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Los Angeles

Volume 36 Number 4

Serving Los Angeles County for Over 36 Years

Observer Group Newspapers of Southern California

Black Women Leaders to Senator Diane Feinstein:

Give Up Your Own Seat for Padilla Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌ ‌ ‌California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌ Black women leaders have a recommendation for Dianne Feinstein, California’s senior U.S. Senator: consider giving up your own seat so that California Secretary of State Alex Padilla can fill it. Their call is to appoint a Black Woman with political experience and a track record of success – someone who will be ready on day one to serve.

News broke last week that Feinstein, who has represented California in the upper house of the U.S. Congress for 28 years now, reached out to Gov. Gavin Newsom. She called to let him know that she supports Padilla, who is Latino, as Sen. Kamala Harris’s replacement in the U.S. Senate.

Black leaders campaigning for the governor to replace

Use the “Observer Interactive” App to sign the petition to tell Gov. Gavin Newsom to keep the seat.

(Courtesy Photo)

Harris with an African American woman responded promptly.

“The good senator herself has been sitting in that seat for a longtime. She has served our state well. Very honorably. Maybe she should consider resigning, which would make room for Secretary Padilla to carry on her legacy,” said Amelia Ashley-Ward, publisher of the San Francisco Sun-Reporter, the oldest Black newspaper in the “Golden Gate City.”

Ward said once Harris is inaugurated Vice President of the United States in January, the United States Senate will lose its only African American woman.

“That is a terrible loss for America. That is our seat,” Ward continued. “It was won by an African American woman and she had hundreds of thousands of African American women working hard with her, holding her up, standing behind her to win that seat. Not to mention millions of other Californians. Kamala was the second Black woman in history to serve in the United States Senate and she is currently the only Black woman in the United States Senate. She is the face and the voice of Black women from all across this country and we will lose that when she’s gone.”

Padilla, who is from Los Angeles, served as an aide in Feinstein’s Senate office in the 1990s.

“I told him,” Feinstein said, talking about her appeal to the governor in support of Padilla “And my sense is that he’s going to represent California very well. And he’s someone I’d be happy to work with and bring Hispanic representation to the Senate for the first time.”

Dr. Amos Brown, a civil rights activist, president of the San Francisco branch of the NAACP and pastor of Third Baptist Church in San Francisco, says representation is important. He said Gov. Newsom should appoint either Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA-37) or Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA13).

“The seat must go to an African American woman.

How can there be no Black woman among Democrats in the U.S. Senate? The women we are recommending are smart, qualified and prepared to replace Harris,” he said.

In an all-out effort to ensure that an African American woman continues to serve in Harris’s U.S. Senate, Black women groups in California and across the United States

have launched a social media campaign to spread the word and garner support. They say the party establishment wants Black people to vote for a Democratic majority in the Senate by turning up to vote in the January runoff election in Georgia, but they do not want to fight to make sure a Black woman is represented in the United States Senate.

The Black Women for Wellness Advocacy Project (BWWAP), Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA), the Black Women’s Democratic Club (BWDC), and numerous leading Black women in the state are speaking in one voice, sending a clear and forceful message to Gov. Gavin Newsom that he should pick a Black woman to replace Harris.

To amplify their message the women are employing podcasts, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, digital flyers, emails and catchy taglines. Public service announcements will flood the internet according to the of organizers for the campaign.

“This is an initiative by Black women from across California who are elevating the conversation around the appointment for Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’s U.S. Senate seat,” said Dezie Woods-Jones, founder of BWOPA, oldest Black political action organization in the state. “It is a full court press directed to an audience of one and that audience is Gov. Gavin Newsom.”

There are three African Americans serving in the United States Senate. Harris, Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, and Tim Scott, a Republican from South Carolina.

But after Jan. 20, 2021, when Harris is sworn in as Vice President, there will be no Black woman in the US Senate. Gov. Newsom can either decide to make an appointment to complete Harris’s term, which ends in 2023, or he can hold a special election.

The Black women organizations have also set up several online hubs to push the issue. They are asking people around the country to email their support to help them Keep the Seat for Black Women in the U.S. Senate. California residents can email Newsom directly. Or they can also message him at this site as well.

On social media, they can send a tweet to the governor @ GavinNewsom.

The Challenges Black America Face with Distant and

Virtual Learning During COVID-19

“If a child is in a lower socioeconomic category, then they are less likely to have high-speed internet or a device to use even to access the lessons. I know the Philadelphia School District had to get a grant to purchase tens of thousands of Chromebooks and the like.”

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent Students, teachers, parents, and administrators face ever-rising challenges as the coronavirus pandemic continues to force changes in how young people receive their education.

The challenges are particularly pronounced in the African American community, where access to the internet, working parents, and a haphazard learning model have undermined pre-pandemic gains.

Education experts have agreed that when students of color in underserved schools must go to blended or fully remote learning models, the digital divide gets broader, more profoundly affecting them.

Their school attendance plummets, along with their understanding of the curricula, their motivation to learn, and subsequently their grades.

“The digital divide again doubly impacts these students, as it completely stops our tutoring with almost all of our school partners,” said Richard Kaplan, the executive director of IvyTutorsNetwork.com, a New York City Department of Education-approved vendor that teaches students in multiple underserved public and charter schools in the Bronx, Harlem, and Bedford Stuyvesant.

“Given that the schools are struggling to pay for and provide the most basic teaching during the pandemic and, further, administrators now lack the budget for outside Continued on page A2

Holly Mitchell Sworn in to Serve on AllWomen LA County Supervisors Board

State Senator Holly Mitchell just got voted onto the LA County Board of Supervisors. She’s representing District 2, which includes Compton, Culver City, Koreatown, and other neighborhoods. (Photo by Leroy Hamilton)

Tanu Henry California Black Media This past weekend, Martin Jenkins, California’s first and only African American Supreme Court Justice, swore in former California State Sen. Holly Mitchell to the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors.

For the first time in history, the five-member leadership team that Mitchell is joining, which represents nine cities in California’s most populous county, is composed of all women. Mitchell will serve as chair Pro Tem of the current board, which Los Angeles County political insiders have now dubbed the “fab five.”

Representing the county’s Second District, Mitchell is the second Black woman to serve on the board that oversees Los Angeles County’s robust $36 billion budget, the largest for a county government in the country. The first Black woman to serve on the board of supervisors was Yvonne BrathwaiteBurke. She served twice: from 1992 to 2008 and from 19791980.

“I have to think that somewhere on high, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is smiling,” said Jenkins in his remarks, acknowledging the installation of the all-women county board. “When she was asked by a reporter how many women it would take for her to feel that there was enough diversity on the Supreme Court, she said ‘all nine, all of them” Jenkins said, quoting Ginsburg. “And in the fab five, you all have accomplished just that.”

Before the administering the oath, on a more personal note, Jenkins praised Mitchell, who he says he says he has known for over 25 years, for her accomplishments and leadership ability.

“Holly is a deeply committed public servant,” Jenkins Continued on page A2

Free!

Thursday, December 10, 2020

First Openly Gay Justice Sworn In to CA Supreme Court

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – California’s Supreme Court has its first openly gay justice.

Martin Jenkins was sworn in on Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom in a virtual rather than in-person ceremony because of coronavirus safety restrictions.

“In swearing in Justice Jenkins today, our state once again makes history, and we elevate an extraordinary Californian to the bench,” Newsom said in a statement. “The people of our state could not ask for a finer jurist or better person to serve them in this capacity.”

Newsom nominated Jenkins to replace Justice Ming Chin, who retired on Aug. 31. The Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed Jenkins in November, praising him for his “brilliant intellect, first-class temperament, and boundless humanity.”

During a news conference in October, Jenkins said his identity as a gay man has been “perhaps the greatest challenge of my life.”

Jenkins also is the third Black justice to serve on the court. He joins a diverse bench that includes another Black justice, Leondra Kruger; Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuellar, who is Latino; two Asian Americans, Chief Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye and Justice Goodwin Liu; and white justices Joshua Groban and Carol Corrigan..

Jenkins grew up in San Francisco. His father was a clerk and janitor at the city’s iconic Coit Tower. He was a prosecutor in Alameda County and a civil rights attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in the Reagan administration.

He was appointed as a federal judge in 1998 joined the state Courts of Appeal in 2008. He retired last year and joined Newsom’s administration as the judicial appointment secretary, helping Newsom vet potential appointments for judgeships.

46 Students Chosen for UK Scholarships BOSTON (AP) – Forty-six students from across the United States have been chosen to receive Marshall Scholarships that will enable them to study in the United Kingdom, the British government announced Sunday.

