An Exclusive Investigative Report By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on May 6, 2019 Beginning on April 18, 2019, I published five articles about the City of Birmingham, Alabama’s loss of a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to partner with Major League Baseball (MLB) on the development of a $10 million Youth Baseball Academy in the city. MLB’s Youth Foundation was set to fund the project at George Ward Park. It would have converted the five softball fields into four full-size baseball fields. MLB was also going to build an academy building on the site that would have provided low to no cost baseball and softball instruction and league play for children. In additional to the baseball curriculum, MLB’s Science of Sports would have also provided football, basketball and soccer programs for kids. This was “a dream come true” for thousands of young children across the city. MLB was excited to host the Youth Baseball Academy in Birmingham and was prepared to showcase it around the world. Residents in the predominantly white Glen Iris neighborhood objected to the project because it was located close to their neighborhood. They believed the Academy would attract too many black children and their supporters to the adjacent 100-acre George Ward public park. Council President Valerie Abbot, who is white, lives in the Glen Iris neighborhood and represents the council district where George Ward Park is located. She controls the Birmingham’s black mayor and predominantly black city council with an iron grip. Abbott’s constituents enjoy the degree of control and dominion she exercises over the mayor and council, and she does too. Local media groups, including The Birmingham News and AL.com, afford Abbott a courtesy form of media protectionism from public criticism because they share her values. MLB was shocked and appalled that “benign” racism defeated the Youth Baseball Academy project in Birmingham, despite an 8-1 vote from the city council to move forward with the project. In light of the City’s foot-dragging on the project, its messy and petty politics, and the negative racial comments that were whispered during the City’s consideration of the project, MLB reconsidered the George Ward Park site and focused on a more welcoming community and site in Vero Beach, Florida. Abbott Threatened to Report the "Fishy" MLB Baseball Academy Deal to Federal Law Enforcement Authorities What has never been exposed publicly until now is how Valerie Abbott killed the MLB project. Abbott is accustomed to outthinking, outworking, and out maneuvering Mayor Randall Woodfin and most of her colleagues on the city council when it comes to matters that are important to her. She sees these officials as lazy, inept, and unprepared officeholders. Abbott also knows that Mayor Woodfin and most of the city councilors have no courage, substance, or vision for Birmingham. Furthermore, Abbott knows that the city’s park board, which is headed by neophyte board member Montal Morton, is even weaker than the city council. Even though the park board supported the MLB project, it did not have the political will, intestinal fortitude, or business acumen to counteract Abbott’s strong opposition to the MLB project. Armed with all of this inside knowledge, Valerie Abbott used a technique on the council and park board members that is as old as slavery in America. Abbott let it be known to some of her colleagues in City Hall that she thought something was "fishy" about the MLB Youth Baseball Academy project and that, if they kept pushing for the project at George Ward Park, Abbott was going to ask the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Birmingham to investigate the matter. With this bold power play, Abbott killed the project. The supporting city councilors and park board members sprinted from the Youth Baseball Academy project like they were running in an Olympic track event. Mayor Woodfin, who only shows up for work at City Hall a few days per week, quietly abandoned the MLB project as soon as he learned of Abbott’s opposition to the project. She did not have to threaten Woodfin. It is well-known in Birmingham's business community that Woodfin is afraid of any kind of confrontation with the city's white business and political leaders. Most cities would clamor for an opportunity to partner with MLB on a project of this quality and magnitude. This is the kind of partnership that usually leads to an endless series of positive experiences and projects with MLB. However, Birmingham city officials quickly ditched a sports academy project that would have benefited tens of thousands of deserving children for generations solely because Valerie Abbott threatened to have a dozen or so scared blacks on the city council and park board investigated by federal law enforcement authorities. Blacks Have No Effective Political Representation Inside Birmingham City Hall The 1965 Voting Rights Act literally changed the face of Birmingham’s city government from all-white to predominantly black. Yet, black city residents today have no real voice or effective representation in city government. Except for District 8 Councilor Steven Hoyt, the people who were chosen to represent the political interests of the city's black residents and businesses have consistently refused to stand up and aggressively fight for them on issues ranging from Mayor Woodfin’s open embrace of modern-day environmental racism in the Five Points West community, to the abandonment of economic empowerment opportunities for city businesses in connection with the construction and operation of the $174 million UAB football stadium, to the proposed $10 million MLB Youth Baseball Academy. Instead producing tangible results that improve the quality of life for their political constituents, the city’s mayor and most of its black city officials tend to blame their failure to perform the duties of their offices on “white racism.” They always claim, in private, that this condition is beyond their control. In truth, there is no justifiable excuse for their persistent failure to aggressively and faithfully represent the political interests of their constituents. The MLB Youth Baseball Academy project is dead, but Valerie Abbott's political grip on the city's mayor and council is alive. PHOTO: Birmingham Council President Valerie Abbott killed the $10 million MLB Youth Baseball Academy project by threatening to have this "fishy" deal investigated by federal law enforcement authorities in Birmingham. Her threat scared all of the Academy's supporters in City Hall away from the project.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 22, 2019 On April 18 and 20, 2019, I published articles that were highly critical of Birmingham, Alabama’s mayor, 8 of its 9 city council members, and all 5 of the city's park board members for fumbling a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to partner with Major League Baseball (MLB). I said these officials are small-minded, week-kneed, and incompetent because they allowed Council President Valerie Abbott to kill a $10 million project sponsored by MLB’s Youth Foundation that would have converted the five softball fields at George Ward Park into full-size baseball fields. MLB was also going to build an academy building on the site that would have provided low to no cost baseball and softball instruction and league play for young athletes. The world-class MLB Youth Baseball Academy would have also provided the attendees with academic and career training. I also said these city officials effectively serve as “bellhops” inside City Hall for Valerie Abbott, who opposed the MLB project because George Ward Park is located in her council district. Residents in the adjacent Glen Iris neighborhood, which is predominantly white, opposed the project out of fear that it would increase the black presence in the park. Abbot, who is very competent and who outthinks, outworks, and outmaneuvers all of the other city officials, used her intimate knowledge of City Hall and considerable political skills to kill the MLB deal. She knows better than anyone just how weak, lazy, unprepared, subservient, and incompetent the other city officials are. After I blasted the city's mayor, the other 8 council members, and 5 park board members in my April 18th article, I received private messages from various City Hall “insiders” asking me to refrain from publicly criticizing this predominantly black group of elected and appointed officials. The tenor of the messages was that a black journalist should never portray black public officials in a negative light (even when they deserve it) because it tends to perpetuate negative racial stereotyping of these officials. To me, that message was total “bullshit." I answered the request for a race-based form of protectionism from public criticism on April 20th in my very public, “Hell, No!” article. This response angered some of these officials, and they wasted no time in letting me know how they felt. All of the sudden, these city officials have a developed a backbone. Now, they want to stand up and fight. Now, they want to be aggressive. The trouble with their new-found courage is this: They don’t want to stand up and fight those who killed the MLB Youth Baseball Academy deal. That would require them to fight Valerie Abbott, who has proven she can whip their asses and humiliate them, at will. They don’t want to fight AL.com, which is a white-owned media organization