Leukemia Overview: Symptoms, Signs, Treatment and Causes
From A Hurting Heart: On The Execution Of Marcellus Williams
Marcellus Williams.
There's no other way to write this outside of the extensive curse words I want to use: What, the actual, hell? How on earth does the United States have such a deeply flawed system of injustice that the state of Missouri executed a man that both the defense and prosecution believed was innocent? My heart is heavy. How about you?
The state of Missouri executed Marcellus Williams on Tuesday, September 24. He was convicted of a murder committed in 1998. It was apparently a burglary gone wrong that resulted in the killing of former newspaper reporter Lisha Gayle. Williams was sentenced to death.
There is significant evidence that Williams was wrongly convicted. The original prosecutor, Wesley Bell, sought to block the execution out of concerns about the trial. Bell had concern about two of the primary trial witnesses as well as how prosecutors excluded Black jurors. Further, there was no DNA evidence tying Williams to the crime scene. In fact, the DNA found on the knife used in the murder was actually from a prosecutor and investigator who processed the scene without wearing gloves. Repeated DNA testing found no connection to Williams.
The victim's family as well as several jurors who served on the trial expressed doubt about Williams' guilt and wished to spare his life. Inexplicably, none of this was enough to commute Williams' sentence to life in prison because it did not establish his "actual innocence."
The witnesses who did testify, as is often the case, were seemingly trying to game this messed up system. One who shared a jail cell with Williams and to whom he allegedly confessed, had been convicted of felonies and offered reward to testify. Likewise, a girlfriend who testified likely falsified her claims for financial gain.
Williams' case is yet another example of how the system of capital punishment is broken beyond repair. The absurdity that everyone can agree that someone is innocent but that bureaucratic issues prevail is not a sign of a healthy system of justice.
I care a lot that Marcellus Williams was apparently wrongly convicted and certainly wrongly executed. We should all, because executions take place in our names with our tax dollars. We need to speak up, not just when the system gets it so horrifically wrong, as it did here, but because if we do not, our silence is endorsement that the state killing people is OK. I cannot live with that. I hope others cannot as well.
As many have pointed out, making a mistake in convicting someone is a fixable problem–unless the punishment is the death penalty. Then a fix is forever impossible. Why would we operate this way?
I am feeling so distraught, yet I am still trying to see a glimmer of hope. As a college professor, I am so fortunate to work with amazing students who I think will do better. I have the most wonderfully smart daughter who I know will be part of the solution.
I can't stop crying. We can't stop trying.
Venus Williams Opens Up About Having Sjögren's Syndrome – The Disease That's More Likely To Affect Women
Venus Williams is opening up about her experience with Sjögren's syndrome after being diagnosed over a decade ago.
As an athlete, Williams is used to putting her body to work on and off the court, but the four-time gold Olympic medalist reveals that she dealt with a different kind of endurance while learning how to manage the syndrome.
She told Harper's Bazaar, "I had all kinds of symptoms, but that was very challenging as an athlete. When you crash, you go so hard that you can't get up, literally.
Source: Courtesy of / Madison Lane
"But I still got up, because I had to," she said, as the disease is known to bring prolonged fatigue. "Lying in bed is not fun. There is no substitute for being well. I had to change my pace."
Williams started to experience symptoms of the disease as early as 2004. While she had to publicly face other tennis athletes on the court, she was privately battling symptoms of exhaustion. After several trips to the doctors and multiple misdiagnosis Williams finally got an answer to her problems in 2011.
"It took seven years before I was diagnosed," she said before later adding, "I hadn't felt myself for a while." It was a relief to know what was going on with her body, "But at the same time, it was hard to accept. I'm used to doing whatever I want, working hard and staying fit. To realize that it's not something you can work through, that this is your life now…that was hard."
Source: PrathanChorruangsak / Getty
But Williams decided not to let the disease discourage her and instead she chose to make the best of it with a major pivot in her diet. A move she says has been extremely beneficial. The 44-year-old became vegan in order to help regenerate her body with the things the disease was robbing her of. "Knowing how important a role my diet plays keeps me on track," she told Women's Health in 2020.
