Page 2 The Skanner July 25, 2018
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Challenging People to Shape
a Better Future Now
Congress Must Stop Family Separation
Bernie Foster
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Like many Americans, the
treatment of children and
families at the border has
shaken me to my core.
San Diego-based U.S. Dis-
trict Court Judge Dana Sa-
braw has essentially said to
stop defying the courts and
reunite these families.
The deadline to reunify
parents with children under
5 was July 10th, and the dead-
line to reunify children five
and older is July 26th. The
Administration has asked for
an extension saying it would
need more time to recon-
nect parents and children in
certain cases. They have re-
quested an extension to the
deadline, but the court is still
monitoring and it has yet to
be granted.
It’s no secret that Donald
Trump views immigrants
with disdain. He has called
Mexicans “rapists” and re-
ferred to immigrants as “ani-
mals.”
The Trump Administration
has embraced nativist dog
whistles from day one.
Nowhere is this clearer
than in the shameful “zero
tolerance” policy pursued by
President Trump, which has
separated families, locked
kids in facilities, and trauma-
tized innocent children.
Families come to this coun-
try seeking asylum. They
undertake grueling, danger-
Rep.
Barbara Lee
D-Calif.
ous journeys in the hope that
America will provide safe
harbor from the violence that
they are fleeing. Some are es-
caping domestic abuse, oth-
ers have come to our shores
to save their families from
gangs. None expect to have
their children ripped from
their arms when they finally
reach safety.
Two weeks ago, I travelled
to McAllen, Brownsville and
Los Fresnos, Texas to visit
detention centers and see
the situation firsthand. I wit-
nessed terrified kids sleeping
on cold concrete floors. I saw
scared toddlers separated
from their families. I heard
from mothers unsure if or
when they would see their
children again. Some parents
didn’t even have a phone num-
ber to reach their children.
This is not the first time in
America’s history that we
have separated young chil-
dren of color from their par-
ents. It happened during the
Middle Passage.
It chills me to the bone to
know our government would
repeat this dark history of
jailing children and splitting
up families.
Before the abolition of slav-
ery, children of Black slaves
were sold by owners at will.
This was a constant fear for
enslaved families—that their
beloved children would be
sold away, never to be seen
again.
Starting in the 19th centu-
ry, Native Americans were
forced to send their children
to government or church-
“
The Trump
Administra-
tion is repeat-
ing the mis-
takes of our
past
run boarding schools, known
as “Indian Schools.” There,
these children were stripped
of their culture, forced to
cut their hair and given new
names. These schools existed
in America until the 1970s.
America also has a long his-
tory of jailing entire families,
like the Trump Administra-
tion now wants to do with asy-
lum seekers. Who can forget
the devastating internment
camps of the 1940s, where
people of Japanese ancestry
were forced to live during
World War II. This policy
was such a source of nation-
al shame that in 1988, the U.S.
government signed legisla-
tion formally apologizing and
providing restitution to in-
terned Japanese-Americans.
Instead of learning from
our painful history, the
Trump Administration is re-
peating the mistakes of our
past and inflicting more trau-
ma on families seeking safe
harbor from the violence and
abuse they left behind.
And now, rather than pro-
posing real solutions, the
Trump Administration wants
to lock immigrant families up
indefinitely. Let me be clear:
jailing children is unaccept-
able under any circumstances.
Ending the policy of sepa-
rating families—but forcing
kids to live in jail for months
on end—is just replacing one
form of child abuse with an-
other.
These human rights viola-
tions must be addressed im-
mediately.
I have asked UN Secre-
tary-General Anthony Gu-
terres to send observers to
report on the conditions at
detention facilities and to
ensure the thousands of chil-
dren who have been separat-
ed from their parents are re-
united.
Read the rest of this commentary at
TheSkanner.com
You Don’t Have to Break the Bank to Give Back
E
arlier this year, a man
named Jack Weldon
Patrick passed away in
Menomonee Falls, Wis-
consin. A long-time lawyer,
Patrick was remembered as a
family man, an advocate for
social justice, and a respected
community leader.
One day a check arrived by
mail for the Thurgood Mar-
shall College Fund (TMCF) in
memory of Jack Weldon Pat-
rick. A few days later, another
one arrived, and a few weeks
later, another check. Individ-
ual donations kept coming
to support the work of TMCF
and our publicly-supported
Historically Black Colleges
and Universities (HBCUs) in
honor of Jack. His obituary
read, “in lieu of flowers the
family suggests memorial do-
nations in Jack’s name to caus-
es he cared deeply about.” One
of those causes was TMCF.
So many of us outside of
TMCF headquarters and
Menomonee may have never
known Jack as a stalwart of
access and opportunity for
students attending Black col-
leges. Many of us aren’t even
aware that Jack was part of
the reason why in 2016, pri-
vate giving and contracts
earned by HBCUs increased
for a second straight year,
posting a four-year high of
$320 million. But we do know
he was a living embodiment
Dr. Harry L.
Williams
Pres. & CEO
Thurgood
Marshall
College Fund
of the famous quote by Nelson
Henderson: “The true mean-
ing of life is to plant trees, un-
der whose shade you do not
expect to sit.”
While philanthropic ano-
nymity is honorable, philan-
thropic leadership helps or-
ganizations like TMCF reach
new supporters, encouraging
new donor circles to give.
Showcasing the faces and sto-
ries of those who give is an
important tool in cultivating
similar donors, encouraging
a culture of giving around
our campuses. This is a criti-
cal strategy that grows an or-
ganization’s base of support
every year. For non-profit
organizations,
individual
giving is the largest type of
charitable gift – four times
the amount as the next largest
category in 2015, according to
Giving USA.
Organizations like TMCF
thrive due to the generosity
of individuals who believe in
our work and want to expand
our impact, through monthly
and annual donations, as well
as the legacy gift. TMCF com-
bines these individuals’ gifts
with foundation grants and
partnerships with major cor-
porations and government
agencies to provide the funds
that allow us to transform
lives. It takes a philanthrop-
ic village to develop young
minds, and we are humbled
to be good stewards of the re-
sources that our donors and
partners entrust to us.
TMCF,
its
47
mem-
ber-schools and the nearly
300,000 students attending
them each year, want to play
“
Anyone
believing in
the power of
education to
transform
lives should
invest in
HBCUs
a role in redefining HBCU
philanthropy and support.
The data on finances and the
number of degrees we pro-
duce in areas like STEM, ed-
ucation, social sciences and
criminal justice already show
just how productive HBCUs
continue to be in graduating
Black students. Seventy per-
cent of our publicly-support-
ed HBCUs attendees are first
generation college students
(like I was) and eligible for
Pell Grants. In comparison,
the national average is only 37
percent for all public schools.
By providing this quality ed-
ucation, students transform
their lives and prepare to en-
ter economically sustainable
careers. Now TMCF wants to
illustrate that same culture
within our giving networks.
Anyone believing in the
power of education to trans-
form lives should invest in
HBCUs. This includes alumni
who want to have a tangible
way to support their schools.
All people in our networks at
work, at church, in our com-
munities, fraternities and
sororities, and other circles
of activity are worthy of solic-
iting for support. Age, earn-
ings and personality are not
elements for disqualifying
those who might be willing to
give, or those who have the ca-
pacity to do so.
TMCF
member-schools
like North Carolina Central
University are experiencing
record gains in gifts secured
from younger donors. Texas
Southern University recently
raised more than $1M at its an-
nual Maroon and Gray gala,
an event which just in its sec-
ond year which has cultivated
new supporters for the uni-
versity and has raised nearly
$2M for student scholarships
and institutional support.