Bio Musical of Michael Jackson Wins Four Tony Awards Page A3
Arts, Culture & Entertainment Festival Powered by NAACP Page A7
News Observer The Valley’s
Volume 37 Number 31
Serving the San Fernando Valley for Over 37 Years
Observer Group Newspapers of Southern California
California Commemorates
Juneteenth ’22 Edward Henderson California Black Media On June 6, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed a proclamation making Juneteenth an official holiday for city employees. Although President Joe Biden signed a bill declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday last year, cities and states still have the power to decide which holidays they will officially observe. Mayor Garcetti’s signing is one among many commemorations of Juneteenth nationwide as a growing number of states and municipalities officially honor the historic holiday long celebrated in African American communities across the United States. “We need every Angeleno to learn the full story of our past, no matter the ugliness of some of its chapters, and that means recognizing the lasting legacy of slavery in our
country,” Garcetti said at the signing ceremony. History of Juneteenth The holiday is recognition of June 19th, 1865, the day Union soldiers notified enslaved African Americans in Galveston Bay, Texas that they were free under the Emancipation Proclamation. Two and a half years earlier, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes across the country to mark what was known as “Freedom’s Eve” on Jan. 1, 1863. They were awaiting news confirming that President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation that ended slavery in Confederate States. Anticipation heightened and celebrations began as the news spread of the 13th Amendment, the constitutional modification that established the abolishment of slavery. Union soldiers began their march to spread the news Continued on page A5
Five Homelessness Bills Moving Through California’s Legislature Aldon Thomas Stiles California Black Media The COVID pandemic intensified California’s housing affordability problem and forced the state to take urgent steps to secure emergency shelter for its unhoused population. Even in the wake of the global health crisis, the state is still reeling, facing increasing housing instability and a homelessness crisis that is enduring and more-andmore complex. Approximately 160,000 Californians are unsheltered as affordable housing for so many continues to be difficult to come by. This year, lawmakers introduced a number of bills to give unhoused Californians a safe and stable place to live. SB 1335 Senate Bill (SB) 1335, authored by State Sen. Susan Eggman (D-Stockton), would disallow “housing-related discrimination” against individuals based on their credit history if they receive government housing subsidies. SB 1335 includes people applying for a rental accommodation where there is a federal, state or local subsidy. “Individuals using housing subsidies go into the housing market with a credit history and its stereotype attached to their applications,” Jacqueline Ramirez, Policy Associate with Housing California stated in a letter of support for the bill. “However, credit scores are an unnecessary tool due to the reliability of payment for the voucher program. As a result, despite having most of the rent covered by the government, those applying for housing subsidies face rejections based on credit histories,” Ramirez continued. On June 2, SB 1335 was referred to the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development. It is still being reviewed. SB 1338 Senate Bill (SB) 1338, authored by State Sen. Tom Umberg (D-Orange County) and Eggman, establishes Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Courts, a program that provides individuals suffering from severe mental illness and going through the
Photo by: Philip Pilosian ANGELES/CALIFORNIA -APRIL 8, 2020: Homeless encampments along the roadside depicting the growing epidemic of homelessness amidst the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. (Los Angeles, California USA/Shutterstock)
criminal trial process with court-ordered treatment in lieu of incarceration.
“The status quo on homelessness is not working. It’s Continued on page A2
CA Black Women Leaders on Nov Election Ballot
Antonio Ray Harvey California Black Media Black women running for political office on every level across the state of California showed up strong during the state’s June 7 primary election. They won the minds and the hearts of diverse groups of Californians and drew the numbers they needed to secure spots on the November general election ballot. The results, some political organizers say, signal that Black women are fully engaged in California’s political process, and they are primed to succeed against stiff competition ahead. “The June 7 primary election was another demonstration of the consistency of Black Women in the political process,” said Kellie Todd, founding convener of the Black Women’s Collective (BWC), an organization of Black women leaders and advocates working in politics, business, entertainment, health care and other professions across the state. “And this time we didn’t just show up to cast our votes, we were on the ballot at every level, in diverse communities throughout that state,” Griffin pointed out. After 168,338 mail-in ballots were counted after June 7, U.S. Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA-37) closed the gap against her better-funded, billionaire opponent Rick Caruso in the Los Angeles mayor’s race, according to results released June 10 by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Caruso leads with 155,929 votes (40.5%) to Bass’s 149,104 (38.8%), according to the latest vote count released June 11 by Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. More than 500,000 votes remain uncounted, and ballots postmarked by election day will be accepted through June 14. Continued on page A2
(Shutterstock Photo)
Take One!
