LAWT 06-09-2011

W E E K E N D E R

Vol. XXX, No. 1235

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

FEATURE STORY

| PAGES 8-9

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

HOROSCOPES A

RIES ~ If you want to keep your positive outlook intact, avoid gossip and those who might want to just cry the blues for no good reason. You’ll be happiest this week if you keep busy and keep your opinions to yourself. However, good advice is available from an older female relative.

AURUS ~ You may feel restless this week because you have an excess of mental energy. You can channel that into productivity by applying your fine mind to tasks that you have been putting off for a while. You’ll feel great at the end of the week.

EMINI ~ You wake up feeling as good as you want to feel! Affirm your right to a healthy, happy, joy-filled life and that’s what you’ll find that you have this week! Lucky! Treat yourself to a lottery ticket!

ANCER ~ Watch for petty arguments at your workplace this week. Sail past any grumbling coworkers with a smile and think about how your soul vibration radiates your happiness. You’ll look and feel very attractive to positive vibrations.

EO ~ A compromise may be in order; luckily, it’s easy for you to be flexible. That special other person will be very appreciative of your ability to go with the flow when necessary. You are truly one-of-a-kind!

IRGO ~ Peace is flowing all around you this week. Soak up the harmony as if it were sunshine and smile, smile, smile. You’ll be in sync with partners, family, friends, and even co-workers. Enjoy!

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IBRA ~ Your multi-tasking abilities will kick into high gear this week.

While it’s sometimes difficult for you to know how to handle a particular situation, this week you’ll know the perfect answer.

Everything good is unfolding!

CORPIO ~ Sociable, lovable you!

You can have a wonderful week this week if you hook up with like-minded friends. You’ll find that many are on your wavelength this week. Appreciate your ability to bring people together.

AGITTARIUS ~ Your intuition is showing, and you may surprise yourself as much as you surprise another by making a sudden intuitive leap and saying what you feel. You may feel as if you can read a certain someone’s mind. Use your gift for good.

APRICORN ~ Happiness is where you find it this week. How hard are you looking? It’s easy for you to pull your thoughts away from any negative emotions and flow with your inner harmony.

Let yourself be very happy this week.

QUARIUS ~ Someone close to you may be acting up or acting out. Try to respond with patience and love. If that seems impossible, turn it over to your higher power and get on with your own joyful life.

ISCES ~ You look as lovely as can be this week, as you breeze through the week like a butterfly. All communications are effective, and even more to your liking, they are fun! Enjoy some verbal soul vibrations with good friends later in the week.

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Feds accuse gang of targeting Blacks in Calif. city

BY GREG RISLING ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES — A Latino gang conspired to rid a Southern California city of its Black residents through intimidation, threats and violence dating back to the early 1990s to exert its influence and show its loyalty to the Mexican mafia prison gang, according to a federal racketeering indictment unsealed Tuesday.

More than 50 people were charged as authorities made early morning raids targeting the Varrio Azusa 13 gang. Federal prosecutors said the gang, which has about 400 members or associates, engaged in a host of crimes ranging from drug trafficking to hate crimes that have hobbled Azusa, a city of about 45,000 residents near Los Angeles.

“We hope that this federal case will signal the end of this racist behavior and will help vindicate all of the victims who have suffered over the years,” U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. said.

Sixteen of the people named in the indictment were arrested Tuesday, while another 23 were already in custody, U.S. attorney’s spokesman Thom Mrozek said. Authorities were

seeking another 12 suspects.

The crackdown is the latest effort by law enforcement to cripple Latino gangs that have targeted blacks in the Los Angeles area.

In 2009, more than 140 members and associates of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens gang were charged in connection with waging a racist campaign against black people.

Four years ago, authorities arrested dozens of members of South Los Angeles’ Florencia 13 gang in connection with the killing of Blacks because of the color of their skin.

Tuesday’s charges mirrored a similar effort taken by federal prosecutors against The Avenues, a gang from the Highland Park area northeast of downtown Los Angeles, where four gang members were convicted in 2007 of hate crimes for killing a Black man.

In Azusa, six people have been charged with civil rights violations for allegedly harassing, and in some cases attacking, African Americans to drive them out of the city or to prevent them from relocating there.

Most of the defendants named in the indictment face a minimum 10-year prison sentence.

More than two-thirds of Azusa is

Hispanic, while roughly 3 percent is black. The city has tried to address the racial problem after the number of hate crimes peaked at 17 in 2000 then dropped to about one a year since 2006, said Azusa Police Chief Robert Garcia.

City officials have also created a human relations commission in the wake of the gang’s attempt to drive black residents from Azusa.

“Crimes based upon hatred are intolerable in our society and represent the worst in human behavior,” Garcia said.

The Rev. Logan Westbrook, who has been on the commission since its inception in 2001, said fear has subsided somewhat since 2000, when about a dozen parishioners concerned about the racially motivated violence opted not to follow him when his church moved to Azusa from nearby Monrovia.

Some Black residents still worry about going out at night and feel trapped because they are unable to move out of town, he said.

“Those who are living there, if they get an opportunity to move on they would, but given the economic conditions, they haven’t,” Westbrook said.

Geronimo Pratt Dead at 63

BY RA-JAH KELLY SPECIAL TO THE NNPA FROM THE WASHINGTON INFORMER Elmer “Geronimo” Pratt, the former Black Panther leader, who spent nearly three decades in prison for a crime he claimed to have not committed, has died. He was 63.

Pratt — who spent eight years in solitary confinement and had his 1972 murder conviction overturned in the death of a Santa Monica teacher in 1968 — died early Friday at his home in a village near Arusha, Tanzania. He had lived there for the past five years, according to a statement his friend, Pete O’Neal, made to The Associated Press. O’Neal, who praised Pratt as his hero, said that he suspected he died from either a heart attack or stroke.

“Geronimo was a symbol of steadfast resistance against all that is considered wrong and improper,” O’Neal told The AP. “His whole life was dedicated to standing in opposition to oppression and exploitation ... He gave all that he had and his life, I believe, struggling, trying to help people lift themselves up.”

Pratt had maintained that on the day of the murder, he was in Oakland for Black Panther Party meetings. He also reportedly said that evidence that would have proven his innocence had been destroyed or hidden by police and FBI agents.

Pratt’s conviction was overturned after a judge cited a lack of credibility by key witnesses, and in 2000 he settled a $4.5 million lawsuit for false imprisonment and violation of his civil rights against the FBI and city of Los Angeles.

However, Stuart Hanlon, the attorney who helped Pratt win his freedom, said his client had refused to harbor any resentment.

“He had no anger, he had no bitterness, he had no desire for revenge,” Hanlon said. “He wanted to resume his life and have children. He would never look back.”

Pratt is survived by his wife AP Photo and son.

Information This April 6, 2005 file photo, Elmer “Geronimo” Pratt speaks during funeral services for attorney Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. at the West Angeles from: The Associated Press.

Cathedral in Los Angeles.

AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

Azusa Police Department, Chief Robert Garcia, right, and U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr., take questions about operation “Bright Lights Big City,” a federal racketeering indictment against members of the Varrio Azusa 13 gang in Los Angeles Tuesday, June 7, 2011. A Latino gang conspired to rid a Southern California city of its black residents through intimidation, threats and violence dating back to the early 1990s to exert its influence and show its loyalty to the Mexican Mafia prison gang.

Resident reaction to the gang bust “will be a big, big sigh of relief,” he added.

In the indictment, prosecutors said Marty Michaels, known as “Casper,” and another Varrio Azusa 13 member punched a Black man in Jan. 2000 while using a racial epithet.

In April 2010, Manuel Jimenez yelled a racial slur at a Black high school student returning home from a track

meet, the document said, noting Jimenez and another man hit the student, chased him down the street and stole his items, prosecutors said.

Gang member Ralph “Swifty” Flores was sentenced to death in 2008 after he was convicted of four murders. A judge imposed three death sentences for three murders between 2002 and 2004 as well as a sentence See GANG SWEEP, page 6

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Prison ruling ignores ‘elephant in the room’ ‘Three strikes’ dilemma handcuffs reform

BY CHRIS LEVISTER SPECIAL TO THE NNPA FROM BLACKVOICENEWS.COM Robert Nash Parker, a University of California Riverside professor of sociology, called the recent U.S. Supreme Court order to remove thousands of inmates from California prisons, an “impetus for change.”

“This is a transformative moment, but it ignores the elephant in the room — the three strikes and you’re out dilemma.”

Supporters of three strikes laws have argued that the plummeting crime rates are due in part to the tough sentencing scheme.

Parker, the co-director of the Presley Center for Crime and Justice Studies at UCR, is one of the nation’s foremost leaders in documenting the connection between drugs and alcohol and the prevalence of crime, violence, and anti-social behaviors.

“Until we address the wall of resistance to modifying or repealing the three strikes law and reduce our appetite for incarceration, California is simply kicking the can down the road.”

The three-strikes-and-you’re-out

law approved by voters and the Legislature in 1994, significantly increased prison terms for repeat offenders with previous convictions for violent or serious crimes, putting some behind bars for life.

The law originally gave judges no discretion in setting prison terms for three strikes offenders.

However, the California Supreme Court ruled in 199 that judges, in the interest of justice, could ignore prior convictions in determining whether an offender qualified for a three strikes sentence.

Prosecutors have the greatest discretion; they may decide whether to count certain crimes as strikes when they file their criminal complaint. Critics have charged that this system introduces the worst of both worlds: mandatory sentences for those charged under the law and unequal application of the law.

Parker warns that Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget-crisis-driven plan to move inmates convicted of low-level and nonviolent crimes into the custody of county officials, combined with the state’s tough sentencing laws, particularly three strikes recidivism, is a cocktail for failure.

AP Photo/Eric Risberg

The gymnasium at San Quentin State Prison is filled with nearly 400 double-bunked inmates because of crowded conditions in San Quentin, Calif., Thursday, June 14, 2007. The federal receiver who controls California’s inmate medical system opened a new $1.6 million emergency room for the prison’s 6,000 inmates, offering it as a model for the expensive modernization he said is needed throughout the nation’s largest state prison system.

“On one hand you’ve got the justices ordering inmate reductions,” Parker said. “On the other hand you’ve got people serving life terms for minor crimes contributing to the prison overcrowding and causing even further financial strains on the state.”

Why energy costs are rising and what Southern California Edison is doing to secure affordable, reliable and environmentallyresponsible energy.

Our region’s electrical grid needs investments to enhance its reliability and security. Our “general rate case” is a formal request SCE makes to the California Public Utilities Commission every three years. The rate case determines about half of what makes up customer rates and allows us to perform our core work – making sure you have access to safe and reliable electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In the process, we will also be creating over 10,000 jobs in the California economy.

Below are common questions we get to help you better understand the cost of electricity and what you can do to lower your bills. For more information about our rate case, visit www.sce.com/2012plan.

Q: Why is my electricity bill going up?

A: We need to make investments that will enhance the reliability and security of our power delivery grid.

The money requested in the rate case is used to make capital investments and on operations and maintenance. The other half of what the utility charges is comprised of factors like fuel and purchased power, state programs, etc. which are passed along to customers “at cost.”

The infrastructure in older communities such as Compton, was built before families owned plasma television sets, computers and microwave ovens. The capital investment is split roughly in half between replacing aging components and expanding the network to meet increased electrical consumption.

If approved, the funding will be used for activities like: • Replacing poles, wires and transformers.

• Adding smart grid components needed to include more renewable energy, like solar and wind.

• Maintaining a skilled work force to handle upgrades to grid and related customer service needs.

• Increasing grid security and the security of customer information.

Q: How do rising oil or natural gas prices affect the cost of electricity?

A: We use various forms of fuel to generate electricity, so when the price of oil or natural gas goes up, our rates and your bills increase.

In fact, almost 40% of what you pay in 2012 will be for fuel and purchased power. However, SCE does work to mitigate the cost for customers, like negotiating fuel price hedging contracts to protect customers from the volatility of fuel costs. This portion of our costs is passed along to customers “at cost.”

Q: What is the expected increase in my monthly bill and when will the increase take place?

