Dear Reader,
As a young child, each weekday, my sisters, brothers, and I walked past a predominantly white school in the mornings and afternoons, to a predominantly black school on the other side of town. We crossed the city’s busy main street, where my older sister at about ten years old was struck by a car. My mother protested until a stop light was placed at the point where we crossed the street.
As time has passed, I have grown to appreciate the academic rigor and the cultural richness of our school environment, including the Mayday celebrations and the numerous plays and oratorical contests that sharpened our intellect and competitiveness.
Yet, some of our books had strange names in them of previous owners. They were somewhat worn, and obviously had been used extensively before reaching our hands.
Our teachers would often interrupt class to remind us that we could not afford to be average and that we should always aim to be the best in everything that we attempted to do.
Meanwhile, I noticed that when we went to public places, there were “colored” and “white” signs above the water fountains and above the bathroom doors. Before I knew better, I wondered why they were labeled “colored” and “white,” thinking that the description had something to do with the way they were painted, and not aware that they indicated racial assignment.
In around 1964, my younger siblings and I helped to integrate the elementary and high schools in our new hometown a few miles away from our original home, built by our dad, a skilled brick mason.
These were groundbreaking (I was co-valedictorian of my class), although lonely times, at least for me. In my eyes, my younger siblings appeared to adjust almost immediately to the new environment (my youngest sister was student council president and my youngest brother the most valuable football player in his senior high school year).
Through it all, we were avid church goers, with the church and our family helping to ground us with good wholesome values of how to treat our fellow human beings — the way we wanted to be treated, but more than anything, the way a good Christian ought.
In a few years, college rooted me away into the strange, but intriguing Black Power Movement that was so much a part of black campus life in the 60s. I found new friends from various parts of the country, whose backgrounds, for the most part, were in sharp contrast to my own. They were already a part of the Movement. Yet, I forged long-lasting relationships that have remained until this present day, and I became the “go-to” political reporter for the college newspaper.
In college, I followed the footsteps of my older sisters and became a primarily A student (they too were valedictorians of their class and became a lawyer and educator, respectively). Earlier, we had taken interest in what was happening in the nation politically and socially, especially when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, President John F. Kennedy, and his brother presidential candidate Robert Kennedy were assassinated. We knew the world would never be same. My dad had not allowed his girls to participate in Civil Rights marches because of the violence that sometimes ensued, but one of my older brothers had helped to integrate the local ice cream parlor.
A few days ago, when Justice Designate Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed to the Supreme Court, my whole world seemed to stand still and all the events of my life, seemed to converge, both the past and present.
When she stated most eloquently that she was “the Dream and the Hope of the Slave,” I could feel the emotion and tears welling up inside. In that moment, I knew that one era in history was ending, and another was beginning, that the 230-year-old U.S. Supreme Court would no longer be comprised of only white men, with one exception, and a few white women. I am reminded of King’s statement just before the passage of the Brown vs Board of Education act, when he stated, “If we are wrong, justice is a lie, love has no meaning. And we are determined … to work and fight until justice runs down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” At least that day, justice and righteousness seem to stream mightily across our collective conscious. Yet, I still felt, though vicariously, as did many, the sting of the vitriolic racism and sexism of the U.S. senators who sought to humiliate, denigrate, and rewrite the history of a supremely qualified black female judge who was obviously of a different caliber human being than they were or ever could be.
When Justice Designate Brown Jackson stood on the raised podium to recount her victorious accomplishment, I stood with her in spirit. As she boldly accepted her position as role model for young black girls and women on the precipice of change, and indeed, role model for an entire nation and world, I stood with her. Proudly and fearlessly.
I hope you enjoy this issue during these unprecedented times.
Sincerely,
Gwendolyn S. Bethea, Ph.D.
Editor
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Officially the First Black Woman on Supreme Court of the United States
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, confirmed as the first African-American woman to hold the position of Supreme Court Justice (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
On April 7, 2022, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed as the first African-American woman to hold the position of Supreme Court Justice. Both of Jackson’s parents are products of HBCUs, including North Carolina Central University. Jackson is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School. She was previously a Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. Vice President Kamala Harris, former senator of California and a graduate of Howard University, announced the confirmation vote of 53 to 47.
In this image from Senate Television video, Vice President Kamala Harris speaks after the Senate confirmation.
BOOK REVIEWS
A Review by Gwendolyn S. Bethea
In Surviving Cancer: Poetry and Prose, Dr. Frederick D. Harper considers the varied emotions associated with an unexpected colon cancer diagnosis. His poetry and prose flow effortlessly through perplex questions that ask “why” life’s enigmas often seem to have no explainable solutions or consequences.
According to Harper, we must steer clear of unhealthy, albeit sometimes accidental incidents and negative, ill-conceived relationships. For example, in “The Way of All Flesh,”” he encourages only reciprocally rewarding relationships.
In “Stand up America” Harper urgently encourages his readers to speak up for fairness and to stand against injustice.
In “What is Beauty in Woman,” he questions the superficiality of physical beauty and suggests a treasuring of God-given talents and the warm spaces of a discerning heart. In still other works, Harper reveals deep sensuality of physical thought and feeling.
“When I die,” leaves no doubt that helping humanity was always paramount among Harper’s concerns and writings throughout the years and so obviously evident in this book.
