested positive for COVID-19. • Track the recovery of Rickey Smiley’s youngest daughter RESHAPING BLACK REALITY who was shot three times here in Houston. When a battalion of Black folk dressed in all black and • See Black Houston’s reaction to H-Town being selected armed to the tee showed up at Stone Mountain, it was for COVID-19 vaccine trials. AMERICA THE REALITY SHOW
IG: @mz_nicolex Facebook: @NicoleXRunner Read more on Friday about Nicole at defendernetwork.com If you are Fit & Fine email: fitnfine@defendernetwork.com
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DEFENDER NETWORK
DN News Billionaire Robert Smith asks corporations for 2% reparative plan for Blacks
Kanye West announces he’s running for president
RUDLEY OR FREEMAN?
TSU considers naming library Defender News Service
a number of degree programs in engineering and education, and secured $50 million in funding Regents for Texas Southern University are for the college library. mulling a name change for the Library Learning Alumni quickly mobilized, launching a Change. Center. Initially, the board was considering org petition to rename the library after Freeman. changing the name to the “Dr. John M. Rudley The petition has garnered over 4,000 signatures. Library Learning Center,” after the former TSU “A Baptist minister as well as a professor, president. Th omas F. Freeman was one of those rare Dr. John Rudley But an online petition started by some alumni instructors whose mentorship and guidance urged the regents to consider naming the facility outside the classroom was prized as much as his after longtime debate coach Thomas F. Freeman, teaching,” the alumni wrote. who died June 6 at age 100. He joined TSU’s Wendell King II, a TSU alumnus and former faculty in 1949 and quickly became a legend on assistant coach who worked under Freeman, the campus, training students and celebrities said his impact was immeasurable and lasted alike in public speaking and debate. longer than most people at the meeting had At the June board meeting, regents said the been alive. Library Learning Center considered a resolution The university’s honors college was named Dr. Thomas F. to name it after Rudley, a certified public after Freeman in 2009, during Rudley’s tenure. Freeman accountant who served as president from 2008 to The debate suite has also been enshrined as the 2016. T.F. Freeman Center for Forensic Excellence. The resolution listed several of Rudley’s accomplishments, After hearing both sides, board members postponed the including the college’s substantial growth. Under his leadership, official naming of the library. The board’s next meeting is TSU launched an aviation sciences flight training program and scheduled for Aug. 13. An agenda has not been released.
Rickey Smiley’s daughter shot in Houston Defender News Service
The daughter of nationally known comedian Rickey Smiley is continuing her recovey after being caught in the crossfire of a shooting police are blaming on road rage. Smiley posted a video on social media as he rushed to Houston after learning his daughter, Aaryn, 19, was shot over the July 4th weekend. Aaryn was on her way to an eating establishment near
Highway 288 and Holcombe when police believe it was road rage, and she was caught in the middle. Smiley wasn’t allowed to see his daughter and was forced to use FaceTime because of coronavirus restrictions, but was just grateful that she was alive. Police are still looking for the shooter but believe the incident stemmed from a fight at a separate location. “I just want people to
Comedian Ricky Smiley and daughter Aaryn Smiley
talk to their kids about their surroundings, who they hang out with and what they’re involved with. A lot Publisher | CEO Sonceria Messiah-Jiles
VOLUME 89 - NUMBER 37 - JULY 9, 2020 The Defender newspaper is published by the Houston Defender Newspaper Inc. and audited by Alliance for Audited Media (AAM). Only digital subscriptions are available at: www.defendernetwork.com/subscribe No paper subscriptions available. All materials covered by 2020 copyright. No materials herein may be reproduced without the written permission of the Publisher. 713-663-6996 | P.O. Box 8005, Houston, Tx 77288
Ad/Client Relations Selma Dodson Tyler Strategic Alllance Clyde Jiles Engagement Manager Margo Williams Hubbard
of innocent kids were killed over 4th of July weekend from people with guns who should not have them,” he said. Managing Editor ReShonda Tate Billingsley Creative Director Michael Grant Associate Editor Marilyn Marshall
Why we must vote! ROYCE WEST, TEXAS STATE SENATOR “African Africans should vote on July 14 because our future depends on what actions we take in the runoff. This is the first election in Texas following the George Floyd protests. In the U.S. Senate race, Texans find themselves able to send someone who has walked in their shoes to Washington. As an added bonus, that person already has tremendous experience when it comes to the issues of the day, including police reform, criminal justice reform, and social and economic justice. As your next U.S. Senator, I will bring both my ability to build coalitions and my unique perspective to the U.S. Senate to get things done for our people.” BORRIS MILES, TEXAS STATE SENATOR “I believe it is always important to vote in our elections. It is how our community can express its voice and elect leaders who will represent our views from city council to Congress. This year, we have the opportunity to send an African American from Texas to the U.S. Senate, my friend and colleague, State Senator Royce West. In these times, he is the best choice for Texas to send to Washington D.C. He is the longtime Democrat in this race with a record in the Texas Legislature of expanding health care access, increasing funding for public education and championing economic development in underserved communities. With a historic opportunity to pass police reform in Washington, Senator West is the only choice. He has passed significant reform legislation in Texas, banning racial profiling, requiring dashboard cameras in police cars, and body cameras for police officers. We need that experience in the U.S. Senate.Because fewer people vote in runoff elections, your vote will count much more on July 14. Vote and Breathe!”