that also blasted their failed leadership on the MLB deal. Likewise, they do not want to fight former Birmingham News sports writer Kevin Scarbinsky, who is white and who also highlighted their gross incompetence in this deal. Instead, these “do-nothing” city officials want to use their new-found courage and backbone to fight me, which is fine. They can take a number and get in line. There are a lot of distinguished adversaries and failed leaders in line ahead of this bunch of disgraced and incompetent city officials. I am sick and tired of watching sorry groups of elected and appointed officials betray the trust and confidence of the people they serve. I had to speak out on the MLB deal, and I am glad I did so. Say what you will about Valerie Abbott, but she delivered the results her Council District 3 constituents wanted. In contrast, Birmingham’s mayor, 8 of the 9 city council members, and all 5 of the park board members failed to deliver the MLB Youth Baseball Academy for their constituents. There is no excuse for this catastrophic failure of leadership. I served as an elected member of the Montgomery, Alabama city council from 1979 to 1983. Montgomery and Birmingham share the same Mayor-Council Act. I also know first-hand how lazy, weak, unprepared, subservient, and incompetent the other 14 city officials had to be for Valerie Abbott to beat them in such a public and humiliating fashion. Now, I am firmly convinced that all this group of inept city officials can do reasonably well is: (a) engage in the never-ending search for social media photo opportunities, (b) pat each other on the back for holding the government titles they possess, (c) attend sports event, entertainment concerts, dinner meetings, and out-of-town "workshops" (for free), (d) talk about me behind my back, and (e) participate in an endless series commemorative events that recognize the bravery of 1950s and 60s-era civil rights activists. All of these "feel good" actions and gestures are “safe” and will not offend Valerie Abbott, the Glen Iris neighborhood, or anybody else. Meanwhile, their deserving constituents continue to suffer in a perpetual state of self-induced, multi-dimensional disenfranchisement. I will back off of these city officials only when they start representing the political interests of the people they serve. PHOTO: Birmingham, Alabama Council President Valerie Abbott, the most powerful public official in Birmingham city government. She consistently outthinks, outworks, and outmaneuvers the city’s mayor and other 8 city council members, all of whom serve as her "bellhops" within City Hall.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on May 3, 2019 In May of 1933, Birmingham, Alabama City Engineer A.J. Hawkins released a city map that ranked its neighborhoods and communities as follows: 1. Best 2. Still Desirable 3. Definitely Declining 4. Hazardous 5. Negro Concentration 6. Commercial and Industrial 7. Undeveloped Black neighborhoods were deemed less desirable than those areas that were contaminated with hazardous waste. All-white city, county, and state public officials ran the state of Alabama in 1933. Jim Crow laws and customs were rigidly enforced. Black Birmingham residents could do very little to improve the quality of their neighborhoods. The delivery of basic city services to “Negro Concentration” neighborhoods was pretty much an afterthought. Yet, this did not stop these residents from trying to improve their communities and plight in life. By the 1960s, blacks in Birmingham decided that they were willing to face fire hoses, police dogs, church bombings, home bombings, and death in order to end the sweltering heat of Jim Crow oppression. Martin Luther King wrote about the suffocating conditions of racial segregation in his infamous 1963 “Letter from a Birmingham Jail." Birmingham played a pivotal role in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968. The Voting Rights Act made it possible for blacks in the South to register to vote and elect candidates of their choice to public office. Over time, the Voting Rights Act changed the color, face, and responsiveness of state and local governments throughout Alabama and across the South. In 1979, Birmingham elected Dr. Richard Arrington, Jr. as its first black mayor. With his election, the civil rights movement that began in the streets had been ushered into City Hall. City government became inclusive, responsive, and progressive in all facets of municipal services, and in all neighborhoods. During his 20 years as mayor, U.S. News and Report named Arrington as one of the nation’s five best mayors. In 1982, the Alabama Society of Public Administrators selected Arrington as “The Alabama Administrator of the Year”. In 1988, the National Urban Coalition named Arrington, “The Nation’s Most Distinguished Mayor”. The city was growing, thriving and moving toward equality under Arrington’s leadership. Arrington’s election paved the way for more blacks to win elections in Jefferson County. For the first time ever, black neighborhoods and communities in Birmingham could see and feel the delivery of equitable city services. Politicians had to earn and respect the black vote. Oliver Robinson Cracked the Door Open for Modern-Day Environmental Racism In 1998, the residents of the House District 58 in the Alabama Legislature elected Oliver Robinson as their candidate of choice to advance and protect their political interests, including their right to live in safe and clean neighborhoods. Robinson wasted no time in selling them out to Birmingham’s corporate elite. He quickly gained a notorious reputation in the State House for selling out his constituents. In 2016, Robinson abruptly resigned from office. He was later charged by federal prosecutors with conspiracy, bribery, fraud, and tax evasion. Robinson was sentenced to prison after pleading guilty in September 2017 to one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery, four counts of fraud, and one count of tax evasion. During the course of Robinson’s criminal trial, the public learned that he accepted money from business interests associated with industrial polluters in exchange for his opposition to community and regulatory efforts to designate polluted black neighborhoods in North Birmingham as EPA Superfund sites. In effect, Oliver Robinson was paid by the polluters and their business cronies to keep the old “Negro Concentration” neighborhoods below the “Hazardous” neighborhoods. Steven Hoyt Exposes a Resurgence in Environmental Racism Last month, Birmingham City Councilor Steven Hoyt, a three-term council member who represents District 8, exposed a plan by Sherman Industries to relocate a concrete manufacturing facility from its downtown location to a stable black residential neighborhood in the Five Points West community. According to an April 26, 2019 letter written by Hoyt, the relocation plan has the support of Mayor Randall Woodfin and his administration. Councilor Hoyt’s letter states: “Because of the negative environmental impact stemming from this company’s line of work, they were asked to relocate from downtown in an effort to reduce the impact on residents in and around Railroad Park and Regions Field. It is no secret that the residents there are predominantly white. Now, this company is being urged to in what I’d consider to be the heart of the black community in Birmingham.” Councilor Hoyt accused Woodfin and his administration of perpetuating the vestiges of “environmental racism” with Sherman Industries' relocation plan. He noted that the concrete facility would be located directly across the street from a daycare center that provides care for 35 to 40 children. He also pointed out that the facility would be located next to the Regions Bank building and one of the City’s major investments at the CrossPlex. Finally, Councilor Hoyt informed Mayor Woodfin that the relocation plan is a “prime example of the zoning plague that still grips our city, one that is a direct result of Birmingham’s history of bad leadership and segregation.” Steven Hoyt is absolutely right in opposing the relocation of the concrete facility to a stable residential neighborhood. It is well-documented that concrete manufacturing facilities release toxins in the air and soil that can be extremely dangerous to the health and safety of humans in surrounding communities. Unfortunately, Mayor Woodfin’s support for relocating the Sherman Industries’ concrete facility to the Five Points West community perpetuates the kind of environmental racism that is reflected in A.J. Hawkins’ 1933 city map. Because blacks were viewed as sub-human in 1933, Birmingham city officials forced them to live in residential neighborhoods that were located between lands that were used to dump commercial volumes of hazardous waste and those that were zoned for heavy commercial and industrial use. Eighty-six years after A.J. Hawkins diagramed the neighborhoods and depicted the zoning decisions of Birmingham’s all-white segregationist city commissioners in 1933, Birmingham’s neophyte black mayor and majority black city council seem ready to breathe new life into the racist zoning decisions of their eight-decades-old predecessors in office. Hoyt appears to be the lone fighter against the concrete facility relocation plan. Why Won't They Fight for Us? Steven Hoyt’s exposé raises hard questions that demand straight answers from Birmingham city officials. Here are a few: Why would Mayor Woodfin and a majority of the city council repeat North Birmingham’s tragic experience with environmental racism in the Five Points West community? Why would black city officials (and their white council colleagues) jeopardize the lives and safety of men, women and children in the Five Points West community to accommodate a known polluter that is seeking sanctuary in a black residential neighborhood? When will the mayor and other city council members join Councilor Steven Hoyt and put an end to the modern-day environmental racism that slowly poisons black residential neighborhoods? Finally, why won't they fight for us? PHOTO: In May of 1933, Birmingham, Alabama City Engineer A.J. Hawkins released a city map that ranked its neighborhoods and communities. The map is depicted below. PHOTO: The Legend for delineating environmental racism and redlining on A.J. Hawkins' 1933 city map appears below. PHOTO: District 8 City Councilor Steve Hoyt's April 26, 2019 letter to Mayor Randall Woodfin.