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THEINNER-CITY INNER-CITY NEWS May27, 15,2016 2019- August - May 21, NEWS- July 02, 2019 2016

House Passes GunaStorage Lawatwith Support Financial Justice Key Focus 2016Bipartisan NAACP Convention New Haven, Bridgeport

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Volume 27 . No. 2330 Volume 21 No. 2194

Ida Ruth Wells Corner Christened

$1 Bus Fare Offered In Exchange For Tolls

“DMC”

Malloy Malloy To To Dems: Dems:

Dozens of friends, family, neighbors, and admirers came out to the corner of County Street and Henry Street in Newhallville Friday afternoon to celebrate the life of the late Ida Ruth Wells.

Ignore Ignore“Tough “ToughOn OnCrime” Crime”

Color Struck? Viola Davis Diabetes Diagnosis andSnowReveals in July? Nursing Home Workers Campaign to Raise Awareness Authorize Strike, SetUS NewON Date FOLLOW 1

THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

House Passes Gun Storage Law with Bipartisan Support by Jack Kramer

Ct. news Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — “Ethan’s Law” which would require all firearms, loaded and unloaded, to be safely stored in homes occupied by minors under 18 years of age easily passed the House on Tuesday with bipartisan support. The bill, which passed by a 127-16 vote, would allow prosecutors to criminally charge the owner of a gun that isn’t properly stored. It now moves to the Senate. Gov. Ned Lamont has already endorsed the legislation. Connecticut’s current safe storage law only requires that loaded firearms be properly stored “if a minor is likely to gain access to the firearm without the permission of the parent or guardian of the minor.” Ethan Song, of Guilford, died of a selfinflicted gunshot. The 15-year-old accidentally shot himself in the head in January 2018, the Waterbury state’s attorney’s office said after concluding its investigation. A juvenile friend of Ethan’s was charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death. Ethan’s parents, Kristin and Mike Song, have become nationally known advocates for stronger gun storage laws since the death of their son. The Songs watched the vote from the House gallery. Following the vote, Kristin Song used a word that’s she’s used before to describe her feelings as the legislation has moved forward “bittersweet.”

CHRISTINE STUART / CTNEWSJUNKIE PHOTO

Kristin Song receives a hug and Michael Song clutches his hands to gesture thanks to the House Song spent her morning picking out a tombstone for her son, which is something she said she’s been unable to do since his death.

“I just kept thinking how ironic it was that I was picking out a tombstone for my son on the same day we’re going up to do Ethan’s Law,” Song said.

but those votes wouldn’t be needed if all or even a vast majority of the Democrats in the House and Senate voted to legalize. But those votes at least right now don’t seem to be there, even though recent polls have indicated that a majority of Connecticut residents favor legalization. And the clergy in attendance at Friday’s press conference mean to keep it that way. “Don’t let big money mess with our kids,” said Abraham Hernandez, pastor for the Second Star of David Christian Church in New Haven. Hernandez also urged legislators to “not fall for the rhetoric” they’ve heard from some proponents that legalization would address the issue of minorities being arrested as a higher rate than caucasians. ‘“That rhetoric really stirs us,” Hernandez said. “Our residents are being misled and it’s just not right.” Also imploring the legislators to “just say” no was the Rev. Carl McCluster, pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Bridgeport. “I wear a tie every day but I took my tie off today because it’s time for a fight,” McCluster said. McCluster said he was ready to fight the “thugs who have come into our community, into our state, to advocate for activities to

destroy our youth.” McCluster said he might be “on the streets today” if he didn’t straighten himself out after “at age 16 some of my friends enticed me to try marijuana.” McCluster said the high from pot wasn’t enough for him so he moved on to harder drugs, a concern he said he has for youth today if marijuana is legalized in Connecticut. He also said he can’t stomach the argument that if marijuana is legalized that some money should be spent on funding drug addiction programs. “So we’re going to get the money from marijuana and we’re going to use part of it to treat the problem that the money creates,” McCluster said incredulously. “That doesn’t make sense to me.” A bill which passed the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee last week by a vote of 29-21 would establish a state gross receipts tax of 6.35% on retail cannabis sales for adult use and a 3% local sales tax on retail sales. All of the state tax revenue would be deposited into the Community Development Corporation Trust Fund to pay for things like early literacy education and community development corporations that focus

Michael Song said at times during the debate he felt like Ethan was right next to him and at other times he was so far away from him that he couldn’t bear it. “To see people meet in the middle is really gratifying,” Song said. Kristin Song added that she’s “so happy people are willing to step up and make a change, especially the Republicans.” She said she was perplexed by some of the pushback against the bill because it doesn’t infringe on anybody’s right to own a gun. “We have so much more in common than what separates us. We all want to keep our loved ones safe, we all want to keep guns out of the hands of the bad guys, we all want a safer America,” Kristin Song said. “There is a balance between freedom and responsibility. Freedom is great, but it has always come with limits.” Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, told his colleagues: “My community, my hometown suffered an unspeakable tragedy. Ethan’s parents did everything right; they raised Ethan and two other kids as best as they could and yet, there was nothing they could do. “Somebody else, a different person, improperly stored a firearm,” Scanlon said. Looking up at the gallery where the Songs were listening to the debate, Scanlon told the couple that they “have showed more courage than I thought was possible in two people.” Scanlon continued: “To bury a child and then go out in public and try and change something, try to change our state. But to-

day we are going to do something very special in his honor and your honor.” Rep. Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, whose district includes Guilford, worked with Scanlon and the other shoreline legislators on the bill and has noted in the past that he was one who has not been a strong supporter of repealing gun owner rights. But he said “Ethan’s Law” was an example “of the way we should do things in this chamber,” noting the bill came from dialogues between legislators of both parties, rather than confrontation. Again, referring to the Songs, Candelora said: “I hope this bill will start the healing process for them.” Part of the language bill does not mandate but rather calls for state education officials to provide guidance to local school districts on developing firearm safety programs in schools. The president of largest Second Amendment organization in Connecticut, Connecticut Citizens Defense League President Scott Wilson, was happy that language is part of the bill. “Rather than criminalizing gun ownership, teaching children to understand the importance of what can happen if a firearm is handled without adult supervision is much more important,” Wilson said. The Songs will be making a return trip to Washington later this month, Kristin Song said, when Connecticut Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro is expected to introduce federal legislation modeled after Connecticut’s “Ethan’s Law” bill.

Clergy to Legislators: ‘Just Say No’ by Jack Kramer

Ct. news Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — Clergy from across Connecticut came to Hartford on Friday to make a passionate pitch to legislators to resist backing the legalization of recreational marijuana. While bills calling for legalization have made it through various committees, none have been called for a vote or even a debate on the House or Senate floor. And the clock is ticking toward the end of the legislative session at midnight, June 5. The group of clergy on Friday urged legislators to resist the temptation or promised dollars that legalization would bring to the cash-starved state, stating that the cost of legalization would far outweigh the benefit. One of those legislators was Rep. Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, who was in attendance at the press conference and has been a consistent voice against legalization. “This has to do with quality of life and other social impacts,” Candelora said. “Connecticut is going in the wrong direction with legalization and I hope we are able to stop it this session.” Currently, not a single Republican in either the House or Senate has said they would support legalizing recreational marijuana,

COURTESY OF CT-N

Abraham Hernandez, pastor for the Second Star of David Christian Church in New Haven on improving the lives of people living in economically distressed and underserved communities. Local tax funds would go to the localities where the retail sales occurred. An amendment was attached to the bill stipulating that an unspecified amount of funding taken in from legalization would

be set aside to treat mental health and addiction issues in all of the state’s communities. Proponents stress that the amendment was put into place to ensure some of the money is spent on helping with such services only when and if recreational marijuana is legalized.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Nursing Home Workers Authorize Strike, Set New Date

HARTFORD, CT — The on again-off again strike by more than 2,500 workers at 20 nursing homes across the state is back on again as union members Wednesday night authorized a new walk out date of June 3. Nursing home caregivers represented by the New England Health Care Employees Union, District 1199 SEIU, are demanding additional funding in the state budget to cover wage raises industry-wide for the next two years. Working under expired contracts over the past two years, caregivers did not get raises in 2016 and 2017 before getting a 2% increase in 2018 amounting to roughly 30 cents for most workers. But if the current state budget proposal is approved, they won’t receive raises in 2019 and 2020. A previously set May 1 strike by more than 2,500 workers at 20 nursing homes across the state was called off as the workers’ union said progress was being made in new contract negotiations. “More than 2,500 nursing home caregivers will be forced to walk out of their jobs until proper funding is provided to raise their take-home pay,” Rob Baril, president of SEIU 1199 New England said. “This is a last resort for workers who care dearly about the residents and patients they serve every day. “Some of our members are making as little as $10.93 per hour, or just 83 cents above the bare-minimum wage. This is totally unacceptable in a wealthy state like Connecticut,” Baril added. Baril said five more nursing homes with

600-plus workers may be joining the strike once their voting process has concluded. Further complicating matters is a bill to increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 over the next few years an amount that exceeds what many nursing home workers currently earn. The bill was being debated by legislators today and does not appear to contain any exemption for nursing homes. The CT Association of Health Care Facilities/CT Center for Assisted Living (CAHCF/CCAL) said as many as 150 nursing home staff will be at the state Capitol today to meet with their local legislators to urge them to support a 4% Medicaid rate increase for Connecticut’s skilled nursing facilities. What emerged following a recent union press conference about a possible strike several weeks ago was universal agreement that the workers deserved pay raises. However, what clearly is at odds is who is most responsible for coming up with the money the nursing home owners, the legislature, or the governor. The governor’s February budget proposal did not include additional Medicaid funding for wage increases over the next two years. The union estimates that the 4% raises would cost $40 million annually, but they quickly added that a large portion of the raises would be covered by Medicaid payments to nursing homes. “We pray for immediate action from our elected officials to fund wage increases for nursing home workers. We had no raise in 2016. No raise in 2017,” said Careene

JACK KRAMER / CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE

Careene Reid, a certified nursing associate at the Trinity Center Hill nursing home, speaks to reporters in April when her union had set an original strike deadline of May 1 Reid, a certified nursing assistant at Trinity Hill Care Center. “A 27-cent raise for me in 2018. And no raise coming our way in 2019 and 2020. “We demand the required funding from our state leaders. Our caregivers, as well as our patients and residents, and their families deserve better. But now we know we’ll have to fight in union to get the modest raises that we ask for.” Upon receiving an encouraging letter two

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weeks ago from Lamont asking for room to negotiate, workers withdrew the previous notice of intent to strike sent to Connecticut nursing homes, which was effective on May 1. The National Labor Relations Act requires labor unions to give health care employers a minimum notice of 10 days before going on strike. Wages for nursing home workers have grown, on average 2%, over the past four

years. Caregivers are also facing lower staffing ratios at nursing homes, and residents who require higher levels of care as the state of Connecticut’s population ages. The Connecticut Association of Healthcare Facilities has said that increased Medicaid resources for nursing homes is badly needed to help fund raises for the workers.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

$1 Bus Fare Offered In Exchange For Tolls by STAFF

New Haven Independent

If Gov. Ned Lamont succeeds in getting tolls reinstituted on state highways, he’ll cut CT Transit bus fare from $1.75 to $1 a ride. Lamont announced that deal during a press conference Monday morning at New Haven’s Union Station. He was joined by local officials and labor activists to make the case for the controversial electronic tolling plan, whose fate the legislature will determine in coming weeks. The governor said he needs the money from the tolls to upgrade the state’s trains, bus service, and highways. “We’ve got to do a better job of getting people out of those cars” and “allow people to get around the city of New Haven” on buses, the governor said. It was one of several references made during the press conference to how the toll plan could benefit cities like New Haven. Lamont spoke of how higher-speed rail to New York and Boston could help make Union Station “the crossroads of the state when it comes to transportation” and “bring cities back to life.” He noted Yale-New Haven Hospital’s recent announcement of plans to build an $838 million neuroscience center on its St. Raphael campus as an ex-

ample of the kind of next-generation jobs that better transportation can support. The governor also mentioned the high rates of asthma “for people living along highways”; New Haven’s Annex neighborhood, in the shadow of the I-91/I-95 interchange, has regularly shown up at the top of lists of places in the state with the greatest concentration of asthma cases. The tolls plan will probably include a “close to” 50 percent discount for in-state commuters and possible exemptions for low-income drivers, said New Haven State Rep. Roland Lemar (pictured at the top of the story), who co-chairs the legislature’s Transportation Committee. Lemar and Mayor Toni Harp also spoke of how tolls will draw 40 percent of their revenue from out-of-state drivers. Neighboring states are already collecting toll revenue from Connecticut drivers to build up their economies, Lemar noted, so Connecticut should do the same. Department of Transportation Commissioner Joseph J. Giulietti, who grew up in New Haven, noted how upgrading transit can spawn new development. In less than a year of operation, the new Hartford Line to New Haven has sparked plans for $400 million in “transit-oriented development” (TOD), he claimed. Some $200 million

New Haven Independent

In eighth grade, a transgender boy’s standardized test scores tanked after his former name appeared on every window on the computer-based test — a former name he’d wanted to keep secret from his classmates. “He had gone through a great deal of change to get to that point,” said his mom, Kathleen Rooney, a math teacher at Hill Regional Career High School. “This is not trivial; this is a huge issue for that child.” Rooney said that her two kids taught her about the rights that students with different sexual orientations or gender identities are guaranteed under state law, including about name recognition for transgender students. But Rooney said that she hadn’t heard much at all about those regulations from the district. “As a group, we really need to be more clear about what those laws are,” she said. “The diversity of our community is wonderful. We need to celebrate that, but we need to tools to deal with the different kinds of speech that our students use in terms of race and gender. We need real clear guidelines in our community about what’s not tolerated in any way.” Rooney, along with a half-dozen other activists, delivered that message at Monday night’s regular Board of Education meeting at Celentano School. They said that a halfcentury after the rebellion at Stonewall, the school district needs to do more to train educators about the LGBTQ+ students in their classrooms.

