L.A. Focus February Issue 2021

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Church News: L.A. Faith Community Mourns Bishop Howard Swancy PAGE

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One On One: Bridgerton Sensation Rege-Jean Page PAGE

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Upfront

Board of Equalization’s Malia Cohen Raises the Red Flag on Bank-Breaking Prop 19 Tax Costs Malia M. Cohen, the only African American member of the California Board of Equalization (BOE), has some critical concerns about the cost homeowners will have to bear because of Proposition 19, a constitutional amendment that took effect on Dec. 16, 2020.

Money Matters Tavis Smiley to Launch Talk Radio Format, KBLA

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contents

L.A. Focus Publications

February 2021

Left: Special Needs Network President Areva Martin hosted Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas and April Verrett (SEIU) among others for a Vaccinate South LA event (Photo: Debra Simmons/Diamond Dust); Middle: Supervisor Holly Mitchell who represent the South L.A. area to urge constituents distrustful of the COVID-19 vaccine to get inoculated.

Right: Mayor Garcetti informs L.A. residents that the city cannot meet the demand for vaccines at the current pace it is receiving them.

UpFront

11 Cover Story 12

California Attorney General Opens Civil Rights Investigation of L.A. Sheriffs Department; Former Assistant Files 22 Page Lawsuit Against Inglewood Mayor James Butts Alleging Harassment and Wrongful Termination

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4 Commentary

From The Editor

“Sobering Realities”

Biden’s Paradox

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Game Changer

L.A.’s Vaccine Rollout: Will the Black Commuity Get A Fair Shake

Looking for Unity In A Nation Where The Lines Are Blurred

Headlines From Africa

9 10 Money Matters

Through The Storm

Tavis Smiley to Launch KBLA New Progressive Talk Radio Venture

Biz News Briefs New Fund From Jay-Z Will Provide $10 Million to Minority-Owned Cannabis Businesses;Sephora Introducing More Black-Owned Beauty Brands to Stores;Starbucks Creates $100 Million Fund

staff

Photographer Advertising

Lisa Collins Stephen Oduntan,Keith Delawder, Dianne Lugo Ian Foxx Kisha Smith

Mama Don’t Take No Mess: Nick Cannon Talker Get’s Green Light: Bridgeton Gets Second Season

Red Carpet Style Michelle Obama

Eye On Gospel

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Angela DeJoseph

Ernie Hudson

Rege’-Jean Page

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New Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church: Pastor Sonja Dawson

Having Words with Kirk Franklin; CeCe Winan’s Compassion In Her Own Time; Nothing Can Stop Them

Church News

L.A.’s own Amanda Gorman, whose performance of her poem The Hill We Climb at Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration drew widespread praise.

L.A Faith Community Mourns the Passing of Bishop Howard Swancy;Macedonia Receives $150K to Support Business Accelerator Program

First Lady Files Crystal Haley

honorary advisors West Angeles C.O.G.I.C. City of Refuge Greater Zion Church Family Southern Saint Paul Church Faithful Central Bible Church Mt. Moriah Baptist Church Baptist Minister’s Conference

Bishop Charles Blake Bishop Noel Jones Pastor Michael Fisher Rev. Xavier L. Thompson Bishop Kenneth C. Ulmer Pastor Emeritus Melvin Wade Pastor K.W Tulloss

L.A. Focus/February 2021

L.A. Focus–On the Word, is published monthly.

Address all correspondence to: L.A. Focus, 333 W. Florence Ave., Suite C333 Inglewood, CA 90301 • (310) 677-6011 Subscription rates $25.00 per year.

Hollywood Buzz

One On One

One Pastors Battle With COVID_19

Publisher/Editor-In-Chief Staff Writers

Ronald Bridgette

Napoleon Brandford

Head to Head

18 From The Pulpit of 19 In Good Taste 21 Saving Grace 22 Pastor Profile

advisory board Napoleon Brandford Pastor Beverly Crawford Lem Daniels Bob Blake

Siebert, Brandford, Shank & Co. Bible Enrichment Fellowship International Church Morgan Stanley Bob Blake & Associates

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Commentary

ED SANDERS Guest Columnist

“Biden’s Paradox”

T

he election of the US President is the most unique and inspiring act of governance in the world. The most powerful country on the planet has a process, enshrined in its Constitution, to determine and peacefully transfer power to successive leaders based upon the outcome of a democratic election. The transition of power has been a hallmark of the American democracy for over 240 years. There have been bitter, contested elections before. But in the end, the distinguishing characteristic of American politics becomes evident. The people eventually accept the process and its outcome. We, as Americans, agree to be governed by this process. It is amazing that the entire system continues. What we accept as a given is not always the case. Countries and governments have emerged and collapsed, but the United States continues. Every four years the inauguration of the United States President is the renewal of this process and signifies our rededication to democracy.

This inauguration feels different. The introspection of who we are as a country yields many questions about where are going and what kind of people we are going to be. Race, tribalism and xenophobia were significant factors in this election. And the results are both troubling and optimistic at the same time. Demographic trends underscore a browning of the country. The United States is becoming more diverse. Americans of European decent have seen the change coming and many are reacting as though this is worst thing that could ever happen to our country. And so, four years of ‘Make America Great Again’ and chants of “Take back our country” were commonly heard at political rallies and from the bully pulpit of the White House. Which leads me to ask the blunt question: Will Americans of European decent ever live up to the ideals in the Constitution and accept people from around the world as equal citizens?

The greatest threat to the American democracy has never been a foreign power. Our greatest threat comes

from within. This nation is at another precipice. We are fighting the Civil War again.

On January 6th, an angry, violent lynch mob stormed the Capitol looking to overturn the election. The crowd, whipped into a frenzy and spurred on by the sitting President who would not accept his electoral defeat, was aimed, like a loaded gun, at the legislative branch creating the very definition of a constitutional crisis. This stage was set in the weeks and months leading up to the election. Then President Donald Trump would tell his supporters that ‘they are going to steal this election from you’. After the election, he continued to press allies to find ways to overturn the results. On January 6th, he told the crowd gathered in front of the White House, “If you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.” An hour later, that crowd was battering its way into the capitol, hunting for the legislators, including the Vice President. Apparently, only one shot was fired in defense of the most recognized symbol of democratic government in the world. The hours-long siege eventually

From the Editor

led to at least five deaths. Two weeks later, a new President took the oath of office at the very same Capitol.

Righty so, the House of Representatives acted to impeach Trump for a disgraceful second time, and now a trial is set to take place in the Senate. To our new President, the impeachment trial of Donald Trump must seem like a distraction. After all, the country is in the midst of a deadly pandemic and millions a Americans are struggling. No President wants the previous administration to dominate the political discourse while trying to launch an agenda. Furthermore, the Republicans in the Senate give no indication that they are going to vote to convict the former President. So, what is the purpose.

Why bother?

While there are several pressing issues before this administration there is none more important than waging and winning the “battle for the soul of this country” to quote Biden in his own words. That is why the trial of Donald John Trump is so critical. What is now clear for the entire country to see is that a deep sense of loss grows within a large group of the electorate. This group of people are organized through common media outlets that reinforce their angry and bitter views. And now we know that they are willing to attack the United States figuratively and literally.

It is not enough to try to put the attack on the Capitol in the past. We cannot just sweep it under the rug and act like it did not happen. The country needs to deal with this head on and that requires leadership from the President. In fact, it will require leadership from many more as well. This challenge of insurrection can only be quelled in the light of day and that requires transparency and truthfulness. We look to Presidents for guidance and leadership. This issue, more than any other will require President Biden to be front and center.

Ed Sanders is the President of ES Advisors Group, a public affairs consultancy with over 20 years of experience in state and local politics.

LISA COLLINS Publisher

“Sobering Realities”

L.A. Focus/February 2021

J

anuary was a month of sobering realities–the manifestation of lies fed by political ambition devoid of any moral integrity that led to what we all witnessed on January 6 at the U.S. Capitol.

I remember after 911 –when for at least in the time it took for them to pull the last survivor out of New York City’s Twin Towers and our eyes were glued to the television–we saw the looks on the faces of those in Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran, who were shouting ‘death to America’. I remember thinking how angry they must be to put that much energy in wishing death to anyone. I couldn’t imagine how miserable people would have to be to live in a nation of such angry people.

On January 6, I saw that look of anger again. Only this time it wasn’t on foreign soil. It was right here in our nation on the faces of thousands of Americans–believing themselves to be patriots, (aka misguided fanatics)– storming the capitol to change an election and execute some of this country’s highest ranking elected officials.

I have never been much of a [political] party person...never really a follower, but instead have remained a staunch independent. That said, I don’t get drawn into the tit for tat political squabbles that seem to dominate today’s political discourse.

Up until 2015 when Donald Trump threw his hat into the race, the discourse was somewhat civil. But with his brand of name calling, backbiting and abhorrent bullying, America descended into a race to the bottom.

Yes, I understand the major difference in the two political platforms and those who may not have liked Trump but voted the Republican ticket in their deference to a platform of limited government, greater individual responsibility, lower taxes and a conservative Supreme Court that valued religious tenets.

And I know that many of them feel as if their party has been taken over. That said, what I can’t understand is how they continue to let it happen. How they’re not moving to expel some of those politicians who are so fearful of not being re-elected that they can’t stand up

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for the standards of the nation they have sworn to serve.

A nation where civility–and not a dog whistle to a racist past– was once the hallmark of political discourse.

Where storming a capital was something we all believed could not happen. Where threatening to lynch a vice president (a white one at that) and erecting a platform to do it, could only have been imagined to happen in Bagdad.

We should know the names of those who enabled he and his “big lie” –those like Kevin McCarthy, Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz and Marjorie Taylor Greene– and rally against them for only then will civility be fully restored.

In the words of Martin Luther King Jr., “He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetuate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it.”

Party loyalties aside we need to restore the kind of civility that provokes the positive discourse and cooperation we will need to get through the challenge threatening all our lives–COVID-19.

At this moment, our biggest enemy shouldn’t be other Americans and particularly those within the halls of Congress. It should be uniting against a virus that could care less about our political rancor and revels in the notion by some that it is fake news. In fact, the coronavirus is making big news daily as it mutates into even more contagious strains at every attempt to excise it.

It will take all of our collective energy to defeat. See our feature story beginning on page 10 for more on that fight.

Because of the pandemic UCLA economists are predicting a gloomy winter, but that it will be followed by an exuberant vaccine spring and summer and then “robust growth for some years”. Ah, the light at the end of the tunnel shines brightly…

In the meantime, it’s Black History month. Ethel Waters, the first African American to star on her own TV show and the first African-American woman to be nominated for a primetime Emmy Award, once famously said: "I have the soundest of reasons for being proud of my peo-

ple. We Negroes have always had such a tough time that our very survival in this white world with the dice loaded against us is the greatest possible testimonial to our strength, our courage and our immunity to adversity... Our greatest eloquence, the pith of our joy and sorrow in our unbreakable hearts, comes when we lift up our faces and talk to God, person to person. Ours is the truest dignity of man, the dignity of the undefeated."

That dignity was on full display in the celebrated lives of two history makers we lost last month–Hank Aaron and Cicely Tyson.

To be sure, there’s a lot to celebrate in our rich history and the powerful testimonies of faith that have seen us through, including my father, who worked alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., my grandfather, who along with A. Philip Randolph, helped in the unionization of pullman porters and co-founded the first black newspaper in Omaha, Nebraska, and my cousin, Ollie Gates, the king of Kansas City barbecue. I take pride in knowing that the fruits of those who labored, sacrificed and died for us resulted in a rich harvest of talents that have powered our progression and bred a new generation of dreamers and achievers.

In a month where a black woman, Kamala Harris, was named vice president of the United States, we remember and celebrate those on whose shoulders we stand.

Keep the faith.

UpFront

News Briefs

California Attorney General Opens Civil Rights Investigation of L.A. Sheriff’s Dept

L

ast month, outgoing California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced that he has opened a civil rights investigation to determine whether there is a pattern of unconstitutional policing practices involving the country’s largest sheriff’s department.

The California Department of Justice (DOJ) launched the investigation responding to allegations of excessive force, retaliation, and other misconduct, including a number of reported incidents involving LASD management and personnel.

“We’ve done a number of these,” Becerra said, referring to the multiple investigations his office has opened. He was speaking at a virtual news conference on Jan. 21.

“The action we’re taking is the result of having received credible information, reports, from a number of sources over a period of time,” Becerra said. “(It) led us to a point where we now believe it is important to move forward with the investigation. We are undertaking this investigation to determine if LASD has violated the law or the rights of the people of Los Angeles County.”

Becerra said that the LASD probe is “not a criminal investigation,” and his office has not made any determination about “specific” complaints. The DOJ’s action is also prompted in part by the absence of sustained and comprehensive oversight of LASD’s operations.

“I applaud Attorney General Becerra for his commitment to looking at public institutions and to ensure that our civil rights are not being violated,” NAACP president Rick L. Callender told California Black Media.

Callender said he believes the investigation will force other law enforcement officers in the state to think twice before breaking the law or violating established codes of conduct.

Xavier Becerra

“It’s efforts like this which allow us to not only fight individual acts of bigotry and racism, but this puts on notice other statewide institutions and systems that perpetuate racism and inequity that they will not go unchallenged,” he said.

LASD isn’t the only law enforcement agency in the state under the DOJ’s microscope for allegedly engaging in activities that went against their departments’ policies. The cities of Stockton, Vallejo, Bakersfield, San Francisco, Sacramento, and the county of Kern have kept the DOJ busy since Becerra became AG in 2017, replacing Vice President Kamala Harris.

Last month, President Joe Biden nominated Becerra to join his Cabinet as Secretary of Health and Human Services. Awaiting confirmation by the U.S. Senate, Becerra has been making an effort to improve public safety and the criminal justice system up and down the state.

Last month, following an extensive investigation, the AG secured an agreement to reform a wide range of practices

BOE Member Malia Cohen Raises Red Flag on Bank-Breaking Prop 19 Tax Costs

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L.A. Focus/February 2021

alia M. Cohen, the only African American member of the California Board of Equalization (BOE), has some critical concerns about the cost homeowners will have to bear because of Proposition 19, a constitutional amendment that took effect on Dec. 16, 2020.

Cohen, who represents 10 million Californians in 23 counties on the board, is concerned with how Prop 19 will affect Black and other minority homeowners across California. The BOE is the commission responsible for implementing the law.

“The challenge is that it was voted upon and the election has been certified. So, it’s the law,” Cohen said during a virtual media news briefing with reporters from across the state on Jan. 29 organized

by California Black Media.

In her commentary, Cohen discussed the ways the law will impact all property owners.

“It not only affects our respective Black communities,” she told the reporters. “It affects all homeowners and property owners in the state of California. When people wake up there is going to be a massive coalition (to fight it) -- possibly an uprising.

People need to know what the real

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deal is.”

