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While no official (e.g., government) figures on subchapter “I acknowledge how my original reasoning was flawed,’’ V cases have been released to date, ABI’s Ed Flynn compiled the Slate said. “That it existed as an example of white privilege figures after a case-by-case review of records from the PACER and unjust allowances made within a system of societal white system. A consultant and special editor to the ABI Journal, Flynn supremacy, and that in me playing Missy, I was engaging in previously worked for more than 30 years at the Executive Office an act of erasure of Black people.’’ for U.S. Trustees and the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. In addition to providing the monthly totals of subchapter V elections, he included an analysis of the filings on the SBRA Resources website that also breaks down the subchapter V elections by circuit.

“The data on subchapter V elections and additional analysis LOS ANGELES (AP) – Colin Kaepernick is joining from Ed Flynn will help provide a better picture to practitioners, with Emmy-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay on a Netflix researchers and the public about how struggling small businesses drama series about the teenage roots of the former NFL are utilizing the new law,” said ABI Executive Director Amy player’s activism.

Quackenboss. “These statistics, and the wealth of information “Colin in Black & White’’ will examine Kaepernick’s contained within ABI’s SBRA Resources site, make the site an high school years to illuminate the experiences that shaped his advocacy, Netflix said Monday. invaluable reference.”

“Too often we see race and Black stories portrayed ABI launched the “SBRA Resources” website in February through a white lens,’’ Kaepernick said in a statement. “We to help practitioners and struggling small businesses learn about seek to give new perspective to the differing realities that the new law and stay updated on SBRA developments. The site Black people face. We explore the racial conflicts I faced as an features information on ABI events on the new law, FAQs about adopted Black man in a white community, during my high the SBRA, an infographic, the legislative history of the SBRA, school years.’’

Kaepernick, born to a white mother and Black father, informative videos of ABI presentations on the SBRA, updated was adopted in Wisconsin by a white couple who moved to news and commentary, articles from the ABI Journal and ABI California when he was a child. committee newsletters, and more.

In 2016, the San Francisco 49ers quarterback began ABI is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan kneeling during the national anthem to protest police organization dedicated to research and education on matters brutality and racial inequality, drawing both support and criticism, with his detractors including President Donald related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Trump. Kaepernick became a free agent in 2017 but went Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy unsigned. issues. The ABI membership includes nearly 11,000 attorneys, Writing on the six-episode series was completed in accountants, bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround May, the streaming service said. DuVernay, writer Michael While no official (e.g., government) figures on subchapter V cases have been released to date, ABI’s Ed Flynn compiled the figures after a specialists and other bankruptcy professionals, providing a forum Starrbury and Kaepernick are the executive producers. case-by-case review of records from the PACER system. (Photo: iStockphoto / NNPA) for the exchange of ideas and information.

Kaepernick will appear as himself as the limited series’ narrator, Netflix said. Further casting details and a release date were not immediately announced.

“With his act of protest, Colin Kaepernick ignited a national conversation about race and justice with far-reaching consequences for football, culture and for him, personally,’’ DuVernay said in a statement. “Colin’s story has much to say about identity, sports and the enduring spirit of protest and resilience.’’

Kaepernick, who led the 49ers to the Super Bowl following the 2012 season, filed a grievance against the league in 2017, contending teams colluded to keep him out. The sides reached an undisclosed settlement in 2019. The 32-yearold Kaepernick still wants an opportunity to play. A workout in Atlanta last November that was organized by the NFL turned chaotic and resulted in no job offers.

In the aftermath of nationwide protests following the death of George Floyd, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell apologized to players for not listening to them earlier and encouraged them to protest peacefully. Goodell says he’s encouraged teams to sign Kaepernick.

“This young man is talented enough to play in the National Football League,’’ league executive Troy Vincent said recently.

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Small Businesses File Bankruptcy

Nearly 500 Using Increased Eligibility Limit Since February

BobActor cat Recov Family Guy e A f t e r Being Hi to Stop Voicing Police Car Black Character

Kaepernick’s Path to be a Netflix Series

Ben Crump Heralded as Black America’s Attorney General

Momentous events can occur in an instant, but more often they emerge after a long build-up.

Removing John Wayne’s Racist Name

The explosion of protests all over the world was such a moment following the George Floyd killing. And Ben Crump who has been called the African American family emergency plan received yet another call from an African American family who was devastated unexpectedly by an unjustifiable killing at the hands of the police.

This is not out of the ordinary for the North Carolina native Ben Crump who moved to South Florida when he was 12 years old. He first received national recognition when he represented 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson who was killed at the Bay County Sheriff’s Boot Camp in 2006. Crump advocated for the family and received the largest settlement from the state of Florida for wrongful death. He worked with the Black Conference of State Legislators to close boot camps in the state.

Crump rose to international prominence when he represented the family of Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old child who was killed by neighborhood watchman George ZImmerman in 2012.

Most recently, Crump has represented three of the most high profile cases in America today in his representation of the families of Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, who was shot while jogging in Brunswick, Georgia, and Breonna Taylor, gunned down in

Attorney Benjamin L. Crump, Esq. (Courtesy Photo)

Attorney Benjamin L. Crump, Esq. (Courtesy Photo)

her bed by Louisville police in Kentucky. But his role in the movement stretches back more than a decade and includes the cases of Michael Brown and Tamir Rice, as well as Corey Jones, Pamela Turner, Botham Jean, Stephon Clark and others. \

His face and voice are everywhere – from rallies to funerals, from cable news to a recent profile in the Washington Post. At Floyd’s Houston funeral, the former President of the National Bar Association was introduced by the Rev. Al Sharpton as “Black America’s attorney general.”

Ben Crump’s passion for civil rights and justice goes back to his childhood in small Lumberton, NC, where he attended his first integrated school in fourth grade and came to idolize Thurgood Marshall. His family moved to Florida when he was in middle school and he got his undergraduate and law degrees from Florida State University. The 50-year-old Crump is the founder and principal of Ben Crump Law, which has grown to over eight offices across the country, but he never forgot his Lumberton, North Carolina, roots.

He began his law practice handling personal injury cases, but his determination to right wrongs and achieve justice spans the spectrum from fighting for Black Americans killed by police to ensuring restitution for poor residents subject to environmental toxins. His current workload includes cases accusing Flint, MI, of poisoning Black residents though a tainted public water supply

and Johnson & Johnson of targeting Black women with talcum powder that causes ovarian cancer.

Crump is widely known as the go-to attorney when police violate the rights of Black men and women. And, sadly, those cases abound: Even though they make up less than 13% of the U.S. population, Blacks are more than twice as likely as whites to be shot and killed by law enforcement.

In an era when cell phone videos and bodycams are capturing acts of police misconduct and keeping the cases front and center, there is no end in sight for Ben Crump’s work on behalf of victims. He is simultaneously encouraged and concerned about the necessary shift in public opinion in the wake of the 8 minutes and 46 seconds that took George Floyd’s life.

“I’m not stunned that this is happening in 2020. It takes extraordinary effort in America for Black people to get simple justice,” Crump, said in that Washington Post profile. “I feel like I’m running out of time.”

“If we don’t change the culture and the behavior of policing in America, we will continuously see our children killed and become hashtags - more than we can keep up with.”

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) – In the latest move to change place names in light of U.S. racial history, leaders of Orange County’s Democratic Party are pushing to drop film legend John Wayne’s name, statue and other likenesses from the county’s airport because of his racist and bigoted comments.

The Los Angeles Times reported that earlier this week, officials passed an emergency resolution condemning Wayne’s “racist and bigoted statements’’ made in a 1971 interview and are calling on the Orange County Board of Supervisors to drop his name, statue and other likenesses from the international airport.

The resolution asked the board “to restore its original name: Orange County Airport.’’

“There have been past efforts to get this done and now we’re putting our name and our backing into this to make sure there is a name change,’’ said Ada Briceno, chair of the Democratic Party of Orange County.

