Landscape painting - Florida's Highwaymen

Friends, guests and fans were enthralled and inspired by the artistry and many stories of Florida’s Highwaymen at the Onyx Speaks celebration earlier this week.

Beginning in the early 1950s and 1960s as a loose association of 26 African American artists from Fort Pierce and Vera Beach, the Florida Highwaymen’s original paintings are in high demand national and internationally and can be found in the State Capitol, Amway Center, prisons, schools, private homes, businesses and the White House.   The group created inexpensive landscape paintings, and sold them out of the trunks of their cars.  Their longevity is a testimony to their strength, and their ability to survive.

Al Black, a painter and the lead salesman for the group said, “The reason we sold landscapes is because they would sell. I have been with the Highwaymen from the very beginning and nothing else would sell. We would get on the road, and go to different places to sell our work.”  The Highwaymen have created a body of over 200,000 paintings, using gypsum board instead of canvas.

“We did not know each other until a book was published about the Highwaymen in 2001,”  Willie Reagan, another Highwayman declared.  ”But before that, I would go up and down the highway and sell my paintings out of my station wagon.”

Several newspaper articles on the Highwaymen’s work brought major recognition from the art world in the 2000s.  Some of the Highwaymen are deceased, and most are now in their 70s and 80s.  Nevertheless, they all still paint and Mary Ann Carroll, the only woman in the group, had this to say about her experiences.

“It never occurred to me, because I love art. When my kids were at school, I would go out and sell my work. I knew, I had to get back in time to pick them up after school,” Carroll said.

Earlier this year, Carroll met First Lady Michelle Obama and one of her paintings is on display at the White House.  She has been invited to discuss and display her art at Harvard University.

In recent years, the Florida Highwaymen’s paintings skyrocketed in value and their work is listed in the Florida Artist Hall of Fame.   There will be a silent auction of their work at the 9th Onyx Awards Reception & Gala, on September 24, 2011, at Rosen Centre, at 6:00 p. m.

For more information, log onto www.onyxawards.com.

Prison strike in Georgia, December 2010

The cell phones have allowed the prisoners in different prisons to coordinate a network and implement a strike on the same day. The prison officials did not anticipate the level of organization from the inmates and they stay connected with the new technology for the prison system.

The inmates are protesting forced labor, poor living conditions, better educational opportunities and food. The unprecedented strike has united prisoners across religious and ethnic lines. There are Blacks, Mexicans, Whites, Muslims, Christians, and Rastafarians, all united around common interest.

The prisons where the strikes are taking place are Macon, Hays, Telfair, Baldwin, Valdosta, and Smith: all in the Georgia State prison system. The prisoners are non-violent, and they tell the guards that they are not coming out until their demands are addressed.

The prison administration and guards have cut off the heat and hot water in 30 degree weather to force the intimates to go back to work. At other times, the administration has sent S.W.A.T. teams into the cells and destroyed the inmates’ property, and refused to serve them food.

As the conditions continue to deteriorate, there is a need for communication and outside intervention. There is very little communication with the media, and the situation at anytime could escalate to a prison riot.

Sixty-three percent of the prison population is African American, and there is also a large concentration of the Hispanic population. It is time for the federal government to step in and help resolve this potential explosive situation.

It is my understanding that there has been a partial resolution on the prison strikes, but there has been limited communication concerning the demands of the prisoners.

This operation is a direct response of North Korea shelling the small island of Yeonpyeong, on Tuesday, November 23, 2010, which killed four people and destroyed dozens of houses. The North said it was responding to live fire from the South into its waters.

“The situation on the Korean peninsula is inching closer to the brink of war due to the reckless plan of those trigger-happy elements to stage again war exercises targeted against the North,” said North Korea’s news agency. “The army and people of North Korea are greatly enraged at the provocation of the puppet group of South Korea, if they dare encroach again upon North Korea’s dignity and sovereignty even in the least.”

President Obama and the United Stated have aligned itself with South Korea, and China has aligned itself with North Korea. There are 28,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea, and the Pentagon is quick to point out the naval exercises are “defensive in nature.” The Pentagon also acknowledged that this joint exercise is a reminder of U.S. military strength and American’s allegiance with South Korea.

The Korean peninsula is a very complicated region, and the Yellow Sea impacts the borders of the country of China. China has been low-key with its response to North Korea’s shelling of the island, and there has been a flurry of diplomatic activity with the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton and Chinese diplomats.

