L.A. Focus Newspaper October 2019

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FEATURE

Vaping Sparks A Nationwide Public Health Crisis

California is one of 38 states in the U.S. facing a major public health crisis caused by the use of vaping devices and e-cigarettes.

State officials say there have been two reported deaths (both men over age 40) and some 90 people in the state who have been hospitalized for lung illnesses related to vaping...

THROUGH THE STORM: Vanessa Bell-Calloway’s Story of Survival

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contents

L.A. Focus Publications

October 2019

Left: Councilman Curren D. Price honored Beautycon which brings more than 32,000 people to the Los Angeles Convention Center to celebrate beauty and individuality.

Middle: First Lady Togetta Ulmer (Faithful Central Bible Church), First Lady Erica Campbell (California Worship Center) and Pastor Warryn Campbell celebrate Erica Campbell’s award at the First Ladies High Tea last month. Right: Mark Ridley-Thomas, Dr. Beverly “Bam” Crawford, Supervisor Janice Hahn, Wendy Raquel Robinson and Essence Atkins joined the First Ladies High Tea, held last month at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

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From The Editor In Praise of Whistleblowers

Commentary Homelessness: Deepening, Dynamic and Dangerously Urgent

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UpFront The Rise of Candace Owens (& How Her Far Right Politics Are Ticking Off Blacks); Clippers Pledge $100 Million in Community Benefits as Part of Proposed Arena; Seven Ways California’s New “Rent Cap” Law Would Affect You

Head to Head What Impeachment Means for Trump

Headlines From Africa

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21 First Lady Files Calendar/Around LA 22 From The Pulpit Red Carpet Style Through the Storm 23 Eye On Gospel In Good Taste Hollywood Buzz 25 17 26 Saving Grace

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Biz News Briefs staff Publisher/Editor-In-Chief Staff Writers Production Photographer Advertising Social Media

Lisa Collins Gerald Bell, Keith DeLawder Kisha Smith, Dianne Lugo Ian Foxx, Rickey Brown Leatha Davis Tristin Standifer

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

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

Marlene Norwood

“The Process of Success””

71st Primetime Emmy Awards

Toba Garrett

Oprah Winfrey Partners With Apple TV+ to Re-Activate Her Book Club; Will Smith to Play Famous New York Crime Boss in New Netflix Film; Jharrel Jerome Becomes First Afro-Latino and Youngest to Win Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie; Claws Renewed for Fourth and Final Season

Vaping Sparks a Nationwide Public Health Crisis

Driving Toward Financial Freedom in Motor City

Kareem Cook and Claude Tellis

Vanessa Bell Calloway’s Story of Survival

Feature Story

10 Money Matters

Game Changers

One On One Rick Ross

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Church News Pastor Fred Price Jr. Releases His First Book Pastor Profile James Phillips

Brely Evans

The Special Needs Network, founded by Areva Martin, will host their 14th Annual Evening Under the Stars Awards Gala Fundraiser on October 19 at the California African American Museum. Honorees will include Linda & Judge Greg Mathis and LoLo Spencer.

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 Mt. Zion MBC Jacob’s Ladder

Bishop Charles Blake Bishop Noel Jones Pastor Michael Fisher Rev. Xavier L. Thompson Bishop Kenneth C. Ulmer Pastor Emeritus Melvin Wade Rev. Edward V. Hill II Bishop Robert T. Douglas, Sr

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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Commentary

MARK RIDLEY-THOMAS Guest Columnist

Homelessness: Deepening, Dynamic and Dangerously Urgent s you approach downtown, the skyline provides a stark illustration of the income and wealth gap in our region. Mere steps away from dozens of cranes looming above the gleaming towers of downtown, we find human beings living in utter squalor, subjected to unspeakable living situations. This jarring juxtaposition is visible in too many corners of our region, from Culver City to Claremont, and from San Pedro to Santa Monica.

In a County as prosperous as Los Angeles, and a state as wealthy as California, homelessness is a moral crisis which will define our civic legacy in the eyes of future generations. On any given night, over 58,900 people experienced homelessness, many of them families with young children. When you and I go to sleep tonight, we must remember that there are thousands bedding down in alleys, in makeshift shelters and in tents where there is no safe sleeping!

We are faced with a crisis that has been building for decades, driven by declining incomes and rising housing costs. From 2000-2015, the typical monthly rent in Los Angeles County increased 32%; however, the typical renter’s monthly income decreased 3% during the same period. According to the California Housing Partnership, Los Angeles County needs over half a million (516,946) more affordable rental homes to meet current demand, and renters in Los Angeles County need to earn $47.52 per hour or $8,237 a month — more than 3 times the local minimum wage — to afford the median monthly asking rent of $2,471.

This means preschool teachers, medical assistants, paramedics, nursing assistants, construction workers and many others with full-time jobs cannot afford to live in Los Angeles County.

The problem is particularly acute in Los Angeles County’s Second District, which, over the last 10 years, has accounted for nearly a third of the County’s homeless population. As Supervisor, I feel a moral imperative and political responsibility to immediately aid those who are still living on our streets, while recognizing that addressing this deeply entrenched problem will require going upstream. This is why I championed Measure H, a 10-year sales tax generating an additional $355 million annually dedicated to providing homeless services to combat this crisis head on and intensively. Thanks to the generosity and compassion of the voters, Measure H was approved by in March 2017, but it was only intended to be a “first step”.

Measure H has allowed us to scale up existing good practices, like ensuring that formerly-homeless persons are connected to services, such as mental health, medical and substance use services. We have ramped up our street outreach to more than 800 workers (from less than 50 workers just two years ago).

We now have a baseline of over 16,000 interim housing beds, including but not limited to shelter beds for families, specialized bridge housing for women and young adults, and recuperative care beds for people experiencing homelessness that are being discharged from hospitals and clinics but still need medical care. Last year alone, 25,000 were brought indoors into interim housing with services and over 21,000 were transitioned out of homelessness.

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From the Editor

A mere three months ago—May 2019, the Board of Supervisors approved $460 million for the third year of Measure H funding.

• $23 million to prevent people from falling into homelessness.

• $29 million for social workers and health professionals to go out into the streets of Skid Row and across the County to connect people living on the street to affordable housing and supportive services.

• $126 million for shelter or interim housing.

• $80 million to expand services for homeless families with young children, including infants.

• $85 million to help families/individuals pay their rent for a limited amount of time until they are able to pay the rent themselves.

• $77 million for help with long-term support.

In spite of all our great strides, we still saw an increase in the homeless population this January. For every 133 people we house every day, an entirely separate group of 150 people fall into homelessness each and every day. Regretfully, we are losing the battle at this rate.

We have to urgently accelerate our efforts because we are faced with an unmistakable State of Emergency with 58,900 reasons that compel us to act now. Homeless advocates and service providers have rightfully turned the heat up regarding what has often been referred to as the “right to shelter.”

Renewing the call to access at least $1 billion from the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties is a critical start. This is in addition to the recent significant allocation made by the Newsom Administration through this year’s budget process could jumpstart implementation of statewide re-housing efforts. This collective action is critical if we are to get people off of our streets and into venues that honor their dignity and worth as human beings.

We must also get ahead of this crisis by preventing more individuals and families from falling into homelessness in the first place. We need executive orders and legislation to stabilize the rental market by preventing price gouging in the marketplace and preventing renters from being evicted without just cause.

We need to ensure that people who have been stably housed for decades do not suddenly find themselves without recourse when their rents skyrocket from one month to the next. I’m talking about the 86-year old woman with her 62-year old autistic son who was evicted from her home after 20 years because her new landlord raised the rent beyond her income capabilities.

Hard work lies ahead. It will require nothing less than a data-driven, communitycentered, public reckoning. Martin Luther King, Jr. said “Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but through continuous struggle.” That struggle is urgent now and we must gather the courage and the compassion to act accordingly.

Mark Ridley-Thomas is a Los Angeles County Supervisor and was recently appointed CoChair by Governor Gavin Newsom to the Statewide Task Force on Homelessness and Supportive Housing.

LISA COLLINS Publisher

“In Praise of Whistleblowers” n a story that is as rapidly unfolding as the impeachment inquiry surrounding President Trump and his Ukraine saga, it is difficult to predict what will happen next. What is clear is that with this president, just when you think things can’t get any worse for him, they do.

The problem is we’re all getting used to it and that’s dangerous because just as we become more and more accustomed to the bizarre behavior coming out of the White House, we become more accepting of it.

A majority of Americans say the latest Trump misstep is serious, but here’s the rub: a recent CNN survey found that 83% of Americans were not surprised by Trump’s pressuring Ukraine to dig up dirt on former Vice President Joe Biden in what is clearly an abuse of power.

As one columnist pointed out, “as the Trump presidency daily proves, people can get used to anything. This latest Trump scandal led to an impeachment inquiry because it happened so fast–the shock was still fresh. But the Comey firing, the racist tirades, the “if it’s what you say I love it” email–those were all once shocking too. Then they blurred into the avalanche of Trump awfulness. Trump is protected by the sheer number of his high crimes and misdemeanors. He will certainly commit more, and then these latest [the Ukraine and whistleblower scandal] risk being buried.

The fact that Trump continues to ramp up attacks against the whistleblower despite the fact that it’s against the law and that violating whistleblower statutes– which are in place to protect them from retaliation–is a flagrant no-no.

Here’s why: Whistleblowers are vital to democracies as they have historically served to uncover government corruption at every level and yet while people appear to embrace the information, they do not necessarily embrace the messengers and despite sanctioned protections, whistleblowers have not historically fared well though without them.

Former CIA employee John Kiriakou, who disclosed that the U.S. had tortured prisoners with waterboarding, would later be imprisoned for nearly two years.

It was Watergate –the scandal that took out President Richard Nixon–that helped make whistle-blowing a legally sanctioned, as well as risky and courageous, act. The Whistleblower in that case turned out to be Mark Felt (aka “Deep

L.A. Focus/October 2019

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Throat”), who as reported in Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein’s book, All The President’s Men, lived in solitary dread, under the constant threat of being summarily fired or even indicted–even killed, with no colleagues in whom he could confide.

To question the whistleblower’s legitimacy– as the President has done in recent tweets– shows Trump just doesn’t get it. (So what else is new?)

Perhaps what is becoming all too clear is the president’s efforts towards tyranny.

Timothy Snyder, the author of “On Tyranny” and a Yale professor, said “What we were seeing is someone who began his career as President of the United States by saying lots of things that were untrue. Now we’ve moved into a new phase where he’s operationalizing untruths and making other people repeat them. He makes others around the world to spread a fictional version of what happened in 2016…This is what authoritarian rulers do. It’s what you think and feel, it’s not the truth that matters. This is where a democracy starts to tilt into something else, which is rather scary.”

Trump, ever ratcheting up the consequences, recently tweeted out this quote from evangelical pastor, Robert Jeffress who said it during a recent appearance on Fox News: “If the Democrats are successful in removing the President from office (which they will never be), it will cause a Civil War like fracture in this Nation from which our Country will never heal.”

While it’s unlikely that impeachment will find enough votes in the Senate to warrant Trump’s removal, what is not clear is the political consequences of impeachment, particularly given that the only two presidents to have even been impeached (Bill Clinton and Andrew Johnson), neither was removed from office.

In the meantime, Trump’s cycle of fiction and fear continues. We would do well to remember that if fear wins, we all lose.

Keep the faith.

UpFront

News Briefs

The Rise of Candace Owens (& How Her Far Right Politics Are Ticking Off Blacks) he has sparked controversy wher- instead pointing to government depend- black people support Trump is evidence ever she goes and yet the number ency and victimhood as key problems that you hold a racist viewpoint of black of her followers continues to multi- within the black community.

Americans as a monolith, proprietary to ply. 1.6 million Twitter followers. A “Victimhood”, she says, “has become a the Democrat Party,” posted Owens, who million-plus Facebook followers. 335,000 mental plague on black America.” released a YouTube video titled, “Dear You Tube subscribers. But for the majorShe offered Cardi B $250K to debate Celebrities: Nobody Cares What You ity of blacks who have come to know her her after the rapper publicly advocated Think!!!”. through viral face offs with the likes of for Bernie Sanders in a post; claimed that Last year, as part of an effort to get superstar rapper T.I., her attacks blacks to leave the Democratic on Black Lives Matter advocates Party, the social commentator and her controversial views on launched “Blexit”, a movement– black democrats (having likened and mission–to move the black them to slaves on plantations), the vote 20 percent by 2020. A move name Candace Owens strikes a that would dismantle the viscerally negative chord.

Democrats most reliable voting Testifying before the House bloc and inevitably alter the outJudiciary Committee in September come of the 2020 White House on the rise of hate crimes and race. white nationalism, Owens said, “If Said Owens, “Blexit is the black we’re going to have a hearing on exit from the Democratic Party. white supremacy, we are assuming It’s the black exit from permanent that the biggest victims of that are victimhood, the black exit from minority Americans… the false idea that we are some“Based on the hierarchy of how separate from the rest of what's impacting minority America.”

Americans, if I had to make a list T.I. has dubbed Owen’s rhetoric of 100 things, white nationalism and controversial views as “danwould not make the list," Owens gerous”. went on. "I would argue that right “I’m not saying every Black pernow, we have a social environment son has to be a Democrat… I’m A poster shared by Turning Point USA and Candace Owens that is hostile toward men and not speaking on behalf of or in before her departure as Communications Director for the organidoes not inspire masculinity or support of the Democratic party or zation in May 2019 being a man and what it means to the Republic party. I’m speaking be a father figure in a household. Black Colin Kaepernick was white and had for fair, righteous and decent,” T.I. staton black crime is a huge issue in America tried to "rig the system" to enrich him- ed. “There’s just certain things that you right now, but people don't like to talk self; and chastised actress Debra Messing have to understand you can’t say… I about that." to “Please stop telling black people what don’t want it to come off in any way disShe rejects the broad brushing of the we are “targeted by” to satisfy your respectful or it’s a me against her thing.

Republican Party as racist and the “white savior” complex.”

It’s a me against what she’s saying Democrats as the saviors of blacks, “The fact that you can’t accept that Owens continued to page 24

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Clippers Pledge $100 Million in Community Benefits as Part of Proposed Arena nglewood city officials Tuesday unveiled an unprecedented $100 million package of proposed community benefits pledged by the Los Angeles Clippers as part of the team’s proposal to build a new arena and team headquarters in the city.

The package, as described in a staff report to the City Council, dwarfs the community benefits packages recently agreed to by other professional sports teams in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento.

It also is more than 300 times larger than what the Madison Square Garden Co., which is fighting to defeat the Clippers proposal, has given to the community since renovating the Forum in 2014.

After Tuesday’s City Council meeting, Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts called the proposal “hugely historic, bigger than anything ever pledged to a Southern California city before. It shows just how serious Steve Ballmer and the Clippers are about their proposed move to Inglewood.

“Homeowners.

Renters.

Students. Workers. Library patrons.

Senior citizens. Community groups.

The sweep of this proposed plan would touch and improve the lives of virtually every Inglewood resident,” said Butts.

The centerpiece of the proposed L.A. Focus/October 2019

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package is up to $80 million earmarked for affordable housing and housing-related assistance for Inglewood residents.

The remainder of the Clippers package provides $20 million for after-school programs, upgrading the city’s public library complex, job training and senior programs.

In a statement, Clippers President Gillian Zucker said that while the arena project may be relatively new to some residents, the Clippers’ commitment to the Inglewood community is not.

“This benefits package reflects priorities identified during many months of interacting and listening to the needs and aspirations of Inglewood families and leaders,” Zucker said. “We are more excited than ever about the arena project and the contribution it will make toward positive outcomes for the residents of this dynamic community we hope to call home.”

