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By By Troy Schulz, Zenger News

White carved out a pioneering career path that stretched from the Pentagon’s head office to Hyundai headquarters

As Hyundai North America’s first chief communications officer, Dana W. White knows what it is like to have two feet in two worlds.

“Growing up I always knew about the power of communication, the power of words,” she said, talking about her childhood in Charlottesville, Virginia. “My grandfather, who was born in 1896, founded the oldest black newspaper in the state. I used to cut ad sheets every month and write copy and process black-and-white photos [at the paper]. The entrepreneurial spirit runs deep in me and my family.”

While the weekly black newspaper, the Charlottesville-Albemarle Tribune, is gone, the family’s entrepreneurial spirit lives on. “The environment I grew up in, my family, was that there was never just a pot of gold waiting for me at the end of the tunnel,” she said. “It’s in my DNA – to make it happen for yourself.”

Dr. Ben Chavis runs the trade group for African American newspaper publishers. “The National Newspapers Publishers Association salutes Hyundai for its decision to elevate an African-American woman leader to the position of Chief Communications Officer. In this year where the focus is on the empowerment of all women, Dana White represents and embodies the best of Black America,” he told Zenger News of White.

Dana White is no relation to the Ultimate Fighting Championship president with the same name.

She studied hard in college, taking the toughest courses on purpose even if they were scheduled early in the morning and required long walks across Chicago wind-chilled campus. Those courses included learning to read, write and speak Mandarin, the mostly widely used of the Chinese-language dialects. She majored in Chinese history at the University of Chicago.

White thought hard about her choices in what to study; she didn’t just take the most popular courses or the easiest ones to earn a top grade. Of course, she said there are no “easy” courses at the University of Chicago, which competes with the Ivy League for students. “At the time, nobody was thinking about China,” she said. “Everyone was terrified that Japan was taking over the world, but no one was thinking about this country of one billion people that was just sitting there, very quiet. I wanted to make sure I’d be employable for the next 50 years, find something that was valuable for the future. So, I decided to study Mandarin.”

She applied for scholarships to study in China’s capital, Beijing, and later in South Korea’s capital, Seoul. This on-the-ground experience would later prove pivotal in her career.

“I think it’s fascinating, working as a Black American within different cultures. In fact, sometimes I think it’s an advantage as I experience my home culture differently and therefore, I think I’m much more observant and intrigued by people, their language and traditions. It’s helpful in translating best practices and communications,” she said. “Communication isn’t just about the literal words themselves, it’s about the feeling, impressions and the image you convey or defy.”

After college, she moved to Washington, DC without a job and worked as an intern and a temp to pay the bills while she applied for jobs on Capitol Hill.

The Republican committee for all GOP lawmakers, then chaired by Rep. J.C. Watts, the only Black Republican serving in Congress, was the first to call her back. She went on to take a series of jobs in government and in media, often working as the only black woman in the room. She accepted a job as deputy press secretary for the House Republican Conference, where she worked for two years until 2000.

Then she joined the public relations team at Fox News for a year in 2000. Later she worked at the Heritage Foundation, a think tank on Capitol Hill that is influential among Republicans.

“I was director of the Heritage Foundation’s roundtable for Asia-Pacific journalists, which was comprised of foreign correspondents from outlets such as The Nikkei and Asahi Shimbun and Chosun Ilbo.” she said. “I was working with more than 400 different journalists from across Asia.” Her study in Chinese language and Asian culture had made her stand out. Her careful preparation was paying off in unexpected ways. “At Heritage, I met some wonderful reporters from Taiwan, Japan and Korea. It was so beneficial when I did my first stint at the Pentagon on the China Desk, then at Nissan and now Hyundai.”

Her studies and experience soon took her back to the federal government. President George W. Bush named her Taiwan Country Director at the Defense department.

She returned to the private sector as an editor in the arts and culture section of The Wall Street Journal, the nation’s most widely read newspaper, and lived in Hong Kong.

Next, she was tapped as director of policy and strategic communications for the Renault–Nissan Alliance, a joint venture of the French and Japanese auto makers. They needed someone who understood both media and Asia, and she was one of the few that fit the bill. She soon became fluent in French and worked from Renault’s Paris headquarters. Still, she never forgot her roots, often phoning her mother—who was born and raised in a small black enclave in north Philadelphia—and then living in northern Virginia’s ever-spreading suburbs.

She returned from Paris in 2015 and started her own public relations firm 1055 Grady, named in honor of her grandfather’s address in Charlottesville, where she was first inspired to be an entrepreneur. Back in Washington, DC, she was tapped by the Trump campaign to help with their strategic communications. Shortly after Donald J. Trump was sworn in, she was asked about taking a high-profile spot back at the Pentagon. Her earlier stint at the Defense Department along with her knowledge and contacts in U.S. and foreign media perfectly positioned her to take the top spot as head of public affairs for the Defense Department. She was sworn in as Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and Chief Pentagon Spokesperson on April 7, 2017.

It was also the same day the U.S. sent cruise missiles to strike Syria in response to its chemical-weapons attacks. Nearly one year to the day, she would go before the world to brief the U.S. strikes on Syria in response to another chemical attack. She became the first black person to hold that prestigious post.

She reported directly to then-Defense Secretary James Mattis. When he resigned in 2018, she followed the same day. “I left DoD alongside Mattis because I believe in his integrity,” she said.

