Oakland Post, week of December 7 - 13, 2022

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Brittney Griner Freed

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire

After 294 days in Russian custody, including the past several weeks in a dreaded and dangerous penal colony, WNBA star Brittney Griner is free.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris met with Griner’s wife at the White House, where they spoke with the basketball player on the telephone.

“She’s safe. She’s on a plane. She is on her way home,” Biden declared.

The Biden administration secured Griner’s release after agreeing to a one-for-one prisoner swap that saw the president commute the 25-year sentence of notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

The White House said it would continue efforts to bring home

retired U.S. military officer Paul Whelan, who remains in Russian custody.

Whelan has been imprisoned in Russia for nearly four years, and, recently, his family said they hadn’t heard from him.

They were told he was transferred to a hospital, but the family doubted that explanation.

The deal to release Griner was consummated a week ago in the United Arab Emirates.

Biden said Griner’s expected home within 24 hours.

“It’s a good morning,” the president exclaimed at a news conference where Vice President Kamala Harris and Griner’s wife, Cherelle, stood close.

“After months of being unjustly detained and held under intoler-

Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce receives the Benjamin Travis Community Service Award from the Charles Houston Bar Law Association

Raphael Warnock’s Coalition Wizardy Wins, Walker’s Wolfishness Loses

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire

For the second time in two years, voters in Georgia have delivered a Senate runoff victory for Democrats.

For the second time in two years, voters in Georgia have delivered a Senate runoff victory for Democrats.

Incumbent Raphael Warnock, who won a runoff in January 2021 against Republican Kelly Loeffler, defeated Herschel Walker in a close contact that saw both candidates earn nearly 2 million votes.

Warnock’s victory underscored

the people of Los Angeles. I look forward to swearing in Mayorelect Karen Bass this weekend,” Harris said in a Tweet on Dec. 5.

the major disappointment experienced by the GOP after pundits and Republicans anticipated a socalled red wave that never materialized.

Importantly, it gives Democrats a 51-49 edge in the U.S. Senate.

Despite already enjoying the majority in the Senate because Vice President Kamala Harris carries the tie-breaking vote, the victory allows Democrats breath-

Incumbent Raphael Warnock, who won a runoff in January 2021 against Republican Kelly Loeffler, defeated Herschel Walker in a close contact that saw both candidates earn nearly 2 million votes.

Warnock’s victory underscored the major disappointment

experienced by the GOP after pundits and Republicans anticipated a so-called red wave that never materialized.

Importantly, it gives Democrats a 51-49 edge in the U.S. Senate.

Despite already enjoying the majority in the Senate because Vice President Kamala Harris carries the tie-breaking vote, the victory allows Democrats breathing room.

It also means that the Senate

Community Steps Forward to Protect Holy Names University

By Post Staff

of Los Angeles by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris.

Bass will make history as the first Black woman to lead the second-largest city in the U.S. and her oath will be administered by a woman who made history herself when she was elected the first Black/Asian woman to hold the second-highest office in the country.

“This is an historic moment for

The ceremony, which will be held at Los Angeles City Hall on Sunday — so Angelenos who want to attend don’t have to take off work — will be followed by entertainment. Harris, who will accompanied by her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, is not expected to make any remarks.

Replacing outgoing Mayor Eric Garcetti, Bass plans to hit the ground running on Dec. 12 to

Patelco Knows How to Roll Out the Welcome Mat

Patelco Credit Union in downtown Oakland, with five talented women running the branch, have been providing the warmest welcome to visitors and shoppers that enter their front doors as they wait their turn to be serviced.

Patelco takes pride in living out their mission statement which is to strengthen their members financial lives and wellbeing. This has been effortlessly implemented and put into practice every day through the efforts of their frontline team members and leadership. This has lived tried and true with Patelco’s Branch on 12th and Clay Street.

When asking existing Patelco members why they initially joined

credit union, some would say it was the higher returns on savings, fewer fees and lower rates on auto loans, personal loans, and home equity loans. But moreover, many members, both in person and on Yelp, have shared a commonality being that it is the excellent mem-

ber service you receive when you come to Oakland City Center that draws them in and keeps them coming back to this branch.

Oakland City Center is the prime example of it’s-not-about-howmany-team-members-you-havein-your-branch, but more about the quality of service, engagement, financial knowledge, and value you bring to your members. Oakland City Center Branch MondayFriday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. 1200 Clay St. Ste. 130 Oakland, CA 94612, Oakland Webster Branch MondayFriday 10am-5pm 360 22nd St. Ste. 100 Oakland, CA 94612. Phone: (800) 358-8228.

address the issues she outlined in her campaign. Bass has also established an online job portal seeking applicants who want to work in her administration.

“We’re going to solve homelessness,” she told The Grio. “We’re going to prevent and respond urgently to crime. And Los Angeles will no longer be unaffordable for working families.”

Endorsed by Harris as well as President Joe Biden and former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Bass was challenged by Rick Caruso, a billionaire developer and former Republican who became a Democrat just before he decided to run.

The counting of votes took more than a week after the Nov. 8 election and Bass won, carrying 55% of the vote to Rick Caruso’s 45%, despite his war chest in the tens of millions of dollars and outspending Bass by a 10-1 ratio.

Harris and Emhoff campaigned for Bass the day before the election and, earlier in the month, Harris participated in a GOTV event sponsored by UCLA students prompted by the U.S. Supreme Court decision on abortion.

“I know Karen Bass,” Harris told the crowd, according to ABC7 News. “I’ve worked with Karen Bass. When I was in Sacramento and she was in Sacramento, I saw how she would tirelessly fight for the people of this region, the people of our state and the people of our nation. Karen Bass has a long history of always being on the side of people, fighting for the people.”

The Grio described Harris as a “three-time statewide electee who maintains her residence in Los Angeles, [and] became the first Black and South Asian woman to be elected vice president in 2020.” The Grio further characterized Bass as a “six-term congresswoman who was also a potential Biden running mate, [who] received more votes than any other mayoral candidate in Los Angeles’ history.”

“No matter who you voted for, no matter who you are or where you live, I will be a mayor for you,” Bass said, according to the Grio.

By Ken Epstein

The Faculty Senate of Holy Names University in Oakland voted unanimously this week to work collaboratively with community, civic and business leaders in the wake of a simmering budget crisis.

Already many community leaders and local politicians have come forward to volunteer to work with Holy Names to stabilize and protect the university’s long-term work as a major edu-

cational institution in Oakland for undergraduate students and training of teachers and principals.

The university has served the Oakland community for over 150 years. The student population is 37% Latino or Hispanic, 18% African American, 13% Asian and 21% white. One website summarized the university’s diversity, “The school has very high racial diversity – 79% of students are

Gary

Sr. Builds Up Lincoln University Oaklanders

By Lee Hubbard

While much of Bay Area college basketball focuses on PAC 12 teams like the Cal Bears, the Stanford Cardinals or St. Mary’s Gaels, one team that flies under the radar is the Lincoln University Oaklanders.

Lincoln University is a private school in Downtown Oakland. Founded in San Francisco in 1926 and named after President Abraham Lincoln, the school focused on law, commerce, and business administration. The school de-

cided to enter the ranks of college basketball three years ago, starting a collegiate basketball program and naming as its head coach NBA Hall of Famer and Oakland High School basketball legend Gary Payton.