The $100 million package reflects the philanthropic vision of Ballmer and his wife, Connie, who have donated hundreds of millions of dollars to anti-poverty causes through their Ballmer Group.

The Ballmers have made it their mission to advance economic mobility so that any child, rich or poor, has a fair shot at the American Dream.

Details of the announced plan include: •Up to $75 million for a new Affordable Housing Development Loan Fund that Clippers continued to page 24

Seven Ways California’s New “Rent Cap” Law Would Affect You TANU HENRY California Black Media e built these ships, we dredged these canals, in a San Francisco they never knew existed," said AfricanAmerican actor Jimmy Fails in the trailer of the June 2019 movie “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” which also stars Golden Gate City native Danny Glover.

The film — with sentimental flashbacks of a bygone era - centers on the ongoing gentrification in California’s largest city and how it has sapped the blackness out of The Fillmore neighborhood in San Francisco, once a thriving African-American political and cultural hub in the Bay Area.

In 1970, about 13 percent of San Francisco’s population was Black. That was about one in every seven San Franciscans. Today, the city’s Black population is only about 5 percent — or one in every 20 residents. And the majority of the 46,000 African Americans who remain in the city of more than 884,000 people now lives in public housing.

Like San Francisco, the high cost of buying and renting in homes has con-

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Rent Cap continued to page 24

Kamala Harris Unveils “Reform First” Criminal Justice Plan U.S Senator and presidential hopeful Kamala Harris recently unveiled her “reform first” criminal justice plan. It is beig praised by several California leaders and activists.

The plan calls for ending mandatory minimum sentences, legalizing marijuana and shutting down for-profit prisons. It also hopes to overhaul the country’s criminal justice system by introducing a national standard for police use of force ; providing incentives for states to get rid of mandatory minimums; mandating prisons to offer educational courses as well as mental health and addiction treatment.

According to Harris, it “replicates and nationalizes” programs she introduced during her law enforcement career in California.

“This plan uses my experience and unique capability to root out failures within the justice system,” she said. “We can end mass incarceration and combat the bias and racism that fuels it. We can ensure accountability for all parts of the system to build foundations of trust in our communities. We can stop profit from incarceration and stop criminalizing poverty. As president, I’ll fix this broken system to make it fairer and more accountable for communities across the country.”

Kaiser Permanente Workers Withdraw Threat to Strike After Reaching Agreement Negotiations between union representatives and Kaiser Permanente restarted as the healthcare giant hoped to avoid the massive nationwide strike that had been scheduled later in October.

80,00 healthcare workers represented by the union coalition would have participated in a seven-day strike in California, five other states and the District of Columbia.

However, the healthcare provider and Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions have now reached a tentative agreement on a national, 4 year collective bargaining agreement that covers those 85,000 unionized workers.

The agreement provides annual pay increases and employee benefits while also creating a program to reduce the national shortage of healthcare workers.

It was reached following nearly five months of active bargaining.

California Newspapers Win One Year Exemption to AB 5 AB 5, the “Employee Misclassification Bill”, was signed into law by Gov. Newsom recently changing the classification of more than one million jobs across the state from “contractor” to “employee.”

Before it was passed, various industries pressed officials to give them an exemption to the bill. Notably, newspapers in the state argued that the law would be another blow to an already struggling industry.

Leaders argued that the law especially threatened to put 20 African American owned newspapers that operate in cities and towns across California out of business.

12 amendments to AB 5 were pushed by Senate Republicans, including one that provided temporary exemption for newspaper carriers and distributors named AB 170.

Under AB 170 newspapers across California now have until January 2021 to hire the drivers who deliver their papers as W-2 employees.

Other exampted categories include architects, veterinarians, private investigators, dentists, travel agents, photographers, cartoonist, and more.

HeadToHead What Impeachment Means for Trump In recent days, we have How many times has the I-word A Matter of seen the latest evidence of been raised by the Democratic leadTrust just how difficult it's ership and the members of their become for President Donald Trump to oper- caucus? Whether or not it's warranted ate in this present-day hyperpartisan envi- appears to be wholly immaterial and utterly ronment. Our commander in chief simply secondary to the primary goal of tarnishing cannot fulfill the duties of his job to the max- the legitimacy of President Trump. The imum benefit of us all when he cannot trust Democrats want a lasting asterisk next to the people in sensitive positions around him. his name for generations to come as a way of What sad days these are in America. undermining and calling into question the Personal hatred of this president seemingly legitimacy of his presidency. overrides the sense of duty felt by those Successful leaders whose livelihood actually comes from a fed- know that having a eral budget paid for in full by our nation's team of competent and citizens. Consider the latest headlines about capable people around a so-called whistleblower raising concerns them is the key to sucabout a phone conversation between Trump cess. No matter how and Ukrainian President Volodymyr intelligent or talented Zelensky. any single individual The headlines are ablaze with sensation- may be, that's not al speculation surrounding what should enough to win the day. have been a confidential conversation What any man or Armstrong between two heads of government. If the woman can achieve Williams president cannot speak candidly with other alone pales in compariworld leaders without being undercut by son to the exponential results of a group subordinates who leak information to the aligned behind a common vision. media and file frivolous and politically motiThe antithesis of such a scenario is one in vated complaints with bloated bureaucra- which infighting and backstabbing prevent cies, then the president is being restricted forward progress. For the sake of all from doing the job that the American people Americans, we cannot abide a situation have elected him to fulfill to the best of his whereby people turn to political machinaabilities. tions to advance the agendas to which they There was a time when commitment to subscribe.

God and country was more important than I worry the precedents that are being set political preference, but it is increasingly by Democrats in order to assassinate apparent that those halcyon days have Trump's character will redefine our political faded from view. Instead, we are muddling landscape. Open debate is American. through a time in which cutthroat political Having your own opinion is fine. However, moves are the norm and not the exception. debasing our system of checks and balances So, what should be the punishment for by pursuing any and all means to distract this nameless, faceless, spineless individual the public and embarrass and attack our who has needlessly sparked a furor? What president are patently un-American. kind of accountability will he or she be President Abraham Lincoln famously forced to accept as consequence for these warned, "A house divided against itself canshortsighted and traitorous actions? That is not stand." It's a sentiment and concept that what we'll need to see moving forward. speaks directly to today. The job of president But I suspect the answer will be nothing is hard enough on its own merits, but when – or a mere slap on the wrist, far less pun- political motivations spark endless cycles of ishment than is warranted. accusation and acrimony, the biggest loser is The Democrats were quick to seize upon every one of us. this nonissue and attempt to score political Lincoln uttered those poignant and caupoints. Appearing on Sunday television talk tionary words at a time when the fate of the shows, Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of Union was far from certain and America the House Intelligence Committee, said the faced the very real possibility of being forevpresident will be investigated "come hell or er splintered into two warring entities. In high water" and vowed that impeachment the end, the Union was preserved, and the Armstrong Williams continued to page 22 may be the "only remedy."

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Headlines From Africa Congo: 28 people were killed in a northeastern province of Democratic Republic of Congo over two days. A series of attacks in northeastern Congo targeted civilians, including children, who were fleeing the months of ethnic clashes between farming and herding communities. The violence in Congo has killed over 200 people and displaced hundreds of thousands since early June.

Egypt: Some of the first demonstrations Egypt has seen since President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi came to power in a military takeover six years ago have erupted as calls for Sisi to step down over corruption allegations moved from social media to the street despite Sisi’s zero tolerance for protest during his rule.

Ghana: Police in Ghana announced that a suspected coup was foiled after three people believed to have been collecting makeshift bombs, weapons and computer equipment and plotting to target the presidency, were arrested. Officials said the three men were taken into custody after 15 months of surveillance. They also said that the suspects were part of a group pretending to work on education, health and homelessness to radicalize young people.

Kenya: In an effort to curb trafficking, Kenya has banned foreigners from adopting local children and instead will work to create a new policy governing the process. It follows the footsteps of neighboring Ethiopia, which banned the practice in 2018. Presidential spokeswoman Kanze Dena added that the ban was put into place because of “the need to safeguard and protect children.”

Liberia: A national day of mourning was declared in Liberia last month after 27 children and two children died in a school fire at a religious boarding school outside the capital. Children were trapped while they were sleeping in a building attached to a mosque at an Islamic school which had no fire exit and security steel bars on the windows. An

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Just when you thought Trump Warns There This man is so corrupt even President Donald Trump Will Be A Civil War If whiteness can’t protect me from couldn’t possibly stoop He’s Impeached, Is him,” epiphanies later, those any lower, he yet again went off same people are singing a difHe Right? the deep end by posting a thinly ferent tune and finally realizing veiled threat that if we impeach him, we’ll that Trump actually doesn’t have much of have a another civil war on our hands. an allegiance to anyone but himself.

“If the Democrats are successful in This has caused a fracture in the GOP removing the President from office (which unlike anything we’ve ever seen, because they will never be), it will cause a Civil while Democrats thrive on intellectual War like fracture in this Nation from debate — and often get called elitist as a which our Country result — Republicans thrive more on a hive will never heal,” mentality, and are notorious for showing a POTUS tweeted united front even when they secretly hate Sunday, quoting long- each other. time evangelical pasBut for many in the GOP, this civil war tor Pastor Robert tweet finally made them lose their minds Jeffress, who made and speak up in the way we wish they had the comment during back in 2016 when this all could have been an appearance on Fox avoided. & Friends Weekend.

For example, Illinois GOP Rep. Adam Blue While some scoff at Kinzinger is the poster boy for conservaTelusma this ever being a reali- tive values. He’s a young, clean cut, well ty, Republicans extremists suggest a new spoken, Air Force veteran who served in civil war between Democrats and both Iraq and Afghanistan. When Republicans isn’t so far fetched.

Republican women think about a dream But just to jog everyone’s memories, the boat, this guy is probably the kind of perAmerican Civil War began in 1861 over the son who comes to mind. enslavement of Black people in the United And yet Sunday, he put his political States. So in the same way that many pro- affiliations aside, and spoke out against Confederate flag enthusiasts would have the president, tweeting, “I have visited you think the Civil War was just about the nations ravaged by civil war.

North versus the South, the truth is: it was @realDonaldTrump I have never imagined about race. And if we do have another one, such a quote to be repeated by a be clear it would be about race yet again.

President.”

So in a nutshell, ya’lls president just Then dropped the mic by characterizing high-key threatened us with a race war if Trump’s threat as, “beyond repugnant.” we impeach him.

Trump has always been able to hide When Trump first started his campaign behind the complicity of the GOP. But to embolden bigotry during his 2016 cam- when someone at the frontlines of your paign, many white people and die hard base, starts telling the world they think Republicans of color, pretended that his you’re trash too, THIS is when you need to casual racism could be overlooked, or even start worrying. People may be willing to debated about during dinner parties. This turn a blind eye when the Commander in mindset on its own is problematic because Chief targets four women of color in conpretending there is any version of reality gress, but invoking the ghost of the civil where pushing hateful rhetoric against war is just gonna piss off everybody, for a minorities is palatable (as long as we “cre- myriad of reasons. ate more jobs”) is pretty morally apprehenIn fact, even Meghan McCain had to sible. concede during Monday’s broadcast of The And yet, that argument was made View that her party had completely lost its repeatedly by people who could afford to mind; an admission many of us never watch others get discriminated against as thought we’d live to see. long as they were assured their own walPerhaps the greatest irony of the presilets would benefit. dent posting what amounts to the political Three years and several, “Oh snap!

Blue Telusma continued to page 22

A look at current news from the continent of Africa investigation was launched into how the fire started.

Mali: Six people were killed and 46 were wounded after a traffic accident in the center of Mali’s capital Bamako caused a fuel tanker to explode. Over 30 motorcycles, a pick-up and a goods vehicle burned as a result of the accident. While Islamist groups frequently carry out violent attacks in the north and center of the West African country, officials did not believe the accident had any link to the groups.

Mozambique: 10 people were killed and nearly 100 people were injured at a campaign rally of Mozambique’s President Filipe Nyusi after a large crowd tried to move through a single gate of the stadium and people were trampled on as they attempted to leave. All but 14 of those admitted for care at the hospital were discharged and eight continue in intensive care.

Nigeria: Army officials have accused the non-profit Action Against Hunger of aiding and abetting terrorists in the country’s war-torn northeast region. The NGO was forced to shut its doors after the army said that the organization gave food and drugs to Boko Haram fighters, despite several warnings. The NGO, however, says it was given no notice or reason before the closure of its office. It will now focus on appealing the decision.

Zimbabwe: The capital of Zimbabwe has shut its main water plant, citing shortages of foreign currency to import water treatment chemicals. Now, many residents fear that the city will run dry and that a repeat of the worst cholera outbreak in a decade last year that killed at least 26 people will repeat itself. Local authorities say that they require at least 40 million Zimbabwe dollars ($2.7 million) a month for water chemicals but they are only collecting 15 million in monthly revenue.

Vaping Sparks A Nationwide Public Health Crisis GERALD BELL

Contributor

L.A. Focus/October 2019

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alifornia is one of 38 states in the U.S. facing a major public health crisis caused by the use of vaping devices and ecigarettes. State officials say there have been two reported deaths (both men over age 40) and some 90 people in the state who have been hospitalized for lung illnesses related to vaping.

A sharp warning was issued by California Health officials last month to: “Stop vaping immediately.” This came almost two weeks after the Trump administration announced plans to remove all flavored electronic cigarettes (that appeal to youth) from the market.

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At least 800 cases of vaping-associated respiratory illnesses have been reported across the country that number of cases is up from 530 the week prior. Sixteen of these cases have been fatal. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that nearly three-quarters of those sickened were male, and two-thirds were ages 18 to 34. Sixteen percent are 18 or younger. So far, most of the deaths were older people and had underlying illnesses.

This spike in vaping sicknesses has prompted a nationwide backlash, with Government officials aggressively enforcing a ban on flavored tobacco, including the liquid used in e-cigarettes and other vaping products.

The mounting evidence of lung illnesses, especially among young people, led the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to vote unanimously in favor of an ordinance banning the sale of flavored tobacco, including menthol cigarettes and flavored vaping products in unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County.

Local youth groups were in attendance at the County hearing and expressed favor for the ban. Also present were people in opposition to the ban on vaping merchandise. They agreed minors should not use tobacco products, but that adults should have the right to choose.

Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who introduced the measure argued, "We have a responsibility to care for [our youth] and make sure the environment is safe."

Popular menthol cigarette brands such as Kools and Newports were among the products targeted in a proposed Los Angeles County ban. It is already unlawful to sell tobacco and vaping products to anyone under 21.

According to Ridley-Thomas, his ordinance will impose more regulation, enforcement and require merchants to obtain a county business license.

“For decades, we were making incredible progress in decreasing tobacco use among young people. But flavored e-cigarettes have reversed that trend. Now nearly 1 in 10 high schoolers report using e-cigarettes,” said Chair of the board of Supervisors Janice Hahn in a statement following the vote. “By taking action now and banning the sale of flavored products that mask the smell and taste of tobacco, we may be able to save this next generation from the same terrible health effects of nicotine addiction that generations before them suffered from.” The board of supervisors stated that a second vote will take place sometime soon.

“A new generation has become addicted to nicotine through flavored vape products like e-cigarettes,” said

Make no mistake, the industry shamelessly tries to maximize profits while its customers suffer death and disease, and local taxpayers continue to foot the bill for tobaccorelated illnesses. This swift action is exactly the type of protections we would like to see.

WHAT DO TEENS SAY IS IN THEIR E-CIG

Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Director of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. “The epidemic of our youth becoming addicted to nicotine by flavors and flavored tobacco is unacceptable, and we will work to reverse this trend as we partner with others to ensure a tobacco-free generation.”

