Ebola in America: CDC, White House Fighting Fears with Information

Oct. 5, 2014

Ebola in America: CDC, White House Fighting Fears with Information
By Hazel Trice Edney

President Barack Obama talks on the phone with Dr. Tom Frieden,
Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the
Oval Office, Sept. 30, 2014. Dr. Frieden updated the President on the
recently-diagnosed Ebola case in Dallas, Texas. PHOTO: Pete Souza/The White House.

Medical worker illustrates frequent handwashing as one way to prevent the spread of Ebola. PHOTO: CDC.gov

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - As the first death from the deadly Ebola virus has occurred in the U. S. this week, the Centers for Disease Control and the White House are pressing to thwart fears with information.

Thomas Eric Duncan, a native Liberian, who had traveled to Dallas, Texas from West Africa, died Wednesday, Oct 8, after he was diagnosed Sept. 30. Duncan had shown no symptoms until a few days after he arrived in the U. S. Sept. 20. He had been isolated at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas since Sept. 28 where he has died.

The CDC says officials are desperately trying to prevent spread of the virus by monitoring at least 50 people who came in contact with Duncan; with nine being at higher risk. As of Sunday, none had shown any symptoms.

News of America now dealing with its first death from Ebola has sparked worry across the U. S. because the disease has killed more than 3,400 people in West Africa. Two American aid workers, Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol, were diagnosed in Africa, but successfully treated in America with experimental drugs. A 33-year-old NBC freelance cameraman Ashoka Mukpo was being transported from Liberia to the U.S. on Monday also with the deadly virus.

There is no known cure or vaccine. But, the CDC also reports that half of the people who have contracted the virus in Africa have survived it.

President Obama has announced he will send 3,000 troops to help keep order, build hospitals, labs and other medical facilities. He said this week that an additional 1,000 might be sent. Meanwhile, Americans are on edge with questions about how the virus spreads, what the symptoms are and how to avoid contracting the disease. The following is information that has been posted by the CDC and the White House in attempt to answer questions, dispel myths and educate about the disease:

Ebola History and Background

Ebola was first discovered in 1976 near the Ebola River in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since then, outbreaks of Ebola among humans have appeared sporadically in Africa. Ebola viruses are found in several African countries, including Liberia, Guinea, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone.

Symptoms of Ebola

Fever, headache, joint and muscle aches, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, lack of appetite, and abnormal bleeding are the common symptoms. Symptoms may appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after exposure to Ebola virus though 8-10 days is most common.

How Ebola is Transmitted

It is transmitted through direct contact with the blood or bodily fluids of an infected symptomatic person or through exposure to objects (such as needles) that have been contaminated with infected secretions. Ebola is not a respiratory disease like the flu, so it is not transmitted through the air. Neither is Ebola transmitted through food or water in the United States. Individuals who are not symptomatic are not contagious. In order for the virus to be transmitted, an individual would have to have direct contact with an individual who is experiencing symptoms or has died of the disease. Individuals who are not symptomatic are not contagious.

In order for the virus to be transmitted, an individual would have to have direct contact with an individual who is experiencing symptoms or has died of the disease. Ebola is spread through direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes in, for example, the eyes, nose, or mouth) with blood or body fluids (including but not limited to urine, saliva, sweat, feces, vomit, breast milk, and semen) of a person who is sick with Ebola; objects (like needles and syringes) that have been contaminated with the virus; infected animals.

Though Ebola is not spread through the air , water, or generally by food, Ebola may be spread as a result of handling bushmeat (wild animals hunted for food) and contact with infected bats. There is no evidence that mosquitos or other insects can transmit the Ebola virus. Only mammals (like humans, bats, monkeys, and apes) have shown the ability to become infected with and spread Ebola virus.

Treatment

CDC Director Tom Frieden said the medical response for anyone who has contracted the disease is threefold:

1. Caring for the patient, to provide the most effective care possible, and as safely as possible, to maximize the chances that the patient will recover.
2. Identifying all people who may have had contact with the patient while he could have been infectious.
3. Monitoring those people if they develop fever -- isolate and care for them, and eliminate any chances that they will infect other people.

