LA 3.19.20 4C

se

old Cooper. ea ican-Americ in han an death roquadruple The allegeddcuffs and ha New w inmate in ci Cooper’s 1som’s decision could d en Flori t wa making ouda Today reports t Hills famil 985 conviction in lead to the overtu t. y th rn A an e u in th k d g il o li th ri E of ng of a ru has the ti say t nough Of Y eir 11-y our Love”esan Californiapnotential, some polieatir-old house guest. ral Chino da s.

The case cal watcher s say, to d Both the C ivide alifornia an and more th d nited S past appeals an a dozen lower U tates suprem courts hav . e rejected Ce courts “I take no p ooper’s osition regar nocence at about the h this time,” Newsodming Mr. Cooper’s g uilt igh-profile said in his terest. N executive oor inse free 2. When you see a photo or ad with the Observer 1.ew Get the appca for by downloading th at Y h o as rk d rder rawn intern Times’ colu Sen. Kamal at m Interactive logo scan over the whole photo with your it from Google Play or The Apple App a io n is H n al t arri Nic in have all ca lled for res -tand reality TV starholas Kristof, U.S.tablet or smartphone. forensic Store technology. esting using curr Kim Kardashian SUL ent, more The ACLU gorilla suitPHUR, La. (AP) – P se n si an ti ve groups hav d other hu mattress befbroke into a Louisiaol man rights e also urged o n a deeper in an C d alifornia st Serving Los Angeles County News ouretl officers arrested ha ves gation ate officialsos cial justice et into Cooper s Gov. Newtiso sp q u o k o for Over 35 Years es te to m Mel E launch ’s con m’s tion issu st in ThSuulphu officers saan by formerorder Friday expandviction. w Jeremie es rsday test four ed s G p co o Moran wal re v. st vious direc ume. They rry Brown kin lowed analpyieces of crime scenJe h ad in so rece D ember n looking in to an orange sts to perform DNe evidence. Brownec to homes.ived calls a ’s E to A o st es prosecutors wel; and the han re-testing on a tan rder al- bo proached bsays Moran ran in dle dies in the say Cooper T-shirt; to u was disco R In this new used in theand sheath of a hat y ch en ar ’s ges inclutdin vered hidain chet Joshua Ryen, the home with a tota murders. investigatio of hair from g re tr sistin y, meth poss lo vic wound on button Co the victims’ hannd, analysts will look his throat.tims’ 8-year-old sofn143 stab wounds. ing in the sion and wg an offic In Louisiaes at strands tack. oper’s attorn s, blood sam , H S su an e ff w B er as tigators pla er ed n th n a, a personearing a m the allegatio ar a e only surv ples and a g ey N in public ca After Coop convicte ns Cooperd’sino County are not ivor of theslash D.A reen n Angeles Co nted at the sceneorman Hile mainta b e m er .’s o su at s’ st at legally stay s jail break rprised abo office. Man . Exception sentenced to th torneys are vestigation unty Superior Couof the crime. A reins inves- al ed , u s ra y in t m ar in ci v o h ak e es al f o allowed for re a ho lidays like H tigat th biases and . so y they tire rt judge wil frequently ing about their relig discriminem alloween an found eviduse next door to thoers found, he il- complaints l oversee thd Los familsa Cooper, 61 co m It at p ’s la io d Mardi G unclear if M ence in the y’s station w in about are handled n in the w e invictims. Th , has main years. His la g an m R g ay . o ag en y ta ey Ju p ra en o th ro t. in n st n ’s eir cases or se tor Mic has a lawy last month that tied C h For some, G

by Gov. N wyers hope the resu ed his innocence , a San Ber ooper to thome and in the under presscu hael Selyem ov. Newsom ing in Group ewsom, wh over th lts of the re ure for mak nardino Thursday, March 19, 2020 the case Newspapers eCalifornia , m w hel18 ’s e u Volume 35 Number

Observer of Southern h o rd o p pro o rd ic n er -t is h is er s. so es in W b co

to ti ci eing met w him. ve their client’s innould take several mong ordered poof the murders Josh ith dismayb. roaden DNA test- chelle Oal media. His insultgscrude and racist anhdite, resigned ua Ryen an nths, will cence and bam ta eted fo rters of the The lone su comments B d rm fi lack shooti a, U,S. Rep. Maxrg In 1 rvivor nally exon ine Waters er First Lady Ming victim. erate they are disappoRinyens and Hughesfaalmily, friends and su on four co9u85, a San Diego Co and an unn “Unfortunat ted with the gov l across the state p- Lo Thomas R. Parker amed 26 and an nts of murder. At unty jury convicte s Angeles o ernor’s decis , el sa a y, fo y fo es th d r o rm ca v C ju e er ti o p er st o ed m ti ic ffi per d m io e of his arre e ep ce cord - inclu prison inm n in e , u . it b ty th el se is h ie ems the vic ead of the This guy is ves Cooper case matte st, he was no District A FBI’s in Pennsylv ding several burglaate. His lengthy crim “Prior DN ttorney Jason Arsnless and less,” Santims’ desire “The evidence w innocent,” he told. ries and the ania – did in al re as A B th d er o not help his te er e p n n Cooper, form rape of a m st la so N ar th in n ew n d te e g icl sa d st th aimed ou Y , he was fr and.” case. inor erly named in 1958 ld exoneratat Mr. Cooper sougidh in a statement. amed, theork Times.

What has k per’s guilw e him have t, agreed to cops lied t.” months onldear Pittsburgh, PenRichard Goodman, ep t a th fe al e d an eral appella l confirmed case going d nsylvania. was born Y et p During his , he was adopted an te er M an su W ec co r. d as ution and re hen he was urt Cooive argumen C LAKE FOR six monies and iew the ca’ssedecision in 2004 toooper alive - is and he spenchildhood, his par d renamed Kevin ts ased on Gov. Newvso EST ents physica is recoverin w stay his exCooper. reasonable qualeslegations of evidenbce t a good p co it h n fl m ic juvenile det o ti m re n D ’s g sc g after bei,nCalif. (AP) – Offici ar

N ll d te ti ie t ta y ec A o n st o m n ab ti is if g te s p fi io at ad u ab st er c en y se n o o in o ev in o rs d ti n le u to g g id o g struck by u t sc h ro , n se co th en im k al en ad in South centers. In a mental d to ail Co ee e ethods low another m ce. ce living in a polic erAn and storiesp raising California Governoes early in the term oper. Threm n Cex-girlfriend several attack, and in nsw roundCLARITA, L ag SANTA Calif.

(AP) – Californiah. ealth facility in Pen1982, Cooper esPublic u o n e h in r f a av w w o v Beach Policealifornia. eapons wer f the progre estie high expec hose suppo orn caped fr three atannounced health officials thetemove in direct nsylvania b the OranJr. st im ta o e rt m o of boxer Floyd Mayweather who was the mother of ck u ta ss O er n se iv ti er ffi g y, s d o e e on the poli s ho weretesting positive cer Thomas efore moto n Jo Duri County Reg couldnumber response so vinthe meo White. Heshua Ryen said hein the solve “DNA testing shs.o have beeofnwpeople cal children g togrowing ister heCaline’s pdead three oftihis was found a Southern gued that nCg his murder trial, Left et whin init saw Hisestimated later testified uld immed th for COVID-19.

As of March 17, an 187,990 en p e o p F an o R ro eb th F p ic y se u . e er en . rt 1 cu ca k 9 h suburb, authorities said. iately tafornia Ryen, their illed husban t darted inially th case and fi . tors people er copositive that they Chiang sa successfworldwide mplicatifor k an e have tested coronavirus n p 1 d n al 0 la u id n am -y an ll ly ce g y d ea d M th ed Diana R ensure just The coroner’s uring the ca to re- office confirmed arr-o w e prosecuti cGuire sayWednesday that the front neighbor C that DNA oug anand oper ice is sewas belon disease over ofgin those infected have died. s whCounty ons’ claims, mpaign. “N hristopherld daughter Jessica ifane D the animLos d Peg ev ca en id m rv en h e gy 7,000 g woman Josie Harris, Angeles e ed fo to ce al g rw ,” b oSheriff a h o Hughes. Po ca d an 1Across was ut testing in t out to chec womer fohave t nly is it ard of n with blood inal. SStates, rmer been boyfriea ntotal lice found 1-year-the he turnthere proven told KABC-TV. Animal Cobigger than a house this case whoelp law enforcemoen old United Alex Villanueva y cl d o ed th w th in the bcases E h n o d t g cat. e u v tr 4,534 and 89 deaths. estroyed it. solv was a violen ld come at en though evidence ov o to loodied l o an e ffi cr ce an im The woman found justhobefore 10 p.m.

