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LOS ANGELES, CA- On Thursday, October 12 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, celebrities gathered to support the The Eva Longoria Foundation’s (ELF) work to empower Latinas through education and entrepreneurship. Attendees included: Eva Longoria, Terry Crews (“Brooklyn Nine Nine”), Felicity Huffman (“American Crime”), Melanie Griffith,  Mario Lopez, Jaime Camil (“Jane The Virgin”), Angelique Cabral (“Life In Pieces”), Edward James Olmos (Blade Runner), Bernard David Jones (“The Mayor”), Chandler Kinney (“Lethal Weapon”), Eva Gutowski (Influencer/YouTuber), Ana Brenda Contreras (“Blue Demon”), Eva LaRue (“CSI: Miami”), Robin Antin (“The Pussycat Dolls”), Kendall Schmidt (“Big Time Rush”), Diana Maria Riva (“Man With A Plan”), and Alex Meneses (“Telenovela”).

Guests arrived at The Four Seasons Beverly Hills for cocktails and h’ors d’oeuvures followed by a sit-down dinner and program. Mario Lopez introduced Eva Longoria, who spoke about the foundation’s work to reach girls facing education inequality, and language, immigration and economic barriers. Bernard Boudreaux, Director of Corporate Responsibility for the Target Corporation, and the event’s premiere sponsor, spoke about Target’s continued support for the foundation’s programmatic work reaching low-income Latina girls in south Texas. Actress Alex Meneses introduced participants in ELF’s Latina mentorship program at Gertz-Ressler High School in Los Angeles. “Jane the Virgin’s” Jaime Camil spoke about the importance of supporting minority women business owners, and a local Latina entrepreneur spoke about receiving capital from the foundation’s microloan fund.  Together Longoria and Mario Lopez orchestrated a Call-to-Donate and gave closing remarks. Other event sponsors included College Track, The Gilbert and Jacki Cisneros Foundation and Somos Healthcare. 

The Eva Longoria Foundation was established in 2012 by actress, activist and philanthropist Eva Longoria. Latinas are a rapidly growing group with extraordinary potential, yet they disproportionately lack educational opportunities and face economic challenges. Latinas will make up nearly 15% of the United States population by 2060, and their success is critical to the future of the country. However, nearly one-third of Latinas live below the poverty line. By providing Latinas with the resources to succeed in school and business, the foundation works to improve their lives, empower their communities and shape the national conversation about leveling the playing field for minority girls and women.

If you would like to donate to the Eva Longoria Foundation, please visit www.evalongoriafoundation.org/donate.

By Lue Dowdy

Ge-ho of C.H.E.F. Music Studio is What It Do! Having the right producer and studio to record in can be vital to an artist’s project. Relationships and trust is an important factor as well. To create you must be in an environment that makes you feel comfortable. I’d like to take a moment to give thanks to one of the BEST producers/engineers in the game, Mr. Ge-ho of C.H.E.F. Music.

Working with Ge-ho over the years has been magical. He truly has a heart for artists. As soon as you step in the building, there he is ready to greet you with his chef hat and coat ready to work. His fire beats make artists want to serve it up in the booth. Never holding no punches, Ge-ho tells it like it is to inspiring artists in the game. The advice is worth paying for but he offers it for FREE.

With Ge-ho being talented in several areas, he will be departing C.H.E.F Music as the producer/engineer and will be taking on other duties in the company. Taking his place, the company has hired two replacements, Andrew Cook and Daniel Phillpot. I am looking forward to working with these two as well.

Don’t forget to book with the best and that’s Chef Music, C.H.E.F. standing for “Creativity is Heard Emotion is Felt.

Until next week keep it 100% always.

Chef Music, LLC is located at 14425 Seventh Street, Suite 5 in Victorville. Hours of Operation 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Saturday. You can email them at info@chefmusic.com or call (844) 484-2433.

Publisher’s Commentary by Wallace J. Allen

Who is coming to help your neighborhood after the earthquake, fire, flood, or mudslide?  Trained ‘first responders’ will start where they stand!  If there are trained ‘first responders’ in your neighborhood during or immediately after a disaster, your neighborhood will be in better hands than those neighborhoods that do not!               