People Editor Aswad Walker Sports Terrance Harris Jodie B. Jiles Photographers Ray Carrington III Jimmie Aggison
Correction During a recent story on “Let the People Be Heard,” the Defender inadvertently ran the wrong photo of Rev. Ricky Williams. We apologize for the error.
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DN News
‘Senseless’ shootings claim young lives Associated Press
A 6-year-old computer whiz from Illinois who preferred milk to soda. An 8-year-old from Georgia who loved to make dance videos. From San Francisco to South Carolina, a spate of shootings claimed the lives of people celebrating or just taking a drive over the Fourth of July weekend. Chicago saw one of its bloodiest holiday weekends in memory, with 17 killed and 70 wounded by gunďŹ re. The incidents come amid fears the coronavirus pandemic, protests against racism, rising gun sales and an election year could make for a particularly deadly summer. Here’s a look at some of the victims. ‘SHE DIED IN MY ARMS’
Secoriea Turner should have been making TikTok videos on her phone Sunday evening, her mother said. Instead, Charmaine Turner appeared before reporters with Atlanta’s mayor and interim police chief to plead for anyone with information about her 8-year-old daughter’s death to come forward.
and started ďŹ ring rounds. Her father, Nathan Wallace, said he’d hugged his daughter minutes before the shooting. “I just wanted her to have a chance at life,â€? he said. A 33-year-old man was charged with murder. ‘HE WAS GOING TO BE SOMETHING’
Four child victims of gun violence in the US over the holiday weekend pictured from left: Natalia Wallace, Davon McNeal, Secoriea Turner, and Royta De’Marco Giles Jr.
Secoriea was riding in a car with her mother and another adult just before 10 p.m. Saturday. They exited the interstate and tried to enter a parking lot when they were confronted by “a group of armed individualsâ€? blocking the entrance, police said. Before the driver could make a U-turn, shots were ďŹ red and Secoriea was hit, Turner said. “She died in my arms,â€? Turner said.
‘A CHANCE AT LIFE’
Studious and sweet, Natalia Wallace was preparing to start second grade in a few weeks at a Chicago elementary school. The 7-year-old was killed by a gunshot wound to the head. She was standing on the sidewalk in a West Side neighborhood where she’d visited her grandmother. Authorities said gunmen got out of a car
Jace Young was a “bright star� with an unlimited future, his uncle said. Six-year-old Jace was shot and killed while attending a birthday party in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco. Nate Ford said his nephew was intelligent and empathetic beyond his years. “We knew he was going to be something,� the boy’s uncle told the San Francisco Chronicle. No arrests have been made. “Senseless violence like this that could so tragically claim the life of a small child is unacceptable in our city,� said San Francisco police Chief William Scott.
KNOW PREDICT PREVENT Â Â? Â? Â Â? Â? Â?
Offic e of Distr ict Attorne y ha r r is co unt y, T X
Kim Ogg
HarrisCount yDA.COM
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DEFENDER NETWORK
DN InFocus FOCUS SOCIAL DEATH OF SANDRA BLAND: FIVE YEARS LATER
Marilyn Marshall
As the nation deals with calls for criminal justice reform, the mysterious death of Sandra Bland in July 2015 exemplified what can go wrong with African Americans while in police custody. Bland, 28, was pulled over near her alma mater, Prairie View A&M University, for failing to signal a lane change. Her death three days later in a Waller County Jail cell resulted in widespread demands for answers. For a perspective on the tragedy five years later, the Defender turned to Houston State Rep. Garnet Coleman, who has advocated for justice in the case while addressing the “harmful policies” that led to Bland’s demise. Two weeks after her death, Coleman convened a Texas House committee hearing to look into trooper arrest procedures and state jail standards. “I still can’t figure out how someone gets pulled over and gets stopped for changing lanes and ends up dead,” Coleman said in 2015. “It doesn’t make any sense.” Here, he talks about lessons learned and what lies ahead.
Defender: What lessons have we learned from the tragic death of Sandra Bland?
