Focus 11.15

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L.A. FOCUS

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LAFOCUSNEWS<<

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Pastors Demand Apology From Black Lives Matter PAGE

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Finding Your Pretty Spotlight on Kim Kimble PAGE

SEE PAGE

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>> COMES Saving Grace Pooch Hall

TO THE SOUTHLAND SEE PAGE

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Essence Atkins

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contents L.A. Focus Publication

November 2015

Left: Dr. Bobby Jones, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Daisy Lewellyn, L.A. Focus publisher Lisa Collins and Pastor Ron Gibson at 18th Annual First Ladies High Tea; (Middle) Dr. George McKenna, Congresswoman Karen Bass and Council President Herb Wesson mark the occasion of Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson’s first 100 days in office; (RIght): Bishop Charles E. Blake with Dr. Isadore Hall, III at the Vanguard Awards last month in Los Angeles

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14 Inside Hollywood 16

Commentary

Calendar/Around LA

“Who Is A Real Black?”—Star Parker

From The Editor Lisa Collins

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Grace Jones Is Back?; Sanaa Lathan Gets New Series...

Upfront Black Lives Matter Disruptions May Hurt Message; Another Win For Legal Marijuana; Blackface Incidents Spark Concern

One On One Margaret Avery

17 Head To Head 8 Headlines From Africa 18 10 Feature Story 19 Money Matters 12 20 Red Carpet Style 13 21

Through The Storm Singer Beverly Crawford Defeats Bullies & Cancer

Open Season On Police?

Gamechangers: Five Blacks Who Are Making Big Moves In The City of Angels

Summit To Help Blacks Become Players in $257 Billion Insurance Industry

The Paley Center’s Hollywood Tribute To African American Acheivements In TV

staff Publisher/Editor-In-Chief Staff Writers Contributors Photographers Advertising

Lisa Collins Stephen Oduntan Chez’ Hadley Larry Elder Bill Jones, Ian Foxx Kisha Smith

Church News Pastors Demand Apology from L.A. Chapter of Black Lives Matter

First Lady Files Andrea Robinson-Resurrecion Church L.A

Pastor Profile Jawane Hilton—City On The Hill

From The Pulpit Pastor Ron Hill—Love & Unity

With Bro Steve

Nancy Wilsons Mac & Cheese

Pooch Hall

With Chez

This month marks the release of the first book from Shonda Rhimes, titled “Year Of Yes”, documenting how saying “yes” to everything for an entire year set her on a path to major success in the television industry.

advisory board Napoleon Brandford Pastor Beverly Crawford Marc T. Little

Siebert, Brandford, Shank & Co. Bible Enrichment Fellowship International Church Law Offices of Marc T. Little

honorary advisors West Angeles C.O.G.I.C. City of Refuge

@LAFocusNews

23 24 In Good Taste 25 Saving Grace 26 Finding Your Pretty Eye On Gospel

Paradise Baptist Church Southern MBC

F. A.M.E. Church Faithful Central Bible Church Mt. Moriah Baptist Church Mt. Zion MBC

Bishop Charles Blake Bishop Noel Jones Dr. Aaron D. Iverso Rev. Xavier L. Thompson Dr. Cecil Murray Bishop Kenneth C. Ulmer Rev. Melvin Wade Rev. E.V. Hill II

Cover Design: Joseph Anthony

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 Fax: (310) 677-2338 Subscription rates $25.00 per year.

Copyright, January 1995 by L.A. Focus Publications. All rights reserved. Unsolicited manuscripts/photographs are not accepted, nor shall any responsibility for them be assumed.

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Commentary Star Parker

Who Is a 'Real' Black?

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upert Murdoch got the predictable avalanche of liberal pushback when he recently tweeted, "Ben and Candy Carson terrific. What about a real black president who can properly address the racial divide? And much else."

What? Murdoch is suggesting our current president is not a "real black"?

Soon, following the explosion of liberal outrage, another tweet followed from Murdoch, "Apologies! No offence meant. Personally find both men charming."

What exactly is it about Murdoch's statement that so incensed these liberals?

Perhaps the suggestion that some blacks are "real," and some not? Or is it Murdoch's suggestion that "real" blacks are conservative?

It is no secret that since the civil rights movement, liberals have controlled black politics. So much so, that blacks are automatically assumed to be liberal.

For years, despite growing evidence to the contrary, it was taken as an indisputable fact of life that big government socialism was the answer to black social and economic problems. When the few conservative blacks, like me, emerged on the scene to challenge this and propose a conservative alternative, liberal boilerplate reaction was that only a black being paid off by Republicans could propose such nonsense.

In other words, liberal blacks have peddled for years that black conservatives are not "real."

Ben Carson's story is certainly not a story that black liberals want told as a black story.

The idea of a young black man rising from a ghetto in Detroit to head of pediatric neurosurgery at John Hopkins Hospital, and attributing his achievement to values, hard work, and education — and not to government programs — is the last thing any self-respecting liberal wants conveyed as typical.

As Dawn M. Turner writes in the Chicago Tribune, "Folks, Carson included, make the mistake of believing that he had some formula, some secret sauce for achievement, when the reality is that for every kid like him who climbs out of poverty, so many fall by the wayside."

Now certainly there is no "secret sauce" for becoming one of the world's leading pediatric neurosurgeons.

But there is a "secret sauce" for rising out of poverty in America.

Guest Columnist Brookings Institute scholar Ron Haskins lays it out.

According to Haskins, there are three rules for not being poor in America. "Complete at least a high school education, work full time, and wait until age 21 and get married before having a baby."

"Based on an analysis of census data," continues Haskins, "people who followed all three of these rules had only a 2 percent chance of being in poverty and a 72 percent chance of joining the middle class."

Over the forty years from 1974 to 2014, black household poverty rates changed from 30 percent to 26.2 percent. Not exactly a meaningful change, particularly given the trillions spent on anti-poverty programs.

Black poverty is centered on single parent black households. The breakdown of the black family, and the almost tripling of black out-of-wedlock births over this forty-year period, is the product of displacement of traditional family values with welfare state programs.

These welfare state programs, and the propping up of union-controlled failing inner city public schools, are both the babies of the liberal establishment.

It is, of course, ridiculous to suggest that some blacks are "real" and others are not.

But it is not ridiculous to suggest that some solutions to black problems are "real" and others are not.

The "real" solutions for black problems begin with giving black parents alternatives to the failed public schools where poor black children are trapped, restoring the black family — once the pillar of black life in America — and building a culture of ownership and entrepreneurship.

Ben Carson is a poster child for these conservative solutions. And surely why liberals would be so upset when anyone would refer to him as a "real black."

Star Parker is an author and president of CURE, the Center for Urban Renewal and Education. Contact her at www.urbancure.org.

DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM.

Note: Last month’s commentary was incorrectly credited to Thomas Sowell. It was penned by Councilman Marqueece Harris Dawson

From the Editor From The Ridiculous To The Sublime

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The columnist described the mother of the couple’s three sons, and grandmother of two—who met her husband while majoring in music, psychology and pre-med at Yale University, as a “confident ray of sunshine: down-to-earth, devoutly Christian and proudly patriotic”. Of the contrast to Obama, she wrote, “While Mrs. Obama first gained notoriety carping about racism and trashing America, Mrs. Carson helped kick off her husband's 2016 bid by playing the violin with a gospel choir as they performed a joyful, rousing rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner.”

In politics, wives have become fair game, and the more offensive remarks directed toward Candy Carson and Michelle Obam are those tied to the differences in their appearance.

And yes, appearance does matter and politicians know it. Recall that GOP handlers spent $150,000 at Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus to dress Sarah Palin for the campaign trail when they recruited her to run for Vice-President.

That said, comparisons between Obama and Carson have popped up all over social media. While airing her disapproval of the attacks on Candy Carson’s appearance, columnist Demetria Lucas D’Oyley (theroot.com) went on to add that she could use a glam squad.

“Well-meaning sympathizers of Candy Carson have excused her appearance as aresult of her religious beliefs,” D’Oyley wrote. “She is a devout Seventh-day Adventist, a religion that discourages women from wearing makeup and jewelry and emphasizes a modest appearance. OK. But religion and modesty are not synonymous with ill-fitting and unflattering and out-of-date.”

As I recall while Michelle Obama is clearly one of today’s biggest fashion icons, it was a role she evolved into, and being first lady does have its perks—among them having every designer in the country vying for you to wear their designs More importantly, this country is facing a lot of serious issues with critical implications and consequences and we need to be sure that the person we elect has the ability to solve them and not be so concerned about what his wife looks like.

Turning to this month’s issue, be sure and check out our cover story on page 10 to read about five blacks who remind us of all that is possible in a world laced with evermounting challenges. Not only are you sure to be hearing a lot more from and about them, but they are living examples of how changing the world around us starts with us.

Keep the faith. (And rest in peace, Frederick A. McNeill).

L.A. Focus/November 2015

picture never tells the full story but late last month in South Carolina videos from several different cellphones in a Spring Valley high school algebra class, showed a complete enough picture for everyone to agree South Carolina field deputy Ben Fields, who is also a near 300-pound power weight lifter needed to go. The now infamous videos caught Fields slamming the 16-year old and her desk to the ground, then yanking her like a rag doll out of the seat and tossing her across the room before pinning her to the floor and handcuffing her.

He’s now fired and that’s great, but what disturbed me equally about the tape wasthe response from the teacher and a school administrator, who at no point, felt they should step in and stop the officer.

In fact, in defense of Field’s actions the subsequent violent arrest of the teen, the classroom teacher reportedly said, “She should have cooperated.”

What was not broadcast so widely was that close to 100 black and white students alike walked out of class in a brief protest to show their support for the deputy, who was also part of the school’s football coaching staff.

While kids are increasingly unruly in classrooms across America, it is important to note that often teachers, school administrators and police aren’t much older than the kids and aren’t emotionally equipped to handle problem kids. Then there are those kids that need more professional help. That needs to be addressed and that’s the story that unfortunately didn’t get told.

Moving on to another story in the news, I rarely agree with Senator Ted Cruz about anything, but after viewing the latest GOP debate I found myself agreeing with him, when he said this to moderators: "You look at the questions: 'Donald Trump, are you a comic-book villain?,' 'Ben Carson, can you do math?,' 'John Kasich, will you insult two people over here?,' 'Marco Rubio, why don't you resign?,' 'Jeb Bush, why have your numbers fallen?' How about talking about the substantive issues people care about?”

In truth, televised political debates have more and more become about pitting candidates against each other for the kind of heated exchanges and personality conflicts that make for higher TV ratings, and while some of them—courtesy of Donald Trump—have been pretty interesting, we all should be more concerned about who can really do the job and less about who looks the most presidential.

Speaking of which—and getting to the sublime, Ben Carson’s wife, Candy Carson is now being dubbed, “the Anti Michelle Obama” by those like conservative columnist Michelle Malkin.

LISA COLLINS Publisher

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UpFront Black Lives Matter Disruptions May Hurt Message STEPHEN ODUNTAN Staff Writer

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ast month in Los Angeles, a group of Black Lives Matter activists shouted down Mayor Eric Garcetti during a heated town-hall meeting at the Holman United Methodist Church as the mayor attempted to discuss a wide range of issues—intended to improve his strained relationship with the black community of South L.A. About 50 protesters stood and turned their backs on the mayor as he spoke at the forum in church—eventually moving outside, when they surrounded and chanted at him—as he walked to his car.

Their actions drew ire from Black religious leaders. (See our church news story on page 18).

"With Black Lives Matter being a new organization with young activists, they don't have the experience or discipline to be more effective advocates," said Ali, the director of the advocacy group Project Islamic Hope. "They seem like a one-trick pony and all they can do is disrupt and make noise."

In August, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders left a campaign event in Seattle without giving a speech after "Black Lives Matter" activists took over the podium and brought the rally to a halt.

“We’re shutting this event down— now,” said an activist who suddenly leaped on stage.

When Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump vowed he would never let something like that happen to him— referencing the Sander’s incident— #BlackLivesMatter tweeters took up the challenge, tweeting "Trump just called us out let's make sure we take his [expletive] mic!!! Republicans are the real enemies."

And marking the first time Black Lives Matter protesters interrupted a Hillary Clinton event since she officially entered the 2016 presidential race, late last month during a campaign gathering in Atlanta, the former secretary of state attempted to show solidarity with the black community, activists disrupted a speech she was making about civil rights leaders.

"I appreciate their passion," Clinton said after they were escorted out of the room, "but I'm sorry they didn't listen because some of what they're demanding, I am offering."

Ironically, many may agree with some of the Black Lives Matter movement’s goals, but as encounters like what happened in Atlanta and the one at Holman Church spring up across the nation, that passion is being misinterpreted and could potentially hurt their message.

More and more are wondering if the conversation surrounding such protests is drawing attention from the real issues of racial disparities in policing and justice as people are increasingly finding it harder and harder to defend the movement in the wake of such antics.

“There’s something wrong when your activism overshadows your message, said Reverend K.W. Tulloss of the Waller Street

Baptist Church.

“Nine times out of ten,” he added, “it seems the issue is more about them rather than the issue at hand.”

The movement, which was born out of the fatal shooting of 17-year old Trayvon Martin in 2012, gained national momentum with the fatal police shooting of 18year old Michael Brown.

But in recent months, much of the discussion about the movement has centered on its confrontational tactics—how to control the message and survive bad publicity.

Dr. Melina Abdullah, a professor and the Chair of Pan-African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles—a prominent leader of the L.A. Black Lives Matter movement—said, “Being polite has run its course and so if it requires disrupting the system, then that’s what we shall do.”

When asked to address criticism levied against the movement’s approach, Abdullah told L.A. Focus, “As black people, we’ve always been engaged in a range of different types of activism.

It’s never been just one approach. And so if some people disagree with our approach, they are free to employ another approach that works best for them.

“But we have to let our voices be heard. And so, we intend on engaging in the same approach.”

Self-described, “grandfather” of the Black Lives Matter movement Greg Akili voiced similar sentiments; pointing out that the use of “polite politics” hasn’t yielded any positive results in the black community.

Public officials, Akili, 67, noted haven’t necessarily lived up to their promises.

“When Hillary Clinton takes money from the private-prison industry; that doesn’t look like she’s supporting justice,” Akili said.

Subsequently, following increased pressure from Black Lives Matter and other groups, Clinton pledged to ban the use of private-prison companies if elected, and also said in the meantime will no longer accept campaign donations from lobbyist and corporations that work for them.

Akili believes had there not been a Black Lives Matter movement that challenged Hillary Clinton for receiving donations from the private-prison lobbyist, the chances are she would not have stopped taking money from them on her own.

For reasons such as this, Akili said, Black Lives Matter is “extremely dissatisfied” with the status quo.

He said while participants in the movement “want justice and peace” – they are not interested in dialog when there still exist a dangerous societal refusal addressing “white denial” and the long history of police violence against people of color.

“We don’t get no justice,” he said, “you don’t get no peace.”

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There’s something wrong when your activism overshadows your message...

”

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UpFront Another Win for Legal Marijuana As Issue Still Divides Californians

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n October 9, 2015, Gov. Jerry Brown signed three bills into law establishing what he calls an “overdue” regulating system for the state’s estimated $2.7 billion medical marijuana industry, a number that has grown 74% from $1.5 billion in 2013, according to Arc View Market research.

Some onlookers saw the move as one more step in the direction of full legalization of cannabis in the state, although Californians remain deeply divided on the issue. This year, the Public Policy Institute of California conducted a statewide survey and found 53% of residents support the legalization of marijuana, 45% oppose it, and 2% are undecided. The survey also found 63% of African Americans and 57% of whites support the legalization of marijuana.

The Governor says the Medical Maridjuana Regulation and Safety Act will create standards for licensing businesses as well as set rules for packaging, labeling, testing, and tracking marijuana.

"This new structure will make sure patients have access to medical marijuana, while ensuring a robust tracking system," Brown said in a signed statement.

"This sends a clear signal to our federal counterparts that California is implementing robust controls not only on paper, but in practice."