Mattis differed with President Trump on matters ranging from pulling troops out of Syria and Afghanistan to withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

Now Dana White runs North American communications for Hyundai Motor Company, a South Korean car maker that builds more than half of its vehicles at its plant in Alabama and employs some 25,000 people in the United States. She joined the Zenger News advisory board in 2019.

White sees herself as a cross-cultural bridge.  At Hyundai Motor North America, she is the Chief Communications Officer—a first for Korean automaker in the U.S. She oversees communications for Hyundai Motor North America headquarters and all of Hyundai’s North America Affiliates including Canada and Mexico, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Glovis (Hyundai’s Logistics Operations), Mobis (Hyundai Parts Operations), Hyundai Capital and the Washington, DC Office. White also has strategic oversight of Hyundai’s luxury automotive brand Genesis, the first SUV for the industry’s newest luxury brand.

“When I joined Hyundai a year ago, I knew I needed someone who understood decision making at the highest levels, storytelling and how to work across cultures seamlessly to deliver results. So, I called Dana,” said Jose Munoz, Global COO of Hyundai Motor Company and Pres. & CEO of Hyundai Motor North America. “It’s rare to find one person with all the skills, talents and experiences that she has. And she has proven track record of success. In few short months, Dana has already made a big difference in how we operate, communicate and tell the Hyundai story.”

Ultimately for White, she said her passions are education, excellence and empowerment. “I can still hear my grandfather’s gruff voice saying, ‘Mouse, I want you to be a smart little girl. Learn everything you can.’ I think about everything he survived, all the limits placed on his life and how if he could see me now—a man who proud to put pictures of my nursery school graduation in the paper—I know he’d say…’So, Mouse…what’s next?’”

Her father, Sherman R. White, graduated from Charlottesville’s segregated schools was also plaintiff in the desegregation of Charlottesville schools.  He attended Howard University at 16 years-old and later pledged the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.  At Howard, he met her and married her mother Agnes Cross, who was from Philadelphia. Her father was an AME minister and her mother one the first blacks to secure a civil service job in the state of Pennsylvania.

Her cousin Cheryl was the President of the local Williamsburg chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. In high school, Dana was awarded a merit scholarship from the University of Virginia Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta. And her older brother is a graduate of Hampton University

“The thing about me is that I’m propelled by history and obsessed with the future. I’m passionate about ideas and a mission. I want to see people move forward—know their past and explore their future,” she said. “It’s in my family—this spirit of perseverance. I feel like they handed me a baton. They ran hard and ran fast. They carried the baton as far as they could go. Now, it’s my turn to run faster and farther and pass the baton to the next generation. I say, ‘When you stand on the shoulders of slaves, there’s no slouching.’”

By Tanu Henry | California Black Media  

About 41 weeks into her pregnancy now, California Board of Equalization (BOE) memberMalia Cohen, who is the state’s only African American woman constitutional officer, is preparing to give birth on September 3.   

Motherhood will be a new role for Cohen, a veteran leader and elected official, who served two terms on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and now administers California’s $70 billion property tax system as a member of the BOE, representing 10 million people in 23 counties. 

Although Cohen could not host the fancy themed baby shower she had once imagined because of the COVID-19 pandemic, on Father’s Day Cohen hosted a “gender” reveal on Zoom instead.   

Before that virtual event, Cohen and her best friend mailed party poppers to her close friends and family members, including her mother, mother-in-law and sister. On the video call, her loved ones chanted a countdown with Cohen and her husband before the couple announced that they are having a girl to a Zoom room of cheering loved ones and streaming popper confetti.   She has assembled a “birth team” for her delivery, too. It is scheduled to happen at the San Francisco Birth Center.  

“The birth center allows me to deliver with a team of trained midwives, a Black pediatrician and my birth team, who are my mother, my husband, my sister and my doula,” said Cohen. It’s a professional emotional support system. They will all be around me when I’m laboring.”  

Cohen says being allowed to have other close relatives in the delivery room besides her husband was one reason for choosing a birth center over a traditional hospital.  Another was safety. An uptick in coronavirus cases in California over the summer sealed that decision.  

In addition to planning her birth, working out to stay in shape, and meditating to keep her stress low, Cohen has managed to balance her BOE responsibilities with keeping public speaking commitments and staying involved in state policymaking. She has worked with the governor’s office to get several executive orders in place to provide relief for taxpayers.  

She also watches and has called into legislative committee hearings to testify on various issues, and she has written letters to support or oppose a number of bills.  Cohen lent her voice in support of ACA 5, authored by Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), that would repeal Proposition 209, and bring affirmative action back to California’s public agencies.  ACA 5 is now on the November ballot as Proposition 16, and Cohen is campaigning hard for its passage. 

“I’ve had to rely on technology to get things done,” says Cohen whose home office, she says, has been upgraded with a ring light for Zoom or Microsoft Team calls, two laptops, a scanner-slash-printer and the “fastest internet speed possible” to make her telecommuting seamless.  

“These coronavirus times are sure different,” says Cohen, recalling the rush to jump on the train to Sacramento and attend government meetings in person. 

“I really miss reaching out and working to solve problems face to face,” she says, citing another impact of the pandemic. Cohen says, overall, she has managed to keep her life and responsibilities in order.   But there are times when those cravings hit, Cohen says. “They are not so manageable.” 

