By Lou Yeboah

Listen, nobody told you to go do what you did. You knew better but you wanted to prove to your homeboys that you were down. Now you crying woof? Well ain’t no need of crying now. You should have cried before you did what you did. Stop your crying!

You know my mama used to tell me that I was a hard headed kid. That was her way of telling me that I was stubborn. And she was right, I’ve learned a number of hard lessons in life because I did things my way. When we are young, we see ourselves as masters of our own future. We tend to be impatient with advice from others older and more experienced than us. We naively think that everything will go smoothly and easily. But one of the realities of life is that sooner or later we will run into things that are neither of our choosing nor to our liking. Many times, we learn lessons the hard way. So many lessons come from mistakes, poor choices and, dare I say it, sin. 

The problem I earnestly believe is that we do not know how powerful sin is.  We do not know, we have no idea, it’s a term we toss around and we talk about it in a gleeful tone.  But let me say something to you, we have under estimated its power, its grip, and its hold on us.  I submit to you, that we have been bamboozled, fooled, brain washed, and beguiled. Sin is a cruel taskmaster. It robs one of much and provides him with nothing. And like the old saying says, “Sin always takes you farther than you want to go, keeps you longer than you want to stay, and costs you more than you are willing to pay.” It is extremely important that we understand sin and its all-consuming power.

You know, the Bible – God’s Word always deals with realities. Among these is the fact that we get things wrong and do stupid things. Another is the fact that troubles will often come into our lives whether we go looking for them or not. I tell you, life is hard, but GOD IS GOOD! He doesn’t give us what we deserve because of our stubborness, or our pride. I want you to know that just like God tried ever so gently to reason with Cain, He is ever so gently trying to reason with us. Know that there is no substitute for self-control and alertness when it comes to sin. God says, sin is standing at the door desiring to come in as master. Because sin is not satisfied with living in one room in your heart. It wants full run of the house. It wants in the closets, attics and basements and the whole nine yards. Sin is not satisfied until it completely masters the whole of your life. You better know that you know.

Some of the hardest life lessons repeat themselves over and over again, and it’s on each and every one of us to be reflective enough to witness them happening in the moment — so that this time around, a different decision can be made. Making the same mistakes over and over can be costly in more ways than one. Grasp the lessons life is trying to teach you. And know that God is reaching out to you again to give you another chance to repent.  God will forgive you and restore you again. But if you continue to disobey and live in sin, God’s anger will descend on you like king Manasseh. That could be fatal. Don’t take God’s grace for granted. Galatians 6:7-8 tells us: Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Listen, as the quote says, “Life is a school, learn your lesson quickly so that you would not have to repeat it!”

SAN BERNARDINO, CA— — Southern California Edison (SCE) donated to Young Visionaries Youth Leadership Academy (YVYLA), to help give support to their S.A.M. Program, which stands for Student Achievement Mentor Program. Most of SCE grant funding is targeted to help meet the needs of diverse ethnic groups, seniors, people with special needs, women, low-income, and gay and lesbian populations groups that are often under-served.

A donation of $5,000.00 was donated to the Young Visionaries SAM Program. Young Visionaries Youth Leadership Academy’s Student Achievement Mentoring (SAM) is a program designed to address and reduce suspensions through effective implementation of positive behavior support systems. SAM is a goal-oriented program designed to support the educational and professional aspirations of all students. The Program increases the completion of developmental courses, retention and graduation rates. To accomplish this, the program increases exposure to educational, professional, and civic opportunities.

The Student Achievement Mentoring Program through mentoring works to:

• Improved Self Confidence and Self Esteem

• Increase Motivation

• Broaden horizons and experience of students

• Raise Achievements and Aspirations

• Build Relationships

• Establish Employment Development Skills

• Support to Graduation

The City of San Bernardino is home to a diverse and prominently minority population: 66% Hispanic, 14% African American, 13% White, 4% Asian, and 3% other. 23% percent of the population is foreign-born. In San Bernardino, the 2016 median household income was $39,472, compared to $63,783 for the State. Unemployment has remained above both state and national levels since the 2008 financial crisis, and the 2018 unemployment rate for the City was 5%, compared to 3.9% for the county, 4.6% for the state, and 4.1% for the United States.