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on May 2, 2019 Yesterday, I engaged in some straight talk with Birmingham, Alabama’s black community in an Open Letter about the city’s school system, mayor and council, and park board. For me, the sincerest form of loyalty is constructive criticism. The feedback I received from my Open Letter shedded much needed light on why the city’s black elected and appointed officials consistently fail to represent the interests of their constituents. The lone exception is Steven Hoyt, who is currently fighting what he calls "environment racism" with Sherman Industries’ plan to relocate its concrete manufacturing facility to Five Points West in Hoyt's council district. The other black city officials mentioned in my Open Letter constantly whisper to me (and others) that “white racism” is to blame for their catastrophic failure of leadership. I characterized the "white racism" excuse as “bullshit.” According to the feedback I received in phone calls and emails, it was unfair for me to compare the scholastic achievements of black students in all-black schools during the 1950s and 60s to the poor academic preparation of black students in Birmingham city schools today. In one comment, I was told: “America wasn’t founded on EDUCATION; it was founded on winning WARS!  Education is over-rated and worthless if nobody will give you an opportunity to apply your skills and you can’t find a way to apply your skills for your own self, like many black educated people have that problem.  As well as others who can’t do without Affirmative Action, whether the Affirmative Action is white or black based.” I disagree with this comment. I believe that education is the key to success for black Americans and people of color all over the globe. Without it, we are doomed to a permanent state of servitude and abuse. Furthermore, education goes far beyond formal courses in K-12 and college. It includes exposure to and learning from people who are different from us and who may hold differing viewpoints. I also believe in the old saying, “everybody who is your color is not your kind.” This saying applies to members of all ethnic groups. Another comment focused on the amount of pay city officials receive for the public positions they hold. The inference was this: Black pubic officials don’t get paid enough money to stand up and aggressively fight for the political interests of their constituents. These officials knew the salaries for their positions when they were campaigning for the job or applying to be appointed to an agency like the park board. If they are not committed to representing the political interests of their constituents on principle, alone, then these officials are not worthy of their positions. For the record, I served as a member of the Montgomery city council from 1979 to 1983.  We operated under a Mayor-Council Act that is similar to Birmingham’s.  Council members were paid $300 per month.  I never took a dime in expense money from the city. There were only four black council members out of total of nine Montgomery city councilors.  Yet, the four of us accomplished more tangible improvements in the delivery of city services for our constituents than all of today’s black Birmingham city officials combined.  What is more, our achievements came in the face of massive resistance to every program we implemented for fairness and equity in the delivery of city services. My personal experiences as a public official serve as the yardstick by which I measure the effectiveness and progress of other blacks in similar positions. This is why I know “bullshit” excuses when I hear them. Finally, it was suggested that my Open Letter was written to curry favor with prosecutors in my criminal case. This was an interesting comment, but completely wrong. No one controls the subject-matter or content of my articles. I am "unbought" and "unbossed" in this regard. I have harshly criticized President Donald J. Trump, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the FBI, the COINTELPRO program (both the old and modern versions), The Birmingham News, AL.com, John Archibald, Kyle Whitmire, the Pentagon, The Boeing Company, U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL.), former Alabama governor Robert Bentley and his married lover Rebekah Caldwell Mason, Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ron Abernathy, Matrix, LLC CEO Joe Perkins, former Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard, former Montgomery federal judge Mark Fuller, former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, former Alabama attorney general/U.S. senator Luther Strange, and a host of other well-known public officials, both black and white. I don’t have a double standard in this regard. I think my comments in yesterday’s article presented a fair and balanced assessment on the failure of leadership in Birmingham city government.   For me, a public official, whether he/she is black, white, brown, yellow, Democrat, Republican, Independent, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, or Atheist, should provide effective leadership, or get out of the way. African-Americans will never make progress as a people if we do not hold our public officials accountable for failing in their duty to represent our interests in an honest and aggressive manner. People may criticize a city official like Birmingham Council President Valerie Abbott or a national official like President Donald Trump for their public policy views, but very few people will criticize them for the aggressive and effective manner in which they represent the political interests of the constituents who elected them. My bottom line is this: I am sick and tired of black public officials abandoning the political interests of their constituents as soon as the swearing-in ceremony ends. If this spontaneous abandonment is okay with the people who elected them, then these officials (and their constituents) should stop blaming the precarious socio-economic conditions of African-Americans in Birmingham (and across America) on “white racism.” PHOTO: Birmingham Councilor Steven Hoyt represents Council District 8. He is currently fighting "environmental racism" within his District and has been criticized by the city's mayor on social media for waging this fight. Hoyt, who was first elected in 2009, seems to be the lone fighter for economic justice inside City Hall.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 25, 2019 After I published four articles about how Birmingham, Alabama’s mayor, city council, and park board blew a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to partner with Major League Baseball (MLB), I received a very thoughtful email from one of my readers. The author of the email wrote, “your position on City Hall is off base, in this case, unless you are going to call a spade a spade and leave no wiggle room or ambiguity in what you write to be misconstrued. The People voted for Abbott to be in her position as well as voted for the mayor.” The writer raised a number of points that I need to clarify. All of them deserve further comment. First, my emphasis on the MLB deal goes far beyond the $10 million the League was going to invest in the constructing four full-size baseball fields and a world-class Youth Baseball Academy at George Ward Park. It goes to placing Birmingham on the world map for something other than the infamous 16th Street Baptist Church bombing that killed four little girls and the shocking images of Bull Connor using firehoses and police dogs to attack peaceful civil rights demonstrators. I learned about the vast national and international power of American-based major league professional sports organizations and their member teams through personal experience. In 2002, MLB qualified me as a bidder for the Anaheim Angels, which was owned by the Walt Disney Company. In 2003, the Angels sold to Arturo Moreno, who was a limited partner in the Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2009, Goldman Sachs qualified me as a bidder for the Rosenbloom family’s 60% ownership interest in the St. Louis Rams. In 2010, Stan Kroenke, the sole limited partner in the Rams, exercised his right of first refusal at the last minute and bought the Rosenblooms’ 60% interest. The biggest drawback I had during my competition for the Angels and Rams stemmed from the fact that I was from Birmingham, which was viewed by each organization as a third-tier city in