Kathleen Rooney to Board of Ed: I should be learning about LGBTQ+ rights from administrators, not just from my kids.

LGBTQ+ kids — the initials stand for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer report higher rates of bullying, harassment and discrimination. They often don’t feel safe in the classroom, and they often don’t see themselves in the textbooks. For more than a year, the New Haven LGBTQ+ Youth Task Force — a coalition of

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State Rep. Roland Lemar at Union Station press conference Monday. worth of TOD “has already sprung up” along the 9.4 miles of the CT Fast Track busway to Hartford, he added. A reporter asked the event’s emcee, New Haven Rising organizer, the Rev. Scott Marks (pictured above), whether low-income New Haveners can afford new tolls. “Yeah, if we had more people in construction doing good union work” on transit

projects, Marks responded. “This brings more opportunity. More tourism. We’re going to have more people be able to afford not only tolls but a decent quality of life.” Republican Bob Stefanowski, who ran against Democrat Lamont for governor last year, held a separate event on the New Haven Green earlier Monday blasting the tolls proposal.

LGBTQ+ View: New Policy Isn’t Enough by CHRISTOPHER PEAK

John P. Thomas

students, educators, city staffers, pediatricians, social workers and youth advocates has been fighting to change that locally. Their advocacy led the Board of Education to update its nondiscrimination policy; to train social workers, physical education teachers and wellness facilitators; and to send high schoolers to the annual True Colors conference. Another set of trainings is in the works for Central Office administrators, principals, health center nurses and school counselors. Superintendent Carol Birks said that the online training module, known as SafeSchools, could eventually be shared with all teachers. Task force members returned to the Board of Education on Monday night, though, to tell them that they now need to make sure the policies will actually be implemented. The task force members said that a complaint form to report discrimination is hard to find on the website, that specific questions about the LGBTQ+ experience weren’t included in the full climate survey, and that principals and teachers haven’t yet been trained on their legal responsibilities. “We live in a royal-blue city, yet our district seems to be publicly silent on LGBTQ identities and issues,” said David Weinreb, a Fair Haven School teacher who co-founded the task force. “I’m not sure schools have ever received a clear mandate or any kind of guidance from city-based supervisors to build safer schools for LGBTQ students. We are here to encourage you to do so.” Research has found that schools with re-

sources for gay and transgender students, like supportive teachers and inclusive lessons, have seen decreased absenteeism. Gay-straight alliances and anti-bullying policies were especially helpful for transgender students, a study from 2013 found. The task force members asked the Board of Education to do a better job of clarifying its rules in the unified code of conduct and student handbook, listing LGBTQ-specific resources in the family guide, organizing professional development for staff and including awareness of sexual orientation and gender identify in the curriculum. “As we continue our work with students and adults, we continue to hear heartbreaking stories of discrimination in our district that must stop,” Phillip Modeen, a librarian at the Stetson Branch, read from a letter signed by 23 task force members. “We care about the success and happiness of all students in our district and are committed to seeing that LGBTQ+ students are represented in the district’s new vision of #OneNewHaven.” After public comment ended, the board members asked Superintendent Birks what questions were asked on the climate survey and when trainings would take place. Tamiko Jackson-McArthur, the board’s secretary who chairs the Governance Committee, said that additional policy guidance would be on her agenda at this month’s committee meeting. The LGBTQ+ Youth Task Force meets every second Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at the New Haven Pride Center at 84 Orange St. The next meeting is scheduled for June 13.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

On Arts, Harp Goes In On Neighborhoods

Lucy Gellman, Editor, The Arts Paper www.newhavenarts.org

Mayor Toni Harp: “Part of the reason that we have such a vivacious, activated city is because of the arts. It’s often overlooked, but it’s part of what makes life inspiring and interesting for all of us.” Lucy Gellman Photo. Mayor Toni Harp hopes to dance into her fourth term in office. And if she does, her plan is to build on arts programming that already exists, while expanding the city’s cultural support in New Haven’s neighborhoods. Harp outlined that plan in a recent interview at City Hall, framed by a massive map of New Haven that hangs in her office. This year, she is running for reelection against 2013 opponent Justin Elicker, educator and labor organizer Seth Poole, and housing and homelessness advocates Wendy Hamilton and Urn Pendragon. “Part of the reason that we have such a vivacious, activated city is because of the arts,” she said. “It’s often overlooked, but it’s part of what makes life inspiring and interesting for all of us.” Harp’s first exposure to the arts took place far from New Haven, during her childhood in Utah. Born to a professional dancer and raised by her grandmother, Harp grew up taking dance lessons, which gradually became piano lessons, then violin lessons, then the school choir. In her school library, she spent study breaks looking at student art installations. During those years, she began a love affair with dance that stayed with her through a childhood polio diagnosis and weekly school dances where only one classmate ever asked her to join in. “I love to dance, because there’s a cer-

tain amount of freedom of expression that comes from that,” she said. “And I think we all have that.” Acting, too, became a sort of release for her during those years (click here for a 2014 article on flexing those skills in City Hall). Raised in the Baptist church, Harp first came to performance through poetry recitation, a skill that stayed with her through undergraduate theater at Roosevelt College in Chicago and then the Alliance Theatre (now the Alliance Children’s Theatre) in New Haven. Years ago, she played one of the witches in its production of Howard Richardson and William Berney’s Dark of the Moon. When she wasn’t acting,

she was serving on the board by constructing and striking sets. “I think that having that experience made me not as terrified to speak in public as I would have been otherwise,” she said. “In many ways, we are not often intentional about it. But part of what makes life worth living, in many respects, is having a way to artistically interpret our beliefs about the world. And I think we all do that sometimes without even realizing.” The experience changed the way she looked at arts learning and at New Haven. When Harp became a mom herself, she sent her daughters to the now-shuttered Dixwell Children’s Creative Arts Center, of which State Rep. Toni Walker was then executive director. She began making jewelry, navigating the intricacies of owning a small business while rising in state politics. As recently as last year, she took drawing classes at Creative Arts Workshop (CAW) on Audubon Street. In New Haven, she added, those experiences have fed her belief in arts education. While recent curricular consolidations have reduced the number of arts offerings in some schools (or meant that they operate on an after-school and volunteer basis) she noted that there is at least one music teacher per school, praising NHPS Performing and Visual Arts Supervisor Ellen Maust for her work in the district. She also recalled a recent Board of Education meeting, at which students performed selections from the August Wilson Monologue Competition. They’ve also convinced her that the arts play a vital role in New Haven’s economy. In six years, she has placed her cultural focus largely on city’s downtown, making the case for the arts as a catalyst for economic development. That began shortly after she entered City Hall in 2013, when she hired

Andy Wolf to run the city’s division of Arts, Culture and Tourism. During his time in New Haven, Wolf has split his focus between “branding” New Haven and bringing in acts from both in and outside the city and the state, many of which have performed publicly on the New Haven Green or at City Hall. He has also thrown the city several birthday parties, coordinated large-scale events including the city’s Grand Prix, and helped facilitate New Haven’s budding sister city relationship with Changsha, China. Reached by email Monday, Wolf praised Harp’s “passion for the arts, creative transformation, and remarkable grasp of a new urbanism that had taken root” in the city. “Who could have imagined a Washington Post feature on destination romantic getaways, or a Bloomberg Trend Analysis on the top locations for millennials to call ‘home’ with New Haven at the top of the list!” he wrote. “We continue to promote, promote, promote our dynamic creative sector to achieve their highest ideals and aspirations with a City Hall so grateful for the (often under-recognized) powerful intellectual, social, artistic and humanistic contributions that has resulted in New Haven emerging as a global destination in the creativity economy.” Describing her administration’s work in the city, Harp noted her early support of College Street Music Hall in 2014, when it looked like Yale might block construction over an easement. She suggested that her support has paid off: College Street brought in over $16 million in 2018, according to a study released last week through the New Haven Center for Performing Arts. Moving mentally across the street she added the Shubert Theatre, then the Yale University Art Gallery and the Yale Center

for British Art that sit a few blocks away down Chapel Street. She mentioned that she sees the frequent reproduction of the YCBA’s collection as a sort of shout out to the city, which packs a fair amount of art into its 18.7 square miles. “We get about two million visitors a year, and many of them come just to see the art that we have here in town,” Harp said. “A lot of people come for our music, and of course that’s art too.” Currently, she said, she hopes the city can provide similar support to Long Wharf Theatre as it decides whether to pursue a downtown cabaret space with the Shubert and Albertus Magnus College in the Crown Street Garage’s commercial space. Earlier this year, the New Haven Center for Performing Arts won a bid for that space, but backed out after disagreements with the city’s parking authority. On Thursday morning, Long Wharf’s Managing Director Joshua Borenstein confirmed that “it is still something that we’re looking at.” “We’re hopeful that we can work with them and the parking authority on that space, to provide development funds to support that collaboration,” Harp said. “So that’s innovative if that happens.” She added that her fourth term vision for the arts extends beyond downtown, and goes deep into all of the city’s neighborhoods. In addition to the city’s continuing percent for art program, collaboration with community management teams, and support of public art projects going up in the Hill-to-Downtown Corridor, she zeroed in on the role of arts in the planned redevelopment of Long Wharf, noting that she sees the eponymous theater as both a cultural and economic anchor in the area. In Dixwell, she said she is also excited for Con’t on page 10

Garrett Calls For Chief From Outside Department by PAUL BASS

New Haven Independent

Hamden should look outside its police department for its next chief — and not pick anyone quite yet. So argued Legislative Council member Lauren Garrett, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for mayor. She took the stand Monday during an appearance on WNHH FM’s “Dateline Hamden” program. “I think it’s got to be somebody from outside of Hamden. There have a been a lot of issues in the police department in the last couple of years. We’ve made the news way too many times,” Garrett argued. “I don’t think we can have a police chief from within Hamden take the reins effectively.” Among the recent controversies embroiling the department: • Hamden Officer Devin Eaton’s April 16 shooting at two unarmed people inside a car after he crossed the town line into New Haven; • The fallout from a video released earlier

this year showing Officer Andrew Lipford who had a history of losing his cool on the job following Hamden resident Victor Medina to his home, where Lipford and Sgt. Michael Sigmon arrested him at gunpoint. Lipford at one point told Medina, “If you do something that you’re not told you’re gonna get shot.” The town has also been debating whether to create a civilian review board to monitor police misconduct and whether to create a new chase policy. The search for a new chief began last fall. Mayor Curt Leng put the search on hold pending the outcome of some of these controversies. Garrett Monday agreed that “it would be very hard to bring in a chief right now while we’re in this turmoil,” especially pending the conclusion of an investigation into Eaton’s actions on April 16. Some in town have promoted an internal choice for the job, Capt. Kevin Sampieri. Garrett said the town needs “more diversity in our police chief,” along racial and/or gender lines. (“I think a woman would be

fantastic.”) Among the candidates who applied last fall: New Haven Assistant Police Chiefs Racheal Cain and Luiz Casanova and now-retired Chief Anthony Campbell. During her radio appearance, Garrett called for community policing. Leng has, too. She disagreed with his quest to add three community police officers and two school resource officers to the upcoming fiscal year’s budget; she said the town can’t afford the positions. She called for incorporating walking beats into every patrol officer’s regular routine rather than creating specific walking beats. She also disagreed with his proposal to have officers interface with community programs at the Keefe Community Center. In response to a listener question, Garrett said it’s not her job to decide whether the officer who fired his gun in the April 16 incident, Devin Eaton, should be immediately fired; it’s the job of the Board of Police Commissioners. She said she has watched video footage of the incident and didn’t like what she saw.