Young Visionaries Youth Leadership Academy has large annual outreach events for the San Bernardino community. For example, February, “Hearts for Hygiene” at this event YVYLA collects 200 bags of hygiene and distribute them to the youth in our programs that need hygiene. June is Young Visionaries Annual Youth Conference, this conference average up to 300 youth in attendance. The month of August the youth group has an annual “2000 Backpack and School Supplies” giveaway, the month of November is a Thanksgiving event giving out 1000 Thanksgiving Turkeys and boxes of food to 1000 families in need. During the month of December for Christmas YVYLA has their annual 1000 Toy giveaway to 1000 community youth.

“We would like to thank, Southern California Edison for their generous donation and recognizing the need in our community” says Terrance Stone, CEO and Founder of Young Visionaries Youth Leadership Academy.

EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK—ENN— The family of the late Queen Wyteria Ophelia Arrington Musgrove wishes to acknowledge the many expressions of sympathy and gestures of kindness shown to us following our sad loss.

On behalf of the Arrington family we would like to send out a note of great appreciation, gratitude, admiration, and thanks to our many friends, neighbors and well-wishers who visited our home, telephoned, travelled long distance, sent floral tributes, cards and messages of condolences, and who attended the wake, service and burial and who provided emotional and practical support for us doing our difficult time. Thank you for the outstanding loyalty and participation on November 4th 2019, while laying to rest our Queen Wyteria Ophelia Arrington Musgrove, we are truly grateful.

As it would be impossible to thank everyone individually, please accept this acknowledgement as an expression of our deepest gratitude for the respect that you showed the family and the honor you gave us in this time of need. Celebrating the life of Wyteria would not have been complete without you.  Many thanks, the family of Wyteria.

A special word of thanks to Dr. and Mrs. Raymond Turner, Temple Missionary Baptist Church; Pastor, Dr. Joshua and Mrs. Beckley, Ecclesia Christian Fellowship; Pastor Harrison J. and Ursula Carolina , Evangelist Jerry Musgrove, Pastor Nathaniel Newman, Pastor David McKenzie, Reverend Church Esters Jr., Ms. Karen Sanderlin, Ms. Dyanna Montgomery, Brandie Lee, The Celebration Mass Choir, LaSalle Lewis (Marissa Watkins), Soul Winners, Brandie Lee and Katrina Patterson, Tillman Riverside Mortuary, and Montecito Memorial Park and Mortuary for their kindness and respect shown at all times.

LOS ANGELES, CA— Hollywood Power Broker Creator and Executive Producer Koshie Mills, presented a live audience taping of her groundbreaking cultural talk show series “The Diaspora Dialogues” Live in Los Angeles on Friday, November 1st at the California African American Museum. The show and movement is designed to bridge the gap between Africans from Africa and African descendants in the Diaspora. 

“The Diaspora Dialogues will ignite the long-overdue conversations needed between black people globally to extinguish our cultural disconnection and create a better understanding of our different experiences but shared identity.” says Mills.

Born in Ghana, West Africa and curated in Los Angeles, Koshie’s initial experience in the entertainment industry came from managing the careers of her three successful sons who are all actors. Kwame Boateng (Everybody Hates Chris; The Plug), Kofi Siriboe (Queen Sugar; Girls Trip) Kwesi Boakye (Claws; Colony).

The Diaspora Dialogues will lend its important cultural voice by coming into the community Live and curate conversations in diverse environments to address our internal racism, identity crisis and cultural disconnect.

“The focus will be on the journey to healing and what the 21st century African Renaissance has the potential to look like for all its descendants.” says Mills.

The live taping was presented to a full house of multigenerational community supporters in the audience. It was standing room only and the evening was steered by the master of ceremonies Actor Duain Richmond (VH1 Drumline: A New Beat) and the first half of the program included a spoken word performance from poet Yasmin Monet Watkins and a screening of “The Diaspora Dialogues” first season and first episode, “Who Do You Think You Are” guest starring musical artist Estelle and Digital content creator Suede.

The talk show taping began with the introduction of Ghanaian-American Creator, Executive Producer and host Koshie Mills. Thefeatured panelists came from diverse upbringing and backgrounds, British-Nigerian, Gina Yashere (Co-Creator, Writer, Producer CBS show Bob Hearts Abishola),Dutch-Surinamese Actress, Yootha Wong-Loi-Sing (Love Is; Hunter Street) and African American, Ebonee Davis (Model/Activist). A prolific and masterful conversation ensued about the cultural divide plaguing black people as a whole globally. Many notable quotes from the panelists and host ended the programming with a standing ovation and a lengthy line for questions and answers from the audience. 