Tuesrs rush imal es, was no cost to th Newsom’s t crim- is bold, he is er to the p ed sp the In California, so far, people have tested positive it tr al au Afric450 , d o w ec e m li tr h is ce, but they issue th ea an American ate.” parked a.in the driveway oferher in astvehicle e it apparwas diagnbole at Californding carefully on aiopn in theday and there have been 11 COVID-19 related Coresidence s, Hdeaths.. o p se ispanics an D er r. ca ent just outside the city of Santa Clarita and K ia se w ri o v te atching. H sti Krause, oters across ntially pola other mino While San Francisco residents are still waiting dfor she expher a vetdepartment e is keepin the politica rizinpronounced ectsdead, firefighters a1-p sheriff’s erinarian, te rities liv- C g th e g 1 l h sp is more information about how this order will affect their back into th ectrum said. o ll ontinued focus on fa are on page A e wild afteurnd (5-kilogram) castth irnesstatement s anSheriff’s lives, some on Twitter have opted to find the humor in this d justice investigators 2 McGand it re the coroner’s office were g u ai ir n e s strength. to visited the otherwise dire situation. that if hthe b e working to determine cause of death, Villanueva o se b es ca t n Friday it again, he’ “When shelter-in-place takes [effect] in San Francisco, . ll issue a tiock said. each afternoon everyone in the city will stand on their et for ja “It will take a while to figure that out,” he said. balconies as a community and pitch their startups,” stated In 2010, Harris alleged that Mayweather attacked Chris Albon, director of data science at Devoted Health her in Las Vegas. The following year he pleaded guilty to on Twitter. a reduced misdemeanor charge and served two months Gov. Gavin Newsom expressed in an address on The San Francisco Streets. (Photo Credit: The Verge in jail.

Monday that he agreed with San Francisco’s order to ban Via Twitter) Empty streets in San Francisco. (Courtesy Photo) In 2015, Harris sued Mayweather for defamation unnecessary gatherings. and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional Aldon Thomas Stiles “It just makes sense to me at this point,” Newsom said. as these stores will remain open. We’ll meet this challenge distress in response to statements he made about the inCalifornia Black Media This order is not technically a lockdown as residents and we’ll get through it together.” cident during an interview.

From March 17 to April 7, residents in seven counties will be allowed to grocery shop, keep doctor’s appointments Under this order, when residents do leave their homes During his response to questions about domestic and one city in the Bay Area have been ordered to “shelter and other essential meetings for the three weeks this order they are urged to stay at least six feet away from other people violence, Mayweather said: “Did I kick, stomp, and beat in place” in order to halt the spread of COVID-19, also is set to be in effect. in order to minimize the risk of spreading COVID-19. someone? No, that didn’t happen. I look in your face known as coronavirus disease.

Law enforcement will be present in communities to “The most important thing you can do is remain home and say, ‘No, that didn’t happen.’ Did I restrain a womThe Bay Area jurisdictions are the city of Berkeley and as much as possible,” stated San Francisco Mayor London “ensure compliance” with this order, according to the San an that was on drugs? Yes, I did. So if they say that’s San Mateo, Marin, San Francisco, Alameda, Santa Cruz, Breed. “There is no need to rush out for food or supplies, Francisco Chronicle. domestic violence, then you know what? ... I’m guilty of Contra Costa and Santa Clara counties. restraining a person.”

In 2018, a California appeals court ruled against Mayweather’s objections and allowed the lawsuit to proceed.

Welcome to Observer Interactive

Deeper Content. Pictures Move. Ads Talk. Live Shopping.

Man in Go Breaks in r Hides UndH e

News Observer Free!

Los Angeles

Near Lockdown in the Bay and LA: Residents Instructed to Stay Home

California’s Online Triage to Help with Coronavirus Test Shortages

By Rachel Becker CalMatters California still does not have enough capacity to test for coronavirus, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Sunday, despite furious efforts by private, university and government laboratories to scale up to handle thousands of more patients.

To help triage the crush of Californians in the Bay Area who want to be tested for the novel coronavirus, Newsom announced a new website created in partnership with Alphabet’s subsidiary Verily that will provide screening and testing support.

Starting Monday, Californians with mild symptoms or who are concerned about exposure can take a questionnaire that will direct those especially at risk from the virus to two pilot testing sites in Santa Clara and San Mateo, according to a Verily news release.

As of Monday morning, however, the questionnaire did not ask about risk factors or exposure history, and did not direct people to testing. Verily did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Newsom called it “the next phase” for testing in California, which to date has conducted 8,316 tests for the virus — of which, 335 have come back positive for the novel coronavirus. “That’s a 14 percent increase from the prior day,” Newsom said. “Tragically, we now have six indi-

viduals that have passed away.”

In the press briefing, Newsom said California has the capacity for just shy of 9,000 tests. But he alluded to issues surrounding the availability of supplies, saying he was worried now about access to adequate numbers of swabs for collecting patient samples. The governor’s office declined to elaborate further during the press briefing or afterward.

“There’s still some capacity concerns not only on the diagnostic side on the back end with the labs — both private, public, commercial — but as it relates to supplies,” Newsom said. “And one must be honest about that.”

Politicians and health officials across the country have criticized the slow rollout of U.S. testing relative to other countries. Until the end of February, labs were barred from using tests they created themselves without prior federal approval, even as labs across the country discovered flaws in the CDC’s early tests.

Now, academic medical centers in California, as well as private companies, are racing to catch up to what is expected to be a dramatic increase in the spread of the virus.

The test itself is a standby of molecular biology called a reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, or RT-PCR. Clinicians collect samples by swabbing a patient’s nose and throat and send it to a lab to extract genetic material called RNA from the swab.

Clinical technicians processed samples of potential coronavirus at the virology lab of the University of Washington in Seattle on Friday. (Photo Credit Andrew Burton for The New York Times)

The challenge is detecting the virus in the soup of human and microbial genetic material, so lab workers use

BoFloyd bcat Reco Mother of ve AfterJr’s Mayweather Being Hi Police Cis Three Children ar Found Dead

Man Runs Toilet Paper Exchange on San Diego Street Corner ENCINITAS, Calif. (AP) – Disturbed by empty store shelves and reports of hoarding during the coronavirus crisis, a man stood on a Southern California street corner and held up a homemade cardboard sign with a simple request: “Share your toilet paper.”

Jonny Blue told the San Diego Union-Tribune on Saturday that the response to his impromptu toilet paper exchange in Encinitas was immediate and positive.

Drivers honked horns in support and stopped to drop off rolls of toilet paper. Just as quickly, Blue would hand rolls to those in need.

Blue, a physical therapist, said he plans to be out on the corner again Sunday to “encourage people to be better” amid the global pandemic.

Blue gave a few rolls to a grateful motorist who said he came up empty at several stores.

“He was like, `Do you want me to pay you?’ I said, `No, man. Somebody gave it to me. Take it.”’

The 33-year-old told the newspaper he made his sign after a friend had a difficult time finding diapers and essential supplies for his kids.

“I think people want a sense of community,” Blue said. “When things are really challenging, people are looking to band together and be unified.”

Continued on page A2

Celebrity Sightings at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival

By Ricky Richardson Contributing Writer Los Angeles- Thousands of movie lovers heeded the call to insure that their paper work was in proper order so as to secure a PAFFPORT. The PAFFPORT allowed it’s lucky holder a chance to travel through the African diaspora by way of cinema and arts.

The Pan African Film & Arts Festival (PAFF) wrapped it 12-day marathon of offerings from around the diaspora. It celebrated its 28th anniversary in grand style with a string of highly-anticipated films.

The festival got underway with a star-studded Gala, Tuesday, February 11th, at the Directors Guide of America, DGA Theater Complex. The Opening Night Gala featured a screening of HERO-Inspired by The Extraordinary Life & Times of Mr. Ulric Cross, directed

by Frances-Anne Solomon, with Nickolai Salcedo in the lead role as Ulric Cross.

Wednesday, February 12th, featured the timely movie, The Last Black Man in San Francisco. This movie resonated with the audience as it deals with Gentrification, which is taking place all across the United States, and a stones throw away from this theatre.

