Happily Divorced And After

CaSonya Thomas, director of the Department of Behavioral Health

A director with 25 years of experience in meeting the social service and mental health needs of San Bernardino County residents was appointed on Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors to lead County Human Services.

CaSonya Thomas, director of the Department of Behavioral Health, will succeed Linda Haugan, who is retiring as Assistant Executive Officer of Human Services on Oct. 15 after more than 35 years of service to the County.

Haugan has spent the past 11 years as head of Human Services, a County agency that includes eight departments, more than 6,000 employees, and a $1.9 billion annual budget. Both Haugan and Thomas began their careers in what is now known as the Transitional Assistance Department as eligibility workers, an entry-level position in County Government. Thomas began her career in 1991.

Their careers illustrate the County’s successful efforts – mandated by the Board of Supervisors – to identify and develop talent from within the County organization, and ensure the County maintains a bench of qualified managers and executives to promote when vacancies occur. This practice will allow a nearly three-month transition for Thomas to work closely with Haugan before assuming her new role.

“It is an honor to receive this appointment, which comes with a tremendous responsibility to the people of San Bernardino County,” Thomas said. “Each day, Human Services changes lives through a number of programs and services, and we will remain committed to our Countywide Vision to build healthier communities by strengthening individuals and families, enhancing quality of life and valuing people.”

Thomas has held a number of positions within Human Services over the course of her 25-year County career, including Director of Behavioral Health and executive and management positions within Human Services. Under Thomas’ leadership, Behavioral Health played a key role in the County’s efforts to assist the survivors of the Dec. 2, 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino and the families of those who died.

“CaSonya Thomas is an outstanding employee and an asset to the county. As the newly appointed Assistant Executive Officer for Human Services, Ms. Thomas will bring professionalism and expertise that will continue to strengthen the County of San Bernardino,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman and Third District Supervisor James Ramos.

“CaSonya has proven herself as a successful and well-qualified leader for this position. Her experience, hard work and professionalism will serve our residents and the County well,” said Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman and First District Supervisor Robert Lovingood.

“It was a privilege to appoint Ms. Thomas as the Director of the Department of Behavioral Health in 2012, and I am thrilled to now support her appointment as the Assistant Executive Officer for Human Services,” said Fifth District Supervisor Josie Gonzales. “I am so pleased to see her succeed and I have no doubt she’ll continue to do a remarkable job.”

“CaSonya has consistently demonstrated her commitment to the well-being of all county residents,” said Second District Supervisor Janice Rutherford. “Her intelligence, compassion and creativity are perfectly suited to the challenges we face.”

Haugan assumed the reins of Human Services in July 2005 after an already-notable career that included the implementation of the landmark C-IV Statewide Automated Welfare System. Her first order of business as Humans Services chief was to successfully and dramatically reduce the County’s food stamp error rate.

Throughout her tenure, Haugan has fostered collaboration between Human Services departments to improve services to the public, a practice that has made the County a consistent leader in winning national and state awards for innovative and effective programs.

“I have had the good fortune of working with many talented people who carry out their public service mission with passion and intelligence. That’s why I feel I am leaving Human Services in a very good state and in very good hands,” Haugan said.

Thomas has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a post-graduate degree in public administration, both from California State University, San Bernardino. She is also certified in healthcare compliance by the national Health Care Compliance Association.

Thomas serves as president-elect to the County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California (CBHDA), whose goals include advocating and developing public policy agendas that support access to necessary quality services that promote behavioral health and wellness, and resiliency and recovery in communities. She also is co-chair of the CBHDA Cultural Competence, Equity and Social Justice Committee.

Human Services departments, divisions and offices include Aging and Adult Services, Animal Care and Control, Behavioral Health, Child Support Services, Children and Family Services, Children’s Network, Environmental Health Services, Homeless Services, Preschool Services, Public Health, Transitional Assistance and Veterans Affairs.

