INNER-CITY NEWS

INNER-CITY NEWS July 27, 2016 - August 02, 2016

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Financial Justice a Key Focus at 2016 NAACP Convention On re-entry: Creating Communities That Thrive…

Reflections on leading a housing organization New Haven, Bridgeport

INNER-CITYNEWS

Volume 27 . No. 2290 Volume 21 No. 2194

“Joe,

Just Relax.”

“DMC”

Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim at Albertus Magnus Wednesday night.

Is America Color Struck?

Ready

Malloy To Dems: Malloy To Dems: Study Confirms That Black Women Have Ignore “Tough On Crime”

Ignore “Tough On Crime” the Highest Amount of Student Loan Debt

Snow in July?

Hill Health Set To Expand

Abuse Center FOLLOW USSubstance ON Cornell Scott-Hill CEO Michael Taylor with State Rep. Walker and Mayor Harp.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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“Joe, Just Relax.” “Don’t Touch Me” THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

by MARKESHIA RICKS NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

A gubernatorial debate in New Haven turned testy after protesters pushed Joe Ganim about his handling of cops who kill and Ganim pushed his opponent Ned Lamont on how he finances his campaign.

The fast-paced exchanges flew Wednesday night in the last 16 minutes of the forum before a packed crowd of human services and social-justice advocates at Albertus Magnus College’s Tagliatela Center Wednesday night, where Greenwich businessman Lamont and Bridgeport Mayor Ganim were “in conversation” on education, housing, immigration, healthcare, and criminal justice reform. Partyendorsed Lamont faces challenger Ganim in an Aug. 14 Democratic primary.

The personal animosity that has developed between the two remained under wraps until an hour and ten minutes into the debate, when Ganim resurfaced an old allegation about Lamont’s performance at one of his private businesses. Lamont called it a personal attack. Ganim insisted Lamont’s alleged “business practices” are a legitimate issue.

“Joe, just relax,” Lamont interrupted him, placing his hand on his opponent’s arm.

Ganim shot back: “Please don’t touch me.”

Throughout the evening Lamont argued that his business acumen will enable him to lead the state out of its financial woes and make it competitive again, while Ganim made the case that experience in governing best equips him.

Then the discussion took an unexpected swerve when Ganim was asked a question about why no Bridgeport police officers have been charged or disciplined in a series of high-profile incidents involving the deaths of young people of color.

That question originated from Jazmarie Melendez, sister of Jayson Negron, a 15-year-old shot to death last year by Bridgeport police officers. She showed up with a group of placard-bearing, criminaljustice reformers from New Haven and Bridgeport to confront Ganim over how he has handled the Negron case and the case of 18-year-old Corbin Cooper who died in a police chase that ended in a crash.

Ganim expressed remorse for the death of both teens, calling the incidents “terrible losses. Both terrible tragedies.”

“These are people who are known in our community that have friends and relatives,” he said. “These are sensitive.”

But he also tried to make a distinction about authority and what power his police chief has and his own authority as a mayor. He pointed out that in Negron’s case the investigation was taken over by the state’s attorney’s office, which is common for fatal cases involving local cops.

Neither he nor his chief had any authority over whether officers would be charged, he said.

Ganim said he had concerns about the

MARKESHIA RICKS PHOTO Jazmarie

Albertus.

Melendez, sister of cop-slain Jayson Negron, at

PAUL BASS PHOTO

Ganim, Lamont debating Wednesday night at Albertus Magnus.

Lieutenant governor candidate Eva Bermudez Zimmerman checks her calendar with the NAACP’s Dori Dumas outside the debate.

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“transparency” of that process, but ultimately the chief state’s attorney’s office couldn’t communicate with him until the investigation was complete and he had no say in that process. That investigation ultimately concluded that the use of force in the Negron case was justified. (Officers had stopped a stolen car and ordered Negron outside; he remained inside.)

In the wake of these cases, Ganim said, the city police are getting more de-escalation and sensitivity training and using body and dashboard cameras.

“But we still have challenges, certainly,” he said. “I will uphold the law and fight against any officer or individual who breaks the civil rights of any individual or causes any problem and that’s where I come from ... but that wasn’t my role and responsibility, authority in that situation.”

“You have the power to hold that officer accountable,” New Haven activist Kerry Ellington called out from the crowd.

“You have that power. You’re not using it.

Bridgeport does not have body cameras or dash cameras.”

“I asked the chief state’s attorney when they came out with their decision, what authority do I have, what authority does the chief have under Connecticut law ...”

Ganim started to respond but protesters drowned him out.

Lamont then took the mic, pivoting from offering condolences to Jazmarie Melendez to questioning Ganim’s downplaying his role in the case.

“First of all you’re much too young to have to suffer the tragedies you did,” he said, “And I thought that explanation I just heard was nonsense.

“You want someone who is going to stand up and take responsibility. Not the legislature, not the police chief. You want someone who will give the community the confidence that we will do everything we could. As governor, I would take the lead on that. Policing doesn’t work unless there is some sense that police are working on behalf of the people. That’s not happening “ To which Ganim accused Lamont of using a sensitive case to earn political points.

“I lost a lot of your respect for you for what you just said,” Ganim told Lamont.

“As mayor, as a public official, you will often be situations where the heart goes out but your authority and what you want to do is confined,” Ganim said. “I won’t politicize this and won’t address it any further.”

Lamont got his own chance in the hot seat with the next questions, which concerned how the “second-chance society” Connecticut is pursuing relates to elections.

He was asked whether Ganim should have been allowed to receive public-financing to try to match some of the dollars Lamont is spending of his own money to run for governor. Lamont is opting out of the voluntary public-financing system so he

can spend as much money as he wants; he has spent $10 million on previous losing campaigns. Ganim sought to qualify for matching public dollars under the Citizen Election Program. But a judge ruled that he couldn’t participate because he was convicted of a felony in a corruption case involving his earlier stint as mayor.

“If you’re qualified to run for governor, you should qualify for public financing,” Lamont said.

“Whether you should be elected or not,” he added, “is another question.”

He said Ganim was given a second chance by the voters of Bridgeport and has the right to be mayor.

“You should complete your job in Bridgeport,” Lamont said.

He was then asked whether having been convicted of stealing money from taxpayers and then serving his time should disqualify Ganim from becoming governor.

“I think the laws of the state say if you serve your time you can run and you can serve,” Lamont responded.

Ganim said he appreciated that comment. Then he took a dig at Lamont for his deep pockets, pointing out that in his bid to make the ballot Ganim had talked to thousands of people and collected 32,000 signatures on petitions from voters.

“Even without public financing that effort is people over power,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how much money I have. Every vote counts the same.”

He then noted that Lamont as a selffinancer doesn’t need to file detailed reports that show how he came to amass the money that’s going into his campaign. He challenged Lamont to limit his spending to $1.2 million; Lamont has declined to do that.

“I’ve asked for full disclosure,” Ganim said. “You know all about me, you should know all about Ned and where his money comes from.”

“It’s getting a little feisty around here!”

Lamont remarked. “I’ve got nothing to hide. I’m proud of how I earn my money.

I work my heart out every day. I created a business, I created jobs and my wife has worked her heart out as well. So I’m proud of what we did. I’m not going to apologize for that. By the way, Republicans are spending $10 million to take back the governor’s mansion in November.”

Ganim said if Lamont’s wife Anne (a venture capitalist), for instance, is a state contractor the people should know before Election Day. “This is a very important election,” he said.

The forum was hosted by Greater New Haven VOTE 2018 a nonpartisan collaborative effort targeting the youth and voters of color who have historically had trouble accessing the ballot, according to the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven.

From The Hill To The Hood THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

by CARLY WANNA

NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black claims that we live in a lunatic world but one in which we can not simply survive, but thrive.

Black offered advice on that topic during an hour-long address Saturday at Albertus Magnus College as part of a pilot event called “Mission Himpossible” organized

by Mount Zion Seventh Day Adventist Church. After Black’s address, the congregation served lunch, collected food and other donations for the community, offered free blood tests, and held discussions about local issues.

“We will not yield for Christ for Christ has ordained that we will triumph through Him. So we have this beautiful blueprint to thriving in a predatory world,” said Black.

As Senate chaplain, Black opens each day’s session with prayer and provides counseling and spiritual support for senators and their families as well as staff members. He was elected the Senate’s 62nd chaplain in 2003.

Black has studied theology, philosophy and psychology and secured the position of Navy Chaplain in 1976. Dwight Ware of

CARLY WANNA PHOTO Barry

Black in New Haven on Saturday.

New Haven introduced Black on Saturday, citing his autobiography From the Hood to the Hill, which he described as a story of overcoming adversity.

Twenty minutes into his sermon, Black unpacked his call to thrive in a lunatic world by outlining three principles for the congregation. His first pillar pressed people

to not give up on Jesus due to his disciples.

He said that too many people abandon church due to negative interactions with fellow worshipers, leaving many of them wishing to return to their religious bodies.

His second pillar affirmed the common desire to serve God, calling the congregation to bless others with the power they draw

from the Lord. According to Black, there will be more people in heaven than most people realize, as it is “more difficult to be lost than to be saved.”

“Watch out when you think you’re the only one serving the Lord,” said Black.

In his final point, Black told the congregation not to grieve Jesus Christ. He discussed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his writings, asking the Church why the Sabbath remains “one of the most segregated hours of the week.”

He then challenged the audience to strengthen their faith.

“I tell my mentees, and I tell senators, and I tell staffers on Capitol Hill, every day you eat physical food, get some spiritual food in you,” said Black.

Black has been in contact with community members for years, saying he knew many of them growing up as a member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, which observes the Saturday sabbath. Tamara Nathan-Oputa, Mount Zion’s education director, said the organization needed a strong keynote speaker.

“It’s overwhelming,” said Nathan-Oputa.

“I’m amazed. I’m in awe.”

Still More Questions Than Answers About Inmate Medical Care

by Christine Stuart CT. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — High-ranking University of Connecticut officials spoke Monday about how their teaching hospital has cared for prison inmates under a contract with the state Department of Correction. But those same officials were gone by the time four families testified about how their incarcerated loved ones had died from, or suffered because of, extreme medical neglect.

Correctional Managed Health Care, an organization within the University of Connecticut, is transitioning the delivery of inmate health services back to the Department of Correction after 21 years. The transition is still underway with several service level agreements in place for various services over the next few months.

But little about those temporary agreements was discussed Monday at an informational hearing held by the legislature’s Public Health and General Administration and Elections Committees.

Correction Department Commissioner Scott Semple said they should have a better idea of what the new system will look like by January 2019 when he’s able to hire a chief operating officer to oversee three directors: one for medical care, one for behavioral health, and one for addiction treatment.

He said he’s working as quickly as possible because he might not have a job when a new gubernatorial administration takes office in January.

Semple’s comments about that transition, however, didn’t inspire confidence from the handful of families who have had loved ones die while under the department’s care.

Some of those families are suing the department in federal court.

Keshanna Staten, the mother of Karon Nealy, wants to know how a healthy 19-year-old goes into prison to serve a two-year sentence and dies two months before he’s supposed to be released.

Staten said neither the department nor the hospital have given her his medical records.

She said her son was so desperate to receive medical care for what’s now thought to have been Lupus, that he pulled the fire alarm to get attention.

The federal lawsuit filed last week details Nealy’s repeated attempts to get medical care and how he was repeatedly denied.

But he wasn’t the only one.

A consultant’s report, which the Department of Correction refuses to release to the public claiming attorney-client privilege, details 25 cases of medical neglect that could potentially be referred for litigation.

Cathy Camera testified Monday that her husband Patrick Camera’s nosebleeds were ignored for nine months to a year before the tumors started pressing on his face and brain. She said at one point her husband didn’t even know who he was or where he was.

She said the neglect and indifference

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Keshanna Staten and Nealy’s four year old daughter

they showed him was “criminal.”

Camera said she struggled to know when they transported him to the hospital even though she was his emergency medical contact. She said by the time he was offered treatment, it was too late.

Dr. Joseph Breton, the former chief medical officer for the Correction Department, testified Monday that the largest roadblock to care in the facilities were the “utilization review committees.”

He said under Correctional Care Health Management, a committee of doctors in the prison system would decide whether

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a patient should be seen by a specialist or given a higher level of medical care. He said that in his first year 95 percent of his requests were denied by the committee.

He said those utilization review committees no longer exist.

Legislators on the Public Health and General Administration and Elections Committee pushed for answers about how to improve the costly medical system, which critics say has only been made costlier by medical neglect and death.

Breton said the second biggest barrier to Con’t on page 15

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Murphy: Change Congress To Pass Gun Control

by CARLY WANNA

NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy has spent much of his time in office working to influence the opinions of his colleagues about gun control. Now, he said, he has changed course working instead to change who his colleagues are.

Murphy talked about that change in strategy Monday to a gathering of teens participating in Squash Haven, a nonprofit youth development program, on Ashmun Street.

“There are two ways to change the law: Change people’s minds in Congress or change the people that are actually in Congress. I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve done everything I can to change people’s minds,” said Murphy.

Murphy, who since the school massacre at Sandy Hook has championed efforts in D.C. to pass gun control laws, primarily discussed that issue with the students before

opening the floor to questions.

He spoke of how he sought to change the views of gun control opponents through a 15-hour filibuster following a shooting in an Orlando nightclub among other tactics.

Now, he said, he spends much time to support pro-gun-control Democratic candidates in this year’s mid-term elections.

Number one on his docket, he said, is national background checks, which would require an individual check conducted on anyone wishing to buy a gun. Connecticut currently requires such reviews, but not every state employs the measure. People can therefore attain firearms legally in other states with looser gun control laws and bring them to Connecticut where the buyer may have been blocked from purchase.

Depending on the outcome of the upcoming Congressional elections, Murphy said the legislature may have enough support to pass universal background checks by next

year.

Beyond background checks, Murphy called for requiring for all states to require that local cops issue permits before people can buy guns; the states that already have this policy also have a lower rate of gun violence, he said. He added that he believes certain guns, such as semi-automatic weapons, should be banned entirely.

Murphy encouraged the teens, even if they can’t vote yet, to maintain an active stance on social media and contact their representatives.

He spent nearly an hour with the group, answering questions on topics ranging from gun control to wealth inequality to the role of gender in shootings. Then he accepted a token of their thanks –– a sweatshirt and bumper sticker –– before returning to Capitol Hill to vote on legislation.

“These kids get it,” said Murphy.

CARLY WANNA PHOTO

Murphy with Squash Haven Monday.

Could It Be The Alleged Killer?

Police may have finally caught up with a man wanted for allegedly shooting a New Haven woman dead in front of her kids.

The man, too, may now be dead.

We won’t know for sure until a medical examiner weighs in.

That’s the latest turn in the manhunt for 42-year-old Tremaine Marquise Poole. New Haven police have been looking for him since May 31, when he allegedly shot 28-year-old Tyekqua Nesbitt in her car in front of her children at the intersection of Wilmot Road and Wintergreen Avenue. Police also believe he shot his 36-year-old wife (not fatally) on May 7.

Poole, who was wanted on a $5 million bond, has evaded capture. At least

Tyeqkqua Nesbitt’s sister Tashauna (right) and her mother at a June press conference appealing for information on the wanted killer.

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO

possibly until now.

Then, on Wednesday morning, Virginia State Police ended up in a shoot-out with a man in a stolen car in Sussex County. It is believed the Poole might be that man.

The troopers there chased a stolen car on I-95. Shots were fired at the troopers form the stolen car; the cops shot back.

The pursuit ended near off Exit 24.

The troopers reported “apprehending” the driver — who is dead.

The police are waiting on a medical examiner to confirm the identity of the deceased driver, who is believed to be Poole. it is believed that a police canine was struck during the shoot-out.

Here’s the full text of the official statement from Virginia State police spokeswoman Trooper Michelle Anaya: “Virginia State Police are investigating a shooting and pursuit that occurred in Sussex County Wednesday morning (Aug. 1, 2018). The incident began at approximately 8:18 a.m., when a vehicle traveling north Bon Interstate 95 refused to stop for a state trooper. A pursuit was initiated.

During the course of the pursuit, shots were fired from the suspect vehicle.

The suspect vehicle continued north on I-95 and took Exit 24. The pursuit ended near Loco School and Bell roads in Sussex County. The driver of the suspect vehicle was apprehended.”

Connecticut Joins Lawsuit To Stop Release of 3D Printed Firearm Plans

by Christine Stuart CT. News Junkie

Following a push from groups like Connecticut Against Gun Violence, Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen announced Monday that he would join a multi-state lawsuit against the federal government for settling with a Texas nonprofit that plans to make blueprints for a 3D gun available online.

The lawsuit filed in the Western District of Washington at Seattle argues that the federal government violated federal law and the 10th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and that the government’s actions will have far-reaching implications for national security and the safety and security of state residents, including Connecticut residents.

Connecticut is joining Washington, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New

York, Oregon, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia.in the action.

The states argue that the government’s actions were arbitrary and capricious, and that they effectively tie the hands of state firearms regulators who seek to promote public safety by keeping firearms out of the hands of those who, for various reasons, should not have them.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the federal Directorate of Defense Trade Controls are named as defendants.

Earlier this month the Texas nonprofit Defense Distributed reached a settlement with the Trump administration resolving a 2015 government challenge to its public posting of the instructions for manufacturing guns with 3D printers. The challenge was started in 2013 during the Obama administration.

“The action by the federal government is

outrageous and flies in the face of the most basic notions of public safety and responsible gun control,” Jepsen said Monday.

“I have grave fears not only for the safety of Connecticut residents but also for our police officers and law enforcement professionals if these plans are allowed to be made public, as absolutely anyone would be able to make and sell untraceable, undetectable plastic guns. The danger of this situation and the path of irrational gun ownership it portends simply cannot be overstated, which is why my colleagues and I have filed a lawsuit today to stop this underhanded, wrong-headed and deeply alarming situation created by the very federal officials who are charged with ensuring our national security and public safety.”

CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE PHOTO Attorney

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General George Jepsen

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Hill Health Set To Expand Substance Abuse Center

by MARKESHIA RICKS NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

Shovels should be in the ground next spring to start building an expanded treatment facility for those recovering from substance abuse disorders in the Hill neighborhood.

That was the promise as Gov. Dannel P. Malloy joined officials from the Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center and state and local elected leaders Tuesday to announce that the state Bond Commission had awarded the center $10 million for the development of a new Recovery and Wellness Center.

The Recovery and Wellness Center will replace the center’s smaller existing Grant Street Partnership treatment program. The new center will be on Minor Street adjacent to the South Central Rehabilitation Center, which sits at the intersection of Minor and Cedar streets. The Recovery and Wellness Center will also be home to a new kitchen that will serve inpatient residents and those of the South Central Rehabilitation Center.

Cornell Scott-Hill CEO Michael Taylor said construction is expected to begin in spring 2019 and take about 12-15 months.

“We are thrilled to receive this generous award,” he said. “It will allow us to expand our capacity to care for the increasing number of people who suffer from substance abuse disorder.”

Cornell Scott-Hill Board President Angel Fernandez-Chavero said the name of the new center is important because for so many who utilize the services of the center it is a place to recover from whatever ails them so that that they are well enough to go back to being productive members of society.

As much as Tuesday’s announcement was a celebration of the future four-story, 52bed, facility for both men and women, it also was a chance for New Haven’s elected leaders to praise Malloy and reflect on his eight years of service.

State Rep. Toni Walker thanked Malloy for being a governor who understood the value of second chances, particularly in a state where 85 percent of the prison population is battling substance abuse and addiction.

“This is a good thing,” she said of the new center.

“He started it for us,” she said of Malloy’ second-chance criminal justice efforts.

“We have to keep the momentum going.”

Mayor Toni Harp pointed out the irony of New Haven being home to a world-class teaching hospital while simultaneously being home to so many who can’t access that care because of “economics, language, or cultural differences.”

“The underserved in New Haven deserve

effective health care,” she said. “Cornell Scott-Hill has been bridging that gap for 50 years.”

She pointed out that the center has grown to 23 locations with more than 500 providers. She said the state partnering with the center to build out the new treatment facility “makes perfect sense.”

Harp also pointed out that under the Malloy administration the state is leading in gun control efforts and addressing shootings as a public health issue. The state also is a leader in addressing the opioid crisis that has swept the country.

“And whenever Gov. Malloy comes to New Haven, he always comes bearing gifts,” Harp joked.

With all the public praise, Malloy reminded the crowd, “I’m not dead yet.”

Malloy said he inherited concern about public health from his mother, who was a nurse. He said community health centers have bridged the access gaps for years, and the state has some of the best centers in the country.

He said given the opioid crisis facing the nation, community health centers are more important than ever in giving people a chance to turn their lives around. Whether a person’s life is saved “one time or 25 times,“he said, every time is “a chance to change their life and make a difference.”

Cornell Scott-Hill Board President Fernandez-Chavero.

Northland: Disaster Not Our Fault

by CHRISTOPHER PEAK NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

If Church Street South was such a mess, why didn’t the tenants tell the landlord? Or government inspectors?

Lawyers for Northland Investment Corporation, the Massachusetts-based owner of the former 301-unit federally subsidized housing complex across from Union Station, raise that argument in a new 700-page brief, as they try to dissuade a judge from grouping former tenants together to press their case that the company is responsible for endangering their health and their lives.

The tenants argue that they all suffered from the property owner’s mismanagement, particularly from the creeping mold that left many with respiratory problems.

The tenants — all of whom have moved to new homes as their old deteriorated complex gets demolished — have filed a lawsuit in state Superior Court seeking millions of dollars in damages.

In the new response brief, filed last week, Northland’s lawyers argue that each apartment needs to be looked at separately to verify those claims can be backed up with maintenance logs, code enforcement orders or medical records.

Depending on whether or not the judge rules to certify the class is certified, the trial could focus on either five named plaintiffs or hundreds more unnamed families.

The city’s biggest housing crisis in years could be dealt with as a systematic failure

Lead plaintiff Personna Noble, at right, at announcement of lawsuit. by one company or it could be split into hundreds of different suits and settlements pant mold, leaking ceilings, and other hazabout shoddy repairs. ards at the 301-unit complex.

The tenants’ class-action suit against Only now, months later, with all the tenNorthland, filed in state court by attorney ants relocated and the cinderblock homes David Rosen in November 2016, seeks being reduced to rubble, will a judge get monetary damages for the respiratory to decide whether former residents legally problems, skin disorders, migraines, loss constitute a class. of furniture, dislocation and homelessness Superior Court Judge Linda Lager schedsuffered by the families because of ramuled the case’s next hearings on July 30

PAUL BASS PHOTO

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and Aug. 29.

The Northland court filing offers the company’s first detailed defense against the accusations of allowing hundreds of families to live in dangerous conditions. More on that later in the story. But first, a look at the more immediate question of whether Lager should allow the lawsuit to proceed as a class action covering all the tenants.

Connecticut judges must do a “rigorous analysis” before deciding whether to certify a class-action lawsuit. They generally give deference to the attorneys, especially if they’re representing hundreds of lowincome plaintiffs.

Past precedent has established that class actions save everyone time and money.

Moreover, they look out for clients who can’t afford to take on corporations alone, at the same that they also protect companies from inconsistent orders in multiple courtrooms.

The state legislature, too, explicitly encouraged lawyers to act like “private attorneys general” through the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act, judges have determined.

Rosen alleges that law was violated in this case in collecting rents for apartments that had become uninhabitable. The suit accuses Northland of “demolition by neglect” allowing conditions to deteriorate so badly that the complex would need to be torn down at the expense of tenants’ health and safety.

The toughest burden to meet, however, for certifying a class is that there is one common question whether of fact or law that predominates over individual circumstances.

Rosen acknowledged differences in how bad apartments got, but he argued that Northland’s “entire course of conduct” in largely ignoring moisture and mold was the same throughout Church Street South.

In the end, he said, it forced everyone to be relocated out of the complex.

He argued that would meet the standard that a federal judge set in 2008 in determining that residents of a Hamden neighborhood built atop a city landfill could join as a common class to sue Olin Corporation for dumping industrial waste that contaminated their yards.

Northland’s lead attorney, Marc Kurzman, argued in the latest brief that the tenants’ experiences vary so widely that they can’t be dealt with all at once.

Nicknamed “The Jungle,” Church Street South consisted of 22 buildings located over a “sprawling” 13 acres of land, Kurzman wrote. That size alone and tenants’ varied experiences within it means the claims can’t be dealt with together, he argued.

Proof that one apartment was in rough shape doesn’t mean that other properties were too, let alone that Northland was responsible for the defects, Kurzman argued.

Con’t on page 08

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Disaster Not Our Fault Con’t from page 06

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Similarly, proof that one tenant had difficulty breathing after moving in doesn’t mean other clients were sickened too, let alone that Church Street South caused the shortness of breath, he added.

“Each tenant’s claim necessarily rises or falls on its own merits,” he wrote. “This is the antithesis of a class action.”

As proof, he cited how judges tossed out housing suits across the country, from luxury-apartment dwellers in Manhattan who tried to get a rent rebate for power outages during Hurricane Sandy to mixed-income tenants in Los Angeles who sued their landlord over nuisances like an intermittently operating elevator and trash pileups.

But almost all of those cases had other procedural issues that were never going to get to court.

The strongest case law Kurzman can rely on is from 2007, when a Connecticut judge refused to certify a class of public housing residents in New London seeking damages from the city for letting them live in squalor. The judge said those issues required specific proof.

Northland said it would prefer to deal with the case by setting up a special docket, as the state judicial system has done for asbestos and lead paint. More recently, the courts set up another special docket for 2,500 pending cases against the manufacturer of Pradaxa, a prescription blood thinner, the company’s attorneys pointed out.

In the context of that procedural argument, Northland’s attorneys also previewed for the first time in the brief how they intend to rebut the claims that they created a public-health crisis at Church Street South.

A company executive will say that, after buying the property for $5 million in 2008, the owner poured $11 million into maintenance and repairs over the next decade, before one “horrific winter” finally did the property in. And an industrial hygienist and a building engineer will say that tenants rarely complained about mold, possibly because the spores showed up after the property was condemned and the heat turned off.

Kurzman assembled that team of experts

8

to pick apart tenants’ statements, pressing them to document each claim of disrepair and each diagnosis of respiratory problems, rather than relying on a general sense of decrepitude in the complex that the ward’s alder took to calling “Asthma Central.”

To certify the class, Rosen wants to put one common question to everyone who lived at Church Street South: Did you suffer from Northland’s “demolition by neglect”? Kurzman plans to try to complicate that “self-serving and scurrilous allegation” with a dozen more questions: Which building did you live in? What was its condition? How was the roof? Where was your apartment? Who lived there and for how long? What was its condition? If there was damage, what caused it? Did it affect your health? Did it damage your possessions? Did you tell anyone? Did they do anything about it?

Rosen had tried to prove the general disrepair by submitting questionnaire data from 268 people who lived in 106 units at Church Street South.

Those families reported that 93 percent of the units had mold, 91 percent had structural damage, 86 percent had water leaks, and 82 percent had plumbing backups. Some type of defect was reported in all but one of the apartments, Rosen wrote.

Kurzman wrote that that summary simplifies “a diverse panoply of alleged conditions and health effects.”

For instance, tenants meant different things when they reported “water damage,” he argued, as three had water dripping from their walls and ceilings, one had a leaky boiler, and two had broken faucets.

He demanded a paper trail that tenants might not have, especially because the bureaucracy at the time failed to catch problems, until just before the property was condemned.

Kurzman went after the lead plaintiff, Personna Noble, in particular, stating that she frequently complained to the property manager and city inspectors, but those re-

ports never documented any mold.

A log of 13 repairs at Christopher Green, Apt. 14C, that ranged from the bathroom sink coming loose and shattering on the floor to the boiler breaking down and and cutting the heat, don’t mention any mold over the two years. Noble said she believed that three work orders had gone missing — “without explanation,” Kurzman said.

He added that Noble was also unable to explain why a 2015 inspection report from the Livable City Initiative (LCI), New Haven’s anti-blight agency, did not cite mold as an issue in her apartment, despite showing her bathroom to the inspector.

That fits a pattern throughout Church Street South: HUD and LCI inspectors reported mold in only one-third of the apartments. Only 22 were bad enough to be condemned, representing less than 7 percent of the complex.

“In all, the contrasts, variances, and contradictions between Ms. Noble’s allegations, her testimony, and records of repair and inspection, can only be resolved through individualized fact finding,” Kurzman wrote.

Recent pictures of an apartment like Noble’s wouldn’t cut it either, said Eric Olson, a professional engineer whom Northland hired to check the roofing and walls.

After the apartments were vacated, they were trashed by vandals, burglars and squatters, he said, meaning they likely looked different from 2013 to 2016.

Olson did admit, however, that buildings with “exterior masonry barrier walls” like Church Street South, often have trouble “reliably preventing water intrusion due to precipitation. “These limitations were inherited by Northland, not caused by Northland,” he said.

William Thompson, Northland’s senior vice president, picked up that argument by saying that the company tried to invest in the property, putting $5.4 million into capital improvements by 2015, amounting to nearly $18,000 per apartment. Thompson also submitted a balance sheet showing Northland lost $244,000 on the property over the last decade, after accounting for operating expenses, service contracts, utilities, repairs, taxes, insurance and debt service.

Thompson said the complex just wasn’t able to withstand the “unforeseeable and uncontrollable”: an “extraordinary winter.”

After the complex was pounded by blizzards in early 2015, Thompson said Northland decided that it would be “economically unfeasible” to repair the damage. He said they “worked with the City and HUD officials to decommission the property.”

But that telling makes it sound like Northland had a choice; in fact, the feds had already declared the complex unlivable, cutting off the rental subsidies because the company failed to maintain “decent, safe

Fixing The Budget: Fire Choices THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

by THOMAS BREEN

NEW HAVEN INDEPENDENT

Cutting four firefighter positions and merging medical and fire response units could save New Haven over $1.7 million each year.

In the view of the fire union, it could also mean fewer firefighters available to respond to the next serious blaze.

Cutting an engine company could also save the city over $1.7 million each year in personnel costs. But neither management nor the union is considering that idea, fearing that a closed engine would increase average emergency response times by over a minute.

Those are among the tough choices New Haven faces in deciding how to rethink how it runs its government, or else succumb to a state takeover of its finances, choices the Independent is asking readers to explore and weigh in on as part of New Haven’s quest to get its fiscal house in order.

As the city grapples with an estimated $30 million structural deficit and two recent credit downgrades that resulted, in part, from years of overly optimistic budgeting, observers have identified the fire department as one area to examine for cost-saving restructuring.

One potential model for how to approach the restructuring could lie in an early 1990s study by now retired Yale business school professor Art Swersey. Swersey devised a controversial plan to reduce firefighter personnel in favor of cross-trained firefighter-medics as a means of cutting costs and tilting the department away from fire suppression and more towards emergency medical response.

New Haven adopted the plan at the time, and then quickly dropped it. But Swersey’s ideas continued to be debated not just here, but nationwide.

Read on to see how we got to this point in the fire budget and let us know how you would weigh the pros and cons to make the tough decisions.

At $33.2 million, the Fire Department’s budget makes up 6 percent of the city’s overall general fund budget for the current fiscal year. That’s the third highest budget of any city department, after the school system (which is overseen by the Board of Education but receives nearly two-thirds of its annual funding from the city) and the Police Department.

Last year, the Fire Department exceeded its $31.4 million budget by nearly $5 million. Overtime, salary, and retirement buyouts were the three key drivers of the department’s deficit.

The department’s general fund budget includes 366 full-time personnel, 347 of whom are assigned to fire suppression and emergency medical services (EMS). The fire suppression personnel include positions for 270 firefighter/EMTs, 25 captains, 40 lieutenants, eight battalion chiefs, and four deputy chiefs.

According to Fire Chief John Alston, the department currently has 356 full-time employees.

CHRISTOPHER PEAK PHOTO

NHFD’s Keith Kerr treats man who overdosed on heroin.

PAUL BASS PHOTO Paramedics help an overdose victim on Elm Street near Norton on Martin Luther King’s birthday.

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO

Fire Chief Alston: Evaluating for efficiency.

The most recent union contract, which expired at the end of June, requires 72 firefighters to be on duty at all times. The contract also stipulates that a firefighter’s average work week should be 42 hours.

That means the department employs four or five firefighters for every position that

needs to be filled at any given moment to meet the minimum staffing requirement.

The city mandates that all New Haven firefighters be trained as Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) in Basic Life Support (BLS). That means that, in the case of a medical emergency, any New Haven

9

firefighter can provide a baseline of medical care, including airway maintenance, CPR, and Narcan, until a paramedic trained in Advanced Life Support (ALS) gets to the scene.

According to Kenneth Oliver, Jr., the department’s EMS supervisor, 38 of the city’s 356 full-time employees are certified paramedics.

Across the city’s ten fire stations, the department runs 10 fire engine companies, four fire truck companies, two special rescue squads, and only two emergency medical units with ALS equipment.

The engines, trucks, and rescue squads must be manned by a minimum of four firefighter/EMTs when they respond to a call.

The emergency medical units are manned by one paramedic and one firefighter/EMT each.

Each of the 270 firefighter/EMT positions has a line item salary of $76,496 in the budget. But, as independent Financial Review and Audit Commission (FRAC) Chair Mohit Agrawal points out, the city budget has separate line items for salary and fringe benefits, such as pensions, medical care, and workers’ compensation. He said the average fringe benefits for a city firefighter likely add another 40 to 50 percent to the cost of each position’s salary.

That puts the average cost of a firefighter/ EMT position closer to $107,00, conservatively speaking.

Even though every firefighter is capable of providing BLS and the city’s paramedics can provide ALS, none of the city Fire Department vehicles can transport people experiencing medical emergencies to the hospital.

The city contracts that work out to the private ambulance company American Medical Response (AMR) to the tune of $100,000 each year. The city can then receive reimbursements from AMR if cityemployed paramedics make the trip to the hospital with the person being transported.

A Changing Profession Meanwhile, the nature of firefighter work is changing, and has been changing for the past four decades.

Firefighters respond much more frequently to emergency medical calls than they do to fire suppression calls.

In Fiscal Year 2016-2017 (FY17), New Haven firefighters responded to over 25,512 incidents in total, according to the department’s budget narrative in the most recent budget.

Eighty percent of those calls were medical.

Only 18 percent of those calls were for fire incidents. Of those fire incidents, only 1 percent were for arson.

According to the U.S. Fire Administration, 64 percent of calls to fire departments nationwide in 2014 required EMS response.

Only 5 percent of calls required fire suppression.

Firefighters union President Frank Ricci told the Independent that simply claiming that firefighters respond to more medical calls than they do to fire suppression calls perpetuates a “false narrative.” He said

fires may be less frequent now than they were 40 years ago, but they are more intense, take place in more confined spaces, and are more dangerous for firefighters to respond to.

Plus, he said, the category of “medical response” includes a broad range of incidents, including automobile accidents, cliff rescues, and boat accidents.

“Emergency medicine happens to run more calls than any fire calls,” he said. “But they’re two distinctly different things, and they shouldn’t be compared together.”

Back in the early 1990s, a Yale business school professor and former RAND Institute researcher named Arthur Swersey did just that.

Asked by then-city Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Douglas Rae and then-Fire Chief Earl Geyer, Jr. to investigate which fire engine company to shutter in response to the city’s then-fiscal crisis, Swersey instead delivered a different recommendation.

He argued that the department could save $1.4 million a year and even improve public safety by cutting four firefighter positions and creating two fire/medic units that were cross-trained to respond to both fire suppression calls and to ALS-necessary emergency medical calls.

An amended version of the controversial plan was adopted for only a year before it was dropped. From Swersey’s perspective, the plan failed because it lost political support and succumbed to union pressure.

From Ricci’s perspective, the plan failed because it needlessly endangered city firefighters and residents by rendering certain engine companies unusable whenever their corresponding medical teams were out on call.

Today’s firefighter/EMTs are better trained to respond to medical emergencies than were the city’s non-medical firefighters in the early 1990s.

The Independent spoke with Swersey, Ricci, and Alston to see if there are any takeaways from the Swersey Plan of 1991 that might help the New Haven Fire Department of 2018 cut costs and maintain public safety. We also spoke with former city CAO Rob Smuts, who undertook his own efforts back in 2010 to transfer four firefighter positions from an existing engine company into two new ALS units.

Because of ongoing contract negotiations with Local 825, the fire chief declined to go into detail in response to questions about if and how the department needs to be restructured to fit the rising tide of medical calls.

He did say that he is keeping a close eye on the department’s paramedics program.

“It’s being evaluated for efficiency,” Alston said. “We’re concerned about the increase in calls related to the opioid epidemic and the use of K2 as an illicit drug. Medical calls are up, and some of the principal indicators of productivity and quality service to the citizens of New Haven all revolve around our fire-based EMS program.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

DOJ Warned of ‘Zero-Tolerance’ Harm to Children

by Peter Urban CT. News Junkie

WASHINGTON — Before launching its “zero-tolerance” policy in April, the Trump Administration was warned that it could do serious harm to children separated from their parents at the border.

Commander Jonathan White, a Health and Human Services official who led the agency’s family reunification efforts, testified Tuesday that he had raised concerns about the about the “traumatic psychological injury” that separating families at the border could have on children caught up in the program.

“During the deliberative process over the previous year we raised a number of concerns … about any policy that would result in family separation due to concerns we had about the best interest of the child,” White told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee at an oversight hearing examining the fallout of family separations due to the zero-tolerance policy requiring all unlawful border crossers to be prosecuted.

White’s statement — solicited during questioning by Senator Richard Blumenthal — was significant in that it would seem to belie a Republican talking point that family separations were an unintended

result of a the zero-tolerance policy.

Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, said in his opening remarks at the hearing that family separation was an “unintended” consequence of a “well intentioned” policy.

Blumenthal claimed family separation was, rather, an intended consequence of the zero-tolerance policy and was done to inflict harm as a way of deterring asylum seekers from crossing the Mexican border unlawfully. The fact that the administration was warned, he said, makes clear it was not unintended.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued the zero-tolerance policy in April. President Donald Trump ended it in June after public outcry.

As a result of the administration’s “zerotolerance” policy more than 2,500 illegal immigrant children were separated from their parents. As of last Thursday, 1,442 of those children have been reunited directly with their parents. An additional 378 have been released to other individuals under appropriate circumstances. But, almost one third of the children — approximately 711 — are still in government custody and are unable to be reunited with their parents, Grassley said.

Blumenthal was among the last members of the Judiciary Committee to question witnesses at the hearing on Tuesday when he asked if any of them had raised concerns that the zero-tolerance policy was “maybe not such a good idea.”

After a brief silence, Blumenthal turned to White for a response. White explained that he had raised concerns which Blumenthal then boiled down into layman’s terms.

“You told the administration that kids would suffer as a result. That pain would be inflicted. Correct?” Blumenthal asked.

“Separation of children from their parents entails significant risk of harm to children,” White agreed.

“Well, it is traumatic for any child to be separated from his or her parents. Am I correct? I say that as a parent of four children,” Blumenthal asked again.

“There is no question that separation of children from parents entails significant potential for traumatic psychological injury to the child,” White said.

White, however, said that he believes the children separated from their parents are receiving sufficient care in U.S. custody, noting that each has a mental health clinician assigned to them.

SCREENGRAB VIA JUDICIARY.SENATE.GOV

Cmdr. Jonathan White of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Dems File Election Complaint Against Indy Expenditure Group

by Christine Stuart CT. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — House Democrats filed an election complaint Wednesday against an independent expenditure group that is planning to target General Assembly races.

House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, D-Berlin, said he’s personally been targeted by the independent expenditure group Change Connecticut. He said they think the group is coming in to benefit Republican candidates, but they don’t know for certain because it hasn’t declared which candidates its targeting.

Change Connecticut has spent more than $225,000 in Connecticut. At least $99,000 of that was on opposition research with a company called Percipient Strategies LLC. The firms website says it was started by communications staffers from the Republican National Committee.

“They have yet to declare who they’re benefitting,” Aresimowicz said. “This flies in the face of what we expect here in Connecticut.”

A spokesman for Change Connecticut, told CTNewsJunkie said Wednesday that the group doesn’t know which candidates it plans to spend money on yet.

T”he research is done to determine which districts we believe will be the best use of resources,” Ben Davol, a spokesman for Change Connecticut said. “No decisions have been made on which districts to support.”

The opposition research and polling the group has done may never be used to benefit or disadvantage a candidate.

CHRISTINE STUART / CTNEWSJUNKIE

House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, Majority Leader Matt Ritter, and Reps. Liz Linehan and Michael Winkler House Majority Leader Matt Ritter said the four state representatives who have had opposition research done against them expect to be asked about their records during a campaign.

He said no one is complaining about that.

“What we’re complaining about is that these outside groups from DC funded by very conservative think-tanks and others are putting money in and then spending in

Connecticut and not complying with our statutory scheme for clean elections,” Ritter said.

Expenditures of the money from these groups has to be reported in a 24-hour period.

The complaint says Percipient Strategies has been working on the research dossiers since at least June 6 and Change Connecticut only reported the expenditure on June

10

29.

The requests targeted state Reps. Michael Winkler of Vernon, Liz Linehan of Cheshire, Phil Young of Stratford and Aresimowicz.

Linehan said the group search through 20 years of police records for her name.

“When we’re talking about dirty money, we’re also talking about dirty politics and that’s just not ok,” Linehan said.

Aresimowicz said the town of Berlin received requests on June 19 and June 20 for voter records and records related to his time as a town councilor.

“I understand that it can be asked,” Aresimowicz said of the request for information.

“But who is asking?”

He said they tracked it back to a firm with staffers who worked for both Trump and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

Change Connecticut, which is being run by William Phillips of Milford, has received $400,000 from the Republican State Leadership Committee, a Washington D.C.-based 527 group that receives money from thousands of large corporations like Wal-Mart and the Koch Brothers Inc. According to past records, the top five donors to the Republican State Leadership Committee in 2016 were the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Reynolds American, Las Vegas Sands, Altria Group, and Amway/ Alticor. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce a business lobby aligned with Republicans donated $5.4 million to the group. Koch Industries and Wal-Mart Stores also contributed about $400,000 that year to the group.

“We want these outside, DC political interests to stay out of Connecticut elections,”

Aresimowicz said.

But Citizens United makes that an impossible task.

The only thing Connecticut can do is require more reporting of expenditures made by these groups and increase the penalty for those who don’t comply.

Legislation that would have made the changes House Democrats want to see died on the House calendar in 2017 and 2018.

Aresimowicz blamed Republicans for being unable to take up the legislation even though Democrats still hold the majority in the chamber.

“Their candidates are benefitting without them being listed,” Aresimowicz said.

Democrats also benefit from independent expenditure groups.

In 2016, Labor United for Connecticut, an independent expenditure group funded by SEIU District 1199, spent about $100,000 in attack ads targeting Republicans.

This is not the first time Democrats have complained about an independent expenditure group.

Two years ago, Grow Connecticut, which was run by Liz Kurantowicz, received $350,000 from the Republican State Leadership Committee to target House and Senate races. The group targeted 3 Senate races, and 10 House races.

In 2016, independent expenditure groups spent more than $1.4 million on more than a dozen General Assembly seats.

The election resulted in Republicans picking up 8 seats in the House and drawing even with Democrats in the Senate.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Is America Ready for Another Black President?

By Micha Green, AFRO Washington, D.C. Editor, mgreen@afro.com

Former Attorney General Eric Holder confirmed on “The Late Show” with Stephen Colbert that he’s seriously considering running for president in 2020- an announcement that received major cheers from the crowd. Despite the support from Colbert’s audience, in a post-Obama, “Make America Great Again” era, which many argue has divided the nation, the question becomes: is the United States ready for another Black president?

In 2008 and 2012, former President Barack Obama won the nation over with hopeful rhetoric. Then in 2016

Former Attorney General Eric Holder

President Trump unapologetically flipped the switch from hopeful optimism and political correctness to inciting fear and sometimes awakening hate. Obama era policies like the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, which championed opportunities for young immigrants, are now being phased out by a president who advocated for a zerotolerance immigration policy.

Some of the same people who chanted “Yes We Can” are now leaving the Democratic Party for movements like “#WalkAway”, while some longtime Republicans, like political strategist Steve Schmidt, are so disgusted

by Trump that they’re now backing

Democrats.

So in two years will America be ready for a Black president? Is a former Obama cabinet member going to be welcomed after four years of Trump and red “MAGA” hats which rapper Pusha-T compared to the hoods worn by the Ku Klux Klan?

Will America embrace a president of color who looks like some of the same people that come from nations that the current Head of State once referred to as “sh*thole countries”?

In the meantime, these questions don’t have to be immediately answered, as Holder hasn’t confirmed that he is indeed running for president.

“Yeah, I’m thinking about it,” Holder

told Colbert when asked if he was throwing his hat in the ring in 2020.

“And what I’ve said is that I’ll make a determination sometime early next year,” he said.

While he makes up his mind, Holder is working hard to uplift the Democratic Party.

“My focus, really, now is on 2018, the midterms and trying to make sure that Democrats take back the Senate, take back the House, and that we do well, importantly, at the state level,” Holder said.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder told Stephen Colbert he’s considering running for president in 2020. (Twitter Photo)

Mississippi Civil Rights Museum Tells Authentic Stories from the Movement

By Freddie Allen, Editor-in-Chief, NNPA Newswire

The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum tells the stories of Mississippi residents that made extraordinary contributions to the Civil Rights Movement.

In the early morning hours of January 10, 1966, civil rights leader Vernon Dahmer Sr. was jolted from his sleep, as members of the Ku Klux Klan surrounded his house just north of Hattiesburg, Miss. Dahmer, a Black land-owner, had been actively working to register Blacks to vote and, in some cases, he even paid their “poll” taxes. It was enough to earn a Black man a death sentence in the South.

The Klansmen bullets ripped through the darkness splintering wood and shattering glass as they fired on Dahmer’s house; one of them hurled a Molotov cocktail through the window; the Klan wanted to burn Dahmer and his family alive.

As smoke and flames engulfed his home, Dahmer grabbed his shotgun and blasted his way out, creating a diversion as the rest of his family fled into the woods. Later that day, Dahmer died from smoke inhalation at an area hospital.

A few days later, Dahmer’s voter registration card arrived in the mail.

“These are the kinds of stories we talk about in the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum,” said Pamela Junior, the museum’s director. “We tell people all the time: Museums are living and breathing places.”

Junior lamented that, oftentimes, the history of the Civil Rights Movement is told through the narrow lens of a few key figures, like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks. She said that it was important that people know that Mississippi was ground zero for the Movement; the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum helps to tell the stories of the people that were there.

“What we want to do is make sure that the stories are told authentically,” Junior

said. “We have our own native son, Medgar Wiley Evers. We have Fannie Lou Hamer, June Johnson, Owen Brooks…local people who made up the Movement.”

Junior said that it was also important to show that civil rights leaders were ordinary people, yet they still managed to have a significant impact on the course of American history.

Junior continued: “So, to see something so powerful that these regular, poor people did to make things happen in the state of Mississippi is awesome.”

The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum

opened on December 9, 2017. The Clarion Ledger reported that the Dahmer family donated a truck that had been shot during the 1966 attack to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum.

The museum promotes a greater understanding of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi and shares the stories of the movement that changed the world.

A press release that described the museum said that visitors can witness the freedom struggle in eight interactive galleries that show the systematic oppression

12

of Black Mississippians and their fight for equality that transformed the state and nation.

The press release continued: “Seven of the galleries encircle a central space called ‘This Little Light of Mine.’ There, a dramatic sculpture glows brighter and the music of the Movement swells as visitors gather.”

Each museum gallery highlights a specific sub-topic or period. Gallery 1 defines civil and human rights; Gallery 2 focuses on the Civil War and Reconstruction; Gallery 3 highlights civil rights activists and shares the stories of a Mississippi movement that changed the world; Gallery 4 peels back the layers of a segregated society; Gallery 5 showcases the sacrifices and the successes of the 1960s; Gallery 6 takes a deep dive into the Freedom Summer and local movements in Mississippi (1963-1964); and Gallery 7 tells the story of Black Empowerment from 1965 to the early 1970s.

Junior said that, through the civil rights museum, the ills of Mississippi are finally on the wall.

“We’re taking the bandage off of the sore,” Junior said. “We don’t allow it to fester anymore. We let it breathe, so that healing can continue.”

The last gallery, Junior said, was designed to spark conversations about how all races can move forward together.

“Martin is gone. Medgar is gone. All of these people are gone that were at the center of the movement, at the forefront.

We believed in them and trusted in them.

These people are gone,” Junior said. “So, what we want to do is teach people that they are the movement.”

Junior continued: “We are the movement; it’s up to us to do the work.”

Gallery 8 is titled “Where do we go from here?” and features mirrors with quotes from Mississippians who made incredible sacrifices to improve the lives of others.

One of the last quotes that visitors see as they walk out of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum is by Oseola McCarty, a Black seamstress and domestic worker who lived in Hattiesburg, Miss. McCarty, who “quit school in the sixth grade to go to work, never married, never had children and never learned to drive,” according to The New York Times, eventually donated nearly her entire life savings—$150,000—to the University of Southern Mississippi to fund scholarships for Black students. “[McCarty] said that, ‘if you want to be proud of yourself, you have got to do things you can be proud of,’” Junior said.

“So, I want people to live by that mantra.”

For more information about the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, please visit http://www.mcrm.mdah.ms.gov/.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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Call us at 860-548-3163 or visit aarp.org/CT for more information.

203-710-2102 Or call the school at 203-387-5693 14

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Conference Positions Aspiring Black Authors to Ink Their Next Bestseller

This one-of-a-kind conference empowers attendees to write, edit and market their next bestseller – at a fraction of the cost. It all takes place in Atlanta, GA at the Hilton Garden Inn–Wildwood on Saturday, September 15, 2018 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Attendees can expect a time of quality information, food and fun as they experience on-screen editorial exercises, writing prompts, professional headshots and an industry-specific vendor showcase!

The conference will cap at 96 attendees.

Collectively, conference speakers, Tenita “Bestseller” Johnson, Sulondia “Sue-Ham” Hammond and Lakeisha Dixon have over 30 years of industry experience and run successful businesses that support indie authors nationwide. Attendees will learn new, innovative information that will position Con’t from page 04

Medical Care

care is the lack of staffing.

“We need to markedly increase providers in the facility and increase nursing staff so nurses aren’t working double shifts weeks on end,” Breton said.

Breton resigned as chief medical officer after three months because he knew the system wasn’t going to produce good outcomes and he would be blamed for those outcomes.

He said lawmakers were asking the right questions about why the contract with UConn ended.

“Why would the Department of Correction take over?” Breton said.

Pressed about what the state should be doing to improve a system that was run

by Correctional Managed Health Care, Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, UConn Health’s CEO, said he was “reticent” to answer the question.

He said they no longer run the system, so that’s a question better posed to the Correction Department.

Sen. Heather Somers, R-Groton, said she didn’t think it was too much to ask for UConn’s help in answering the question.

“You should be able to identify for us [weaknesses], and I don’t think it’s too much to ask,” Somers said.

Agwunobi said cost is one of the reasons why they wanted to end the contract with the Correction Department. He said they were losing more than $1 million a year on an $80 million contract.

The state has only budgeted $72 million for inmate medical services in 2019.

Gail Johnson, former head of Correctional Care Health Management, said they tried to keep the cuts away from the services they delivered to inmates, but that became harder and harder to do.

Connecticut spends about $5,000 on medical services per inmate, which according to Semple is “middle of the road.” He said surrounding states probably spend a little more.

them to build a solid platform as an authorpreneur and speaker.

Complete with information on marketing, crafting a solid professional bio and book synopsis, as well as self-publishing industry secrets that save both time and money, writers will leave inspired to take their book from the page to the stage and beyond, if they so desire.

Early bird tickets are just $97 until July 1, and general admission tickets after July 1 are $167! VIP registrants and vendors will receive an on-site professional headshot photo shoot.

To purchase tickets, visit www.theredinkconference.com. For interviews or more information, please contact Tenita Johnson at redinkconference@gmail.com, or 313999-6942.

Hip-hop Icon MC Lyte Talks about her Role as National Spox for the NNPA’s Discover The Unexpected HBCU Journalism Program

By Tyvan Burns, Diamond Durant, Denver Lark, #TeamOptimistic, NNPA DTU Journalism Fellowship Hip-hop legend MC Lyte is the national spokesperson for the NNPA’s Discover The Unexpected Journalism Fellowship program. The NNPA DTU Journalism Fellowship was designed to give HBCU students practical experience with the Black Press.

Hip-hop pioneer MC Lyte is the national spokesperson for the National Newspaper Publishers Association’s (NNPA) Discover The Unexpected (DTU) Journalism Fellowship program.

Her passion about education and her desire to create opportunities for HBCU students are two of the many reasons she partnered with the NNPA and Chevrolet, the program’s sponsor.

As she continues her great acts of philanthropy, MC Lyte said that music and journalism are much alike, as they are both used to tell stories.

MC Lyte became great friends with Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., the president and CEO of the NNPA, through his work in hip-hop and civil rights.

When she got the call about the NNPA’s DTU program, she said that she was happy to help out; she said that representing the DTU program is a great fit.

When it comes to her philanthropic work that grew out of her music career, MC Lyte said that she always wanted to give back. That sense of altruism manifested early on in her music career with her hit single “I Cram to Understand U,” which included a strong anti-drug message, geared towards the Black community.

MC Lyte made it her responsibility to advocate for young people and to shed light on the deluge of heroin and

crack cocaine that flooded her Brooklyn neighborhood in the 70’s and 80’s.

“I don’t think that I really do anything for me, per se,” MC Lyte said.

“It’s about getting out there, [using] the MC Lyte name, to form partnerships with bigger entities and to gain access to resources and sharing those resources with the people who need them the most.”

Hip-hop pioneers like Salt-N-Pepa and Rakim inspired MC Lyte to partake in the music industry at such an early age. MC Lyte also vividly remembered how the Bronx-born, hiphop group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five helped to shape her storytelling rap style.

MC Lyte said that “The Message,” the Furious Five classic featuring Melly Mel, painted a picture of life in the Bronx that was very different from her life in Brooklyn, where she was

15

born and raised. “The Message” influenced MC Lyte to gravitate towards the storytelling aspect of hip-hop. MC Lyte described “Lyte as a Rock,” her first album, as “a book of poems and short stories.”

“It was easy to get into a [creative] space and just write,” MC Lyte said.

“My mother made me write an essay for whatever I wanted to do.”

MC Lyte said that young artists, who are pursuing careers in the entertainment business, should educate themselves about royalties, build a trustworthy team and seek legal advice when necessary.

“Never sign anything without counsel and always sign your own checks,” MC Lyte advised.

Reminiscing about her career in the music industry, if given the opportunity to change or do anything different, MC Lyte said that she would have said

“yes” more often and been more open to trying new music genres and collaborating with unexpected artists.”

Although, MC Lyte is often credited as a pioneer in hip-hop culture, her passion to ignite change on a greater scale was alive from the very beginning. She was one of the first female rappers to speak out against sexism and misogyny in the industry. Her voice shook up the male-dominated hip-hop scene and helped pave the way for female MC’s that followed in her footsteps, like Queen Latifah and Missy Elliott.

Tyvan Burns (Norfolk State University), Diamond Durant (Morgan State University) and Denver Lark (North Carolina A&T University) are 2018 Discover The Unexpected Journalism Fellows representing #TeamOptimistic. Check out more stories by #TeamOptimistic at nnpa.org/dtu.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

On re-entry: Creating Communities That Thrive… Reflections on leading a housing organization

had offered in terms of healthcare, treatcally aimed at this population. Our initiament and wellness programs, education, tive has grown over the years and remains job training and more that would actually rooted in the fundamental beliefs that “we serve to rehabilitate souls and prepare them are not our worst moments” and “everyone for re-entry. And together we dreamed of a deserves opportunities”. Believing in both re-entry system that offered services, basic of these tenets, we have offered opportunineeds, employment, changed attitudes and ties to house hundreds of returning citizens forgiveness for those who had served their through initiatives that offer opportunities Karen DuBois-Walton, Ph.D. time. without sacrificing the security of our deThese conversations are important as revelopments.

I recently had the opportunity to sit withentry touches all of our communities. As Long before the federal government ofin a circle of women who were discussing many of 100 million US adults – nearly fered guidance to housing professionals on the challenges of their re-entry after a peone-third of the population- has a criminal the Fair Housing implications of the use of riod of incarceration. I was moved beyond record of some sort according to the US criminal background records in selecting measure by their honesty, their accountDepartment of Justice’s Bureau of Justice residents, ECC/HANH had adopted reability and their insights into systems and Statistics. The majority of these records vised screening protocols that removed the situations that had led to their incarceration are misdemeanor crimes not felonies. The conviction history from becoming a barrier and their reflections on the system of mass New England states represent 5.3 million to accessing housing services. Beginning incarceration and the challenges of re-enof these adults. Our mid-sized cities are in 2009, ECC/HANH introduced pathways try. In honest conversations, these women home to a disproportionate number of reto housing that allowed returning individuspoke of the economic challenges and turning adults. While CT specific statistics als to be added to the lease of an existpersonal and interpersonal situations that have been difficult to gather, it is known ing household or access their own unit or led them to commit a criminal act. They that New Haven welcomes home over 100 voucher through specific set-aside waitlists spoke of services that they wish had exreturning citizens each month who have for returning residents. Individuals housed isted at earlier points in their lives that may completed their sentence or are on probathrough these pathways undergo a revised have addressed their need for education, tion or parole. screening that does not deny them upon job skills, employment, self-esteem and New Haven was the first CT city to create discovery of a criminal conviction. Inrelationship skills that may have changed a re-entry office within City Hall to spestead, returning individuals apply through their trajectory. They longed for diversion cifically focus on the needs of this populaa process whereby they are able to provide programs that may have offered options tion. Early on lack of housing was identievidence of their rehabilitation through atfor restorative justice, treatment for behavfied as an important barrier to successful testations of a probation or parole officer, ioral health issues and parenting programs. re-entry. Beginning in 2009, Elm City recommendation of employers or treatThey offered thoughts on alternatives for Communities/Housing Authority of the ment providers and statements made on parents who are convicted – alternatives City of New Haven (ECC/HANH) began their behalf by individuals who could prothat lessen the impact and trauma expepartnering with the City’s re-entry rienced by their Theyxspoke of RP inner city children. news 5.471 5.1. july.qxp_Layout 1 7/9/18 2:40 PM office Page 1 vide evidence of successful re-entry. to create housing opportunities specifiRather than receiving a denial upon apwhat they wished the incarceration system

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plication, returning individuals are offered an opportunity to account for what had occurred in their past by offering testimony to what they had done subsequently and are currently doing to make a new start. In other words, they are offered an opportunity to be more than their worst moments.

Through our revised criteria we are able to consider individuals with most any type of conviction excluding those that HUD requires we deny and arson which we have chosen to deny.

By allowing individuals to join or re-join an existing lease we provide the most access to returning individuals. This conceptually provides access to over 6,000 units of housing because any of our assisted families could request to add a family member to their lease. Individuals with a re-entry background are subject to our revised screening criteria which disregards most convictions (not the HUD mandatory nor arson) when the applicant can supply mitigating information such as positive employment history, verification from probation or parole, community service providers, treatment providers etc.

Additionally, beginning in 2009 we set aside a number of units within our portfolio that are specifically for the returning population. We assess this number annually seeking to grow our ability to set aside units. ECC/HANH partners with the City’s Fresh Start and Warren Kimbro Re-entry Programs (WRKP). These partner entities screen and prioritize families for our waitlist. We then house them according to that priority level and our availability of housing units or vouchers. Again, all families housed through this manner are subject to our relaxed screening criteria.

They receive housing and supportive services. When they no longer need services they “graduate”, however, they keep their housing. Their graduation opens a space for a new family to be housed through our re-entry program. We expanded our ability to house residents by offering access to a set-aside number of housing choice vouchers. These vouchers are also issued in partnership with city entities including WKRP and Project Longevity.

We have experienced great success in housing individuals and families through these initiatives as measured by lease compliance, employment rates and household income, and low recidivism and eviction rates. We attribute the success to these hallmarks of our program: • Relaxed screening criteria so that people are not ruled out due to their criminal background • No automatic denials (except for a few crimes that we are required to deny); instead everyone is given the opportunity to explain their situation • Ability to join the lease of an existing household • Dedicated units and set aside preferential waitlists for our units and vouchers • Supportive services provided for all our families • Partnerships with others who prioritize individuals on the waitlist and seek to house the most in need first Finally, there are families who simply

move their way through our waitlist process without the assistance of the re-entry program providers. For families that include an individual with a reentry background, we offer assistance here as well. In seeking to ensure that criminal background does not become a barrier to accessing our housing services, we have implemented a system where applicants called off one of our regular waitlists are notified as they reach the top of the waitlist. If upon background screening a conviction is revealed that falls within our “additional review period” (now a 3 to 5 year lookback for most things), they are sent a notice for additional review. Applicants may come in with or without an advocate for a review meeting. We consider the same mitigating factors that we use for our re-entry programs during this review. Applicants who successfully satisfy our review criteria move forward in the application process. Applicants who do not are then sent a letter of intent to deny. Applicants may disagree with that decision and afford themselves of the grievance procedure. Through this revised screening process many individuals whose conviction history is older than 5 years are never subjected to further screening and those with more recent histories can take advantage of the opportunity to explain their circumstances rather than receive an automatic denial for housing services.

While the average recidivism rate over 5 years in CT has hovered around 50 percent, ECC/HANH has shown much more optimistic results with our re-entry housing population. 66% of our returning residents are employed and have maintained their employment for more than 6 months. Each year between 33% and 50% have met all goals and graduate from the supportive services component of the program. To date, less than 10% have reoffended and left the program- a percentage significantly lower than the statewide average 5 year recidivism rate.

While ECC/HANH was ahead of most other CT housing providers in adopting these measures, it is surprising that more have not adopted our best practices. Given our track record of success with this population and more recent Federal guidance under the Obama Administration which has made clear the Fair Housing implications of relying on criminal background records to deny housing, all CT housing providers should be significantly revising their approach to background screening. Federal guidance outlines how the reliance on criminal history has a discriminatory and disparate impact effect on protected classes and may well represent a Fair Housing violation. Housing providers are well advised to look at their screening and admission policies to ensure alignment with the federal guidance.

CT policy makers have an opportunity to use their role to ensure that policies are updated. Many housing providers look to CT CHFA and Department of Housing for needed develop and operating resources for their affordable housing portfolio.

CHFA and DOH should revise their fund-

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

Study Confirms That Black Women Have the Highest Amount of Student Loan Debt

Nationwide — Education may be priceless but it does come with a price tag. And for Black women in the United States, it’s even more expensive! A new study has discovered that African-American women have the highest average amount of student loan debt… and it boils down to race and gender inequality.

A recent report released by American Association of University Women entitled “Deeper in Debt: Women and Student Loans” revealed that African-American women accumulate an average of $30,400 of debt by the time they graduate from college, in comparison with $22,000 on white women and $19,500 on white men.

All in all, women owe almost twice the country’s student loan debt amounting to $890 billion, compared to $490 billion owed by men.

Kim Churches, the Executive Director of AAUW, added that the debts women carry over their careers are even aggravated if

they face the gender pay gap. “This debt is an albatross for many women as they embark on careers and work to support their households and families. And, it only gets worse over time when coupled with the gender pay gap,” she said.

That happens even though women account for 56 percent of enrolled college students and are most probable to graduate than men owing money at 71 percent for female graduates and 66 percent for male graduates.

Although women have higher graduation rates, because Black women barely make 63 cents for every dollar white men make, they still find it harder to pay off their student loan debts.

Meanwhile, there are some solutions presented in the report which includes increasing state and federal funding of public colleges and universities and ensuring and expanding Pell Grants for low-income students.

Now Is the Time for Black Youth to Take the Mantle of Leadership in America

By Jeffrey L. Boney, NNPA Newswire Political Analyst Without being given much direction, Black youth have seemingly taken matters into their own hands, relative to their future here in America, by strategizing, organizing and mobilizing.

Whether on social media or through community activism in the streets, Black youth are proactively pushing the agenda forward and forcing society to no longer ignore many of the issues that have been impacting the Black community for decades. Many have decided to take an even greater step towards bringing about change, by getting involved with politics.

These bold efforts to express themselves in ways that are progressive and substantive have given Black youth a clearer vision for their future and an even greater sense of purpose that has given them an alternative to doing things that are detrimental to their future.

Because many of their Black predecessors dropped the ball and failed to effectively protect them from the many dangers and pitfalls they have had to face without adequate support, it forced this new generation of Black freedom fighters to become more knowledgeable about things.

Black youth have chosen to stand up and fight for themselves, in spite of the lack of collective support they have received from the Blacks who came before them who were beneficiaries of the civil rights struggle.

That is why the Black Lives Matter movement was birthed and gained so much traction.

Black Lives Matter was formed by a small remnant of Black youth who were sick and tired of being sick and tired. This energized group of young, African Americans wanted to do something about the issue of police brutality, as well as other critical issues that were negatively impacting the Black community, particularly Black youth.

Black Lives Matter isn’t the first example of young, African Americans creating movements and platforms to allow their voices to be heard and making a difference. The hip-hop community was formed because many Black youth wanted to express themselves and needed an outlet to talk about the things they were dealing with in their respective communities and facing in this country. Just as it has been since inception, hip hop has become a steady tool used by Black youth to influence society and make a difference.

While there are a myriad of things currently impacting Blacks in America, the advent of social media has given Black youth the necessary access to news and information to keep them up-to-speed on everything they need to know.

Prior to social media, many young, Black people were disconnected from news and politics and had limited interest in things such as reading newspapers, watching news channels, listening to talk radio or keeping up with major current events and social issues online.

Now, through social media, Black youth have the ability to get this information in real time and in a way that is interactive and enlightening to them. This has caused many young, Black people to become more engaged in and educated about issues that truly impact their daily lives.

As America finds itself in the midst of a crucial midterm election, young, African Americans have chosen to get even more involved and are looking for more ways to make a difference, versus look-

ing for leadership and assistance from older Blacks who many believe have abandoned them or from traditional mainstream Black institutions where they feel they don’t belong. Black youth have found themselves searching for answers and looking for quality leadership to help them navigate through these tumultuous waters called life in America.

Getting involved in community activism and politics may be the tools that they need to make more of an impact. Black youth need direction.

This new generation of freedom fighters needs to be mentored and not ignored.

This new generation of freedom fighters needs to be encouraged and not berated.

This new generation of freedom fighters needs to be praised and not overly criticized. Many Black youth are tired of having to figure things out on their own, but have come to the realization that they are living in a country that does not seem to value their Black lives. They are fighting for their lives and seeking relevance the only way they know how—through using the tools and resources they have at their disposal and by getting engaged by any means necessary.

Since desegregation in the 1960s—and the election of President Barack Obama, decades later— some Blacks bought into the false pretense that America had transitioned to a post-racial society and that they would no longer be affected by the things their predecessors had to endure.

Fast forward to 2018, and we see that many of the Black youth who were never taught the realities of racism or never forced to experience the sting of segregation, are seeing a very different America than the one they grew up believing existed. In many ways, especially when looking at statistics and the current climate in America, Black people are facing many of the same issues they had to deal with during segregation. Sadly, in many cases, it

18

has become far worse.

If Black youth are shown the importance of politics, the effectiveness of government and the impact of voting, they will do those things and be excited about being a part of them.

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), which represents over 200 Black-owned media companies across the U.S., recognizes Black youth as an important part of the future of America. Through their efforts to encourage 5 million Blacks to register to voter before the midterm elections in 2018, tapping into the energized spirit of Black youth in this country to accomplish that goal has been a primary focus of the NNPA and one the group believes will make a huge difference, come November.

NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benja-

min F. Chavis, Jr. says that he is encouraged today by the tenacity and courage of Black youth to challenge White supremacy, hatred and bigotry.

“The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) takes note, with a sense of pride, in the renewed activism and self-determination of today’s Black American youth leaders,” Dr. Chavis said.

“The struggle for freedom, justice and equality is intergenerational. Each generation is obligated to wage the next stage of the struggle with a relentless courage to win more victories and to improve the quality of life of our families and communities throughout the world.

Dr. Chavis continued: “As one of the seasoned elders of the Black Freedom Movement in the U.S. and throughout

Westport Historical Society hosts Amistad/Harper Collins Editorial Director Tracey Sherrod

Join Barracoon’s publisher on Friday, August 9 at 5 p.m. for a lively discussion – In 1927, Barracoon author Zora Neale Hurston traveled to Plateau, Alabama, to visit eighty-six-year-old Cudjo Lewis, a survivor of the Clotilda, the last slaver known to have made the transatlantic journey. Illegally brought to the United States, Cudjo was enslaved fifty years after the slave trade was outlawed.

At the time, Cudjo was the only person alive who could recount this integral part of the nation’s history.

Barracoon, The Story of the Last Black Cargo, Book Discussion, August 9, 5-6 pm, Westport Historical Society, 25 Avery Place, Westport, Members, $10, Non-Members $15. Reservations are recommended, To register, visit westporthistory.org or call (203) 222-1424.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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INNER-CITY NEWS July 27, 2016 -- August 02, 2016 THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 August 07, 2018

***HELP WANTED***

Dispatcher

NOTICE

TOTAL FENCE LLC currently has a full time opening for a fence installer foreman.

SOON ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR HARBOUR TOWNHOME APARTMENTS

Galasso Materials is seeking a motivated, organized, detail-oriented candidate to join its truck dispatch office. Responsibilities include order entry and truck ticketing in a fast paced materials Candidates must have at least 5 years of fencing experience, strong commumanufacturing VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PREAPPLICATIONS AVAILABLEand contracting company. You will have daily innication skills, the ability to provide clear and detailed instructions to their teraction with employees and customers as numerous truckloads crew and management, a reliable form of daily transportation, a valid driver’s of material cross our scales daily. We are willing to train the right license, have the ability to obtain a DOT medical card and to a physical HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House andagree the New Haven Housing Authority, individual that has a great attitude. NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE. andisdrug testing as required. accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this develReply to Hiring Manager, PO Box 1776, East Granby, CT 06026. opment located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations apEOE/M/F/D/V. A valid CDL and current OSHA card are encouraged.

ply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have Please apply in person to: been received at the officesFENCE of HOME TOTAL LLCINC. Applications will be mailied upon request by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours.Our Completed pre525 ELLA GRASSO BOULEVARD tree service company is looking for a laborer applications mustNEW be returned to CT HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third HAVEN, 06519 to assist the Shop manager. Basic mechanic knowlFloor, New CT 06510.

Or Haven, email resume to: gina@totalfencellc.com

Shop Assistant

***No phone calls please*** Total Fence LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer

NOTICIA

edge a must Responsible for filling in where needed around our garage and yard. Doing minor repairs and maintenance on equipment and vehicles, loading mulch and/or firewood

Elementary CaféDEManager VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES 10 months per year – 20 hours per week Candidate is subject to a drug check.

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está Email resume to mclellantree@comcast.net The Town ofpre-solicitudes Wallingford Board of Education Food Service aceptando para estudios y apartamentos de unDepartdormitorio en este desarrollo ment is seeking skilled to coordinate andSemanage ubicado en la acalle 109 individual Frank Street, New Haven. aplican the limitaciones de ingresos Or Fax: 860-261-7755 activities of the other foodservice employees within the facility. ApWe areMartes a medium sized 30+ year company that offers máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando 25 plicants must have a high school degree or equivalent. Ability to read, julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) medical and dental benefits as well as 401K plan write, and speak English. Individuals must have experience in food en laswith oficinas de food HOME INC. experience Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo aAffirmative petición Action/Equal Opportunity Employer service school service preferred.

Supervisory llamandoalso a HOME INC alSpecial 203-562-4663 duranteMust esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse experience preferred.

Requirement: possess sanitation certification an approved Dept. of Education source.

Hour. a las oficinas defrom HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510KMK Insulation Inc. ly Rate of $16.57 per hour plus an excellent fringe benefit package.

Apply to: Human Resources Department, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492. Fax #: (203) 294-2084.

Closing date will be August 8, 2018 or the date the 50th application is received, whichever occurs first. EOE.

1907 Hartford Turnpike North Haven, CT 06473

Mechanical Insulator position.

Waste Treatment NEW HAVEN

Affordable Rental Housing – Studio & 1 Bedroom Units 1645 Black Rock Turnpike, Fairfield CT 06825 The application period will begin later this summer 2018. We will be following up this mailing with at least 2 more over the coming months updating you on the status of everything.

Owner: Harbour Townhomes, LLC Managing Agent: ARG Consulting Applicants will need to meet certain income requirements based on family size for 60% and 80% of Area Median Income. Applications will be received during the to-be-determined application period and placement on the wait list will be made through the random selection method, once the period has ended. The maximum number of applications to be placed on the wait list is twenty (20).

1.5 person family 60% AMI Max limit $42,210 1.5 person family 80% AMI Max limit $56,280 Applications will be provided to any & all interested persons when the application period begins. All units are studio or 1 bedroom units with stainless steel appliances and granite countertops. Individuals interested should email harbourtownhomes@gmail.com with their name, email, phone number, current address, and what style of unit (studio or 1 bedroom) they are interested in. We will follow up with you as the application period nears.

For Additional Information Contact Anthony: Email: harbourtownhomes@gmail.com

DELIVERY PERSON NEEDED

Insulation company offering good pay and benefits.

Please mail resume to above address.. MAIL ONLY This company is an Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer.

Part Time Delivery Needed One/Two Day a Week, SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE Invitation to Bid:

Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator (Attendant III): Operates and maintains 2nd Notice equipment and processes in a municipal sewage treatment plant. Requires a Common Ground High School is hiring a Full Time Grade 10 InH.S. diploma or GED. A State of CT Dept. of Energy and Environmental terdisciplinary Lab Instructor, a Full Time Teaching Assistant and Protection (DEEP) Class III Operators License or higher certification plus a Part Time certified Social Studies/History Teacher. Please visapartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 three (3)All yrs.new of experience in the operation of a class II or higher wastewater Oldjob Saybrook, CT it http://commongroundct.org/get-involved/join-our-staff/ for treatment facility, with one (1) yr. in anear supervisory capacity of foreman level highways, bus stop & shopping centerdescriptions and how to apply.

(4 Buildings, 17 Units) or higher. Must possess and maintain a valid driver’s license underhourly 40lb /allowed. parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 $ 28.77 toPet $ 32.83 $ 26.69 toInterested $ 32.83 based on certifications & exTax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project perience plus an excellent fringe benefit package. Apply: Department of Human Resources, TownDeacon’s of Wallingford, 45 South Main Wallingford, CT 06492.

CT. Unified Association is pleased to Street, offer a Deacon’s New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, a 10date month designed toform/resume assist in the intellectual TheCertificate closing Program. date willThis be isthat theprogram 50th application is re- formation of Candidates in-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, in response to the Ministry needs.

The cost EOE is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:30ceived, or August 28,Church’s 2018 whichever occurs first.

242-258 Fairmont Ave 2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA

Must Have Own Vehicle If Interested call

QSR STEEL CORPORATION APPLY NOW!

(203) 435-1387 Cast-

Certified Police Officer

3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. Steel (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster

Fabricators, Erectors & Welders Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Top pay for top performers. Health Benefits, 401K, Vacation Pay. Common High School is seeking a Full Time Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection.

St. New Haven,Ground CT Email Resume: Rose@qsrsteel.com Hartford, CT The Town of Wallingford is currently accepting applications for current Connecticut Teaching Assistant (TA). The TA is responsible for supporting This contract is subject to state set-asideP.O.S.T.C and contract compliance requirements.

Certified Police Officers.

Applicants must be active P.O.S.T.C Certified Police teachers in the classroom during the school day, providing targeted AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER Officers in good standing with their current department, or have retired in good standing, supports in academic labs both during and after school, and assiststill having ing with summer academic programs. For a full job description Bid Extended, Due Date: Augusta 5,current 2016 certification status with P.O.S.T.C. This Process will consist of Written, Oral, Polygraph, Psychological, Medical Exam, and Background Investigation. and how to apply, please visit http://commongroundct.org/2018/05/ Anticipated Start: The August 15,of2016 Town Wallingford offers a competitive pay rate $62,753.60 - $74,963.20 annually.

The Glendower Group, Inc common-ground-is-seeking-a-special-education-teaching-assistantSealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour Project documents available via ftp deadline link below: Application will be August 13, 2018 Apply: Human Resources Department, Town until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, of Wallingford, 45 South Main St., Wallingford, CT. phone: (203) 294-2080; fax: (203) Requesthttp://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage for Proposals DISPATCHER 294-2084. EOE. Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

Material Testing Services

The Town of Wallingford seeking responsible Smithfield Gardensis Assisted Living candidates Facility, to26perform Smith911, Street Seymour.

Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com police, fire and EMS emergency dispatching duties. Must be able to work all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses is looking for an Assistant Manager of Faanencourages affiliatethe ofparticipation Housingof Auunder stressful conditions and be able to type information with a high rate of The Glendower Group, IncHCC cilitiesAve, and Grounds to assist the Site Manager with the care, upkeep and Company, 32 Progress Seymour, CT 06483 speed and accuracy.

Must be able to work all three shiftsHousing including weekends City of New Haven d/b/a Haynes Elm Construction city CommuniA pre-bid conference will be held at the Authority thority Office 28 Smith and holidays and be able to work additional shifts beyond the regular shift AA/EEO EMPLOYER maintenance of Common Ground’s site and facilities in order to ensure ties is currently seeking proposals for Material Testing Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. schedule. Requires a H.S. or business school diploma with courses in typing they effectively meet all of Common Ground’s programmatic needs. and 2 years of responsible office work experience. $ 22.19 ~ $ 26.46 hourly Services. A complete copy of the requirement may be (Contract Currently Under Negotiations) plus shift differential and excellent obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration PorClick here for a full job descrtipion and how to apply: http://commonBidding documents available from Housing Authority Offringe benefits.

Closing dateare is August 8, 2018 or thethe dateSeymour of receipt of the tal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/ groundct.org/2018/07/common-ground-is-seeking-an-assistant-manag50th application, whichever occurs first.

Apply: Human Resources Departfice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579. ment, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main St., Wallingford, CT 06492. EOE. gateway beginning on Monday, July 30, 2018 at 3:00PM er-of-facilities-and-grounds/

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to reduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any

20

Common Ground

July 2016 -- August THEINNER-CITY INNER-CITY NEWSNEWS - August 0127, , 2018 August02, 07,2016 2018

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE

The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport (HACB) d/b/a Park City Communities (PCC) will be opening its Low Income Public Housing Waiting Lists for 1BR Elderly/62 and VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE over individuals and our 2BR & 3BR family units beginning Monday, August 13 through Friday, August 31, 2018. To qualify for Elderly, you must be 62 years or older; for 2BR HOME INC, on behalf Columbus House and the (2) New Haven Housing Authority, & 3BR units a family size of MUST be a minimum of two AND the annual gross income is accepting studiobelow and one-bedroom apartments at this develmay not exceedpre-applications the income limitsfor shown for the household size. Pre-Applications opment located at Gary 108 Frank Street, New Haven. income limitations apmust be picked up at Crooks Community Center,Maximum 301 Bostwick Ave. Pre-Applicaply.can Pre-applications will befrom available from www.parkcitycommunities.org.

9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday tions also be downloaded our website OnlyJu;y one pre-application perending family when will besufficient accepted; pre-applications duplicate pre-applications will be disqualified.

25, 2016 and (approximately 100) have

been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon reApplications must be returned toduring Gary Crooks ONLY. quest by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 those hours.

Completed preapplications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third This housing authority does have a preference point system: disabled, homeless, elderly, Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

working, displaced, domestic violence, veterans, elderly congregate and witness protection. A waiting list with preferences means that applicants who qualify for the preference will receive

NOTICIA

Household size VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES 1 3 Income Limits

2

HOME INC, enVery nombre de (50%) la Columbus House y de la$38,750 New Haven$43,600 Housing Authority, está Low $33,900 aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Extremely LowStreet, New $26,15 de ingresos $20,35 $23,25 ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Haven. Se aplican limitaciones 0 0 0 máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 julio, 2016 hastaLow cuando se han recibido suficientes (aproximadamente 100) (80%) $64,75 $50,35 pre-solicitudes $57,55 en las oficinas de HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán 0 0 enviadas0 por correo a petición llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse If youde require a reasonable this process, helpHaven line will, be a las oficinas HOME INC enaccommodation 171 OrangeforStreet, tercera designated piso, New CT 06510 . available to receive your requests at (203) 337-8804 PCC Does not discriminate based upon race, color, disabilities, religion, sex or national origin.

NOTICIA PUBLICA NEW HAVEN

The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport (HACB) d/b/a 242-258 Park City Communities (PCC) Fairmont Ave

2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA

abrirá sus listas de espera de viviendas públicas de bajos ingresos para 1dorm. para personas de edad avanzada, y mas y nuestras familiares 2BR &close 3BR comenzando el Lunes, All new62apartments, newunidades appliances, newdecarpet, to I-91 & I-95 13 de Agosto hasta el Viernes, 31 de Agosto de 2018. Para calificar para ancianos, usted debe highways, near bus stop & shopping center tener 62 años o más; para las unidades 2BR & 3BR un tamaño de familia debe ser un mínimo de dos (2) el ingreso anual Interested no puede exceder límites de ingresos que se muestran a Pety under 40lbbruto allowed. parties los contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 continuación para el tamaño del hogar. Las pre-solicitudes deben ser recogidos en el Centro Comunitario Gary Crooks, 301 Bostwick Ave. las aplicaciones previas también se pueden descargar desde nuestra página Association web www.parkcitycommunities.org.

CT. Unified Deacon’s is pleased to offer a Deacon’s Sólo se aceptará una pre-solicitud por Certificate This is a 10duplicadas month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates familia; las Program. pre-aplicaciones serán descalificadas. in response to the Church’s Ministry needs. The cost is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:303:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. deben serBishop entregadas a Gary CenterChurch solamente!

(203)Aplicaciones 996-4517 Host, General Elijah Davis, D.D.Crooks Pastor ofCommunity Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. 64 Brewster St. New Haven, CT

La Autoridad de Viviendas tiene un sistema de preferencias: personas sin hogar, discapacitados, mayor de edad, empleados, víctimas de violencia domestica, veteranos, ancianos congregados y protección de testigos. Una lista de espera con preferencias quiere decir que personas que cualifican con su preferencia recibirán asistencia antes de personas sin preferencias.

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

A pre-bid conference will be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

Si necesita un ajuste razonable para este proceso, una línea de ayuda designada estará disponible

para recibir sus peticiones (203) 337-8804 Bidding documents are available from thealSeymour Housing Authority Office, Smith Street, CT 06483 (203) religión, 888-4579.

PCC 28 no discrimina basadoSeymour, en la raza, color, discapacidad, sexo u origen nacional.

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to reduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any

The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport Invitation for Bid (IFB) CF Greene & Trumbull Gardens Parapets Solicitation Number: 112-PD-18-S The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport d/b/a Park City Communities (PCC) is requesting sealed bids for CF Greene and Trumbull Gardens Parapets. A complete set of the plans and technical specifications will be available on July 16, 2018. To obtain a copy of the solicitation you must send your request to bids@ parkcitycommunities.org, please reference solicitation number and title on the subject line. A MANDATORY pre-bid conference will be held at 150 Highland Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06605 on July 31, 2018 @ 10:00 a.m., submitting a bid for the project without attending conference is not in the best interest of the Offeror. Additional questions should be emailed only to bids@parkcitycommunities. org no later than August 9, 2018 @ 3:00 p.m. Answers to all the questions will be posted on PCC’s Website: www.parkcitycommunities.org.All bids must be received by mailed or hand delivered by August 16 , 2018 @ 2:00 PM, to Ms. Caroline Sanchez, Director of Procurement, 150 Highland Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06604, at which time and place all bids will be publicly opened and read aloud. No bids will be accepted after the designated time.

EXP, welder for structural steel, misc. metals shop Send resume: hherbert@gwfabrication.com

FENCE ERECTING CONTRACTORS

Field Engineer

BA/BS in Civil Engineering or Construction Management.

2-5 yrs. experience. OSHA Certified.

Proficient in reading contract plans and specifications.

Resumes to RED Technologies, LLC, 10 Northwood Dr., Bloomfield, CT 06002; Fax 860.218.2433; Email resumes to info@redtechllc.com. RED Technologies, LLC is an EOE.

Project Manager Environmental Remediation Division 3-5 years exp. and Bachelor’s Degree, 40-Hr. Hazwoper Training Req. Forward resumes to RED Technologies, LLC, 10 Northwood Dr., Bloomfield, CT 06002;

Fax 860.218.2433; or Email to HR@redtechllc.com

RED Technologies, LLC is an EOE.

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc

seeks: Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced in Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits Contact: Dan Peterson Phone: 860- 243-2300 email: dpeterson@garrityasphalt.com Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc

Large CT Fence & Guardrail Contractor is looking for seeks: Reclaimer Operators and Milling Operators Fence Installer foreman and helpers. Foreman must have at with current licensing and clean driving record, be least 5 years’ experience. Helpers-no experience required, willing to travel throughout the Northeast & NY. will train the right person. Work available 10-12 months per We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits Invitationand to Bid: year. Valid Ct. Driver’s license required must be able Contact: Rick Tousignant to get a DOT Medical Card. All necessary equipment pro2nd Notice Phone: 860- 243-2300 vided. Medical, vacation & other benefits included. Must be Email: rick.tousignant@garrityasphalt.com able to pass a physical and drug test. Foreman rates from Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Saybrook, CT $16 to $22 to $28.10/hour plus benefits,Old helper rates from Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer $18.10/hour plus benefits. OSHA 10 training required.

(4 Buildings, 17 Units) Please email resume to pking@atlasoutdoor.com AA/EOE Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Union Company seeks:

VanNew Driver to transport w/disabilities Construction, Woodindividuals’ Framed, Housing, SelectivereceivDemolition,Tractor Site-work,Trailer Cast- Driver for Heavy & Highway Coning services according to assigned schedule/destination. HS struction Equipment. Must have a CDL License, in-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, diploma/GED plus 3-12 months exp/training. Current CT PSL/ clean driving record, capable of operating heavy Flooring, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Medical Card a Painting, must. Split shift 20-25 hrs/week. Pay rate $11.85/ equipment; be willing to travel throughout the hr. Apply to: GWSNE, Recruitment Mgr., 432 Washington Ave, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection.

North Haven, CT 06473/fax (203) 495-6108/ hr@goodwillsne.

This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements. Northeast & NY. org EOE/AA – M/F/D/V We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits Contact Dana at 860-243-2300.

Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com Waste Treatment

Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Wastewater TreatmentProject Plant Operator (Attendant II):via Operates documents available ftp link and below: Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer maintains equipment and processes in a municipal sewage treathttp://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage ment plant. Requires a H.S. diploma or GED. In addition, must possess a State of Connecticut Department of Energy and EnviFax or Protection Email Questions & Bids Dawn Lang 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com ronmental Class II to: Operator or @higher certification; or encourages the participation of allcertification.

Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses a Class IIHCC Operator-in-training or higher Must possess Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 Large CT Fence & Guardrail Contractor is looking and maintain a valid driver’s license. $25.38 to $30.24 hourly / $22.59 - $30.24 on certifications AA/EEObased EMPLOYER for experienced, responsible commercial and resi& experience plus an excellent fringe benefit package. Apply: Perdential fence erectors and installers on a subcontracsonnel Department, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, tor basis. Earn from $750 to $2,000 per day. Email Wallingford, CT 06492. The closing date will be that date the 50th resume to pking@atlasoutdoor.com AA/EOE application form/resume is received, or August 21, 2018, whichever occurs first. EOE

FENCE ERECTING SUBCONTRACTORS

21

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018 Con’t on page

On re-entry: Creating Communities That Thrive… ing awards to require compliance with Federal guidance on Fair Housing as it relates to criminal background screening. Funding awards should not be made to developers and operators who fail to meet this standard.

Further, needed housing resource needs to be devoted to providing housing opportunities for the re-entry population. All the efforts that ECC/HANH have made have been within its already too limited allocation of affordable housing resources. CT and Federal policy makers must be called upon to adequately invest in basic needs resources of affordable housing and to ensure that within that allocation the Fair Housing implications of housing the re-entry population are met.

And finally as a community, we must all counter the myth that housing cannot be obtained if you have a criminal background.

This can be accomplished by sharing accurate information re. those housing providers like ECC/HANH who have already made needed changes and by pressuring other housing managers who have not yet complied to address the discriminatory processes that they employ. We should do this as a community because it is the law, and it is the right and moral thing to do. We must all continue to recognize the humanity in others knowing that none of us are our worst moments and all of us deserve opportunities to thrive.

I thank these brave women who shared such personal aspects of their stories. They reinforced my belief that we are doing the right work at ECC/HANH and challenged me to find ways to serve more and more returning families. They sparked powerful ideas for systems change that might realign investments into greater resource for efforts like ours to build communities that support healthy development; that reform our incarceration system into a system that actually rehabilitates; and that create environments into which people can return and be accepted without forever wearing a label

created by actions conducted in their worst moment.

Karen DuBois-Walton is the Executive Director/President of the Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of the City of New Haven, CT. Trained as a clinical psychologist, Dr. DuBois-Walton has led the agency since 2010 integrating progressive housing policy, community development and social service provision in ways that create communities of opportunity for lowincome residents in the City of New Haven. ECC/HANH’s vision is a New Haven where every resident has a safe and decent home that they can afford and opportunities to fulfill their goals.

Yoruba King Appeals to the African Diaspora to Embrace the Continent

1https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/bjs/ grants/244563.pdf 2 http://www.phillytrib.com/news/new-haven-program-guides-those-released-fromprison/article_be648112-cd5f-53b6-8a40d4f2b9d2790d.html 3 US HUD Office of General Counsel Guidance on Application of Fair Housing Act Standards to the Use of Criminal Records by Providers of Housing and Real Estate-Related Transactions, April 4, 2016.

4 HUD mandatory denials include anyone placed on the sex offender registry and those convicted of manufacturing methamphetamines on public housing property.

5 Project Longevity is a federal, state and local partnership that seeks to intervene with individuals engaged in gang violence through a message of policing and supportive services.

6 Project Longevity is a federal, state and local partnership that seeks to intervene with individuals engaged in gang violence through a message of policing and supportive services.

“The Criminal Population in New England: Records, Convictions, and Barriers to Employment.” New England Public Policy Center, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, March 2017.

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Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Babatunde Ogunwusi of Nigeria makes historic visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. WASHINGTON, D.C./NNPANewswirePR/July 30, 2018—In a visit to the United States in July, His Imperial Majesty (HIM) Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Babatunde Ogunwusi of Nigeria made an appeal for world peace and invited people of the African Diaspora to visit the continent and to embrace their roots. A highlight of his trip was a private tour in his honor at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), where he delivered extensive remarks. NMAAHC director Lonnie Bunch hosted the Ooni (monarch, king).

“This museum reflects what I stand for…and my belief that the greatest joy for anybody is the ‘joy of origination,’” the Ooni said in his remarks at the NMAACH. “If we don’t invest in our past, so that we can know where we are from, the future will be very problematic; the future will be so bleak that we will not embrace one another in this world we love.”

The Ooni’s trip was part of his commitment to help unite people of African descent throughout the world and to reinforce the fact that the continent of Africa is the root of humanity and civilization.

“The mother continent, for all of us, is the continent of Africa. Everyone should look back and truly realize that there were no ‘slaves,’ even though people were enslaved. They

22

were enslaved against their wishes and will. The lineage of kings and queens is still intact, and that’s their roots—not a root of a “slave,” the Ooni said. “We are ready to walk with everybody to trace our roots appropriately.”

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., the president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, formally welcomed the OONI and suggested that his organization is willing to travel to Nigeria as guests of the Ooni, royal leader of the Ile-Ife Kingdom who represents the world’s millions of Yoruba people.

The Ghana-based Diaspora African Forum is working with the Ooni to promote his vision.

“The King is doing a tremendous job in his efforts to unite our people,” said Ambassador Erieka Bennett, the founder and head of the Ghana-based Diaspora African Forum, a first of its kind organization, created to support the African Union in reuniting the African diaspora. “We are excited to support His Imperial Majesty and his campaign for peace, unity and prosperity among people of color across the world.”

To learn more about visits to Africa and how to get involved with the effort to promote unity among people of the Diaspora, contact Kandice Oreid at Kandice1950@yahoo.com and phone 1-404-474-3202: CONTACT

Kandice Oreid Email:Kandice1950@yahoo.com U.S. Phone: 1-404-474-3202 Ghana Phone: +233-302-780-923 Diaspora African Forum (DAF) P.M.Box 42 KIA W.E.B. Dubois Center Accra, Ghana Ghana Phone: +233-302-780-923 Con’t on page

Now Is the Time for Black Youth

the African Diaspora, we want the world to know that Black Lives Matter is a welcomed youth-led movement for social change across America.”

Encouraging Black youth to step up and get involved is an important step, but the role that Black parents and responsible adults in the Black community play in supporting Black youth is extremely critical and will help them effectively deal with the social ills and issues they are facing in America today. Until Black youth are shown that, however, it will fall on deaf ears.

Jeffrey Boney is a political analyst for the NNPA Newswire and BlackPressUSA. com and the associate editor for the Houston Forward Times newspaper. Jeffrey is an award-winning journalist, dynamic, international speaker, experienced entrepreneur, business development strategist and founder and CEO of the Texas Business Alliance Follow Jeffrey on Twitter @ realtalkjunkies.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - August 01, 2018 - August 07, 2018

24