Prevention

To protect yourself from Ebola, wash your hands often with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer; Medical personnel must wear protective gear; Do not touch the blood or body fluids (like urine, feces,saliva, vomit, sweat, and semen) of people who are sick; Do not handle items that may have come in contact with a sick person’s blood or body fluids, like clothes, bedding, needles, or medical equipment. Do not touch the body of someone who has died of Ebola.

"I have no doubt," Dr. Frieden said, "that we will control this case of Ebola, so that it does not spread widely in this country."

First Family in Danger - Secret Service Head Resigns Amid White House Security Breaches

Oct. 5, 2014

First Family in Danger
Secret Service Head Resigns Amid White House Security Breaches

julia pierson swearing in
President Barack Obama watches as Vice President Joe Biden administers the oath of office to then incoming U.S.
Secret Service Director Julia Pierson March 27, 2013. Nineteen months later Pierson has resigned amidst major security breaches at the White House.

PHOTO: Pete Souza/The White House

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Richmond Free Press

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - The director of the U.S. Secret Service, who faced blistering criticism for her agency’s string of breakdowns jeopardizing the security of President Obama and his family, resigned Wednesday, Oct. 1.

Julia Pierson, 55, stepped down amid mounting pressure from Democrats and Republicans. She had led the agency for the last 16 months.

“I think this lady needs to go,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md.

The ranking member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee said he had trouble sleeping Tuesday night after hearing Ms. Pierson’s testimony before the committee.

The criticism of the Secret Service came to a head after revelations that the man who breached security at the White House on Sept. 19 penetrated much farther into the building than previously disclosed.

“How on earth did it happen?” asked committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif. He stressed the fact that Omar Gonzalez, an Army veteran of the Iraq War, had breached at least five rings of security at the White House.

Gonzalez, 42, was charged with unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon. Officials said he was carrying a knife when he jumped the White House fence, sprinted across the lawn and entered the Executive Mansion.

A prosecutor said in court last week that officers found more than 800 rounds of ammunition, two hatchets and a machete in Gonzalez’s car.

A Secret Service official who spoke on condition of anonymity said an alarm box near the front entrance of the White House had been muted when Mr. Gonzalez entered the Executive Mansion, according to The Washington Post.

Mr. Gonzalez was previously arrested in July with a sniper rifle and a map on which the Executive Mansion was marked, the prosecutor said.

The Post reported that Mr. Gonzalez ran past a sentry immediately inside the door, past the stairway leading up to the first family’s living quarters and through the East Room, before an off-duty Secret Service agent tackled him.

An initial statement from the Secret Service, approved by Ms. Pierson, claimed that Mr. Gonzalez was apprehended just inside the doors to the North Portico.

The alarm box near the entrance, designed to alert guards to an intruder, had been muted at what officers believe was the request of the usher’s office, the Post reported, citing the Secret Service official.

The officer posted inside the door appeared to be delayed in learning the intruder was about to come through, the Post reported. Officers are trained to lock the front door immediately if they learn of an intruder on the grounds.

Also revealed this week is the fact that a gun-carrying felon rode an elevator with President Obama and his protective detail — just three days before the fence-jumping incident.

That security breach occurred while the president was in Atlanta to discuss the Ebola outbreak with officials from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A private security contractor, working with the Secret Service advance team for the president’s trip, entered the elevator and began acting strangely, refusing to stop using a cellphone to record President Obama when ordered to do so.

A supervisor from the contractor’s firm fired him immediately upon learning of his behavior — and then confiscated his firearm.

Prior to the supervisor’s action, the president’s protective detail was unaware that the contractor was carrying a gun.

It was later revealed that the man had three convictions for assault and battery.

“Words aren’t strong enough for the outrage I feel for the safety of the president and his family,” said Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security.

“His life was in danger. This country would be a different world today if (the contractor) had pulled out his gun.”

Testifying Tuesday, Ms. Pierson called the breakdown in White House security “unacceptable,” but called for most of the hearing to be closed to the public.

