My late 3rd cousin Rosetta Smith Sykes lived from July 22, 1913 to March 9, 2008. She was a descendant of my 5th great grandmother Zilphy Claud (1820-1893). My mother knew of Rosetta Smith Sykes and people like Jasper Sykes and other human beings in that family too. Rosetta Smith Sykes's parents were Reuben Smith (1885-1952) and Annie Mason Claud (1887-1961). Annie Mason Claud's parents were Frank Thomas Claud (1856-1948) and Elizabeth Whitehead (1868-1939). Frank T. Claud is a direct descendant of Zilphy Claud. Mrs. Rosetta Smith Sykes transitioned to eternal life at Southside Regional Medical Center in Petersburg, Virginia. During her childhood and teenage years, she attended Southampton County, Virginia public schools. She loved to be a member of the Pleasant Grove Baptist Church at Drewryville, Virginia. She worked in many ministries of her church as Usher, Missions, and Food Servic3es. Rosetta Sykes was a member of the Sunday school and Bible study. People referred to her as Mother Sykes, and she had a great love for the Lord. She was the Mother of the Church, and the church was headed by the pastorate of the Rev. William Dentson. In real life, Rosetta Sykes helped tons of human beings as a babysitter, housekeeper, and caregiver. She was a member of the Shiloh Association and other groups. Rosetta Smith Sykes married Jasper Sykes Sr. (b. 1912), and her children are James Lloyd Sykes (b. 1934), John Ruben Sykes (1936-2004), Rudolph Sykes (1938-1985), Floyd Sykes, Melvin Sykes, and Jasper Sykes Jr., Rev. Dr. Rosa Rynn (b. 1944-2009), and Delores Verronco Sykes (b. 1953). My 4th cousin Jasper Sykes Jr.'s first wife was Lynnette Elizabeth Mayes (b. 1945). His second wife was named Gloria J. Sykes (b. 1948). Jasper Sykes Jr.'s children with Lynnette Elizabeth Mayes are LaShonda Verrett Sykes (b. 1968), Areatha Sykes (b. 1969), and Aronda Sykes (b. 1971). His 2 stepchildren are Chandra Porter and Leonard Gilliam Jr. Jasper Sykes Jr. six grandchildren (or Rosetta Sykes's grandchildren) are Sameia, Areatha, Taurik, Maurik, Lyndsey, and Lauryn.
Jasper Sykes Jr. was a member of the First Union Baptist Church on Dill Road. He served the Trustee Ministry. He worked for 35 years in the United States Postal Service (from being a mail carrier to the supervisor of mail delivery). He retired in October of 1999. He was in the U.S. Army for 8 years and then served in the reserve unit for 20 years. He was a truck driver for the Atlantic Constructors. Rosetta Smith Sykes's son of James Lloyd Sykes (or my 4th cousin) married Margaret Ann Stevenson (b. 1937-2022) on April 8, 1955, at Norfolk, Virginia. Their children are Karen Sykes (b. 1955), Marietta Lavonne Sykes (b. 1957), Jane Elois Sykes (b. 1959), and Jay Lloyd Sykes (b. 1962). Karen Sykes married Burnell Jason Moore (b. 1954) on May 28, 1977, at Norfolk, Virginia. Marietta Lavonne Sykes married Willie Clay Woodard (b. 1957) at Norfolk, Virginia on August 13, 1983. Their children are Gabrielle Nicole Woodard (b. 1989), Sade Denise Woodard (b. 1993), and Willie Woodard Jr. (b. 1994. He is married to Allison Woodard). Jay Lloyd Sykes married Angela Priscilla Meyters on November 23, 1985, at Portsmouth, Virginia. Jane Elois Sykes married Aubrey Griffin McCoy at Norfolk, Virginia on April 3, 1982. Rosetta Smith Sykes had 31 grandchildren,36 great grandchildren, and five great great grandchildren.
It has been 55 years since the evil, unjust assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was evolving his political views rapidly. By 1968, Dr. King was a completely different man from when part of the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott movement was. He took his last breath on Earth at the great, historic city of Memphis, Tennessee. Dr. King was a progressive and pro-democratic socialist African American Baptist clergyman and civil rights leader who was shot at 6:01 pm. CST at the Lorraine Motel. Dr. King faced death threats throughout his adult life. He was cursed at, stabbed, and assaulted before. By this time, Dr. King wanted to follow through to make the legitimate Memphis sanitation strike successful. Black men, who were sanitation workers, wanted living wages, union protection, and other economic benefits against a stubborn mayor Henry Loeb. Many leaders of the Memphis Sanitation strike were T.O. Jones, Helen Turner, Rev. James Lawson, etc. The walkout by the workers started on February 11, 1968. After protests and a government provoked violent occurrence, Dr. King was more adamantly to make sure that the strike will end up with victory (before his Poor People's Campaign march). America saw rapid deindustrialization, growth of inflation, and the continuation of the imperialist Vietnam War which validated Dr. King's point that there is something wrong with capitalism. Dr. Martin Luther King also accurately states that there should be a radical restructuring of society where poverty is finally abolished, because there is no justice without economic and racial justice. There must be a radical redistribution of economic and political power in order for human beings to fulfill their God given destinies. Dr. King and others wanted billions of dollars to rebuild urban and rural centers, address other social issues, and do other progressive actions to address pernicious injustices. The 1968 assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. changed America and the world forever that still influenced the modern world in 2023 indeed.
