6/12, full issue: On NFL and kneeling; new STEM school; GA-7 runoff

EIGHTH ANNUAL BLUESBERRY FESTIVAL  at Betty Mauldin Park by the City Hall in Norcross, Saturday, June 16, from 3-10 p.m. Visit with downtown merchants for blueberry-theme desserts, drinks and reduced prices on other items. Some of the coolest bands will play from the local blues scene. The festival is free to attend.

TODAY’S FOCUS: NFL Players Kneel in Respect to Problem Often Swept Under Rug

EEB PERSPECTIVE: Visiting the New Paul Duke STEM School; Grad Rates at Georgia State

ANOTHER VIEW: Kathleen Allen’s Thoughts on Upcoming Democratic Run-Off

SPOTLIGHT: Walton EMC

FEEDBACK: Most Bothered by Moral Cowards Incapable of Taking Responsibility

McLEMORE’S WORLD: Witness

UPCOMING: Duluth Plans Community Clean-up and Free Dumping on June 16

RECOMMENDED: Movie Review: Chopin: Desire for Love

GEORGIA TIDBIT: John Abbot Publishes Work with Meticulous Illustrations of Species

MYSTERY PHOTO: Water Rolling Over a Dam Is One Clue in Mystery Photo

CALENDAR

NFL players kneel in respect to problem often swept under rug

“One act of obedience is worth a hundred sermons.” –Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

By Jack Bernard, contributing columnist

PEACHTREE CITY, Ga.  |  National Football League players kneel to give visibility to a problem that is often swept under the rug, unnecessary shootings of African-Americans by law enforcement officers.

Our President has said that protestors should leave the country if they don’t stand for the flag, ignoring the underlying issue and undercutting our democratic values.

Regarding the underlying issue, black (and a few white) ministers have been preaching about overt police violence against black men for many decades. Nothing has come of their good intentions.

As our divisive president has taught us, heavily publicizing an issue brings it into view for the majority of Americans. In his case, Trump often takes unsupported fantasies and spins a wild tale, a false narrative spider’s web for his unwitting supporters to get caught in. But, these unjustified shootings of black men by police are very real, as the many videos over the last few years have shown us.

I am from a law enforcement family with relatives who have been with the FBI, New York Police Department and corrections departments. I fully support the appropriate use of force against criminals, regardless of race. And, I believe these officers should be treated with respect.

But, respect goes both ways. We cannot simply assume a police officer is in the right if all the evidence shows him to be wrong.

Regarding the second point, President Trump is purposefully stating that anyone who doesn’t agree with him is unpatriotic and isn’t a real American. Trump’s demagogic pronouncements are undemocratic; taking a knee for whatever purpose is not. Tom Tebow took a knee to praise God, as is his right. It is also the right of athletes to take a knee to protest racist murders.

Trump has used the kneeling issue to further divide the nation, keep the focus off his campaign’s obvious collusion with the Russians, and throw red meat to the blind base. The base has responded by boycotting the National Football League, hurting its bottom line.

The wealthy NFL owners, who only care about their pocket books, have caved into the pressure and gone along with Trump’s agenda. They have silenced their players, most of whom are black. Apparently, they are very comfortable with corporate censorship of American rights to free speech.

I have written against the censorship taking place on our campuses regarding the Palestinian-Israeli problem, as have many conservative commentators. Conservatives, you should also be speaking out against censorship by the National Football League.

• Have a comment? Send to:  elliott@brack.net

Visiting the new Paul Duke STEM School; Grad rates at Georgia State

By Elliott Brack
Editor and publisher, GwinnettForum

JUNE 12, 2018  |  It was an early-morning open house recently at the new Paul Duke STEM High School in Norcross. I was disappointed in the lack of a crowd to tour the new facility. The school had mailed invitations for the public to come look at the just-finished school, though workmen were going through the final check-list while we were there.

The school itself is beautiful, built at 5850 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard in Norcross. It is expected to relieve crowded conditions at Norcross High, while offering an innovative program in science, technology, engineering and math.

