Miami's rough history With Nelson Mandela

In June 1990, Miami's politically powerful Cuban exile community protested a visit by Mandela, newly released from a South African prison, for his praise of Fidel Castro, arch-enemy of right wing, Cuban exiles but friend of the anti-apartheid movement.
Despite pleas by local African-American leaders, the cities of Miami and Miami Beach, along with Miami-Dade Country, refused to recognize Mandela when he visited the area for a labor conference.  The Miami City Commission rescinded a proclamation honoring Mandela.
Tourists angry at the Mandela snub launched a boycott that cost the city $25 million in lost revenue. Business leaders helped end the boycott in 1993, but tensions continued in the 1990s between blacks and Cubans after several incidents between Miami police and immigrant Haitians.
"I offer now an apology to Nelson Mandela for the way he was received  in Miami," Penelas told 10,000 delegates attending the national convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
"I am proud of how far we have come," Penelas said. "President Mandela's visit was one of the many challenges we have learned from."

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From The Desk Of Jeb Bush

Dear Friends,

I believe in a strong America; an America that is the definitive beacon of opportunity, an America that is the global leader in economic prosperity, an America that has the most competitive workforce in the world.

But the daunting truth is that we are not that America. We are falling behind. We have to do better, for our children, and for generations to come who deserve a revived, strong nation.

Yesterday, results from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) were released. The assessment compares 15 year olds from developed countries across the globe in math, science and reading. The results point to a jarring reality we all need to face in our country: our education system is not equipping our children for the competitive workforce.

Other countries are making faster progress. U.S. teenagers are now ranked 26th in math, 21st in science, and 17th in reading. Shanghai, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong are leading the pack, while countries like Poland and Ireland surpassed us for the first time.

There is no excuse in the book to justify our performance on the world stage. We are in a competitive 21st century and it’s time we start preparing our kids to compete. Without adequately preparing our kids with the fundamental skills needed in school, how can we expect them to go on and contribute to a vibrant workforce? We need to do better.

Yesterday’s results dramatically underscore the need for higher, internationally benchmarked standards and a focus on foundational skills in K-12 education. We accomplish this by holding schools accountable for performance and providing teachers with the supports they need to help students meet these higher expectations. This improves our children’s opportunity to achieve success in school, college, career, and life, thereby preparing them to successfully compete with their peers around the globe.

However, we do see a positive outcome in the PISA results that reaffirms my core belief: all students can and will learn when education is focused on them. Massachusetts participated for the first time in the international benchmarking system and received separate scores. Massachusetts’s average scores were higher than both the U.S. and global average scores in all three subjects. The reason Massachusetts out performs not only the rest of America but other countries? Reform works. In 1993, Massachusetts adopted a bold package of education reforms to transform the failing status quo and focus the system on students’ learning. They implemented rigorous standards and achievement tests that students have to pass to graduate.

Today other states are following their lead and it couldn't come at a more critical time.

I hope that you will join me in this mission of giving every child in America a quality education. Your voice has a significant impact. Here’s how you can do your part to guarantee a strong America:
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ADL Seeking Applications to Honor Top Florida Law Enforcement

