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In Memoriam Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, Sr. Wilhelmina J. Rolark THE WASHINGTON INFORMER NEWSPAPER (ISSN#0741-9414) is published weekly on each Thursday. Periodicals postage paid at Washington, D.C. and additional mailing offices. News and advertising deadline is Monday prior to publication. Announcements must be received two weeks prior to event. Copyright 2016 by The Washington Informer. All rights reserved. POSTMASTER: Send change of addresses to The Washington Informer, 3117 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E. Washington, D.C. 20032. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. The Informer Newspaper cannot guarantee the return of photographs. Subscription rates are $55 per year, two years $70. Papers will be received not more than a week after publication. Make checks payable to: THE WASHINGTON INFORMER 3117 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E Washington, D.C. 20032 Phone: 202 561-4100 Fax: 202 574-3785 news@washingtoninformer.com www.washingtoninformer.com
PUBLISHER Denise Rolark Barnes STAFF D. Kevin McNeir, Senior Editor Ron Burke, Advertising/Marketing Director Shevry Lassiter, Photo Editor Lafayette Barnes, IV, Editor, WI Bridge DC Jamila Bey, Digital Content Editor Austin Cooper, Our House Editor Desmond Barnes, Social Media Stategist ZebraDesigns.net, Design & Layout Mable Neville, Bookkeeper Angie Johnson, Office Mgr./Circulation Angel Johnson, Admin. Asst. REPORTERS Stacy Brown (Senior Writer), Sam P.K. Collins, Aja Beckham, Ed Hill, Will Ford (Prince George’s County Editor), Hamil Harris, 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
4 APRIL 21 - 27, 2022
wi hot topics
COMPILED BY WI SENIOR EDITOR D. KEVIN MCNEIR AND WI STAFF WRITER WILLIAM J. FORD
Maryland Primary Election Finally Set for July 19 The Maryland Court of Appeals ruled a legislative map approved by the General Assembly remains constitutional and will be used for this year’s July 19 primary election. Prospective candidates had to file by Friday, April 15. The state constitution requires candidates for senator or delegate to reside in a specific district for at least six months. However, for this year’s election the court ruled a candidate must establish residency in a district by May 8. “The court . . . determined that the plan enacted into law on January 27, 2022, is consistent with the requirements of the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Maryland,” Chief Judge Joseph M. Getty wrote in an opinion after a hearing April 13. The ruling occurred less than two weeks after Gov. Larry Hogan signed a new congressional map into law. The general election will take place on Nov. 8. WI
Bowser Recognize National Reentry Month with Landmark Investment Initiative
Norton Calls on Senate to Pass D.C. Statehood Bill as Federal Tax Filing Deadline Ends
On Monday, April 18, Mayor Muriel Bowser and District leaders recognized National Reentry Month with the announcement that 200 District residents, identified by the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform as being at highest risk of involvement in gun violence in the District, have been assigned a multidisciplinary team to include a Credible Contact, a Pathfinder and a member of the Mayor Bowser’s Cabinet. The Mayor’s FY23 budget proposes a $1.7 million investment in a Life Coach initiative that will build on these efforts by providing approximately 20 coaches who will offer high-quality care coordination services, needs assessments and coordination with outreach teams to execute individual success plans. The initiative will be led by Linda Harllee Harper, director, Office of Gun Violence Prevention. Other members of the mayor’s staff who will lend their expertise include: Delano Hunter, director, DC Department of Parks and Recreation; Lamont Carey, director, Mayor’s Office on Returning Citizen Affairs; and Paul Winestock, director, Saving Our Next Generation. WI
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), one day after the federal tax filing deadline, called on the Senate to pass her District of Columbia statehood bill. She noted that D.C. pays more federal taxes per capita than any state and more federal taxes than 23 states but D.C. residents have no voting representation in Congress. “Yesterday, many D.C. residents rushed to mail checks to the IRS before the filing deadline to keep our federal government running but still do not have voting representation in Congress,” Norton said. “‘No taxation without representation,’ the slogan that gave birth to the nation itself, should apply to the citizens of the nation’s capital. The House has passed my D.C. statehood bill twice, President Biden supports it, and today, I call on the Senate to pass the bill and finally give the same rights other Americans have to the residents of our nation’s capital.” The House has passed the D.C. statehood bill twice in history, in 2020 and on April 22, 2021. WI
Biden Administration to Appeal Ruling Lifting COVID Mask Mandate on Travel On April 19, the Biden administration said it plans to appeal a federal judge’s ruling that struck down COVID-19 mask mandates on planes and other forms of public transportation. “The Department of Justice and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] disagree with the district court’s decision and will appeal,” the DOJ said in a statement, “subject to CDC’s conclusion that the order remains necessary for public health.” “If CDC concludes that a mandatory order remains necessary for the public’s health after that assessment, the Department of Justice will appeal the district court’s decision,” the DOJ said. On Monday, Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle of
U.S. District Court in Tampa, Florida, ruled that the CDC overstepped its bounds by mandating that masks be worn on planes, trains, buses and other forms of public transportation. Mizelle was appointed to the federal bench in 2020 by former President Donald Trump. The Transportation Security Administration said later April 18 that it would not enforce mask-wearing rules, in accordance with Mizelle’s decision. The CDC, meanwhile, maintained its recommendation that people wear masks on public transit. The DOJ said April 19 that it “continues to believe that the order requiring masking in the transportation corridor is a valid exercise of the authority Congress has given CDC to protect the public health.” “That is an important authority the Department will continue the work to preserve,” the agency’s statement said. WI
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