W. E. B. Du Bois

                William EdwardBurghardt “W.E.B.” Du Bois (pronounced /du:’boiz/doo-boyz) was born on February 23, 1868, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, to Alfred and Mary Silvina Burghardt Du Bois.  His mother descended from Dutch, African, and English ancestors, and her family belonged to the very small free black population of Great Barrington and owned land in Massachusetts.  William’s maternal grandfather was Othello Burghardt, his maternal great-grandfather was Jack Burghardt, and his maternal great-great-grandfather was Tom Burghardt who was born in West Africa about 1730 and owned as a slave by Dutch colonist Conraed Burghardt.  He may have gained his freedom by serving in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. 

                James Du Bois, an ethnic French-American from Poughkeepsie, New York, was William’s paternal great-grandfather.  James fathered several children with slave mistresses, and one of his mixed-race sons was Alexander.  Alexander went to Haiti where he fathered a son named Alfred before leaving his mistress and son to return to Connecticut.  Alfred moved to the United States prior to 1860; he married Mary Silvina Burghardt on February 5, 1867, in Housatoic, Massachusetts.  Two years after the birth of William, Alfred left his family in 1870.  Mary worked to provide for her family with some assistance from her brother and neighbors.  She had a stroke in the early 1880s and died in 1885.

                William was treated generally well by the people in Great Barrington who were mostly European American.  He went to school and played with white schoolmates, and his teachers encouraged him academically.  The members of the First Congregational Church of Great Barrington, his childhood church, donated money for his tuition when he decided to attend college.  Because of his good experiences, he believed he could use his knowledge to help African Americans but as an adult would write about racism.

                William graduated from Harvard and became the first African American to earn a doctorate there.  He became a professor of history, sociology and economics at Atlanta University.  He was a sociologist, historian, civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, author, editor, and one of the co-founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909.

                “Du Bois was organized and disciplined:  His lifelong regimen was to rise at 7:15, work until 5, eat dinner and read a newspaper until 7, then read or socialize until he was in bed, invariably before 10.  He was a meticulous planner, and frequently mapped out his schedules and goals on large pieces of graph paper.  Many acquaintances found him to be distant and aloof, and he insisted on being addressed as `Dr. Du Bois’.  Although he was not gregarious, he formed several close friendships ….  Du Bois was something of a dandy – he dressed formally, carried a walking stick, and walked with an air of confidence and dignity.  He was relatively short 5 feet 5.5 inches and always maintained a well-groomed mustache and goatee.  He was a good singer and enjoyed playing tennis.

                “Du Bois was married twice, first to Nina Gomer (m. 1896, d. 1950), with whom he had two children, a son Burghardt (who died as an infant) and a daughter Yolande, who married Countee Cullen.  As a widower, he married Shirley Graham (m. 1951, d. 1977), an author, playwright, composer and activist.  She brought her son David Graham to the marriage.  David grew close to Du Bois and took his stepfather’s name; he also worked for African-American causes.”  Du Bois may have had several extramarital relationships.

                Du Bois became nationally known because he was the leader of the Niagara Movement, a group of African-Americans who wanted equal rights for blacks.  He and his group opposed the Atlanta Compromise that was crafted by Booker T. Washington.  Du Bois insisted on full civil rights and increased political representation.  He called the African-American intellectual elites  the “talented tenth” because he thought they could bring equality for blacks by their leadership.  He worked for civil rights for his entire life but did not live long enough to see the Civil Rights Act passed the year after his death. 

                Du Bois did much good throughout his life and received many honors, but he became a bitter old man.  He became a Communist and blamed capitalism for the woes of people of color.  He passed away at age 95 on August 27, 1963, in Accra, Ghana.

No Offices for Rebels

                The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday comes from Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States:  “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State Legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.  But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”

                This statement made it legal to exclude from any elected office or public appointment any former official who had pledged to uphold the U.S. Constitution and then taken part in a rebellion against the United States.  This provision was apparently written specifically against those men who had fought against the Union in the Civil War.

                W. Cleon Skousen explained, “It is obvious from this provision that the radical leadership of the Congress which wrote the Fourteenth Amendment had very little of the spirit of healing and reconciliation exhibited by Lincoln or even by General Grant when Lee surrendered.  As a result, the South was deprived of its experienced, traditional, and most responsible leadership.  Except for the issue of slavery, some of this leadership provided the nation with some of its best elements of political wisdom prior to the war.

