Fast-food giant McDonald’s is moving toward making their senior leadership more diverse. This week, the corporation announced the appointment of Tiffanie Boyd to assume the role of senior vice president U.S chief people officer.
The former General Mills human resources manager brings a vast amount of experience working in a range of roles including human resources leadership, supply chain, and foodservice. The Minnesota resident worked for the company for 23 years before transiting to McDonald’s.
In a company memo written by EVP, Global Chief People Officer Heidi Capozzi, McDonald’s expressed how Boyd’s appointment was a part of its larger mission toward its commitment to its consumers.” As part of our 2021-2022 U.S. Own the Ambition plan, Crew Experience is our most important growth priority,” the company wrote. “In partnership with owner/operator leadership, we intend to make bold moves for our people as we roll out our Employee Value Proposition and People Purpose throughout the System.”
The news comes after the company recently announced the appointment of Reginald Miller to serve as the company’s global chief diversity equity and inclusion officer.
“I’m proud to join a company with such a powerful brand and broad presence across our country. I look forward to working with franchisees to bring the McDonald’s values to life through our people and their employee experience, as well as the communities in which we operate,” says Boyd in a statement sent to BLACK ENTERPRISE.
“My goal is to ensure that McDonald’s is a place where people love the work they do, have opportunities to grow, and can make a meaningful contribution to society. As I step into my role, my first priority will be to spend time with employees, managers, crew, owner/operators, and other partners who bring the iconic McDonald’s brand to life.”
“Listen carefully, and read with discernment,” says the Lord. For something important is about to be uttered.” [Revelation 13:9]. Remember, I told you that Satan is an imitator. Right now, he has the world right where he wants it; eating out of the palm of his hand. And by his words, he has stirred up a nation and convinced them that they could rule the world. He has convinced them that they are superior to all others, and like a fool, they have bowed before this hellish king, and given him what they have steadfastly refused to give Me. [Revelation 12:10]. So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?” Not knowing that the leader is Satanically empowered. Not knowing that Satan has raised him up so that he can receive worship. [Revelation 13:4-10]. Not knowing that because they have chosen to worship him, I will abandon them to their choice, with all the consequences that come with such a decision. If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
Two beasts are described in the Book of Revelation chapter 13, one from the sea [vs. 1] and one from the land [vs. 11]. With the beast out of the sea, the one from the land, although he claims that he is the peace maker, he is not. He comes as a great source of darkness into the world. He comes not to save the world, but to damn the world. Listen and listen carefully! There is an urgency in the world that has never existed before. Your entire life is about to change. Events will unfold soon to destroy the Western world’s way of life as you know it. Soon, mankind will suffer through the most devastating, bloody war in human history—called, in biblical terminology, the “Great Tribulation.” A war such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. [Matthew 24:21-22]. Yes, a major war in the Middle East is coming soon, and it will be massive. The players are in place and this coming war will be the birth pangs of the Gog-Magog Wars as foretold by God to the prophet Ezekiel. “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass.” [Luke 21:36]. Because nothing in the past can even remotely compare to what is about to take place. Listen, and listen carefully!
The Book of Daniel was written for your time. Its prophecies speak with increased meaning to your generation. The Bible prophet, Daniel, outlined in vivid detail world events now unfolding before your eyes. They provide “inside information” on the enemy’s plans. They reveal the last-day delusions Satan uses to deceive the world’s population. They also carefully outline God’s strategy for the end time. The days ahead will be difficult. A crisis of unimagined fury will break upon the world. Read and understand the Book of Daniel, for it contains truth for your time. In it, the stories reveal how to be ready for earth’s final days. The prophecies reveal when these last-day events will occur. Understand the significance of today’s news and where it is all leading. Learn to discern. Yearn to discern. For the failure to discern the times and the threat is detrimental. [2Peter 3:3-4]. The exhortation, “Listen carefully and read with discernment!”
London — Despite the fact that the Los Angeles Dodgers won a World Series in Texas and the Los Angeles Lakers just won an NBA title in Florida, Brooklyn’s Mike Tyson will soon fight what may be his final match in Los Angeles.
Former heavyweight champions Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. vowed at an official press conference recently, ahead of their November 28fight in Los Angeles, that both men are training as hard as they did in their primes for their upcoming match.
“I looked at film of Roy when he was at his best because that’s the guy I anticipate fighting,” Tyson said. “I’m in the best shape. I boxed seven rounds so far, and it keeps improving. I’m boxing younger guys and hungry guys, and it’s showing me that, from the looks of things, I’m doing really well.”