This year will have the 60th year anniversary of the assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. President Kennedy in America represented both the imperfections of America and the idealism that we all desire (which is peace, justice, equality, and tranquility in our world). President Kennedy lived during the most dangerous time of the Cold War, especially when the Cuban Missile Crisis existed back in 1962. A bad policy decision would have destroyed millions of human lives, and we could be dead literally. Yet, President Kennedy rejected the calls of the war hawks in his own government. Instead, the Kennedy administration finally decided to establish a blockade and a cogent negotiated settlement with the Soviet Union in ending that conflict. On Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 pm. CST in Dallas, Texas, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in broad daylight in a cowardly act. He was in the vehicle with his wife Jacqueline, Texas Governor John Connally, and Connally's wife Nellie. He was instantly murdered by many shots. The establishment said that Lee Harvey Oswald, a former U.S. Marine, assassinated President Kennedy from a nearby Texas School Depository. Yet, many scholars (from across the political spectrum) also believe that a conspiracy caused the death of President Kennedy. It is important for the viewer (i.e. you) to look at all of the facts and come up with your own conclusions as a free thinking, independent human being. President Johnson took over after his assassination. President Kennedy was not perfect (we know of his imperfections), but he grown to be more progressive by 1963 in the following ways: by supporting a federal civil rights bill, by promoting secret talks in Cuba to have detente, signing a Nuclear Test Ban treaty, going out to try to end the Vietnam War by 1965, investing in the arts and sciences, advocating for universal health care for the elderly (which would later be Medicare), supporting nationalists movement in Africa including Asia (including opposing colonialism), opposing nuclear weapons to be developed in Israel, called for peace in his famous American University speech, and using eloquent and wit in his speeches to convey a message of optimism (without naivete) about changing America for the better. Camelot was a myth as America still suffered massive economic, racial, and social oppression, but hope for the future is no myth. Therefore, the evil assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy should inspire all of us to evaluate our lives, care for humanity, and seek out the Dream to be fulfilled by being of service to help others beyond our own individual motivations.
The 2020 Presidential election ended by January 20, 2021, when President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were inaugurated into office. Before that time, there was the United States Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, when Trump supporters attacked and stormed the Capitol to try to stop the counting of electoral votes. Trump was impeached for a second time by January 13, 2021, after the insurrection. As early as June 26, 2021, Trump started a series of campaign style rallies. On November 20, 2021, President Joe Biden and some of his aides inform some allies that President Biden intends to run for re-election during 2024. By January 19, 2022, President Biden said that he will keep Vice President Kamala Harris as his running mate in 2024. By February 27, 2022, former President Donald Trump won the 2022 CPAC straw poll by over 30 points. On March 8, 2022, 2016 Democratic Party Presidential nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that she will not run again in 2024. Corey Stapleton, the former Secretary of State of Montana announced that he has formed a formal exploratory committee for a possible run for President on March 10, 2022. Trump said that if he runs for re-election, his former Vice-Presidential running mate Mike Pence will note be his running mate on March 16. The RNC voted unanimously to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates by April 14. In Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the Supreme Court of the United States declares that the Constitution does not confer the right to an abortion. The decision is met with controversy as abortion becomes a hot button issue across the country (on June 24, 2022). The RNC has named Milwaukee as the site for the 2024 Republican National Convention. August 8, 2022, was the historic date when the FBI executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago relating to a criminal investigation into former President Trump.
August 19, 2022, was when Philosopher and perennial candidate Jerome Segal announces his presidential campaign, becoming the first confirmed candidate for the 2024 Democratic primaries. The November 8, 2022, midterm elections changed everything. The Democratic Party retained control of the U.S. Senate, flipping one seat in Pennsylvania, while the Republican Party gains control of the U.S. House of Representatives with a net gain of nine seats, restoring the majority they had lost in the 2018 elections. By November 11, 2022, former Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton declared his intent to run for president in 2024 as a Republican, becoming the first confirmed candidate for the 2024 Republican primaries. November 15, 2022, was when former President Donald Trump announced his candidacy at a rally in front of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland opened an investigation into former President Trump's role in the U.S. Capitol attack and his handling of government documents, headed by special counsel Jack Smith (on November 18, 2022). From November 18-22, 2022, the Republican Jewish Coalition conference, which is considered the first major "cattle call" event of the cycle, takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada. On November 20, former South Carolina Governor and ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said that she was considering running for President. On that same day, hip hop artist and 2020 candidate Kanye West confirms his 2024 campaign when answering paparazzi questions. On November 22, 2022, Kanye West met with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, along with white supremacist Nick Fuentes, in which West allegedly offered Trump to be his running mate. From December 1-3, the DNC’s rules and bylaws committee meets to finalize the primary schedule for the upcoming cycle. On December 29, 2022, President Biden signs the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, adding to and revising the procedures carried out for the counting of electoral votes and the presidential transition process.