ABOUT SANDRA BLAND • Naperville, Ill. native • Ran track, played volleyball and was cheerleader in high school • 2009 graduate, PVAMU College of Agriculture • Member, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority • Worked on administrative staff of Illinois food service equipment company • Spoke out about plight of African Americans using #SandySpeaks hashtag
Bland, dressed in prison garb, stood before a desk at Waller County Jail in Hempstead,Texas. WALLER COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT VIA AP
by their State Attorney General Keith Ellison recommended already knew how dangerous de-escalation training for all the criminal justice system officers in Minnesota. is for us, but Sandra Bland’s death made it clear to some The foundation of the white people how our crimiSandra Bland Act has also nal justice system treats Black allowed Texas to pass adState Rep. people. How Black people are ditional reform like my HB more likely to be pulled over, Garnet Coleman 4468 from last session, which arrested, not be able to make helped improve jail safety, bail, etc. Then to add insult to injury the and provided the woodwork that allowed perpetrators of these wrongdoings often TCOLE [Texas Commission on Law Enget off with little to no punishment. forcement] to fulfill my [recent] request Defender: How has the Sandra to add implicit bias training into the baBland Act that you introduced sic officer training course. Coleman: Most Black people
made a difference since it was signed into law in 2017? Coleman: We have re-
quired de-escalation training for law enforcement officers in Texas; our jails are safer than they were because of better jailer training, safety improvements, and outside investigations of in- custody deaths; and we have better data. There is still a long way to go but we are further ahead than others. For example, earlier this year before George Floyd’s murder in Minnesota, a statewide task force on police reform lead
Defender: What should the Texas Legislature do during its next session to address police reform and what will your role be? Coleman: Senator John Whitmire
and I are going to work together once again on passing a package of policies to reform our criminal justice system. We need to have policies that prohibit choke holds, pretext stops, consent searches, and arrests for non-jailable offenses. We also need to strengthen our racial profiling law, and collect more and better data. We need to improve the safety of our communities not only by training better officers, but also looking into alternatives like community oversight boards with real power, and Crisis Assistance: Helping Out on the Streets (CAHOOTS) programs where social workers and police work together to solve problems.
Questions still surround Sandra Bland’s death on July 13, 2015.
• Posted that, “Being a Black person in America is very, very hard. At the moment Black lives matter…” • Described by sister Sharon as “extremely spontaneous, spunky, outgoing, truly filled with life and joy…”
TIMELINE OF EVENTS July 10, 2015 – White DPS Trooper Brian Encinia pulled Sandra Bland over. He arrested her for being combative and took her to Waller County jail. She was charged with assaulting law enforcement official. July 13, 2015 – Around 9 a.m. Bland found hanging from plastic bag liner made into noose. Authorities said hallway cameras showed no one entering or leaving before body discovered. July 16, 2015 – Encinia placed on administrative leave for violating procedures guiding traffic stops and department’s courtesy policy. Texas Commission on Jail Standards cited Waller County jail for failing to conduct timely checks on inmates and inadequate employee training for mental health issues. July 17, 2015 – Protesters marched in Waller County to demand investigation into Bland’s death as family, friends and Black officials questioned circumstances. Protests later spread to other states. July 23, 2015 – Medical examiners ruled Bland ‘s death suicide by hanging. Jan. 7, 2016 – In only indictment tied to Bland’s death, grand jury said Encinia lied about why he ordered her out of her car. Encinia later fired. Sept. 15, 2016 – Bland’s family settled wrongful death civil suit for $1.9 million. June 28, 2017 – Perjury charge dropped against Encinia, who agreed to give up law enforcement license. Dec. 3, 2018 – HBO premiered documentary “Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland,” examining the case and unanswered questions.
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DN InFocus FOCUS SOCIAL
BLACK WOMEN, GIRLS KILLED BY POLICE VIOLENCE Marilyn Marshall
#SAYHERNAME
Louisville shooting victim Breonna Taylor is remembered during a rally in Boston. Taylor’s death also led to unrest in Louisville. One of the officers involved in the shooting was fired. (AP PHOTO/STEVEN SENNE)
The killing of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ken. has focused nationwide attention on the death of Black women and girls at the hands of police. It comes at a time when Americans are demanding reform and an end to police violence that has taken the lives of Taylor, George Floyd, Rayshard Brooks and too many others. Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician, was asleep in her apartment on March 13 when it was raided by three plainclothes officers executing a no-knock warrant related to drugs. Gunfire was exchanged between officers and Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, a licensed gun owner. Taylor was shot eight times. No drugs were found in her home and the suspect in the case had already been taken into custody. Rev. Al Sharpton, president of the National Action Network, said NAN was “outraged” by Taylor’s death. “It’s inexcusable that Black women make up less than 10% of the population and 33% of all women killed by the police,” Sharpton said. A 2018 study by Washington University in St.