a bottom-five state. Eventually, I was able to redirect the focus of MLB and the NFL back to the quality of my personal assets rather than where my businesses were headquartered. Once I qualified as a bidder for a major league sports team ownership opportunity, I was exposed to the inner workings of MLB and the NFL and their vast network of empowerment opportunities. The cities that partner with MLB and the NFL have a tremendous competitive advantage over cities that do not. These sports organization are multi-billion dollar enterprises that can deliver tangible economic benefits to neighborhood schools, non-profit organizations, local businesses, and civic organizations within the sphere of their networking partnerships. In this case, MLB wanted to partner with Birmingham. All the city had to do was host MLB's Youth Baseball Academy project at George Ward Park, rather than insulting the organization with a small-minded, self-centered, neighborhood-focused agenda. The city’s mayor, council, and park board allowed Council President Valerie Abbott to single-handedly kill the MLB project. She was able to outthink, outwork and out maneuver all of these city officials combined. Like weak-kneed puppets, the other city officials accepted this embarrassing outcome and bowed out of a political fight with Abbott over this matter. Abbott, who enjoys media support and protectionism from The Birmingham News and AL.com, was wrong in the merits of her opposition to the MLB project. However, from a political effectiveness standpoint, she did an outstanding job of representing the interest of the Glenn Iris neighborhood. This mostly white neighborhood trashed the project and disrespected the visiting delegation from MLB. Mayor Randall Woodfin has been as silent as a church mouse on this blunder. Woodfin's silence tells me he tacitly supported Valerie Abbott’s "hit job" on MLB. This is the second major blunder the City of Birmingham has made in the sports world within a year. In 2018, the City agreed to provide $90 million of the $174 million in funding for a new 55,000 seat open air stadium for University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) football. Even though the City is providing the largest amount of money for the project, it does not control the hundreds of contracting and subcontracting opportunities related to the construction of the stadium or the plethora of ongoing revenue streams from stadium operations. Furthermore, the City did not demand that businesses headquartered in Birmingham have first preference on contracting opportunities related to the project. The other financing partners in the stadium project have total control and dominion over the expenditure of project financing monies and the economic empowerment opportunities derived from stadium operations. Instead of controlling the stadium project, Birmingham city officials are just happy to have seats, hot dogs, and drinks in one of the luxury skyboxes during the UAB games. Somehow, these officials always seem to be content with the trapping of power, rather the exercise of power to deliver tangible benefits to the city’s residents and businesses. For the record, I support the stadium project. However, Birmingham’s $90 million financing commitment, with no controlling rights as the largest financing partner, reflects very poorly on the city’s understanding of the power of its money. Furthermore, Birmingham is NOT respected as a partner in the project because it has no "purse string" rights. If this is the quality and direction of leadership a majority of Birmingham voters wanted in the last municipal elections, then I respect their wishes. However, as a taxpayer and voter in the City, I will continue to speak out. Unfortunately, I do not see things getting any better for Birmingham residents and businesses; I only see them getting worse. PHOTO: MLB Youth Baseball Academy participants, officials, and supports in Washington, D.C. This opportunity could have occurred in Birmingham, but city officials blew it.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 24, 2019 Having blown a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to partner with Major League Baseball (MLB), Birmingham, Alabama's mayor and council are back to doing what they do best -- majoring in minors. At Tuesday’s weekly council meeting, Birmingham city officials were focused Councilor Darrell O’Quinn’s proposed ordinance that would ban retail businesses in the city from providing plastic bags and other single-use containers to their customers. The ordinance, while environmentally-friendly, will not create a single new job in the city and will not generate a dollar in new revenues for city services to residents. In the aftermath of the MLB debacle, O’Quinn’s ordinance is an example of how city officials perpetually majors in minors. The MLB partnership would have created a lot of new jobs, constructed four full-size baseball fields and a Youth Baseball Academy at George Ward Park, and promoted a positive profile of Birmingham around the world. This partnership would have been a major league deal. The blown MLB project has shown us that Birmingham’s mayor and 8 of the city’s council members are political dwarfs who cannot do anything but major in minors. The only effective and strong leader in city government is Council President Valerie Abbott. She outthinks, outworks and out maneuvers all of the other city officials combined. What is worse, the other city officials have an inferiority complex when dealing with Valerie Abbott on matters of importance to her. She opposed the MLB project and single-handedly killed it. The other city officials accepted this embarrassing outcome and bowed out of a political fight with Abbott over this matter. Additionally, the mayor and male council members have been psychologically and politically castrated. Apart from Abbott, the females on the council are neophytes who appear to be incapable of challenging Abbott's authority. This is why the mayor and council are talking about plastic bags rather than their collective failure to consummate the MLB partnership. The MLB deal evidences one huge lost opportunity where the mayor and council cannot use white racism as an excuse to explain their failure to exercise strong and effective leadership. The council voted 8-1 to get the MLB deal done. Yet, they did not have the intestinal fortitude or political acumen to override Valerie Abbott’s staunch opposition to the MLB project. Birmingham has third-string city officials who pretend they are municipal government all-stars. Valerie Abbott is an all-star, but the others are not. Now that the mayor and council members have shown us who they really are, we should believe them. I suggest that those of us who pay taxes in Birmingham simply adjust our expectation down several notches and allow these city officials to focus on (a) banning plastic bags, (b) fixing potholes in the streets, (c) repairing broken sidewalks, (d) cutting ribbons at ceremonial events, (e) passing resolutions that honor distinguished citizens, and (f) cutting grass on vacant city lots. These are non-controversial tasks that should not overwhelm them. My God, how did we get here? PHOTO: Birmingham City Council member Darrell O'Quinn represents District 5. He is leading the effort to ban city businesses from using plastic bags. O'Quinn voted for the MLB project but was powerless to consummate the deal.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 20, 2019 On Easter Sunday, we will celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord. Please read his obituary. It is the most important one in the history of mankind. People around the world know Jesus's name and revere his life's story. Do you see a piece of yourself in how Jesus lived his life? If Jesus were here today, how would Christians in the United States and around the world treat him? I ask these simple questions because Jesus stood for everything that many of today’s political officials, religious leaders and Christians do not. Here are some examples: Jesus was an outside agitator who led an underground liberation movement. He was homeless most of his life. He was also anti-materialistic. Jesus loved people -- all people. His love was unconditional. Jesus welcomed outsiders and foreigners. He favored the poor and afflicted over the rich. He did not “hate” on those who refused to follow his teachings. Jesus also encouraged help for the sick and elderly. He practiced medicine without a license and healed the sick on the Sabbath. Jesus distributed food without a permit. He made wine without a license. Jesus paraded on public streets without a permit. He held numerous illegal gatherings. Whenever children sat on Jesus’s lap, he was not molesting them. Instead, Jesus protected children and taught them in the way of the Lord. Jesus aided and abetted known prostitutes. And, he sent revolutionaries out into the world to spread his word. Jesus treated the “least of these” with the utmost respect. Finally, Jesus denounced violence, even when it involved his own crucifixion. He asked God to forgive those who killed him. Who among us today promotes, protects, and advances these Christian values? PHOTO: The obituary of Jesus Christ