“For the most part – I’ll say 85-90% of the time – I’ve been conscious and healthy. But there is that 10 or 15 % when I have to have Doritos or Oreo Cookies. My mom makes the Rice Krispies treats for me,” Cohen laughed.  “Yes, my mom is my enabler.”  

At work, Cohen says right now one of her main priorities at the BOE is working on providing safe remote hearing for the Assessment Appeals Boards. That body resolves property value disputes between taxpayers and assessors who appraise properties.  

“How do we take things we use to do in-person and bring them online?” She asked. “That way, we are protecting due process. We are protecting the integrity of sensitive documents. We are protecting the health and safety of the petitioner and of our staff.” 

Because of the pandemic, Cohen says the BOE has had to make major adjustments. “To use the expression,” she explains, “we are building the plane while we’re flying.” 

Away from work, Cohen says watching George Floyd’s murder on TV and seeing reports about Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery murders, as well as following the protests across America and the world, have taken a toll on her.  

“You begin to wonder: What kind of world am I bringing a baby girl into?  There are days when I watched the protests and I just sat on the couch crying, just weeping,” says Cohen, who was able to get out to speak at one Black Lives Matter protest in San Francisco. “I wanted to march, too, but I realize that I had to protect myself and my baby.”  

Cohen says a source of stress that has always been in the back of her mind is looking honestly at how the country cares for Black women.  

“There is a disparity between Black women and White Women. Less Black women carry their babies full term,” Cohen pointed out.  Through it all, Cohen says she stays positive and remembers all the things she can be thankful for like being able to take naps when she gets overwhelmed by sleepiness or not having to commute from her home in San Francisco to weekly meetings in Sacramento.  

Then there’s the inspiration of Kamala Harris. Cohen says she been a supporter of the former California Attorney General since she was a DA in San Francisco. Cohen served on the city’s Board of Supervisors and worked with Harris on more than one occasion. Cohen says that Harris’ selection to run as Vice President “Is but one more step in a long road towards justice and representation for African Americans.” 

For now, Cohen says she is preparing to go into labor and for all the joys and challenges that are bound to follow.  

“I can’t wait to pour into her everything that I’ve learned, my understanding of the world,” says Cohen.

“Pouring into her curiosity; a respect for other people and cultures; a desire to travel; and resiliency. Our daughter will inherit the world we will make better through our struggles and our commitment to justice.” 

As we ended our interview, Cohen added, “Every day I have a smile on my face and joy in my heart when I think of her.  I can’t wait for her to be born!” 

By Erik Cork

Rest In Power, Young King CHAD BOZEMAN.  You were just coming into your own.  You were generally regarded as “The Next Denzel” with no other contenders to this elite super-star throne.

Born in South Carolina in 1976, YOUR NAME meant BOX OFFICE to Hollywood executives who picked YOU to portray historic icons like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall and James Brown.  However, when CHAD BOZEMAN played King T’Challa in the blockbuster BLACK PANTHER, your talented name became the talk of the town.

Your fans NEVER KNEW you had been fighting cancer for the past 4 YEARS.  Everyone is now in SHOCK!!  Your close family, your colleagues and your peers are shedding inconsolable tears because 43 years old seems WAY TOO YOUNG to die.  Not many folks who might live to see 100 will achieve YOUR admirable accomplishments – no matter how much or how hard they might try.

CHAD BOZEMAN – you exuded class and dignity.  You were an elite actor who studied & perfected your craft.  You were serious.  You were skilled.  You were sincere.  You loved to smile.  You loved to laugh.

Colon cancer canceled your future performances in SUPER HERO FILMS that made Black people proud.  Grown folks showed up in record numbers to theaters wearing dashikis to represent WAKANDA and Black Pride OUT LOUD.

The acting crowd in Heaven will welcome your brilliance like we gaze at a SHOOTING STAR.  They will not do lines from any of your billion-dollar grossing movies.  It must be royal welcoming already, so far…

Regardless of who you are, you must ADMIT actor Chad Bozeman was 100 percent LEGIT.  He was a polished professional ironically ahead of his time – because TIME and LONGEVITY was not on his resume – even though iconic “King T’Challa” will LIVE FOREVER in our hearts and mind.

WAKANDA FOREVER – but more importantly, how will you wake up and LIVE YOUR LIFE tomorrow?  Chad Bozeman is receiving TRIBUTES because he lived out his dream in the midst of secret chemo treatments and private sorrow.

Rest In Peace, Young Warrior Prince.  You had the whole world absolutely CONVINCED you were invincible as the The Black Panther.  You were a COMET whose light was bright and very condensed as YOU, Idris Elba and Jamie Foxx were the 1, 2 or 3 ANSWER in a very short window of Black box office fame.  And just like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, James Brown & King T’Challa – young CHAD BOZEMAN – the world will always remember YOUR NAME!

Margie Lee Pellum was lovingly known by family and friends as “Big Mama”, recently recognized in the San Bernardino County 2020 Black History Month “Phenomenal Woman” parade. 

Mrs. Pellum received awards from Fiona Ma, State Treasurer, San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, City of Fontana, Congresswoman Norma Torres, Assemblywoman Reyes as well as from the organizers of the event the Concerned Citizens for the Development of North Fontana for her dedication as an educator for 35 years prior to retiring from the district.