“Caribbean slaves suffered as much as American slaves, it’s just we don’t hear about it as much because America has a louder microphone” – Gina Yashere

“Our ancestors built this country and it’s not about running to Africa and leaving America but going to Africa to understand who we are and where we come from.” – Ebonee Davis

“Black Pete is such a horrible representation of black face in Dutch society and it’s sad how it portrays black people in the Netherlands.” – Yootha Wong Loi-Sing

“Africans from the continent have African Privilege, they have a clear sense of identity and self, therefore they have no concept of what their African American, Caribbean and South American counterparts face daily from the results of oppression and their stolen identity. I am challenging us to lean in and lead with empathy on both sides.” – Koshie Mills

The evening concluded with “The Diaspora Lounge” afterparty where guests enjoyed complimentary wine, catered traditional African food such as Jollof Rice, plantain and the atmosphere was electric with Afrobeats from DJ Major league, culminating in an immersive experience for all.

The taping also drew out other notable celebrities to attend and walk the red carpet. Celebrity attendees included Kofi Siriboe (Queen Sugar; Girls Trip), British Actress Shola Adewusi  (CBS show Bob Hearts Abishola), V. Bozeman (Empire; Recording Artist), Vanessa Williams (Soul Food), Lewis T. Powell (CSI), Duain Richmond (VH1 Drumline: A New Beat), Kwesi Boakye (Claws; Colony), Yazmin Monet Watkins (Actress), Bambadjan Bamba (Actor, Black Panther), Mishon Ratliff (R&B Artist), YDN (African Musical Artist), Kwame Boakye Sr. (Designer; Style Aficionado), and many others. 

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… and, it seems, we’re not doing a damn thing about it

The three most important actions every American resident should take in 2020 are the following:

• file taxes
• vote
• take the Census

Arguably, the most important of those three activities is full participation in the Census. This task is one of the most crucial, if not the most crucial, life-and-death or existential imperatives for Black people in the United States.

And, yet, there’s little noise being made about it. Collectively, Black communities are talking more about Colin Kaepernick’s beef with the NFL and Byron Allen’s lawsuit against Comcast than they are the Census – the latter which they have much more direct control over than the first two issues.

It’s easy for a topic as wonkish and technical as the Census to lost in the issue mix. After all, there’s so much else to talk about. But, it’s tragic and telling that the only time it has been a big deal is on the question of a “citizenship” question in the Census questionnaire. That question was settled – but, it had little to do with the much more egregious and dangerous possibility of yet another massive undercounting of the U.S. Black population. The Urban Institute projects an undercount of the national Black population as high as nearly 4 percent.

This is serious. The Constitution – Article 1, Section 2 – mandates a full count of all residents in the United States. Yet, since it’s start in 1790, the federal government has looked for every opportunity it could find to make the Black population in the U.S. as invisible and as powerless as possible through the decennial (every 10 year count). It’s done this through a variety of sinister methods over the centuries. Fighting back against this systematic effort simply requires a massive effort to ensure every last Black resident in the United States takes the Census – a very free (no-charge, no-fee), 10-question activity that shouldn’t take more than 10-15 minutes out of a person’s day. Where’s the outrage and where’s the movement?

Source: https://thebenote.com/

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- Over one thousand teachers got extra help for their classrooms at the first I.E.’s Largest Teachers Appreciation Day event held at Community Action Partnership of San Bernardino County (CAPSBC) on Saturday, October 26. Teachers from all over San Bernardino County chose from over $1 million in new school supplies donated by the Family and Kids Foundation.

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The event was open to elementary school teachers from all school districts. CAPSCB and Young Visionaries Youth Leadership Academy provided warehousing, sorting, and distributing the items, as well as publicizing the event to teachers and lending a hand as attendees browsed through the materials and chose items for their classrooms.

Assemblymember Eloise Gomez-Reyes stopped by to support the event and presented certificates of appreciation, saying, “This event celebrates the joy of teachers who work tremendously hard to provide the best learning experience that will prepare all students to have successful futures.”