Louis found that nearly 60 percent of Black women killed by police were unarmed at the time of the interaction. By comparison, less than 20% of white men killed by police were unarmed. Bringing the issue to the forefront is one of the goals of #SayHerName, a national campaign promoting awareness of the “often invisible names and stories of Black women and girls who have been victimized by racist police violence.” #SayHerName was launched in 2014 by the African American Policy Forum (AAPF) and Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies. Since its founding, the campaign has expanded and increased its focus on direct advocacy. Each year, it hosts a #SayHerName Mothers Weekend in New York City to bring together mothers who have lost their daughters to police violence. The Mothers of #SayHerName and AAPF described Breonna Taylor as a “daughter, sister, niece, and granddaughter who was unjustly executed in her own home…,” and demanded visibility, accountability and justice. “Our lives matter, our daughters’ lives mattered, Breonna Taylor’s life mattered.”
Demands & recommendations
#SayHerName compiled a list of demands and policy recommendations to combat police violence and heighten awareness of it. They include: • Honor the memories and tell the stories of Black women and girls who have been killed by police. • Invest in forms of community safety and security that do not rely on police officers. • Defund the police and divert those resources back to where they were taken from: mental health and domestic violence services, shelters for people without homes, education, etc. • Hold police accountable for violence against Black women and girls. • Create and pass reforms that specifically address the home as a site of police violence against Black women. • End the use of no-knock warrants. • End the practice of sending officers to mental health and domestic disturbance calls. • Adopt and enforce police department policies banning officers from searching people to assign gender based on anatomical features. • Create and enact use-of-force policies to prohibit the use of Tasers or excessive force on pregnant women or children.
• Include the faces, names, and stories of Black women alongside those of Black men at protests, demonstrations and other actions against police violence. • Use an intersectional gender and racial lens when developing policy platforms to ensure that comprehensive solutions to state violence are being built. • Create spaces to discuss how patriarchy, homophobia and transphobia impact Black communities as a whole. • Hold individuals and organizations accountable for addressing how our communities sometimes recreate systems of oppression. • Develop skills to talk about the multiplicity of ways in which state violence affects all Black women and girls, including transgender, non-transgender and gender-nonconforming. • Acknowledge that both public and private forms of violence are devastating the lives of Black women and girls.
For more information visit aapf.org/ sayhername
Remembering their names Defender News Service
Black women and girls ranging in age from 7 to 93 have been killed by police. Here are five such tragedies: AIYANA STANLEY-JONES, 7, Detroit – She was asleep on the couch in 2010 when a Special Response Team stormed through the apartment looking for a murder suspect. She was mistakenly shot through the neck and killed. Officer Joseph Weekley was charged with involuntary manslaughter. He was cleared of charges after multiple trials. Aiyana’s family agreed to an $8.25 million settlement with the city in 2019. REKIA BOYD, 22, Chicago – She was walking with a group of people in Chicago in 2012 when Dante Sevin, an off-duty officer, exchanged words with them over noise. Servin said he thought one of Boyd’s friends had a gun – it was actually a cell phone – so he opened fire in fear for his life. Boyd was fatally shot in the back of the head. Her family was awarded a $4.5 million wrongful death settlement in 2013 while Servin was still with the department. He was later charged with involuntary manslaughter but found not guilty at trial. ATATIANA JEFFERSON, 28, Fort Worth – She was babysitting her 8-year-old nephew in 2019 when two officers arrived at her home for a welfare check. Jefferson, a pre-med graduate student, heard a noise in the yard, retrieved a gun and pointed it at the window. Officer Aaron Dean yelled “Put your hands up! Show me your hands!” before firing through the window, killing her. Dean resigned and remains under indictment for murder. YVETTE SMITH, 47, Bastrop – She had called 911 to defuse a dispute between two men near Austin in 2014. When she opened the door, an officer yelled “Police” and shot her. Police initially claimed that Smith was armed and refused officers’ demands. Investigators later said they couldn’t confirm that Smith was armed or refused to follow commands. The officer, Daniel Willis, was acquitted of murder. Smith’s family settled a lawsuit against Bastrop County for $1.2 million. MICHELLE CUSSEAUX, 50, Phoenix – She was changing the lock on her door in 2014 when police arrived to take her to a mental health facility. Police said she wouldn’t open her door so they forced their way inside. Sgt. Percy Dupra said he saw her holding a hammer above her head in a way he deemed threatening and that he shot her in self-defense. No criminal charges were filed against Dupra. A Phoenix Police Department internal review board later demoted him. DEFENDERNETWORK.COM Get update the death of Pamela Turner in Baytown
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DEFENDER NETWORK
DN Feature CORONAVIRUS:
THINGS TO KNOW Data reveals firms that received PPP money
By Defender News Service Abbott blasts local leaders’ responses
Gov. Greg Abbott didn’t hold back when addressing local officials who are pushing for a second stay-at-home order or more authority of their own. During an interview with a Beaumont TV station, KFDM, Abbott put Texas leaders on blast for not enforcing his established orders. “If you look at the county judges or mayors who are asking for more authority to take action or to really shut things down completely back into lockdown mode that really forces Texans into poverty,” Abbott said. “I found one thing consistent: All of these local officials who are asking to shut Texas back down – they’ve absolutely refused to enforce the current executive orders that are already in place.” Abbott said every order related to the pandemic, including the current statewide mask order, was issued based on the advice of doctors. He said if local leaders were enforcing the order then they would see a decline in the spread of COVID-19. In the recent order, Abbott said wearing a mask is a proven method to slowing down the spread of COVID-19 and said Texans’ compliance with the order would help prevent more extreme measures from being implemented.
