"And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague."   Mark 5:34 KJV

CARVER COMMUNITY CENTER

Some students from Davis Bottom attended two public schools located on the site of what was known as The Carver Community Center at 522 Patterson Street. These two schools played an integral role in the history of public education for African Americans in Lexington from 1883 to 1972.

The site’s history begins with nearby Pleasant Green Missionary Baptist Church, which established one of the first schools for African Americans in the basement of its “old” church building in 1874. Within a decade, enrollment swelled to 108 students so a church committee raised $900 to purchase a lot for construction of Patterson Street School (site of present day playground). Opened in 1883, Patterson was built within twenty feet of noisy and dangerous railroad tracks. In the 1930s, the Works Progress Administration provided funds for construction of George Washington Carver Elementary School, which served neighborhood students from 1934 until 1972.

From the Kentucky Archaeological Survey

The hymn of praise, “At the Cross,” originated from Isaac Watts’ 1707 song, “Alas! and Did My Saviour Bleed.”

In 1885, Ralph E. Hudson transformed it, by adding a popular revival refrain from Salvation Army meetings and composing a new melody for Watts’ verses, creating the familiar version sung today.

Both interpretations of the hymn—Watts’ original “Alas! and Did My Saviour Bleed” and Hudson’s adaptation “At the Cross”—serve different purposes in worship:
Isaac Watts’ lyrics solemnly reflect and contemplate Christ’s sacrifice, …

“Alas! and did my Savior bleed. And did my Sov’reign die? Would He devote that sacred head. For such a worm as I?”

While Ralph E. Hudson’s words become a celebratory testimony of the joy and freedom that sacrifice brings.…

“At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light. And the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there by faith I received my sight. And now I am happy all the day!”

Hudson’s significant contribution was not just combining Isaac Watts’ powerful text with his popular refrain. Hudson created a new melody specifically for Watts’ verses. The result was a perfect marriage of Watts’ profound theological reflection with the joyful testimony of the refrain.

Biblical inspiration, themes and interpretations of the song are reflected in scripture.

As the prophet Isaiah wrote centuries before either Watts or Hudson put pen to paper in Isaiah 53:5-6: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

Both versions of this beloved hymn point us to this eternal truth.

To God Be The Glory for the divinely prolific teamwork shared between two strangers who lived centuries apart. Their creative genius, inspired by the word of God began in the early 18th Century and didn’t see completion of the adaptation we know so well today until the 19th Century! Their vision and combined talents through the creation of this famous hymn continue to spiritually bless hearts and souls worldwide to this day!

Sister Cathy Black

WEEKLY ACTIVITIES

• Join our Virtual Prayer Service by phone on Tuesday evenings from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm Bible Study from 8:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
  
  Call: 253-215-8782 or 301-715-8592;
  Additional Phone Numbers:
  564-217-2000; 646-558-8656;
  646-931-3860
  Meeting ID: 685 433 0718
• Radio broadcasts Saturdays 9:00 am and 3:00 pm as well as Sundays at 7:30 am on WJMM FM 99.1
• International Sunday School Lesson
  This Sunday's Lesson:
  
  "God Is Compassionate: Should Sinners Be Punished Or Shown Compassion First?" Micah 7:14-20
  
  Lesson Nugget:
  In today's lesson, in spite of the trangressions of Israel, Micah seeks God's mercy and compassion as was extended to them when He brought them out of Egypt. God will restore them and their land to past times when joy was the order of the day.
  
  Do we as Christians seek God's mercy and compassion even though we deserve His punishment?

• Next Sunday's Lesson: "God Promises Salvation: How Do Believers Respond To Our Troubles?" Habakkuk  3:2-6, 17-19

• In - Person Worship Service on Sundays at 10:30 am and Streaming on the Church Facebook Page and YouTube. It can also be viewed on demand on the church
  historicpg.org website by selecting "Watch Us Live."
  
• Thank you for giving your Tithes and Offerings In-Person, by mail or with the Givelify App.
  
