Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Breast cancer is a disease affecting women all ethnic backgrounds. According Texas Medical Association, one out of nine American women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. A new breast cancer case is diagnosed every three minutes and one woman dies from this disease every 13 minutes. The statistics are definitely frightening for women around the world, though it does affect a small percentage of men. Though the disease is unbiased in who it affects, minority women are very much susceptible to it. BlackAmericaWeb.com stresses that back woman should become more aware of this problem. According to the America Cancer Society, breast cancer is 12 percent higher in Anglo women than it is black woman, but with black women it strikes at an earlier age and the mortality rate is higher. Breast cancer is the second-most common cancer among black women, surpassed only by lung cancer. According to a study at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seatle, African American women, Native American women and Hispanic women are 70 percent more likely to die after a diagnosis than a white woman. This is attributed to the most incurable tumor type “triple negative,” which affects African-American and Hispanic women more than Caucasian women

The purpose of Breast Cancer Awareness Month is very straight forward. Since October is designated as BCAW, many women schedule a check-up with doctor for their annual mammogram. Mammography is used to diagnose breast disease in women who have symptoms, and also those who appear to have no breast problems. According to the Society’s “Cancer Facts & Figures for African-Americans 2007-2008” booklet, “Factors that contribute to the higher death rates among African-American women include differences in access to and utilization of early detection and treatment, risk factors that are differentially distributed by race or socio-economic status, or biological differences associated with race.”

RedbookMag.com outlines prevention methods women should take for breast cancer. Four doable ways to reduce your breast cancer risk inlcude:

• Do monthly breast self-exams! "About 40 percent of lumps are still discovered by women themselves," says Lillie Shockney, of the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center.
• Help your husband quit smoking. Women who have never smoked but who are frequently exposed to smoke at home or work are 68 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than other never-smokers.
  
• Know your family history. If you have relatives with breast cancer or other hormone-driven cancers such as prostate or ovarian cancer, talk to your doctor about BRCA testing.
  
• Breast-feed your babies. Research suggests that the practice can protect against breast cancer in moms over age 25.
  
  For more information on breast cancer, visit nbcam.com
  

Internet Leveling Playing Field?

Is the internet leveling the playing field in the representation of people of color in the media? The Jena Six took some time to gain national spot light. The nooses were hung in Jena, LA on September 1, 2006. This action set off a chain of events that led to the harsh sentencing of six black students who beat up a white student. As one can see, these events were going on in this little town behind the backs of all Americans. Was it that CNN received a tip on what was going on in Jena, Louisiana? No, it took the efforts of many people, primarily college students, sending the information all across America through web.

The reason college students were so vital in the spreading of this information is because they are exposed to so many resources. In college, a student is surrounded by internet access. One does not even need to go to a computer lab to access the internet due wireless connectivity being readily available to so many students. Various forms of web brought this injustice to light, such as email and weblog. Many individuals learned of the Jena situation through word of mouth attributed to various blogging sites, including Myspace and Facebook.

Latisha Edwards, a second year student majoring in Psychology, said she heard about the Jena Six as a result of word of mouth. “My friend found out about the situation through Facebook and told me about it,” said Edwards. Jarrhette Burke, a freshman majoring in digital arts, learned of this prejudice through email. Now that we are in this new era many have dubbed the “digital age,” can we expect more injustices to come to light? As Al Sharpton said, “You wait ’til we go to D.C. and bring the whole country, because there’s Jenas all over America.” This is not the first incident of racial injustice going on in America and it sure will not be the last. It just so happens that this incident by the Grace of God was heard all around the world. People of color should not let incidences of this caliber stop with the Jena Six. Everyone should report injustices. If news outlets will not listen, create your own news outlet in the form of a blog. There are millions of people in cyber space. Someone will be bound to listen and it may catch the eye of someone who has resources to bring the injustice to national spotlight. As Al Sharpton said, let’s let it be known of the Jenas in our communities.

Toledo Riot Aftermath: 2 Years Later

If one were to walk down Stickney avenue- or “The Ave” as some residents would call it- in North Toledo, one would not believe a riot ensued in this neighborhood two years ago. Children playing, music blasting through car stereos, friends relaxing on porches, teenage boys shadow boxing or playing a game of pick-up basketball at nearby Wilson Park would describe a scene on a typical day in this neighborhood. But taking a trip back to Saturday, Oct. 15, 2005, the scene drastically changes. At least 14 members of the Nationalist Socialist Movement turned an entire community upside down in their attempt to lead a hate march. In a chaotic four-hour scene to follow, a mob of 600 rioters looted a gas station and bar, engaged in a violent confrontation with police and pelted cars with rocks. The end result: more than 120 rioters arrested, a damaged city and community.

Today, the aftemath of the riot has further deteriorated relations between residents and the police, garnered a bad reputation for Toledo and left the north Toledo community with many unanswered questions.

