The Washington Informer - November 10, 2022

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Bonds and McDuffie Clinch Victory in At-large Race

P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer

Hundreds of supporters converged onto the third floor of The Park at 14th in Northwest Tuesday to celebrate Kenyon McDuffie’s victory over D.C. Councilmember Elissa Silver man (I) for an at-large seat on the D.C. City Council. D.C. Councilmember Anita Bonds, a Democratic candi date in an overwhelmingly Democratic city, easily reclaimed her at-large seat.

Earlier this year, McDuffie who represented Ward 5, sus pended his campaign for attorney general and changed his party affiliation in order to run for the atlarge council seat, a decision that did not sit will among

Democrats

Maryland Democrats Sweep

Wes Moore officially made history as the first Black Governor of Maryland, and one of only three elected in American histo ry. Moore won through strong performance in Prince George’s, Charles, Montgomery, Howard, Baltimore City, and Baltimore County and a narrow victory in Anne Arundel County. In Talbot, Kent, and Frederick County, Moore is currently only a few per centage points behind Cox.

Brooke Lierman is the first woman to be elected Comptroller, and the first woman to be independently elected to an executive position in Maryland.

Anthony Brown is the first Black Attorney General in Mary

James Wright WI Staff Writer

Democratic office holders in the Dis trict held on to their positions accord ing to the D.C. Board of Election’s un official results from the Nov. 8 general election.

“Things are going well in D.C.,” said Marcia Jones, a Ward 5 voter who cast a ballot at the Turkey Thicket Recreation

5 Eleanor Holmes Norton. (Courtesy photo)

Center in Northeast.

5 Phill Mendelson. (Courtesy photo)

“Mayor Bowser seems to have a handle on things. Crime seems to be a little high, but I don’t blame her for that,” shared Jones.

Bowser easily won with 74.8% of the vote against three lesser-known opponents.

Richard D. Elliott

WI Contributing Reporter

Sam

5 Wes Moore (left) with President Biden and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, and Senator Chris Van Hollen Jr. (D), has made history in Maryland as the nation’s only third Black governor and Maryland’s first. (Anthony Tilghman/The Washington Informer)

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PUBLISHER

Denise Rolark Barnes

STAFF

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Shevry Lassiter, Photo Editor

Lafayette Barnes, IV, Editor, WI Bridge DC

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REPORTERS

Kayla Benjamin, (Environmental Justice Reporter) Stacy Brown (Senior Writer), Sam P.K. Collins, Curtis Knowles, Brenda Siler, Lindiwe Vilakazi, Sarafina Wright, James Wright

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Shevry Lassiter, Photo Editor, Roy Lewis, Jr., Robert R. Roberts, Anthony Tilghman, Abdula Konte, Ja'Mon Jackson

DC Health Link Celebrates 10th Open Enrollment

DC Health Link officially kicked off the 2023 Open Enrollment Period with a celebration and health fair Nov. 3 at Freedom Plaza. District residents learned how to conveniently shop, compare, and enroll in quality health insurance plans that best meet their needs and budgets. The event featured a variety of activities includ ing onsite enrollment, free health screenings, Zumba, Yoga, food demonstrations, local entertainment, cooking demonstrations, refreshments, and more.

D.C. has the second highest insured rate among all states in the nation, with almost 97 percent of District residents covered, according to DC Health Link officials. Since opening for business in 2013 and heading into its 10thOpen En rollment Period, DC Health Link has helped cut the District’s uninsured rate in half.

DC Health Link is the District’s state-based health insurance exchange established under the Affordable Care Act and provides health insurance to more than 14,000 residents through the individual marketplace and more than 87,000 peo ple through the small business marketplace.

Open Enrollment for individuals and families began November 1, 2022 and ends January 31, 2023. Eligible District residents can enroll in a health insurance plan online through DCHealthLink.com/individuals or by calling (855) 532LINK [5465]. Plan selections made by December 15 will be effective on January 1, 2023. Small businesses—as well as individuals and families eligible for Medicaid—can enroll through DCHealthLink.com at any point. WI

Ex-D.C. Health Director Joins GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences

Dr. LaQuandra S. Nesbitt, the former D.C. health director, has joined the George Washington Univer sity School of Medicine and Health Sciences as the new executive director of the Cen ter for Population Health Sciences and Health Equity, the institution announced Monday.

Nesbitt, an appointee of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser in 2015, served as the city’s top health administrator until August, when she resigned.

She will also serve as an associate dean for population health sciences and health equity, and professor of med icine.

Nesbitt is scheduled to start her duties this month.

“I look forward to working with many colleagues and community members I have known throughout the years, in continued service to the residents of the District of Columbia and beyond to achieve better health and equity in the health care space,” she said.

In her role, Nesbitt will manage the center’s medical research, education and community engagement pro grams with the aim to address health inequities.

“I am thrilled that Dr. Nesbitt will be joining our team,” said Dr. Barbara Bass, a high-level administrator at the school. “Throughout the pandemic, Dr. Nesbitt has been an incredibly resilient and effective leader. She navigated the response with a sharp focus on equity to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 for all District res idents. This response, coupled with her longstanding efficacy in leading health care delivery and public health programs in D.C. demonstrate her knowledge and skills as a nationally recognized health care leader. Dr. Nesbitt is the ideal leader to launch this timely new center within GW’s academic medical enterprise.” WI

D.C. Region Best in U.S. for Veteran Entrepreneurs: Report

The D.C. metropolitan area ranks number one in the na tion for military veterans who are now entrepreneurs, accord ing to a PenFed Foundation report released Tuesday.

The region retained the ranking in the PenFed report for the second year in a row for the top 20 cities for veteran business owners. The rankings are based on factors such as economic growth, ability to start a business, livability and support for vet erans.

“D.C. ranks No. 2 for the highest concentration of veter ans,” said PenFed Credit Union CEO James Schenck, WTOP reported. “It has one of the lowest veteran unemployment rates. D.C. ranks No. 1 in the Veteran Administration’s ex penditures for veterans, and it ranks No. 2 for the number of VA-accredited attorneys.”

Census data shows 7.5% of Washington-area businesses are veteran-owned. Plus, about one in five of the 200,000 people nationwide leaving the military for civilian life starts a business, WTOP reported.

The PenFed Foundation utilized 30 data sources such as government databases, private foundations, census data, and information from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to compile the ranking of the cities. Rounding out the top five were the metro areas of New York City, Seattle, Dallas and Houston. WI

In Memoriam Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, Sr. Wilhelmina J. Rolark

Melanie Adams

AROUND THE REGION

The Vista Apartments Tenants Gripe About Poor Upkeep

Broken Elevators, Rife Rodents Are Common, They Say

James Wright WI Staff Writer

A number of tenants who live at The Vista Apartments in Ward 8 in Southwest Washington, D.C. are ex periencing what they say is a lack of care and maintenance at their facility that includes elevators consistently breaking down without timely repair and rodents roaming freely, while management offers no timeline when extermination services will be provided.

The Vista, known colloquially as the Wingate, had only one work ing elevator for 350 units in the 10-floor facility recently, according to Alisa Head, the president of the Vista Gardens Tenant Association.

The Vista has three elevators for tenants. Head said one elevator has been out of order for three weeks. She said another elevator didn’t work for five working days and the lone working unit creaks when be ing used.

“We have seniors and people who are disabled who cannot move around like they need to,” Head said. “It has gotten so bad that some resi dents have called the fire department to have firefighters take them up stairs, sometimes 10 flights, to their apartments. Because the elevators aren’t working, people are literally stuck in their apartments.”

Head said even the freight elevator that tenants are not supposed to use, couldn’t be utilized because security personnel on the grounds didn’t have the key to open it.

Head said the dysfunctional ele vators are the latest problems at The Vista, owned by CIH Properties, Inc. in Silver Spring. She said the building has “gone down” since the CIH took over the management of the building six years ago.

“CIH refuses to correct the ongo ing problems here,” she said.

Head said water leaks in many apartments. Tenants have com plained to her about pets in the building and how they seem to go about without their owners.

“You can own a pet in our build ing but things have gotten out of hand,” Head said. “We have multi

ple pit bulls in the building and they seem to roam around without their owners sometimes. The dogs in the building urinate and defecate in the hallways. Our building stinks when they do that.”

Head said criminal activity has increased noticeably but the securi ty company hired to protect tenants and the property aren’t performing their duties.

“Crime has elevated,” she said. “It seems that the management compa ny hires these “fly by night” security firms to work here. Some of the secu rity guards are unprofessional. They flirt with tenants.”

Head said when a tenant reports a crime, the security guards say they will contact officers of the Seventh District of the Metropolitan Police Department to come by and inves tigate.

“But they hardly do anything about stopping crime here,” she said.

Gabriella Bond serves as the secre tary of the tenants’ association. Bond said the rampant presence of rodents infuriates her.

“There are insects and rodents all over the place,” Bond said. “In addi tion to rats and mice, you have huge cockroaches and water bugs. You have cockroaches on the wall and cockroaches on the ceiling. There is an abundance of mice on the 10th floor.”

Bonds said the building has some pipes that have been there for de cades. She agreed with Head that water floods throughout the build ing without any maintenance from the management company to fix the problem.

Head said her organization has reached out to their advisory neigh borhood commissioner, Monique Diop, who lives in the building. Diop told the Informer she couldn’t comment at press time. Head said the office of D.C. Council member Trayon White (D-Ward 8) and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s staffers have been contacted regarding the prob lems at The Vista. Additionally, she said her association has reached out to Council member Anita Bonds (D-At Large), who serves as the chair of the Committee on Housing and

Executive Administration “multi ple times” with no response. Head said she has received assistance from tenant advocacy associations in the city.

The Informer reached out to CIH Properties for comment through emailed questions but the company made no response by press time.

WI @JamesWrightJr10

Date: Thursday, November 17, 2022 Time: 6:00 pm – 7:00

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NOV. 10

1891 – Inventor Granville T. Woods patents electric rail way system.

1957 – Black golfer Charlie Sifford wins the Long Beach Open, becoming the first African American to win a ma jor professional golf tournament.

1960 – Journalist Andrew Hatcher is named associate press secretary to President John F. Kennedy, becoming the first Black press secretary.

NOV. 11

1831 – Nat Turner, an enslaved African American who led a deadly rebellion of slaves and free Blacks in South ampton County, Virginia, is executed by hanging.

1890 – Inventor Daniel McCree patents the portable fire escape.

NOV. 12

1770 – York, an African American slave best known for his participation with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, is born in Caroline County, Virginia.

1941 – Opera singer Mary Cardwell founds the National Negro Opera Company, the first African American opera company in the United States.

1977 – Ernest N. "Dutch" Morial becomes the first Black mayor of New Orleans.

NOV. 13

1894 – Inventor Albert C. Richardson patents the cas ket-lowering device.

1913 – Daniel Hale Williams becomes the first Black to be made a fellow of the American College of Sur geons.

1951 – Famed ballerina Janet Collins becomes the first Black dancer to appear with the Metropolitan Op era Company in New York.

1985 – Major League Baseball pitcher Dwight "Doc" Gooden unanimously wins the Cy Young Award, be coming at 20 the youngest-ever winner of the award.

NOV. 14

1915 – Booker T. Washington, a former slave who became a celebrated educator, author, orator and civil rights leader, dies in Tuskegee, Alabama, of hyperten sion at 59.

NOV. 15

1881 – Inventor Payton Johnson patents swinging chair.

1898 – Hairdresser and inventor Lyda Newman pat ents an improved hairbrush, which was easier to clean.

1950 – Hockey player Arthur Dorrington becomes the first Black to sign an NHL contract, joining the New York Rangers organization.

NOV. 16

1873 – Composer and musician W.C. Handy, known as the "Father of the Blues," is born in Florence, Ala bama.

1901 – Pioneering musician and songwriter Jesse Stone aka Charles Calhoun, who wrote the rock 'n' roll staple "Shake, Rattle and Roll," is born in Atchi son, Kansas.

1930 – Famed novelist and professor Chinua Achebe, author of "Things Fall Apart," is born in Ogidi, Nige ria.

2004 – President Bush announces his nomination of Condoleezza Rice as secretary of state. She is the first Black woman to serve in the position.

WI

AROUND THE REGION

view

BY SARAFINA WRIGHT

Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk continues to make headlines as he has announced radical changes are coming to the platform, including offering an $8 monthly subscription for ‘blue checks,’ which are used to verify official accounts. Celebrities, including Whoopie Goldberg, are the latest to depart from the platform, citing it’s ‘unsafe.’ What are your thoughts?

CYNTHIA

HEASTIE /

NEW YORK, N.Y.

More and more people need to leave that platform. I’m glad I never got on that mess.

JULIAN UREÑA /

WINDERMERE, FLORIDA

Isn’t this the same person who said she would leave if Trump was elected? What is she still doing here, then?

LILLIE HUFF / LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

Is she leaving because someone different now owns Twitter, or is it because the rules will be equal for all? I’m confused because there was no problem when the former owners were doing the same or worse things to those who also felt the same way she now proclaims to feel. Elon Musk and his Twitter policies are no different than any other media platform – certain restrictions apply.

SARA KING / WASHINGTON, DC

Well, if every Black person and anti-racist left Twitter, there won’t be anyone left on the platform to take screenshots and “out” the posts of racists on Twitter. Leaving Twitter is what they want us to do so they can exercise their racist “free speech” with impunity. I think people should rethink leaving Twitter. As the saying goes, “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

SHELIA DECKARD / DALLAS, TEXAS

I’m not a celebrity, but I also shut down my account.

No Red Wave but Election Night Results Could Still Leave Democrats Feeling Blue

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

As Election Night turned slowly into Wednesday morning, the U.S. House and Senate balance of power remained a tossup after tens of millions of votes were counted nationwide.

And while crucial races like the Georgia Senate race between Republi can Herschel Walker and Democratic Incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock re mained too close to call, the red wave many political watchers and several mainstream media outlets predicted hadn’t developed.

In the House, where power is like ly to change hands, one Democrat, Virginia Rep. Elaine Luria, lost her seat. However, Ohio GOP Rep. Steve Chabot also lost his House seat.

Some House seats that most pre dicted as easy Republican prey like Democratic Reps. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, and Chris Pappas in New Hampshire, were retained.

On Wednesday morning, Republi cans were assured of 207 House seats to 188 for Democrats. A party needs 218 seats to control the chamber.

With Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman defeating Republican Meh met Oz for the Pennsylvania Senate seat, Democrats currently hold a 4847 seat advantage in their efforts to retain control.

As it’s been the past two years, Democrats need 50 seats to control that chamber because Vice President Kamala Harris acts as the tiebreaker.

However, the race to represent

Georgia in the Senate remains sur prisingly close. Warnock awakened on Wednesday in a statistical dead heat with Walker, each at 49% of the vote with 96% of precincts counted.

Approximately 18,000 votes sepa rate the candidates. If neither candi date wins 50% of the vote, they will square off on Dec. 6 in a runoff.

The Wisconsin Senate race between Republican Incumbent Ron Johnson and Democrat Mandela Barnes, a Black man, was too close to call. John son held a slight advantage Wednes day morning with about 32,000 more votes or 50.6% to 49.4%.

However, most of the remaining ballots are GOP strongholds.

Meanwhile, Senate races in Arizona and Nevada will determine the Senate majority, and both outcomes aren’t ex pected for several days.

Senator Mark Kelly, a Democrat, held a 52% to 45.8% lead over Blake Masters, a Republican, Wednes day morning with 66% of the votes counted.

Republican Adam Laxalt holds a 49.9% to 47.2% lead over Democrat ic Incumbent Catherine Cortez Mas to in the Nevada Senate race.

Wes Moore counted among the 21 Democrats to win gubernatorial elections, making history as the first African American to win election to governor in Maryland.

Stacey Abrams conceded the Geor gia governor’s race to incumbent Re publican Brian Kemp in a rematch

of their controversial and bitter 2018 contest.

“Tonight, I am doing clearly what is the responsible thing. I am suspending my campaign for governor,” Abrams said following her loss. “I may no lon ger be seeking the office of governor, but I will never stop doing everything in my power to make sure the people in Georgia have a voice.

“While I may not have crossed the finish line, that doesn’t mean I won’t stop running for a better Georgia,” she added. “Even though my fight –our fight – for the governor’s mansion came up short, I’m pretty tall.”

Two of the nation’s most controver sial governors, Greg Abbot (R-Texas), and Ron DeSantis (R-Florida), easily won re-election. Abbot defeated Beto O’Rourke, while DeSantis beat Char lie Crist.

Democratic Rep. Val Demings lost her bid for the U.S. Senate against GOP Incumbent Marco Rubio.

However, Florida voters made his tory by electing Maxwell Frost in the race to represent Florida’s 10th Con gressional District.

The 25-year-old Afro-Cuban be comes the first member of Generation Z elected to serve in the U.S. House.

“History was made tonight,” Frost tweeted. “We made history for Flo ridians, Gen Z, and everyone who be lieves we deserve a better future.”

In Pennsylvania, Austin Davis, a

5 Wes Moore made history, becoming the first African American governor in Maryland (Photo courtesy Wikimedia commons)

AROUND THE REGION

D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton will stay in her post as the District’s member of the U.S. Congress, amassing 86.35% of the vote in her race against three op ponents. Norton has been in the U.S. Congress since 1991.

D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) defeated two op ponents with 81.94% of the vote. Mendelson has served on the Dis trict’s legislative body as an at-large council member and the chairman since 1999.

Council members Brianne K. Nadeau (D-Ward 1) and Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) also won against nominal opposition and no oppo nents, respectively.

Ward 5 State Board of Educa tion member Zachary Parker (D) easily dispatched his Republican opponent Clarence Lee to become the ward’s new council member.

Ward 3 Democrat Matt Frumin beat back an aggressive challenge from David Krucoff, a Repub lican, 75% to 23%. Democrat at-large council member Ani ta Bonds got 32% of the vote in an eight-member field and won re-election. Ward 5 Kenyan Mc Duffie, running as an independent for an at-large seat, led incumbent independent lawmaker Elissa Sil verman by 22% to 18%.

The victors speak Bowser spoke to about 150 peo ple at Hook Hall in Northwest. Realizing that she may face a Re publican House of Representatives hostile to the District, she spoke happily and defiantly.

“We will fight,” the mayor said. “No matter who picks on us, we

will fight back. We are all Wash ingtonians. We care about our city.”

Allen noted he did not have any opposition in the primary and the general election. Nevertheless, he said he would not take his constit uents’ votes for granted and wants his ward to be better.

“I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished together over the last eight years for Ward 6 neighborhoods and our city,” he said. “And that experience is going to be needed more than ever as we lead our city through the chal lenges we’re facing—public safety, affordable housing, education, economic recovery, and so much more.”

Norton said she has worked with Republicans for most of her career representing the District and will do so if needed for the next two years.

Board of Education and Initia tive 82 Results

Ben Williams easily won the Ward 1 State Board of Education race. Eric Goulet, who lost to Fru min in the Ward 3 Democratic primary, secured a victory for the chance to represent his ward on the State Board of Education. Ward 5 voters elected Robert Henderson to represent his ward on the edu cation board. Henderson received the support of Parker in his bid. In the tight Ward 6 Board of Educa tion race, Brandon Best edged out Joshua Wiley, 51 to 46%.

District voters also approved Initiative 82, which will allow tipped workers to get the mini mum wage in incremental stages with 74.1% of the vote. WI

@JamesWrightJr10

32-year-old state lawyer, became the first African American elected to lieu tenant governor in the Keystone State. It’s the highest position any African American has held in Pennsylvania.

“I am deeply mindful that this is my opportunity, but it’s not an oppor tunity I paid for,” Davis said. “It was paid by the sweat equity and work of people who came before me. It is my responsibility to view it as while I may be the first, I’m not the last and that I blaze a trail for other minority candi dates to follow in my footsteps.”

Also, Summer Lee won the race in the 12th Congressional district,

becoming the first African American woman elected to Congress from Pennsylvania.

In Los Angeles, former Congressio nal Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass re mains hopeful in her quest for mayor.

At press time, Bass trailed billionaire developer Rick Caruso by less than 1,500 votes – a 50.19% to 49.81% margin.

Bass hopes to become the first Black woman to hold that job.

Voters in California, Michigan, and Vermont codified abortion rights in those states. A ballot measure to do the same in Kentucky proved too close to call as of Wednesday morning. WI

Self-Care

5 D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser speaks to supporters at her victory celebration at Hook Hall in Northwest on Nov. 8. (Roy Lewis/The Washing ton Informer)

Alexandra Brown RD, LDN

CAPTURE THE MOMENT

PLANTING CHERRY BLOSSOMS THROUGHOUT THE CITY

The National Cherry Blossom Festival and Chase Bank joined the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Washington to plant trees at the Club on November 7. (Robert R. Roberts/The Washington Informer)

Who’s Reading the Informer?

Quincy Davis reads the Washington Informer. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

WORDS TO LIVE BY

“Positive progress towards excellence, that’s what we want…If you stand still and settle for the status quo, that’s exactly what you will have."

– Brigadier General Hazel Johnson-Brown

1927 - 2011

Johnson Brown was an American nurse and educator who became the first Black female general in the U.S. Army and the first Black chief of the U.S. Army Nurse Corps.

Statehood Advocates Caravan Across D.C.

James Wright WI Staff Writer

U.S. Shadow Rep. Oye Owole wa (D) led a motorcade through out the District to the U.S. Cap itol to call on Congress to pass statehood legislation. He called it the SuperCar Parade for D.C. Statehood and participated by rid ing in a yellow Porsche.

“This year, we have 51 cars pa rading through the streets to create awareness of what D.C. statehood is about,” Owolewa said. “By holding this parade, we are plan ning to take the fight for statehood to a whole new level.”

Owolewa said the Nov. 6 parade is the second time the procession has occurred. The first time, he said, took place last year with a smaller group of cars and “nobody on the road” to hold up the pro cession.

For the past two sessions of the U.S. Congress, District statehood bills sponsored by D.C. Del. El eanor Holmes Norton (D) have successfully passed the House of Representatives. In 2021, a hear ing by the U.S. Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a hearing on Dis trict statehood, a matter rarely considered in the history of that chamber. U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) is a sponsor of the D.C. statehood bill with a record 45 co-sponsors. President Biden has indicated he will sign D.C. state hood legislation should it reach his desk. Additionally, Norton has quoted a poll commissioned by the Data for Progress and the Democracy for All 2021 Action, indicating that 54% of Americans favor District statehood.

THE PROCESSION

THROUGH THE CITY

Supporters drove their cars to a parking lot in the Palisades neigh borhood in Ward 3. Many are members of the Sunset Auto Club.

With Owolewa’s name on stick ers taped to car doors, and a Q.R. code containing information on the statehood movement, the pro cession made its way across the city

for the nearly 90-minute journey, ending at the Peace Monument on the west side of the U.S. Capitol.

Escorted by the D.C. MPD, drivers honked their horns as peo ple on the sidewalks and streets shouted their support.

At the Peace Monument, Owolewa spoke about the need for people to get ready to fight for statehood.

“We have come too far to turn back,” he said. “Tell your family and friends about D.C. statehood and why it is important.”

Carol Junkin observed the pro gression near the Peace Memori al. She listened to Owolewa talk about D.C. statehood and admit ted she didn’t know much about the issue.

“I saw all of these nice cars in a row, and I wondered what this was about,” said Junkin, a resident of

Iowa. “I listened to the man talk about statehood for Washington, D.C. I really didn’t know anything about that.”

Dominic Ilochi, a leader with the Sunset Auto Club based in Potomac, Md., and parade leader, said he supports statehood for the District.

“I support Oye, and our club supports him,” Ilochi said. “This is a good cause, and today we had a good response for the second year in a row.”

Stuart Anderson serves as the Anacostia Coordinating Council’s director for community engage ment. Anderson said his organiza tion firmly supported the parade.

“We are a huge sponsor of this,” he said. “We will support this until the 700,000 residents of the Dis trict of Columbia are full citizens of this country.” WI

5 Participants in the SuperCar Parade for DC Statehood wait on their instruc tions. (Courtesy Photo/Oye Owolewa)

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY

Glenn Ivey Poised to Serve in the 118th Congress in 2023

Richard D. Elliott WI Contributing Reporter

With tonight’s results, former Prince George’s County State’s At torney and Capitol Hill staffer Glenn Ivey will be serving in the next Con gress. His first experience in Congress was working for legendary Michigan Congressman John Conyers, who helped to found the Congressional Black Caucus. He also worked with Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Senator Paul Sarbanes. He served as the Prince George’s State’s Attorney from 2002 to 2010 and also served as the Chair of the Maryland Public Service Commission under Gover nor Paris Glendenning.

In this campaign, Ivey defeated former Congresswoman Donna Edwards, among others, in a con tested primary election. In a new

Glen Ivey: On the Record

What is your name and new title?