Among high school students in Los Angeles County, ecigarettes are reportedly the most commonly used tobacco product. Last August, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health intimated that more than 30% of LA County high school students have reported ever using e-cigarette products and 10% of high school students regularly use e-cigarette products according to the latest data from the 2017-18 California Student Tobacco Survey and the California Healthy Kids Survey. This is up from 6.4% last year, while the prevalence of cigarette smoking for high school students in Los Angeles County reached a historic low of 1.7%.

The CDC found that the younger a person is when they start to use tobacco, the more difficult it is to quit. Ninety percent of adult smokers began smoking before the age of 18. The CDC also reported that flavored tobacco products are driving youth experimentation, as more than 80 percent of youth who ever used a tobacco product started with a flavored product.

Vaping has grown in popularity alongside the rise of ecigarettes, which were introduced to the U.S. mass market in 2007. Vaping devices not only include e-cigarettes but vape pens and advanced personal vaporizers (known as ‘MODS’). E-cigarettes, which resemble smoked cigarettes, and vape pens, which resemble large fountain pens, are typically simpler in design and less expensive than devices that have been customized by the user.

The vaping products ban has triggered an upheaval of frustrations among industry leaders. Manufacturers of flavored e-cigarettes insist banning the products would push people back to cigarettes and ultimately “create a thriving black market” of fake and unregulated products.

They further contend that vaping affords tobacco users an outlet to quitting.

Ryan Stump, CEO of Charlie's Chalkdust, which makes flavored oils said, “95% of adult smokers who have converted off combustible tobacco have done it utilizing flavors such as ours."

With major retailers, such as Walmart, deciding to remove e-cigarettes off their shelves, and the proposed federal ban by the Whitehouse administration, marketeers predict vaping sales will suffer a loss of at least 80 percent of its sales.

Juul Labs, the dominant e-cigarette company that some say is almost synonymous with vaping, reportedly made $1.2 billion in the first six months of 2019.

Commanding more than 70 percent of the market, the San Francisco based company currently employs more than 3,800 people. Once the banning was declared, Juul Labs immediately begun a restructuring plan that could lead to several layoffs.

The Food and Drug Administration and some state attorneys general are investigating Juul Labs’ marketing practices. It’s believed the enormous growth they’ve enjoyed over the past three years, is in large part, due to the vast popularity, of its sleek devices and flavored nicotine pods, with teenagers.

While Juul Labs denies targeting underage consumers, still the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent the company a warning letter because of evidence revealing Juul was illegally marketing its products as safer than cigarettes.

Founded in 2015, Juul Labs has already seen a decline

PERCENTAGE OF ADULTS WHO’VE TRIED VAPING (BY AGE)

in sales nationally. It lost half its domestic sales when it voluntarily pulled most flavors from the shelves last year, a company official said. Company sales have dropped even more while facing the steady report of lung illnesses this past summer, concerns raised about teenage vaping, and additional states curbing sales of e-cigarettes, especially flavored products.

According to Nielsen ratings, Juul’s weekly sales fell to $52.7 million by mid-September 2019 from $63 million in August of this year — but remained higher than sales for the same period last year.

“Make no mistake, the industry shamelessly tries to maximize profits while its customers suffer death and disease, and local taxpayers continue to foot the bill for tobacco-related illnesses,” said Primo Castro, the L.A. Government Relations Director for the American Cancer Society - Cancer Action Network. “This swift action [taken by the board of Supervisors] is exactly the type of protections we would like to see.

The most popular vaping product is produced by Juul Labs and is appropriately named the JUUL. A small device that resembles a computer USB flash drive, the JUUL is easy to hide, which likely explains why it has become so popular among middle and high school students. The JUUL alone accounts for some 72 percent of the market share of vaping products in the United States.

Every JUUL product contains a high dose of nicotine, with one pod or flavor cartridge containing about the same amount of nicotine as an entire pack of cigarettes. It comes in several enticing flavors like crème brûlée, mango and fruit medley.

Critics of the government mandated ban on vaping say that if federal policy makers really care about youth addiction there should likewise be a ban on the sale of all flavored alcoholic beverages.

Michael Siegel, a Massachusetts based tobacco researcher and anti-tobacco advocate for 30 years asserts that alcohol is responsible for more than 4,300 deaths among underage youth each year and one-third of high school seniors consume alcohol and half of them are drinking flavored alcoholic beverages.

“More than 3,600 people die every day from smokingrelated diseases. Close to half of these smokers used menthol-flavored cigarettes,” Siegel said. “But neither President Trump nor any lawmakers have called for a ban on flavored traditional cigarettes. In fact, e-cigarette bans, like those recently enacted in Michigan, New York and Massachusetts, would leave traditional cigarettes, including menthol brands, on the shelves.”

Siegel further argues, “Gun violence results in 100 deaths a day, but so far the U.S. Senate has not appeared to be willing to vote on simple measures that could reduce death rates…Why the disproportionate reaction to vaping, which causes less disease and death than drinking, smoking and gun violence?”

Reverberating quickly throughout the country, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker took aggressive action ordering a four-month ban on the sale of all vaping products in what was considered the most sweeping prohibition targeting electronic cigarettes in the U.S. Baker’s decision to declare a public health emergency–and apply the ban to both tobacco and marijuana vaping products– garnered praise from concerned medical professionals.

“We don’t have time to wait,” said one medical expert alongside Baker. “People are getting sick and the time to act is now.” The Baker administration stressed that the decision to enforce the ban is intended to allow the medical community and federal officials time to investigate what’s driving the increase in illnesses. Vaping is a multi-

faceted problem that is raising many questions, from what types of additives are to blame for the current outbreak, to even what parts of electronic cigarette devices–which typically heat liquid with battery-activated coils–may be helping drive it.

Dr. Alicia Casey, a pediatric pulmonologist at Boston Children’s Hospital has been treating teens who require ventilators to breathe and warns these youth could suffer permanent lung damage as a result of vaping. “I can assure you that these products are not safe,” she said.

“This ban is a critical and necessary step to combating this epidemic of youth vaping.”

Although vaping hasn't been around long enough for health experts to fully know how it affects the body over time, what is known is vaping puts nicotine into the body and the substance is highly addictive. Such an addiction has been proven to slow brain development in kids and teens, affect memory, concentration, self-control, attention, and mood.

Devoted to children's health and development, Kidshealth.org reports that when nicotine affects brain development in youth it can make learning much more complicated. Some of the brain changes are permanent and can affect impulse control later in life. Moreover, addiction in the adolescent brain may set up pathways for later addiction to other substances.

Parents are advised to call their doctor right away if their child or teen vapes and has shown such signs as; shortness of breath, coughing, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, tiredness, fever, or weight loss. Nicotine addiction leads to very strong cravings for more nicotine, and this can also lead to; headaches, feeling tired, cranky, angry, or depressed, trouble concentrating, insomnia, hunger and restlessness. Even if someone doesn't vape every day, they can still get addicted to the toxic vapors made from e-cigarettes. The vapor contains harmful chemicals and very fine particles that are inhaled into the lungs.

The LA County Department of Public Health reported that in California, flavored tobacco product use is high across all genders, races, ethnicities, and grades. They also report that 35 cities and counties have prohibited the sales of flavored tobacco products.

“Because of menthol, African American communities experience the greatest burden of tobacco-related mortality of any racial or ethnic group in the United States,” said the Rev. John Cager III, Pastor of Ward African Methodist Episcopal Church. “When the FDA banned flavored cigarettes in 2009, they left an exemption for menthol because it was just too profitable for the tobacco industry. The Supervisors must reverse this mistake and make Los Angeles County a leader in putting Black lives before Big Tobacco.”

Supervisors Ridley-Thomas and Hahn filed a motion in early 2018 directing Public Health to work with the LA County Department of Regional Planning, County Counsel, Sheriff, Treasurer and Tax Collector, and community stakeholders to assess the number and location of nuisance tobacco shops countywide, and to research ways to monitor and regulate them. The motion also called for developing education and outreach strategies to address the use of tobacco and certain other substances.

Currently, LA County has 85 tobacco shops. To give them time to come into compliance with the new requirements, Supervisor Ridley-Thomas filed a motion to extend the implementation period to 180 days.

“This is not an assault on businesses but a thoughtful and balanced approach to regulation,” Ridley-Thomas said.

MoneyMatters Driving Toward Financial Freedom in Motor City MADHU PAI Prudential ain was falling from a foreboding sky as our plane touched down in Detroit. It seemed a fitting introduction. After all, friends had warned me to expect a deserted, dilapidated and depressing city, adding, “Watch where you go.”

Ironically, the warning was worth heeding because Detroit offers a lot to see. Far from being deserted, the city bustles with activity and new development. Construction cranes dot its skyline, promising sleek new skyscrapers, boutique hotels, restaurants, housing and schools.

And Detroit is where Audrey Hurst is raising three children and working to give them a strong financial legacy.

I was there to meet Audrey for the filming of “Legacy Lives On,” a documentary Prudential created in partnership with Urban One–the largest distributor of content to black Americans in the U.S. The documentary, which aired on June 19 on TV One, profiles Audrey and two other black millennial women–one from Atlanta and the Tulsa, from other Oklahoma. Through the stories of these three women, it highlights financial modern-day struggles, hopes and juxtaposed dreams against past events that each shaped have woman’s perspective on money and finances.

The film builds on stories told through The State of US, Prudential’s exploration of financial wellness across America, and the challenges that stand in the way. Black Americans share those same challenges but bear the burden of overcoming past economic and social injustices that have created barriers to building financial wealth. The film is the first to tell this story in this way.

The camera crew set up at Audrey’s mother’s house, a third of which Audrey now owns as an inheritance. Audrey entered the house carrying her baby girl, filling the space with optimism despite the rain. She’s a newlywed who works full time at a local Costco, along with running several side hustles that help her earn money to offset her family’s mounting debt. She held her daughter during most of the two-day shoot, talking about how she’ll do whatever she can to help her children fulfill their dreams.

Audrey has set her hopes on her inheritance–counting on the proceeds from the sale of the house left to her and her siblings after her mother died. She sees the house as an inspiration to pass along something of value to her own

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children and as a path out of financial insecurity.

As a mother, I related to Audrey’s desire to leave a financial legacy to her children. And as a first-generation immigrant from a family of refugees who overcame loss and rebuilt their own legacies over two generations, I felt an instant connection with Audrey. She’s like many black Americans–more optimistic about her ability to reach her financial goals than the general population. In fact, Prudential’s 2018 Financial Wellness Census found that two-thirds of black Americans making $60,000 or less said they were optimistic about their finances, compared with only half of all Americans in the same income bracket.

While Audrey’s optimism made me smile, I also wanted to remind her that she will get just a third of the proceeds from the sale of the house, and that she’ll need to balance the money she receives between paying off debt and day-today bills while leaving something to her kids. But I stayed quiet. My partners at Urban One were doing a beautiful job drawing out Audrey’s story and I didn’t want to interrupt.

Yet my hopes for Audrey turned into worry because her optimism doesn’t seem to square with reality.

That’s not unusual: Financial The Wellness Census found that despite high levels of optimism, just 29% of black Americans making $60,000 or less annually say they are on track to save enough for retirement.

Despite only knowing her for a day, I believed Audrey would figure out how to reach her goals and build a strong foundation for her family. She openly admitted that she doesn’t know much about managing finances and finds it overwhelming. However, she’s already seeking guidance to manage her debt and start building wealth.

Audrey’s story fueled my own sense of purpose and illustrated the importance of Prudential’s work to bring to light the complex construct of legacy within the black community in a way that’s seldom acknowledged. This film is only the beginning of a journey to understand and learn as we seek to bring financial wellness to all Americans.

Prudential was founded on the belief that financial security should be within reach of everyone, offering insurance to working-class Americans from day one almost 145 years ago. Unfortunately, that hasn’t always included Financial freedom continued on page 24

On the Money Kanye West Titled Highest Paid Hip-Hop Star by Forbes for the First Time in His Career Kanye West has been placed above his mentor and “big brother: Shawn ‘Jay-Z’ Carter as Forbes’ highest paid hip-hop act for the first time in his career.

The top 20 list for 2019 was unveiled recently and tallied his pre-tax income from June 2018 through June of this year. Thanks to West’s Adidas Yeezy brand that is expected to hit $1.5 billion in sales this year, his estimated income is nearly double hip-hop’s first billionaire, Jay-Z—whose income was estimated to be $81 million.

It is an impressive leap for West who was placed at No. 10 just last year. Earlier this year, Kim Kardashian West congratulated her husband on Twitter, applauding his flourishing business.

“I watch how hard he works as he puts his soul into every idea & product that he creates. It’s of no surprise to anyone who works w Kanye that he has been able to turn millions of $ in debt into a billion dollar empire in only 4 years - 100% on his own terms while owning it 100%” The Yeezy line at $1.5 billion is now viable competition to the Jordan Brand, which brings in around $3 billion annually.

“There was a beam of light on the idea of me making athletic footwear,” West said in an interview for the August cover of Forbes. “A paradigm shift. Like the Yeezy is desired as much as a Jordan.”

Drake earned the No.3 spot, just shortly behind JayZ with $75 million while “Diddy” placed fourth.

Travis Scott, West’s potential future brotherin-law, was listed as No. 5.

Only two w o m e n m a d e Forbes’ list: Nicki M i n a j with $29 million at No.12 and Cardi B with $28 million at spot No.13.

Biz News Briefs Big Chicken, NBA Legend Shaquille O'Neal's fast-casual chicken restaurant, announced today its second location in Glendale, CA. Big Chicken has attained a cult-like status since opening its doors less than a year ago and has recently been featured on "The Today Show," "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," and "Extra!" to name a few.

"Big Chicken has been a dream of mine," said O'Neal. "Seeing the guests' response to our food has been so rewarding. I can't wait to bring Big Chicken to Southern California and let more people experience the best chicken sandwich in the world."

The 2,500 square-foot California restaurant is expected to open in late 2019. The first Big Chicken, located in Las Vegas, opened in October 2018 and was chronicled through Big Chicken Shaq , an eight-episode Facebook Watch series that followed O'Neal and his restaurant

L.A. Focus/October 2019

Shaquille O’Neal to Open Second Big Chicken Location in California

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team.

trademark dispute and exact terms of the deal were not announced.

Beauty Brand “Black Opal” is Now Black-Owned Black Opal is a global beauty brand that has established itself as a makeup brand catered to women of color.

Now, two black women have bought the global brand.

Created in 1994 the brand recently rebranded as BLK/OPL and became tangled in a trademark battle with a black-owned business, the all-natural marketplace BLK + GRN. In May, the founder of BLK +GRN, Dr. Kristian Henderson, posted a viral post on Medium that asked: “What happens when large corporations that are not Black-owned appear Black-owned and block Black-owned brands from thriving? What happens when white corporations wear Blackface?”

Now, that has changed as BLK/OPL announced that the 25-year old company was acquired by two AfricanAmerican businesswomen named Desiree Rogers and Cheryl Mayberry McKissack.

“Rooted in its exceptional product quality and unparalleled knowledge of skincare for highly melanated skin, Black Opal is known for its superior ingredients and high product efficacy,” she continued. “Together, Cheryl and I are looking forward to creating even more innovative products and continuing to grow the brand globally.”

It is unclear where the new acquisition leaves the

NCAA Athletes Prepare to Get Paid After Gov. Newsom Signs ‘Fair Pay to Play Act’ Into Law The Fair Pay to Play Act has been signed into law after being passed unanimously by California’s legislature last month. The law, which received heavy pushback by the NCAA, will allow student athletes to accept compensation for the use of their names, likeness and images, a practice that the organization has banned for years. The law will also make it illegal for schools in the state to take away an athlete’s scholarship or eligibility as punishment for accepting endorsement money.

The law will go into effect in 2023.

“It’s going to initiate dozens of other states to introduce similar legislation,” Newsom said of the law. “It’s going to change college sports for the better by having the interest of the athletes on par with the interests of the institution.

