By Lila Brown | California Black Media

A growing number of Black Americans, relying on newly digitized federal records and other sources, are discovering direct bloodlines to Native American ancestors. These discoveries are inspiring individuals to trace and claim their Native American ancestry, leading some to apply for citizenship with tribal Nations.

When Daniel Bruce Kelly, 32, an actor and minister, began researching his genealogy, he was sure that he would identify a place in Africa where his family came from.

The Huntington Beach man who identifies as African American, says he was determined to prove his parents wrong. His mom and dad had begun discovering, exploring, and embracing their European and Indigenous American ancestry.

In his research, Kelly discovered that his great-great-great-grandfather was registered as Cherokee on the Dawes Roll, a U.S. Government record listing individuals eligible for indigenous tribal membership.

Kelly also identified other family members listed as Indian on U.S. Census Bureau records.

“At first, I was offended that my parents didn’t want to claim to be African, but then I had this awakening. You can’t talk about Native American history without talking about the Black American Indians,” Kelly said.

Similarly, Cameron Lewis, 48, a truck driver from Sacramento, says he always heard family members talk about having “Indian in the family.”

Delving into family documents, he found out that his great-great grandfather acquired land in the mid-1800s in areas of Florida inhabited by Seminole Indians.

“I found it hard to believe that Whites would sell hundreds of acres of land to Blacks in the South during slavery. The more I started digging, I found out this particular ancestor also had brothers each owning hundreds of acres of land. This is when I started coming across terms, I was not familiar with describing my ancestors as ‘mulatto’ and ‘intransigent,’ and linking them to tribes such as the Yamasee, Catawba and Creek — terms I’ve never even heard of,” he said.

The Dawes Act of 1887 gave each tribal family head 160 acres of land and each single person 80 acres. The government would hold the land title in a trust for 25 years, after which each individual would receive United States citizenship and a “fee simple” land title. Under this law, Black tribal members, known as Freedmen, were granted approximately 2 million acres of land.

In Oklahoma’s Creek Nation, about a third of the land was Black owned.

While the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, slavery in the continental United States did not fully end as a legal institution until June 14, 1866, when the Creek Tribe agreed to abandon enslavement of African Americans. That was the day after Congress approved the Fourteenth Amendment.

Recent efforts to recognize historical injustices against Native Americans have seen progress, such as last month, during Native American Heritage Month, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a Proclamation celebrating the unveiling of a monument dedicated to California Native peoples at the State Capitol.

While this progress is appreciated, many Black Native Americans feel that the history of their Black Freedman ancestors remains largely overlooked.

“We have to tell the whole of the story,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr in 2022 during the 70th annual Cherokee National Holiday.

The Cherokee Nation has committed to including the descendants of Cherokee Freedmen.

“We have to acknowledge that we enslaved African Americans under our own law. If we ignore or suppress that, we do to Freedmen and their descendants the same things that has been done to Cherokee people. Any nation is a stronger nation if they tell their whole story: the tragedy, the triumph, and the chapters that are dark and difficult,” added Hoskin.

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, approximately 1.4 million Californians identify as full or partially American Indian and Alaskan Native. California also has the largest American Indian population in the country, with close to 900,000 American Indian residents.

A population map commissioned by the Cherokee Nation in 2013 shows that California has the second-largest Cherokee population in the country, after Oklahoma, where many displaced American Indians settled after the Trail of Tears.

In 2021, the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court removed the phrase “by blood” from its constitution. That change acknowledges that the descendants of Black people once enslaved by the tribe, the “Cherokee Freedmen,” have the right to citizenship, which means they are eligible to run for tribal office and to access other resources. In 2022, The University of California (UC) began waiving tuition and fees for Californians who are members of federally recognized Native American tribes.

However, debates about who is — and who is not — American Indian continues with some darker skinned indigenous people facing challenges in claiming their Native American ancestry.

Not all Native Americans had lighter skin as often shown in Hollywood movies. There are even historical renderings of phenotypically Black Indians drawn by professional artists in the early 1800s.

