Happily Divorced And After

BOTTOMLINE: Save The Dorjils! For Subsidized Housing! For the Legacy!

Publisher’s Commentary by Wallace J. Allen IV

Dorjil Apartments is in foreclosure… The San Bernardino west side apartment complex consisting of 34 units was built forty years ago to provide subsidized low-income housing. The foreclosure is based on administrative and financial defaults causing a sales auction to be scheduled for Monday March 21.  It is possible that a thirty-day delay of the sale date may occur. It is possible that the original developer, John Dukes will maintain control of the property.

The dilemma of ownership is a story that must include chapters on property management, property maintenance and customer service… The Dorjils were developed by Vivian Nash and John Duke creating great pride and national accolades for the project and for the Black couple. Dorjil is a great story that deserves to be told, I hope John is writing the book!

The dilemma of homelessness is immanent when one’s housing is in foreclosure.  Where will the people who now occupy the Dorjil apartments, live if the foreclosure sale takes place? Where will they live if present ownership prevails? Those questions both are rooted in the maintenance/condition of the property. The condition of the property is of immediate concern to the residents, and ultimately the responsibility of the owner regardless of who that may be.

Some residents have been withholding rents, they say, because of the property conditions… If new ownership occurs, will the condition of the property be an excuse/reason for tenant displacements during improvements?   If ownership remains the same, will residents pay rents before repairs are made? Will management handle repairs prior to collecting withheld rents? Will residents get evicted? Does the forty-year-old development continue to provide subsidized housing, or will it become the reason for housing trauma that may lead to homelessness?

The residents are organized to withhold rent because of not only maintenance concerns, but also recently about what they consider to be questionable if not illegal rent collection procedures. The management and many of the residents are at odds. I have not heard all the residents but of the dozen or so that I have heard, all of them are upset, saying they don’t trust management!

Distrust is not a good foundation for negotiation. There is a solution… I hope we find it!

Women’s History Month: California Org Honors Leaders, Discusses Priorities

By Charlene Muhammad | California Black Media

To mark Women’s History Month, The California Black Women’s Collective (CBWC) honored more than 100 Black women leaders from across the state from different professional backgrounds, including media executives, public health professionals, activists, politicians and more.

The organization also held a series of panel discussions leading up to the celebration and highlighted several policy priorities, including aging and elder care.

The Hon. Cheryl Brown, a retired California Assemblymember and a Commissioner on the California Commission on Aging said 23% of Black women live in poverty, which is the second highest percentage in the U.S. — only behind Native American women.

Brown pointed out that Gov. Gavin Newsom set aside $2 billion for the Master Plan on Aging, a 10-year project, but she questioned, how would the people the money is intended to help access the money. Brown said currently there are not effective systems in place to inform people about the help they need.

The funds, she said, will funnel down through the California Department of Aging down to county agencies.

“That’s why it’s critical to get involved on those levels,” Brown emphasized.

Ahead of Women’s History Month, a group of influential California Black women brought their perspectives together last month in a virtual “fireside chat” to take a broader look at aging and elder care in the Black community.

Whether they were expressing the joys of caring for a loved one or exposing the range of challenges Black women face as they age, the panelists shared useful insights that could shape public health policy or improve ways African American caregivers attend to the needs of aging family members.

“This is our third event as part of the California Black women Empowerment series,” said Yvonne Wheeler, a member of the strategy team of the CBWC. The event was organized in partnership with Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA).

“Our goal is to talk about the issues that are important to Black women in California and today the topic is ‘Black Women Aging With Dignity and Respect.’”

During their remarks, panelists outlined resources Black women need to make sure that their needs are met while elevating some concerning statistics.

“Black women in California have many barriers in their everyday life. As we get older, the issues don’t change. The issues just get more complicated,” said Regina Brown Wilson, moderator of the event and Executive Director of California Black Media.”