Thursday, June 16, 2022
White Kansas Fire Supervisor Suspended Over Racist Sweater
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – A white Wichita Fire Department supervisor who texted a photo of himself wearing a sweater featuring a naked Black man has been suspended for three days without pay in one of the harshest penalties yet over racist, homophobic and sexist texts that were shared among the city’s SWAT team members. Capt. Keith Niemann, who was punished this month, shared the image in a WhatsApp chat with the message, ``having a good morning at the firehouse,’’ The Wichita Eagle reported. Another white fire supervisor was also disciplined for sending an image showing a naked Black man doctored into a scene from the popular holiday movie ``A Christmas Story.’’ But that supervisor’s identity and punishment haven’t been made public. Fire Chief Tammy Snow said she is ``deeply disappointed’’ in the two supervisors, who served as medics on the SWAT team. They have returned to work. Stephanie Yeager, the business manager for the local branch of the union that represents the firefighters, the International Association of Fire Fighters, said Niemann was sorry and didn’t understand the significance of the image. She said she thinks the city is trying to ``make an example’’ out of Niemann, who was originally given a reprimand, because the police department was criticized for giving light punishments to its implicated officers. Some of the 10-plus officers caught up in the investigation had fatally shot people and sent messages joking about shooting and beating people. They were given coaching and mentoring. The only officer put on leave for a few days was one who insulted former chief Gordon Ramsay. The interim police chief, Lemuel Moore, could give additional punishment to police officers. He has forwarded his recommendations to the city’s legal department.
Juneteenth Marked as State Holiday in Alabama This Year MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has authorized Juneteenth Day – the federal holiday marking the end of slavery – as a holiday for state workers this year in Alabama. Ivey issued a memo earlier this month authorizing the day as a holiday for state workers. State offices will be closed on June 20 for the holiday. Juneteenth, or June 19, falls on a Sunday this year, so the holiday will be recognized the following Monday. President Joe Biden signed legislation last year to make Juneteenth, or June 19, a federal holiday to recognize the end of slavery. Ivey authorized the holiday for state employees since its designated at the federal level, spokeswoman Gina Maiola wrote in an email. ``However, it is important to remember that ultimately the Legislature must decide if this will become a permanent state holiday,’’ Maiola wrote. Alabama law recognizes all other national holidays in the state as permanent state holidays, with the exception of Juneteenth. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers brought the news of freedom to enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas _ two months after the Confederacy had surrendered. That was also about 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves in the Southern states. Alabama has three state Confederate-related holidays that close state offices for the day. Alabama marks Confederate Memorial Day in April and the birthday of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in June. The state jointly observes Robert E. Lee Day with Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in January. There have been various efforts to abolish or change the name of Confederate-related holidays, but none has been successful.
Arkansas Man Injured During Floyd Protest Sues Troopers By ANDREW DeMILLO Associated Press LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – An Arkansas attorney who was hospitalized after he was struck by a beanbag fired by police during a protest at the state Capitol over George Floyd’s killing filed a lawsuit Friday against the head of state police and several troopers. Don Cook’s lawsuit names state Trooper Ryan Wingo, who fired the beanbag, and state police director Col. Bill Bryant, accusing them and other troopers of violating his constitutional rights. The protest occurred days after Floyd had been killed by a Minneapolis police officer who knelt on his neck. Cook was struck in the face by the beanbag, which was fired after state police ordered crowds at the Capitol to disperse, according to the lawsuit. Cook suffered serious injuries to his face, jaw and teeth, and the beanbag had to be removed during emergency surgery, the suit said. The lawsuit said the use of the beanbag was unnecessary since he was already walking away from the Capitol and that it caused Cook ``great injury, anxiety, stress, mental anguish, pain and suffering.`` A spokesman for Arkansas State Police declined to comment, citing the agency’s longstanding practice of not commenting on pending litigation. Critics have questioned the use of the beanbags and other ``less lethal`` uses of force on protesters during Floyd protests around the country. Their use has prompted similar lawsuits by protesters in other states who have been injured. A protester injured by a rubber bullet during a Floyd protest filed a lawsuit last week against police in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The city of Spokane, Washington, this week paid $210,000 to a woman who was struck in the throat by a beanbag fired by police during a Black Lives Matter Protest in 2020. Cook’s lawsuit, which was filed in federal court, seeks unspecified damages and a declaration that the troopers violated the attorney’s constitutional rights.