Houston Style Magazine Vol 32 No 14 by Houston Style Magazine (HSM)

Houston Style Magazine April 02 – April 08, 2021

Houston’s Premiere Weekly Publication, Since 1989

Volume 32 | Number 14

H President Biden $2 Trillion Infrastructure Plan H

Don’t Suffer Alone: STOP Domestic Violence By Jo-Carolyn Goode, Managing Editor / www.StyleMagazine.com

Complimentary

Jesse Jackson

The New Jim Crow Laws In America

Jo-Carolyn Goode

TotallyRandie On The Whispers Of Women’s History Month

STAY HOME H WORK SAFE CORONAVIRUS – US NUMBERS: Cases: 31,169,999 Deaths: 565,292

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Biden Names Diverse Nominees for the Federal Bench George Floyd Murder Trial UPDATE

Falyn Davis

Houston’s Hot New Realtor Brings Homebuying Info To StyleMag

STYLE HAUTE SHOTS

N E W S | C O M M E N TA R I E S | S P O R T S | H E A LT H | E N T E R TA I N M E N T Support Black Owned Businesses

Week of March 22, 2021

Rev: 03/21/21 5:45 p.m.

April 02 – April 08, 2021

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NATIONAL WRITERS

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President Biden and Vice President Harris say 90% Of American Adults Will Be VACCINE ELIGIBLE In Three Weeks.

President – Joe Biden H V.P. Kamala Harris

AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN www.BuildBackBetter.gov www.StyleMagazine.com

April 02 – April 08, 2021

COMMENTARY

The New Jim Crow By Jesse Jackson, National Political Writer

n Georgia, Donald Trump’s big lie that the election was stolen has now been turned into bad law -- an election law designed to make it harder for minorities and the young to vote. This is, as President Joe Biden stated, the new Jim Crow a blatant attempt by Republicans to suppress votes so they can hold onto power. This bad law drives a stake into democracy in Georgia. It must be reversed. The Justice Department is considering going to court. Civil rights groups in Georgia have already filed suit. The US House of Representatives has passed the For the People Act that would set national standards for fair elections. Now, businesses and associations must weigh in. When apartheid South Africa suppressed the votes of blacks, an international movement arose to make South Africa a pariah state. Athletic teams refused to travel to South Africa. Companies disinvested. Celebrities refused to perform. Countries enforced sanctions. Eventually, apartheid fell in a peaceful transition to democracy. Georgia’s misguided leadership must feel similar pressure. I have called on Major League Baseball to move the All-Star game from Atlanta. Companies like CNN, Delta, UPS and others with headquarters in Georgia must make their opposition clear. Celebrities should begin to postpone appearances in Georgia until the law is changed. The WNBA which played a major role in standing with the Black Lives Matter mobilizations should join with the NBA and the MLB players’ association to demand the law be reversed. This mobilization is vital because this law is a direct affront to

democracy. Let’s be clear about what is going down. Trump’s big lie was refuted by official recounts, by the Republican Secretary of State and election officials, and by Trump’s own attorney general. Despite Trump’s direct intimidation, the Republican secretary of state stated the truth: There was no evidence of fraud. The election -- and later Senate run-off elections -- featured a dramatic increase in turnout with the votes cast and counted fairly. Led by the governor, state Republicans then claimed that election law changes were needed to “restore confidence,” a confidence allegedly weakened by Trump’s big lie. They then passed a law designed to suppress the votes of those likely to vote against them Among other things, the law makes it a crime to give water or food to people in line to vote. It ensures that those lines will be long by slashing the availability of drop boxes, limiting early voting, imposing new ID requirements on mail-in voting. After Democrats won the runoff elections in two Senate seats, Republicans voted to reduce the time for the runoff from nine weeks to four with no clear provision for early voting, which African Americans use disproportionately. This attack on the right to vote is direct and blatant. Propelled by a massive increase in African American and young voters, Democrats flipped Georgia in 2020, winning the presidential race and taking two Senate seats, including the historic election of the first African American to a Senate seat. In response, Republicans chose not to broaden their appeal, alter their policies to attract votes from minorities

April 02 – April 08, 2021

and the young. Instead, they chose to pass a law to make it harder for their opponents to vote. In addition, they punished the secretary of state who stood up to Trump, stripping the power to run Georgia elections from his office and from local counties, transferring it to a state board that will be dominated by Republicans. Instead of celebrating the increase of participation in Georgia, Republicans are intent on suppressing it to keep control. A former Confederate state, Georgia has a long and shameful history of repressing the black vote. And now Georgia is just the tip of the Republican spear, with Republican legislators introducing some 253 laws in 43 states to make it harder to vote. This new Jim Crow cannot stand if America’s democracy is to survive. The U.S. Senate should overcome the threatened Republican filibuster and pass the For the People Act that would provide national standards for fair elections. In Georgia, a massive mobilization is needed to overcome the new obstacles and show that the emerging majority will not allow itself to be suppressed.

