Florida Sentinel Bulletin

A Mayor Who’s Not Our Friend   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   Open season. Those were the first two words that crossed my mind the minute I found out that Jane Castor was elected Mayor of Tampa. This is the same woman who, while heading the Tampa Police Department, was exposed for implementing a policy that…

Only God Knows What’s Coming   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   For as long as I can remember I’ve always felt that doomsday predictors were the most ridiculous sort of people. The way they draw parallels between current events and ancient prophecies found in the Bible’s Book of Revelations, the quatrains of Nostradamus or the…

Too Young To Know Better   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   Over the last few years I’ve had to come to terms with the fact that my way of thinking is incapable of evolving as fast as society seems to be changing. What I once thought was normal is now being considered abnormal and vice versa….

A Game We Can All Play   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   If you’ve been watching the news recently, you’ve probably noticed that what they call “white privilege” has been on full display across the country. From a judge going well below federal guidelines to sentence Donald Trump’sformer campaign manager, Paul Manafort,to 3 years in…

Another Win For The Haters   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   I imagine that half of the people reading this right now probably never heard of Nipsey Hussle. In fact, depending on their age, they may get him confused with Nipsey Russell, the comedian who played the role of the Tin Man alongside Michael Jackson and Diana Ross in the…

Forget Gucci BY CLARENCE BARR, II   High-end fashion designers don’t want Black people buying their clothing. It is either that or they each, coincidentally, came to the same conclusion recently that partnering their products with blatantly racist imagery was an effective way to attract free publicity. Then again, maybe it’s a little of both….

Time To Secure The Bag   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   Forty (40) acres and a mule. That was the compensation the United States government promised to give every freed African slave in America following the passing of the 13th amendment. Unfortunately, as is typically the case with most of the deals the federal government agreed…

He Had Mirrors On The Ceiling   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   I was 17-years-old when I first set foot inside of the infamous Manilla nightclub. Nicknamed “The Thriller,” and situated within a too small building located on the not-so-tourist-friendly stretch of 7th Avenue. It was a place where you were just as likely to…

A Case For More Black Teachers   BY CLARENCE BARR, II   I was 6-years-old the first time someone referred to me as a nigger. It was on my first day of class at a predominately white elementary school. During recess a group of my light-skinned (Caucasian) classmates surrounded me and started hurling the term…