By Defender News Service
Nearly 6,300 Texas-based companies are among those that received loans from the federal government valued at more than $1 million this spring, representing a major injection of government money into the state as the federal government was straining to keep the economy afloat. Within that sum, nearly 400 Texas companies received loans within the range of $5 million to $10 million, according to data from the Trump administration. The companies taking part in what government officials called the Paycheck Protection Program say they were able to retain jobs. Here is a sample of companies around the country that received funds:
$10 MILLION LUBY’S
$5 MILLION & $10 MILLION PF CHANG’S
GOP convention moves forward despite concerns
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is strongly urging the Texas GOP to cancel this month’s in-person convention at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Turner pleaded with the event’s organizers and sponsors to call it off and said if canceling is not an option, to at least make the in-person convention -- which is scheduled for July 16 through 18 -- virtual due to the surge in COVID-19 cases in the city of Houston. Turner said all major conventions and conferences scheduled this year have been either canceled or rescheduled to 2021 except the GOP convention and he doesn’t think it’s wise to bring thousands of people together as the city desperately works to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Turner said if the convention happens, organizers must adhere to several social distancing and masking rules. Texans may have to pay back unemployment funds
More than 46,000 Texans who lost their jobs in recent months are having portions of their unemployment benefits clawed back after the Texas Workforce Commission found that they were initially overpaid. The overpayments are estimated to be more than $32 million in total since March. There can be several causes for overpayment, according to the agency, including fraud or incorrect reporting on an application. If TWC finds unemployment
$5 MILLION & $10 MILLION TGI FRIDAY’S
The Texas Medical Association’s COVID-19 Task Force has issued a risk assessment chart to help people gauge their risk levels when doing activities
problems accessing benefits, encountering fraud in a case, the person has to give busy phone lines and an overwhelmed back the benefits and pay a 15% penalty. application website. Benefits must be repaid even if the state is to blame for the overpayment, or if it Atlanta mayor tests positive for was otherwise not the recipient’s fault. The COVID-19 state comptroller can recover the money Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms by withholding certain funds, including has announced that she tested positive for lottery winnings, unclaimed property, COVID-19, though she has NO unemployment benefits and symptoms. Her husband and one other state job-related expenses. of her children have also tested Some state funding for college positive. Bottoms, in her first term students cannot be released as mayor, has risen to prominence until a repayment is made during the COVID-19 pandemic. in full. Claimants who have She has been noted for her earlier received notices can appeal the criticism of Republican Georgia process, but TWC can take legal Keisha Lance Gov. Brian Kemp on his slowness to action too if they don’t recover Bottoms order Georgians to shelter in place the money. City of Atlanta and his quickness to lift that order. As of late June, 2.7 Bottoms has supported protests million Texans had filed for against police brutality and racial injustice unemployment relief since mid-March, but that have been widespread in Atlanta, urging TWC has struggled to keep up with the protesters to get tested for the virus. She has high levels of demand. Since the pandemic no idea how she contracted the virus. started, countless Texans have experienced
$2 MILLION & $5 MILLION
KANYE WEST’S CLOTHING SNEAKER BRAND YEEZY
$1 MILLION TO $2 MILLION SCULPTOR JEFF KOONS
$1 MILLION
AMERICANS FOR TAX REFORM FOUNDATION
$350,000 & $1 MILLION THE GIRL SCOUTS
$6.3 MILLION WEST VIRGINIA GOV. JIM JUSTICE (WV RICHEST PERSON)
*Data only reveals ranges
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DEFENDER NETWORK
DN Feature Houston selected for COVID-19 vaccine trials
The Texas Education Agency has announced COVID-19 safety guidelines for students returning to school in the fall. Those guidelines include masks for everyone inside schools and screenings. According to the TEA, parents can choose remote learning for their children at any point in the 2020-21 school year. Parents who choose remote learning may have to commit to remote instruction for a full grading period (6 or 9 weeks), but will not have to commit more than two weeks in advance, allowing a decision to be made off the latest public health information. At every school in the state, all students, teachers, staff and visitors will be screened before being allowed on campus. Also, masks will be required while inside school buildings Each district will have the option to establish a phased-in return to on-campus instruction for up to the first three weeks of the school year in order to make sure all appropriate health and safety procedures are in place. The TEA also told parents and educators to expect to see some campuses close for brief periods during the upcoming school year.