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Major League Baseball and other businesses cannot stay neutral, for that would essentially support the law, voter suppression and the new Jim Crow. Joining a demonstration against the law, the newly elected Sen. Rafael Warnock stated the simple truth: “Today is a very sad day for the state of Georgia. What we have witnessed today is a desperate attempt to lock out and squeeze the people out of their own democracy.” Now it is time to stand up and make it clear that this cannot stand.

Follow him on at: Twitter @RevJJackson Share this story online at:

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April 02 – April 08, 2021

Biden Unveils First Slate Of Judicial Nominees Featuring A Diverse and History Making Selections By Ariane de Vogue and Betsy Klein www.CNN.com / www.StyleMagazine.com

resident Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled a diverse slate of 11 judicial nominees, including three African American women for Circuit Court vacancies and a candidate who, if confirmed, would be the first Muslim federal judge in US history. The list, first reported by The Washington Post, is Biden’s first wave of judicial nominations, and also includes candidates who, if confirmed, would serve as the first AAPI woman to serve on the US District Court for the District of DC and the first woman of color to serve as a federal judge for the District of Maryland, the White House said Tuesday. One nominee Biden announced Tuesday is Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who is picked to fill the seat of Merrick Garland on a powerful DCbased appellate court that is also a breeding ground for potential Supreme Court nominees. “This trailblazing slate of nominees draws from the very best and brightest minds of the American legal profession,” Biden said in a statement. “Each is deeply qualified and prepared to deliver justice faithfully under our Constitution and impartially to the American people — and together they represent the broad diversity of background, experience, and perspective that makes our nation strong.” The Biden administration pledged early on to prioritize judicial nominations and to cast a wide net seeking professional and demographic diversity, including those who had served as public defenders, civil rights lawyers and legal aid attorneys. During the campaign, Biden pledged to name the first African American woman to the Supreme Court should a vacancy arise. Tuesday’s move will come as a welcome development for progressives eager to regain ground lost after former President Donald Trump placed more than 200 appointees in the courts, including three Supreme Court justices. Before taking the bench, Jackson, a 2013 Obama nominee to the US District Court of the District of Columbia, served as an assistant federal public defender, as well as a commissioner on the United States Sentencing Commission. She is a former clerk to Justice Stephen Breyer and is seen by some as a future Supreme Court nominee if a new vacancy were to arise. She is perhaps most known for her 2019 opinion ruling that former White House counsel Don McGahn must comply with a congressional subpoena concerning Russia’s alleged interference into the 2016 presidential election. That case is still pending. Other names on the list of 11 include two other African American women. · Candace Jackson-Akiwumi, who currently

works at a Washington, DC-based firm with a focus on white collar criminal defense and investigations, is also on the list for a seat

April 02 – April 08, 2021

on the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Before joining private practice, she spent 10 years as an attorney at the Federal Defender Program in the Northern District of Illinois. She attended Princeton University and Yale Law School.

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson listens to arguments as local high school students observe a reenactment of a landmark Supreme court case at U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, DC.

· Tiffany Cunningham, also in private practice,

is an intellectual property litigator who previously served as a patent attorney in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. A graduate from Harvard Law School who earned a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from MIT, she would serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit if confirmed.

· Also on the list is Zahid N. Quraishi, who

serves as a United States magistrate judge in New Jersey. According to his biography, he is of Pakistani ancestry and is the first Asian-American to serve on the federal bench in New Jersey.

Judge Tiffany Cunningham

· Judge Florence Y. Pan is a nominee for the US

District Court for the District of Columbia who has served as an associate judge on the Superior Court for the District of Columbia since 2009.