In these and other poems and prose interpretations, we find a thoroughly enjoyable perspective of wisdom and truth in Harper’s poignant, unforgettable thoughts and reflections.
This book will be one to keep by your bedside for years to come.
To purchase this book and others by the author:
Surviving Cancer, Amazon, Website
https://www.amazon.com/s…
Black Elder Speaks
I Love Poems is a delightful book that can be adapted to any level for babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and school-aged children. Studies have shown that poetry reading is an excellent way to build confidence in children. Reading enjoyable poems repetitively and with expression develops fluency, accuracy, and increased vocabulary skills.
This book also strengthens auditory, visual, memory and comprehension skills. This book of rhymes can be used with thematic units, integrating reading, writing, music, and other subjects.
To purchase her book, I Love Poems, contact
gsbethea@yahoo.com
Rebecca Scotton White is a graduate of North Carolina Central University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. She has taught in the Guilford, Chatham, and Randolph County school systems. For many years, she taught at Randolph Community College retired elementary school teacher, she resides in Ramseur, NC with her daughter, Kimberly, also a teacher, and grandson, Ariel.
HEALTH NEWS
The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine and the Engineering DEPARTMENT COMMISSIONED by LSU and the city of Baton Rouge to track COVID-19
The Louisiana State University (LSU) School of Veterinary Medicine and the LSU engineering department have been commissioned by LSU and the city of Baton Rouge to track COVID-19 outbreaks through wastewater samples. This method is being used throughout universities in the U.S. and internationally.
COVID-19 can be detected in wastewater up to 10 days before an individual begins displaying symptoms of the virus and a clinical diagnosis can be made. This method is primarily used to detect potential outbreaks and prevent circulation of the virus, according to pathobiological sciences professor Konstantin Kousoulas.
“That’s the power of this technology, that it can be a predictive tool to project where the problem may be and perhaps take measures to limit further spread,” Kousoulas said.
Some of the research team’s predictions have already come to pass throughout the state. Konsoulas said the team predicted a surge of infection that has been confirmed by case studies both in the city and at the University with incoming students.
Environmental engineering professor John Pardue said they pasteurize the samples. “Just like milk is pasteurized, (this process) kills anything in the sample that could cause you to get sick,” Pardue said.
Then, the team uses a chemical to extract the virus from the water and performs a genetic test looking for the RNA from the SARS CoV-2 virus.
“We’re looking for how many copies of that virus are floating around in the water we’re sampling,” Pardue said.
Based on how many millions or billions of RNA fragments are in the sample, the researchers can determine the approximate amount of individuals who have the virus in the building that was tested. This is especially useful in dorm complexes.
The VetMed school also has technology able to decipher which strain of COVID-19 is present in the samples.
“We have the capacity to analyze and track down which strain is circulating. We don’t do that now, but we can do that,” Kousoulas said.
Kousoulas said anyone who has previously contracted COVID-19 should be “resistant or at least partially immunized against any subsequent infection.”
“We’re trying to provide another piece of information for the people making decisions,” Pardue said. Kousoulas said that knowing in advance when outbreaks may Kousoulas said that knowing in advance when outbreaks may occur gives LSU an important advantage.
“Any detection mechanism as an early warning of what may be coming is important,” Kousoulas said.
Although Kousoulas and Pardue predict an uptick of cases in the coming weeks, their goal is to help keep everyone on campus safe.
“[We’re] not trying to close the campus with this, we’re trying to do the opposite,” Pardue said. “We’re trying to keep it open longer if we can break the transmission.”
Higher long-term exposure to air pollution may raise risk for worse COVID-19 outcomes
High long-term exposure to particulate matter was associated with increased risk for mortality and ICU admission among patients hospitalized with COVID-19, researchers reported.
“Risk factors for COVID-19 mortality may extend to environmental exposures, including air pollution,” Anne Bozack, PhD, postdoctoral fellow in the department of environmental health sciences at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, and colleagues wrote in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
– Source: Adobe Stock.
The retrospective analysis evaluated electronic health records of 6,542 patients with confirmed COVID-19 (median age, 65 years; 41% women) who were admitted to seven New York City hospitals from March to August 2020. More than 50% of patients self-identified as a person of color (26% Hispanic; 25% Black). Researchers estimated annual average fine particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide and black carbon concentrations at each patient’s residential address.
The primary outcome was mortality. Secondary outcomes included ICU admission and intubation.
Overall, 31% of patients died, 19% were admitted to the ICU and 16% were intubated.
Researchers observed generally low air pollution exposure levels. Higher long-term air pollution exposure levels were associated with an increased risk for mortality (RR = 1.11 per 1 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5; 95% CI, 1.01-1.21) and ICU admission (RR = 1.13 per 1 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5; 95% CI, 1-1.28) in multivariable models.
Nitrogen dioxide and black carbon exposure were not associated with COVID-19 mortality, ICU admission or intubation.
According to the researchers, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the critical impact of environmental, social, and structural factors on health disparities, and this analysis suggests that such vulnerability factors extend to long-term air pollution exposure.
“These findings suggest that environmental regulations to further reduce air pollution levels are critically important as governments begin to consider policies to build back the economy,” the researchers wrote.
