WSSN Stories

By Black Men for Educational Equity | Special to California Black Media Partners

The school to prison pipeline starts as early as preschool for our youngest Black learners.

According to the U.S. Department of Education (2016-2017), Black children face issues with preschool access and exclusion, and are prone to receive harsher discipline than non-Black students who display the same behavior. 

Statistics show that Black children are 15% of the K-12th?grade student population; however, they are 36% of students suspended at least once. Too many Black early learners are bounced around between multiple preschools or childcare programs like urban nomads.

During the height of the George Floyd protests, a group of?African American men with professional experience in education, policy, research and social work formed?Black?Men for Educational Equity (BMEE) to address implicit bias in early education. Over the last five months, BMEE examined the disparities and inequalities that exist in the system for young Black children and have created a plan of action for addressing these systemic issues.

To combat this problem, BMEE is calling on the California Legislature to ensure that Black preschoolers are not excluded from important educational components and success through implicit bias and structural racism.?Having access to quality preschool, fair treatment in the classroom, and equal opportunity for success are all crucial components in helping our Black preschool students succeed now, and for generations to come. 

Too often, the three “B’s” predict a preschooler’s risk of expulsion: “big, Black and boy.” Black children are expelled at twice the rate of white children, particularly if they are bigger or taller than their peers. Research reveals this is less about the physical characteristics of the child and more about what is going on in the teacher’s mind, than what the child is doing.?Although there is great need in California for preschool and childcare services, preschool is not compulsory.? 

Preschools in California currently can exclude students prior to even attempting to teach them based on subjective behavioral expectations. These unfounded behavioral expectations are often fraught with implicit bias and hidden from research as providers are not required to track or report reasons for exclusion, expulsion, or suspension.?It is tantamount to expulsion without any process or notice of rights, and contrary to long term public policy.? 

Young Black children, particularly Black boys, are too often victims of an education system that fails them and stifles their potential to succeed. When Black children are held to different standards for learning and behavior and even worse, higher standards are seen for them in preschool, it furthers the systematic racial divide. 

“It is important early education staff shift from destructive approaches to discipline and towards research-informed best practices,” commented Dr. Judy D. White, Riverside County Superintendent of Schools. “The Research is clear that when teachers are supported with resources and evidence-based training, preschool can help young children build crucial social-emotional and pre academic skills. A child’s ability to successfully navigate social and emotional learning at a young age is a major factor in educational success.? Exclusionary discipline such as suspension isolates the children most in need of social-emotional development, and results in poor educational outcomes. We want all preschoolers to experience an inclusive and welcoming learning environment.” 

While legislators have made efforts to address preschool accountability, such as?AB 752 by Assemblywoman Blanca Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) which proposes?a series of interventions and referrals before expelling a child,?there remains a hole the size of Mount Everest in California’s early learning accountability and teacher training system.?? ? 

California should establish developmentally appropriate policies and structures to provide support to preschool providers by clarifying definitions for suspension and expulsion in preschool and providing due process.? Due process should come before any sort of expulsion to help ensure?disciplinary?practices are not abused. It is long past time for California to take measurable action to eliminate exclusionary practices that contribute to the preschool to prison pipeline. 

Preschool providers should collect and track data on rates of expulsion and suspension in early learning and preschool settings. At a minimum, four dominant categories should disaggregate the data.?They are:?sex, race, ethnicity, and disability status.?Information could be housed locally and by the state. Preschool providers should also be required to provide due process before kicking a student out. 

“California’s early learning and care system continues to suffer from historic and structural racism and sexism,” according to Dr. Mary Ann Dewan,?Santa Clara County Superintendent of schools.?”Policies and procedures such as?incentivizing?providers to expel children who are deemed ‘problematic’, paying a higher reimbursement for part-day preschool than full-day preschool and directing CalWORKS recipients to lower-quality childcare programs serves to perpetuate the inequities caused by structural racism and sexism.? Now that we know better, it’s time to do better.” 

 “BMEE is here to shake up the system and not maintain the status quo,” said Khaim Morton, owner KRM Strategies and BMEE Member. KRM strategies specializes in the advancement and application of comprehensive legislation and government affairs strategies. “All Black children deserve an opportunity to succeed. Research shows that implicit bias demonizes Black children before they get to kindergarten. BMEE’s vision is to remove stigmas that Black preschoolers are subjected to and support policy solutions.” 

About the Authors 

BMEE is a group of?African American men with professional experience in education, policy, research and social work.