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members are trained to put out small fires, assess buildings, and help with first aid to family, friends and neighbors, as well as provide leadership during a time of crisis. During a disaster, CERT members often become regarded as heroes and superheroes to those people that need immediate help!

The City of Rialto Fire Department is hosting its final scheduled 2017 CERT training session, covering 20 hours over three days on October 27, 28 and November 4. The classes are FREE and all materials are provided! You too can train to become a ‘super hero’! I highly recommend the classes to everyone who has the time available. The Friday, October 27, class is from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., and the other classes, October 28 and November 4, are on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Classes are held at Rialto Fire Station 203, 1550 Ayala Dr.  The classes are sponsored by the Rialto Fire department and the Advanced CERT Volunteers.

Register for the classes on line at rialtocert@gmail.com leaving your contact information or by calling the Rialto CERT hotline at (909) 421-4964.

We do not look forward to having a disaster, but that does not mean one will not occur!  In California, we can be sure it is coming, but not when. We need to be prepared at home, in the car and at work! We all need to store extra water, food, blankets, flashlights, a first aid kit, fire starter, etc. Our choice is either to prepare, or, depend on being near a super hero when surprised by disaster!

RIVERSIDE, CA- Each year, the NAACP Riverside Branch hosts a luncheon on Veterans Day to recognize and honor our brave heroes of war. The 47th Anderson Copeland Memorial Veterans Recognition Luncheon will take place on Friday, November 10 at 11 a.m. (Veterans Day) at Mount Rubidoux Seventh Day Adventist Church located at 5320 Victoria Avenue in Riverside.

Special guest speaker will be retired United States Air Force combat nurse, Lieutenant Colonel Sandra Jones. Decorated war heroes and other special invited guests from various military branches will also be present.

Veterans and their families will be treated to a complimentary southern-style lunch. Additionally, all veterans will also be honored with a special medal as a small token of appreciation for their dedicated service to our country. For information call (909) 229-4825 or (909) 456-0786. Visit www.Naacp-Riverside.org.

By Naomi K. Bonman

LOS ANGELES, CA- As usual, the Taste of Soul brought out thousands of Southern California residents to the Crenshaw area on Saturday, October 21.

For those who are unfamiliar with the Taste of Soul, it is one of the largest street festivals in Los Angeles where of variety of ethnic food vendors from in and around Los Angeles County come out to promote their restaurants. The Los Angeles Sentential is the main media producer that puts on the event every year with the help of sponsors, such as.  Other business and entities also come out to promote as well, but the scope of the afternoon is centered around the delicious food that you will embark on.

In addition to the food vendors, there are several stages that bring out top notch talent. This year among those stages was StarQuest. StarQuest held a competition between adults and children where they gave one adult winner $500 and one child winner $500. They also had headlining performances from household entertainers that included Brandy, Melanie Fiona, Kenny Lattimore, Doug E. Fresh, and Kool Moe Dee. In between performances, Danny Bakewell explained the importance of supporting black owned businesses, which is the purpose of way Taste of Soul was put on and has been successful for the past 12 years.

(Photo Credit: Kristina Dixon/11:One Visuals)

Lou Coleman-Yeboah

By Lou Coleman-Yeboah

Talking ‘bout can’t touch this! Well, “Can’t Touch This,” I got One Word for you: Kryptonite…. ….That’s right…. Kryptonite…. What? What you say? I can’t hear you…. “Can’t Touch this” talk to me…..Hello…. my point exactly… True enough, the Man of Steel is an iconic character and he is as powerful as they come.  Bullets can’t hurt him.  Nothing is faster and he is the strongest that there is. But don’t get it twisted, even Superman has a weakness. That mysterious green substance called Kryptonite. Yes, Kryptonite renders Superman useless. 