Cohen said, at appearances she is planning similar to the news briefing she had with CBM, residents of California will begin to hear about “the first steps” they can take to become educated about how Prop.19 will hit their bottom lines.

This is something she feels was not adequately explained to voters when the referendum was placed on the ballot last November.

On Nov. 3, 2020, California voters approved Prop. 19, the “Home Protection for Seniors, Severely Disabled, Families, and Victims of Wildfire or Natural Disasters Act.” Although Prop 19 was enacted in December, Cohen warns that a critical part of the legislation will take effect on

ANTONIO RAY HARVEY CA Black Media

at the Kern County Sheriff’s Office.

Earlier last year, following several reports of misuse — including falsification of records -- the DOJ rescinded LAPD’s access to CalGang, a statewide database that tracks individuals who may be connected to gangs.

Last summer, the DOJ introduced a broad statewide agenda for police reform aimed at improving use-of-force procedures, addressing issues around bias in policing, and increasing accountability and transparency. Many of the proposed reforms stem from a set of policing best practices and recommendations made to the Sacramento Police Department (SPD) by the Attorney General in January of 2019. The AG issued 66 policy recommendations to SPD following the shooting death of Stephon Clark, a 22year-old unarmed African American man in Sacramento, by two officers in 2018.

Regarding the LASD, Becerra says he has made no determinations at this time about specific complaints or allegations.

However, one violation stands out. In March 2020, LASD announced that eight of its deputies were responsible for sharing images taken at the site where retired NBA star Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna “Gii” Bryant died in a helicopter crash. The action of the deputies and other first responders at the scene prompted Assemblymember Mike A. Gipson (D-Carson) to author AB 2655, the “Invasion of Privacy: First Responders” Act. L.A. Sheriff Alex Villanueva said he welcomes the probe.

“I look forward to this non-criminal pattern and practice’ investigation,” Villanueva said in a statement. “Our department may finally have an impartial, objective assessment of our operations.”

The Center for Juvenile Law and Policy

Trials Still Ongoing Before Approval of COVID Vaccines for Children Pfizer and Moderna, two of the major pharmaceutical companies leading the production of COVID-19 vaccines, are taking steps to make sure their treatments are safe for children.

As of now, though, neither vaccine has been approved for children under 16 years old to receive.

“The trials in children are now only beginning. We are discovering what the appropriate doses are for adolescents and perhaps even infants,” said Dr. William Schaffner, who is professor of Preventive Medicine in the Department of Health Policy as well as Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tenn.

“We expect the results of those trials this summer, everything going well,” he said.

Pfizer says its vaccine is already safe for children between16 and 18 years old. Now, the company has begun phased testing on children between 12 and 16 in California and across the country. Their intention is to follow with trials on kids 12 and under.

In California, more than 300,000 children under age 17 have been infected with the coronavirus since last March. Among African American children in the state, there have been 7,945 confirmed COVID-19 cases and one death.

Dr. William Schaffner, who is professor of Preventive Medicine in the Department of Health Policy added that the vaccines currently being administered are safe for women who want to become pregnant and for mothers who are breastfeeding.

Shirley Weber Takes Oath to Serve As Secretary of State

L.A. Sheriffs continued to page 20

ANTONIO RAY HARVEY CA Black Media Feb 16. Until that date, the state currently allows tax breaks for parent-child transfers. When parents give or sell real property to their children (or perhaps, grandchildren), that heir continues to pay property taxes at the same rate assessed on the home value as the parent.

After Feb. 16, Prop. 19 will eradicate the parent-child exclusion. Then, parents would still be able to transfer their house to a child, and the child may keep the parent’s assessed value. But the Prop. 19 law has added one critical condition: the child must move into the residence and make the property his or her own primary residence. If not, the property will be reassessed at what the current tax cost is for the home at that time.

Cohen discussed the immediate property tax implications and how it might impede property owners' intentions to create generational wealth by transferring their personal residence and other property they own to their children as part of their estate planning.

BOE Tax Counsel Richard Moon also participated in the briefing.

“What is required that a child moving into the home must file a homeowner exemption and that needs to be done Prop 19 continued to page 20

California Secretary of State Shirley Weber

On Jan. 29, former Assemblymember Shirley N. Weber, who represented parts of San Diego and its eastern suburbs in the lower house of the state legislature for eight years, was sworn in as Secretary of State of California.

In her new role as the state’s top election official, the former chair of the California Black Legislative Caucus replaces Alex Padilla, who Gov. Newsom appointed to represent California in the U.S. Senate.

“I will be the 1st Black woman to serve in this role and only the 5th Black person to serve as a constitutional officer ever #RepresentationMatters,” Weber tweeted, celebrating her confirmation and the mark she has made on California political history.

“I am humbled to be able to continue to stand up for Californians as Secretary of State," Weber said. "I thank the governor for his nomination, the state senators and the Assembly members who voted to confirm my appointment, and the Californians who expressed their faith in my ability to assume this critical office. I look forward to lifting up and defending our democratic values of inclusivity and participation in this new role."

UpFront Former Assistant Files 22-Page Lawsuit Against Inglewood Mayor James Butts Alleging Harassment and Wrongful Termination nglewood Mayor James Butts’ former executive assistant Melani McDade-Dickens has filed a 22page lawsuit against Mayor Butts and the City of Inglewood after she says she endured years of harassment and abuse, was coerced to perform sexual acts at the office before she was stalked and fired when she ended their nine-year relationship.

“There’s a virus raging on the ninth floor of the city hall in Inglewood and that virus has nothing to do with Covid. That virus is promoted by fear. That virus is promoted by intimidation and hopefully, this lawsuit will be the first step in finding a cure,” said Attorney Carl Douglas of Douglas Hick Law in a press conference announcing the lawsuit. McDade-Dickens is also represented by Maryann P. Gallagher.

McDade-Dickens previously filed a claim for damages in June of last year. It was rejected by the City of Inglewood on July 29 which allowed her to move forward with a lawsuit against the City and Butts.

“Here I am wanting to restore my name and my dignity,” she said at the conference.

The lawsuit outlines how McDadeDickens met Butts in 2010 when he still worked as Chief of Los Angeles Airport Police and she volunteered on his mayoral campaign. She then joined him as an office manager before she worked through the ranks to become an adviser on his

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strategy committee. It was during the campaign that the two began forming a consensual romantic relationship and after securing his win, Butts invited McDade to join his administration as Executive Assistant.

As Mayor Butts became a “tyrant” and “monster”, says McDade-Dickens. The lawsuit decibels Butts as an aggressive man who not only demanded sex at the office but would punish her by shouting and harassing her if she did not engage.

He would also encourage and intimidate others to shun her, adds the lawsuit.

McDade says she attempted to end their relationship on March 5, 2018. A move that she says enraged Butts and marked the start of his stalking.

“On more than a dozen occasions, Butts terrorized McDade’s family showing up at her home, unannounced, in the middle of the night, gaining entry into her home by using her garage door opener that he refuses to return when she broke up with him,” the lawsuit says.

It also says that McDade suspected Butts had added a tracking device to her car after he would appear “out of nowhere” on her personal time every other Friday when Inglewood City offices were closed.

An emotional McDade at the press conference says she nonetheless continued working at the office saying she loved her job.

“I showed up at work every single day, I didn’t miss an assignment, I was at

every meeting that he eventually allowed me to be in,” McDade-Dickens said. “I still maintained all of my daily activities, I never slacked. I would close my door sometimes and cry and bite my tongue, but I compartmentalized my work and my relationship.”

The lawsuit names other city leadership including City Manager Artie Fields and Human Resources Director Jose Cortes who were both supposedly aware of the harassment and yet did nothing to stop it.

McDade says Butts, angry at her success without him, directed Cortes and Fields to exclude her from the executive meetings which she had been attending for years and to strip her of regular duties before ordering them to order an armed guard to escort her from the ninth floor offices and suspend her, a move that made headlines.

“After she dumped him, the mayor retaliated against her and set upon a course to ruin her reputation, and, using two puppets he employed, to destroy her career,” said Douglas at the press conference.

At the press conference, Douglas drew parallels between former President

DIANNE LUGO Staff

Donald Trump and Mayor Butts.

“Both men reward their friends and punish their enemies. Both men treat themselves like they were king or dictator. And both men need to be shown even an elected official is not about the law,” he said.

“The Mayor categorically denies any and all allegations of coercion or harassment,” said Mira Hashmall, an attorney for the city, in a statement. “This complaint, full of salacious fabrications, is a tactic designed to draw attention away from Ms. McDade’s wrongdoing by smearing others. It will not work.”

HeadToHead Looking for Unity In A Nation Where the Lines Are Blurred

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ew people in our nation’s world people are smiling.

Democracy history have been more “We have learned again that Survived an challenged or found a time democracy is precious. DemoInsurrection and more challenging or difficult than cracy is fragile. And at this America Now the time we’re in now,” President hour, my friends, democracy has Needs Unity Biden said. prevailed,” said the president.

This is an accurate statement, but It is very easy to talk that talk, but to many American historians would say that execute is where the rubber meets the is why there is an election every four years road. During the first day on the job, for president. During the last pandemic, President Biden issued a slew of executive 100 years ago, there were 625,000 orders that dismanAmericans who died, and the responsibili- tled the policies of Exty of the president was to solve the crisis. President Trump.

Twelve years ago, when President Obama In his first official took office the country was bankrupt, and day, President Biden there were monumental financial prob- got busy with no hesilems, and he solved them. tation, and let the This is the role and responsibility of the Republicans know president–to resolve insurmountable there was a new sherissues, with a vision that brings change iff in town — Roger Caldwell and success. America almost lost democra- Washington, DC. He cy on January 6 with the storming of the rejoined the World Health Organization, Federal Capitol building. After the elec- rejoined the Paris Climate Accord, impletion in 2020, President Donald Trump con- mented a mask requirement in the tinued to promote one huge lie. Federal government, ended a Muslim travEssentially, he told the country and the eler ban, paused student debt until world, that he had really won the election. September 30th, delayed housing forecloEven though millions believed this sure until March 31st, ended the building huge lie, there was a peaceful transition of of the Border Wall, preserved DACA, and power, and President Joe Biden took his much more. oath of office on January 20, 2021. The The push back has started from the focus of this great inauguration speech Republicans, before the ink could dry on was unity and trying to bring back togeth- the Executive Orders. On the second day er a divided country after four years of in office, controversial House Republican political turmoil.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor-Greene “Chief Justice Roberts, Vice President filed articles of impeachment against Harris, Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, President Biden. In certain states around Leader McConnell, Vice President Pence, the country, Republican Party members distinguished guest, and my fellow are saying leftists are taking control of Americans. This is American’s day. This is both houses and the White House. democracy’s day. A day of history and On the federal level, many Republican hope. Of renewal and resolve,” said Biden Congressmen and women are saying that during his inauguration speech.

President Biden’s big stimulus plan is too It didn’t matter whether or not you expensive, and it is doomed to not pass on voted for the president, this speech was the Senate floor. powerful, because it made you believe in President Biden wants unity, but it America again. does appear that the Republicans are “Today we celebrate the triumph not of ready to fight for power. The most we can a candidate, but of a cause, the cause of expect from Republicans at this time is democracy. The will of the people has been bipartisan politics that are not controverheard and the will of the people has been sial and they can agree with. This must be heeded,” said President Biden. done in incremental steps, with positive What a beautiful day and speech. conversation and dialogue, which everyone America is at a crossroads and there is a is committed to and believes in. tremendous amount of work to be done. Roger Caldwell is an newswire contributor But the new president is ready to do the to the National Newspaper Publisher’s work, and all around the country and the Association (NNPA).

Headlines From Africa Central African Republic: Over 200,000 have fled fighting in the Central African Republic (CAR) since violence erupted over the December election results. The army has been battling rebels seeking to overturn a Dec. 27 vote in which President Faustin-Archange Touadera was declared the victor.

Congo: Democratic Republic of Congo’s Prime Minister Sylvestre Ilunga Ilunkamba resigned after parliament passed a no-confidence motion. The move makes way for President Felix Tshisekedi to appoint his loyalists to key ministries, doing away with last of former president Joseph Kabila’s loyalists.

Cote d’Ivoire: Heavy rains and sun in what is normally Ivory’s dry season, means that the world’s top cocoa producer, is in for a bountiful April-to-September mid-crop harvest.

Djibouti: Djibouti has dismissed claims it was biased in authoring it’s report on the current diplomatic tiff between Kenya and Somalia. Somalia criticized the findings that concluded there was no evidence Kenya meddled in its internal affairs and found no justification for severing diplomatic ties.

Eritrea: The U.S. has directly pressed senior levels of Eritrea’s government to immediately withdraw its troops from neighboring Ethiopia, where witnesses have described them looting and hunting down civilians in the embattled Tigray region.

Gambia: Authorities in the Gambia say they are going to reveal the identities of those who have violated Covid19 regulations in an effort to shame them and prompt others to follow COVD protocols.

Kenya: Some have called for the return of corporal punishment while others insist on counselling but anxiety among teachers, parents and education administrators is mounting as indiscipline rises in schools.

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resident Joe Biden and the purpose of government to focused on the theme of Biden's Anti-Unity protect that freedom.

The Agenda unity in his inaugural Constitution was designed to address. define more clearly legitimate "Today, on this January day, my whole tasks of the federal government, and to soul is in this: bringing America together, keep government within those boundaries. uniting our people and uniting our nation," This is what makes us the United States. he said.

Unity broke down and led to civil war Sounds so nice. But only a career politi- because one of the core principles – procian can be this disingenuous and speak tecting the rights of all men – was violated the words as if he were by the presence of slavery. so, so sincere. If When we all accept the core principles Biden's top priority that enable us to be free and the limited were really unity, role of the federal government as defined in would he have allowed the Constitution, we function successfully a trial of former Presi- as a unified country, and we grow and dent Donald Trump to prosper. move forward in the It means each of us respects the uniqueSenate? Or immedi- ness and freedom of each of our neighbors.

Star Parker ately signed 30 execuReading through Joe Biden's laundry tive orders in his first three days in the list of what he calls unity, we see a list of Oval Office, many of which focused on everything that pulls us apart: "We can undoing and dismantling Trump's policies? right wrongs. We can put people to work in Such actions immediately alienate the good jobs. We can teach our children in safe 74 million Americans who voted for Donald schools. ... We can reward work, rebuild the Trump. middle class ... We can deliver racial jusAppreciating that if you want to know tice. We can make America, once again, the what someone is about, pay attention to leading force for good in the world." what they do, not what they say, it is obviI would never rely on Joe Biden to ous that Biden's concern is advancing the define for me right and wrong, to decide left-wing agenda of his party, not unity. how to create "good jobs" or "rebuild the On the other hand, there probably middle class." wouldn't be much difference with a Joe Biden's idea of unity is more governRepublican president. Republicans would ment and more politics. This means forcing be pushing for the president to advance all Americans to buy into his values – their agenda. The game is to defeat the something that will never happen – and opposition, not unity. the idea that government can micromanSo, what about unity? Is unity some- age our lives. thing we should care about?

