< PreviousBISHOP RICHARD ALLEN Richard Allen was born in Philadelphia on February 14, 1760, the slave of Benjamin Chew, a prominent lawyer and Chief Justice of the Commonwealth. When he was a child, Richard, his parents and his three siblings were sold to Stokeley Sturgis, a Delaware planter. When Stokeley got into financial trouble, Richard's mother and three of his five siblings were sold. After his own religious conversion, Richard joined the Methodist Society, began attending classes, and evangelized his friends and neighbors. Richard took up his master's suggestion that he purchase his freedom. He set out to earn the money by working for the Revolutionary forces, eventually taking the surname "Allen" to signify his free status. As the group grew in number, Allen "saw the necessity of erecting a place of worship for the colored people," an idea rejected by "the most respectable people of color in the city," but embraced by "three colored brethren ... the Rev. Absalom Jones, William White and Dorus Ginnings [who] united with me as soon as it became public and known." When this plan was explained to the white elder, "he used very degrading and insulting language to us, to try and prevent us from going on. Allen and Jones formed the Free African Society, a non-denominational religious mutual aid society for the black commu- nity. Eventually this society grew into the African Church of Philadelphia. Seven years later, in 1794, he founded Bethel, which became the "Mother" church of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the first independent black denomination. With the support of his second wife, Sara, whom he married in 1800, Richard Allen remained an ardent activist on behalf of the local and national black community. Allen died in 1831, widely revered as, in the words of abolitionist David Walker, one of "the greatest divines who has lived since the apostolic age." HOMER SYLVESTER BROWN Homer S. Brown, born in Huntington, W. Va. on September 23, 1896, was educated at Virginia Union University in Richmond, Va., and received his law degree from the University of Pittsburgh in 1923. Brown became a member of the Allegheny County Bar Association on October 26, 1923, and in 1934 he was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. During Brown's tenure in the House (1935-1950) he authored the State Fair Employment Practices Act. In 1943 Brown was the first African American appointed to the Pittsburgh Board of Education, and in 1949 he became the first African American to hold the position of Allegheny County Judge. In 1956 he was elected to the Court of Common Pleas and remained until 1975 when poor health forced his retirement. On the bench Brown was best known for his 1968 decision that the City of Pittsburgh's tax on hospitals, known as the "sick tax", was unconstitutional, a decision upheld by higher courts. Another historic decision came in 1973 when he ruled that prayers could be offered at graduation ceremonies. This decision was upheld by the United States Supreme Court. Brown also served many private organizations, most notably as first President of the Pittsburgh Branch of the National Associa- tion for the Advancement of Colored Persons; the Centre Avenue (Pitts- burgh) YMCA, where he chaired the Board of Directors; and the Board of Trustees of Virginia Union University. He also served on the White House Commission on Education (1955) and the Governor's PA Committee on Education (1960). Judge Brown died at his home in Pittsburgh on May 22, 1977. JAMES FORTEN Born in Philadelphia to free black parents in 1766, Forten at the age of eight began working alongside his father in Robert Bridges' sail loft. The death of his fa- ther forced Forten to find additional work to support his family. Somehow his mother still found a way to send him part-time to a Quaker school for two years. At the age of fourteen, he volunteered for service in the Revolutionary War, assigned to the Royal Lewis, a privateer that supported the Continental Navy. After the war, Forten returned to Philadelphia, he rejoined Robert Bridges' sail loft as an apprentice sailmaker. In 1798 Bridges retired and asked the thirty-two-year-old Forten to remain in charge. Within three years Forten owned it outright. By the early 1800s he invented a sail that enabled ships to maneuver more adeptly and to maintain greater speeds. In the early 1800s Forten presided over an integrated workforce who obeyed his strict rules of hard work, church attendance, abstention from alcohol, and strict punctuality. At times he noted sarcastically, he was prevented by whites from exercising this right, but it didn't matter: his white workers voted as he directed to advance their mutual economic interests. Forten's fortune was considerable for any man, black or white. He used more than half of his wealth to purchase the freedom of slaves, operate an Under- ground Railroad station out of his home on Lombard Street, and fund a school he had opened for black children in his house. Vocal in his opposi- tion to slavery, he was active in other reform causes, particularly women's rights and temperance, and he became a firm opponent of the American Colonization Society, founded in 1816. In 1833, James' wife Charlotte Vandine Forten and their three daughters helped found the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society. James