THE CASH STUFF FOR OCTOBER 28TH

                                                                     GREGORY S. SMITH

ALLEGED RACIALLY PROFILED

NC MEDICAL DIRECTOR PETITIONS

MO. ATTY GENERAL FOR 

“FORMAL INVESTIGATION”

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

A Fayetteville clinical director who alleges that he was illegally racially profiled by a Missouri state highway patrolman, and later forced to walk approximately 6 miles to his rental car in the dark of night, has now formally asked the Missouri attorney general and the governor; as well as the city administrator, city council and police chief of Platte City, Missouri;  to mount a“formal investigation’ respectively into the incident as his court date soon approaches.

Gregory S. Smith, clinical director of PromptCare Clinic in Fayetteville, says that he made the October 15th written request after it became clear that attorney he originally hired to represent him in the case “…isn’t advising or aggressive.”

Smith feels he had to do something on his own because his case has been moved up from its original November 16th date, to now November 9th.

“Perhaps he's intimidated by law enforcement there….,” Smith says of his old attorney, adding that it was “ridiculous” that he had to “…constantly contact this guy for updates.”

Smith is vigorously trying to secure a new attorney, especially with the new court date approaching. In the meantime he is hopeful that the 9-1-1 call and available trooper dash cam video of the incident will be able  to help him plead his case in a Missouri courtroom, and assist any investigation mounted by officials in the “show-me” state.

In his written request for a formal investigation -duly notarized in Cumberland County -  Smith recounted how, on August 6th of this year, he landed in Kansas City from North Carolina and secured his rental car to take him to his hotel in order to rest up for a medical conference he was attending nearby. It was after midnight when a Missouri state trooper pulled Smith over on the highway. Smith writes “to this very day, I still have no clue as to why I was pulled over, and I was given no explanation by the officer.’

All the while, Smith has called 9-1-1 on his cellphone, and is holding his phone in his hand on the steering wheel so that his tense exchange with the trooper can be both heard and recorded.

The trooper, demanding that the Black motorist produce a driver's license, then makes “…threatening, taunting, baiting, verbal commands [that] gave me the clear impression that he wanted me to make a sudden gesture that would allow him to [shoot] and kill me,” Smith writes. Then he states that he demands that a supervisor come to the scene, and he will present his license then.

The trooper then becomes “incensed and irate,” Smith alleges, and threatens to pepper spray him, and the other officers showing up on scene were “…gonna physically drag you you out of this vehicle, and physically go through yo personal belongings and take yo drivers’ license.”

Smith writes that he makes sure the 9-1-1 operator is hearing all that is being said, which she confirms, and that a supervisor will be on scene momentarily. In the meantime Smith says he felt as if his life “was in danger” as a more incensed Missouri state trooper “in the most verbally violent and hostile way…” continued to “threaten physical abuse and harm…six times within a five minute period.”

Other troopers came prepared to force Smith from his vehicle, when he says, a supervisor did come up on the other side, and asked Smith to produce his driver’s license, which the Black driver slowly and carefully did.

Then he slowly exited the vehicle, at which point he was thrust against the car by the trooper, had his legs pushed open, bent over the hood, and aggressively told the he was under arrest and tightly handcuffed.

Smith insists that even though he was taken to a Highway Patrol station to be booked, “I was never given an explanation for being stopped. And I was not given a reason for being arrested, nor was I mirandized.”

In his written petition to Missouri officials to investigate, Smith does not go into how badly his wrists were injured from the handcuffs (he had to go to the emergency room); how the troopers had a hard time justifying the arrest on forms, but still charged him $1,040 to not get locked up; and how, after 90 minutes when no cab showd up, he was forced to leave the Highway Patrol station in the dead of night to find his rental car six miles away at a gas station.

Gregory Smith concluded his written petition for an investigation with, “it is my opinion that I was wrongfully stopped, unlawfully arrested and racially profiled. Your prompt attention to this matter is greatly appreciated.”

As has been previously reported in recent years, the Missouri State Attorney General’s Office has reported that African-Americans have comprised 75-85 percent of law enforcement vehicle stops in the state of Missouri.The problem is so bad, the state NAACP president there issued  a cautionary “travel advisory” for out-of-state blacks coming there.

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                                                ATTORNEY IRVING JOYNER

AS SELECT COMMITTEE PROBE 

GROWS, NC’S CONNECTION TO

JAN. 6TH SIEGE INTENSIFIES

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

As the Congressional Select Investigative Committee probe into the Jan. 6th attacks on the U.S. Capitol attacks gains both prominence and headlines as to what led up to one of the most stunning insurrections in our nation’s history, one fact is becoming clear - North Carolina played an important role, and could very well continue to play an important role in any further attack on America’s democracy.

