INNER-CITY NEWS

INNER-CITY NEWS July29 27, 2016 -- August THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July , 2020 August02, 04,2016 2020

Financial Justice a Key Focus at 2016 NAACP Convention U.S. Postal Service to Review Stamp Honoring Supremes Florence Ballard New Haven, Bridgeport

INNER-CITYNEWS

Volume 27 . No. 2400 Volume 21 No. 2194

Malloy Malloy To To Dems: Dems:

“DMC” Moment Seized:

Ignore Ignore“Tough “ToughOn OnCrime” Crime”

Cop Accountability Bill Past The Finish Line

Color Struck?

Protesters Rally Outside

Snow in July?

FOLLOW ON The State CapitolUSAnti-Violence Walk-Talkers Hit West Rock Streets 1

1

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Fasano Calls For Delay On Police Accountability Vote

by Lisa Backus Ct. News Junkie

Hours after Attorney General William Tong declined to provide a formal opinion on the constitutionality of the police accountability bill, Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven, asked Senate Democratic leadership to put a vote on the bill on hold.

The bill passed the House early Friday and is on the agenda for the Senate’s special session Tuesday. Fasano didn’t specify when he wanted the legislation to come up for a vote.

Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!

“Attorney General Tong states in his response to my request that he cannot provide a legal opinion on such complex constitutional matters in such a short time,” Fasano said in a letter to Senate President Martin Looney, D-New Haven, and Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, DNorwalk.

“Lawmakers are being asked to vote on the same issue in the same period of time and make a legislative proposal state law,” Fasano said. “If there is not enough time for a formal opinion, how can there be enough time for the Senate to accurately analyze and vote on this bill without the needed legal guidance?”

The Senate Democratic caucus plans on moving forward with a vote Tuesday.

Although Tong declined to provide a “formal” response to Fasano’s request to have the portions of the bill related to the creation of an Office of the Inspector General to investigate deadly use of force incidents, the Attorney General said an informal review revealed the proposed law is constitutional.

“I am comfortable that the Inspector General provisions of HB 6004 are constitutional,” Tong said. “I am prepared to defend them in court should the bill be enacted into law as currently drafted.”

Hours after the bill passed in the House Friday morning, Fasano asked Tong to weigh in.

Tong said in his response to Fasano that he was hesitant to provide “a formal legal opinion” on a sensitive bill slated to come up for a vote Tuesday. But overall, Tong said he felt the portion of the legislation in question was in accordance with the state constitution.

“I must respectfully decline your request because I have serious reservations about providing a formal opinion on emergency certified legislation that is presently the subject of active debate in the General Assembly and that has already been passed by the House of Representatives in a special session,” Tong said.

“These circumstances are unique and your request unusual in its timing,” Tong said. “Therefore I must be careful not to prejudice or unduly interfere with legislative proceedings presently underway.”

Gov. Ned Lamont expressed his support for the bill during a press conference on COVID-19 Monday. Lamont said he believed that it was on its way to Senate approval when asked if he had been encouraging individual senators to approve the bill.

“I would approve it,” Lamont said. “I think it’s a good bill. It takes into account transparency and accountability, builds more trust between police and the local community, I think it’s pretty important. I think the House made it a better bill and I hope the Senate passes it.”

Fasano questioned the constitutionality of the proposed office which would be head-

ed by an “Inspector General” appointed by the state’s Criminal Justice Commission and approved by the legislature to independently investigate deadly use of force and in-custody death incidents.

Chief State’s Attorney Richard Colangelo also questioned the constitutionality of the proposed unit.

According to Colangelo and Fasano, only prosecutors working in the state’s Division of Criminal Justice have the authority to prosecute cases in Connecticut and the Criminal Justice Commission can appoint only prosecutors and other attorneys “as prescribed by law.” It is the independence of the proposed office—the cornerstone of the concept—that potentially poses the constitutional conflict.

“I want this to work, I think it’s a good idea for the state and for the people of the state,” Colangelo said late last week. “But without the proper staffing, it’s not going to work.”

For years, advocates for police accountability have sought to have the investigations into use- of-deadly-force incidents taken out of the hands of state police and prosecutors who often work with police on cases.

Under the bill, the Office of the Inspector General would investigate all deadly useof-force and in-custody death incidents independently from the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney. The unit would be under Colangelo for administrative purposes.

Colangelo and Fasano contend they support the concept of independent investigations. But both said they had concerns that the appointment of the Inspector General and the independence of the office from the Division of Criminal Justice would run “afoul” of the state’s constitution.

The bill, largely crafted by Sen. Gary

CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE PHOTO Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano and House Minority Leader Themis Klarides in January

Winfield, D-New Haven, co-chair of the Judiciary Committee, passed in the House in a 86 to 58 vote after several hours of intense debate early Friday. Winfield was instrumental in the passage of police accountability legislation in 2015 and 2019, bringing more transparency to deadly use-of-force investigations including the requirement that any dashboard or body camera videos must be released within 96 hours of an incident.

But Winfield was able to garner statewide support for further reforms fol-

lowing the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis on May 25. Floyd’s death generated protests throughout the state and country and calls for police reform.

In addition to independent investigations of deadly use of force, the bill calls for training in the use of de-escalation, requires police to undergo regular drug and psychological testing, and adds provisions allowing the Police Officer Standards and Training Council to “decertify” officers accused of wrongdoing.

Immigrant Community Continues To Push For Funding

by Christine Stuart Ct. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — It wasn’t part of the special session agenda but immigrant groups rallied Tuesday outside the state Capitol to call on lawmakers and Gov. Ned Lamont to approve more funding for the undocumented population.

“Funds, not crumbs,” they chanted.

Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!

Undocumented immigrants don’t qualify for federal assistance, which is why they are asking the state for additional assistance.

The state of Connecticut announced in June that it will be giving $2.5 million to about 2,500 undocument families to help them pay their rent. The undocumented community and their advocates said Tuesday that they have no way of accessing the money.

That funding, along with another $1

CTNEWSJUNKIE PHOTO

million in small cash donations from the philanthropic organization 4-CT, was announced last month. However, the com-

munity is still struggling to unlock that funding, too.

Max Reiss, a spokesman for Gov. Ned

2

Lamont, said the governor continues to lead on the issue.

“The governor has been a leader in providing support for undocumented residents in this pandemic, especially compared to other states and those efforts will continue,” Reiss said.

Camila Bortolleto of Connecticut Students for a Dream (C4D) said the $1 million gift card program from 4-CT is a mystery to the community and they’ve also been unable to access the $2.5 million in rental assistance from the state.

“We demand a $150 million real relief fund,” Bortolleto said.

She said immigrant communities have been left behind.

Denise Rodas of C4D said she’s from Ecuador and moved to the United States when she was 13 years old.

Rodas said she’s been working as a CNA and has not lost her job, but her mother, who is a housekeeper, lost her job one

month ago.

“My family is undocumented so we obviously did not receive the coveted stimulus check,” Rodas said. “So my dad has been the only one financially supporting my family.”

She said that as immigrants, they deserve the same rights as everyone. They are equally impacted by the virus as everyone else living in Connecticut.

“Immigrants will always be essential and we deserve to be treated fairly,” Rodas said.

Vanesa Suarez of the Semilla Collective said the $3.5 million attempt to address the immigrant community “is one example of how the state continues to throw crumbs at deep systemic issues instead of addressing the root of the problem.”

She said it disregards the needs the immigrant community has demonstrated.

“We need real relief,” Suarez said.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Bus Is Still Free, For Now

by JOHN BESCHE

New Haven I ndependent

Riders board through the side entrance at the middle of the bus. Drivers don’t collect fares. Chain barriers separate bus drivers from their passengers.

These changes to make CTtransit buses safer in the Covid-19 era have cheered passengers and tap into a regional movement to see buses as a public good.

Whether the changes that riders see as positive will last beyond the pandemic remains to be seen.

Riding the bus now “is more convenient because you don’t have to pay and you can keep more distance,” said rider Tony Williams, who was visiting New Haven from Hartford.

At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, CTtransit issued a moratorium on fare collection, installed chain barriers between the driver’s area and passengers, and set stricter cleaning protocols. Passengers are required to board toward the back of the bus to eliminate interaction with the driver and avoid the congestion that results from fare collection. CTtransit has been tracking whether these changes make riders feel safe enough to return.

According to Kevin Nursick, the state Department of Transportation’s communications director, ridership decreased to around 46 percent of pre-Covid levels for a short period of time. Since then, ridership has been at around 50 percent of the norm with recent upticks to 70 percent in early July.

“Our ability to maintain service at our customary levels has continued to show to our passengers that we are reliable even under the most challenging conditions,” Nursick wrote. “Therefore, we expect service to continue to rebound, and after the pandemic is over we expect to exceed prior ridership levels as a direct result.”

New Haven bus riders interviewed by the Independent said they have been happy with CTtransit’s modifications.

Wearing face masks as they waited for the bus, Ramona Williams and Corris Smith said the ride beats walking from one side of town to the other.

Smith rides the bus for her commute and her personal trips. She said that not only does she feel safe riding the bus, she prefers it to ridesharing services like Uber.

Karl Powers has seen a change among riders too. At the Green bus stop, he steadied his bike with one hand as he reflected on the past few months of bus trips.

“Nowadays, people are nicer,” Powers said.

Trends Towards Free Transit CTtransit’s halt on fare collection for public health concerns comes at a time when other New England cities are thinking about eliminating fare collection altogether.

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey and U.S. Rep.

SAM GURWITT FILE PHOTO CTtransit bus operator Jasmine Medina.

Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts recently introduced the Freedom to Move Act. It would provide $5 billion for local governments to experiment with fare-free public transportation.

“Transit justice is fundamental to economic empowerment and racial equity across every neighborhood,” Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu said of the legislation. “When we remove barriers to reliable, safe, convenient public transit, all communities benefit with cleaner air, safer streets, and faster commutes.”

Free transit has worked for Lawrence, Mass. After the city eliminated fare collection in Sept. 2019, bus ridership shot up by 24 percent.

For New Haven riders, though, this farefree future is likely to last only as long as the pandemic.

Nursick wrote in an email to the Independent that the federal CARES Act is covering the lost fare revenue and the costs of increased sanitation measures.

State budget woes make fare-free travel unlikely after that.

“We are not currently exploring a free fare policy,” Nursick said. “Connecticut will be facing a funding crisis in the state’s Special Transportation Fund in the next few years, and it is unlikely to be able to support a fare-free transit operation.”

Driver Perspectives New Haven bus drivers have more mixed feelings about the pandemic modi-

fications than their passengers.

CTtransit driver Victor Acevedo said he feels safe in his job, thanks to hand sanitizer, face masks, and eye shields provided by the agency. The most important intervention for Acevedo has been the distance between drivers and riders.

“If someone’s running toward the bus and they’re panting because they’re out of breath, I don’t have to interact with them face to face because they enter through the back,” Acevedo said.

Acevedo added that he does not force his passengers to wear a face covering, since some people have respiratory conditions like chronic asthma.

Driver Javier Garcia said that some of his regulars have died from Covid-19, which makes him uneasy about his own safety.

“A lot of older people I used to see all the time, I don’t see them anymore,” he said.

The first CTtransit worker to die of Covid-19, Howard G. Rogers, Jr., passed away in May. At that time, 30 of 1,200 CTtransit employees had tested positive for the virus.

Garcia said that he, like Acevedo, lets the unmasked board his bus.

“I can’t leave anyone behind,” he said.

As the pandemic persists, CTtransit plans on furthering its public health standards.

Nursick said that the agency is in the process of installing driver barriers in all of its buses.

CTtransit aims to have the barriers installed by the end of the year.

3

DONT LET THEM COUNT YOU OUT!

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

OP-ED | Addressing Our Racist Past With Symbols And Substance ered together.

by Nuchette Black-Burke Ct. News Junkie

People who don’t live in Windsor may not be familiar with our history, our character, and the ways we are on the cutting edge, despite having the distinction of being the oldest town in the state.

In June, we became the first town in Connecticut to pass a resolution declaring racism a public health crisis. This makes clear what many already knew – that racism is real, and that the constant stress of living in a racist society, and structural and economic racism, have a huge impact on Black people’s health. As a Town Council member I proposed the resolution, which passed and committed the town to measure and work to correct it.

Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!

Windsor is also among many towns in the state and country having passionate discussions about public statues. In our case, it’s a statue of John Mason, a former mayor of the town and governor of the state. Mason is notorious also for leading a massacre of hundreds of Pequot women and children and having more sold into slavery.

Both of these things need to be consid-

Nearly 20 people spoke out at a recent council meeting and asked that the John Mason statue be removed. Should this statue come to life, there is reason to think, based on history, that he could continue drawing his sword and proceed to slaughter, and sell into slavery, indigenous men, women, and children. Speakers declared their discomfort with the statue and what it represents. Following that meeting, there has been debate and dialogue, and some of the messages online have mentioned people’s home addresses and taken a threatening tone. Even more people will be at the next meeting, where it will be on the agenda and where action will be expected. I urged my fellow council members to ask the Pequot nation what it wants to do about the statue. Other options are to form a committee of residents and students to explore the options.

Americans, confined due to COVID, have had time to see and reflect on the systemic police violence that killed George Floyd and so many others, and has been doing so for years. The Windsor community came together and organized two very moving and well-attended vigils – one by youth – in support of Black Lives Matter. The turnout and content were inspiring and amazing. People came out, listened, shared their stories.

Many people defend the Mason statue.

But history is moving forward quickly.

More and more white people are becoming aware of our recent racist past

Penfield Communications Inc

John P. Thomas Publisher / CEO

Babz Rawls Ivy

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

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

Editorial Team

COURTESY OF THE WINDSOR HISTORICAL SOCIETY The statue of John Mason in Windsor

– redlining and housing discrimination; the Black Wall Street massacre in Tulsa, Oklahoma; the racial wealth gap, caused by public policy that has denied mortgages, educational aid, and Social Security to Black people; and many more.

Clearly that statue must go from its place of prominence in our town. Its location must change. It is a powerful symbol. Declaring racism a public health crisis – and committing to examining our own systems and outcomes – means action, substance, and changes in policies and how we use our resources.

As lawmakers in Hartford debate police

accountability, and other ways to improve our systems to mitigate the impact of racism, they should know that towns like Windsor throughout the state are continuing the march forward, and will be holding them accountable for the kind of change that we need.