Glenn F. Ivey, Democratic Nom inee for the 4th Congressional Dis trict of Maryland (when elected US Representative, MD-04)

What do you aim to accomplish in the House of Representatives?

Work hard for the people of the 4th Congressional District. Help working families and those who are underrepresented in the U.S. Con gress. Contribute positively to the betterment of our communities, state and country.

What do you think are your

ly-redrawn district that removed portions of Anne Arundel County and added sections of eastern Mont gomery County, Ivey was able to get the endorsements of the Washington Post and numerous municipal and legislative leaders including former Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker, former Congressman Al Wynn, and Montgomery County’s first Black executive, Ike Leggett. Ivey was on many of the Prince George’s sample ballots and had the most con sistent doorknocking operation of the congressional candidates. During Early Vote, their volunteers and sup porters covered polling sites to dis tribute literature and sway undecided voters.

This was not his first campaign for the position. In 2012, Ivey consid ered a run for Congress but did not file. In 2016, Ivey faced off against

primary areas of expertise in leg islating?

Judiciary and Financial Services; but having worked on Capitol Hill before, I will be able to contribute to the conversation in many areas of importance to the people of 4th Con gressional District and beyond.

Do you believe earmarks will continue during your first term in Congress? What earmarks would you pursue for the 4th congressional district?

We will have to see in the new Con gress how that progresses. I am open to helping foster working relationships with our local and state partners from the federal level - including funding worthy projects or programs.

Who are some members of Con gress you aim to work with and learn from?

former Lieutenant Governor An thony Brown and Delegate Joseline Pena-Melnyk in the 4th congres sional primary. Ivey received 34% to Brown’s 41% in this race. In this year’s primary election, Ivey received over 50% of the vote and handily won Prince George’s County against the former Congresswoman.

In an interview, Congress man-Elect Ivey said that he plans to “work hard for the people of the 4th Congressional District, working fam ilies, and the underrepresented” in Congress. He believes he would best use his abilities on the Judiciary and Financial Services Committee, given his legal background, but would be able to use past experience working in Congress regardless of committee assignment. He is particularly excited to learn from Capitol Hill veterans Kweisi Mfume and Steny Hoyer’s extensive“experience and insight” on the Hill, and to work with Commit tee Chairs Maxine Waters and Jerry Nadler. Constituent service and di rect engagement will be pivotal in representing the needs of both Mont

There are many people who have helped to pave the way for new arriv als to Capitol Hill. From Maryland, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Rep. Kweisi Mfume have much expe rience and insight into the workings of the House. Our two Senators, Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen are also stellar public servants. I look forward to working with Chair Maxine Waters and Chair Jerry Nadler on Financial Services and Judiciary, respectively, among many others.

On what committee do you want to serve, and why?

I am looking at all the possibilities right now… two that look very in teresting are Financial Services and Judiciary. I worked both in the House and Senate on financial issues and be lieve I am well-suited to work in that realm. My stints as State’s Attorney and Assistant U.S. Attorney, as well as

gomery County and Prince George’s County

practicing as a private defense attorney, put me in good stead to work on the House Judiciary.

What are some of the first bills you plan to introduce and sponsor?

I am looking at several possibilities and will let you know when we file them. I would rather not reveal those possible bills at this time.

How do you plan to work with the next Governor, and what do you want to work with him on?

I will work with the next Gover nor for Maryland by being a good federal partner. We can join forces to better the economic, environmen tal and equal rights landscape for the 4th Congressional District and all of Maryland.

How are you going to balance your Prince George’s and Montgom

The next Congress will enter ses sion on January 3rd, 2023. WI

ery County constituents?

Serving the people of the 4th Congressional District means listen ing to them and acting on their be half to help in all the ways a member of Congress can. I plan on visiting with and listening to leaders from both regions, to people in need and those who ask for our help. We will make sure our constituent services responds to the needs of both areas of the district.

Why do you believe your cam paign strategy was effective?

We worked hard to touch all the grassroots of the district. It was im portant to get buy-in from all the municipalities, associations and vot ers of the district. Addressing the needs of the constituents was vital to our outreach and eventual victory in the primary. WI

5 Glenn Ivey won his general election bid on Tuesday. ((Courtesy photo/Glenn Ivey for Congress Campaign))

In an interview, Congressman-Elect Ivey said that he plans to “work hard for the people of the 4th Congressional District, working families, and the underrepresented” in Congress.

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY

MD ELECTIONS from

Page 1

land’s history, and would be just the 11th Black Attorney General in American history. All 3 received over 60% of the vote statewide.

There are currently 32 Demo crats in the Senate and 99 in the House of Delegates. Vote by mail ballots are still being counted, which will affect the outcome of some close races.

There will now be as many as 34 Democrats in the State Sen ate if Anne Arundel Democrat Dawn Gile and former Senator Mary-Dulany James wins their respective seats. As many as 102 Democrats will be in the House of Delegates if Delegate Bagnall retains her seat, Gary Simmons wins mail-in ballots, and Brooke Grossman maintains her majori ty. There was already a veto-proof majority in both houses and now there is additional wiggle room in the event that legislative lead ership wants to override a veto

from the Governor.

Senator Chris Van Hollen was re-elected, and Glenn Ivey won his election and will be sworn into the Congress early next year. All of the sitting Members of Congress in Maryland were handily re-elect ed, excluding Congressman Trone who is currently losing to Re publican Delegate Neil Parrott.

Howard County Executive Cal vin Ball,, Prince George’s Coun ty Executive Angela Alsobrooks, and Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski were re-elected, and Republican Senator Michael Hough defeated Frederick County Councilmember Jessica Fitzwater for Frederick County Executive.

Anne Arundel County Executive Stewart Pittman is in a close race against Councilmember Jessica Haire that has not yet been called.

There were several ballot ques tions, all of which passed with over 60% approval. Question 1 renamed the Court of Appeals, the highest court in the state, to the

Maryland Supreme Court. Ques tion 2 strengthened residency re quirements for state legislators, re quiring legislators to primarily live in the district which they repre sent. Question 3 raised the mone tary floor to request a jury in a civ il trial from $15,000 to $25,000. Question 4 will legalize cannabis on July 1st, 2023 and include sev eral provisions introduced by the legislature, including community investment for impacted commu nities and expanding expunge ments. Question 5 put the pow ers of Howard County’s Orphan’s Court under the authority of the Circuit Court.

Among the main priorities of the incoming leadership will be funding and implementing the Kirwan Commission’s recommen dations for public education in Maryland, improving the econo my for working families , and uti lizing the state’s nearly $2 billion budget surplus.

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5 Senator Chris Van Hollen speaks at the final rally before Election Day. (An thony Tilgham/Washington Informer)

Billionaire Businessman Robert F. Smith Envisions Endless Pool of Black Tech Talent

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

Robert F. Smith grew up in what he called a beloved com munity – the Five Points section of Denver – one of the oldest and most diverse neighborhoods affec tionately known as the “Harlem of the West.”

Smith, chairman and CEO at Vista Equity Partners, explained how his upbringing helped shape his vision and intentional invest ments in businesses and managers emphasizing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The businessman noted that his parents stressed the importance of giving back and supporting his community.

Despite meager means, Smith’s parents routinely donated time and resources to charities, helping others to achieve goals.

As an infant, Smith’s mother took him to the 1964 March on Washington for Jobs and Free dom. After that, the young Smith recalled watching each month as his mother sent a $25 check to the United Negro College Fund.

He said his upbringing helped instill in him his unwavering belief that everyone can help make the world better and more equitable.

“I remember a community that cared for its children, and that ex pression of care came from people who volunteered,” the billionaire businessman and philanthropist stated.

“I saw that importance of com munity and education brought me an enlightened view on the impact of technology,” Smith said.

Earlier this year, Smith received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Cornell Engineering.

He took the opportunity to announce a $15 million gift for engineering student aid, focusing on assisting undergraduate stu dents who come to Cornell from urban high schools and graduate students who attended historically Black colleges and universities.

In 2019, Smith paid $34 mil lion to settle the loan debt for the nearly 400 students who gradu ated that spring from Morehouse College.

He asserted that technology re mains the course for young people of color.

“What technology has done is it has created a massive opportu nity for human ingenuity to create product solutions and services that leverage complete power that’s never been seen,” Smith remarked.

“Our task is to ensure that our people can access that opportunity which means ensuring all our HB CUs have broadband access, the ability to get internships to train and experience what this digital transformation is because it is in every industry on this planet.”

Smith continued:

“I think that’s an important dis tinction we have to drive as a focal point to the leaders in our com munity, the educators, and gov ernment, to ensure they provide equal access for our children and students to access this marvelous transformation.”

While focusing on helping youth today, Smith recalled work ing at Bell Labs during his summer and winter breaks while complet

ing his chemical engineering de gree at Cornell University.

After graduating from Cornell, he worked as an engineer for sev eral top companies, including Kraft General Foods, where he was granted two patents in the U.S. and two more in Europe, before earning his MBA with honors from Columbia Business School.

According to his bio, Smith joined Goldman Sachs in 1994 to “help develop more robust invest ment banking in technology, start ing in New York and later moving to Silicon Valley.”

He became the Co-Head of Enterprise Systems and Storage, assisting massive technology com panies like Hewlett Packard, IBM, eBay, and Apple with mergers and acquisitions.

Smith counted as the first per son at Goldman Sachs in San Francisco to focus on that specific area of financing.

Recognized by Forbes as one of the 100 Greatest Living Busi ness Minds in 2017 for his busi ness acumen and leadership skills, Smith is celebrating 22 years as the founder of Vista Equity Partners.

“It’s been an interesting jour ney,” Smith declared.

“Our world is going through a massive transformation that has been characterized as the fourth industrial revolution.

“Every industry on the planet is being digitized, and you need to know how to participate in that either as a software programmer or utilize that digital capacity in whatever you do.”

He continued:

“If our students don’t have broadband and computing capaci ty, it will limit their gaining access to this economy.

“We have to get those resourc es and ensure HBCUs have access and infrastructure to teach and train our students to be a part of this as a producer, not just a con sumer, of the technology.”

Smith insisted that the fourth industrial revolution meant sig nificant opportunities for African Americans to be big players in the global economic market.

He said the need for access to the tools of the revolution couldn’t be overstated.

“We need to be uploading soft ware, not just downloading it. If we miss out on this fourth indus trial revolution, it will be gener ations before we can participate again,” Smith proclaimed.

He reiterated his focus on HB CUs.

Smith said HBCUs could cre ate an unending pool of African American talent by providing the necessary technical resources.

“It’s about creating the next generation of Black tech innova tors, who will be job creators and wealth creators,” Smith said.

WI

5 Robert F. Smith, chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners (Courtesy photo/Official Facebook Page)

“I remember a community that cared for its children, and that expression of care came from people who volunteered. I saw that importance of community and education brought me an enlightened view on the impact of technology."

business briefs Thank you for Your Service!

Tropical Smoothie Store Opens at Skyland Town Center

David and Alesha Magby opened up a Tropical Smoothie café in the Skyland Town Center development in Ward 7 in Southeast Washington.

The café held its grand opening on Nov. 5. The Skyland location is the third under the ownership of the Magbys, with cafes located In Temple Hills, Md., and the Shops at Dakota Crossing in Ward 5 in Northeast. The Magbys are planning to open their next location in Baltimore across the street from Morgan State University, their alma mater, in December.

The Magbys are managing to turn smoothies into something more than just a blended beverage. Of course, their drinks use the usual recipes - a liquid base such as fruit juice, milk, yogurt, ice cream or cottage cheese and fruit, vegetables, non-dairy milk, crushed ice, whey powder or nutritional supplements. Customers say they most enjoy the Island Green smooth ie. That checks out, as the company reports that’s the top selling flavor option.

In addition to smoothies, Tropical Smoothie customers may purchase sandwiches, flatbreads, wraps, bowls and breakfast items. Alesha Magby said she and her husband wanted to get into franchising a few years ago, but didn’t want to sell hamburgers and French fries.

“We wanted to offer customers a healthy menu,” she said. “My husband and I make it a point to eat healthy and plant-based foods. Fried foods are not good for African Americans. We also wanted to offer affordable fresh foods to people who live inside of the Beltway.”

The Skyland Cafe offers a small dining area. Alicia Magby said the café’s customer base tends to be carryout and delivery. With 25 employees, David Magby said he wants to help them progress in their careers and lives.

“We want to help our employees go to college or move on to their next job,” he said. “We care about our employees and they know we care about them.”

The Skyland location has emerged as the first eatery to open as a recipient of the District’s food access grant program. The Magbys received a $320,018 grant to open the café. D.C. Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio said the Magbys are an example of entrepreneurship in District neighborhoods with an emphasis on healthy foods.

“We want to make sure that residents of Wards 7 and 8 have access to healthy food,” Falcic chio said. “The food access grants help us to do that. Mayor Bowser wants to eliminate health disparities in the city and the food access grants are designed to do that.” WI

Black Firm to Co-Design New Howard University Facility

Moody Nolan, the largest Black-owned architecture firm in the U.S. that is based in Northwest Washington, has been selected by Howard University to co-design its new Center for Fine Arts and Communications that will house the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts, the Cathy Hughes School of Communications and the institution’s television and radio stations, according to the Nov. 2 edition of the publication, The Architect’s Newspaper. The firm will work with District-based KGD on the project.

Moody Nolan has completed 63 projects for 33 Black college and university campuses during its four-decade history. The Howard project will be led by firm partner and alumnus Renauld Deandre Mitchell. Mitchell expressed excitement on helping to design a building on Howard’s campus.

Mitchell said, “For the KGD/Moody Nolan team, this represents a transcendent design opportunity,” The Architect’s Newspaper reported.

“The Center for Fine Arts and Communications,” Mitchell added, “will endure as a thresh old building for the campus and catalyze a new era of innovation and creative expression for future Bison. I am humbled by the opportunity to give back to the place that has given me so much.”

University officials expect the building to open to students in Fall 2025. WI

@JamesWrightJr10

Aimee D. Griffin, Esq.

November 11th is the day we set aside to honor veterans. In this time of unrest around the world we are reminded more than ever that it is because of veterans who have made the decision to defend the freedoms of our country that we are free. While we know that our country is not perfect and we have no accomplished freedom and justice for all, this country is worth fighting for.

We honor veterans for their commitment to submit their lives for the country. They have decided to subject their decision-making authority to the chain of command that prioritizes the needs of these United States. That subjection means that the defense of other countries may be the priority. That subjection may mean that families are left behind. That subjection may mean loss of life or limb. Again, I say thank you for your service. My father, who just celebrated 86 years, and my husband are among my favorite people who have made the decision to serve as veterans. I hear the stories of the impact of the decision to serve and again I am thankful.

As a firm we continue to be connected to families of veterans who have delayed in establishing estate plans or have outdated plans that no longer address the current needs of their families. There are in deed services and benefits that veterans are afforded but many are not aware of. As previously mentioned, my father who is a veteran is just connecting with the Veterans Administration to register for services. It is a process. The process is not expedient, but the benefit is worth the effort.

The Veterans Administration provides services for those individuals who have served and are incapacitat ed. The Veterans Aid and Attendance Benefits program is available for those who qualify. As of December 2018, a single veteran who qualifies for A&A can receive up to $1,881 per month, a married vet can receive up to $2,230 per month and a surviving spouse can receive up to $1,209 per month to pay for needed care at home, in an assisted living community, memory care or in a nursing home. For many families paying for senior care, this income can make the difference between comfort and hardship.

Here are the general guidelines to help you decide whether to apply for Aid and Attendance.

Veterans who served on active duty for at least 90 consecutive days, including at least one full day during a time of war, may be eligible for Aid and Attendance if they also qualify for the basic Veterans Pension and meet the clinical and financial requirements.

Service in a combat zone is not a requirement. Widowed spouses of eligible veterans may also qualify if they meet the clinical and income requirements and have not remarried.

Veterans or surviving spouses must meet at least one of these clinical criteria:

• Be bedridden except for medical and therapy appointments and treatments

• Have severe visual impairment (eyesight limited to a corrected 5/200 visual acuity OR less in both eyes OR concentric contraction of the visual field to five degrees or less)

• Reside in a nursing home because of physical or mental incapacity, including Alzheimer’s and demen tia

• Require help with some activities of daily living (ADL's) such as, but not limited to: bathing, dressing, eating, using the bathroom, etc.

In December 2018, the VA set a clear upper limit for applicants’ net worth of $123,600 not including the applicant’s automobile, personal effects and residence. The VA also implemented a three-year lookback pe riod to see if assets were sold below market value or gifted in a way that reduced net worth below the upper eligibility limit. If so, that may delay (but not necessarily prohibit) the start of VA pension benefit payments.

There’s also an upper limit on monthly countable income minus expenses such as unreimbursed medical bills, prescription out-of-pocket costs and Medicare and private health insurance premiums. The VA pays benefit amounts that make up the difference between recipients’ countable income and the monthly upper limit.

The Life & Legacy Counselors of the Griffin Firm thank all veterans and law enforcement providers for their service and for the month of November will provide a 30% discount on our services.

Aimee D. Griffin, Esq., The Griffin Firm, PLLC http://yourestateplanningattorney.com (855) 574-8481

5335 Wisconsin Ave NW  Suite 440  Washington DC 20015 4041 Powder Mill Drive Suite 215 Beltsville MD 20705 100 International Drive 23rd Floor Baltimore MD 21202 4601 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 1200 Arlington, VA 22203

NCRC Files HUD Complaints Against Appraisers Who Discriminated Against Black Homeowners in Recent Investigation

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

Federal housing officials should sanction two appraisal firms in Bal timore over their discriminatory treatment of Black homeowners who participated in a recent “mystery shopper” investigation of appraisal bias, the National Community Re investment Coalition (NCRC) wrote in a pair of complaints filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Authors of the extensive report noted that “the severity and subtlety

of racial bias captured in our findings suggest that it will take sweeping and aggressive action from both policy makers and the industry itself to rid the appraisal marketplace of discrim ination.”

Representatives from NRC and HUD wrote that the way that home owners, lenders, and policymakers use the term “property values” often implies that there is one organic, objective, correct definition of what someone’s home is worth.

“But that is not the case,” they con cluded.

“Our cultural conception of prop

NRC and HUD Investigators said an undervaluation of a home is rarely corrected. Discriminatory treatment is harmful (and should be prevented) in any setting; in the context of home appraisals, it often comes with severe economic consequenc es./Baltimore Heritage via Wikimedia commons

erty values obscures the fact that hu man beings often determine those values,” the investigators determined.

They said professional appraisers make mistakes like anyone else.

However, they also carry biases, conscious or unconscious, into their workplace, and the consequences of an appraiser’s mistakes are much more severe than most people’s work day errors.

For instance, investigators said a store clerk who rings something up wrong could charge it back.

Likewise, a bartender who pours the wrong beer can turn around and serve the right one. But an appraiser’s mistakes, misjudgments, or prejudic es can derail generations of work to build wealth within a family.

The treatment a homeowner re ceives while selling their home can have severe impacts, especially if out right discrimination is involved, the investigators asserted.

And an undervaluation of a home is rarely corrected. Discriminatory treatment is harmful (and should be prevented) in any setting; in the context of home appraisals, it often comes with severe economic conse quences.

“There is no excuse for discrim ination anywhere in the housing market, but the long-overlooked role that biased appraisers play in undermining Black wealth is an especially insidious problem,” NCRC President and CEO Jesse

Van Tol said in a news release.

“We are asking federal officials to intervene in these two instances be cause we believe they are representa tive of widespread discrimination in the appraisal industry that costs Black homeowners both time and money.

“No one should be subjected to the sort of treatment these two ap praisers visited upon these two fam ilies – and regulators have the power to do something about it.”

Both cases arise from an investiga tion NCRC conducted in Baltimore over the past year.

NCRC recruited interracial cou ples who own their own homes to act as “mystery shoppers” and discovered differential treatment by appraisers when the couples presented their homes with only the Black or the White partner present.

The investigation report con firmed that Black homeowners were treated worse than their White part ners in terms of customer service and valuation of their homes.

In one of the complaints, NCRC and a Black homeowner detailed how an appraiser made the homeowner wait 11 weeks for a report, ignored follow-up communication, and did not explain why the information took so long.

The same appraiser, a few weeks later, timely delivered a report to a White homeowner and even sent the homeowner a courtesy email in advance with an expected

timeline for delivery.

The appraiser showed differential treatment and a lack of profession alism when interest rates were highly volatile – meaning that the appraiser’s discriminatory conduct could have cost the Black client a chance at an affordable mortgage.

In the second complaint, NCRC and a second Black homeowner al leged that an appraiser undervalued a home presented by the homeowner, then overvalued a separate house pre sented by a White homeowner.

The appraiser valued the first home at $310,000 when it was shown by the Black partner in the interracial couple who owned it, while three other appraisers valued the same house at $350,000 or more.

This appraiser then appraised a home shown by a White homeown er and valued it $43,000 higher than any other appraiser did in the tests conducted by NCRC.

The appraiser’s pattern of bias in valuing homes in Baltimore warrant ed an enforcement action by NCRC and the homeowner, who was the victim of discrimination.

“Creating a truly equitable en vironment for homeownership is a broad and important societal un dertaking that will go far beyond the confines of the appraisal industry,” investigators concluded.

Click here for the full report from NCRC’s investigation, which is the first of its kind published. WI

5

Black is Back Coalition Marches Days before Midterm Races

Omali Yeshitela Speaks Out, Once Again, on FBI Raid

Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer

As a highly contentious mid term election season ends, elder organizer Omali Yeshitela remains adamant about reminding Black people in the United States that many elected officials, and Dem ocrats, in particular, haven’t met their interests at home or abroad.

On Saturday, Yeshitela and oth er members of the Black is Black Coalition for Justice, Peace and Reparations converged on Mal colm X Park in Northwest for the 14th annual Black People’s March on the White House. The rally and march took place more than three months after the FBI raided Yesh itela’s homes in St. Louis, Missouri and St. Petersburg, Florida.

As of today, charges have not been levied against Yeshitela or his wife, Ona Zené Yeshitela.

Federal authorities said the raid was in connection to an investi gation into Russian influence in American affairs. Unsealed doc uments cited Aleksandr Viktor ovich Ionov, a Russian national, who they said organized secession movements in other countries.

Yeshitela revealed the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP),

of which he serves as chairman, as one of the groups mentioned in the documents. He then said anti-Russian propaganda has been unleashed to distract Americans from Black people’s need for rep arations and justice.

“They can’t tell us why they are destroying Black communities, but they said the Russians are pay ing us to [demand reparations],” Yeshitela said on Friday at Sankofa Video Books & Cafe. “Because of white people’s assumptions about Russians, they dismissed our argu ments because the underpinning is that another force has to define our experience for us. That’s not true.”

The recent midterms raised questions about whether the Dem ocrats would maintain or increase their power in the House and Sen ate. Republicans had been favored to win more than half of the 35 Senate seats on the ballot. In the house, Republicans also showed signs of securing nearly 20 more seats than Democrats.

For months, pundits focused on the five states -- Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wis consin – that President Joe Biden

5 Omali Yeshitela, chairman of the People’s Socialist Party, speaks to the press in front of the Sankofa Bookstore in Northwest before leading a rally and march to the White House on November 5. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

AT LARGE from Page 1

many D.C. voters.

McDuffie fought hard, and com manded a nearly 4 percent lead over Silverman, the independent council member campaigning for a third term. Nearly two hours after the polls closed on November 8, a visibly vin dicated McDuffie took to the stage at The Park on 14th, surrounded by his mother and his wife Princess Mc Duffie, along with campaign staff and supporters.

"I'm not going to [be able to] thank everyone but I will thank y'all through the way I represent this city,” McDuf fie said.

“There were people who said ‘Oh he wants a job,’ but I told them this is not a job for me. It’s my passion and my purpose,” he continued.

“This is the first day of a movement for the next four years and I need y’all to be a part of it. This is what democ

racy looks like. When they say this city is divided, remind them of the cam paign we ran.”

By law, one of the at-large D.C. Council seats must be held by some one not from the majority party. Oth er independent at-large candidates included Karim Marshall, Fred E. Hill, and Graham McLaughlin, while David Schwartzman represented the D.C. Statehood Green Party candi date and Guiseppe Niosi, the Repub lican Party.

At Hook Hall on Tuesday night, Bonds commented on her victory with a call for unity.

"I am happy that the people of Washington, D.C. have re-elected me to the council,” she said.

“It is really a joy. I am ready to go back to work. There is much to do. We can accomplish a lot. We need to get more people involved in the process. People want to be heard. We need to listen to each other."

her leadership on the D.C. Council Committee on Housing and Execu tive Administration disappointed him. Mailers in support of Bond from de velopers reaffirmed Hagler’s position on the matter.