Listen to him as he is faced with Kryptonite…. “At that moment far out in space, strange…., I feel so weak…. No strength at all! Dizzy… faint… as though I’m near Kryptonite! May be an asteroid containing it nearby, I’ll check with my X-ray vision! WH—What? This ship… It-its lined with Kryptonite…. And over that, a layer of lead… the only substance my X-ray vision can’t penetrate… Th-this is a trap… a flying coffin that will carry me helplessly through space forever.” Now ain’t that ‘bout nothing….. Can’t touch this….

I tell you, you better listen to Superman because Satan has also placed traps out for you to get caught in. Pitfalls to fall into [Psalm 119:110]. As [Hebrew 2:1] says, “It’s crucial that you keep a firm grip on what you’ve heard so that you don’t drift off. Don’t be fooled…. Kryptonite will destroy you.  Don’t look up; don’t look back; run for your life!” [Genesis 19:17b]. You have not a moment to lose. “Escape,” the angels says, “for your life- it is now or never. A few more minutes, a few more hours, and it will be too late.”

You see the Bible tells us in [Ephesians 6:11] that we fight an enemy that uses “wiles” to get his way in our lives. Satan would like nothing better than to trip you up and cause you to fall into one of his traps. Just before Jesus died, remember He told Simon Peter that Satan desired to have him that he might sift him as wheat, [Luke 22:31-32]. Satan wants to do the same to you and me. He wants us to fall. He wants us to fail, and he will stop at nothing to bring that to pass.  So, beware of every impulse, temptation that comes down the line. Check out everything by the Word of God and by the will of God and the Lord will always lead you in the right way!

Realize your danger. Don’t trifle with your own soul, with hell and heaven, with God and His bleeding, inviting Son. Now, now, now! “Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die and not live.” There is but a step between us and death. [John 3:36]. Know that Lady Wisdom only allows a window of time to show your love for truth and wisdom. If you neglect or reject her offer, she will withdraw and neglect or reject you in your great hour of need when you call upon her for help [Proverbs 1:20-32]. Don’t delay! Destroy what steals your strength, because Satan will use slick and enticing speech to get you to yield to his plans for your life. He practiced this kind of trickery in the Garden of Eden when he talked to Eve, [Genesis 3:1-6]. He told her that she could question God’s Word; He told her that God did not really mean what God has said; He told her that God was really just holding out on her. In other words, Satan will give you every reason in the world to justify the things he wants you to do. Then when you have followed him and are out of God’s will and in trouble, he will discard you like a piece of trash and leave you to rot in your sins! You better know that you know! Don’t be deceived. You see, [2 Corinthians 2:11] tells us that Satan desires to gain an “advantage” over us and to do this; he will use every trick in the book to get us to follow him into failure. Be careful because the Enemy can be deceptive. He can be destructive. You do not have to fall for everything the devil tells you! He is a liar and the father of it, [John 8:44]. The Bible tells us in [Ephesians 4:27], that we are not to give “place” to the devil in our lives. We must always be on guard to avoid his attacks. Don’t even let him have so much as a foot in the door! Take the steps that are necessary to defeat the devil and walk in victory!

David writes: “The proud have hid a snare for me…” [Psalm 140:5, emphasis mine]. The trap that the devil or the wicked are setting for you is something you can’t see. It is laid in secret: “…they privately [secretly] laid a snare for me” (142:3). “…they commune of laying snares privately…” (64:5). Perhaps you are caught in a snare right now – trapped by the enemy. At one time, you were like a bird, flying about, singing a sweet song. You spread your wings of faith and soared into the heavens. You knew what it meant to be free in Christ. But the enemy set a trap for you – he laid out his net and placed the corn nearby – and you went for it. You flew down, caught your foot in the fowler’s net, and the trap sprang. You were caught! And today you sit in bondage, feeling trapped by your sin.

Don’t worry be happy; I have incredible news for you. If you’ve been trapped by the enemy – if you have fallen into his snare, yet you know you love God with all your heart – the Lord will not allow you to be the enemy’s victim. He will not let you remain in the devil’s teeth. You are about to be set free! “Blessed be the Lord, who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth” (Psalm 124:6). The snare is broken-and we have escaped! [Psalm 124:7] Yes & Amen to that!

