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By Mildred D. Henry

In this year of unprecedented politics, there are those who would tell me how I should think and feel as an African-American. I ask, if the African-American experience is so bad, what have you personally done to alleviate the situation? What is your personal experience with the African-American community? I have a few personal experiences I would share.

• On a visit to Little Rock, Arkansas, shortly after Bill Clinton was elected president, I personally met with key administrators of his transition team decision-makers, which were African-American. African-Americans have been employed in his administrations throughout Bill Clinton’s political career.
• President Clinton appointed Rodney Slater U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Rodney is an African-American married to the daughter of my schoolmate, Henry Wilkins III, who attended all-Black Merrill High School in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
• Hillary Clinton worked with the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) which was founded by African-American Marion Wright Edelman in 1973. CDF is the leading nonprofit advocacy organization in the United States for children’s rights. A leading coalition is the Black Community Crusade for Children.
• In 1968, when Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated, Hillary Clinton worked with the African-American student organization at Wellesley College to organize a two day strike.
• On October 16, 2016, while visiting the Museum of Black History and Culture at the historically Black AM&N College/University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, I met an art major graduate who is currently employed as an archivist in the Clinton administration. This young lady is responsible for preserving artifacts, and making restorations, such as she did on the broken nose of President George Washington’s face. She is employed to also be responsible for archiving memorabilia, such as Hillary Clinton’s wardrobe. I have found African-Americans involved at all levels of the Clinton’s experience.

I could go on and on. If my African American experience is as bad as you purport, you have not walked in my shoes, and if you provided no jobs or shoes for my feet, you cannot talk to me, or for me.   Sorry, “I can’t hear what you say for seeing what you do”.

On Tuesday November 8, I will cast my vote for proven experience.

SAN BERNARDINO — Twenty-two veterans — who served in the military during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, as well as had their high school completion interrupted — will receive their diplomas during a ceremony organized by the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools.

This will be the eighth graduation class for the Operation Recognition Veterans Diploma Project, which is held in partnership with the County Department of Veterans Affairs. This year’s ceremony will be held at Serrano High School in the Snowline Joint Unified School District on Nov. 9 at 4:30 p.m. The school is located at 9292 Sheep Creek Road in Phelan.

Veterans in this year’s graduating class are:

• Louis Avilez of San Bernardino, World War II, Marines (posthumous);
• James Bezenah of Phelan, Vietnam War, Navy;
• Shelvere Black of Colton, Vietnam War, Marines;
• Edward Cervantes of Victorville, Vietnam War, Army;
• George Cervantes of Loma Linda, Vietnam War, Marines (posthumous);
• Leonardo Contreras of Hinkley, Vietnam War, Marines;
• Allen Cronk of Apple Valley, Vietnam War, Marines;
• Lewis Gayle of Highland, Korean War, Air Force;
• Jacob Hall of Landers, Vietnam War, Army;
• Carlos Holguin of Rancho Cucamonga, World War II, Army;
• Stephen Jacobs of Hesperia, Vietnam War, Navy;
• Melvin Larsen of Phelan, Korean War, Navy;
• Jerry Martin of Phelan, Vietnam War, Marines and Navy
• Allen Miller of Apple Valley, Vietnam War, Marines
• John Miller of Yucca Valley, Vietnam War, Marines;
• Wilburn Milligan of Fontana, World War II, Marines;
• Stephen Morrow of Hesperia, Vietnam War, Marines;
• Ricky Reyes of Yucca Valley, Vietnam War, Army;
• John Rivera of Wrightwood, Vietnam War, Army;
• Fred Romero of Hesperia, Korean War, Navy;
• Roy Rubio Jr. of Upland, Vietnam War, Marines;
• David Villafana of Barstow, Korean War, Army.

Following the graduation ceremony, veterans and their guests will be honored at the 22nd annual Veterans Dinner taking place in the Serrano High School gymnasium. The dinner will be hosted by the Snowline Joint Unified School District and the Tri-Community Kiwanis Club.

Operation Recognition Veterans Diploma Project provides veterans and internees, who were unable to complete high school due to military service or internment, the opportunity to receive a high school diploma, according to the state education code. Veterans who served in and received an honorable discharge from World War II, the Korean War or the Vietnam War; or individuals who were interned in a Japanese American relocation camp and are San Bernardino County residents are eligible to participate.

For more information, contact County Schools at (909) 386-2412.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA– The foundation that was laid at last year’s inaugural Black-Brown Conference will be built upon on Friday, Oct. 28, when Cal State San Bernardino brings back to campus about 350 African American and Latino ninth-grade young men for the second annual conference.

Designed to increase the number of African American and Latino males who enroll and graduate from college, the students, representing five Inland Empire school districts, will receive critical college information, get connected with CSUSB students and have the opportunity to talk about relevant issues facing young students today.

Colton, Fontana, Rialto, San Bernardino and Victorville school districts will be sending youths from about 20 schools to the free conference, which will be held at CSUSB’s Santos Manuel Student Union Events Center from 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m. The conference also will provide lunch for the students.

Raising the percentages of black and brown male students who graduate from high school and complete a college degree is vital for the social and economic prosperity of the area and the U.S., say conference organizers.

Only 21 percent of black males and 25 percent of Latino males graduated from high school two years ago in San Bernardino County having met the A-G requirements. At the same time, young black females graduated high school at a rate of 31 percent, Latina females at 33 percent, white males 33 percent and white females 43 percent having taken more challenging courses and being better prepared to attend college.

The National Center for Education Statistics has reported that only 12.4 percent of Latino men and 20.8 percent of black men ages 25-29 have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 37.7 percent of white men.

The conference focuses on this ninth graders because early college awareness and access is critical to improving college enrollment and degree completion for historically underrepresented students. In ninth grade, said Olivia Rosas, CSUSB associate vice president for enrollment management, students are pondering the college prep courses they need to enroll at a university.

CSUSB is nationally recognized for its leadership role in changing the face of U.S. higher education. A reflection of the region’s dynamic diversity, CSUSB, which has the most diverse student population of any university in the Inland Empire, and the second-highest African American and Latino enrollments of all public universities in California, is considered a model of access and excellence in higher education.

For more information about the Black and Brown Conference, email blackbrown@csusb.edu.

Reverend Floyd Lofton

Reverend Floyd Lofton  who was born on June 2, 1935, in Crystal Springs, Mississippi to Louis and Eliza Lofton. He was the youngest of eleven children. After graduating from high school in 1954, he entered the United States Air Force where he proudly served 30 years as a Security Police Officer.

He received many outstanding awards, one of which was the Outstanding Security Police Officer of the Year. He retired as a Senior Master Sergeant. After his separation from the USAF, he was employed as a Classified Destruction Manager with Northrop-Grumman for 15 years.

In 1968, while station at March Air Force Base, he met Betty, the love of his life. They were united in Holy Matrimony in 1971. With this union, he also married Kenneth, DeJuan and Esther (Betty’s sister). Rev. Lofton and Betty have had a happy and blessed union for 45 years.

He accepted his call to the ministry in 1989 under the late Bishop Dr. Herman Hubbard. in 1994.  He united with New Hope Missionary Baptist Church where it was evident he had a passion for praying, worshipping, visiting and praying for the sick and shut-ins.  His favorite declaration was, “…God will never leave you, no forsake you” Hebrews 13:5. He was appointed the Assistant Pastor at New Hope MBC in 1998, and served faithfully until his retirement in November 2015. 

On September 6, 2016, Rev. Lofton became ill and was hospitalized.  On October 17, 2016, God, in His infinite wisdom, gently and peaceably called him home from his journey as a preacher, husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, godfather and friend, to his eternal rest.

He was preceded in death by his parents ,Louis and Eliza Lofton, and all his siblings.

He leaves to cherish his memory his loving and devoted wife, Betty, sons: Kenneth (Wynolia) and DeJuan; six grandchildren: Stephanie (Kenneth), Tanya (Dewaan), Phylicia, Destiny (Edward), Mark (Leslye), and Jol (Bracchell); 11 great-grandchildren: Aaliya, Troy, Josiah, Mycah, Lexi, Angelique, Mya, Kolby, Kylee, Amiah, and Markie; 6 goddaughters: Joi, Tammy, “Starr” (Leon), Krystal, DeNae and DeJahna; 3 sisters-in-lw: Alice Jaqueline and Esther (John); and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and church family.

God sent His Son into the world; God didn’t tell Jesus to be partially committed to His will. God didn’t have His Son embrace only part of the cross or only go part way up Calvary’s hill.  When Jesus came to earth, He gave His life completely for you. There was no holding back, no turning back and no going back in Gods plan or in the obedience of Jesus. Reverend Lofton was obedient to these teachings and faithfully followed Jesus’ example fully in his dedication to preaching, helping and being a true reflection of God’s grace and love.

By Michael H. Cottman, Urban News Service

Negest Dawit, a savvy businesswoman from Ethiopia, steered her 1998 Mercedes Benz past a vacant building on 9th Street near downtown Washington, D.C. and gazed into her future.

“I looked at the building and said ‘This will be my store,’” Dawit told Urban News Service.

That was 10 years ago. Today, Dawit — affectionately called TG — owns a cigar store. TG Cigar Lounge is at 1118 9th Street, NW.

But her journey from Ethiopia to entrepreneurship was not easy.

She moved from that East African nation to Canada in 1996 and worked as a housekeeper. That job paid the bills, she said, but not one she wanted for long.

“I only had $50 when I got to Canada,” she said. “My mother gave me the money.” Dawit sat in her modest apartment, talked to her sister, and, during meals, discussed her future.

In 2000, Dawit packed her bags and moved to Washington, D.C. seeking better opportunities. She spent four years at an Ethiopian restaurant on U Street.

Even as she waited tables there, she planned her next move, next job, and next challenge.

“It was very hard moving here,” she said. “I had to learn the streets, the Metro, driving. It was a lot to learn. I moved here and started from scratch.” 

And there also was the language: Dawit learned English at school in Ethiopia and speaks it well. But her thick accent reveals her African heritage.

Dawit took a job at Presidential Cigars at Union Station in 2004, and it changed her life.

“They taught me everything I know about cigars,” she said. “I worked in sales, and I learned the business. And the owner encouraged me to open my own business.”

And that’s just what she did.

“I was a housekeeper, a waitress, a cigar saleswoman, and then I opened my own cigar store,” Dawit said. She now is Washington’s only female cigar store owner. 

“Customers ask if they can speak with the owner, and they are surprised when I tell them I’m the owner,” Dawit said.

Dawit opened her business in 2006 after standing inside the dusty storefront building and imagining what how her operation would look after she renovated. 

“It was formerly a T-Mobile store,” Dawit said. “It was dirty, and it needed a lot of work. But it was mine.” 

Mark Jackson, Dawit’s store manager, recalls meeting Dawit as he strolled through Presidential Cigars.

“I was checking out local cigar shops, doing research to launch my own line of cigars, ‘Blacksmoke,’ which I eventually did,” he said.

Jackson said he was immediately drawn to Dawit.

“She was absolutely beautiful and very knowledgeable about cigars,” Jackson said.

But opening her own store had its unique challenges, Dawit said. She required inventory — $30,000 to start — and needed people to vouch for her, tough things for someone just getting started. 

“They were asking me for referrals, but I didn’t have any,” Dawit said. “It was a challenge. I built relationships with sales people and wholesalers, and they helped me build my inventory, and some gave me credit.”

Dawit now has a $500,000 inventory and is arranging to buy the property, which she now leases. She has more than 3,500 customers, some of whom pack into the shop seven days a week to smoke cigars, sip Scotch, and network with other smokers.

“My customers include businessmen, politicians, and cigar club members,” Dawit said. “One third of my customers are women.”

She said the three cigar clubs that loyally meet at her store help her business flourish.

“They feel like they are at home,” she said. 

Dawit proudly points to the 2,000 cigar brands for sale inside her state-of-the-art glass-case humidors

The aroma of cigar smoke fills Dawit’s spacious location. Next to the well-stocked bar is a roomy lounge with comfortable seats and a large flat-screen TV.
While nearly 13 billion cigars were sold in America in 2015, according to the Center for Disease Control, Dawit is not the typical cigar store owner: She doesn’t smoke.

“I don’t smoke cigars, and I don’t drink,” Dawit said as she walks through her stylish venue, and cigar smoke hangs in the air. “But I do offer my customers a great deal of knowledge about cigars.”

Dawit is friendly, attractive and formidable. She has a sly smile, long black hair that flows over her shoulders, and a sultry accent that hints of mystery.

“TG’s gift is certainly her personality,” said Jackson. “She hugs people, shakes hands, it’s a genuine passion for her business and it brings folks back.” 

Dawit agreed.

“I haven’t had a vacation in 10 years,” she said. “I work seven days a week; I’m always here.”

Dawit says her store also offers a full-service tobacco shop with house-blended tobaccos, cigar lighters, novel ashtrays, vaporizers and hookah pipes. 

And she drives to work in her 2017 Range Rover.

“I know everything there is to know about cigars,” Dawit said. “I can smell cigars, roll them, merchandise them, and sell them. I just don’t smoke them.”

By Frank Kineavy 

Black and Hispanic minors in New Jersey are far more likely to be prosecuted as adults than those in other groups, according to a new analysis of court records by WNYC. Further, far more Black and Hispanic youths are given adult sentences or, in some cases, sent to adult prisons.

Over the past five years, state prosecutors were asked to try 1,251 minors as adults. According to the data, 87.6 percent of those minors were Black or Hispanic.

Roughly half — 692 — of those requests were granted, and those minors were all tried as adults. Of those minors, 87.4 percent were Black or Hispanic.

According to the U.S. Census’ QuickFacts, New Jersey is 56.2 percent white, 14.8 percent Black, 19.7 percent Hispanic, 9.7 percent Asian, 2.1 percent two or more races and less than one percent American Indian and Native Hawaiian.

WNYC went through New Jersey prison records for everyone currently incarcerated who was a minor at the time they committed a crime and found:

“• At least 152 inmates are still in prison today for crimes they committed as kids in the past five years

• 93 percent of them are Black or Latino

• The most common crime they committed was robbery

• 20 percent of them have sentences of 10 or more years

• 2 are female inmates”

If a minor is convicted as an adult, they are subjected to adult sentences, which are longer than juvenile sentences. Adult sentences also give the minor a permanent record, rather than juvenile records that usually end up sealed. The minors are also sent to adult prisons. A minor is only tried as an adult if a prosecutor makes a special request, and then the judge either accepts or denies that request.

The study also showed that some county prosecutors are more likely than others to make special requests, and some counties are more likely to accept these requests for Black minors to be tried as adults compared to their white counterparts. Hunterdon County’s prosecutor has not requested to have a minor tried as an adult in the last five years, and their minor population is 80 percent white.

“Controlling for nature of offense, controlling for family background, controlling for educational history — all of the things that go into a prosecutor’s decision, there are still disparities, significant disparities, that cannot be explained by anything other than race,” says Laura Cohen, the director of the Criminal and Youth Justice Clinic at Rutgers Law School.

The data from New Jersey matches up with trends nationally, as an estimated 60 percent of those under 18 serving life sentences without parole are Black.

Psychological research also supports these statistics. In 2014, the American Psychological Association published a study, “The Essence of Innocence: Consequences of Dehumanizing Black Children.” The study concluded that Black children are less likely to be seen as children or “childlike” than white children:

“We find converging evidence that Black boys are seen as older and less innocent and that they prompt a less essential conception of childhood than do their White same-age peers. Further, our findings demonstrate that the Black/ape association predicted actual racial disparities in police violence toward children. These data represent the first attitude/behavior matching of its kind in a policing context. Taken together, this research suggests that dehumanization is a uniquely dangerous intergroup attitude, that intergroup perception of children is underexplored, and that both topics should be research priorities.”

According to the study’s authors, white children are more often perceived as innocent than Black children.

“The evidence shows that perceptions of the essential nature of children can be affected by race, and for Black children, this can mean they lose the protection afforded by assumed childhood innocence well before they become adults,” said co-author Matthew Jackson, PhD, of the University of California, Los Angeles. “With the average age overestimation for Black boys exceeding four-and-a-half years, in some cases, Black children may be viewed as adults when they are just 13 years old.”

“Children in most societies are considered to be in a distinct group with characteristics such as innocence and the need for protection. Our research found that Black boys can be seen as responsible for their actions at an age when white boys still benefit from the assumption that children are essentially innocent,” noted author Phillip Atiba Goff, PhD, also from UCLA.

In March of 2016 New Jersey signed into law that minors who are tried as adults will no longer be sent directly to adult prisons until they are the appropriate age. However, this law is not retroactive, meaning minors already serving sentences in adult prisons will not be moved to a juvenile facility.

Read more @ DiversityInc.com

LOS ANGELES, CA- Autistic teen chef Chase Bailey from Orange County, CA, who hosts his own hit cooking show www.chasenyurface.com launches his first cookbook this autumn to raise money to enable other people with autism to follow their dreams.

The official launch takes place at Santa Monica’s popular and award-winning Upper West restaurant in Santa Monica, CA. on November 10. Executive Chef Nick Shipp has been a huge fan of Chase since they cooked together at Autism Speaks’ Hollywood Celebrity Chef Gala in 2015. Between them they will be creating a five-course tasting menu based on The Official Chase ‘N Yur Face Cookbook. On hand to film the event will be Joey Travolta with a crew from his Inclusion Films company. The company teaches adults with developmental disabilities the practicalities to film making and many go on to work in major entertainment organizations.

Featuring over 75 recipes 15-year old Chase has developed, supported by mouthwatering photography, fun facts and anecdotes, The Official Chase ‘N Yur Face Cookbook (Chase ‘N Yur Face Media LLC, $24.95) includes an endorsement from Chef Mario Batali, who Chase appeared with on ABC’s top cooking program The Chew.

Using part of the book’s proceeds, Chase has decided to set up his own foundation www.chaseyurdreams.org  to assist people with autism who are working towards their dreams of living independently. 

“When Chase was little, he had some serious food aversions, which is common among people with an autism diagnosis.  One day I noticed how drawn he was to TV cooking programs.  Soon food became his world – he started overcoming his aversions and even started trying exotic foods,” Mary, Chase’s mom states. “The show began simply enough with me filming Chase cooking at home and posting the results on YouTube.  People loved it! Chase started inviting chefs and foodies to join him – Roy Choi, Becky Reams, Galia Orme, Anne Scioscia, Fuschia Sumner, and famed chefs Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken are just some of the stars who’ve shared their recipes with him on Chase ‘N Yur Face.”

Tickets for the event, which starts at 7pm, cost $70 (plus tax & tip), and includes a signed copy of Chase’s cookbook plus a gastronomic goody bag. Tickets are available from www.upperwest.com or by calling the restaurant direct on 310-586-1111

DCOFFXTOP

By Lue Dowdy

We like the cars, the cars that go boom with a dope beat that is! This week producer DCOFFXTOP is What It Do! The beat is everything some artist would say. It sets the stage for the right lyrics to come forth; a mixture of the right beat and lyrics can make for a hit record.

Born right here in San Bernardino, CA, DCOFFXTOP first started rapping around 2008/2009 in a home-based recording studio (now Defunct Blaqhouse ENT). As he mastered his craft of rapping over industry beats, he ventured into making his own beats, full blown production.         Making major moves he’s now currently a member of J.A.N.K MOBB, who’s acronym stands for, Just Aktive No Kuts Money Over Banging Boundaries. Just recently he attended the art institute where he majored in Music Arts.

Still mastering his craft, this producer is an active member of the j.a.n.k mobb(jme). The team has utilized his beats and has set the stage on fire with their performances. His beats are featured on many artists’ compilations and singles being distributed on the Hip-hop circuit. Make sure you check out this talented King. Hit him up for your next slapper.

Until next week L’zzzzzz!

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- On October 14, the San Bernardino Valley College (SBVC) Foundation’s 90th Anniversary Gala brought hundreds of alumni, dignitaries and philanthropists to campus to celebrate SBVC’s 90th anniversary and to raise funds for student scholarships. At the end of the night, donors had contributed over $135,000 to help support programs ranging from athletics to music, as well as to provide low-income students with textbook vouchers.

“We disburse around $200,000 in scholarships to our students each year,” said Karen Childers, the foundation’s director. “The amount we have raised tonight has significantly exceeded our goal, so we are very excited.”

Augmenting the support raised by donors in attendance were two larger donations: $25,000 from Kitchell / BRJ and Associates and $300,000 from the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. The latter contribution was earmarked for Valley-Bound Commitment, a unique SBVC program which grants thousands of local high-school graduates a free first year of college, and which the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians has supported since the program’s inception in 2008.

“I am proud to be affiliated with this community treasure,” said Emmy Award-winning actress Lindsay Wagner, a former SBVC professor who was the guest emcee for the event.

The gala was held in SBVC’s newest and biggest building: its 3-story, 108,000 square foot Kinesiology and Athletics Complex, which first opened to students in August 2016.

For more information and pictures, visit www.facebook.com/sbvalleycollege.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA-One of the largest marches and rallies in the history of San Bernardino will be led by faith-based, political, business and community leaders on October 22, 2016 in the wake of an unprecedented year of crime and an alarming increase in homicides.