The November program, led by Libby Edwards-Allbaugh, Owner of the Tax Ladies, and Jason Statuta, Managing Director of Petrichor Wealth, gave the audience an opportunity to learn strategies to assist with keeping their taxes in check.  Year-end tax and investment planning is essential to keeping more of what people earn.  Tax planning involves analyzing your financial situation to ensure that all elements work together to enable you to pay the lowest taxes possible, avoid penalties and enhance your overall financial health.

The tax planning ideas that Libby and Jason focused on were understanding 2024 tax laws- both now and in the future, maximizing retirement plan contributions for those still in the workplace or self-employed; managing your Required Minimum Distributions (RMD’s) for those over the age of 70 1/2  through the use of Qualified charitable distributions (QCD’s); considering greater charitable giving in higher income years or using Donor Advised Funds (DAF) for highly appreciated assets when there is a windfall within a tax year; tax loss harvesting to capture the losses which can offset some or all capital gains in your taxable portfolios or the use of direct indexing funds- an investment vehicle that can provide enhanced tax benefits for some investors.

For individuals and small business owners, the advantages are clear.  Reducing their tax burden, integrating tax strategies with broader financial goals and minimizing the risk of audits and penalties are all ways that integrated tax planning benefits the well prepared taxpayer.

Sue Liberman, President of Senior Statesman of Virginia (SSV), emphasized the importance of seniors being informed and engaged in the upcoming election.  The purpose of today’s meeting was to provide information and resources to help members feel confident about voting.

Jim Nix, SSV Board member and Treasure, and member of the Charlottesville Electoral Board, reviewed key election dates and deadlines, including:

· October 15th – Last day to register to vote
· October 25th – Last day to request an absentee ballot
· November 2nd – Last day for early voting. Jim stressed the importance of not waiting until the last minute to request and return absentee ballots due to postal service delays.

Jim introduced speakers Lauren Eddy, Albemarle County Registrar, and Taylor Yowell, City of Charlottesville Registrar.  The registrars provided an overview of the various voting options and procedures, including:

· In-person early voting at their offices
· Requesting and returning absentee ballots by mail or drop box
· Voting provisionally if issues arise (e.g. lost/misplaced absentee ballot, same-day registration)

They emphasized the importance of voters checking their registration status and polling place; both noting that there are no major changes to voting procedures from previous elections.

The registrars discussed the security measures in place to protect the integrity of the election, including:

· Backup power and contingency plans for technical issues
· Bipartisan observation and oversight of all election processes
· Coordination with emergency management and law enforcement to ensure voter and election official safety

They assured the group that voting will continue no matter what, even in the event of power outages or other disruptions.

President Liberman closed the meeting by encouraging everyone to exercise their right to vote and have their voice heard. She also provided an overview of upcoming Senior Statesman events, including tax preparation tips in November and the annual meeting meeting in December…with a celebration and program focus on
Health, Wellness and Sexuality for the Senior!!

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More than 100 civic-minded seniors attended the 5th Congressional District Candidate Forum on September 11th at The Center.  Senior Statesmen of Virginia (SSV), The Center and the League of Women Voters Charlottesville Area jointly hosted the Forum. The League provided voter registration services and voting information.

President Sue Liberman welcomed everyone and noted the events of 9-11-2001 as we remembered the solemn anniversary.  She also paid tribute to the brave men and women on Flight 93.  Their collective action avoided additional attacks on our democracy. President Sue encouraged everyone to take action and vote on November 5th…to again prevent an attack on our Democracy.

Gloria Witt, the Democratic candidate for the 5th District, and John A McGuire, Republican candidate, were invited to participate in the Forum.  Gloria Witt accepted.  Senior Statesmen member Bob Beard moderated.

Candidate Witt shared her background, noting she spent a long career in procurement, enhancing her negotiation and collaboration skills.  She is successful in helping people with different, even competing, views find common ground and agreement. She believes a “no” is an opportunity to learn more, and that listening to other points of view can open up discussion and lead to consensus.

Candidate Witt stated that she has several family members who are teachers, and thus believes in the power of excellent schools; restoring a woman’s right to control her own body; changes in access to health care is needed; and changes in gun control to allow background checks and safety requirements.  She believes climate change is real and deserves policy attention.