"The developers don't want folks to look at the numbers [but] Elissa Silver man looks at the numbers and raises questions about their implication,” said Hagler, a staunch independent and proponent of open primaries.

“It's not about who you like but about who you can persuade and get on the right side of the coin. I need folks not to be so easily sold out to the economic interests being sold to us."

On Tuesday evening, Silverman and her supporters gathered at CityState Brewery Co. in Northeast in an ticipation of the election results. As she looked around the room, Silverman took note of the racial, ethnic and geo graphical diversity.

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Over the last few months, McDuf fie touted his record of advocacy for holistic anti-violence measures, Blackowned small businesses and codifying racial equity, even as Silverman’s sup porters called the longtime Ward 5 council member a pawn of corporate interests.

McDuffie’s campaign staff and sup porters included people of various ra cial and professional backgrounds who expressed a commitment to unifying District residents. After the Office of Campaign Finance (OCF) found Silverman in violation of campaign finance laws, some of them called for her to drop out of the race. .

On November 4, the DC Board of Elections (DCBOE) deliberated on the “due process” portion of Sil verman’s appeal and didn’t find OCF in violation when it issued its ruling about a Ward 3 D.C. Council prima ry poll Silverman financed with public campaign funds.

DCBOE is scheduled to deliberate on other aspects of the appeal Silver man filed on November 14.

Days before the election, The Rev. Graylan Hagler expressed support for Silverman on social media, encourag ing his followers to not get caught up in recent developments.

He conveyed his respect for Silver man's independent political identity and her penchant for questioning de velopers.

When it came to McDuffie, Hagler said he didn’t consider the Ward 5 council member a true independent.

In regard to Bonds, Hagler said

She then expressed hope that, with the changing composition of the D.C. Council, she could be collaborative.

“Our campaign is about coming to gether to solve the big problems we face. We shouldn’t be divided.We have to use our collective resources to solve it.”

However, some people, like Dianah Shaw, recounted instances when Sil verman didn’t appear too enthusiastic about listening to her and other con stituents.

Shaw, a longtime member of the DC Association of Realtors, said she has been able to garner McDuffie’s support on issues related to housing. On several occasions, she met with McDuffie on behalf of her colleagues in the industry, many of whom are District residents pursuing burgeoning entrepreneurial ventures.

On Tuesday morning, Shaw stood outside of Barnard Elementary School in Northwest in support of McDuff ie. She said doing so counted as part of an effort to represent small business owners like herself who get ignored in conversations about economic devel opment.

“Councilmember McDuffie has done good things on the business side,” said Shaw, a Ward 4 resident and owner of a brokerage firm that special izes in property management

“I can see his concerns and it starts with the people. It’s not just about put ting legislation out there. His work on economic development has been im pactful.”

WI staff writer James Wright contrib uted to this story. WI

@SamPKCollins

5 Elissa Silverman. (Marckell Williams/The Washington Informer)

(D) turned blue in 2020. Neva da also became a state of interest. Democrats revved up a get-outthe-vote campaign in those states, even dispatching former President Barack Obama to remind voters about the significance of Novem ber 8.

A few days before November 8, Yeshitela pointed to the Biden ad ministration’s Safer America Plan, which increases law enforcement funding, as a sign of what’s to con tinue for Black people in the Unit ed States.

During Saturday’s rally, partic ipating organizations, including Black Alliance for Peace, drew parallels between law enforcement presence in Black communities and U.S. military operations in Af rica and other parts of the world.

On Friday, Yeshitela was joined on the front steps of Sankofa

Video, Books & Cafe by Marsha Coleman Adebayo of the Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition, Be linda Parker Brown of Louisiana United International, and Yejide Orunmila of the African National Women’s Organization. They ex plored various manifestations of the racialized violence they tackle through their work.

Orunmila highlighted APSP’s work in training African women to be doulas. Meanwhile, Adebayo brought attention to ongoing ef forts in Bethesda, Maryland, to stop developers’ desecration of an African burial ground. Parker took onlookers to Louisiana, where a ballot measure, if passed, would bring further ambiguity to a stat ute outlawing slavery and involun tary servitude.

In her remarks, Parker demand ed that the actions of the U.S. gov ernment at the federal, state and local levels reflect the will of the

5 Marsha Coleman-Adebayo speak ing during the press conference for the 14th annual Black People's March to the White House on November 5. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

people.

“We won’t stand by silently while our government locks us up and throws away the key in these God-forsaken prisons and jails,” Brown said

“The system is corrupt, and cor rupt people are serving their selfish gains by abusing us. They have al lowed us to get tangled up in all sorts of abandonment. We have to stand up, unite and hold our government accountable for these abuses.”

In years past, APSP, also known as the Uhuru Movement, has participated in politics from the periphery. In St. Louis, the orga nization unsuccessfully backed the Board of Aldermen candidates that supported reparations. Yesh itela and his comrades have also coordinated housing rehabilitation projects and community gardens.

As APSP chairman, Yeshite la has also traveled to Russia and

Nicaragua to organize against im perialism.

During the July 29 raid, feder al agents confiscated phones, hard drives, and documents from Yesh itela’s homes in St. Louis and St. Petersburg, Florida. Yeshitela said APSP no longer has access to the signatures they collected from an online petition for reparations.

On Friday, Adebayo implored people to recognize the gravity of Yeshitela’s situation and how it is similar to what happens across the world, particularly in Africa.

“People are dying on the richest continent,” Adebayo said.

“Only a continent that serves the African community first can fight this. Chairman Omali is an indispensable part of the liberation movement of this country. We must assert hands off the Uhuru movement and hands off Black leadership.” WI

@SamPKCollins

africa now

DRC and Rwanda Foreign Ministers Meet in Rwanda to Ease Tensions

Foreign ministers from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda arrived at the An golan presidency on Saturday, November 5, for a fresh round of diplomatic talks amid rising tensions in eastern DRC.

Angolan President João Lourenço was appointed by the African Union as a mediator for the talks be tween DRC's Christophe Lutundula and Vincent Biruta from Rwanda,

Tensions have been particularly high between Kinshasa, the capital of DRC, and Kigali , the capital of Rwan da, since the resurgence of the March 23 Movement, known as M23, late last year.

The former Tutsi rebellion group took up arms accusing Kinshasa of failing to respect agreements on the demobilization of its fighters.

Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of supporting this rebellion -- a claim Kigali systematically denies.

But the eastern DRC region has been plagued for nearly three decades by violence from armed groups, many of them born out of the wars that occurred there in the wake of the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Efforts had already been made in Luanda to try and normalize relations between the two neighbours in July.

According to the UN, the fighting between the FARDC and the M23 has displaced some 50,000 people since October 20, of whom 12,000 have taken refuge in Uganda. WI

Plans Announced for Grand Bahama $250M Resort

A $250 million investment that will bring one of the world’s top luxury resort brands to Freeport, Grand Bahama, was hailed as “the catalyst” that will drive the island’s “phoenix from the ashes” rebirth, The Tribune, one of The Bahamas’ leading newspapers reported on Friday, November 4.

Rupert Hayward, the grandson of former Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) co-chair Sir Jack Hayward, told The Tribune that the multi-party deal to develop a Six Senses resort at the 30-acre Barbary Beach site previously owned by Marri ott will “raise many, many eyebrows around the world and put Grand Bahama on the map” for high-end tourism.

Rupert Hayward voiced confidence that the agreement featuring Weller Development, which is spearhead ing the largest U.S. urban regeneration in Baltimore, and Pegasus Capital Advisors, the private equity group focused on investing in sustainable projects, will “change the narrative on Grand Bahama,” and restore its rep utation as a location that attracts high-quality investments by both foreigners and Bahamians.

Mr. Hayward, whose Blue Action Lab is functioning as the project’s local partner and adviser, said that while “I don’t have the figures in front of me” the Six Senses development will create “hundreds of direct and indirect jobs” -- as well as construction posts -- with completion and opening targeted for 2026.

Hinting that the Six Senses resort is just the first step in Weller’s plans for Grand Bahama, Mr. Hayward added: “This is the start of bigger plans.”

Confirming that the Six Senses project has received the government’s blessing, via National Economic Coun cil (NEC) and Bahamas Investment Authority (BIA) approvals, Mr. Hayward said the resort brand’s arrival will also place Bahamians “at the forefront” of sustainable development via education and training.

He said the resort’s development should also be a “catalyst” for the revival of airlift to Grand Bahama, given that Six Senses will stimulate visitor demand while creating a further impetus to swiftly redevelop the island’s main airport which still remains in poor condition more than three years after Hurricane Dorian.

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COMPILED BY OSWALD T. BROWN, WI CONTRIBUTING WRITER

5 Christophe Lutundula and Vincent Biruta meet João Lourenço in Luanda (Copyright © africanews AFP)

INTERIM DIRECTOR JESSICA SMITH

November 2022 Message from Department of Aging and Community Living

From Enid Borden, CEO, the National Foundation to End Senior Hunger (NFESH)

At NFESH, we’re laser focused on working with states and local ities to engage in research methods and practices to find causes and consequences of senior food in security, and then to initiate and employ innovative methods that address possible solutions. We are once again proud to be working with DACL in this space. Our academic research team has been charged with conducting a study to examine food insecurity in the District, and to specifically look into the underlying risk factors that changed disproportionally for DC seniors as a result of the Great Recession.

country. And while it is not a new phenomenon anywhere, I must say that we’re inspired by how DACL has continued to take the issue seri ously and has made a commitment to combatting senior food insecu rity through the creation of some of the most innovative programs in the country. Their Food4Choice project is just one such example — a program that is giving select seniors’ choice in their nutritional decisions through grocery card dis tribution. And I’m proud to note that our work with them on the age WELL pilot project will be a national model of senior nutrition and wellness as we work to address food insecurity with the many community partners that are com ing together on this project.

In partnership with DACL, we will be looking at trends specific to senior food insecurity in the District, analyzing the factors associated with the issue, and getting a better understanding of the instabilities in housing, family structures, and other factors related to food insecurity.

As you’ve heard us say in the past, addressing senior food in security in the District is a top priority for Mayor Bowser and DACL. And while we’re focused on this all year round, we know food, and access to food, is at the front of many people’s minds during the holiday season. So, as we look to Thanksgiving, we want to take this opportunity to highlight one of our newest part nerships in the nutrition space –the National Foundation to End Senior Hunger (NFESH), who’s at the forefront of ensuring states across the country have access to quality data to inform their nu trition programming decisions.

Jessica Smith

In partnership with DACL, we will be looking at trends specific to senior food insecurity in the Dis trict, analyzing the factors associ ated with the issue, and getting a better understanding of the insta bilities in housing, family struc tures, and other factors related to food insecurity. As a partner in DACL’s work, I’ve been able to see how the agency is using research as a guide in their daily practices and programming to continue to implement innovative practices and methods that address underly ing factors that contribute to food insecurity. Our research produc es numbers. That data, however, represents real people. Our work with DACL begins and ends with seniors like you. And our work is performed on a national level, as food insecurity is not solely an is sue in Washington, DC. It is a na tionwide problem that is being ad dressed both locally and around the

The current state of senior food insecurity in the District has shined

a light on an issue that we must all be cognizant of and concerned about. There are many factors that contribute to food insecurity and many, sad to say, are beyond any one’s control. But throughout our country, and specifically here in the District, organizations like DACL are working diligently to move the needle forward. The senior nutri

tion programs that are run here in the District and throughout the country are models of pub lic-private partnerships at their best and at NFESH we look forward to working with DACL to use every tool possible to ad dress senior food insecurity in the District and across the na tion.

Attend Mayor Bowser’s 24th Annual Senior Holiday Celebration

Dear Seniors,

HEALTH

CDC: Cancer Deaths Continue Downward Trend

Modest Improvements in Survival for Pancreatic Cancer

By Sarafina Wright WI Contributing Writer

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report ed cancer death rates continued to decline among men, women, children, adolescents, and young adults in every major racial and ethnic group in the United States from 2015 to 2019.

This year’s Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer re port, published in October, shows that from 2015 to 2019, overall cancer death rates decreased by 2.1% per year in men and women combined.

Among men, death rates de creased by 2.3% per year; among women, death rates decreased by 1.9% per year. In addition, the annual decline in death rate accel

erated from 2001 to 2019 in both men and women.

“The findings in this year’s An nual Report to the Nation show our ongoing progress against cancer, continuing a more than two-decade trend in declining mortality that reflects improve ments in preventing, detecting, and treating cancer,” Monica M. Bertagnolli, M.D., director of NCI said.

“The advances shown in the re port underscore the importance of working together across soci ety to develop effective, equitable approaches to tackle this complex disease. I look forward to work ing with all our partners in the cancer community to meet these challenges head-on, because peo ple affected by cancer—and that includes all of us—are counting

on it.”

The findings in the report –based on data from before the COVID-19 pandemic – also highlight longer-term trends in pancreatic cancer, as well as racial and ethnic disparities in incidence and death rates.

The report showed the declines in death rates were steepest in lung cancer and melanoma (by 4% to 5% per year) among both men and women.

However, death rates increased for cancers of the pancreas, brain, bones, and joints among men and for cancers of the pancreas and uterus among women.

The researchers noted that ra cial and ethnic disparities exist for many individual cancer sites. For example, from 2014 to 2018,

incidence rates for bladder cancer declined in White, Black, Asian/ Pacific Islander (API), and His panic men.

Still, they increased among American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) men. In addition, in cidence rates for uterine cancer increased among women of every racial and ethnic group from 2014 to 2018, except for White women, who had stable rates.

From 2015 to 2019, prostate cancer death rates were stable among non-White and Black men but decreased among API, AI/AN, and Hispanic men.

Likewise, Colorectal cancer death rates were stable among AI/ AN men but decreased in men of all other racial and ethnic groups.

Among women, death rates for lung, breast, and colorectal cancer decreased in nearly every racial and ethnic group.

The exceptions were API wom

en, among whom breast cancer death rates remained stable, and AI/AN women, among whom breast cancer death rates increased and colorectal cancer death rates remained stable.

“Factors such as race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status should not play a role in people’s ability to be healthy or determine how long they live,” Lisa C. Richardson, M.D., M.P.H., director of CDC’s Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, said.

“CDC works with its public health partners—within and out side the government—to address these disparities and advance health equity through a range of key initiatives, including pro grams, research, and policy initia tives. We know that we can meet this challenge together and create an America where people are free of cancer.”

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This year’s Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer report, published in October, shows that from 2015 to 2019, overall cancer death rates decreased by 2.1% per year in men and women combined.

(Courtesy photo)

By Sarafina Wright WI Contributing Writer

Consumers in need of health insurance can sign up now on HealthCare.gov. The Biden Ad ministration launched the tenth year of Marketplace Open En rollment this month which runs to Jan. 15, 2023.

Anyone who enrolls by mid night Dec. 15, 2022, can get full-year coverage that starts Jan. 1, 2023. The Administration said thanks to the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduc tion Act; both signed into law by President Biden, a majority of people continue to have access to affordable premiums that help lower costs for families. In addi tion, four out of five customers will be able to find plans for $10 or less per month after tax cred its.

They added that families who have found employer insurance unaffordable in the past should look at new opportunities for savings on HealthCare.gov.

“Living the life you want with family and friends starts with good health, and that often means having accessible, afford able care. Don’t cheat yourself: check out HealthCare.gov for high-quality care at low costs,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra

said.

“President Biden has tire lessly fought to lower costs and make care more accessible for all Americans. We’re doubling down to reach people where they are and get everyone connected to the care and peace of mind they deserve.”

CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said the online Marketplace is increasingly easi er for consumers to navigate and sign up for coverage along with increased financial assistance made possible due to the Infla tion Reduction Act.

A recent report released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shows enroll ment in health coverage through HealthCare.gov increased among Blacks, Hispanics, American In dians, and Alaska Natives from 2020 to 2022.

Brooks-LaSure said building on last year’s successes, CMS continues its targeted engage ment strategy to ensure they reach historically underinsured and uninsured communities and connect people to local help and resources.

“CMS is thrilled that even more families will have access to lower cost, comprehensive cover age through ACA Marketplaces during our tenth Open Enroll

ment,” Brooks-LaSure said. “I strongly encourage all those who are in need of health insur ance to go to HealthCare.gov or their State-based Marketplaces

To find local help from a Nav igator or certified application counselor or to be contacted by

a Marketplace-registered agent or broker, consumers should go to https://www.healthcare.gov/ find-assistance. WI

(Courtesy photo)

A High Price To Pay With Diabetes How Rationing Insulin Can Present Dangerous Possibilities

Lindiwe Vilakazi WI Staff Member

The affordability of diabetes treat ment has become a hot topic since the Biden Administration pushed to approve a spending cap on annu al costs for insulin. But despite the slight turn of progress, a recent study discovers immoderate rates have forced over a million Americans to ration their insulin intake, running a dangerous risk to their health.

The Annals of Internal Medicine recently published a study exposing that roughly 1.3 million Americans are so financially overwhelmed, they cannot afford the required doses of insulin needed to maintain proper health while managing the disease. Those participants without health

insurance rationed most frequently, while diabetics 65 and older had the smallest rate of rationing, although most of this demographic are covered by Medicaid health insurance.

Insulin, a pancreatic hormone pro duced to regulate glucose levels in the blood, is as vital to a diabetic’s survival as the food and water we consume. Dr. Abbas Motazedi, MD endocri nologist with the Center of Diabetes in NE Washington, D.C., maintains a patient base mostly covered by insurance, while providing feasible options for those without insurance to continue receiving the life-saving treatments.

“Unfortunately, most of the insur ance companies are shifting the cost to the consumers. Their premiums go up, the cost of co-payment of in

sulin goes up, or they don’t cover it. The office co-payment goes up. It gets to a point where they have to choose between food and insulin, and their medications,” Dr. Motazedi said.

And the very fight between wheth er one can afford to eat, or maintain their proper insulin levels is the un fortunate battle that often shows re sults in the long term. The gradual ramifications of underdosing insulin treatments create a high potential for the body to fall ill from inconsistent glucose regulation over an extended period of time.

“Nothing happens overnight. Diabetes is a long-term compli cation that happens as a result of uncontrolled diabetes,” said Dr. Motazedi. Generally at least after 5

to 10 years of uncontrolled diabe tes [is] when you start seeing com plications like heart disease, kidney disease, atherosclerosis vascular dis eases with narrowing of the vessels - and many of them end up with amputation of the leg, stroke, heart attack, [or] kidney failure and dialy

sis. So, this is a major health issue.” In efforts to prevent diabetic com plications due to lack of finances, the Center of Diabetes is one of the multiple medical facilities that part ner with health organizations work ing to provide low-income families with access to stabilizing healthcare needs. Lilly Cares Foundation, Inc., for example, is a nonprofit organi zation working to serve an indigent demographic of diabetic patients and provide them with quality-tier insu lin. The organization works closely with the Center of Diabetes to ensure those District patients facing finan cial hardship can continue to receive needed healthcare.

District resources similar to DC Healthy Families, Catholic Charities, and other local organizations are also available as they continuously work to serve those uninsured residents avoiding medical care due to a lack of financial resources.

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Get the family caregiving support you need, when you need it.

We know navigating your way through caring for family can be overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it alone.

AARP is dedicated to help our members and families get the answers and resources they need for Family Caregiving.

We know it can be a challenge, but we’ve done the hard work to help you connect with the other family caregivers and resources close to home. So you can take care of what matters most.

To learn more, visit aarp.org/caregiving

5 Dr. Abbas Motazedi (Courtesy photo)

Living with Type 2 Diabetes and Taking Control

Submitted by Amerigroup Maryland

Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes Among Black Men and Women

Type 2 diabetes can develop at any age, but it often occurs in middle age and later. It occurs more often in people who are 45 or older, those who have a family history of diabe tes, and those who are overweight or obese. Nearly 29 million Americans have been diagnosed with diabe tes, and a disproportionate number of these Americans are Black men and women. In fact, Black adults in the U.S. are nearly twice as like ly as white adults to develop Type 2 diabetes. Several factors have been found to contribute to this dispari ty, mostly biological factors such as weight and obesity, but reports keep demonstrating that this disparity is not going away. Over the past 30 years, Type 2 diabetes has been rising among Black adults, so it is critical to take action that takes back control of health and lives.

Living with Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes cannot be cured, but it can be managed. If left un managed, diabetes can damage the heart, eyes, nerves and kidneys. It can be life-threatening, so taking control is critical. Controlling this disease often means lifestyle changes and new routines. It means finding ways to lower stress because stress elevates blood sugar. It means making smart decisions about diet, including what is stocked in the fridge and pantry, pre-planning meals, taking a diabe tes-friendly alternative to a gathering, or making low-carb and low-sugar substitutions. Taking control means adding activities and exercise to rou tines to counteract some of the neg ative impacts that diet, extra weight and biological factors can have on health. Additionally, taking control means keeping appointments with a healthcare team and participating in routine testing.

Keeping on Top of Type 2 Diabe tes with Screening, Testing and Care

Diabetes requires constant mon itoring and testing. It requires a

person to regularly check their blood sugar levels at home, but it also requires testing that is done by a healthcare team in a doctor’s office or lab. People with Type 2 diabetes need a healthcare team. This team is usually a primary care doctor and specialists that are re ferred by the primary care doctor. Also, it is very important for people with di abetes to check in with this healthcare team at least twice a year. In fact, the National Institute of Diabetes, Diges tive and Kidney Diseases recommends the following routine care:

• Primary Care Visits: See your healthcare team at least twice a year, and during each visit, make sure you have a blood pressure check, foot check, weight check and review of your self-care plan. Your healthcare team should also help you access annu al care to check your teeth and gums, conduct a dilated eye exam to check for eye problems, get an annual flu shot, test your cholesterol, and run urine and blood tests to check for kidney prob lems.

• A1C Tests: Your healthcare team should run a test to check your A1C at least twice a year, but if your A1C is over 7, your care team may recom mend more frequent tests and moni toring. (Amerigroup Maryland mem bers are offered a $25 Healthy Reward for completing their diabetic A1C screening. Visit the Amerigroup Mem ber Portal or call the Member Services phone number on your Amerigroup ID card for more information about this benefit.)

• Vaccines: Because diabetes can put you at risk of suffering complica tions from certain diseases, it is very important to follow your healthcare team’s advice on vaccination, including getting vaccines for pneumonia, hepa titis B and COVID-19.

RESOURCES TO HELP

MANAGE TYPE 2 DIABETES

Diabetes can be a lot for a person to handle on their own, but they don’t have to because there is help. In fact, there is a wealth of resources that can help people take control of their health

and lives:

• Friends and Family – Families and friends of people with diabetes should educate themselves about the disease, so they can help loved ones stick to care plans, follow routines, make healthy decisions and so much more. To learn more about how to help a friend or family member who has diabetes visit: https://www. cdc.gov/diabetes/library/features/ family-friends-diabetes.html#:~:tex t=Go%20to%20appointments%20 if%20it's,Avoid%20blame.

• Healthcare Team – Having a primary care doctor, who can help put together a healthcare team, is a must for a person with diabetes. Talk to a primary care doctor about who should be on this healthcare team. Anyone who doesn’t have a primary care doctor should get established with one right

away. Amerigroup Maryland members can get help by visiting: https://www. myamerigroup.com/md/care/find-adoctor.html or calling Member Ser vices at 1-800-600-4441 (TTY 711).

• Amerigroup – Amerigroup Maryland offers health and wellness information online for anyone who is living with diabetes, as well as extra supports and Healthy Rewards for its members who have diabetes. Infor mation, diabetes management apps, interactive tools, links to credible re

sources and even member rewards for keeping up with routine care have been made available by Amer igroup. To explore these resources, visit: https://www.myamerigroup. com/md/care/health-and-wellness. html.

November has been designated as National Diabetes Month. This designation calls upon all Amer icans to join in activities that raise diabetes awareness in order to help prevent, treat and manage this dis ease. It’s a call for everyone to play a role, so whether it is making a lifestyle change, planning a dia betes-friendly adjustment for the next holiday party, researching the disease on the internet, scheduling a doctor’s visit, or talking to friends and family about diabetes, take ac tion that makes a positive impact.

The Informer Introduces Our Earth

Dear readers,

Welcome to the newest section in the Washington Informer’s weekly paper! My name is Kayla, and I joined the paper in June to cover climate change, environmental issues, and sustainability in the DMV. I’m excited about the Informer’s launch of this section as a go-to spot for information about how the environment impacts our commu nity and what people in the DMV are doing about it.

Some of the stories you might find here in the coming weeks will focus on global happenings, like the international Confer ence of Parties taking place in Egypt starting this week, or federal changes like the impacts of the major climate bill Congress passed in August. But more often than not, we’ll be focusing on the envi ronment right here in the D.C. area.

