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Why These Teen Boxers Train Hard THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

by MAYA MCFADDEN New Haven Independent

Hillhouse freshman Matthias Cruz, Hamden High sophomore Brianna Alers, and Wexler Grant sixth-grader Amir Foster returned home with flashy championship belts from a national boxing competition, then got back to work in the ring and at school.

The trio won the belts at the Sugar Bert Nationals Tournament two weeks ago.

Two other boxers, Amare Foster, 9 and Isac Alers, 8, competed at the national tournament, as well.

The group train and compete with Get’em Boy Boxing Gym at 746 Orchard St. The team brought six athletes to nationals and came back with the three wins.

This was the first time the New Haven team competed in the Sugar Bert tournament, coach Solomon Maye said.

The team also recently competed in a national competition in Kansas City, where Amir and Brianna went to the finals; as well as the Albany Regional Silver Gloves.

The boxers gathered at the gym this week to recount their victories and talk about what brought them into the ring.

Brianna Alers has been boxing for four years. She was introduced to the sport by her uncle and dad, who are often watching boxing fights together at her house.

After she expressed interest in the sport, Brianna’s dad immediately enrolled his two daughters at a gym. “I wanted to learn self defense and get closer with my dad,” Brianna said.

After getting suited up in pads and gloves for her first boxing training, Brianna recalled, she was told, “You can go far with this. You’re really good.”

So she stuck with the sport until her previous gym closed. She then moved to Get ‘Em Boy. The transition to being an athlete was not easy. At the start of her journey four years ago, she often found herself contemplating quitting the sport because she had less time to hang out with friends, couldn’t flat-iron her hair as often, and couldn’t wear long nails.

He dad refused to let her quit.

“I wanted to be a girl and thought this was a boy’s sport,” she said. “But my mindset changed. Now I just have short nails and be cute on the weekends,” she said.

During her recent nationals fight, Brianna said, her win did not come easily. “I died out at the end. That’s why our workouts are so intense, because we have to be prepared to be tired,” she said.

Brianna enjoys not only the sport of boxing but also the “family” she has found with her fellow boxers and coach.

When she once got suspended for ten days from school for fighting, Maye required her to come to the gym every

MAYA MCFADDEN PHOTO Get 'Em Boy Boxing crew returns with national championships. day to spar for hours in the morning.

“He gives tough love. He taught me that I should walk away from bad problems like fighting,” she recalled. “He teaches life lessons.”

Brianna’s record so far is four wins and three losses.

Her daily schedule consists of going to school, followed by her own lifting workout at the gym. She chills for an hour, then heads to boxing in the evenings.

Boxing helps clear her mind off when she is mad or stressed, she said, and it keeps her in shape.

Amir, who has been boxing for six years, got into the sport while living in New York.

His dad introduced him to the ring as a way to learn to protect himself.

He recalled sparring for his first time at 5 years old, which resulted in him getting “beat up.”

That first practice made him want to “step up my game,” he said.

His initial goal was to box to learn self defense. He grew more interested in the sport’s ability to help him de-stress and take out his anger on a bag instead of in school.

He too focuses on school and boxing to maintain good grades in order to stay

in the ring.

His daily schedule consists of going to school, doing homework at home, then going to the boxing gym for practice.

In the past Amir has played basketball and football.

For future practices, Amir plans to practice on relaxing during fights, being sharp with fast and hard punches, and turning into his punches.

At the Albany Regional Silver Gloves competition, Amir said, he fought in his hardest fight so far. When he learned his opponent had far more fighting experience, he said, he got nervous and shy. “I would have won, but the crowd got to me,” he said.

Amir’s record is four wins and two losses.

He said that Maye helps him through “real-life stuff” like school issues and takes the team out to dinner and to have fun.

Matthias has been boxing for the past eight years. He described the sport as a form of therapy, self defense, and a physical challenge.

It wasn’t until two years into learning the sport that Matthias decided he wanted to compete.

“When I saw the trophies and medals people get, my mentality switched, and

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I wanted to earn my own,” he said.

At times, Matthias said, his busy schedule can get out of hand because he doesn’t “have too much time to think.”

Over the years he has “quit” the sport twice but was always drawn back in.

“There’s nothing really like this sport,” he said. “The rush in the ring is mental and physical work.”

Earlier this year Matthias tried out track but found it wasn’t as fun as boxing. His current boxing record is three wins and two losses.

He spends his day focused on school and boxing, he said. He keeps in mind words from his mother: “You can’t be a dumb boxer.”

In addition to boxing, Matthias has been learning to play piano this year and enjoys drawing and music.

Currently Matthias is working to improve on keeping his right hand up, moving forward more, and being proactive as well as reactive in the ring.

Isac, who attends Church Street Elementary School, started boxing after witnessing his sister’s success. He is working on his balance and keeping his left hand up in the ring.

Amare, who attends Wexler Grant, got into the ring to follow in his brother’s

footsteps. He is currently working to improve on not panicking and throwing more combinations.

“He’s somebody that has my back whenever I need help,” Amare said of Coach Maye. “He believes in me.”

He added that Maye has helped him to “toughen up” and realize “I don’t always have to say yes.”

Amare currently has four wins and three losses. Isac has four wins and two losses.

More Than Just Fighting Maye described the sport of boxing as more than teaching kids to fight — though he also aims to teach his students to “not look for them [fights] or run from them.”

He trains the student-athletes six days a week.

His goal is to teach his athletes to be “aggressive and confident in the ring, but outside the ring be a civil person.”

Maye, who is 47, said he was kicked out of his home at age 13 and alternated between homelessness and jail in his youth.

Now, he said, he tries to be a mentor to “do for the kids everything that I wanted to have when I was kid.”

“If I had me around when I was a kid, I wouldn’t have gotten into so much bullshit I was in,” he said.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

After Plaza Attack, Seniors Press Officials

by NORA GRACE-FLOOD New Haven Independent

Miller Memorial Library employee Kathy Galasso wasn’t at work Wednesday — but she sent a public explanation to her boss and 100 fellow seniors from her “uncomfortable hospital bed” where she is currently recovering from two pelvic fractures sustained during a broad daylight carjacking at the Hamden Plaza.

“It happened in a flash… I was tackled from behind and thrown violently to the ground,” Galasso wrote. “The incident happened so fast I wasn’t even scared.

What I am now is angry. Angry that I’m confined to a bed, that I can’t move without pain, that I can’t do the everyday things I did before.”

While Galasso was slugging through the first few days of an expected 12-week recovery process, around 100 seniors flocked to the library’s auditorium to discuss what they saw as a broader issue of upscaled crime aimed at senior citizens, primarily in Hamden’s central shopping centers.

They were joined by Hamden police, Mayor Lauren Garrett, and Andrew Bermant — the owner of the Hamden Plaza, who flew across the country from California to talk about his efforts to prevent future thefts and assaults.

Prior to the pandemic, Bermant told the seniors, he couldn’t remember many incidents taking place at the shopping plaza since he took on his role back in 2000.

“It was nothing like what we’re facing today,” he said.

Police statistics show that over the last five years, certain categories of crime have risen in town. The number of robberies reported between Jan. 1 and March 22 increased from 12 to 19 between 2018 and 2022. (The numbers for that given time period for each year in between were 8 in 2019, 8 in 2020, and 16 in 2021.) During the same three-month period, motor vehicle theft incidents changed from 28 reported incidents in 2018 to 23 in 2019; 76 in 2020; 72 in 2021; and back down to 40 in 2022. But thefts of motor vehicle parts and/or thefts from inside cars have surged from 55 in 2018 to 72 in 2019; 93 in 2020; 70 in 2021; and 120 in 2022.

Incidents like carjackings, especially by juveniles, have actually been on the rise across the country, Chief Sullivan pointed out. The trends witnessed in Hamden are not specific to the town, he argued.

While individual attacks at shopping centers, like Galasso’s, are disturbing, such events seem relatively rare.

The last time the Independent wrote about crime in shopping centers — a popular topic of debate during the 2021 general election — it appeared that only four reports had been filed for incidents that took place at Hamden Plaza and Hamden Mart: A series of purse snatchings at Hamden Plaza and Hamden Mart on Jan. 16, 2020; an assault and vehicle theft on

Seniors turn out Wednesday to hear from town officials and Hamden Plaza's owner about shopping-center safety.

an older woman on Sept. 8, 2020; another purse snatching at Hamden Mart on Feb. 19, 2021; and a final purse snatching on Nov. 1, 2021.

Since then, the Independent noticed three additional events that took place in shopping centers: Galasso’s March 19 carjacking; a series of thefts from vehicles on Feb. 15 between Hamden Plaza and Hamden Mart; and a failed theft on Feb. 2 outside the plaza.

Public officials, along with Bermant, attempted to reassure seniors Wednesday about measures being taken to prevent future crime — and to encourage the elderly to alter their individual behaviors in order to better defend themselves.

“We don’t want people to live in fear,” urged Detective Sean Dolan, the department’s spokesperson. “But we want people to be smart.”

Police suggested everyone leave their purses at home, go shopping with a friend or in groups, remember to lock their cars, always keep their keys easily accessible, and “stay alert.”

“Program the Hamden Police Department number into your phone,” Dolan instructed. “203−230−4000. First name, Hamden, last name, Police Department.”

Bermant appealed to the older residents by recalling his own history in Hamden.

“My family has owned this shopping corner at the Hamden Plaza since 1956,” he said. “Many of you may recall the ghost car parking lot — We don’t want that whole plaza to become a ghost car parking lot.”

“We’re gonna do everything we possibly can do to try to take care of you, because you are the most important thing for us and for our retailers,” he assured.

“We spent $250,000 on security in the last year,” he stated, sharing that he has upgraded lights around the plaza to an

Chief of Police John Sullivan with Detective Sean Dolan.

Seniors speak out at meeting.

LED system and invested in a new video surveillance system that provides coverage of the entire parking lot. Now, when crimes take place, he is able to send foot-

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age to the police for processing.

Police Chief John Sullivan added that the department currently has two patrol cars stationed by Stop & Shop, which is

technically outside of the plaza but part of the town’s “Magic Mile” of stores. It also has two area cars responsible for patrolling the west side of Dixwell, which includes the plaza, as well as the east, which includes Hamden’s shopping mart.

“This is ridiculous, we don’t see police out there!” one woman shouted.

“We wanna meet your concerns …”

Dolan began.

“I don’t think that’s gonna happen!” another interrupted.

Some seniors came out to complain about homeless people wandering through the plaza. Others asked about the police department’s recruiting efforts given that they are currently understaffed.

More threatened to begin shopping in North Haven and other nearby towns.

One protested the mayor’s proposed mill rate hike.

The gathering was the first in two years of the Association of Miller Seniors. Before the pandemic, members would come together monthly for social activities like concerts or to host fundraisers for organizations like local soup kitchens.

On Wednesday, they returned to the library for the first time for a different kind of conversation.

“We didn’t expect all this,” said VicePresident Eleanor Pesanelli, pointing to the large turnout and numerous news outlets crowding the auditorium.

“Maybe next time I’ll have Hollywood,” she joked.

Her takeaway from the event: “Perhaps we should have a meeting and get signatures and write to Hartford about what we’re seeing,” she said, suggesting that the problem is insufficient policies designed to hold juveniles accountable for their behaviors.

“They should be definitely serving time,” she said of youth who are participating in carjackings, thefts, and even violent assaults.

At the end of the meeting, Hamden resident Mary Nelson, who remained quiet throughout the two-hour event, offered her opinion on the situation.

“I’m not afraid to shop here,” she said.

“Percentage-wise,” Nelson noted, there are few criminal occurrences taking place at Hamden’s shopping centers.

“I like to know what’s going on, and I like to listen to other opinions,” she said regarding her reasoning for coming out to Miller.

“But I’m glad they did this. And it’s very impressive that the owner flew in from California. He’s taking it seriously.”

“If they hold another event,” she said, “I’ll be there, too.”

The town will hold a second public input session regarding crime solutions facilitated by the Strengthening Police and Community Partnership council next Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Legislative Council Chambers.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Fixing Fathers, Inc. and the Village of Hamden Connecticut took a group of New Haven and Hamden teens to a New York Knicks game

Penfield Communications Inc

John P. Thomas Publisher / CEO

Babz Rawls Ivy

Editor-in-Chief Liaison, Corporate Affairs Babz@penfieldcomm.com

Advertising/Sales Team Keith Jackson 10 Delores Alleyne John Thomas, III

Editorial Team

Staff Writers Christian Lewis/Current Affairs Anthony Scott/Sports Arlene Davis-Rudd/Politics Many of the young men had never seen the New York Knicks live before. According to Dr. David Lee Asbery, “taking these young men to the game promotes self-esteem and opens up their minds to the variety of opportunities that life has to offer. The young men on this trip learned how to communicate with one another, hang-out with one another, while creating an exploratory mindset that will push and enable them to one day take their kids or a group of kids out to a game."

When organizations and cities wonder what they can do to help keep our youth safe and off the streets there are several points that they must touch upon. You must step out and engage the youth, you must listen to them and find out what they are interested in, and you must implement a plan and make it happen.

We could not have done any of this without support from The Department of Economic and Community Development/Office of the Arts. None of this work happens without like-minded partnerships.

For more information about Fixing Fathers, Inc. you can visit them at www.fixingfathers.org. photo courtesy of Fixing Fathers, Inc.