According to those who crafted the resolution, the effort to oust Wayne, a longtime resident of Orange County who died in 1979, is part of “a national movement to remove white supremacist symbols and names (that are) reshaping American institutions, monuments, businesses, nonprofits, sports leagues and teams.’’

In a 1971 Playboy magazine interview, Wayne makes bigoted statements against Black people, Native Americans and the LGBTQ community. He said, “I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people.’’ Wayne also said that although he didn’t condone slavery, “I don’t feel guilty about the fact that five or 10 generations ago these people were slaves.’’ The actor said he felt no remorse in the subjugation of Native Americans.

“I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. . (O)ur so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival,’’ he said. “There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.’’

Wayne also called movies such as “Easy Rider’’ and “Midnight Cowboy’’ perverted, and used a gay slur to refer to the two main characters of the latter film.

Orange County Supervisor Don Wagner told the Times that he had just heard about the Democratic resolution and was unaware of its wording or merit.

A2

THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, July 2, 2020

World & Nation

Minority-Owned Miestro.com Paves Faster, Simpler Path for the

Massive E-Learning Space Industry As social distancing and shelter at home became the newest challenge for burnt-out seasoned professionals to surmount in the era of COVID-19, one small company had already been helping frustrated corporate executives turn their expansive knowledge into robust revenue in the multi-billion-dollar e-learning industry.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Miestro.com is a small, minorityowned, but fast-growing player in the massive open online course (MOOC) industry and has been carving out its own space as a viable online course creation platform for authors, speakers, industry experts and entrepreneurs with small businesses.

“It’s never been a better time for professionals to leverage their knowledge and expertise and build recurring revenue through the development of online courses,” says Justin Burns, the 33-yearold founder of Miestro.com. “Our platform was created to allow users to easily create comprehensive online courses and broadcast their expertise to the world in a matter of minutes,” he said.

As a result of his own success as a trained e-learning and education consultant, author and speaker, Burns is becoming known as the go-to authority when it comes to online selling success in the digital age. The author of the best-selling digital marketing book, “ExpertCode,” Burns has been instrumental in helping hundreds of course creators fulfill their dreams of

building and launching successful online courses.

Burns, who has built Miestro into a seven-figure earning company that incorporates the online course platform and personal success coaching in a few short years, had to overcome many personal and professional challenges and setbacks himself.

However, he continues to leverage those lessons for the success of his own company, as well as the success of his course creation customers and coaching clients.

“There was a time when I was perceived as unlikely to ever achieve professional success because I was uninterested in education when I was younger, to the point where my family thought I might have a learning disability,” says Burns. “However, after a mentor taught me about the financial opportunities involved in online training and I began study it and leverage my natural speaking and selling abilities, my life and financial prospects started to change,” he shared. “I learned that when it comes to overcoming challenges, you have to learn to build your own boat and that’s what I’ve done with Miestro,” Burns said.

Enhancing user experience stays at the forefront of Miestro’s operation, so Burns recently revamped his branding and site offerings to increase ease of use, incentive badges and gamification and even allows course creators to record their screens. Miestro.

com is also a very cost-efficient option compared to some competitors, as its member programs provide the blueprint to walk course creators through specifically how to create their own customized courses. Prices range from $49 for basic program and opportunity to create three courses, to $199 for unlimited course creation opportunities and coaching features. The company also hosts online course education summits a few times a year, with one scheduled for July 31 to August 2, 2020.

Burns who was approached to be acquired by another company, says he’s in no rush to sell his company and is determined to build Miestro.com into a top tier learning management system (LMS) company and make his mark as the only black founder in the e-learning space.

“We live in a world where people need to have a great user experience and I’m excited that we have been getting great feedback on our revamped site that makes it easier, faster and more efficient for our members,” says Burns. “Minorities are not really big players in this space, but Miestro.com is well-positioned to grow quickly and we’re excited about where we are and where we’re going as we continue to attract new members, including some very well-known industry leaders,” he said.

Justin Burns, the 33-year-old founder of Miestro. com

Rashard Brooks and the Tale of Two Police Officers

and Officer Discretion

The encounter included many different moments over 40 minutes. The police were called when Brooks fell asleep in line in the drive thru lane. Brooks was intoxicated. Video shows Officer Devin Bronsan, who joined the Atlanta Police Department in 2018, driving first to wake up Brooks. Officer Bronsan asked Brooks to move his vehicle out of the drivethru lane and Brooks politely complied.

The videos captured several scenes from the evening of June 13 in Atlanta, Georgia at a Wendy’s drive-thru restaurant. The encounter ended in the death of 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks. Scan over this picture of Rayshard Brooksusing your “Observer Interactive” App to see full video.

By Lauren Victoria Burke NNPA Newswire Contributor In the wake of almost a month of national protests, another police shooting gained attention and national news coverage after several videos of an arrest turned violent were widely viewed.

The videos captured several scenes from the evening of June 13 in Atlanta, Georgia at a Wendy’s drive-thru restaurant. The encounter ended in the death of 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks.

The encounter included many different moments over 40 minutes. The police were called when Brooks fell asleep in line in the drive thru lane. Brooks was intoxicated. Video shows Officer Devin Bronsan, who joined the Atlanta Police Department in 2018, driving first to wake up Brooks.

Officer Bronsan asked Brooks to move his vehicle out of the drive-thru lane and Brooks politely complied.

Brooks offered to walk home but now former Officer Garrett Rolfe arrived and was against the idea. Video footage released by the Atlanta Police Department shows the officers talking to Brooks for nearly half an hour. When Rolfe told Brooks he was going to place him under arrest, Brooks resisted and was wrestled to the ground by both officers. He got away from both and ran with a taser in his hand, as Brooks turned back and pointed the taser at Rolfe, the officer opened fire.

Brooks is seen on video laying on his back moving.

He later died at the hospital. Hours later, it was announced that Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields would resign her position. It was also announced that the officer who shot Brooks had been fired. Brooks’ family says he left behind four children, three daughters and a stepson.

Many argue that because Brooks resisted arrest, his shooting was justified. Many police jurisdictions maintain that use of force is decided on a “one up” continuum that dictates that Brooks aiming the officer’s taser at Rolfe justified his use of deadly force. Others argue that Brooks run-

California Moves One Step Closer to Granting

Parolees Right to Vote Antonio Ray Harvey California Black Media Assemblymember Kevin McCarty’s (D-Sacramento) Assembly Constitutional Amendment 6 (ACA 6) passed out of the California State Senate last week.

The bill, known as the Free the Vote Act, will seek voters’ approval in the 2020 November election to restore voting rights to former inmates who are free from incarceration but still on parole.

Currently, in California, a person’s right to vote is suspended when they are imprisoned or on parole for a felony conviction, although they can vote while on probation, county post-release community supervision and federal supervised release.

Only two states, Maine and Vermont, allow people to vote while still incarcerated.

ACA 6 passed out the Senate with a 28-9 vote.

It’s been a long road for ACA 6 since it first passed out of the California Assembly with bipartisan support back in August 2019. About 48,000 people on parole would become eligible to vote should Californians approve the amendment.

“ACA 6 passed on the Senate Floor. To get to this day was not easy, and there’s still work to be done,” McCarty said in a Twitter post following the Senate vote. “But I am thrilled that Californians will have an opportunity to weigh in this November, and use their voice to give voice to others.”

ACA 6 is sponsored by the California Secretary of State Alex Padilla and jointly authored by Assemblymembers Dr. Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego), and Rob Bonta (D-Oakland).

Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) also co-authored ACA 6.

Assemblymembers Ash Kalra (D-San Jose), Mike Gipson (D-Carson), Kevin Mullin (D-San Mateo), Mark Stone (D-Monterey Bay), Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles), and Sydney Kamlager (D-Los Angeles) sponsored the bill.

Last year, Nevada and Colorado restored voting rights to approximately 87,000 people on parole.

ning away from the officers confirms that their lives were not in danger.

