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Districts beef
up security in wake of Santa Fe
shootings
Thursday was the last time Melissa
Ansley’s daughters will attend public school
in the foreseeable future.
Law enforcement vehicles screamed past
her home Friday morning along State Highway
6, about a mile east of Santa Fe High
School. As she read details of the latest
school massacre on her phone, Ansley decided
not to allow her 11- and 13-year-old
daughters to go back to their Santa Fe ISD
campuses.
“I won’t put my kids back in school,”
she said. “I’m going to homeschool them
because this kind of stuff scares me.”
As schools across the greater Houston
area prepare to open for the first time
since a 17-year-old gunman opened fire in
Santa Fe High School, killing 10 and
wounding 13 others, parents and students
question if their schools have done enough
to prevent a potential massacre.
Texas Gov.
Abbott on the
shooting at
Santa Fe High
School
Texas Governor Greg Abbott
speaks about the shooting at Santa
Fe High School, during a press
conference at the Santa Fe ISD
Agricultural Center Friday, May 18,
2018, in Santa Fe.
All four schools in Santa Fe ISD will
remain closed at least Monday and Tuesday,
district officials said in a social media
post.
A few districts near the shooting have
already pledged to beef up security after
the shooting. In Clear Creek ISD, which
shares a border with Santa Fe ISD,
Superintendent Greg Smith wrote there would
be an increase in “police visibility”
through the end of the school year.
Dickinson ISD pledged additional officers
would be stationed at its schools and staff
would update the district’s safety plans.
Angleton ISD Superintendent Pat
Montgomery wrote more officers would patrol
the district’s eight regular campuses.
“We do not believe that there is
anything to be concerned about or wrong,”
Montgomery wrote, “we just want to make sure
you feel safe sending your child to school
and that our students and staff feel safe
coming to school.”
Some parents do not.
On parent Facebook forums from Humble to
Fort Bend, folks debated additional security
measures and recalled their students’
experiences with active-shooter drills.
Some parents in Fort Bend ISD worried
portable classroom buildings, with thin
metal siding, would be easily pierced by
bullets. Parents in Dickinson and Galveston
ISDs created petitions calling for metal
detectors at all school entrances.
Carrie Whiten, whose 16-year-old
daughter attends Kingwood High School in
Humble ISD, proposed creating a volunteer
sign-up so parents could greet and monitor
students as they stream into school each
morning. She said she is not worried about
her daughter finishing out the school year
in the northwest Houston suburb but wants to
find more immediate solutions.
“I think those vulnerable soft spots are
right as kids entering main big entrances,
and that’s something we as parents could do
to help,” Whiten said. “I just think right
now, doing the status quo isn’t going to
work.”
Mike Haynes spent part of Sunday
wrestling with whether to allow his
13-year-old daughter to go to classes at her
Texas City ISD middle school on Monday.
The operations manager for Exxon Mobil
said there was too little time between the
Santa Fe High School shooting and Monday for
the campus to make meaningful security
changes. Haynes is unsure what security
measures would be most effective, but he
said metal detectors, armed guards at all
entrances and outfitting exits with one-way
doors would be good places to start.
Those solutions could be pricey, Haynes
said, but he challenged school districts to
invest in more security infrastructure and
spend less on multimillion-dollar football
stadiums.
“As a parent it’s a big concern,” Haynes
said. “This happened right in our back yard,
and it was a matter of time. People are
walking around blind, acting like it’s not
going to happen here. Well, why not? What
was going to keep it from happening here?
Nothing.”
The Group of Frogs (Encouragement)
As a group of frogs were traveling through the
woods, two of them fell into a deep pit. When the other
frogs crowded around the pit and saw how deep it was,
they told the two frogs that they’re was no hope left
for them.
However, the two frogs decided to ignore what the
others were saying and they proceeded to try and
jump out of the pit. Despite their efforts, the
group of frogs at the top of he pit were still saying
that they should just give up. That they would never
make it out.
Eventually, one of the frogs took heed to what the
others were saying and he gave up, falling down to his
death. The other frog continued to jump as hard as he
could. Again, the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop
the pain and just die.
He jumped even harder and finally made it out. When
he got out, the other frogs said, “Did you not
hear us?”
Moral of the story:
People’s words can have a big effect on other’s
lives. Think about what you say before it comes out of
your mouth. It might just be the difference between life
and death
6 Very
Black Moments From The Royal
Wedding
WINDSOR, ENGLAND - MAY 19:
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex
and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex
leave Windsor Castle in the
Ascot Landau carriage during a
procession after getting
married at St Georges Chapel
on May 19, 2018 in Windsor,
England. Prince Henry Charles
Albert David of Wales marries
Ms. Meghan Markle in a service
at St George's Chapel inside
the grounds of Windsor Castle.
Among the guests were 2200
members of the public, the
royal family and Ms. Markle's
Mother Doria Ragland. (Photo
by Leon Neal/Getty Images)
For months now, we have
impatiently waited for the royal
wedding to unfold before us. Prince
Harry and American actress Meghan
Markle’s highly anticipated union was
expected to be historic in many ways.
But once the big day was upon us
we were all shook from the bountiful
display of blackness. Beautiful black
people showed up and showed out as the
world watched. Here are six of the
blackest moments from Saturday’s royal
wedding.
Bishop Michael Curry
brought down the house
The Chicago-born bishop
electrified hundreds of attendees
at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor
Castle. Curry turned the
historically white church on its
head by preaching with soul and
about the power of love.
“We must discover the power of
love, the redemptive power of
love. And when we do that, we will
be able to make of this old
world a new world. Love is the
only way, “ he said in his sermon.
He stood in front of the royal
family with pride and grace,
reminding them of the horrors of
slavery while also telling the
world that survivors used their
love for God to withstand hell.
“I’m talking about some power.
Real power,” he continued. “Power
to change the world. If you don’t
believe me, well, there were some
old slaves in America’s antebellum
South who explained the dynamic
power of love and why it has the
power to transform.”
Friction Emerges
Between Local And
National Black
Politicians
Instead of walking in
lockstep, friction between
African-American political
leaders at the national
and local levels could
threaten success in the
2018 midterm elections.
Georgia’s Democratic
Rep.
John Lewiscampaigned on Saturday
for Rep. Michael
Capuano, a
Massachusetts Democrat, at
the Twelfth Baptist Church
in Boston. There’s nothing
unusual about Lewis, a
civil rights icon,
supporting a liberal
Democrat—especially one
who has served 10 terms in
Congress with a track
record of supporting
issues that are important
to Black people. What’s
raising eyebrows in
Boston’s Black community
is that Capuano is White
and competing against a
female Black progressive
candidate, Ayanna
Pressley.
Lewis is not alone. In
fact, the Congressional
Black Caucus Political
Action Committee
endorsed Capuano on
Friday over Pressley, who
was the first Black woman
to served on the Boston
City Council.
Local Black elected
officials understand the
loyalty to Capuano but
would have preferred that
their national
counterparts stay neutral
for the Democratic primary
race, according to the
New York Times.
Bennie Wiley,
a local civic leader who
is supporting Pressley, is
“disappointed, but not
surprised” by the Black
caucus’ endorsement of
Capuano. Marie St.
Fleur, a former
state representative,
raised questions about the
caucus’ understanding of
local issues.
What’s at risk in the
endorsement is further
dissatisfaction with the
Democratic party, which
supposedly embraces
diversity. Democratic
leaders have
credited Black women with
saving the party in
recent elections but have
come up short in returning
the support of Black
candidates. Black
Democratic voters are
demanding more than a
simple thank you for their
loyalty.
This situation could
harm that party’s success
in the 2018 midterm
elections, as the
Democrats seek to take
control of Congress. Black
voters want a reason to
come out and cast a
ballot. Overall
African-American voter
turnout
declined in 2016, the
first major election in
the post-Barack
Obama era.
This division between
national and local Black
leaders could continue the
decline.
Michael Jackson will
have a street named
after him in Detroit
VARIOUS, VARIOUS
- JUNE 25:
Michael Jackson
performs in
concert circa
1986. (Photo by
Kevin
Mazur/WireImage)
Michael Jackson is
getting honored in
Motown.
According to reports,
the King of Pop will
have a street name after
him in downtown Detroit.
On June 15th, which is
during Detroit Music
Weekend, Michael Jackson
Avenue will be unveiled.
His four brothers,
Jermaine, Tito, Marlon
and Jackie, will also be
a big part of the
weekend of festivities.
Not only will there be a
Jackson 5 Tribute
Concert but they will
also receive a key to
the city.
It’s only right that
MJ and his brothers are
honored in Motown. They
started as the Jackson 5
in 1968 and went on to
sell over 75 million
records. With hits like
“I Want You Back,”
“ABC,” “I’ll Be There”
and “The Love You Save,”
the Jackson 5 became one
of the biggest groups of
all time. Michael
Jackson launched his
solo career in 1972 but
it was his 1979 release
of Off the Wall
that established him as
a solo artist. In
1984, he released Thriller,
which is the best
selling album of all
time. He died on June
25th, 2009 from a
prescription drug
overdose at the age of
50.
The
PINNACLE Center is free* for use to Fort Bend and City
of Houston residents that are ages 50 and above.