We’re rebalancing that power arrangement.”

“As more states consider their own specific legislation related to this topic, it is clear that a patchwork of different laws from different states will make unattainable the goal of providing a fair and level playing field for 1,100 campuses and nearly half a million student-athletes nationwide,” said the NCAA in response to the signing.

Bible Believers Christian College & Seminary 4081 W. El Segundo Blvd Hawthorne, CA 90250 Phone: 323.779.2222

www.lafocusnewspaper.com

Game Changers Kareem Cook and Claude Tellis

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n October 2003 Los Angeles made the dramatic move to ban junk food and soda from the 713 campuses in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The move put strict limits on the amount of fat, sugar and sodium in any snacks sold during the school day and marked a bold statement against a growing childhood obesity crisis.

The decision by the Board of Education came thanks in part to a movement that advocated for healthier choices that would better the health of children in the city.

That movement was co-led by two men: Kareem Cook and Claude Tellis.

Cook and Tellis both met while attending Duke University. There, they connected over their shared experiences of living with family members who suffered from diabetes and other diet-related illnesses.

We’d always been passionate about health and wellness in particular in the African American community as it relates to diet-related illnesses because you know the majority of diseases that we encounter as a community is diet-related. I mean there are some that are inherited or passed down from generation to generation but we largely suffer from diseases that we get from our diet,” Cook stated.

10 years later, that partnership has bloomed into new businesses that are helping those in the African-American community make healthier choices. In 2002, that looked like Healthy Body Products. A vending machine venture they launched that provided healthier snacks and drinks to customers instead of the normal junk food and soft drinks that were usually offered. It was an idea that was sparked right after Cook and Tellis moved to Los Angeles.

While they’d both had ideas of what Los Angeles looked like—Hollywood and Baywatch, they recall—they were quick to realize that the majority of communities did not fit into the picture-perfect image of celebrities and models. After learning of the 40% child obesity rate they decided to create a business to target childhood obesity. Their first thought: why not put healthier vending machines in schools?

To start, the two cold-called the presi-

dent of the YMCA and in the meeting with him, “embarrassed” the president about the sodas being sold to children in the front entrance. By the time they left the meeting the president had been convinced and had awarded the two contracts for every single YMCA in Los Angeles. It was an impressive feat just a month after moving to the city.

Within two months, they had scored their first contract with a Los Angeles High School after meeting a teacher named Jackie Day, a vegan advocate who was ecstatic to meet two men equally as passionate about changing school diets.

The venture would bloom into contracts across the LAUSD that soon caught the attention of the soft drink companies who began pressuring the two, unhappy that they were taking their contracts. As a solution, Cook and Tellis offered to become partners instead of enemies forming a partnership where the larger companies would provide the two with vending machines and Healthy Body Products only accepted their waters and juices.

“Then we decided it was time to step it up,” they recalled. “We realized that the law needed to be changed in order to really affect some change...we joined a consortium of health teachers who were actively trying to get junk food banned from the schools and we brought everyone together and lobbied the L.A Unified School District. A year later they ended up voting to ban junk food in all public high schools and middle schools.”

It was a powerful win that came about after health teachers laid the groundwork and Cook and Tellis were able to bring celebrities and other connections to apply more pressure to the growing movement.

“We became a powerful force,” Cook said.

The success in Los Angeles would lead to an invitation from President Bill Clinton and Gov. Huckabee to present to their child obesity prevention organization, Arkansas Alliance for a Healthier Generation. It would also result in an invitation to speak with board members at their Alma Mater, Duke.

“They had started reading about what

we were doing in L.A and we decided, because we were going to be talking to these higher network individuals, why don’t we take advantage of the opportunity to try and raise some money to buy a company that we can continue the strategy of going against diet-related illnesses but at a national maybe even global level,” they explain.

The two were successful and with the money those board members invested, they were able to purchase Naturade in 2012.

It was a challenging acquisition with the company just emerging from bankruptcy, the two spent most of the first two years at the company turning it around. They had also unexpectedly been forced to become CEO and CFO of the company.

“The CEO and the CFO quit when we bought the company and Claude and I had to jump in and start running the company before we thought we were ready to, but we jumped in and took the reigns and moved forward,” Cook said.

Naturade has now become a platform to launch VeganSmart, which creates healthy, low-calorie protein powders made with all vegan ingredients. Their mission is to bring these healthier products to those often ignored by other healthy food businesses.

“We want to bring Whole Foods quality products to the Walmart consumer,” they explain. “80-85% of our consumers are not vegan or vegetarian.

These are people that are just trying to do something better and eat something healthy and clean.

That’s who we’re going after. We’re going after the 86 million pre-diabetics in the country. Those are the people we’re

DIANE LUGO Staff Writer trying to save.

They have recognized that those who shop at stores like Whole Foods and other specialty health food stores are more likely to know the products to avoid, will have a higher than average income, and will be, for the most part, white. The two hope to bring that same access to everyone.

“If a person that doesn’t have options or lives in a food desert...why should they have to get on a train or bus to get to a Whole Foods when they should have access to the same quality products,” Cook emphasized. “We’re bringing it to consumers that no one else is really talking to...the consumer that needs it the most.”

It is why VeganSmart is available not only at Whole Foods but also in CVS, ShopRite, Sam’s Club and other local supermarkets.

Their mission is to now focus on expanding and growing their business and stay true to their ultimate goal: help the underserved and low-income communities live a healthier life and combat diet-related illnesses.

Calendar of events

Ongoing Art exhibit: L.A Blacksmith (Thru February 16, 2020) Beginning with Beulah Woodard’s homages to African mask making, this exhibit examines how the Watts Rebellion and other political and aesthetic ideas shaped midcentury metalwork.

Tues-Sat: 10am — 5pm; Sun: 11am — 5pm Free/Parking $12) California African American Museum (CAAM) 600 State Drive Info: (310) 676-7300 caamuseum.org Boo at the L.A Zoo (Thru October 27) Daily entertainment and activities including live shows, special animal feedings, and themed photo ops Trick-or-treating: October 19/20 and 26/27 10 am — 4pm • $17-22 Los Angeles Zoo 5333 Zoo Drive www.lazoo.org/boo

Wednesday, October 2 All-Star Chef Classic (Thru October 5) Food festival that features

chef demonstrations, dining experiences, tastings and showcases Times Vary • $135-$425 LA Live 800 W Olympic Blvd allstarchefclassic.com

Friday, October 4 Dealing with Debt: Where You Begin Class that covers the best practices for getting out of debt, how to handle the different types of debt and your rights when facing repossessions, foreclosures and lawsuits.

12 — 1:30pm • Free LA Law Library 301 W. First Street Contact: (213) 785-2529 www.lalawlibrary.org

Saturday, October 5 2019 Jazz at Drew Outdoor fundraising and community concert 12 — 9pm• $65+ Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science 1731 East 120th Street Contact: (310) 216-4722 www.jazzatdrew.com

Tuesday, October 8 Uplifting Men and Boys of Color in California

Conference 2019 Speakers include public/mental health practitioners, policy-makers, funders, artists, community advocates, law enforcement and probation and elected officials 7am — 4pm • $75 — $850 California Endowment 1000 Alameda Street www.calendow.org

Friday, October 11 Chris Brown INDIGOAT Tour featuring Ty Dolla Sign, Tory Lanez, Joyner Lucas and Yella Beezy 6:30pm • Prices Vary Staples Center 1111 S. Figueroa St. www.staplescenter.com

Sunday, October 13 Pink Ribbon Yoga Afternoon of yoga and information about breast health for African American women. Bring own yoga mat 2:30 — 4:30pm • Free Kasier Premanente Baldwin Hills Community Center 3782 W Martin Luther King Jr Blvd.

Contact: mulambdaomega@yahoo.com

Wednesday, October 16 In Concert: Ms. Lauryn Hill and H.E.R 7pm • Prices vary

Saturday, October 12 9th Annual Education and Enrichment Christian College Fair Explore affordable faith-based colleges 10am — 2pm • Free West Angeles COIC Crystal Room 3045 Crenshaw Blvd Contact: (323) 733-8300 www.westa.org

Hollywood Bowl 2301 N Highland Ave www.hollywoodbowl.com Family Law Divorce Orientation Workshop 9 — 11:30am •Free Torrance Superior Court 825 Maple Ave, Room 110 Contact: (213) 785.2516 www.lalawlibrary.org

Thursday, October 17 Ambassador Susan Rice in Conversation with Mayor Eric Garcetti Former National Security Advisor to President Obama, Ambassador Susan E. Rice will discuss her memoir, “Tough Love: My Story of the Things Worth

EVENT SPOTLIGHT October 20 23rd Annual L.A.M.P.S Conference 2019 Hosted by Dr. Beverly "Bam" Crawford.

(Thru October. 23) 7:30pm • $75-85 Bible Enrichment Fellowship Church 400 E. Kelso Street Info: (310) 330-4700 regonline.com/lamps2016

L.A. Focus/October 2019

Regina King walked the Emmy purple carpet in an elegant soft blue gown last month.

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carpet the red egga at d Astra” N th u R e of “A premier

Tyler Per ry w own Holly as honored with h is very wood Wa lk of Fam e star. wford, Marla Gibbs Dr. Beverly “Bam” Cra binson at the 22nd and Wendy Raquel Ro s High Tea. die La st Fir Annual

Cicely Tyson looked elegant as always at the Creative Arts Emmys red carpet last month.

Kaine Nicholas, a guest, Shaquawn Schasa and April Smith from Prudential joined the red carpet at the 22nd Annual First Ladies High Tea.

Fighting For 8pm • $20-55 Peltz Theater at the Museum of Tolerance 9786 West Pico Blvd www.livetalksla.org

Friday, October 18 In Concert: Oleta Adams (Thru October 20) 8:30pm • $35+ Catalina Bar & Grill 6725 West Sunset Blvd Contact: (323) 466-2210 www.catalinajazzclub.com

Saturday, October 19 Special Needs Network 14th Annual Evening Under the Stars Awards Gala Fundraiser Host: Sherri Shepherd Honorees include Linda & Judge Greg Mathis, LoLo Spencer 6 — 10pm • $500+ California African American Museum 600 State Drive Contact: (323) 291-7100 www.snnla.org

Warryn Campbell and Sheryl Underwood Food, vendors and live entertainment 10am — 7pm • Free Crenshaw Blvd. between Stocker St. and Rodeo Dr. www.tasteofsoul.org

Sunday, October 20 In Concert: Todrick 7:30pm • Prices Vary City National Grove of Anaheim 2200 East Katella Avenue Contact: (714) 712-2700 www.citynationalgroveofanaheim.com

Tuesday, October 22 IDA Documentary Screening Series: Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am 7:30-10pm • Free The Landmark Theater 10850 W. Pico Blvd. www.documentary.org

Wednesday, October 23 Fifth Episcopal District Southern California Conference (Thru October 27) Host pastor and church: Rev. J. Edgar Boyd FAME

Hilton Airport Hotel 5711 W. Centruy Blvd. www.ame5.org

Friday, October 25 LAAAWPPI 14thAnnual Women in Action Gala Awards Reception 6pm • $75.00 Millennium Biltmore Hotel 506 S Grand Ave. www.laawppi.org/donate

Saturday, October 26 41st Annual Wisdom From Above Luncheon with Dr. Betty Price 9:45am • $70 Hyatt Regency Long Beach 200 S. Pine Avenue Long Beach Contact: (323) 758-3777 www.faithdome.org West Angeles CDC Community Health Fair Features Dental, Vision, BMI, Glucose, Cholesterol, Hypertension Screenings, Mammograms and more Free food, free games 9am — 2pm • Free 3010 Crenshaw Blvd Youth Center Parking Lot www.westa.org

Black Women’s Annual Business/Career & Networking Breakfast Forum Panel, booths, networking, marketplace & more 9am-1pm • $65 Proud Bird 11022 Aviation Blvd Register: (323) 964-4003 blackwomensnetwork.net

Inglewood www.faithfulcentral.com

Scarium of the Pacific (Thu October 27) Costume contest, creepy coloring contest, face painting, magic shows, underwater pumpkin carving, storytelling & crafts.

9am–5pm • $17.95 (children) $26.95 (seniors) $29.95 (adults) (Free admission for child with costume) 100 Aquarium Way Long Beach 90802 Info: (562) 590-3100 aquariumofthepacific.org

Afrolicious Hair Expo Los Angeles 2019 Natural hair convention celebrating, educating and demonstrating natural hair care, techniques and hairstyles 11am — 5pm • $20-50 LA Convention Center 1201 South Figueroa St. afrolicioushairexpo.com

Trunk or Treat 2019 4:30pm • Free Presented by Faithful Central Bible Church Tabernacle Parking Lot 321 N. Eucalyptus Ave

‘Us’ in Concert Live score of Jordan Peele’s “Us” 7pm • $50-195 Microsoft Theater 777 Chick Hearn Court www.microsofttheater.com

Sunday, October 27

Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools Screening of a documentary that looks at the alarming high school dropout rate of African American girls through the eyes of girls from elementary to post high school.

1:45-3pm • $15

around los angeles Taste Of Soul Family Festival Celebrity Chairs: Erica &

appearance at The O’Jays made an miere for pre es gel the Los An me.”

“Dolemite Is My Na

Ruth Carter, Luenell, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, KeeganMichael Key, Mike Epps, Craig Robinson, Eddie Murphy, Wesley Snipes and Titu ss Burgess at the “Dolemite Is My Name” premiere .

the orange carSamuel L. Jackson walks re last month mie pet at the Netflix film pre e.”

Nam My Is ite lem “Do for

Regal L.A Live: A Barco Innovation Center 1000 W Olympic Blvd www.dtlaff.com/schedule

Thursday, October 31 Light the Night Event with food trucks, carnival games, music, and more 5-9pm •Free Center of Hope LA 9550 Crenshaw Blvd. www.go2lightthenight.com

Friday, November 1 Southern California Womens Conference 2019 Keynote speaker: Holly Robinson Peete 7am — 3:30pm • $35 Pasadena Hilton 168 S. Los Robles Ave Contact: (626) 581-5978 socalhealthconference.com

Sunday, November 3 Booksigning: Karamo Brown “I Am Perfectly Designed” 7pm • Free The Grove 189 The Grove Drive Contact: (323) 525-0270 www.barnesandnoble.com

Karrueche Tran in a 70s inspired look for the premiere of “Do lemite Is My Name” in Los Angeles.

15

Eye On Gospel Greene Keeps the Hits Coming Three-time GRAMMY® nominated chart topper Travis Greene continues to bring listeners together and create an elevating experience of love and blessing with the release of his new song “Great Jehovah.” The newest song from his upcoming eleven-track album, the buoyant, high-energy track follows on the heels of the single “Good & Loved” (feat. Steffany Gretzinger) and lead single “Won’t Let Go.” His two latest songs have quickly garnered acclaim among fans and peers everywhere, showcasing the gifts of performance, engaging culture, and song craft that have made him one of the most refreshing hit artists, songwriters and producers of this generation.

Celebrating the fastest rise for his new video in a week with over 1 million views of “Good & Loved,” his live performance with Gretzinger and the official video for “Won’t Let Go” collectively have over 2.3 million views and counting.

The three-time GRAMMY® nominee, multiple award-winning artist, songwriter, and producer’s new album Broken Record, is available for pre-order and is set for release everywhere on Friday, October 11th. With Broken Record, Greene continues to make waves as one of the industry’s most exciting hit makers of this generation, engaging listeners and friends to come together connecting in faith and love, taking his songs around the world with smash hits like “Intentional,” which just recently was RIAA-Certified Gold®, “Made a Way,” “You Waited,” “Be Still,” and more.