Defender News Service
The Texas Center for Drug Development (TCDD), an independent clinical research company, is looking for volunteers for trials that will be underway in two weeks. The program is a joint initiative between TCDD and DM Clinical Research. “We do want more people who are high risk, such as healthcare workers, firefighters, essential workers, people who work in grocery stores, but we do have vaccines for all different risk levels,” said Dr. Vicki Miller of TCDD. The company wants to make the pool of volunteers as diverse as possible and said Houston’s diversity is one of the reasons the area was chosen. “In order for trials to be shown to be effective and safe in all populations, all different types of people, all genders, races need to participate,” Miller said. They will try out several possible vaccines that have already passed the first phase of testing. “We are very careful; we don’t want to enroll anybody who wouldn’t qualify or would not be safe,” Miller said. For more information or to sign up, go to houstonfightscovid.com or call 281-886-3753.
TEA mandates students wear masks, announces other guidelines
COVID Testing
Black, Latino areas struggle with test disparities Associated Press
As the pandemic explodes in diverse states like Arizona and Florida, people in communities of color who have been exposed to the virus are struggling to get tested. While people nationwide complain about appointments being overbooked or waiting hours to be seen, getting a test can be even harder in America’s poorer, Hispanic and Black neighborhoods, far from middle-class areas where most chain pharmacies and urgent care clinics offering tests are found. “There really isn’t any testing around here,” said Juan Espinosa, who went with his brother Enrique to a recent drive-up testing event in Phoenix’s largely Latino Maryvale neighborhood after a fellow construction worker was suspected of having COVID-19. “We don’t know anywhere else to go.” Arizona — the nation’s leader in new confirmed infections per capita over the past two weeks — and its minority neighborhoods are just starting to feel what New York and other East Coast and Midwestern communities experienced several months ago, said Mahasin Mujahid, asso-
Pandemics expose the inequalities in our health care system. What is needed is to make testing free and as available as possible.”
Dr. Thomas Tsai, assistant professor Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
ciate professor at the University of California, Berkeley’s School of Public Health. “It’s the perfect storm as this hits unlevel playing fields all across the U.S.,” said Mujahid, a social epidemiologist who studies health in disadvantaged neighborhoods. INEQUALITIES EXPOSED
Public health officials say widespread testing to rapidly identify and isolate infected people can help ensure residents of underserved neighborhoods get care while slowing the virus’s spread. “Pandemics expose the inequalities in our health care system,” said Dr. Thomas
Tsai, assistant professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a surgeon at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “What is needed is to make testing free and as available as possible.” “Outreach to the Hispanic population, the Black community, to immigrants, the most vulnerable, unprotected people is critical for public health,” with a national response being ideal, he said. But President Donald Trump’s administration has delegated responsibility for testing to states that have stitched together a patchwork of responses, forcing private foundations and nonprofit community
health organizations to fill in the gaps and ensure people of color are reached. “If you just set up the testing sites in wealthy communities, you cannot rein this in,” said Dr. Usama Bilal, assistant professor at Drexel’s Dornsife School of Public Health in Philadelphia, where Black doctors recently won city funding for testing in African American neighborhoods. HELP NEEDED
When Florida officials were slow to roll out testing in the migrant community of Immokalee, the nonprofit Coalition of Immokalee Workers called on the international aid group Doctors Without Borders for help. The Greater Auburn-Gresham Development Corporation in Chicago pushed hard before getting support from the city’s Racial Equity Rapid Response Team to deliver free, widespread testing in that Black neighborhood. “It hit the African American communities very, very hard,” said the corporation’s executive director, Carlos Nelson. “We have since had great success in getting people tested and bringing numbers down.”
10 | July 9, 2020 |
DEFENDER NETWORK
DN Sports A.B. in Texans’ plans? While unconfirmed, there is speculation that there could be mutual interest between the Texans and troubled receiver Antonio Brown.
COMMENTARY
Rockets sign veteran forward
The Rockets have added veteran forward Luc Mbah a Moute to their roster for the season restart later this month.