Although California legalized medical marijuana in 1996, no regulatory bill put forth by lawmakers has passed the state’s legislature. The new law, however, creates a comprehensive state licensing system for the commercial cultivation, manufacturing, labeling, retail sale, transport, distribution, delivery, and testing of medical marijuana.

The law requires all cultivation and manufacturing licensees to send their products to a state agency for quality assurance and inspection before passing them to the next stage of manufacturing or retailing. Counties may also now levy a tax on the dispensing, producing, pro-

cessing, and distributing of cannabis.

New marijuana regulations also preserve the right of individuals to grow small amounts of medical marijuana for personal use. Now, many groups around the state would like to take it a step further by working to qualify a voter initiative for the 2016 ballot that would allow adults to grow and use specific amounts of marijuana for recreational purposes.

President and Founder of the Greater Los Angeles Collective Alliance, Yamileth Bolanos, is an advocate for marijuana use and has been in the trenches working to obtain more regulation. GLACA’s mission is to provide patients safe access to medical marijuana while they adhere to a strong code of operational guidelines. Bolanos strongly believes an unregulated market only causes problems.

“It’ll clear up a lot of the legal aspect because now it’s used to put a lot of our Latino and Black men in prison,” she said. “It doesn’t make sense to me how a 21-year-old adult can consume all the alcohol they want and go crazy, but can’t consume marijuana, which doesn’t make you crazy.”

Celebrities have publically spoken about the advantages of legalizing marijuana. In an interview with Time Magazine, John Legend said, “Criminalizing drug abuse only further shatters people and families that (when referring to people should use who” not ‘that”) are already in pieces.”

Within the last 10 years, California has taken a number of steps to relax criminal penalties for use and possession of marijuana. Prior to that, the numbers were alarming. In 2010, the state ranked fourth in the nation for marijuana possession charges with over 57,000 arrests.

L.A. County alone accounted for 15,643 arrests. The Drug Policy Alliance report revealed data that Blacks were 3.73 times more likely to be arrested than whites on marijuana possession charges

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STEPHEN ODUNTAN Staff Writer

“If more students were educated about the history of blackface,” Hunter said, “they might be sensitive toward cultural differences.”

Interestingly enough, the frequency at which fraternities and sororities chapters have gotten into trouble because of racist-tinged events may be glimpses into a culture that is more widespread.

In another incident earlier this year, two dozen students at the University of Oklahoma fraternity took part in a racist chant about African Americans and lynching that was videotaped and went viral.

James Olonade, a San Diego State University grad student, said, “the level of ignorance well documented at prominent higher learning institutions is compounded by the fact that minorities are underrepresented.”

Others underscore the fact that “white privilege” is so deeply and subconsciously embedded in the fabric of white America that often it affects awareness of cultural differences.

“The Kanye Western incident is a classic example of white privilege and lack of Blackface continued to page 22

California Targets Blacks & Latinos in New Round of Obamacare Covered California still faces major challenges in enrolling Blacks and Latinos as the state’s health insurance exchange launched its third open enrollment period Nov. 1.

“We know we’ve come up short in who’s enrolled today,” Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee said at a recent media briefing on the exchange’s marketing and outreach plans. “Of those who are still uninsured, we want to make sure we reach them.”

About 2.4% of the exchange’s approximately 1.3 million enrollees are African American and only about half of the Blacks considered eligible for subsidies because of their income.

Another 30% are Latino; 37% of whom are considered eligible for subsidies, according to Covered California data.

In contrast, enrollment of whites and Asians has exceeded eligibility projections, meaning that Covered California was better able to reach those groups. The state’s enrollment data is not exact because more than a quarter of enrollees decline to state their race.

While many more California Latinos and African Americans have become insured since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, including through the state’s Medi-Cal expansion and employer-based insurance, Covered California’s experience echoes that of other states trying to ensure that their minority populations get the health coverage they need, said Larry Levitt, senior vice president at the Kaiser Family Foundation.

About 55% of the nation’s remaining 32.3 million uninsured under age 65 are people of color, including 34% who identify as Hispanic/Latino and 14% who identify as Black, according to Kaiser Family Foundation data.

In California, about 2.2 million Californians remain uninsured but are eligible for Medi-Cal or Covered California insurance plans, Lee said. They are more likely to be Latino and African American, and younger and slightly more affluent than current enrollees, who may have qualified for subsidies or Medi-Cal, the state’s version of Medicaid. Covered California’s open enrollment runs from Nov. 1 to Jan. 31, 2016.

Covered California has earmarked about $50 million for marketing and another $13 million for trained counselors who help people learn about and sign up for coverage.

Episcopals Install First Black Leader

The Rt. Rev. Michael Bruce Curry, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, who was elected and confirmed to be the next Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church at the 78th General Convention in June was officially installed November 1 at Washington’s National Cathedral. Curry is the first AfricanAmerican to be elected Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church. He will also serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society and chair of the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church.

L.A. Focus/November 2015

mockery of black culture.”

UCLA officials said it is investigating the party and issued the following statement.

“While we do not yet have all the facts, the alleged behavior is inconsistent with good judgment as well as our principles of community. We remind students that while they are free to celebrate in ways that draw on popular culture, their specific choices can cause harm and pain to fellow members of their community. Put simply: Just because you can do something does not mean you should.”

The statement, however, also triggered a separate debate over the students right to freedom of speech and how the university should address sensitive racially charged issues.

But Marcus Hunter, an assistant professor in sociology and African American Studies at UCLA argues that while freedom of speech is undoubtedly one of the cornerstones of American democracy, oftentimes, however, it’s used loosely where it doesn’t apply. Hunter told L.A. Focus that the right to free speech comes with responsibility.

News Brief

California Black Media

across the country.

Recent national numbers still show racial disparity when it comes to criminal charges related to marijuana possession. In 2013, according to the Drug Policy Alliance, 40% of African Americans were incarcerated in state or federal prison for drug law violations.

Although drug use is similar across racial and ethnic lines, Blacks and Latinos are more likely to face drugrelated legal penalties than whites.

“It's the result of policies that criminalize poverty and make prisons and jails become warehouses for deeply damaged people with little or no access to mental health or substance abuse treatment,” says Legend. “Instead, let’s invest those resources in our neighbors and family members so they don’t end up in the system to begin with, and if they do, so they can get back on their feet.”

According to the Drug Policy Alliance in 2013 the U.S. spent more than $51 billion on the war on drugs according to the Drug Policy Alliance. It is estimated that taxing and regulating the sale of marijuana will raise $1.4 billion in revenue for the state of California alone.

High profile criminal defense attorney, Robert Shapiro, is against the legalization and possible recreational use of cannabis. After losing his son to alcohol and drug overdose, Shapiro created the Brent Shapiro Foundation for Alcohol and Drug Awareness. He believes the use of marijuana may be a gateway to other illicit substances.

“If it’s available for recreational use, kids may start using marijuana at a younger age”, says Shapiro. “How do you monitor people driving under the influence and test for it?”

Blackface Incidents Spark Concern An Alabama elementary school teacher was recently at the center of another racially charged social media backlash after a controversial Halloween photo surfaced of him covered in blackface.

Last month, several white UCLA students attended a fraternity party—cohosted by the local chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon and the Alpha Phi sorority— reportedly wearing blackface and dressed in racially offensive outfits at a Kanye West- and Kim Kardashianthemed party.

The party ignited angry protest as several students rushed Chancellor Gene Block’s office chanting “Black Bruins matter,” and demanded immediate and effective action against what they denounced as insulting caricatures of black people that reinforce racist stereotypes.

Hundreds of other students marched on campus wielding signs that read, “Our culture is not a costume.”

Alicia Frison, a black student union member at the University, said, “The issue isn’t simply about putting on blackface, it is also about the entire

MADLEN GRGODKAIAN

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Open Season On Police? n recent months there spoon.

Open Season have been a series of The truly tragic cases cases reported in the involve some really young kid On Police media, where some teenage — maybe ten years old or so — thug — white, black or Hispanic in differ- who has a very realistic-looking toy gun, ent cases — has been stopped by a police- and has removed the red plastic attachman for some routine violation of the law ment that is supposed to show that it is not and, instead of complying with lawful a real gun. When he turns his realisticinstructions, such as "show me your dri- looking toy gun on a policeman, and refusver's license," chooses instead to defy the es to drop it, that can turn out to be the last policeman, resist arrest and finally ends up mistake of his young life. physically assaulting the cop.

Someone in the In the most recent case, the teenager media recently comhappened to be white, but the story doesn't plained that a policeseem to change much, whatever the com- man shot a boy who plexion of the guy who violated the law. had a toy gun "within Nor does the sad ending change, with the seconds" of arriving on young wise guy shot dead. Nor do the reac- the scene. When sometions of the media and the parents vary one has a gun, and much. refuses to drop it, a "He was only a kid" is an almost auto- policeman can be Thomas matic reaction of the parents and the killed within seconds. A Sowell media. "He didn't deserve to be killed" over dialogue under these a traffic violation, or because he didn't drop conditions can be a fatal luxury he cannot a toy gun when ordered to, or some other afford. minor infraction.

There is something grotesque about Are we so addicted to talking points and people sitting in safety and comfort, blithesound bites that we can't be bothered to ly second-guessing at their leisure what a use common sense? If you are killed by a policeman did when he had a split second teenager, you are just as dead as if you had to make a decision that could cost him his been killed by the oldest man in the world. life, leaving behind a widow and orphans.

It doesn't matter how minor the law vioYou cannot have law without law lation was that caused the young guy to be enforcement. If cops are supposed to back stopped. He wasn't shot for the violation — down whenever they are confronted by which could have been jay-walking, for all some brassy young thug, that may indeed the difference it makes. He was shot for save a few lives among the thugs. But that attacking the police, after having foolishly just means that a lot of other lives will be escalated a routine encounter into a per- lost under "kinder, gentler" policing. sonal confrontation.

After this year's widespread indulIrrational statements by the young gences in anti-police rhetoric by politicians, man's parents may be understandable the media and race hustlers, how surprised when they discover that their son is dead. should we be by the dramatic upsurge in But for media people to make such mind- murders after law enforcement had been less statements to a nationwide audience is undermined? just grossly irresponsible.

Laws without law enforcement are just In an atmosphere where second-guess- suggestions. Imagine if highway speed ing policemen has become a popular sport signs are replaced by signs that say, "We in the media, as well as among politicians, suggest you not drive faster than 65 m.p.h., there is always someone to say that there please." Do you doubt that many more lives must have been "some other way" for the will be lost on the highways? policeman to handle the situation.

Maybe the parents who are so bitter Utter ignorance of what it is like to be in over the loss of a son in a wholly unnecessuch situations does not seem to make the sary confrontation with a policeman doing second-guessers hesitate. On the contrary, his job might ask themselves if they did ignorance seems to be liberating, so that their job, when they raised a child without "excessive force" has become an almost teaching him either common sense or comautomatic comment from people who have mon decency. no basis whatever for determining how Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the much force is necessary in such situations. Hoover Institution, Stanford University.

You can't measure out force with a tea- Visit www.tsowell.com. CREATORS.COM

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Headlines From Africa Angola: In an effort to broaden and diversify the amount of external finance it can draw on, Angola has launched of $1.5bn worth of sovereign debt bonds, marking the oil-rich southern African country’s entry into the international capital market. It is believed the move could attract European and American investors while enhancing Angola’s image.

L.A. Focus/November 2015

Botswana: Speaking at a Job Summit in partnership with the Human Resources Development Council (HRDC), Botswana’s Vice President Mokgweetsi Masisi said that while the government had the budget and the political will to resolve unemployment, it was not ready to create jobs in public service. “We are not intending to create jobs in government. We want to facilitate for you the private sector to create more jobs,” Masisi said. “If there are no more jobs (being) created, it is the private sector that has failed.”

Burundi: The European Union has invited Burundi’s government to talks in an attempt to restore peace, as violence sparked by the controversial re-election of President Pierre Nkurunziza’s to a hotly disputed third term has resulted in increasing violence across the nation. The talks are proposed to held in Brussels this month.

Cameroon: The Cameroon army retook Kerawa, a town of 50,000 in the far north of the country that was briefly seized by Boko Haram jihadists. Authorities there reported that the jihadists had been considerably weakened and were in desperate need of food, logistics and military equipment.

Congo: Under orders from African warlord Joseph Kony, elephants are being poached from Garamba National Park and killed for their ivory, which rebels then trade it for supplies in Sudan, according to a report released by the watchdog group, Enough Project. Kony is the subject of an intensive manhunt.

Djibouti: The erratic conduct of Djibouti president, Ismail Omar Guelleh is raising concerns about the future of a vital U.S. intelligence-gathering base that plays a key role in targeting al-Qaeda and ISIS militants in Yemen and Syria. Guelleh’s behavior has been so unpredictable that he was summoned to make an unprecedented appearance in a London court,

8

ecently, someone on my brutalizing of black men. But newsfeed Open Season? they, of course, do see a pattern Facebook posted a video of police Cry Me a River of growing hostility against law officers responding to a disenforcement. traught man wielding a machete.

When an overzealous Cleveland police Described as an “amazing video for edged officer ignores all rationale thinking and weapon training”, it starts with the seven kills a 12-year-old boy holding a toy gun, officers on the scene attempting to gain then adds salt to an open wound, pleading control of the deranged man violently immunity and ignorance, one cannot be swinging the machete and taunting police. surprised at the public outrage.

The footage was captured on a London These are not just isolated incidents of street. You could see police officers overreacting. Eric Garner the man lunge forward died in Staten Island, New York after offitowards the officers, cers approached him on suspicion of selling forcing them into tem- “loosies” (single cigarettes) from a pack porary retreat. without tax stamps—ultimately putting It was mayhem. But him in a “chokehold” for 15 to 19 seconds. after a few tense minThe infamous video and events leading utes, the attack reced- to Garner’s death were “very disturbing”, ed when dozens of former President George Bush said. police officers desAll things considered, some people are Stephen cended on the location. incapable of seeing anything past their Oduntan In a swift, well-coordi- noses like former LAPD detective Mark nated response, officers moved toward the Fuhrman, a frequent Fox News commentaman, shutting down any possible room for tor. Despite becoming a universal symbol escape or to use the machete, — all without of police bigotry and the epitome of a rogue discharging a single bullet. cop, Fox news provides Fuhrman a platNow, close your eyes and picture form on cable TV to defend excessive force.

American law enforcement faced with the In making reference to the chokehold same scenario. What are the chances the death of Garner, Fuhrman said NYPD offimachete-wielding suspect would not have cers were simply trying to “enforce the been riddled with high-velocity missiles laws” about selling loose cigarettes. from the guns of the officers?

Fuhrman even defended the white sherWould they have been hesitant to iff’s deputy in South Carolina, who is shoot? Maybe. Word on the street is that under federal investigation after he was police officers nationwide have become caught on video last month tossing a black more reluctant to use their firearms amid female high school student from her desk heightened public scrutiny involving police and dragging her across a classroom. use of deadly force.

“I tell you why it’s not excessive,” said “A lot of officers are being too cautious Fuhrman. “He verbalized, he made conbecause of what’s going on in the media,” tact, he was polite. [Therefore], the next said a Birmingham police detective, who level is to put a hand on her. She escalated was pistol-whipped unconscious with his it from there. He used soft control. He gun by a suspect during a traffic stop. threw her on the ground; he handcuffed In any event, it appears some officers her. He didn't use mace. He didn't use a did not get the memo. As recent as August, Taser. He didn't use a stick. He didn't kick another unarmed American, Christian her. He didn't hit her. He didn't choke her.

Taylor, 19, was fatally shot by a police offi- He used a minimal amount of force necescer, this time in Suburban Dallas. sary to effect an arrest.”

While it is undeniable that police in the Part of the problem with people like U.S. often contend with much more violent Fuhrman and the “open season on the encounters and more heavily armed indi- police” pseudo-movement is the fact they viduals than police in other developed dem- have such insular views. ocratic societies, the propensity to use To put it mildly, blaming protesters and deadly force raises serious concerns. liberals for creating an atmosphere that Then there are those right-wing voices could purportedly lead to a Jihad on moaning absurdly about how it’s “open sea- American police officers, is tantamount to son on the police.” a rape victim provoking her attacker by These zealots see no pattern in the wearing provocative clothing. numerous incidents of police killings and How preposterous is that?