Jackson, an African American woman who is only 50 years old, has a degree from Harvard College and Harvard Law. She also served as an assistant federal public defender as well as the vice chair and commissioner on the United States Sentencing Commission. She did stints with large law firms to help support her family and gave an unusual speech at the University of Georgia School of Law in 2017 on a topic that underlines her particular story. Her talk, called "Reflections on my journey as a mother and a judge," illustrated how hard it is for mothers to serve in law firms that are often the stepping stones to judicial appointments. "I don′t think it is possible to overstate the degree of difficulty that many young women, and especially new mothers, face in the law firm context," she said. She noted that the hours are long and there is little control over the schedule which is «constantly in conflict with the needs of your children and your family." In 2019, she issued a 120-page opinion relying upon separation of powers principles to rule against the Trump›s administration›s attempts to block McGahn’s congressional testimony. “Presidents are not kings,” she said, adding that the Trump administration’s assertion that it had “absolute testimonial immunity” protecting its senior level aides “is a proposition that cannot be squared with core constitutional values” and “cannot be sustained.” She held that “individuals who been subpoenaed for testimony by an authorized committee

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Judge Zahid N. Quraishi of Congress must appear for testimony in response to that subpoena—i.e., they cannot ignore or defy congressional compulsory process, by order of the President or otherwise,” although she stressed that such individuals are free to assert executive privilege in response to the questions asked of them. As things stand, there are currently 72 vacancies, according to the Administrative Office of the US courts and 28 future vacancies where judges have noted an intent to retire on a future date. Although the Biden administration has put strong emphasis on nominations, vowing to fill seats quickly to begin to make up for the more than 200 Trump appointees, there had been some grumbling from progressives that it wasn’t moving quickly enough. That criticism should diminish with Tuesday’s list.

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The Whispers Of Women’s History Month By TotallyRandie – Feature Writer / www.StyleMagazine.com

Jo-Carolyn Goode

Managing Editor Houston Style Magazine www.StyleMagazine.com

s we close out Women’s History Month, I take a moment to reflect not only on all the history that is being made this year alone but also the last 10 years. While I am still in semi-quarantine, I have been binge-watching shows that I absolutely love like The Walking Dead and there is an episode where Eugene (Google him) decides he is going to help fight for the first time and he makes a statement that is quite familiar with many shows like this, he says “ This is what they are going to write about.” That made me think of what I like to call Whisperers of Women’s History. We often think about the CEO’s, doctors, entrepreneurs, activists, scientists, political features, celebrities, and those alike that are moving the needle. They are highlighted and celebrated for their “Trailblazing” actions of pushing for a better future for women. Their names are often written in history. This is what Eugene was talking about; he wanted to do something so grandiose that his name gets written in history. While those women are definitely moving the needle, I wanted to focus on the whisperers, the women who are also moving the needle but who are not celebrated. These women are so far behind the scenes that they are often forgotten about. The impact on society, however, cannot be made without them. So let me highlight one: Jo-Carolyn Goode – Managing Editor for Houston Style Magazine I could go on about how she is an educated lady of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. with a degree from an HBCU but those are just jewels in her crown. Jo-Carolyn, affectionately known as simply “Jo” to many, has been the moving force behind Houston Style Magazine. The approaching 30year publication is the premier urban magazine in Houston, publishing digital and print weekly. She manages writers, media personalities (like myself), and photographers. She schedules staffers

for assignments and events to cover, and so much more. She is also heavily involved in her sorority rendering hours of community service to help others. Jo is equally involved in her community, church, and mentors young women of all ages. She does all of this while battling Lupus. If that’s not the definition of trailblazing, I don’t know what is. She has never told her story, sought out the spotlight, or even highlighted her illness. I have seen her work from a hospital bed and no one ever knew. One hundred years from now when a young person stumbles across a Houston Style article she will be a part of their history. Women like Jo-Carolyn are found with their eyes and ears to the ground. They are constantly working for a better future. They are opening up conversational spaces about equal rights for all races and genders within the medical field like Nikashia Franklin, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, who is a nurse at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. They are dominating and opening doors in male-dominated fields like Shawntell McWilliams, MS, EdS, Vice President of Sisters Network Incorporated; a national breast cancer organization, who highlights and celebrates women in spirits. They are volunteering in schools, lending their time to women’s shelters, and organizing during disasters. They are curating cultured events and consistently giving back like Monica Jones, BornCEO. They are changing the narratives on health and food like Chef to the Stars (Tiffani Janelle). They may not go viral, they may not receive their flowers now but they are here being the whisperers of history.

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Get vaccinated against COVID-19.

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April 02 – April 08, 2021

The Open House: With Realtor Falyn Davis

By www.StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

elcome to The Open House, Houston Style Magazine’s new real estate column. My name is Falyn Davis and I am a Texas Realtor located in Houston. Outgoing, detail-oriented and trustworthy are just a few words my clients would use to describe me as a professional realtor. Let me expound: I love to connect and work with new people. I have a strong desire to determine my clients’ goals and exceed them in excellence. And I believe that the most important aspect of any relationship is trust. The Open House will serve as a space for you to get to know me as I share my knowledge and tips on all things real estate. From leasing, to buying and selling your home, to contracts changes, I’ll give you the inside scoop on the market while sharing the best places to invest and so much more!

