NOTE: This column appeared in the April 1 edition of The Commercial Appeal.
Several weeks ago, a dozen babies gathered in our living room to celebrate my daughter's first birthday. It was a joyful afternoon of bubbles and balloons, singing and snacks -- the kinds of things all 1-year-olds should enjoy. Yet I know that in the Mid-South, many infants -- children who could have been my daughter's peers -- never make it to their first birthday.
What makes this sad fact more distressing is that we know what it takes to give children the best opportunity to survive -- proper vitamins and diet for the mother during pregnancy, prenatal health care, regular pediatric visits after birth, and careful attention to the tiny details through which babies send us signals about their health, hunger and happiness. Yet we do not do an adequate job of delivering the necessary information and services to the pregnant women whose children are most at risk.
The tragically high infant mortality rate in and around Memphis has been well documented. In 2005, Memphis had the highest infant mortality rate among the 60 largest American cities, a rate of 14 infant deaths per 1,000 births, twice the national average. In some of the poorest pockets of our community, the infant mortality rates are on par with those of several Third World countries. Statewide, Tennessee ranks 48th and the rates in Hardeman, Shelby, Tipton and Haywood counties are the worst in the state. Last month, this newspaper reported that the infant mortality rate in Mississippi, already the worst in the country, is rising, particularly in the Delta communities along U.S. 61. In the Mid-South, more human beings die each year before their first birthday than from homicides, even though we know the tools necessary to bring infant mortality rates down.
As a result of the notoriety born of such intolerable statistics, local and state leaders have pushed to make reducing infant mortality a top priority. Last spring, Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen and Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton convened a workshop aimed at decreasing infant mortality. The Tennessee Department of Health has set a goal of bringing the state infant mortality rate down to the national average by 2010. In addition, local and national organizations with experience in infant health are converging on Memphis. In March, the founder of the Birthing Project, a program that matches pregnant black teenagers with women trained to guide them through pregnancy and a child's first year, was in Memphis meeting with potential volunteers.
These initiatives are a start, but more must be done. Too many women do not see a doctor during their pregnancy until they enter the hospital for labor. They neglect to visit the doctor because they do not have health insurance or because they cannot get time off from work or because they do not know that regular doctor visits during pregnancy drastically reduce the risk of infant mortality.
Among pregnant women in Tennessee who received no prenatal care, the infant mortality rate is astronomical -- 46 infant deaths per 1,000 births. In 2005, infants born to mothers who first received prenatal care in the seventh month of pregnancy or later were twice as likely to die as those born to mothers who received care during the first trimester.
To give our community's most vulnerable the chance to survive their first year, we must remove all barriers to pregnant women receiving prenatal care early and often. This means providing health care coverage to all pregnant women and infants, a goal addressed by Bredesen's CoverKids program, slated to take effect today.
But coverage is only the first step -- all efforts must be made to ensure that covered individuals actually enroll in the new program and that sufficient numbers of doctors and health care facilities serve those in the highest-risk areas.
We know not only that these steps can lower the risk of infant mortality, but also which women need attention the most. In addition to behavioral activities like smoking or drinking while pregnant, increased risk of infant mortality is highly correlated to a pregnant mother's social traits, including poverty and lack of education. Unfortunately, infant mortality breaks along racial lines as well. In Tennessee in 2004, the infant mortality rate for African-American mothers was more than two and a half times higher than that of white mothers.
So we know the mothers whose babies are most at risk for infant mortality and we know what it takes to lower that risk. It is a matter of delivering the proper information and care to the right women at the right time. As a community, we must embrace maternal health and work to ensure that the information and services necessary to give women the best opportunity to give birth to a healthy child reach those women most at risk early in their pregnancies. We will not eliminate the tragedy of infant mortality, but we must do better at protecting our most vulnerable.
April 01, 2007
March 19, 2007
Cinderella Nation Revisited
NOTE: This column references last year's NCAA Tournament column, available here.
Can we be a Cinderalla nation without a Cinderella?
That is the question I’m left pondering after a weekend of college basketball without a major upset. Last year, I wrote that the NCAA tournament gives us the most quintessential American tale – the Cinderella story – year after year. With the apparently level playing field in the tournament, any team could wear a glass slipper for a few weeks in March.