R

A look at current news from the continent of Africa prompting senior D.C. counter-terrorism officials to question whether the U.S. can afford to maintain its alliance with him.

Ethiopia: Millions of people are in need of food assistance as the El Nino climate phenomenon has deepened a severe drought. More than 8 million people in Ethiopia now depend on food assistance, up from 4.6 million in August as reported by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Kenya: A man was arrested for murder after he beheaded his wife—in front of their children—when he said she insulted him, calling him uncircumcised.

Liberia: President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has challenged Liberians to create an environment for businesses investing in the country to feel safe, expand and grow. “It will not work if people are going to destroy businesses; it’s not going to work with placards all over the place; it’s not going to work unless businesses know and have confidence in our policies, laws and in the way that we do things,” she cautioned.

South Africa: Citing rising unemployment stats in South Africa (25.1% to 25.5% over the last three months period), South African President Jacob Zuma is pointing to the global money slowdown as the cause for his nation’s financial struggles, adding that his government's plans to boost growth would be “a serious struggle.”

Uganda: Uganda’s Minister of State for Internal Affairs, James Baba, is defending the police treatment of opposition members, saying the treatment is in line with the police role under the constitution. Last month a female opposition official was stripped naked on live TV as police tried to prevent a rally from being held. Baba maintains she stripped herself naked and is trying to blame it on police.

Zimbabwe: A Zimbabwean opposition leader has reportedly warned of total collapse the day President Robert Mugabe "does not wake up". Former finance minister turned People's Democratic Party leader Tendai Biti cautioned that Zimbabweans should brace themselves for civil war if Mugabe "does not wake up one morning". The remarks were sparked by succession battles within Mugabe's party with individuals positioning themselves to succeed the 91-year-old leader.

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:38 AM Page 9

“It was so easy!“ L.A. Focus Columnist Chez Hadley lost 19lbs in 21 days

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STEPHEN ODUNTAN Staff Writer

They have made significant strides in terms of leadership, law enforcement, and even entertainment. From Police Commissioner to Executive Director of Los Angeles World Airports, Hollywood, local government and the music industry, their moves are shaking this town up and making them key players to watch in the years ahead.

Making groundbreaking moves in entertainment is award winning writer, director Ava DuVernay, who has not only earned accolades for her Oscar-nominated film “Selma”—a biopic about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s led voting rights campaign in 1965, but she’s also redefining how films are being distributed through her recently-formed company called Array, an outgrowth of her African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement (AFFRM).

To mark its entry into the film marketplace, Array is releasing two films this fall, including South African director Sara Blecher’s coming-of-age drama “Ayanda and the Mechanic” and Takeshi Fukunaga’s debut feature, “Out of My Hand.”

DuVernay, the first African-American female director to receive a Golden Globe nomination, is on a mission to bring color to the film world.

In 2011, she founded AFFRM for emerging filmmakers of color and the expansion of public exposure to their projects. Five years later, she then announced she was rebranding the company and relaunching it as Array, as part of an intensified focus geared toward helping a greater variety of filmmakers—particularly

women.

In what critics call Hollywood’s blatant sexism, women directors are much more rare in an industry that prides itself on speaking for equal rights and diversity. And a woman director of color? Well, that’s virtually unheard of.

The 43-year-old has developed a reputation for tackling subjects and themes deemed too dark or controversial by others with projects such as “Middle of Nowhere”—a depiction of a Compton woman struggling while her husband remains incarcerated— and currently, a recently-announced third collaboration with British-Nigerian actor David Oyelowo, chronicling the racial and economic issues of Hurricane Katrina.

In a recent interview with L.A. Focus, DuVernay gives insight into what inspired her to make a film about Selma, a tumultuous period in American history that many consider a turning point in the civil rights movement.

“There’s something about Selma that really captured me. Growing up in L.A., especially around South Central, Compton, a lot of people—including myself— subscribed to the romantic version of the Panthers and the ideology of Malcolm X. In fact, a big part of my growing up, we believed [militancy] was cooler than the nonviolent stuff.”

Fact is she said, “The civil rights history is glossed over and marginalized as four words, ‘I Have a Dream’ that you often forget the texture and the radical, brave, strategic and tactical planning that went into the nonviolent movement. That it wasn’t a passive-do-nothing movement.“ DuVernay’s rise to prominence has taken many by surprise. Born on August 24, 1972, in Long Beach, DuVernay is the oldest of five children. Their mother and stepfather raised her and her two sisters in the infamous city of Compton. But her dedication, passion and love toward filmmaking would propel her way beyond her humble beginnings and onto Hollywood’s directing A-list.

But the self-actualizing path is not for the fainthearted. There are imminent challenges that could either make or prove fatal to your career. Such was the case for a West Philadelphia native whose blueprint for

managing new and upcoming artists is an inspiring one about triumph over failure and resilience to say the very least.

At just 5 feet 1 inches tall, trim frame and always wearing his signature thick-framed glasses, you could easily be fooled by his less than intimidating presence.

But Troy Carter is a force to be reckoned with. No matter how many lethal blows life inflicts on him, Carter comes back even stronger.

A brilliant mind in the music industry, he’s known for his knack for picking raw talent and turning that talent into a cultural phenomenon through his management firm, Atom Factory, as well as helping to finance such red-hot startups as Uber and Spotify.

Recently appearing as a guest investor on ABC’s hit show, Shark Tank, the man whose résumé includes introducing Stefani Germanotta aka Lady Gaga to the world has heard Donald Trump’s catchphrase “You’re fired” one time a many it could have left his ego permanently scared.

Documenting real-life financial ups and downs, Carter became riddled with financial woes when his management career lost steam in 2006. Descending deeper into debt, he saw his house go into foreclosure and vehicle repossessed. That same year, however, merely months after rapper Eve fired him, and failure loomed, an old friend of Carter’s brought Lady Gaga to his office in Culver City.

"She walked in with these huge sunglasses on, fishnet stockings, and basically told me how she was going to change the game," recounts Carter. She called herself Lady Gaga, who had a European dance-club sound and pop-star ambitions—musical components that historically haven't mixed. Def Jam Records had just dropped her. Carter had never heard of her. Yet, he says, "I believed her."

Gaga’s success grew and so did Carter’s talent management company, signing many other recording and emerging artists including John Mayer and John Legend.

Today, Carter has over 70 personal investments in his portfolio including Uber, Spotify, Dropbox Warby Parker and Lfty.

But they say good things often end like an ugly

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divorce. The eccentric singer Gaga severed ties with Carter two years ago, reportedly over that familiar phrase, “creative differences”.

There are clearly pitfalls and challenges along the way. He was 7 when his father shot and killed his new wife’s brother after an argument.

The CEO, husband and father of five children, who defined the careers of numerous artists said, “Money doesn’t make me tick. The definition of success doesn’t make me tick. Managing some of the biggest stars in the world doesn’t make me tick. Making my family proud makes me tick.”

His words are inspiring, but successes like his so often go underreported. Role models are often limited to rappers and professional athletes—a cliché celebrity list that does not reflect the diversity of achievement in black America. The truth is cities like L.A. are filled with upper class, successful black lawyers, writers, doctors, scientist, and even high-ranking law enforcement officials.

Like entertainment attorney Mathew Johnson, whose client list includes Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Eddie Murphy, Ice Cube, Tyra Banks, Michael Strahan and Michael Keaton. The newly appointed L.A. Police Commissioner is the only African-American on the fivemember board assigned with keeping a close eye on the L.A.P.D. (Los Angeles Police Department).

Johnson was part of Mayor Garcetti’s transition

Deborah Flint

team and served on the L.A. Airport Commission before accepting the seat on the police commission.

“Over the last six months or so, Mayor Eric Garcetti kind of turned up his heat to get me on the Police Commission,” Johnson said. “[Garetti] was very concerned about communitypolice relations and police reform. It was something that he and I talked about constantly. I believe he felt I was extremely passionate about these issues, and so he encouraged me to get involved and make a difference.”

Johnson, who is also a member of the Democratic National Committee, has vowed to help restore trust between the public and the L.A.P.D. and like most blacks, personally identifies with everyday experiences of racial bias in America—an issue that have underpinned recent protest across the country.

As a student at Rutgers University, before going on Christmas break he said, police improperly stopped him, put him in handcuffs and told him he was suspicious because he’d been driving slower than the other cars pelting down the turnpike.

“Back in the late 1980s, said Johnson, “New Jersey police were notorious for stopping African-American drivers on the freeway.” He recounts the humiliating experience on that cold December day, police searching his car, looking through the trunk and under the seats.

“I was worried they were going to plant something in

Matt Johnson

that he recommended another of our game changers, Deborah Ale Flint, who at the time was the director of aviation at Oakland International Airport.

In June, Flint was selected as Executive Director of Los Angeles International Airport, only the second black woman to hold the post.

What makes Flint stand out is her strong background in aviation. She’s a woman of two unique first. In 2009, she was appointed Aviation Director in Oakland, the first woman to hold that post in the airport’s 83-year history, and the first African-American woman airport director in the Bay Area.

In the few months since taking the helm at LAX, Flint has already supervised various renovations at the three airports the city agency oversees.

Garcetti called her “the right aviation executive to lead the changes we are making, overhauling nearly every terminal and bringing rail to LAX, growing passenger activity at LA/Ontario airport and adding new customs service at Van Nuys Airport.’’

The modernization and safety enhancement project at the nation’s second-busiest airport involves $8.5 billion in spending and is expected to create nearly 40,000 construction jobs.

Flint, who has a Bachelor degree in business administration from San Jose State University, said the architecture and interior design for LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) will include building and renovating facilities with an emphasis on efficiency, sustainability, and technology.

“We don’t have the luxury of phasing in improvements over the next 30-years, we have to deliver a transformed LAX while adopting a hospitality mindset, and keep the functionality while operating safely and securely,” she said.

Flint described it as a pivotal time for LAX, saying, “We have an opportunity to change and transform the airport, bring LAX into the modern era for the modern trav-

Ava Du’Vernay

eler by providing a world-class experience, in world-class facilities.

“I want to return LAX to iconic status,” continued Flint, “and make it the airport that other airports measure themselves by.”

She added, “We are making great strides to rebuild LAX with a well-defined Capital Development program that includes solutions to solve roadway and traffic congestion with connections to mass transit.”

The city committed $2 billion for a light-rail link to LAX. Stations will be built at 96th Street and Aviation Boulevard on the future Metro Crenshaw Line, north of the Green Line. The route is expected to open in 2019.

Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson hopes the Crenshaw rail line will “enhance [the] Hyde Park station” as well as attract local investment along the Vermont bus transit and the Slauson corridor that runs through South L.A. Harris-Dawson, who was sworn in as 8th District City Councilman on July 1, has made comprehensive economic development one of his chief priorities.

Through working with community members and other stakeholders, Harris-Dawson, and his team are exploring multiple initiatives such as job growth, quality education, and workforce training.

One thing for certain, he isn’t your typical politician.

With an unorthodox approach aimed at dramatically improving South L.A’s landscape, his office rejected liquor store permits—businesses that are often a magnet for crime and blight.

The councilman said he was eager to use his power and influence to fight for the interest of his constituents’ needs. He expressed a deep determination at addressing the inequity in city services and was dedicating his efforts to ensure District 8 gets its fair share.

Harris-Dawson began his political career in 1995, where he joined the Community Coalition under then founder and current Congresswoman Karen Bass. His first cam-

my car because they were so intent on finding something,” he recalls.

“Then, of course, when they didn’t find anything, they gave me a lecture about how fortunate I am that they were letting me go.

“An experience like that,” he said, “builds anger and resentment that you hang onto for a long time.”

Nevertheless, Johnson’s days as a college kid is long behind him, but as police commissioner, he faces the steep challenge of combating the agency’s insular culture.

He acknowledges it won’t be easy to “change the department’s culture overnight” but stressed officers must be held accountable for their actions.

He believes, “When there are consequences and police officers see that there are consequences”, it would produce a deterrent effect and help weed out the bad ones.

Johnson’s duties include deliberating on police shootings and determining whether the use of force exceeded reasonable bounds.

His professional background comprises extensive experience as President of the Board of the Challenger’s Boys and Girls Club, a member of the board of the L.A. Urban League, the Foreign Policy Roundtable and the Next Generation Council of the Motion Picture and Television Fund.

It was during his tenure on the airport commission

Troy Carter

Marqueece Harris-Dawson

paign drew attention to the deplorable conditions present in many inner-city schools and inequalities in the distribution of public funding.

"Growing up in South LA, I witnessed a deterioration of the social fabric that once existed with my parents' generation as a direct result of the mass departure of jobs, the war on drugs, and failing schools," he said.

His vision and strategic goals include a safe, healthy and thriving South L.A. with open green public spaces, and improved police-community relations.

South L.A.’s troubles were thrust into the spotlight in recent months after unverified post on social media declared “100 days and 100 nights” of random killings in retaliation for the fatal shooting of a high-ranking gang member.

Thinking ahead, Harris-Dawson had already called upon social media companies to assume an element of responsibility and refrain from sharing images of violent and graphic photos out of respect for grieving families.

He has also reached out to L.A.P.D as part of a collaborative effort to brainstorm ideas to curb crime in South L.A.’s hotspot areas.

Moreover, the upsurge in violence and homicides prompted Harris-Dawson, a long-time community organizer to arrange a gathering at a local church and begin a dialog between residents, gang intervention workers, officials, and law enforcement.

He said he wanted to give people an opportunity to discuss possible solutions; while at the same time provide an outlet for them to express their concerns to public officials.

During his 20 years of public service, Harris-Dawson has continued to champion his district’s causes.

"Serving on the City Council,” Harris-Dawson said, “gives me more authority to impact lives, but my core mission to empower historically underserved communities hasn't changed.

“It’s about protecting the dignity of constituents."

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MoneyMatters Summit to Help More Blacks Become Players in State’s $257 Billion Insurance Industry

C

alifornia is home to the largest insurance industry in the United States, pulling in annual revenue of approximately $257 Billion in premiums, and paying out over $90 Billion in annual claims and benefits. It also employs about 234,000 people across the state and pumps tens of billions into the state economy every year.

In 2012 insurance companies, operating in the state awarded 1,300 contracts worth $930 million to businesses owned by minorities. According to a California Department of Insurance (CDI) survey, African Americans headed 66 of those businesses.

To what extent those investments actually impacted African-American communities across the state in terms of jobs or economic development is unclear.

“There are not a lot of opportunities for minorities in general and for African Americans in particular it’s even less,” said Aubrey Stone, California Black Chamber of Commerce President. “Ensuring that those opportunities can be realized is key.”

This month, African-American businesspeople from across the Golden State with concerns like Stone’s may get a chance to voice them when the State Insurance Commissioner’s office hosts its fourth annual Diversity Summit November 4 at California State UniversitySacramento. The summit will unveil the 2015 Insurer Supplier Diversity Survey results. The survey queried over 200 insurers about business deals done in the state in 2013 and 2014, their governing board composition and the diversity of their suppliers. The CDI has invited insurance companies, minority business owners and potential vendors to attend the daylong event.

“We are home to the most women-owned businesses in the country and home to one-fifth of the minority-owned

MCKENZIE JACKSON California Black Media

businesses in the country,” said Melanie Ramil, chief of external affairs community programs of the C a l i f o r n i a Department of Insurance.

In 2012, Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB 53 into law, requiring California admitted insurer, with premiums of $100 million or more, to submit a report to the CDI on its efforts to procure minority, women, and disabled veteran-owned business enterprises.

“To see success in the industry you have to build relationships, create networks and networking opportunities for diverse suppliers, as well as, the insurers looking to work with them,” Ramil said. “Getting insurers to the table and diverse suppliers in one spot. This will happen with the summit.”

Personal Insurance Federation Vice President Michael Gunning is optimistic. He expects the dollar amount of insurer and diverse vendor contracts to rise above $1.5 billion in this year’s survey.