SAN BERNARDINO, CA-  During November’s National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), the San Bernardino Public Library will be hosting free writing workshops for kids and teens, ages 7 to 17, starting on Monday October 23. These free workshop/writing sessions will be at the Feldheym Central Library Children’s Room from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. every Monday from October 23rd through November 27. 

National Novel Writing Month’s Young Writers Program is a nonprofit literary crusade that encourages aspiring young writers all over the world to write a novel in a month. On Nov. 1, more than 25,000 kids and teens worldwide will begin a furious adventure in fiction. By Dec. 1, thousands of them will be novelists!

NaNoWriMo is the largest writing event in the world. It’s a fun, seat-of-your-pants writing event where the challenge is to complete an entire novel in just 30 days. 

The word-count goal for the adult NaNoWriMo program is 50,000 words, but the Young Writers Program (YWP) allows 17-and-under participants to set reasonable, yet challenging, individual word-count goals. 

For more information on our workshops call 909-381-8238 or visit www.sbpl.org. For more information on NaNoWriMo visit http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/  

ALTADENA, CA- On Friday, October 20, Los Rakas and Ceci Bastida will be joined by special guest artists in Adelanto for a free, community #SchoolsNotPrisons concert, to advocate for fair treatment of immigrants who are awaiting a decision on their request to stay in the U.S., as well as the closure of all immigrant prisons. The concert comes just two weeks after Governor Jerry Brown signed a new bill by Sen. Ricardo Lara, which will limit the growth of immigrant prisons and takes a strong stand against profiteering by private prison interests.

The #SchoolsNotPrisons Adelanto concert will bring artists, advocates, and community members together for a historical event, creating a unique platform to advocate for the closure of immigrant prisons and shine a light on the many ways for-profit immigrant prisons harm California communities. Centered at the intersection of art and activism, #SchoolsNotPrisons Adelanto will spark meaningful dialogue around the practice of unjust immigrant incarceration and the cruel conditions of immigrant prisons – generally misrepresented as immigrant detention centers. 

“Nearly 40,000 immigrants are incarcerated each day in facilities across the United States, with over 70 percent of them held in prisons run by corporations profiting off their misery,” said Christina Fialho, Co-Executive Director of Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement (CIVIC), a national nonprofit that visits and monitors immigrant prisons. “It’s time we close these unnecessary and abusive prisons, and instead use community-based alternatives to ensure immigrants are afforded due process in court.”

The upcoming #SchoolsNotPrisons tour stop is presented by CIVIC, the Inland Empire-Immigrant Youth Collective, the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice (ICIJ), and produced by Revolve Impact, which has organized the statewide tour since the summer of 2016. The tour promotes a vision of community safety focused on prevention rather than incarceration, and supports local advocacy campaigns that call for more effective, community-based alternatives rather than severe forms of punishment, particularly for vulnerable populations.

“Having grown up on the Mexican side of the border, I’ve always been aware of how much people risk to get to the other side,” said popular Latin singer-songwriter Ceci Bastida, “I’m honored to play for people who are so brave, who have left their home and everything they know to pursue a different life here. We are excited to share our music with the community of Adelanto, stand up for the rights of everyone who is incarcerated at the GEO immigrant prison, and shine a light on this abusive system.”

About 1,600 people are incarcerated in Adelanto’s immigrant prison, which is owned and run by the for-profit prison company GEO Group.

“Conditions inside the immigrant prison in Adelanto are inhumane and abusive, and incarcerated immigrants have launched multiple hunger strikes to protest unclean water and food, denial of medical care, and excessive bail requirements” said Javier Hernandez of ICIJ. “Meanwhile, the CEO of The GEO Group, earns a salary of five million dollars a year, yet GEO pays incarcerated immigrants just a dollar a day to work inside as janitors or cooks.”

The #SchoolsNotPrisons tour stop in Adelanto will take place at the Adelanto Stadium, with gates opening at 5pm and the concert starting at 6pm. Guest speakers will include those who’ve been incarcerated inside the Adelanto immigrant prison.