This is exactly where things have been After all, this is the United States, so going, and this is why it's all breaking named by the founders in 1776. down. For perspective: Combined federal, Eleven years later, in 1787, the state and local government spending as a Constitution was adopted, the preamble of percent of gross domestic product – our which explains its purpose to "form a more entire economy – in 2020 was 39.8%. A perfect Union." mind-boggling 40% of our entire economy The glue holding together what the in 2020 was controlled by government. In founders called the United States is adher- 2000, it was 26%. In 1950, 17.7%, and in ence to the principles upon which the coun- 1900, 6.8%. try was founded. We can read them clearly We should indeed strive for unity – in the Declaration of Independence: "(A)ll unity around the principles upon which the men are created equal ... they are endowed nation was founded. by their Creator with certain unalienable Star Parker is president of the Center for Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty Urban Renewal and Education and host of and the pursuit of Happiness. ... That to the new weekly news talk show "Cure secure these rights, Governments are insti- America with Star Parker." To find out tuted among Men." more about Star Parker, visit www.creThe country is about individual freedom ators.com.

A look at current news from the continent of Africa Liberia: Government officials expect talks with a multinational steelmaker to yield an agreement to invest $800 million in the West African nation, which would boost revenues of an economy still recovering from Ebola.

Mozambique: Eloise, the nation’s third cyclone in less than two years, has displaced thousands, and shattered Mozambique’s progress from the recovery of cyclone Idai in 2019.

Niger: In a landmark ruling, Shell Oil has been ordered to pay damages to farmers whose farmlands were devastated through oil exploitation in 2008.

Nigeria: The sentencing of a teenage boy to ten years in prison for blasphemy—after he was accused of using fowl language toward Allah in an argument—has prompted national outrage and condemnation from UNICEF. South Africa: Struggling to contain a second wave of Covid-19 infections, fueled by a virulent new local variant, “Covid fatigue” and a series of “super-spreader” events, South African officials now fear a third wave in May and possibly even a fourth wave later in the year.

Tanzania: Refusing to impose a COVID-19 lockdown, President John Magufuli has instead said that God would protect his people. Further that such precautions as steam inhalation were better at warding off the virus than foreign vaccines.

Uganda: Singer-turned-opposition leader Bobi Wine has been unable to leave his home since the Jan. 14 election for fear that his presence in public could incite rioting. Yoweri Museveni was declared the winner of the election with 58% of the vote while Wine had 34%. Wine, however, insists he won, and accuses Museveni of staging a coup.

Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe’s rich and poor have been forced to confront a crippled healthcare system as COVID patients flood hospitals amidst a dusk-to-dawn curfew and the nation’s worst economic crisis in decades.

Through the Storm

F

One Pastor’s Battle With COVID-19

or Macedonia Baptist Church Pastor Shane B. Scott, the day that brought the Coronavirus began like any other, though he woke up a little more tired than usual. That night, he went to the church and recorded his sermon. The next day, however, he stayed in bed all day, crediting the fatigue to a busy two weeks that included a marathon two week schedule and traveling to the Bay Area to spend a week with his three young children.

“I had no other symptoms. I just thought I was tired and emotionally exhausted,” Scott recounts.

The next day he took a few meetings at the church, but as he left, he was still feeling so poorly that he cancelled the church’s Wednesday Bible Study. It is, however, what happened next that triggered concern.

“I'm an asthmatic and the next day when I woke up, I was having trouble breathing. I went to urgent care about 4pm,” Scott recalls. “The doctor tested me for COVID, gave me an inhaler and steroids and said, “I'll call you tomorrow to let you know whether or not you are positive.

“It still never crossed my mind that I had COVID, because I had, in my opinion, done everything I thought I was supposed to do to protect myself.”

Unfortunately, all he’d done wasn’t enough and the next day he was informed that he was positive and instructed to go to UCLA for a chest X-ray.

“I had the X-ray and they sent me home with a six-day round of steroids and was told me to quarantine for 14 days,” Scott picks up the story. “I did the 14-day quarantine and on about day 16, which was a Sunday, I'm thinking I'm through, but I’m steady getting worse. Literally I went to bed that night wondering if I was going to wake up.”

He returned to UCLA emergency the next day but was told he would have to ride it out and was sent home.

“I'm saying to them, “What do you mean I have to ride it out? It's been 16 days.” So, they gave me more a round of stronger steroids, told me to eat well and until I felt better to stay away from people.”

As a pastor, he couldn’t help but wonder how many others had been told to go home and ride it out and instead passed away.

Having lost 16 pounds and still not feeling any better and not knowing which way to turn, Scott began questioning the inequities in health care.

“One of the doctors had asked me, “Do you have medical insurance?” And my question to him was, “Is it your job to find out if I have medical insurance and are you asking me this because of the color of my skin?”

He was sent home again, frustrated more than ever.

“My fear–at that point– was simply that I was dying and that I have three children who depend upon me for financial and emotional and spiritual support.”

Then, on December 1st, Scott felt like that world had

“

What I’ve said to my people is to call your doctor's office every day and ask them, when will the vaccine be available to you? Make them get tired of you calling. Call your elected officials office and tell them that your doctor is not responding to you and you want the vaccination. come crushing down around him.

“I woke up with body aches and I couldn't get warm. I got up, I put on some sweats, a pullover and turned on the heater. Hours later, I'm crying like a baby. I called my mother and told her I felt like I was dying. My mom who's in the medical profession said, ‘Go back to urgent care’. Instead, he called 911. But before he made that call, he called good friend and mentor, Congresswoman Maxine Waters.

“When I got to Cedars by ambulance, the doctor was waiting in the parking lot and she said to me, “Be prepared to stay. They took me immediately into a room in the ER, they started treating me. Within an hour, I was in a room and they gave me this antiviral and some antibiotics. I was severely dehydrated, although I had been drinking a gallon of water a day.”

Because his oxygen level was right at about 70, they also put him on oxygen. It would be the beginning of six days in the ICU. But says Scott, “I got better within hours.”

He credits–at least partially– the treatment he received at the hospital the final time to the to the phone call he made to a well-known pulmonary specialist who was also a family friend and to Waters who had phoned the CEO of Cedar Sinai.

“After I get out of the hospital, the doctor tells me to quarantine another 10 days, which I did. I went to the doctor last week and they do another chest X-ray because I was still wheezing a little bit. He called me and says, ‘You have pneumonia. We knew you had pneumonia when you were here, but we treated you for COVID and thought that the pneumonia would go away with the antibiotics.’

“So, he's going to put me on another round of antibiotics, and while they were really low on hospital beds, they might bring me back for 24 hours.”

While Scott is not entirely out of the woods, he is thankful that he is through the storm of COVID-19, viewing the experience as somewhat of a wakeup call.

“Both as a business owner, pastor and a survivor, it

certainly has taught me that education is key, and the lack of education is causing people to lose their lives.

Knowing your rights, being informed about the severity of this pandemic. Being able to communicate and advocate on your own behalf is critical. Unfortunately, ignorance makes us fools, and black folk operating as if we are immune to this thing is especially crazy.”

And for those who want to believe preachers are immune, Scott is living proof that they are not. But he is hardly alone. Many pastors have either been diagnosed as positive and or have overcome the virus. Sadly, Los Angeles has lost a number of preachers to the coronavirus as well.

“I knew early on that this was dangerous,” Scott said.

“What I also knew was that I was going to be healed and when I say healed, I knew that if I died physically, I was going to live eternally. I knew that, and I trusted that that God's will would be done. Now, I didn't want to die, but I knew that if I died, that I had my business in order, that I had made it right with people that I had wronged and that God would carry me to my heavenly home.

Looking forward, Scott is hopeful about L.A. elected officials like Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, Assemblyman Mike Gibson who believes are key to successful implementation in our community of strategies against COVID and the vaccination rollout.

“I don't believe that my parishioners can advocate for themselves,” said Scott. “That it is my job and the job of our elected officials and black media to advocate for them.

“What I’ve said to my people is to call your doctor's office every day and ask them, when will the vaccine be available to you? Make them get tired of you calling. Call your elected officials office and tell them that your doctor is not responding to you and you want the vaccination.”

To those who are unsure of the vaccine, Scott had this advice, “I told my people, you can distrust it all you want to until you get the virus.”

L.A. Focus/February 2021

9

Money Matters Tavis Smiley to Launch KBLA, New Progressive Talk Radio Venture

DIANNE LUGO Staff

P

rolific radio host and author Tavis Smiley is launching a new media venture in Los Angeles. Smiley has purchased KBLA 1580 AM radio station, located in Santa Monica, for a reported $7.15 million. The station will be re-launched with a liberal talk format under the name “KBLA Talk 1580.”

The station’s website, kblatalk1580.com, advertises the venture as “unapologetically Progressive.”

KBLA has a large reach, with a 50,000-watts day and night signal that reaches over the entire L.A. basin out to parts of Riverside County and Orange County. The station also has a storied history in California radio. It was previously known as KDAY until its name change in 1991 and was the first radio station to play hip-hop in the Los Angeles area in the 1980s.

Information on the station’s lineup has yet to be released. On Dec. 7, KBLA Talk announced that it was scheduling open on-air auditions for its 9 pm. To 12 a.m. weekday host lineup. In the announcement, Lyle Gregory, a veteran LA talk radio producer who’s in charge of the talent search, gave a hint to the vibe of KBLA Talk’s future hosts.

“This historic moment is pleading with us to lift up a new generation of young, insightful voices to contribute to a vibrant and productive conversation. For too long now, talk radio in this city has been all day, all night, all white.

We are building a conversational talk radio station that sounds like our city looks. We are confident that our search will result in a new talk radio team that is whip-smart, imaginative and sharp-witted in discussing the current events and issues that matter to all fellow citizens,” said Gregory.

Smiley has a long-storied career in television and radio. In the late 90s, Smiley was a commentator on The T o m

On the Money What A Second Impeachment Could Cost Donald Trump

L

Joyner Morning Show and he hosted the public affairs show BET Talk, later renamed BET Tonight, from 1996 to 2001. Smiley was previously the host of The Tavis Smiley Show, which aired on NPR from 2002 to 2004 before becoming a weekly show distributed through the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) from 2005-2018.

In 2017 Smiley was suspended indefinitely from PBS due to “multiple, credible allegations of conduct that is inconsistent with the values and standards of PBS,” according to PBS. Smiley acknowledged that he had engaged in consensual sexual relationships with coworkers and could prove they were indeed consensual with letters, cards, gifts and, photos, but staunchly denied any misconduct.

The talk show host filed a wrongful termination suit against the PBS, and the network countersued. However, in August 2020, Smiley was ordered to pay PBS $2.6 million for violating the network’s morals clause.

In a statement, Smiley said, “It’s time for a real conversation in America, so men and women know how to engage in the workplace. I look forward to actively participating in that conversation.”

It appears he will now have the opportunity to start that conversation.

KBLA’s most recent owner was Multicul-tural Broadcasting, which currently airs a Spanish Christian talk and teaching radio format. The station’s sale also includes a noncompete clause.that bars Multicultural Broadcasting from working with other broadcasters to develop urban format radio in the L.A. market for eight years.

The website proclaims the motto, “We’ve got a lot to talk about”. Time will tell who listens.

ast month, Donald Trump became the first president in the history of the nation to be impeached twice by Congress, after he incited throngs of his supporters in an assault on the U.S. Capitol as part of an attempted coup that left five dead.

Although he is no longer in office, Trump still stands a lot to lose should he be convicted in the U.S. Senate.

Most notably, he could be barred from ever holding public office again. But a great deal of what he has to lose is financial.

For starters, Trump would lose an annual pension of $221,400 along with a governmental allowance for an office, staffing of up to $96K per staffer and equipment.

He would also lose up to a $1 million in reimbursed travel expenses annually and lifetime Secret Service protection, which is priceless.

Presidents also receive an annual expense account of $50,000 and a $19,000 entertainment account.

Then there’s those funerals with high honors that come with the option of an Arlington National Cemetery Burial.

But the financial hurting for Bush is not limited to the loss of presidential perks, with the growing number of corporations that are cutting ties with him as well as those companies that are halting their political contributions to Trump. Add to that New York City, which recently announced that they were severing all contracts with the Trump organization, estimated to be worth $17 million.

And if that wasn’t enough, the Trump brand’s retail operations have taken a huge hit as social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter in addition to commerce platforms such as PayPal, Shopify and Stripe have cut him off in wake of the January 6 insurrection he inspired.

Biz News Briefs

L.A. Focus/February 2021

New Fund From Jay-Z Will Provide $10 Million to Minority-Owned Cannabis Businesses

Jay-Z’s Roc Nation joined CMG Partners Inc., Left Coast Ventures Inc. and Subversive Capital Acquisition Corp earlier this year to form The Parent Company, the largest and most funded vertically integrated cannabis operation in California. Now, the company has announced the launch of an investment fund that will help other minority-owned cannabis businesses.

The fund, named the Social Equity Ventures, will provide up to $1 million to cannabis startups. $10 million total funds will be distributed to start.

Jay-Z spoke to the Wall Street Journal about the fund and his desire to boost minority-owned marijuana businesses explaining that the cannabis boom has largely excluded people of color.

“We were the ones most negatively affected by the war on drugs, and America has turned around and created a business from it that’s worth billions,” he said.

Currently, the marijuana business has grown into a $20 billion business and it is expected to surpass the U.S wine business by 2030 when it is estimated to hit $70 billion.

10

Sephora Introducing More Black-Owned Beauty Brands to Stores Following Racial Bias Study Results Sephora has announced that it will be doubling the number of Black-owned brands available at its stores after a study revealed that 20 percent of its customers and employees have experienced unfair treatment based on their race and 37 percent of its employees had considered quitting as a result of biased treatment..

The study was conducted after Sephora promised to work on growing its diversity and inclusion initiatives following multiple Black employees coming forward with negative criticism of the company. The report reconfirmed racial bias at the stores that employees and shoppers have faced and revealed that Black and minority shoppers have been opting to shop online rather than entering a store. After all, the report also revealed that 32 percent of minority shoppers felt judged because of their ethnicity or skin color as opposed to 9 percent of white Sephora shoppers.

By increasing the amount of Black-owned beauty brands Sephora hopes to address the findings which showed that 74 percent of shoppers also believed that Sephora did not show the diversity of race and skin tones in their marketing materials.

Starbuck’s Creates $100 Million Fund for BlackOwned Businesses in BIPOC Neighborhoods Starbucks is joining companies trying to tackle diversity and inclusion issues by expanding their initiatives and

investing $100 million to create the Starbucks Community Resilience Fund.

The fund will focus on supporting smaller businesses and community development projects in Black, Indigenous and People of Color neighborhoods, they announced. The $100 million will go to these businesses and projects by 2025 with a focus on businesses in Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, Miami, Minneapolis, New Orleans, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington D.C and Los Angeles.