For people without a record of acceptance into what are considered “the Five Civilized Tribes” — Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole and Chickasaw Indians — many have been denied citizenship.

For example, the 3x great-grandmother of Kiori Jordan-Marquering, 46, of Santa Rosa who was known as “Indian Julia,” was denied acceptance into Choctaw Nation based on her appearance.

“She is visibly Negro,” the space reserved for “office use” on her application form noted.

“My ancestor’s application for citizenship was contested in court for more than three years before ultimately being denied,” says Jordan-Marquering.

The Choctaw Nation has consistently refused to recognize Freedmen as citizens.

Only the Cherokee Nation and the Seminole Tribe of Florida recognize Freedmen as eligible for citizenship.

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Green Living Plan: Clearly a major clean energy transition is taking place, with jobs being created. But do the most marginalized and climate-hit communities even know how to access all of this?

By Jessika Pollard | a University of Redlands partnership

According to Pew Research during the 2020 elections, 70 percent of registered America voters identified climate change as an important factor influencing their choices in the presidential election. Since then, in a commitment echoing his campaign promises, President Joe Biden has set forth an extremely ambitious vision: A carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035 and net zero emissions by 2050. This transformative agenda includes climate forward legislation including the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) – or combined spending of $3.5 trillion. It represents what Biden and other observers have called the “largest ever investment in clean energy research and innovation.”

Fast forward a few years later and the IRA specifically, is calculated to decrease the national deficit by $300 billion over the next 10 years through funding initiatives that advance environmental justice, cut emissions, manufacture clean energy products, and more. Also within that time frame, this initiative is expected to create more than 9 million well-paying clean energy jobs – averaging 912,000 annually. Roughly $400 billion will be injected into various sectors and communities across the U.S., including millions of dollars in incentives for private investment, in the form of tax incentives, grants, loans, and more.

As President Biden and the U.S. Congress attempt to fulfill these promises, tangible results are already surfacing. For example, since its passage, the IRA has created over 100,000 clean energy jobs in (notably ‘red’) states such as Georgia, Kansas, Tennessee, and Arizona. Nationally, reports from companies across the country indicate nearly $90 billion in new investments have been established. Additionally, President Biden has recently announced the new Hydrogen Hub in Philadelphia that will create 20,000 new jobs.

Yet, the impact of these initiatives extends beyond the economic figures of for already affluent areas. What does this mean for families and communities in dis-invested areas? President Biden’s climate plan not only set ambitious goals for carbon emissions and clean energy, but also to fortify the national climate resiliency. Still, the realization of this vision hinges on aggressive investments in marginalized and vulnerable communities, often overlooked and underserved. In many low-income communities of color, the absence of critical infrastructure and healthy environments poses significant challenges to healthy, stable, and thriving living spaces.

Recognizing the interconnectedness of “Neighborhoods and Environment” as one of the six domains of Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) underscores the urgency of reinvestment. These SDOHs are the underlying conditions that are contributing factors of health inequities. The lack of adequate and affordable housing, poor air quality, and lack of infrastructure for safe drinking water and accessible electricity are all results of a disinvested community. American dependency on oil and gas has only exacerbated the challenges these communities regularly face. The monies appropriated from the Biden climate plan are essential to see transformative investments in these underserved, low-income communities of color, steering the nation toward a more equitable and sustainable future. But: Do those communities even know those funds are available and, supposedly, accessible?

How Are Funds Being Planned?

A number of states, such as California, Vermont, and New York, are already working toward environmental justice polices – such as oil and gas drilling regulations or cap and trade – that mitigate air pollution in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods and communities of color. These efforts aim to alleviate the poor air pollution in economically disadvantaged communities. The success in those investments from climate policies rely heavily on the collaboration between local, state, and federal policymakers and mission driven organizations actively engaged in the field.

The IRA, coupled with the BIL infrastructure law, represents significant investment in these targeted areas, aiming to enhance the nation’s infrastructure and transportation networks. Initiatives such as modernized home electrification, rebates, and grants/loans for zero emission technology, empower lower income households to invest in public safety and escape unhealthy living conditions.