“Before COVID-19, we were already experiencing financial hardship, poor health outcomes, and when the pandemic hit, older Black women were among the most vulnerable because of their circumstances, Wilson stated. “Approximately 80% of Black women are breadwinners who earn 40% of the household income. Seventy-four percent of Black women breadwinners are single mothers.”

The panelists were Brown; Sylvia Drew Ivie, Special Advisor to the President, Charles R. Drew University; Delane Sims, Founder and CEO, Senior Moments; and Shavonda Webber-Christmas, Community Benefits Program Manager at LA Care Health Plans. The women helped shed light on issues that Black women experience as they age in their older years.

Webber-Christmas said it is critical to ensure that there are culturally competent providers helping Black women navigate resources available to them and to make sure that they are practicing the self-care they need to maintain long, healthy lives.

“If you’re missing food, your likelihood of being healthy is low. So, we do try to look at the whole person and not just medical needs when we talk about the services that we contract for, or services that we provide grants for. We want those to be holistic,” she said, highlighting some of the wraparound social services LA Care provides to the people it serves.

“I think that when we talk about older women, we’re not talking about someone who just became that person,” Webber-Christmas added.  We’re talking about someone, if you look over the life course of the individual, it’s incremental. What we are doing today determines what we experience in later life.”

Sims spoke about the experiences of Black women who live longer and the various challenges they face as caregivers.  Her own father lived to be 115 years old, she shared. Sims said taking care of him became a challenge as his other caregivers aged.

“It was daunting to say the least, to be sort of thrust into caregiving and not being prepared, but just feeling like it was something I absolutely needed to do to honor my mother and certainly my stepfather. But that is also one of the challenges,” said Sims.

She encouraged Black women caregivers to seek emotional support, avoid missing meals, talk to someone and even join a support group.

Brown said Black families must take a collective look at caring for their aging loved ones.

“We have to look out for each other,” she said. “It has to be an inter-generational thing.”

Kellie Todd Griffin, convenor of the CBWC said there is an emerging trend of communal living among Black single mothers.

“They are buying homes together. Sharing in the costs of daycare and helping each other out. We have to be creative,” she said.

Griffin said it is also important for Black women to organize.

“We have got to raise our voices and knock on doors. When we show up at the Capitol and in those district offices, that’s when they start listening to us,” she pointed out. “It is important to show up to those town hall meetings that legislators have in their communities.”

Empire Talks Back (ETB) Chats with Yung Muusik

EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)— The 3-13-22 ETB Broadcast features two segments: An interview with Yung Muusik, produced by WSS News columnist, Lue Dowdy. The second segment features a conversation with Don Smith, a 25-year IE Housing advocate with the Rent Relief program ending on March 31st, evictions and foreclosures are eminent.

Celebrate Soulfully: Black History Month Brought to Life Through Food, Art, and Music

The Disneyland Resort celebrated soulfully during Black History Month this February. Guests in the Downtown Disney District discovered beautiful chalk art installations by Marcella “Marci” Swett, Disney Live Entertainment senior production artisan. Her art pieces honored African American heritage and history through dynamic visual storytelling.

“To be able to leave a mark by educating individuals on matters that they had no idea about, and to hear that they will share that knowledge with others is a wonderful experience,” Marci shares.

Elsewhere around the resort, guests experienced Celebrate Gospel in Disneyland park, a lively celebration of the rich legacy of gospel music, in addition to new menu items and jazz music featured at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa. PULSE, the Business Employee Resource Group representing and advocating for the Black community, also brought more programming to cast members throughout the month and had a special meet-and-greet with Bruce W. Smith, Creator of “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder” on Disney+.

New $2,500 COVID-19 Relief Grant Available for County Microbusinesses

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors recently approved $2,500 to be disbursed to qualified businesses through the Microbusiness COVID-19 Relief Grant.

This grant is open to businesses and nonprofits with five or fewer full-time employees, gross revenues of less than $50,000 in the 2019 and 2020 tax years, and those who did not receive the California Relief Grant issued by Lendistry. Businesses must be located in San Bernardino County.