In partnership with community leaders, Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) and other impact-focused financial institutions, the Fund will help provide access to capital intended to support small businesses and neighborhood projects, including those addressing the inequitable impacts of climate change.

As part of the initiative, Starbucks will work with partners like the Opportunity Finance Network to allocate funds to local CDFIs that will provide borrowers with access to capital, ongoing mentorship and technical assistance.

“Starbucks has always been a company focused on caring for our partners, creating experiences for our customers, and playing a positive role in our communities and throughout society,” said Kevin Johnson, Starbucks President and CEO. Additionally, Starbucks will be partnering with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture to share their educational resources and volunteer opportunities.

GameChanger:

KEITH DELAWDER Contributor

“Napoleon Brandford”

H

ave you ever wondered how states and municipalities are able to afford to build and maintain the major public works projects we all use such as airports, stadiums, roads and bridges, and public transportation? Well, like you or I they borrow the money, but their loan comes in the form of what is known as a municipal bond which tends to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars and are repaid bi-yearly rather than monthly over the twenty-to-thirty year duration. In charge of these mammoth investments are municipal bond traders such as Napoleon Brandford who spent his 38- year career funding major public works projects across the country totaling over $1.9 trillion dollars, all while breaking barriers and setting a legacy of black excellence on Wall Street for generations to come.

In his soon-to-be-released memoir entitled “Making It, How To Be Black And Successful In America”, Brandford shares his story of how a fatherless kid from humble means in the midwest made the transition from college basketball player to being one of the country’s most powerful municipal bond traders and started the first minority owned firm to be ranked in the top ten on Wall Street.

While Brandford’s work extends throughout the country, the San Francisco-based firm Grigsby Brandford & Co., was responsible for such projects here in Los Angeles as the Tom Bradley Terminal at LAX and the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Branford–who holds a Master’s degree in public administration from USC– got into municipal bonds in order to use his expertise in finance to achieve real, lasting contributions to society.

“I wanted to figure out how to improve the infrastructure of our community,” Brandford tells L.A. Focus. “In corporate finance all you’re doing is reengineering how people make more money. With municipal bonds I’ve

“

The biggest challenge for the African Americans is to regain the drive to be an entrepreneur and expand your business outside of the black community.

been able to facilitate the construction of things that people can use, like hospitals and airports. You’re able to see the legacy of your work.”

It’s also important to recognize that historically blacks have been barred from the field of corporate finance, with municipal bonds being the only field on Wall Street that had been open to African Americans. As he lays out in “Making It”, Wall Street is one of the last bastions of white male supremacy and Brandford had to learn to navigate the many obstacles that were aimed to eliminate minority owned firms on Wall Street.

It was these factors that made Grigby Brandford’s

refinancing of the Los Angeles Convention Center in 1993 monumental-- not only was the $503 million deal the largest of its kind in the history of the country at the time, but the opportunity for black owned company to win the contract was landmark. During the final board meeting to award the contract to one of the final two competing firms, Grigsby Brandford or Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs, Brandford remembers one board member named Clint Rosemont from Pasadena spoke up for the historic nature of the decision they were about to make.

“When he got his chance to speak Rosemont said, ‘we have an opportunity to be like Branch Rickey when he chose Jackie Robinson to break through the baseball color barrier,” Brandford recalls. “We have the same opportunity to break through the corporate ceiling if we choose this firm to do the financing.”

Grigsby Bradford would eventually win the bid on an 11-4 vote.

Brandford would continue to break barriers in 1996 when he left the firm he founded after nine years to team up with Wall Street legend Muriel “Mickie” Siebert and Suzanne F. Shank to form Siebert, Brandford, Shank & Co.,the first woman-led and minority owned investment firm to be ranked in the top-ten on Wall Street.

Seibert, who has been dubbed “the First Woman of Finance” holds the distinction of being the first woman to own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange when she joined in 1967.

“I was just honored to be able to partner with the only woman who’s in the top 100 finance people in the history of America,” says Brandford of his former Jewish colleague. “She called me on my cell phone [in 1995] and said, ‘Napoleon we have the chance to be the only African American and woman owned firm on Wall Street. I have retail and the capital, and with your expertise in debt Gamechanger continued to page 20

E

KEITH DELAWDER Contributor

leven months into a global pandemic that has

shaken

every

aspect of daily life for most people and has caused intense strain

and uncertainty on the systems that facilitate a functioning society, there is finally a flickering light at the end of the tunnel.

Thanks to Operation Warp Speed, the fastest vaccine to ever be developed is now ready and being distributed

and

administered

around the country, initiating the L.A. Focus/February 2021

start of the first steps toward community immunity of the COVID19 virus and a much-anticipated return to some kind of normalcy in our lives.

12

But here in Los Angeles, rollout of the vaccine has been far from perfect. Despite having administered over 864,000 doses of vaccine, L.A. County is drowning in demand, with chaos and confusion over when and where they can receive the vaccine. In mid-December, California quickly moved from its initial phase of the vaccine rollout known as “Phase 1a”–which made the vaccine only available to healthcare workers and longterm care residents–to “Phase 1b” which included citizens 65 and older. What resulted was a tidal wave of seniors seeking to get vaccinated, overloading the system and making already backlogged appointments even harder to come by.

“We recognize that our vaccine rollout has not been perfect, and we are working around the clock to get Californians the information on how, when and where they can get vaccinated,” says Dr. Nadine Burke-Harris, California’s Surgeon General. “We’re working to see what support counties and providers need to speed up getting vaccines into arms, that is our big goal.”

According to City of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who spoke–along with Governor Gavin Newsom, at Dodger Stadium– one of the city’s largest mass vaccination sites–the problem lies in the availability of the vaccines being allocated from the federal government.

“The national supply isn’t coming,” Garcetti stated, noting that it’s not a problem with the state or on the local level. “We simply don’t have the supply coming in.”

And while people are forced to wait patiently for their turn to get vaccinated, concerns about vaccine skepticism have prompted a concerted effort on the part of leaders to get information out about the safety of the vaccine.

According to a national poll by the Pew research center, only 32% of African Americans adults say they would definitely or probably get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Similar findings were published in a joint study by the COVID Collaborative and the NAACP which found that the majority of black people didn’t believe a vaccine would be safe or effective, and don’t plan to get it.

Already, in the limited rollout, some of this data is starting to be manifest. Department of Health Services

“

We recognize the distrust and skepticism that exists from communities of color and we know there are valid reasons for skepticism. From a community perspective, we really want to ensure the public that we hear you. This vaccine has gone through a rigorous vetting process and has been tested with different races and ethnic groups. In order to reach community immunity people have to get the vaccine. We are taking steps at the community level to make sure we have community data that helps us address the skepticism and to help shape and

”

inform community outreach.

data reveals that just under one-third of black health workers in L.A. County have received the vaccine and more than half have not requested it, which is lower than any other ethnic group.

Shantay R. Davies-Balch, founder of the Black Wellness and Prosperity Center is committed to turning the trend around.

“We recognize the distrust and skepticism that exists from communities of color and we know there are valid reasons for skepticism,” says Davies-Balch. “From a community perspective we really want to ensure the public that we hear you. This vaccine has gone through a rigorous vetting process and has been tested with different races and ethnic groups.

“In order to reach community immunity, people have to get the vaccine. We are taking steps at the community level to make sure we have data that will help us address the skepticism and to help shape and inform community

“Before they were authorized, the FDA reviewed all data from clinical trials in meetings that were open to the public-- I actually sat in on a meeting when they were discussing the data and its findings. They were then reviewed by the vaccine consideration board at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the FDA will continue to monitor the safety of the vaccines as they are being given.”

It’s important to distinguish that the vaccines are associated with mild to moderate side effects, but side effects are normal and do not mean the vaccine is unsafe.

Especially after receiving the second dose of the vaccine common side effects may include brief fever, headaches, muscle aches and joint pain, and soreness at the injection site. But according to Dr. Batchlor, those side effects are a good thing!

“The appearance of side effects are signs that the vaccine is working as it should,” says Dr Batchlor. “It means

take it.

The State of California is currently close to launching a website where people can go to find out if they are eligible and receive notifications on the vaccine’s status.

While it may take over a year to reach the targeted goal of 70% of the population vaccinated to achieve what is called “community immunity”, it is vital that everyone continue to take safety precautions to keep themselves and those around them safe.

“Californian’s personal actions continue to make the biggest difference in getting us through this pandemic,” says Dr. Burke-Harris. “The best thing that each of us can do to save lives is remember the ‘four W’s’, which are: wear a mask, wash your hands, watch your distance, and wait to see friends and family.”

And even for those lucky enough to get the vaccine early on, minding the ‘four w’s’ will still be necessary until everyone else gets a chance to be vaccinated.

Left: Viral immunologist Kizzmekia Corbett has been praised by Dr. Fauci as the key scientist behind the COVID-19 vaccine; (Middle) Health workers administer vaccine at drive-up clinic in Los Angeles; (Right) Sandra Lindsay, a New York City critical care nurse, was the first person in the United to get the COVID-19 vaccine. outreach.”

The vaccine is especially critical for African Americans across the nation as Black communities have been among the hardest hit. In California, the death rate among black people is 13% higher than the statewide total. With African Americans only making up 6% of the population this number is staggering, and the vaccine will be crucial for saving black lives.

A major part of changing the hearts and minds of those skeptical of the vaccine is informing them about the vaccine and how safe it has shown to be.

Currently there are two vaccines in circulation, one made by Pfizer-BioNTech and another manufactured by Moderna, and for all intents and purposes they are essentially the same. Both vaccines have been approved for adults over the age of eighteen and require two doses administered approximately three to four weeks apart.

By all accounts, the efficacy of the vaccines has exceeded researchers’ expectations.

“The data reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)--which included thousands of adults from diverse backgrounds including older adults, adults with chronic illnesses and communities of color-showed that both vaccines are highly effective, preventing COVID- 19 in 95% of people who received both doses.

Those who did get COVID showed a much milder form of the disease,” says Dr. Elaine Batchlor, Chief Executive Officer of Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital. “I don’t think we could ask for much better than that! These vaccines are the light at the end of the tunnel, and I think of them as a gift from science to public health.”

Dr. Batchlor also notes that prominent black researchers played a crucial role in developing the vaccine.

“The research that was done for the Moderna vaccine was led by an African American woman scientist,” Batchlor adds excitedly. “One of us was leading the team!

I hope that can bring some sort of comfort for people.”

Another upside to the vaccine is how remarkably safe they have proven to be after going through the rigorous clinical trials.

“I also want to emphasize the safety of these vaccines because I know how many people in our community are hesitant and worried about safety, so I want to stress that these vaccines have been held to the same safety standards that all vaccines are held to,” says Dr Batchlor.

the vaccine is stimulating an immune response so that if a person is exposed to the virus, their immune system will be primed and ready!”

And for the rare instances when adverse symptoms do occur the CDC and FDA are partnering to create a national platform for reporting any issues people may be experiencing after receiving the vaccine. The platform, which is called the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) will allow any patient who has suspicion of an adverse symptom to be examined by a doctor and determine whether that symptom is truly related to the vaccine or is the product of something else, like an underlying health condition.

The CDC has also created a smartphone app called V-Safe that uses text messaging and web surveys to provide personalized health checkins after you receive a COVID-19 vaccine.

Through v-safe, one can quickly notify the CDC of any side effects after getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Depending on your answers, someone from CDC may follow up to check on you and get more information.

V-safe will also remind you to get your second COVID-19 vaccine dose if you need one.

For those looking to get the vaccine, but are confused as to where, the first place to check is your healthcare provider.

“Most of us will be vaccinated by our healthcare provider,” says Dr. Nadine Burke- Harris.

“If you don’t have a regular healthcare provider then reach out to the county provider of health and they can direct you to your closest testing center.”

Though the pool of people eligible for the vaccine is limited right now Dr. Burke- Harris reminds us that the vaccine is free for all citizens and in the year to come will be available for all Californians who elect to California Surgeon General Nadine Burke-Harris

“We know from the data that was collected in clinical trials that the vaccines protect from infectious symptoms, meaning that you can still get the virus, but you won’t get sick,” Dr. Elaine Batchlor explains. “We don’t yet have the evidence that it prevents transmission of the virus. We believe it does prevent transmission, but we don’t yet have that data, so we want people to continue to follow the ‘four W’s’ to prevent transmission from occurring.

“Once we reach community immunity, we can get rid of masks and go back to our normal activities and interactions which is why it’s so important everyone in the community gets vaccinated so we can get to that level.”

Despite some of the skepticism and uncertainty circulating about the new vaccines Dr. Nadine BurkeHarris is also hearing an upswell of excitement and enthusiasm about the prospect of getting back to life as usual and protecting those vulnerable around them.

“There are so many people that I’m talking to that tell me about why they want to get vaccinated and why it’s important to them,” says Burke-Harris.

“People want black- owned businesses to re-open and they want to protect their friends, families and communities, especially in California where African Americans are dying at higher rates. We want to make sure we are protecting the lives of black people. That is the narrative I want to see uplifted. There is incredible energy and power in the way a community can come together to raise their hands and say, ‘yes, I want to be part of protecting my community!’”

For more COVID-19 vaccine related information visit: www.covid19.ca.gov.

HO L LY W OOD SPOT LIGHT Neily Dickerson “The LIttle Things” The film industry will be testing a new hybrid release configuration (on HBO Max and in theaters) with the rollout of “The Little Things”, but given the star power of Denzel Washington, there couldn’t be a better bet for success for this Hancock-style crime thriller.

In the film –that was nearly 30 years in the making –Washington is joined by fellow Oscar winners Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody) and Jared Leto (Dallas Buyer’s Club) and by all accounts the performances are “can’t miss” and Oscar worthy, particularly Leto, who plays a cat and mouse game with the detectives that is brilliantly psychotic.

The story centers in on obsessed cops in on the trail of a killer after a series of brutal serial murders in 1990 Los Angeles without the benefits of DNA and other technological advances.

Washington is Kern County Deputy Sheriff Joe Deacon, who is teamed with LAPD hot shot detective Jimmy Baxter

(Malek) in the hunt for the killer (Leto), during which echoes of his past uncover disturbing secrets that threaten the case.

When asked what was different about Deacon in comparison to other law enforcement characters Washington has played in the past, the actor joked, “About 35 pounds…

Despite that, the gritty crime drama is a battle of wits for these three actors with just enough suspense to keep you on the edge of your seat until its surprise twist at the end “The Little Things” debuted in theaters on January 29th and on HBO Max, and is rated “R” (Restricted), requiring that those under 17 be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

OUT THIS MONTH

HOLLYWOOD BUZZ

Cinderella February 5

Malcolm & Marie February 5

Mama Don’t Take No Mess

L.A. Focus/February 2021

The Equalizer is back and no, it’s not Denzel Washington, who served up two big box office hits as “The Equalizer”. This time, Queen Latifah is in the driver’s seat of CBS’ reboot of the classic 1985 series. As the first Black woman portraying the Equalizer in the franchise’s span, Latifah will portray Robyn McCall a single mom who balances her crime-fighting life with raising her teenage daughter.