Consumers also stand to benefit from incentives including tax rebates on energy-efficient appliances, home improvement, and electric vehicles. To ensure effective allocation of funds in line with the U.S. climate goals, the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators propose three strategies: green banks, creating agency guidance and requirements, and creating funding streams for state funding matches.

An estimated $30 billion from the IRA is to be allocated to state and local governments and nonprofit entities, or Green Banks, intended to accelerate the transition to clean energy and fight climate change. Moreover, the opportunity to have IRA and IIJA funds matched by state governments creates greater opportunity for the much needed investments for increased infrastructure in communities requiring immediate attention.

Analyzing potential benefits, Rewiring America provides insights into the positive outcomes of Bringing Infrastructure Home. Properly distributing and implementing funds within communities will help lower energy costs and expenses related to upgrades, not to mention. The findings suggest major benefits to indoor and outdoor air quality for low-income households just by updating home electrification. Furthermore, a modernized electrification system will save low-income households close to $500 annually, decreasing their percentage of rent burden; however, these numbers are only realized if community revitalization is prioritized.

How Will We Know It’s Working?

As previously mentioned, since its passage, the IRA has already proved valuable in achieving specific climate goals set by President Biden; however, to what extent has that included disinvested, marginalized communities? And do they know what’s happening?

Here’s what was promised …

• Incentivize clean energy
• Increase nationwide energy efficiency
• Increase access and affordability of electric vehicles
• Create more jobs
• Advance clean air and transportation
• Lower healthcare costs

At this rate, domestic carbon emissions are expected to experience a 40 percent reduction by 2030. Noteworthy is the surge in planned manufacturing sites that will promote and support the development and use of renewable energy sources such as battery and electric vehicle manufacturing sites and wind and solar manufacturing sites. Furthermore, we have also seen an increase in planned green banks across the country to make the transition to clean energy more widespread and as previously mentioned, numerous jobs have been created and wages raised, contributing to the economic mobility of many families across the country.

What we’ll need to know, however, is if there is an increase in jobs and economic growth in the most disadvantaged communities. Do low-income, traditionally low-resources Black and Brown communities even aware that they’re able to participate in this massive transition taking place?

This climate legislation was diligently crafted in the application process in that it allows cities to seek funding independently if the state government refuses. To avoid a blocking of these initiatives where Republican-run states refused funds, as seen with the Affordable Care Act, the IRA extends the offer to the three largest cities in the state. For instance, Florida, South Dakota, Iowa, and Kentucky have all refused funds from the IRA, but cities such as Iowa City, Rapid City, and Louisville are attempting to take full advantage of these funds.

While it is still a bit too early to determine the effectiveness of the place-based incentives a discernible trend is emerging. We can track that many of the deployed IRA investments have been distributed to low-income communities due to place-based bonuses offered in the IRA. These bonuses are targeted for investments in low income high unemployment areas to ensure the most promising regions for growth are invested. As more funds are disbursed and data accrues, the optimistic anticipation of success continues to grow. Still, we need to keep asking and assessing if those populations know about these funds and that they’re circulating on their behalf. It’s not clear that they do. That also poses a problem for policymakers as they’ll need a combination of community input and partnership.

By Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media

On November 28, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the appointment of Tomiquia Moss as Secretary of the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency (BCSH).

Moss, a Democrat, replaces Lourdes M. Castro-Ramírez, who started in the position in March 2020.

Moss’s nomination requires Senate confirmation, and the compensation is $232,858 per year.

“The housing and homelessness crisis is the number one issue facing our state, and Secretary Moss brings decades of deep knowledge and experience working to move the needle on this challenge in the public and nonprofit sectors,” said Newsom. “I look forward to her partnership in continuing to implement California’s transformative solutions on these and other priorities for our state.”

On October 2, Castro-Ramírez announced that she was stepping down as Secretary of BCSH. Her resignation took effect on November 2.

Moss will oversee and supervise 12 entities, including 40 boards and bureaus. She will be responsible for the preservation and expansion of safe, affordable housing, efforts to prevent and end homelessness, protecting consumers, and upholding California’s civil rights laws.