Tyson also stressed that he has spared as much as seven full rounds against younger opponents in his training camp for this contest.
“I am the only boss,” he said, referring to his sparring partners. “If you don’t kick my ass, you’re fired. Everyone’s doing their best and if you are not doing your best, you got to go home.”
“I usually judge it how I feel that night,” he said. Former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson waves to fans as he arrives in Bloxwich, Walsall, West Midlands on November 18, 2005. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Tyson also appeared disappointed about the shortened two-minute rounds for this fight, as did Roy Jones, Jr. Professional men’s boxing uses three-minute rounds. Women’s fights use two-minute rounds. Some fights involving senior fighters or certain exhibitions may also use one-minute rounds.
This fight will be contested over eight two-minute rounds as per the rules of the California State Athletic Commission. Both men stressed the smaller, 12-ounce gloves and lack of headgear as part of the reason that, from their perspective, this is no exhibition. The winner will be awarded a “Frontline Battle” Belt by the World Boxing Council.
While age may not have softened their desire to win, both men seemed to take a humbler approach when describing his new opponent. Tyson offered that he had turned down offers to face 47-year-old MMA legend and former NFL player Bob Sapp and 48-year-old title contender Shannon Briggs before finding a worthy challenge in Roy Jones, Jr. Tyson also confirmed rumors that the two had once discussed a potential fight in 2003 at a face-to-face meeting in Texas.
Jones offered similar praise of Tyson as one of boxing’s hardest punchers. Jones described the fight as “bucket list” material.
“Everywhere I go in life, young kids always ask me if I ever fought Mike Tyson. And now I’ll be able to say, Yes I did.’”
Triller will live the stream the match on its streaming service and the fight will be available around the globe on a variety of pay-per-view platforms. The organizers also used the press conference to announce the fight will take place at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, the nominal home of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers and the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings.
Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Lakers won an NBA championship without the use of their home court. Due to the novel coronavirus, the event had not had a live sports event since early March when the Los Angeles King’a played there.
As things stand, the venue will not admit fans, but, the staging of the event in such a prestigious venue may pave the way for fans later if the conditions improve. The fight had previously been scheduled for an outdoor venue in nearby Carson, CA. No reason for the change in venue was announced, leading to speculation that the change could allow live fans to return, albeit wearing a facemask.
Tyson last boxed in a 2006 exhibition fight against Corrie Sanders. Roy Jones, Jr. last boxed in 2018, when he won a fringe German cruiserweight title against Scott Sigmon. While Tyson has pledged to stage more bouts following this one, Roy Jones, Jr. was coyer.
“I usually judge it how I feel that night,” he said.
Dr. Leslie Ray Matthews was recently on with ABC News to talk about how vitamin D can be effective in fighting against COVID-19. Dr. Matthews is a retired trauma surgeon who has spent most of his career researching the complexities of vitamin D. Dr. Matthews is an inductee at the Royal House of Medicine and has spoken at the FDA and CDC previously on this same subject.
Dr. Matthews encourages the use of vitamin D especially among those who are melanin rich and have a harder time absorbing the sun’s rays.
Debt collectors will have more access to you next year.
Consumer Reports reported that a new rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) will allow debt collectors to contact consumers by email, text message, and social media platforms. The ruling would permit collectors to place up to seven debt-collection phone calls per week with an unlimited number of attempts through messaging platforms as well as email.
“The rule clarifies how debt collectors can use email, text messages, social media, and other contemporary methods to communicate with consumers,” wrote Kathleen L. Kraninger, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director, in a post for the bureau. “And our rule will allow consumers, if they prefer, to limit the ability of debt collectors to communicate with them through these newer communication methods.”
This can pose a threat to marginalized communities that have more debt. Data shows that 45% of people who live in predominantly Black or Hispanic areas have debt currently in collections, compared to 27% of people living in predominantly White areas. A 2017 survey by CFPB also showed that over 20% more borrowers of color were continuously contacted about their debt as opposed to 29% of White borrowers.
Critics also worry that the ruling doesn’t enforce collectors to verify the debt to the consumer, which can allow for more harassment for debt consumers may not be legally responsible for.