A: Our proposal would add between $2.50 and $9.50 to the average monthly residential bill.

We currently expect a final decision at the end of the year, with new rates taking effect January 1, 2012.

Q: What can I do to save money on my bill?

A: We focus on helping our customers reduce the impact of an increase by offering a variety of business and residential energy-efficiency and economic assistance programs.

There are discount programs, offers for rebates on energy-efficient lighting and appliances, and much more. For more information just visit www.sce.com/rebatesandsavings or call (800) 655-4555 for General Residential Customer Service and (800) 990-7788 for General Business Customer Service.

During two decades, Parker has authored more than 40 scientific articles and chapters on the relationships between drugs, alcohol, violence and crime, as well as on research methods in the social sciences.

The high court ordered a reduction of 33,000 inmates within two years after finding that the state’s penal system is so overcrowded that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment.

“California has gorged itself on the all-you-can-eat buffet of imprisonment. It’s about time we went on a diet,” Parker said. “We are paying $40,000 to $50,000 a year on average to incarcerate people. That cost will increase dramatically as these inmates age and the costs for their health care soars.”

The recent ruling has also already inspired a fresh round of political recriminations, with some law enforcement officials and Republicans echoing the Supreme Court’s dissenters by saying the release will result in more violence as released inmates, unable to find jobs, return to their former way of life.

“We’re bracing for the worst and hoping for the best,” said Mark Pazin, the Merced County sheriff and chairman of the state’s sheriffs’ association. “This potential tsunami of inmates being released would have such an impact on local communities. It could create real havoc.”

During a lecture titled “Worse Policy After Bad: Why and How Three Strikes is a Complete Failure as Crime Policy,” Parker warned against fear-mongering and took direct aim at claims that the state’s tough-on-crime policies, most notably its three strikes law, are responsible for a 100 percent crime drop since 1992. The lecture was ironically given a day after the court issued its landmark ruling.

“These assumptions are patently false and irresponsible,” Parker told the audience. “Research and a logical

examination of data on violent crime state by state over the past 50 years conclusively show that this is not the case.”

“A multivariate Vector time series model for California over the last five decades shows that the imposition of Three Strikes in 1994 has had no impact on the violent crime rate in the state, but that alcohol consumption and unemployment have important impacts on the rate of violent crime,” said Parker.

Critics of the law point out that at the time California adopted its tough Three Strikes Law, New York and Canada, neither of which has a Three Strikes deterrent, enjoyed crime rate declines ballyhooed by Californians as being questionably attributed to the Three Strikes Law. Parker said research shows counties that aggressively enforced the law had no greater declines in crime than did counties that used it far more sparingly. One study found that crime dropped by 21.3 percent in the six most lenient ‘three strikes’ counties, compared to a 12.7percent drop in the toughest counties.”

If these results are correct, said Parker “the budget of California has suffered from a tremendous burden caused by the excess imprisonment of many nonviolent offenders under the Three Strikes policy.”

In 2004, California voters rejected an initiative that would have required an offenders’ third strike to be a violent or serious felony and eliminate second-strike sentences for most offenders. Only 47 percent of the state’s voters supported the measure.

“I like to tell my students, California didn’t used to be known for incarcerating its citizens — but then the Soviet Union fell and Apartheid ended in South Africa. We were in bad company then” — now, says Parker — “we’ve gone from being a ‘laboratory’ for democratic policies to a poster child for incarceration.”

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

NAACP, NNPA and others Study: Black colleges payoff for urge FCC to approve Black students AT&T’s acquisition of T-Mobile USA

BY NISA ISLAM MUHAMMAD SPECIAL TO THE NNPA FROM THE FINAL CALL

WASHINGTON — A coalition of advocacy groups, including the NAACP and NNPA, today encouraged the Federal Communications Commission to approve AT&T’s acquisition of T-Mobile USA, saying the merger is in the best interests of millions of African Americans.

The coalition told the FCC that the AT&T/T-Mobile deal will bring wireless Internet access to areas now lacking broadband, will save users money and will create new jobs nationwide.

“The merger of AT&T with TMobile USA stands to bring some much-needed relief to the African American community by helping to close the digital divide and increasing access to vital services in urban and rural communities,” wrote Hilary Shelton, senior vice president for advocacy for the NAACP, in a letter to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.

Joining the NAACP and NNPA in the letter were the leaders of a broad coalition of civil rights and national black intergovernmental organizations representing 40 million African Americans.

The coalition pointed out that although African Americans are leaders in adopting wireless Internet access, they often must contend with poor service.

“Despite their high wireless adoption rate,” the coalition members told the FCC chairman, “African American wireless Internet users frequently contend with substandard and inconsistent access that plagues many urban and rural areas.”

The AT&T/T-Mobile merger can bring significant improvements, according to the coalition, because “if the T-Mobile purchase is approved, AT&T has made commitments to substantially increase broadband access to underserved areas and invest billions in infrastructure upgrades.”

The AT&T investment will provide upgrades to service, the coalition’s letter said, and “will lead to shovel-ready opportunities that will put the unemployed back to work.”

The coalition also pointed out that AT&T has a demonstrated commitment to diversity in its hiring and in its selection of suppliers.

“Minority-owned firms make up 20 percent of the company’s suppliers,” the coalition said, “and nearly 40 percent of AT&T’s employees are people of color.”

Joining NAACP and NNPAin the letter were: • Melanie Campbell, president and CEO of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation.

• Albert E. Dotson Jr., chairman of 100 Black Men of America.

• Dr. Avis Jones-DeWeever,

executive director of the National Council of Negro Women.

• Gary Flowers, CEO of the Black Leadership Forum.

• Susan Taylor, of the National Cares Mentoring Movement.

• Rep. Barbara Ballard, president of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators.

• Sen. Sharon Weston Broome, president of the National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women.

• Vanessa Williams, executive director of the National Conference of Black Mayors.

• Commissioner Arlanda Williams, president of the National Association of Black County Officials.

• Dr. Valerie White, chairwoman of the Black College Communication Association.

• Tommy Dortch, chairman of the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame.

• Ricardo Byrd, president of the National Association of Neighborhoods.

AT&T is one of the oldest American communications companies, and T-Mobile USA is a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, a German telecommunications giant.

In March, AT&T offered to acquire T-Mobile USA for $39 billion in cash and stocks.

If approved by the Federal Communications Commission, the deal will create the largest provider of wireless service in the nation, with a combined 130 million subscribers.

“This transaction represents a major commitment to strengthen and expand critical infrastructure for our nation’s future,” said Randall Stephenson, AT&T’s chief executive, in a statement announcing the proposed acquisition.

At the time of the announcement in March, analyst Charles Golvin from Forrester Research told CNN that with AT&T’s acquisition of T-Mobile “high-speed mobile broadband service will improve in quality and coverage, including — in the long run — those in rural communities outside the reach of terrestrial broadband today.”

WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com) — To attend an Historically Black College and University (HBCU) or not is the question many Black high school students face every year.

New research from Morehouse College economist Gregory N. Price and two fellow economists from Howard University — William Spriggs and Omari H. Swinton — finds graduates of HBCUs do better in the labor market long term than nonHBCU grads.

Their report, “The Relative Returns to AP Photo/Vinny Tennis Graduating from a Historically Black Col- Sousaphone players from Howard University perform during lege/University,” considered the benefits of earning the 2nd Annual African American Band Event at Clipper a baccalaureate degree from an HBCU compared to Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pa on Saturday Aug. 28, 2010. a non-HBCU for Black Americans.

The event sponsored by the Lancaster chapter of Concerned “Our results lend support to the idea that Black Men, Inc hosted marching bands from six historically HBCUs continue to have a compelling educational black colleges and universities. justification, as the labor market outcomes of their graduates are superior to what they would have been had attending a non-HBCU. “By the 1990s, however, there is a wage penalty, they graduated from a non-HBCU,” according to their resulting in a 20 percent decline in the relative wages of article.

The researchers “Suggest that HBCU graduates real- H.B.C.U. graduates between the two decades.”

The Morehouse and Howard economists’ results ize higher earnings relative to non-HBCU. As such, our results lend support to the idea that HBCUs have a com- “suggest that HBCUs afford its graduates relatively supeparative advantage in nurturing the self-image, self- rior long-run labor market outcomes,” which “stand in esteem and identity of graduates, which theoretically contrast to the recent results of Fryer and Greenstone — who find that over time the relative returns to graduating matters for labor market outcomes.”

The study also challenges earlier research by Roland from an HBCU have become negative — and compleFryer and Michael Greenstone that found, “In the 1970s mentary to those of Mykerezi and Mills (2008) who find H.B.C.U. matriculation was associated with higher wages that HBCUs have a positive effect on the long-run labor and an increased probability of graduation” relative to See BLACK COLLEGES, page 7

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Historic photos taken by Black photographers representing former football star O.J. Simpson. Cochran died in 2005 of a brain tumor.

The bottom photo shows the inside of what is believed to be a Black Panther Party building on March 5, 1970.

These photos were taken by Black photographer Harry Adams. They were provided courtesy of Kent Kirkton, curator and director of the Institute for Arts and Media at California State University, Northridge.

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In the photo directly below, a young Johnnie Cochran Jr. (center) stares at the camera in January 1968. The lawyer gained notoriety during his career, including for

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GANG SWEEP Continued from page 3

of life without parole for the racially motivated murder of Black teen Christopher Lynch in 1999. Flores was 17 at the time of the murder and not eligible for the death penalty because he was a minor.

Authorities also said the gang extorted payments from drug deal-

ers to let them keep working in Azusa. The gang also drew up a business plan to monopolize the drug trade in the city, which included stockpiling an arsenal of weapons and plotting to kidnap relatives of wayward dealers, the 24count indictment said.

Drug proceeds were then funneled to members of the Mexican mafia who wielded control over the gang. The “13” in the gang’s name — much like others in Southern California — stands for the letter ‘M’ and shows the affiliation with the notorious prison gang.

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

The Oprah Effect: Do you have it within you too?

BY CHERYL PEARSON-MCNEIL Oprah has left the building — at least the one where “The Oprah Winfrey Show” was taped. And we’re all aware she’s moved on to bigger (and knowing Oprah, probably mo’ better) things. As a matter of fact I just hung up from speaking with my mom, who is already quoting psychologists from Oprah’s cable network OWN. So chances are Lady O will continue to have an ongoing impact on our lives.

At Nielsen, the world’s largest marketing research company, we measure what consumers watch and buy globally. And over the years we’ve followed Oprah a number of ways: from our ratings service, which measured her syndicated daytime show (watched by approximately 7.4 million people daily, or 26 percent of all American households during the first two weeks of May this year), to our Nielsen BookScan service which has tracked the success of “Oprah’s Book Club” picks.

As a cultural and media icon, she had a powerful influence on some of America’s buying habits. CNN even produced a special about this phenomenon and the impact it had on driving success for a company or product. It’s known as The Oprah Effect. Take Chicago-based Garrett Popcorn — which I wish had a western suburb outlet because trekking into the city whenever I have out-of-town guests who have to have it gets old really fast; and I blame it on Oprah.

According to CNN, sales jumped by 100 percent after a December 2002 “Oprah’s Favorite Things” show. And, consider that Atlanta-based Spanx (the fashionable body shapers that make those of us over 25 look like we still have a 25-year-old’s body … er, kinda ... ) was almost unheard of until the founder appeared on Oprah and netted the company a subsequent $350 million in retail sales. Any product that was good enough for Oprah was good

Cheryl Pearson-McNeil enough for the rest of us, which explains why I have a stunningly beautiful pink-and-brown-striped chair in my guest room that doesn’t match anything in there — I saw it in “O” Magazine and had to have it.

Oprah has style, and it rubbed off on the rest of us over the years.