Next-Gen Leaders Fine-Tune Their Game

Contributing Writers David Asbery / Tanisha Asbery Jerry Craft / Cartoons / Barbara Fair Dr. Tamiko Jackson-McArthur Michelle Turner / Smita Shrestha William Spivey / Kam Williams Rev. Samuel T. Ross-Lee

Contributors At-Large Christine Stuart

www.CTNewsJunkie.com

Paul Bass www.newhavenindependent.org

Memberships National Association of Black Journalist National Newspapers Publishers Association Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce Greater New Haven Business & Professional Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc.

From left to right, top to bottom: Nicole Smith, Natural Resources Analyst, South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority; Tracy Bruno, Marketing and Communications Manager, BHcare; Emma Lopez-Mastropietro, Coordinator, Marketing & Development, Parents’ Foundation for Transitional Living; Kassandra Hernandez, Donor Relations Officer, New Reach, Inc.; Shana Schneider, Founder, Fitstyle by Shana/Consultant, Russell Reynolds Associates/LGNH Program Coordinator, Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce; Nikelle Carter, Clinical Program Manager, New Reach, Inc.; Kristen Welton, Development Manager, Alzheimer’s Association; Jorgieliz Casanova, Program Manager (K-12), New Haven Promise; Kentha Heng, Acting Coordinator of Wrap Around Services FESP & Equity Programs/Achievement Coach, Family Economic Security Program (FESP)/Case Manager, Center for Students and Families, Gateway Community College Counseling and Wellness Center; Juan M. Salas-Romer, Founder & Executive Director, Known Coworking & Growth Lab; Devon O’Nalty, Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, Avangrid; Terri Alford Mosley, Director of DMHAS Young Adult Services & Mental Health Waiver, Marrakech, Inc.; Jim Hill, Director of Operations, South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority; Tameika G. Miller, Vice President of Marketing & Program Development; Terri Alford Mosley, Director of DMHAS Young Adult Services & Mental Health Waiver, Marrakech, Inc.; Venetia Ndabian, Branch Manager, People’s United Bank; Larry Bingaman, President & CEO, South Central Regional Water Authority; Earl McCoy, Jr., Assistant Director of Career and Professional Development, Albertus Magnus College; Deena Nicol-Blifford, Digital Strategist & Graphic Designer, Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce.

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The Inner-City Newspaper is published weekly

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Eviction Withdrawn After Rent Catch-up

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven Independent

After breaking both of his feet and fracturing his kneecap in a scooter crash on Whalley Avenue, Dean Howard fell behind on rent — and got hit with an eviction lawsuit.

His Stamford-based landlord has now withdrawn the case, after Howard caught up on what he owed with the help of his employer, his dad, and a state assistance program.

That whirlwind of hardship, frustration, persistence, and resourcefulness has defined the past nearly five months in the life of Dean Howard.

Howard, 59, lives in a second-floor apartment in the Woodbridge Commons condo complex on Frederick Street on the far west side of town.

A native New Havener, Howard first moved into his Frederick Street apartment in early 2020, ending a yearlong stretch of homelessness.

He currently works a full-time job in the flooring department at Home Depot.

Despite the tenant’s full-time employment, and his professed ability and willingness to pay his $1,300 monthly rent, Howard’s landlord — Rent New Haven LLC, a holding company controlled by Daniel and Joseph Scherban — filed an eviction lawsuit against him on March 6.

That lawsuit sought to kick Howard and his two daughters out of their Frederick Street apartment on two legal grounds: lapse of time and nonpayment of rent.

The eviction complaint’s first count claimed that the tenants’ month-to-month lease had expired, and that, per a notice to quit served on Jan. 19, they had to move out by Feb. 24.

The second count claimed that the tenants had failed to pay their monthly rent in January.

According to state court records, on March 16, Howard filed an answer to the complaint in which he detailed how tough the past few months have been — and how, with help from a variety of sources, he believed he had caught up completely on all back rent owed. (See more below.)

As recently as Tuesday, his landlord remained unswayed, and moved ahead with the eviction.

Rent New Haven’s attorney, Ori Spiegel, filed a legal reply in which the landlord denied “each and every allegation” set forth in Howard’s March 16 filing.

One day later — and a few hours after the Independent reached out to Spiegel and Daniel Scherban for comment on this matter — the landlord formally withdrew the eviction action, thereby ending Rent New Haven’s case against Howard.

HOMAS BREEN PHOTO Dean Howard in his Frederick Street apartment.

“At the time this eviction was started, Mr. Howard was behind in his rent,” Spiegel told the Independent by email on Wednesday afternoon after the case had been withdrawn. “Because he was able to bring his account current, in this case my client was able to stop the eviction. My client always attempts to reach a fair resolution of these cases with his tenants.”

Even as Howard’s case has now ended, eviction filings in Connecticut are on track

to reach their highest monthly number since 2017, according to this article in the CT Mirror. That article also states that the UniteCT rent relief program stopped taking new applications as of mid-February, and that all of the $400 million-plus in federal pandemic-relief money that the state had dedicated to rental assistance has either been distributed or is in the process of being given out.

February also saw the launch of the state’s new right to counsel program, which provides legal representation for tenants facing eviction in 16 zip codes across Connecticut. In New Haven, those zip codes include 06511, 06513, and 06519.

On Wednesday morning, Howard took the time before a doctor’s appointment to meet up with this reporter in his second-floor apartment to talk about his then-ongoing eviction case — and about the previous few months of challenges, and support.

The most recent set of troubles came on Nov. 10 of last year, he said, when he was involved in a car accident while on his scooter on Whalley Avenue.

He said a car cut right in front of him, causing him to go flying from his vehicle.

“I broke both my feet, cracked my right kneecap, and broke my nose,” he said.

That host of injuries left him home and out of work from mid-November to mid-

January, he said. And during that time, he fell behind on rent, missing both January’s and February’s monthly payments.

“I’m back at work [now], but don’t get me wrong, because my feet hurt like hell,” he said. “But I’m still back at work.”

This isn’t the first time in the past year that Howard had fallen behind on rent. He said he missed several months’ rent payments last year, too, as he struggled to find a job and before he landed the part-time, and then full-time, work at Home Deport.

He said the state’s rental assistance program, UniteCT, paid off $8,600 in back rent and utility bills. After he added his own $200 in cash to that total, he said, he was all caught up on everything he owed through the end of December.

But thanks to his new injury-induced bout of unemployment from November through mid-January, Howard said, he suddenly was behind on rent yet again, and needed help.

This time around, that help came from two different sources: his employer, and his dad.

Howard said that Home Depot provided him with a $3,000 check through its Homer Fund program. According to the program’s website, The Homer Fund “provides financial assistance to associates facCon’t on page 08

East Rock Backs “Stop APT” Drive After Debate

by LAURA GLESBY

New Haven Independent

The East Rock Community Management Team voted to oppose a proposed methadone clinic in the next-door Newhallville neighborhood, after passionate discussion over whether such a stance would further stigmatize people with opioid use disorder.

That vote and debate took place Monday evening during the management team’s online monthly meeting.

The back-and-forth echoed conversations in the Hill and in other cities about how to balance the sore need for stigmatized treatment centers with the fact that those centers are often concentrated in Black and Brown neighborhoods.

Members of the Newhallville-Hamden Strong coalition of activists have been appearing at management team meetings across the city over the past month to request letters of support in their mission to stop a proposed new APT Foundation office and methadone clinic location at a former school building at 794 Dixwell Ave. They plan to submit those letters of support, as well as a petition of individual signatures, to the city in the coming weeks.

Newhallville community members Carlota Clark and Gary Gates presented before the East Rock Community Management Team on Monday evening, where

they shared the arguments they and other neighborhood residents had made at meetings, door-knocking sessions, and a rally: that while they support access to substance use disorder treatment, they worry that a Newhallville methadone clinic would attract more drug use and sales.

They pointed to complaints of such activity from neighbors of the APT Foundation’s Hill location. They argued that APT should relocate to an environment with more concentrated medical resources, rather than a “residential neighborhood.”

The activists’ arrival at the East Rock management team marked an effort to reach out to a neighborhood adjacent to Newhallville, but on the other side of income and racial inequality in New Haven.

While both neighborhoods have active management teams and strong community cultures, East Rock is a majority-white area with many Yale students and professors, while Newhallville is a majorityBlack area with the lowest percentage of “high income” residents in the city, per a DataHaven analysis in 2016.

East Rock resident and harm-reduction pionneer Robert Heimer, a Yale School of Public Health professor who researches injection drug use, offered pushback.

“I don’t want to get into an argument about where to site a clinic,” he said, “but I do want to discuss the very serious issue of opioid overdose rates going up in this

LAURA GLESBY PHOTO Imam Saladin Hasan at anti-APT-plan rally: "We are pro-help.”

state and this city.”

Overdose deaths have gone up by 20 percent over the past year, he said, and methadone treatment can significantly reduce the risk of death by overdose.

“The most effective treatment for opioid use disorder is methadone,” Heimer said.

“We need more clinic sites in this city and this state… It’s gotta go somewhere, or we’re just gonna keep seeing overdose deaths.” He argued that methadone reduces an individual’s likelihood of committing a crime.

Heimer noted that in the case of a murder near the Hill clinic that activists have

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pointed to as an example of nearby crime, a methadone patient was the victim, not the perpetrator, of the crime.

Kim Harris, who chairs the Newhallville Community Management Team, affirmed that she supports patients seeking methadone treatment. She described an encounter with a neighbor she had known for a long time, who revealed to her in a discussion about the APT proposal that he takes methadone. “The need that is out there, I agree,” Harris said. But she quoted the neighbor who told her, “Ms. Kim, if that clinic comes to our neighborhood, Newhallville will become the drug capital

of the world.”

Harris argued that Newhallville is not a neutral place to site a methadone clinic.

A petition circulated by activists of Newhallville reads, “We are already fighting against the structural racism that confronts us every time we leave our homes, which has further been exacerbated by the disproportionate impact of COVID deaths, school closures, digital divides, unemployment, crime and gun violence.”

“We’re a traumatized community,” Harris said.

Maritza Spell, a Newhallville resident, echoed those words.

“We are facing a lot of trauma as it is, and we want to recover from this trauma.

We don’t want anything added to it,” she said. “We are not against treatment. We just don’t want it where our kids have to stomach it. I have friends in the Hill who said their parking lot of the APT foundation is a transaction area for drugs.”

East Rock resident Lorena Mitchell wrote in the chat: “I am concerned about how we are further stigmatizing addiction with this conversation.“ Rachel Mihalko added, “Agree, Lorena. You never know who is recovering from addiction.”

Alder Steve Winter, whose ward spans parts of both Newhallville and East Rock, spoke up in favor of writing the letter. “I Con’t on page 08

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Housing Foundation Names DuBois-Walton Board Chair

by MAYA MCFADDEN

New Haven Independent

Hillhouse freshman Matthias Cruz, Hamden High sophomore Brianna Alers, and Wexler Grant sixth-grader Amir Foster returned home with flashy championship belts from a national boxing competition, then got back to work in the ring and at school.

The trio won the belts at the Sugar Bert Nationals Tournament two weeks ago.

Two other boxers, Amare Foster, 9 and Isac Alers, 8, competed at the national tournament, as well.

The group train and compete with Get’em Boy Boxing Gym at 746 Orchard St. The team brought six athletes to nationals and came back with the three wins. This was the first time the New Haven team competed in the Sugar Bert tournament, coach Solomon Maye said.

The team also recently competed in a national competition in Kansas City, where Amir and Brianna went to the finals; as well as the Albany Regional Silver Gloves.

The boxers gathered at the gym this week to recount their victories and talk about what brought them into the ring.

Brianna Alers has been boxing for four years. She was introduced to the sport by her uncle and dad, who are often watching boxing fights together at her house.

After she expressed interest in the sport,

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO Karen DuBois-Walton at a Newhallville community event.

Brianna’s dad immediately enrolled his two daughters at a gym. “I wanted to learn self defense and get closer with my dad,” Brianna said.

After getting suited up in pads and gloves for her first boxing training, Brianna recalled, she was told, “You can go far with this. You’re really good.”

So she stuck with the sport until her pre-

vious gym closed. She then moved to Get ‘Em Boy. The transition to being an athlete was not easy. At the start of her journey four years ago, she often found herself contemplating quitting the sport because she had less time to hang out with friends, couldn’t flat-iron her hair as often, and couldn’t wear long nails.

He dad refused to let her quit.

“I wanted to be a girl and thought this was a boy’s sport,” she said. “But my mindset changed. Now I just have short nails and be cute on the weekends,” she said.

During her recent nationals fight, Brianna said, her win did not come easily. “I died out at the end. That’s why our workouts are so intense, because we have to be prepared to be tired,” she said.

Brianna enjoys not only the sport of boxing but also the “family” she has found with her fellow boxers and coach.

When she once got suspended for ten days from school for fighting, Maye required her to come to the gym every day to spar for hours in the morning.

“He gives tough love. He taught me that I should walk away from bad problems like fighting,” she recalled. “He teaches life lessons.”

Brianna’s record so far is four wins and three losses.

Her daily schedule consists of going to school, followed by her own lifting workout at the gym. She chills for an hour, then heads to boxing in the evenings.

Boxing helps clear her mind off when she is mad or stressed, she said, and it keeps her in shape.

Amir, who has been boxing for six years, got into the sport while living in New York.

His dad introduced him to the ring as a way to learn to protect himself.

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He recalled sparring for his first time at 5 years old, which resulted in him getting “beat up.”

That first practice made him want to “step up my game,” he said.

His initial goal was to box to learn self defense. He grew more interested in the sport’s ability to help him de-stress and take out his anger on a bag instead of in school.

He too focuses on school and boxing to maintain good grades in order to stay in the ring.

His daily schedule consists of going to school, doing homework at home, then going to the boxing gym for practice.

In the past Amir has played basketball and football.

For future practices, Amir plans to practice on relaxing during fights, being sharp with fast and hard punches, and turning into his punches.

At the Albany Regional Silver Gloves competition, Amir said, he fought in his hardest fight so far. When he learned his opponent had far more fighting experience, he said, he got nervous and shy. “I would have won, but the crowd got to me,” he said.

Amir’s record is four wins and two losses.

He said that Maye helps him through “real-life stuff” like school issues and takes the team out to dinner and to Con’t on page 10

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

CDC Supports 2nd Booster Shots for Americans 50 and Older East Rock Backs Con’t from page 06

by Jason Henderson, BlackDoctor.org

Hours after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized a second booster shot of the Pfizer and Moderna coronavirus vaccines for people 50 and older, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced its support for the move.

Echoing the FDA, the CDC also recommended a second COVID booster shot for “certain immune-compromised Individuals.”

“Boosters are safe, and people over the age of 50 can now get an additional booster 4 months after their prior [booster] dose to increase their protection further,” CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in an agency statement.

“This is especially important for those 65 and older and those 50 and older with underlying medical conditions that increase their risk for severe disease from COVID-19,” she added, “as they are the most likely to benefit from receiving an additional booster dose at this time.”

Why is a second COVID booster shot needed?

Any adult recipient of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine is also recommended to get a second booster, the CDC said.

“Based on newly published data, adults who received a primary vaccine and booster dose of Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 vaccine at least 4 months ago may now receive a second booster dose using an mRNA [Pfizer or Moderna] COVID-19 vaccine,” the agency said.

Walensky hinted that general access to a second booster might be further expanded later. “CDC, in collaboration with FDA and our public health partners, will continue to evaluate the need for additional booster doses for all Americans,” she said.

Dr. Peter Marks directs the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.

During a media briefing held Tuesday, he explained the FDA’s reasoning on second booster shots.

“Recent data show that three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine retain some degree of effectiveness over time. That said, the available data also show that immunity does wane to some extent over time, and older adults and those with weakened immune systems, even if they’ve received a booster, may be more likely to experience severe outcomes if they get COVID-19,” Marks said. “To give those at highest risk of serious outcomes of COVID-19 the option for continued protection, we are authorizing a second booster dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for use in people 50 years of age or older, and those with certain kinds of immunocompromise.”

When asked why age 50 was chosen as the FDA’s age cutoff for second booster shots, Marks noted that “we know that people in the age range from about 50 to

65, about a third of them have significant medical co-morbidities. by choosing age 50 and up… we felt like we would capture the population that might most benefit from this fourth booster dose.”

The CDC’s support signals that second booster shots should now become available to recommended recipients.

Tuesday’s move by the CDC and FDA has not come without debate, however.

Some federal health officials strongly support second boosters, while others are skeptical, but they came to the decision to offer the shots in case infections surge again before the fall, The New York Times reported.

Vaccines to target newer variants?

Marks said the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee will meet next week to discuss whether another booster will be recommended in the fall — possibly involving a new vaccine targeting one of the newer COVID variants.

“It would not be surprising if there’s a potential need. I don’t want to shock anyone, but there may be a need for people to get an additional booster in the fall along with a more general booster campaign,” Marks said. “We may need to shift over to another variant coverage. It may be a decision is made that rather than the vaccines we currently have, which are called vaccines against the prototype virus, that

we will move to a vaccine that is either against one of the variants, whether it’s Omicron, Beta, Delta, or something else.”

“We know already that it is reasonable from this past year to give the influenza vaccine and COVID 19 vaccine at the same time,” Marks noted. “It may turn out that if we decide that boosters are necessary, that our annual flu vaccine campaign — in which usually on an average year in the United States, we give somewhere between 150 and 170 million doses of influenza vaccine — could be paired with a COVID 19 vaccine campaign. That will be something for discussion as a possibility because of the operational efficiency that could bring and the protection that it might help bring.”

Should you get a second booster?

In the meantime, if a major wave of COVID-19 surfaces in the next few months, a second booster dose for older Americans could save thousands of lives and prevent tens of thousands of hospitalizations. But if there is no significant surge until the fall, second boosters could waste vaccine doses, increase vaccine fatigue and raise questions about the federal government’s strategy, according to the Times.

Public health experts said they are finding it harder and harder to advise their patients on whether they should get yet another shot.

“I’ve been getting multiple inquiries from lay friends over the past few days: ‘What does this mean, and what should I

8

do?’” John Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, told the Post. “I find it increasingly difficult to tell friends what they should do. It’s becoming really problematic.”

The primary benefit of a fourth shot is thought to be protection against severe illness, and that risk can vary dramatically among people 50 and older. A plethora of factors — underlying health conditions, age and time since last booster dose or infection—-all play in what a person should consider when weighing a second booster.

Meanwhile, another surge of coronavirus cases in Europe is being driven by the highly contagious Omicron subvariant BA.2. And just this week, BA.2 became the dominant variant in the United States, where it is now responsible for nearly 55% of all cases.

To date, one in 75 Americans aged 65 or older has died of COVID-19, accounting for three-fourths of U.S. deaths from the virus, CDC data show. More than 33 million (over two-thirds) of people in that age group have a first booster and would be eligible for a second, the Times said.

Opinions about second boosters for older adults vary in the wider scientific community.

“I am not persuaded there is substantial waning of protection against severe disease after the third dose,” Dr. Philip Krause, a former senior regulator at the FDA, told the Times.

But while healthy younger people with one booster are protected at the moment, older people “should probably start receiving fourth shots now,” Dr. Monica Gandhi, an infectious disease doctor and medical professor at the University of California, San Francisco, told the newspaper.

The fact that officials approved, but didn’t recommend, a second booster could frustrate the public, according to Dr. Judith Aberg, chief of the division of infectious diseases at Mount Sinai Health System in New York City.

Approving a second booster without meetings of the FDA and CDC advisory panels — as happened with the first boosters — could also draw criticism, another expert suggested.

“This is a complex decision that involves a pretty deep dive, and I think it would really benefit from public discussion,” Dr. Jesse Goodman, a former chief scientist at the FDA, told the Times. “I would not want to see an advisory committee skipped on this.”

While no advisory panel meetings on second boosters are planned, the FDA has scheduled a meeting of its advisory committee on April 6 to discuss the administration’s overall future vaccine strategy.

If you have questions about whether or not you should get a second booster and how it may affect you, consult with your doctor.

get complaints about drug dealing in my section of Newhallville. The drug trade is thriving already, and we do know that from seeing our neighbors in the Hill that drug transactions will occur” outside APT, he argued. “I think it’s incredible what the APT Foundation does … but I think it is a significant downside for a neighborhood that has significant drug trafficking as there is. … There’s concern about essentially bringing in a whole new market in drugs.”

Winter called for a more centrally-located methadone clinic Downtown, “in a place that is regulated.”

While activists have, in the past, pointed to other methadone clinics that have fewer issues with crime, Heimer defended APT as a low-barrier-to-entry clinic. Low levels of security and police presence are necessary in order to encourage patients to seek treatment, he argued.

As the conversation came to a close, East Rock Management Team members voted 15 to 2 to submit the letter of support to the Newhallville activists.

Meanwhile, the state’s Bond Commission is scheduled to vote Thursday on whether to grant $2 million to a partnership promoting an alternative plan for the site, a “Resilience Academy” focused on families’ mental health.

Con’t from page 06

Eviction Withdrawn After Rent

ing unexpected hardships.” Howard said he set aside most of that money for paying January’s and February’s rent.

The next source of help was his father, who brought him $1,100. Howard said he set aside that money to help cover March rent.

Howard said he and his father met up with the property manager on Feb. 22 — two days before the notice to quit had ordered him to vacate the apartment — and paid him in full for January, February, and March rent.

And that, Howard thought, was that.

Except it wasn’t.

Even after he said he had paid off his back rent bills, Howard said, his landlord continued to pursue evicting him. He said he couldn’t get in touch with the property manager, and was no longer able to access the online tenant portal.

On top of all that, he was worried that, if he did get evicted from his Frederick Street apartment, he would lose the $2,600 security deposit he paid when he first moved in two years ago.

“I’m in a place where I can take care of what I need to take care of,” Howard said.

He has a full-time job. He can pay rent going forward. He’s caught up on rent that he owed.

“What is the problem?” Why follow through with the eviction?

Ultimately, Howard’s landlord appears to have agreed with the tenant that the eviction case shouldn’t go forward. A few hours after the Independent interviewed Howard, the landlord withdrew the eviction action from state court and ended the case.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Bolaji COVID Patient

“To everyone who saved my life and my baby’s life too... thank you – from both of us.”

“I was 34 weeks pregnant when I found out I had COVID. While I was on the ventilator and sedated, I delivered Joseph by C-section, and I couldn’t see him for a month. But the doctors and nurses at Yale New Haven Health, they took care of us.”

At Yale New Haven Health, we’re grateful to all the healthcare workers out there who care for others.

So that others can live.

9

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

To earn department respect as a woman, they work twice as hard

Dismissed as ‘quota hires’ but now called ‘boss’: Philly’s Black women firefighters tell their stories When she reported to Engine 20 in Chinatown, she was the platoon’s first woman and the only Black person. “They were apprehensive at first, but once they saw I was capable, they became almost protective.”

In 2006, she was promoted to lieutenant and is now on the Aircraft Fire and Rescue (ARFF) unit. After 26 years of service, Woodhouse, 50, is now the department’s longest serving Black woman PFD officer.

BillyPenn.com When Battalion Chief Lisa Forrest and Captain Tarra Mungen were in the Philadelphia Fire Academy in 2003, they were two of 10 women cadets. Of those, six were Black women like them. It was a record year.

In contrast, when Lieutenant Monica Woodhouse, also a Black woman, was in the academy in 1996, she was the only female cadet in a class with 80 men.

“It was hard,” Woodhouse told Billy Penn.

“I wanted to quit every day.”

Today, fewer than 4% out of the 2,650 or so uniformed PFD members are Black women, according to the department. And it’s unclear how many are actually firefighters, since these figures encompass city paramedics and EMTs. Including men, the Fire Department is about a quarter Black, a milestone achieved thanks to the work of Club Valiants. In 1975, the 60-year-old society sued, charging the department with “a pattern of discrimination.” A consent decree was reached, and the city agreed to “promote more Black firemen to the upper ranks, and to increase recruitment and hiring of minorities.”

During the period of the decree, Philadelphia got its first black fire commissioner, and today about a quarter of PFD members are Black. But women still make up a small proportion.

Firefighters like Mungen, 45, and Forrest, 40, give credit to Woodhouse and others before them.

“They had it much harder,” said Mungen. “We stand on their shoulders,” Forrest added. Some detractors dismissed them as “quota hires,” but “we didn’t take a different test,” Forrest noted, adding that sometimes, “people think you’re there because of someone you know and not because you’re qualified.”

Given the potential dangers of the profession, the story also includes tragic firsts.

Joyce Craig, who graduated the academy with Mungen and Forrest, was the department’s first woman to perish while fighting a fire in 2014. Club Valiants paid for a headstone for her grave.

Forrest is the first woman president of the club, and she noted recruitment efforts are ongoing. “It’s not about being the first,” Forrest said. “It’s about making sure you’re not the last.”

Battalion Chief Lisa Forrest In September 2020, Forrest became the first Black woman battalion chief, in the department’s 150-year history.

Though she originally had plans to pursue a medical career, she’s now the PFD’s highest-ranking Black female firefighter.

As battalion chief, Forrest oversees six stations, with over 40 firefighters reporting to her.

Forrest went for the rank of lieutenant at the first opportunity. In 2008, that promotion took her to what Forrest referred to as one of the busiest stations in the country, Engine 50 in North Philadelphia.

“They’d never had a female firefighter

Battalion Chief Lisa Forrest

Lieutenant Diane Mercer

Lieutenant Monica Woodhouse

Firefighter Michele White

Captain Tarra Mungen there, and I’m coming in as the boss.” she said. But Forrest, a self-proclaimed daredevil, accepted the challenge. “I knew if I didn’t go, there probably would never be another woman assigned there.”

Chronicling the history of women firefighters is a passion for Forrest. At her request, Lieutenant Diane Mercer, who is also Black, was appointed to the Historical Corporation, the board that oversees the Fireman’s Hall Museum.

“I am consistently giving our information to the PFD because a lot of [it] was not documented,” Forrest said. Having Mercer on the board, “ensures we are not written out of history,” Forrest said.

Lieutenant Diane Mercer Mercer, 68, said “the profession chose me.” She originally sought a position with the United States Postal Service. But since the Fire Department was at the time more

intentional in recruiting people of color, a relative encouraged her to apply.

“Like most people, I thought, I’m not going into a burning building and dying in a fire!” Mercer said. But she applied, and in 1985, became one of the first three women and second African American woman in department history.

“At that time, there were so few women, even in other cities,” she said. “As a Black woman in a predominantly male organization, you’re going to run into stuff.”

While stationed at Engine 41 in West Philadelphia, Mercer became pregnant. She recalled that it was the first time the department had to consider making accommodations for that. “They really didn’t know what to do with me.”

She was then assigned to the fire prevention division — and loved it. “It was there that I found my niche,” Mercer said, adding that the five-day work shift fit her schedule as a new mother.

In 2003, she was promoted to lieutenant, becoming one of the department’s first two Black women in that position. Before she retired in 2018, after 33 years, she was the PFD’s longest serving woman.

Lieutenant Monica Woodhouse Woodhouse recalls walking past a PFD recruitment table set up at Community College. The recruiter called her over and encouraged her to apply. “I told them, no, that’s not for me,” she said.

But the recruiter was persistent and Woodhouse did apply. After achieving a high score on the civil service examination, she entered the academy.

10

Firefighter Michele White Michele White, 51, also has 26 years of active duty, and is Philly’s longest serving Black woman firefighter.

Like Woodhouse, she initially resisted the department’s recruitment efforts. She remembers being in The Gallery (now known as the Fashion District) when she was approached by a female recruiter. That woman would later become her mentor.

She began her firefighting career in 1996, at Engine 73 in her West Oak Lane neighborhood. White said those early days were difficult. “My station was great, White said, “but there were [some men] who still looked at me as ‘just a woman.’ ” Although she had a military background, White said it gave her no advantage. Even when she did prove herself, White said accolades were hard to come by. She told of once beating her male colleagues during a fire training drill. Usually the winner would get bragging rights and praise, according to White, “but when I beat their time, no one said anything.”

White said she had to make a choice. “I was a single mom of three boys, and it is not easy to raise boys in the city,” she said, adding that one son has special needs. So she shifted to fire prevention — and found a new calling.

“It gave me a platform to teach safety to my community,” White said. “It was about more than just having a 9 to 5… This let me help people before a fire.”

Captain Tarra Mungen Facing a layoff at a different workplace, Mungen said she “fell into” a career with the PFD. “At the time, I just needed a job,” she said. “I never even knew there were female firefighters.”

But at her first assignment, Engine 40 in Southwest Philadelphia, Mungen “fell in love with it.” She now sees her job as a ministry, but there were some bumps along the way.

Mungen described going through a proving ground. “Like anyone, I had to earn my reputation — but as a woman, you do have to work twice as hard,” she said. She remembered receiving cool receptions from some men. “They just wouldn’t speak to you.”

Now stationed at Engine 1 in Center City, Mungen is PFD’s only Black woman captain, and said she plans to answer her calling to continue rising the ranks.

She noted that the younger male firefighters seem more accepting of working under ranking women . “It’s funny,” Mungen said, “My nickname is ‘boss.’ There was a time that never would have happened.”

Con’t from page 06

DuBois-Walton

have fun.

Matthias has been boxing for the past eight years. He described the sport as a form of therapy, self defense, and a physical challenge.

It wasn’t until two years into learning the sport that Matthias decided he wanted to compete.

“When I saw the trophies and medals people get, my mentality switched, and I wanted to earn my own,” he said.

At times, Matthias said, his busy schedule can get out of hand because he doesn’t “have too much time to think.”

Over the years he has “quit” the sport twice but was always drawn back in.

“There’s nothing really like this sport,” he said. “The rush in the ring is mental and physical work.”

Earlier this year Matthias tried out track but found it wasn’t as fun as boxing. His current boxing record is three wins and two losses.

He spends his day focused on school and boxing, he said. He keeps in mind words from his mother: “You can’t be a dumb boxer.”

In addition to boxing, Matthias has been learning to play piano this year and enjoys drawing and music.

Currently Matthias is working to improve on keeping his right hand up, moving forward more, and being proactive as well as reactive in the ring.

Isac, who attends Church Street Elementary School, started boxing after witnessing his sister’s success. He is working on his balance and keeping his left hand up in the ring.

Amare, who attends Wexler Grant, got into the ring to follow in his brother’s footsteps. He is currently working to improve on not panicking and throwing more combinations.

“He’s somebody that has my back whenever I need help,” Amare said of Coach Maye. “He believes in me.”

He added that Maye has helped him to “toughen up” and realize “I don’t always have to say yes.”

Amare currently has four wins and three losses. Isac has four wins and two losses.

More Than Just Fighting Maye described the sport of boxing as more than teaching kids to fight — though he also aims to teach his students to “not look for them [fights] or run from them.”

He trains the student-athletes six days a week.

His goal is to teach his athletes to be “aggressive and confident in the ring, but outside the ring be a civil person.”

Maye, who is 47, said he was kicked out of his home at age 13 and alternated between homelessness and jail in his youth.

Now, he said, he tries to be a mentor to “do for the kids everything that I wanted to have when I was kid.”

“If I had me around when I was a kid, I wouldn’t have gotten into so much bullshit I was in,” he said.

Cheaper by the Dozen review THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

by Dwight Brown, NNPA Film Critic

It’s kinda like a movie. Kinda like a sitcom. Not really either. But its sweet emotions and modern sensibilities eventually make it endearing.

It looks like the goal of the relaunch of Cheaper by the Dozen, a classic 1950 and 2003 white bread Disney family comedy, was to make it more topical and multi-grain. Certainly, the casting attests to that ambition. Zoey (Gabrielle Union, TV’s L.A.’s Finest) and Paul Baker (Zach Braff, TV’s Scrubs) own Bakers’ Breakfast, a diner that serves the first meal of the day all-day long. Both are divorced and bring their mixed bag of offspring into their new life.

Zoey has a teen basketball-loving daughter, Deja (Journee Brown), and young son DJ (Andre Robinson) from her ex-husband Dom (Timon Kyle Durrett), a rich successful basketball player. Paul brings his daughters, Ella (Kylie Rogers), Harley (Caylee Blosenski), who careens around in a wheelchair, and adopted Southeast Asian son Haresh (Aryan Simhadri) into the clan. Post wedding bells, the couple produced two sets of mixed-race twins: the rambunctious Luca and Luna (Leo Abelo Perry and Mykal-Michelle Harris)

and the cute Bailey and Bronx (Christian and Sebastian Cote). After taking in Paul’s adolescent nephew Seth (Luke Prael), who comes from a broken home, that makes the Bakers an even dozen.

The animated family resides in the multi-ethnic neighborhood of Echo Park, in Central L. A., northwest of bustling Downtown, west of trendy/bohemian Silver Lake and east of historic Chinatown. Childcare, an ever-present concern, is helped by Paul’s dizzy ex-wife Kate (Erika Christensen). Money is another problem, and that’s solved as the couple expands their business. Its success brings them gobs of money, tosses them into an upper socioeconomic group and suburban neighborhood. Issues of culture clash and changing family values threaten their happiness.

The screenplay, by Kenya Barris (Blackish) & Jenifer Rice-Genzuk Henry (Black-ish) doesn’t aim higher than it must. It sets the eclectic characters up way too much in the beginning, with frontloaded, excessive, backstory exposition. As the film progresses, the narrative gives family members life dramas to resolve. Funny, quick wit dialogue in rapid delivery makes them comic and appealing. The script raises some of the

social, racial and class issues blended, multiracial families confront. Though, it noticeably steers clear of the LGBQT conversations kids have these days. Is that to protect the Disney PG brand? A fear of being too real? Debate among yourselves.

The rhythm of the laughs and schtick are so TV sitcomish audiences may wonder why this is a 1h 47m streaming movie and

11

not a series. Certainly, it’s not up to theatrical release standards. In Netflix’s hands, the material would be broken up into hour episodes, extended over a season and delve into today’s problems with more depth. Hopefully in a way that wouldn’t confound children or anger adults but still get the job done. Imagine if Deja’s hoop dreams, DJ’s sojourn into Goth culture, Harley’s experiences as a physically challenged teen, Seth’s juvenile delinquent behavior and Haresh’s encounters with bullying played out until they were well-developed with appropriate character arcs. Kids, tweens and teens might get hooked. And parents too. What’s on view is relevant, but too safe at a time when families are looking for enlightened guidance as they navigate an ever-changing world.

Director Gail Lerner (Black-ish) is not all that adventurous. Lots of scenes are obvious sets, especially home interiors.

Her filmmaking doesn’t take real advantage of the great outdoors and the kind of freedom and range exterior shots allow.

For the first 45 minutes the quick-paced short scenes (editor Troy Takaki, Sweet Home Alabama) lack pizazz. Verve finally emerges at a basketball game half-time show. The very competitive dads, Paul

and Dom, have a dance off. It’s a welcomed burst of energy, Lerner milks the scene well and Braff clowns around like a comedy star. More of these moments were needed.

Speaking of cast, the entire ensemble brings more to the party than the filmmakers. Braff is an expert at mugging for the camera. Union plays the mom with the right amount of nurturing and the wife with just enough backbone and grit.

Brown, Robinson, Prael, Blosenski, Simhadri and both sets of twins stand out. The actors make up for a lot of what the film lacks. They pull you into their emotional states until they give you a warm, fuzzy feeling. All romp around on sets (production designer Desma Murphy) that look too artificial with antics captured by harsh lighting (cinematographer Mitchell Amundsen) that contributes to that plastic TVish look. The musical score (John Paesano) is both soulfully contemporary and generic all at the same time.

Objectively, the film dares to take on pressing issues and hits some nice emotional peaks. Pity it is not as brave as it could have been. If Cheaper by the Dozen had owned up to what it really is, a potential series with opportunities to dig deep, it might have had more impact.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Home COVID Tests Can Cause Harm If Not Stored Safely

by Cara Jones, BlackDoctor.org

An at-home COVID-19 test is a key tool in containing the spread of the coronavirus. But a few safety precautions are in order to prevent serious injury, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns.

The tests can cause harm if they’re not used according to manufacturers’ instructions, and they also need to be kept out of reach from children and pets, the FDA says.

Injuries from incorrect use The FDA has received reports of injuries caused by incorrect use of at-home COVID-19 tests due to: • People accidentally putting liquid test solution in their eyes when small vials of test solution were mistaken for eye drops.

• Placing nasal collection swabs into the liquid solution prior to swabbing the nose (the liquid solution is not supposed to touch your body).

• Children putting test parts in their mouth and swallowing liquid test solution.

Self-testing is safe when the tests are used and stored properly.

They offer a convenient and important way for people to check whether they

or family members are infected with the coronavirus, according to the agency.

However, the liquid solutions in the test may contain irritating or toxic chemicals such as sodium azide. These chemicals can cause harm if they come into contact with your skin, nose, mouth or eyes, or if test parts, such as small vials containing the liquid solutions, are swallowed, the FDA cautions.

How to properly store and use at-home COVID tests

Like many Americans, you may have received at-home COVID test kits from the federal government or purchased some from a retailer. If so, the FDA offers the following safety advice: • Keep all parts of at-home test kits out of reach from children and pets before and after use. Also, store the test in its box until you are ready to use it.

• Follow the manufacturer’s step-by-step test instructions exactly. Read the “Warning, Precautions, and Safety Information” in the test instructions for a description of chemical ingredients and recommendations for safe handling. This will also outline what to do if they accidentally touch your skin or eyes.

• Keep the liquid solution away from the skin, nose, mouth and eyes. Do not swal-

low the liquid solution.

• Use only the swab in the test kit to collect a nasal sample.

• After you perform the test, follow instructions on how to throw away the used test parts. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water.

In addition, contact your local poison

control or health care provider right away if skin or eye irritation does not go away after exposure, or a person or animal swallows the liquid solution.

If you have questions, contact the FDA’s Division of Industry and Consumer Education at 800-638-2041 or 301-796-7100.

You can also call the customer service department for the COVID-19 test you are using.

If you think you had a problem with your COVID-19 test, you can report the problem through the FDA’s MedWatch Voluntary Reporting Form.

Biden Administration Focuses Money on HBCUs After Bomb Threats

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Contributor

Shifting funds from the Department of Education to assist Historically Black Colleges and Universities experiencing sporadic bomb threats, several top officials in the Biden Administration spoke out. Over the last two months repeated bomb threats have been made against several HBCUS including Morgan State, and Howard University.

On March 16, in a small auditorium at the Old Executive Office Building next door to The White House, Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and Attorney General Merrick Garland spoke on the plan. The allocations, coming from existing money from the Department of Education budget, comes to about $150,000 per school.

HBCUS have received a record amount of funding from the federal government over the last year into the billions.

“At the Justice Department, we believe the time to address illegal threats is when they are made, not after tragedy strikes.

We also know that the threat against HBCUs and their students has deep, historical roots… In the over 150 years since the founding of the Department, the threats posed by hate-fueled criminal acts have taken on many different forms. But our task remains the same: to use our resourc-

Aerial view of North Carolina University’s campus. The university was one of at least seven bomb threats reported in early January at Historically Black Colleges and Universities around the country. mond about the historic allocations. es and our legal authorities to prevent supporters of HBCUs. “If you look at our Administration, if and confront bias-motivated violence and Black Press USA asked Congressional threats of violence,” the Attorney said in Black Caucus Chairwoman Joyce Beatty you look at what we’re doing we’re makfront of education officials, reporters and (D-OH) and Senior Advisor Cedric Rich- ing sure we empower our universities.

12

They’ve done great with less for far too long,” Richmond said standing in the White House driveway.

Members of the CBC received a briefing on the bomb threats from Department of Justice officials in early March.

In an era of divisive politics and a former President, Donald Trump, who negatively openly targeted Black members of Congress and cities with large Black populations such as Baltimore and Philadelphia, concerns for HBCUs have remained high.

“The threats made against our nations Historically Black Colleges and Universities are far from new, and I commend the Administration for finally allocating the necessary attention and resources to HBCUs as we work to end the string of threats and bring the perpetrators to justice,” said Rep. Frederica Wilson in a statement.

“Our administration is sending a very clear message that intimidation will not stand and we will not be intimidated. We will do everything in our power to protect all our communities from violence and from hate,” said Vice President Harris.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist and the host of the podcast BURKEFILE. She is a political analyst who appears regularly on #RolandMartinUnfiltered. She may be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

IN MEMORIAM:

Madeleine Albright, First Female U.S. Secretary of State, Dies at 84

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

Madeleine Albright, the first female secretary of state who remained a close friend with fellow secretaries, Colin Powell (the first Black secretary of state) and Condoleezza Rice (the first Black woman secretary of state), has died at 84.

Albright’s first notable foray into the U.S. political scene came when President Jimmy Carter tapped her as his national security counselor.

Born in Prague, Czechia, Albright stood just four feet and ten inches tall. But her legacy is as significant as that of any other political figure.

Albright’s family escaped the Nazis before arriving in America.

Albright would make her mark in the political sphere by advising Sen. Walter Mondale, Gov. Michael Dukakis, and President Bill Clinton.

Under Clinton, she became U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and then secretary of state.

She cherished her kinship with Rice and

Powell, both of whom acknowledged seeking her out for advice when they were cast in the role of secretary of state.

Following Powell’s death in 2021, Albright spoke of the bond between the two respected public servants.

“He was truly an incomparable man in every way and incredibly smart, dedicated to this country,” Albright told NPR. “And turned out we were – got to be very, very good friends. And he was somebody that understood what our country needed

and had served it with great honor.”

Albright often spoke of her concerns about divisions in America, particularly during the Donald Trump presidency.

In 2021, she spoke of being bothered by individuals who “know about where facts

come from” but ignore them.

“In a (2018) book that I wrote is ‘Fascism: A Warning,’ I went back, and I actually looked at how fascism began, which it did with Mussolini,” Albright stated during a broadcast conversation with Rice.

“The best quote in the whole book comes from Mussolini, and he said, ‘if you pluck a chicken one feather at a time, nobody notices,’ and that is what I think is kind of happening in the United States,” she stated.

“The major thing Mussolini did was to identify with one group at the expense of another, who then became the scapegoats.

That is what worries me now. We have been, I think in many respects, artificially divided to blame somebody else.

“I think we need to respect why people are coming from where they’re coming from and to make it a point to listen. And we’re not doing that enough. But the main issue now is, how are we getting our information?”

Albright reportedly died surrounded by her family. Her three daughters and grandchildren survive her.

Henrietta Lacks deserves the Congressional Gold Medal

By Congressman Kweisi Mfume The chronicles of human history have always contained chapters depicting martyrs whose legacies are crafted through their selfless sacrifice. For most of these figures, their physical lives were finite, from birth until death. The effects their lives have on the world after they depart continue their story in spirit. But for Henrietta Lacks, even after she took her tragic last breath, microscopic pieces of her physical body that, I believe, are a part of a Divine miracle have remained and forever changed countless lives through their medical applications.

Henrietta Lack’s tale is one of a saving grace in the scientific community, discovered by what some call chance, but I deem as fate. Despite questionable moral implications surrounding the aftermath of her medical care, it was Ms. Lacks’ destiny to serve as a martyr saving the lives of those whom she would never meet, and who in turn would never be able to share their thanks. So, this imposes the question, how can we collectively and fittingly show our gratitude to Ms. Henrietta Lacks for her impact on the world?

On March 15, I introduced legislation to answer this very question, by posthumously honoring the immortal life of Henrietta Lacks with a Congressional

Gold Medal.

Ms. Lacks was born in Roanoke, Va. in 1920, and later moved to Baltimore, Md. with her family. In 1951, at the age of 31, she sought treatment from the Johns Hopkins Hospital for prolonged bleeding. At the time, the hospital was one of few that would treat African Americans. Shortly after her admission to the hospital, she was diagnosed with aggressive cervical cancer that would lead to her unfortunate death only eight months later.

While being treated, the hospital collected samples of Henrietta’s cells. Her cells, labeled “HeLa cells,” were a medical revelation, reproducing at a high rate and capable of dividing numerous times without dying.

This breakthrough resulted in Ms. Lacks’ cells becoming a revolutionary medicinal tool, used to develop the polio vaccine

and advance treatments for cancer, HIV/ AIDS, Parkinson’s disease, leukemia, hemophilia, and others. In addition, her cells have contributed to breakthroughs in cloning, in vitro fertilization, gene mapping, and many more functionalities.

While her cells will remain immortalized in the medical field, Ms. Lacks’ story must endure as well, for her tale is one of tremendous sacrifice amongst tragedy.

It was unbeknownst to Lacks and her family, without their consent, that her cells were stored by the hospital. While technically allowed by law, the doctors and administrators’ actions prompted understandable privacy concerns for the Lacks family, whose genetic information was literally under the microscope for the whole world to see. Historical cases of medical exploitation against racial minorities, such as the case of Ms. Lacks as

14

well as the Tuskegee experiments, have resulted in low enrollment in clinical trials designed for healthcare research.

In an effort to combat this trend, the Henrietta Lacks Enhancing Cancer Research Act was signed into law last year, an effort I spearheaded, which targets healthcare disparities amongst minorities by diversifying clinical trials to treat cancer. While this law honors the name of Ms. Lacks, and rightfully so, I have urged my colleagues to immortalize her legacy once more through a Congressional Gold Medal. The response from the Lacks family, whose opinion I so greatly value, to the congressional action I have undertaken has been both appreciative and encouraging.

“My family applauds our Congressman Kweisi Mfume for his leadership on the introduction of the bill to posthumously

award a Congressional Gold Medal to my beloved mother, Henrietta Lacks,” said Lawrence Lacks, Sr., Henrietta Lacks’ eldest son.

“This year, through our family-led HELA100: The Henrietta Lacks Initiative, we commemorate 70 years since her ‘HeLa cells’ changed the world. In life, my mother gave to many in our community, and today is a full-circle moment during Women’s History Month to have Henrietta Lacks’ legacy advanced by Congressman Kweisi Mfume, who grew up just blocks away from my family,” added Mr. Lacks, Sr. While her cells will be attributed to saving countless lives, it was at the cost of Ms. Lacks’ own survival, leaving behind her husband, five children, and generations of the Lacks family who would take great pride in hearing her story through acts of commemoration like the Congressional Gold Medal that I have introduced.

Ms. Lacks’ legacy sparks a complicated, yet necessary dialogue on scientific breakthrough, entangled with questionable ethics, yielding privacy intrusions against an African American woman.

Her life is far deserving of celebration through the Congressional Gold Medal.

The bestowment of this award to Ms. Lacks would encapsulate the everlasting effects started by a few microscopic cells that have transcended into conversations on race, the paradox of scientific advancement amidst sacrifice, and what it means to live forever.

Kweisi Mfume represents the Seventh Congressional District of Maryland.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Confirmation Hearings for Historic Nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson Featured Tense Exchanges

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Contributor

Last year, Senate Republicans serving on the Senate Judiciary Committee moved the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to be a Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

This week, starting on March 21, those same Republicans suddenly had problems with Jackson’s sentencing decisions they’d never mentioned before. As Judge Jackson’s confirmation hearings to be an Associate Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court moved forward, it was clear that Republicans would attempt to brand the Judge as soft on crime.

Jackson is expected to be confirmed by the Senate and become the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court in American history.

The “soft on crime” strategy wasn’t a new way of weakening the power of Black public officials, but what was new was the particular subject matter Republicans focused on: Sexual violence. Five Republican Senators, Ted Cruz (R-TX), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Marsha Blackburn (R-OK) focused on the sentencing of seven cases related to child pornography and sex trafficking. The seven cases represented 1.6 percent of the 580 cases Judge Jackson has presided

over.

On March 18, The American Bar Association rated Judge Jackson as “well qualified” — the highest rating possible — to serve on the US Supreme Court, before the hearings began. The association’s Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary was unanimous in their decision.

“Can you fairly judge a Catholic,” Sen. Graham asked on day one of the questioning after asking the Judge what religion she was. On day three of questioning on March 23, Graham put words in the Judge’s mouth she didn’t say in a determined effort to link her with light sentencing in child pornography cases.

“You don’t think that’s a bad thing I think that’s a horrible thing,” Graham said loudly pointing his finger at Jackson.

That’s not what the witness said and she should be allowed to answer,” Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL) shot back at Graham.

The five Republican Senators, particularly Graham and Hawley appeared to be avenging the Brett Kavanaugh hearings.

Kavanaugh was accused of sexual assault

by Christine Blasey Ford, a professor who alleged that when she was 15-yearold a drunk teenaged Kavanaugh engaged in rough housing at a private home with another drunk male. The allegations blew up Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings in late 2018.

Judge Jackson repeatedly answered similar questions from Hawley and Graham

on her sentencing decisions even after Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) broke down in detail all of her sentencing decisions on the matters Republicans were focused on.

Republicans complained that they didn’t have the information Democrats on the panel did.

“I’m telling you right now I’m not letting anyone steal my joy,” said Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) to Judge Jackson after she endured a barrage of questions from Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO).

Booker gave Jackson a pep talk after Sen. Hawley’s abrasive questioning and recounted some of his experiences as one of only two Black members of the U.S. Senate as Judge Jackson sat at the table and listened. Her husband Patrick was seen sitting behind her and at one point held the hand of their daughter as Booker spoke and the Judge wiped away a tear.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said, “I thought you’ve done a great job in the last couple of days,” Tillis said to Jackson adding it was hard to have “one arm tied behind your back” during questioning. The Senate is expected to vote on Jackson’s nomination before the Easter break.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist and the host of the podcast BURKEFILE. She is a political analyst who appears regularly on #RolandMartinUnfiltered. She may be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

The Third Day of Confirmation Hearings Reveals Two Troubling Reasons GOP Senators Oppose Judge Jackson

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent The constant badgering and apparent lack of respect toward Supreme Court Justice nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson during 13 hours of testimony on Tuesday and throughout Wednesday only revealed two essential reasons why Republican senators oppose the D.C. jurist.

First, she’s the pick of President Joe Biden, a Democrat.

Second, and more troubling, Judge Jackson is a Black woman.

“Many Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are wasting no time embracing the kind of bad-faith scrutiny often reserved for women and Black nominees – beneficiaries of affirmative action, in one GOP senator’s parlance,” Political Analyst Brandon Tensley wrote in an analysis for CNN. “Some Republicans, lacking a coherent strategy, are pressing Jackson for her views on The 1619 Project and the children’s book ‘Antiracist Baby’ – because of ‘critical race theory,’ though neither has anything to do with the job she’s being considered for,” Tensley determined.

“Others are trying with great effort to cast the nominee as weak on crime by

distorting her past work defending Guantanamo Bay detainees and her sentencing in child pornography cases.”

If confirmed, Judge Jackson would emerge as the first Black woman to sit on the U.S. Supreme Court.

In questioning Judge Jackson, South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham continued the theme of his GOP colleagues, claiming the jurist is weak on crime—specifically regarding defendants charged in child pornography cases.

Repeatedly interrupting Judge Jackson’s

responses and egregiously misstating her position, Sen. Graham suggested the judge didn’t consider computer usage a sentencing enhancement.

Her face displaying disbelief in the senator’s behavior, Judge Jackson remarked that she not only sends offenders to prison but orders lengthy periods of supervision following their release.

“Senator, all I’m trying to explain is that our sentencing system, the system that Congress has created, the system that the sentencing commission is the steward of,

16

is a rational one,” Judge Jackson stated.

“It’s a system designed to help judges do justice in these terrible circumstances by eliminating unwarranted disparities and ensuring that the most serious defendants get the longest periods of time in prison.

“What we are trying to do is be rational in dealing with some of the most horrible kinds of behavior.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell claimed Judge Jackson was evasive in a floor speech.

“Judge Jackson is receiving a calm, re-

spectful process, unlike the treatment that Senate Democrats typically inflict on Republican presidents’ nominees,” McConnell decided.

“But unfortunately, thus far, many of Judge Jackson’s responses have been evasive and unclear. She’s declined to address critically important questions and ameliorate real concerns.”

However, Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York praised Judge Jackson.

“At times, the judge also displayed one of her greatest traits: her grace and poise, even when Republicans asked intentionally misleading questions,” Schumer remarked on the Senate floor. “Republicans tried to land a blow, but Judge Jackson kept her cool.”

When Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) attempted to get Judge Jackson’s position on Roe v. Wade, the jurist noted that the Supreme Court is currently considering efforts to overturn that law, making it inappropriate for her to comment.

Sen. Cornyn pressed, asking, “What does viability mean when it comes to an unborn child in your understanding?”

The Judge responded: “I hesitate to speculate. I know that it is a point in time that the court has identified in terms of when – the standards that Con’t on page 17

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Con’t from page 17

apply to regulation of the right,” Judge Jackson responded.

Cornyn shot back: “No one suggests that a 20-week-old fetus can live independently outside the mother’s womb, do they?” Cornyn asked.

Tch she responded:o whi “Senator, I’m not a biologist,” she replied.

“What I know is that the Supreme Court has tests and standards that it’s applied when it evaluates regulation of the right of a woman to terminate their pregnancy.

“The court has announced that there is a right to terminate, up to the point of viability, subject to the framework of Roe, and there is a pending case that is addressing these issues.”

Another Republican, Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, suggested Judge Jackson was too compassionate for the Supreme Court.