He said companies such as All-State, State Farm and Liberty Mutual have organized vendor fairs for decades to bring diverse vendors into the insurance industry.

“I think the outreach is broad across all ethnic minorities,” Gunning added. continued on page 23

On the Money Win Or Lose: Ben Carson Won’t Be Hurting For Cash Whether or not Ben Carson has what it takes to be the next president of the United States is for voters to determine over the next year, but one thing is sure: win or lose, he won’t be hurting for money.

The GOP’s #2 polling candidate earned between $8.9 million and $27 million over the last 18 months, according to the personal financial disclosure he filed with the Federal Election Commission earlier this year.

He was paid over $4 million from 141 paid speaking engagements. That’s an average of $29,000 per speech, though he has received as much as $44,500 for a speech.

The retired neurosurgeon also earned between $1.1 million and $6 million in royalties from his ten books, the latest of which, “A More Perfect Union”, was published last year.

Then there’s the monies he pulls in from sitting on the boards of corporate giants like Kellogg and Costco, which accounted for anywhere from $2 million to $10 million; and what he is paid as a contributor to the Washington Times and Fox News, reported to be between $200,000 and $2 million.

Biz NewsBriefs Tavis Smiley Signs Deal With Warner Bros TV

Warner Bros. Television has signed an exclusive multi-year development and production pod deal with celebrated broadcaster, author and producer Tavis Smiley. Under terms of the agreement, WBTVG and Smiley will develop new scripted television series projects for the broadcast networks and cable.

The first projects to be developed will be television series adaptations of two of Smiley’s books: My Journey with Maya, a memoir of the author’s nearly 30-year friendship with the

renowned poet Maya Angelou, and the upcoming Before You Judge Me: The Triumph and Tragedy of Michael Jackson’s Last Days, a vibrant account of the final 16 weeks in the life of legendary pop music superstar Michael Jackson, to be published in June 2016.

The deal continues an association that was established earlier this year when Warner Bros acquired the television rights to Smiley’s book Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Final Year, which is being developed as an event series. Death of a King was published in 2014 and became a New York Times bestseller. In it, Smiley recounts the final 365 days of King’s life, revealing his trials and tribulations —dismissal by the country’s black middle class and militants; assaults on his character, ideology and political tactics.

Smiley’s TV projects will be produced through his The Smiley Group, Inc. The nonprofit Tavis Smiley Foundation is in the midst of a $3 million, four-year campaign called Ending Poverty: America’s Silent Spaces, to alleviate endemic poverty in America.

can help you start or expand your business with quality services including business trainings, counseling, loan assistance and affordable office space starting at $250 per month.

Upcoming Entrepreneurial Training Programs: Level 1: Marketing Feasibility 3 weeks (Sat. 9:30am – 11:30am) November 7-21 & December 5-19 Off-Site 8-Week Level II Business Plan Writing Workshops Tuesdays, 6:30pm – 9:00 pm – Dec. 1 - Jan 26, 2016 Thursdays, 9:30 am – 12:30pm – Dec 3 – Jan. 28, 2016 Upcoming Events: Strategic Thinking & Management Execution For Your Business Thursdays, November 12, 6-8pm

Radio One Celebrates 35 years; TV One To Expand Last month, Radio One celebrated 35 years of providing news, commentary and chart-topping music to the radio airwaves. The nation’s only African-American owned media conglomerate—headed by Cathy Hughes and run by her son, Alfred Liggins—reaches 82 percent of black Americans and is currently in 60 million households.

With 53 radio stations, Radio One’s programming includes seven of the top eight black syndicated radio shows, including morning shows from Tom Joyner, Ricky Smiley and Yolanda Adams.

Future plans include expansion of their TV and online presence and a move into the gaming business.

Meanwhile, TV One has signed a multi-year agreement with the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC).

"Establishing this inaugural partnership with NCTC and its approximately 850 member-operators will enable us to continue to provide the critically acclaimed and entertaining content for Black adults in even more communities across the country," said Michelle L. Rice, executive vice president of content distribution and marketing.

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 13

Re d Carpet Style

CICELY TYSON is the epitome of style in this black and white classic look

GABRIELLE UNION is stunning as usual in this yellow midi

Red Carpet Hits The fashions were no short of sizzling hot at the Paley Centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hollywood Tribute To African American Acheivements In TV last month IN Beverly Hills.

Here are just some of those who lit up the red carpet

KELLY MCCREARY showed off her svelte shape in this pink/orange number

IN THEATERS THANSGIVING

BRANDY NORWOOD was both toned and regal in this flowy black halter formal

TRACEE ELLIS ROSS opted for comfort in this chic evening ensemble

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 14

Calendar of events

Sean “Diddy” Combs introduces new CÎROC Vodka during a recent appearance on “Late Night with Seth Meyers.”

Ongoing All Eyez On Me: The Writings of Tupac Shakur (Through January 10, 2016 & Sinatra: An American Icon Exhibit (Through February 15, 2016) 10am-7:30pm (weekends) $12.95; Child $10.95 Grammy Museum 800 W Olympic Blvd Downtown L.A. grammymuseum.org

Tuesday, November 2 Church of God In Christ 108th Holy Convocation (Through November 9) Speakers include Bishop T.D. Jakes, Bishop Paul S. Morton & Bishop Roy L.H. Winbush, Bishop Darrell Hines and Presiding Bishop Charles Blake The America’s Center St. Louis Info: (901) 947-9322

Wednesday, November 4

L.A. Focus/November 2015

Uzo Aduba stuns in this black and white gown on the red carpet at Paley Center’s Hollywood Tribute To African American Acheivements In TV

14

Mary Lou Williams: The Lady That Swings The Band Feature documentary chronicling the life of the renowned jazz pianist 7PM CAAM 600 State Drive

s her hus applaud e 18th s a m o h yT t th Avis Ridle o was honored a Tea h h ig w H d s n ie a b irst Lad F l a u n n A

Exposition Park (213) 744-7432 www.caamuseum.org

Information: (323) 846-1649 www.brotherhoodcrusade.org

Love & Unity Church Pastor Appreciation Services (Also Sunday, November 8 @8am & 11:30am) 7pm 1840 S. Wilmington Avenue Compton Contact: (310) 604-5900

Thursday, November 5 Summit 2015: Lifting Communities Through Social Change (Entrepreneurs, Civic & Faith Leaders) Keynote: Devon Franklin 8AM – 1PM USC Town & Gown 665 Exposition Blvd Information: (213) 743-2141

In Concert: Kem with special guest Tamar Braxton 8PM • $65 - 130 777 Chick Hearn Court Los Angeles (213) 763-6030 http://www.microsofttheater.com

Saturday, November 7 Sexual Predator Seminar Sponsored by Peace Apostolic Church 11AM • Free 21224 South Figueroa Street Carson Information: (310) 212-5673 NKLA Super Adoption Weekend (Through November 8) Over 1,000 dogs, cats and puppies with fees starting at $50

Also food trucks and vendors 10am – 4pm • Free La Brea Tar Pits 5801 Wilshire Blvd http://nkla.org 2015 50+ Senior Expo (Exhibitions, hair & beauty makeovers, Mini Job & Volunteer Fair, samples and giveaways, health screenings and informative educational seminars) 10am – 3pm Free Admission/Free Parking Angel Stadium 2000 Gene Autry Way GoldenFutureSeniorExpo.com African American Quilters Biannual Quilt Show Door prizes, vendors, jazz and over 280 quilts 10AM – 5PM • $10 Carson Community Center

Friday, November 6 On Stage: “Angry Insecure Men” Starring Beth Payne, Christopher Williams, Willie Taylor and Jackie Christie (Also Saturday, November 7) 8PM • $35-40 The Wilshire Ebell Theater 4401 W. 8th Street Tickets: (310) 461-8805 The Brotherhood Crusade Pioneer of African American Achievement Award Dinner Honoring SEIU 2015 President Laphonza Butler 7pm • $500 Beverly Hilton Hotel 9876 Wilshire Blvd.

EVENT SPoTLIGHT Sunday, November 22 Je'Caryous Johnson's Things Your Man Won't Do Starring Essence Atkins, Leon Robinson, Allen Payne & Terri J. Vaughn 3PM • $58.50 - $78.50 The Wiltern •3790 Wilshire Blvd •(213) 388.1400

Sheryl Lee Ralph is the lady in gold at her 25th Annual Divas Simply Singing gala last month in L.A. k Ridley-Thomas Supervisor Mar th received at 18 models hat he a Te h ig H es di La Annual First

Robert Bu sh, Om Tulloss po arosa and Pastor K se at the 3 .W. rd Annual Vanguard Awards

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Eloise Laws, Mary Wilson and Freda Payne perform at the 25th Annual Divas Simply Singing concert

3 Civic Plaza Drive Carson Contact: (323) 296-2391

Thursday, November 12 Young, Gifted & Black (A Black College Summit withmusic, food, poetry & the word)The first 50 students can apply to 43 HBCUs for free 6-8PM Holman UMC 3320 W. Adams Blvd Contact: (323) 731-7285 holmanumc.com/HBCU Odyssey Media “In The Black” Tour Discussions, networking and developmental tools for women entrepreneurs Presenters include Essence Editor-At-Large Mikki Taylor and “BOSSpreneur™” Becky Davis $50 • 5PM – 7:30PM 100 Universal City Plaza Universal City http://www.odysseymc.com

Rhone (Through November 14) Living Christ Church 2516 North “M” Street Tulare www.centralcdc.org

Friday, November 13 Black Business Association Financial Lending Pavillion (One-on-One Networking sessions with financial institution representatives and technical assistance providers) 8:30AM – 1PM Hawthorne Memorial Center 3901 W. El Segundo Blvd Contact: (323) 291-9334 www.bbala.org

(Through November 22) Call for show times $29 - $150 Hollywood Pantages Theatre 6233 Hollywood Blvd Tickets: (800) 982-2787 On Stage: “Beautiful Poison” A Gospel Play 8PM • $17-25 West Angeles Theatre (Through November 14, 7PM Info: (323) 733-8707 In Concert: Raheem DeVaughn & Leela James 8pm • $25—$37.50 Club Nokia 800 Olympic Ave. www.clubnokia.com

Saturday, November 14

YWCA “Rhapsody Gala” Honoring Honorable Mark Ridley-Thomas and BET CEO Debra Lee Co-chairs: Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Kathy Ireland and Fabian Wesson 8PM • $300 Beverly Wilshire Hotel 9500 Wilshire Blvd Contact: (213) 251-1329

94.7 The Wave Presents Super Freestyle Explosion Featuring Salt-N-Pepa, Lisa Lisa, Jody Watley, Tone Loc, The Jets, Young MC and Stevie B 7PM • $25 - $85 Honda Center 2695 E. Katella• Anaheim Tickets: (714) 704-2400

On Stage: Disney’s Beauty & The Beast

2015 Step Out: Walk To Stop Diabetes

11AM Griffith Park 4730 Crystal Springs Drive Info: (323) 966-2890 X7540 http://stepout.diabetes.org Conversations At CAAM: Dr. Elaine Batchlor CEO of MLK Jr. Community Hospital 1PM – 2:30PM Free California African American Museum 600 State Drive Exposition Park Reservations (213) 744-2056 www.caamuseum.org In Concert: Monica Also Rico Love 8pm • $25—$49.50 Club Nokia 800 Olympic Avenue www.clubnokia.com

Thursday, November 19 Architects of Change Host: A Conversation with Shonda Rhimes 9-10 AM (Breakfast: 8AM) $50 Mt. Saint Mary’s University 12001 Chalon Road Info: (310) 873-5010

Friday, November 20 L.A. Auto Show Over 60 car debuts, test drives, dining, entertainment & kids fun zone.

(Through Nov. 29) 10am–10pm (weekends) $12 - 15; Children $5; Seniors $10 L.A. Convention Center 1201 S. Figueroa St www.laautoshow.com The Queen Mary presents Chill (Through Jan. 10) Ice skating, ice tubing, lifesize ice sculptures, live entertainment & access to the Queen Mary 10am—11pm (Weekends) $24.99 kids $34.99 adults The Queen Mary 1126 Queens Highway • Long Beach www.queenmary.com

Saturday, November 21 Zumba-Thon To support Lupus awareness & healthy practices Presented by the We Win Foundation Guest host: Tichina Arnold 10AM – 1PM • $12 Adults/$6 Children Rialto Middle School

around los angeles

California District Council Fall 2015 Conference Speakers include Bishop Robert Douglas & Suffragan Bishop David

Bobby Jones Bobby Jones in all his glory at the 18th Annual First Ladies High Tea

s chic”, Daisy The “queen of effortles t & Heels”), ea Sw Lewellyn (“Blood, carpet red the m fro ses kis blows Tea h Hig ies at the First Lad

Sunday, November 22 American Music Awards 5pm $135—$695 Microsoft Theater 777 Chick Hearn Court nokiatheatrelalive.com

Wednesday, November 25 West Coast Feast IV Featuring Bone Thugs-NHarmony, Collie Buddz & DJ Quik 8pm • $25—$37.50 Club Nokia 800 Olympic Ave. www.clubnokia.com

Friday, December 4 Holman UMC 70th Anniversary Gala Honoring Marian Wright Edelman Host: Pastor Kelvin Sauls 6PM • $175 Omni Hotel 251 South Olive Street Info: (323) 731-7285 www.holmanumc.com

“If Loving You Is Wron g” stars Heather Hemmens and Edwina Findley Dickerson walk the red carpet at the First Ladies High Tea

L.A. Focus/November 2015

KNBC artin embraces 10th Host Areva M e th rly White at reporter Beve Stars ing Under The en Ev l Annua

1262 W. Rialto Avenue Rialto (323) 577-3887 •(909) 4344388

15

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 16

INSIDE Ho L LY w ooD with Chez’Ney Grace Jones is Back!

1980’s icon Grace Jones is on a press tour promoting her book “ I’ll Never Write My Memoirs” and at 67 the star is still living up to her outrageous persona. Arriving hours late to signings, smoking cigarettes while signing books for fans, and pulling up her top to flash photographers.

“She’s not their typical author and they don’t know how to handle someone like her. She’s a star from a certain era who does what she pleases. It’s difficult not to love her because she’s fun and wild, but she does what she wants and it has been a huge headache for them.” Says a source from her publishing team, Simon & Schuster imprint Gallery Books.

Featuring sixteen pages of stunning full-color photographs, many from her own personal archive, I’ll Never Write My Memoirs follows this ageless creative nomad as she rejects her strict religious upbringing in Jamaica; conquers New York, Paris, and the 1980s; answers to no-one; and lives to fight again.

Grace offers an intimate insight into her evolving style, personal philosophies, and varied career paths. “I’ll Never Write My Memoirs” is available now.

New Fox Series For Sanaa Lathan Sanaa Lathan is reuniting with Love & Basketball writer and director Gina Prince Bythewood for a dramatic series on FOX. Deadline reports that the show "examines the dangerous aftermath of a police shooting when an African-American cop kills a white teen in Tennessee." Lathan will as an expert investigator who digs into the police shooting case, alongside a special prosecutor sent to the town by the Department of Justice. The pair must navigate the media attention, public debate and the social unrest that comes with such a volatile case as they seek justice before the divided town

erupts in a race war. Sanaa's also set to star in Now You See Me 2 and as the lead in the on screen version of Omar Tyree's book Flyy Girl.

DJ Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince Reunited Will Smith is recording new music and planning his first ever world tour with non other than the other half of his 80’s rap duo “D.J. Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince” and “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” co-star D.J. Jazzy Jeff. Smith says he wants to tour with D.J. Jazzy Jeff because they never went on a proper tour together back in the day.

The announcement was made a few days after Smith released his first new song in over a decade, “Fiesta”—a remix of a Bomba Estereo track. Smith admits he is "terrified" about making his first album since 2005's Lost and Found.

"When you've had a certain amount of success, it seems like it should breed confidence," explained Smith." But it doesn't. When you win a lot, you lose the ability to lose. You're not allowed to lose anymore." But releasing “Fiesta”—in which he’s rapping in both English and Spanish—helped him by "shaking the rust off, knocking the dust off".