NFL OFF KEY WITH BLACK NATIONAL ANTHEM Civil rights leaders and activists have demanded real and tangible change from the NFL, like more than three Black coaches and two Black general managers in a league that is over 70% African American. Terrance Harris
Much of Black America has been steadfast since the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell struck a conciliatory tone during the current Black Lives Matter movement. We want Colin Kaepernick to have his job back as an NFL quarterback. Period. Instead, the NFL has been only happy to provide us with empty gestures. The latest came when word got out that the NFL plans to play the Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” before the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” during opening week of the regular season in September. So that means when the Texans take on the Kansas City Chiefs to officially kickoff the season, we will all witness another empty gesture gone all wrong by the NFL. “Lift Every Voice and Sing” is a song that is sacred to our community and never meant to be part of any dog and pony show. Civil rights leaders and activists have demanded real and tangible change from the NFL, like more than three Black coaches and two Black general managers in a league that is over 70% African American. Instead of the assault on our intelligence with the apology from the commissioner and his admission that the league was wrong to interfere with the peaceful social protest of its players, a real start would be one of the 32 teams having the guts to sign Kaepernick. He has paid the price for spearheading this awakening when he was blackballed out of the league a few years ago for daring to take a knee during the playing of the national anthem to give attention to the senseless killing of Black people at the hands of police officers. Yet, all the NFL is offering is another symbolic gesture, and this one is just the most insulting of all. It’s one thing for the Black National Anthem to
be played before the start of HBCU games. Most in those stands understand and feel the power of the words James Weldon Johnson first wrote as a poem in the late 1890s. Most of the white fans who pack NFL stadiums probably won’t understand the meaning and power of those words: “...Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on ‘til victory is won...” This song that means so much to the African American community is supposed to now be the opening act for a song that was written by a slave owner, whose lyrics are saturated with racism? You have to wonder where was Jay-Z, who is supposed to be the well-paid voice of reason to the overwhelming white, male and privileged NFL owners fraternity when this decision was made by Goodell with the consent of his bosses. Let’s just hope between now and the start of the season that a better decision is made and a song that is so sacred to the African American community is not another empty gesture offered up the NFL.
Houston Texans wide receiver Kenny Stills (12) kneels during the national anthem before an NFL football game in Nashville, Tennessee. (AP Photo/Mark Zaleski, File)
Sports Briefs: Sefolosha opts out season restart Rockets veteran forward Thabo Sefolosha will not be with the team when it reports to Orlando as part of the journey of 22 teams to restart the NBA season. Sefolosha has opted out due to concerns with contracting the coronavirus in the planned “bubble” that the NBA hopes to create as it gets set to resume the season later this month at Disney World. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) TSU volleyball promotes alum Gabrielle Floyd has been named the new Tigers volleyball coach, becoming the program’s fourth head coach. Floyd, a native of Missouri City, was an All-SWAC player for the Tigers in the early 2000s and has been a longtime assistant coach under the previous two head coaches.
July 9, 2020 |
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DEFENDER NETWORK
DN Sports
DRU POLIDORE EXCELS IN SPORTS, ACADEMICS Aswad Walker
His mother recalled several situations where Black high schoolers who excel in both the her son was profiled, including a “driving while classroom and sports often receive far too little Black” incident where police searched Dru’s vehiattention. Dru Polidore, a senior at Tompkins cle for drugs, but found nothing but a spotless car, High School in Katy ISD, is one such student just like his entire discipline record — spotless. deserving of recognition. “Parents have to be vigilant and fight in During his junior year, Polidore’s skills as a most public and private schools to protect their defensive back garnered scholarship Black children from predatory teachers offers from across the country. Six and administrators,” said Ellene of those offers came from Ivy Polidore. “You just can’t legislate League campuses, underscoring people’s hearts, but you can his status as an academic star know your rights and control as well. After weighing his how you behave.” She added options, he chose to attend that Dru is so respected by the U.S. Air Force Academy those who know him that in Colorado Springs, Colo. parents often call and ask if “I define myself as a stuhe can talk to their sons. dent who happens to be an And according to Finnley athlete,” Polidore said. “My parPolidore, Dru is teaching him ents have always instilled the and his wife a thing or two. Dru Polidore in action with importance of education into “Dru has given us a Tompkins High School me, and I understand that renewed youth, seeing life sports are a luxury as to what through his eyes! He is a is necessary to be successful in life.” joy to be around…He teaches us to relax and He added that competition is his biggest enjoy life.” motivator, whether going one-on-one with wide “Dru fully understands that he is underreceivers or taking on school assignments. estimated and hated because of the color “What fuels me to succeed academically is of his skin,” his mother said. “He also competing in the classroom. I can’t stand to knows and was taught that he is a hear that one of my friends made a higher grade child of God and should fear no than me.” man.” Coming from a high-achieving family — his Though focused on academic mother, Ellene, has a PhD in Education and his and sports success, Polidore is sister, Taylor, is an accomplished actress with cred- well aware of the signs of the its that include several episodes of “Black Light- times, noting that the systemic ning”— Polidore points to his engineer father, oppression and racism toward Finnley, as his biggest influence. Black people has been going on too long. He “He’s been there every step of the way, on and has also seen COVID-19’s impact, with family off the field. My father has always been the main members who had it and survived, and with the person holding me to a standard of excellence,” pandemic’s potential impact on fall sports. he said. “The pandemic led me to make my college Still, his mother and father are far from being decision earlier than planned, but didn’t change overbearing “helicopter parents.” my decision-making process,” he said. “Helicopter? No. Supportive and high expecPolidore, officially a member of the Class of tations? Yes,” said Finnley Polidore. “We try to 2021, will complete his high school requirements let our kids know that they should not settle for this December and begin his transition to mediocrity. We tell them that if you take time to college. do anything, work to be the best and do not set Though extremely proud of your level of achievement based upon meeting his Ivy League offers, the future average goals.” Cyber Science major is all-in His parents are just as committed to making with Air Force. sure Polidore recognizes the reality of being Black “It’s the only school in in America. the country where even “’The Talk’ happens on a regular basis in our the sky is not the limit. household because my son is growing up to be a You can’t beat top 25 Black man in America and I want him to be aware college football and an Ivy of things he may face,” said his father. League-level education.”