                “The Fourteenth Amendment was ratified on July 9, 1868, and on Christmas Day of the same year, President Andrew Johnson wiped out the effects of this vindictive provision by exercising his pardoning powers.  He issued a proclamation of full amnesty, granting `unconditionally and without reservation’ to all who had been engaged in the Southern cause, a `full pardon.’”  (See The Making of America – The Substance and Meaning of the Constitution, pp. 725-726.)

                Paul Moreno offered further explanation about this “disqualification of former rebels for federal and state office.”  He said it “was the most controversial of the sections of the Fourteenth Amendment.  It appeared to be vindictive and to intrude on the President’s pardon power.  It certainly made the ratification of new state constitutions in the South less likely – and some Congressmen believed that this was a deliberate stratagem to keep the Southern states out of the Union until after the 1868 election.  An original draft of the section would have disqualified all who had voluntarily aided the Confederacy until 1870, but the Senate adopted Senator Jacob Howard’s less severe but potentially more permanent version.  Congress lifted the disqualification of many individuals, and in 1872 it did so for all but Members of the Thirty-seventh (1861-1863) and Thirty-eighth Congresses (1863-1865), federal judicial and military officers, heads of departments, and foreign ministers.  In 1898, Congress removed all disqualifications for previous disloyal conduct.  Despite being written in a particular historical context, the clause is still in operation and would apply in the case of future insurrections or rebellion.”  (See The Heritage Guide to the Constitution, p. 406.)

The Case for God

                Is science making the case for God?  Have scientists discovered that God is not dead?  The longer scientists look for life on other planets, the closer they move to intelligent design.

                Eric Metaxas  wrote an interesting article about science proving the case for God; in his article he gave figures and quoted scientists.  Instead of saying “God is dead” or “he’s obsolete,” scientists move closer and closer to proving that He is alive and well.

                Scientists have been searching for “Extraterrestrial Intelligence” since the 1960s and received only silence in return for listening for signals of intelligence.  The program was funding by public and private money but now receives only private funds.

                “What happened?  As our knowledge of the universe increased, it became clear that there were far more factors necessary for life than Sagan supposed.  His two parameters grew to 10 and then 20 and then 50, and so the number of potentially life-supporting planets decreased accordingly.  The number dropped to a few thousand planets and kept on plummeting….

                “As factors continued to be discovered, the number of possible planets hit zero, and kept going.  In other words, the odds turned against any planet in the universe supporting life, including this one.  Probability said that even we shouldn’t be here.

                “Today there are more than 200 known parameters necessary for a planet to support life – every single one of which must be perfectly met, or the whole thing falls apart.  Without a massive planet like Jupiter nearby, whose gravity will draw away asteroids, a thousand times as many would hit Earth’s surface.  The odds against life in the universe are simply astonishing.

                “Yet here we are, not only existing, but talking about existing.  What can account for it?  Can every one of those any parameters have been perfect by accident?  At what point is it fair to admit that science suggests that we cannot be the result of random forces?  Doesn’t assuming that an intelligence created these perfect conditions require far less faith than believing that a life-sustaining Earth just happened to beat the inconceivable odds to come into being?

                “There’s more.  The fine-tuning necessary for life to exist on a planet is nothing compared with the fine-tuning required for the universe to exist at all….”

                Scientists may one day prove what prophets have known for thousands of years:  God created the Earth and the Universe for the benefit of His children – us.  In fact, God created many worlds.  Modern prophets as well as ancient prophets attest to this truth.  One of them is the late Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  

                “Christ is the Creator and Redeemer of worlds so numerous that they cannot be numbered by man.  As to his infinite and eternal creative and redemptive enterprises the divine word attests:  `And worlds without number have I created,’ saith the Father, `and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son I created them, which is mine Only Begotten.  … But only an account of this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, give I unto you.’  As to all of the other worlds of the Lord’s creating we know only that it is his work and his glory `to bring to pass’ – through the Redeemer - `the immortality and eternal life’ of all their inhabitants.  (Moses 1:33, 35, 39.)

                “In what is probably the most glorious vision given to mortals in this dispensation, Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon saw `the Son, on the right hand of the Father,’ and `heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father – That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.’  (Doctrine and Covenants 76:20, 23-24.)  Christ is thus the Creator and the Redeemer.  By him the worlds were made, and through his infinite atonement the inhabitants of those worlds are adopted into the divine family as heirs with himself…” (“Christ and the Creation,” Ensign, June 1982).