“This was a good opportunity to help Oakland and help to put this team on the map,” said Payton at a recent media event at Open Gym Premiere at 31 Fourth St. in Oakland, where he referred to the program as a “start-up.

“This was the team that I

On Sunday Dec. 11, 2022, former Congresswoman Karen Bass will be sworn in as the 43rd mayor

Study Reveals Barriers to Mental Health Support for Black & Latina Women...

Misty Copeland’s New Memoir, “Wind at My Back,”...Page 5

New UC Berkeley Chief, Yogananda Pitman Page 8

“It is vital to our community that Holy Names continue to be an independent university”

V.P. Kamala Harris to Swear in L.A.’s First Black Woman Mayor, Karen Bass

Coach

Payton

Joe Biden and Cherelle Griner speak on the phone with Brittney Griner after her release by Russia, as Vice-President Kamala Harris and the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, look on. Photograph: White House

Warnock’s victory gives Democrats a 51-49 edge in the U.S. Senate.

Left to right: Attorney Vince Brown, Vice President of CHBA; Anne Fredd, wife of Judge Benjamin Travis; Attorney Tamara C. Micheal, CHBA; Cathy D. Adams, President & CEO, Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce; Donovan Loud, nephew of Attorney Gordon Greenwood, Kazan, McClain, Satterly & Greenwood; Attorney Terrace Evans, Immediate Past President of the Charles Houston Bar Association

PHOTO: Los Angeles Mayor-elect Karen Bass with Vice President Kamala Harris. Facebook photo.

Gary Payton, Sr. Twitter photo.

From right to left. Kiara Bowling,Janeka Ricks,Jackie Jordan,Miracle Wright and Marina Johnson.

Photo by Johnathan Fitness Jones.

Post Staff

Jackie Jordan, Janeka Ricks, Marika Johnson, Miracle Wright, and Kiara Bowling share a family oriented atmosphere as they continue to cultivate personal relationships by greeting each member by name and continuing to look out for their financial well being.

the

State Task Force Getting Closer to Identifying What Reparations Look Like

By Antonio Ray Harvey California Black Media

The California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans will be conducting its last meeting of 2022 on Wednesday, Dec. 14, and Thursday, Dec. 15, at Oakland City Hall Chambers located at 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza adjacent to 14th Street.

The start time is 9 a.m. for both days beginning with one hour of public comment. The meetings will be live streamed via the official Task Force website or ETM Media on YouTube.

Task Force Chairperson Kamilah Moore says that the next meet-

ing is of high importance “for a few reasons,” and will include an in-depth conversation about redress and repair.

“No. 1, we will begin to refine community eligibility standards (including residency requirements); No. 2, we’re inviting leaders from local/municipal reparations efforts from across the state to share their incredible work (i.e., Oakland, Los Angeles, Berkeley, Russell City, Palms Springs etc.),” Moore said in a written statement on Dec. 1. “No. 3, it will be the first-time task force members will collectively discuss and begin to determine what types of reparation proposals will be in the final report that will be released in June 2023.”

The task force’s two-year charge is scheduled to end in June 2023.

California’s AB 3121, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom into law in 2020, created the nine-member task force to investigate the history and costs of slavery in California and around the United States.

The law charges the Reparations Task Force with studying the institution of slavery and its lingering negative effects on Black Californians who are descendants of persons enslaved in the United States.

From the information they collect, the task force will develop reparation proposals for African Americans and recommend appro-

on page 9

George Robert Carruthers: Revealing the Mysteries of Space

By Tamara Shiloh

At a time when only a few Black high school students were entering projects in Chicago science fairs, George Robert Carruthers (1939–2020) presented the telescope he’d designed and built. He won three awards, including first prize.

He later graduated (1957) from Chicago’s Englewood High School and earned his Ph.D. in aeronautical and astronautical engineering at the University of Illinois (1964). But his deep interest in space started much earlier.

The Cincinnati-born Carruthers constructed his first telescope using cardboard tubing and mail-order lenses he bought with money he earned as a delivery boy. He was 10 at the time and found everything about space fascinating. Although the first human journey around Earth did not take place until 1961, George’s dream was to become a part of the “unknown” being explored.

During a 1992 oral history interview with the American Institute of Physics Carruthers shared: “When I was about 8 or 9 years old, I got a Buck Rogers comic book from my grandmother, and that was, of course, long before there was any such thing as a space program. Since it was science fiction, nobody took space flight seriously in those days, back in the late ’40s, early ’50s.”

What was then considered an interest in socalled science fiction would lead Carruthers to a successful career as an astrophysicist and engineer and his 1970 telescopic design that had been sent into space on an unmanned rocket from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico,

proving the existence of molecular hydrogen between stars and galaxies.

He also created an advanced telescopic device used during the 1972 Apollo 16 mission to produce ultraviolet photographs of Earth’s outermost atmosphere, stars, nebulae, and galaxies. This discovery enabled scientists to examine Earth’s atmosphere for concentrations of pollutants. For his work on the project, Carruthers was awarded NASA’s Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal.

Throughout his career, Carruthers would design several telescopes that flew aboard NASA spacecraft. In the 1980s, one of his inventions captured an ultraviolet image of Halley’s Comet. In 1991, he invented a camera used in the Space Shuttle Mission.

A supporter of education, Carruthers was instrumental in creating the Science & Engineers Apprentice Program that offered high school students an opportunity to work at the Naval Research Laboratory. In 1996 and 1997, he taught a course in Earth and Space Science for Wash., D.C., Public Schools science teachers. In 2002, he taught an Earth and Space Science course at Howard University.

In 2003, Carruthers was inducted into the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame for his work in science and engineering.

Charles F. Bolden Jr., a NASA administrator, said about Carruthers: “He has helped us look at our universe in a new way by his scientific work and has helped us as a nation see ourselves anew as well.”

Carruthers, described as “a slight, reserved man who often rode his bicycle to work,” died in 2020. He was 81.

Learn more about Carruthers and other Black inventors in Susan K. Henderson’s “African-American Inventors II.”

50 Years After Passage,

Title IX Author Patsy Mink Remembered

By McKenzie Jackson | California Black Media

Steve Prudholme traveled from Malibu to South Bend, Indiana, for 10 days last month to cheer on his daughter, Sophia, and her Notre Dame Fighting Irish women’s soccer teammates in the NCAA Women’s Soccer Championship.

The younger Prudholme’s squad won three matches before being defeated, but her dad returned to the Golden State a happy father because his 19-year-old daughter is playing the sport she loves and getting a great college education.

“It makes me feel good to see her in that environment and also learning the trials and tribulations that sports teach you — especially from a female’s perspective,” Steve said.

The elder Prudholme said participating in sports allows Sophia to showcase her independence and strength of personality.

All of that is possible because of legislation championed by Democratic Congresswoman Patsy Takemoto Mink of Hawaii.

Mink co-authored and spearheaded the Education Amendments of 1972, more commonly known as Title IX. The law prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other educa-

tion program that receives monies from the federal government.

Title IX was signed into law by President Richard Nixon on June 23, 1972 and renamed the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act in 2002, after Mink’s death on Sept. 28, that year.

This week Mink would have turned 95. The tireless fighter for women’s rights and equity for everyone was born Patsy Matsu Takemoto in Paia, Hawaii Territory, on Dec. 6, 1927.

