There are a lot of mysteries about the passing of Prince. An autopsy came about and his body was soon cremated. Prince passed away on April 21, 2016. As early as April 7, 2016, Prince postponed two performances at FOX Theater in Atlanta from his Plano & A Microphone Tour. This is the venue that released a statement saying that he had influenza. Prince rescheduled and performed the show on April 14, even though he still was not feeling well. While flying back to Minneapolis early the next morning, he became unresponsive, and his private jet made an emergency landing at Quad City International Airport in Moline, Illinois, where he was hospitalized and received Narcan, but he left against medical advice. Representatives said he suffered from "bad dehydration" and had had influenza for several weeks. Prince was seen bicycling the next day in his hometown of Chanhassen, Minnesota. He shopped that evening at the Electric Fetus in Minneapolis for Record Store Day and made a brief appearance at an impromptu dance party at his Paisley Park recording studio complex, stating that he was feeling fine. The weekend before his death, a photograph was taken by Heather Hofmeister of Prince riding his bike. She lives about a mile from his estate. She said that Prince was riding around for more than an hour and showed no signs of fatigue. Friends and neighbors say he was an avid bike rider. On April 19, he attended a performance by singer Lizz Wright at the Dakota Jazz Club. On April 20, Prince's representatives called Dr. Howard Kornfeld, a California specialist in addiction medicine and pain management, seeking medical help for Prince. Kornfeld scheduled to meet with Prince on April 22, and he contacted a local physician who cleared his schedule for April 21, for an exam and to check on Prince's condition. On April 21, at 9:43 a.m., the Carver County Sheriff's Office received a 9-1-1 call requesting that an ambulance be sent to Prince's home at Paisley Park. The caller initially told the dispatcher that an unidentified person at the home was unconscious, then moments later said he was dead, and finally identified the person as Prince. The caller was Dr. Kornfeld's son, who had flown in with buprenorphine that morning to devise a treatment plan for opioid addiction. Emergency responders found Prince unresponsive in an elevator and performed CPR, but were unable to revive him. They pronounced him dead at 10:07 a.m., 19 minutes after their arrival. Prince was only 57 years old when he passed away. On April 26, 2016, Prince's sister and only full sibling Tyka Nelson filed court documents in Carver County, Minnesota, to open a probate case, claiming that no will had been found; Prince's five half-siblings also have a claim to his estate. Prince was active and healthy enough to attend concerts and perform a couple of shows before he passed. Prince was found inside an elevator in his studio. It is important that celebrities travel overseas. Yet, the people who sign the checks of the celebrities have much more power than these celebrities. The multinational corporations, the political elites (as found in the Pilgrim Society, the Bilderberg Group, the Trilateral Commission, etc.), and some members of secretive organizations control the mainstream industry. Numerous celebrities show numerology, esoteric imagery, and other forms of mysticism in their albums, music, and their personal ideologies. Many questions are not answered. An independent investigation can find answers. Prince wanted to get control of his publishing and he is now passed away. RIP Prince.
It is a known fact that Phyllis Hyman wanted more black institutions and she was at odds with Clive Davis. There are plenty of stories about Clive Davis and what he has done to artists. Phyllis Hyman had a great voice and she was a very talented black woman. Phyllis Hyman had a great wisdom and she was right to say that black artists should give their wealth to their own communities. Black people have great intellectual power to handle managerial situations, but the evil stereotypes have been promoted in our society (which is sick). We have to love our black identity and care for the truth. I saw Phyllis Hyman’s story on Unsung and it was a very emotional story. We will always remember her life and her great words that taught us to love our black identity and to love the ingenuity of black creativity. Yes, we have to change the way we think, act, and talk. That means we should never call black people slurs or evil language. We should work to fight for Black Unity, and we should use discernment to not support those who disrespect us as black people. My belief is that black celebrities and black people in general are obligated to speak against injustice and promote the interests of black people (especially grown black people). We have mental slavery in our community. Collective solutions are needed in our community. Muhammad Ali opposed the Vietnam War, he supported blackness, and he stood up for the human dignity of black women by his own words. Today, some black people refuse to talk about real issues relevant to black people. There should be accountability and we should support justice in our black community. The black community heavily supported these black celebrities and these celebrities should speak on the liberation of black people. Some celebrities get money out of the black community send money to mostly the white community (since mostly white males own most of the corporations in the Western world. The owners control most of the infrastructure of mainstream Western society). The evil people are not in our interests, so we should have value for ourselves and stand up for our human rights as black people. Therefore, we have to grow consciousness, help others, and think as a community. We have to move as a community as black people. Black people supply a huge amount of capital in the American economy. So, we can develop our infrastructure to empower ourselves. Speaking out against injustice is never a huge burden. Our black ancestors suffered genocide, lynchings, and death. Speaking out is the least that any black person can do in confronting injustice.