RIVERSIDE, CA- On Saturday night, July 30, 2016, twenty-eight year old professional boxer Mikey Garcia returned to the ring at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, after a two and a half year layoff due to a contract dispute with his former promotional company, Top Rank. On the Showtime televised broadcast, Garcia knocked down former WBC World Featherweight Champion Elio Rojas four times, before referee Eddie Claudio called an end to the fight at 2:02 of Round 5. Following Saturday’s TKO win, Garcia’s record improved to 35-0, with 29 KOs, while Rojas’ record dropped to 24-3, with 14 KOs. Garcia-Rojas was scheduled for ten rounds in the junior welterweight division as the co-main event on the fight card promoted by DiBella Entertainment, in association with Cyclone Promotions, and presented by Premier Boxing Champions. In the main event, Carl Frampton won the WBA Super World Featherweight Title by defeating Leon Santa Cruz by majority decision.

Garcia, a former two-time WBO world champion in the featherweight and super featherweight divisions, last fought on January 25, 2014, when he successfully defended his WBO World Super Featherweight Title in a unanimous decision win against Juan Carlos Burgos on HBO. In October 2014, he vacated the WBO World Super Featherweight Title because he had plans to move up in weight. Mikey grew up in Oxnard, California, trains in Riverside at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy, and resides in Moreno Valley.

He shared his thoughts about his winning performance against his opponent, Elio Rojas. “It took me a round or two to get my rhythm going. I had to find that right distance and range to connect my punches. I didn’t feel any ring rust. My defense and footwork were fine, my punches felt sharp and fast, and I felt good with my jab. My opponent used the ring well and demonstrated solid footwork. The plan was always to keep my distance and measure him. It was difficult to land that one big shot, because he kept moving and using his legs. He was smart and he wanted to win. Rojas had good reflexes, and he was able to see me coming in. He kept moving out of the way before I could land a big punch. I worked hard to close the distance, and when it happened, I let my hands go. Once I started landing hard shots, I knew that I hurt him, and eventually he went down.

After the first two knockdowns, Rojas didn’t look like he wanted to be in the ring anymore. The last time that I dropped him, the referee asked him if he wanted to continue. He kept looking down and finally said no. I made a statement by stopping Rojas in my return fight. Everybody at the Barclays Center was cheering, and it was great to get a victory in that manner. I easily made 138 lbs for this fight, and the contracted weight had been set previously at 140 lbs. I felt real comfortable on fight night, so making 135 lbs for my next fight won’t be any problem.”

Mikey discussed his career going forward. “During the past two years, I never went away from boxing. I’ve stayed busy helping other fighters get ready for their fights, and continued making improvements in the gym. I had good sparring prior to this fight, and I had adequate time to prepare. It’s very important that I get right back in the ring again soon. I didn’t have any cuts or abrasions, and my hands feel good. I’m ready for a world title fight right away at 135 lbs. I would love to fight for the WBO World Super Featherweight Title, which is currently held by Terry Flanagan of the UK. If the world title opportunity isn’t available, then I want to be back in the ring as soon as possible so that I can stay active. My next objective is to challenge for a title at 135 lbs, then perhaps unify titles in that division if the opportunity presents itself. After that, a move to 140 lbs would be likely, and I’ll seek world title opportunities there. I’ll target big names and the big fights that fans want to see. There are plenty of big challenges ahead of me. Because of the time away, it’s important to me that I’m moved on the fast track, so that I can face champion after champion. Now that the Rojas fight is over, I plan to resume conversations with boxing promoters. I’m still a free agent and am willing to negotiate a deal if it is in my best interest to do so.

I want to thank Stephen Espinoza, Al Haymon, and Lou DiBella for giving me the opportunity to fight on Saturday night. I also want to thank my sponsors: B&B Plastics Inc., Asanti Wheels, and Everlast. It feels great to be back, but there’s so much more I want to accomplish. This is just the beginning, and I will do my best to give everyone memorable fights. The time off helped me regain that fire, and it motivated me to come back stronger. I’m thankful for all the fan support I’ve received. My performance on Saturday night hopefully reminded everyone what I’m capable of doing inside the ring, and it’s a great way to begin this next stage of my career.

Mikey Garcia Fight Night Recap Video:

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- A recent series of workshops at San Bernardino Valley College educated young women about the importance of aspiring to leadership roles to bring about change in their local communities.

Sponsored by the BLU Educational Foundation, the Soul Sisters Leadership Academy was launched on July 18 and attended by several dozen local high school and college students, ages 14 to 21. Workshops focused on African American women’s history, self-identity, racism, sexism, and the importance of women taking leadership positions on school and college campuses.