Denise Millholland, who was previously at Central Gwinnett, assistant to Principal Dr. Jonathan Weatherington, showed me around.

You immediately get an idea that this school is different, since near the entrance, and adjacent to the central office, is an Entrepreneurship Center. That central space will be used by business partners and teachers for classes, a creative space to allow students to work alongside community members to bring their business skills to share with the students, many on internships. It will also be where students will work on capstone projects, or even start a company.

To view the STEM school layout, click the image.

We walked to the then-silent student Commons, a big central area where students will meet and have lunch. Next to it is the auditorium, where about half the next year’s 900 student body can assemble at one time.  Only freshmen, sophomores and juniors will be on campus the first year, with four full classes next year.

Though the STEM students won’t compete with other schools in athletics, there’s a fairly good size gymnasium, as they will have intramural sports. On the main floor are dance, orchestra and band rooms, other outlets for creative expression. Another large space on the first floor will be an engineering-robotics lab.  Students will be able to fabricate projects here, hence the name “Fab Lab.” Among the machines here will be 3D printers and CNC plasma cutters.

Most of the regular classrooms will be on the second and third floors. Throughout the school will be “C Spaces,” that is, Collaboration Spaces, aimed at allowing room for students (and teachers) to “spark creativity” and which also allows the building to be more open and inviting.

All in all, the new Paul Duke STEM School is just that, “open and inviting” and should be a hit when the students get there on August 6.  The school year ends on May 22, 2019. Note that in 2018 all Gwinnett County Public School students will have a “fall break” with no classes on October 4,5 and 8. Put that on your calendar to take advantage this October.

SINCE WRITING ABOUT SCHOOLS  today, we were surprised to learn that Georgia State University, now the state’s largest university with 55,000 students, is the nation’s leader in the last five years in awarding more bachelor’s degrees to African American students than any other non-profit college in the United States.

Granted that while that is significant, realize this, too, about GSU: It raised its overall graduation rate from 32 percent in 2003, to 54 percent in 2017. It’s done that by monitoring 40,000 student undergrads by using data analysis to predict potential academic problems, then working closely with these students at the first sign of trouble. This method of monitoring students has attracted attention from as far away as the Netherlands and South Africa.  It sounds like a model that needs to be extended through the University System of Georgia!  Wow, Big Attaboy, Georgia State!

• Have a comment? Send to:  elliott@brack.net

Kathleen Allen’s thoughts on upcoming Democratic runoff

(Editor’s Note: We asked Kathleen Allen of Norcross, who was a Democratic candidate in the Seventh District Congressional race in the recent primary, what were her thoughts on her campaign. Two of the other candidates, David Kim and Carolyn Bordeaux, face each other in the July 22 runoff election.—eeb)

Here are Ms. Allen’s thoughts:

I was delighted at how well Melissa Davis did!  Her votes were proof that candidate effort and voter outreach matter, and it’s not all about money and mailers.  Our district needs more candidates like her, Steve Reilly, and Ethan Pfam, folks who are truly active partners in our Gwinnett/Forsyth communities.

Allen

As for the runoff, David Kim is not a Democrat, in that he doesn’t practice or truly support our representative democracy, nor a Democrat, committed to Democratic values and platforms.  David Kim is simply an oligarch.  As someone who has voted in every election since I turned 18, who believes in the Democratic platform, and who has lived and practiced my Democratic values in this district where I’ve lived for the last 12 years, I’ll never vote for or endorse him.

I’ll vote for Carolyn, but she’s too far from me on the issues nearest my heart and life’s work for me to endorse her.  An endorsement carries a different weight and message than a vote, so here are the two biggest policy reasons I can’t endorse Carolyn.

She doesn’t support single-payer healthcare, and she’s wrong on this, economically and in terms of health outcomes.  A public option will not include sufficient funding to increase provider reimbursement rates, which will lead to more providers refusing to see the influx of new patients, which will delay needed care.  This will HURT people, not just their pocketbooks, but their health and lives.