Title IX ensures that young women are entitled to the same athletic chances as young men. It has been responsible for increasing the number of girls and women playing organized sports nationally.

Girl high school sports participation increased from 294,015 in the 197172 school year to 3.4 million in 2018-19 according to a study by the Women’s

George Robert Carruthers (center) constructed his first telescope using cardboard tubing and mail-order lenses he bought with money he earned as a delivery boy

Patsy Mink was the first woman of color elected to the U.S. Congress. (Photo: Patsy Takemoto Mink Foundation)

Steve Prudholme of Malibu, California, visits daughter Sophia, who is a soccer player at Notre Dame.

Economic experts for the California Reparations Task Force Dr. Kaycea Campbell, right, and Williams Spriggs, left, explain to the 9-member panel in Los Angeles that the group has “rough estimations” for five harms that could be used to determine compensation. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey. Sept. 23, 2022. Continued

Oakland Frontline Healers Host “Circle of Peace” Event at Lake Merritt December 28

Study Reveals Barriers to Mental Health Support for Black, Latina Women

By Maxim Elramsisy California Black Media

A poll of Black women and Latinas across California conducted by Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) and Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE)® found that 77% are experiencing some form of discrimination due to “personal characteristics,” including race or ethnicity, assumptions about income or education, and/or physical appearance.

“We have known that racism and discrimination take a toll on the mental health of our communities, and now we must factor in the disproportionate and lingering effects of the pandemic on communities of color,” said LaNiece Jones, executive director of BWOPA.

“What matters now is that we don’t sweep these added challenges aside but treat these barriers in mental health care for what they are: a crisis in care that must be urgently addressed,” Jones added.

The historic poll was conducted by Los Angeles-based public opinion research firm EVITARUS.

Responses were recorded from

800 Black and Latina women across California and the findings provide insights about the most important concerns that they face with their families, accessibility of mental health services, preferences for providers, and priorities for approaches to create greater equity in the provision of mental health care.

Experts widely agree that the COVID-19 pandemic triggered an unprecedented global mental health crisis. People of color, young people, women, and those with low incomes were most at risk of mental health challenges before and after the pandemic, compounded by the added weight of a heightened economic crisis and instability, as well as more visible expressions of White Supremacy, anti-Blackness, anti-immigrant sentiment and hate crimes aimed at communities of color.

The current social and economic climate creates a distinct set of pressures on Black women and Latinas. Thirty-four percent cite finances or issues related to inadequate income as the top concerns

Continued on page 9

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By Post Staff

On Dec. 28, over 20 Black nonprofits will stage the largest “Circle of Peace” in the history of Oakland around Lake Merritt. Their intent is to galvanize every citizen in Oakland to join them in a citywide appeal for “Peace in the Streets.”

“We need 1,500 men, women and children, standing 12 feet apart to totally encircle the lake,” says Tanya Dennis, member of Adamika Village #StopKillingOurKidsMovement and Oakland

Continued on page 10

Misty Copeland’s New Memoir

“The Wind at My Back,” Pays Homage to Another Black Ballerina

You don’t belong here.

It’s a declaration that seems confusing, at first. Who says? Who’s in charge here? You don’t belong because...why? The answer is almost always as rude and hurtful as the statement itself, almost as unthinkable now as it was 70 years ago. But in “The Wind at My Back: Resilience, Grace, and Other Gifts from My Mentor, Raven Wilkinson” by Misty Copeland with Susan Fales-Hill, those are four words that strengthen resolve.

Copeland’s first memoir, “Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina,” was published in 2014, before her unprecedented 2015 promotion making her the first African American Principal Female Dancer in the American Ballet Theater’s 75-year history.

Her career at ABT started in the ballet corps in 2001, later becoming a soloist in 2007 when she was quite often the only Black dancer on the stage. She got used to it, but never got comfortable with it. Racism is common in dance and most Black dancers in American history were encouraged to stick with “modern” performances.

That wasn’t the kind of dance Copeland had always dreamed of. Still, she persevered. Just being with the ABT kept her in place

for what the future might bring and besides, she felt like she was representing. Her presence there was encouraging to Black girls who were told they’d never be ballerinas.

And then Copeland met Raven Wilkinson, one of several women of color who paved the way in dance.

Wilkinson (1935-2018) was born to educated, upper-crust Black parents and had set her sights on ballet when she was 5 years old, having experienced the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. She cried then at the emotion in the ballet, and she knew that she wanted to dance. Her parents enrolled her in the School of American Ballet and later, she was trained by Madame Swoboda, one of the Bolshoi Theatre’s premiere ballerinas.

On the cusp of realizing her dream, however, Wilkinson was told that it was “never going to happen” because she was “colored.”

And yet, she, too, persevered and she began touring with a professional troupe which took her to the American South where she fought for her dignity, and she endured threats on her life. Still, she danced, a pioneer, a professional, and a “first.” And when she met Copeland, she became a supportive, loving, wise, thoughtful, pow-

erful mentor.

While it sure looks like a book and it feels like a book, “The Wind at My Back” isn’t really a book. No, it’s a love letter to an elder trailblazer with grace, both inside and out.

Copeland, somewhat of a pathfinder herself, weaves the story of her career in with Wilkinson’s, whose work had been hidden in plain sight for decades. In telling Wilkinson’s story, loudly and publicly, Copeland also writes of the friendship the two women had, and how Wilkinson pushed Copeland to soar to greater heights, careerwise and in Copeland’s personal life. This gives the book an intimate feel, sometimes uncomfortably so, but the sense of gratitude and absolute love for a woman who didn’t hear the word “no” when society repeated it overpowers any squirm you might feel.

A working knowledge of ballet will enhance your enjoyment of this book, but it’s not an absolute necessity. If you (or your teen!) merely love a good double-biography, “The Wind at My Back” belongs on your bookshelf.

“The Wind at My Back” by Misty Copeland with Susan FalesHill, c.2022, Grand Central Publishing, $29.00, 240 pages

Cover of “The Wind at My Back” pictures Raven Wilkinson, left, and Misty Copeland, right.

Darren White, CEO of Realized Potential, teaches fatherhood workshops for youth regarding how to be good fathers, respect women and disavow violence in resolving conflicts. Photo courtesy of Darren White.

Tanya Dennis, lead facilitator of Oakland Frontline Healers and board chair of Adamika Village says that “We are teaching peace and ‘The African Way’ in the Black community. We hope we can get every citizen in Oakland to join us to bring peace to the streets by supporting our Circle of Peace event.” Photo courtesy of Tanya Dennis.

More than 800 Black and Latina women across California were surveyed by BWOPA and HOPE®. iStock image.

priate ways to educate Californians about the task force’s findings.

After the task force decided who would be eligible for compensation in March, the panel approved a framework for calculating how much should be paid — and for which offenses — to individuals who are Black descendants of enslaved people in the United States.

An expert panel reported to the task force in March that a “conservative estimate” of 2 million African Americans in California have ancestors who were enslaved in the United States. According to the U.S. 2020 Census, there are about 2.6 million Black Californians out of a total state population of nearly 40 million residents.

The five-member expert panel, appointed by the task force, is quantifying past economic injustices African Americans faced in the state and elsewhere, and determining what or how much compensation should be made to Black people living in California.