Back On Top Again John P. Kee is right back where he likes it with the release of his latest full length album, I Made It Out, and that’s back on top. The CD, which debuted at at #1 on Billboard’s Top Gospel Chart and #1 on

Billboard’s Current Gospel Albums Chart, features Kee’s signature vocals on standout tracks, including “He Careth For You,” an encouraging song for those dealing with depression, “One God” featuring powerhouse vocalist Chrystal Rucker, and the sure-to-be fan favorite “One Yes Away” with Isaiah Templeton and Samoht. The album also features a remake of Kee’s catalog hidden gem “Colorblind” with lead vocals by PJ Morton.

Dubbed “The Prince of Gospel Music,” and having been active for more than 20 years in the music field, Kee is primarily known both for his signature, soulful, husky voice and for mixing traditional gospel with modern contemporary gospel. The Grammy-nominated gospel music pioneer’s songwriting and vocals have been hailed by critics throughout his career — often by mainstream artists across various genres of music. He is currently enjoying the success of his current single and album title track, “I Made It Out (feat. Zacardi Cortez),” sitting in Billboard Gospel Airplay’s top-ten chart.

Currently, the Charlotte, NC native serves as the Senior Pastor of New Life Fellowship Center. Kee’s latest effort I Made It is available in stores and online now.

James Fortune Proves You Can Dream Again With word that his latest release, Dream Again, reached #1 on Billboard’s Top Gospel Album Sales and Gospel Album Sales chart, GRAMMY-nominated gospel artist James Fortune took to social media saying, “[This is] Proof you can Dream Again.” Fortune’s 10th album, released last month, features the artist’s innovative style of preaching, urban gospel hip-hop soul, complete with his spoken, sung, and shouted encouragement. Dream Again boasts the Billboard Gospel top-ten hit, “I Am (featuring Deborah Carolina)” and incredible collaborations “It’s Gonna Happen (featuring Zacardi Cortez),” “It Will All Work Out (featuring Keith

RedCarpet Style

KERRY WASHINGTON went for a glittery take on the tuxedo

AVA DUVERNAY glowed in a soft yellow gown with silver embelleshments

“Wonderboy” Johnson),” “Nobody Like Jesus (featuring Lisa Knowles Smith)” and more.

Fortune’s strength is in understanding how to put gospel and praise songs over to a young 21st century audience, and with his featured choir, FIYA (which stands for Free in Yahweh's Abundance), he freely incorporates hiphop arrangements and urban beats into his recordings.

His past recordings include: The Transformation (2007) — which featured the single "I Trust You", charted at number one on gospel radio for 25 weeks and number 30 on Urban AC charts.

Briefly: Last month, GRAMMY® nominated and Stellar Award-winning artist, Kierra Sheard hosted a live recording for her forthcoming self-titled album, Kierra at her father Bishop J. Drew Sheard's church, Greater Emmanuel Institutional COGIC in Detroit. The star-studded event featured performances by Le’Andria Johnson, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, and Todd Dulaney. The project will also feature the songstress’ new single “Don’t Judge Me” with hip-hop icon, Missy Elliot but fans will have to wait until 2020 for its release…Award-winning artist Byron Cage, credited as one of the artists who helped popularize Praise & Worship, dropped his latest project, Isolation, on September 27th. The project, seven years in the making, speaks to Cage's recent season walking thru a low moment in his life. The debut single "Oh How Good It Is" is already moving up the charts… Bebe Winans, whose musical “Born For This” is making its way to Broadway, is set to release a new album and a new autobiography “Born For This” in fall of 2019…Finally, Lecrae has signed on to be part of a teaching team for a six-week pop-up workshop at Stanford University through October 28. The workshop, “Controlling the Narrative: Building A Legacy Through Film and Business” will explore how the stories of underrepresented minority youth are told through film and rich media in an effort to teach the next generation of content creators to have a greater appreciation when capturing the stories of subjects who may have grown up differently and who have daily obstacles to overcome.

The 71st Primetime Emmy Awards brought Hollywood’s hottest celebrities to Los Angeles, California where the stars showed off their best looks on the purple carpet. Here are some highlights.

ANGELA BASSETT

opted for a red hot custom caped pantsuit

ZENDAYA COLEMAN wore a custom Vera Wang gown with a sheer corset

VIOLA DAVIS donned a striking two-tone wrapped style gown

INSIDE HO L LY W OOD with Neily Dickerson Black and Blue: A Timely Thriller I attended a screening of Screen Gems/Sony’s “Black and Blue” starring British actress Naomie Harris and Tyrese Gibson, and the movie is solid.

It combines the much-too-familiar scenario of unfair police practices with the experiences of a rookie New Orleans cop who sees the world through rose-colored glasses The story follows Alicia West played

by Harris (“Moonlight” and “Skyfall”), who is naively convinced that the police in her community are actually dedicated to “protect and serve.”

She soon learns that instead of working with New Orleans’ Finest, she’s surrounded by a group of corrupt officers in cahoots with some of the neighborhood’s biggest and most vicious drug lords.

Having witnessed the corruption first-hand, Alicia embarks upon an uphill battle to expose the crooked cops.

Without support from any of her colleagues, she enlists the assistance of her own neighborhood backup, Milo “Mouse” Jackson (Gibson) to prove she is not a part of the corruption. Alicia combines her Black Girl street smarts and her police smarts to outwit the cops and the crooks.

Other familiar faces in “Black and Blue’ are Frank Grillo (from “Zero Dark Thirty), Mike Colter (“Luke Cage” and the new hit series “Evil”), and Reed Scott from the HBO series “Veep”.

City, FL Be sure to check out Black and Blue Hometown: Rraised in Carol Hustlin’ single breakout 2006 Break: Big when it hits theaters on October 25th.

Current Projects: Hurricanes: A Memoir and Port of Miami 2

Q&A

Rick Ross

DUE IN THEATERS THIS MONTH

Though Ross doesn't speak like a scholar, his wisdom permeates our conversation. Rick Ross' fans are believers in his use of language, and his unabashed celebration of riches. He's proud to remind people that he created a palatial oasis out of the urban desert that was his early life.

HOLLYWOOD BUZZ

Joker October 4 Oprah Winfrey Partners With Apple TV+ to Re-Activate Her Book Club

Apple TV+ is set to launch Nov. 1 and with the new service, Apple has revealed the Oprah Winfrey’s famed book club will be returning as an exclusive launch with the service.

Winfrey’s “Oprah’s Book Club” will be a new series on Apple TV+ that will feature interviews with selected authors throughout the series with new episodes every two months.

Winfrey has since revealed her first pick for the book club: “The Water Dancer”

by Ta-Nehisi Coates.

She called the book “one of the best books I’ve ever read in my entire life,” she said. “Right up there in the top five.”

Coates appeared on CBS This Morning to speak on his book’s selection which he called a “tremendous honor.”

“You’re going into the company of people like Toni Morrison, Colson Whitehead,” he said. “This was a huge, huge honor for me.”

Will Smith to Play Famous New York Crime Boss in New Netflix Film Will Smith is partnering with

Gemini Man October 11

Addams Family October 11

“Concussion” helmer Peter Landesman in his next Netflix film, “The Council.” Written and produced

by Landesman, the new film will feature Will Smith as the New York City crime boss, Nicky Barnes who ruled Harlem in the 1970s and early 80s along six other African-American men. The crime syndicate had the goal of establishing a self-sufficient and self-policing African American citystate, funded by revolutionizing the drug game.

Barnes, who was arrested in 1978 and sentenced to life in prison, would eventually become a federal informant and helped bring about the demise of The Council.

The crime drama is described as an exploration of “the Shakespearean court intrigue in The Council between Barnes and a rising protégé.” Smith most recently starred as the genie in Disney’s live-action remake of “Aladdin” and will next be seen in Ang Lee’s sci-fi thriller “Gemini Man.”

Jharrel Jerome Becomes First AfroLatino and Youngest to Win Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie While the Emmy’s and Fox had a disappointing night with record low viewers, Jharrel Jerome is celebrating a much happier new record after his win for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his role in the acclaimed Netflix series,

Black and Blue October 25

“When They See Us.” Jerome became the first Afro-Latino to win an Emmy for acting and also became the youngest to ever win in the category at the age of 21.

Jerome portrayed Korey Wise in the series, one of the exonerated five who, as a young teen, was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for 14-years.

The five men were present at the ceremony as director Ava DuVernay’s dates and stood up to give the young actor a standing ovation.

“Thirty years ago, they were sitting in a prison cell, falsely incarcerated, and today they’re in suits styled by designers for the Emmys,” Jerome said of the men.

“It’s a blessing and I hope this is a step forward for Dominicans, for Latinos, for Afro Latinos. It’s about time we’re here,” added Jerome.

Claws Renewed for Fourth and Final Season The hit TNT show “Claws” is coming to an end after the network announced that it had renewed the dramedy for its fourth and final season.

The show stars Niecy Nash as Desna Simms, the owner of a nail salon in Florida and follows ehr and her staff as they turn to a life of crime and grow a powerful empire.

“For the past three seasons, Claws has handled delicate and culturally relevant themes like race, class, gender, age and sexual orientation with grace and humor via superb storytelling,” Brett Weitz, general manager of TNT, TBS, and truTV, said in a statement. “Fans cherish the overthe-top Clawsian moments that have defined its run, and we will do them justice as we wrap up the tale of Desna and her crew.”

The final season will air in 2020.

Where many others in the Carol City district of Miami where Ross grew up saw few options, Ross saw the opportunity to translate his experiences into music. He came on the scene as hip hop left its golden era behind in favor of corporate commercialism, and then helped to usher in a rap renaissance of which he has become one of the genre's most powerful voices.

Do you believe in destiny, free will, or both?

Destiny, for many different reasons. When there was [sic] twenty shots fired at my Rolls Royce, I had the audacity to go back and get my Cuban link chain. Not only did I go back to get my Cuban link chain, I went back to go get my girlfriend. It had to be destiny.

Do you pray? And who or what do you pray to, and what do you pray for?

Daily. I call him The Big Homie because there's only one Big Homie; I don't care what nobody else calls him.

I just let Him know I'm appreciative of everything, and I'm really under his command. The second he calls for me or is ready for me, I'm going to open my arms to him.

You've been quoted as saying that you never question God. Even in your darkest moments, you've never asked, "Why?" or questioned Him in any way?

If I have, it was many years ago before I began to understand what life is. Life can be a cruel place; it can be a cold place. But it also can be as beautiful as you make it. I didn't even question Him on the morning I woke up with my closest friend dead in the room next to me. We had just been together three hours earlier, and now three hours later, he's dead and gone (Ross recounts this story in his book, Hurricanes: A Memoir/Hanover Square Press). I never questioned when my other closest homeboy was gunned down in a home invasion in front of his two, three and four-yearold sons. I'm not going to question the Big Homie.

Whatever his plans are, that's his plans. However I go out, it's destiny.

You discuss your solid financial prowess in your book.

What do you teach your children about money?

The disadvantage my children have is that they're my kids, and my entire family is in a different position.

They're receiving money from everybody. I could put my kids on an allowance, but my daughters have credit cards. I do explain the importance and the value of building a brand. I don't speak to my daughter about coming up from the mud to the marble and starting with nothing, because that's not her life. She's not in Rick Ross continued to page 22

ChurchNews Pastor Fred Price Jr. Releases His First Book

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

ast month, with the release of his first book, Pastor Fred Price Jr. (Crenshaw Christian Center) added author to his growing list of accomplishments.

The book, entitled “Behind the Seen: Angels, Demons, and the Battle for the Human Soul,” is the culmination of 15 years of study for Price on angels, demons and the supernatural.

“According to scripture we see there is a spirit world and a physical world and the physical world of course is the one we live in,” said Price. “But what’s really happening and even inspiring and influencing what happens in this this natural realm is what’s going on in the spirit realm.”

It’s a subject Price has been interested in for quite some time.

“The book has been in the works for about three years and I just feel like the time is now...it’s relevant to what’s going on in the world. Spirits and angels and all of the creatures of the celestial hierarchy are behind the scenes influencing politicians influencing the finance industry just influencing a lot of the things we see going on you know in the world today.”

“Interestingly, while angel’s sounds nicer. The bible is filled with evil and wicked angels who are distinctly different from demons. So, this an informative book to kind of lay out the land of and the geography of the spirit realm. You know what is an angel exactly? What is a demon exactly? Do we have any insight as to where they originated - where they came from? I would say it’s content and subject matter that is forever relevant to any generation because the enemy is attacking and has been attacking every generation.”

What the book–primarily intended to equip believers–does not touch on is his personal life or why he stepped away from the pulpit for a year.

“This is not a testimonial or a look into the life of Frederick K. Price Jr. It wouldn’t be that interesting anyway,” Price notes. “It’s on the spirit realm and it’s about something I was working on before stepping away, during, as well as after.”

Part of his mission, Price says, is to reach out to the local community.

“Helping the stranger, helping the widow, helping the orphan, helping the homeless. So absolutely that is a part of my mission. We have a great relationship with The Union Rescue Mission in the battle for homelessness.

That’s the beginning of many of the things I want to do because that’s the picture I see of the church today.”

L

T.D. Jakes Launches Divinity School

L.A. Focus/October 2019

All systems are go for T.D. Jakes Divinity School, which is gearing up for its inaugural semester this month with an inaugural Symposium on the Holy Spirit & Theological Education.

“I want to pour into the next generation of leaders and ministers. We need innovative leadership and Spiritual formation to advance God’s work for generations to come in both church and society,” said Bishop T.D. Jakes, founder and chancellor of Jakes Divinity School.

Unlike seminaries that tend to focus solely on traditional vocational ministry, Jakes School of Divinity mirrors the multi-dimensional focus of Jakes’ life and ministry such as: the art of presentation, leadership, entrepreneurship, global humanitarianism, entertainment and media.

“Ministry is no longer confined to traditional categories. The needs are great in our world. Ministry and

18

continued to page 22

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

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 Dr. Ruby Cottle, Pastor & Teacher G.F.D.J.C Every Friday: 7:00pm -9:30pm Location: St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church 3901 West Adams Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90018

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

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

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!

Grace United Methodist Church 4112 West Slauson Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 294-6653 • F: (323) 294-8753 • graceumc1@earthlink.net Rev. Dr. Cedrick Bridgeforth, Pastor • www.graceumcla.com Early Morning Worship: 7:45am Sunday School (all ages) : 9:45am Morning Worship: 10:45am Tues. Mobile Prayer: 6:15am Wed. Bible Study: Noon Follow us on Facebook

Christ The Good Shepherd Episcopal Church 3303 W. Vernon Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90008 (323) 295-4139 • F: (323) 295-4681 Rev. Edith Oloimooja Sunday School: 10:00am Early Worship: 8:00am Morning Worship: 10:00am Mon. Centering Prayer/Meditation: 6:30pm Mon. Overeaters Anonymous: 7:00pm Wed. Bible Study & Eucharist: 7:00pm Wed. Alcoholic Anonymous: 7:00pm E: cgshepherd4041@sbcglobal.net

Greater Ebenezer Baptist Church 5300 S. Denker Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 759-4996 Rev. DeNon Porter

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

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

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.

