6BB AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO THE MIAMI HERALD MONDAY , MAY 14 , 2018
CONGRESSWOMAN ’ S REPORT
Congresswoman Wilson ’ s Legacy Includes Changing Lives Through Education
By Congresswoman Frederica S . Wilson
I am often asked what legacy will I leave behind ?
The most common definitions for “ legacy ” deals with gifts , wills , money or other personal property . A lesser-known definition focuses on using familial relationships in order to gain membership into schools or fraternal organizations . But the most meaningful definition relates to ancestors passing down something tangible to their descendants .
POLITICS
It is important that we leave a legacy for our children . This is especially true in light of disturbing reports that predict black Americans ’ median wealth will fall to zero by the year 2053 , virtually causing the black middle class to be nonexistent in less than two generations .
It ’ s difficult to imagine that level of regression in 2018 , the 50th year since Rev . Dr . Martin Luther King ’ s assassination . But we have been in a state of devolution since the 2016 election .
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 are being severely limited by voter suppression laws . There are also efforts to expand work requirements under the current presidential administration .
How can we prepare our children for this seemingly bleak future ? Education has been the answer since Alexander Lucius Twilight became the first black American to graduate from college in 1823 .
Studies indicate that investing in education reduces poverty , boosts economic growth and increases income . Education also increases the chances of having a healthy life , reduces maternal deaths , and combats diseases such as HIV and AIDS .
As a former elementary school principal , I have always believed in the importance of investing in our children ’ s future . It is why I started the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project 25 years ago .
Each year , the program sends dozens of previously at-risk boys of color – known as Wilson Scholars – to college to help them realize a brighter future . Next week , 58 Wilson Scholars from 11 senior high schools will sign scholarships to the colleges or universities of their choice . In addition , graduates will receive custom-made suits and 5000 Role Models signature neckties from the Sean John Collection at Macy ’ s . They will also receive new red laptops , the signature color of the program .
The program has mentored thousands
Florida Can Lead Way for Gun Control Reform
of young men who have become the good citizens , good fathers , and good men who are now our community ’ s teachers , doctors , lawyers , law enforcement officers , professional athletes , elected officials , and other leaders .
When I get the opportunity to listen to them , they recount the experiences with the program that served as the cornerstone for changing the trajectory of their lives , and in many instances helped them avert life-threatening situations .
These young men are a part of the legacy I hope to leave behind .
The 5000 Role Models of Excellence Foundation ’ s Annual Academic Signing Day will take place in May 2018 at Hard Rock Stadium . For more information call ( 305 ) 995-2451 .
|
By Chris Norwood
Nearly two weeks after the tragedy at Stoneman Douglass in Parkland , Florida , I appeared on AtlanticLive ' s “ Schools Across America : a Miami Town Hall .” When asked about Parkland , I responded , “ The gun laws we have in our state and country are deplorable . We are
|
one of two countries that constitutionally has a right to bear arms . Personally it motivates me to think more about what it takes to do a constitutional amendment because that ' s what needs to be done .”
Gun control will never get around the 2nd Amendment . We can dance around it like Ali , perhaps jab at it with policy like Sugar Ray , but we will never Tyson TKO gun control without completely repealing and / or amending the 2nd Amendment so that individual states can determine for themselves how to regulate personal gun use .
Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens agrees as he recently challenged the youth to take it a step further and “... demand a repeal of the Second Amendment .”
To even discuss a constitutional convention to ratify a constitutional amendment draws the ire of Democrats and Republicans alike . Do we honestly feel that the 39 men who signed the U . S . Constitution 230 years ago are some sort
|
of deified superheroes that cannot be questioned ?
The late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall said he would not accept offers to speak at constitutional bicentennial celebrations in 1989 , “ For I do not believe that the meaning of the Constitution was forever ‘ fixed ’ at the Philadelphia Convention . Nor do I find the wisdom , foresight , and sense of justice exhibited by the framers particularly profound . To the contrary , the government they devised was defective from the start , requiring several amendments , a civil war , and momentous social transformation to attain the system of constitutional government .”
Florida should be leading the charge . We have more ways to amend our constitution than any other state . Florida is in the midst of a mandatory revision process as the Constitutional Revision Commission meets every 20 years by law . The revision-commission process is entirely unique to Florida .
|
Why not a constitutional convention to discuss gun control ? Shootings kill more than 36,000 Americans each year . Every day , 96 deaths and 222 injuries are result of gun violence . Of all firearm homicides in the world , 82 percent occur in the United States . African-American children have the highest rate of firearm mortality overall . They are 10 times more likely to be killed by guns in this country . When it comes to the 2nd Amendment , we can ' t just stop in the middle of the road like a deer . We don ' t have to stand still and get run over . We need to adjust the 2nd Amendment . Either repeal or amend , but enough with the deer in headlights .
Christopher M . Norwood , J . D . is the spokesman for the Democratic Black Caucus of Florida ; member of the Democratic Executive Committee for Miami-Dade ; and principal consultant of the Norwood Consulting Group .
|