“That officer’s life has to be in imminent danger to use deadly force… If you look at the video you will see the officer is reaching for his gun before Brooks turns around and aims the taser at him,” said Brooks family attorney Chris Stewart. Stewart was also the attorney who handled the shooting death of Walter Scott in South Carolina. In 2015, Scott was shot in the back multiple times by former North Charleston police officer Michael Slager as he ran from Slager. The incident was filmed by a bystander. Slager was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Legislation, executive orders and other measures related to policing are being considered as a result of the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on Memorial Day. Producer Tyler Perry is paying for the funeral expenses of Rashard Brooks.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist for NNPA and the host of the podcast BURKEFILE. She is also a political strategist as Principal of Win Digital Media LLC. She may be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke.

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THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER Bakersfield News Observer Los Angeles News Observer 1219 20th St. Bakersfield, Ca 93301 Mailing Address P.O. Box 2341 Bakersfield, CA 93303 Phone (661) 324-9466 FAX. (661) 324-9472 emails- General info: observernews@gmail.com Advertising: observeradvertising@gmail.com Online: www.ognsc. com

Features

Thursday, July 2, 2020

THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER A3

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TOGETHER, WE CAN HELP SLOW THE SPREAD. Learn more at coronavirus.gov

Features

A4

THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, July 2, 2020

Scrubbing CA Landmarks of Racist Symbols and the Word “Negro”

By Antonio Ray Harvey and Manny Otiko California Black Media This past weekend, the Mississippi Legislature approved the removal of the Confederate battle emblem from the state flag. It’s a sign of the times, historians say, that speaks to the turning spirit of the nation – even happening in a state that has remained a proud stronghold, clinging to enduring customs that nod to a romanticized version of the “Old South.”

Gov. Tate Reeves said he will sign the bill into law.

The deep south state was the lone holdout flying a flag that flaunts the Confederate “Stars and Bars,” which has long stood as a symbol of White supremacy, racism, and slavery. Now, Magnolia State lawmakers say they will create a commission that will design a new flag.

Legal Notices

PUBLIC NOTICE

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE OF PROPOSED ACTION CASE NUMBER: 18STPB10794 The personal representative (executor or administrator) of the estate of the decreased is: FREDDIE MAE JACKSON The Personal representative has authority to administer the estate without court supervision under the Independent Administration of Estates Act (Pro. Code, §10440 et seq.) with limited authority under the act (there is no authority, without court supervision, to (1) sell or exchange real property or (2) grant an option to purchase real property or (3) borrow money with the loan secured by an encumbrance upon real property.

On or after: July 18, 2020, the personal representative will take the following action without court supervision: NOTICE OF SALE of Real Property at Private Sale Case No. 18STPB10794 In the Superior Court of the State of California, for the County of LOS ANGELES In the Matter of the Estate of Fred Douglas Dorton, Sr., deceased. Notice is hereby given that the undersigned will sell at Private Sale, to the highest and best bidder, subject to confirmation of said Superior Court, on or after 7/18/2020 at the office of 168 H Street, Bakersfield CA 93304, all the right, title and interest of said deceased at time of death and all right, title and interest the estate has acquired in addition to that of said deceased, in and to all the certain Real property in the City of Los Angeles, County of LOS ANGELES, State of California, particularly described as follows: Lot 14 of Tract No. 583 as Per Map Recorded in Book 16, Page 12 of Maps, in the City of Los Angeles, in the office of the County Recorder of said county. APN: 5101-026-021 Commonly known as 155 W. 58th St., Los Angeles CA 90037 Terms of sale are cash in lawful money of the United States on confirmation of sale, or part cash and balance upon such terms and conditions as are acceptable to the personal representative. Ten percent of amount bid to be deposited with bid.

Bids or offers to be in writing and will be received at the aforesaid office at any time after the first publication hereof and before date of sale.

Dated 6/11/2020 S/ Freddie Mae Jackson Personal Representative of the Estate.

Attorney at Law: William Edwards Real property transaction: No inventory yet.

Date: 6/11/2020 Personal Representative or Attorney: William Edwards 237587 William Edwards Law 168 H Street Bakersfield, Ca. 93304 Attorney for: Freddie Mae Jackson

25 inclusive of Maps, in the office of the county recorder of said county.

Except therefrom all oil, gas, minerals and other hydrocarbon substances lying below a depth of 100 Feet from the surface of said property but with no right of surface entry as provided in deed recorded in Book 1798 Page 569 of official records.

In the exercise of said reserved exclusive easements, mineral rights and reservation, grantor may pool said lands with other lands. The right of grantor shall include, but shall in no way be limited to, all Subterranean rights necessary incidental or convenient to the full exercise of the rights reserved by grantor below 100 Feet of the surface of said land and shall include the right to drill and maintain well holes through the said land below 100 Feet from the surface thereof for the Purpose ofremoving oil, gas and other hydrocarbon substances from other lands whether such other lands be adjacent contiguous or distant from said lands. APN: 7315-024-038 Commonly known as 34 Paradise Valley North, Unit 114, Carson CA 90745 Terms of sale are cash in lawful money of the United States on confirmation of sale, or part cash and balance upon such terms and conditions as are acceptable to the personal representative. Ten percent of amount bid to be deposited with bid.

Bids or offers to be in writing and will be received at the aforesaid office at any time after the first publication hereof and before date of sale.

Dated 6/11/2020 S/ Freddie Mae Jackson Personal Representative of the Estate.

Attorney at Law: William Edwards Real property transaction: No inventory yet.

Date: 6/11/2020 Personal Representative or Attorney: William Edwards 237587 William Edwards Law 168 H Street Bakersfield, Ca. 93304 Attorney for: Freddie Mae Jackson

LOS ANGELES BAY NEWS OBSERVER (E) PUB: June 18, 25, July 2, 2020

NOTICE OF PROPOSED ACTION CASE NUMBER: 18STPB10794 The personal representative (executor or administrator) of the estate of the decreased is: FREDDIE MAE JACKSON The Personal representative has authority to administer the estate without court supervision under the Independent Administration of Estates Act (Pro. Code, §10440 et seq.) with limited authority under the act (there is no authority, without court supervision, to (1) sell or exchange real property or (2) grant an option to purchase real property or (3) borrow money with the loan secured by an encumbrance upon real property.

On or after: July 18, 2020, the personal representative will take the following action without court supervision: NOTICE OF SALE of Real Property at Private Sale Case No. 18STPB 10794 In the Superior Court of the State of California, for the County of LOS ANGELES ln the Matter of the Estate of Fred Douglas Dorton, Sr., deceased. Notice is hereby given that the undersigned will sell at Private Sale, to the highest and best bidder, subject to confirmation of said Superior Court, on or after 7/18/2020 at the office of 168 H Street, Bakersfield CA 93304, all the right, title and interest of said deceased at time of death and all right, title and interest the estate has acquired in addition to that of said deceased, in and to all the certain Real property, situation in the City of Carson, County of LOS ANGELES, State of California, particularly described as follows: A Condominium Comprised of: A. An undivided 1/600 interest in and to Lot 601 of Tract No. 28042 in the City of Carson, County of Los Angeles, State of California, as per map recorded in Book 716 Pages 17 to

LOS ANGELES BAY NEWS OBSERVER (E) PUB: June 18, 25, July 2, 2020

AFFIDAVIT AND NOTICE OF DEFAULT BY TACIT PROCURATION AND ARTICLE 9 By: Dean, April, Lenai Affiant: NOD-041820-ALD Los Angeles County,Carson, Ca Respondents: SPS, JP Morgan Chase, US Bank, et al. THAT the governing law of this private contract is the agreement of the parties supported by the Law Merchant and applicable maxims of law.

LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER PUB: June 18, 25, July 2, 9, 2020

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME CASE NUMBER 20SMCP00171 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES SANTA MONICA COURTHOUSE 1725 MAIN STREET SANTA MONICA, CA 90401 PETITION OF: FAISAL GHALEB SAAB TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: Petitioner: FAISAL GHALEB SAAB for a decree changing names as follows: Present name FAISAL GHALEB SAAB Filed a petition with this court Proposed name FASAL GHALEB SAAB 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 petition should not be granted if no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING Date: AUG 21, 2020 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: June 16, 2020 LAWERENCE CHO JUDGE OF THE SUPERIOR COURT Faisal Ghaleb Saab 11734 Wilshire Blvd. #C1016 Los Angeles, Ca. 90025 Phone: (951) 233-1800 In Pro Per LOS ANGELES NEWS OBSERVER (E) PUB: July 2, 9, 16, 23, 2020

Worldwide protests against injustice and racism have led to a revolt in the United States against monuments that honor public institutions or figures who stood for — or upheld — racism. The death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man police officers killed in Minneapolis has brought police brutality, racism, and economic inequality in America into sharp focus. That has prompted the nation to look inward and soul search, which has now expanded to questioning the country’s tradition of celebrating controversial figures that honor its racist past.

Across the United States, protesters have defaced, torn down or petitioned the removal of enshrinements honoring confederate soldiers, segregationists, slave traders, white supremacists and others identified as racist.

“There is no room in the hallowed halls of Congress or in any place of honor for memorializing men who embody the violent bigotry and grotesque racism of the Confederacy,” said Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-12), Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. On June 18, Pelosi ordered the removal of four portraits depicting confederate leaders from the nation’s Capitol.

In California, after 137 years, legislators announced the removal of statues depicting Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabella of Spain from the Capitol Rotunda. They had been on display under the building’s dome since 1883.

“As the first California Native American elected to the Legislature, I welcome removal of the statue. It is a symbol of genocide and atrocities toward Indigenous people throughout the world, including the United States,” said Assemblymember James C. Ramos (D-Highland), reflecting on the removal of the Columbus monument. “We need to harness this opportunity to portray factual history from the view of those who suffered. Yet, we must also focus on the present in order to change the future.”

These acts around the country have sparked a debate about whether or not history — and public memorialization of our past — should be sanitized.

Dr. Daniel Walker, an African American historian and professor, says not creating, funding or publicly displaying these symbols do not equate to “sanitizing” history.

“It is removing what are, in many cases, false history. It is correcting what are misinterpreted histories, and, at some times, removing what is fully oppressive history,” Walker told California Black Media.

Renaming CA State Park Negro Bar, Formerly “Ni**er Bar” In northern California, a movement to study and correct local symbols deemed racist is brewing around one of the state’s African American-themed landmarks. Negro Bar is an area located within the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area near Sacramento.

Located in the city of Folsom, Negro Bar sits on the west bank of the American River, which flows south into the adjoining Sacramento River.

The picturesque park was named after an area where Black miners once worked during the Gold Rush of the mid-1800s.

The miners were isolated because of their color.

At Negro Bar, the Black miners struck gold in 1850, one to two ounces for each man on the average per day, according to an article published in the now-defunct Sacramento Placer Times.

Clarence Caesar, a Black historian at California State Library’s California Historical and Cultural Endowment said Negro Bar is the state’s “first Black gold mining site.”

The park’s name has gone through several changes. It was initially identified as the racial epithet, “(N-word) Bar,” as described in the book “Riches for All: The California Gold Rush and the World.”

Before recent anti-racism protests, local Black community leaders and historians had agreed to continue using the current name, which doesn’t seem to bother the many kayakers, fishers, and hikers of all races that flock to that park during the hottest days.

The Sacramento Chapter of Buffalo Soldiers, a history group that pays homage to the U.S. Army’s Black 10th Cavalry of Company G, staged events at Negro Bar for many years, beginning in the 1990s up until the mid-2000s.

The California Department of Parks and Recreation

(CDPR) has stated that it recognizes the seriousness of offensive public symbols and that their interpretations can change over time. The department welcomes feedback from the public.

“In response to comments received in 2018, the department has undertaken a review to better understand the public’s perspective about the name and its continued use,” CDPR stated on its website.

People who are not happy with the current name say Negro is an archaic term for Black people. A petition to rename Negro Bar currently has more than 60,000 signatures.

But some Black people are in favor of staying with the current name. One of them is Jonathan Burgess, a native of Sacramento.

His great-grandfather was an enslaved Black man whose owner brought him to California during the Gold Rush.

He says the current name is “part of history.”

He said changing the name would be a “miscarriage of justice” and he doesn’t consider Negro Bar offensive.

He added that some activists don’t have a great understanding of history, and that’s why they want to tear down all monuments.

However, Burgess is firmly against statues that honor Confederate officers. He said those statues lionize people who fought against their own country to maintain slavery.

“These were people who fought against our government,” he said. “Pull them down.”

The city of Folsom and the California State Parks’ Office of Historic Preservation have procured another African American landmark called Negro Hill.

Negro Hill, listed No. 570 in California Historical Landmarks Program, was an established community for African American, White, Asian, Spanish, and Portuguese miners founded by a Black man named “Kelsey.”

Negro Hill, comprising of “Little Negro Hill” and “Big Negro Hill” camps, was located across the South Fork of the American River from Mormon Island, according to Sierra Nevada Geotourism. It was first mined in 1848, four miles from Negro Bar. Negro Hill had a population of 1,200 by 1853. When laws

Dr. Daniel Walker (Facebook profile photo) were enacted to limit the rights of Black people in the 1850s, disenfranchisement forced the African Americans to leave Negro Hill.

What’s left of Negro Hill is now at the bottom of Folsom Lake, swallowed by an expanding lake basin. But the departed buried at the landmark town have been reinterred at the nearby Mormon Island Memorial Cemetery.

Michael Harris, a Sacramento activist who studies both Negro Bar and Negro Hill, ensured that the 36 gravesites received new headstones to keep the Gold Rush era community’s legacy alive.

More Monument Removals Around California The Statewide Coalition Against Racist Statues (SCARS) and numerous social justice partners celebrated the removal of the Capt. John Sutter statue from Sutter Park in Sacramento.

Sutter, an early settler of California’s capital city, is memorialized as a Gold Rush icon and Sacramento founding father, but, SCARS has stated that he “was actually a cruel and depraved slavemaster.” The removal of the statue, which was issued by the administration of Sutter Hospital, ends “the glorification of Indigenous genocides and ‘De-Sutters’ Sacramento,” SCARS said in a written statement.

“Being a Native American in Sacramento and seeing the idealization of a person who brought a reign of terror to our local Native tribes — and beyond — is triggering.

I grew up here, learned about Sutter in my primary school education, participated in the field trips to the fort that left me shocked,” wrote Vanessa Esquivido (Nor Rel Muk Wintu, Hupa, Xicana), an expert on Native American Studies, in a letter to CBM. In Antelope Valley, an inland area north of Los Angeles, Quartz Valley High School has ditched its Rebel mascot. And Fort Bragg, a small North Coast town with less than 8,000 residents, is considering changing its name.

The Confederate general Braxton Bragg, for whom the scenic seaside town is named, enslaved over 100 Black people.

On June 26, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order to protect monuments, memorials, and statues.

Walker says the solution to preserving history without lifting up racist historical symbols is simple.

“Take all the monuments that have been removed and confiscated, put them in one place,” he said. “Put them in a museum, and say, ‘this is the Confederacy.’ This is how bad we’ve been in America. This is the real story.”

Thursday, July 2, 2020

Entertainment

THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER A5

Opinion: Netflix and Pills — #BlackAF and the Downside of Popping Molly on TV Chida Rebecca California Black Media The Netflix series #blackAF ended its first season this spring, but its episodes live on, accessible to anyone who wants to watch them on the digital streaming service.

