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INNER-CITY July 27, 02, 2016 THE INNER-CITY NEWSNEWS - November 11,2016 2020- August - November 17, 2020

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Yale Posts $203M Surplus; City Projects $13M Deficit by THOMAS BREEN

New Haven I ndependent

Yale University has posted a $203 million operating surplus for its most recent fiscal year. Meanwhile, the city is staring down a $13 million projected deficit—with dozens of job cuts in the rearview, and plenty of pandemic-induced uncertainty ahead. Those glimpses into the current state of town-gown financial discord were offered in two separate documents, both published in recent weeks. Yale’s show of good fiscal health came in its annual financial report for the fiscal year ending June 30. That report shows that the university generated a nearly $203 million operating surplus, even as the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted just about every aspect of university operations. Yale’s financial report points to the university’s $31.1 billion endowment, medical services income, and grant and contract income as the key drivers of the past fiscal year’s surplus. “Even though the pandemic’s total effect on our finances is unknown,” the university’s senior vice president for operations and its vice president for finance co-wrote in the report, “the university is entering the current fiscal year in a solid position to manage successfully through the time ahead. We remain committed to responsible and conservative financial management to ensure the university’s ability to weather unforeseen financial shocks.” The projected $13.2 million city deficit, meanwhile, first reared its head in the September monthly financial report for the current fiscal year, which runs from July 1 through June 30, 2021. That report was discussed at length by city staff and committee alders during Monday night’s virtual meeting of the Board of Alders Finance Committee, and was alluded to by Mayor Justin Elicker during a Monday morning press conference calling for more federal Covid relief. It points to multi-million-dollar expected overages in police and fire overtime and debt service, as well as to significant drops in parking meter and ticket revenue, as the key drivers of the anticipated shortfall. City Budget Director Michael Gormany cautioned Monday night that the September monthly report represents only a “snapshot in time. We have a long way to go in the fiscal year.” He reminded the alders that the city was able to erase a projected $14 million deficit when Covid hit last fiscal year through expenditure controls, hiring freezes, and better-than-anticipated revenue collection. “I’d rather project the worst-cast scenario” and work up from there, he said. During a Tuesday morning phone interview, Elicker stressed that the city’s projected deficit and Yale’s reported surplus highlight the need for the university to step up its financial support of the city it

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO Elicker: Will Yale now

“accept its responsibility?”

calls home. “As time goes on and Yale continues to do better, New Haven will struggle more and more unless the university decides to accept its responsibility to the residents of the city,” he said. He compared the university’s current contributions to that of a billionaire who donates $100,000 to a soup kitchen but doesn’t pay $100 million in taxes. “I think the university and the university community need to think deeply about their ethical responsibility, especially in this time of crisis, in this time when we’re all talking about undoing racism and how we’re going to redefine ourselves as a nation.” Elicker insisted the city’s overall financial picture is anything but rosy. He noted that: • The city both raised taxes and eliminated dozens of vacant positions in this fiscal year’s budget. • Upwards of 60 percent of the city’s real estate value is off the tax rolls, with a vast majority of that tax-exempt property is owned by Yale University and Yale New Haven Hospital. • The twin public health and economic crises of the Covid-19 pandemic will likely exacerbate the city’s need to provide more social services with less reliable revenue. “Now is the time for Yale to significantly impact the economic future of the city,” he said. “When people are struggling the most, when there’s deep conversations about racial and economic injustice, the fact that Yale is making such a significant profit yet not willing to contribute more to the city that it calls home, it’s unethical.” The university currently contributes $13 million a year and YNHH contributes $2.8 million a year to the city in the form of annual voluntary payments. Elicker pushed during his mayoral campaign last year for Yale to increase that annual voluntary contribution to $50 million. Yale’s local pink-collar and blue-collar unions along with the local labor advocacy group New Haven Rising have been calling for Yale and YNHH to bump up

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS Yale’s Harkness Tower and New Haven City Hall.

their direct payments to the city to over $146 million a year. In an email statement sent to the Independent Tuesday morning, university spokesperson Karen Peart said that Covid-19 has cost the university $250 million in lost revenue and Covid-related expenses so far due to “reduced enrollment, conferences, and events as well as increased costs for COVID-related issues, including the public health infrastructure for testing, contact tracing, and isolation.” She also said that the university’s current surplus is “earmarked for school- or department-specific uses and is not available to invest at the discretion of the president and provost,” including 89 percent of the operating surplus set aside in “reserve balances in individual schools, departments, programs, or faculty accounts.” “That is the nature of Yale’s decentralized financial structure,” Peart continued, “and the money will be used to invest in the university’s mission of teaching, research, and practice. The positive results have allowed many schools and units at Yale to build up reserves to cushion against negative outcomes in the uncertain future.” Yale’s annual financial report includes a two-page letter written by Yale Senior VP Jack Callahan, Jr. and VP for Finance Stephen Murphy in which the top university financial staffers describe two parallel fiscal phenomena: a university hard hit by the demands of Covid-19, and a university that continues to thrive even amidst such a worldwide cataclysm. They wrote that Yale’s operating revenues increased by 3.4 percent to $4.2 billion for the year. “This result was well behind pre-pandemic expectations and was less than half the rate of revenue growth seen in the prior year.” Spending from the endowment hit $1.4 billion, they wrote, while medical services income grew to just over $1 billion.

“[T]his growth was considerably lower than it would have been absent COVID-19,” they cautioned, “as many patients cancelled or deferred surgeries, doctor visits, and other medical care during the initial months of the pandemic in Connecticut. These revenues have rebounded as the 2021 fiscal year began although there are risks from another wave of the virus.” Operating, endowment, and facilities gifts, meanwhile, grew in comparison to the prior year “as sponsors and donors provided high levels of support for the university before and after the onset of the pandemic.” And net tuition, room and board fell as the university refunded a portion of room and board when undergraduates left campus in the spring. On the expenses side, the top financial staffers wrote, salaries and wages grew by 7.7 percent, “which was driven primarily by growth in faculty and staff in the School of Medicine related to the expansion of clinical and sponsored research activities.” Employee benefits grew by 10.9 percent due to higher salaries, wages, health care inflation, and increased pension fund contributions. And the university made “multi-million dollar investments in the public health infrastructure for the campus, including personal protective equipment, enhanced cleaning, COVID-19 testing, isolation living quarters, a field hospital, and other pandemicrelated expenses. These pandemic related expenses have stepped up considerably in 2021.” The nearly $203 million surplus number is based on Yale’s use of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) in tracking its financial information. An internal “Management View” accounting method—which focuses more on “resources available and used in the fiscal period presented” rather than on “rev-

enue when earned and expenses when incurred,” according to the report—showed the university ending last fiscal year with a $125 million surplus. The city’s September monthly financial report, meanwhile, shows an expected end-of-fiscal-year deficit of $13.2 million—driven by an anticipated $8.3 million overage in expenditures and a $4.9 million shortfall in revenues. Those higher-than-budgeted expenditures include police overtime expected to come in $2.2 million over budget at a total of $9.3 million, and fire overtime expected to come in $3.4 million over budget at a total of $5.6 million. Gormany said Monday night that the city police and fire chiefs will soon submit to the alders requested budget transfers to help close those expected gaps caused by overtime deficits. Elicker said during Monday’s City Hall press conference that city police and fire personnel have been stretched thin in part because of the uptick in local violence during the ongoing pandemic. On the revenue side, Gormany pointed out that parking meter revenue is now expected to come in $2.1 million under budget and parking ticket revenue is expected to come in $2 million under. “While we did end the year in a better position” than anticipated in regards to parking revenue, he told the alders, “we’ve definitely seen a decline in the number of tickets and meters [in comparison to] last fiscal year.” Finance Committee Vice-Chair and Westville Alder Adam Marchand said he was heartened to see in the monthly financial report that property tax collection is on track and “in good shape,” even with the various deferral and reduced penalties afforded by the city because of the pandemic. Con’t on page 08

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Bus Co. Blasted For Covid Reporting Delay by EMILY HAYS

New Haven I ndependent

First Student waited days to tell the city that 27 bus drivers were coming down with the coronavirus — leading outraged school officials to demand a reckoning for the “negligence” that ended with a twoweek shutdown. That demand arose at a Board of Education meeting Monday night. Members learned that employees of the school system’s privately contracted bus company began showing coronavirus symptoms as early as Oct. 22 — but the company didn’t start working with the New Haven Health Department to shut down its bus routes until six days later. Board of Education members said the company is on thin ice after this outbreak, which now includes 27 Covid-positive First Student employees. “Yes, they are the only bus company right now, but I think the majority of our parents would rather seek something else than have their children in harm’s way,” said board member Tamiko JacksonMcArthur during a virtual meeting on Monday. “It just seems like it’s always something with First Student,” Jackson-McArthur said. New Haven Public Schools Chief Operating Officer Michael Pinto offered board members a chronology of the First Student saga at Monday night’s meetings. He spoke of the first employees showing Covid-19 symptoms on Oct. 22. But the city wasn’t told that yet. A First Student employee tested positive

Attn. Walmart: by COURTNEY LUCIANA & PAUL BASS New Haven I ndependent

New Haven’s health department gave the Foxon Boulevard Walmart outlet 72 hours to clean up its Covid-19 act or face a shutdown. Shoppers were upset to learn about conditions at the store, but also concerned about where else they would buy what they need. The health department hand-delivered the “final warning” notice to the store on Thursday. The notice details nine violations of Covid-19 health and safety orders and formal warnings dating back to April 3. Health Director Maritza Bond issued the notice after a phone conversation with store management. The notice gives the store 72 hours to submit to her office a corrective plan, including how it will institute new disinfecting and training and Covid reporting and tracing protocols. “Please know that I take these matters

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO Supt.Tracey: Probe sought.

for Covid-19 on Oct. 27. Over the course of 24 hours, five or six more of the bus company’s employees tested positive. By the end of Oct. 28, the health department told the company that they needed to ground the buses for two days for deep cleaning. Jackson-McArthur and fellow board member Darnell Goldson said the company didn’t come forward with the informa-

tion about the sick employees; instead an employee passed the word to the Board of Ed unofficially. First Student was asked about that by the Independent in an email; the company did not respond to the question. “It is clear that there was some defensiveness, and probably panic, in the initial two days [on the part of First Student],” Pinto said, adding that the company be-

came more proactive after those days. As the number of Covid-19 cases at the company continued to escalate, the health department extended the bus shutdown to two weeks. If the company shows the health department that appropriate measures are being taken to prevent this from happening again, bus drivers will again pick up students for New Haven’s limited, in-person Special Education program on Monday, Nov. 16. The buses have also been transporting students for non-public schools in the area. One safety measure is starting this Thursday. First Student is converting one of its garages into a drive-thru Covid testing site to “get as many employees tested as they possibly can,” Pinto said. The employees to be tested include all the drivers who would interact with area students. After that, the company plans to randomly test its employees every four weeks, Pinto relayed. Superintendent Iline Tracey said that she has asked the health department for this deeper investigation into how the outbreak occurred at First Student and how it was handled. “I believe there was negligence at First Student,” Tracey said. One safety measure less reassuring to Jackson-McArthur and other board members—a pledge from employees acknowledging that their behavior outside of work affects whether they can do their jobs. The health department found that 11 of the employees who came down with Covid-19 were at a birthday party together outside of work. Pinto said that at least

38 people attended the party. These personal decisions prompted the idea for the pledge. Jackson-McArthur compared the pledge to a pinky swear and asked for regular testing instead. Goldson contested this focus on employees’ off-the-clock decisions. He said that the real problem was that First Student did not screen their employees better for Covid-19 symptoms. “We’re blaming the victims who got sick and not the managers ... for not managing,” Goldson said. “I heard about this several days before you guys reported it. Staff was coming to work sick and saying that they were sick, but they were put on buses anyway.” In response to emailed questions, First Student spokesperson Jay Brock said the company doesn’t consider “anything more important than the safety, health and well-being of our students and employees.” He said the company is “working with and supporting the efforts” of the city to deal with the situation. The affected employees are in quarantine, he said; the company has told other employees to self-monitor for symptoms and get tested if they feel sick. New Haven Public Schools pays First Student 85 percent of their usual rate when their buses are idle during the Covid-19 pandemic. Pinto said that NHPS may get a financial credit for this closure, to be revealed at next week’s Board of Ed Finance and Operations Committee meeting.

City Might Shut You Down very seriously and if you are found to be in violation again, your establishment will be shut down without warning and you will face legal action,” Bond wrote. “This letter serves as your FINAL WARNING.” A store manager declined comment Thursday and referred the Independent to the corporation’s media relations department. That department failed to respond to a request for comment. The notice states that the store has repeatedly exceeded capacity limits, had employees not wearing masks (or not wearing them properly), and violated protocols for disinfecting and training on Covid-19 guidelines. Those actions run afoul of “State of Connecticut Sector Rules” for businesses operating during the Covid-19 pandemic under Gov. Ned Lamont’s executive orders. It also reports that the health department received a “delayed response” from the company after learning on Nov. 2 that

COURTNEY LUCIANA PHOTOS Adjoa “Monday” Ofosu-Adu sprays down customer’s cart Thursday.

an employee had tested positive for Covid-19. “For the purpose of contact tracing, this department attempted to collect information from your staff, numerous times; however, there was a delayed response,”

Bond wrote. “This information is time sensitive and crucial in trying to safeguard and protect the health and safety of all your employees and patrons that frequent this establishment. Moreover, it has been brought

to our attention that there may have been additional COVID- 19 cases among your employees in the previous weeks.” Seniors Dependent, At Risk Bond told the press she gave the store the extra 72 hours rather than immediately closing it because it is an “essential business” on which many people — including the seniors at nearby Bella Vista — rely for groceries and household supplies. “That aging population, many with chronic health conditions, are some of our most vulnerable residents to the impact of COVID-19. With that, it is important that the store follows the State and local Health departments’ COVID-19 guidelines to keep customers and employees safe,” Bond noted in a separate written statement. George Rose is one of those elderly shoppers “Really? It’s going to shut down?” Rose asked in disbelief when told ThursCon’t on page 11

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Biden Taps Yale Prof To Co-Lead Covid Panel by STAFF

New Haven I ndependent

It’s official: New Haven will have Joe Biden’s ear as he crafts a Covid-19 policy, thanks to the appointment of Yale’s Marcella Nunez-Smith to co-chair the president-elect’s coronavirus advisory board. Biden’s transition team announced the composition of the board on Monday. Nunez-Smith, an associate professor at Yale School of Medicine, is one of its three co-chairs. A former Yale School of Medicine dean, David Kessler, who once ran the Food and Drug Administration, is one of the other co-chairs. The third is former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. Nunez-Smith’s specialty has been inequities in health care. She spoke about that work recently in this interview with the Yale School of Management’s Ben Mattison. “We need equitable access to highquality healthcare. And every word in that sentence matters,” she said in the SOM interview. “The disproportionate representation of

brown and Black people in those lowwage, frontline jobs that were deemed essential during the pandemic—that’s a structural reality. … We have a segregated, separate and not equal, educational system in this country. “When we talk about pre-existing conditions and COVID, there’s one narrative that says, ‘Oh, you have folks who are making bad choices with their diet and they’re not exercising,’ but there’s never a mention of the fact that they’re living in neighborhoods exposed to environmental toxins. We don’t speak to this. We don’t speak to the fact that people live, not just in food deserts, but often in food swamps. I went blueberry picking yesterday. My kids have lots of fresh produce to eat. What does it mean to live somewhere where it takes you three buses and a train to get to somewhere that sells skim milk, or a fresh leafy green? … “If you don’t have a grocery store, you don’t have choice. “If I had that magic wand right now, it’s about equitable access to high-quality