By Dr. Arabia Mollette

Recently, many of my friends and relatives have asked me questions and expressed their concerns about hosting Thanksgiving celebrations in their homes. Some of the questions included: “How should we handle Thanksgiving dinners as the numbers of coronavirus cases rise?”; “Is it possible to host a safe Thanksgiving dinner at home?”; “Is it safe to have them at all?”; “Are there ways to prevent the spread of the coronavirus while sharing meals?”; “How many people is it safe to invite to dinner during a global pandemic?” 

While it is important for families to create memories together, if you decide to host Thanksgiving dinner this year, it is important to consider and implement proper safety precautions, as uncertainties that exist around the pandemic remain. Please find tips below on how to remain safe in preparation for the Thanksgiving holiday.

The safest measurement is to grant yourself time to understand the risks, plan ahead and/or participate in a virtual Thanksgiving gathering. The good news is food has not been shown to be a risk factor in transmission. However, the greatest risk factor for COVID-19 stems from person-to-person transmission. Therefore, I strongly recommend you know the infection rates in your community and the communities your guests live in. This varies from state-to-state and even within counties. If the community spread is high or growing, you may want to consider doing a virtual dinner or postponing it. I urge you to talk with your elders and relatives who are in high-risk groups about not attending the in-person Thanksgiving dinner because of the possibility of becoming sick with the novel coronavirus.

Require guests, who would like to attend dinner, to schedule a COVID test with their PCP, at a local drug store or an Urgent Care at least two weeks in advance. This would not only allow everyone to know their status, but it would provide comfort in knowing no one is at risk of contracting the virus if the result is negative. Be kind and explain the significance of taking these safety precautions. If you receive a negative test result, be sure to implement two weeks of strict social distancing before attending the celebration. If your test result is positive, you should inform your friends and/or relatives, quarantine for 14 days, then get retested.

In the event a Thanksgiving gathering is scheduled, guests should still be required to wear a mask, practice physical distancing and regularly wash their hands. Advise your guests to keep their face masks on when food and drinks aren’t being consumed. Please avoid sharing utensils, food or drinks at all times. I suggest using disposable and environmentally safe service ware, utensils and tablecloths, to avoid the exchange of bodily fluids.

If you live in an area where the weather is warm and you have a backyard, take advantage of that space for physical distancing. If you live in a colder climate, consider how many people you can accommodate safely indoors. Keep it intimate, since being close to others can potentially put one at risk and touching common surfaces is the second-highest risk in contracting COVID-19.

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ABOUT DR. ARABIA MOLLETTE

Dr. Arabia Mollette is the embodiment of strength, perseverance and empowerment. She is living proof that you can overcome adversity, as she is a product of the foster care system, homelessness and poverty. In the span of six years, Dr. Mollette witnessed her mother attempt suicide, experienced domestic violence and suffered the traumatic loss of her four-month-old son at the hands of his father. Six years later, her youngest sister was murdered while riding in a friend’s car. These traumatic incidents, in addition to countless others, fueled Dr. Mollette’s desire to study medicine in order to make a difference in her community, a community plagued by crime and poverty. 
 
After receiving a full scholarship to study medicine at the Latin America School of Medicine in Havana, Cuba, Dr. Mollette relocated to Cuba, where she studied and lived for seven and a half years. After she matriculated from medical school, Dr. Mollette completed her residency as an Emergency Medical Resident Physician at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. She is now an Emergency Medicine Physician in New York.
 
Every other year, Dr. Mollette travels to Sierra Leone to volunteer and assist in medical efforts. In addition to her health care efforts, Dr. Mollette has the opportunity to give back to her community through her podcast, The Visit with Dr. Arabia Mollette. Past guests have included Vivica A. Fox, Vanessa Simmons, Rolonda Watts, Selena Hill and Teresa Weatherspoon and more.

Dr. Arabia has been featured on CNN, Dr. Oz, NY Daily News, Cheddar TV, PIX 11 and a host of other media outlets. 

By Dana Givens, Black Enterprise

Fast-food giant McDonald’s is moving toward making their senior leadership more diverse. This week, the corporation announced the appointment of Tiffanie Boyd to assume the role of senior vice president U.S chief people officer.

The former General Mills human resources manager brings a vast amount of experience working in a range of roles including human resources leadership, supply chain, and foodservice. The Minnesota resident worked for the company for 23 years before transiting to McDonald’s.

In a company memo written by EVP, Global Chief People Officer Heidi Capozzi, McDonald’s expressed how Boyd’s appointment was a part of its larger mission toward its commitment to its consumers.” As part of our 2021-2022 U.S. Own the Ambition plan, Crew Experience is our most important growth priority,” the company wrote. “In partnership with owner/operator leadership, we intend to make bold moves for our people as we roll out our Employee Value Proposition and People Purpose throughout the System.”