For the first time in the program’s 66-year history, 52% of the class are members of minority communities, including a record number of Black and Latino scholars. A majority are female and six are firstgeneration college students.

The 2021 class will take up their studies next September at 14 institutions across the U.K. “This class, one of the most diverse and inclusive in the program’s history, is a wonderful mirror of modern American society and demonstrates the vital role that the Marshall Scholarship continues to play in maintaining a vibrant U.S.-U.K. relationship,” Karen Pierce, the British ambassador to the United States said in a statement announcing the recipients.

The program, created in 1953 and principally funded by the British government, began as a gesture of gratitude to the U.S. for assistance the U.K. received after World War II under the Marshall Plan, the program that aided in Europe’s economic recovery between 1948 and 1951.

Of the 35 U.S. institutions represented in the class, nearly half are from state or public universities.

Newspaper Editor to Get Cronkite Award PHOENIX (AP) – Arizona State University announced Monday that Dean Baquet, the first Black executive editor to lead both The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times, will be presented with this year’s Walter Cronkite Award for excellence in journalism.

Baquet will receive the 37th annual award from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication during a March 25 virtual ceremony.

The New York Times has won 16 Pulitzer Prizes during Baquet’s tenure as executive editor.

The newspaper shared a Pulitzer with the Washington Post in 2018 for coverage of Russian interference in the 2016 election and its connections to the Trump campaign, transition team and administration.

Baquet became managing editor of the Los Angeles Times in 2000, serving in that role for five years before assuming the executive editor position.

During his time as managing editor and top editor, the newspaper won 13 Pulitzer Prizes.

Baquet returned to The New York Times in 2007 as Washington bureau chief and then managing editor.

He was named executive editor in 2014.

The Cronkite School, named after the late CBS News anchor, has honored a prominent journalist annually since 1984.

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LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, December 10, 2020

World & Nation

The Challenges Black America Face with Distant and

Virtual Learning During COVID-19 Continued from page A1

tutors, we have been unable to help.

“We are no longer allowed in the classrooms for health reasons, and the students – many of them homeless – lack reliable Internet connections or suitable devices for effective remote sessions,” Kaplan remarked.

“For some, fully remote actually means they might as well be in Tahiti or Timbuktu, inaccessible to effective teaching and all but forgotten.”

The distance learning scheme or the online classes method of teaching are good strategies in reducing physical contact and helps limit the spread of the virus, asserted Lewis Keegan, owner and operator of SkillScouter.com, which aims to help potential students find their learning paths via online learning platforms.

“However, the solution might not be as inclusive, especially for people of color in other parts of the world,” Keegan observed.

“This is because not everyone is privileged for such amenities. Some areas across the globe are still not introduced to the concept of the internet,” he said.

Keegan continued: “Aside from this, having devices such as laptops and phones for learning are not cheap and easily accessible.

Because of this, more practical options are chosen by parents like spending their money in food and sustenance, rather than education.”

As the pandemic shuts most people in for what promises to be a long, cold, and socially distant winter, families are suffering, offered Dr. Karen Aronian of Aronian

Education Design LLC. “Without a doubt, people of color are our most vulnerable populations. Special-needs education students in isolated rural communities, those who are homeless, and food insecure, are in dire education straits,” Aronian stated.

She noted that some reports have revealed that the pandemic has forced students to lose as much as 50 percent of their academic growth in math, at least 30 percent of ELA, and perhaps a full school year of academic growth in some cases.

“Strain, struggle, and hardship abound in communities of color, which carries over into family life and lack of hope,” Aronian continued.

“Children’s education becomes secondary to the basic needs of a home and family. The traditional in-person school has been, for many children, a respite from home life, family problems, and dysfunction. Without school, education has fallen off the radar in homes where survival is first, and education is a much lower rung during COVID times.”

The pandemic has especially been tough on marginalized communities, including those with special needs, added Lisa Lightner, of A Day in Our Shoes, an organization that advocates on behalf of special education.

“I have been chatting with all kinds of families, including Black and Brown families. Here is some of what I’m seeing. The challenges that these families are facing aren’t necessarily due to their skin color – but because their skin color makes them much more likely to be in another

category of marginalization,” Lightner proclaimed.

“For example, lower socioeconomic status or nonNative English speakers. If assignments and instructions are not being provided in the parents’ native language, then there is much less parent participation and follow up for school and assignments,” she stated.

“If a child is in a lower socioeconomic category, then they are less likely to have high-speed internet or a device to use even to access the lessons. I know the Philadelphia School District had to get a grant to purchase tens of thousands of Chromebooks and the like.”

According to a recent Duke University panel at the school’s Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity, many Black and Brown individuals face challenges that affect their and educators’ ability to resume in-person education safely.

The panel concluded that the issue is a double-edged sword because wealth inequity also makes it harder for these communities to learn remotely.

The average Black household in North Carolina, where the panel convened, is about $800,000 less in net worth than the average white home.

According to the Public School Forum of North Carolina, 72 percent of Black and Brown students in the state’s public schools have parents who lack secure employment, compared with 21 percent of white students.

That equates to lower-wealth households having had less access to opportunities for higher-quality education and access to post-secondary studies, education officials

said.

Further, Education Week reported that in-person learning yields superior educational outcomes for primary and secondary students — and that the pitfalls of virtual instruction are especially pronounced in minority communities and those living in poverty.

School districts around the country that are strapped for cash have found it increasingly challenging to tackle the learning barriers minority students disproportionately have experienced during the pandemic.

“The reality is in many economically distressed counties, over 60 percent of families don’t have reliable internet access, and that disproportionately affects students of color. In one of my counties, over 70 percent do not,” said Alex Beene, an adult and high school teacher in Tennessee.

“And while I try to supplement those households with additional packets and materials, it’s just not the same. It’s impossible to attend daily classes and submit assignments digitally if you can’t even connect to join the conversation,” Beene remarked.

“Many families of color also lack adequate nutrition and a culture of learning in the home. When schools are closed down, not having access to school lunches or educators that motivate students to go higher academically can have lasting effects that will stretch on long after the pandemic.”

Biden-Harris Commits to Spending with Black Owned Media Businesses

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent President-Elect Joe Biden’s administration plans to support legislation offered by District of Columbia Democratic Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton that would ensure federal agencies advertise with minority-owned businesses, including the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA).

“From the racial equity plan – at the direction of the President-Elect, the Director of Minority Business Development Agency will coordinate all federal offices to reduce barriers to procurement for underrepresented groups, including all types of minority-owned businesses,” a Biden transition spokesperson told Black Press USA. “This is good news for the Black Press of America in 2021,” declared Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO of the NNPA. “The incoming Biden-Harris Administration has gone on the public record to keep their commitments to ensure equitable federal advertising dollars to be spent over the next four years with Black-owned newspapers, and other minority owned media companies across the nation.”

In 2019, after reviewing a General Accounting Office audit that revealed federal agencies only spend a pittance of its allotted $5 billion advertising budget with Black and minority-owned entities, Norton introduced H.R. 2576.

The legislation requires each of the 12 federal Appropriations Committees to adopt language mandating that all agencies include in their annual budget request to Congress the amount of money they spend to advertise with the Black Press, Hispanic Press, and women-owned publications.

Norton’s bill, which remains under consideration in the House, requires all budgetary requests include a line-item detailing what they are spending with Black and other minorityowned businesses, including media companies.

“This is important not just for the publications but because those publications reach minorities and women in a way that mainstream publications may not,” Norton said when introducing the measure.

“We did this because the federal government is the largest advertising agency in the United States and this gives it a special

In 2019, after reviewing a General Accounting Office audit that revealed federal agencies only spend a pittance of its allotted $5 billion advertising budget with Black and minority-owned entities, Norton introduced H.R. 2576.

obligation to make sure that it is using advertising dollars fairly and to reach all people in the United States,” said Norton, who has served in the U.S. House since 1991.

The incoming Biden administration plans to see this legislation through.

“The President-elect is committed to implementing the

The Importance of Home and Health A Live Interview with NNPA

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent On Thursday, December 10, at 11AM ET, the accomplished physician will join this reporter and National Newspaper Publishers Association President and CEO, Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., for a LIVE interview. The discussion will be streamed live over Facebook, Youtube (BlackPressUSA TV) and on BlackPressUSA.com.

The rising hospitalizations and deaths resulting from the coronavirus pandemic have brought bad news to just about everyone. But no single group has felt the pain more than African Americans, who make up a large portion of the more than 276,000 virus-related deaths in the U.S. Black people have also felt the brunt of the devastating pandemic’s financial fallout, including in the housing market.