died in Philadelphia in 1948 and left behind an exemplary family, a sizable fortune, and a legacy of philanthropy and activism that inspired generations of black Philadelphians. WILLIAM "BILL" GOLDWYN NUNN, JR. Bill Nunn was born and raised in the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is the son of William G. Nunn Sr., who was the managing editor of the Pittsburgh Courier. The Courier was among the most influential black publications in the nation. The younger Nunn attended college at West Virginia State where he was a stand-out basketball player on a team which went 26–0 in his senior season. His high school and college teammate, Chuck Cooper would become the first black player drafted by the NBA. Another college teammate, Earl Lloyd, was the first black to play in an NBA game. Nunn was recruited by the Harlem Globetrotters, but chose instead to return home to Pittsburgh to work at the Courier. Nunn started as a sportswriter at the Courier, and eventually moved up to become the sports editor and then managing editor in the mid-1960s after his father's retirement. As a sportswriter for a black publication, Nunn developed deep knowledge of football programs at historically black colleges and univer- sities. The Courier named a "Black College All-America" team starting in 1950. The NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers noted Nunn's coverage of these players who were traditionally under-represented in the league and in 1967 Nunn accepted a part-time position on the team's scouting staff. The sideline became a full-time position two years later when Chuck Noll became the team's coach. Nunn lived with his wife, Frances, in the Schenley Heights neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Their son Bill was an actor; he played Radio Raheem in Do The Right Thing. Because of his son's fame, the elder Nunn referred to himself as Bill Nunn, Sr. Their daughter, Lynell Wilson, is a for- mer U.S. Attorney. Nunn died on May 6, 2014 at the University of Pitts- burgh Medical Center, two weeks after suffering a stroke. Nunn is survived by his wife Frances, his daughter Lynell, his three grandchildren Jessica Nunn, Matthew Wilson and Cydney Nunn, and one great grandchild. Black History MakersWWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 19 During this speech Judge Sampson provided five options or choices to the graduating class, as it related to what and whom they would become with the knowledge they acquired during their collegiate matriculation. The choices offered included becoming a pacifist, conformists, elitist, extrem- ists, or activist? It is Judge Sampson’s remarkable legacy which enabled her to unequivocally position herself most appropriately to ask this question. Judge Edith Sampson was born Edith Spurlock on October 13, 1901, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Louis and Elizabeth (McGruder) Spurlock. Sampson’s primary education was received at Lincoln and Larimer Elementary Schools and she later graduated from Peabody High School. After high school, she attempted to secure a teaching position. While that did not come to fruition, it was during her time of employment with the Associated Charities of Pittsburgh that she was provided with the opportunity to study at the New York School of Social Work. Later, she attended the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago. According to Judge Sampson’s obituary featured in the New York Times on October 11, 1979, it was at the University of Chicago during which she received high grades in a criminology course that her Professor George Washington Kirchwey, Professor of Law at Columbia University said to her, “You are in the wrong field. You have the earmarks of a lawyer.” These words ultimately lead to Sampson enrolling in evening classes at the John Marshall Law School. She earned her LL.B. degree in 1925 and in 1927 she gained an LL.M. from Loyola University, and was admitted to the Illinois bar. In her twenties, she married Rufus Sampson and divorced him not too long after. In 1934, she remarried Attorney Joseph Clayton who died in 1956. Sampson who had made Chicago her home, served as a lawyer, probation officer and referee in the family court of Cook County, as well as an assistant corporation counsel for the City of Chicago. In 1962, Sampson made her mark in the annals of history becoming the first black woman elected to the bench in Illinois as an associate judge of the Municipal Court of Chicago. In 1964 and 1970 she was elected associate judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County and in 1971 and 1976, judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County. She held that position until she retired in 1978. Sampson’s legacy also includes representing the United States interna- tionally. In 1949, George V. Denny Jr. original moderator of America’s Town Meeting of the Air, one of radio’s first talk shows, organized a 72-day dialogue around the world. Sampson was invited as one of the 28 national leaders from varying fields including civic, cultural, labor, women’s activities and education to participate in the Town Hall World Seminar, sponsored by America’s Town Meeting. The meetings were held in twelve world capitals to discuss problems of interest worldwide and nationally relating to the