“Debt collectors are notorious for hounding consumers and filing lawsuits about debts that have already been paid off or were never owed in the first place,” said Suzanne Martindale, who works on financial issues Consumer Reports.“The CFPB’s new rule does nothing about this egregious practice, and fails to ensure that debt collectors can prove that money is actually owed and they have the legal right to pursue the debt.”
A spokesperson for Facebook and Instagram said the company is currently “in the process of reviewing this new rule and will work with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over the coming months to understand its effect on people who use our services,” according to Consumer Reports. Twitter has yet to publicly comment on the new rule.
California’s unofficial 2020 proposition results have shown an electorate that is fairly moderate, supportive of business interests and concerned about issues affecting older citizens.
It also showed that there is limited support for progressive policies. Initiatives a majority of African Americans and young Californians supported such as affirmative action and rent control also fell short.
Prop 16, the ballot initiative to reinstate affirmative action programs in California, failed with 56 % of voters voting no. The proposition would have allowed public universities and state and local governments to consider race, sex, ethnicity and national origin in their hiring, contracting or admission decisions. Although supporters of the proposition argued that it would increase racial equity in the state, it faced heavy opposition. With the no vote, affirmative action is still banned in California.
The most recent attempt at rent control also failed, with 60 % of voters rejecting Prop 21. The initiative would have allowed local governments to enact rent control on housing built over 15 years ago, while exempting landlords who own no more than two properties. Instead, California’s statewide ban on new forms of rent control will stay in effect, at a time when millions of Americans are struggling with rent or facing eviction due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
After months of high spending and heated debate, Proposition 22 passed with over eight million yes votes, as of Nov. 8. Gig economy companies including Uber, Lyft and DoorDash are now exempt from AB 5, the California law that classifies workers. The companies will be allowed to continue classifying their drivers as independent contractors.
The Yes on 22 campaign received over $202 million in contributions, making Prop 22 the most expensive ballot initiative campaign in California history. According to Ballotpedia, the top five donors for Yes on 22 were Uber, DoorDash, Lyft, InstaCart and Postmates, with Uber and Lyft spending over $50 million each.
Voters also struck down Prop 23, which would have required dialysis clinics to have at least one licensed physician on site during treatment. Opponents of the proposition had argued that the ballot initiative’s passage would force multiple clinics to reduce hours or shut down due to the increased hiring costs.
Voters said no to rolling back previous criminal justice reforms, rejecting Prop 20 by the widest margin, with 62 percent of voters voting no on upgrading several crimes to violent felonies and upgrading some theft crimes to be chargeable as either misdemeanors or felonies.
Voters also rejected replacing money bail with a risk assessment system, with 55 % voting no on Prop 25. Although it was billed as an attempt at serious bail reform, multiple social justice groups had concerns that the risk assessment system would lead to increased racial profiling against Black and Brown suspects awaiting trial.
Two propositions this year focused on voter rights. Prop 17 passed with 59 % of yes votes, giving parolees the right to vote upon release from incarceration. With Prop 17’s passage, tens of thousands of predominately Black and Brown parolees have regained their voting rights. However, Prop 18 fell short, with 55 % of voters saying no to allowing 17-year-olds to vote in primaries if they turn eighteen by the next general election.
In both of this year’s propositions related to property taxes, voters resisted tax increases. Prop 15, which proposed an increase on property taxes for commercial properties to fund education and local governments, failed by a margin of about 425,000 votes as of Nov. 8. Prop 19 passed, with 51 % of the vote approving tax breaks for property tax assessment transfers for homeowners over 55 years old, people with severe disabilities and victims of natural disasters.
Voters approved Prop 24, to strengthen the California Consumer Privacy Act and establish and limit the use of sensitive consumer data among businesses. Also, Prop 14 passed, approving the issue of $5.5 billion in state bonds to fund stem cell and other medical research.
After four exhausting years of President Donald Trump and four excruciating days of vote counting, the election was called for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Saturday. Hallelujah!
Those days of counting felt agonizingly slow to many of us, but the momentum was always on our side: Democratic voters—mostly Black voters—in and around Philadelphia, Detroit, Milwaukee and Atlanta delivered the battleground state votes needed to deny Trump a second term. In Nevada and Arizona, Latino and Native American voters provided crucial votes.
News that Pennsylvania put Biden over the top sparked dancing in the streets and tears of joy in many households. So did the sight of Kamala Harris making her historic appearance as our next vice president—the first woman, first Black woman, first South Asian woman, to be elected to the White House.