The expert panel includes Williams Spriggs, chief economist for the AFL-CIO and former chair of the Department of Economics at Howard University; Thomas Craemer, Public Policy professor at the University of Connecticut; Dr. Kaycea Campbell, CEO for Ventana Capital Advisors and Los Angeles Pierce College associate professor of Economics; Dr. William A. “Sandy” Darity Jr., director of the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity at Duke University; and Kirsten Mullen, a writer, and lecturer whose work focuses on race, art, history, and politics.

All five experts participated on the first day of the two-day meeting held at the California Science Center in Los Angeles two months ago. Spriggs and Campbell attended the event in person, while the other three experts appeared virtually.

Campbell and her colleagues discussed with the task force the “models” to provide a “road map”

that would determine how reparations would be “paid and measured.”

The experts presented “five harms or atrocities,” down from the 13 they originally proposed, that could be used to determine compensations.

Campbell said the five categoris under review will not be “exhausted” until they have received enough data to complete the process.

“This is not to say that other harms and atrocities are not important. As soon as, or if we get better data or more recent data, then we can, in fact, go through the process of what these look like,” Campbell said.

The experts made “rough estimates,” of property unjustly taken by eminent domain, devaluation of Black businesses, housing discrimination, the disproportion of mass incarceration and over-policing, and health inequities as the major harms.

Task Force Member Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Inglewood) released the following statement as clarification that the task force has not proposed that California compensate descendants of slaves with direct compensation for historical housing discrimination.

Bradford said, “Since its formation, a lot of misinformation and willful misrepresentation of the work from the Task Force has been released. The fact is that the Task Force has not completed its work and has made no formal recommendations to the Legislature. It’s important that we be deliberative and get this right because the nation is watching and it’s more than likely ours will be the model for all to follow.”

Members of the community and media are encouraged to visit the Reparations Task Force website and subscribe to the task force’s mailing list for updates at: https:// oag.ca.gov/subscribe or call (213) 519-0504.

mushrooms in celebrations, healing rituals and religious ceremonies. Studies in the U.S. now suggest that, combined with therapy, psilocybin can alleviate anxiety and depression in cancer patients, substance abuse disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Like most well-known psychedelics, psilocybin is illegal in the majority of jurisdictions around the world, but it’s emphasized in the center’s curriculum, said Trujillo, as “it is an area ripe for potential authorization to use it as a federally approved treatment.”

The center also has FDA approval for low-dose psilocybin functional MRI experiments to determine how psychedelic drugs affect the brain during the psychedelic experience.

Robbins plans to use her fellowship, in part, to interview multiple generations of Indigenous people about psilocybin mushrooms.

“Some families have a very strong connection to plant wisdom,” she said, “and some may have lost a lot of that connection through a break in knowledge” caused by trauma to their Indigenous identity, such as forced assimilation in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in federal Indian boarding schools.

“I experienced trauma as a child within my own family and friends growing up on a reservation,” she said. “Having overcome my own addiction, and knowing how powerful that can be, I know there are people back home who need something they’re not getting through anti-depressants.

“I want to be able to say, ‘This is a very accessible option for you, and it helped me in my life, it helped me transcend my trauma, and I want to walk with you through it so you can be the best version of yourself.”

Self-discovery’s twists and turns

Until she was age 11, Robbins lived in Window Rock, which today has a population of about 2,700 people, nearly all of them Diné, or “the people,” in Navajo. She recalled it as a “beautiful place to grow,” where she climbed trees, rode her bike, and appreciated nature and the love of Native traditions in her community.

She especially cherished her maternal grandfather. “He was a very big influence in our lives, in terms of love — he showed us what love was and meant by spending time with us, telling us stories, and being present as a strong, male role model,” said Robbins.

But Robbins’ young life had challenges, too. Her parents divorced when she was 4. Her father, a former Marine, struggled with PTSD and alcoholism; her mother worked three jobs to raise

Barriers to Mental Health Support

facing their households. Safety, health, and housing also rank as chief concerns.

More than 3 in 5 respondents reported having a mental health concern for which they did not seek care from a provider. The barriers they cited include travel expenses, length of travel time to appointments, and inability to take time off work. Women without coverage for mental health services, those with mental health conditions, younger women, and those covered through Medi-Cal reported the highest rates of untreated needs.

The women who did seek help reported often having negative experiences. Seventy percent of Black women and 54% of Latinas reported racial or ethnic discrimination. Another 59% of Black women and 55% of Latinas reported “assumptions people make about your income or level of education.”

Forty percent of Latinas reported discrimination based on “assumptions about their ability to communicate in English” and 28% reported “assumptions about…documentation of immigration status.” Several other types of discrimination were reported, particularly relating to class, faith, size, and accent.

“Our research draws a direct line between the challenges in access-

ing mental health care for Latinas and Black women to the shortage of mental health professionals that share our backgrounds,” said Helen Torres, CEO of HOPE. “The data is a call to action for healthcare providers and educational institutions to address the negative impacts of a healthcare workforce that does not represent the communities it serves. We must take steps to close the representation gap and provide better care to all.”

Nearly half of respondents reported difficulty finding access to a mental health provider.

Fifty-seven percent of Black or African American women and 38% of Latina women said that it was extremely important or very important to have providers of the same background, but more than half said it is difficult to find a provider who shares their values or comes from a similar background.

According to the Medical Board of California, only 4% of active psychiatrists practicing in California are Latino and only 2% are Black.

The ability to find a therapist with shared values and offering low-cost services were the most commonly reported barriers, though many also reported difficulty finding providers and services covered by their insurance.

Insurance acceptance was the most documented problem across all age groups, underscoring the widespread unaffordability of mental health care.

Disparities in women’s health are well documented at almost every level of health care. Mental health is no different.

The mental health crisis is not specific to adults. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among people ages 15-19, according to a 2019 study on mortality.

Suicide rates among Black youth have been rising for more than a decade, most sharply among Black girls. According to a 2021 report, approximately one third of young Latinas seriously contemplate suicide.

Long-existing disparities in maternal health are also present with relation to mental health. Women of color suffer from higher rates of postpartum depression compared to white women. They also have a lower rate of screening and treatment for post-partum mood disorders.

The study recommended increased funding to address the barriers to getting adequate care and development of programs, scholarships and financial aid to increase the pipeline of Black women and Latinas in mental health related fields — which, experts say, will increase the number of mental health advocates and promotors who can work to help women navigate the system and expand awareness among communities of color about the benefits of seeking help or support when facing mental health challenges.

her three daughters alone.

Like her sisters, Robbins experimented with alcohol in her early 20s. “We were blinded by it,” she said. “We didn’t know our limits or how to reflect on our usage of it.”

Robbins considered joining the military but chose to pursue a B.A. in criminal justice and criminology, which she received — after becoming a new mom and transferring from the University of New Mexico to Arizona State University — in 2010.

But a sorority sister’s family wound up having a bigger and more profound influence on Robbins.

“They were Xicano and also part of the Ajchemen tribe,” she said. “They were mask-makers, musicians, muralists, and they exposed me to a lot of diversity and culture and influenced the way I viewed the world.”

Robbins began painting, and “it turned into my own medicine, my own therapy,” she said.

Robbins began researching art therapy techniques and ran an expressive arts program at a nonprofit that offered transitional housing and substance abuse treatment.