“We’ve been equalizing for centuries, from Hatshepsut to Stacey Abrams to Kamala Harris,” said Latifah of black woman when discussing the show during a recent panel.

The show–set to debut after the Super Bowl on February 7–was written with Latifah in mind and is expected to stay true to its original theme fighting for the downtrodden, but will also reveal the character’s vulnerabilities.

“She has a teenage daughter. She has to figure out how to turn off the soldier in her and turn on the mom,” said Latifah, who exec produces as well as stars in the show.

Also debuting this month is “Young Rock”, which explores different chapters of D w a y n e Johnson’s ascent to superstar from a rebellious childhood to playing football at t h e

14

Judas & the Black Messiah February 12

University of Miami, to his professional wrestling days.

“We use these terms ‘wild’ and ‘crazy’ – those are great sizzle words we use as we promote this thing,” Johnson said of the show that premieres on February 16. “But it was incredibly complicated and incredibly tough growing up, specifically with these timelines in my life of 10 years old, 15 and 18,” “The relationship I had with my dad was incredibly complicated and fueled by tough love. My dad was kicked out of his house when he was 13 and was homeless, so that then shaped the man who then raised me.

And in that complication came an extraordinary life that was full of travel. I lived in 13 different states by the time I was 13 years old.

Nick Cannon Talker Gets Green Light Stay tuned this fall for a nationally syndicated daytime talk show from Nick Cannon. The New York-based show has gotten the green light after being put on hold last summer after anti-Semitic remarks made by Cannon on his podcast went viral and made national news. “We are standing by Nick in our hope that by fall 2021 he will be able to use his extraordinary talent and platform to entertain, enlighten & unite his audience on the Nick Cannon talk show,” said the show’s backers of the talker that has been described as exciting, fun and uplifting show reflecting Cannon’s brand of celebrity, music, comedy and pop culture.

Said Cannon, “It’s been a longtime dream of mine to host my own daytime talk show and that I’m able to do this in New York City, bringing daytime television back to the place that has fostered genera-

Without Remorse February 26

tions of talent, is very special to me.

With this show, we’ll be uniting all aspects of entertainment in a unique way in the very place where a lot of what we know today as our culture started. I couldn’t ask for better partners than Debmar-Mercury and Fox and thank them for supporting me in this endeavor.” Cannon, who hosts Fox’s celebrity competition series The Masked Singer, will also serve as an executive producer on the show.

Bridgerton Gets Second Season The official announcement is in, Netflix’s hit new show Bridgerton is getting a second season, returning to production in spring 2021. The show from Shonda Rhimes is a part of her multi-year Netflix deal, bringing the bestselling Bridgerton book series by Julia Quinn to life. Debuting at the end of 2020, it quickly became a hit for the streaming platform with 63 million households viewing the show in its first four weeks. It was also the number 1 show on Netflix in 76 countries.

In other industry news, Idris Elba’s Green Door Pictures has acquired the film and TV rights to London-based poet Salena Godden’s well-received debut novel Mrs Death Misses Death, the fictional story of a young author named Wolf who is visited by Death — a shapeshifting, working-class black woman. Exhausted from spending eternity doing her job, Death seeks someone to unburden her conscience to and asks Wolf to write her memoirs.

Elba, who was drawn to her writing, dubbed the novel as “an intoxicating story that crosses time and continents.”…Ledisi has been tapped to play gospel singer Mahalia Jackson in the upcoming biopic, “Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story.” She will star alongside Columbus Short who has been cast as Martin Luther King Jr. in the film…Finally, it’s official, Michael B. Jordan and Lori Harvey are a couple. We wish them the best.

Q&A

Rege-Jean Page Hometown: London, England Big Break: 2016 “Roots” remake Upcoming Projects: “Bridgerton”, “Sylvie’s Love” Regé-Jean Page is the internet’s newest heartthrob thanks to his performance as the star of Netflix’s latest period drama, Bridgerton. as the Duke of Hastings.

Born in London and raised in Zimbabwe, the 31-yearold actor–who also sings– began on stage. His big break came when he was cast as Chicken George in the 2016 remake of the miniseries Roots and a year later in Shonda Rhimes legal drama, For The People.

Currently, Page–who splits his time between Los Angeles and London–is in the running of those being considered to be the next James Bond.

On being a heartthrob: It’s a huge compliment to know that people trust me with characters that they want an audience to fall in love with,” he says. “But that person on screen isn’t me.

The idea of Prince Charming is wonderful, so long as you can figure out what’s actually charming to us now.

On the appeal of his smash hit series, Bridgerton: The central theme of the show is identity and love and romance. It’s indulgent, it’s lavish…the most glamorous version of what romance could be. As a Christmas present, it’s a big warm Regency-flavored hug. With tumult and heartbreak and impassioned meetings in rainstorms.

On his hometown, Zimbabwe: Home is a relative concept. Home is very much wherever it is that your people are and where you fit in. I spent my whole life figuring out how to be different people.

Zimbabwe’s one of the youngest countries in the world, it became independent from British colonialism in the 1980s.… It’s the most beautiful place in the world.

Everyone says this about their own country, but it’s objectively beautiful. And because it was so young I think there’s a genuine generosity in people from Zimbabwe.

On inspired him to pursue acting: I wanted to be an explorer when I was a kid. That was my first idea of what would be a really great thing to do in the world: to discover unknown things and pick around in them and see what you could bring back home to go, “Look! The world is bigger than you thought it was.” Then I discovered that would involve facing entirely too many very large spiders. Acting is the closest thing I found to that, honestly. It’s about exploring and getting the opportunity to live in worlds and understand people that I would have no reason otherwise to interact with…It’s this really freeing profession. It’s a great way to spend your time as a human: learning about other humans and then sharing that knowledge.

On the superstardom that is sure to follow Bridgerton’s success: I try to kind of surf the waves as they come and stay loose so that if anything does throw me off balance, I’m kind of floppy enough to roll with it. “So…I’m entirely naive of the fact that there is a big wave coming. I’m just kind of ready to surf it.

RedCarpet Style

2021 INAUGURATION of President Joe Biden in Thom Brown dress

2017 ESPY AWARDS In design by Cushie

People couldn’t stop talking about the ourfit Michelle Obama wore to the 2021 Inauguration of President Joe Biden last month at the U.S. Capitol. We decided to take a look back at some of our favorite looks from America’s first lady of color in the White House.

2015 TOKYO VISIT getting off Air Force One in Kenzo floral dress

2013 INAUGURATION of her husband second term in Thom Brown dress

2011 IN LONDON For a visit with the Queen in Ralph Lauren

Eye On Gospel Having Words With Kirk Franklin Kirk Franklin is teaming up with Sony Music Entertainment for a new podcast, Good Words with Kirk Franklin, set to launch on February 9. The podcast will feature the 16-time Grammy winner having intimate conversations exploring faith, redemption, and the realities of today’s world.

Among the artists who will be having intimate conversations with Franklin on race, religion, politics and music are H.E.R., Kelly Rowland and Pharrell Williams “I want to bring you something really special from my heart, it’s called Good Words with Kirk Franklin. Now this a podcast where I’ll be having candid conversations about faith,” he said. “These are conversations that are heartfelt.

And you know me, it’s going to be funny.”

CeCe Winans’ Compassion On February 21st, 12-time Grammy award winner CeCe Winans invites fans to celebrate a season of gratitude as she brings music, joy, encouragement, and special guests to the computer screen. Tauren Wells, Carrie Underwood, and Marvin Winans join CeCe for this very special livestream concert. The evening will feature the story and music of CeCe Winans from her first solo as a child, to her first solo project, as well as performances of fan-favorite songs that encompass the acclaimed singer’s career.

“I am so excited about partnering with Compassion Live for An Evening of Thanksgiving,” says Winans. “There is so much going on in the world and I believe we could all use a night to forget about the chaos and focus on God and his faithfulness. I hope you will join me and some of my friends as we come together to enjoy Jesus and each other. Tell your family and friends and I promise you will be uplifted, encouraged and thankful!”

By sponsoring a child with

Compassion International, attendees will be given access to An Evening of Thanksgiving as well as access to a separate VIP event that includes exclusive performances and a very special conversation with CeCe Winans and her family. There will even be a sneak peak at new music from her upcoming live recording due to release in this year.

“I am honored to be a part of the mission of Compassion International and their years of commitment to helping children who are experiencing unimaginable circumstances because of poverty and COVID 19 has made those issues even more dire,” adds Winans. “The Compassion mission statement “releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name” is ministry that is near and dear to my heart and I look forward to what we can do together to forever positively change lives.” For information visit www.compassion.com/cecewinans.

In Her Own Time The gospel world was saddened last month by the passing of Duranice Pace, the eldest of the Anointed Pace Sisters, whose hit songs include “When God is in The Building,” “He’s Here,” “It’s Already Done” and “Be a Fence.” A featured soloist on Dr. Bobby Jones’ Gospel Explosion, Pace boasted a vocal style influenced by Broadway and musical theater, singing both alto and soprano for the storied Atlanta-based group.

Pace grew up in Atlanta, where she sang with her 9 siblings–8 girls and 1 boy—at her father, Murphy Pace Jr.’s, church. She began singing at five, inspired by her father, who was a professional quartet singer for Gospel Starlights and her mom, who sang praise and worship at church. The Anointed Pace Sisters released their first studio album, It’s Morning Time, in

1992, on which Duranice sang both alto and soprano. The group went on to share 6 more projects, including My Purpose and It’s Already Done.

It was more than a decade ago that Pace was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and given three years to live. She is survived by her siblings, Phyllis, June Pace—Martin, Melonda, Dejuaii, Leslie, Latrice, Lydia, Lashun, as well as a son, Demarcus Wardell Love. She is set to be featured in the upcoming National Geographic drama series, Genius Aretha.

Nothing Can Stop Them “Nothing Can Stop Us” is the inspirational message for this highly anticipated night of praise and worship during Super Bowl LV. This year’s event will be hosted by national radio and TV personality Rickey Smiley and feature performances by The NFL Players Choir, Erica Campbell, Voices of Fire presented by Pharrell Williams, PJ Morton, Kierra Sheard, Koryn Hawthorne, Zacardi Cortez, and an exclusive performance by gospel music pioneer and living legend John P. Kee. Additionally, the show will feature appearances from NFL Players Desean JacksonPhiladelphia Eagles WR and Dak Prescott - Dallas Cowboys QB. The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration will present Houston Texans QB Deshaun Watson with this year’s “Faith In Action Award.” The son of a courageous cancer survivor, Watson is one of the NFL’s youngest philanthropists and is committed to causes that support families and youth in underserved communities.

In collaboration with the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration, the American Cancer Society will highlight the need to eliminate barriers to prevention and treatment in the black community during the broadcast. Blacks have the lowest survival rate for most cancers, and COVID-19 has caused an alarming drop in cancer screenings.

Originating in 1999, the annual event joins key NFL Players, top Gospel/Contemporary Christian, and mainstream GRAMMY® Award-winning artists, and special guests all on one stage to bring audiences an evening of uplifting music and inspirational messages.

ChurchNews

Agape Church of Los Angeles Worship Center Consolidated Plaza: 3725 Don Felipe Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90008

L.A. Faith Community Mourns the Passing of Bishop Howard Swancy

W

L.A. Focus/February 2021

ith unimaginable heartbreak and most painful devastation, the first family is in mourning over the sudden loss of dearly beloved father, Bishop Howard A. Swancy.”

And so, came the announcement last month that one of Los Angeles’ prominent pastors had passed.

For the last 40 years, Swancy has served as senior pastor of Peace Apostolic Church, the ministry he founded in 1981.

“From the day we got started, thousands have gotten saved at our church, but I never equate success with numbers,” Swancy told L.A. Focus in 1977, People come and go. I equate success by the growth of an individual–their stability... actually obeying the Scriptures. Everybody is in the pool, but everybody ain’t swimming.”

Just as his ministry grew, so too did the stature of the L.A. native, who was elevated to Bishop in the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World.

“Bishop Swancy was a loyal and committed soldier to the apostolic faith– especially adamant about ministerial preparation and his moral code of ethics was above reproach,” said Bishop Robert Douglas, a friend of more than forty years and a diocesan bishop in the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World.

“Liberal and generous with his revenue and resources, he loved his family and was exceptionally fond of his congregation and fellow comrades. Most of all, he was always trying to help somebody and that’s how he would want to be remembered.”

“I go to great degrees to live a life pleasing to God,” Swancy has said. “Some of the indictments against the ministry are valid. Therefore, I try to make sure my home is in order so my congregation can see us as an example of Christ.”

His quest in that endeavor has earned him a reputation of being self-righteous, dogmatic–even pompous. But what others called self-righteous he called boldness.

“I can be considered very direct...no nonsense, and everybody doesn’t like that. People don’t like to hear they’re wrong. Some pastors can preach all day and never say anything about sin. They think they’re hurting someone’s feelings and not showing love when they are direct, but I want someone to tell me when I’m wrong. Sin is the problem and I preach hard against those things that would lead to eternal damnation.”

“I don’t believe you can be a pastor and not have the ministry of reconciliation. That’s your job, to bring men and women to a place of awareness of sin and how they can be delivered from it.”

Swancy also served as president of the Aenon School of Theology, which he established to equip men and women for a higher purpose-Christian living and faithbased vocations.

No cause of death has been given for the sudden passing. A following note from the family read as follows: “We know that our Peace Apostolic church family grieves with us and we are truly thankful for your prayers, cards, flowers and kind messages. We will be in touch with information concerning Pastor’s homegoing service and more, but we are humbly requesting patience, privacy and prayer at this incredibly difficult time.”

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Macedonia Receives $150K to Support Business Accelerator Program Macedonia Community Development Corporation has been awarded $150,000 from the Amgen Foundation to support its Watts Entrepreneur Business Accelerator program. The program provides technical assistance and access to capital to entrepreneurs and existing businesses in Watts and surrounding communities as well as businesses that hire Watts residents.

The program provides in-depth business counseling, classroom training, and peer-to-peer learning and covers areas such as business plan development, marketing, permits and licensing, web development and more.

“Macedonia CDC is playing an important role in addressing economic inequality by focusing on providing the support that is required for entrepreneurs to thrive,” said Eduardo Cetlin, President of the Amgen Foundation.

“When people have access to these critical business resources, they become empowered to seize opportunities.

I look forward to seeing the companies that this program will launch and grow.”

“The generous support of the Amgen Foundation allows us to continue meeting the needs of local entrepreneurs and equipping them to be successful,” said Shane Scott, Macedonia CDC Chairman and CEO. “This is a great example of how our partnerships with public and private entities benefit Watts and directly advance historically marginalized communities.”

Macedonia CDC launched the WEBA program in 2017. One-on-one technical assistance is available Monday through Friday.