Environmental issues in every category—from toxic pollution to climate-related flooding and heat waves—have disproportion ate impacts on Black Americans. In the District, southeast neigh borhoods experience far higher rates of air pollution and lower numbers of air-cleansing trees than Whiter neighborhoods in Northwest. Almost half the land zoned for industrial use in D.C. is clustered around historically-Black neighborhoods in Ward 5.

But the decades-long fight against environmental racism has picked up steam in recent years, led by Black, Brown, and Indig enous activists. We plan on spotlighting local voices fighting for environmental justice, green space, food equity, and more. We’ll continue covering issues like lead pipes, air pollution, and flooding while following local government efforts to solve these problems.

Most of all, we want to hear from you: what questions or con cerns about our local environment would you like the Informer to look into? Please reach out at kbenjamin@washingtoninformer. com.

Prince George’s County Launches Countywide Curbside Compost Collection

The Program Tackles Climate Change, Landfill Overuse, and Residents’ Calls for More Trash Pickup Services

Kayla Benjamin WI Contributing Writer

After more than three years in the pilot program phase, Prince George’s County launched curbside compost pickup countywide last week. Every home using county trash services— more than 175,000 households— should receive a new outdoor cart and a smaller indoor pail for composting by the end of next year.

“I know that the idea of compost ing may be a new one to some of our residents,” County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said at a press conference to announce the launch on October 3. “I can tell you that composting is im portant because it strengthens the local economy, it reduces waste, it combats the impacts of climate change, and it protects our environment.”

When buried in a landfill, food scraps and other organic waste release high amounts of methane—a green house gas even more potent than carbon dioxide. Composting address es both climate change and landfill overflow. In addition, some of the

composted material is repurposed into a soil additive for improving plant and lawn growth, which the county sells for revenue.

Alsobrooks also touted the ex panded curbside program as an en vironmentally-conscious solution to a problem Prince George’s residents have raised: limited trash collection services. The county switched from a twice-weekly garbage pickup to oncea-week in 2016, matching the services provided in nearby Maryland counties and in D.C., a change that sparked a backlash. Earlier this year, Prince George’s added bulk trash pickup to the waste collection services provided.

“Our residents have been asking for additional days for waste collection, and the truth of the matter is, this is not an issue that we will resolve by simply putting more trucks on the road to haul more trash to our land fills,” Alsobrooks said. “We cannot af ford to go backwards in terms of waste collection.”

According to a recent Waste Char acterization Study, food and other organic waste makes up more than

a third of materials found in Prince George’s landfill. Not all residents have been sending their scraps there, though—more than 20,000 Prince George’s households had already opt ed into the county’s pilot program for curbside composting.

“I think it will make a big differ ence,” said Betty Wise, an Upper Marlboro resident who was an ear ly joiner of the pilot program. “You know, I noticed that when I put out my green bin, on the regular trash day I only have like one or two kitchen-size bags to put out. So I'm putting out less trash, which means if everybody does that, the landfills won't fill up as quickly.”

Wise said some of her neighbors have expressed hesitation about join ing the program, mostly citing con cerns about smells or vermin. To solve that problem, she said she keeps her small compost pail—provided by the county—in her fridge with a com postable liner bag. When the bag fills up, she moves it to her freezer. The

Cheers, Kayla & the rest of the WI Team

5 County Executive Angela Alsobrooks emphasized the curbside composting program’s twin goals: providing extra trash services for residents and pushing environmental sustainability. (Anthony Tilghman/The Washington Informer)

Spotlighting Black Environmentalists: A Q&A with Wesley Wiggins

Kayla Benjamin WI Contributing Writer

At 22 years old, Wesley Wig gins already spends a lot of time thinking about his own lega cy. He is a seventh-generation Washingtonian from Douglass, a neighborhood in the southeast. Wiggins graduated from Prince ton University in May 2021. Now he’s back in D.C. working with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Creating Resilient Water Utilities Initiative as a fellow with the Oak Ridge Institute for Sci ence and Education. Earlier this fall, Wiggins led a presentation on climate resilience for individuals and communities as his final proj ect through Black Millennials for Flint’s DC Environmental Griots program.

Kayla Benjamin: Tell me a little bit about your family and growing up here in the District.

Wesley Wiggins: My family has

been in DC for a really long time. I can't chart the journey exactly, but if I’m remembering correctly, from what my parents have told me, post-escaping slavery, this is kind of where my ancestors went, and planted their roots. And then we've been here ever since.

I live right in between Congress Heights metro and the Southern Avenue station. My mom, dad, and my three sisters lived basical ly in the same neighborhood our whole lives. There's a communi ty center near my house called THEARC, and I have a lot of fond memories there.

And I just got into a lot of D.C. programs growing up. And then by the time I got to high school, I was really into the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. I spent a lot of time volunteering there.

KB: What got you interested in the museum—were you into sci ence before that?

WW: I think I've always had a

fascination with science. I had a rock collection when I was young er; my parents got me a science kit. I was always a very curious child. And I think a lot of it was science fairs.

So by the time I got to high school at BASIS DC, a Public Charter School in northwest, I got the core sciences like biology, chemistry, physics. And I really gravitated towards biology and then really gravitated towards ecology. And then I learned about climate change.

KB: Did you know then that you wanted to keep going with the science stuff after high school?

WW: Yeah, I went to Princeton University, and I majored in geo science and minored in environ mental studies. I think the really interesting thing about my time at Princeton is that I wrote my col lege application essay about how WIGGINS Page 47

Vacuum Leaf Collection Program

How to Prepare for Leaf Vacuum Collection:

• Check the DPW website to confirm your area’s leaf collection dates;

• Move vehicles from curb lanes to help ease the leaf vacuum collection process;

• Rake leaves to the curbside or tree box at the front of the residence the Sunday before the scheduled leaf collection date;

• Remove all cans, bottles, sticks, toys and debris from your piles of leaves—these items can damage equipment and prevent safe and proper collection

For more information, please visit dpw.dc.gov/service/leaf-collection

5Wesley Wiggins leads a training on climate resilience at MLK Library on October 22. ability. (Kayla Benjamin/The Washington Informer)

Your Liver Care Destination

When it comes to liver care, there’s no need to search all over the region. Turn to GW Hospital for comprehensive services in one place, now including liver transplantations.

Located in the heart of D.C. and easily accessible by bus and Metro, we offer care for a wide range of conditions, including:

• Acute liver failure

• Cirrhosis

• Fatty liver disease

• Liver cancer

• Liver lesions

• Liver masses

• Liver transplantation

• Viral hepatitis

We also help manage diseases while patients await an available organ for transplant. Whether you require care at our Liver and Pancreas Institute for Quality or our Transplant Institute, GW Hospital is dedicated to your liver health.

We are now accepting patients for evaluations.  Learn more at gwhospital.com/livertransplant

Physicians are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of The George Washington University Hospital. The hospital shall not be liable for actions or treatments provided by physicians. For language assistance, disability accommodations and the nondiscrimination notice, visit our website. 221090250-1140662 10/22

Stephen Gray, MD Surgical Director, GW Liver Transplant Program

Zahid Vahora, MD Medical Director, GW Liver Transplant Program

Lynt B. Johnson, MD, FACS Executive Director of the GW Liver and Pancreas Institute for Quality

EDUCATION

Global African-Centered Clean Up Project Focuses on Health and the Environment

Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer

For the first time since the pan demic, children at Roots Public Charter School in Northwest will once again participate in community service activities. The latest gathering, scheduled for this weekend, counts as part of a global movement taking place in parts of the United States, the United Kingdom and Africa.

On November 12, Roots PCS will participate in the Black Star Action Network International (BSANI)’s Be Clean campaign, an annual event that has roots in Freetown, Sierra Le one. Throughout much of the morn ing, young people and adults will en gage in dialogue about health and the environment before walking through Manor Park and Brightwood Park in Northwest to pick up trash.

Bernida Thompson, founder of Roots PCS, said the Be Clean cam paign aligns with her school’s values.

“We work with children to raise their awareness and help them [fulfill] their political and economic commu nity responsibilities,” Thompson said.

“A part of our mission is to encour age success leading to self-reliance, economic, social and political contri butions to society,” she added.

Organizations partnering for this endeavor include the Universal Ne gro Improvement Association Rec onciliatory Committee 2020 and the Pan-African Federalist Movement of North America,

The World Health Organization connects diarrhea, cholera, dysentery,

intestinal worm infections and polio to unclean water, and the lack of san itation. Experts say that nearly half of the people living on the African continent will face these conditions during their lifetime.

BSANI launched the Be Clean campaign in the fall of 2017, months after the Mount Sugarloaf mudslide claimed hundreds of lives in Free town, Sierra Leone and threatened to exacerbate the spread of disease.

In the aftermath of the mudslide, organizers gathered children from the community and cleaned up market places to address concerns about a cholera outbreak. BSANI members didn’t want Sierra Leone’s then-pres idential candidates involved in the program, except for Pan-Africanist Karim Bah. Still, the clean ups at tracted their attention.

It even inspired similar movements in the West African country, and lat er a mandate by Sierra Leone Presi dent Julius Maada Bio who required residents clean up public areas once a month for more than a year. Free town Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, Bio’s political rival, also coordinated similar projects.

Five years later, BSANI’s Be Clean campaign not only has a presence in Sierra Leone, but other countries ad opted the program, as well, including Monrovia, Liberia; Lagos, Nigeria; and Gunjar, Gambia. Partnering or ganizations are located throughout the U.S. in D.C, New York, Detroit, Jacksonville, Florida, and Oakland and San Diego, California, as well as in Birmingham, United Kingdom.

In an era where cholera, Ebola and COVID have ravaged portions of the African continent, the Be Clean cam paign’s educational component has become even more essential. BSANI members tour schools and other ven ues to distribute cleaning products and conduct workshops about prop er handwashing and sanitation.

A young woman within their ranks has also created feminine products.

The group raised hundreds of dol lars through a crowdfunding cam paign to carry out these efforts with out government assistance.

BSANI founder and head orga nizer Chief Mansa Foday Ajamu Mansaray said that the Be Clean

campaign speaks to the power of Universal African Nationalism, as articulated by Marcus Mosiah Gar vey. He said that BSANI will work to institutionalize these events so that disaffected youth on the African continent and around the world will continue to receive compensation for their good deeds.

“We can have teams in D.C., De troit, and Monrovia to combat and fight against gentrification, and pro mote volunteerism and Pan-African ism,” said Mansaray, a repatriate from Pennsylvania who has lived in Sierra Leone for a decade.

“The Be Clean campaign is one of those things that would be similar

to the Black Panther Party’s breakfast program. It took the Black Panthers to organize the parents in the same way. No one can deny that every where Africans live, we can be clean -- not only in our environment but our private lives.”

“It’s important for our children to focus on the school community, en vironment and health because if you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything. That’s the bottom line. Our environment is directly related to our health,” emphasized Thompson.

For more information about BSA NI’s Be Clean Campaign, visit BSANI. org. WI

@SamPKCollins

After Nearby Shooting, Some Roosevelt Staff Members Concerned about Emergency Response

Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer

Nearly two dozen staff mem bers at Theodore Roosevelt High School in Northwest stayed home on Monday out of concern about what some described as inconsis tent leadership, lax communica tion, and lack of preparation for on-campus emergencies.

The recent emergency that trig gered this sentiment occurred on the morning of November 2 when the Metropolitan Police Depart ment (MPD) responded to re ports of gunshots in the parking lot Roosevelt shares with nearby MacFarland Middle School.

Staff members and students getting their day started heard the gunshots, some of which dam aged teachers’ cars. Accounts in clude details about people outside of Roosevelt running for cover and even attempting to enter the building after administrators initi ated a lockdown.

One staff member who spoke on the condition of anonymity said administrators lifted the lock down in less than an hour and kept the normal schedule intact, even though teachers and students in some parts of the building hadn’t yet heard from them.

An email The Informer later secured showed that Roosevelt’s

af ternoon.

The staff member said that without opportunities to practice during lockdown drills, teachers had no idea of how to navigate the emergency, especially as students reacted to by-the-minute reports about the shooting circulating on social media.

“We’ve done multiple fire drills this year already, and it’s absurd that we haven’t done one lock down drill,” the staff member said.

“There are a lot of new teach

5 Roots Public Charter School in Northwest (Courtesy Photo)

acting principal Brandon Eatman communicated with staff members about the shooting in the early

Annual Hoodie Season Event Promotes Community, Self-Reliance

Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer

Over the last seven years, an an nual birthday celebration has incre mentally morphed into an exercise in philanthropy and community orga nizing. So much so that it recently at tracted hundreds of people eager for a good time and solutions to some of the District’s most pressing issues.

During the most recent install ment of the event known as Hoodie Season, nearly 400 participants not only donated 90 hoodies and helped raise thousands of dollars for a local nonprofit, but sat front row center as up-and-coming local acts showcased their talents on a stage at the Well at Oxon Run in Southeast.

“Black people have been under at tack from every angle. The only way to beat systemic racism and oppression is being systemic and strategic in build ing up our communities,” said Dwight Lacy, founder of Hoodie Season.

“We have to analyze the system that is put in place to trip us up,” he continued.

“Once we do that, we can use our collective resources and tap into the seven Kwanzaa principles to build from within. That’s the only way that we can get this slice of this American pie,” Lacy added.

For this year’s Hoodie Sea son event, Lacy collaborated with D.O.L.L.S. [Daughters Overcoming Life’s Lessons] and Dreams and the Hustlers Guild.

D.O.L.L.S. and Dreams, a non

profit organization providing life skills and educational support to young women, will distribute the donated hoodies to District public school students. Meanwhile, Hustlers Guild will use the funds collected to conduct programming focused on college readiness, professional devel opment and innovation.

During the fall of 2015, the first Hoodie Season was held in conjunc tion with Lacy’s belated birthday cel ebration. Weeks after recovering from an illness, Lacy hosted a party at his apartment complex and invited his friends, all of whom he encouraged to wear hoodies in anticipation of the changing weather.

When Donald Trump entered of fice in early 2017, Lacy made plans to channel Hoodie Season’s positive en ergy in support of the Hustlers Guild at the time when its founder, Jason Spears, a former Obama administra tion official, launched the nonprofit.

Two years later, in 2019, Lacy started selling tickets to the event to generate funds for Hustlers Guild.

In the weeks leading up to the most recent Hoodie Season, a flyer circulated online with images en couraging civic engagement and control of one’s affairs, themes Lacy continues to promote.

On November 5, guests who con verged on the Well at Oxon Run during an unseasonably warm day enjoyed barbeque from JetSet BBQ and Colby’s BBQ, both Black-owned businesses. Nearly a dozen vendors scattered throughout the venue also

sold candles, handcrafted jewelry, original artwork, and other merchan dise.

DJ Hamp kept guests grooving well into the evening hours while members of The Arguing Brothers Podcast conducted a livestream.

By nightfall, guest Eryn Murray had set up shop by the bonfire and spent time with a friend who just moved to the District. Throughout most of the Hoodie Season event,

Murray perused the different vendor tables and nibbled on barbeque that took her back to her childhood in Kentucky.

For her, the diversity of events and the disposition of the guests re affirmed what she has thought about D.C. since moving to the area a de cade ago.

As a resident of Northern Virginia who frequents the District, Murray not only enjoyed another gathering

with young professionals from vari ous walks of life, but she contributed to the well-being of young people.

She said doing the latter in a fun and positive environment counted as the greatest aspect of Hoodie Season, which she learned about in an email weeks prior.

“ I like that Hoodie Season is do nating to good causes,” Murray said.

“Next year, I’ll tell people to bring a hoodie, bring a friend and bring a drink to enjoy themselves. There were a lot of elements for people to experience all at once. This event was positive, uplifting and supportive of a good vibe.” WI

@SamPKCollins

5 (L-R) Hoodie Season founder Dwight Lacy speaks with Donovan Springs and Ladeldrick McQuarter of the Arguing Brother's Podcast during the November 5 event at the Well at Oxon Run in Southeast (Photo courtesy of Jason Spears)

“Black people have been under attack from every angle. The only way to beat systemic racism and oppression is being systemic and strategic in building up our communities,” said Dwight Lacy, founder of Hoodie Season.

ers who don’t know the lockdown procedure.”

Eatman and assistant principal for climate and culture Darryl Powell, didn’t respond to The In former’s request for comment.

On its website, DCPS said it has coordinated guidance for emergency planning, response and compliance. Central office em ployees work with schools to en sure fidelity to protocol. In total, public schools are supposed to per form 10 fire drills throughout the school year, along with two lock down drills, one shelter-in-place, one evacuation and relocation, and a bevy of other procedures re lated to natural disasters.

A lockdown drill scheduled well before last week’s lockdown will take place on November 16.

Months earlier, community members at Roosevelt experienced an emergency that required a re sponse much like what DCPS said administrators executed on No vember 2.

In a statement, a DCPS spokes person said that Roosevelt and MacFarland went into lockdown mode throughout that entire morning. Both schools lifted the lockdown once MPD completed its investigation. Until then, ad ministrators cleared hallways and postponed outdoor activities while locking doors and prohibiting people from entering or leaving the premises.

DCPS didn’t respond to an in quiry about whether mental health professionals were dispatched.

However, they said administrators communicated with all appropri ate parties.

“DCPS actively works with MPD during these challenging incidents and remains in constant communication with school offi cials,” the spokesperson said. “We consult with MPD to ensure we can communicate incidents to DCPS families and share updates in a timely manner.”

As of Monday, 177 homicides have been reported in the District this year, along with more than 1,200 assaults with a deadly weap on.

Some shootings have happened near public and public charter schools. Toward the end of Oc tober, authorities found a young woman fatally shot in a car near Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Northwest. In August, a 15-year-old youth was charged with shooting and wounding two classmates near IDEA Public Charter School in Northeast.

Another shooting near Mundo Verde Bilingual Public Charter School in Northwest that month claimed two lives.

On the morning of November 3, teachers and staff members at Roosevelt took part in meetings where they shared ideas about how to move forward. As one staff member recounted, participants heard various perspectives on the situation, depending on one’s lo cation in the school and whether their classroom had an intercom system.

The staff member who request ed anonymity said that adminis

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trators followed the proper steps when it came to gathering infor mation, alerting teachers, and clearing the hallways. However, they expressed empa

thy with frustrated colleagues.

“We didn’t know until 10 min utes later that something hap pened outside of the building,” the staff member said. “I felt I got the

information [during the incident], but I could see if someone had an other interpretation of how it went down.” WI

@SamPKCollins

5 The Roosevelt High School community recently dealt with an active shooter scare.

(Courtesy photo)

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Double Victory, Always

The African American quest for social equality and protection in America continues to fuel a similar desire for others across the globe. Once known as the Double Victory (or Double V Campaigns), Black servicemen and women risked their lives to courageously protect and liberate the dispossessed. Black men and women have served valiantly in every conflict in American history in the nation’s pursuit of both independence and global power. Their service has helped define the personhood of Africans in America and actualize the belief in the inalienable rights upon which the nation would later be founded.

For instance, roughly 8,000 Africans in the colonies served in the Patriots (British) Army with valor during the Revolutionary War. Among them were Crispus Attucks, Peter Salem and James Armistead Lafayette, who were promised freedom in exchange for fighting on behalf of the Crown.

Their commitment to the cause of freedom and personhood came as colony leaders, vic torious in their pursuit of independence, tabulated their political and social value with the 3/5ths Compromise (1787). This agreement allowed the enslaved to be counted as 3/5 of a person for both representation and taxation. The Compromise also decreed the end of the international slave trade -- after two decades (until 1808) and charged the federal govern ment with returning runaway slaves (fugitive laborers) throughout the country.

Black enlisted faced discrimination and racism from within as documented by U.S. Ma jor General H.E. Ely’s assessment of Black ‘manpower’ in 1925. Ely stereotyped Blacks as an incapable sub-species who were inherently weak in character, natural cowards, and dis loyal – making them poor servicemen. Still, Black soldiers proved their bravery and might, receiving honors stateside and abroad.

Despite social obstacles, African Americans eagerly answered the call to serve: More than 180,000 in the Civil War, over 700,000 registered for military service to fight in World War I, more than 1 million during WWII, 600,000 African Americans served in the armed forces during the Korean War, an estimated 300,000 served in the Vietnam War – totaling 31 percent of the ground combat battalions in Vietnam, and according to the Department of Defense, active-duty service members numbered 1,319,283; of those, 227,974, or 17.3 percent, were African American, as of December 2021.

The Washington Informer honors those who served our nation so courageously and thank them for their service.

WI

Voting on You

A new national poll heading into the election season found that Black women voters made up a demographic of particularly eager voters. In addition to being anxious to cast their votes in the 2022 midterm elections, they approached the ballot box as a means of toppling concerns over rising food, housing, and medical care costs. But while running to the polls, that same energy is not being expensed on caring for themselves.

Chronic stressors have been associated with Black women developing disproportionate cases of mental and physical ailments and diseases. The Soujorner syndrome and the Super woman Schema (SWS) concepts are used to explain the phenomenon of early onset of mor bidity among African American women in response to persistent chronic stress and active coping associated with meeting day-to-day demands and having multiple caregiver roles.

In the shadows of Black Girl Day Off -- yes, it is a bona fide national holiday – (held Oct. 11), few Black women recognize the stressors that are leading to their burnout. Black Girl Day Off, recognized annually on the day after World Mental Health Day, was designated “to encourage Black women to take a mental day off to focus on their emotional well-being.”

“A day like Black Girl Day Off brings awareness to the ‘Superhuman’ ideals that come with being a ‘Strong Black Woman,’ which is an expectation/stereotype/assumption that many women of color have to continue to perform because of pressures to manage several roles,” Valessa Gray, assistant director of counseling and diversity and inclusion initiatives for Ohio University’s Counseling and Psychological Services told The Athens Post. “Having multiple marginalized identities increases the likelihood of experiencing day-to-day stress ors.”

Irrespective of the election outcomes, the time has come for Black women to vote on themselves by setting necessary boundaries and achievable goals before crafting those New Year’s resolutions for 2023. Some things require immediate attention. Stress is not new among Black people – particularly Black women who traditionally lumber themselves with the burdens of their households, families, jobs, and larger society. What can be different going forward, is turning off the mobile phone, disconnecting from the world around you, and casting a ballot for your own wellbeing. WI

I am not surprised that this Supreme Court is now taking aim at Affirmative Action. First, reproductive rights, now this, and I’m willing to bet same-sex marriage is next. The election of Donald Trump set all of these unfortunate events in motion. If people don’t see the conse quences of elections from this situation, I don’t know what will.

Tomasina P. Dorsey Washington, DC

Readers' Mailbox

TO THE EDITOR

I still think about Relisha Rudd and the tragedy of her kidnapping. It truly breaks my heart of the evil that lurks in our com munities and the children who have no protection or covering and become victims. The District has to do better to protect our children, but most of all, we must protect ours, whether we know them or not.

Tina Albach Washington, DC

The Washington Informer welcomes letters to the editor about articles we publish or issues affecting the community. Write to: lsax ton@washingtoninformer. com or send to: 3117 Martin Luther King Jr Ave., SE, Washington, D.C. 20032. Please note that we are unable to publish letters that do not include a full name, address and phone number. We look forward to hearing from you.

Race Neutrality is Anti-Blackness

During this Supreme Court ses sion, the justices will tackle affirmative action in two cases brought by Stu dents for Fair Admissions opposing affirmative action policies at Har vard University and the University of North Carolina. According to its web site, this group represents "20,000 stu dents, parents and others who believe that racial classifications and prefer ences to college admissions are unfair,

unnecessary and unconstitutional." Where were these people when Afri can Americans were explicitly exclud ed from college admissions? Where were they when Black folks had to sue to be admitted?

Consider the George McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents case, where McLaurin, an African American man, was denied admission to a graduate program at Oklahoma University solely because of his race. In 1950, it was illegal in Oklahoma to attend, teach at or operate an educational in

Guest Columnist

stitution that admitted both white and Black students. Taxpayers, including Black citizens, funded this university. This was affirmative action for white folks, but no "Students for Fair Ad missions" challenged the racist policy.

Anti-blackness was acceptable his torically, and it is alive and well today. The bizarre concept of race neutrality in a racist society is nothing more than historical denial. Anti-blackness is wo ven into the fabric of our nation, and affirmative action, minority set- asides, and other race-conscious remedies are

merely the antidote to historical struc tural racism. These "Students for Fair Admission" have embraced the abso lute unfairness of how national public policy is tilted against Black people. Enslavement was not race-neutral. Jim Crow laws were not race-neu tral. Fair Housing redlining was not race-neutral. But these Students for Fair Admissions want race neutrality. They need the education in American history they missed since they did not study how so-called race neutrality has harmed Black people.

Tell the Supreme Court: We Still Need Affirmative Action

Once admitted to Oklahoma Uni versity, George McLaurin was segre gated in the library, classrooms, and cafeteria. The lower court ruled that his "inconvenience" was minor. The Supreme Court found for McLau rin, but only after a multi-year battle. Meanwhile, Oklahoma University found his classroom presence so oner ous that he was forced to listen to lec tures in a closet that was separate from the classroom space for other students.