Why is that important to African-Americans? Because, observers say, short-circuiting the impact of the Black vote, either by redistricting, voting restrictions, voter intimidation, or violence seem to be the weapons of choice on several fronts. 

“The violent, deadly insurrection nine months ago . It was about white supremacy, in my view,” said President Joe Biden recently.

Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC-12) agreed.

“America is clearly brown now, and that’s the fear of these white supremacists,” she said last January after escaping the Capitol attacks. “[They feel] like they are superior….[that] they are the ones who own this country.”

Congressman Bennie Thompson (D- Miss) told CBS’s Face the Nation Sunday, “ It’s clear that those elements would love to deny people of color their rights in this democracy,” later adding, “I think the public saw for themselves when they saw Confederate flags, when they saw anti-Semitic symbols being displayed. Those things clearly represent a philosophy that is anti-democratic and racist.”

As the Charlotte Observer has reported, “ North Carolina was in the middle of a multi-state conspiracy to recruit, train, and arm potentially violent militia members to storm the U.S. Capitol on January 6th.”

A March 2021 report in Scalawagmagazine,org titled Go There Ready for War - Militia Organizing in North Carolina in the Context of the Insurrection at the U.S. Capitol by Mab Segrest, details, through tracking federal indictments, to what extent North Carolina was involved in the far-right conspiracies that culminated in January 6th.

According to Segrest, “federal indictments since January 19, 2021 make it clear that the vanguard of the January 6, 2021 Capitol Insurrection were white supremacist and anti-government militias….” pointing specifically to North Carolina members of the Oath Keepers, and the Proud Boys.

Investigations have shown these groups to be comprised, in part, of former and current members of the military, former and current law enforcement officers, and civilians trained in military tactics.

And just where are they getting this military training?

A new article in the The Nation out this week titled Carolina: Training for the Next January 6 details how 88 of North Carolina’s 100 counties have at least one “tactical and cultural training center” where militia wannabes go to either learn or sharpen they para-military training.

According to the report, “Grassroots activists organizing across this state are concerned about a seemingly unmonitored flow of military-grade weapons, training and white warrior ideology out of North Carolina’s privatized military and into civilian lives.”     One of the insurrectionists charged in the Jan. 6th siege was a former Marine who attended a North Carolina training camp last December. Another was a retired 13-year veteran K-9 officer and SWAT team member in North Carolina, according to federal indictments.

The FBI warned some time ago that domestic, not foreign, terrorist groups were America’s greatest threat, but Republicans in Congress shot down that report. And in recent months, Republicans have also engaged in rewriting history about the Jan. 6th U.S. Capitol siege, saying that it was not as bad as reported, or that the Select Committee was on a witch hunt.

Atty. Irving Joyner, law professor at North Carolina Central University School of Law says, “For African Americans, in particular, the [legal] owning and presence of guns in our possession have met with violent responses by law enforcement officers, many of whom are members of these right-wing para military groups. When confrontations occur with these officers and individuals, local prosecutors have not sought to protect the rights and lives of our community members.”

“It is certainly advisable for African Americans and other racial minorities to be sufficiently armed in the event that these militarized groups begin to direct their activities toward our communities, neighbors and family members. In addition, elected and appointed law enforcement officials must be pressed to investigate these groups and their activities in order to defend the community against the racialized hate that these groups have demonstrated.”

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                                                   REP. ALMA ADAMS

EXCLUSIVE

REP. ADAMS CONCERNED 

THAT JAN. 6TH ATTACKERS

WILL TRY AGAIN

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

History already records that when former Pres. Donald Trump decided like the fact that he lost the Nov. 2020 presidential election, he called for a huge protest “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C., which fatefully culminated in the Jan. 6th violent siege on the U.S. Capitol to stop the official certification of the election.

Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC-12) believes that it could all happen again if far right activists don’t like the results of the upcoming 2022 midterm or 2024 presidential elections.

“Yes,” confirmed the four-term Democrat from Mecklenburg County.   “That is why we must take the investigations and subsequent prosecutions seriously.”

“If the message gets out that you can break the windows of the Capitol, or incite an attack on our democracy, and only get a slap on the wrist, what does that do to deter future attacks on elections and our democratic process?”

Like her colleagues in Congress, and constituents back home, Rep. Adams is keeping sharp eyes and ears out for the latest information from the House Select Committee investigating the events surrounding Jan. 6th. Adams was in the midst of the siege when it occurred, and even to this day, is “frightened’ by what could have happened if the rioters had kidnapped or harmed members of Congress.