“It seems as though you’re a very kind person, and there’s at least a level of empathy that enters into your treatment of a defendant that some could view as may be beyond what some of us would be comfortable with, with respect to administering justice,” Sen. Tillis said, piggybacking off colleagues like Sen. Graham who called the judge a “nice person.”

Judge Jackson disputed Sen. Tillis’ assessment.

“I follow the statute that applies to judges that Congress has set forward, including the nature and circumstances of the offense, the history of the character and characteristics of the defendant,” Judge Jackson stated.

When belligerent Texas Republican Ted Cruz attacked Judge Jackson and demanded that, if confirmed, she recuses herself from an affirmative action case involving Harvard University, the judge said she planned to sit out that decision.

Judge Jackson sits on Harvard’s Board of Overseers.

Sen. Cruz defiantly ignored Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin’s (D-Illinois) repeated admonition to allow Judge Jackson to answer his questions and that his time expired.

Sen. Cruz asked Judge Jackson to define a woman, shouting that she’s the only nominee not able to answer that question.

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“I know that I’m a woman,” Judge Jackson retorted.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Jada Pinkett Smith on Alopecia, Hair Loss and the Slap Heard Around the World

by Aria Ellise, BDO Special Contributor

Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have been in the spotlight a lot lately, and it’s not always been in a good way. The latest news involves Will storming the Oscars stage at the 2022 94th Oscar Awards and slapping Chris Rock making a joke about his wife. That moment is the one everyone is talking about from Sunday’s Oscars, and not the winners.

Rock made a comment about Jada’s bald head referencing the movie G.I. Jane, where actress Demi Moore shaved her head for the role.

It all went down when Rock came out to present an award for Best Documentary. On stage, the comedian laughed and said, “Jada, I love ya. G.I. Jane 2 — can’t wait to see it, all right?” At that point Will walked on stage and proceeded to slap Chris and then calmly walk back to his seat.

He then shouted back to Chris saying, “Keep my wife’s name out your mutha—— mouth!”

No matter how you feel about the joke, many did not know that Jada has had issues with losing her hair for years.

Back in 2018, Jada Pinkett Smith had been wearing headwraps and not showing her hair for months at a time. It turns out the beautiful Girl’s Trip star has been struggling with the hair loss condition,

possibly linked to alopecia. She took to social media to explain it.

“I’ve been getting a lot of questions about why I’ve been wearing this turban,” said the beautiful 50-year-old actress.

“Well, I’ve been having issues with hair loss. And it was terrifying when it first started.”

She also says she’s currently receiving steroid injections to help with her loss.

“I’m getting steroid injections, which

seem to be helping but not curing. But I’m open to other ideas,” she posted on her Instagram.

One type of steroid injection Pinkett Smith may be using is called Corticosteroid Injections. This method of treatment — the most common form of treatment for alopecia areata — uses corticosteroids that are injected into bare patches of skin with a tiny needle. These injections are repeated about every four to six weeks

and are usually given by a dermatologist.

If new hair growth occurs from corticosteroid injections it is usually visible within four weeks. There are few known side effects related to this kind of treatment. But a drawback of corticosteroid injections, like all treatments for alopecia areata, is that they do not prevent new hair loss from developing.

Alopecia is defined as loss of hair from the body. Hair loss is often a cause of

great concern to the patient for cosmetic and psychological reasons, but it can also be an important sign of systemic disease.

Alopecia areata, also known as spot baldness, is a condition in which hair is lost from some or all areas of the body.

Often it results in a few bald spots on the scalp, each about the size of a coin. Psychological stress may result. People are generally otherwise healthy. In some, all the hair on the scalp or all body hair is lost and loss can be permanent.

Alopecia areata is believed to be an autoimmune disease. Risk factors include a family history of the condition. The underlying mechanism involves failure by the body to recognize its own cells with subsequent immune-mediated destruction of the hair follicle.

The actress recalled the “terrifying” moment she first noticed she was losing “handfuls of hair” in the shower.

“It was one of those times in my life where I was literally shaking with fear,” she said. “That’s why I cut my hair and continued to cut it.”

This revelation was featured in the third episode of her Facebook mini-series, Red Table Talk, co-hosted by her mother Adrienne Canfield Norris, and teenage daughter Willow Smith.

Other topics discussed have included coping with loss, motherhood and body image – with Willow previously disclosing she self-harmed as a child following Con’t on page 19

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

COMMENTARY:

#OscarsBlackAF: Will Packer’s 94th Academy Awards Broadcast Delivers

By Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D., NNPA Newswire Culture and Entertainment Editor

Über producer Will Packer was tapped to produce the 94th Academy Awards ceremony and he did not disappoint with grand performances, powerful acceptance speeches and an unscripted slap seen around the world. Hosted by comedians Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer and renowned actress Regina Hall, the Oscars were infused with African American influence and culture from the presenters to the music of Earth, Wind and Fire, Lupe Fiasco and many more during the transitions and commercial breaks. The show’s musical director was Adam Blackstone and included a super group composed of Blackstone on bass guitar, Robert Glasper on piano, Travis Barker and Sheila E. on drums. The Oscar’s orchestra was led by Baltimore’s Dontae Winslow.

Presenters included Venus and Serena Williams, Halle Bailey, Ruth E. Carter, Rosie Perez, Wesley Snipes, Jason Mamoa, Lupita Nyong’o, Tracee Ellis Ross and Tyler Perry. The ceremony opened with the radiant Williams sisters, who executive produced King Richard, announcing Beyoncé, who performed “Be Alive,” from the King Richard soundtrack, on the tennis courts in Compton, CA where Con’t from page 18

Jada Pinkett Smith the release of her debut single Whip My Hair.

Despite having many medical tests, Pinkett Smith said she has not been able to find the cause of her alopecia. She suspects it might be stress.

Other main factors for alopecia are: 1. Thyroid Problems The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland at the front of the neck. It produces hormones that regulate many processes throughout the body. If the gland makes too much or too little thyroid hormone, the hair growth cycle may falter. But… … hair loss is rarely the only sign of a thyroid problem. Other symptoms include weight gain or loss, sensitivity to cold or heat, and changes in heart rate. and 2.Polycystic Ovary Syndrome(PCOS) Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have a chronic hormonal imbalance. The body makes higher levels of androgens than expected. This often causes extra hair to sprout on the face and body, while hair on the scalp grows thinner. PCOS can also lead to ovulation problems, acne, and weight gain. But sometimes thinning hair is the only obvious sign.

These days, Pinkett Smith said she enjoys using turbans, as they help conceal her condition and are an empowering fashion choice.

“When my hair is wrapped, I feel like a queen,” she said.

the world champions trained as girls.

Reminiscent of the style and look of Tobe Nwigwe’s, “Make It Home” music video, Beyonce sang her heart out surrounded by an all-white clad group of Black performers against a mint green landscape.

The show which has grown from 15 minutes in its first year (1929) to an average of 3 and ½ hours in recent years had some controversy when Packer, executive producer of Girls Trip, Think Like a Man and Ride Along, cut some categories from the broadcast in order to shorten the time, which has been blamed for low ratings in previous years. The Florida A&M University (FAMU) graduate stuck to his guns addressing the controversy head on in the opening act and moved through the program effortlessly.

Ariana DeBose kicked off the ceremony with a Best Supporting Actress win for her performance as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story. DeBose thanked Rita Moreno, who originated the role of Anita in 1962’s West Side Story, becoming the first Puerto Rican actress to win a Best Supporting Actress award. DeBose thanked Rita Moreno for opening the doors for other “Anitas like he”r and referred to herself as an openly Queer AfroLatina, of which she is the first to win an

Academy Award. She encouraged young people struggling with their identities to persevere and know that “there is a place for them here.”

Celebrated actor John Leguizamo introduced the song, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” from Disney’s Encanto soundtrack. Even though the song has become the highest charted Disney song in the last 28 years, Lin-Manuel Miranda opted to submit “Dos Oruguitas,” for Oscar consideration instead. Miranda, who was scheduled to appear, had to pull out of the broadcast after his wife tested positive for Covid-19. “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” was performed by the Encanto cast Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn NineNine), Diane Guerrero (Doom Patrol), reggaeton singer Adassa, Colombian musicians Carolina Gaitán and Mauro Castillo and Grammy award-winning rapper Megan the Stallion. John Leguizano, who actually voices the character of Bruno Madrigal in the film, did not perform, which he joked about during the introduction.

Amir “Questlove” Thompson won for Best Documentary feature for his film Summer of Soul. Thompson, who was accompanied by his mother, was overwhelmed by the win offering that the film

19

covers the Summer of 1969 in Harlem but is relevant to what is happening today.

Comedian Chris Rock introduced the documentary category and made jokes about Denzel Washington’s performance in The Tragedy of MacBeth, at which the two-time Oscar winner laughed and congratulated Jada Pinkett Smith for her role in G.I. Jane 2. Will Smith, who later won the Best Actor award for his performance as Richard Williams in King Richard, approached Rock and slapped him in the face and returned to his seat. American television muted the sound after Smith shouted to Rock to “keep his wife’s name out of your mouth.” Lupita Nyong’o sat stunned at what many thought was a comedic bit but soon realized was a real slap.

Sean “Diddy” Combs tried to calm the situation down following the smack.

Upon winning the Best Actor award, Smith wept as he spoke of protecting his family of actors and producers as well as his wife. He spoke about being bullied and forced to take poor treatment due to his celebrity. He apologized to the Academy and his fellow nominees but not to Rock. With his win, Smith becomes the fifth Black man to win the Best Actor Oscar in the history of the Academy Awards.

Additional awards were given out earlier. Late last week (March 25), the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences awarded legendary actor Samuel L. Jackson, 73, an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement in film and humanitarian efforts. Jackson, a prolific actor who has 197 acting credits, has delivered powerful performances in a host of films including Jungle Fever, Django, A Time to Kill, Eve’s Bayou, The Red Violin and the Star Wars and Marvel Universe franchises. One of Jackson’s most memorable performances was as Jules Winfield in Quentin Tarantino’s classic film Pulp Fiction, for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 1995 Academy Awards. In his acceptance speech for the honorary Oscar, Jackson said, “I’m really, really proud to receive this statuette,” and “this thing is going to be cherished.” The Morehouse graduate also thanked “every person who has ever bought a ticket to any movie I was in.”

At the same event, Iconic actor Danny Glover, 74, received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his human rights activism that has spanned the globe during the course of his career. Glover who is best known for his starring roles in The Color Purple, the Lethal Weapon franchise and critically acclaimed performances in The Color Purple, To Sleep With Anger, Places in the Heart, Freedom Song and The Last Black Man in San Francisco has been engaged in civic activism and used his platform to shed light on many causes including ending Apartheid in South Africa. Glover’s activism began in the Haight Asbury neighborhood of his hometown San Francisco, where he was a part of the Black Panther’s Breakfast program and a student activist at San Francisco State University.

In 1988, Glover was appointed Goodwill ambassador to the UN Development Program and an ambassador for the UNICEF division in 2004, respectively. In those capacities, Glover worked with countries in Haiti, Mali, Namibia, Senegal, Jamaica and Columbia on causes including social justice, climate change and HIV/AIDS awareness. In 2005, he combined his love for acting and filmmaking with activism and co-founded Louverture Films in New York City. The production company is dedicated to producing independent films of historical relevance, social purpose, commercial value and artistic integrity.

Since its inception, the company has produced nearly 30 films on topics such as Hurricane Katrina, post-conflict resolution in Nepal, and a film about Afghanistan.

The film Coda was the big winner of the night, winning three top categories: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture and Troy Kotsur for Best Supporting Actor.

This post was written by Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D., founder & editor-in-chief of The Burton Wire. Follow Nsenga on Instagram or Twitter @Ntellectual or @ TheBurtonWire.

THEINNER-CITY INNER-CITY NEWS March 30, 2022 - April 2022 NEWS -July 27, 2016 - August 02,05, 2016

Request for Proposal (RFP) NOTICE Small Business Energy Advantage Eversource EnergyMACRI ServiceRENTAL Company (“Eversource”) and United Illuminating (“UI”), VALENTINA HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE Connecticut Natural Gas (“CNG”), and Southern Connecticut Gas (“SCG”) subsidiaries of AVANGRID, Inc., referred to as the Companies, as administrators of the ConHOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, necticut Energy Efficiency Fund, are soliciting proposals from qualified contractors is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this develto install energy-effi cient equipment measures for existing small business customers opment at 108 Frank Street, New Haven.

Maximum income limitations apthrough thelocated Small Business Energy Advantage Program (SBEA).

ply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y 25, 2016 and ending whensubmit sufficient (approximately 100) have Interested contractors should yourpre-applications intent to bid to SBEACT@eversource.com received at the offices HOME INC. Applications will number be mailied andbeen include your company name,ofprimary contact name, phone andupon emailreno quest callingApril HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during thosedetails hours.below.

Completed prelater thanby Friday, 8, 2022 after reviewing the program Bid invitaapplications must be returned INC’s Procurement offices at 171Department.

Orange Street, Third tions will be coordinated through to theHOME Eversource Interested contractors willHaven, need to Floor, New CTregister 06510. in Eversource’s sourcing platform, ARIBA, in order to participate in the RFP. Instructions will be provided once you indicate your intent to bid.

NOTICIA

Awarded contractors will be required to submit self-generated, qualified leads. They MACRIsite VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES must VALENTINA conduct customer assessments to evaluate the electrical, natural gas, oil and propane saving opportunities. Contractors shall have the ability to provide detail and coordinate installation fordeall measures including, butestá not HOME INC, en nombre la potential Columbus Energy House y effi de laciency New Haven Housing Authority, limited to, weatherization improvements, high-efficiency lighting with controls, adaceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo vanced thermostats, equipment with controls, frequency drives ubicado en la callerefrigeration 109 Frank Street, New Haven.

Se aplicanvariable limitaciones de ingresos for máximos. operatingLas equipment, HVACestarán equipment upgrades and energy management systems. pre-solicitudes disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 They must also be cuando capablesetohan engage with a customized, internet(aproximadamente based system provide julio, 2016 hasta recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes 100) by the Companies training provided to allserán awarded contractors. en las oficinas defollowing HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes enviadas por correo a petición

llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse Those contractors submitting a bid will be evaluated on their ability to support the a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510 . program through a dedicated sales staff plus an in-house team, audit and build projects.

In addition, contractors will be asked to submit examples of previous energy efficiency comprehensive projects.

The Companies offer customer incentives for qualified energy-efficient installation services to offset a portion of the project costs. Zero percent, on bill financing is also available for those customers who qualify. Not all utility customers qualify, and these offerings are limited to small businesses as defined by each utility within their program implementation manual. 242-258 Fairmont Ave

NEW HAVEN

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

A bidders conference call will be held on April 8, 2022 from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. to answer All newprospective apartments, appliances, new carpet,may close to I-91 I-95 any questions or new current program contractors have.

The &conference highways, near bus stop to & shopping center call will be open to qualifi ed contractors willing operate in Eversource and Avangrid/ UI CT service territories.

Pet under 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 Energize ConnecticutSM – Programs funded by a charge on customer energy bills.

CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates 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. (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster St. New Haven, CT

State of Connecticut Office of Policy and Management

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY The State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management is recruiting for an

Executive andby a Secretary 1. Authority of the Town of Seymour Sealed bidsSecretary are invited the Housing Further information regardingAugust the duties, application until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, 2, eligibility 2016 at requirements its office at and 28 Smith Street, instructions are available at: Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the https://www.jobapscloud.com/CT/sup/bulpreview.

Smithfield Gardensasp?R1=220315&R2=3594SE&R3=001 Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour. and

A pre-bid conference will be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith https://www.jobapscloud.com/CT/sup/bulpreview.

Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. asp?R1=220314&R2=6976CL&R3=001 The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer

anddocuments strongly encourages the applications of women,Housing minorities, and Bidding are available from the Seymour Authority Ofpersons with disabilities. fice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

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

DRIVER CDL CLASS A

$220,000,000* State of Connecticut

University of Connecticut General Obligation Bonds, 2022 Series A

Full Time – All Shifts Top Pay-Full Benefits EOE Please apply in person: 1425 Honeyspot Rd. Ext. Stratford, CT 06615

Preliminary Pricing Information Retail Order Period*

Institutional Period*

Expected Maturities

Monday and Tuesday, March 28-29, 2022

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

2023 through 2042

Expected Tax Status

Interest is federally tax-exempt and state tax-exempt for Connecticut residents** Ratings from Moody’s, S&P and Fitch are Aa3/A+/A+, respectively

For more information on these Bonds, including the Preliminary Official Statement, please visit: or contact any of the firms below.

RBC Capital Markets 800-243-2478 Piper Sandler & Co. 800-552-0614

Mesirow Financial, Inc. 800-558-7290

Academy Securities 855-212-3239

Blaylock Van, LLC 877-591-7072

Cabrera Capital Markets LLC 800-291-2388

Citigroup 855-644-7252

Drexel Hamilton, LLC 212-632-0406

Fidelity Capital Markets 800-544-5372

J.P. Morgan 855-231-8873

Mischler Financial Group, Inc. 800-820-0640

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. 866-208-1368

Raymond James 877-295-9116

Rice Financial Products Co. 888-740-7423

Roosevelt & Cross Inc. 800-348-3426

Siebert Williams Shank & Co., LLC 800-334-6800

Stern Brothers 800-466-5519

Stifel 800-679-5446

TD Securities 212-827-7172

*Preliminary, subject to change. ** Before purchasing any Bonds, contact your tax advisor to determine any applicable federal, state and local tax consequences.

These Bonds may not be sold, nor may offers to buy be accepted, prior to the time an Official Statement is delivered in final form. Under no circumstances shall this announcement constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of the Bonds in any jurisdiction in which an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities law of any such jurisdiction. Bonds are subject to availability. The Bonds will only be sold by means of an Official Statement.

Deputy Director/Director of Transportation Planning The South Central Regional Council of Governments (SCRCOG) is seeking to fill the Deputy Director/Director of Transportation Planning position. Visit www.scrcog.org for the full position description, qualiInvitation to Bid: fications, and application requirements.

Applications are to be submitNotice Questions may be emailed to 2nd2022. ted by noon on Friday, April 22, jobs@scrcog.org. SCRCOG is an Affirmative Action/Equal OpportuSAYEBROOKE VILLAGE nity Employer.

Old Saybrook, CT (4 Buildings, 17 Units) QSR STEEL Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project CORPORATION

APPLY NOW!

New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, Castin-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Steel Fabricators, Erectors & Welders Electrical, Top pay for topMechanical, performers.

Health Plumbing and Fire Protection.

Benefi ts, 401K, Vacation Pay.set-aside and contract compliance requirements.

This contract is subject to state Email Resume: Rose@qsrsteel.com Hartford, CT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 Project documents available via ftp link below: http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

TOWN PLANNER

Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 AA/EEO EMPLOYER

Full-time position Go to www.portlandct.org for details 20

APPLY NOW!

Steel Fabricators, Erectors & Welders Top pay for top performers. Health Benefits, 401K, Vacation Pay.

www.BuyCTBonds.com or call 877.552.8266

Loop Capital Markets 888-294-8898

QSR STEEL CORPORATION

Email Resume: Rose@qsrsteel.com Hartford, CT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Town of Bloomfield

Vehicle Mechanic Technician Salary $30.97 hourly (non-CDL) Salary $31.91 hourly (CDL) Pre-employment drug testing.

AA/EOE.

For Details go to www.bloomfieldct.org

Town of Bloomfield Maintainer II Salary $28.58 hourly Pre-employment drug testing.

AA/EOE. For Details go to HYPERLINK "http://www.bloomfieldct.org/" www.bloomfieldct.org

NEWS -July 27,30 2016 - August 02,05, 2016 THEINNER-CITY INNER-CITY NEWS March , 2022 - April 2022

State Program Waiting List Opening Notice

Starting April 7, 2022, at 8:30 a.m. through April 21, 2022, at 4:30 p.m. the Housing Authority of the City of Bristol (BHA) will accept pre-applications for the efficiency and 1-bedroom units at Mountain Laurel Manor. This property is for Elderly (62 and over) and Disabled individuals only. All units are rent-subsidized and rent is based on VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE the tenant’s income. To get qualification information on how to apply, go to our BHA website at www.bristolhousing.org or the United Way 211 website at www.cthcvp.org. onhousing behalf ofprovider Columbus New Havenbased Housing Authority, WeHOME are anINC, equal andHouse we doand notthe discriminate on race, color, is accepting for studio and one-bedroom apartments at thisidentity, develnational origin,pre-applications religion, sex, actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender opment marital locatedor atfamilial 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations apdisability, status. 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 been received at the offices INC. Applications will be mailied upon reAviso de Apertura de of la HOME Lista de Espera del Programa Estatal quest del by calling HOME INCaatlas203-562-4663 during hours.

Completed pre-p.

A partir 7 de abril de 2022 8:30 a. m. hasta el 21those de abril de 2022 a las 4:30 applications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third m. La Autoridad de Vivienda de la Ciudad de Bristol (BHA) aceptará solicitudes preFloor, Haven, CT 06510. y de 1 dormitorio en Mountain Laurel Manor. Esta vias paraNew las unidades de eficiencia propiedad es para personas mayores de 62 años o más y para personas discapacitadas.

La renta es con subsidio y basada en el ingreso del residente. Para obtener información de calificación sobre cómo presentar una solicitud, visite nuestra la página web de BHA en www.bristolhousing.org o la página web de United Way 211 en www.cthcvp.org.

VALENTINA MACRI DE ALQUILER Somos un proveedor de VIVIENDAS vivienda equitativa y no PRE-SOLICITUDES discriminamos por DISPONIBLES motivos de raza, color, origen nacional, religión, HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 julio, 2016 cuando hana.m. recibido suficientes (aproximadamente 100) Starting Aprilhasta 7, 2022, at se 8:30 through April pre-solicitudes 21, 2022, at 4:30 p.m. the Housing en las oficinas de HOME INC.(BHA) Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por a petición Authority of the City of Bristol will accept pre-applications forcorreo efficiency, 1-bedroom 2-bedroom units at Bonnie Acres, Apartments anddeberán Gaylord Towllamando aand HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esasJKF horas.Pre-solicitudes remitirse ers.a las These unitsdeare for Elderly over)Street, and Disabled individuals only. will. oficinas HOME INC en(62 171and Orange tercer piso, New Haven , CTWe 06510 also be accepting pre-applications for 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-bedroom units at Cambridge Park, a family site. All properties are rent-subsidized, and rent is based on the tenant’s income. To get qualification information on how to apply, go to our BHA website www.bristolhousing.org or the United Way 211 Website at www.cthcvp.org.

We are an equal housing provider and we do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, marital or familial status.

NOTICE

NOTICIA

Federal Program Waiting List Opening Notice

NEW HAVEN

242-258 Fairmont Ave Townhouse, 1.5a. BA, 3BR, 1 abril levelde ,2022 1BA A partir del2BR 7 de abril de 2022 a las 8:30 m. hasta el 21 de a las 4:30 p.

Aviso de apertura de la lista de espera del Programa Federal

m. la Autoridad de Vivienda de la appliances, Ciudad de Bristol All new apartments, new new (BHA) carpet,aceptará close tosolicitudes I-91 & I-95para las unidades de 1 y 2highways, dormitoriosnear en Bonnie Acres, JKF Apartments bus stop & shopping center y Gaylord Towers. Esta lista es para personas mayores de 62 años o más y para personas discapacPet under 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 itadas. La renta es con subsidio y es basada en el ingreso del residente. También aceptaremos solicitudes para las lista de 1, 2, 3 y 4 habitaciones en Cambridge Park. Esta lista paraDeacon’s familias.

Para obtener información de calificación sobre cómo presentar CT. es Unified Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s Certificate Program. is alistas, 10 month program designed to assist in the formation of Candidates una solicitud para This estas visite nuestra página web deintellectual BHA www.bristolhousing. to the Church’s Ministry needs. The cost is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:30orgin oresponse la página web de United Way 211 en www.cthcvp.org.

3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. Somos un proveedor de vivienda equitativa y Pastor no discriminamos por motivos deBrewster raza, (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 color, origen religión, sexo, orientación sexual real o percibida, identidad de St. New Haven,nacional, CT género, discapacidad, estado civil o familiar.

SEYMOURDevelopment HOUSING AUTHORITY Economic Specialist

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, The Town of Wallingford is seeking a qualified individual to develop and implement the Seymour,business CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs at the marketing, recruitment and retention programs forand the Replacement Town of Wallingford.

Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree from a college or university in economics,

business, public administration, planning or related field, plus three (3) years’ experience in municipal economic office or agency, or equivalent A pre-bid conference willdevelopment be held at the Housing Authority Officecombination 28 Smith of education and qualifying experience substituting on a year - for year basis. Wages: Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. $65,000 to 80,000 annually. The closing date for applications is April 14, 2022. Apply to: Department of Human Resources, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492.areApplication materials be emailed to wlfdhr@wallingBidding documents available from the can Seymour Housing Authority Offordct.gov.

Application will be from the Department of fice, 28 Smith Street,forms Seymour, CTmailed 06483upon (203)request 888-4579.

Human Resources or may be downloaded from the Department of Human Resources Web Page. Phone #: (203) 294-2080; Fax #: (203) 294-2084. EOE

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 informalities in the bidding, if such actions are in the best interest of the

CITY OF MILFORD NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR Seeking qualified condidates to

fill numerous vacancies to include, Deputy Assessor, Mechanic Sewer Line, Public Health Nurse and more. For information and detailed application instructions, visit www.ci.milford.ct.us Click on SERVICES, JOBS and JOB TITLE.

DELIVERY PERSON

NEEDED Must Have your Own Vehicle If Interested call

Part Time Delivery Needed One/Two Day a Week,

(203) 435-1387

DRIVER CDL CLASS A Full Time – All Shifts Top

Pay-Full Benefits

THE ELM CITYCOMMUNITIES, HOUSING AUTHORITY OF NEWHAVEN (ECC/HANH) PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE LIPH ADMISSION AND COMTINUED OCCUPANCY PLAN (ACOP) AND HCV ADMINISTRATIVE PLAN (ADMIN PLAN)

Elm City Communities, the Housing Authority of the City of New Haven (ECC/ HANH) is proposing to amend sections of its Low-Income Public Housing Admissions and Continued Occupancy Policy (ACOP) and the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Administrative Plan (Admin Plan).

Copies of the amendment to the ACOP and the Administrative Plan will be made available on Monday, April 4, 2022 on the agency website www.elmcitycommunities.org or via Twitter, www.twitter.com/ECCommunities or via Facebook www.facebook.com/ ElmCityCommunities.

You are invited to provide written comments addressed to: ECC/HANH, ACOP & Admin Plan Revisions; Attn: Evelise Ribeiro, 360 Orange Street, New Haven, CT 06511 or via email to: eribeiro@elmcitycommunities.org.