• Give with CashApp: $1790pgchurch
  
  Our mailing address is:

Historic Pleasant Green Missionary Baptist Church

PO Box 11845
Lexington, KY 40578

Upcoming Events

Virtual Prayer Service 

Tuesday, February 17, 7:00 PM

Call: 253-215-8782;

Meeting ID: 685 433 0718

Choir Rehearsal

Thursday, February 19, 6:30 pm

 Bible Study,

In-Person & Virtual

Saturday, February 21, 10:00 AM

Call: 253-215-8782;

Meeting ID: 685 433 0718

40 Year Christians Group

Virtual Meeting

Saturday, February 21, 12:00 PM

Call: 253-215-8782;

Meeting ID: 685 433 0718

BLACK HISTORY 

JUST FOR KIDS AND TEENS 

February 15, 2026

THE WHY AND IMPORTANCE 

OF BLACK HISTORY, HOPE AND YOU!

Rev. Herbert T. Owens, Jr. Church Historian

“Listen, my children, and you shall hear

(Not) Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,” …

(BUT)

Of the emphasis of Black History each year…

So that you can understand your history quite clear!!!

(I took a creative liberty spin to start this article with the iconic/ memorable first line of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s (1860) poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride.

The Lord woke me up this past Saturday morning at 7 AM with this article to share with you. The Lord reminded me (memory is the storage vault of history) of His blessings early in my life to discover one of my “callings” in my life, which is the continual study of history.

The Lord impressed His blessing strongly in my mind and heart that one of my roles in life was to study, learn, and teach history. This epiphany / (sudden, profound insight) When I was a child, around 6 or 7 years of age, my parents took our family to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the late 1950’s. I still remember that vacation. During our visit I was privileged to be able to visit Independence (meeting) Hall, the building where the framers wrote our current U.S. Constitution.

The History society restored the location in approximation to the original site in 1787-1789. I walked on the cobble stone walkway in front of the building. For a small child that was an arduous task for little feet. I was mesmerized by everything I saw there.

The tour guides were dressed in clothes of the time period known as Colonial America. They told our tour group the story of the location and the tasks that the Constitutional Convention delegation deliberated and then wrote the Constitution there. I delighted in awe in what I was able to understand that day.

The guide directed us to the place where the famous Liberty Bell was on display. I could not believe that I would ever, not only see, but touch that which I had heard of even as a young student. I still remember (memory the storage vault of history within my mind) tracing the infamous crack in the Liberty Bell with my right index finger (They did not have plexiglass to encase the Liberty Bell in the late 1950’s. Therefore, I and all of the other children not only traced the track in the bell the guide let us stick our heads in side of the bell, imagine that. She told the frowning mothers that it was ok let them look.).

At that very moment with my finger coursing down the crack in the Liberty Bell, I remembered my Mom and Dad telling me that the crack happened when they rung it so hard it cracked. They explained that the people that rung the bell that hard because they were so proud and excited that the citizens of the United States of America in Philadelphia Pennsylvania had declared their independence from the country of England, who the Americans felt were oppressing them. Little did I know that all I experienced that day would be a lifelong blessing to me. Eventually the visit played a role in deciding my career choice.

Yesterday morning, as I stated above, the Lord inspired me to tell all of you THE WHY AND IMPORTANCE OF BLACK HISTORY from His Holy Bible:

“Numbers 18:20 from the International Children’s Bible:

20 The Lord also said to Aaron, “You will not inherit any of the land (not just Israel but black slaves in America as well). And you will not own any land among the other people (not just Israel but black slaves in America as well) I will be yours. Out of all the Israelites (and everybody else), only you will inherit me.

Lamentations 3:24

International Children’s Bible

24 I say to myself (because God has given us MEMORY… the storage vault of history within our minds) “The Lord is what I have left.

So I (we)have hope.

Genesis 50:20

International Children’s Bible.

The scriptural definition of what author Kenneth Stampp named slavery in America, The Peculiar Institution:

20 You meant to hurt me (in keeping us in slavery). But God turned your evil into good. It was to save the lives of many people. And it is being done.

The Holy Spirt of God inspired me to use these verses to help us to know that God is always in control. Observing Black History annually in February, the Love Month, is in keeping with our remembering the definition of God found in 1John 4:8: “ He that loveth not knoweth not God; for GOD IS LOVE (SELF DEFINED).

In my 57 years of serious study of Black History, I have poured over countless numbers of sources seeking a better understanding of our history in this American diasporic existence (diasporic meaning having been dispersed or scattered from our original homeland to various regions in the world).