President Obama and China’s President Hu Jintao have a scheduled meeting in January 2011 in Washington DC, and a war between North Korea and South Korea would make the meeting extremely awkward. As a result, both countries are asking for restraint, and the world and the citizens of the United States are waiting for an official statement from President Obama.

China is protesting the United States and South Korea’s joint exercises following North Korea’s artillery attacks on Tuesday. China opposes any military operations near its territorial waters. “The Korean peninsula situation is highly complicated and sensitive, and all parties concerned should stay calm and exercise restraint,” said China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei in a statement.

As this tense situation continues, President Obama must walk on a tight rope, because China and the United States have common interest with the economic factor being the most important. The United States has a trade deficit with China of $226 billion and Chinese businesses are heavily invested in American markets. China needs American businesses and American businesses need the Chinese population to grow their business markets. The difference in ideological and government systems explains why the two countries do not trust each other and are neither friends nor partners.

The war exercises in the Yellow Sea started on November 28, 2010, and will last for four days. There are six South Korean War Ships and four other U.S. vessels: the USS Cowpens, USS Lassen, USS Stethen, and USS Fitzgerald. The participating forces will carry out firing and bombing drills, and these exercises will involve thousands of service personnel in the four-day drill.

No one can predict the outcome of this drill; however it is not helping to resolve the crisis and problems between South Korea and North Korea. Playing war games during a tense explosive situation can turn into an all out war where no one wins and everyone loses.

Lucius Gantt--political commentator

Political registration figures reveal that the fastest growing group of newly registered voters have registered as having “No Party Affiliation”.

Well, we are always late in everything political race!

Non-Black voters have always been independent. For instance, white Democrats have no problems voting for white Republicans. If they did have a problem there wouldn’t be a Republican in any elected office in most states in the Union because there are more registered Democrats than registered Republicans.

White, Hispanic and most other ethnic voting groups are somewhat evenly divided with members of their groups in a variety of political parties.

Historically most African Americans tend to vote primarily Democratic. Even if a Democratic klansman ran against a Republican radical or activist, most Black voters would still vote Democratic.

But those days are dwindling if they are not already over!

Today, there are two new generations of Black voters. One group of voters chose whom to vote for on an individual basis. They think political parties don’t deserve respect, individual political candidates do. Another group of Black voters shun all candidates, regardless of party, and only vote for candidates that they know or candidates that are in line with their particular political philosophies and political needs.

This rise in independent voters has resulted in many non-traditional parties such as The Libertarian Party or The Green Party. Some would argue that so-called Tea Party members and followers are independent because they vote for or against candidates of all political persuasions.

Of all of the independent factions in America, independent Black voters are the most dangerous politically because whatever candidate gets most of the Black vote has a good chance of winning. Blacks, more often than not, vote in blocks and usually give 80 or 90 percent of their votes cast to one candidate in each race.

How does all of this newly found political independence affect Black candidates? One glaring result is that candidates need to more than just say, “I’m a Democrat!”

Black candidates cannot expect to turnout large numbers of Black voters by identifying themselves as mere puppets of the Democratic, or Republican, political parties.

Yes, non-Black consultants hired by Blacks are correct in saying that some Black candidates will get a meager percentage of votes cast by frequent voters but they are dead wrong when they suggest that any Black candidate will get the Black voter support that President Barack Obama got from African American voters.

If Black candidates don’t realize that more and more Blacks are registering as having No Party Affiliation and that these newly independent registered Black voters can’t vote in states that have partisan primaries, those Black candidates might just taste the agony of political defeat!

If Black candidates insist on having a milk sugar campaign message that doesn’t address the issues and political needs of Black voters, they may not generate sufficient Black voter support.

And, if Black candidates fail to utilize the political resources, skills and talent of brothers and sisters in America’s Black communities, they will forever be tricked into defeat by modern-day political carpet baggers that come into ghettos and barrios to steal all of the political money they can and then run away back to the suburbs.

One day independent voters will revolt. I think they will rise up when they realize that in some states they are victims of taxation without representation.

The Democratic and Republican elected officials have conspired to prevent independent registered voters from voting in elections when all candidates for office are members of the Democratic or Republican parties and the winner of the partisan primary is awarded a political position after the primary election.

Perhaps, some voters registered as Independents don’t want to vote for Democrats or Republicans anyway!

The representatives in Congress based on the lobbyists and large corporations understand that appropriations for large federal projects start with a relationship. Politics is always about who is going to get billions of dollars to implement their plan or project.

