SB County offers free COVID-19 testing
Still a good movie even without Adam Sandler
Sites are in Santa Barbara, Goleta, Lompoc and Santa Maria - A2
Review: While not the best ‘Hotel Transylvania’ film, ‘Transformia’ succeeds with Brian Hull as the new voice of Dracula - B1
Our 166th Year
Honoring Martin Luther King Jr. Santa Barbara committee salutes civil rights icon during virtual program; MLKSB President says Dr. King’s words are relevant today By ANNELISE HANSHAW NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Martin Luther King Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara commemorated the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. virtually for the second consecutive year this weekend. Its program, compiled from 2021’s celebration, highlights moments from the committee’s years of observances. It aired Friday through Monday on TV Santa Barbara’s channels and YouTube site. “Over the past 15 years, we’ve been very much engaged in the community and presenting programs and events that reflect what we’re trying to do in terms of embracing the entire community and standing up on the issues — social justice issues — that we’re concerned about,” MLKSB President E. Onja Brown told the News-Press. The committee holds events throughout the year, but Ms. Brown said the civil rights icon’s message of nonviolence and community arrives at a time of need. “It’s important in 2022, because we’re at a time period when things are in flux in terms of where we are with the pandemic and in terms of where we are with so many issues having to do with social justice in Santa Barbara and across the country,” she said. She also hopes people remember Dr. King’s crusade for voting rights. On Monday, Dr. King’s family led the D.C. Deliver for Voting Rights March. Martin Luther King III tweeted, “Today, remember the true nature of my father’s work. He fought for easy access to the ballot box & civil rights protections. He isn’t a figurehead to be used to uplift backward agendas.” The Freedom To Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act remain paused in a 50-50 Senate. In Santa Barbara, MLKSB’s annual march “Walk with Us” is postponed. The march was started by the UCSB chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and grew to include the community. Dr. Hymon Johnson, professor emeritus at Antioch University and former UCSB professor and administrator, spoke about the Eternal Flame on the campus of UCSB during MLKSB’s virtual program. It is one of two eternal flame memorials honoring Dr. King; the other is in Atlanta. President John F. Kennedy and his brother, Sen. Robert Kennedy, are also commemorated on UCSB’s monument, which was
THE CENTER SQUARE
(The Center Square) – Gov. Gavin Newsom solicited hundreds of millions in donations to bolster the state’s COVID-19 response in 2020, a report from the California Fair Political Practices Commission found. According to the FPPC, companies and foundations donated more than $226 million
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Gov. Gavin Newsom
By BETHANY BLANKLEY THE CENTER SQUARE CONTRIBUTOR
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. inspired Americans as a civil rights leader who advocated for equality through nonviolent change and a commitment to ideals.
dedicated by the Class of 1969. The Eternal Flame is a popular space for student activists to gather. “It really came to be a focus on the symbol of achievement
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Celebrations took place across the country Monday in honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin King Jr., who would have turned 93 on Jan. 15. In Washington D.C., Dr. King’s family led a two-mile Martin Luther King Jr. Day peace walk in the morning. Mayor Muriel Bowser and civil rights activists joined the march, which went to the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. Another notable celebration took place in Atlanta. This is an annual celebration that is held at Dr. King’s old congregation, Ebenezer Baptist Church. Presiding over the service were Pastor Sam
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over struggle, achievement over hardship,” Aaron E. de Santiago Jones, director of the Educational Opportunity Program said. “Regardless of what the issue was, whether it be commemorating the
Collier and the Rev. Natosha Reid Rice. The Rev. Michael Bruce Curry, presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church, was the keynote speaker. First Lady Jill Biden attended the ceremony, where the speakers included U.S. Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga.; Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens; Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge. The ceremony included musical performances by Keke Wyatt, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Pastor Mike Jr., Le’Andria Johnson and Emanne Beasha. On Monday afternoon, a march took place in downtown Atlanta, in honor of Dr. King. The march ended on Auburn Avenue in front of the King Center, where a rally saluted the civil rights leader.
birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King or in response to trustees with regards to the development and the evolution of Black Lives Matter to graduate Please see MLK on A4
The King Center also worked with the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda and Youth Service America to hold a voter registration drive Monday in Atlanta. The King family, meanwhile, called for the U.S. Senate to pass new voting rights legislation. Senators will start to debate the bill today. “No matter what happens tomorrow, we must keep the pressure on and say no more empty words. Don’t tell us what you believe in, show us with your votes. History will be watching what happens tomorrow,” Martin Luther King III, son of Martin Luther King Jr., said in a speech Monday in Washington, D.C. email: kzehnder@newspress.com
(The Center Square) – Less than 24 hours after an 11hour-hour hostage situation at Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, which ended with an armed gunman dead and hostages escaping, British police took two individuals into custody for questioning over their potential connection to the incident. The Greater Manchester Police Department announced that its Counter Terrorism Policing North West group had detained two teenagers possibly connected to the incident. They were in custody and being questioned. Any additional information about them and their potential connection hasn’t yet been released. The hostage taker, the FBI confirmed, was 44-year-old Malik Faisal Akram, a Muslim British citizen. The FBI’s North Texas Joint Terrorism Task Force is continuing to investigate the incident, saying it “will continue to follow investigative leads.” On Saturday, SWAT officers with the Colleyville Police Department, as well as officials with the Texas Department of Public Safety and FBI, initially responded at 10:40 a.m. to a call for service at the synagogue.
When police arrived, they observed an emergency situation and began evacuating the area. Mr. Akram had reportedly entered the sanctuary while the service was being live-streamed on Facebook. On the recording, he can be heard speaking to police in broken English, using profanities and mentioning Islam. The live broadcast was taken down shortly before 2 p.m. CST. By around 5 pm, one male hostage had been released, unharmed. However, Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker and two other hostages were still inside. While communication continued between the FBI and Mr. Akram, Rabbi Cytron-Walker later told CBS Morning News that at the time, it appeared that Mr. Akram “wasn’t getting what he wanted. It didn’t look good. It didn’t sound good.” When Mr. Akram “wasn’t in a good position,” Rabbi CytronWalker said he’d prepared his congregants to run on his signal. When that time came, he threw a chair at Mr. Akram and the men ran out a door and escaped, he said. Mr. Akram next stepped outside the door, reportedly holding a gun in his hand, and was shot dead by law enforcement. The ending to the dramatic standoff was captured Please see HOSTAGE on A2
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on Gov. Newsom’s behalf in 2020, the majority of which went toward the state’s COVID-19 response. The donations came in the form of behest payments, which are payments made on behalf of an elected official that are for charitable, legislative or government purposes. Gov. Newsom was the top behesting official in 2020, far outranking any other elected official that year. Former Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, D-San Diego, was the second topbehesting official in 2020 after soliciting nearly $1.6 million in donations. Fueled by pandemic response efforts, the amount of behested payments skyrocketed in 2020, reaching more than $237 million in total, according to the FPPC’s report released Thursday. This figure is almost ten times higher than 2019, where elected officials behested about $24.3 million in payments. The majority of behested payments in 2020 were given in support of the state’s COVID19 response, with more than $225 million targeted at Please see DONATIONS on A2
British authorities apprehend two in connection to Texas hostage situation
By KATHERINE ZEHNDER
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Report: Newsom solicited millions in donations for pandemic response By MADISON HIRNEISEN
Celebrations across the U.S. honor Dr. King
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Saturday’s SUPER LOTTO: 1-26-34-42-45 Mega: 10
Monday’s DAILY 4: 0-4-5-1
Friday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 5-8-13-22-48 Mega: 25
Monday’s FANTASY 5: 5-20-26-27-37
Monday’s DAILY DERBY: 12-05-06 Time: 1:46.04
Saturday’s POWERBALL: 3-18-37-51-59 Meganumber: 13
Monday’s DAILY 3: 1-2-3 / Midday 0-9-8