Admission to the concert is free, but people are encouraged to register in advance through this Eventbrite link because the event is expected to reach capacity. The concert is an all-ages peaceful community event, and will be a tobacco-free, alcohol and drug-free zone.

The #SchoolsNotPrisons is funded by The California Endowment and The California Wellness Foundation. The tour stop is presented by Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement (CIVIC), the Inland Empire-Immigrant Youth Collective, and the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice (ICIJ), and produced by Revolve Impact. The tour is in partnership with more than 50 organizations from across California, including: A New Way of Life, ACLU-CA, Advancement Project, American Friends Services Committee, Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Asian Law Caucus (ICE out of CA), Black Alliance for Just Immigration, BLU Educational Foundation, Brave New Films, Centro Del Inmigrante, Children’s Defense Fund-California, Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), Clergy & Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE), Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ), Congregations Organized for Prophetic Engagement (COPE), CultureStrike, Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Fathers and Families of San Joaquin Valley, Homie UP, Inland Congregations United for Change, Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, MILPA, Mobilize the Immigrant Vote, Movement Generation, National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), Nile Sisters Development Initiative (NSDI), Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA), PICO CA, Pomona Economic Opportunity Center, Presente.org, Project Kinship, Resilience Orange County, San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium, Sanctuary Task Force of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, Sankofa, Self Help Graphics & Art, Sol Collective, The Place4Grace, Training Occupational Development Education Communities (TODEC) Legal Center, Trans Latin@ Coalition, UFCS Local 770, UnidosUS, Warehouse Workers Resource Center (WWRC), Young Women’s Freedom Center, Youth Action Project, Youth Justice Coalition, and Youth Law Center.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- On October 21, Time for Change Foundation will partner with CSUSB for their 2nd annual Run Like a Mother 5k run/walk. The event will bring together staff, students, faculty, and community members to support the agency and raise consciousness for critical social and economic issues affecting the community.

For the last 15 years, Time for Change Foundation has successfully helped over 1,020 homeless women and children reach self-sufficiency in addition to reunifying 247 children out of the foster care system back with their mothers. The fundraiser will support key programs and services that directly impact the lives of women and children in need.

“This is our 2nd annual 5k and we are so excited to bring such a wonderful opportunity for the community and TFCF to walk together to support homeless women and children,” expressed Vanessa Perez, Associate Director for Time for Change Foundation. “We expect a bigger turn out this year and are happy to partner with CSUSB again!”

Through a culmination of strength-based case management, evidence-based supportive services, and customized self-sufficiency plans, TFCF gives homeless women and children the tools they need to thrive.

The community is invited to participate by registering at www.TimeForChangeFoundation.org. Check-in begins at 7:00 a.m. and the race will begin promptly at 8:00 a.m. at the CSUSB Lower Commons Patio, 5500 University Parkway, San Bernardino, CA, 92407. The cost is $10 for the first 100 registrants. All inquiries should be directed to the faculty coordinators Dr. Nicole Henley (Nicole.Henley@csusb.edu) and Dr. Angie Verissimo (AOtinianVerissimo@csusb.edu).

By Marla A. Matime

On Sunday, October 8, 2017, Alvin T. Clavon, better known as A.T. Classic, hosted an African themed Tea Party, infused with African attire, exotic teas, and music, to promote his fourth published book, “Message from the Hood:  The Fatherhood of God, The Brotherhood of Man.”  The event was held at the Mt. Rubidoux SDA Church to help raise funds for Clavon’s medical expenses, as he has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma along with neuropathy, just last year.

“Multiple myeloma is a cancer formed by malignant plasma cells. Normal plasma cells are found in the bone marrow and are an important part of the immune system.  Multiple myeloma is a relatively uncommon cancer. In the United States, the lifetime risk of getting multiple myeloma is 1 in 143 (0.7%). The American Cancer Society’s estimates for multiple myeloma in the United States for 2017 are: About 30,280 new cases will be diagnosed (17,490 in men and 12,790 in women).  Multiple myeloma is more than twice as common in African Americans than in white Americans. Men are slightly more likely to develop multiple myeloma than women.  The risk of multiple myeloma goes up as people age. Less than 1% of cases are diagnosed in people younger than 35. Most people diagnosed with this cancer are at least 65 years old.”