“I am glad that we can discuss the realities of discrimination in a safe and open environment,” says Ana Stewart, an SBVC economics major. “I don’t think there is enough discussion about the challenges of being minority and female in the Inland Empire.”

Debra Robertson, the mayor of Rialto, shared an inspiring account of her own path to becoming the first black mayor of her city, referencing her family’s long history of community involvement.

For more information on the BLU Educational Foundation, visit www.bluedfoundation.org.

By Naomi K. Bonman

In today’s society, people, especially the media and the government, put labels on people. On job applications they want you to “label” yourself by putting what ethnicity you are, when it shouldn’t matter what color you are but what should matter is how well you do your job. Because we have become so accustomed to labels, we label ourselves. People will say, “Oh, I’m a Black such and such because society say’s so.” 

The BRANDED COLLECTION by Sophisticated Relations was created to erase the stigma behind labels. We want people to know that they are their own BRAND by simply being themselves. The way you carry yourself, your personality, that is your overall BRAND. If you’ve been through hell and back, but now you have made a name for yourself and you are an inspiration for your community, then your BRAND can be that you are a ‘Strong, determined, and successful Black/Latino Woman/Man.’

So without further due, I introduce you to the first batch of the BRANDED.YOU collection. View more photos of the collection below or buy it at www.sophisticatedrelations.com/shop.

Kei Lane Royalty

By Lue Dowdy

That Las Vegas talent is WHAT IT DO this Week. Check out female emcee Kei Lane Royalty.

Kei Lani Royalty (Pronounced Key Loni) was born to parents Dorine and Junie Maddox in Chicago, Illinois as the 8th child out of 10. All of her siblings and parents moved to Palmdale, CA when she was 4, where she was then raised. At the age of 9 she started writing her own music. She wrote her first song titled, “Got an attitude.” She was on and off with music throughout her childhood up until the age of 20. When she met “Fully Loaded” she immediately was determined to never stop again. She is also known by the name Princess K, but has developed into Kei Lani Royalty. 

She has worked with many artists such as Angel Combs (The Hit Mechanix) and producers which include Tyron Allen and Flawless Track whom has produced for artists such as Wale. She recently was involved in a video shoot in Las Vegas by Tay Price called “REP YOUR CITY” Filmed of Honey cocaine’s Vlog/interview and multiple video’s from Dizzy Wright of Funk Volume.

Kei Lane is currently residing in Las Vegas where she is continuing her love for music. She recently released her album “It’s Royalty” and mixtape “The Bitch in Me” on Datpiff. Her second album “The Maturity” will be released in 2016 from her record label It’s Royalty E.N.T. 

You can download ringtones and the album NOW. “It’s Royalty” on www.reverbnation.com/keilani, watch video’s, interviews, and 16 bars from Kei-Lani’s on YouTube under princessk320 or Kei Lani Royalty, Facebook: Kei Lani Royalty, Twitter @keilani1, and Instagram @keilaniroyal1.

Until next week L’z high in the air!

By Naomi K. Bonman

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- They say it takes a village to raise up a child, and that is exactly the motto that United Nations of Consciousness (UNC) has been doing with our youth in San Bernardino.

The organization recently acquired a space where they are able to meet and hold activities for the youth at Anne Shirrells Park. However, things are never quite official until there’s a ribbon cutting.

UNC held its official grand opening and ribbon cutting on Saturday, July 30 at Anne Shirrells Park. Youth from all across the community came out to receive their backpacks filled with goodies, lunch provided by McDonalds, and a day filled with activities stations which included art, reading, building blocks, coloring, movies, and more.

To show their support, government and elected officials were in attendance, from Assemblymember Cheryl Brown, Rick Van Johnson, Carolyn Tillman, and the Black Chamber of Commerce Inland Empire.

If you would love to get involved with UNC and their community endeavors, please visit www.uncyouth.org or www.unclife.org.

Activists Debate Boycotting Clinton, Police Violence and the Possibility of a Trump Presidency

By Manny Otiko/ California Black Media

Democrats attending their party’s  convention last week in Philadelphia were moved to tears, rounds of applause and a standing ovation when nine mothers of Black men slain by police brutality and racially motivated attacks took the stage. 

“The majority of police officers are good people doing a good job,” said Lucia McBath, the mother of 17-year-old Jordan Davis, who was killed by Michael Dunn, a 45-year-old White male in Jacksonville, Fla.,  after a tense argument at a gas station.