Between filming his forthcoming blockbuster, Suicide Squad, Smith says he has been in the studio "every day" and though nothing is official yet the actor/rapper has recorded more than 30 songs and has six or seven that he really likes and is planning to begin touring summer of 2016.

Performing classics like “Parents just don’t understand” and “Summertime” along with his new hits.

RAVEREVIEwS

The Peanut Movie Snoopy embarks upon his greatest mission as he takes to the skies to pursue his arch-nemesis The Red Baron, while Charlie Brown, begins his own epic quest.

Nov. 6th

Secret in Their Eyes

Bolden!

A team of FBI investigators – Ray (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Jess (Julia Roberts), along with their District Attorney supervisor Claire (Nicole Kidman) – is torn apart when they discover that Jess’s teenage daughter has been murdered. Nov. 20th

Bolden is an biographical drama film about the New Orleans trumpeter Buddy Bolden.

Directed by Daniel Pritzker and stars Gary Carr, Ian McShane and Michael Rooker.

Nov. 11th

Creed Adonis Johnson (Michael B. Jordan) never knew his famous father, boxing champion Apollo Creed. However, boxing is in his blood, so he seeks out Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) and asks the retired champ to be his trainer.

Nov. 25th

“Things Your Man Won’t Do” Makes L.A. Debut Leading African-American playwright and inspirational speaker Je'caryous Johnson is back with a brand-new touring play set to catch the stage on fire! Starring Leon (Five Heartbeats, Waiting To Exhale), Essence Atkins (Half & Half, Are We There Yet?), Allen Payne (House of Payne), Terri J. Vaughn (The Steve Harvey Show, All of Us) Love Thy Neighbor) tells the story of the funny efforts an emo-

tionally unintelligent man must make in order to win back the love of his life. To complicate matters, when he enlists the help of his friend, he finds that there is another person in the race for this woman's affections. Opening night is November 19th at the Wiltern Theater. You can also catch the play in Long Beach, November 20th at the Terrace Theater. For more information, visit www.jecaryous.com.

Q&A

MargaretAvery

The beautiful and talented Margaret ‘Shug’ Avery began acting in TV and stage plays in in the 70’s, winning The Los Angeles Drama Critics Award for “Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie” in 1973. Avery’s film career began taking off with the popular “blaxploitation” films “Cool Breeze” and “Hell Up In Harlem”, but she is famously known for her role as Shug Avery in the classic film “The Color Purple”. The Mangum, Oklahoma native currently co-stars alongside Gabrielle Union and Richard Roundtree on BET's #1 Hit Drama 'Being Mary Jane' as family matriarch and Lupus victim, Helen Patterson.

With a career spanning four decades, the singer/actress shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Q: Are you excited about the show being picked up? It’s BET’s first 1 hour drama A: The heroes of the show not only Gabrielle Union but our writers. It’s not just about a woman’s point of view but the scripts have now included a male’s point of view and I think that’s good. And I like that they show the strength and weaknesses of our characters. Its very real life Q: You’ve been in a lot of TV shows as well as films. Is there one that you prefer over the other?

A: They both require a different technique. With TV it moves so fast and you’ve got to be able to memorize fast because a lot of times we don’t get our dialogue until the night before where as film you may have had that script for weeks or months before you start shooting. I get so disgusted with award shows that lump TV and film together in one category TV requires a lot more skill in a different way than film. When you’ve had a script for weeks ahead and you do a scene and you can take 17 and 18 takes that’s a whole different ball game than you getting a script 2 days before and can only take 3 or 4 takes. TV doesn’t have the ability to do all that editing to make the actor look good. TV actors don’t get that kind of assistance. NAACP Image Awards do that. They put up feature film actors against TV actors and it’s unfair.

Q: Do you think your character Shug overshadowed other proud moments in your career?

A: Oh no, there is nothing I’m more proud of than the Color Purple. I’m proud of some other things but not more proud. It was the most challenging and without “The Color Purple” people probably would not remember me today because everybody knows me as Shug. I used to resent that but now I’m happy because that movie is over 30 years old and for people to still remember is a blessing.

Instagram: @margaretshugavery Twitter: @MaragaretAvery85

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 17

Through the Storm “Gospel’s Beverly Crawford Defeats Bullies and Cancer”

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ne can hardly tell by looking at her now, particularly when she leans back and belts out the powerful stanzas to hit songs like "He's Done Enough" and "It's About Time For A Miracle" that have made fans of thousands across the country spanning the White House and President Barack Obama—who enlisted her to join him on the campaign trail in 2008 to Chad Ochocinco, but there was a time when vocalist Beverly Crawford’s selfesteem was so crushed that she considered taking her own life.

From the time she was six years old, the former Bobby Jones Gospel singer, known for her anointed performances, says she was picked on severely in very much the same manner as kids who are victims of the growing problem of bullying today.

According to the results of the first national survey on this subject, one out of every four kids is bullied and 30% of U.S. students in grades six through ten are involved in moderate or frequent bullying — as bullies, as victims, or as both.

“It was not just every now and then,” Crawford recalls. “It was a daily thing. "I was real skinny and dark—darker than most of the kids, so they always told me, ‘you’re ugly, black and skinny.’”

Not only was she teased constantly at school, but at home a s

Beverly Crawford

well. Out of jest an older sister would tease her, telling her she was adopted. But it was no laughing matter for Crawford who began internalizing the negative feedback.

“To make matters worse, we came out of a strict church and wore only dresses, so I always felt different from most kids, ” Crawford continues. “They constantly called me a sanctified, holy rider. But that was a set up of the enemy that led me to believe I was different and by myself.”

By the time she was 10, Crawford was fed up and determined to end the taunting by taking her own life.

She remembers vividly the day she put a knife to her chest, but she says something inside of her just wouldn’t allow her to go through with it. Still, the teasing continued and she attempted suicide again a few years later. Her mother, who was battling with cancer at the time, was prescribed a pill that she could only take half of because of its potency.

“I thought if I could just take a couple of those pills I could sleep my way out and no one would know until later on that I had taken an overdose of pills.

But God was watching out for me because I made a mistake and grabbed some water pills that were sitting next to my mother ’s pills. So the only thing I ended up doing was having to go to the bathroom an awful lot.”

As a teen, Crawford responded to the pain by being rebellious. Because her peers used singing to taunt her, she shed the pastor ’s kid image to fit in with them.

“I didn't want them picking on me, so I became one of them,” says Crawford who grew up one of six kids.

“I developed a bad temper, cursed and hung out with the bad kids. Even though I tried to be like them I still didn't fit in. I just went through a stage of not really knowing who Beverly was.”

Crawford finally learned to bolster her wavering self-esteem upon graduation from high school. She confronted her older sister about how the teasing affected her and says deliverance came in the fact that she’d surrendered herself to a true relationship with Christ.

Ironically, just as she’d overcome one dilemma, another one was waiting. Barely past the threshold of 18, she was diagnosed with cancer.

But instead of throwing her hands up in despair she was determined to come out a victor.

“I had just seen my mother go through it a couple of years before,” recounts Crawford. “She did radiation treatment and I said, ‘God I don't want

Mark Your Calendars for November 22, 2015 The Retirement Banquet of Rev. Reginald & Dr. Maye Helen Leffall

November 22, 2015 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

Tabernacle of Faith Baptist Church Donations: Adults $25 • Children $15 Seats will sell out fast so please reserve yours today.

FOR MORE INFORMATION,

CALL (323) 569-4162

to go through this, so I'm going to trust you. I didn't care what the doctor's said. Everyday I just stood on the word of God and believed God for my healing.”

Within a year ’s time that healing came. Crawford remembers the day vividly. It was a Saturday morning and she had received prayer from a pastor. She went believing that she would be healed.

“I just felt that I was healed,” she says. “I heard him pray and he said ‘this cancer demon has got to go.’ I was always in constant pain but when he finished praying there was no pain.”

A visit to the doctor shortly thereafter confirmed that there was no cancer.

It was a year or two later that the then married Crawford received the call to the preaching ministry, but with it came another set of challenges, not the least of which was dissension in her marriage.

Not only did her denomination not recognize women preachers, but her husband had apprehensions as well. So distraught was he with her decision to accept the call that he said he was going to divorce her and take custody of their baby daughter.

“My mom told me, ‘It's better to obey God and let Him deal with your husband.’ But once again I felt like I was by myself, like I was getting ready to lose my mind.”

Retreated into silence—Crawford barely spoke to anyone. It was the best way for her to cope. That is until one evening, she and her husband attended a revival where the preacher just happened to be a woman. The service would prove to be a major turning point in their lives.

“A sister sitting by me tapped me on my shoulder and told me to look in the back where my husband was sitting. There was a woman ministering to my husband. I don't know what she was saying to him, but on our way home in the car he said, ‘whatever God has told you to do, obey God, I'm with you 100 percent.’ ” For the past two decades, she and her husband have been ministering full-time side-by-side at the Gainesville Family Worship Center in Gainesville, Florida. In 2009, the mother of two won her first Stellar Gospel Award for “Traditional Female Vocalist of the Year” and that same year received an honorary doctorate. Her ninth CD, “Thank You For All You Have Done”—which was released last year, is a testament to where the Lord has brought her.

"There comes a time when it doesn't matter what anybody else says except God. The enemy tries to make my past come back, but I know who I am now.”

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 18

ChurchNews Pastors Demand Apology from L.A. Chapter of Black Lives Matter

A

coalition of South Los Angeles religious and community leaders, including the Baptist Ministers Con-ference of Los Angeles and Southern California are denouncing the actions of Black Lives Matter organizer Melina Abdullah and the L.A. chapter and demanding an apology to Pastor Kelvin Sauls, Holman United Methodist Church, the South LA Pastor Kelvin Sauls community and Mayor Garcetti, who came to participate in a town hall meeting with Mayor Eric Garcetti.

The meeting was unfortunately cut short after Melina Abdullah and Black Lives Matter activists stormed the stage.

“To threaten violence against a pastor in his own church and our community is unacceptable", stated Rev. Paulette Simpson Gipson.

"To the members of Black Lives Matter L.A. chapter and allies who cussed at me in the sanctuary on Monday night during the town hall, I have forgiven you,” Sauls said. “Because the lives of black people matter, your disrespect and verbal violence will not be a weapon mass distraction to our resolve."

After turning their backs on the mayor and rushing the podium, the Black Lives Matter activists jumped on his car as he attempted to leave under police escort.

"In light of what took place last Monday night at Holman Church we stand with the community in demanding a public apology for the actions that violated that sacred place of God, the Pastor and community,” added Rev. K.W. Tulloss, president of the National Action Network L.A. chapter and pastor of the Historical Weller Street Baptist Church. “We demand this because black life matters."

“The ball is in their court. Our focus continues to be being a bridge, Sauls said. “A covenant has been broken and it’s very unfortunate that the majority there were silenced because of the disruption and just the sheer violation of sacred space. The disrespect and disregard—the verbal violence against many folks in attendance—even threats of violence.”

Sauls says he continues to be committed to constructive and production dialogue with dignity, decency and respect.

“We want to get back on track and build a united front to reclaim our power and refocus on seeking solutions— that’s the key piece—to see how we can reposition our energy towards solutions facing the challenges of south Los Angeles.

In the meantime, the church is gearing up for its 70th anniversary galaon December 4.

“We’re celebrating legacy and we’re excited to honor Rev. Lawson with the establishment of an award in his name and that the recipient is Marian Wright Edelman.”

Dr. R.M. Leffall Makes Retirement Official

L.A. Focus/November 2015

The Tabernacle of Faith Baptist Church is in the midst of preparing for a gala and commemorative event honoring their beloved pastor, The Rev. Dr. R.M. Leffall III who will be retiring as Senior Pastor at the end of November 2015.

Leffall, who began his tenure at the Church in 1997, insists that his retirement is only from the Pastorate, not from ministry.

“I’ll still be involved in ministry on the sidelines as they go through the process of finding a new pastor. I’ll be writing my book and I’ll be spending more time with my wife. I’ve put in over 35 years as a pastor winning souls to Christ —19 of them here, but I’m in my middle seventies and I believe they need someone younger to move it forward.

“When I got here, the church was in turmoil after the death of Pastor Mims and I had to spend a great deal

18

Church News continued to page 22

Amen L.A. (Affirming Ministry Enlightening Nations) 1455 W. 94th St. Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 229-9351 • www.amenla.org Rev. Dr. DiAnn L. Johnson Sunday Morning Worship: 9:30am-10:30am PTP / Preach the word- Teach the word practice the word

Bethel AME Church of Los Angeles 7900 South Western Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 750-3240 • www.bethelamela.org Rev. Kelvin T. Calloway Early Worship: 7:45 am Morning Worship: 10:45am Mid-week “Hour of Power” (Wed): noon

Bethesda Temple Church Apostolic Faith 1101 W. Florence Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 299-2591 Interim Pastor Robert Lockett Sunday School: 9:40am Morning Worship: 11am Evening Worship: 6pm Bible Study (Wed): 7pm Prayer (Sat): 7am Evening Prayer (Mon.): 6:30pm

First AME Church (FAME) 2270 South Harvard Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 730-7750 • F: (323) 735-7829 • www.famechurch.org Pastor J. Edgar Boyd, Senior Pastor/CEO Sunday School: 10am Worship: 8am, 10am, Noon Youth Church (Fame Renaissance): Noon Wed. Prayer Service: Noon Wed. Bible Study: 7pm Radio: 10:30am on KJLH-102.3FM First AME is the oldest Black Church in the City Grace United Methodist Church 4112 West Slauson Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 294-6653 • F: (323) 294-8753 • graceumc1@earthlink.net Rev. Pastor Paul A. Hill • www.graceumcla.com Early Morning Worship: 7:45am Sunday School: 9:45am Morning Worship: 10:45am Wed. Bible Study: Noon & 7pm Fri. Alcoholic Anonymous: 7pm Tues. Prayer Fellowship: 6:30pm Super Seniors (Thurs/Bi-Monthly): 10:30am Follow us on Facebook Greater Ebenezer Baptist Church 5300 S. Denker Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 759-4996 Dr. Solomon Drake 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

Bethlehem Temple Church, INC. 958 East 52nd Street Los Angeles, CA 90011 (323) 232-8429 • F: (323) 232-8660 Pastor Elder Gentry Richardson, Jr. Sunday: Christian Education: 9am Morning Worship: 11am PYPU (youth services): 4:30pm Evening Worship: 6pm (5pm 5th Sun.) Monday Prayer Revival: 7pm Wednesday Ministerial/Teacher’s Prep. Class: Noon; Bible Class: 7:45pm

Holman United Methodist Church 3320 W. Adams Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 731-7285 • F: (323) 731-2609 • www.holmanumc.com Rev. Kelvin Sauls

Christ The Good Shepherd Episcopal Church 3303 W. Vernon Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90008 (323) 295-4139 • F: (323) 295-4681 Rev. Joseph Oloimooja Sunday School: 10am Early Worship: 8am Morning Worship: 10am Mon. Centering Prayer/Meditation: 6:30pm Mon. Overeaters Anonymous: 7pm Wed. Bible Study & Eucharist: 7pm Wed. Alcoholic Anonymous: 7:pm E: cgshepherd4041@sbcglobal.net

Lewis Metropolitan CME Church 4900 S. Western Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 292-0179 Pastor & Presiding Elder Wendell M. Oldham Jr. Sunday School: 9am Morning Worship: 10:30am Wednesday Bible Study: 7pm Wed. Youth & Young Bible Study: 7pm Ministry to Men (3rd Sat.): Noon - 1pm Ministry to Women (3rd Sat.) Older/ 11:30am 1:30pm & Younger/ 2pm - 3:30pm

Church of Jesus Christ International 3719 W. Slauson Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 296-1106 Pastor Michelle Beal

Liberty Baptist Church 1500 West 51st Place, Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 295-3866 • F: (323) 295-0366 • E: LBCwim@aol.com Rev. Terry Lovell Brown Sr.

Sunday Morning Glory Service (2nd & 4th): 8:30am-9:30am Christian Education Classes: 9:45am-10:45am Sunday Morning Worship: 11:15am Tuesday Prayer: 7pm Wednesday Bible Class: 7pm 1st Sunday Nights: 7pm Congregational Church of Christian Fellowship 2085 S. Hobart Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 Phone: (323) 731-8869 • F: (323) 731-0851 • www.cccf-ucc.org Pastor James K. McKnight Sun. Early Worship: 8am Prayer Meeting: 10:30am Morning Worship: 11am Wed. Afternoon Bible Study: 1pm Wed. Prayer Meeting: 6pm Wed. Evening Bible Study: 7pm View Pastor McKnight’s Sermons on YouTube Crenshaw Christian Center 7901 South Vermont, Los Angeles, CA 90044 (323) 758-3777 • F: (323)565-4231 • www.faithdome.org Rev. Frederick Price Jr. Sunday Service: 10am Bible Study (Tue): 11am & 7pm Tue. Night Kidz Unlocked: 7pm Tue. Night Bible Study (Teens): 7pm Alcohol & Drug Abuse Program (Wed): 7pm Intercessory Prayer (Wed.): 7:30pm Prayer & Praise (Thurs.): 6:30pm

Sunday School: 8:00, 9:45 & 11am Fuse Worship (Sunday): 6pm Early Worship: 8am Morning Worship: 11am Bible Study (Thurs.): Noon Sun. Radio: KJLH 102.3FM: 11am E: Holman@holmanumc.com

Sunday Church School: 9am Morning Worship: 10:30am & 12:30pm Wed. Bible Study: noon & 6:30pm Prayer Meeting: 6pm Follow us on Twitter @dacrossculture www.thecrossculture.org Miracle Center Apostolic Church 2638 S. Western Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 735-5121 or 735-5122 Dr. Roy S. Petitt • Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Worship: 8am, 11am & 6pm Tues. Prayer & Bible Class: Noon Rights of Passage: 7pm Wed. Bible Study: 8pm Thurs. Prayer/Bible Class: Noon Fri. Faith Seminar: 8pm Radio KTYM-1460AM: (M-Fri.) 8am - 8:15am Mt. Moriah Baptist Church of LA, Inc. 4269 S. Figueroa St. Los Angeles, CA 90037 (323) 846-1950 Rev. Melvin V. Wade, Sr. Sunday School: 8:15am Morning Worship: 9:45am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Mid-Week Worship (Wed): 7pm Bible Study (Wed.): 8pm

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 19

Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church of Los Angeles 3669 W. 54th St. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 291-1121

F: (323) 291-1133 • msmbc-la.org • mt.sinai@msmbc-la.org Pastor George E. Hurtt, Pastor-Teacher Sunday Worship: 8am, 10am Noonday Worship (1st Sun): Noon Sunday School: 8am, 10am Noonday Prayer (Mon): Noon Noonday Bible Study (Tues): Noon Tuesday Night in the Truth: 7:15pm Our Goal: To win more Christians & develop better Christians to the glory of God. (Matt. 28:18-20) Mt. Tabor Missionary Baptist Church 6614 S. Western Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 753-3189 • F: (323) 753-1018 • www.mttabormbc.org Dr. Ticey M. Brown, D. Min. Pastor/Teacher Early Morning Worship: 8am Sunday School: 9:30am Mid Morning Worship: 11am Tues. Bible Study: 10am & 7pm Meeting/Bible Study: 6:30pm–8pm First Sun. Communion: 11am & 5pm Baptism First Sunday

Paradise Baptist Church 5100 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90037 (323) 231-4366 Dr. Aaron Iverson Pastor’s Bible Class & Sunday School: 8am Morning Worship: 9:30am Tues. Prayer: 7pm Tues. Bible Study: 8pm

Park Windsor Baptist Church 1842 W. 108th St. Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 756-3966 • RevTerrellTaylor@sbcglobal.net Rev. Terrell Taylor Morning Worship: 8am & 11am Bible Study Wednesday: Noon & 7pm Communion: 1st Sunday at 8am & 11am

“You can end your search for a friendly church” 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. Sun. Tues. Pastor’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Wed. Noon-day Prayer: Noon New Antioch Church of God in Christ 7826 So. Vermont Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90044 (323) 778-7965 Elder Jeffrey M. Lewis Sunday Early Morning Worship: 8am Sunday School: 9:30 am Morning Worship: 11am Tuesday Prayer and Bible Band: 11am Wednesday Bible Study: 7:30pm Wednesday in the Word: 7:30pm

New Mt. Calvary Baptist Church 402 E. El Segundo Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90061 (310)324-0644 • F: (310) 769-1287 Rev. Sonja Dawson, Senior Pastor • Rev. Lonnie Dawson, Sr., Founder (1962 - 2010) Morning Worship: 7:30am & 10:45am Sunday School: 9:45am Wed. Prayer/Bible Study: Noon Pastor’s Bible Study: 7pm

New Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church 9537 South Vermont Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90044 (323) 755-1130 or 755-1139 • F: (323)755-8961 Rev. Melvin Hill, Pastor Worship Services: 8am & 11am Sunday School: 9:30am Prayer Meeting(WED): 6:30pm Bible Study(WED): 7pm

People’s Independent Church of Christ 5856 West Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 296-5776 Bishop Craig A. Worsham, Sr. Pastor Sundays: Morning Worship: 8am & 11am Wednesday Bible Study & Mid Week Worship: Noon & 7pm Prayer Meeting: 6:30pm

Pleasant Hill Baptist Church 2009 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 293-6448 • F: (323) 293-6605 Dr. Sylvester Washington Sunday School: 8am Morning Worship: 10am Tues. Bible Study: 11am Wed. Evangelism Class: 6:30pm First Sun. Holy Communion Service: 4pm www.pleasanthillbaptistchurch.org Praises of Zion Baptist Church (“Praise City” 8222 So. San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90003 (323) 750-1033 • F: (323) 750-5458 • www.pozlive.com Dr. J. Benjamin Hardwick, Sr. Pastor Early Morning Worship: 6:45am Educational Hour: 9:15am Mid-Morning Worship: 10:45am Wed. Bible Study: Noon & 7pm Sunday Broadcast: 7pm

Price Chapel AME Church 4000 W. Slauson Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 296-2406 • pricechapel@sbcglobal.net Rev. Benjamin Hollins Sunday Worship Service: 10am Sunday School: 8:30am Power Lunch Bible Study (Wed): 11am Praise & Worship Bible Study (Wed): 6:30pm

The Church where “It pays to be nice”.

New Shady Grove Baptist Church 1509 W. Manchester Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90047 (323) 753-0198 • www.newshadygrove.com Rev. Jewett L. Walker, Jr. Sunday Worship: 11am Sunday School: 9:30am Wednesday Bible School: 6pm Men’s Ministry Meetings 2nd Tues: 6pm Youth Mentoring Program 3rd Sat: 10am-11am

Sunday Worship: 9am, 11am & 1pm Wednesday Midweek Service: 8pm www.Channel1Live.tv—View live streaming

St. Matthew Tabernacle of Praise “The S.T.O.P.” 3770 Santa Rosalia Dr. Baldwin Hills, CA 90008 (323) 291-1115 • F: (323) 293-0471 Rev. C.Barry Greene, Pastor Morning Worship: 8am Church School Hour: 10:15am Tuesday Hour of Power: 7pm www.thechurchstop.org E: thechurchstop@yahoo.com pastorcbgreene@aol.com

Andrea Robinson-Resurrection Church L.A. Being a pastor’s wife was the furthest thing from the mind of newlywed Andrea Robinson, who just recently celebrated her one year anniversary. “You have this image of first ladies and I she wasn’t interested in being a traditional first lady.” Then again, Pastor Joseph Carlos Robinson was not the typical pastor.

“At the end of the day, I’m married to Joseph who happens to be a pastor and my first ministry is to him,” says the East St. Louis native. “I am a wife, a woman, but I’m not going to let people lock me in the box.

“I do know people are watching and I’m okay with that because I was taught right and I’m going to act like a lady. I also do believe I need to set an example, but that is what I would do anyway.”

More comfortable with giving than taking, Robinson works as a senior employee relations consultant handling human resources, discrimination claims, conflict resolutions and the like. With a background in social work, Robinson adds, “I definitely have a heart for people. I want to give.”

Salem Missionary Baptist Church 729 S. Park View St. Los Angeles, CA 90057 (213) 738-1077 • jranniew@gmail.com Pastor J. Williams Sunday School: 10am Morning Worship: 11:15am Ministry For Alcohol & Chemical Addiction Wednesday: 5:30pm Bible Study Thursday: 7:30pm Office Hours: Mon 1:30pm-5:30pm; Thurs 2:30pm-7:30pm St. Paul’s Mission Fellowship Church 4816 S. Western Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90018 Cell: (760) 214-8282 • burtcj@cox.net Rev. Dr. Charles J. Burt, Senior Pastor Morning Worship: 11:30am

“Join us for worship–you will be blessed!”

St. Rest Missionary Baptist Church 709 W. Manchester Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90044 (323)752-6179 Rev. Torrey Collins, Pastor Sunday School: 9am Morning Worship: 10:45am Evening Worship: 3:30pm Tues. Bible Study: 7pm Wed. Bible Study: 11am Choir Rehearsals (Wed. & Fri.): 7pm Southern Missionary Baptist Church 4678 West Adams Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90016 (323) 731-2703 • F: (323) 737-5202 • smbcla@gmail.com Rev. Xavier L. Thompson, Sr. Pastor L.I.F.E. Groups Sundays: 8:30am Morning Worship: 10am Baptism & Communism (First Sunday): 5pm Word Wednesday: 6:45pm “One Church For All Generations”

The First Saint John Bible Church 11030 S. Willowbrook Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90059 (323) 566-5055 • F: (323) 566-0219 Pastor/Teacher: Bishop Michael A. Brass, Jr. Sunday School: 9:30am Morning Worship: 11am Bible Study Wednesday: 7pm

L.A. Focus/November 2015

One Church International 614 N. La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036 (818) 763-4521 • www.onechurchla.org Sr. Pastor Toure’ Roberts

St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church 5017 S. Compton Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90011 (323) 231-1040 • stmarkmbcofla.org Rev. Dr. Lovely Haynes Morning Worship: 8am & 11am Mon. Night Bible Study: 7pm Mon. Tutorial Study: 6:30pm Wednesday Prayer: Noon Wed. Exposition of Sunday School Lesson: 7pm • Wed. Prayer Meeting: 7pm Thurs. Evangelism: 7pm (enrollment required)

first lady files:

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Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 20

Tree of Life Missionary Baptist Church 9702 Holmes Ave. Los Angeles CA 90002 Cell: (323) 566-1202 • burtcj@cox.net Rev. Marcus A. Murchinson, Pastor Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Service: 11am Wednesday Bible Study: 7pm

Weller Street Baptist Church 129 S. Gless St, Los Angeles, CA 90033 (323) 261-0949 Pastor K.W. Tulloss Sunday School: 8am Sunday Morning Worship: 9am Evening Worship: 6pm Tues. Bible Study: 5pm “We have not walked this way before” Joshua 3:1-6

Trinity Baptist Church 2040 West Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 735-0044 • F: (323) 735-0219 Rev. Alvin Tunstill, Jr Sunday Worship: 7:30 & 10:30am Sunday Church School: 9am Radio Broadcast KJLH FM: 9am Wed. Prayer & Bible Study: Noon-7pm www.trinitybaptistchurchofla.org

West Angeles Church of God In Christ 3045 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90016 (323) 733-8300 Bishop Charles E. Blake Sunday School: 8am & 10:30am Early Worship: 8am Morning Worship: 11am Evening Worship (North Campus): 7pm Wed. Mid-Week Worship: 7pm Sun. Radio Broadcast KJLH 102.3FM: 10am www.westa.org

UpLift Christian Fellowship 4745 W. Slauson Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90056 (310) 927-3476 Pastor Anthony Thompson

Lifeline Fellowship Christian Center 2556 N. Lake Ave., Altadena, CA 91001 (626) 797-3585 • F: (626) 797-3233 • www.lifelinefcc.org Pastor Charles D. Dorsey

Sunday Worship: 10am Bible Study Wednesday: 7pm

Sunday School: 9am Early Worship (Glory Prayer): 8am Morning Worship: 10:30am Evening Worship (1st & 2nd Sun.): 5pm Wed. Bible Study: 7pm

In Carson

Judson Baptist Church 451 E. 223rd St, Carson, CA 90745 (310) 834-2630 • F: (310) 513-0943 • www.judsonbc.net Dr. Johnny V. Baylor, Pastor/Teacher

Sunday Worship Service: 9:30am Children’s Church (Except 5th Sun): 9:30am 2nd & 4th Sun. Speak Life Youth Ministry: 12:30pm Wed. Bible Study: Noon Streaming live at judsonbclive.net

Peace Apostolic Church 21224 Figueroa Street, Carson, CA 90745 (310) 212-5673 Suff. Bishop Howard A. Swancy Sunday School: 10am Morning Worship: 11:45am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Wed. Noon Day Bible Class: 12:30pm Wed. Bible Class: 7:30pm

Resurrection Church L.A. 1135 East Janis St. Carson, CA 90746 Office Address: 1143 East Janis St. Carson, 90746 (310) 626-4864 • www.resurrectionchurchla.org Pastor Joseph Carlos Robinson Service times: 8am, 10am, 12:15pm Communion: every 5th Sunday Tuesday Bible Class: 7:30pm

Pastor Profile: Jawane Hilton •City On The Hill When did you embark on the path to ministry?

I always knew that I was called from a young age. I used to go to church with my grandmother and she would tell me, ‘one day you’re going to be a pastor’.

Other stuff didn’t fascinate me. My mom would try and get me involved in sports, but I would want to stay home and watch a documentary about Dr. King or something.

I guess you could call me like a nerd, but I had a good mind to be a criminal genius. My cousin used to say I knew you were going to be something great, but I just didn’t know whose team you were going to be on.

Then one night when I was in college and I remember not being able to sleep and literally hearing the voice of God as clear as day saying, ‘I’ve asked you to pledge to me, when are you going to do it?’ I’ve been doing it ever since. I started my first church on October 7, 2007.

So you never pastored before?

No. I founded a church in the city of Carson at the Carson Community Center with seven people. We stayed there for two years and then we obtained the building where we are located now. I moved straight from the community center to a church and today, eight years later, we have about 250 on roll.

L.A. Focus/November 2015

You recently won a city council seat in Carson, why did you decide to run for office?

I was the former public policy director for a large non-profit in Carson and that was my first brush with politics. As you know Dr. King was on the front lines of the civil rights movement and traditionally, when people wanted to get elected,

20

Name: Jawane Hilton Church: City On The Hill Hometown: Los Angeles Education: Azuza Pacific University, Masters of Divinity Family: Married 7 years to Chantae Hilton; 2 children, Reagan Grace and Riley Faith they came to the church. We’ve always been on the lines of making protests, but rarely on the lines of making policy, so I thought that we could use that power to leverage making policy.

What was your strategy in winning?

I ran in March and I lost in March. I ran with the idea of knowing it was virtually impossible to win, but I wanted to place really high to raise my name I.D. Two months later, there was another seat that was open, so I went from one race to another race and I was the front runner in that race, coming in heavily endorsed by Congresswoman Janice Hahn, Senator Isadore Hall, Assembly member Mike Gibson, —and I was the only candidate in the race endorsed by the Democratic Party.

I clinched the victory and now I serve over 98,000 residents in the city of Carson.

Is there a conflict in there being a pastor and politician?

When I sit there, I don’t sit as a pastor. I sit as a legislator, but following the heart of God, so I don’t think it’s a conflict. The policy that is drafted impacts the people we serve [as pastors] every day.

You can pray all day long, but you’ve got to be active. The Bible says faith without works is dead.

Sometimes we have to go out with our prayers and actions…

I saw my Mom work two jobs to raise us. I wanted to get involved in setting policy where people can get quality jobs and don’t have to be at work all day.

What of the separation of church and state?

I know that there’s a difference between church and state, but I think the reason we’re going through all that’s happening today is because people have taken God out of our governments.

What is your philosophy of preaching/ministry?

My style of preaching is expository. My process of ministry is to make sure the messages are thought-provoking and life changing —that people can apply them to their lives. For too long the church has been concerned just about what’s happening on their corner. Now its time for us to get out beyond the four walls and make things happen for our communities. We’ve never been at the center of policy making because we don’t pool our resources together, but if we come together we could have a huge impact.

In the eight years since you started the church, how have your goals changed?

The one goal I started with is still the same, building people to build a city. I always say, if you help people build their lives, they will help you to build a church. So our main goal is to make sure that every need of their life is met be it physical, be it mental or emotional to help them improve their lives.

No doubt ministry has come with its own share of challenges—what were they for you?

Our first baby died at birth and it was very difficult. My wife carried her to term but when we got to the hospital, they said her heart had stopped beating. We still struggle with it from time to time.

Then just before the election my little brother—who was 24 at the time—fell dead in my mother’s living room. My mom called and said she thought he had a seizure and when I got there he wasn’t breathing. I remember going to the hospital with him and we waited an hour and thirty minutes and we prayed and all of a sudden he came back.

The doctor told me, ‘surely if he comes from this he’ll be brain dead’. Yesterday, my brother was on the premiere of new BET show, The Westbrooks. so God is good. That was a major defining moment in our lives to know that God is still a healing. That’s why we keep on going. I see miracles every day.

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 21

From The Pulpit of: Love & Unity Christian Fellowship

I

’ve got a question I want to ask today, —“Do you see Jesus?”

If you don't believe the gospel, then you can't truly love God. Let me take a moment to share some concepts from the gospel. It is so important that we come to get the right perspective on the gospel.

After years of preaching and teaching the gospel, I’ve come to understand that there are people who don't really believe the gospel. They have heard it, but they don't really believe it.

I was in a restaurant talking to a 93year-old man the other day and he was on a walker barely getting by and I teased him and said, you got to start speeding it up around here, and he laughed and said well young man, he laughed and said in 93 and how old are you? I said 79 and he said, you nothing but a baby and I said

Pastor Ron Hill

oh God. I began to communicate with him and said, do you believe in God and he couldn’t hear me, so I yelled and the whole restaurant turned around. He said no, I’m an engineer. When he said that to me I said nothing else about God. Because what he said to me made me believe that he was too intelligent to believe God. I was not offended at all. You cannot trust the gospel except the spirit of the lord reveal it to you. I’m so glad He revealed it to me. Before the gospel revealed it to me I was going to parties, getting high and doing all the sinful stuff back in the days because I didn’t know any better. I was dead in sin and before the Holy Spirit revealed Jesus to me, that’s where I was. I couldn’t stop. I stopped for a while and then I went right back to it because I was not born again and could not see Jesus. Yet you have people who go to church everyday but still they can’t see him. They don’t have any evidence in their lives that they are Christians because they aren’t. They just go to church.

If I’m going to hell, I'm going to hell, first class. I'm going to party up in there.

The moment you believe for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever will not perish but have everlasting life—every time you hear the gospel, you have to make a decision. You can’t hear him and not make a decision.

People don’t fail as Christians because they don’t try hard. You trying hard has nothing to do with it. You can go in that parking lot and try real hard to jump to the top of this building. But you cannot

In Compton

Citizens of Zion Missionary Baptist Church 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) Sunday School: 9am Morning Service: 10:45am Wed. Mid-Week Bible Study: 7pm Greater Zion Church Family 2408 North Wilmington Avenue, Compton, CA 90222 (310) 639-5535 • E: GreaterZionCF@gmail.com Reverend Michael J. Fisher & Dr. W. Jerome Fisher, Pastor Emeritus Sunday Morning Worship: 9am, 11am & 5pm Wed. Bible Studies: Noon-7pm www.greaterzionchurchfamily.com

Holy Chapel Baptist Church 1016 East Rosecrans Ave. Compton, CA 90220 (310) 537-3149 Rev. George L. Thomas Early Morning Worship: 7:30am Sunday School: 9:45 & 10:15am Mid Morning Worship: 10:45 am 1st. Sun. Holy Communion: 7:30 & 10:45 am Sat. Broadcast KTYM 1460AM: 10-11pm Wed. Mid-Week Prayer & Bible Study: 7pm

Sunday Morning Worship: 8am & 11:30am Sunday Evening Worship: 6:30pm Bible Studies: Wed. 7:30pm & Sat. 9am Food for Your Soul Radio & Television Ministry: KTYM 1460AM: Mon - Fri. 6:30am Church Channel: Tues. 5:30pm & Fri. 2:30pm

Victory Institutional Baptist Church 4712 West El Segundo Blvd., Hawthorne, CA 90250 (310) 263-7073 • www.vibconline.com Pastor Richard Williams, III

Unity Christian Fellowship 16133 S. Atlantic Ave., Compton, CA 90221 (310) 604-0234 • F: (310) 886-0198 Bishop Johnny R. Withers, Jr., Senior Pastor Sunday G.I.R. Up Leadership Class: 8am Morning Worship Tuesday: 10am Teaching Empowerment Night: 7:30pm

In Gardena

The City of Refuge 14527 S. San Pedro Street, Gardena, CA 90248 (310) 516-1433 Bishop Noel Jones Morning Worship: 8am & 11am Evening Worship: 6pm Bible Study (Wed): Noon & 7pm BET/Fresh Oil (Wed): 7am

Sunday Morning Worship: 9am Sunday Evening Worship: 6pm Wed. Mid-Week Worship: 7pm Bible Study Tuesday: Noon & 7pm

Bible Enrichment Fellowship International 400 E. Kelso, Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 330-4700 • www.bamcm.org Dr. Beverly “BAM” Crawford

In Inglewood

Morning Worship: 9:30am Tues. Bible Study: 7:30pm Wed. Mid-Week Prayer: 5am, Noon & 7pm Wednesday Pathway: 7pm

The Liberty Church 14725 S. Gramercy Place, Gardena, CA 90249 (310) 715-8400 Pastor David W. Cross Early Worship: 8:30am Morning Worship: 11am Children’s Church: Both Services Word Power Wed.: 7-8pm

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: 7am & 10am Wed. Mid-Week Service: 7pm The Tabernacle is located at 321 N. Eucalyptus Ave., Inglewood

www.thelibertychurch.com

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

you. He was bruised for our iniquity. The chastisement of our sins were upon Him and by His stripes we are healed.

Whatever was wrong with you is not wrong with you anymore, but you have to accept it by faith.

We walk by faith and not by sight. You cannot live your way into victory, you have to believe your way into victory. The word of God is voice-activated. You speak it out of a heart of faith and it becomes alive and when the word of God comes alive in you, nothing or nobody can defeat you, because greater is He that is on the inside of you, than he that is in the world.

I want to encourage you to stop trying and start trusting. St. John 14:21, if you hear the word of God and you keep the word of God, you are saying that you love Him, you are saying I love God. Though He loves everybody the same, if you obey him, He pours more love into you. When you obey Him, He does more for you than He does for his disobedient children. When you trust and obey him, He reveals himself more to you than He does hard-headed Suzie or Billy. It doesn’t matter what you are going through, you will come out more than a conqueror..

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, ‘Trust in the lord with all thine heart’.

God does not want us to share our hearts with anything in the earth realm.

You have an instructor and his name is Holy Ghost. You have a guidebook and you have to trust and believe that everything in life that you need comes from God. You get the chance to make one decision every day and that decision is who is going to be the lord of your life.

In Hawthorne

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

Crusade Christian Faith Center 801 S. La Brea Avenue, Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 330-8535 Bishop Virgil D. Patterson Sr. Wed. Mid-Week Service: 7pm Sunday School: 9am Sunday Worship: 10:30am

L.A. Focus/November 2015

Love and Unity Christian Fellowship 1840 S. Wilmington Ave, P.O. Box 5449, Compton 90220 (310) 604-5900 Fax: (310) 604-5915 Dr. Ron C Hill

jump to the top of this building without some assistance. Trying harder has nothing to do with it. You believe to be a Christian and become one according to what you believe.

If one does not love God, one will not trust and obey God and if you don’t love him, you won’t trust and obey him. When you really love God more than anything else, obeying God is a piece of cake.

People in this country are full of religion, but few people are full of God. In I Samuel, we read where the people of God said, we don’t want God to be our leader anymore. We want to get us a king like everybody else. Samuel tried to talk them out of it and God spoke to Samuel and said, ‘Listen, Samuel, they are not rejecting you, they are rejecting me.’

God reminded them that I am over you, I am protecting you, I have supplied your needs and you have the nerve to tell me that you don’t want me to be your king.

There are those of us who are in trouble today because we refuse to trust and love and obey God. You are doing what you want to do and you are suffering, but you still won’t let go.

People who don’t trust and obey God cannot see him. St. John 14, if we don’t see God and walk in what we see then we will be no more than religious people.

I want you to know God on a personal level. Know that Jesus’ blood has redeemed you,— that you have been born by the spirit of almighty God. Those of you who believe the gospel, you are the body of Christ. You’ve got to learn how to walk in it. Stop trying to achieve it, because Jesus achieved it for

21

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 22

In Arise Christian Center 6949 La Tijera Blvd. Suite C, Westchester, CA 90045 (310)568-8445•F: (310) 568-8430 • Arisechristiancenter.com Pastor Ron Taylor

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

Westchester

In Irvine Christ Our Redeemer AME Church 45 Tesla, Irvine, CA 92618 (949) 955-0014 • F:(949) 955-0021 • www.corchurch.org Pastor Mark E. Whitlock, II

In Monrovia

Second Baptist Church 925 S. Shamrock Avenue • P.O. Box 479, Monrovia, CA 91017 (626) 358-2136 • F: (626) 303-2477 Bishop W.M. Larue Dillard, Phd.

Sunday Worship: 8am, 10:30am New Generation Praise Service: 10:30am Sun. Bible Univ.: 9:30am Tues. Interactive Bible Study: 7pm Wed. Pastor's Bible Study: Noon, 7pm Thurs. Bible Study: 7pm Fri. Singles Bible Study (1st Fri): 7pm

Morning Worship: 8am & 11am Wed. Mid-Week Service: Noon Wed. Teaching Ministry: 7pm 1st Sunday Communion 5th Sunday Baptism

In Long Beach

Jacob’s Ladder Community Fellowship, inc.

1152 E. Hyde Park Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90303 (866) 330-1702 • F: (310) 674-0760 Watchman/Shepherd Dr. Robert T. Douglas Sr. Sunday School: 10am Morning Services: 11:45am Evening Service: 7pm Wed. Lock & Load Prayer: 7pm Wed. Bible Study: 7:30pm 3rd Friday Youth Night: 7:30pm KYTYM 1460AM (Sunday): 11:30am www.jacobladderschurch.com

Antioch Church of Long Beach 1535 Gundry Ave. Long Beach, CA 90813 (562) 591-8778 • F: (562) 599-6048 Pastor Wayne Chaney Jr.

Miracle Temple Church of God Pentecostal 733 S. Grevillea Avenue, Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 419-7335 • info@cogpinglewood.org Bishop Johnny J. Young, Ph.D., Senior Pastor Elder Jonathan J. Young, Executive Pastor Sunday School: 8:30am Morning Worship: 10:15am Thursday Praise & Bible Study: Noon & 7pm Weekly Prayer: Noon Monday-Friday Early Morning Phoneline Prayer: 5am Fridays *(209) 255-1000 Access code = 100061# "Where the Difference is worth the Drive"

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

New Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church 434 S. Grevillea, Inglewood CA 90301 (310) 673-6250 Office • (310) 673-2153 Rev. Dr. Phillip A. Lewis, D. D., D. Th., Senior Pastor Sunday School: 9:30am Early Worship: 8am Morning Worship: 11am First Sunday Evening Worship: 5pm Mid-Week Bible Study Wed.: 7pm Radio: KTYM 1460 AM on Saturdays at 8pm & Mondays at 7pm

Stone’s outlook is more cautious. “The issues need to be discussed objectively,” says Stone. “Right now there is no communication. None whatsoever. Other than this thing the task force is doing. That is just done for one day, then they go back to business as usual.”

To encourage open and organic communication at this year’s summit, the CDI organized a networking event along with two matchmaking sessions providing space for informal interaction between insurance companies and vendors. Jones will also speak at a lunch event.

“This year, for the first time, we are going to have a business-to-business networking event for our diverse suppliers only,” says Ramil. “It is so valuable maybe they can go after a contract together. Maybe they pro-

Sun. Worship Experience: 10:45am 3rd Sun. Healing & Annointing: 10:45am Wed. Bible Study: Noon & 6pm Mothers of Murdered Youth & Children: Thurs. by appt • On/off Parole, Now What?: Thurs. by appt

Morning Worship: 9am & 11:15am Bible Study Wednesday: 7pm Intercessory Prayer Tuesday : 7pm Intercessory Prayer Sunday: 8am - 8:45am Intercessory Prayer Thursday: 11:30pm - 12:30pm

First Church of God Center of Hope 9550 Crenshaw Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90305 • (323) 757-1804 Pastor Geremy L. Dixon

Insurance continued from page 12

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

Sunday Worship: 7:45am, 10:45am, 4:45pm Ministry Worship to Children/Youth Sunday: 9:45am - 10:45am Prayer/Academy of Biblical Studies (Wed): 10:45am - 6:45pm www.second-baptistchurch.com

In Pasadena

Bethlehem Church 1550 North Fair Oaks Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91103 (626) 794-5211 • F: (626) 794-6592 Pastor Christopher A. Bourne

Worship Services: 8am, 9:30am, 11:30am Elements Bible Study: 8am & 10:15am Spanish Worship Service: 3pm Family Night Bible Study (Wed.): 7pm

Sunday School: 9am Sunday Worship: 10am Tuesday Bible Study: 7pm Mid-day Worship Thursday: Noon www.bethlehemcoch.org

Sunday School: 8:30am Sunday Worship Service: 9:40am Wed. Bible Study: 7pm Wed Youth & Young Adult Ministry: 7pm

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: 11am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Wed. Intercessory Prayer: 7pm Wed. Pastoral teaching adults: 7:30pm Wed. Youth Ministry Boot-Camp; Youth Bible Study: 7pm & Choir Rehearsal: 7:30pm

cure services from each other.”

Ramil said the insurance commissioner had personally written letters to every CEO asking them to attend the matchmaking session and she and her team have also called the companies.

“I want every diverse supplier to know we are really opening the door for economic opportunity in an industry that may not have been as open to it,” says Ramil.

Stone says to really improve communication, the CDI should organize a minoritybusiness-led panel to sit down with the insurers who do the least business with minority-owned businesses. This should be organized, he says, to hammer out a way to improve communication providing the contractors with a real shot to secure new business.

“It’s as simple as that, really,” he added.

Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church 980 Rio Grande Street, Pasadena, CA 91104 *Mailing Address: 1416 N. Mentor Ave. Pasadena, 91104 (626) 794-4875 • F: (626) 794-7815 Pastor W. Harrison Trotter Sunday School: 8:30am Sunday Worship: 10am Bible Study Wednesday: 7pm Intercessory Prayer (Fourth Wed.): 7pm Christians Uniting To Make A Difference -Eph. 4:13

Spirit of Zion Fellowship Church 10853 Victory Blvd. North Hollywood, CA 91601 (805) 517-1907 • www.mtzionla.org Pastor E.V. Hill II

In Van Nuys

Sunday Worship: 1pm Children's Church: 1pm

VOTE NOVEMBER 3

Church News continued from page 18

of time stabilizing it. The greater challenge to what we face, however, is the demographics of where we are. I would not think the church has to move. Instead to remain where it is, but to be sensitive to the demographics and the needs of this community.”

Also retiring this month is Pastor David Buggs of the Central Baptist Church in Carson. Buggs, who celebrated his 90th birthday earlier this year, has served in ministry for over 40 years. He has served as

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pastor of the 1,000-plus member church for 43 years. On November 29, the church will install his son-in-law, Rev. Gerald Waddis as their next pastor..In other local church news, Rev. Clyde Oden has been reassigned to Bethel AME Oxnard, Rev. Dr. Mary Minor goes to Brookins AME– Kirkland and the Rev. Carolyn Baskin-Bell has been assigned to Second AME. Bryant Temple AME welcomes Rev. Theodore Payne as its new pastor.

