100 New Yorkers Become U.S Citizens

A naturalization ceremony was held on Sunday for a hundred New Yorkers from 35 different countries. The Obama administration launched a campaign in September, urging 8.8 million immigrants to do the same. The campaign is working to ease the naturalization process. The process includes allowing immigrants to pay the $680 naturalization fee with a credit card, and helping future citizens find English and civics classes. It has been speculated the admiration’s effort is to acquire more democratic voters.

The ceremony was part of the Hispanic Heritage Month. Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas insists the country and new citizens are benefiting from naturalization. “It reflects a greater level of integration in American society and it also affords people very significant rights, the right to vote chief amongst them, and it also comes with responsibilities, civic responsibilities, that I think make our county stronger,” Mayorkas said.

Mayra Martinez, 28, was among the 100 New Yorkers to gain citizenship. Martinez came to the U.S. from Mexico when she was 2. It was her goal to become a citizen before the presidential election. “If we want to make an impact as a community, we need to really come together, sign up, become citizens,” she said. “So I guess that’s really the main way you can make your voice heard.”

 Read the original story here

Listening Post

The biggest listening post in my family are my mom and grandmother. My mom and her mother, Grandma Lane, are constantly on the phone rambling about local news and gossip. Grandma Lane even has a police scanner in her living room of which she religiously listens. She’s had it for as long as I can remember. Going to Grandma Lane's was akin to watching the news! My sisters and I called them the Corning News Station. They always seemed to know more than anyone should about everyone else!

In my hometown of Corning, Arkansas, I had more social outlets to discuss news. I used to work in a grocery store. I can't even begin to describe the amount of gossip I heard every day. I was a cashier for my first three years, so I was well informed! Then, I worked in the back as a produce worker. The gossip was still adamant!

Corning Loses Reverend Billy Snow Sr.

Reverend Billy Joe Snow Sr., 87, of Corning, Arkansas passed away Wednesday, October 14, 2015. Snow was an ordained minister for 59 years with the United Pentecostal Church. Even after retirement, Snow ministered at the Highway Tabernacle U.P.C in Moark, Arkansas. He also drove a bus and served as a Funeral Assistant for Corning’s Ermert Funeral Home. Snow was a well-loved and respected citizen of the community.

Reverend Snow was survived by his wife of 70 years, Dollie Mae (Cullins). He was also survived by his two sons Reverend Kenneth Snow of Corning, AR and Reverend Edward Snow of Cabbot, AR, and one daughter Ramona Dugas of Poplar Bluff, MO. He was preceded in death by parents Marvin and Gladys Vennie (Leonard) Snow, and also one son Reverend Billy Wayne Snow, Jr. and one grandson Jason Gene Snow.

Visitation was held Friday, October 16, 2015 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM. Funeral services were conducted on Saturday, October 17, 2015 at 2:00 PM in Ermert Funeral Home Chapel. Reverends Bryan Parkey and bill Meadors officiated. Burial service immediately followed in Corning Cemetery.

Review the public record here

Review the Ermert Funeral Home obituary here

Is the FBI Circumventing the FOIA?

The Better Government Association is a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that works to expose corruption inside the government. The association recently filed a request for records from the FBI requesting records concerning the agency’s website section titled “Fun and Games.” The BGA was concerned about how much it is costing taxpayers as well as discerning the benefits.

The FBI claimed to have done a search of its “Central Records System,” but came up empty handed. The agency then asked for, “additional information pertaining to the subject that you believe was of investigative interest to the Bureau.”

CEO and President of the BGA, Andy Shaw, believes this isn’t unusual for the FBI. He stated that the FBI performs, “at best, a cursory search for records and then spitting out a nonsensical response . . . The agency should know better – and should be abiding by the law. It certainly demands that from the rest of us.”

The BGA is suing the FBI for allegedly violating the Freedom of Information Act. The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday, October 13, 2015 in the U.S. District Court of Chicago, the city in which the BGA is based.

The Lawsuit claims the, "FBI’s request for more information appears to demonstrate that no human being actually read or intelligently considered the subject matter of the request and that the search performed was part of an automated process divorced from the reality of the request.  Clearly the FBI website and its Fun & Games character ‘Bobby Bureau’ are not subjects of an FBI investigation, and clearly records responsive to the request would not be found."

Again, the BGA requested for the records asking that the FBI search all files. The agency has yet to respond. The FOIA requires the FBI to turn over its public records, but it appears the agency is circumventing requests by any means possible. 

Read the original story on the BGA website here where you can find photographed documentation of the BGA's lawsuit.

The Light for the Fight Cermeony (SAU Centennial Homecoming)

Manolia’s Southern Arkansas University recently kicked off the Centennial Homecoming. Homecoming began on Monday, October 5 with a pep rally commencing an eventful week. The festivities included football, mulegating, a concert, the showing of a drive-in film, and more.

On Monday, The SAU Rankin College of Business hosted the Third Annual Light for the Fight ceremony. It was located at the campus’ Business Building fountain, free and open to the public. The purple and white luminaries were sold for $5. Each luminary was representative of a loved one affected by cancer. Purple honored friends and family while white honored survivors and those currently battling cancer.

The luminaries are still on display and will remain so through October. All proceeds from the event went to the family of Anne Sands, a coach and assistant director of financial aid at SAU. Her daughter, Kaylynn Sands, 2, is in the treatment process for ganglioneuroblastoma. 

SAU 2015 Homecoming Schedule

Information regarding Light for the Fight

FORMER OLE MISS STUDENT SENTENCED TO 6 MONTHS IN PRISON

Harris

Graeme Phillip Harris, a former student at the University of Mississippi, was sentenced to six months in prison. While intoxicated, Harris and two former fraternity brothers hung a rope and a Georgia state Confederate flag on the campus statue of James Meredith. Meredith was the first African-American student to attend the university.

Harris pleaded guilty to one count of using a threat of force to intimidate African-American Students. He did not plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate civil rights although he was indicted on both charges. Harris’ defense attorney, David G. Hill, argued he should not be spared from prison because of his intoxicated state.

James Meredith Statue

“When he sobered up after the incident, Harris sent his younger sister a text message that said, “I have done something that will mess up the rest of my life,” Hill also stated in Harris’ defense.

The fraternity brothers from the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity were not charged. Hill claims “racism was blatantly and actively practiced,” within the fraternity along with the underage drinking that was taking place. Harris, 21, joined the Sigma Phi Epsilon as a freshman, but the fraternity was closed after the crime took place.

Harris was arrested on March 27, 2015. He is set to begin serving his sentence on January 4, 2016.

Read the original article by Southern Poverty Law Center here