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OP-ED: Anything Banned Becomes a Policing Issue:

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Ban advocates acknowledge that there will be an increase in the trafficking of unregulated cigarettes nationwide. This creates a roadmap for organized criminal enterprises to expand their operations within Black and brown communities where individuals will be seeking their tobacco product of choice due to the ban. History has shown that nothing is better for expanding organized crime than prohibition.
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Why the FDA Menthol Ban is Not Good for Communities of Color

By Elliot T. Boyce, Sr. (Ret.), Former Director of the New York State Police Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

With the FDA’s pending ban on menthol cigarettes growing ever closer, it’s important that policymakers contemplating passing legislation that will impact the interactions between Black and Hispanic Americans and law enforcement better understand the unintended consequences of this decision.

For Those Who Are Uninformed

This August, the FDA could announce a nationwide ban on all menthol cigarettes, ending the legal sale and purchase of menthol-flavored tobacco. Some advocates falsely claim that menthol products are more harmful, but research shows that menthol cigarettes are no more dangerous than any other cigarette. A JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute study found that “menthol cigarettes are no more, and perhaps less, harmful than nonmenthol cigarettes.” Toothpaste, gum, and other products can add menthol, but this does not make the products more harmful or addictive. Moreover, menthol cigarettes are not the preferred cigarette in America; non-menthol cigarettes are. So why would the FDA aim to ban only menthol-flavored tobacco products, especially considering the majority of Black and Latino smokers prefer menthol? The reasoning behind the ban is misguided, non-scientific, and rooted in the historical targeting of people of color.

For Those Who Claim That the Ban is Solely Motivated by Health

The best solution for a public health issue like tobacco smoking is education, treatment, and counseling. The government knows this approach well, as it’s led to tremendous declines in smoking since the 1960s. According to Statista, from 1965 to 2019, the prevalence of cigarette smoking in the U.S. has decreased from about 42 percent to 14 percent. Resources like quit-smoking websites, hotlines, medications, and text message programs contributed to this decrease, as well as common tobacco control policies like warning labels, advertising bans, and smoke-free environments.

For Those Who Don’t Understand That Prohibitions are Police Matters

The federal government has not yet released its blueprint for enforcement of this proposed ban; however, under federal guidelines, tobacco-related incidents fall under the jurisdiction of the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives), an agency that works both independently and in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies to combat tobacco-related offenses. For advocates and policymakers to tell the public that the health department will enforce the ban, they are ignoring one key fact: anything banned becomes illegal and, therefore, a police matter.

Ban advocates acknowledge that there will be an increase in the trafficking of unregulated cigarettes nationwide. This creates a roadmap for organized criminal enterprises to expand their operations within Black and brown communities where individuals will be seeking their tobacco product of choice due to the ban. History has shown that nothing is better for expanding organized crime than prohibition. In addition, this could force traditionally law-abiding citizens, particularly elderly individuals, who prefer menthol products to the streets to seek illegal, unregulated tobacco products, and in turn, increase their risk of being victims of street crime.

Police officers I have spoken with say this will become one more reason for officers to stop individuals in communities of color impacted by the ban, leading to more negative interactions and less community trust where it’s already sorely lacking. This means a proactive police approach to solving the trafficking concerns will target individual possessors of contraband and illegal cigarettes to get the larger organized criminals. This is a police tactic that will, unfortunately, target individuals whose only crime is their choice of cigarette.

As a Former Director of the New York State Police Employee Assistance Program (EAP), I travel the nation speaking to policymakers, citizens, and other distinguished law enforcement professionals to further clear up misconceptions about the unintended consequences of the menthol ban. Many smokers and non-smokers (like myself) are unaware of the ban, and many are perplexed by the rationale behind banning products that are not the most widely smoked but instead are preferred by Blacks and Hispanics.

In conclusion, please remember that information is power; we must understand the unintended consequences of the menthol ban. Health concerns are more effectively managed through education, treatment, and counseling, not by police.

The post OP-ED: Anything Banned Becomes a Policing Issue: first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Chavis and Bryant Lead Charge as Target Boycott Grows

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Surrounded by civil rights leaders, economists, educators, and activists, Bryant declared the Black community’s power to hold corporations accountable for broken promises.

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By Stacy M. Brown
BlackPressUSA.com Senior National Correspondent

Calling for continued economic action and community solidarity, Dr. Jamal H. Bryant launched the second phase of the national boycott against retail giant Target this week at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta. Surrounded by civil rights leaders, economists, educators, and activists, Bryant declared the Black community’s power to hold corporations accountable for broken promises. “They said they were going to invest in Black communities. They said it — not us,” Bryant told the packed sanctuary. “Now they want to break those promises quietly. That ends tonight.” The town hall marked the conclusion of Bryant’s 40-day “Target fast,” initiated on March 3 after Target pulled back its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) commitments. Among those was a public pledge to spend $2 billion with Black-owned businesses by 2025—a pledge Bryant said was made voluntarily in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020.“No company would dare do to the Jewish or Asian communities what they’ve done to us,” Bryant said. “They think they can get away with it. But not this time.”