Mt. Sinai Church 3669 W. 54th St. Los Angeles, CA 90043 • (323) 291-1121 F: (323) 291-1133 • office@sinai.church • www.sinai.church George E. Hurtt, Pastor-Teacher Sunday Worship: 8:00am, 10:00am Noonday Prayer (Mon): 12:00pm Tuesday Night in the Truth: 7:15pm Noonday Bible Study(Wed): 12:00pm Radio: KKLA 99.5 FM (Sat): 9:00pm

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

First AME Church (FAME) 2270 South Harvard Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90018 (323) 735-1251 • F: (323) 735-3353 • www.famechurch.org Pastor J. Edgar Boyd, Senior Pastor/CEO Sunday School: 10:00am Worship: 8:00am, 10:00am, Noon Teen Church (2nd Sundays):Noon,Allen House Wed. Prayer Service: Noon Wed. Bible Study: 7:00pm Radio: 10:30am on KJLH-102.3FM First AME is the oldest Black Church in the City

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

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

Please call for our Sunday School & Discipleship Schedule

Our Goal: To glorify God by winning more Christians and developing better Christians (Matt. 28:18-20) Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church 1300 E. 50th Street Los Angeles, CA 90011 (323) 235-2103 • F: (323) 235-3177 • www.mtzionla.org Dr. Edward V. Hill, II, Pastor Sunday Intercessory Prayer: 9:15am Morning Worship: 9:30am Children’s Church: 9:30am Sunday School: 11:30am Baptism: 2nd Sun. & Lord’s Supper: 1st. Sun. Tues. Pastor’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Wed. Noon-day Prayer: Noon

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

Pleasant Hill Baptist Church 2009 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90062 (323) 293-6448 • F: (323) 293-6605 Dr. Sylvester Washington Sunday School: 8:00am Morning Worship: 10:00am Tues. Bible Study: 11:00am Wed. Evangelism Class: 6:30pm First Sun. Holy Communion Service: 4:00pm

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

Join us October 12th and 13th in celebration of Westminster Presbyterian Church’s first 115 years 1904 - 2019

Second Baptist Church 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

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

Watch Live: http://ttphla.org/watch-live/

“LONGEVITY IN FAITH” —Anniversary Seminar

Rev, Barbara J. Essex Author, Pastor, Lecturer Ohio

The Rev. Reginald Ragland, Pastor Knox Presbyterian Church, LosAngeles

The Rev. Barbara J. Essex and The Rev. Reginald Ragland will conduct a seminar that connects church and culture. Continental breakfast and check-in will start at 9:00 a.m. The first 50 people to register will receive a special gift.

There is a $15.00 registration fee. Register at wpcofla.org/Anniversary Seminar or mail registration/ fee to 2230 W. Jefferson Bl., L.A., CA 90018. Make checks payable to Westminster PC with a note to 115th - Essex & Ragland Seminar.

Sunday, October 13, 2019 – 3:00 p.m.

LONGEVITY IN FAITH CONCERT

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

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

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

Pastor Christopher A. Bourne, Sr. Sunday School: 9:45am-10:30am Sunday Worship Service:10:45am Prayer/Bible Study Wed.:10:45am & 6:45

BISHOP SYLVESTER WASHINGTON Celebrating 50 years as Pastor of the 107- year old PLESANT HILL BAPTIST CHURCH 2009 W. Martin Luther King Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90062 On Sunday, October 13, 1912 at 3PM Pleasant Hill Baptist Church was organized. On Saturday, October 5, 2019, Pastor Washington celebrates 50 years as pastor of this 107-year old church at the Carson Center. He took the mantle in August of 1969, and under his pastorate, Bishop Washington, affectionately known as “The Soul Winning Pastor” pursued his continuing education, at Fuller Seminary, Ecumenical for Black Church Studies, at Providence, and received an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Providence Baptist Seminary, an extension of the American Baptist Seminary. Since 1987, this church has served the community, feeding, clothing, and giving blankets, socks, and supplying other needs to the homelessand all in need of a helping hand.

“HAPPY 107TH BIRTHDAY PLEASANT HILL”

Celebrate With Us

dlw (Don Lee White) Community Chorale Dr. James M. Calhoun, Director

Paradise Baptist Church 5100 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90037 (323) 231-4366 Pastor Darryl Barnes Adult Life Sunday School Study: 8am Sunday Worship Servie: 9:30am P3 - Pray, Praise & Partake (Fri before 1st Sunday) Mission Bible Study(Wed): 12:00pm Women’s Bible Study(Thurs.): 7:00pm New Life Bible Study(Sat.): 9:00am

Sunday Worship Service: 8:00am PrayerLine: (Tuesday & Wednesday): 6:00am WordLine (Tuesday): 7:00pm ( (712) 775-7031 Access Code: 814352108) E: thechurchstop@yahoo.com pastorcbgreene@aol.com

www.pleasanthillbaptistchurch.org

Sunday Worship: 9:00am, 11:15am & 1:00pm Thursday Midweek Service: 8pm

St. Matthew Tabernacle of Praise “The S.T.O.P.” 1740 West 59th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90047 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 56608, Los Angeles, CA 90056 (323) 291-1115 • F: (323) 293-0471 Rev. C.Barry Greene, Pastor

Sunday, October 13, 2019 - 8:30 AM, 10:00 AM, & 4 PM

Price Chapel AME Church 4000 W. Slauson Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90043 (323) 296-2406 • pricechapel@sbcglobal.net Rev. Benjamin Hollins Sunday Worship Service: 10:00am Sunday School: 8:30am Power Lunch Bible Study (Wed): 11:00am Praise & Worship Bible Study (Wed): 6:30pm

Christian’s Community Center of Los Angeles 3960 E. Gilman Street,Long Beach, CA 90815 (562) 597-3252 Senior Pastor Thom Washington Sunday Morning Services Sunday Morning Prayer 8:00am New Member’s Class 9:00am Sunday Bible Class 9:30am Sunday Morning Worship 11:00am Sunday Afternoon Services 4:00pm (2nd & 4th Sunday) Weekday Services WednesdayPrayer 6:00pm / Bible Study 7:00pm

Southern Saint Paul Church West Angeles Church of God In Christ 4678 West Adams Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90016 3045 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90016 (323) 731-2703 • smbc@smbcla.org (323) 733-8300 Rev. Xavier L. Thompson, Senior Pastor/Teacher Bishop Charles E. Blake Corporate Prayer: 8:30am Sunday School: 8:00am & 10:30am L.I.F.E. Groups: 9:45am Early Worship: 8:00am Morning Worship Service: 11:15am Morning Worship: 11:00am Baptism & Communion (First Sunday): 4:00pm Evening Worship (North Campus): 7:00pm Pastoral Bible Study (PBS)Wednesdays:7:00pm Wed. Mid-Week Worship: 7:00pm North Campus: Sun. Radio Broadcast KJLH 102.3FM: 10am Worship Service: 8:00am www.westa.tv 11137 Herrick Av • Pacoima 91331 (818) 899-8031 st.paul@smbcla.org •“Loving People Making Disciples” 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

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

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The Neighborhood Church 3435 San Anseline Ave., Long Beach, CA 90808 (562) 425-1235 Pastor Lance Riley Early Worship: 8:00am Sunday School: 9:30 am Morning Worship: 11:00am Bible Study:7:15 - 8:15

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

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

Resurrection Church L.A. 1135 East Janis St., Carson, CA 90746 Office Address: 1143 East Janis St., Carson, CA 90746 (310) 626-4864 •www.resurrectionchurchla.org

Victory Baptist Church 4802 South McKinley Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90056 (323) 231-2424• Pastor Dr. W. Edward Jenkins Sunday School: 10:45 am Morning Worship: 9:00am Bible Study Wednesday:Noon Radio Sundays: KPRO 1570AM: 9:00pm

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

In Carson

Pastor Joseph Carlos Robinson Worship Services: 8:00am & 10:00am Bible Study Tuesdays: 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 First United Methodist Church Compton 1025 S. Long Beach Blvd • Compton, CA 90221 (310) 639-0775 • Fax: (310) 639-1161

Dr. Arnetha E. Inge, Pastor Sunday School: 10:00am Morning Worship: 11:45am Evening Worship: 6:30pm Wed. Noon Day Bible Class: 12:30pm Wed. Bible Class: 7:30pm

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

Pastor Profile: James Phillips Church: Holy Trinity How Long at Church: 2 years Hometown: Columbus, OH Family: Married 32 years to Wanda RosadoMartinez, Two adult sons How did you come to be pastor of this church?

I was serving a church in Washington D.C. for 21 years when the assistant to the Bishop gave me a call, sent me a profile on this church and said, "We really need somebody like you in this transition period to take over this church.’ The pastor had retired after 38 years and following somebody that long required an experienced pastor and I’d been pastoring 33 years. I said, no, so he waited a couple of weeks and called me back and asked me to pray on it. Of course, the Holy spirit told me to at least check it out, so they flew me out for a visit. I met the congregation and thought, "This is good a group of people, I need to be here.”

What state was the church in and what was your goal?

In every church when there's a pastoral vacancy, there's always people leaving, but following somebody after 38 years really is a big deal because people become so attached. They feel like they need to retire like the pastor retired, so my goal was to try to get to know everybody or let them get to know me really fast and to get them to wait a while and just check out my ministry and vision.

L.A. Focus/October 2019

Were there similarities in terms of the community activism the church was known for?

Yes. I've always been active in the community. One of the first things I was able to do was to invite the L.A chapter of Black Lives Matter to host their meetings here. This church had never done anything like that before, but I convinced them that the NAACP, just 40 years ago was thought of in the same way and was maligned by the white press and all the other myths that come with black progressive groups. So, I joined the chapter. That really showed the congregation I was committed to this.

The church has always been known in the community as food distributors and for hosting community meetings, but the previous pastor really didn't believe in getting into politics.

Also, the denomination is 99.9% white and has been, even after 1987 when they had their major merger and they dedicated their goal to become 10% people of color in 20 years (and haven't made it). The black Lutheran churches are few and far between, but they're very vital because we're able to combine spirituality with theology in action.

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How did you get in the Lutheran church?

We moved to a suburban neighborhood and there was only a Lutheran church and a Catholic church, so we joined this Lutheran church. We didn't know what it was, but we were the only black family. The president of that congregation tried to buy my father out because he said [my father] was ruining the neighborhood. My father stuck to his ground, but he didn't join the church because of that. Instead my mother took my sister and me to the church and as other black families moved into the neighborhood, we were kind of like that bridge.

I explored as I got in high school. I was with Campus Crusade for Christ and I went to my grandparents' Baptist church every weekend in the summer. My cousins were Pentecostal, so I went to their church as well, but I feel like God called me to stay in the Lutheran church because of the issues, and it's not just the racism, but the white folks in this church are lost too because everything is built, in our denomination upon the ritual and the worship service. And the idea of grace through faith alone by Martin Luther, the founder of the denomination. Grace that doesn't require accountability or actions. Grace without faith and action doesn't mean anything.

Is that what you preach every Sunday?

I try to.

Did you always know you were going to be a pastor?

Church was always part of the family life, but when I was 13, I had this premonition. It was like God was talking to me and said, "I want you to be a preacher."

I said, "Well, God, I believe in you and everything, but if this is real, you have to prove it, because I don't have any of the attributes that go into a pastor or a preacher."

I'm an introvert. I wasn't involved in school politics or speaking up in front of people. I like to be behind the scenes and my grades were just very average.

My father–who wasn't religious–said, "Well, if you're going to be a preacher, you need to be as good as Billy Graham and you can't be like that because you're too quiet, you don't get good grades and all this stuff... But God proved it to me through the scripture.

When did your family say, "Oh, this guy is serious."

When I was in high school, I joined Campus Crusade for Christ and had them come to my Lutheran church and we had an altar, which you don't do, especially then. Then Campus Crusade sent us to Chicago and had us go door to door. We were out for four hours like Jehovah Witness.

We'd be knocking on the doors, but it was such a fantastic experience. From there, I went to Kent State University.

I majored in history because they didn't have anything else. Then I went to seminary–Fuller, first– and then I went to Berkeley, which is a graduate union of theology

schools and Hong Kong Lutheran Seminary for one year.

Has ministry changed you?

When I'm in the pulpit, I become someone else. I'm still the same person inside, but it's just that God has given it to me and this is how you have to be with people. But if I had a preference to say, "Would you like to go to a party tonight with a bunch of people or would you like to stay home with your wife and read a book or watch a movie, it would be to stay home.

Now, my wife would rather go to the party.

You came here with one goal, have those goals changed as you've learned the community and what it's facing?

Yes, because I was thinking just of helping make this transition for the congregation, but seeing the stadium going up, the gentrification, what's happening to the community…

So my goal now is not about numbers. It's about trying to find a way to equip people in this church to see beyond their own personal needs and to be concerned and have some kind of strategic action to help our sisters and brothers out there. And we know the problems and the issues that we have to not let the congregation keep secrets. And what I mean by that is so many churches of all denominations–particularly, in black churches–we don't talk about homosexuality, like it doesn't exist. We don't talk about incest…family problems, AIDS. We don't talk about drug problems.

We don’t talk about people going in and going to jail.

We had one member and their family member was put in jail and it was like, "I'm going to whisper this to you, pastor, after the service because I don't want the congregation to know because that'd be a stigma against my family."

I want to do away with that to get people to be free. It's not about airing your dirty laundry, but it's about asking God and the community of God to stand with you.

Inevitably you're going to run into other people in the congregation that face the same thing and can help you through it. We've all got scars. So if we bring it out into the open within a community of healing, that's the only way Christ can heal it. It's got to be real. It's got to be talked about. It's got to be dealt with.

Greater Zion Church Family 2408 North Wilmington Avenue, Compton, CA 90222 (310) 639-5535 • (Tues - Thurs 10am -4pm)

First Lady Files Marlene Norwood

Crusade Christian Faith Center 801 S. La Brea Avenue, Inglewood, CA 90301 (310) 330-8535 Bishop Virgil D. Patterson Sr.

The Walk Church

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

Love and Unity Christian Fellowship 1840 S. Wilmington Ave, P.O. Box 5449, Compton 90220 (310) 604-5900 Fax: (310) 604-5915 Dr. Ron C Hill Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00am & 11:30am Sunday Evening Worship: 6:30pm Bible Studies: Wed. 7:30pm & Sat. 9am Food for Your Soul Radio & Television Ministry: beblessedwebradio: Mon - Fri. 6:30am Church Channel: Tues. 5:30pm & Fri. 2:30pm

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

The Liberty Church 14725 S. Gramercy Place, Gardena, CA 90249 (310) 715-8400 Pastor David W. Cross Early Worship: 8:30am Morning Worship: 9am & 11am Children’s Church: Both Services Word Power Wed.: 7-8pm www.thelibertychurch.com

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

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 Victory Institutional Baptist Church 4712 West El Segundo Blvd., Hawthorne, CA 90250 (310) 263-7073 • www.vibconline.com Pastor Richard Williams, III Sunday Morning Worship: 9:00am Sunday Evening Worship: 6:00pm Wed. Mid-Week Worship: 7:00pm Bible Study Tuesday: Noon & 7:00pm

Bible Enrichment Fellowship International 400 E. Kelso, Inglewood, CA 90301 In Inglewood (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

Wed. Mid-Week Service: 7:00pm Sunday School: 9:00am Sunday Worship: 10:30am

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

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

Jacob’s Ladder Community Fellowship, inc.

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

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

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

In Long Beach

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

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

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

Christ Our Redeemer AME Church In Irvine 45 Tesla, Irvine, CA 92618 (949) 955-0014 • F:(949) 955-0021 • www.corchurch.org Pastor Mark E. Whitlock, II Sunday Worship: 8:00am, 10:30am New Generation Praise Service: 10:30am Sun. Bible Univ.: 9:30am Tues. Interactive Bible Study: 7:00pm Wed. Pastor's Bible Study: Noon, 7:00pm Thurs. Bible Study: 7:00pm Fri. Singles Bible Study (1st Fri): 7:00pm St. Stephen Missionary Baptist Church 1720 N. Walnut Avenue, La Puente, CA 91744 (626) 918-3225 • F: (626) 918-3265 Pastor Tony Dockery

Born and raised in Los Angeles, First Lady Marlene Norwood has worked hard to serve her community since 2011. A psychotherapist, Marlene has dedicated herself to addressing mental health partnering with various clinics and donating her time to those in need.

Her work with mental health came as a surprise as she thought her path would be related to music. Before joining her husband, Pastor Dohn W Norwood, II, she served for seven years at her childhood church Faith Way as Director of the Music Ministry. However, she is grateful now to be able to help those in need.

