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Jefferson County Kicks Off Bicentennial Celebration

THE BIRMINGHAM TIMES — The number “200” was spelled out in the shape of orange and purple balloons as a cool breeze whispered across the Vulcan Park and Museum on Monday morning. At the top of the steps leading to the museum a purple sign announced “200 Years of Innovation” with the “Jefferson County Bicentennial” stretched across the bottom of the sign.

Published

7 years ago

May 16, 2019

Oakland Post

By Ameera Steward

The number “200” was spelled out in the shape of orange and purple balloons as a cool breeze whispered across the Vulcan Park and Museum on Monday morning.

At the top of the steps leading to the museum a purple sign announced “200 Years of Innovation” with the “Jefferson County Bicentennial” stretched across the bottom of the sign.

Welcome to the kick-off of the bicentennial celebration for Jefferson County that drew County Manager Tony Petelos and all five county commissioners President Jimmie Stephens, Lashunda Scales, Sheila Tyson, Joe Knight, and Steve Ammons.

“We’re going to have events in each commission district with the help of each commissioner in those areas to highlight the local communities and what they have meant in Jefferson County through the year,” said Petelos.

A logo announcing 200 years of innovation is a testament to how much the county has grown from an “iron and steel town to the home of UAB, a world-class medical facility,” Petelos said.

Jefferson County was founded in December 1819 and building up to that “we’re going to highlight communities and cities throughout the county…we have an incredible history and this is a great place to live and raise a family,” said Petelos.

The county was established on Dec. 13, 1819 and will reach 200, one day before Alabama turns 200.

Beginning June 27, which is 200 days from the county’s 200th anniversary, officials will begin highlighting communities, people and places on social media. Buildings will be marked with the new bicentennial logo, Petelos said.

Since its founding, Jefferson County has been home to innovation, medical technology, and served an award-winning food and dining scene, Jefferson County has become a haven for culture and innovation,” said Petelos.

Scales said she hopes people will see the intentional efforts made by the county to diversify.

“As the first woman to be elected for county commission District 1 I believe that, that also is about the changing of hearts as it relates to women, race, religion, that we all recognize that though we are different in our backgrounds, we’re one as it relates to the county moving forward in a very progressive manner,” she said. “I believe that in the years to come that Jefferson County will be known as part of Alabama’s most progressive counties that we’ve ever seen.”

While the county is celebrating the past 200 years, Stephens said he is excited by what’s to come.

“It’s in our hands to forge and to make sure that we cover the right path. Let’s make sure that we continue to work together, draw on our diversity and get that done,” he said.

Knight said there is good, bad and perhaps the ugly to see in the county’s history, “but as leaders we should learn from pass mistakes and collectively concentrate on putting the building blocks in place for those who will follow us as they become the next leaders,” he said. “I am confident that Jefferson County will thrive and continue to be on the forefront of good things to come.”

Ammons said his District 5 has something to offer for everyone, from shopping and entertainment to outdoor adventures. “We have 200 years of collected beauty and history to offer our residents. Jefferson County is moving in the right direction and I look forward to not only growing with Jefferson County but improving the quality of life for our residents and our quality of place for our residents and our visitors,” he said.

Tyson said she hopes the role of African-Americans will also be celebrated.

“We were inventing things, we were very intelligent people, we were lawyers and doctors and inventors….so I would like for people to know that,” Tyson said. “So, it’s time for someone to tell the story and people to come out of the communities that have never been asked to participate in this bicentennial.”

The county is asking residents to submit their stories about the people and places of Jefferson County history on the county website.

This article originally appeared in The Birmingham Times.

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Poll Shows Support for Policies That Help Families Afford Child Care

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

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1 week ago

March 2, 2026

Oakland Post

By First Five Years Fund

New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

The national survey was conducted by UpOne Insight on behalf of the First Five Years Fund from January 13–18, 2026.

Key findings include:

• Parents need help: 80% of voters say the ability of working parents to find and afford child care is either in a state of crisis or a major problem.

