Treasury Secretary Mnuchin dismisses question about putting Harriet Tubman on $20 bill

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday declined to say whether the Trump administration would continue with a plan to depict Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill.

Asked during a CNBC television interview about removing President Andrew Jackson from the currency in place of Tubman, an abolitionist and former slave, Mnuchin said: “It’s not something that I’m focused on at the moment.”

The most important reason to make currency changes is to stop counterfeiting, he said.

“People have been on the bills for a long period of time,” he said. “This is something we’ll consider. Right now, we have a lot more important issues to focus on.”

In April 2016, then-Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said he asked the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to accelerate work on the new $20 bill with Tubman on the front. He said he expected the final concept design for the new $20 bill and other bills to be unveiled in 2020 in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote.

[SOURCE: POLITICO]

David A. Clarke Jr. resigns as Milwaukee County sheriff

In a surprise move Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. resigned today. Although he gave no reason he may have resigned due to the investigation of his jail, or the highly likely chance that he would not win re-election, or that he found out that impersonating Uncle Ruckus for conservative media very well. Read more about his resignation below. George L. Cook III African American Reports.

Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. — the controversial, Stetson-wearing official who rose to national prominence with his no-holds-barred conservative rhetoric — resigned his office Thursday.

Clarke, who is in his fourth term, submitted a resignation letter to Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson on Thursday afternoon. The sheriff was attending the convention of the National Fraternal Order of Police in Nashville and could not be reached for comment.

"Pursuant to Wisconsin Statute 17.01, this communication is submitted as the notice of my resignation as Sheriff of Milwaukee County commencing Aug. 31, 2017, at 11:59 p.m.," stated Clarke's resignation letter.

He has not said what his plans are.

Read more: David A. Clarke Jr. resigns as Milwaukee County sheriff

Aaron Rodgers says Colin Kaepernick 'should be on a roster right now'

Many marquee African American player such as Michael Bennett, Richard Sherman, Brandon Marshall, and Marshawn Lynch have come out in support of Colin Kaepernick, and openly question why the QB does not have an NFL job yet. Many are waiting for a marquee white player to come out in support Kaepernick and it looks like Green Bay Packers QB, Aaron Rodgers is that player. George L. Cook III African American Reports.

You won't find Aaron Rodgers kneeling during the national anthem this season, but in a recent interview with ESPN's Mina Kimes, the Green Bay Packers offensive captain revealed he has no issue with players who do choose to protest.

That includes fellow quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who's still waiting for a job offer less than two weeks before the start of the 2017 season. Kaepernick became a national figure last season, when he popularized the practice of not standing during the national anthem in protest of racial injustice in America.

Rodgers said it would be "ignorant" to believe that the lack of interest has nothing to do with Kaepernick's history of activism.

"I think he should be on a roster right now," Rodgers said. "I think because of his protests, he's not."

While Rodgers will continue to stand for "The Star Spangled Banner," he plans on supporting his teammates who choose to follow Kaepernick's example. He mentioned that conversations with two of his teammates, wide receiver Randall Cobb and tight end Martellus Bennett, have helped him to better understand the motives behind the protests; Bennett is the brother of the Seahawks' Michael Bennett, one of the NFL's most prominent protestors.

"I'm gonna stand because that's the way I feel about the flag – but I'm also 100 percent supportive of my teammates or any fellow players who are choosing not to," he said. "They have a battle for racial equality. That's what they're trying to get a conversation started around."

Aaron Rodgers says Colin Kaepernick 'should be on a roster right now'

Aaron Rodgers speaks in support of Colin Kaepernick

Statue of Martin Luther King Jr. unveiled in Atlanta

The daughter of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. stood beside her father's newly unveiled statue Monday, just a few blocks from where he grew up, handing out hugs and telling each well-wisher: "It's about time."

The statue paying tribute to King made its public debut Monday on the Georgia Capitol grounds in front of around 800 people including Gov. Nathan Deal, many other state political leaders and several members of the King family. The sculpture's installation comes more than three years after Georgia lawmakers endorsed the project.

"Forty-nine years ago when my father was assassinated, he was the most hated man in America. Today, he is one of the most loved men in the world," the Rev. Bernice King said of her father, who was slain in 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee.

A replica of the nation's Liberty Bell tolled three times before the 8-foot (2.4-meter) bronze statue was unveiled on the 54th anniversary of King's "I have a dream" speech at the 1963 March on Washington. The sculpture depicts King in mid-stride, as his left arm holds an overcoat while grasping a batch of papers.

"Today, we as the sons and daughters of former slaves and former slave owners are here to witness the unveiling of that statue," Bernice King said. "It is a glorious and grand day in the state of Georgia and in the United States of America and all over the world."

Read more: Statue of Martin Luther King Jr. unveiled in his hometown.

'Black Minds Matter' under fire from conservative group

A coalition of conservatives and some civil rights activists is calling on San Diego State University to withdrawal its support of a doctoral class that helps to educate future teachers about how to make black male students more successful, and that is inspired by Black Lives Matter.

“Now we want to give them taxpayer dollars to train educators on how to indoctrinate our children?” organizer Craig DeLuz said in a press release Tuesday. “That’s insane.”

SDSU professor of education J. Luke Wood developed the course, Black Minds Matter, and said its purpose is not indoctrination, but rather to educate future teachers about how to make black male students more successful in school.

“Our goal is to change the paradigm as to how educators view their role,” he said, adding that doctoral students will learn about challenges black male students face and strategies that can help them succeed.

The course will be taught to SDSU students studying to become education professors, or teachers of teachers. Wood said interest in the course has been so high that he’s also creating a free public course that will allow people to watch the first hour of each class online.

DeLuz, a trustee in the Robla School District in Sacramento, said he heard about the course through a Facebook post and plans to send a letter to SDSU demanding its cancellation before its scheduled Oct. 23 start. He’s started a Facebook page, Education Not Indoctrination, and enlisted leaders of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and the Frederick Douglass Foundation of California in his effort.

Read more: 'Black Minds Matter' under fire from conservative group