But of all the things I love most about Oprah, it was her ability to make reading “cool” again. I’m an avid reader, and in two rooms of my home, I have floor-to-ceiling, built-in bookshelves that are filled to the rafters with books to prove it. Because of Oprah I suddenly had girlfriends who hadn’t picked up books since our freshman English Lit class calling me saying, “Giirrrl, did you read Oprah’s book of the month? Whew! It. Was. Deep. Honey!” And although I didn’t personally read many of her selections (the ones I tried were actually a little on the depressing side and I don’t like

books that make me weep through more than one chapter) Nielsen’s BookScan numbers don’t lie — I was clearly in the minority. In the last decade, “Oprah’s Book Club” choices — which ranged from older classics to lesser known works to Pulitzer Prize-winners — translated into more than 22 million copies sold. That’s a lot of readers.

For example, Oprah Pick No. 54 (Sept. 22, 2005): “A Million Little Pieces,” by James Frey (which ultimately turned out to be a fraud), made Frey a household name and sold a stunning 2.7 million copies in Oprah trade paperback; compared to the hardcover, which sold 149,500.

Another previously unknown work, Oprah Pick No. 63 (Sept. 17, 2009): “Say You’re One of Them,” by Uwem Akpan, enjoyed a whopping 853 percent increase in sales after his appearance.

Not only did Lady O encourage America to read, she gave her audience choices in how they could read.

I’m old school — I like my books with pages that I can turn down at the corners, cuddle up with on a rainy day, and place in alphabetical order on one of my bookshelves when I’ve finished. Oprah raved about the new electronic reading (eReaders) devices like the Kindle. And according to Nielsen, 61 percent of eReader owners opt to snuggle up in bed with this modern convenience rather than a conventional book.

Oprah epitomizes what I write about (OK, sometimes I can be a little preachy) regularly in this column: using our consumer power for good. If we could sprinkle a little of her fairy empowerment dust throughout the land so that everyone understood the power of choices, there’d be no stopping the economic impact we could all have on the world.

Cheryl Pearson-McNeil is the senior vice president of Public Affairs and Government Relations for Nielsen. For more information and studies, go to www.nielsenwire.com.

BLACK COLLEGES Continued from page 5

market earnings of black males.”

“Moreover, we cannot conclude, as Fryer and Greenstone (2010) do, that HBCUs retard Black progress, as our results suggest that HBCU graduates realize higher earnings relative to non-HBCU graduates. As such, our results lend support to the idea that HBCUs continue to have a compelling educational justification, as the labor market outcomes of their graduates are superior to what they would have been had they graduated from a non-HBCU.” Since emancipation HBCUs have been among primary vehicles for social, political and economic progress for Black Americans.

They’ve produced some of the best and brightest in Black America.

“Having the knowledge of self can’t be underestimated when it comes to the learning experience and embarking on that journey of higher learn-

ing. I believe HBCUs give our children the foundation through the experience of being around their own kind, which strengthens their self-identity and knowledge of self,” said Dr. Larry Muhammad, head of the Nation of Islam’s Muhammad University of Islam.

“Well, I wanted to go to Morehouse, but circumstances kept me at a Big 10 school that offered a high quality education, but a seriously racist and selfish environment. I saw clearly the need for us to have our own to ensure that young people have a positive, Godcentered environment that supports who they are and gives them fertile ground to grow in.”

He added, “You had to really strive and fight to maintain on the path that God was calling you for.

That’s a dangerous environment to be in when youth have to take charge of themselves and their future

because the environment created is so toxic. HCBUs must be supported and soon we need to sit down with ALL of our educators and policymakers and begin targeting one or more of these schools to align with the vision of The Honorable Elijah Muhammad of having a truly independent university system.”

According to the report, “HBCUs have been viewed analytically as labor market interventions that impact the wages of attendees and graduates. In general, the interest has been whether or not HBCU graduates fare better or worse in the labor market relative to Black graduates of non-HBCUs.” “Working and going to school with your own peers helps to build camaraderie that is desperately needed in our community when it comes to Black business success and development. This is a big plus for Black colleges!” said Dr. Muhammad.

NBA shoots for social justice

BY MAYA RUPERT Over the last few months, a number of homophobic incidents surrounding the NBA, followed by positive actions from management and players, have given professional men’s sports and several of its star players an opportunity to support equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. And after each one, I couldn’t help but think about a night in 1958 Charleston, W.V. In 1958, the Minneapolis Lakers, who wouldn’t move to Los Angeles for another two years, had three Black players — Boo Ellis, Ed Fleming, and Elgin Baylor.

Baylor is in the Hall of Fame. His jersey hangs in the Staples Center.

He is inarguably one of the alltime greatest players in the NBA. He was also the first Black player to ever boycott a game.

The Lakers had been scheduled to play an exhibition game in Charleston, which was the hometown of Lakers’ Hot Rod Hundley. When the team arrived in the city and attempted to check into the team’s hotel, they were informed that the Black players could not stay at that hotel. Baylor argued with the clerk, but the clerk ignored him. Hundley interceded and pointed out that Baylor was their star player, but the clerk refused to budge. Hundley made two other calls to hotels, but he was told they had the same policy. Ultimately, the team had to stay in a run-down hotel that was reserved for Black people. When Baylor left the hotel to eat, he found that no restaurants in the town would serve him, and he and the other two Black players were forced to eat at the concession stand at the Greyhound bus station.

When it came time for the game, Baylor refused to play in a town that would not afford him the basic respect to serve him a meal. The promoters of the game approached Hundley to get him to convince Baylor to play since the two were friends. Hundley asked Baylor to play as a favor to him, since it was his hometown. Baylor told his friend that he simply couldn’t play in a town where he hadn’t been treated him like a human being. Hundley remembers that as the moment that he started to feel Baylor’s pain. “Elj,” he told him, “Don’t play.”

While this was the first time a Black player boycotted a game, it wouldn’t be the last. Just a few months later, Bill Russell would do the same thing at an exhibition game in Dallas.

But what strikes me about this particular story isn’t what it meant for Baylor, but what it meant for Hundley. It’s always amazed me that it was at that moment that Hundley began to understand that the racism his teammate faced was about more than restaurants and hotels. It was about equal dignity.

And he wouldn’t have understood that unless he knew Baylor. I’ve always kind of loved him for that, because it is simply the most perfect explanation for why the NBA works so well as an unwitting agent for social change; and the perfect explanation for why I’ve been so encouraged by recent actions

Maya Rupert from the league and from players condemning homophobia in the NBA. Following their recent high-profile use of anti-gay slurs, Bulls’ Joakim Noah and Lakers’ Kobe Bryant each faced substantial fines. In the aftermath of those ugly outbursts, the league took the opportunity to issue public statements condemning homophobic language in the NBA, and released a Public Service Announcement (PSA) featuring stars like Phoenix Suns’ Grant Hill encouraging young people not to use the word “gay” as an insult. The Lakers released their own PSA pointing out the damaging effect of such language. Former MVP and Suns’ star Steve Nash released a video supporting marriage equality in New York. And Rick Welts, president of the Suns, publicly came out as a gay man.

When asked to comment on Welts and whether an active NBA player could ever come out, Hall of Famer and former Suns’ star Charles Barkley stated that everyone in the league has played with gay teammates, and, as he explained, “I’d rather have a gay guy who can play than a straight guy who can’t play.” In other words, as long as the moral arc of the jump shot bends toward the basket, no one cares who’s shooting it.

The NBA has an incredible capacity to make teammates out of strangers, and link the fates of people who might otherwise never have understood each other’s perspective.

And if the NBA could make a White guy from Charleston begin to understand the discrimination faced by a Black guy from Washington, D.C., when an active player in the NBA finally does come out as gay, it’s exciting to think of the effect that will have on the players and fans of the league and sports in general.

The NBA may well have a transformative impact on the lives of LGBT people. It is, after all, where amazing happens.

Maya Rupert is the Federal Policy Director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

8

L.A. Watts Times WEEKENDER

Thursday, June 9, 2011

In light of Black Music Month, the Watts Times takes a look at African Americans and their music.

By Jennifer Bihm Contributing Writer It started on America’s plantations, according to historians like Benjamin McChie, educator and founder of the online African American Registry.

“Part of what [Africans] brought here were our art forms but when masters caught us doing that stuơ, we’d get beaten. So we devised ways to keep our traditions on the plantation … to keep us as connected to the homeland as possible,” he explained.

There, in those vast fields along with tobacco, indigo, rice and cotton, the seeds of Black American music were planted.

Rooted in pain and suơering, African traditions and New World ideologies, Black music sprang forth as a movement. Each genre has, at one time or another, served as a main backdrop to many of the United States’ eras.

“The blues, gospel, jazz, R&B, Rap... are all derivatives of traditional [African] music, particularly percussion based music,” McChie said.

NEGRO SPIRITUALS Historians attribute what was most likely the first black American musical genre, the Negro spiritual, to African traditions.

“The very first negro spirituals were inspired

by African music even if the tunes were not far from those of hymns,” according to negrospirituals.com. “Some of them, which were called ‘shouts’ were accompanied with typical dancing including hand clapping and foot tapping…”

Shouts are described by the website as an event after regular worship service in which the slaves would gather in a circle and shout the same musical phrase over and over until members were exhausted or in an ecstatic state. The practice was banned for being an oơshoot of a primitive African dance. Shouts gave way

to Christian hymns as slaves became involved in America’s 19th-century spiritual revival. Lyrics were mostly tied to being a good Christian. But after church, they served another purpose.

“The codes of the first negro spirituals are often related with an escape to a free country,” negrospirituals.com writes. “For example, a ‘home’ is a safe place where everyone can live free. So, a ‘home’ can mean Heaven, but it covertly means a sweet and free country, a haven for slaves. The ways used by fugitives running to a free country were riding a ‘chariot’ or a ‘train’.

“The negro spirituals, ‘The Gospel Train’ and ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ directly refer to the Underground Railroad, an informal organization that helped many slaves to flee…”

BLUES “The origins of blues is not unlike the origins of life. For many years it was recorded only by memory, and relayed only live, and in person. The Blues were born in the North Mississippi Delta following the Civil War. Influenced by African roots, field hollers, ballads, church music and rhythmic dance tunes called jumpups evolved into a music for a singer who would engage in call-and-response with his guitar. He would sing a line, and the guitar would answer…”

– From history-of-rock.com/ blues.htm

After the Civil War, slaves no longer had to flee the plantations, but they did either have to leave them and survive on their own, or they had to continue to work on them for little compensation. The call and response, shouts and coded lyrics of the Negro spirituals segued into the revelation of these lifestyle changes. Stories of back-breaking work, poverty, forlorn lovers and sexual encounters were set to guitar tunes that filled nightclubs across the country.

The number of blues fans began to grow as composer W.C. Handy, widely known as the “father of blues,” published favorites such as “Memphis Blues” and “St. Louis Blues.”

Singer Mamie Smith made the first blues recordings with songs like “Crazy Blues” and “It’s Right Here for You.” Throughout the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s, singers such as Gertrude “Ma” Rainey, Bessie Smith, Muddy Waters, B.B. King and John Lee Hooker became popular.

JAZZ The blues gave way to jazz, a genre, according to historians of music, that began in 20th-century New Orleans. The music, which included mixes of European music, blues, ragtime, and marching band, reflected the cultural soup that characterized the southern city.

Jazz migrated along with Blacks to northern cities like New York and Chicago as they looked to improve their financial status.

Jazz had its heyday, in part, from the 1920s through the 1940s, due to the increased accessibility of the phonograph. Also, the underground booze market spawned clubs called speakeasies in various cities, where blacks and whites alike spurned traditional values with short s k i r t s , short hair, bright suits and wild dancing.

T h e three decades produced legends like Glenn Miller, Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.

The 1950s and ’60s saw the rise of jazz great Miles Davis.

GOSPEL Like blues and jazz, gospel music stemmed from the musical traditions of slavery. However, it didn’t become a significantly recognized genre until Thomas Dorsey (former piano man for Ma Rainey) brought it to the forefront in the early 1920s. Dorsey’s most famous contributions to the music were classics like “Precious Lord Take My Hand,” and “The Sweet Bye and Bye.”

PHOTO CREDITS Billie Holiday (AP Photo) Mahalia Jackson (AP Photo)

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The music, Dorsey said back then, was to inspire and comfort people, to lift their spirits up from poverty and depression. The 1930s saw gospel travel from southern states to big cities, where its patrons sought better lives during the Great Depression.