In his speech Saturday night, Joe Biden made it clear that he understands how much he owes to Black folks. “The African American community stood up again for me,” he said. “They always have my back, and I’ll have yours.”
We will all need to help Biden make good on that commitment with policies that address our communities’ needs. There’s a lot to do.
We need a more effective response to COVID-19 pandemic and its particularly hard impact on the health and economic well-being of people of color.
We need a vision and a plan for an economy that does not leave Black communities behind, an economy where opportunity is widely available and prosperity is widely shared—not one that strips wealth out of middle-class and lower-income families and funnels it to the richest people in the world.
We need to eliminate voter suppression strategies—and resist ongoing efforts by Trump and his allies to delegitimize and overturn his decisive defeat.
We need to confront the systemic racism that leads to police killings of Black men, women, and children—killings for which justice far too often is delayed and denied.
We need to address the corruption of our federal court system by Trump and Senate Republicans and the hard-right judges they have spent four years packing into our federal courts, which we can no longer count on to uphold our constitutional and civil rights.
All those jobs will be made so much harder if Republicans maintain control of the Senate. The unprincipled obstructionist Republican leader Mitch McConnell has turned that half of Congress into a graveyard for legislation the American people need to advance the vision of a more just society for which we just voted.
So, we have work to do, right now, in Georgia, where two U.S. Senate races are headed for runoffs in early January. Both races feature corrupt, Trump-enabling Republicans who represent the worst kind of politician. Both are being challenged by smart, progressive Democrats who will help Biden and Harris achieve good things for the American people.
Those victories in Georgia are achievable, largely in part to the brilliant organizing work of my dear friend Stacey Abrams. She responded to her own unjust defeat in Georgia’s race for governor in 2018 by leading a coalition that registered hundreds of thousands of new voters and turned the state blue this year.
She believes Democrats can absolutely win the Senate runoffs, and that the outcome of those races will help determine whether we have access to health care and access to justice in the U.S. The excellent Democratic candidates, Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, need and deserve all the support we can give them.
Defeating Trump and electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris was a huge victory. Let’s celebrate, get a good night’s sleep or a long nap, and get back to work.
One of gospel biggest icons passed on October 31. 71-year-old Rance Allen, leader of The Rance Allen Group died recently while recovering from a “medical condition” at Heartland ProMedica in Sylvania, Ohio.
Discovered by a Stax Records promotion man, Rance Allen and his brothers Thomas and Steve were signed after appearing in a Detroit talent show. He co-founded the Rance Allen Group with his brothers in Detroit in 1969. He was the lead vocalist and was known for his powerful voice.
An eight-time Grammy nominee, Allen had grown up in the shadow of Motown, recorded for Stax and been influenced by Chuck Berry, but his songs were always a deeply profound and fervent expression of his religious faith.
The Rance Allen Group combined rock and soul with gospel music to create a crossover sound. They had a top 30 R&B hit in 1978 with “I Belong to You.” And “Ain’t No Need of Crying” was one of their most successful and popular hits. In 1998, the Rance Allen Group were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. Allen was nominated for a Grammy in 2009 for best gospel performance for the song “I Understand,” which featured Mariah Carey and Bebe Winans. He sang at the White House in 2015 for President Barack Obama.
Allen born in Monroe, Michigan was a longtime Toledo, Ohio resident and most recently bishop for Church of God in Christ for the Michigan Northwestern Harvest Jurisdiction.
Rance Allen is survived by his wife of 49 years Ellen Allen. They had no children together.
Discovered by a Stax Records promotion man, Rance Allen and his brothers Thomas and Steve were signed after appearing in a Detroit talent show. He co-founded the Rance Allen Group with his brothers in Detroit in 1969. He was the lead vocalist and was known for his powerful voice.
An eight-time Grammy nominee, Allen had grown up in the shadow of Motown, recorded for Stax and been influenced by Chuck Berry, but his songs were always a deeply profound and fervent expression of his religious faith.
The Rance Allen Group combined rock and soul with gospel music to create a crossover sound. They had a top 30 R&B hit in 1978 with “I Belong to You.” And “Ain’t No Need of Crying” was one of their most successful and popular hits. In 1998, the Rance Allen Group were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. Allen was nominated for a Grammy in 2009 for best gospel performance for the song “I Understand,” which featured Mariah Carey and Bebe Winans. He sang at the White House in 2015 for President Barack Obama.
Allen born in Monroe, Michigan was a longtime Toledo, Ohio resident and most recently bishop for Church of God in Christ for the Michigan Northwestern Harvest Jurisdiction.