Blumenthal To McConnell: by THOMAS BREEN

Nunez-Smith

healthcare and equitable access to opportunity.” Nunez-Smith wears many hats at the

Pass Covid Relief Now

New Haven I ndependent

Richard Blumenthal made a post-election pitch to his Republican colleagues in the U.S. Senate: Start negotiating now over a new Covid-19 relief package worth at least $2.2 trillion. Families and small businesses and state and local governments hurting during the pandemic cannot wait a minute longer. Connecticut’s senior U.S. senator put out that call Monday morning during a press conference held on the front steps of City Hall. Standing alongside Mayor Justin Elicker and Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) Executive Director and CEO Joe DeLong, Blumenthal sought to turn up the pressure on Republican Maj ority Leader Mitch McConnell. The presser came just hours before the upper legislative chamber resumes session Monday afternoon; two days after major news outlets projected that the Democratic ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have won the presidency and vicepresidency; and amidst a regional and nationwide surge in new Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations. “In red states, in blue states, our cities and towns and the states themselves are facing this fiscal vise that is gripping and crippling the future of our society,” Blumenthal said. “We need to come together right now. We can do the next pandemic relief program literally by the end of this week. We can vote on Thursday. If Mitch McConnell puts it on the floor of the Senate.” The Democratic-controlled House of

medical school. Among her roles: associate professor of medicine and of epidemiology (focusing on chronic diseases); a faculty representative to the Council of Faculty and Academic Societies; co-chair of the medical school’s Steering Committee on Community Projects; academic advisor to med students; director of the Center for Community Engagement and Health Equity; founding director of the medical school’s Equity Research and Innovation Center; director of the Center for Research Engagement. That’s only a partial list; read more about her work here. Babz Rawls-Ivy and her guests on Monday’s edition of WNHH FM’s “Love Babz Love Talk” program, including Greater New Haven NAACP President Doris Dumas, applauded Nunez-Smith’s appointment. They said it reflected that the in coming administration intends to take more seriously a pandemic that has hit communities of color particularly hard, and that New Haven will have the new administration’s ear.

THOMAS BREEN PHOTO Sen. Blumenthal (right) with Mayor Elicker at Monday’s presser.

Representatives has already passed the $3.4 trillion HEROES Act, he said. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that she will go as low as $2.2 trillion in a subsequently negotiated bill. Blumenthal said $2.2 trillion is likely the “bottom line” for a bill he would support. But that bill must by “robust, comprehensive, and inclusive.” What that means to him? Direct aid to state and local governments. Another round of stimulus payments for families in need. Hazardous duty pay for frontline workers. More financial aid for vaccine development, personal protective equipment, and a national testing strategy. And more loans for small businesses to help them stay afloat amidst the ongoing eco-

nomic devastation of the novel coronavirus. Blumenthal was asked if Democrats would be sacrificing leverage in negotiations by pushing for a bill now as opposed to January, when President-Elect Biden assumes office and the Democrats might have control of the Senate as well as the House (depending on two runoff elections in Georgia). He replied, “The need is too urgent. We need to do it now, not later.” Blumenthal also said that Biden has indicated that he would like to be a part of the negotiations over a new bill even before he assumes office. What that might look like is uncertain. As for whether McConnell has made any noises about backing a substantive relief

bill after months promoting instead a “skinny bill” turned down by Democrats, Blumenthal pointed to comments the Kentucky senator made the day after Election Day. At the time McConnell said passage of a new relief bill before the end of the year is a priority of his. “He has been totally unspecific about the amount” of such a bill,” Blumenthal said. “He has been completely absent from the talks.” The last major, new Covid-19-related relief package passed by Congress was the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, which was signed by the president in late March. Elicker (pictured) and DeLong backed up Blumenthal’s call for more aid by citing the fiscal pain cities like New Haven are feeling now, and the likely solutions Connecticut municipalities will have to turn to if federal support does not come soon. Elicker said that the city is now projecting that it will end Fiscal Year 2020-21 (FY21) with a $13.2 million deficit. The fiscal year runs from July 1 through June 30, 2021. The mayor said that projected local deficit is driven by a likely steep drop in certain budgeted revenues, such as parking meter and parking tag collections. The city is eyeing significant overages in certain expenses, like police and fire overtime. That latter driver comes in part from the sharp uptick in violence that New Haven—like other cities across the state and country—has seen during the pandemic. “As the economy continues to deteriorate, that will put more pressure on us to do more while we have less money to do Con’t on next page

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

AKA Sorors Do A Victory Stroll For Kamala Harris

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

Over two dozen women stood still in the sunlight, waiting for the beat to drop. A speaker crackled to life. Two dozen hips pivoted. Just as many right arms pointed skyward, pinkies lifted in perfect unison. Set It Off I suggest y’all Set It Off I suggest y’all! Strafe whisper-sang. Hands clapped in time with the music. Someone called a perfect “skee-wee!,” a jubilant cry that soared over the asphalt. This was a victory lap, AKA style. Sunday afternoon, members of the Theta Epsilon Omega chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated gathered outside of Wexler-Grant Community School to celebrate Kamala Harris’ victory as vice president elect of the United States. Harris is the first Black and South Asian woman—and the first soror—to hold the position. She joined the founding chapter of the sorority at Howard University in 1986, 78 years after it was launched and three decades before she shattered a glass ceiling. The celebration began at 12:08 p.m., a nod to the sorority’s 1908 founding. “We are elated at seeing herstory in the making,” said chapter president Shenae Draughn. “This is the first time a woman, and a Black woman, is holding this office. It is amazing.” Around her, the sun-soaked parking lot became a sea of pink and green as sorors parked their cars and congregated in the center of the lot. Instead of hugs, they greeted each other with COVID-19-safe elbow bumps and excited waves. Ivy Leaf designs, some sparkling from masks, and fuzzy green letters dotted the space. At the top of three steps, Connections Chair and Greater New Haven NAACP President Dori Dumas waved pink and green pompoms that shimmered in the sunlight. “We elected a soror! Our VP is our soror!” she sang. On her feet, rhinestonestudded laces glinted off her pink converses. This year, the shoes became a trademark of Harris’ tenacious ground game during the 2020 presidential campaign. So did the vice president elect’s pearls, a direct nod to the sorority. Near Dumas, lifelong New Havener Karen Kennon soaked in the sun in a pearlescent baby-pink windbreaker emblazoned with white Greek letters. The youngest of four kids, Kennon was the first in her family to complete college when she graduated from Tuskegee University. Her parents came from a family of sharecroppers, who moved to New Haven for the promise of industry and financial stability. When she finished college, she returned to the city to pursue graduate work in business. She now works for the Connecticut Department of Labor. Sunday, she said that Harris’ road to the White House feels momentous not just because it is history but because it’s history in which she can see herself reflected. Across the coun-

try, Black women, who in no small part swung the election for Biden and Harris, have been sharing similar stories. “I’m here to celebrate the first VP of mixed heritage, and a member of an HBCU,” she said. “We can’t forget—our organization was founded in 1908, during severe segregation. These amazing women banded together and made the first chapter. It’s a legacy.” Roughly six feet from her, Sondi Jackson was ready to do the Alpha Kappa Alpha

“stroll,” typically performed to Strafe’s 1984 funk-drenched hit “Set It Off.” The tradition gained mass attention earlier this year, as AKA members and fellow sorors in the historically Black “Divine Nine” spearheaded a viral movement to “stroll to the polls,” increase turnout and civic engagement, and fight voter suppression. For Jackson, a speech pathologist at Wexler Grant, the moment has been decades in the making. Thirty nine years ago, she joined an undergraduate chapter

of the sorority as a student at Tufts University. When she returned to New Haven for graduate work at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU), she joined a graduate chapter there. She has worked in the city’s public schools for 27 years. This week, she spent every free moment praying for a Biden/Harris win, sometimes with fellow sorors over the phone. She said she is especially excited to see both Harris and Dr. Jill Biden headed to the White House because she believes they will transform the educational landscape. Saturday, she heard the news when a soror called her during a six-hour online educational workshop. She let out a little shout of relief, and then went back to teaching. “This is historic for us,” she said. “Members of the AKA sorority have been at the forefront of many, many movements for many many years. Just to realize this moment for a member of our sorority breaking the glass ceiling—it is enormous. And for me being an educator, having Dr. Biden as the first lady helps me to feel encouraged. Now that we have a true educator in the president’s earshot, I believe the educational agenda will be reflective of that.” As close to 50 members gathered beside AKA lawn signs, Draughn pulled up the music from a speaker no larger than a water bottle. In unison, about two dozen members formed a line, waiting for the music to start. When it did, they bounced into action together, pinkies lifted in the instant shorthand for their sorority. No sooner had they finished to cheers and whoops than Draughn called for senior members of the group to assemble, and stroll out to Mary J. Blige’s “Just Fine.” Cheryl Pegues was one of those members. At 77 years old, she said she has

waited 65 years to see Harris’ win. Born and raised in Charleston, West Virginia , Pegues was just a girl during poor attempts at integration in the Jim Crow era South. She recalled how frightening, and then devastating, it was when Black schools closed white families opposed students of color learning alongside their children. For her, the history of white supremacy and voter suppression isn’t a relic of the past. Pegues moved to New Haven over five decades ago, after meeting her husband at West Virginia State College. A longtime champion of education—she worked for decades as an administrator at Gateway Community College before retiring—she said she is most excited that her 17-year-old granddaughter can look up to the vice president and see someone who looks like her. “It’s a long time coming,” she said. “A long time coming. I waited 65 years for this day. With all that happened in 2020, I was saying, ‘how much more do we have to take?’” Pegues stood beside her daughter, Elicia Pegues Spearman, as she spoke. The family has multiple generations of AKAs: Spearman is a former president of the New Haven chapter and the chairman of the International Leadership Fellows Committee. She also works as the general counsel and chief human resources officer at Quinnipiac University. Basking in Sunday’s sunlight, she said that she was so excited to celebrate Harris’ victory with both her mom and her sorors. Still waving her pom-poms, Dumas said that she, too, is celebrating for all the women in her life. Her daughter became a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha during her time at Howard, meaning that she belongs to the same chapter Harris joined in the 1980s. On Saturday night, she went to fete Harris’ win at the Black Lives Matter mural in downtown Washington D.C., where celebrations were well underway. “This is huge for us,” she said. “This is a huge deal for women, for Black women. It’s historic. I am excited for women, and I’m excited for our community.” In the midst of celebration, Draughn also reminded attendees that there is still work to do. As Biden and Harris roll out their transition documents and first priorities for a new White House, Draughn urged sorors to look to Georgia, where the presidency may have been called but the senate is facing an uphill battle to solidify a blue wave. “I am here to say this, and I am going to say it loud,” Draughn said. “Our job is not done. Yes, we have the presidentelect, the VP-elect. We are so proud and we are in that moment. But understand, we need to focus on the Georgia Senate race. Although we are in the state of Connecticut, there are so many things we can collectively do, so we need to make sure we do that.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

"I Know That She Is Another Angel”

by Lucy Gellman, Editor, The ARTS Paper www.newhavenarts.org

Sharon Clemons was a small business owner and a friend to hundreds. She was a mom, who loved shouting out her daughters’ birthdays and pushing them to follow their academic dreams. She was a devoted wife, sister, and woman of fierce faith, who lifted her loved ones in prayer without a moment’s hesitation. She was a butterfly, with large and mesmerizing wings that carried her to great heights, and never left anyone behind. Sunday, that’s how over 100 of Clemons’ family members, friends, and colleagues remembered her at a balloon release outside of Sharon Joy Salon on State Street. Clemons, whose grace and magnetism often preceded her, ran the salon with her sister Joy Brown. She passed away unexpectedly of COVID-19 on Tuesday at the age of 51. A memorial is planned for Tuesday. “As I look around at all the colorful balloons, my sister already wrote her eulogy,” said Brown, addressing a huge crowd that had gathered with pink, yellow, orange and butterfly-shaped pearlescent balloons. “Every life she’s touched in her 51 years—this is showing it. And we thank you all. We are truly blessed to have each and every one of you. Everyone is family to her. Everyone’s a butterfly to her.” Clemons was born in Stamford, the third child of five girls and one boy, in April 1969. As a kid, she learned about hair by watching her mother Mable do every coiffure in the house, sometimes holding a hot pressing comb in one hand as her children sat still between her knees. It didn’t matter if it was church, or the holidays, or the first day of school—the hair was always immaculate by the time Mable Johnson was done with it. By her adolescent years, Clemons had started braiding her sisters’ hair, a skill she later passed down to her daughter Nia. In the 1990s, her older sister LaTrenda Wilson opened her own salons in Stamford and Bridgeport. Clemons began to help her out while she was still a student at Wilfred Beauty Academy, from which Brown also graduated. She had her own flair, her sister remembered—but she was also bubbly and warm with the customers who came in, endearing herself to them as a new friend by the end of the visit. “Sharon was amazing,” Wilson said Sunday, motioning to the number of people standing on both sides of the street. “Her personality was magnetic. Her beauty, her craft, and her art were all unsurpassable. She stood alone in that regard. She knew how proud I was of her as a big sister. Proud of the woman that she was as a wife, a mother, a sister, and a friend. She just gave. She was so giving of herself.” In 2005, Clemons and Brown opened Sharon Joy Salon on State Street. By