CAPSBC board member Dr. Margaret Hill said, “These items go a long way in helping teachers who reach into their own pockets to purchase materials so they can offer their students the finest classroom experiences. With this wonderful donation from the Family and Kids Foundation, we were able to provide an unlimited amount of school supplies to all teachers that participated.”

Established in 1965, CAPSBC works with our low-income communities to address barriers to economic stability. This is accomplished under an array of services and assistance programs including food/nutrition, home energy, and family development. For more information on CAPSBC and its programs, visit their website at www.capsbc.org.

By John Coleman, Community Photographer

For many years the Riverside NAACP Chapter, Anderson Copeland Memorial,  the Kansas Avenue Seventh Day Adventist Church, Armed Forces Commitee  and the Rubiboux SDA Church have cooperated, annually, in presenting a special Memorial Day, Veterans Recognition Luncheon. 

The public was invited.  Those who serve or served in the military were invited to wear their uniform or symbols.

The 2019 observance was held on Monday, November 11, 2019, at the Cross Word Christian Church, Education Building in Moreno  Valley.

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SAN BERNARDINO, CA— Options For Youth (OFY) hosted a Grand Opening for its third campus in San Bernardino on November 5, 2019. The event brought together community partners and the local residents to celebrate with a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the San Bernardino Chamber of Commerce, tour the new facility, and learn more about the non-profit OFY-SB public charter school program.

For its contribution to the San Bernardino community, State Senator Mike Morrell’s office presented Options For Youth – San Bernardino (OFY-SB) a Certificate of Recognition at the event. OFY-SB’s Principal Ileana Arroyo said the school’s goal was to “provide alternative paths of academic excellence and overall success for those students whose unique needs have not met solutions in a traditional high school environment.”

OFY-SB has been working with the San Bernardino City Unified School District for the past ten years, educating students in grades 7-12 who are facing social, emotional, and academic challenges in traditional public schools. OFY-SB has helped underserved students by providing a flexible and customizable lesson plan, tutoring and sports, and by encouraging students to re-engage with their community through volunteer work with Ronald McDonald House, Walk for Kids, Helping Hands Pantry, Community Gardening, Angels Closets in Redlands, and Red Cross Blood Drives.

The OFY-SB campus is located in the El Dorado Plaza by the Walgreens Pharmacy. The campus space features a large open communal room with several SGI (small group instruction) classrooms on the outer perimeter.

For more information, visit https://ofy.org/

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- Ms. Madeline Farlow, one of the community leaders and employee of the Employment Development Department spent time with Social Lites, Inc. of San Bernardino Beautillion Knights on a beautiful fall afternoon on Saturday, November 2, 2019 at the Center for Youth and Community Development.  Ms. Farlow addressed goal setting, importance of professional appearance and role-playing with the participants in soliciting for ads for scholarships. 

The 53rd Beautillion Scholarship 2019-2020 program under the leadership of Mrs. Tina Darling, Beautillion Chairperson is now in progress.   Its’ not too late for young men seeking scholarship opportunities to participate in this scholarship and personal development program. 

Community leaders who have spent time with participants include Dr. Samuel Gibbs, Mr. Richard Blacksher, Dr. Rose Culpepper and Bessine Little, City Council Woman, 6^th Ward. 

Weekly meetings are on Saturdays from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Center for Youth & Community Development (formerly Boys and Girls Club of San Bernardino) located at 1180 W. 9^th Street, San Bernardino, CA  92411.  The program will commence on March 28, 2020 at the National Orange Show of San Bernardino.

For more information, please telephone chairperson, Mrs. Tina Darling at tribicu2@msn.com or Ms. Lisa Blacksher, President at lisasocialities@gmail.com or Mrs. Bettye Brewster, Business Manager, bettyebrewster@yahoo.com

By Tess Eyrich

In 2010, during the last decennial population count, nearly one in four Inland Empire households didn’t mail back their census questionnaire. What’s more, another 40,000 people throughout the region didn’t receive a questionnaire by mail at all.

Why does this matter? Because undercounted regions miss out on vital federal and state funding, hindering potential growth in those regions for years to come. In a place like the Inland Empire, which has seen significant growth over the past decade, missing out on funding could be especially damaging. 

This fall, staffers and students at the University of California, Riverside, are mobilizing in a variety of ways to ensure a more accurate regional population count in 2020. 