Also, it will feed into Republican complaints about Medicare AND healthcare reform.  We need Democrats in Congress to stop messing around the edges of our healthcare system in appeasement to Republicans and join the rest of the world in moving beyond profit-centric healthcare.  We have very little time to get this right before the demographic tsunami of Baby Boomers and their increased health needs in the next few decades crush our economy and cause tens of thousands of early deaths.

Also, Carolyn doesn’t support HR-15, to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 over several years.  The tax credits she proposes instead just cost middle-class taxpayers like you and me more money, and ask nothing of corporations making record profits.  The $15 wage isn’t even a living wage in most places, and a living wage is what I’m trying to promote through the nonprofit I started.

So, I simply can’t endorse her candidacy and be true to MY values and the platform on which I ran as a candidate.  Doing so would show no respect to those who voted for me because of my values and my platform.  I’ll vote for her, and hope that if she’s elected, she’ll reconsider those policy positions and be braver in pushing for what’s really needed to help Americans thrive.

• Have a comment? Send to:  elliott@brack.net

Walton EMC   

The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today’s sponsor is Walton EMC, which provides electric service to 70,000 Gwinnett homes and businesses in the Lilburn, Snellville, Grayson, Loganville and Dacula areas. Because its customers own the company, service — not profit — is Walton EMC’s primary focus.

• More information: http://www.waltonemc.com

Most bothered by moral cowards incapable of taking responsibility

Editor, the Forum:

Yes, since Donald Trump continues to supply us with evidence that he is severely narcissistically disordered, we somehow have to stop paying attention to every little statement, every little tweet. I don’t want to see another “ego-stroking” rally on television. In addition to calming the anxiety of the damaged child who must be at the center of attention to feel whole, it distracts us from paying attention to what else is going on.

The magician’s trick—watch my right hand, and pay no attention to what my left hand is doing, even if—especially if—I am wielding a sledgehammer and destroying the foundations of the experiment that is America.

Instead, we should be examining our own conclusions about what democracy, representative or otherwise, really means. Else, it won’t be around much longer. As a friend said, I suspected that America might eventually destroy itself, but I didn’t expect it to be in my lifetime.

I think I’m most disappointed in those who continue to cheer Trump on and yet self-describe as Christian. In other words, it isn’t Trump who bothers me as much as the moral cowards who inhabit the Congress today and the host of people I am have been flabbergasted to find after years of assumptions of goodness are either oblivious, ignorant, or incapable of taking responsibility for their own lives—instead blaming it on someone else or claiming authority over the content of other’s religious beliefs. I rather think that’s a clear violation of the first of the 10 commandments—the idolatry of one’s own thoughts.

— Vally Sharp, Asheville N.C.

GwinnettForum challenges her thoughts about events

Editor, the Forum:

About your recent column, concluding “No man is above the law”: I could not agree with you more. It could have been written by me! I always look forward to the GwinnettForum. Thanks for challenging my thoughts about events and ideas.”

— G.G. Getz, Duluth

These Cincinnati people love their city, ice cream and chili

Editor, the Forum:

Thanks for the wonderful article on Cincinnati, Ohio, the Queen City, and my hometown.  My first job at age 16 was at Graeters ice cream parlors.  Their chocolates and pastries are as wonderful as their ice cream.  I am not a Ben and Jerry’s fan or Brusters. Graeters always for me!  You can purchase Graeters at Kroger, another Cincinnati company.

I keep Skyline Chili stocked in my pantry and it is our first stop when we arrive.  Hope you will return to the Queen City, there’s a lot of see and do.

— Ann G. Sechrist, Lawrenceville

Send us your thoughts:  We encourage you to send us your letters and thoughts on issues raised in GwinnettForum.  Please limit comments to 300 words.  We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length.  Send feedback and letters to: elliott@brack.net

Witness

• For more of Bill McLemore’s cartoons, see his page on Facebook.
• Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net

Duluth plans Community Clean-up and free dumping on June 16

For one day only, the City of Duluth will open its doors and extend hours on June 16 to the dumpsters at the Duluth Public Works Department to any trash a resident wants to get rid of for the second annual Community Clean-Up Day.

