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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (June 20, 2018)
Page 2 The Skanner June 20, 2018 ® Challenging People to Shape a Better Future Now Black Voters Must Hold All Politicians Accountable Bernie Foster Founder/Publisher Bobbie Dore Foster Executive Editor I Jerry Foster Advertising Manager Christen McCurdy News Editor Patricia Irvin Graphic Designer Monica J. Foster Seattle Office Coordinator Susan Fried Photographer 2017 MERIT AWARD WINNER The Skanner Newspaper, es- tablished in October 1975, is a weekly publication, published every Wednesday by IMM Publi- cations Inc. 415 N. Killingsworth St. P.O. Box 5455 Portland, OR 97228 Telephone (503) 285-5555 Fax: (503) 285-2900 info@theskanner.com www.TheSkanner.com The Skanner is a member of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Association and West Coast Black Pub lishers Association. All photos submitted become the property of The Skanner. We are not re spon sible for lost or damaged photos either solicited or unsolicited. ©2018 The Skanner. All rights re served. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission prohibited. Local News Pacific NW News World News Opinions Jobs, Bids Entertainment Community Calendar LOCAL NEWS BRIEFS ! • L i ke u s on F ebo m me • nts TheSkannerNews o k • learn • co in y o u r c o m m u n y toda ac it Updated daily. y • Opinion nt • lo c a l n e w s • eve Check out: TheSkannerReport.com Your One-Stop Hub for Community Newspapers Throughout the U.S. t’s that time again. It occurs every year around the same time like clockwork. It’s election season. Political signs infiltrate Black neighborhoods, placed by campaign operatives hop- ing you remember their re- spective political candidate come election time. More importantly, these political operatives are hoping your familiarity with their respec- tive candidate will drive you to the polls with the belief that their efforts will translate into a vote for them at the bal- lot box. Establishing familiarity is quite an effective tool, espe- cially when it comes to cre- ating a sense of connection with people. Now be honest. If connecting with people through establishing a sense of familiarity weren’t so ef- fective, why would radio sta- tions play the same song over and over again, or why would major companies spend an inordinate amount of money to consistently and strategi- cally advertise their product or service to consumers on a regular basis? Seeking to connect with peo- ple by establishing a sense of familiarity is one of the first things any campaign team tries to do to help get their re- spective candidate elected. Have you ever noticed that Jeffrey L. Boney NNPA Columnist during every election sea- son, radio ads become more frequent, print mailers get sent out in bulk quantities and television ads get placed on any given network during key television shows in an effort to try and reach regis- tered voters? Politicians have long been staples in our community. Many of them visit a church here, walk the block and knock on doors over there; kiss babies, shake hands and even give the Black communi- ty ‘stuff ’ to get them to come out to the polls and vote. It is fascinating the way some political candidates scurry around during election sea- son trying to solicit the Black vote so that they can get elect- ed to a certain office or retain their current seat. It’s an art. Many of these campaign op- eratives and elected officials have it down to a science. However, when it comes to developing key, solid policies that will help the Black com- munity, many of these same candidates disappear—never to be heard from again—until the next election cycle rolls around. Interestingly, many of these elected officials get a pass for doing nothing. Now, if members of the Black community would be com- pletely honest, they would ad- mit that a lot of these elected officials are often treated like high-profile celebrities, rath- er than public servants who “ You know what I’m talking about; offering the Black commu- nity chicken dinners, BBQ cookouts, fish plates... have the power to advocate for substantive policies that can literally change the eco- nomic landscape and quality of life of their communities. One act of familiarity that has been a go-to-approach to reach the Black community has been the tactic of political candidates using certain gim- micks to solicit votes. You know what I’m talking about; offering the Black com- munity chicken dinners, BBQ cookouts, fish plates, steak days, gift cards, air condi- tioners for senior citizens, etc. Many of these political- ly-motivated gimmicks have and continue to be used to get Black people to vote for a par- ticular candidate. You know the routine. Black voters get out to vote, then there is very little reciprocity from many of the candidates towards