After the public hearing Tuesday, the committee held a classified hearing on the issue.

Ms. Pierson joined the Secret Service in 1984. President Obama named her the agency’s first female director last year.

After Ms. Pierson’s resignation, Joseph Clancy was appointed interim director.

Mr. Clancy was special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Presidential Protective Division before retiring from the agency three years ago. He was one of the agents who famously jogged with President Bill Clinton.

Rev. Bryant Preaches Jesus and the NAACP By Zenitha Prince

Oct. 5, 2014

Rev. Bryant Preaches Jesus and the NAACP

By Zenitha Prince

Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant

Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Afro American Newspaper

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - For the Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant, the call to ministry was not heralded by a booming voice from heaven or even a still, small voice. Instead, it came from the satiric wit of a popular comedian-slash-activist. “When I tell people I got my call to ministry from Dick Gregory they laugh,” Bryant said.

Then-director of the NAACP Youth and College Division, Bryant said he was at an NAACP convention, where Gregory, the guest speaker, said something very critical. “He said that during the 1960s when Black people were in trouble they called on Jesus and the NAACP and that we’re now part of a generation that doesn’t know Jesus and they’re not members of the NAACP,” Bryant recalled. “I grew up in the church, but I had never heard it in that context. And it really jarred me . . . and I really sensed that that was where my assignment was – to merge the spiritual and the social . . ., starting a church that would be socially relevant but spiritually grounded.”

The church was always in Bryant’s blood – literally – having come from a ministerial legacy that was both a gift and a burden. “I see myself more as a prodigal son,” the 42-year-old said. “I knew I had a call my whole life, but because I knew the family legacy – my father was in ministry, my grandfather was in ministry, my mother was in ministry, my aunt was in ministry . . . – I was sort of running in the opposite direction.

“My whole life I swore two things: One, I would never pastor. And two, God knows I would never live in Baltimore. You could see how that ended for me, I’m right here in the place I never thought I would be.”

While Bryant sought to avoid his calling, it was something absorbed into his being through the examples of faith and ministry set by his parents, the Rt. Rev. Dr. John Bryant, senior bishop and presiding prelate of the Fourth Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and the Rev. Dr. Cecilia Williams-Bryant. “Seeing my father operate as the priest of his home was the greatest example of ministry for me. [And] my parents taught me the integrity of ministry by showing it was not about business but service,” he said.

When the senior Bryant was assigned to Bethel A.M.E. Church in Baltimore in 1975, he grew the congregation to several thousand members. More importantly, under the Bryants’ leadership, the church hosted Labor Day shoe giveaways for children who did not have shoes for school; ran a food co-op, credit union, women’s resource center and many other ministries.

Rev. Bryant adopted those principles in his ministry at Empowerment Temple A.M.E., as he did the examples of other heroes, including: minister and former Congressman Floyd Flake, who revived the neighborhoods of Jamaica, Queens in New York; Bishop T.D. Jakes, from whom he learned ministry “outside of the box;” the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who put liberation theology into practice; the Rev. Dr. Frank Reid, the current pastor of Bethel, who influenced Bryant during his early years of ministry, supervising his trial sermon and licensing him to preach; and others.

Bryant said he also strongly identifies with King David in the Bible who “fell and made mistakes [but] was still a child after God’s own heart.” Bryant and his ministry fell under a cloud with the news of his infidelity, his having a child out of wedlock and his subsequent divorce from his wife, Giselle back in 2008, a time the pastor called “one of the darkest seasons of my life” and also for Empowerment Temple.

“It wasn’t just a divorce for me but it was a divorce for 12,000 people. For me, it was my wife, but for them, it was their first lady,” Bryant said. “It showed me that being in ministry doesn’t afford you diplomatic immunity. You have to go through your own storms and own crises.”

Going through that crucible has helped the entire Empowerment family to mature, the Bryant said. “Going through that experience helped strip the cape of ‘Superman’ [from me.] A lot of people idolize their pastor without seeing behind the veil. For the church to witness me going through a painful bout with humanity kicked over the pedestal, showed that grace is attainable, that mercy is available to everybody.