That same year, Williams became so passionate about foods and exploring how it can benefit your body that she went on to co-found a plant-based protein powder company called Happy Viking. The powder can be used in shakes and smoothies, and according to the website, it takes only two scoops to get "all the nutrition you need each morning to boost lean muscle, sustained energy, brain power, immune support, collagen production, digestive health, hair, skin and nails and more."
Sjögren's syndrome is identified as an autoimmune disorder that, according to John Hopkins Medicine, "targets moisture-producing glands and can cause systemic symptoms."
The most common symptoms include, dry eyes, dry mouth, swollen glands, prolonged fatigue, and a persistent dry cough. While the syndrome is more likely to develop in women who are 40 and older, Williams was diagnosed at age 31 after years of experiencing symptoms.
Women are 10 times more likely to get Sjögren's syndrome than men.
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If The Minnesota Lynx Form Like Voltron And Napheesa Collier Is The Head, Then Courtney Williams Is The Heart
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On game days in the WNBA, teams generally gather in the morning for a "shootaround," a brief practice to put up some shots and go over the game plan.
Shootarounds often end with a little fun — a halfcourt shooting contest among the players, with video of the winner showcased on social media. That contest was in progress Wednesday morning when reporters were allowed into the Lynx shootaround at Target Center, before Game 2 of their first-round playoff series with Phoenix.
All-Star guard Kayla McBride and backup Olivia Époupa had already hit halfcourt shots when starting point guard Courtney Williams — the one with the short bleached-blond hair, pink sneakers and ebullient personality — stepped up to shoot. Williams pounded about a dozen quick two-handed dribbles, took two steps and launched her shot. Swish. A happy Williams grabbed Époupa, who was laughing, then celebrated with a little solo dance.
The three-way tie required several rounds to break. McBride finally did it, breaking into her own lengthy dance.
"And I lost," said Williams, tempering her mild disappointment with a smile.
A free agent signing from Chicago, the veteran Williams brought a playful spirit and fierce competitiveness to the Lynx, who advanced to Sunday's WNBA semifinals against the Connecticut Sun by sweeping the best-of-three series from Phoenix. Call it what you want — spunk, an edge, whatever — but Williams gives the Lynx a fire that's been missing since their run of four league championships ended in 2017.
Whether it's facing the crowd after a hitting a three-pointer, trash-talking opponents or chest-bumping a teammate after a big play, the 5-foot-8 Williams brings big energy every night. Her mid-range shooting, playmaking and pick-and-roll success with league MVP runner-up Napheesa Collier helped the Lynx post the league's best record after the Olympic break (13-2) and finish second in the regular-season standings at 30-10.
"She embraces all the people around her, and I think that's why we have such a high level of chemistry this year in particular," said Lynx General Manager Clare Duwelius. "She's a big reason why we're enjoying some of those things and those moments this year."
Williams' blunt honesty and unfailing support plays well with her teammates and coaches. Forward Bridget Carleton finished third in the voting for the league's Most Improved Player with a breakout offensive season she partly attributes to Williams, a teammate in Connecticut when she broke into the league in 2019.
"She builds me up," Carleton said. "I really appreciate that about Courtney. She's always in my ear, telling me to stay confident, telling me to shoot. She's on me when I pass up a shot. She gets mad at me and tells me not to do it again. I really appreciate that about her, and her leadership."
That leadership includes Williams and backup guard Natisha Hiedeman, another former Sun, hyping up their teammates with pregame dancing in the locker room, to a song Williams playfully declined to disclose. (Hey, you can't tell the media everything.)
"It's so much fun, man. We have a ball together," Williams said. "I think you see it when we translate it on the court, how much we like each other. We're having a good time — a great time.
"When it's time to buckle up and do what we need to do, that's what we do."
Williams draws her basketball ability and competitiveness from her parents. At Charlton County High School in Folkston, Ga., her mom, then known as Michele Granger, held the single-game scoring record of 40 points until Williams scored 42 her junior year. Her father, Donald Williams, constantly challenged her athletically. He set up the basketball goal at their house for the neighborhood kids to come over and play.
"Mom got a lot of the hype, but Pops was getting busy, too," Williams said. "He was one of them kids who was just freakishly athletic for no reason, doing backflips everywhere. He was just an athlete. He can still do a backflip.