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is delighted to announce its call for applications for the centennial edition of ADL’s 2013 Doris and Murray Felton Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards.
Recognizing two essential components of the law enforcement community – the sworn officers who put their lives on the line every day to protect Americans from the threat of extremism, terrorism and hate – often our community’s first line of defense; and the prosecutors, who work tirelessly to ensure the offenders receive the punishment accorded by law – ADL’s Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards recognizes both the investigative and prosecutorial roles of law enforcement, identifying those members who are so deeply committed to their work that they have gone above and beyond expected efforts to protect the community.
“ADL has ten decades of experience in fighting anti-Semitism and bigotry, and exposing domestic extremist groups,” stated Hava Holzhauer, ADL Florida Regional Director. “Today, ADL is the largest non-governmental law enforcement training organization in America, and has emerged as the most esteemed private authority on hate groups, extremism and domestic terrorism. As an important partner and ally to law enforcement agencies nationwide and here in Florida, ADL’s Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards represents and honors the best of law enforcement.”
“The ADL Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards is unique not only in the State of Florida, but across the United States,” stated Michael Freeling, Chairperson, ADL Florida Law Enforcement Committee. “No other organization publicly recognizes leadership in law enforcement in the areas of hate crimes, domestic terrorism, civil rights and public-private partnerships quite like ADL.”
Capt. Rick Wierzbicki (ret.)
In 2011, Capt. Rick Wierzbicki (ret.), former Commander of the BSO Hate Crimes/Anti-Bias Task Force was honored with ADL’s prestigious award, and this year, he is proud to chair the Selection Committee for the 2013 awards: “It’s a privilege to work with some of the most dedicated and accomplished law enforcement leaders within the State of Florida who are current members of the ADL Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards Committee. As Chairperson, I reached out to Seminole County Sheriff Don Eslinger and Sanford Police Chief Cecil Smith, both of whom had the national spotlight focused on them and their respective agencies due to some trying times this last year. Like the other Committee invitees, both Sheriff Eslinger and Chief Smith accepted positions on the Committee without hesitation, which shows their strong commitment to the Award and to ADL.”
One of the Awards’ Selection Committee members, Doug Muldoon, Chief of Police, City of Palm Bay Police Department, reflected, “I am very honored to be asked to participate on the ADL Committee in 2013-2014. Not only do I represent the City of Palm Bay, but law enforcement in general and the FBI National Academy Associates where I currently serve as the President of the Association and represent over 18,000 members in over 170 countries.”
The ADL 2013 Doris and Murray Felton Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards application is due by January 31, 2014 and is available online. The application includes information regarding:
  • Criteria for nomination
  • Selection process
  • Past Award recipients

Doris and Murray Felton Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards Selection Committee:
  • CHAIRPERSON: RICK WIERZBICKI, CAPTAIN, Broward Sheriff’s Office (Ret.)
  • DAN ALEXANDER, CHIEF OF POLICE, Boca Raton Police Department
  • RIC L. BRADSHAW, SHERIFF, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office
  • JANE CASTOR, CHIEF OF POLICE, Tampa Police Department
  • STEVE CASEY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, Florida Sheriff’s Association
  • JERRY L. DEMINGS, SHERIFF, Orange County Sheriff’s Office
  • DONALD F. ESLINGER, SHERIFF, Seminole County Sheriff’s Office
  • CHARLES F. KAPLAN, FL. REGIONAL 13 VICE PRESIDENT, ASIS International
  • AL LAMBERTI, SHERIFF, Broward County Sheriff’s Office (Ret.)
  • PAUL C. MAY, SHERIFF, Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office
  • AMY MERCER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, Florida Police Chiefs Association
  • DOUG MULDOON, CHIEF OF POLICE, Palm Bay Police Department
  • MARCI HORWITZ REX, ASSISTANT STATE ATTORNEY, Fifteenth Judicial Circuit
  • HON. KATHERINE F. RUNDLE, STATE ATTORNEY, Eleventh Judicial Circuit
  • JOHN H. RUTHERFORD, SHERIFF, Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office
  • LARRY SCHROEDER, CHIEF OF POLICE, Delray Beach Police Department (Ret.)
  • MIKE SCOTT, SHERIFF, Lee County Sheriff’s Office
  • CECIL E. SMITH, CHIEF OF POLICE, Sanford Police Department
  • JOHN SULLIVAN, JR., EXECUTIVE LIASION, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office
  • BREEZYE TELFAIR, ASSISTANT STATE ATTORNEY, Eleventh Judicial Circuit

ADL Law Enforcement Committee Members:
  • MICHAEL FREELING, Chair
  • WAYNE BLACK
  • STANLEY FOODMAN
  • GUY FROSTIN
  • TRACEY GROSSMAN
  • MARC REINER
  • JEFFREY WEINSTOCK
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