More than a dozen questions were asked, spanning additional topics such as the economy, inflation, Project 2025, Ukraine war with invading Russia, Gaza conflict among Hamas/Israel/Palestine, and more.

Candidate Witt encouraged everyone to vote and invited anyone interested to volunteer!

*****

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To join Senior Statesmen of Virginia click the link below

Join SSV

To open our “Optimizing Brain Health” program, Dr Kathleen Fuchs of the UVA Memory and Aging Care Clinic (MACC) shared definitions, including cognitive changes in normal aging: slowed information processing, reduced mental flexibility, slowed learning, mild inefficiency in retrieval and words/names. Plasticity offers hope for older brains…it is new brain connections in response to life experiences.  New thoughts and skills carve out new memory pathways.  Repetition and practice strengthen these pathways. Animal studies show improved cognitive performance with:  1) enriched environment; 2) exercise; and 3) increased social interaction.

Cognitive reserve provides persons with higher lifetime intellectual enrichment the ability to withstand neurological disease progression without suffering cognitive impairment or dementia. Education (early and lifelong learning), cognitively challenging work, cognitive leisure activities, social activities and aerobic exercise are contributors to Cognitive Reserve.

#1 brain health activity:  exercise. Exercise 3-4 times per week.  Build up to 30 minutes. Increase your heart rate.  Be sure to check with your doctor before starting, if you don’t currently exercise.  Walking and talking double benefit.

Follow a Mediterranean diet.  Watch sleep quantity/quality.  Check hearing.  Monitor your mood.  Seek socialization.

IF interested in participating in research, contact Colleen Webber, UVA Memory Disorders Division, 243-5898 phone.

The Center’s Executive Director Melanie Benjamin shared literally hundreds of ways to improve plasticity and cognitive reserve at The Center, including exercise/fitness, painting/art, Spanish/Italian/French,  crocheting,  gardening, cooking, quilting, dancing, support groups (Parkinson’s, Womens, Cancer, Mental Health, ADHD, Grief, Retirement, Aging in Place, etc.), education (Pride Series, DEI Series, Brain Health, Cell Phone tutorial, Architecture, Good Life series, Funerals, Medicare, Vietnam, WWII, Money, Navigating Senior Living Options and more), luncheons, music performances, movies, documentaries, beer and bingo, book clubs, health services (flu clinic) AND MORE !!

Maintain your brain….you have the power.

*****

Following the program, the SSV held a reception welcoming everyone back to The Center at Belvedere:

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To join Senior Statesmen of Virginia click the link below

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The public is welcome to our meetings. Beginning August 14, 2024, the meetings will take place at The Center at Belvedere, 540 Belvedere Boulevard , Charlottesville, VA 22901, the second Wednesday of the month from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. There is no charge, although we suggest you join our group which has been in existence for 25 years. The membership dues are only $25 per year and can be paid online on the ‘Join SSV’ page. Your dues will help us continue to deliver top-quality presentations. If you have questions, please email info@seniorstatesmen.org. Click the tab above to see samples of our newsletter.

Wednesday, December 11, 2024    2:30 p.m.

Annual Business Meeting Monthly Program Joyful Wellness: Cherishing your mind, body, spirit, and sexuality at any age

Celebration of SSV 30th Anniversary Honoring Gene Ecton Smith Davis, Founding Member

Come and be rejuvenated, invigorated, and inspired to explore a heart-full path to creating more joyful wellness in your life. This nurturing presentation will offer an all-pleasure/all-gain exploration to mind/body/spirit and sexual wellness. All of this will be presented in a manner that honors individual values and spiritual beliefs.

We will explore gentle ways of unleashing your body’s innate wisdom and hearing about how sexuality can be more delightful than ever. You will take away inspirational tips designed to reduce stress and worry and increase your energy while developing an increased capacity for adding more peace, joy, love, and pleasure into your life.

Susan Tate

Susan Tate, former Director of Health Promotion and Assistant Professor in the School of Medicine at the University of Virginia, brings a wealth of experience to the realm of holistic wellness. She has presented at workshops internationally and spoken at conferences across the U.S. for many years. Susan is a licensed black belt Nia Master Teacher who has taught thousands of classes since her Nia career began in 1999. She currently teaches Nia Moving to Heal for the Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center at the University of Virginia. Susan, a well-respected health educator for over five decades and the author of 4 books (including Wellness Wisdom: 31 Ways to Nourish Your Mind, Body, Spirit 2007, 2011), Susan is passionate about creating and inspiring individual, community, and global wellness. She loves sharing her holistic approach to wellness as an author, speaker, sexuality educator, Nia teacher, and heart-centered life coach.