“We’re going to keep using our voices and our votes to support leaders like Hillary Clinton, who will help us protect one another so that this club of heartbroken mothers stops growing,” said  Mcbath.   The mothers of Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Michael Brown and other men and women who were killed by police or died from gun violence joined McBath  on stage.

Many who attended the convention or watched that heartfelt moment around the country at home viewed the inclusion of “the mothers of the movement” as a signal that the Democratic party is taking the concerns of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement seriously.

But for some that emotional moment on television was just political theater – too simple a gesture with little or no real or lasting impact.  

Hank Newsome, a New York-based attorney and self-described “Black Lives Matter Activist,” is threatening to boycott the presidential elections, unless the Democratic Party takes more and immediate action on police violence.

He and other activists recently  launched the “I Ain’t Voting” campaign to express their anger at the Democratic Party, threatening to persuade Blacks to not vote in 2016.

Black Americans, he says, have a rare chance right now  to collectively demand action from the  Democratic Party –  or at least insist that some of their priorities be included in the party’s 2016 platform  or future policy plans.

“Hey, if you don’t give us criminal justice reform, we’ll give the country to Donald Trump. That’ll send the Democrats into a frenzy. Black lives will matter then, I guarantee you,” said Newsome in an interview with the BBC.

Newsome and a group of other African-American activists protested at both the Democratic National Convention this week and the Republican National Convention before that in Cleveland.

Newsome is not the first to call for African Americans to withhold their votes. Political pundit Tavis Smiley has suggested numerous times that Black Americans should sit out an election to get the Democrats’ attention.

Other activists view the idea of Blacks not voting – or boycotting the 2016 elections in particular – differently.

Dr. Melina Abdullah, for example, who is one of the founders of Black Lives Matter, admits she supports neither Clinton nor Trump. She describes the standard bearers of the two major parties as “corporate candidates” whose positions on issues can be influenced by powerful meg- donors.

She says the BLM movement does not plan to endorse either candidate. If Clinton is the eventual winner of the presidential election, though, she says BLM will continue to demand she pushes for  police reforms.

Unlike Newsome, Abdullah is urging African Americans to get out and vote in November.

“A lot of Black folk say people died for this,” said Abdullah, who is also  professor of Pan-African studies at California State University Los Angeles. “It (voting) is a way of honoring my ancestors.”

Although Abdullah says she respects the right of people who chose to sit out, she plans to cast her vote in November and says she also votes in every election.

For Earl Ofari Hutchinson, a Los Angeles-based political analyst and writer, Newsome’s “I Ain’t Voting “campaign is “unrealistic.”

“It’s the height of political naivety,” said Hutchinson. “The stakes are far too high for that kind of pox-on-both-of-your-houses attitude.”

Black Americans vote overwhelmingly for Democratic candidates. If many of them don’t turn out on Election Day – especially in states that have a tendency to vote either Republican or Democrat  like Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio and North Carolina – that could greatly affect Clinton’s chance of winning.

Hutchinson said that instead of sitting out the election, Black voters should get engaged and lobby politicians to take action.

“The better strategy is to organize, educate, and mobilize among young persons about the importance of political engagement to pressure the Dems, local elected officials, and others for police and criminal justice reform,” Hutchinson said. “That can’t happen if you disengage from the process.”

Whether they support the possibility of an African-American boycott of the 2016 elections or not, most Black political activists are extremely critical of Trump and at least ambivalent about a Clinton presidency.

Abdullah calls the billionaire businessman “oppressive on every level.”

“He’s a raving lunatic, fascist and a blatant racist,” she describe Trump.

But she is no fan of Clinton’s either. She described the first female nominee of a major political party in the United States a “war hawk” and pointed out that  Clinton supported domestic policies that expanded the criminalization of Black men and spurred the growth of  the prison industrial complex.

Hutchison says there are more than enough valid criticisms of both candidates to go around, but sitting out the 2016 election is not a beneficial move.

He warned BLM activists about the dangers of boycotting the 2016 election and handing victory to Trump.

“A Trump win will mean stepped up repression of BLM by police forces emboldened by a Trump win, fewer protests, more arrests and convictions,” Hutchinson said. “However, remember BLM is hardly the only or first to organize, mobilize, and make demands for police reform and accountability. That fight has been waged by civil rights groups from the NAACP to my group and civil rights activists for years and will continue.”

