The Clock is Ticking for the Government to Do What is Right for this Flooded Historic Black Community By Ben Jealous

Oct. 27, 2024

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(TriceEdneyWire.com) - The state of Alabama destroyed their homes. Your federal tax dollars helped pay for it.

We are checking back in on the historic Black Shiloh community in Elba, Alabama.

Ever since 2018, when the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) expanded a highway running through the town, stormwater runoff floods the homes in this community whenever it rains. It is an ongoing crisis.

Members of this community have lost everything. Some of the families here have owned these homes for generations. Their generational wealth has been wiped out. They deserve justice. They deserve to be made whole. Now, the federal government could be running out of time to help.

Pastor Timothy Williams is a Shiloh community member who has been a leader in the fight to get justice for his neighbors and his own family. Back in March, when I spoke with Pastor Williams, he told me, “My house has already sunk two feet into the mud. I see my inheritance and my children’s American Dream being washed away and stolen.”

Since then, Pastor Williams says things have only gotten worse. He now says the frustration and hopelessness taking root in the community has led to people using alcohol and drugs as an escape, whereas several years ago that would be unheard of in this community.

It speaks to the toll on this community being more than just economic. Watching your home and community be destroyed, and your generational wealth evaporate, has physical, mental, and emotional impacts just like any trauma does. People are watching their homes sink, and living with the danger all this physical upheaval of their land has caused with power lines and gas and sewage pipes. Pastor Williams himself has been warned his sinking house could eventually hit a natural gas pipeline causing a rupture or even an explosion. Think about the impact this must have not only on the entire community’s mental health, but what it must do to the kids in the community and their ability to succeed in school.

Beyond that, there is the clear racial factor here. This is Alabama after all. The reckless disregard for this rural Black community in the state’s highway project was not something unfamiliar to people who have lived there for decades. Nor were years of inaction and being left behind by the state (and now the federal government) since then. And there have been acts of intimidation by outsiders aimed at community members like Pastor Williams who have spoken up – in March, Pastor Williams told me the restaurant he owns had been the target of a boycott by some local whites. And white people make up most of his clientele.

In a place where the shadow of Jim Crow still looms large, that justice for this Black community seems so elusive seems like no mere coincidence. It is understandable that some in the community believe the storm drainage pipes were aimed at their community intentionally.

In the months since I first spoke with Pastor Williams, I have visited Shiloh. And I have been working closely with Dr. Robert Bullard, known as Father of Environmental Justice and this country’s preeminent voice exposing environmental racism, to build pressure on both the state and federal governments to act. Elba, Alabama is Dr. Bullard’s hometown. It is an example of the pervasiveness of environmental racism, that such injustice could continue in the hometown of a prominent expert who sits on the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council.

Someone else who visited Shiloh the past few months is Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. And on October 4, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced a Voluntary Resolution Agreement (VRA) with ALDOT to address the ongoing flooding in Shiloh every time it storms. The VRA is one product of an investigation under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Title VI prohibits racial discrimination – among other kinds of discrimination – in projects that receive federal financial assistance, like the Alabama highway project that destroyed the Shiloh community.

But the VRA is not a solution for the harm that has already been done to the people of this community. It is an insult to them. The agreement requires infrastructure improvements to mitigate flooding. But these people’s homes are already ruined, their families are traumatized, and their property values are decimated.

Perhaps Army veteran Willie Horstead Jr., who has watched his home sink into the flood-soaked ground similarly to Pastor Williams, put it best when he told the visiting US Secretary of Transportation, “I’ll tell you – I just want to be made whole.”

In his 1963 Letter from Birmingham Jail, Dr. King wrote, "justice too long delayed is justice denied,” paraphrasing an old legal maxim.

Justice has been delayed for far too long for the residents of the Shiloh community. And the clock is ticking.

We don’t know what will happen with the presidential election. But It is possible it could result in some of the same people returning to the US Department of Transportation who originally approved the use of federal funds for the disastrous Alabama highway project back in 2018. Or people willing to have the federal government turn a blind eye to racial discrimination by a state with a deep history of it. Any more delay could mean justice being permanently denied to members of the Shiloh community.

Ben Jealous is the Executive Director of the Sierra Club and a Professor of Practice at the University of Pennsylvania.