My research labors have given me the following summation of what most dedicated teachers and promoters of the continual study of Black History believe in our hearts in stressing teaching it to all that have the capacity to receive it:

Therefore, Emphasizing Black history to small children and teens is crucial to foster empathy, respect, and a sense of belonging, while countering stereotypes early on. Black History introduces young learners to diverse heroes who exemplify perseverance and courage, helping them understand that Black history is American history. Black History promotes a more inclusive world view and provides positive representation for all children.

Parents I implore you (I beg you…in the words of that old Temptations song…I “Ain’t too proud to beg”) all of you to use what The Lord gave me to share unto all of us to help our young ones to understand our American Black History. In doing so we will then join in the chorus of that soulful self love song that Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway so beautifully sung and requested all of us of Ebony 

Hue to do:

“BE REAL BLACK FOR ME!”

AMEN!

TO BE CONTINUED:

During February, the Youth Ministry will present on a Black History figure or a Hero of Faith in the Church, past or present, every Sunday to celebrate Black History Month! This is an exciting opportunity for our Youth to share an important piece of African-American history and culture with our Church family from a Youth perspective. Although every month is Black History to us, we are thrilled to share the beauty of our heritage, through intellectual, emotional, and spiritual stories. We hope you enjoy our presentations as we honor our ancestors!

The Youth will continue to meet every 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month at the Church at 7pm (*correction from last month's article.) We welcome ALL Youth and we encourage you to bring a friend! We look forward to studying more great characters of the Bible in depth. We have a jam-packed calendar of events this year, including several events planned for this month for Black History Month, so please join us! All reminders and events will be posted in our GroupMe messaging app. Contact Sis. Heather Happy (859.509.2927) for additional details.

Yours in Christ,
Youth Directors

WE ARE ONE!

Welcome to the 40 Year Christians' Cooking Corner! 

Here we will feature recipes from the 40 Year Christian Group. This week's recipe comes from Sister Alyce Emerson by way of the UK Cooperative Extension Service.

Blessings to all.

Sister Linda Gates, President

Name: Dre Valentine

Current Focus: Improving my relationship with GOD is something that I have really tried to focus on for the last several years. To approach my aim, I made a plan. I have a list. I work on it day by day, week by week. I know that it is a list that I will never complete. But that won’t deter me from trying! I scratch one off the list and GOD adds another. GOD is always willing to show us how to grow closer to HIM. I will work on HIS list until the day I die.

Career: I am a ticket broker. That is very different from being a ticket scalper. I sell tickets to concerts of major recording artists and to sporting events, etc. The largest events that I broker include the Super Bowl (football), the Masters (golf) and the World Cup (soccer).

Why this Career?: I have been a ticket broker for the last 16 years. Prior to that I was a car salesman for 15 years. The car business requires you to work on the weekends. I paused to look at my life. I knew that I wanted to spend more time with my sons, so I had to make a change. I made a conscious decision to pursue a different career path. The first venture I considered was the insurance business. The feedback I heard wasn’t positive enough to take that leap. Then I turned my focus towards securing a government position. I had interview after interview. I stopped and thought there was more for me. I connected with an old friend who had been a ticket broker since we were in our teens. He gave me some advice and I haven’t looked back. I’ll admit that I had to start lean and build up. I am where I am supposed to be. I have Saturday memories with my boys. They’ve become young men who will always remember having an involved father.

What do you want your church family to know about you?: I turned 59 last Friday. Know that I am basically just like every other member of our church family. We are all basically alike! Different situations, different circumstances, but all of us have had - and will continue to have - ups and downs, trials and triumphs. My oldest son was 28 when he was taken from us in 2021. My mother transitioned in 2017. My aunt, her younger sister, transitioned six months later. Through everything I’ve been through, GOD has never left my side. That’s my testimony. You have yours. Each testimony is unique, yet similar because we are all connected and covered by the blood of JESUS.

Pleasant Green has always been home for me. I was baptized at the age of 6...or 7…by our former pastor, the late Rev. Dr. Randall Hutchinson. Throughout my Christian journey I have sinned and come short like everyone else. GOD has stayed close. HE has navigated me away from relationships – personal and professional – that would not have been for my best. Throughout the years, I’ve visited other churches while popping in and out of Pleasant Green. I decided this past summer that it was time for me to come back home. I’m back! I am back with a made-up mind and heart to work; to serve; to help; to be part of our continuous improvement to the glory of GOD.