In 2016, she began a master’s degree program at Arizona State in American Indian studies, with a concentration on Indigenous rights and social justice. A course on intergenerational trauma led her to reflect on her own family.

Finding healing in medicinal mushrooms

Robbins’ road to truly healing herself began after meeting her partner, who introduced her to medicinal mushrooms, which she discovered “took down all these barriers.”

On the night of winter solstice 2019, mother and daughter prayed prior to their experience, “asking the medicine to show us what we need to do to heal.” At one point during the hours that followed, “we laid down,” said Robbins, “and she held me. It felt like I was back in the womb.”

But on her trip, Robbins also saw “what the trauma was (in my youth), and it was challenging.

After a while, she walked to her altar and lit an offering of cedar. The altar contained family photos and some of her own. Seeing her relatives in the images, she said, made her feel “safe and protected and tied to them” and reminded her that healing runs in the family.

“That night,” Robbins said, “changed the trajectory of my life.”

Within a month, she was researching mushroom cultivation, seeking out psychedelic community groups, and reading about María Sabina, a Mazatec medicine woman in Oaxaca whose ancestors used mushrooms to heal people in their community.

“I learned to harvest and cultivate mushrooms, and to give them the respect they deserve as living, breathing, conscious beings,” said Robbins.

As for her arrival at Berkeley, the university “was never on my radar, never felt attainable,” said Robbins. Her partner and his family were influential in her decision to apply, she said, adding that it took a major amount of support from her community of friends and family to embark on this new path.

She’s not exactly sure of her future career, but so far, one idea is to create a hub on her reservation in Arizona that focuses on psychedelic plant research and community healing. Or perhaps she’ll work in tribal government and health policy to advocate for psychedelic research projects on tribal reservations.

But Robbins is clear about her mission: “My vision,” she said, “is access to psychedelics for Indigenous peoples. If these medicines are going to be offered soon in contemporary forms, in psychedelic therapy, they also need to be offered as options on reservations.”

Gretchen Kell works in the Media Relations Department at UC Berkeley.

sure you’re taking care of yourself. That includes going to the doctor and getting screened for cancer.’ It may be a tough conversation to have, but you may be the one that could make a lifesaving difference.

Cancer wasn’t something I was prepared to factor into my life. But through my experience, I learned some tough lessons. It is important to listen to my doctor. I need to take the time to share with others, so they don’t make the same mistake. It’s necessary to go to the doctor on a timely basis. It’s OK to have scary conversations about health with loved ones. And if a doctor recommends cancer screening, get screened.

Through my work with the American Cancer Society, I have seen that cancer doesn’t discriminate. It’s not just older people getting cancer; anyone can be at risk. This is the reason why it is so important for you to talk to a doctor about the type of health care and screening you may need.

You can’t play around with your life. It’s more than just a cancer screening, it’s a way to help ensure that we will be around for our families. The longer we are around, the more opportunities we have to live our dreams and to see our loved ones achieve their goals.

As we prepare to gather for the holidays, whether it’s a large gathering or with immediate family, I encourage you to have a conversation with your loved ones about regular cancer screening.

I hope that you take the steps yourself to schedule an appointment to get screened. If you need cancer screening recommendations, resources, as well as tips to start the conversation visit cancer.org/get-screened. A small discussion can make a lifesaving difference, so please don’t wait.

David Ford, is a two-time cancer survivor, Senior Government Relations Manager at Southern California Edison, and member of the American Cancer Society Cancer

Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour Celebrating

65 Years

Action Network Board of Directors.

Milagro Jones, a participant at the Reparation Task Force meeting in Los Angeles, holds up a 500-page interim report that was submitted to the California Legislature in June 2022. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey, Sept. 23, 2022.

Sports Federation. Participation has risen at the collegiate level — from 29,977 athletes at NCAA schools 50 years ago to 215,486 a in 2020-21.

The educational law has helped increase female enrollment in college. Women accounted for nearly 60% of all college students by the end of the 2020-21 academic year, and women were awarded 57% of the bachelor’s degrees conferred. Additionally, women earn nearly half of all law and medical degrees. Title IX is also a framework for handling sexual misconduct complaints on campuses.

Mink, known as an educational trailblazer who changed the politics of gender, called Title IX one of her most significant accomplishments as a member of Congress.

“I take special pride in honoring its contributions to changing our view about women’s role in America,” she said.

Mink served in Congress in two stints beginning in 1965. A Japanese American, Mink was the first woman of color to be elected to Congress, four years ahead of Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman elected to Congress.

University of California Irvine professor of Asian American Studies Judy Tzu-Chun Wu said Mink’s bouts with discrimination fueled her advocacy for Title IX against educational bodies that tried to exempt themselves from the civil rights law.

“A lot of people associate Title IX with sports, but it’s really about all aspects of education,” Wu said. “It’s about admissions; It’s about scholarships; It’s about having a positive environment for women to be in school.”

Title IX turned 50 this year, so it and Mink have been the focus of celebrations nationally. A portrait of Mink was unveiled at the U.S. Capitol on the anniversary of Title

IX’s signing by Nixon.

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi called Mink an American hero.

“With this portrait, the extraordinary courage of Patsy Mink will be known to all who come to the Capitol,” Pelosi said. “Women and girls — and that’s what I love about it — will know about her and that — her relentless fighting spirit. Patsy Mink made an enormous difference for women and girls in our nation.”

Many Americans don’t know about Mink’s championing of Title IX. “Women’s history is now more inclusive but there is still a tendency to celebrate the great white foremothers,” Wu said. “Sometimes Asian Americans are left out.”

Mink attended the University of Nebraska at Lincoln before graduating with a B.A. in zoology and chemistry from the University of Hawai’i in 1948.

While attending Nebraska, she was forced to live in a segregated dorm. She formed the Unaffiliated Students of the University of Nebraska for students of color who were prohibited from joining fraternities and sororities and the group succeeded in changing the university’s housing policies.

Mink’s ambition was to become a doctor, but being a woman of color, she was denied entry to 20 medical schools. She turned her focus onto earning a law degree and graduated from the University of Chicago Law School. In 1951 she married John Francis Mink, a graduate student in geology at the university.

She started her own law practice and became a lecturer at the University of Hawai’i after facing discrimination in her attempts to join a law firm.

Mink won seats in the territorial senate before Hawaii achieved statehood in 1959. In 1964, she became the first Asian American woman to serve in Congress. She won re-election five consecutive

times.

Mink fought for equal rights and was against the Vietnam War and nuclear weapons. Her political leanings were steered by her background, Wu said.

“The society Mink grew up in was hierarchical in terms of class and race,” Wu said. “She experienced it in terms of gender. Those marginalizations shaped her desire to achieve equality.”

In 1976, Mink lost a bid for U.S. Senate. After serving as a member of the Honolulu City Council, she was re-elected to Congress in 1990 and served until her passing. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously in 2014 by President Barack Obama.

Wu said Title IX increased gender equality, but it is not completely implemented the way Mink envisioned.

“There are still ongoing battles,” Mink had said. “There has been gender revolution, but it’s not complete. If we compared women’s lives from the ’60s and ’70s to now it would be drastically different. But again, it’s not complete.”

Shortly after Mink’s death in 2002, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), paying tribute to her friend at a Congressional memorial, reflected on a WNBA game the two women had attended.