Sometimes the principals are in plain sight and there is no mystery which investment group is behind the legislation. Other times it is necessary to pull certain strings and make certain commitments to another project, to get a personal project accepted. Sometimes it is necessary to be covert and not reveal who is connected or behind the bill.

Many times pork projects do not waste taxpayers money, because they enhance and improve local citizens’ lives. Legislators in Congress would not know which local roads or bridges needed federal funds to be repaired, without help from local representatives, local firms, and lobbyists. Federal appropriations impact every aspect of our lives, and politics is the vehicle to get things done.

As a community, African Americans fundamentally are not involved or aware of the politics that exist in their local school board or their local mayor’s office. Many times we would rather complain about what our local, state and federal representatives are not doing, than finding out what they are doing.

Angela Glover Blackwell is the founder and CEO of PolicyLink, a national research and action institution, and has put together a list of policies that President Obama’s administration has initiated that are positively impacting African Americans. The historic health care legislature will dramatically improve the lives of 7 million African Americans without health insurance.

Also in that health care bill are little-noticed provisions to restructure the college loan system to push an additional $36 billion to college students’ loans. Grant programs will receive an additional $2.56 billion, which will go directly into historically black colleges and universities. President Obama has laid the groundwork for an extraordinary growth in economic and social programs for millions of African Americans, which is available for anyone to see. So far the president has invested or proposed:

• $5 billion targeting energy efficiency and jobs to low income communities

• $250 million for Choice Neighborhoods, in communities with opportunities

• $400 million to open new supermarkets in underserved communities

• $600 million for summer youth jobs

• $210 million for Promise Neighborhoods using Harlem Children’s Zone

• $8.1 billion for nutritional support programs

• $4 billion for Race to the Top educational grants

• $10.2 billion for early childhood education

• $144 million for prisoner re-entry programs

• $ 4 billion for Community Development Block Grants

• $ 4 billion in job-training programs for youth

It is obvious that our president is aware of the challenges confronting our community, and is providing opportunities in our cities and poor communities. In politics it is important to read between the lines and take advantage of benefits, because your community meets the requirements.

It is essential for African American communities to begin to do their homework and due process and find out what federal, state, and local programs are available for their community. We can sit around and wait for our leaders to take us by the hand to receive benefits, or we can take the initiative and find out what is available.

Our president is laying the foundation and it is up to us to build the walls and the roof to complete the building. The doors are being open and all we have to do is get busy and walk through the doors of opportunity.

By Roger Caldwell

The store manger quickly went on the intercom and apologized for the incident, but the damage had already been done. Many of the Black customers expressed their anger to the store management and also called and sent letters to corporate headquarters. The only response that management could give was that they were investigating the incident and the local police were involved.

The incident occurred on a Sunday, March 14, and the Washington Township police chief and Wal-Mart officials held a press conference presenting their findings and answering question from the media and community on Saturday, March 20.   A 16-year-old is charged with making a racial comment and he has been released to his parents.

Since he is a minor, his name has not been released and there is little information about his background. Some community members said Saturday that they had heard reports of similar incidents happening at the store in recent months.

There have been several past instances of Black customers charging they were unfairly treated at other Wal-Mart stores. In February 2009, the retailer paid $17.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging racial discrimination in its hiring of Black drivers.

Wal-Mart spokesman David Tover said in a statement issued after the news conference, “We’re pleased this matter is resolved and we have updated our intercom system at this store to prevent this from happening again. We again apologize to all our customers and associates who had to listen to something so offensive.”

This case will be handled in juvenile court in the neighboring county where the 16 year old lives. Authorities would not say if the incident was planned or the comments made impulsively. Another teenage friend is being investigated, but he has not been charged.

By Roger Caldwell

This bill will be transformational and it will dramatically alter the way the healthcare system works. Everyone is well aware that this bill will take incremental steps to improve healthcare for all Americans. There are 50 million Americans without health insurance, and this bill will help millions get health insurance.

The Obama administration is working extremely hard to get 217 votes in the House to pass the amended version of the bill, that is changing everyday. In the Senate, 60 votes are needed to pass the healthcare bill, but there is a special procedure that can be used where the senators only need 51 votes.

One thing for sure eventually there will be a healthcare bill, where the Democrats and the President can be extremely satisfied with their achievement. The Congressional Budget Office will eventually have to determine a cost estimate over 10 years and hopefully the bill will not exceed over a trillion dollars.

