By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are not only talking the talk when it comes to racial equity. The new administration is walking that walk.

In the first of what is expected to become subsequent White House briefings with the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), White House Senior Advisor to President Biden and Director of the Office of Public Engagement Cedric Richmond detailed what the administration has recently done and what it plans to do in the future to ensure racial justice, accessibility, and equity for Black America.

The on-the-record briefing revealed that the strategic priority of the Biden-Harris Administration is now to push for the immediately enactment of the $1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan that the Administration has put before the Congress of the United States. Given the disproportionately deadly impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Black America, the anticipated passage of the American Rescue Plan will bring much needed relief to African American families, businesses and communities across the nation.

“Let past actions give you an inference on how serious the President is on racial equity,” stated Senior Advisor and Director Richmond, the former Congressional Black Caucus Chair. “On the first day in office, the President signed an executive order holding every department accountable. We are absolutely dead serious about racial equity. He said he would make it a priority through the whole of government, and we will monitor and move the ball.”

More than 100,000 people have viewed the livestreamed briefing, which is available on the Black Press of America’s primary Facebook page at Facebook.com/BlackPressUSA.

NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., moderated the discussion.

Those in attendance included NNPA Chair and Houston Forward Times Publisher Karen Carter Richards, NNPA Chair Emeritus and Los Angeles Sentinel Publisher Danny Bakewell, Sr., members of the NNPA Board, NNPA Foundation, and NNPA Regional Presidents including Atlanta Voice Publisher Janis Ware, Mississippi Link Publisher Jackie Hampton, Charlotte, N.C. County News Publisher Fran Farrer, New Journal and Guide Publisher Brenda Andrews, Houston Defender Publisher Sonny “Messiah” Jiles, Texas Metro News Publisher Cheryl Smith, New Tri-State Defender Publisher Calvin Anderson, Data News Weekly Publisher Terry Jones, Los Angeles Wave Publisher Pluria Marshall who is also Chair of the NNPA Fund, Westside Gazette Publisher Bobby Henry, and Washington Informer Publisher Denise Rolark Barnes. The NNPA’s executive administrator Claudette Perry also joined the meeting.

During the White House video conference, an emphasis was also placed on how the Biden-Harris Administration is responding to the issues concerning a national Black Agenda supporting the HR 40 Reparations Bill, DC Statehood, healthcare, economic development opportunities and Black-owned businesses, homeownership, completing a more accurate count of the U.S. Census, public education, and support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

“The Black Press of America via the NNPA appreciated the opportunity to hear directly from the Honorable Cedric Richmond, the Senior Advisor to President Biden and the Director of the White Office of Public Engagement,” Dr. Chavis remarked.

“This was another extraordinary day in the 194-year history of the Black Press of America. I am personally grateful that Director Richmond was candid, honest, and authentic in his responses to questions that NNPA member publishers had submitted from across the nation. We look forward to these type of White House briefings. Quite frankly, we are proud of the important position that Cedric Richmond now serves in the inner-circle of the Biden-Harris administration.

Director Richmond promised NNPA Chair Karen Carter Richards and to all of the NNPA member publishers who were on the video conference that the White House would seek opportunities to partner with the Black Press as the Biden-Harris administration attempts to get important messaging out to African American and other minority communities.

“I’d like to thank the NNPA for what you do. You tell the unvarnished truth, unedited, and, in many places, you are the most reliable,” Director Richmond stated.

“You reach audiences that others cannot. On the campaign trail, President Biden made himself available to you because it was important. He made investments because it was important.”

“Now that we are in the job of governing, that won’t change. You take COVID-19, for instance. Our dire need is to get everyone vaccinated. There’s skepticism in the Black community, and we know we have work to do to build up trust in the African American community so that they can take the vaccine.”

Director Richmond announced that he and his mother had received a vaccination, and the administration is, in part, counting on the Black Press to help spread the message that getting the vaccine is vital. He also noted the administration’s mission to “root out systemic racism.”

“This is not a new safari for Cedric Richmond,” exclaimed NNPA Chairman Emeritus Danny Bakewell, Sr., in a passionate statement about the responsibility of the federal government departments and agencies to advertise with the Black Press.

Referring to Richmond, Bakewell stated, “He knows the Black Press, he’s engaged with the Black Press and always supported the Black Press. So, we are really in good hands, and he knows the pain the Black Press has consistently suffered over the many years despite our good work.”

Director Richmond responded: “You have a friend, an advocate, and I know the need and role the Black Press plays in communities, especially in this fragile time. We are going to need your help.”

Click here to view the full briefing with Director Cedric Richmond.

By Wave Staff and Wire Services

Ten Los Angeles Dodgers players have spoken out against racial injustice in a video released July 16 and committed to use their platforms to amplify the voices of Los Angeles social justice organizations.

“For centuries, the Black community has lived in a different America,” pitcher Clayton Kershaw said. “Instead of addressing racism, inequality, and injustice, many of us simply look away.

“Silence is no longer an option. I’m fighting for my teammates, their families, and their communities.”

The other Dodgers speaking on the video were Cody Bellinger, Walker Buehler, Kike Hernandez, Gavin Lux, Joc Pederson, A.J. Pollock, Ross Stripling, Justin Turner and Alex Wood.

The players said they also will match funds raised from the “In This Together” special edition T-shirts benefiting the California Funders for Boys & Men of Color Southern California: Our Kids, Our Future Fund.

The Dodgers wore the “In This Together” T-shirts during a workout at Dodger Stadium last week. The T-shirts are available for purchase at Dodgers.com/Together.

The group is a coalition of 13 organizations including the Children’s Defense Fund of California, Brothers, Sons, Selves Coalition and the Community Coalition.

Kershaw, Pederson, Stripling and Turner participated in a listening session last week with leaders of four of the organizations comprising the California Funders for Boys & Men of Color Southern California who shared the history of racial and social inequities in Los Angeles and how their respective organizations have been working for decades to seek change.

The players discussed how they want to use their platforms and resources to support the coalition’s efforts and be allies for the Black community.

Additional sessions are planned.

A member of the Los Angeles Angels made his own social justice statement this week.

Angels relief pitcher Keynan Middleton evoked the names of Jackie Robinson and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in explaining why he took a knee during the playing of the national anthem before the Angels’ home exhibition game July 20.

“Racism is something I’ve dealt with my entire life,” Middleton wrote on his Twitter and Instagram accounts. “As a Black man in this country it is my obligation to want to better the future for generations to come.

“Over the past few months I’ve been out in the community taking part in peaceful protests and having the difficult conversations that are needed for change.

“Before pioneers like Jackie Robinson, a Black man didn’t have a voice in the game of baseball. The foundation laid down and sacrifices made by Jackie and others is the reason I have the platform I do.

“I will not allow that to go to waste. Kneeling for me is one way I can use my platform for change in a peaceful way. I have the utmost respect for all the brave men and women that served this country.

“We must all take this fight against racial injustice seriously. Until things start to change in this country and my brothers and sisters don’t have to live in fear I will be using my platform to implement change.”

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Cancel that USC season opener against Alabama in Arlington, Texas, Sept. 5. Ditto for the season finale against Notre Dame in the Coliseum.

The Pac-12 Conference has announced conference-only schedules for football and several other fall sports this year.

The decision limiting the conference’s football teams to playing only Pac-12 opponents means the cancellations of three games for each team.

The decision means USC’s scheduled games against Alabama Sept. 5 in Arlington, Texas, Notre Dame Nov. 28 and New Mexico Sept. 12 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum are canceled, as are UCLA’s scheduled games against New Mexico State Aug. 29 at the Rose Bowl, Hawaii Sept. 5 in Honolulu and San Diego State Sept. 19 in San Diego.

The Pac-12 is developing a series of potential fall sport scheduling models including conference-only schedules and delayed season starts. The decision also affects men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball.

The conference made clear that it hopes to play football and all other fall sports, provided the conference can meet the health and safety needs of its athletes and obtain appropriate permissions from state and local health authorities.

The conference is also delaying the start of mandatory athletic activities until a series of health and safety indicators, which have recently trended in a negative direction, provide sufficient positive data to enable a move to a second phase of return-to-play activities.

Pac-12 athletes who choose not to participate in intercollegiate athletics during the 2020-21 academic year because of safety concerns about COVID-19 will continue to have their scholarships honored by their universities and will remain in good standing with their teams.

“Confronted with an unprecedented global pandemic, in going to a conference-only schedule for fall sports in 2020, the Pac-12 Conference is acting responsibly on behalf of the health and safety of all of our student-athletes, coaches and staff while trying to do everything possible so we can compete this year,” USC Athletic Director Mike Bohn said.

Bohn said he has communicated with the athletic directors as Alabama, Notre Dame and New Mexico “and there is no additional information to share at this time.”

The cancellation of the season opener drew mixed reactions from USC fans. Most were happy to hear the Alabama game was canceled, fearful of a repeat of the 52-6 beat down Alabama laid on the Trojans in 2016.

Some fans were hoping the Trojans could surprise Alabama in the season opener, since Alabama lost several standouts from last season to the NFL and is breaking in a new quarterback.

The cancellation of the Notre Dame game is news because it will mark the first time since 1945 that the two schools haven’t met in football during the season.

The USC-Notre Dame series, which began in 1926, has been contested every year except 1943-45 during World War II when travel was limited.

UCLA Athletic Director Martin Jarmond said his university “fully supports” the decision “to delay the start of mandatory athletic activities and to limit fall seasons for several sports to conference-only competition.”

“The health and safety of our student-athletes, staff and fans is paramount, and this move affords us the greatest level of flexibility to adapt and evolve in real time, in the midst of a very fluid situation,” Jarmond said.

MORE CANCELLATIONS: The Los Angeles Rams told season ticket holders July 21 that the team anticipates the NFL canceling preseason play, making their first game at SoFi Stadium the Sept. 13 “Sunday Night Football” game against the Dallas Cowboys.

The team also told season ticket holders if fans are allowed to attend games at SoFi Stadium during the 2020 season, the capacity at the 70,240-seat stadium would be limited to approximately 15,000 to allow for social distancing. Wearing a face covering would be required.

The first NFL preseason game at SoFi Stadium was scheduled for Aug. 14 matching the Rams and New Orleans Saints. The Rams other home preseason game was scheduled Aug. 29 against the Denver Broncos.

The Rams were also scheduled to play a third preseason game at the Inglewood stadium, Aug. 22 against the Los Angeles Chargers in what would have been a Chargers home game.

The Chargers confirmed in an email sent to season ticket members that if they are able to have fans at their games it will be at
a reduced capacity to accommodate state and local social distancing guidelines and mandates.

Single-game tickets that have been purchased have been canceled due to the reduction in capacity, and full refunds will be sent
in three-to-seven days per the Chargers and Ticketmaster.

SOCCER TOURNAMENT: The opening stage of Major League Soccer’s MLS Is Back tournament ends July 23 with Los Angeles Football Club expecting to move ahead to the second round and the Los Angeles Galaxy getting ready to fly home. With one game left in group play, LAFC is in second in Group F with four points behind group leader Portland, which has six points.

LAFC is 1-0-1 so far in the tournament, defeating the Galaxy 6-2 July 18 after playing Houston to a 3-3 tie in the tournament opener.

The Galaxy is 0-2, losing to Portland, 2-1 in its opener.

The Galaxy plays Houston July 23 and LAFC plays Portland. If LAFC defeats or ties Portland, the club will advance to the second
round.

The post SPORTS DIGEST: Dodgers take a stand against racial injustice appeared first in Wave Newspapers.

Wave Staff Report

LOS ANGELES — Nine YMCA centers have opened across Los Angeles to provide access to restrooms, showers and locker rooms for homeless people who are unable to take shelter during the coronavirus pandemic.

“In a crisis like the one we are currently facing, it is vital that our most vulnerable are taken care of,” said Kevin James, president of the Los Angeles Board of Public Works, which approved the use of the YMCA facilities April 3.

The partnership will provide the YMCA centers with six mobile hygiene units currently deployed by the city and 17 by the Board of Public Works for unsheltered residents.

Among the YMCAs providing the facilities are the Stuart M. Ketchum-Downtown YMCA, 401 S. Hope St.; Weingart YMCA Wellness & Aquatic Center, 9900 S. Vermont Ave.; and the Westchester Family YMCA, 8015 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Westchester.

Financial literacy essay contest offered

LOS ANGELES — OneUnited Bank, the nation’s largest black-owned bank, is holding its 10th annual “I Got Bank!” National Financial Literacy Contest in celebration of National Financial Literacy Month. Ten children between the ages of 8 and 12 will win a $1,000 savings account.

Students are invited to read a financial literacy book of their choosing and write a 250-word essay or create an art project to show how they will apply the book to their daily lives. Submissions must be emailed or postmarked by June 30, and winners will be announced Aug. 31. Among the winners from 2019 were DeAsia Mauldin, 11, of Compton and Sabreen A. El-Amin, 12, of Pasadena.

OneUnited Bank also offers free copies of the “I Got Bank! What My Granddad Taught Me About Money” e-book, to support families who are home schooling their children due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

For more information, visit www.oneunited.com/book.

Plus Men offers  journaling course

LOS ANGELES — The Plus Me Project, a community partner dedicated to empowering youth through the art of storytelling, will launch “Our Stories Matter: A 10-Week Community Journaling Experience” April 13 through June 19.  The journaling project will offer motivation and encouragement for teens to write down and share their stories of the current moment virtually.

The “Our Stories Matter” journaling experience is designed to increase self-awareness and self-confidence through storytelling, and also to build the foundation for college personal statements and scholarship essays.

The program is free for California high school students and $20 for adults and high school students outside of California The project also offers journals, and for each sold, one will be sent to a deserving teen in need in Southern California. For more information, visit theplusmeproject.org.

Radio show host to discuss book

LOS ANGELES — Earl Ofari Hutchinson will discuss his new book, “COVID Politics—Trump’s Deadly Game” during the 10 a.m. hour April 11 on The Hutchinson Report on KPFK 90.7 FM.

The book is a scathing indictment of the president’s political gamesmanship during the coronavirus crisis.

The show begins at 9 a.m.

Duchess narrates elephant documentary

BURBANK — A documentary on a herd of elephants migrating across the Kalahari Desert in Southern Africa in search of water narrated by Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is now streaming on Disney+.

“Elephant” follows African elephant Gaia and her spirited 1-year-old son Jomo as their herd travels hundreds of miles from the Okavango Delta to the Zambezi River. The Kalahari Desert covers parts of Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.

The documentary is the first entertainment project for the former Meghan Markle since she left the USA Network legal drama “Suits” to marry Prince Harry in 2018.

The premiere of “Elephant” and a second Disney nature documentary, “Dolphin Reef,” narrated by Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman, coincides with Earth Month.

Youth apprentice grants available

LOS ANGELES — The U.S. Department of Labor has announced the availability of $42.5 million in youth apprenticeship grants to support the enrollment of in-school or out-of-school youth apprentices into new or existing programs nationwide.

“These apprenticeship grants offer communities the opportunity to make targeted investments that will fuel future economic growth, by enabling young people to earn a living while learning critical job skills at the same time,” U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia said.

The department’s Employment and Training Administration intends to fund 15 to 25 Youth Apprenticeship Readiness grants, with awards ranging from $1 million to $5 million for private nonprofit, for-profit or public agencies that act as pipelines for youth apprenticeship.

The amount of grant funding an applicant can receive will depend on the proposed number of youth ages 16 to 24 enrolled in Registered Apprenticeship Programs.

Information on how eligible applicants can apply for funding can be found at www.grants.gov. Visit www.apprenticeship.gov to learn more about the department’s broader efforts to connect career seekers with apprenticeship opportunities and expand apprenticeship into new sectors and industries.

Leimert Park garage damaged by fire

LOS ANGELES — A fire in the garage of a Leimert Park four-plex was extinguished in less than 20 minutes April 2 and no injuries were reported.

Twenty-six firefighters arrived at the scene in the 3800 block of South Arlington Avenue, near Obama Boulevard, about 8 p.m., according to Nicholas Prange of the Los Angeles Fire
Department.

The fire was extinguished by 8:19 p.m., Prange said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Compiled by Quinci Legardye.

L.A. Digest is designed to help promote events, activities and initiatives that are serving the interests of residents in L.A. To submit an item, send emails to [email protected].

The article first appeared in The Los Angeles Sentinel.

LOS ANGELES — Gov. Gavin Newsom visited staff and residents at a board and care home in a Los Angeles neighborhood on the second day of his weeklong homelessness tour, calling the growing problem “a human crisis.”

Newsom stressed the need for the state to take a leadership role in addressing homelessness while also asserting the need to mandate that cities and counties across California take action.

“No longer can we volunteer our support,” Newsom said. “No longer can we encourage a response to this. We need to mandate it. We need accountability. We need to own this. And we need to own up to our responsibility to do more and do better.

“This is the wealthiest state in the world. It’s the fifth-largest economy on planet Earth. It’s running unprecedented surpluses. … And yet the homeless rate continues to climb and climb and climb. It’s unacceptable and we need to do better.”

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas joined Newsom on the visit. Ridley-Thomas is a co-chair of Newsom’s Council of Regional Homeless Advisors, whose work Newsom credits for inspiring many of his new proposals to address the homelessness crisis.

Newsom said his tour is highlighting the “staggering” numbers of homeless across the state.

“We no longer can assume that a city even as large as Los Angeles, a county even as extraordinarily large as Los Angeles County, can do this alone. The state of California needs to assert itself,” Newsom said.

“The state of California needs to take responsibility. The state of California needs a plan. The state of California needs to implement this plan. The state of California and its representatives, its governor, needs to call this what it is — a human crisis. And we need to respond accordingly.”

Newsom’s tour began Jan. 13 when he visited two homeless service providers and shelters in Grass Valley, about 60 miles north of Sacramento. He visited Riverside Jan. 14 before his stop in Los Angeles.

Newsom signed an executive order Jan. 8 as part of a comprehensive state response to homelessness.

The order includes creation of the California Access to Housing and Services Fund, expediting the availability of state land assets to temporarily house the homeless and directing the Department of General Services to supply 100 camp trailers from the state fleet and the Emergency Medical Services Authority to deploy modular tent structures to provide temporary housing and delivery of health and social services across the state.

In his state budget proposal released Jan. 10, Newsom formally announced more than $1 billion in homeless response funding, including $750 million for the Access to Housing and Services Fund, and making changes to the Medi-Cal system to better serve individuals experiencing mental illness and homelessness.

“The state of California is treating homelessness as a real emergency because it is one,” Newsom said in connection with signing the executive order.

“Californians are demanding that all levels of government — federal, state and local — do more to get people off the streets and into services, whether that’s housing, mental health services, substance abuse treatment or all of the above.

“That’s why we’re using every tool in the toolbox — from proposing a massive new infusion of state dollars in the budget that goes directly to homeless individuals, emergency housing and treatment programs to building short-term emergency housing on vacant state-owned land.”

Ridley-Thomas said Newsom’s action could allow the county to move more quickly and scale up solutions.

“I am pleased to partner with a governor who doesn’t just talk the talk — but walks the walk,” Ridley-Thomas said.

Before the tour, Ridley-Thomas previewed a motion — to be heard Jan. 21 — urging his colleagues on the Board of Supervisors to adopt a crisis response informed by recommendations from the governor’s council.

“Implicit in Gov. Newsom’s proposal and the council’s recommendations is a call for state, county and city governments to respond to this crisis with new urgency, boldness and ingenuity,” Ridley-Thomas said.

Ridley-Thomas said he was pleased with Newsom’s action.

“We know what works,” Ridley-Thomas said. “Los Angeles County established a flexible housing subsidy to support our most vulnerable residents and it has proven to be much more affordable and effective than watching homeless Angelenos cycle in and out of emergency rooms or jails.

“I am pleased to see Governor Newsom taking this model, innovated in Los Angeles County, and proposing that it be scaled up in all corners of the state.”

Wave Wire Services

The post Governor calls homelessness ‘a human crisis’ first appeared in The Los Angeles Wave.

By Ashley Orona

WILLOWBROOK — The county Board of Supervisors voted last week to move forward with the next phase of the Magic Johnson Park revitalization project that will bring much needed improvements to the 126-acre park.

“Our next phase of improvements will focus on outdoor amenities that create inviting gathering space for a host of activities … ranging from a dog park to a place for a community concert,” county Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said. “At Magic Johnson Park, our goal is to make sure there is an amenity for everyone.”

The project will improve existing amenities and add an array of new facilities including a community events center, an amphitheater, a splash pad and acres of new landscape.

“For almost 25 years, the Magic Johnson Park has been used for daily exercise, family outings, and celebrations,” Earvin “Magic” Johnson said in a press release. “I’m excited about this significant investment by Los Angeles County which provides a safe, scenic space for Willowbrook residents and increases the community’s engagement with the park.”

Due to financial and environmental constraints, the project will be completed in six phases. Currently at its second phase, the focus will be to invest $7 million into a dog park as well as to incorporate 16 acres of vacant land adjacent to the park that have been abandoned since 2013.

Since its approval in 2016, the project’s master plan has gone through some changes. Major changes consist of new cultural components, retention of the south lake, removal of the equestrian center and implementation of a stormwater treatment water system.

According to a press release from Ridley-Thomas’ office, the lake is an important feature of the park that will help address water conservation and water quality goals. The stormwater treatment water system will divert storm runoff from surrounding neighborhoods and nearby Compton Creek, clean it, and then use it to refill the lower part of the lake as well as irrigate part of the park.

The park has not seen any significant improvements since 1985. It is estimated that the renovations to the park will last up to 18 years and cost about $135 million.

“The renovations in of itself is a good thing,” park goer and Willowbrook resident Tony Muhammad said. However, he did raise the concern about the lack of African-American workers on the project. He believes that the workers of projects in the community should reflect the make-up of the community.

The park will remain open to the public during construction, although some spaces may be limited.

This article originally appeared in the Wave Newspapers. 

By Staff and Wire Reports

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles World Airports has announced it has hired a former assistant county sheriff as its next chief of airport police.

Cecil Rhambo will replace David Maggard, who was named LAWA’s deputy executive director for Law Enforcement and Homeland Security this summer after serving as the airport police chief for three years.

“Cecil Rhambo is a highly respected and regarded law-enforcement and municipal leader who has extensive local relationships and experience across a wide variety of law enforcement assignments,” LAWA CEO Deborah Flint said.

Rhambo retired in 2014 from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. In his 33 years in the department, Rhambo developed expertise in areas including municipal patrol, emergency management, community partnerships and employee union relations. As assistant chief, his responsibilities included overseeing the county’s rail and bus lines, experience that will serve him well as the airport builds an Automated People Mover train system, which will connect to the county’s regional rail system when completed in 2023.

“His experience as a key member of the executive leadership team for the largest sheriff’s department in the United States makes Cecil Rhambo the ideal person to lead the biggest and best dedicated airport police force in the nation,” Maggard said.

As chief, Rhambo will lead the nation’s largest airport law enforcement force of more than 1,100 sworn and civilian personnel at Los Angeles International and Van Nuys airports, officials said.

The Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association commended the selection of Rhambo.

“In the history of the Los Angeles Airport Police, which dates back to 1946, no police chief or safety/security executive has had the depth of on-the-ground and highly specialized policing experience, combined with civilian management experience, that … Rhambo has,” the association said in a statement.

Association President Marshall McClain said morale among the association’s members “surged” after Rhambo was announced as the next chief.

“His leadership will change the culture of the airport police force and instill the values of respect, dedication and diversity among its officers and its higher-ups,” McClain said. “The LAAPOA Board of Directors recently met with Chief Rhambo and is excited about working with him to move the department forward.”

Rhambo received his bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Humboldt State University and his master’s degree in organizational leadership from Woodbury University.

After retiring from the sheriff’s department in 2014 Rhambo worked in municipal government, serving as assistant city manager of Carson until 2017 when he became city manager of Compton.

The article first appeared in the Wave Newspapers.