The program will be moderated by SSV Board member, Margreta Swanson

SSV IS ASKING ALL ATTENDEES TO REGISTER IN ADVANCE AT THE FOLLOWING LINK:
Senior Statesmen of Virginia | The Center Charlottesville (thecentercville.org)

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Past Programs

Past programs are arranged in inverse chronological order.  Speaker bios and links to videos and podcasts are given, with a program summary written by SSV board member Ella Jordan.

Some say that health outcomes are not keeping pace with the costs of healthcare while this system is by design, more “disease care” than healthcare and prevention. What can be done about an entrenched healthcare system? Dr. Pamela Ross, a featured physician in the movie documentary Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare, gives an inspiring take on lessons learned.  The program was presented on June 12, 2013 and was moderated by SSV President Sue Liberman.

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Pamela A. Ross, MD, FACEP, is an associate professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Virginia Health System, and founding CEO of Holistic Medical Consultants. She bases her holistic medical principles and practice on the belief that there is an unbreakable connection between the mind, body and spirit.

A native of rural Decatur, Tennessee, and her parent’s oldest child, Dr. Ross’ exceptional perceptive skills and mental capabilities were realized at an early age. By the time she reached the fourth grade, she was engaged in various public speaking opportunities through 4-H Club, the nation’s largest youth development organization. Public speaking was a skill that Dr. Ross evidently mastered early, but it was her mother’s illness that sparked her interest and curiosity in the study of medicine. Determined to aid in her mother’s care, Dr. Ross focused her education and career goals on becoming a physician.

Dr. Ross received her BA in Chemistry from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and her MD from Emory University School of Medicine. Her distinguished career is filled with notable highlights including receiving an invitation from President Barack Obama to be present in the White House Rose Garden when he presented “Doctors for Healthcare Reform” to the nation – an event that galvanized the eventual passage of the Affordable Care Act by the United States Congress. Most recently, she is a featured doctor in Escape Fire: The Fight To Rescue American Healthcare, a 2012 Sundance premiere movie documentary that tackles the pressing issue of a badly broken healthcare system.

In her 16+ year tenure at the University of Virginia Health System, Dr. Ross has worn many hats. She has served as division director of the Pediatric Emergency Department, director of the Child Abuse Program, director of the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner’s Program and director of Quality Improvement. Currently, she serves as ambassador for Sisters Conquering Cancer, a local community grass roots cancer survivor-ship organization; chair of the UVA Cancer Center Minority Recruitment Task Force; and a member of the UVA Compassionate Care Initiative, grounded in compassionate action and empathic leadership. She is also the UVA School of Medicine curriculum thread leader for Complimentary and Alternative Methods (CAM.)

Dr. Ross spends her spare time nurturing her own mental, physical and spiritual well being through reading, meditation, laughter, dance and fellowship in various settings with family and friends.

Program Summary

The intriguing topic addressed by Dr. Pamela Ross was entitled, “Escape Fires & Healthcare Leadership: Lessons I’ve Learned.” Dr. Ross is an associate professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Virginia Health System, and founding CEO of Holistic Medical Consultants. Two central themes are that we don’t have a health care system in this country–we have a disease management system, and to maintain a continuous dialogue on health care is essential. In her remarks she incorporated perspectives from a family practice doctor, patients, and that of herself, an emergency department doctor. Due to her mother’s illnesses, she decided at 11 years of age to become a doctor. Her experiences in medical school led to her specialty in emergency medicine. Emergency medicine represents the health care safety net and the only specialty mandated by law to provide health care to people regardless of their ability to pay.

During the course of her remarks, Dr. Ross cited five leadership lessons she has learned: (1) follow your gut and your dream; (2) the Serenity Prayer; (3) never judge a designated leader until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes; (4) the mantra “no money, no mission” should be completely reversed to “no mission, no money”; (5) “I returned, and I saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happens to them all” (Ecclesiastics chapter 9 verse 11).

