A6 The Afro-American October14, 2023 - October 20, 2023 Volume 132 No. 23 THE BLACKwww.afro.com MEDIA AUTHORITY • AFRO.COM
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JANUARY 6 , 2024 - JANUARY 12, 2024
Retired U.S. Army Col.
Edna W. Cummings AFRO Person of the Year 2023
Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Col. (Ret.) Edna W. Cummings
Retired U.S. Army Col. Edna W. Cummings, filmmaker and 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion advocate, is honored as AFRO Person of the Year for all of her work in 2023. Cummings was instrumental in getting the women of the 6888th, shown right, recognized with their own day in the state of Maryland. Each March 9, residents will celebrate the members of the 6888th and their contributions during WWII. By Tashi McQueen AFRO Political Writer tmcqueen@afro.com
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As 2024 kicks off, the AFRO takes a look back at the person who truly stood out in 2023, making a difference in the lives of others and affecting actual change in the
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communities they serve. This year’s honoree, U.S. Army Col. (Ret.) Edna W. Cummings, has contributed much to veterans in Maryland and throughout the United States. Cummings was vital in getting legislation passed in 2023 to establish a day recognizing the 6888th Central Postal Directory
Battalion, a majority AfricanAmerican women’s battalion from World War II. The battalion reported to Birmingham, England, in 1945, where they worked in eighthour shifts, seven days a week, to eliminate two years worth of backlogged mail. The 6888th were
given six months to send all the accumulated mail— they did it in three. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity to share the story and thankful for the community of supporters, that includes descendants,” said Cummings. Her years of contributions to
educating people about the 6888th and the overall service of Black women in the military make her an excellent fit for the “AFRO Person of the Year” title. In the past, Cummings has received several awards and accolades for her work to honor Continued on A3
Harvard’s first Black president, Claudine Gay, resigns amid controversy By Collin Binkley and Moriah Balingit Associated Press American higher education has long viewed plagiarism as a cardinal sin. Accusations of academic dishonesty have ruined the careers of faculty and undergraduates alike. The latest target is Harvard President Claudine Gay, who resigned Tuesday. In her case, the outrage came not from her academic peers but her political foes, led by conservatives who put her career under intense scrutiny. Reviews by Harvard found multiple shortcomings in Gay’s academic citations, including several instances of “ duplicative language.” The university concluded the
errors “were not considered intentional or reckless” and didn’t rise to misconduct. But the allegations continued, with new ones as recently as Monday. Conservatives zeroed in on Gay amid backlash over her congressional testimony about antisemitism on campus. Her detractors charged that Gay — who has a Ph.D. in government, was a professor at Harvard and Stanford and headed Harvard’s largest division before being promoted — got the top job in large part because she is a Black woman. Christopher Rufo, a conservative activist who helped orchestrate the effort against Gay, celebrated her departure
a gruesome practice taken up by white colonists who sought to eradicate Native Americans and also used by some tribes against their enemies. “Tomorrow, we get back to the fight,” he said on X, describing a “playbook” against institutions deemed too liberal by conservatives.
Continued on A3
AP Photo/Steven Senne
Supporters of Claudine Gay, the first Black person to lead Harvard University as president, are in an uproar after she resigned in a cloud of controversy on Jan. 2. as a win in his campaign against elite institutions of higher education. On X,
formerly Twitter, he wrote “SCALPED,” as if Gay was a trophy of violence, invoking
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A2 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
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Analysis: Falling short in the playoffs won’t cut it for Lamar Jackson and the Ravens By Rob Maddi The Associated Press Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens played their best football in the biggest games of the regular season. Now, they’ve got to do it in the playoffs. Jackson has been one of the NFL’s top players for several years, but the Ravens are just 1-3 in the playoffs with him. This season seems different. The Ravens have not only beaten the better teams, they’ve dominated them. Jackson boosted his chances for his second AP NFL MVP award with back-to-back sensational performances in lopsided wins over the 49ers (12-4) and Dolphins (11-5) to help the Ravens (13-3) secure the AFC’s No. 1 seed. He threw for 573 yards and seven touchdowns (TDs) with a 145.3 passer rating and ran for 80 yards in the two games as the Ravens outscored both teams 89-38. In five games this season against teams that currently have 11 wins, Jackson has completed 90 of 125 passes (72 percent) for 1,339 yards, 13 TDs and two picks with a 134.7 passer rating. The Ravens were 4-1 in those games with an average margin of victory of 27
“This season seems different. The Ravens have not only beaten the better teams, they’ve dominated them.” points and each win by at least 14. Overall, Jackson has a career-high 3,678 yards passing with 24 TDs, seven interceptions and a 102.7 passer rating. He has also run for 821 yards and five scores. He had 36 TD passes, 1,206 yards rushing and seven TDs on the ground in 2019 when he was the NFL MVP. But the Ravens were knocked out of the playoffs in the divisional round after earning the top seed that season. That won’t cut it this time. “We gotta finish the season the right way,” Jackson said. Wounded birds That 10-1 start for the Philadelphia Eagles is a distant memory. Four losses in the past five games knocked the Eagles out of the running for the NFC’s No. 1 seed and likely into a wild-card spot. Blowing a 21-6 halftime lead in a 35-31 loss to lowly Arizona cost Philly control of the NFC East and now the Eagles need Dallas to lose to Washington to have a shot at winning the division. Fans are calling for coach Nick Sirianni’s job, even though he’s 34-16 with three playoff appearances, including a Super Bowl trip, in three seasons. They’ve wanted offensive coordinator Brian Johnson fired for a while. First-year defensive coordinator Sean Desai already lost play-
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calling duties to Matt Patricia. A.J. Brown is not happy with the offensive play-calling and refusing to talk to reporters to avoid criticizing coaches. Anonymous players have questioned Jalen Hurts’ leadership. Things most definitely aren’t sunny in Philadelphia. “We’re all frustrated,” Sirianni said. Despite their troubles, the Eagles are capable of going on a run. They beat Dallas, Miami, Buffalo and Kansas City this season before losing to the 49ers, Cowboys, Seahawks and Cardinals. If they somehow get back on track, they’ll be a tough out in the playoffs. Winning the south The Tampa Bay Buccaneers blew their first chance to clinch a third straight NFC South title. A four-game losing streak prevented the Jacksonville Jaguars from securing a second consecutive AFC South title until Week 18. Both teams are in an excellent position to do it this week. The Buccaneers (8-8) visit the woeful Carolina Panthers (2-14). The Jaguars are on the road at Tennessee (5-11). If the Buccaneers stumble, the Falcons-Saints winner takes the division. If the Jaguars slip up, the Texans-Colts winner takes the crown. The teams that come out of the South in both conferences could be home underdogs in the wild-card round. The AFC South winner will host the Cleveland Browns (11-5). The NFC South winner will host either the Eagles or Cowboys. One year later On Jan. 2, 2023, Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and needed to be resuscitated after undergoing a cardiac arrest. Hamlin made a remarkable recovery and has played in five games this season. The NFL and other major sports leagues and leading health advocacy organizations launched the Smart Heart Sports Coalition in March 2023 in response to Hamlin’s cardiac arrest. The coalition’s goal is for every state across the country to adopt life-saving policies
AP Photo/Terrance Williams
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) looks to pass the ball during the first half of an NFL football game. that will prevent fatalities from sudden cardiac arrest among high school athletes and others. Those policies are: — An Emergency Action Plan for each high school athletic venue that are widely distributed, posted, rehearsed, and updated annually. — Clearly marked automated external defibrillator (AEDs) at each athletic venue or within 1-3 minutes of each venue where high school practices or competitions are held. — CPR and AED education for coaches. Since the coalition’s work began, five states have moved to enact one or more of the policies, including New Mexico, Kentucky, Indiana, Louisiana and California. This article was originally published by the Associated Press.
GOP candidate Nikki Haley doesn’t mention slavery when asked what caused the Civil War By Meg Kinnard The Associated Press Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley was asked at a New Hampshire town hall about the reason for the Civil War, and she didn’t mention slavery in her response. She walked back her comments hours later. Asked during a Dec. 27 town hall in Berlin what she believed had caused the war — the first shots of which were fired in her home state of South Carolina — Haley talked about the role of government, replying that it involved “the freedoms of what people could and couldn’t do.” She then turned the question back to the man who had asked it. He replied that he was not the one running for president and wished instead to know her answer. After Haley went into a lengthier explanation about the role of government, individual freedom and capitalism, the questioner seemed to admonish Haley, saying, “In the year 2023, it’s astonishing to me that you answer that question without mentioning the word ‘slavery.’” “What do you want me to say about slavery?” Haley retorted before abruptly moving on to the next question. Haley, the former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina governor, has been working to become the leading alternative to Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. It’s unclear whether her comments will have a long-term political impact, particularly among the independent voters who are crucial to her campaign. She backpedaled on her Civil War comments 12 hours later, with her campaign disseminating a Dec. 28 morning radio interview in which she said, “Of course the Civil War was about slavery,” something she called “a stain on America.” She went on to reiterate that “freedom matters. And individual rights and liberties matter for all people.” Her GOP rivals quickly jumped on her original
AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley speaks during a town hall, Dec. 18, in the City of Nevada, Iowa. comments, even though most of them have been accused of downplaying the effects of slavery themselves. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign recirculated video of the original exchange on social media, adding the comment, “Yikes.” Campaigning in Iowa on Dec. 28, DeSantis said that Haley “has had some problems with some basic American history” and that it’s “not that difficult to identify and acknowledge the role slavery played in the Civil War.” DeSantis faced criticism over slavery earlier in the year when Florida enacted new education standards requiring teachers to instruct middle school students that slaves developed skills that “could be applied for their personal benefit.” U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, the only Black Republican in the Senate and DeSantis’ then-rival for the GOP presidential nomination, rejected that characterization, saying instead that slavery was about “separating families, about mutilating humans and even raping their wives.” Make America Great Again Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump’s campaign, sent out a release saying Haley’s response shows she “is clearly not ready for primetime.” The group also included an X post from Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, a Black Republican who supports Trump, reading “1. Psst Nikki... the answer is slavery PERIOD. 2. This really doesn’t matter because Trump is going to be
the nominee. Trump 2024!” Trump did not mention the two centuries of slavery in America at a 2020 event marking the 223rd anniversary of the signing of the Constitution. He instead focused on America’s founding having “set in motion the unstoppable chain of events that abolished slavery, secured civil rights, defeated communism and fascism and built the most fair, equal and prosperous nation in human history.” Issues surrounding the origins of the Civil War and its heritage are still much of the fabric of Haley’s home state, and she has been pressed on the war’s origins before. As she ran for governor in 2010, Haley, in an interview with a now-defunct activist group then known as The Palmetto Patriots, described the war as between two disparate sides fighting for “tradition” and “change” and said the Confederate flag was “not something that is racist.” During that same campaign, she dismissed the need for the flag to come down from the Statehouse grounds, portraying her Democratic rival’s push for its removal as a desperate political stunt. Five years later, Haley urged lawmakers to remove the flag from its perch near a Confederate soldier monument following a mass shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, in which a White gunman killed nine Black church members
who were attending Bible study. At the time, Haley said the flag had been “hijacked” by the shooter from those who saw the flag as symbolizing “sacrifice and heritage.” South Carolina’s Ordinance of Secession — the 1860 proclamation by the state government outlining its reasons for seceding from the Union — mentions slavery in its opening sentence and points to the “increasing hostility on the part of the non-slaveholding States to the institution of slavery” as a reason for the state removing itself from the Union. On the night of the town hall, Christale Spain — elected this year as the first Black woman to chair South Carolina’s Democratic Party — said Haley’s response was “vile, but unsurprising.” “The same person who refused to take down the Confederate Flag until the tragedy in Charleston, and tried to justify a Confederate History Month,” Spain said in a post on X, of Haley. “She’s just as MAGA as Trump,” Spain added, referring to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan. Jaime Harrison, current chairman of the Democratic National Committee and South Carolina’s party chairman during part of Haley’s tenure as governor, said her response was “not stunning if you were a Black resident in SC when she was Governor.” “Same person who said the confederate flag was about tradition & heritage and as a minority woman she was the right person to defend keeping it on state house grounds,” Harrison posted Dec. 27 on X. “Some may have forgotten but I haven’t. Time to take off the rose colored Nikki Haley glasses folks.” This story has been corrected to show nine people, not eight, were killed in the Charleston church massacre in 2015. This article was originally published by the Associated Press.
January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American A3
Former U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson dies at 89 By Tashi McQueen AFRO Political Writer tmcqueen@afro.com Former Texas U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson died on New Year’s Eve at 89. Johnson served as the 30th District congresswoman for Texas for 30 years until she retired in January 2023. “Eddie Bernice Johnson was a dedicated nurse, state legislator, and longtime U.S. congresswoman with immense courage and a commitment to the promise of America. She had unwavering dedication to the people of North Texas,” said President Joe Biden in a statement. “As the first Black American elected to Congress from Dallas, she fought to expand civil rights, create jobs, combat the climate crisis and much more.” Johnson was also the first Black woman to serve as the regional director for the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare – now the Department of Health and Human Services. She also served as the first African American and first woman to chair the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology. She worked in medicine during her lifetime, serving as the chief psychiatric nurse at the Veterans Administration in Dallas. While in Congress, she helped pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and CHIPS and Science Act in 2022, alongside many other accomplishments. “Eddie Bernice Johnson devoted her life of service to the people of North Texas,” said R. Gerald Turner, Southern Methodist University president, of which Johnson is an alum. “Her trailblazing leadership and advocacy will
Courtesy Photo
Friends, family of former U.S Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson are mourning her deat at age 89. Johnson spent 30 years in Congress advocating for various issues, such as climate change and civil rights.
continue to have a profound impact on SMU, Dallas, and the surrounding community. She will truly be missed.” On Jan. 8, a public viewing will be held at the Hall of State in Fair Park in Dallas from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. After the viewing, there will be a prayer service at Concord Church at 8808 Pastor Bailey Drive in Dallas from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. On Jan. 9, Johnson’s funeral service will begin at 10 a.m. at Concord Church. On Jan. 10, a graveside service for Johnson is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Texas State Cemetery in Austin, TX. “We mourn the loss of [former] Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, a true trailblazer in the House of Representatives and a dedicated public servant,” said Jessica Fulton, interim president and vice president of Policy at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. “We are beyond grateful for her commitment to public service and dedication to advancing the needs of Black communities.” She leaves behind a son, Kirk Johnson, and three grandsons, Kirk Johnson, Jr., David Johnson and James Johnson. “I was deeply saddened to hear we would begin the New Year without my beloved Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority sister, friend and colleague Eddie Bernice Johnson, affectionately known as EBJ,” said U.S. Rep. Alma Adams (D-N.C.-12) in a statement. “May her example be a reminder to all of us that we can effect change in our community despite the obstacles that may stand in our way.” Tashi McQueen is a Report For America corps member.