That was ten months ago, and in that time, over 600 of the Jan. 6th rioters have been arrested and indicted, giving congressional investigators possible leads as to who was involved in the planning, according to a recent explosive article in Rolling Stone Magazine.                                          

        The names of representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Madison Cawthorne (R-NC), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Louie Gohmert (R-TX),  Mo Brooks (R-AL) and Lauren Boebert (R-CO), along with that of Trump White House Chief of Staff and former North Carolina congressman Mark Meadows were reported to have been allegedly involved.

As a result, it seems very likely that several Republican members of Congress were involved. Indeed, Rep. Adams says that “…the attackers had help from a small number of far-right members of Congress…,” and  “While we have heard stories about a small number of fringe Republican lawmakers collaborating with the attackers, any evidence of advance planning on the part of those lawmakers must be treated seriously, and if it turns out that what they did rises to the level of criminal conspiracy, any lawmaker who helped plan the attack on the Capitol, or who provided material assistance to the attackers, should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Rep. Adams makes clear that that includes former Pres. Donald Trump, and that prosecutors “…should follow where the case leads.”

“Prosecuting the perpetrators of the January 6 attack on the Capitol isn’t easy, but our country can’t send the message that there’s one criminal justice system for Donald Trump and his supporters, and another, harsher criminal justice system for everyone else,” Adams says when asked if such prosecutions would further tear the nation apart. “There have been two parallel and unequal criminal justice systems in our country for far too long, and that’s not a legacy that I want to be responsible for continuing.”

Still, there are Republicans in Congress who are working diligently to undermine any serious investigation into the events of Jan. 6th, event to the extent of calling the violent attackers just “tourists.”

“I was there,’ Adams insists, “… and so were my Republican friends. We all know what happened that day, we all witnessed that attack on America, and history will not be kind to those who saw one thing but say another.”

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STATE NEWS BRIEFS FOR OCT. 28TH

COMMUNITY MOURNS DEATH OF HOKE COUNTY SHERIFF

[HOKE COUNTY] The community of Hoke County is still in shock over the death of one of the state’s veteran black sheriffs, Hubert Peterkin. Peterkin, 59, had cancer, and died from complications after surgery last week. Sheriff Peterkin served for 19 years. Outside of Hoke County, he is best known for eulogizing George Floyd during a memorial service in 2020.

CDC SAYS IMMUNOCOMPROMISED MAY NEED FOURTH COVID-19 VACCINE

[WASH. D.C.] If you are moderately to severely immunocompromised, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now recommending a fourth COVID-19 shot, according to new guidelines. Of course, speak with your primary physician to see if you fit this category, but a study from Johns Hopkins University this summer showed the immunocompromised people were much more likely to either end up in the hospital, or die from breakthrough infections without a fourth shot . Again, speak with your doctor if you’re considered immunocompromised.

OUTGOING REP. PRICE BLASTS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR NOT DOING MORE AFTER THE FATAL HAMLET CHICKEN PLANT FIRE.

[WASH., D.C.]Democratic Fourth District Congressman David Price - who has announced that he is stepping down from office after this term - is blasting the federal government for not doing enough to ensure workplace safety after the fatal Sept. 3rd, 1991 Imperial Foods chicken processing plant fire in Hamlet, NC. that killed 25 people, and injured 54.

The deaths and injuries occurred, according to subsequent investigations, because the plant owners  believed the workers were stealing chickens, so they had the exit doors locked. It was revealed that state safety inspectors had never visited the plant, but Price says the USDA never really followed up, even 30 years after the tragedy. He says he wants to see that happen.

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THE CASH STUFF FOR 10-21-21

                                                FORMER SEC. OF STATE COLIN POWELL

HOW COLIN POWELL’S DEATH 

SHOWS VALUE PROTECTING 

YOUR ELDERS WITH COVID SHOT

By Cash Michaels

An analysis

When it comes to the death of former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell earlier this week, due to complications from COVID-19 though his family assures that he was fully vaccinated, the anti-vaxxers have it all wrong.

Indeed, Sec. Powell’s death is a cautionary for other elderly members of the Black community as to why it is important to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, health experts say, especially if you are between your 60s and 80s.

But Powell’s death underlines a key lesson for how Black, Hispanic and other communities of color can better protect the eldest of their families. By minimizing the number of COVID-19 unvaccinated people around the elderly, you lessen the opportunity for the infection to hurt that elder family member, especially if they don’t normally leave their abode.