Photos: Lucy Gellman then, she had met and married Erik Clemons, director of the Connecticut Center for Arts & Technology (ConnCAT), and started a family that grew to four daughters who she affectionately called her butterflies. The bright, winged insect became something of her symbol, reflected Sunday as dozens of silver-edged butterfly balloons shone in the afternoon sunlight. Outside of work, she spread her wingspan across the state. She led mentorship groups for young women in New Haven, Bridgeport, Norwalk, Stamford and New York. At home, she and her husband nurtured their daughters Kiara, Nyle, Nia, and Kai, watching them break from their chrysalises as they became college students and adults focused on their own careers. She expanded her church family, many members of which came out Sunday to pay tribute. She received accolades for her work, including from the city’s Board of Alders and the hair-positive group Free Your Scalp. Sunday, it seemed that everyone within a two block radius had a story. Down the street, tattoo artist Ashley Velasquez paused to steady herself when she heard the news. For the two years that her shop has been open, she’s received clients who come from Sharon Joy salon. Clemons herself visited twice, and instantly endeared herself to the staff. She found herself repeating the words in half-disbelief. “It’s shocking,” she said. “You never know when something will strike. It’s pretty scary.” Across from the salon, Kim Jackson and her son Dior Hobson (pictured above) held tight to a bunch of orange, yellow and pink balloons. Jackson met Clemons when she was just a teenager, singing in an a cappella group at the University of Connecticut. When the group had a competition, Clemons saw that “we were

broke,” and offered to do their hair and makeup for free. The two fell in and out of contact, always picking up right where they had left off. Years later, when Dior became a student in ConnCAT’s after school program, Clemons fussed and delighted over the fact that Jackson had become a mom to such a sweet teenager. “It came full circle,” Jackson said. “Every time I saw her, we always said we loved each other. I’m comforted by who she was. She was a beautiful spirit. She was so strong and resilient—she left her mark on everyone. This is hard. This year has been hard. But I don’t think she would have wanted us to be sad.” Sunday, friends and family remembered her through tears, some tying handwritten notes to their balloon strings before letting them go. Kassandra “Sonie” John-

son, a close friend and fellow hairdresser who helped organize the event, remembered Clemons for her fierce mentorship and kindness. The two met in Bridgeport when Johnson was a 15-year-old client at LA Hair Trends, and Clemons was a budding stylist. They clicked instantly. As Johnson grew older, Clemons “was my mentor,” guiding her as she became a wife, a foster parent to three girls, and then a mother a second time over to a son 13 years ago. Clemons was her son’s godmother. Most recently, Clemons pushed Johnson to pursue a graduate degree in social work, which she’s now doing as a student at the University of New Haven. In October, Johnson lost her own sister unexpectedly. Without ever being asked, Clemons helped her do the hair for the funeral, then posted a call for prayer to the salon’s social media. When Johnson

heard that Clemons had passed away on Tuesday, she remembered falling to her knees and letting out a scream that came from somewhere deep inside of her. “It devastated me,” she said, the words catching in her throat. “I’m still in shock. I feel like I’m in this dream, and more and more people are joining as they find out. This is really hard. But I know that she is another angel to look up to.” Sunday, her husband Laterrius Terry Johnson led attendees in prayer as they bowed their heads, some weeping and others offering soft “amens.” While he said that he believes that Clemons is now in a heavenly kingdom, his heart also aches; tears pooled at the sides of his eyes and his voice cracked with the words. He asked that attendees pray for Clemons’ family, including her husband Erik, daughters, and siblings. “God, your word says that you would never put more on us than we can bear, but God right now we’re at the edge,” he said. “We’re at the tipping point—God I don’t know how much more any of us can take, oh God. How much more loss we can take. God, we know that Sharon is looking on us, smiling, talking to us, giving us good advice … but we miss her. We miss her so much.” Opal Harmon, an organizer of Sunday’s event, knew Clemons for 32 years. She said she’s still very much in shock. For over three decades, she’s been close with the whole family, watching Clemons become a mom and most recently a grandmother for the first time. She is also a member of the ConnCAT family, where she works as the director of human resources. “This is going to be tough,” she said. “There’s this lump in my throat that’s been there since Tuesday. I’ve tried to swallow it and I can’t.” After the event, Clemons’ daughter Nyle remembered her mom as a constant mentor whose heart always seemed to have room for one more person, and then another, and then another. All week, she said she feels like she’s been getting signs from the universe that her mom is up there, in heaven, looking down on her. For instance, she said, Clemons loved warm weather. It’s been 70 degrees almost all week. She recalled sitting down with her mom a few years ago, after she had started to pursue nursing and realized her heart wasn’t in it. Her mom listened. Then she encouraged her daughter to go with her gut, which had always said criminal justice. Nyle is now pursuing a graduate degree in the field at the University of New Haven, with dreams of working in the FBI. “We feel her presence now,” she said. “My parents instilled faith in us always. Especially during this trying time, I’m comforted knowing that our lord and savior—and our mom—will carry us.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Lamont Says Biden Is Good For Connecticut HARTFORD, CT — Gov. Ned Lamont, an early supporter of President-elect Joe Biden, said the former vice president understands how important state and local aid is, and as such Lamont said he is hopeful that the state will see a boost in federal funds once Biden is sworn into office. Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism! Lamont said the federal funds Connecticut received through the CARES Act helped pay for COVID-19 expenses, but it didn’t cover the loss of revenue every state experienced from the impact COVID had on the economy. Even with a divided U.S. Senate, Lamont said he hopes they can come together and get something done “before they start attacking each other.” Connecticut is facing a $1.2 billion budget deficit for the 2021-22 fiscal year, and Lamont will have to propose a twoyear budget to a newly elected General Assembly in early February, around the same time his emergency powers run out. Lamont said he’s worked with the legislature to give him the executive authority he needs and he’s tried not to wander from the “core mission” to do everything they can on a timely basis to prevent the spread of the virus.

Ritter Assigns First Committee Chairs by Christine Stuart | Ct. News Junkie

He said Republicans want him to use his executive authority to “tear up the labor agreements,” while Democrats, according to Lamont, want him to use it to “ban guns.” “I’m focused on our response to COVID. You’ve given me a fair amount of authority. I hope I’ve used it judiciously to hold the rate of infection down,” Lamont said. There are 10 bargaining group agreements set to expire in 2021. Will Lamont make sure those bargaining groups don’t receive an increase in their salaries? Their health and benefits negotiated by the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition don’t expire until 2027. Lamont didn’t specifically answer the question, but he said there are still opportunities with about 20% of the workforce eligible for retirement in the next few years to make changes.

HARTFORD, CT — Incoming House Speaker Matt Ritter isn’t making many big changes when it comes to Connecticut’s two budget-writing committees. Rep. Toni Walker, D-New Haven, will remain at the head of the Appropriations Committee, and Rep. Pat Billie Miller, D-Stamford, will remain the chair of the Bonding subcommittee. Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism! Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, will take over as co-chairman of the Finance Committee as the previous chairman, Rep. Jason Rojas, has been promoted to House majority leader. “Look folks, it’s not going to be a normal session,” Ritter said during a press conference outside the Connecticut Capitol Building. As lawmakers begin drafting the next two-year budget, the state will still be struggling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. “The reality is, we’re still going to have a very different session in January, February, March and maybe through June. So I think it’s fair to all the chairs that they have an opportunity a little earlier than normal to make their mark, to have the meetings they need,” he said.

Rep. Toni Walker, D-New Haven

The state is facing a $1.2 billion budget deficit and consensus revenue figures are expected out later today, but Ritter and the rest of the House leadership team seem to be taking a wait-and-see approach. Walker said they still don’t know how much money Connecticut will receive from the federal government.

“There’s a major opportunity, which is we’re going to get more money from Washington which is going to also have to be factored in,” Walker said. Ritter said with $3.1 billion in the Rainy Day Fund, they’re not going to have to make as many budget adjustments as former Gov. Dannel P. Malloy had to make when he took office in 2011. Rojas said it’s their responsibility to explore all the various budget options, including legalizing marijuana and expanding sports gaming, but it’s hard to say what’s going to happen before April when the revenue numbers are calculated after tax day. “It’s very premature of us to be talking about bad decisions we have to make,” Scanlon said. “Toni is right, people are hurting in Connecticut, but there’s also a moving stock market happening and those things, we have to marry them to find out what the difference is between those two things.” Ritter said the budget process is a very long process and they won’t be making any of these hard decisions until April. He expects to name chairs of the more than two dozen joint legislative committees and additional leadership positions over the next few weeks.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

The Gospel Of Black Voters Comes To Goffe Street

by Lucy Gellman, Editor, The ARTS Paper www.newhavenarts.org

Rev. Steven Cousin watched Black voters, and particularly Black women, secure the presidential election for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Sunday, he prepared a spiritual message urging his parishioners to both celebrate and remain vigilant. Sunday morning, Cousin threaded faith, civic engagement, and electoral politics in “Stay Woke,” his weekly sermon at Bethel AME Church on Goffe Street. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cousin has kept services virtual until further notice. Only he and a few church members meet in the sanctuary, from which services are streamed onto Facebook. “God is saying during these difficult times, stay alert,” he said Sunday, after a refrain of Leonard Shumpert’s “I’m Gonna Make It” from a pianist and small, mostly-masked choir in matching red blazers and slacks. “Be on your guard. And stand watch.” Sunday, the sermon began in two places. In one, Cousin looked to the gospel of Matthew 26:40, in which Jesus has gone to pray and returns to find his disciples sleeping. In the passage, Jesus asks Peter why he was unable to stay awake and keep watch. There isn’t contempt in the question, so much as a wounding, a loss of trust that is not unearned. Sunday, the words flashed on the screen, twinkling against a gold background. At the pulpit, Cousin read them aloud, his voice ringing through the mostly-empty sanctuary. The few choir members still present clapped along from the pews. Someone let out a murmur of agreement close to the livestream. In the other, Cousin was in his living room Saturday morning when he heard his wife cheering and saw her running around the house with her family members pulled up on Facetime. He quickly learned the source of her joy: Pennsylvania had been called for Democratic candidates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, pushing them over the 270 electoral votes they needed to win the presidency. Donald Trump’s four years in office were officially coming to an end. Cousin was elated. He called his grandfather and his uncles to celebrate the news. Over the phone, they talked about what it meant to have Trump out of the White House. They marveled at the reality of a president committed to stemming the spread of COVID-19, and a vice president-elect to whom Black and South Asian women and girls can look up and see themselves reflected. “As we’re talking and we’re laughing and we’re celebrating, at the end of that phone conversation, we told ourselves: Be careful out there. Protect yourself,” he said. “Because although 75 million people voted for change in this country, I can never forget, 71 million people voted to keep things the same.” It made him think about the uneasiness

that had crept into his week, starting with a whisper of doubt on Tuesday night and spilling into Wednesday, then Thursday, then Friday. Even as results rolled in, Cousin recalled holding his breath. The more he studied electoral maps, the more buoyed he felt by the fact that cities filled with Black voters had not yet been called. In Michigan’s Wayne county, it was Detroit. In Georgia’s Fulton County, it was Atlanta. In Pennsylvania, the country was still waiting to hear from Philadelphia, where millions of voters cast their ballots early and by absentee vote. At some point, he stopped listening to political pundits that were trying to tease out regional differences or pick apart identity politics. “I’m laughing at myself, saying, ‘I don’t know why you’re trying to complicate things,’” he recalled. “It’s very simple. The Black vote turned out this time. And that’s the reason why we got a new president and a new vice president. Y’all missed it.” “On Wednesday, it got smaller,” he recalled of the margin as organ began to wail beneath him. “On Thursday, it got smaller. And then on Friday, Biden took the lead, because all the votes from the Black cities started coming in. Never forget, it was the Black people … it was the Black votes in South Carolina. And while we’re talking about Black votes, let’s not forget. It was the Black women who really set things off.” He shouted out Stacey Abrams for her own ability to “stay woke” after her narrow loss to Georgia governor Brian Kemp two years ago, in an election that has since been scrutinized as a case study in voter suppression. Instead of falling

asleep, Cousin said, Abrams fought with everything she had to ensure a fair election for Black voters. She turned the state blue for the first time in 28 years, since Bill Clinton won by less than one percent in 1992. He shouted out his mother, a resident of Bucks County, Penn. who started doorknocking, canvassing, and making lastminute phone calls to her neighbors, coworkers, and county residents in the final days before the election. He praised her fearlessness in speaking out against Donald Trump, working to sway votes as the clock ticked down to Tuesday. “We can change the world,” he said. “Stay in the fight. Don’t give up. Just keep believing. And know that we got the power to change this whole world. We got the power to change this country. Praise be to God. As James Brown said, ‘I am Black, and I am proud.’ Be proud of who you are.” Still, he said, he is haunted by the fact that 71 million Americans voted for Trump. He recalled his wife turning off the television Tuesday night, unable to watch as hundreds of thousands of votes put Trump initially ahead. He urged congregants to stay alert, hold fast to faith, and hope for a kinder, more socially just world. “It should have never been that close,” he said. “So although I am happy that the American people have decided for change, there is still half the country that does not share that position. As much as I want to celebrate, as much as I want to be joyous, as much as I want to be happy, God is still telling me to stay woke. Now is not the time to go to sleep.”

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City Projects $13M Deficit “There are some things that are unknown that are bigger unknowns than usual,” he said about the budget projections as a whole. “The big unknowns are the virus, and it is going to get worse and will things shut down even more.” If that’s the case, parking meter and ticket revenue is likely not to rebound anytime soon. “It is early days to start looking at that nearly $14 million figure and panic, because we’ve had the experience for many years now of having an early deficit that the city has been able to chip away at,” he continued. “But it’s still concerning nevertheless.” COVID-19 has cost Yale more than $250 million in lost revenue and COVIDrelated expenses so far, and the ongoing pandemic and the disruption of the U.S. economy mean that the financial outlook for Yale remains uncertain. Despite all the additional COVID-related expenses and revenue shortfalls, the university reported a surplus from operations for the 2020-21 fiscal year. This positive result provides Yale with a buffer for the current year during which the university has experienced significant lost revenue from reduced enrollment, conferences, and events as well as increased costs for COVID-related issues, including the public health infrastructure for testing, contact tracing, and isolation. In addition, most of the 2020-21 surplus is earmarked for school- or departmentspecific uses and is not available to invest at the discretion of the president and provost. In fact, 89% of the operating surplus is in funds that are accumulated as reserve balances in individual schools, departments, programs, or faculty accounts. That is the nature of Yale’s decentralized financial structure, and the money will be used to invest in the university’s mission of teaching, research, and practice. The positive results have allowed many schools and units at Yale to build up reserves to cushion against negative outcomes in the uncertain future. Yale University values its relationship and partnership with the city of New Haven. We continue to play an active role in supporting our community. A recent example is our Yale Community for New Haven Fund, which was established to address the local impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and has since March 2020 distributed over $2 million to local nonprofits to support New Haven residents negatively impacted by the pandemic. This includes $250,000 to New Haven Public Schools to purchase Chromebooks for New Haven students. Yale spends over $700 million annually directly on New Haven. This includes compensation to New Haven residents who work at the university and many programs and initiatives that we support throughout the city. Yale University’s $12 million voluntary payment in FY20 to the City of New Haven was the highest from a university to a host city anywhere in the

United States. It represented a 44 percent increase from the payment that was made three years earlier. Yale committed to an increase of $1 million in voluntary payment to the City’s FY21 budget and Yale continues to be among the top three real estate taxpayers in New Haven due to its Community Investment Program. Yale makes numerous other contributions to the city of New Haven. For example, the university commits significant resources to support New Haven public school students as co-founder and primary funder of New Haven Promise. Yale contributed $4 million this year to cover full tuition at any public university in Connecticut for eligible New Haven public-school students. Last year, Yale and its employees made over $3 million in charitable donations to New Haven nonprofits and the United Way Campaign, to the direct benefit of New Haven residents. Yale further contributed $1.5 million to the Yale Homebuyer Program, which offers Yale employees $30,000 to purchase homes in New Haven. Yale supports initiatives such as the New Haven Works jobs pipeline program and Market New Haven. Yale is also New Haven’s largest employer, with nearly 14,000 faculty and staff. Through its New Haven Hiring Initiative (NHHI), Yale has hired more than 1,000 New Haven residents into full-time positions (bringing the total to 4,000). For FY20 staff, academic, and construction hires have resulted in 239 total hires, with 86 from Neighborhoods of Focus. The NHHI graduated two Gateway Learning Cohorts and launched the 3rd cohort in August 2020. Yale recently made a significant contribution to support the new Stetson Library in the Dixwell Avenue neighborhood; our medical school sponsors free clinics; our law school offers pro-bono legal advice; and our architecture school designs and builds homes for the economically disadvantaged. Yale students volunteer throughout the city, providing tutoring, mentoring, tax preparation, ESL classes, and food pantry services to the city’s residents. Yale’s Pathways to Science programming provides extensive STEM outreach programming to New Haven youth. August was National Black Business Month, and the university-sponsored radio ads on WYBC to increase the visibility of the Black-owned businesses in Yale properties and throughout the city. We are continuing to sponsor this initiative through the holiday season. The university also hosts many events for students and families throughout New Haven, such as our monthly community breakfasts and our extensive educational outreach programs, and we regularly attend Community Management Team meetings to listen and engage with our neighbors.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Tense Moments Outside The Connecticut Capitol As The Race Is Called For Biden by Hugh McQuaid Ct. News Junkie