Leading the charge is the Center for Social Innovation, which two weeks ago spearheaded the formation of UCR Counts, the university’s official Complete Count Committee. An initiative of the U.S. Census Bureau, the Complete Count Committees program is key to creating census awareness in communities nationwide through targeted outreach efforts.

UCR Counts brings together representatives from the center, which is housed within the School of Public Policy; Student Life; Governmental & Community Relations; the Associated Students of UC Riverside, or ASUCR; and Undocumented Student Programs.

Complementing the committee’s efforts, on Oct. 16, ASUCR passed its first Senate Resolution of the fall 2019 quarter, encouraging  student leaders, student organizations, and administrators to participate in census efforts.

The resolution was co-authored by Eric Calderon and Luis Huerta, two members of ASUCR’s Executive Cabinet who also serve as student representatives on UCR Counts. It emphasizes UCR’s responsibility to host informational sessions about the census and promote census education and resources on campus. 

Perhaps more importantly, however, it underscores the university’s role in driving outreach to so-called “hard-to-count” communities, including undocumented immigrants, non-English speakers and/or households, and racial and ethnic minorities, among other groups. 

“One key statement in the resolution that will drive our work is, ‘Students are often important advocates, translators, guides, and trusted messengers for their family, friends, and community,’” said Marlenee Blas, associate director of the Center for Social Innovation, who is leading the on-campus census efforts. “We’re really relying on our students as trusted messengers for their communities.” 

During a visit with members of UCR Counts on Oct. 24, Ditas Katague, director of California Complete Count, the office coordinating census efforts statewide, discussed the importance of UCR’s work and shared outreach strategies. 

“Our hard-to-count populations in California are full of fear,” she said. The current political climate, Katague noted, has increased wariness among many people in hard-to-count communities, which also include low-income groups, people experiencing homelessness, and those living in rural or geographically isolated areas.  

“People keep asking, ‘What’s different this year?’” she added. “But what they should be asking is, ‘How can we make the difference?’ Because everyone knows the political environment this year is different. But for me, what’s going to make the difference is the youth — period.”

Katague said the Census Bureau’s pivot to a digital format in lieu of traditional paper questionnaires puts young people on the forefront of outreach and education efforts. 

For the first time, the bureau is asking most people to answer the census online. Katague believes this opens up a realm of opportunities to promote the census through social media, for example, as well as for young people to help their older relatives and friends with completing it.

Katague was joined in the visit to UCR by Mignonne Pollard, education outreach manager for California Complete Count, and Quintilia Ávila, regional program manager for California Complete Count’s efforts throughout Southern California. 

Pollard said California Complete Count will work over the next year to partner with the University of California, individual UC campuses, and UC’s various Basic Needs programs to ensure harder-to-count populations are reached in 2020. 

The statewide team will also use the recently passed ASUCR resolution as an example when visiting other universities to promote census efforts, they said.

On campus, UCR Counts has plans to collaborate with several departments and groups, such as Residential Life, the ethnic and gender programs based in Costo Hall, and the Academic Senate.

A major aspect of the Oct. 24 meeting involved figuring out how UCR Counts might better connect with undocumented students, in particular, and those with ties to other hard-to-count populations both in the region and statewide.

The campus committee builds on the Center for Social Innovation’s ongoing work in coordinating census outreach efforts across Riverside and San Bernardino counties, said Karthick Ramakrishnan, a professor of public policy and political science who serves as director of both the center and the Inland Empire Complete Count Committee.

“Efforts like UCR Counts will give students a once-in-a-decade opportunity to deepen their applied research skills and serve their communities, either through paid census job opportunities or through service-learning opportunities that draw on their talents and passions,” Ramakrishnan said.

Likewise, Blas emphasized that UCR students — many of whom are Pell Grant recipients and first-generation college students — have the potential to make big impacts in their communities.

Students can assist with the committee’s efforts by talking to their families and friends about why it’s important to participate in the census. The census will take place on April 1, in the middle of the first week of the spring 2020 quarter, making spring break a prime time for initiating conversations with loved ones about how to participate.

“Concentrate your efforts on the hardest of the hard to count,” Katague said. “And please document everything you’re doing,” she added, so that in another 10 years, the campus might be able to follow the blueprint established by UCR Counts.