That means not only that all family members around the elderly should be vaccinated, but elder family members should be prioritized to better protect them, because they are most likely to be already suffering from a serious disease that is already comprising their immune system (their ability to fight off serious infection).

Yes, Colin Powell, at age 84, died of complications from the coronavirus, says his family. And yes, Powell was fully vaccinated, his family confirms.

But, as was in the case of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who, at age 80, was hospitalized in Chicago a few weeks ago with complications from COVID-19 though fully vaccinated, Sec. Powell, because of his age, was vulnerable to what are known as “breakthrough” infections because of his  underlining declining health. In Powell’s case, he was already suffering from multiple myeloma (blood cancers), which can reduce the body’s ability to fight off infections.

There is also one more difference between Sec. Powell, Rev. Jackson, and the average elder in a family of color - Powell and Jackson traveled long distances more often, thus exposing them to varying degrees of infections depending on what city they were in, even during the pandemic.

In her tribute to Sec. Powell, Vice Pres. Kamala Harris recalled just seeing, and speaking with him a recent official dinner.

And Rev. Jackson has famously continued to take part in various protest marches across the nation until his recent hospitalization slowed him down.

According to an article in The Wall Street Journal from July 2, 2021:

First, vaccines aren’t 100% effective. Not everyone who is inoculated will respond in the same way. Those who are elderly or whose immune systems are faulty, damaged or stressed by some other illness are less likely to mount a robust response than someone younger and fitter. COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective but some people will still be vulnerable to the virus even after receiving their shots.

Second, the risk of dying from COVID-19 increases steeply with age. If a vaccine reduces an 80-year-old’s risk of death from COVID-19 by 95%, for instance, that 80-year-old’s risk of death might still be greater than the risk faced by an unvaccinated 20-year-old. Some chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension and lung disease are also associated with a higher risk of severe illness and death.

Third, as more of the population gets vaccinated, there are fewer unvaccinated people for the virus to infect. If the pool of vaccinated people is larger than the pool of unvaccinated people, then it is possible and even likely that breakthrough infections resulting in death in the older, vaccinated group would match or exceed deaths in the younger, unvaccinated group. Consider an imaginary country with 100% of people vaccinated, where the virus can still somehow spread. All COVID-19 deaths would be in vaccinated individuals.

To argue, as some have, that the COVID-19 vaccine did not adequately protect Colin Powell from dying, is to argue that he had zero chance of dying in spite of the vaccine.

A person suffering from cancer, diabetes, or a bad heart is still likely to die because of those maladies. If they catch coronavirus at an elder age, the likelihood of them dying is more probable, because they are more vulnerable.

But if they are vaccinated, again, based on what their health condition is to start,along with their age, the likelihood of death is not as certain.

Thus, protecting the elderly as much a possible from possible COVID-19 infection, which includes making sure all in the same household or environment are fully vaccinated, is the best policy.

As stated in The Washington Post Monday:

It seems inevitable in this moment that Powell’s death will prompt new indifference to the vaccine, as though his death somehow proves that the vaccines don’t work. The lesson we should learn instead is that the vaccines work best when they work broadly and that, had Powell been protected both by the vaccine and by low rates of infection in his community, he might still be alive.

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BLACK HISTORYMAKERS MOURN

DEATH OF SEC. COLIN POWELL

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

The first Black American ever to serve as U.S. secretary of State, Colin Powell, 84, was lauded by other Black political pioneers for his leadership after his untimely death was announced Monday.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the first African-American ever to hold the office, said in a statement:

Secretary Colin Powell dedicated his life defending our nation. As National Security Adviser, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of staff, and secretary of State, he was an independnt thinker and a barrier breaker who inspired leaders in our military and throughout our nation.

Secretary Powell served our nation with courage, unwavering in his belief in its principles and its promise. The son of immigrants, Secretary Powell rose through the ranks of the United States Army. He was a decorated veteran and devoted patriot.

The legacy that he leaves behind - on America’s national security and on the leaders he mentored - can be seen every day across our nation and the world.

Former President Barack Obama issued a statement saying:

Years ago, when he was asked to reflect on his own life, General Colin Powell described himself as “first and foremost a problem-solver.” It was true, of course. But he was far more than that.

General Powell was an exemplary soldier and an exemplary patriot. He was at the center of some of the most consequential events of our lifetimes – serving two decorated tours in Vietnam; guiding U.S. strategy in the Gulf War; serving as National Security Advisor, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Secretary of State; offering counsel to four presidents; and helping shape American foreign policy for decades. Everyone who worked with General Powell appreciated his clarity of thought, insistence on seeing all sides, and ability to execute. And although he’d be the first to acknowledge that he didn’t get every call right, his actions reflected what he believed was best for America and the people he served.

