Kaepernick Files Grievance Against NFL Alleging Collusion
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News Observer Bakersfield
Volume 44 Number 7
Celebrating Our 40th Anniversary 1977- 2017
Observer Group Newspapers of Southern California
Wildfires 100 Miles Wide By SUDHIN THANAWALA and ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press SONOMA, Calif. (AP) _ They fled in fear nearly a week ago. Now they’re ready to go back. While wildfires are still burning powerfully in parts of Northern California, some of the tens of thousands of evacuees are getting antsy to return to homes that aren’t under immediate threat. Others want to see if they still have homes to return to. But authorities are staying cautious in the face of blazes that have now killed at least 40 people and destroyed at least 5,700 homes. “We’re on pins and needles,” Travis Oglesby, who evacuated from his home in Santa Rosa, said to Sonoma County Sheriff Robert Giordano on Saturday. “We’re hearing about looting.” Although some evacuees were returning home in Mendocino County, the latest estimates were that about 100,000 people were under evacuation orders as the fires burned for a sixth day. Plans were in the works to reopen communities, but they were not ready to be put into effect, said Dave Teter, a deputy director with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Douglas and Marian Taylor stood outside their apartment complex Saturday in Santa Rosa with their two dogs and a sign that said “End evacuation now.” Their building was unharmed at the edge of the evacuation zone with a police barricade set up across the street. The couple said they are spending about $300 per day to rent a motel and eat out, and they want to return home because the fire does not appear to threaten their home. At an evacuation center at the fairgrounds in the Sonoma County city of Petaluma, volunteers sorted through mounds of donated baby wipes, diapers, pillows, shoes and clothing.
Death Toll Reaches
40
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Gun Cameras?
Some Police are Trying Them Out
By DAVE COLLINS Associated Press A small number of police departments are showing interest in a new type of video camera that can be mounted directly on officers’ guns, saying it may offer a better view of officer-involved shootings than body cameras. Some law enforcement officials and civil rights groups are skeptical. Among the cons, they point out, is that gun cameras start recording only after weapons are removed from holsters and won’t capture what led to officers drawing their guns, or other interactions with the public. They also say they should be used only as a complement to body cameras. Besides the better view, supporters say the pros include lower video storage costs because gun cameras record much less often than body cameras, and a feature in some models that instantly alerts dispatchers and nearby police via wifi and Bluetooth when officers draw their weapons and may need help. Officers’ arms, walls and other objects can get in the way of Continued on A4
First Black Female Governor Will Stacey Abrams Be America’s First Black Female Governor in U.S. History? By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Contributor The GOP has held a tight grip on the governor’s mansion in Georgia since 2002, when Sonny Perdue, promising to restore the Confederate battle cross to the state flag, defeated Democratic incumbent Roy Barnes to become the first Republican to hold the position in the Peach State since Reconstruction. But, a motivated Democrat is looking to change that and shatter a glass ceiling that has never been broken in the United States. Stacey Abrams, the Georgia state house minority leader, who holds degrees from Spelman College and the Yale School of Law, is seeking to become America’s first Black female governor. “It’s a very humbling experience to know that, if I win this election, I would have achieved something that Black women, as far back as Barbara Jordan and Shirley Chisholm, have fought for, not necessarily the same job, but transforming how we think about leadership in America,” Abrams said in an interview with the NNPA Newswire. “Physically claiming that mantle of leadership and holding it signals that anything is possible and we
Wednesday October 18, 2017
can redefine what leadership looks like and who we can lift up.” Abrams, 43, said she’s undaunted by the stranglehold the GOP has had on the governor’s mansion for the past 15 years. She said Georgia will likely be a majority-minority state in the coming years which provides Democrats more of an opportunity to claim the seat next year. Abrams noted that Democrats have gained steamed, citing the 2006 race where the party lost by nearly 400,000 votes but significantly closed the gap during the last election in 2014, coming within less than 200,000 votes of victory. Four Republicans—Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle; Secretary of State Brian Kemp; State Senator Hunter Hill; and State Senator Michael Williams and two Democrats—Abrams and State Representative Stacey Evans—have declared their candidacy for the post. The New Georgia Project, a non-partisan voter registration group, that Abrams launched three years ago, may also help her candidacy. “It’s the single largest voter registration effort in recent memory in Georgia and we have been able to register more than
Georgia State Representative Stacey Abrams is the House Minority Leader. She says we have to build into our consciousness that every election matters. (Credit: State Representative Stacey Abrams via CBS)
200,000 people of color in Georgia to vote,” Abrams said. “I just don’t talk, I have a record that we need to talk about.” The Guardian reported that, Abrams is “One of six children born to Methodist ministers in Mississippi who later followed their work to Georgia, Abrams’ family struggled to fight off poverty, relying at times on government assistance.” As a student at Avondale High School, Abrams was hired as a typist for a congressional campaign in high school, where her tweaks to a campaign speech she was typing up were deemed so good she ended up being hired as a speechwriter at 17, The Guardian reported. And, as she seeks to become the first female Black governor in history, Abrams has already accomplished a series of firsts including being the first person in her immediate family to buy a house and the first to become a lawyer. She also earned the distinction of being the youngest deputy city attorney in Atlanta’s history. When she ascended to the position of house minority leader, it was the first time that a person of color or a woman had held that job in more than 200 years, according to The Guardian. Incidentally, her sister, Leslie Abrams, is the first Black woman to become a federal judge in Georgia. “Georgia is a fast-changing state with demographic parity,” Abrams said. “But, I’m running to be the governor of all Georgians, because all Americans deserve leaders who care about them and who don’t work only for the privileged, but for justice.” That’s important, because “Poor doesn’t care what color you are,” Abrams said. With vast experience in the public, private and nonprofit sector, Abrams said she’s poised to lead her state. Abrams said that she has created several small businesses, published eight novels and, one of her latest ventures, was to make sure Blackowned small businesses had access to capital. Her campaign is based, in part, on a vision that every Georgia resident deserves the freedom and opportunity to thrive, but Abrams said that too many people are being left behind or left out. Abrams has also pledged to expand pre-kindergarten programs and make technical college education free. Her vision for Georgia is one she said fosters prosperity where everyone has the opportunity to succeed, not just survive. “We have the ability to build a stronger, brighter Georgia,” Abrams said. “It is time for transformative leadership, powered by all of us.