Nuchette Black-Burke is an educator, lifelong Windsor resident, and member of the Town Council.

DISCLAIMER: The views, opinions, positions, or strategies expressed by the author are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of CTNewsJunkie.com.

State Won’t Dictate School Reopening

by Christine Stuart Ct. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT — Gov. Ned Lamont said a survey of 231 schools found most students and teachers expect to return to the classroom this fall, but contrary to the messages it was sending as recently as last week, the state isn’t going to dictate whether that should happen.

Lamont said he’s heard from districts like Danbury and New Haven who would prefer the hybrid model of in-school and remote learning. Most of the other districts feel comfortable “especially for the lower grades,” to get back to school, Lamont added.

Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!

Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona said they asked schools to submit three plans, which included a full return to school, a hybrid of online and in-school learning, and a remote learning plan.

“We know distance learning doesn’t make up for in-classroom learning,” Cardona said. “But health and safety will trump whatever decisions are made.”

He said the districts have to feel comfortable with the plans that they have.

“Districts will have to make a determina-

CTNEWSJUNKIE FILE PHOTO Gov. Ned Lamont in the briefing room

tion as to what element of the plan and whether they feel comfortable with a full reopening,” Cardona said.

He said they may decide to fully reopen

elementary schools, but not the middle and high schools.

The state won’t be making those decisions. That was news to some school superintendents.

“This goes against the guidance we have previously received,” West Hartford Superintendent Tom Moore, said.

“No superintendent has an epidemiologist on staff, so to have 169 superintendents making separate decisions about student health is an abdication of responsibility, just as it was in March when we were forced to make decisions on whether to close with no guidance. We have been provided no metrics on opening or closing.”

A survey of West Hartford parents found 75% plan to send their children to school while 8.5% plan on home schooling and 16.5% are uncertain.

Lamont said it might have been a misunderstanding that the state planned to mandate how school districts would reopen in the fall.

“Every town, every city has very different metrics,” Lamont said. “The vast majority will be able to have in-classroom especially for the lower grades.”

Cardona said any parent in Connecticut

4

has the right to keep their child home and receive learning from home.

Lamont’s executive authority runs out in September and he’s going to ask for an extension unless the legislature wants to regulate everything he’s had to regulate since the pandemic began.

Earlier this month the state Department of Education issued guidance to local school districts before asking them to submit their plans for the state to review.

The guidance requires 177 days of school. It also says that if a school has to cancel classes due to the changing public health data they will be expected to provide full access to educational programming remotely.

The order would take the form of a statewide emergency if an outbreak is geographically concentrated.

The plan goes on to define the new “cohorting” term as a group or team of students and educators with consistent members that stay together throughout certain periods of the school day. The purpose of the cohort model is to limit the number of students who are exposed to COVID-19 if there is community transmission in the Con’t on page 22

Staff Writers Christian Lewis/Current Affairs Anthony Scott/Sports Arlene Davis-Rudd/Politics

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

Contributors At-Large Christine Stuart www.CTNewsJunkie.com

Paul Bass www.newhavenindependent.org

Memberships National Association of Black Journalist National Newspapers Publishers Association Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce Greater New Haven Business & Professional Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. The Inner-City Newspaper is published weekly

by Penfield Communications, Inc. from offices located at 50 Fitch Street, 2nd Floor, New Haven, CT 06515. 203-387-0354 phone; 203-3872684 fax. Subscriptions:$260 per year (does not include sales tax for the in State subscriptions). Send name, address, zip code with payment. Postmaster, send address changes to 50 Fitch Street, New Haven, CT 06515. Display ad deadline Friday prior to insertion date at 5:00pm Advertisers are responsible for checking ads for error in publication. Penfield Communications, Inc d.b.a., “The Inner-City Newspaper” , shall not be liable for failure to publish an ad or for typographical errors or errors in publication, except to the extent of the cost of the space in which actual error appeared in the first insertion. The Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising for any reason and to alter advertising copy or graphics deemed unacceptable for publication. The entire contents of The Inner-City Newspaper are copyright 2012, Penfield Communications, Inc. and no portion may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Protesters Rally Outside the State Capitol, While Lawmakers Stay In Their Offices

by Christine Stuart Ct. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT – Police officers from across the state turned out in large numbers Thursday to protest parts of the police accountability legislation, which was still under negotiation as of 2 p.m.

It’s one of four bills the House is expected to debate during a historic one-day special session that involves social distancing, masks, and political unrest outside the state Capitol, which was closed to the public.

Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!

Andrew Matthews, president of the Connecticut State Police Union, said the Democratic majority in the General Assembly must have forgotten how close Republicans got in 2016 to taking over the Senate.

While it wasn’t necessarily a political rally, there were vendors selling Trump paraphenalia and some officers wearing Trump baseball caps.

Matthews said there’s no police officer who condones what happened in Minneapolis.

“It’s real easy to attack us,” Matthews said. “The very people who are willing to die for the state of Connecticut.”

Sen. Gary Winfield, co-chair of the Judiciary Committee, uploaded a tearful live Facebook video expressing his disappointment in how the legislation has been watered down.

The proposed legislation calls for an independent body under the Division of

Criminal Justice to investigate deadly police use of force incidents, requires officers to undergo regular mental health and drug screening, and gives the state’s Police Standards and Training Council the power to “decertify” police officers for wrongdoing.

Winfield spoke in a Facebook live video about how his activism on this topic began several years ago.

He talked about his son and daughter and the future he’s leaving for them.

“They certainly shouldn’t have to worry about the people who are there to protect

them,” Winfield said.

He said the fight is “about the power we have given them and how we’ve allowed them to use that power.”

He said even after the bill passes “the fight is not over.”

He said he understands the form the bill is currently in, is the form it has to pass.

Republicans in the House believe the issue of qualified immunity should be discussed, but not part of the legislation.

“This is a serious issue that should take many months to look into,” House Minority Leader Themis Klarides, R-Derby,

said. “Then we should come back next session and deal with it.”

As far as government immunity “the cons far outweigh the pros,” Klarides said. “Police officers leave their home every morning wondering if they’re going to be back to see their family at night.”

She said officers can be sued now for egregious behavior.

“I think there are too many consequences in this bill without qualified immunity,” Klarides said.

She said the legislation has evolved over the past few days and developed more

problems.

The police protest was only one of seven.

Nursing home and home care workers rallied at the Capitol to express their desire to see the General Assembly take up legislation to ensure adequate supplies of personal protective equipment, accountability of state officials and employers, and respect for workers who denounce hazardous situations from the front lines.

Black Lives Matter protesters were also at the Capitol.

Lions Shred Paper And Smash Computers

by SOPHIE SONNENFELD New Haven I ndependent

In the parking lot behind the Barnard Environmental Studies Magnet School, members of the New Haven Lions Club teamed up with Barnard Principal Bob McCain for a first-time “Shred Event” fundraiser.

The Lions invited New Haveners to collect any old papers or computers around their houses and dump it off at Barnard Saturday morning. Participants paid $10 for smaller loads and $20 for larger loads.

Lions Club President Jamene Farrell said the money will fund their initiatives to help fight blindness, feed the hungry at Columbus House, and aid seniors and the disabled.

Throughout the morning, 50 people pulled up and waited in their cars as the Lions unloaded paper piles from their trunks.

Over a dozen of the New Haven and Fairfield county Lions Club 49 members came to volunteer on Saturday. At 8 a.m. they set up a tent and began tying balloons and hanging signs around the school.

Fred Ventura parked in the lot with a

Jim Bennett (left) with Farrell and next year’s Lions Club president, Kamor Olaosebikan.

trunk full of old bills, paperwork, and receipts. “I wanted to come support the Lions and get rid of all this stuff I’ve had for years!” he said.

Lions volunteers dumped the paper in bins and wheeled the bins over to a shred-

ding and recycling company they contracted for the day.

Joe Johnston, who owns a company called Affordable Solutions, has three trucks for on-site shredding. The truck grabs the paper bins and chucks the paper into a shredding compartment.

5

Once the truck is filled with the shredded paper, Johnston drops it off at a paper recycling plant in Bridgeport. The plant then turns it into paper plates and other recycled paper products.

On Saturday, Johnston’s truck was filled with 4,500 pounds of shredded paper and eight hard drives and computers. For the computers, Johnston disassembles and recycles the hard drives and recycles the rest of the computers at a separate plant.

Johnston shreds papers at fundraising events every few weeks around the state.

He said with people stuck at home during the pandemic, more and more people are cleaning and showing up to shred papers. At one event in Fairfield roughly a month ago, Johnston said, the shredding line wrapped the building. “It was probably their sixth time doing that event and never was it ever that busy.”

“Everybody has stuff and you have to get rid of it and this is the environmental way to do it” he said.

McCain said he is excited to get Barnard students more involved in recycling efforts like the shredding event.

“I think it’s fantastic for us to do an event

like this because we’re an environmental school and we should be doing things like this. It can help kids understand recycling is a really important thing to be doing.” said McCain.

Farrell was inspired to start the event last August when she and another member of the Lions attended a lecture from a professional organizer who spoke at the Mitchell Library about decluttering and redecorating. At the end of the lecture, one librarian told Farrell she wasn’t sure where the library should get their recycled papers shredded. “I stepped right up and I said, ‘The Lions club could do it with you. Let’s do it!’”

Initially the Lions planned to partner with the environmental school to shred and recycle in May. The Lions wanted to have the kids and their families involved in the process. When Covid-19 shut down the school, they altered their plans. Once reopenings started in New Haven, the Lions pounced to quickly organize the event for July.

“As it turns out, people like to come after they do taxes, so this worked out Con’ton page 14

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Anti-Violence Walk-Talkers Hit West Rock Streets doors and chatting with those enjoying the sunny day on their front steps.

Leading up to Saturday’s second gathering, Staggers reached out to community leaders on Facebook in hopes of bringing more people into neighborhoods to show youth the many people that care. “Even when people aren’t taking it seriously, I’m going to keep doing this,” he said.

CT Against Gun Violence (CAGV) Executive Director Jeremy Stein and Director of Community Outreach Terra Volpe walked with the group to support the community and Smith. “This is what we need. A community that talks the talk and walks the walk,” said Stein.

After Smith knocked on Westville Manor resident Elizabeth Yarbrough’s door, Staggers told her why the group was walking. “We need our village back,” he said. Yarbrough, who raises her two grandkids, said she was comforted by the group passing by.

“I’m afraid to let them go outside sometimes. I appreciate that they’re out here. I won’t have to be as afraid if the kids are outside,” she said.

Some walkers wore T-shirts memorializing Kiana Brown, the 19-year-old former Hillhouse basketball champ killed in her sleep by a bullet meant for someone else.

Staggers wore a shirt that read “It takes a village” on the front and continued with “to stop the violence” on the back.

“We’re out here walking today to stand against gun violence in New Haven.

We’re tired of these kids getting shot and killed. We want to tell our kids out here that we care about them and that they’re better than the violence and killing,”

by MAYA MCFADDEN

New Haven I ndependent

While celebrating his birthday on his Westville Manor front steps with his two granddaughters, Jose Valentin shared his perspectives of gun violence in New Haven with a group of 15 adults walking the neighborhood to talk to residents about stopping the violence.

Valentin (pictured above) works at a barbershop in the Hill. He agreed that all violence, especially gun violence, needs to stop.

Valentin said he sometimes deals with angry and violent youth at his barbershop.

“These kids think ignorance is a joke,” he said.

Valentin blamed the government for making it hard to parent nowadays: “All these services out there won’t let you parent, so I think that’s why these kids are out here like this. Everybody loses when they won’t let you parent.”

The exchanged occurred during a neighborhood walk organized by former West Rock Alder Carlton Staggers. Staggers had organized another group of New Haveners to walk through the Newhallville neighborhood last Monday asking residents to stand against gun violence and encourage youth to put the guns down.

The group of 15 walked through West Rock’s Westville Manor and Rockview Circle neighborhoods Saturday afternoon for the second event.

Current West Rock Alder Honda Smith joined the group while also handing out packs of reusable face masks to residents.

Staggers and Smith led the group around the neighborhood knocking on residents’

Staggers said to a family sitting on their front porch.

“I wish they would put their guns down so these kids can have a childhood,” responded one resident.

The group made a stop at a cookout on Wayfarer Street, where a resident grilled hotdogs and hamburgers on his front lawn for his neighbors and anybody passing by.

Smith promised the griller, Reggie, she would stop by. “Thank you guys for being out here for our kids,” Reggie said.

“Violence is violence, and we want to stop it all,” said Smith.

The group also stopped by a youth-organized wrestling match in a Westville Manor backyard. Ice the Beef President Chaz Carmon said he hopes to arrange with the boys to find them indoor space to wrestle. “I’ll support anything and everything that keeps these kids out of trouble,” he said.

Carmon walked with the group, proud that “the community is getting up off their butts.”

Staggers said the group’s next gathering will be on Tuesday around the Quinnipiac area at 6 p.m. A specific location is still in the works.

Iva Johnson, Ward 30 Democratic committee chair, joined the group’s walk after canvasing the West Rock neighborhood with Jason Bartlett collecting signatures from registered voters to get Bartlett on the Nov. 3 ballot as an independent running for State Senate. “Some of these kids only ever wake up to gun violence. We need to give them hope, opportunity, and care,” she said.

Minority Hiring Picks Up At Q House

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

Four local African American-owned contractors recently landed work at the Q House construction site, bringing the project’s share of subcontracting work awarded to Black-owned businesses past the city’s 10 percent goal, for now.

City Engineer Giovanni Zinn gave that update Monday evening during a virtual meeting of the Q House Advisory Board.

The group met online via the the Zoom videoconferencing platform.

Zinn said that, roughly 40 percent of the way through the construction of the new community center at 197 Dixwell Ave., around 10 percent of subcontracts on the $16 million-plus overall project have been won by African American-owned businesses.

That means that Black-owned contractors are slated to bring home at least $1.7 million by the time the two-story youth, health, and senior center is done in April 2021.

The update came one month after Q House Advisory Board members and local African American contractors laid into the city and the project’s Branfordbased general contractor, A. Secondino & Son, for the relatively low share of construction work at the site going to Black-owned businesses and Black workers. It also comes amidst broader citywide debates inside and outside City Hall around how best to ensure that local African American and Hispanic construction workers and companies benefit from local building work.