The results on the court bore out my theory – a quarter of the teams that won their first round games were double-digit seeds. Two double-digit seeds and five teams seeded worse than 6 survived the first weekend into the Sweet Sixteen. And the George Mason Patriots, an 11 seed from the unheard-of Colonial Athletic Association, knocked off three Goliaths on their way to the most improbable Final Four berth ever.
Last year’s results were so surprising that even as they underscored the first half of my theory – anything can happen – they cast doubt on the second half – but it usually doesn’t. The tournament, like the American dream it mimics, is not as fair as it seems, I wrote. But after George Mason, I began to wonder if maybe the playing field of the tournament was level after all.
Last year’s madness seemed to usher in the postmodern era for college basketball where conference affiliation, star players, and Hall of Fame coaches no longer mattered. Parity was the buzz word and an avalanche of upsets was predicted for this year’s tournament.
In short, the avalanche hasn’t happened. Of the forty-eight games played so far in this year’s tournament, only four qualify as genuine upsets. Only two-double digit seeds got through the first round and both were bounced in the second. Only two of the Sweet Sixteen is seeded 6 or worse. All four #1s, three #2s, and three #3s are still in.
All of which leaves us without a true Cinderella. The lowest seed remaining, #7 UNLV, has a championship banner from 1990. The two teams from so-called mid-major conferences, Butler and Southern Illinois, spent the majority of the season in the top 25 and earned good seeds. Like it or not, teams like Butler, Southern Illinois, and Gonzaga are becoming Goliaths of their own, albeit leaner ones.
Ironically, the Cinderella story from this year’s tournament may be predictability itself. Over the years, the tournament has captured our national attention by being unpredictable. In the wake of George Mason’s bracket-busting run last year, the only thing no one expected this year was exactly what we got – top seed domination. In the context of March Madness, what’s more unpredictable than predictability?
This development should be welcomed by all who love college basketball. We seemed headed to an era where anything really could happen, rendering the label of underdog irrelevant. How much of a fairy tale is it if Cinderella gets the prince every year?
This year’s tournament has restored order to the college basketball universe. At least until next year when it can be turned on its head once again. See you in March 2008.
Can we be a Cinderalla nation without a Cinderella?
That is the question I’m left pondering after a weekend of college basketball without a major upset. Last year, I wrote that the NCAA tournament gives us the most quintessential American tale – the Cinderella story – year after year. With the apparently level playing field in the tournament, any team could wear a glass slipper for a few weeks in March.
The results on the court bore out my theory – a quarter of the teams that won their first round games were double-digit seeds. Two double-digit seeds and five teams seeded worse than 6 survived the first weekend into the Sweet Sixteen. And the George Mason Patriots, an 11 seed from the unheard-of Colonial Athletic Association, knocked off three Goliaths on their way to the most improbable Final Four berth ever.
Last year’s results were so surprising that even as they underscored the first half of my theory – anything can happen – they cast doubt on the second half – but it usually doesn’t. The tournament, like the American dream it mimics, is not as fair as it seems, I wrote. But after George Mason, I began to wonder if maybe the playing field of the tournament was level after all.
Last year’s madness seemed to usher in the postmodern era for college basketball where conference affiliation, star players, and Hall of Fame coaches no longer mattered. Parity was the buzz word and an avalanche of upsets was predicted for this year’s tournament.
In short, the avalanche hasn’t happened. Of the forty-eight games played so far in this year’s tournament, only four qualify as genuine upsets. Only two-double digit seeds got through the first round and both were bounced in the second. Only two of the Sweet Sixteen is seeded 6 or worse. All four #1s, three #2s, and three #3s are still in.
All of which leaves us without a true Cinderella. The lowest seed remaining, #7 UNLV, has a championship banner from 1990. The two teams from so-called mid-major conferences, Butler and Southern Illinois, spent the majority of the season in the top 25 and earned good seeds. Like it or not, teams like Butler, Southern Illinois, and Gonzaga are becoming Goliaths of their own, albeit leaner ones.
Ironically, the Cinderella story from this year’s tournament may be predictability itself. Over the years, the tournament has captured our national attention by being unpredictable. In the wake of George Mason’s bracket-busting run last year, the only thing no one expected this year was exactly what we got – top seed domination. In the context of March Madness, what’s more unpredictable than predictability?
This development should be welcomed by all who love college basketball. We seemed headed to an era where anything really could happen, rendering the label of underdog irrelevant. How much of a fairy tale is it if Cinderella gets the prince every year?
This year’s tournament has restored order to the college basketball universe. At least until next year when it can be turned on its head once again. See you in March 2008.
March 05, 2007
Leadership Across the Color Line
It has been nearly a century and a half since the peculiar institution that was slavery was outlawed in the United States, yet the legacy of racial issues born by slavery continues to affect modern politics and leadership. Just last week, we learned that the ancestors of a preeminent African American leader (Al Sharpton) were at one point owned by the ancestors of a preeminent segregationist politician (Strom Thurmond), and it turns out that ancestors of Barack Obama’s white mother once owned slaves.
Against the backdrop of these revelations, a bill was recently introduced in Congress seeking an apology on behalf of the United States government for slavery and the Jim Crow segregation that followed it. Although the bill raises all sorts of interesting questions on its own, one of the more noteworthy aspects of it is that it was offered by a white congressman.
Specifically, the bill was introduced by Steve Cohen, a freshman representative and the first white congressman from majority-black Memphis in three decades. Cohen arrived in Washington only after defeating more than a half dozen African American candidates in a primary where some of his opponents suggested that he was unqualified to represent Memphis because of his race. The consensus is that Cohen is likely to face an African American candidate in 2008 with more unified support, giving him two years to prove to any suspicious black constituents that he can vigorously represent this district despite the color of his skin.
Ultimately, those two years will provide Cohen’s answer to the question of how a white person can effectively represent a majority-black district. This question, however, is really part of a larger question about leadership in America. Do Americans want a leader who simply looks like them or one who is able to understand their concerns regardless of what that leader looks like? Will Americans tolerate a leader who is not personally appealing if that leader proves capable of delivering good results? There is no question that Cohen’s record as a state senator has proven him to be strong on core African American issues – perhaps even stronger than his African American predecessor, Harold Ford, Jr. However, there is also no question that Cohen’s tactics and demeanor – and for some, his race – do not always endear him to the African American community. Cohen believes that if he can prove that he both understands African American concerns and work diligently to address them, his race ought not matter. But, fairly or not, Cohen’s race does matter.
Effective leadership requires a combination of many abilities – the ability to connect with constituents, the ability to empathize with those constituents’ concerns, and the ability to work toward effective solutions to those concerns. Even today, each of these abilities is significantly impacted by what a leader looks like. In his first months, Cohen needs to overcome hurdles an African American representative would not have encountered by working to make connections with the majority of his constituents who do not look like him. The apology measure, along with a well-attended community event featuring African American congressman John Conyers, are clearly efforts by Cohen to prove himself capable of understanding and addressing African American concerns.
In our increasingly diverse nation, it will be impossible to find leaders who share a perspective will all of their constituents. What we should seek from those who represent us is a willingness to listen to our concerns and a passion for finding solutions to them. Whether that leader’s ancestors were slaves or slaveholders ought to matter less than how that leader confronts today’s problems, many of which find their origins in the era of slavery. Cohen’s apology bill will not solve any of those problems, but it is a first step toward convincing his constituents that he is up to the task of representing them effectively and it is a step Cohen has to take.
Against the backdrop of these revelations, a bill was recently introduced in Congress seeking an apology on behalf of the United States government for slavery and the Jim Crow segregation that followed it. Although the bill raises all sorts of interesting questions on its own, one of the more noteworthy aspects of it is that it was offered by a white congressman.
Specifically, the bill was introduced by Steve Cohen, a freshman representative and the first white congressman from majority-black Memphis in three decades. Cohen arrived in Washington only after defeating more than a half dozen African American candidates in a primary where some of his opponents suggested that he was unqualified to represent Memphis because of his race. The consensus is that Cohen is likely to face an African American candidate in 2008 with more unified support, giving him two years to prove to any suspicious black constituents that he can vigorously represent this district despite the color of his skin.
Ultimately, those two years will provide Cohen’s answer to the question of how a white person can effectively represent a majority-black district. This question, however, is really part of a larger question about leadership in America. Do Americans want a leader who simply looks like them or one who is able to understand their concerns regardless of what that leader looks like? Will Americans tolerate a leader who is not personally appealing if that leader proves capable of delivering good results? There is no question that Cohen’s record as a state senator has proven him to be strong on core African American issues – perhaps even stronger than his African American predecessor, Harold Ford, Jr. However, there is also no question that Cohen’s tactics and demeanor – and for some, his race – do not always endear him to the African American community. Cohen believes that if he can prove that he both understands African American concerns and work diligently to address them, his race ought not matter. But, fairly or not, Cohen’s race does matter.
Effective leadership requires a combination of many abilities – the ability to connect with constituents, the ability to empathize with those constituents’ concerns, and the ability to work toward effective solutions to those concerns. Even today, each of these abilities is significantly impacted by what a leader looks like. In his first months, Cohen needs to overcome hurdles an African American representative would not have encountered by working to make connections with the majority of his constituents who do not look like him. The apology measure, along with a well-attended community event featuring African American congressman John Conyers, are clearly efforts by Cohen to prove himself capable of understanding and addressing African American concerns.
In our increasingly diverse nation, it will be impossible to find leaders who share a perspective will all of their constituents. What we should seek from those who represent us is a willingness to listen to our concerns and a passion for finding solutions to them. Whether that leader’s ancestors were slaves or slaveholders ought to matter less than how that leader confronts today’s problems, many of which find their origins in the era of slavery. Cohen’s apology bill will not solve any of those problems, but it is a first step toward convincing his constituents that he is up to the task of representing them effectively and it is a step Cohen has to take.
February 19, 2007
Disconnected in DC
It is a long way from Washington, D.C., to Baghdad. Over 6200 miles to be exact. But watching the events of the last week, it would be possible to think that the two were ever further apart. On different planets, perhaps.
On Friday, the House of Representatives, after over 45 hours of debate spread over 5 days, passed a measure formally disapproving of President Bush’s plan to send an additional 20,000 combat troops to Iraq. Over the course of the debate, 392 House members took their 5 minutes to passionately defend their positions in front of a largely empty chamber, speaking only into the air that is the C-SPAN viewership. The bill that passed, however, was really only a “nonbinding resolution.” From a policy perspective, this nonbinding resolution has exactly zero effect on the future direction of Iraq other than lobbing some harsh words at the Administration. So much for sticks and stones, eh?
The House’s expression of public outrage may not have been much, but it still bested the performance of the Senate. In a startling display of Congressional impotence, the Senate failed to even get to a debate on the resolution passed by the House thanks to procedural rules. This failure means that, for now, Senators – many of whom are running for president – will not engage in debate, much less put themselves on record, regarding a crucial issue in our nation’s life.
Meanwhile, President Bush seems content to run out the clock on his term so that he will never have to admit a mistake and can pass his fiasco on to the next president.
This entire scene unfolds amid a backdrop of increasing American casualties and downed helicopters and bombs that kill scores of Iraqis even as security forces crack down. The contrast between real lives being lost and symbolic resolutions being debated – or not even debated in the case of the Senate – vividly drives home the disconnect between the powers that be in Washington and the events of the real world. It is no wonder that both congressional and presidential approval ratings are at historic lows – neither Congress nor the President is responding effectively to an immense national problem.
The sad fact is that the decision makers in Washington are not leaders, but politicians. Even as they debate crucial issues, they keep an eye on partisan strategy and the next election. Questions that may be asked when a vote must be cast could be, in this order: Is it good for me? Is it good for my party? Is it good for the country? These are the priorities of politicians. I have no doubt that many start in politics for all the right reasons – to serve the public and improve the country – but years within the Beltway have a tendency to warp perspectives to the point that nonbinding resolutions pass for bold action.