The news comes after the company recently announced the appointment of Reginald Miller to serve as the company’s global chief diversity equity and inclusion officer.

“I’m proud to join a company with such a powerful brand and broad presence across our country. I look forward to working with franchisees to bring the McDonald’s values to life through our people and their employee experience, as well as the communities in which we operate,” says Boyd in a statement sent to BLACK ENTERPRISE.

“My goal is to ensure that McDonald’s is a place where people love the work they do, have opportunities to grow, and can make a meaningful contribution to society. As I step into my role, my first priority will be to spend time with employees, managers, crew, owner/operators, and other partners who bring the iconic McDonald’s brand to life.”

By Lou Yeboah

“Listen carefully, and read with discernment,” says the Lord. For something important is about to be uttered.” [Revelation 13:9]. Remember, I told you that Satan is an imitator. Right now, he has the world right where he wants it; eating out of the palm of his hand. And by his words, he has stirred up a nation and convinced them that they could rule the world. He has convinced them that they are superior to all others, and like a fool, they have bowed before this hellish king, and given him what they have steadfastly refused to give Me. [Revelation 12:10]. So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?” Not knowing that the leader is Satanically empowered. Not knowing that Satan has raised him up so that he can receive worship. [Revelation 13:4-10]. Not knowing that because they have chosen to worship him, I will abandon them to their choice, with all the consequences that come with such a decision. If anyone has an ear, let him hear.  

Two beasts are described in the Book of Revelation chapter 13, one from the sea [vs. 1] and one from the land [vs. 11]. With the beast out of the sea, the one from the land, although he claims that he is the peace maker, he is not. He comes as a great source of darkness into the world. He comes not to save the world, but to damn the world. Listen and listen carefully! There is an urgency in the world that has never existed before. Your entire life is about to change. Events will unfold soon to destroy the Western world’s way of life as you know it. Soon, mankind will suffer through the most devastating, bloody war in human history—called, in biblical terminology, the “Great Tribulation.” A war such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. [Matthew 24:21-22]. Yes, a major war in the Middle East is coming soon, and it will be massive. The players are in place and this coming war will be the birth pangs of the Gog-Magog Wars as foretold by God to the prophet Ezekiel. “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass.” [Luke 21:36]. Because nothing in the past can even remotely compare to what is about to take place. Listen, and listen carefully!

The Book of Daniel was written for your time. Its prophecies speak with increased meaning to your generation. The Bible prophet, Daniel, outlined in vivid detail world events now unfolding before your eyes. They provide “inside information” on the enemy’s plans. They reveal the last-day delusions Satan uses to deceive the world’s population. They also carefully outline God’s strategy for the end time. The days ahead will be difficult. A crisis of unimagined fury will break upon the world. Read and understand the Book of Daniel, for it contains truth for your time. In it, the stories reveal how to be ready for earth’s final days. The prophecies reveal when these last-day events will occur. Understand the significance of today’s news and where it is all leading. Learn to discern. Yearn to discern. For the failure to discern the times and the threat is detrimental. [2Peter 3:3-4]. The exhortation, “Listen carefully and read with discernment!”

Dr. Leslie Ray Matthews was recently on with ABC News to talk about how vitamin D can be effective in fighting against COVID-19. Dr. Matthews is a retired trauma surgeon who has spent most of his career researching the complexities of vitamin D. Dr. Matthews is an inductee at the Royal House of Medicine and has spoken at the FDA and CDC previously on this same subject.

Dr. Matthews encourages the use of vitamin D especially among those who are melanin rich and have a harder time absorbing the sun’s rays. 

By Dana Givens

Debt collectors will have more access to you next year.

Consumer Reports reported that a new rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) will allow debt collectors to contact consumers by email, text message, and social media platforms. The ruling would permit collectors to place up to seven debt-collection phone calls per week with an unlimited number of attempts through messaging platforms as well as email.

“The rule clarifies how debt collectors can use email, text messages, social media, and other contemporary methods to communicate with consumers,” wrote Kathleen L. Kraninger, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director, in a post for the bureau. “And our rule will allow consumers, if they prefer, to limit the ability of debt collectors to communicate with them through these newer communication methods.”

This can pose a threat to marginalized communities that have more debt. Data shows that 45% of people who live in predominantly Black or Hispanic areas have debt currently in collections, compared to 27% of people living in predominantly White areas.  A 2017 survey by CFPB also showed that over 20% more borrowers of color were continuously contacted about their debt as opposed to 29% of White borrowers.

Critics also worry that the ruling doesn’t enforce collectors to verify the debt to the consumer, which can allow for more harassment for debt consumers may not be legally responsible for.