Houston Pastor Kirbyjon Caldwell Sentenced Houston megachurch pastor Kirbyjon Caldwell–who led the 15,000+ member strong Windsor Village United Methodist Church and served as a spiritual adviser to former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama–was sentenced last month to time in a federal prison for his part in a scheme that defrauding investors out of more than $3.5 million in 2018.

Caldwell pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was sentenced to six years in prison.

According to a statement released by the church, Caldwell expressed his profound remorse and accepted full responsibility for his actions.

“The court found that Caldwell made full restitution to all of the victims,’ the statement continued. “Notably, restitution began prior to indictment and was completed before sentencing. Many victims were paid over and above the amount that they invested.

“Lay Preacher Caldwell, who is no longer an ordained elder in the Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, never stopped serving the community.

As a direct result of this servant leadership, 980 part-time and full-time jobs were created; 258 acres of land have been developed and more than $168 million in economic value has been added to our community, a historically underserved community.”

Caldwell has been ordered to report to the Bureau of Prisons on June 22, 2021. The church is currently being led by his wife, Pastor Suzette Caldwell.

In other church news, Dr. Fauci has set mid-fall as the timeline for a safe return to indoor church services.

That’s indoor services–complete with praise and worship, hugging and choirs– if all goes as planned with getting 70-85% of Americans vaccinated.

Fauci spoke to a group of black faith leaders as part of the Choose Healthy Life Black Clergy Conclave of more than 100 Black clergy, convened by Rev. Al Sharpton and New York pastor Calvin Butts.

On a sad note, the Baptist Minister’s Fellowship announced the January 29 passing of Elder Eugene Bryant who served as pastor of the New Philadelphia Baptist Church. Our condolences.

Corprate Office: 4602 Crenshaw Blvd, Suite 2A, Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 295-5571 www.agapela.org Bishop Craig A. Worsham, Founder & Senior Pastor Sunday School: 10:00am Morning Worship: 11:00am Loving, Lifting & Liberating Humanity Through The Word Bethel Missionary Baptist Church of South L.A. 10905 S. Compton Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90059 (323) 566.5286 Sunday School: 9:30am Morning Worship: 8am • 11am Children’s Church: 11am (2nd/4th Sundays) Evangelism Training/Bible Study/Independent Prayer: (Mon): 7:29pm Mobile Prayer/Bible Study: (Wed) 11am Book by Book Bible Study (Wed.): 6:30pm

Bethesda Temple Apostolic Faith 4909 Crenshaw Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 299-2591 • thevoice4904@att.net Pastor Kyron S. Shorter Sunday Morning Prayer: 9:00am Sunday School: 9:30am Morning Worship: 11:00am Children’s Church: 11:00am Sunday Evening Service: 6:00pm

Bryant Temple AME Church 2525 W. Vernon Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90008 (323) 293-6201 • F: (323) 293-0082 Pastor Dwaine Jackson Sunday School: 8:15am Morning Worship: 9:15 am Bible Study (Tues): Noon Pastor’s Bible Study( Tues): 6:00pm

Calvary Baptist Church 4911 W. 59th Street,Los Angeles, CA,90056 (323)298-1605•F: (310) 568-8430 • calvarybaptistla.org Rev. Dr. Virgil V. Jones Sunday Prayer: 8:30am Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Worship: 11:00am Wednesday Bible Study: 12:00pm & 7:00pm We are the Church on the Hill where the Light Shines Bright!

Congregational Church of Christian Fellowship 2085 S. Hobart Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 Phone: (323) 731-8869 • F: (323) 731-0851 www.christianfellowshipla.org Pastor James K. McKnight Sunday LiveStream: 10:00am (facebook.com/christianfellowshipla) Sunday Conference Call: 10:00am (310-372-7549 / code: 342408) Tue/Thurs Morning Word & Prayer: 7:00am Wed. Bible Study w/ Elder Stephen Brown (701-802-5001 / code: 825252# Crenshaw Christian Center 7901 South Vermont, Los Angeles, CA 90044 (323) 758-3777 • F: (323)565-4231 • www.faithdome.org Pastor Frederick K. Price, Jr. Sunday Service: 9:45am Bible Study (Tue): 11:00am & 7:30pm Tue. Night Children’s Ministry: 7:30pm Tue. Night Bible Study (Teens): 7:30pm Alcohol & Drug Abuse Program (Wed): 7:30pm

God’s Faithful Disciple of Jesus Christ / Prayer Clinic & Deliverance Ministry P.O. Box 561368, Los Angeles,CA 90056 (323)293-7566 • www.gfdjc.org• gfdjc@att.net Ruby Cottle, Ph.D., Pastor & Teacher Prophetess June Morgan / Assistant Pastor

Services Every Friday: 7:00pm -9:30pm We meet at: St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church 3901 West Adams Blvd, LA, CA 90018 Watch Dr. Cottle on HBN TV on Wed’s 7:30am Channel 20 Dish & DirectTV,Channel 3 U-Verse

Grace Temple Baptist Church 7017 South Gramercy Place, Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 971-8192 Rev. Rodney Howard Sunday L.I.F.E Group: 8:30am Sunday Worship Service: 9:30am Wednesday Intercessory Prayer: 6:30pm Wednesday Night Bible Study: 7:00pm E-Mail: gtbcla@gmail.com

Grant AME Church 10435 S. Central Avenue • Los Angeles, CA 90002 (323) 564-1151 • F: (323) 564-5027

Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church 1300 E. 50th Street Los Angeles, CA 90011 (323) 235-2103 • F: (323) 235-3177 • www.mtzionla.org Dr. Edward V. Hill, II, Pastor Sunday Intercessory Prayer: 9:15am Morning Worship: 9:30am Children’s Church: 9:30am Sunday School: 11:30am Baptism: 2nd Sun. & Lord’s Supper: 1st Sunday Tues. Pastor’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Wed. Noon-day Prayer: Noon

FIRST LADY FILES

Crystal Haley

Rev. Dr. J. Arthur Rumph, Senior Pastor Reappointed to Grant AME Church Los Angeles Rev. Dr. James A. Rumph

Sunday School: 8am Worship: 9:30am Wed. Bible Study: 11:30am •6pm

Greater Ebenezer Baptist Church 5300 S. Denker Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 759-4996 Rev. DeNon Porter Early Worship: 8am Sunday School: 9:30am Mid-Morning Worship: 11am Radio-KALI 900AM: Sun. 11-Noon, 7-8pm KTYM 1460AM Sundays: 5:30pm Bible Study (Tues, Wed & Thurs): 7pm

Holman United Methodist Church 3320 W. Adams Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 703-5868 • www.holmanumc.com Email: holman@holmanumc.com Rev. Dr. Ken Walden, Senior Pastor Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Sunday Radio: KJLH 102.3FM at 11:00am Sunday School: 9:30am (Children/Youth) & 9:45am (Adults) Bible Study: Every Thursday @ Noon We Gather,Grow,Go and Live the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

Israel Missionary Baptist Church - A Holy Spirit Filled Church 4501 South Compton Ave, Los Angeles,CA 90011 Church/Fax: (323) 233-3295 or 3296 Website: www.Israelmbc.com • Email: israelmbc@yahoo.com Rev. Rodney J. Howard, Sr. Sunday School: 10:00am Morning Worship: 11:30am Sunset Service: 5:00pm Communion Every First Sunday First Sunday Men In Prayer: 8:30 am Pastor’s Bible Study Tuesdays: 7:30pm McCarty Memorial Christian Church 4103 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 731-4131 • www.mccartychurch.org Senior Pastor Edward Anderson Sunday Worship: 10:45am Sunday School: 9:30am Bible Study: Tues Noon

Mount Moriah Baptist Church of Los Angeles, Inc. 4269 South Figueroa St. Los Angeles, CA 90037 (323) 846-1950 •Fax: (323) 846-1964

A

United Christian’s MBC

s the daughter of Rev. Willie Chambers, pastor of Mt. Moriah Baptist Church in Riverside, Crystal Haley grew up knowing what the life of a pastor was like. But she never envisioned herself one. In fact, when Pastor Nathanial Haley (United Christian’s Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles) first stated his interest in her two decades ago, she declined. The couple, who have known each other 25 years, eventually moved past friendship and have been married and doing ministry together for 10 years.

“The hardest thing for me was having to share my husband with a lot of people,” reveals the Inglewood native. “The phone calls and texts in the middle of the night took some getting used to.”

But the joys of being a pastor’s wife outweigh that challenge.

“My biggest joy is just loving on the members and being able to help,” says Haley, who oversees the women’s ministry Sisters United in Christ and outreach ministry as well as directing the choir. “I am able to work like I was before I was a pastor’s wife. That’s a great blessing for me. It would have been hard for me to just sit because I love praising the Lord and helping.”

Outside of church, this mother of six (she and her husband have a blended family) and grandmother of two has her hands just as full working full time for the Riverside Unified School District and designing and customizing face masks like the one she’s sporting in this picture through her company, Filtered Masks, Inc. The lessons she learned growing up a pastor’s daughter are now sustaining her. “My parents always instilled prayer in us told us, ‘You can’t go anywhere without God and education.”

If you’re interested in one of her facemasks, you can reach out to her at: continue2travel @yahoo.com

New Antioch Church of God in Christ 7826 So. Vermont Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90044 (323) 778-7965 Elder Jeffrey M. Lewis

People’s Independent Church of Christ 5856 West Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 296-577 Pastor Roshod Sundays: Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Wednesday Bible Study & Mid Week Worship: Noon & 7:00pm Prayer Meeting: 6:30pm

St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church 5017 S. Compton Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90011 (323) 231-1040 • stmarkmbcofla.org Reverend Dr. Lovely Haynes, Pastor Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Sunday School: 9:30am Mon-Wed Corporate Prayer: 6:00 - 6:55 pm Monday Night Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday Noon Prayer: 12 Noon Wed. Exposition of Sunday School Lesson: 7:00pm

The Potter’s House at One LA 614 N. La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036 (818) 763-4521 • www.tphla.org Sr. Pastor Toure’ Roberts Sunday Worship: 9:00am, 11:15am & 1:00pm Thursday Midweek Service: 8pm Watch Live: http://tphla.org/watch-live/

Trinity Baptist Church 2040 West Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 735-0044 • F: (323) 735-0219 Rev. Alvin Tunstill, J Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 am YouTube channel: tv.trinitybaptist.cloud Facebook/Website:trinitybaptistchurchofla.org SundayRadio Broadcast KJLH FM: 9:00am Zoom Wed. Night Virtual Bible Study: 7:00pm Sign in to zoom.us click on “join in a meeting” enter meeting ID: 480-271-5449. By phone call 1-699-900-6833 give zoom ID. Sign-in at 6:55pm Weller Street Baptist Church 129 S. Gless St, Los Angeles, CA 90033 (323) 261-0949 • F: (323)264-6601 • www.wellerstreetlive.com Pastor K.W. Tulloss Sunday School: 8:00am Sunday Morning Worship: 9:00am Tues. Bible Study: 6:45pm www.wellerstreetlive.com “We have not walked this way before” Joshua 3:1-6

West Angeles Church of God In Christ 3045 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90016 (323) 733-8300 Bishop Charles E. Blake Sunday School: 8:00am & 10:30am Early Worship: 8:00am Morning Worship: 11:00am Evening Worship (North Campus): 7:00pm Wed. Mid-Week Worship: 7:00pm Sun. Radio Broadcast KJLH 102.3FM: 10am www.westa.tv Peace Apostolic Church 21224 Figueroa Street, Carson, CA 90745 (310) 212-5673 Suff. Bishop Howard A. Swancy

In Carson

Reverend Johnteris Tate-Pastor Sunday Church School: 8:00am Worship Service: 9:15am Baptist Training Union: 7:00am Tues. Bible Study/Prayer:Noon & 7:00pm

Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church 3669 W. 54th St. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 291-1121 F: (323) 291-1133 • office@sinai.church • www.sinai.church George E. Hurtt, Pastor-Teacher Sunday Worship: 8:00am, 10:00am, 12:00pm Tuesday Night in the Truth: 7:15pm Radio: KKLA 99.5 FM (Sat): 9:00pm During the pandemic, all in-person gatherings are suspended. Tune in from our website, YouTube channel or Facebook page.

Sunday Early Morning Worship: 8:00am Sunday School: 9:30 am Morning Worship: 11:00am Tuesday Prayer and Bible Band: 11:00am Wednesday Bible Study: 7:30pm Wednesday in the Word: 7:30pm Park Windsor Baptist Church 1842 W. 108th St. Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 756-3966 • RevTerrellTaylor@sbcglobal.net Rev. Terrell Taylor Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Bible Study Wednesday: Noon & 7:00pm Communion: 1st Sunday at 8:00am & 11:00am

Sunday School: 10:00am Morning Worship: 11:45am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Wed. Noon Day Bible Class: 12:30pm Wed. Bible Class: 7:30pm Citizens of Zion Missionary Baptist Church In Compton 12930 No. Lime Ave., Compton, CA 90221 (310) 638-0536 • F: (323) 636-2080 • www.citizensofzion.org Rev. Bobby Newman, Jr., Senior Pastor; Rev. B.T. Newman, Pastor (Pastor Emeritus) Service Time: 10:45 Virtual Worship: Youtube

Greater Zion Church Family 2408 North Wilmington Avenue, Compton, CA 90222 (310) 639-5535 • (Tues - Thurs 10am -4pm) Dr. Michael J. Fisher, Senior Pastor Sunday Worship: 8:00am|10:45am| 5:00pm Wednesday Bible Study: 12pm|7:00pm FB: GreaterZion IG: GZCFamily www.gzcf.us

The City of Refuge 14527 S. San Pedro Street, Gardena, CA 90248 (310) 516-1433 Bishop Noel Jones

In Gardena

Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Evening Worship: 6:00pm Bible Study (Wed): Noon & 7:00pm BET/Fresh Oil (Wed): 7:00am

In Hawthorne

Holy Chapel Missionary Baptist Church In Compton 1016 E. Rosecrans Avenue, Compton, CA 90220 (310) 537-3149 • F: (310) 537-3149 Rev. Dr. George L. Thomas Sunday School: 9:45am & 10:15am Early Morning Worship: 7:30am Mid-Morning Worship: 11:15am New Members’ Class: 9:45am Holy-Communion (1st Sunday): 7:30 & 11:15am Mid-Week Prayer & Bible Study (Wed)- 7:00pm Broadcast (KALI 900AM - Sunday): 2:00pm3:00pm

Atherton Baptist Church 2627 W. 116th Street Hawthorne,CA 90250 (323) 757-3113 • www.athertonbc.org F: 323-757-8772 • athertonbaptist@sbcglobal.net Pastor Larry Weaver

Love and Unity Christian Fellowship 1840 S. Wilmington Ave, (P.O. Box 5449), Compton 90224 (310) 604-5900, www.loveandunity.org • info@loveandunity.org

Bible Enrichment Fellowship International In Inglewood 400 E. Kelso, Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 330-4700 • www.bamcm.org Dr. Beverly “BAM” Crawford Morning Worship: 9:30am Tues. Bible Study: 7:30pm Wed. Mid-Week Prayer: 5am, Noon & 7:00pm Wednesday Pathway: 7:00pm Thurs Bible Study: 10:00am Sat Marriage & Family Prayer: 7:30am

Apostle Ronald C. Hill, Sr. Founder and Pastor Live Stream Sunday Worship:10am & 6:30pm Live Stream Bible Studies:Wed.7:30pm&Sat 9am Live Stream Prayer w Apostle: Fri: 9am Food For Your Soul TV Ministry Impact Televison Network: Mon-Fri @6:30amPST KJLH 102.3 Sundays 9:00pm

Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00 am Sunday Bible Enrichment Class: 9:45am Mon.-Thurs. Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday Bible Study: 12:30pm & 7:00pm

Blessed Family Covenant Church 325 North Hillcrest Blvd, Inglewood, CA, 90301 (310)-674-0303 • F: (310)-674-0303 • blessedfamilycovenant.org Rev. Wendy Howlett Mon, Wed, Fri Service Times: 10 - 4 Virtual Worship on YouTube Blessed Family Covenant Church

Church of God Center of Hope 9550 Crenshaw Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90305 (323) 757-1804 www.go2Hope.com Pastor Geremy L. Dixon Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Wed. Mid-Week Service: Noon Wed. Teaching Ministry: 7:00pm 1st Sunday Communion 5th Sunday Baptism

Faithful Central Bible Church 321 N. Eucalyptus Ave. Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 330-8000 • F: (310) 330-8035 Bishop Kenneth C. Ulmer, Ph.D. Senior Pastor/Teacher Services at The Tabernacle: Sunday Services: 7:00am, 9:30am & 11:45am Wed. Mid-Week Service: 7:00pm The Tabernacle is located at 321 N. Eucalyptus Ave., Inglewood www.faithfulcentral.com

Pastor Profile: Ronald Bridgette Church: Belmont Avenue Baptist Church How Long at Church: 45 years Hometown: Long Beach Family: Single What do you feel about what's going on in our nation right now and how does it reflect in what you preach on Sunday mornings?