HARTFORD, CT—Emotions ran hot outside the Connecticut State Capitol Saturday as demonstrators on both sides reacted to news that the presidential race had been called for Democrat Joe Biden, signalling the beginning of the end of a bitterly contested election. What was scheduled as an “Every Vote Counts” rally on the North steps of the Capitol became something else. It was a cathartic and at times defiant celebration for Democrats, who had just watched their candidate named the victor by TV networks after four days of prolonged vote-counting in swing states. Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism! It was a protest of outrage for conservatives, whose candidate, President Donald Trump, had not conceded Saturday and had spent most of the week unsuccessfully attempting to invalidate Biden’s growing leads in states where votes were still being counted. Here in Connecticut, where voters chose Biden by an overwhelming margin Tuesday, hundreds of demonstrators on both sides showed up on the Capitol grounds early Saturday afternoon ready to shout conflicting narratives in what might well have been a microcosm of this year’s election. Rochelle Palache, political director for 32BJ SEIU, let out a shriek of excitement as she took a microphone during the rally. She tossed her hair around and danced

along the steps of the Capitol. “We won,” she yelled. “They’re the friggin minority,” she shouted in a nod to a small throng of Trump supporters who had positioned themselves off to one side of the rally. State Capitol police officers hung near to the Trump supporters, whose taunts sometimes overshadowed the rally’s speakers. “Joe Biden is a pedophile,” one of them screamed. “Smoke crack and rape babies,” someone shouted. But Palache was undeterred. “We’re the majority. Who’s got the power? We have the power. No, I’m sorry,” she said. “Y’all look a little down. We just won!” Supporters in the crowd picked up the phrase, chanting “we just won” and drowning out the response from the small group of dissenters. Backed by a drumline from the youths of the Hartford’s Proud Drill, Drum, and Dance Corp., Democrats took a victory lap. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal channeled the words of former President Gerald Ford’s when he was inaugurated immediately following the resignation of former President Richard Nixon. “As was said at a different time, ‘Our long national nightmare is over,’” Blumenthal said. The crowd finished the quote with him then erupted into cheers. And while Trump supporters began to amass on the other side of the Capitol complex, Blumenthal sought to strike a note of unity. “The challenges are too big and urgent

“The mainstream media are overpaid puppets of the elite. They’re not reporting the truth or the fraud,” said Noemi Soto, of the group Bring Glory to God. Soto was milling around in the Trump crowd, passing out petitions alleging fraud and conspiracy in the election results. In the aftermath of Election Day, Trump’s legal team launched several challenges to vote-counting operations in close states. Courts have dismissed some of those complaints, but Soto said she expects that other lawsuits on behalf of the president will be successful. When it’s all said and done, Soto said she believes Trump will be re-elected. “Absolutely. Without a doubt, this will go to Trump,” she said.

HUGH MCQUAID / CTNEWSJUNKIE PHOTO

for us to remain divided. We need to come together as a nation under Joe Biden’s leadership for the sake of these children,” he said. But while reconciliation may be in the country’s future, there was little hint of it on display in Hartford Saturday. As the rally dispersed and many participants departed, a group of Biden supporters made their way to Capitol Avenue and took up a position in front of the Connecticut Supreme Court Building. Hundreds of Trump supporters were waiting for them on the other side of the

G R E ATE R N E W H AV E N

street with flags and signs. For more than a half hour, the two groups stood on either side of the street like opposing armies, shouting mockeries at each other as passing cars blared their horns. Twice, Biden supporters spilled out into the street and came into direct conflict with the Trump supporters. Both times Capitol and Hartford police officers pried them apart, separating the two sides like wrestling referees. Many Trump supporters dismissed the call in Biden’s favor as posturing by a sympathetic media.

Tensions flared again as a convoy of Trump supporters came down Capitol Avenue in flag-adorned trucks, cars and motorcycles. They beeped their horns, revved their engines and shouted back at the pro-Biden demonstrators. Both sides exchanged middle fingers as police redirected the convoy down Washington Street. They circled the Marquis de Lafayette memorial statue and came around for another pass. “Go the fuck home, you lost,” someone shouted. One woman took off into the street, chasing one of the Trump vehicles. She Con’t from page 12

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

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Attn. Walmart:

You Down

day about the order as he left the store. “There’s another Walmart in Hamden, but they’re not as nice.” During the pandemic, Rose said, he has left the house only to go to the store. Limited Options Siblings Destiny James, Yasmine Brown, and Daniel Bowling waited outside the store for an Uber. James said that despite the allegations of unsafe conditions,she doesn’t think there’s really any other place for her to go. “If you’re from the area, it’s either here or Shop Rite. Shop Rite has half of what Walmart has,” James said. “I’ll just be careful of what I buy. I’ll come for the boxed, canned stuff, and clothes for my son.” James had purchased condiments and a baby shower gift. She had spent $30. Brown had a cart filled with food, drinks, and other household items that came to out to $150. Brown said that hearing that Foxon employees allegedly had COVID-19 does worry her. “If this is shutdown in 3 days then I’ll probably go to the Milford Walmart,” Brown said. “I’m not going to the Hamden one. You’ve got to get what you need somehow and this is closer to where we live” “It’s hard because unless you have a Costco or a BJ’s Walmart actually accommodates to more of the items that you need,” Bowling said. Jonnef Green, standing with a fully packed cart in the parking lot to leave, said that she was upset for not knowing that the store had been violating Covid-19 protocol before purchasing. She said she doesn’t plan on returning to the store. “I wouldn’t had bought these items if I had known,” Green said. “I feel some type of way about that. I come in this Walmart almost every single day. “It’s over. I won’t be returning. They should had told us before entering.” Employees approached at the store said they’d had no idea that their employer had been allegedly violated health safety regulations. Employee Adjoa “Monday” Ofosu-Adu said she spends the entirety of her 8 a.m.5 p.m. shift disinfecting the shopping carts for customers with a disinfectant spray and wipes before entering the store. “If the customer tells me that they don’t want their cart sprayed, then you go inside and we have sanitizer,” Ofosu-Adu said. In her statement to the press, Health Director Bond said she is “confident that the store managers at Wal-Mart will implement the needed measures to address the violations. The Health Department stands ready to work with this establishment. But if they will not take action and make the needed changes to keep our residents and their own staff and customers safe, then we will.”

Alder Takes Newhallville’s Pandemic Pulse by LAURA GLESBY

Newhallville newcomer Reishana Morrison told the woman knocking on her door that she’s a “homebody” concerned about how her kids are faring in the pandemic. The door-knocker, Alder Delphine Clyburn, had an Rx. It began with participating in neighborhood groups. Clyburn, the alder representing Newhallville’s Ward 20, had knocked on Morrison’s door on a crisp mid-October Saturday to request information for a neighborhood-wide survey she created to assess how residents are faring in a time of remote education, record unemployment rates, and a deadly virus. Clyburn surveyed one Shepard Street block that morning, going door to door and stopping pedestrians who walked by. She had just returned to New Haven from spending the better part of recent months with her newborn grandson in Florida, and said she wanted to take a pulse of how her ward’s needs have evolved since the start of the pandemic. She expressed particular concern about kids enrolled in online school who might not have the technology or internet access needed to log into class. Through a Surveymonkey form, she asked questions about each family’s ability to attend school, as well as employment status, voting and census participation, and the issues they felt that the local legislature should be prioritizing. In the process, she wound up connecting with new neighbors whom she hopes to draw further into both neighborhood and civic life. When Morrison answered the door, she told Clyburn that staying mostly inside hasn’t been too difficult. “I’m a homebody,” she said. Her most pressing concern was the need to provide kids with structured, positive activities in a time when there is little inperson support for young people. “I don’t know how long I’m gonna stay here,” she said of her apartment. Her kids don’t feel safe on that block. Clyburn didn’t treat Morrison like a temporary resident. Hearing the passion in Morrison’s voice when the topic of after-school activities for kids came up, she encouraged Morrison to bring her ideas to neighborhood meetings, like the community management team. “It’s good to be involved in your community,” she said. “We come together as one, and then we work on it.” “Put the ‘neighbor’ back in the ‘hood,’” Morrison agreed. Morrison shared that her daughter just started at the Sound School, which has a community service requirement for graduation. Clyburn offered to put her daughter to work. She said she has taken on high school volunteers in the past, asking

LAURA GLESBY PHOTO Clyburn (at right) checks in on Reishana Morrison.

Shepard Street residents — and interpreters — Mandy, Benjamin, and Matthew.

Clyburn with Jason and Elijah DeBois.

them to check on neighbors and go door to door. “She won’t be bored now,” Clyburn said when Morrison responded enthusiastically. Louvine Spears, right, answers the door. As she knocked on doors, Clyburn carried

a neighborhood newsletter, a voting information sheet, and flyers for free tutoring and food giveaways to distribute to her interlocutors. When she handed a packet of sheets to Shepard Street resident Louvine Spears, she didn’t expect to receive a stack of

papers in exchange: flyers for a prayerthemed event with Spears’ church. “Whatever I ask God for, He always provides,” Spears told Clyburn. While she suffers from congenitive heart failure, she said, she has been holding up OK during the pandemic. “It looks like it’s dark here,” Clyburn said, pointing to the treetops outside Spears’ door. “It is,” Spears affirmed. “And the sidewalk needs to be fixed.” Clyburn jotted down notes on the back of one of the flyers. Next door, Rosdely Bello answered the door. A language barrier made it difficult for Bello and Clyburn to communicate. So her three kids — Mandy, Benjamin, and Matthew — came to the doorway to translate between English and Spanish. Trying to explain what the word “alder” means, Clyburn said, “if she needs help, I’m the person she calls.” As they helped Clyburn fill out the survey, the family shared that all three kids were able to log into school. While walking from house to house, Clyburn met new neighbor Mary Henderson on the street. Henderson, a home health aide who lost her job when her client’s daughter started working from home due to Covid, said she didn’t need the free tutoring program for her children, who are now all grown. But “if they help me get my G.E.D., I’ll take it,” Henderson said. “You call me about that,” Clyburn replied. She pointed out her phone number on the neighborhood newsletter sheet. “I’ll call you when I need you,” Henderson said in response. Clyburn spontaneously introduced herself to nearby resident Jason DeBois, who was passing by with his son Elijah. The pair agreed to fill out the survey on the spot. The survey questions revealed that Elijah broke his laptop a few days earlier. He’s been going to a special education school in Waterbury. Clyburn asked DeBois if he was registered to vote. “I can’t vote,” DeBois said. “I have a felony.” Clyburn shuffled through her papers to find a voter information sheet. Have you completed your parole? she asked DeBois. When DeBois answered that he had, Clyburn nodded. “You can vote, then.” She explained that he could contact vote in person at Lincoln Bassett School, or else contact the City Clerk’s Office to obtain an absentee ballot. At the end of their conversation, Clyburn turned to Elijah. “I’ll take you to the Learning Corridor,” she promised, referring to the revitalized corner of the Farmington Canal Trail in her ward. Where there’s plenty more community-building work to do.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

COVID-19 Worsens Debt Collector Harassment New CFPB Rule Leaves Room for State Actions color losing $1 trillion of wealth, still hinders these same families a decade later. Until or unless regulators recognize that race and income are inextricably linked, harmful rules will only perpetuate the nation’s wealth gap.

By Charlene Crowell, Senior Fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending

As the final days of the 2020 election season drew to a close, major media across the nation focused on polls and prospects for the presidential candidates. At the same time, scant news coverage reported on a development affecting 68 million consumers: debt collection regulation. On October 30, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its 653- page regulatory revision for enforcement of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), originally enacted in 1977. Since that time, the debt collection industry has grown into a multi-billion industry with over 8,000 firms throughout the country. For Black America, debt collection was troublesome even before the COVID-19 pandemic. One investigation revealed that in three major cities – Chicago, Newark, and St. Louis – the rate of judgments for debt collection lawsuits was twice as high in mostly Black neighborhoods than in mostly white areas. Nearly a year ago, Urban Institute research found that debt collection disproportionately affects 42% of communities of color. By contrast, the national average of all consumers was lower in double-digits at 31%, and a wider racial gap among whites at 26%. The largest portion of debt for communities of color are medical services and student loans. Given the decades of discriminatory policies and practices that perpetuated the nation’s racial wealth gap, these disparities extend to a lack of access to health care as well as a greater dependence on debt to finance higher education. For-profit colleges and institutions are among the latest and most visible financial predators. In addition, the CFPB’s own 2017 survey found that 44% of borrowers of color reported having been contacted about a debt, compared to 29% of white respondents. Even when accounting for differences in income, communities of color are disproportionately sued by debt collectors. In fact, 45% of borrowers living in communities of color faced litigation, while only 27% of similarly situated consumers in white areas were sued. CFPB’s revised rule will allow debt collectors to contact affected consumers up to seven times within seven days – or – within seven consecutive days of a prior telephone conversation about a debt. It is important to note that this allowed communication is for each debt owed. Multiple numbers and types of debt collection can legally multiply the number of allowed contacts and result in harassment for already struggling borrowers. Secondly, debt collectors who opt to contact consumers by electronic media, must also offer consumers a “reasonable and simple method” to opt out of these communications that include social media, emails and text messages.