During the next decade, singers like Mahalia Jackson, Clara Ward and James Cleveland made recordings that carried gospel beyond the church and into the mainstream.

The genre is a mainstay, still providing inspiration to people today. Artists like Kirk Franklin, Yolanda Adams and Donnie McClurkin set their inspirational lyrics to currently popular musical styles. Gospel music has contributed to other sounds, most significantly, soul music.

SOUL, R&B AND FUNK Singer Ray Charles is noted as one of the first catalysts of the sound known as soul. Taking musical notes from popular gospel songs, he translated them into secular tunes that people still connected with but that were seemingly less appropriate for church. Soul began emerging during the civil rights era, the raw sound coinciding with the palpable racial tension in the country.

Musicians like Sam Cooke, James Brown and Bobby Blue Bland became popular in this era. As soul music was emerging, another sound eventually dubbed Rhythm and Blues by Jerry Wexler of Billboard Magazine, was also making its way to the forefront. R&B was mainly a mix of jazz and blues, making the sound a little smoother than soul.

The Motown record label, started by producer Berry Gordy in Detroit, arguably made the most significant contributions to R&B music. Artists and groups like Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, The Temptations and the Jackson 5 became famous with lyrics and music that provided escape, inspiration and was also thought-provoking.

As the assassinations of civil rights leaders increased, and the amount of peaceful protests, sit-ins and boycotts decreased, the civil rights era began its gradual decline.

Marvin Gaye (AP Photo) Chaka Khan (AP Photo/Keystone, Sandro Campardo)

Thursday, June 9, 2011

By the late 1960s and early ’70s, a generation of Whites and Blacks more rebellious against social norms emerged and their music reflected that. So was the beginning of funk.

Though it involved elements of its predecessors (jazz, R&B and the blues) bass guitar riơs and drum beats were its main characteristics.

Sub-genres included P-Funk, made famous by George Clinton and Parliament, and Funkadelic, which made bands like Rufus featuring Chaka Khan, Sly and the Family Stone and the Commodores famous. The sound contributed heavily to the disco era, which remained wildly popular until the early 1980s.

During the ’80s, Michael Jackson achieved great success with hits such as “Thriller,” “Billie Jean” and “Bad,” and made a mark in history as one of the greatest pop stars to ever live.

RAP AND HIPǧHOP The fact that what was dubbed rap music in the late ’70s mimicked the old African tradition of telling stories to drum beats, makes it difficult to pinpoint its exact beginnings. However, in 1979 Melvin Glover, more famously known as MC Melle Mel, headed up the group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, which began recording “Superrappin” that year. In 1982, his call for public awareness with songs like “The Message” and “White Lines,” which were about drugs and the extreme poverty permeating Black communities across the United States, brought rap into the forefront.

Though subject matter varied, lyrical content and flow were the main elements of the music. The artists simply set their realities to a beat. The country had a plethora of realties during ’80s and ’90s, which was evident in rap.

Rappers like Kool Moe Dee, KRS-One and Chuck D talked about ghetto life on the East Coast.

DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince spoke of things like girls and parents, while rappers like Eazy-E and Ice Cube talked

9

about gang life in Los Angeles.

Commercially, rap came to prominence in the 1990s, thanks in part to Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. THE MILLENNIUM By the late ’90s and the 2000s, Black music seemed to become less of a distinct sound as artists explored diơerent genres. Neo soul became popular as artists like Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Kem and India.Arie mixed elements of soul, rap and jazz into their music. But still, the classic R&B sound remained popular, maintained by artists and groups like Beyoncé and Destiny’s Child, Brandy, Monica and 112.

THE MUSIC AND THE MONEY To some, the new decade has seen music become less of an art and more of a commodity. A variety of today’s online forums are full of discussions and debates about the state of Black music.

“It’s a sad commentary on our culture and society when the biggest thing in popular music is an ex-crack dealer whose claim to fame is being shot nine times,” musician Kenny Drew Jr. said in his article “What the F***k Happened to Black Popular Music?,” referring to rapper 50 Cent.

“I recently discovered that there is now a form of rap called ‘coke rap,’ in which the lyrics deal mainly with the sale, distribution and use of cocaine and crack. I find it offensive,” he said, “that any record company would try to make a profit from glorifying something that has decimated the black community the way that crack has.”

“The stagnation of today’s [Black popular] music has a lot to do with the commercialization of it,” said UCLA African American Studies professor Cheryl Keyes.

“It’s constantly being robbed and diluted by the music industry.”

Black music in the past has always revolved around issues, she said, whether they be political, social or economical. Coming from traditional sources like the church or the streets, the music has reflected the realities of black life in America.

“We have to get back to our sources,” said Keyes.

COVER PHOTO CREDITS Ray Charles (AP Photo/Jeff Kowalsky) Lil Wayne (AP Photo/Hector Mata) B.B. King (AP Photo/Observer-Dispatch, Heather Ainsworth) Beyonce Knowles (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

10

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Burress leaves NY prison

BY JOHN KEKIS ASSOCIATED PRESS

AP Photo/Ed Betz

In this Feb. 23, 2001 file photo, New York Knicks’ Mark Jackson speaks at a news conference before a game against the Phoenix Suns at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Golden State Warriors have hired television analyst Jackson as their new head coach. The team announced the decision to have Jackson replace Keith Smart on Monday June 6, 2011.

Warriors hire analyst Mark Jackson as head coach

BY JOSH DUBOW AP SPORTS WRITER OAKLAND, Calif. — Mark Jackson’s leadership skills as a player more than outweighed his lack of coaching experience when it came time for the Golden State Warriors to hire their coach.

The Warriors hired Jackson to replace Keith Smart on Monday, giving the former point guard and television analyst his first chance to be a head coach on the game's biggest stage. “He epitomized leadership as a player in this league for 17 seasons and we think that characteristic — and many other positive traits — will translate very well into his coaching duties with our young team,� owner Joe Lacob said in a statement. “He was a leader and a winner both on and off the floor in this league and we’re convinced that he is the right person to guide this team into the future and help us achieve the success that we are striving for as an organization.�

Jackson will get a three-year, $6 million contract with a team option for a fourth year, Yahoo! Sports reported.

Jackson interviewed with Lacob, newly hired consultant Jerry West, and general manager Larry Riley before being picked for the job. Riley said the decision was unanimous throughout the organization that Jackson’s attributes outweighed his inexperience. “It was his analysis of the game and the way he sees the game overall in our discussions that really convinced me this guy has thought about the game of basketball,� Riley said. “I think he’s been yearning to be a head coach for a long time. Some guys sit back and say, ‘I can be a head coach.’ I think he’s been preparing all along for the day when he can be a head coach in this league. It isn’t something he had a dream about.�

Jackson played 17 years as a point guard in the NBA, for New York, the Clippers, Indiana, Denver, Toronto, Utah and Houston. He won Rookie of the Year honors in 1988 and made the playoffs 14 times. He ranks third on the NBA’s all-time assists list.

But he has never coached, spending the past few seasons as the lead analyst for ESPN and ABC for their NBA coverage. He won’t start his new job until after he’s finished calling the NBA finals.

His first coaching job is a daunting one, taking over a team that has made

the playoffs just once since 1994. “I am really elated about this opportunity and I’m looking forward to the challenge of building the Warriors into a perennial contender,� Jackson said.

Jackson played for five Hall of Fame coaches in his college and pro career: Lou Carnesecca, Lenny Wilkens, Jerry Sloan, Pat Riley and Larry Brown.

Jackson, 46, had been looking to get into coaching while working as an analyst in recent years. He interviewed for the opening in New Orleans last year and was one of three finalists for the Minnesota job in 2009, but lost out to Kurt Rambis. He also interviewed in previous years for openings in Phoenix, New York and Chicago.

He finally ended up getting the offer he wanted from the Warriors, who have made big changes in the front office and coaching staff under Lacob’s new ownership. “I have sensed that Joe is committed to winning and building a team and a culture the right way,� Jackson said. “I think we all witnessed that with some of the recent front office additions as well and some of the other positive things that have been done in recent months. This is an incredible opportunity.�

The hiring of Jackson is the latest move by Lacob, who took over the team last year after buying it from Chris Cohan for a record $450 million. The team cut ties with Don Nelson before Lacob and co-owner Peter Guber officially took over ownership and Keith Smart coached the team to a 36-46 mark this past season.

But Smart did not keep the job despite Golden State showing a 10-game improvement in the standings. Lacob also brought in West as a consultant last month and former agent Bob Myers as assistant general manager and GM in waiting in April.

Jackson takes over a team led by a high-scoring but undersized backcourt of Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry. The Warriors and their new coach must also address the team’s lack of an inside presence. “He has a strong personality, not abrasive, but he has a strong personality and should have the right mix to lead our team,� Riley said. “I think he’ll be a guy who will relate to our team. That’s important. That was part of this decision.

That was an ingredient we were looking for. Not only can he relate to the team, he can get the point across and get results.�

ROME, N.Y. — Clad nearly all in black — hooded sweat shirt, athletic shorts, sneakers — and a white T-shirt, the tall, lanky man walked alone through a gate in a chain-link fence topped by swirls of barbed wire.

Plaxico Burress looked around for something familiar, and his agent Drew Rosenhaus ran up and jumped into his arms as both men smiled broadly.

Freedom at last for Burress, the former New York Giants receiver. He was released from prison around 9 a.m.

Monday after spending nearly two years behind bars on a gun charge. “I just want to thank God for bringing me through one of the most trying times in my life,� Burress said in a brief exchange with reporters outside Oneida Correctional Facility in central New York. “It’s a beautiful day.

It’s a beautiful day to be reunited with my family. I want to go home and spend some quality time with them. “I’d like to thank everybody for their prayers and words of encouragement,� Burress said. “I’d like to thank all my fans all around the world for the thousands of letters, for their unwavering support. As far as football is concerned, if and when everything gets settled, when they get back on the field, I’ll be ready.�

Burress pleaded guilty in Aug. 2009 to attempted criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced to two years in prison. He was released about three months early for good behavior.

Burress will be on parole for two years. He has to get and keep a job, undergo substance abuse testing, obey any curfew established by his Florida parole officer, support his family and undergo any anger counseling or other conditions required by his parole officer.

It didn’t take long for friends and former teammates to transmit their good wishes.

In response to a tweet that said: “Just In!. Plaxico Burress Just Released from Jail!� former Giants star Michael Strahan responded: “About time!!�

Despite the intensity of the NBA finals, even LeBron James took a moment to tweet: “Welcome home Plaxico! Best of luck in the near future both on and off the field. 17 Jersey coming to a city near u.�

Former Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce, who was with Burress the night his life unraveled, tweeted the following a couple of hours before Burress was released: “17.. Time well over due.. Great teammate, friend, person and better yet Man. Always a Champ.. Only 1 way to go ... Back to the TOP.�

Burress, who turns 34 in August, seemed intent on doing just that. He gave the victory sign as he sped away in a black Range Rover to meet up with his wife for the flight home.

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick, who served a 23-month federal sentence for running a dogfighting ring, has shown it’s possible to successfully return to the NFL. Vick said in a recent radio interview with WIP in Philadelphia that Burress would be a great fit with the Eagles.

Maybe that’s why Burress also was wearing a Philadelphia Phillies hat when he was freed.

AP Photo/Heather Ainsworth

Former New York Giants star Plaxico Burress speaks to reporters after being released from the Oneida County Correction Facility in Rome, N.Y., Monday, June 6, 2011. Burress was released from prison after spending nearly two years behind bars on a gun charge.

The Giants declined comment Monday.