SAM GARRETT PHOTO

Garrett announces her mayoral campaign earlier this month.

Birks Paid “Volunteers” On The Sly THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

by CHRISTOPHER PEAK New Haven Independent

Three consultants who led Superintendent Carol Birks’s transition team, supposedly as “volunteers,” all received secretive payouts from the school district in the months after submitting their reports. One received $9,000 for leading meetings for three days. One received $9,998 for writing job descriptions for six days. A third was hired part-time to coach principals for an undisclosed amount. Those payments are revealed in new documents the Independent obtained through the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act. The school district itself still has not produced any records, despite several weeksold requests for the consultants’ contracts. But the city budget director provided invoices this week detailing how two consultants were paid. Superintendent Birks said that she did not see a problem with hiring her transitionteam leaders to consult and coach for the district. “I do not see any conflict as people have suggested. There is no direct benefit to me. These people are leaders in the field of education who have done work around the country with other school districts,” Birks said. “My first priority is to enlist the support of people who I think bring the best expertise to the children of New Haven.” A year ago, Birks brought together a 73-person transition team to study the big issues facing New Haven’s school system. She split them up into five groups that would each review data, conduct focus groups and make recommendations in a final report that centered on inequities throughout the district. Much of that work was done by the team leaders four district employees and nine outside experts who drafted the report’s five sections. Since then, three of those outsiders were handed school business in unusual arrangements that skirted public disclosure. Rather than signing contracts that would have been reviewed by the board’s Finance & Operations Committee, the district paid them through purchase orders or hired them as part-time employees, avoiding any oversight or public notice. In July 2018, the district paid $9,998 to the Urban Schools Human Capital Academy, a consultancy in the Washington, D.C., suburbs that employs Susan Marks, Norwalk’s former superintendent, who co-led the transition team’s Talent Management and Development Committee. Marks did not respond to an email on Thursday afternoon seeking comment. Birks brought in Urban Schools Human Capital Academy after the district sent termination notices to over 1,110 part-time employees, like secretaries, bus monitors, and art instructors, that were later rescinded. For six days last summer, two consultants from Urban Schools Human Capital Academy helped Human Resources Direc-

CHRISTOPHER PEAK PHOTO

John Ramos, at right, at Birks’s transition team kick-off.

CHRISTOPHER PEAK PHOTOS

Darnell Goldson: “Astounded.”

tor Lisa Mack analyze part-time positions to determine their “necessity [and] future status,” wrote job descriptions “for repurposed or newly designed positions,” and created a draft plan for filling them, according to the invoices. Through purchase orders, Urban Schools Human Capital Academy was paid in two lump sums of $4,999 each, just short of the threshold in city procurement rules that would have required Birks to seek out competitive bids. Still, Birks said she thought the money was well spent. “We did not get quotes at that time,” Birks said, but “for two people, with other expenses like travel, I don’t think that’s expensive, no.” In November 2018, the district also paid $9,000 to the Transformative Solutions in Education, a consultancy in Boston run by Michele Brooks, who co-led the transition team’s Family and Community Engagement Committee. Brooks did not respond to a call and an email on Thursday afternoon seeking comment. For three days last fall, Brooks assisted the Department of Youth, Community and Family Engagement with “capacity building efforts,” according to the invoice. To do that, Brooks led two “strategic planning” meetings with staff at the district’s Meadow Street headquarters and one “parent feed-

back” meeting at Betsy Ross Parish Hall. At the time, the department’s chief, Gemma Joseph-Lumpkin, was out on maternity leave. Darnell Goldson, the board’s president, said in an interview Thursday morning that he didn’t understand why a consultant was being paid to facilitate staff meetings. He said that the Department of Youth Family and Community Engagement has both a supervisor and deputies who could have stepped in during Joseph-Lumpkin’s leave. “To bring in these experts to run meetings? That’s even more concerning,” he said. “If they had direct student involvement, I might have been more open to it.” Why couldn’t Deputy Superintendent Ivelise Velazquez have organized the two strategic planning meetings? “We’re in the learning profession. I don’t know if you have worked in a school district before, but you get technical support. It’s not uncommon to get facilitators to help around visioning and thinking,” Birks said. “It’s not like [Velazquez] couldn’t do that, but she has a lot of responsibilities. For some time, the direct supervisor was not in the district.” Through a purchase order, Transformative Solutions in Education was paid a lump sum of $9,000, which Birks said Deputy Superintendent Velazquez signed off on. Birks said she thought the district got a

good deal. “For someone at Michele’s professional level, that’s a very fair rate,” Birks said. “I don’t think that’s excessive for a welltrained professional who does this level of work nationally.” She added that, because of Brooks’s experience starting Parent University in Boston, which was the basis for a similar program in New Haven, the district considered her a “sole-source provider” and did not compare rates with any competitors. Birks also said she did not know why the payment “did not go through the traditional pathway” of a contract. “I didn’t try to do anything wrong,” she said. “I don’t know why there would be scrutiny.” Finally, John Ramos, Birks’s former boss in Bridgeport who co-led the transition team’s Equity and Access Committee, was hired as a part-time employee to coach an elementary school principal, Wexler Grant’s David Diah. Ramos did not respond to a call and an email on Thursday afternoon seeking comment. Mike Pinto, the district’s chief operating officer, said on Thursday night that he couldn’t find a contract for Ramos or his consultancy, Equity and Excellence Imperative. Birks said she was unaware of how much Ramos had decided to charge and how many hours Ramos had spent at the school. She added that Ramos recently decided to turn down whatever payment he’s owed. “He has not been paid to do that work,” Birks said. “Once it was brought to his attention, he said that if it’s going to be a problem, he’s enjoying the work and he doesn’t want anyone to perceive that anything was done improperly.” Until recently, the Board of Education didn’t know about the three deals. That’s because Superintendent Birks structured the payouts in a way that wouldn’t need their approval or even show up in their biweekly reports detailing all the latest contracts and hires. (One other transition team leader’s contracts with the district were publicly disclosed. Fay Brown, a Yale Child Study Center director who co-led the transition team’s Learning and Teaching Committee, received a $9,300 contract in December 2018 and $50,000 contract in February 2019 for the Comer School Development Program. Both those contracts were vetted by the board’s Finance & Operations Committee.) Goldson said he was “astounded” that Birks had directed money to transitionteam leaders in a process that he called “out of the norm.” “We made it clear that we were very concerned with the way that it appears transition-team members were essentially writing their own contracts. They were giving recommendations for changes that they then won contracts for. I can’t imagine why anyone would think that’s appropriate,” Goldson said. “I am more than uncomfortable with it; I am astounded by the lack of

vision that the superintendent did not see that this could be perceived as a conflict.” Goldson said the board is still waiting on Superintendent Birks to produce a list of all the district’s purchase orders from the last nine months, which the Finance & Operations Committee requested last month. “I’m wondering how many more are going to pop up before we get to the end of this,” he said.

Cops Cuff Reporter; Reporter Slaps Down SLAPP by PAUL BASS

New Haven Independent

Press freedom in Connecticut took a step forward this week along with a step back. The step back occurred Thursday night. Bridgeport police detained and handcuffed Connecticut Post newspaper reporter Tara O’Neill as she was doing her job covering a protest (an anti-police protest). The Connecticut chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists issued this statement afterward: “The fact that Bridgeport police found it appropriate to arrest a reporter is disturbing. Tara O’Neill was reporting on Thursday’s protest to write a news story. She was not a participant, and identified herself as a reporter when an officer handcuffed her. The fact that someone can be arrested in Bridgeport for the lawful exercise of a First Amendment right is chilling. The New England First Amendment Coalition issued this statement decrying the arrest and demanding a response from Bridgeport officials. (Among the protesters arrested was New Haven organizer Kerry Ellington.) Meanwhile, a Norwalk politico has failed in his quest to try to shut up a local reporter and make her pay for reporting on a drunkdriving request. The politico, unsuccessful State Senate candidate Marc D’Ameilo, Monday withdrew an intimidation suit he filed against the reporter, Nancy Chapman of the crusading news site Nancy on Norwalk. He did so after Chapman got help from Yale Law School’s Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic (MFIA). Her team fought back against the suit by drawing on a new Connecticut Anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) law aimed at stopping retaliatory lawsuits like D’Ameilo’s, which threaten the First Amendment. Under the new law, the target of a frivolous suit can file a motion to have the case dismissed quickly and then force the person responsible for filing the suit to pay the target’s legal expenses. SLAPP suits developed as a tool for busi ness owners or public figures to seek to prevent news outlets or citizen groups from criticizing them or revealing information that could complicate their plans, because it can cost thousands of dollars 9at a minimum) for an activist or a news organization to defend against even meritless lawsuits. Chapman’s team filed such a motion, and D’Ameilo caved.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

DeLauro Blasts GOP on Child Welfare at the Border by Peter Urban

Ct. news Junkie

WASHINGTON – The House ended the week on a raucous note Friday as Representative Rosa DeLauro raged against Republican colleagues over a Trump Administration policy that last year lead to thousands of children being separated from their parents as they crossed into the United States at the border with Mexico. DeLauro launched into her attack Friday as the House wrapped up debate on a $17 billion disaster relief bill. Republicans offered a “motion to recommit” – a routine procedural tactic the minority party uses to highlight shortcomings in the majority party’s legislation. In this case, Texas Representative Kay Granger, the ranking Republican on the Appropriations Committee, sought to add to the bill a recent Trump request for $2.9 billion in emergency funding to care for unaccompanied children. Granger said the federal government had nearly 13,000 unaccompanied children in its care at the end of April and if trends continue it would run out of funds needed to care for them. The motion to

recommit, she said, would have given the House a chance to pay for the necessary expenditures before that occurs. Granger noted that a similar request was made – and rejected - earlier in the week on an appropriations bill that would fund the Department of Health and Human Services. DeLauro, who chairs the committee, was miffed by the implication that her panel was ignoring the children. DeLauro assured the House that Democrats are seriously reviewing the request but want answers from the Trump administration on how it will be allocated to make certain it pays for mental health and legal services that she claims have gone wanting. She then blasted GOP colleagues for failing to agree to spending $4.5 billion next year for childcare and child welfare. “They said ‘no.’ They said ‘no’ to this, so don’t be fooled,” DeLauro said. And, then added that all this is happening on the “one year anniversary of a child abuse policy” that separated children at the border. “You should have cared for them last year and every day since,” she said.

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Harp Blasts Police Union Leaders THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

by MARKESHIA RICKS

New Haven Independent

Mayor Toni Harp came out swinging Thursday at the police union officials, challenging them to return to the negotiating table over a new contract rather than, in her view, taking pot shots at her. Meanwhile, the union leaders stood by and held their fire until a promised response on Friday. That took place at a City Hall press conference, where Harp and her chief labor and public safety administrators responded to this recent New Haven Register article in which Officer Florencio Cotto Jr., the current president of New Haven Elm City Local, blamed the administration for the current exodus of police officers, especially minority officers. Suburban departments have been actively recruiting New Haven cops (whom the city has already paid to train) with salaries as much as $20,000 a year higher as well as more generous benefits. With Cotto and about two dozen other police officers present, Harp praised the work of New Haven officers who have worked without a contract for the last three years. That contract is currently in arbitration. Fearing that they will lose pension and health benefits, dozens of officers, including the chief, have resigned or retired. Many more are looking for jobs elsewhere. “We want officers that mirror the community. Well, let me tell you firsthand those same individuals who ‘mirror’ the community are leaving the department for better wages and benefits for communities that they may in fact not ‘mirror,’” Cotto said in the previous statement that rankled Harp. He cited Bridgeport as a city that was able to reach a contract with its police union. Harp said she would put her record for hiring minority police officers up against any city in the United States.“My administration has made hiring New Haven residents, African-American recruits, Hispanic recruits and women recruits a priority this past five years,” she said. “I won’t allow any opportunistic union official to besmirch that record as a negotiating strategy or to try and influence or to motivate his membership.” Harp said that in the past four years 60 percent of the resignations from the department have been by white officers. She said the departures of African-American and Hispanic officers have been in proportion to the numbers of those officers recruited, hired and trained in that same time frame. “Contrary to what has been reported, the demographics accurately reflect the community it serves and the departures do too,” Harp said. “My strong preference for the president of Elm City Local is for him to call me the next time he has something to say about this instead of calling a newspaper reporter.