broad topic of peace. Sampson’s impressive participation contributed to her 1950 appointment as the Alternate United States Representative to the United Nations. She was reappointed to this post in 1952. During the years of 1951 and 1952, Sampson served as a representative of the State Department touring Europe and lecturing about the current status of African Americans. Her international service continued in 1961- 62 as an appointee to the United State Citizen Commission on NATO. Judge Edith Sampson died on October 8, 1979, having held member- ships with various organizations including the Cook County Bar Associa- tion, the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, the National Association of Women Lawyers, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and the National Council of Negro Women. At the conclusion of her aforementioned 1965 commencement speech, Judge Sampson requested of those who would choose the fifth choice, ulti- mately identifying themselves as ones that “Hang loose, but stay vibrantly alive”, “If any of you in this class makes that fifth choice, I wish you’d let me know about it. You I’d like to know better.” Now you can ask yourself was Judge Edith Sampson a pacifist, conform- ists, elitist, extremists, or activist? “You, too, can be a pillar-of-society conformist. No strain, no pain.” —Judge Edith Spurlock Sampson 20 | TALK MAGAZINE • WINTER 2020 by Lela J. Sewell-Williams Judge Edith Sampson was not a practitioner nor advocate of her own words quoted above. These words were delivered as part of a May 30, 1965 Commencement Speech at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. The choices offered included becoming a pacifist, conformists, elitist, extremists, or activist? It is Judge Sampson’s remarkable legacy which enabled her to unequivocally position herself most appropriately to ask this question. The 1619 Project, led by author and Editor Nikole Hannah-Jones, marked the 400th anniversary of enslaved Africans and their arrival to Vir- ginia. Originally set as a one-time special edition issue in August of 2019, the issue developed into an entire project with journalists, black academia, and writers contributing essays, poems, fiction stories and photographs to round out the fullness of the topic at hand. The project’s aim was to reframe, reshape, and refocus the Black American’s contribution as a central point in national history. It increased the conver- sation about the layered consequence of slavery, providing more history and background of African history which is widely unknown, surpassing the oftentimes simplistic or tamed approach to this sensitive time period. Topics include The Great Migration, African Americans and politics, genera- tional wealth suppression, and institutional racism. While the project has been met with wide- spread support, it also lends itself to strong criticism from historians and different newspaper publication outlets in regards to its accuracy. It has also been criticized for being racially charged and developing a political and social narrative that is di- visive. While some critics call it a necessary project which corrects the wrongdoing of faulty narrative, many critics have stated the project uses inaccurate details and falsifies history. The reporting comes under scrutiny for being too biased and one sided, an argument which works (in its irony) to prove why such a project is important and fundamentally necessary. As the 1619 Project grows and expands in wid- er audiences, the idea of ‘which’ history is accurate is a tough point to discuss. On one hand, African Americans have just cause for being protective over their history. One of the most troubling conse- quences of slavery was the dismissal and erasure of African culture in the ‘new land’. The consequences of that run deeply, with many African Americans left void of their true ancestral roots or valid American history from which to pull. American history oftentimes ‘handpicked’ which historical events were worth mentioning and the dominant culture’s decision making in cer- tain time periods was geared towards creating an American image without bloodshed and division. Seeing the consequence of omission, writers have been providing more sustaining historical accounts which feature African Americans as a strong fixture, and not an addendum, to American History. As a nation, examining our past has never been an easy task, and critics on either end could see how recent narratives created and developed all served a purpose in moving the agenda of the dominant culture, gender, and race forward. This leads to many ‘gaps’ in history, largely the important role that many African American men and women played in politics, enter- tainment, and society at large. Black History Month is oftentimes designed as a ‘top 10’ list of recycled African American entertainers, creators, and leaders. While there has always been more to the African American side of history, it is oftentimes told from an oppressive, less revolutionary and thus seemingly less necessary approach. The ‘same old, same old’ approach leaves much to be desired. That is why the 1619 project, and others like it, are important for our society. As technology advances, the ability to be both ill-informed and misinformed becomes problematic in how stories are shared widely