On August 25, 2020, Mrs. Pellum transition from this life to the next to celebrate her 95th birthday  with her Heavenly Father, we thank God for her longevity. The North Fontana Community is grateful for her lifelong dedication to the thousands she touched, unlocking young minds, and always reminding us that education is the key to success. Thank you, Donald, Jerry, and Fred Christian for sharing your phenomenal mother with us. 

Services will be held on Monday, September 9 at 11 a.m. at Greater Faith Grace Bible Church located at 249 E. Randall Avenue in Rialto. The service will be live streamed from the church via www.gfgbcrialto.org.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- With the start of the 2020 fall semester, California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) will launch the School of Entrepreneurship, the first of its kind in California. The unique program, one of less than 15 existing worldwide, will boost the university’s already highly successful entrepreneurship program.

The School of Entrepreneurship, housed in the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration, further places CSUSB as a leading entity in the growing field of entrepreneurship education, said Mike Stull, a professor of entrepreneurship and director of the university’s Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship, who will serve as the school’s director.

“Establishing the School of Entrepreneurship is an important step for CSUSB and the Jack H. Brown College as it evolves and innovates to meet the needs of students and the local community,” said Stull. “We envision a substantial positive impact, as it will further cement the JHBC reputation as a leader in the field of entrepreneurship education and increase the college’s ability to engage with the local business community in terms of relationships, collaboration, and resources.”

As a school of entrepreneurship, it will oversee and coordinate eight major academic programs in entrepreneurship with over 20 full- and part-time faculty, Stull said.

Cal State San Bernardino President Tomás D. Morales said he was pleased to give the final approval to establish the School of Entrepreneurship, which had been championed at the department, college, Faculty Senate, and by the provost.

“The School of Entrepreneurship represents a truly wonderful and pioneering example of our mission here at Cal State San Bernardino in offering our students a challenging, yet rewarding, educational experience,” Morales said.

“The school’s offerings and dynamic faculty will inspire our students to succeed and help prepare them for life after graduation where they will become our future business leaders and leading entrepreneurs.”

“Our entrepreneurship program has evolved to the point where it makes sense for it to control its own destiny as a distinct academic discipline,” said Lawrence Rose, dean of the Jack H. Brown College. “As a school, the program will gain greater visibility and collaboration campus wide. It will be able to innovate and engage different stakeholders across campus structures. Faculty recruitment will become easier, and employers will better understand what hiring a graduate from the School of Entrepreneurship can contribute to their organizations. I also strongly believe this will allow us to deepen our partnership with the community, bringing significant resources and collaborations that will benefit all parties.”

The creation of the School of Entrepreneurship will significantly raise the university’s profile in recruiting potential students and reinforcing its efforts to become a “destination” program that draws students from beyond the Inland Empire region, Stull said.

“Students are looking for programs that are leaders and innovators in the educational field and have the ecosystem that will support their goal to create new ventures or become innovative change makers in their career field,” Stull said. “CSUSB checks all the boxes in that regard – an innovative, well-established program that is going to the next level by creating a school of entrepreneurship.”

For the existing CSUSB entrepreneurship faculty, the designation will provide an advantage in applying for external research and grant funding. It will also create a significant competitive advantage as the school recruits for top faculty talent. The designation also allows for more interdisciplinary collaboration on campus and the potential for joint faculty appointments with fields such as art, natural sciences, social sciences and education.

The school will add to the university’s entrepreneurship program’s already high profile within the inland region with potential employers, donors and other organizations, which in turn enhances support for startup ventures as well as job and internship opportunities for students in the school, said Stull, who added that the hope is that this will attract more local professionals and entrepreneurs to support the school as mentors, guest lecturers and adjunct faculty.

The CSUSB entrepreneurship program is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the leading accreditation for business academic programs worldwide and has evolved and grown substantially since it was launched in the early 2000s.

Enrollment has grown from fewer than 20 students in fall 2002 to its current total of 265 students.  Program officials believe strongly that the entrepreneurship academic program could nearly double in five years.

This growth will be fueled by increasing interest in entrepreneurship among students from all different fields. In fall 2020, CSUSB is welcoming its largest ever freshman class in entrepreneurship, and the school is launching several new initiatives including a dedicated graduate degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, collaborative entrepreneurship academic programs with Art, Liberal Studies and Education and unique new courses such as The Improvisational Mind, a collaboration between entrepreneurship and theater arts faculty. 

“We believe strongly that the entrepreneurship academic program can reach 500 students by 2025,” Stull said. “Supporting this potential growth is the fact that entrepreneurship expanded to our Palm Desert Campus in fall 2019 and is currently implementing a wide range of new courses and programs that appeal to students from every discipline on campus.”

As entrepreneurship has grown at CSUSB, the greater academic field of entrepreneurship has also grown and evolved to become recognized through research and programs as a distinct discipline in the field of business. These trends, coupled with the anticipation of future growth and development of the program, resulted in the unanimous decision by the CSUSB entrepreneurship faculty to propose the establishment of a new academic unit representing Entrepreneurship. The school, developed and approved over a three-year process, ultimately received unanimous approval from the Jack H. Brown College, the university Faculty Senate and CSUSB President Tomás Morales.

Stull said as entrepreneurship continues to evolve and grow as a distinct academic discipline, legitimate programs that aspire to national and global recognition are establishing distinct Schools of Entrepreneurship within their respective academic colleges. Universities such as Florida State University, Oklahoma State University and Drexel University are among the early adopters in establishing schools. 