The real power of Congress when it comes to foreign policy – the power of the purse – was explicitly not on the table during last week’s debate and non-debate. Why? Because forcing politicians to take a stand on such a politically-charged issue may put politicians in politically-uncomfortable situations. The result of this reticence, unfortunately, is that American troops and an entire nation of Iraqis are put in truly uncomfortable, even deadly, situations every day.
On Friday, the House of Representatives, after over 45 hours of debate spread over 5 days, passed a measure formally disapproving of President Bush’s plan to send an additional 20,000 combat troops to Iraq. Over the course of the debate, 392 House members took their 5 minutes to passionately defend their positions in front of a largely empty chamber, speaking only into the air that is the C-SPAN viewership. The bill that passed, however, was really only a “nonbinding resolution.” From a policy perspective, this nonbinding resolution has exactly zero effect on the future direction of Iraq other than lobbing some harsh words at the Administration. So much for sticks and stones, eh?
The House’s expression of public outrage may not have been much, but it still bested the performance of the Senate. In a startling display of Congressional impotence, the Senate failed to even get to a debate on the resolution passed by the House thanks to procedural rules. This failure means that, for now, Senators – many of whom are running for president – will not engage in debate, much less put themselves on record, regarding a crucial issue in our nation’s life.
Meanwhile, President Bush seems content to run out the clock on his term so that he will never have to admit a mistake and can pass his fiasco on to the next president.
This entire scene unfolds amid a backdrop of increasing American casualties and downed helicopters and bombs that kill scores of Iraqis even as security forces crack down. The contrast between real lives being lost and symbolic resolutions being debated – or not even debated in the case of the Senate – vividly drives home the disconnect between the powers that be in Washington and the events of the real world. It is no wonder that both congressional and presidential approval ratings are at historic lows – neither Congress nor the President is responding effectively to an immense national problem.
The sad fact is that the decision makers in Washington are not leaders, but politicians. Even as they debate crucial issues, they keep an eye on partisan strategy and the next election. Questions that may be asked when a vote must be cast could be, in this order: Is it good for me? Is it good for my party? Is it good for the country? These are the priorities of politicians. I have no doubt that many start in politics for all the right reasons – to serve the public and improve the country – but years within the Beltway have a tendency to warp perspectives to the point that nonbinding resolutions pass for bold action.
The real power of Congress when it comes to foreign policy – the power of the purse – was explicitly not on the table during last week’s debate and non-debate. Why? Because forcing politicians to take a stand on such a politically-charged issue may put politicians in politically-uncomfortable situations. The result of this reticence, unfortunately, is that American troops and an entire nation of Iraqis are put in truly uncomfortable, even deadly, situations every day.
February 05, 2007
Life and Death
I heard the news only hours after I left the courtroom following a hearing on whether my client, a death row inmate, could obtain DNA testing to corroborate his story of innocence. Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen had issued a three-month moratorium on executions in Tennessee. I was at once relieved for my client, whose execution is now pushed back indefinitely, and pleased to see Tennessee join the growing number of states grappling to find the most appropriate way to impose the death penalty.
Although Governor Bredesen’s order offers hope for death penalty opponents, it certainly does not end the practice. In the very second sentence of his press conference announcing the moratorium, Bredesen proclaimed himself “a supporter of the death penalty” even as his executive order called into question the procedures for carrying it out. The executive order charges the Commissioner of Corrections with undertaking a comprehensive review of how the state carries out executions. Specifically, the review is to look at the actual administration of the death sentence – the lethal injection procedures and protocol – to ensure that Tennessee’s practice is consistent with moral and legal norms.
The action in Tennessee is part of what seems to be a quickly-expanding nationwide second look at the death penalty. In 1976, the US Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was not cruel and unusual punishment, but in the last several years, several states have begun to reconsider whether that is the case. Both Florida and California are undergoing reviews of execution procedures similar to that ordered in Tennessee, but several other states have gone even further. In New York, the state’s highest court ruled the death penalty statute unconstitutional. In New Jersey, a commission recently recommended halting the practice, and the governor of Illinois commuted the sentences of all of that state’s death row inmates in 2003.