It stars Kenya Barris, creator of critically acclaimed Blackish (and its spinoffs Grown-ish and Mixed-ish), as a fictionalized version of himself. Barris and his co-stars in #blackAF uncover the “messy, unfiltered, and often hilarious world of what it means to be a ‘new money’ Black family trying to ‘get it right’ in a modern world where ‘right’ is no longer a fixed concept.”

In episode two of #blackAF, parents Kenya and Joya (Rashida Jones) decide to attend a festival where they seek to relive their twenties, deciding to go for a Molly do-over after a noneventful first experience with the drug.

Though rich in satire, that episode – like the others – presents 2020’s African American family life as frenzied, hyperhonest and decidedly untraditional.

Maybe #blackAF’s aim is to get as close to reality TV as possible in its spoofing of Black Hollywood’s rich and famous. But even if it is just exaggerating faux-reality, uncensored drug use on the show still raises the question of how much responsibility media companies should bear when they jazz up their story lines with dangerous behavior for the sake of authenticity, comedic relief or dramatic effect.

“The responsibility we have as Black artists is the same as a doctor, a lawyer, a business leader or educator: To uplift our community,” said Rickerby Hinds, professor and chair of the Department of Theater and Digital Production at the University of California Riverside.

“And while that may sound like a cliché, it has proven to be the formula for the success of other communities,” said Hinds. “If we continue to “get mine” and get out, then our communities will continue to be the most affected by negative issues.”

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), “[Molly or] 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a synthetic drug.”

Initially popular on the nightclub scene, Molly (slang for molecular) is “chemically similar to both stimulants and hallucinogens, producing feelings of increased energy, pleasure, emotional warmth, and distorted sensory and time perception.”

NIDA adds that “MDMA increases the activity of three brain chemicals” by producing increased activity and acts in the reward system to reinforce behaviors (Dopamine); it increases heart rate and blood pressure — which is especially problematic for individuals with heart and blood vessel problems (Norepinephrine); and it affects appetite, mood, sleep patterns, and other functions, triggering hormones that affect sexual arousal and trust. The release of the large amounts of (Serotonin) likely causes the emotional closeness, elevated mood, and empathy felt by those who use MDMA,” the NIDA adds.

Molly, the powdery substance, is usually sold in capsules.

Sometimes dealers mix in other dangerous drugs like the deadly synthetic opioid Fentanyl, which is also used to lace marijuana cigarettes and other drugs. The death rate from Fentanyl overdoses is rising fastest among African Americans, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).

Though blackAF’s second episode begins with Kenya and Joya’s emphatic opposition to drug use, they end up sauntering into their musical night out – VIP style and high “AF.” The evening culminates with Joya being escorted out of the festival on an ambulance gurney.

The show may have been entertaining, but experts say the reality is this: In “real life,” individuals battling depression and desiring escapism can become subliminally intrigued by even lighthearted portrayals of drug use — and they may become curious about its enjoyable effects.

Actress Rashida Jones and Producer Kenya Barris (Photo: Netflix)

This is also true for opioid use.

Because of the increasing prevalence of Opioid use — due in part to people who voluntarily take them at first and then become addicted — over the last few years, the federal government as well as states around this country and community-based organizations have been placing emphasis on curbing the abuse of that particular class of prescription drugs.

While media coverage has largely presented opioid abuse a white rural epidemic, it is steadily growing in Black communities both in terms of use and the ways Blacks are disproportionately penalized for use and possession.

“The impact of opioid use in the Black community has been under-reported,” says Dr. Lenore Tate, a Sacramento-based psychologist who operates a private practice.

“Although the rate of opioid use is higher for Whites than it is for Blacks, death rates from opioid abuse and overdoses have been steadily increasing in the Black community for the past five years,” says Tate, who has served as a consultant to the California Legislature on public health.

According to the Addiction Center, Molly has served as a gateway drug for 92% of its first-time users ushering them to using other substances including marijuana, amphetamines, cocaine, and heroin, one of the most well-known opioids.

Whether it’s MDMAs like Molly; opioids like Percocet, OxyContin or Vicodin — or other harmful drugs, substance abuse continues to rise in the United States.

Across the United States in 2018, more than 10 million Americans misused opioids, according the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. About 67,000 people around the country died from overdoses.

In California, there were a total of 2,199 opioid overdose deaths in 2017, according to data compiled by the KFF, the Centers for Disease Control and the National Center for Health Statistics. Blacks accounted for 147 of those fatalities; Hispanics, 483; and White deaths totaled 1,397.

Opioid abuse also contributes to the high rate of homelessness in California, the highest in the United States, according to the California Department of Public Health.

With such staggering statistics, shouldn’t the world of entertainment use more discretion with the content it creates?

Tate points out that the media may present an image with only “a kernel of truth,” but that may be enough to “subtly distort reality” for some viewers who might associate a specific group with those “shared attributes or characteristics.”

From negative portrayals of Blacks in America’s first 3-reel silent film, “The Birth of a Nation,” and similarly controversial depictions in 1970s era Blaxploitation films to violent “gangster rap” videos of the 1980s and the reality TV explosion of the 1990s until now, some experts say the media has been a major force in shaping how Blacks are viewed by the American public.

“The media has historically had a significant impact in contributing to racism through reinforcing negative stereotypes,

glamorizing substance abuse, sexuality and criminal activity,” Tate explains.

For content creators like Tamera Hill, a San Diego based screenwriter, producer, and director, the power of the creative pen carries a lot of weight and should not be taken lightly.

“A writer’s purpose is to persuade, inform, and entertain.

I’ve always treated the gift of writing as an oath to God and my community,” she said.

“We have a plethora of platforms now and our voices can be heard,” Hill continued. “I choose not to waste it on frivolous stories that do not build, encourage, or inspire. Media is a powerful tool. Our words turn into images and affect culture and trends in our community. We are responsible.”

Instead of leaving the substance abuse prevention messaging to Hollywood, programs like the MAT (Medication Assisted Treatment) Access Points Project are educating individuals about the dangers and prevalence of opioid use.

The public awareness campaign titled “Choose Change California” provides information on opioid use disorder and a list of centers across the state where people addicted to opioids can go for Medication Assisted Treatment and community-based wraparound services. The campaign is a collaboration operated

by Sacramento- and Fresno-based The Center at Sierra Health Foundation and funded through the California Department of Public Health MAT Expansion Project.

OWN Network Hit is Number One

GREENLEAF Willie Brown, Jr. Is Not Dead

Staff California Black Media Former California Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, Jr., is not dead.

On the June 28 broadcast of the 2020 BET Awards, the network included Brown’s image and name in a video montage of famous African Americans who have died within the last year. The tribute included Diahann Carroll, Bill Withers, the Rev. Joseph Lowery, Pernell Whitaker and others.

“I can confirm that Mayor Willie Brown is very much alive and not deceased,” said Amelia Ashley-Ward, publisher of the Sun-Reporter, San Francisco’s longest running African American newspaper and a California Black Media partner.

Ashley-Ward said she had spoken to Brown earlier in the evening. He received roughly 200 back-to-back calls after BET aired the tribute, according to Ashley-Ward.

Brown, 86, still lives in the Bay Area. He served in the California Assembly for a little over 30 years from 1964 to 1995 — 15 of which he was Speaker of that lower house of the California legislature.

After that, San Franciscans elected Brown mayor in 1995. He served in that capacity until 2004.

Its more than likely that BET intended to honor one of Brown’s namesakes, another famous African American with California ties: Pro-Football Hall of Famer Willie Ferdie Brown. The NFL cornerback played 16 seasons in the league for the Denver Broncos and the Oakland Raiders. After that, he also coached the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders from 1979 -1988.

Coach Brown died in October of 2019 in Tracy. He was 78.

