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Collective embarks on public education campaign about the role of District Attorneys

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- The ACLU of Southern California and Congregations Organized for Prophetic Engagement (COPE) as part of the “Hey, Meet Your DA!” campaign, are collaborating with groups across San Bernardino County to educate the community on the critical role of the District Attorney. The collective of organizations are hosting a town hall meeting to educate the public about the impact that District Attorneys have on a range of justice issues. The town hall comes after a similar event was convened with residents in Riverside County less than a month ago.

However, the collective group of San Bernardino organizations was troubled and disappointed that their local District Attorney would be so hesitant to meet with the community even after being offered alternative dates and declined an offer to participate even for a short time on the Monday, April 30 town hall meeting. “We need a District Attorney who will represent the community, not avoid them” says Rev. Samuel Casey, Executive Director of COPE.

The press conference and rally that came as a result of the dismissal of the District Attorney drew a crowd of 30 organizational leaders and community members who discussed existing justice issues in San Bernardino. The recurring chant heard from the crowd, led by Casey “It’s time to ReThink Public Safety!” an initiative led by COPE to promote responsible, restorative, and redemptive approaches to justice reform in schools and communities throughout the Inland Valley Region. “We must transform what public safety looks like to our community. We need the DA to prosecute killer cops especially when they are killing our young sons just as police murdered Dante Yarber in a Barstow Walmart.” stated Lanae Norwood from Institute Developing Equity, Advocacy, and Leadership (IDEAL.)

The collective now is focused on their town hall set for April 30^th in the City of Fontana. Their man goal is to discuss with community members solutions needed to reform the San Bernardino County criminal justice system and inform them about the role and duties of district Attorneys.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Bruce Atlas wants Inland Empire residents to refer to the Ontario Airport as “Our” Airport! Atlas, Chief Operations Officer of the Ontario International Airport, was the guest speaker at Monday’s Black Business Chamber Inland Empire (BBCIE) meeting.  

He spoke of the expected growth of the Inland Empire and of the planed airport expansion. He is enthusiastic about getting local businesses involved in the vender and contracting opportunities that come with the Airports growth.  Amy Goethals, the Liaison for The Ontario International Airport Small Disadvantaged Business Program, who was the other speaker, requested support in her quest to outreach and to otherwise accommodate the Airport working with local minority businesses. 

The BBCIE meets three times per month. BBCIE President, Tammy Martin-Ryles, says that the Chamber will continue to expose members to speakers who are able to educate, stimulate and facilitate opportunity.  

Bruce Atlas will be on Empire Talks Back (ETB) on Sunday, May 6 at 10 a.m. on KCAA 1050 AM, 102.3 FM and 106.5 FM. You can also watch the show live at kcaaradio.com.

‘The Penis Monologues: The Long Hard Truth’ presents the authentic, raw truths that men face in their everyday realities

By Naomi K. Bonman

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- How many women empowerment events do you run into? Probably more than you can count, right? Now how many men empowerment events do you come across? Yeah, not that much. When it comes to our men, especially our Black men, there are not many outlets out there that give them a voice. This is why playwright Karen Roberson created ‘The Penis Monologues: The Long Hard Truth’. She wanted to create a space for men to voice their concerns and feelings.

I recently attended one of the rehearsals for the upcoming show on May 19^thand May 20^th, and the rehearsals put me in awe, so I only know that the actual production is going to be remarkable! The writing of this monologue is astounding! Each cast member is in touch with character because they can relate to the stories in their everyday lives. The stories that are in this stage production are REAL and RAW. There is no sugarcoating with this one and it all comes from the male’s perspective.

After the rehearsal, Mrs. Karen Roberson sat down with me where we chatted on her inspirations to bring this creation to life and where she envisions to take it in the future.

What inspired you to write this production?