Recently, Zillow, which is transforming the way people buy, sell and finance homes, launched a health safety initiative called “Move Forward. Stay Safe,” to protect customers, employees, and partners.

The company also tapped former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin as Zillow’s Health Advisor.

The “Move Forward. Stay Safe,” program includes industry-leading health safety standards along with Zillow’s groundbreaking virtual technology, designed to protect its customers and give people the confidence to move safely.

“I’ve dedicated my career to health and wellness. My role as Zillow’s health advisor is a continuation of my commitment to prevention and population health,” said Dr. Benjamin, who founded the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Alabama.

Throughout her career, Dr. Benjamin remained active in medical organizations and advisory groups.

Through recent research, Zillow found that, of the nearly 2 million U.S. renters who can take advantage of heightened telework options and could afford monthly payments on homes in less-expensive areas outside of their current metros, Black renters benefit far more than other renters.

In large metro areas where typical starter home values are higher than they are nationally, Black renters are 29 percent more likely than other renters to buy their first home in a less expensive area because of the opportunity to work from home permanently.

“As people venture into the real estate market, it’s critical they have precise information and guidelines on how to stay safe during every part of their move,” Dr. Benjamin stated in a separate news release. “From listing to shopping, to closing documents, we must minimize risk and protect each other. I am pleased to join Zillow in its dedication to public health through this new initiative.”

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Associated Press, Better Business Bureau, GLAAACC President: Ellen Coley Operations Manager: Jon Coley Editor: James Luckey

Black people have also felt the brunt of the devastating pandemic’s financial fallout, including in the housing market. Use the “Observer Interactive” App for more information on the full interview.

Continued from page A1

supervisors.”

Mitchell joins the board when Los Angeles County faces the worst occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the state.

The county also faces a homelessness crisis that is the worst in the country, heightened racial tensions, a strained relationship between law enforcement and minority residents of the county, among other problems.

The other women on the board are: Hilda L. Solis (First District), who served as United States Secretary of Labor during the Obama administration; Sheila Kuehl (Third District); Janice Hahn (Fourth District); and Kathryn Barger (Fifth District).

During the virtual swearing-in ceremony, soul singer and Oakland native Goapele sang “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing,” and religious leaders representing Christianity, Judaism and Islam offered prayers. The event’s Master of Ceremony Manuel Pastor, a professor at the University of Southern California, also paid tribute to Native American ancestors he called the “caretakers of

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Holly Mitchell Sworn in to Serve on AllWomen LA County Supervisors Board

continued. “She’s the best kind of public servant. She’s smart, a true visionary, pragmatic in her judgments, humble and forceful at the same time. And last, she is a leader – a charismatic leader.”

Mitchell, who represented the state’s 30th Senate District and was the only African American woman serving in the California State Senate from 2013 to 2020, succeeds Mark Ridley-Thomas, who is also Black. In her new role she represents the Second District of Los Angeles County. The district covers an area that includes parts of Los Angeles, Carson, Compton, Inglewood, Mar Vista, Ladera Heights, Crenshaw, Lynwood, and other cities. It is located in the region of the state that has the highest number of African Americans.

“Equity will be at the center of all of our work,” Mitchell promised in her remarks. “As we fight to bring more housing to those in need, more mental health services, more job opportunities and real second chances for re-entry, they will be accomplished through that lens. And I look forward to collaborating with the newly-formed anti-racism initiative established by the

plans that he laid out during the campaign that focuses on building the economy back better and creating opportunities for minority-owned businesses to advance and prosper,” the transition spokesperson relayed.

“Biden’s Lift Every Voice plan largely addresses the President-elect’s plans to address building Black wealth, which means investing in Black communities.”

The president-elect’s Build Back Better Racial Economic Equity plan also relays how Biden plans to hold federal offices accountable for adequately maintaining their relationships with minority-owned businesses.

It includes increasing the funding and stature of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA).

Latino and Black Americans are roughly 30 percent of the U.S. population, yet they currently own just 7.5 percent of small businesses with employees.

For almost four years, the only federal agency charged with addressing racial disparities in small business ownership has been on the Trump administration’s chopping block.

MBDA provides business consulting services and connects minority-owned businesses with capital and contracting opportunities.

“These services are critical. Instead of trying to reduce or eliminate funding for MBDA, Biden will protect the agency and call on Congress to increase its funding dramatically,” the transition spokesperson said.

The plan includes the Biden administration elevating the Director of the MBDA to the Assistant Secretary level and instruct the MBDA to coordinate all federal offices charged with reducing barriers to procurement for underrepresented groups.

With additional resources and authority, MBDA will also create new business development grants and other programs that will address the economic challenges facing Black and Brown communities, expand small business ownership, and shrink the racial wealth gap.

Additionally, Biden plans to provide MBDA with $5 billion in annual lending and investment authority “to ensure capital flows directly to minority-owned businesses and investments in critical infrastructure in Black, Latino, AAPI, and Native American communities,” the spokesperson said.

the land.”

Assemblymember Sydney Kamlager (D-Los Angeles), who says she looks up to Mitchell and considers her a “big sister,” has announced that she is throwing her hat in the race for Mitchell’s Senate seat.

In another virtual ceremony last Friday, Gov. Newsom swore in Jenkins to the California Supreme Court.

“The residents of the Second District are fortunate to have you represent them,” said Ridley-Thomas to Mitchell. RidleyThomas served on the board for 12 years.

“I’ve worked with Holly for many years through state and county partnerships, tackling some of the most daunting social issues of our time -- homelessness, child maltreatment, human trafficking, poverty, criminal justice reform and structural racism,” Ridley-Thomas said. “She is a trailblazer, a leader, a fighter on the frontlines pushing for equity and justice for those who have no one else to stand up for them.”

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Thursday, December 10, 2020

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER A3

Features

HBCU Students May Be Less Likely to Develop Midlife Health Issues

Kimberly A. Morrow, M.Ed., is an accomplished educator, author, and speaker worth knowing. She is highly engaging and provides proven practical strategies for quality teaching that any educator can go back to their classroom and implement tomorrow. Some of those can be found in her book, “8 Pearls of Wisdom: A Parenting Guide - Empowering Children is the Way to Go!” She holds a Master’s degree in Teaching & Curriculum from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education. She is a devoted member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, Inc. and an HBCU grad - Morris Brown College. (Courtesy Photo)

By Brittany Wallace Contributing Writer A new study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology shows that Blacks who attend Historically Black Colleges and Universities are less likely to develop health problems later in life, than Blacks who attend predominantly white institutions.

The study, led by Ohio State University sociology professor Cynthia Colen, found that Blacks that attend HBCUs are 35% less likely to develop metabolic syndrome, which is defined as the presence of three to five factors that increase the risk for heart disease, diabetes, stroke, high blood pressure and high blood sugar. These same health risks are known to be prominent in the Black community, and can lead to lifelong complications.

Colen stated on the Ohio State University website that “We’ve known for a very long time that the more years of completed schooling someone has, the better their health is likely to be across the life course, but there’s been very little research looking at the different contexts in which education occurs and their impact on subsequent health outcomes.”

She went on to say “This study really points to a strength of HBCUs that people don’t normally think about: Not only can they be health-protective, but they can be health-protective for years to come, not just while people are in school.”

Parenting and Education Expert, Kimberly A. Morrow states that “This study affirms what those of us who have been privileged to attend or graduate from an HBCU already know. Black Colleges are a safe haven for Black students. HBCU grads are more likely equipped and prepared to deal with stress factors like racial discrimination than their peers who attended a PWI. They are also likely

to gain knowledge about specific health-related issues that are prevalent to our communities.” Morrow, a graduate of Morris Brown College in Atlanta, GA, expressed that HBCU students do not have to bear the stress that comes with having to compete with non-Black students at a PWI. She stated that “at an HBCU, students feel loved and welcomed. They don’t necessarily have to belong to a club or fraternity to feel a sense of connection, because there is already a sense of family that comes with simply attending.”

While the available data in the study cannot explain why Blacks that attend HBCUs are less likely to develop health problems, there are many possible contributing factors that could lead to the outcome. Students at HBCUs have the benefit of regular interaction with Black professors, staff and mentors, which leads to significant reduction of racial discrimination, which has been shown to have a severe impact on mental and physical health, as opposed to Black students that attend PWIs. Additionally, Black students at HBCUs are not plagued with carrying the burden of having to perform better academically than their non-black counterparts for equal recognition, as they would likely have to at a PWI. In addition to the study, HBCUs have gained popularity this year for several reasons; most notably as Vice President-Elect, Kamala Harris, is a proud graduate of HBCU, Howard University, and is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Additionally, many high school athletes have begun to show interest in taking their talents to HBCUs instead of PWIs, after highly sought after California high school basketball star, Makur Maker, made headlines when he chose to attend Howard University instead of UCLA.