Lou Coleman

By Lou Coleman

And think that you are lying to everybody else too. You ain’t fooling nobody! Why complicate things? Just go ahead and admit it. I understand. Life gets complex, and sometimes we just feel the need to bend the truth to make it through the week. We need our lies to keep the pain tucked away where it can’t get to us. That deceitful heart of ours has a way making it easy for us to be okay with these lies that is, until they’re drawn out by God’s scalpel [Psalm 139:23]. What I want you know is that lies don’t just cover up the pain of life, they actually make it harder for you to grow in your faith and in your connection with others. The problem is that we have gotten so numb to them that we don’t necessarily even see the damage they do. It is important that we face our moments of truth understanding the serious implications of actions and decisions. Stop lying and start telling the truth! Truth telling is essential to the church.

Y’all get mad with me if you want to, but I ain’t sugar coating nothing! I’m going to call sin just what it is, Sin! I hear folks say, “It won’t hurt to tell a little white lie.” Yes it will and yes, it does! I don’t care how big a lie is or what color a lie is. A lie is a lie and if you lie at all it’s a sin and sin is sin.  We’ve got to stop white washing our sin. We’ve got to stop trying to cover up. We’ve come to the point where we’re calling right wrong and wrong right. Shame on us! The world manipulates – but the church is based on Truth. The world covers for itself – but the church is based on Truth. The world pulls strings – but the church is based on Truth. The world exaggerates – but the church is based on Truth. When you start introducing anything but the Truth, the Pure Unadulterated Truth into the way you handle your interactions in life, then it’s like taking a big hatchet and whacking at your own foot. Which goes to show that you ain’t hurting nobody but yourself… Stop it!

Lying is a killer! It robs you of all godly virtues. It comes as harmless yet its effects can be most devastating.  If you want to be established, lay your foundation on Truth. Go and apologize to those you have lied to or against. You cannot afford to miss Heaven! Lying is more perilous than it seems. It’s more Satan-like than Christ-like. Jesus referred to Satan as “a liar and the father of lies” [John 8:44]. By contrast, Jesus declared himself to be the Truth [John 14:6]. The prophet Jeremiah said, “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick” [Jeremiah 17:9]. What’s so indicative of our human state is the universal tendency to minimize the treachery of lying. We want certain forms of lying to be okay. Well it’s not okay! Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” [John 8:32].  

You got to learn that when you’ve done wrong, you got to live with yourself. And when you have done wrong, your memory is working against you.  David said in [Psalms 51] every time he turn around, memory, keep bringing that situation back to him. You can’t lie and get away with it. You tell one lie; you got to tell another one.  Listen, we’ve all sinned and come short of the Glory of God. My memory recalls and keeps me reminded that I haven’t always been what I am now. Memory reminds me of my mistakes that I’ve made. Reminds me of problems and flaws in my own character. I’m not talking about someone else’s memory; I’m talking about my memories that are ever before me. But I’m glad to report that when sin is plaguing you and when it’s ever before you, there’s hope. You don’t have to be overcome by your sins. There’s a God who is able to bring you out. There’s deliverance. There’s escape from sin. David shows us that way. David made it to the praying ground. David found a prayer closet and talked to God about His sins. That’s all you got to do… You need to pray about your weaknesses. You need to talk to God about your shortcomings. Talk to Him about your faults and your defects. David opened with a plea of mercy. David said, “Have mercy on me oh God according to thy loving kindness, according to thy tender mercies. Blot out my transgressions, wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin… Against thee, thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight… “Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean: wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.” Somebody ought to help me tell Him thank you. Thank you Lord for a new walk and new talk. NO MORE LIES!

By James Carter, Special to CBM Media Outlets

After making millions brazenly flaunting their gang affiliations and celebrating gun violence, The Game and Snoop Dogg want to be Black peacemakers with the blessings of the police chief and mayor.

When I turned on the TV July 8 reporters, public officials, and pundits were still attempting to make sense of the chaotic chain of events that began with the videotaped police killings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge and Philando Castile in Minnesota, and ended in Dallas with Micah Johnson shooting two participants of a peaceful protest en route to killing five police officers and injuring nine others in a retaliatory attack on law enforcement. 