“I would remind him and his members— the hard-working men and women who wear the New Haven Police Department badge, the route to a new contract runs right through my administration,” Harp added. “There are no alternative routes.” Harp also blamed the union for the fact that the contract is in arbitration, where observers on both sides have been predicting that the city’s fiscal straits will help it win its case that it can’t afford to pay cops more or preserve benefit levels. Harp said over a year ago her administration made an offer to the union with terms that were virtually identical to what has been offered to and accepted by police in Waterbury, and most recently signed in Bridgeport. The mayor said the union “soundly rejected” that offer and “overwhelmingly voted” to enter into binding arbitration, all without ever offering even a counteroffer to the city. She said a counteroffer would still be welcomed. “Let me say that again, union members chose binding arbitration over negotiation,” she said. “So if union members are frustrated, they’re free to second guess their leadership and their recommendations.” Cotto and officers stayed quiet through the press event, not interrupting her as some leaders have done in the past. Afterward, Cotto declined to respond to Harp. He said he will hold a press conference at some time Friday, where he will respond. Good morning, everybody. Thank you for joining us here at City Hall – welcome. Thank you for your interest in good government in New Haven, particularly when it comes to public safety. City residents should know the New Haven Police Department continues its proud tradition of effective crime prevention and law enforcement, despite delays while working to settle on a new contract. I know I speak for all city residents with gratitude for continuing professionalism in that department. Earlier this week, in a published piece, it was reported that New Haven’s prolonged contract impasse with its police officers’ union is the cause of widespread defection of New Haven police officers – especially among minority officers. I won’t speculate about the motivation for that planted newspaper story, but I will say diversity in the New Haven Police Department – regarding race, cultural background, and gender – compares favorably with any city in the United States. Furthermore, my administration has made hiring New Haven recruits, AfricanAmerican recruits, Hispanic recruits, and women recruits a priority these past five years. I won’t allow any opportunistic union official to besmirch that record as a negotiating strategy or to try and influence or motivate his membership. The truth is: resignations from the NHPD

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

over the past four years show fully 60 percent of those who resigned are white. The percentages of African-American and Hispanic resignations mirror the percentages of those who have been recruited, hired, and trained in that time. In a word, contrary to what was reported this week, the demographics of New Haven Police Department accurately reflect the community it serves, and departures from the department do, too. My strong preference would be for the president of the New Haven Police – Elm City Local to call me the next time he has something to say about this instead of calling a newspaper reporter. I would remind him and his members – the hard-working men and women who wear a New Haven Police Department badge: the route to a new contract runs right through my administration; there are no alternate routes. As for details about contract negotiations, city residents should know an offer was made to the union last April – more than a year ago – with terms virtually identical to those agreed upon in Waterbury, and again just recently in Bridgeport. That offer from New Haven was soundly rejected a year ago, and union members overwhelmingly chose to enter a binding arbitration process that continues to this day. I’ll repeat that: union membership chose arbitration over negotiation, so if union members are frustrated, they’re free to second-guess their leadership and its recommendations. By the way, the city has received no counter offer from the union in the yearplus since; a reasonable response from the union, even after all this time, would be welcome. My invitation today is for leaders of the New Haven Police – Elm City Local to resume talks with administration officials to try and abbreviate the binding arbitration process or bypass it altogether – it’s not too late for that. My suggestion is for union leaders to quit trying to out-maneuver, out-flank, or otherwise manipulate the process for some imaginary, quick settlement – with terms you haven’t yet even presented to the city. My experience – and just plain common sense – tells me the men and women the union knows within my administration are likely to be more understanding than people they don’t know on the arbitration panel, and more likely to come to terms sooner. My recommendation is for union leaders to quit the theatrics, quit the gamesmanship, and come to the table to get a deal done like they did in Waterbury and Bridgeport. And now those of us assembled will try and answer any questions you might have. Thank you very much.

MARKESHIA RICKS PHOTOS

Harp blasts the police union (above) while Elm City Local

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

It’s Time to Put People Before Drug Company Profits.

While too many Connecticut residents struggle to make ends meet, the big drug companies continue to rake in billions. It’s no wonder, considering that they make Americans pay the highest prescription drug prices in the world. That’s why it’s critical for all Connecticut lawmakers to put aside their differences and support commonsense solutions to lower drug prices, including: • Allowing our state to negotiate for lower prices. • Preventing brand-name drug companies from paying off generic competitors to stop more affordable medications from reaching consumers. People shouldn’t have to choose between buying medication and buying food for our families. To all state lawmakers: It’s time to work together and pass bipartisan legislation to lower prescription drug prices—now.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Ida Ruth Wells Corner Christened by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven Independent

Dozens of friends, family, neighbors, and admirers came out to the corner of County Street and Henry Street in Newhallville Friday afternoon to celebrate the life of the late Ida Ruth Wells. The intersection, right outside of the Prescott Bush senior apartment complex where Wells lived, gardened, and advocated for public housing tenants rights for over a decade, will forever be known as Ida Ruth Wells Corner. The corner renaming ceremony felt more like a family reunion than a formal event, with Wells’s children, grandchildren, and great-children sharing hugs and stories with Wells’ former neighbors and supporters, including Mayor Toni Harp and former New Haven Land Trust Executive Director (and current mayoral candidate) Justin Elicker. Wells’s family came from as close as Newhallville and as far as the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens for the event. A cousin even hired a Brooklyn-based filmmaker to shoot a documentary about the ceremony, leading a camera and boom-mic crew to pull aside attendees every few minutes for interviews about Wells’s impact on her adopted home. “She was strong-willed, straightforward, kind-hearted,” Wells’s daughter Stephanie Wells-Gary said while fighting back tears, “and she never shied away from any big moment that came her way.” “This is black history in the making,” her other daughter Jacqueline Frazer said, looking up at the new street sign with admiration. Earlier this year, Newhallville/Prospect Hill Alder Steve Winters worked with Wells’s former neighbors and friends to gather hundreds of community signatures in support of the corner renaming. Born in 1921 in Newark, N.J., Wells moved to New Haven in 1986. She died in 2016, at the age of 95. Friends and family remembered her as a tireless advocate for public housing tenants and as a fixture of the George Crawford Manor complex at 90 Park St., where she lived for decades before moving to Newhallville’s Prescott Bush apartments around 2008. She served as the vice chair of the board of the city’s housing authority from 1991 to 2001, and as the president of Prescott Bush’s Tenant Rights Council for many years. She was also active with the city’s land trust, helping set up a community garden behind the senior apartment complex. Wells-Gary said her mom was particularly fond of growing tomatoes, cabbage, and collard greens, and taught her neighbors and fellow tenants by example that one need only learn to garden to harvest a lifetime’s worth of fresh fruits and vegetables. “She was so terribly blunt,” Wells-Gary said with a smile about her mom. If she felt strongly about something, she would let you know with no equivocations. And what she cared most about in the world, she said,

A crowd of friends, family, and neighbors at Friday’s corner renaming. was making sure that people had enough to eat, especially seniors. That’s how fellow Prescott Bush tenant and former TRC president Percy Penn remembered Wells, too. He said, if Mother Wells was holding a cookout at the apartment complex, no one was getting away without donating something to the cause. “I don’t care if you were the FedEx man,” he said, everyone had to pitch in a little money or a little gardening time to help make the cookout happen. Nearly every day, he said, people would need only look out back to find Wells pitched over the garden beds, plucking tomatoes and making sure the collard greens were just right. The ceremony even brought together the two frontrunners in this year’s mayoral election, current Mayor Toni Harp and challenger Justin Elicker, who spoke on Friday not about their campaigns but about their mutual respect and love for the late community stalwart. Harp said she had known Wells for over 25 years. “One of the things that I remember about her is that at Thanksgiving and other holidays,” Harp said, “she would raise money from the community to make sure that no one went without.” As a public housing tenant and TRC leader, she said, Wells was always pushing her neighbors to treat their homes with respect and to demand respect from those who worked at and visited the public housing complexes. “She is someone that was a mentor to me,” the mayor said. “Someone that I greatly respected. Someone who understood the power of her voice, a power that could create change.” Elicker agreed. He referenced a video made by the New Haven Land Trust in which Wells speaks about why she gardens. “She describes a tomato,” Elicker said, “and why that single tomato is so important because it gives people nutrients. Because it teaches people about the land. It teaches people about where they came from. And it helps people have the nourishment to have a broader impact on so much more in everyone’s lives.” Posted by New Haven Independent

Justin Elicker.

NEW HAVEN LAND TRUST PHOTO / THOMAS BREEN PHOTO The late Ida Ruth Wells in 2011. Her family, including daughters Jacqueline Frazer (second from left) and Stephanie WellsGary (second from right) outside of the newly renamed corner on Friday (below.)

Con’t from 05

Harp Goes In On

Neighborhoods

the opening of NXTHVN (Next Haven), and the collaborative work that artist and founder Titus Kaphar has proposed doing with students from James Hillhouse High School. She praised the incubator, of which there has been significant state support, as a sign that New Haven is a place where artists can live and practice their work, instead of taking it elsewhere. She pointed to the work that the Department of Parks, Recreation and Trees has been doing each summer with its weekly Cool Breeze jazz concerts and free Friday night movies in city parks, as well as a second-year effort to revitalize the New Haven Green with dance and music on Friday afternoons. City spokesperson Laurence Grotheer added that the city bought its own stage in 2017 specifically for that purpose, so “it’s easier and more cost-effective to host events.” She also noted the city’s renewed support for Gospel Fest in Goffe Street Park after an eight-year hiatus, annual “CB3B” basketball tournament, and ongoing support for LunarFest with the Yale-China Association. Each year that she has participated in the parade, she’s been particularly tickled by the dancing lions, who take red envelopes into their mouths as a symbol of good luck. Despite ongoing budget negotiations, she hopes to grow that support in the next year. This year, she has allocated an extra $40,000 in her proposed budget for the annual Mayor’s Neighborhood Cultural Vitality Grant, with the idea that more money will go to local artists with small, projectbased needs. With the funding available, she said she believes it’s on artists to know to apply—and to seek help in City Hall if they have questions. “I don’t think it’s the city’s responsibility to develop them [programs], but I do think it’s the city’s responsibility to support the development of,” she said. “So when people come to us for support, then we do what we can to support them.” In response to Justin Elicker’s criticism that city funds have gone to non-New Haven artists in the past two years, she staunchly defended photographer Rob Goldman and his iMatter Project, noting that the city has thought about it as empowering the city’s youth first, and serving a purpose as public art second. “A lot of it has to do with who comes with the idea,” she said. “While I’m sure that there were many photographers who saw it as art—and it was art—we saw it as a way to positively portray the way in which our young people interact with the world. And it was the idea that sold it, not the art.” “I know that there are going to be some people that are unhappy about that,” she added. “Look. If there are artists that have ideas like that … they’ve got to come and share those with us! If there are some naysayers, come! We’re here to help.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Commissioner Mullins Youth Leadership Award 2019

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PHOTOGRAPH CREDIT: Patricia Libero West Haven Planning and Zoning Commissioner Steven R. Mullins presents the “Commissioner Mullins Youth Leadership Award” to West Haven High School freshmen Grace Nowak and Brian Carew as Principal Dana Paredes looks on.

West Haven Planning and Zoning Commissioner Steven R. Mullins presented his annual “Commissioner Mullins Youth Leadership Award” to two outstanding, civic minded West Haven High School students last week. Freshmen Brian Carew and Grace Nowak were recommended by Principal Dana Paredes in recognition of their involvement with school and civic activities. Every year, Mullins, a 1993 graduate of West Haven High School presents the award to a freshman male and freshman female student to encourage them to continue to serve in leadership roles at the school and the wider West Haven community throughout their tenure at the school. Previous recipients of the award have gone on to serve as student representatives on the Board of Education and have been accepted to and attend Ivy League schools.