One of the great joys of my life is teaching. I'm fortunate to teach classes on social justice at the Uni versity of Pennsylvania, one of the most respected schools in the coun try. Penn has a longstanding com mitment to affirmative action, and I have seen first-hand how diversity in the classroom benefits all my stu dents. There's just no question that diversity is a core piece of a vibrant academic community and a critical

part of the learning experience — for all of us. Bringing together students with different lived experiences forc es students to think critically about their assumptions, which is an essen tial goal of a university education.

That's why I, like so many of us, am deeply concerned about two af firmative action cases argued at the Supreme Court just a few days ago. Opponents of affirmative action have been trying to destroy it for years. And now it looks like they just might get their chance.

Two universities, Harvard and the University of North Carolina

(UNC), are defending their admis sions programs against opponents who want them declared unconstitu tional. (The university where I teach, Penn, and the organization I lead, People For the American Way, have both joined briefs supporting the universities' positions.) Considering race as one of many factors in ad missions has been upheld by the Su preme Court for decades. The court has said repeatedly that diversity in higher education is a "compelling interest."

But today's Supreme Court is dif ferent. It's dominated by far-right

justices who have made it clear they don't share this view. Chief Justice John Roberts' famous quote, "The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race," sums it up: con servatives believe affirmative action is at best unnecessary and at worst just another type of discrimination. Some conservatives would like to retire affirmative action because they claim it's accomplished everything it set out to do. But it hasn't. Not even close.

In Texas and Michigan, applica tions and enrollments of Black and

Latino students plunged after state politicians banned the consideration of race in admission to their public universities. That's a huge red flag. Nationally, there's a big gap between the percentage of white and Black students who earn a bachelor's de gree. And that perpetuates all kinds of harm and inequities in income, health, family wealth, and more. We still have a long way to go in building a fair society in which all our chil dren can thrive.

And here's an important point

We should never take for grant ed the power of a person's spoken words. At times, they may ap pear idle and harmless, but those words' subtle and indirect messag es can ultimately prove deadly. A clever person, when they speak, understands the hearts and minds of his listeners. A clever and in sensitive person will take that un derstanding and use it for malice

and ill will. If I mention the name George Wallace, many people may immediately think of the come dian. Others would remember the former governor of Alabama who Martin Luther King Jr. once called the "most dangerous racist in America." Gov. Wallace was dangerous because of his spoken words. While many remember him as a segregationist, most peo ple never knew that the NAACP once endorsed Wallace.

In 1958, during his first run

for governor of Alabama, Wallace was a moderate Democrat who rejected the idea of making race an issue while declining a formal endorsement from the Ku Klux Klan. By welcoming Klan support, his opponent overwhelmingly de feated Wallace in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. But Wal lace was a shrewd politician who adjusted well and developed a deep insight into the mindset of the Southern white working class. He understood the reasons behind

their hate, their anger and their disenchantment. He understood their distrust of the federal govern ment while encouraging the need to stand up against it. Driven by political ambition and the thirst for power, he redefined himself as a segregationist with a strong, au thoritative persona. Four years lat er, he ran again for governor, this time as a vocal champion for seg regation and states' rights. He won by a landslide. In his inauguration address, written by leaders of the

Ku Klux Klan, Wallace followed the cultural influence of his base supporters by vowing "segrega tion now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever." In four years, George Wallace transformed from a moderate gubernatorial candi date supported by the NAACP into an "angry man's candidate" who played upon the fears, griev ances and hatred of white South erners.

Ben Jealous

Julianne Malveaux

Guest Columnist

David W. Marshall

Idle Words Can Lead to Political Violence

OPINIONS/EDITORIALS

Joe Biden's Great Recovery

One definition of recovery is "a re turn to a normal state of health, mind or strength." Another is "the action or process of regaining possession or control of something stolen or lost." I can't think of any more appropriate descriptions of the first 20 months of President Joe Biden's administration. History records President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the creator of the New Deal, President Harry S. Truman as the initiator of the Fair Deal, and

President Lyndon Johnson as the mas termind of the Great Society. I believe historians will one day recognize Pres ident Joseph R. Biden as the engineer of the Great Recovery.

When President Biden took office on Jan. 20, 2021, the country was in the grip of a global pandemic that was killing more than 3,000 people per day. Businesses were shuttering, schools were closing, and the nation's unemployment rate was 6.4%. The American people were losing faith in their government and its elected offi cials.

Guest Columnist

Is Brown Next?

The bombastic style of the previ ous administration was wearing thin on the American public and their lack of substance was visiting hard ships on the American people, their families and their communities. Our nation's long pursuit of "a more per fect Union" seemed to be coming to an unceremonious end. In short, our democracy was at peril.

President Biden and congressional Democrats are engineering a "Great Recovery" of, for and by the American people. From day one, we have focused on shoring up the shaky foundation

left by the previous administration. On March 11, 2021, less than two months after he took office, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan (ARP) putting in place the first pillar of the foundation upon which he would jump-start a great recov ery. The ARP put money in people's pockets, got children back in school and lifted nearly half of those children living in poverty out of poverty. We reopened businesses, kept workers on their jobs and stemmed the deadly rampage of COVID-19 by expanding testing and access to vaccines.

The second pillar of Biden's foun dation came on Nov. 15, 2021, when he signed the Infrastructure Invest ment and Jobs Act. Joe Biden's his toric investment in our crumbling and outdated infrastructure is putting people to work repairing roads and bridges, expanding high-speed broad band, cleaning our drinking water and creating a resilient electric grid. It is replacing lead pipes, making a down payment on clean energy transmis sion and erecting charging stations

E. Faye Williams

"It is the policy of the Government of the United States to … promote the full realization of equal employment opportunity through a continuing af firmative program in each executive department and agency." — President Richard M. Nixon, Executive Order 11478 (Aug. 8, 1969)

Resulting from the concerted ef forts of civil rights activists, this exec utive order was issued to remedy the

systemic, pervasive and traditional discrimination — institutional dis crimination – that had governed and shaped federal government employment practices for decades. From that time forward, federal em ployment practices were to be con ducted without regard to race, color, religion, sex or national origin. With the exception of HBCUs, advanced education was singularly available to whites, while fewer opportunities existed for non-whites. Soon after the executive order and assessing the similarities of past discriminatory policies and practices within their

ranks, colleges and universities began to acknowledge the need to adjust admission policies to reverse and eliminate practices of institutional discrimination.

At the urging of civil rights activ ists, increased numbers of Black stu dents were admitted. These increased numbers of admissions were logically justified as remedial, but were also recognized as an enhancement to the academic environment. The resulting intellectual, cultural and social diver sity realized by these "affirmative" admissions created a learning and de mographic environment that more

closely reflected the general society and provided improved opportuni ties for positive interpersonal inter actions. Although not immediate or without challenges, these bilateral goals of eliminating discrimination practices and expanding intellectual diversity were set in motion. Since being placed into practice, these "af firmative" admission policies have faced legal challenges alleging "re verse discrimination."

Resulting court decisions in high profile cases involving highly ranked institutions have directed modifi cations to admission policies, but

The Ghost of Lee Atwater Haunts the 2022 Midterm Elections

current challenges face a more reac tionary social mindset and a more dogmatic Supreme Court. At this writing, the Supreme Court of the United States is entertaining chal lenges to the admission policies of Harvard University and the Uni versity of North Carolina. In this immediate case, Asian American students allege that "race-conscious" admissions have prevented the ad mission of more qualified Asian American applicants.

According to The Washington

"It is not new to see antisemitism or overt racism in politics. What is new is after years … in which it was clear that to be credible in public life politicians had to reject prejudice, it's now been normalized in ways that are really quite breath taking."

— ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt

Violent crime, which fell during

the height of the COVID-19 pan demic, has returned to a level last seen in 2016. A majority of the perpetra tors of violent crime are white. And undocumented immigrants are far less likely than native-born Americans to commit violent crimes.

Political ads flooding the airwaves, however, paint a starkly different and wildly misleading picture, "portraying chaos by depicting Black rioters and Hispanic immigrants illegally racing across the border," the New York Times reports.

These ads aren't really about crime or immigration, however. They're about race.

The effort was especially pro nounced in the effort to defeat candidates of color. In Wisconsin, opponents of Mandela Barnes, the lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, dis tributed a mailer in which the color of Barnes' skin was darkened. Another ad brands Barnes as "different" and "dangerous" while flashing the images of three Congress members of color,

none of whom has campaigned with him.

In Georgia, images of gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams have been darkened by her opponent's cam paign.

It's not just the candidates whose images are being darkened: An ad distributed in several House districts in New Mexico shows a barber with darkened hands and suggests that he is a sex offender.

Research shows that people sub consciously associate darker skin with negative personality traits and crime. This bias is linked to deadly conse quences like police shootings and substandard medical care. Respon sible public servants should work to counteract it. Instead, far too many are all too happy to exploit it for po litical gain.

Racism has always been present in American political campaigns, but the

Marc H. Morial

Rep. James Clyburn

LIFESTYLE

Chuck D on Death of Takeoff: ‘When Corporations Show Up God Leaves the Room’

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

As family, friends, and fans, con tinue to mourn the death of Migos member Takeoff, the demand for hip-hop to take a stand against gun violence has grown.

While many have expressed dis belief and anger that the shooting death of the 28-year-old, whose real name is Kirshnik Khari Ball, took place allegedly because of an argument over a dice game.

Fans on social media and the mainstream press have quickly tossed blame at everyone from Takeoff’s bandmate Quavo to clothing boss J. Prince, Jr. and even to the slain rap star himself.

And, as always, hip-hop has

come under fire.

That’s no surprise to legendary Public Enemy frontman Chuck D, whom most recognize as hip-hop’s voice of reason.

A perspective perhaps only the “Fight the Power” artist can offer, Chuck noted that any other indus try that has seen as many fatalities as hip-hop would have addressed that issue long ago.

And Chuck doesn’t put the blame entirely on the artists.

“This curiosity of what is this hiphop thing, what is this Black thing. The world always seems to want to know and mimic our greatness,” Chuck asserted during a 30-minute interview with the Black Press of America’s live morning news pro gram, “Let It Be Known.”

“And if they can find a way to finance and have our people mim ic us at our worst – the stereotype that generalizes us as a bunch of murderous thugs and metastasize that over a 10-15-20-year period as being normal, then we got a prob lem.”

He continued:

“I don’t blame the youth. You’ve got to blame some adults hiding behind the scenes, pied piping and pied papering all of this madness and making this kind of thing seem normal. Was there a shootout at a dice game? Yes. Were Black men involved in that circle? Yes. But it’s somebody pushing buttons and pulling levers and not only do ing so, but they have been greatly enriched financially by these inci dents.”

Takeoff’s death counts among a string of murders in the hip-hop community over the past several years.

Other high-profile murders include PnB Rock, Pop Smoke, XXXTentacion, Nipsey Hustle, King Von, and Young Dolph.

“I was in college when Biggie and ‘Pac was killed and thought there was no way we’d ever expe rience anything remotely close to that again,” media personali ty Jemele Hill tweeted following Takeoff’s death.

“Now,” Hill continued. “It’s happening so frequently that you barely have time to recover before someone else is killed.”

Chuck noted that a large part of the argument about hip-hop deaths and violence comes from many who don’t consider all avail able facts.

“There are hundreds of thou sands of artists out there,” he said when asked whether the young er artists pay attention to the old heads.

“Who do you count? Do you count the more successful ones because more people like them? When we start getting into follow ers and likes, those algorithms don’t add up to who we are as a people,” Chuck insisted.

He explained, “I have ten sta tions on Rap Station (Radio). We play artists from the underground and under-found. We play artists with a 10-15-year career, women worldwide and in more abundance than in the United States.”

Chuck continued:

“If you only pay attention to what’s being washed up on your shores, you’re going to get a limit ed view of what it really is. There is really no kind of educational fo rum that people can go to like in other aspects of life. Our arts and culture should be taught to us. If we don’t control our educational curriculum, we’re going to let cor porations teach us. And, whenever corporations show up, God walks out the door.”

In a recent podcast, Takeoff spoke about receiving his flowers before he died.

“It’s time to pop it,” Takeoff said on “Drink Champs.”

“It’s time to give me my flowers. I don’t want them later when I’m not here. I want them right now.”

Chuck said the life artists today lead, compared to earlier hip-hop stars, is different.

“At the beginning of hip-hop, es pecially in the real beginning, cats

wanted to get away from that,” Chuck recounted.

“They didn’t want to be in the Bronx. New York City had been deemphasized and abandoned by the U.S.A. during a tough fiscal time post-Nixon. Cats saw the emergence of hard drugs coming in out of nowhere. Guns coming out of nowhere, and cats wanted to get away from that, and they didn’t want to [rhyme] about that in the 1980s.”

He concluded:

“You had MCs and rappers who adhered to those values and quali ties. We could have “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash and the Fu rious Five that talked about what’s going on, but they also made par ty records to not talk about things people saw every day.

“There was a balance to at least try to bring good times into the picture. People often said Public Enemy bought a political message, but we came from the 1960s, so we remember a time of being broke but not broken.

“Many cats came from the 1970s doing hip hop in the 1980s and 1990s.

“We came from the Black Pan ther Party doing lunch programs, the Nation of Islam doing things in the neighborhood. We remember Dr. Martin Luther King and Mal colm X being assassinated when they were living people to us.

“On my birth certificate, it says ‘Negro.’ I remember being ‘Colored’ and ‘Black is Beautiful.’ That’s a different period that has been kind of pushed under the rug in Americana.”

WI

5 Chuck D continues to count as the voice of reason inside and outside the hip-hop community/NNPA Newswire Photo

WABJ to Honor Top Journalists at December Gala

WI Staff Writer

Five noted professionals in the journalism and communications fields will be honored next month at a gala sponsored by the Wash ington Association of Black Jour nalists.

The Special Honors Awards Gala will take place on Dec. 10 at the Eaton DC in Northwest and will be presented by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The Lifetime Achievement Award will go to Adelle M. Banks, the projects editor and national re porter for Religion News Service.

The Legacy Award will be filled by Washington Informer free lance writer Hamil Harris, who has worked for the Washington AFRO-American Newspaper, The Washington Post and other publi cations.

“I cried when I learned that I would receive this award because it comes from a new generation of reporters, writers, and editors who are members of the WABJ,” Har

ris said. “My heart is full because I am 62, and I have spent the last 40 years fighting to report and write stories, and it has not always been easy. But I know that to be validat ed by my colleagues feels so good. I am honored.”

Tracee Wilkins, the Prince George’s County bureau chief for NBC4, is slated to receive the Journalist of the Year Award, while the Young Journalist of the Year Award will go to Nolan D. McCaskill, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times.

Lon Walls, president and CEO of Walls & Associates, Inc., will receive the Excellence in Commu nications Award.

“We are excited about this inau gural event, which showcases the contributions of our membership to the Washington region,” said WABJ President Khorri Atkin son. “Our esteemed honorees have done impactful work throughout their stellar careers worth celebrat ing and emulating.”

Tis the Season:

A AZZY HOLIDAY

Saturday, December 17, 2022 @ 2PM

Doors open at 1:30PM

Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center Kay Theatre - University of Maryland College Park

Program

director position. Going forward, the gift designates the position as the Roger Ferguson and Annette Nazareth Director of the Anacos tia Community Museum.

“Since its inception, the Ana costia Community Museum has been a model for how museums can be more than simply com munity centers but also powerful change agents at the center of their communities,” said Smith sonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch.

Ferguson and Nazareth’s do nation enables the museum to recruit and retain world-class di rectors who are critical to the con

tinued success of the museum. By endowing the directorship, the museum can do even more in pre senting innovative exhibits and programs to the public.

“This incredible gift, in the 55th year of the Anacostia Communi ty Museum, will strengthen the museum for the next 55 years and beyond,” said Melanie Adams, the Roger Ferguson and Annette Naz areth Director of the Anacostia Community Museum. “Their gen erosity ensures that the museum will continue to illuminate and share the untold and often over looked stories of people in Wash ington neighborhoods.”

FEATURING:

Julian Wilson

Publication Date 11-17-22

Strathmore Brings In a Creative Chef Who Reaches All Audiences

Chef LaTasha Prepares Food From Her Roots

Brenda C. Siler WI Contributing Writer

Strathmore Music Center in Bethesda can be proud of Chef LaTasha Stevenson, who creates menus that satisfy a wide range of palettes. Trained at the Art In stitute of Philadelphia and with southern and Caribbean heritage, the executive chef oversees menu development, food prep, and a staff that creates deliciousness on a plate for venues under the Strath more umbrella.

“I really fell in love with cook ing around age 14,” Stevenson said with a smile. “Just being around the kitchen with my grandparents and different church auxiliaries, I knew all the people at church. That’s where all the older people were.”

We met Stevenson while she was preparing for a breakfast event for 80 people. Several quiches were al ready done, and she was chopping vegetables for more. It’s a typi cal industrial kitchen with pots hanging from above, large-sized utensils, and metal cookie sheets. Everyone is focused on a task. Touring the pantry revealed large containers of ingredients. What was not seen was the breath of the work done from this kitchen.

Stevenson and her team prepare food sold at “Allegro Kitchen,” the eatery at Strathmore’s prima ry venue that opens for dining 90 minutes before show time. That means patrons can take in dinner and a show. The team prepares food for private functions held in the music hall building and events at the Strathmore Mansion, including weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs, and tea parties. At AMP, the Strathmore venue at Pike & Rose in Rockville, food and bever ages are available to people attend ing performances and for private affairs like retirement, holiday, or business events.

“After attending culinary school and working professionally, it opened me up to so much more of the culture of food and cuisine. Everyone’s America is different,”

the chef said about her ability to create for various taste pallets. Not afraid to insert her south ern and Caribbean flavors into her dishes, Stevenson will test some of her creations on Strathmore staff who work outside the kitchen. That means experimenting with spices and curries with a West Af rican, southern, or Caribbean in fluence.

“Learning more about myself and my culture really made me dive and research into a different realm of food and culinary,” said this chef who really knows food.

Working in a butcher shop is also in Stevenson’s background. That is where she learned how to break down and understand the fabrication of meats and to fillet fish. She had to send back an or der because she could tell it was not fresh by just running her fin ger across the fish. Stevenson also warned about another protein, cheese. Pre-shredded cheese is usu

ally coated with flour to prevent sticking.

She has been able to adapt food choices in response to special di etary requests. For another recent breakfast event, the group did not want a lot of protein, so Steven son prepared parfaits made with vanilla yogurt and house-made cherry-almond granola with blood orange pieces and honey. The next course was a trio of toasts, includ ing a cherry-ricotta French toast casserole, in-house smoked salm on on rice toast, and Caprese toast with avocado, tomato, and mozza rella cheese topped with a balsamic glaze.

Creating enjoyable dining memories is Stevenson’s vision for her role at Strathmore.

“I can create my own recipes and menus to serve food that speaks to me and that comes from my heart,” said Stevenson.

Find out more about Strathmore at www.Strathmore.org. WI

5 Chef LaTasha Stevenson is the executive chef at Strathmore in Bethesda. She is preparing for a breakfast event scheduled for 80 guests. (Robert R. Roberts/The Washington Informer)

Prince Georges County Native Found Her Niche in Sweet Treats ‘Jenny Bakes It’ Makes Events to Remember

Brenda C. Siler WI Contributing Writer

Hyattsville resident Jennifer Mayo has a busy life. She works full-time as a security specialist for the federal government, has a part-time gig at Nordstrom, and manages a business called “Jenny Baked It.” This entrepreneur is a self-taught creator of cakes and cupcakes with specially designed themes for her clients.

“I’ve always loved doing many different things,” Mayo said, the graduate of Riverdale Baptist High School. “After high school, I was the assistant cheerleading coach, I worked at a gym, and then I got my first government job.”

Through contacts, Mayo start ed working in the events indus try. That experience triggered her

childhood memories of baking cakes with her Dad. Mayo also ex perienced the passing of a beloved family friend who babysat her and her brother. That family friend was also the babysitter for Mayo’s mother. When cleaning out the home of that fam ily friend, a Kitchen Aid mixer was found that the friend’s family gave to Mayo. That is when a light bulb went off.

“I can’t just keep it and not use it. She really made the most deli cious desserts,” Mayo said when remembering her former babysit ter. “She used to make the most amazing pound cake that I have yet to make because I

Jennifer Mayo is founder and CEO of “Jenny Baked It,” a creative cake and cupcake business based in Prince Georges County. (Anthony Tilghman/ The Washington Informer)

LIFESTYLE

Maryland Legalizes Recreational Marijuana

Abby Zimmardi Special to the Informer

BALTIMORE — Question four on the Maryland ballot passed eas ily, which means Marylanders 21 years and older can expect to legal ly use, carry and grow recreational marijuana beginning July 1, 2023.

The Associated Press called the contest with 65.4% for and 34.6% against with about 38% of the vote counted. Maryland became the 20th state in the nation to legalize recreational cannabis. The state le galized medical marijuana in 2014.

Within the measure, there are provisions explaining what is legal when the law is enacted. The provi sions come from the Cannabis Re form Act (HB837), passed in April during the 2022 General Assembly.

THE PROVISIONS INCLUDE:

• Legalization of cannabis up to 1.5 ounces.

• A civil fine for possession of 1.5 to 2.5 ounces of cannabis. Current ly, possession of up to 10 grams of marijuana does not result in arrest, jail time, or a criminal record. In stead, possession of small amounts results in civil penalties.

• The release of any person in jail or a detention center solely for pos session of cannabis on Jan. 1.

• Automatic expungement of previous convictions for posses sions of cannabis.

• Limit of two cannabis plants per person.

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• Prohibition of smoking canna bis, which is subject to the Clean Air Act, indoors and outside in public areas.

• A focus on keeping cannabis out of the hands of children.

Del. Luke Clippinger, D-Balti more City, chair of the House Ju diciary Committee, sponsored the legislation. Its provisions were con tingent on voters passing the ballot measure.

“What we’re doing is responsible and we’re seeking to take the profit out of this for people who use vi olence to sell the substance,” Clip pinger said in an interview with Capital News Service.

In 2014, Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, D, signed a bill that de criminalized possession of marijua na. Instead of jail time, people who are caught with up to 10 grams of cannabis would receive a $100 civil fine for the first offense. A crimi nal offense would be an individual caught with more than 10 grams, resulting in jail time.

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Civil engineering design, structural engineering design, architectural engineering design, topographical survey, sub-surface utility engineering (SUE), geotechnical and/or geophysical investigation, corrosion control design, record drawings, other permitting support.

Interested firms must hold a DBE/WBE certification from a recognized DC Water agency/organization as highlighted in the DC Water Business Development Program. The deadline for submissions is November 15, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. EST. For questions email Mikayla Clarke at mclarke@carollo.com or call 703-258-1344.

In 2017, three years after med ical marijuana was legalized, the first medical marijuana dispensaries opened under the Maryland Medi cal Cannabis Commission. In the 2021 fiscal year, dispensary sales reached more than $500 million. So far this year, there have been more than $424 million in dispen sary sales.

Clippinger said the next steps in the legalization of recreational can nabis include licensing and the tax ation structures. The state’s Gener al Assembly will decide those issues during its 2023, 90-day legislative session, which begins in January, he said.

One way to understand how Maryland’s revenue might be im pacted is to look at Massachusetts, a state of similar population where voters chose to legalize marijuana in the 2016 general election. A month after the vote, cannabis became le gal for adults to possess and grow.

The state’s residents made their first purchases of recreational mari juana two years later at two licensed retail stores. Since then, there have been more than $3 billion in sales, according to the state’s Cannabis

Control Commission.

In Massachusetts, recreational cannabis is taxed at 20%, with the state getting 17% and 3% going to municipalities, according to the Cannabis Control Commission.

Eugene Monroe ischair of the “Yes on 4” campaign that advocat ed for the legalization of recreation al marijuana in Maryland.

“Voting ‘yes’ on four is really changing the destiny for people in the state of Maryland,” Monroe said. “It's eliminating fear.”

Monroe, a former Baltimore Ra vens offensive tackle, said the legal ization of cannabis could generate job opportunities as well as second chances for thousands of people previously incarcerated for marijua na possession.

In 2020, 1,072 people were ar rested for marijuana possession in Maryland, according to the FBI Crime Data Explorer.In 2021, 1,973 people were arrested. The change reflects an 84% increase in marijuana arrests from 2020-2021.

“We have to stop punishing adults for the simple possession of cannabis,” Monroe said. “Certainly, putting people in prison for a small amount for cannabis isn't improv ing public safety by any means.”

