KEEPING IT REAL

PAULETTE BROWN-HINDS, PhD Publisher

S.E. WILLIAMS Executive Editor

KENNETH NG’ETICH Assistant Editor

BREANNA REEVES Staff Reporter

ARYANA NOROOZI Staff Reporter

PRINCE JAMES STORY Staff Reporter

PHYLLIS KIMBER-WILCOX Staff Reporter

GAIL FRY Contributor

SUSAN MORRIS General Manager / Controller

CHRIS ALLEN Creative Director

CHRISTEN IRVING Revenue/Audience Engagement

CHUCK BIBBS

Digital Director

ALEXANDER BROWN-HINDS Creative

MONICA VICUNA

VOICE Cares

HARDY & CHERYL BROWN Co-Publishers Emeritus

CONTRIBUTORS

Jon Gaede, Jeremiah Settle, Dr. Joseph Bailey, Jordan Brown, Benoit Malphettes, Kathy Malphettes, Laura Klure

CONTACT US

To submit an article, become a subscriber, advertiser, sponsor, or partner please contact the general manager at 951.682.6070 or email suzie@ voicemediaventures.com.

ESTABLISHED 1972

Voice Media Ventures

Post Office Box 912

Riverside, California 92502

(951) 682-6070

The Murder of Tyre Nichols by Modern Day “Men in the Middle”

Implicit bias in the psyche of America undergirds the correlation of Black maleness with crime and it is this bias that often robs Black men of their lives. So when news of the Tyre Nichols murder became public, the heartbreaking conditions surrounding his death seemed even more bitter for the African American community when we learned of the five Black, Memphis, TN, police officers implicated in his death.

Yet, it's hard not to admit that in some ways, the shocking revelation of Nichols’ death by these “Blacks” who stood along the “Thin Blue Line” jaggedly complicates the ongoing struggle for justice in policing during an era when white nationalism is on the rise.

Nichols’ brutal murder has forced many Blacks to call up a painful truth from the annals of our history, something that lies just beneath the surface of our consciousness. That is, throughout our sojourn in America, and recently applicable to some Blacks along the Thin Blue Line, there are some who behave with the same “us against them” mindset as their white racist counterparts once they pin the badge of police

Published every Thursday and distributed throughout the Inland Empire Adjudicated, a legal newspaper of general circulation on July 8, 1974 Case # 108890 by the Superior Court of Riverside County. Stories published do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publishers. Member of: National Newspaper Publishers Association, California Black Media and California News Publishers Association continued on page 9

The tragedy offered ready fodder for racists who, ignoring the objective data on police use of force in relation to Black people, proclaimed that the incident supported their long held views that such deadly use of force by police is not about race. However, those who live in reality know the data tells a different story.

Proposed Legislation Seeks Mandatory Training for Federally Licensed Gun Dealers

SB 241, if passed by the legislature and signed into law, will require all federally licensed firearm dealers in California, and their employees, to complete annual training provided by the California Department of Justice. (source: gunsafety.ny.gov).

Asante-Ra | Contributor

On Wednesday, January 25, 2023, CA Senator Dave Min (D-Irvine) introduced Senate Bill (SB) 241 requiring all federally licensed firearm dealers in California, and their employees, to complete annual training provided by the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ).

CA DOJ training will cover federal and state laws governing the sales and transfers of firearms and ammunition; how to recognize indicators an individual intends to use a firearm for fraudulent activity, unlawful purposes, or self-harm; theft and burglary prevention. The training will also focus on the rules of safe firearm handling and storage and other reasonable business practices that will deter gun trafficking or the unlawful use of firearms.

SB 241 builds on Senator Min’s SB 1384 (Chapter 995, Statutes of 2022) which requires firearms dealers to carry liability insurance and install onsite surveillance, signed by the Governor last year.

Mandatory training and gun dealer certification intends to prevent theft, straw purchases, and other nefarious crimes that are too often a result of the free flow of guns in our communities. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) reports 1,903 federally licensed dealers or pawnbrokers of firearms in California.

“We have got to do something to reduce the gun violence in this country. While this bill will not end gun violence, it will help to reduce it, by requiring gun dealers to undergo training to prevent theft, fraud, and illegal purchases,” Min continued on page 19

Prince

James Story | Staff

On Dec.31, 1879, Thomas Edison stood in front of a crowd in Menlo Park, New Jersey, to display his new invention, the incandescent lightbulb.

There is no question about the historical impact Edison’s invention had on the world years ago and how people from all over the country traveled to New Jersey for Edison’s revolutionary reveal.

One hundred forty years later, another revolutionary event occurred with the unveiling of North America’s first Hydrogen microgrid home, H2, at the Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) Energy Resource Center is Here with H2: in Downey, California.

It is the first fully integrated demonstration project with solar panels, a battery and an electrolyser to convert solar energy into hydrogen, as well as a fuel cell to supply electricity to the home.

Among the dignitaries in attendance at the event was former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who now serves as Infrastructure Advisor for the State of California.

The home, at 2,000 square feet, was built in 20 weeks. The construction included six modules that were built off-site, brought over, and put together in six hours, creating the house.

The micro-grid draws its power from solar panels and converts excess energy into renewable hydrogen energy.

SoCalGas explained that the micro-grid could deliver clean and renewable energy to a neighborhood composed of an estimated 100 homes and industrial buildings.

“California is home to 40 million people. Yes, California is also an idea. It is a vision of the future. It is a gateway to progress,” Southern

California Gas Co. President Marayam Brown said.

“It is very much the case that innovation and technology for the last half-century has flowed in this country from west to east. That is because of the incredible work of many of the people in this room.”

During the event, James Slevin, the National President of Utility Workers For America