“Becoming the first School of Entrepreneurship in the state of California enables us to extend our existing brand as a top entrepreneurship program and continue to be an innovator both locally and within the CSU system with regard to entrepreneurship education,” Stull said. “Potential students will be drawn to CSUSB as we practice what we preach – innovation, growth and applying the entrepreneurial mindset to achieve impact.”

Mike Stull, director of the CSUSB School of Entrepreneurship is available for interviews. Contact Joe Gutierrez at the CSUSB Office of Strategic Communication at 951-236-4522 or email joeg@csusb.edu.

About Cal State San Bernardino

California State University, San Bernardino is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in Inland Southern California. Opened in 1965 and set at the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, the university serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually. The university offers more than 70 traditional baccalaureate and master’s degree programs, education credential and certificate programs, and a doctorate program in educational leadership. Every one of its academic programs that is eligible has earned national accreditation. CSUSB reflects the dynamic diversity of the region and has the most diverse student population of any university in the Inland Empire. More than 80 percent of those who graduate are the first in their families to do so.

For more information on Cal State San Bernardino, contact the university’s Office of Strategic Communication at (909) 537-5007 and visit https://www.csusb.edu/inside.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—– The PAL Center,  a local San Bernardino non-profit organization located in the heart of San Bernardino and Muscoy,  has been serving the Inland Empire with a variety of community programs for over 35 years.

They were among several COVID-19 front line organizations that shared in an Arrowhead United Way funding drive-thru on Thursday, August 13th at United Way Headquarters.

Dwaine Radden Sr., the PAL Center CEO, stated: “It is always great when your organization and staff are recognized with a grant for making a difference in your community.

Cars were lined up for blocks filled with community leaders to participate in this historic first funding drive-thru hosted by the Arrowhead United Way.

United Way President, Gwen Dowdy Rodgers, said: “Arrowhead United Way has always been the beacon of light for our community and during COVID-19 we continue to serve those in need along with organizations dedicated to our community during these unprecedented times    

We supported 30 local agencies affected by COVID for a total of $285,000 because of generous donor support. The Arrowhead United Way team reached out locally and to the mountain communities to make these awards.

While we continue to stay safe and maintain social distance, our Marketing lead, Christopher Ortiz, and the staff felt we could do a safe drive through check presentation, and a follow up virtual check presentation for those unable to make the drive-thru celebration. Most of the organizations were able to join us in the drive-thru celebration.” 

Radden, saluted President Gwen Rogers and the Arrowhead United Way Team, for keeping funds in our community and making sure local non-profit organizations were included in this grant. He said, “This grant will provide all of us working on the front line with funds to continue and expand needed services for our families and community.”

Visit PAL Center at www.palcenter.org, or social media Facebook, and Twitter. To make donations, or to learn more about their programs and organization, call (909) 887-7002

Visit Arrowhead United Way website and Facebook and follow up on social
Media to donate.

The PAL Center,  a local San Bernardino non-profit organization located in the heart of San Bernardino and Muscoy,  has been serving the Inland Empire with a variety of community programs for over 35 years.

They were among several COVID-19 front line organizations that shared in an Arrowhead United Way funding drive-thru on Thursday, August 13th at United Way Headquarters.

Dwaine Radden Sr., the PAL Center CEO, stated: “It is always great when your organization and staff are recognized with a grant for making a difference in your community.

Cars were lined up for blocks filled with community leaders to participate in this historic first funding drive-thru hosted by the Arrowhead United Way.

United Way President, Gwen Dowdy Rodgers, said: “Arrowhead United Way has always been the beacon of light for our community and during COVID-19 we continue to serve those in need along with organizations dedicated to our community during these unprecedented times    

We supported 30 local agencies affected by COVID for a total of $285,000 because of generous donor support. The Arrowhead United Way team reached out locally and to the mountain communities to make these awards.

While we continue to stay safe and maintain social distance, our Marketing lead, Christopher Ortiz, and the staff felt we could do a safe drive through check presentation, and a follow up virtual check presentation for those unable to make the drive-thru celebration. Most of the organizations were able to join us in the drive-thru celebration.” 

Radden, saluted President Gwen Rogers and the Arrowhead United Way Team, for keeping funds in our community and making sure local non-profit organizations were included in this grant. He said, “This grant will provide all of us working on the front line with funds to continue and expand needed services for our families and community.”

Visit PAL Center at www.palcenter.org, or social media Facebook, and Twitter. To make donations, or to learn more about their programs and organization, call (909) 887-7002

By Hermene D. Hartman

The shouting is over. The 2020 Democratic National Convention was well crafted, programed and designed. The Democrats told the stories of the candidates.

President Bill Clinton reminded us of another time when he was President. Hillary Clinton reminded us that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris could win by 3 million votes and still lose. Trust me she knows what she’s talking about.

President Barack Obama gave us a strong and forceful lesson on constitutional law. He powerfully presented in unprecedented terms how Trump as President, just didn’t have it. He pulled no punches. He stated, “I never expected Trump to embrace my vision or continue my policies, I did hope (for the sake of our country) that Donald Trump might show some interest in taking the job seriously.” “Trump has shown no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get more attention he craves.” He said that Joe and Kamala will rescue the economy and deeply cared about Americans, together they would get the pandemic under control.