Finnley Polidore, Taylor Polidore, Dru Polidore, Ellene Polidore
On & off the field 2
interceptions
9
pass break-ups
51
tackles
Named 1st Team All-District (19-6A)
Earned 16 Division I scholarship offers, including 6 from Ivy League schools
KATY ISD All-Academic Team 3.6 GPA
(all As and Bs)
12 | July 9, 2020 |
DEFENDER NETWORK
DN Entertainment
Joe P.
A.J. McQueen
Se7en
SPOKEN WORD ICONS JOIN DEFENDER CAMPAIGN
By Von Jiles
Houston is under a red alert as the coronavirus numbers continue to grow and claim the lives of Blacks at alarming rates. But, the COVID-19 pandemic is not the only battle African Americans in the area are confronting. There’s also a battle against social injustice. Joining forces in this war, the Houston Defender and several spoken word icons have combined their resources to encourage and uplift the community during this fight: Joe P, A.J. McQueen and Se7en. In the month of July, the Defender Facebook COVID-19 campaign is emphasizing the seriousness of the virus and the importance of taking personal responsibility in order to achieve a collective victory. Joe P, a spoken word artist who is also a professional actor, playwright, and educator, will be the first to debut. His talent and work will be showcased on Facebook.
When asked why he joined the campaign, Joe P said, “I wanted to utilize my gifts and skill set to promote the importance of staying safe from COVID-19 in the Black community. I have witnessed it firsthand as it ravaged through our community like a wild fire along with years of police brutality. “We are being attacked on all fronts so I wanted to do what I could to alert and inform our community of the importance of knowing this disease is serious, real and killing US. I wanted to join the Defender campaign because, one, I’m a supporter and reader of the Defender, and I also feel it’s the duty for an artist to serve their community in any way possible.” A.J. McQueen, poet and founder of Writer’s Block, a non-profit 501c3 performing arts and literacy company that encourages youngsters to discover their potential and change the world with it, commented on why is a part of the
Defender campaign. “This message is important because it is true,” McQueen said. “We need to bring awareness and clarity to what is affecting our communities and our people. It is greatly important that we use our voices and our influence to protect and defend. “I am joining this Defender campaign to offer my service, my voice, and my talent to help showcase solidarity and unity among our generation.” Seasoned spoken word artist Se7en rounds out the group of phenomenal messengers in the campaign. “As a griot in our community, I understand why the Defender is important! They are here to tell the story and so am I,” he said. Acknowledging the three talented men, Defender CEO and publisher Sonny Messiah Jiles stated, “We thank all of these gentlemen for their powerful words and support of the Houston Defender Network. Considering that for 90 years the
Defender has captured the words and images of the Houston Black community, as its historian, advocate and educator, this campaign seemed only fitting. Like other Black businesses impacted financially by COVID-19, we are also asking the community to support us by giving taxdeductible donations.” To see the full campaign, which includes spoken word, videos and music, go to www. facebook.com/defendernetwork.com. To learn more about the spoken word icons... Joseph Palmore, a professional actor with AEA and poet, go to: www. ActingUpStudios.com To book Joe P. call: Darnetta Nelson, 313-673-4682. A.J. McQueen, go to: www.ajmcqueen. com or call 281-746-0736 Se7en, go to: Se7enthepoet.com. To make a tax-deductible donation to the Defender Facebook COVID-19 Campaign go to: bit.ly/DefenderFacebookCOVID-19.