Despite the extensive outreach efforts described in this 503-page document Zinn submitted to the board in June, African American-owned businesses made up only 9 percent of the project’s subcontractor work and Black workers made up less than 8 percent of the workforce as of last month.

Zinn said those numbers are looking a bit better now — and have met the minority hiring goals as laid out in the city’s

Chapter 12 ½ and 12 ¼ ordinances — thanks to the recent hiring of New Havenbased, African American-owned contractors Green Elm, Providence Install, New Haven Firestop, and A-Plus.

“Your discussion last month with the general contractor lit even more of a fire under them, and I think that was effective in pushing some of this along,” Zinn told the board members As of right now, he said, 10 percent of subcontractors on the project are African American-owned businesses, 6 percent are Hispanic-owned businesses, and 17 percent are women-owned businesses.

He also said that 9 percent of the overall construction workforce (as measured by work hours by ethnicity) is African American, and 47 percent of the total workforce is Black or Hispanic.

“The numbers you’re giving us are floor levels,” said Q House board member Dottie Green. “That’s the absolute minimum.

So I’m hoping that there will be continued efforts to increase the number of minor-

6

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO Their voices were heard: contractors protest outside Q House site.

ity contractors as well as to increase the number of minority workers.”

Zinn described in detail the construction work to be performed by the recent hires.

Green Elm, which is run by Dixwellbased contractor Rodney Williams, will be starting as soon as Wednesday on exterior sheeting work at the site, Zinn said.

Providence Install will be doing ductwork. New Haven Firestop Systems, run

by New Havener Robert Walker, will be doing all of the mechanical firestopping for the project. And A-Plus will be doing the mechanical pipe insulation in the building.

Con’t on page 12

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Stream the moment without skipping a beat.

Enjoy streaming with Xfinity. With the best in-home WiFi experience, Xfinity delivers fast and reliable Internet for grooving to your tunes or watching your shows around the house.

Plus, keep devices connected to your home network protected with the Xfinity xFi Gateway.

With Xfinity, streaming is simple, easy, awesome.

Xfinity Internet

39

$

99

/ month

For 12 months

Paperless Billing and Auto Pay Required | No Term Contract

Get the xFi Gateway for speed, coverage and security

xFi Advantage Security FREE with the xFi Gateway

Equipment, taxes, and other charges extra, and subject to change. See below for details.

Go to xfinity.com, call 1-800-xfinity, or visit an Xfinity Store today.

Offer requires enrollment in both automatic payments and paperless billing. Must enroll within 30 days of placing the order. Without enrollment, the monthly service charge automatically increases by $10. The automatic payment and paperless billing discount is for a period of 24 months and will appear on the bill within 30 days of enrolling. If either automatic payments or paperless billing are subsequently cancelled during the 24-month term, or services are reduced to Xfinity TV Limited Basic service only, the $10 monthly discount will be removed automatically. Offer ends 09/21/20. Restrictions apply. Not available in all areas. New residential customers only. Limited to Performance Internet. Equipment, installation, taxes and fees extra, and subject to change. After promo. period, regular rates apply. Actual speeds vary and are not guaranteed. For factors affecting speed, visit xfinity.com/ networkmanagement. Xfinity xFi and xFi Advanced Security are available to Xfinity Internet customers with a compatible Xfinity Gateway. Call for restrictions and complete details. NPA232170-0001 NED AA Q3PIV3

137766_NPA232170-0001 Moments ad 9.25x10.5 V3.indd 1

7

7/16/20 4:12 PM

BLM Rally Call: Ballots Matter THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

nity as long as you’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing. But what should happen is when you run into what we call the bad apples, bad actors, there should be some checks and balances on that.”

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal joined the marchers down Goodrich Street.

“These young leaders are inspiring to me. They are who I keep in mind while fighting in Washington,” he said.

Pastor Nicardo Delahaye of the Faith 7th Day Adventist Church in Hartford came to stand in solidarity with Newhallville.

“We won’t have the realization of all lives mattering until Black lives matter as well,” he said. Delahaye said even at 32 there are times he is afraid of interacting with the police. Delahaye said he worries for his 1-year-old son.

Mother of two Salamato Mohammad heard of the equality and empowerment rally last week and marked it down in her calendar. She stopped by all the tables and collected about 10 books for her 7 and 8-year-old sons, a recipe for a drink to boost immune systems, and multiple handouts from local organizations.

“This is is new ,and I hope it happens again. It makes it easier for us to learn whats going on in the neighborhood at one time. I see things are changing,” Mohammad said.

Jennette Sykes, founder of The Perfect Blend, a nonprofit organization that focuses on youth services and mentorship, debuted its eight-week youth grief and loss program. While at the rally 36 people signed up for updates on the organization. The program’s second session of the program, focused on meditation, nutrition, and healthy living will begin on Aug. 18.

Organizer and Mount Zion Education Director Tamara Nathan-Oputa said the Newhallville rally will become an annual event.

The Sunday rally was the launch of Newhallville United, said Devin Avshalom-Smith, founder of the Newhallville Community Action Network. In the near future, the initiative will host webinars for the community to learn about financial literacy, employment opportunities, and voting. “Newhallville United is made up of the community’s social justice partners. We have come together to make an even larger impact and connect the whole neighborhood,” he said.

Four hundred seventy-two bags of groceries, which included bread, grits and pancake mix, fresh fruits and vegetables, and food items for pasta salad, were distributed at the rally. Each grocery bag contained 20 meals, said Ne-

by MAYA MCFADDEN New Haven I ndependent

Hundreds of Newhallville residents united with a march and rally to call for local voting, equality, and empowerment.

The Newhallville United event was hosted at the Lincoln Bassett School Sunday by community leaders looking to share local resources with residents and get neighbors registered and motivated to vote. The NAACP registered residents to vote on-site.

The event started with a half-mile march from Goodrich and Newhall Street to Lincoln Bassett School. Community members walked to the beat of a drumline followed by a caravan of 50 cars through Newhallville headed to the rally.

The Newhallville United initiative is a collaboration among dozens of neighborhood resources including 15 churches, youth services, after school programs, and more.

Nearly 30 vendors offered community members groceries, blood pressure checks, Covid-19 testing, voter and census registration, period products, health and wellness information, and kids books. Hundreds stopped by the outdoor marketplace where activities for young kids, food, and information on local resources were offered.

Organizers also celebrated hitting 144,000 meals distributed throughout Newhallville during the Covid pandemic. The Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center set up a walk-up Covid testing site.

Drummers Lesly Crockett, Jasmine Reed, Ryshon Menafee, Myran Darden led the march for jobs and justice to Lincoln Bassett School with their beats echoing through Newhallville. “We matter,” they chanted as they walked and Dixwell residents cheered them on from their front porches and windows.

State Rep. Robyn Porter and State Sen. Gary Winfield shared with the crowd the process of the state House passing the bill, HB 6004 An Act Concerning Police Accountability (AACPA) on Friday.

“Your team is whoever is out there doing the work for you. Democrat, Republican, independent ... it doesn’t matter.

What matters is: Do they speak Black Lives Matter into policy? And when they don’t do that they’re not part of the team,” said Winfield.

Porter called out the names of Tamir Rice, Malik Jones, Breonna Taylor, Rekia Boyd, Eric Garner, Jayson Negron, Corbin Cooper.

“There was no due process for them,” she said. “This legislation says, ‘You know what? You can have your immu-

Myran Darden, Lesly Crockett, Jasmine Reed, Ryshon Menafee.

8

whallville Management Team Chair Kim Harris.

The Newhallville United Facebook page will offer updates on the upcoming webinars and workshops for the community. On Aug. 1 the first workshop about voting will be hosted by the Registrar of Voters Office. The free workshops will be hosted on Zoom. Zoom sites at local churches will be offered in the community for residents without access to the internet to tune in.

Donnell Durden led a crew of local youth around the rally taking video and doing interviews for Newhallville TV, a community Youtube channel.

“We came out here to make noise about being united,” said Harris.

Partnering Churches will be able to expand their programming outside of the church and further into the community.

“This is chance for churches to be focused on ministry and not just be individual,” said Nathan-Oputa.

The Music Note Kids Club Inc., a Hamden-based after-school program that combines educational material on STEM, arts, and ecology in its program for youth joined the community Sunday. Founder Joseph Inigo brought along free books, musical instruments, and puppets to introduce the kids to a form of self-expression. “It’s not only fun for them, but it’s a form of therapy,” he said.

Inigo invited kids as young as 4 to host a puppet show about anything they wanted. Inigo’s introduction of puppetry to the youth is meant to also teach the kids skills like hosting, acting, and voicing. “These are real skills they can get jobs with,” Inigo said. “We want to provide them with equal opportunity and equal knowledge.”

Avshalom-Smith was proud to see hundreds of dedicated Newhallville residents and organizations Sunday. Avshalom-Smith said the organizing team’s main goals were to spread awareness of the importance of voting, filling out the census, and linking neighbors with community resources.

“Poverty and violence lend itself to hopeless but in Newhallville we saw a lot of hope today,” he said.

Newhallville resident RA GODDESS QUEEN brought her three kids out to the rally after a flyer was posted on her Bassett Street residence. While reading the flyer on her door the words equality, united, and helping hands stood out to her.

“I love that there are churches out here for us,” she said. “I wanted to bring my kids along to experience quality in our neighborhood. We deserve it out here.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

2 Months Later After Floyd’s Murder, Hamden Rally Keeps The Message Alive

by KO LYN CHEANG

New Haven I ndependent

Hamden mother Shana Jackson watched in horror as she saw Officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on the neck of a suffocating George Floyd, one hand in his pocket. The policeman’s posture reminded her of the way a hunter stands over their dead prey.

She was so disturbed by the event and the many other police shootings that had recently occurred that she felt compelled to do something.

But as she marched alongside fellow Black Lives Matter protestors in Hartford in the days after Floyd’s death, fist in the air, chanting “No Justice No Peace”, she feared that this moment of nationwide reckoning would only be ephemeral. She said she did not want people to just go home, feeling exhausted and their energy expended, and not take further action for real political change.

That’s when Jackson got the idea to organize a rally that also had voter registration booths to encourage people to vote for politicians who support long-term systemic change to address racial injustice. Two months after Floyd’s murder, her dream came to fruition Saturday afternoon with an event in Hamden.

Braving the sweltering heat, over 80 people gathered at the steps of Town Hall to listen to speeches by Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz, State Rep. Robyn Porter, Rabbi Brian Immerman, Pastor Deidre Johnson, and other activists.

Two voter registration booths flanked the ornate semi-elliptical colonnade. Speakers called upon those present to fill out the census forms to ensure that the federal government recognize the racial diversity of Hamden and Connecticut and to vote for change. Local and state elected leaders including Justin Farmer, Hamden city councilman and State Senate hopeful, were also present.

Medical students Richard Ferro, Whitney Nichols and Stephanie Quainoo.

“I’m so delighted that people across the state are realizing that your voice is only heard if you vote,” Lt. Gov. Bysiewicz told the Independent at the event. She said to those present, “The second thing that all of us can do is speak to our elected leaders about huge important issues like police accountability and transparency, like absentee ballot expansion for November and some things that would help with healthcare access and equality.”

Jackson, a Yale law school library staff member for 30 years, spoke with a booming voice into the microphone as the crowd, children holding their parents’ hands and elderly people in wheelchairs, cheered.

“We have an administration right now that claims to be pro-life but they’re

not pro-life, they’re pro-death. We have people on the border right now that are locked up in cages,” said Jackson. Plastered on the stone columns and walls behind her were the names of dozens of African-Americans, Hispanics, and people of color who have been killed by the police.

Days after Floyd was killed, Jackson reached out to immigration rights organizer and social justice activist Kica Matos. Matos then contacted activist groups to put together the event. Jackson’s idea blossomed into a coalition that included Hamden Action Now, Black and Brown United in Action, Unidad Latina en Accion, and others.

“As a longtime activist, I know these moments do not last very long, so we

$2,000 on disinfectant sprays and bottles. $1,700 will pay for utility carts and storage bins, and $1,300 will pay for a storage shed.

The department will also use $26,000 to upgrade the program it uses for scheduling personnel.

The most expensive and most controversial item, though, is not as directly related to the virus as others. About $33,500 of the grant will pay for a drone, with camera attachments, other accessories, warranties, and training. While drones are not typical tools in a government’s arsenal for fighting coronavirus, it is still eligible for purchase with the grant.

Police Chief John Sullivan, and former Chief John Cappiello, said the drone will be used mostly for search and rescue operations. Hikers frequently get lost on Sleeping Giant, for example, and the

drone would help the police and fire departments locate them. They said it is a piece of equipment the department might want in the future, and the grant was an opportunity to get it without having to pay out of pocket.

The main component of the drone and its accessories — a DJI Matrice 300 RTK — are a wide-angle camera with a strong zoom feature and a thermal camera, Sullivan told the council Monday. It could have been helpful during the tornado that tore across the northern end of town in 2018, he said. The department could also use it to document and map crime scenes, or to analyze traffic flow, or even to make announcements by mounting a PA system on it.

Departments across the state have started using drones in recent years. In 2017, Stamford, for example, established a

need to seize the moment and push for radical change around eliminating systemic racism, around defunding the police and coming up with an entirely different vision of how police engage with our communities,” said Matos, who is the Vera Institute director of the Center on Immigration and Justice. “This is also an opportunity to create new Shana Jacksons in our community — a new crop of activists who feel compelled to act in the moment we are in.”

State Rep. Porter spoke a day after playing a key role in getting a police accountability bill passed through the State house. Among other measures, the bill. which now goes before the State Senate, would ban chokeholds and alter the longstanding doctrine of “qualified immunity” protecting police officers from lawsuits filed by civilians over excessive force.

Bysiewicz said she hopes to see the bill passed next week, after which point it would go to the governor for his signature.

On the police accountability bill, Matos said, “It’s a step in the right direction. It’s exactly where we need to be headed. But we need to do more. It’s about also making sure that the laws don’t just pass at the state level but that we are engaging with the police in a different way.”

Matos suggested that governments should reallocate funds from “over-bloated police budgets” and reinvest them in social services for disenfranchised communities.

“Sick & Tired Of Being Sick & Tired” Pastor Deidre Johnson said she “forgot she was black” when she became one of the few African-American homecoming queens at the predominantly white Rutgers University years ago as an undergraduate. Holding her gold-plated trophy of a woman standing confident and proud, she, too, felt confident and proud.