Community Clean-Up Day is part of a wider effort brought to the forefront by the Duluth Neighborhood Outreach Work program. It was created to improve the quality of life in city neighborhoods through collaboration of city staff and community members in identifying neighborhood concerns and applying resources to respond.

Residents can dump trash at Duluth’s Public Works Department on June 16 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Residents can dump just about anything such as: four vehicle tires, left over paint from your home improvement project, debris from your home renovation project, cardboard, lawnmowers, appliances, grills, furniture,  clothing,  electronics, vehicle parts and fluids (motor oil, batteries, antifreeze), garden chemicals (pesticides, herbicides, fertilizer, and insecticides), household chemicals (toilet bowl cleaner, shower/tile cleaner, carpet cleaner, rust remover) tree limbs, grass clippings, leaves, etc. Normally, many of these items would not get picked up on trash day.

This event is free and is only for residents who live in Duluth City limits.  Those who want to participate are asked to bring a utility bill or trash card to identify them as Duluth residents to be able to dump. For more information, visit www.duluthga.net/community.

Two classes for notary public training to be held June 20

Gwinnett Clerk of Superior Courts office is offering two Notary Public training classes for the public on June 20.

Training will be held at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center auditorium. The classes will be held from 10 to  11:30 a.m. and from 1 to 2:30 p.m..

The workshops, held in conjunction with the Georgia Superior Court Clerk’s Cooperative Authority, are free, but participants should register at www.gwinnettcourts.com. The Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center is located at 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville.

Hudgens Art Center signature summer camp experience underway

Hudgens Art Center’s signature summer camp experience, Passport Adventures in Art, has just kicked off! During each week of summer camp, campers will rotate through multiple sessions each day with fine art instruction in Drawing, Painting, Clay and Mixed Media.

As an added bonus, the Hudgens will offer after camp classes Monday through Thursday from 3 to 5 p.m. In June, students will work on nature inspired projects using drawing, painting, printing, weaving, fiber arts and much more! In July, students will work on hand-built clay projects with a focus on functional items. (Non-campers ages 5 to 12 are also welcome into these classes.)

Go to the Hudgens web site to learn more about summer camp and after camp classes. Additionally, registration is currently open for the following classes and workshops.

• Calligraphy: Irresistible Italics– 6 weeks (Starts 6/12)
• Handbuilding for Kids & Parents– 5 weeks (Starts 6/20;)
• Cold-Process Soap Making(Sunday 6/24);
• All Natural Hand Lotions & Toiletries(Sunday 7/29); and
• Fire and Water Raku Workshop(Sunday 6/24).

Juneteenth celebration is June 23 at Yellow River Post Office Park

Gwinnett Community Outreach and the United Ebony Society of Gwinnett County Inc. are sponsoring a Juneteenth celebration on June 23 as part of Gwinnett County’s Bicentennial. The celebration will take place at the historic Yellow River Post Office Park which has slave cabins dating to the Civil War. The celebration runs from 1 to 5 p.m. The Park, located at 3519 Five Forks Trickum Road, Lilburn.

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating announcement of the abolition of slavery in Texas and the emancipation of slaves throughout the United States. Today, it is a time to celebrate African-American freedom and achievement while encouraging continuous self-development and respect for all cultures. The free event will feature performances, historical presentations, artwork and quilt displays, vendors, food trucks, and games.