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May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

From Community Health Patient To CEO by MARKESHIA RICKS

When Cornell Scott Hill Health Center CEO Michael Taylor was a kid growing up in West Philadelphia, he didn’t know that he would one day lead one of Connecticut’s oldest and largest community health centers. He just knew he wanted to help people like his friends who one by one found themselves incarcerated. “Very simply put, I am a kid still from the ghetto in Philadelphia,” he told Jeff Grant, co-host of WNHH FM’s “Criminal Justice Insider,” during a recent episode. “That was my upbringing. When you are raised in that kind of environment, where people face sometimes extraordinary challenges just in everyday life. If you have a heart you want to find ways of helping people.” Taylor had a heart. He also had eight other friends with whom he was “thick as thieves and did everything together.”

After watching each of the boys he grew up with tangle with the criminal justice system at some point in their lives, Taylor said ,he knew he wanted something different. He’d hoped to become a doctor as a way to help people who grew up as he did, but he wasn’t very good at science. He pursued a degree in accounting from Northeastern University in Boston. “I feel very blessed that I have been able to escape that and turn my life in a different direction,” Taylor said. “I give a great deal of credit for that to my parents and by the grace of God.” He didn’t forget those friends. He still keeps in touch with those boys, turned men, whom he considers “lifelong friends.” “Some were never able to recover from their incarceration experience, and their lives are quite hard,” he said, Taylor’s background and the connections that he maintains to his friends influenced his decision to enter the health care field on the business side. He started his career

in hospital administration in Boston. He worked for a number of large healthcare accounting and consulting firms before getting involved in the community health center movement back in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He estimated to Grant that he has worked in some 300 health centers across the country over the years. Before coming to Cornell Scott in 2008, first as a consultant, then as chief operating officer, and now as the CEO, he had an epiphany. “The epiphany was that I was a health center patient as a kid,” Taylor recalled. “I didn’t know it at the time. To me, it was just the doctor’s office.” Taylor ended up serving on the board of that very community health center in West Philadelphia, Spectrum Health Service, that he visited as a child. He’s also friends with the center’s current CEO. Now he is at the helm of a community health center that he said is in the top 1 percent of providers in the country of medical and dental servic-

MARKESHIA RICKS PHOTO

Taylor gives a tour at West Rock’s new Hill Health Center outpost.

es. Cornell Scott also provide an array of behavioral health services including mental health and substance abuse help, services that are often necessary for successful rein-

tegration after incarceration. The center has undergone an expansion to provide more of those services. “It’s sort of a circle of life,” he said.

Obamas Go Hollywood, Set to Launch Films with Netflix ects,” President Obama said in a statement from Higher Ground. “Touching on issues of race and class, democracy and civil rights, and much more, we believe each of these productions won’t just entertain, but will educate, connect, and inspire us all.” Michelle Obama added: “We love this slate because it spans so many different interests and experiences, yet it’s all woven together with stories that are relevant to our daily lives.” According to Entertainment Weekly, other projects include a non-fiction series based on Michael Lewis’ best-selling book “Fifth Risk,” a damning examination of the Trump administration’s impact on America’s key government agencies; “Bloom,” a period drama exploring the upstairs-downstairs worlds of women and people of color in a post-WWII New York;

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

When Former President Barack Obama occupied the White House, it wasn’t uncommon to see a myriad of celebrities meeting with the Commander in Chief and First Lady Michelle Obama. Some even called Washington, D.C., “Hollywood East,” because of the popularity of the Obamas even among superstars. Now, one year after launching their production company, “Higher Ground Productions,” the Obamas have officially gone Hollywood. The former president and First Lady have announced seven projects that are scheduled to be developed and released in the years to come. The projects include “American Factory,” a documentary from this year’s Sundance Film Festival that examines the clash of cultures in Ohio when a Chinese billionaire sets up a new factory in the old General Motors plant and hires some 2,000 blue-collar Americans. The film was acquired by Higher Ground Productions in partnership with Netflix, where the Obamas have a content deal. “Crip Camp” is also a documentary acquired by Higher Ground and Netflix, currently in production with support from the Sundance Institute, according to Entertainment Weekly which reported that the film will follow a ramshackle summer camp for disabled teenagers in the early 1970s that helped set in motion the disability rights movement in America. “We created Higher Ground to harness the power of storytelling. That’s why we couldn’t be more excited about these proj-

a scripted anthology series called “Overlooked,” based on the New York Times’ obituary column about people whose deaths were not initially reported by the paper; and a feature film adaptation of author David W. Blight’s Pulitzer Prizewinning biography, “Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom.” There is also a preschool series with the title, “Listen to Your Vegetables & Eat Your Parents.” That series is described as taking young children and their families on a global adventure to learn where their food comes from. It’s a project that’s reportedly closely connected with Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” initiative that she spearheaded during her tenure as First Lady to get all Americans more access and education to eating and living healthily.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Manhood conference focuses on mentors, power of forgiveness By Shirley Hawkins

Baker warned youths about predators. “There are a lot of men who get molested by women like the babysitter,” Baker said. “Or teen boys who are seduced into sexual activity by their teachers.” Baker shared his own experience. “I was 15 and I was secretly struggling with my sexuality,” he said. “One day, this adult who was 30 years old and a mentor of mine leaned over and kissed me. I thought, ‘I was dirty, I was wrong.’ I was confused because my sexual identity was still being developed.” He said he was coerced into embarking into a sexual relationship with the mentor. “I wanted to instantly go back to being a teen, but I couldn’t,” Baker said.

cluded community advocate Dustin Baker;Harriell, and Terry Boykins, CEO of Street Positive, a company that assists youth impacted by adverse childhood experiences. Donta Morrison, program manager at APLA Health, served as the moderator. “How many of you young men have had a conversation about sex?’ Morrison asked the audience. Only a handful of young men raised their hands. The panelists warned that young men who are not knowledgeable about sex could contract sexually transmitted diseases or be

faced with an unwanted pregnancy. “Please have that conversation with your parents or guardian,” Morrison urged. Sexual abuse was also a topic of conversation. “An adult engaging in sexual activities with a child is wrong and needs to be held accountable,” said Boykins, who added that sexual consent should occur between two adults, not with children.

Morrison confessed that he was also sexually molested at the age of 8. “I told my father, but he called me a liar,” said Morrison, who was traumatized by the incident. “I didn’t tell anyone else about the abuse until I was 29 years old.” Morrison added that every day, he tests young men at APLA who are stunned to find out that they are HIV-positive because they didn’t practice safe sex. A young man raised his hand and asked, “If we’re in school and the principal touches us in a strange way, can they go to jail?” “That’s a very good question,” said Boykins, who quietly passed the boy’s confession on to probation officers listening in the room.“Young people, if someone is

touching you inappropriately, tell an adult you trust. When someone is a predator, you are probably not the first victim he has done it to.” “Our culture says, ‘Don’t snitch,’” Baker said. “But you have to tell someone if you’ve been sexually molested because the trauma will affect you well into your 30s and 40s.” “Remember, ‘if someone approaches you sexually, tell them ‘no’ means ‘no,” Harriell said. The Importance of Mentorship featured Arturo Flores from the Big House,Dillon Iwo, senior field representative for U.S. Rep. Karen Bass; and Torrence Brannon Reese, CEO of F.A.M.L.I., a mentoring program for at-risk youth. The panel was moderated by Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Brent Burton. “Where can a young person find someone to help them grow and develop?” Burton asked. “A mentor can be anyone who can provide a level of guidance for you,” Iwo said. “Mentors can be people we aspire to be like in various aspects of our lives.” “You can find mentors at the Boys and Girls Club or at church,” Flores said. “It’s not hard to find people for inspiration,” said Flores. “Be tech savvy. You can find or read about mentors on Google, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat.” Reese added that youths can also ﬁnd mentors in books. “Books saved my life,” he said. “My mother gave me ‘The Autobiography of Malcolm X’ when I was 10 years old. He Con’t on page 22

Reproductive Justice organizations express dismay over Hyde Amendment status

WASHINGTON — The House Appropriations Committee marked up its Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies spending bill for Fiscal Year 2020. This watershed spending bill reflects several progressive policies that matter to women of color. For the first time in more than 20 years, it includes funding to study gun violence and maternal mortality prevention. It removes funding for abstinence-only education and increases funding levels for comprehensive, medically accurate sexual education and for the Title X Family Planning program that is a lifeline to communities living with low-incomes. However, once again the bill fell short of eliminating the oppressive Hyde Amendment — sending a clear message to poor women, who are predominately women of color, that they have no right to health care coverage for abortion services. Under the collaborative Intersections of Our Lives, the leaders of national women of color Reproductive Justice organizations released the following statements expressing dismay that the Hyde Amendment was added to the bill: “Women of color voted to give Democrats control of the House of Representatives because we wanted change. We are

watching how that majority votes and we want our legislators to hear us. Now is the time for new Members to take bold action against policies like Hyde that are harmful and deeply personal to the ability of women of color to make decisions about their own bodies,” said Marcela Howell, president and founder of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda. “It’s 2019. How much longer do women of color have to wait for basic equity? How can it be that we still do not have enough political will from Members of Congress to say that women with less means are no less deserving of the freedom to make decisions about their bodies and their health with dignity and self-determination?” said Jessica González-Rojas, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health “It is high time that members of Congress truly hear that women of color deserve full agency in our ability to determine the course of our lives, our families, and our communities regardless of our means. We will not stand quietly in the face of Congress permitting outdated laws that were put in place to control women of color in our decision making,” said Sung Yeon Cho-

imorrow, executive director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum. Intersections of Our Lives calls on our champions in Congress to raise their voices in opposition to the draconian Hyde Amendment. Intersections of Our Lives is a collaborative of National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF), In Our Own

Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda (In Our Own Voice), and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH), three womenof-color led national reproductive justice organizations with both federal and statewide presence. The collaborative has released new polling data that demonstrates the growing power of Black, Latina, Asian

American and Pacific Islander women voters and their collective opposition to policies that reduce their ability to determine whether, when, and how to have and parent children. 62 percent of women of color voters say they will be watching their elected officials in Congress more closely compared to previous elections.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Well-Known Street in Los Angeles Renamed as President Barack Obama Blvd BlackNews.com

Los Angeles, CA — In a momentous event on May 4, thousands of people gathered to witness the unveiling of the street sign that is named after former President Barack Obama. The 3.5-mile road named after Obama, which intersects with the Martin Luther King Blvd, has been considered a significant advancement in civil rights and human rights issues. The historical street name, which replaced the former Rodeo Road, has been proposed by residents from the 10th District of South Los Angeles where it is located, according to City Council President Herb J. Wesson. “We partnered with the community to make this happen and I’m just so pleased for all of us. It’s a fitting tribute to a great president, one that history is going to be kind to,” Wesson said. “With so much negativity and hatred in the world, it’s good that

our community can show nothing but love. This would not have happened if it weren’t for community organizations and all of the elected officials that helped.” A whole day festival was held in front of Rancho Cienega Sports Center and Park last May 4 to celebrate the street name change. Several people who attended expressed their happiness about it. “He’s a living legend and it’s an honor for him to have a street in his name,” Ayanna Brown, an L.A. resident, said. “Obama was a very good president. He was all-positive and today’s event was all positive,” another resident, Bridgett Goss, said. “This is history! He was the first Black president and someone we can look up to,” Marvin Adams, also from L.A., said. U.S. Congresswoman Karen Bass, who often worked with Obama during his presidency, has also expressed her excitement. “King Blvd. running into Obama Blvd. re-

flects our past struggles and gains and our future struggles. All of the energy that we put into electing Barack Obama, we’ve got to do the same thing again. I’m fired up and ready to go!” she said. Michael Lawson, CEO and president of the L.A. Urban League who was also Obama’s friend, reminded those who attended the event of the significance Obama and King made in the US and that parents should ensure that “our children’s children know and understand. We can’t forget.” Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama proclaimed his appreciation for the street naming. “While Michelle, Malia, Sasha and I are so humbled by this day, we’re still mindful that it’s not about us. It’s about this neighborhood’s next generation and all that we want from them,” Obama wrote in a letter Lawson read during the event. “We hope they’ll look at these new street

Destined to Succeed Whatever your child wants to be is within reach when you are involved. Your engagement in their education will prepare them for the future. To learn more about the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and how you can advocate for your children, visit us at www.nnpa.org/essa Sign-up for our ESSA alerts at www.nnpa.org/essa

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build a better community, a better L.A., and a better country where every single one of us can reach our full potential.”