The she found out a group of white students walked out of the pageant after she won. The pageant, a multi-racial event organized by the African Student Congress, was cancelled the next year.

She recounted this incident during the rally and said, “We have to raise our voices to the degree that if we perish, we perish.

No matter what we face, we have to raise our voices against injustice.”

As the afternoon wore on, Puerto Rican bomba music, provided by Connecticutbased cultural group Movimiento Cultural, filled the air. Then the beating drums died down and the dancers in their colourful dresses cleared the stage.

“Say their names with me,” said Farmer, as he listed the names of victims of police shootings and police-related deaths in Connecticut, including Jayson Negron, Corbin Cooper, Malik Jones, and Anthony “Chulo” Vega. The crowd echoed their names.

“These are the names of young men who have been lost by police violence here in our state of Connecticut … men who are younger than me, who did not get the chance to live to their full potential,” said Farmer, who describes himself as an “activist official.”

As he spoke about what it means to be an elected official in this day and age, Farmer said that he was, like the 20th-century civil rights activist Fanny Lou Hammer, “sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

Even though the focus of the rally was police accountability, speakers emphasized that the problem of racism extends far beyond that issue. During the pandemic, Black and hispanic people have been more likely than white people to get infected by the coronavirus and die from it.

Three Quinnipiac University medical students spoke during the rally about “medical racism,” highlighting how black and brown people face more discriminaCon’t on page 14

Hamden Council Approves Drone Purchase

by SAM GURWITT

New Haven I ndependent

The Hamden Police Department added to its arsenal of Covid-19 related resources with authorization to spend grant money on PPE, cleaning supplies, a storage shed, utility bins, personnel scheduling software … and a drone.

The Hamden Legislative Council voted this past week to accept an $82,363 coronavirus-related grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The Bureau of Justice Assistance FY 20 Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding Program is supposed to help state and local law enforcement agencies with the costs of Covid-19.

The department will use some of the grant to pay for supplies. It will spend nearly $18,000 of it on personal protective equipment (PPE). It will spend about

9

drone unit, according to the Stamford Advocate. In New Haven, people floated the idea of using drones to monitor dirk bike riders last year. That idea was ultimately shot down.

Some Hamden council members, though, were wary of the advanced features the drone has to offer. Some, including Justin Farmer and Brad Macdowall, said they opposed the purchase because of the drone’s potential for surveillance use.

In 2018, a councilwoman in Hartford raised similar concerns after the city bought a drone with a grant.

The grant, and the drone purchase, originally came before the council in June.

The council voted to take the drone out of the grant, and then tabled the full grant acceptance.

On Monday night, the administration came back to the council with the drone

still in the grant. This time, the grant passed 7 to 6 with the drone in it.

Many of the details of the drone’s use are still unclear, since the department has not yet created a policy for its use. Once it does, the council will not have any official oversight. By approving the grant, the council voted oversight of the drone off its desk.

Instead, it is now up to the police department to draft a policy. The police commission will then consider it.

Commission Chair Michael Iezzi said he would take the opinions of members of the public, and council members, into account. “Of course I have consideration for the council as members of the town on what their concerns are,” he said. “But it’s overall what’s in the best interest of the town” that will influence how the commission votes.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Moment Seized: Winfield Pushes Cop Accountability Bill Past The Finish Line

by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

The State Senate early Wednesday voted 21-15 in support of a hotly contested police accountability bill after over 10 hours of impassioned debate led by New Haven State Sen. Gary Winfield, culminating his decade-long quest to convince a suburban-dominated legislature that Black lives matter when it comes to law enforcement.

The vote came at 4 a.m. at the end of the State Senate’s marathon socially distanced special session, which started at 11 a.m. Tuesday, and was held in the State Capitol building in Hartford and broadcast live on CT-N. Now that the bill, called House Bill 6004: An Act Concerning Police Accountability, has been approved by both the State House of Representatives and the State Senate, it advances to Gov. Ned Lamont to be signed into law. He is expected to sign it.

To get there, Winfield spent hours arguing passionately against efforts by some colleagues questioning his assertions about police misconduct against people of color.

“This is an issue about power,” Winfield, the bill’s top proponent, said on the Senate floor Tuesday evening. “This is an issue about how power is used in communities. This is an issue about how power is misused in communities. Yes, this is about cost, but there are costs for communities who cannot believe — although I wish they could—that the police are operating to protect them. That’s what this is about.”

All the chamber’s Republicans voted against the bill. All the Democrats but one (Waterbury’s Joan Hartley) voted for it. Police unions fought against it, civil-rights groups for it.

The vote comes just over two months after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked mass protests across the state and the nation against police brutality.

Thousands of people in New Haven and across Connecticut demanded in those rallies an immediate and overdue response to the long history of unequal treatment of Black and brown people at the hands of law enforcement in this country. The marches led legislators to be receptive to considering police reform proposals — including ideas they rejected when Winfield proposed them in the past — in a special session.

The bill’s provisions include: • Creating a new independent inspector general office charged with investigating deadly use of force by police.

• Requiring behavioral health assessments for police officers every five years.

• Banning chokeholds except when officers believe they personally face an imminent threat of deadly violence.

FRANKIE GRAZIANO | CONNECTICUT PUBLIC PHOTO Sens. Gary Winfield and Doug McCrory pray with Reps. Robyn Porter and Anthony Nolan after the vote.

• Authorizing all Connecticut municipalities to create civilian review boards with subpoena power.

• Requiring an officer to intervene if they see a colleague violating someone’s rights.

• Prohibiting police departments from hiring officers who have been decertified for past misconduct while employed by another law enforcement agency in Connecticut.

Speaking towards the end of the debate at 3:30 a.m., New Haven Democrat and State Sen. President Pro Tempore Martin Looney described the bills as “addressing urgently needed transparency issues, issues of professionalism, issues of accountability, and issues of public safety.”

“The problem isn’t the good officers,” Winfield argued at one point. “The problem is that there are officers who have been given power, and they’ve been allowed to use that power, and we’ve pretended as if the system is going to check it. It doesn’t. It doesn’t. And it will not

check it” without reforms like this.

Logan Leads Attack On Immunity Change As was the case during a 12-hour virtual public listening session earlier this month as well as during an overnight nearly eight hour debate in the State House of Representatives last week, Republican and Democrat critics alike focused their concerns on the 71-page bill’s Section 41.

That section limits when police officers can invoke the legal defense of governmental immunity. It also creates a new cause of action in state court designed to make it easier for people harmed by police officers to file civil lawsuits seeking financial damages when an officer’s actions are found to be “malicious, wanton or wilful.”

George Logan, a Republican senator who represents Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, Derby, Hamden, Naugatuck and Woodbridge, offered perhaps the most ardent attack on Section 41 in a 20-minute speech decrying what he said

10

would be inevitable unintended consequences of the bill’s passage.

Logan said reforming governmental immunity — a state-level equivalent of the federal judicially evolved, common law doctrine of qualified immunity — would result in higher crime, fewer police officers, frivolous lawsuits, and greater costs to municipalities in the form of officer-specific insurance policies.

“The effect of [Section 41] is going to be that cities, towns will hire less police officers to try to make ends meet,” Logan asserted. “That will result in less patrols. Less patrols will result in higher crime and violence. The criminal will know this. That is the problem. That is the fatal flaw.”

Logan repeated a line of criticism offered by many Republicans Tuesday night: That reforming governmental immunity as it currently exists will discourage officers from doing their jobs because it will expose them and the municipalities that employ them to ex-

pensive, frivolous lawsuits related to the necessary work of proactive policing.

North Haven Republican and Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano offered a less dire take during his time at the mic around 3 a.m. Wednesday. But he too opposed the governmental immunity change as worded in the bill, warning that it will likely lead to an increase in “frivolous lawsuits” — particularly because of the one-year statute of limitations as defined in the bill. He said that limited time frame between when an alleged civil rights violation has occurred and when a plaintiff has to file suit will likely encourage lawyers to sue quickly and generously.

“Good cops are going to be sued,” he said. “No doubt about it.”

Winfield, East Hartford Democrat Saud Anwar, an American flag-clad Bridgeport Democrat Dennis Bradley, and other defenders of the bill argued that that critique misrepresents the actual language of the bill. They said it overlooks the very real harm caused by “bad apple” police officers who can avoid legal, professional, and financial consequences all thanks to a doctrine developed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Winfield pointed out that Section 41 allows a police officer to invoke governmental immunity only if they have an “objectively good faith belief that such officer’s conduct did not violate the law.”

Per the language of the bill, a municipality or law enforcement agency must indemnify a police officer from financial loss and expense in court so long as they are “acting in the discharge of the officer’s duties.”

And the only time that an individual officer would be held personally, financially liable—in the form of having to repay a municipality or law enforcement agency providing insurance for them— would be when a jury finds that that officer’s actions were “malicious, wanton or wilful.”

“Do we need police officers in our communities who are doing bad-faith activities?” asked Anwar.

“Do we need people who are actually going to harm fellow individuals with malice, with wilful bad intention?”

This bill is not about defunding the police, Anwar insisted. No matter how many times critics said that’s what the bill sets out to do.

Instead, he said, it’s about defining “bad apples” and removing an obstacle currently in place that prevents people harmed by officers from even having their day in court in a suit alleging civil rights violations by police.

Bradley laid out exactly how qualified immunity works in practice after the U.S. Supreme Court essentially created Con’t on page 12

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

You're doing creative things to stay safe.

And we're doing world-class things to keep you safe.

At Yale New Haven Health, we’ve instituted a comprehensive 10-step safety program in all of our facilities to ensure that everything is clean, safe, and ready to treat you at a moment’s notice.

There's never been a better time to take advantage of our world-class medical expertise in the presence of new, world-class safety measures. ynhh.org

11

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Bill Past The Finish Line Con’t from page 10

the doctrine in 1967.

“It is not enough for a plaintiff or a victim to say, ‘This officer did something to violate my rights,’” he said. “It’s not enough. You have to show as a matter of law that there is case law that is extremely similar to the action of that police officer. And on the basis of that, the police officer should have known that his conduct is illegal.”

Without that “clearly established” judicial precedent, he said, any officer is almost always left off the hook.

“It doesn’t matter how egregious the conduct is.” That’s because a judge can and will simply throw out the case if there is not a past case with nearly the exact same fact pattern and context, and that resulted in a judgment against the officer.

This bill, Bradley said, in particular Section 41 of this bill, will not result in police officers losing their homes, their assets, and their financial livelihoods because of frivolous lawsuits. Rather, this will allow people harmed by the police to bring civil suits in state court and have a greater likelihood of their cases heard by a jury.

During that trial, he said, the plaintiff still has to convince the jury that the officer’s actions were “malicious, wanton or wilful.”

“Those words have meaning,” he said.

At the end of his roughly 10 minutes of testimony, Bradley pulled out an America flag and pulled it over his shoulders.

He said he did so not out of disrespect, but because he loves this country more than he loves himself.

“We don’t want to see a country that is divided,” he said. “We have to bring everybody together. And this legislation is exactly that.” It isn’t designed to bring cops down, he said, but rather to let all civilians know that they can hold accountable police who do harm.

“People Who Have Not Been Able To Get Justice” The Democrats who defended the police accountability bill Tuesday night and Wednesday morning did not turn solely to legal arguments when making their case.

They also shared personal stories about the harmful impact of living one’s life in the shadow of structural inequality.

“The center of this problem is that Black people in this state, in this country, have a problem when it relates to police,” Winfield (pictured) said, “and it goes back to the foundational history of this country. It goes back to the foundations of policing in this country. It goes back to slavery.”

Winfield said he has seen people in

his neighborhood of Newhallville get pulled over by the police — that he has been pulled over by the police — and feared whether or not he would survive the encounter, simply because of his skin color.

He said he is the father of four children “who walk this earth in Black skin. It’s important to me that if something ever happened [to me], that they have recourse. But it’s also important to me that [the State Senate] think about where the conversation should be centered. And the conversation should be centered on those people who have not been able to get justice.”

Bridgeport Democrat Marilyn Moore (pictured above) agreed. She also opened up about some of the discrimination she has faced as a Black woman born and raised in Bridgeport.

She said she’s been stopped by police in Bridgeport, Trumbull, and Monroe.

She said a man once confronted her in a Fairfield parking lot because he believed she had stolen a car with a State Senate license plate. She said she received hundreds of “vulgar” letters from people from majority white towns throughout Connecticut, urging her to vote against the bill.

“We get this all the time,” she said.

“This cannot continue.”

Monroe told her Senate colleagues that when she uses the terms racism, equality, and social justice, “that is not rhetoric. That is what we live as Black and brown people every day.”

“We’re here today because our communities will not allow us to continue on the same road that we are on,” she continued. “Because it’s taking us down as a community. It’s taking us down as a state. It’s taking us down as the United States of America.”

Hartford Democrat Douglas McCrory said that two of the most difficult days in his life were July 5 and July 6, 2016.

On July 5, he said, Alton Sterling was shot and killed by two Baton Rouge police officers in Louisiana.

McCrory said he drove his teenage son to school and asked him if he had seen the video showing Sterling’s death.

“Yes,” his son replied. And the two then had a conversation about how to “survive the encounter” with as a Black person interacting with a police officer.

The very next day, on July 6, Philando Castile was shot and killed by a police officer in Minnesota. Driving his son to school that day, McCrory asked him if he had seen the video showing Castile’s death.

“Yes,” his son replied. And then he turned to his dad and asked, “When does

it end?”

“What do you mean?” McCrory replied.

“When does the mistreatment end?” his son continued.

McCrory paused. “I said, ‘Boy. As long as you stay Black, this is how it’s gonna be. And you’re going to have to figure out how to survive in this society as a Black man. And that’s not the type of environment or country I want to live in.”

He said this is why he and Winfield and Moore and so many other Black and brown legislators are so passionate about this police accountability bill, and other reforms like it. “We cannot understand what we did to be treated this way,” he said. “We just wanted to be treated like anyone else.”

“What It’s Like To Feel Different” Greenwich Democrat Alexandra Kasser said she supported the bill in part because she has spent the past two months listening closely to experiences with police shared by her colleagues of color.

She also described the “intimidation and fear, domination and control” that she experienced in a previous relationship with someone who was violent and abusive.

“I know what it’s like to be dehumanized and feel powerless,” she said. “Domestic abuse and police abuse are different, but the power dynamic is the same.