As I flipped back and forth between local and national news coverage of the shootings I caught live pictures of rappers Snoop Dogg and The Game marching up to Los Angeles police headquarters during a police academy graduation ceremony. The somewhat impromptu event, organized by The Game via Instagram, drew a group of approximately 50 men with the stated objective to “make the Californian government and it’s law branches aware that from today forward, we will be unified as minorities and we will no longer allow them to hunt us or be hunted by us! Let’s erase the fear of one another on both sides and start something new here in the city of Los Angeles, a city we all love and share! There are many things that have to be done to rectify this situation that has plagued us for hundreds of years and unification is the first step!”

By the time the group reached police headquarters, photographers, news cameras and reporters were swarming in to speak to the two primary figures, The Game and Snoop, to get their thoughts on the recent events and better understand their presence at the ceremony.

The combination of media attention and celebrity ultimately earned the rappers a private meeting with LAPD Police Chief Charlie Beck and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who issued the following Tweet — “Right here, right now: We are having the dialogue for peace in our city and our country. @thegame @SnoopDogg.”

Following the meeting The Game, the police chief, the mayor, and America’s favorite Crip, Snoop Dogg, stood side-by-side at a press conference speaking about peace, unity, understanding, and healing.

“We just had an extraordinarily powerful meeting….. We had a discussion inside about hearing each other and feeling each other and understanding this moment. And I want to thank Game for his courage, coming down here today and marching alongside fellow Angelenos to be here in support of peace, to be here in support of love, and to find some common ground of work together,” stated Los Angeles Mayor, Eric Garrett.

“We are too violent a society. Violence begets violence. It is time to put down our arms and start the dialogue. We have to go forward from today as human beings, as Americans, as partners. Put aside the things that divide us and come together on the things that bind us.” — Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck

“Our whole mission today was to move in peace and show that LA can be unified. And not to bash the police but to come up here and get some dialogue because we’re all angels.” — Snoop Dogg

“When I woke up this morning I was uneasy, I was saddened, I was angered. So I called on a dear friend of mine, someone that I look up to, Snoop Dogg. And we had a conversation about how we could better our communities from Long Beach to Compton and hoping it would spiral out to other neighboring, poverty-stricken neighborhoods. … We need to take responsibility as a human race and take the role as peace givers and people that distribute love and change throughout this city.” — The Game

Pictures from the meeting and press conference flooded social media, drawing praise from many quarters as a sign of hope and unity. The optics couldn’t have been better — two Black hardcore rappers with “street cred” alongside the two most powerful White public officials in the city, days after multiple high-profile killings in which race was a key factor.

While those very same optics struck me as ironic, it was the combination of the messages and the messengers that I found particularly disturbing.

Now I’ll go out on a limb and presume neither Garcetti nor Beck have ever listened to a Game or Snoop album. And it is highly probable that neither had even heard of the former before the closed-door meeting took place. If they had, I doubt the chief of police in the second largest city in the country would be clamoring to stand side-by-side in front of the world with a rapper, in full Crip regalia, whose first single, Deep Cover, was specifically about murdering police officers, or another gang-affiliated rapper who specifically compared the LAPD to Nazis on his latest album — all of this one day after nine police officers were shot in Dallas.

So to the chief and the mayor and the hipster journalists who failed to ask key questions, and other Hip Hop-deficient bystanders who want to lift The Game and Snoop up in an attempt to legitimize them and their efforts at this most serious of times, here’s some information on your new partners in peace.

A Deadly Game

Much like Chicago, the violence inflicted by Black males on other Black males in Los Angeles has been a persistent problem. A majority of this violence has been and continues to be gang-related.

According to the LAPD Gang and Operations Support Division, between 2001 and 2008, there were 2,149 gang-related homicides, 24,260 gang-related felony assaults, and more than 4,300 gang-related attempted homicides in the City of Los Angeles. This does not include Game’s hometown of Compton, which falls outside of Los Angeles city limits.

And while city officials note that crime has been on the decline over the past decade in much of Los Angeles, those are just numbers to the inhabitants of many areas of South Central Los Angeles, home to “Death Alley”and epicenter of the 100Days100Nights hashtag where Rollin 100s Crip gang members vowed through social media to kill 100 rivals in 100 days and nights.

