(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Black Kos, Week In Review [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-07-28 Voices & Soul by Justice Putnam, Black Kos Poetry Editor The Great Migration vitalized many emerging cities in the North, but none so much as Chicago and Detroit. Offering wages of as much as five dollars a day, unheard of in the rural South, Henry Ford’s Detroit factories swelled with the oaken strength of whole generations from Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas and Alabama. But the ‘quiet racism’ of industrial Northern cities stubbornly red-lined the newly arrived Black populations to generations of rental uncertainty, even so, vibrant neighborhoods arose and flourished. The West Side of Detroit was one such neighborhood, giving us luminaries such as John Conyers, Damon Keith, Malcolm X and Julius V Combs, MD. Beneath Elm trees sheltering Hazlett Street, vigilant descendants of enslaved wombs, of steel-bone labor, like religious resistance, reimagine existence. When a child visits a physician, sees a Black man in a white coat, and within a flash, envisions his mission: “I am going to be a doctor.” Julius commits to covenants as husband, father, brother, son, friend, and physician, countering inequities with a deep belief in an oath to sustain life, to realize hope for impoverished patients surviving dark parts of cities, like Detroit’s Westside, where he became, reflecting on the arc of tree limbs, supplying fresh oxygen for lungs and cool shade for sizzling summer days. Then, the consequence of disease destroys the Elms, leaving empty skies and abandoned homes as factory closings wound neighborhoods, hemorrhaging like bodily injuries. And yet, ever vigilant, Julius V. Combs, MD, continues to protect our flesh, to change hospital restrictions, to revolutionize health care rules, to deliver thousands of souls at birth, resurrecting a legacy that defies this contentious, stillborn nation that undermines nature and conspires to smother a Black child’s first gasp for breath. - Melba Joyce Boyd ”Ever Vigilant: Julius V Combs, MD” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To meet the long-term demand for commercial airplane pilots, Boeing is investing $950,000 in scholarships for pilot training. According to the company’s news release, a $500,000 donation from the American aircraft manufacturer will fund 25 scholarships with five aviation groups: Latino Pilots Association, Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, Women in Aviation International, and Sisters of the Skies, an organization of professional Black female pilots who employ “mentorship, professional development, outreach and scholarship” to support future Black aviators, per the organization’s website. Boeing is also donating $450,000 to the Los Angeles-based nonprofit Fly Compton, which introduces Black youth to aerospace career opportunities, the news release states. “The demand for qualified and diverse pilots remains high at airlines worldwide. While becoming a pilot provides a lifelong career, access to training remains a barrier to entry for many,” said Ziad Ojakli, executive vice president of government operations at Boeing. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ They don’t get to puff out their chests, talk about national security and profess the love and respect they hold for every man and woman who wears a uniform. The Root: On the 75th Anniversary of Armed Forces Desegregation, Republicans Don’t Get to Pretend They Support Our Military ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On July 26, 1948, President Truman changed the course of American history when he issued Executive Order 9981 officially declaring “there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin.” This order desegregated the United States military. As we commemorate the 75th anniversary of that historic moment, when President Truman, in a moment of real political courage, desegregated our military, we should remember that history may have been on Truman’s side but public opinion at the time was not. In fact, a 1948 poll showed that only about 26 percent of the American people supported Truman’s decision and he was loudly criticized for using our armed services as a “social experiment.” If that sounds familiar, that’s because a MAGA Republican tried to use the same language to defend his legislation disallowing any racial education training in the Department of Defense. We literally have Republicans using the same language of resistance to integration today. The military hasn’t been race-neutral, and history will tell the story. We should remember the countless Black soldiers who had just returned home from the battlefields of World War II and, instead of the grateful nation that embraced our white veterans, found a home of violent subjugation—where Jim Crow still reigned supreme and where they were too often treated as uniformed monkeys instead of the heroes of the great crusade they were. They’d fought to free the world but they weren’t free themselves. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ John Boyd Jr. weighs in on a $4 billion debt relief program that was supposed to provide relief to Black farmers but was recently dismissed. The Grio: Black farmers are being exploited in America ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In 1919, Black farmland ownership was between 16 to 19 million acres, according to Feeding America, making up 14% of total agricultural land in America. In 2022, the number has gone down to only 1% due to systemic racism, biased government policy and inequitable social and business practices. The Black farmers remaining are demanding the pay that they are rightfully owed from an administration who made a promise. Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it was accepting applications for its Discrimination Financial Assistance Program, a $2.2 billion initiative being funded by the Inflation Reduction Act. It provides financial help for Black farmers, ranchers and forest landowners who experienced discrimination by USDA in the agency’s farm lending prior to 2021. Eboni K. Williams: We’re back with more of the exploitation of Black farmers in America. Now, several of them have sued and recently received back pay after it was discovered by the U.S. Labor Department that immigrant workers, white immigrant workers, were being given more money than the Black farmers, and the Black farmers were doing the exact same job. It’s a disturbing reality for many Black American farmers, whose numbers are dwindling by the day. Still with us is John Boyd Jr. He’s the founder and president of the National Black Farmers Association. Now, John, when you were here, we wanted to address some of the concerns. We’ve had this conversation, but we want to go deeper. Recently, we saw that a federal judge dismissed your lawsuit about the $4 billion debt relief program for Black farmers. Essentially, that was President Biden, including a specific element of that package that was supposed to provide relief to Black farmers. He reneged on that promise. You and Attorney [Ben] Crump and others filed suit, and now, it’s been dismissed. Where do you go next in this case? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Los Angeles city police arrest a Black or Latino person nearly eight out of every 10 times, despite the fact that those two communities only make up about half the city’s population, a new study has found. City Controller Kenneth Mejia’s office released an analysis Wednesday night of the LAPD’s nearly 300,000 arrests made from 2019 to 2022. Mejia was elected in November, and part of his campaign involved putting up billboards around Los Angeles blasting the city’s massive police budget. Black and brown people make up an average of 78.26 percent of all arrests for the years analyzed—but they make up only 56 percent of the city’s population, according to 2020 census data. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/7/28/2183364/-Black-Kos-Week-In-Review Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/