Somewhere, Snoop Dogg, Mike Tyson and JR Smith are Celebrating Federal Bill to Legalize Marijuana

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent Somewhere in in the world — California, Nevada, or beyond — Snoop Dogg, Mike Tyson, J.R. Smith, and millions of other Americans are smiling. They might even be enjoying a puff and “passing it around.”

On Friday, December 4, 2020, in Washington, DC, the U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation that would decriminalize both the smoking and possession of marijuana.

House Members maintain that the bill aims to correct some of the devastating injustices caused by the War on Drugs.

While every state has already decriminalized at least some aspect of the drug’s usage at the local level, this marks the first time either chamber has voted to decriminalize marijuana

at the federal level. However, most Capitol Hill pundits and watchers note that the legislation has little chance of passing the Republican-led Senate. The bill would then have to be signed by the current president in order to become law during the current session of Congress.

If it passes both chambers and is signed into law, the legislation will legalize the drug’s distribution and authorize a 5 percent sales tax on marijuana products. Proceeds from the tax will be invested in job training, legal aid, and substance abuse treatment for individuals adversely impacted by the war on drugs.

According to the bill, which passed mostly along party lines, the tax revenue would also provide funds for small business loans and allow access to marijuana licensing and employment for economically disadvantaged individuals.

Five Republicans and 222 Democrats supported the measure, while 158 members of the GOP and six Democrats opposed the bill.

Hip-Hop superstar and Long Beach, Calif. Native, Snoop Dogg, has long championed the legalization of marijuana.

On Twitter, NBA star J.R. Smith, whose passion for the full legalization of marijuana is well-documented, found his name and Twitter handle trending with the news of the legislation.

As for boxing legend, Mike Tyson, smiling emojis on his Twitter feed directly conveyed his sentiments on the subject. “I smoked every day, during and while training for the fight,” Tyson said following his comeback bout against Roy Jones Jr. earlier this month in Las Vegas. “I never stopped smoking.”

By SHARON COHEN AP National Writer The deadly pandemic that tore through the nation's heartland struck just as Aaron Crawford was in a moment of crisis. He was looking for work, his wife needed surgery, then the virus started eating away at her paycheck.

The Crawfords had no savings, mounting bills and a growing dread: What if they ran out of food? The couple had two boys, 5 and 10, and boxes of macaroni and cheese from the dollar store could go only so far.

A 37-year-old Navy vet, Crawford saw himself as self-reliant.

Asking for food made him uncomfortable. “I felt like I was a failure,” he says. “It's this whole stigma... this mindset that you're this guy who can't provide for his family, that you're a deadbeat.”

Hunger is a harsh reality in the richest country in the world, even during times of prosperity. Now, with staggering job losses and business closings, millions of Americans are worried about empty refrigerators and barren cupboards.

Feeding America, the nation's largest anti-hunger organization, has never handed out so much food so fast _ 4.2 billion meals from March through October. The organization has seen a 60 percent average increase in food bank users during the pandemic; about 4 in 10 are first-timers.

An Associated Press analysis of Feeding America data from 181 food banks in its network found the organization has distributed nearly 57 percent more food in the third quarter of the year, compared with the same period in 2019.

Those fighting hunger say they've never seen anything like this in America, even during the Great Recession of 2007-2009.

Across the country, cars line up for miles to wait for food handouts, each driver waiting hours for a box or bag of food. In New York, and other large cities, people stand, waiting for blocks on end.

Shortly before Thanksgiving, Norman Butler and his girlfriend, Cheryl, arrived at 3 a.m. at a drive-through food bank in a suburban New Orleans sports stadium. They joined a predawn procession of mothers with their kids, the elderly and folks like him – unemployed workers.

Before the pandemic, Butler, 53, worked as an airport shuttle and limousine driver, a valet and hotel doorman. Since March when the normally bustling streets turned silent, jobs have been scarce in the city.

“A lot of people are in limbo,” he says. “The main thing we need is to get back to work.”

For communities of color, the pandemic has been a compound disaster with Blacks and Latinos reeling from disproportionately high rates of deaths, infections _ and joblessness.

Unemployment surged among Latinos to 18.9 percent this spring, higher than any other racial and ethnic group, according to federal statistics. Though it has since fallen, many are still struggling.

More than 1 in 5 Black and Latino adults with children said as of July 2020 they sometimes or often did not have enough to eat, according to a September report commissioned by the Food

Research & Action Center. That was double the rate of white and Asian households. It also found that women, households with children and people of color are at greatest risk of hunger.

Abigail Leocadio, 34, who was brought to the U.S. from Mexico by her family when she was 7, works as a phlebotomist in a local lab. Her husband, a restaurant cook, was unemployed for months during the outbreak.

Leocadio's income _ barely more than the $11 state minimum wage _ wasn't enough to cover their expenses. They pay $500 a month to rent a lot for their two-bedroom trailer, and as much as $450 in monthly electric bills and internet service so their four kids, 9 to 15, can attend class remotely.

“It has been hard feeding all the kiddos daily,” Leocadio said outside the trailer after a recent delivery from the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix, Arizona. The family recently received two boxes from the charity, including canned tomatoes, dried beans, rice, breakfast cereal and the kids' undisputed favorite: specialty Oreo cookies.

Pandemic Pushes Newly Hungry Americans to Crowded Food Lines

Legal Notices PUBLIC NOTICE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME CASE NUMBER 20SMCP00393 Superior Court of the State of California, for the county of Los Angeles, 1725 Main Street, Santa Monica, CA 90401 PETITION OF: PAOLA ANDREA MONTERO SALAZAR FOR CHANGE OF NAME TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: Petitioner: PAOLA ANDREA MONTERO SALAZAR for a decree changing names as follows: Present name PAOLA ANDREA MONTERO SALAZAR Filed a petition with this court Proposed name PAOLA ANDREA BAILEY THE COURT ORDERS: that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the pe-

PUBLIC NOTICE tition should not be granted if no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING Date: Jan 29, 2021 Time: 8:30 a.m.

Dept: K The address of the court is: Same as noted above.

A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published at least once a week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition in the following newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER Date: November 10, 2020 Hon. Lawrence Cho JUDGE OF THE SUPERIOR COURT Marcos Mariseal DEPUTY Petitioner: Paola Andrea Montero Salazar 3219 Overland Avenue, Apt 9197 Los Angeles, Ca. 90034 Phone: (310) 844-3637 E-mail Address: paolaabailey@gmail. com LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER (E) PUB: Nov 26, Dec 3, 10, 17, 2020

The food, she says, provides less than half of what her family eats in four weeks, but reduces their monthly bill to about $250.

While food banks have become critical during the pandemic, they're just one path for combating hunger. For every meal from a food bank, a federal program called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamps – provides nine.

Anti-hunger groups have lobbied Congress for a 15 percent

increase in maximum food stamp benefits, A similar measure went a long way in digging the nation out of the Great Recession.

A stimulus bill passed by the House this spring includes such a provision, but it has been bogged down in partisan squabbling.

Many going to food pantries also are receiving food stamps, though eligibility varies among states.

Aaron Crawford says the addition of $550 in food stamps the family started receiving last summer has made a significant difference as they've faced their own medical troubles. Both he and his wife, Sheyla, had mild cases of COVD-19; she had hysterectomy surgery.

The family also has depended on the Family Resource Centers and Food Shelf, part of 360 Communities, a nonprofit 15 minutes from their apartment in Apple Valley, Minnesota.

When needed, they receive monthly boxes of fresh produce, dairy, deli, meat and other basics _ enough food to fill two grocery carts. If that runs out, they can receive an emergency package to tide them over for the rest of the month.

At first, Crawford was embarrassed to go the food shelf; he worried he'd bump into someone he knew. He now sees it differently.

“It didn't make me a bad man or a terrible husband or father,” he says. “On the contrary, I was actually doing something to make sure that my wife and kids had ... food to eat.”

A4

Entertainment LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

THE BLERDBINDER:

Thursday, December 10, 2020

AfroComicCon 2020

Black Nerds of the World, This Con’s for You!

By Noah Washington NNPA Newswire Contributor The Blerd Binder covers nerdy news for the Black nerds of the world. We welcome you to take the journey with us as we talk about subjects ranging from movies to music to tech to toys.

If you’re a Blerd (Black nerd) that’s been living in Oakland, California for the past few years, your living space would have to be located under a rock for you to have not heard of the area’s seminal annual event for Black nerds: AfroComicCon (www.afrocomiccon.com).