Blackface continued from page 7

sensitivity to experiences of marginalized groups in society,” says Professor Darnell Hunt, UCLA’s Director of Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies.

Meanwhile, the UCLA fraternity at the

center of the firestorm posted a statement on Facebook, apologizing for the event but denied any of their guests wore blackface to the party.

The pictures from the party posted on Instagram have since been deleted.

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Nancy Wilson Shares A Time Tested Holiday Tradition

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he’s got three Grammy awards and over 70 albums to her credit, but onstage isn’t the only place this prolific jazz songstress performs spectacularly. Fact is, for as long as she can remember, the famed 78-year old song stylist has taken great joy in preparing meals for friends and family.

“I've been cooking since childhood”, says Wilson, having grown up in a cooking household, it’s hard to remember exactly when it became part of her life but she’s certain about one thing: cooking brings friends and family together, which is the most important element of the cooking experience.

Her specialty is festive holiday dishes, including the one below.

“I like cooking big holiday meals,” says

the musical legend. “Thanksgiving and Christmas are my favorites, with all the trimmings.”

During the holidays, an invitation to the Wilson residence is most sought after not just for her grace and charm, but because while most stars of her magnitude have everything catered, this handson star continues to do what she knows and loves, sharing with family and friends some of her time-tested recipes.

To that end, Wilson—once dubbed by some as the lady with the honey-coated voice, shares with L.A. Focus’ readers one of her most requested side dish creations, putting a spin on the classic macaroni and cheese.

Enjoy a little holiday tradition, courtesy of the incomparable Nancy Wilson.

Macaroni & Chee se With White Sauc e Ingredients : 1 cup (4 ounc es) elbow mac aroni 4 tablespoon s butter or m argerine, divi 1 small onio ded n, minced 3 tablespoon s all-purpose flour 2 cups milk 1 1/5 cups sh redded sharp cheese salt and pepp er to taste Instruction s: Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Cook macar oni in boilin g water unti Rinse and dr l tender. ain.

Heat 1 tables poon butter in skillet. Sau until tender. te onion Combine flou r, remaining 3 tablespoon milk, salt an s butter, d pepper in sa ucepan. Cook on medium and stir heat until sm ooth and crea onion stir to my. Add mix.

Layer half of macaroni in baking dish, third of chee add onese. Repeat la yers. Pour on sauce. Top w ith remaining white cheese. Bake degrees for 30 at 325 minutes. Ser ve hot.

Offering Classes on ABSTINENCE, ETIQUETTE & LIFE SKILLS

Training For Female Teens Ages 12-18

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Eye On Gospel Holidays Bring New Projects from Kirk Franklin & Mighty Clouds Well it’s that time of the year again…a time of reflection, time of thanks and most of all the season of Thanksgiving. Let’s take the time to be grateful for what we have and what God has allowed us to have. Be grateful for the simple things in life such as health, family and friends. My mind goes back to the old classic song “Be Grateful” by Walter Hawkins…a true classic song with a powerful message.

Speaking about messages, the word is out on the street that the “Rebirth of the Mighty Clouds of Joy” is coming soon. One of the greatest quartet groups of all time will be releasing a new project in 2016. In celebration of the Christmas season, they will be releasing a Christmas single. We’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, The first single from Kirk Franklin’s Losing My Religion— “Wanna Be Happy?”— debuted at #1 on the charts upon its release in August and also became the best first-week, digital single in gospel sales history, selling 11,882 units in its premiere week.

“Every human being was wired with the desire for happiness and we will try different things all in the pursuit of that feeling,” Franklin said. “With this song I’m saying if you really want to be happy, you have to start with the originator. My goal is to try to lead people to the manufacturer of their souls.”

Losing My Religion, the eleventh album from the nine-time Grammy® Award winning artist, songwriter and producer, drops November 13, but it’s not only the music that is taking center stage, but the controversial remarks Franklin has made surrounding the title.

"Religion, throughout the years, has become a very oppressive thing that doesn't allow people to get to know the God it was created to try to lead them to,” Franklin said.

"We think we need man and these systems to make us right with God and it's not that. It's when we accept His gift, we're right," he said. "We're getting rid of the systems and all the rules, and the processes, and it's like, let's fall in love with the Father and see Him as a father that loves us, as flawed as we are.”

Lecrae Makes History Lecrae made history last month, becoming the first becoming the first purely hip-hop artist to win Artist of the Year at the GMA Dove Awards.

"It's extremely humbling," Lecrae said.

"I make music to impact and inspire. I'm grateful to have a t e a m around me t h a t believes in the vision and

contributes their talent to bring it all to fruition."

Other big winners included the following: Gospel Artist of the Year: Tasha Cobbs; Contemporary Gospel/Urban Recorded Song: “I Luh God (ft. Big Shizz)” – Erica Campbell; Rap/Hip Hop Album: Anomaly – Lecrae; Rap/Hip Hop Song: "All I Need is You" (Lecrae); Traditional Gospel Song: "How Awesome is Our God” —Israel & New Breed (ft. Yolanda Adams); Contemporary Gospel/Urban Album: Forever Yours— Smokie Norful; Traditional Gospel Album: Worth Fighting For — Brian Courtney Wilson.

A Life-time Achievement Award was presented to Bobby Jones Gospel.

Speaking of award news, the biggest buzz in the industry is the Stellar Awards coming back to Las Vegas. Stellar Awards 2016 will be Febru-ary 20th at the Orleans Hotel. This year the Gospel Music Workshop of AMerica board meeting will kick off one after the Stellar Awards (Sunday through Wednesday)…Another power packed week in Las Vegas.

Worthwhile Anthony Brown kicks off Thanksgiving early, with the "Worth Weekend" video contest. Starting next Sunday, Brown is looking for the best rendition of his Number 1 song "Worth," off the current album Everyday Jesus.

Entering the "Worth Weekend" contest is easy. Simply upload a Youtube link of your BEST version of the song to Anthony's Official Facebook fan page (www.facebook.com/ajblive). The contest is open to any groups, choirs, praise teams and family ensembles.

The contest will run from November 1 November 15 and all entries should be no longer than 5 minutes. The winner will be selected on November 18, 2015. Anthony Brown & group therAPy will perform live at the winner's church on Sunday, November 29th. For more details on the contest check out Anthony's video here: Anthony's "Worth Weekend"> In other news, Rev. Run, one of the founding members of the group is now partnering up with AT & T to join the “Inspired Mobility” series. This program will be heard on radio stations all across America and other parts of the world.

Merging Faith and Technology together as one. As I always say..there are more mobile phones than toilets in the world..get a clue. You can connect with more people via mobile phone now than on desktop computers.

Don’t forget to secure your ad in the 2016 Gospel RoundUp. Also if you are a pastor or ministry, make sure you get your ad into the LA Focus’ new ministry section, you will be shocked at the new changes coming in the new year.

Finally, stay connected to the industry text MUSICBIZ to 24587 and enjoy a bonus gift. Check me out on radio, TV and online at BroSteve.com or email me at BroSteveMedia@me.com.

Remember, tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life….See ya next month..!!

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 25

SavingGrace

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Pooch Hall Lift, starring Kerry Washington. He went on to land supporting roles in the indie releases, Black Cloud and Blind Dating with Chris Pine for director James Keach; Stomp The Yard 2: Homecoming and the 2011 box office hit, Jumping The Broom which starred Angela Bassett, Paula Patton, Laz Alonzo. Meagan Good and Mike Epps. On the small screen, Hall worked with Jenna Elfman on the CBS primetime series Accidentally On Purpose and had a recurring role on Suits.

He doesn’t take any of it for granted.

“I’m blessed as an individual and I want to give back the blessings that I’m getting because everybody can have blessings. I want to make sure that I let people know that they matter and that trusting yourself and trusting God, you’ll be good.”

Saving grace for Hall boils down to one word—family.

“As a man and as a father of three myself, it’s about choices and you can mess your life up by just doing the wrong thing. For me it’s about making right choices because there is a legacy you have to leave and making sure you can look yourself in the mirror and say, “Hey I’m happy with who I am and where I’ve been and I’m looking forward to where I am going.”

L.A. Focus/November 2015

hen Pooch Hall lost his role on the series “The Game” in 2012, he was just short of devastated. The role was a game changer for the Boston native, who’d up until landing it had starts and stops in his Hollywood career with short-lived TV series like “Pepper Dennis” and bit parts on shows like “Without A Trace” His departure from the show was also hard on the fans who, were rooting for the show’s main couple, Derwin Davis and Melanie, played by Tia Mowry Hardrict.

“It was tough. “The Game” was a huge part of my life. But all good things come to an end. I realized I couldn’t be Jerome forever so I kept it moving,” he said.

And move he did. Just as Hall’s role in “The Game” was winding down, he landed a supporting role on a new Showtime series. Initially, he hoped to be able to do both, but due to scheduling conflicts (“The Game” shot in Atlanta and “Ray Donovan” in Boston), BET decided to write Hall’s character off the show.

“When we were making my deal with Showtime, they knew how strong my fan base was so…Showtime said you still can work over at “The Game.” And when I went back to BET and was like let’s make this work, they didn’t return my phone calls or emails. Everyone was like why’d you’d leave “The Game” and I was like ‘I didn’t leave.’ It was hurtful.”

Fortunately for Hall, “Ray Donovan” became a network hit. And just like that Hall became a hot Hollywood commodity. He’ll star with Vivica Fox and Charles Dutton in the upcoming film, “Carter High”, has a horror film, “But Deliver Us From Evil” on tap for release in 2016 and just recently joined the cast of DreamWorks’ A Dog’s Purpose with Bradley Cooper and Dennis Quaid.

But it is on the set of “Ray Donovan” where Hall has seen the greatest dividends.

“I really feel like I’m part of the big league in Hollywood,” said Hall of the cast and crew that includes stars Live Schreiber, Jon Voight, Elliott Gould, Hank Azaria and Katie Holmes. “I’m learning so much and I know that The Game had prepared me for this very moment to be working with these high caliber producers and Oscar winning cast. We possess all the elements to be one of these shows that is going to be talked about for the next few years.”

With that, Hall hasn’t looked back, even if he did return to “The Game” this past summer to tape the series finale, which aired on August 5.

“It felt good to say goodbye to The Game. I thank the fans for allowing me to have those five seasons, and to be where I am in my career now.

While he played a good guy on The Game, his character on Ray Donovan is the son on a gangster and a complete opposite.

“The fact that he’s the son of a Boston Irish mobster—there is something compelling and intriguing about that. And I really enjoy ‘being bad,” Hall reports.

Ironically, his character on the show is a boxer and it wasn’t until after they cast him that it was revealed that he grew up boxing in his hometown of Brockton, Massachusetts where he was 23-0 as an amateur fighter “The boxing situation didn’t even come into play until they saw me training and said, ‘Yeah, this kid can really fight.’ It’s plain to see in Ray, Terry, and even Bunchy has a sense of toughness about him too. I didn’t grow up there but I do have that toughness in my blood, being from the east coast and from the northeast in general. I grew up where Marvin Hatley and Rocky Marciano are from and being tough is a way of life.

Sports was a way out for the 38 year old actor who was born Marion H. Hall Jr. and won the Southern New England Golden Gloves in 1994.

“Growing up in that type of city you’re not exactly sure where you’re going to end up. I lost a lot of my friends to gangs or being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“My father didn't want us to be pushed around. He didn't want me fighting in the streets. He wanted me fighting in the ring and I took it a little more seriously and started training for real.”

Acting, however, came somewhat by chance.

“There was an open call for a movie and I went and got chosen. It was called Outside Providence and was my first very movie audition. Making the transition from sports to acting just came naturally. “ He got his first break when he landed a small role in the independent feature,

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Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 26

A

Finding Your Pretty with Chez

ccording to the ladies in my family there are rules to being a lady. Don’t wear rollers outside the house, don’t apply makeup in public, and always keep your nails well manicured.

I can’t remember my first manicure, that’s how young I was, but I do know that I was in the 5th grade when I started getting acrylics and the older I got the longer and more outrageous my nails got. Every two weeks I was at the nail tech getting all the rhinestones, colors and designs that my teenage budget could afford. I was addicted. Although my nails are toned down for business purposes only, I’m still addicted and a fresh manicure every two weeks is heaven to me.

SPOTLIGHT ON: NAILZZ BY DAYA @NAILZZBYDAYA

Since moving to LA I’ve tried a lot of nail salons some I liked some I hated.

Every other week I try my best to make it all the way to the valley to sit in my girl Daya’s chair. Her I love! It’s a little bit of a drive but well worth it. There’s never a wait, she’s sweet as pie , she knows all her clients personally remembering that I do not like my cuticles cut, and I always leave with my nails on point.

Daya has been doing nails since 2010 and says she loves the creativity and with every client that sits in her chair is it’s like her very own therapy session. The mother of two with one on the way is one of the best in the business especially when it comes to designs and making your nails pretty but she stresses that the first step to pretty nails is healthy nails “Keeping your nails healthy has a lot of factors, from your nail tech using proper techniques and approved products to you as a client also

YOU GOTTA GET THIS A big thanks to Nailtiques for their donation to our Annual First Ladies High Tea that was held last month in Beverly Hills. It marked my formal introduction to the nail polish and nail care products, which are great as are the selection of colors offered by the company that is dedicated to the maintenance of healthy nails.

Their Formula 2 consists of a unique blend of protein and conditioners. The

protein immediately acts to help bond nails that are splitting or peeling and helps to strengthen the nail.

Nailtiques Color Lacquer with Protein gives the nail protein or Base Wear an extra boost. When ordinary nail polish is applied, the polish inhibits the great benefits of the nail protein. The protein boost in Nailtiques color lacquer will allow the protein to penetrate through the polish to provide maximum benefits.

taking the right precautions. “If you have acrylics get a fill when due, which is about every two weeks,and tampering with your nails by chewing or ripping off skin is a big no no.

With her celebrity clientele, prestige talent and upscale location Daya could easily charge a lot more but keeps her prices reasonable. Manicures start at just $18 and square full sets start at $25.

Salon Suites 5444 Yolanda Ave Ste 216 Tarzana, Ca 91356 818.210.7006 *Cash Preferred/Credit Cards Accepted*

BE BOLD Mix nail shapes! Here Daya mixed stiletto and square for this bold look. Paired with the Swarovski stones and clear acrylic. This look is sure to make heads turn.

Tip: Check out the shape of your cuticles. Are they curved, squared, or squared with rounded edges?

This is an easy indicator of what nail shape will work best for you.

Profiling Hair Stylist to the stars Kim Kimble Kim Kimble has come a long way since her humble beginnings as a shampoo girl at her mom’s salon in Los Angeles.

A third generation hair stylist, she trained at both Vidal Sassoon Academy and Dudley Cosmetology University in North Carolina. After graduating, Kim began building her clientele out of a barbershop where she happened to get a break of a lifetime.

“A lot of the clientele were from West Angeles Church. That's how I found out about a play being headed by Robert Townsend. They were doing a version of The Five Heartbeats, and I volunteered to do the hair.”

In 1995, after opening her first salon,

Phaze II, she was approached by Townsend and Halle Berry to do more fantasy hair on the film, B*A*P*S. That was the beginning of Kim’s celebrity stylist career .

Today, the Chicago native serves as the primary stylist on all of Beyoncé’s movie, TV and music projects in addition to working with Oprah, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Shakira, Mary J. Blige, and even the iconic Miss Piggy.

In 2000, Kim opened Epiphany Hair Studio in West Hollywood and launched Kimble BeautyTM, a full range hair care line. In 2013 she developed K2 BeautyTM, a line of professional hair care products. Her reality show, LA Hair, is in

L.A. Focus/November 2015

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its fourth season on WE tv.

Focus 11.15_Focus 7-04 11/3/15 11:39 AM Page 27

Follow us on twitter @lafocusnews www.lafocusnewspaper.com ComiNg iN JANUARY:

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