When we work together, you’ll get that I have a great sense of humor. I’m also direct in my communication. I’m a throwback. LOL Straight shooter!!! I don’t tell you one thing and mean another. Take me at face value and know that is how I am taking you. Say what we mean. Mean what we say. Walk away knowing what we said, what we’re doing, what we’re getting.

It’s much like a decision about birthday cake! LOL I don’t like box cake. Grocery cake doesn’t have flavor. Neither are what I wanted for my boys! So, I had to learn to make a cake. I had to put in the work. Now mine are great! Yes! I make a “mean cake.” LOL. That started with a decision. First decision: birthday cakes have buttercream icing! Second decision: Buttercream flavor matches cake flavor. Make a decision, put in the work and do it right!

I’ve cooked since I was in the 2nd grade. I make it all – lasagna, prime ribs, steaks, fettuccini carbonara. You name it. I can cook it!

Is there anything special your church can do for you? Pray for me, my family and my continued growth – growth not only spiritually but also within the church. I am at an age where I have material things and for those, I am grateful. But I realize that they don’t carry the value I once thought. You realize that when you are 50+.

What do you want your church family to know about GOD?: GOD is patient and HIS love is never ending! HE’s been patient with us throughout our lifetimes and with man since the very beginning of time! GOD loved us enough to sacrifice HIS only begotten son. Once we are in GOD’s hands there is nothing that we can do that will remove us from HIS love or from HIS care. Think of your own children. I tell my sons that I may not agree with everything they do but there is NOTHING they can ever do that will remove my love. I am human and I love my children that way. We’re GOD’s children! Trust HIS love for us! Let GOD show us how to be loved by HIM as HE shows us how to parent, how to befriend and how to live.

Mother: the late Barbara Valetine Floyd

Spouse: Monica Valentine

Adult Sons: the late John Harris (28 at time of death), Nicholas Valentine (27), Jacob Valentine (22), Tyler Valentine (21)

Recent Requests

• Family of Sister Jackie Lindsay, who passed. (Sister of Brother Wayne Frazier) Arrangements: Visitation: 11:00 am; Service: 1:00 pm, Friday, February 20, Main Street Baptist Church
  
  
• Family of Brother Bill McCann (Austin, TX), who passed. (Brother-In-Law of Brother Wayne Frazier) Arrangements Pending
  
  
• Family of Sister Rhonda Winn, who passed. (Cousin of Brother Derrick Winn)
  
  
• Sister Alyssa Burns (UK Medical Center) (Daughter of Rev. Ron & Sis. René Burns)
  
  
• Sister Charlie Peoples Brown (Home)
  
  
• Brother Sherman Greene (St. Joseph Hospital Harrodsburg Rd) (Father of Sister Janice Owens)
  
  
• Sister Dawn Gay Martin (Home)
  
  
• Sister Penny McCann (Austin, TX)
  
  
• Sister Sharon Scarber (UK Samaritan Hospital)
  
  
• Sister Lynn Smith (Home)
  
  
• Brother Rodney Taylor ( Ephraim McDowell Regional Hospital, Danville, Ky) (Nephew of Sister Juanita Black and Cousin of Sister Cathy Black)
  
  
• Sister Dawn Williams (Home) (Daughter of Sister Thelma White)
  
  
• Brother William "Bill" Young (Home)
  
  

Ongoing Requests:

• Brother Willis K. Bright, Jr. (Indianapolis, In)
  
  
• Brother Bruce from Tates Creek Golf Course Clubhouse
  
  
• Brother Levi Fishback (Harrodsburg Health & Rehabilitation Center, Harrodsburg, KY)
  
  
• Sister Anna Jarber (Homestead Nursing Home)
  
  
• Sister Thelma Masterson (Homestead Nursing Home)
   
• Brother Glenn Allen (Home) (Relative of the Brooks Family)
  
  
• Sister Mary Ann Banksden (Florence, AL) (Sister of Brother Sammie Brooks)
  
  
• Sister Lillian Bell (Ruston, LA)
  
  
• Sister Ruby Branham (Prestonsburg, KY) (Mother of Sister Jackie Peoples)
  
  
• Sister Beverly Bowman (Home)
  
  
• Sister Bonita Brown (Home)
  
