Author: Virginia Martin
Second Verse Same as the First: Four of Five JeffCo Commissioners Have No Known Election Challengers
The next Jefferson County Commission will look very much like the current one as four of the sitting five commissioners have no challenger in the upcoming primary or the general election.
Qualifying for the May 24 party primary elections concluded Friday with four of the five incumbents facing no opposition. District 2 Commissioner Sheila Tyson was the lone exception; Steve Small qualified to face her in the Democratic primary.
None of the commission seats has a qualifier from the other party in November’s general election.
Barring a successful independent or third-party challenge, Republicans Jimmie Stephens (District 3), Joe Knight (District 4) and Steve Ammons (District 5) and Democrat Lashunda Scales (District 1) will remain in office another four years. Stephens and Knight were initially elected in 2010. Scales, Ammons and Tyson were first elected to the commission in 2018.
Commissioners questioned Tuesday said the lack of challengers is an endorsement of the work they’ve done.
“It says that all five commissioners – not just four – all five commissioners have been working for the betterment of their communities,” said Stephens, the commission president. “We all run in districts, and everyone within those districts are extremely satisfied. They did not see a need to change.
“That means that we as a commission are working together to get things done to improve the quality of life for our citizens in Jefferson County,” he continued. “That is indeed what we were elected to do.” Read more.
Humane Society Can Continue Operation After JeffCo Commission Extends Contract
The Jefferson County Commission on Tuesday made sure the Greater Birmingham Humane Society can continue to house animals the next three years, avoiding having to move – or even euthanize – them. It extended the county’s contract with GBHS, without which the humane society would not have been able to get the insurance it needs.
“I don’t know where the slowdown came,” Commissioner Joe Knight said, “but it was some back-and-forth stuff up in the personnel board. But we got it out and we got her done. Had it expired, they would have had to move the animals.” Read more.
New Library Board Taking Over as Birmingham Council Replaces Five Members
The Birmingham City Council appointed five new members to the Birmingham Public Library’s board of trustees Tuesday, replacing a majority of the board’s current lineup, including President Eunice Johnson Rogers.
It’s a high-profile shake-up for the library board, which over the past several years has proven a lightning rod for controversy. Read more.
Candidates, On Your Marks
Candidates have lined up under the Republican and Democratic flags to run for their party nominations for a slate of offices, from U.S. Senate to governor to Jefferson County Commission.
Friday was the deadline for candidates to file papers to run in the primary election, which will be May 24, leading up to the Nov. 8 general election.
In Jefferson County alone, Democratic voters will have more than 80 candidates to choose from, and Republicans will have more than 60.
That doesn’t count candidates running for the U.S. House of Representatives. That qualifying deadline has been extended while the courts determine whether the redrawn House districts approved after the 2020 census are constitutional. A three-judge federal court panel ruled that they were not and told the state to redraw them, but the state has appealed that ruling to the U.S.
For lists of candidates running in each primary, read more.
Republican Primary Candidates 2022
Democratic Primary Candidates 2022
Not Falling for Phony News Takes a Lot of Darn Work
In light of the rampant spread of false information these days, the recent National News Literacy Week seems humorously futile. What’s next? Courteous Driving Week? Brussels Sprouts Appreciation Week?
News literacy, sometimes called media literacy, means that audiences, not just news organizations and platforms, carry responsibility for stopping distribution of misinformation and disinformation that arise from social media and substandard professional news outlets. (Misinformation means unintentional wrong information; disinformation means wrong information created or shared intentionally to cause mischief, advance a political agenda or make money.) This audience obligation entails evaluating the credibility of statements before choosing to believe them and share them. Read more.
Birmingham Teachers Stage Sickout Due to COVID Frustrations
Some Birmingham City Schools employees staged a sickout this week to bring attention to their concerns with how COVID-19 is being dealt with in their schools. Read more.
Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith Resigns, Citing Personal Matters
Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith resigned Friday, saying he wanted to focus on personal matters.
Birmingham Mayor Randall L. Woodfin appointed Capt. Scott Thurmond, a 23-year veteran on the force, to replace Smith on an acting basis, according to a statement issued by the mayor’s office.
In a letter to Woodfin on Friday, Smith resigned effective Feb. 25, but he asked to be put on administrative leave with pay until then to allow him to conclude some personal business and to allow for a smooth transition to new leadership. Read more.
Critical Race Theory Divides Educators and State Leaders
Every time Annemarie Gray begins teaching a new unit in her history class, she changes the posters on the walls of her classroom at the Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham.
They currently feature Andrew Jackson and maps showing what’s known as the Trail of Tears. For the next lesson, she’ll put up photos of abolitionists who fought for the end of slavery.
Gray, who is white, says telling the whole story has always been important in her lessons.
“I’ve always sort of said that when it comes to teaching American history, I teach the good, the bad and the ugly,” Gray said. “Frankly, I would challenge anyone to come into my classroom and tell me that I’m teaching anything that isn’t the truth.”
But in Alabama, Mississippi and other parts of the country, the truth of American history is being challenged because of a concept that’s becoming a political football across the country — critical race theory. Read more.