Cummings Continued from A1
the women of the 6888th. She won the NAACP’s Jesse Brown Leadership Award in 2022 and became a Military Officers Association of America Changemaker on the national level in 2023. Cummings has a vast armed forces background, from being raised on military bases by her mother, Jessie Cummings, and father, Sgt. (Ret.) Willie Cummings.
officer for a unit of air traffic controllers.” Cummings said being a woman in the military was the most challenging aspect of her 25-year career with the armed forces. “The Army wasn’t accustomed to women when I first came in. I came in on the tail end of the Women’s Army Corps,” said Cummings. “The Army, I think, was unclear
“I'm just grateful for the opportunity to share the story and thankful for the community of supporters, that includes descendants.” “I was born on a military base at Fort Bragg, which is now Fort Liberty, in North Carolina. Bases are my childhood,” said Cummings. She eventually found herself entering the “family business.” Upon graduating high school, she joined an Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program at Appalachian State University in 1974. Unbeknownst to her at the time, she became the first African-American female to enroll in the program and receive a commission as an officer. “My first assignment was at a school in Fort Lee, Va. After I graduated from that course, I became a quartermaster officer. I was then assigned to Fort Novosel, Ala. I was in charge of refueling helicopters for the students going through flight school,” said Cummings. “I did that for a while, and then I worked as an executive
about how to integrate women in the ranks. Then to add race – it became even more challenging.” “Sometimes I was the only Black person and the only woman, and I just felt that I had to be so thorough and detailed because no matter what I did, I would be challenged,” she continued. Cummings said women were often put in units where combat was not probable, leaving them to get fewer promotions, but still, she was able to climb the ranks and became a colonel in 2001. Sometime after her military career ended, Cummings discovered the story of the 6888th Battalion. “I started working on the 6888th project in 2018,” said Cummings. “I was so impressed because of the commander, Charity E. Adams. Some of her experiences were similar to mine— like not being saluted and people not believing I
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was an officer when I came on active duty. Even though hers was from 1945 – there were many parallels. I took it upon myself to be part of a community to uplift these Black women.” In 2023, she helped make a day of recognition for the 6888th in Maryland. The 6888th will be commemorated every year in the state on March 9 moving forward. “Col. Edna Cummings has been a staunch advocate for telling the 6888th story
and advocating for women Veterans,” said Del. Mike Rogers (D-Md.-32), who sponsored the legislation for the 6888th Batallion Day. In 2023, Cummings also worked to bring the 6888th Broadway musical production to fruition. “I’m honored to work with actor Blair Underwood on the musical. It embraces how the AFRO told the story of the 6888th. Had it not been for the Black press sending reporters overseas to cover
the war – these stories would be lost.” Cummings said they are hoping to bring the musical to the stage and tour in 2025. “Musicals can take up to ten years, but we’re ahead of schedule now,” she said. Cummings explained what’s next for her. “My personal goal is to stay healthy enough to participate in the activities because we plan to tour the musical. We’re going to start in Birmingham, England,”
she said. “I also want to stay healthy to continue elevating this narrative and making people aware of the contributions of these phenomenal women.” For all of her work in the state of Maryland and beyond, the AFRO commends Col. (Ret.) Edna Cummings, and names her AFRO Person of the Year. Tashi McQueen is a Report for America corps member.
Gay
Continued from A1 His latest target: efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in education and business. “We must not stop until we have abolished DEI ideology from every institution in America,” he said. In another post, he announced a new “plagiarism hunting fund,” vowing to “expose the rot in the Ivy League and restore truth, rather than racialist ideology, as the highest principle in academic life.” Gay didn’t directly address the plagiarism accusations in a campus letter announcing her resignation, but she noted she was troubled to see doubt cast on her commitment “to upholding scholarly rigor.” She also indirectly nodded to the December congressional hearing that started the onslaught of criticism, where she did not say unequivocally that calls for the genocide of Jews would violate Harvard policy. Her departure comes just six months after becoming Harvard’s first Black president. As the figureheads of their universities, presidents often face heightened scrutiny, and numerous leaders have been felled by plagiarism scandals. Stanford University’s president resigned last year amid findings that he manipulated scientific data in his research. A president of the University of South Carolina resigned in 2021 after he lifted parts of his speech at a graduation ceremony. In Gay’s case, many academics were troubled with how the plagiarism came to light: as part of a coordinated campaign to discredit Gay and force her from office, in part because of her involvement in efforts for racial justice on campus. Her resignation came after calls for her ouster from prominent conservatives including Rep. Elise Stefanik, a Harvard alumna, and Bill Ackman, a billionaire hedge fund manager who has donated millions to Harvard.
The campaign against Gay and other Ivy League presidents has become part of a broader right-wing effort to remake higher education, which has often been seen as a bastion of liberalism. Republican detractors have sought to gut funding for public universities, roll back tenure and banish initiatives that make colleges more welcoming to students of color, disabled students and the LGBTQ+ community. They also have aimed to limit how race and gender are discussed in classrooms. Walter M. Kimbrough, the former president of the historically Black
“If you want to lead an institution like [Harvard] … there are going to be people who are looking to disqualify you.” Dillard University, said what unfolded at Harvard reminded him of an adage from his mother, a Black graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, in the 1950s. As a Black person in academia, “you always have to be twice, three times as good,” he said. “There are going to be people, particularly if they have any inkling that the person of color is not the most qualified, who will label them a ‘DEI hire,’ like they tried to label her,” Kimbrough said. “If you want to lead an institution like (Harvard) … there are going to be people who are looking to disqualify you.” The allegations against Gay initially came from conservative activists, some who stayed anonymous. They looked
for the kinds of duplicated sentences undergraduate students are trained to avoid, even with citation. In dozens of instances first published by The Washington Free Beacon, a conservative website, Gay’s work includes long stretches of prose that mirror language from other published works. A review ordered by Harvard acknowledged she duplicated the language without using quotation marks. Harvard previously said Gay updated her dissertation and requested corrections from journals. Among her critics in conservative circles and academia, the findings are clear evidence that Gay, as the top academic at the pinnacle of U.S. higher education, is unfit to serve. Her defenders say it isn’t so clear-cut. In highly specialized fields, scholars often use similar language to describe the same concepts, said Davarian Baldwin, a historian at Trinity College who writes about race and higher education. Gay clearly made mistakes, he said, but with the spread of software designed to detect plagiarism, it wouldn’t be hard to find similar overlap in works by other presidents and professors. The tool becomes dangerous, he added, when it “falls into the hands of those who argue that academia in general is a cesspool of incompetence and bad actors.” John Pelissero, a former interim college president who now works for the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, said instances of plagiarism deserve to be evaluated individually and that it’s not always so cut and dried. “You’re looking for whether there was intentionality to mislead or inappropriately borrow other people’s ideas in your work,” Pelissero said. “Or was there an honest mistake?” See more on afro.com This article was originally published by the Associated Press.
A4 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
COMMENTARY Dear voters: Keep raising your voices in 2024 By Mary-Pat Hector From the time I could talk, I was loud and opinionated, especially about the rights of those disenfranchised and pushed to the margins of society. Though it wasn’t called democracy back then, I believed being heard by the powers-thatbe would make a difference. My adamant pitch and passion was always met by opponents bent on silencing and shutting me down. One hurdle after another, this Black girl-child coming of age in the deep South eventually realized going it alone to get results was an impossible feat. I found my tribe — a chorus of like-minded voices — all screaming synchronously at the top of our lungs. Together, we unharnessed the secret to being heard, fighting back and making an impact. In 2023 the primal scream of voters reverberated. The message was simple. They’ve had enough of being dismissed, denied and deceived. The stunning wins for the abortion rights movement in ruby-red Ohio, deep-purple Virginia, and light-blue Pennsylvania were not about party or candidate victories. It was a full-throttle response to disinformation maneuvers
by extremists who are clueless about how democracy works or that it can work. Last year’s victory can’t be claimed by one state or coalition alone. It is part of a still roaring scream, pushing to the tipping point a changing landscape to exact a people’s victory that proclaims democracy is us. Grassroots organizers, nonprofit advocacy groups and institutions are saving the day. From Vermont to Virginia, Kansas to Kentucky, Montana to Maine, the call is loud and crystallizing. Politicians should read the edict from voters, not the latest polling data. Just as abortion rights in the post-Dobbs era triggered unstoppable pushback and movements in ballot campaigns, constitutional amendments and legislatures across the country, groundswells of voices for change are surging and coming to their feet around gun safety and climate change. Voters are saying “no” to book banning and assaults on LGBTQ rights, fighting for clean water in Jackson and Flint; and demanding justice for workers on picket lines at work sites nationwide. There is a well-paved path of civic engagement animated by people devoted to action and advocacy. Together, we are the connective tissue of democracy.
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Mary-Pat Hector, CEO of the student and youth activist organization, RISE, says we must “raise our voices for ownership of our civic life.” You don’t need an advanced degree to read the message plainly spelled out last year. Without abstractions or caveats, the voters are collectively embracing authentic solutions. Across generational, demographic, and geographic divides, we are responding to issues that hit hard where we live, impacting real-life choices and everyday circumstances. What’s motivating us with each new ballot initiative is our demand to raise our voices for ownership of our civic life. We can secure common sense solutions that speak to an elevated form of basic brilliance. We know the role of
government is to help, not hinder, obstruct or enter the corridors of our personal lives. Rights denied, reversed, or taken away will ultimately spur movements.
The indisputable importance of Black fathers By Walter Fields Beginning in 1954, America’s conception of a “good father” was through the lens of White patriarchy. Actor Robert Young’s portrayal of the fictional Jim Anderson in “Father Knows Best” established the defining qualities of an American father – White, middle class, white collar and hardworking, dominant and all-knowing. This typology was reinforced by subsequent television series, such as “Make Room for Daddy,” “My Three Sons,” “The Andy Griffith Show,” “Bachelor Father,” “The Courtship of Eddie’s Father” and “The Brady Bunch.” It was not until actor John Amos’ role as James Evans in television’s “Good Times” in 1974 that popular culture acknowledged the presence of Black men as the head of the household, while also being a caring and loving spouse. For much of the 20th century Black men were depicted in the media as
estranged from their children, uncaring and irresponsible in their role as fathers. Critics of Black family life have cited Black male incarceration and unemployment rates, high school dropout data for young Black men, and Black teenage parental birth rates as evidence of the irresponsibility of Black fathers, placing the onus on individual behavior, while ignoring the systemic factors driving these conditions. This narrative was driven by historical bias and contemporary public policy that undermined the desire of Black men to fulfill their fatherly duties. A 2013 National Center for Health Statistics report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) effectively upended the mythology around Black fathers. Most notably, the report indicated that compared to their White and Hispanic fathers, Black men are more involved fathers– participating in activities like sharing meals with their children, bathing,
diapering, dressing and reading to their children. The study showed that Black men actively play several nurturing roles. The report indicated that 2.5 million Black fathers live in a household with their children compared with 1.7 million who do not – contradicting the imagery of most Black children living in fatherless homes. Even in instances when Black men are not in the home, they make an effort– sometimes extraordinary effort– to be involved in the lives of their children. So, why has America believed the worst about Black fathers? The CDC report confirmed what many Black Americans knew, despite how media and public officials portray Black men in society. Many Black people have experienced and witnessed the Black father the research identifies. I am one of those people. My father, now deceased, was committed to the care and upbringing of his children. Possessing no more than an eighth-grade education,
my dad was a blue-collar worker who cooked meals for his children, danced with his daughters, sewed school dresses for his daughters and always had time for his boys. He did this against the backdrop of being a southerner, driven north by Jim Crow. He was also a World War II veteran denied the benefits of the GI Bill because he was Black. The negative perception of Black fathers is rooted in racism. Americans have been socialized to believe Black men are irresponsible, violence prone, dangerous, lazy and hyper-sexual. Ironically, it has been the historical treatment of Black men that have put them at a relative disadvantage to White men in their role as fathers. From the separation of Black families during the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the emasculation of Black men during enslavement, to lynchings and subjugation under Jim Crow, and present-day public policy, the agency of
My call to action is for anyone unsure of the power they hold in their voice. The time is now! Join a group that shares your values in 2024. Get involved. Speak, meet, organize
and act. Become the movement to plow the ground and plant the fertile seeds of change.
Black men has been an act of resistance. Black fatherhood has been a social movement; a conscious repudiation and rejection of deliberate efforts to excise Black men from their families. It has not been enough for Black men to become a father by biology, we have had to navigate the waters of structural racism to overcome barriers to our engagement with our children. If America is serious about “family values,” public policy needs to address areas of civic life that disproportionately penalize Black men. This includes reforming a criminal justice system that dehumanizes the convicted. We need to embrace policies that facilitate successful reentry into society, ending the criminalization of Black men, adopting sensible and reasonable child-support mandates, and liberalizing custodial rights. We need to support Black men as they enter college and workforce training,
and support mental wellness and the treatment of chronic illnesses that have a disparate impact upon them.
This article was originally published by Word in Black.
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Walter Fields is pursuing his doctoral degree in applied sociology and social justice at Morgan State University.
How the clean energy win in Michigan provides a roadmap for other states By Ben Jealous If you live in Detroit or another part of Michigan where there’s a looming threat of bodily harm from fossil fuel pollution, it just got a little easier to breathe a sigh of relief … and to maintain your ability to breathe in general. The historic Clean Energy Future Package and Clean Energy and Jobs Act, signed into law by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer late last year, will greatly accelerate the state’s transition to the exclusive use of clean power sources like wind and solar. That’s a victory for Michiganders and for the country’s goals of slashing the pollution that fuels climate change and harms our health. It’s also a major win for environmental justice, hard-hit communities in a state, and workers. Michigan’s codified commitment to fighting the pollution driving climate change is inherently good news for the communities of color that bear
a disproportionate burden of the effects of the crisis, and the benefits go even further. New incentives in the bills to make buildings energy efficient will have an outsized positive impact for these communities, where a higher number of the homes are old, drafty and not energy efficient. Finally, air pollution from many of the power and industrial plants, which are also disproportionately located in these communities, will be reduced by the state’s mandates for clean energy. This is huge for all Michiganders, and especially for those communities where public health is suffering from pollution. The Detroit tri-cities area – encompassing Detroit, River Rouge and Ecorse – and other parts of Michigan experiencing the worst air pollution are predominantly Black or Black and Latino. The Harvard Medical School Primary Care Review has pointed out that within the two zip codes that make up Southwest Detroit alone, “there are more
than 150 facilities that emit toxic fumes, gasses, chemicals and particulate matter.” Black residents make up 80 percent of one of those zip codes, 48217, a statistic noted at an October gathering of activists, near the Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s refinery in Southwest Detroit, by Ember McCoy, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability, in discussing the disproportionate impact of air pollution on the city’s residents. According to 2019 figures from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, adult residents of Detroit were 46 percent more likely to have asthma than the statewide average. And within Detroit, Black residents were hospitalized for asthma three times as often as white residents. And that’s just asthma. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences says this type of pollution is also known to increase rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease,
neurological and immune disorders, and other health concerns. And, as McCoy also noted at that Detroit panel discussion, “certain pollutants, when combined, as they are in the air, are worse together than they are alone individually … but we still measure them and regulate them as if they’re acting separately.” So, yes, a lot still needs to be done. Especially in terms of how these chemical and particulate pollutants are regulated at the federal level. Still, we shouldn’t lose sight of the positive action that states like Michigan are taking right now and the example it sets for other states. There’s a lot to be hopeful about in the clean energy bills’ impact on public health. The bills also set a powerful example for how to help ensure a just transition away from fossil fuels with strong protections for labor. Part of the clean energy package is the creation of the Community and Worker Economic Transition Office. The office will develop a plan
and coordinate efforts to address the impact on workers in the shift from fossil fuels to renewables, helping to ensure that no worker is left behind. By delivering historic federal action in the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden administration has already given states a powerful way to capitalize on massive federal investments in their economies and a green future for us all. That’s exactly what Michigan is doing, and doing it right. In addition to the billions that Michigan has already secured in federal investment dollars, a recent report by the Michiganbased 5 Lakes Energy shows that passing the 100 percent clean energy legislation could mean over 160,000 additional quality jobs over the next decade and $7.8 billion more in investments by 2050, which is more than twice what Michigan would expect to receive without enacting these policies. Thanks to the IRA, states now have an unprecedented opportunity to address the harm done by climate change while
also jumpstarting economic development, creating jobs, moving towards energy independence, improving the health and lives of their residents, and leading on environmental justice. This article was originally published by TriceEdneyWire. com.