  
• Brother Byron Brown
  
  
• Sister Patricia Brown (Home)
  
  
• Sister Carrie Clay (Home) Upcoming surgery
  
  
• Sister Charmaine Collins (Home) (Daughter of Sister Debra Collins)
  
  
• Sister Debra Collins (Home)
  
  
• Sister Gloria Coleman (Home)
  
  
• Brother Lonnie Cowan (Home)
  
  
• Crutcher, Jones, & Payne Family (especially Little Brother Vince Crutcher III and Sister Brittany Payne)
  
  
• Sister Laura Dunaway (Home)
  
  
• Brother Billy Edwards (Home)
  
  
• Sister Shirley Alcorn Edwards (Portsmouth, VA)
  
  
• Sister Jessica Embry
  
  
• Sister McKinley Emerson (Home)
  
  
• Brother Greg Forrest (Kevil, KY) (Nephew of Sisters Janice Jackson and Barbara Ridgeway)
  
  
• Sister Johnetta Frazier (Home)
  
  
• Rev. Jerry Gumm (Home)
  (Friends of the late Dr. Charles Black's family)
  
  
• Brother Darius Hall, Jr. (14 year old Grandson of Sister Marion Hall) (Home)
  
  
• Sister Sheryl Haskins (Home)
  
  
• Sister Jeanette Higgins (Home)
  
  
• Sister Gwendolyn Holloman (Home) (Wife of Bishop J. B. Holloman)
  
  
• Sister Iris Horice (Paducah, KY) (Niece of Sisters Janice Jackson and Barbara Ridgeway)
  
  
• Brother Daron Houtman, Jr. (Wichita, KS) (Nephew of Sister Lisa Leath)
  
  
• Brother Julian Jackson (Home) (Father of Brother Jarold Jackson)
  
  
• Sister Kemona Johnson (Home)
  
  
• Sister Norma Johnson (Home)
  
  
• Sister Vera Johnson (Home) (Sister of Sister Marion Hall)
  
  
• Brother Vincino Johnson (Home)
  
  
• Brother Travis Jones (Home ) (Brother of Sisters Liz Brooks, Trina Morton, and Sobona Sweat)
  
  
• The Kierra Joseph Family
  
  
• Sister Janet King (Classmate of Sister Norma Johnson)
  
  
• Brother Larry Leath (Home)
  
  
• Sister Lindsey Leath (Home)
  
  
• Sister Patricia Leavell (Home)
  
  
• Sister Wanda Frazier (Home) (Sister of Brother Wayne Frazier)
  
  
• Sister Karisma Lockhart (Los Angeles, CA) and her family (Niece of Rev. Freddie Moody)
  
  
• Sister Danise Madison (Seattle, WA) (Sister of Sister Bonita Brown)
  
  
• Sister Charlet McLellan & Family
  
  
• Sister Genice Moody Mays (Los Angeles, CA) (Youngest sister of Rev. Freddie Moody)
  
  
• Sister Irene Sykes McKenzie (Home)
  
  
• Sister Elnora Miller (Home) (Mother of Sister Lisa Miller)
  
  
• Sister Lisa Miller (Home)
  
  
• Brother Daryl Moberly (Uncle of Sister Marva Eubank)
  
  
• Sister Tyailan Moberly (Home) (Cousin of Sister Marva Eubank)
  
  
• Brother Charles Moore, Sr. (Denton, TX) (Brother of Sister Shelia Williams)
  
  
• Sister Dorothy Offutt (Home)
  
  
• Sister Ashanti Owens (Granddaughter of Sister Mary Thomas)
  
  
• Sister Brittany Payne (Home)
  
  
• Brother Stevie Pepper (Columbus, OH) (Cousin of Sister Mary Thomas)(Home)
  
  
• Brother Steven Prater (Richmond Hill, GA)
  
  
• Sister Ruth Rawlings (Friend of Sister Kim Bond)
  
  
• Veronica Ridgeway (Louisville, KY) (Cousin of Sisters Janice Jackson and Barbara Ridgeway)
  
  
• Sister Annette Reid (Home)
  
  
• Brother Ashley Roach
  
  
• Sister Gayle Rush-Coleman (Home)
  
  
• Sister Tamika Sales (Home)
  
  
• Sister Candace Hayes (Home) (Daughter of Sister Sharon Scarber)
  