Applications will be open soon. For more information, please call 909-915-1706 or https://selectsbcounty.com/major-initiatives/microbusiness-covid-19-relief-grant.

CA Democrats Endorse Three Black Candidates for Statewide Offices

By Joe W. Bowers | California Black Media

This weekend, the California Democratic Party, for the first time in state history, endorsed three Black candidates for statewide office at the same convention.

Delegates attending the virtual convention threw their support behind Dr. Shirley Weber for Secretary of State; Tony Thurmond for State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI); and Malia Cohen for Controller.

“I’m asking for your ongoing support, running for my first term as Secretary of State. I’m going to fight whatever happens. The democracy that gave me life, gave me opportunity and gave me purpose,” said Weber, who Gov. Newsom appointed Secretary of State in December 2020 after he selected Alex Padilla to replace Kamala Harris in the US Senate when she became Vice President.

96.4% of the delegates attending the convention, themed “We Are California” and held March 4-6, voted to endorse Weber.

The convention attracted more than 3000 Democratic office holders and district delegates to engage each other and mobilize the party faithful as they prepare for the 2022 primary and midterm elections.

Democratic National Convention (DNC) top brass also attended the annual conference, including Vice President Kamala Harris; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-12); DNC Chair Jaime Harrison; and members of California’s delegations to the United States Congress, among others.

Rusty Hicks, California Democratic Party Chair, praised the endorsements and admitted the party needs to do more to empower voters — not just engage them.

“Our party over the last two years, actually stood up an organizing department specifically to engage communities across the state on a year-round basis, not just on electoral work, but on important issues and policy work,” Hicks told California Black Media, addressing concerns about the decreasing number of Black men voting for Democratic candidates in elections across the country.

Cohen received endorsement votes from 93.7% of the delegates. Cohen, who is currently President of the state Board of Equalization, was chosen over Los Angeles City Controller Ron Galperin.

“I’m a proud lifelong Democrat. I’m a proud graduate of Fisk University. We are the alma mater of the great John Lewis. You remember, John Lewis. He was the one that coined the phrase “making good trouble,” she said. “Well, Fisk is the place where I learned the art of making good trouble. A notion that has shaped my career and my public service.”

Thurmond, who was endorsed by 93.7% of the delegates, was elected SPI in 2018 in a close race over his opponent Marshall Tuck. That race was reportedly the most expensive campaign ever for a state education chief.

“In 2018 you endorsed me to serve in this role. I’m before you again asking for your endorsement as I seek re-election to continue the great work to support our six million students in this State,” he said.

Thurmond told Party leadership and delegates – some attending from a production studio in Los Angeles, others mostly participating from home – that he

Lost his only parent to cancer when he was six years old.

“I ended up being raised by a cousin who I met for the first time when I showed up on our doorstep,” he said. “We were raised on the free lunch program, on public assistance and government cheese.”

Thurmond said he found the strength to succeed by his belief in “the promise of education that my teacher shared with me –and saying that my life would be better than it had started.”

Other candidates the delegates endorsed for the June 2022 California primary include: Gavin Newsom for Governor; Eleni Kounalakis for Lt. Governor; Alex Padilla for US Senate; Rob Bonta for Attorney General; Fiona Ma for Treasurer; and Ricardo Lara for Insurance Commissioner.

Students from High Desert, Needles and Trona Join Student Advisory Panel

Approximately 200 students from the High Desert, Needles, Trona and other regions are representing their high schools in the 8th Annual San Bernardino County Student Advisory Panel, which offers youth a chance to share their thoughts on community issues.

Each year, students share their thoughts on our Countywide Vision’s Community Vital Signs Transformation Plan. Topics include the economy, education, safety, and health/wellness. After the four weekly sessions, students offer their feedback and recommendations to elected officials and community leaders.

