YES! Weekly - November 25, 2020

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NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020 VOLUME 16, NUMBER 48

10 TRIAD GIVING GUIDE

5500 Adams Farm Lane Suite 204 Greensboro, NC 27407 Office 336-316-1231 Fax 336-316-1930 Publisher CHARLES A. WOMACK III publisher@yesweekly.com EDITORIAL Editor KATIE MURAWSKI katie@yesweekly.com Contributors IAN MCDOWELL KATEI CRANFORD MARK BURGER

Ahead of Thanksgiving and Giving Tuesday, YES! Weekly would like to spotlight some of the Triad’s NONPROFIT and MUTUAL AID organizations that have been a lifeline for many over the course of this chaotic year.

JIM LONGWORTH

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PRODUCTION Graphic Designers ALEX FARMER designer@yesweekly.com AUSTIN KINDLEY artdirector@yesweekly.com ADVERTISING Marketing TRAVIS WAGEMAN travis@yesweekly.com KAILEY GREESON kailey@yesweekly.com Promotion NATALIE GARCIA

DISTRIBUTION JANICE GANTT KYLE MUNRO SHANE MERRIMAN ANDREW WOMACK We at YES! Weekly realize that the interest of our readers goes well beyond the boundaries of the Piedmont Triad. Therefore we are dedicated to informing and entertaining with thought-provoking, debate-spurring, in-depth investigative news stories and features of local, national and international scope, and opinion grounded in reason, as well as providing the most comprehensive entertainment and arts coverage in the Triad. YES! Weekly welcomes submissions of all kinds. Efforts will be made to return those with a self-addressed stamped envelope; however YES! Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. YES! Weekly is published every Wednesday by Womack Newspapers, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free, all additional copies are $1.00. Copyright 2020 Womack Newspapers, Inc.

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When Vice-President-Elect KAMALA HARRIS stood behind the podium to address the nation in Wilmington, Delaware, on Nov. 7 regarding her historic victory, she not only became a beacon of hope for young women and African-Americans but also for Asians-Americans.

5 When the first jury selection since March began in GUILFORD COUNTY COURTHOUSE last Wednesday, four of the 12prospective jurors appeared to be seated closer than 6 feet from each other. To me, two seemed closer than 4 feet, and from my seat in the court room, which afforded a side view of the three rows in the jury box, the second and third rows appeared to be seated closer to each other than the first and second rows.

6 A/PERTURE CINEMA in WinstonSalem will be bringing holiday cheer to local audiences with a double-barreled line-up of drive-in double features, which will be screened on consecutive nights in the parking lot of First Presbyterian Church, located at 300 N. Cherry St. in Winston-Salem.

7 PRESIDENTS are only human, so they make mistakes. No, I’m not talking

about Bill Clinton hooking up with Monica Lewinski, or Donald Trump calling neo-Nazis “very fine people.” I’m talking about John Kennedy...

12 After filing felony charges against Greensboro minister Greg Drumwright, the ALAMANCE COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT shared what activists say is a deceptively-edited audio clip of Drumwright’s plans for a protest in Graham this Sunday. As previously reported, on Oct. 31, Alamance deputies and Graham police officers attacked the “I Am Change March to the Polls” rally led by Drumwright...

14 It’s a little bit circus, it’s a little bit rock ‘n’ roll, it’s the CHARLES HANSON FAMILY BAND, and they’re calling all clowns to join their upcoming show at Oden Brewing Company on Dec. 5. “The circus known as the Charles Hanson Family band is looking forward to having a wonderful journey through the senses,” said ringleader Chris Powell (AKA Charles Hanson,) regarding their first stage show in the Triad since the shutdown. “Shit gets weird,” he added, “wear a mask.”

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The first crack in the glass ceiling: What the Biden-Harris win means for ‘model minorities’

BY HABIN HWANG

he’s your star student: the quiet teenager hunched over an SAT prep book in the back of a loud classroom, her schedule loaded with AP classes (all of which she is undoubtedly acing) and extracurricular activities. She’s your neighborhood tiger mom: the middle-aged lady rushing her children to swimming, gymnastics, ballet, or music lessons, nagging at them in her native language from the front seat of her Lexus. She’s your model minority: the woman who seems least likely to cause a commotion if confronted, avoid-

ing conflicts and staying out of fights as much as possible. She’s your classic Asian, regardless of whether her skin is “brown” or “yellow,” with a dad in IT and a housewife mom, going to either your dream college or your state school with a full ride. Her life seems full of straight-A’s or quiz bowl trophies, which may be part of the reason why Asians are frequently grouped with Caucasians in academic or financial reports, yet are as excluded from most privileges as other racial groups.

Despite this exclusion, Asian-Americans have frequently been excluded from the racial subdivision, “people of color”

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in the past decade, both by Caucasians and other people of color. For example, a Washington school district recently grouped Asian-American students with Caucasians in an academic progress report, excluding them from the racial subdivision “people of color.”

According to a Pew Research Center study, Asian-Americans are the highestincome, best-educated, and fastestgrowing racial group in the United States.

Due to the high success levels of AsianAmericans, they are often painted as an all-successful, privileged group of people, easily “riding the system” to gain prestige in society and rarely facing obstacles on their journey to excellence.

This enviable image of Asians may appear beneficial but is actually ironically counterproductive. With each stereotypical expectation added, the gag over the mouths of Asian-Americans has tightened— this illusion of privilege preventing instances of violent, blatant racism from being reported, recognized, or published.

The most glaring way Asian-Americans are silenced is within the field of mental health. Over 2.2 million people who identify as Asian-American or Pacific Islander have reported a diagnosable mental illness in the past year, according to Mental Health America, the nation’s leading nonprofit on raising awareness for mental illnesses.

Despite the “model minority” label placed on Asians, the clean, all-successful stereotype faced by these students is simply a product of underreporting cases of mental illnesses or other struggles. By painting mental illness as an obstacle not frequently faced by Asians, these issues are often exacerbated by the societal pressures to maintain the “status quo” of being the “model minority.”

Though it is easy to see white or Black actors portraying those struggling with substance abuse or mental illnesses in movies and shows, Asians are significantly less frequently depicted as struggling with these issues. It is extremely common to see their “Asian upbringing” or “stress caused by tiger parents” blamed as the root cause, instead of the lack of mental health resources geared toward Asians.

This social stigma, which discourages Asians from speaking out about such struggles, is frequently ignored as the true source of magnified symptoms of mental illnesses.

Just like mental health is painted as a primarily “Caucasian issue,” American politics has been historically geared toward Caucasians as well.

When Vice-President-Elect Kamala Harris stood behind the podium to address the nation in Wilmington, Delaware, on Nov. 7 regarding her historic victory, she not only became a beacon of hope for young women and African-Americans but also for AsiansAmericans. Identifying as both Black and South Asian, Harris’s racial description soon accompanied every article covering the Biden-Harris win, describing her as the “first female Vice President of color” or the “highest-climbing African-American/Asian.”

The media magnification upon her racial background may appear harmless, or even benevolent, but simply proves how American politics has been essentially dominated by Caucasian leaders throughout American history, despite the large volume of people of color in the United States.