The evening featured voices from national movements, including civil rights icon and National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) President & CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., who reinforced the need for sustained consciousness and collective media engagement. The NNPA is the trade association of the 250 African American newspapers and media companies known as The Black Press of America. “On the front page of all of our papers this week will be the announcement that the boycott continues all over the United States,” said Chavis. “I would hope that everyone would subscribe to a Black newspaper, a Black-owned newspaper, subscribe to an economic development program — because the consciousness that we need has to be constantly fed.” Chavis warned against the bombardment of negativity and urged the community to stay engaged beyond single events. “You can come to an event and get that consciousness and then lose it tomorrow,” he said. “We’re bombarded with all of the disgust and hopelessness. But I believe that starting tonight, going forward, we should be more conscious about how we help one another.”

He added, “We can attain and gain a lot more ground even during this period if we turn to each other rather than turning on each other.” Other speakers included Tamika Mallory, Dr. David Johns, Dr. Rashad Richey, educator Dr. Karri Bryant, and U.S. Black Chambers President Ron Busby. Each speaker echoed Bryant’s demand that economic protests be paired with reinvestment in Black businesses and communities. “We are the moral consciousness of this country,” Bryant said. “When we move, the whole nation moves.” Sixteen-year-old William Moore Jr., the youngest attendee, captured the crowd with a challenge to reach younger generations through social media and direct engagement. “If we want to grow this movement, we have to push this narrative in a way that connects,” he said.

Dr. Johns stressed reclaiming cultural identity and resisting systems designed to keep communities uninformed and divided. “We don’t need validation from corporations. We need to teach our children who they are and support each other with love,” he said. Busby directed attendees to platforms like ByBlack.us, a digital directory of over 150,000 Black-owned businesses, encouraging them to shift their dollars from corporations like Target to Black enterprises. Bryant closed by urging the audience to register at targetfast.org, which will soon be renamed to reflect the expanding boycott movement. “They played on our sympathies in 2020. But now we know better,” Bryant said. “And now, we move.”

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The Department of Education is Collecting Delinquent Student Loan Debt

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — the Department of Education will withhold money from tax refunds and Social Security benefits, garnish federal employee wages, and withhold federal pensions from people who have defaulted on their student loan debt.

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By April Ryan

Trump Targets Wages for Forgiven Student Debt

The Department of Education, which the Trump administration is working to abolish, will now serve as the collection agency for delinquent student loan debt for 5.3 million people who the administration says are delinquent and owe at least a year’s worth of student loan payments. “It is a liability to taxpayers,” says White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt at Tuesday’s White House Press briefing. She also emphasized the student loan federal government portfolio is “worth nearly $1.6 trillion.” The Trump administration says borrowers must repay their loans, and those in “default will face involuntary collections.” Next month, the Department of Education will withhold money from tax refunds and Social Security benefits, garnish federal employee wages, and withhold federal pensions from people who have defaulted on their student loan debt. Leavitt says “we can not “kick the can down the road” any longer.”

Much of this delinquent debt is said to have resulted from the grace period the Biden administration gave for student loan repayment. The grace period initially was set for 12 months but extended into three years, ending September 30, 2024. The Trump administration will begin collecting the delinquent payments starting May 5. Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough, president of Talladega College, told Black Press USA, “We can have that conversation about people paying their loans as long as we talk about the broader income inequality. Put everything on the table, put it on the table, and we can have a conversation.” Kimbrough asserts, “The big picture is that Black people have a fraction of wealth of white so you’re… already starting with a gap and then when you look at higher education, for example, no one talks about Black G.I.’s that didn’t get the G.I. Bill. A lot of people go to school and build wealth for their family…Black people have a fraction of wealth, so you already start with a wide gap.”

According to the Education Data Initiative, https://educationdata.org/average-time-to-repay-student-loans It takes the average borrower 20 years to pay their student loan debt. It also highlights how some professional graduates take over 45 years to repay student loans. A high-profile example of the timeline of student loan repayment is the former president and former First Lady Barack and Michelle Obama, who paid off their student loans by 2005 while in their 40s. On a related note, then-president Joe Biden spent much time haggling with progressives and Democratic leaders like Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer on Capitol Hill about whether and how student loan forgiveness would even happen.

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VIDEO: The Rev. Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. at United Nations Permanent Forum on People of African Descent

https://youtu.be/Uy_BMKVtRVQ Excellencies:       With all protocol noted and respected, I am speaking today on behalf of the Black Press of America and on behalf of the Press of People of African Descent throughout the world.  I thank the Proctor Conference that helped to ensure our presence here at the Fourth Session of the […]

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Excellencies:

      With all protocol noted and respected, I am speaking today on behalf of the Black Press of America and on behalf of the Press of People of African Descent throughout the world.  I thank the Proctor Conference that helped to ensure our presence here at the Fourth Session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.
      The focus on AI and digital equity is urgent within the real time realities today where there continues to be what is referred to as the so called mainstream national and international media companies that systematically undergird racism and imperialism against the interests of People of African Descent.
         We therefore call on this distinguished gathering of leaders and experts to challenge member states to cite and to prevent the institutionalization of racism in all forms of media including social media, AI and any form of digital bias and algorithmic discrimination.
            We cannot trust nor entertains the notion that  former and contemporary enslavers will now use AI and digital transformation to respect our humanity and fundamental rights.
              Lastly we recommend that a priority should be given to the convening of an international collective of multimedia organizations  and digital associations that are owned and developed by Africans and People of African Descent.
Basta the crimes against our humanity!
Basta Racism!
Basta Imperialism!
A Luta Continua!
Victory is certain!
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