Defamation Lawsuit May Finally Hold Trump Accountable for His Lies About the Exonerated Five By Marc H. Morial

Oct. 27, 2024

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(TriceEdneyWire.com) - “Starting when I was 15, my life was not my own. For years, I had no control over what happened to me. Being in the spotlight makes me wary and self-conscious again. I am overwhelmed with fear that an overzealous Trump supporter might take matters into his or her hands. Doing something simple like picking up dinner for the family or going to the aquarium now fills me with dread. I’m constantly looking over my shoulder, keeping an eye out for people who stare too long. Like a soldier always on high alert, I can never enjoy myself fully, with all the adrenaline that comes with that. It’s a scary feeling.” -- Yusef Salaam

Matias Reyes violently raped a 28-year-old woman who was jogging in Central Park on April 19, 1989. He beat her so badly she remained in a coma for 12 days.

Reyes confessed to the attack in 2002. DNA evidence confirmed his guilt. The five men wrongly convicted of that brutal attack and another assault the same night were cleared of all wrongdoing.

But Donald Trump, who advocated for their execution before they even had been indicted, can’t stop lying about them.

During the September 10 presidential debate, Trump falsely claimed, "They pled guilty. And I said, well, if they pled guilty they badly hurt a person, killed a person ultimately."

Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown, and Korey Wise – now known as the Exonerated Five – this week sued Trump for defamation.

“At the September 10, 2024, presidential debate, Defendant Trump falsely stated that Plaintiffs killed an individual and pled guilty to the crime. These statements are demonstrably false. Plaintiffs never pled guilty to any crime and were subsequently cleared of all wrongdoing. Further, the victims of the Central Park assaults were not killed.”

Trump can hardly claim ignorance about the case. In 2013, he attacked the acclaimed documentary The Central Park Five as “a one-sided piece of garbage.” When New York City reached a $41 million settlement with the exonerated men in 2014, Trump penned a guest editorial in the New York Daily News calling the settlement “a disgrace.” A 2019 television miniseries about the case, When They See Us, was streamed by more than 23 million viewers within a month of its release and was one of the most celebrated television dramas of the year.

In the immediate aftermath of the Central Park Attack, Trump spent a reported $85,000 to place a full-page ad in four New York City newspapers on May 1, 1989, calling for a reinstatement of the death penalty and decrying “roving bands of wild criminals” – an unmistakably reference to the teens, who had already been dubbed “The Wolf Pack.” Trump’s ad “contributed to an atmosphere that deprived these men of a fair trial,” according to Barry Scheck, a founder of Innocence Project and one of the lawyers who worked with prosecutors to reinvestigate the case Scheck.

“He was the firestarter,” Salaam said. He was 15 at the time of his arrest and served seven years in prison.

Salaam, now a New York City Council member, tried to correct Trump’s false statement and seek an apology immediately after the debate. According to the lawsuit, Salaam approached Trump in the post-debate “spin room” and said, “President Trump, I’m Yusef Salaam, one of the Exonerated Five. How are you doing?”

Trump inexplicably responded, “Ah, you’re on my side then.”
Salaam responded, “No, no, no, I’m not on your side.”

Trump waved his hand and walked away.

It's Time to Sing a New Song! By Dr. E. Faye Williams

Oct. 27, 2024

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(TriceEdneyWire.com) —In just a few days the world will learn who we really are in America. All voters will have a say in the matter whether they use their vote or not. If you don’t vote, you’re helping to make the wrong decision. Whether we vote or not, we’ve seen and heard the best of who we are. Sadly, we’ve also seen and heard the worst of who some are.

For young people who are eligible to vote for the first time, I caution you to pay attention to the candidates. Listen to what they are saying. Check out their background to see what they have been doing to make our country better for all and not just for themselves at the expense of people in need.

All candidates are on trial, and we, the voters determine who is telling the truth, who is respectful, who has no problem pledging to work for us instead of for ruthless leaders like Russia’s and North Korea’s leaders, and “them that’s already got and already mistreating their citizens.” Yes, we, the American people are on trial.

At the Presidential level, we know Donald Trump has already shown his intentions. Some of his former staff, former supporters, and party members have told us who he is. They’ve told us he disrespects our military and wants to use them not for the American people, but against the American people! They tell us he is an admirer of the ruthless Hitler--a known killer of millions of innocent people. He longs for an army like Hitler’s. He calls people against him vermin and he plans to imprison them. Maybe he means us! He wants to mass deport innocent people who came to America seeking a better life. He’s shown us what he would do to those of us who are children of ancestors who were violently uprooted from their lives and families in Africa and brought to this country. We know he’s limited us to “Black Jobs” and no matter how educated or successful some of us have already become against great odds.