Rance Allen is survived by his wife of 49 years Ellen Allen. They had no children together.
Former Vice President Joe Biden has now become President-Elect after being named the projected winner of the 2020 presidential election. Supporters were quick to show their support.
“Finally, I want to thank everyone who worked, organized and volunteered for the Biden campaign, every American who got involved in their own way and everybody who voted for the first time,” Obama wrote. “I know it can be exhausting, but for this democracy to endure, it requires our active citizenship and sustained focus on the issues—not just in an election season, but all the days in between.”
Biden was declared the winner Saturday morning, after days of ballot counting, protests, and Donald Trump’s wildly false claims about election fraud. Biden won states on both coasts, including Washington, California, Oregon, and Nevada as well as New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and New Jersey. But it was the states in the middle of the country that made the difference. Biden and Harris also took Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, the last two of which flipped from Republican.
The former first lady also congratulated Biden and his wife, Jill, as well as Harris and her husband Douglas Emhoff.
I’m beyond thrilled that my friend @JoeBiden and our first Black and Indian-American woman Vice President, @KamalaHarris, are headed to restore some dignity, competence, and heart at the White House. Our country sorely needs it. pic.twitter.com/yXqQ3tYRoa
“I’m beyond thrilled that my friend @JoeBiden and our first Black and Indian-American woman Vice President, @KamalaHarris, are headed to restore some dignity, competence, and heart at the White House. Our country sorely needs it,” the former first lady wrote on Twitter.
Hillary and Bill Clinton also expressed their congratulations to Biden’s and Harris for winning the White House.
“America has spoken and democracy has won,” tweeted former President Bill Clinton, less than an hour after the Associated Press officially called the election for Biden after receiving the 270 electoral college votes necessary. Hillary Clinton wrote “It’s a history-making ticket, a repudiation of Trump, and a new page for America.”
CNN reported Sunday Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) both called and congratulated Joe Biden on his election victory. They were the only two Republicans to express their support to Biden and Harris.
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — After a 15-year effort by his family and members of Congress, the U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed a bill authorizing a posthumous Medal of Honor for U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Alwyn Cashe.
Introduced by U.S. Reps. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.), Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) and Michael Waltz (R-Fla.), the bill waives a federal law that requires a Medal of Honor be awarded within five years of the actions that prompted it.
The House of Representatives passed it on Sept. 22, but its momentum slowed while Senate Republicans were focused on Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation process. The bill will go to the White House to be signed into law. It permits the Department of Defense to waive the five-year rule for Cashe.
Cashe died on Nov. 8, 2005, from injuries he sustained while rescuing his fellow soldiers from a vehicle destroyed by an Improvised Explosive Device in Iraq.
“I am so grateful the Senate passed our bill to pave the way for the President to award Alwyn Cashe the Medal of Honor,” said Murphy, who represents the Sanford, Fla., and Oviedo Fla., communities where Cashe was born and raised.
“We are now very close to recognizing this unbelievably heroic soldier, who died saving his men, with our nation’s highest award for combat valor, which he earned beyond a shadow of a doubt.”
Cashe Family with Rep. Stephanie Murphy: SFC Cashe’s son, Andrew, a newly minted Army infantryman, poses in front of a memorial plaque with Cashe’s sister, Kasinal Cashe White, and Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) at the renaming of the Oviedo Post Office. (Courtesy of Rep. Murphy’s Office)
Murphy’s co-sponsors were effusive after the bill cleared the Senate on the eve of Veterans Day.
“We are one step closer to properly recognizing Sergeant First Class Alwyn Cashe for his bravery in risking his own life to save his fellow soldiers,” said Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL. “He is deserving of the Medal of Honor, our nation’s highest military award for bravery on the battlefield, and we urge President [Donald] Trump to quickly sign our bill into law to make sure that happens.”
“It’s not every day you read an extraordinary story like Alwyn Cashe’s,” Waltz, a former Army Special Forces officer, said. “His bravery in the face of danger has inspired so many already, and this is a significant step forward to properly recognize him for his heroism.”
Cashe will be the 91st African American serviceman to receive the Medal of honor.
The long, hard road to now
Cashe was born on July 13, 1970, the youngest of a blended family of 18 children. He is remembered by his sister as a “rambunctious, spoiled, somewhat bad kid” with a passion for the outdoors.