Because that’s what it is is. It’s a power differential. One party or individual using their power to dominate another.”

She said that this bill, and particularly Section 41, seeks to address that power imbalance. “It draws a line and says we cannot dehumanize one another without consequences. It creates a boundary that cannot be crossed that says every person is a person, every person has value, every person must be heard and validated.”

Danbury Democrat Julie Kushner said she too would be supporting the bill because of conversations with constituents and legislative colleagues in recent weeks about “systemic racism” and its connection to law enforcement.

Like Kasser, she relayed her experiences living on the margins of a community — in her case, growing up in the only Jewish family living in a rural Iowa community populated mostly by German-American farmers in the 1950s.

“It taught me what it’s like to feel different,” she said. And her parents, she said, instilled in her the belief that “no one should be treated as lesser than because they’re different.”

Vernon Republican Dan Champagne also tapped into his own personal history with the police — as a member of Vernon law enforcement for over two

12

decades — to underscore his opposition to the bill.

He said he came within a second of shooting a man who had driven to Connecticut from Boston with his kidnapped wife held captive in his car. That man pointed his gun at Champagne’s partner, Champagne recalled. He said he was a split-second away from shooting the man, but the man killed himself first.

Champagne also recalled using a chokehold in one instance because that was the only tactic he said he could use in order to pry a man who was choking someone himself off of the third party.

He said he’s worried that those actions — whether the chokehold he used to protect someone else, or the shot he could have fired to protect himself and his partner — could be found to have violated the law, if the police accountability bill were passed.

“Call And Responsibility” Champagne, Logan, and their colleagues ultimately were not able to win over enough Democrats to vote against the bill.

Instead, the majority voted in support of the bill championed by Winfield.

The New Haven state senator made what felt like a closing pitch for the bill in a speech given at around 2:10 a.m. (the final vote wouldn’t come until just before 4 a.m.)

Winfield has proposed police accountability bills since his winning his first election to the legislature in 2008 after years of police-accountability activism.

Some, including racial-profiling measures, have passed. Others remained blocked until the Black Lives Matter marches over the past two months convinced his colleagues to take them up in this bill.

Wiping tears from his cheeks and pausing frequently to maintain composure, WInfield said, “No matter what I do, part of me is broken because of the work I’ve been doing for the past three decades. Part of me is broken because I walk around in the skin I walk around in.’

To his Democrat colleagues who criticized the process — who saw the Judiciary Committee take the lead on the bill, while other committees did not hold public hearings or listening sessions on the matter during the special session — Winfield said, “To invest more in the process than in the people who are affected by the process is a problem itself.”

“I know that history is written in the action that we take right now,” he concluded. “And there has never been a greater call and responsibility.”

Con’t from page 06

Minority Hiring

He said those four subcontracts are worth upwards of $200,000.

Zinn also said that a New Haven-based, Hispanic-owned business called Affordable Glass has been hired to construct the building’s sunshades as part of a subcontract with the main glass installer for the project. He said that sunshade subcontract is worth roughly $84,000.

Zinn said several more local minorityowned businesses are teed up to win other remaining work.

An African American-owned business is close to signing a subcontract for roughly $250,000 worth of interior wall assembly work at the site, he said; another African American-owned business is close to signing a roughly $60,000 subcontract for exterior and interior calking work.

Zinn said there’s plenty more work left to bid for around acoustical ceilings, concrete flatwork and pavings, and tiles.

The city engineer said that going through this process of searching for, and struggling to hire, New Haven-based, minority-owned contractors has spurred the city to look into developing new hiring pipelines for minority subcontractors and workers alike.

“The train is moving fast,” warned advisory board member Sean Reeves. He urged Zinn and the city to keep up the pressure on the general contractor to hire and finalize agreements with minority contractors as soon as possible so they don’t miss out on work needed to complete this project at the heart of New Haven’s historically African American epicenter.

Fellow advisory board member Malcolm Welfare encouraged Zinn to tap existing construction workforce pipelines in the city, like Career Tech Pathways, when looking for skilled and capable Black and brown construction workers for projects like this.

“There have been many apprenticeship programs in the past, he said, “and I definitely think we should learn from those programs and those mistakes. But also, we have to pull from trade programs already existing.”

After the meeting, Rodney Williams called the new small contracts just a drop in the bucket of what needs to be done, in terms of the work that Black contractors are capable of doing.

“We’re getting snacks. Everybody else is getting meals,” Williams said. “Don’t give us false hope.”

As for overall timeline for the project, Zinn said that the Q House likely won’t be done until late April or early May 2021 — pushed back from the previous goal date of early April 2021. That’s because the Covid-19 pandemic has delayed existing work long enough that the final paving work likely won’t be done by this Fall. Since paving is not done during the winter, and the paving plants reopen April 15, that paving won’t take place until soon after then.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

U.S. Postal Service to Review Stamp Honoring Supremes Florence Ballard

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent

Supremes legend Mary Wilson is on a crusade that she hopes will end with the United States Postal Service commemorating her late bandmate and close friend Florence Ballard on a Forever Stamp.

“I get so emotional when I speak about Flo,” said Wilson, who received a 2020 NNPA Lifetime Achievement Award during the Black Press of America’s recently completed virtual convention.

“I’ve been working hard to get that recognition for her because she deserves it.”

Wilson noted that the U.S. Postal Service has done a brilliant job of issuing commemorative postage stamps about iconic pop culture heroes who have helped shape the world.

In the past, there have been U.S. Postage Stamps to celebrate the lives and accomplishments of several music business legends, including Elvis Presley, Sarah Vaughn, Patsy Cline, Jimi Hendryx, Marvin Gaye, and Janis Joplin.

Wilson’s quest to get the U.S. Postal Service to issue a stamp to celebrate Ballard, a founding star of The Supremes, has gained momentum.

“We have received a proposal from the public, and it will be reviewed at our next Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee meeting,” Roy Betts, a U.S. Postal Service spokesman, told BlackPressUSA.

The U.S. Postal Service and the members of the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC) have set specific criteria used in determining the eligibility of subjects for commemoration on all U.S. stamps and stationery, Betts added.

Among them are that stamps and stationery would primarily feature American or American-related subjects. The Postal Service will honor extraordinary and enduring contributions to American society, history, culture, or environment.

U.S. stamp programs are planned and developed two to three years in advance and, consideration would occur if suggestions are submitted three or more years in advance of the proposed stamp.

In 2018, the Postal Service began considering proposals for deceased individuals three years following their death.

Officials noted that the stamp program commemorates positive contributions to American life, history, culture, and environment.

Born in Detroit in 1943, Ballard was the eighth of Jesse and Lurlee Ballard’s thirteen children.

Almost from the start, music played an essential part in her life, according to her biography.

Her father was her first teacher, and a young Ballard displayed a keen interest in his music. Jesse Ballard would play particular songs and teach his daughter to sing them.

Those early lessons made a deep impression, and legend has it that Florence Ballard was soon out-singing her father.

Ballard’s musical gift was hard to go unnoticed. As she grew older, she found an outlet for her singing in school music classes and choirs.

While in her early teens, Ballard’s career was set in motion.

Two of her neighbors, Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams, sang in a group called the Primes (later to become the Temptations). They introduced her to manager Milton Jenkins, who was so impressed with the 14-year-old’s voice that he asked her to perform as a soloist along with the Primes. After Ballard appeared with the

group for a few engagements, Jenkins knew he had found an outstanding talent, her biography read.

Since groups were popular in the late 1950s, Jenkins suggested that Ballard form a sister group to the Primes.

Immediately she asked her friend, Mary Wilson, to be a member of the group.

Betty McGlown and Mary’s friend, Diana Ross, were also recruited. After gaining their parent’s permission, the four teenagers, in the spring of 1959, became officially known as the Primettes. They began rehearsals with Ballard as the lead singer.

McGlown departed just before the group found fame at Motown with the name,

The Supremes. Ballard died in 1976 at the age of 31.

“The memories are so vivid,” Wilson said. “Florence Ballard was such a wonderful person. It’s my sincere hope that we can get the Postal Service to honor her now.”

Wilson’s quest to get the U.S. Postal Service to issue a stamp to celebrate Ballard, a founding star of The Supremes, has gained momentum. (Photo: The Supremes in Hilton Hotel, the Netherlands, 1965. [From left:] Florence Ballard, Mary Wilson and Diana Ross / Wikimedia Commons)

Advice you need for the mortgage you want.

The Census is a Social Justice Issue! . It’s quick and easy! The 2020 Census Questionnaire will take about 8 minutes to complete.

Polly Curtin • Loan Officer 860-200-2292 pcurtin@liberty-bank.com NMLS #555684

. It’s safe, secure and confidential! Your information and privacy are protected! . Your response helps direct billions of dollars in Federal Funds to local communities for schools, roads, and other Public Services! . Results from the 2020 Census will be used to determine the number of seats each state has in Congress

Chris Stokes • Loan Officer 203-720-6121 cstokes@liberty-bank.com NMLS #1182815

We’ll help you find the mortgage that’s right for you.

and your political representation at all levels of goverrnment The 2020 Census can be completed by phone in the following languages:

Contact us today.

English: 844-330-2020 Spanish: 844-468-2020

Loans are subject to credit and underwriting approval. Certain fees, restrictions and other terms and conditions may apply.

Ask your loan officer for details.

MEMBER FDIC

Online: https://my2020census.gov/

EQUAL HOUSING LENDER NMLS #459028

13

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

NNPA Teams with Magic Johnson to Fund Over $100 Million in PPP Loans for Minority and Women-Owned Businesses

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) announced today that he and the NNPA have agreed to assist the efforts of Earvin “Magic” Johnson, majority owner of EquiTrust, the nation’s largest minority-owned insurance company, and MBE Capital Partners (MBECP), the largest certified minorityowned asset-based lender, in funding over $100 million in PPP loans.

EquiTrust, MBECP and the NNPA together today are focused on informing and encouraging minority- and womenowned businesses throughout the United States to take advantage of the current PPP loan opportunities for businesses in underserved communities.

Dr. Chavis emphasized, “I have the highest regard and respect for the entrepreneurial leadership and courage of Earvin Magic Johnson. The NNPA, therefore, is enthusiastic and pleased to assist Johnson’s EquiTrust and with MBE Capital to enhance the economic recovery of African American and other minority owned businesses amidst the devastating COVID-19 pandemic in America. Our businesses are the lifeblood of our communities.”

Johnson’s EquiTrust is providing critical financial support to underserved communities and businesses that have been traditionally neglected. These small and diverse businesses often have difficulty developing strong lending relationships with big banks. According to the Center for Responsible Lending, up to 90% of businesses owned by people of color have been, or will likely be, shut out of the PPP program.

MBE Capital is perfectly positioned to help small and diverse businesses take advantage of this latest round of PPP fund-

ing; and the company is an approved SBA lender with over 20 years of experience serving diverse and minority businesses.

They can process up to 5,000 loans per day, utilizing end-to-end online technology to accept, underwrite and transmit the applications to the SBA. MBE Capital has already processed over $300,000,000 in PPP loans — including the EquiTrust partnership funding $100,000,000.

The NNPA is the nation’s largest trade association of African American-owned newspapers and media businesses that reach 22.4 million readers per week across the nation.

MBECP has also partnered with The Enterprise Center (TEC), a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), providing them with technology and resources to help them process over $100,000,000 in PPP loans. This will allow TEC’s CDFI to process more SBA loans in two weeks then they have in the

last 10 years.

By working with Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s EquiTrust, MBECP’s pipeline is over $500,000,000. MBE Capital is committed to providing vital funding for small businesses in underserved communities. With almost $100 billion left in the second round of PPP funding, it is imperative that vulnerable small businesses are able to secure resources needed to sustain themselves.

According to Rafael Martinez, CEO of MBE Capital: “I contacted EquiTrust, to be an additional strategic partner because I know that EquiTrust believes in changing outcomes for underserved communities the way I do. The team at EquiTrust and my direct contact Kenyatta Matheny were incredible, and we put this deal together from first call to contracts in a week.” He added: “After receiving hundreds of emails and calls from applicants asking if they can receive their PPP loans

as soon as possible because this was a last hope to stay open – and in some cases to keep food on the tables of their employees – I was moved to expand this and look to fund over 20,000 PPP loans for minority companies.”

“This is a unique SBA-backed opportunity to use the vast resources of EquiTrust’s to prudently provide real and much needed cash to deserving minority and women-owned businesses that find it difficult to secure such funding through traditional means,” said Eric Holoman, President and Chief Executive Officer of EquiTrust. “The jobs saved will make a significant difference to their families and communities. Equitrust is excited to partner with Rafael Martinez and MBECP to do this and more as we try to level the playing field for businesses that are the backbone of America.”

Safe & Free Disposal of Household Hazardous Waste Located at the Regional Water Authority, 90 Sargent Drive, New Haven

Working with Communities to Protect Our Water Sources Saturdays only, 9 a.m. to noon through October 31, 2020 Closed September 5, 2020

Residential Waste Only A program brought to you by the RWA and participating towns

Pre-registration required. Visit rwater.com/hazwaste to register and for more information, or call 203-401-2712.

14

Con’t from page 05

Lions Shred

perfectly,” Farrell said.

Since the outbreak of Covid-19, the Lions have been holding bimonthly Zoom meetings to plan for the shred event and other socially distanced in-person events for the future.

Lions members Jim and Joan Bennett organize eyesight screenings at libraries, nursery schools, and other schools in North Haven, Orange, and West Haven.

Jim, who has been a member for 40 years, said last year they were able to screen 7,000 kids. In addition to the eyesight screenings, the Lions Club is also in its second year of funding a camp for kids with diabetes in Meriden.

Farrell, who is a social worker at Seth G. Haley Elementary School, said the New Haven Lions are trying to expand their in-person and New Haven-based programs and events. “We want to be visible in New Haven. We care about New Haven. All we do is raise money and give it away.”

Farrell said the Lions are planning to run more shredding events with Barnard students and families this year.

Con’t from page 09

2 Months Later

tion, more denial of treatment, and more dismissal of their pain than white people.

Whitney Nichols, a second-year medical student, explained how a common test used for measuring a patient’s kidney function is based on a flawed, historical assumption that black people have higher muscle mass on average than white people, and therefore better kidney function.

Black people automatically have points added to their score, which could “make results appear more normal than they might be,” possibly delaying needed treatment, said Nichols. “There is bias and racism in medicine in determining who can get a kidney.”

