Heard cocochats yet? The 30-minute talk show airs at 6 p.m. each Wednesday–as in tonight!–on SupaJamz 103.7 FM, a young, Caribbean-themed station that is, in only a year, the most popular station of its kind in Palm Beach County (PBC).

Its hostess? cocowire’s very own team lead, Marian Dozier.

The show got started last month, after Ms. Dozier met station owner Junior Blacks. And talked.

“We were on the same page,” Ms. Dozier said. “It was important to both of us that our communities are aware, connected and strong. News helps.”

And those communities? As anyone who knows Ms. Dozier will tell you, they are the communities in PBC that make up the African diaspora—African Americans, Caribbeans and native Africans. A population growing in size, complexity and diversity.

Ms. Dozier comes to the radio station after co-hosting for several years the weekly South Florida Sunday show with former Riviera Beach Mayor Thomas A. Masters on X102.3 FM, the most popular R & B station in PBC. She also has been a legislative aide to state Senator Bobby Powell and to several members of the Riviera Beach City Council and, before that, a newspaper reporter or editor for more than two decades, including at the Detroit Free Press, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

It was at that position in Florida that Ms. Dozier first learned about a focus she had–even though it wasn’t her beat or area of coverage. “No one is writing about what you do,” her editor at the time said, when he learned she was leaving to go to Atlanta.

“I remember thinking ‘huh?’ What is he talking about?’ ” Ms. Dozier said. “But he told me how I always made sure to get other voices in my stories—other black voices—and how I did it seamlessly. He said that was valuable, I remember, and it was primarily why he felt my byline leaving the Sun-Sentinel would leave an empty hole. It was a wow.”

Turns out he was right, though, when she thought later about her work at other newspapers too. Push it forward to cocowire–and cocochats.

So. Please. Tune in. Share story ideas. Tell us what you think. In other words, tell us about our focus: news, events and useful information for communities of color in PBC.

The guest on today’s show will be Anthony Ashe, creator of Rated R Fitness, which combines fitness with nutrition and faith–for a reason. Learn more about him here.

One hundred and fifty-seven years ago tonight, the enslaved peoples of America and their supporters were huddled together, praying for their freedom. That historic moment has come to be known as ‘Watch Night.’

On that night, December 31, 1862, they were awaiting word that the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued and signed by then-president Abraham Lincoln.

And, primarily, they were in the church.

Though it was signed the next day, the Proclamation still didn’t immediately free any slave—the 13^th Amendment would do that about three years later—but those downtrodden people were on watch, praying and hoping for change.

That original African-American ‘watch night’ continues tonight, 157 years later, as a tradition of the historic black church across the United States and here in Palm Beach County (PBC).

Many Christian denominations have watch nights, or vigil services. United Methodists, for example, began observing New Year’s Eve watch nights in this country in 1770–a practice all but abandoned today — and Catholics, most notably, “watch” for the coming of the Messiah on Christmas Eve.

But for African-Americans, the tradition is inextricably tied to their own history in this country–even if today’s community isn’t huddled in fear of what the next day, and New Year, might bring.

Rather, today, it’s about celebration, family and peace. There are Watch Night events at many churches in PBC. Here’s a few:

Back on December 31, 2000, an article was published in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel about Watch Nights and it was written by cocowire’s team lead, Marian Dozier. Read the article here—including a quote from then-Bishop Thomas A. Masters, who would become Mayor of Riviera Beach seven years later!

Three states have banned discrimination against nappy hair—and Florida could be the fourth, thanks to bills recently filed for the 2020 Legislation Session.

The other-state laws, and those Florida bills, are part of a national movement known as CROWN—Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural hair—which aims to protect people of African descent who wear afros, dreadlocks, twists, cornrows and other natural hair styles from discrimination in schools or at work.

California was the first state to outlaw nappy hair discrimination this summer, followed by New York and, just last week, New Jersey. Several cities and counties nationwide have done the same, and lots of states are considering it. Learn more about the movement here.

Florida Senate Bill 566 was filed in October by state Senator Randolph Bracy (D-Orlando), who said the bill represents “creating a respectful and open world for natural hair” which he calls essential to acknowledging the culture and history of the people who wear those styles. State Representative Kamia L. Brown (D-Ocoee) filed a companion bill in late November.