What factors played a role in the neo-Nazis coming to Toledo?

The media had reports Thomas Szych, a white resident of North Toledo, contacted NSM due to conflict with black gangs. According to the Toledo Blade, a quarrel between Szych and his neighbor, a black woman, over a fence was the cause behind the planned neo-Nazi march.

The march was planned in response to what was thought to be worsening race relations in the community. Tony Newson, a resident of North Toledo, said he has never experienced any racial problems in is community.

“I have lived in this community for seven years and have never in my time here seen any racial conflict,” said Newson. “Everybody gets along.”

Tony Newson, his brother Josh Newson and Richard Huggins, believe the media played a role in promoting the build up around the march.

Toledo Blade reporter Clyde Hughes said the media played a part in the large crowd turnout and probably the intensity of the crowd.

"But to be honest, as a journalist, I don't know what we could have done differently," he said. "An event like that could not have been ignored by the media, print or electronic.”

Hughes said he believed NSM played a little gamesmanship with the media by refusing day by day to disclose its route and other information after promising to do so, leading him and reporters to write additional stories about the march they would not have written.

“That was a clever move by them to manipulate the publicity," he said. "In fact, there were things our police reporter was picking up on the streets that we decided not to report on because we felt it would add fuel to an intense situation, so I think in some ways we showed good restraint in our newspaper coverage and I think a review of our stories would bare that out."

Why were neo-Nazis allowed to march through a residential community?

Tony Newson said he and his neighbors were in disbelief upon learning a hate group would be marching through their commnity.

"There was a lot of unrest in the community leading up to the march," Newson said. "You just knew something was going to happen."

Former mayor Jack Ford said he didn't think the march was going to turn out the way it did.

“No one thought the protest would get out of hand," he said. "We expected some rock throwing, but nothing like a full out riot.”

Hughes said it was hard to predict.

“It's a tough call," he said. "Other cities handled it by giving them space in a public square, like what happened the second time the group visited in December.”

Ford said the neo-Nazis, as American citizens, are entitled to their right of free speech.

“First Amendment gives you the right to free speech,” he said. “If we would have denied them their right to march, we would have been infringing on their rights.”

Josh Newson said he is doubtful of the whole situation because he feels there are inequalities present. He said a musician wanted to shoot a video in Toledo, but was denied a permit to do so.

“Lyfe Jennings wanted to do a video here, but the city would not grant him a permit,” said Newson. “Our city denies someone who wants to provide positive energy for our community, but grants some people a permit whose intentions are negative?”

Should the community have had a say in who could march in their neighborhood?
Newson said he and other residents were angered to not have been able to have a say in who could march through their community. Newson said he felt betrayed by the city offering police protection to the 14 NSM members.

“My tax dollars provided their protection,” he said.

Ford said protection must be provided for those who lead a march.

“When you have free speech you have to protect people who are marching,” he said. “They could use the “due diligence” clause and sue the city if we didn’t provide them with protection if something were to happen to them.”

Hughes agreed police protection was necessary.

“Given the reaction this group draws, the police protection was appropriate," he said. "Without police protection and injury to the protesters, the police would have been drawn into the situation regardless and would have had less control."

Huges added “Of course, police and the mayor miscalculated how little control they would have allowing the Neo-Nazis to march in the streets and it all unraveled very quickly. I know we in the media didn't give a lot of thought to the counter-demonstrators, who proved just as fervent as the Neo-Nazis in their protest and quickly made for a bad situation.”

Newson said the march should have been held downtown rather than in a residential ommunity.

“The mayor should have done more to prevent the march from happening in the neighborhood,” said Newson. “I could see if the march was held downtown like it was when they came back a second time.” '

In the second rally, which took place in December 2005, slightly less than 30 individuals were arrested compared to the more than 120 individuals arrested in October 2005.

Freedom of Speech

Freedom of speech is arguably America’s most important Amendment in the Constitution. Josh Newson said police would not allow him to lead a hate march in a majority white neighborhood. He said it would be impossible to obtain a permit and police protection to do this.

“I know for one thing; if I gathered a racist black group to Ottawa Hills, they lock my ass up!” he said.

Jack Ford disagreed.

“If one wanted to march in Ottawa Hills or Perrysburg, they should have that right,” he said. "A group would have to negotiate with city officials on a variety of factors. If a city were to deny one the right to march, one could sue for infringement of rights. NSM applied for a permit march two weeks prior to the march."


The Aftermath

The Toledo Blade quoted NSM leader Bill White saying his group put more blacks in jail than the Toledo Police Department did in an entire year.

Tony Newson said residents should have shown more restraint.

“It’s hard to ignore racist white people, but then again we ended up hurting ourselves," he said. "That day, I saw people being taken by the bus loads.”

Ford said the city of Toledo was negatively affected by he riots.

“Toledo earned a bad reputation from the riots,” he said.