Commenting on the new rule, CFPB’s Director, Kathleen Kraninger, said, “Our rule applies these protections to modern technologies. …And our rule will allow consumers, if they prefer, to limit the ability of debt collectors to communicate with them through these newer communications methods.” But for the 233 consumer, civil rights and legal advocates who filed public comments on the proposed rule, the announcement sent mixed messages for what it proposed as well as what it delayed. “The devil is in the details, and we will have to scour this complicated rule to make sure that it does not open up new fronts for debt collectors’ pervasive and abusive treatment of consumers,” said Christine Hines, legislative director at National Association of Consumer Advocates. “Through the guise of modernization, the debt collection rule could open the gate for collectors to aggravate vulnerable consumers with even more harassment and a flood of electronic communications.” Although the October 30 announcement does address the emerging modes of communications, it also delayed action on three specific areas of concern in debt collection. Guidelines on “zombie” debt, the term used to describe debts that outlived statutory limitations for collection, are expected to be announced this December. Similarly, debt collectors’ practices of leaving messages with third parties or on postcards was not addressed, nor was negative information on consumers’ credit reports. “As we face a dire and worsening economic crisis, we will be keeping a close eye on the ‘zombie debt’ rule, coming in

December, which could leave consumers more vulnerable to deception and harassment,” said Linda Jun, senior policy counsel at Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund. “Collectors should not be allowed to bring expired debt back to life by luring people into making a small payment that revives a debt that would otherwise be past the timeline for a lawsuit.” Although consumers have a right to expect more and better financial regulation at the federal level, many advocates are calling for states to do their fair share on protecting consumer rights. A new survey from the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) analyzed how the 50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands currently protect wages, bank account assets, and personal property from seizure by debt collectors. Entitled, No Fresh Start 2020: Will States Let Debt Collectors Push Families into Poverty in the Wake of a Pandemic?, warns that once the pandemic recedes, families struggling to get back on their feet are likely to face a wave of debt collector lawsuits for medical bills, back rent, credit card debt, the balance due on repossessed cars, and even utility bills. It recommends that states “protect a living wage for working debtors – a wage that can meet basic needs and maintain a safe, decent standard of living within the community”. The report also recommends that states allow debtors to keep “a reasonable amount of money” to enable debtors to pay daily living costs such as rent, utilities, day care, and transportation. This gap in state regulation became evident when federal stimulus checks were de-

posited in families’ bank accounts and then garnished by debt collectors. Further, and according to NCLC, • Not one state currently meets five basic standards of debt regulation: • Preventing debt collectors from seizing so much of the debtor’s wages that the debtor is pushed below a living wage, • Allowing the debtor to keep a used car of at least average value; • Preserving the family’s home—at least a median-value home; • Preserving a basic amount in a bank account so that the debtor has minimal funds to pay such essential costs as rent, utilities, and commuting expenses, and • Preventing seizure and sale of the debtor’s necessary household goods. NCLC identified the worst states that allow debt collectors to seize nearly everything a debtor owns, even the minimal items necessary for the debtor to continue working and providing for a family. States receiving an F grade included: Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, and New Jersey. States rated with a low D grade include: Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, and Pennsylvania. “By reforming their exemption laws, states will not only protect families from destitution but will promote economic recovery by enabling families to spend their money in state and local communities,” said Carolyn Carter, NCLC deputy director and author of the report. Recalling its earlier research on the family wealth lost as a result of the Great Recession, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), holds that the effects of families of

“We applaud the CFPB for dropping the safe harbor that would have widened the door for collectors to use state courts to sue consumers on wrong or incomplete information,” said Center for Responsible Lending policy counsel Kiran Sidhu. “But, the CFPB’s final rule does not do enough to protect communities of color, especially during COVID-19, who are still struggling to recover from the Great Recession because of discriminatory exclusion from the financial mainstream and predatory inclusion into high-cost loan products.” Sidhu also emphasized how the right kind of policy reform was important to stop debt collection law firms and attorneys from filing thousands of collection lawsuits each year that harass consumers on debts that may not even be owed. To phrase it another way – It’s hard to build family wealth when you’re burdened with heavy debts and harassed by abusive debt collection practices. No amount of collector harassment will result in payments when no funds are available to pay past due bills. Further, any policy that denies indebted consumers the ability to preserve essential services like housing or utilities is unsustainable. The financial disparities that Black America strives to endure would significantly diminish if an inclusive financial marketplace became a reality. The crux of many burdensome debts is the lack of affordable and accessible financial services. It is time to stop seizing our hard-earned monies. Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at charlene.crowell@responsiblelending.org. Con’t on page 10

Tense Moments

hurled something at the car. Police caught up with her and detained her. From a unity standpoint, it was not a very promising scene. But sometimes reconciliation takes time. Mike Rogers, a Trump supporter who arrived at the Capitol with a Halloween skeleton fixed to a piece of wood with a dialogue bubble that read “I voted,” said he expected that in time, the country would coalesce around the next president. “Listen, I think Trump did a phenomenal job. These career politicians aren’t getting it done. But I’m going to support the outcome of this election,” he said. “We are still all citizens of this great nation. Hopefully the country will come together. We’ll see what happens.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Black Men Receive Good News in Prostate Cancer Treatment By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

At a risk rate of 74 percent higher among African American men than non-Hispanic white men, prostate cancer has exacted a deadlier toll on Black men than it does white and all other men of color in the United States. According to medical researchers, Black men have the highest risk of developing this cancer and dying from prostate cancer, the most common disease in men and the second-leading cause of cancer-related death in men after lung cancer. Black men remain more likely to develop more aggressive types of prostate cancer as prostate cancer death rates in African Americans are more than double those of every other racial and ethnic group in the U.S. However, a 2020 study has revealed some good news. African American and white men with prostate cancer live equally as long if the same care delivery system treats them. The use of Provenge (sipuleucel-T), a personalized cancer vaccine, extended survival by nearly 15 months over oral hormone therapy, according to the retrospective study of more than 6,000 men, researchers reported at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco. “Provenge, developed by Dendreon,

was the first approved cancer vaccine. It involves collecting a sample of a patient’s white blood cells, exposing the dendritic cells to tumor antigens in a lab, and reinfusing the trained immune cells back into the body,” described Liz Highleyman for Cancerhealth.com. “It targets prostatic acid phosphatase, a protein found at high levels in most prostate tumors. Dendritic cells present these proteins for recognition by T cells, the immune system’s main cancer-fighting soldiers.” When comparing African American and white men who received the Provenge treatment, Black men lived over 4.5 years, compared with 2.5 years for Caucasian men—a difference of 20.9 months and a 48 percent relative risk reduction of death. No other prostate cancer treatment has shown this level of added benefit in African American men with advanced prostate cancer. “Based on our analysis of these realworld data, men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who had immunotherapy added to their treatment regimen had a significant reduction in the risk of death at three years, regardless of the sequencing,” lead study author Dr. Rana McKay of Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, said in news release from the drug-maker Dendreon. According to a retrospective analysis of medical and pharmacy claims data from

were African American, and 41,834 were white.

more than 6,000 Medicare Fee for Service beneficiaries, the addition of Provenge to either the drugs Zytiga or Xtandi, at any point in a patient’s mCRPC [metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer] treatment regimen, reduced the risk of death by 45 percent and extended median overall survival by 14.5 months. Another study looked at survival data from 60,035 men diagnosed and treated for prostate cancer by the U.S. Veterans

Administration (V.A.) Health Care System between 2000 and 2015. Because VA hospitals provide the same subsidized care to all eligible veterans, African American men don’t experience the delays in diagnosis or treatment that they can often face in the general population regardless of their socioeconomic standing. Of the men included in that study, 18,201

African Americans tended to be diagnosed at younger ages, lived in areas with lower median incomes, and had less education and more additional health problems than the white men. According to a Harvard University blog, after adjusting for tumor grade, prostatespecific antigen levels, smoking habits, the types of treatment received, and other factors with an influence on prostate cancer survival, investigators found that African Americans had slightly better odds of not dying from the disease than the white men did. “Specifically, the 10-year prostate cancer-specific death rate was 4.4 percent among African Americans and 5.1 percent among white men. And among all men in the study who were still alive after 10 years, 81.8 percent were African Americans, and 77.5 percent were white,” the Harvard blog noted. “Based on our analysis of these realworld data, men with mCRPC [metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer] who had immunotherapy added to their treatment regimen had a significant reduction in the risk of death at three years, regardless of the sequencing,” Dr. McKay stated. “This magnitude of risk reduction is a compelling finding, and additional analyses are underway looking at other variables that could impact outcomes.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

Lee Elder honored by Masters with scholarship and a tee shot

AUGUSTA, Ga. — In a year marked by racial injustice, Augusta National announced Monday it would honor Lee Elder with two scholarships in his name at Paine College and an honorary tee shot next year for the first Black player in the Masters. “It’s mind-boggling every time I think about it,” said Elder, who made his barrier-breaking debut in 1975. It was about time, according to Masters Chairman Fred Ridley, who said racial injustice and equality have been at the forefront of the nation this year.

The connection to Paine College goes beyond it being an HBCU. Elder arrived in Augusta more than 45 years ago to much fanfare as the first Black competitor in a tournament that for four decades only included Blacks as caddies or in catering. Finding a place to eat dinner was difficult — Elder said that was more because he had some 15 people with him than “being segregated against.” Julius Scott, in his first year as president of Paine College, handled the catering for Elder all week.

”Our question was not so much what we can say but what we can do,” Ridley said.

From that week, Elder began a relationship with the college.

The Masters for some two decades has provided scholarship money for Paine College, a private, historically Black college in Augusta. The Lee Elder Scholarship will be endowed for one man and one woman on the golf team. The fact Paine doesn’t have a women’s golf program was not a problem. Ridley said Augusta National would pay to start one. YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Will Lee Elder be the First African American Masters Honorary Starter? Elder already was looking ahead to next April when he returns to the first tee, this time with a shot that doesn’t count toward a score but is more meaningful to him than when he first played the tournament. “That is one thing that’s going to be sig-

Fred Ridley, the Augusta National chairman, said Lee Elder was a ‘pioneer and a great citizen’. Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters

nificant to me, because 1975 was just an ordinary shot playing a golf tournament, even though it was the Masters,” Elder said. “It’s not as significant as this shot will be come April 8, 2021. Because my heart and soul will be into this shot.” The criteria have changed over the years at the Masters, and when the club began issuing invitations to PGA Tour winners, Elder qualified by winning the 1974 Pensacola Open. That made him eligible for the 1975 Masters. He missed the cut,

though Ridley said the moment was historic because of the message it sent that “I belong.” Next April, he will join Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player as the honorary starters. Ridley referred to it as a “special moment in time,” suggesting it will be a one-time appearance as honorary starter. Elder ended his career with four PGA Tour victories. He played five more times in the Masters, with his best finish a tie for 17th in 1979.

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“To know that I would be hitting a shot off the first tee alongside the great Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, you have to think about where you’re at and what you’ve accomplished and why you’re there,” Elder said. “A young man from the ghetto of Dallas, Texas, man, you’ve achieved world fame. The whole world will be watching and looking. “For the chairman to present me with that opportunity is something I’ll never forget. Never forget.”

“Look at old yearbooks and you’ll see pictures of him with the golf team,” said Cheryl Evans Jones, the president of Paine College. “He’s made a a lot of contributions to the sport.” Ridley said he did not know how much it would cost to start a women’s golf program and that was irrelevant. He said Augusta National would pay for everything. “The times I have visited, a lot of the ladies came out to watch the men play,” Elder said. “I heard quite a number of times, `Gee, I wish we had a team so we could play.’ By Augusta National making that decision, it’s now going to give them a chance to fulfill that dream of being able to come to college, get a four-year scholarship plus compete on the golf team.” Fb-Button

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

America Declares to Trump: ‘You’re Fired’ Black Votes Push Biden Over the Top in Contentious Election “We have a lot of work ahead of us. Let’s get started,” she added. When Biden and Harris are sworn-in on January 20, 2021, the California Senator will become the first Black Vice President in U.S. history. After what’s expected to be the most contentious and violent post-election in American history, inauguration ceremonies will occur. Demonstrators had already gathered outside of vote counting centers around the nation, mainly as the country waited anxiously for results from Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia, and Nevada. Chants of “Stop the Count! Stop the Count,” turned to “Stop the Steal! Stop the Steal! At state buildings by pro-Trump supporters at state buildings. The President egged on the commotion, tweeting false claims about voter fraud and that the “Democrats are trying to steal the election.”

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

After days of post-Election Day counting, Democrat Joe Biden has defeated President Donald Trump to become the nation’s 46th commander in chief. With all eyes on Pennsylvania, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona, it was the Keystone State’s 20 electoral college votes that put Biden over the top, and helped America send the message Trump had become known for years earlier during his “Apprentice” reality television show: “You’re Fired!” “Trump finds out Biden won while he’s playing golf,” Washington Informer Journalist Anthony Tilghman tweeted, as Trump played golf at his National Club in Sterling, Va. Reportedly, it’s the 410th day the President spent at one of his namesake properties since taking office. “This election is about so much more than @JoeBiden or me. It’s about the soul of America and our willingness to fight for it,” Sen. Kamala Harris, the Vice President-Elect tweeted alongside a video.

With little question, Black voters pushed Biden over the top. Biden trailed the President in Pennsyl-

vania, but as the count included predominately Black Philadelphia and surrounding counties, Trump’s lead disappeared, and the Democrat prevailed. That scenario repeated itself in Georgia, where Atlanta and Fulton County also came through for the former vice president. “At this historical moment, the voters have made it clear that they want a country that works for all people. They want a country that is not broken by racism and bigotry,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson wrote in a statement. “They want leadership that can create opportunities for all Americans to succeed in all aspects of society, without fear of over-policing, discrimination, and destructive policies at our expense. “This election transcends party and gives voice to the voters who want affordable health care, economic stability, quality education for their children, and wholesale relief from the pandemic and structural inequality. How we move forward from here and begin to repair our nation is critical.”

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris Defeat Trump and Change History By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

After days of counting in Georgia, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Arizona, President Obama’s former Vice President, Joe Biden, and California Senator, Kamala Harris, won the 2020 race for the White House. News of their victory sparked spontaneous celebrations around the country. In Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York and Atlanta people took to the streets on foot and in cars in celebration with Biden flags and signs. Times Square filled with a crowd unseen in months since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March.

In Washington, DC, cars honked horns driving up and down Connecticut Avenue and around the White House. A large crowd assembled at Black Lives Matter Plaza on 16th Street as close to Lafayette Park as they could get near The White House. Streets around The White House were fenced off creating a large perimeter around the streets that would allow people to get clear video and still photos of the building. The level of celebration in several cities was reminiscent of the revelry seen after a sports team wins a championship. Bottles of champagne were opened on the street and music played loudly. Relief after four

years of Donald Trump’s decision making and endless controversies, tensions and policy decisions were clearly on display in public. The backdrop, 235,000 Americans dead as the result of the coronavirus pandemic, was not lost on the man who will be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. In his first speech after being elected, President-elect Biden said he would, “marshal the forces of decency, the forces of fairness, the forces of science, the forces of hope” and promised his first job would be tackling the coronavirus epidemic. “Our work begins with getting COVID under control,” Biden told thousands of

people in Wilmington, Delaware. On November 9, Biden will formally announce a task force to confront the COVID-19 crisis. “In an election of record-breaking turnout, the American people have made clear who we are and who we aspire to be. Difficult times are ahead, but I have no doubt President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris have what it takes to help us build back better. I look forward to working with them to tackle the challenges ahead, from defeating the pandemic to addressing the racial and economic inequality that continues to grip our nation,” wrote Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH) after Biden was declared

the winner. Trump is unlikely to admit the loss and concede. In the end, on January 20, 2010 at noon, the federal government and all executive power will be in hands of Barack Obama’s former Vice President and now the new President of the United States, Joe Biden. Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist for NNPA and the host of the podcast BURKEFILE. She is also a political strategist as Principal of Win Digital Media LLC. She may be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

‘It had to Be You’ — Black Press Publisher on Her Respect and Commitment to Vice President-Elect Harris By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

One day before the Associated Press and other media outlets called the 2020 Presidential Election for Democrat Joe Biden, San Francisco Sun Reporter Publisher Amelia Ashley-Ward communicated with her longtime homegirl, Sen. Kamala Harris. “I told her ‘It had to be you,’” AshleyWard, whose more than 76-year-old newspaper, the Sun Reporter, is among the oldest in the 230-plus member Black Press of America. As she had done so many times in her nearly two-decade friendship with Ash-

ley-Ward, Sen. Harris quickly responded: “We’ve been on this journey for a long time. Thank you, Sister Amelia, love you very much,” the Vice-President Elect responded. Ashley-Ward proudly says she had Harris’ back since the renowned former District Attorney and California Senator began her glass-ceiling shattering political career. Harris wasn’t a household name, but all that mattered to Ashley Ward was that she was a sister with immense talent and on the rise. “I gave up a close friendship with her former boss in the District Attorney’s office to support Kamala,” Ashley-Ward told Black Press USA.