• This is an affordability issue: 82% believe federal child care funding will help lower costs for working families — including 69% of Republicans, 84% of Independents, and 94% of Democrats.

• And there continues to be strong support (62%) for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), a federal program that makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of families to afford safe, quality care for their children while parents work or go to school, including a majority of Republicans, 63% of Independents and 72% of Democrats.

• Support for funding child care programs remains strong: 75% believe child care funding should be increased or kept at current levels — including 75% of Republicans, 85% of Independents, and 97% of Democrats.

• 74% say funding for child care is an important and good use of tax dollars, including a majority of Republicans, three-quarters of Independents, and nine in ten Democrats.

FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling said, “Voters across the country are sending a clear message: federal child care and early learning programs work. These investments help parents stay in the workforce, strengthen families, and support healthy child development. They have also long had strong bipartisan support in Congress. At a time when affordability is top of mind for families, continued federal funding is essential to ensure child care remains accessible and within reach.”

First Five Years Fund works to protect, prioritize, and build bipartisan support for quality child care and early learning programs at the federal level. Reliable, affordable, and high-quality early learning and child care can be transformative, not only enhancing a child’s prospects for a brighter future but also bolstering working parents and fostering economic stability nationwide.

We work with Congress and the Administration to identify federal solutions that work for families with young children, as well as states and communities. We work with policymakers to identify ways to increase access to affordable, high-quality child care and early learning programs for children. And we collaborate with advocacy groups to help align best practices with the best possible policies. http://www.ffyf.org

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

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1 week ago

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Oakland Post

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Trump’s MAGA Allies are Creating Executive Order Plan to Steal the 2026 Midterms

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

Published

1 week ago

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Oakland Post

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

A group of MAGA pro-Trump activists, who say they are working in coordination with the White House, are circulating a 17-page draft executive order that would claim without evidence that China interfered with the 2020 presidential election. Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential to President Joe Biden by over 7 million votes. Since Trump lost to Biden in 2020, he has repeatedly claimed that the election was “stolen” without evidence. The report of a group of “Trump allies” preparing an executive order to give Trump power over elections was first reported by The Washington Post.

The lies around the right-wing campaign that pushed falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen was trafficked through right-wing media, particularly Fox News. Fox News was then sued for defamation for the claims by Dominion Voting Systems. Fox lost the case and had to settle for the largest defamation amount on record of $787.5 million in April 2023.

The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

The story in The Washington Post arrives as Trump increasingly signals that he may take actions that would alter the result of the 2026 midterms. The Republicans are widely expected to lose as their approval ratings plummet as a result of a failing economy under Trump. Over 50 members of Congress have announced they will retire this year and not return in 2027.

The Trump Department of Justice, which now has a large image of Trump on the side of it, “sued five new states Thursday [Feb. 26, 2026] demanding access to their unredacted voter rolls — escalating a campaign that has been rejected by multiple federal courts and faces resistance from Republican-led states as well,” according to Democracy Docket, a group that works to protect voting rights.

Trump claimed back in late 2020, the last year of his first term, that he had the authority to issue an executive order related to mail-in voting for the 2020 elections — which he would then lose. But the Constitution states that control of elections lies with the states. As the GOP works to place hurdles in front of voting, Democrats worked to make voting easier.

In March 2021, President Biden signed an executive order calling on federal agencies to expand voting access as part of the Biden Administration’s effort “to promote and defend the right to vote for all Americans who are legally entitled to participate in elections.”

Trump’s focus is clearly on altering the November 2026 midterm elections. Trump’s polling numbers and the elections and special elections that have taken place around the U.S. over the last year clearly indicate that Republicans are about to be hit by a blue wave of Democratic victories.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent investigative journalist and the founder of Black Virginia News. She is a political analyst who appears on #RolandMartinUnfiltered and hosts the show LAUREN LIVE on YouTube @LaurenVictoriaBurke. She can be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke