L.A. Focus Newspaper June 2020

VOLUME XXV • ISSUE 5 • June 2020 >>

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CHURCH NEWS The Church of God In Christ Cancels Annual Convocation PAGE

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HOLLYWOOD BUZZ Celebs React to Killing of George Floyd PAGE

SEE PAGE

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A Nation In Protest & Pain Check out some of the powerful images from around the southland

>> SEE PAGE 16 UPFRONT Larry Elder Hopes Uncle Tom Film Will Up Black Vote For Trump

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contents

June2020

L.A. Focus Publications

Left: Congresswoman Maxine Waters practices COVID-19 social distancing while passing meals to families in need. Middle; Janelle Monae and volunteers show the crowd some dance moves; Right; Angela Rye hands out meals to families awaiting in their cars. Inglewood Unified School District, KJLH and Gate Gourmet hosted #WondaLunch a free lunch drive-through giveaway on Friday, May 29. 10,000 lunches were given away at Crozier Middle School in Inglewood. (Photo credit: Rickey Brown)

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From The Editor “The Tipping Point”

Commentary

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My Faith & The Census Remind Us “You Matter”

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Mourning and Mayhem: California Legislators React to the Killing of George Floyd,Former President Barack Obama Encourages Protesters to Take Activism Further,Larry Elder Hopes

On Race & Rage

Headlines From Africa

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Tracy Ellis Ross

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Feature Story Proposed Crenshaw Mall Acquisition Sparks Community Protests & Efforts To Keep It Black Owned

What Will California Do About Rent?

Magic Johnson to Provide $100M in Capital to Fund PPP Small Business Loans

Game Changer Dr. Kissmekia Corbett

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

Lisa Collins Gerald Bell, Stephen Oduntan Christal Mims Kisha Smith Ian Foxx, Rickey Brown Derek McKeith

Melissa Viviane Jefferson (aka “Lizzo)

Eye On Gospel Ricky Dillard Cues Up Sunday Morning Church With New Album, The Widow of Troy Sneed Issues Statement

Church News

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First Lady Files

Not So Fast: Pastors Postpone & Return To In Person Services, The Church of God In Christ Cancels It’s Holy Convocation

First Lady Shalonda K. Crawford

Pastor Profile Bishop James Taylor

27 From The Pulpit of 30 Through The Storm 33 In Good Taste Saving Grace 34 “Courage To Continue” Pastor James McKnight

COVID-19 - One Man’s Personal Battle

Monique Kilgore

Omari Hardwick

Tennis player Naomi Osaka is now the highestearning female athlete in the world, topping even Serena Williams. The 22-year-old, who d e f e a t e d Williams in the 2018 U.S. Open final, e a r n e d $37.4M in 2019.

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

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

advisory board Napoleon Brandford Pastor Beverly Crawford Lem Daniels Bob Blake

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

Cover Design: UpScale Media Group

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L.A. Focus/ June 2020

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Red Carpet Style

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Money Matters Biz News Briefs

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Celebs React to George Floyd, America’s Got Talent Producer Vindicated in Investigation Over Gabrielle Union’s Controversial Exit From America’s Got Talent

One On One

UpFront Head to Head

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Hollywood Buzz

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Commentary

REV. EDDIE ANDERSON Guest Columnist

“My Faith & the Census Remind Us That “You Matter” he census is important because it says, “You matter. Who you are matters.

Where you live matters.” Speaking from my faith, Scripture reminds us by way of the Gospels that proclaiming “I matter” is one of the most powerful acts a human can take.

As the senior pastor of my church in South Los Angeles, I lend my voice for the members of my congregation and remind each of them that they matter. In addition to my ministry, one of the meaningful ways I accomplish this is by serving as a census campaign partner with LA Voice, an interfaith grassroots organization uniting over 55 congregations and over 40,000 community members to encourage our brothers and sisters to be counted on the 2020 census.

Through countless phone calls, virtual town halls, telethons and digital roundtables, our faith-based community is united and working hard to make sure all of our church members are counted.

Why is the census so important for us? We see not only equality, but equity.

We must be counted. We must be counted in a time of crisis.

When we participate in the census, we are marking ourselves as “present.” We say, “I matter. I count. My community matters.” When we are counted, we see better schools and enrichment programs for our children; we see better roads and more funding for our hospitals; we see SNAP and CalFresh funded so people are able to eat especially in times of crisis like today.

For African Americans, many of us can affirm and attribute the increase in resources to us by being counted. Being counted is both a spiritual and political affirmation of our agency and being, even when oppression is rampant.

The region of Los Angeles County just surpassed the 50% response rate milestone, but there’s still a long road ahead. Our region, and particularly our African American communities, are expected to be undercounted in the 2020 census. This means millions of dollars can potentially be taken from our communities.

I give you the challenge my mother gave me every day growing up: “show up.” It is up to us to show up for our families, for our church, and for our community.

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From the Editor

I urge you to tell your neighbors. Tell your church members. Tell your friends. Tell your community members to take on the pledge to fill out the census and say “I matter. I count. My community matters.”

Everyone must be included. We all have to come together. Combining resources and partnerships between organizations and people are of utmost importance. Our nonprofit organizations, local businesses and our faith community must all work collectively to spread this message far and wide, especially among our African American communities.

All throughout the Bible, God recounted the importance of being counted. Moses counted the people so he could help them and distribute resources equally and equitably. It is our turn to follow in these footsteps and make sure funding and resources for our communities are distributed equally and equitably.

The only way we can do that right now is by taking the time to fill out the census.

Completing your form is simple. It’s fast. It’s safe. Complete your census online at my2020census.gov, by phone at 844-330-2020 or by mail if you received a paper form.

Your responses are protected by the law and cannot be shared with other government agencies and organizations. For example, your landlord cannot get access to your responses.

Help spread the word on why the census is so important. Tell your neighbors, your family, your relatives and your church members. Even as we remain sheltered in place and continue to live our lives in this new environment, we have an important opportunity to work through our faith together for an accurate count.

Complete your census today and proclaim “I matter” powerfully and with joy.

Rev. Eddie Anderson is the senior pastor at McCarty Memorial Christian Church in South Los Angeles. Anderson is a census campaign partner with LA Voice and part of the We Count Los Angeles Campaign comprised of more than 100 grassroots organizations committed to ensuring that everyone is counted in the 2020 Census.

LISA COLLINS Publisher

“The Tipping Point” e’ve suffered through three years of President Donald Trump, lost over 100,000 lives to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was the 8 minutes and 46 seconds it took for Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin to snuff the life out of George Floyd on May 25, that has galvanized the nation’s youth and captured the attention of the world.

It was a wake-up call for justice. A tipping point, for sure.

The timing couldn’t have been worse. That same day, a white woman in Central Park called the police and falsely accused a black man birdwatching in Central Park of threatening her after he asked her to leash her dog. Video of two white men hunting down Ahmaud Arbery and killing him was already dominating national headlines.

Yet, it was the callous optics that drew the world in and while it would have been easy to turn away, most watched as George Floyd took his last breath. It is the first of many powerful images that have come to define the best and worst of America as protests and unrest erupted on the nation’s streets inspired by a generation of youth demanding justice and asking to be heard.

Among the images were the faces of white, black, brown and Asian youth enjoined and resolute in their anger and calls for justice and change. The image of a police chief kneeling and praying at the sight where George Floyd took his last breath at the knee of one of his own officers. The images of police all over the nation taking a knee in support of the protests and their cause.

Juxtaposed to that was the disturbing image of a president who invoked a 200year old law to put troops on the streets to “dominate” American citizens and tear gassed a group of peaceful protesters to clear the way for a photo opp at a church. (Are we still in America?)

In the absence of true leadership, four former presidents were compelled to speak to the nation.

Bush said, “It is time for us to listen. It is time for America to examine our tragic failures -- and as we do, we will also see some of our redeeming strengths."

“Those who set out to silence those voices do not understand the meaning of America – or how it becomes a better place”, he added.

Said Clinton, “it is impossible not to feel grief for his family–and anger, revulsion, and frustration that his death is the latest in a long line of tragedy and injustice, and a painful reminder that a person’s race still determines how they will be treated in nearly every aspect of American life.

“No one deserves to die the way George Floyd did. And the truth is, if you’re white in America, the chances are you won’t.”

America’s oldest living president, Jimmy Carter, called for “a government as good as its people”.

But it was Barack Obama, who urged the protesters on, telling them that they had

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helped to make the entire country feel as if this is something that’s got to change and “communicated a sense of urgency that is as powerful and as transformative as anything that I’ve seen in recent years.”

"The next moment in American history can be a real turning point if we can channel our justifiable anger into peaceful, sustained, and effective action,” Obama said.

“As tragic as these past few weeks have been, as difficult and scary and uncertain as they’ve been, they’ve also been an incredible opportunity for people to be awakened to some of these underlying trends. They offer an opportunity for us to all work together to tackle them, to take them on, to change America and make it live up to its highest ideals.”

That all four officers were charged is proof that their efforts have paid off. In due time, we will see if justice is served for George Floyd as the world will no doubt be watching to see if the officers are actually convicted.

Said Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, “I don’t think we get another chance to fix this.”

That can also be said of the leadership– or lack thereof– in the White House. We have one chance to fix it in November.

“We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership,” said former U.S. Secretary of Defense, James Mattis who was so disturbed by Trump’s actions in light of the nationwide protests that he was prompted to speak out. So too, was retired Gen. John Allen, who hopes the protests will lead to a more enlightened America, but noted, "it will have to come from the bottom up. For at the White House, there is no one home."

In fact, the latest actions from the Oval Office cause some to wonder whether there will be elections in November and worse still, if voted out of office, would Trump actually leave?

“All the signs are there. I don’t know why people aren’t panicking more,” said one pundit. “Trump so clearly wants to be a dictator. What is standing between him taking power?”

Well, I think the protests of the past few days hold the answer to that in the thousands of Americans who have taken to the streets in every state in the nation–many for the first time in their lives. Yes, they’re protesting systemic racism. Yes, they’re advocating for police reform. But they are also very clearly saying “no more” to Donald Trump and it is in November, that they can have the final say..

Keep the faith!

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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UpFront

News Briefs

Mourning and Mayhem: California Legislators React to the Brutal Killing of George Floyd TANU HENRY

CA Black Media

rotestors and pastors across California as well as angered citizens and politicians – including Gov. Gavin Newsom – have all responded to the violent death of an unarmed Black man in Minnesota.

George Floyd, 46, died in police custody after a White officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeled on his neck for nearly eight minutes during an arrest in Minneapolis on May 25. The cellphone video of the brutal killing has been shared tens of millions of times around the world. In it, Floyd can be heard pleading for help and letting the officers know that he was suffocating.

“I can’t breathe,” Floyd cries out to the cops. He also called out for his mama.

The California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) issued a statement after Floyd’s death.

“There were other officers who could have helped him but did not,” read the CLBC statement. “They instead preferred to stand by and watch as their colleague killed an unarmed man. There were bystanders who wanted to help him but could not because of the uniforms, guns and badges that stood in the way” Assemblymember Shirley Weber (DSan Diego), the chair of the CLBC, also took to Twitter to express her grief, horror and support for the victim’s family.

“George Floyd should be alive today,” Weber tweeted. The members of CLBC, she told her followers, “stand with his family, the people of Minneapolis, and those speaking out in the name of justice.”

Floyd was killed almost a year to the date that the California state Assembly passed AB 392 in May 2019. The bill Weber introduced and championed raised the bar for police officers to justify using lethal force in California. It took effect on Jan 1 this year.

Across the country, days of fiery protest escalated into violent rioting in every major American city and in some smaller towns, too.

“In California and across the country, there are indications that violent actors may be attempting to use these protests for their own agendas,” the governor said. “We are closely monitoring organizing by violent extremist organizations. To those who seek to exploit Californians’ pain to sow chaos and destruction, you are not welcome.”

Last week, the Rev. Shane Harris, President of the People’s Alliance of Justice, attended a rally supporting Floyd’s family in Minneapolis. Harris, who is an activist based in San Diego, joined the Rev. Al Sharpton and other activists and faith leaders from across the country.

“A Black man went to death row before he could ever get to court over an alleged nonviolent offense,” Harris said.

“The County DA's response to whether he's filing charges shows us he must have selective justice in his mind.”

Senator Shannon Grove (RBakersfield), Minority Leader in the California Senate, says she empathizes with the outrage but called the riots “unacceptable”.

"Today our state and country woke up with a mixture of emotions,” said Grove.

“We feel sadness and grief for George Floyd's family, and we feel anger and frustration with those who would use a tragic event to vandalize, loot, and destroy communities.”

In a solemn ceremony on Sunday afternoon, San Francisco Mayor London Breed took a knee with local leaders in the Mission district in the city. She called for justice and asked the protest organizers to remain true to the spirit of non-violence that underpins their activism.

"Your words mean nothing if your actions are something else,” Breed advised.

“Stop turning Black Lives Matter into a joke, because it's not. It's born out of pain. It’s born out of disrespect and racism.”

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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Here in California, the demonstrations have led to the death of a Black law enforcement professional, mass looting, arson, vandalism and billions of dollars in property loss. The protests got so violent and destructive in Los Angeles that Gov. Newsom has declared a state of emergency in all of Los Angeles County after the city requested emergency aid for the state to activate and deploy the California National Guard.

Assemblymember Sydney Kamlager (D-Los Angeles), who attended a march in the L.A., tweeted, “There are no amount of hashtags or social media posts to remember the effects of the internalized trauma from experiencing repeated police brutality in America. I stand firm in the fight to decriminalize Blackness.”

In Oakland on Saturday, a gunman opened fire in front of the Ronald V. Dellums Federal building, killing a 53year-old African American Federal Protective Services Officer who lived in Pinole on the north East Bay. Another officer, who is currently hospitalized, was also shot.

“We are further saddened and outraged by this callous act of gun violence.

This crime is under investigation,” wrote U.S. Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA13). “But we should never conflate the actions of murderers with the motives of protestors demanding justice."

On Thursday, Gov. Newsom said he understood the raw emotion that sparked the protests.

“Over the last few days, we have seen millions of people lift their voices in anger, rightfully outraged at how systemic racism is allowed to persist,” Newsom said. “Every single day, people of color are disadvantaged and discriminated against. Black and Latino men in particular face mortal danger all across this country simply because of their race.

Every person who has raised their voice should be heard.”

The governor also condemned the violence that has sidelined the protests.

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Photo Credit: Alain Vasquez

BET Founder Calls for $14 Trillion in Reparations for Black Americans BET Founder Robert Johnson recently called for $14 trillion of slavery reparations for black Americans. This comes days after the killing of George Floyd and a national conversation about the unfair treatment of blacks.

“Wealth transfer is what’s needed,” Johnson said. “Since 200-plus-years or so of slavery, labor taken with no compensation, is a wealth transfer. Denial of access to education, which is a primary driver of accumulation of income and wealth, is a wealth transfer.” He believes that the problems we’re facing can be fixed if the government is willing to “go big.”

“The problems we confront today can be solved, but it takes a big, bold action and $14 trillion in reparations for damages upon heirs of slaves is an appropriate statement,” Johnson believes that reparations will prove that white Americans understand the “damages that are owed” to black people. ““If this money goes into pockets like the stimulus checks ... that money is going to return back to the economy.” This would lead to more wealth for black people.”

Johnson went on to say that, along with other efforts, reparations must happen in order to level the playing field.

“Short answers to long horrific questions about the stain of slavery are not going to solve the inequality problem.”

Governor Extends Statewide Freeze on Evictions Until July

Gov. Gavin Newsom has issued an executive order halting evictions for renters across California until July 28.

The order, according to the governor’s office, authorizes local governments in California to extend moratoriums on evictions to protect their residents who can’t afford to pay rents because of the coronavirus crisis.

The initial order–executed in March– was scheduled to expire on May 31.

On March 16, the governor strengthened the order by issued a ban on enforcement of eviction orders by local authorities or courts for renters affected by the global pandemic.

Once the moratorium is lifted, though, tenants could still be liable to pay back rent to their landlords.

On May 27, the Senate Housing Committee voted yes on SB 1410, a bill, introduced by Sen. Lena Gonzalez (D-Long Beach). If passed and signed into law, SB 1410 would provide temporary financial assistance to California renters.

The state would make direct payments to landlords for as much as 80% of unpaid rent for tenants across the state, Tenants would only qualify if their nonpayment due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Gov. Newsom’s executive order Friday included other provisions, too. Among them were a directive to the Deparment of Motor Vehicles to extend mail-in renewals for driver’s licenses and identification cards. It also lifted restrictions that prevented after-school and childcare programs from serving children of essential workers, and dropped the requirement to take an assessment test for Californians enrolled in the teacher preparation program during the 2019-20 school year.

HeadToHead On Race & Rage

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n 1992, I operated a small pub- The Burden of American laws, and the mortal lishing business in Los assault on him inflicted a deep Race and Angeles. It was destroyed as a wound on every American, not just Rage result of riots that ensued after four American blacks. People who think police officers were acquitted of charges of it their duty now to express sympathy to excessive violence in the beating of Rodney black folk must learn how to recognize that King. the grief is their own and not that of some It changed my life. I focused my resolve 'other' looking for their generosity." to work in public policy to change destrucRegarding allegations of racism, I say: "I tive realities that were taking our distressed don't agree that our communities, and the whole nation, in what nation is racist. That I saw as the wrong direction. mantra is the poison That was almost 30 years ago. Yet it's that entrenches still going on: chaos and destruction, suppos- resentment and diviedly justified by racial injustice. Why? sion among us. The For the past week, I sat bunkered at daily hunt for racism night in my Washington, D.C., apartment as from top to bottom of the nation's capital was being transformed our nation's instituinto a war zone. tions have institutionStar Parker Domestic terrorists roamed the streets, alized the perception of destroying private property, wanting to racism in the post-Civil Rights era." destroy our nation, pretending to be rioting "They have systematically reduced the to save it. They defaced the Lincoln fundamentals of citizenship to race, in the Memorial and the World War II Memorial, guise of diversity and inclusion – and these and torched St. John's Episcopal Church, illusive lies have sown increasing distrust where presidents have prayed since 1816. and painful social distance in conflict with President Donald Trump touched the our reality," I say. "Most Americans are corheart of the issue in remarks he made in the dial to their neighbors, work hand in hand White House Rose Garden, saying: "America across racial lines, and just want to be left is founded on the rule of law. It is the foun- alone." dation of our prosperity, our freedom and Why this chaos today, 30 years after Los our very way of life."

Angeles was torn up and my business He then courageously ventured off the destroyed?

White House grounds, crossed Lafayette I say it is because respect for the law and Square and stood in front of St. John's every human being comes only with humiliChurch, holding up a Bible, and declaring ty, and that humility comes only when we the greatness of our nation and his resolve to see that law rooted in God and every person keep it safe. created in His image.

I do not believe any president has preBut too much of our nation's reality has sented himself outside in public in this fash- been controlled arrogance, not humility: ion since President Ronald Reagan was shot arrogance that we don't need the God of our in 1981. Yet, the left-wing media mocked fathers and founders. Those on the left have Trump. convinced too many that our answers lie in No sane American – of any political per- politics, their secular humanism and moral suasion – is not appalled at the horrible relativism. death of George Floyd at the hands of a The result is the destruction of life and policeman. property that true law, adhered to by true But the answer to flouting of the law by believers, protects. anyone demands that we recommit ourOnly return to eternal truths will save selves to universal respect and execution of us. the law, not throw it in the trash.

Star Parker is president of the Center for In an announcement from my organiza- Urban Renewal and Education and author tion, UrbanCURE, that called for a national of the new book "Necessary Noise: How "Pastoral Prayer for America," I note: Donald Trump Inflames the Culture War "George Floyd did not die as a black man but and Why This is Good News for America." as a human being, under the protection of

Headlines From Africa Burundi: Burundi's main opposition party filed a case in the country's constitutional court challenging last month's presidential election result, claiming there is evidence of fraud. Agathon Rwasa, the opposition leader of the National Freedom Council, has charged that "appalling errors were made across the country." The court is set to rule on June 5 and if the court does not decide in his favor, he intends to take the case to the East African Court of Justice in Arusha, Tanzania.

Congo: Widespread and systematic killings, beheadings, rape and other barbaric acts by militia mostly from the ethnic Lendu community in northeastern Congo constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes, according to the UN. Eritrea: Last month, the Health Ministry declared the nation COVID-19 free, after bringing the infected number of patients to zero. Eritrea is among few African natios that have no Covid-19 deaths.

Malawi: Manhunts have begun after hundreds of people, some with the coronavirus, fled quarantine centers in Zimbabwe and Malawi while authorities worry they will spread COVID-19 in countries whose health systems can be rapidly overwhelmed. At least 46 escapees had tested positive for the virus before fleeing.

Namibia: Namibia has been praised for its containment of the spread of the coronavirus. For 45 days (April 7 to May 21) no new cases were recorded. At press, the country only had21 confirmed cases, and 0 deaths from the virus.

Nigeria: A new report from Amnesty International has found that widespread unlawful detention and torture by

Soaries continued to page 20

A look at current news from the continent of Africa Nigerian security forces has aggravated the suffering of a generation of children and tens of thousands of people in northeast Nigeria. At least 10,000 victims – many of them children – have died in detention, among the many thousands more arrested during a decade-long conflict with jihadist groups.

Niger: Niger’s parliament brushed off an opposition protest walkout to adopt new legislation authorizing wiretapping as a means of curbing “terrorism and transnational criminality”. The new law would permit the “research of information” which may “threaten state security” or “prevent the fight against terrorism and organized transnational crime” in a country with areas prone to jihadist conflict.

Rwanda: Rwanda has introduced robots as part of its fight against coronavirus. With 314 confirmed cases (as of May 22), the East African country has enlisted the help of five anti-epidemic robots to battle the virus. The robots perform a number of tasks relating to managing coronavirus. They will be used for mass temperature screening (up to 150 people every minute for symptoms of the virus), monitoring patient status, and keeping medical records of Covid-19 patients.

South Africa: Due to the COVID-19 shutdown, South Africa’s government isn’t planning on opening to tourism for quite a while. According to reports, domestic tourism won’t resume until December 2020 and international tourism won’t resume until February 2021.

Tanzania: While surrounding countries moved quickly to implement preventative measures against Covid19, Tanzania’s president has repeatedly downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic. The lack of a response from the government has stoked fears that large swathes of the population have already been infected. The US Embassy warned that “despite limited official reports, all evidence points to exponential growth of the epidemic in parts of the nation.”

L.A. Focus/June 2020

Kenya: Kenya’s recent floods have ruined harvests in several rice production hubs that together supply up to 40% of all rice grown in the country. The flooding of rice fields across Kenya over the past two months could worsen food insecurity in a country already struggling to feed a fast-urbanizing population.

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e need law enforcement. How We Can protests occurring right now are That is undeniably true. likely to fail to result in creating Breathe Having been abducted at Again: From long term, sustainable change. It gunpoint and saved by a white may influence the disposition of the Protest to police officer myself, I will never cases that will be brought against Solutions deny the need for police. But I also the men responsible for the death of cannot deny that we have a problem that is George Floyd. But the lack of coherent much larger and deeper than one, two, or strategy, disciplined action, experienced even a handful of incidents. organization and the absence of long term, What is true is comprehensive policy initiatives all minithat the legitimate mize the sustainable impact that will protest that has result from this formidable showing of disemerged in response content. to the death of George This protest is revealing a unique surge Floyd is addressing of serious concern among the demographic the same issues that that seems to normally be preoccupied the legendary civil with fake reality TV and celebrating vulrights movement of garity and nudity wrapped in musical genthe 1950s and 1960s res. As commendable as it is, our current Dr. DeForest addressed.

What is “social uprising” lacks the guidance and Soaries, Jr. also true is that in the substance needed to know the defini1968 The President’s National Advisory tion of victory.

Commission on Civil Disorders–known as For the past fifty years, blacks have the Kerner Commission–released its behaved as if simply putting other blacks report, condemning racism as the primary in the right positions constituted a victory cause of the surge of riots that occurred in for all black people. So, it must be excrucithe mid-late 1960s. Headed by then Illinois atingly painful to their otherwise political Governor Otto Kerner the 11-member com- saviors when these young protesters seem mission was appointed by President to sense no substantial difference between Lyndon B. Johnson in July 1967 to uncover their new, diverse political representatives the causes of urban riots and recommend and the former urban, white political solutions. machine despots.

It is true that the Commission report in And they lack formal, credible, trained 1968, which declared that "our nation is leadership. Their base is comprised of fragmoving toward two societies, one black, mented grassroots sympathizers and their one white–separate and unequal," called fragile organizational infrastructures have for expanded aid to African American com- allowed them to be infiltrated and at times munities to prevent further racial violence upstaged by those whose goal is chaos and and polarization. Unless drastic and costly destruction rather than justice and remedies were undertaken at once, the progress. Organization was a key to civil report said, there would be a "continuing rights era successes. polarization of the American community A social movement in America is by defand, ultimately, the destruction of basic inition legitimate only to the extent that democratic values." its goal is to make America a better democBut the Commission report did not racy. Any other goal is too narrow, shallow, awaken America to the awareness that and self-serving to deserve broad sympainstitutionally law enforcement agencies thy and support. This means that the core were both the perpetrator and defender of of a legitimate movement or protest must the racism that would cause even econom- be the belief that America is worth improvically and socially successful blacks to live ing and able to improve. in a perpetual nightmare.

The civil rights movement wanted to It is true that the election of hundreds work itself out of a job. And its leaders of black mayors, county officials, state leg- knew what that looked like. islators, congresspersons and even a black Desegregation. Legal rights equal to other president has not had a measurable Americans. Support to catch up to historic impact on this issue. And it is true that the deprival. The policing issue needs similar-

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UpFront Former President Barack Obama Encourages Protesters to Take Activism Further

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ormer President Barack Obama spoke during a town hall about the necessity of both voting and civil disobedience in the wake of the national protests sparked by the death of George Floyd.

“I've been hearing a little bit of chatter... voting vs. protest. Politics and participation versus civil disobedience and direct action," Obama commented. "This is not an either or. This is a both, and. To bring about real change, we both have to highlight a problem and make people in power uncomfortable, but we also have to translate that into practical solutions and laws that can be implemented.”

He went on to say that political leaders need to be held accountable and look out for their communities. “I am urging every mayor in this country to review your use of force policies with members of your community and commit to report on planned reforms,” Obama said. “What are

the specific steps you can take?”

Obama also addressed the global pandemic and the ways in which racism and bias impacts the black community and other communities of color who need treatment and healthcare. He stated that COVID-19 has exposed the shortcomings of our healthcare system as well as “the unequal investment, the biases, that have led to a disproportionate number of infections and loss of life in communities of color.”

Despite the growing number of things that must happen in order for the country to see real progress, Obama shared that the large amount of activism gives him hope, especially amongst the younger generation. “When sometimes I feel despair, I just see what’s happening with young people all across the country and the talent and the voice and the sophistication that they’re displaying and it makes me feel optimistic,” Obama expressed.

Larry Elder Hopes “Uncle Tom” Film Will Up the Black Vote for Trump GERALD BELL

Contributor onservative syndicated radio host, Larry Elder, has again taken his talents to the big screen, this time as executive producer and co-writer of Uncle Tom, a documentary feature that is predicted to get controversial reactions because of its title, content and message.

The film, which gets its name from the Harriet Beecher Stowe's 1852 novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, unveils what life is like for black conservatives in America — as minorities within a minority group.

According to Elder, the movie delivers a sharp look at “the grief that people who are black and conservative get for just saying that they're not Democrats.”

Directed by Justin Malone (Undocumented, Hurry Up and Wait, The Bus Stop), Uncle Tom features Elder, former congressman Allen West, 2012 presidential candidate Herman Cain and TV pundit Candace Owens.

“The film really is attacking the way the Uncle Tom term is commonly used to demean people that have rethought their assumptions to the Democratic Party,” says Elder. “You've got people like Maxine Waters and the whole Congressional Black Caucus, all essentially saying, ‘Anybody who votes for a Republican is a sell-out.’”

The movie also includes newsreel footage of prominent A-list figures as John Legend, President Barack Obama, Denzel Washington, Jay-Z and others. Some of the black conservatives in the film go so far to make their point by wearing the "Uncle Tom" moniker as a badge of honor.

Elder insists the tone of the film is to encourage viewers to do the homework and e d u c a t e

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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themselves on Republican and Democratic platforms and see which party represents their values.

“You tell me which platform is the one that wants to give you choices at school, which platform is more likely to create economic conditions so that you get a job,” Elder exclaims. “Which is the platform that pushes victimhood and that you're oppressed. And which is the platform that says, you are an individual capable of making your own decisions…If you work hard, stay focused, you'll be fine in America.

Which platform says that?"

National Action Network founder, Rev. Al Sharpton, who also appears in the film by way of video clips told Newsweek Magazine, he has little regard for the premise of the Uncle Tom documentary.

“Republicans are against affirmative action, voter rights and other policies we support,” says Sharpton. “Black conservatives are great at getting on Fox News, but they're thin-skinned when we respond."

Former Congressman Allen West believes more minority people are standing up against leftism. He says the film gives black conservatives an opportunity to talk about conservatism in the black community. “They are starting to see the Democratic Party, and how their history has been the most damaging pollical party for the black community,” West said in an online interview. “So many people have come to believe conservative black is a new trend.”

A candidate to chair the Texas Republican party, West pointed to black historical figures Frederick Douglas and Booker T. Washington as ones who lived by the mantras of education, entrepreneurship and selfreliance. “When you sit back and look at history and understand the principles of the black community, the conservative ideal has been there for quite some time,” he said.

According to Elder, the movie took about two years to make and it was done on a shoestring budget.

He came on board

at the executive level after Malone contacted him for an interview for the film. “[Malone] showed me the footage and it was in black and white. It was very stylistically done,” Elder explains. “He showed me two or three other interviews he'd done, and I was impressed…And I said, ‘Look, you make me a partner in this film and let me help you co-write it, and I will raise the money. And so, we did. And I did.”

Adding Elder to the team was timely given that Malone had no clue where the dollars would come from to fund the project. “The money that I raised is primarily from people who care about the issue,” Elder adds. “These are people who want to break that monopoly that the Democratic Party have on black people. Those are the ones who are contributing money. And frankly, they're not all that interested in a return. They want to make sure that the feeling gets made and it has an impact.”

Elder and Malone are pushing for a summer release — with plans to premiere the movie this month in Dallas. They intend to make it available both online and in cities where cinemas have reopened following the Coronavirus pandemic shutdowns.

While some may think it a bit ambitious to assume the film will lead to an increase in the number of black Americans abandoning one party affiliation for another, it’s been reported that the number of blacks who embrace conservative values is seeing an uptick even though they may still consider themselves Democrat.

“I think it is in the country's best interest to disabuse blacks of the idea that they're victims and that the Democratic Party deserves 95% of their vote,” Elder said. “It is in everybody's interest to break that narrative.”

“I'm hoping [the movie] can have an impact on the (next presidential) election,” Elder said. “I love the style and I loved that it isn’t angry, and it wasn't defensive.

It wasn't mad at people for calling us Uncle Tom. It was, ‘Dude, you're undermining your own productivity, your own progress by not even engaging in a healthy discussion about whether or not we ought to have some different ideas in the black community’…The film’s message could not be more important or more timely."

CHRISTAL MIMS Staff Writer

He also had a message specifically for the young men and women of color living in the United States. “I want you to know that you matter. I want you to know that your lives matter, that your dreams matter,” he said. “I see limitless potential that deserves to flourish and thrive, and you deserve to learn and make mistakes and live a life of joy without having to worry about what’s going to happen when you walk to the store or go for a jog.” Obama said that the unity and overall desire to change race relations in this country is what distinguishes these protests from those that took place in the 1960’s.

“What has particularly inspired me is the degree to which folks are thinking strategically, practically, at a very detailed level, about where are the places where you can make change and what are the practical solutions backed up by data,” Obama stated. If change can happen, he believes it’s bound to happen now.

Supreme Court Places Restrictions on Church Reopenings As facilities around California plan to reopen, restrictions are being put in place to protect the health and safety of residents, but some believe the guidelines to be too harsh. San Diego church South Bay United Pentecostal requested relief from Governor Gavin Newsom’s recent decision to limit churches to 25% of their normal maximum capacity, but in a 5-4 vote, the supreme court rejected it.

Justice John Roberts reiterated that it would be unwise to bypass the opinion of health professionals and state officials on the matter.

“Although California’s guidelines place restrictions on places of worship, those restrictions appear consistent with the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.

Similar or more severe restrictions apply to comparable secular gatherings, including lectures, concerts, movie showings, spectator sports, and theatrical performances, where large groups of people gather in close proximity for extended periods of time,” Roberts wrote.

Those disenting included Brett Kavanaugh, who wrote, "I would grant the Church’s requested temporary injunction because California’s latest safety guidelines discriminate against places of worship and in favor of comparable secular businesses.

Such discrimination violates the First Amendment," Kavanaugh wrote.

Some churches are planning to disregard Newsom’s capacity cap, saying that they will allow in as many attendees as they can.

“While many churches will have no problem complying with the 100-person limit, some of our clients have churches that seat 2,500 people and more,” stated Attorney Robert Tyler, president of Murrieta-based Advocates for Faith & Freedom. “Limiting places of worship to 100 people is arbitrary, unreasonable and unconstitutional.”

Despite pushback, there are still no plans to officially lift the restrictions. This could be due to the surrounding uncertainty around the virus itself and how it can be controlled.

Churches outside of California have also been grappling with this issue, with some succeeding in their case for eased restrictions.

We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t breathe either...

Justice for George Floyd

VOTE!

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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STEPHEN ODUNTAN Staff Writer

ast month, a prominent commercial real estate firm, the CIM Group, announced that it had reached an agreement with Capri Capital Advisors to acquire the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza for $100 million, scrapping plans that would have included 1,000 new residential units in favor of more commercial development.

The proposed sale has been met by strong opposition from community leaders and neighborhood residents who were caught by surprise with the news.

“Does that mean that our community will also lose Albertson’s, an essential business, for office space?” observed one resident. “Overpriced office space is not essential to our community. Low- and mid-income housing, supermarkets and farmers’ markets are. This is outrageous.”

“Don’t let this happen,” posted another. “The community needs retail stores that employ people.

Westfield put billions of dollars into redeveloping the Fox Hills mall and I think the community should come together and push for new and better stores like Nordstrom, Bloomingdales.”

None were more surprised by Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson, is whose 8th District the mall is situated. He says the announcement of a purchase may have been premature and that many had been in talks to purchase the mall.

“None”, Harris-Dawson said, “have been so brazen as to do a press release about their plans for the mall without talking to the council office. The group selling the mall and this group are in talks, but I’m not sure why the [Los Angeles] Times elected to print this [story]. Escrow is not closed. They have not submitted any plans to the city or anybody, so it is a press release that says I’m going to buy the mall and by the way, I’m not going to do anything that the community talked about for the last 20 years.

“This deal that’s pending with CIM does not include

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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housing,” said Pastor K.W. Tulloss, president of Baptist Ministers Conference of Los Angeles. “We need affordable housing. We don’t need an outside force coming into our community telling us we need office space. We don’t want that.”

One protester described the proposed deal as a “takeover by CIM” and if the sale is approved “it will be the nuclear bomb of gentrification” in the Crenshaw community.

“Simply put, this is a sacred area,” said Rev. William D. Smart, Co-Pastor of the Christ Liberation Ministries.

“If you look around the city, you’ll see white folks developing everything. Why can’t a black person develop something? We developed Timbuktu. We developed the Pyramids. We can build a mall.”

Community leaders are angry because they were not involved in any of the talks with the mall’s current owners Capri Urban Investors about the new project.

“CIM is a predatory cash cow tied directly with the Trump Organization and is solely concerned with the well-being of its investors not with the needs of communities,” Dr Earl Ofari Hutchinson, President of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable said. “The L.A. Planning Commission has a golden opportunity with the Baldwin Hills Mall to say no to CIM’s predatory grab.”

The 40-acre property is located at Crenshaw and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near a future Metro light rail station that is expected to open sometime next year. Properties along its path have notably attracted much attention from developers as Metro prepares to open new rail line that will run through South L.A. to LAX. Walmart and Sears were anchor stores at the mall until both closed in recent years. CIM Group hopes to forge housing for commercial office space.

A main concern was that the proposed change would displace lower-income tenants and minority residents.

For more than five decades, Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza has been a Los Angeles cultural/business icon and the place where African-Americans shopped, evolving from an open-air retail hub to an indoor shopping com-

Simply put, this is a sacred area. If you look around the city, you’ll see white folks developing everything.

Why can’t a black person develop something? We developed Timbuktu. We developed the Pyramids. We can build a mall.

undervalued urban properties which force out longtime residents and alter the character of the neighborhood as affordable housing options dwindle. The firm, say its critics, have been buying properties all over West Adams– including pushing out a community landmark–Johnny’s Pastrami, all the way out along from Main Street toward Culver City. That the Crenshaw Mall is in an Opportunity Zone makes it all the more attractive.

“CIM condemned themselves in their own words,” said Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable “A spokesman,” Hutchinson noted “said in an email "CIM stands for CIM…that is all."

We have a major crisis of affordable housing in our community, and yet CIM says we stand for ourselves.”

Of the five neighborhoods with the greatest price increases year over year, four of them are in South L.A.– Hyde Park, Southeast LA, Leimert Park and Baldwin Hills.

A recent study from the UCLA Anderson School of Management ranked Los Angeles at no.1 in the nation as the single most unaffordable city for both homebuyers and renters. A 2015 City of Los Angeles study found that families must earn $81,240 to afford the average rent and $104,360 to afford a newly built apartment.

That, say activists, is twice the median household income in Leimert Park, and four times the median household income in Baldwin Village, where no census tract has a median income for a family of four that is above $26,000.

Dwayne Wyatt, a city planner for Los Angeles, noted that in his thirty-five years as a city planner he had seldom seen the more established developers come into the black community with the residents of that said community’s best interest at heart.

“They usually only talk to the decision-makers,” said Wyatt. “They come in with their own agenda. Most of these development projects are not centered on what’s good for the community. Instead their more interested in how they can make money. But once they get community resistance then they may try to change their act because they know there’s going to be resistance to a project.”

It’s why Roland A. Wiley, a Los Angeles-based architect and the founder and principal of RAW International, believes that until African Americans are willing to critically examine the ways in which they support one another they’ll never see progress.

“We ain’t going nowhere unless we all come to the table,” he said.

“CIM is a predatory cash cow tied directly with the Trump Organization and is solely concerned with the well-being of its investors not with the needs of communities,” said Hutchinson. “The L.A. Planning Commission has a golden opportunity with the Baldwin Hills Mall to say no to CIM’s predatory grab.”

Goodmon reported that many other entities have been in the same social stance as the CIM Group and were forced to back out.

“We’re hopeful that by applying pressure on the actual decision-makers we’ll be able to convince the sellers to sell the property to us instead.”

Asked directly to lay out a general plan of how the coalition will raise over $100 million for a down payment to purchase the mall, Goodmon kept his response vague but said a group of financial partners are working on that question.

The group will not include AIDS Healthcare

Foundation CEO Michael Weinstein, who while working with Goodmon on the Prop 10 rent control campaign, will not be part of the deal and did not fund the lawsuit the group filed against the mall.

“I haven’ spoken to Damien in a year and a half,” said Weinstein. “We worked on anti-gentrification issues such as opposing Cumulus and the luxury tower at the Crenshaw Mall. I have a very low opinion of CIM. We’ve been involved with legal disputes with them over gentrification developments.”

Newly formed nonprofit organization Liberty Community Land Trust say they have joined the coalition and are determined to make a concerted effort to help purchase the Crenshaw mall but underscored that the black community must get involved.

“We are asking the community to join us in buying back our mall,” said Zerita Jones, of Liberty Community Land Trust. “We have a board that is geared up to support us in these efforts. But we need the community to help us on this project.”

That the community wasn’t in on the negotiations was a sore spot for Gina Fields, who serves on the Empowerment Congress West Area neighborhood council.

“We want the best for our community. But] my concern is CMI has not reached out to us at all to find out what our needs are or what we want.

“The prior developer Capri, continued Fields.

“Attended every meeting, asking us what we want and getting the community involved.

“Capri Urban Investors, [the current owners] laid out all their plans on how they were going to redevelop this area. So, this new person isn’t required to the same thing?” said Denise Woods, a former candidate for city council district 8.

“We want to protect the best interest of our community,” said Pastor K.W. Tulloss President of Baptist Ministers Conference of Los Angeles and pastor of the Historical Weller Street Missionary Baptist Church. “We want to make sure we do whatever we can to have something nice that going to benefit our community. The mall is a treasure in our community.”

“We would love to see this area redeveloped,” said Pastor William D. Smart Jr. “But it has to be developed right. CIM is not who we need. We already have an African American spearheading the development, and that's Quintin E. Primo. Let us stick with them.”

As co-founder, chair and CRO of Capri Capital Partners–one of the largest minority-owned real estate investment management firms in the nation, Primo manages over $6 billion in assets and has expertise in underserved urban markets. His company, which presently manages the mall, has also made a bid to acquire it and has earned the support of key community players.

In a 2010 interview, Quintin Primo, CEO of Capri Investment Group, told reporters “Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza is more than just a simple mall on the southside of L.A. “And that is why it remains critically important that areas like these become more a part of mainstream America.”

Representatives with the CIM Group did not respond to requests for comment.

A website–www.SaveBaldwinHillsMall.com–has been set up and has already gathered over 2,500 signatures on a petition to stop the proposed purchase as community activists vow this fight is far from over.

L.A. Focus/June 2020

plex.

Plans proposed to redevelop the retail property for $100+ million could potentially jeopardize previous redevelopment ambitions that would have brought 551 new condominiums, 410 apartments (some of which would be designated as affordable housing) and a 400-room hotel to the neighborhood.

“We would love to see this area redeveloped,” said Pastor William D. Smart Jr. “But it has to be developed right. CIM is not who we need. We already have an African American spearheading the development, and that's Quintin E. Primo. Let us stick with them.”

In a 2010 interview, Quintin Primo, CEO of Capri Investment Group, told reporters “Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza is more than just a simple mall on the southside of L.A. “And that is why it remains critically important that areas like these become more a part of mainstream America.”

Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza — formerly called the Broadway-Crenshaw Center — was one of the first regional shopping centers built in the United States, specifically for the automobile. It was designed by Albert C. Martin and included a Vons supermarket, bank, and drugstore when it opened in 1947.

The retail complex also opened its doors to the public as the first large department store to anchor smaller retail shops in a single development along the then Santa Barbara Avenue (now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard) to the once whites-only enclave. The neighborhood saw a racial demographic shift after a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1948 struck down restrictive covenants that allowed whites to benefit from government-sanctioned segregation.

As a result, white families fled en masse, and blacks filled into the area that had once been strictly off-limits to them.

And as African Americans moved to the area in droves, many of them found they could walk out onto the street to do their shopping. A shopping mall catered to this new, car-driving demographic, placing all consumer desires in one convenient location. The Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza did precisely that for this black community.

In 1986, the mall complex underwent a massive renovation that saw much of the original inline store demolished.

Two years later, a two-level, enclosed regional shopping mall structure was built that connected The Broadway and May Company stores via a bridge and included a new Sears as the mall's third anchor.

Then mall operators poured more money into redeveloping the existing property in early 2005 when global investors Capri Capital Partners purchased the shopping mall, and by 2010 the owners added new interior embellishments, as well as a new and larger food court on the first level.

A redevelopment of the area has been in works for some time due to construction of the Crenshaw/LAX light rail line scheduled to open next year.

Local activist and the Founder and Executive Director of the nonprofit Crenshaw Subway Coalition Damien Goodmon has partnered with other community leaders to push back against the proposed plan to purchase the mall.