The annual con, which was co-founded by Michael James and Hally Bellah-Guther, explores themes that go far beyond comics to include music, film, science, technology, gaming and writing.

“2020 has been a long strange journey for everyone. As a live event organizer, the learning curve was steep and our community has suffered but will not be deterred, which is why we made it happen virtually,” said AfroComicCon Co-Founder Hally Bellah-Guther.

As a result of the pandemic, planning for this year’s AfroComicCon event was shifted away from a physical space to the virtual space — which turned out to be a good thing! The change in venue not only meant that more people could attend and share in the experience, but it also enabled organizers and planners to engage a wider array of participants (nobody had to leave the comfort of their home).

Another tremendous advantage that online cons present is that the content, once it’s made available, remains accessible forever — or as long as it’s owners consent to do so.

With approximately 60 panels and a film festival that viewers were able to engage with across a number of channels and platforms, there is more content to see than a typical visitor can consumer in one day.

While the primary preferred destination for visitors is the AfroComicCon website at afrocomiccon.org, a partnership with the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) meant that content can also be accessed via the NNPA’s BlackPressUSA’s YouTube page (BlackPressUSA TV) and on the YouTube and Instagram pages of AfroComicCon. With so much to offer to visitors, AfroComicCon panels are organized according to one or more of eight

categories: Writing, Gaming, Comic Book, Animation, FLASH (fit like a superhero) Hollywood Production, Social Justice and Special Sessions.

It’s all good stuff but if you’re like The Blerdbinder and appreciate helpful hints to point you in the direction of AfroComicCon gold, fear not fellow traveler. The panels are all pre-recorded sessions. So, if you need to pause something you’re watching, you can do so and resume from where you left off.

of their insights — and tales of their lives and times — as storyboard artists. Find out how two brothers who loved to draw became directors of Marvel and DC animated films and are now directors at DreamWorks. At the same time, learn the basics of storyboarding!

“Producers of TV and Film” — Four Giants of Film and TV help us understand the routines of writers, producers, and managers on projects as varied as Spike Lee masterpieces, The Boondocks to Heroes and The Jamie Fox

Start with these standouts: “Entrepreneurial Journey into Animation, Advertising, Design, And Tech” — The motivation, the ways and the means to get there may be varied but is there a set of prerequisites to make it in the world of high tech and creative design?

“The First Steps of Visual Storytelling - Storyboarding is the Foundation Of Animation” — The Copeland Brothers, film and game industry superstars, share some

Show.

“The Road from A-Z. Becoming a Successful Tv Writer in Today’s Crowded Landscape” — Join professional writers Liz Benjamin, Bianca Sams, Mercedes Valle, Maya Houston and Kate McCarthy for a fun and frank conversation about what it really takes to survive and thrive in the high-stakes world of Film and Television. How they got in. How they stayed in. How they’re building bridges for lasting success.

“Pursuing the dream: Stage, TV and Film, the life of Actors, Writers and Producers” — A panel discussion featuring film and TV actors who have enjoyed long and successful careers in LA and NYC “Black Comic Convention Creators Panel” — From the early Pioneers to AfroComicCon: Black Comic Cons past present and future!

“One on One with Godfrey” — Stand-up comedian and actor, Jay Washington sits and talks with fellow comedian actor and iconic personality Godfrey Danchimah.

Among the panels not listed above: The legacy of Chadwick Boseman; Special guest celebrity Blerds like Sinbad (in one of his last publicly recorded sessions before his tragic stroke last month), Godfrey, Miles Brown and Diallo Riddle (creator of HBO Max’s “SouthSide” and AMC’s “Sherman’s Showcase”).

The 2020 AfroComicCon Virtual Short Film Festival, which was sponsored by the NNPA, The BurtonWire, and Pixar, was hosted by Dr. Nsenga Burton. This year’s festival, which was also virtual, showcased monumental achievement in film by upcoming and veteran filmmakers.

The Festival’s winning selections are: • Best Film and Cinematography: “Far From Casablanca” by Youssef Rhanem (1st place) and “The Dark Strums” by Steven Russel (2nd place) • The Audience Award Winner: “What Could Have Been” by Semmi Cole:

• Best Film and Best Director: “Outcast”

by Royce Adkins There was also an awesome cosplay contest! The winners’ Instagram handles:

• @Hellspawned cosplay

• @Sotogrant Cosplay • @coko_galore AfroComicCon is also a non-profit event that not only provides amazing content, entertainment and fun but also raises funds for programs like its Moonshot Junior Collaboration for leveling young girls of color up in a 12-month innovation program.

For more info and to register for this free event, signup at Eventbrite - AfroComicCon 2020 Reloaded Sign up now or visit AfroComicCon.org. You can also follow like and share @AfroComicCon on Instagram and Twitter or Afro Comic Con on Facebook!

America’s Biggest Dog Show Moves to ABC Under AKC-ESPN Deal

NEW YORK (AP) – The biggest dog show in the country is about to bark at a much bigger audience.

The AKC National Championship will be presented on ABC for the next three years under an agreement between the American Kennel Club and ESPN announced Monday.

Nearly 5,300 dogs entered the AKC event that was won by Wasabi the Pekingese last year, almost twice as many pooches as usually take part in the prestigious Westminster dog show.

This year’s AKC National Championship will be held next weekend in Orlando, Florida. The three-hour ABC broadcast of the competition will be shown on Jan. 17, hosted by Mary Carillo with Gina DiNardo and Carolyn Manno handling the paw-by-paw duties.

The afternoon telecast will be opposite an NFL playoff game. But a taped broadcast of a dog show going against football has worked well in the past _ the annual National Dog Show on NBC routinely attracts a total audience of over 20 million on Thanksgiving Day for an event held outside Philadelphia.

“People just love their dogs and our viewers responded

very well to our previous AKC telecasts,” Burke Magnus, ESPN executive vice president of programming and original content, said in a statement. “I know my black labs Luna and Stella will be joining me to watch.”

The AKC, which has collaborated on “ESPN Dog Day” and “ESPN Puppy Day,” will produce other championships and competitions for the network that feature dog agility and skills.

The deal includes digital rights for events to stream live on the ESPN app, among them the upcoming AKC National Championship evening and group competitions.

Last year's big event was shown on the AKC.tv app.

“It is exciting to introduce new audiences to these action-packed events and showcase the stellar dogs that compete,” AKC President Dennis B. Sprung said.

Next year's Westminster show, presented live on Fox, has been shifted because of COVID-19 concerns from its usual mid-February date to June 12-13 outdoors at an estate in Tarrytown, New York, about 25 miles north of Manhattan. It will mark the first time since 1920 that the Westminster best in show hasn't been awarded at Madison Square Garden.

Film-COVID Awards Season -

With Red Carpets Rolled Up, the Oscar Race Goes Virtual

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) – This is the time of year when Hollywood's awards-season-industrial complex usually shifts into high gear. It's a frothy, festive run of the year's final premieres and screenings _ all part of a carefully orchestrated dance to court tastemakers and, ultimately, academy voters.

The movies may be finished -- picture locked -- but their Oscar fortunes are in flux right up until ballots are cast. And a glittering, glad-handing ecosystem of cocktails and Q&As works very hard to steer the conversation.

This year, with many under quarantine, theaters shuttered in Los Angeles and New York and, well, some more pressing concerns than who's campaigning for best supporting actor, awards season is operating in a strange COVID-19 vacuum with only a whiff of the stuff it thrives on: buzz.

For Awards Daily founder Sasha Stone, who has been covering the Oscars since 2000, it's like nothing she's ever seen _ an awards season without glamour, without red carpets, without anything that feels real. She compares this year's race to the floating debris left by a sinking ship.

“There’s no there there,” says Stone. “What's missing is the ‘wow’ factor. That's really what the Oscars have kind of been built on.”

Nevertheless, Oscar season is pushing ahead, despite the pandemic, despite a year where most of the biggest releases were postponed. The timetable has shifted two months: The Academy Awards are to be held April 25. And awards season, such as it is, has gone virtual. The Oscar race will Zoomed.

Awards campaigns normally focused on doing

everything they can to lure guild members and others to see their film on the big screen have had to accept that this year they'll be watching in their living room, maybe on a laptop, potentially with a lot of pausing and probably with many glances at their phone.

“The biggest challenge is: How are we going to get people to see the movies? Are they really going to watch them? What are they going to watch?” says Cynthia Swartz, one of the industry's top Oscar campaign strategists.

“Ninety-five percent of an academy campaign is getting people to see the movie, ideally on the big screen. Now you can't get them to the big screen. Everyone's seeing it at home.”

Keeping any movie not named “Borat” in the zeitgeist has been nearly impossible this year, either because people are overburdened by the pandemic, movies lack a physical presence beyond a box on your TV screen or because viewers would rather just binge “The Queen's Gambit.”

Swartz, who has helped steer campaigns for everything from “Boyhood” to “Black Panther,” acknowledged, “Right now, it's hard for films to feel real and to feel like they're sticking.”

The whole rhythm of the season’s calendar, from one awards group to another, is also off kilter. With Oscar nominations ballots usually due in early January, most voters plow through screeners over the holidays.

“It’s going to be a challenge to keep your movie sort of in the awareness all the way to April or to March, when voting happens,” said Tom Bernard, co-president of Sony Pictures Classics, whose contenders this year include the dementia drama “The Father,” with Anthony Hopkins.

“It's going to be a very different journey between now and the end of April.”

It has undoubtedly reshuffled the usual kinds of movies in the race. Many of the films that might have been among the favorites this year -- Steven Spielberg's “West Side Story” or Wes Anderson's “The French Dispatch” -have been postponed. That's left open leading positions for smaller films that might have had to fight harder for the spotlight -- among them Chloe Zhao's open-road ode “Nomadland,” Lee Isaac Chung's Korean-American family drama “Minari” and Regina King's fictional gathering of ‘60s Black icons “One Night in Miami.”

For some, it's a tantalizing possibility that this year's unusual circumstances could expand the traditional notions – and frustrating restrictions – of what is an Oscar movie.

“It’s going to be interesting because there were no blockbusters. We didn't have any blockbusters this year, so how do we know what was a hit. I'm curious if it will skew more indie-cinephile,” says Steven Soderbergh, whose Meryl Streep-led “Let Them All Talk” is among the many films going straight to streaming. “The question is: Do you embrace that and say: `That was this year,' and not be pants-on-fire about it. Just go: That was this year.”

It's also left the field for Netflix to dominate. The streamer, which has fiercely sought a best-picture win after close calls with “Roma”and “The Irishman,” this year has at least three best-picture candidates, including David Fincher's “Mank,” Aaron Sorkin's “The Trial of the Chicago 7” and George C. Wolfe's “Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.”

One of few sure things is a posthumous nomination for Chadwick Boseman for his performance in “Ma Rainey.”

This year, the film academy relaxed its requirement of a theatrical run for nominees – a change some are already lobbying to make permanent.

Last Oscars, the win for “Parasite,” the first non-

English language film to take best picture, was heavily fueled by social-media support. This year, in the absence of real conversation, the race will likely be won online, making critics and pundits even more influential.

Not everyone is sorry that awards season _ an increasingly bloated, overlong, high-priced slog from September to February _ has been turned upside down.

Publicists used to racing from event to event can do it this year with a click, while wearing sweatpants. Costs will be lower. Stars less worn out. Maybe, some hope, it will slim down for good.

Meanwhile, Zoom boxes are getting more dressed up all the time. For the launch of the black-and-white “Mank,” Netflix outfitted its video conference in handsome monochrome. For a Q&A for his dystopic space drama “The Midnight Sky,” George Clooney could track down a better-than-average moderator via video conference: Cate Blanchett.

The IFP Gotham Awards, one of the first big parties of the year, will livestream their Jan. 11 show from the cavernous Cipriani's in Manhattan, with guests arranged virtually on tables. To pull off the digital trick, organizers are relying on an online poker interface. On the bright side, said producer Jeffrey Sharp, executive director of the Independent Filmmaker Project, more people will see the typically untelevised ceremony than ever before.

“If there are any lessons learned, we're happy to pass them on to the next guy. I do feel like we're all in this together,” says Sharp. “This year, everyone's trying to figure it out, and I think deserves credit for at least trying to keep the ball rolling.”

Thursday, December 10, 2020

Sports

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER A5

Trask QB and McFadden LB Honored

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer Kyle Trask of Florida and Micah McFadden of Indiana were named this weeks National Walter Camp Offensive and Defensive Players of the week.

Trask completed 35 of 49 passes for 433 yards and four touchdowns in leading the fifth ranked Gators to a 31-19 win over Tennessee.

The senior from Manvell, Texas is now within one TD pass shy of Danny Wuerffel’s school record 39 (1996).

“I think it’s pretty cool but I’m not a huge statistic person and all that,” said Trask. “Just taking it one game at a time and now were going to be locked in on LSU.” He is the first Florida player to win the award since Jonathon Greenard (Nov. 2019). The win also clinches a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

McFadden had nine tackles (6 solo) two of them for loss, to go with two quarterback sacks. The junior linebacker from Tampa helped the 8th ranked Hoosiers defeat Wisconsin 14-6.

He helped hold the Badgers to 6 points the lowest vs. Indiana since 1992.

This year he has 52 tackles, 8.5 for loss, 5 sacks to go with 2 interceptions for the 6-1 Hoosiers. The only loss is against #3 Ohio State. McFadden is the first Indiana player to win the award since it started in 2004.

This is the 17th year that the Foundation has awarded one Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week. Walter Camp is known as the Father of American football. He first selected an All-American team in 1889.The Walter Camp Foundation is an all-volunteer organization based in New Haven, Connecticut. It founded in 1967 to perpetuate the ideas of Camp and continue the tradition to select annual All-American team.

Micah McFadden (47) had nine tackles (6 solo) two of them for loss, to go with two quarterback sacks, to lead Indiana (6-1).(Photo: IU Athletics)

Kyle Trask (11) is now within one TD pass shy of Danny Wuerffel’s single season school record 39 (1996).

(Courtesy Photo)

Rams Rebound with Team Effort

Offensive Lineman Sam Marrazzo (64) raises Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) in celebration after a touchdown Saturday night at the Rose Bowl. Photo Credit: Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports)

UCLA Tops Arizona State

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer In this COVID filled football season UCLA football appeared to be the most confident it’s been in a long time. The offense did well and the defense had big moments in a 25-18 win against Arizona State.

For the first time in some games the Bruins jumped out to and lead instead of struggling to come back to win a game. With Dorian Thompson-Robinson returning after a couple of games off helped his team jump out to a 17-3 halftime lead over Arizona State. Under Chip Kelly UCLA is 8-1 after leading at the half and the 3 points are the fewest given up since 2018 vs. CAL. Early in the second quarter DTR led the team on a 9-play 73-yard drive with the big play being a 38-yard completion to Delon Hurt that got the Bruins on the board 7-0. DTR and Hurt were among several players who returned from COVID-19 protocols.

Later in the drive Hurt would catch a nine-yard TD pass to open the scoring for the Bruins. The junior from Servite High had 4 catches for 68 yards.

In his first game back DTR showed a little rust with some high passes but looked solid on the way to completing 18 of 24 passes for 196 yards no interceptions and a touchdown giving him a 82.4 QBR. The junior also carried the ball 15 times for 49 yards including a 27 yard scamper.

“It feels amazing I think the whole UCLA Community has been waiting for this,” said an excited DTR. “Like coach said were headed in the right direction.”

Brittian Brown led all rushers with 94 yards on 7 carries including a 64 yarder. Demetric Felton had with 41 yards on 10

carries.

Caleb Johnson led the defense with 10 tackles six of them solo and two sacks and a fumble recovery. He was part of a defense that gave up 165 yards on the ground. It also marked the first time all season they had did not allow the opponents to score. Former Bakersfield High standout Carl Jones had 3 tackles 2 of them solo.

Stephan Blaylock had seven tackles while Quinten Lake and Osa Odighizwa chipped in with six apiece. Odighizwa also had a sack.

Jayden Daniels went 21 of 35 for 225 and one touchdown for the Sun Devils. The sophomore from Cajon high was sacked 5 times and was picked off by the Bruins Jay Shaw in the endzone it was his second career interception. It was Daniels first interception in 231 passes.

ASU had a Nov.14 game postponed against CAL then had back-to-back games against UTAH and Colorado canceled giving them a three week lay-off before taking on the Bruins.

Marlin Robertson of Junipero Serra High had 8 tackles three of them solo to the lead the ASU defense.

BRUIN NOTES: The Bruins (3-2) are over .500 for the first time since 2017 under Chip Kelly… It’s the first time since 2013 that UCLA has had back-to-back games without a turnover, they are a plus 15 in turnover margin in wins … DTR had thrown at least 1 TD pass in seven straight games and 13 of 14… Felton had his 17th consecutive game with at least one catch… This was the first regular season win in December since defeating USC13-9 in 2006... They will take on the Trojans this week at the ROSE BOWL Saturday 4:30 on channel 7.