  
• Brother Donald Scarber (Home)
  
  
• Brother Doug Smith (Brother of Rev. Michael Smith) (Home, Louisville, KY)
  
  
• Sister Pennie Smith (Home)
  
  
• Sister Eleanor Smothers (Home)
  
  
• Sister Delores Spencer (Home)
  
  
• Sister Tonia Stewart (Home)
  
  
• Brother Adrian Tatman (Home)
  
  
• Sister Anna Tatman (Home)
  
  
• Sister Cheryl "Midge" Taylor (Home)
  
  
• Sister Kendra Taylor (Home)
  
  
• Sister Carol Thomas (Home)
  
  
• Brother Pete Thompson (Home)
  
  
• Sister Anna Ison-Walker (Home)
  
  
• Brother Kevin Walker (San Francisco, CA) (First Cousin of Rev. Freddie Moody)
  
  
• Sister Martha Warner (Home) (Mother of Sister Catherine Frye)
  
  

• Sister Tassa Wigginton (Home)
  
  
• Brother Melvin Williams (Home)
  
  

• Brother Leon Wilson (Home) (Brother-in-Law of Sister Mary Thomas)
  
  
  
• Each person listed on our Sick List
  
  
• HPGMBC Full Time Pastor Search Committee Members, their families and their work
  
  
• Victims of the Wildfires
  
  
• Families of the Children affected in war torn countries around the world
  
  
• Children orphaned due to war and worldwide crises
  
  
• Families affected by gun violence in our community and abroad
  
  
• COVID-19 Victims around the world
  
  
• The People of Ukraine
  
  
• Healthcare workers, First responders, etc.
  
  
• The Entire Pleasant Green Church Family
  
  
• Our our Local and National Government Officials

Heavenly Father, thank You for offering us new life, set free from sin, through faith in Christ.Thank you for Jesus. In His Name. Amen 

{Adapted from Our Daily Bread,  February 10, 2026}

Keep Your Contact Information Updated

Please keep your contact information up to date. In case of emergencies, changes of service times, etc., every attempt will be made to contact church members as expeditiously as possible using text messages to cell phones, phone calls, and emails. You can update your contact information by calling the church at (859) 254-7387.

If you would like to volunteer in assisting with contacting members on the rare occasions when information needs to be communicated to the church membership quickly, please call the church and give your name and phone number.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

The contact persons for Pleasant Green are Sisters Dawn Offutt and Linda Gates.  On Sunday, February 22, following morning worship, there will be a meeting with any ladies interested in attending the Consolidated Baptist District Women's Retreat.

FLU

Flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that infect the nose, throat, and sometimes the lungs. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death.

Flu shots are available at local pharmacies. Consult your physician regarding a flu vaccination.

RSV

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common, contagious virus that usually causes mild symptoms. In older adults and adults with certain underlying conditions, RSV can cause severe infections.

RSV shots are available at local pharmacies. Consult your physician regarding a RSV vaccination.

COVID-19

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Most people infected with the virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. However, some will become seriously ill and require medical attention. Older people and those with underlying medical conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, or cancer are more likely to develop serious illness. Anyone can get sick with COVID-19 and become seriously ill or die at any age.

The best way to prevent and slow down transmission is to be well informed about the disease and how the virus spreads. Protect yourself and others from infection by staying at least 1 metre apart from others, wearing a properly fitted mask, and washing your hands or using an alcohol-based rub frequently. Get vaccinated when it’s your turn and follow local guidance.

The virus can spread from an infected person’s mouth or nose in small liquid particles when they cough, sneeze, speak, sing or breathe. These particles range from larger respiratory droplets to smaller aerosols. It is important to practice respiratory etiquette, for example by coughing into a flexed elbow, and to stay home and self-isolate until you recover if you feel unwell.

Both COVID vaccines and Booster COVID vaccines are available at local pharmacies. Consult your physician regarding COVID vaccinations.

General Health Information

General Health information can be obtained from the Health Department. Contact information is below:

LEXINGTON-FAYETTE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
650 Newtown Pike
Lexington, KY 40508
(859) 252-2371.

VOL. 14 COMMON SENSE REVISITED

“BEFORE COLOR PREJUDICE…

“GOD SHED HIS GRACE ON WE AS WELL ! BUT THEN!