“People were saying that they didn’t really know her. Well, she’s definitely a sister, and she’s brilliant, she’s warm, she’s easy to talk to, she’s nurturing, she doesn’t back down, and she’s fearless.” On Saturday, November 7, 2020, when Joe Biden and Sen. Harris cemented victory and claimed their status as President and Vice-President-Elect, Ashley-Ward sat and reflected joyfully inside a San Francisco beauty salon. “I cried, and there were three or four other women there who jumped for joy,” recalled Ashley-Ward, who, by her association with Vice President-Elect Harris, has become somewhat of a celebrity. The New York Times has been among

Photo: San Francisco Sun Reporter Publisher Amelia Ashley-Ward

the outlets that have called Ashley-Ward to gain insight into Harris. A longtime member of the Black Press and the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), Ashley-Ward formally introduced Harris to her Black Press family in 2018. That year, Harris received the honor as the NNPA’s 2018 Newsmaker of the Year Award during Black Press Week in Washington, D.C. Ashley-Ward escorted her friend into a ballroom to accept the award. “In all of my years covering news in our community, Sen. Harris has been one of the smartest, most fearless, steadfast Con’t on page 22

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

100 Years Since Women’s Right to Vote, Kamala Harris: “Black Women are the Backbone of Democracy” by y Aria Ellise, BDO Special Contributor

Beginning in the 1800s, women organized, petitioned, and picketed to win the right to vote. Some tried to pass voting acts in each state—nine western states adopted woman suffrage legislation by 1912. Others challenged male-only voting laws in the courts. Some suffragists used more confrontational tactics such as picketing, silent vigils, and hunger strikes. Often supporters met fierce resistance. Opponents heckled, jailed, and sometimes physically abused them. Some dedicated their lives to lecturing, writing, marching, lobbying, and practicing civil disobedience to see this cause through, yet only a few early supporters lived to see final victory in 1920. By 1916, almost all of the major suffrage organizations were united behind the goal of a constitutional amendment. When New York adopted woman suffrage in 1917 and President Wilson changed his position to support an amendment in 1918, the political balance began to shift. On May 21, 1919, the House of Representatives passed the amendment, and 2 weeks later, the Senate followed. When Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify

the amendment on August 18, 1920, the amendment passed its final hurdle of obtaining the agreement of three-fourths of the states. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby certified the ratification on August 26, 1920, changing the face of the American electorate forever. The 19th amendment now legally guarantees American women the right to vote and it seems like we have come full circle 100 years later as Kamala Harris, is about to enter the White House and become America’s first female, first Black and first South Asian vice president-elect. “We did it Joe,” Harris says, while apparently out on a walk with her husband as she heard the news that former VicePresident, now President-Elect Joe Biden has surpassed the 270 electoral votes to win the presidency. “You’re going to be the next president of the United States.” While women gained the right to vote in 1920, a new battle formed in order to protect women’s rights, which stalled until the civil rights movement in the 1960s. Even though women could legally vote in 1920, not all could. Minority women couldn’t vote until 1965 when the Voting Rights Act came into effect. Harris’s history-making win also represents the millions of women in the demo-

graphics — often overlooked, historically underrepresented and systematically ignored. In a speech Saturday night in Wilmington, Delaware, before she introduced President-elect Joe Biden, Harris also thanked Black women, saying they are “too often overlooked, but so often prove that they are the backbone of our democracy.” “While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last,” Harris said. “Because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities.” “And to the children of our country, regardless of your gender, our country has sent you a clear message: Dream with ambition, lead with conviction and see yourself in a way that others might not see you, simply because they’ve never seen it before. And we will applaud you every step of the way,” she said. While a concession speech by an outgoing president is a courtesy and a normality after a sitting president loses, those close to the President don’t think that he’ll make a concession speech. But, the Constitution does make one thing clear: on January 20, 2021, Joe Biden will officially start his presidency. Whatever

Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

Trump says, or refuses to say, won’t matter at that point. When the clock strikes noon, Trump will no longer be President, whether he likes it or not. “Now together, on eagle’s wings we embark on the work that God and history has

called upon us to do,” said Biden. “With full hearts and steady hands, with faith in America and in each other, with love country and a thirst for justice, let us be the country we know we can be.”

Google News Initiative Ad Transformation Lab to Help Sustain African American and Latino American Newspapers in Digital Advertising

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA)

An opportunity to collaborate with the Google News Initiative (GNI) is very much welcomed by newspaper publishers in particular who are coming to grips with both the opportunities and challenges of digital advertising. The necessity to embrace a “digital first” business priority is the financial-sustainability handwriting that has been on the wall of the newspaper publishing industry before we were all hit with the devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, it is the reality today of the persistent global pandemic coupled with the concomitant preexisting conditions of poverty, social inequalities, and racial injustice in America’s minority communities that have converged to accelerate the challenge for a new virtual and digital advertising-normal for African American-owned and Latino American-owned newspapers, as well as for alternative news media companies, across the nation. The last thing that all of our newspapers need today is a widening digital divide and technology gap. Advertising continues to be the sustainable lifeblood of both local and national newspapers. Digital advertising and especially digital “programmatic advertising” continue to irreversibly change how the marketplace has become profitable and sustainable for those news publishing companies that have the trained staffing and requisite technology infrastructure to compete. It is in this timely context that the Na-

tional Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), the National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP), and the Association of Alternative Newsmedia (AAN) have agreed to join in an industry collaboration with the Google News Initiative. We are pleased, therefore, to announce the launch of the Google News Initiative Ad Transformation Lab. This much needed and innovative collaboration will directly assist the NNPA, NAHP and the AAN to acquire digital advertising train-

ing and to upgrade technology platforms and infrastructures required for effective, efficient, and engaging programmatic advertising. Additional partners who are key members of the GNI Ad Transformation Lab (ATL) collaboration are the Center for Community Media at CUNY and Borealis Philanthropy. The GNI ATL will be a 6-month cohort-based digital strategy and enablement program for news publishers in the U.S. and Canada to support Black and Latino-owned legacy and digital na-

tive news organizations focused on serving local and underrepresented communities. I am personally and professionally enthusiastic about the GNI Ad Transformation Lab because I have witnessed too many times how in particular Black and Latina publishers are overlooked and undervalued by major digital advertisers because of the digital gap inside the advertising infrastructures in our trade associations’ member publications. It is not a question of competence. It is an issue of the pace and process of migration and transformation to “digital first” from solely print advertising that produces sustainable revenue streams and profits. These additional revenue streams for our newspaper publishers can then be reinvested strategically to keep our member newspaper publishers at the cutting edge of continued industry innovations and market advances in the growing digital advertising space. In part the program objectives of this unique GNI collaboration will also include advancing the digital transformation through extensive analytical, technical, and research expertise from experienced consultants and peers to accelerate digital migration and to create sustainable digital advertising revenue streams for our participating member newspapers respectively. The Ad Transformation Lab will assist publishers to develop and to clarify their digital content and distribution strategy; optimize their websites; improve their digital advertising capabilities and experiences; and to act on these improvements

to generate incremental advertising revenues. There will be an open selection process for interested publishers to apply. A representative body representing the members of the collaboration will select from the applicant pool those publishers who will participate in the GNI Ad Transformation Lab program. The success of the program will be indicative of the digital maturity and achievement demonstrated by adoption of digital CMS; innovative integration of advertising platforms with best practices delineated; improvement of digital KPIs (e.g. page speed, ad load, etc.); and, the program’s impact scalability to the broader community of publishers. Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), and a 60-year veteran of the Black Press of America and the Civil Rights Movement. He can be contacted at ResponseToChavis@nnpa.org NNPA (The National Newspaper Publishers Association) is an association of over 230 minority and women owned media companies with a weekly print and digital readership of over 25.85 million Black consumers across the United States. They are trusted, embedded and connected in their local communities, are significantly influential, and are one of the “Guardians of Democracy.” With its reach and influence, NNPA can help with effective outreach to the African American Community. Visit https://blackpressusa.com/

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

COMMENTARY:

Monsters Are Scary. So Are Brilliant Black Women

By Julianne Malveaux, NNPA Newswire Contributor

I was frightened of monsters when I was a child. Not so sure why, but my brother, who loved to plague me, used to tell me they were lurking under my bed. I shook, and I shivered, and I cried for fear that one of those dreaded monsters would rise from under the bed to strangle me. I don’t know what got me over my fear of monsters. Perhaps I realized that my brother got perverse pleasure by mocking me. In any case, one day, he told me that there was a monster under my bed, and I laughed in his face. And the monster myth lost its hold on me. I got over my fear of monsters, but Donald John Trump is holding on to his fear of his. His demons are brilliant Black women, like Congresswomen Maxine Waters and Fredericka Wilson. He ridicules anyone who opposes him, but he saves his tartest barbs for Black women. We are his monsters, the folks lurking under his bed, inside his consciousness, willing to call him out. According to one dictionary definition, monsters are “a type of grotesque creature, whose appearance frightens and whose powers of destruction threaten the human world’s social or moral order. A monster can also be like a human, but in folklore, they are com-

monly portrayed as the lowest class, as mutants, deformed, supernatural, and otherworldly.” Monsters, threatening the white male social order. Monsters like Democratic Vice Presidential nominee, Senator Kamala Harris. I wrap myself in the epithet of monster. Like Harris, I am an otherworldly woman who isn’t supposed to be a Black woman economist. I live to destroy the white male social order; I reject the notion that I am the “lowest social class” or “deformed.” And I embrace the idea of being supernatural and otherworldly. With the roll of my neck, the cut of my eyes, the arch of my brows, I can turn an ignorant white man into New Orleans blanc mélange, just like Senator Harris did a bland Mike Pence when they “debated.” No wonder the best the Orange Man could come up with was to describe our precious California Senator as a “monster.” No wonder that the best he could do was to describe her as frightening. In so describing her, he revealed his own fright, his fright of a woman so capable, so marvelous that he cowers in the wake of her brilliance. He cringes, and his Vice President appears more afraid, so much so that he is too intimidated to allow her to finish a sentence, interrupting her twice as often as she interrupted him. He earned her admonishment, “I am speaking,” and

ignored the rules he had agreed to. But the marginally elected President and his clone, who only differs from him because he went to both church and charm school, have no regard for rules or decency. I was angry that the Orange Man described Senator Harris as a “monster” until a friend reminded me that monsters are frightening. And Donald John Trump is not afraid, not scared, but skered! He is not only skered of losing face and losing the election, but he is also skered of the blue wave of Black women gunning for him, along with the White women who are sick of his dismissiveness. He is skered of suburban women, regardless of race, who have had it with the ignorance that has decimated their families. 211,000 dead at this writing, while he rallies, joyrides, and ignores medical advice. If he ain’t skered, then he ought to be. He is so skered (yes, I spelled it wrong, just so you could pronounce it wrong, with a little bit of flava) that he projected his greatest fear on Senator Kamala Harris by describing her as a “monster.” Yes, she is – otherworldly, supernatural, disruptive to the white male order of being. She is the future. He is the past, and his followers cling to his fading past where anybody but white men were invisible. She is the monster that is our future, a monster only to those who fear progress.

CONNECTICUT STATE MISSIONARY BAPTIST CONVENTION WINTER LEADERSHIP VIRTUAL CONFERENCE Conquering Our Challenges: Thriving Through Tough Times

So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?” Nehemiah 6:3 (NKJV)

Friday, December 11, 2020 – 6:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. / Saturday, December 12, 2020 – 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. / Friday, December 11, 2020, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

COVID-19 Situational Awareness and Faith-Based Response Effort

This workshop will assist in community awareness, prevention, and sensitization of COVID-19 best practices; to provide public health information on COVID-19 best practices for churches and communities. The workshop will explore strategies for approaching, reopening churches during the pandemic. Learn what congregants should expect, and do, as in-person operations resume. Maritza Bond, Director of Public Health, City of New Haven Saturday, December 12, 2020, 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon

State Congress and Christian Leadership School

This workshop will address the origin, structure, and staffing of the Congress of Christian Education and Christian Leadership School. The workshop will address planning for a post Covid-19 Christian Education program and Zoom training. Dr. Brett Snowden, Pastor, Greater Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, Tampa, FL and Dean, Florida General Baptist Convention, Inc.

Evangelism, Home and Foreign Missions

This workshop is designed to study the history, purpose, programs, organization and operations of the Home and Foreign Mission Board. It is open to all who have a genuine interest in the “Great Commission.” The workshop will introduce ways to build home and foreign missionary endeavors into the total educational program of

the local church during the age of Covid-19. Rev. Terrence D. Griffith, Pastor, First African Baptist Church of Philadelphia and Executive Secretary, Foreign Mission Board, National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

Church Ushering Ministry

This workshop will address the method and motive of the ministry of ushering by being Biblebased, Christ-centered, and Holy Spirit led. It will teach the basic elements of ushering in the local church, district association and state convention. Dr. Brenda Eason, President of Ushers and Nurses Department, National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

Deacons, Deaconess and Laypersons

This workshop is designed to assist deacons, deaconess and church laypersons in becoming biblically based and more effectively perform their duties and work harmoniously with the pastor and other church leaders. Deacon Harold Simmons, President Emeritus of the National Baptist Laymen’s Movement.

Youth, Young Adult and Millennials

This workshop will focus on exploring the characteristics and needs of generation X, millennials, and generation Z. How will the church attract, engage, and involve younger generations in the life and ministry of the church in this age of the new normal. Rev. Joseph Tribble, Adjunct Professor, American Baptist College and Senior Staff Editor at R. H. Boyd Publishing Corporation

Technology in Ministry

This workshop offers instruction in modern technology and equipment usage to enhance the aspects of church ministry: administrative software, Bible software, media, website design, and management. Rev. Horace A. Hough, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Milford, CT

Women Thriving in Troubling Times

The workshop will address coping with mental health, emotional stress self-care and grief during Covid-19 to make a positive impact on our marriages, families, church, and community. The facilitator will address organizing women’s ministry and leadership roles. Dr. Cheryl Evans, Administrative Director of Surgical Services, Richmond, VA and Vice-President Northeast Region of International Association of Ministers’ Wives and Ministers’ Widows, Inc.