“Had I not gone through all of that, I don’t know that I would be able to reach the base that I do now.”

The targets of Empowerment Temple’s ministry has always been the “everyman,” the unsaved and unchurched, and Bryant’s public fall from grace has enabled many of his congregants to feel open about their own failings and accept the reality of second chances.

With such a large and varied congregation, which ranges from “Motown to Def Jam” in age and background, Bryant has had to tailor the ministry to create the optimal experience for all. So while Empowerment is one of the most technologically in-touch ministries – Bryant prays for all interested members of the congregation during the week via phone; he communicates with individual members via e-mail and Facebook, and livestreams services, among other advancements – Bryant said he also employs “old-school” pastoring.

“We have three services every Sunday with thousands of people, but I go to an old pastoral model of standing at the back door shaking hands to let them know that I’m not just a preacher but still their pastor,” he said.

Another facet of “old-time religion” that needs to be revived is the teaching of the foundations of the Christian faith, Bryant said. “I think a lot of preaching has gone to life-coaching and has missed the real principle of Bible teaching,” he said.

“We grew up in a time when as a child you learned ‘The Lord’s Prayer,’ ‘The Apostle’s Creed,’ the ‘23^rd Psalm,’ John 3:16 . . .. And now you’re dealing with a generation that just knows, ‘Turn to your neighbor,’ or ‘Shout it out loud’ . . .. They know praise but they don’t know principle. So, it is very important that the 21^st century church go back to teaching doctrine, theology, and the articles of religion, our faith,” Bryant said. “Christians, embarrassingly, are the most illiterate believers in the world. You stop a Muslim . . . they know what they believe; you stop a Buddhist . . . they know what they believe, but a lot of Christians don’t know the tenets of their faith.”

In terms of its community service, Empowerment Temple has left an indelible impression in the Park Heights area, but Bryant said there are untapped areas of need he’d like to see the ministry address.

“One of the chief things that has to happen is job-preparedness and economic development,” he said.

The activist-preacher cited the surfeit of abandoned houses and the preponderance of Black Baltimoreans who are renters as an imbalance that needs to be addressed. He also said that when the church recently held a job fair, employers were reluctant to participate because too many residents were only prepared for entry-level positions. Still, he said, the number of people who lined up for the fair was more than a block long. “And that tells me that people want work, they want to do better, but the church has to help provide avenues and opportunities for that to happen,” Bryant said.

Record Number of Black Nominees for State and Federal Offices in the Mid-Term Elections By Frederick H. Lowe

Oct. 5, 2014

Record Number of Black Nominees for State and Federal Offices in the Mid-Term Elections
By Frederick H. Lowe

elections-voting

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from TheNorthStarNews.com

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - A record number of African Americans are nominees for federal and state offices in the upcoming mid-term elections in November.

Eighty-three African-American candidates are running for federal office exceeding the previous high of 72 set in 2012, said Dr. David A. Bositis, an independent political consultant and former senior research associate for the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank for black elected officials.

Sixty-six of the candidates are Democrats and 17 are Republicans, Bositis said. Sixty of the Democrats are running for the U.S. House of Representatives and two are nominees for the U.S. Senate. The number of Democratic nominees is record setting, surpassing the previous high of 59 in 2012.

In statewide races, 25 black candidates are running for office, well ahead of the record 17 nominees in 2002. This includes 24 Democrats and one Republican, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina.

Thirteen women and 12 men are among the nominees and five are incumbents. There are three nominees for the U.S. Senate and two African Americans have been nominated for governor.

Increased racial polarization is driving the increase in African-American major party nominees at both the state and federal level.

"In the South, whites are withdrawing from Democratic Party politics, leaving black candidates the nominations by default," Bositis said.

He predicted that five black women will be elected to Congress. They are Democrats Brenda Lawrence of Michigan, Alma Adams of North Carolina, Stacy Plaskett of the Virgin Islands and Bonnie Watson Colman of New Jersey.