Movie review: Chopin: Desire for Love

Reviewed by Karen Harris, Stone Mountain  |  This movie, produced by Polish filmmaker Jerzy Antczak in 2003, chronicles the tempestuous affair of Fryderyk Chopin, a rising virtuoso pianist, and Aurore Dupin, that is, George Sand, the famous feminist writer.  Though total opposites, their initial meeting sparked a relationship fraught with joy, burgeoning creativity for Chopin, and finally, the break brought about by conflicts with Aurore’s children, Maurice and Solange, and Chopin’s illness. The movie features 77 compositions written by Chopin played throughout the picture by Yo Yo Ma, Emmanuel Zak and other artists.  In addition to the superb acting by Polish actors Piotr Adamczak as Chopin, and Danuta Stenka as Aurore Dupin, the cinematography is breathtaking as is the music which provides a feast for music lovers and those who enjoy period romances

• An invitation: what books, restaurants, movies or web sites have you enjoyed recently? Send us your recent selection, along with a short paragraph (100 words) as to why you liked this, plus what you plan to visit or read next.  Send to:  elliott@brack.net

Abbot publishes work with meticulous illustration of species

(Continued from previous edition)

In 1797 The Natural History of the Rarer Lepidopterous Insects of Georgia… Collected from the Observations of Mr. John Abbot was published in two volumes, edited by James Edward Smith, the founder and president of the Linnean Society of London. The first major work on North American insects, the volumes contain 104 etchings of watercolors of species that naturalist and artist John Abbot collected in the vicinity of his home between 1776 and 1792.

A grebe, by John Abbot

Abbot’s work was also included in the Histoire generale et iconographie des lepidopteres et des chenilles de l’Amerique Septentrionale (1829-37), by J. A. Boisduval and J. LeConte, and in American Ornithology (1808-14), by Alexander Wilson. S. H. Scudder included a chapter about Abbot in his three-volume work The Butterflies of the Eastern United States and Canada (1889).

Abbot’s meticulous illustrations and careful writing chronicle the habitats, life cycles, behaviors, and migratory patterns of numerous species. He also advances theories concerning the relationship between predator and prey. His work enabled others to classify closely related species, several of which were named according to Linnean classification from Abbot’s specimens and drawings. Naturalist and evolutionary theorist Charles Darwin studied Abbot’s work prior to his own exploration of the New World.

Abbot lived and worked in Chatham County between 1806 and 1818. When the War of 1812 (1812-15) disrupted overseas commerce, Abbot sent his work to American collectors. After trade resumed, he once again sent work to Europe; in 1818 he moved to Bulloch County.

Abbot continued to send drawings and specimens abroad until the mid to late 1830s, by which time he was widowed, in failing health, and living in reduced circumstances. He moved to the home of his friend William E. McElveen, whose plantation was located in Bulloch County. The final legal record of the artist is a document that concerns his will, dated October 24, 1839, which is housed at the Bulloch County Courthouse in Statesboro.

Abbot was recorded in the census of 1840, and anecdotal information indicates that he died shortly thereafter. He is buried in the McElveen family cemetery.

1957 the Georgia Historical Society placed a marker in the McElveen cemetery as a monument to Abbot and his work. Two species of spiders and one moth are named in his honor. The Southern Lepidopterists’ Society, established in 1978, bestows the John Abbot Award to an individual who has made significant contributions in the field.

All in all, Abbot produced more than 4,000 original watercolors depicting the insects, plants, and animals of Georgia, although fewer than 200 were published under his name during his lifetime. The Natural History Museum in London owns several thousand of Abbot’s watercolors, which were originally owned by John Francillon, Abbot’s agent.

In the United States, Abbot’s watercolors can be found in the permanent collections of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, Penn.; the Atlanta Historical Society in Atlanta; the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library at the University of Georgia in Athens; the Houghton Library of Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass.; the Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library of Emory University in Atlanta; and the Morris Museum of Art in Augusta. The Georgia Museum of Art in Athens holds 35 etchings from The Natural History of the Rarer Lepidopterous Insects of Georgia in its permanent collection.

• To view the Georgia Encyclopedia online, go to http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org

Water rolling over a dam is one clue in Mystery Photo

About all we’ll say about this photo is nearly obvious: it’s not South Georgia. But where is it. Could be many different places. Give us  your idea and sent it to elliott@brack.net, and include your hometown.