                President Ezra Taft Benson also testified of Christ being the Creator:  “The first principle of our religion is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  Only He can provide the hope and strength we need to rise above our human failings.  Jesus Christ was and is the Lord God Omnipotent.  He is the Only Begotten Son of God in the flesh.  He was the all-powerful creator of the heavens and the earth.  He is the source of light and life to all things.  His word is the law of by which the universe is governed”  (“Jesus Christ:  Our Savior and Redeemer,” Liahona, April 1993).

                Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles also spoke about God being the Creator:  “The process of construction is truly inspiring to me.  From conception to completion, any major building project reflects upon the work of the Master Creator.  In fact, the Creation – of planet Earth and of life upon it – undergirds all other creative capability.  Any manmade creation is possible only because of our divine Creator.  The people who design and build are given life and capacity by that Creator.  And all materials used in the construction of an edifice are ultimately derived from the rich resources of the earth.  The Lord declared, `The earth is full, and there is enough and to spare; yea, I prepared all things.’ (Doctrine and Covenants 104:17).

                “It is difficult for mortal minds to comprehend the majesty of the Creation.  It is much easier for us to think about good things to eat or fun things to do.  But I would like to stretch our minds to think of things beyond our easy grasp.  The creation of man and woman was wondrous and great.  So was the creation of the earth as their mortal dwelling place.

                “The entire Creation was planned by God.  A council in heaven was once convened in which we participated.  There our Heavenly Father announced His divine plan.  It is also called the plan of happiness, the plan of salvation, the plan of redemption, the plan of restoration, the plan of mercy, the plan of deliverance, and the everlasting gospel.  The purpose of the plan is to provide opportunity for the spirit children of God to progress toward an eternal exaltation….

                “I testify that the earth and all life upon it are of divine origin.  The Creation did not happen by chance.  It did not come ex nihilo (out of nothing.  And human minds and hands able to build buildings or create computers are not accidental.  It is God who made us and not we ourselves.  We are His people!  The Creation itself testifies of a Creator.  We cannot disregard the divine in the Creation.  Without our grateful awareness of God’s hand in the Creation, we would be just as oblivious to our provider as are goldfish swimming in a bowl. …

                “This earth is but one of many creations over which God presides….  Grand as it is, planet Earth is part of something even grander – that great plan of God.  Simply summarized, the earth was created that families might be….

                “The Creation, great as it is, is not an end in itself but a means to an end.  We come to the earth for a brief period of time, endure our tests and trials, and prepare to move onward and upward to a glorious homecoming.  Our thoughts and deeds while here will surely be more purposeful if we understand God’s plan and are thankful for and obedient to His commandments….

                “As beneficiaries of the divine Creation, what shall we do?  We should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations.  And we are to love and care for one another….

                “I testify that God lives!  Jesus is the Christ and Creator!  He is Lord over all the earth…” (“The Creation,” Liahona, July 2000).

                I too know that God lives and created this beautiful Earth and the Universe through His Only Begotten Son, even Jesus Christ.  I know the words of the above quoted prophets are true.

Reading, the Gift that Keeps on Giving

                Families, communities, and nations are strengthened when the rising generation knows how to read.  One of the greatest gifts we can give to our children and/or grandchildren is to teach them to read well and enjoy it.  I learned to read in school, but I learned to enjoy reading by seeing my mother sit down with a good book at the end of long, hard days on the farm.  I followed my mother’s example and taught my own children to enjoy reading, and now my children are teaching their children the value of reading for pleasure.  Several of them have gotten in trouble with their teachers because they read instead of  listening.  One of my greatest joys is to see my grandchildren engrossed in good books. 

                This love for reading was passed down from my mother.  I can still see her sitting on the door of the oven to our old coal and wood stove reading a book.  She particularly enjoyed western novels, but she read many other writings.  She showed by her example that reading was a good thing in her life.  When I started school in the first grade, I was more than ready to learn how to read, and I became one of the better readers in the class.  I still love to read!

                A child, teenager, or adult who does not know how to read feels much like a second-class citizen.  Those of the younger generation who struggle with reading are embarrassed and often act out in school or church classes rather than be called upon to read.  I know a young man who desired to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but he could not put his papers in for a mission until he read the Book of Mormon – Another Witness of Jesus Christ.  He had many friends who were also preparing to serve missions; they individually worked with their friend until he completed the book.  He was an excellent reader as he read from the scriptures while giving his homecoming address to our ward.  He was a good missionary because he could read, and he gained the ability to further his education after his mission.