Outside Linebacker Leonard Floyd excited after a big play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. (Photo Credit: Brevin Townsell/LA Rams)

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer After a week of turnovers and questions marks and a tough last second loss to San Francisco the Rams put together a game that spelled “TEAM” on both sides of the ball.

The results was a 38-28 win over Arizona in a game that appeared after the first quarter the Rams (8-4) were in control the entire way.

After trailing 7-0 Jarred Goff marched the team on an 85yard 14 play drive-During which he converted four third-down plays including a 12-yard touchdown to Cooper Kupp on a third and four.

During the game he had no surprising interceptions, no drive killing fumbles it was all steady while completing 21 of 27 passes in the first half a touchdown with no interceptions.

“I responded exactly how I expected to, I’ve been through a lot of bad things in my football career before and I’ve consistently responded, and this is no different,” said Goff.

Darrell Henderson (49) and Cam Akers (72) were solid on the ground combining for 119 yards and each scoring a rushing touchdown. It’s the second week in a row Akers is team leading rusher.

The ground attack helped nearly double the edge in time of possession 38:53 to 21:07 to go with 30 first downs.

Goff spread out his passes and the steady Robert Woods led the way with 10 catches for 85 yards. Kupp had 9 catches for 73 yards a 9 yards per catch average. Gerald Everett had six catches for 44 yards “When Goff is in rhythm the RAMS offense starts rolling,” said Woods.

He finished the day going 37 of 47 passes for 351yards giving him a passer rating of 104.2. this marks the sixth game of the season Goff has a 100.0 rating or higher.

“I really wasn’t worried About Jared, I mean this guy has responded from so many adversities,” said Sean McVay. The thing I wasn’t worried about was him being overwhelmed and having a tough outing and then respond. He took great care of the football and we were efficient on third down.”

Aaron Donald made his presents known with pressure all day having a QB hit and a sack, his 11th of the season for a nineyard loss. He now has 83 for a career.

The defense did a superb job holding the Cardinals (6-6) elusive Kyler Murray to 140 yards passing while sacking him twice for 33 yards in losses. He only completed 21 of 39 for 173 yards-He had 15 yards. The defense forced four three and outs during the game. They lead the league with 36 three and out by the opponents.

Troy Hill scored one three Ram 4th quarter touchdowns with a 36-yard pick-six. It’s the second straight week in a row Hill had made a clutch scoring play. Last week vs. the Niners he scooped up a fumble for a score.

RAMS NOTE: The win assured the 4th winning season for L.A. McVay is 7-0 vs the Cardinals. The Rams take on The Patriots in a short week. It does not phase Sean McVay. “The difference you can do in a typical week opposed to a Thursday game is areal big emphasis above the neck.” Because of a Seattle loss the Rams are tied for first have hold the tiebreaker edge for the playoffs with the Seahawks.

Sports

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LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, December 10, 2020

Dick Allen, Fearsome Hitter and 7-Time All-Star, Dies at 78

By ROB MAADDI AP Sports Writer Dick Allen, a fearsome hitter who was a seven-time All-Star, the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year and the 1972 AL MVP, has died. He was 78.

The Philadelphia Phillies, the team Allen started out with, announced his death on Monday.

Allen's No. 15 was retired by the Phillies in September, an honor that was considered long overdue by many for one of the franchise's greatest players who fought against racism during a tumultuous period with the team in the 1960s.

“The Phillies are heartbroken over the passing today of our dear friend and co-worker, Dick Allen,” the club said.

“Dick will be remembered as not just one of the greatest and most popular players in our franchise's history, but also as a courageous warrior who had to overcome far too many obstacles to reach the level he did. Dick's iconic status will resonate for generations of baseball fans to come as one of the all-time greats to play America's pastime,” the Phillies said.

Phillies managing partner John Middleton broke from the team's longstanding “unwritten” policy of only retiring the number of players who are in the Hall of Fame to honor Allen.

In 2014, he fell one vote short of Cooperstown in a Hall committee election.

“I thank the city of Philadelphia. Even though it was rough, I've made some friends along the way,” Allen said in an emotional ceremony on a warm, sunny afternoon.

Mike Schmidt, a Hall of Fame third baseman who helped lure Allen out of retirement to return to Philadelphia

for a second stint with the team in 1975, was among the former players who attended the ceremony. They wore masks and sat several feet apart during the coronavirus pandemic that shortened the major league season to 60 games. The Phillies planned to honor Allen again in 2021 with fans in attendance.

Schmidt called Allen “an amazing mentor” who was wrongly labeled a “bad teammate” and “troublemaker.”

“Dick was a sensitive Black man who refused to be treated as a second-class citizen,” Schmidt said in a speech.

“He played in front of home fans that were products of that racist era (with) racist teammates and different rules for whites and Blacks. Fans threw stuff at him and thus Dick wore a batting helmet throughout the whole game.

They yelled degrading racial slurs. They dumped trash in his front yard at his home. In general, he was tormented and it came from all directions. And Dick rebelled.”

Allen answered in his own way, sometimes scratching out “Boo” or “No” with his cleats in the dirt around the bases.

Schmidt pointed out Allen didn't have a negative reputation playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago White Sox. He also campaigned for Allen's induction into the Hall of Fame.

“My friends, these (negative) labels have kept Dick Allen out of the Hall of Fame,” Schmidt said. “Imagine what Dick could've accomplished as a player in another era, on another team, left alone to hone his skills, to be confident, to come to the ballpark every day and just play baseball.”

Allen was Middleton's favorite player as a kid. He called the abuse Allen received “horrific” and pointed

out his accomplishments are even greater considering the racism he endured.

Allen batted .292 with 351 homers, 1,119 RBIs and .912 OPS in 15 seasons. He played first base, third base and left field.

After seven years in Philadelphia, where he rose to prominence by hammering balls over the Coca-Cola sign atop the grandstand and out of Connie Mack Stadium in batting practice, Allen played a season with the Cardinals and Dodgers.

In 1972, he joined the Chicago White Sox and was the AL MVP. He finished his 15-year career with Oakland in 1977.

Allen had the fifth-most home runs (319) over an 11year span (1964-74) behind four Hall of Famers: Hank Aaron (391), Harmon Killebrew (336), Willie Stargell (335) and Willie McCovey (327). His .940 OPS during that time was second to Aaron's .941.

Allen wasn't elected into the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America and he fell one vote short in Golden Era Committee voting in 2014. The Golden Days Committee and the Early Days Committee did not vote this year because of COVID-19 and instead will meet during the winter of 2021.

Two of Allen's brothers played in the majors. Hank was an outfielder for seven seasons, mostly with the Washington Senators, and Ron had a total of seven games for the Cardinals.

“He is now reunited with his beloved daughter, Terri.

The Phillies extend their condolences to Dick's widow, Willa, his family, friends and all his fans from coast to coast,” the Phillies said.

USC Has Record Day

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer Kendon Slovis had a record day throwing five touchdowns in the first half, three to Amon-Ra St Brown in leading USC to a 38-13 win over Washington State (1-2) at the Coliseum.

The win helped USC (4-0) bounce back after numerous cancellation’s and postponements.

“We don’t like being away from football this long, but I think the days away helped up get our legs under us.” said St. Brown. ‘We had some lineman out but we had a lot of time to get our throws in.”

Tyler Vaughns caught the fifth TD pass.

The Trojan play UCLA at the Rose Bowl this weekend.

Kicks for a cause, Chargers players, in collaboration with the NFL, will dawn their custom-made cleats as part of the NFL’s My Cause, My Cleats initiative during Week 13’s matchup against the Patriots. Photoed are Chargers star Joey Bosa’s “More Than 4 Athletics” for Pediatric Cancer. (Photo: Mike Nowak/Los Angeles Chargers)

Chargers WeeklyChapter 17

By Cameron Buford whatsgoodnsports.com With a 3-8 record at this point in the season, the Chargers are playing spoiler for the rest of the season. By beating the Patriots, who have a record of 5-6, they would give the Patriots their 7th loss of the season. This would be somewhat monumental for the NFL, as the Patriots have not lost more than 7 games in a season since 2002.

To get the win, the Los Angeles Chargers would need a duplicated effort from their defense which generated three takeaways last week vs the Buffalo Bills. Last week Joey Bosa had career highs in sacks, quarterback hits, and tackles for a loss he also eclipsed Hall of Fame linebacker Junior Seau for No. 5 on the team’s all-time sacks list. Additionally, Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert is setting records of his own this season, one of them being, he has thrown multiple touchdowns passes in seven consecutive games, setting the all-time rookie mark, Tossed three-plus touchdowns five times, setting the record for a rookie quarterback. He has also tied ties an all-time rookie record by passing for 300 yards six times this season.