the Black communi- ty, if they are elected. Think about it for a moment and ask yourself some ques- tions. What evidence do you have to prove that any of your elected officials have actually advocated for you? Ask your- self, when it comes to develop- ing sound policies and legisla- tion for the Black community, when was the last time your elected officials drafted any policy or advocated for any legislation at the local, state and/or federal level that has positively impact you? Now, you may have been invited to a fish fry, steak dinner or community social event, but ask yourself when was the first or last time any of your elected officials edu- cated, equipped and informed your community about any key issues that is impacting them or will affect them? Read the rest of this commentary at TheSkanner.com Black Mamas Are Dying. We Can Stop It. B lack mothers are dying and it’s time to do some- thing about it. Every year, more than 700 American mothers lose their lives to pregnancy or birth-related complications. Some medical professionals estimate that at least half, if not more, of these deaths are entirely preventable. While the deaths of 700- plus American mothers should shock us all, the sta- tistics are much worse for African American mothers. We are three-to-four times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than our White counterparts. A 2010-2011 survey of maternal deaths in Philadelphia found that three-quarters of those deaths were Black mothers. These shocking statistics cut across class, education level, and socio-economic sta- tus. Earlier this year, Serena Williams shared her own sto- ry of nearly losing her life. She, like too many other women, was ignored when she raised concerns about her own health and body. If this tragedy can befall a wealthy, world-class athlete who’s deeply in tuned with her own body, it could, and does, hap- pen to anyone. Sadly, the situation is get- ting worse, not better. Amer- Robin Kelly U.S. Rep. (D-11) ican mothers are dying at higher rates every year. Globally, we’ve had real success in pushing down the rates of mothers needlessly dying, especially in Africa and the Caribbean. Yet at the same time, the U.S. is one of a handful of nations where the number of mothers dying is increasing. We can and must do better. All mamas deserve the chance to be mamas. That’s why I’ve introduced the “Mothers and Offspring Mortality and Morbidity Awareness Act” or the MOM- MA Act, for short. This com- prehensive legislation takes a multi-pronged approach to ending maternal mortali- ty through increased access to care, expanded cultural- ly-competent training and standardized data collection. Currently, one of our great- est challenges in addressing the rising rate of maternal mortality is a lack of good data. We need to standardize data to find trends and proto- cols that work to save lives. The MOMMA Act also es- tablishes and enforces nation- al emergency obstetric proto- cols and ensures the sharing of best practices between practitioners and hospital systems because, if it’s work- ing, we want every doctor to know about it. “ The MOMMA Act would im- prove access to cultural- ly-competent care Additionally, the MOMMA Act would expand access to care by ensuring that mothers retain their Medicaid cover- age for one year after giving birth, the entire postpartum period. Right now, mothers lose their coverage just two months after giving birth. However, many women face significant health challenges, often weeks and months, after giving birth. One mom who spoke at my press conference unveiling the bill suffered a childbirth-related stroke 20 days after giving birth. Fur- thermore, we know that post- partum depression and other health challenges face new mothers; expanding access to care will ensure that moms remain healthy as they raise their families. Finally, the MOMMA Act would improve access to culturally-competent care throughout the care con- tinuum. For decades, we’ve known that culturally-incom- petent care has had massive and negative impacts on our community and our health. In 2018, it’s time to train health professionals to give appro- priate care to all patients, re- gardless of their race. I could not be prouder to have introduced the MOM- MA Act or to have worked with the amazing women and men who helped us craft this important legislation to save mothers’ lives. It’s the product of months of work with families, mothers, doctors, nurses, midwives, doulas and policy advocates. I’m deeply humbled to have the support of Black Women’s Health Imperative, the Black Mamas Matter Alliance, the National Urban League, American College of Obstetri- cians and Gynecologists and many others. As a mother, I was lucky enough to experience two happy, healthy pregnancies. I want the same thing for every mother and family: a healthy, happy pregnancy and child.