With Asian-Americans currently making up only 3% of federal leadership, as reported by the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS), Kamala Harris’s South Asian background is considered a groundbreaking event due to both the historic and modern exclusion of Asian-Americans (especially Asian-American women) in political discussions and decisionmaking.

Though it is amazing to see the prospect for growth in Asian-American governmental representation, it is also extremely shameful to see so much focus be given toward a politician’s racial background, instead of their political beliefs— a sign for more Asians to be included as an active part of the political spectrum.

Kamala Harris not only symbolizes the breakthrough of Asian-Americans into modern big-game politics for the first time, but the prospect of Asians to break into other stereotypically Caucasian roles in society.

As a prominent socio-political figure, Harris’s South Asian background is sure to not only encourage younger generations of Asians to pursue such closed-off fields but also to fight for more equal representation in other areas, such as accessibility to mental health and other resources geared toward people of color. !

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Distance between jurors among COVID concerns at courthouse When the first jury selection since March began in the Guilford County Courthouse last Wednesday, four of the 12 prospective jurors appeared to be seated closer than 6 feet from Ian McDowell each other.

To me, two seemed closer Contributor than 4 feet, and from my seat in the court room, which afforded a side view of the three rows in the jury box, the second and third rows appeared to be seated closer to each other than the first and second rows.

When a prospective juror in the second row happened to lean back or the juror behind them in the third row leaned forward, their heads appeared to be no more than 3 feet apart.

A glass partition separated the jury from the judge, clerks, D.A. and Defense.

Another partition enclosed the judicial bench. Due to the muffled sound, Judge Stuart Albright told each juror to remove their mask and speak up when he questioned them. “There’s two sheets of plexiglass between us,” Judge Albright said, “so shout if you need to.”

Several did. There was no plexiglass between those shouting unmasked jurors and the masked jurors around them.

Within the jury box, only air separated the jurors from each other, and from the bailiff standing nearby.

The Administrative Order Regarding Jury Trial Resumption Plan, issued Oct. 29 in the General Court of Justice, State of North Carolina, Guilford County, Superior and District Court Divisions, includes the following recommendation for Voir Dire. That French phrase, meaning “to see to speak,” refers to the process by which potential jurors are questioned by either the judge or an attorney, in order to determine whether they can serve without bias. Item 12b on page 4 of the Resumption Plan states: The Senior Resident recommends that between one (1) and six (6) potential jurors shall be randomly selected from the panel and will be seated in the jury box six feet apart from all other persons in all directions and questioned by the court and by the attorneys for the State/ Plaintiff(s) and the Defendant(s).

On March 16, Cheri Beasley, Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

Court, issued an order postponing jury trials in response to the pandemic.

Seven months later, despite a recordbreaking surge in COVID-19 cases in both the county and the country, Senior Resident Superior Court Judge John O. Craig signed the order detailing plans for jury trial resumption in Guilford County.

Jury selection was originally scheduled to begin Tuesday, Nov. 10, but the first case was thrown out for lack of probable cause, and the second case was continued, with both motions granted before jury selection began. Both of those cases involved non-violent drug or alcohol offenses.

In the case that began Wednesday, March 18, defendant John Alexander Poss was charged with Assault with a Deadly Weapon.

Once twelve prospective jurors were seated in the jury box, Judge Albright told them that, if selected for the trial, they would all be given plastic face shields. Albright also stated that Guilford County Public Health Director Dr. Julia Vann had approved the configuration of the jury box.

“I’ll do everything I can to keep your health first and foremost,” said Judge Albright.

When interviewed by the judge, one prospective juror stated that he works for an insurance company and deals with COVID-19 cases, and that he was concerned about safety in the courtroom. “Can you set aside those concerns and give the state and defendant an impartial trial in this case?” asked Judge Albright. The juror said that he could.

After Judge Albright questioned all the prospective jurors and dismissed one (not the man who expressed COVID-19 concerns), the remaining eleven were allowed to leave the courtroom for a break. I observed that, when their seats were empty, the chairs appeared further apart than the jurors had when seated.

Curious about the apparent closeness of the seated jurors and their potential for projecting aerosolized particles when shouting answers to Judge Albright’s questions, I emailed Trial Court Coordinator Brittany R. Robinson.

Robinson forward my email to Senior Superior Court Resident Judge Craig, who had issued the Oct. 29 resumption order. Shortly afterward, Judge Craig sent the following reply: “Dr. Vann and I personally approved the plan for the spacing of the jury in the boxes for all courtrooms where jury trials are routinely held, after inspecting

the courtrooms with Amanda Leazer, the COVID-19 coordinator. Two weeks ago, I personally measured the space and placed the chairs in the three-tier configuration that is currently being used in the trial before Judge Albright in Courtroom 4C.” I responded by sending Judge Craig a sketch I’d made of the jurors closest to me, noting that the man and two women seated at the ends of the three rows appeared to be on the same plane, and that there appeared to be approximately four feet between the woman in the third row and the man in the second. I noted that, when the chairs were empty, there appeared to be more space between them, but that when jurors were seated, several of their heads appeared to be less than four feet apart.

I asked Judge Craig if there had been any attempt to measure distances when the chairs are actually occupied.

I also noted that his own order had recommended “between one (1) and six (6) potential jurors shall be randomly selected from the panel and will be seated in the box six feet apart from all other persons in all directions . . .” during Jury Voir Dire. I also asked if Judge Craig or Judge Albright could explain why this recommendation was not followed.

That evening, Judge Craig replied: “that while my jury trial resumption plan recommended conducting voir dire with smaller-than-normal numbers of potential jurors in the box, the ultimate decision on how to conduct trials rests with the trial judge” and “I do not have the judicial authority to override the discretion of the jurist who conducts the actual trial.”

Judge Albright, who had been cc’d on my email, did not respond. Nor did Judge Craig respond to my question about whether anyone had tried to measure the distance between people actually seated in the chairs.

He concluded with the following statement: “I have heard from courthouse personnel that those jurors who report for duty are doing so with alacrity because they realize their civic responsibilities outweigh the temporary risks. Americans instinctively realize that we cannot let this scourge defeat the underpinnings of our democratic society. It’s why record numbers of voters participated in the recent election, despite the increased risk of contracting the virus.”

After YES! Weekly reported on multiple confirmed cases of COVID-19 at

the Guilford County Courthouse, one source for that article, who requested anonymity, told me that some departments within the courthouse are not instructing or requiring staffers being tested to stay home until their results are back. This source also alleged that multiple staffers had been instructed to not contact the health department after those staffers reported to their superiors that they might have been exposed.

On Thursday, Nov. 19, I sent Trial Court Coordinator Robinson the following inquiry about these allegations, noting, “I am not at liberty to divulge the name of the person making this claim or the office in which they work, but everything else they have told us over the past two months has proven to be accurate.”

Robinson forwarded the query to Judge Craig, who responded: “This is the first time we have heard of such allegations. If true, they are extremely serious and would definitely warrant further investigation. However, without the specific details of these accusations, we are at a standstill in terms of addressing them.”

This story is still developing. !

IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of.