After engaging in the full practice of medicine for several years, she noticed trends going on in medicine that made her uncomfortable. Patients were losing trust in their doctors, and that she was just a small part of a huge system that is out of control. Decisions made by administrators, policy makers and insurance companies put more distance between the doctor and patient. She learned in a health care marketing class a three-word answer to her question, and it was “follow the money.” For example with investors in pharmaceuticals, if you’re making profits from disease, then what is the motivation to get you to a point where you don’t have to take a whole bunch of pills? The system doesn’t want you to get completely cured, because if you’re completely cured you have no further need of the system.

The above just barely scratches the surface of the points covered by Dr. Ross. To learn how the concept of “escape fire” fits into this discussion on health care, you can listen to the entire presentation via the podcast link above.

Satyendra Huja, mayor of the City of Charlottesville and Ann Mallek, chairman of the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors spoke at the Wednesday, May 8, 2013 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The meeting was held at The Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following opening remarks by the participants questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by SSV President Sue Liberman.  A podcast of the meeting is available here.

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Satyendra Huja is the president of Community Planning Associates, and is also adjunct faculty at the University of Virginia School of Architecture and teaches Urban Planning courses on a regular basis. He was director of Strategic Planning for the City of Charlottesville from 1998 to 2004. Prior to that he was director of Planning and Community Development for the City of Charlottesville for 25 years. He received his Masters Degree in Urban Planning from Michigan State University.

He was elected to the Charlottesville City Council in 2007 and is currently serving as mayor. His experiences are in the area of downtown revitalization, housing, historic preservation, transportation planning, art and culture activities, and neighborhood revitalization.

He has received honors from the Virginia Society of American Institute of Architects, recognition from the PEW Foundation for downtown revitalization, and a special recognition award from Piedmont Council for the Arts for his outstanding contribution and support for the arts. He also has been a consultant to the City of Pleven, Bulgaria, for Economic Development and Tourism Marketing.

Ann H. Mallek, chairman of the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, represents the White Hall District. She is an educator and program coordinator for Central Virginia for the Virginia Museum of Natural History. She received her B.A. in Zoology from Connecticut College, New London CT.

Ms. Mallek was elected to the Board in January 2008 and is currently serving as chairman. She serves on the following standing committees: Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission; Piedmont Workforce Network Council; Acquisition of  Conservation Easements; Property Committee;  Rivanna River Basin Commission; Charlottesville/Albemarle/UVA Planning and Coordination Council Policy Committee; LEAP Governance Board; CIP Oversight Committee; and the Crozet Community Advisory Council.

She is a member of the following organizations: League of Women Voters; Albemarle County Farm Bureau; Charlottesville-Albemarle Chamber of Commerce; Piedmont Environmental Council; Southern Environmental Law Center; Rivanna Conservation Society; Ivy Creek Foundation and the League of Conservation Voters.

Program Summary

Ms. Mallek said that the state of the county is good even given the economic downturn. The slide in property tax values has stopped and we see some increases in value along with strong commercial growth. These optimistic signs enable us to think about how we may change our focus going forward and how we address our infrastructure needs. Ms. Mallek visited 3,000 doors during the 2007 campaign and people asked why we are allowing all these people to come and not provide the infrastructure they need—the roads, schools first. One of the consequences of the economic slowdown and the need to balance the budget was to erase quite a few investments in our capital improvement program reducing the budget by $30 million, and also cutting 70 staff through attrition and retirement. Now it is important to change our focus to begin again the process of investing in the infrastructure.

Mr. Huja gave an overview of the geographics, demographics, economics and budget of Charlottesville. We have a good forward looking government and most importantly a very caring and engaged citizenry. In terms of cooperation with the county, there are many joint ventures we work together on. Among those he mentioned were the water and sewer authority, solid waste authority, regional library, regional jail, communications center, convention and visitors bureau, Darden Towe Park, and joint social agency review. Even given all of this he said we could do more and cited several areas including a joint transit system. He discussed the city budget, schools and the extensive involvement of the city in the area of affordable housing. The city has 18.5 percent of the region’s population but provides 57.5 percent of the subsidized housing and so he would like to see the county do a little more in this area. The city spends $200,000 annually for improvement of bike lanes and a half-million on sidewalk improvements because we should have safe walking and biking in our community. Meadowcreek Parkway, a 45-year project, will finally be built this year. The city and county have adopted a joint 50-year water plan. Three new hotels are in the pipeline. Mr. Huja concluded that the state of the city is very healthy and vibrant.

