Mshale Newspaper November 8, 2021

Issue # 495

INSIDE

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HBCU National Center ribbon cutting is on November 11

Ethiopia Conflict: Rival groups join in bid to remove prime minister

NOVEMBER 8 - 14,2021

A F R IC A N

C OM MU N I T Y

N E W S PAP E R

Minneapolis City Council will be majority People of Color

(L to R) Andrea Jenkins - Ward 4; Robin Wonsley Worlobah - Ward 2; Jamal Osman - Ward 6; Aisha Chughtai - Ward 10

Study: White evangelicals and religious diversity (L to R) LaTrisha Vetaw - Ward 4; Jeremiah Ellison - Ward 5; Elliott Payne - Ward 1; Jason Chavez - Ward 9

Tom Gitaa & Al McFarlane Mshale/Insight News

P.10

Amapiano Live Music Festival on TikTok

The nation’s eyes were on Tuesday’s Minneapolis municipal elections for a ballot measure that sought to create a new department of public safety and place the Minneapolis Police Department under it. That ballot measure failed with only 43% of voters supporting it.

However, people of color who have borne the brunt of the city’s police brutality are smiling as they are set to be the majority in the 13-member city council.

Eight of the 13 members that prevailed last night are people of color and six

of color in yesterday’s historic election. The New faces in the council three will join Andrea Jenkins, Jeremiah Ellison, that are people of color include Elliott Payne, a LaTrisha Vetaw, Jamal Black man, in Ward 1 who Osman and Jason Chavez defeated incumbent Kevin to round up the people of Reich, a white man. color caucus. Vetaw and Chavez are newcomers In Ward 2, Robin Wonsley to the council with Vetaw Worlobah, a Black woman defeating another person of color, incumbent Ward who ran as a Democratic Socialist and is married 4 Councilman Phillipe Cunningham. Chavez, to a Liberian, defeated four-term incumbent Cam whose parents are from Gordon of the Green Party. Mexico ran in an open seat to represent Ward 9 replacing another Latino, Aisha Chughtai whose parents are from Pakistan Councilwoman Alondra won an open seat in Ward Cano who did not seek 10 previously held by City reelection.

Council President Lisa Bender.

The newcomers are also decidedly young and were propelled to office by Chughtai, Payne and Worlobah are the the likes of University of three pickups for people Minnesota student Shana are Black.

Wanjohi.

“Young people are the future. Youth involvement in the electoral process is important because we need to be knowledgeable about the people governing us, and that we receive the resources we need to live safe and peaceful lives here in Minneapolis,” said Wanjohi.

The new Council will be sworn-in in January.

The opportunity for transformative change this Council represents is immeasurable.

In some ways, the seating of this band of Minneapolis on Pg. 5

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November 8 - 14, 2021 Issue 495

Ribbon cutting for HBCU National Center set for Nov. 11

Internships on Capitol Hill are increasingly limited to those who are wealthy enough to afford to live in Washington and work for free.

Photo: Courtesy NNPA

By Lauren Victoria Burke NNPA On November 11, the HBCU National Center will hold a ribbon cutting blocks from the U.S. Capitol. The center has been established by Jacqueline “Jackie” Lewis, who is also the Founder of WISH, LLC, which provides housing to interns in Washington, DC. The ceremony will feature Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC) who is Chair of the Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) Caucus in Congress.

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Washington, D.C. is one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. to live in and has rents that can be north of $2,000 per month. Internships on Capitol Hill are increasingly limited to those who are wealthy enough to afford to live in Washington and work for free.

Lewis has previously gained national recognition for her educational work as a federal appointee of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. She served on the President’s Intergovernmental Advisory Council on Education in both Administrations. Lewis, along with her late husband, Robert, created a way to provide safe affordable housing in Washington, DC after learning there were few properties available.

They started buying vacant properties in Washington, D.C. that would house students at a price no more than back on their college campus.

Because of the tight economics of interning in a federal office, particularly for Black college students, some have suggested that interns should be paid.

