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2A April 5, 2007 \ational World Black teen who pushed hall monitor freed from juvenile prison BROWNWOOD, Texas (AP) — Shaquanda Cotton, whose yearlong stay in a juve nile prison for pushing a hall monitor made her a symbol of alleged racial bias and the trou bled Texas Youth Commission, was rleased Saturday, a state Jawmaker sad. The lc'»,\'("\l’-fikl was freed from the Ron Jackson Correc tonal Complex and picked up by her mother, said Rep. Harold Dutton, chairman of the House juvenike justce com mittee who lobbied state offi aals for Cottons release. Dutton said Cotton and her Black groups oppose By MATTHEW LITTLE Slu-cial to the NNPA Minncapolis (NNPA) - Rep resentatives of both the Minncapolis NAACP and the Minncapolis Urban lx.\gm‘ lL‘.\lificd bcfi)rc (hc Minnesota House Telecom munication, Regulations and Infrastructure Com mittee last Friday, March 23. They spoke in opposi tion to a bill labeled “The Minnesota Video Competi tion Act.” Rep. Sheldon Johnson (DFL-St. Paul) sponsored the bill, and in testimony it was referred to as the State wide Franchising Act. The hill prnpuscd to establish competitive video services throughout the state by requiring the various prm'ldcrs of service to be authorized under condi tons set by the Minnesota Public Uulities Commis .\i()n. The Minncapolis NAACP was represented by Duane Reed, its president. Reed prc.\cntcd a str()ng Magic Johnson speaks to cruise industry about minority travelers By ADRIAN SAINZ Associated Press Writer FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) ~Magic Johnson was known for his uncanny vision on the basketball court, finding open players and easy scoring chances almost at wll. Now, as a businessman with a stake in the travel industry, Johnson sets his eyes on anoth cr opportunity — to make the leisure industry more accessible to minorities and tap into their spending power. Johnson, at 6 feet 9 inches, was the tallest person in the room Friday as he spoke to a group of cruise industry mem bers and travel agents at the cruise3sixty conference in Fort Lauderdale. “\thn you think abn'ut minorities, yes, we'e traveling, but we could do it even more often if we have more minority buyers and sellers in the indus try,” Johnson said. “We need more minorities selling travel.” The former All-Star point guard, through The Magic Johnson Travel Group, has cre ated a network of home-based travel agents who serve minori ty customers. Johnsons goal is to bring more jobs and money into minority communities by attracting more minority travel ficnts into the leisure industry. e said Hispanics and blacks Family hcadcd had\’ o Paris, hcr East Texas hometown near the Oklahoma border where avil nghts acuvists have held two protests In as many wecks call in¥ for her release. ‘She had a whole cavalry” when picked up, said Dutton, a H()ustnn Democrat. Atempts to reach the Cot ton family by phone werent successful. Cotton was sentenced on a felony count of shoving the teachers aide, who is classified as a public servant, before the morning bell at Paris High School 1n 2005. She had no argument against the pas sage of the legislation. He indicated that the new pro posal contained no stipula tions for broad coverage to the many diverse markets of the state. Cheryl Morgan- Spencer, the Urban League's community development coordinator, dutifully noted to the committee that her remarks rcprc.wntcd those of Executive Director Clarence Hightower and the Urban League. Morgan- Spencer expressed fears that the bill as worded could result in redlining of certain low-income and minority arcas, permitting providers to cherry-pick program ming. She maintained that the legislation contained no guarantec that all areas would be pmvidcd cqual programming. Committee member Rep. Paul Thisen (DFL-Mpls.) challenged her contention, but she was up to the challenge and agreed to provide docu mentation. / L Magic Johnson have a combined spending power of $1.9 trillion but much of that spending is directed outside their commu nities, which need capital to build or improve homes and businesses. “In general, that (travel) mar ket 1s underserved and should w,” said ynne Biggar, sen fi:' vice pru?dcnt anlég;:ncn] manager of American Express Consumer Travel Network USA. “Theres a nlot of un 0 reunicy. ]:firp;dn m)builtqmcocsful businesses by bringing con sumer opportunities to urban markets where minorides live. He has joint-ownership