                Dawan Coombs, an Assistant Professor of English at Brigham Young University, is a former high school English teacher and now does research of struggling readers.  She listed several ideas for how we can strengthen struggling readers, some of which are as follows. 

                  (1) Give them a “strong support environment.”  Help them to “feel safe” in attending and participating in our family scripture study or

church classes. Be careful about inviting them to read in class before they are ready and possibly give them some advance notice.

                  (2) Teach “scripture stories through audiovisual resources or pictures” before expecting them to comprehend what they read.  When they know the basic story, they can “concentrate on understanding principles or themes” rather than “tracking characters and plot lines.”

                  (3) Be sure to “distinguish between actions and identities.”  We should never confuse what someone does with who they are.  A struggling reader has just as much worth as anyone else.  When we help someone to overcome a struggle, we help them to understand their full potential as a child of God.

                  (4) Ask God for help.  Ether 12:23-28 contains a lesson taught to Moroni by God.  Moroni was afraid that people would mock his writings because of his weakness.  God told him, “fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness.

                  “And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness.  I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”                                                                                                                                                                                                     

                Prayer helps both the parent/teacher and the struggling reader.  One of the best ways to teach children to read is to have them take part in family scripture study.  Several of my children give their children an opportunity to “read” scriptures when they are two or three years old.  The parent reads a few words of a verse and waits while the child repeats the words.  Then a few more words are given, and the child repeats them.  This teaches the child several things:  (1) Each child is an important part of the family.  (2) The basic scripture story.  (3) Scripture language.  Gradually, each child begins to sound out the words on the page and eventually is truly reading the scriptures.  I have been amazed at how well my young grandchildren read the big words in the scriptures.

                The ability to read well is very important to building self-esteem as well as success in school.  When a child or youth reads and loves reading, they are more prepared to strengthen their family, community, and nation.

Freedom

                Freedom!  What does freedom mean to you?  To me, freedom means the opportunity to go, say and do whatever I desire as long as I do not infringe upon the freedoms of others.  Freedom gives me the opportunity to worship the God of my choice in any way I choose.  Freedom gives me the opportunity to go wherever I choose and whenever I choose.  Freedom gives me the opportunity to speak the words I choose to speak.  Freedom gives me the opportunity to write what I choose to write.  Freedom gives me the opportunity to assemble with the people I desire to meet.  Freedom gives me the opportunity to make choices, but it does not free me from the consequences for those choices.

                Some time ago – months, maybe even years – I read a book entitled Agenda 21.  The book described a compound where the “authorities” imprisoned all the citizens of what once was America.  The leaders of the “Republic” made all the decisions as to food, clothing, marriage, childcare, career, etc.  I do not remember if the book explained how the people came to these circumstances. The people who were older teens or adults at the time of imprisonment remembered true freedom.  If they taught their children about freedom, they were punished.  Those too young to remember what it was like to be free as well as those who were not taught about freedom simply assumed that their leaders knew best.  One by one the older people died or were killed because they were no longer productive, and the knowledge of freedom died with them.  The more time that went by, the less the people knew about what freedom means.

                Every once in a while I have read of something about “camps” being made by FEMA.  Is our own government making “compounds” to imprison Americans?  I know not but believe it is possible with the present administration.  What I do know is the importance of the older generation passing knowledge of freedom to the rising generation.  Freedom will last only as long as we protect it and preserve it.

                President Ronald Reagan understood our need to protect and preserve our freedom and spoke often about it.  “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.  We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream.  It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.”  The only way the rising generation will know the value of freedom is for us to teach them.

                Viktor Emil Frankl knew a thing or two about freedom and the loss of it.  He was a neurologist and psychiatrist in Austrian, and he survived the Holocaust.  He wrote a best-selling book entitled Man’s Search for Meaning about his experiences as an inmate in a Nazi concentration camp.  From his experiences there, he discovered “the importance of finding meaning in all forms of existence, even the most brutal ones, and thus, a reason to continue living.”  

                Frankl understood the meaning of freedom, especially the last freedom:  “The last of human freedoms [is] the ability to choose one’s attitude in a given set of circumstances.” 

                Frankl also stated, “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing:  the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”  Evil people can take everything away from us except our choice of how we will respond to their wickedness.