Four students from each high school in the county are invited to participate in the panel. For more information about the Student Advisory Panel, please call 909-386-2413.

After Racist Photo Surfaces, Black Leaders Demand Investigations, Resignations

By Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media

California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) Chair Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) is calling on Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones to resign for “dereliction of duty” and for “breeding a culture of racism, hatred, and ignorance.”

Bradford was commenting on an investigation of Kate Adams, a former Sacramento County sheriff’s captain, who was placed on administrative leave for misconduct, which included the distribution of racially charged text messages, memes, and photographs.

Adams has since retired from the position.

“Former Sacramento County Sheriff’s Captain Kate Adams, acting as the Chief of Police of the Rancho Cordova Police Department under the supervision of Sheriff Jones. is the poster child for law enforcement bias,” Bradford stated.

Bradford, who is also the chair of the Senate Public Safety Committee, added, “for the first time in California, both the Senate and the Assembly Public Safety Committee chairpersons are African Americans. I am concerned, outraged, but not surprised by this behavior.”

“The pervasive, ongoing racism that is rooted in law enforcement and in America is an issue that all people of color should be concerned and outraged by,” he continued.  “This ongoing, blatant racist behavior under Sacramento Sheriff Scott Jones stops now.”

Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-Los Angeles), who is also a member of the CLBC, is the chair of the Assembly Public Safety Committee.

The Greater Sacramento Branch of the NAACP (GSNAACP) asked Bradford to expand the investigation now that Adams has resigned from the Sheriff’s office. RCPD is under contract with the county office and uses deputies to patrol the community.

“Unfortunately, we’ve seen that racist conduct is ignored until it reaches a level that the public becomes aware of it. Similar cases of racist texts between law enforcement officers in Los Angeles, Torrance and San Francisco should have taught us that transparency on this issue is a must,” wrote Betty Williams, Branch President of GSNAACP.

Adams would have been able to seek employment as a law enforcement officer elsewhere in California without a hitch if it were not for Senate Bill (SB) 2. Bradford authored the bill that became California law on Jan. 1, 2022.

SB 2 authorizes the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) to decertify officers if investigations find they have engaged in serious misconduct.The inquiry into Adam’s actions was called off after she retired but Bradford said she should still be held accountable.

“The investigation of Captain Adams must be completed and if the allegations are found to be confirmed, she should lose her POST certification so that she is unable to be hired by any other law enforcement agency to continue racist and hateful misconduct in another community,” Bradford stated. “In addition, the hundreds — or perhaps thousands — of cases she’s handled over the years, under a climate of bias, must all be reviewed in an independent investigation.”

In a statement, GSNAACP said SB 2 “could not have been achieved without the support of many legislators, community organizations, families, and entertainers” who persistently “advocated non-stop for accountability in our policing system.”

“We use this moment to recognize that social

media messaging is used as a pathway to perpetuate racism while also exposing those who use racism in their positions of power. Rancho Cordova’s Chief Adams had a responsibility to stand against racism and bias,” the statement continued. “Instead, what has been communicated to the GSNAACP is a person who finds the historic and traumatizing use of (high-powered water) hoses against Black people a mockery.”

With a Black population of over 6,800 out of a total of 74,000 residents, Rancho Cordova is 15 miles east of downtown Sacramento. The Adams case is not the first time the CLBC has weighed in on misconduct involving officers of the Rancho Cordova Police Department.

In April 2020, a Rancho Cordova officer was caught on video punching a defenseless 14-year-old boy. The deputy was in the area due to complaints from citizens about hand-to-hand sales of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs to minors.

“The deputy saw what he believed to be a hand-to-hand exchange between an adult and juvenile,” according to an April 2020 statement from the Rancho Cordova Police Department.

“After an administrative investigation (related to the incident), the deputy was terminated from employment,” the sheriff’s office said in a September 2020 written statement.

Bradford said peace officers in California are accountable to the people they serve.