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NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020

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A/perture doubles up on drive-in screenings

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Mark Burger

Contributor

/perture Cinema in WinstonSalem will be bringing holiday cheer to local audiences with a double-barreled lineup of drive-in double features, which will be screened on consecutive nights in the parking lot of First Presbyterian Church, located at 300 N. Cherry St. in

Winston-Salem.

The cinematic yuletide celebration kicks off on Friday, Dec. 4 with the 1983 comedy classic A Christmas Story (rated PG), based on Jean Shepherd’s semiautobiographical memoir In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash and directed by Bob Clark (who’d earlier helmed another holiday classic, the original Black Christmas!), starring the great Darren McGavin, Melinda Dillon, and Peter Billingsley.

Second on the bill is director Richard Donner’s 1988 reinvention of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is Bill Murray in Scrooged (rated PG-13), featuring a star-studded cast including Karen Allen, Carol Kane, Bobcat Goldthwait, John Forsythe, David Johansen, Michael J. Pollard, Alfre Woodard, and Robert Mitchum.

Truth be told, in my review for The Temple News, I wrote: “You know you’re in trouble when Robert Mitchum’s the funniest person in the movie.”

Then again, the film grossed over $100 million worldwide and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling – so many were indeed made merry

by Scrooged. The parking lot opens at 5 p.m., and the screening will commence at 6 p.m. Tickets are $40 and can be ordered online at https://checkout.square.site/ buy/GT4UT5A5SIGL4CB4UVA5Q23K. The fun continues Saturday, Dec. 5, beginning with director Jon Favreau’s 2003 blockbuster Elf (rated PG), starring Will Ferrell in the title role, backed by James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Bob Newhart, Faizon Love, Peter Dinklage, Amy Sedaris, Michael Lerner, and Edward Asner (as Santa). One of the biggest box-office hits released by New Line Cinema, it became the basis for the 2010 Broadway musical, which was titled, appropriately enough, Elf: The Musical.

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Capping off the evening is one of the more controversial Christmas favorites: Joe Dante’s Gremlins (1984), scripted by Chris Columbus (who later directed Home Alone), starring Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton, Polly Holliday, Judge Reinhold, Keye Luke, Glynn Turman, Frances Lee McCain, Kenneth Tobey, Scott Brady (in his final film), the one and only Corey Feldman, the always-welcome Dick Miller, and the voice of Howie Mandel (as Gizmo).

The film’s PG rating was called into question due to its violence and dark humor. That same summer, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was equally controversial for the same reason, prompting the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) to establish the PG-13 rating. Nevertheless, Gremlins was a box-office hit and spawned a sequel in 1990. Once again, the parking lot will open at 5 p.m., followed by the screening at 6 p.m. Tickets are $40 and can be ordered online at https://checkout. square.site/buy/FV2XVDPHQTNURMTOCFPEAYTQ. “The titles we picked for the holiday films are just and light and have really classic characters,” observed Lawren Desai, a/perture’s executive director, and curator. “2020 is all about nostalgia, and I don’t think you can get more nostalgic than A Christmas Story, Elf, Gremlins, and Scrooged. We just had to find a place for Bill Murray in the line-up!”

Fresh popcorn and other refreshments will be available for purchase. In addi-

NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020

tion, both Wutyasay Food Truck and The Songbird House will be on the premises serving food and hot beverages on both evenings. Attendees may also bring new and unwrapped gifts to benefit Twin City Santa this holiday season. Ticket holders will be checked in by name, and vehicles parked on a first-come basis.

Guests are required to wear proper face coverings when outside of their vehicles or interacting with event staff or other personnel. Bathrooms are located in First

Presbyterian Church, and face coverings are required to enter.

“I think for having never done drive-ins before and for everything being done as pop-ups in a pandemic, they have gone really well,” Desai said. “We’ve had really great partners too, and that has been essential.” The official a/perture cinema website is https://aperturecinema.com/. !

See MARK BURGER’s reviews of current movies on Burgervideo.com. © 2020, Mark Burger.

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JFK and the first Thanksgiving

residents are only human, so they make mistakes.

No, I'm not talking about Bill Clinton hooking up with Monica Lewinski, or Donald Trump calling Jim Longworth neo-Nazis “very fine people.”

I'm talking about Longworth John Kennedy, and at Large how he misread history, unintentionally insulted the State of Virginia, and was compelled to make amends.

The story begins on Wednesday Dec. 4, 1619. That's the day 38 English settlers from the London Company, navigated their ship down the James River and onto Berkeley Hundred (Harrison's Landing), in what is now Charles City, Virginia, just 20 miles upstream from Jamestown, which had been settled twelve years prior. The landing party was led by Captain John Woodlief, who, as prescribed in the company charter, ordered a day of Thanksgiving to be observed upon their arrival, and every Dec. 4 thereafter.

Over time, Berkeley became known for its historic firsts. The first bourbon whiskey was made there in 1621 (by a preacher no less). "Taps" was played for the first time while the Union army was encamped at Berkeley in 1862. And, of course, it was the site of America's first Thanksgiving.

More on that in a moment.

In 1907, Berkeley was purchased by John Jamieson who had served as a Union drummer boy during the army's encampment at the plantation. Ownership later fell to his son (and my friend) Malcolm, who passed away in 1997. Mac loved Berkeley and was aggressive in marketing

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the historic site, including through the use of promotional videos and commercials which I helped to produce. He invited the public to tour the house and grounds, sold Berkeley boxwoods and bourbon, and held an annual Thanksgiving pageant which attracted tourists from across the country. But the celebration wasn't always widely recognized.

One hundred years after his father beat the Yankee drums at Berkeley, Mac was upset by something another Yankee did.

In the fall of 1962, President Kennedy issued his yearly Thanksgiving Proclamation in which he recognized his home state of Massachusetts as the site of America's first Thanksgiving. And so, on November 9th of that year, Virginia State Senator John Wicker was prompted by Mac to write to the President, and point out Kennedy's faux pas. In his telegram, Wicker referenced historical records about Berkeley's celebration, which took place one full year before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth in 1620.

Later that year, Kennedy confidant and noted historian Arthur Schlesinger sent a reply to Wicker with a tongue-in-cheek apology from the President. According to Berkeley records, Schlesinger "attributed the error to unconquerable New England bias on the part of the White House staff ".

The following year, on Nov. 5, 1963, President Kennedy had to eat crow during his annual Thanksgiving proclamation, saying, "Over three centuries ago, our forefathers in Virginia AND Massachusetts, far from home, in a lonely wilderness, set aside a day of thanksgiving".

Kennedy's New England bias wouldn't allow him to disavow Plymouth entirely, but Mac was happy that Berkeley finally gained official recognition for holding the first Thanksgiving, even if it was a shared honor. Sadly, it was to be Kennedy's last proclamation. He was assassinated seventeen days later in Dallas.

The holiday season is now upon us, and because of the Pandemic, many of us will have to forego our traditional Thanksgiving gatherings. We’ll celebrate with loved ones via Zoom, Skype, and old-fashioned phone calls, and we’ll remember those who are no longer with us. And despite the tragedies and restrictions of 2020, we will find a way to give thanks for what we have and whom we’re with. Perhaps we would also do well to emulate those wea-

ry English settlers, and just be thankful for surviving another day of our long journey.