“It was just a few months ago that I sat at the WNBA All Star Game where Patsy was honored for her 30 years of work,” Waters said. “As I looked at all of those strong, tall women out there playing and my dear child, Lisa Leslie, who won the All-Star honor that evening, I thought it was a short, little woman that caused this tall, big woman to be able to realize her dreams, to be able to hone her talents. What a wonderful moment that was.”

This Article was supported by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library.

Frontline Healers (OFH).

“Dec. 28 is the third day of Kwanzaa, which honors ‘Ujima,’ collective work and responsibility,” said Dennis, who is lead organizer of the Circle of Peace event. “The purpose of Ujima is to build and maintain the Black community and make our brothers’ and sisters’ problems our problems and to solve them together.

“It takes a village to heal a village,” Dennis said.

The ‘Circle of Peace’ will be preceded by a ‘peace caravan’ starting at Liberation Park at 7101 Foothill Blvd at 3 p.m. It will arrive at the north end of Lake Merritt at 5:30 p.m. where artists will entertain the crowd.

Candle stations will be established at north, south, east, and west locations on the lake. “Please bring your children. It’s time to teach peace.”

The organizers are asking 1,500 of Oakland’s brothers and sisters to come to Lake Merritt at 6:30 p.m., stand 12 feet apart and light a candle, and stand in silence from 7-7:30 p.m. to “shift the energy in Oakland and end violence.”

“Let’s make this go national and inform the nation Oakland wants and supports peace in the streets,” Dennis said. A drone will record the event.

Last year’s “Peace in the Streets” event saw the installation of hundreds of peace banners installed on International Boulevard.

Oakland Frontline Healers, Oakland’s premiere COVID-19 response team, comprises 19 Black-led nonprofits dedicated to the restoration, building, and healing of the Black community through providing resources, projects, and events.

The organization has also led development of a Black mental health initiative in partnership with the East Bay Association of Black Psychologists.

A collaboration with Adamika Village #StopKillingOurKidsMovement, MACRO, Broken Chains Ministries, and the Oakland Fire Department and headed by OFH member Realized Potential Inc., is hosting a community holiday event on Dec. 18 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at East Bay Dragons headquarters, located at 8731 International Blvd.

Realized Potential, which is headed by Darren White, does pop-up community resource events at local Oakland hot spots where gun violence has occurred to show residents that there are people and organizations engaged in gun violence prevention.

“We will provide Christmas gifts to youth and community members; we are serving food and distributing resource packets for community members that need information about jobs and housing,” White said. “We have hygiene kits, COVID-19 information, and PPE that will be available with hand sanitizer, masks, and home test kits — all free to the community.”

Realized Potential’s gift giveaway and Adamika Village’s Circle of Peace are kicking off a series of OFH events in Oakland to prevent crime and show solidarity by modeling appropriate behavior for men and women involved in criminal behavior, utilizing their “African Way” philosophy.

OFH’s goal is to provide people with needed resources in order to change their behavior, put down guns, and end the violence that’s disrupting and traumatizing Oakland residents.

Ready to start a business? Here are six steps before opening your doors.

advisors to run through best and worst-case scenarios and find out what your options are. Financial resources like cash management solutions can be helpful when setting up your business.

At Berkeley, ‘we can … really show the world what’s possible’

By Nykole Prevost, Senior Business Consultant, JPMorgan Chase

Black business ownership is surging, fueled by Black women as the nation’s fastest-growing demographic of entrepreneurs. In fact, over one million new businesses started over the last decade are owned by entrepreneurs of color. It’s a promising trend, as local Black-owned businesses play a significant role in building wealth, creating job opportunities, and celebrating diverse cultures.

Starting a business requires planning. You may already have a great business concept, but, before you start selling products or opening stores, consider these six steps to lay a strong foundation for growth:

1. Make it official…legally The first step is establishing your business by choosing between a limited liability corporation (LLC), a limited liability partnership (LLP) or a corporation. Registering your business as an LLC,

LLP or corporation is crucial because it makes your business a separate legal entity and forms a financial protection barrier between you as the owner and your business.

2. Make your business account work for you Once the business is established, it is essential to determine your business’ spending needs and financial resources. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recommends all incorporated businesses have a business banking account, and there are several benefits to opening one up. For example, separating your personal finances from those of your business allows you to take full advantage of tax deductions, automate your bookkeeping, protect yourself from business debt liability and establish business credit. Consider speaking with a business banker for more information and available resources.

3. Fund your business idea Business credit is one of most common ways for entrepreneurs to fund a new business. It’s also a great way to access the capital that you need to start, run, and

grow your company. Much like personal credit, business credit signals to lenders how your company handles its debt. Stronger credit scores can increase your purchasing power by potentially making it easier — and, in some cases, cheaper — to secure loans and other forms of financing to cover day-today expenses, invest in inventory, hire additional staff, and conserve liquid cash.

It’s important to remember, though, that using credit responsibly is a crucial component of building any business.

4. Take inventory of your financial resources What are your income streams and how much could you invest in your business to create more customers, increase sales, and produce opportunities for growth?

Make a list of all your assets, including savings, retirement, business accounts, or home equity. Next, list out your liabilities, including credit cards, rent, mortgage, or car payments. Then, find out your net worth by subtracting what you owe from what you own. Work with your financial, legal and tax

5. Create your online presenceWhether you have a brick-and-mortar business or you’re digital only, your customers need a way to find out more about your business and what you offer. Think about your target customer and what you want them to know about your brand. If you don’t already have a website, creating an online hub for your business is critical to getting your message out there and building a customer base.

6. Build your dream team

As your business grows, you’ll need to hire people you can trust to get the job done and reach the next level. Assemble a team who brings a strong work ethic and diverse expertise. It’s also essential to hire against your weaknesses and find team members who can make you smarter, more strategic, and more effective as you start down the path of growing a successful business. We also recommend seeking out mentorship. The Minority Entrepreneurs Initiative is a great way to gain an additional perspective on ways to stabilize, grow and scale your business from experts.

Visit a local Chase branch and speak with a business banker or check out educational materials at chase.com/business/next-levelbiz to learn more about starting and managing your business.

Sponsored content from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Last summer in downtown Cambridge, an artist completed a brightly colored outdoor mural featuring 12 pioneering women from surrounding Dorchester County. Among them are Harriet Tubman, the iconic antislavery activist; Donna Wolf Mother Abbott, the first woman chief of the Nause Waiwash tribe; and Bea Arthur, an actor on stage and screen. And in the lower left corner? Yogananda Pittman, smiling in her blue watch cap and uniform.

Her place in the mural reflects the place of honor she holds in her hometown and in much of the Wash., D.C., area. She hadn’t foreseen the day that she would leave, but when Berkeley reached out to discuss the coming vacancy on its police force, she was intrigued.

Through her sons, Pittman has an affinity for young adults. She’s drawn to academic culture. She has a master’s degree in public administration, and she’s working on the final chapters of her Ph.D. thesis in that field, focused on gender diversity in law enforcement. She’s inspired to see that at UC Berkeley, racism is seen as a public health issue.

Of course, in ways both superficial and profound, the U.S. Capitol in Washington is a long way from the Berkeley campus. One features the nation’s highest-ranking elected officials and visiting dignitaries; the other, extraordinary scholars and young people who are just beginning to find their way in life.