“Whether you are Black, white, mixed, Latinx, Asian, Native-American, straight, gay, bisexual, or transgender, we all need to care about each other,” said Nichols.

As the sun sank in the sky, the activists, the crowd flooded into in the intersection of Whitney Avenue and Dixwell Avenue.

A woman with a loudhailer called upon everyone present to take a knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the duration of time that Officer Derek Chauvin held his knee on the neck of George Floyd.

About 30 people stood, feet firmly planted, fists raised in silence. If they could, they kneeled on the hot black tarmac.

“We’re not here to be destructive, but we will be heard,” said activist Los Fidel.

Cars honked but eventually reversed and took turns down side roads when they realised the protestors were not moving.

Some stayed.

Shadows grew long as the minutes ticked on. No one said a word. They didn’t need to.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Rep. Val Demings (D-FL) Talks VP Candidacy, Blasts Trump for Pardons

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent

Congresswoman Val Demings (D-Fla.) was not shy about her willingness to serve as vice president under a potential Joe Biden administration as well as her sincere appreciation for being considered for the role.

In a live interview with BlackPressUSA as part of its #FIYAH! Live series, the esteemed member of the Congressional Black Caucus shared her history and the work ethic and commitment that has brought her to this point, stating, “You all know my history. I grew up the daughter of a maid and a janitor in Jacksonville, Florida.”

“The youngest of seven children, I watched my father go to work every day, working odd jobs to keep a roof over our heads,” she continued. “I was the first in my family to graduate college. I worked as a social worker, law enforcement, and now a member of Congress.”

Demings served as one of seven House Impeachment Managers during the January trial of President Donald Trump in the Senate. Regardless of the Senate acquittal, history will forever note that he is the fourth commander-in-chief to be impeached.

The former House Impeachment Manager, replied in a February interview with NPR from her Capitol Hill office, “Was it worth it? Every day it has been worth it.” Adding, while the verdict was disap-

pointing, Democrats had an obligation to pursue the case regardless of outcome.

During the interview, Demings made it clear that she objects to Trump commuting the prison sentence of Roger Stone, who was convicted of lying to Congress (among other felonies) as well as his pardoning of other felons convicted of similar crimes, stating, “The gall of pardoning your friends, those who lied and cheated to cover up for your wrongdoings.”

Demings heads Biden’s list of potential running mates along with CBC Chair Karen Bass (D-Calif.), former Georgia State Rep. Stacey Abrams, Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois), Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, former U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice and a few others.

She noted however, that just one person will decide who will run alongside Joe Biden this fall. “That’s Joe Biden.” Then, while laughing, she raised her hand to her lips in a mock whisper to those viewing the livestream, adding, “If y’all want to make a call… go ahead.”

There’s no doubt that regardless of one’s political leanings, history will look back on this period as a season of evolution in American politics and perceptions. This fact was not lost on Demings. She noted that having so any women in consideration for vice presidential candidacy represents an opportunity to break through what remains of the glass ceiling — particularly when it comes to African American women.

“These are the exact opportunities that I

work hard for all of my life to create for young boys and girls who may have been told they’re the wrong color, don’t have enough money, or are the wrong gender,” she said.

The congresswoman pledged to make sure that the Democratic National Committee and the Biden campaign advertise and to work with the Black Press of America to get as many as possible out to vote.

“I will make a call to [DNC Head] Tom

Perez and I will put this on the top of my list,” Demings promised. She agreed it should be done now, rather than later in the campaign.

Responding to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s suggestion that Trump might refuse to leave the White House if defeated, and a separate editorial stating that the president is positioning to pardon himself, Demings became animated, “To even suggest pardoning himself made me

sick to my stomach.”

“But who would ever do that other than Trump? I think he hates the job. It’s not a job where you should be allowed to break the law and ignore the Constitution.

I think he hates the job, but he hates to lose. I can see this president not wanting to leave the White House, but we have a way of taking care of that, and if that happens, I just want to be on the team that makes it happen.”

Giant anteaters don’t have teeth?

Let your curiosity run wild!

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS! PLEASE CALL Dr. Acabbo at 203-710-2102 Email: drashsp@yahoo.com or Judy Thompson at 203-892-8191 Email: jfreyerthompson@gmail.com for an application

**Our program is Full Day/Full Year/Open from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm **NAEYC Accredited **Care4Kids accepted **State mandated sliding scale fee based on income and family size

St. Aedan Pre School 351 McKinley Avenue New Haven CT 06515 office phone 203-387-0041

Online tickets required: www.beardsleyzoo.org 15

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Chuck D continues to speak truth to power

By A. R. Shaw, RollingOut.com

Great art will always stand the test of time. In the summer of 1989, Public Enemy released the most poignant protest song in hip-hop history in “Fight the Power” for Spike Lee‘s gut-wrenching film, Do the Right Thing. Thirty-one years later, the song speaks to a new generation of activists inspired by the killings of unarmed Black people such as Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Rayshard Brooks.

During the 2020 BET Awards, which took place virtually during the last Sunday of Black Music Month, Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” which featured new verses from Nas, The Roots, Rapsody, Jahi, and YG, served as the opening performance for the show, which presented numerous instances of artists making art to combat social injustice.

For Chuck D, using his voice to make a difference is simply another day at the office. Albums such as It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back and Fear of a Black Planet served as testimonials in an era where the voices of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. found a new home in hip-hop decades after their assassinations.

Beyond being behind the mic, Public Enemy’s lead emcee is now building media platforms to help more artists push the culture forward.

“I have a 10-station network on the internet called Rap Station,” Chuck D said during a recent interview on rolling out‘s “AM Wake-Up Call” talk show. “And for the last 11 years, we have probably boosted and promoted like 10,000 artists and their songs. We have an all-woman station called She-Movement Radio. Over

Images by Travis Shinn The post Chuck D continues to speak truth to power appeared first on Rolling Out.

the last four years, we have gone into the digital space. You can get the app and we have a station dedicated to hip-hop music from over 130 countries. Some say there aren’t many women in hip-hop. But when you go to the stations, there are at least 30 to 40 percent of artists who are comprised of women. It’s out there if you want to check it out. We have artists who speak directly to a movement. There are

so many artists speaking truth to power right now. But it comes down to if you are into the art form.”

Over the years, Chuck D’s love for hiphop has remained evident. As the genre transitioned from vinyl to digital, Chuck D realized early on that the business of music would change drastically.

“We were an album group in a single’s format,” Chuck D said. “Cassette play-

ers were everything from the 1970s until 1990 when CDs came. So the businesses were overlapping, and the same thing happened in the early 2000s when CDs were being pushed out. The smartphone emerged in 2006. Technology made the business change again. Five years later, streaming came. Staying on top of technology is important.”

Along with the distribution of music, Chuck D witnessed how technology changed the landscape of recording. In turn, artists are now able to produce more music and get it out to the consumer faster.

“Technology has made recording easier,” Chuck D said. “In the older days, you would crave to be in the studio to create. But you also had to watch your minutes and seconds because the minute you stepped in the booth, you had to be aggressive. Because studio time was often rented, you didn’t have all the time in the world. But with technology, it has allowed artists to record whenever they want.”

While mundane lyrics about guns, drugs, and violence have been plentiful over the past few years, there appears to be an awakening that coincides with the Black Lives Matter movement.

Lil Baby shocked most of the music world in June 2020 when he released a millennial protest anthem, “The Bigger Picture.” Other artists of the current generation who have spoken out against racial disparities include DaBaby, Roddy Ricch, and YG. As a master of the protest song, Chuck D sees himself as a mentor to artists who are using their music as a way to express the reality of the current times.

“Think about NBA stars, those guys

aren’t coaching themselves,” Chuck D said. “There is always an OG person to guide guys like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving. You have to play the game before steering the game. In music, there is a need for visible mentorship.

Most artists want their art to be loved. We tell artists that you don’t have to be on your knees so much. Just stand up and be diligent about your work.”

Even as a mentor in rap, Chuck D continues to put in work behind the mic. In 2017, Public Enemy released the album Nothing Is Quick in the Desert and they are preparing to release their 14th studio album this summer, Loud Is Not Enough.

Chuck D is also a member of the group Prophets of Rage, which features members of Rage Against the Machine and Cypress Hill. And he recently formed a group called Night Train with Speech from Arrested Development and DaddyO of Stetsasonic.

Rap used to be a genre reserved for teens and 20-somethings who had a knack for rhyming to describe their environments.

However, Chuck D and his comrades have proven that if artists are able to keep their skills up to par, there will always be room to serve as a player-coach in the game of rap.

Three decades after “Fight the Power” became hip-hop’s de facto protest song, Chuck D has yet to find a reason to stop fighting.

“The art is there,” Chuck D shared. “And the art will make its own noise. There is no such thing as putting out too much music. They used to say that about Prince and now they don’t have enough music by Prince. As a creator, you have to stay as hot as a furnace. You must always continue to speak truth to power.”

Legendary Rapper Biz Markie Battling Serious Illness Triggered by Diabetes Barry Anderson, BDO Contributing Writer

Legendary rapper, Biz Markie, who brought us such hits like “Just a Friend” and “Vapors” has taken a serious hit to his health. The 56-year-old rapper – whose real name is Marcel Theo Hall – has been receiving treatment at a hospital in Maryland, although the extent of his condition is yet to be revealed.

Representatives for the rapper have confirmed to TMZ that his hospitalization is not related to the coronavirus but was triggered due to complications from type 2 diabetes. Sources have also confirmed that the beatboxing champion has been the hospital for weeks. Apparently, he has been keeping his condition under wraps, but it steadily has gotten worse.

While we don’t know what kind of complication it is, and long-term complications of diabetes Type 2 develop gradually, they can eventually be disabling or

even life-threatening. Some of the potential complications of diabetes include: Heart and blood vessel disease – Diabetes dramatically increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and narrowing of blood vessels (atherosclerosis).

Nerve damage (neuropathy) – Excess sugar can cause tingling, numbness, burning or pain that usually begins at the tips of the toes or fingers and gradually spreads upward. Eventually, you may lose all sense of feeling in the affected limbs.

Damage to the nerves that control digestion can cause problems with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or constipation. For men, erectile dysfunction may be an issue.

Kidney damage – Diabetes can sometimes lead to kidney failure or irreversible end-stage kidney disease, which may require dialysis or a kidney transplant.

Eye damage – Diabetes increases the risk of serious eye diseases, such as cata-

racts and glaucoma, and may damage the blood vessels of the retina, potentially leading to blindness.

Slow healing – Left untreated, cuts and blisters can become serious infections, which may heal poorly. Severe damage might require toe, foot or leg amputation.

Hearing impairment – Hearing problems are more common in people with diabetes.

Skin conditions – Diabetes may leave you more susceptible to skin problems, including bacterial and fungal infections.

Sleep apnea – Obstructive sleep apnea is common in people with type 2 diabetes. Obesity may be the main contributing factor to both conditions. Treating sleep apnea may lower your blood pressure and make you feel more rested, but it’s not clear whether it helps improve blood sugar control.

16

Alzheimer’s disease – Type 2 diabetes seems to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, though it’s not clear why. The worse your blood sugar control, the greater the risk appears to be.

Another hip hop pioneer took a huge loss at the hand of Type 2 Diabetes. Ten years ago, Doctor Dre, of the groundbreaking hip-hop TV show…

Yo! MTV Raps, developed Type 2 diabetes. The DJ and hip-hop expert revealed that the disease has caused him to lose a toe, suffer numerous ankle injuries and in 2013, it took his eyesight as well.

“My stubbornness put me where I’m at.

Now my energy is going to change that,” Dre said. “We got young people, grown people, old, all having this. We can prevent this. We can cure this.”

The status of Biz’s condition is unclear at this time, but he is said to be “receiving the best care from an amazing team of medical professionals” while hospitalized.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Biden Surrogates Tout ‘Plan for America’

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent

President Donald Trump’s failure to control the coronavirus pandemic has worsened a long list of challenges facing American families, according to presumptive Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden.

Among those challenges are caregivers, parents struggling to find childcare, and those in nursing homes, Biden and his campaign team said as they rolled out the former vice president’s “Plan for Mobilizing American Talent and Heart to Create a 21st Century Caregiving and Education Workforce.”

Staging frequent media briefings where surrogates tout Biden’s message remains a regular occurrence of the campaign.

On Tuesday, July 21, former Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.), Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles, and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, championed Biden’s plan.

In a media briefing, the four African American women leaders said Biden’s plan prioritizes caregivers, and it would lend needed assistance to families of color, particularly Black women.

“I’m a grandmother of three beautiful young girls, and what I do every day is hope they have caregivers who know that I respect the work they are doing very much,” Lyles said.

“That means we need to pay people. We need to provide them with benefits. We need to make sure the people who are taking care of our children don’t have to worry about how they are going to get home on a bus, and that they are certain that they have an adequate wage to live in our cities.”

Each agreed that even before the pandemic, the U.S. experienced a caregiving crisis.

They echoed Biden’s campaign message that some care needs were going untended.

Other care needs were filled by Americans serving as unpaid caregivers lacking the financial support or respite care they needed, and sometimes putting their careers on hold.

Often, families made caregiving decisions that came with significant financial, professional, physical, and emotional costs, the surrogates each agreed.

Caregivers and early childhood educators – disproportionately women of color – have been underpaid, unseen, and undervalued for far too long, they stated.

“I don’t know if President Trump has even met a caregiver, or that he would even understand the role of caregivers, and their importance in our society and our economy,” said Rawlings-Blake.

“When I take a look at [Biden’s] plan, it is very comprehensive, and it is focused on standing in the gap for a healthcare

system that the president is trying to dismantle.”

Biden’s plan includes: Expanding access to a broad array of long-term services and supports in local settings, including closing the gaps in Medicaid for home- and communitybased services and establishing a state innovation fund for creative, cost-effective direct care services.

It ensures access to high-quality, affordable childcare, and offers universal preschool to three-and four-year olds through more significant investment, expanded tax credits, and sliding-scale subsidies.

Building safe, energy-efficient, developmentally appropriate childcare facilities, including in workplaces, so that parents and guardians never again have to search in vain for a suitable childcare option.

17

Treating caregivers and early childhood educators with respect and dignity, and giving them the pay and benefits they deserve, training and career ladders to higher-paying jobs, joining a union and bargain collectively, and other fundamental work-related rights and protections.