within society. Thanksgiving can either be a meeting of the minds or a genocide. Slavery can either be depicted as gruesome or illustrated as a necessary and nor- malized structure. What we have gained in access to information, we have lost in authenticity and responsibility for accuracy and wholeness. Projects like 1619 with both admiration and criticism alike, bring to the forefront the very real issue of misin- formation and omission of a Black America silenced for generations. Our truths became negotiable, our stories rewritten. The 1619 project created another avenue for truth sharing on a platform with a wider and more diverse audience. Projects like these require audience support. Whether you are comfortable with history as it is, or yearn for a fuller and wider spectrum of all experiences, there are benefits to knowing history in its entirety. It is worth reading and knowing. Con- versations about these and many different experi- ences help to expand our scope and provide a clearer lens to a blurred picture. Black authors often spoke about the two different Americas, the America in history books and the American story left largely untold. The works of Richard Wright, Toni Mor- ison, and others served as a way to tell our truths and to tell them more accurately, freely, and more in depth than mainstream society allowed. Pioneers in writing stood against the dismissal of African Americans in history, working to develop stages and platforms to showcase our history. The 1619 project, as Afro-centric as it is, pushes us into understanding the two Americas as one. One nation and one story woven together through a gruesome reality. Understanding that from both sides is necessary. Both stories of America are needed in order to see one another as we are. Both stories are intertwined in a way unique to the American experience and necessary to be spoken about in honesty, fullness, and transparency. Please explore The 1619 Project, and others, to learn and develop your own opinion. and the Black Experience in American History Who governs the rights of the black narrative? For centuries, history has been depicted in ways that omit the full realities of our country’s past. As such, some historians have written about an American history that is void of the African American experiences, limiting African American influence and its direct contribution to the building of our nation. Because of this, Afrocentric narratives have begun to take shape in history books and the media in efforts of creating a much fuller depiction of our nation’s history. Most recently, an initiative by New York Times Magazine, the 1619 Project, has taken hold of the baton to continue the race in pushing forward for a more accurate narrative of the American Experience. by Fiordaliza White “Let the Record Show…”: The 1619 Project WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 21TMAG 2018 Pennsylvania Voter Project Check Donation Level: n $5 n $10 n $20 n $50 n $100 n $300 n $500 n Other $______________ n Yes, I will Contribute to Talk Minority Action Group Voter Project Print Name ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ City ______________________________________________________ State ___________ Zip Code _____________________ Email _____________________________________________ Telephone ____________________________________________ Make checks payable to The Pittsburgh Contingency/TMAG Mail checks to PO Box 143 ~ Monroeville, PA 15146-0143 Our Partner The Pittsburgh Contingency (TPC) is a 501(c)3 non-profit and your Contribution is tax deductible. P 412.823.4007 ~ E contact@talkminorityactiongroup.org ~ www.talkminorityactiongroup.org GUIDE TO CITIZENSHIP & RESPONSIBILITY EDUCATING & EMPOWERING DISCUSSION GUIDE TMAG VOTER PROJECT Voter Registration Set Up Registration Booths At Community Block/Street Fairs, Churches, Schools Targeting Pennsylvania’s African American/Latino Populations INCLUDING Classes and events using our Citizens’ guide booklet reviewing Voters’ rights, responsibilities of elected officials Voter Turnout Walk to the polls Ride to the polls Door to door on election Voter Education Please help with your DONATION TMAGWWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 23 The ‘War on Drugs’ is an ongoing war with no shortage of casualties. In 1971 President Nixon declared a war on drugs, a highly televised campaigned that was said to devote funding that would prevent individuals from becoming addicted while also rehabilitating current addicts. This public statement served to send a clear message about drugs in America. They were unwelcomed here, and the country was prepared to do what it must to prevent the widespread epidemic. Nixon provided an unreserved amount of funding on a federal level for military intervention of illegal drug trade and set initiatives to develop drug policies to aid in the eradication of drugs. What seems like a drastic move was a long time coming. Heroin infused cough syrups and over the counter children’s medications had just been discontinued in 1912 after creating thousands of household addicts. Civil War and WWI vets had utilized an addictive amount of Morphine to treat wounds. Alcohol Prohibition through the 18th Amendment soon followed. The Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act came into play in 1970, leading Nixon