Despite being impacted firsthand by gang violence, despite previously residing in an area where gang violence is a daily danger, despite living in an environment where gun violence is particularly rampant, and despite previously residing in an area where Black males just like him are treating each other’s lives with callous disregard, The Game chooses to throw blood red lyrical fuel on the  the flames of ignorance and violence as he celebrates and uplifts the gangs that have heaped more terror and violence on poor Black communities around the country than every police force combined.

Song after song The Game fetishizes gun violence like no other rapper sharing his stature in the genre.

The Game can barely go a few dozen bars before bragging about shooting yet another Black male down in the street.

Out of 178 songs on his 11 studio albums, 115 feature references to either an act of gun violence or gang affiliation — in many cases both.  Those that don’t include these elements are predominantly either intros, outros, interludes or songs in which sex and denigration of women are the focus.

To say that he is a one-dimensional rapper is being generous. However, if you consider rhyming about shooting niggas, fucking bitches, your cars, the rims on your car, smoking weed, loving Tupac, shooting niggas, being gang affiliated, and counting your money before going out to shoot some more niggas as representative of depth, then Taylor is the Mariana Trench of rap.

But if you recognize his music for what it is, profiteering from the exploitation of real-life misery of the very people he now claims to want to love and wants to save, the spectacle of The Game as peacemaker is even more abhorrent.

WHO Am I (What’s My Name?)

At this point Snoop Dogg is essentially a parody of a caricature who will push, peddle and promote any product or cause placed in his path, be it wrestling matches, malt liquor, used car dealerships, fruit juice, perfumes, porn movies, or peace rallies. His track record is fairly well known to even non-rap fans. He is to gangsta rap what Hulk Hogan is to wrestling, the face of the genre. In fact, his latest song is entitled SuperCrip. But at the march, meeting, and subsequent events, Snoop has been a secondary figure whose name value and star power are more prominent than his ideological contributions.

This latest effort is a full-out Game production.

Jayceon Taylor, or The Game, as he is known to his nearly 7 million Instagram followers and the various millions who have bought his albums since his debut in the early 2000s, is a gangsta rapper of the highest order.

Here’s the abbreviated Game bio as spoken by Gangsta Rap godfather Dr. Dre during his narration on The Game’s eighth album, R.E.D.:  “His moms and his pops met in Compton. His pops was a Nutty Blocc Compton Crip. Moms was from South Central, she claimed Hoover. … Now his parents hustled, so he was left alone by himself a lot. So shit, he did whatever the fuck he wanted to do. … In Compton you either a Blood or a Crip … Shit was a hard decision for him to make cause both his parents was Crips.

His Uncle Greg was a Crip. He died when he was 5. His brother Jevon was a Crip. He got murdered when he was just 13.

After that, he decided that being a Crip just wasn’t for him. So he ran across the tracks until everything turned red and never looked back.”

The circumstances that led Taylor to become affiliated with the Cedar Block Piru Bloods are unfortunately not atypical for thousands of young Black males in the Greater Los Angeles area. And while we can’t choose the circumstances under which or to whom we are born, at age 22 Taylor made a life-altering decision. While recovering from gunshot wounds he decided to become a rapper and took on the Game moniker. By any music industry metric he has been extremely successful, with more than 24 albums, mixtapes and related projects to his credit.

So who better than a successful rapper with a spectacular social media following and the ear of millions to represent the interests of Los Angeles’ afflicted Black community than The Game? Well, how about, perhaps anyone!

The Game has built his HipHop fortune and notoriety by brazenly exploiting the same violence that has for decades plagued the very community he’s from.

He flies the red flag of his gang affiliation in every imaginable manner possible, far beyond the standard crimson athletic wear — Game flaunts everything from red bandana-patterned backpacks, to cherry exotic cars, to a red cellphone case/joint lighter, to his own line of gang-related Game emojis — because after all, who hasn’t been dying to sign off a text message with “Red Bandana, Red Bompton Hat, UZI, Shotgun Shell, Crime Scene Chalk Outline.”   

I suppose one could say it’s all in good fun, if LA street gangs weren’t such a deadly serious matter.

The Pathology of The Peacemaker

As rappers go, The Game’s talent is undeniable. But he has chosen to utilize that talent in the most pathological way possible,  building a fortune via the denigration of women and advocacy of gun and gang violence between puffs of marijuana smoke. That is his choice. But in making that choice, The Game has effectively disqualified himself for legitimate consideration to represent civilized, responsible Black people in negotiations around serious policy matters involving our communities.