However, New England enters Sunday’s game with the NFL’s fifth-ranked rushing attack. Cam Newton leads their rushing attack having scored nine scores on the ground, which has him tied them for fifth this season. On their defensive side of the ball, J.C. Jackson has a team-high six interceptions which have him ranked second in the NFL and had helped them to win three of its last four games.

Cam Newton scores two rushing touchdowns in the first half, which adds to his 9-rushing touchdown for the season.

This continues his pace of becoming the first QB in the Super Bowl era with at least twice as many rushing touchdowns as pass touchdowns in a season (min. 8 starts). His second touchdown was sandwiched between two of their worse special team mishaps of the day, a returned punt that went for a touchdown than a blocked field goal attempt that was returned for a Patriots touchdown to sap the energy out of the Chargers just before the half.

Coming out of the half, the Chargers offense continued its futility today by Herbert throwing two interceptions in the third quarter, leading to Newton’s first touchdown pass in a couple of weeks. Before this game Justin Herbert was the only rookie in NFL history with 300+ pass YPG and a 100+ passer rating, this unique stat is sure to take a hit after this game.

A couple of other streaks that have been broken up is Austin Ekeler 4 game average of 126.8 scrimmage Yards Per Game this season, Also Keenan Allen’s has 5 game touchdown streak, which happened to be the longest of his career. The Chargers still have yet to win a game where they have trailed by 10+ points or more since 2018.

The Patriots defensive back J.C. Jackson’s 3rd quarter interception was his 9th takeaway of the season, which happened to be the 2nd-most by a Patriot player in a season since 2002. This was complemented by Cam Newton’s passing for a touchdown and rushing for a touchdown for the 42nd time in his career.

For the 4th time, Cam rushed for 2 rushing touchdowns this season which is the most by QB in a season since 1950. His 2-yard touchdown in the 2nd quarter gave him his 69th career

rush touchdown, the next closest QB in league’s history has 44.

Additionally, Cam rushed for 10+ touchdowns for the 3rd time in his career. No other QB has more than 1 such season all-time.

As good as a season that Justin Herbert has had, there’s no way Bill was going to overlook him coming into this game. Belichick has a well-documented history of making young quarterbacks look worse than they are, as Herbert’s 43.7 quarterback rating was the worse of the season. Belichick’s 20-5 record against rookie quarterbacks, is evidence he confuses most rookie quarterbacks he faces.

As you might have imagined, heading the team’s second shutout in franchise history, Anthony Lynn was not pleased with his team performance against the Patriots. Coach Lynn, opened up his post-game press conference by saying emphatically, “That was on if the worse football game I’ve ever been a part of in my 30 years in the National Football league as a player and a coach! It’s not acceptable, it’s not indicative of the men that’s in that locker room! I know I will personally make sure that will never happen again because that was unacceptable and embarrassing.”

With Special Teams being a major cause for concern in recent weeks and knowing that Coach Lynn adjusted the Coaching Staff (reassigning long term friend and former Special Teams Coach George Stewart). He made it clear leading up to the game that he would be assisting coaching up that position group. I was interested in knowing if he thought there may be too many voices for that position group to handle and he responded by saying, “Right now, this is what we’ve got to work with. I’m helping out there because we need help there… The operation today was not good, it was unacceptable!”

For multiple weeks now, we’ve heard Anthony Lynn talk about the resilience of this team and their record not being indicative of the team’s personality. During his Coach Lynn’s press conference on Monday, he seemed to acknowledge that he’s reconsidering how the Special Teams will be coached moving forward by stating, “we may eliminate the coaching by committee… one voice definitely could help.” Additionally, I asked him about a famous quote from one of his mentor’s Bill Parcells, “You are what your record says you are,” and how what he thought about that statement. His exact words were, “He’s 100% correct.”

For week now, I’ve been reluctant to say we are seeing the final weeks of Anthony Lynn’s coaching stint with the Los Angeles Chargers. However, because they have been losing in such a unique fashion and these losses appear to be getting progressively worse I’d be surprised if he returned as Head Coach. Kindly share your thoughts on if you see this union finishing the season, by reaching out to me on Twitter @whatsgoodnsport or forward any suggestions on what topics or angles you’d like to see discussed to info@whatsgoodinsports.com.

Lastly, be sure to 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. On our Podcast, we have passionate banter about all NFL games while addressing current NBA topics, in addition to discussing multiple issues in and around the world of sports.

Thank you, as always, for making our voice your choice!

Thursday, December 10, 2020

Local

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER A7

As California Shuts Down Again, GOP Lawmakers Push for Health, Education Data Quinci LeGardye California Black Media More than half of California is now under a regional stay-at-home order.

Last week, when the governor announced the impending shutdown, he said health officials had carved the state into five regions. Their goal is to coordinate a broad emergency response that would reach across county lines and consider the proximity and capacity of health services within each area based on population and density. Those regions are: Northern California; Greater Sacramento; Bay Area; San Joaquin; and Southern California.

Effective Dec. 6 at 11:59 p.m., the Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions went under the order after both areas’ intensive care unit (ICU) capacities fell under 15 % -- the threshold Gov. Newsom set last week as the bar that would trigger shutting down.

Five Bay Area counties also went under the order voluntarily on Dec. 6.

But as the state strengthens restrictions, Republican lawmakers are calling for transparency. They are calling on Gov. Newsom to share data that detail the affects that COVID-19 related restrictions have had on Californians.

On Dec. 3, Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) called on the governor to revise the state’s re-opening standards, called the Blueprint for a Safer Economy.

In November, Grove wrote a letter asking the governor to allow gyms, museums, places of worship and restaurants to remain open for indoor use with social distancing guidelines whenever the state enforced its strictest social isolation policies under the Blueprint for a Safer Economy.

Last week, Grove also called on Gov. Newsom to release data relating to mental health, domestic violence and the achievement gap in education between Black and Brown students (and lower income students across the board) and their White peers since March.

“Californians have a right to public health data that is being used to shape their lives, and the governor owes the state leadership that is committed to transparency and accountability. We have to ensure the state’s actions are based on a holistic approach that protects out mental, social, and emotional well-being along with our physical health,” said Grove.

State health officials announced Dec. 5 that ICU capacity had fallen to 12.5 % in the Southern California region, and 8.6 percent in the San Joaquin Valley region.

Statewide, California had the highest number of new coronavirus cases for one day on Dec. 5, with 25,000 new reported cases.

The stay-at-home order went into effect three days after Gov. Newsom announced the 15 % threshold for ICU. capacity. It affects 33 million Californians, 80 % of the state’s population. The order will last for three weeks, and it will be renewed on a weekly basis until the region’s projected I.C.U. capacity increases to 15 % or more.

“We are at a tipping point in our fight against the virus and we need to take decisive action now to prevent California’s hospital system from being overwhelmed in the

coming weeks,” Newsom said.

Under the order, gatherings of any size of people from more than one household are prohibited. Non-essential businesses must close, including bars, wineries, hair salons and barber shops, nail salons, museums, movie theaters,

ernment encourages members of the same household to visit parks and beaches, which remain open under the order, to maintain their physical and mental health.

The current stay-at-home order is the most restrictive statewide order since the March 19 order, which closed ev-

ple’s dinner tables or activities and travel through Thanksgiving are going to show up right about now,” said California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly on Dec. 7. “We believe that the levels of transmission that we’ve been reporting will likely continue to go up because

playgrounds, indoor recreation facilities and amusement parks. Travel is also prohibited except as necessary for permitted activities, such as working at essential businesses or doing necessary shopping.

Retail businesses can stay open, but they are limited to 20 % capacity, and restaurants can only do takeout or delivery. Schools that are already open for in-person instruction can remain open along with critical infrastructure businesses. Also, worship services and protests are allowed as long as they take place outdoors.

Though most activities are now closed, the state gov-

erything except essential businesses. On Nov. 21, the state directed counties with high caseloads to stay home and close non-essential businesses between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., but case numbers continued to rise.

The regional stay-at-home-order also comes soon after the Thanksgiving holiday. Public health officials have expressed their fear that the impact of Thanksgiving has yet to be seen, since any possible COVID-19 infections from that time can begin to show symptoms within the next week or so.

“We know that those cases that occurred around peo-

of those activities.”

The current list of counties under the stay-at-home order as of Dec. 7 include: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Imperial, Inyo, Mono, Calaveras, Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, San Benito, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Tulare, Tuolumne. The Bay Area counties under the order include: San Francisco, Santa Clara, Contra Costa and Alameda, with Marin County going under the order Dec. 8.

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LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, December 10, 2020