We want a diversity of qualified, talented black people to show excellence in theater and other areas. Also, many black people with amazing resumes and acting experiences experience still struggle to get various roles. So, the lesson is that we have a long way to go, but we should show compassion, help the poor, and show human compassion to those who are sick too. Also, those, with the gifts of acting and theater, should not be patronized in a disrespectful way. They (or those involved in theater, acting, etc.) should be encouraged to cultivate their gifts and to be inspired to express their abilities to the maximum capacity. There is a difference between the Oscars and the Tonys. When black people are given fair opportunities, respect, and just dignity, we excel into massive heights. We also excel despite obstacles too. As others have outlined, we have every right to build our own production companies, so more of black people can be apart of an infrastructure that we control. Our eyes are definitely on the prize. Like always, we honor the sacrifice and heroic courage of Harriet Tubman. She saved hundreds of lives of black people. Yet, her being placed on the dollar bill was used as a means by the powers that be to deflect their responsibility in oppressing our people. Also, other racists are still on our currency. So, we have a long way to go. Also, we should expose Andrew Jackson (who destroyed a black fort filled with black men, black women, and black children. The Battle of Negro Fort was a short military siege in 1816 in which forces of the United States assaulted and managed to blow up an African-American fortified stronghold in the frontier of northern Spanish Florida.The Seminole Wars are interesting to study) too as a white supremacist, a person who had black slaves, and he was involved in the Panic during the 19th century that harmed the economy. Having Andrew Jackson on the back of the 20 dollar bill is disgraceful. So, we have to know about the subtle tactics of white supremacy. Black people globally should be treated with dignity and with respect. I do believe that black men and black women have the right to be leaders. Malcolm X was a leader and Assata Shakur is a leader in our generation. A woman should never be ashamed of her womanhood. A man should never be ashamed of his manhood. Mainstream society readily promotes materialism, unnecessary greed, variance, and other forms of evil. Conversely, we promote righteousness, goodness, and integrity.
The new nation of the United States of America was influenced by Enlightenment Ideals. The creators of the Constitution and the early American government knew about history. They studied the works of ancient Greece and ancient Rome. They understood about the history of England too along with English Bill of Rights. So, they used many concepts from Enlightenment scholars to create the American government and the U.S. Constitution. There were political writings like Montesquieu’s “The Spirit of the Laws”, Rousseau’s “Social Contract”, and John Locke’s “The Two Treaties of Government” that impacted American society and law. John Locke believed that a government’s power comes from the consent of the people. America formed a government that is a representative government the Preamble mentions the consent of the governed. Montesquieu believed in the separation of powers in government. The U.S. government does have the separation of powers (or three branches of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government). Rousseau followed direct democracy and we have many kinds of elections of politicians. Voltaire wrote about about free speech, religious tolerance, etc. and we have the freedom of religion and the freedom of speech found in the Bill of Rights. Beccaria believed that the accused has rights and he opposed torture. The Bill Rights gives rights to the accused and it bans cruel and unusual punishment. Torture is against the Eighth Amendment. Back then and today, the American government has popular sovereignty, limited government, the separation of powers, and checks and balances. Checks and balances is a concept of government where one branch of government doesn’t have too much power over another branch of government. For example, the judicial branch can declare acts of Congress constitutional or unconstitutional. Congress can impeach judges. The Senate may reject appointment of judges. The President can sign and executive laws, but the Congress can override the President’s veto. The Supreme Court can declare executive actions unconstitutional. So, the American government has many complexities and simplicity at the same time. Originally, the American government is a federal republic or a government with divided power among the federal (or national) government and the state plus local governments. By 1789, the Constitution became the official law of America. The Enlightenment principles spread globally from Europe to the Americas. In 1789, the French Revolution would begin. The Haitian Revolution against France would start in 1791. Black people in Haiti were tired of slavery and they rightfully rebelled against imperialism and tyranny. In 1811, Paraguay proclaimed independence from Spain. In 1818, Chile was independent from Spain. Columbia would be independent from Spain in 1819. Many of the Latin American revolutions would be influenced by the Enlightenment principles. Mexico would gain independence from Spain in 1821. Peru would be independent from Spain in 1821 too. Brazil would be independent from Portugal in 1822 and Bolivia achieved independence from Spain in 1825. This was an era of Revolutions globally. The world would never be the same again.