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Facebook Challenged to Do More to Protect Children From Online Predators

The international anti-trafficking organization Love146 has launched a campaign and petition asking Facebook to protect children from predators online. “Of the children we work with who were recruited online, many tell us that Facebook is the platform their traffickers used to first reach out to them and groom them,” says Erin Williamson, Love146’s US programs director. “We’re sick of hearing this same story from victims. It’s outrageous that Facebook’s default privacy settings for children make them vulnerable to exploitation.” Love146 has more than 15 years of experience working with children who have been trafficked and sexually exploited. Protecting children on Facebook is even more urgent after the platform announced last week that it is going to introduce encrypted messaging. Encryption will make it more difficult for law enforcement to investigate messages, so it will be important that predators who attempt to interact with children on the platform are pushed out of encrypted conversations and into visible spaces, like comments. Currently, children on Facebook do have different default settings than adults, but they don’t yet provide the necessary protection. Williamson says Facebook can make three changes to its default settings that

would stop predators from easily finding children and grooming them through private conversations. Each of these changes, she said, need to be made the “default” setting in order to be effective. 1. Facebook needs to stop children’s friends lists from being public. Currently, predators can find children with ease using friends lists. Children that Love146 works with often cite “mutual friends” as one of the primary criteria they use for determining if someone is “safe” to accept as a “friend.” Public friends lists provide predators with a road map they can use to connect with children they are seeking to exploit. Predators simply go through a friends list and “friend” request several children. When a few of these requests are accepted, they can then reach out to the targeted children, who are now more likely to accept these requests because of “mutual friends.” 2. Facebook needs to create a new privacy setting: “Who can see me on other people’s friends lists?” – and set the default to “Only my friends.” In addition, even when someone sets their friends list as not public, they can still be seen on others’ friends lists without any control. This is a critical missing feature for all users and a huge safety issue for children in particular.

Family-Owned Potato Chip Brand Celebrates 3 Years in Business

3. Facebook needs to allow children to receive direct messages only from close friends. Predators use Facebook’s messaging feature to privately connect with and groom children for exploitation. The social network has already built in the ability to label people as “close friends.” However, Love146 says that the majority of the chil-

Nationwide — The road to entrepreneurship is a long one, but once there, the ability to maintain can be just as hard if not harder. The Anderson family, founders of Symphony Chips, pride themselves on working together to sustain their business and continue their growth. Dondre Anderson and his two daughters, Amina and Amari, have gone through several obstacles to get to where they are today. The largest obstacles they’ve had to overcome were first packaging, then supply chain and finally marketing. Their packaging issue was both the look and then finding the right company to produce their very vibrate and alluring potato chip bags. Next was stabilizing their supply chain.

When entering the market with a new product, statistically most new companies fail due to either lack of supply chain beyond them or lack of supply chain stabilization. Even though this family boasts of having the world’s only gourmet seasoned potato chip, they also have a multiple tier supply chain that the father oversees. Lastly is their marketing component. This component which takes the combined effort of both daughters to manage. Amina, who is seeking a carrier in film, helps with their video production and video editing for their content creation. Amari helps by overseeing their social media. To learn more and/or to place an order, visit http://www.symphonychips.com

youth would feel less compelled to find and respond to them. Love146 has sent two letters to Facebook requesting these changes and did not receive a response. The organization is asking people to sign their petition, which can be found at www.love146.org/facebook, and let Facebook know to #ProtectChildrenByDefault.

Viola Davis Reveals Diabetes Diagnosis and Campaign to Raise Awareness By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

Academy Award winner Viola Davis has opened up about her prediabetes diagnosis, sharing that she comes from a family with a history of type 2 diabetes. “I’m one of 84 million American adults living with prediabetes and I’m sharing my story for the first time in an effort to inspire others to take action against the type 2 diabetes epidemic,” Davis said in a statement after narrating “A Touch of Sugar,” a new documentary about type 2 diabetes epidemic in America. Davis received her diagnosis despite having experienced no symptoms, she said.

BlackNews.com

dren they work with are unaware of this feature. “When a friend request is sent to a child, they should have to specify if someone is a ‘close friend,’” says Williamson, “and have the default set so that only ‘close friends’ can send messages through the platform.” Messages sent by anyone else should go to the “message requests” folder, where they don’t trigger notifications and

“None whatsoever. I felt totally healthy and able … I went in for a hormone test, and my doctor took an A1C test,” Davis said of the blood test that takes the average of your blood sugar levels for the past two to three months and is used to diagnose type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose (also called blood sugar) is too high, according to the National Institutes of Health. Blood glucose is the body’s main source of energy. Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose get into your cells to be used for energy. In type 2 diabetes, your body doesn’t make enough insulin or doesn’t use insulin well. Too much glucose then stays in your blood, and not enough reaches your cells. Over time, too much glucose in your blood can cause health problems, such as heart disease, nerve damage, eye problems,

Academy Award winner

Viola Davis and kidney disease. Among the most recent reports, a study published by MedScape revealed that 13.3 percent of all African Americans have diabetes and blacks are 1.8 times as likely to have diabetes compared to non-Hispanic whites. Davis, who has won an Academy Award, an Emmy and a Tony, said she hopes her new documentary will shed light on the stigma around the diabetes and also help others be more productive about their health. “My sisters are both struggling with type 2 diabetes and my aunt also died from complications of the disease,” Davis said. “Growing up, we just said they had ‘the sugar’ which didn’t sound that concerning. But, when you look at the facts, there’s nothing harmless about diabetes – it’s a chronic disease that needs to be taken seriously if we’re going to get it under control,” she said. Davis joined forces with the pharmaceutical company Merck to narrate “A Touch of Sugar,” which also depicts how the disease

affects all communities. The film reportedly is part of a larger initiative led by Merck called “America’s Diabetes Challenge: Get to Your Goals.” “A Touch of Sugar” debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York last month. “There are 30 million Americans with type 2 diabetes and 84 million with prediabetes. There are 324 million people in this country, so that’s half the population right there,” Davis said. “I think this documentary is really wonderful because it’s confronting the stigma around diabetes, and it’s giving a voice to something that has been voiceless for way too long and that’s why the numbers are too high,” she said. “There are 30 million Americans with type 2 diabetes and 84 million with prediabetes. There are 324 million people in this country, so that’s half the population right there,” said Viola Davis who joined forces with the pharmaceutical company Merck to narrate “A Touch of Sugar,” which also depicts how the disease affects all communities (Photo: violadavis.net)

THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

5 Reasons Why You Should Try Float Therapy Jasmine Browley, BlackDoctor.com

What was once known as “sensory deprivation” therapy has reemerged into “flotation therapy,” a form of therapy that is undertaken by floating in a warm salt water in a float tank. It’s especially beneficial to those in need of some de-stressing and mental relaxation can lay out, motionless, for a specified amount of time. Here are some reasons why float therapy may your answer to massages: 1. It’s totally intimate and private. The thought of being in a dark space can be frightening to some; however, as you close your eyes please try to relax and breathe deeply. The total blackness within the float room does not create an enclosed, confined or restricted feeling; it actually creates a

sense of tranquility and zen. Our float rooms are big enough to stand and walk around in; you are in complete control of your surroundings, so if necessary, you can exit the float tank at any time. 2. You’ll enjoy a feeling of absolute suspension.At Nima’s Float and Spa, the floating sensation comes from the 1,200 pounds of Epsom salts dissolved in gallons of body-temperature water. As the mind relaxes, the music piped in shuts down. (It’s only on for the first five minutes.) The unit is completely soundproof. 3. You can float in complete darkness Traditional float therapy may call for total darkness. But many places allow you to decide. At Nima’s, the lights turn off after five minutes. Floaters can get half of them back

— just enough for it to be soothingly dim.

4. There is no rush. Many float centers offer sessions that last an hour or longer. At Nima’s, it is advised that you shower beforehand and once the float is over, a second shower gets rid of the salty residue on the body and in the hair. You’re then free to have another float session if necessary. Give it a try. It’s entirely possible that you’ll float your stress away! Jasmine Browley holds an MA in journalism from Columbia College Chicago, and has contributed to Ebony, Jet and MADE Magazine among others. So, clearly, she knows some stuff. Follow her digital journey @JasmineBrowley.

First Black Student to Attend the University of Alabama Finally Receives Doctorate Degree at 89-Years Old Blacknews.com uscaloosa, AL — Autherine Lucy Foster, the first Black student at the University of Alabama, has finally been awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the university. Now 89-years old, Foster was delighted by the recognition decades after she was rejected by the university for being Black. In 1952, Foster applied to the all-white university but her acceptance was overturned because she was Black. After a lengthy legal battle, she enrolled again in 1956. She was able to attend classes until she was expelled three days after due to persistent riots and death threats against her.

COMMENTARY:

photo: Autherine Lucy Foster, the first Black woman to attend University of Alabama

After that, African-American students were only allowed to enter the campus in 1963, following the infamous stand in the school house door where Gov. George Wallace pledged “segregation now, segregation tomorrow and segregation forever.” Foster finally earned her master’s degree in education from the university in 1991, more than 35 years after attending her first class. She graduated with her daughter the following year. During UA’s graduation ceremonies on May 3, Foster returned to the campus to receive her Doctor of Humane Letters degree. She was welcomed with applause and a standing ovation from the crowd, a lot different from the situation about 60 years

ago. “I wasn’t crying, but tears was just rolling down my eyes because it’s just so different and so unique for me to be able to come back to such a university as this,” Foster told WBRC. Moreover, Foster has also been honored by the university with a clock tower at Malone Hood Plaza named after her and a historic marker in front of Graves Hall in 2017. Despite all that, Foster remains humble. “I feel elated. Somewhat embarrassed because I don’t feel exactly worthy of what I’m getting. But I’m going to thank them and act as if I can.”

To Commemorate Brown, Support Our Teachers

By Julianne Malveaux, NNPA Newswire Contributor Sixty-five years ago, the Supreme Court ruled, in the Brown v. Board of Education case, that the Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) doctrine of “separate but equal” was unconstitutional. That ruling ended legal segregation in public facilities, but it did not necessarily accomplish its goals in terms of school desegregation. Indeed, Richard Rothstein, the historian who is a Distinguished Fellow at the Economic Policy Institute and at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, wrote that in 2014, Black students are “more racially and socioeconomically isolated” than at any time since 1970, when this data was first available. After Brown passed, there were some in-

tegration gains, through bussing and magnet schools, but the South resisted Brown because a second case ordered desegregation “with all deliberate speed,” which was a euphemism for taking your sweet time. I attended a segregated school in Moss Point, Mississippi in 1969, fifteen years after the passage of Brown v. Board of Education. In 2016, Cleveland, Mississippi finally closed its segregated Black high school and renamed Cleveland High School, the white school, Cleveland Central High School. Now, the district is in court because a young Black woman was denied the salutatorian honors she earned so that a young white man, with a lower GPA, could have the honor. Yes, the Brown v. Board of Education case made history, but it was an imperfect tool to tackle racial inequities in the public school system, mainly because these inequities are anchored in residential patterns and funding sources. When schools are funded with property taxes, those who live in wealthier districts will simply have better education, perpetuating inequalities. It has been trendy to blame teachers for unequal education outcomes, even as these

teacher’s responsibilities expand with increased regulation, test-taking, and unrealistic requirements around engagement with parents and others. A school district in South Carolina, for example, requires that teachers respond to parent emails within 24 hours. The burden of one teacher’s 10-12hour days became so onerous that she quit her teaching job in the middle of the school year. Many questioned her commitment to children, but she fought fiercely to maintain her sanity and some semblance of a quality of life. Teaching is not supposed to be trench warfare. It is supposed to be joyful for both students and teachers. There is nothing more gratifying than to watch children gleefully grasp a concept, read a page, solve a math problem, or give a speech. But that sense of gratification is diminished when bureaucracy chips the joy away, or when a teacher has to take on outside work to pay her bills. Teachers have made national headlines as they seek supplemental income, driving Uber or Lyft, moonlighting as food servers, taking on side jobs as tutors, and living two or three in an apartment meant for one to

save money. Those who teach really have to want to do it – they earn about a quarter less than their counterparts who have the same education, according to the Economic Policy Institute. We have been underpaying teachers for at least the last two decades! So, the nonsense we celebrated during the week of May 6, Teacher’s Appreciation Week, is a charade. If you want to appreciate teachers, pay them! Don’t offer folks two for one burritos at Chipotle or other food fringes when what teachers need is fair pay. Don’t give teachers apples and faux appreciation when the teachers who graciously accept your apples and recognition are hustling outside the classroom to make ends meet. Teachers are striking all over the country, even in places like West Virginia where we would least expect it because they are desperate to be valued. Paying them less than they are worth is disrespectful. Offering half price burritos and other nonsense is hypocrisy at its highest! Sixty-five years ago, the Supreme Court tackled the issue of segregation in our nation’s school systems. The Brown v. Board

of education decision changed the law, but not the structure of racial gaps in education. And it did not foresee the many ways that those who deliver the educational product, our nation’s teachers, have been disrespected and disadvantaged by the structural indifference to classrooms that serve poor and Black students. Sixty-five years after the Brown v. Board of Education decision, the achievement gap is persistent. Our nation’s wealth gap is a function of that achievement gap, and the treatment of our nation’s teachers is connected to the wealth and achievement gap. When we commemorate Brown v. Board of Education, we must embrace the importance of adequately compensating teachers. In embracing our teachers, we support the children they are teaching and guiding. In ignoring issues of fair teacher compensation, we are utterly abandoning our children! Julianne Malveaux is an author and economist. Her latest project MALVEAUX! On UDCTV is available on youtube.com. For booking, wholesale inquiries or for more info visit www.juliannemalveaux.com.