So here's a Berkeley bourbon toast to Captain Woodlief, a little drummer boy, old Mac, and to that Yankee President who finally set the record straight. God bless, and Happy Thanksgiving. !

JIM LONGWORTH is the host of Triad Today, airing on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. on ABC45 (cable channel 7) and Sundays at 11 a.m. on WMYV (cable channel 15).

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[NEWS OF THE WEIRD] DESPERATE TIMES

Chuck Shepherd

Passers-by were reported to be incredulous at signs posted since midSeptember outside Trillade elementary school in Avignon, France, asking parents to refrain from throwing their

children over the locked gate when they are late to school. “Parents who arrived after the ringtone literally threw their children away,” Principal Sanaa Meziane told La Provence with a nervous laugh.

“It hasn’t happened that many times ... but we preferred to take the lead.”

While there were no injuries, the practice alarmed school officials enough to create the signs, which feature an adult stick figure tossing a child-sized stick figure over the gate.

UNIFORM COMPLAINTS

— The BBC reported that Police Constable Simon Read of the Cambridgeshire Police will be the subject of a misconduct hearing on Nov. 25 after being accused of switching prices on a box of doughnuts in February. Read, shopping at a Tesco Extra store while on duty and uniformed, allegedly selected a $13 box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts and replaced its barcode with one from the produce section that lowered the price to 9 cents, then went through the self-checkout line. In papers filed before the hearing, Read was said to bring “discredit upon the police service ... because a reasonable member of the public ... would be justifiably appalled that a police officer had acted dishonestly and without integrity.”

— San Juan, Puerto Rico, police officer Fernando Leon Berdecia, 46, is accused of stealing $1,300 worth of merchandise from a Home Depot on Nov. 16 while wearing his uniform. The Associated Press reported Puerto Rico Police Chief Henry Escalera said Leon has been suspended from the department, and a court date has been set for Dec. 2.

FAKE NEWS

Readers of Radio France Internationale’s website were alarmed to learn on Nov. 16 of the passing of dozens of world leaders and celebrities, The New York Times reported. Obituaries for Queen Elizabeth II, Clint Eastwood, soccer legend Pele and about 100 others were posted on the broadcaster’s website, and it was several hours before the notices were removed. The station issued a statement apologizing to “those concerned” and noting that the prewritten obituaries were accidentally posted as the website was moved to a new content management system.

LINE CROSSED

Typo, a gift and stationery retailer in Australia known for its tongue-in-cheek merchandise, is drawing fire from moms and dads Down Under after marketing a Christmas ornament that features a small elf holding a sign that says, “Santa isn’t real,” 7News reported. One dad posted that the item led to an awkward discussion with his son and encouraged other parents to “complain and get these things taken off the shelves.” The store said the ornament, which is part of its “naughty” line, has been removed from Typo’s in-person and online stores. “Sometimes we do make mistakes,” a spokesperson admitted. “We certainly don’t want to take the fun out of Christmas for anyone, especially after the year we’ve all had.”

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AWESOME!

Twenty concerned citizens in Norman, Oklahoma, turned out on Nov. 17 to help George Simmons, an arborist from Idaho, continue the search for his missing pet raccoon, an effort that had stretched into its second week and included support from the Norman Fire Department, which deployed its thermal imaging technology.

Coonsie had accompanied Simmons when he traveled to Oklahoma to help cut trees around power lines after a freak October ice storm, KFOR reported, but Coonsie got loose in Nov. 6, and Simmons says he won’t return to Idaho until he locates her.

He has been overwhelmed with gratitude for the Norman residents who are helping him look for Coonsie every night: “I’ve been all over the United States and never seen the hospitality like I have here,” Simmons said. At presstime, Coonsie was still missing.

FINDERS KEEPERS

Douglas Allen Hatley, 71, of Lakeland, Florida, was arrested on Nov. 16 after the Florida Highway Patrol said he found a metal light pole by the side of the road in Tampa and tried to sell it to Eagle Metals Recycling. The Tampa Bay Times reported the recycling center turned him away because he didn’t have documentation for the pole, and officers responding to reports of a 1997 Camry with a pole twice its length strapped to the top pulled him over soon afterward. Hatley told troopers a highway maintenance worker “gave it to me.” He was charged with third-degree grand theft.

BRIGHT IDEA

Two recent graduates of the Sydney Grammar School in Australia hatched a plan to skirt COVID-19 restrictions on large gatherings to host a graduation party while their parents were out of town. Outdoor gatherings are limited to 30 people, and indoor events are capped at 10, the Daily Mail reported, but up to 150 guests can attend weddings if they follow social distancing protocols. On Nov. 12, the unnamed best friends “married” in a backyard ceremony and planned a 150-person party to follow, until their parents caught wind of the event online and returned to put an end to it: “We shut down the planned private celebratory event as soon as we found out about it, and thankfully, nobody was put at risk,” one of the lads’ dad said. !

© 2020 Chuck Shepherd. Universal Press Syndicate.

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

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Triad giving guide: Local nonprofit, mutual aid organizations provide relief despite COVID-19

O Katie Murawski

Editor

ther than claiming almost 300,000 lives over the past eight months, the COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a major blow to the nation’s economy, leaving many in financial disarray. Ahead of Thanksgiving and Giving Tuesday, YES! Weekly would like to spotlight some of the Triad’s nonprofit and mutual aid organizations that have been a lifeline for many over the course of this chaotic year.

NONPROFITS Goodwill Industries of North Carolina (also known as Triad Goodwill) have been in the area since 1963 with a mission to improve the lives and enrich communities through the power of work in the following counties: Alamance, Caswell, Guilford, Randolph and Rockingham. Marketing Business Manager Christine Gillies said when people think of Triad Goodwill, they often think of one of its 24 locations “and it’s because of our retail stores that we are able to achieve our mission.”

“Whenever you shop with us, 85 cents of every dollar or 85%, goes back to our mission,” Gillies said. “We do that through free and low-cost job training programs, which are available to anyone in the community.”

According to the 2019-2020 Impact Report of the Career Development Services, Triad Goodwill served 7,249 people and 1,022 individual who had reported job placements. Triad Goodwill also served over a million shoppers, had 452,727 donors and over 19 million pounds of product was donated during that year.

“What is amazing is that it’s not just the mission and the stores; we are also diverting things from the landfill through our recycling efforts,” Gillies said. “We impact so much of Central North Carolina communities through a lot, and everyone depends on us for different reasons.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused Triad Goodwill to pivot to the virtual sphere with online classes such as how to grow businesses as well as classes geared toward the IT profession. Triad Goodwill was also able to host virtual job fairs and virtual career coaching sessions.

“We were really lucky in that, when we did close for six weeks, we were still able to provide our mission to those in need— and there was a huge need for jobs during that time,” Gillies noted. “It is really interesting, during those six weeks we were closed, people were cleaning out their houses, so we actually were very lucky to receive a tremendous amount of donations.”