What inspired me to write ‘The Penis Monologues’ is that I feel like our men lack a platform for them. As I was telling you earlier, I can easily go to a woman’s empowerment situation like almost every weekend. There is nothing going on for our men; there is nothing that they have where they can say, ‘We are a brotherhood, we are together, and we are going to empower each other; and we are going to uplift each other, and we are going to talk about some serious issues so that we can become better.

Men don’t have that. I’m not talking about an every now and then men’s conference, I’m talking about what do they have. And so, with ‘The Penis Monologues’ I hope that I can start a movement; a movement for men. A brand for them.

After the stage production is all said in done, what else do you envision for ‘The Penis Monologues’ or for our men in general?

I would like to do conferences, tours and panel discussions. ‘The Penis Monologues’ goes way beyond the stage.

From being able to witness just a snippet of what to except from the show tonight during rehearsal, I can tell that each male resonated with their character, so for casting how did you pick out each character?  

Well, for Reggie and Idrees, the dual monologues, I wrote those specifically for them. But for casting, I’m the type of person that is a feeler, I like to feel and be moved. If I’m not moved when I’m casting, then you don’t have a job. I need to feel it in my soul and these guys just came in and blew me away!

What can people except from this show? I know you did 6 previous shows last year, which all sold out, so what can we except? Did you had some twists and turns this go around?

I did add some elements of surprise. Every time I do the show I try to elevate it a little bit more. If you are a person that is returning to see the show, you’re going to see something a little different. I just feel like that’s our way of keeping our audience on their toes and looking forward to seeing what we have.

We’re going to take you on a rollercoaster ride! These guys are going to strap you in for an hour and 30 minutes and you are going to have to hear what they say, but I promise you when you [women] leave that you will have a greater appreciation for men, specifically our Black men.

And when men leave, they will feel empowered and knowing that they have a voice and a platform to be heard. That’s what ‘The Penis Monologues’ is about.

How can people get tickets?

People can get tickets at thelonghardtruth.brownpapertickets.com. They can follow us on social media @thelonghardtruth on Instagram and Mahogany Girl Productions on Instagram and Facebook. You can also get tickets from the website at mgproductionsllc.com. All the information is there on the website and you can also read up on the cast and you can see what upcoming events that we have.

But listen, I want Uncle Steve Harvey to see this. I need my Aunty Oprah to see this and I just need some heavy hitters to really rally behind me to help get this on the global platform where it needs to be. If the Vagina Monologues became huge like it was, I know clearly that the messages that we’re sending can spread like wildfire!  

Can you see yourself making a film from ‘The Penis Monologues’?

Yes, I do! We are in talks about film. I would love to speak with Showtime, HBO or Starz to do an actual special. I’m excited. There is no limit to what we could do. We’re going to take it to the stage, to the big screen, to the community—everywhere that it needs to hit the people, so they can be changed, uplifted and empowered. That is where this message needs to go.

As we wrap things up, I know you said this is the first play that you have done, so how was it being behind the scenes as the director and writer than from being in the spotlight? Which one do you like better?

I know right! I really like this side because I feel like, don’t get me wrong I love acting and I love singing as well but when you become the playwright and you become the creator, now I have the voice, the control and the creativity to create the things that I want people to hear and see. So, I’m really like that and it has inspired me to continue to create other content to keep bringing the people. You can always except it REAL and RAW.

I feel like it’s easy to have those feel good conversations, right? But what about the long-hard truth? What about those uncomfortable conversations that no one needs to have? So, you can always except me to keep it REAL.

Awesome. I’m looking forward to more!  

The show is on May 19 and May 20 at Cal State Dominguez Hills where I’m an alumnus of their theater department, so it’s always fun bringing my stuff home and allowing the community to come out. We don’t always have to go to Hollywood to see good quality stuff. I can put my stuff in the hood and let them come and be blessed by it as if we were anywhere else.

I’m happy that it is at Dominguez. We’re going to have a good time. Come ready! All I can say be ready for an unforgettable ride.