Goodmon and his Crenshaw Subway Coalition characterize the proposed acquisition as the greatest threat to the stability of the historically black Crenshaw community, adding that pricing out black and brown residents was the basis of their current Superior Court lawsuit on the mall redevelopment.

They believe “Black L.A. is under attack”.

“Gentrification is the greatest threat to the stability of the Crenshaw community,” says Goodmon. “If this project is built as currently proposed it would rise up a gentrification tsunami that will push out Crenshaw’s tenants, low-income residents, and vulnerable homeowners. This is bigger than the rail line. This is about whether there is going to be a black Los Angeles.”

CIM’s interest in Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza started before the coronavirus outbreak upended life in the U.S. CIM Group was one of a half dozen companies that bid on the property when it was put up for sale several months ago, says Shaul Kuba. Its offer wasn’t picked initially. But the first-choice buyer fell out of contract and CIM got a second opportunity in February. The developer remained persistent on finalizing a deal through March as the economy shut down, Kuba says, and ultimately signed a contract in late April.

Many observers believe that the Mid-Wilshire based investment company has a disturbing track record of making profitable returns for investors by investing in

11

MoneyMatters What Will California Do About The Rent? very first of the month, California’s past due rent bill gets bigger.

A disproportionate share of the abruptly laid-off and underemployed are lower-wage renters already struggling to afford the state’s sky-high housing costs before the pandemic shuttered the restaurants, retail stores and rideshare operations that employed them.

As missed rent payments mount, California tenants and the landlords that depend on their monthly checks to pay their bills are increasingly and aggressively asking the same questions: How much rent is going to be owed at the end of this? (A lot).

How long will tenants have to repay it? (Unclear).

Is the state going to pick up some of the tab? (Some, but the real help may have to come from the feds).

“Renters’ debt is going to chase people for years and years and years after this crisis is over,” said Shanti Singh, spokesperson for Tenants Together, one of a handful of renter groups that has called on state legislators and Gov. Gavin Newsom to forgive rent and mortgage payments while statewide emergency measures are in place.

While renters and landlords might disagree on the rules and mechanics of how the government should distribute rental aid, both groups are clamoring for a major infusion of public dollars.

California lawmakers are in the early stages of developing proposals to help, but how much the state can realistically afford is unclear as tax revenues shrivel and other pandemicinduced strains on the state budget mount.

“This is an unprecedented problem,” said Assemblyman David Chiu, Democrat from San Francisco, who has introduced several renter protection bills in his time in the state legislature. “And we’re not in a place yet where we know exactly how we can fix it.”

The National Multifamily Housing Council, which advocates on behalf of apartment owners, estimated over 90% of April rents nationally had been at least partially paid. In April of last year, the figure was 96%.

But landlords and tenants expect May to be considerably worse, as the ripple effects of the shutdown spread and renters run out of savings and other emergency resources they can tap.

“We don’t know how many tenants can make it another month, and then how many landlords can make it another

E

On the Money MATT LEVIN

Cal Matters

month,” said Debra Carlton, executive vice president for state government affairs for the California Apartment Association.

While expanded unemployment benefits and one-time stimulus funds approved by the federal government may take care of rent in cheaper parts of the country, those benefits aren’t adjusted for California’s high cost of living.

“The rent is going to eat up a lot of the (unemployment benefits),” said Elizabeth Kneebone, a researcher at the Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley. “If you’re getting unemployment in places like the Bay Area and Silicon Valley, it’s very possible most of it will be going to rent.”

So how much would California or the federal government have to spend to make up for missed rent payments?

Kneebone’s research suggests that cumulatively, renters in industries immediately impacted by California’s shutdown owe $3.9 billion a month in rent. A study from the left-of-center Urban Institute suggested $100 billion might be necessary nationally if the aid was targeted exclusively to lower-income renters.

State Sen. Lena Gonzalez, Democrat from Long Beach, has introduced the first bill to provide some type of bailout funding for renters and landlords suffering from missed rent payments. Sponsored by the landlord lobby, SB 1410 would have the state pay for 80% of missed rents for up to seven months if renters could demonstrate they had been financially impacted by COVID-19. If landlords decided to accept payments from the state, they would give up pursuing the remaining 20% of missed rents and agree not to charge late fees or raise rents for a year.

Conspicuously absent is a price tag, but bill backers say it could be in the ballpark of $2 billion.

“We have a bigger issue to worry about when it comes to homelessness and poverty that I think all contributes to this,” said Gonzalez, who cautioned that her staff was still in the process of researching an appropriate number and hoped the fund could draw down federal dollars as well.

Carlton, the lobbyist for the California Apartment Association, hopes the state can tap housing funds previously approved for homelessness or low-income housing.

San Francisco Assemblyman Phil Ting, chair of the Assembly budget committee, says that some type of general Money Matters continued to page 28

NBA Players Will Have to Pay the League Back In compliance with the NBA’s “force majeure” clause sparked by the COVID-19 shutdown, the NBA is set to begin withholding salaries. The NBA had proposed a 50 percent pay cut starting in April but settled on half of that to start in midMay. Players received a letter in March reminding them of the clause that addresses an event that would make it economically impracticable for the NBA to perform its obligation in terms of player pay, including wars, terrorism, epidemics and any governmental order or action.

A 25% pay cut applies to every player in the league, although six of the NBA’s highest earners have already been paid in full.

According to ESPN, the six–Stephen Curry, John Wall, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin and Paul George–will have to pay back the money when they receive their advances for the 2020-21 season this fall.

For Curry, who makes $40.2 million a season as the league’s highest paid player, that will mean $420K per paycheck for each scheduled 25 percent reduction.

James would have to pay back $370K per paycheck.

If the season is cancelled, a 40 percent pay reduction comes into play and players c o u l d lose a total of $1 billion in combined salary.

Biz News Briefs NBA legend turned social entrepreneur Magic Johnson has committed to providing $100 million in capital to fund small business loans through the SBA's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). His companies, Magic Johnson Enterprises and EquiTrust Life Insurance Company, have partnered with a New Jersey-based lender called MBE Capital Partners that specializes in financing minority and womenowned businesses.

In total, Johnson's investment will fund loans for about 5,000 small businesses. He reportedly has launched the initiative to help the many Black and minority-owned small businesses that were overlooked during the first round of loans that the U.S. government launch. Many who applied never even heard anything regarding their application.

“What we’re launching here now is so important because we’re going to save a lot of small, minority businesses because they can’t just walk into the bank and get that loan,” Johnson told the Wall Street Journal.

Black and minority communities in the U.S. have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus pandem-

Magic Johnson to Provide $100M in Capital to Fund PPP Small Business Loans

ic. Major cities like New York City, Chicago, and Detroit have all seen higher African American death rates because of the virus. Even worse, their local business communities have been shattered leaving many Black entrepreneurs with no other option but to shut their enterprises.

To learn more and/or to apply for the loans available through Magic Johnson's new partnership, visit www.mbecp.com

United Airlines Holdings Appoints First African American President Effective May 20, Brett J. Hart was appointed to serve as President of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. As President of United, Hart will continue to lead the company's public advocacy strategy including the Government Affairs, Corporate Communications, Legal and Community Engagement teams. He will also continue to oversee business-critical functions like the Corporate Real Estate team and manage United's industry leading environmental sustainability efforts. His responsibilities will expand to include managing the Human Resources and Labor Relations teams.

"I am honored and energized as I take on these new responsibilities to lead this incredible team that I am convinced will build United into a thriving industry leader," Hart said. "The path forward will not be easy, but I am confident that Scott and I will continue our partnership to lead United through the extraordinary challenge

posed by COVID-19.”

Before joining United, Hart was executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at Sara Lee Corporation, where he directed global legal operations for the corporation.

Venus Williams Launches New Sunscreen Line She owns a small interest in the Miami Dolphins and the UFC, has her own athletic clothing line, Eleven, and an interior design firm, V Starr Interiors. Now Venus Williams has partnered with Credo Beauty in the development of her first beauty line called EleVen by Venus x Credo.

“When I was younger, I was wild and too free, and I took it for granted that I had great skin,” the five-time Wimbledon champ and Olympic gold medalist told Allure Magazine. “That is not the case now. I am covered from head to toe when I’m outside: long sleeves, long pants, and sunscreen. I try to protect my skin as much as I can.”

The line, dubbed “suncare without limits”, ranges in price from $42 — 50, is available online at credobeauty.com and at Credo Stores.

L.A. Focus/June 2020

13

Game Changer: Dr. Kissmekia Corbett “The Black Doctor at the Forefront of the Race for a Coronavirus Vaccine”

A

s the coronavirus pandemic continues, one black woman stands at the forefront of it in the development of a vaccine to combat COVID-19.

Dr. Kizzmekia S. Corbett is a viral immunologist and research fellow with the National Institutes of Health. She is leading a team based in Seattle and has stood alongside Dr. Anthony Fauci, Dr. John Mascola, Dr. Barney Graham and leader of the human genome project, Dr. Francis Collins, who is also director of the NIH at several White House briefings.

Corbett and her team have now begun first-stage clinical trials of a vaccine for the novel coronavirus.

“I would have never thought that I would be in this moment right now. I wake up sometimes and I’m like, are we living an alternate universe? God is shaking the table,” said Dr. Corbett in an interview with Black Enterprise.

“I’m frankly in a very blessed position to be able to respond to this pandemic in the way that I am with some level of purpose and passion,” she added.

In a profile from NBC News, Graham praised the black researcher. He remembered meeting Corbett 12 years ago when she was still an undergraduate at the University of Maryland working at the Vaccine Research Center over the summer. After asking her what she wanted to do with her life she was bold in her reply.

“She said, ‘I want your job,” he shared. “From the very beginning, she was really pretty bold in her aspirations.”

Tn fact, the 34-year North Carolina native has been preparing for this moment all her life.

She earned a full scholarship to the University of Maryland where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Sciences and another one in Sociology in 2008. An NIH and Meyerhoff Scholar, in 2014, she earned her PhD in Microbiology and

Immunology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and joined the NIH Vaccine Research Center that same year.

“Vaccines, generally speaking...are the reason why several diseases have been essentially eradicated,” Corbett said. “It’s important for people to understand that in order for that level of eradication to occur for coronavirus, there has to be some level of community participation.

“It’s not like we’re giving you a virus. We’re not giving you an infection. We’re just telling your body if an infection is to come later, you can recognize the virus and you know what to do.”

Corbett noted that a coronavirus vaccine would be part of a vaccine portfolio, administered like measles or polio shots. “It’s very clear what this virus can do and has done globally, not just inside of our community. If we don’t vaccinate just about everyone or at least a critical mass of people in every community, the vaccine will be unsuccessful on a worldwide level.”

Corbett’s team had a bit of an edge in that her team had spent years in the process of developing a vaccine against MERS and has said that the work couldn’t have moved so quickly had it not been for the time spent testing for a possible MERS vaccine that works the same way.

Despite her successes, she is sometimes not given the respect she merits.

“Sometimes I’m a little bit dismissed,” she reports.

“My views have to go through my boss who happens to be a white man. Or people will blatantly ask him to ask me something. And then he’ll say, ‘Well, you know Kizzmekia is the scientific lead on the coronavirus team.’

And, they’ll reply back through him.”

Corbett, however, doesn’t take it personally.

“I like to say that I can go from the trap house to the White House in smooth transition. And, I have. I commu-

nicate well, across different communities. I speak to scientists the way that I speak to scientists, and then I’m able to speak to the layperson the way that I speak to [the] general population,” said Dr. Corbett.

She also says that you just have to show up.

Corbett remains a faithful woman who hopes to see another good thing come out of the pandemic.

“I’m frankly in a very blessed position to be able to respond to this pandemic in the way that I am with some level of purpose and passion.”

“Many of the things that you do in life should have some level of concern about somebody else. Even if it’s just that you have to pick one person,” she shared. “I would hope that everybody would have a concern for just the world, I think that it will make the entire world a better place.”

If Corbett is successful in her efforts, a working vaccine could be ready as early as next spring.

“Let’s All Come to the Table”

L.A. Focus/June 2020

T

wo and half months ago, the idea of quarantine and mandatory stay-at-home orders was far from anyone’s mind, especially mine. As the head of Mel’s Fish Shack which has been in the South LA community for nearly 40 years, you’d think I’d have seen it all. Yet, somehow coronavirus found a way to catch us all off guard and forced us to look at our world through a new lens.

Since coronavirus, we've had to hire more people to manage social distancing, curbside delivery and to handle the onslaught demand overall. To help keep up with the high demand, we’ve had to heavily rely on food delivery apps like DoorDash, Postmates, UberEats, GrubHub and ChowNow, to help keep up with the orders.

Things were starting to make sense again and then the City Council introduced a motion that would put a 15% cap on fees food delivery apps charge restaurants.

While I certainly understand the intentions of our local representatives, I can’t say that a rate cap will help.

While we are paying these fees, it’s a matter of survival and it’s trifold. The fees help us to meet the demand for food, our seniors and community who are shut in during the mandatory stay-at-home order. It also helps to keep our employees working and prevents layoffs.

The price we pay is more of a sacrifice to provide options to our customers who need our services and for their senior parents who live in our neighborhood and can’t get out.

With reduced revenue from the rate cap, delivery app companies might be forced to compensate by cutting services, lowering drivers’ pay or increasing the fees paid by diners. That isn’t a risk I’m willing to take.

Don’t get me wrong, I definitely don't want to see these fees go up, but I realize there’s a cost for these services that has helped us keep our doors open during a pandemic and to serve an even broader audience.

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We can’t afford to become like New York or San Francisco who are currently dealing with their own rate cap laws. Just to give a glimpse, Uber has stopped delivery to a portion of San Francisco and taxed customers more. GrubHub reported a 10% drop in restaurant orders. Must we really play with something as essential as food? South LA is already considered a food desert and healthy food options are already limited. The community heavily relies on us to feed their families and loved ones.

We honestly couldn't take on the liability of offering delivery if we were to do it alone. We need the food delivery apps as our partners and not our enemies. So how can we find a common ground? It’s time for us all to come to the table, possibly over a meal, and figure out what will be the best for all.

The swift pace that the Council has taken to move this law along has left out key voices. Not just the restaurants but the delivery drivers and customers who are both so vital to this fragile ecosystem.

Many customers who are considered to have a compromised immune system rely on these delivery apps not just for food but medicine. Understanding how important that order is, customers often tip their delivery drivers for the risk they’re taking each time. These tips and overall wages help people keep their bills paid while we see the unemployment rate skyrocket to historical numbers.

There is no need to rush this process, we need to create a viable solution. It’s possible for this to be a win-win situation where our “new normal” benefits everyone including the restaurants, customers, delivery drivers and the app. This should be a democratic process; no decision should be made until all sides are considered. We need to make sure that we get this right the first time because so much depends on it.

Georgette Powell is the owner of Mel’s Fish Shack.

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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INSIDE HO L LY W OOD

by Neily Dickerson My, my, my, there is a lot going on.

We are in the midst of a Global pandemic, there’s national unrest and rioting following the killing of George Floyd so it’s pretty timely that Executive Producer, Larry Elder and Director, Justin Malone release their documentary, UNCLE TOM. Elder’s definition of an “Uncle Tom,” one who sold out and embraced the white man by rejecting the idea that you (blacks) are a victim.” The “Uncle Tom" cast includes; Elderite & Blexit creator, Candace Owens Farmer, one time Presidential candidate, Herman Cain, Jesse Lee Peterson and a host of others who are sure the Black community is sliding down a slippery slope to demise. Our problem - the Democratic

Party has damaged the mentality of the race. Their fix - more, if not all of, Blacks should join & be a part of the Republican way of thinking.

The documentary is well done, the overarching theme is to see African American’s achieve success. How do

we do that, by pulling ourselves up by our boot strips, hard work, solid values, etc. However, it seems if we don’t accept and live according to Republican standards and values, it will not be achieved. Filled with testimonials of Republican greatness, Elder and Peterson, present and make their case for the party. Here’s the thing, no one party has thee answer about how we as a people achieve greater-ness. I sat under the leadership of Reverend E. V. Hill for more than 20 years and he was a Republican, but I wouldn’t call him an Uncle Tom. As a matter of fact he became a part of the party because he thought we as a people should have a voice, no matter the party, and he was our very loud voice in the Republican party who fought to make sure we would be treated equal.

STREAMING & IN THEATRES THIS MONTH

HOLLYWOOD BUZZ

Da 5 Bloods June 12 (Netflix)

Miss Juneteenth June 19

Celebs React to George Floyd

L.A. Focus/June 2020

"This is what it means to be Black in America. Tried.

Davis Viola Convicted”, poignantly posted on social media after witnessing the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.

“Killed for being Black. We are dictated by hundreds of years of policies that have restricted our very existence and still have to continue to face modern day lynchings.”

In a powerful video on social media, Beyoncé said, “We need justice for George Floyd.

We all witnessed his murder in broad daylight,” she said.

“We’re broken and we’re disgusted. We cannot normalize this pain. No more senseless killings of human beings. No more seeing people of color as less than human. We can no longer look away. George is all of our family in humanity.” called Jay-Z husband, Her Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to see what he could do.

Showing a picture of Colin Kaepernick taking a knee next to a photo of the police officer with his knee on the neck of George Floyd under the words, “This …Is Why”, LeBron James wrote, “Do you understand NOW!!??!!?? Or is it still blurred to you?? Stay woke.”

Ava DuVernay urged action, writing, "You deserved your breath, your dignity, your life. Not to die in the street, murdered by a white cop’s knee on your neck," she wrote. "You deserve our tears, our prayers, our rage, our action. We must act - for you - and for all of those were no cameras are present. We must.”

A shaken Gayle King said it felt like “open season on black men”.

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Uncle Tom June 19

Star Wars star John Boyega slammed racist white people in his post. “This just burns,” he said.

“Seems to be a never-ending cycle. The murderers need to be charged severely. Even in the face of death this man was given zero empathy.”

When criticized by a parent for using harsh language, Boyega countered, “I understand your choice and unfortunately wouldn’t change anything I said. You’re his biggest role model and that’s what counts. This is my own personal account. I am not here for the kids.”

Ice Cube canceled a scheduled appearance on Good Morning America stating that mood the death of George Floyd at the hands of police put him in made it impossible for him to pretend everything was okay.

“I apologize to everyone expecting to see me on Good Morning America today, but after the events in Minnesota with George Floyd I’m in no mood to tell America, good morning,” Ice Cube posted.

Justin Beeber posted the video on his Instagram with the words, “THIS MUST STOP.” Colin Kaepernick is reportedly setting up a legal defense fund to help protesters arrested in Minneapolis’s street confrontations.

“In fighting for liberation, there’s always retaliation,” Kaepernick tweeted. “We must protect our Freedom Fighters. We started a legal defense initiative to give legal representation to Freedom Fighters in Minneapolis paid for by @yourrightscamp“ Kaepernick’s fund will aid those who can’t afford to hire legal representation, paid for by the Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp.

Chrissy Teigen, Seth Rogen, Steve Carell, Janelle Monae and Harry Styles are among those also making donations to protesters’ bail.

Dark Girls 2 June 30 (OWN)

America’s Got Talent Producers Vindicated in Investigation Over Gabrielle Union’s Controversial Exit from Show “The investigation has shown that the concerns raised by Ms. Union had no bearing on the decision not to exercise the option on her contract,” was the statement released by NBC, Freemantle Media and Syco Entertainment (Simon Cowell’s company).

“Through the investigation process, it has been revealed that no one associated with the show made any insensitive or derogatory remarks about Ms. Union’s appearance, and that neither race nor gender was a contributing factor in the advancement or elimination of contestants at any time,” the statement said.”

Allegations of a “toxic and racially insensitive workplace” surfaced following Initial reports were that Union had been fired in November after urging the show's producers to report an incident involving a racist joke to human resources and after producers told her multiple times that her hairstyles on the show were "too black."

The actress tweeted one month later that she’d met with NBC where she was able to express my unfiltered truth. I led w i t h transparency and my desire and hope for real change."

Q&A Tracy Ellis Ross Hometown: Los Angeles Big Break: “Girlfriends” The second child of music icon Diana Ross, Tracy Ellis Ross began her career as a comedienne on MTV’s The Lyricist Lounge Show in 2000. Later that year, she landed a lead role in the hit sitcom, Girlfriends, which ran from 2000 to 2008. But her career exploded in 2014 with a starring role on Black-ish, for which she won a Golden Globe in 2017. The show, centering on an upper middle class black family and the cultural issues that define their combined experiences, has run for six seasons and in 2019, she became a producer on the show’s second spin-off, “Mixed-ish”. Last year, Ellis Ross also became an entrepreneur with the launch of Pattern Beauty, her haircare line for women with curly, coily and tight textured hair. On May 29, she made her film debut in “The High Note”, playing a 40-year old recording superstar.

On The High Note: “So often we get to this place where we have a dream, a passion, a fire that we want to explore and we either hear the naysayers, the societal pull to stay in your lane, or the personal fear of what it would mean to take a risk and possibly fail. I've always wanted to sing since I was a little girl, and somewhere along the way I hid that part of me away. In my life, there are so many times where I go, "Is it worth the risk for me to do something that I know I want to try?" No one likes to fail, and yet the failing is the thing that makes us grow”.

On Her Mother Being Diana Ross “My mom is Diana Ross. The idea of stepping into that parent’s shadow and everybody’s possible comparison or criticism got bigger and bigger. I had, on my journey in life, seen other children of [musicians] be shredded to pieces in terms of comparison, and why would you even try to take this leap? I understood that the fear that I have I came by honestly. “So when this role came along and I was like, ‘Oh my God I can do it. This is what I’ve always wanted.’

On What Her Mother Thought Of Her Singing “I picked her up in my car and we sat in our driveway...

"Love Myself" was the first one I played. She sat in the passenger seat and she was looking forward. She has lots of hair like me so I couldn't see her face. But we were holding hands, and when the song finished she was like "Stop it for a second." She looked at me and there were tears all over her face and she said "Finally."

On growing up in privilege?

“I’ve always been taught that you work for the things you want. My mom always joked: ‘I’m not leaving you guys any of this money. I made this money for me! I’ll make sure there’s a roof over your head. I had a job in high school. My mom was like, ‘If you want to keep buying those clothes, you’re going to have to figure out how to pay for them.’ There was a commitment on her part to a normalcy that I have taken into my adult life.”

On being single People misinterpret being happily single as not wanting to be in a relationship. Of course, I want to be in a relationship but what am I going to do? Spend all the time that I’m not [in one] moping around? No. I’m going to live my life to the fullest and I’m going to be happy right here, where I am.”

RedCarpet Style

ACADEMY AWARDS In a strapless whiteAtelier Versace gown, hand-embellished with Swarovski crystals

THE BRIT AWARDS In striking blue draped asymmetric bustier gown by Dundas

You can’t say this famed singer/rapper doesn’t know how to turn heads.

In fact, when Melissa Viviane Jefferson (aka “Lizzo”) hits the red carpet, it’s all about flaunting her curves. Here, in our estimation, were some of her best looks.

MTV VMA AWARDS In custom red sequined gown by Moschino.

NAACP IMAGE AWARDS In a custom multi-colored Mary Katrantzou dress

Eye On Gospel Ricky Dillard Cues Up Sunday Morning Church With New Album Last month, Ricky Dillard and his New Generation Chorale (New G), celebrated the release of their eleventh album and their debut recording for Motown Gospel, titled Choirmaster.

Recorded live in Chicago before a sold-out church audience, Choirmaster brings choir music back to the forefront, as Dillard returns to the churchy sound and style, he first pioneered years ago. The project features standout singles “Release,” featuring Tiff Joy (currently a Top 15 single, and rising, at gospel radio), “Let There Be Peace On Earth,” “Since He Came,” and “More Abundantly Medley,” a revisited treatment of his first hit single. Videos for the same songs have become instant fan-favorites as well, already amassing over 2 million views between them.

"I hear many ministers of music and music directors saying they want choir music,” Dillard said. “We love praise and worship music, but we want to go back to songs that choirs want to sing on Sunday morning. It’s not that praise & worship is not for congregations, but we have our own style, our own flair, our own sound, and we’d like to retain that.”

With songs like “God’s Gonna Do It,” “I’ll Trade My Worries For Worship” and “Never Failed Me Yet,” Choirmaster cues up Sunday morning church with musical arrangements ranging from mid to upbeat tempos to praise-worthy melodies with messages

filled with gratitude, faith, hope, unconditional love and peace that rejuvenates the spirit and heals the soul. In addition to the four previously released commercial singles, other standouts include “He’s My Rooftop,” one of Dillard’s favorite songs by The Mighty Clouds of Joy featuring lead vocals by quartet singer Keith “Wonderboy” Johnson, and the churchy piece rendered by Donisha Ballard “Never Failed Me Yet.”

The Widow of Troy Sneed Issues Statement Gospel singer Troy Sneed’s widow, Emily Sneed, has issued a statement of gratitude for the public’s expressions of love following the Grammy ® Nominated recording artist’s sudden April 27th death of coronavirus complications.

“As we continue to maneuver our new normal with shattered hearts, we are constantly comforted by the continuous displays of love shown to us in Troy’s passing,” Sneed says. “With sincere gratitude, we want to thank each and every one of you for every prayer, call, text, post, email, card, meal, and or gift.

Although, our loss is immeasurable, we give God all the glory for the time we were allotted with Troy and will hold tight to the many memories to move forward. As it is a confusing time, we have currently postponed memorial services until the climate allows for a celebration of life more befitting of the man Troy was and the life he led.”

Sales and consumption of Troy Sneed’s music rose considerably after news of his death broke.

Radio airplay of Sneed’s music grew 461.3% while his streaming consumption numbers leaped 1,002.4% to over 374,000 streams last week.

Sneed’s current album, All My Best, features his biggest radio hits such as “My Heart Says Yes,” “Kept by His Grace” and “Hallelujah.”

Juan & Lisa Winans Release Official Debut Single He got his start as part of “Winans Phase 2: We Got Next” before touring with his sister Deborah Joy Winans in the original musical Born For This: The BeBe Winans

Story, for which he won Best Male Lead at the 2019 NAACP Theater Awards. She began her career as one third of the Dove Award winning, Contemporary Christian Music trio, Out of Eden. Last month, Juan and Lisa Winans (formerly Lisa Kimmey) released their official debut single, “It Belongs To Me,” featuring 6X GRAMMY-Award winner/uncle Marvin Winans.

“Our single is more than a song to us, it’s the way we are aspiring to live. Jesus said that He came to give us abundant life. That’s a big, bold statement and just one of many promises offered to us as children of God. This song is a declaration of our desire and dedication to living in those promises; to possessing every gift and blessing that God makes available to us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. ‘It Belongs To Me’ is our anthem of grace and faith,” says Juan Winans.

On May 25, the couple appeared on the second season of the NBC hit show “SONGLAND” in an episode featuring Boyz II Men.

Jekalyn Carr Shares The Power of Love With New CD On June 5, seven-time Billboard #1 chart-topper, fourtime Grammy nominee, Dove Award-winner, and multiple Stellar Award winner Jekalyn Carr will release for digital download and streaming of her current radio single and Billboard Top 15 radio song "Changing Your Story," a prophetic declaration and prophetic message of hope and the heartfelt "Power of Love" digital track.

“Changing Your Story” is about overcoming the issues and struggles that have plagued a person’s life. This statement is for all to understand that you can defeat what has been defeating you,” says the 22-year old. “God has equipped you and empowered you to have victory in ANY situation. The message is profound and your story has to change.” Power of Love” releases the message that we CAN live, we CAN walk, and we CAN stand in unity.

Love is powerful and we must embrace our family and others using that power. We all need a hug at times, and this song is to share that hug with you through the Power of Love.”

L.A. Focus/June 2020

Through the Storm “Jeffrey, unfortunately, your test came back positive for the Coronavirus.”

Hearing those words from the doctor, March 27th, shook me to the core. Was this really how my life was going to end?

The news reports I had been watching and reading reported dire results relative to those who had contracted the virus. Death tolls were rising. Honestly, I felt like the odds were stacked against me.

My journey started on March 17th with a slight cough and internal digestive symptoms. The next day, I not only had a loss of appetite, but stomach pain and heavy bouts of diarrhea. I even had an episode where I passed out on the way to the bathroom and was disoriented. I woke up in a sweat. I drank lots of water, tried natural remedies and ceased normal activities. None of which worked.

I self-quarantined for eight days –during which time, I contacted my primary care physician, who said self-quarantine was probably the best option.

I decided to reach out to my good friend, State Representative Ron Reynolds to express my concerns and get his advice on if I should go through one of the drive-thru testing sites that had recently opened primarily for my peace of mind, but also because I was concerned for my family. They were still living in the same house as me.

I was not displaying the respiratory symptoms a majority of COVID-19 patients were reported to have been experiencing, such as shortness of breath or a heavy cough. There were also reports that the only way a person could be tested was if they were elderly or a first responder. I was deeply concerned.

A few days later, I received a call from U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. She’d heard I was experiencing a health challenge and asked me some questions. She then immediately told me to come down to United Memorial Medical Center (UMMC) on Tidwell to get tested right away. I wasted no time.

As I was driving to the hospital, the Congresswoman told me she’d already spoken to the Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Joseph Varon, and that he was prepared to receive me and administer the test.

I was instantly relieved that I would be able to get a definitive on whether I’d contracted the COVID-19 virus or not.

I was met by Dr. Varon, who walked with me inside to the place where I was to be tested. I was told by Dr. Varon that my test results would take anywhere from 24-48 hours to come back, so I waited patiently and eagerly.

As anxious as I was to find out the results the following day, I decided to give it another day, but on March 27th, things took a drastic turn for the worse. I began to cough, and what I thought would be regular phlegm turned out to be a significant amount of bright red blood. As this continued to happen, I called Dr. Varon to share my update. After hearing my status, he implored me to come to the UMMC Emergency Room immediately and informed me that I had tested “positive” for the Coronavirus. I was shook.

My wife, who had followed me to the hospital, was not allowed inside. I was met by medical staff and they ushered me into a room. She stood outside awaiting word. The nursing staff

22

immediately went to work, initially drawing blood and then taking some vitals at the order of Dr. Varon.

One of the first things the doctor ordered was a CT Scan, allowing doctors to see inside your body by using a combination of X-rays and a computer to create images of your organs.

That CT Scan was the best thing that could have ever happened to me as it revealed something major going on inside my body. My lungs showed a severe case of pneumonia, as well as other issues involving my vital organs that came as a result of the Coronavirus.

I was admitted to Intensive Care. It was then that I realized how serious things were and that I was going to have to rely on my faith in God. I was on a mental and emotional roller coaster. I didn’t know how long I would be in ICU, but more importantly, whether I would make it out alive. I could not help but think about the time in 2003 when my wife and I took my mom to the ER because she was ill. It was a life-altering experience for me.

After being seen by doctors in the ER, the medical staff informed us that my mom would need to be admitted to address a serious health condition. My wife and I decided to stay with her, but my mom kept telling us to go home. We stayed anyway. They moved her in the wee hours of the morning to a different floor. It was then that I told her that I was not be going very far, as I chose to sleep at my mother-in-law’s house because it was closer to the hospital.

No more than five minutes after I laid my head down on the pillow, the nurse on duty called to inform me that my mom had stopped breathing and had slipped into a coma. I was devastated. I felt guilt as if I was there, I could’ve possibly done something. Several months later, my mother passed away and I never forgot that moment.

As I was being prepared to go to ICU myself, I was reminded of my mom’s experience and bombarded with memories about what she endured. I also struggled with the mental anguish of worrying about a virus with no cure or vaccine to fight it. I knew I needed to draw on something greater than myself to get through this ordeal.

Not only did I have a severe case of pneumonia, but my liver and kidneys also needed to be protected from the virus; my heart rate was through the roof and I was headed to potential heart failure; my blood pressure was high; I had a sharp pain in my right side; diarrhea and a loss of appetite. Things were not looking good.

I relied on my faith in God as I continued to deal with the mental anguish of being in this Coronavirus-specific ICU area, particularly knowing that there were people around with breathing issues and hearing the machines go off all day and night, and as I looked at news reports showing the number of people dying on a daily basis.

I needed a miracle.

Because I didn’t have respiratory issues, the doctors developed a treatment plan for me that was different than other patients. Dr. Varon and Dr. Joseph Gathe, Jr. oversaw my care. They created a Coronavirus cocktail, which included heavy doses of Vitamin C, which was specific to my treatment. Per Dr. Varon, my case taught them that they must use high dose blood thinners on every Coronavirus patient admitted to the hospital.

After several days, my symptoms began to subside, and my appetite came back in a major way. Dr. Varon eventually

“

Not only did I have a severe case of pneumonia, but my liver and kidneys also needed to be protected from the virus; my heart rate was through the roof and I was headed to potential heart failure; my blood pressure was high; I had a sharp pain in my right side; diarrhea and a loss of appetite.

Things were not looking good...

I needed a miracle.

”

informed me that all of my vital organs had returned to normal and that my blood work and vital signs were solid.

Finally, I was turning a corner and feeling better.

That was until a second CT Scan revealed more devastating news regarding my health condition. The scan revealed a pulmonary embolism in my right lung.

Potentially fatal and life-threatening, a pulmonary embolism occurs when blood clots block the flow of blood to the lungs.

Dr. Varon and his team promptly took the necessary steps to address the blood clot and reduce my risk of death and I continued to follow the instructions of the doctors until I received news on Sunday, April 5th, that I had made miraculous improvement and was being discharged.

Prior to being discharged, I had another COVID-19 test done and I self-isolated once again, until I got my second test results. After several days, I tested “NEGATIVE”.

This was a long and faith-filled journey, to which I still am slated to have to deal with this blood clot in my right lung for the next six months or so. I will continue to fight and do what I am supposed to do. In the meantime, I am encouraging everyone, especially my African American brothers and sisters, to get tested, regardless of whether you have symptoms or not.

This is NOT a drill.

This virus is unrepentant and aggressive and can spread quickly to anyone who comes in contact with it.

Listen to your local leaders and medical professionals to help stop the community spread.

Don’t ignore your symptoms and don’t ignore the seriousness of this virus. Think about your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, loved ones and those you don’t know. Stay safe! Giants can be intimidating. The fight can many times be tough. Sometimes we lose. Sometimes we win. The common thread in winning versus losing is giving it all you have when you are in the midst of a fight. In the Bible, David showed us that giants can indeed fall. This was my journey, and this is my testimony.

Jeffrey L. Boney is a political analyst and international correspondent for the NNPA Newswire and BlackPressUSA.com and serves as Associate Editor for the Houston Forward Times newspaper. Follow Jeffrey on Twitter @realtalkjunkies.

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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ChurchNews

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

œNot So Fast œ: Pastors Postpone Return To In Person Services

L.A. Focus/June 2020

On May 25, the California Department of Public Health announced the statewide reopening of places of worship for religious services. Under new guidance, places of worship can hold religious services and funerals that limit attendance to 25% of a building’s capacity — or up to 100 attendees, whichever is lower — upon approval by the county department of public health.

The new guidance for religious services and cultural ceremonies encourages organizations to continue online services and activities, including to protect individuals who are most at risk for more severe COVID-19, including older adults and people with specific medical conditions.

To reopen, houses of worship must adhere to a stringent ten-plus page set of guidelines that include rigid cleaning and disinfecting protocols, marked physical distancing and signage, extensive staff training, parameters around choirs or praise and worship teams, “touch-free offerings”, face coverings and temperature checks.

Additionally, churches are being asked to establish a written, workplace specific COVID-19 prevention plan, consider the implementation of a reservation system to limit the number of congregants and to provide contact information for the local health department in the event of outbreaks among staff and parishioners.

The move comes after 1200 California pastors sent a letter to the governor stating that they would be holding services beginning May 31–Pentecost Sunday– with or without his lifting the order that shut them down two months ago and the Department of Justice’s cautioning that Newsom’s reopening plans were unfairly burden religious services and that California do more to accommodate religious worship.

On Sunday, Trump piled on, demanding that churches be opened.

But some L.A. pastors say not so fast. Both Faithful Central and West Angeles COGIC–two of the cities largest churches have put statements on their social media platforms stating that they will not be returning until further notice.

Said Faithful Central Senior Pastor, Bishop Kenneth Ulmer, “I know many are going to be doing some gatherings on Pentecost Sunday, but I don’t believe the Lord is leading us to do that… For this house, we’re going to wait awhile until we see what God says next. I don’t feel like this is the right time.”

“Until science says it is safe, Macedonia will continue to worship virtually,” said Senior Pastor Shane Scott. “We will not sacrifice the lives of our parishioners for profits.”

“While we deeply miss gathering with our church family, we believe that it is prudent for us to continue our engagement through online and telephonic platforms for the foreseeable future,” said Geremy Dixon of First Church of God Center of Hope.

“We are listening intently to the Holy Spirit, interfacing with the agencies responsible for public health and safety and discussing options, timeframes and strategies for reopening with our internal leadership and our wider ecumenical network”.

Apostle Beverly “Bam” Crawford agrees.

“While I am thankful that so many pastors can get in agreement, I’m not opening on May 31. I don’t know when we’re opening. I think it’s wise for us to wait…to wait on the guidelines and do our own modifications so that when we do go back, it is safe.

“I don’t feel that the public overall is prepared,” Crawford adds, “and I am concerned about people coming back out and throwing caution to the wind and don’t want to put myself or my members in harm’s way.”

Pastor Michael Fisher (Greater Zion Church Family) is not planning to open before July 4 given that modifying his church operations to adhere to state guidelines for religious worship will take some time.

“Nobody wants to come back right away,” said Fisher of his staff and members. “Everyone is looking at it from the standpoint of being a medical/health issue particularly as people in our community are more prone to the severity of COVID-19 and underlying conditions, so we can’t afford for it to be a test run that goes wrong.”

First AME Church has developed an extensive, “23Point Crisis Recovery Plan,” to lay out proper and responsible protocols intended to lessen the risk of transmission by or to those who visit their campus and its pastor agrees that the reopening of churches shouldn’t be politically motivated by the president.

States Pastor J. Edgar Boyd, “In light of the continued rise in the number of persons infected as well

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

as the number of persons who are deceased as a result of the coronavirus, we’ve decided at FAME Church to delay our opening until such time that we are convinced by the data from the CDC and the medical professionals. We are reluctant to be guided by political influence that has an ulterior motive to encourage churches to open prematurely.”

Most of Boyd’s AME church counterparts are doing the same.

The Baptist Ministers Conference will let churches decide for themselves what is best for their membership.

“Most of our members are concerned about the health and wellbeing of their members, many of them who are seniors. We know the consequences,” said Pastor K.W. Tulloss, president of the Baptist Ministers Conference of Southern California.

“I’m going to continue to monitor this virus these next few months before making a final decision as we work to prepare our sanctuary in compliance with the Governor’s guidelines, which for my church may not be open until September.”

Bishop Ulmer relayed the sentiment of most when he told parishioners, “The church is still open. We have not missed a beat. In fact,” he added, “these last several weeks, I’ve seen God do some amazing things. What we’ve learned maybe more than ever before is that the church is not the building, the church is the people and we have continued to be the people of God in our own homes, in this distancing and in this challenging time.”

The Church Of God In Christ Cancels Its Holy Convocation For only the second time in its 100-plus year history, the Church of God In Christ will not be holding its annual convocation, which had been planned for November 2-11 in St. Louis and typically draws upwards of 40,000.

Presiding Bishop Charles Blake made the announcement with an online statement.

“First and foremost, truly there is no greater experience than fellowship with other Church of God in Christ members face to face,” Blake said. “However, we must use collective wisdom and consider the tremendous effort that would be required to hold our holy convocation in as safe a manner as possible in these critical times.

“There are still too many unanswered questions as to how this type of densely populated church gathering can be accomplished while assuring the safety of all convention attendees,” Blake said.

In lieu of meeting face to face, the Church of God In Christ is planning an on-line experience. Blake also stated that he and the General Board had determined that COGIC churches should remain closed at least through the month of June and implement a slow opening thereafter.

In other news, nationally renowned pastor and gospel singer Bishop Paul S. Morton had announced that he would step down as senior pastor of the Changing a Generation Full Gospel Baptist Church megachurch in Atlanta in July on his 70th birthday. But now the awardwinning singer and founder of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship has said that he will postpone his retirement until there is a vaccine for the coronavirus.

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

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

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

Congregational Church of Christian Fellowship 2085 S. Hobart Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 Phone: (323) 731-8869 • F: (323) 731-0851 www.christianfellowshipla.org Pastor James K. McKnight Sun. Early Worship: 8:00am Prayer Meeting: 10:30am Morning Worship: 11:00am Wed. Afternoon Bible Study: 1:00pm Wed. Prayer Meeting: 6:00pm Wed. Evening Bible Study: 7:00pm 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 Pastor Frederick K. Price, Jr. Sunday Service: 9:45am Bible Study (Tue): 11:00am & 7:30pm Tue. Night Children’s Ministry: 7:30pm Tue. Night Bible Study (Teens): 7:30pm Alcohol & Drug Abuse Program (Wed): 7:30pm

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

Services Every Friday: 7:00pm -9:30pm

Correction: The May 2020 edition of Church News incorrectly listed the late Dr. Johnny Baylor as the founder of Judson Baptist Church. In fact, Baylor was the second pastor to lead the church.

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

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

Grant AME Church 10435 S. Central Avenue • Los Angeles, CA 90002 (323) 564-1151 • F: (323) 564-5027 Rev. Dr. J. Arthur Rumph, Senior Pastor Reappointed to Grant AME Church Los Angeles Rev. Dr. James A. Rumph

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

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

Holman United Methodist Church 3320 W. Adams Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 703-5868 • www.holmanumc.com Email: holman@holmanumc.com Rev. Paul A. Hill, Interim Senior Pastor Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Sunday Radio: KJLH 102.3FM at 11:00am Sunday School: 9:30am (Children/Youth) & 9:45am (Adult) Bible Study: Every Thursday 12:00pm

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

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

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

FIRST LADY FILES

Shalonda K. Crawford Experience Christian Ministries Shalonda K. Crawford, ThM, PsyD, dubbed Dr. Sunshine, approaches the issues we face today with an open mind and heart. As a licensed psychologist in private practice, she is adept in exploring-deep seeded issues and identifying the silver lining. Her compassion for others and desire to affect positive change in her community sparks initiatives and has the potential to affect a global transformation in the way that people view mental health.

As Co-Pastor of The Experience Christian Ministries in South Central Los Angeles, Dr. Crawford and her husband, Sr. Pastor, Shep Crawford, have proactively taken to the streets of Los Angeles to speak with people and to be a positive voice for change and peace Last week, she was out among protesters both in support of the calls for justice and to quell the violence.

“We’re always active with something when it comes to the streets, be it protests, AIDS healthcare screenings or food distribution. We’re always trying to keep myself prepared to reach out and help someone else,” Crawford says.

The Grand Rapids, Michigan native–once an aspiring singer who now also serves as First Lady – is passionate in her pursuit to break down the stereotypical and stigmatic walls that prevent people from living our absolute best lives. She is currently partnering with organizations across America to address mental health issues as it relates to African Americans and other minorities in corporate America.

In addition to her work with community mental health and her work with Aids Healthcare Foundation’s BLACC Faith division, Dr. Crawford has been working with city officials, and other faith-based organizations and community leaders, to formulate plans on the best ways to reopen Houses of Worship in light of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

“When I first found out that my husband answered his call to pastor, I was terrified,” she said. “In my mind I didn’t think I embodied what a First Lady was– since I wasn’t raised in the church, I faced some harsh criticism from family and friends which confirmed my fears.”

The perspective she has come to embrace is simply this: “God is the example and I am following him in my own way.”

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

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

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

Sundays: Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Wednesday Bible Study & Mid Week Worship: Noon & 7:00pm Prayer Meeting: 6:30pm

Praises of Zion Baptist Church (“Praise City”) 8222 So. San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90003 (323) 750-1033 • F: (323) 750-6458 Dr. J. Benjamin Hardwick, Sr. Pastor Early Morning Worship: 6:45am Educational Hour: 9:15am Mid-Morning Worship: 10:45am Wed. Bible Study: Noon & 7:00pm Sunday Morning Broadcast: 5:30am Live Streaming Sundays: 12:00pm http://www.pozlive.com St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church 5017 S. Compton Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90011 (323) 231-1040 • stmarkmbcofla.org Reverend Dr. Lovely Haynes, Pastor Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00am Sunday School: 9:30am Mon-Wed Corporate Prayer: 6:00 - 6:55 pm Monday Night Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday Noon Prayer: 12 Noon Wed. Exposition of Sunday School Lesson: 7:00pm

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

Trinity Baptist Church 2040 West Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 735-0044 • F: (323) 735-0219 Rev. Alvin Tunstill, Jr Sunday Worship: 7:30 & 10:30am Sunday Church School: 9:00am Radio Broadcast KJLH FM: 9:00am Wed. Prayer & Bible Study: Noon-7:00pm www.trinitybaptistchurchofla.org Weller Street Baptist Church 129 S. Gless St, Los Angeles, CA 90033 (323) 261-0949 • F: (323)264-6601 • www.wellerstreetlive.com Pastor K.W. Tulloss Sunday School: 8:00am Sunday Morning Worship: 9:00am Tues. Bible Study: 6:45pm www.wellerstreetlive.com “We have not walked this way before” Joshua 3:1-6 West Angeles Church of God In Christ 3045 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90016 (323) 733-8300 Bishop Charles E. Blake Sunday School: 8:00am & 10:30am Early Worship: 8:00am Morning Worship: 11:00am Evening Worship (North Campus): 7:00pm Wed. Mid-Week Worship: 7:00pm Sun. Radio Broadcast KJLH 102.3FM: 10am www.westa.tv

Lifeline Fellowship Christian Center In Altadena 2556 N. Lake Ave., Altadena, CA 91001 (626) 797-3585 • F: (626) 797-3233 • www.lifelinefcc.org Bishop Charles D. Dorsey Sunday School: 9:00am Early Worship (Glory Prayer): 8:00am Morning Worship: 10:30am Evening Worship (1st & 2nd Sun.): 5:00pm Wed. Bible Study: 7:00pm

L.A. Focus/June 2020

Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church 3669 W. 54th St. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 291-1121 F: (323) 291-1133 • office@sinai.church • www.sinai.church George E. Hurtt, Pastor-Teacher Sunday Worship: 8:00am, 11:30am Discipleship Groups (Sun): 9:45am Noonday Bible Study(Tue): 12:00pm Tuesday Night in the Truth: 7:15pm Radio: KKLA 99.5 FM (Sat): 9:00pm Our Goal: To glorify God by winning more Christians and developing better Christians (Matt. 28:18-20)

Sunday Early Morning Worship: 8:00am Sunday School: 9:30 am Morning Worship: 11:00am Tuesday Prayer and Bible Band: 11:00am Wednesday Bible Study: 7:30pm Wednesday in the Word: 7:30pm

People’s Independent Church of Christ 5856 West Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 296-5776

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Peace Apostolic Church 21224 Figueroa Street, Carson, CA 90745 (310) 212-5673 Suff. Bishop Howard A. Swancy

In Carson

Sunday School: 10:00am Morning Worship: 11:45am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Wed. Noon Day Bible Class: 12:30pm Wed. Bible Class: 7:30pm

Citizens of Zion Missionary Baptist Church In Compton 12930 No. Lime Ave., Compton, CA 90221 (310) 638-0536 • F: (323) 636-2080 • www.citizensofzion.org Rev. Bobby Newman, Jr., Senior Pastor; Rev. B.T. Newman, Pastor (Pastor Emeritus) Sunday School: 9:00am Morning Service: 10:45am Wed. Mid-Week Bible Study: 7:00pm

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

Holy Chapel Missionary Baptist Church In Compton 1016 E. Rosecrans Avenue, Compton, CA 90220 (310) 537-3149 • F: (310) 537-3149 Rev. Dr. George L. Thomas Sunday School: 9:45am & 10:15am Early Morning Worship: 7:30am Mid-Morning Worship: 11:15am New Members’ Class: 9:45am Holy-Communion (1st Sunday): 7:30 & 11:15am Mid-Week Prayer & Bible Study(Wed): 7:00pm Broadcast(KALI 900AM - Sunday):2:00pm3:00pm Love and Unity Christian Fellowship 1840 S. Wilmington Ave, (P.O. Box 5449), Compton 90224 (310) 604-5900, www.loveandunity.org Apostle Ronald C. Hill, Sr. Founder and Pastor Sunday Worship: 8:00am & 11:30am Sunday Evening Worship: 6:30pm Bible Studies: Wed. 7:30pm & Sat. 9am Prayer w/Apostle: Tue - Fri: 9am Food for Your Soul TV Ministry- 6:30am Impact Network Television: Mon-Fri 6:30am KJLH 102.3 Sundays: 9pm The City of Refuge 14527 S. San Pedro Street, Gardena, CA 90248 (310) 516-1433 Bishop Noel Jones

In Gardena

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

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

In Hawthorne

Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:00 am Sunday Bible Enrichment Class: 9:45am Mon.-Thurs. Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday Bible Study: 12:30pm & 7:00pm Bible Enrichment Fellowship International In Inglewood 400 E. Kelso, Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 330-4700 • www.bamcm.org Dr. Beverly “BAM” Crawford Morning Worship: 9:30am Tues. Bible Study: 7:30pm Wed. Mid-Week Prayer: 5am, Noon & 7:00pm Wednesday Pathway: 7:00pm Thurs Bible Study: 10:00am Sat Marriage & Family Prayer: 7:30am

Blessed Family Covenant Church 325 North Hillcrest Blvd, Inglewood, CA, 90301 (310)-674-0303 • F: (310)-674-0303 • blessedfamilycovenant.org Rev. Wendy Howlett Sunday School: 8:30am Morning Worship: 9:30am Wed. Prayer & Bible Study: 7:00pm

Pastor Profile: Bishop James Taylor Church: Heavenly Vision Baptist Church How Long at Church: 18 years Hometown: Los Angeles Family: Wife, Karen of 55 years, four children aged 7-20 Under your grandfather, Pastor Joseph Lee, you started preaching at the age of nine–what were those sermons about?

God is love. That's the only message I could give anybody at that point in time. I really served as my grandfather's armor-bearer. I was always with him through elementary school, middle school, high school. As I got older, I began to have a real heart for God and for the church. I became one of the youth leaders at 16 and from 16 to 18, my grandfather had me in like this secret pastoral training track. I would travel with him at different points and for a while, my Sunday [to preach] was the second Sunday.

How did you come to be pastor of Heavenly Vision?

When we celebrated our 50th anniversary in 2002, my grandfather called the congregation together and laid out how he started the church with 16 members and $40 in 1953; how God had done a lot of great things; and he wanted to make sure the legacy of Heavenly Vision continued. For that reason, he said, ‘I'm going to make James the next pastor Heavenly Vision.’ From 20022003, I was the co-pastor and then in 2003 we had his official retirement.

The church fell on hard times for a bit…

Yes. My grandfather was sick for three to four years and was out of the pulpit for two years. At our lowest, we got to about 20 showing up on Sundays.

So you take over at 18 and are you somewhat daunted that there's 16-20 members sitting out there?

Amazingly daunted. I'm graduating high school with ambitions of being the next Johnnie Cochran. Even though I was preaching, there was no desire to be the senior leader. All of my peers were going off to college and I'm left to the church and a leadership team in their 50s and 60s. You can imagine the challenges that go with a large age gap.

Absolutely–so did you have a plan because I understand that now you're doing quite well?

Yeah, right now our average attendance is a little over 200. We've seen numbers

higher and lower, but since 2008 we’ve had a consistent core of about 75 and they've done everything. One of the things God laid upon us to do in 2008 was to pay off the church. We had a mortgage of about $50,000 and that 75 people–along with my grandmother, who is now deceased–started giving and in about a month and a half we paid the mortgage off. I believe that was like a proving ground for the people and we've been on an upward track since. God has been faithful every step of the way. We're going to be leveling our school building and we're already in plans with the city to build a 54-unit supportive housing development.

For low-income housing?

Actually, it’s for homeless transition. I went through the Passing The Mantle program at USC through the Cecil Murray Center and that changed my whole life. Before that, civic engagement wasn't on my radar, but after going through that program, I began to look at what we had and how to make our church a living, breathing part of the community on a daily basis. I have some really progressive people on our board so they were open to the different ideas and opportunities and we were able to get with the right development partners.

Was your age more of a help or a hindrance when first starting out?

It was a hindrance for sure because everybody was way older than me and I had an amazing chip on my shoulder to prove myself. The amazing thing is my grandfather gave me a great deal of autonomy... I made some foolish decisions because I was just young and didn't know.

What among those decisions did you learn the most from?

Thinking or believing that the people were always going to give – not understanding the ebbs and flows of seasons and giving, and also recognizing that people are not just commodities. That it's their choice to be there. That they can decide tomorrow not to come back.

Is age paying off for you in this pandemic where now churches have to adapt online and obviously youth has its benefits in a technology era?

Yeah, it has. When I first became pastor, I wanted to spend money on technology and mics and sound and the

board was like we don’t need all of that. But as our board transitioned and some people left or died, we've put a high premium on making sure that we're able to keep up and not be on the wrong side of the digital divide. Today, our biggest demographic is 24 to 35. I would attribute that to my age because I guess I'm the senior leader.

What has helped you to engage millennials in a demographic that is really shifting and in an area of the city most progressive millennials don't really care to go to?

A lot of people have seen and have been engaged by our passion. We just love and share and serve, whether through our food or backpack giveaways or just different service opportunities and people have responded to that.

What's most important for you to communicate on Sunday mornings?

That God is real and present. Getting people to understand that He is Emmanuel –God with us.

Is that a difficult message right now with COVID 19?

Most certainly. I'll never forget one Bible study we were teaching on forgiveness and having people give their testimonies. One woman was talking about how her daughter was molested by a family member and the member asked me, ‘where was God when my daughter was getting molested?’ I had to look her straight in her eyes and say, ‘He was right there.’ The room got quiet and I said He was present right there in that room just like He was present on Calvary when His Son was being killed. I think He is always present in the lowest parts of humanity, but the beautiful thing is that He's also there to bring us from the lowest place to where He wants us to be.

That's what makes the gospel message so dynamic.

Has COVID-19 presented a challenge in preaching that?

Yes and no. There are those who are like well, where is God so forth and so on. But what I am learning is that people who were against God, against prayer, against church…I have seen how this crisis has put people into a position where they are more open to receive the gospel– to receive faith, hope and love.

What do you think is drawing people to you?

Fidelity to the scripture. People know that when they come, they're going to get sound biblical teaching. That we are going to rightly divide the Word of truth, but that we will make it relevant and applicable to what’s going on today.

Where do you see your church five, 10 years from now?

James: I see Heavenly Vision as a thriving community or a thriving conglomerate of communities. We have some amazing pastors and leaders and my goal is to plant as many of these as I can around our region and if possible, our country.

From the Pulpit: Congregational Church of Christian Fellowship “Courage To Continue”: Joshua 1:1-10 When we were kids, I can remember little sayings we shared with one another that were actually sources of encouragement when difficulty hit. We used to say, if at first you don’t succeed try, try again.

We used to say stick and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me (that is not true by the way) We used to say, quitters never win and winners never quit.

Do you remember that? Quitters never win and winners never quit? Me too.

We could say that to one another as youngsters and it would help but as I have gotten older, I need something a little stronger than a witty saying. Brothers and sisters there are certainly times in life when the temptation to throw in the towel is high. You get a bad piece of news when you were expecting a good piece of news.

You get rejected when you thought for sure you were going to be chosen. You got criticized when you thought you were deserving of commendation. You were preparing for addition and instead you got subtraction.

Surely during this unprecedented season, many of us know what it feels like to have conflict going on in our heads and hearts. One side is fighting to be strong and faithful–and faith-filled, and the other side is fighting to drag us down into deep despair because we are experiencing unbelievable things.

Indeed, the news recently went from bad to worse. There has been grief, but a new kind of grief hit when we saw the coldblooded murder of a beautiful black man in Georgia.

Surely COVID 19 has stopped so many things but it certainly hasn’t stopped racism and ugliness and hatred.

When disappointment is high and frustration is high, that is the time when we need courage to continue. Our souls are blessed when we see someone toughing it out with great courage.

Haven’t you seen courage on display over the last several weeks? We all have!

You don’t have to see it on the news, you

“

If God told you he has plans to prosper you, open doors for you, be your strength, your staying power, your healing, your blessing, your breakthrough, your joy…depend on him to keep his promises. He’s able!

”

can see it in your own family. Someone you know, and it might just be you, has said, “I am not going to throw in the towel, I am not going to give up, lay down and die, I am going to keep on moving forward with my trust in the Lord”.

This story in the Book of Joshua is a story that can teach us some lessons about courage and continuation. The Israelites have been wandering around for almost 40 years because of their lack of faith and the stubborn hearts. Finally, after the generation of disobedient dies off, God has his people poised to enter into the promised land. But before that happens, God summons Moses to a meeting and tells him, go up to the top of Mount Nebo, I am going to let you look at the promised land, but you are not going to be able to cross over into it.

Then he says, you will die on the mountain looking at the blessing you could have had.

Wow! That information is revealed in the book that proceeds Joshua. So when the book of Joshua opens up, the story is continuing.

What does it say? God is talking to Joshua

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

and he says, Moses is dead, now you and all the people need to continue. Notice what he says in verse 2. Moses, my servant, is dead. Now proceed (continue) to cross the Jordan into the land that I am giving to the Israelites.

I see something in that. We have to have courage to continue in spite of the fact that some who have been on the journey are not going to make it. Simply stated, carry on even when deaths occur. Death is real, but death does not have the last word. In this case, God took Joshua’s mentor, but he found the courage to continue in spite of the pain– the courage to continue.

Someone reading this today has experienced the pain of loss. We know that COVID 19 has hit the hardest in our communities for a number of reasons all of which are regrettable. Too many people are dying!

Here is the word of encouragement that I got after reading this passage and about the “great cloud of witnesses” in Hebrews 12:1… Carry on brother! Carry on sister.

It may just be that our loved ones who have gone on before us are in glory cheering us on saying, “Trust the Lord even in your grief! Have the courage to continue!”

Look further at what God says in verse 3. God told Joshua, “Every place your foot shall tread upon, I have given you as I promised to Moses. Isn’t that something?

God seems to be saying depend upon my promises.

One thing that we can likely agree on is that God makes good promises and God keeps them beautifully. Look at verse 5…

“No one will be able to stand against you. I will not fail you or forsake you.”

Look also at verse 10, “…for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”.