The driving force behind much of this review is the deeply felt need to get it right with the death penalty. In an age where DNA and other means have been used to exonerate several death row inmates, it is clear that the possibility of executing innocent individuals is very real. Governor Bredesen’s order is essentially an order to make sure Tennessee is getting it right when it comes to the actual administration of the death sentence.
However, there are numerous opportunities to go wrong before an inmate ever reaches the death chamber. Beginning with the collection of evidence at the crime scene, to the prosecution’s discretion to choose which defendants face the death penalty, to the competence of defense attorneys to confront the prosecution’s evidence, to complicated and often vague jury instructions, through post-trial appeals and into the science behind lethal injections, there are countless opportunities for the human beings involved in death penalty practice to make mistakes. And as humans are wont to do, mistakes are made. These mistakes don’t mean that every death row defendant is innocent. They simply mean that no death row inmate was sentenced without the potential for error.
Are there crimes for which the perpetrator deserves to be put to death? Absolutely. However, the death penalty does not serve either deterrence or economic goals. It may provide some comfort to victims’ families, but even that must be diminished when the death occurs a quarter-century after the crime, as is typical. Just because some crimes and criminals deserve a penalty of death does not mean that we, as a society, should overlook the inevitable flaws in our system to impose it.
Governor Bredesen’s impulse for review is laudable, but the review he has ordered does not go far enough. Rather than only focusing on what occurs in the death chamber, the state would be better served by reevaluating death penalty administration from start to finish. In my mind, there is no way to devise a system, administered by human beings, for taking human lives without creating the potential for grave errors. In these matters of life and death, there is no room for error.
Although Governor Bredesen’s order offers hope for death penalty opponents, it certainly does not end the practice. In the very second sentence of his press conference announcing the moratorium, Bredesen proclaimed himself “a supporter of the death penalty” even as his executive order called into question the procedures for carrying it out. The executive order charges the Commissioner of Corrections with undertaking a comprehensive review of how the state carries out executions. Specifically, the review is to look at the actual administration of the death sentence – the lethal injection procedures and protocol – to ensure that Tennessee’s practice is consistent with moral and legal norms.
The action in Tennessee is part of what seems to be a quickly-expanding nationwide second look at the death penalty. In 1976, the US Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was not cruel and unusual punishment, but in the last several years, several states have begun to reconsider whether that is the case. Both Florida and California are undergoing reviews of execution procedures similar to that ordered in Tennessee, but several other states have gone even further. In New York, the state’s highest court ruled the death penalty statute unconstitutional. In New Jersey, a commission recently recommended halting the practice, and the governor of Illinois commuted the sentences of all of that state’s death row inmates in 2003.
The driving force behind much of this review is the deeply felt need to get it right with the death penalty. In an age where DNA and other means have been used to exonerate several death row inmates, it is clear that the possibility of executing innocent individuals is very real. Governor Bredesen’s order is essentially an order to make sure Tennessee is getting it right when it comes to the actual administration of the death sentence.
However, there are numerous opportunities to go wrong before an inmate ever reaches the death chamber. Beginning with the collection of evidence at the crime scene, to the prosecution’s discretion to choose which defendants face the death penalty, to the competence of defense attorneys to confront the prosecution’s evidence, to complicated and often vague jury instructions, through post-trial appeals and into the science behind lethal injections, there are countless opportunities for the human beings involved in death penalty practice to make mistakes. And as humans are wont to do, mistakes are made. These mistakes don’t mean that every death row defendant is innocent. They simply mean that no death row inmate was sentenced without the potential for error.
Are there crimes for which the perpetrator deserves to be put to death? Absolutely. However, the death penalty does not serve either deterrence or economic goals. It may provide some comfort to victims’ families, but even that must be diminished when the death occurs a quarter-century after the crime, as is typical. Just because some crimes and criminals deserve a penalty of death does not mean that we, as a society, should overlook the inevitable flaws in our system to impose it.
Governor Bredesen’s impulse for review is laudable, but the review he has ordered does not go far enough. Rather than only focusing on what occurs in the death chamber, the state would be better served by reevaluating death penalty administration from start to finish. In my mind, there is no way to devise a system, administered by human beings, for taking human lives without creating the potential for grave errors. In these matters of life and death, there is no room for error.
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