Delegate David Toscano spoke at the April 10, 2013 meeting to provided his perspective on the issues that came before the 2013 Virginia legislature. Delegates Steve Landes, Rob Bell and Matt Fariss were also invited to speak but were unable to attend. The program was moderated by SSV board member Bill Davis.

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Delegate David Toscano is serving his fourth term in the Virginia General Assembly. He represents the 57th District (Charlottesville and part of Albemarle County) in the House of Delegates and, since 2011, has served as House Democratic Leader.

David is a member of the Courts of Justice; Transportation; and Science & Technology committees. He also a member of the Disability Commission and has served on the special Joint Subcommittee to Study Land Use Tools in the Commonwealth and the Joint Committee to study Math, Science, and Engineering. He is also a member of the United Way Board. The Virginia League of Conservation Voters have named David a “Legislative Hero” five consecutive years for his work on environmental issues.

An attorney with Buck, Toscano & Tereskerz, Ltd., David specializes in family law, real estate transactions, and estate planning.

Program Summary

The program for the April meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia was a report from the Virginia delegates on the 2013 General Assembly. Delegates Rob Bell, Matt Fariss, Steve Landes and David Toscano were all invited to participate, but Delegates Bell and Faris declined due to scheduling conflicts. Delegate Landes was hopelessly ensnared in a traffic jam on the way to the program, so Delgate Toscano provided the report. He is finishing his eighth year in the Assembly and second year as Democratic leader in the Virginia House.

Delegate Toscano opened his remarks by highlighting what he saw as the things that were important and that were discussed in this session of the General Assembly. He noted that this was the “short” session (45 days instead of 60 days) which occurs every other year and originally set up to just tweak the two-year budget, but over the years has morphed into a totally new session with all these new bills being introduced. This session will be remembered for the transportation plan. For years he has said that, if we get some leadership, we could get a transportation plan that would raise enough money to fix our roads and bridges, build new roads, speak to our transit problems and provide a dedicated source for passenger rail. The approved plan raises over a billion dollars a year. By necessity, localities have been diverting local funds for road maintenance, but now money will be coming to the localities and also a dedicated source of revenue to fund passenger rail.

The second big thing for this region was the debate about Helen Dragas and the Board of Visitors. As it eventually turned out, she was reappointed on a split vote, and several bills that were introduced related to the governance at UVa largely failed.

A third major item was the debate about Medicaid. Governor McDonnell took a strong position opposing the expansion of Medicaid where the feds would pay 100 percent for the first three years and then eventually decline to the present level of 50 federal/50 state. Delegate Toscano was concerned about the uninsured as well as the status of our major teaching hospitals that are required to serve the uninsured. The expansion could serve 300,000 Virginians, provide 30,000 jobs, and $9 billion in revenue coming to the Commonwealth. A compromise was arrived at establishing a special joint commission which would recommend the expansion only if certain reform measures were met. So, we don’t have the expansion, but rather a road map to getting it, and it will depend upon the next governor and everything may change.

“We will never, ever run out of oil,” says Deborah Gordon in this interesting podcast on the future of fossil fuels.

Deborah Gordon is a nonresident senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Energy & Climate Program), where her policy research focuses on oil, climate, and transportation issues in the United States, China, and globally. Ms. Gordon spoke at the Wednesday, March 13, 2013 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The program was moderated by SSV board member Grace Zisk.

Since 1996 she has been a policy consultant specializing in transportation, energy, and environmental policy for non-profit, foundation, academic, public, and private-sector clients. From 1996 to 2000 she founded and co-directed the Transportation and Environment Program at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and from 1989 to 1996 she founded and then directed the Transportation Policy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Additionally, Gordon has worked at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (1988-1989), under a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Gordon began her career as a chemical engineer with Chevron (1982-1987). Ms. Gordon also authors a blog on the topic of unconventional oil.

Program Summary

What happened about three years ago shocked the world and the oil companies: recognition of the fact that we will never, ever run out of oil. It’s not oil though, because now economically the prices are high enough, and technologically we’re adept enough, that we can transform anything with hydrogen and carbon in it into liquid fuel.