Michelle Obama gave it to us middle of the road, southside girl style, stating the facts of the case and telling it like older generations use to say “T-I-S!” Wearing a “Vote” necklace, Michelle called Trump by his name and said “Donald Trump is the wrong president for our country.” We watched a moving documentary on democracy.

The highlight of the convention was the introduction of Kamala Harris. We heard of her background being raised as a Black woman born of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father. Her mother, a biologist and cancer researcher, raised her and her sister as a single parent, and her father left the family when she was 5 years old. Her mother is deceased. Her dad is an economics scholar and was the first Black male to gain tenure at Stanford University.

As we listened and watched Kamala accept the Democratic nomination for vice president, we wondered if we were watching a future president. She could make astounding history as the first woman and the second Black in the Oval Office. Wow. This could really happen in our lifetime. A lady from Howard University could possibly lead the White House. Hello to all of the AKA’s.

Harris meets ambivalence with some Black men as they question her deeds as a prosecuting attorney in California. She locked many of them up. She will be questioned, yet she was only doing her job. But, would you rather have Trump? That’s the legitimate question.

Dr. Jill Biden will make her very own history as First Lady, community college professor and super mom if Joe’s elected president. She promised that she wouldn’t leave her students, not even for the job at the White House. She will be the first First Lady with outside employment. Let’s see how that works and who enrolls next semester.

Finally candidate, former vice president Joe Biden. Joe presented himself in a strong speech, perhaps the best in his 47 years of public service. It wasn’t a convention speech but felt like a fireside chat. He was compassionate, elegant, dignified and real. He told his story about his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania where he knew real life causalities, from his Dad’s loss of job, to the accidental tragic death of his first wife and daughter.

His political journey has been from being the youngest Senator to being possibly the eldest President. When he lost his first wife and daughter in a tragic car accident in 1972, he commuted to work every day via Amtrak to and from Washington, DC every day (the trip’s about 90 minutes) and tucked his kids in bed nightly, as they got through the pain. He did this for 36 years. He lost his son, Bo, to brain cancer. You could hear Biden’s pride of his son the solider, as he went into public office, yet the agony lingers as he tell us, you never get over it. If you don’t identify with that, you are heartless.

During his speech, Biden pulled at your heartstrings as he spoke about his personal stuttering. He introduced to a young boy he met on the campaign trail, with the same problem. Biden told the 13-year-old boy how to conquer his speaking issue. “Kids like me are counting on you to elect someone we can all look up to” he said.

The convention was staged beautifully. It was different. It’s messages deliberate. Zoom was used at its best especially during the home spun roll calls. No fanfare, no balloons or confetti, no applause, no tears, and no cheers. Taped speeches were controlled and purposeful as they were delivered with everyone talking straight to the American public, from their living rooms to ours. It was cozy, casual and comfortable.

As perfect as the Democratic National Convention was, its speakers missed a few things. They missed telling us their plans on what they will do with program and policy for the future of America. Many of them ran against Trump, but did they run for a Democratic platform? We assume it will be better with Biden’s seniority and his lovely family but what should we expect? In the days to come we need to hear the Biden-Harris platform and not just see pretty faces and storytelling.

What about the eradication of racism in this era of Black Lives Matter? What about the economy, as we face a changing face of culture with the pandemic? What about police reform? What about education? Kids have missed a full year of school. We need to hear policy positions.

I like the idea very much that the future Vice President is in place. Kamala will represent a new generation. She will be groomed to assume office if need be. I like that Biden knows his way around the White House from his vice presidency days. I like the fact that he knows the Senate and can cross the aisle to get things done. I like his seniority very much. He can hit the ground running with vigor and energy as an expert surgeon. Experience matters. Biden’s experience matters.

Enters Trump…

And now comes the movement of Trump. He plans on appearing all four days of the Republican National Convention. His talks will be bold, pompous, filled with greatness and illusions of grandeur. His will be a scene from a patriot play that speaks in code to the ways of yesteryear, filled with America great slogans.

The rose garden has a new look for the television screen. Trump will tell us with boundless optimism how great he is, as he plays the political hand that has destroyed the Republican Party. He takes us backwards to a place we won’t go, as he disrupts even the post office. He challenges the system in a bold crazy way with his lovely fashionable family at his side as main speakers of the Trump parade.

His presidency is a virtual reality show. The last three years of his presidency has been flawed and Trump will tell us of the many hoaxes during his last three years.

Trump is not to be discounted, ignored or dismissed. He is ruthless and enjoys the attention of being president. He’s nothing but outrageous – from challenging birthing and calling people out of name. It’s nothing but a good hand of playing “signifying monkey.” His tactics work for him, because they are so daring. He’s like the drunk in the bar that everybody laughs and listens to, but nobody puts him out. They do nothing but give him another drink so that he can be more outrageously offensive.

Trump is not to be under estimated. He is a master of the media. He is bold. He’s an escaped convict running desperate. He’s a pied piper. All of his men have been jailed for their wrongdoing. Trump will pardon them as he can. Trump is telling us loud and clear if he loses it will be because the Democrats cheated. Perhaps the U.S. marshall will be called to remove him from the White House.