                President Abraham Lincoln left a warning to Americans:  “America will never be destroyed from the outside.  If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”

                I had the privilege of growing up in a nation with more freedoms than what we presently enjoy.  I know we are losing freedom bit by bit.  We have lost a lot of freedom over the past six years.  Are we going to stand by and allow our last freedoms to be taken from us?  I am not.  I teach my children and grandchildren about our great nation and the freedoms we enjoy.  I am apparently doing a good job because one of my six-year-old grandsons saw a patriotic sun catcher in the store at his school and gave it to me for Christmas.  He knows I love our nation and the freedoms we enjoy.  I hope and pray that all of my children and grandchildren understand the importance of freedom and the need to fight for it and to protect and preserve it.  Remember, freedom is “just another word” until we give meaning to it!

Changing Family Structure

                Does it seem like society has changed since you were a child?  This may depend upon the year you were born or the region of your birth.  I became an adult in the 1960s in a small conservative community and have seen many changes in family structure.  How the world has changed since 1960! 

                This could be the lament of an old lady, but the Pew Research Center validated the following facts.  In 1960 couples married young before starting a family and were committed to stay married until death.  In 2015 couples delay or even forego marriage.  Divorces and remarriages are increasing.  In 1960 only 5% of children were born outside of marriage; in 2015 this percentage stands at 41% of all babies born.

                In 1960 there were 73% of children living with their married heterosexual parents in their first marriage.  In 1980 this percentage dropped to 61%.  In 2015 there are less than half (46%) of children under 18 years of age living with their biological parents.

                Today 15% of children live with two parents who are in a remarriage, but there are no records showing if they are step-parents or biological parents.  In 2013 6% of all children lived with a step-parent.

                “One of the largest shifts in family structure is this:  34% of children today are living with an unmarried parent – up from just 9% in 1960, and 19% in 1980.  In most cases, these unmarried parents are single.  However, a small share of all children – 4% - are living with two cohabiting parents, according to CPS data.  Because of concerns about the quality of the new 2013 ACS data on same-sex marriage, we do not separate out the very small number of children whose parents are identified as in this type of union, but instead fold them into this `single parent’ category, as well.

                “The remaining 5% of children are not living with either parent.  In most of these cases, they are living with a grandparent – a phenomenon that has become much more prevalent since the recent economic recession.”

                What does the change in family structure means to our society today?  More children are living without a strong family structure, and many of these children become involved in the violent part of society.  More children are growing up in poverty because marriage and stable families are essential to being financially independent.  More people become adults with an entitlement attitude; they believe they are entitled to the wealth earned by other people.

                Strong families are needed for the rising generation to reach their full potential.  Children need the loving influence of both father and mother in order to become well-adjusted, independent adults.  The changes in family structure are not good for children or for society.

Free Community College

                What are your thoughts about Barack Obama promising two years of “free community college” for any student who maintains a “C” average?  The results of this promise comes at the expense of the tax payers?  My first thought was “What is he thinking?  He has real nerve to ask me to pay college expenses for anyone who desires the community college experience!”  My husband and all six of our children paid their own college expenses by scholarships, grants, loans, or work.  Each of them has great appreciation for what they accomplished and the knowledge they did it by themselves.  In spite of all this, each of my children plans to help their own children and do so by helping them save money for college.

                Lindsey Burke of The Heritage Foundation is not in favor of Mr. Obama’s idea:  “The administration’s proposal begs certain questions.  Low-income students already have access to federal Pell Grants, which can be used to finance their tuition obligations at a community college.  Indeed, the number of Pell recipients has doubled since 2008.  So the proposal will serve as little more than a federal handout to the community college system.

                “And it’s a system that hasn’t exactly produced stellar outcomes.  Just 20 percent of students who begin community college each year complete their program within 150 percent of the standard time, according to the U.S. Department of Education….”

                Ms. Burke quoted Neal McCluskey at the Cato Institute:  “According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, only 20 percent of community college students transfer to four-year schools, and only 72 percent of those will have finished or remained enrolled four years later.  So, from what we can tell, we are looking at completion for just around 34 percent of community college students.”

                These two quotes show that most of the students at community colleges fail to complete their education for one reason or another.  If the public is paying the cost of community college, how many people will go for the “college experience” without any intention of getting an education?   I simply do not like the idea!

                I thought this administration was all about “fairness.”  How can Mr. Obama consider this idea to be fair when millions, possibly even billions of students have paid their own way through college only to have to turn around and pay the college costs for other people?  How will it help today’s college students when community college costs began to soar simply because the government got involved in education?