Because of the pandemic and the political divisiveness across our nation, we are preaching the need for much healing, physically, psychologically and spiritually. We had so many deaths this year and so many members who were unemployed and disenfranchised. It's almost indescribable. I've never seen it like this before, but as a man of faith, I believe God is getting ready to do some miraculous things in the lives of these people, because we've experienced so much depression and disenfranchisement, that it's time to move forward.

In times like these people pose challenging questions to their pastors about either what’s happening in the world or why it's happening to them. What may be the most challenging question somebody might've posed to you?

Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?

They feel like they’ve done they could and have lived a life to be proud of, then all of a sudden, the bottom drops out and it seems the storm is never going to end. My response is that God moves in mysterious ways and we have to trust him.

How many members have you lost in your congregation?

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L.A. Focus/February 2021

Is it difficult for you to look at what's happening now and stay positive with your members?

Yes, because some members look at the pastor as being above all this, but this year they’ve come to realize that the pastor is a human being also who has pain and experiences sorrow–some of the same things they go through.

I can identify with a lot of them now, but I became a minister when I was about 14 here in Long Beach and I was just a first-year student in high school.

The Lord had placed in my heart to go into the ministry and of course, I didn't want to go into the ministry and I kind of ran from it because I just wasn't ready. I was going to go to college to become an attorney.

Did you try and reason with God or did you just ignore the call?

No, I tried to get out of it. In fact, there were spiritual leaders who saw where God was dealing with me and were trying to encourage me to just say yes to the will of God,–that everything else would fall in place. I realized after listening to them that they were

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telling me the truth and at 16 I committed my life to the ministry. It still took some time, even though I was always very deeply involved in the church before I stepped into ministry. The choir, the deacon board, usher board which I was a part of, the youth department, meeting people – it was all a part of me and I had to submit.

But it was during the era when the civil rights movement was strong, so there was a lot of movement toward human rights and I wanted to be involved in that.

What did your family think and did you preach to them?

They were all in the church. I had eight brothers and sisters and I preached to them in the backyard and under the apple tree.

How did you come to be at Belmont Baptist church?

It was through the friendship of my predecessor, Dr. John Fryer. He was the pastor at the time. I’d met him through some youth fellowships and Baptist meetings. Dr. Fryer was a proponent of higher education. I had just ended high school and I was in the ministry at the same time and he and his wife fell in love with my ministry and I'd been in love with his ministry. Over time, they became close friends. They had no children and on his death bed, he requested that I become the next pastor of the church.

At the time, I was a youth pastor of our congregation in Long Beach and I didn't want to leave, but the trustee board at that time asked if I’d become their leader temporarily until they knew which way to go concerning leadership. I prayed about it, talked to my pastor and I’ve been here ever since. I was acting pastor from 1976 to 1977 and when Dr. Fryer made his transition in 1977, I was elected and installed to be the next pastor.

How have you evolved as a pastor over the last 45 years?

When I took over as pastor, the church was suffering financially, numerically, and spiritually and I just I was a young teacher in the L.A Unified School District. I don't know where the people came from, but the church began to prosper and grow numerically as well as spiritually.

And we began to reach out into the community every night. Food drives, a women’s shelter–we became involved with those things and helping the community with gang violence which was really rampant. We were able to move forward by the grace of God, with the help of the people.

I went back to school and got my theological training and received my doctorate in philosophy. I'd already acquired two master’s degrees, one from Long Beach State and the other from UCLA. I was teaching and still pastoring at the same time. I was one of those pastors with two jobs.

When did that stop?

I retired in 2016 after 44 years, eight months with LAUSD. How difficult was it to be bi-vocal?

It's a challenge. You really have to be committed. There isn’t much time to do anything else. I look back over it had to be God. Five days you're teaching and you have to be prepared and if there’s a meeting after your regular assignment… Then, you have your church. Also, you have meetings at church and other religious meetings. Of course I was young doing all of this and I wasn't married.

What would you say is your biggest strength?

My biggest strength is prayer and depending and trusting in God to help me in meeting the needs of people, helping people through this pandemic and its restrictions. They tell everybody to stay home and go out only if it's necessary, and I've been a people person all these years. Just talking to people, laughing with people, praying with people, sharing with people and people being in my life, that being a part of their life–I miss that part. So, my biggest strength is prayer, being good to people, being a blessing to people and listening to people.

What is the thing you want to communicate most to the members of your church?

I want them to get a positive relationship, a real relationship with God. By having that real relationship with God, I always remind them that God will reveal to them who they are. Many of our members come from troublesome or disadvantaged backgrounds, so we try to build that selfesteem. We remind them that God has never made junk out of a human being. That everybody is to find your purpose in life–to live life with that purpose.

Don't breathe air and exhale. I ask them this question: “My life is worth l i v i n g because…”

Then I ask them to fill in the blank.

From the Pulpit of: New Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church “Settle In”—Jeremiah 29

I

I've always had a hard time settling in. My friends and family will tell you I used to move around a lot, and when I was moving to a different home, apartment or condo, it would take me a long time to unpack the final box, because, in my mind, that last box meant that I’d settled in.

What is settling in? The definition says: to become comfortable in and accustomed to a new location, environment or circumstance.

One of the benefits of these stay-athome orders we've had for the last nine months, is I've finally had a chance to settle in. Now, I feel comfortable hanging pictures and even cleaning out junk drawers.

You know what I discovered? That settling in is a mindset. The prophet is teaching us in Jeremiah 29 that we need a mindset that helps us to settle in.

See, Jeremiah is a true prophet of God, but he had the unfortunate task of confronting the lies the false prophet Canon had any had told the people that even though they have been taken to Babylon, it wasn't going to last long. But the Spirit had revealed to Jeremiah that this was not true–that they should just settle in because it was going to be a while.

In this text, he writes to the elders, the priests and to the prophets and in that letter, we find some instructions–and even though they were written thousands of years ago to completely different people– they might actually relate to us right now.

Not too long ago, I had a conversation with a member of our church. I was saying how much I missed being at church every Sunday–that I missed the fellowship. I was sharing with them how challenging it is to be a pastor in this virtual space, because a lot of us honestly, criticize what we call TV preachers, and now all of us are, whether we want to be or not.

All of us, in some ways, can feel exiled this year, not only from our houses of worship and the familiar weekly routine of attending church services, but some of you may feel exiled at work. Maybe you had a job that you went to every day…a routine.

You have friends you're used to seeing and going to lunch with and spending time with. Now, you're stuck at home.

It feels like we have lost control, but then there is a word from the Lord. He gives instructions you and I can learn from and apply to the situation we're in now.

The first is to see this as an opportunity. Verse five says, build houses and live in them, plant gardens and eat their produce.

See, the Jewish people were in Babylon by the will of God. He was bringing judgment on Judah for their generations of rebellion. God's plan was that they’d be in Babylon for a long time, so it was best for them to settle in and make the best of their lives while they were there.

Jeremiah writes to the leaders, telling them that they're not going anywhere any time soon, so embrace this opportunity.

When I read that, it made me think about our current situation. We left our church in March and thought we’d be back within a month or two, but I hear the Spirit saying, ‘settle in’.

See, some people believe this is a result of God's punishment. Some believe it’s the mismanagement of our government. I just believe it's science –something that occurs every 100 years. Wherever you fall in your beliefs, we can agree–as Christians and believers–that where we are right now is God's will.

We know it’s God's will, because the Bible says ‘all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose. And since it's God's will, we must become comfortable in this season of preparatory waiting, that's waiting and preparing at the same time.

So, let me ask you a question, what are you doing to embrace this opportunity?

Most of us are just trying to stay safe... to survive. But it shouldn’t be just watching the news all day and seeing the numbers and worrying about the politics and all the issues we're going through.

Have you written down your goals– your visions for the new year? That's how you can embrace the opportunity.

The second thing we learn in the text:

True Friendship Missionary Baptist Church 7901 South Van Ness Ave. Inglewood, CA 90305 (323) 750-7304 Rev. James A. Perkins Sunday School: 9:30am Early Worship: 8am Morning Worship: 10:45am Bible Adventure Hour (Tues): 6pm Bible Study (Tues): 7pm Bible Study (Thurs): Noon

Antioch Church of Long Beach 350 Pine Ave., Long Beach, CA 90802 (562) 591-8778 •www.antiochlb.com Senior Pastor Wayne Chaney, Jr.

In Long Beach

Online Services Stream live: Sunday 10:00 am at antiochlb.com Give: text antiochib to 77977 Social Media: facebook.com/antiochlb instagram.com/antiochlb youtube.com/antiochlongbeach

Christ Second Baptist Church 1471 Martin Luther King, Jr., Ave. Long Beach, CA 90813 (562) 599-3421 • Fax: (562) 599-6175 • www.csbclb.org Rev. Welton Pleasant II, Senior Pastor Sunday School: 8:30am Sunday Worship Service: 9:40am Wed. Bible Study: 7:00pm Wed Youth & Young Adult Ministry: 7:00pm

Verse six says take wives, become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons, they give your daughters to husbands that they may be your sons and daughters and multiply there...

Expand your territory.

Last month, I had a chance to talk to almost 200 of our church members. Many were purchasing homes, paying off debt, losing weight, restoring relationships with family members, getting married.

The wonderful testimonies came out of them using this time to not just wait for it to be over, but to allow them to bloom and to expand their territory.

It makes me think of the parable of the talents where Jesus tells the story to the disciples about a master who gives talents–things you can invest–to his servants. Two of the servants doubled the talents they were given, but the servant given just one talent buried it in the ground because he was too afraid to use it.

The master than took away the talent.

Let me ask you another question–are you burying your talent? Who are you in that story?

I would never have imagined that I’d be doing a sermon sheltering in place. God had to speak to my heart to open up my mind that there's more than one way to reach the masses.

So, first, we learn from the text that we got to embrace the opportunity. That's what Jeremiah was saying, embrace your opportunity, expand your territory.

Here's the final point in the text–impact your community. I believe that's what God is calling us to do right now.

Verse seven

reads, “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”

We are here at this time, but we are still responsible for our community. The first response we have, according to this text, is to pray for our community.

I'm so glad we pray every morning and every Monday night. That is our mandate–to pray and to stand on II Chronicles 7:14, ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land’.

This is the best time to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. To talk to our friends and family about accepting Christ as their personal Savior. To let people know they can have a relationship with Him. That's the greatest impact we can have on our community.

As we see people turn to the Lord, the city will change. That's what Jeremiah was saying. We’ve got to make the best of a tough situation. These are the best of times, and for some people, the worst of times, but even if that's your reality, you can still make it as long as you keep your hand in God's hand.

So, what are we going to learn from this message?

We're going to embrace our opportunities, expand our territory, and impact our community the greatest way we can by sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.

Pastor Sonja Dawson

Christian’s Community Center of Los Angeles 3960 E. Gilman Street, Long Beach, CA 90815 (562) 597-3252 Senior Pastor Thom Washington Live Stream Sunday Service: 11:00am Wednesday Night Prayer: 6:00pm Sunday Bible Class: 9:30am Sunday Afternoon Services: 4:00pm (2nd & 4th Sunday) Wednesday Prayer: 6:00pm Bible Study Wednesday 7pm

Grant AME Church of Long Beach 1129 Alamitos Ave. Long Beach, CA 90813 • (562) 437-1567 grantamelb@aol.com • www.grantamelb.org Rev. Dr. Michael W. Eagle, Sr.

Family of Faith Christian Center 345 E. Carson Street, Long Beach, CA 90807 (562) 595-1222 • F: (562) 595-1444

First United Methodist ChurchCompton 1025 S. Long Beach Blvd •Compton, CA 90221 (310)639-0775•F: (310) 639-1161

Sun. Worship Experience: 10:45am 3rd Sun. Healing & Anointing: 10:45am Wed. Bible Study: Noon & 6pm Mothers of Murdered Youth & Children Where all receive a little attention, affection and love.

Bishop Sherman A. Gordon, E.D. Min

Dr. Arnetha E. Inge, Pastor

Sunday School: 8:00 am Morning Worship: 9:00 am

Sunday School: 8:30am - 9:30am Sunday Morning Worship: 10:00-11:45am TONGAN Worship:1:00pm(2nd&3rd Sundays) Wed. Prayer & Bible Study: 7:30am & 6:30pm

Gospel Memorial Church of God In Christ 1480 Atlantic Ave. Long Beach, CA 90813 (562) 599-7389 • F: 562-599-5779 • gospelmemorial@aol.com Bishop Joe L. Ealy Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Worship: 11:00am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Wed. Intercessory Prayer: 7:00pm Wed. Pastoral teaching adults: 7:30pm Wed. Youth Ministry Boot-Camp; Youth Bible Study: 7:00pm & Choir Rehearsal: 7:30pm

Greater Emmanuel Temple 3740 E. Imperial Highway, Lynwood, CA 90262 (424) 296-0400 •www.greateremmanuel.org

In Lynwood

Pastor Nissan Stewart Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00am Wednesday Prayer: 6:30pm Mid-Week Refuel/Bible Study: 7:00pm (Wednesday) Follow us: @GETFamilyNow The Greater Emmanuel Temple App Available in App Store

Walking In The Spirit Ministries Double Tree (Sonoma Grill) 13111 Sycamore Drive, Norwalk CA 90650 (213) 248-6343 P.O Box 1597 Norwalk CA,90651 Tim & Leshia Brooks

In Norwalk

Morning Worship: 11:00am Services Held Every 2nd & 4th Sunday and Free Breakfast Is Served Bible Study: 8:30am (Every 5th Friday)

Jacob’s Ladder Community Fellowship, inc.