Rosenhaus said the wide receiver would fly home to Florida immediately to begin workouts. Rosenhaus said he has spoken to several teams about Burress and expects him to play again in the NFL. He said Burress matured in prison and there are things he would do differently. “He’s learned an awful lot,�

Rosenhaus said outside the prison moments before his client emerged. “He knows that he obviously made a mistake. To miss two NFL seasons in the prime of your career. To not be with your family, most importantly. To lose out on millions and millions of dollars. These are things that have forced him to certainly evaluate his life.�

Rosenhaus said the teams he’s talked to have not expressed any concerns about Burress. He did not say which teams or how many he spoke to. “He’s going to be a top free agent,� Rosenhaus said. “There are going to be multiple teams interested in signing him. I expect him to get a good contract. I expect him to absolutely be playing.�

Because he was a high-profile inmate, Burress was placed in a protective custody unit at the prison, which has 930 inmates, 20 in protective custody. While in prison, he completed an aggression management program and worked as a lawn and grounds laborer, according the state's Department of Correctional Services.

Burress violated prison rules and regulations three times. He lied to a guard about having permission to use the phone; gave another inmate a pair of black and silver sneakers that were deemed contraband; and had too many cassette tapes and an unauthorized extra pillow in his “filthy� cell.

The 6-foot-5 receiver had the world at his feet after catching a 13yard pass from Eli Manning with 35 seconds to play to give the Giants a stunning 17-14 win over the undefeated New England Patriots in the 2008 Super Bowl.

His world fell apart nine months later when he walked into a Manhattan nightclub with a handgun tucked in the waistband of his pants. The weapon slipped down and discharged as Burress tried to grab it, injuring him in the thigh.

The wound was not serious. The backlash was.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg called for Burress to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and was irate that officials at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center treated Burress and failed to report the shooting, as required by law. A doctor who treated Burress was later suspended.

The gun was not licensed in New York or in New Jersey, where Burress lived. His license to carry a concealed weapon in Florida had expired in May 2008.

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Rihanna video causes uproar AP Photo

Michelle Obama is seen visiting the village of Moneygall , Co. Offaly, during the US President's trip to Ireland on Monday, May 23, 2011.

AP Exclusive: Michelle Obama to appear on ‘iCarly’

BY SANDY COHEN AP ENTERTAINMENT WRITER LOS ANGELES – Michelle Obama is going to be on one of Nickelodeon's most popular shows.

The first lady is set to appear on an upcoming episode of the comedy “iCarly” to promote Joining Forces, an initiative aimed at increasing awareness and support for military families, network president Cyma Zarghami said Wednesday.

The show’s main character, Carly Shay (Miranda Cosgrove), is the daughter of a colonel serving overseas in the military. When Carly’s two best friends break some rules to set up a web chat so Carly can speak to her dad on his birthday, “the first lady discovers it and comes to have a chat with them in the most positive way possible,”

Zarghami said.

Show creator and executive producer Dan Schneider wrote the episode just for Obama and her Joining Forces initiative.

“When she approached us, after he was done jumping for joy, Dan sat down and came up with a very, very clever idea,” Zarghami said.

The network president said she wasn’t concerned that featuring the first lady and promoting the Joining Forces program would make a political statement for the show or Nickelodeon.

“It’s a feel-good initiative,” she said, “and regardless of your political affinity, everybody cares about these families, so it just feels right.”

Zarghami says Obama’s daughters are fans of the show. The Obama “iCarly” episode is likely to air in January.

SPECIAL TO THE NNPA FROM THE AFRO-AMERICAN NEWSPAPER Pop star Rihanna’s new video for the song “Man Down” created quite a stir after it debuted on BET‘s “106 & Park” on May 31. The violent images in the video have caused many to ask for it to be banned.

In the video, Rihanna portrays a victim of sexual assault that gets retribution on her attacker by gunning him down in a train station. Members of the Parents Television Council (PTC) complained that the singer, a victim of a highly publicized domestic assault, should approach domestic violence differently.

“Rihanna’s personal story and status as a celebrity superstar provided a golden opportunity for the singer to send an important message to female victims of rape and domestic violence,” Melissa Henson, director of communications and public education for the PTC, said in a statement.

“Instead of telling victims they should seek help, Rihanna released a music video that gives retaliation in the form of premeditated murder the imprimatur of acceptability.”

Rihanna used a Twitter posting to

AP Photo/Peter Morgan

Rihanna arrives at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards in New York, on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2006. defend herself on June 2. She says she’s an artist and her expression should not be muted.

“I’m a 23 year old rock star with NO KIDS! What’s up with everybody wantin me to be a parent? I’m just a girl, I can only be your/our voice!” she said on Thursday. “Cuz we all know how difficult/embarrassing it is to communicate touchy subject matters to anyone especially our parents!

And this is why! Cuz we turn the other cheek! U can’t hide your kids from society, or they’ll never learn how to adapt! This is the REAL WORLD! “The music industry isn’t exactly Parents R Us! We have the freedom to make art, LET US! It’s your job to

make sure they don’t turn out like US,” she continued.

BET defended it’s airing of the video, saying it fit within the networks guidelines for decency. However, Henson took offense with the network as well.

“BET’s justification for airing Rihanna’s video is beyond inadequate,” Henson said. “If BET is serious that the video ‘complied’ with its standards, we would like to know just what those ‘standards’ are. In the interest of full disclosure, we call on BET to issue a public explanation of its programming guidelines and urge MTV to keep the video off its network.

Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ jacket up Fishburne closes ‘CSI’ for auction

case, exits series

BY LYNN ELBER AP TELEVISION WRITER LOS ANGELES — Laurence Fishburne is closing the file on his

AP Photo/Danny Moloshok

Actor Lawrence Fishburne

“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” career.

The actor won’t be back on the CBS crime drama this fall, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday because CBS had yet to announce Fishburne’s departure.

Fishburne joined the “CSI” cast as Dr. Raymond Langston midway through the 2008-09 season.

He stepped in to replace departing star William Petersen.

The person says CBS and the show’s producers are taking Fishburne’s departure in stride, aware that his movie career made a long TV tenure unlikely.

“CSI” returns for its 12th season this fall and continues to rank among the 20 top-rated shows.

Fishburne’s credits include “The Matrix” films, and he's in the upcoming “Contagion” with Matt Damon.

BY SANDY COHEN AP ENTERTAINMENT WRITER

BEVERLY HILLS — The jacket Michael Jackson wore in his “Thriller” video is hitting the auction block.

Auction administrator Darren Julien says the red and black leather jacket is “the most recognized and significant piece of pop culture” to come up for sale, and he expects it to fetch at least $200,000 at the Music Icons auction on June 25 and 26 at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills.

Jackson autographed the jacket as a gift to his longtime costume designers, Dennis Tompkins and Michael Bush. He wanted them to use the small calfskin jacket as a template for his future concert fashions. A portion of the proceeds from its sale will benefit the Shambala Preserve, where Jackson’s two Bengal tigers, Thriller and Sabu, have been living since the pop star left his Neverland ranch in 2006.

Other Jackson items up for sale include the wig he wore when he announced his ill-fated “This Is It” concert series in London, a fedora and spangled glove he wore on stage, his shirt from the “Scream” video and the

AP Photo/Matt Sayles

In this May 26, 2011 photo, auction items that belonged to Michael Jackson are displayed at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills, Calif. Items are among the memorabilia available for auction on June 25 and June 26, 2011, at Julien’s Auctions. battered mailbox from the Carolwood Drive estate where Jackson died at age 50 in 2009.

The Music Icons sale also includes one of Eric Clapton’s guitars, Frank Sinatra’s patent leather boots and 1986 Jaguar, handwritten lyrics and a leather jacket from Johnny Cash, jackets and a guitar from Elvis

Presley, a signed harmonica from Bob Dylan and nearly 600 other pieces of music memorabilia from Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, The Beatles and others.

The collection will be on view free to the public from June 13 to 25 at Julien’s Auctions Gallery in Beverly Hills.

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

EVENT 6-9-11 “FEEL LIKE GOING HOME” (LAGRANT COMMUNICATIONS) — In celebration of Black Music Month, there will be a film screening of “Feel Like Going Home” today (June 9), 7 p.m., at the California African American

Museum (CAAM). The film celebrates bluesmen through original performances

by Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and others. This event is free and open to the public. CAAM is at 600 State Drive, Exposition Park, Los Angeles. More information, RSVP: (213) 744-2024, www.caamuseum.org.

6-11-11 REDISTRICTING — “A Community Conversation: Analyzing and Evaluating Redistricting Maps” will take place June 11, 2 to 4 p.m. The meeting will take place as a result of the California Citizens

The deadline for receipt of calendar listings is Friday, noon, at least two weeks prior to events.

Fax to: (323) 299-3896, e-mail us at wattsweekender@yahoo.com or mail to: L.A. Watts Times, 3800 Crenshaw Blvd., L.A., CA 90008.

All calendar items are received from various sources and are subject to being edited.

LISTINGS

Redistricting Commission’s efforts to redraw legislative and congressional maps for California. Draft maps are expected to be released June 10, and they will be discussed at the meeting. The meeting will take place at West Angeles Villas, 6030 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles. RSVP: (510) 926-4016, micheller@greenlining.org.

WRITER’S WORKSHOP (AC BILBREW LIBRARY) — A writer’s workshop presented by Charles Chatmon and Chandra Adams will take place June 11, 2:30 p.m., at the AC Bilbrew Library, 150 E. El Segundo Blvd., Los Angeles. Chatmon, an author, poet and executive director of the Los Angeles Black Book Expo, will present strategies for writing, publishing, marketing and using new technologies. Adams, an author, will join him as co-facilitator. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (310) 5383350 and press 5.

FESTIVAL (MIXED ROOTS FILM & LITERARY FESTIVAL) — The 4th annual Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival will take place June 11 to 12 at the Japanese American National Museum, 369 E. First St., Los Angeles. The free two-day festival brings together film and book lovers, innovative and emerging artists, and multiracial families and individuals for workshops, readings, film screenings, and special family activities.

Preregistration, more information: www.mxroots.org.

“DADDY AND ME” (LOS ANGELES UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL) — “Daddy and Me Day” will take place June 11, 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at the 97th Street Early Education Center, 430 W. Colden Ave., Los Angeles. Fathers and other male role models will attend this event to join their preschoolers in a day of fun, activities and speeches. The event aims to encourage fathers to take a more active role in their children’s lives to become positive role models and more involved in their kids’ educational needs. This event is only open to male relatives of kids at the school. More information: (213) 416-1200.

06/11 - 07/11

happening these months

6-14-11 UNVEILING — A bust of Arnett L. Hartsfield Jr., a local African American who for several years served as a firefighter amid segregation and racism, will be unveiled June 14, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., at the African American Firefighter Museum, 1401 S. Central Ave., Los Angeles. The sculpture was made by artist Artis Lane. The event is open to the public. More information: (213) 7441730.

6-16-11 WEB CONFERENCE (NATIONAL PRIVATE DUTY ASSOCIATION) — “Creating a Senior Friendly Home to Help Parents Age in Place,” a consumer education web conference, will take place June 16, 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). The live and interactive program, which is being held during National Home Safety Month, will provide advice on how to design and furnish a home to create a safe environment for a senior aging at home. The event is free. Preregistration is required.

Registration: www.privatedutyhomecare.org.

6-18-11 FREE CONRocky Dawuni CERTS (DAVIDSON AND CHOY PUBLICITY) — The Levitt Pavilion Pasadena, located in Memorial Park in Old Pasadena, will kick-off its 9th annual 50 Summer Concert Series (Wednesdays through Sundays) on June 18, 6 to 9 p.m. The kick-off event will feature reggae artist Rocky Dawuni and the Afro Funke Soundsystem. All concerts have openlawn seating and are free and open to the public. Thursday, Friday and Saturday night concerts begin at 8 p.m. and Sunday concerts begin at 7 p.m. Children’s nights are Wednesdays at 7 p.m.

There will be no performances July 4.

Memorial Park is on Raymond Avenue between Holly and Walnut streets. The Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts at MacArthur Park will also present its 5th annual summer concerts series June 19 through Sept. 4 (Thursdays through Sundays), at the newly renovated MacArthur Park. There will be a Cumbia Festival kick-off event on June 19, 4 to 7 p.m. MacArthur Park is at 2230 W. 6th St., Los Angeles.

MacArthur Park concert information: http://levittla.org/en/calendar.html, (213) 384-5701. Memorial Park concert information: www.levittpavilionpasadena.org/calendar.html.

JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION — In celebration of Juneteenth, Freedom Day will be held June 18, 1 p.m., at the AC Bilbrew Library, 150 E. El Segundo Blvd., Los Angeles. The event will feature Binnie Tate Wilkin, a storyteller, educator and author. There will be songs, dance, art activity and refreshments. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (310) 538-3350 and press 5.

www.lawattstimes.com 13

Thursday, June 9, 2011

6-19-11

7-4-11

HONOR THY FATHER AWARDS (ESTELLE FOR HUMANITY) — The 10th annual Honor Thy Father Awards Dinner will take place on Father’s Day, June 19, 6:30 p.m., in the main ballroom at The Proud Bird restaurant, 11022 Aviation Blvd., Los Angeles. A

reception starts at 5:30 p.m.

This is a dinner ceremony that will give people the opportunity to honor their fathers, husbands, brothers, uncles or male mentors on this Father’s Day. Estelle for Humanity is accepting registration and nominations for this event.

People who want to attend the event are encouraged to get tickets in advance.

Tickets cost $55 for adults and $30 for children ages 5 to 12. Parking is free.

More information: (310) 502-3450 or (323) 281-0766; www.honorthyfather.org, estelleforhumanity@yahoo.com.

6-25-11 LEIMERT PARK BOOK FAIR (CKG COMMUNICATIONS) — The Leimert Park Village Book Fair will be held June 25, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., in Leimert Park on the Vision Theatre back lot, located at 43rd Street and Degnan Boulevard. The event is free and open to the public. Former editor in chief of Essence magazine, Susan L. Taylor; economist Dr. Julianne Malveaux; and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist-turned-author Isabel Wilkerson have been nabbed in an aim to stimulate intellectual dialogue for this year’s literary event. More information: www.leimertparkbookfair.com, (323) 730-0628.

BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION (PORT OF LONG BEACH) — There will be a celebration June 25 to mark the Port of Long Beach’s 100-year-old birthday.

The free event will include music, cupcakes, a history panel discussion and more. The event will be from 2:30 to 8 p.m. on Pier E. The address for the Port of Long Beach is 925 Harbor Plaza.

Pier E is south of Gerald Desmond Bridge, at Ocean Boulevard and Pico Avenue. More information, map: www.polb.com/birthday.

BASKETBALL GAME — A basketball game between Los Angeles Fire Department firefighters and L.A. Police Department officers will take place June 25, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the USC Galen Center, 3400 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles. There will be a free barbecue lunch, prizes, entertainment and more.

The event is free to attend. The celebrity host will be Arsenio Hall. Parking is $5.

More information: lapdonline.org, lafd.org, (213) 486-5919.

6-27-11 PANEL DISCUSSION (IWOSC) — The Independent Writers of Southern California (IWOSC) will present a panel discussion titled “Hooray for Hollywood (and Broadway)! Arts & Celebrity Writing and Film/TV Criticism” on June 27, 7:30 p.m., at the Veterans Memorial Building, 4117 Overland Ave. (at Culver Boulevard), Culver City. What do editors, agents, magazines, websites and readers look for in writing on media?

Are cultural critics today more diverse than they were in the past? IWOSC’s June panel will examine these questions along with others. IWOSC members can attend for free; nonmembers must pay $15. Reservations are required: (877) 799-7483, info@iwosc.org.

7-2-11 FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND (KIDSPACE CHILDREN’S MUSEUM) — Attendees will have the opportunity to join Kidspace Children’s Museum in a patriotic parade around the gardens and museum grounds, in making parade shakers and pom-poms and getting patriotic tattoos. Fourth of July events will take place on July 2 and 3 at the museum, which is at 480 N. Arroyo Blvd., Pasadena. Kidspace will be closed July 4 due to events at the Rose Bowl.

Information: (626) 449-9144, www.kidspacemuseum.org.

FOURTH OF JULY AT CAAM (LAGRANT COMMUNICATIONS) — On July 4, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., the California African American Museum (CAAM) will celebrate America’s birthday “CAAM Style” with a patriotic performance in song, dance and spoken word.

CAAM opens its doors from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

CAAM extends its hours with a special live program starting at 6 p.m.

CAAM’s outdoor plaza stage will pro-

vide onlookers a place to view Los Angeles’ largest fireworks extravaganza, set to take place at dusk in Exposition Park. This event is free and open to the public. CAAM is at 600 State Drive, Exposition Park, Los Angeles. More information: www.caamuseum.org.

RSVP: (213) 744-2024.

7-23-11 HIGH SCHOOL REUNION — A 20-year reunion for Crenshaw High School’s Class of 1991 will take place July 23 to 24.

On the 23rd, the reunion will take place at Maverick’s Flat, 4225 S. Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles. On the 24th, attendees will meet at Westchester Park, 7000 Manchester Blvd., Westchester. More information, tickets: chsreunion91@ yahoo.com.

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Trustee Sale No. CA09001844-10-1 APN 6047-013-016 Title Order No. 4585018 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED March 9, 2007.

UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On June 20, 2011, at 01:00 PM, At the front entrance of the Pomona Superior Courts Building,350 West Mission Blvd, Pomona CA, MTC FINANCIAL INC. dba TRUSTEE CORPS, as the duly appointed Trustee, under and pursuant to the power of sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust Recorded on March 22, 2007, as Instrument No. 20070651515, of Official Records in the Office of the Recorder of Los Angeles County, CA, executed by JOSEFINA ISAIS, A MARRIED WOMAN AS HER SOLE AND SEPARATE PROPERTY, as Trustor(s), in favor of HOME LOAN FUNDING, INC. as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, in lawful money of the United States, all payable at the time of sale, that certain property situated in said County, California describing the land therein as: AS MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OF TRUST The property heretofore described is being sold "as is". The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 1345 -1347 WEST 90TH PLACE, LOS ANGELES, CA 90044 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest Theron, as provided in said Note(s), advances if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligations secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of this Notice of Trustee`s Sale is estimated to be $521,189.80 (Estimated), provided, however, prepayment premiums, accrued interest and advances will increase this figure prior to sale.

Beneficiary`s bid at said sale may include all or part of said amount. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept a cashier`s check drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the California Financial Code and authorized to do business in California, or other such funds as may be acceptable to the trustee. In the event tender other than cash is accepted, the Trustee may withhold the issuance of the Trustee`s Deed Upon Sale until funds become available to the payee or endorsee as a matter of right. The property offered for sale excludes all funds held on account by the property receiver, if applicable. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder`s sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. DATE: May 19, 2011 MTC FINANCIAL INC dba Trustee Corps TS No. CA09001844-10-1 17100 Gillette Ave Irvine, CA 92614 949-252-8300 Rowena Paz, Authorized Signatory SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED ON LINE AT www.NoticeSolutions.com AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL 714-786-5351 TRUSTEE CORPS IS A DEBT COLLECTOR. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. Ad #12687 2011-05-26 2011-06-02 2011-06-09 Trustee Sale No. CA09003839-10-1 APN 7410-019-025 Title Order No. 4944689 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED July 19, 2006.

UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On June 27, 2011, at 01:00 PM, At the front entrance of the Pomona Superior Courts Building,350 West Mission Blvd, Pomona CA, MTC FINANCIAL INC. dba TRUSTEE CORPS, as the duly appointed Trustee, under and pursuant to the power of sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust Recorded on July 26, 2006, as Instrument No. 06 1652078, of Official Records in the Office of the Recorder of Los Angeles County, CA, executed by EMILIO RIVERA A MARRIED MAN AS HIS SOLE AND SEPARATE PROPERTY, as Trustor(s), in favor of WASHINGTON MUTUAL BANK, FA as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, in lawful money of the United States, all payable at the time of sale, that certain property situated in said County, California describing the land therein as: AS MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OF TRUST The property heretofore described is being sold "as is". The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 1657 252ND STREET, LOS ANGELES, CA 90710 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest Theron, as provided in said Note(s), advances if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligations secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of this Notice of Trustee`s Sale is estimated to be $550,381.62 (Estimated), provided, however, prepayment premiums, accrued interest and advances will increase this figure prior to sale.

Beneficiary`s bid at said sale may include all or part of said amount. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept a cashier`s check drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the California Financial Code and authorized to do business in California, or other such funds as may be acceptable to the trustee. In the event tender other than cash is accepted, the Trustee may withhold the issuance of the Trustee`s Deed Upon Sale until funds become available to the payee or endorsee as a matter of right. The property offered for sale excludes all funds held on account by the property receiver, if applicable. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder`s sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. DATE: May 24, 2011 MTC FINANCIAL INC dba Trustee Corps TS No. CA09003839-10-1 17100 Gillette Ave Irvine, CA 92614 949-252-8300 Paul Gutierrez, Authorized Signatory SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED ON LINE AT www.NoticeSolutions.com AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL 714-786-5351 TRUSTEE CORPS IS A DEBT COLLECTOR. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. Ad #12809 2011-06-02 2011-06-09 2011-06-16 Trustee Sale # CA0927986-2 Loan# 3002748394 Order # 080069850 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED 02/16/2007. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On 06/27/2011 at 01:00PM, MTC FINANCIAL INC., dba TRUSTEE CORPS as the duly appointed Substituted Trustee under and pursuant to Deed of Trust Recorded on 02/23/2007 as Document No. 20070393118 of official records in the Office of the Recorder of Los Angeles County, CALIFORNIA, executed by, ALMA JEANNETTE ESTRADA, A MARRIED WOMAN, AS HER SOLE

Thursday, June 9, 2011 AND SEPARATE PROPERTY, as Trustor, MORTGAGEIT, INC, as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER FOR CASH (payable at time of sale in lawful money of the United States, by cash a cashier's check drawn by a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association, or savings bank specified in section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state). AT: At the front entrance of the Pomona Superior Courts Building, 350 West Mission Blvd, Pomona CA The property heretofore described is being sold "as is". All right, title and interest conveyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust in the property situated in said County and State describing the land therein: APN # 6008-043-003 As more fully described on said Deed of Trust. The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 6014 MIRAMONTE BOULEVARD, LOS ANGELES, CA 90001 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made, but without covenant or warranty, expressed or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest thereon, as provided in said Note(s), advances, if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligation secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of the Notice of Trustee's Sale is: $404,081.70 (estimated amount). Accrued interest and additional advances, if any, will increase this figure prior to sale. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder's sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse.

The Beneficiary under said Deed of Trust heretofore executed and delivered to the undersigned a written Declaration of Default and Demand for Sale, and a written Notice of Default and Election to Sell.

The undersigned caused said Notice of Default and Election to Sell to be recorded in the County where the real property is located and more than three months have elapsed since such recordation. Compliance with California Civil Code Section 2924f: The Beneficiary or Beneficiary's agent has indicated that the requirements of California Civil Code Section 2924f have been met. Compliance with California Civil Code Section 2923.52: 1. Pursuant to California Civil Code 2923.54 the undersigned, on behalf of the beneficiary, loan servicer or authorized agent, declares as follows: X Servicer does hereby state that Servicer has obtained from the commissioner a final or temporary order of exemption pursuant to Section 2923.53 that is current and valid on the date of the notice of sale is filed. 2. Timeframe for giving notice of sale specified in subdivision (a) Section 2923.52 Does X Does not apply pursuant to section 2923.52 or 2923.55 Dated: 06/02/2011 MTC FINANCIAL INC., DBA TRUSTEE CORPS, as Successor Trustee By: Paul Gutierrez, TRUSTEE SALES OFFICER TRUSTEE CORPS 17100 Gillette Ave, Irvine, CA 92614 FOR SALE INFORMATION CONTACT: (714)786-5351, (949) 252-8300 FOR REINSTATEMENT / PAY OFF REQUESTS CONTACT: (949) 252-8300 RPRequests@trusteecorps.com Ad #12872 2011-06-02 2011-06-09 2011-06-16 Trustee Sale No. CA09001153-11-1 APN 5304-033-012 Title Order No. 5127424 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED June 2, 2006.

UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On June 27, 2011, at 01:00 PM, At the front entrance of the Pomona Superior Courts Building,350 West Mission Blvd, Pomona CA, MTC FINANCIAL INC. dba TRUSTEE CORPS, as the duly appointed Trustee, under and pursuant to the power of sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust Recorded on June 13, 2006, as Instrument No. 06 1296411, of Official Records in the Office of the Recorder of Los Angeles County, CA, executed by CLAUDIA ANEL RAMIREZ, A SINGLE WOMAN, as Trustor(s), in favor of SUNTRUST MORTGAGE, INC. as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, in lawful money of the United States, all payable at the time of sale, that certain property situated in said County, California describing the land therein as: AS MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OF TRUST The property heretofore described is being sold "as is". The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 4133 MERCURY AVENUE, LOS ANGELES, CA 90031 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest Theron, as provided in said Note(s), advances if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligations secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of this Notice of Trustee`s Sale is estimated to be $391,203.10 (Estimated), provided, however, prepayment premiums, accrued interest and advances will increase this figure prior to sale.

Beneficiary`s bid at said sale may include all or part of said amount. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept a cashier`s check drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the California Financial Code and authorized to do business in California, or other such funds as may be acceptable to the trustee. In the event tender other than cash is accepted, the Trustee may withhold the issuance of the Trustee`s Deed Upon Sale until funds become available to the payee or endorsee as a matter of right. The property offered for sale excludes all funds held on account by the property receiver, if applicable. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder`s sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. DATE: May 26, 2011 TRUSTEE CORPS TS No. CA09001153-11-1 17100 Gillette Ave Irvine, CA 92614 949-252-8300 Rowena Paz, Authorized Signatory SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED ON LINE AT www.NoticeSolutions.com AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL 714-786-5351 TRUSTEE CORPS IS A DEBT COLLECTOR. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. Ad #12891 2011-06-02 2011-06-09 2011-06-16 Trustee Sale No. CA09001228-11-1 APN 2108-002-007 Title Order No. 53001083 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED May 14, 2007.

UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On June 27, 2011, at 01:00 PM, At the front entrance of the Pomona Superior Courts Building,350 West Mission Blvd, Pomona CA, MTC FINANCIAL INC. dba TRUSTEE CORPS, as the duly appointed Trustee, under and pursuant to the power of sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust Recorded on May 29, 2007, as Instrument No. 20071286276, of Official Records in the Office of the Recorder of Los Angeles County, CA, executed by THEODORE SCOTT GLASSFORD, A SINGLE MAN, as Trustor(s), in favor of Mortgage

Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, in lawful money of the United States, all payable at the time of sale, that certain property situated in said County, California describing the land therein as: AS MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OF TRUST The property heretofore described is being sold "as is". The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 8100 COZYCROFT AVENUE, LOS ANGELES, CA 91306 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest Theron, as provided in said Note(s), advances if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligations secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of this Notice of Trustee`s Sale is estimated to be $437,627.37 (Estimated), provided, however, prepayment premiums, accrued interest and advances will increase this figure prior to sale.

Beneficiary`s bid at said sale may include all or part of said amount. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept a cashier`s check drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the California Financial Code and authorized to do business in California, or other such funds as may be acceptable to the trustee. In the event tender other than cash is accepted, the Trustee may withhold the issuance of the Trustee`s Deed Upon Sale until funds become available to the payee or endorsee as a matter of right. The property offered for sale excludes all funds held on account by the property receiver, if applicable. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder`s sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. DATE: May 26, 2011 TRUSTEE CORPS TS No. CA09001228-11-1 17100 Gillette Ave Irvine, CA 92614 949-252-8300 Rowena Paz, Authorized Signatory SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED ON LINE AT www.NoticeSolutions.com AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL 714-786-5351 TRUSTEE CORPS IS A DEBT COLLECTOR. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. Ad #12900 2011-06-02 2011-06-09 2011-06-16 Trustee Sale No. CA09000959-11-1 APN 5209-033-013 Title Order No. 110081053-CA-LPI NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED March 5, 2007.

UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On June 27, 2011, at 01:00 PM, At the front entrance of the Pomona Superior Courts Building,350 West Mission Blvd, Pomona CA, MTC FINANCIAL INC. dba TRUSTEE CORPS, as the duly appointed Trustee, under and pursuant to the power of sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust Recorded on March 15, 2007, as Instrument No. 20070575614, of Official Records in the Office of the Recorder of Los Angeles County, CA, executed by ELSA TERAKAWA, AN UNMARRIED WOMAN, as Trustor(s), in favor of MORTGAGEIT, INC as Beneficiary, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER, in lawful money of the United States, all payable at the time of sale, that certain property situated in said County, California describing the land therein as: AS MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OF TRUST The property heretofore described is being sold "as is". The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 4362 RADIUM DRIVE, LOS ANGELES, CA 90032 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein.

Said sale will be made without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest Theron, as provided in said Note(s), advances if any, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligations secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of this Notice of Trustee`s Sale is estimated to be $173,571.28 (Estimated), provided, however, prepayment premiums, accrued interest and advances will increase this figure prior to sale. Beneficiary`s bid at said sale may include all or part of said amount. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept a cashier`s check drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the California Financial Code and authorized to do business in California, or other such funds as may be acceptable to the trustee. In the event tender other than cash is accepted, the Trustee may withhold the issuance of the Trustee`s Deed Upon Sale until funds become available to the payee or endorsee as a matter of right. The property offered for sale excludes all funds held on account by the property receiver, if applicable. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder`s sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. DATE: May 27, 2011 TRUSTEE CORPS TS No. CA09000959-11-1 17100 Gillette Ave Irvine, CA 92614 949-252-8300 Paul Gutierrez, Authorized Signatory SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED ON LINE AT www.NoticeSolutions.com AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL 714-786-5351 TRUSTEE CORPS IS A DEBT COLLECTOR. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. Ad #12925 2011-06-02 2011-06-09 2011-06-16

CITY OF LOS ANGELES $50,000 REWARD NOTICE The City of Los Angeles offers a reward payable at the discretion of the City Council to one or more persons in the sum or sums up to an aggregate maximum total sum of $50,000 for information leading to the identification and apprehension of the person or persons responsible for the act of murder against, ALONZO ESTER, in the City of Los Angeles. On Friday, May 13, 2011, at approximately 2:20 a.m., Alonzo Ester, a 67-year old man, was pulling into his driveway when he was shot and killed by unidentified suspect(s). The suspect(s) then fled the scene in an awaiting vehicle. LAPD is still searching for this suspect(s) and encourages witnesses to come forward, even anonymously, to assist them in their

McCARTHY BUILDING COMPANIES, INC. Martin Luther King Jr. Medical Center Part B- Request for Technical & Cost Proposals Multi-Service Ambulatory Care Center Project Los Angeles, CA McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. is requesting bid proposals from all qualified subcontractors and suppliers for this Design/Build project. The scope of work includes a new four level, 138,000 square foot MACC building. The clinical departments include, but are not limited to, a pharmacy, walk-in clinic, outpatient imaging, outpatient surgery and various outpatient clinics that are currently operating in the existing MACC. The project will contain numerous typical exam, bariatric exam, special procedure and other specialty service rooms typical with the types of medical services listed. Minimum LEED silver is required.

The new MACC Building will be physically connected on the ground floor to the existing North Support Building (NSB) to provide connectivity between the patient accessible support services in the NSB and clinical functions in the new MACC. The existing NSB is 51,700 square feet. Approximately 34,000 square feet of tenant improvements will be performed in the NSB to provide space for various MACC departments. This is also minor tenant improvements in the South Support Building (SSB).

Sitework consists of parking, sidewalks, paths of travel, accessibility and emergency egress. There is also a new service yard and tech dock position for a potential CT scanner along the south side of the MACC building.

Offsite work consists of adding a new crosswalk and traffic signal at the new Medical Center entry drive. Additionally the project will add a left turn lane The deadline for Part B Technical and Cost Proposals is due 12:00 p.m., noon June 23, 2011 WORK CATEGORIES: Selective Demolition; Earthwork; Piles; Site Utilities; Asphalt; Site Concrete; Landscaping; Striping; Fences & Gates; Site Furnishings; Reinforcing Steel; CIP Concrete; CMU; Stonework; Structural Steel; Metal Decking; Miscellaneous Iron; Expansion Joints; Rough Carpentry; Finish Carpentry/Casework; Waterproofing; Building Insulation; Vapor Emissions Control; General Sheet Metal/Metal Panels/Roof Accessories/Louvers; Roofing; Smoke Containment Systems; Joint Sealants; Doors, Frames & Hardware; Access Doors; Coiling Doors/Grilles; Glass & Glazing; Lath, Plaster & Drywall; Ceramic Tile; Terrazzo; Acoustical Ceilings; Resilient Flooring, Carpet & Base; FRP; Painting & Wallcovering; Markerboards & Tackboards; Cubicle Curtains/Tracks; Wall Protection; Lockers;Signs and Graphics; Fire Extinguishers; Shelving; Telephone Specialties; Toilet Compartments/Accessories; Projection Screens; Medical Equipment; Equipment; Entrance Mats; Window Coverings; Radiation Protection; Special Structures; Elevators; Pneumatic Tube Systems; Fire Sprinkler System; Building Controls.

Do not contact the County, Architect or any Consultants. All questions will be sent to Robert Bruns, Preconstruction Director via fax (949-756-6841), or email (rbruns@mccarthy.com) * - This is a Prevailing Wage Project. * - A 100% Performance and Payment Bond from an admitted surety will be required upon award of contract for all trades. * - McCarthy is signatory to union agreements with the Carpenters, Laborers, and Cement Masons.

Subcontractors will comply with such labor agreements for all of Subcontractor’s Work falling within the jurisdiction of such labor agreements. Subcontractor agrees to require its subcontractors and their subcontractors, if any, to be bound in a like manner. * - McCarthy is an equal opportunity employer and encourages qualified Community Business Enterprises (CBE) which includes business enterprises owned by disabled veterans, disadvantaged business enterprises, and minority and women-owned business enterprises. The County has established an aspirational goal that 25 percent of all County contract dollars shall go to certified CBEs. McCarthy also endeavors to hire Local Small Business Enterprises (Local SBE) businesses and Local Worker Hiring.

OBTAINING DOCUMENTS: Subcontractors are responsible for all costs of blueprinting and shipping.

Bid Documents may be viewed and/or purchased online at C2 Planwell site: Go to www.c2repro.com and Click on Place an Order.

Click on Planwell Enterprise and then click the Planwell Enterprise link.

Log in under “Guest Access” Project Number:C2RP_MLK-MACC Project Password: mccarthy (Case Sensitive) 20401 S.W. Birch St, Suite 300, Newport Beach, CA 92660 Ph (949) 851-8383/Fax (949) 756-6841

Request for Proposal County of Los Angeles Child Support Services Department The County of Los Angeles, Child Support Services Department, is soliciting proposals from qualified businesses, consortiums, partnerships or corporations to provide As-Needed Secretarial/Clerical and Accounting Temporary Services.

Proposer’s who have demonstrated verifiable experience in providing staff to perform Secretarial/Clerical and Accounting Services are invited to submit a written proposal in accordance with the Request for Proposal package. Copies of the Request for Proposal package can be obtained beginning June 6, 2011 at 8:00 a.m., at the Child Support Services Department, 5770 South Eastern Avenue, Commerce, California 90040-2924, by calling Linda Billups, Contract Analyst, at (323) 889-3364 or by email to: lbillups@cssd.lacounty.gov. There will be a mandatory Proposer’s conference on July 12, 2011 at 9:30 a.m., at the Child Support Services Department, 5500 S. Eastern Avenue, Commerce, California 90040,Philip L. Browning Conference Room 137, 1st Floor. y y investigation. The person or persons responsible for this crime represent an ongoing threat to the safety of the people of Los Angeles. Unless withdrawn or paid by City Council action, this offer of reward shall terminate on, and have no effect after, DECEMBER 6, 2011.