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 18, 2019 I rarely write about local government matters. My articles tend to focus on national and international issues of significant public interest. Today, I am making an exception to this trend because the City of Birmingham, Alabama lost an incredible opportunity to partner with Major League Baseball (MLB) on the development of a $10 million baseball and softball academy at George Ward Park that focuses on educating and training young athletes. MLB is a professional baseball organization, the oldest of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. A total of 30 teams play in the National League (NL) and American League (AL), with 15 teams in each league. MLB revenues exceed $10 billion annually. MLB's influence in professional sports is felt worldwide. Birmingham is a third-tier sports city. Unlike Memphis, Charlotte, Nashville, New Orleans, St. Louis, Tampa, Orlando, and other comparable metro-areas in the region, Birmingham has no major league professional sports team. It has a minor league baseball team that plays in Regions Field in the downtown area. MLB’s Youth Foundation was set to fund the project at George Ward Park that would have converted the five softball fields into full-size baseball fields. MLB was also going to build an academy building on the site that would have provided low to no cost baseball and softball instruction and league play for young athletes. The Youth Academy would have also provided the attendees with academic and career training. Residents in the predominantly white Glen Iris neighborhood objected to the MLB project because it was located close to their neighborhood. They believed MLB’s Youth Academy would attract too many black patrons and supporters to the adjacent park area. Council President Valerie Abbot, who is white, lives in the Glen Iris neighborhood and represents the council district where George Ward Park is located. She controls the mayor and predominantly black city council with an iron grip. MLB was shocked and appalled that racism once again raised its ugly head in Birmingham. In light of the City’s foot-dragging on the project, its messy and petty politics, and the negative racial comments that were whispered during the City’s consideration of the project, MLB reconsidered the George Ward Park site and focused on a more welcoming site in Vero Beach, Florida. I don’t blame MLB for moving on. Except for Abbott's status quo agenda, Birmingham’s city government is leaderless today. The George Ward Park project incident is the latest in a series of embarrassing blunders that Birmingham has made on the world stage. It follows the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute’s decision in January 2019 to rescind its presentation of the 2018 Fred Shuttleworth Human Rights Award to world-famous civil rights activist Angela Davis. After announcing the Award to Ms. Davis, the Institute received objections from local patrons. Following a worldwide and very public outcry about its decision to withdraw the Award, the Institute reconsidered this action and reinstated the Award to Ms. Davis. Like MLB, Ms. Davis moved on to work more supportive civil rights causes and activists, without accepting the Institute’s reinstated Award. While the City has plenty of officeholders with nice sounding titles, they have no courage, substance, or vision. Except for Valerie Abbott and two of her council colleagues, they have a demonstrated track record of abandoning the constituents who elected them at the blink of an eye. Not one of them had the business acumen or ability to consummate the City’s partnership with MLB. What is worse, City leaders allowed “do-gooders” in the Glen Iris neighborhood to kill the MLB deal. They have no replacement sports academy deal with MLB, MLS, the NFL, or the NBA that is of equal or greater value to the City and its young athletes. It was an exercise in stupidity for City leaders to lose an opportunity to partner with MLB on something as wholesome, important and influential as the Youth Baseball Academy. The project would have put Birmingham on the national and international map for something extremely positive. Instead, Birmingham appears to be hopelessly trapped in an endless series commemorative events that recognize the bravery of 1950s and 60s-era civil rights activists. For reasons I do not understand, Birmingham seems incapable of moving beyond petty racial politics, even when an organization like MLB presents the City with a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to do so. Most cities would clamor for an opportunity to partner with MLB on a project of this quality and magnitude. This kind of partnership usually leads to an endless series of positive experiences and projects with MLB. Now, Birmingham city officials can congratulate themselves on how they lost out on something tangible and meaningful for tens of thousands of young aspiring athletes, for generations to come. In the end, Council President Valerie Abbott showed MLB and the rest of the world who these city officials really are, and who owns them. PHOTO: MLB tried to establish a $10 million Urban Youth Academy in Birmingham. Racial politics and neighborhood animosity killed the deal.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 20, 2019; Updated at 4:30 p.m. EST After I published an April 18, 2019 article that was highly critical of Birmingham, Alabama’s mayor, city council, and park board members for fumbling a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to partner with Major League Baseball (MLB), I received a string of private messages from City Hall “insiders” asking me to refrain from publicly criticizing this predominantly black group of elected and appointed officials. The gist of the messages was that a black journalist should not portray black public officials in a negative light (even when they deserve it) because this criticism tends to fuel negative racial stereotyping of the officials in question. The private and public answer to these requests for race-based protectionism from public criticism is, “Hell, No!” For the record, I slammed The Boeing Company for manufacturing a defective 737 MAX airplane that killed 346 innocent passengers and crew members in two recent planes crashes. I exposed historical and embedded racism in America's immigration policies. I criticized Mayor Rahm Emmanuel for leading Chicago to the unenviable title of “Murder Capital of the World” while consuming himself with actor Jussie Smollett’s admission into a state-sanctioned pretrial diversion program for non-violent, non-drug-related, first time offenders. I bashed former Montgomery federal judge Mark Fuller for severely beating his second wife, while other media outlets remained silent on this domestic abuse matter. I criticized former governor Robert Bentley for trading the executive powers of his office for sexual favors from Rebekah Mason, his married lover. I also exposed the 2005 murder of Private LaVena Johnson, who was black, by a four-star general, who is white, on a military base in Balad, Iraq, which the Pentagon covered up by labeling the murder a "suicide." This list goes on and on. In light of this track record, why would I give Birmingham city officials a “pass” on the fumbled MLB opportunity just because the governing body is predominantly black? I will not. Neither skin color, nor partisan politics, is not a factor in the articles I write. Leadership skills, job performance, and accountability are the factors that matter to me. MLB’s Youth Foundation was set to fund a $10 million project at George Ward Park that would have converted the five softball fields into full-size baseball fields. MLB was also going to build an academy building on the site that would have provided low to no cost baseball and softball instruction and league play for young athletes. The Youth Academy would have also provided the attendees with academic and career training. Residents in the predominantly white Glen Iris neighborhood objected to the MLB project because it was located close to their neighborhood. They believed MLB’s Youth Academy would attract too many black patrons and supporters to the adjacent park area. Council President Valerie Abbot, who is white, lives in the Glen Iris neighborhood and represents the council district where George Ward Park is located. She was able to kill the MLB project because she controls the mayor and predominantly black city council with an iron grip. They basically serve as her “bellhops” within City Hall. MLB was shocked and appalled that racism once again raised its ugly head in Birmingham. In light of the City’s foot-dragging on the project, its messy and petty politics, and the negative racial comments that were whispered during the City’s consideration of the project, MLB reconsidered the George Ward Park site and focused on a more welcoming site in Vero Beach, Florida. It was an incredible exercise in stupidity for City leaders to lose an opportunity to partner with MLB on something as wholesome, important and influential as the Youth Baseball Academy. The project would have put Birmingham on the national and international map for something extremely positive. This kind of partnership usually leads to an endless series of positive experiences and projects with MLB, which is a $10 billion a year business enterprise. Sadly, what passes for leadership at City Hall today are the following actions: (a) the never-ending searches by city officials for non-controversial photo opportunities, (b) their attendance at sports and entertainment events (for free), and (c) their symbolic participation in an endless series commemorative events that recognize the bravery of 1950s and 60s-era civil rights activists. These PR actions are “safe” and will not offend anybody. Meanwhile, these city officials have squandered another big opportunity to improve the quality of life for young people in Birmingham. There is nothing they can do to restore the lost opportunity with MLB. Finally, the takeaway for major business enterprises that want to partner with the City of Birmingham is this: Make your deal with Council President Valerie Abbott. She, alone, killed the MLB transaction, which had the support of the mayor and 8 of the 9 council members. Valerie Abbott is the real "powerbroker" who will determine whether your deal with the City lives or dies. The other officeholders in city government are nothing more than an ensemble of polished "seat-warmers" who look nice in a photogenic "window-dressing" portrait. PHOTO: Mayor Randall Woodfin (from row, left), Council President Valeria Abbott (front row, right), and council members. Ms. Abbott runs the City of Birmingham. The other city officials serve as her "bellhops" in City Hall.