Love was in the air. Friday, February 14th (Valentine’s Day) Spotlight Screening of Stuck With You, presented by UMC. This movie directed by Patricia CuffieJones and featured an all-star cast and crew, who was in attendance to grace the Red Carpet.

My journey through the African diaspora continued on Saturday with the screening of All on Mardi Gras Day/The Last Mambo. The former gave viewers an inside look into the making of the elaborate, hand made costumes worn by the Mardi Gras Indians leading up to Mardi Gras.

The Last Mambo is a great documentary about the vibrant Latin Jazz and Salsa scene in the Bay Area, from the mid-20th Century to the present.

Jamaica & Tamarindo: Afro Tradition in the Heart of Mexico. This eye opening documentary, directed by Ebony Brown, is about the origins of the iconic ingredients from Africa, that are used to make two of the most popular,

Idris Elba Says He Has Coronavirus: No Symptoms So Far

She Ball cast and Crew. (Ricky Richardson Photo)

refreshing beverages in Mexico and the diaspora.

Mama Africa-Directed by Ifayemisy Marquez traced traditional Yoruba religious and cultural expressions.

This wonderful movie was film between Nigeria and

Venezuela.

The Cuban-Directed by Sergio Navarretta follows the daily life of Luis a former Cuban musician and his Continued on page A3

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Idris Elba says he has tested positive for the coronavirus. The actor tweeted Monday that he has no symptoms so far and has been isolated since Friday when he found out about his possible exposure.

Elba is the latest high profile celebrity to have tested positive for the virus. Last week, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson said they had also tested positively in Australia.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

Elba in a video message said that his wife has not been tested yet but is feeling OK. “This is serious. Now’s really the time to think about social distancing, washing your hands,” Elba said.

“We live in a divided world right now. We can all feel it,” he added. “But now’s the time for solidarity, for thinking about each other.”

A2

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, March 19, 2020

World & Nation

California Online Triage for Coronavirus Continued from page A1

probes that stick to parts of the virus’s genetic code and run a series of reactions to amplify the signal. That way, if the virus is there, they’ll be able to see it.

“The PCR is the really easy part,” said Frances Sladek, a professor of cell biology and toxicology as well as the divisional dean of life sciences at UC Riverside. Freshmen who have never touched scientific instruments learn in a lab course how to run PCR well enough to identify species of fish from the filets at a store, Sladek said. That’s why it’s so incomprehensible to her, she said, “that there’s any problem at all with this.”

In addition to bureaucratic slowdowns from the federal government, testing has been hampered by a series of technical failures. Many of the early tests sent out by the CDC had faulty components that made it impossible to tell if a positive result was real, according to Science. The CDC did not respond over the weekend to a request for more information about the flawed tests.

Then, another hold-up: Politico first reported a shortage of key ingredients needed to extract genetic material from patient samples. “The availability of those reagents is obviously being looked at,” CDC Director Robert Redfield told Politico. “I’m confident of the actual test that we have, but as people begin to operationalize the test, they realize there’s other things they need to do the test.”

Newsom publicly criticized the test kits Thursday, calling them incomplete. “You’re going to the store and purchasing a printer, but forgetting to purchase the ink,” he told reporters. “I’m surprised this is not more of the national conversation.”

But the governor’s office directed followup questions to California’s Department of Public Health, which said questions about RNA extraction kit supplies would need to be answered by the CDC. Neither state public health officials nor the CDC responded to CalMatters’ questions about the number of extraction kits California expected, or how many it received.

The bottleneck may be coming from the CDC itself: the CDC only names RNA extraction kits from two vendors — QIAGEN and Roche — on a webpage detailing

the supplies sent to public health laboratories. And until Sunday, CDC’s instructions for the diagnostic test only listed QIAGEN’s kits for RNA extraction, saying that “names of vendors or manufacturers are provided as examples of suitable product sources. Inclusion does not imply endorsement by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

Still, Yousef Haj-Ahmad, president and CEO of Norgen Biotek Corp, a Canadian Biotechnology Company that also makes RNA extraction kits, said Norgen’s kits should have made the cut. “CDC made an error by only recommending Qiagen; doing so created a bottle[neck] for testing,” he told CalMatters in an email.

A Qiagen spokesperson told Reuters on Friday that Qiagen ramped up production of its extraction kits by 70 percent, and isn’t to blame for the testing delays in the US. Qiagen could not be reached for comment over the weekend.

But even as medical centers at UC San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego offer in-house tests for the novel coronavirus, they too are bracing for a shortage.

Right now UCSF is only testing hospitalized patients, not the general public, spokeswoman Laura Kurtzman said. And while UCSF is not currently hurting for RNA extraction supplies, it “may encounter this as testing continues to ramp up,” Kurtzman said. “In parallel, we are developing tests that may potentially bypass the extraction step so would not need these chemicals.”

Farther south, UCLA Health is testing hospitalized patients with the same test that the CDC and California Department of Public Health are using, according to spokesman Enrique Rivero. Citing the shortage of RNA extraction kits, Rivero said, “UCLA’s laboratory is working to modify the CDC kits to work with other reagents.”

It’s a near-universal challenge, Nam Tran, associate professor and senior director of clinical pathology at UC Davis, told CalMatters on Sunday. “When every hospital is competing for the same thing, that’s what happens — you end up being in very short supply.”

UC Davis’s strategy is to bring not one but three dif-

ferent types of tests online over the next several weeks. One is a CDC-type test. Another runs cartridges containing samples on a more automated device that Tran compared to working like a video game: “You put the cartridge in, or device in, and press start. And in an hour and a half, you get a result.” The test can run samples from 12 patients at a time, and Tran expects it to be ready in the next week.

The third test will take longer to be up and running; it’s a home-grown assay that runs on an SUV-sized piece of equipment called the cobas 6800 made by biotech company Roche. The instrument can run 1400 tests in a day, according to Tran, which he called a “game changer.”

Stanford, which recently announced drive-through testing, has been running in-house tests through its clinical virology laboratory since March 4, according to Benjamin Pinsky, associate professor of pathology and medicine. He couldn’t say how many tests but said the number is increasing. The lab is testing samples from a number of hospitals including Stanford Hospital, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, and Kaiser Northern California.

“At this point, the demand for testing and need for testing outpaces the availability of testing,” Pinsky said.

His team has also experienced shortages in key components, including some of the Qiagen extraction kits, and is now working to validate other kits and enzyme mixes.

“I’m really proud of Stanford that we were a little bit ahead of the game here and we’re able to provide this testing for the Bay Area,” Pinsky said. “I think that has really helped patients in this area get the right care.”

Companies also are stepping up. Quest Diagnostics has been running a lab-developed test for the novel coronavirus at its infectious disease laboratory in Juan Capistrano since March 9. The company is rolling out the test nationally and expects to be performing 10,000 tests per day by the end of this week, according to a news release.

While Quest’s test does include a step to extract genetic material from patient samples, spokeswoman Rachel Carr told CalMatters the company has the supplies needed to perform the tests. “It’s the largest laboratory in the world, and we have continuous access to the reagents we

Ask Congressman Clyburn

South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn. (Courtesy photo)

By Dr. Margaret Fortune Letter To The Editor It’s a fast moving Democratic presidential primary. As of the writing of this piece, it’s a two-man race — Biden and Sanders. Elizabeth Warren dropped out after spending time in retreat at her Massachusetts home where she placed a disappointing third on Super Tuesday.

The Democrats are consolidating around a front runner with Buttigieg, Klobuchar, Bloomberg, Booker and Harris pledging fealty to Biden while Sanders is being asked by MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow to explain why Black voters are not enlisting in his revolution when he’s had since 2016 to broaden his tent. She wanted to know if he’d courted Congressman Jim Clyburn’s support in South Carolina.

Clyburn is a revered figure in South Carolina politics and the House Majority Whip who resurrected Joe Biden’s faltering campaign with his endorsement. Congressman Clyburn, the king maker, united the Black vote in a surge that swept the American south and signaled Super Tuesday voters across the country to rally around Biden as their front runner. Historians and political pundits are calling

it one of the most significant turn of events in American politics — ever.

Yet, when asked, Sanders made it clear to Maddow that he had not sought Clyburn’s support. “I know Jim very well . . . he’s a very nice guy, but his politics are not are not my politics.”