But Pittman and university officials are focused on the points these geographies hold in common. Both are sprawling campuses with diverse communities numbering in the tens of thousands. While the Berkeley police department is far smaller than the Capitol’s, both must manage a range of threats to safety and security.

“The environment for policing on large, urban campuses is

challenging,” said Marc Fisher, Berkeley’s vice chancellor for administration. “This is a nationwide phenomenon, and Berkeley is not immune. But in Chief Pittman, we have a leader of incredible personal and professional experience. She has confronted extraordinary challenges and achieved results, both in policing and communitybuilding.

“We are very fortunate to have her join the UC Berkeley Police Department.”

Pittman will arrive as a leader in managing a multi-year campus security reform program, initiated in 2020, to improve emergency management, mental health crisis response and security technology, and to strengthen relations with diverse communities.

She has experience in all of those areas. She’s already met with campus officers during a recent visit to their headquarters in the basement of Sproul Hall. She said she “connected with them immediately.”

Beyond that, though, she’s not offering specific plans or bold pronouncements. Instead, she said, her early days in office will be for listening, learning, understanding — and building trust and legitimacy. It’s a topic that she’s spoken about recently to groups in Canada and Germany.

To those debating the need for protection from crime versus a greater commitment to social services, Pittman answers that both are needed. The goal is building consensus for a balanced approach.

“There does not have to be an either-or in terms of policing and much-needed mental health services, services for the unhoused or drug and rehabilitation services,” she said.

“I’m confident that when we work together, we will find that balance to accommodate the needs of everyone.”

“I hope we can take the lessons we’ve learned and really show the world what’s possible.”

able circumstances, she’s coming home,” Biden asserted.

The president said his administration “never stopped pushing for her release.”

“It took painstaking and intense negotiations for her release,” Biden stated.

He thanked the UAE for helping to facilitate Griner’s release and noted that’s where her plane landed after finally leaving Russia.

Biden noted that the past few months had been “hell” for Griner and her family.

He said she’s in good spirits and

relieved.

“She lost months of her life,” Biden stated.

He said she deserves space, privacy, and time to heal in a not-sosubtle appeal to media members.

Biden added that Griner wrote him in July, not asking for special treatment.

“She said, please don’t forget about me and the other American detainees,” Biden said.

“We have not forgotten about Brittney and Paul Whelan.”

Biden emphasized that the onefor-one swap wasn’t America’s choice.

He said he wished to bring Whelan and any other wrongly detained American home.

“We have not yet secured Paul’s release. But we have not given up, and we will never give up,” Biden insisted.

“We’ll keep negotiating for Paul’s release in good faith. I urge Russia to do the same. My administration has brought home dozens of wrongly detained Americans and many who were detained before I took office,” Biden continued.

“Reunited Americans with their loved ones remain a priority. We will continue to work to bring home every American who endures such injustice.”

Cherelle Griner called Brittney’s plight one of the darkest moments of her life.

“Over the last nine months, you all have been privy to one of the darkest moments of my life. I’m overwhelmed with emotion but sincere gratitude to President Biden and his administration,” Cherelle Griner stated.

“Today, my family is whole. As you are aware, there are so many families who are not whole. BG and I will remain committed to the work of getting every American home, including Paul, who remains in our hearts.”

As expected, civil rights activists, many in the sports world, and politicians applauded Griner’s release.

“This is long overdue,” Rev. Jesse Jackson declared. “This is a cause for global celebration and could be a step toward peace.

sometimes hazardous conditions, including where he grew up in the South, in Detroit and Chicago, among mine workers in the Appalachians, and in San Francisco and Oakland.

In his most recent work in Oakland, Riley joined with others to develop a progressive ranked choice slate, which contributed to the victory of the more progressive mayoral candidate in the Mayor’s race.

Walter Riley Honored for Civil Rights Activism

By Ken Epstein

Oakland Attorney Walter Riley received a Lifetime Achievement Award for more than 60 years of activism for civil rights at a gala celebration hosted by the Charles Houston Bar Association (CHBA), Dec. 3 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in San Francisco.

Keynote speakers at the annual event were Lonita Baker, National Bar Association president and counsel for the family of police shooting victim Breonna Taylor, and Venus D. Johnson, chief deputy attorney general and CHBA past president.

The CHBA, whose membership includes lawyers, judges, and law students, is named in

honor of civil rights practitioner Charles Hamilton Houston (1895 – 1950) and works to “address the unique challenges facing the African American community,” according to the organization’s website.

Introducing Riley at the event, CHBA special advisor Nedra Shawler said, “It is fitting that Mr. Riley receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. (He) has committed … his life to the advancement of civil rights and activism...”

In his remarks, Riley said, “I see this award as a tribute to the values that I hold. I’ve been organizing since I was 12 years old, and I’m 78 now.” He explained that he has done political work, often in difficult and

“Ranked choice forever!” Riley said, raising a clenched fist “Ranked choice is the best hope for guaranteeing that disenfranchised people can participate in the electoral process.”

He emphasized that lawyers who are committed to justice and equal rights cannot simply advance their own careers. They must join with others, stop the push in cities across the country that is driving poor and working people out of their communities.

In an interview with the Oakland Post after the event, Riley emphasized his passion for fighting for equity and social progress, fighting for change not just inclusion.

“Advancing our individual positions in this racist political socio-economic system maintains oppression and exploitation,” he said. “We need more than diversity; we need to work for fundamental structural change in institutions in every aspect of society.”

Elaine Brown and Gay Plair Cobb

Celebrate Post’s Anniversary

Releasing prisoners and prisoner swaps as opposed to more bombing and killing is good news,” Jackson stated.

Texas Democratic Congressman Al Green said he was delighted at the timing of Griner’s release.

“There’s no place like home for the holidays,” Green tweeted.

Tennis legend Billie Jean King tweeted, “Thank you to President Biden and all those who worked so hard to secure her freedom.”

And fellow Democratic Texas Rep. Colin Allred called Griner’s release a relief.

“Brittney Griner is coming home. This is a huge relief for Brittney and her family after months of uncertainty,” Allred said.

“I commend President Biden, Secretary [Antony] Blinken, the State Department, and all those who made this happen. We remain committed to getting every American detained abroad back home.”

The Black Press of America also saluted the Biden administration’s efforts in bringing Griner home.

“The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) profoundly welcomes the release of Brittney Griner from a Russian prison,” NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. stated.

The NNPA is the trade association of more than 230 African American-owned newspapers and media companies in the United States.

“Brittney Griner was a political prisoner,” continued Chavis, the leader of the famed Wilmington 10, also political prisoners.

“Thanks to the effective leadership of President Joe Biden, our beloved sister is now free,” Chavis declared.

Warnock’s Coalition Wizardy Wins

can quickly and more easily move on nominations for the federal bench.

“Democrats, with Mr. Warnock, could also be in position to replace a Supreme Court justice,” Ross Barkan, a novelist and New York Times contributor wrote.

Barkan said the 6-3 conservative majority makes this seem less pressing, but Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death “was a lesson that Stephen Breyer, who retired this year, seemed to heed: Once you’re of retirement age, it’s best to leave the court if an ideologically friendly president and Senate majority are in control.”

Barkan further pointed out that Sonia Sotomayor is 68 and Elena Kagan is 62.

