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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 3:09 pm
There is actually a Wesleyan church. I used to attend, but it lost it's congregation to other larger churches with more money and a bigger following. Now I am home churched.
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Legalboxer
Member
11-17-2003
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 3:14 pm
thanks for the link mocha
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 3:20 pm
It is very interesting. Society would have us all believe that the origin of the slaves, the land where they came from, was a desolate hell hole, and they should be greatful they were brought here. Even if the state of the land is a desolate hell hole today, it was not at one time, and who's to say that the removal of such a large number of people from a certain area, did not create such strife that it caused the area/country to now be in that condition.
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 4:50 pm
And what condition do you think it is in?
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 6:48 pm
Tuskegee Airmen to Be Honored at Last All-Black Unit Will Receive Congressional Gold Medal Next Year (CBS) Lt. Col. Herbert Carter has a lot of memories about two of this country's hardest-fought battles — one against Adolf Hitler, the other against Jim Crow. Carter made history in World War II as one of the first African-American fighter pilots, CBS News correspondent Richard Schlesinger reports. At age 22 he was an original member of the all-black Tuskegee Airmen, who had to fight for the right to fight for their country. "We were told that we were lackadaisical. That was an insult, to say that you were too stupid to serve your country," Carter says. At the time, black servicemen were seen more often in the kitchen than the cockpit. "Our philosophy was that the antidote to racism and separatism was excellence in performance," Carter says. They trained hard at the base in Tuskegee Ala., which has been made a national historic site and will soon be restored. Today, no one doubts the skill or the patriotism or the heroism of those pilots. But back when Tuskegee was their training base, during the war, the only people who expected the Tuskegee Airmen to succeed were the airmen themselves. "We were damn good!," Carter says. He's not just bragging. There were about 1,000 black fighter pilots in the group. They flew more than 16,000 times during the war, won more than 900 medals — and the Germans never shot down a bomber they were protecting. New York Rep. Charles Rangel led the fight to award the Tuskegee Airmen the highest honor Congress can bestow, the Congressional Gold Medal, as a tribute to their victories over there and their suffering over here. "The sad part of the story is when they came home, they were just black men who served their country and were subjected to the same discrimination that existed before their heroic acts," says Rangel. The Airmen have won a slew of other honors, but this medal can't come too soon for Carter. "It simply says that the United States of America is saying, finally, a job well done," he says. Carter is one of only about 130 known surviving Tuskegee pilots — old men now whose skills were recognized years ago, but who are only now getting the recognition they deserve. link
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Native_texan
Member
08-24-2004
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 7:09 pm
The father of Good Morning America's Robin Roberts was a Tuskegee pilot. A while back she got to fulfill her fantasy in flying in a plane like her dad flew. Her dad died not too long afterwards. I remember how touching it was to see father and daughter after she landed.
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Landi
Member
07-29-2002
| Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 7:20 pm
i'm so glad they are getting the recognition they deserve! a veteran is a veteran is a veteran!
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 6:53 am
Bout time.
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Retired
Member
07-11-2001
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 7:44 am
Yep.
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 8:13 am
And what condition do you think it is in? I don't know. I was just giving a "what if" situation. I wasn't suggesting anything to the contrary of it being in perfectly fine condition.
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 8:14 am
K
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 8:30 am
I have been doing some light reading all morning regarding the upper west coast of Africa. While some nations there are still underdeveloped, places such as the ivory coast, liberia, among others are rich in agriculture, exports, even diamonds. Very interesting. I'll bet it's absolutely beautiful. In fact, the Ivory coast is the most prosperous of all the tropical African States.
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Yankee_in_ca
Member
08-01-2000
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 10:25 am
I've been lucky enough to travel to various countries in Africa, and everywhere I have been has been lush and beautiful and spectacular. Just because you don't have economic power doesn't mean you live in a desolate hell hole.
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 2:37 pm
<55> That's what I was saying, although, for justification purposes, society would have us believe that it is a desolate hell hole and people are better off here.
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 2:40 pm
And let's be clear on what portion of society wants you to believe that...