New ideas for the healthcare reform bill are now coming from everyone, including Republicans, Democrats, Doctors, Lawyers, Lobbyist, and insurance executives. This is a good thing because in order to make democracy inclusive, the final bill must be bi-partisan and representative of the entire country. No one party or group should make all the decisions, because the bill should be collaborative and transformational.

Once the bill is passed, and the President has signed the bill, the real work is just beginning. Transforming a system that is controlled by powerful billion dollar corporations will be a massive undertaking. In order to make healthcare affordable and accessible to an additional 40 million people will have to be managed by the government.

There is a great idea being promoted by our own Congressman Alan Grayson. He is proposing that millions of Americans be allowed to purchase health insurance from Medicare and Medicaid. There is already a system in place and the mechanism can be used to get more Americans insurance and not re-invent the wheel.

There are also great ideas where adult children can stay on their parents insurance until they are 25 years old, and this would help keep this age group insured. There are ideas where Americans with pre-existing conditions could not be denied coverage. With the large influx of Hispanics, the new bill would make it easier to get healthcare insurance to this targeted group. Also in the new bill, everyone would be required to purchase healthcare insurance very similar to car insurance.

With the cost of healthcare increasing this year for some companies and certain individuals by 25%, something has to be done. The insurance companies are making billions of dollars, but their profits are hidden and secret to the general public. Since their records are not transparent and accountable, the question is how can they justify 25% premium increases?

The healthcare system is broken and if you don’t have or can’t afford good insurance don’t get sick. Once anyone in your family gets sick, you will have to take out a second mortgage to pay your bill, or just refuse to pay it. Medical bills are a contributing factor to 62% of Americans declaring bankruptcy.

Americans now spend 8% of their income on healthcare insurance and the cost is increasing yearly. If a citizen does not get healthcare insurance from his company, the coverage on the individual market is more expensive.

The affordability and accessibility to healthcare insurance will always be a challenge, and is not going away, because eventually everyone gets sick. The politicians will not agree with all the different provisions and cost of the bill. The public will not know who to believe and who to trust.

Nevertheless as an American, we know it is time for a change in the healthcare system, and we need to support our president on healthcare reform.

By Roger Caldwell

Hurricane Katrina, Downed Buras-Louisiana watertower

Coming from the relatively Flat state of Arkansas, I totally understand the unpredictability of nature and how destructive it can be.  I lived in what was so affectionately referred to as “TORNADO ALLEY” and let me tell you, you don’t know fear unless you’ve found yourself in a position where an F5 140 mph+  tornado is flying over head.  NO sir! It’s not sexy at all!   And, of course, no one will forget about the awesome blizzards that have just crossed our country.  Snow covered 25 of 50 states and lasted all the way into March.

Now, I know you aren’t reading this to merely listen to me recite the facts and stats of which you are already aware.  I’m here because I’m HOPING that with all of these natural disasters and major weather systems coming through that you are conscious of the fact that we are JUST getting into the groove of the weather system.

We have about 3 months before Hurricane Season kicks in and you can expect the temperature to start getting hot around May.  That’s right, my friends, HEAT and HURRICANES are on the menu AGAIN!

So with that being said, I think it’s only appropriate that I share with you some tips to prepare you for the ‘rump shaker’ weather system that is fast coming upon us:

1)      PHONE ROSTER.  Get your phone roster ready and make sure at least ONE person has a land line.  I hate to be the bearer of bad news but how do you plan on making a call if the cell phone lines go down.

2)      ZIP LOCK BAGS.   Keep all of your personal effects that you need to keep dry or safe in a bag that you can grab at a moment’s notice.

3)      ELDERLY CHECK.  If you have friends or relatives that are elderly, make sure their A/C works. Make sure they have ice and water.  Get them OUT of the house if their house is a HOT BOX. More importantly, make sure that someone can get them if need be.

4)      GAS TANK.  I know times are tight but I’ve had the opportunity to try and find a gas station during a hurricane and you would be amazed how empty the pumps are at that time.

5)      INSURANCE.  Make sure you let your insurance company know when a disaster is on its way.  They probably know already.

6)      DESTINATION.  If you gotta roll on a dime, know where you’re going.  Put your destination spot on point so they know that they are going to have visitors.

7)      ADVANCE NOTICE.   Don’t trust that people outside of your region follows the weather IN your region.  Call them and give them a heads up.