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS -S:9.25” May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

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A fee for early withdrawal will be imposed and could reduce earnings on this account. Special Rates are applicable to the initial term of the CD only. At maturity, the Special Rate CD will automatically renew for a term of 6 months, at the interest rate and APY in effect for CDs on renewal date not subject to a Special Rate, unless the Bank has notified you otherwise. 1,2. Due to the new money requirement, accounts may only be opened at your local branch. Wells Fargo reserves the right to modify or discontinue the offer at any time without notice. Minimum new money deposit requirement of at least $25,000 is for this offer only and cannot be transferred to another account to qualify for any other consumer deposit offer. If you wish to take advantage of another consumer deposit offer requiring a minimum new money deposit, you will be required to do so with another new money deposit as stated in the offer requirements and qualifications. Offer cannot be combined with any other consumer deposit offer, except the Portfolio by Wells Fargo $500 offer, available from March 25, 2019 until May 31, 2019. Offer cannot be reproduced, purchased, sold, transferred, or traded. 3. The Portfolio by Wells Fargo program has a $30 monthly service fee, which can be avoided when you have one of the following qualifying balances: $25,000 or more in qualifying linked bank deposit accounts (checking, savings, CDs, FDIC-insured IRAs) or $50,000 or more in any combination of qualifying linked banking, brokerage (available through Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC) and credit balances (including 10% of mortgage balances, certain mortgages not eligible). If the Portfolio by Wells Fargo relationship is terminated, the bonus interest rate on all eligible savings accounts, and discounts or fee waivers on other products and services, will discontinue and revert to the Bank’s then-current applicable rate or fee. For bonus interest rates on time accounts, this change will occur upon renewal. If the Portfolio by Wells Fargo relationship is terminated, the remaining unlinked Wells Fargo Portfolio Checking or Wells Fargo Prime Checking account will be converted to another checking product or closed. © 2019 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Deposit products offered by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. NMLSR ID 399801

THE RIDGEFIELD PLAYHOUSE 1

Non-profit 501 (C) (3)

WF_074328_BB_E1_9.25x5.1_AA.indd

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Job info Job 074328 Client WF Media Type Newsprint Live None Trim 9.25” x 5.1” Bleed MAY 19 None Pubsacoustic rock None Acclaimed Mexican guitar duo who

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from

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& TIP CITY

Opening Act: MK.Gee Mexican American singer mixes indie guitar pop, funk and R&B!

Grammy Award-winner & bassist extraordinaire! Free wine tasting and art exhibit before the show!

JON BATISTE

BERNIE WILLIAMS

Gala tickets include food, open bar and auction items! Band leader on the “Late Show with Stephen Colbert!”

Images WF_logo_box_cmyk_red_F1.ai (22.19%)

Singing inNotes Spanish, French, Portuguese and English! Latin Grammy-Award Winners! None

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LIVE ON THE VOYAGER TOUR

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INNER-CITY THE INNER-CITYNEWS NEWS July - May 2019 - May 21,2016 2019 27, 15, 2016 - August 02,

Black & Boucher, LLC is looking for experienced milling

EMPLOYMENT SPECIALIST - (P/T)

machine operators for our Wirtgen W220’s and W50 machines. Po- Assist individuals receiving services in identifying and making sitions are full time seasonal work. Starting pay is $38.87 an hour choices about their social, vocation and personal goals. Duties in(W220) and $38.20 (W50), includes benefits (Health, Pension, An- clude case management, job development/placement/retention sernuity). Must be willing to work nights and some weekends. Year- vices and job support as needed. Requires use of personal vehicle. in a related field; plus 2 yrs’ related experience or equivalent VALENTINA MACRIWe RENTAL PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE end Bonus also included. are anHOUSING equal opportunity employer, B.A. minority, female and veterans are encouraged to apply. Work is combination of education and experience. Pay rate $16.61/hr. Apply to:Authority, GWSNE, 432 Washington Ave., North Haven, CT 06473/ in HOME the Southern England (Connecticut, and Housing INC, onNew behalf of Columbus HouseMassachusetts, and the New Haven Fax (203) EOE/AA - M/F/D/V Rhode Island) area. Please emailforblackandboucher@earthlink.net is accepting pre-applications studio and one-bedroom apartments at this495-6108/hr@goodwillsne.org develif interested! opment located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations ap-

The Glendower Group, Inc

NOTICE

DELIVERY PERSON NEEDED

ply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y

The Group in when N. Stonington, CT has Temporary, 12 25,Cooper 2016 and ending sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have

week positions for Finish Painters, starting 6/3/19. Requires min. been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon re2 years experience, ability to prep surfaces, brush paint and glaze quest by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed prewindows. Must have own tools and transportation. Fluency in Engapplications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third lish. We are an Affirmative Action/EOE. Send resume and referFloor, New Haven, CT 06510. ences to Employment@thecoopergroupct.com

Part Time Delivery Needed One/Two Day a Week,

NOTICIA Tree Company New Haven County looking for a bucket op-

Must Have your Own Vehicle

erator, climber and groundmen with Class B CDL. 2-4 years experience with large residential and commercial treePRE-SOLICITUDES removal. Full VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER DISPONIBLES time with work year round. Experience with using a bobcat with grapple and everyday tree de removal equipment. HOME INC, en nombre la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está Sign on bonus to the right person! Call (203) 466-2400 or email aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo PCSLANDSCAPING@AOL.COM

If Interested call

(203) 387-0354

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,Housing 2016 hasta Authority cuando se han of recibido pre-solicitudes The the suficientes City of Norwalk, CT(aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas de HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición Accounting Department has two immediate openings for full is requesting proposals for Financial Advisory Services. llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse time Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable professionals Request for Proposal documents can be viewed and printed at a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510 . in a fast-paced office environment. Must be highly organized, www.norwalkha.org under the Business section RFP’s/RFQ’s possess good computer skills, be detail oriented, and able to Norwalk Housing is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Adam Bovilsky, Executive Director. manage multiple projects. Benefits include health, dental & LTD insurance plus 401(k). Send resume to: Human Resource Dept. P O Box 388, Guilford CT 06437.

Listing: Accounting

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

Request for Proposals

CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK FOR WESTVILLE MANOR The Glendower Group, Inc an affiliate of Housing Authority City of New Haven d/b/a Elm city Communities is currently seeking Proposals for Construction Manager at Risk for Westville Manor. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Wednesday, April 24, 2019 at 3:00PM

Water

Electrical Technician – The Town of Wallingford Water Division is seeking a responsible and skilled individual to maintain, repair, and calibrate all of the electrical or electronic equipment pertaining to water treatment and distribution systems and operations. The position requires a high school diploma or GED and (2) two yrs. of college level education or specialized maintenance training and (4) four yrs. of experience in the repair and maintenance of electrical equipment or graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering or related field and (1) one yr. of experience. Salary: $27.32 - $33.20 per hour (contract currently under negotiations) plus an excellent fringe benefit package. Apply to: Human Resources Department, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492. Fax #: (203) 294-2084. Closing date will be May 28, 2019 or the date the 50th application is received, whichever occurs first. EOE.

The Cheshire Housing Authority

Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced ********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer********** is currently accepting application for Foote Commons non-subsidized family one, two and Invitationthree to Bid: in Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory bedroom apartments. All applicants must meet the Income Limits set annually by the nd 2 242-258 Fairmont Ave Notice training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). To qualify you must have a The GUILFORD HOUSING AUTHORITY gross annual income of $50,350-one person $57,550-two people, $64,750-three We offer hourly rate 1.5 & excellent benefits1 levelis, currently 2BRexcellent Townhouse, BA, 3BR, 1BA accepting applications for its efficiency and one maximum people, $71,900-four people, $77,700- five people, $83,450-six people, $89,200-seven peoContact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860243-2300 bedroom apartments at Guilford Court and Boston Terrace All new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 Old Saybrook, CT ple, $94,950-eight people or be able to pay a rent of $794-$1,090 for a one bedroom, $930Email: rick.tousignant@garrityasphalt.com or on $1,278 for a two bedroom, and $1,075-$1,500 for a tree bedroom. highways, near bus stop & shopping centerin Guilford, CT. Applicants must be age 62 and over (4 Buildings, 17 Units) Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply 100% social security or federal disability and over the age Interested parties may pick up an application at 50 Rumberg Road or may have one mailed. Pet under 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 Exempt Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer of 18. Applications maybe obtained by Tax calling the & applicaCompleted applications must be returned to the Cheshire Housing Authority 50 Rumberg

NEW HAVEN

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

tion line at 203-453-6262, ext. 107. Applications will be ac- Road, Cheshire, CT 06410. The wait list will open for 90 days (July, 19) or until the wait listSelective has 60 applications the required number by the State of Connecticut. If there are New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Demolition,orSite-work, Cast3:00 p.m. Credit, police, and units and wait list does not have the required number of applications, The Housby the authority. Smoke free in-place Concrete, Asphaltopen Shingles, VinyltheSiding,

CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s cepted until May 30, 2019 at Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates checks in response to the Church’s Ministry needs. The cost is $125. Classes start Saturday,landlord August 20, 2016 1:30- are procured 3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon J. Davis, Operators M.S., B.S. Reclaimer Operators andJoeMilling with current housing. (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

Contact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860- 243-2300

For more information call (203)272-7511 ext1 or 2

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

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

Email: rick.tousignant@garrityasphalt.com Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

ing Authority may fill those units on a first come first serve basis. Section 8 vouchers are

Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, welcomed.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY HOUSING Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection.

licensing and clean driving record, St. New Haven, CT Be willing to travel throughout the Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport

Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 Invitation for Bid (IFB) Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 Elevator Maintenance Services Project documents available via ftp link below: Solicitation Number: 126-AM-19-S http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

KMK Insulation Inc.

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 1907 Hartford Turnpike The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport d/b/a Park City Communities (PCC) is SmithfieldUnion Gardens Company Assisted Livingseeks: Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour. Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com

currently seeking bids from qualified elevator companies to provide full-service elevator North Haven, CT 06473 Tractor Trailer Driver for Heavy & Highway Construction HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran,maintenance S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses there is a mix of elevator types and locations. Soliciand repair agency-wide, Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 Equipment. Must have awill CDL driving record, tation package will be available on April 29, 2019. To obtain a copy of the solicitation you A pre-bid conference beLicense, held atclean the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith must send your request to bids@parkcitycommunities.org, please reference solicitation capableSeymour, of operating equipment; be willing to travel AA/EEO EMPLOYER Street CT heavy at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. Insulation company offering good pay number and title on the subject line. A pre-bid conference will be held at 150 Highland Ave, throughout the Northeast & NY. Bridgeport, CT 06604 on May 15, 2019 @ 10:00 a.m. Although attendance is not mandaand benefits. Please mail resume to We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Oftory, submitting a bid for the project without attending conference is not in the best interest Contact Dana at 860-243-2300 above address. of the Offeror. Additional questions should be emailed only to bids@parkcitycommunifice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579. Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com ties.org no later than May 22, 2019. Answers to all the questions will be posted on PCC’s Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Website: www.parkcitycommunities.org. Seal bids will be received until May 30, 2019 @ This company is an Affirmative Action/ The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer 10:00 at which time the bids will be publicly opened and read aloud.