Most internships in Congress went unpaid for several decades but after a great deal of lobbying in 2018 interns on Capitol Hill now earn at least $1,800 per month.

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Guest Commentary by Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.

Keeping our access to healthcare Over the past year and a half, New Jerseyans of all backgrounds have struggled to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic and economic insecurity.

Friends and family got sick, and tragically, some passed away from the COVID-19 virus. Data collected in June and July shows an estimated 1.5 million New Jerseyans are having difficulty covering the most basic household expenses like food, rent or mortgage, medical bills, car payments, or student loans. Worse yet, hundreds of thousands of our community members rely on unemployment benefits to support themselves and their families.

Like crises before, the most impacted in our state are Black Americans and Hispanics. Black and Hispanic residents in New Jersey have been the most vulnerable to COVID-19, serving as critical frontline and essential workers.

The healthcare system has long been inequitable – low-income individuals, people of color, and those without means, time, or money to travel to a physical facility, face significant challenges in getting the care they need.

This situation worsened as the world shut down last year.

Early in the pandemic, Governor Murphy quickly signed Public Health Emergency orders, expanding access to telehealth services. This helped people with chronic conditions get the medical care they need.

The COVID-19 pandemic proved that telehealth could provide relief to an overburdened health system. This had a large impact on medically underserved communities who were now able to access healthcare at a location that suited their needs without risking exposure to COVID-19.

But now it looks like the Governor might be on the path to taking this access to healthcare away. If he does, Governor Murphy will be the first state executive in the country to limit access to virtual care, despite saying he wants to increase access and promote equity.

Even before the pandemic, it was clear that telehealth could have a positive impact on Black Americans and Hispanics. The ability to easily see a provider to manage chronic conditions or when something comes

Join the Mshale Text Club: Text AFRICA to 24587 or follow us onTwitter.com/Mshale Community News, updated daily on Mshale. com © 1995-2021 Mshale Communications, Inc. Mshale – The African Community Newspaper Editorial & Corporate Office: 2 E Franklin Ave., Suite 1 Minneapolis, MN 55404 Mailing Address: P.O.BOX 80071, Minneapolis, MN 55408 Tel: 612-454-5648 Email: mshale@mshale.com www.mshale.com

President & Publisher: Tom Gitaa

Contributing Editor: Edwin Okong’o

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up, saves lives and saves money. Seeing a medical provider in-person can take an average of two hours away from other responsibilities and can be a large burden to hourly employees, and childcare providers, among others.

Keeping telehealth accessible can reduce frustrating interactions with the healthcare system and decrease the time patients need to spend away from work and their families.

Despite the proven power of telehealth to increase healthcare access in our community, Governor Murphy has refused to sign legislation into law that would make these services permanent in New Jersey. At a time of significant surges in COVID-19 cases and deaths, now is not the time to consider limiting this lifeline. Rather, this is the right time to learn from the past year and a half and permanently expand healthcare access to those who need it most.

To their credit, the New Jersey Senate and House recently acted so patients could keep seeing their providers in a way that works best for them.

The bill, A4179/S2559, requires that doctors and nurses are paid fairly regardless of how they deliver care, just as they have done throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. It also ensures that patients can keep seeing providers with the types of telehealth visits that work best for them.

Without access to meaningful healthcare through telehealth, our communities will continue to be devastated by this pandemic. The time is now for Governor Murphy to act in the best interests of the community he claims to serve and sign this telehealth bill into law, ensuring access to healthcare remains protected for medically-underserved, and historically excluded populations.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and can be reached at dr.bchavis@nnpa.org

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November 8 - 14, 2021 Issue 495

Tigray, other groups form alliance against Ethiopia’s leader after year of devastating war

By Cara Anna and Nomaan Merchant Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Ethiopia’s Tigray forces on Friday joined with other armed and opposition groups around the country in an alliance against Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to seek a political transition after a year of devastating war, and they left the possibility open for his exit by force.