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 17, 2019 The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is working with Boeing to fast-track a tentatively approved “fix” to the troubled 737 MAX series of aircraft. This is not the “fix” the flying public had in mind. The same Seattle, Washington division of the FAA that initially approved the flying death trap as “airworthy” and “safe to fly” on March 8, 2017 is now working expeditiously to certify Boeing’s software "fix" to the MCAS flight safety system. An excellent six-minute educational video from Vox.com explains why the 737 MAX has engineering flaws that are far beyond the software “fix” offered by Boeing and tentatively approved by the FAA. The FAA’s Fast Track Review of the Modified MCAS System In March 2019, the FAA’s Flight Standardization Board (FSB)and Seattle-based Aviation Evaluation Group for Transport Aircraft reviewed Boeing’s proposed modifications to the MCAS system. On April 16, 2019, the FSB released a draft report that found the MCAS system to be “operationally suitable.” The FSB report also recommended additional pilot training to address the MCAS system description, functionality, associated failure conditions, and flight crew alerting. The FAA shortened the period of time for public comment on the draft FSB Report. Members of the public must deliver their comments to the FAA by the April 30, 2019 deadline. This is the second time the FAA has shortened the period for public comment during this review process. The draft FSB Report is a public document. I submitted my public comments to the FAA today. Sadly, the FAA’s abbreviated time period for public comment follows a proposed Boeing modification to an airplane that has experienced two crashes and killed a total of 346 passengers and crew members. In the aftermath of these tragic deaths, the FAA's truncated and expedited certification process for the 737 MAX airplane with the modified MCAS system is unconscionable. This FAA action demonstrates that the public agency responsible for flight safety is still captive to Boeing’s corporate interests. Furthermore, the FAA is still placing Boeing’s profit interest ahead of passenger safety, even after 346 passengers and crew members died in two 737 MAX airplanes. The fundament engineering design problem with the 737 MAX aircraft is the size and placement of its two engines. The engine size and placement causes the nose of the airplane to pitch up during a full-throttle takeout. This is a built-in engineering design flaw. Rather than redesigning the airplane before commercial production began, Boeing tried to fix this flight safety problem by installing the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) system on the airplane. The MCAS software “fix” was the cheapest and least desirable flight safety solution available to Boeing. Using its army of lobbyists and clout within the FAA, Boeing won certification of an inherently defective passenger aircraft in record time. This feat was relatively easy to achieve in an era of deregulation legislation passed by Congress for FAA certification protocols and flight safety operations. After new 737 MAX airplanes crashed in October and March, both Boeing and the FAA knew they had a major problem on their hands. The FAA had never before certified a new plane with advance knowledge that the aircraft had a built-in engineering design flaw which jeopardized airworthiness and flight safety. This reckless certification action guaranteed that passengers and crew members on 737 MAX commercial airplanes would die in plane crashes in massive numbers. And, they did -- 346 of them to date. A Throwback to the Ford Pinto Days (1971-1976) Boeing, with the FAA’s blessing, has made a strategic decision that it is far cheaper to pay death claims from 737 MAX airplane crashes than it is to redesign the airplanes in production at its Renton, Washington manufacturing facility. Americans have seen this kind of short-sighted business approach before. Ford Motor Company made the same strategic decision in 1971 after the company learned that its new Pinto model car had an exploding gas tank when the vehicle was hit from the rear in a low-to-moderate impact accident. It was a basic design flaw in the car that Ford knew about before the cars hit the market. Approximately 180 deaths and thousands of burn-related injuries occurred as a result of rear-impact-related fuel tank fires in the Pinto. . As was the case with Boeing and the 737 MAX airplane, Ford rushed the Pinto into production to fight imported sub-compact cars from its foreign competitors. From Ford's standpoint, it was cheaper to pay the death claims from Pinto rear-end accidents than it was to redesign the Pinto cars in production. In September 1978, after a public outcry from consumer groups over the horrific deaths and burn-related injuries, Ford issued a recall for 1.5 million 1971-76 Pinto sedans and Runabouts, plus all similar 1975-76 Mercury Bobcats, for a safety repair. Each car received a new fuel-tank filler neck that extended deeper into the tank and was more resistant to breaking off in a rear-end collision. The FAA’s Action is Not the “Fix” the Public Deserves Welcome to the age of lobbyist-controlled FAA operations, “bought and paid for” Congress members who deregulated flight safety protocols to the manufacturer, and one greedy and reckless airplane manufacturer that controls 38% of the market. The FAA’s tentative approval of the modified MCAS system is not the “fix” we deserve for the 737 MAX airplane. How many passengers and crew members have to die in 737 MAX airplane crashes before the FAA makes Boeing redesign this defective aircraft to eliminate its built-in design flaw? Who among us will be on the death-roll from the next 737 MAX crash? PHOTO: A Boeing 737 MAX airplane taxing from the assembly line to the paint factory in Renton, Washington.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 13, 2019 On Friday, Chicago Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot shocked the nation by openly declaring that undocumented migrants and asylum seekers in U.S. custody are always welcomed to her city, even if President Donald Trump is the one sending them there. This bold statement was made in response to a recent threat Trump made to ship asylum seekers who exceeded their 20 days in custody to Democratically-controlled sanctuary cities nationwide. Chicago is one such city. In 1950, Chicago’s population was 3.6 million. Today, the city’s population has dropped to 2.7 million. Chicago’s tax base has taken a big hit as a result of this decline in population. Chicago needs a boost in its population to become vibrant again. As discussed below, Lightfoot may have found a viable solution to the city’s rapidly declining population and tax base problems. Demonizing Migrants of Color Trump has spent his entire presidency demonizing migrants of color from Central and South American countries and from African countries, including those who apply for entry into America through designated ports of entry. Trump has painted all of these migrants – men, women and children -- as “thugs," “drug-dealers," and “gang members.” He has labeled their place of national origin as “shithole countries.” In a controversial move that weaponized America’s immigration system, Trump implemented a family separation policy that separated thousands of young children from their migrant parents and placed them in cages. Trump also authorized border patrol officials to break America’s immigration laws in their treatment of migrants of color with an openly stated promise that these lawbreakers will receive a presidential pardon for engaging in such unlawful conduct. Trump’s increasing demonization of migrants of color and his brutal crackdown on their efforts to seek American citizenship constitute inhumane political responses to a 2018 Brookings Institute report that projects America will become “minority white” in 2045. During that year, whites will comprise 49.7% of the population in contrast to 24.6% for Hispanics, 13.1% for blacks, 7.9% for Asians, and 3.8% for multiracial populations. The Institute’s first report on this subject in 2014 projected that the tipping point would occur in 2044. Among the minority populations, the greatest growth is projected for multiracial populations, Asians and Hispanics with 2018–2060 growth rates of 176%, 93%, and 86%, respectively. The projected growth rate for blacks is 34%. During this time frame, the aging white population will see a modest immediate gain through 2024, and then experience a long-term decline through 2060, a consequence of more deaths than births. Trump’s crackdown on migrants of color is aimed at slowing or stopping the “Browning of America.” Disparate Treatment Based Upon Skin Color and Place of National Origin Trump’s political response to America’s recent fixation with its “immigration problem” does not apply to white migrants from Europe. In fact, during a January 2018 meeting with lawmakers in the Oval Office, Trump referred to Haiti and countries in Africa as “shithole countries” and called for more immigrants from places like Norway.  