Since 2020, the agency and its subsidiary departments have delivered more than $31 billion in funding to expand rental and homeownership housing opportunities and more than $11 billion to address homelessness.

In addition, the position requires partnering with state agencies to develop statewide action plans that strengthen consumer protections by licensing, regulating, educating, and enforcing rules for over four-million businesses, professionals,  and financial institutions.

“The Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency touches the lives of virtually every Californian,” Moss said in a statement. “I am humbled by Governor Newsom’s appointment to serve as its secretary, especially for the millions of Californians who are struggling to find and keep a roof over their heads, and for those who are the targets of fraud and discrimination. Leading this multifaceted organization is a sacred responsibility. I look forward to supporting all the good work that’s already under way,” Moss stated.

Moss is the founder of All Home, a Bay Area-focused organization that advances regional solutions that address poverty, homelessness and racial disparities, and aims to create more opportunities for people with very low incomes. She has served as CEO of this organization since 2019.

Moss was CEO of Hamilton Families from 2017 to 2019 and served as chief of staff of the Oakland Mayor’s Office from 2015 to 2017. From 2013 to 2015, she was Executive Director of HOPE SF, a San Francisco Mayor’s Office initiative.

Additionally, Moss is Board President of the Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California.

She earned a Master of Public Administration degree from Golden Gate University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Government from Ohio Wesleyan University.

“While I’m excited to take the Administration’s commitment to housing and homelessness solutions even further, I also see how important the agency’s other mandates are to make California a fairer and more equitable place with greater opportunities for all people to thrive. I’m honored to begin this work in early 2024, and deeply grateful for the Governor’s faith in me to do so,” Moss stated.

According to the BCSH website, the agency has over 8,000 employees and a $4.6 billion operating budget

By Lou K. Coleman

The same choice that was offered to the Israelites, in [Deuteronomy 30:11-20] is the same choice being offered to you today. The choice of life or death. I admonish you to choose life. Don’t be on the fence like the children of Israel who refused to stand for the Lord at Mount Camel until they saw the power of God. Make your stand known today by making the right choice. Choose life!

Listen, we have been told in the Word of God that there would come a time when this world, as we know it, will end. Don’t wait until it’s too late, things are about to come to a screeching halt. God said it and He is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. [Numbers 23:19]. Choose life, so that you and your descendant may live. Don’t presume on God’s goodness in sparing you or conclude that you can keep on ignoring His warnings. Because over the years, God has been speaking to you, and so far, you have turned your back on Him. But don’t keep doing it because, you don’t know when your life will end—and once it does, it will be too late. The Bible warns that there is no second chance after death! It says that “man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” [Hebrews 9:27].

Today, you have a very serious choice to make.  Choose wisely!  Because there will come a point when God gets fed up and He will not relent from His judgment. [Amos 7:1-9]. For thus saith the Lord, I will spare them no longer. I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing, and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” [Genesis 6:3-7].

“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!”

By Tanu Henry and Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media

In an intense, 95-minute-plus televised faceoff between California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the men traded jabs and putdowns, defended their respective gubernatorial records, disagreed sharply on how to solve the country’s most pressing problems, and expressed clashing views on the performance of the Biden-Harris administration.

Conservative Fox News personality Sean Hannity moderated the duel, during which the TV pundit, more than once, injected his opinion, and appeared to be providing subtle assists to DeSantis.

As the debate progressed, it was clear that opinions about each topic discussed was representative of the philosophical and political chasm that divides liberal and conservative America, and a preview of campaign mudslinging that is bound to intensify as the 2024 presidential campaign ensues.

“I’ll tell you why I’m here,” said Newsom said. “I’m here to tell the truth about the Biden-Harris record and also compare and contrast Ron DeSantis’ record and the Republican Party’s record” with that of California.”

DeSantis blasted Newsom’s management of the COVID-19 crisis and criticized Newsom for prevalent crime, homelessness and deteriorating social conditions in California cities.