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 3:25 pm
I wasn't aware that I was being unclear on that.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 3:36 pm
Miami Legend Athalie Range Dies At 91 She Became First Black Miami Commissioner In 1965
M. Athalie Range, a pioneer in Miami politics and a legend in Miami's African-American community, died Tuesday just a week after her 91st birthday. Range was a champion of civil rights, a successful businesswoman, a supporter of education and the arts, and a political activist who made history in both local and state government. Range was the first African-American to serve on the City of Miami Commission, appointed by a politically ambitious mayor in 1965 as the civil rights movement reached its peak. Range fought against segregated schools, and in 1970 went on to serve in Florida’s state cabinet as Secretary of the Department of Community Affairs, appointed by Governor Reuben Askew, the first African-American to serve in Florida's Cabinet since the reconstruction. In 1980, she went to Washington, when President Jimmy Carter appointed her to serve on the board of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, the parent body of Amtrak. Range was born Mary Athalie Wilkinson in Key West on November 7th, 1915, and later moved with her family to Miami. Early in her life, she lived in Miami's Liberty Square Housing Project, the first of its kind in Florida. Range's political career started when she became involved in the Parent Teacher's Association (PTA) of her childrens' schools in the mid 1940's. After winning the post of PTA president, she pushed to build new schools in predominantly black neighborhoods, and served as a PTA leader for 16 years. Her service as a PTA leader whetted her interest in serving her community, and led to her 1965 campaign for a seat which was vacated when a white commissioner decided not to run for re-election. Range later said she decided to run because in seeking a vacant seat, she would not be seen as 'taking something away from somebody." Range won the election by fewer than 1000 votes, but without the required 50% plus 1 vote, she was forced into a runoff election, which was won by opponent Irwin Christie in a racially tinged campaign. However, when Miami's mayor decided to run for Governor a few months later, he realized he needed the support of the black community, and appointed Range to replace a retiring commissioner. Range won her next election, and fought hard for the black community, winning among other things equal trash pickup in black and white neighborhoods. Range was elected a few years after the death of her husband, Oscar, with whom she opened Range Funeral Home in 1953. In 1960, Oscar Range died of a heart attack, leaving Athalie a mother of four with a business to run. Out of necessity, she attended the New England Institute of Anatomy and Embalming to obtain her funeral home director's license so she could legally operate the funeral home. She continued to run the business until recently, when she turned it over to her son. In recognition of her community service, which continued virtually until her death, she was the recipient of more than 100 local, state, and national awards and honors. In 1997, she was elected to the Florida Women's Hall of Fame. A park in Miami's Liberty City area was named in her honor, as was a US Postal Service building located at 500 NW 2nd Street in Miami. Range was a strong supporter of Florida Memorial University, where the Athalie Range Science Hall is named in her honor. She was the namesake of the M. Athalie Range Cultural Arts Foundation. In 1984, Range was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Humanities by the University of Miami. In addition to her son Patrick, who once served as an aide to former Miami Commissioner Johnny Winton, and son Gary, Range is survived by her daughter, Myrna. link
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Thursday, November 16, 2006 - 8:15 pm
Athalie Range was a MAJOR Miami persona when we lived there from 1979 to 1987. I remember her well. Sorry to hear of her passing.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 8:49 am
Classes canceled after students' blackface party Whitman College holds race symposium after off-campus incident Updated: 5:41 a.m. CT Nov 9, 2006 SPOKANE, Wash. - Students who wore blackface to an off-campus party sparked such an outcry on campus that officials at Whitman College canceled classes Thursday so students and faculty could attend a diversity symposium. Ruth Wardwell, Whitman’s director of public relations, said that students wore blackface to mimic the cast of “Survivor: Cook Islands,” which divided the teams by ethnic origin at the start of the CBS reality show’s current season. After pictures of the students’ costumes were posted on online social networking sites, the stunt touched off a fiery debate about race on an all-campus e-mail list. That prompted faculty members to vote to cancel classes. “This is a day that is dedicated to a campus-wide discussion of issues that are important to our Whitman community,” the 1,450-student private school in Walla Walla said in an e-mail to students. About 3 percent of Whitman’s students are black. Asians, Hispanics and American Indians account for about 15 percent, and about 80 percent of students are white. The event was being organized by students and faculty, with the administration’s blessing, Wardwell said. It will be “based on scholarly research, opinion and individual perspective,” Wardwell said, and is not open to the public. An agenda for the symposium includes sessions on the biology of race, a history of race and civil rights, a curriculum discussion and a film discussion. A phone call to the school’s Black Student Union rang unanswered Wednesday, and four of its student leaders did not immediately return e-mails seeking comment. link While I applaud the school officials and faculty, I'm appalled that it happened at all.
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 8:55 am
Me too. I just find it odd that they wouldn't understand about blackface. I know schools don't teach all there is to know with regards to minorities and about segregation and jim crow laws and lynching and blackface but dang don't you learn something at home also? Well obviously not.
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 9:08 am
New Focus on Affirmative Action Ballot Measures Add to Debate on Continuation of Programs By Elizabeth Williamson and Valerie Strauss Washington Post Staff Writers Friday, November 17, 2006; Page A23 The number of minorities -- particularly black Americans -- winning government contracts and being admitted to public colleges and universities in California has dwindled since a ballot measure was passed 10 years ago outlawing preferential treatment for minorities in those areas, according to a study released yesterday. The report comes as the longtime controversy over affirmative action is gaining new attention. Michigan voters last week adopted a constitutional amendment essentially taking the same action as California, and the American Bar Association is facing criticism from some groups for strengthening its diversity requirements for accreditation of law schools. The study of California's Proposition 209 shows that it has had a major effect, according to Ellis Cose, who wrote the report for the Institute for Justice and Journalism at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication. At the University of California's two flagships, the campuses in Berkeley and Los Angeles, the impact of Proposition 209 was immediate: The number of black and Hispanic freshmen admitted the year after the law took effect fell by half. <snip> link
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Zachsmom
Member
07-13-2000
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 9:13 am
I am sorry, I don't know what blackface means. I have never heard the term.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 9:36 am
Blackface was a type of theatrical makeup used and a genre of theatre production that perpetrates a very racist, stereotypical countenance, the characters portrayed were referred to as 'darkies' or 'coons' (and you cannot imagine how angry typing those words made me feel. They used burnt cork, shoe polish and makeup to exaggerate the facial features of blacks and put on these performances. Very degrading, hateful, hurtful caricatures that sometimes still pop up.
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Zachsmom
Member
07-13-2000
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 9:43 am
I am appalled and speechless right now. I am sorry I asked you a question that was hurtful for you to answer. Thank you for answering. 
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Llkoolaid
Member
08-01-2001
| Friday, November 17, 2006 - 9:52 am
I don't think my kids would remember blackface but I think anyone over 40 probably would. Not excusing what they did, cause there are a ton of other reasons that their actions were so wrong and they were old enough to know better. It is not like they were my Hilary when she was 3 who snuck an indelible black marker and covered herself from head to toe cause she wanted to look like Tamara, Ashley's friend. These were college students. My memory isn't so great but didn't someone in the last few years get in a bunch of crap for doing it. Something on tv, I know it happened but I can't remember exactly. I remember blackface and the actor always portrayed their charactors in a very degrading way. Just gonna shake my head.
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