On February 4, 2023, the Democratic National Committee approves a new primary calendar, moving South Carolina to February 3, followed by Nevada and New Hampshire on February 6, Georgia on February 13, and Michigan on February 27. Iowa, which traditionally goes first, would then be held later in the primary season. The DNC gives Georgia and New Hampshire an extended deadline of June to modify their state laws so they can comply with the new dates (New Hampshire state law mandates them to hold the first primary in the country, while Georgia state law requires them to hold both the Democratic and Republican primaries on the same day), but this remains unlikely to happen since both states have Republican-controlled state legislatures. Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley announced her bid for the Republican Presidential nomination against former President Donald Trump on February 14. On February 21, 2023, author and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy announces his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination. From March 1-4, 2023, the 2023 Conservative Political Action Conference is held in National Harbor, Maryland, with candidates Trump, Haley, and Ramaswamy all featured as speakers. The DNC declared their full support for President Biden's re-election, stating they do not plan to host any official debates on March 3, 2023. By March 4, 2023, author Marianne Williamson announced her campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination as the first major challenger to incumbent President Biden. On that day, Trump won the 2023 CPAC straw poll, leading prospective candidate Ron DeSantis by 42 points. Former Governor of Maryland Larry Hogan said that he won't run for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2024 on March 5, 2023. By March 6, 2023, according to sources close to Donald Trump, Axios reports a shortlist of potential contenders for his running mate, including former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, former news anchor Kari Lake, South Dakota governor Kristi Noem, and Arkansas governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Joe Exotic has ran for President from a federal prison by March 16. By March 18, The Palmetto Family Council's Vision '24 Forum is held in Charleston, South Carolina, with Haley and potential candidate Tim Scott in attendance. Former President Donald Trump is indicted by a Manhattan grand jury for his hush money scandal with Stormy Daniels on March 30, 2023.
Former governor of Arkansas, Asa Hutchinson, who also served as chairman of the National Governors Association, informally announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination during an exclusive interview with ABC News' Jonathan Karl. This was on April 2, 2023. On April 4, 2023, former President Donald Trump turned himself in and pled not guilty to 34 felony charges in New York. By April 6, 2023, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. files to challenge Biden in the 2024 Democratic primary. The Democratic Party announced that its convention will be held in Chicago, Illinois by April 11, 2023. U.S. Senator of South Carolina, Tim Scott, announces the formation of an exploratory committee to possibly run for president. This was on April 12, 2023. From April 14-15, the National Rifle Association holds its 2023 Annual Meeting and Exhibit in Indianapolis, with a number of presidential hopefuls in attendance. By April 19, 2023, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., environmental lawyer and son of Robert F. Kennedy, formally announces his presidential campaign in a launch event in Boston. By April 20, Larry Elder began to run for President. April 25, 2023, was when President Joe Biden announced his bid for re-election in 2023. Asa Hutchinson is starting his Presidential campaign in a rally in Bentonville, Arkansas. Jerome Segal ends his campaign by May 6 and starts his run for U.S. Senate in Maryland. Trump had his controversial town hall at CNN on May 10, 2023. Tim Scott started his Presidential campaign officially on May 22, 2023, at a rally at his alma mater at Charleston Southern University. May 24 was when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis started his Presidential campaign in an interview with Elon Musk over at Twitter Spaces. The RNC sets rules for their first presidential debate, requiring candidates to attract 40,000 unique donors with a polling threshold of 1% on June 2. June 4th was when Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Instagram account is reinstated after it was suspended in February 2021 for sharing misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine. By June 5, Vice President Mike Pence made it known that he is running for President. Cornel West is running for President of the People's Party by June 5, 2023, too. June 6th was when Former New Jersey Governor and 2016 candidate Chris Christie announced that he is running for President at town hall in Saint Anslem College. Mike Pence announced his Presidential candidacy at Ankeny, Iowa on his 64th birthday. This was on June 7. North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum announces his presidential campaign with a rally in Fargo, becoming the first born in his state to run for president. Trump is indicted a second time on charges stemming from the Smith special counsel investigation on June 8, 2023.
By Timothy
No comments:
Post a Comment