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Ben Jealous is executive director of the Sierra Club, professor of practice at the University of Pennsylvania and author of “Never Forget Our People Were Always Free.”
The opinions on this page are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the AFRO. Send letters to The Afro-American ∙ 233 E. Redwood Street, Suite 600G Baltimore, MD 21202 or fax to 1-877-570-9297 or e-mail to editor@afro.com
January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American A5
Reliability rests on his shoulders. There’s a source of energy in Virginia as reliable as any in the world: our employees. It’s their hard work – braving storms, servicing power lines, and building a smarter and more secure power grid – that brings you the dependable electricity you’ve come to expect. Our employees’ dedication to every community they serve is at the heart of everything we do.
A6 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
If your business accepted Visa and/or Mastercard between 2004 - 2019, you’re now eligible to claim your share of a $5.5 billion Settlement. Claim your share now. Merchants (business owners) who accepted Visa and/or Mastercard at any time from January 1, 2004, to January 25, 2019, are eligible to claim their share of a $5.5 billion Settlement. Visa and Mastercard and their issuing banks (the “Defendants”) are alleged to have violated the law because they wrongfully inflated Interchange Fees. Defendants say they have done nothing wrong. They claim their business practices are legal. After years of appeals, the Settlement is now final, and Claim Forms are now being accepted. If you do not file a claim, you will not receive a Settlement Payment. Claim Forms are now being mailed to more than 15 million merchants. Even if you do not receive a Claim Form in the mail, you may still be eligible, and you should visit www.PaymentCardSettlement.com to get more information about the Settlement. The deadline to file a claim is May 31, 2024. You can file your claim online at the website. Or, if you prefer, you can get a paper Claim Form at the website or by calling 1-800-625-6440. Assistance with preparing your claim is available at no cost to you from the Class Administrator and Class Counsel. Submitting your claim online can take less than five minutes. STEP ONE: Scan the QR code to go to www.PaymentCardSettlement.com.
To get a Claim Form in Spanish Japanese , Chinese
STEP TWO: Provide the information requested about your business.
, Russian , or Thai
STEP THREE: Submit your claim! Your claim process is now complete.
, Korean , Vietnamese , , please visit www.PaymentCardSettlement.com.
Visit Online: www.PaymentCardSettlement.com
Do you need additional help or information?
Email: info@PaymentCardSettlement.com Call: 1-800-625-6440
January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American
BALTIMORE-AREA New Maryland laws you should know about in 2024
Pless Jones Jr. files lawsuit against Fulton Bank Data shows improvement and Maryland Dept. of Environment
in Baltimore City Public Schools System
By Ariyana Griffin Special to the AFRO
By Tashi McQueen AFRO Political Writer tmcqueen@afro.com
Though many new laws from the 2023 session of the Maryland General Assembly took effect last July and October, some new laws took effect on Jan. 1. The Stop the Spam Calls Act of 2023 (SB90/ HB37), which restricts mobile phone solicitations for non-charities, went into effect on the first day of the year. An individual
“Thanks to the Fair Wage Act, Maryland will ring in 2024 with a much-needed $15 minimum wage.” who violates the law is guilty of a misdemeanor and, if convicted, will be fined up to $1,000 for a first offense and $5,000 for each subsequent violation. “Spam calls and calls that conceal the caller’s identity are on the rise. A report found that 123.8 million spam calls were made to Maryland residents in one month, January 2019, an average of almost 15 calls per person for every resident of the state,” said Marceline White, executive director of Economic Action Maryland, in written testimony. “Although Continued on B2
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would need to take over the responsibilities of the consent decree although there was no legal obligation on his part. Instead, the burden should have fallen on the seller who initially entered the consent decree, according to the complaint. MWMCA’s president, Wayne Frazier, led a press conference at The Woodberry, located at 2001 W. Cold Spring Lane, on Jan. 2 to discuss the lawsuit. “Fulton Bank, as the lawsuit states, placed Mr. Jones’ business in a position that would cause a default sooner or later because the cash flow would have to be siphoned off of his business to pay for improvements to a property the bank did not even secure as collateral,” said Frazier. “There was no statutory standing for the bank to include that property as collateral for that loan.” Frazier said that he believes Fulton Bank had no lawful reason to bring Jones Jr. into the consent decree agreement. “He had nothing to do with it,” said Frazier. “That land wasn’t a part of the collateral. I keep going back to why? Because it may affect other Black-owned and women-owned businesses in this town.” In addition to issues with the actual loan, Jones Jr. alleges that the bank was unethical in their attempt to handle problems related to the consent decree. Jones Jr.
A total of 39 Baltimore City Public Schools improved in 2023, according to information from the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Each year (MSDE) releases the annual Maryland School Report Card with a star rating system that critiques academic performance, college readiness and attendance measures. The star system allows schools to earn one to five stars based on the above criteria. According to a statement by the Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS), “City Schools outpaced the state in star rating improvement: 27 percent of City Schools improved compared to 8 percent of schools across the state. In addition, the proportion of three, four and five-star schools in City Schools increased from 25 percent to 35 percent.” Roughly 19 schools were able to matriculate from one-star campuses to two stars. The progress can be attributed to the increase in summer learning opportunities, the implementation of more tutoring resources, the implementation of individualized Student Learning Plans and the organization of a redesigned Office
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Photo courtesy of Youtube.com/MWMCA
Pless Jones Jr. is lodging an eight-count lawsuit against Fulton Bank and the Maryland Department of Environment for allegedly pressuring him into a consent decree as he tried to secure a loan to purchase his father’s construction company. Wayne Frazier, president of the Maryland Washington Minority Companies Association, spoke with the AFRO about the lawsuit. Frazier, shown here speaking at an unrelated event, says he is concerned about other Black businesses that may find themselves in a similar situation. By Megan Sayles AFRO Business Writer msayles@afro.com
The Maryland Washington Minority Companies Association (MWMCA) has called attention to an eightcount lawsuit filed by a local Black entrepreneur against Fulton Bank, a Small Business Administration (SBA) preferred lender. According to the complaint, Baltimore resident Pless Jones Jr. attempted to obtain a loan from Fulton Bank in 2019 in order to purchase his father’s construction business, P&J Contracting. The financial institution had concerns about approving the loan because of a 2014 consent decree that his father, Pless Jones Sr., agreed to for a property associated with the business. The consent decree in question was related to the cleanup of a property in East Baltimore. The agreement was entered into by Jones Sr. with the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), which is also named as a defendant in the suit. Allegedly, Fulton Bank initially told Jones Jr. that he should not have to become party to the consent decree in order to purchase the business. But, the bank changed its stance, and Jones Jr. has claimed that he was coerced into becoming party to the consent decree in order to obtain the loan and assume ownership of the business. Jones Jr. alleges that he was made to think that he
“There was no statutory requirement or legal authority which required Mr. Jones to be added as a defendant to the second consent decree.”
Stem and Vine opens in Baltimore, cultivating a space for community, plants and wine By Megan Sayles AFRO Business Writer msayles@afro.com
There are wine bars, and there are plant stores. But, what if the two were combined? Former metallurgical engineer Quincy Goldsmith has done just that in Baltimore with Stem and Vine. When walking into the business, located on the 300 block North Charles Street, you see not only plants from all over the world, but a full-service bar with space for fellowship and community. Its tagline is “cultivating the art of living well.”
“When this came together I wanted Stem and Vine to be more than just houseplants,” said Goldsmith. “I wanted it to be more culture-based and to highlight the diversity in the world of houseplants– but also of cultures and how plants have been traditionally used.” Stem and Vine’s plant offerings are arranged in the store by origin, separated into the Americas, Australia and Africa. The business also sells ceramics and painting, primarily created by women of color. But, Goldsmith does
leaders to host small conferences and events for the public. “This is not a plant shop,” said Goldsmith. “This is a whole lot more than that. I want this to be a cultural community center and hub for downtown Baltimore.” Goldsmith wants
to delve into the world of edutainment, or educational entertainment, by hosting wine tasting and workshops on topics such as plant care, horticultural therapy, ethnobotany and financial literacy. Drawing from Continued on B3
AFRO Photo / Megan Sayles
Quincy Goldsmith is the owner of Stem and Vine, a plant shop and bar in Downtown Baltimore that seeks to serve as a hub for community and culture.
not just want residents to use the space to buy plants and have a glass of
wine. He intends to invite other business owners, nonprofits and political
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New Maryland laws Continued from B1
there are some federal regulations related to spam calls and robocalls, they have been largely ineffective. The federal regulations provide a floor and SB 90 creates stronger state guardrails for Maryland residents by requiring affirmative consent to receive these calls.” Several businesses that use similar call systems to reach their customers and potential clientele spoke against the new law. “As written, SB90/ HB37 would prohibit a person from making certain calls in a certain manner by restricting the methods, times and identifying information that the person making the call may utilize. Specifically, before a person has the ability to perform the telephone solicitation to a resident, they must first receive expressed written consent,” said Davion Percy in written testimony on behalf of the Retail Energy Supply Association. “For businesses seeking
new customers by telephone, they would now be confronted with an unreasonable and unnecessary barrier that would ultimately require an additional form of solicitation from the resident.” Another new law (SB805/HB1217) that has taken effect since Jan. 1 requires non-profit health service plans, insurers and health maintenance organizations in Maryland to provide coverage for biomarker testing. Biomarker testing helps doctors diagnose, treat, manage and monitor diseases according to the legislation. When it comes to earnings on the job, the Fair Wage Act of 2023 (SB555/HB549), a law that requires all Maryland employers to increase the minimum wage to $15, went into effect on Jan. 1. The minimum wage in Maryland was $13.25 for employers with 15 employees or more and $12.80 for employers with 14 or fewer employees. “Thanks to the Fair
Pless Jones Jr.
Several new laws are now in effect for Maryland residents as a result of legislation created by members of the Maryland General Assembly last year.
Wage Act, Maryland will ring in 2024 with a muchneeded $15 minimum wage. It will help workers put food on the table, keep a roof overhead and boost the consumer spending that local businesses depend on,” said Holly Sklar, founder and CEO of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage. “Fairer wages also help businesses hire and retain employees and deliver
the reliable service that leads to repeat customers instead of lost customers.” Though the Fair Wage Act has gotten significant applause, several organizations are against the law. “As a general proposition, the Maryland Multi-Housing Association (MMHA) believes that wages should be commensurate with the cost of living. However, the minimum
wage should be reassessed and reauthorized by the Maryland General Assembly regularly, rather than predetermined by a rigid formula with limited factors,” said the MMHA in a written testimony. Later this year, another new law, SB760/HB1055, will take effect on June 1. It will stop employers from hiring uncertified security guards and requires the Maryland Police Training and
Standards Commission to identify or create training programs for security guards. The bill also requires that a security guard agency or employer submit a detailed report of any use of force incidents by a security guard while on the job within 48 hours after the altercation.
positive indicators in attendance, literacy and math, verify that we are on the right track.” Maryland’s chronic absenteeism issue, students who are enrolled in school and miss more than 10 percent or more of days, has decreased as well. The progress may not be portrayed in the scoring due to a change in the scoring system, which allowed fewer schools to earn more points. According to the statement, “more than 85 percent of the schools
measured reduced chronic absenteeism in at least one grade band, 128 of 148 schools.” The improvement in attendance results from multiple efforts from the schools, investments and community. Each school has an established attendance plan and the community has incorporated “phonea-thons, neighborhood visits by the “City Schools On The Go” bus, home visits and summer outreach.”
Tashi McQueen is a Report For America corps member.
Baltimore City
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says in September 2020 Fulton Bank advised him to procure legal counsel from Todd Chason, resident agent at Gordon Feinblatt, to help resolve the consent decree issue with MDE. Jones Jr. would later come to discover that Chason was also representing Fulton Bank, according to the complaint. A couple months later, the complaint claims that Chason told Fulton Bank they had reached an agreement with MDE that involved withholding $500,000 from the loan to place the funds in escrow as a security measure in the event that Jones Sr. failed to adhere to the consent decree. Shortly after, Fulton Bank told Jones Jr. that MDE was requiring him to join the consent decree and that he would be unable to obtain a loan if he refused, according to the complaint. In December 2020, Jones Jr. signed the consent decree and closed the loan to purchase P&J Contracting. At that point, he assumed all terms, conditions and requirements of the agreement.
AFRO Photo/Tashi McQueen
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“Defendants Fulton Bank, MDE, Gordon Feinblatt and Chason worked together to coerce Mr. Jones into being added as party to, and signing, the second consent decree,” according to the complaint. “There was no statutory requirement or legal authority which required Mr. Jones to be added as a defendant to the second consent decree.” The complaint accuses Fulton Bank, MDE, Chason and his law firm of crimes, including civil conspiracy, breach of contract, legal malpractice, negligence, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation and punitive damages. A Fulton Bank representative told the AFRO that it was against company policy to discuss pending litigation with news media. Jones Jr. is seeking a judgment in excess of $75,000, according to the complaint.
of Student Success to support college and career readiness. Baltimore School for the Arts and Baltimore Polytechnic Institute earned an outstanding five-star rating. This year, star schools decreased from 29 to 15, and only six percent of schools decreased in the number of stars they earned for the academic school year. “Our positive results are more than numbers on a spreadsheet; they indicate a rapid growth trajectory that outpaces
our state. They are proof of the collective effort and investment of our community to accelerate the improvement of our student outcomes and schools,” said Dr. Sonja Brookins Santelises, chief executive officer of City Schools, in a statement. “The quality of our schools - as indicated by increased stars - is improving, which equals better options for our students and families. We still have more progress ahead, but these results, paired with other
Megan Sayles is a Report For America corps member.
Photo courtesy of citysprings.school
According to information released by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), public schools across Baltimore City are improving. Shown here, students from City Springs Elementary Middle School enjoy a learning experience outside of the traditional classroom.