Both can serve for decades, but Democrats have to think seriously about the practical advantage of installing liberal justices who are in their 40s or early 50s.

The author noted that Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed at 48; Neil Gorsuch was 49.

“Justice Breyer wisely gave way to Justice Jackson. Perhaps Justice Sotomayor, at least, should give thought to stepping aside with Mr. Biden in the White House and Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer guiding the Senate.”

“With 51 votes, Mr. Schumer could steer through a judge who is as progressive as either Justice Sotomayor or Kagan, helping to nurture a liberal minority that could theoretically expand someday,” Barkan wrote.

And then there’s 2024.

Community Steps Forward to Protect Holy Names University

Continued from Page 1

Coach Gary Payton, Sr....

wanted and that I recruited. They understand and they are focused,” he said as his second year with the program began. “We will be much better than last year.”

Lincoln plays an independent schedule and a series of Division I and II programs all over the country. They will play 20 games this season on the road. Last year’s team was cut short due to the COVID-19 vaccine and the team’s inexperience, Payton said.

“My goal for this year’s team is for us to come on the floor and play hard,” continued Payton. “We may be good enough soon to play in a league like the one Sac State is in. This year, we can win at least 12 to 13 games.”

Playing hard is what characterized Payton’s basketball career.

minorities or people of color (BIPOC).

In an open letter in support of Holy Names, community and university leaders pledged to support efforts to protect the school:

“We are concerned with the future of Holy Names University,” the letter said. “This 154-year-old local Oakland institution is one of the most diverse four-year colleges in the country and it has educated thousands of Oakland young people.

“Its program for educating teachers is the best in the area; its nursing program is legendary; its sports program is robust; and its graduates include city council members, education leaders, entrepreneurs, and non-profit leaders.

“It is vital to our community that Holy Names continue to be an independent university, responsive to the needs of Oakland and surrounding communities, serving both graduates and undergraduates and expanding its service to more students.

“Toward that end we seek the participation of the government bodies, community-based organizations and individuals that represent Oakland, along with the students, faculty and administration of Holy Names.”

Post Publisher Paul Cobb, who has been involved in several cooperative projects with HNU said, “I’m concerned that Holy Names should not enter into a partnership like the one between Northeastern University and Mills, which destroyed existing Mills College programs and culture. The City of Oakland and Alameda County can’t afford to lose a vital part of our health and education infrastructure because closing HNU negatively impacts nursing, health workers and teacher graduation rates. The city was asleep at the wheel while chasing down and offering money to sports teams while Mills and HNU are being lost due to our neglect,”

Councilmembers Carroll Fife and Rebecca Kaplan are drafting a City Council resolution encouraging support and cooperation with Holy Names University.

The open letter was signed by: Rebecca Kaplan, Vice Mayor of the City of Oakland, Atlarge member of the City Council

He was a standout at Skyline High School in Oakland before continuing his basketball career at Oregon State, where he was an All American and a second-round pick for the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics.

With the Sonics, he made nine All-Star games in nearly 13 seasons, and he capped his career with an NBA championship with the Miami Heat in 2006. He won two Olympic gold medals, retired from the NBA in 2007 and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

After being a media commentator and celebrity, he got the itch to coach. But he only wanted to coach in the right situation and the Lincoln program provided him with the opportunity he wanted.

“Being in Oakland, and wanting to give something back to the city, pushed me into coaching,” said Payton.

While the Oaklanders team is in its infancy, Payton says the plan is to build the program up each year until it’s ready to join an NCAA conference. Located at 401 15th St. in Downtown Oakland, Lincoln is trying to follow the lead of the San Francisco Academy of Art, another private college that started an athletic program in 2006.

Since that time, the Academy of Art’s men’s basketball program has developed into an emerging Division II program, playing in the Pac West conference with teams such as San Francisco State, Cal State East Bay, and others. Last year, the Academy of Art Urban Knights, made it to the Division II NCAA tournament, its first appearance in school history.

Some of the players to watch on this year’s Oaklanders include 7-foot post Marcus Noble; 6-foot7-inch wing Goodnews Kpegeol; and 6-foot-4-inch guard Adjanti Johnson.

This is Noble’s first year for the Oaklanders, after playing last year at Tennessee Tech. A senior, Noble is a traditional post player, with an NBA body. A back-to-the-basket player, he is very effective in a pickand-roll offense. Payton is very high on Noble, and he said that if he is focused, Noble has a chance to play professionally.

“I want to impact winning and making things happen,” said Noble.

Cathy Adams, CEO of the Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce (OAACC), invited Gay Plair Cobb, Post News Group(PNG) co-owner and Elaine Brown, former Black Panther leader and now an affordable housing developer, to pose for photo at the EBONY booth at the OAACC’s annual Black Business Kwanzaa expo in Jack London Square as they celebrated the anniversary of the PNG purchased by Gay and her husband in 2004. Gay, a former Board member that built the Oak Center affordable senior apartments tower at 14th& Market Streets in the 70’s, said the Post will also feature future articles on Brown’s 7th Street affordable housing development. Cathy Adams said that dedicated Black women know how to make things better by getting people to work together. Photo courtesy of PNG & OAACC.

With a Walker win, Republicans would have enjoyed a huge advantage in their quest to not only flip the Senate but also build a durable majority that could last a generation or more.

Noting how foreboding the 2024 map is for Democrats, three incumbents represent states that Mr. Trump handily carried in 2020.

“A 51-49 majority is a better hedge against such a possible wipeout. It also gives Mr. Warnock a chance to shine on the national level and demonstrate whether he can become a formidable member of an expanding Democratic bench, the kind of senator who could end up president someday,” Barkan concluded.

Carroll Fife, Oakland City Council, District 3, and Holy Names 2022 Alumnus of the Year

• Janani Ramachandran, Oakland City Council MemberElect, District 4 Gay Plair Cobb, Alameda County Board of Education (ret)

Paul Cobb, publisher of the Oakland Post; Holy Names University Honorary Doctorate Kitty Kelly Epstein, Ph.D., professor, Host of Education Today, KPFA 94.1 FM

• Victor Littles, EdD, Merritt College program leader, and HNU Adjunct Faculty

• Walter Riley, John George Democratic Club

• Sheryl Walton, MPH, Community Organizer, Activist

Kpegeol, is a run-and-jump, athletic wing man from Minnesota, who originally played at Kansas State and Valparaiso, before coming to Lincoln. He has battled injuries over the years, but coming out of high school, he was a highly touted recruit.

“I am just trying to get better, play hard and stay healthy,” said Kpegeol. “I want to show everyone what I can do on the court.”

Johnson is a freshman who came to the Oaklanders after a high-profile career at Vanden High School in Fairfield, CA.

Though the team has a mix of Division I and Division II transfers, along with former junior college players, Payton believes his team can make its mark on the court.

“We have to build it up. Build up the team and win and conferences will come for us and want us to be a part of them,” continued Payton. “I am gonna coach the old school way, like I was coached and do what needs to be done, basketball wise.”

Cherelle Griner called Brittney’s plight one of the darkest moments of her life. “Over the last nine months, you all have been privy to one of the darkest moments of my life. I’m overwhelmed with emotion but sincere gratitude to President Biden and his administration,”.

Oakland Attorney Walter Riley (on right) received a Lifetime Achievement Award for more than 60 years of activism for civil rights