The current Mayor of Washington is Muriel Elizabeth Bowser. She was born in August 2, 1972. She grew up in Michigan Park in northeast DC. Bowser graduated from Chatham in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with a bachelor's degree in history, and she graduated from American University with a Master’s in Public Policy. She is 43 years old. She was elected to the Advisory Neighborhood Commission in 2004. She was elected to the Council in 2007 via a special election. She was reelected (as a member of the Council of the District of Columbia in Ward 4) in 2008 and 2012. On March 23, 2013, Bowser announced that she would run for the Mayor of the District of Columbia in the 2014 election. Her campaign’s chair was former council member William Lightfoot. Bowser said that she can connect with longtime residents who are concerned with massive changes in the District. She wanted free Metro fares for students. She was against increasing the minimum wage only for employees of large retailers. Muriel Bowser has been mayor since January 2, 2015. She is the second black woman to be mayor of D.C. The first one was Sharon Pratt Kelly. Muriel Bowser (like mayors nationwide) had to deal with crime and other issues in Washington D.C. In October 2015 (in response to an increase of homicides in her first year as Mayor), Bowser proposed legislation allowing law enforcement officials to perform warrantless searches of violent ex-offenders. The bill was widely opposed by citizen's groups and the D.C. Council. She also deals with homelessness in the city. DC General closed, so by 2016, she proposed various housing sites to house the homeless. Although Bowser supports the outfitting of Metropolitan Police Department with body cameras and has requested $6 million in her 2016 budget proposal to complete the task, she also included a provision that would make all footage from the cameras exempt from Freedom of Information Act requests, with the goal "to respect privacy." She is early in her mayorship. She launched an inclusive technology program to support startups and entrepreneurs offering products and services to poor communities. The issue is that she has to deal with corporate forces trying to exploit D.C. and she has to promote the interests of the community in D.C. irrespective of the goals of select corporations. Also, it is important to outline the progressive actions of the Mayor Muriel Bowser. She promoted projects to increase jobs. She devoted an historic $100 million to the Housing Production Trust Fund, which can help to build many affordable housing units in D.C. She has supported investments in education. Muriel Bowser gave her State of the District speech in the beautiful Arena Stage Theater in Southwest, D.C. In her speech, the mayor spoke of elected officials having three choices when building the city. “One is to reject growth and accept decline; two is growing without regard to our roots, and risk losing what makes D.C. great; and the third is to balance change with preservation and growth.” She believes in fulfilling the third choice. She touted existing successful programs, like having 500 mentors for boys who need it most; the money saved by families when Kids Ride Free on public transportation; 8,200 families reading to their children benefiting from the “Books from Birth” program; and various Cornerstone, Common Core and Career Academies. Mayor Muriel Bowser signed a youth suicide prevention bill in April 27, 2016. The bill requires the city’s public schools to adopt suicide prevention policies. D.C. has the fastest improving urban school district in America. It is very early in her mayorship. One thing that is true is that Muriel Bowser is a very qualified black woman, she loves Washington, D.C., and we wish the best for her.
By Timothy
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