Negro Bill Canyon Renamed After Years of Debate SALT LAKE CITY (AP) _ After years of debate, a U.S. government board has voted to rename Utah's Negro Bill Canyon, overruling a recommendation by Utah officials to keep the name. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names decided Thursday to rename it Grandstaff Canyon to get rid of an offensive name, The Salt Lake Tribune reports . The vote was 12-0, with one member declining to vote. The decision comes 16 years after the board voted to keep the name. The new name honors black rancher and prospector William Grandstaff, whose cattle grazed there in the 1870s. “His name was Grandstaff; it was not Negro Bill,” said Wendi-Starr Brown, a member of the federal board who is Native American. “I'm pretty sure that's not how he wanted to be addressed in life.” Brown is a member of the Narragansett Indian Tribe who represents the Bureau of Indian Affairs on the federal board. The Utah Committee on Geographic Names had recommended keeping the name, citing a lack of consensus from state minority groups. The NAACP said the name is not offensive and preserves the history of the site, while the Utah Martin Luther King Jr. Commission called the name “blatant racism.” The canyon is home to a popular hiking spot in Moab, the gateway to stunning, massive red rock formations. Local officials and business owners have long said the name generates frequent complaints and outcry from tourists who come from around the world, lured by the red-rock landscapes in nearby national parks. A proposed name change in 1999 failed after it received little government support. Spurred by complaints from tourists, the Grand County Council voted in January to change the name after refusing to do so in 2013 and 2015. A year ago, the federal Bureau of Land Management changed signs to say “Grandstaff Trailhead” instead of “Negro Bill” trailhead. “I think we have to look forward,” said federal board member Elizabeth Kanalley, manager of National Geospatial Services at the Forest Service. She said keeping the old name would not recognize that it is hurtful to people. Mary McGann, a member of the Grand County Council, said she's very happy with the decision. “It needed to go because it was enabling,” McGann said. “It was the right thing to do.” But Moab resident Donna Jordan, a member of the Grand County Historic Preservation Commission, said she disagrees with the decision. Why do we need to change the historic canyon name? This is similar to removing historic statues to appease a few,” Jordan said. “History is history. If we hide those lessons and are not reminded of them, we do not learn from them.”
School Board Apologizes for Racial Slur
FLORENCE, S.C. (AP) _ A former school board member in South Carolina has apologized for sending an email where he called African-American board members “darkies.’’ But one black Florence School District One member says that is not enough and he wants a state and federal investigation into possible discrimination. Glenn Odom sent the email to a district employee in August asking for a ride and also asking her not to “send it to the darkies.’’ Odom resigned Oct. 2, and the Morning News of Florence reported he apologized during a prayer gathering Friday, saying he was brought up to respect all people. Board member Alexis Pipkins Sr. is still upset. He says African-American board members weren’t told about the email for a month and that’s why he wants the district’s emails reviewed.
Friday the 13th: Flight 666 Lands Safely in HEL
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) _ The Helsinki airport says Flight 666 has arrived safety in HEL _ the airport code for the Finnish capital _ for the last time. The Finnair flight took off from Copenhagen, Denmark, in the 13th hour of Friday the 13th, headed for Helsinki Vantaa airport. Finavia, which operates Finland’s 21 airports, says the flight landed eight minutes ahead of schedule at 3:47 p.m. local. The flight started 11 years ago and has fallen on Friday the 13th 21 times with no reported ill effects. Still, Finnair has decided to retire the flight number. As the carrier is switching around some flight numbers later this month, Flight AY666 will become AY954.