Falyn Davis

12403 Brightwood Drive, Montgomery, TX 77356 My goal is to be a valuable voice to you and help make the world of real estate a little easier to understand. So, whether you’re looking to buy your first home or your dream home, or you’re relocating from out of state and wondering what area to invest in

or apartment locating, you’re welcome to The Open House…the perfect place for you. Are you looking to make your next move? Do you have questions on your next steps? Contact me - I look forward to working with you!

Cell Phone: 832-396-6276 Email: FalynMDavis@gmail.com Social Media: @FalynDavis

Store Cashier Who Suspected George Floyd Of Using Fake $20 Bill Says He Feels Guilty By Eric Levenson and Aaron Cooper www.CNN.com / www.StyleMagazine.com

n employee at the Minneapolis corner store who suspected George Floyd gave him a counterfeit $20 bill last May testified in court Wednesday that he felt guilty knowing that their interaction led to Floyd’s death under former police officer Derek Chauvin’s knee. “If I would have just not taken the bill, this could have been avoided,” Christopher Martin, a 19-year-old cashier at Cup Foods, testified in court Wednesday. He stopped working there soon after because he said he didn’t feel safe. Martin’s testimony comes on the third day of Chauvin’s trial and after prosecutors called a number of bystanders to explain their interactions with Floyd and Minneapolis Police that fatal day. Martin testified that Floyd responded slowly and appeared to be high when he came into the store on May 25, 2020. Surveillance video played in court shows Floyd fiddling with items in his pockets and casually interacting with other customers and employees. Floyd then bought a pack of cigarettes with a $20 bill that Martin believed to be fake because of its blue color and texture. After examining the bill closely, Martin told his manager, who twice told Martin and other employees to go out to Floyd’s vehicle and bring

April 02 – April 08, 2021

him back into the store to resolve the issue. When Floyd refused, the manager told an employee to call police -- a fateful call that ultimately ended with Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds. Martin is one of a number of bystanders who have expressed survivor’s guilt about what they did and didn’t do leading up to Floyd’s death. On Tuesday, a high schooler who recorded and shared video of Chauvin kneeling on Floyd said she had lost sleep over the incident thinking of what else she could have done. “It’s been nights I’ve stayed up apologizing to George Floyd for not doing more and not physically interacting and not saving his life,” she said. “But it’s not what I should have done, it’s what he should have done.” Chauvin, 45, has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. His trial comes 10 months after Floyd’s death sparked a summer of protest, unrest and a societal reckoning with America’s past and present of anti-Black racism and aggressive policing. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, attendance is strictly limited inside the courtroom. The trial

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George Floyd is being broadcast live in its entirety, giving the public a rare peek into the most important case of the Black Lives Matter era.

Off-duty Firefighter Said Police Blocked Her From Helping Floyd Wednesday’s testimony began with a short cross-examination of Genevieve Hansen, an off-duty Minneapolis firefighter. She testified a day earlier that she was out for a walk on her day off last May and came upon Floyd struggling to breathe and appearing unconscious under Chauvin’s knee. She tried to help Floyd and repeatedly asked police to check for a pulse, but they refused, leaving her feeling desperate and helpless. “I tried calm reasoning, I tried to be assertive, I pled and was desperate,” she testified. “I was desperate to give help.” Hansen became combative with defense attorney Eric Nelson during Tuesday’s cross-examination, repeatedly taking issue with his questioning and responding with snark. “I don’t know if you’ve [ CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE ]

“Murder Trial of George Floyd, FIRST WEEK” Derek Michael Chauvin, 45 – Fired Police Officier Accused and On Trial for Murdering George Floyd

In this image, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneels on the neck of George Floyd on the street in front of CUP Foods Store.

Genevieve Hansen, 27 – Off Duty Minneapolis Firefighter

Donald Williams, 33 – Mixed Martial Artist

ever seen someone die in front of you, but it’s very upsetting,” she said at one point. After dismissing the jury for the day, Judge Peter Cahill admonished Hansen, telling her to answer questions and stop arguing. Upon her return to the stand on Wednesday morning, Nelson asked just one question to confirm she did not show the officers on the scene her ID. Hansen was one of six bystanders who testified on Tuesday, along with a 9-year-old girl, three high school students and a mixed martial arts fighter. All arrived at the corner of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis looking to buy snacks from a corner store or to simply get fresh air -- only to witness Floyd’s last breaths. “I was sad and kind of mad,” the 9-year-old testified. “Because it felt like he was stopping his breathing, and it was kind of like hurting him.”

Defense Tries To Show Crowd Was ‘Threat’ Their harrowing testimony furthered the prosecution’s opening statement that asked jurors to focus on video of the 9 minutes and 29 seconds that Chauvin knelt on Floyd›s neck. “You can believe your eyes that it’s a homicide,” prosecuting attorney Jerry Blackwell said Monday. “You can believe your eyes.” Nelson, Chauvin’s defense attorney, has argued that the case is more complicated than just the video. He said Chauvin was following his police use of force training and argued Floyd’s cause of death was a combination of drug use and preexisting health issues. He also said that the bystanders morphed into a threatening crowd, which distracted the officers. In cross-examinations of Hansen and MMA fighter Don-

George Perry Floyd Jr. was an African American man killed during an arrest after a store clerk alleged he had passed a counterfeit $20 bill in Minneapolis. Derek Chauvin, 1 of 4 police officers who arrived on the scene, knelt on Floyd’s neck for a period initially reported to be 8 minutes and 46 seconds. www.StyleMagazine.com

Christopher Martin, 19 – CUP Foods Cashier

Charles McMillian, 61 – Neighborhood Witness ald Williams II on Tuesday, Nelson tried to get them to admit that they and the crowd were angry as Floyd slowly died. They insisted they were increasingly desperate, helpless and concerned. “I grew professional. I stayed in my body,” Williams said. “You can’t paint me out to be angry.”

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April 02 – April 08, 2021

INFRASTRUCTURE, ECONOMY and JOBS CREATION

Here’s What’s In Biden’s Infrastructure Proposal By By Tami Luhby, Katie Lobosco and Kate Sullivan, www.CNN.com / www.StyleMagazine.com

Housing: $213 Billion

Water: $111 Billion

Manufacturing: $300 Billion

ow that his massive coronavirus relief package is law, President Joe Biden is laying out his next big proposal: A roughly $2 trillion plan for improving the nation›s infrastructure and shifting to greener energy over the next 8 years. He is set to unveil the effort, dubbed the American Jobs Plan, on Wednesday at an event in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania -- the opening move in what’s expected to be a months-long negotiation with Congress. The nation’s infrastructure is sorely in need of repair. It recently earned a C- score from the American Society of Civil Engineers, which said an additional $2.6 trillion in funding is required over the next decade. But Biden is also pitching his plan as an investment to benefit communities of color, rural Americans and others burdened by decay or lagging modernization. The infrastructure spending plan is the first of a two-part proposal to help the nation›s economy recover from the coronavirus pandemic. The President is expected to unveil his package focusing on the «care economy,» including investments in education and child care, in coming weeks. The President plans to pay for this part of his recovery package by raising corporate taxes -- a core campaign promise the administration says would raise more than $2 trillion over the next 15 years. Here’s what we know so far about Biden’s infrastructure proposal, according to the White House.

will create “really good-paying jobs” and help the nation compete better. Biden would spend $621 billion on roads, bridges, public transit, rail, ports, waterways, airports and electric vehicles in service of improving air quality, reducing congestion and limiting greenhouse gas emissions. His proposal calls for allocating $115 billion to modernize 20,000 miles of highways, roads and main streets, and $20 billion to improve road safety for all users. It would fix the “most economically significant large bridges” and repair the worst 10,000 smaller bridges. Biden would also invest $85 billion to modernize existing transit and help agencies expand their systems to meet demand. This would double federal funding for public transit. Another $80 billion would go to address Amtrak’s repair backlog and modernize the Northeast Corridor line between Boston and Washington DC -- the line Biden relied on for decades to get home to Delaware -- as well as to connect more cities. Also, the President would funnel $25 billion to airports and $17 billion to inland waterways, ports and ferries. Biden is also proposing to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles with a $174 billion investment in the electric vehicle market. It includes giving consumers rebates and tax incentives to buy American-made electric vehicles and establishing grant and incentive programs to build a national network of 500,000 charging stations by 2030. It would also replace 50,000 diesel transit vehicles and electrify at least 20% of yellow school buses.

Home Care Services And Workforce: $400 Billion

Transportation: $621 Billion Funding improvements to roads, bridges, railways and other infrastructure has been a central piece of Biden’s recovery plans. He has said that it

April 02 – April 08, 2021

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Biden would provide $400 billion to bolster caregiving for aging and disabled Americans. His plan would expand access to long-term care services under Medicaid, eliminating the wait list for hundreds of thousands of people. It would provide more opportunity for people to receive care at home through community-based services or from family members. It would also improve the wages of home health workers, who now make approximately $12 an hour. One in six live in poverty, the administration says. It would put in place an infrastructure to give caregiving workers the opportunity to join a union. During his presidential campaign, Biden said he would devote $450 billion to allow more older Americans and their families to receive care at home or in their communities, as opposed to nursing homes and other institutions.

Manufacturing: $300 Billion Biden wants to put $300 billion toward boosting manufacturing. Under his plan, $50 billion of the money would be invested in semiconductor manufacturing and another $30 billion would go towards medical manufacturing to help shore up the nation’s ability to respond to a future outbreak. Some of the funds would be carved out for manufacturers that focus on clean energy, rural communities, and programs that give small businesses access to credit. About $20 billion would be used to

Transportation: $621 Billion

Workforce Development: $100 Billion

Digital Infrastructure: $100 Billion

create regional innovation hubs that would support community-led projects. Biden is asking Congress to include $46 billion that would be used to make federal purchases of things like electric cars, charging ports, and electric heat pumps for housing and commercial buildings that would boost the clean energy industry. Biden has already signed an executive order aimed at boosting American manufacturing. It set in motion a process that would change the rules regarding federal spending on American-made goods, equipment, vehicles and materials for infrastructure projects -- with a 180-day deadline that comes up in July.

Water: $111 Billion

It would provide $40 billion to retrain dislocated workers in high-demand sectors, such as clean energy, manufacturing and caregiving. It would invest $12 billion in programs to train the formerly incarcerated, create a new subsidized jobs program, eliminate sub-minimum wage provisions and support community violence prevention programs. The proposal would also funnel $48 billion into apprenticeships, career pathway programs for middle and high school students and job training programs at community colleges.

Housing: $213 Billion The plan would invest $213 billion toward building, renovating and retrofitting more than two million homes and housing units. Biden is calling on Congress to produce, preserve and retrofit more than a million affordable and energy efficient housing units. The plan would also build and rehabilitate more than 500,000 homes for low- and middle-income homebuyers. The proposal would eliminate exclusionary zoning laws, which the White House says inflates housing and construction costs. Biden is calling on Congress to enact a new grant program that awards flexible funding to jurisdictions that take steps to eliminate barriers to creating affordable housing. Homes would be upgraded though block grant programs, extending and expanding home and commercial efficiency tax credits and through the Weatherization Assistance Program.

Research and Development: $180 Billion Biden is calling on Congress to invest $180 billion to advance US leadership in critical technologies, upgrade the US’s research infrastructure and establish the US as a leader in climate science, innovation and research and development. His plan would also aim to eliminate racial and gender inequities in research and development and science, technology, engineering and math. Biden is calling on Congress to make research and development investments in historically Black colleges and other minority-serving institutions.

Biden’s plan allocates $111 billion to rebuild the country’s water infrastructure. It would replace all of the nation’s lead pipes and service lines in order to improve the health of American children and communities of color. The White House says replacing the pipes would reduce lead exposure in 400,000 schools and childcare facilities. The proposal would upgrade the country’s drinking water, wastewater and stormwater systems, tackle new contaminants and support clean water infrastructure in rural parts of the country.

Schools: $100 Billion Biden calls for $100 billion to build new public schools and upgrade existing buildings with better ventilation systems, updated technology labs, and improved school kitchens that can prepare more nutritious meals. Another $12 billion would go to states to use towards infrastructure needs at community colleges. The President is calling for an additional $25 billion to help upgrade child care facilities and increase the supply of child care in areas that need it the most. The plan also calls for expand a tax credit to encourage employers to build care facilities at places of work.

Digital Infrastructure: $100 Billion Biden wants to invest $100 billion in order to give every American access to affordable, reliable and high-speed broadband. The proposal would build a high-speed broadband infrastructure in order to reach 100% coverage across the nation. The plan would aim to promote transparency and competition among internet providers. Biden says he is committed to working with Congress to reduce the cost of broadband internet and increase its adoption in both rural and urban areas.

Workforce Development: $100 Billion The President would allocate $100 billion to workforce development -- helping dislocated workers, assisting underserved groups and getting students on career paths before they graduate high school.

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Veterans’ Hospitals and Federal Buildings: $18 Billion The plan would provide $18 billion to modernize the Veterans Affairs’ hospitals, which are on average more than 40 years older than a private sector hospital, according to the White House. It also calls for $10 billion to modernize federal buildings.

Here’s How Biden Plans To Pay For It: Corporate Tax Hike: Biden

would raise the corporate income tax rate to 28%, up from 21%. The rate had been as high as 35% before former President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans cut taxes in 2017.

Global Minimum Tax: The proposal would increase the minimum tax on US corporations to 21% and calculate it on a country-by-country basis to deter companies from sheltering profits in international tax havens. Tax On Book Income: The

President would levy a 15% minimum tax on the income the largest corporations report to investors, known as book income, as opposed to the income reported to the Internal Revenue Service.

Corporate Inversions: Biden would make it harder for US companies to acquire or merge with a foreign business to avoid paying US taxes by claiming to be a foreign company. And he wants to encourage other countries to adopt strong minimum taxes on corporations, including by denying certain deductions to foreign companies based in countries without such a tax.

April 02 – April 08, 2021

Garcia Hamilton & Associates Gives Houston Area Families A $250.00 H-E-B Gift Cards 120 Gift Cards Provided To Community and Baptist Ministers By www.StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

n Tuesday, March 30, 2021, Gilbert Garcia of Garcia Hamilton and Associates along with H-E-B provided 120 underserved families with a $250 H-E-B gift card to assist them during these challenging times from the pandemic to the recent winter storm. Mr. Gilbert Garcia saw a need in the Houston area and took action to help as he has on other occasions. He partnered with Dr. Max Miller of the Baptist Ministers Association of Houston and Vicinity to provide five members from twenty-four churches with a $250 H-E-B gift card totaling $30,000. Today, Mr. Gilbert Garcia and Dr. Max Miller distributed the gift cards to the recipients at the H-E-B MacGregor Market located at 6055 South Freeway, Houston, Texas. The participating churches were Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Floyd Nathaniel Williams; Brentwood Baptist Church, Dr. Joe Ratliff; Christian Faith Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Leroy Joseph; City Cathedral Church, Bishop Leroy Woodard; Covenant Glen Church, Pastor Robert Childress; Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Nelson LaFleur; Forest Lawn Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Ricky C. Bell; Greater Faith Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Anthony Runis; Greater Macedonia Baptist Church, Pastor Ben Lewis; Greater New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Donald Dickson; He Heard My Cry Christian Fellowship, Pastor Claude Cummings, III; Helping Hands Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Paul Giddings; Holy Trinity Missionary Baptist Church, Dr. Richard Je’wel Rose; Living Faith Baptist Church, Pastor Rickey G. King; Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor

Richard E. Jones; Mount Hebron Missionary Baptist Church, Dr. Max Miller; Mt. Rose COGIC, The City of Refuge, Pastor Ron Eagleton; Mt. Vernon Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Kenneth Rose; New Jerusalem Baptist Church, Pastor Willie Adams Jr.; Pisidia Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Albert Walker; Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Israel Holmes; St. James Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Leonard Dancy; St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor James Nash; and The Church at Bethel’s Family, Pastor Walter August.

About Garcia Hamilton & Associates

Garcia Hamilton & Associates (GH&A) is an award-winning fixed income asset management firm with over $17 billion in assets under management. The firm is 100% employee-owned, a certified Minority Business Enterprise and is the largest privately-owned bond management firm in Texas. GH&A believes in diversity, promoting local talent and giving back to the community. The firm is 90% women and minority-owned and 65% minority-owned. Over half of GH&A employees are graduates of University of Houston and Texas Southern University. The firm has a robust internship program designed to give minority and women students exposure to the asset management industry. During the recent COVID-19 crisis, Mr. Garcia and GH&A have donated over 35,000 masks along with hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes to various organizations. In response to the severe winter storms that devastated Houston, Mr. Garcia teamed up with community and state leaders to host two food distributions.

April 02 – April 08, 2021

www.StyleMagazine.com

H-E-B EVENT PHOTOGRAPHY BY

Jerome Provost and Francis Page, Jr.

Don’t Suffer Alone: STOP Domestic Violence By Jo-Carolyn Goode, Managing Editor / www.StyleMagazine.com

his time last year domestic violence was on the rise in Houston. Increasing by almost 10%, victims were now trapped in an enclosed space 24/7 with their abuser. No help from family and friends was available as all were practicing being socially distance while quarantining. Although staying at home to stay safe was enacted to keep everyone was safe from catching the coronavirus, it gave abusers the opportunity to take total control over their defenseless victim(s). Through various community partnerships with the city of Houston, a message was sent out to let survivors know that they don’t have to suffer in silence. Domestic violence is defined as violent or aggressive behavior within the home, typically involving the violent abuse of a spouse or partner. It can be verbal, sexual, emotional, and, of course, physical. It does not discriminate against age, race or gender. Whether you are in a heterosexual relationship or same-sex relationship, man, woman, boy or girl you can all be potential victims of domestic violence. The lingering effects of domestic violence run the gambit. There are the physical scars that can heal over time. The more severe ones can cause the development of physical disabilities, health problems, and psychological disorders. The latter are the hardest to identify in survivors. They can become so brainwashed years and years of therapy is needed. Would you know the signs of domestic violence if victim a was staring you in the face? Domestic violence scars

can vary from individual-to-individual. People must educate themselves on the signs of abuse and know how to offer help. In children, abuse can present itself with the child having poor motor skills, being withdrawn, lacking bladder control, bad grades, headaches, nightmares, and more. In adults, domestic violence can be spotted with bruises, lack of appetite, missed activities, and more. Emotional and psychological abuse is hard to treat. These signs are not as obvious depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, a drug or alcohol addiction, and much more. This matter of the mind so it will take time and patience to unravel all that was done over a course of time. Data indicates that 10 million people in the U.S. are victimize a year. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence breaks that number down to 22 people per minute. Texas is one of the top ten states with the highest rate of domestic violence. Just 6% lower than the high-ranking Michigan, Texas averages 35.10% of violence towards women and 34.5% towards men by the World Population Review. After spotting someone with abuse, you may feel the need to help them get away. You can’t always force them to leave, but you can let them know that you want to help. It is best to see why victims stay with their abusers. Experts have noted the reasons victims sometime choose their abuser over freedom because they alone. One of the first things abuser do to victims to control them is to isolate them from family and friends making the victim feel like the abuser is there only support. Feelings of

fear and shame can one freeze in their tracks. Lack of finances is a big one. Victims of domestic violence have a bevy of resources available. Midway into the global pandemic Houston stepped up its services even more as shelters started to see an increase of individuals seeking refuge, Sadly some had to be turned away due to COVID decrease the number of beds they had available. That is when Houston took a big stand to help survivors. Almost a year ago the Houston’s Office of Human Trafficking and Domestic Violence launched a new website with community partners Houston Area Women’s Center and the Harris County Coordinating Council to give survivors a way out. Through the social media campaign #NoCOVIDAbuse. According to the website #NoCOVIDAbuse is a public initiative to address the spike in domestic violence reports during the COVID-19 public health crisis through a partnership with Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, District C Council member Abbie Kamin, the Houston Police Department, the Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council, and the Houston Area Women’s Center. Together with community leaders, domestic violence organizations, the criminal justice system, law enforcement, and private partners, we are united and committed

to ensuring that services and responses remain available and ready to meet the needs of survivors. Survivors not able to escape to shelters maybe able to get refuge temporarily in a hotel through the program also. April is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Take time to check on friends and loved ones to make sure they are ok and not suffering in silence. If you or someone needs help getting out of a violent relationship utilize the resources below as a starting point.

IMPORTANT RESOURCES:

Houston Area Women’s Center Domestic Violence Hotline: (24/7, free and confidential)

713-528-2121

National Domestic Violence Hotline: (24/7, free and confidential)

1-800-799-7233

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April 02 – April 08, 2021

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April 02 – April 08, 2021

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Five Things To Know About Desiree Ralls-Morrison, McDonald’s Incoming General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

By www.StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

esiree Ralls-Morrison will join McDonald’s on April 26 as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, overseeing global legal operations and corporate governance.

Get To Know Desiree With Five Quick Facts About Her! 1. Family comes first. Desiree’s family are more important than anything else she does. But she recognizes that she’s a better mother and spouse when she’s happy and fulfilled in her job. She is proud of the positive perspectives her sons have about working women and hard work. 2. Integrity is at the core of everything she does. De-

siree’s favorite phrase is something her mother repeatedly told her and her brother growing up, “It’s never right to do wrong.” Desiree tries to live by these words in her personal and professional life, ensuring that ethics and integrity are an important part of everything she does. 3. Continuous learning and development are critical. If Desiree’s not growing or being challenged, then something has to change. She believes we all excel when we’re expanding our thinking and learning new things. It’s this commitment to ongoing development that led Desiree to be named one of the most powerful women in corporate America by Black Enterprise Magazine and one of the top innovative General Counsels around the world by the Financial Times. 4. She believes in the value of diversity and authenticity. Throughout her career, Desiree has understood and appreciated the value of inclusion and how much benefit comes from diversity. What she values in people is what makes them unique, recognizing that diversity increases innovation and revenues. She doesn’t want people who just agree with the status quo, she wants to hear everyone’s voice and wants people to be their authentic self. 5. She’s excited to join McDonald’s because…she recognizes the role that McDonald’s plays at the heart of every community it serves. Desiree knows that

www.StyleMagazine.com

Desiree Ralls-Morrison while the challenges are complex, the opportunities are significant, and she is proud and humbled to join a company with such a vital purpose and broad impact.

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April 02 – April 08, 2021

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April 02 – April 08, 2021