“Debt collectors are notorious for hounding consumers and filing lawsuits about debts that have already been paid off or were never owed in the first place,” said Suzanne Martindale, who works on financial issues  Consumer Reports.“The CFPB’s new rule does nothing about this egregious practice, and fails to ensure that debt collectors can prove that money is actually owed and they have the legal right to pursue the debt.”

A spokesperson for Facebook and Instagram said the company is currently “in the process of reviewing this new rule and will work with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over the coming months to understand its effect on people who use our services,” according to Consumer Reports. Twitter has yet to publicly comment on the new rule.

By Quinci LeGardye | California Black Media 

California’s unofficial 2020 proposition results have shown an electorate that is fairly moderate, supportive of business interests and concerned about issues affecting older citizens.

It also showed that there is limited support for progressive policies. Initiatives a majority of African Americans and young Californians supported such as affirmative action and rent control also fell short. 

Prop 16, the ballot initiative to reinstate affirmative action programs in California, failed with 56 % of voters voting no. The proposition would have allowed public universities and state and local governments to consider race, sex, ethnicity and national origin in their hiring, contracting or admission decisions. Although supporters of the proposition argued that it would increase racial equity in the state, it faced heavy opposition. With the no vote, affirmative action is still banned in California.

The most recent attempt at rent control also failed, with 60 % of voters rejecting Prop 21. The initiative would have allowed local governments to enact rent control on housing built over 15 years ago, while exempting landlords who own no more than two properties. Instead, California’s statewide ban on new forms of rent control will stay in effect, at a time when millions of Americans are struggling with rent or facing eviction due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

After months of high spending and heated debate, Proposition 22 passed with over eight million yes votes, as of Nov. 8. Gig economy companies including Uber, Lyft and DoorDash are now exempt from AB 5, the California law that classifies workers. The companies will be allowed to continue classifying their drivers as independent contractors.

The Yes on 22 campaign received over $202 million in contributions, making Prop 22 the most expensive ballot initiative campaign in California history. According to Ballotpedia, the top five donors for Yes on 22 were Uber, DoorDash, Lyft, InstaCart and Postmates, with Uber and Lyft spending over $50 million each.

Voters also struck down Prop 23, which would have required dialysis clinics to have at least one licensed physician on site during treatment. Opponents of the proposition had argued that the ballot initiative’s passage would force multiple clinics to reduce hours or shut down due to the increased hiring costs.

Voters said no to rolling back previous criminal justice reforms, rejecting Prop 20 by the widest margin, with 62 percent of voters voting no on upgrading several crimes to violent felonies and upgrading some theft crimes to be chargeable as either misdemeanors or felonies.

Voters also rejected replacing money bail with a risk assessment system, with 55 % voting no on Prop 25. Although it was billed as an attempt at serious bail reform, multiple social justice groups had concerns that the risk assessment system would lead to increased racial profiling against Black and Brown suspects awaiting trial.

Two propositions this year focused on voter rights. Prop 17 passed with 59 % of yes votes, giving parolees the right to vote upon release from incarceration. With Prop 17’s passage, tens of thousands of predominately Black and Brown parolees have regained their voting rights. However, Prop 18 fell short, with 55 % of voters saying no to allowing 17-year-olds to vote in primaries if they turn eighteen by the next general election.

In both of this year’s propositions related to property taxes, voters resisted tax increases. Prop 15, which proposed an increase on property taxes for commercial properties to fund education and local governments, failed by a margin of about 425,000 votes as of Nov. 8. Prop 19 passed, with 51 % of the vote approving tax breaks for property tax assessment transfers for homeowners over 55 years old, people with severe disabilities and victims of natural disasters.

Voters approved Prop 24, to strengthen the California Consumer Privacy Act and establish and limit the use of sensitive consumer data among businesses. Also, Prop 14 passed, approving the issue of $5.5 billion in state bonds to fund stem cell and other medical research.

By Ben Jealous

After four exhausting years of President Donald Trump and four excruciating days of vote counting, the election was called for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Saturday. Hallelujah! 

Those days of counting felt agonizingly slow to many of us, but the momentum was always on our side: Democratic voters—mostly Black voters—in and around Philadelphia, Detroit, Milwaukee and Atlanta delivered the battleground state votes needed to deny Trump a second term. In Nevada and Arizona, Latino and Native American voters provided crucial votes. 

News that Pennsylvania put Biden over the top sparked dancing in the streets and tears of joy in many households. So did the sight of Kamala Harris making her historic appearance as our next vice president—the first woman, first Black woman, first South Asian woman, to be elected to the White House.