to finally declare a war on drugs in 1971, with drugs becoming Public Enemy Number One. At that time, Crack Cocaine was the drug of choice and the ‘color’ behind reform. The way in which drugs were viewed mattered in both perception and criminal outcomes. In 2011, The Global Commission on Drug Policy declared the War on Drugs as a failed one, disconnected from the very real reality of addiction and disease. The argument was simple, drug use was a result of a diseased group of individuals, and not criminals. While the consensus was that drug use was a disease, it did not deter from its criminality. Drugs still resulted in jail time, with marijuana carrying the burden as the face of criminal deviance. The cultural shift in drug use seemingly began when the use of Opioids and prescription drug abuse began to increase. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, there was an estimated 72,000 drug overdoses in the USA in 2017. The most obvious spike in drug use has come in death related to pentenyl and synthetic opioids, accounting for approximately 30,000 deaths. On average, 21- 29% of patients abuse prescribed opiates. Eighty percent of individuals using heroin first misused prescription opioids. The prescription medication abuse is on the rise, and this leads to many individuals looking at the way we have managed drug use and abuse over time. While new legislation has led to many conversations over the way in which race has seemingly played a much larger role in drug addiction that it should have, many are now wondering how to coincide cultural competence, social justice, and pain management to address growing drug abuse across cultures. Opioid addiction, much like crack cocaine addiction, causes adverse effects to psychological and physical functionality of the body. Treatment for overdose and misuse of drugs is still an ongoing process, with social determinants effecting if one is considered ‘sick’ or just deviant. Many who are sick are still being applied punitive care rather than medical care. Treatment in modern society must consider historical context of the crack epidemic in order to begin the process of addressing treatment and sustainability of the addict. While both means of addiction may seem connected, the historical occurrences from a legal and social standpoint leads to many complexities in addressing crack addiction the same as opioid addiction. Understanding those differences first and foremost can help to create a platform for further advocacy and similarly constructed frameworks in addressing a sound solution for both equally moving forward. Historical context aside, and with an already understood identification of the disparities in criminality, the need for treatment for both with equal effort is key. Drug addiction, as we have always known it to be, is an addiction; a disease. Handling a disease requires a sense of understanding precipitating events that lead to the behaviors, focusing on many of the cultural aspects that might both bring those trends together or set them apart. Cultural competency within diagnosis, assessments, and treatment helps families to understand root causes, physicians to understand best level of treatment, and societies to implement programming which serves the need of the addict more holistically. Treatment facilities must consider how culture plays a role in pain management, counseling, religious or holistic treatment options, etc. The opioid epidemic shares strikingly similar characteristics as the crack cocaine epidemic, which is both promising and alarming. While the opioid epidemic is much widespread due to its geographical and, frankly, racial composition of its users, it does not echo in how society has reacted to its use or its treatment. More and more, the need to address drug epidemics has come into focus. In order to move forward, a fuller scope of drug abuse is needed, with a historical analysis of both the problem and our successes and failings in solutions. As a society, there is a need to recognize that this new age of aggressive pill distribution hinders successful outcomes in treatment from occurring, and treatment facilities must be better equipped with the economic tools to apply vigorous treatment programming in its facilities. Step down programming from treatment to mental health facilities are a promising solution being offered, one that addresses the duality of the disease. With talks of mental health, the conversation for drug abuse and treatment come into play as well. Mental health services see a strong trend in identified drug users seeking treatment. Dual services oftentimes aid in servicing both of those needs, but without appropriate funding, collaboration, and education, both users and community members alike are left wondering about the best solution for treatment. Nontraditional avenues for treatment are on the horizon, and with it, more ways of addressing any and all addiction comes with it. Both addictions, the ones left behind as well as those at the forefront, now have a stronger army for advocacy and relief efforts. The goal has now been reignited to find treatment facilities which detox to help prevent deaths, with more facilities helping to keep individuals safe and alive with alternative medications. There are more facilities designed with culturally and linguistically