Trump with his many conspiracy theories, tells us that the post office will fail us, especially with mail-in votes. So what does he do? He removes the mailboxes off the streets and destroys the sorting machines. He has no fear. He tells us that even if he looses, he will not leave the White House. We look in disbelief and wonder, what on earth will he do next as he mounts his campaign for a second term. How much more offensive can he be? What other lunatic tactics and alien-like methodology will he use in a second term? Mrs. Obama has warned that it could get worse. This will only add to more fodder for books written about his ill and zany ways.

These are amazing times that we live in. As society changes daily, we watch old ways become new. We watch with fright and astonishment as we cope with a world pandemic, that the leader of the free world cannot embrace. He tells us it will be all right eventually, rather than pay attention to the science of the matter. Yet Trump will try and take credit for everything once a cure is found for COVID-19.

As we pray, we better damn sure get out to vote, at all cost. The vote is the only thing we can do to save America. Vote Trump out. Vote for Joe Biden. We HAVE to save our democracy. America’s at stake, please STAY woke.
The best thing that can happen to American democracy is to tell Trump “You’re FIRED!”

VOTE. Please share.

Fighting to uphold the Constitutional right to vote, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas urged the Board of Supervisors to oppose the Trump Administration’s cost-cutting efforts at the United States Postal Service, calling it a brazen attack on Americans’ ability to vote by mail.

Acting on his motion, Board Chair Pro Tem Hilda Solis issued an Executive Order authorizing County Counsel to join litigation as amicus curiae (friend-of-the-court). The Board is expected to ratify the Executive Order when it reconvenes on September 1^st.

“We’ve fought too hard to have our voices heard on Election Day, and we cannot allow the Postmaster General to suppress our right to vote by mail and undermine a pillar of our democracy,” Supervisor Ridley-Thomas said. “It is imperative that we take a stand so voters can cast their ballots without having go to a polling station during a pandemic.”

US Rep. Karen Bass, who chairs the Congressional Black Caucus, expressed support for the motion during a Facebook Live conversation with Supervisor Ridley-Thomas on leadership and community organizing. She is among the leading Congressional representatives calling for the resignation of the US Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, and for the Trump Administration to cease any “operational initiatives” that will have an impact on election mail.

“My father was a letter carrier for more than 30 years here in Los Angeles,” Rep. Bass said. “The US Postal Service is not only vital to our election, but also to the livelihood of so many in our communities. The Post Office is one of the largest employers of veterans. We must continue to do all that we can to protect this institution from those who are looking to destroy it.”

Supervisor Ridley-Thomas has fought for voting rights for decades. He founded the African American Voter Registration, Education, and Participation (AAVREP) in 2002, the largest organized effort to register African American and urban voters in California. This after a decade of service as the Executive Director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, whose national organization was founded by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

More recently, Supervisor Ridley-Thomas has worked with Susan Burton, founder of the nonprofit A New Way of Life, to support L.A. Free the Vote, aimed at increasing the civic engagement of people in the justice system.

“As a formerly incarcerated person, I know that my vote matters. I depend on the Post Office to deliver my vote to the County Registrar Recorder’s Office,” Burton said. “We are appalled at the Trump administration’s attempt to disrupt the United States Postal Service during such a critical time.” A New Way of Life helps formerly incarcerated women successfully reenter society by connecting them to supportive services. It works to restore the civil rights of formerly incarcerated people, including their right to vote.

The USPS has always played a central role in the functioning of American democracy but has become even more critical amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Many people rely on mail not only to cast ballots but also to receive life-saving medications and other supplies during a time when it is incredibly risky to gather in one place, stand in line, and touch the same election machinery. 

Despite that, Postmaster General DeJoy recently, and just months before the November 3rdGeneral Election, decided to implement changes at the USPS without first seeking authority from the Postal Commission, and despite acknowledging that the service reductions would result in “mail left behind.” DeJoy, a Republican Party and Trump campaign donor, later canceled some of the changes after a public outcry. The USPS, however, has already removed many mailboxes from service across several states.

The Attorneys General of Washington, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin have all filed lawsuits opposing the changes. The Attorneys General of Pennsylvania, with California, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New Jersey, and New York, are also expected to the challenge the changes in court.

By Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media 

Eric Garner’s mother Gwendolyn Carr says, for Black Men, selling a single cigarette, known as “loosey,” can lead to an arrest, a prison sentence or even death. 

Six years ago, a police officer put her son in a chokehold and strangled him to death for allegedly selling illegal cigarettes on Staten Island, a borough of New York City. 

Now, Carr is speaking out in a new video against California Senate Bill (SB) 793, which she says will create the same circumstances – the illegal sale and use of menthol cigarettes and aggressive, racially-biased law enforcement — that led to her son’s death. If the Senate passes the bill and Gov. Newsom signs it into law, it would ban the sale of menthol tobacco and other flavored cigarette products. 

“A new law would criminalize menthol cigarettes, which Black people smoke almost exclusively, giving police officers another excuse to harm and arrest any Black man, woman or child they choose,” Carr says in the video opposing SB 793. “A bad law has consequences for mothers like me.” 

Carr is not alone in her opinion of the bill. Across California, there is opposition to SB 793, which, if passed, would become the country’s strongest restriction on flavored tobacco products, including Newport, Kool and Salem cigarettes — three brands Blacks disproportionately smoke. 

Old and young, faith leaders, retired law enforcement officers, and civil rights activists came together to protest SB 793. At protests in Los Angeles and Sacramento on Aug. 20, they called out the inherent discrimination coded into the language and spirit of SB 793, which California Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) authored. 

