Author: Carma Henry

Carma Lynn Henry Westside Gazette Newspaper 545 N.W. 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33311 Office: (954) 525-1489 Fax: (954) 525-1861

     Thomas’ predecessor on the court, Thurgood Marshall, was a civil rights lawyer before becoming a justice. In 1991, in his final opinion before retiring after a quarter century on the court, Marshall warned that his fellow justices’ growing appetite to revisit – and reverse – prior decisions would ultimately “squander the authority and legitimacy of this Court as a protector of the powerless.”

     It’s not the same as it was. This retelling of 18th century French violinist-composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges’ life is steeped in history but rocked with a modern imagination.

     It’s been over 30 years since Justice Clarence Thomas was confirmed to the Supreme Court seat once held by the great Thurgood Marshall, and it’s safe to say that his reputation for unethical behavior – which was poor to start with – has only gotten worse. 

The poignant origin of slavery in the US dates back to 1539 in Florida. This was decades before the common denotation of 1619 as the beginning of slavery in the 13 colonies. In 1539, slavery arrived in present-day Florida when the slave trader, Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto, attempted to establish a permanent settlement here.

During the past month, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) has released several episodes of “The I AM Story,” a new podcast detailing the history and legacy of the historic 1968 Memphis Sanitation Workers’ Strike. The comprehensive series examines the origins of the strike and events leading up to the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who was assassinated on April 4th, 55 years ago while in Memphis supporting the strikers. 

The American Lung Association’s new “State of the Air” report finds that nearly 120 million people in the U.S., or more than one in three, live in counties that had unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution. Overall, air quality has improved across the nation; however, major differences exist between air quality in eastern and western states and between air pollution exposures for white people and people of color.

     With the legislative session scheduled to end May 5, the Naples Republican said Wednesday that lawmakers have faced “very few issues,” so the process of hammering together a spending plan for the 2023-2024 fiscal year is “probably about five days ahead of schedule.”