When you live in the world of scarcity, you act in one way, and when you live in the world of plenty, you act in a very differently, and we’re in a world of plenty, so this is confronting the complexities of oil. Seventy percent is in transportation and 30 percent in everything we use and enjoy in our lives, from plastic bottles to diapers to pace makers.

With so much oil now available, the question is how are we going to prioritize which oils we will use. Even with all the growth in gas, oil will remain the dominant energy force world-wide in the foreseeable future.

After detailing all of the types and sources of new oil, Ms. Gordon described the important knowledge gaps on new oil including: make up of oil and their supply chains; price of oil; geography of oils; geopolitics of oils; sound oil investments; and the social impacts on water and climate change.

The 13th Amendment ended slavery in the United States, or did it?  In the February 13, 2013 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia, Pulitzer Prize winner Douglas A. Blackmon talks about what really happened during reconstruction.   The program was moderated by SSV vice-president Bob McGrath.  Click below to listen to the podcast.

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Douglas A. Blackmon is the Pulitzer Prize winning author of Slavery by Another Name: The Re- Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II, chair of the University of Virginia’s Miller Center Forum program,  and a contributing editor at the Washington Post. Mr. Blackmon’s book was awarded the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. The book also received many additional awards and citations and was a New York Times best seller. Mr. Blackmon  is also co-executive producer of a documentary film based on the book which was broadcast on PBS last year. The documentary will be rebroadcast on PBS on February 22, 2013.

Until 2011 he was the longtime chief of The Wall Street Journal’s Atlanta bureau and the paper’s Senior National Correspondent. He has written about, or directed coverage of, some of the most pivotal stories in American life, including the election of President Obama, the rise of the tea party movement, the BP oil spill, and the hurricane Katrina disaster. Prior to his work at the WSJ, Blackmon covered race and politics at the Atlanta Journal Constitution for seven years.

Raised in Leland, Mississippi, Blackmon penned his first newspaper story for the Leland Progress at the age of twelve. He received his degree in English from Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas. At present he is time sharing between Charlottesville and downtown Atlanta where his family makes their home.

Program Summary

Douglas Blackmon is the Pulitzer-Prize winning author of Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II. The book is the story of how, after the Civil War and full citizenship had been extended to the formerly enslaved African-Americans, something happened that most of us don’t know about. Even though the freed former slaves were incredibly impoverished and had been denied education for generations, there was a tremendous move by African-Americans to grab onto real citizenship and participate in elections on a huge scale. They wanted to get away from the folks who controlled them before, and it’s largely a fairy tale that many so loved their masters they wanted to stay behind. They swarmed into schools and the first real public schools were set up. The literacy rate skyrocketed to be comparable with that of poor whites. They began to acquire property and were moving into the mainstream of American life.

But then a terrible thing begins. First, white Southerners couldn’t resurrect the cotton economy without four million slave workers, and they simply could not conceive of any equitable labor arrangements. Thus there was a tremendous need economically to figure out how to get as many African-Americans into a condition as close to slavery as possible. At the same time, whites wanted to stop African-Americans from exercising their civil rights and get them out of the political process.

Beginning in the 1870s, laws were passed that were designed to essentially criminalize black life. It became a crime for any farmer to sell his produce after dark, which meant the African-Americans could only sell to the land owner. It also became a crime to walk beside a railroad track or to speak loudly in the company of a white woman, or to romance or have physical activity with a white woman. But the most insidious laws that were passed imposed tremendous penalties for vagrancy – if you couldn’t prove you had a job you were arrested. Also, it was a crime for a farm worker (who may have been repeatedly lashed, deprived of his fair share of the crops, starved, his wife abused by the landowner, etc.) to look for another job.

Overwhelmingly these laws were only applied to African-Americans. Payments to sheriffs and others were based on a fee system—you had to pay a fee to who arrested you, witnesses against you, the court, and the jailer. The fine for vagrancy might be $5, but the fees could add up to $100 – a full year’s pay. To pay the fine and fees, the convicts were leased or sold back to the same landowner, or to work in coal mines, lumber camps, turpentine camps—all the new industries dependent on this forced labor. The terror of having this happen was greater than even the fear of mob violence, and it resulted in African-Americans going along generation after generation with whatever was imposed upon them. This system persisted right up to the 1940s.