“He was very outdoorsy,” said Kasinal Cashe White, 62, a registered nurse in Tallahassee, Fla. “His favorite times were when he had a gun on his hip or a fishing pole in his hands.”
For more than 15 years, Cashe family and members of Congress have lobbied for a posthumous Medal of Honor. (Courtesy of the U.S. Army)
After graduating from Oviedo High in 1988, Cashe enlisted in the U.S. Army, where, as an infantryman, he served tours of duty in the 1991 Gulf War and during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
On Oct. 17, 2005, acting as a platoon sergeant for 1st Platoon, Alpha Company, Cashe, and his troops embarked on a mission to clear a route in the city of Daliaya.
According to Military Times reports, Cashe was in the lead Bradley Fighting Vehicle when it struck an Improvised Explosive Device, rupturing the vehicle’s fuel cell, covering him in fuel, and causing the Bradley to engulf into flames.
While ablaze and under heavy gunfire from insurgents, Cashe rescued six soldiers from the burning vehicle, returning multiple times and refusing medical assistance until everyone was pulled from the burning wreckage.
At the end of the skirmish, an interpreter was killed in action, with 10 soldiers wounded, seven severely.
Cashe was flown to a medical facility in Germany after having 72% of his body severely burned before being transported to Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, where he ultimately succumbed to his wounds.
When the news of her brother’s incident first came to light, White thought little of it.
“I was told that Al had been hurt,” she said. “My sister, Bernadine, told me he’d been in an accident, so I thought maybe he broke his leg.”
During her commute from her then-Lake Butler, Fla., home to Gainesville, Fla., where she was working as an intensive care nurse, she received another call: the description of his condition was downgraded from “hurt” to “wounded.”
“Now, you’ve got my full attention,” she said. “I was routed to the doctor in Iraq that told me Al had been burned and was in critical condition. That’s not a term that’s used loosely. All I could think was, ‘please don’t let my brother die. Send him home to me.’”
The fog of war made initial reports of the action sketchy. Unaware of how badly wounded Cashe was and the extent of his heroism, mainly performing a rescue while taking on enemy gunfire, his battalion commander at the time, now-Lt. Gen. Gary Brito, nominated Cashe for the Silver Star.
Along with a Purple Heart, that award was presented to Cashe’s mother outside his hospital room, where he lay fatally wounded.
Meanwhile, the hospital staff provided Cashe’s sister with more details of his actions on that fateful day in Daliaya.
“They were telling me that my brother was a hero, but, in the U.S., that’s a word we throw around a lot,” said White. “But, I did my research and concluded that my brother deserved a Medal of Honor.”
After getting the “run-around” from former Sen. Bill Nelson and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who both claimed they could not aid in her efforts to upgrade Cashe’s Silver Star to a Medal of Honor, Rep. Murphy took up the mantle.
The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed a bill to authorize a posthumous Medal of Honor award for U.S. Army St. First Class Alwyn Cashe. (Photo: U.S. Army)
“She called me and said, ‘Ms. White, I’ve been reading your brother’s story, and I can’t believe a Florida citizen did this, and there’s not a building named after him. I will support you,’” said White.
On July 14, 2014, a new Army Reserve Center in Sanford, Florida got Cashe’s name. The Oviedo, Florida post office was renamed in his honor in May 2019.
Buoyed by additional statements provided to the Army by Brito to justify upgrading Cashe’s award to a Silver Star, Murphy, Waltz, and Crenshaw reached out to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper last fall to formally request the upgrade.
“After giving the nomination careful consideration, I agree that SFC Cashe’s actions merit award of the Medal of Honor,” Esper responded in a letter to Waltz on Aug. 24.
“However, 10 U.S.C. § 7274 requires that the Medal of Honor be awarded ‘within five years after the date of the act justifying the award.’ Before we can take further action with this nomination, Congress must waive this time limit. Once legislation is enacted authorizing the President of the United States to award, if he so chooses, the Medal of Honor to SFC Cashe, I will provide my endorsement to the President.”
After skepticism born of a decade and a half of trying, White said she is elated at the news.
“My heart is overjoyed. We now have passed the Senate, which means we have full support,” she said. “This means more than you’ll ever know because now all we need is for the president to sign off on the endorsement, and my brother, Sgt. First Class Alwyn C. Cashe, will finally get the medal he deserves, our nation’s highest honor.”
Westside Story Newspaper – Online The News of The Empire – Sharing the Quest for Excellence