Willie Brown Jr.,at the San Francisco Sun Reporter Talented 25 reception March 4, 2016. (CBM File Photo)

By Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D. NNPA Newswire Entertainment and Culture Editor The fifth and final season premiere of OWN’s hit megachurch drama “Greenleaf” (6/23/20) delivered 1.9 million viewers and ranked as Tuesday night’s #1 cable telecast in OWN’s key demographic of women 25-54, which is up +2% from last season’s premiere. The acclaimed drama from Lionsgate, awardwinning writer/executive producer Craig Wright (“Lost,” “Six Feet Under”), and executive producers Clement Virgo (“Empire”), Kriss Turner Towner (“Black Monday”), and Oprah Winfrey was also the night’s #1 telecast across all broadcast and cable for African-American women.

Greenleaf stars Merle Dandridge as Grace Greenleaf; Keith David as Bishop James Greenleaf; Lynn Whitfield as Lady Mae Greenleaf; Kim Hawthorne as Kerissa Greenleaf; Lamman Rucker as Jacob Greenleaf; and Deborah Joy Winans as Charity Greenleaf-Satterjee.

In addition, the season premiere of “Greenleaf” ranked as the #1 most social scripted series across all of broadcast and cable, including Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, on Tuesday night (non-sports).

OWN was Tuesday night’s #2 cable network among women 25-54 with “Greenleaf” the #1 cable telecast in the key demo.

OWN was Tuesday night’s #1 network on all of television, including broadcast and cable, for African American women and total viewers.

Currently, OWN has four of the Top 20 original scripted series (“The Haves and the Have Nots,” “Greenleaf,” “If Loving You Is Wrong,” “Cherish the Day”) on ad-supported cable among

women 25-54, which is more than any other network.

In the second episode of the fifth and final season of “Greenleaf” tomorrow night (Tuesday June 30 at 9:00 p.m. ET/ PT), Noah (Benjamin Patterson) returns to Memphis to help Grace (Merle Dandridge) with A.J (Jacob Gibson), offering her stability in a world that’s upside-down and spinning out of her control. Bishop (Keith David) and Lady Mae (Lynn Whitfield) take a walk through their history when they visit Mavis’s club as a potential venue for their future. Jacob (Lamman Rucker) continues to dig into the past and uncovers a shocking revelation about the history of the Greenleaf family home.

Source: The Nielsen Company; Nielsen Social Content Ratings. Ranked by total interactions.

“Greenleaf” has garnered ten NAACP Image Award nominations, including wins for Outstanding Drama Series in 2020, and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2019 and 2020 (Lynn Whitfield). The “Greenleaf” Soundtrack Volume Two was named Outstanding Gospel/Christian Album (Traditional or Contemporary) by the NAACP Image Awards in 2018. The series has also been recognized by the Alliance for Women in Media’s Gracie Allen Awards and by the Black Reel Awards for Television.

“Greenleaf” is produced for OWN by Lionsgate in association with Harpo Films and Pine City. Executive producers are Oprah Winfrey, Craig Wright, Kriss Turner Towner, and Clement Virgo.

A “Greenleaf” spinoff, currently in development with Lionsgate, was announced in May 2020.

Viewers can now catch up on the show’s complete four seasons on Netflix.

A6

Sports

THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER

Thursday, July 2, 2020

Dodgers (Spring Training?)

Opens This Week

Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts and President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman plan for MLB 60 game season. (Photo Credit: Keith Birmingham-MediaNews Group)

By Earl Heath Contributing Sports Writer After all the back and forth between MLB owners and the Major League Baseball Players Association it looks like we will have a baseball season. Teams are to report to their home team stadium.

The Los Angeles Dodgers (at press time) are to report to Dodger stadium July 1 to prep for a shortened 60 game season.

On that date the players will be tested.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the schedule is set that teams will play each team in their division 10 times (40 games) to help keep traveling down. The rest of the games will be against teams in the geographical close location such as NL West vs AL West, NL Central vs. AL Central. NL East vs AL East.

The season is scheduled to start July 23 or 24th.With the new season comes new rules such as no spitting (good luck with that one), no chewing tobacco, no fans, and pitchers aren’t

allowed to lick their fingers. They also must bring their own rosin bag. It’s all due to health experts who say that respiratory droplets spread the coronavirus.

Most players will sit in the stands since there will be no fans allowed. Umpires and players must stay at least six feet apart whenever possible-even during the National Anthem. Each time the ball is touched by multiple players it will be removed from the game.

Off the field has some things in place also including lockers six feet apart. No showering in the locker room. Players are not to swim in hotel pools. Players must also only get their meals only through room service.

After month’s without sports I think we all will be ready to hear, ”PLAY BALL!”

MLB Implements New Rules as they Finally Agree to Start Date for the 2020 Season

By Cameron Buford whatsgoodinsports.com After months of negotiating, fans of one of American’s pastimes began to doubt if there would be an actual baseball season this year. Not only did COVID-19 result in a delayed start to the season, but the league’s owners and players also couldn’t agree on the number of games to play, which made canceling the entire season a true possibility. Canceling the season for the first time since 1994 would have been a tragedy for Major League Baseball.

For some on the fence baseball fans, like myself, canceling the World Series in 1994 made it tough to watch the games again.

It became apparent teams and their player was no longer playing for the love of the game which had morphed into too big business.

Well, fast forward nearly 30 years the game has become a much bigger business.

While there are likely mixed feelings between player safety and wanting the season to begin, I’m sure there are fans, like myself, who questioned the motivation behind the owners wanting to cancel the season. When the 1994 World Series was canceled, I questioned if “baseball was less about the love of the game or big business?” Well, fast forward twenty-six years (26), and those feelings have returned; were thoughts to cancel about safety or money? With team salaries ranging from $50 million to over the $200 million, it’s not that difficult to understand why the owners don’t want to pay these exorbitant salaries, for a shortened season. an argument can be made for why owners don’t want to pay exorbitant salaries for a shortened season. If money is the true issue, versus safety, isn’t the real question becomes why owners agree to such high salaries in the first place? When we do a deeper dive into the business of baseball, the high profits owners make from local television deals play into the “big business” equation?

If salaries and profits were lower, would there be different considerations with starting the 2020 season?

Regardless of the challenges, the owners and players agreed to get the season started in July for a shortened season. Since every game will matter towards each team’s postseason opportunities, this season has a chance to be one of the most exciting baseball seasons since the peak of the “long ball” era of 1998. The newly implemented rules the league has adopted will add to the uniqueness of this season.

For years MLB has looked for ways to speed up the game; even without COVID-19 shortening the season, the newly implemented rules will likely shorten the game. Requiring pitchers to pitch to a minimum of three (3) batters or end the inning would decrease the times a manager visits the mound and potentially fewer pitcher changes. The “designated hitter” rule will be in place for both American and National league play, allowing another player to bat in place of the pitcher, which will help avoid overtaxing pitchers. Additionally, managers will have ten (10) seconds less to challenge a play, reduced thirty (30) seconds to twenty (20).

The most extreme of these rule changes will be seen in the games that go to extra innings. After the ninth inning, the player who made the final out the last time his team was at bat (or a pinch-runner) will begin the inning on second base. This rule will not be implemented for the postseason.

Turning back to the pitchers, in place of licking their fingers, pitchers will be allowed to carry a small wet rag in their back pocket to be used for moisture. They will not be permitted to utilize the rag while on the rubber, and they must wipe their fingers off their pitching hand before touching the ball; this rule is in place to minimize the potential of spreading germs during a particular game.

Kindly share your thoughts on the return of Major League Baseball and their new rule changes that they have implemented by reaching out to me on Twitter @whatsgoodnsport or forward your thoughts to info@whatsgoodinsports.com. Additionally, be

sure to subscribe to our weekly “Voice of the Fans Podcast” which is available for you on most podcasting platforms; Apple and

By Donal Ware boxtorow.com The MEAC is officially in trouble.

Those are the words I said on last week’s FROM THE PRESS BOX TO PRESS ROW. I prefaced it by saying if the MEAC loses another school.

The MEAC has lost another school.