Pastors and Ministers

This workshop will focus on equipping pastors and ministers to provide pastoral care and to provide leadership to their congregations during the COVID 19 crisis. The facilitator will provide wisdom and sage advice to participants who will be preparing to provide leadership to their congregations while facing the new normal. Dr. Marcus Davidson, Pastor, New Mount Olive Baptist Church, Ft. Lauderdale, FL and President of the youth and Young Adult Auxiliary, National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

Con’t from page 04 it with,” he said. Having direct funding from the federal government to state and city governments, he said, “is desperately needed and will keep us on track to support our residents.” DeLong agreed. He called for new federal aid with fewer strings attached that allows state and local governments to make up for lost revenue during the pandemic. Without further federal support, he said, one of two things is likely to happen. Towns and cities are going to face “massive increases to their property taxes” to make up for lost revenue. Or they’re going to make “massive cuts to local services.” Congresspeople worried more about the federal deficit than about jumpstarting the economy are suffering from a “mentality that is the most pennywise and poundfoolish approach that any of our federal representatives can take.” That’s because, if the federal government does not step in to help stabilize and grow the economy during such a crisis moment, then government deficits across the country will only grow as revenues plummet and expenses increase. Trump’s Lack Of Concession “Will Be A Tiny Footnote In History” When asked about his thoughts on how over 70 million Americans voted to re-elect Donald Trump this election, Blumenthal pointed to President-Elect Biden’s speech on Saturday night, just a few hours after he was projected to be the victor in the race. “He wants to be the president of all

Americans,” he said. Blumenthal said he himself has “very strong convictions” about a number of progressive priorities. “I think we need a Green New Deal. I think we need to take dramatic steps to conquer the virus and expand our healthcare system. We need to put people back to work through major infrastructure programs.” “But,” he continued, “we also need to have civil conversations.” He said that, just like Biden, he plans to reach out to constituents who voted for Trump and assure them that he is an elected representative for all of Connecticut — not just for Connecticut Democrats. Blumenthal called on Republican legislators across the country to “speak up” about the integrity of this country’s election system, and about their willingness to respect the will of the voters and to work with a newly elected Presidential administration. Blumenthal said that he and fellow U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy did exactly that in 2016 after Trump was elected. He recalled standing with his Senate colleague and saying, “Trump won; we lost. We’re going to respect the integrity of the election system and work with Donald Trump if we can.” As for Trump’s refusal to concede the race so far, Blumenthal said, “His lack of a concession will be a tiny footnote in history.” While it is “sad and pathetic,” he said, it will likely be “of little note” because concessions do not determine election results—the voters’ ballots do.

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November , 2020 - November 17, 2020 INNER-CITY NEWS July 27,11 2016 - August 02, 2016

NOTICE Accountant Commercial Property

Property Management Company located in New Haven, CT is looking for a Commercial Property Accountant. The ideal candidate will be responsible for all accounting aspects for a portfolio of 13-15 commercial properties. Responsibilities include:

VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE

• Prepare, maintain and distribute statements. HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus Housemonthly and thefinancials New Haven Housing Authority, • Mortgage, taxes and insurance invoice processing. is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this devel• Analyze dataFrank to prepare budget actual Maximum variance reports. opment located at 108 Street, Newvs Haven. income limitations ap• Compile monthly and yearly sales tax filings. ply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y • Assist with annual budget preparation. 25, 2016• and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have Collect and post all tenant payments. been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon re• Prepare journal entries. quest by• calling HOME INC atescrow 203-562-4663 duringaccounts. those hours. Completed preReconcile all cash, and investment applications must bedepreciation/amortization returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third • Maintain schedules. Floor, New Haven,annual CT 06510. • Prepare escalation/recovery settlement invoices. • Annual income and expense and personal property filings. • Third party funding requisitions.

NOTICIA

Job Requirements:

in accounting, finance or related discipline. VALENTINABachelor’s MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES 3-5 years accounting experience. Accounting experience with property management is strongly preferred. HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está Experience with Sage Real Estate (Timberline) a plus. aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Organized and able to handle multiple properties and deadlines in fast paced, timely, ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos accurate manner. máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 Detailed oriented. julio, 2016 hasta cuando se hanExcel recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes Strong skills and software savvy. (aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas deFast HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición learner with excellent communication skills. llamando a HOME INC alTeam 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse player with positive attitude. a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510 . Excellent benefits include medical, dental and 401k. Please send resume to openjobs. mgmt@fusco.com. Phone calls will not be accepted. Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

Public Notice NEW HAVEN

The Connecticut Airport Authority (CAA) hereby announces its federal fiscal years Fairmont Ave (DBE) plan related to 2021-2023 49 CFR Part 26242-258 Disadvantaged Business Enterprise FAA-assisted contracts for professional services and construction 2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 levelprojects , 1BAfor the five General Aviation Airports. The proposed plan, which includes the 3-year goal and raAll new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 tionale, is available for inspection between 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through highways, Airport, near busAdministration stop & shopping center Friday at Bradley International Office, Terminal A, 3rd Floor, WindsorPet Locks, 06096 or onInterested CAA's website the Bradley underCT 40lb allowed. partieshttp://www.ctairports.org, contact Maria @ 860-985-8258 International Airport website http://www.bradleyairport.com for 30 days from the date of this publication. CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates Comments onChurch’s the DBE goal will forstart 45 Saturday, days from the date1:30of in response to the Ministry needs. Thebe costaccepted is $125. Classes August 20, 2016 3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J.notice Davis, M.S., B.S. availability of this and can be sent to the following: (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster

St. New Haven, CT Laurie A. Sirois Manager of Grants, Procurement and Insurance Programs Connecticut Airport Authority Bradley International Airport Administration Office, Terminal A, 3rd Floor Windsor Locks, CT 06096 lsirois@ctairports.org 860-292-2043 (direct)

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour Oruntil 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 Thomas L. Knox, Jr. Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

DBE/ACDBE Compliance Specialist - New England Region FAA Office ofconference Civil Rights,will AWP-9 A pre-bid be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith thomas.knox@faa.gov Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. Phone: 424-405-7208 - Fax: 424-405-7215 Cell: 951.489.8674 Physical Location: 777 S. Aviation Blvd. Suite 150, El Segundo, CA 90245

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority OfComments from Public Review(203) and Consultation fice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 888-4579.

DELIVERY PERSON

NEEDED

Part Time Delivery Needed One/Two Day a Week,

Must Have your Own Vehicle If Interested call

(203) 387-0354

QSR STEEL CORPORATION

APPLY NOW!

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

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES

Invitation for Bids Robert T. Wolfe Building Upgrade Phase II The Housing Authority of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently seeking Bids for Robert T. Wolfe Building Upgrade Phase II. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City Communities’ Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/ gateway beginning on Wednesday, September 23, 2020 at 3:00PM.

Construction Administrative Office Position. FT-Exp required.Email- Hherbert@ gwfabrication.com

PUBLIC NOTICE

THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF BRISTOL OPENING WAITING LIST FOR THE HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER (SECTION 8) PROGRAM

Starting on Oct. 26, 2020 the Bristol Housing Authority will accept pre-applications for their Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8), specifically for households with a nonelderly person with a disability, between the ages of 18-61 and who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Applicants must meet these criteria to apply. To apply online or to down-load the application, go to https://www.bristolhousing.org. Large CT guardrail company looking for Applications will not be available until Oct. 26, 2020. Applicants are encouraged to apply Laborer/Driver with valid CT CDL Class online; however, applications will also be available at our main office lobby located at A license and able to get a medical card. 164 Jerome Ave., Bristol CT 06010. The office hours are Mon-Thur 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Must be able to pass a drug test and physiand Fri 8:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m. For assistance with the online application, please call (860) cal. Compensation based on experience. 582-6313. Email resume to dmastracchio@atlasoutApplications not completed online must be mailed to the Bristol Housing Authority, 164 door.com AA/EOE M-F Jerome Ave., Bristol, CT 06010, postmarked no earlier than Oct. 26, 2020 and no later than Oct. 30, 2020 and received by Nov. 9, 2020. Applications will only be accepted online or by mail and must contain accurate and complete information. Hand-delivered, faxed or emailed applications will not be accepted. Only 1 pre-application per post-marked enveInvitation lope to Bid: will be accepted. Duplicate, incomplete, or illegible applications will not be accepted. 100 applications will be drawn at random on Dec. 1, 2020 and only families selected will 2nd Notice Large CT Fence & Guardrail Contractor receive notification by Dec. 15, 2020. is looking for experienced, responsible Bristol Housing Authority is an equal housing provider. commercial and residential fence erectors Old Saybrook, CT and installers on a subcontractor basis. (4 Buildings, 17 Units) Earn from $750 to $2,000 per day. Email Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project resume to rhauer@atlasoutdoor.com AA/ Lead Building Maintainer - Facilities EOE

HELP WANTED:

FENCE ERECTING SUBCONTRACTORS

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Town of Bloomfield Finance Director

New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, CastLEGAL NOTICE of in-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, Full Time - Benefited TOWN OF PORTLAND, CT Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Town of Portland has amended its Citi$96,755 - $149,345 zen Participation Mechanical, Plan for the Electrical, purpose ofPlumbing and Fire Protection. This contract is subject state set-aside and contract compliance requirements. informing the public abouttoits intent to Pre-employment drug testing.

apply for CDBG, Covid-19 funding. For For more details, a copy of the amendedBid Plan go to www. visitAugust our website – www.bloomfieldct.org Extended, Due Date: 5, 2016 portlandct.org.

Town of Bloomfield

Full Time - Benefited $31.26 hourly Pre-employment drug testing. For more details,

visit our website – www.bloomfieldct.org

Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 Project documents available via ftp link below: EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

DELIVERY PERSON

NEEDED

HANDYMAN P/T. Bristol Neighborhood Development Corp. (BNDC)

Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com seeking an 3 energetic individual who has experience maintaining HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran,isS/W/MBE & Section Certified Businesses properties. Duties include but not limited to various small to medium Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 tasks of carpentry, painting, plumbing, HVAC, snow removal, and AA/EEO EMPLOYER

Part Time Delivery Needed One/Two Day a Week,

Must Have your Own Vehicle If Interested call

Public review comments - pending

(203) 387-0354

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

landscaping. Pay will commensurate with experience. Send resume and references by October 9, 2020 to The Bristol Neighborhood Development Corporation, Mitzy Rowe, CEO, 31 Quaker Lane, Bristol, CT 06010. An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Entity

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020 INNER-CITY NEWS July 27, 2016 - August 02, 2016

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

Listing: Commercial Driver

Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced in Full time Class A driver for petroleum deliveries for nights Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory and weekends. Previous experience required. Competitive training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT 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.

APARTMENTS FOR RENT

NOTICE

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.Affi Pre-applications willEqual be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y State of Connecticut rmative Action/ Opportunity Employer 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have Office of Policy been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon request by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed pre- and Management 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 Floor, New Haven, CT 06510. and clean driving record, be willing to travel throughout the NorthThe State of Connecticut, Office of east & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

NOTICIA

Policy and Management is recruiting for a Leadership Associate (target class Budget Analyst).

Contact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860- 243-2300 VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES Email: rick.tou-

242 Fairmont Avenue, New Haven Spacious 2 bedroom townhouse $1,225.00. Tenant pays all utilities including gas for heat, hot water, elec.stove, balcony and private entrance, off street parking. Close proximity to restaurants, shopping centers and on bus line. Section 8 welcome. Security Deposit varies. Call Christine 860-985-8258.

APARTMENTS FOR RENT 241 Quinnipiac Avenue, New Haven

Spacious 2 bedroom townhouses with hardwood floors. 1.5 baths. Select with basements and washer/dryer hookups. On-site laundry facility. Off street parking. Close proximity to restaurants, shopping centers and on bus line. No pets. Security deposit varies. $1,425-$1,450 includes heat, hot water and cooking gas. Section 8 welcome. Call Christine 860-985-8258.

Further information regarding the duties, signant@garrityasphalt.com eligibility HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, estárequirements and application Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply instructions for this position is available aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer at: ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos

Union Company seeks:

máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 https://www.jobapscloud.com/ julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) CT/sup/bulpreview.asp?R1= en lasTrailer oficinasDriver de HOME INC. & Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas Tractor for Heavy Highway Construction Equip- por correo a petición 201015&R2=5989VR&R3=001 llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse ment. Must have a CDL License, clean driving record, capable of . a las oficinas de equipment; HOME INCbe enwilling 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, 06510State operating heavy to travel throughout theNew Haven , CTThe of Connecticut is an equal Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com with disabilities.

Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply

CITY OF MILFORD

242-258 Fairmont Ave Townhouse, 3BR, 1vacancies level , 1BA Seeking2BR qualifi ed condidates 1.5 to fillBA, numerous to include,

All Health new apartments, new appliances, carpet, I-91informa& I-95 Public Nurse, Mechanic Sewernew Line and close more.toFor nearinstructions, bus stop & shopping center tion and detailedhighways, application visit www.ci.milford.ct.us Pet under 40lbon allowed. Interested parties MariaTITLE. @ 860-985-8258 Click SERVICES, JOBScontact and JOB

Real Estate Controller

CT. Unified Deacon’s Association is pleased to offer a Deacon’s Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates in response to the Church’s Ministry needs. The cost is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:303:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. Fusco Management is seeking a Real Controller. Candidate should have (203) 996-4517 Host, General Bishop Elijah Davis, Estate D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster

leadership, communication and supervisory skills. Controller should have 6+ St. New Haven, CT year’s hands on accounting experience and have a BS in Accounting.

Duties and Responsibilities:

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

Oversee the activities of the Accounting Department for the accurate and timely dissemination nancial by management reports including andSeymour external Sealed bids of arefiinvited the Housing Authority of theinternal Town of monthly financial statements, and annual budgets. until 3:00 pm on Tuesday,annual Augustaudits 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street,

Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the Desired Skills and Experience Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour. Qualifications: • • • •

Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, Timberline and Timberscan, BNA, TValue. A pre-bid conference willand be good held communication at the Housing skills. Authority Office 28 Smith Discretion, good judgment Street general Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, 20, 2016. Strong ledger, accounts payable and accountsJuly receivable. Real Estate experience a plus.

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority OfEducation and Experience Required: fice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance. CPA certification a plus. Must have 6+years of hands-on accounting managerial experience. Fusco Management ofThe Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to fers a competitive benefit package. Fusco is an Affirmative Action/ Equal Opreduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any portunity Employer

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

Invitation for Bids

Phase 2 – Group 4 – Lead Abatement at Essex Townhouses The Housing Authority of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently seeking Bids for Phase 2 – Group 4 – Lead Abatement at Essex Townhouses. A complete copy of the requirements may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Monday, October 26, 2020 at 3:00PM

Contact Dana at 860-243-2300

NEW HAVEN

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES

Invitation to Bid: nd Notice

Town of Bloomfield2

ELM CITY COMMUNITIES Request for Proposals

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE of Single-Family Homeownership Housing Development

Lead Building Maintainer - Facilities

Old Saybrook, CT Full Time - Benefited (4 17 Units) $31.26 hourly Buildings,The Housing Authority of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is

Taxdrug Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage seeking Rate Project Pre-employment testing. currently Proposals for Development of Single-Family Homeownership For more details, visit our website – Housing. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Elm City www.bloomfiWood eldct.org New Construction, Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Cast- Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobbleCommunities’ VendorSite-work, Collaboration

beginning on in-place Concrete, Asphaltstonesystems.com/gateway Shingles, Vinyl Siding, Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Monday, August 10, 2020 at 3:00PM. Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection. Seeking qualified condidates to fill This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements. Office Position. FT-Exp required. Construction Administrative numerous vacancies to include, Email- Hherbert@ gwfabrication.com Benefits & Pension Coordinator Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 and more. For information and Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016 detailed application instructions, Project documents available via ftp link below:ELM CITY COMMUNITIES visit www.ci.milford.ct.us http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage Click on SERVICES, JOBS and Invitation for Bids JOB TITLE. Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com

CITY OF MILFORD

QSR

Plumbing Services Agency-wide

HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 STEELHaynes CORPORATION AA/EEO EMPLOYER The Housing Authority

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

of the City of New Haven d/b/a Elm City Communities is currently seeking Bids for plumbing services agency-wide. A complete copy of the requirements

may be obtained from Elm City’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Monday, October 26, 2020 at 3:00PM

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November , 2020 - November 17, 2020 INNER-CITY NEWS July 27,112016 - August 02, 2016

REQUEST FOR BIDS

Federal Program Waiting List Opening Notice (1-bedroom Non-Elderly Disabled Only)

NOTICE

Miscellaneous Concrete Repairs, Waterproofing and Drainage Repairs at the Union Station Parking Garage

VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE

New Haven, Connecticut HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House and the New HavenProject Housing Authority, New Haven Parking Authority #18-016

is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this development located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations apply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon reby calling INC at beginning 203-562-4663 during 9, those preBidquest Documents willHOME be available November 2020hours. at no Completed cost by downloading from the Buildapplications must be returned to HOMEBigda INC’sof offices atConstruction 171 Orange Company Street, Third ingConnnected FTP site. Contact Maryann Turner at 203-712-6070 for FTP New Haven, CT 06510. siteFloor, access.