Along the way, General Powell helped a generation of young people set their sights higher. He never denied the role that race played in his own life and in our society more broadly. But he also refused to accept that race would limit his dreams, and through his steady and principled leadership, helped pave the way for so many who would follow. It was the way Colin Powell saw the world – not as a starry-eyed idealist, but as someone with deep and abiding faith in this country and what it stands for – that made him such a central figure. 

Also on Monday, from the current U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III, the first African-American in American history to hold that post:

I was informed earlier of the loss of Colin Powell and I want to express my deepest condolences to Alma, his wife, his son Michael, and the entire Powell family.

The world lost one of the greatest leaders that we have ever witnessed. Alma lost a great husband, and the family lost a tremendous father. And I lost a tremendous personal friend and mentor. He has been my mentor for a number of years. He always made time for me and I could always go to him with tough issues. He always had great counsel.

We will certainly miss him. I feel as if I have a hole in my heart, just learning of this recently.

He was the first African-American chairman of the Joint Chiefs, first African-American Secretary of State and a man who was respected around the globe. Quite frankly, it is not possible to replace a Colin Powell. We will miss him.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and we are deeply, deeply saddened to learn of this.

According to Wikipedia, “Colin Luther Powell (April 1937 to October 2021)was an American politician, diplomat, statesman, and four-star general who served as the 65th U.S. Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005., and the first African-American to do so. Prior to the election of Barack Obama, as president in 2008, he and his successor, Condoleezza Rice were the highest-ranking African Americans in federal executive branch history (by virtue of the Secretary of State standing fourth in the presidential line of succession. He served as the 16th U.S. National Security Advisor from 1987 to 1989 and as the 12th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1989 to 1993."

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                                                            AIMY STEELE

NEW NC VOTERS PROJECT

SEEKS TO ADD 100,000 FOR 

THE 2022 ELECTIONS

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

In the world of GOTV (Get Out The Vote), no name in modern times shines brighter than Stacey Abrams of Georgia. 

Abrams, a former Georgia state representative and Democratic candidate for governor in 2018, founded a voters’ rights nonprofit group called the New Georgia Project, which in turn pushed a number of voter registration efforts in order to increase Georgia’s  voter rolls, particularly in black and other diverse communities.

Just prior to the 2020 presidential elections, Abrams founded yet another nonprofit known as Fair Fight, which not only registered new voters, but educate them on the pressing issues.

The results - 800,000 new Georgia voters were brought to the process; Democrat Joe Biden won the traditionally conservative red state over incumbent Republican Donald Trump; and even more importantly, two Democrats, Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Osoff, unseated two Republican incumbents give Pres. Biden the 50 Democrats he needs to get any of his agenda done.

Dr. Aimy Steele agrees that there is much to be learned from Stacey Abram’s kingmaker success in Georgia, and she hoping that some of that “Black Girl Magic” will rub-off right here in North Carolina in time for the  2022 elections.

Last week, Dr. Steele and her team kicked off “The New North Carolina Project (NNCP),” an ambitious effort, modeled after the Abrams’ effort in Georgia,  to register more than 100,000 eligible voters of color for the 2022 midterm elections, increase early voter turnout by 50 percent, and register 90 percent of North Carolina eligible voters by 2030. 

And the key to the NNCP’s projected success, Executive Director Steele says - field organizing - something that wasn’t done very well by Democrats in 2020.

“I think the best way to do that is to invest in communities of color, insure that these communities thrive by organizing long-term infrastructure,,” Steele told MSNBC October 15th.

“We plan to really engage people from communities of color in the work [of organizing] their communities, hire and train them, and really educate them on really exercising their power, and their right to vote,” Dr. Steele continued.

“No longer is it OK to just assume that these groups of color are monolithic, and are going to vote a certain way. We really have to get out there and organize.”

So who is Amiy Steele, and why doe she want to take this massive undertaking on?

The Texas native is a former Spanish teacher, K-12 school principal, mother of five and pastor’s wife of 21 years who, s a child moved to North Carolina in 1993 from Japan (her father was in the Army). She graduated high school , and attended UNC-Chapel Hill or three years before transferring to UNC-Charlotte.

In 2018, Steele came within less than 2,000 votes from unseating a republican incumbent for NC House District 82. In 2020, Steele lost another close race for the state House representing Concord.