While not easy, the last Mystery Photo proved quite easy for several readers. The photo came from John Titus of Peachtree Corners.   Lois Solomon of Dacula wrote: “It’s the Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland.  This is along the sea coast of the Antrim plateau.”  Others recognizing included Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill; Lou Camerio, Lilburn; and Jim Savadelis, Duluth, who wrote: “This formation was the result of ancient volcanic fissure eruptions and consists of 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, according to Wikipedia.”

George Graf if Palmyra, Va. added: “The Giant’s Causeway was voted as the fourth greatest natural wonder in the United Kingdom. UNESCO declared it as a World Heritage Site in 1986.  Based on geology, the Giant’s Causeway was formed over 50 million years ago by intense volcanic action. The lava cooled at a rapid speed breaking into distinctive shapes.

• The number of columns per rock vary. Some have four sides while others go up to eight sides.  Some actually go as high 39 feet into the air.  During the rock weathering, circular structures start to appear. Most residents call them the Giant’s Eyes.
• If you are a person that loves to watch sea birds, this is a great place to visit. It has some excellent spots where you can sit and wait for the sea birds to land. In addition, some rare plants that thrive in this region can’t be found anywhere else on the planet.”

Allan Peel, San Antonio, Tex. feels that “Today’s Mystery Photo could have been titled ‘Been There, Done That!’

Well, actually I haven’t been there myself, but the GwinnettForum has when it published, on January 5, 2018, the Mystery Photo of the Giant’s Causeway near the town of Bushmills on the coast of Northern Ireland. The area’s popularity as a tourist destination has grown ever since it has been adopted as one of the sites where the HBO TV series  ‘Game of Thrones’ is filmed.”

Ink, Paint and Steel is a new art exhibit open through July 13 at The Rectory in Norcross. Explore the works of Katherine Linn and Simone Wilson in this new exhibit . Opening night, June 8, is free and open to the public and will include a reception with music, refreshments and the opportunity to meet these extraordinary artists.

The Peachtree Corners Festival will be on June 9-10 and seeks volunteers to help make the magic happen. Volunteer opportunities, as short as two hours, are available for assisting exhibitors with setting up booths, as well as support during the festival for hydration and rest breaks. The car show will also need people to direct cars and help drivers, while the dining area will need to be kept clean for guests, and the hospitality suite will need to be manned. Visit PeachtreeCornersFestival.org and click Volunteers to get started. Every volunteer receives the exclusive 2018 Peachtree Corners Festival t-shirt. Teens and groups are welcome.

Podcast workshop:  Have you ever wanted to have your own podcast?  If so, come Wednesday June 13 at 6 p.m. for a panel discussion on podcasting. You’ll learn the how and why as well as what to think about as you launch your own podcast. The workshop will be at Prototype Prime, 147 Technology Parkway in Peachtree Corners. RSVP at https://prototypeprime.wufoo.com/forms/podcasting-101-at-prototype-prime/.

Book Signing and Talk by local author Clyde Strickland will be held Thursday, June 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the Suwanee Branch of the Gwinnett County Public Library, 361 Main Street in Suwanee. Strickland, born a sharecropper’s son, has overcome poverty and minimal schooling to become a self-educated CEO.  Mr. Strickland’s newest book, What Can I Do?, is a testimony to achieving the American Dream by trusting in God and doing what’s right, even if it’s hard. The event is free and open to the public.  Books will be available for purchase (cash or check only) and signing. For more information, visit www.gwinnettpl.org or call 770-978-5154.

GwinnettForum is provided to you at no charge every Tuesday and Friday.

Meet our team

• Editor and publisher:  Elliott Brack, 770-840-1003
• Managing editor: Betsy Brack
• Roving photographer: Frank Sharp
• Contributing cartoonist: Bill McLemore
• Contributing columnist: Jack Bernard
• Contributing columnist: Debra Houston
• Contributing columnist: George Wilson

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