The campaign estimates that the plan would cost $775 billion over ten years and would be paid for by rolling back unproductive and unequal tax breaks for

real estate investors with incomes over $400,000 and taking steps to increase tax compliance for high-income earners.

“The plan in every way is set out to really support those who are making it possible for our society to work,” RawlingsBlake stated. “I’m particularly interested in the support that is given to in-home caregivers, because I know how precarious their jobs are, particularly in this COVID-19 crisis.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

COMMENTARY:

“I’m Just Sayin'” — Sharing results from the Black Agenda nity is overwhelmingly forward looking, there is a strong sense that there must be a redress of past policies that have hurt our community.

A Black agenda must do both.

By Marshawn Wolley, The Indianapolis Recorder I don’t know if there has ever been a community wide survey of just Black people about a Black agenda— and while I recognize there is always room for improvement — I think this needs to be something we do moving forward.

While just over 1,700 respondents completed the survey, ultimately this report is only going to focus on the 1,117 Black people who live in Indianapolis — or the respondents for the sake of this article.

So, what did we learn?

Over 95% of survey respondents said that they believe Black Indianapolis should have a Black agenda.

While this might seem like an obvious response there were enough powerful and influential Black people who told me directly that they didn’t think we needed a Black agenda — I dismissed those comments to concerns about electoral politics at the time.

The truth has always been our community wanted a plan — the better question was what should it look like?

The vast majority of respondents (87%) felt like an agenda needed to have S.M.A.R.T. goals or specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely goals.

Among the many learnings in the current process is that any agenda has to be communicated in multiple ways.

Notably, 60% of respondents supported “a checklist of demands of elected leaders addressing policies that harmed Black people.”

My takeaway is while the Black commu-

There was also a strong consensus amongst the respondents that both development and implementation of a Black agenda should be a collaborative effort — a partnership with the Black community, elected officials and Black community leaders.

Nearly 62% of respondents felt like the development of a Black agenda should involve a partnership between the Black community, Black leaders and elected officials.

“When responding to who should be responsible for implementing a Black agenda” only a very small percentage of respondents (6%) felt like the Black community should do it all by itself.

An even smaller percentage (4%) felt like Black leaders and Black elected officials should be left with the implementation of a Black agenda.

There is a desire — even expectation for collaboration and practical realization that white politicians and even white leaders aren’t going anywhere anytime soon and at a minimum can’t shirk responsibility for redressing the harms of the past to the Black community.

The Black community called for focused action specifically aimed at the Black community — equity demands it as well.

The aforementioned responses were all statistically significant at the .05 level within a margin of error of +/- 3 percent.

This basically means that if we implemented this effort 100 times, 95% of the time we would have gotten similar results. We might also expect changes in some answers of around 3% either direction if redone.

Unfortunately, the number of people who provided answers to the next set of

questions didn’t meet the statistically significant threshold, nevertheless the responses are informative.

When looking at both the current AACI agenda and feedback from the community about community issues, we found that 1,000 respondents — again Black people who live in Indianapolis — ranked education and mental health as the top two issues of concern.

The survey asked about police reform and 1,000 respondents stated that implementation of body cameras and the reduction of excessive use of force by 25% in three years were the top two ranked concerns respectively.

When asked about community violence, 1,000 respondents ranked the stated goals of reducing homicides by 10% over three years by partnering with the Office of Public Health and Safety and other community organizations as the slight majority (50.1%).

The same number of respondents ranked decreasing shootings by 10% over three years by partnering with the Office of Public Health and Safety and other com-

munity organizations as the second goal (42.1%).

When asked about Black economic inclusion and Black business development 993 respondents ranked developing a Black business development plan (26%) as the top priority, with the development of a Black Community Development Financial Institution second, and increasing Black youth entrepreneurship a close third.

In conclusion, many lessons were learned in the development and implementation of this effort which was also impacted by COVID-19.

For example, going into the process we knew survey completion for groups facing socio–economic challenges is harder and there is a healthy distrust of surveys in the Black community. While plans were made to address these concerns, some efforts to overcome these challenges were impacted.

We do appreciate the partners who helped with distribution which included social media influencers, community centers, churches and civic organizations.

An additional reality that was outside of our control was a pandemic, dramatic rise in violence and financial crisis that occurred during the eight-week period the survey was out between May 9 and July 9.

Black Onyx Management Inc., a management consultancy specializing in diversity, equity and inclusion developed and managed the survey process.

What I am hearing …

Looks like there was an effort to move the Northwest district police station. Pike Township residents have expressed some frustration with the process and made their voices heard.

See you next week …

Marshawn Wolley is a lecturer, commentator, business owner and civic entrepreneur. Contact him at marshawnwolley@ gmail.com.

This article originally appeared in The Indianapolis Recorder.

“Always Rejoice!” Convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses Moves to Streaming Platform

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent

For more than 100 years, the annual convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses packed venues like the old Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Yankee Stadium in New York, and Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the religious organization’s Governing Body canceled the annual gatherings and, for the first time, moved the event to a virtual platform.

Congregations, families, and guests can now view the convention titled, “Always Rejoice!” during July and August on the organization’s website, http://www.jw.org.

“The convention will continue to teach us that joy is a quality of the heart. It is something that we have inside even when

things around us maybe crumbling,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “This message for our community is absolutely vital.”

Hendriks added that the two Christian principles that guided the Witnesses’ historic decision to cancel their annual convention are respect for the sanctity of life and love of neighbor.

“As much as we long to meet together, life is far too precious to put at risk,” Hendriks stated. “Life trumps a place, and a building. Life transcends our desire to meet together. Life is paramount and we recognize that even if one life was taken because of a public meeting, that would be one life too many. We love our brothers, and we love our communities so when you think of carrying the virus, that is contrary to love of neighbor. The principles that

move us to knock on doors and talk to our neighbors about the gospel and to invite people to our public gatherings, are the very principles we used to stop the convention and hold it virtually.”

In 2019, more than 14 million people in 240 lands attended conventions of Jehovah’s Witnesses, including roughly 2 million in the United States.

“Our worship is centered on our mutual love for our God and for each other, irrespective of where we are physically,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “This year’s convention program underscores the unity of our international family and the joy that people can have against a backdrop of stress and despair.”

The conventions of Jehovah’s Witnesses are usually held over three days – Friday

18

through Sunday, with a morning and afternoon session each day.

Witness officials said they would release the program on their website in six installments, each corresponding to a morning or afternoon session. Many congregations and families have already viewed the first convention session, which debuted July 11.

The final weekend of the virtual event takes place August 29 and August 30.

Hendriks noted that this year’s program explores questions that include, what contributes to finding and sustaining joy?

How can you cultivate joy in the family?

How can you remain joyful in difficult times?

A key feature of the program is a Biblebased drama that considers Nehemiah’s

life and how he helped the ancient nation of Israel find joy in their worship of God. Those interested in viewing the convention can contact their local congregation or access the program on http://www. jw.org, available under the “Library” tab.

There is no charge for viewing the convention, sign-ups, or email addresses also aren’t required.

Each year many who are not Jehovah’s Witnesses attend the annual conventions, Hendriks said, adding that there are more than 8.6 million active Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide. Yet, the 2019 conferences had a peak attendance of more than 14 million.

“With the program available online in hundreds of languages, this may be the most attended convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses to date,” Hendriks stated.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

19

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020 INNER-CITY NEWS July 27, 2016 - August 02, 2016

Listing: Customer Retail Assistant

WATER NOTICE Maintainer II

Petroleum Company has an immediate full time opening. Excellent customer service skills a must.

Requirements include: answering billing questions, assisting in sales calls received, scheduling service calls as well as assisting in collections and account set ups. Previous petroleum experience and/ or experience in a very busy office environment a plus. Applicant to also perform administrative/ clerical tasks as assigned. Please send resume to: H.R. Manager, Confidential, P O Box 388, Guil-

Performs tasks required in the maintenance, installation, repair and construction of roadways, services, hydrants, and structures relating to facilities, lines and equipment of the water system. Requires VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE at least three (3) years employment as a Maintainer in the Water Division or in construction involving the installation and maintenance of pipe lines and related equipment OR two (2) years training in HOME INC, behalf of Columbus House and New Havenin Housing Authority, plumbing pluson one (1) year of employment asthe a Maintainer the Water System OR an equivalent is acceptingofpre-applications fortraining. studio andThe one-bedroom apartments at this develcombination experience and Town offers a competitive pay rate of $24.43 - $29.66 located 108 Frank Street, New Haven.

Maximum income limitations ap-will be accepted until peropment hour plus an at excellent fringe benefit package.

Applications or resumes ply.

Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y August 25, 2020 (or the date of receipt of the 50th application) at the following address: Human 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have Resources Department, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main St., Wallingford, CT 06492, (203) 294been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon re2080. Fax: (203) 294-2084. EOE quest by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed preapplications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third APARTMENT FOR RENT Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

ford CT 06437.

CITY OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT - REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS Q-House Launch and Management RFP # 2020-07-1340

92 Ivy Street, New Haven NOTICIA Spacious 3 bedroom apartment, newly renovated, $1050.00. Off street parking and On a bus line. Call Jan. 203-909-8069.

RFP due date: Tuesday September 29, 2020 at 11:00 AM EST.

VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES

DOT Certified Welder

RFP can be downloaded at https://newhavenct.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=login Michael V. Fumiatti Purchasing Agent

DELIVERY PERSON

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Applicants have a Street, minimum of 3 Seyears ubicado en lamust calle 109 Frank New Haven. aplicanorlimitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 equivalent experience as aestarán CT DOT Certified Welder. julio, 2016 hasta cuando seto hanlreopell@cjfucci.com recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes Please email resumes or fax(aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas deattention HOME INC. LasReopell. pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición #203-468-6256 Lee llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse C.J. Fucci, Inc. is an affirmative action/equal oppora las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT Delivery 06510 .Needed One/Two Day a Week, Part Time

tunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.

********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer**********

NEEDED

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES Request for Proposals

Request for Proposals for Outside General Counsel Legal Services for Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of The City of New Haven, Including The Glendower Group, Inc. and Its Various Affiliates and 360 Management Group Company

Must Have your Own Vehicle If Interested call

(203) 387-0354

Police Officer C: TheNEW TownHAVEN of East Haven is currently seeking qualified ap-

The Housing Authority of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently seekInvitation to Bid: for Proposals for Outside General Counsel Legal Services for Elm City ing Proposals for Request 2nd NoticeAuthority of The City of New Haven, Including The Glendower Group, Inc. Communities/Housing and Its Various Affiliates and 360 Management Group Company.

A complete copy of the requirements may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration PorOld CT tal Saybrook, https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on (4 Buildings, 17 Units) Monday, July 27, 2020 at 3:00PM

plicants to participate in the CivilFairmont Service Examination for the position of Police Officers 242-258 Ave C. Qualified candidates shall meet the following minimum requirements: must possess 2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE a valid Driver’s License; High School Diploma or GED; must be 21 years of age and a All new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 U. S. Citizen; possess a valid C.H.I.P. card; pass a physical examination; polygraph test; highways, near bus stop & shopping center psychological examination; background investigation in addition to Civil Service testing.

Pet under 40lb allowed.

Interested contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 Candidates bilingual in Spanish areparties encouraged to apply.

Salary is $59,025 per year and Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project the town offers an excellent benefit package. Deadline: August 21, 2020. Apply online Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s New Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, at CT. www.policeapp.com/EastHavenCT. The Town of East Haven is committed to Construction, building Wood underFramed, its instrumentality Baldwin Holdings, Inc. isCastrequesting sealed bids for Re-Construction of Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates Concrete, Shingles, Siding, a workforce diverse individuals.

Females, Handicapped and Veterans are in-place in response to theof Church’s Ministry needs. The cost isMinorities, $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:30Three – ThreeAsphalt Family HomesVinyl located at 344-346, 350-352, 354-356 Hanover St. A complete set 3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. the plans and technical specifications will Casework, be available on July 27, 2020. To obtain a copy of the Flooring, Painting,ofDivision 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential encouraged apply.

(203) 996-4517 to Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster solicitation you Plumbing must sendand your to bids@parkcitycommunities.org, please reference solicitaMechanical, Electrical, Firerequest Protection.

St. New Haven, CT tiontonumber and titleand oncontract the subject line. Arequirements.

MANDATORY pre-bid conference will be held at 344 This contract is subject state set-aside compliance CITY OF MILFORD

The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport

Hanover St., Bridgeport, CT 06604 on August 11, 2020 @ 11:00 a.m., submitting a bid for the project without attending conference is not in the best interest of the Offeror. Additional questions should be Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 emailed only to bids@parkcitycommunities.org no later than August 18, 2020 @ 3:00 p.m. Answers Anticipated Start: August 2016on PCC’s Website: www.parkcitycommunities.org. All bids must to all the questions will be 15, posted be received by mailed orvia hand Project documents available ftp delivered link below:by August 27, 2020 @ 10:00 a.m., to Ms. Caroline Sanchez, Director of Procurement, 150 Highland Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06604, at which time and place all bids http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage will be publicly opened and read aloud. No bids will be accepted after the designated time.

Seeking qualified condidates to fill numerous vacancies to include, Engineer Technician, Secretary and more. For information and detailed application instructions, visit www.ci.milford.ct.us Click on SERVICES, JOBS and JOB TITLE.

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

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

Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

Listing: Commercial Driver

Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com Class A part time driver for a petroleum and asphalt company for deliveries HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses for day, nights andwillweekends. experience Competitive Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, BUS CT 06483 DRIVERS A pre-bid conference be held at the Previous Housing Authority Office 28required.

Smith DATTCO AA/EEO is hiring Commuter Bus Drivers & Motor Coach Drivers for our New Britain, CT locaEMPLOYER wage, 401(k). CT Send resume HR Manager, P. O. Box 388, Guilford, CT tion. Also hiring Shuttle Bus Drivers in Bridgeport, CT. All positions require a CDL (Class A or B) Street Seymour, at 10:00 am, onto: Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

06437. with P endorsement and one of the following: F, S, A, or V. Apply at www.DATTCO.com/jobs.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, reli Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Ofgion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. fice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, Action/Equal CT 06483 (203) 888-4579. ********An Affirmative Opportunity Employer**********

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

20

THEINNER-CITY INNER-CITY NEWS July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020 NEWS -July 27, 2016 - August 02, 2016

Listing: Commercial Driver

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced in Full time Class A driver for petroleum deliveries for nights Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT and weekends. Previous experience required. Competitive We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits wage, 401(k) and benefits. Send resume to: HR Manager, VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE Contact: Tom Dunay P. O. Box 388, Guilford, CT 06437.