And, apparently, it’s needed. According to the CROWN movement,  incidents of discrimination based on hair texture is a huge issue. Well-known examples include the young New Jersey wrestler who had to cut his locks in order to compete and two sisters in the Boston area prevented from wearing braid extensions to their charter school.

And it happened in Orlando last year, when a six-year-old named Clinton Stanley Jr. and his father were told on the first day of class that he couldn’t attend the private school until his dreadlocks were cut off. The family is currently suing the state’s Department of Education and the school, A Books Christian Academy.

And, it happens here, in Palm Beach County. Jatory Smith of West Palm Beach recalled applying for a job once where he talked over the phone and got the interview. Then, he showed up–and was told the job was no longer available.

“This is who I am,” said Mr. Smith, 30, as his strong, confident hair swung. “If somebody can’t accept that, then they can go on.”

Read the language for Senator Bracy’s bill here and, for Rep. Brown’s, here. Both links can be used to track the efforts’ progression. The legislative session begins January 14, 2020.

On tomorrow, it will be announced which of the 12 high-achieving women, above, will be named the 2019 Woman of the Year by the Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce.

The award luncheon is hosted by the Chamber’s Women in Business Council and, this year, will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. tomorrow, Thursday, November 14, at the Wyndham Grand Jupiter at Harbourside Place. The event is sold out, but learn more about its intent below.

The winner is clear: Annetta Jenkins, who is currently the Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (RBCRA)’s Director of Neighborhood Services, works every day to create programs, events and opportunities that connect city residents with improved quality of life and small businesses with greater economic opportunity.

Which is nothing new for her. Ms. Jenkins has more than 30 years of award-winning national, state and municipal experience in real estate finance and development, affordable and workforce housing creation and community uplift. This came through her previous work as assistant director for Miami-Dade County’s Department of Housing and Community Development; executive director of South Florida Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC); a former long-time board member of the Florida Housing Coalition; and an appointee to the state’s Affordable Housing Study Commission. 

And, in a county where the average home price is approaching $350,000 and the city where she works has an average rental rate of $1,200 a month, that work she does every day is critical.

cocowire’s team lead, Marian Dozier, met Ms. Jenkins back in the early 2000’s when she was a reporter at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and Ms. Jenkins was with LISC, a nationwide nonprofit created by the Ford Foundation to connect local communities with the governments, companies and nonprofits with support resources. Ms. Jenkins was working to bring affordable home ownership and rentals to an underserved West Palm Beach neighborhood, one of many in south Florida that her hands had touched. She was astute, sharp, aware.

Learn more about the award itself, here, which seeks to recognize outstanding female leadership and commitment to the Palm Beach North region.  Like Annetta Jenkins, whose commitment is far wider, richer and, to us, valuable.

The winner is clear. As we said. Come back tomorrow and find out.

That would be state Senator Bobby Powell, whose District covers Palm Beach County (PBC) from West Palm Beach north to the county line, heads west to pick up Royal Palm Beach and a few other towns and villages, and includes three barrier islands. We say all this because we incorrectly listed his District number in our monthly digital newsletter that went out to readers last Friday.

And as we talk about his District, let us tell you a few other things about him. Senator Powell is the youngest elected official representing PBC in the State Legislature; he is the highest-ranking public servant ever from his hometown of Riviera Beach; and he is a new, proud and happy father. His daughter just turned 1 this month.

The piece incorrectly said he represents District 88. Click here to read the corrected version. So, who does represent District 88? That would be state Representative Al Jacquet. Learn more about him here and, about Senator Powell, here.

We regret the error. And still can’t believe we made it.

For 35 years, Daryl Lewis, age 55, had been a criminal. Not working, in and out of jail and prison but then, when he was released in April, he was a changed man–including his name. Today, ‘Truth’ works and prays and thinks all the time about improving his life.

One thing he hasn’t done is register to vote.