“You have the freedom to defecate in public in California,” DeSantis said. “You have the freedom to pitch a tent on Sunset Boulevard. You have the freedom to create a homeless encampment under a freeway and even light it on fire. They’re not the freedoms our founding fathers envisioned.”

Newsom took a jab at DeSantis presidential candidacy, predicting that the Florida Governor would be endorsing GOP frontrunner Donald Trump soon.

“There’s one thing we have in common,” Newsom said. “Neither of us will be the nominee for our party in 2024.

By Tanu Henry and Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media

The federal government is investing more than $400 billion in projects around the United States through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which was passed by President Biden in 2021.

To assist minority-and-women-owned businesses benefit from the federal investment, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) recently introduced two bills in Congress: The Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Supportive Services Expansion Act and the Accelerating Small Business Growth Act.

“Small businesses, particularly those that are minority-and women- owned, hold enormous potential to bolster our economy, but they have historically faced disproportionate barriers to succeed in America,” said Padilla in a statement.

“The unprecedented investment in American infrastructure from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law over the next decade provides a major opportunity to create good-paying jobs that uplift disadvantaged communities,” Padilla continued. “These bills would provide the resources to help women and minority entrepreneurs develop self- sufficiency in competing for federal contracts, helping to build prosperity in communities that have too often been left behind.”

President Biden has committed to increasing the participation of disadvantaged businesses in government contracting by 50% by 2025.

If passed, among other provisions, the bills would increase funding by $15 for a training program that helps minority-owned small business to compete for federal government contracts.

It would “would create a grant program to fund transportation agency programs to help underserved businesses grow and compete on an equal basis for contracts and subcontracts in federally funded transportation projects,” according to a press release from Padilla’s office.

By Tanu Henry and Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-12) marked Worlds AIDS Day on December 1, with a critical call-to-action.

The Congressmember, who is running for U.S. Senate, urged her colleagues to pass legislation that will reauthorize the PEPFAR program, a U.S. Government-supported global initiative that provides lifesaving HIV medications to people in the United States and around the world who can’t afford to buy them.

“World AIDS Day is an opportunity to celebrate the incredible progress we have made toward becoming an AIDS-free generation. In the past two decades we’ve saved 25 million lives, especially among the Black community globally, through transformative programs like PEPFAR,” said Lee statement.

In 2003, with bipartisan support – and after vocal and extensive advocacy by members of the Congressional Black Caucus — Congress passed the law approving the program. Former President George Bush, who famously championed the program, signed it into law.

On November 30, Dr. Robyn Neblett Fanfair, Acting Division Director in the Division of HIV Prevention at the National Center for HIV and the Centers for Disease Control, said the AIDS crisis is at a crossroads.

“Together with ongoing commitment, we can honor the hundreds of thousands of lives lost to HIV-related illness in the United States and millions worldwide by ensuring that everyone benefits equally from four decades of groundbreaking scientific advances,” Fanfair said in a letter.

The CDC estimates that 1.2 million people in America have HIV, and 1 in 8 carriers don’t know it.”

Since its inception, the U.S. Government has provided over $100 billion to support the PEPFAR program.

“For 20 years, PEPFAR has been one of our nation’s most profound and transformational investments globally. 5.5 million babies have been born HIV-free because of the critical work funded by the program,” Lee continued.

The PEPFAR program is credited with significantly lowering the AIDS death rates in Black communities across the United States, where there are still a disproportionate number of HIV cases and where incidents continue to increase. In Los Angeles County, California’s largest and

populous city, for example, there was a 13 % year-over-year increase in new HIV cases between the last two years, according to data compiled by the LA County Department of Health.

PEPFAR is also lauded for turning around the epidemic in Africa, where it was most severe when the initiative was established.

On World AIDS Day, I call upon my colleagues in Congress to reignite the bipartisanship that has been linked to PEPFAR for so long and act swiftly to keep this lifesaving program alive,” said Lee.

To commemorate the 35th anniversary of World AIDS Day, the California State Capitol was illuminated in red light on the evening of December 1.