"He was the one who was like, `Let's go run outside. You beat me back to the house, I give you $20.' When I got to college, I beat him for the first time, so he knows he can't mess with me now. But for a long time, it would always be him, having me outside. `C'mon, let's go play this basketball. C'mon, let's go run.' Doing anything athletic, he was always the one."
And when they hooped, Pops never took it easy on her.
"He always talked trash to me," she said. "He always told me, `If you're going to talk trash, you'd better be able to back it up.' So that was always the motto. He did it to me, so now I do it to everybody else."
A first-team All-American as a senior at the University of South Florida, Williams moved on to the WNBA and Phoenix in 2016 as the No. 8 overall pick. Traded to Connecticut early in her rookie season, she spent most of her career with the Sun, from 2016-19 and again in 2022. There, she twice played in WNBA finals before signing last year with Chicago as a free agent. She made her only All-Star appearance with Atlanta in 2021.
With the Sky, she shifted from wing guard to the point. Williams adapted well enough to intrigue the Lynx, who cycled through a succession of point guards since Lindsay Whalen retired in 2018. Some could score, some could distribute, some could defend. But none combined all those important skills to Coach Cheryl Reeve's liking.
"I think overall, Courtney had a lot of experience in the postseason," Duwelius said. "That was attractive. She's great in pick and roll, and we wanted to open up some stuff between Phee (Collier) and her.
"The biggest thing, she comes with what people call 'the dog.' She can execute late game. She can be that go-to player for us that no moment is too big, and she'll just rise up to the occasion. That's something we obviously thought we needed to make late playoff pushes and go deeper into the postseason."
On the first day of free agency, Williams met with Lynx staff via a Zoom call. Reeve, also the club's president of Basketball Operations, knew of Williams from a brief encounter at a USA Basketball camp and came away impressed with her tell-it-like-it-is approach — a perfect match for Reeve.
"Just the little bit of communication I had with her, I was like, I can rock with this player," Reeve said. The call went well, and Williams flew to Minneapolis for a visit. She ultimately signed for two seasons.
"Honestly, the moment we talked to Courtney, we knew she would be a great fit for us," Duwelius said. "She's going to call it how she sees it, which is exactly how Cheryl is and how we kind of like to operate.
"Their relationship in particular is one I've enjoyed witnessing, just because those two kind of speak the same language. She's been a really good conduit from the coaching staff to the rest of the team."
On the court, Williams oozes confidence, kind of a cross between Whalen and Diana Taurasi. Observant Target Center fans caught a glimpse of that earlier this season against Atlanta.
Fouled on a three-point attempt just before halftime, Williams went to the line as Tina Charles, the all-time WNBA great, walked behind her. Williams and Charles are friends, and Charles playfully questioned whether Williams could go three-for-three. Challenge accepted. Williams hit them all, yapping and pointing at Charles between shots.
"Every time I made one," Williams said with a smile, "I had to let her know about it."
Williams struggled with her jump shot early on after rupturing a ligament in her right thumb late in training camp. The month-long Olympic break helped it heal, and Williams' production rose down the stretch. After shooting 39.6% and averaging 9.8 points per game before the break, Williams improved to 51.1% and 13.4 points after it, finishing the season averaging 11.1 points and 5.5 assists. She delivered one of her best performances Sept. 1 against Chicago, scoring 10 of her 22 points in the fourth quarter on 5-of-6 shooting to lift the Lynx past the Sky, 79-74.
Collier, who broke Maya Moore's club playoff record with 42 points Wednesday night in Game 2, is the unquestioned leader of the Lynx. But Williams may be its chest-bumping, trash-talking heart.
"Coming to this team, Cheryl told me, `Keep your voice, I'm going to back you up on everything that you say,' " Williams said. "I think it gave me that comfort of knowing, OK, I can be myself. I can try to coach some of the girls up, most of the girls up, all the girls up. Because from the top to the bottom, everybody's so coachable, myself included. We all just want to learn.
"Cheryl and her staff have been there before, right? Them already having the blueprint, we're just here to follow."
Pat Borzi
Pat Borzi is a contributing writer to MinnPost. Follow him on Twitter @BorzMN.
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