‘The Penis Monologues’ features: Tobyus as ‘Angry Penis’; Lamont Young as ‘Broken Penis’; Samuel Simmons as ‘Devoted Penis’; Lucky Conner as ‘Loving Penis’; Marwan Granville as ‘Disappointed Penis’; Louis Kameron Jack III as ‘Empty Penis’; Reggie Myles as ‘I Don’t Penis’; Idrees Degas as ‘I Do Penis’; DeJuan Christopher as ‘My Penis Matters’; and Mike Strong as ‘Erotic Penis’.

The show premieres Saturday, May 19 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, May 20 at 5 p.m. at California State Dominguez Hills Theater located at 1000 E Victoria Street in Carson. Tickets can be purchased at http://bit.ly/PenisMonologuesLA. For more information, please call (310) 291-5315.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- The SB Pastors United will be hosting another Community Block Party on Saturday, April 28. The event will be held from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Highland Pacific Elementary School located at 3340 Pacific Street in Highland.

“We are bringing God back into our schools and community,” Reginald Young explains. “The Pastors in Unity and solidarity is taking a stance against violence on our youth and in our community. We invite the community to come out and join us.”

There will be free food, free groceries, free shoes, free clothes and free health checks. There will also be a life-saving message by Bishop Ernest Dowdy of Church of the Living God, as well as powerful gospel music, dancing and good fellowship, face painting, free prizes, much fun! 

The SB Pastors United will also be in attendance at the San Bernardino 2018 State of the City address, on Friday, April 27 at the SB International Airport. Along with two other agencies, SBPU will be recognized for making a difference in the community. 

SBPU has been devoted to making a difference in the lives of the residence in the City. You are invited to come out and see what’s going on in your city and be a part of the solution. Let us join together in unity and solitary; let’s not just talk about it but be about it.

 “It’s going to take the whole village to turn our community around.  SBPU is here to help make a difference in our community by providing “Healing, Change and Progress” to the City of San Bernardino. Good things are coming out of San Bernardino,” Young said.

Please preregister by phone, email or visit www.sbpastorsunited.org. To volunteer call (909) 353-7977.  

By Lue Dowdy

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- The 3^rdUltimate Lowrider Photoshoot and Models is What It Do! We are calling all models, slim or thick!

Diva Outlaw is providing an opportunity for you to expand your professional portfolio with some fresh and edgy photos. You can sign up with Diva Outlaw and have these phenomenal photographers, ‘Trademenz Loung’, ‘The LBC Photographer’, and guest photographer ‘FGO Fantasy’ take your photos on Sunday, May 19. Come out, have fun and network with other models. For more details email Riisha Shelby, owner of Diva Outlaw at divaoutlawapparel@gmail.com.

Until next week L’s.

Publisher’s Commentary by Wallace J. Allen

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- It appears that police take complaints about Black men as orders to arrest! I expect that the police should validate the accuracy of the call and the level of threat prior to arresting or shooting!

Did the police in Sacramento check the validity of the phone call about someone breaking car windows prior to responding and chasing someone to the area of Stephon Clark’s Grandmother’s backyard, where upon seeing Stephon with his cell phone in his hand? They screamed “gun” and shot him 8 times, killing him. Six shots of which were in the back! Were the police sure that the person they had been chasing was the person standing in the yard? Were they sure that the person they were chasing had broken any car windows?

When the police responded to a call from the Starbucks store about trespassers that had not yet made a purchase, did they investigate the validity of the call? Did they question and determine if there was a threat that required or justified the arrest of the two Black men?  How many people have the police removed, in handcuffs, from a Starbucks because of their slow order or for waiting to meet someone that completes their party?

Starbucks, you and I have the ability to call the police for any reason; however, it is up to the police to validate the reason prior to taking action!