in 108 Smrbuc{cs coffee stores, owns movie theaters and formed a partership with 24 Hour Fit ness. “Everybody thought they could not make money in urban America, and that is AUGUSTA FOCUS prior criminal convictions. Actvists say the fact that the same judge sentenced a white 14-year-old girl to probation for bumning down her own house signaled evidence of racial bias. Her release was approved by Jay Kimbrough, the conserva tor appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to lead the state’s embat tled juvenile justce agency, which* has been wracked by allegations of sexual abuse. Kimbrough has said he will assemble a panel to review records of all youth inmates to make sure their records hadn't Several representatives of the teleccommunications industry also joined the two community advocates 1n nppusitinn to the lcgisla— tion. One of the most force ful and articulate was Pete Rose of WRNB cable music channel. Rose and his wife Kim have been in the industry for 22 years and are the only licensed African Amer ican operatives in the state. Rose argued that his station represented the rapidly increasing numbers of non- White consumers that do not necessarily identify with mainstream video. He suggested that alth()ugh pcnplc ()fcnl()r, ()f late, are being utilized more frequently, they are not always scripted to represent the true multicultural dimensions of the diverse community. He, too, sup ported the contention that the new bill presented an opening for diminished access for minority commu nities. wrong,” Johnson said. “You just have to know how to speak to that customer.” Johnson must realize that the cruise industry is a growth industry. Only 16 percent of Americans have taken a cruise, according to an industry study, and with 33 ships being added in the next four years, the industry needs to spur demand to keep up with the increased capadity of some 80,000 berths by 2011. Ships have grown in size and are offering more diverse on board activities such as rock climbing and surfing, and more unique destinations, from Rio de Janeiro to Shang hai, China. Richard Fain, chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Cruises, said earlier this month that cruise lines must find a broader base of travel cus tomers by targeting spedfic groups such as minorities in marketing efforts. “When 1 look at some of these ships and some of these trips, and the ships keep getting longer and bigger and taller, this is what minorities want - a chance for a trip of a lifetime,” Johnson said. “You just have to take it to them and explain to them how wonderful a time they are going to have.” been extended unfairly. Cotton was among about 4,700 offenders ages 10 to 21 in TYC faalites who are con sidered the most dangerous, incorrigible or chronic. Prasecutors in Cottons case have maintained they tried to keep Cotton out of juvenile prison but say the judge in the case had no other options. “Were happy shes home,” said Allan Hubbard, a .gokcsman for the Lamar unty District - Attorney’s Office. “We hope we never see her in the juvenile justice sys tem again.” Other representatives of the telecommunications industry presenting testi mony against the legisla- r' sk IS YOUR CREDIT —— INNEED OFA | {7 - MAKEOVER? |W~ ' . L ’ Let ANIC Help. We now offer &g Credit Counseling Services. CALL for your appointment TODAY] "= - 706.724.5565 Corited HouingCounsel D R eT R T R R e DR R N TUG By e W N e O ATHVEIQTA QD %"I TINITVVED 1T IL} d I - AUGUSIA STALTE UNIVERDSITY , *‘in&“‘”* VRN R e S s e . s ; ‘ ‘ i AR o n v 4 ' . y Qig . | by Lorraine Hansberry i i@ . ; 8 p.m., April 19-21 a’i’ 2 5 ; 3 o - « m., April 22 = i | - ‘.‘, E ‘ * vz V - L R T e G s ——eneral admission, $10; | \,au ETAR (s T RS 3 \ ¢ o ey L T e e b - s 3 o P s k \"f.—;;z ffiff@'fi'ld ASU ID. g R R T EATERY ; e . “¥ 4 ;_fi A f' ,A | & BB L EER R R 3 a | B At ; % e . : ;fi,re (e 1P ]sR “ s"’ '.J . ' i : '%b s Lo i T 3 . ? ':" e:" ?51# ’ 3 b 3 1 v 7 4;: \.‘o § P \ y .:I;A i¥n s £ 5 B e N ) P ;o 3 fi"‘“ ™ G % j" ‘ PR - N ¢ .88 ot e & § g e e > P 5 e LR IR gy W ; ’ o N W L CIBe RPN £ " B R AR TTer mirvr"‘ ,'""‘ "Y.wo! Punlic Relations and Publictbons A - . o L ~ ~ o . " ™\ 4 » o . J o vy P . _@;{* ~.’J d e . ; f b 4 e . é g _"i 2 M ""(" = ] Photo by BET Shaquanda Cotton (right) pictured with her mother Creola Cotton. video bill tion included Randy Young, Minn. Associa tion for Rural Telecom munications; Greg Moore, NW Suburban Cable Communications See Billy page 8A