Yes, we are all on trial no matter who we are. In the Presidential race, Trump’s key competitor is Vice-President Kamala Harris. He has called her every name that’s more fitting of him. He is a multi-number of times convicted criminal. Vice-President Harris on the other hand is one with vast experience prosecuting people like Trump. She is highly educated, a great speaker to share her plans with the American people that she has to make our lives better. She tells the truth. She brings plans to improve our health care, not to destroy existing health plans with just a concept, but real plans. She brings us joy when she appears and doesn’t just criticize people who are in need of help. She offers a plan to save the lives of women by bringing back Roe v. Wade rights, jobs for all, funds to help new parents, money to help first time home buyers, and more good things our country can well afford.

People come out to her rallies that increased as she campaigned to urge her on without hateful, fearful language. Thus far, she’s bringing out up to 30,000 people in person and millions online to cheer her on for showing people how we can turn the page from the old hateful, jealous, lying, racist, sexist, anti-migrants, anti-DEI behavior. She has a background of success and fairness—exactly what we need to protect our democracy!

Just a few days before the election, Washington Post and Los Angeles Times are showing their fear of what Trump has promised—shutting down press that’s against him! Let’s show them we are not afraid. Vote from now to November 5^th. Show them what courage is!

(Dr. E. Faye Williams, President of The Dick Gregory Society.)

Black Retirees Growing Older and Poorer By Charlene Crowell

Oct. 22, 2024

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(TriceEdneyWire.com) - As Americans live longer, the ability to remain financially independent is an ongoing struggle. Especially for Black and other people of color whose lifetime incomes are often lower than that of other contemporaries, finding money to save for ‘old age’ is particularly daunting.

According to the National Council on Aging, racial and ethnic minorities accounted for one in 4 adults aged 65 and older in 2022. In that same year, the average 65-year-old could expect to live another 18 years or longer, on a median income of $29,740.

In 2022, the average yearly Social Security benefit for Black men ages 65 and older was $15,345, and for Black women was only $13,755. However, the average annual Social Security income for all 65 or older men was $18,910, and for all older women was $14,824.

In past generations retiring workers often received a gold watch, pension, and company-sponsored health insurance. But today’s retirees face far different circumstances. With few remaining pensions available, most workers must look to themselves for financial security in their old age. And Social Security has become a financial lifeline.

When enacted in 1935 during the throes of the Great Depression,Social Security was a ground-breaking federal social safety net for retirees. Financed by payroll taxes that began in 1937, both employees and their employers paid into the program. A 1939 amendment to the law expanded the program to include survivor benefits for retirees’ widows and children, commonly known today as SSI. In 1956 disability benefits were added in a second expansion.

To compensate beneficiaries for rises in cost of living, an annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) began in 1975. Prior to 1972, only special acts of Congress could increase benefits.

Today, more than 80 years later, 68 million retirees and 4.5 million other program participants recently learned that a 2.5 percent COLA increase will be added to their monthly checks – even lower than the 2.6 percent decade-long average computed by Social Security. For retirees, the increase will begin in January. SSI beneficiaries will receive their increase with their December 31 payment.

Next year’s increase means the average retiree’s monthly $1,927 Social Security check will rise by $49. The monthly average for an elderly couple with both receiving benefits will be $3,089, from 2024’s $3,014 – a $75 increase. It is important to note that individual benefit levels are determined by a formula that uses a worker’s highest earnings over a 34-year career. Should Medicare’s 2025 rates increase as expected, the net increase to retiree checks will be even less.

As the nation still struggles to cope with rising prices, the agency’s statement and those of elder advocates were polar opposites.

“Social Security benefits and SSI payments will increase in 2025, helping tens of millions of people keep up with expenses even as inflation has started to cool,” said Martin O'Malley, Commissioner of Social Security.

But according to AARP, when the projected Medicare increase is announced, most retirees will receive a net gain of only $10.20 in 2025.

“[E]ven with the COLA, we know many older Americans who rely on Social Security may find it hard to pay their bills,” Jo Ann Jenkins, AARP’s chief executive officer, said in a statement. “Social Security is the primary source of income for 40 percent of older Americans.”

AARP’s concerns are validated by findings in an April 2024 report from the Society of Actuaries Research Institute, entitled, Retirement Wealth by Race and Ethnicity: Differences, Trends and Contributing Factors.

“Social Security provides a near-universal basic benefit, but many older adults, especially Black and Hispanic/Latino people and many people of other and multiple races and ethnicities, still struggle to meet the expenses they incur that are above those basic benefits because they have substantially fewer retirement savings, even after accounting for aspects such as education and income, than is the case for white households,” states the report.