Of course, Norway is a European country with an 83% white population. Furthermore, Trump’s disparate treatment of migrants of color is best measured by how he treated First Lady Melania Trump’s parents, Viktor and Amalija Knavs. The Knavs, who made their first trip to America from the Yugoslav Republic of Slovenia in February 2004, took their oaths to become Americans in August 2018 after the First Lady sponsored their green cards. Slovenia has a population that is more than 88% white. The Knavs were not fleeing gang violence, political persecution, or abject poverty in Slovenia. Instead, the Knavs, who are white, had a "hook-up" in the White House. They are European immigrants who benefited from the “chain migration” which Trump has repeatedly denounced for immigrants of color. Under “chain migration,” a single immigrant who becomes a U.S. citizen may sponsor an unlimited number of other relatives for green cards and citizenship. Against this backdrop of disparate treatment in the application of America’s immigration laws based upon the color and national origin of the migrants in question, it was refreshing to hear Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot proclaim: “We have people who are routinely coming to this city. We have a whole infrastructure that’s built up to make sure that their rights are protected while the city of Chicago has, under the current administration, provided funding for various groups to help support asylum seekers and other people that are going through the immigration court system. I expect it will continue, if not expand upon, those kinds of resources.” Except for Native Americans, all other Americans are descendants of immigrants. Many of these immigrants were brought to America as African slaves, white indentured servants, and English prisoners. Given this history, there is no rational and/or legal basis for treating today’s migrants and asylum seekers differently from European migrants based upon their skin color and place of national origin. Despite Trump’s Political Rhetoric, America is not “Full” During his trip to a U.S. Border Patrol station in California on April 5, 2019, Trump made it clear that the U.S. would not accept any more immigrants from Central and South American countries. He declared: “Can't take you anymore - we can't take you. Our country is full. Our area's full. The sector is full - can't take you anymore. I'm sorry.” Trump repeated his "Our country is full" declaration twice in the same speech. Afterwards, Trump threatened to send the migrants in U.S. custody to self-declared sanctuary cities. Although Trump was motivated by pure political retribution against Democrats who control sanctuary cities, Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot stepped forward and said: "We are a city that is a sanctuary city. We have immigrants from all over the world who call Chicago their home. They’ll continue to do that, and we’re going to continue to make sure that this is truly a welcoming community for those immigrants and we want them to come to the city of Chicago.” If Trump delivers the detained migrants to Chicago, this move will aid in solving America’s immigration problem and will provide Chicago with a viable option to regain a productive, responsible, and growing population. Contrary to the broad-brush, negative racist stereotypes Trump has painted about migrants from Central and South American countries and from “shithole countries” in Africa, the American experience with immigrants from these countries has shown that they go on to become the hardest working, most law-abiding, socially-responsible, civic-minded, successful, and patriotic members of American society. Unlike some of America’s most violent homegrown psychopaths and serial killers, these migrants are not likely to commit the mass murders of: (a) elementary, junior high, and high school children, (b) community college and university students, (c) personnel working on military bases in the U.S., (d) movie theater patrons, (e) civilian workplace employees, (f) assembled members of church congregations, (g) synagogue worshippers, (h) Las Vegas concert attendees, (i) young girls and women, and (j) other innocent American murder victims. This kind of horrific criminal activity is most often found within the ranks of native-born, white Americans who seemingly enjoy some form of National Rifle Association-sponsored political protection in Washington to acquired and possess their weapons of mass destruction. Mayor Lori Lightfoot should move forward with this opportunity to rebuild Chicago with men, women, and children who: (a) fled gang violence, political persecution, and abject poverty in Central and South America and in African countries, (b) risked their lives traveling to America, and (c) want the same opportunity to become productive American citizens that is routinely extended to white migrants from European countries. There is plenty of room for migrants and asylum seekers with these qualifications in American sanctuary cities that have experienced a severe decline in population due to decades of white flight to the suburbs. This can be a win-win solution for Lori Lightfoot, the City of Chicago (and other cities similarly situated), Donald Trump, and America. Embrace it. PHOTO: In a paradigm-shifting approach to America's "immigration problem," Chicago Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot welcomes detained migrants and asylum seekers to her city. These new residents just might help Chicago regain its lost population in a very productive and responsible way.

By Donald V. Watkins ©Copyrighted and Published on April 15, 2019 Many people are offended by the notion that President Donald J. Trump's hardline approach to America's “immigration problem” has racial underpinnings. To them, Trump is offering real and forceful solutions to a growing problem – the “Browning of America.” Trump is cracking down on the flow of undocumented migrants from Central and South American countries and African nations using any and all means necessary, whether legal or illegal. This crackdown is in full swing. A look back through history is useful in understanding the surge of support Trump enjoys for his immigration and naturalization policies that favor openly white immigrants from European countries while punishing migrants of color from other nations. As expected, Trump’s immigration and naturalization policies are extremely popular with his political base. This is particularly true with respect to his diehard supporters in the Deep South states that formed the old Confederacy during America’s Civil War. The Birth of White Entitlement in America The history of America has been riddled with schemes that sounded noble and virtuous, at least on the surface. At the end of the day, their only intended purpose was to award an avalanche of benefits to white European immigrants and their progeny. Thus, at the same time this country’s “founders” were espousing noble principles, they were aggressively grabbing land and valuables while exterminating Native Americans and enslaving people of color who were brought here from Africa. Even cherished patriots like Thomas Jefferson owned hundreds of slaves and spoke of the need to “eliminate” or “extirpate” Native Americans. In short, America’s early settlers and colonists denied and seized the rights, property and lives of millions of human beings. During the pinnacle of the patriarchy in the United States, which was supported by both the church and the legal system, half of the population – women – was denied the privileges and powers afforded to white males. Before 1865, a mere 154 years ago, ninety percent of blacks in America were slaves who were denied every freedom historically enjoyed by white males. The Native American population, roughly estimated to be 60 million people in the 1500s, was reduced to less than 306,000 by 1880. Because federal policy never officially mandated the “physical annihilation of the Native populations on racial grounds or characteristics,” the slaughter and starvation deaths of millions of Native-Americans during this period was not considered to be “genocide.” Embedded Racism in America’s Early Immigration and Naturalization Laws The adoption and implementation of racist immigration and naturalization policies in the United States did not start with President Trump. It started with the Naturalization Act of 1790, which limited citizenship in America to white persons. The Naturalization Act of 1870, which was enacted by Congress during the Post-Civil War Reconstruction Era, extended the naturalization process to "aliens of African nativity and to persons