We will discuss this subject further and “What happens when we choose to not vote” during this Sunday’s edition of “Empire Talks Back” at 10 a.m.  on KCAA1050 AM, 102.3 and 106.5 FM. There is also a live video stream via www.kcaaradio.com and you can listen on your phone by dialing (701) 801-4444.

San Bernardino Valley College holds first-ever CyberTech Girls Workshop getting girls more involved with technology on Saturday, April 21

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Sixty middle and high school girls from San Bernardino and Riverside counties are scheduled to participate in the first CyberTech Girls workshop on Saturday, April 21 at San Bernardino Valley College.

The students represent more than 25 schools and 14 districts in the two-county region. At the conference, they will learn about crime scene investigations, how to build a computer and work on constructing a website.

The event is organized by San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools’ (SBCSS) CyberSB and San Bernardino Valley College. Participating schools and districts include: Alta Loma: Vineyard Junior High; Central: Ruth Musser Middle; Chaffey: Alta Loma High; Colony High; Etiwanda High; Ontario High; Rancho Cucamonga High; Colton Joint Unified: Joe Baca Middle; Etiwanda: Day Creek Intermediate, Lightfoot Elementary; Summit Intermediate; Hesperia Unified: Sultana High; Ontario-Montclair; Redlands Unified: Beattie Middle; Clement Middle; Cope Middle; Moore Middle; Redlands High; Redlands East Valley High; Rialto Unified: Kolb Middle; SBCSS; Upland Unified: Foothill Knolls Elementary; Upland High; Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified: Dunlap Elementary, Inland Leaders Charter; Park View Middle.

L/R: Mr. Gilbert D. Brown, Western Province Polemarch; Ms. Joyce Smith, President, Social Lites, Inc.; Dr. Samuel Gibbs, Chairman

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Congratulations to Social Lites, Inc. for being awarded the “Johnnie L. Cochran Award” and a $500 donation from Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. at the fraternity’s Public Meeting on Friday, April 13 at the Ontario Airport Hotel and Conference Center. 

Social Lites, Inc. have been in the Inland Empire for sixty-one years and has given to many worthwhile community need and presented over a million dollars scholarships and awards to deserving young men who have participated in the annual Beautillion Scholarship Program.

The 52nd Beautillion Program will start in Fall 2018. For more information visit www.sociallitesinc.net.

By Naomi K. Bonman

With tax season wrapping up on Sunday, April 15 (Tax Day), businesses and individuals are scurrying to get that last-minute tax refund in. But how many of you are investing that refund wisely?

When it comes to healing our communities, economics plays a vital role in building up and expanding our communities. All it takes is to have leaders that are savvy in economic growth to teach and show others how to assist in helping our communities grow. One of our community leaders that is a prime example of that is Reginald Young.

Reginald Young is the founder of MDISNET and an administrative pastor for Pastors United. He is also one of the core founders that are in the process of launching a credit union in San Bernardino, which would cater to the minority community.

I recently sat down and chatted with Rev. Young where he explained in detail the community and business endeavors that he has planned for this year and the coming years. To watch the interview, please hit play below:

Publisher’s Commentary by Wallace J. Allen

This week we relive the agony generated by the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.!  Many proclamations and declarations will be made about how far we have come or about the progress that has or has not been made. Much of the comparison will speak to the anticipated conduct of white people, especially the white people and institutions that have historically and traditionally impeded our progress.

This is to encourage that we, Black people and non-Blacks of conscious, involve ourselves in supporting two institutions that Dr. King suggested are paramount and critical to our development. He said that we should all get a life insurance policy from a Black Owned Insurance Company and that our churches should be depositing Sunday tithes and offerings into Black owned and operated banks and or credit unions!

I submit that when we decide to put our money in institutions that are focused on developing our communities, it will matter less about the anticipated/expected/desired conduct of people and institutions that we know are preying upon us as well as praying against us!

For information about supporting Black owned and operated Insurance and banking institutions, feel free to call and leave me a message at (909) 384-8131. I will return your call with specific information!