Phone: 243-2300 HOME INC, on behalf of860Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, ********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer********** is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this develEmail: tom.dunay@garrityasphalt.com opment& located at 108 Frank Street, Haven. Maximum Women Minority Applicants are New encouraged to apply income limitations apply.Affirmative Pre-applications willEqual be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y Action/ Opportunity Employer 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon re-Field Operations quest by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed preManager - Facilities Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Incoffices seeks: applications must be returned to HOME INC’s at 171 Orange Street, Third Reclaimer Operators and Milling Operators with current licensing Full Time - Benefited Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

NOW ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS FOR THE HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER PROGRAM (Rental Assistance) Fairfield Housing Authority 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield CT

NOTICE

Town of Bloomfield

and clean driving record, be willing to travel throughout the Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

$75,909 - $117,166 Pre-employment drug testing.

Contact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860- 243-2300 For more details, visit our website – www.

VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES Email: rick.toubloomfieldct.org signant@garrityasphalt.com

NOTICIA

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply aceptando pre-solicitudes estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Affirmative Action/ para Equal Opportunity Employer

Town of Bloomfield

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. comenzandoVehicle Martes 25 Mechanic Technician julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) Full Time - Benefited en lasTrailer oficinasDriver de HOME INC. & Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas Tractor for Heavy Highway Construction Equip- por correo a petición llamando HOME INCLicense, al 203-562-4663 duranterecord, esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse ment.

Must ahave a CDL clean driving capable of $30.49 hourly with CDL or $29.59 hourly a las oficinas de equipment; HOME INCbe enwilling 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, operating heavy to travel throughout theNew Haven , CT 06510 . without CDL Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

Union Company seeks:

Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply

Pre-employment drug testing.

For more details, visit our website – www. bloomfieldct.org

HELP WANTED:

Town of Bloomfield

Contact Dana at 860-243-2300

NEW HAVEN

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

Preliminary Applications will be accepted beginning on 07/31/2020 AND ENDS with a postmark date of 08/13/2020. Pre-Applications received after the end date as postmarked will be automatically rejected. Pre-Applications are to be mailed only and sent to the Fairfield Housing Authority’s (FHA) offices - 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield, CT 06825.

Applicants will need to meet the income requirements based on family size for 80% of Area Median Income, or less. Preliminary Applications will be received during the period noted above and placement on the wait list will be made through the random selection method, once the period has ended. The maximum number of pre-applications to be placed on the wait list is two hundred (200). Pre-Applications will not be accepted by hand-delivery, facsimile, email or any other electronic transmission.

80% of Area Median Income

1 Person max income $54,950

2 Person max income $62,800 3 Person max income $70,650 4 Person max income $78,500

5 Person max income $84,800 6 Person max income $91,100 7 Person max income $97,350 8 Person max income $103,650

Pre-Applications will be provided to any & all interested persons. Individuals or families may receive a hard copy of the pre-application by contacting the FHA offices at 203-366-6578 and we will mail out an application to you or online at http:// millennium-realty.com/.

For Additional Information Contact Carol Martin: Phone: (203)366-6578 TRS/TDD: (800) 842-9710

Invitation to Bid: 2nd Notice

Ducci Electrical Contractors, Inc. seeks a Diversity Compliance Man-

SAYEBROOKE agerVILLAGE to oversee and implement the company’s Diversity Policy and Program. apartments, new appliances, close to I-91 & I-95 Finance Director Large All CTnew guardrail company lookingnew for carpet, Laborer/ Duties Old Saybrook, CTwill include guidance for all diversity programs, reviewing bid docunear bus stop & shopping Driver with validhighways, CT CDL Class A license and ablecenter to managing supplier outreach efforts, reviewing contracts and monitoring Full Time - Benefited (4 Buildings,ments, 17 Units) get a medical Must Interested be able to passcontact a drug test@ 860-985-8258 DBE, MWBE, SBE goals. Send resume to Ducci Electrical Contractors, 74 Scott Pet undercard.

40lb allowed. parties Maria $96,755 - $149,345 Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project and physical. Compensation based on experience.

Swamp Rd. Farmington, CT 06032 ATTN: Jackie Ducci OR via e-mail to jaPre-employment drug testing. For more details, visit our Email resume to dmastracchio@atlasoutdoor.com ducci@duccielectrical.com; EOE/M/F/D/V website – www.bloomfieldct.org CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, CastAA/EOE Certificate M-F Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates in response to the Church’s Ministry needs. The cost is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:303:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster

LEGAL NOTICE of TOWN OF PORTLAND, CT

Town of Portland has amended its Citizen Participation Plan for the purpose of informing the public about its intent to apply for CDBG, Covid-19 funding.

For a copy of SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY the amended Plan go to www.portlandct.org.

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour St. New Haven, CT

until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for CITY ConcreteCOMMUNITIES Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the ELM Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

Request for Proposals

Housing Choice Voucher (Section Based Assistance Program to A pre-bid conference will be held8)atProjectthe Housing Authority Office 28 Smith Support the Development of Affordable Housing

Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

Housing Authority City of New Haven d/b/a Elm city Communities is currently seekdocuments areChoice available from(Section the Seymour Housing ingBidding Proposals for Housing Voucher 8) ProjectBased Authority Assistance OfProgram Support Development Affordable Housing.

A complete copy of the fice,to28 Smiththe Street, Seymour,ofCT 06483 (203) 888-4579. requirement may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to cobblestonesystems.com/gateway

reduce the scope of the on project to reflect and to waive any beginning Monday, Julyavailable 13, 2020funding, at 3:00PM. informalities in the bidding, if such actions are in the best interest of the Housing Authority.

in-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, CITY OF MILFORD Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Seeking qualified condidates to fill numerous vacancies to include, Engineer Centrally Located Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection.

Technician, Public Health Nurse and more. For information and detailed applicaConstruction Company This contract is subject to state set-aside tion and instructions, contract compliance requirements. visit WWW.ci.milford.ct.us Click on SERVICES, JOBS and JOB

in Connecticut has positions available TITLE. for experienced project managers, Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 laborers and truck drivers.

Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 This company is an Affirmative Action /

ROTHA Contracting Company

Project documents Equal Opportunity Employer M/F. Females and

available via ftp link below: ROTHA Contracting Company, Inc. is a Union contractor that has various job openings Minorities are encouraged to apply. http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage throughout the year for Bricklayers, Carpenters, Laborers, and Operating Engineers. We Please fax resume to ATTN: Mike to

have contracts with the following Unions: Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com

HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran,· United S/W/MBEBrotherhood & Section 3 Certified Businessesand Joiners of America, New England Regional Counof Carpenters Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 cil of Carpenters Locals 24, 43 and 210 QSR STEELHaynes CORPORATION AA/EEO EMPLOYER

International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers AFL-CIO Local 1

860-669-7004.

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

21

· Connecticut Laborers’ District Council of Laborers’ International Union of North America, AFL-CIO

· International Union of Operating Engineers Local 478 and its Branches AFL-CIO

Please contact your Union Local to apply for open positions. ROTHA Contracting Company, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer and welcome minorities, woman, and trainees in our workplace.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

How To Be Healthier In A Tough Economy

by Jade Curtis, BlackDoctor.org

You’ve probably figured out by now that times these days are a little less kind to your wallet. Many people find themselves considering scaling back on things like health insurance and prescriptions in order to better balance their budget.

But this is a mistake – no matter how tight money is, you need to take care of your health. Why? Because, ironically, not doing so can actually be the most expensive choice of all.

See Your Doctor Regularly Keep up to date on screenings. Mammograms, cholesterol level checks, and colonoscopies can catch serious problems. If medical conditions are caught early, they can be less complicated to treat and, as a result, less expensive.

Keeping up with treatment, medication, and healthy habits is especially important if you have a chronic condition such as diabetes, asthma, or heart disease. Why? This can keep your health from getting worse and requiring more costly treatment.

Get Your Shots to Prevent Illness

$5,000 or more of medical bills out of pocket before insurance pays.

Vaccines aren’t just for kids. Immunizations can help keep you and your loved ones healthy. Most vaccines are covered by insurance — and many are affordable without it. Plus, they save you the cost of medical care, treatment, and sick days off work by preventing illness.

Talk to your doctor or another medical professional to find out which shots you should get to prevent illness.

Save for Emergencies Broken or lost glasses. A chipped tooth.

Emergencies can and do happen. And putting medical bills on high-interest credit cards can bury you in debt.

Starting an emergency medical fund can help. Sock away $100 or $200 a month into savings. Most banks will let you set up automatic deposits online. Can’t afford that much? Put aside what you can to help lessen debt from an unexpected bill.

Cut Prescription Drug Costs Ask your doctor if you could safely split some of your pills. If so, your doctor can prescribe a higher-dose, and have you take 1/2 a pill at a time to save money.

Or you may be eligible for drug company “prescription assistance” programs.

Shop for low prices. Mail-order pharmacies may offer 3 months worth of a drug for a discounted price. Doctors can sometimes offer free samples.

Pick Only Necessary Procedures Sometimes you are offered products or procedures that are not medically necessary.

Beware the up sell on teeth whitening at the dentist, or new frames from the optometrist, or a neck adjustment at the chiropractor. These often aren’t covered by insurance.

Embrace a Healthy Lifestyle Healthy habits like eating well, exercising, and getting enough sleep can decrease your risk of disease and illness.

If you smoke, consider quitting. Overweight? By becoming more active you

Haley Endorses

Streicker

may help cut your risk of chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and arthritis.

Open a Flexible Spending Account (FSA)

FSAs cut costs by saving you taxes. Pretax money is taken from your pay and put into an account for you to spend on health care not covered by insurance. Put only what you’ll spend on medicine and coCon’t from page 04

State Won’t Dictate School Reopening

school, and assist with effective contact tracing. While there is no definitive numerical restriction on cohort size, cohorts should be kept as stable as practicable.

State officials said they would continue to offer guidance to local school districts.

Parents across the state are struggling with the idea of sending their children back to school.

Parents across the state are struggling with the same question.

Streicker, Haley Nikki Haley, one of the national Republican Party’s leading female political figures, has endorsed Margaret Streicker’s campaign for Congress.

Streicker, a Republican, faces incumbent Democrat Rosa DeLauro and Green Party candidate Justin Paglino in the Nov. 3 general election for New Haven’s Third U.S. Congressional District seat.

Streicker’s campaign announced the Haley endorsement in a press release issued Wednesday. Haley, a former South Carolina governor and then Donald Trump’s first U.N. ambassador, is often mentioned as a future presidential candidate.

“As a single mom, a businesswoman who’s created hundreds of jobs for her state, and a community leader, she’s ready for any challenge that comes her way,” the release quoted Haley saying of Streicke

pays in your FSA. Save receipts to prove you’re meeting FSA rules, in case asked.

Spend all your FSA money before the year is up. What you don’t use, you lose!

Preserve Coverage with Low-Cost Plans A “catastrophic” or “high-deductible” insurance plan can be a cheap option if you’re healthy. Bought through your employer or on your own, monthly payments are low. But you and your family may pay

“I lean toward my daughter returning, but that will depend on national infection rates, not just those in Connecticut,” said Michelle Manafy, a Shepaug Valley School parent who attended a recent school board meeting to advocate for the hybrid model to be deployed at the combined middle and high school in Washington, in rural Litchfield County.

She believes the full in-person option is not only a health risk, but a waste of time and money.

“There is no way for our schools to come near the six-foot requirement,” for social distancing, she said. “The planning for how to do lunches alone will eat up un-

22

told energy and time that could better be spent on providing the resources teachers and educators need to prepare to do their jobs in the fall. Our teachers will spend less time enforcing social distancing and more time educating.”

AnnMarie Sarbello, who volunteered to serve on the reopening committee for Shepaug Valley School where her son will be a junior this year, favors a hybrid model that would reduce the number of students in classes, as well as on buses, in hallways and at lunch.

Teachers, she said, would still have the in-classroom opportunity to help students struggling with distance learning, and to develop plans to help those students both in school and remotely. She said she would consider holding her son out of school if she doesn’t like the local plan.

“Unfortunately, the full model greatly increases everyone’s exposure,” more than what the state allows for indoor dining, businesses or grocery stores, said Sarbello, a certified teacher who works at an elementary school library. “We should certainly hold our schools and the safety of our children and educators to an equal, if not higher, standard.”

Take Care of Your Teeth Get a dental checkup and regular cleanings. It costs about $200 to fill a cavity caught early. Untreated, you may later need a root canal, which can cost $2,000 for the operation and crown.

Laid off? Try COBRA The hitch? Cost. Before, your company likely paid part of your premium. Under COBRA, you pay the whole cost, plus a 2% fee. Laid off since late 2008? Financial help may be available, visit http:// www.dol.gov/cobra.

Or ask an insurance agent about a shortterm individual policy. They can cover you a month at a time and may be cheaper than COBRA. Help When You’re Uninsured Community health clinics often offer some health care at reduced cost or for free based on your income. Contact your local health department. If you have a limited income and meet other requirements set by your state, you may be eligible for Medicaid coverage. Find your local Medicaid office at http://www.benefits.gov.

Get the Most from Doctor’s Visits When you do go to the doctor, write down all your questions ahead of time. This can cut down on follow-up visits. Once there, ask your doctor to help you decide which care or procedures are really necessary, and which are elective.

Be sure your doctor understands your financial situation. Tell her if you’re thinking of skipping a procedure or dropping a medicine because of cost. She may be able to help you manage your medical care on a budget.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Stay at least

SIX FEET from others.

Social Distancing is simple and can help you and others stay safe.

23

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - July 29, 2020 - August 04, 2020

Inaction is not an option.

Complete the 2020 Census to shape the next ten years for your community.

The power to change your community is in your hands. We can help inform funding every year for the next ten years for public services like healthcare, childcare programs, public transportation, schools, and job assistance. And our responses determine how many seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. But time is running out, so complete the census today online, by phone, or by mail.

Complete the census today at:

2020CENSUS.GOV Paid for by U.S. Census Bureau.

2019_Census_Community_DM_Size O.indd 1

24

7/6/20 4:50 PM