Daily Chamber

Headlines : Florida Unemployment Rate Continues to Drop

The Florida unemployment rate is at its lowest point since January 2009. Over 10,000 jobs have been added in Florida, mostly in the Trade, Transportation and Utilities industries. The construction industry, though has continued its downward climb in the state.

Florida Unemployment Rate Continues to Drop

Headlines : Florida Invests $1 Billion in K-12 Education

Last month Governor Rick Scott signed Florida’s state budget, investing an additional billion dollars in K-12 education. The state spending plan includes more funds for Florida’s School Recognition Program, which provides financial rewards to schools that improve student learning. The budget also renews Florida’s commitment to reading by providing funding for an additional hour per day of intensive reading instruction for students in the 100 lowest-performing elementary schools, an expansion of Summer Reading Camps for any K-5 student who is having reading difficulties, and an emphasis on K-5 reading intervention services provided by reading intervention teachers.

“Equipping students with a high quality education is crucial for the future of our students and our state,” said Patricia Levesque, Executive Director of the Foundation for Florida’s Future. “Florida’s budget reflects our state’s commitment to funding students’ success. I thank Governor Scott, President Haridopolos, Speaker Cannon and Florida lawmakers for keeping education a priority. I look forward to members of the Florida Legislature building on these advancements to further improve education and student achievement in the years to come.”

Headlines : Florida Redistricting Maps Approved by US Justice Department

The new political boundaries in Florida have been set. Political candidates can now begin the process of preparing to qualify for office. The new maps were drawn according to regulations that were approved by voters in 2010. The Florida Democratic Party along with some voters are opposing the new maps and had asked the courts to hold of on the decision, to no avail. They claim that the new mapping unfairly groups together African American and Hispanic voters to the Republicans’ advantage.

Florida Redistricting Maps Approved by US Justice Department

Opinion : From Rodney King to Trayvon Martin: Let’s Not Miss Another Opportunity to Progress

Twenty years ago on April 29, 1992, four white LAPD officers were acquitted of assaulting motorist Rodney King despite the presence of videotaped footage of the horrific beating. The nation was fixated on the case, much like we are now with the tragic death of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, FL. But what people often forget in Rodney King’s story is that it was not about race — it was about justice.

In fact, it was a man by the name of George Holliday (of Argentinian descent), who shot the infamous footage of King’s beating. Holliday knew instinctively that what he captured was troubling, and when police failed to do something about the incident he videotaped, Holliday went to the press and soon everyone saw the atrocity for him or herself. So when the not-guilty verdicts against the four accused officers were read some 20 years ago, all of us should have been united in our response. Race should not have been a factor; we needed to rally around the issue of police brutality and injustice. It was a missed opportunity. We cannot allow that to happen again.

The notion of race in America is complex, troubling and hopeful at the same time. Blacks still struggle with the remnants of slavery and unequal access to educational, housing and job opportunities. Whites still grapple with changing demographics, and immigrants work to both assimilate and hold on to their cultural heritage simultaneously.

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Headlines : Florida Extended Unemployment Benefits to Expire

Florida’s unemployment rate has dropped, causing the state to do away with the extended benefits that most of the unemployed have expected to receive this year. During the recession, people could be eligible to receive 99 weeks of unemployment. As of May 12, those benefits dropped down to 74 weeks.

Florida Extended Unemployment Benefits to Expire