Sanders’ response is remarkably telling. It acknowledges at once that the Black electorate has substantive policy and ideological differences with Sanders, they are not buying his democratic socialist revolution, and the candidate won’t put in the effort to show-up and listen to the nuanced perspectives of Black voters, even though they are the base of the Democratic Party. Sanders gave himself credit for garnering support among “people of color.” But when pressed to reflect on his results with Black voters in particular, Sanders dug in his heels, prompting Maddow to observe, “Your argument for your electability is flawless,” by which of course she meant, it isn’t.

As a lifelong Democrat and former political appointee in California’s state government, I maintain at least one eye on our political escapes, especially as it pertains to Black education. A part of Joe Biden’s work in this political mo-

ment is to not only collect endorsements from his moderate challengers who dropped from the race clearing the field for him, but also to win over their voters. When it comes to Black education, Biden must beware of the path of Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders and remember his Obama roots.

Warren lost me completely when she dawned a red sweater and stood on the picket line with striking union teachers last October in Chicago against Mayor Lori Lightfoot, the first Black woman and first openly gay leader of the city. Warren’s presence on the picket line may have excited populists progressives, but it signaled to me that she stands in defense of an American public education system that, on one hand, under-educates Black children and on the other demands public charter schools be shut down, forcing Black parents back into failing schools they left for reason. I have a soft spot for teachers and it doesn’t harden if they choose to teach in a charter school. If I were White, I would fit the demographic of a Warren supporter — I’m a Harvard educated woman with an advanced degree and a Democrat living in a blue state. But, I am a Black woman and I founded eight public charter schools in my hometown to prepare Black kids for college because I personally experienced the frustration of having no choice but to attend a bad urban public school. Both Warren and Sanders want to take away federal funding from charter schools.

Sanders said he wants a moratorium on charter schools.

My experience won’t allow me to look past Warren’s and Sanders’ willingness to run down public charter schools (even those founded by Black women to better serve Black students) in order to align with national teachers unions who want to run charter schools out of town on a rail because most are non-union.

President Obama supported education reform because he understood just how underserved Black students are in American schools. It’s a crisis that is accepted as a fact of life by far too many Democratic politicians. Like former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg, President Obama supported chartering new schools to offer parents educational options within the public school system that are held accountable for results. The Obama-Biden Administration expanded public charter schools with the support of federal funding and policy. Sure Obama had the endorsement of teachers unions, but he also held them accountable. Joe Biden should do the same.

In California, more than 600,000 school children attend public charter schools. California has the largest number of charter schools in the country — all are non-profit, held to higher standards of fiscal and academic transparency and accountability than district-run public schools and are authorized by elected public school boards. Black students are represented at higher proportions in charter schools than in district-run schools in the Golden State.

This is true because Black parents are choosing public charter schools for their children.

Like most Blacks, these parents belong to the

need, and so right now we’re not experiencing any shortages,” she said. “However, we’re closely monitoring our supply continuously.”

Quest CEO Stephen Rusckowski announced the company also would incorporate a newly approved diagnostic test from biotech company Roche. The test can run on the same cobas 6800 instrument the team at UC Davis uses, which Roche said can turn around results in about three-and-a-half hours. “Upon authorisation Roche will have millions of tests a month available for use on the cobas 6800 and 8800 systems,” the release said.

Of course, all the tests in the world won’t help if healthcare workers can’t safely collect samples from patients. Carmela Coyle, president of the California Hospital Association, said in a state Senate budget subcommittee meeting on Thursday that more test kits may not widen the bottleneck if another shortage isn’t addressed, and quickly: personal protective equipment.

“We’re already short,” she told lawmakers. Without equipment like face shields and masks that protect health workers from infectious droplets, she’s concerned about a backlog. “That will very quickly become a rate-limiting factor, and we’re concerned most of the testing, as a result, will end up back in hospitals.”

In the hearing, Kat DeBurgh, executive director of the Health Officers Association of California, asked for help addressing yet another shortage: staff, to help track down people who might have been exposed and follow through with quarantine orders.

Over the past 15 years, 11 public health labs have closed in California, according to DeBurgh. And last year, the Health Officers Association of California and the County Health Executives Association of California requested $50 million in ongoing funding to shore up the state’s infrastructure to address infectious diseases, she said.

“We got $40 million in one-time funding. And we can’t hire staff with one-time funding — and staff is our greatest need.”

CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

Margaret Fortune (Courtesy Photo)

Democratic Party. Joe Biden should do better than Bernie Sanders and consider the nuance of the situation when it comes to the relationship of Black families to the public schools. Black people are practical. Our children simply have not been well served by traditional public schools and we can’t wait for the system to right itself. Joe Biden should use this moment to broker a peace between teachers unions and charter schools by acknowledging both as a permanent part of the education landscape and welcome all Democrats under the tent to beat Donald Trump.

Now is a time to build coalitions and leave the progressive purity tests in the rear view mirror. In addition to his endorsement, Congressman Clyburn has been a source of practical campaign advice. It is well worth returning to Clyburn’s well of wisdom. If Joe needs help on how to broker the peace in the education wars, ask Congressman Clyburn.

News Observer Los Angeles

Adjudicated a Newspaper of General Circulation on July 2, 1991, Los Angeles Superior Court Decree, Case No. BS007262, Government Code 6023.

Bulk Mailing Permit 724 Bakersfield, CA 93385

Published every Thursday by The Observer Group Newspapers of Southern California, Inc. Member: National Newspaper Publishers Assc.

Associated Press, Better Business Bureau, GLAAACC President: Ellen Coley Operations Manager: Jon Coley Editor: James Luckey Credo - The Black Press believes that America can best lead the world away from racial and national antagonisms when it accounts to every person, regardless of race, color, or creed full human and legal rights. Hating no person, fearing no person, the Black Press strives to help every person in the firm belief that all are hurt as long as any one is held back.

After several hours of marching, police declared an unlawful assembly and herded demonstrators onto a freeway overpass, eventually arresting dozens of people, including clergy members and three reporters

Sacramento Settles with Protesters SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) _ Sacramento has agreed to pay more than $500,000 to settle a lawsuit on behalf of 84 people who were arrested during a protest over the police shooting of an unarmed, mentally ill black man, a lawyer said Tuesday.

If a judge approves the deal, most protesters will receive $4,000 each while four will receive $7,000 each, civil rights attorney Mark Merin told the Sacramento Bee. Sacramento County will pay another $595 to each person, Merin said. County sheriff's deputies backed up city police during the protest.

The 2018 killing of Stephon Clark sparked months of protests that roiled the city and spurred changes to a state

law governing when authorities can use deadly force.

Clark, 22, had run from officers who were investigating reports of a car burglar. He was shot in his grandparents' backyard. Police said they believed Clark was carrying a firearm. But investigators concluded he only had a cellphone.

The city later agreed to pay $2.4 million to Clark's two sons in a wrongful death lawsuit.

The March 4, 2019, protest was prompted by the decision of the county district attorney not to file criminal charges against officers over the killing.

After several hours of marching, police declared an unlawful assembly and herded demonstrators onto a freeway

overpass, eventually arresting dozens of people, including clergy members and three reporters. None were charged.

City Manager Howard Chan called the protest settlement agreement “a fair resolution to a difficult situation.”

“The city remains committed to ensuring the safety and security of all of its residents and to protecting everyone's right to free speech and peaceful assembly,” Chan said in an emailed statement to the Bee. The Police Department also issued a statement saying it “is dedicated to ensuring the safety of our community while upholding the constitutional rights of every individual.”

The Observer Group Newspapers reserves the right to publish views and opinions that may not necessarily reflect those of the staff and management are soleley the product of the responsible individuals who submit commentaries published in these newspapers. Letters, articles and comments appearing in the Observer Newspapers reflect the opinions of the contributor and do not constitute the opinion or endorsement by The Observer Newspapers or its staff. The Observer Group Newspapers assumes no responsibility for photographs, articles, letters, press releases and unsolicited materials. Decisions as to the editiing and publishing of materials are at the discretion of the Publisher and Editors. All rights are reserved on materials accepted for publication unless otherwise specified.

The Observer Group Newspapers of Southern California, Inc.: Los Angeles News Observer, Bakersfield News Observer, The Valley’s News Observer Los Angeles News Observer 12655 W. Jefferson Blvd.

4th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90066 Mailing Address: 309 Phone (661) 324-9466 FAX (661) 324-9472 General Info: observernews@gmail.com Advertising: observeradvertising@gmail.com Online: www.ognsc.com

Thursday, March 19, 2020

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER A3

Features

Celebrity Sightings/Pan African Film & Arts Festival Continued from page A1

caregiver Mina, as she follows her true passion with music, as result of her friendship with her patient. The movie stars Louis Gossett, Jr and Ana Golja, both in attendance at the screening.

Los Angeles City Councilmember President Emeritus Herb Wesson announced the winners of the John Singleton Short Film Competition during a private reception at the Pan African Film Festival (PAFF). In conjunction with PAFF and the city’s embRACE LA iniative, the film competition pays tribute to the criticallyacclaimed film director John Singleton. John Singleton is known for such classic movies as BOYZ N The HOOD, POETIC JUSTICE and BABY BOY. For helming BOYZ N The HOOD, he became the first African-American and youngest person to be nominated for Best Director in 1992.

Black Mexicans, Directed by Jorge Perez Solano is another wonderful movie that allowed viewers to expand our knowledge and appreciate the every day life of people in the diaspora in this case, Mexico.

Buster Williams: Bass to Infinity, Directed by

Adam Kahan is an awesome jazz documentary about Musician/composer/Buddhist, world citizen Buster Williams as we get a glimpse into his life and legacy and the universal music known as jazz. The documentary featured comments and performances by Herbie Hancock, Nancy Wilson and Carmen Lundy.

Our journey continued in the United States, City of Inglewood to be exact for the screening of She Ball, directed by Nick Cannon. This is another one of those movies that leaves one to have lively, and engaging discourses about race, gentrification, criminal justice and female empowerment. The cast and crew were in attendance for the screening.

I had to rush to catch another flight, so that I could meet the winners of the iamAFRICA Short Film Competition. PAFF in partnership with Youtubes/ Google, and The African Narrative, has produced the iamAFRICA Short Film Competition. It’s a project geared toward finding new storytelling talent, based in Sub Sahara Africa. PAFF jurors and YouTube’s global audience narrowed down more than 160 submission from around the continent. iam AFRICA Jury Award Winner

2020- “Eyelash” (South Africa) Directed by Faith Riyano, “Miracle” (South Africa) Directed by Bongi Ndaba, “Who Knows” (Kenya) directed by Nick Wambugu and the iamAFRICa Audience Award Winner 2020 “The Letter Reader” (South Africa) Directed by Sibusisi Khuzwayo.

Actor Jimmy-Jean Louis (Desfrances and Rattlesnakes) offered remarks and conducted interviews with these talented, budding filmmakers.

PAFF ARTFEST consisted of an eclectic mix or original art to suit a range of personal taste. The exhibit and sale included paintings, sculpture, ceramics, fashion, jewelry, home decor, and African artifacts.

My journey through the Diaspora by way of cinema concluded with a marvelous screening of Studio 17: The Lost Reggae Tapes. The reggae and world music community anxiously awaits futures releases from this treasure trove of never before release music.

PAFF is the largest Black Film Festival in the United States and the largest Black History Month cultural event in the nation. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has designated PAFF as an official qualifying film festival for live action and animation short

films.

The festival has cemented its role as a hub for breakthrough and award-winning Black films and filmmakers from around the world. PAFF is dedicated to the cinematic promotion and cultural exploration of peoples of African descent. It is PAFF’s goal to present and showcase the broad spectrum of Black creative works, particularly those that reinforce positive images and help destroy negative stereotypes. PAFF believes film and art can lead to better understanding and foster communication between peoples of diverse cultures, races, ethnicities, and lifestyles in an entertaining way.

The festival handed out a variety of juries prizes, including Best Narrative Feature, Best First Feature Film, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short, and Best Narrative Short as well as audience favorite awards during an awards ceremony at the close of the festival.

In honor of the late actress and co-founder Ja’Net Dubois, who unexpectedly passed away during the festival, prizes were re-named in her honor. Dubois was best known for her role as Willona in the TV series, “Good Times.”

2020 Census Officially Kicks Off in LA County All LA County Residents Urged to be Counted as Billions of Dollars are at Stake

Stuck With You Cast and Crew. (Ricky Richardson Photo)

Legal Notices

PUBLIC NOTICE

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE NO: 2020026232 The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: IMAGO DEI at 9521 5th Ave., Inglewood, Ca. 90305 Mailing Address: Same County: LA REGISTERED OWNERS(S): DOMONIQUE DENE REDMOND, 9521 5th Ave., Inglewood, Ca. 90305 The business is conducted by: an Individual SIGNED: DOMONIQUE DENE REDMOND, Owner The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: N/A This statement filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles County on: Jan 31, 2020 DEAN C. LOGAN, Los Angeles County Clerk By: CATRICE DANIELS, Deputy

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE: IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUBDIVISION (a) OF SECTION 17920, A FICTITIOUS NAME STATEMENT GENERALLY EXPIRES ST THE END IOF FIVE YEARS FROM THE DATE OF WHICH IT WAS FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE COUNTY CLERK EXCEPT, AS PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION (b) OF SECTION 17920, WHERE IT EXPIRES 40 DAYS AFTER ANY CHANGE IN THE FACTS SET FORTH IN THE STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 17913 OTHER THAN A CHANGE IN THE RESIDENCE ADDRESS OF A REGISTERED OWNER. A NEW FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT MUST BE FILED BEFORE THE EXPIRATION. EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2014, THE FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY THE AFFIDAVIT OF IDENTITY FORM. This statement expires on Jan 31, 2025 LOS ANGELES BAY NEWS OBSERVER (E) PUB: Feb 27, Mar 5, 12, 19, 2020

LOS ANGELES – The 2020 Census officially began last week, with the U.S. Census Bureau sending letters to all households in the County, inviting residents to participate in the census, either online, by mail or by phone.

“We know COVID-19 remains top of mind for residents in L.A. County and across the country, and the health and safety of all L.A. County residents is always our top priority,” said L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger.

“You can safely participate in the census from your home: online, by mail-in or by phone. There are also online and phone resources available in over 50 languages to help you complete your census form. Doing this will reduce the risk of spread of novel coronavirus in our community, while also ensuring we get an accurate count of our communities.”

The County of Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles, City of Long Beach, and the California Community Foundation are teaming up to lead the region’s “Get Out The Count” efforts, which are designed to urge residents to take part in the 2020 Census.

“The stakes of the Census could not be higher — because participating this year means getting the resources and representation we deserve for the decade ahead,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “Our mission and message are absolutely vital to the future of our city and our democracy: everyone matters and everybody belongs, and we have to ensure immigrants, communities of color, low-income families, and our most vulnerable neighbors are seen, heard, and counted in 2020.”

The Constitution mandates a count of the nation’s population every 10 years. The information from the census determines the number of seats each state holds in Congress, and how much federal funding is allocated to both state and local communities for the next 10 years.

Local government officials use the census to ensure public safety and plan new schools and hospitals. Businesses use census data to decide where to build factories, offices and stores, which creates jobs. Real estate developers and city planners use the census to plan new homes and improve neighborhoods. Residents use the census to support community initiatives involving legislation, quality-of-life and consumer advocacy.

“The 2020 Census is the first census that will be done primarily electronically, creating an additional barrier for low-income families and communities of color. We embrace L.A. County’s diversity and will make every effort to count every resident,” said L.A. County Supervisor

Hilda L. Solis. “An accurate census count is not only foundational to representative democracy, but it ensures that schools and communities throughout L.A. County receive their fair share of federal funding. We cannot afford to have millions of people undercounted in the census.

In difficult times like these, our hospitals must be fully funded to preserve the health of our families. And in the future, freeway projects could be jeopardized, workforce development programs could be affected, and school programs could be cut. The federal government must not leave our vulnerable communities underfunded and underrepresented. L.A. County will rise to the challenge to make sure that everyone is counted in the 2020 Census.

Everyone counts!”

“More people getting counted translates into more funding for important programs and services like schools, hospitals, clinics, and roads,” said L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl. “Over the past 10 years, our community lost hundreds of millions of dollars because too many of us didn’t fill out our census form a decade ago. This year, we can change that!”

The California Community Foundation has brought together more than 100 community-based groups who are leading activities to support and encourage local residents across L.A. County to complete their census form. Visit https://wecountla.org/ for more information.

“The magnitude of this effort demonstrates the value we place on ensuring every person is counted,” said Antonia Hernández, president and CEO of the California Community Foundation. “Too much is on the line and we must all stand up and be counted.”

For non-English speaking residents, the L.A. County 2020 Census website offers county-specific information in 16 languages, and the U.S 2020 Census website offers general information in 59 languages, including inlanguage guides. Visit https://census.lacounty.gov/ and https://2020census.gov/ for more information.

“Participating in the census is one of the most democratic things you can do for your community,“ said Long Beach City Councilmember Rex Richardson. “Gather your family, friends, work colleagues, your neighbors, and everyone you know to complete the census. Let them know that they count and they matter.”

When asked what obstacles he faces when reaching the African American community Concilmember Richardson said, “I think we will have a number of seniors who are going to be paying attention to Corona Virus and certain issues in our communities with digital divide when access to the internet is expensive for certain communities.

We are going to have to get our black organizations and integrate them however we can into the process to get our communities counted.”

Members of the Board of Supervisors and other local community leaders gather with people of the city of LA. (Los Angeles News Observer Photo)

COVID-19 Changing All Our Lives Daily

Some people have waited in line for an hour or more just to enter some stores. (Earl Heath Photo)

By Earl Heath Contributing Writer COVID-19 has caused many people to stay home. It can be contagious and spread through touching, coughs, amoung other ways.

It caused Los Angeles Unified to close all its schools for at least two weeks. That means some 700,000 students and another 75 thousands employees have their daily lives changed.

L.A. mayor Eric Garcetti and Austin Beutner have decided to shut things down for at least two weeks and most likely through the end of the school year to help stop the spread and re-evaluate how to handle the problem.

There have been many lay-offs as bars have been ordered closed and restaurant’s are to have take out only.

There has been long lines at grocery stores as people have waited an hour in lines just to gain entry. Stores have run out of poultry, toilet paper and other essential’s.

Some stores have allowed limited purchases. At one Vons store a man came to the counter with 2 packages of english muffins, the cashier told him,”You can only buy one of these sir.”

Hand sanitizer, alcohol, and paper goods have been sold out in many locations for days.

Shoppers walk down many empty isles after waiting outside. (Earl Heath Photo)

Black Press of America Celebrates 193 Years of Journalism

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior Correspondent From Freedom’s Journal to The North Star to John Abbott’s Chicago Defender, African American-owned newspapers have sparked fires for truth and equality that have burned with the passion for fighting for freedom throughout history.

Monday, March 16, 2020 marks the 193rd anniversary of the Black Press of America, whose global impact remains undeniable. It all began with Freedom’s Journal, the first African American newspaper, that was guided by the fearless publishers, John B. Russwurm and Samuel E. Cornish.

On March 16, 1827, Russwurm and Cornish announced the publication’s inaugural issue with a frontpage that contained these words: “We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us.”

The 4-page edition included stories about the struggle to end the horrors of slavery, lynching, and social injustice.

It also informed the African American community of international news of particular interest, like events in Haiti and Sierra Leone. The newspaper featured biographies of African American men and women, schools, jobs, and housing opportunities.

“As we deal with some of the most challenging times in modern history, it is important that we understand the significance of the Black Press in reporting on and recording our history,” said National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Chair, and publisher of the Houston Forward Times, Karen Carter Richards. The NNPA is the national trade association representing America’s Black Press.

“As we celebrate 193 years of being the Voice of Black America, we have made the decision to reschedule Black Press Week due to the unprecedented impact of the Coronavirus. Since the beginning, whether it has been our publishers, editors, journalists, photographers and many others, the Black Press has made the sacrifices and endured the struggles they had to go through in order to publish,” said Richards.

“Even though Freedom’s Journal existed for only two years, its impact on the Black Press has lasted 193 years — and counting,” said Mississippi Link publisher Jackie Hampton, who also serves as secretary of the NNPA. “I give Freedom’s Journal credit for the establishment

of more than 200 African-American-owned newspapers across the nation. The papers not only cover regional, national and international news, but they are still telling the stories that Freedom’s Journal advocated,” Hampton observed. “Those stories include political rights for all Americans, the right to vote for all Americans and the telling of positive stories regarding the accomplishments of African Americans which mainstream newspapers often will not cover.”

Observing Freedom’s Journal’s anniversary traditionally occurs during the NNPA’s Black Press Week, held annually in Washington, DC. This year’s festivities are postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I think the founders and editors of Freedom’s Journal would be very proud of the NNPA for deciding to postpone Black Press Week,” Hampton observed. “Because putting the health and safety of attendees first, regardless of how much we value the significance of Black Press, demonstrates our leadership is in good hands. If we don’t make good decisions for ourselves, then who will?”

“The postponement of Black Press Week activities coincides with the national response to the coronavirus, which is the right thing to do,” added Sonny Messiah Jiles, the publisher of the Houston Defender Network and former chair of the NNPA. “Yet the significance and importance of the Black Press during these times are more relevant than ever before,” Jiles added.

“The virus presents health issues of access to testing, economic issues of job security and family/business income, and sustainability issues of how long this pandemic last. The challenges our country faces today reaffirms the importance of the Black Press of America and of Black Press Week.”

The anniversary of the Black Press is a reminder of the contributions that remain indelibly associated with its fearlessness, determination, and success.

Those contributions include the works of Frederick Douglass, WEB DuBois, Ida B. Wells, Patrice Lumumba, Kwame Nkrumah, and former NNPA Chairman Dr. Carlton Goodlett.

Douglass, who helped slaves escape to the North while working with the Underground Railroad, established the abolitionist paper, The North Star, in Rochester, New York.

He developed it into the most influential black antislavery newspaper published during the Antebellum era.

The North Star denounced slavery and fought for the emancipation of women and other oppressed groups with a motto of, “Right is of no Sex – Truth is of no Color; God is the Father of us all, and we are all brethren.”

“In Africa, you had the atrocity of European nations colonizing sovereign states and turning them into satellite copies of their own nations,” said Rosetta Perry, a civil rights activist and publisher of the Tennessee Tribune.

“That’s one of the reasons why French is spoken so widely on the continent, as well as African nations still using the English monetary system. Black newspapers covered these stories as best they could from afar, but still lacked the resources to send correspondents over to these nations, they often depended on the reports of foreign correspondents from other publications,” she said.

Today, where possible, the Black Press continues to reach across the ocean to forge coalitions with the growing number of websites and special publications that cover Africa daily from on the continent, Perry noted.

The evolution of the Black Press, the oldest Black business in America, had proprietors take on issues of chattel slavery in the 19th century, Jim Crow segregation and lynching, the great northern migration, the Civil Rights Movement, the transformation from the printing press to the digital age and computerized communication.

With the Plessy vs. Ferguson Supreme Court ruling that said no Black man has any rights that a White man must honor, there came a flood of Black publications to advocate for Black rights and to protest the wrongs done to Blacks.

Today, the Black Press continues to tackle domestic and global issues, including the new novel coronavirus pandemic and its effects on all citizens – particularly African Americans.

“This is an important story about the history of the Black Press of America that has consistently been the freedom fighting voice of African people in America and throughout the world for 193 years without waiver or distortion of the truth,” stated NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. “Today, in 2020, amidst the global pandemic of the coronavirus, the Black Press remains the vital source of news and information for 47 million African Americans,” he added.

Chavis continued: “On this momentous anniversary, the NNPA salutes

Today, the Black Press continues to tackle domestic and global issues, including the new novel coronavirus pandemic and its effects on all citizens – particularly African Americans.

all of the African American-owned newspapers and media companies that are affiliated with the NNPA’s expanding network of over 230 media properties and channels.

“May God continue to bless the Black Press of America.”

A4

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, March 19, 2020

Entertainment

FILM REVIEW: The Roads Not Taken

Javier Bardem and Elle Manning in The Roads Not Taken. (Courtesy Photo)

By Dwight Brown NNPA Newswire Film Critic It’s a character study. One that marks the spaces in between conversations. The silences, moans and groans. It’s about someone living in a parallel world of dreams and a patchwork of memories.

Leo (Javier Bardem), a writer, is suffering from dementia. Barely able to live on his own. Tended to by a caregiver. His life is managed by his twenty something daughter Molly (Elle Fanning), a journalist, who is torn between her career and his day-to-day needs. She is bewildered by his lapses. Molly: “Where have you been all day dad?”

Exasperation comes with the territory. Leo is oblivious to the amount of attention he needs and the time she gives him. He’s floating in and out of reality—more and more.

And on this day, his determined offspring is taking him to the dentist and other appointments. Their story is told over a 24-hour period.

The main problem for this well-intentioned project, by writer director Sally Potter (Orlando), is that it focuses on a writer who second guesses the choices he has made in life. Many of them selfish. He stopped to form a family, but there is no indication that he appreciates what he has.

It’s easy to sympathize with the disease. Not so much with the self-involved man. A touch more empathy might be placed with his daughter, but in ways her ineptness tests your patience too. A responsible person, when taking a man with cognitive deficits into a store, would watch him like a hawk. She flubs that.

Plausibility isn’t a major concern in Potter’s underdeveloped script. Sympathetic characters also are not high on that list. She guides the actors like a drama coach working with students, rather than an astute director helping Oscar-caliber professionals find the core of their characters.

Her process of taking this well-intentioned premise from story to script to screen seems like it skipped a couple of steps.

Bardem’s interpretation of what’s on the page is as well formed as it can be. He searches for depth that doesn’t exist in this fairly shallow role. In the film The Sea Inside,

Bardem played a quadriplegic with even less control of his body and could only use his head to communicate. He was far more expressive in that movie largely because its screenplay and direction gave him the tools he needed to do a stellar job.

Fanning seems to grasp at straws. Laura Linney plays her mother like she is doing an off- Broadway play. It’s a very studied performance that never finds the emotional core of the estranged wife. Selma Hayek, as Leo’s old girlfriend, is wasting her talent.

The artistry that surrounds this family portrait is impeccable. Subtle string music cries and sings a constant dirge (composer Sally Potter). The colors (salmon and lime colored walls) are so beautiful that they almost steal your eyes away from the story (art directors Bárbara Perez-Solero and Linda Wilson). Leo’s New York apartment, his old house in Mexico, a waterside bar in Greece, a seedy NYC garage—they all represent his surroundings and backlight his tale in the most atmospheric ways (production designer Carlos Conti, The Mustang; set decorators Deila Picirilli and Linda Wilson).

The lighting, which is equally exquisite, flatters the deep crevices of Bardem’s aging face. The composition of each shot is pure art, from hallways, to bedrooms, to kitchens (cinematographer Robbie Ryan, The Favourite) Maybe if Leo was so evil in his last life, his current purgatory would be karmic and more compelling to watch.

Maybe if he had been a saintly man previously, the tragedy of his current situation would be absolutely heartbreaking.

Neither is the case.

As is, audiences may find it a struggle to like Leo. A struggle to like the film. That’s unfortunate, since so many adults are becoming caregivers to parents with dementia.

This could have been a road map for many. Instead it ends at a fork in the road.

Visit NNPA News Wire Film Critic Dwight Brown at DwightBrownInk.com and BlackPressUSA.com.

Baltimore, embarking upon his own journey to bring individuals to Christ.

“I left the Baltimore area and came home and established a church. Really, my mother, Catherine, was the founder of the church, New Jerusalem Church of God in Christ Jesus on the North Road,” Carr said, referring to the church which has since relocated to the Cordova Road.

Mrs. Carr said, “I came down here in 1989. He was still in the Baltimore area. About two years later, he came down. But we've been preaching in this area here for like maybe four to five months,” referring to the area along U.S. Highway 601.

The couple operates a daycare, which sits off of U.S. Highway 601 and is a place where Mrs. Carr often preaches in front of too. There are also signs welcoming individuals in for drive-through prayer.

“When I'm out there, people will come and drive through ...I give them the address and tell them they can come anytime. The door is open. That's what we're doing,” she said. “It's impacting lives. We have the ministry of reconciliation. We have to reconcile man back to God, and that's what we're about.”

The couple's history of street preaching in the Orangeburg area actually goes back many years.

“We've been here for years. We preached on the street down by Dixon's Shoe Shop. We were right in front of there, right on Russell Street. We got away from it for a little while because we had the church and stuff like that, but then we got back into it,” Mrs. Carr said.

“I preach right here in front of our daycare. The Lord told us we better get back out there,” she said.\ Carr said he doesn't just break out in dance or preach from the Bible for no reason.

“I rejoice in my salvation because my salvation that God gives me free me from sin and death ... The joy that I have, the world didn't give it to me, and the world can't take it away,” Carr said. “I have to preach a sermon. I have to preach his death, burial and resurrection.\ “It's not about my life, it's about his life,” he said. “Because of his life, I move, I live and I have my being. I can't do nothing without him. I'm no longer myself. I'm a vessel of his. So he uses me and as he uses me, I preach. You have to preach the gospel because I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

He said he is also not concerned about what people may think of him, and neither is his wife.

“People said that he was crazy, that he was going to hell and that this kind of thing could only happen in Orangeburg. So we were like, `I hope it's happening everywhere and not just in Orangeburg.'\ “He (Jesus) told us to go out and be fishers of men, to go bring them into his house that his house may be full. So we're not afraid because what we're doing is exactly what those boys that he chose did back in the day,” she said.

Carr said he has begun his street preaching as early as 7 a.m.

“Lately, the Lord is having me on my knees. I preach a while, and he'll tell me to get on my knees and I'll start praying ... We got to pray without ceasing,” Carr said, noting that the Holy Spirit gives him the power to preach the gospel in what others may deem the strangest of places.

“The Holy Ghost gives me the boldness. It allows me to preach the kingdom of God, and the kingdom of God is not words, but it is power and authority ... The Holy Spirit

gives me the power to exercise the spirit of God that works in my life,” Carr said.

“When I speak, it's not me that speaks, it's the Christ that's in me speaking the wonderful works of God,” he said.

The bishop said he will never stop preaching because he realizes God's purpose for his life.

“Regardless of what takes place in life, you can never

‘Dancing Preacher’ Spreads the Message

By DIONNE GLEATON The Times & Democrat ORANGEBURG, SC (AP) – You may have seen him along the highway with his feet uplifted, Bible outstretched and long purple robe billowing in the wind, but Bishop Guss Carr Jr. is not about promoting frivolous ostentation, but rather the salvation of souls.

Carr, 67, is pastor of New Jerusalem Church of God in Christ Jesus Apostolic Inc. at 1492 Cordova Road in Orangeburg, along with Rehoboth COGIC in Holly Hill.

He is used to the waves and smiles he often gets as he preaches on the streets of Orangeburg, including along Chestnut Street in front of Prince of Orangeburg Mall and near Hardee's on U.S. Highway 601, but he is also familiar with the ugly online attacks he receives for being called everything from crazy to sacrilegious.

“Wherever the Lord leads me, I will follow. We have a lot of waving. Some people say, `Continue to do what you're doing.' You know, you have some negative remarks.

They put that on Facebook, but you're going to have those things,” Carr said.

“If people don't understand the word of God, they'll think you're crazy, but the commission of the gospel is to go out into the highways and hedges ... into all the world preaching, teaching and baptizing in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost,” he said.

The Orangeburg native attended Dunton Memorial School, Sharperson Junior High School and Wilkinson High School. He graduated from Claflin University in 1975 with a bachelor's of science degree in chemistry

before being commissioned to the U.S. Army, where he served for five years as an active duty officer.

He also married his loving wife, Evangelist Cynthia D. Carr, in 1975, a lady with whom he shares nine children and 23 grandchildren.

Carr later gained employment at Allied Chemical in Baltimore, Maryland, a company he stayed with for 14 years as a chemist and supervisor.

Baltimore was also where Carr found his own salvation.

“I got saved in Baltimore, Maryland, at Rehoboth Church of God in Christ Jesus Apostolic at 700 Poplar Road. At the time I got saved, my pastor was Bishop William S. Barnes Sr. ... I got saved under his ministry, and after he passed away, Bishop Keith Allen became my pastor,” Carr said.

He said he and his wife, who is also a preacher, began street preaching in Baltimore.

“We started in Baltimore, Maryland, me and my wife and a lot of other young people that got saved ... We went out in the Baltimore, Maryland, area and started preaching, teaching, passing out tracts, everything. At every meeting that we'd have, someone goes out and witnesses around the area,” Carr said.

“Them that are led by the spirit of God are the sons of God. So in the fullness of God's time, God does his work in us. So this is the fullness of time now. This is the time we have to go out and save souls,” he said.

Carr was called into the ministry a couple of years after Bishop Keith Allen became pastor of his church in

Bishop Guss Carr Jr. pastor of New Jerusalem Church of God in Orangeburg, South Carolina.

kill the purpose of God ... I will continue. My wife will continue. I have daughters in the ministry too. They are preachers, teachers and singers,” Carr said.

“Let me put it this way, they're greater than me. You haven't seen nothing yet.”

Get The Los Angeles News Observer Online at www.

OGNSC.COM Observer Group Newspapers of Southern California

Thursday, March 19, 2020

Other Stars Chip In

Sports

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER A5

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer The coronavirus pandemic has changed the way many of us will live for a long time. It has touched people around this great country and around the world.

It is an awful disease that has virtually shut down the sports world in America.

A positive element coming from all this is the way some pro athletes are helping many will have economic woes due to the closure of sports venues everywhere.

Zion Williamson pledged to pay all workers at the Smoothie King Center for 30 days while the facility is shut down.

The New Orleans Pelican Rookie made the announcement on Instagram.

“These are the folks who make our games possible, creating a perfect environment for our fans and everyone involved in the organization. My mother has always set an example for me about being respectful and being grateful for what we have, so today I am pledging to cover the salaries for all those Smoothie King Center workers for the next 30 days.”

Williamson is one of the bigger stars in the NBA. He was the first selection in this year’s draft and will make $44 million dollars over a four year period.

Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers was the first player to make a donation to workers-$100,000 to those at Rocket Mortgage Field House.

Also the Detroit Pistons Blake Griffin chipped in $100,000 for the workers at Little Ceasars Arena.

Mavs owner Mark Cuban is the only individual owner to donate which prompted this from Sportscaster Michael Eveas.

The Lakers, Clippers, Kings, and STAPLES Center Steps in For Workers

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer The sports world was rocked recently with the cancelation and postponements of events around the country. A unity to help for those who will have economic difficulties in the upcoming future caused by the coronavirus pandemic is on the way in downtown LA. The LA Clippers, LA Kings, Los Angeles Lakers and STAPLES Center have joined together to establish a fund to provide financial support to all hourly event staff employees impacted by the suspension of sporting events at STAPLES Center.

The fund is designed to provide compensation for wages lost by employees scheduled to work at suspended sporting events through the end of the NBA and NHL regular seasons. Nearly 3,000 active hourly event staff who work at STAPLES Center will receive funds during the stoppage of events. They include ushers, security officers, ticket sellers, ticket takers, parking attendants, merchandise staff, food and beverage employees, housekeeping and operations staff and stage hands, among others. Recognizing that the coronavirus is not just a health crisis but also an economic one, the organizations have come together in this unprecedented way to help the valued employees who work tirelessly to deliver outstanding guest experiences and teamwork that is the heart of STAPLES Center.

NBA Players Picking Up the Bill for Arena Employees

By Cameron Buford whatsgoodinsports.com The United States is currently under seize by the recent outbreak of the Coronavirus Pandemic which has spread across the globe. This has impacted our lives in the US more than most people anticipated. So much so that most of our professional leagues has abruptly suspended their season’s as this country tries to find out how best to manage this crisis.

According to the CDC, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, it is possible that a person can get COVID-19 from people who are in close contact, 6 feet or closer, with each other. Or through the production of respiratory droplets from when an infected person coughs or sneezes and said droplets are inhaled into the lungs or have landed in the mouths or noses of people who are

nearby. Additionally, ways to spread the virus can be by touching objects or surfaces which have the virus on it and then touching one’s mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes.

Due to the nature of competitive sports, there are many opportunities for this virus to spread among athletes. The collection of people that convene at any particular venue to attend and enjoy various sporting events has become another potential breeding ground for this COVID-19.

Understanding this tenuous situation, NBA Governors gave serious consideration to playing games without the fans in the Arena. As of this Thursday, March 12, the Golden State Warriors were slated to do just that.

As the Utah Jazz was sent to take on the OKC Thunder, Rudy Gobert was removed from the court and told said to be being tested. Hours later Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz was also tested and diagnosed with Coronavirus.

The NBA then had little choice to suspension their season,

Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan meets with officials before an NBA basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Utah Jazz was postponed at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Wednesday, March 11, 2020. [Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman]

indefinitely, when this information was revealed. Days later Detroit Piston Christian Wood was also diagnosed with this infectious virus.

In the same week, the NCAA was amidst their conference tournaments that feed their annual Tournament that captures the hearts and minds of basketball fans from major cities to the smallest towns in the country. However, once the NBA Suspended their game the NCAA also ended their season and canceled their tournament for the season due to the rampant growth of this virus. Just as did Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, the Premier Boxing Champions as well as other combat sports leagues.

An unintended consequence of the suspension of these leagues and competitions, specifically in the NBA, is the reduction in hours for the arena employees. The support staff at these arenas include nearly 1500 ushers, cooks, security guards and other hourly workers which assist in the production of these events. In the spirit of giving back and supporting those which support them at their respective arenas, some players have offered to assist with the funding for these essential employees.

The always thoughtful Cleveland Cavalier Forward Kevin Love has chosen to partner with Cavaliers Governor Dan Gilbert, through @KevinLoveFund and has committed $100,000 to provide funding and support to the Rocket Mortgage Field House event staff. In his typical thoughtfulness, Love has requested some advice on coping strategies for those who may be justifiably stressed and worried about the impact coronavirus from UCLA’s Dr. Craske and she recommended these steps for us all; 1. Normalize this. We are all experiencing increased anxiety and worry. Sometimes worry can fuel and motivate you but recognize that what you are feeling is completely normal.

2. Don’t stay plugged in 24/7. Limit the sources coming to your phone and TV. You don’t need updates every few minutes. Check the news one or two times a day, and use that trusted information and act upon it when needed.

3. Stay healthy. Feed your body, feed your mind. Stock up on nutritious food. Drink water. Exercise as best as you can. And find a time each day to calm your mind, whether through meditation, or just slow-breathing exercises.

4. Stay connected with your family and friends, even if remotely. Don’t isolate and suffer alone. When you’re feeling anxious and worried, it’s better to be connected.

Days before being tested for the Coronavirus virus, Utah Jazz Center Rudy Gobert, facetiously joked with the media by touching their mic and cell phones in his pre-game press conference. Not only has he apologized for his untimely joke, but Gobert has also decided to donate $500,000 to those impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent NBA season suspension. $200,000 of Gobert’s pledged donation will go to Utah Jazz arena workers who were scheduled to work NBA games at Vivint Smart Home Arena. He plans to donate

$100,000 to families in Utah and Oklahoma affected by this virus, in addition to donating 100,000 Euros to assist families in his home country of France.

The League’s reigning Most Valuable Player, and the front runner to win this year’s award, Giannis Antetokounmpo followed suit by agreeing to donated $100,000 to the event staff at Fiserv Forum. He posted on Twitter, ”I want to help the people that make my life, my family’s lives and my teammates lives easier.” It’s admirable that a player at the height of his individual success finds to time consider the thoughts and needs of those less fortunate than he is.

The league’s most recent #1 draft pick Zion Williamson has also chosen to assist those essentials staff members at Smoothie King Arena, the home New Orleans Pelicans while acknowledging that many of them are still recovering from the challenges Katrina created. He stated in his post on Instagram, “This is a small way for me to express my support and appreciation for these wonderful people who have been so great to me and my teammates and hopefully we can all join together to relieve some of the stress and hardship caused by this national health crisis.”

When the NBA decided to suspend its season, long time Governor of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban was the first to commit to assisting the event staff of the American Airlines Center. Cuba told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, “we have to be smart in how we respond.

This is people’s lives at stakes. This isn’t about basketball; this isn’t about the Mavericks. This isn’t about when do we start, do we start? Or how do we start? This is a pandemic, a global pandemic where people’s lives are at stake.” After consulting with arena employees Mark has agreed to “pay the arena employees as if they were working,” for the next four scheduled games.

With Staples Center in Downtown Los Angeles being the headquarters to the Clippers, Kings and the Lakers they employee 2800 hourly employees that will be impacted by the leagues shut down due to the Coronavirus. These local organizations have partnered together to create a fund that would provide compensation for those employees scheduled to work during the suspended events at Staples.

This union to assist the essential employees, that make their events what have they are, is just as unprecedented as the pandemic infested the country. Each of these men listed was commended by former President Barack Obama for “setting a good example for the during a challenging time.” I will add that, all these actions from the players are further evidence of what’s good in sports. Kindly share your thoughts on the generosity of these players with us by simply commenting in the comment section of this article on www.whatsgoodinsports.com or by following me on Twitter @whatsgoodnsport for immediate engagement.

Additionally, subscribe to our weekly “Voice of the Fans Podcast” which is available for you on most podcasting platforms, Apple and Google Podcasts including Spotify, TuneIn, and iHeart Radio. As always, we certainly appreciate you for making our voice your choice!

A6

Local

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, March 19, 2020