New York's highest court welcomes first openly gay judge
By Kylee Tsuru, CNN
Friends and family applaud as New York Court of Appeals Associate Judge Paul Feinman, center, is confirmed on Wednesday, June 21, 2017.
Senator Brad Hoylman, one of five openly gay members of New York's State Legislature who urged the governor to appoint an LGBT person to the Court of Appeals, called the confirmation "an important perspective that has been missing on the court."
"It is a watershed moment for the LGBT rights in the state of New York," said Hoylman. "It comes at a time when gay rights are under assault from Washington, DC and LGBT people and their families feel under siege."
Two of the seven candidates recommended to take the open seat were openly gay. But it was 57-year-old Feinman whose seat was confirmed amid Pride Month celebrations of the progress the LGBT community has made. He is the first openly LGBT justice to be confirmed in the Court of Appeal's 170-year history.
"Certainly my entire career has been about promoting equal access and equal justice for all, and I hope to add to the diversity of perspectives that the court considers," he said.
Feinman, the newest justice on the Court of Appeals, is a Long Island native and the third of five children. He first took interest in matters of law while navigating the "maze that is the social services network" as an intern in Columbia University's legal internship program.
"I learned being a lawyer is a helping profession," he said before the Senate at his confirmation hearing.
His robust legal career began as an attorney at Legal Aid Society, where he provided legal aid to low-income New Yorkers as a public defender. He served the law in a host of positions, including civil court judge, acting New York State Supreme Court justice and, most recently, associate justice for New York's Supreme Court.
After working for 31 years in state courts and 20 years as a judge, Feinman finds himself confirmed to serve a 14-year term on New York's highest court.
The seat was left vacant by another trailblazer: the late Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam was the first African-American woman to serve on New York's highest court. Abdus-Salaam was found dead in April when police pulled her body from the Hudson River. In May investigators concluded her death was likely a suicide, but family members challenged the idea she would take her own life.
Feinman joins six other judges on the diverse Court of Appeals, three of whom are women.
"Justice Feinman will be an exceptional addition to New York's highest court," New York's Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a statement. "He is a talented jurist who has dedicated his career to public service and standing up for a fairer and more just New York."
Feinman was the former president of the International Association of LGBT judges. He is a member of the Richard C. Failla LGBT Commission, which promotes fair treatment of LGBT issues and LGBT members of the court community.
“I HOPE I DON'T't GET KILLED FOR BEING BACK TODAY.”
By Andrew Lind
Cleveland Heights four-star defensive end Tyreke Smith didn't have much to prove during Ohio State's one-day camp on Saturday, as he's already one of the most sought-after prospects in the country. In addition to holding an offer from the Buckeyes, programs such as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, Texas, UCLA and USC are pulling out all the stops to get him to commit.
Smith showed up anyway, and used the camp as an opportunity to mingle with Ohio State commits — and potentially his future teammates — Emory Jones, Jaelen Gill and Dallas Gant. He also spent a significant amount of time with defensive line coach Larry Johnson, who pulled him to the side for some one-on-one instruction.
But none of that was the talk of the camp. Instead, it was Smith's shirt that grabbed everyone's attention.
“I hope I don't get killed for being black today.”
That's a powerful message from a 17-year-old kid who shouldn't even have to worry about losing his life, but that's also a reality for so many young African-Americans across the country. Smith lives in a county that saw a state-high 168 homicides last year, and he wants to use his platform as a star athlete to make a positive impact on his community.
“I decided to wear the shirt because I wanted to bring attention to the epidemic of blacks being killed at an alarming rate,” Smith said. “What we would like to do is have people talk about these issues to reduce the murder rate of African-Americans.”
Now before you rush to judgment, understand that Smith isn't just talking about the Cleveland police officer who fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice and other examples of police brutality that seemingly dominate headline news. He's also talking about the black-on-black crime that is destroying his city brick by brick.
“The shirt was created to bring light into the every day problems that blacks face between police and black-on-black crimes,” Tyreke's older brother, Malik, said. “The shirt exemplifies a voice that we have, but may not be heard. So why not have people see it?”