1152 E. Hyde Park Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90302 (866) 330-1702 • F: (310) 674-0760 Watchman/Shepherd Dr. Robert T. Douglas Sr. Sunday Fresh Start & Prayer 9:00am Sunday School: 10:00am Morning Services: 11:45am Evening Service: 7:00pm Wed. Lock & Load Prayer: 7:00pm Wed. Bible Study: 7:30pm 3rd Friday Youth Night: 7:30pm www.jacobladderschurch.com

Arise Christian Center In Westchester 6949 La Tijera Blvd. Suite C,Westchester, CA,90045 (310)568-8445•F: (310) 568-8430 • Arisechristiancenter.com Pastor Ron Taylor Morning Worship: 9:00am & 11:15am Bible Study Wednesday: 7:00pm Intercessory Prayer Tuesday : 7:00pm Intercessory Prayer Sunday: 8am - 8:45am Thursday:11:30am-12:30pm

For more info, call

310.677.6011

InTribute

Our nation lost an icon with the passing of award winning actress Cicely Tyson last month. Tyson, best known for her portrayals of strong black women (i.e. The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman), was the special guest at L.A. Focus’ First Ladies High Tea in 2014. Here she is pictured with (l-r) L.A. Focus publisher Lisa Collins, Isabelle Drake, Myesha Chaney and Debbie Williams.

L.A. Sheriffs continued from page 6

Prop 19 continued from page 12

management we can create a firm that can compete with the big boys. I was honored to be the only person in her career that she ever asked to be a partner! And she offered me a 50/50 split.”

The partnership would take off and accomplish one major deal after another including the largest infrastructure and public works bond in California history worth $1.75 billion in 2008, and another $1 billion dollar deal for the Dallas Area Rapid Transit in 2009. In 2010 Siebert, Brandford and Shank would reach the #8 spot on the list of most powerful Wall Street firms, right ahead of Wells Fargo at #9. Brandford cites this, along with his incredible streak of making a profit for 30 consecutive years of his career, among his greatest accomplishments.

“That’s an unusual thing in our business,” Brandford says of his profit streak. “And making it to the top-ten, being a minority owned firm that ranked higher than Wells Fargo is probably something that will never happen again.”

Now in his retirement Brandford shares his wisdom and expertise with the next generation of investment bankers on how to carry on his legacy of black excellence in the financial sector. While some progress has been for black people in finance, there is much room for growth when it comes to climbing the corporate ladder.

“There are opportunities for blacks to work on Wall Street these days, but having ownership is a whole different ball game,” says Brandford. “The biggest challenge for the black community is to regain the drive to be an entrepreneur and expand your business outside of the black community. A lot of it has to do with segregation forcing us to live within the community, and what it did was limit the viability of black enterprises. So I took that lesson and that’s why I expanded my business outside of traditionally black communities and opened offices in places like Albuquerque, Seattle, Honolulu, and El Paso to name a few. We wanted to put ourselves in the game!”

And though Brandford is a devout capitalist, he does not believe this puts him at odds with trying to make a better society.

“When I’m speaking to students, I give them advice that might not be politically correct these days and some people might view it as a narrowly focused view of the world, but I tell them if you want to have a better life, strive to be a one-percenter. We live in a capitalist society so you need capital to survive, how can you help anyone else if you don’t have anything? My favorite quote is from Reverend Jackson which goes, ‘it’s better to be able to give than have to receive.’

“When I was growing up in the 60’s there was a choice, you could either be socially responsible or financially independent, you had to pick one. What I didn’t realize until the 80’s was that you could do both!”

But what really made Brandford so good at what he did was his work ethic and his vision.

“I was a 125% man,” says Brandford, “Meaning whatever you think your maximum effort is I can do 25% more.

The reason I was able to accomplish so many goals was because I was on a mission. I made it my mission to put a black owned investment firm in the top-ten. When you’re on a mission it’s different from a job or a career.

When you're on a mission there may be obstacles, detours, blind spots and setbacks, but when you’re called from God to do something, none of that matters.

You have to get to the top of that mountain. You can’t let anything deter you from your dream. And none of this can be without faith, that’s the secret. With faith you can do anything.”

(CJLP) at Loyola-Marymount’ Loyola Law School released a comprehensive report documenting how “deputy gangs” have negatively impacted public safety in Los Angeles.

“The concern is that these subgroups foster a culture that resists police reforms, such as community policing and constitutional policing, by encouraging and even celebrating aggressive tactics and excessive use of force against minority communities,” the report stated.

Starting this year, State prosecutors in California must investigate all police shootings that result in the death of an unarmed civilian, under a new law, Assembly Bill (AB) 1506. It took effect on Jan. 1.

Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC), introduced the legislation which will override local prosecutors’ authority in investigations of fatal shootings by police. That responsibility now falls under the AG’s office. It also requires that a detailed report is created and publicly released on each investigation.

McCarty says he was motivated to push the law after he learned that more than 800 people had been shot and killed by police in California since 2015. Only one independent investigation had been carried out.

“Now more than ever there needs to be a uniform standard for local law enforcement officials and district attorneys to call for independent investigations into police killings,” McCarty said. “Police shouldn’t police themselves, and the current system is fraught with conflicts of interest.”

ures for Black-owned property in this country.”

The law, as it is written, would exclude from the term “purchase” and the phrase “change in ownership” for purposes of determining the “full cash value” of property in the purchase or transfer of a family home or family farm, for example.

Hardy Brown, Publisher Emeritus of the Black Voice News in Riverside — the oldest African American-owned newspaper in that city -- says some of the spirit of Prop 19 may have been positive. The state intended to provide financial cover for the mostly White Californians living in fire and flood prone parts of the state in the event disaster happens. But what it ends up doing, he argues, is decimate the wealth of Blacks and other minorities.

“It doesn’t help,” says Brown. “It might make a quick buck for campaign contributors or help the state to be a good neighbor to some people, but severely harms others in the process. What it really ends up doing is putting another law on the necks of Black people in the state of California. It will choke the breath right out of us.”

Under its constitutional mandate, the BOE oversees the assessment practices of the state’s 58 county assessors, who are charged with establishing values for approximately 13.6 million properties each year.

“We are not talking about $25 million palaces in Malibu. We are talking about humble homes. Middle-class homes,” Cohen said. “I live in the Bay View community (of San Francisco). We’re talking about Baldwin Hills of Los Angeles or Encanto in San Diego and other communities throughout California. Homes that were purchased for $100,000 decades ago that now have a market value of over $1 million. These homes were paid for through hard work and could be potentially lost.”

L.A. Focus/February 2021

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New Laws continued from page 9 within a year of the transfer date,” Moon said. “The child has one year to move into the family home and maintain that family home in order to keep the exclusion. But if they move out after three years, the property would be assessed at that point.”

Rates of Black homeownership in California and across the country are still far below that of Whites and other minorities. Critics of the law say the fact that Prop. 19 could set up even more barriers to African Americans owning homes — and straddle struggling families with additional financial burdens — is problematic.

About 2.2 million Black people reside in California, around 5.5% of the state’s population. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the rate of White American homeownership sails over 73%, while that of African Americans stands at 41%, Black Enterprise magazine reported in 2019.

According to data compiled by Lending Tree, the country’s leading online home loan marketplace, Los Angeles is one of the cities with the highest percentage of Black homeowners. Utah’s Salt Lake City, Texas’ San Antonio, Oregon’s Portland, and Northern California’s San Jose are also included on that list.

African Americans primarily generate wealth through homeownership and home inheritances, according to data included in the Urban Institute’s “2019 Black Homeownership Gap: Research Trends and Why Growing Gap Matters” report.

“Homeownership is currently the largest single source of wealth-building” among the Black population, the study stated. Between 2005 and 2008, over 240,000 African Americans lost their homes to foreclosure according to the Center for Responsible Lending.

“The financial crisis triggered a massive destruction of wealth for African Americans,” Alanna McCargo, co-director of the Urban Institute’s Housing Finance Policy Center told the Washington Post in 2019. “Wealth is inextricably linked to housing, and that wealth gap is evident in fig-

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L.A. Focus/February 2021

rnie Hudson may not know what it is truly like to be the veteran boxing coach dad of a decorated soldier struggling with PTSD, but he understands deeply what it means to be a loving, supporting father. That’s the perspective Hudson brought to his latest project Redemption Day, a movie featuring Gary Dourdan as Brad Paxton, a traumatized Marine tasked with saving his wife after she’s kidnapped by terrorists.

“I'm always fascinated with the whole family dynamic, and how those relationships are, Hudson explained in an interview with L.A Focus. “And to see your children in a situation where they're struggling and then this awful thing happens to [them], how do I be there? And not just in terms of support, but how do I create that place where there is a safe place to return to. When all the insanity is done, there is a safe haven that is there, a normal place.

And I have kind of related it to kind of what we've been going through, I think, as a world, with this pandemic and everything, where is that safe place that we can get back to after we go through this? And honestly, I don't know what that is.”

Hudson says he was drawn to the film not only because the story came from a perspective he knew but because it also allowed him to be part of a film addressing the struggles people face coming out of the military.

It is a theme he feels is vital to address. A bit more selfishly, he also admits that his wife’s favorite movie is Casablanca, and he knew he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to film in a country where they were both eager to travel to.

The film is now another part of Hudson’s long and impressive career. Although he is best known for his role as Dr. Winston Zeddemore in the Ghostbusters universe and Warden Leo Glynn in HBO’s Oz, Hudson has over 245 acting credits to his name. A feat he did not necessarily expect but always knew he would achieve.

He admits he never grew up thinking he wanted to be an actor, although he always had an admiration for films and he had participated in church and school plays as a kid, but he never seriously considered acting as the career he would make a living off of.

“It wasn’t until I made a lot of not smart choices” he said.

Hudson had married straight out of high school when his wife, at the time, was only 16 and he was 18. The two had two sons together and with children to feed Hudson’s jobs included everything but acting including work at a telephone company, a soda factory, a car dealership, and jobs as a machine operator and janitor. He also briefly tried to join the United States Marine Corps after high school, but he was discharged three months in due to his asthma.

Hudson decided to enroll at Wayne State University to major in Speech and English, thinking he would pursue writing but his full understanding of his love for acting came when he joined an acting class to fulfill a required elective.

“I just happened to stumble into a theater, literally, and saw this production and I thought, oh my God, I mean, it was so mind-blowing that I thought, man, if you

22

Ernie Hudson could do this for a living. I mean, it was almost a question too big to even ask God for,” he remembered. “When I walked on stage, I just knew. I just felt at home. I knew that, man, if I can do this...and that’s the prayer that you say: ‘Okay God, if I can just do this, if I can just hone this, be good at this.’ This is the one thing.”

“And I never doubted it once I was in it. At times I was frustrated. I wanted this part, I wanted that part, but it was never a doubt because there was never anything else that I could conceivably do. There’s nothing. This is it...You know, you tell yourself I can do anything, not really...It's my calling.”

He graduated from Wayne State University in 1973 and went on to accept a full scholarship to Yale University in the Master of Fine Arts program, another turning point for Hudson.

“At the time," Hudson told LA Focus, “there was such a thing as black theater but at Yale they didn’t acknowledge anything black, especially me. The more opposed they seemed to my ideas about black theater and the community, the more resistant I became. It wasn’t a real good experience because I felt if I immersed myself into their curriculum I would come out a changed person and not changed for the better.”

So, Hudson left Yale a year after he first began his program to star in his first feature film role, Archie in Leadbelly.

While his career was just beginning to thrive, his marriage was not. By the spring of 1976 his marriage had ended and Hudson was suddenly a single father to a 7-year-old and a 10-year-old.

It was a terrifying reality for Hudson who was raised by his grandmother after his mother died when he was just three months old and without his dad and therefore had to learn by himself what fatherhood involved.

For clarity and guidance, Hudson often turned to what he learned from his grandmother, who was very religious.

“People say they grew up in the hood, but I really grew up in church. My house to the church was pretty much where I was,” he said.

He remembers his grandmother as an equally universally spiritual person who would share a unique perspective when it came to God. “She just always made me feel that God or that concept of God was there

for everyone and it was a source that you call on and it didn’t really require anything that you did or didn’t do.

And I think the difference between her and other people in the church was they felt if you behave this way, you get to utilize it. And if you behave that way then you're on your own. My grandmother felt that this is personal.”

“I understood not knowing my mother because death is final and there’s nothing you can do about that,” he added. “But I couldn’t understand not having a father...She would say--because I didn’t know my dad-God is your father.”

It was a belief and lesson he held onto when he first became a single dad. He knew things were going to be okay because the universe and God was there to provide, he said.

“The Bible talks about surrender...Because a lot of times even though I would say I believe in God and God is there and all that, you get busy and sometimes you just kind of forget that...and when I think I’m in control and then it falls apart that’s usually when I just had to surrender and just sort of go to the Lord’s prayer of Psalms 23, the Lord is my shepherd. And I just have to remember that God is my shepherd and that the table is provided to me,” he shared.

“My grandmother used to say, even though I walk through the valley and shadow of death, she said, son, just keep walking. You don't take up residence. Don't linger there, just go through and trust that you will get through. So there are times when, honestly, as a single dad, I couldn't see tomorrow. I mean, there were things pressing, things were due, and I would sit there with my two sons and I just don't know how we're going to... but the waves always provided. And I've learned to not put so much faith in my own intelligence, in my own abilities. Ultimately, it's all me, of course, but I just learned to give thanks for that source.”

Now, Hudson looks forward to more projects. He’s not looking for one particular role but instead, at this stage of his life he says he’s looking for roles that have some kind of universal connection or theme people can relate to, like his role in Redemption Day. “A lot of the things that I did, I did because my kids were in college or they were in diapers or the mortgage had to be paid. But the kids are all grown up and on their own, the mortgage is paid.

So, I have to ask myself, is it fun?

Otherwise, I’d really rather just be home. So just finding those things that I think have meaning to me, that is what I want to do...So I don't know what that means in terms of maybe I won't be doing as much, working as much. I don't have to and I'm aware of that.”

Redemption Day is now available in select theaters and on demand and digital on January 12th.