Bethune-Cookman announced late Thursday that it will join the SWAC beginning in 2021 in a unanimous vote by the B-CU board of trustees, ending the affiliation it had with the MEAC since 1979. The move comes two weeks after fellow Florida school Florida A&M announced its move to the SWAC. When Hampton abruptly announced it was leaving the conference in November 2017 to begin play in 2018 in the Big South, I wrote Goodbye Hampton. Not that it was a bad thing for Hampton to do what it felt was in its best interest, but there is a protocol and Hampton did not follow the protocol. Still, in the words of Woody Harrelson’s brother’s character in the film No Country for Old Men, “You can’t stop what’s coming.”

At the time, I didn’t really think much of Hampton leaving.

It doesn’t seem to receive great support for football games at home and certainly not on the road. Its basketball programs are really good and it seemed that would be a loss for the MEAC. But NCCU has been the dominant team in men’s basketball lately and, as we know, football is king so it wasn’t a huge loss for the MEAC. But then North Carolina A&T announced in February that it was also leaving to join the Big South beginning in the 202122 season. Proper protocol was taken by A&T, but the whole HBCU world was in an uproar. Many questioned why N.C. A&T would leave the MEAC, an HBCU conference, for the Big South, a conference with only one HBCU. That uproar was much different than for Hampton and, in some respects, rightfully so.

Aggies support A&T athletics as a whole. Plus, A&T had become the standard in athletics in the MEAC: a growing track and field program, a solid baseball program, a very good women’s basketball program, and a men’s basketball program that is now one of the better ones in the league. Not to mention a dominant football program, winning four of the last five Celebration Bowls and being named HBCU national champions four of the last five seasons.

That was a big loss for the MEAC. But the MEAC could weather that storm, too. The MEAC shortly thereafter released a statement which said, in part, “…the current makeup of MEAC member institutions are united to remain viable and sustainable Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) conference and are committed to academic and athletic excellence for our students and student-athletes.” MEAC Commissioner Dr. Dennis Thomas echoed that to me on BOXTOROW a month later.

Obviously, that was not the case. Florida A&M announced two weeks ago it would leave the MEAC for the SWAC in a move that has been well received. And it was a move that made sense.

Less travel for the Rattlers and better and more historical rivalries.

But what about Bethune-Cookman’s move? B-CU doesn’t have the same support as FAMU. It has history and tradition, but not like FAMU. Was this move made because FAMU made the move to the SWAC? Both schools still could have played the Florida Classic – the annual game between the two teams played in Orlando that generates crowds in excess of 60,000 fans inside the stadium – without B-CU moving to the SWAC. The phrase, “the change of landscape in college athletics” keeps coming up. What exactly does that mean? Well, in most cases it’s about money. It seemed like the MEAC was well-positioned from a financial standpoint and Dr. Thomas mentioned that the schools have received an increase in revenues from the MEAC in each of his 18 years as commissioner. The MEAC also has schools

in large metro areas like Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, a solid contract with ESPN, which not only airs games digitally, but on television on the ESPN family of networks. Plus, from top to bottom, the MEAC is (was) better in football than the SWAC. There is something that the MEAC just doesn’t have or is not doing and it’s causing schools to jump ship. I said A&T wouldn’t be the last to leave, but I didn’t think it would be this soon and I never saw FAMU or B-CU leaving for the SWAC. On the other hand, it is not a surprise because the SWAC has a dynamic leader in Dr. Charles McClelland, its commissioner.

When I sat down with Dr. McClelland for an interview during SWAC football media day last year, I was blown away by our conversation. He talked about the sponsorships that SWAC had secured, including a chartered flight company. More recently when he came on BOXTOROW, I asked if sponsorship had been affected by COVID-19 and he indicated partnerships were even stronger. He is a visionary who helped pull Texas Southern athletics out of a mess. He is well respected, enough that he sits on the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament committee.

I’m sure what Dr. McClelland was saying made FAMU and B-CU say, “I want to be part of the SWAC.” And that’s not to say that he or the SWAC solicited FAMU or B-CU. Each came of its own free will.

So what’s next for the MEAC? Will there be other schools that move on? Undoubtedly. Because A&T left for the Big South, will North Carolina Central join A&T? Will Morgan State make the move to the NEC? At one time, the MEAC was set to add three schools over a three-year timeframe. They have now lost five schools in about 13 years and the way things stand, the conference will now have eight schools (six that play football) to start the 2021 athletic season. Adding a Virginia State or Bowie State from the CIAA would make sense if those schools would be willing to make the

By Cameron Buford whatsgoodinsports.com For years the Confederate flag has seemingly been a part of the fabric of the “good ole boy” racing sport down south; before mid-June, the flag was prominently displayed at each event on and off the infields of their various tracks by the multitude of fanatic fans. Over the past few weeks, NASCAR has found themselves in the news for various of the track reasons coupled with their desire to appeal to more than their traditional race fans that follow their events week to week.

Earlier in June, Mobile, Alabama native Darrell “Bubba” Wallace and driver of the #43 car, owned by Legendary Richard Petty and his Motorsports team, raised some eyebrows when he requested that NASCAR “Get rid of all Confederate flags.”

Wallace, the single black race car driver on the circuit, went on to say, “No one should feel uncomfortable when they come to a NASCAR race. It starts with Confederate flags. Get them out of here.”

To most sports fans, the tradition of displaying the Confederate flag at NASCAR events made this an unimaginable request. As fans proudly flaunt the “Stars and Bars,” showing more reverence to the Confederate flag more than the American flag as if it should replace the American flag; ignoring the negative connotation and offensiveness associated with the flag to may outside the sport.

Though the prominence of the flag in the infields of the race tracks and campgrounds has tapered off in recent years, many fans were still displaying the flag proudly on race weekends. In an attempt to disassociate themselves from the confederate flag, NASCAR mentioned that they would appreciate it if fans did not

display the flag during their events back in 2015. When Wallace spoke up earlier this year against the confederate flag, NASCAR, to their credit, promptly banned the display of the flag at their events.

Oddly enough, in the next race, after Wallace made his request, at Talladega Speedway, a noose was reportedly found in Bubba Wallace’s garage area. The FBI was brought in to investigate, and later determined the noose was used as a pulldown rope to close the garage door. “Through the investigation and the examination of the video and photographic evidence, the FBI was able to determine the noose was present in the same garage stall as last fall,” NASCAR President Steve Phelps said when addressing the media. Though it was determined there was no “hate crime” was committed, it did raise questions as to why a noose would be used to close the garage door vs. the standard rope with a “ball knot” on the end, which has been most commonly used on garage doors.

To further prove that NASCAR is trying to move on from their well-known association with the confederate flag and the history which that flag represents, they have promoted longtime employee, Brandon Thompson, to Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion. Having begun his career with NASCAR as an intern while at Clarke University, Brandon has held several titles with NASCAR, from Account Executive to Operations Manager. In his new role as VP of DI, Thompson will manage the “NASCAR Drive for Diversity Program.” This program will focus on giving access and opportunities to women and minorities at NASCAR. It’s a little-known fact NASCAR has been working to be more inclusive over the past few years. Employing the knowledge an experience of Dawn Harris as Managing Director of Diversity

and Inclusion and now the promotion of Brandon is tangible evidence of their efforts to add diversity to their management team. “NASCAR has made significant progress in the areas of diversity and inclusion and we now have an opportunity to build on our momentum - both as a company and industry. It is with great passion and energy that we will champion our sport as accepting and welcoming of all individuals interested in being part of the NASCAR family,” Thompson stated.

Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Content Officer at NASCAR, Jill Gregory, had this to say about Thompson’s promotion, “Brandon is an established and wellrespected leader in our sport who will help NASCAR realize its vision in creating a more diverse industry. This new position and Brandon’s appointment reinforces our steadfast commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for our fans, industry, and employees.”

I commend NASCAR and their prompt response to their driver’s concern as well as their willingness to take action to further improve the diversity in their senior leadership team.