“If you see a need you have to fulfill it...I would not have imagined [working with mental health issues] because I started in the music ministry but God always has a way of showing us where we want to be.”

For First Lady Marlene, her role as a First Lady is to support her family. She takes pride in being a stay at home mom and a therapist.

“I’m a therapist mom,” she describes. “So their needs— their emotional state and spiritual state, I feel like God has commissioned me to minister to them first to make sure they’re healthy so that they can go out and do what they need to do.”

She considers herself a mentor to the younger women of her church and a sponge to the mothers of the church.

Marlene now looks forward to hosting a women’s conference in November and continuing to make a difference in her community.

In La Puente

Sunday School: 9:30 AM Early Worship: 8:00 AM Morning Worship: 11:00 AM Spanish Service: 9:30AM Bible Study: Every Wednesday 7:00 PM www.stsbc.org

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

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 & Annointing: 10:45am Wed. Bible Study: Noon & 6pm Mothers of Murdered Youth & Children Were all receive a little attention, affection and love.

From the Pulpit of: Church “The Process of Success”

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

First African Methodist Episcopal Church, Pasadena 1700 N. Raymond Ave, Pas, CA 91103•(626) 798-0503 admin@famepasadena.org•www.famepasadena.org Rev. Dr. Larry E. Campbell Sunday Worship Service: 8:00 am - 11:00am Church School: 10:00am Wed’s: • Sunrise Prayer Service: 5:30am • Hour of Power Bible Study: 10:30am • Sunset Prayer Service: 6:00pm •Evening Bible Study: 7:00pm Third Saturday Bible Study: 10:00am Children Ch 1st, 2nd, 4th Sun: 8 & 11:00am

L.A. Focus/October 2019

When it comes to success, what most people fail to realize is that there’s a process and a lot of people get discouraged and quit because of the process.

When I think about the process of success; I am reminded of the Michael Jordan story. When Michael First AME Church Santa Monica In Santa Monica Jordan first started playing basketball, he signed up to Walking In The Spirit Ministries Double Tree (Sonoma Grill) 1823 Michigan Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90404 play basketball and all his friends made the team and to 13111 Sycamore Drive, Norwalk CA 90650 • (310) 450-0331 F: (310) 450-4680 Michael’s surprise, he didn’t.

(213) 248-6343 P.O Box 1597 Norwalk CA,90651 Rev. Reuben W. Ford, Pastor Michael went home with tears in his eyes and told his Tim & Leshia Brooks Sunday School: 9:30am mom, “Mom I didn’t make the team.” Being a mother, Sunday Worship: 11:00am Morning Worship: 11:00am she threw her arms around Michael to comfort him. By Bible Study/Prayer Meditation: Thursday 6pm Services Held Every 2nd & 4th Sunday and “The Church In The Heart Of The Community the time his dad got home and saw Michael crying, he Free Breakfast Is Served with The Community at Heart” made Michael go outside in the backyard and play basBible Study: 8:30am (Every 5th Friday) Email:famecsm@verizon.net ketball until nighttime.

Facebook: First AME Church Santa Monica Today, people don’t celebrate the fact that Michael Jordan got cut from his first basketball team. They celebrate that he is one of the best basketball players to Morning Star Chrisian Church Joe Biden and his son Hunter.

In Pasadena 980 Rio Grande Street, Pasadena, CA 91104 ever play the game.

And let’s not forget that whistleblower complaint detailWhy? Because even though there was a process to his *Mailing Address: 1416 N. Mentor Ave. Pasadena, 91104 ing concerns that POTUS was “using the power of his office success, he didn’t allow his failures and disappoint- (626) 794-4875 • F: (626) 794-7815 to solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 Pastor W. Harrison Trotter and First ments to discourage him from reaching his goal. So U.S. election.”

Lady Ranza Trotter many times in life, we motivate and train people on how OR the fact that the president got cocky and kind of conSunday School: 8:30am to be a success–on how to be victorious, but very seldom Sunday Worship: 10:00am fessed he did what he’s being accused of in a news conferdo we train them on how to handle the process.

Bible Study Wednesday: 7:00pm ence that his team is having a really difficult time convincIntercessory Prayer (Fourth Wed.): 7:00pm Yes, we know how to react when it comes to making ing us didn’t happen.

Christians Uniting To Make A Difference -an “A”; our problem is we don’t know how to react when Based on this recent unraveling, the only civil war I Eph. :13 we’ve made an “F”. We have no problem rejoicing when really see happening at the moment is within the the loan goes through, but what do you do when the loan the journey. All you have to do is stay in the race and Republican party, because they are finally realizing that is denied? We know how to celebrate when we get the endure until the end. Because guess what? As long as you the egomaniacal reality star they planned to weaponize raise on our job; but what do you do when you were keep waking up; you’re still in the race. against the rest of us, has a penchant for eating his own.

I remember somebody once said, Pastor King has made Which is kind of poetic justice if you think about it, unless expecting the raise or promotion, but instead got a pick some mistakes because we all make mistakes. I stood up this clown somehow wins another 4-year term. Then this slip?

It doesn’t do you any good for me to talk to you about and said, no I didn’t. I have never made any mistakes just might start feeling like an installment of The Purge. falling if I can’t tell you how to first get back up. And because mistakes are only mistakes when you haven’t most people don’t like to talk about the disappointments learned anything from them. Once you have learned some- Rick Ross continued from page 17 of life because they don’t realize that our disappoint- thing from your mistakes, they are no longer mistakes, but the position me and my sisters were in. Instead, I talk to they become lessons learned. I don’t know about you, but her about the importance of maintaining our brands and ments are really the process for our success. bringing something new to the brand. By the time she was I don’t care what walk of life you come from, all of us I’ve learned a lot of lessons. fourteen, my daughter knew how to run a Wingstop (one of If you start looking at your mistakes as mistakes you’ve at some point have had times in our lives when we’ve tried, but just couldn’t make it– days we came up short made, you’ll start feeling like you wasted your time. Most Ross' several business interests). If we left her in a on the journey. The difference between those who make people give up and throw in the towel because they look at Wingstop [restaurant] with two other people, they would be able to run it for a full day. With my haircare line, RICH it and those who don’t is how they respond to the their failures and mistakes as though they have wasted Haircare, I allow her to be in the conference calls and to sit process. Those who don’t make it, give up and quit. They their time. in on the meetings. At the same time, she gets to live and That job they’ve been on, they feel like it’s been a waste enjoy life much more than I did at her age. You have to throw in the towel because they don’t realize that everyof time. Chasing your dream seems like it has been a waste take the good with the bad, but I most definitely let them thing they went through was just the process.

I want you to know if you are ever going to be success- of time; that relationship you just got out of; that bad mar- see firsthand what hard work is. ful in this life; if you are ever going to be great; if you are riage– a waste of time. But if you have learned how and Hurricanes: A Memoir by Rick Ross with Neil MartinezBelkin is available on Amazon and wherever books are ever going to make a difference and accomplish what not to make that mistake again, it’s a lesson learned.

And now that you have learned your lesson, if you just sold. Port of Miami 2, Ross' 10th studio album, is out now. you have been destined to do, you are going to have to stay in the race, there will always be a next time– another Follow him on Instagram @RichForever. learn how to handle the process.

A lot of people don’t want to admit it, but there were business deal, a better relationship– another opportunity Allison Kugel is a syndicated entertainment columnist and owner of communications firm, Full Scale Media. Follow times on the journey they gave their best swing and to make a difference in somebody’s life. on Instagram @theallisonkugel and at So, don’t allow the process to make you give up because her struck out. They got in a marriage expecting it to be a AllisonKugel.com. dream come true, but it ended up being more like a there will always be a next time if you just stay in the race.

Some of the greatest people in the world are great today Church News continued from page 18 nightmare.

There are people right now who are homeless; not because there was a next time. Tiger Woods is the first leadership formation is now challenged to rise to the occabecause they are uneducated; not because they didn’t golfer who will become a billionaire by playing golf, but sion of preparing women and men for innovative, biblically know how to function in society, but they gave up on life even Tiger Woods has lost some matches. Serena Williams sound, Christ-centered, Holy Spirit infused leadership that will probably go down as one of the greatest tennis players inspires religious and social transformations for the combecause they didn’t know how to handle the process.

There are people who think if they don’t come in first there ever was, but even Serena has lost some matches. mon good," said Antipas Harris, president and dean of So, don’t give up, because there’s always a next time. place then they’re not considered Jakes Divinity School. as a winner, and because they Armstrong Williams continued from page 7 Jakes Divinity School offers fully accredited degrees didn’t come in first; they country found a way forward together in a spirit of reconcili- through its university partners Vanguard University and thought the race was over. ation and hope.

North Central University. A Doctor of Ministry is set to But the Bible says the race is We are at an inflection point once again, and it is my sin- launch spring 2021 along with professional and continuing not given to the fastest nor to cere wish that the very people who are supposed to be serving education in pastoral care and guidance, women in leaderthe strongest, but to those the public find a way to finally set aside their blind devotion ship and Africa’s presence in Christianity. who decide they to attacking Trump and instead dedicate their energy to will endure doing their duty.

Several local pastors including Rev. James K, McKnight until the end. To find out more about Armstrong Williams and read features (Christian Fellowship LA), Pastor Lemuel Mossett (Calvary So, it doesn’t by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Santa Monica), Rev. John E. Cager III (Ward AME), Rev. m a t t e r Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

K.W. Tulloss (Weller Street Baptist Church), Rev. Joyce h o w Reece Kitchen (Emmanuel/Turner; AME), Pastor Sandie Blue Telusma continued from page 7 Richards (First UMC San Fernando), and Rev. William D. equivalent of, “Snitches get stitches” is that threatening us Smart (Christ Liberation Ministries) will lead a Q&A seswith war if we impeach him, is arguably an impeachable sions following screenings of films at the 25th Annual offense in and of itself.

African American Film Marketplace & S.E Manly Short “This tweet is itself an independent basis for impeach- Film Showcase later this month on October 12 at the Los much ment — a sitting president threatening civil war if Congress Angeles Center Studios. Film include “Emanuel,” “Let Go y o u exercises its constitutionally authorized power,” Harvard and Let God,” “Amazing Grace,” “Breakthrough,” and “Sule have messed Law professor John Coates wrote on Twitter on Monday. and the Case of the Tiny Spark.” up. It does After years of our patron saint Maxine Waters screamnot matter ing, “Impeach him!” to anyone who would listen, last week On a sad note, the L.A. faith community mourned the passwhere you the House of Representatives formally launched an ing of Bishop Grate Shipp, senior pastor of Carson fell short on impeachment inquiry due to reports that Trump tried to Community Deliverance Center on September 15 at the age strong arm Ukraine to investigate former Vice President of 73.

Dr. Melvin H. King .

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Through the Storm

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anessa BellCalloway had been the picture of perfect health for years. She ate the right diet, exercised and went to her yearly mammogram and pap smear appointments just as she was told to until one day, she awoke to the sensation that something was wrong.

Bell-Calloway had missed her yearly mammogram for the first time after her regular clinic had closed and she felt like God was whispering in her year to go see her physician right away.

“Sometimes God whispers things to you and you have to listen,” she said.

Calloway asked for every test they could administer and afterwards, she was informed that they had found suspicious calcifications in her right breast. Calloway knew right away that this was what God had been warning her about.

Calloway would soon be diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) at the age of 52. It is considered one of the most common types of non-invasive breast cancers where abnormal cells in the milk ducts have not yet invaded the rest of the breast. Doctors initially recommended that Calloway undergo a mastectomy but after further discussion, she underwent a lumpectomy in the midst of planning the 50th anniversary party for her inlaws. She underwent a second lumpectomy the very next day.

Unfortunately, doctors determined that the lumpectomies had been less effective than they’d hope and informed Calloway that, as they’d suggested, she would have to face a mastectomy.

“I was pretty OK when I thought I was just going to do a lumpectomy,” said Calloway who has been married to anesthesiologist Dr. Anthony Calloway since 1988. “I figured if that’s what I had to get, I’d get it and keep it movin’. It was after the second lumpectomy that the oncologist and radiologist said I was going to have to have a mastectomy.”

While originally “hysterical”, it was her husband and sister that helped her come to grips with her reality.

“My husband was tearing up,” said Calloway. “He kept telling me we had things to do like weddings and graduations. My sister said, ‘It’s a bad breast. Get rid of it.

Right then I came down from my pity party.”

And so, Calloway did exactly what she was expected to do. She rolled up her sleeves, dug in and tackled the cancer head on. Unstoppable, Calloway went on with her life.

“I had a couple of jobs to shoot and my daughters had high school and college activities,” said Calloway. “To me, if I’m going to die, ain’t no sense in me missing it and if I ain’t going to die then I can go ahead and put this off and not miss it. I wasn’t willing to miss life.”

When it was time to find a surgeon, Calloway’s husband, Dr. Anthony Calloway, an anesthesiologist, recommended his friend and colleague Dr. Ronald Hurst, director of clinical research at CORI. Calloway has nothing but the utmost respect for Dr. Hurst, who is also partnered with the United States Military Cancer Institute. Dr. Hurst said he suggested Calloway get the mastectomy.

“After I reviewed her mammogram, a mastectomy was the best course of action,” said Hurst.

“He means the world to me,” said Calloway. “He taught me very important lessons. He taught me to never underestimate people who have professional expertise.

Let them do their jobs. He’s so thorough. He stayed on top of it.”

Calloway’s surgery took 12 hours and involved two surgeons. While one surgeon performed her mastectomy, the other reconstructed her breast by using body tissue from her stomach. In a personal essay she published Calloway revealed that she showed surgeons photos of

“

It stunned me for a while. You have a denial you go through. I take my health seriously, I always have. I detected it early.

I was smart and I’m grateful. I beat the odds. I’m feeling great and I plan to keep on feeling great by taking care of myself.

My advice to any woman facing breast cancer is to still plan your life. You just have to include cancer. Try to keep the joy in your life.

”

herself on the red carpet.

“I made sure to tell them to leave my cleavage,” she wrote. “My playboy days are over, but I still needed to be sexy.”

After her surgery, Calloway, a selfdescribed ‘control freak,’ was anxious to get her life back to normal. However, she had some limitations. For instance, she couldn’t run or jog, but that wouldn’t stop her from putting one foot in front of the other.

“I didn’t have to miss any work,” she said. “I was thankful for that. I was working. I was scheduling. Some days I forgot all about it. I just kept going on with my life.”

For the first year and half after she was diagnosed and had the surgery, Calloway told only a handful of family members and friends.

“It’s a very private thing,” she said.

“I wasn’t ready yet. I didn’t tell people for about six to eight months. I told them after it was over. I knew then I had something to say.

However, in the last year I’ve started speaking publicly on breast cancer.”

Three months after her surgery Calloway booked the hit show “Hawthorne” on TNT, a role for which she was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. It marked her eighth NAACP

award nominee.

Since her story of survival Calloway has continued to work as a talented actress in the Showtime comedydrama, “Shameless” and in 2016 she was cast as a lead character in Bounce’s hit prime time soap opera, “Saints & Sinners.” She is not prepared to reprise her role as Imani Izzi in the upcoming sequel “Coming 2 America.”

She has also taken to using her platform to empower and educate other women on various issues and has partnered with various organizations.

Calloway, applauded the efforts of the CORI organization and their community outreach programs.

“The research they do is so important,” she said. “They care. In some neighborhoods we have economic challenges and we also have challenges of getting our people to go the doctor. Some of them are scared. CORI has tried to alleviate the fear. The work they are doing is so important. People have to understand that CORI is there to help them, not hurt them.”