I had the opportunity to not only interview Clavon, but I had the pleasure of spending the entire afternoon, with him and his wife Joyce Clavon, of 33 years, and hear all the wonderful stories of how they met and their journey together.  They took me down memory lane with pictures of his ancestral family members, poems that he has written in other publications, as well as poems that he has dedicated exclusively to his beautiful, beloved wife. They met in 1980 at a park in downtown Detroit, as Sister Clavon recalled, she felt these “Eyes,” watching her. So, she sent her young daughter, at the time, over to summon him to come talk to her.  There was another gentleman, who was heading her direction on his bike, but had fallen off upon his approach, and tipped his hat to Clavon and said, “You the better man.” 

Clavon began writing Message from the Hood shortly after his diagnosis of multiple myeloma to push himself to release what the Holy Spirit had given to him to share with the world.  His writings are filled with poetic and rhythmic expressions from current situations that have taken place in our society as well as the situations that happened as he was growing from a young boy into manhood.  He also beautifully weaves bible scripture and references from Ellen G. White, to back his statements up with the love of Christ, the truth about judgment and favor, as well as how we are to love one another. 

Clavon refers to his mother, Mary Love Clavon, often throughout our conversation, and so I had to know more about this powerhouse of a woman.  His mother was a psychiatric technician and was close friends with Rosa Parks.  When he first saw her in person, he happened to be getting on the bus to go to downtown Detroit, and at the time didn’t know exactly who she was, or that she was his mother’s friend. Clavon’s mother worked in the clinic and was the liaison between the psychiatrists and the patients, hence, how she came to know Ms. Parks, as her husband suffered from PTSD and other mental anguishes due to the conditions that they were living in, prior to moving to Detroit. His mother was a community activist in the same way as Ms. Parks was; however, was an advocate for equal health care for Black Americans, here in the United States.  His mother was the very first person to receive an HMO health insurance card in the nation as her medical record number was number 1.

Clavon was raised by a politician and aside from his connections with monumental civil rights leaders, such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson, and of course his mother’s friendship with Rosa Parks, Clavon is a very close friend of Rock and Roll Legend Little Richard and had been instrumental in helping Richard share the gospel of Christ through his book, when he came to know God’s love for him.

Clavon, emphasizes the fact that our African heritage has been lost in our society and he hopes that in his writings, he can shed light on truth and facts regarding where we come from and where we are going as a people.   Despite his diagnosis, Clavon believes that the phrase Love Heals, which he references often in the book, has become a true affirmation and action in his life as he is surrounded by not only the powerful, matchless love of God and his wife but that of his children and grandchildren. 

Ultimately, the central focus contained within Message from the Hood, is the point that D-evil One has sought to trick the world with a lose/lose proposition. Clavon stated that “One group that he has seduced into believe their “white” skin makes than superior and that all other people of color are inferior to them, and are here to be their servants or slaves.  With the so called superior race oppressing and hating people of melanin.  D-evil One expects those hated to hate their oppressors, thus sending both groups to hell.”  Unbeknownst to many of those within the African American and other indigenous groups, we have defeated the evil one by not returning hate for hate and that we have the freedom of expressing the love that God has bestowed upon us as His children.  Clavon hopes to spread this awareness to those of African and Indigenous descents across the globe so that we may be able to act like the Remnant Kin of the creator of the Universe.

It was very inspiring to sit and speak with Mr. and Mrs. Clavon.  His secret to life is to find young friends as you grow older.

If you would like to donate to A.T. Classic’s go fund me page, to help with the medical treatment, please visit www.gofundme.com/AlvinClavon. For more information regarding Message from the Hood, events, and other books and publications from A. T. Classic, please visit www.atclassic.com.