appropriate staffing to address addiction, and increased funding towards programming efforts to address recovery for all drug users. Whether or not the conversation shifted because the color of the identified addict will always be up for question. However, moving beyond that into solution-based strategies will help to guide the new narrative of addiction as an ever- growing problem within our nation. The Color of Drug Reform and Treatment by Fiordaliza White During his 2016 keynote address at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Barack Obama went so far as to say: “Even if all restrictions on voting were eliminated, African Americans would still have one of the lowest voting rates. That’s not good. That is on us.’” On the other end of the spectrum, Trump insinuated that black voters stayed home during the election. “They didn’t come out to vote for Hillary. They didn’t come out… so thank you to the African American community.” The same message reverberated through political commentary and activism. Brando Starkey of The Undefeated wrote that, “Black people who didn’t vote let us down,” in the 2016 election. Two years later, the Detroit News’ Bankole Thompson wrote, “It is not enough to raise your fist in a political frenzy as a symbol of Black power and solidarity if you are failing to exercise the power of the ballot and not showing up at the polls.” Despite these comments, “black people don’t vote” is not based in data: though they are only 13% of the US population, black voters are among the most stable voting bloc in politics, despite the concerted efforts to stop them. The myth instead is rooted in an exaggerated narrative derived from Reconstruction-era stereotypes about work ethic, opportunity and culpability. Similar to how black people were the economic scapegoat for the downfall of southern states once slavery was outlawed, they also became the political scapegoat for the losses of the Republican party in the late 1800s. After the civil war, black voter turnout boomed and elected nearly 20 black people to the House and Senate and many more to local and state positions. By December 1887, however, Congress convened without one black member in about two decades leading to “The Negroes Temporary Farewell” when black people were excluded from Congress. As black people gained political power during Reconstruction, southern states passed stringent voter ID laws and gave black people voting literacy tests that included outlandish questions such as: how many plies are on a roll of toilet paper or how many bubbles does a bar of soap have? Some were even lynched for voting or asking for the right to vote. Black people became disenchanted with the Republican party and some started to align with the civil rights arm of the Democratic party as Jim Crow continued to disenfranchise them. Once the 15th amendment was restored during the civil rights movement, black people instantly became a strong voting bloc for the Democratic party, particularly in the south. When Democrats lose, however, it is the same stereotype – black people didn’t come out to vote. But in the last three presidential elections, black voter turnout was 59.6% in 2016, 66.6% in 2012, and 65.2% in 2008. The voter turnout for black DO BLACK PEOPLE VOTE? There is a common stereotype among black and white Americans, and it’s that black people don’t vote. 24 | TALK MAGAZINE • WINTER 2020 After the civil war, black voter turnout boomed and elected nearly 20 black people to the House and Senate and many more to local and state positions.The racist lie rooted in the American psyche despite the tactics of voter suppression working against them, black people are one of the most stable voting blocs in the US by Rashawn Ray people in each of these elections was higher than Latinos and Asians and higher than whites in 2012. Of the 10 states highlighted in the graph, black voter turnout in seven of these states in 2016 was higher or the same as their percentage of the state. In five states, black people represented over 40% of Democratic voters in 2016. While it is true that black voter turnout decreased from 2012 to 2016, it does not mean that black people are to blame for the Democratic loss of the 2016 election. Twelve percent of whites who voted for Obama in 2012 voted for Trump in 2016. Considering Hillary Clinton lost by less than 11,000 votes in Michigan and 44,000 votes in Pennsylvania, these changes made a difference too. Despite the apparent preference for voting Democrat, black voters are not a monolith. Gender, education and incarceration are factors in determining voter turnout and political party preference. Generally, women vote at higher rates than men across race, and this is true of black women too. And, while most black women with or without college degrees voted for Hillary Clinton, only 78% of black men with a college degree (16% voted for Trump) and 82% without a college degree voted Democrat (11% voted for Trump). This data still doesn’t tell the whole story. Current barriers to voting are real, pervasive and covert. In 2013, the decision in the Shelby county v Holder case afforded people who want to disenfranchise black people the license to do so. Incriminating documents were found on the hard drive of a Republican operative known as the “gerrymandering king” who deliberately