Steele’s key mission, she says is creating #voters for life. According to th 

NNCP website, despite North Carolina’s record breaking voter turnout for the November 2020 elections, “…large fractions of eligible voters of all races n ethnicities did not vote , including more than half of eligible Latinx and indigenous voters, more than forty percent of Asian-American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) voters, and a third of black voters. In fact, nearly one million eligible voters of color did not vote  (in North Carolina) in 2020.”

Per the 2020 North Carolina elections, analysts report that Democrats let their guard down by not going door-to-door to canvass neighborhoods, especially in rural areas, because o the COVID-19 pandemic.

But Republicans did, in addition to promoting early voting and mail-in balloting. The 2020 result was a GOP bloodbath of Democratic candidates, except for incumbents Gov. Roy Cooper and state Atty. Gen. Josh Stein.

Steele doesn’t want to see communities of color count themselves out of important elections again. Thus, the New North Carolina Project.

“We’re here to build a year-round community organizing infrastructure,” she assured the News and Observer.

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STATE NEWS BRIEFS

NIKOLE HANNAH-JONES DISCUSSES 1619 PROJECT AT UNC-W NOV. 2

[WILMINGTON] Pulitzer Prize winning NY Times journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones will be appearing at UNC-Wilmington to discuss her controversial 1619 Project on Nov. 2 at 7:30 as part of the annual Writers Week event. The appearance is ironic given that Hannah-Jones turned down a belated tenure offer several months ago from the UNC Board of Trustees after it as revealed that conservative political influence kept her from receiving it  months earlier from teaching at the UNC- Chapel Hill School of Journalism.

GRAVE OF 1898 MASSACRE VICTIM DISCOVERED OF RANKIN STREET

[WILMINGTON] After 123 years, one of the first graves of a black 1998 race massacre victim has been discovered  off Rankin Street in an unmarked grave in Pine Forest Cemetery off Rankin Street. The discovery of the body of Joshua Halsey was made by the nonprofit Third Person Project. The 1898 Commemorative Foundation will give Halsey a formal funeral on Nov. 6th. The public is invited to attend.

FEDERAL COURT RULE THAT UNC-CHAPEL HILL  CAN CONTINUE TO USE RACE IN ADMISSIONS POLICY

[CHAPEL HILL]  A federal judge has ruled that UNC-Chapel Hill does not discriminate in the use of race of it’s undergraduate admissions policy, and may continue to do so. The decision was made after a trial which ended most a year ago in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District in Winston-Salem. “While no student can or should be admitted to this University, or any other, based solely on race, because race is so interwoven in every aspect of the lived experience of minority students, to ignore it, reduce its importance and measure it only by statistical models… misses important context to include obscuring racial barriers and obstacles that have been faced, overcome and are yet to be overcome,” Judge Loretta Biggs wrote in her opinion. 

The decision will be appealed to the Fourth U.S. Circuit of Appeals, vows the plaintiffs in the case, Students for Fair Admissions.

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THE CASH STUFF

 

                                                            LT. GOV. MARK ROBINSON

WILL LT. GOV  MARK ROBINSON

BECOME OUR NEXT GOVERNOR?

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

It was only a matter of time before even the Democratic White House would know NC Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s name, though not necessarily like what routinely comes with it.

“The role of a leader is to bring people together and stand up for the dignity and rights of everyone; not to spread hate and undermine their own office,” said White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates about the outspoken black Republican’s recent controversial remarks calling the LGBTQ community “filth.”

What exactly did the highest ranking Republican in North Carolina state government say to draw the ire of the highest office in the land, not to mention several North Carolina state senators as well?

"There is no reason anybody, anywhere in America, should be telling any child about transgenderism, homosexuality or any of that filth," Robinson, 53, is seen on a recently released videotape saying to the congregation of Ashbury Baptist Church in Seabury last June. "And yes, I called it filth. And if you don't like it that I called it filth, come see me about it."

And for those who may agree with Robinson’s bigoted view, on the same video, he is seen calling supporters of Black Lives Matter “socialist liars and nitwits,” those who teach America’s true history of racism, “morons.” Indeed, Robinson is on record rhetorically going after “leftists” African-Americans, Jews, and other groups he has political differences with.

He’s also expressed disdain for former Pres. Barack Obama, falsely calling him an “anti-American atheist” and First Lady Michele Obama, calling her a “man.”

Yet, the Greensboro native and one-time factory worker has labeled himself “a man of GOD” who refuses to either apologize or resign for his blazing, divisive rhetoric.