Oh, I love these verses! You see the truth of these verses is what we need to hold onto when we feel like giving up. If God told you he has plans to prosper you, open doors for you, be your strength, your staying power, your healing, your blessing, your breakthrough, your joy…depend on him to

True Friendship Missionary Baptist Church 7901 South Van Ness Ave. Inglewood, CA 90305 (323) 750-7304 Rev. James A. Perkins

Pastor James McKnight

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

Sunday School: 9:30am Early Worship: 8am Morning Worship: 10:45am Bible Adventure Hour (Tues): 6pm Bible Study (Tues): 7pm Bible Study (Thurs): Noon

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

In Long Beach

Antioch Church of Long Beach Mailing address P.O. Box 2291, Long Beach, CA 90801 website:www.antiochlb.com

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

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

Pastor Wayne Chaney Jr. Sunday Worship Services: 10:00am Long Beach Poly High School 1600 Atlantic Avenue Long Beach, Ca 90813

Sunday School: 8:30am Sunday Worship Service: 9:40am Wed. Bible Study: 7:00pm Wed Youth & Young Adult Ministry: 7:00pm

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

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

L.A. Focus/June 2020

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

Early Worship: 8:00am Sunday School: 9:30am Morning Worship: 11:00am Mid-Week Bible Study (Wednesday): 7:00pm Afternoon Bible Study (Thursday): 1:00pm

keep his promises. He’s able!

Mother’s Day was last month. My mother was a promise keeper. Remember Fedco? My mom would promise to get me a cherry Icee and a slice of pizza after shopping. She always came through just like God. Get this… mom was a promise keeper and she came through even after I cut up in the store. That’s grace and that’s love, a God kind of promise keeping love.

In verse seven, God tells Joshua obey my law and in verse eight, God says constantly read and study the book of my commandments. He promises that such disciplines will result in real blessings. Truly these are times when we need discipline.

In our hearts we know we benefit when we are faithful in the study of the Bible, faithful in prayer, faithful in worship, faithful in Christian service.

Can I ask you a question? Is there a correlation between your spiritual disciplines and your ability to be strong in the storm?

You know the answer! Yes! Be steadfast, immoveable always abounding in the work of the Lord 15:58).

(1Corinthians Carry on with the courage Christ gives!

You can do all through things who Christ you strengthens (Philippians 4:13)!

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New Philadelphia A.M.E. Church 6380 S. Orange Avenue, Long Beach, Ca 90805 (562)422-9300•F: (562) 422-9400 Pastor Darryl E. Walker, Senior Pastor Worship: 9:00am —1st & 5th Sunday Sunday School/New Member Classes: 8:00am 2nd thru 4th Sunday Worship:7:30 am &10:00am•Sunday School New Member Classes: 9:00am Sunday worship services streamed live on the web Pastor’s Bible Study: Wednesday Eve 7:00pm Mid-Week Bible Study: Thursday 12:00 noon www.nuphilly.org

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

In Lynwood

Pastor Nissan Stewart Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00am Wednesday Prayer: 6:30pm Mid-Week Refuel/Bible Study: 7:00pm (Wednesday) Follow us: @GETFamilyNow The Greater Emmanuel Temple App Available in App Store Second Baptist Church In Monrovia 925 S. Shamrock Ave., P.O. Box 478, Monrovia,Ca 91017•(626)358-2136•(626) 303-2477 Fax Church Office: Tue-Thur 9am -5pm e-mail:sbcmon925@gmail.com • www.sbcmonrovia.org Pastor Christopher A. Bourne, Sr. Sunday School: 9:45am-10:30am Sunday Worship Service:10:45am Prayer/Bible Study Wed.:10:45am & 6:45

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

Greater Morning Star Missionary Baptist 1973 Seventeenth St., Santa Monica, CA 90404 (310) 450-1168 • Pastor Study:(310) 450-4880 (City by the Sea) Pastor Michael Larry, Jr. Senior Pastor Sunday School: 9:00am New Member Class: 9:45 - 10:15am Children Church.: 11:15am Wed: Mid-week Bible Worship: 7:00pm 1st Sunday Communion Trusting God to Transform the Creature, the Church and the Community, Romans 12:2 Arise Christian Center In Westchester 6949 La Tijera Blvd. Suite C,Westchester, CA,90045 (310)568-8445•F: (310) 568-8430 • Arisechristiancenter.com Pastor Ron Taylor Morning Worship: 9:00am & 11:15am Bible Study Wednesday: 7:00pm Intercessory Prayer Tuesday : 7:00pm Intercessory Prayer Sunday: 8am - 8:45am Thursday:11:30am-12:30pm

In Norwalk

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

Money Matters continued from page 12 public assistance bond floated on the November ballot could potentially be used to fund additional rental help while buttressing state coffers. But he cautioned the lion’s share of the money would have to come from Washington D.C. Billions of dollars from the CARES Act headed to California could conceivably be redirected for rental assistance, although experts say more rounds of federal funding will be necessary to meet the need in any meaningful way. Ting says he’s unconvinced that funding will be forthcoming.

Ting has his own proposal for rental help that doesn’t require a major infusion of state dollars: AB828 would allow renters facing the prospect of eviction for non-payment of rent to petition the court for a 25% reduction in rent payments for the next year, with the renter making up missed rent in monthly 10% installments.

The rent reduction would only proceed if the court determined renters were unable to afford rent because of COVID-19, and small landlords would have an opportunity to demonstrate their own financial hardship resulting from reduced rents.

The landlord lobby, as well as developers and the California Chamber of Commerce, fiercely oppose Ting’s bill, arguing it unconstitutionally interferes with private contracts and forces landlords to swallow a rent reduction without any compensation.

While both landlords and renters agree emergency rental assistance is needed, they clash on what strings should be attached to the funds, especially when it comes to additional eviction protections.

In March, the state Judicial Council suspended nearly all evictions in the state, except in cases with a threat to public health or safety. Courts won’t allow evictions to proceed until 90 days after Newsom lifts the state of emergency, a date no one can predict with any certainty.

Renters who haven’t paid April or May

Morning Star Christian Church In Pasadena 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 and First Lady Ranza Trotter Sunday School: 8:30am Sunday Worship: 10:00am Bible Study Wednesday: 7:00pm Intercessory Prayer (Fourth Wed.): 7:00pm Christians Uniting To Make A Difference -Eph. :13

Call 310-677-6011 Ask for Kisha

rents can legally stay in their units for the time being. But eventually, as the state inches closer to a gradual re-opening, advocates are worried a flood of evictions are inevitable if the state doesn’t intervene.

“Right now we’ve hit pause, nobody can be physically evicted,” said Brian Augusta, legislative advocate for the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation. “But those cases are still alive, they’re dormant and at some point they will spring to life.

When we take this off pause…we’re going to have a far worse affordable housing and homelessness crisis than where we were at the beginning of this.”

Tenants groups want that possibility off the table, arguing non-payment of rent during the pandemic shouldn’t be used as a reason for eviction once the emergency orders are lifted. They also insist that accepting rental assistance be mandatory, worrying landlords will simply decline state dollars so they can evict tenants they already view as problematic.

For example, a landlord could decline a state payment in order to evict a tenant in a rent-controlled unit to raise the rent to market rates and easily recoup more than what they would have received from the government.

California tenant groups organized a widespread rent strike May 1 calling for Newsom and state lawmakers to enact total rent forgiveness during the pandemic. While some local governments have extended the window in which renters can pay back missed rents, no city has yet forced landlords to outright forgive all or some portion of missed rents. Los Angeles notably has granted renters a 12-month repayment period.

Forcing landlords to swallow large losses, especially smaller landlords, could be bad policy for California’s housing market long term.

CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

Soaries continued from page 7 ly concrete goals. And the “movement” for justice needs to define what justice means in the aftermath of the George Floyd moment. It must be more than hashtags, slogans, and periodic marches. We need a seven-part agenda: 1. We must find diverse communities that exemplify excellent police-community relations. We must study those communities, document the model, and promote it as a best practice. Communities must be incentivized to tailor the principles for use in their locale. We may want to start with Genesee County Michigan where Sheriff Chris Swanson marched with protesters in Flint, Michigan.

2. We must increase penalties for abusive behavior by law enforcement officials and implement no tolerance practices for police misconduct. This includes lowering the threshold for charging law enforcement officials with violating the civil rights of citizens.

3. We must create independent commissions that review, evaluate, revise, and monitor the use of training manuals, procedures, and practices in law enforcement agencies.

4. We must recruit, train, and promote law enforcement personnel that possess the psychological, emotional, and cultural capacity for law enforcement work and assess them every three years.

5. We must incentivize law enforcement personnel to breach the “blue wall” of silence.

6. Develop a national database of law enforcement who were terminated for misconduct and ban them from working in other law enforcement agencies.

7. Elect political representatives that support this agenda and hold them accountable for its followthrough.

If the activist energy that is currently being displayed can be harnessed into support for a concrete agenda, then we may be able to unify our country and start working on the next issue that threatens the greatness we all desire for our country.

Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr. is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens, the former New Jersey Secretary of State and Founder/CEO of the dfree® Financial Freedom Movement.

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L.A. Focus/June 2020

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SavingGrace Omari Hardwick “ometimes when the gift of which is given to the soul of a viewer or a listener is so definitive, lasting and powerful...the line between the two becomes blurred. Thank you, Starz, producers, writers, directors, crew, teamsters & my beloved cast for trusting each other enough to aid majorly in this line being blurred. That is when programming shifts the culture. My belief is we accomplished that. Thank you, fans for entrusting me with the job of quarterbacking this team of bandits who scored in stealing your hearts week in/week out for six years.”

That statement marked the close of a major chapter in the career of “Power” star Omari Hardwick who helped to make the show Starz most watched series and a ratings powerhouse for the network.

Earlier this year, Hardwick ended his tenure as wealthy New York City club owner James St. Patrick– who lives a double life as an underground drug lord named “Ghost” trying to go legit and make something of himself only to be killed by his only son.

“There was a good angel on the right shoulder and a bad angel on the left shoulder and they were competing,” Hardwick has said of his character.

Offscreen, life is a great deal more black and white for the prolific actor whose parents expected such great things from him that they gave him a Swahili first name that means “most high.”

These days, Hardwick– who played the love interest of Gabrielle Union in “Bein’ Mary Jane” and Jordin Sparks in “Sparkle”, the love interest of Tika Sumpter in “Nobody’s Fool”, the husband of Janet Jackson in Tyler Perry’s “For Colored Girls”, starred alongside Ashton Kutcher and Kevin Costner in “The Guardian” and Dylan McDermott in the TNT series “Dark Blue”– seems to be living up to his name.

But the multi-talented actor and artist wasn’t handed his accomplishments, and openly talks about a period in his life in which he used to live out of his car and shower at the YMCA when money was tight. He credits his devotion to God (and a little help from Denzel Washington) to his success.

“Dreams are so qualified, but God has to be there first and foremost,” Hardwick says.

In fact, he credits getting the role on “Power” to God. “My wife had prayed two months prior to meeting about the show that my career should be in another place,” Hardwick said in a phone interview from the New Mexico set of Netflix’s “Army of the Dead.” “She had prayed, ‘God, please give this man the power to embrace his power

L.A. Focus/June 2020

S

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If Ghost has taught you anything...watch the company you keep and keep the company you watch.

over the industry and to embrace his gifts.’ It turned into a power surge and changed my life. When I look at it, physically, spiritually, mentally, I absolutely left every drop on the field that I could leave.”

He was raised in a religious household, with a father who went to the African American Methodist Episcopal church and a mother who is a practicing Catholic.

Hardwick was given a well-rounded spiritual upbringing with their dueling faiths, alternating going to his mother and father’s churches every Sunday. He calls it “double church” duty.

But Hardwick says that while he had religious structure in his life, he wasn’t always the most well-behaved.

“Although I never did anything that would follow through time and bite me, I did receive the nickname ‘Devilish Angel’ and lived up to the reputation.”

It was a love of football–and not acting–that fueled Hardwick’s passion growing up in Decatur, Georgia. So much so that after graduation, he relocated to San Diego for a spot on the San Diego Chargers before a knee injury would cut his football dreams short.

But after a knee injury, i t

became clear that football wasn’t his path.

“It was hard to tell my Pops that I wasn’t going to be the star football player he imagined me to be,” Hardwick recounts. “I remember going to him and my mom hesitantly and letting them know that I would be pursuing acting, something I had minored in while in school.

“My pops took it better than I thought he would, but the disappointment was still there. It was my Mom that really embraced my decision and gave me the confidence to pursue this new dream.”

Still, parental support is only part of the battle, and he spent years working odd jobs and living on a dime until he was cast by Spike Lee himself in his debut role, the 2004 TV movie, “Sucker Free City.”

Since then, Hardwick has had resounding success in hit blockbusters like Kick-Ass, The A-Team, and For Colored Girls. He has also been on many TV shows, including CSI: Miami, Saved, and Being Mary Jane.

Hardwick has worked alongside rapper 50 Cent, Tyler Perry, and Jordin Sparks, and credits Denzel Washington as a close mentor, after he and his wife gave Hardwick shelter and helped him when his car was about to be repossessed.

Offscreen, Hardwick passionately pursues his poetry which has not only been a spiritual and creative outlet but has also given him a means to reach out to the younger generation. His bluApple Poetry Network offers a free after-school program that teaches kids in Broward County, Florida about spoken word poetry.

“Poetry has, in a way, been my bridge to my acting career,” Hardwick says. Early on, he wrote a poem called “Maybe only God hears my dream,” after dreaming what his life could be like.

Last year, he launched a podcast series called Poetics where those like Fat Joe, 50 Cent, T.I. and Draymond Green come to the show and share their poems.

Music is another love and with Power behind him, he hopes to cultivate that talent. In the meantime, he has four upcoming movies in the pipeline, including “Army of the Dead”, which is set to debut on Netflix later this year.

When asked if the 46-year old actor is fearful of being typecast, Hardwick said he did not quarantine his talent when I was playing Ghost.

“I did nine movies during that time. I am more than one dimension. However, if someone calls me Ghost on the street that’s fine but I am not scared of this character to follow me.”

He has dealt with a lot worse as fame came with a price tag, and the actor was dealt two major blows when he lost his infant son and was subsequently separated from his wife. The public scrutiny during that time, he says, was harder than he could have possibly imagined.

“It’s a double edge sword, balancing the fame and having to deal with such a public life,” he says. “It’s difficult.”

His closeness to God has been of utmost importance in living in the public eye, which he has learned to navigate with the strength and determination of a former football sensation, and the delicacy and sensitivity of a poet.

“Grace to me is having the ability to give people the opportunity to redeem themselves,” he says.

“I, in no way, believe that I am the highest or most high,” Hardwick says, recalling his name. “But I feel like my name gives me something to strive for.”