Oswald Newbold, on the other hand, who spent nearly 25 years in prison before he was released in 2017, registered to vote as soon as it became possible for ex-felons to do so after the passage of Amendment 4 last year. Now a municipal employee, a business owner and an author, Mr. Newbold actually voted in the March 2019 municipal elections.

The difference? None, according to Alfred J. Fields, president of the Alpha Educational Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the WPB-based Delta Delta Lambda chapter of the national Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. That chapter, along with the Omicron Upsilon Lambda chapter, are hosting a statewide fraternal conference October 18-20, 2019, at the West Palm Beach Marriott.

Part of the conference will be a panel discussion and community workshop about this issue. The name of the event is A Voteless People is a Hopeless People: Amendment 4; Now What? and it has a simple, clear focus: ex-felons and protecting their right to vote.

“Ex-felons have all kinds of stuff to deal with when they get back home–housing, jobs, family issues, even trying to get a driver’s license–so voting may not be at the top of their lists,” he said. “But the key is this: whenever they are ready to vote, that right needs to be there.”

His point is huge. It underlies the overwhelming Amendment 4 voter support across Florida, which had been one of only three states that didn’t allow full rights restoration for felons once they completed their sentences.

It is also why, when Gov. DeSAntis signed a bill into law in June that requires ex-felons to pay all fines related to their crimes first, multiple federal lawsuits were filed against the state. It, too, explains why the League of Women Voters of Florida (LWV) President Patricia Brigham called the new law “a blatant attempt at voter suppression.”

Mr. Fields’ point also explains the Alphas’ focus at the conference panel discussion: how and why to register ex-felons. It is a pushback that other organizations–like the LWV, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the ACLU of Florida–are doing too as part of their lawsuits against the state.

In other words, these efforts are meant to undermine the new state law that seeks to undermine Amendment 4.

“A poll tax in 2019?” Mr. Fields asked. “No.”

Besides the federal lawsuits, one Alpha Man has already started a pushback of a different sort: he filed a bill in the state Legislature. State Rep. Al Jacquet, who represents District 88 in Palm Beach County, has filed a bill for the 2020 Legislative Session that would remove language requiring full payment of certain fines and fees.

But how important is registering to vote for the ex-felon? Truth says he hadn’t even thought about it because he’s focused on “trying to live my better life.”

Mr. Newbold agrees. “But it comes,” he said, “as we change and grow and achieve, we then start looking around to try to make change not just in our own life but in society. Believe me: we know what change is.”

For more event information, call 561-627-3089, x. 201 or send an email here.

This year’s Caribbean-themed TikiMarket at the Marina will launch Sunday, October 20 with a focus on one particular island nation: The Bahamas.
The season opener is a Bahamas Relief Benefit titled Art, Jazz & Junkanoo.  

 The weekly event started in 2018 and is held from 4 to 7 p.m. each Sunday at the recently redeveloped Riviera Beach Marina Village, located at 190 E. 13th Street. Vendors can still register and sponsorships are also available. 

But this year is unique. Just ask Hurricane Dorian: the storm’s effect on The Bahamas was devastating, including Grand Bahama’s Freeport, which is Riviera Beach’s sister city. Plus, when the Town of Riviera was founded in 1922, many of its early residents were Bahamians working in the city’s huge fishing industry. Lots of those pioneer families remain.

“We had to help; we had to,” said Alisa Hall, the TikiMarket manager. “But we’re also going to celebrate: the food, the music, the culture—the people—of the Bahamas.”  

The special event will include a performance by Miami-based Florida Junkanoo Gawds, a Carnival-themed Bahamian band; Eric & The Jazzers of Pompano Beach; and Shelly Sweetshells, a Soca music performer based in Fort Lauderdale.

There will also be creative artists selling their works, many of whom will provide a portion of their sales to the relief effort. Donations will also be accepted onsite.

 Mayor Ronnie L. Felder is also expected to participate, as he’s done ever since Dorian hit, partnering with Tropical Shipping, for one, to help collect and send support items.

The Market runs every Sunday through May. Get a sense below of what to expect! It’s fun.

TikiMarket at the Marina is a program of the Riviera Beach CRA. Visit its website here.

For more information, visit the TikiMarket website here, call Ms. Hall at 561-352-6626 or send an email here.