8)      YOU.  In the end, remember, YOU are the most valuable property that there is.  You can get more cars, sculptures and pictures but you can’t replace you so LOOK after yourself.

I know that a lot of this is common sense but you would surprised how many people take for granted that you have to prepare for Mother Nature to strike.  Remember, Mother Nature is on her OWN clock.

Anthony Reeves is an attorney at law and host of the blog talk radio “Legal Beat in the Morning” and “In the Know”.  He may be reached at anthony@reevesfirm.com or visit his website at: www.reevesfirm.com

First the story; I was in the 7-Eleven on SR-436 Saturday evening and had the misfortune to overhear a young woman asking an older gentlemen (older than me and way older than the lady in question) who was busy selecting a donut from the Krispy Crème donut case, if he “would buy her a donut too, she was hungry.”  He did not respond or even look her in the eyes; he just ignored her hoping she would just go away.  Chivalry is clearly dead and gone.  It was only $.99.

I, on the other hand, could not wait and jumped right in, placed a dollar on the counter to pay for the donut, and told the cashier I was paying.  I then looked at the cashier and said “a dollar won’t be enough, what about the tax,” and promptly put another dollar on the counter.  The young lady refused to pick up the money, I guess in hopes that I would pay and take the change.  Instead I put a third on top of the two that were already there.  She then felt the need to tell me her story.

And I, in my great wisdom told her “I don’t care about your story, I just care that you are hungry” while the older gentlemen stood on my right and didn’t say a word.  I don’t even think he noticed.  The cashier also felt the need to express her gratitude and let me know that the young girl had been trying for quite some time to find someone to help her and had been at the 7-Eleven since early afternoon asking people to “buy her food, she was hungry.”

I fully intended to beat everybody to the punch but my muse, Scott Maxwell, got his story in the Orlando Sentinel Sunday morning first.  And let me tell you he’s right.  We, as Americans, will go far and wide to feed the people in Haiti but fail our own here at home.  Maybe it’s easier because we can’t see them, we don’t have to talk to them and it sure makes for good press.

I, on the other hand, know it’s time we stopped and smelled the coffee.  When every man, woman, and child in this country goes to bed each night with a full stomach, then and only then should we start to feed the rest of the world.  What do you think?

This is Elaine and let the sun shine in,

Elaine Huffman
Author, Publisher, and Environmentally Conscious

For the past year and a half the organization has been limited in its impact in the community and many thought that their platform was no longer relevant. There has been a cut in its funding from corporate, federal, and public resources. As a result of the limited funding and the recession, the word on the street was that the Urban League was dying.

I had the opportunity to experience the new excitement and exuberance that the new CEO brings to his position. Quiet as it has been kept, the Metropolitan Orlando Urban League Guild has been rated as the #1 guild in the entire National Urban League organization. This is a tremendous accomplishment this year; because they were able to achieve this recognition without a president and leader.

As a result of Nouchelle “Shelly” Hastings, President of the Metropolitan Orlando Urban League Guild, and the rest of her team, the work has never stopped. Everyone who works with the guild understands it is a volunteer position; therefore this is more than a job, because they believe in their mission.

At this the first meeting of the guild with the new president, it appeared that everyone was on the same page, as Mr. Braswell laid out his vision and platform for the Metropolitan Orlando Urban League and the community. Mr. Braswell understands the peculiar idiosyncrasies of the local community, because he was raised in Central Florida. He knows how to connect to the community, because at one time he ran the same roads as a kid and teenager.

Mr. Braswell also has the corporate experience coming from Disney and he’s been a past chairman of the Urban League. In Disney, most recently he was manager of global strategies for diversity at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. He has held the position of past chairmen of the Leadership Orlando Alumni, a member of the board of governors for the Orlando Regional Chamber of Commerce, and currently serves on the Quest Inc. board as chair of its resource development committee.

It appears that the new president is the right choice for the monumental challenges of the job. His vision is that through transparency, hard work, and accountability, the community can once again be proud of the organization in all three counties that it serves. The goal of the Urban League is to empower communities and change lives.

It is obvious to empower communities, the Metropolitan Orlando Urban League must first fix its infrastructure and solve its internal problems. The new president is very receptive to change and every organization must be able to make a transitional shift in this new informational age.

If the success of the guild is any indicator of the success of the affiliate, then Orlando better get ready for a new player in town. Look for a new face on the Metropolitan Orlando Urban League, as it builds a new image one supporter at a time. For more information contact at www.guildorlando.org.