And this is who the mayor and police chief of the nation’s second largest city have opted to present publicly as a partner with whom to bridge the divide between the Black community and the police? It’s like letting a pyromaniac join the fire department.

When you traffic in Black degradation and arrogantly and brazenly flaunt your affiliation to the most destructive and genocidal elements of the Black community, you lose your right to speak on behalf of the Black community. You have abdicated your authority to lead.

You don’t get to profit from Black misery on Friday and be a champion of peace on Sunday.

At what time, if ever, will The Game become serious about his advocacy and take the most basic of first steps — denouncing the gangs to which his affiliation, however tangential, has made him rich and famous? How about owning up to the hypocrisy of calling for a gang peace treaty after creating a celebratory soundtrack for their heinous acts of violence over the past 15 years? 

I can’t be fooled like White public officials desperate for a high-profile “urban” Black face to validate their “outreach,” and hipster journalists and TV hosts who want the easy headline instead of doing the work of investigating root causes. These people are swayed by The Game’s winning smile, captivated by his style and sympathetic to his pleas for peace.

The question isn’t, “Why would the mayor and police chief legitimize The Game and Snoop as leaders with official meetings, press conferences, and photo ops?” The question is, “Why wouldn’t they?”

After all, Beck and Garcetti get to be cool by association, pick up some urban credibility, and get loads of free publicity. Beck and Garcetti don’t have to live in communities terrorized by the gangs Snoop helped make a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. Beck and Garcetti don’t have to worry that their children will fall victim to being innocent bystanders in the type of drive-by shootings The Game routinely raps about. Beck and Garcetti don’t have to worry if their kids’ choice of t-shirt will make them a target for gang violence. Beck and Garcetti don’t have to counsel their children on how to interact with the police out of fear they will be presumed to be gang members and treated hostilely.

If the powers that be want to demonstrate their seriousness in addressing and solving these issues, then they need not elevate those who pander to and profit from the basest instincts of people in communities beset with problems of violence and gangs.

I am a Black man. I am a father. I work with children in South Central LA. I live in a community where gun violence occurs all to frequently. I grew up on HipHop. Most importantly, I recognize the issues facing the Black community regarding the police, gangs and violence are very real and very serious. These are serious times that require serious people with serious solutions. Someone please tell Jayceon this is far from a game.

Meagan Good

LOS ANGELES, CA- Krazy Actress Productions, co-founded by actress Meagan Good  (“Minority Report,” “Think Like a Man”) and actress-writer Tamara Bass (“Baby Boy,” “All That Matters”) has launched an Indiegogo campaign to help finance its next project, “If Not Now, When.” 

The feature film was written by Bass and will star both women. Sway Calloway (VH1, “MTV News”) has signed on as executive producer. 

The Indiegogo campaign launches on the heels of the landmark success of Krazy Actress Productions’ web series, “All That Matters” which debuted on World Star Hip Hop and earned over 25 million views. 

“As young women, we remember watching films that molded and shaped our perspectives on womanhood and friendship,” said Good. “I wanted to be a part of making films that inspire others the way that I was inspired…to make movies that take people on a journey, and tell a story that ultimately makes us love ourselves a little bit more.”

“If Not Now, When?” is reminiscent of popular female bonding movies prevalent in the ’90s. The film tells the story of Suzanne (Good), Patrice (Bass), Tyra and Deidre, friends since the age of 14. Over the course of their lives, fights, disagreements and love have created distance between them, particularly Suzanne and Patrice who haven’t spoken in almost 15 years. When Tyra experiences a crisis, the women reunite and rediscover the importance of sisterhood, as they band together to look after Tyra’s 14-year-old daughter.

“I wrote this movie because we are committed to telling stories that showcase diversity, and to doing our part to create more leading roles for women of color,” said Bass. “Leveraging a crowdfunding campaign to raise capital for our film not only allows us to maintain creative control, but also gives the fans a chance to weigh in on what types of movies they want to see and support.”

The Indiegogo campaign goal is $750,000. Donors will receive a variety of perks ranging from autographed scripts to producer credits.

For more information and to contribute to the campaign, visit www.krazyactressproductions.com or the Indiegogo campaign page.