A public hearing where public comments will be accepted and recorded is scheduled for Monday, May 2 2022 at 2:00pm via RingCentral: https://meetings.ringcentral.com/j/14 42345626?pwd=V01CUkxOZVBvTDVjeDlIcXV4T0luUT09 Password: 325851 Or Phone: US: +1(646)3573664, Meeting ID: 144 234 5626 Any individual requiring a Reasonable Accommodation to participate in the hearing may call the Reasonable Accommodation Manager (203) 498-8800, ext. 1507 or at the TDD Number (203) 497-8434.

AVISO DE AUDIENCIA PÚBLICA PARA

LAS COMUNIDADES DE LA CIUDAD DE ELM, AUTORIDAD DE VIVIENDA EOE Please apply in person: DE NEWHAVEN (ECC/HANH) ENMIENDA PROPUESTA AL PLAN DE 1425 Honeyspot Rd. Ext. ADMISIÓN Y OCUPACIÓN CONTINUA (ACOP) Y AL PLAN Stratford, CT 06615Invitation to Bid: ADMINISTRATIVO DE HCV (PLAN ADMIN) DEL LIPH 2nd Notice

Elm City Communities, la Autoridad de Vivienda de la Ciudad de New Haven (ECC/

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE HANH) propone enmendar secciones de su Admisión a Viviendas Públicas de Bajos SENIOR ADMINITRATIVE

Ingresos Old Saybrook, CT y Política de Ocupación Continua (ACOP) y el Plan Administrativo de Vales de Elección de Vivienda (HCV) (Admin Plan).

(4 Buildings, 17 Units) Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Las Wage copiasRate de laProject enmienda al ACOP y el Plan Administrativo estarán disponibles el

ASSISTANT Full-time position

lunes 4 de abril de 2022 en el sitio web de la agencia www.elmcitycommunities.org o

a través de Twitter, www.twitter.com/ECCommunities o a través de Facebook www.

Newto Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, CastGo www.portland/Comunidades de ElmCity. in-place Concrete, Asphaltfacebook.com Shingles, Vinyl Siding, ct.org for details Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential comentarios Casework, por escrito dirigidos a: ECC/HANH, ACOP & Se le invita a proporcionar Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing Fire Protection.

Adminand Plan Revisions; Atención: Evelise Ribeiro, 360 Orange Street, New Haven, CT QSR STEEL CORPORATION 06511 o por correo electrónico a: eribeiro@elmcitycommunities.org.

This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements.

APPLY NOW! Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016

Una audiencia pública donde se aceptarán y grabarán los comentarios públicos está programada para el lunes 2 de mayo de 2022 a las 2:00 p. m. a través de RingCentral: Steel Fabricators, Erectors & Welders Anticipated Start: https://meetings.ringcentral.com/j/1442345626?pwd=V01CUkxOZVBvTDVjeDlIcX August 15, 2016 Top pay for top performers. Health V4T0luUT09 Project documents available via ftp linkContraseña: below: 325851 Benefits, 401K, Vacation Pay. O Teléfono: http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage Email Resume: Rose@qsrsteel.com Hartford, CT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

EE. UU.: +1(646)3573664, ID de reunión: 144 234 5626

Cualquier persona que requiera una Adaptación Razonable para participar en la audiFax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com encia puede llamar al Gerente de Adaptación Razonable (203) 498-8800, ext. 1507 o HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 al Número TDD (203) 497-8434 AA/EEO EMPLOYER THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF NORWALK, CT IS REQUESTING PROPOSALS FROM CONSULTANTS OR ARCHITECTURAL/ENGINEERING FIRMS FOR AN UPDATED PHYSICAL NEEDS Full Time, Benefits, Top Pay ASSESSMENT OF 12 FEDERAL FINANCED HOUSING PROPERTIES. TO OBTAIN A COMPLETE COPY OF THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS, CONTACT GUILLERMO BENDANA, PROCUREMENT Apply:Pace, 1425 Honeyspot SPECIALIST AT GBENDA@NORWALKHA.OGR NORWALK HOUSING IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMRd. Ext., Stratford, CT EOE PLOYER. ADAM BOVILSKY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.

MECHANIC TRACTOR TRAILER

21

THEINNER-CITY INNER-CITY NEWS March , 2022 - April 2022 NEWS -July 27, 30 2016 - August 02,05, 2016

Construction

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced in Seeking to employ experienced individuals in the labor, Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory foreman, operator and teamster trades for a heavy outside training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT work statewide. Reliable personal transportation and a valWe offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits id drivers license required. To apply please call (860) 621Contact: Tom Dunay VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE 1720 or send resume to: Personnel Department, P.O. Box 368, Cheshire, CT06410.

Phone: 860- 243-2300 HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, Email: tom.dunay@garrityasphalt.com is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom this develAffiatrmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/V Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to applyapartments Drug Free Workforce opment located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven.

Maximum income limitations apAffirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer 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 been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon reGarrity Asphalt Incduring seeks: CT Fence quest by calling HOMEReclaiming, INC at 203-562-4663 those hours.Large Completed pre- Company looking for an individual for our Reclaimer Operators and Milling Operators with current licensing PVCStreet, Fence Third Production Shop. Experience preferred but will applications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange and clean driving record, be willing to travel throughout the Northtrain the right person. Must be familiar with carpentry hand Floor, New Haven, CT 06510. east & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits & power tools and be able to read a CAD drawing and tape measure. Use of CNC Router machine a plus but not required, will train the right person. This is an in-shop production poContact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860- 243-2300 sition. Duties include building fence panels, posts, gates and Email: rick.touMust have a valid CT driver’s license & be able to obtain VALENTINAsignant@garrityasphalt.com MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDESmore.

DISPONIBLES a Drivers Medical Card. Must be able to pass a physical and Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply drug test. Please email resume to pboucher@atlasoutdoor.com.

Affirmative Action/deEqual Opportunity HOME INC, en nombre la Columbus House y Employer de la New Haven Housing Authority, está AA/EOE-MF aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 Tractor Trailer Driver for Heavy & Highway Construction Equipjulio,Must 2016have hastaacuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes ment.

CDL License, clean driving record, capable of (aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas porSeeking correo atopetición operating heavyde equipment; be willing to travel throughout the employ experienced individuals in the labor, foreman, llamando HOME INC alexcellent 203-562-4663 horas.Pre-solicitudes deberánand remitirse Northeast &aNY. We offer hourlydurante rate &esas excellent benefits operator teamster trades for a heavy outside work statewide. a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT personal 06510 . transportation and a valid drivers license reReliable

NOTICE

PVC FENCE PRODUCTION

THE GLENDOWER GROUP, INC. Request for Proposals Construction Monitor The Glendower Group, Inc. is currently seeking proposals for a construction monitor. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Glendower’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/ gateway

beginning on Monday, March 28, 2022 at 3:00PM.

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES Request for Proposals UCaaS

NOTICIA

Union Company seeks:

Contact Dana at 860-243-2300

Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

NEW HAVEN

Construction

quired. To apply please call (860) 621-1720 or send resume to: Personnel Department, P.O. Box 368, Cheshire, CT06410.

Elm City Communities is currently seeking proposals for UCaas. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City Communities’ Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on

Monday, March 28, 2022 at 3:00PM.

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES Request for Proposals Intelligent Document Management

Elm City Communities is currently seeking proposals for intelligent document management. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm Drug Free Workforce City Communities’ Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.

Invitation to Bid: cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on nd State of Connecticut 2 Notice Office of Policy Monday, March 21, 2022 at 3:00PM. and Management

Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/V

242-258 Fairmont Ave 2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA All new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 highways, near bus stop & shopping center Pet under 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates 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. (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster St. New Haven, CT

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.

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Office, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

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

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Old Saybrook, CT (4 Buildings,The 17 Units) Norwalk Housing Authority and Heritage Housing, Inc. are seekThe State of Connecticut, Office of Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing RateedProject Policy and Management is recruiting ing Wage a qualifi Arch/CM/GC for a Multi-Family Housing Project. The for an Agency Labor Relations project consists of the construction of 69 new mixed-income housing Specialist.

New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, units on property located inCastNorwalk, CT. The development may be Further information regarding the duties, in-place Concrete, Asphaltfunded Shingles, Vinyl Siding, through the State of Connecticut Department of Housing and eligibility requirements and application instructions are available Flooring, Painting, Divisionat:10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, other sources.

Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity regulations https://www.jobapscloud. apply.and A Fire fullProtection. copy of the RFQ Bid is available from Heritage HousMechanical, Electrical, Plumbing com/CT/sup/bulpreview.asp?

Inc. bycompliance emailing requirements. a request to Niall Farrell (nfarrell@heritagehousThis contract is subject to state set-asideing, and contract R1=220224&R2=5257MP&R3=001 inginc.com).

The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer Due Date: August 5, 2016 Bid Extended, and strongly encourages the applications Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 of women, minorities, and persons Economic Development Specialist with disabilities.

Project documents available via ftpoflink below: is seeking a qualified individual to develop and implement the The Town Wallingford marketing, business recruitment and retention programs for the Town of Wallingford. http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree from a college or university in economics, business, public administration, planning or related field, plus three (3) years’ experiFax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com ence in municipal economic development office or agency, or equivalent combination HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses of education and qualifying experience substituting on a year - for year basis. Wages: Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 Full Time –Haynes All Construction Shifts Top $65,000 to 80,000 annually. The closing date for applications is April 14, 2022. ApAA/EEO EMPLOYER ply to: Department of Human Resources, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492. Application materials can be emailed to wlfdhr@wallingEOE Please apply in person: fordct.gov. Application forms will be mailed upon request from the Department of 1425 Honeyspot Rd. Ext. Human Resources or may be downloaded from the Department of Human Resources Web Page. Phone #: (203) 294-2080; Fax #: (203) 294-2084. EOE Stratford, CT 06615

DRIVER CDL CLASS A Pay-Full Benefits

22

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

Join The Inner City Newspaper As We Celebrate The Achievements Of Women During Women’s History Month!

HISTORY DURING THE MONTH OF MARCH,

The Inner City Newspaper

will present our “Annual Women’s History Month Commemorative Issues!”

These Special Edition Issues published each week during March, will be a tribute to the achievements of Women from a historical perspective as well as a celebration of the lives of women who impact our communities, Our region, and who through their works, have made an impact throughout the country.

These issues will focus on Women's Health , Lifestyle, Fashion, Careers, Entertainment, Relationships, and Comfortable Living!

We invite your business to utilize these showcase editions as a platform to place your branding messages in premium locations throughout these keepsake issues! For more information on how your business can play a prominent role in these productions, call the Inner City News Advertising Department at: (203) 387-0354.

Circulation Breakdown

Circulation Breakdown Inner-City News Market CIRCULATION BREAKDOWN

GET THE FACTS

Connecticut has

16.5% non-white population. The figure

Published: weekly / circulation:

for the inner city newspaper coverage area is an overwhelming

44%.

25,000 / Readership:

100,000 Where: over

750+ racks throughout the New Haven and

Bridgeport area.

Within the inner city distribution area, the cities with the largest non-white populations are: Bridgeport

New haven

53.1% New haven 49.3%

60% Bridgeport 40%

New Haven, Westhaven, Hamden, North Haven, Bridgeport,

This represents a vital consumer base and an important seg-

Orange, Ansonia, Milford, Waterbury

ment of the population that cannot be ignored! Media market research (MRI) reported that

30.3% of the black popu$40,000 a year!

Here are some quick facts about our readers.

35–78 College educated: 53% 46%– 54% Home owners: 34%

lation have household incomes of over

Age:

10%

Male / Female:

of this population have incomes of 70,000 or more!

Place your message where people place their trust.

The

Inner-City Penfield Communications inc.

News

Connecticut’s first choice for urban news since 1990.

5 0 Fi t c h S t r e e t ,

New Haven, C T 06515 | Phone: 203.387.0354 w w w. i n n e r c i t y o n l i n e . c o m

23

|

Fa x :

203.387.2684

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 30, 2022 - April 05, 2022

The secret’s out.

Introducing game-changing savings.

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Offer ends 4/3/22. Restrictions apply. Not available in all areas. New customers only. Limited to Gigabit Internet and one line of Xfinity Mobile Unlimited data. Savings based on combination of promotional discount for Gigabit Internet and Xfinity Mobile Unlimited discount as compared to regular rate for Gigabit Internet. Internet: Gig-speed WiFi requires Gigabit Internet and compatible xFi Gateway. WiFi is shareable across all devices in your home. Actual speeds vary and not guaranteed. Many factors affect speed, including equipment performance, interference, congestion, and speeds of visited websites. WiFi speeds affected by additional factors, including distance from Gateway, home configuration, personal device capabilities, and others. For factors affecting speed visit www.xfinity.com/networkmanagement. All devices must be returned when service ends. Xfinity Mobile: Requires post-pay Xfinity Internet. Line limitations may apply. For Xfinity Mobile Broadband Disclosures visit: www.xfinity.com/mobile/policies/broadband-disclosures. Xfinity Mobile utilizes the network with the most RootMetrics 5G data reliability wins in 2H 2021. Results may vary. Award is not endorsement. Xfinity customers will auto-connect to Xfinity WiFi when available and not use the wireless network. RootMetrics did not test WiFi networks. Call for restrictions and complete details. NPA239608-0003 NED-AA-BMD-V5

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2/15/22 2:14 PM