“The goal of this protest is to ensure we are heard,” said Rev. K.W. Tulloss, President of Baptist Ministers Conference Los Angeles and co-founder of Neighborhood FORWARD, a community-based social action organization. “SB 793 is a bad bill that’s not good for California. The unintended consequences of this legislation are real. Bills like this take us backward.” 

But on the same day of the protests, the Assembly Appropriations Committee passed the bill, sending the bill to the full Assembly for consideration. 

The rallies were two in a series of three held against SB793. The first one was held in front of the home of California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood). 

Like Carr, people and organizations that oppose SB 793 say it is discriminatory because some adult tobacco products — those preferred by Whites – are exempted from the ban. 

Meanwhile, the tobacco products preferred by African American adult smokers, menthol cigarettes, are included in the ban. Exemptions in SB 793 include shisha tobacco, which is used in hookah water pipes, premium tobacco, and loose-leaf tobacco. 

The retail sale of flavored handmade premium cigars with a minimum price of $12 are also not prohibited under this bill. 

Some California residents say that the exemptions for certain kinds of tobacco nearly mirror laws that unequally penalized people for selling or possessing the same amounts of crack cocaine and powdered cocaine. 

In 1986, the federal government passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, which mandated stiffer punishments for people who sold crack cocaine, the rock form of the drug, which more Blacks used. Penalties for possessing or distributing cocaine powder, preferred by Whites, were much lighter. Distributing just five grams of crack triggered a federal mandatory minimum prison sentence of 5 years. But it required 500 grams of cocaine for a distributor to receive a federal prison sentence of the same length of time – a 100:1 disparity. 

Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement (NOBLE) agree that the bill has a racist element to it. They say the bill demonstrates clear discrimination and preferential treatment between two tobacco products preferred by two different cultural groups. 

“We will not and cannot stand for more policies that resemble another Black tax yet find a way to make concessions and amendments for certain groups,” Rev. Tulloss said. “Hookah is exempted, yet menthol cigarettes are not. The Speaker can make this bill fair and that’s all we’re asking.” 

Existing law prohibits a person from selling or otherwise furnishing tobacco products to a person under 21 years of age. It also prohibits the use of tobacco products in county offices of education, on charter school or school district property, or near a playground or youth sports event. 

If SB 793 passes, each violation of the law would be punishable by a fine of $250. 

“Using candy, fruit, and other alluring flavors, the tobacco industry weaponized its tactics to beguile a new generation into nicotine addiction while keeping longtime users hooked. SB 793 breaks Big Tobacco’s death grip,” said Hill said after the Senate voted 33-4 to advance the bill to the Assembly last month. 

An estimated seven out of 10 African American youth ages 12 to 17 years smoke menthol cigarettes, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition, African American adults make up the largest percentage of menthol cigarette users compared to other racial and ethnic groups, the CDC says. 

The coalition of SB 793 supporters include the Office of Lieutenant Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, the Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, and the Common Sense Kids, who are all bill sponsors. 

“SB 793 coauthors, cosponsors, African American thought leaders in government, health, the faith community, science, the arts and among our youth, as well as other supporters, have provided strong counterpoints to the obfuscation,” Hill stated. “We are confident that together we can ensure the strongest tobacco control restrictions in the country become California law.”

Photo by Antonio R. Harvey

Tanu Henry | California Black Media 

On July 25, the federal government’s Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program ended for most states, leaving millions of Californians without the extra cash many of them had been relying on for months to make ends meet. 

The $600 extra in federal stimulus pay was added cushion to the amount states already provide for their residents in unemployment insurance payments. Created for Americans who lost their jobs due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the program was authorized by the Cornonavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) act, which was signed into federal law in March. 

Then, last week, the California Employment Development Department (EDD) announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved California’s application to participate in the federal Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) program — funding that President Donald Trump authorized by memorandum Aug. 8. The LWA program provides $4.5 billion to California from which $300 extra in unemployment insurance benefits will be paid to individuals for three weeks. 

“Since the beginning of this pandemic, we have sought to maximize federally funded unemployment benefits to Californians. These benefits are critical for the basic security of families and communities and for our economy, which have been so devastated by the virus and its financial impacts,” said California Labor Secretary Julie A. Su after the EDD’s announcement. 

To qualify, unemployed Californians would have to already be eligible to receive at least $100 each week in unemployment benefits and they would have to provide proof that their job loss resulted from the coronavirus crisis. 

Although the U.S. House of Representatives has approved a fifth stimulus bill, the $3-trillion-dollar ‘‘Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, the Senate has not brought it up for debate or vote. That bill includes an extension of the $600 federal supplement through Jan. 31, 2021. 

Senate Republicans have countered the $600-a-week proposal in the HEROES act with a $400 weekly payment in UI benefits. Democrats turned down that offer in negotiations. 

Some Republican Senators opposed to the $600 payment approved in the last stimulus package argued that it does not provide an incentive for workers who were laid off to look for work. 

“We cannot encourage people to make more money in unemployment than they do in employment,” Sen. Tim Scott (D-SC) pointed out. 

While the U.S. Congress decides what should be included in the next stimulus package, for now unemployed Californians can apply to get $300 a week extra in unemployment benefits 

dating back to Aug. 1. 

“As we modernize and strengthen the state’s unemployment insurance delivery system, we will continue to leverage any additional resources the federal government makes available,” Su said.