Key findings from the report include:

White households with a college degree had a median retirement wealth of $273,500, compared to $160,323 for Hispanic/Latino households, and $119,000 for Black households with a college degree; and

Over the past three decades, Black and Hispanic/Latino households, as well as households of other or multiple races or ethnicities, owned on average between one-third and 60% of the retirement wealth of white households. There is no robust indication of those gaps becoming smaller.

These retiree racial wealth gaps are framed as elder poverty in another report, Who Counts as ‘Poor’ in America?, from the New York-based Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis.

“[I]magine being over 65 years old and trying to survive on $15,060 a year,” states the report. “According to official U.S. government poverty levels in 2024, one is considered “poor” in America – and thus qualifying for certain assistance – if their annual income is $15,060 or less for a single person, $31,200 for a family of four.”

The next Congress would be well-advised to get serious about the future solvency of Social Security. No one wants or should expect to become older and poorer.

Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Consumers to Receive $48 Million After Home Renter's Abuse Case by Charlene Crowell

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Single family house for rent. PHOTO: Urban Institute

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - The nation’s largest corporate landlord for single-family home rentals was recently fined $48 million by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for years-long financial abuses of tenants. The firm, Invitation Homes, also will be required to change its practices, and agree to long-term monitoring of its rental activity.

According to the September 24 settlement, renters who resided in one of Invitation Homes’ over 33,000 properties between 2018 and 2023 will be the beneficiaries. Its rental properties across the nation are located in both cities and suburbs including – but not limited to: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, and Seattle.

“Invitation Homes, the nation’s largest single-family home landlord, preyed on tenants through a variety of unfair and deceptive tactics, from saddling people with hidden fees and unjustly withholding security deposits to misleading people about eviction policies during the pandemic and even pursuing eviction proceedings after people had moved out,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan in a September 24 announcement. “No American should pay more for rent or be kicked out of their home because of illegal tactics by corporate landlords. The FTC will continue to use all our tools to protect renters from unlawful business practices.”

Founded in 2012, Invitation Homes’ initial public offering (IPO) raised approximately $1.77 billion, making it and is the second- largest real estate investment trust (REIT) IPO in history, according to its website.

Regulators said Invitation Homes was guilty of anti-consumer practices that included:

· Deceiving renters about lease costs including $500 ‘reservation fees’ in addition to application fees. Since 2019, Invitation Homes has collected more than $18 million in application fees alone for deceptively priced houses;
· Charging undisclosed junk fees – costing consumers up to $1,700 per year;
· Failing to inspect homes before residents moved in;
· Unfairly withholding tenants’ security deposits when they moved out; and
· Other misrepresentations including total monthly leasing price, property condition, and availability of emergency maintenance,

In a related consumer alert posted on FTC’s website, Larissa Bungo, a senior attorney, shared more details documenting why the enforcement action is warranted.

“Landlords must truthfully advertise the prices and services they’re offering, said Bungo. “The FTC says Invitation Homes advertised an overall “worry-free leasing lifestyle” and promised pre-inspected homes before move-in and “24/7 emergency maintenance” for any issues, but failed to deliver.”

“Instead, new residents faced major issues like sewage backup, broken appliances, and visible rodent feces,” continued Bungo. “The promises didn’t live up to the hype and, to add insult to injury, according to the FTC, Invitation Homes wrongly withheld some or all of renters’ security deposits for things like normal wear and tear or damage that was already there before renters moved in. Which is also illegal.”

The fall settlement also marks a milestone victory for consumer advocates that in recent years have urged federal regulatory agencies to adopt and enforce rules to better protect consumers from an array of junk fees.

For example, in 2022, four national consumer advocates – Americans for Financial Reform, the Consumer Federation of America, the National Consumer Law Center, and the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), jointly urged the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), to enact junk fee rules.

“Hidden fees and costs strip wealth from the most vulnerable consumers who are struggling to make ends meet,” wrote the advocates. “The most impacted consumers often come from communities of color already burdened by other predatory practices, further exacerbating racial inequities… Disclosure is intended to give consumers an opportunity “know before they owe.” But that knowledge is worthless if charges are imposed under circumstances that most consumers would not expect even if, with hindsight, the fees were disclosed.”

By early February 2023, junk fee advocacy grew to involve more than 40 national and state consumer advocates who together appealed to the FTC for its own agency rules and actions.

Created in 1915, the FTC has two primary missions: protecting competition and protecting consumers. It is empowered to investigate as well as prevent unfair methods of competition, and unfair or deceptive acts or practices affecting commerce.

Consumers who suspect a company may be engaging in fraud, scams or bad business practices can share their concerns at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/.

Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow at the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..