With recreational cannabis le galized, Clippinger said cities may see benefits in terms of savings due to fewer arrests. He said there will probably not be a big difference on the state level.

Monroe said he sustained mul tiple injuries while in the National Football League, and took pre scribed opioids to counter the pain and to heal. The opioids were do ing more harm than good, he said, and he began to push for the NFL to change its restrictive policies on using cannabis, even for recognized medical therapy.

“We've seen legalization [of can nabis] change the tide in opioid related incidents as a result of the access to cannabis and the reduc tion of the need for opioid prescrip tion,” he said. WI

"Smile" Movie Review

DB Bantino WI Film Reviewer

Smile is a psychological horror movie that keeps you entertained, frightened, and anxious.

Sosie Bacon, who also played in the TV series Scream, is the main character Rose Cotter, a doctor who dedicated her life to working at a center for psychiatric patients.

Early in the movie, Rose is called into a room to help Laura Weaver, a patient in extreme distress. Weav er explains that her college professor once looked at her with a very eerie smile as he committed suicide right in front of her. She begged Rose to believe that she was not crazy, but ever since the incident, she began seeing strange things and having very daunting experiences. Weaver then explodes with fear when she tells Rose that what she has been seeing is now in the room with the two.

As Rose calls for help, she turns and sees Weaver smiling at her before committing a gruesome suicide.

Rose tries to stay positive after the event but eventually is told to go home from work for a week after displaying many signs of distress. She begins to see the same things Weaver described and is now the next to be under the dark spell.

She tries to get everyone to believe that she sees things, too, but no one believes her. They think she is going crazy. After researching, Rose realizes she is under a dark spell. The only way to cure herself is to kill someone with a witness, or she will eventually be the next to smile while commit ting a horrendous suicide.

Smile is directed by Parker Finn, who previously directed The Hidebe hind, a short film about a guy lost in the woods who encounters a peculiar figure. He also directed Laura Hasn’t Slept, a movie about a girl who seeks help from a therapist to stop having a reoccurring nightmare.

While in an interview with Mov ieWeather, Finn explains that his film Laura Hasn’t Slept was his primary motivation in creating the movie

Smile. Finn also was inspired to cre ate Smile after watching the 1986 film Rosemary’s Baby and the 1995 film by Todd Haynes titled Safe. He stated that it was because they por trayed a character’s anxiety as they began to go down a rabbit hole.

In an interview with thewrap. com, he was asked, “Why a smile?” He answers by saying, “I think there’s something fun there, and I love the inherent contradiction between a smile and this sense of palpable evil. I wanted the movie to feel sort of like gleefully evil, and I’m hoping that is what people get out of it.”

I admit that I am not usually a fan of movies that portray blood and gore, but I couldn’t help but hope that Rose would find someone to believe her. We all go through times when we feel isolated, and it’s hard to get people to understand what we are dealing with. The use of bright pastel colors, dynamic camera angles, and transitions also kept me more inter ested than afraid. Honestly, the first suicide scene almost made me want to walk away from the screen, but in the end, I was glad that I stayed to see how the story played out.

Smile turned out to be a box office success. The budget for the film was $17 million, and the film has grossed over $190 million. The musical score did not include any familiar sounds but instead was full of original music scored by Cristobal Tapia, who also scored for the show Black Mirror. The movie’s look was amazing, with great use of practical effects produced physically without computer-gener

ated imagery or other post-produc tion techniques. The practical effects in Smile were done by Amalgamated Effects, who also did films such as Alien 3, Mortal Kombat, Mars At tacks, and the Nutty Professor. I recommend this film to anyone who liked The Ring, The Orphan, or Get Out. I enjoyed the intense end ing and how it leaves you wondering what will happen next. WI

Former Nationals Skipper Baker Relishes First World Series Title with Houston Astros

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

One week after lamenting that there were no Black American play ers on either the Philadelphia Phillies or his Houston Astros in the World Series, Dusty Baker became only the third African American manager to lead a Major League Baseball team to a World Series title.

The Black Voice Project would like to invite the public to our weekly Returning Citizens meeting every Saturday @ 10am. FP2 Barbershop: 3222 22nd St. S.E. Join us as we create solutions and a platform that is wholeheartedly for the entire community! www.theblackvoiceproject.com

Cito Gaston of the Toronto Blue Jays, who won back-to-back World Series titles in 1992 and 1993, and Dave Roberts, who led the Los An geles Dodgers to the championship in 2020, are the only other Black manag ers to capture the Fall Classic.

Baker’s Astros dispatched the Phil adelphia Phillies in six games, send ing the city of Houston into a frenzy just five years after the team’s tainted World Series victory in 2017 under manager A.J. Hinch.

“I’m tired of hearing it,” Baker pro

claimed after the Astros series clinch ing a 4-1 victory in Houston on No vember 5.

“[Critics said] ‘He doesn’t do this; he doesn’t do that.’ All I heard about what I can’t do,” Baker stated. “But

my mom and dad taught me perse verance. And you gotta persevere, you gotta believe in yourself.”

Born in 1949, Baker broke into the

5 Robin Weigert, born in Washington DC, plays Dr. Madeline Northcott in Para mount Picture’s new horror film Smile.

5 Houston Astros Manager Dusty Baker Jr. (C) and his players celebrate as they win their second World Series title with a 4-1 victory against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 6 on Nov. 5, 2022, at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Kyodo News via Getty Images)

Credit Can Unlock the Door to Your Future

Marcia Griffin CEO/Founder HomeFree-USA  Homefreeusa.org

How much do you know about your credit? If you’re like many people, the answer is ‘not enough.’

One of the best things you can do to pave the way for a better financial future is focus on your credit today.

The most commonly used credit scoring systems are FICO and VantageScore. Credit scores range from 300 to 850. The higher your score, the less credit risk you pose to lenders, meaning they are more likely to approve you for low-interest loans.

Not only can a low credit score cause you to be rejected for a mort gage, but it can cause you to be charged more in interest on a car loan or even keep you from getting the job you want. Lenders, landlords and potential employers all make decisions about people based on their credit scores. Don’t leave your credit score to chance.

The good news is there are steps you can take to improve your cred it. No matter how low your score is today, you can achieve a better score by making a few credit-savvy moves. If you’re ready to take charge of your credit and your financial future, get started on the following steps today.

Find out where you stand. Before you can improve your score, you have to know where you are starting from. Find out your credit score by going to Experian.com. Don’t be frustrated if your score is not where you want it to be. A credit score is only a current snapshot in time of your finances. This time next year you can be in a much better place.

Automate your bill payments. Lenders want to do business with people who pay their debts on time. As a result, late payments can do damage to your credit score. One of the best things you can do to improve your credit score is to pay your bills on time month after month. To avoid forgetting or paying late, automate your payments so you don’t even have to think about it.

Pay down credit card debt. Lenders want to know if you are over extended and owe more money than you can easily pay back. If you have a lot of debt, that will cause your credit score to drop. It’s best to use no more than 30 percent of your available credit so if you have $10,000 in available credit, you would want to use no more than $3,000 at a time. As you pay down debt, your credit score should improve.

Check for credit report mistakes. A potentially easy way to im prove your credit is to check your credit report. There could be a mis take on your credit report that is bringing your credit score down. To get a free copy of your credit report, go to AnnualCreditReport.com. By alerting the credit bureaus of such a mistake and letting them take it off your credit report, you may pave the way for your credit score to rise a few points.

Your credit can be a powerful tool if you know how to use it. By taking the time to learn some credit basics, your financial fu ture will be brighter.

Check out HomeFree-USA’s upcoming events to learn more fi nancial and homeownership

LIFESTYLE

from Page 42

big leagues as a 19-year-old when he joined the Atlanta Braves in 1968.

In a stellar career that spanned three decades, Baker was as feared a hitter as anyone. He earned two All-Star nods, won the Silver Slugger Award for best hitter at his position twice, and fin ished in the top 10 in the MVP race twice.

Bakker also won a Gold Glove and was part of the 1981 Dodgers team that defeated the New York Yankees in six games to win the World Series.

He managed the San Francisco Gi ants, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs, and Washington Nationals.

Each team improved under his leadership.

Before winning the World Series, Baker noticed that the 2022 Fall Clas

sic stood out as the first since 1950 that didn’t have an African American on either team.

“Nah, don’t tell me that,” Baker lamented.

“That’s terrible for the state of the game. Wow! Terrible. I’m ashamed of the game. Quote me. I am ashamed of the game,” reaffirmed Baker, an Af rican American.

While Black players made up about 18 percent of all MLB rosters when re searchers from TIDES first began as sessing the league’s demographic data in 1991, Black players represented only 7.2 percent of all MLB players at the start of the 2022 season.

Researchers at TIDES – The Insti tute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports – reported that the percentage of Black players “has been a serious concern for many years.”

TIDES reported that 38 percent of all players on Opening Day 2022 were players of color – approximately 28.5 percent Hispanic or Latino, 1.9 percent Asian, and less than 1 percent Hawaiian/Pacific Islander or Native American.

“Well, I don’t think that’s some thing that baseball should really be proud of,” Baker said. “It looks bad. It lets people know that it didn’t take a year, or even a decade, to get to this point.”

A baseball lifer, Baker has done all he could to make the sport look good.

Now enjoying his first World Se ries victory as a manager, Baker, 73, said he’d not only like to win a second before he retires, but he’ll continue to work to ensure more diversity in fu ture Fall Classic games.

“I’m just grateful, really, for the trials

and tribulations you go through to get to this and just grateful for my mom and dad for being tough on me,” Bak er said.

“Also grateful for some of the ene

mies that helped motivate me to get to this point, you know what I mean? But, you know, with no malice or anything because that doesn’t do any good.” WI

BAKER

5 The Washington Informer’s 2016 interview with Dusty Baker when he was coaching the Washington Nationals. (WI File Photo)

JENNY BAKES from Page 39

just don’t want it to not live up to hers.”

As her business evolved, Mayo learned which tools of the trade worked the best. The cake pans she works with to make the best cake layers are the brands Wilton or Fad Daddio. To perfect her designs, Mayo has not hesitated to check out Instagram or YouTube videos to refine her creative talents. She also asks clients for reference pho tos to inspire her creations. Mayo is also confident with her resource fulness in finding alternatives if something is not working out with a design.

Mayo learned how to adapt her designs as the world has attempt

ed to move past COVID confine ment. Events were smaller, which meant smaller cakes that kept exciting themes and colors. She may suggest cupcakes for an affair, which are great for guests to take home or for guests to bring to an event. A strong work ethic is what keeps Mayo’s business growing.

“I like celebrating events with people, and I stress that with my clients. They are milestones. For me, events are not just projects,” Mayo said. “Having a business where I specifically cater to custom events means a lot to me.”

Visit the “Jenny Baked It” website to see Mayo’s cake designs and con nect with her social media. https:// www.jennybakedit.com WI

As her business evolved, Mayo learned which tools of the trade worked the best. The cake pans she works with to make the best cake layers are the brands Wilton or Fad Daddio.

frozen bags go into her green bin right before she brings it out to the curb on collection day.

“I think there probably needs to be more marketing and education to get people to come into the program, and when they see the benefit, they'll do it,” Wise said.

Starting this week, the county be gan delivering pails and bins to around 65,000 Prince George’s households along with informational materials about how composting works. The remaining eligible households will re ceive their bins in the spring or fall of 2023.

Andrea Crooms, Director of Prince George’s County Department of the Environment, said that the county is working on expanding the program beyond single-family housing in the future, with small pilot programs in cluding multi-family housing units, schools, and businesses.

In the DMV region, curbside com post collection remains relatively rare, though Takoma Park and Arlington (which started its program just last year) offer it. D.C.’s Department of Public Works plans to implement a pi lot program for curbside composting in the spring of 2023.

5 For the official launch on October 3, the county showed off a collection truck alongside compost bins, pails, and compostable liner bags. (Anthnoy Tilghman/The Washington Informer)

Currently, District residents can drop off their food waste at designated farmer’s markets across the city on the weekends. Blake Adams, who heads DC’s Office of Waste Diversion, es timates about 3,000 to 4,000 people swing by to drop their scraps every weekend.

“It’s really exciting because once people get interested in composting, they start to pay more attention to how they’re recycling and how much waste they’re producing,” Adams said. “It’s a great way to socialize really sound ze ro-waste behaviors.”

WI

much I wanted to do research. But like, when I started doing research my freshman year, I was like, ‘this isn't everything.’ I started taking some classes in anthropology, and African American studies, which is how I kind of started incorpo rating environmental justice into a lot of my passion.

KB: How did you eventual ly land on climate resilience, or adapting to meet the demands of climate-related disasters, as something to focus on in your work?

WW: Actually, I was listening to the ‘How to Save a Planet’ podcast. And they had an episode on Hur ricane Maria, and how the com munities came together to prepare for climate change and to recover after that disaster. And I was so in spired by that kind of push to help ourselves and to build the systems to prepare for these effects.

KB: Do you kind of see the idea of climate resilience as kind of an

extension of your own resilience in any way?

WW: Coming out of school in a pandemic, transitioning to the workforce in a pandemic I was experiencing burnout to a very in tense degree. I think that was the first time that I thought, ‘I serious ly need to reach out for help.’ And in March, I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, general ized anxiety disorder. In August, I was diagnosed with ADHD.

And it's been a very enlighten ing kind of going through that process—because I’m a Christian reconnecting with God, and also seeing a psychiatrist and getting on medication. And things kind of started moving again in my mind.

Hearing about climate change every now and then is already a daunting experience, but working in the climate space—it can be so soul-crushing sometimes. But that all ties back into climate re silience. I started becoming a lot more solutions focused, because I think I had become so hyper-fix ated on the problems and the worries that I was really strug

gling to see the solutions.

KB: What are you up to now?

WW: So I’m in the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Edu cation fellowship program, and they connect us with government agencies. So I’m with the EPA, in their Office of Groundwater and Drinking Water. And the goal of my program, which is called Cre ating Resilient Water Utilities, is to provide drinking water and wastewater facilities with tools, training, and technical assistance to help increase their resilience to climate change.

KB: And what’s next?

WW: You know, I’ve had this dream since I was a child to be Dr. Wiggins, but I'm not gonna lie and say that's the only reason I'm applying to get my PhD.

It’s kind of about embracing that resilience that I have devel oped over time. And it is kind of about taking my younger self, the child in me, seriously, and know ing that this is something that I've always wanted to do. WI

Black Lawyers for Justice (Dr. Attorney , Malik Zulu Shabazz)

All Roads lead to Bowling Green, Kentucky December 3 Demanding authorities serve arrest warrant for Carolyn Bryant Donham

Carolyn Bryant Donham Emmett Till Activist are keeping up demand on an arrest warrant being served to Carolyn Bryant Donham. The warrant was found June 2022 in a basement in a Mississippi court house for her involvement in the gruesome murder of Emmett Till in 1955.

WIGGINS from Page 27

Lorraine Hansberry Sculpture Comes to DC

Exhibition Now at Howard University

Brenda C. Siler WI Contributing Writer

A bronze statue of Lorraine Hansberry, the first Black female playwright to reach Broadway, has been installed in front of Chad wick Boseman College of Fine Arts Building at Howard University.

On view until November 30, the statue is a national traveling exhibition produced by the Lor raine Hansberry Initiative. Hans berry is best known for her play “A Raisin in the Sun,” which pre miered on Broadway in 1959. Los Angeles-based artist Alison Saar was commissioned a little over four years ago to sculpt the statue titled “To Sit a While.”

Saar is known for artwork that focuses on the African diaspora and Black female identity. The

statue is a life-size likeness of Hansberry surrounded by five movable bronze chairs represent ing aspects of her life. On the Lor raine Hansberry Initiative website, Saar describes the desired feeling from the statue.

“So I invite you to take a seat. Congregate with friends to read poems or sing songs of resistance. Gather with strangers to share ideas and dreams. Come alone and be inspired by the brilliance of Lorraine Hansberry. Be in spired to find your own brilliance, be inspired to contribute to the Lorraine Hansberry Initiative to support women and non-binary artists of color, gift them the time and the space…to sit a while and think.”

“To Sit a While” was unveiled on June 9 in New York City’s Times

Square. Following the exhibition at Howard University, it will travel to Los Angeles, Seattle, San Fran cisco, Atlanta, and Chicago, which was Hansberry’s hometown.

The Lorraine Hansberry Initia tive has been designed to bring attention to the playwright’s work beyond “A Raisin in the Sun,” one of the most performed plays in American theater. Hansberry died of pancreatic cancer at age 34 in 1965.

In conjunction with this na tional exhibition tour, a graduate school scholarship honoring Hans berry has been launched under the auspices of the Lilly Awards, which recognizes women’s work in the ater. The Hansberry Initiative and the Lilly Awards hope the national tour brings attention to the play wright’s total body of work as an artist, journalist, and civil rights leader.

“Her writings and advocacy have proven to be as clear and rel evant today as it was during her short lifetime and deserves to be studied and revered as such,” the Initiative states on its website.

Hansberry wrote “A Raisin in the Sun” as a semi-autobiograph ical family drama that tells the sto ry of an African American family living under racial segregation on the South Side of Chicago. The play, which opened on Broadway

in 1959 with Sidney Poitier in the cast, won the New York Dra ma Critics’ Circle award for best play, making Hansberry, at 29, the youngest American and first Black recipient of the award.

A new revival of “A Raisin in the Sun” is currently on stage at the Public Theater in New York.

Learn more about the exhibition, the scholarship, and the life of Lor raine Hansberry at https://lorraine hansberryinitiative.org WI

5 “To Sit a While,” a commissioned sculpture statue of playwright Lorraine Hansberry is on view in front of Chadwick Boseman College of Fine Arts Building at Howard University. On view until November 30. (Brenda C. Siler/The Wash ington Informer)

11/11

Honoring those who serve 24/7

With over 200,000 veterans and service men and women reentering the workforce each year, Bank of America is supporting the unique needs of our heroes as they transition to civilian life and careers. Some steps we’re taking to support veterans and military members:

• Offering free online resources through BetterMoneyHabits.com on topics specific to them, from home buying to retirement

• Expanding the number of financial centers near military installations to address the needs of military customers

• Continuing our hiring momentum — more than 15% of our new hires are military veterans

My teammates and I here in the DMV are proud to support our military service men and women, especially as we celebrate Veterans Day. Thank you for your service.

Lawrence Di Rita President, Bank of America Greater Washington D.C.

What would you like the power to do?

Learn more at bankofamerica.com/washingtondc

®

Bank of America, Better Money Habits, Mejores Hábitos Financieros and the Bank of America logo are registered trademarks of Bank of America Corporation. Bank of America, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Credit Opportunity Lender © 2022 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.

People around the world are grateful for a good harvest. A good harvest in the fall means there will be plenty of food for all.

China: Moon Festival

China’s harvest celebration

Families gather to eat different kinds of round foods that symbolize the moon. These include eggs and mooncakes served in round cups.

Mooncakes are round pastries that are filled with a sweet filling.

All but one of these mooncakes has an identical twin. Can you nd the unique mooncake?

Canadian Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day in Canada is celebrated on the second Monday in October. It was originally celebrated by an English explorer, Sir Martin Frobisher. When his ship reached Canada, he gave thanks for a safe arrival.

Thanksgiving celebrations go back thousands of years in some parts

In ancient Greek mythology, baby Zeus was fed by a goat foster-mother named Amalthea. One day, he broke off one of her horns.

Food began to pour out of the horn. This is the story of the “horn of plenty,” a familiar symbol of Thanksgiving in the U.S.A. today.

Circle every other letter to discover another name for the “horn of plenty.”

BCTOHRY NBULCN OMPSIFA

38 No. 50

Ghana: Hooting at Hunger

In parts of Ghana, people celebrate a festival called Hooting at Hunger

Years ago, a severe famine broke out among the people. The people put all of their energy into growing yams and soon had a big crop. Their hunger ended, and, with great joy, they “hooted at hunger.” This is the meaning of their name for their day of thanksgiving.

Write down the letters on the correct path of the maze to the celebration’s name.

Hold this page up to a mirror to read this paragraph!

UnitedKingdom

Which Country?

On the first full moon in autumn, people in this country celebrate a thanksgiving holiday. Families get together to share food and give thanks for the harvest. In the evening, they take walks to enjoy the beauty of the full harvest moon. They call the holiday Chuseok. Unscramble the letters to discover which country celebrates Chuseok.

What year did Sir Martin Frobisher reach Canada?

Complete this math problem to reveal the year.

Japan: Labor Thanksgiving Day

Long ago, people in Japan celebrated the harvest. As time went on, their day of giving thanks became a time to thank the workers who grew and harvested their food.

Today, Japan celebrates a Labor Thanksgiving Day. It’s a day to show gratitude for the workers in the community. School children make colorful thank you cards and gifts for the police, firefighters and hospital workers.

Use the code to discover what the Japanese call their special thanksgiving celebration.

Thank the Helpers

Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper thanking the community helpers such as police, firefighters, teachers, hospital workers and more.

Thankfulness is Caring

Erntedankfest

is called the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Moon Festival or the Mooncake Festival

© 2022 by Vicki Whiting, Editor Je Schinkel, Graphics Vol.

KID SCOOP IS SPONSORED BY

LIFESTYLE

reviewwi book

"Revolutionary Women: 50 Women of Color Who Reinvented the Rules"

By Ann Shen

Terri Schlichenmeyer WI Contributing Writer

Change is a-coming.

You can feel it. You know it's happening because you're a catalyst, you're one of the ones helping to make it. Change is a-coming, and it's everywhere you look: at home, in your neighborhood, in your entire country and, as you'll see in the new book "Revolutionary Women" by Ann Shen, it's coming from history, too.

Take a look at the shelves of your library or favorite bookstore, and you'll see lots of books written about women. But Ann Shen says she "wanted to write a book that features something close to my heart..." She hoped to write about "the lives and work of BIPOC women..." because, she says, those women are "historically underrepresented."

Take, for instance, the actress-singer Eartha Kitt. She was born "dirt-poor" and it seemed that no one in her family wanted her. No matter; Kitt grew up to have a fantastic career onstage, she was an activist, "she learned to speak four languages and could sing in 11."

Seven years ago, Misty Copeland was tapped as the first Black woman to achieve the position of principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre. Before her, Maria Tallchief was America's first Prima Ballerina and the first indige nous woman to achieve that honor.

Tracey Norman had an amazing career in fashion until she was "outed as a trans woman by a hairdresser." She didn't let that stop her; today, she's the "mother" of the House of Africa, a team that competes at New York's drag balls.

Speaking of dance, Rita Moreno is one of three people ever to reach a cov eted PEGOT: a Peabody, an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony award.

At 29, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was the youngest woman to enter the U.S. Congress. Shirley Chisolm was the first Black woman and the first female candidate to run for the office of president in 1972. Joyce Chen was America's first celebrity chef of Chinese-American descent. Bessie Stringfield was "the Motorcycle Queen of Miami," and Celia Cruz was "the Queen of Salsa."

Sometimes — especially this time of year, when your schedule becomes extraordinarily packed — all you want is something quick to pick up, read and browse. "Revolutionary Women" is exactly that.

Each page of author Ann Shen's diverse selection offers readers a brief biog raphy of a women of history and influence and a short but fact-filled narrative of that woman's life and achievements, making this book perfect for timecrunched readers. Some of the entries will be familiar — Shen mostly honors audacious women who lived in the last 125 years — although some of the bios may serve as an introduction to a life. The fun of this book draws from the little-known info within those biographies; they're heavy on current events and politics, without ignoring science and the arts.