In his speech Saturday night, Joe Biden made it clear that he understands how much he owes to Black folks. “The African American community stood up again for me,” he said. “They always have my back, and I’ll have yours.”

We will all need to help Biden make good on that commitment with policies that address our communities’ needs. There’s a lot to do. 

We need a more effective response to COVID-19 pandemic and its particularly hard impact on the health and economic well-being of people of color. 

We need a vision and a plan for an economy that does not leave Black communities behind, an economy where opportunity is widely available and prosperity is widely shared—not one that strips wealth out of middle-class and lower-income families and funnels it to the richest people in the world.

We need to eliminate voter suppression strategies—and resist ongoing efforts by Trump and his allies to delegitimize and overturn his decisive defeat.

We need to confront the systemic racism that leads to police killings of Black men, women, and children—killings for which justice far too often is delayed and denied.

We need to address the corruption of our federal court system by Trump and Senate Republicans and the hard-right judges they have spent four years packing into our federal courts, which we can no longer count on to uphold our constitutional and civil rights. 

All those jobs will be made so much harder if Republicans maintain control of the Senate. The unprincipled obstructionist Republican leader Mitch McConnell has turned that half of Congress into a graveyard for legislation the American people need to advance the vision of a more just society for which we just voted.

So, we have work to do, right now, in Georgia, where two U.S. Senate races are headed for runoffs in early January. Both races feature corrupt, Trump-enabling Republicans who represent the worst kind of politician. Both are being challenged by smart, progressive Democrats who will help Biden and Harris achieve good things for the American people. 

Those victories in Georgia are achievable, largely in part to the brilliant organizing work of my dear friend Stacey Abrams. She responded to her own unjust defeat in Georgia’s race for governor in 2018 by leading a coalition that registered hundreds of thousands of new voters and turned the state blue this year. 

She believes Democrats can absolutely win the Senate runoffs, and that the outcome of those races will help determine whether we have access to health care and access to justice in the U.S. The excellent Democratic candidates, Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, need and deserve all the support we can give them.

Defeating Trump and electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris was a huge victory. Let’s celebrate, get a good night’s sleep or a long nap, and get back to work.

One of gospel biggest icons passed on October 31. 71-year-old Rance Allen, leader of The Rance Allen Group died recently while recovering from a “medical condition” at Heartland ProMedica in Sylvania, Ohio.

Discovered by a Stax Records promotion man, Rance Allen and his brothers Thomas and Steve were signed after appearing in a Detroit talent show. He co-founded the Rance Allen Group with his brothers in Detroit in 1969. He was the lead vocalist and was known for his powerful voice.

An eight-time Grammy nominee, Allen had grown up in the shadow of Motown, recorded for Stax and been influenced by Chuck Berry, but his songs were always a deeply profound and fervent expression of his religious faith.

The Rance Allen Group combined rock and soul with gospel music to create a crossover sound. They had a top 30 R&B hit in 1978 with “I Belong to You.” And “Ain’t No Need of Crying” was one of their most successful and popular hits. In 1998, the Rance Allen Group were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. Allen was nominated for a Grammy in 2009 for best gospel performance for the song “I Understand,” which featured Mariah Carey and Bebe Winans. He sang at the White House in 2015 for President Barack Obama.

Allen born in Monroe, Michigan was a longtime Toledo, Ohio resident and most recently bishop for Church of God in Christ for the Michigan Northwestern Harvest Jurisdiction.

Rance Allen is survived by his wife of 49 years Ellen Allen. They had no children together.

Discovered by a Stax Records promotion man, Rance Allen and his brothers Thomas and Steve were signed after appearing in a Detroit talent show. He co-founded the Rance Allen Group with his brothers in Detroit in 1969. He was the lead vocalist and was known for his powerful voice.

An eight-time Grammy nominee, Allen had grown up in the shadow of Motown, recorded for Stax and been influenced by Chuck Berry, but his songs were always a deeply profound and fervent expression of his religious faith.

The Rance Allen Group combined rock and soul with gospel music to create a crossover sound. They had a top 30 R&B hit in 1978 with “I Belong to You.” And “Ain’t No Need of Crying” was one of their most successful and popular hits. In 1998, the Rance Allen Group were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. Allen was nominated for a Grammy in 2009 for best gospel performance for the song “I Understand,” which featured Mariah Carey and Bebe Winans. He sang at the White House in 2015 for President Barack Obama.

Allen born in Monroe, Michigan was a longtime Toledo, Ohio resident and most recently bishop for Church of God in Christ for the Michigan Northwestern Harvest Jurisdiction.

Rance Allen is survived by his wife of 49 years Ellen Allen. They had no children together.