Gillies also said that the nonprofit’s e-commerce department has been up and running nonstop since the shutdown, which has been another blessing. Marketing Director Teresa Smith added that during the six-week shutdown, Triad Goodwill’s Career Center fielded many calls— even from their own former employees— and one of the major issues that kept popping up was that “the state was so overtaxed in trying to talk to people and YES! WEEKLY

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get them started on unemployment benefits that Triad Goodwill was able to step in and help share the load,” so that the state employees weren’t overwhelmed and people were able to get unemployment benefit checks.

“There are plenty of people who turn the door in our career center or call and ask for assistance that have barriers that make things difficult for them to get a job,” Smith said. “The experts that we have in those career centers are so good at coaching these people and getting their foot in the door for their first job or haven’t worked in a long time, finding that company that will give them that opportunity. We also work with a population of people who have been incarcerated, and when they are coming out of incarceration, and they are trying to get back into the workplace, it is very difficult for them. We have cultivated a list of employers that trust our team who work with those people and recommend them to the right companies that can give them a second chance because everyone deserves a second chance.”

“We are just really thankful to our community; people have been extremely generous and patient with us,” Gillies added.

Ahead of Giving Tuesday, Gillies said that Triad Goodwill is always accepting physical donations to sell in stores and for volunteers to donate their time. Gillies also said Triad Goodwill is also accepting monetary donations via the website, www. triadgoodwill.org/donate.

American Children’s Home is a nonprofit located in Lexington that cares for children who have been taken from their homes by the Department of Social Services due to abuse and neglect. Development Manager Julie Harshaw said the nonprofit has a network of foster families throughout North Carolina, but the age group of those living on campus ranges from 13 to 21, and about 99% are kids from the greater Triad area.

“Whenever a child enters DSS custody, the first goal is to get them into a foster home, but there are just not enough foster homes anywhere in the community; and usually, foster homes don’t like to take in teenagers, they want the little guys. So, we house teenagers here.”

Harshaw said that there are 25 kids living on campus currently; however, in a normal year, that number would be close to 35-40.

“We are keeping the counts low due to COVID,” Harshaw said. “According to the Governor’s Executive Orders, we fall under the same category as nursing homes, so it’s congregate care... Besides getting in a car and going through a drive-thru, going to a public park, our kids haven’t gone anywhere.”

Harshaw said it’s been hard for the nonprofit as well as for the teenagers during the pandemic, particularly because they haven’t been able to go anywhere and do much other than going to school and participating in outdoor recreational activities. Harshaw said that the pandemic had drastically affected the ACH’s finances for the year with the cancelation of both of the nonprofit’s biggest fundraisers.

“That took away about $30,000 that we raise every year, and having the kids on campus full-time is expensive because usually, they are in school, so the cost

associated with keeping them here, all-day, every day, have skyrocketed— we spent almost triple our food budget. We also had to upgrade our technology because we are out here in the middle of nowhere in Lexington, and had to get a fiber loop installed like you would need to do in a neighborhood,” Harshaw said. “Our kids need to know that they matter. These kids have gone through more trauma in their lives than most adults I know… The donations that come to the ACH pay for the quality of life; DSS pays for the lights and to keep them set, but donations pay for the quality of life. All donations go toward the kids’ activities, well-being, mental health and making sure they are well-rounded and taken care of— not just sheltered and fed. These kids need to know that someone out in the community cares about them even though it is someone they will never meet. Just feeling that somebody cares about them is really special and important to these kids.”

Harshaw said for anyone interested in being a foster parent to reach out and that all training would be done virtually or in-home.

“There are not enough foster homes in North Carolina, in the Triad area, so we are very actively looking for foster parents as well,” she added.

For more information about the ACH, visit the website, https://www.ach-nc.org/, and to donate, email Julie Harshaw at jharshaw@ach-nc.org.

Hoops4L.Y.F.E. has a mission to provide at-risk youth and young adults with redirection and “building blocks to maximum exposure in education and in sports,” said founder Brittany Ward. In the past, Ward said boys have been exclusivey part of this program, but now, the organization is co-ed.

“Since COVID, we have not stopped— we have continuously been open and providing remote learning programs,” Ward noted. “Right now, we are only able to have 10 students— and since COVID, we have helped empower these 10 students and their families with resources such as rent-assistance, utility-assistance, food and PPE...

We were serving up to 25, but we had to decrease to 10, and we have an extensive waiting list. We are looking to launch more remote learning sites throughout the city.”

Earlier this summer, Ward said that Hoops4L.Y.F.E. received a grant for equipment [such as computers or electronics needed for students to be successful amid the pandemic] from the Winston-Salem Foundation’s COVID-fund. Ward said that Hoops4L.Y.F.E. was also able to get a grant during the recent second round of funding. She said that this grant was used to build on more capacity and to hire more people to help assist with the remote learning program.

Ward also mentioned that Christ For Love and Action For Equity are two other community organizations that have helped Hoops4L.Y.F.E. tremendously over the course of the pandemic. Ward said that on Giving Tuesday, Hoops4L.Y.F.E. is launching a platform on Facebook so that folks that would like to donate can do so there as well as via PayPal (PayPal.me/Hoops4LYFE) and CashApp ($H4LYFE). Ward noted that in-person donations could be dropped off or submitted at 3205 S. Main

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St. in Winston-Salem. Ward said that Hoops4L.Y.F.E. also is a part of www.smile.amazon.com as a charity that receives 5% of purchases. There is also a Hoops4L.Y.F.E. wishlist for direct needs that can be purchased and delivered directly to Hoops4L.Y.F.E. MUTUAL AID Greensboro Mutual Aid formed in March of this year after the pandemic shut down North Carolina’s economy.

“We were all already struggling, and this could have existed beforehand, but it has evolved from a virtual tip jar for people to then be on that and try to expand within the realm of mutual aid and support,” said a volunteer with Greensboro Mutual Aid in a phone interview last week. “We are really trying to connect people to the idea of solidarity and mutual connection as we move through this very-connected pandemic.”

The volunteer went on to explain that Greensboro Mutual Aid has grown exponentially since March, and has helped move a significant amount of money through the community in such a short time.

“Our main qualification has been geographic and an element of trust; that is within the tenets of mutual aid that we trust people,” they said. “Mutual aid is not new, it is a thing that has kept Black, Indigenous, workingclass, and immigrant communities thriving over the years. This is a very old concept. In that process, part of what we have been doing is also providing education around the concept of mutual aid, but it’s also very natural to some people. We’ve had a lot of people who found out about us because they were on the virtual tip jar, then after some time, they became more secure, removed themselves, and started being more involved in contributing— that is the power of mutual aid. It is based out of the notion that we have everything to meet everyone’s needs, we all have the ability to contribute, and we all have the ability to receive. Mutual aid also helps keep people more connected and engaged with each other.”

The volunteer also noted that Greensboro Mutual Aid is involved with Mutual Aid Fund, which is “a network composed of 12 organizations doing mutual aid or neighborhood-specific work throughout the city, fiscally sponsored by grants from the YWCA.” The volunteer said that those involved with the decision-making process of the organization are longterm, established organizers in the community and that mutual aid is a “solidarity, not charity” model that supports community resilience and build a new economy.

“Mutual aid is closer to the people,” the volunteer said.

“The money that you donate to us will go directly into people’s pockets, and it will go directly to paying medical bills, rent, etc.— you are keeping people housed through this pandemic, and you are keeping people safe.”

To learn more about Greensboro Mutual Aid, check out the Facebook group. Greensboro Mutual Aid accepts donations via CashApp ($GSOmutualaid), PayPayl (gsomutualaid@gmail.com), or via a tax-deductible donation to the YWCA. Sistas4ChangeWS began after the massive Black Lives Matter movement this summer as a means to provide concrete services to individuals in need.

“I actively participated in the local protests earlier this year, but decided that it was time to form a more concrete, consistent way to help make a change,” said co-founder Hatasha Carter. “S4C was the ending result!”

S4CWS’s mission to “be there for community members who have exhausted all other resources, but still need WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

someone in their corner to help them,” Carter added. “We do not have ‘typical services that we assist with,’ rather, we ask what is needed and try our best to assist in any way we can.”

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, S4C has struggled with getting funds to continue its Community Eatz initiative, which serves those who are food insecure twice a week, every week.

“We are in need of food donations or monetary donations to continue,” Carter said. “It is hard to host any of the events/fundraisers that we would like to due to current COVID restrictions. S4C has the backing of executive members who have the hearts of angels sent directly from God. We are genuine in our efforts and take pride in the work we do. We love who we serve and will do whatever is needed to help and make a difference.

Financially, things are tough; however, we have faith in our community and their ability/willingness to assist and support S4C and our efforts. You will not find a more passionate group.”

Coming up, S4C is hosting a “Once Upon a Toy Drive” drop-off event on Dec. 12 at Quality Education Academy, located at 5012 Lansing Dr.- C in Winston-Salem. For more information about S4CWS and to donate, visit their website (https://sistas4changews.org/about-us) and social media pages (@S4CWS).

Triad Abolition Project was formed this summer and sustained a 49-day Occupation in downtown Winston-

Salem, which resulted in the banning of the restraint method that led to the death of John Elliott Neville, an inmate in the Forsyth County Law Enforcement Detention Center, in December 2019. TAP’s mission is to “abolish the prison industrial complex” in addition to “continuing to amplify abolition education, supporting fellow grassroots organizations seeking transformative change, civic engagement in local politics, and calls for reinvesting taxpayer money into community care efforts.”

“We know that slavery did not end in the 19th Century and has continued under the structure that is the prison industrial complex,” wrote organizers with the group in an email. “We seek to abolish this system completely with education and dedication so that we can replace it with systems of care for our communities. We seek to provide and create abolitionist education; amplify the voices of our Black community leaders; monitor and empower local abolitionist progress and policy proposals; and share accessible, accountable, and responsible abolitionist actions.”

The organizers with TAP wrote that the COVID-19 pandemic had shifted the group’s direct actions into the virtual realm to protect the health of their community.

“Most recently, we’ve collaborated with virtual letter writing with Prisoner Outreach Initiative, continued virtually participating in local government meetings, and we’ve shared funds with mutual aid organizations who continue to do work for the community on the ground,” the organizers wrote. “COVID’s impact is dangerous for our incarcerated siblings in the Forsyth County Jail, and so we continue to support amplification of decarceration efforts. Our current finances are being used for direct action materials, for court fees to assist the 55 civil disobedience arrests from summer actions, and educational materials.”

Ahead of Giving Tuesday, TAP organizers wrote that folks should consider giving to their organization because of the radical progress that mutual aid efforts have made in the Winston-Salem community through “education, amplification, and actions on behalf of transformative change.”

“Efforts by Housing Justice Now, Forsyth Court Support, Hate Out of Winston, The United States of Racism, Prisoner Outreach Initiative, and Triad Abolition Project demand accountability from city and county elected officials, WSPD, and FCSO. Giving to mutual aid funds sustains the work of community care.”

To stay informed about TAP’s future actions, membership interest meetings, and educational programming, follow TAP on Facebook, Twitter (@TriadAbolition), and/or Instagram (@triadabolitionproject). Folks can also text TAPWSNC to 74121 to receive direct action updates from us. For more information on TAP’s mission and actions, visit www.triadabolitionproject.org, and to donate, the organization accepts donations via Venmo at @triadabolitionproject.

(To donate via another method of payment, email triadabolitionproject@gmail.com for more details. All donations and expenditures are shared in a monthly finance report on TAP’s website: https://www.triadabolitionproject.org/donations.) !

KATIE MURAWSKI is the editor-in-chief of YES! Weekly. Her alter egos include The Grimberlyn Reaper, skater/public relations board chair for Greensboro Roller Derby, and Roy Fahrenheit, drag entertainer and selfproclaimed King of Glamp.

NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020 YES! WEEKLY

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Alamance sheriff shares edited audio of pepper-sprayed preacher After filing felony charges against Greensboro minister Greg Drumwright, the Alamance County Sheriff’s Department shared what activists say is a deceptivelyedited audio clip of Drumwright’s plans Ian McDowell for a protest in Graham this Sunday.

As previously Contributor reported, on Oct. 31, Alamance deputies and Graham police officers attacked the “I Am Change March to the Polls” rally led by Drumwright, Burlington Mayor Ian Baltutis, and George Floyd’s niece and nephew Brooke and Brandon Williams. When sheriff’s deputies charged from the historic courthouse building and arrested speakers addressing the crowd, Drumwright was peppersprayed in the face, thrown to the ground and handcuffed.

Others directly pepper-sprayed included Janet Johnson, a 56-year-old Black minister from Graham who attended the march in a motorized wheelchair, and the bystanders who came to her aid while she convulsed. Documentary filmmaker Nat Frum was pepper-sprayed multiple times, first when helping to carry Johnson to a medical station, then while attempting to retrieve her wheelchair.

Frum’s video of the pepper-spray attack on Johnson was shared on social media by Frum’s father, former Atlantic editor (and George W. Bush speechwriter) David Frum.

Reports of the attack brought international attention to long-standing allegations that Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson openly supports white supremacists and suppresses anti-racist dissent.

Gov. Roy Cooper and Attorney General Josh Stein have publicly condemned the actions of Alamance and Graham law enforcement.

On Nov. 18, over two weeks after the event that earned Sheriff Johnson international condemnation, Johnson’s office responded, not with an explanation or apology, but by announcing felony charges were being brought against the Black Greensboro clergyman they peppersprayed and arrested.

Rev. Greg Drumwright was charged with felony assault on an officer and obstructing justice. According to the Washington YES! WEEKLY

PHOTOS BY TONY CRIDER

Sheriff Terry Johnson with neo-Confederate supporters Post, “the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office said it has reviewed video of the Oct. 31 rally and alleged that Drumwright, pastor of the Citadel Church in nearby Greensboro, was involved in an ‘altercation’ that left a deputy injured.”

(This writer, who witnessed the deputies’ assault on the speakers’ stand, and has reviewed multiple videos of the incident, has seen no evidence of either an altercation or an injured deputy.)

As the Post article notes, the felony charges were filed after Drumwright, the ACLU of North Carolina and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law filed a federal lawsuit against Sheriff Johnson and Graham Police Chief Kristy Cole for the tear-gas attack on the voting rights march.

“These charges are retaliatory in our view,” attorney Elizabeth Haddix told the Post. “We’re looking forward to seeing the video the sheriff referenced. The videos we have seen dispute his statement.”

On Nov. 20, Sheriff Johnson launched a social media counter-attack via a post on his office’s Facebook page, which stated: According to an anonymous recording

NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020

received by the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office, a demonstration is expected to be held in downtown Graham on Saturday, November 28, 2020.

[As noted below, this date was subsequently changed to Sunday, Nov. 29] The recording that was received by the Sheriff’s Office is from the Thursday, November 19 Community Meeting for Unification. While the Sheriff’s Office recognizes that some of the message from last night was peace, part of the recording was cause for concern.

At one point, Mr. Drumwright states, “I’m here to announce that, yes, we will march again and while we may not all agree on a march, what we need to understand is that, it’s either at this point, a march or a riot. We work with others, we’re at war.”

The Sheriff’s Office strongly encourages all those that attend the November 28 demonstration to refrain from harming people and property, blocking streets and intersections, and trespassing, as these actions are illegal and can result in arrest.

While the Sheriff’s Office supports and respects an individual’s constitutional right

to free speech, we continue to ask everyone to exercise those rights in a peaceful and respectful manner.

This social media post mischaracterizes what Drumwright actually said at that meeting, according to the full audio recording of Drumwright’s speech obtained by YES! Weekly. Elon University professor Tony Crider, whose photographs have documented the activities of white supremacists, anti-racist activists and law enforcement’s reaction to both across the North Carolina Piedmont, told YES! Weekly that Drumwright was “clearly proposing the organized march as a means to channel the energy and avoid an unorganized riot.”

The post also misquotes a key phrase; Drumwright did not say “we work with others,” but “we work with that understanding.”

The full text of Drumwright’s speech is too long to reproduce in print, but the relevant portion has been reproduced below: I’m here to announce that, yes, we will march again. And while we may not all agree on a march, what we need to

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Pepper spray understand is that, it’s either at this point, a march or a riot. We work with that understanding. We’re at war. I’m going to be honest with you. It does not feel good to be sitting in this room, one week before Thanksgiving, after an entire summer of activism.

Drumwright also sated that he was not the only activist targeted by Alamance and Graham law enforcement.

They have been trumping up charges to engage innocent people in the criminal justice system, whose lives will never be the same if convicted. I want you to understand that I have received messages that the sheriff is going after more than just me.

And in the group that he’s seeking to throw felony charges on is a really rock star rising teacher in Guilford County. And for those of you who are educators, a teacher who is facing felony charges could actually lose their career. This individual is certified and performs so well through the certification process that now they teach and help to certify other teachers in the Guilford County School System.

Drumwright made it clear that he was WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM

The maskless sheriff supervises the arrests of activists while protesting not advocating a riot by stating: And let me keep it one hundred, because we’re in church and I got to be honest with you. There are folks in here who are ready to kick ass. There are people in here who are ready to riot. There are people in here who are holding back their anger out of respect for my leadership, for your leadership, for Uncle Cliff, Aunt Glenda, for some reason, and we are agreeing to channel our anger, because we don’t want to start a riot.

In a comment on the post from the Alamance Sheriff’s Office, activist Carey Kirk Griffin denounced Sheriff Johnson for his refusal to the denounce the violent rhetoric of white supremacists.

“You NEVER DENOUNCE the violent propaganda and ‘call to arms’ that Gary Williamson or other ACTBAC members enlist before events,” Griffin wrote, “because you’re all in bed together.”

Gary Williamson, founder of Alamance County Taking Back Alamance County, which the Southern Poverty Law Center once listed as hate group in 2017, is one of many neo-Confederate counter-protesters

whom Johnson has been publicly friendly toward during rallies, at which he has personally arrested anti-racist demonstrators for cursing, while merely observing and even laughing as the neo-Confederate supporters made threats and shouted racist insults. When ACTBAC member Steve Marley posted a literal call to arms on the ReOpen NC Facebook page against the 700 Black Lives Matter demonstrators who peacefully marched from Burlington to Graham in July, the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office had no public response.

On Tuesday afternoon, Drumwright told YES! Weekly that the date of the “Ready 4 Change Peaceful Protest for Criminal Justice Reform” has been changed from Saturday to Sunday, Nov. 29, with demonstrators assembling at 1 p.m. in the Children’s Chapel United Church of Christ at 334 E. Harden St. in Graham, and the march beginning at 2 p.m. He also said that he met with representatives of the Greensboro Sheriff’s Department on Friday, Nov. 20, so that felony papers on him could be served.

He did not state why he met with Guilford rather than Alamance deputies.

“We are calling on the State of North Carolina to investigate everything about the law enforcement in Graham, and we have every reason to believe that it’s going to happen,” said Drumwright in his Nov. 19 speech at the Community Meeting for Unification. “I have spoken to the Attorney General personally several times, and we have every reason to believe that criminal justice reform is coming.”

In his closing remarks, he acknowledged the health risks of the ongoing pandemic.

“COVID is real. I’m not trying to downplay it. I’ve provided pastoral care to many people this summer who have dealt with COVID. Thanks be to God, none of them have died. But we’ll do it and we’ll do it safe. Bring two masks if you have to.

It may be cold. Get your coats. Ask your auntie if you can borrow her fur. You need to look fabulous in the streets that day, but we’re going to keep going.” !

IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of.

NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020

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Talking turkey and other absurdities with the Charles Hanson Family Band

t’s a little bit circus, it’s a little bit rock ‘n’ roll, it’s the Charles Hanson Family Band, and they’re calling all clowns to join their upcoming show at Oden Brewing Company on Dec. 5.

“The circus known as the Charles Hanson Family band is looking forward to having a wonderful journey through the senses,” said ringleader Katei Cranford Chris Powell (AKA Charles Hanson,) regarding their first stage show in the Triad since the shutdown. “Shit Contributor gets weird,” he added, “wear a mask.”

Weird, indeed. Grounded irreverence could be Powell’s trademark: working as a frontman preacher for a strange gospel that occasionally turns serious. “Some might say it’s been a lifetime in the making,” Powell noted of the group’s origins, calling their moniker “a combination of the most psychotic and wholesome families.”

“We were born in a basement, on the back of a napkin,“ he added, “you know, like a real family, we’re not going to be saccharin.”

Riding shotgun in the clown car is Powell’s real-life brother, Bob Powell, on the drums. The pair of rock ‘n’ roll siblings from Sophia have been playing music together for more than two decades, and now, they are working together as contractors. “We build and remodel houses to pay for our music addiction,” Powell said, noting that they could melt faces and build a back porch in one swing.

As a family, they’re looking forward to Thanksgiving traditions like smacking each other with turkey legs. “It’s messed up, but somehow it became a thing,” Powell said, noting his favorite side is sweet potato casserole with marshmallows.

For his musical family, Powell credits “a series of luck playing out at local open mics brought us into orbit.”

That orbit includes bassist Caleb Fisher, guitarists Miguel Noyola and Charlie Thomas, and percussionist Peterson Duff. “We’re building some mammoth sounds,” Powell noted, “and going to hit the ground running when the pandemic ends.”

Before the shutdown, the Charles Hanson Family Band held regular slots at Walker’s and Common Grounds. For Powell, “playing that corner was as crucial to our development as the Reeperbahn was for the Beatles.” During the pandemic, they’ve put out two records and played a round of virtual shows and pop-ups.

Powell considers not getting arrested the hallmark of success for pop-up endeavors and underground parties, like the ripper in February they threw with Strictly Social (in the basement of an Irving Park house worth threequarters of a million dollars). “Our stories have been interweaving for decades,” he explained of their partnership with the electronic music party makers, adding that “Graham Pickford [from Strictly Social] has even been to a Powell family Thanksgiving!”

While the band has toned it down during the pandemic YES! WEEKLY

NOVEMBER 25 - DECEMBER 1, 2020

PHOTO COURTESY OF CHRIS POWELL

(gracing only a few backyards and blocks along Elm Street), not getting arrested remains a highlight.

“It’s nice to be on the level with the people of this great city,” Powell said of their street performances. “You have to build trust with the audience,” he explained of tailoring to more family-friendly crowds, “kind of like gradually boiling a frog before they know it, they’re in the shit.”

Regardless, “we stay hard,” he insisted, explaining the “grip and rip it” style extends to production, with both of their releases recorded in-house at Sloth Studio and an alluring domicile known as “the Compound.”

“The Compound is a house of love,” Powell said of the residence he shares with his brother, which is located “that way between here and hell, beside the poultry plant.” It’s where they recorded their first album, hosted backyard DJs, and plot general mayhem alongside their music, which rests on a shelf in between Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift— though the sound lends more along the lines of Green Jello or a chilled-out Wesley Willis.

Powell’s shoutout to Enya as an influence makes more sense on their second record.

Welcome to the Circus, which boasts a distinctly more soulful, funky vibe— surprisingly smooth— in contrast to the fuzzed-out garage noise of their first album, Skylord.

Together, the two releases lay the far-out spectrum embodied by the Charles Hanson Family Band.

“It was good to put out some dirty rock ‘n’ roll,” Powell

explained of Skylord, “but we barely touched the surface with philosophy.”

Espousing philosophy remains salient for the Charles Hanson Family Band, which Powell often shares through handheld affirmation videos— almost daily—like a freaked-out Stuart Smalley.

“We love to engage when we have something to say,” he said of the motivators behind his content: shot on an iPhone with zero-budget, an effort reflective of the times.

“Plus, our fans are the best fans in the world,” he added on the push to keep creating, “we’ll put out for them— quarantine or not.”

Beyond plans for more videos and a new album, Powell holds meager hopes for the post-pandemic future: “Charles Hanson wants to jump off a stage into the arms of rabid lunatic fans, travel the world playing with our motley revue and bring joy to the downtrodden masses.”

For now, they’re settling on excitement for an upcoming show and turkey to roast, with advice to share.

“Definitely take the blue pill,” Powell said, adding that “clowns aren’t scary and never trust a fart you have to squeeze.”

The Charles Hanson Family Band plays Oden Brewing Company on Dec. 5. !

KATEI CRANFORD is a Triad music nerd who hosts Katei’s Thursday Triad Report on WUAG 103.1FM.

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last call

[THE ADVICE GODDESS] love • sex • dating • marriage • questions

GRAND THEFT AUTOCRAT

I’m a 29-year-old straight woman, and I recently started dating this guy I really like. The only issue is he seems a bit controlling. For example, he always Amy Alkon wants to pick the restaurant and Advice which TV show we Goddess watch. While I’m generally pretty go with the flow, it seems like I never choose what we’re doing. It’s one thing to pick the restaurant, but I worry that he might be like this with bigger things (like if we got a place together or got married). Should I be worried? —Unsure It’s important to have a boyfriend who shows interest in your point of view, ideally beyond, “Are your arm restraints a little tight?”

But before we start measuring you for your “Handmaid’s Tale” bonnet, consider whether there’s a non-creepy, non-control freakish reason the guy wants to choose the dining establishment and the entertainment. Is he some extreme foodie who pores over restaurant reviews and follows chefs like other guys follow baseball players, while you’re simply a chick who likes to eat out?

By the way, I’ve personally horrified some waitresses who’ve overheard me asking my boyfriend to tell me what I should order. I do this not because I

am some shell of a person and have no opinions but because I got tired of having food envy when our dinners came.

I realized my boyfriend is some sort of culinary sniffer dog, using mere words on a menu to divine the tastiest, most exciting entree, much like tracking dogs use an old sweatshirt to sniff their way to a buried dead body.

However, save for the few areas one’s partner has special expertise, there are things in a relationship that can be outsourced, and your decision-making should not be one of them. You create who you are through your choices, and if you make no choices, there’s no “you.”

The elimination by a partner of the need for you to have an opinion could be the beginnings of “coercive control.” This is a term by sociologist Evan Stark for an insidious form of subjugation in a relationship that an abuser uses to dominate and control their partner. It’s a gradual psychological hostage-taking, breaking down a person’s independent self, their concept of reality, and their ability to make decisions for themselves.

Victims of coercive control suffer “perspecticide,” which Stark describes as a loss of the ability to “know what you know.” This comes through their gradual isolation from friends and family and losing touch with their opinions, desires, and values, including their ability to discern what is right and wrong. Their abuser (who research finds can be male or female) often resorts to intimate partner violence when coercive control of their victim fails, like if he or she shows a flash of independent thought.

In a healthy relationship, a person does

not get erased, their perspective never taken into account. Healthy relationships are interdependent. Though one partner might not agree with the other’s every belief and idea, they generally respect each other’s thinking and are open to their suggestions. Marriage researcher John Gottman describes this as partners accepting each other’s “influence.”

This mutual influencing seems to make for more satisfying romantic partnerships with more staying power, explains Gottman: “Men who allow their wives to influence them have happier marriages and are less likely to divorce than men who resist their wives’ influence. Statistically speaking, when a man is not willing to share power with his partner, there is an 81 percent chance his marriage will self-destruct.”

Women tend to be higher in a “pleaser” personality trait, “agreeableness,” which, on a positive note, manifests in being warm, kind, generous, and motivated to have positive interactions with others. On a darker note, it can make a woman with a dominant partner more likely to do as she’s told. That said, your feelings are not the boss of you, and you can simply de-

cide to override them and assert yourself: Have opinions, make decisions, and stand up for yourself.

Accordingly, your interactions with this man should be driven by the understanding that you are his equal in the relationship, not his subordinate. To see whether he’s up for an equal partnership — a girlfriend rather than a female serf — tell him you don’t think it’s healthy for you or the relationship for him to make all the decisions. Going forward, you want shared responsibility for decision-making.

For your part in this, you need to take responsibility: Assert yourself by asserting your opinions and desires when there are decisions to be made. This is how you create a healthy relationship instead of a two-person totalitarian state — complete with a “Gulag Sweet Home” needlepoint and where mundane questions like, “How was your day?” kick off your Soviet show trial. !

GOT A problem? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave, #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or e-mail AdviceAmy@aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com) © 2020 Amy Alkon Distributed by Creators.Com.

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