2 15 2026

One researcher gave a richly illustrated account of black-white contacts from the Pharaohs to the Caesars. In his search he found that “the ancients did not discriminate against blacks because of their color.

For 3000 years Mediterranean whites intermittently came in contact with African blacks in commerce and war and left a record of these encounters in art and in written documents.

The blacks--most known as Kushites, Ethiopians or Nubians--were redoubtable/ (awe inspiring warriors) and commanded the respect of their white adversaries. The overall view of blacks was highly favorable.

In science, philosophy & religion color was not the basis of theories concerning inferior peoples.”

The Researcher’s study proved that the 3000 years of contact and communication with people of diverse cultures showed that there were elevated levels of cultural competency between different races.

A common guide that sociologist use to describe the process of cultural assimilation created by social contact states that: Assimilation is the adoption of norms, values, behaviors by either voluntarily or involuntary (forced slavery for Africans) process. The end results of this process are cultural and identity loss and the incorporation into a dominant group.

Another translation of the Non prejudicial assimilation process explanation states assimilation this way: “The assimilation process involves taking on the traits and customs of the dominant culture (voluntarily) while simultaneously (voluntarily)rejecting their own traditional culture.

This research begs the question, BUT THEN…how was the pall/(vail) of color prejudice cast on African slaves and their descendants in the so-called New World of North America, most especially the English colonies? Pastor Rev. Dr. T.H. Peoples, Jr. often used the expression in his preaching, “I’m glad you asked?”

Another researcher gives one answer to our question this way: He says the fact that the strong African tradition was so strong that “many African customs and traditions persisted” in the forced black immigrants.

His rationale for this deviation from the sociological common guide was “because of the refusal of the members of the dominant group (whites) to extend, without reservations, their own culture to the blacks whom they brought over (by force).” (Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and ponder this in your mind and understand what the researcher just put on your minds. The Hall and Oats song verse creeps in YET again, “So close…YET…so far away.

NOW THEN let us look back at what Lerone Bennett, Jr. also wrote in this regard, he said that “The racial situation, at this juncture, BEFORE COLOR PREJUDICE, (colonial America), was fluid; it contained the seeds of several alternatives for (affordable forced labor). Bennett went further and said, “Other possibilities were Native American slavery and a free labor system for Negroes and whites, Native Americans and immigrants.”

The “other possibilities” were not even contemplated as a viable option to the colonists. Lerone Bennett, Jr. said, “Socio-economic forces (in Colonial America) selected Negro slavery out of the previous alternatives” (as their workable choice).

In the American colonies cotton, rice, and tobacco were the “cash” crops that placed the shackles on our ancestors. In economic language supply and demand dictated the fate of countless millions of blacks in what Kenneth Stampp called, “The Peculiar Institution,” black chattel slavery. The demand for the “cash” crops and the advent of plantations to meet the demands forced the producers to look for a larger and abundant supply of laborers. The question that loomed constantly among these men was, “How can men be forced to work?

The planters' efforts to increase their work force failed. According to Bennett they, “tried Native American, and white male and female slavery.” Their attempts to enslave them failed. Then the white planters became white masters by enslaving blacks as chattel property, just like sheep, pigs, cows, etc. In short, they dehumanized blacks.

When I taught American History and government in public school and on the college level I used an expression that I feel is adequate in explaining the actions of the so-called masters. I labeled their intentions and actions toward blacks as, “elaborate justifications” to get what they wanted in line with the concept of “economic determinism.”

They were not practicing Marxism (Marxism did not exist during the colonial era) but their actions can be construed as running along the same lines as a type of “economic determinism.” Economic Determinism also describes the colonial planter masters’ views as to self-preservation and material interests that primarily dictated their behavior and Colonial societal development. Such was the creation of the “The Peculiar Institution” of black slavery.

The American slavery period can be considered a prime historical example of economic determinism—the theory that economic relationships and systems (the "base") determine the social, political, and intellectual structure of a society (the "superstructure"). 

Furthermore, slavery can be viewed as a horrific "means to an end" from the perspective of Southern slaveholders, Northern financiers, and the expanding American nation, which used enslaved labor to build capital and accelerate economic growth. 

“GOD SHED HIS GRACE ON WE AS WELL !” BUT THEN!!!

COMMON SENSE REVISITED…

TO BE CONTINUED: