NATIONAL—- Grammy Award-winning singer and actress Jennifer Holliday will join the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) as the featured performer for its 2020 Virtual Awards, streaming December 19 at 7:30 p.m. ET. Celebrity DJ Andre Mack will also join NABJ as the host of the awards show live afterparty.
Holliday is best known for her role in the smash Broadway musical, “Dreamgirls,” with her show-stopping performance as Effie “Melody” White. This iconic role garnered her a Tony Award for best actress in a musical.
With over 30 years of experience on Broadway, Holliday got her start at age 17 while singing in her church choir in Houston, Texas. Holliday’s passion didn’t stop on the Broadway stage. She has appeared on television as Lisa Knowles on the Fox TV dramedy, “Ally McBeal.” She has also enjoyed a successful recording career, winning Grammy® Awards for her mesmerizing performances of “And I Am Telling You, I’m Not Going” (1982) and Duke Ellington’s “Come Sunday” (1985). Holliday has also received rave reviews for her first album in two decades – “The Song Is You” (2014).
Back by popular demand, DJ Andre Mack is no stranger to NABJ. After performing at the 2020 Convention Opening Ceremony and Reception, co-produced and presented by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, members and attendees raved about Mack’s skills on the turntables. He is frequently called upon to spin classic and soulful House, Old School R&B, Hip Hop, and Reggae music.
NABJ’s first-ever virtual awards will recognize the winners of its 2020 Salute to Excellence Awards and pay tribute to 2020 Special Honors recipients and Hall of Fame inductees. The hosts for the evening will be Lynn Whitfield, Emmy Award-winning actress; Craig Melvin, anchor of NBC News’ “TODAY”; Tichina Arnold, NAACP Image Award-winning actress; Michelle Miller, co-host of “CBS This Morning: Saturday”; and Kenneth Moton, co-anchor of “ABC World News Now” and “America This Morning.”
The awards ceremony, presented by FedEx, will kick off at 8 p.m. ET. It will be preceded by a pre-event reception at 7:30 p.m. ET. The post-event afterparty will be held from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET. Tickets provide access to all three activities.
“In such a critical time in America and in journalism, it is important that we take time to celebrate and applaud our members and industry colleagues,” said NABJ President Dorothy Tucker. “We are honored to have iconic artists and actresses like Jennifer Holliday, Lynn Whitfield and Tichina Arnold celebrating with us. We are also grateful to have our award-winning hosts and journalists Craig Melvin, Michelle Miller and Kenneth Moton. And, of course, we can’t wait to unwind with the talented DJ Andre Mack. Congratulations to our 2020 honorees and finalists. We are proud of all you’ve accomplished.”
The 2020 NABJ Hall of Fame inductees are:
Fred Sweets
Pam Johnson
Pam Oliver
Mary Mitchell
John McCaa
Cathy Hughes
Clarice Tinsley
The 2020 NABJ Special Honors recipients are:
Journalist of the Year: Yamiche Alcindor
Michael J. Feeney Emerging Journalist of the Year: Rachel V. Scott
Legacy Award: Rehema Ellis
Chuck Stone Lifetime Achievement Award: Kevin Merida
Journalist of Distinction: Elaine Houston
Ida B. Wells Award: Kimberly Godwin
Journalism Educators of the Year: Susan Mango Curtis and James McJunkins Sr.
Angelo B. Henderson Community Service Award: Chelle Luper Wilson
Patricia L. Tobin Media Professional Award: Ramona Logan
Student Chapter of the Year Finalists: University of North Texas-NABJ, Michigan State University Association of Black Journalists and University of South Carolina – NABJ
Professional Chapter of the Year Finalists: Greater Cincinnati Association of Black Journalists, Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Black Journalists – Los Angeles, and NABJ-South Florida
Each year hundreds of Black women travel across the United States to compete in ladies steer wrestling, breakaway roping, bull riding, barrel racing, and other rodeo competitions — many while holding down full-time jobs.
The rise of Black women in the rodeo circuit is largely due to the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo (BPIR), the nation’s only African American touring rodeo, which was founded by Lu Vason in Denver, Colorado, in 1984.
Named in honor of Willie M. ‘Bill’ Pickett, BPIR was an African American cowboy, actor, and ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductee. He invented the bulldogging technique — a rodeo event where a rider wrestles a steer to the ground by grabbing its horns.
Today, BPIR has a woman at the helm and is run by a majority female leadership team.
Since taking the reins in 2015, Vason’s wife Valeria Howard-Cunningham has used her position as CEO to promote women to leadership roles, effectively creating the first successful touring rodeo led by a Black woman.
Although 2020 has been a challenging rodeo year with COVID-19 forcing the cancelation of the competition season, Cunningham is confident that she and her team will continue to drive the movement forward.
Caroline Carter and Justini Carter (Courtesy Caroline Carter)
“Being CEO was an opportunity where I could get women involved to show that women can run a rodeo operation just as effective or more effective as men,” Cunningham said. “That was important to me. A woman has to do 10 times more than a counterpart to show they are capable of doing certain things.”
Women have been involved in the rodeo world at various levels for decades. However, they have been mostly underrepresented, said Krishaun Adair of Point Blank, Texas, who has been competing in rodeo since she was five years old.
“I did not realize we were like unicorns. I didn’t realize there was a lack of or underrepresentation of Black cowgirls. I grew up looking at Black cowgirls, that’s who I wanted to be. They were my role models. Then I realized how small of a group and how precious we are. People had never seen it before, never heard of it before. Their image of a cowboy or a cowgirl looks nothing like me.”
When Adair and her friend Azja Bryanttravel to competitions with horses in tow, people stop and stare, she told Zenger.
“We would stop at different gas stations, and you know, people would either look at you a little funny or [for] some people it was total fascination like they just couldn’t believe,” said Bryant. “I like to be able to perform to the best of my ability, to go out and be a positive role model to others, so I can show other people, ‘Hey there are Black cowgirls out here.’”
Adair said she admires BPIR because it creates a platform for Black cowboys and cowgirls.
“Bill Pickett [represents cowgirls and cowboys] on a level so that we don’t seem inferior or not as good,” said Adair. “I want to be seen; I don’t want to be isolated. We rodeo, we just so happen to be Black.”
Vason created BPIR as a place for African Americans to hone their rodeo skills, showcase their talents, and educate the community about Pickett.
The idea came after he attended Cheyenne Frontier Days, an outdoor rodeo and western celebration in the United States, held annually since 1897 in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Cunningham told Zenger that he did not see Black cowboys or cowgirls in the rodeo despite knowing there were thousands in the United States.
Now, BPIR has surpassed the model of being just a rodeo — it’s a community that brings people together from across the country.
“Bill Pickett is all African American,” Cunningham said. “It gives African Americans the opportunity to display skills and develop skills and not be treated unfairly. People invited to participate in the rodeo know it’s a safe zone.”
Rodeo in the United States is not just fun; it is big business. According to ranch services company Western Ranches, more than 600 rodeos nationwide are sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, and in 2015 rodeo prize money surpassed $46 million. Contestants have the opportunity to win hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money in just a few days.
“Seeing kids from different communities that have never seen a Black cowboy and never seen a Black cowgirl, that’s worth more than money could ever buy,” said Cunningham.
But sponsors and prize money do not come easily for Black rodeos.
“Because we are an African American rodeo association, the biggest challenge has been and continues to be obtaining the level of sponsorship of other rodeos,” said Cunningham.
“Companies don’t want to invest. With the National Finals Rodeo (NFR), millions can be put up for added money at their finals. We sell out all of our venues across the U.S., and we don’t get the same level of sponsorship participation. It’s the biggest struggle we have, but we don’t let that hold us back.”
African American cowboys accounted for up to 25% of workers in the cattle industry in American West, although their images were primarily excluded from popular culture. And while Black cowboys and cowgirls are common in places like Texas and Oklahoma, Cunningham said it is shocking how little is known about them in other parts of the country.
With COVID-19 causing the slowdown of rodeo competition across the country, BPIR is focusing not only on gaining sponsors but on its mission of education and getting more young people involved in the sport.
Cunningham said the Bill Pickett circuit rodeo tour introduces Black cowboys and cowgirls to children across the country and provides education about African American participation in the development of the western United States.
“Seeing kids from different communities that have never seen a Black cowboy and never seen a Black cowgirl, that’s worth more than money could ever buy,” said Cunningham. “History books don’t teach certain things. What Bill Pickett rodeo has done is to bring history alive to educate them.”
Cunningham told Zenger that parents attending and learning about BPIR for the first time often want to know where their children can learn to ride a horse and learn more about cowboys and cowgirls, which passes on the interest to a new generation.
Oklahoma native and steer undecorating champion, Carolyn Carter, began competing in 1982. Now, she has four generations of family involvement in rodeo, including a grandson and great-grandson, who are both two years old.
According to Carter, new generations of Black cowboys and cowgirls have advantages her generation did not have, such as access to parents and grandparents who know how to train horses and gained exposure to Black rodeo competitions at an early age.
“They are learning at an earlier age how to do what we’ve been doing all of these years,” said Carter. “It’s a lifestyle.”
“I will not put up with sin forever. I am going to open Hell to you, and show you what it is like, maybe that will help you get some get right. You see, I am about to destroy the city, and I’m telling you, if you don’t change your ways, you will perish under the wrath which is SOON TO COME. So, “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two hands and go into hell…And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.” [Matthew 5:20-30; Mark 9:43-48]. “I warn you, as I warned you before!”
Having heard all your life about the grace and mercy of God, you have taken His grace for granted. Woe unto you! Exhibiting the spirit of Esau, in which unfortunately you may well discover his end too. You see, Esau’s life is the story of a man who traded his soul for fleeting pleasure. He sold his birthright, which included not only material benefits and family privileges, but spiritual blessings as well, for a bowl of soup. It says that “he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way” 25:34]. He didn’t have a second thought about what he had done. He did it, it felt good, and only much later did he come to regret it. Esau wanted to repent of his actions, but it was too late. “He found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.”[Hebrews 12:17]. Esau sought to reverse the catastrophic outcome of his mistake/decision, but was rejected because he had no further opportunity to repent. The damage was done and there was no turning back.
May each of us learn from Esau, and not wait until it is too late to consider the cost of our decisions and actions. God is good to allow time for us to repent of our sins by delaying His judgment. But don’t think that we have all the time in the world, to repent. Because according to Genesis 6:3-5, it reminds us that the “Lord spirit shall not strive-with man always.” A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” [Proverbs 22:3]. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. [Isaiah 55:6]. Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. [Romans 11:22].
“Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?… Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. [Ezekiel 18:21, 30]. “Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” [Isaiah 1:18].
“The great day of the Lord is near – near and coming quickly. See, the Lord is coming with fire, and his chariots are like a whirlwind; he will bring down his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish… In the fire of his jealousy the whole world will be consumed, for he will make a sudden end of all who live in the earth.” [Isaiah 66:15-16; Zephaniah 1:14-18]. “The great day of the Lord is near ? near and coming quickly.
May the God of heaven give you understanding in all things which concern his glory, and your eternal good.
As COVID-19 case numbers climb, California has imposed tighter restrictions and ordered a ordered a statewide mask mandate, while advising residents to stay home. Out of the 58 California counties, 41 are now at the state’s most restrictive, or purple, tier, including Alameda, Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties.
On Friday, the governor announced a curfew between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. in 41 counties. It will affect more than 90 % of Californians, but he stopped short of reissuing a statewide shelter-in-place order.
“The virus is spreading at a pace we haven’t seen since the start of this pandemic and the next several days and weeks will be critical to stop the surge. We are sounding the alarm,” Gov. Newsom said in a statement. “It is crucial that we act to decrease transmission and slow hospitalizations before the death count surges.”
Earlier in the week, Gov. Newsom announced a stricter mandate that requires mask wearing “statewide at all times when outside of the home” by everyone over age two. The new restrictions are in response to the recent COVID-19 case surge, the “fastest increase we’ve seen since the start of the pandemic,” according to Newsom.
Nationwide, COVID-19 cases hit 12 million on Nov. 21, an increase of nearly 1 million over the previous week. More than 250,000 Americans have died of COVID-19 so far.
“Every age group, every racial demographic, in every part of the state we are seeing case rates increase and positivity rates increase as well. It is no longer concentrated in just a handful of counties. We are seeing community spread broadly throughout the state of California,” Newsom said during a news briefing Monday.
Public health and government officials have recently shifted their messaging to warning the public about the spread of COVID-19 in the winter months, as families consider whether to gather for the holidays. On Nov. 13, Newsom issued a travel advisory warning to California residents discouraging travel out of the state for any nonessential reason, including the Thanksgiving holiday, and recommending a 14-day quarantine for anyone who does travel.
Newsom also shared the number of current COVID-19 hospitalizations in California, which has climbed 48 % over the past two weeks to reach 3,800 as of Nov. 15. Of those, more than 1,000 people were in intensive care.
Black and Brown communities including East Oakland and East Los Angeles are still hotspots – and the case numbers are climbing.
Dr. Beverly Tambe is a primary doctor at Adventist Health White Memorial Hospital in East Los Angeles who recently appeared in a USA Facts Ad to talk about the realities of treating patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a conversation with California Black Media, Tambe spoke about the struggles of treating a virus whose full impact healthcare professionals have yet to determine.
Over the past nine months of treating COVID-19 patients, Tambe has seen a variety of situations with her patients. They range from those who recover in a couple of days, to those who were previously admitted to the hospital at the beginning of the pandemic and still come in for outpatient treatment for decreased lung or heart function. She emphasizes that the effects of COVID-19 vary from patient to patient.
“We have a standardized treatment regimen for patients that come into the hospital, depending on the severity. We’ve got a whole algorithm that we follow, but even with the algorithm and these treatments, some patients get better and some just don’t. We have patients that we’re doing everything for and they’re not getting better,” she said.
Tambe also shared her concerns about the upcoming winter and whether case numbers will continue to increase. She recommended against gathering in large groups. She also emphasized that people at least take the basic safety precautions, including wearing a mask and washing their hands regularly, to protect themselves and those around them.
“There’s a 14-day incubation period with the disease. So even though you feel fine, one day you could travel or meet in a large group, and still be carrying the disease. So, you carry the disease, spread it to everybody and eventually your symptoms might come up, but you’ve already gotten others sick. That’s why it’s so important to take care, to be cautious,” she warned.
Arguably one of our generation’s best fighters, undefeated (26-0) welterweight boxing champion Errol Spence Jr. was riding high after defeating Shawn Porter in 2019.
He couldn’t have known he was on a path that nearly ended his life. Just a month later, photos surfaced of Spence’s demolished vehicle. One look at the condition of Spence’s Ferrari and many critics wondered if he would ever be able to fight at the same level again.
As speculation about Spence’s health circulated, more graphic footage hit the Internet revealing just what one of boxing’s pound-for-pound best had endured. Somehow he walked away with no broken bones. He came back with something to prove.
Many thought Spence’s career was over. It hasn’t been an easy road, but a little more than a year later, Spence is finally ready to defend his WBC and IBF welterweight titles on Dec. 5 against the dangerous Danny Garcia of Philadelphia.
Spence opens up about facing Garcia, the car accident, fighting in Dallas and much more.
Zenger: What’s up with you?
Spence Jr.: Nothing much, tired of doing interviews (laughing).
Zenger: They gave you country-ass livestock and acres! You are a full-fledge farmer now! (laughing).
Percy Crawford interviewed Errol Spence, Jr. for Zenger News (Photo courtesy of Percy Crawford)
Spence Jr.: Yeah, man. Well, I’m not a farmer, I’m a ranch hand. Farmers got all types of fruits and things like that, I just got cattle. So, I’m a ranch hand. I got horses, cows, I’m going to get some chickens in here when this fight is over with and some more horses and stuff like that. I’m a real Texas boy now.
Zenger: That’s a lot of work. Do you get a hand with it, or is it mostly you right now?
Spence Jr.: Me and my dad. I have people come and put horseshoes on and stuff like that.
Zenger: Danny Garcia got into the ring after your win over Shawn Porter, and we see fighters enter the ring all the time. Sometimes those fights come to fruition, sometimes they do not. From the outside looking in, it seems this fight was fairly easy to make. Is that accurate?
Spence Jr.: It was easy to make for the most part. Danny Garcia and myself have the same advisor, so we only had to talk to one person. I feel like it was basically simple, A to B. There was no negotiation or anything.
Zenger: Where Ángel García seems to irritate other opponents and their camps, it seems like you like the fact that he believes in his son so much to make such boastful statements when discussing Danny.
Spence Jr.: I mean, that’s what he’s there for. He’s the man’s father, so it’s only right that he does believe in him. And he’s his trainer too, so it’s only right that he believes in him. I’m not irritated by him. I’ve been seeing his dad talk crazy to other people and everything, but he’s been showing me a lot of respect. I don’t have anything bad to say about him. I just think that it’s a father that believes in his son and he knows how to pump his son up. I feel like the way he be ranting and stuff like that, it’s a way to get his son ready for the fight.
“For me, it was the anniversary, and I just wanted people to see my journey. How hard it was to get to the point where I am now? I just wanted people to see how hard it was. It wasn’t an easy comeback journey to get to where I am now.” (Ryan Hafey/Premier Boxing Champions)
Zenger: Aside from the Kell Brook fight where there seemed to be a little animosity, you always seem to share a mutual respect with your opponents. Do you have a mutual respect for Danny as a fighter and his body of work?
Spence Jr.: I think so. He is a great fighter, I’m a great fighter. I respect his skills and the opponents that he fought, he respects the opponents that I have been in there with, and I feel like, it’s going to be a great fight come December 5. So I appreciate him taking this fight. I know he appreciates me taking the fight and putting my two-belts on the line to fight him. He’s coming to my hometown; I appreciate that too. I feel like it’s going to be an electrifying fight in front of my hometown. I just want everybody to tune-in to Fox PPV or grab their tickets because it’s going to be a one-sided legendary fight for myself.
Zenger: I remember we spoke years ago when you first fought in Dallas and you were kind of hoping that it would become a thing. Now, you have the fanbase, the city behind and it is a thing. It’s gotta be a great feeling to have that thought manifest into what it is now?
Spence Jr.: Definitely man! Fighting at home, I just feel like a lot of fighters don’t get a chance to do that or can do that, but they don’t put butts in the seats. At the end of the day I feel like I’m able to do that and put on great performances when I do that. I’m not losing or anything like that. It’s basically shutout decisions. Last time I fought in Dallas, it was a unanimous decision, the time before that it was a knockout.
The other time was a knockout too. So, every time I have fought there it has been great performances. I want to continue to do that on December 5th and if this all goes well maybe I can come back sometime soon and fight again.
Welterweight world champion Errol Spence, Jr. prepares for a match against Danny Garcia on Dec. 5 in his hometown at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Ryan Hafey / Premier Boxing Champions
Zenger: It feels like you are the chosen athlete in Dallas right now and maybe even the entire state of Texas. With so much violence in Dallas of late, do you hope your fight and your story can bring a little bit of unity to the city?
Spence Jr.: Definitely! It’s been a lot of crazy stuff happening in Dallas. Hopefully, my fight will bring people together, everyone stay safe so nothing tragic happens. I want to see everybody come together. Praying for Dallas.
Zenger: How do you view Danny as an opponent and size him up from being around him?
Spence Jr.: He’s tough. He can be rugged. He’s a guy with a great chin. I feel like he is a counterpuncher with great timing. He is a guy that will punch when you punch, or he will take a punch to give a punch. That’s basically how I size him up. He’s not quick, he’s not fast, he just does everything right.
Zenger: You eventually shared the picture of you in the hospital bed after your car accident. What made you share that picture? Was it just a matter of letting people see what you overcame, your journey leading to December 5th?
Spence Jr.: For me, it was the anniversary, and I just wanted people to see my journey. How hard it was to get to the point where I am now. I just wanted people to see how hard it was. It wasn’t an easy comeback journey to get to where I am now. It was real hard. I put it out to remind people that you can persevere through anything. The power of the mind and staying focused, if you really want something if you put your mind to it, you can do anything and you can persevere through anything.
Zenger: You look to be in amazing shape, physically, how do you feel?
Spence Jr.: I feel good physically. Mentally I feel great. I’m just 100% focused. I’m just ready to put on a great performance, man.
This is something I’ve been waiting for. This is my second opportunity, not only in boxing but in life. I’m not nervous at all or anything like that. If that was anybody else, probably wouldn’t be here right now or they would probably be a vegetable. For me, it’s about staying focused and getting ready for the task at hand and that’s winning in front of my hometown.
Zenger: It didn’t even seem like an option for you to take a fight against a lesser opponent to test out your mental and physical standings after the crash. Why not?
Spence Jr.: I was going to fight him [Danny Garcia] before my accident. For me, I felt 100%, I felt prepared and I felt like Danny Garcia is the type of guy, his record, who he is and his name, he was going to push me to get back to 100%. I couldn’t slack off because if I would’ve slacked off, there’s a chance that he could have beat me. So, I knew that I had to focus and have tunnel vision and make sure that I’m all the way back. If I do that, I will make this a great, entertaining but one-sided performance.
Zenger: Always great talking to you, good luck and I look forward to December 5.
Although housing insecurity affected communities of color long before COVID-19, the current pandemic continues to exacerbate inequalities. As early as April 2020, 32 percent of Black adults and 41 percent of Latinx adults experienced job loss due to the pandemic, compared with only 24 percent of white adults.
Black and Latina women have seen the largest drop in their employment-to-population ratios since February, with Black women in particular seeing jobs come back at a rate that is 1 1/2 times slower than that of white women. Although all racial and ethnic groups have faced record unemployment, the Black-white unemployment gap has persisted throughout the pandemic.
For Asian Americans—who have been particularly targeted by racist responses to the coronavirus crisis—unemployment rates have soared to 11 percent in July, compared with 3 percent during the previous year, and they remain historically high as the pandemic continues.
Lost and reduced income has worsened already difficult situations for many. During the pandemic, renters of color have reported less overall confidence in being able to pay their next month’s rent and have reported not having paid the previous month’s rent on time at disproportionately higher rates than their white counterparts. (see Figures 1 and 2)
With communities of color also navigating the collective pain of higher rates of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, they must face additional medical and funeral costs in addition to potential lost employer-sponsored health insurance and reduced household income due to unemployment—or worse, the loss of an income-earner’s life.
“This Scary Statistic Predicts Growing US Political Violence — Whatever Happens On Election Day” Read MORE …
“The tendency is to blame Trump, but I don’t really agree with that,” Peter Turchin, an evolutionary anthropologist at the University of Connecticut who studies the forces that drive political instability, told BuzzFeed News. “Trump is really not the deep structural cause.”
The most dangerous element in the mix, argue Turchin and George Mason University sociologist Jack Goldstone, is the corrosive effect of inequality on society. They believe they have a model that explains how inequality escalates and leads to political instability: Worsened by elites who monopolize economic gains, narrow the path to social mobility, and resist taxation, inequality ends up undermining state institutions while fomenting distrust and resentment.
Building on Goldstone’s work showing that revolutions tend to follow periods of population growth and urbanization, Turchin has developed a statistic called the political stress indicator, or PSI. It incorporates measures of wage stagnation, national debt, competition between elites, distrust in government, urbanization, and the age structure of the population.
Turchin raised warning signs of a coming storm a decade ago, predicting that instability would peak in the years around 2020. “In the United States, we have stagnating or declining real wages, a growing gap between rich and poor, overproduction of young graduates with advanced degrees, and exploding public debt,” he wrote, in a letter to the journal Nature. “Historically, such developments have served as leading indicators of looming political instability.”
“Black, Hispanic, and Young Workers Have Been Left Behind by Policymakers, But Will They Vote?” Read MORE …
Black voter registration and participation rose after the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965; while Black voting rates would continue to lag behind white voting rates, the gap had narrowed significantly—particularly in the South. In 2008, the gap essentially closed, and in 2012, Black voting rates exceeded white voting rates (Figure A). However, Black voting rates dipped below white voting rates in the 2016 presidential election, asreportsof voter suppression and intimidationincreasedrelative to previous elections.
Hispanic voter turnout has been persistently lower than both Black and white voter turnout: In the 2016 presidential election, Hispanic turnout was reported by the Census Bureau at 47.6%, compared with 65.3% for non-Hispanic white voters and 59.4% for Black voters (Figure A). The reasons for low Hispanic turnout are not necessarily easyto determine and often get told one story at a time. Like Black voters, Hispanic voters have been hampered by voter suppression efforts and face disproportionate disenfranchisement due to felony convictions. Many face language barriers. The Hispanic population is also much younger (with a median age of 30 in 2018) than the white population (with a median age of 44)—and, as discussed below, younger adults are less likely to vote.1
By Antonio? ?Ray? ?Harvey? ?|? ?California? ?Black? ?Media? ?
The California Democratic Party Black Caucus (CDP Black Caucus) joined hands with other women organizations this past weekend?. Their goal: to turn up the pressure on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to appoint a Black woman to replace outgoing Sen. Kamala Harris in the U.S. Senate.
During the virtual “Keep the Seat” news conference, which representatives from the National Organization for Women (NOW) and Black Women United (BWU) attended, the organizers explained why Gov. Newsom should appoint a Black woman. They also gave reasons why he should narrow his options to U.S. Representatives Karen Bass (D-CA-37) and Barbara Lee (D-CA-13).
“This is a pivotal time in California history. I hope together we can bend the moral arc of history towards justice, together, by ensuring that the most underrepresented and marginalized community retain a significant representation in California by appointing a Black woman to replace Kamala Harris,” said Taisha Brown, chairperson of the CDP Black Caucus.
Brown continued, “Our call is for all of you to join us in saying to Gavin Newsom, our governor, that we are not going to accept anything but a Black woman. I think it’s critical that we emphasize that.”
Currently there are three African Americans serving in the United States Senate. Two of them are men (Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, and Tim Scott, a Republican from South Carolina). Harris, the junior Senator from California, is the only African American woman with a seat in the upper house of the United States Congress.
But with Harris’s imminent ascendency to the Vice Presidency of the United States, there will be no African American woman in the US Senate after Jan. 20, 2021.
In response, the CDP Black Caucus has put out a call to action under the slogan “One is not enough, and zero is unacceptable.”
“We have a Thanksgiving message for Gov. Gavin Newsom. Our goal is to have 250 every day until Thanksgiving. We need you to speak up. Make a call and let Gov. Newsom know that Black women have been the backbone of the Democratic Party as voters, organizers, and we deserve representation in the United States Senate,” said Kendra Lewis, a representative for the CDP Black Caucus.
Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor and chairman of Black Studies at California State University Long Beach, was also one of the “Keep The Seat” speakers. Karenga, who is also the founder of the annual spiritual and cultural celebration Kwanzaa, said he “stands strong” with the CDP Black Caucus’s push to keep a Black woman from California in the U.S. Senate.
“First of all, no one is more qualified than the two women mentioned — Bass and Lee. It’s not a gift. It’s recognition overdue. It’s also a service to the Democratic party. Black women have been the backbone of this party. So, it is debt owed to them,” he said.
Over the weekend, several top women Democratic Party donors in California also urged Newsom to select a woman of color. About 150 of them have placed a letter in full-page ads in two newspapers — the LA Times in Southern California and the San Francisco Chronicle in Northern California — making their request known to Newsom.
“Women of color are the core drivers of electoral progress in our country, and their voices should be heard in the nation’s highest governing body. California is fortunate to have a strong pipeline of women of color in elected office who are prepared to serve; as Californians and political supporters, we look forward to you selecting one of them,” the letter read.
The California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) and other Black leaders in the state have also called on Gov. Newsom to fill the seat with an African American woman.
The CLBC members also sent a letter to Gov. Newsom making their case for why Bass and Lee should be at the top of his shortlist of candidates. They cited the women’s lengthy legislative experience coupled with their broad foreign policy knowledge.
Before the election on Nov. 3, Newsom said that he was getting pressure from different groups in the state about who he should appoint to replace Harris. He also acknowledged that he feels the weight of making that important decision and predicted that his choice would not please everyone.
“The stress of having to choose between a lot of friends, to choose between quality candidates, and the fact that whoever you pick, there are going to be a lot of people who are going to be upset, disappointed, that it wasn’t this or that, I don’t even want to get my arms around that until I have the privilege of having to make that decision,” Newsom said in an interview with Los Angeles’ FOX 11.
Gov. Newsom can either decide to make an appointment to complete Harris’s term or he can call a special election.
President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harrisannounced their advisory council to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic with some of the nation’s leading doctors and scientists. At the helm is Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith with her co-chairs Dr. David Kessler and Dr. Vivek Murthy.
“Dealing with the coronavirus pandemic is one of the most important battles our administration will face, and I will be informed by science and by experts,” President-elect Biden said in a press release. “The advisory board will help shape my approach to managing the surge in reported infections; ensuring vaccines are safe, effective, and distributed efficiently, equitably, and free; and protecting at-risk populations.”
Dr. Nunez-Smith comes from Yale University, an Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, Public Health, and Management at the Yale School of Medicine. Her research focuses on marginalized communities’ health and creating an equitable and accessible healthcare system for all.
“Everyone is affected by this pandemic, yet the burden is disproportionate,” Nunez-Smith said in a statement. “We know communities of color are grieving at high rates and are facing substantial economic impact. The transition advisory board is setting a course for everyone in our country to experience recovery.”
Dr Marcella Nunez-Smith, associate dean for health equity research at Yale School of Medicine is now the co- chair of the COVID task-force. Black Women. My heart is so full! pic.twitter.com/4dgVJc0kA2
According to the Yale press release announcing her appointment, “Munez-Smith is an internist and an expert in healthcare equity, is the founding director of Yale SOM’s Pozen-Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in Health Equity Leadership, which trains healthcare practitioners to address disparities in healthcare access and outcomes that affect people of color and other vulnerable populations. She is also the founding director of the Equity Research and Innovation Center at the Yale School of Medicine.”
Her official Yale bio lists Dr. Nunez-Smith as the Deputy Director for Health Equity Research and Workforce Development for the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation, Core Faculty in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, and Research Faculty at Yale’s Global Health Leadership Institute. She comes from the Virgin Islands, earned a BA from Swarthmore College, an MD from Jefferson Medical College, and an MHS from Yale University.
We’re glad to have you on our nation’s team on this road to recovery! Congratulations, Dr. Nunez-Smith.
Wake up and wake up now, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.” [Romans 13:11]. The final countdown and signs of the seven-year tribulation are rising all around us. The warnings are there. The signs are there. The thunder is growing, the lightning is on the horizon, and the dark clouds are gathering. I tell you, we are living in the most significant and important time in Bible-prophecy history, yet no one is paying attention. Woe, Woe, Woe!
If you consider yourself a follower of Jesus, “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” [Luke 21:36]. And if you want to know how close we are in Bible prophecy, then watch Israel and compare it to God’s Word. Israel is the key to the end time prophecy and the City of Jerusalem is the center stage.
Consider the message and understand the vision: [Daniel 9:24]. The final seven year countdown, begins when this world figure known as the Antichrist initiates a peace covenant with Israel. Done [?]: “Israel and the UAE agreed to full normalization of relations in a phone call with President Donald Trump marking the first peace treaty between Israel and an Arab country in 25 years.” [Moving the United States Embassy in Israel back to Jerusalem and recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel].
“STRIKING ANOTHER HISTORIC AGREEMENT: President Donald J. Trump brokered a peace agreement between Sudan and Israel – the third such agreement between Israel and an Arab-Muslim nation in less than three months. “Today, Israel and Sudan have agreed to make peace and to normalize their relations in another landmark agreement. In the coming weeks, the two countries will begin negotiations on cooperation agreements in agriculture, economy, trade, aviation, migration issues, and other areas of mutual benefit. This historic peace agreement follows similar agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Israel and the Kingdom of Bahrain. The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Sudan are the first Arab nations to normalize relations with Israel in over 25 years.”
QUOTE President Donald J. Trump ? “They are choosing a future in which Arabs and Israelis, Muslims, Jews, and Christians can live together, pray together, and dream together, side by side, in harmony, community, and peace.”
Can you hear me now! Bible prophecy is quickly being fulfilled in rapid succession. End time prophecy is being fulfilled one after another. Watch and pray! The final seven year countdown has begun.
Lenny Williams launched his solo career in 1974 with “Pray for the Lion.” In April 2020, a full 46 years later, he’s still making records. His latest studio album, “Fine,” is his 18th. Few recording artists have shared Williams’ consistency and longevity.
Best known for his 1975 hit, “’Cause I Love You,” Williams has been sampled by top artists in the industry. Steve Harvey dedicated a segment in the hit comedy movie, “Kings of Comedy,” to Williams, highlighting the impact of the hit love song.
Today his delivery is as smooth and passionate as it was in the 1970s, and the accomplished R&B and soul singer has no plan to slow down.
Williams discussed the necessary adjustments he has made in order to remain relevant in the music industry his new album, “Fine,” the challenges that Covid-19 posed during the record’s release and his love of boxing.
Lenny Williams remains consistently relevant. (Photo courtesy Lenny Williams)
Percy Crawford interviewed Lenny Williams for Zenger News.
Zenger News: You are very health conscious, and because of that you don’t age one bit. How are you keeping so fit and looking so young?
Lenny Williams: You know, it’s very important to me, because I know that all the statistics and all the research says if you’re healthy you live longer. It helps your mind fight Alzheimer’s and stuff like that. So physical fitness has always been very important in my life.
Zenger: I love the new album “Fine” for many reasons. I love the diversity of the album. I love that you gave us 15 songs. It just hits all the benchmarks for a great album. Did you intentionally make this a diverse album?
Williams: In a way I was trying to create a diverse album because I was working with Levi Seacer. Most of the songs I’ve done on the album, Levi produced. He was the bass player and the guitar player for Prince and the New Power Generation Band. He had played with Sheila E. and people like that. He was able to help me with making the album have a diverse sound. I really enjoyed that.
Percy Crawford interviewed Lenny Williams for Zenger News (Photo courtesy of Percy Crawford)
Zenger: You released this album in April, at the same time the country was shutting down and Covid was being taken very seriously. Did that affect the album and plans you had for the album?
Williams: Yeah, it definitely did affect it, that Covid virus. Because in terms of promotion and things of that nature, I haven’t been able to get out on the road to support the project or things like that. So I had to be like these youngsters in terms of employing some skills of using the Internet and things of that nature. That’s kind of been new territory for me. We’re learning on the job.
Zenger: Things are definitely different in terms of ways to get your music out now, as opposed to when you first came around. You use Instagram effectively and wisely. How have you learned to navigate the Internet and use it to your benefit?
Williams: I’m just feeling my way through it. I’m using my wife to help out. She’s pretty adept at it. I have a daughter that is a computer scientist so she helps some. I also have a grandson and he’s pretty good with it. Kids just kind of grow up with it, you know. He’s 17, so he helps me. We are just finding our way through it. We’re using the services of people we know that are referred to us. We don’t get into the negative aspect of it. We don’t even respond to any negativity. We haven’t had much negativity come our way, though.
Zenger: There was a time I never thought cassette tapes would be obsolete. Obviously I never thought CDs would be obsolete. Yet here we are. What are your thoughts on music being streamed now and the streaming platforms being able to get your music out so quickly?
Williams: It’s really interesting. We have been—when you say straddling the fence, that’s kind of how we’ve been doing it. I got some CDs made because of people in my age group. They still like their CDs. And then the younger crowd, or the crowd that’s kind of in the middle, they like going to Spotify and those various outlets and download it or stream it or whatever. We’re just adapting to the times. If you don’t get with it, you just get run over. We just have to do what’s happening. Progress just moves and you have to move with it or just get left behind. We are just adapting and going with the flow.
Zenger: Do you have a favorite track on this “Fine” album?
Williams: I really like the song “Fine.” I really like the song “Southern Girl.” I really like the song “All Night” that I did with my friend “DOA,” Derek Allen. He is quite a producer. I did two songs with him. He just got through producing Kem’s new album. I’m really excited about those songs. You gotta listen to it. It’s hard to pick just one, but right now we are just concentrating on “Southern Girl.” That’s our single right now. Actually, this week it came in at #45 on the media-based charts, so we are really excited about that.
Zenger: “Southern Girl” is my favorite. I love that Southern soul sound. And “Say So” is another amazing song. But you are right, the entire album can be played with no skips.
Williams: It’s interesting to hear you say you like “Say So,” because that was our first single. We thought that we would successfully be able to have a hit with that. I think it would have been a gigantic single, but unfortunately it came out right with the Covid virus. We were moving up the charts and then they had the blackout day and certain things happened that stalled it. And radio is a difficult beast to conquer right now in this era, especially if you are an older artist. Just trying to navigate radio is a tremendous undertaking. But I’m not quitting. We are just going to keep on keeping on.
Zenger: Is there anyone you wanted to collaborate with that you have not had the opportunity to work with yet?
Williams: I definitely haven’t conquered all of my musical goals yet, so yeah, there are all sorts of people I would like to collaborate with or work with. Kanye—although him and Twister sampled me, I never worked with Kanye directly or been in the studio with him. I would definitely like to do that. Dr. Dre is somebody I would like to go in the studio with. David Foster, the great producer from Canada. I’d really love to go in the studio with him. There are just so many people. I wouldn’t mind doing a collaboration with Beyoncé. I think that would be nice. There’s all kinds of things I would like to do musically.
Zenger: “’Cause I Love You” has 56 million views on YouTube on a single search. To make a song released in 1975, and to still have it viewed so much and revered so much, that has to be an amazing feeling of timelessness.
Williams: Most definitely! It’s just amazing to sit here and think, I could just sit in my little music room back in the day, me and my friend, Michael Bennett. To sit at the piano and write that song. We actually did it twice. We did it on my first album after I left, Tower of Power. We did it on the Motown album, and it didn’t have the talking in it, and it was a little more up-tempo. It wasn’t fast but it wasn’t as slow as it is now. We went on the road singing it for about a year. Then we slowed it down and put the talking in it. And then I had left Motown and went to ABC Records and we put it out and, boom! It hit and it’s just amazing. I go do shows and I see people my age and their kids, their kids’ kids and their great-great grandkids and all of them know the words. It’s just mind-boggling and it’s humbling for sure.
Lenny Williams, right, is pictured with former professional boxer Zab Judah, left. (Photo courtesy of Lenny Williams)
Zenger: To capture that many generations is amazing. Also, with attention spans being so short now, for a seven-minute song to still be relevant is impressive.
Williams: It actually was longer than that. Frank Wilson my producer said, “We gotta leave some of this out,” (laughing). So, that’s kind of interesting. Everybody talks about the passion that’s in that song. And they say, “That girl must have really hurt you,” and I say, “Well, part of it is autobiographical and part of it is just seeing and listening and talking to friends when they have difficulties in a relationship.” And then another thing that happened is, the day I recorded it Andraé Crouch and Sandra Crouch, his twin sister, came to the studio. And I’m singing this song and here is the greatest gospel singers of that era just looking down my throat as I’m singing, so you know I had to dig deep. I had to try and impress Andraé. Get him to waive his hand, say hallelujah or something. So, that contributed to a lot of that passion in that song.
Zenger: I was always a huge Lenny Williams fan. Then I’m watching your TV One’s “Unsung” and discover you are a huge boxing fan, and that put you over the top for me. What made you gravitate to the sport and become a fan?
Williams: Yeah! I love boxing. When we came from Arkansas to California we moved to Oakland. We lived right in the back of the church. Right across the street from the church was the boxing gym, and right down the street from the church was the radio station. So my three loves, the church, boxing and radio, were all right there. As a kid I can just leave home and walk to each one of them. It was real interesting. When I was a teenager, I was in Boys’ Camp. At the gym one day this guy was up in the ring, and he’s just standing there. Everybody was in the gym, but nobody would get in the ring to box him. And I had never boxed before, but I had seen it. I been around it, watching the fights with my dad, and going over to the gym and watching it. I had grown up around it. I was like, “I could outbox him.” I don’t know what made me say that. I got in there and I was slipping punches. It was like it was a natural thing. And I beat the guy. Everybody was like, “Ah, you can box?” I had never been in a ring before. I just used to watch it for hours and hours. I guess by watching it I just absorbed it. I just became a big boxing fan and would go to the gym all the time, hit the bag and jump rope, and try to watch all the fights. As a matter of fact, I was working in San Francisco with a youth group and talking to the principal we noticed that most of the boys at lunch time would go to the park and smoke weed. So, we instituted a boxing program at the school. We would have the kids come down and teach them techniques and stuff. Devin Haney was actually one of the kids who we influenced back in the day.
Zenger: That’s awesome. Do you have a favorite fighter, past or present?
Williams: Floyd Mayweather without a doubt is my favorite current fighter, or fighter from this generation. I would say one of the greatest fighters of all time that I grew up watching is Sugar Ray Robinson. I got to be pretty good friends with Muhammad Ali. I met a lot of fighters. I actually got the chance to shake the hand of around 10 to 12 heavyweight champions. But right now I think Floyd Mayweather. A lot of people get surprised when I say that, but it’s called prizefighting and he’s won the biggest prizes. You definitely have to say that Floyd is the king of the hill for sure.
Zenger: I remember a picture surfaced with you and Sam Watson, and I wanted to reach out to Sam to get an interview with you. I’m glad I was able to find you and get it. This has been an honor.
Williams: Sam is my good, good friend. Al Haymon also. I used to work for Al back when he was doing music shows, back in the day. We were promoting music shows back in the ’70s and ’80s before he got into boxing. I love boxing. It’s my favorite sport. I try to sit around here and throw left hooks and jab a little bit. I got a heavy bag out there and a speed bag and I try to work on it every day.
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