January6, 6,2024 2024--January January12, 12,2024 2024 The The Afro-American Afro-American January
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Stem and Vine Continued from B1
his science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) background, he is set to host a plant science summer camp at Stem
“I want to create a space where ideas can be shared by people who have the means to create change and move the city forward.” and Vine for Baltimore youth. Foremost, Goldsmith wants Stem and Vine to be a gathering place
for the city’s women of color to share ideas and strategies for making Baltimore better. “This was done with intentionality, and the intention is to bring women together to help solve Baltimore’s problems,” said Goldsmith. “I want to create a space where ideas can be shared by people who have the means to create change and move the city forward. I think there’s evidence that Black women are going to be the backbone of that.” Claudia Jolin, vice president of economic development for the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, met Goldsmith in 2019 while the pair participated in a civic leadership program. At Downtown
Partnership of Baltimore, Jolin focuses on business recruitment and retention. Since Shelonda Stokes, president of the
partnership came on board, Jolin said there’s been a push to attract retail stores to vacant spaces in downtown
AFRO Photo / Megan Sayles
Stem and Vine’s plants are organized by origin, native to the Americas, Australia and Africa. The shop also sells ceramics and art, largely made by women of color.
Baltimore, as it’s one of the fastest-growing neighborhoods in the city. In talking to Goldsmith, Jolin learned about his aspirations to open Stem and Vine. She then directed him to a grant program from the partnership, Operation Storefront, which supplies entrepreneurs with grant money to relocate their operations to vacant downtown spaces. “One thing about downtown: our average age of residents is around 32. They love wine, and they love plants,” said Jolin. “My retail analysis suggests that we don’t have a lot of children downtown, but we have a pretty good disposable income of people who want to spend money on themselves.”
Jolin said the partnership is particularly looking to attract businesses that can serve as “third spaces,” or places where people can spend time between home and work. Stem and Vine suits this purpose. “Quincy’s space is that. You can go in, grab a plant and leave, or you can go in, have a couple of glasses of wine, talk to Quincy about plants and start meeting people in your community,” said Jolin. “That’s something downtown has been lacking for a while, which is why I believe this location is going to be so successful. It’s not just a store, it’s a place to go.” Megan Sayles is a Report For America corps member.
Local organization provides students with hands on experience in vocational and technical fields By Aria Brent AFRO Staff Writer abrent@afro.com
Carver Vocational Technical High School has been training their students to excel in both career and collegiate settings for nearly a century. However, a local organization is helping the historic school further prepare their students for greatness. Requity, a nonprofit organization rooted in promoting sustainable community development, is aimed at investing in people and projects focused on social, economic and environmental returns. Founded by Carver alum Sterling Hardy, the small organization is making a huge impact in the
around Carver that were in need of renovation, gave way to the founding of Requity in 2020. The program has created pilot projects that are focused on feeding the community, renovating the neighborhood and completely remodeling a home directly across the street from Carver. “There’s another project that we do called ‘Pleasant Presstman.’ We put up new lighting and new sign fixtures to revitalize the block,” stated Hardy. “We have a program right now that we do on Wednesdays, it’s called ‘We All Eat Wednesday.’ We go around and we make lunch for the neighborhood. We pass out free lunches to the neighbors around the community.”
“We’re changing the narrative of Baltimore City…we’re not just talking about it. We’re actually showing people it can get done and we can make it happen. It may take some time, but we’re on the right path and Baltimore City is going to be a great city.” Presstman neighborhood. “The problem was a lot of my classmates and I were not getting jobs in our actual trades that we graduated school for,” stated Hardy, explaining what inspired him to start Requity. “We’ve been in school for four years, we took these trades, we graduated, we’re certified in it–but no one wanted to hire us because they said we don’t have real handson skills.” The need for hands-on work experience, along with a series of homes
Hardy explained how important it is to provide students with not only the knowledge to succeed but the skillset as well. He shared with the AFRO that not only are they giving students the hands-on experiences they need for their respective fields, but they’re also teaching them soft skills that can be transferred to a multitude of outlets in their lives. “Instead of giving them a textbook and sitting them in a classroom and telling them ‘take these notes and take this test’ it gives them
a hands-on skill to utilize everywhere,” Hardy said. Students from all trades at Carver are welcomed to join the program and further the skills they’ve learned in their programs. Other sectors of the organization, such as the media team, have allowed students like DeMarco Johnson to hone the skills they’ve been learning while attending the historic high school. “We get footage and we prepare everything so it can be posted,” stated 17-year-old, DeMarco Johnson.”This [program] has been able to help me branch out in the media field. Getting to meet different people and connect and build my portfolio has been great. I think we need more things like this to help Baltimore as a whole.” Johnson is a senior at Carver, where he’s studied in the Interactive Media Program for the last four years. Since having joined Requity he’s been able to further hone his media skills by participating in the Carver Media Team. The program currently has about 12 to 15 students who are not only gaining experience in their field but they’re also earning the opportunity to pursue their trades in professional environments like internships and jobs. Although the program is currently only operating inside of Carver they are looking to expand the program to other schools and even regions outside of Baltimore. “Our goal for this [program] is to not just have it at Carver. Our goal is to scale this out across the entire city of Baltimore, then eventually the state and other cities that need this support,” stated Hardy. Requity is not
Photo courtesy of Requity.org
Requity is a non-profit organization focused on bridging the gap between lessons learned in the classroom and hands on experiences needed to succeed in the workforce. Through the programming offered, students can hone their skills in everything from carpentry to masonry and more.
only providing more professional opportunities to students, they’re also allowing them to express themselves and tap into a part of their creativity they didn’t know existed. “Requity has helped me express myself more. Since working with the organization I’ve learned how to contribute ideas to projects,” said Carver senior Deshawn Brown. Brown is also a member of the Carver media team. Much like Johnson, he has been able to grow in his program
and use his skills to work with other organizations in the Baltimore community. Hardy noted that in addition to helping students gain experience in their respective fields, it’s also helped them improve their academics. Some students in the Requity program have become honor roll students after previously struggling with their grades. Other students have gone on to work with companies such as Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) and the
Harbor Bank of Maryland. Requity is determined to change how Charm City is viewed– and they’re starting with the youth. “We’re changing the narrative of Baltimore city, that’s what we’re doing. We’re not just talking about it,” exclaimed Hardy. “We’re actually showing people it can get done and we can make it happen. It may take some time, but we’re on the right path and Baltimore City is going to be a great city.”
B4 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
Baltimore City brings in New Year with Soul Cannon concert and drone light show By James Fields Special to the AFRO
housands lined the Baltimore Inner Harbor for the T New Year’s Eve Spectacular, produced each year by the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts. Many came to
see the fireworks, but first they were treated to music by DJ Curtis, who kicked off the evening’s festivities at 8 p.m. Ice skaters circled the ice rink in front of the Baltimore Inner Harbor Amphitheatre as the crowd grew larger. Soul Cannon took the stage with lead artist Eze Jackson, performing original pieces and covers by other legendary groups, such as the Wu-Tang Clan, at 10 p.m. Shortly before midnight, Baltimore City Chief Administrative Officer Faith P. Leach took to the stage to help residents and visitors usher in 2024. This year’s show included something new– a drone show, in addition to the traditional fireworks. Drones lit up the sky at midnight, creating images such as a dove, representing peace, and of course, the name of the beloved city of Baltimore. Keryl and Martha Liburd head into 2024 with a baby on the way.
All photos by James Fields
The 2023 New Year’s Eve Spectacular included the debut of a drone light show. Shown here, drones in the shape of a dove, representing the peace many hope will come in the new year.
Eze Jackson leads Soul Cannon in their performance for the 2023 New Year’s Eve Spectacular, held each year by the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts.
Protestors use the occasion to call for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.
Baltimore City Chief Administrative Officer Faith P. Leach speaks to those gathered for the new year.
DJ Curtis gets the night started.
Drones spell out the word “Baltimore” in the sky.
Yeshu Sesenaya skates into the new year.
To purchase this digital photo page or photos contact editor@afro.com
January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American
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Historically Black college brings autonomous vehicles to Greensboro, N.C. By Megan Sayles AFRO Business Writer msayles@afro.com
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (North Carolina A&T ) is in the process of bringing self-driving shuttles to the Greensboro, N.C. community. The university unveiled three autonomous vehicles, known as Aggie Auto shuttles, last November before testing them in a one-month pilot program that took place this September. With the shuttles, North Carolina A&T hopes to provide transportation access to disconnected communities in the Greensboro and surrounding areas, a number of which are rural areas. “There are a lot of open questions that we can address with public transportation in rural areas, which are a signature of our state of North Carolina,” said Ali Karimoddini, associate professor at North Carolina A&T’s electrical and computer engineering department. “We decided to move on with creating infrastructure for testing autonomous vehicles in rural areas, and we’re developing different autonomous cars that can serve underserved and rural communities.” The Aggie Auto shuttles were designed by a collaborative of researchers, faculty and students across various science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Before the pilot program’s start, they were tested at Gateway Research Park’s 2-mile test track, which simulates real-world, rural driving conditions. The pilot’s fleet consisted of three self-
driving vehicles, a high-speed van and two sedans, that shuttled students, faculty, staff and community members from campus to downtown Greensboro. The shuttles are equipped with safety mechanisms for emergency stops and have a human back-up driver who can take over if necessary. They were also designed in compliance
“These autonomous vehicles could be very efficient—costwise, time-wise Photo courtesy of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and human North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University’s self-driving shuttles drive through Greensboro, N.C. The resourceAggie Auto shuttles have been designed to better serve rural areas with efficient, reliable transportation access. wise— when team intends “The nature of the human resource-wise— the team to develop an you have very research to release the survey’s distributed population in when you have very app, similar to Uber or findings in the spring. our rural communities little service demands Lyft, that would enable little service For him, autonomous and the sparse demand distributed across a large individuals to view demands vehicles hold the key to for transportation services community. We can’t just estimated wait times and circumventing the low may not justify the use of ignore their transportation the shuttle’s list of stops. distributed density and current transportation,” needs.” Estep thinks the across a large population low ridership in rural said Karimoddini. “These Dezmon Estep, senior autonomous shuttles community.” communities that cause autonomous vehicles computer engineering have an opportunity to with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. However, Karimoddini said perceived safety concerns did pose a challenge to community members embracing the shuttles. “We’ve been conducting a survey to all riders who are using our service about their perception and trust in these vehicles. Imagine in the future, the city invests a lot in this domain and then people are still not trusting,” said Karimoddini. “What is the trust of the public in these vehicles and how can we build that trust are the questions we are looking at.” Karimoddini said the
traditional transit to run infrequently.
could be very efficient— cost-wise, time-wise and
Courtesy photo
Ali Karimoddini is an associate professor for North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University’s electrical and computer engineering department. He has helped to lead the university’s work on the Aggie Auto Shuttles.
student at North Carolina A&T, was a part of the team of researchers behind the Aggie Auto shuttles. He decided to join the project because of his affinity for mobile autonomous systems. “Before, it was really stressful because you have to make sure everything is working properly and precise. Once I actually got to the event, we did the first shuttle ride, and everything worked smoothly,” said Estep. “You could see the wow and amazement of everybody there getting on the shuttle. It was pure bliss to me because I was a part of something so cool.” Estep said the test run went well. As for improvements, he wants
reduce the constraints that traditional shuttle services are confined to. If he had to describe their strength in one word, he said it would be their versatility. “There’s not as many restrictions once you solidify the platform because you won’t have time restrictions, like shuttles only operating at certain hours, and it won’t be that it can only go to certain spots,” said Estep. “I think once the platform is fully developed, you’ll be able to get on the shuttle at any time. You’ll also be able to go to a wider variety of locations. It’s also just a really cool experience.”
Megan Sayles is a Report For America corps member.
Google settles $5 billion privacy lawsuit over tracking people using ‘incognito mode’ mode. It argued that Google’s advertising Google has agreed to technologies and other settle a $5 billion privacy techniques continued to lawsuit alleging that it catalog details of users’ spied on people who site visits and activities used the “incognito” despite their use of mode in its Chrome supposedly “private” browser — along with browsing. similar “private” modes Plaintiffs also in other browsers — to charged that Google’s track their internet use. activities yielded an The class-action “unaccountable trove lawsuit filed in 2020 of information” about said Google misled users who thought they’d users into believing taken steps to protect that it wouldn’t track their privacy. their internet activities The settlement, while using incognito reached Dec. 28, must
By The Associated Press
still be approved by a federal judge. Terms weren’t disclosed, but the suit originally sought $5 billion on behalf of users; lawyers for the plaintiffs said they expect to present the court with a final settlement agreement by Feb. 24. Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the settlement. This article was originally published by the Associated Press.
AP Photo/Matt Slocum
Google agreed Dec. 28 to settle a $5 billion privacy lawsuit claiming that it continued spying on people who used the “incognito” mode in its Chrome browser — along with similar “private browsing” modes in other browsers — to track their internet use.
C2 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
Celebrating artistry: Baltimore welcomes home Rashad Corey, assistant costume designer for ‘The Color Purple’ By Ericka Alston Buck Special to the AFRO
The enchanting evening of Dec. 23, saw The Senator Theatre in Baltimore come alive with vibrant hues of purple, marking an exclusive private screening of “The Color Purple.” The event doubled as a celebration for Baltimore native and assistant costume designer Rashad Corey, who returned to his hometown to host the program, creating a night of glam, inspiration and cinematic brilliance. Corey’s roots in Baltimore and his wealth of experience in fashion and costume design made the Senator Theatre the perfect venue for this momentous occasion. A graduate of Parkville High School, Corey’s love for his hometown was palpable as he curated an evening that merged the charm of Baltimore with the allure of Hollywood. The assistant costume designer for the world premiere of “The Color Purple” had a profound goal for hosting the pre-screening. Corey aimed to provide family, friends and colleagues a sneak peek of the movie before its nationwide release on Christmas Day 2023. Moreover, he aspired to
“I decided not long ago that I was going to literally manifest everything that God had for me. I wasn’t just gonna wait for it to manifest.” empower and inspire individuals, encouraging them to uncover the dormant dreams and visions within themselves, akin to the characters of Miss Celie or Sophia. “I decided not long ago that I was going to literally manifest everything that God had for me. I wasn’t just gonna wait for it to manifest. I said ‘manifest’! I activated the manifestation and began to experience an overwhelming abundance of opportunities and open doors,” said Corey. “What are you thinking that you haven’t manifested? Manifest!” The event drew a remarkable turnout, with nearly 200 guests in attendance, including family, friends, colleagues and social media fans. The purple theme resonated throughout the evening, with guests adorned in an array of purple and lilac, creating a spectacle of color that accentuated the festive atmosphere. The Purple Carpet and Cocktails experience was a highlight
Photo courtesy of Lester Public Relations and Events
Rashad Corey, assistant costume designer for new musical, “The Color Purple” poses outside of the Senator Theatre in his hometown of Baltimore.
of the evening, offering attendees an hour to mingle, capture memories on the purple carpet against a movie-themed backdrop. Those present could also enjoy an assortment of libations before settling into the theater. “The Color Purple” lived up to its legendary reputation, blending the nostalgia of the 1985 version with a modern and refreshing 2023 adaptation. Families across the country spent their Christmas in theaters, contributing to the film’s immense box office success. With $18.15 million in box office receipts, it boasted the highest Christmas Day opening since 2009, securing its place as the second-largest Christmas Day opening of all time. Corey’s contribution to the costume design, working alongside lead costume designer Francine Jamison-Tanchuck, was nothing short of remarkable. He played a pivotal role in
outfitting the entire group of dancers in the iconic Miss Celie’s pants scene and contributed to the wardrobe of esteemed actors such as Louis Gossett Jr., Whoopi Goldberg and Jon Batiste. The design team’s meticulous approach brought the film’s time period to life with vivid colors of red and purple, complemented by subdued matte hues of brown, gray and black. The result was a visually stunning tapestry that perfectly captured the essence of the characters and the narrative. As the credits rolled and the applause echoed through the Senator Theatre, Rashad’s homecoming became not just a celebration of a movie, but a testament to the power of determination, inspiration and the magic of returning to one’s roots. The exclusive premiere was not just a cinematic experience; it was a journey of empowerment, creativity and a shared love for the arts.
Meet Kris Bowers, the man becoming Hollywood’s favorite composer “What could be seen as confidence was really me being like, ‘I don’t know how to do it, but I’ll figure it out,’” he says. “I feel like the daily process is always trying to figure out the voice inside that’s telling me that I don’t belong or shouldn’t be here.” The recurring imposter syndrome was central to Bowers’ 2021 Oscar-nominated short, which he co-directed, composed, and co-starred in alongside his grandfather, telling his family’s story from the American South to Los Angeles. “I kept asking him questions to try to get him to acknowledge that feeling,” Bowers says of his grandfather.
By Leslie Ambriz The Associated Press
Kris Bowers grew up in Los Angeles, just a few minutes away from The World Stage performance space, and immersed in jazz. Music, he knew, was always his path. “I told them (my parents) when I was 12, I want to go to school for jazz and tour as a jazz artist and then transition into film scoring,” the pianist-turned-composer says. “I never had a moment where I thought, ‘Oh, maybe I’ll do something else.’” I was always like, ‘Oh, that’s the path...yeah, I’ll try to figure out how to make it happen.’” Scarcely two decades after that preteen declaration, the 34-year-old is an Emmy- and Grammy-nominated composer whose resume could fill pages. He’s created moving compositions for prominent filmmakers, including Ava DuVernay and Justin Simien, and Oscar-winning films like “King Richard” and “Green Book.” This year alone, Bowers has scored Marvel’s “Secret Invasion” series, “Chevalier” and “Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story” (he’s a veteran of Shonda Rhimes projects ), earning him a spot among The Associated Press’ Breakthrough Entertainers of 2023. Having been nominated once for an Oscar — as a filmmaker, for his short documentary, “A Concerto is a Conversation” — his scores for Blitz Bazawule’s “The Color Purple” and DuVernay’s “Origin” could land him once again at the Academy Awards in March. Bowers is grateful to the filmmakers who he says have allowed him to explore different styles and genres. “As a Black composer, I feel like, you know, before those people gave me opportunities, I always had these roadblocks of typecasting. If I wanted to do a certain kind of film, it was hard to get considered for it,” he says, remembering how easy it was for others to only consider him if they needed a hip-hop score. Now, his close working relationships with artists like DuVernay allow him the freedom to experiment with various blends of sound. His scores ebb and flow seamlessly, from the upbeat, drum-filled tempos of “Space Jam: A New Legacy” to the quirky reimagining of “The Haunted Mansion” to the heart-wrenching soundtrack of “When They See Us.” “I feel like that type of trust and belief is really what has helped me kind of build my career,” he says. Bowers looked to collaborators and mentors to guide him through navigating Hollywood. His mentality when it comes
“I never had a moment where I thought, ‘Oh, maybe I’ll do something else.’”
Photo by Willy Sanjuan
Kris Bowers has made a name for himself in the entertainment industry as a pianist and composer. His talent has put him in the company of award-winning director Ava DuVernay and other power players in need of moving compositions for their films.
to composing was inspired by one of those high-profile collaborators: the late Kobe Bryant, with whom he worked on the 2015 documentary, “Kobe Bryant’s Muse.” “I feel like a lot of my mentality is inspired by him and also like my mentality when it comes to composing was directly inspired by him in that project,” Bowers says. Throughout his early days of film scoring, Bowers says he felt imposter syndrome, but made it a point to tackle challenging projects.
“At some point, he was like, ‘Why would I doubt myself? Why would I generate those thoughts in my own head? There’s already doubt out here that I’m dealing with like, why would I double down and do that internally?’” Bowers still remembers one of the first standout moments of his career, one that assuaged some of his early self-doubt. He was selected to perform two songs in front of thenPresident Barack Obama at the White House, alongside a group of musical icons. “To be able to invite my dad to that space to see me be a part of a show like that, I think, was one moment that definitely stands out for me as feeling a little bit more confident or comfortable in this feeling of having a secure position in an industry,” he recalls. As Bowers continues his rise in the industry, his “I made it” moments and sense of security no longer revolve around public recognition. As a husband and the father of a baby girl, Bowers is more concerned with impressing and providing for the two people he holds dear. “Now it’s so much more driven by wanting to make my daughter proud, like in the future when she looks back on my career to have some sort of sense of pride in who her dad is or like how her dad decided to work, same with my wife, just making sure that they feel taken care of,” he says. This article was originally published by the Associated Press.
January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American C3
Can family doctors deliver rural America from its maternal health crisis? call 365 days a year,” said Deutchman, who is also associate dean for rural health at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus School of Medicine. The school’s College of Nursing received a $2 million federal grant this fall to train midwives to work in rural areas of Colorado. Nationwide, teams of providers are ensuring rural obstetric units stay busy. In Lakin, Kansas, Drew Miller works with five other family physicians and a physician
By Sarah Jane Tribble KFF Health News Dr. Zita Magloire carefully adjusted a soft measuring tape across Kenadie Evans’ pregnant belly. Determining a baby’s size during a 28-week obstetrical visit is routine. But Magloire, a family physician trained in obstetrics, knows that finding the mother’s uterus and, thus, checking the baby, can be tricky for inexperienced doctors. “Sometimes it’s, like, off to the side,” Magloire said, showing a visiting medical student how to press down firmly and complete the hands-on exam. She moved her finger slightly to calculate the fetus’s height: “There she is, right here.” Evans smiled and later said Magloire made her “comfortable.” The 21-year-old had recently relocated from Louisiana to southeastern Georgia, two states where both maternal and infant mortality are persistently high. She moved in with her mother and grandfather near Cairo, an agricultural community where the hospital has a busy labor and delivery unit. Magloire and other doctors at the local clinic where she works deliver hundreds of babies there each year. Scenes like the one between Evans and Magloire regularly play out in this rural corner of Georgia despite grim realities mothers and babies face nationwide. Maternal deaths keep rising, with Black and Indigenous mothers most at risk; the number of babies who died before their 1st birthday climbed last year; and more than half of all rural counties in the United States have no hospital services for delivering babies, increasing travel time for parents-tobe and causing declines in prenatal care. There are many reasons labor and delivery units close, including high operating costs, declining populations, low Medicaid reimbursement rates, and staffing shortages. Family medicine physicians still provide the majority of labor and delivery care in rural America, but few new doctors recruited to less populated areas offer obstetrics care, partly because they don’t want to be on call 24/7. Now, with rural America hemorrhaging health care providers, the federal government is investing dollars and attention to increase the ranks. “Obviously the crisis is here,” said Hana Hinkle, executive director of the Rural Training Track Collaborative,
“There’s no longer Sarah Jane Tribble / KFF Health News the ability to be on YaSheka Shaw (left) celebrates losing weight during a checkup with 24/7 call for your medical student Kaniya Pierre Louis (center) and Dr. Zita Magloire. women to deliver. which works with more than 70 rural There needs to residency training programs. Federal grants have boosted training programs be a little more in recent years, Hinkle said. harmony when In July, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a recruiting to really nearly $11 million investment in new rural programs, including family support a team medicine residencies that focus on of physicians and obstetrical training. Nationwide, a declining number midwives.” of primary care doctors — internal and family medicine — has made it difficult for patients to book appointments and, in some cases, find a doctor at all. In rural America, training family medicine doctors in obstetrics can be more daunting because of low government reimbursement and increasing medical liability costs, said Hinkle, who is also assistant dean of Rural Health Professions at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Rockford. In the 1980s, about 43 percent of general family physicians who completed their residencies were trained in obstetrics. In 2021, the American Academy of Family Physicians’ annual practice profile survey found that 15 percent of respondents had practiced obstetrics. Yet family doctors, who also provide the full spectrum of primary care services, are “the backbone of rural deliveries,” said Julie Wood, a doctor and senior vice president of research, science, and health of the public at the AAFP. In a survey of 216 rural hospitals in 10 states, family practice doctors delivered babies in 67 percent of the hospitals, and at 27 percent of the hospitals they were the only ones who delivered babies. The data counted
Sarah Jane Tribble / KFF Health News
Dr. Zita Magloire, who practices family medicine, says providing care to mothers before, during and after pregnancy is “just essential care” that “affects the whole trajectory of life.” babies delivered from 2013 to 2017. And, the authors found, if those family physicians hadn’t been there, many patients would have driven an average of 86 miles round-trip for care. Mark Deutchman, the report’s lead author, said he was “on call for 12 years” when he worked in a town of 2,000 residents in rural Washington. Clarifying that he was exaggerating, Deutchman explained that he was one of just two local doctors who performed cesarean sections. He said the best way to ensure family physicians can bolster obstetric units is to make sure they work as part of a team to prevent burnout, rather than as solo do-it-all doctors of old. There needs to be a core group of physicians, nurses, and a supportive hospital administration to share the workload “so that somebody isn’t on
assistant who has done an obstetrical fellowship. Together, they deliver about 340 babies a year, up from just over 100 annually when Miller first moved there in 2010. Word-of-mouth and two nearby obstetric unit closures have increased their deliveries. Miller said he has seen friends and partners “from surrounding communities stop delivering just from sheer burnout.” In Galesburg, Illinois, Annevay Conlee has watched four nearby obstetric units close since 2012, forcing some pregnant people to drive up to an hour and a half for care. Conlee is a practicing family medicine doctor and medical director overseeing four rural areas with a team of OB-GYNs, family physicians, and a nurse-midwife. “There’s no longer the ability to be on 24/7 call for your women to deliver,” Conlee said. “There needs to be a little more harmony when recruiting in to really support a team of physicians and midwives.” In Cairo, Magloire said practicing obstetrics is “just essential care.” In fact, pregnancy care represents just a slice of her patient visits in this Georgia town of about 10,000 people. On a recent morning, Magloire’s patients included two pregnant people
as well as a teen concerned about hip pain and an ecstatic 47-year-old who celebrated losing weight. Cairo Medical Care, an independent clinic situated across the street from the 60-bed Archbold Grady hospital, is in a community best known for its peanut crops and as the birthplace of baseball legend Jackie Robinson. The historical downtown has brick-accented streets and the oldest movie theater in Georgia, and a corner of the library is dedicated to local history. The clinic’s six doctors, who are a mix of family medicine practitioners, like Magloire, and obstetriciangynecologists, pull in patients from the surrounding counties and together deliver nearly 300 babies at the hospital each year. Deanna Buckins, a 36-year-old mother of four boys, said she was relieved when she found “Dr. Z” because she “completely changed our lives.” “She actually listens to me and accepts my decisions instead of pushing things upon me,” said Buckins, as she held her 3-week-old son, whom Magloire had delivered. Years earlier, Magloire helped diagnose one of Buckins’ older children with autism and built trust with the family. “Say I go in with one kid; before we leave, we’ve talked about every single kid on how they’re doing and, you know, getting caught up with life,” Buckins said. Magloire grew up in Tallahassee, Florida, and did her residency in rural Kansas. The smallness of Cairo, she said, allows her to see patients as they grow — chatting up the kids when the mothers or siblings come for appointments. “She’s very friendly,” Evans said of Magloire. Evans, whose first child was delivered by an OB-GYN, said she was nervous about finding the right doctor. The kind of specialist her doctor was didn’t matter as much as being with “someone who cares,” she said. As a primary care doctor, Magloire can care for Evans and her children for years to come. This article was originally published by KFF Health News, a national newsroom that produces indepth journalism about health issues. KFF Health News is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism.
American women are stocking up on abortion pills– especially when there is news about restrictions By Laura Ungar The Associated Press Thousands of women stocked up on abortion pills just in case they needed them, new research shows, with demand peaking in the past couple years at times when it looked like the medications might become harder to get. Medication abortion accounts for more than half of all abortions in the U.S., and typically involves two drugs: mifepristone and misoprostol. A research letter recently published in JAMA Internal Medicine looked at requests for these pills from people who weren’t pregnant and sought them through Aid Access, a European online telemedicine service that prescribes them for future and immediate use. Aid Access received about 48,400 requests from across the U.S. for so-called “advance provision” from September 2021 through April 2023. Requests were highest right after news leaked in
May 2022 that the Supreme Court would overturn Roe v. Wade — but before the formal announcement that June, researchers found. Nationally, the average number of daily requests shot up nearly tenfold, from about 25 in the eight months before the leak to 247 after the leak.
to their reproductive rights, and potentially thinking to themselves: How can I prepare for this? Or how can I get around this or get out ahead of this?” said Dr. Abigail Aiken, an associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the letter’s authors. Daily requests dropped
“People are looking at looming threats to reproductive health access, looming threats to their reproductive rights, and potentially thinking to themselves: ‘How can I prepare for this? Or how can I get around this or get out ahead of this?’” In states where an abortion ban was inevitable, the average weekly request rate rose nearly ninefold. “People are looking at looming threats to reproductive health access, looming threats
to 89 nationally after the Supreme Court decision, the research shows, then rose to 172 in April 2023 when there were conflicting legal rulings about the federal approval of mifepristone. The Supreme
AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall
Studies show that women across the country stocked up mifepristone and misoprostol last year. Court is expected to rule on limits on the drug this year. Co-author Dr. Rebecca Gomperts of Amsterdam, director of Aid Access, attributed this spike to greater public awareness during times of uncertainty. Researchers found inequities in who is getting pills in advance. Compared with people requesting pills to manage current abortions,
a greater proportion were at least 30 years old, white, had no children and lived in urban areas and regions with less poverty. Advance provision isn’t yet reaching people who face the greatest barriers to abortion care, said Dr. Daniel Grossman, an OB-GYN at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not involved in the research.
“It’s not surprising that some people would want to have these pills on hand in case they need them, instead of having to travel to another state or try to obtain them through telehealth once pregnant,” he added in an email, also saying more research is needed into the inequities. Recently, Aiken said, some other organizations have started offering pills in advance. “It’s a very new idea for a lot of folks because it’s not standard practice within the U.S. health care setting,” she said. “It will actually be news to a lot of people that it’s even something that is offered.” The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content. This article was originally published by the Associated Press.
C4 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
For More Information Please call the number above LEGAL NOTICES
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001395 NORMAJEAN FREELAND-HOLLADAY AKA NORMAJEAN ELAINE THOMASINE FREELAND-HOLLADAY Name of Decedent Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs DARRIA L. BOYD WISE, whose address is 9322 BREAMORE COURT, LAUREL MARYLAND 20723, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of NORMAJEAN FREELAND-HOLLADAY AKA NORMAJEAN ELAINE THOMASINE FREELAND-HOLLADAY , who died on AUGUST 8, 2023 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JUNE 22, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JUNE 22, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: DECEMBER 22, 2023 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers DARRIA L. BOYD WISE Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 12/22, 12/29, 1/5/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION 2023FEP000123 DECEMBER 27, 2022 Date of Death JASON CHRISTOPHER MONTGOMERY Name of Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS PAMELA D. MONTGOMERY, whose address is 181 SELDOVIA DRIVE, INDIAN HEAD MD 20640 was appointecd representative of the estate of JASON CHRISTOPHER MONTGOMERY deceased, by the REGISTER OF WILLS Court for ST. MARY’S County, State of MARYLAND, on JANUARY 25, 2023. Service of process may be made upon JEFFREY D. KATZ 1776 K STREET NW SUITE 200, WASHINGTON DC 20006 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real property: 356 BURBANK ST. SE WASHINGTON DC 20019. Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills for the District of Columbia, Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice. Date of first publication: DECEMBER 22, 2023 Name of newspaper, and/or periodical: Daily Washington Law Reporter AFRO-American PAMELA D. MONTGOMERY Personal Reperesenative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 12/22, 12/29, 1/5/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION 2023FEP000125 JANUARY 2, 2023 Date of Death EVA MAE INGRAM JONES Name of Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS MARC ELIOT INGRAM, whose address is 11201 DAPPLED GREY WAY UPPER MARLBORO, MD 20772 was appointecd representative of the estate of EVA MAE INGRAM JONES deceased, by the ORPHAN’S Court for PRINCE GEORGES County, State of MARYLAND, on AUGUST 22, 2023. Service of process may be made upon ERICA F. GLOGER 1330 NEW HAMPSHIRE AVE, NW APT 310 WASHINGTON DC 20036 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real property: 1601 HOLBROOK STREET NE WASHINGTON DC 20002. Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills for the District of Columbia, Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice. Date of first publication: DECEMBER 22, 2023 Name of newspaper, and/or periodical: Daily Washington Law Reporter AFRO-American MARC ELIOT INGRAM Personal Reperesenative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 12/22, 12/29, 1/5/24
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001420 LILLER SPENCER FLEMING Name of Decedent Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs JAMES EDWIN SPENCER 3, whose address is 2006 38TH ST SE WASHINGTON DC 20020, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of LILLER SPENCER FLEMING, who died on OCTOBER 31, 2023 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JUNE 29, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JUNE 29, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: DECEMBER 29, 2023 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM1425 ABRAHAM BETHEA Name of Decedent KEITH A. ANDERSON 4700 BLAINE STREET, N.E. WASHNGTON, D.C. 20019 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs CHERYL B. GARDNER, whose address is 22309 GOSHEN SCHOOL RD., GAITHERSBURG, MD. 20882, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of ABRAHAM BETHEA, who died on MARCH 17, 2014 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers
JAMES EDWIN SPENCER 3 Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 12/29, 1/5, 1/12/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001401 PHILLIP A. GREGORY Name of Decedent THOMAS H. QUEEN, ESQ. 7961 EASTERN AVENUE, SUITE 304 SILVER SPRING, MD 20910 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs TERITA R. GREGORY whose address is 1212 HILLBRIDGE DRIVE, HAINES CITY, FL 33844, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of PHILLIP A. GREGORY , who died on JUNE 30, 2008 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JUNE 22, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JUNE 22, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: DECEMBER 22, 2023 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers TERITA R. GREGORY Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 12/22, 12/29, 1/5/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001427 RYAN ALLEN MORGAN Name of Decedent Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs RALPH ALLEN MORGAN, whose address is 3948 FIRST STREET S.W. WASHINGTON, DC 20032, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of RYAN ALLEN MORGAN, who died on SEPTEMBER 10, 2023 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JUNE 29, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JUNE 29, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: DECEMBER 29, 2023 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers RALPH ALLEN MORGAN Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 12/29, 1/5, 1/12/24
CHERYL B. GARDNER Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001442 AVON DECARLOS SHELL SR. Name of Decedent WASHINGTON DC 20006 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs BARBARA ANN SIMMONS SHELL, whose address is 625 HAMLIN ST NE #3 WDC 20017, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of AVON DECARLOS SHELL SR., who died on DECEMBER 7, 2022 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers BARBARA ANN SIMMONS SHELL Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001412 ALPHIE R. WILLIAMS Name of Decedent DENIS C. MITCHELL STEIN MITCHELL BEATO & MISSNER LLP 2000 K STREET, N.W SUITE 600 WASHINGTON DC 20006 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs JOHNICA WILLIAMS, whose address is 3407 WHEELER ROAD, S.E. WASHINGTON D.C. 20032, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of ALPHIE R. WILLIAMS, who died on AUGUST 29, 2021 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers JOHNICA WILLIAMS Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM1410 CHRISTINE CODY Name of Decedent KATELYN E. HOLBROOK ESQ. 4800 MONTGOMERY LN. STE 600 BETHESDA MD 20814 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs JEFFREY D. KATZ, whose address is 4800 MONTGOMERY LN STE 600 BETHESDA MD 20814, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of CHRISTINE CODY, who died on OCTOBER 23, 2022 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers JEFFREY D.KATZ Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001467 LEONARD L. LONG JR. Name of Decedent ELIZABETH V. NOEL ESQ. 10770 COLUMBIA PIKE- SUITE 250 SILVER SPRING MD 20901 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs LETICIA LONG, whose address is 2327 BRANCH AVE SE, WASHINGTON DC 20020, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of LEONARD L. LONG, JR., who died on SEPTEMBER 29, 2023 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers
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LETICIA LONG Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001440 BAHAI PAUL-BAHA Name of Decedent TIMOTHY J. SESSING 12850 MIDDLEBROOK ROAD, SUITE 308 GERMANTOWN, MARYLAND 20874 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs OMAR CATOE, whose address is 6010 BIRKDALE VALLEY DRIVE APT 228, CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA 28277, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of BAHAI PAUL-BAHA, who died on SEPTEMBER 26, 2023 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers OMAR CATOE Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
Washington Classified Continued on C5
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January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American C5
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Effective immediately, The Afro American Newspapers will require prepayment for publication of all legal notices Payment will be accepted in the form of checks, credit card or money order. Any returned checks will be subject to a $25.00 processing fee and may result in the suspension of any future advertising at our discretion. LEGAL NOTICES BOARD OF LIQUOR LICENSE COMMISSIONERS FOR BALTIMORE CITY NOTICE – DECEMBER 2023 Petitions have been filed by the following applicants for licenses to sell alcoholic beverages at the premises set opposite their respective names. The real property for these applications will be posted on or about December 18, 2023. Written protests concerning any application will be accepted until and including the time of the hearing. Public hearings may be scheduled on or after December 28, 2023 at 10:30 AM in City Hall; 100 N. Holliday Street, Room 215, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. Please visit llb. baltimorecity.gov under the link for “Hearing Schedules” for confirmation of the date, time, and place for all matters being heard by the Board. 1. CLASS “A” BEER, WINE & LIQUOR LICENSE Applicant: Alish, Inc. T/a Frankford Garden Liquors - Arsh Chaudhri and Audrey Delray DeGross Petition: Transfer of ownership Premises: 5418-20 Sinclair Lane 21206 Applicant: CNY Enterprise, LLC T/a Mt. Vernon Liquor - Young Yim and Stephanie Marie Corelli Petition: Transfer of ownership Premises: 815-17 N. Charles Street 21201 2. CLASS “A-2” BEER, WINE & LIQUOR LICENSE Applicant: AAMA Chori, LLC T/a Trade Name Pending - Sabitri Thapa and Beth Ann Thomas Petition: Transfer of ownership requesting delivery of alcoholic beverages Premises: 4220 Edmondson Avenue 21229 3. CLASS “B” BEER, WINE & LIQUOR LICENSE Applicant: Barn & Lodge at Rotunda, LLC T/a Barn & Lodge at the Rotunda - James Joseph King and Peter B. Rosenwald, II Petition: New restaurant license requesting outdoor table service and off-premises catering Premises: 729 W. 40th Street, Suite 101 21211 Applicant: QQ Asian Cuisine, Inc. T/a Bambao - Qin Qin Huang and Deborah Yahudah Yah Yisrael Petition: Transfer of ownership with continuation of outdoor table service, requesting delivery of alcoholic beverages Premises: 1010 Aliceanna Street 21202 Applicant: Bcockey, LLC T/a Cockey’s - Tiffany Welch and Robert Glen Cockey, Sr. Petition: New restaurant license requesting outdoor table service, off-premises catering, and delivery of alcoholic beverages Premises: 737 Carroll Street 21230 Applicant: HM Management Latrobe, LLC a/k/a HM Management, LLC T/a Trade Name Pending - Jennifer Pasquier Webber and Pamela R. Haner Petition: Transfer of ownership Premises: 909 N. Charles Street 21201 Applicant: Jeffcross, Inc. T/a Trade Name Pending - Andrew Lasinski and Lonnie Shaulis Petition: Transfer of ownership and location of a Class “B” BWL license presently located at 38 E. Cross Street to 31 E. Cross Street requesting live entertainment and outdoor table service Premises: 31 E. Cross Street 21230 Applicant: Mayfield Café, LLC T/a Mayfield Café - Austin Allen Petition: New restaurant license requesting outdoor table service Premises: 3500-02 Harford Road 21218 Applicant: Macon Opco, LLC T/a Trade Name Pending - Mangafoula Minadakis Petition: Transfer of ownership Premises: 422-26 S. Macon Street 21224 Applicant: Golden Grillz, LLC T/a Da’ Hangout - Rifkaw Shlomis Fonseca and Zoraida Lolita Iris Fonseca Petition: New restaurant license requesting off-premises catering Premises: 2-4 E. Preston Street 21202 4. CLASS “BD7” BEER, WINE & LIQUOR LICENSE Applicant: 3 Doors Down, LLC T/a Trade Name Pending - Eric Christopher Seaburn
For More Information Please call the number above
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
CITY OF BALTIMORE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NOTICE OF LETTING
CITY OF BALTIMORE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NOTICE OF LETTING
CITY OF BALTIMORE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NOTICE OF LETTING
Sealed Bids or Proposal for the F.A.P. NO. AC-TAP000B (742) E, S.H.A. NO. AX352B54, CITY OF BALTIMORE CONTRACT NO. TR-18302, SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL, will be received at the Office of the Comptroller, Room 204, City Hall, Baltimore, Maryland until MARCH 6, 2024, at 11:00 A.M. Board of Estimates employees will be stationed at the Security Unit Counter just inside the Holliday Street entrance to City Hall from 10:45 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. every Wednesday to receive Bids. Positively no bids will be received after 11:00 A.M. The bids will be publicly opened by the Board of Estimates in Room 215, City Hall at Noon. As of DECEMBER 22, 2023, the Contract Documents may be examined, without charge by contacting Brenda Simmons at brenda.simmons@baltimorecity.gov or (443) 865-4423 to arrange for a copy of the bid book labeled “NOT FOR BIDDING PURPOSES” to be emailed to you. Anyone who desires to purchase a bid book to be used for bidding purposes must do so in person and by contacting Brenda Simmons at the email address or phone number above. The non- refundable cost is SEVENTY-FIVE DOLLARS AND NO CENTS ($75.00) at the Department of Transportation 417 E. Fayette Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 made payable to the Director of Finance. Conditions and requirements of the Bid are found in the bid package. All contractors bidding on this Contract must first be prequalified by the City of Baltimore Contractors’ Qualification Committee. Interested parties should call (410) 396-6883 or contact the Committee at 4 S. Frederick Street, 4 th Floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. If a bid is submitted by a joint venture (“JV”), then in that event, the document that established the JV shall be submitted with the bid for verification purposes. The Prequalification Categories required for bidding on this project are A02601 PORTLAND CEMENT CONCRETE, D02620CURBS, GUTTERS, and SIDEWALKS). Cost Qualification Range for this project will be from $500,000.00_ to $1,500,000.00. A “Pre-Bidding Information” session will be conducted via Microsoft Teams on JANUARY 18, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. hosted by the Department of Transportation. By no later than JANUARY 17, 2024, all Bidders must email your contact information to include your name, company name, phone number and email address to john. malinowski@baltimorecity.gov to receive an invite to the Microsoft Team (video conference meeting. Principle Items of work for this project are: 24 INCH WHITE PERMANENT PREFORMED PAVEMENT MARKINGS – 5,810 LF; 5 INCH CONCRETE SIDEWALK - 17,183 SF; and SPECIAL TYPE A COMBINATION CURB AND GUTTER 6 IN. HEIGHT X 12 IN GUTTER – 1,959 LF. The DBE Goal is 15%. APPROVED: Celeste Amato, Clerk, Board of Estimates
Sealed Bids or Proposal for the TR-24008, ADA CURB RAMP AND SIDEWALK CONSTRUCTION URGENT NEED EAST (JOC) will be received at the Office of the Comptroller, Room 204, City Hall, Baltimore, Maryland until JANUARY 24, 2024, at 11:00 A.M. Board of Estimates employees will be stationed at the Security Unit Counter just inside the Holliday Street entrance to City Hall from 10:45 A.M. to 11:00 A.M.nevery Wednesday to receive Bids. Positively no bids will be received after 11:00 A.M. The bids will be publicly opened by the Board of Estimates in Room 215, City Hall at Noon. As of DECEMBER 22,2023, the Contract Documents may be examined, without charge by contacting Brenda Simmons at brenda.simmons@baltimorecity.gov or (443) 865-4423 to arrange for a copy of the bid book labeled “NOT FOR BIDDING PURPOSES” to be emailed to you. Anyone who desires to purchase a bid book to be used for bidding purposes must do so in person and by contacting Brenda Simmons at the email address or phone number above. The non-refundable cost is SEVENTY-FIVE DOLLARS AND NO CENTS ($75.00) to be paid at the Department of Transportation 417 E. Fayette Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 made payable to the Director of Finance. Conditions and requirements of the Bid are found in the bid package. All contractors bidding on this Contract must first be prequalified by the City of Baltimore Contractors’ Qualification Committee. Interested parties should call (410) 396-6883 or contact the Committee at 4 S. Frederick Street, 4 th Floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. If a bid is submitted by a joint venture (“JV”), then in that event, the document that established the JV shall be submitted with the bid for verification purposes. The Prequalification Categories required for bidding on this project are D02620 CURBS, GUTTERS, SIDEWALKS). Cost Qualification Range for this project will be from $5,000,000.00 to $6,000,000.00. A “Pre-Bidding Information” session will be conducted via Microsoft Teams on JANUARY 10, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. hosted by the Department of Transportation. All Bidders must email your contact information to include your name, company name, phone number and email address to receive an invite to the Microsoft Team (video conference meeting. Principle Items of work for this project are: 5” Concrete Sidewalk – 50,000 SF; SURVEY, EVALUATION, SKETCHES, AND STAKEOUT FOR CURB RAMPS – 300 EA; CONCRETE CURB, VARIABLE WIDTH AND WEIGHT - 4,500 LF; CONCRETE COMBINATION CURB AND GUTTER, VARIABLE WIDTH AND HEIGHT - 3,000 LF; and PORTLAND CEMENT CONCRETE PAVEMENT FOR SLOT BACKFILL, MODIFIED MIX NO. 6 - 7,500 LF. TheMBE Goal is 26%; The WBE Goal is 10%. APPROVED: Celeste Amato, Clerk, Board of Estimates
Sealed Bids or Proposal for the TR-24009, ADA CURB RAMP AND SIDEWALK CONSTRUCTION URGENT NEED WEST (JOC) will be received at the Office of the Comptroller, Room 204, City Hall, Baltimore, Maryland until FEBRUARY 21, 2024, at 11:00 A.M. Board of Estimates employees will be stationed at the Security Unit Counter just inside the Holliday Street entrance to City Hall from 10:45 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. every Wednesday to receive Bids. Positively no bids will be received after 11:00 A.M. The bids will be publicly opened by the Board of Estimates in Room 215, City Hall at Noon. As of DECEMBER 22,2023, the Contract Documents may be examined, without charge by contacting Brenda Simmons at brenda.simmons@baltimorecity.gov or (443) 865-4423 to arrange for a copy of the bid book labeled “NOT FOR BIDDING PURPOSES” to be emailed to you. Anyone who desires to purchase a bid book to be used for bidding purposes must do so in person and by contacting Brenda Simmons at the email address or phone number above. The non-refundable cost is SEVENTY-FIVE DOLLARS AND NO CENTS ($75.00) to be paid at the Department of Transportation 417 E. Fayette Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 made payable to the Director of Finance. Conditions and requirements of the Bid are found in the bid package. All contractors bidding on this Contract must first be prequalified by the City of Baltimore Contractors’ Qualification Committee. Interested parties should call (410) 396-6883 or contact then Committee at 4 S. Frederick Street, 4 th Floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. If a bid is submitted by a joint venture (“JV”), then in that event, the document that established the JV shall be submitted with the bid for verification purposes. The Prequalification Categories required for bidding on this project are D02620 CURBS, GUTTERS, SIDEWALKS). Cost Qualification Range for this project will be from $5,000,000.00 to $6,000,000.00. A “Pre-Bidding Information” session will be conducted via Microsoft Teams on JANUARY 10, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. hosted by the Department of Transportation. All Bidders must email your contact information to include your name, company name, phone number and email address to receive an invite to the Microsoft Team (video conference meeting. Principle Items of work for this project are: 5” Concrete Sidewalk – 50,000 SF; SURVEY, EVALUATION, SKETCHES, AND STAKEOUT FOR CURB RAMPS – 300 EA; CONCRETE CURB, VARIABLE WIDTH AND WEIGHT - 4,500 LF; CONCRETE COMBINATION CURB AND GUTTER, VARIABLE WIDTH AND HEIGHT - 3,000 LF; and PORTLAND CEMENT CONCRETE PAVEMENT FOR SLOT BACKFILL, MODIFIED MIX NO. 6 - 7,500 LF. The MBE Goal is 26%; The WBE Goal is 10%. APPROVED: Celeste Amato, Clerk, Board of Estimates
ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MARYLAND
ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MARYLAND
Annapolis, Maryland ANNOUNCEMENT REQUEST FOR BIDS
Annapolis, Maryland ANNOUNCEMENT REQUEST FOR BIDS
On or after December 18, 2023, Plans and Specifications may be obtained from the Anne Arundel County Web Page at the following address: https://www.aacounty.org/departments/central-services/purchasing/P.O.R.T./bids/index.html . Bids will be received until time/date shown below, please submit your bid electronically via the PORT. Bids received after the date and time set will be rejected.
On or after December 26, 2023, Plans and Specifications may be obtained from the Anne Arundel County Web Page at the following address: https:// www.aacounty.org/departments/central-services/purchasing/P.O.R.T./ bids/index.html . Bids will be received until time/date shown below, please submit your bid electronically via the PORT. Bids received after the date and time set will be rejected.
Due by 1:30 p.m. Local Time, Tuesday, January 30, 2024
Due by 1:30 p.m. Local Time, Tuesday, February 6, 2024
Project: P584501 – Jug Bay Environmental Education Center Sonication No.: CAP24000180 Contact: Emma Pfefferkorn – 443-805-1737
Project: P582001 – Deale Community Park Sonication No.: CAP24000190 Contact: Emma Pfefferkorn – 443-805-1737
Washington Classified Continued from C4
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001426 ROSEMARY SONJA LOWERY Name of Decedent WASHINGTON DC 20006 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs KAYLA RODRIGUEZ SKEETE, whose address is 6841 MILLTOWN COURT, DISTRICT HEIGHTS, MD 20747, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of ROSEMARY SONJA LOWERY, who died on MAY 11, 2023 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001399 SARA HAGOS Name of Decedent WASHINGTON DC 20006 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs ABIGAIL HAGOS, whose address is 4211 ARKANSAS AVE NW, WASHINGTON, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of SARA HAGOS, who died on OCTOBER 21, 2023 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers
KAYLA RODRIGUEZ SKEETE Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
ABIGAIL HAGOS Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION ADMINISTRATION NO. 2023ADM001096 WEBSTER ALPHONSO COBB Name of Decedent H. ALEXANDRA P.C. COBB ESQ. FRIEDMAN, FRAMME, & THRUSH 10461 MILL RUN CIRCLE, STE #550 OWINGS MILLS MARYLAND 21117 Notice of Appointment, Notice to Creditors and Notice to Unknown Heirs JAMES BERNARD COBB JR., whose address is 11403 MARY CATHERINE DRIVE, CLINTON MD 20735, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of WEBSTER ALPHONSO COBB, who died on MARCH 24, 2020 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance In this proceeding. Objections to such, appointment shall be filed With the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before JULY 5, 2024. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before JULY 5, 2024 or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship. Date of first publication: JANUARY 5, 2024 Name of newspaper and/or periodical: Washington Law Reporter AFRO American Newspapers JAMES BERNARD COBB JR. Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 1/05, 1/12, 1/19/24
C6 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
A place to call ‘home’: Renovating the historic Upton Mansion By Deyane Moses Special to the AFRO The Upton Mansion is poised to embark on a remarkable transformation as it becomes the new headquarters for Afro Charities and the AFRO American Newspapers. Erected in 1838, this historic mansion holds a distinguished place on the National Registry of Historic Places and recognition as a Baltimore City Landmark. Once a residence, it also served as the headquarters to WCAO–Maryland’s first radio station, the Baltimore Institute of Musical Arts, and the Upton School—a primary institution catering to children with diverse learning needs. Regrettably, the Upton Mansion has sat unoccupied since 2006. Currently, Afro Charities is seeking support via the “Make History with Us” Campaign, aspiring to breathe new life into the Upton Mansion. The nonprofit organization’s vision is to revitalize the mansion, transforming it into a permanent home for the AFRO Archives and an international research center dedicated to the study of Black life. The revitalized Upton Mansion will boast cutting-edge archival storage facilities, spacious research rooms, and state-of-the-art digitization and processing labs. Additionally, plans have been made to establish a fully-equipped broadcasting and video-casting suite. The premises will offer leasable office spaces for like-minded local organizations. On the grounds of the Upton Mansion, you’ll find an array of amenities, including a classroom, community room, gallery, conference room and rooftop access affording breathtaking views of downtown Baltimore. As of Jan.1, the organization has garnered roughly $190,000 in contributions from generous supporters across the nation, with donations and pledges arriving daily. In order to close the deal, another $160,000 is needed. Have you made your donation? It will play a crucial role in securing the financial backing required for the mansion’s redevelopment. We invite you to become a Groundbreaker and contribute to Afro Charities’ “Make History With Us” Campaign. To make your donation, please visit Afrocharities.org/make-history-with-us. Donations to the Afro Charities campaign will go a long way in further preserving the
history that has been put on record by the AFRO for 131 years. As you consider your pledge, take a look at the AFRO pages of yesteryear, forever preserved in the archives. Deyane Moses is curator of the AFRO Archives for Afro Charities.
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Money is currently being raised for the renovation of the Upton Mansion, which will be the future home of both Afro Charities and its sister company, the AFRO American Newspapers. The mansion will serve as a permanent home for the AFRO Archives and provide office space for AFRO News staff.
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January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024 The Afro-American
Trespassers vandalize Howard University’s Benjamin E. Mays Hall
Man surrenders in connection to DaVon Fuller shooting By Chrisleen Herard Special to the AFRO
By Ashleigh Fields AFRO Assistant Editor afields@afro.com Howard University officials are looking into a recent break-in at Benjamin E. Mays Hall, which housed the institution’s School of Divinity from 1987 to 2015. Vandals recorded themselves deploying a dry ice fire extinguisher, roaming through the stairwells, hallways and empty classrooms in a post on the @urbexjetz account via social media. The now viral video shows the individuals breaking into the building through the mechanical entrance. Upon posting the exploit, the alleged trespassers received significant backlash online and defended their actions, before ultimately deleting the recording. “One of the individuals that I was with was an African-American who was also curious on the history of his relative’s school. (you can see him for a split second in the video) [sic],” wrote the Instagram user. “I do not make these videos to diminish the institutions who the property belongs to, but rather to raise awareness on these type of things. I am always working with people who have the power and will to restore these historic buildings and everything that rests inside.” Further posts went on Continued on D3
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Mayor Muriel Bowser is refusing to fund the “Give SNAP a Raise Amendment Act of 2022.” The 10 percent benefit increase was scheduled for Jan. 1.
More than two months after DaVon Fuller was shot and killed in a parking lot near his home, a man walked into a D.C. police station and surrendered himself in connection to his murder. “The loss of our beloved nephew, DaVon Fuller, has been an ongoing struggle for our family. We miss him greatly but have never lost hope that the truth would one day be revealed,” Fuller’s aunt, Nicole Williams, told the AFRO. “Wednesday’s Continued on D3
D.C. Council considers suing Mayor Muriel Bowser over SNAP funding By Tashi McQueen AFRO Political Writer tmcqueen@afro.com D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) proposed an emergency resolution on Jan. 2 that would allow the council to sue or join a lawsuit against Mayor Muriel Bowser after her efforts to block the “Give SNAP a Raise Amendment Act of 2022.” The legislation was passed by the D.C. Council last year and approved funding temporarily to supplement eligible residents. After waiting on additional implementation from the mayor, it is probable that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will no longer see an increase this month. Leaders are waiting on Bowser to release the funds needed to implement the
initiative. The new resolution, introduced on Jan. 2, entitled the “SNAP Litigation Authorization Act,” will be on the council’s agenda at their Jan. 9 meeting. It only needs one vote to pass and does not require congressional or mayoral review. “On Jan. 1, more than 140,000 D.C. residents were supposed to receive an increase in SNAP benefits that we funded in the D.C. budget. Now, Mayor Bowser is blocking this food assistance from reaching families,” said Councilwoman Janeese Lewis George (D-D.C.-Ward 4) in her official statement on the matter. “Increased SNAP benefits are a necessary lifeline for so many children, adults and senior citizens who face hunger in
“We cannot let the $40 million that was earmarked for food assistance be withheld when so many of our neighbors need relief.”
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Photo courtesy of Councilmember Brianne Nadeau’s Office
The wheels of justice are beginning to turn for the family and friends of former D.C. council staffer, DaVon Fuller, who was shot and killed Oct. 16, 2023. Deandre Miles, 28, (not pictured) turned himself in to Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch on Dec. 27 in connection with the murder.
Prince William County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority to host annual youth oratorical competition for MLK Day By Zsana Hoskins Special to the AFRO In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Prince William County Alumnae Chapter (PWCAC) of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority will host its 39th annual Youth Oratorical Competition. The event will take place in person for the first time in three years on Jan. 15, starting at 11 a.m. at Charles J. Colgan Senior High School. This year’s theme is “If America is to remain a great nation, we must?” Six student participants will write original speeches in response to the prompt and compete against each other. Kerri Washington, the co-chair of the event, provided insight into how the students were selected to compete. “Each middle school and high school in Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park School Districts are encouraged to select an orator to represent their school in the regional competition,” said Washington. “Participating schools have a coach or
coordinator. Each school decides how they will select from among their interested students. At the regional competition, we have judges from the community and they use guidelines to help them score the orators and select the six students that will speak at the January 15 competition.” The speech topic was inspired by Dr. King’s famous “I Have A Dream” speech, which was originally delivered on Aug. 28, 1963, at the March on Washington. Washington said attendees can expect more than just the oratorical competition at this year’s event. “There will be community organizations present and our guests can get information about programs and services in the community. There will be three middle school and three high school students speaking based on the topic prompt selected by our committee,” said Washington. The program will include performances by the Manassas Park High School drumline, the MLK Community Choir and the Woodbridge Middle School
“Sometimes we have to forge our way through to make sure that we’re heard and that includes the youth.”
and Freedom High School choirs. Attendees can also participate in the MLK Day of Service by bringing ready-to-eat items or microwave-andeat items to donate to the Northern Virginia Food Rescue. Chapter President Sharon McCarthy-Andrews, said their vision for this event, “was for us to include things that would be helpful in the community.” Other aspects of the MLK Experience include a science, technology, arts and mathematics (STEAM) speaker series on Feb. 10 at Forest Park High School, a Wellness Walk on April 6 at Prince William Forest Park and a celebration on April 28 at Gainesville Senior High Continued on D3
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D2 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
Veda Rasheed announces council bid for Ward 7 in D.C. By Re’Jon Jones Special to the AFRO Veda Rasheed is vying to be a council member for Ward 7 with hopes of reshaping the political landscape. She was raised in the heart of the community in the River Terrace neighborhood and shared that her desire to serve the area is due to a commitment to addressing the diverse needs of the residents. “I am running for the Ward 7 Council seat because I believe Ward 7, where I’ve lived for my entire life, deserves a fierce and active servant leader on the D.C. Council,” said Rasheed. “Former mayor, Vincent Gray’s legacy must be continued, and I believe I am best suited to build on that legacy while forging a path through one of the hardest times our city has faced in decades.” Rasheed has served in various leadership capacities, showcasing her versatility and dedication to community service. As a small business owner and local lawyer, she has not only contributed to the local economy but has also been a steadfast advocate for the legal needs of Ward 7 residents. “Whether through volunteer leadership or elected office, I have served in every branch of D.C. government and have the practical experience to work collaboratively with groups, agencies, and other stakeholders across
“Former mayor Vincent Gray’s legacy must be continued, and I believe I am best suited to build on that legacy while forging a path through one of the hardest times our city has faced in decades.” DC to address critical issues our ward and city faces,” Rasheed shared. “My experience and the relationships I have developed have positioned me to hold our government and agencies accountable to our residents to make sure everyone has the tools and resources available to participate in the myriad of services our city offers.” Her tenure as the Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner for Single Member District (SMD) 7E01, where she represented Benning Ridge, is one of many examples of her hands-on approach to public service, acting as a conduit between the community and local government. “While I have been active in the community since I was a child, my dedication to serving the community in public office was sparked by the experiences my own children and family have suffered in places they should be and feel safe,” Rasheed recalled. “No child should experience a bullet being shot through their classroom window or losing their 15-year-old half-brother when he was just steps away from his front door. Our children are the future of our ward, and the experiences they have today create a ripple effect that will be felt by our community for decades to come.” In addition to her business and public service roles, Rasheed has been actively involved in youth engagement as the chair of the Ward 7 Young Democrats. Her commitment to education is evident and her advocacy
Photo Courtesy of Veda Rasheed
Veda Rasheed describes her vision for Ward 7 while serving as a council member. extends beyond her immediate community involvement, as she also serves as a commissioner on the Mayor’s Commission on African American Affairs, addressing broader challenges faced by the African American community in the District. Rasheed explained the issues she sees plaguing the community, “Our ward also struggles with education, affordable housing and economic development. Many of the problems we struggle with in Ward 7 can be solved by holistic approaches to crime, which often stems from depressed economic development, struggling schools, poor access to affordable housing and a lack of investment in recreational and community spaces across our ward.” Rasheed’s campaign aims to address key issues facing Ward 7 comprehensively. Public safety, economic development, housing affordability, education, and constituent services constitute the pillars of her platform. In terms of public safety, Rasheed advocates for a smart and holistic approach, going beyond traditional policing to create an environment where all residents feel secure
and hopeful about the future. Affordable housing, an issue of growing concern, is also addressed in Rasheed’s platform, not just as an economic challenge but as a means of preserving the diversity and essence of the community. She wants to expand down payment and home ownership assistance programs, increasing housing vouchers in addition to creating accessible financial literacy workshops. “Housing isn’t just a structure; it’s a foundation for security, community, and prosperity. The vision for D.C., especially areas East of the River, is one where every resident can afford a comfortable home, free from the anxieties of displacement or untenable costs,” said Rasheed. In education, she positions herself as a proponent of a robust system that extends beyond the classroom, nurturing lifelong learners equipped to navigate the complexities of the world. She cited statistics from the National Center for Education Statistics for D.C. Public Schools, which states that only 32 percent of fourth-grade students meet or surpass literacy proficiency levels. “Every child in Ward 7, irrespective of their background, capabilities, or challenges, deserves an education that opens doors, broadens horizons, and provides the platform for success,” said Rasheed. “Targeted interventions are crucial. Literacy is the bedrock upon which all other learning stands.” Her campaign for D.C. Council, Ward 7, has achieved a major milestone by surpassing donor requirements, making her eligible for the District of Columbia’s Fair Election Matching Fund Program. With $10,845 raised from 242 individual donors, predominantly District residents, Rasheed’s grassroots support underscores community belief in her vision for positive change. The qualification reflects a commitment to inclusive politics, prioritizing Ward 7 residents over financial interests. Rasheed’s campaign hopes to gain momentum as she focuses on public safety, education, infrastructure, and creating a thriving environment for all Ward 7 residents. Proactive constituent services form the backbone of Rasheed’s commitment to the community. Pledging to pioneer a new era of responsive services, she envisions a hands-on approach, ensuring accessibility and accountability to the daily challenges and concerns faced by the residents of Ward 7. The race for the Ward 7 seat promises to be a closely watched contest, and Rasheed’s candidacy adds a dynamic and experienced candidate to the field. As the community gears up for the upcoming election, Rasheed’s candidacy brings with it the potential for transformative leadership that reflects the diverse and vibrant character of Ward 7. As seen on her campaign website, Rasheed promises, “Powered by my roots in Ward 7 and the community that has poured into me for my entire life, my commitment to you all is simple: As your councilmember, I will serve with an open ear, a compassionate heart, and a fierce dedication to making positive changes in Ward 7. Together, we will build a community where every voice matters, where our children can thrive, and where the legacy of our beloved Ward continues to grow in strength and unity.” Rasheed is one of five candidates. She is competing against Ebbon Allen, Eboni-Rose Thompson, Kelvin Brown, Ebony Payne and Wendell Felder. The incumbent Vincent Gray (D) will not run for re-election leaving a noticeable opening for those interested in serving at the council level.
D.C. Council Continued from D1
our city. We cannot let the $40 million that was earmarked for food assistance be withheld when so many of our neighbors need relief.” In early 2023, Congress ended additional SNAP benefits related to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a 34 percent reduction in monthly allotments, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. According to the rental company Bungalow, D.C. residents can expect to pay 10 percent more than the national average in groceries at $304 per month but District SNAP recipients only receive about $191 on average each month. The measure, which was approved, would have created a 10 percent SNAP increase, or an additional $47 monthly. According to Bowser, the city lacks funding and staff to comply. According to D.C. council members, Bowser proposed that– instead of increasing SNAP– they will fund the necessary administrative costs for Summer EBT, a federal program to provide food assistance to families with
school-aged children when school is not in session. “The administrative costs would be around $2 million, a small percentage of the $38 million allocated for SNAP, and would only serve families with schoolaged children, leaving out the many adults and seniors without children who rely on SNAP benefits,” the letter continued. This decision to forego an immediate increase in SNAP funding will gravely affect communities of color including the Hspanic and Black population in the District. According to statistics shared by Henderson, Black residents rely on SNAP benefits 10 times more than their White counterparts. Recently, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb chimed in on the matter, citing that, according to the law, Bowser can only reroute SNAP funds with council approval. “Because the statutory language concerning the SNAP benefit increase is mandatory and included in an approved budget plan, the mayor must expend the funds as the Council directed and cannot
unilaterally use them for other purposes,” said Schwalb in a memorandum. “Once the Office of the Chief Financial Officer revenue estimate showed excess revenues, the [additional] funds were required to ‘be allocated and expended’ in the manner the Council described.” Bowser and Wayne Turnage, deputy mayor for the D. C. Department of Health and Human Services (DHS), did not respond to the AFRO’s request for comment. In December 2023, the council
addressed a letter to the mayor encouraging her to fund the SNAP increases in fiscal Year 2024. “We urge you to reconsider your decision, respect the budget that the Council passed and you signed and direct DHS to prioritize timely implementation of the SNAP increase,” the D.C. council shared in a collective open letter to the mayor. Tashi McQueen is a Report For America corps member.
January6, 6,2024 2024--January January12, 12,2024 2024 The TheAfro-American Afro American January
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Trespassers Continued from D1
to state that the video was taken a long time ago and that the conditions of the building have since deteriorated. “The entire building can still be restored and repurposed. I hope that after raising awareness on this issue, proper precautions will be taken to secure the building from any further vandalism and theft,” the account owner shared in a separate post. Jennifer Early, president of the Graduate Student Council at Howard University has hopes that the grounds will be more thoroughly safeguarded after this incident. “The break in and subsequent vandalism of Benjamin E. Mays Hall is yet another reminder of the need to keep our buildings and important historical and archival materials safe from trespassers,” said Early. “The individuals were intruders who made the conscious decision to take actions that were harmful and of no regard. Our history is one of pride and importance, archival materials give voice and breath life into our rich history and the Black experience. These experiences deserve to be respected, protected and preserved.” Rev. Kenyatta Gilbert who serves as the dean of Howard University’s School of Divinity issued a statement on the matter shortly after viewing the video, which has since been removed. “While DPS (Department of Public Safety) continues to investigate, we want to make it abundantly clear that the University condemns the unlawful entry of this group
of misinformed individuals,” Gilbert wrote. “In 2015, the School of Divinity was relocated from Mays Hall on the University’s East Campus to its current home at the University’s West Campus, as the East Campus site was planned for redevelopment. At that time, all primary instructional content necessary for maintaining the school’s coursework and accreditation was transferred to the school’s new location.” “The remainder of the school’s possessions continued to be stored at Mays Hall due to limited capacity of the school’s new space. In 2017, the University began working to redevelop the East Campus in accordance with the District of Columbia’s comprehensive plan,” she continued. “Most recently, the University began collaborating with the DC Preservation League to designate East Campus as a historic landmark district, enabling the University’s plan to revive the 23-acre site.” The university did not immediately respond to the AFRO’s request for comment ahead of print and has not disclosed if any items have been stolen or damaged. However, numerous copies of the Christian Recorder, the nation’s oldest continuously published Black newspaper, full sets of the 1868 British and Foreign Evangelical Review in addition to awards from the Bishop Ministers Conference of Philadelphia and Vicinity were combed through in the recording. “It’s disheartening to see
Photo courtesy of Instagram / @urbexjetz
An unnamed individual deploys a dry ice fire extinguisher after breaking into Howard University’s Benjamin E. Mays Hall. Shown here, a screenshot from the now deleted video, originally posted to social media by the vandals. fragile, historic materials mishandled in any context,” shared Lacey Johnson, a library associate at George Washington University and Howard alumna. “Howard University, alongside other historically Black colleges and universities, has a wealth of materials and items that provide key context to the story of Black people in the U.S. over the course of centuries. Anyone who is invested in telling the full, honest history of this country should be concerned when these materials are mishandled or damaged.”
The building was named after Mays, who was a Black educational and spiritual maverick that served as the dean of the School of Religion from 1943 to 1940 and president of Morehouse college for 27 years Howard Divinity School alumni include Carla Brailey, Ph.D., executive director of community affairs and senior advisor for religious affairs for the District of Columbia; Bishop Alfred Owens Jr., D.Min., dean of the Joint College of African American Pentecostal Bishops
Competition Continued from D1
School in remembrance of the life of Dr. King and to recap the activities of the PWCAC MLK Experience. McCarthy-Andrews believes it is important for the chapter to provide the space and the opportunity for students to be heard. “Sometimes we have to forge our way through to make sure that we’re heard and that includes the youth. So one of the things that we’ve done throughout these 39 years with this oratorical is to provide that opportunity for our youth to display their skills,” McCarthy-Andrews added. The woman behind the idea for the competition is Lillie Jessie, former
and Barbara Williams Skinner, D. Min., founding executive director of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. “In a moment where Black History is under attack on multiple fronts– ranging from book bans to whitewashing and obfuscation of Black lived experience, protecting primary sources is vital as we maintain and build institutions that provide Black students the freedom to learn about our history,” said Michael Franklin, former student body vice president and founder of executive communications agency Words Normalize Behavior LLC. “I trust in Howard University’s leadership to put in the necessary work to protect and preserve the archives.” Howard’s School of Divinity currently stands as one of only six Historically Black Theological Institutions accredited by the Association of Theological Schools. “Despite the University’s efforts to remove historically relevant materials from the site in 2015, the actions of those who trespassed and broke into Mays Hall remind us how some are willing to violate the sacred boundaries of our beloved HBCU campuses and threaten to embolden others with similar actions,” read the statement from the current dean. “In light of this incident, Howard University’s Department of Public Safety will ramp up existing patrols of the site and the University will work to reassess the contents of the building and secure it from unlawful access.”
Fuller educator, and Prince Williams County school board member. In the program’s fifth year, she proposed the event format be changed to a youth oratorical contest. Jessie wanted to give “bright Black kids” their time to shine. “The only time we saw them [Black kids] in the newspaper was for sports and things of that nature. I wanted to create an atmosphere or a forum to showcase the academic abilities of these kids. I knew that one thing Black kids can do is talk. We have the gift of speech,” said Jessie. “The Sorority had never done it and they
were skeptical. They said ‘What if you don’t find kids who can speak?’ And I said ‘I’ll find kids who can speak.’ And we did”. According to 2023 U.S. Census data, Prince William’s County’s population is 61 percent White. Jessie also mentioned the lack of diversity in Prince William’s County was another reason this program is necessary. “There is no Black side of town in Prince William County. The first year we had it a thousand people showed up. Because they were thirsty also to hear our kids. It shocked me the first year,” said Jessie.
Photo courtesy of Prince William County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
The Prince William County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority will hold their annual youth oratorical competition for Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 15 at Charles J. Colgan Senior High School.
This MLK festivity was the chapter’s first community service event, originally planned by Joann Bagnerise. Before Jessie’s idea to turn the event into an oratorical competition, adults such as her late husband Joseph Bagnerise, Dr. Dorothy Irene Height and more, recited famous speeches by Dr. King. Bagnerise has enjoyed watching the event evolve and emphasized the community’s support throughout the years. “It [the event] shows to our community, back to your question, that our students can, and have and continue to be able to write their own speeches. Many of our students have gone on, some to be Pulitzer Prize winners, authors, and other endeavors in life. But to have our students to stand, to speak their truths, their beliefs and have done their research, it is pretty powerful,” said Bagnerise. “It’s been a continuation from the very beginning for our community, and they’ve supported us so wonderfully all of these years, and our students. We’re just proud of this particular event.” To find out more about this event or to register for the PWCAC MLK Experience, email pwcacmlkcommittee@ gmail.com or visit www. pwcacdst.org.
Continued from D1
hearing ruling has given us a sense of comfort and we are more determined than ever to pursue justice for DaVon.” On Dec. 27, 28-year-old Deandre Miles turned himself in to the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch and was charged with premeditated first-degree while armed for the October shooting of Fuller, a former D.C. council aide. Authorities from the Fifth District Metropolitan Police Department responded to a report of a shooting during the early hours of Oct. 16, shortly before 5:30 a.m. When officers arrived in the 1500 block of Maryland Avenue, they discovered Fuller, conscious but suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Fuller was then transported to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead. Before becoming an aide to Councilmember Brianne Nadeau, Fuller was crowned homecoming king, a football star and a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. Fuller then moved on to work under Nadeau in hopes of furthering anti-violence initiatives and bringing positive change to the streets of D.C. However, after a 2019 unlawful firearm arrest and his mother’s loss in a battle against breast cancer, Fuller’s life took a turn. On the morning that Fuller was killed, Miles alleged to authorities that Fuller was being ‘disrespectful’ to his grandmother, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. After clashing in a cash-checking shop and then a grocery store, Miles claimed Fuller began to raise his hand with a knife before he fatally shot him. The judge ordered no bail for the suspect as he awaits a preliminary hearing on Jan. 9. Williams said she was happy with the judge’s decision. “I was relieved that the judge recognized that there wasn’t any evidence for self-defense as the accused tried to portray.”
“The loss of our beloved nephew, DaVon Fuller, has been an ongoing struggle for our family. We miss him greatly but have never lost hope that the truth would one day be revealed.”
D4 The Afro-American January 6, 2024 - January 12, 2024
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser holds annual FIT D.C. Fresh Start 5K run By Patricia McDougall Special to the AFRO
O
n Jan. 1 Mayor Muriel Bowser held her 10th annual FIT D.C. Fresh Start 5K Run event. Thousands of D.C. residents joined in the festivities that started at Freedom Plaza with music, exercise, giveaways, food and more. The runners were cheered on as they made their way along the streets passing the U.S. Capital, Smithsonian Museums and more. Photos Courtesy of Patricia McDougall
Above: Participants take their places at the start of the race. Right: Mayor Muriel Bowser welcomes attendees, giving words of encouragement ahead of the 5K.
Avril Knott (left), Dianna Waters and Maria Talo, of the Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs (MOLA), walk together towards the finish line.
District of Columbia Miss America Teen, Tiarah Williams, participates in the 2024 annual FIT D.C. Fresh Start 5K Run.
Jan Adams celebrates the start of a new year with local officials and residents.
Friends Tonya Striplin (left), Latonya Kyler and Lisa Baxter support each other in their New Year’s resolution to be more healthy and fit.
The annual FIT D.C. Fresh Start 5K run celebrates its 10th year in existence. This year, the program added a new component with a kids dash for children under the age of 12 years old.
Malayah (left), Jamel Johnson and Jamel Johnson Jr., complete the full 5k together as a family.
To purchase this digital photo page or photos contact editor@afro.com