By McKenzie Jackson | California Black Media

African Diaspora Network (ADN) founder and executive director Almaz Negash has uplifted and championed investment in businesspersons, entrepreneurs, and innovators of African descent in

U.S. communities and across the African continent for 13 years.

Negash, a native of the East African country Eritrea, who resides in the Bay Area, is now set to do similar work for the administration of President Joe Biden.

Negash was appointed to the President’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement (PAC-ADE) in late September.

Last month, Negash told California Black Media that PAC-ADE can help Africans in the Diaspora be a bridge between the U.S. and the African countries they hail from.

“The African Diaspora Network has been bringing Africans and friends of Africa together to talk about things we can do on the continent,” she stated. “Whether it’s through entrepreneurship, investment, and other ways. If you really look at it, you can reverse it and do the same thing in the United States.”

ADN is based in the Silicon Valley city of Santa Clara. Most of the organization’s leaders are affiliated with the Bay Area’s tech and business communities, even though the impact of the work they do is felt far beyond that region.

Negash, who has a background in international business, hopes the committee can change policies that will allow Black entrepreneurs in the U.S. and in Africa to thrive.

“The same thing that African Americans face here is also faced by Black entrepreneurs on the continent,” she said. “I want to share knowledge and resources but also shed light on the challenge Blacks face like access to funding.”

Negash was one of 12 people selected for the inaugural advisory group for terms that run until 2025. The appointees represent the diversity of the African Diaspora from Black and African communities. PAC-ADE members have distinguished backgrounds from a variety of industries including academia, business, creative industries, faith-based activities, government, sports, and social work.

Delaware’s Silvester Scott Beaman, the 139th elected and consecrated Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, is the council’s chair.

Another Californian, Ugandan-born Ham K. Serunjogi, the co-founder and CEO of Chipper Cash, a cross-border money transfer platform, is also a councilmember.

Along with Negash and Serunjogi, the other PAC-ADE board members are:

• C.D. Glin, of Connecticut, who is the President of the PepsiCo Foundation • Osagie Imasogie of Pennsylvania, who is Chairman of the investment bank Quoin Capitol and co-founder of the private equity firm PIPV Capital
• • Chinenye Joy Ogwumike of Texas, who is a two-time WNBA All-Star for the Los Angeles Sparks and a full-time, multi-platform ESPN host and NBA analyst.
• • Patrick Hubert Gaspard of New York, who is President and CEO of the Center for American Progress
• • Viola Davis of Rhode Island, who is actress, artist, activist, producer, philanthropist, and New York Times best-selling author

• • Mimi E. Alemayehou of Washington, D.C., who is the Founder and Managing Partner of Semai Ventures, LLC
• • Kevin Young of Washington, D.C., who is the Andrew W. Mellon Director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.
• Helene D. Gayle of Georgia, who President of Atlanta’s Spelman College • Rosalind Brewer of Georgia, who until August served as Chief Executive Officer of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.

The PAC-ADE board will have in-person meetings three times a year and do other committee work in between.

The council was established following the Biden administration making a commitment to enhance dialogue between the U.S. government and the African Diaspora during last year’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit held at the White House.

Vice President Kamala Harris told council members during their October swearing-in ceremony that their work is an extension of what the U.S. does to improve global partnerships.

“This is critical in reinforcing relationships and our democratic principles,” she said. “I am also excited that the council will be a way to reintroduce the U.S. to the continent.”

Africa — a continent over 50 nations — has an abundance of natural resources such as arable land, renewable fresh water, and mineral wealth. Forty-two percent of the planet’s 15-to-35-year-olds will live on the continent by 2030.

Negash said Africa will play have central role in the world’s future because of the youth and talent on the continent and in the diaspora.

“That is an incredible opportunity to bring the world together,” she said noting the investments governments across the globe have made in

African nations. “Resources have been going out of the continent. This is an opportunity to help the community thrive, so many leaders around the world or interested in the continent. The numbers are powerful.”