“We will not be intimidated. We will not back down. We will not change our language," Robinson said last Friday. "The language I used, I am not ashamed of it. I will use it in the future because, again, it is time for parents in this state to take a strong stand for their children."

Last weekend, in response by the avalanche of criticism he received, Lt. Gov. Robinson released another video, standing by his earlier remarks, and showing examples of some books he alleged promoted “filth.”

“A pompous buffoon spewing hate and racist remarks,” opined a woman named “Brenda “ on Robinson’s Facebook page. “Yes, he has black skin, so? I’m sick and tired of the hateful comments from an elected official towards any state constituents. He’s not ashamed of the filth that’s spread— calling it free speech and he doesn’t care who doesn’t like it. He’s a bully, treat him like a bully—stand up to his hateful rhetoric now. Saying nothing to curtail this devious political speech makes us complicit.”

In short, Lt. Gov. Robinson has willingly targeted anyone who doesn’t comply with his political and religious points of view. Even other Republican elected officials who have urged the public to get vaccinated for COVID-19 in the midst of a dangerous pandemic, Robinson said he wanted them “voted out of office.”

But this latest rhetorical controversy has placed Mark Robinson on the national political map more than ever before, helping him further build a predominately-white, conservative political base towards what could be his next run for office - most likely governor of North Carolina in 2024.

If not vice president of the United States.

“If he runs, he’s all but certain to be the Republican nominee,” state Sen. Jeff Jackson (D-Mecklenburg) wrote. “He is immensely popular within his party — and I imagine he still will be, even after this.” 

“Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson is not a traditional political figure. But if he becomes the next governor, it will likely be because he can fit into a mold familiar in North Carolina politics: The education governor,” wrote Andrew Dunn in a piece titled, Mark Robinson: The next education governor?, from the online publication Long Leaf Politics on August 30th.

The writer suggests that Robinson is the voice of thousands of outraged parents across the state - “the majority” Robinson claims - who don’t like what their children are being taught in public education.

“For years, North Carolina’s education system has developed an insular self-righteousness and contempt for parents behind the solid brick walls of the schoolhouse. COVID-19 put cracks in the mortar,” Dunn wrote. “With children at home for more than a year, parents for the first time got a glimpse of what actually happens in public schools — and now they’re leaving in droves. It all may be enough to propel Robinson into the Executive Mansion in 2024.”

Robinson, literally a political unknown until 2018 when he spoke out for Second Amendment gun rights before the Greensboro City Council, later shocking the world by winning the 2019 primary for lt. governor, and then further sending shockwaves when he became the first African-American in North Carolina history to be elected second to the governor, led a task force to prove that public schools were teaching “critical race theory” against the wishes of parents and administrators.

When the Republican-led NC General Assembly passed a bill based partly on Robinson’s work, Gov. Cooper vetoed it, dismissing their claims.

Amid calls for Robinson to resign for his recent remarks about the LBGTQ community, Cooper’s office continued to dismiss the lieutenant governor’s rhetoric.

“North Carolina is a welcoming state where we value public education and the diversity of our people,” said Jordan Monaghan, spokesman for Gov. Roy Cooper. “It’s abhorrent to hear anyone, and especially an elected official, use hateful rhetoric that hurts people and our state’s reputation.”

But one thing cannot be denied - Robinson’s plain speaking style has attracted a strong support-base ranging from Fox News to rank-and-file Republicans. He is in demand to speak across the nation, and he is seen as the bare-knuckled conservative leader many disgruntled with government have been waiting for, especially Trump supporters.

“It doesn’t matter to me what the definition of hate speech is,” Robinson recently told Spectrum News. “I said what I said, and I believe what I said. Many people across the state feel the same way.”

Apparently many do. Robinson is floating a “Stand With Lt. Governor Robinson as He Combats the Radical Left ” online petition.There were over 8,200 signatures at press time.

Gov. Cooper reportedly cancelled plans to run for the U.S. Senate in 2022 because he did not want Lt. Gov. Robinson to take over in his absence. Cooper cannot constitutionally run for a third term as governor, meaning the most likely Democratic forbearer for the office is current low-key state Attorney General Adam Stein.

If Stein were to run in a head-to-head against a firebrand like Robinson, could he win? The November 2020 election showed North Carolina Democrats to be very weak.

Time will tell.

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Bishop William Barber  participates in a Vatican poverty conference in Rome, Monday, Oct. 4, 2021. Photo by Gabriella Clare Marino

BISHOP BARBER JOINS VATICAN

CONFERENCE ON GLOBAL POVERTY

By Cash Michaels

Contributing writer

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.”