of African descent." Other non-whites, including Native Americans, remained excluded from naturalization, as mandated in the Naturalization Act of 1790. The Page Act of 1875 was the first federal law that prohibited the entry of immigrants who were deemed to be “undesirable.” These “undesirables” included migrants or contract workers from Asia (i.e., China, Japan, and any oriental country). The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 restricted immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years, prohibited Chinese naturalization, and provided deportation procedures for illegal Chinese. This law was race-based on its face. The Geary Act of 1892 extended and strengthened the Chinese Exclusion Act. The Immigration Act of 1917 further restricted immigration from countries in the Asia-Pacific Zone (i.e., the "Asiatic Barred Zone") and introduced a reading test for all immigrants over sixteen years of age, with certain exceptions for children, wives, and elderly family members. The Emergency Quota Act of 1921 limited the number of immigrants a year from any country to 3% of those already in the United States from that country, as measured by the 1910 census. Many white Europeans were able to fleece this system by simply migrating to Canada or Mexico and subsequently slipping into the United States illegally from these bordering countries. The Immigration Act of 1924 established permanent numerical limits on immigration and began a national-original quota system. Immigrants from non-quota nations, notably those contiguous to the United States, only had to prove their residence in that country of origin for at least two years prior to emigration to the United States. Migrants from Asian nations were still excluded but exceptions existed for professionals, clergy, and students to obtain visas. In the 1930s, federal immigration officials reportedly rounded up and deported more than 400,000 native born Mexicans and Mexican-Americans, many of whom were children and U.S. citizens. The Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act of 1943 repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and permitted Chinese nationals already in the country to become naturalized citizens. However, only 105 new Chinese immigrants were allowed into America each year. In 1954, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service implemented “Operation Wetback” to roundup and deport undocumented immigrants in selected areas of California, Arizona, and Texas along the border. The U.S. Border Patrol later reported that more than 1.3 million people were deported or had left the United States voluntarily under the threat of deportation in 1954. Of course, “Wetback” is a racially derogatory term for a person of Hispanic descent. Undocumented white Europeans who entered the United States from Mexico were not targeted for roundup and deportation in “Operation Wetback.” The Hart-Celler Act of 1965 repealed the national-origin quotas. The Act also (a) initiated a visa system for family reunification and skills, (b) set a quota for Western Hemisphere immigration, and (c) set a 20,000-immigrant country limit for Eastern Hemisphere migrants. In the 1990s, an estimated 5.8 million illegal immigrants entered the United States. Mexico rose to the head of the list of sending countries, followed by the Philippines, Vietnam, the Dominican Republic, and China. After the September 11, 2001 attacks upon the United States, an estimated 3.1 million immigrants entered the United States illegally between 2000 and 2005. From 1998 to 2001, Mexicans accounted for 68% of immigrants who entered the United States illegally. This percentage increased to 78% for the years between 2001 and 2005, mostly due to stricter security measures following the 9-11 attacks (which more efficiently prevented illegal entry from nations that did not share a land or maritime boundary with the United States). Interestingly, since 1990, rich people from around the world have been able to buy their way into America through the EB-5 Investor Visa Program. The program was the brainchild of the George H. W. Bush administration. It provided a legal way to help the President’s wealthy friends in foreign countries bypass long visa lines and gain permanent entry into the United States. The EB-5 program, which was created by the Immigration Act of 1990, allows eligible immigrant investors to become lawful permanent residents -- informally known as "green card" holders -- by investing at least $1,000,000 to finance a business in the United States that will employ at least 10 American workers. About 80% of EB-5 investors come from China, South Korea, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. Others have come from Canada, India, Mexico, Iran, and Japan. President Trump has backed extensions of the EB-5 program on several occasions. Media reports in 2017 suggest that the program was a major source of funding for the Kushner Companies. Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and senior policy advisor, played a pivotal role in (a) extending the EB-5 program and (b) securing EB-5 investments for the Kushman Companies. In marketing materials used by the Kushner Companies, Chinese investors were shown a photo of Donald Trump to suggest the ease of getting a green card. The American Model Shaped Nazi-Era Immigration Laws America’s immigration laws and policies from the 1700s to the early 1900s shaped Nazi-era laws on who could and could not be a German citizen during the rise of the Third Reich. In Hitler’s American Model, noted historian and legal scholar James Q. Whitman traced the evolution of Nazi-era immigration policies and practices to those implemented by the United States. According to Whitman, “What all this research unmistakably reveals is that the Nazis [found] precedents and parallels and inspirations in the United States.” The most radical Nazis were often the most enthused about American legal precedents. More moderate, less anti-Semitic members of the Nazi Party tended to be more skeptical of American approaches. For some Nazis, “American race law looked too racist.” America “was the leading racist jurisdiction” in the 1930s. Whitman’s book investigates institutional discrimination against Jews in 1930s Germany and against people of color throughout U.S. history. In the 1930s, both the United States and Nazi Germany assaulted their own citizens. As Whitman explains, “Jews of Germany were hounded, beaten, and sometimes murdered, by mobs and by the state alike. In the same years the blacks of the American South were hounded, beaten, and sometimes murdered as well.” Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf  praised America as the only nation that had “made progress toward the creation of a healthy racist order of the kind the Nuremberg Laws were intended to establish.” Hitler, himself, viewed America as the “global leader in racist immigration law.” The Nazis also applied an American model of disenfranchising groups of its own citizens. For example, American racists intimidated African American voters to prevent them from influencing government policy. The Nazis similarly cited Jewish “influence” as their reason for disenfranchising Jews in the 1930s. Take-Aways From the Naturalization Act of 1790 to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 to the Emergency Quota Act of 1921, U.S. immigration laws and policies from the Eighteenth through the Twenty-First Centuries have formed the basis for deciding who is and who is not supposed to reside in the country and/or become an American citizen. America is open to white European immigrants but is mostly closed to migrants of color. Trump has painted migrants of color -- men, women and children -- as “thugs," “drug-dealers," and “gang members.” He has labeled their places of national origin as “shithole countries.” Trump’s perpetual demonization of migrants of color have made them “undesirables” to his political base in the same way the Page Act of 1875 made migrants from Asia “undesirables.” Every immigration “solution” implemented by Trump since he assumed the Presidency is rooted in a race-based immigration system that has historically favored white immigrants from European countries. This is one area where government-sponsored affirmative action for whites goes unchecked and unchallenged. Finally, the EB-5 Investor Visa Program shows that a wealthy immigrant, regardless of color or nationality, can buy permanent residency in the United States, even if he/she comes from a country that sponsors terrorism. Enshrined in our immigration laws is the fundamental principle that America has a special pathway to citizenship for the wealthy while millions of others wait in line for an coveted opportunity to join our ranks as citizens. This is the uncomfortable truth about America's immigration laws. PHOTOS: In 1954, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service implemented “Operation Wetback” to roundup and deport undocumented immigrants in selected areas of California, Arizona, and Texas along the border. The U.S. Border Patrol later reported that more than 1.3 million people were deported or had left the United States voluntarily under the threat of deportation in 1954. Of course, “Wetback” is a racially derogatory term for a person of Hispanic descent. Undocumented white Europeans who entered the United States from Mexico were not targeted for roundup and deportation in “Operation Wetback.”