drew new political maps to dilute the black vote in North Carolina. Nearly 900 polling places were closed from 2012 to 2016, including over 400 in Texas and nearly 40 in the Carolinas. There are also the 6.1 million people disenfranchised due to felony convictions. About 40% of this group is black. This means one of every 13 black people cannot vote due to voter disenfranchisement. We must challenge the stereotypes and assumptions we make about each other and recognize that real barriers to voting continue to persist but are surmountable. If we really want to create racial equity in the political process so that all Americans can truly embrace American democracy, The Voting Rights Act will be fully restored and expanded, the Shelby v Holder decision will be revisited to prevent gerrymandering, millions of returning citizens will have their voting rights restored, and election day will become a federal day of service to remove barriers related to employment. WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 25 Despite the apparent preference for voting Democrat, black voters are not a monolith.26 | TALK MAGAZINE • WINTER 2020 Robert Tanner Freeman is the first professionally trained black dentist in the United States. A child of slaves, he eventually entered Harvard University and graduated only four years after the end of the Civil War on May 18, 1869. Robert Tanner Freeman was born in Washington, D.C. in 1846. His formerly enslaved parents took the surname “Freeman” as did countless other people after gaining their freedom from bondage. As a child, Robert befriended Henry Bliss Noble, a local white dentist in the District of Columbia. Freeman began working as an apprentice to Dr. Noble and continued until he was a young adult. Dr. Noble encouraged young Robert to apply to dental colleges. Two medical schools rejected Freeman’s application but with the encouragement of Dr. Nobel who had contacts at Harvard Medical School, Freeman applied there. Initially rejected, he was accepted into Harvard Medical School in 1867 at the age of 21, after a petition by Dean Nathan Cooley Keep to end the school’s historical exclusion of African Americans and other racial minorities. Robert Tanner Freeman and classmate George Franklin Grant became the first blacks to enter the 1867 Harvard Dental School inaugural class of sixteen. Upon Freeman’s graduation in 1869, he and Grant became the first African American dentists in the United States. Dr. Freeman returned to Washington, D.C. after his graduation to open his own practice. He became a pillar in the D.C. black community because of his commitment to mentoring other African American youth interested in the medical profession. Unfortunately, his death came in 1873, only four years after he received his dental school degree. While working in Washington, D.C. he contracted a water-borne disease although the records are unclear as to the specific disease. Dr. Freeman’s legacy extends beyond his short life. He was honored by the National Dental Association, the all-black dental group which was founded in 1913 and is headquartered in Washington, D.C. The Association adopted the mission of Dr. Freeman to extend dental treatment and education to the impoverished, the disabled, and people of color as well as those who may not seek proper care due to age. In 1907 the predecessor organization to the National Dental Association called itself the Robert T. Freeman Dental Society. Dr. Freeman’s grandson, Robert C. Weaver, became the first African American to serve as a member of the Presidential cabinet. Lyndon Baines Johnson appointed him Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in 1966. ROBERT TANNER FREEMAN Clarion University is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its education programs or activities. See the full statement at clarion.edu/nondiscrimination. Take the Promising Path. Choose Clarion University. Join us at an OPEN HOUSE: OCT. 19 NOV. 2 NOV. 16 more than $5 MILLION IN SCHOLARSHIPS AWARDED LAST YEAR clarion.edu /VISITUS 800-672-7171 RANKED BY MONEY MAGAZINE AS one of the BEST VALUES FOR YOUR MONEY 2018, 2019 SAFEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2019 NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR HOME SAFETY AND SECURITY 26 | TALK MAGAZINE • WINTER 2020WWW.TALKMAGAZINEONLINE.COM | 27 “A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determina- tion, and hard work,” Colin Powell, retired four-star general in the United States Army, said. That sentiment from Powell, the first African American to become secretary of state, succinctly sums up the life of Dr. Bernard Harris, another African American trailblazer. Dr. Harris, a former NASA astronaut, was the first African American to perform a spacewalk. “When I was in elementary school I was thinking about going into space. I made the definitive decision when I was 13 years old watching (astronauts) Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin land on the moon. I knew at that point that I wanted to be an astronaut. When I was in class and in boring times, I would draw spaceships in the corner of my paper as a way to reinforce my vision and my dream of becoming an astronaut,” Dr. Harris told Talk Magazine. He didn’t just dream about it, he knew how to be about it. Dr. Harris recognized that education was the key to