The provisions of payment and all other considerations shall be governed by Chapter 12 of Division 19 of the LAAC Code, as amended by Ordinance Nos. 158157 and 166666. This offer shall be given upon the condition that all claimants provide continued cooperation within the criminal justice system relative to this case and is not available to public officers or employees of the City, their families, persons in law enforcement or persons whose misconduct prompted this reward. If you have any information regarding this case, please call the Los Angeles Police Department at 1-877-LAWFULL, 24 hours.

C. F. No. 11-0010-s29 6/9/11 CNS-2112526# WATTS TIMES

To place a classified ad call (323) 299-3800

GOVERNMENT INVITATION FOR BIDS (IFB) NO. 1708 THE ABATEMENT, DEMOLITION AND DISPOSAL OF SEVEN (7) ABANDONED BUILDING STRUCTURES AT 9901 S. ALAMEDA STREET LOS ANGELES, CA 90002 The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) invites vendors to submit bids for The Abatement, Demolition and Disposal of Seven (7) Abandoned Building Structures at 9901 S. Alameda Street. Los Angeles, CA 90002. Copies of the IFB may be downloaded from the internet at www.hacla.org/cgs Bids will be accepted at 2600 Wilshire Blvd, #3100, Los Angeles, CA 90057, until 2:00 p.m. (local time), July 1, 2011.

6/2, 6/9/11 CNS-2111427# WATTS TIMES

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Thursday, June 9, 2011 NOTICE INVITING BIDS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Long Beach, California, acting by and through the City’s Board of Harbor Commissioners (“City”) will receive, before the Bid Deadline established below, sealed Bids for the following Work: ATMIS PHASE VI – VEHICLE DETECTION STATIONS (VDS) AND TRAVEL TIME MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (TTMS) AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS IN THE PORTS AND CITIES OF LONG BEACH AND LOS ANGELES AND THE CITY OF CARSON, CALIFORNIA AS DESCRIBED IN SPECIFICATION NO. HD-S2402 Bid Deadline: Prior to 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 12, 2011 Bid packages will be time/date stamped on the 4th floor or in the Lobby and shall be submitted prior to 10 a.m.

Place for Submission of Bids: 1. By Delivery Any Calendar Day Before the Bid Deadline Harbor Department Administration Building 4th Floor, Plans and Specifications/Program Management Office 925 Harbor Plaza Long Beach, CA 90802 2. By Delivery on the Same Calendar Day as the Bid Deadline Harbor Department Administration Building First Floor Lobby 925 Harbor Plaza Long Beach, CA 90802 Bid Opening:

As soon as practical after the Bid Deadline Harbor Department Administration Building 6th Floor Board Room 925 Harbor Plaza Long Beach, CA 90802

Contract Documents Available: Date/Time: Beginning Thursday, June 9, 2011 Monday –Friday 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Location: Harbor Department Administration Building 4th Floor, Plans and Specifications 925 Harbor Plaza Long Beach, CA 90802 Pre-Bid Meeting: Date/Time: Wednesday, June 22, 2011, 10:00 to 11:00 am Non-Mandatory Location: 5th Floor Conference Room Project Contact Person: George E. Gordon IV, P.E., Senior Program Manager Email: gordon@polb.com Fax: (562) 901-1763 NIB -1 Contract Documents. Copies of Contract Documents in CD format may be obtained, at no cost, at the Plans and Specifications Office, 4th floor, Harbor Department Administration Building, 925 Harbor Plaza, Long Beach, CA 90802 during the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Monday through Friday. To arrange to receive a CD of the Contract Documents by courier at the expense of the Bidder, call (562) 590-4146.

For information on this Project and other upcoming Port projects, you may view the Port website at http://www.polb.com/economics/contractors/out_for_bid.asp.

Copies of all Port insurance endorsement forms, SBE/VSBE Program forms, Harbor Development Permit Applications and other Port forms are available at http://www.polb.com/economics/contractors/forms_permits/default.asp.

NIB -2 Non-Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting. The engineering staff of the City’s Harbor department will conduct a pre-bid meeting at 10:00 am, on June 22, 2011, in the Conference Room Room, 5th floor, of the Harbor Department Administration Building. Attendance is not mandatory, but highly recommended. Note that attendance at the pre-bid meeting can be used to satisfy a portion of a Bidder’s good faith efforts to meet the SBE/VSBE participation goals listed below. Should a Bidder elect not to attend the pre-bid meeting, the Bidder shall not be relieved of its sole responsibility to inform itself of all conditions at the Project Site and the content of the Contract Documents.

Summary Description of the Work. The Work required by this Contract includes, but is not limited to, the following: 1. Provide and integrate travel time management systems (TTMS) each consisting of junction box(es), camera(s), and cables at TTMS Locations 6 through 10: 2. Provide and integrate vehicle detection stations (VDS) each consisting of detectors, cabinets and cables at VDS Locations 1 through 5; 3. Provide nine (9) support poles and foundations; 4. Provide guardrail at locations shown on the plans at TTMS Locations 6 and 9; 5. Furnish and install all electrical, communication and supporting equipment, junction boxes, conduit, pull boxes, mounts, and electrical service equipment; 6. Perform stand alone and acceptance tests of each of the components; 7. Provide for the design, installation, maintenance, operation and removal of traffic control for all construction; and 8. Work requiring lane closures may be restricted to nights and weekends, see Technical Specification 01500 “TEMPORARY FACILITIES AND CONTROLS” and Appendix AA “Caltrans Special Provisions.”

In support of the vehicle detection station and travel time management systems, the Contractor shall furnish all labor, materials, tools, equipment, incidentals, transportation, and supervision necessary for work including, but not limited to the following: provide all electrical, communication and supporting equipment, junction boxes, conduit, pull boxes, mounts, electrical service equipment; perform stand alone and acceptance tests of each of the components; and provide for the design, installation, maintenance, operation and removal of traffic control for all construction activities.

NIB -3 Contract Time and Liquidated Damages. The Work shall be completed within one hundred fifty (150) calendar days as provided in Paragraph SC - 6.1 of the Special Conditions, from a date specified in a written “Notice to Proceed” issued by the City and subject to adjustment as provided in Section 3.1 of the General Conditions. FAILURE OF THE CONTRACTOR TO COMPLETE THE WORK WITHIN THE CONTRACT TIME AND OTHER MILESTONES WILL

RESULT IN ASSESSMENT OF LIQUIDATED DAMAGES IN THE AMOUNTS ESTABLISHED IN THE SPECIAL CONDITIONS. NIB -4 Contractor’s License. Each Bidder shall hold a current and valid Class“A” General Engineering Contractor’s License or as an Electrical Contractor hold a Class C-10 California Contractor’s License to bid this Project. All subcontractors shall hold current and valid California Licenses in their specialties.

NIB -5 Contractor Performed Work. The Contractor shall perform, with its own employees, Contract Work amounting to at least 50% of the Contract Price, except that any designated “Specialty Items” may be performed by subcontract and the amount of any such “Specialty Items” so performed may be deducted from the Contract Price before computing the amount required to be performed by the Contractor with its own employees. “Specialty Items” will be identified by the City in the Schedule of Bid Items.

NIB -6 SBE/VSBE. This Project is subject to the Port of Long Beach (POLB) Small Business Enterprises (SBE)/Very Small Business Enterprises (VSBE) Program. The combined SBE/VSBE participation goal for this project is twenty five percent (25%), of which a minimum of zero percent (0%) must be allocated to VSBE’s. POLB expects all Bidders to achieve the combined SBE/VSBE participation goal. Award of the Contract will be conditioned on the Bidder submitting an SBE-2C Commitment Plan demonstrating the bidder’s intent to meet the combined SBE/VSBE participation goal. If the Bidder’s Commitment Plan does not demonstrate intent to meet the combined goal, the Bidder shall demonstrate that it made an adequate good faith effort to do so, as specified in the Instructions to Bidders (ITB 18).The Port’s SBE Program staff is available to provide information on the program requirements, including SBE certification assistance.

Please contact the SBE Office at (562) 499-3472 or sbeprogram@polb.com. You may also view the Port’s SBE Program requirements at www.polb.com/sbe.

NIB -7 Prevailing Wage Rates and Employment of Apprentices. This Project is a public work as defined in Labor Code section 1720. The Contractor receiving award of the Contract and Subcontractors of any tier shall pay not less than the prevailing wage rates to all workers employed in execution of the Contract. The Director of Industrial Relations of the State of California has determined the general prevailing rates of wages in the locality in which the Work is to be performed. The rate schedules are available on the internet at http://www.dir.ca.gov/DIR/S&R/statistics_research.html. Bidders are directed to Article 15 of the General Conditions for requirements concerning payment of prevailing wages, payroll records, hours of work and employment of apprentices.

NIB -8 Trade Names and Substitution of Equals. With the exception of any sole source determination that may be identified in this paragraph, Bidders wishing to obtain City’s authorization for substitution of equivalent material, product, or equipment, are required to submit a written request for an Or Equal Substitution using the form included in Appendix A together with data substantiating Bidder’s representation that the non-specified item is of equal quality to the item specified, thirty five (35) calendar days after Bid Opening. Authorization of a substitution is solely within the discretion of the City.

The following Variable View Travel Time Management System (TTMS) (Location 10) items shall be the brand and model specified in order to match components already in use: A. The pressurized dome enclosure, camera, lens, pan/tilt drive unit, and camera cables shall be Pelco Pressurized Spectra IV Series pressurized environment clear dome enclosure and 35X Day/Night camera (part number SD435-PRE1).

B. The camera power supply shall be Pelco WCS1-4.

C. The camera wall mount shall be Pelco IDM4012SS D. The pole adapter shall be Pelco PA402.

The following Travel Time Management System (Location 6) communications equipment items shall be the brand and model specified in order to match components already in use: A. Antenna shall be Pacific Wireless PA-58-24.

B. Wireless Ethernet Bridge shall be Verint S4300-BR. C. Ethernet switch shall be field rated Cisco IE 3000 8TC with PWR-IE3000-AC power supply.

The following Travel Time Management System (Locations 7 and 10) communications equipment items shall be the brand and model specified in order to match components already in use: A. Subscriber Units shall be a Motorola Canopy 5.4 GHz (Model No. 5450 SMDD).

B. Pole mount kit shall be Motorola Model No. BH-1209A. C. Wall mount kit shall be Motorola Model No. SSMB1 D. Ethernet switches shall be field rated Cisco IE 3000 8TC with PWR-IE3000-AC power supply.

NIB -9 NOT USED. NIB -10 Bid Security, Signed Contract, Insurance and Bonds. Each Bid shall be accompanied by a satisfactory Bidder’s Bond or other acceptable Bid Security in an amount not less than ten percent (10%) of the Base Bid as a guarantee that the Bidder will, if Conditionally Awarded a Contract by the Board, within thirty (30) calendar days after the Contract is conditionally awarded to the Contractor by the City, execute and deliver such Contract to the Chief Harbor Engineer together with all required documents including insurance forms, a Payment Bond for one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price, and a Performance Bond for one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price. All Bonds shall be on forms provided by the City.

NIB -11 Conditional Award of Contract and Reservation of Rights. The Board, acting through the Executive Director, reserves the right at any time before the execution of the Contract by the City, to reject any or all Bids, and to waive any informality or irregularity. The Conditional Award of the Contract, if any, will be to the responsible Bidder submitting the lowest responsive and responsible Bid. If the lowest responsive responsible Bidder fails to submit the required documents including insurance forms, bonds and signed Contract within thirty (30) calendar days after Conditional Award of Contract, the Board reserves the right to rescind the Conditional Award and Conditionally Award the Contract to the next lowest responsive and responsible Bidder.

NIB -12 Period of Bid Irrevocability. Bids shall remain open and valid and Bidder’s Bonds shall be guaranteed for ninety (90) calendar days after the Bid Deadline or until the Executive Director executes a Contract, whichever occurs first.

NIB -13 Substitution of Securities. Substitution of Securities for retainage is permitted in accordance with Section 22300 of the Public Contract Code.

Issued at Long Beach, California, this 18th day of April, 2011.

Richard D. Steinke Executive Director of the Harbor Department, City of Long Beach, California

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