                                                          Jesus Christ

          Matthew 5:3

Last week, as the world continued to be concerned about the plight of the Haitian refugees who tried to come to America to escape poverty and tyranny, the man of GOD who successfully led the Moral Monday movement here in North Carolina, and has been leading the national Poor People’s Campaign to combat hunger, economic and political exploitation, flew to Vatican City in Rome, Italy to join a two-day conference on how to end global poverty.

Bishop William Barber was among several other invited faith leaders and economists from across the world attending “Caritas, Social Friendship and the End of Poverty,” sponsored by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. Their collective goal - to focus on creating a global movement to, in the words of the bishop of Rome, “limit all the activities and institutions that, by their own inclination, tend to only to profit towards structures of sin.”

Their target - the estimated one billion people on the planet suffering in poverty because of corrupt economic and political policies.

In a message to the conference, Pope Francis, the leader of the Catholic Christian world, maintained that the corrupted vision of happiness held by the industrialized world wrongfully “…consists only in what is useful, in things and possessions, in abundance of things, fame and money…” instead of a “spirit of poverty” which would have powerful nations prioritize the needs of their poor and suffering peoples.

To be “poor in spirit’ means to humble yourself to help the needy.

In remarks delivered at the conference, Bishop Barber, representing his work in the United States, agreed.

“We believe there are interlocking injustices which must be addressed simultaneously - systematic poverty; racism; ecological devastation; denial of health care and housing; a war economy; and the distorted moral narrative of religious nationalism,” Bishop Barber told the conference.

“We need a worldwide Poor People’s Campaign and a global call to moral revival. On June 18, 2022, we are planning a Mass Poor People’s and Low Wage Workers Assembly and Moral March on Washington that we hope others will join in their countries around the world. We don’t know of any major transformation that didn’t result from a moral movement, from abolition in the US to labor movements in the US and Europe, to the movement to end apartheid in South African and people’s movements for democracy in the former Communist bloc. Religious leaders must join with the poor and engage in the public square; not simply in the confines of sanctuary.”

After returning to North Carolina from Rome, Bishop Barber said being at the conference was “energizing” because of the high level of commitment to fight global poverty, and attendees agreed to send a letter to world leaders at the upcoming Summit of the G20 Heads of State and Government, scheduled for October 30th in Rome, advising as to what steps should be taken to end global suffering. President Biden is expected to be there.

Congressman G. K. Butterfield (D-NC-1) heralded Bishop Barber’s participation.

“I applaud my friend, Bishop William J. Barber II’s never ceasing efforts to fight for the least of these in our society, “ Butterfield said in a statement. “His remarks at the Caritas, Social Friendship, and the End of Poverty conference in the Vatican City were prophetic and powerful.”

Bishop Barber added that the conference intends to reconvene in December.

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STATE NEWS BRIEFS FOR 10-14-21

EIGHTH-GRADE TEACHER RESIGNS AFTER SLURRING BLACK STUDENTS

[WINTERVILLE] An eighth-grade teacher at Winterville Charter Academy resigned in. September after telling black students in her calsss that if it wasn’t for the U.S. Constitution, they would be her ‘field slaves.’ According to WITN-TV, the principal of Winterville Charter informed parents of the “racially insensitive lesson,” and that “proactive culturally sensitive training measures Orr current and future staff members” would be undertaken.

NC APPELLATE COURT JUDGE ATTACKS BEASLEY, SAYS RACIAL BIAS DOES NOT EXIST IN THE COURT SYSTEM

[RALEIGH] A Republican NC Appellate Court judge just elected in 2020 maintains that there is no racial bias in North Carolina’s court system. Judge Jefferson Griffin, in a written opinion overturning the 2017 drug conviction of a black motorist. The defense attorney in the case cited remarks by former NC Chief Justice Cheri Beasley when she was still on the bench, stating that for justice to be served, judges “must openly acknowledge the disparities that exist and are too often perpetuated by our justice system.” In his written opinion, however, Judge Griffin disagreed, writing, “I reject this argument. The law is color blind and applies equally to every citizen in the United States of America.”

Beasley, now a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, says she stands by her remarks.

RALEIGH, DURHAM AND CHARLOTTE IN TOP 10 CITIES TO START A BUSINESS

[RALEIGH] According to a Lending Tree analysis, of the top 100 largest metro areas in the nation to start a small business, Raleigh, is number 1, Charlotte is #3 and Durham is # 4. Raleigh is the best because 55% of it’s population  is between 25 and 54, seen a prime working years. California is considered the worst, according to the analysis, because of it’s high unemployment.