Saturday's camp, with hundreds of prospects, parents and reporters in attendance, was the perfect time for that to happen. Smith knew he would be photographed and that it would create instant conversation on social media.
“He asked me if he should wear it, [and] I said, 'Absolutely, Tyreke,'” Malik said, explaining how he was the one who made the shirt. “I told him to be ready for people to want to voice their own opinion about the shirt — good or bad. I also told him to be ready to have an answer and be able to fully explain the shirt in great detail. He did just that.”
The response to Smith's actions have been overwhelmingly positive, with seven out of every 10 replies to his tweet showing support. Naturally, some are also not so kind.
“[They] are speaking negatively because they don't understand what's going on and the message behind it,” Tyreke said, noting he understands that not everyone will share his opinion.
But, then again, some people don't live in constant fear of someone taking their life. They don't have to worry about being shot for being out too late or simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“To see or hear about so many senseless killings, it tends to have a negative impact on you,” Tyreke said. “You start to wonder if we should move away... but most, 'why?'”
Tyreke, with nearly 40 scholarship offers to his name, has the chance to remove himself from the situation. He'll get a world-class education and have a chance to make millions of dollars in the National Football League. But not everyone in Cleveland has the same outlet.
“I think the biggest reasons [for the crimes] are a lack of parenting, community policing and valuing education,” Tyreke said, who wisely beyond his years acknowledged his family, coaches and teachers for their influences on his life.
Smith knows the shirt — which can be purchased through direct message on Twitter — isn't going to put an end to the killing of black men and children in the inner cities. But if it brings the slightest bit of awareness, then he used his platform for good. And that's more than we should have to ask from a 17-year-old kid.
“We need to come together as a unit and stop coming after our own people,” Malik said. “We have to work together.”
Source: Eleven Warriors
A woman insisting her son be examined by a “white doctor” at a Mississauga walk-in clinic on Sunday didn’t shock many medical community members who say it’s not an isolated incident, rather part of a bigger problem.
The incident at Rapid Access to Medical Specialists clinic, which sparked international backlash and prompted several to come forward with similar stories, was recorded on camera by Hitesh Bhardwaj, who was sitting in the waiting room at the time.
In the video, an unidentified woman repeatedly asks clinic staff to see a “white doctor” who “doesn’t have brown teeth” and “speaks English” to treat her son, who she claims has chest pains.
Ontario Medical Association president-elect Dr. Nadia Alam who practices family medicine in Georgetown, Ont. says she was “horrified.”
“It brought back memories of racism that I dealt with as a child, racism I dealt with as a medical student, as a resident and even as a practitioner,” Alam told CTV News Toronto on Wednesday.
'That kind of hateful and racist behaviour is unacceptable'
Reaction to the video attracted comment from Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins, who denounced the woman’s actions and said the province’s medical community won’t tolerate racism.
“That kind of hateful and racist behaviour is unacceptable no matter where it happens,” Hoskins said in a statement to CTV News Toronto. “Ontario’s strength comes from the diversity of its people and our government remains committed to fighting discrimination.”
Premier Kathleen Wynne also stepped into the debate, saying she was “shocked” by the woman’s racist rant.
“There is no place for that kind of behaviour, that kind of racism and hatred, quite frankly, in our society,” Wynne said on Tuesday.
'This is a bigger issue'
But more still needs to be done to confront racism in the healthcare system, Alam says, especially when it comes to doctors.
Legal policy enables doctors to refuse to treat a patient if they feel threatened, in similar situations like those at the Mississauga walk-in clinic, but there’s a “grey zone,” Alam added.
If doctors refuse to treat a patient, they may worry about a complaint being filed against them with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario – which regulates doctors in the province.
The provincial regulator says it doesn’t have a policy to address that situation, but stressed that the Ontario Human Rights Code states all those who provide services in the province are entitled to do so free from discrimination.
Under it policies, doctors may also consider cutting ties with a patient whose behaviour becomes inappropriate or abusive.
But Alam says “this is a bigger issue.”
“We need to not just find solutions to prevent it and deal with it, but also how to recover from it because it hurts at the end of the day, it just plain hurts to be devalued as a human being,” she said.
Source: CTV News Toronto