Bids due December 3, 2020 at 3:00 P.M. NOTICIA

The work mainly includes concrete repairs, waterproofing, and drainage repairs. Bidders must submit with their Bid on forms provided a list of their Intended Subcontractors, including the MACRI VIVIENDAS PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES use ofVALENTINA Minority Business EnterprisesDE andALQUILER Women Owned Business Enterprises as subcontractors for a goal of at least 25% of the total value of the Bidder’s subcontracts. HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando New pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos un dormitorio en este desarrollo Haven Parking Authority is an equaldeopportunity/affirmative action employer. ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas de HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse a las oficinas de HOME INCSale en 171 Orange Street, tercer Rolling piso, New Haven , CT 06510 . of Surplus Stock

REQUEST FOR BIDS

Starting Nov. 2, 2020 at 8:30 a.m. through Nov. 13, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. the Bristol Housing Authority will accept pre-applications for the 1-bedroom Non-Elderly Disabled Waitlist for its Low-Income Public Housing Program. Only households with a disabled head of household or co-head between the ages of 18-61 years of age qualify to apply. Maximum of 2 occupants for a 1-bedroom unit. To apply online or to download a Pre-application go to www.bristolhousing.org or www.cthcvp.org. Applications may also be picked up in person at the BHA office lobby during business hours. Pre-applications and online applications will be available starting Nov. 2, 2020. Pre-applications not completed online must be mailed to Bristol Housing Authority, Attn: Maura Martin, 164 Jerome Avenue Bristol, CT 06010. Pre-applications must be postmarked no earlier than Nov 2, 2020 and no later than Nov. 13, 2020 and received by Nov. 20, 2020. If you are a person with a disability and require a reasonable accommodation to apply, please contact Maura at (860) 582-6313. Following the closing date, applicant position will be determined by a LOTTERY SELECTION and PREFERENCES as set forth in the BHA’s Tenant Selection Policies. 150 applications will be drawn at random on Dec. 14, 2020 and only families selected will receive notification by Dec. 30, 2020. Applicants must be determined eligible and qualify in accordance with HUD regulations and the Bristol Housing Authority’s Tenant Selection policies. We are an equal housing provider and we do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, marital or familial status.

The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport

New Haven, Connecticut

Energy Performance Contract Consultant (EPCC) Request for Proposal (RFP) Solicitation Number: 149-PD-20-S

New Haven Parking Authority Project #21-006 Bids due November 10, 2020 at 3:00 P.M.

NEW HAVEN

Bid Documents will be available beginning October 20, 2020 at no cost by emailing Fortunata Houde, Executive Secretary at fhoude@nhparking.com .

Invitation toofBid: The Housing Authority the City of Bridgeport d/b/a Park City Communities (PCC) is seeking a quali2nd Notice fied firm to perform tasks related to its “Energy Performance Contract” (EPC). Solicitation package will be available on October 26, 2020, to obtain a copy of the solicitation you must send your request to bids@ parkcitycommunitittes.org, please reference solicitation number and title on the subject line. A Pre-proposal All new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 Oldwill Saybrook, conference call be heldCT on November 12, 2020, at 11:00 a.m. Although attendance is not mandatory, highways, near bus stop & shopping center submitting (4 a proposal attending the pre-proposal conference call may not be in the best interest of Buildings,without 17 Units) Pettounder 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact @ 860-985-8258 theExempt Offeror.& Additional questions should be emailed only to bids@parkcitycommunitites.org no later than Seeking employ experienced individuals in Maria the labor, foreman, operator and teamster Tax Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project trades for a heavy outside work statewide. Reliable personal transportation and a valid November 19, 2020 @ 3:00 p.m. Answers to all the questions will be posted on PCC’s Website: www.parkProposals shall be mailed, or hand delivered by December 1, 2020 @ 3:00 p.m., to drivers license apply please call (860) 621-1720 or send resumeNew to: Construction, Person- citycommunities.org. CT. Unified Deacon’srequired. Association is To pleased to offer a Deacon’s Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, CastMs. Caroline Sanchez, Director of Procurement, 150 Highland Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06604, of via e-mail at Certificate Program. This is a 10 month program designed to assist in the intellectual formation of Candidates nelin Department, P.O.Ministry Boxneeds. 368,TheCheshire, CT06410. in-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Late Vinylproposals Siding, will not be accepted. response to the Church’s cost is $125. Classes start Saturday, August 20, 2016 1:30bids@parkcitycommunitites.org.

242-258 Fairmont Ave New Haven Parking Authority is an equal opportunity/affirmative 2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA action employer.

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Construction

3:30 Contact: Chairman, Deacon Joe J. Davis, M.S., B.S. Affirmative Employer M/F/V (203) 996-4517 Action/Equal Host, General Bishop Opportunity Elijah Davis, D.D. Pastor of Pitts Chapel U.F.W.B. Church 64 Brewster Drug Free Workforce St. New Haven, CT

TOWNAUTHORITY CLERK SEYMOUR HOUSING

Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection. This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements.

NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF DANBURY Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016 Architectural and/or Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016

Engineering On-Call Services

TOWN CLERK - Responsible records management andTown supervision of a Municipal Town Clerk’s Sealed bids are invited byfor thepublic Housing Authority of the of Seymour Project documents available via ftp link below: RFQ No. RQ20001 Office position a H.S. Diploma GEDatand (5) years responsible untilThe 3:00 pm onrequires Tuesday, August 2, or 2016 its five office at 28 ofSmith Street,office work experience http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage in a municipal Town Clerk’s Office to include one (1) year of supervisory experience. Wages: $62,542Seymour, 06483 for Concrete RepairsDepartment and Replacement the $80,021 plus CT an excellent fringe benefitSidewalk package. Apply: of HumanatResources, Town of WallSCOPE: Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour. ingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492. The closing date will be November 16, Fax 2020. EOE or Email Questions & The Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 Housing Authority of the dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com City of Danbury hereby issues this Request for Qualifications to provide HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Architectural and/orBusinesses Engineering On-Call Services Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 SUBMITTAL RETURN: PROPOSAL A pre-bid conference will be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith AA/EEO EMPLOYER Housing Authority of the City of Danbury, 2 Mill Ridge Rd, Danbury, CT 06811 Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. Envelope Must be Marked: RFQ No. RQ20001 Architectural and/or Engineering On-Call Services

Listing: Dispatcher

Extremely fast paced petroleum company needs a full time (which includes on call and Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Ofweekend coverage) detail oriented experienced Dispatcher. A strong logistics background fice, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579. and a minimum of one year previous petroleum experience required. Send resume to: HR Manager, P.O. Box 388, Guilford, CT. 06437 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 ********An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer********** informalities in the bidding, if such actions are in the best interest of the Housing Authority.

SUBMITTAL DEADLINE November 9, 2020 at 10:00am (EST) CONTACT PERSON FOR RFP DOCUMENT: Ms. Devin Marra, Director of Procurement,Telephone: 203-744-2500 x141 E-Mail: dmarra@hacdct.org

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

New COVID Vaccine Show 90% Effectiveness in early Results by Dr. Phillip Gould, BlackDoctor.org

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer said Monday that initial data from its coronavirus vaccine shows it is more than 90% effective — a much better than expected efficacy than had even been hoped for. Pfizer said that the vaccine, made with German partner BioNTech, had an efficacy rate higher than 90% at seven days after the second dose, which means protection is achieved 28 days after a person begins vaccination. The vaccine requires two doses. The US Food and Drug Administration has said it would expect at least 50% efficacy from any coronavirus vaccine. The companies looked at the first 94 confirmed cases of Covid-19 among the more than 43,000 volunteers who got either two doses of the vaccine or a placebo. It found that fewer than 10% of infections were in participants who had been given the vaccine. More than 90% of the cases were in people who had been given a placebo. Pfizer and BioNTech SE are the first drugmakers to show successful data from a large-scale clinical trial of a coronavirus vaccine. The companies said they have so far found no serious safety concerns and expect to seek U.S. emergency use authorization later this month. If authorized, the number of vaccine doses will initially be limited. Many questions also remain including how long the vaccine will provide protection. However, the news provides hope that other vaccines in development against the novel coronavirus may also prove effective.

COMMENTARY:

“Today is a great day for science and humanity,” Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. “We are reaching this critical milestone in our vaccine development program at a time when the world needs it most with infection rates setting new records, hospitals nearing over-capacity and economies struggling to reopen.” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said Pfizer’s findings of a coronavirus vaccine candidate that is more than 90% effective were “extraordinary,” per a report. “The results are really quite good, I mean extraordinary,” said Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious

Diseases, according to the Washington Post. Pfizer expects to seek broad U.S. emergency use authorization of the vaccine for people aged 16 to 85. To do so, it will need to have collected two months of safety data on around half of the study’s roughly 44,000 participants, expected in late November. “I’m near ecstatic,” Bill Gruber, one of Pfizer’s top vaccine scientists, said in an interview. “This is a great day for public health and for the potential to get us all out of the circumstances we’re now in.” Normally, clinical trials like these are categorized as Phase I to IV trials. They are generally described as follows:

Phase I (small number of participants, normally between 6-10 healthy volunteers, or very sick patients for whom treatment options are lacking) Phase I studies are designed to allow scientists and medical doctors to understand what effects an investigational compound has in human subjects. The goal is to study what happens to the compound in the body from a safety and tolerability point of view after it is swallowed, injected or infused. .Study participants are monitored for the occurrence and severity of any side effects that they may experience. Phase II (once the initial safety of the study drug has been confirmed in Phase I trials, Phase II trials are performed on

NATION DIVIDED — Where do African Americans go from here?

By Aswad Walker, Defender News Network

With the popular vote split nearly right down the middle, the 2020 Presidential Election revealed to some and reminded others that America is truly a nation divided. The Defender spoke to two political science professors, Carroll Robinson and Michael O. Adams, and Marcus Davis, host of Fish, Grits & Politiks, to get their takes on where the country is headed post-election. Defender: What does this tight race for the presidency mean for the national political scene? Dr. Michael O. Adams: if Biden were to win – it’s a very close election- I think that it would impact governance because the Democrats were not able to control the Senate. [Mitch] McConnell is coming back. And we know that he was a very powerful person, and able to get judicial appointments and basically, to stonewall even the impeachment process of Trump. So, if Biden is in, you’ll still have to contend, and you have to work with that. So, anything progressive, in terms of legislation, it would be very difficult to get something passed in the Senate. Carroll Robinson: What it means is the country is not as center left as people thought. It’s not the land of progressivism. But more importantly, what it shows is the importance of Black voters. That if you turn

out Black voters, Biden probably wins Wisconsin, Michigan and maybe even Georgia. And that will be the three states that gets him to 270 (Electoral College votes) and wins the White House. And if you’re paying attention to it politically, Black America has saved Joe Biden once again, and Black America has saved the Democratic Party. And it’s gonna deliver the White House to Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. And Black folks need to be a priority. Period. Marcus Davis: It means that we’ve got some issues in our nation that we need to fix. Everything from the Electoral College to this cycle of electing one party versus the partisan politics, needs to be addressed too. It means there’s a ***load uncertainly in the nation. We have an issue with media. We have an issue with polling. It means

we’ve got a whole bunch of issues that we need to try to figure out. And it also means specifically, that ain’t nobody coming to save Black folks. Defender: Moving forward, how will the 2020 election results impact state and local politics? Davis: Our nation has a problem that we only pass significant legislation if we have one party that has the House, the Senate and the White House – if you think about it. Trump Administration’s biggest legislation was the tax bill. How was that passed? Because he had the House, the Senate and the White House? The Obama Administration’s biggest piece of legislation was the ACA (Obamacare), because he had the House, the Senate and the White House… It means that American citizens are addict-

ed to getting duped by the system. Robinson: Black people showed up, showed out and delivered, but not enough focus was put on winning the state by driving up Black voter turnout… What last night showed is we have to build the future of the Democratic Party, or the Texas Democratic Party on Black voter turnout. The idea that you’re going to build the future of the Texas Democratic Party on Hispanic voters and white women, that’s just not a solid enough foundation. You’ve got to maximize Black turnout. Defender: What does this election say about us as a country? Adams: I’m overjoyed that so many people turned out to vote. That’s the beauty of a democracy. Because, you want people to participate, regardless of where you stand or what’s your party affiliation. However, it was kind of ugly where you play into dog whistle politics. It only seeks to divide the country. I’m a little afraid. They tried to kidnap the governor of Michigan. Man, who knows what these people will do. Davis: This election says that we are the divided states of America, not the United States… This concept of the United States of America is failing… It means that the pledge of allegiance is a lie. That’s what it means. Because we are not one nation. We are not indivisible. We damn sure ain’t under God. And we damn sure ain’t got justice and liberty for all.

larger groups of patients, generally 20-300 depending on the type of disease) Phase II studies are designed to begin to evaluate the safety and efficacy of an investigational medicine in patients, and often used to determine if different dosages of the treatment have different effects. The patients are given various doses of the compound and closely monitored to compare the effects and to determine the safest and most effective dosing regimen. In many instances, multiple Phase II studies are conducted to test the compound in a variety of patient populations or indications. Phase III (carried out on large patient groups, 300–3,000 or more depending upon the disease being studied) Phase III studies are designed to confirm the safety and efficacy of an investigational medicine. Large numbers of patients are generally involved in order to adequately confirm benefit and safety. These studies, as in the earlier phases, may involve one or more ‘treatment arms’, which allow for the safety and efficacy of the new investigational drug to be compared to other available treatments, or to be tested in combination with other therapies. Information obtained from Phase III studies is used to determine how the compound is best prescribed to patients in the future. Phase IV (also known as Post-Marketing Surveillance Trials) Phase IV studies take place after the medicine has received regulatory approval (market authorization) and are designed to provide broader efficacy and safety information about the new medicine in large numbers of patients, subpopulations of patients, and to compare and/or combine it with other available treatments. These studies are designed to evaluate the long-term effects of the drug. Under these circumstances, less common adverse events may be detected. Con’t from page 14

Black Press

and caring politicians that I have come to know,” Ashley-Ward stated during the ceremony. “She has a lot to offer the world. We are so fortunate to have her advocating on our behalf.” Ashley-Ward has never been shy about her endorsement of Harris. The Senator and former District Attorney often checked-in with Ashley-Ward from time to time. “It’s important that the Black Press is not left out of this historic occasion,” AshleyWard remarked. “We have to make sure that people know that she’s of the Black community. Black women helped to elect her, and I’ve been with her from the very beginning with the Black Press. “I was the first newspaper, a Black newspaper, to endorse her when no one believed in her. It’s always been the Black women. As I told her, it had to be you. I love you, Madame Vice President. That felt good to say.”

THE INNER-CITY NEWS - November 11, 2020 - November 17, 2020

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