Mechanical Insulator position. MAIL ONLY

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 Housing Authority.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Selective Boiler Replacement at Cambridge Park INVITATION TO BID

Bristol, Connecticut The Bristol Housing Authority will receive sealed bids on or before 1:00 p.m. EDT, Friday, May 31, 2019 at their offices at 164 Jerome Avenue, Bristol, Connecticut 06010 and said bids will be publicly opened and read aloud immediately thereafter. Bids will be received for furnishing all labor, materials, tools and equipment necessary to complete “Selective Boiler Replacements at Cambridge Park” in Bristol, Connecticut 06010. The scope of work shall include but is not limited to Boiler replacements, new gyp. bd. ceilings and door replacements. Sealed bid packages to be clearly marked “Selective Boiler Replacement. Attention: Mitzy Rowe, CEO.” A pre-bid walk through will be held on Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. Please meet at the Bristol Housing Authority Office, 164 Jerome Avenue, Bristol, Connecticut 06010. Attendance is strongly recommended for all bidders. Contact Documents including Plans and Specifications, as prepared by J ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS, 84 Market Square, Suite 3, Newington, CT 06111, will be on file at the Bristol Housing Authority 164 Jerome Avenue, Bristol, Connecticut. Contract Documents can be reviewed and purchased within the on-line plan room of Advanced Reprographics, Plainville, CT at www.advancedrepro.net or by calling (860) 410-1020. Project information can also be obtained online at Projectdog.com. The Bristol Housing Authority reserves the right to reject any or all bids and/or to waive any informalities in bidding, when such action is deemed to be in the best interest of the Bristol Housing Authority. All bid documents must be filled out completely when submitted. A satisfactory Bid Bond or Certified Check in an amount equal to five percent (5%) of the base bid, shall be submitted with each bid. The Bid Bond shall be made payable to the Bristol Housing Authority and shall be properly executed by the Bidder. A 100% Performance, Labor and Material Bond is also required. All sureties must be listed on the most recent IRS circular 570. “Attention of bidders is directed to certain requirements of this contract which require payment of Davis-Bacon wages, and compliance with certain local, state and federal requirements. This is a Federally funded project.” No bids shall be withdrawn for a period of sixty (60) days after the opening of bids without the consent of the Bristol Housing Authority. For further information, please contact Carl Johnson, Bristol Housing Authority, Director of Capital Funds at (860) 585-2028 or Jay R. Victorick, J ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS at (860) 665-7063. "AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER MBE’s, WBE's, SBE's AND SECTION 3 DESIGNATED ENTERPRISES ARE ENCOURAGED TO SUBMIT"

Elm City Communities Request for Proposals

Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) Project- Based Assistance Program to Support the Development of Affordable Housing Housing Authority City of New Haven d/b/a Elm city Communities is currently seeking Proposals for Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) Project- Based Assistance Program to Support the Development of Affordable Housing. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Wednesday, May 1, 2019 at 3:00PM.

The Housing Authority of the City of Norwalk, CT is requesting proposals for Utility Allowance Study. Request for Proposal documents can be viewed and printed at www. norwalkha.org under the Business section RFP’s/RFQ’s Norwalk Housing is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Adam Bovilsky, Executive Director.

The Housing Authority of the City of Norwalk, CT is requesting proposals for Financial Advisory Services. Request for Proposal documents can be viewed and printed at www.norwalkha.org under the Business section RFP’s/RFQ’s Norwalk Housing is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Adam Bovilsky, Executive Director.

HELP WANTED: Large CT guardrail company looking

QSR STEEL CORPORATION

APPLY NOW!

Steel Fabricators, Erectors & Welders Top pay for top performers. Health Benefits, 401K, Vacation Pay. Email Resume: Rose@qsrsteel.com Hartford, CT

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

for Laborer/Driver with valid CT CDL Class A license and able to get a medical card. Must be able to pass a drug test and physical. Compensation based on experience. Email resume to dmastracchio@atlasoutdoor.com AA/EOE M-F

State of Connecticut Office of Policy and Management The State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management, is recruiting for a Labor Relations Associate position. Further information regarding the duties, eligibility requirements and application instructions for this position is available at: https://www.jobapscloud.com/CT/ sup/bulpreview.asp?R1=190508 &R2=0190MP&R3=001 The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.

The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven is seeking to fill the position of Program Director for New Haven Healthy Start. Please refer to our website for details: http://www.cfgnh.org/About/ContactUs /EmploymentOpportunities.aspx. EOE. Electronic submissions only. No phone calls

Listing: Accounting

Accounting Department has an immediate opening in Accounts Payable. This full time position in a fast-paced office environment could be an excellent entry to an Accounting career. Requires good computer and organizational skills, attention to detail, and multi-tasking. Benefits include health, dental & LTD insurance plus 401(k). Send resume to: Human Resource Dept. P O Box 388, Guilford CT 06437. ********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer**********

Town of Bloomfield

Library Director $90,364 – $139,476 For more details, visit our website – www.bloomfieldct.org 21

APPLY TODAY Town of Bloomfield

Youth & Family Program Assistant Part Time – Non beneﬁted (5-15 hrs. wkly) $11.87 hourly Pre-employment drug testing. AA/EOE For details and how to apply go to www.bloomﬁeldct.org

Large CT. Fence Company is looking for an individual for our stock yard. Warehouse shipping and receiving and Forklift experience a must. Must have a minimum of 3 years’ material handling experience. Must be able to read and write English, and read a tape measure. Duties will include: Loading and unloading trucks, pulling orders for installation and retail counter sales, keeping the yard clean and organized at all times and inventory control. Individual will also make deliveries of fence panels and products, must be able to lift at least 70lbs. Required to pass a Physical and Drug test, have a valid CT. Driver’s License and be able to obtain a Drivers Medical Card. CDL B & A drivers a plus. Send resume to pking@atlasourdoor. com AA/EOE/MF

CARPENTRY SHOP

Large CT Fence Company looking for a full-time carpenter for our Wood Fence Production Shop. Experience preferred but will train the right person. Must be familiar with carpentry hand & power tools and be able to read a CAD drawing and tape measure. This is an in-shop production position. Duties include mortising & drilling wood posts for fence panels, building fence panels, gates & more. Must have a valid CT driver’s license and be able to obtain a Drivers Medical Card. Must be able to pass a physical and drug test. Please email resume to pking@atlasoutdoor.com. AA/EOE-MF

THE INNER-CITY NEWS -

May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

Dr. Chakwera Seeks to Unite Malawi and African Diaspora By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

On May 21, 2019 the national elections in Malawi will mark a quarter of a century of multi-party democracy in this developing sub-Saharan African nation. Prior to that, most published reports in the western news media negatively defined the nation as a democratic “dictatorship.” When all of the votes are counted this month, Rev. Dr. Lazarus Chakwera, a top contender for the presidency, hopes to unify and provide strategic progressive leadership for this landlocked African nation of nearly 19 million citizens. “We are winding up what’s been a wonderful campaign by going all over this country and talking to people,” Dr. Chakwera told NNPA Newswire in an exclusive interview where he also noted the global importance of the America’s Black Press. “We have a message of super high-five servant leadership that’s uniting this country and making sure everyone prospers alongside everyone else,” Dr. Chakwera said. A longtime religious leader who has played a prominent role in helping to change the self-perceptions of his countrymen, Dr. Chakwera said that the past history of corruption in Africa is ending through more democracy and participation by all the people of Africa for a better more sustainable economic, social and political future. “We need to follow the rule of law because a whole lot of impunity is going on, and for Malawians everywhere, we promise to start building a new Malawi at the end of this month,” he said. Prior to running for the presidency, Dr. Chakwera helmed the Malawi Assemblies

Rev. Dr. Lazarus Chakwera of God for more than 25 years – a position that he was democratically elected to seven consecutive times. A renowned author, mentor and administrator, Dr. Chakwera also chaired the Board for Pan African Theological Seminary; All Nations Theological Seminary, and he has served as board member for Global University in Springfield, Missouri. Born on April 5, 1955, Dr. Chakwera once chaired the Association for Pentecostal Theological Education in Africa and he served as a member for the Public Univer-

sities Working Committee of Malawi. With a Bachelor of Arts degree from Chancellor College of the University of Malawi and a Bachelor of Theology with Honors from the University of the North in South Africa, Dr. Chakwera also earned a Masters of Theology from the University of South Africa in Pretoria and a Doctor of Ministry from Trinity International University in Deerfield, Illinois. “I tell you what, we’re really talking about issues of character, about issues to do with a vision and what I’m offering is somewhat different from what is usually the case,” Dr. Chakwera said. “We want to really have the developmental state that is able to protect our citizens and make sure that each one has a chance to prosper so no one is left behind,” he said. Malawi is small enough that if “you did something consistently and well enough within a couple of years, it should show something has changed,” Dr. Chakwera said. “What we’re doing now is to make sure we get everyone on board so that we do exactly that. Most people come here and look at what we have, and they will not fault so much in the policies and the laws, but it is just the implementation that really needs to improve,” he said. “We want to have the political will which is what everybody says we have a shortage of. So, this is why it’s the issue of character that we want to follow through on.” Growing up, the presidency wasn’t exactly what Dr. Chakwera aspired to attain, but he said his decision to run really came from a much higher source. “Sometimes, when you look back and you piece things together, you see how God was leading you,” said Dr. Chakwera, who’s

now 64. Dr. Chakwera’s personal epiphany occurred in 2012. “That’s when things came to a head. I had thought about serving the nation in many ways and I thought what I was already doing was sufficient,” Dr. Chakwera said. He enjoyed hosting a weekly and national radio talk show and then did likewise on television where he said some of the more encouraging results manifested itself when of his countrymen began building homes and feeling more empowered. Attitudes improved and self-esteem rose in the country based on what Dr. Chakwera had accomplished through his church, he said. “I believe it’s extremely important for the Black Press of America to have a relationship with Africa. It brings the kind of linkage that should always be there but that hasn’t been manifested,” Dr. Chakwera said. “We need to link up because surprisingly we have a kindred spirit and I believe all of us coming together and putting everything on the table will be helpful to our African American friends and all of Africa and to realize that we’re meant to be better than we are,” Dr. Chakwera said. The presidential hopeful also reflected on the 400th anniversary of the infamous Transatlantic Slave Trade. “Right now, we need to say what lessons can we learn. Four hundred years is a long time, but it’s theologically possible that God’s providence permitted for us to come to this stage where we can now take control of our future and destiny. We can’t change the past, but let’s get ahold of our future and shape it the way we want to shape it,” Dr. Chakwera said.

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Manhood conference By Shirley Hawkins

COMPTON — The critical need for male mentors, the importance and power of forgiveness and how to heal from violence and sexual abuse were just a few of the topics discussed April 27 during the third annual Manhood Conference held by the nonprofit Positive Results Corporation. “Our goal is to engage men and boys to increase awareness of dating, domestic violence and sexual assault while being proactive in ways to prevent it,” said Kandee Lewis, executive director of the organization that sponsored the conference at the Douglas F. Dollarhide Community Center. Boys and young men from the ages of 10 to 24 gathered for a day of talking, listening and healing. “Big” John Harriell, the keynote speaker and the diversity manager and superintendent for Morrow Meadows, an electrical and data communications contractor, emphasized the importance of fathers. Harriell said that many boys lack a father figure to look up to. “The absence of a father in the home can be detrimental to a young man or a woman,” he said. “Without that guidance, the children could do things that are counterproductive to themselves, their family and the community.” Harriell, who grew up in a home filled with domestic violence, said he went down the wrong path as a youth. It was only after he did a stint in prison that he was mentored by other inmates — “father figures” who taught him how to be a provider, protector and leader. On a Consent, Abuse and Other Conversations panel, featured speakers included community advocate Dustin Baker;Harriell, and Terry Boykins, CEO of Street Positive, a company that assists youth impacted by adverse childhood experiences. Donta Morrison, program manager at APLA Health, served as the moderator. “How many of you young men have had a conversation about sex?’ Morrison asked the audience. Only a handful of young men raised their hands. The panelists warned that young men who are not knowledgeable about sex could contract sexually transmitted diseases or be faced with an unwanted pregnancy. “Please have that conversation with your parents or guardian,” Morrison urged. Sexual abuse was also a topic of conversation. “An adult engaging in sexual activities with a child is wrong and needs to be held accountable,” said Boykins, who added that sexual consent should occur between two adults, not with children. Baker warned youths about predators. “There are a lot of men who get molested by women like the babysitter,” Baker said. “Or teen boys who are seduced into sexual activity by their teachers.” Baker shared his own experience.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - May 15, 2019 - May 21, 2019

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