Negash’s ADN has promoted business and economic development in Africa and throughout the diaspora since 2010. The nonprofit announced last month that it is partnering with Arizona State University to manage $80 million in funding from the Africa Bureau of the U.S. Agency of International Development’s (USAID) to assemble a coalition committed to empowering Africa’s youth with tools, education, and networking opportunities.

In October, ADN held a graduation ceremony for its Accelerating Black Leadership and Entrepreneurship program, a six-week workshop focused on community building, mentorship, and training for 11 Black entrepreneurs. Each participant received a $10,000 grant.

Additionally, by 2028, Negash noted, ADN hopes to have raised $35 million in funding.

“The most important thing we do at ADN is bringing people together,” she said. “Supporting entrepreneurs in Africa and supporting entrepreneurs in the United States, and really showcasing the diaspora and the role we play in the U.S. and on the continent of Africa

SAN BERNARDINO, CA— Make Santa proud and make a child’s Christmas special by donating to Community Action Partnerships 2023 holiday toy drive. The Drive will be held from Thursday, November 29, 2023, to Friday, December 15, 2023. Unwrapped toys can be dropped off at Community Action Partnership San Bernardino County (Attn: Family Development Program) located at 696 Tippecanoe Avenue, San Bernardino, California 92408. For those that want to make a monetary donation, it can be made at CAPSBC.org/holidayvirtualtoydrive. Please make checks payable to Community Action Partnership of San Bernardino County.

CAPS most pressing gift need is gifts for 14- to 17-year-olds. This could be sports equipment, electronics, board games, art supplies, self-care essentials, etc. For more information, contact Charles Karsch at ckarsch@capsbc.org or (909) 723-1573 or Dennis Collier at dcollier@capsbc.org or (909) 723-1571.

By Tanu Henry, Lila Brown and Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media

On November 20, a group of 14 public and private sector executives in Los Angeles pledged their commitment to ensure that Black and other minority business owners receive a fairer shot at obtaining public contracting opportunities on infrastructure projects.

Called the Equity in Infrastructure Project (EIP) Pledge, the agreement is part of the EIP’s launch of its California Plan Initiative which was unveiled during a forum hosted by Engineering News-

Record, a publication widely recognized as “the bible of the construction industry.”

The Forum convened hundreds of infrastructure leaders from across California and around the nation. It also marked the second anniversary of President Biden’s signing of the historic federal infrastructure law.

The leaders announced that California Secretary of Transportation Toks Omishakin will serve as Chair of the EIP’s California Plan initiative.

In his remarks before the signing, Omishakin pointed out the need to move from symbolic acts of inclusion to more material efforts for achieving equity.

“We can’t just put a policy in place as if it’s good to go. We have to take additional steps like the ones we’re taking today to say we’re committed to making sure this $1.2 trillion that’s coming in from President Biden gets to firms that are often are overlooked as a part of the process,”Omishakin told California Black Media (CBM).

“Governor Newsom has done a similar effort that also ensures the investments that we’re making across California reaches communities that have been overlooked for years,” he added. “Every single person deserves the chance to be successful. It’s an honor for us to be a part of the Equity in Infrastructure Project.”

EIP’s says its mission is to build generational wealth and reduce the racial wealth gap by improving public infrastructure contracting practices to create more prime, joint venture and equity contracting opportunities for Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs), according to the group’s website.

EIP’s Pledge has now been signed by 55 heads of transit authorities, airports, ports, water districts, and engineering firms from across the country, and the White House has directly called upon Bipartisan Infrastructure Law grantees to sign the Pledge.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell introduced the unanimously approved motion that committed the County to the Pledge.

“We commit to tripling the total number of certified small businesses in LA County with a special emphasis on infrastructure servicing small minority businesses,” said Mitchell.

“We are establishing a $2M revolving loan fund to support startup costs as small businesses obtain County contracts and we will create a network of Small Business Advocates with each County department and empower them to advance small business goals and inclusive procurement practices,” Mitchell added. We must ensure that our small and minority firms have the technical assistance they need to access these career-changing government contracts.”

The Pledge was also signed by leaders from the Los Angeles Metro, Port, Airport, Department of Water & Power, and other executives from cities around the region.