Recent editorials from Louisiana newspapers:
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July 22
The Advocate on the death of U.S. Congressman John Lewis:
Our nation lost a giant of a man, an icon to many and an elected representative who stayed in touch with the people he represented.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis, of Georgia, was bold and ambitious even as a high school student in Troy, Alabama. He wrote to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., because he wanted to get involved in the civil rights movement after seeing what was going on in Montgomery with the bus boycott and the stand taken by Rosa Parks. He didn’t want to sit idly by. To his surprise, he got a letter from King, who sent him a round-trip Greyhound bus ticket so they could meet in Montgomery, Alabama.
In a National Public Radio interview earlier this year, Lewis recalled what happened. “Dr. King said, ‘Are you the boy from Troy?’ And I said, ‘Dr. King, I am John Robert Lewis.’ I gave my whole name. But he still called me the ‘boy from Troy.’ ”
That “boy from Troy” went on to be on national and world stages with King and others.
He was the youngest of the “Big Six” March on Washington organizers, an august group that included King, James Farmer of the Congress of Racial Equality, trade unionist A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins of the NAACP and Whitney Young of the National Urban League. Too often we forget the entire name of that event, the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
Lewis had an impact: Bob Tucker, a New Orleans civil rights activist who was arrested in Atlanta in the 1960s when he and other Clark College students staged a lunch counter sit-in, continued his activist ways in New Orleans before moving into city leadership and political circles. He looked at Lewis as “a very special brother who enjoyed planet-wide respect and admiration.”
U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond, of New Orleans, considered Lewis a mentor, in the U.S. Congress and the Congressional Black Caucus. In a statement, he called Lewis a “fearless fighter” who had a “dogged determination that made way for long lasting, meaningful change in this country.”
Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins called Lewis “a real hero” and “a man of great character who did what was right and stood for justice even if it wasn’t a popular stance at the time.”
Lewis was one of our nation’s most forceful speakers and among those who could eloquently articulate the needs of the less fortunate, who need more attention.
We honor Lewis for his courage and putting into action the idea of speaking truth to power, for leading by example and showing how to move protest to seats of power and for showing us that moving forward and moving up doesn’t mean we have to leave behind those who helped us along the way.
Rest in power, sir. You’ve earned your rest.
Online: https://www.theadvocate.com/
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July 21
The American Press on establishing sleep schedules for children going back to school:
There aren’t many lazy days of summer vacation left, but there’s still time to help get your child on a back-to-school sleep schedule and practice some healthy sleep habits if you start now.
Whether you will be taking the online or on-campus educational route when the school year begins again, the best way to prepare your children to get back into the routine is to begin adjusting to a new sleep schedule 10 days to two weeks before school starts. That way, when the first day of school arrives, your children can wake up rejuvenated and ready to put their mind to the test.
Here are some tips from the National Sleep Foundation to help your child ease into his or her school-time sleep schedule and maintain healthy sleep habits throughout the year:
• About two weeks before school starts, work with your child to return to a school-appropriate sleep schedule. Every night, set an incrementally earlier bedtime, and every morning, an incrementally earlier wake-up time. Make sure when school starts, they’ll wake up with the amount of sleep they need for their age-group.
• Once your child’s sleep schedule is established, stick with it; don’t use the weekend to “catch up on sleep.”
• Before bedtime, start a “quiet time” to allow your child to unwind. The routine should include relaxing activities, such as a bath and a bed-time story (for young children) or a reading time (for older children).
• Limit television, video games and other electronic distractions before bedtime.
• Avoid big meals close to bedtime; a heavy meal may prevent your child from falling asleep.
• Caffeinated drinks should be limited after noon, and especially at night. A good rule of thumb is to avoid any caffeine six hours before bedtime, as the caffeine can interrupt your child’s natural sleep patterns, making it difficult to fall asleep.
• Maintain a peaceful bedroom environment by maintaining a dark room, comfortable bed and a room temperature that is neither too hot nor too cold.
• Set a good example for your child. Establish your own regular sleep cycle and maintain a home that promotes healthy sleep.
The sooner your child readjusts to a school-time sleep-schedule, the better he or she will feel during those early morning classes. Feeling fully rested and excited for the day, your child - and you - may have the best year yet.
Online: https://www.americanpress.com/
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