“There is no limit for us,” Berhane Gebrechristos, a former foreign minister and Tigray official, told reporters in Washington. “Definitely we will have a change in Ethiopia before Ethiopia implodes.”

The alliance includes the Tigray forces who are fighting Ethiopian and allied forces, as well as the Oromo Liberation Army fighting alongside Tigray forces and seven other groups. The Tigray fighters are approaching the capital, Addis Ababa, according to the State Department, and Ethiopia on Friday called on military veterans to join what it now calls an “existential war.”

The U.S. Embassy is urging citizens to leave Ethiopia “as soon as possible.”

The opposition alliance formed as U.S. special envoy Jeffrey Feltman met with the prime minister amid calls for an immediate cease-fire and talks to end the war that has killed thousands of people since November 2020. The two held “constructive discussions,” the prime minister’s spokeswoman, Billene Seyoum, told The Associated Press.

The prime minister also met with U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths about the rapidly growing crisis.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement called on the Tigray and Oromo Liberation Army forces to “immediately stop the current advance towards Addis Ababa.” He also urged

Ethiopia’s government to halt its military campaign, including airstrikes in Tigray, and the mobilization of ethnic militias.

The new United Front of Ethiopian Federalist and Confederalist Forces said time was running out for Ethiopia’s government to act.

The alliance seeks to “establish a transitional arrangement in Ethiopia” so the prime minister can go as soon as possible, organizer Yohanees Abraha, who is with the Tigray group, told the AP. “The next step will be, of course, to start meeting and communicating with countries, diplomats and international actors in Ethiopia and abroad.”

He said the new alliance is both political and military. It has had no communication with Ethiopia’s government, he added.

A spokesman for the Oromo Liberation Army, Odaa Tarbii, said the possibility of forcing the prime minister out will depend on Ethiopia’s government and events over the coming weeks. “Of course we prefer if there’s a peaceful and orderly transition with Abiy being removed,” he said.

“The goal is to be as inclusive as possible. We know this transition requires all stakeholders,” he added. But as for members of the prime minister’s Prosperity Party, “there would have to be a process. Many members would have to go through investigation, possibly be prosecuted” for crimes related to the war.

Ethiopia’s government called the alliance “a publicity stunt, asserting that some of the groups involved ”are not really organizations that have any traction.” It also asserted that life in the capital had a “sense of normalcy” and rejected any notion of a siege.

The prime minister’s spokeswoman addressed the alliance when she tweeted that “any outliers that rejected the democratic processes Ethiopia embarked upon cannot be for democratization,”

Mahamud Ugas, center, speaks during signing ceremony of the United Front of Ethiopian Federalist and Confederalist Forces to establish a grand United Front to fight against the Abiy Ahmed regime in Ethiopia, in Washington, Friday, Nov. 5, 2021. Ethiopia’s Tigray forces on Friday joined with other armed and opposition groups around the country in an alliance against Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to seek a political transition.

Photo: Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP

pointing out Abiy’s opening-up of political space after taking office in 2018. His reforms included welcoming some opposition groups home from exile.

The OLA spokesman, replying to the tweet, noted that some of the people who returned to Ethiopia were later put in prison or under house arrest.

“A lot of goodwill was lost over the last three years,” he said.

Other groups in the alliance include the Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front, Agaw Democratic Movement, Benishangul People’s Liberation Movement, Gambella Peoples Liberation Army, Global Kimant People Right and Justice Movement/ Kimant Democratic

Party, Sidama National Liberation Front and Somali State Resistance.

It is not clear whether all the groups are armed. But there’s interest in protecting the 1995 constitution that enshrines ethnic federalism and includes the right to self-determination. Under the constitution, critics have accused regional leaders of asserting the rights of majority ethnic groups at the expense of minorities.

Abiy preached national unity and transformed the former ruling coalition of ethnic-based parties into a single Prosperity Party, but the Tigray leaders who long dominated that coalition opted out, deepening frictions that led to war.

Merchant reported from Washington.

On it.

Ending racial injustice requires all of us to work together and take real action.

What can you do to help?

Educate yourself about the history of American racism, privilege and what it means to be anti-racist. Educate yourself

about the history of American racism, privilege and what it means to be anti-racist.

Commit to actions that challenge injustice and make everyone feel like they belong, such as challenging biased or racist language when you hear it.

Vote in national and local elections to ensure your elected officials share your vision of public safety.

Donate to organizations, campaigns and initiatives who are committed to racial justice.

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like the Doors “Riders On The Storm” or Bob Dylan’s “Rolling Thunder Revue” while Ozzie & Harriet neighborhoods still fixated nightly on “Leave It To Beaver” and “Father Knows Best.”

Mayor Al Hofstede, Northside Council members Lou DeMars, John Derus, Dick Miller and others who had been groomed for power, unleashed pentup development, deploying then novel financial tools, like tax-increment financing, relegating the Foshay and all it stood for, to the shadows of the IDS and banking towers that disrupted and reconfigured the image of the idea of Minneapolis.

Minneapolis City Council candidates for Ward 10 pose for a photo after participating in a citywide televised in-person candidate forum hosted by Mshale in collaboration on October 14, 2021. From left Ubah Nur, Chris Parsons, Aisha Chughtai, David Wheeler, Alicia Gibson and Katie Jones. Chughtai emerged victorious on Tuesday and will be the new council member for Ward 10, one of the net pikcups by people of color in the historic election that ushered in a new era where for the first time the majority of the Minneapolis City Council will consist of people of color. Eight of the 13-member council will now be people of color.

Photo: Paul Okelo for Mshale

Minneapolis from Pg. 1

visionary pragmatists and no-limits intersectional activists, looks like the era-shifting leadership that erupted on the Minneapolis political landscape in the early to mid1970’s.

Back then, the Foshay Tower, defined Minneapolis’ physical profile. The Phone Book cover cemented this image in our public mind. Every home and business had a phone book. Every Phone Book displayed the brilliant commercial photography of the era, the expansive and flat city-scape anchored by the

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phallic Foshay, that you could see from anywhere in the city. It gave you bearings, a sense of knowing where you were.

Then the world changed.

Young Turks – some known as the DeLaSalle mafia – swept into power

Looks like we are at that place again, some 50 years later. Most of today’s players, the reelected and newly elected, were not even born in the 1970’s. But this group is fueled by a propellant of expectation, transparency and accountability never before seen.

What lies ahead may be immeasurable at this moment, but it is not unimaginable. In fact, even more that the DeLaSalle Mafia half a century ago, this group inherits the wings of imagination and the challenge of an era: To leap into equity and equality, into justice and fairness, into yet to discovered solutions that free us all because they are solutions that recognize us and beckon us to co-create a future in which everyone wins.

Panashe Matemba-Mutasa contributed to this story.

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Philando Castile Relief Foundation donates $50,000 to clear school lunch debt

By Panashe Matemba-Mutasa Mshale A nonprofit founded in memory of Philando Castile has donated $50,000 to settle debt families still owe to the school lunch program at the Osseo Area Schools District in suburban Minneapolis.

“I am still trying to wrap my head around why we still have lunch debt,” Valerie Castile, Philando’s mother, said in a video posted on her Facebook page shortly after donating the money.

She founded the Philando Castile Relief Foundation (PCRF) after a police officer shot and killed her son in 2016, during a traffic stop in Falcon Heights, Minnesota.

Before the officer killed him in the presence of his girlfriend and her 4-yearold daughter, Philando Castile worked in the Nutrition Services Department for the St. Paul Public School District, and was the nutrition supervisor at J.J. Hill Montessori Magnet School, where he often used his own money to buy lunch for children who couldn’t afford.

“The United States is one of the richest countries on the planet, and here our children have to worry about lunch,” Castile said.

In 2020, 14.8% of all families with children had food insecurity, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The rate was significantly higher in

The Philando Castile Relief Foundation donated $50,000 to the Osseo School District 279 to support families with meal debt.

Valerie Castile, CEO and Presdient of the foundation accompanied by other members of the Castile family presented the check at Plamer Lake Elementary School in Brooklyn Park in the presence of Mayor Mike Elliott of Brooklyn Center which also falls under District 279. Pictured are Supt. Cory McIntyre, Mayor of Brooklyn Center Mike Elliott, members of Philando Castile’s family and Director of Nutrition Services Jeff Ansorge.

Photo: Jasmine Webber/Mshale

households headed by single parents; 27.7% for mothers, and 16.3% for single fathers. Food insecurity was also worse than average in Black and Hispanic

households, at respectively.

21.7%

and

17.2%,

ceremony held at Palmer Lake Elementary Castile on Pg. 7

Castile presented the check at a brief

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adults, if we aren’t properly nourished, we cannot function.”

Castile from Pg. 6 School cafeteria, in the presence of students and Mike Elliott, the mayor of Brooklyn Center.

“We came up here to help out any way we can by donating to these families,” Castile said. “We are continuing Philando Castile’s legacy of helping reduce those negative lunch balances.”

Castile said it was “crazy” that some schools opted out of free and reduced school lunch programs, which she said they did to keep poor kids out of their schools. School lunch programs were the only option a lot of families have after the devastation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, she said.

“These children are going to lead this country at some point in life,” Castile said.

“They have to be mentally healthy. They have to be physically healthy. As much taxes as we pay, our children deserve to eat for free.”

Jeff Ansorge, the director of nutrition and food services at Osseo Area Schools district said he was pleasantly surprised to receive news of the donation.

“Valerie reached out to me via phone call, saying that she would like to make a donation to pay off negative meal balances,” Ansorge said.

Ansorge said that in addition to causing physical harm to children, hunger negatively affects children’s ability to learn.

“If our kids aren’t fed, it has a direct impact on their physical and mental health, and ultimately their learning outcomes,” Ansorge said. “Even as

November 8 - 14 2021 Issue 495

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Mayor Elliott called on the state legislature to act on making free school lunches permanent for all students saying the average child in Minnesota has a school lunch debt of $168.75.

“It’s now been five years since 32-yearold Philando Castile was shot and killed in 2016 by a St. Anthony police officer,” Elliott said. “I stand in awe of Ms Valerie Castile, as she carries forward the legacy of Philando. I couldn’t be more proud of the foundation’s work; helping victims of gun and police violence as well as clearing lunch debt for students in schools in our community.”

The Osseo Area Schools district, serves more than 21,000 students in the cities of Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Corcoran, Crystal, Dayton, Hassan Township, Maple Grove, Osseo, and Plymouth. It has a minority enrollment of 57%, which is far higher than the Minnesota state average of 34%. Most of the district’s minority students are Black or Asian.

Ansorge said the PCRF grant will target schools in Brooklyn Park and Brooklyn Center, which are home to the most underprivileged student’s in the district.

Administrators of the grant will also prioritize assisting high school seniors so that they may graduate debt-free, Ansorge said.

In addition to advancing Philando Castile’s passion of tackling hunger and food insecurity in schools, the foundation works in the area of preventing gun violence and supports organizations providing counselling services to their families of victims of gun violence, according to its website

Diversity Visa lottery entry closes Nov. 9 Assocoted Press The electronic entry period for the 2023 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, popularly known as the visa lottery, ends on Tuesday, Nov. 9, at noon.

Participation in the DV-2023 program is free and the application process is quite simple.

Winners are determined through a randomized computer drawing from qualified entries. The program, administered by the State Department, will allocate up to 55,000 immigrant visas or green cards in 2023 to foreign citizens who qualify, are selected, and then get approved for an immigrant visa through a consular process.

two years’ work experience over the past five years in an eligible field that requires at least two years of training.

Foreign nationals can sign up and submit their electronic entry only through the Bureau of Consular Affairs web page at dvprogram.state.gov. According to the official instructions for the 2023 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, “after you submit a complete entry, you will see a confirmation screen containing your name and a unique confirmation number. Print this confirmation screen for your records.” Applicants must fill in the complete Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form (E-DV Entry Form or DS-5501) online. Attempting to enter the program more than once automatically disqualifies the applicant, the instructions warn.

To enter the draw, foreign applicants must meet simple but strict eligibility requirements, according to the State Department, which distributes the immigrant visas among six geographic regions. ▪ First, applicants must have been born in qualifying countries. Natives from the following countries are not eligible for the DV-2023 program: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, the United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, Venezuela and Vietnam. ▪ Second, 202136_KL_HennepinCounty_Printad_Mshale_Hibo_4.875x7.125_RD1.pdf applicants must have at least a high school diploma or its equivalent, or

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November 8 - 14, 2021 Issue 495

Uganda Independence Day Gala in Minnesota Photos by Jasmine Webber - Mshale Photojournalist

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Religion Study: Most white evangelicals don’t want to live in a religiously diverse country

By Yonat Shimron Religion News Service (RNS) — Should America be a nation made up of people from a wide variety of religions?

A growing number of religious and non-religious Americans say yes, according to a new study from Public Religion Research Institute.

But there’s one religious group that stands out: White evangelical Christians; 57% indicate they’d prefer the U.S. be a nation primarily made up of people who follow the Christian faith. Only 13% of white evangelicals say they prefer the U.S. to be made up of people belonging to a wide variety of religions. The remaining 30% fell in between.

“On this question, there is really more going on than politics,” said Robert P. Jones, PRRI’s CEO. “One relatively small but powerful group is willing to live in a mostly Christian country. Everybody else is somewhere quite different.”

Their preference for Christianity comes up again in relation to Islam. Seventy-five percent of white evangelicals say the values of Islam are at odds with American values and ways of life — significantly

“Preference for Religious Diversity vs. Christian Majority in the U.S., by Religious Affiliation”

more than any other U.S. religious group (white Catholics were the next, at 58%).

Those are among the conclusions of the 2021 American Values Survey released Monday (Nov. 1). The survey, which tracks a wide range of questions about cultural change, economic anxiety, conspiracy theories and immigration, among others, was fielded online between Sept. 16 and 29 and included 2,508 Americans.

The wide-ranging survey also finds white evangelicals to be outliers on a host of other issues.

Take immigration: Majorities of all religious groups support allowing a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. Those include Black Protestants (75%), Hispanic Catholics (70%), religiously unaffiliated Americans (69%), white mainline Protestants (55%), non-Christians (55%) and white Catholics (54%).

White evangelicals are the exception: A minority of white evangelicals (47%) would like undocumented people to find a path to citizenship and 42% want to see them deported. These views toward immigration are a substantial shift for white evangelicals since the 2013 survey, when 56% supported a path to citizenship and 30% favored deportation.

Their views are even more out of sync with the rest of America when it comes to the belief that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Thirty-one percent of Americans think the presidential election was stolen from former president Donald Trump, but a full 60% of white evangelicals believe this.

No other religious group comes close.

Among the other religious groups, 40% of white Catholics, 37% of mainline Protes-

Graphic courtesy of PRRI

tants, 19% of Hispanic Catholics, 18% of Black Protestants and 17% of unaffiliated Americans believe the election was stolen from Trump.

Almost a quarter of white evangelicals (23%) believe in the QAnon conspiracy theory — more than any other religious group. QAnon believers maintain that the government, media and financial worlds in the U.S. are controlled by a group of Satan- worshipping pedophiles who run a global child sex-trafficking operation.

White evangelicals are also the religious group most likely to say American patriots might have to resort to violence to save the country. Twenty-six percent of white evangelicals believe that violence may be necessary, and that number climbs to 39% among white evangelicals who believe the election was stolen.

“Those other white Christian groups voted six in 10 for Trump,” said Jones.

“They share political partisan views. But they accept the results of the election and they don’t believe we should resort to violence.”

Gerardo Marti, professor of sociology at Davidson College in North Carolina and the author of “American Blindspot: Race, Class, Religion and the Trump Presidency,” said white evangelicals are uniquely uniform in their attitudes. Their religious and political views are reinforced in their churches, parachurch organizations, media outlets and spokespeople.

“What you’re seeing is that they have a way of talking to each other in which they can reinforce a cultural identity that becomes unquestioned,” Marti said.

“They’re immersed in it. They bow down to it, even those who aren’t evangelical, like Donald Trump. They can live in a world in which all these things are taken for granted.”

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November 8 - 14, 2021 Issue 495

Art & Entertainment

TikTok gears up to host its first Amapiano Music Festival, Khanyisa Jaceni to host

By Kaunda Shelisho The Citizen South African music genre amapiano has taken the world by storm and the music industry knows this. Social media platforms that have become heavily dependent on the music industry know this as well.

One such platform is TikTok which often sees new tracks going viral within days of release and sometimes even before an official release.

“Such songs include the new 66 track

by Abuti 3 Piece that has amassed nearly 80,000 views following many fun video recreations that include dance and lifestyle content on TikTok,” said the social media platform in a statement.

The Untitled Music blog defined amapiano as a style of electronic dance music that first appeared in 2016.

“A subgenre of house and kwaito. The sound is distinguished by its use of smooth jazz elements and piano melodies, kwaito baselines, low tempo 90’s South African house rhythms and percussion from another local house subgenre known as

‘bacardi’,” writes the platform’s founder Richie Hartness.

“Although it is accepted the style started in Gauteng, there is a lot of doubt in terms of where the Amapiano style of music originates, with various accounts of the musical style in Johannesburg townships, Soweto, Alexandra, Vosloorus and Katlehong where it is most common.”

According to TikTok, the in-app love for the genre has resulted in #amapiano ranking as the most popular music hashtag on TikTok in South Africa – with over 1.3 billion views to date.

As a result of this phenomenal popularity, TikTok has decided to host its very first Amapiano Live Music Festival to celebrate the genre and the talents that have put South African music on the music world map.

TikTok’s Amapiano Live Music Festival will be broadcast in real-time on 10 November from starting at 5pm central African time (CAT).

Viewers can expect performances from artists including DJ Maphorisa, Pabi Cooper, Lady Du, DBN Gogo, Mr Jazziq.

TikTok’s breakout star, Khanyisa Jaceni, has been booked to host the event.

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A banner promoting the upcoming Amapiano Live Music Fetsival on TikTok. Photo: Courtesy TikTok

“I am really excited to be part of the TikTok Amapiano Music Festival, especially because I get to do it with an incredible entertainment platform like TikTok and artists who I have looked up to for so many years,” said Jaceni in a statement.

“Music has always been a passion of mine and through TikTok, I have been able to share that passion with the world.

TikTok has most certainly been the launchpad for my music career – I don’t

think I’d be where I am today without it,” she added.

She concluded by encouraging aspiring musicians to get on the platform and share their sounds with the world.

Jaceni isn’t just a TikTok creator. Thanks to the platform, she recently made her music career official by featuring on an amapiano track.

TikTok encourages its users to hop on the #amapiano hashtag and continue to support Mzansi’s biggest musical export.

Mshale - The African Community Newspaper

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November 8 - 14 2021 Issue 495

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November 8 - 14, 2021 Issue 495

A Better Community

The solution to housing discrimination starts with you. If you have been trying to buy or rent a house or apartment and you believe your rights have been violated, contact HUD or your local fair housing center. The Fair Housing Act prohibits housing discrimination because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, familial status or disability.

Fair Housing Is Your Right. Use It. Visit www.hud.gov/fairhousing or call the HUD Hotline 1-800-669-9777 (English/Español) 1-800-927-9275 (TTY)

SCAN HERE FOR MORE INFO A public service message from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in partnership with the National Fair Housing Alliance. The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status or disability. For more information, visit www.hud.gov/fairhousing.