Where many companies are posting clichés speaking towards a more inclusive environment, NASCAR has taken decisive steps to support their actual intentions; for that they must be applauded. Let us know your thoughts on NASCAR and their handling of these recent situations by reaching out to me on Twitter @whatsgoodnsport or forward your thoughts to info@ whatsgoodinsports.com. Additionally, 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. As always, Thank You for making our voice, your choice!

Google Podcasts including Spotify, TuneIn, and iHeart Radio. As always, Thank You for making our voice, your choice!

MLB implement new rules for their 2020 season. (Courtesy Photo)

It’s Now or Never for the MEAC

move. Each has a good football program, good overall athletics program, particularly in men’s and women’s basketball, and each is a state school that has solid facilities—particularly VSU which has a 10,000-seat basketball arena.

The footprint of the conference now makes more sense with South Carolina State, NCCU, Norfolk State, Howard, Morgan, Coppin State, Maryland Eastern Shore, and Delaware State.

Adding Virginia State from Petersburg and factoring in Norfolk State as its natural rival from the CIAA days, and the potential addition of Bowie State, the MEAC would add the Richmond media market and solidify the D.C. market with the addition of Bowie State. That would be strong for the MEAC. On the MEAC press conference on Friday, Howard University President Dr. Wayne Frederick, chairman of the MEAC Council of Chief Executive Officers, said that the MEAC had not reached out to any schools in the CIAA and that the MEAC would have an outside consultant firm make recommendations on expansion.

He also indicated that the MEAC presidents and chancellors were united back in February, but that “things change.” Clearly, the MEAC was unprepared for these moves.

Now the MEAC must maximize the 2020-21 season with A&T, FAMU, and B-CU still a part. That could be a little difficult in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is in trouble, but far from becoming extinct. Its 50-plus year history says so.

The MEAC has got to be more progressive. And quickly.

Donal Ware is the founder and host of the nationally syndicated sports talk radio program FROM THE PRESS BOX TO PRESS ROW, airing in over 25 markets across the country and on SiriusXM. He has been covering HBCU sports for more than 20 years.

NASCAR Becoming a More Diverse and Inclusive Brand

Brandon Thompson Recently Announced as NASCAR’s VP of Diversity and Inclusion. (Courtesy Photo)

Thursday, July 2, 2020

THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER A7

Local

Waters Tributes BLM & Civil Rights Activists on House Floor Declares Support for Black Lives Matter Protesters; ‘No Justice, No Peace’

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43) paid tribute to activists and leaders in the decades-long fight against police brutality on the House Floor. Scan over this picture using your “Observer Interactive” App to see the full video.

WSAHINGTON – Ahead of the historic House vote on H.R. 7120, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43) paid tribute to activists and leaders in the decades-long fight against police brutality on the House Floor. She also expressed her support for the ongoing protests for justice on behalf of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Rayshard Brooks, and countless other Black men and women who have been killed at the hands of police.

A transcript of her speech is below: I rise to support H.R. 7120, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which bans chokeholds, creates a national police misconduct registry, and makes it easier to prosecute police for their brutality, among many other much needed provisions.

Thank you to the leadership of the Congressional Black Caucus for bringing us to this moment.

The murder of George Floyd, and the pleasure the murdering officer seemed to take in his power over a struggling Black man, are nothing new. My heart broke when I first saw the video footage of the murder, not just for George Floyd and his loved ones, but also because this brutality, and all the police violence against Black men and women before it, have been used for centuries to terrorize, subjugate, and silence the Black community.

I have been fighting against this since my first days as an activist and member of the California State Assembly, when I took on then-Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates, who popularized

the chokehold maneuver, which killed over a dozen Black men in Los Angeles between 1975 and 1982.

But now I would like to pay tribute to the brave men and women who for so many years have confronted bad cops, racist cops, brutal police chiefs, and the police protective leagues and unions who shield them from accountability. I want to pay special tribute to Angela Davis, Elaine Brown, and the Black Panthers who fought hard and sacrificed mightily fighting bad cops.

And then there is Rev. Al Sharpton, who took up the fight against bad cops and assisted [victims’] families in getting legal representation when these issues were not popular.

I want to thank Rev. [Jesse] Jackson, who worked with me to confront the racist LA police chief Daryl Gates who popularized the chokehold and battering ram.

I want to thank Colin Kaepernick who took the knee and challenged the killings and beatings of unarmed Blacks.

And lastly, I want to thank Black Lives Matter: uncompromising, disruptive, energetic, and dedicated to undoing police killings and abuse.

I want to challenge the mayors and members of city councils and county commissioners who control police budgets to get the courage to reimagine what it means to serve and protect, and undo the system of rogue cops that has gone on for far too long.

And in closing, I want to say to the protesters, I stand with you. No justice, no peace!

As Numbers Spike, California To Begin “Smart Testing” for COVID-19 volume, but it’s not just the volume. We want to see the specificity of testing and the sophistication of the type and target of the testing,” he said.

The governor said the new testing strategy will focus on communities that have “been underserved, undertested and under-resourced.” But he did not give details about the places the state plans to prioritize.

As of June 27, more than 211,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported in California. So far, there have been close to 6,000 deaths in the state.

Los Angeles county accounts for close to half of the state’s infections with roughly 90,000 infections and more than 3,200 deaths.

Younger people, between the ages of 18 and 49, account for about 118,900 cases, the majority of infections in the state.

“From my standpoint, the testing has gotten a lot better,” said Dr. Rodney Hood, who is a medical doctor in the San Diego area and former President of both the Golden State Medical Association and the National Medical Association, respectively.

Hood said, at the onset of the crisis, he struggled to bring tests to low-income Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in Southeast San Diego near where his practice is located.

“We have been fortunate in California. I was concerned about the testing at the beginning but the state and most counties have responded in positive ways, and now we are able to get more people tested,” he said. “But we need to do more.”

There have been more than 3.5 million tests administered in the state so far, according to the California Department of Public Health (DPH). Last week, Gov. Newsom said, in one week alone, more than 88,000 people took coronavirus tests across the sate Hood, who has run his own practice for 40 years, says he recently joined a network of federally qualified clinics called the San Ysidro Health Center. Since he and other doctors stood up the two testing centers in his area — one drive-in and the

Dr. Rodney Hood (Courtesy Photo)

Tanu Henry California Black Media Last Friday, during Gov. Gavin Newsom’s daily COVID-19 update to Californians, he announced that the state will

begin “smart,” or “targeted” testing, for the disease. He announced the plan after health officials released data last week showing a sharp upturn in the numbers of infected people.

“The next iteration of our testing, we want to see the

other walk-up — they have tested about 3,000 people in two zip codes in San Diego county, “We’ve found that once you remove barriers to testing, like demanding appointments people can’t keep because they couldn’t get a day off from work or another reason like that, they will show up. They will come to get tested,” he says.

Hood says the state should focus on zip codes with the highest percentages of infections, most of them are places in the state where there are concentrations of African Americans and Hispanics.

As of June 28, 6,445 Black Californians have tested positive for the disease, and a total of 544 African Americans have died from COVID-19 related complications, according to the DPH. Those numbers account for 4.4% of all cases and 6% of all deaths. Both percentages represent decreases since the state first started collecting racial data when the Black infection rate hovered around over 10% and the death rate at about 6 %.

Latinos account for the majority of cases in the state (55.3%) and 36.3% of all deaths.

In his message, Gov. Newsom warned Californians that the crisis is getting worse in the state. “ This disease does not take a summer vacation,” he said.

“Let us disabuse ourselves of the notion that somehow this is a seasonal disease. I cannot impress on people more as you move, understandably, into more of a festive mode celebrating democracy and freedom, and our independence as a nation, to do so more responsibly.”

Dr. Hood says there is one critical thing the state can do to flatten the curve of new infections.

“We have to implement effective contact tracing,” he says. “We need to have the ability to successfully identify and target where people contract the disease and who they have exposed to it. That is the only way we can bring these numbers down.”

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THE VALLEY’S NEWS OBSERVER

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Thursday, July 2, 2020