Dip into this illustrated book, learn about the trailblazers you didn't know and reacquaint yourself with those you did. While "Revolutionary Women" is good for older teens and young adults, older readers might find it to be a nice change. WI

horoscopes

ARIES As the week begins, you'll be fired up and ready to take action on a passion project. The more you can learn and grow and absorb new information that broadens your horizons now, the better the results. Satiating that burning need for an out of the ordinary experience can be enlivening! Lucky Numbers: 14, 22, 40

TAURUS You could itch to connect with your partner, a dear friend, or a close colleague on a mon eymaking project at the beginning of the week. Trusting your intuition and being willing to scrape beneath the surface, to find what really sets your passions ablaze is the fast track to solid returns on your investment of time and energy. Lucky Numbers: 11, 26, 56

GEMINI At the start of the week, you might find yourself craving more one-on-one time with someone special or a dear friend. Allowing yourself to be vulnerable and wear your heart on your sleeve can open you up to an experience that brings you even closer. Lucky Numbers: 3, 26, 51

CANCER When the week starts, the Universe sets the stage for daydreams, fantasies, and fun. You'll be feeling especially creative and self-expressive, wanting to share your wildest daydreams with those closest to you. Lucky Numbers: 5, 27, 34

LEO Your self-confidence and joy are sure to soar early in the week. You could stumble upon a spon taneous plan for getting out of the house and exploring a nearby park or trying an exciting outdoor workout with your sweetheart or a dear friend. As long as you're getting out of your comfort zone and experiencing something new, you're sure to be making the most of the moment. Lucky Numbers: 3, 27, 51

VIRGO In the beginning of the week, the cosmos is spurring you to put what's in your heart into passion projects. Pouring out your feelings in a journal, poetry, painting, or whatever medium speaks to you can prove liberating, empowering, and transformative. This theme is one you'll feel throughout the week, actually, because your desire to play, let go of work, and connect with people close to your heart is sure to be magnified as the days go by. Lucky Numbers: 13, 21, 42

LIBRA You could be inspired to tune in to your daydreams to lead you to an exciting new money making opportunity early in the week. You'll be especially sensitive and imaginative, so be sure to write down whatever passing thoughts might on some level feel anything but pragmatic. You could be surprised by what transpires. Lucky Numbers: 4, 12, 38

SCORPIO Early in the week, you can look forward to a dreamy time in which your fantasies might feel within reach. Your sensitivity and appetite for lighthearted joy and fun-loving experiences is high, so be sure to share what you're feeling with your significant other or those you're closest to. The result could be truly memorable. Lucky Numbers: 8, 17, 24

SAGITTARIUS You'll be feeling especially fiery and ready to create something that reflects what's in your heart at the start of the week. A burst of confidence can accompany this moment, and you'll have every reason to lean into that and allow it to propel you toward an artistic epiphany! Lucky Numbers: 5, 19, 58

CAPRICORN The days ahead are full of unknowns, but there are several sure things that you can de pend on. Use these known events as tent poles for your planning. If you take the time to put together a thorough schedule today, you'll be rewarded with more free time than you know what to do with. (Although you'll find something to do with it, won't you?) Things in a close friend or partner's life are changing, and they might affect your relationship. Stay flexible. Lucky Numbers: 15, 25, 34

AQUARIUS Your imagination and tendency to innovate could be firing on all cylinders as the week begins. Giving voice to these visions is crucial. Even though you might not have a solid step-by-step game plan just yet, giving yourself room to play and dream can feel heartening and inspiring. Lucky Numbers: 8, 15, 22

PISCES Your professional instincts and drive could very well be fired up as the week gets underway. Pair this with self-confidence and you'll be unstoppable! Midweek, the cosmos boosts your need to foster your most secure, loving connections. Spending quality time with loved ones can fulfill this crav ing. Later, you feel spurred to reflect on how you've been contributing to group efforts with friends, colleagues, and others in your community. You'll want to feel like you're making a difference as a part of a team. If it feels like you could do more, stepping up now will feel especially rewarding and game changing. Lucky Numbers: 10, 21, 31

For more photos, visit www.washingtoninformer.com

5 Volunteers distributed coats to veterans during the Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down. (Roy Lewis the Washington Informer

3 Veterans receive blood pressure checks at the Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

5 Nurses from the Veterans Affairs Medical Center volunteer at the Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

4 U.S. Army Sgt. Isa Abdul Waduud, served in the 25th Infantry Division, 10th Mountain Division, and 2ndInfantry Division from 1983 to 1993. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

5 U.S. Army Corporal James Small served from 1975 to 1977 and was stationed in Germany. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

4 Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down event distributed care package backpacks to veterans attending the event in Northwest on November 4. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

3 U.S. Marine Corp. Lance Corporal George Cain, served from May 1969-1975. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

4 U.S. Marine Corp. Tiffany Anthony served 2007-2008 and deployed to Jordan during Iraq Enduring Freedom and stationed in Camp Pendleton in California. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

6 U.S. Army Sgt. Prince Hayes served from March 1975 to October 1982. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

Washington Commanders Seeks Buyers, Valuation of Over $5 Billion

Richard D. Elliott WI Contributing Reporter

Washington Commanders own er, Dan Snyder has hired Bank of America to explore selling the team, according to a report confirmed by the team.

This report came shortly after the fall meeting with NFL Commission er Roger Goddell and the owners of the 32 franchises to discuss ongoing NFL investigations for workplace misconduct, sexual harassment, and lack of financial transparency by the

Commanders owner. The Com manders are also looking to purchase a new stadium, possibly in D.C. or Virginia, after their lease at FedEx Field ends in 2027.

Snyder and his family own 100% of the team, with their 2021 acqui sition of the remaining 40.5% own ership stake for $875 million. Bank of America will assess the value of the franchise if sold in whole or in part.

According to Forbes 2022 NFL valuation, the Commanders are worth an estimated $5.6 billion. The most recent sale of an NFL team was

Washington Commanders Salute to Service

the Denver Broncos, sold earlier this year for $4.65 billion to a group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton in the most expensive American sport fran chise sale ever.

The list of potential buyers in cludes Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Josh Harris, rapper

Jay-Z, basketball superstar Kevin Du rant, and Clearlake Capital. Vista Eq uity Partners CEO Robert F. Smith and Entertainment Studios head By ron Allen both appear to be making bids to become the first Black major ity owner of an NFL team in history. Both Harris and Allen made unsuc cessful bids to purchase the Broncos.

Two of the rules that will impact the sale are the requirements that the lead owner have at least a 30% own ership stake, and 24 of the 32 owners must approve the sale. While it gen erally takes nine months or more to conduct a sale, it is believed the pro cess may be expedited if the franchise is sold in whole. WI

5 FedEx Field, Dan Snyder, Commanders players, press conference announcing bond initative

5 Chris Bryant, co-founder and president of the Hogfarmers Charitable Foundation, named Washing ton Commanders 2022 Fan of the Year during the first quarter of Sunday’s Salute to Service game at FedEx

3 Command Force and members of US Army visiting USO tent.

(Far Left) Head Coach Ron Rivera meets General Charles Q Brown Jr., Chief of Staff, United States Air Force, pregame on the field.

4 Vice Admiral Sean S. Buck, Superintendent, United States Naval Academy. Lt. Gen. Jody J. Daniels, Chief of U.S. Army Reserve Command. General David H. Berger, Commandant of the Marine Corps. Head Coach Ron Rivera. General B. Chance Saltzman, Chief of Space Operations, U.S. Space Force. Admiral Steven D. Poulin, Vice Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard. General Charles Q. Brown, Chief of Staff of the Air Force

Now that you’ve voted this week, let me remind you of the impact of your one vote. Democ racy is on the line. Seriously! Yet, I see signs of this country trying to go back to the past.

How differently do Confeder ates and Black Union descendants see life today? I recently talked with a North Carolina descendant of Union soldiers and a Caucasian woman who is a Texas descendant of Confederate soldiers. We met on a cruise ship during my birth day, where we honored family members with birthdays in May. The ship was leaving the port at Galveston, Texas, and made several stops in Mexico.

The Caucasian woman of retire ment age was kind and friendly as could be. She was seated at our breakfast table.

She and her husband are cattle ranchers in Post, Texas, owners of hundreds of thousands of acres. She said, “Post, the cereal guy!” I thought, “Understood! She is a de scendant of Mr. Post.” She talked about the heifers and how, though, they are grass-fed. She explained that they may be classified as or ganic. Still, there is no organic beef because the government requires every cow to get shots to prevent disease.

We chatted about lifestyles and sharing from both sides. It was re markable!

After a lengthy discussion, she said, “May I ask a question that may be offensive? And if it is, it is not my intention.” Of course, by

the religion corner

WITH LYNDIA GRANT

Is America Trying To Go Backwards By 150 Years?

that time, she had the attention of all four Grant sisters.

The question: “Why do you think there is so much discussion around the Confederate monu ments?” After pausing, I said, “I think this is a question for me.”

I added, “Perfect question for [former D.C. Council member] Frank Smith, founder, and direc tor of the African American Civil War Memorial in Washington, D.C.”

Without going into an extend ed history lesson, I reminded her of the country’s status in pre-Civil War times when slavery in Ameri ca was the rule and Blacks were not considered human. When animals were fed before Blacks, and so on.

I reminded her how the United States would have been split into two unique and different countries had the Confederates won the war. They did not win, so why celebrate them with flags and monuments? Put that history in books and mu seums.

She was concerned about how those Confederate families want ed to honor their family members who were wonderful people and loved ones, she said. She shared how sweet, loving, and kind they were.

I’ll never understand why one side can’t genuinely sympathize with the other. Let’s reverse the roles. Suppose my fam ily enslaved people for cleaning, cooking, and working the fields at no cost and with mini mal care. As owners, we would make millions of dollars in profits. Not one dollar was paid to my slaves, and my family be came very wealthy from this free labor. I and my lifestyle led to the riches of my family today. Why would I want to allow those once enslaved to

now rule over me?

On the other hand, I believe it would be pretty difficult — but not impossible — for Confeder ate supporters to feel sympathy for those once enslaved. In doing so, they would have to believe in God and in loving one another — only then would they experi ence what life must have been like for enslaved people during those times. Confederate supporters would have to be reminded of the hangings, the beatings, the rap ing of women and men, and how enslaved people lived their lives daily.

With that type of sympathy, there might be a chance to put this part of our history to rest once and for all! However, with more than 300 candidates on the ballot this week, many have vowed to do things their way, no matter what the voters say.

It is time to pray as well as vote. I hope that every able-bodied Democrat voted on November 8! Love for every man is not what ap pears to be happening right now. Scripture says, “Proverbs 14:21, “Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor.” Proverbs 14:31 Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him. WI

Bishop Michael C. Turner, Sr. Senior Pastor

9161 Hampton Overlook Capitol Heights, MD 20743

Phone: 301-350-2200 / Fax: 301-499-8724

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Times : 7:30 AM 7 10:00 AM

Communion: 1st Sunday

Sunday School: 9:00 AM

Bible Study: Wednesday, 12 Noon Bible Study in homes: Tuesday 7:00 PM

Website: www.themiraclecenterFMBC.com

Email: Miraclecenterfmbs@gmail.com

Motto: “We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight”

Blessed Word of Life Church

Dr. Dekontee L. & Dr. Ayele A. Johnson Pastors

4001 14th Street, NW Washington, DC 20011 (202) 265-6147 Office 1-800 576-1047 Voicemail/Fax Service and Times

Sunday School: 9:30 AM

Sunday Morning Worship Service: 11:00 AM Communion Service: First Sunday Prayer Service/Bible Study: Tuesday, 6:30 PM www.blessedwordoflifechurch.org E-mail: church@blessedwordoflifechurch.org

Rev. Louis B. Jones II Pastor

700 Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20002 (202) 547-8849

Service and Times

Worship Sundays: 7:30 & 11:00 AM

5th Sundays: 9:30 AM

3rd Sundays: Baptism & Holy Communion Prayer & Praise: Wednesdays @ Noon & 6:30 PM www.pilgrimbaptistdc.org

Church of Living Waters

Rev. Paul Carrette Senior Pastor Harold Andrew Assistant Pastor

4915 Wheeler Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-894-6464

Service and Times

Sunday Service: 8:30am& 11:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30 PM Communion Service: First Sunday www.livingwatersmd.org

Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church

Rev. Dr. Michael E. Bell, Sr., Pastor

2498 Alabama Ave., SE Washington D.C. 20020

Office: (202) 889-7296 / Fax: (202) 889-2198 www.acamec.org

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Services: 8:00am and 11:00 AM

Sunday Church School 9:15am & Sunday Adult Forum Bible Study - 10:30 AM

2nd & 4th Monday Women’s Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Tuesday Jr./Sr. Bible Study: 10:00 AM

Tuesday Topical Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Tuesday New Beginnings Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Wednesday Pastoral Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Wednesday Children’s Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Thursday Men’s Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Friday before 1st Sunday Praise & Worship Service: 6:30 PM

Saturday Adult Bible Study: 10:00 AM

“The Amazing, Awesome, Audacious Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church”

Third Street Church of God

Rev. Dr. Alton W. Jordan Pastor

800 Street, NE - Washington, DC 20002 202-548-0707 - Fax No. 202-548-0703

Service and Times

Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00 AM

Holy Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:45 AM

Men’s Monday Bible Study: 7:00 PM

Wednesday Night Bible Study: 7:00 PM

Women’s Ministry Bible Study: 3rd Friday -7:00 PM

Computer Classes: Announced Family and Marital Counseling by appointment

E-mail: Crusadersbaptistchurch@verizon.net www.CrusadersBaptistChurch.org / “God is Love”

Greater Mt. Calvary Holy Church

Reverend Dr. Calvin L. Matthews Senior Pastor

1200 Isle of Patmos Plaza, Northeast Washington, DC 20018

Office: (202) 529-6767 - Fax: (202) 526-1661

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Services: 7:30 AM and 10:30 AM

Holy Communion: 2nd Sunday at 7:30 AM and 10:30 AM Sunday Church School: 9:20 AM

Seniors Bible Study: Tuesdays at 10:30 AM

Noon Day Prayer Service: Tuesdays at Noon Bible Study: Tuesdays at 7 PM

Motto: “A Ministry of Reconciliation Where Everybody is Somebody!” Website: http://isleofpatmosbc.org Church Email: ipbcsecretary@verizon.net

St Marks Baptist Come Worship with us...

3845 South Capitol Street Washington, DC 20032

(202) 562-5576 (Office) / (202) 562-4219 (Fax)

Services and Times

Sundays: 10:00am Worship Services

Bible Study: Wonderful Wednesdays in Worship and the Word Bible Study Wednesdays 12:00 Noon; 6:30 PM (dinner @ 5:30 PM) Sunday School: 9:00 AM – Hour of Power

“An inclusive ministry where all are welcomed and affirmed.” www.covenantdc.org

Bishop Lanier C. Twyman, Sr. Senior Pastor

5757 Temple Hill Road, Temple Hills, MD 20748 Office 301-899-8885 – fax 301-899-2555

Services and Times

Sunday Early Morning Worship: 7:45 AM Church School: 9:30 AM

Sunday Morning Worship: 10:45 AM

Tuesday: 7:00pm/Kingdom Building Bible Institute

Wednesday , 12:30 PM Mid-Day Bible Study

Wednesday: Prayer/Praise/Bible Study-7:30 PM Baptism & Communion Service: 4th Sunday – 10:30 AM

“We are one in the Spirit” www.ssbc5757.org / E-mail: ssbc5757@verizon.net

Rev. Cheryl J. Sanders, Th.D. Senior Pastor

1204 Third Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 202-347-5889 office / 202-638-1803 fax

Services and Times

Sunday School: 9:30 AM

Sunday Worship: 11:00 AM

Sunday Community Worship Service: 8:30 AM

“Ambassadors for Christ to the Nation’s Capital” www.thirdstreet.org

Live Stream Sunday Worship Service begins @ 12:00 noon www.thirdstreet.org

Bishop Alfred A. Owens, Jr.; Senior Bishop & Evangelist Susie C. Owens – Co-Pastor 610 Rhode Island Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002

(202) 529-4547 office • (202) 529-4495 fax

Sunday Worship Service: 8:00 AM and 10:45 AM

Sunday Youth Worship Services: 1st & 4th 10:45 AM; 804 R.I. Ave., NE

5th 8 AM & 10:45 AM; Main Church Prayer Services

Tuesday – Noon, Wednesday 6:00 AM & 6:30 PM

Calvary Bible Institute: Year-Round Contact Church Communion Every 3rd Sunday The Church in The Hood that will do you Good! www.gmchc.org emailus@gmchc.org

Dr. Raymond T. Matthews Pastor and First Lady Marcia Matthews

St. Mark's Baptist Church 624 Underwood Street, NW Washington, dc 20011

Services and Times

Sunday School: 9:00 AM Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wed. Noon Day prayer service

Thur. Prayer service: 6:45 PM

Thur. Bible Study: 7:15 PM

PM “Reaching Up To Reach Out” Mailing Address : Campbell AME Church 2502 Stanton Road SE - Washington, DC 20020

Turning Hearts Church

Virgil

421 Alabama Ave. SE Washington, DC 20032

Phone: 202-746-0113

Fax: 301-843-2445

Service and Times

Sunday School: 10:15 AM

Sunday Worship Service: 11;15 AM

Children’s Church: 11:15 AM

Tuesday Bible Study: 6:30 PM

Motto : “A Great Commitment to the

Great Commandment”

Website: www.turningheartschurchdc.org Email: gr8luv4u2@gmail.com

(Disciples of Christ) 1812 12th Street, NW - Washington, DC 20009 Phone: 202-265-4494 Fax: 202 265 4340

Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM

Communion every Sunday: 11:00 AM Sunday School: 10:00 AM Bible Study Tuesday: 12 Noon Pastor’s Bible Study Tuesday: 6:30 PM Motto: “Discover Something Wonderful” Website: 12thscc.org / Email: Twelfthstcc@aol.com

Reverend Dr. Paris L Smith, Sr. Senior Pastor

901 Third Street N.W. Washington, DC. 20001 Phone (202) 842-3411

Fax (202) 682-9423

Service and Times

Sunday Church School : 9:00 AM

Sunday Morning Worship: 10:10 AM

Bible Study Tuesday: 6: 00 PM

Prayer Service Tuesday: 7:00 PM

Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday 10:10 AM themcbc.org

Reverend John W. Davis

Pastor

5101 14th Street, NW / Washington, DC 20011

Phone: 202-726-2220 Fax: 202-726-9089

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Service - 8:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m.

Children’s Church - 11:00 a.m. (1st & 3rd Sundays)

Communion 10 a.m. 4th Sunday

Sunday School - 9:15 a.m. (4th Sunday 8:15 a.m.)

Prayer Meeting & Bible Study - Wednesday 7:00 p.m.

“A Church with a past to remember – and a future to mold” www.mtzbcdc.org

Mt. Zion Baptist Church headline and photo for

John F. Johnson

Reverend Dr.

1306 Vermont Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20005

Service and Times

Divine Worship, Sunday 10:00 a.m.

Communion 1st and 3rd Sunday

“Friendliest Church in the City”

Website: mountolivetdc.org Email: mtolivedc@gmail.com

Crusader Baptist Church Isle of Patmos Baptist Church

Pilgrim Baptist Church

The Miracle Center of Faith Missionary Baptist Church

St. Stephen Baptist Church

Reverend William Young IV Pastor

Covenant Baptist United Church  of Christ

Campbell AME Church

Twelfth Street Christian Church

Mount Carmel Baptist Church

Mount Olivet Lutheran Church

Zion Baptist Church

Rev. Keith W. Byrd, Sr. Pastor

4850 Blagdon Ave, NW Washington D.C 20011 Phone (202) 722-4940 - Fax (202) 291-3773

Service and Times 9:00 a.m. – Sunday School 10:15 a.m. – Worship Service Wed. Noon: Dea. Robert Owens Bible Study

7 PM Pastor’s Bible Study Ordinance of Baptism 2nd Sunday, Holy Communion 4th Sunday Mission: Zion shall: Enlist Sinners, Educate Students, Empower the Suffering, Encourage the Saints, And Exalt our Savior. (Acts 2: 41-47) www.zionbaptistchurchdc.org

St. Luke Baptist Church

Rev. Aubrey C. Lewis

Pastor

1415 Gallatin Street, NW Washington, DC 20011-3851 P: (202) 726-5940

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 11:00 AM Sunday School: 9:15 AM

Holy Communion: 11:00 a.m., 3rd Sun.

Bible Institute: Wednesday - 1:30 PM Prayer Meeting: Wednesday - 12:00 Noon

Rev. Dr. James Coleman Pastor

2001 North Capitol St, N.E. Washington, DC 20002 Phone (202) 832-9591

Service and Times

Sunday Church School – 9:30 AM

Sunday Worship Service – 11:00 AM

Holy Communion – 1st Sunday at 11:00 AM

Prayer – Wednesdays, 6:00 PM

Bible Study – Wednesdays, 7:00 PM

Christian Education / School of Biblical Knowledge Saturdays, 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM, Call for Registration

Website: www.allnationsbaptistchurch.com

All Nations Baptist Church – A Church of Standards

Israel Baptist Church

Rev. Lance Aubert

Imterim Pastor

1251 Saratoga Ave., NE Washington, DC 20018 (202) 269-0288

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Service: 10:45 AM Sunday School: 9:15 AM

Holy Communion1st Sunday: 10:45 AM Prayer Service: Wednesday at 6:30 PM Bible Study: Wednesday at 7:00 PM Bible Study: Tuesday at 10:30 AM

Rev. Daryl F. Bell Pastor

2324 Ontario Road, NW Washington, DC 20009 (202) 232-1730

Service and Times

Sunday School: 9:30 AM

Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM

Baptismal Service: 1st Sunday – 9:30 AM

Holy Communion: 1st Sunday – 11:00 AM

Prayer Meeting & Bible Study: Wednesday -7:30 PM

“Where Jesus is the King”

2409 Ainger Pl.,SE – WDC 20020 (202) 678-0884 – Office / (202) 678-0885 – Fax

“Moving Faith Forward” 0% Perfect . . 100% Forgiven!

Service and Times

Sunday Worship: 8:00 AM & 10:45 AM

Baptism/Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday Family Bible Study Tuesdays – 6:30 PM Prayer Service: Tuesdays – 8:00 PM www.emmanuelbaptistchurchdc.org

Sermon On The Mount Temple Of Joy Apostolic Faith

Dr. Earl D. Trent Senior Pastor

623 Florida Ave.. NW - WDC. 20001

Church (202) 667-3409 / Study (202) 265-0836 Home Study (301) 464-8211 / Fax (202) 483-4009

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 AM

Sunday Church School: 8:45 – 9:45 AM

Holy Communion: Every First Sunday Intercessory Prayer: Monday – 7:00-8:00 PM

Pastor’s Bible Study: Wednesday –7:45 PM

Midweek Prayer: Wednesday – 7:00 PM Noonday Prayer Every Thursday

Matthews Memorial Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. George C. Gilbert

4504 Gault Place, N.E. / Washington, D.C 20019 202-397-7775 – 7184

Service and Times

Sunday Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service : 11:00 AM

The Lord’s Supper 1st Sunday Prayer & Praise Services: Wednesday 7:00 PM Bible Study: 7:30 PM Saturday before 4th Sunday Men, Women, Youth Discipleship Ministries: 10:30 AM

A Christ Centered Church htubc@comcast.net

Noontime Bible Study: Tuesday @ 12:00pm

Prayer Meeting/Bible Study: Tuesday @7:00pm

Theme: "Building On A Firm Foundation"

Email: revprbstmbc@gmail.com Website: www.stmatthewsbaptist.org

Email: mtmoriah@mountmoriahchurch.org

Rev. Richard B. Black Interim Pastor

1301 North Carolina Ave. N E Washington, D C 20002

202 543 1318 - lincolnpark@lpumcdc.org www.lpumcdc.org

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 10:00 AM

Holy Communion: First Sunday 10:00 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday @ 12 noon and 6:30 PM

Motto: "Faith On The Hill"

Elder Herman L. Simms Pastor

5606 Marlboro Pike District Heights, MD 20747 301-735-6005

Service and Times

Sunday Apostolic Worship Services 11:00 A.M and 5:00 PM Communion and Feet Wash 4th Sunday at 5:00 PM Prayer/Seeking: Wednesday at 8:00 PM

Apostolic in Doctrine, Pentecostal in Experience, Holiness in Living, Uncompromised and Unchanged. The Apostolic Faith is still alive –Acts 2:42

New Commandment Baptist Church

Dr. Joseph D. Turner / Senior Pastor 2616 MLK Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Office 202-889-3709 Fax 202-678-3304

Service and Times

Early Worship Service: 8:00 AM

Worship Service: 11:00 AM

New Member’s Class: 9:45 AM

Holy Communion: 1st Sunday, 11:00 AM Church School: 9:45 AM Wednesday 12:00pm Bible Study

Prayer, Praise and Bible Study: 7:00 PM Saturday Bible Study: 11:00 AM

Baptism 4th Sunday: 11:00 AM

“Empowered to love and Challenged to Lead a Multitude of Souls to Christ”

Peace Baptist Church

Kelechi Ajieren Coordinator

6839 Eastern Avenue, R1 Takoma Park, MD 20912 (202) 556-7065

Service and Times

Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wednesday Bible Study: 7:00 PM Friday Evening Service: 7:00 PM ; Last Friday

“…Giving Your Life a Meaning”

www.Christembassydc.org Christ.embassy.dc@hotmail.com

Pennsylvania Ave. Baptist Church

Damion M. Briggs Pastor

8213 Manson Street Landover, MD 20785 Tel: (301) 322-9787 Fax: (301) 322-9240

Service and Times

Early Morning Message: 7:30 AM

Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 AM Sunday Church School: 9:00 AM

Holy Communion: 1st Sunday 7:30 AM & 10:00 AM

Prayer, Praise and Testimony: Wednesday 7:00 PM Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30 PM

“Real Worship for Real People” Website: www.easterncommunity.org Email: ecc@easterncommunity.org

Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church

The Rev. E. Bernard Anderson Priest

Foggy Bottom Founded in 1867 728 23rd Street, NW Washington, DC 20037 Church office: 202-333-3985 - Fax : 202-338-4958

Service and Times Sundays: 10 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Music and Hymns Wednesdays: 12:10 p.m. - Holy Eucharist www.stmarysfoggybottom.org Email: stmarysoffice@stmarysfoggybottom.org

All are welcome to St. Mary’s to Learn, Worship, and Grow.

Rev. Stephen E. Tucker Senior Pastor 13701 Old Jericho Park Road Bowie, MD. 20720 (301) 262-0560

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 11 AM Sunday School: 10 AM Wednesday Mid-Week Worship, Prayer & Bible Study: Wed. 7 PM

“A Church Where Love Is Essential and Praise is Intentional”

Rev. Dr. Michael T. Bell 712 18th Street, NE Washington, DC 20002 Phone 202-399-3450/ Fax 202-398-8836

Service and Times Sunday Early Morning Prayer & Bible Study Class: 8:00 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wednesday Service: 12:00 PM

“The Loving Church of the living lord “ Email Address: admin@pbc712.org

Promised Land Baptist Church

Rev. Oran W. Young Pastor

602 N Street NW - Washington, D.C. 20001 Office:(202) 289-4480

Fax: (202) 289-4595

Service and Times

Sunday School for All Ages: 8:00 AM

Sunday Worship Services: 9:30 AM

Midday Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 11:30AM

Evening Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00 PM

Laymen's League: Thursday 7:00 PM

Email: Froffice@firstrising.org Website: www.firstrising.org

“Changing Lives On Purpose “

Rev. Dr. Kendrick E. Curry Pastor 3000 Pennsylvania Ave.. S.E Washington, DC 20020 202 581-1500

Service and Times Sunday Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM Monday Adult Bible Study: 7:00 PM Wednesday Youth & Adult Activities: 6:30 PM

Prayer Service Bible Study

Mt. Horeb Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. H. B. Sampson, III Pastor

2914 Bladensburg Road, NE Wash., DC 20018

Office: (202) 529-3180 - Fax: (202) 529-7738

Service and Times Worship Service: 7:30 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Worship Service: 10:30 AM Holy Communion: 4th Sunday 7:30AM & 10:30 AM Prayer Services:Tuesday 7:30 PM. Wednesday 12 Noon Email:mthoreb@mthoreb.org Website:www.mthoreb.org For further information, please contact me at (202) 529-3180.

Lincoln Park United Methodist Church

Christ Embassy DC

Rehoboth Baptist Church

St. Matthews

Baptist Church

First Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church

All Nations Baptist Church

Reverend Christopher L. Nichols Pastor

Emmanuel Baptist Church

Florida Avenue Baptist Church

Holy Trinity United Baptist Church

Senior Pastor

Shabbath Commandment Church

King Emmanuel Baptist Church

Mount Moriah Baptist Church Eastern Community Baptist Church

LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES

In God We Trust. Declaration of Nationality. Notice of White Flag Surrender.

Notice of Special Appearance : I am that I am: "Jeremy Dylan Creager©", in full life, in propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: “JEREMY DYLAN CREAGER©", corp. sole Dba.: "JEREMY D CREAGER©", “JEREMY CREAGER©”, “CREAGER, JEREMY DYLAN©” having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Californian American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Constitution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, and all natural laws governing American Citizens, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Californian American. I am that I am: "Jeremy Dylan Creager©", from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality / Status / Jurisdiction, shall be known as: "jeremy dylan creager©". Notice of White Flag Surrender: as "hors de combat", pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of yhwh's covenant, and Internationally Protected Person. Notice of: LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND (HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 32, 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title, and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: Office of Vital Records/ STATE OF CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH: STATE FILE NUMBER: 80-393644: "JEREMY DYLAN CREAGER©", "JEREMY D CREAGER©", “JEREMY CREAGER©”, “CREAGER, JEREMY DYLAN©” is as a special deposit order, conveyed to "Divine Core Legacy Trust©". All property of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned fully intact, as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor / Beneficiary / Bailor / Donor / Principal / Creditor: "jeremy dylan creager©", nom deguerre: "Jeremy Dylan Creager©", as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of: "Divine Core Legacy Trust©", an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary / trustee / agent / bailee / donee / debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfaction. Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved. Deo volente.

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 001103

Joan H. Bishop aka Joan Helene Bishop Decedent

Stephen J. O’Connor, Esq. 5335 Wisconsin Ave., NW Suite 700 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Robyn M. Bishop, whose address is 1544 Northgate Road, NW, Washington, DC 20012, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Joan H. Bishop aka Joan Helene Bishop who died on 5/20/2022 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 4/27/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Reg ister of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 4/27/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 10/27/2022

Robyn M. Bishop Personal Representative

TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

IN God We Trust. Declaration of Nationality. Notice of White Flag Surrender.

Notice of Special appearance: I am that I am: “Derrick Mahoney©”, in full life, in propia persona, sui juris, in solo propio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: “ DERRICK MAHONEY”, corp.sole Dba.: “DERRICK MAHONEY©”, having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Moorish Empire, Estados al-Marikanos, Societas Republicae Ea Al Maurikanuus Estados, The constitution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [United Nations Declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples], and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a Moorish American. I am that am: “Derrick Mahoney©”, from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality/ Status/ Jurisdiction, shall be known as: “cyrus ghaalib micah el©”. Notice of White Flag Surrender: as “hors de combat”, pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Person. Notice of: LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND (HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 32, 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II,Sec. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title, and to reserve all rights, title and interest, in the property: STATE FILE NUMBER, South Carolina 139-1959-038823: DER RICK MAHONEY, MAHONEY, DERRICK©”, is as a special deposit order, conveyed to “ Destan Michael Trust©”. All property of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be re turned fully intact, as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor/ Beneficiary/ Bailor/ Donor/ Principle/ Creditor: ” cyrus ghaalib micah el©”, nom deguerre: “DERRICK MAHONEY©”, as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of : “ Destan Michael Trust©”, an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Devine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary/ trustee/ agent/ bailee/ donee/ debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfaction. Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved. Deo volente

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 000975

Hazel W. Banks Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

James R. Banks, Jr., whose address is 207 Anacostia Ave. NE, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representa tive of the estate of Hazel W. Banks who died on 5/28/2022 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 4/27/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 4/27/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 10/27/2022

James R. Banks, Jr. Personal

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2021 ADM 000593

Lolita Charlene Hackerson Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Thomas Hackerson, whose address is 5201 Hayes Street, Apt. 118, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Lolita Charlene Hackerson who died on September 18, 2020 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 4/27/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 4/27/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 10/27/2022

Thomas Hackerson Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2019 ADM 001290

Geraldine Wilson Decedent

Deborah D. Boddie, Esquire Probate Law DC 1308 Ninth Street, NW Suite 300 Washington, DC 20001 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Lawrence W. Buck, Jr., whose address is 1112 Chaplin Street, SE, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Geraldine Wilson who died on 11/28/2018 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 4/27/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 4/27/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 10/27/2022

Lawrence W. Buck, Jr. Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 000983

Joe Louis Koonce aka Joe Lewis Koonce Decedent

Suren G Adams, Esq. Adams Law Office, LLC 4201 Northview Drive, Suite 401 Bowie, MD 20716 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Sharri C. Koonce, whose address is 2 Lakeside Drive, Marlton, NJ 08053, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Joe Louis Koonce aka Joe Lewis Koonce who died on July 22, 2021 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 4/27/2023.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 4/27/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 10/27/2022

Sharri C. Koonce Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Edon v. James, et al., 2022 CA 002874 R(RP)

PAUL S. SCHLEIFMAN, Plaintiff Attorney 2300 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 700 Arlington, VA 22201

NOTICE OF FILING OF COMPLAINT

Notice is hereby given that a Complaint for Partition has been filed in this Court by Alvin Edon for partition of real property located at 3216 8th Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20017. Defendants, LaFaye O’Neal, Andrea O’Neal and Ricardo O’Neal, are hereby given notice that unless they respond to the Complaint a default may be entered against them. A Scheduling Conference is set for November 4, 2022 at 9:30 a.m. in Courtroom 212.

In God We Trust. Declaration of Nationality. Notice of White Flag Surrender.

Notice of Special Appearance : I am that I am: " Mack Daniel Mims Jr © ", in full life, in propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: “ MACK DANIEL MIMS JR ", corp.sole Dba.: " MACK D MIIMS © ", MACK MIMS, MACK DANIEL MIMS MACK MIMS JR, MACK D MIMS JR, MACK D. MIMS, JR, MACK MIMS ETAL, MACK MIMS ET AL, MIMS, MACK DANIEL, MACK DANIEL MIMS JR AND CRYSTAL NICOLE MIMS, MACK MIMS MIMS AND SON CONSTRUCTION,MACK MIMS GOT DA HOOKAH , having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwest ern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Moorish Empire, Al Maghreb Al Aqsa, Estados al Marikanos, Societas Republicae Ea Al Maurikanuus Estados, The Constitution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [ United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples ], and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby de clare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Moorish American. I am that am: " Mack Daniel Mims Jr© ", from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality / Status / Juris diction, shall be known as: " maat shujaa shabazz© ". Notice of White Flag Surrender: as "hors de combat", pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Person. Notice of: LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 32, 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: STATE OF FLORIDA BUREAU OF VITAL STATISTIS : STATE FILE NUMBER, 109- 1979-065532: " MACK DANIEL MIMS JR© ", is as a special deposit order, conveyed to " BMSM TRUST© ". All property of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned fully intact, as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor / Beneficiary / Bailor / Donor / Principal / Creditor: " maat shujaa shabazz © ", nom deguerre: " Mack Daniel Mims Jr© ", as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of : " BMSM Trust© ", an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary / trustee / agent / bailee / donee / debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfac tion. Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved. Deo volente.

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 001101

Gwendolyn Lucas Decedent

Iris McCollum Green, Esq. 1714 15th Street, NW Suite B Washington, DC 20009 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Chall Lucas, Jr., whose address is 3618 S. Dakota Avenue, NE, Washington, DC 20018, was appointed Personal Representa tive of the estate of Gwendolyn Lucas who died on March 3, 2022 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision.

All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/3/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Reg ister of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/3/2023, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/3/2022

Chall Lucas, Jr.

Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Superior Court of the District of Columbia Civil Division

Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 001162

Estate of Harold J. Sarbacher

NOTICE OF STANDARD PROBATE

Notice is hereby given that a petition has been filed in this Court by Joseph Peter Drennan, Esquire for standard probate, including the appointment of one or more personal representa tives. Unless a responsive pleading in the form of a complaint or an objection in accordance with Superior Court Probate Division Rule 407 is filed in this Court within 30 days from the date of first publication of this notice, the Court may take the action hereinafter set forth.

Admit to probate the will dated August 8, 2010 exhibited with the petition upon proof satisfactory to the Court of due execution by affidavit of the witnesses or otherwise

Date of first publication: 11/03/2022

Joseph Peter Drennan, Esquire 218 North Lee Street, Third Floor Alexandria VA 22314-2631

Petitioner/Attorney:

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 2022 ADM 001087

Troy David White Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Rosetta Frazier, whose address is 316 Peabody Street, NW Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Represen tative of the estate of Troy David White who died on July 11, 2021 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/3/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/3/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/3/2022

Rosetta Frazier Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 1139

Joe L. Greene Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2021 ADM 000406

Christine Winston aka Callie Winston Decedent

Valerie Edwards 1725 DeSales Street, NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Shelia Winston-Graves, whose address is 711 Penn Road, Raleigh, NC 27604, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Christine Winston aka Callie Winston who died on November 27, 2020 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/3/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/3/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/3/2022

Shelia Winston-Graves Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 1145

La’Shawn Woodson Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 624

Brent Antonio Odom, Jr. Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Zelphia Odom, whose address is 102 Jonquil Avenue, Hyattsville, Md 20785, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Brent Antonio Odom, Jr. who died on 2/19/21 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/10/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/10/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

Zelphia Odom Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

SUPERIOR

Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2021 ADM 001285

Robert Ridley Decedent

Brian L. Kass, Personal Representative 4301 Connecticut Ave., NW Suite 434 Washington, DC 20008 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Brian L. Kass, whose address is 4301 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 434, Washington, DC 20008, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Robert Ridley who died on December 30, 2020 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/10/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Reg ister of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/10/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

Brian L. Kass Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 FEP 127

August 3, 2020 Date of Death

Felicia Maureen Johnson Name of Decedent

Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2022 ADM 001172

Shirley L. Van Buren Decedent

James Larry Frazier, Esq. 918 Maryland Avenue NE Washington, DC 20002

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Dorine M. Adams, whose address is 3206 Lassie Avenue, Suit land, Md 20746, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Juanita Yvonne Warren Weathers aka Juanita Yvonne Weathers Warren aka Juanita Warren who died on 8/16/2022 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/11/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/11/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

M. Adams Personal Representative

R. Denise Greene-Bryant, whose address is 5602 Preswyck Dr., Austin, Texas 78723, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Joe L. Greene who died on January 10, 2021 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/10/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/10/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

R. Denise Greene-Bryant

Personal Representative

Taylor Woodson, whose address is 1015 Rhode Island Ave, NE, Washington DC 20018, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of La’Shawn Woodson who died on February 26th, 2022 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/10/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Reg ister of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/10/2023, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESEN TATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Edward G. Varrone, Esq. whose address is 1825 K Street, NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20006 was appointed per sonal representative of the estate of Felicia Maureen Johnson, deceased, by the Register of Wills for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland, on February 26, 2021.

Service of process may be made upon Edward G. Varrone, Esq. 1825 K Street, NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20006 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real estate.

441 Valley Avenue, SE; 208 Malcom X Avenue, SE; 1130 47th Place, NE. Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills of the District of Columbia, 515 5th Street, NW, Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

Edward G. Varrone, Esq. Personal Representative

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Cheryl Van Buren-Smith, whose address is 1918 D Street NE, Washington, DC 20002, was appointed Personal Repre sentative of the estate of Shirley L. Van Buren who died on December 8, 2015 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding.

Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/10/2023. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/10/2023, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/10/2022

Cheryl Van Buren-Smith

Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Juanita Yvonne Warren Weathers aka Juanita Yvonne Weathers Warren aka Juanita Warren Decedent

Dorine

Taylor Woodson Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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He created an environment that inspired people to put violent ac tion behind their personal feelings of resentment and rage. Many of his speeches were rallying cries which indirectly motivated acts of domes tic terror, harassment and even murder. Later in the same year of his infamous "segregation now" speech, Wallace, in a newspaper interview, said he believed Alabama needed a "few first-class funerals" to stop racial integration. One week later, four young girls were killed, and over 20 others were injured in a bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church in downtown Birmingham. Martin Luther King Jr. later informed Wallace that "the blood of four little children … is on your hands. Your irrespon sible and misguided actions have created in Birmingham and Alabama the atmosphere that has induced continued violence and now murder."

Wallace knew what he was doing while taking advantage of his voter's

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MALVEAUX from Page 34

McLaurin was not the only student who attempted admission to Okla homa State University, nor the only one who challenged them in court. Ada Lois Sopuel Fisher applied to OU's law school but was denied en try because of her race. Thanks to the NAACP and the McLaurin agitation, she was admitted in 1949 and grad uated in 1951. She was appointed to the OU Board of Regents in 1992.

In Oklahoma and many other states, justice delayed has been justice denied. Like many other plaintiffs, McLaurin was over 60 when he pur sued his case. He held a master's de gree and was a professor at HBCU Langston University for over 30 years. But the Supreme Court case seemed to take its toll on him. There is no re

JEALOUS from Page 34

that often gets lost. All students — no matter their race or color or creed — benefit from affirmative action. Having diverse classmates promotes a stimulating exchange of ideas and viewpoints. It prepares all students for living and working in our increas ingly diverse society. The Supreme Court as a whole used to understand that. Today, I worry that only a mi nority of the justices do.

One of those justices is Ketan ji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman on the court and a person of profound insight and wisdom. Her questions in oral arguments got to the heart of the matter. Imagine two

MARSHALL from Page 60

vulnerabilities, ignorance, and lack of knowledge of public issues and facts. He was a master of the "us against them" strategy. He con stantly painted a picture where those who were pro-segregation were the victims being abused by the "enemy," which consisted of the federal government, along with those who morally sought to end segregation.

Fast-forward to the year 2022. When we hear the details sur rounding the violent assault on the life of Paul Pelosi, how can we not forget that his wife, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been vilified as a political "enemy" for years? As the face of progressive policies, Nancy Pelosi has been the target of an av alanche of Republican campaign ads leading up to the midterm elections. According to AdImpact,

cord that he graduated, although his wife, Peninah, earned a master's in Home Economics from OU in 1954. George McLaurin died in 1968. Do these Students for Fair Admis sions know this? Do they care that George McLaurin, and so many oth ers, experienced no fairness? Does it matter to them that the antidote to this unfairness is affirmative action?

Or do privileged whites and white-ad jacent people (like the Asian Ameri cans who embrace anti-Blackness and white privilege) simmer in their faux superiority to attack Black people?

Affirmative action opened doors that had, for so long, been shut in the face of Black students. These "Stu dents for Fair Admissions" want to close the doors again. Associate Justice Clarence Thomas has his fingerprints all over this. Two of his former law

qualified students applying to UNC, Justice Jackson suggested: a white North Carolinian student whose family members had attended the school for generations, and a Black North Carolinian whose family had historically been shut out. The white applicant might make the case that attending UNC is deeply meaning ful to her because it is a family tra dition. The Black applicant might make the case that it is deeply mean ingful because her family was so long denied.

Jackson's question made it clear what would happen if the court adopts the far right's position: the white student's appeal to family history would be allowed to help

clerks are the attorneys for Students for Fair Admissions. Thomas is a study of racial contradictions, but the best analysis comes from Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall, who said that whether a snake is Black or white, it is still a snake. Thomas would de scribe himself as a constitutional strict constructionist. I'd call him an exam ple of how Black folk can embrace an ti-Blackness and deny history in their effort to appease and embrace white predatory capitalists.

The Students for Fair Admissions and their Thomas-connected allies deny history, but they are not alone in their anti-Black attacks. Let's not fall for their rhetoric of "race neutrality." Denying race history and racial op pression is nothing more than virulent anti-Blackness.

WI

their chance of acceptance, while the Black student's would not. It would further institutionalize discrimina tion and the harm it has caused gen erations of Black Americans.

I am so grateful for Justice Jack son's voice on the court. I also know that the six right-wing justices ex pressed skepticism of affirmative ac tion at oral arguments. Many report ers are already writing its obituary. I hope for the sake of our education system and our next generation, that they will be wrong. The "compelling interest" that led the court to uphold affirmative action in the past still exists — in fact, it may be stronger than ever.

WI

which tracks television and digital ad spending, Republicans have spent nearly $40 million on ads that mention her by name since the Labor Day holiday.

How can we not acknowledge the consistent patterns from the past to the present? The attack on Pelosi comes during a recent rise in the number of threats aimed at federal officials and perceived en emies of former President Donald Trump. It should not have been taken likely when House Minori

ty Leader Kevin McCarthy joked that if he becomes the next speaker of the House, it will be hard not to hit Pelosi with the speaker's gavel. Where McCarthy would use the speaker's gavel, Paul Pelo si's accused attacker used an actual hammer. Idle words can be deadly. Fortunately, no harm came to the House speaker. And thankfully, Paul Pelosi, who underwent sur gery to repair a skull fracture, is expected to make a full recovery.

WI

When we hear the details surrounding the violent assault on the life of Paul Pelosi, how can we not forget that his wife, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been vilified as a political "enemy" for years?

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for electric vehicles. These infrastruc ture investments are creating jobs and strengthening critical links in our sup ply chain.

The third pillar of President Biden's "Great Recovery" platform, the CHIPS and Science Act, was signed into law on August 9. It restores America's standing as a global science and technology leader by providing the resources and tools to make more products like semiconductor chips here at home. It will create better-pay ing jobs, build a more diverse work force and bolster our supply chains.

The fourth pillar of the Biden plat form, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed the Congress with every Democrat voting for it, and every Re publican voting against it. This new law is making historical investments in climate change and health care. Medicare recipients will see insulin capped at $35 per month, their out-

WILLIAMS from Page 35

Post, "Conservative Supreme Court justices on Monday seemed open to ending decades of precedent allow ing race-conscious admission deci sions at colleges and universities, ex pressing doubt that the institutions would ever concede an "endpoint" in their use of race to build diverse student bodies."

The Post adds that the plaintiff's attorney, Cameron Norris, repre senting Students for Fair Admis sions, emphasized what he called the harms of racial classifications.

"They stigmatize their intended beneficiaries. They increase racial consciousness, which delays the day

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Willie Horton ads of the 1988 presi dential campaign have gone down in history as a low point. Horton, who was serving a life sentence in Massa chusetts for murder, committed a vi cious sexual assault in Maryland after he absconded from a weekend fur lough. Candidate George H.W. Bush missed no opportunity to link Horton to his opponent, Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis. Bush campaign manager Lee Atwater said: "By the time we're finished, they're going to wonder whether Willie Horton is Du kakis's running mate."

Photos of Dukakis paired with Horton's mugshot flooded airwaves and mailboxes. Yet few in the Duka kis camp or the media called out the

of-pocket prescription drugs capped at $2,000 annually, allows Medicare costs to be negotiated, and extends Affordable Care Act subsidies to 13 million Americans.

To further secure and stabilize his platform, President Biden and Dem ocrats constructed some additional, well-placed pillars — the PACT Act, the Safer Communities Act and stu dent loan debt relief. The PACT Act expands health care for veterans ex posed to toxic burn pits and Agent Orange. The Safer Communities Act is the first significant gun safety law en acted in 30 years. It invests in commu nity-based violence prevention initia tives, closes the "boyfriend loophole," creates a new criminal offense for straw purchases and trafficking, and requires enhanced background checks for gun purchasers under the age of 21.

President Biden recently announced up to $10,000 in student loan debt relief for those earning less than $125,000 and reduced future month

in which we can move to true racial neutrality. And they cause resent ment by treating people different ly based on something they can't change," he said."

I find Norris' argument disingen uous, at best. While arguing against "racial classifications," he argues for a group that accepts their own "racial classification" as the basis of alleged discrimination. It is also disingenu ous to believe that, even absent con sideration of past experiences, the color of a person's does not matter, or that, as a class, they would feel stigmatized by actions designed to address past injustice to that class.

One can only ask if "racial neu trality" can ever be achieved or, more

obvious appeal to racism at the time. And that, in large part, was why it was so successful.

"The most important and under played lesson of the Horton message is that, in a racially divided society that aspires to equality, the injection of race into campaigns poses a great danger to democratic politics — so long as the injection of race takes place under cov er," political scientist Tali Mendelberg wrote in "The Race Card: Campaign Strategy, Implicit Messages, and the Norm of Equality." "When a society has repudiated racism, yet racial con flict persists, candidates can win by playing the race card only through implicit racial appeals. The implicit nature of these appeals allows them to prime racial stereotypes, fears, and resentments

ly payments for borrowers from 10% to 5% of their discretionary income. He also announced up to $20,000 in debt relief for Pell Grant recipients. In addition, the Biden administration reworked the Public Service Loan For giveness program for public servants who are eligible and those who were among the 99% of loan applicants who were denied forgiveness under the previous administration. He extended the deadline for applicants to October 31, 2022. In the past 10 months, over 175,000 borrowers have received over $10 billion in debt relief.

President Biden and Democrats are putting people above politics. Throughout my travels, I proudly pro claim that thanks to President Biden, and a Democratic Congress, America is emerging from a very dark time in our history. President Biden is provid ing the strong, steady leadership need ed to build a solid foundation upon which to launch a Great Recovery. WI

practically, if we must be about the work of correcting emerging or re maining vestiges of discrimination where we find them. I'm left to won der if, for this iteration of the Su preme Court, 50 years is an arbitrary expiration date for SCOTUS deci sions that correct long-standing so cial ills. Like Lee C. Bollinger, presi dent of Columbia University, I agree that if Columbia (and other colleges/ universities) is not allowed to consid er race, the presence of Black, His panic and Native American students on the Ivy League campus could be diminished.

"I would expect it to have a signif icant impact," Bollinger said.

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do so. When an implicit appeal is rendered explicit — when other elites bring the racial meaning of the appeal to voters' attention — it appears to violate the norm of racial equality. It then loses its ability to prime white voters' racial predispositions."

There is no question that many of the ads being used to stoke racial animosity "violate the norm of racial equality." Politicians like Tommy Tu berville, who explicitly tarred all Black Americans as "criminals," and Marjo rie Taylor Greene, who invokes "Re placement Theory" conspiracy theory long promoted by white nationalists, seem to have dispensed with the "im plicit" aspect of the strategy. By calling out racism, in all its forms, we can deflate the power of these repugnant appeals. WI