Mia Love of Utah is expected to become the first black woman Republican to be elected to Congress.

The increase in the number of black women in Congress will boost the 42 member Congressional Black Caucus by two to 44, Bositis said.

The CBC is expected to pick up two additional seats with the possible elections of Lawrence, who is expected to replace John Dingell Jr., who is retiring; and Coleman, a New Jersey Democrat, is expected to replace Congressman Rush Holt Jr., who also is retiring. Adams and Plaskett are replacing Democratic incumbents.

It is not clear if Love will join the CBC. Sen. Scott refused to join.

My Brother’s Keeper Draws Hundreds and Elicits Passion By James Wright

Oct. 5, 2014

My Brother’s Keeper Draws Hundreds and Elicits Passion

By James Wright

Rev. Al Sharpton moderates the discussion on My Brother's Keeper.

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Afro American Newspaper

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - The My Brother’s Keeper program inspired U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.), to leave her work as a principal in a public school to run for a political office to help young Black men succeed. “I was wondering why these young Black boys were always acting up,” the representative said. “I realized later that these boys had no fathers or grandfathers in their lives.”

Wilson said she was determined to do something about it and launched a political career that took her from Miami’s school board to representing South Florida on Capitol Hill. Wilson was joined by her colleagues, Reps. Hakeem Jefferies (D-N.Y.) and Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), in voicing support for “My Brother’s Keeper.”

The braintrust for “My Brother’s Keeper,” President Obama’s initiative designed to help with the problems that young Black males face, drew hundreds of attendees at the 44th Annual Legislative Conference for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Sept. 26 at the Washington Convention Center in Northwest. The braintrust featured a panel of 14 speakers including scholars, community activists, and leaders of non-profit organizations that deal with the problems of Black males.

Broderick Johnson, the chairman of the “My Brother’s Keeper” task force and Jim Shelton, its executive director, both said that the Obama administration is committed to positively shaping the lives of young Black males and is pleased with the response the initiative has gotten from the public and private sectors.

Horsford, who comes from the Las Vegas metropolitan area, specifically called out a group of young Black men from Miami’s Coral Park High School in the audience. These young men wore white dress shirts, red ties and black pants and shoes.

“I came from your situation and we love you and we want you to succeed,” he said. Horsford, raised by a single mother who struggled with drug addiction, said he lost his father to gun violence. The Rev. Al Sharpton said he came from similar circumstances and that young Black men should strive for a better life. “I may be responsible for you getting down but it is your responsibility for getting up,” he said. “I encourage Black men not to accept being down.”

The need for young Black males to be nurtured and emboldened was stressed by the braintrust’s speakers. “Black males are not used to being loved,” said Howard Jean, who used to be employed by the “Call Me Mister” program at Cheney University. “They are not used to being approached in a loving way and we need to change that.”

Professional athletes are popular role models for young Black men and two former National Basketball Association players, Etan Thomas and Allan Houston, participated in the braintrust.

Houston, who is the assistant general manager for the New York Knicks, said that this organization will work with Obama’s initiative and encouraged the audience to get involved in helping young Black males.

“Everyone has the capacity to lead and to mentor,” Houston said. “We need to lead them and teach them good values. They watch us as adults and we have to be good examples for them.”

One of the most moving parts of the braintrust took place when the parents of slain Black males had the chance to speak to the audience. Participants included Valerie Bell, mother of Sean Bell; Michael J. Brown Sr., and Lesley McSpadden, the parents of Michael Brown Jr.; Queen Brown, mother of Eviton Brown; Gwen Carr, mother of Eric Garner; Sybrina Fulton, mother of Trayvon Martin; as well as Robbie Tolan of the Tolan Foundation.

Queen Brown, participant, said that the one common thread among the slain Black males was there physical size. “Black men who are big are feared and should be loved,” Queen Brown said.

Valerie Bell addressed the young men from Coral Park and told them to keep striving. “We may have lost our sons but our justice is being here today,” she said. “Don’t give up your dream.”