fulfilling his childhood aspirations. To that end he earned a B.S. degree from the University of Houston and M.D. degree from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine. After completing his residency in internal medicine at the Mayo Clinic and a fellow- ship at NASA Ames, he joined NASA's Johnson Space Center as a clinical scientist and flight surgeon. “A family physician who was an African American physician intro- duced me to medicine. At the same time I realized there were doctors who worked in the space program. At the end of my senior year I realized that I could become a medical doctor that could take care of folks in space,” Dr. Harris revealed about his time at the University of Houston. When describing his 1995 historic spacewalk, he said it was nothing short of incredible. “As an astronaut the thing that you desire the most is to get into space, which is a story in itself. Once you’re there and you’re traveling around the world every 90 minutes, 17,500 miles an hour, it’s incredible,” Dr. Harris proclaimed. It was a joy for him he said to be on a Space Shuttle that was orbiting the earth. However, everything about extravehicular activity, the technical term for spacewalking, wasn’t a walk in the park. “I put on the suit that weighed over 350 pounds on earth, but nothing in space. Still it’s very bulky and cumbersome to get in and out of a space ship. Once you’re outside it’s incredible. There are no panes of glass that is separating you from the universe around you,” the 63-year-old former space sailor (Greek words meaning astronaut) said. Currently he is the Chief Executive Officer of the National Math and Science Initiative, where he helps young people and adults fulfill their strongly sought aspirations. Dr. Harris leads the organization’s efforts to improve teacher effectiveness and student achievement in STEM education across the country. “Our whole business NMSI the National Math and Science Initiative provides professional development for educators in the STEM fields. When they return to the classroom, they have the skills, curriculum and have learned from their master teachers on how to deliver curriculum so that it can be adjusted appropriately by the students,” the Temple, Texas native said. STEM fields are science, technology, engineering, and math. According to a Forbes Magazine report, “Americans don’t excel enough in the so-called STEM disciplines.” Recreational space travel is now on the fast track. However, once upon a time Hollywood would help baby boomers get “Lost In Space,” (airing from 1965 to 1968) a science fiction original series featuring the Robinson family, intergalactic settlers. Or be reminded on “Star Trek,” another sci-fi series (airing from 1966-1969), that space was the “final frontier.” Many boomers will remember from 1962 to 1963 meeting George Jetson, his wife Jane, and others who starred on the classic Space Age cartoon “The Jetsons.” Now billionaires including Virgin Airlines founder Richard Branson and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos are offering for those who can afford it space tourism travel. “During my time in the space program all of the vehicles were government sponsored. Meaning that governments put up money in order to fund our space program. We went to the moon. We did that because we were in a race with the Russians. But now things have changed. That’s usually how it happens. Those with means get an opportunity to do it before the other of us come around,” Dr. Harris explained. He said titans of industry are forming partnerships that will one-day result in more people not so wealthy to be able to experience “low earth orbit” or travel 250 to 400 miles above the earth. “The fact that you have these titans in the field alongside the government dol- lars. It truly is a public private partnership that is allowing this to happen. The space industry has reached the point where we’re going to be celebrating what we do in low earth orbit,” he noted. What about the possibility of the existence of unidentified flying objects, U.F.Os., or extra-terrestrials, so called ETs? Does his scientific mind consid- er the possibility that we may not be alone in this vast universe? “This is a fancy of science fiction. But, it’s amazing to me how science fiction somehow turns into science fact. The fact of the matter is when you look up in the heavens on a clear night, those stars that you’re seeing. And you see massive amounts of stars you’re looking at only the Milky Way Galaxy,” Dr. Harris replied. The Milky Way Galaxy he emphasized has over four hundred billion stars in it. Some of those stars have planets. One of his favorite quotes is from celebrated astronomer Carl Sagan, who investigated reports of the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence. “The question was, was there life out there. He said, ‘If it’s not. Then that’s an awful waste of space.’ I kinda fall in that category. I think there has to be life out there,” the NASA Space Flight Medal winner admitted. He has logged more than 438 hours and traveled over 7.2 million miles in space. Dr. Harris is the author of “Dream Walker: A Journey of Achievement and Inspiration.” by Tené Croom A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work Dr. Bernard Harris The First African American Astronaut to Walk in SpaceNext >