This year, she partnered with Susan G. Komen to amplfy the “Know Your Girls” campaign and re-lanch her digital series “Iin the Company of Friends” on Instagram TV and YouTube. There, fans are able to see candid conversations with Calloway and her friends like Essence Atkins, Tina Knowles Lawson, Shanola Hampton, Nischelle Turner, and more.

"With our incredible lineup of celebrities, industryleading experts, and breast cancer survivors, the mission of In The Company of Friends - All Things Healthy will inspire, educate and entertain viewers," says Bell Calloway. We empower our audience to embrace a healthy lifestyle, by providing inspiration to make healthy choices."

While she’s happy to be called a cancer survivor, Calloway wants to stress that it’s part of her life, but it’s not who she is.

“It’s a part of the fabric of who I am now,” said Calloway.

“It stunned me for a while. You have a denial you go through. I take my health seriously, I always have. I detected it early. I was smart and I’m grateful. I beat the odds. I’m feeling great and I plan to keep on feeling great by taking care of myself.

My advice to any woman facing breast cancer is to still plan your life. You just have to include cancer.

Try to keep the joy in your life.”

Owens continued from page 6 thing–a me against what I feel she’s representing type thing.”

But love her or hate her, Owens has fast become a bona fide celebrity on the political circuit and a superstar in some right-wing circles for her efforts to recruit the votes and voices of young and minority Americans. The darling of the conservative movement, particularly among black conservatives–Owens is praised by President Trump (who called her the “hottest thing out there right now”, is in demand on outlets like Fox News and her show, The Candace Owens Show, broadcast on conservative Prager U’s YouTube channel, has 2.2 million subscribers.

The Washington Post named Candace Owens as the new face of black conservatism. Her meteoric rise is in part credited to Kanye West who in April of 2018 tweeted, “I love the way Candace Owens thinks.”

West, would however, soon distance himself from Owens, whose bad fortune included praise from the white supremacist who murdered 49 worshipers in two New Zealand mosques citing Owens as one of his biggest influences.

Ironically, Owens didn’t vote in 2016 and had been a Bernie Sanders supporter until she considered his policies. Critics have questioned her “in-your-face” style and limited political knowledge. She has publicly stated that she only registered as a Republican in 2018 and as of earlier this year believed that the Central Park Five were guilty.

The 30-year old far-right pundit credits others like Larry Elder for influencing some of her views and efforts to get people to rethink their assumptions.

Of Ovens, Elder said, “She's amazing.

Sharp, fearless, tenacious and bright. She encourages blacks, using facts, to stop thinking like victicrats and to stop allowing

democrats to play the race card to manipulate blacks for votes and power.

The Stamford, Connecticut native rose to fame while working with Turning Point USA, a national right-wing nonprofit focused on organizing young conservatives, as a communications and urban engagement director.

Whatever people think of her, that she is making headway is not disputed.

“I think Black America is finally trending in the right direction,” Owens told Elder in April. “I walk down the street and people come up to me and say you changed my mind, or I think I might be a conservative.”

Even T.I. has said the two were cool.

"Onstage, after the panel, backstage, we still were cool," the rapper said after facing off with her. "I made sure she knew I wasn’t against her, that she was still a sister, and as a sister, I support her. I disagree with her, emphatically, but I still support her, and I made that known.”

“Someone like Candace could be effective in shaving into or creating a pathway and making it not toxic to be a black consevative,” said CNN contributor Van Jones”.

“I think she’s going to be around for a long time. She could be the next Megyn Kelly.”

Financial freedom continued from page 8 everyone, including the black community, but that part of the company’s history will not be its legacy. Our Legacy campaign is not only an important first step toward serving the black community, it also demonstrates Prudential’s commitment to being fully inclusive as we push toward our ambition to become the leading financial wellness partner for all communities.

Without giving away any spoilers, I can say my time in Detroit ended with a sense of hope. I hope to revisit the city in the

future to enjoy its revitalization. And I remain hopeful for Audrey, who left the shoot after two days of rain and stepped into sunshine.

Madhu Pai is vice president, Brand Development and Engagement for Prudential Brand Marketing and Advertising. She joined Prudential in 2016 after working for advertising agencies where she supported blue chip clients including Pepsi, Merrill Lynch and Ameriprise.

Outside of work, she has served on her local school board, volunteers with local charities for at-risk youth and serves on boards of two philanthropic organizations.

Clippers continued from page 6 will provide qualifying developers lowinterest loans for the purchase, preservation and construction of mixed-income, affordable housing in Inglewood over the next 10 years. The fund will be administered by a local housing nonprofit.

•$5.5 million in grants to help first-time buyers with down-payment assistance and other services to qualify for homeownership; for emergency financial and legal support over five years to prevent homelessness and evictions; and $250,000 in grants to help housing-focused nonprofits expand their Inglewood operations.

•$12.75 million in grant money over five years to fund after-school activities, as well as design and coding camps, for Inglewood students; drop-out prevention programs at two Inglewood high schools, as well as postsecondary advising at all high schools; and college scholarships for eligible low-income Inglewood students.

•$500,000 to renovate public basketball courts in Inglewood and for senior programs, including computer literacy.

These benefits are in addition to the Clippers’ commitment to provide job-training and job-fair programs for Inglewood residents and small businesses, to help them qualify for jobs and contracts on the arena project. The team has said that 30%, or about 2,100, of the 7,000 construction jobs, and 35%, or more than 500, of the estimated 1,500 permanent jobs at the arena, will go to residents of Inglewood.

Additionally, the team has pledged to provide 100 general admission tickets to each regular-season home game to Inglewood-based community groups.

The Community Benefits package is over and above the estimated $268 million in annual economic activity — sales, wages, taxes, among other things — that the complex will generate for Inglewood annually.

The project also is forecast to generate more than $190 million in new tax revenue from 2020-2045.

“I’m thrilled to welcome the nation’s most philanthropic basketball team to our community. I’ve seen firsthand how families have struggled to find and maintain affordable housing in Inglewood. The Clippers’ generous $80 million pledge towards affordable housing assistance will change lives and make a real impact in our neighborhoods. We’re looking forward to partnering with the Clippers to make our city an even better place to work, live and raise our families,” said Ricardo Rosales, the Director of The Midnight Mission’s HomeLight Family Living program.

If approved by the City Council, construction of the arena complex is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2024 NBA season opener, after the Clippers’ lease at Staples Center expires.

Rent Cap continued from page 6 tributed to a homelessness crisis in every major city in California and has forced middle class residents in urban areas to relocate to distant suburbs, or smaller cities and rural towns inland. Between 2005 and 2010, for example, more than 54,000 African Americans moved out of Los

Angeles to surrounding areas or to other states, mostly in the South.

“California has the fifth largest Black population in the United States, with an estimated 2,571,208 people who identify as Black,” wrote Mark Ridley-Thomas, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, in an open letter to Gov. Newsom earlier this year.

“In the moral crisis that is homelessness,” Ridley-Thomas continued, “Black Californians make up nearly seven percent of the state’s general population yet are nearly 30 percent of the homeless population. Californians are struggling to get by.

And Black Californians, facing a host of upstream factors that impact their experience, have a particularly distinct struggle.”

Responding to the high cost of living in California’s cities, Gov. Newsom and state legislators have been pushing a number of measures to remedy the crisis.

In February, Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco), along with colleagues Richard Bloom (D-Carlsbad), Rob Bonta (D-Sacramento), Timothy Grayson (D-Sacramento) and Buffy Wicks (DSacramento) introduced AB 1482 or the Tenant Protection Act of 2019.

The measure limits the amount landlords can hike rents within one year to 5 percent, plus local inflation. The Assembly voted in favor of the legislation in May and the Senate passed it in September.

Gov. Newsom says he will sign it.

“In this year’s State of the State address, I asked the Legislature to send me a strong renter protection package,” said the governor after the Senate’s yes vote in September. “Today, they sent me the strongest package in America. These antigouging and eviction protections will help families afford to keep a roof over their heads, and they will provide California with important new tools to combat our state’s broader housing and affordability crisis.”

Although Chiu prefers to call the legislation a “rent cap” bill instead of a rent control bill, it includes a number of provisions other than the limit on rent increases that tenants and landlords in California should know about.

They are as follows: In California cities that already have local rent control laws in place, AB 1482 will only apply to property that is not already covered by those measures. The only areas in the state that currently have some form of a rental cap are the City of Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Santa Monica, Berkeley, Campbell, East Palo Alto, Fremont, Hayward, Los Gatos, Oakland, Palm Springs, San Francisco, San Jose, Thousand Oaks and unincorporated Los Angeles County.

The bill exempts condos and singlefamily homes owned by individuals from the rent cap - unless it is a duplex where the owner lives in one of the units.

AB 1482 will only apply to a single-family unit if the property is owned by a corporation.

The bill will not apply to property constructed and put on the market within the last 15 years. You can check your county assessor’s office to find out when your building was constructed.

The law would not override existing local rent control laws.

Before evicting tenants, under AB 1482, landlords would have to show “just cause” such as failure to pay rent, conviction of a crime on the property or other lease violations.

For tenants who have lived in a property for more than one year, landlords would have to give that lease holder a chance to “cure” their violation.

If a landlord wants to renovate a unit or convert it to a condo, he or she would have to pay relocation fees for the tenant equal to one month’s rent.

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SavingGrace Brely Evans ven without lead roles, Brely Evans has always stood out in the projects she has been in– from “Being Mary Jane” to “Sparkle”, but with the debut of Will Packer’s “Ambitions”–the super producer’s first ever scripted TV series under a new pact with Oprah Winfrey’s OWN Network starring Robin Givens, Essence Atkins and Brian White– Evans has become a breakout star.

“I don't even know what to say about that,” says the Oakland native, who plays Rondell Lancaster, sister to the Mayor, on the highly publicized multigenerational soap that explores love, power and politics in Atlanta.

“It's so funny that I'm like a fan of Robin and Essence and I always thought Brian was ‘the hot guy.’ Just to have them up close and personal is just amazing. And with Rondell Lancaster, I've been having so much fun because she's so well-rounded with such a rainbow of things she has to go through. You get to see her happy, sad, sexy, mad– all these different attitudes where sometimes you've seen me and I only get to play one scenario”.

Given that the average size of American women is 14 or 16 (depending on whose study is referenced) Evans curves only seem to have added to her popularity and she believes Hollywood just might be ready for her.

“I hope so, because I'm kicking the door down. I mean, there were curvy women before me. Queen Latifah is one of them that I look up to. We might have a different energy, but she still is a curvy girl and it has not stopped a thing. I look at Niecy Nash, she's a curvy girl. And honey, her curves are banging. Like, it has not stopped a thing.”

With her gift for gab and love of people, Evans majored in marketing at Cal State L.A. to satisfy her parents, then promptly set out to become a singer.

“I was that little baby who was like two years old with my grandmother in church going, "I want to go up there with the choir." And she was like, ‘No, sit down.’ I do my first solo at about five and it's Yes, Jesus Loves Me and I still remember the crowd clapping and I was like, ‘Oh, I've got to get this off all the time.’ “ I chased that

L.A. Focus/October 2019

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Everybody knows, Brely is the God’s girl. They know she’s a church girl and I don’t mind it. It’s so refreshing to see that we can still have swag, do all the fun stuff and go to the fun places and still love the Lord. I believe there’s power in standing up for something instead of just being tossed and driven by the industry. music dream and was able to get a record deal with a group I was in called Emage. If you go on Youtube, you can see our first music video. The song was called “The Choice is Yours” and we toured with the Backstreet Boys.”

The dream was however short-lived when one of the girls decided to go solo. For all her dreams of a career in music, Evans didn’t see herself as a solo singer.

“I would sing background here and there for people here in L.A. I always felt like my voice wasn't as pretty as theirs. They had the songbird thing going on. Then one day a neighbor said, "Oh honey, you're an actor" and that changed my life.”

The neighbor went on to set her up with his commercial agent in 2006.

She said, "I'm going to start sending you out immediately." Now I hadn't had an acting class. I was just raw.

I got to my 10th audition and they tell me to walk in and say, "Honey, does my butt look big in these?" That's the line. So I do, "Honey, does my butt look big in these?"

"I was like, oh, yeah, I'm an actor. Oh, yeah. One day I've worked 12 hours and I've made with my parents make in a year. Yeah. Where do I sign up?’ Literally, I've been working ever since.”

Ironically, it would be her singing that landed her a much coveted role in the 2012 remake of Sparkle, starring Whitney Houston.

Recalls Evans, “I was at an audition for Sparkle, and I walked into the lobby and sat there with all these famous girls who I wanted to ask for their autograph and I was kind of like, "Why am I here?" I was thinking it's a waste of time. So I got up to leave and I heard for the first time that still small voice that people always talk about.

And it said to me, "I am the giver of talent. Do not compare yourself to your sisters. Use what I gave you.

“Mind you, I was sitting in the lobby hearing the other girls come through the walls and their voices were just angelic.

Then casting direct o r (Twinkie Byrd) goes, "Do your song first."

And I’m thinking,

not that, let me act first.

“So I chose to sing a song called Thank You (Mary Mary). I'm singing the song and I see her kind of tap to it. Then I see the girl behind the camera tap to it. So they start getting into the song and we're just having fun and praising God. I finished the song and did my acting audition and she was like, ‘that was excellent.’

As I'm leaving I see a whiteboard that said happy birthday. So, I said, "Is it your birthday?" And she goes, ‘Yeah, do you want to come to my birthday party?’

Of course I went and when I got there she was taking pictures with people and I was like, ‘Can I get a picture with you?" So we're on the carpet and we take our picture and she whispers in my ear, "Congratulations, you will be in the movie Sparkle."

For all of Evans’ good fortune in Hollywood, there have been stops and starts.

“I was kind of on a roll in the beginning. I mean, there was not a room I couldn't walk in that didn't book me.

And so I was thinking, "Gosh, usually they say the curvy girl needs to lose weight." But everyone was accepting me just like I was. Then realized I accepted myself and so my most authentic self was what people were looking for. I was owning it, right? and then the dry spell came.”

Roles got so sparse that she took a telemarketing gig with a company as Kim Evans, a shortened version of her whole name, Kimberly Evans.

She racked up sales for a year becoming a top producer and enjoying the commission checks she was taking home. Until one day, a movie she’d made a year before– Just Wright with Queen Latifah and Common–was going to be showing in the employees lunchroom.

“So people are watching the movie looking at me, watching the movie, looking at me and I'm like, "That's my sister." They're like, " We know it's you." And I said, "Well, I'm just in between films and I needed to get a job.

Days after that, I got a call from Mara Akil about Sparkle and I never worked a job again.”

These days, Evans is thinking beyond acting.

“I've started producing now and I have 15 shows registered with a WGA (Writers Guild of America) because I'm always thinking ahead. It's everything from reality shows to scripted shows to movies that I have ideas for and I think now it's time for me to pull them out one by one and produce them out.”

Her Christianity is what has kept her grounded and she has worn it like a badge of honor.

“Everybody knows, Brely is the God's girl,” said Evans, who is married and lives between L.A. and Atlanta. “They know she's a church girl and I don't mind it. It's so refreshing to see that we can still have swag, do all the fun stuff and go to the fun places and still love the Lord. I believe there's power in standing up for something instead of just being tossed and driven by the industry.”

Faith, she says, has been her saving grace.

“This has been a faith walk like none other,” Evans states. “Ambitions is on now, but I don't know what my next movie is. I just stay busy in the interim, you know, focusing and promoting what I'm doing. I keep my website up. I sell waist trainers. I have my belly beads. I have a new e- book coming out, so I'm keeping busy with keeping my brand going and social media. That's a job in itself.

“So I'm really not worried about what tomorrow holds because I know who holds my future. That's what water walking is all about. It’s getting out of the boat, knowing that we as humans were not made to walk on water, but as we keep our eyes on Christ, we can literally do anything.”