“Our communities must have faith that all law enforcement officers in California are held to the highest standards,” Bradford stated.

Nothing Bundt Cakes Opens Location on Bear Valley Road in Victorville

VICTORVILLE, CA—- The High Desert has a Nothing Bundt Cakes location on Bear Valley Road in Victorville, and Policy Advisor Christopher Porter was there for the ribbon cutting and grand opening celebration. The bakery specializes in a wide variety of bundt cakes, including their signature bitesized Bundtinis. On behalf of the First District, we wish you all the best in your new business!

“You Ought to Know That Jesus Prophecy in the Olivet Discourse is Being Fulfilled [Russian and Ukraine]!”

By Lou Yeboah

You see, Jesus prophesied to the disciples that there will be wars and rumors of wars. He said, “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this MUST take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places.” [Matthew 24:6-7].

Hear me and hear me good. God has a plan for the End Times. The war between Russia and the Ukraine, is part of the plan. As told in the Bible, the world is moving toward the Tribulation and the Battle of Armageddon. God is preparing the nations. This is the most likely reason for the war between Russia and Ukraine, and God is allowing it. Ultimately, it is part of His plan. God has allowed Russia to invade Ukraine. He knew the events of March 3rd, 2022, before they occurred. He knew the Russian army would attack Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant in Ukraine in the city of Zaporizhian. He knew the fires would erupt during the battle over the nuclear reactor as the Russian invasion continued into its second week. He knew that on the morning of March 4th, the world would learn the reactor was safe, the fires would be extinguished, but the invasion would continue. Because as King David declared in [Psalm 139] God knows everything. It is obvious that God knew about the war before it started, and He continues to know all that will happen. So, why did God allow this war to begin and continue? The question to explore is, “What does the Bible reveal about Russia and Ukraine in the end times?”

The first prophecy that helps to answer the question is [Daniel 11:40-45]. The prophecy describes a series of battles that will occur BEFORE and DURING the Battle of Armageddon. The prophecy refers to the major countries that will be engaged in the Battle of Armageddon. It states that the king of the north and the king of the south will attack Israel. So, who is the king of the north? The prophecy in [Ezekiel 38-39] reveals that most likely it is Russia. These two chapters provide more detailed information about the role of Russia’s army in the battle of Armageddon at the end of the tribulation. Read it. Pick up your Bible and read it. So that you will not be caught off guard as to the things that is YET to come.

Here are His words, “This is the plan devised against the whole earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out against all the nations. For the LORD of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?” [Isaiah 14:26-27]

The message is that God rules over human history. No one can stop His plans. [Isaiah 40:1-23] says, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. It is He who reduces rulers to nothing, who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. [Isaiah 40:21-23].

The best example of why God can allow such overwhelming evil, suffering and any circumstance to exist is the crucifixion of Jesus, Himself. The GREATEST wrong, evil and sin EVER committed by any human or humans was when Jesus was crucified. The creation tortured its Creator and then nailed Him to a tree to suffer the most agonizing of deaths. This is the reason God can allow such awful suffering and circumstances to exist in the world: if God can take the GREATEST evil/sin [the Crucifixion] and turn it into the entire creation’s greatest blessings, our salvation, how much ‘easier’ will it be for God, through Jesus, to eventually bring about blessings and a glorious ending from ALL the ‘lesser’ evils, sins and sufferings that exist today, as well as in times past.

No one can frustrate God’s plans. Russia may plan, march, invade, murder, and destroy, but that nation cannot do anything that God does not permit and cause to happen. No President, head of state or ruler of any country can carry out any decision or policy they have made UNLESS God give them ‘permission’ to do so: As [Proverbs 16: 1] state, “Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word.” An illustration of this is in [Job 1:6,12; 2:6] where Satan, himself, is shown to be limited ONLY to what God gives him ‘permission’ to carry out. [Job 1:6, 12; 2:6].

My faith is in God not man. What about you?